Work Text:
“You're crazy. You know that?”
Marinette winced at the accusation and glanced at the boy hiding with her on the balcony. They'd been flirting with their eyes from across the room until the Akuma had shown up. “Maybe you aren't as interesting as you look,” she shot back.
She didn't see his appalled expression as she pulled on the blind cord she'd dragged out with them, testing the strength of it. It was no good. She would have to trust the awning two stories down.
“It's coming!” His warning didn't seem too panicked, at least not as much as when she'd shoved him through the shattered window onto the narrow balcony. She couldn't blame him—this spot wasn't exactly made to be used—the window in front of it didn't open, but thanks to the flailing arms of the Akuma, it had already been smashed and now it was about to make an excellent impromptu exit.
“Time to take a leap of faith!” Marinette announced ruefully. She clambered over the balcony rail, eyeing the drop to the wide awning below as she let go. Everything was nearly ruined when the boy grabbed her around the waist just as she dropped. Luckily, he was tall and the rail was below his waist- which meant that all he succeeded in doing was falling with her. She twisted quickly to adjust their position so her landing would still work…
“Aaaagghhhhhhhhh!”
The boy yelled the whole way down. It was a very manly cry, and she couldn’t fault him for it. She’d hollered plenty the first several times she’d been sent careening, falling, or flying across the city as a superhero.
Marinette nearly lost her breath when he tightened his hold on her. Whether he was trying to protect himself or her, she didn't know, but she liked the feeling either way. They hit the striped awning with a bounce, and Marinette arched her back to adjust their trajectory- the second hit was less like landing on a trampoline and more like being cradled in a hammock. Perfect.
“What the hell is wrong with you?” the boy asked as she scrambled out of his lap. Blue hair flopped over wild blue eyes as he scanned her. His hands grabbed tight to her shoulders as if he could hold her still. It was kind of comforting. She was usually too busy taking care of other people for anyone to worry about her.
“Ummm… probably a few things.” Pocket god of Luck notwithstanding, her life had been a journey and she had no idea how to sum up the craziness that her life had become.
“Ready for the last hurdle?” She asked the boy brightly, batting her eyes sweetly.
He shook his head frantically. Hmmm, maybe she was being a little too Ladybug-like, it probably did look crazy without the suit.
All she needed to do was rein in the crazy and help him feel more comfortable. “Hey, what's your name?”
Luka stopped searching the incredible, insane girl for wounds and met her eyes when she asked his name. “I’m Luka.”
“Okay, Luka. We're only one story up. All we have to do is drop down from here, and we'll be safe on the ground.”
“What?” Luka looked over the edge and sure enough, it would be an easy drop- especially compared to the last stunt she'd pulled. “Yeah, sure. Okay.”
Luka had no idea who this girl was, but now that he realized he was following a crazy girl with a plan - he didn't mind following her lead. He mimicked her actions as she grabbed the awning bar and dangled for a second before they dropped almost in unison. It was easy compared to some of the stunts he'd pulled aboard the Liberty.
She beamed at him, obviously proud at his break from perceived cowardice. She had a great smile.
He wanted to say something, find out more about her-
Crash! Creeeeeeeeak
The sound of tearing metal made him look back up the way they’d come. The Akuma was tearing its way through the building in an insane effort to give chase. Why it was so fixated on them, he had no clue.
“Run!” The girl—blue eyes flashing and a hint of a manic grin on her face—grabbed his hand and pulled with more strength than anyone that size had a right to. He was yanked down the street and quickly got his feet under him to keep up with the most chaotic girl he’d ever met. Could you fall in love while falling out of a building?
“Split up!” Luka was shoved into an alley and a glance behind him showed that she had used the momentum from pushing him to propel herself in the opposite direction. The Akuma was in the road between them. Shit. He ran full out until he came out into another street. It was much quieter here. He looped around to the front until he could see the action. He’d never been one to shy away from chaos—he was a Couffaine—but neither had he made it a habit to pursue danger. At the moment all he wanted to do was find the girl—and since she’d run opposite him— she was likely in the thick of it.
He watched the monstrosity as it pulled in its arms and rolled, bouncing off the rough-hewn stone only to crash back to the ground in a wild tangle of metal limbs and cracked concrete. He hesitated for only another second before he dashed towards the insanity he had just escaped. He wasn’t going to leave the girl to fend for herself if there was anything he could do about it.
Marinette dashed away from her inadvertent shadow and pelted down the alleyway. She just needed a minute to transform and then she could take care of this mess.
There! A doorway alcove offered the perfect spot. Thank goodness Paris was an old city- filled with funny little nooks and crannies in the old architecture. Seconds later she swung up, looking for a good vantage point as soon as she was in her spots.
The metal Akuma, which looked like the robot from ‘The Incredibles’, was smashing up the area just as well as the automaton had in the movie. She just didn’t know why . It had dropped through the ceiling from the floor (or floors) above them and locked its eyes (or sensor or whatever) on her table. The room had been filled with students from all over the city for a symposium and she didn’t know what set her table apart from the others. The whole room had erupted as students and teachers alike had scrambled for the exits, and while her friends had gotten away, she had veered in the opposite direction to transform only for it to follow her. The fact that she ran into Luka- the cute blue-eyed, blue-haired boy who had been smiling at her for half the conference had thrown her for a loop, and it had taken some Ladybug-level planning to get him and herself away safely.
She quickly scanned the prong-like appendages for anything that stood out. They all appeared to be empty. Channeling her Pixar knowledge, she looped her yo-yo on one of the arms and swung onto its spherical body. With a little luck, it would pierce its own armor in its attempt to get to her, and she could find the Akumatized object on the inside.
The glowing magic of pink butterflies swarmed the area, and Luka skidded to a stop in front of the newly pristine building he’d been in before everything started.
“Ladybug!” Luka shouted, desperately trying to get the heroine's attention as she prepared to swing away. Her yo-yo stopped midair and dropped back into her palm and she turned to him.
“Can I help you?” Her eyes were a clear blue that reminded him of the crazy girl.
“There was a girl! I need to find her. She dragged me off a balcony.”
Ladybug’s eyebrows soared. “If you want to press charges, you’ll need to talk to the police. I just deal with the Akumas.”
“No!” Luka shook his head. “She's crazy and beautiful… I need to see her again. She was in the area and I need to know if she’s alright.”
“Oh. Um, well everything should be alright now. If she was here, she shouldn’t be too far away.”
“Thanks,” Luka mumbled as he watched the spotted heroine swing away. A feeling of disappointment dropped into his stomach like a stone. The symposium wouldn’t start up again, no matter how quickly the Akumas were handled, whatever events were interrupted always seemed to fall apart. He looked around for a flash of pink or silky black hair to no avail. Stupid Akuma. He’d planned to say hi at the break. Ask her her name. Maybe find out what school she went to. Why couldn’t it have waited twenty minutes?!
He spun around once more, scanning everyone who walked in or out of the building. He could wait a few minutes.
Marinette clutched her sketchbook to her chest as she ducked out of the lobby to head home. She paused for a second and looked up at the fourth- no fifth-story (oops!) window above the blue and white awning. She was tempted to look for Luka- but he thought she was insane. She sighed. He also said she was beautiful, she argued with herself.
Marinette nearly squawked when a pair of hands grabbed her by the shoulders and spun her around.
It was Luka. His grin looked a little hysterical. He was still cute though.
“You're okay!” His smile and his shoulders relaxed a little.
“Of course I am.” Everyone was okay because of her. That was her job. It was sweet that he cared though. Really sweet.
His eyes roamed her face and she blushed under his scrutiny. She liked how protective he was acting. She smiled at him and leaned a little closer, not even knowing why, only that she liked having him near. Before the Akuma, she'd been sure he would walk over and introduce himself, and she'd been looking forward to it.
Before she had a chance to realize that he'd leaned over her, his lips were on hers. She should be angry. He didn't even know her name! But she wasn't. She rather liked this. A lot. His lips were soft, warm, and gentle. She wrapped her arms around his neck and let herself enjoy kissing him for a moment, sighing happily.
He jerked back suddenly, apologizing. “Sorry! You don't even know me! I…”
“You said I was crazy,” Marinette interrupted him, watching as a flush climbed his neck to stain him pink. She smirked. Flustering a cute boy made her feel powerful. As powerful as Ladybug.
“You are... Which is why I'm crazy about you .” Luka tapped her on the nose and she giggled.
“So, crazy isn’t necessarily a bad thing?” she asked, tipping her head curiously.
“Definitely not. It looks amazing on you…” Luka blushed harder, and Marinette felt her own cheeks pink in response. “Any chance I can get your name?”
“Oh! I’m Ma-ma- Marinette.”
“I am very glad to meet you, Marinette.”
Marinette decided that maybe being a little crazy now and again wasn’t such a terrible idea.