She held up her hands and waved them like the wings of a wounded bird. “No! Not at all! No one’s forcing me to do this. It was my decision…so no worries, Minou,” she added with a wink, trying to reassure him.

His invigorated smile returned, and his tail began to flick excitedly once more. “Oh, good. Because I’ve really been looking forward to this.”

He scooped up her hand and placed a light kiss on the back of it. “You can count on me, Mousinette. I’m going to be the best teacher ever.”

She drew back her hand with a shake of her head. “Do you flirt with all of your recruits like this?”

Her tone was disapproving, but her eyes and lips held a playful smile that reminded him strongly of his Lady.

“Considering that you’re my one and only? Yes,” he snickered, returning her wink from earlier. “But, all joking aside, let’s get down to business. We can goof off a little later, but, first, I want to make sure you’re feeling comfortable and confident about going into battle. You did a masterful job last time, so I don’t expect you’ll need much instruction, but we could probably stand to work on teamwork and strategy at least.”

 Marinette was surprised at how seriously her goof of a partner took his role as instructor.

He earnestly focused for a full half hour on drilling Marinette on her skills, sparring with her, and giving her feedback on hand-to-hand combat that she’d be able to use as Ladybug.

“Good!” he praised her liberally throughout. “You’re a total natural, Princess. I cannot wait to see you in action. You’re going to be an amazing addition to our team.”

She found herself slightly disappointed at the thought that it would never actually happen. She could at least use the skills she gained from their practice sessions to improve as her other persona, though.

 After the combat portion of their training, Chat gave her the grand tour of Paris’s rooftops in order to help her become familiar with navigating the terrain.

He showed her his favourite spots and shared all kinds of tips and tricks he’d picked up over his tenure as a hero.

They landed on the top of the Eiffel Tower, and Chat peered over the railing with an odd smile.

“I actually enjoy jumping off this thing,” he confessed. “It makes me feel like I’m invincible…truly living. …I imagine it’s kind of like a rollercoaster.”

She arched an eyebrow at him. “Do I need to be worried about you?”

“Maybe just a little,” he admitted sheepishly. “Not too much, though. I’m just not allowed to leave my house very often. My father…” He winced. “…he’s very controlling and strict. I’ve never been on a rollercoaster before. He doesn’t let me do those kinds of things.”

“Potentially dangerous things?” she guessed.

“Fun things,” he clarified, hopping up onto the railing and holding out a hand to her. “Jump with me? Try to use your jump rope to stop your fall, but, if you can’t, don’t worry. I’ll catch you.”

She took his hand, smirking. “You just want the adrenaline rush from throwing yourself off the tower.”

A wide grin spread across his lips. “Carpe diem.”

“On three,” she decreed…and then immediately shouted, “Three!”, jumping and pulling him with her.

They both screamed in delight on the way down.

Marinette briefly toyed with the idea of letting him “save” her but ultimately decided against it. His ego didn’t need any stroking.

 Their last stop was a rooftop garden above Hermès’s headquarters.

“This is one of my secret places,” he informed her conspiratorially, keeping his voice low. “It’s not open to the public, so don’t tell Ladybug I come here. I thought you’d appreciate it, though. I heard they get inspiration for some of their perfumes from the plants that grow here.”

She closed her eyes and took a deep inhale, luxuriating in the heady aroma of the garden at dusk.

“Thank you for bringing me,” she whispered with a grateful smile, touched that he’d thought of her.

As much as Chat Noir was an incurable clown, he was also painfully sweet. Sometimes she forgot that in the heat of battle when his antics occasionally made her want to throttle him.

He snipped a light pink rose from a nearby bush with his claws and checked it for thorns before tucking it into her bun.

“Our little secret,” he informed with a wink.