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Everyone was born with a small, discreet soulmate marking on their bodies. Doctors made a record of these at birth, for convenience. A lot of people had them on their wrists or ankles, which made it easy to hide or show depending on the situation. Their soulmate would have a matching marking on the opposite side of their body.
Marinette’s was behind her right ear. She’d spent hours before, twisting and turning to try to find a good angle in the mirror where she could see it. It was a small butterfly with both wings held up, so they laid over each other with no real distinction between them. Unlike some markings, it was drawn in a thin, loop design and not filled.
It was pretty. She’d tried to inspire several clothing and jewelry designs off of it.
But it was also inconvenient. Most people’s ears were covered partially or fully by their hair. It was awkward trying to crane her neck to see if someone had a matching mark. She’d tried several times and always got weird looks for it.
So for the most part, she’d stopped looking. Her parents had reassured her that if she was meant to find her soulmate, she would. They weren’t soulmates; they had gotten married and then two years later, Tom had found his soulmate and they’d become quick, easy friends. Sabine had yet to find hers.
“They’re not your ‘chosen lover for life’,” she’d explained. “They’re someone who you will be able to bond with well, someone who will be important to you, but not necessarily in a romantic way.”
It was discouraging seeing people like Mylene and Ivan discover they were soulmates and immediately get together. But then there was also Chloe and Sabrina, and they were perhaps the most odd example of soulmates Marinette had ever seen.
So she tried to stop worrying.
Minus a few quick checks to see if Adrien might possibly be her soulmate, Marinette had stopped thinking about it.
She certainly wasn’t thinking about it when she was dragging her hands through Chat Noir’s hair, playing with it absently while he laid his head on her lap.
But she pushed up the left side of his hair and there it was. Easy to miss but plain to see.
A little loopy butterfly.
Ladybug’s first instinct was to panic. Chat Noir was her soulmate?? He loved her, but she didn’t love him like that. If he found out then this would be a disaster-
But then again, of course it was him. Who else could it be?
Her brave, silly, flirtatious and kind kitty. Her partner in and against crime. The person who made her laugh until she cried and who held her when she sobbed. He ate ice cream so fast he got a brain freeze every time. He stopped and smelled flowers and could ramble about them for hours. He was her other half. A little destruction to her creation, a little calm to her crazy, a little crazy to her calm. Her soulmate.
And the mark was a little loopy butterfly.
She laughed a little to herself, because of course. The universe had a sense of humor, but she didn’t mind.
There was no one else she’d really have rathered it be.
“What’s so funny?” Chat Noir asked sleepily. He lifted his head slightly to look at her.
“Nothing, kitty. I just love you.”
“Oh.” He smiled and let his head fall back down. “I love you too.”
She didn’t say anything to him about it. But when he braided her hair a month later and paused, gasped, and then laughed, she thought he felt the same too.