Work Text:
Ladybug had told him that Tikki was sick and she had to rest, so she was going to be stepping back from the fights for a while while she got better.
“I’ll be around if things go wrong, but Tikki needs lots of rest because I don’t know all the healing things Master Fu could do. I don’t want her to be stressed if we can help it.”
“I thought your suit looked a little pinker than usual. I understand, Milady, but how will we handle the akumas if you aren’t there to purify them?”
She put her hand on his shoulder in a comforting squeeze. “I know it’s not ideal, but I need you to be the standby, not the distraction. You can destroy the akumas with your cataclysm after it has been released.”
“But, LB, I can’t do this alone. I’m going to need some help.”
She gave him a smile. “That is why I am going to get you a substitute partner, just until Tikki gets better. And I am going to give you the snake miraculous as a backup. So is there one of the temporary heroes that you want to watch your back for a while?”
His heart stuttered at the prospect. LB was out of action until Tikki got better and he had to choose a new partner? She was trusting him with two miraculous and who his partner could be?
“Could it be any of the others?”
“Well, if you wanted Viperion, I could give him a different miraculous to work with, but he wouldn’t be as well suited to it.” She shrugged. “Other than that, sure.”
“Multimouse,” he said instantly. He didn’t need to think about it. Marinette had been magnificent and it was a shame that LB refused to let her be a holder because she had revealed her identity to him by accident.
Ladybug’s eyes widened in surprise. “Why her? Why not Carapace or Ryuko or Purple Tigress?”
“ ‘Cause next to you, I trust Marinette the most. You do too or else you wouldn’t have trusted her with all the miraculous. She is brilliant and kind and she would never use a miraculous for selfish gain.”
“But why?” She sounded confused. “Because you’ve spent time chatting on her balcony?”
He blinked in surprise, then smirked at her. “Why, has the Bug been spying on her Kitty to make sure he’s true?”
She snorted derisively. “As if, alley cat. You aren’t the only one who likes to take a run in the night air, you know?”
“So, who do you go visiting, then,” he asked, his grin spreading as her cheeks matched her mask. “Does your special boy have a thing for magical bodysuits?”
She glowered at him and he could hear her grinding her teeth. “Okay. Touchy subject.”
“It was never like that! He never even saw me like that! I go out for the night air for my mental health, not for … canoodling with civilians behind the mask!” Ouch! She spoke in the past tense. He knew how that felt.
He held up his hands in surrender. “Okay. Sorry for teasing, LB. You know I didn’t mean anything by it. And there is no canoodling going on between me and Marinette, though the cat in me wouldn’t be opposed to cuddles with my princess. Besides, she’s earned my trust. You and I both know she was so anxious to do it right that she gave you the miraculous back right away. You heard her! She thought we shared everything.”
She sighed, rubbing her temple. “Cat…”
“It’s not fair, LB! I already know half the holders and you didn’t make them give up their miraculous when I found out. What is so different about Marinette? If any of us deserve to wear a miraculous it is her!”
“Fine, but you are responsible for her and yourself. None of us can afford for you to be distracted by your little… girlfriend.” Her eyes board into him with an intensity that surprised him. “She is there to watch your back and keep you safe, got it?”
He gave her a snappy salute and a wink. “Yes ma’am!”
She relaxed marginally. “Good. I'll deliver the mouse to her tomorrow and explain things. See you later, Cat.”
“Bye, LB,” he called as she swung off on her yoyo. When she was out of sight, he rubbed his hands together excitedly.
He would finally get a date with his little mouse!
———
“So, Princess, having fun yet?”
“This isn’t my idea of a good time,” Multimouse cried, performing incredible twists and flips over their enemy in an attempt to distract the giant mantis long enough for Cat to destroy the pendant around his neck. If it’s confused swaying was any indication, her quick movements were overwhelming the akuma’s giant compound eyes.
“I start with low expectations so things can only go up from here,” he called, dodging the pinchers and looking for an opening. “Just wait for our second date!”
“Who said this is a date, Kitty?” Deftly, she looped her jumprope tail around the creature’s neck on her next pass, jerking its head back as she fell and giving him an opening.
He pounced, breaking the chain and making off with the pendant. “Come on, Mousy! Time for us to bug out!”
They leapt away from the giant mantis and ran side by side, steps in sync as if they had been partners forever. It felt good, sharing this with Marinette. It turned work into a game and gave him a chance to show off for his most adorable classmate. Though, as usual, Marinette went above and beyond and left him dazed at how well she took to the whole hero thing.
“And boy, did she give me a chewing out for trying to save her with that comic cyborg akuma,” he thought, grinning fondly at the girl by his side. “She could give Ladybug a run for her money in that department.” Though it did give him a better understanding of why LB freaked out whenever he took a hit for her. He had barely held himself together when she had taken a javelin to the back - a javelin meant for him. He had maintained an iron grip on his emotions as he tore away the akumatized object and cataclysmed the akuma. Then he called Ladybug and wept, holding her lifeless form while she fixed everything, bringing Marinette back to him.
“Here. This should be far enough,” Multimouse said, turning into a blind alley and checking for cameras. “We’re clear.”
He broke the pendant and cataclysmed the dark butterfly when it emerged. His partner slid her jumprope handle up and made the call. “Okay. The akuma is taken care of. Your turn.” In seconds, the city was set to rights again.
She held up her fist and he tapped it with his. “Pound it.”
That was when his little mouse got a very shrewd look in her eye. “So what is this about a date, Kitty Cat?”
“Ladybug. She was joking about you being my girlfriend when I asked for you to be my partner, though I think she was just jealous. She seems to think we have been canoodling on your balcony.”
That was when he knew he was in trouble. Multimouse spun her tail teasingly while she swished her hips, her mouth sliding into a smirk that made his heart race faster than the battle had done. “And what did you tell her?”
How could six words rock his world like this? His hand crept to the back of his neck as his cheeks burned. “I may have said I wouldn’t mind some princess cuddles,” he answered honestly.
His insides flipped over when she seemed to seriously consider the idea. Then she looked up at him and her eyes held questions he desperately wanted to answer. “And did you mean it?”
Her voice was as soft as a caress. Where Ladybug had been a fire in his heart, burning him out with it, Marinette was a gentle rain. If anyone could cure his thirst for love, it would be her. With her, maybe he could even grow.
He closed the space between them, stroking her cheek, and she bloomed with roses under his hand. “Always, princess. I would always mean it.”
She pressed upwards on her toes, capturing his lips with hers. His arms pulled her closer while hers crept into his hair and their tails twined around each other.
Yes. Having Multimouse as his partner might have been the best thing that had happened to him since he had become Cat Noir. He really needed to send a thank you and get well gift to Tikki.