Chapter Text
Just a normal girl with a normal life, she used to tell everyone around her. It used to work as a method of throwing people off the trail of her secret identity. The phrase also served as a way to psychologically separate the two parts of her identity. This had become incredibly important for both the security of her secret, and to ensure her ability to function. Being able to set Ladybug’s woes and doubts aside so Marinette could focus on taking notes in class and maintaining her relationships with others proved to benefit her mental health tremendously. After being Ladybug as well as Marinette for years now, she was able to switch between her identities without a second thought, Marinette’s daily struggles could be swept away in the blink of an eye and replaced with the burden of a spotted mask.
Unfortunately, unlike Ladybug’s bright red suit, her normal life as Marinette wasn’t invulnerable. Ladybug could walk through the darkest parts of Paris with the knowledge that she would most likely emerge the victor of any conflict she might encounter. But like every other young woman in the world, even walking home from the grocery store at night could be a gamble of safety. Her parents had asked her not to go to the grocery store alone, but business required enough ingredients to keep up with the reputation and demand of being Jagged Stone and Adrien Agreste’s bakery of choice. Even Tom and Sabine had to admit that they were slightly too short of ingredients to make more fresh products for the Bakery. The grocery store was going to close soon and Marinette just happened to be the least busy in her family. So she insisted that she would be swift and cautious. Sabine was particularly reluctant to let Marinette go, but eventually gave in.
The bright white lights were unpleasant on Marinette’s eyes. As it had been dark when she left home, her eyes had adjusted to the warmer, yellow lights of her home and street as well as the darkness of night. With the store’s lights reflecting off the polished tile floor, the setting felt cold and clinical. She could carry all that her family needed in a singular shopping bag, and her possessions such as her phone, purse and Tikki were all tucked away in her handbag.
It was on her way home, with her hands carrying the grocery bag that she was grabbed by her hair and tugged backwards with a shrill gasp into the shadows. The next thing she knew there was a large, sweaty palm covering her mouth and something cold gently pressed against the side of her neck. Chills ran down her spine, she didn’t have to be a superhero to know what that object was.
A second set of hands roughly held her wrists trapped behind her back. Someone kicked her behind the kneecap, forcing her leg to buckle and sending her to the ground where she was made to kneel. The hand covering her mouth tilted her head upwards, Marinette noted that she could smell cigarettes as her captors examined her.
“Dark hair and skinny.” A rasped the man keeping Marinette’s hands bound. She decided to call him Captor One. “Those are definitely points in our favour, but the pale skin and lack of an hourglass figure might not be as popular.”
“Blue eyes from what I can tell…” Said the man covering her mouth, now called Captor Two. Marinette cursed internally, the darkness combined with her positioning made it almost impossible to make note of any features of her captors other than their voices. “Looks like she might have a bit of asian in her.”
“I’m sure there’s a demographic that will pay for that.” Said a third man, Captor Three from further in the shadows. Captor Three sounded as if he measured every word carefully. His presence made Marinette even more distressed. Two adult men was bad enough, she would likely fail to defend herself from either if the confrontation was one on one! There was no way she was coming out alive if she tried to take on three men by herself at once. And transforming into Ladybug wasn’t an option because she couldn’t risk revealing her identity even if she wanted to! The only sounds she could make with Captor Two’s hand in the way were muffled.
Oh no.
If they checked her purse they would find Tikki and then it wouldn’t matter that she couldn’t transform!
“She’s definitely a looker.” Said Captor Two as he moved her head further away from the blade threatening her soft skin. “But we’re going to have to be careful not to damage the merchandise too much, or we might lose some cash.”
“Oh I’ll make sure you lose a LOT more than cash if you leave her with a single bruise.” Said a fourth voice. This person’s voice was low and foreboding, yet it sent a rush of adrenaline through Marinette’s body and brought tears to her eyes. She knew that voice! Chat Noir was looking down on them from the roof of the building they were hiding behind. Despite the vibrant cat-like glow of his eyes Marinette could not recall a single time she had ever seen his eyes that dark with rage. “You have one chance to let her go and never show your faces anywhere in this whole damn city ever again. If you don’t, I will make sure I hunt you down and cataclysm each of you.” He pointed his baton at the man keeping Marinette from screaming, who was also holding the knife to her throat. “Starting with you.”
“Good luck finding us a second time Shat noir.” Growled Captor Two.
“I have been recording our little conversation this whole time and have made sure none of your faces were excluded from the footage.” Chat noir tapped his baton with his index finger. “So don’t think I won’t remember you. I will stop at NOTHING until each of you has withered away from the inside, leaving nothing left but dust. So I STRONGLY suggest that you let. Her. Go.”
Marinette watched her captors cast glances at each other, silently considering their options, Captor One and Two looked to Captor Three for answers. She looked up at her partner, her eyes filling with tears of terror. The potential cause of her end was pressed against her neck, one quick swipe and she could perish. She was determined that if, after all her victories as Ladybug she was destined to die as a civilian trapped in an alley, Chat noir was going to be the last thing she saw.
“Make your decision!” Chat noir hissed at Marinette’s captors. “I’m not waiting all night.”
“Have your precious pretty little lady then.” Captor Three’s voice rose from the shadows, Captor Two released his grasp. The other two men followed him as they retreated, leaving Marinette shaking wide-eyed in the alley. Immediately Chat dropped down beside her, holding his baton between them and the men like a shield in case they should return. The sound of footsteps and gruff muttering dissolved into the night, eventually leaving the pair certain of their solitude. He wrapped an arm around Marinette’s waist and whisked her away from the location. He brought her to her balcony, she was expecting him to simply set her down and check to be sure she was okay. Instead, he surprised her by settling himself on the floor with her cradled in his arms. He clutched her tightly to his chest, his fingers gripping the material of her shirt as if something was attempting to strip her away from him. Her head was pressed against his heart. She could hear how rapidly his heart was beating, juxtaposing his earlier stoic demeanor.
“Marinette Marinette Marinette.” he kept murmuring over and over again. His words tumbled out of his mouth uncontrollably. “I heard you cry out and I wanted to check on you, but I couldn’t find you! I started panicking because no matter where I looked you were no where to be found a-and… Are you okay?” The wavering in his voice turned into a bitter growl. “If I find that they have hurt you in ANY way, I swear…” The anger in his eyes was overcome by worry again immediately after, as Marinette whimpered in his hold. She was clutching onto the open pockets of his suit, the only part that didn’t perfectly fit his form. She was still trembling. “Oh Marinette, it’s okay now. I’ve got you, I’m here.” he cooed, gently stroking her scalp. “I swear on my life, I am not going to let ANYTHING hurt you. I swear okay?”
Marinette whimpered again, this time Chat heard her sniffle. He held her closer still, trying to envelope her in his warmth like a mother cat looking after a kitten.
“Marinette, do your parents know where you are? Surely they must be worried if you were out so late?”
“I-I went out to get ingredients for them.” Marinette choked out timidly. She had never felt like this before. She was shaking and she couldn’t stop it. She was scared to breathe. Her wide eyes had become paralysed along with her fearful expression. Even in Chat’s arms, she didn’t dare blink, her eyes darting around her balcony.
“We should probably tell them you’re home and safe. If it makes you feel better I can ask them if they are comfortable with me keeping watch over your house tonight. I doubt those horrible people would dare come anywhere near you now, but I’d feel better being close by just in case.”
Marinette nodded feebly. “I-I’d like that too.”
It was quite obvious Marinette was in no state to explain to her parents what had just happened, so Chat noir brough Marinette to her family in their living room and he explained to them there what had happened in the least triggering way he could. This he did with an arm still wrapped around Marinette’s shoulders, holding her close and comforting her. Thanks to his occasional appearances in the bakery, Tom and Sabine didn’t seem to upset with the obvious affection between their daughter and the super hero. As well as that they were more than happy for him to remain at the house for the night. Chat noir insisted that he was happy to keep watch from outside the house if they preferred, but the married couple stood their ground and said anything less than a place to sleep on their couch and food for him and his kwami would be unacceptable considering that Chat noir had just saved their daughter’s life and returned her to them unscathed. Seeing that he wouldn’t win this, and he had no intention of going against Tom, Sabine (and frankly his own) wishes, he claimed his spot on Marinette’s chaise lounge.
After that conversation, Chat did not leave Marinette’s side until she had to change into her pyjamas. Even as she was changing, he stayed within earshot, posture rigid and ears pricked as he stared out her window surveying the streets for the criminals from earlier. Empty. Good. When she’d finished changing, Chat was there with her as she brushed her teeth, as she lifted her hand to insert the toothbrush into her mouth their eyes caught on the red marks already appearing on her wrists. Chat noir glared at them. “Never again.” He growled at the markings, his eyes softening as he met her gaze. “I promise you Marinette.”
He was with her as she climbed into bed, tucking her in and sitting at the end of her bed. He ignored the pictures of his civilian form pinned near her head. She must really love fashion. It was becoming clear that Marinette was not settling. She was curled up with her back to the wall underneath the covers, but she was stiffer than a statue and Chat couldn’t recall the last time he’d noticed her blinking.
“Hey, I’m here.” He reminded her with a soft murmur and a reassuring smile. “No one is going to hurt you on my watch. I am not leaving until you tell me to, or you fall asleep. I’ll even stay here the whole night if you want me to.” He reached behind him and manoeuvred his belt-tail so that she could hold it. “If you want you can even hang onto this so you can be sure I haven’t left you when you close your eyes.”
Marinette timidly took him up on his offer and clutched the belt in her left hand and reluctantly closed her eyes.
“Please stay.” She whimpered so quietly he was almost uncertain that he’d heard her at all. Chat noir was pleased to see that in a few minutes the rise and fall of her chest had become steady and noticeable, proof that she was no longer holding her breath and her body was subconsciously filling her lungs with deep inhales of oxygen. The worried crease in her brow relaxed, making her look at peace. She had fallen asleep. At that moment Chat realised a flaw in his offer to stay all night; he couldn’t stay Chat noir for that entire time. At some point he was going to have to transform back into Adrien, and he couldn’t risk her waking up and seeing his civilian form. He frowned, searching her room for something to help his plan.
Was that a Chat noir themed sleep mask? It was mostly black except for some tiny little lime green paw prints around the edges. They looked like they had been sewn on by hand, Marinette was great. Carefully extracting his belt from Marinette’s hand once he was certain she had gone into stages 3 or 4 NREM sleep (something he’d learnt about in his Psychology class) and wouldn’t be waking any time soon, he crept to her desk and collected the sleep mask. He curled up on her chaise under a blanket provided by Sabine, making sure that nothing below his neck was visible, in case he detransformed in his sleep, and slid the sleep mask over his eyes.