Chapter Text
Her identity is one of her most closely guarded secrets.
Though Adrien spends many hours with her, the girl in the armor with the red spotted cloth pulled over the lower half of her face has never given him any indication as to who she really is. Instead, she calls herself Ladybug.
Ladybug is his most trusted knight, she follows him most places. Adrien isn’t really sure when she started shadowing him as a personal guard, but he knows he’s thankful for it. Through most banquets, balls, and diplomatic visits, he sees her waiting, looking for any sign of danger.
They’re friends, he likes to think, though he hasn’t gotten her to drop the “prince” in front of his name. But with all the hours they spend together, it’s hard not to be friends. She rides next to him when they travel from kingdom to kingdom, her horse always keeping perfect pace with his. When they travel, he tries to stay focused on the path in front of him, but it’s not that easy. Adrien inevitably finds his gaze always drifting back to her, his knight with the striking blue eyes.
It’s drifting again today, though he isn’t on horseback.
He’s on a diplomatic trip, to visit one of the neighboring lords. He’s been sitting in a carriage for a few hours, and outside his window is his knight. She escorts him from a further distance than he’d like, but it’s a necessity in this longer journey. Still, Adrien finds he’s missing her easy company. He longs for the journey to be over, just to be closer to her once more.
It’s nightfall when they arrive at the Bourgeois’s estate, and predictably, Chloé waits for him at the entrance.
“Adrikins!” She exclaims when he steps out.
“Hello Chloé.” He glances to the side. Ladybug has dismounted, holding the reins of her horse. Adrien smiles softly at her, wishing she didn’t have to be so distant.
“You're later than the other guests staying with us.” Chloé pouts. Adrien sighs, running a hand through his hair. He knows diplomatic relations between him and the Bourgeois’s are important, and Chloé is a key factor in that, but at the same time, he wishes he could simply state he didn’t want to come.
“I had a few other things I had to attend to.” He opts to say instead, trying for a smile.
“Oh of course, your princely duties are very important Adrikins.” She clings his arm as they enter her manor. He notes Ladybug has vanished, presumably because she had to lead the horses to the stable.
“Your highness,” Chloé’s twin sister, Zoé, drops into a curtesy when she sees him. Chloé’s grip on his arm tightens.
“Hello Lady Bourgeois.” He nods at Zoé, and she smiles back.
“I’m taking Adrikins to his room.” Chloé spits, glaring at her sister. Adrien notes that Zoé withdraws, almost imperceptibly. He’s dragged away from the hall before he can ask if she’s alright.
“Your guest suite is only a hall away from my suite, in case you want to visit.” She leads him up the stairs, and out of the corner of his eye, Adrien sees Ladybug follow behind him.
“Thank you Chloé, goodnight.” Adrien pushes the door open, trying to signal he wants to enter by himself. The girl relaxed her grip, and stood back.
“I’ll see you at brunch tomorrow morning, Adrikins.” She smiles, almost flirtatiously, and Adrien steps into his room as quickly as he can, only feeling comfortable again once Ladybug has slipped inside, closing the door lightly.
He hears the clack of heels as Chloé walks away, and feels as though he can breathe again. Though the heir to the Bourgeois’s estate was once one of his closest childhood friends, she changed as Adrien became closer to marrying age. He now dreads these visits he once looked forward to.
Ladybug walks a perimeter around the room, and he watches her. His knight, always alert.
“You can relax, you know.” He jokes, grinning at her.
“You never know when assassins lurk around the corner, Prince Adrien,” She jokes back, her own smile evident in her voice. Ladybug taps her sword lightly. “That’s why I always have this.”
He laughs lightly at that. He’s only seen her draw her sword twice. He knows she prefers the bow that she carries on most journeys, the bow that becomes very impractical once they enter an enclosed space. She’s an excellent swordsman, but her true talent lies in her marksmanship.
“So, any threats that you can see?” He raises an eyebrow at her, smirking.
“Oh, just the usual.” She responds.
“Big windows and the balcony?” He’s been with her long enough to know what she normally sees as a threat. Ladybug nods.
“Should be fine as long as the Bourgeois’s guards do their job.” She’s staring at him.
“Are you alright?” He asks. She doesn’t normally look at him freely for this long, almost as though she’s studying him.
“I may be around less on this trip.” She’s quiet, almost seems as though she hates what she’s said.
“Ladybug?”
“I have… other things I need to attend to. I’ll be with you when I can.” She’s turned away from him, hiding her face.
“What?” He’s confused, watching as his unfazeable knight fiddles with the edge of her red traveling cloak.
“I’ll still be here to protect you of course, I just have other duties that require…” she trails off, and he sees her look down at her gloved hands.
“Your identity.” He finished for her. Ladybug whips around, and he thinks he sees tears in her eyes. Must be a trick of the lighting.
“You know how loyal I am to you, your Highness, but this is important to me.” She fidgets with her hands. Adrien takes a breath.
“Of course. You don’t need to worry about me,” He reaches out, holding one of her hands lightly. “I’ll be fine Ladybug.”
He watches as she searches his face, almost as if looking for something.
“Thank you, your Highness.” She sweeps into a bow, and Adrien’s mesmerized. No matter what she does, his knight is beautiful and graceful.
He smiles softly at her, before lifting her hand up slowly, to give her time to pull away if she wanted to. He presses a kiss against the worn leather of her gloves. Ladybug’s eyes widen, and he swears he can almost see a hint of pink where her mask doesn’t cover her cheeks completely. She interlaces their hands, and Adrien feels himself blush.
“I promise I’ll be back.” She then pulls their hands apart, and cups his face. The leather is soft, and Adrien feels his eyes close as he leans into her hand. But too soon, she pulls away.
And with that, his knight exits the room, the door closing softly behind her.
•••
Adrien wakes slowly to sunlight streaming through the large windows. He stares at the beautiful blue sky that reminds him of her eyes, and the way they glistened last night. Ladybug has always needed to attend to other matters, it’s been a fact for as long as he’s known her, but never has she told him last minute.
He finds himself missing her as he exits his room, her iconic red absent from his vision. Instead, he is immediately greeted by a flash of yellow, and Chloé is at his side, clinging to him once more.
She guides him through the halls like he’s never been there before, talking about the guests who’ll be attending her family’s signature weekend of balls.
“Mother thinks I’ll find someone suitable to uphold the Bourgeois name this time.” She states as they walk into her large dining room. It’s surprisingly empty.
“Did she invite new guests?” He questions. He knows Chloé’s relationship with her mother has always been tense, and that she is always eager to make her proud.
“Oh no, but the guests always bring a rotation of their court. And if not me, other members of the household will find someone.” She’s nonchalant about it, but Adrien notices the lack of Zoé’s name.
“Speaking of, where is the younger Lady Bourgeois?” He questions. He had expected to at least be able to talk to her during brunch, but she was absent.
“Oh, she’s off preparing to meet her friends from a neighboring estate, so it’s just us.” Chloé’s hand rests on his arm, and Adrien finds himself glad when a butler walks in and taps Chloé’s shoulder.
“Lady Césaire and her court are here.” He states. Chloé rolls her eyes and stands hurriedly, brushing off her dress.
“I need to see to this, but you’re welcome to join Adrikins.” She walks off towards the main hall, leaving Adrien alone.
His quiet moment by himself is short, because he realizes it’s not polite for a prince to hide in the dining room while guests arrive. It may not be his castle, but he still should greet guests, especially because he’s never met the young Lady Césaire.
He walks briskly to the hall, where both ladies of the estate wait. He makes it just in time to see a carriage slow to a stop. This the groups cue to head towards them, Adrien himself a few steps behind the girls.
The carriage door opens and out steps a girl in a beautiful pink dress. She turns quickly and holds out her hand, helping who he assumes is Lady Césaire out of the carriage. She’s dressed in a soft orange, and she drops into a soft curtesy, the girl in pink dress doing so right after.
“Your Highness, I’m honored you waited to greet us,” her voice is even, a rarity for people he’s never met before. It’s a welcome surprise.
“Lady Bourgeois, thank you for hosting me during your weekend of festivities. My estate is unfortunately a bit too far to make the daily journey.” Her voice is more clipped and formal when speaking with Chloé as though she knows her personally.
“Alya and Marinette!” Zoé is suddenly much more expressive, as if waiting for her sister to be addressed so she could speak. Adrien watches as she breaks into a grin and rushes at the two girls.
The girl in pink, Marinette he assumes, quickly pulls her into a hug.
“Zoé, it's been much too long!” Lady Césaire cheers, joining the hug. Adrien feels as though he’s intruding, and walks away briskly, almost missing the way Marinette’s head pokes out of the hugs and her face flushed pink.
•••
It’s been a long time since Marinettte has had to be on the other end of these formalities. She knows it’s only muscle memory stopping her from making social missteps with Prince Adrien present, though the likelihood of him recognizing her is low. She’s almost disappointed at that.
Instead of being by his side, her sword proudly displayed on her hip and armor shining in the sun, Marinette wears a pink day dress, a single danger in a sheath she attached to her leg. The prince had walked off shortly after her embrace with Zoé, vanishing to somewhere within the house. Alya holds her arm comfortingly as Zoé guides them through the gardens.
“I know you haven’t been here, Marinette, but I promise it’ll become easier to navigate as the weekend goes on.” Her friend promises. Marinette sees Alya stifle a laugh with her hand out of the corner of her eye.
“Oh I think she’ll have an easier time than you think.” Her best friend grins, and she rolls her eyes.
Alya had been there when Marinette had chosen to leave home, when she had traded the extravagant dresses and social niceties for her bow and her sword. She had known that Marinette was Prince Adrien’s mysterious knight for as long as she had been Ladybug.
Alya had also been the one who Marinette wrote to when she realized she had fallen for her prince.