#mesfics

“Your eyes, they twinkle when you smile like that. You’re buzzing with radiance. You literally light up, my Lady, just like how you light up my world.”

“Ah, what a sweet talker, aren’t you?” she chuckles and rings his bell with the tip of her finger.

“Only for you, Buguinette,” he answers with a smile. The smile that she’s always delighted to see etched onto his face.

It’s a carefree atmosphere they have created for themselves, and Marinette yearns for times like this with her best friend. But that wistfulness comes to an end when they realise havoc soon descends on Paris.

Ladybug squeezes Chat Noir, enjoying his heat one last time before releasing him into the cold, getting ready to fulfil her duty to the city she calls home. “Let’s go, mon Chaton.”

——————-

A silly phrase from his mouth, and a flick of his bell from her fingers soon follows as retaliation. Marinette always loved the sound of his cat bell jingling. It goes so well with the softness of his laughter, as though a symphony erupts whenever he does so.

Nadja snaps her fingers, probably the third time now, Marinette doesn’t know. “Now, we would like you both to meet the person who has won her place to have a chat with you! Please welcome Mabel!”

A blast of confetti and loud music burst forth to greet Mabel as she appears on the large TV screen. Ladybug and Chat Noir pause their mini banter at the loud bang, but quickly go back to giggling again once the initial shock wears off.

“We must have pissed off the producers so much that they slammed the buttons to gain our attention.” Ladybug laughs as he wiggles his eyebrows. “Litter did they know they were doing the exact opposite!”

Marinette snorts loudly, since the audience can’t hear her, and gently pushes his shoulder. “Chaton, stop, we need to focus. The spotlight is on us!”

Chat Noir grins and winks at her before turning to the screen to wave at the person. Ladybug follows suit.

“Oh my god oh my god oh my god!” The lady on the screen squeals as she sees her and her best friend. Marinette is always happy to be able to light up someone’s day like that. “Ladybug, Chat Noir, I’m your biggest fan!”

Ladybug waves and addresses her. “We’re so glad to see you! Congrats on winning the contest! It must have been so tough!”

“For the superheroes of Paris, it was all worth it!” She has a big smile on her face and Marinette finds her pleasant to talk to. She’s so appreciative and polite, showering Ladybug with so many compliments she hasn’t heard before that Marinette blushes.

What a charming young lady indeed.

After she’s done, she seamlessly shifts her attention to Chat Noir and again, manages to have her way with words. Marinette loves it when her Chaton receives the love he deserves as well. She’s really liking the person on the screen right now.

Until…

“Thank you so so much for protecting Paris, mon Chaton! Your heroic acts—”

Mon Chaton…

Oh, what a beautiful lady she is. Her pink cheeks made her look so cute and healthy. Marinette is pretty sure she had some blusher on to enhance her looks. Nothing wrong with that, she had to look presentable on TV after all. And her skin was spotless. So very spotless. Marinette could only dream of her skin looking the same. The little brown stains she has on her face must’ve made her own skin flawed.

The lady’s blue eyes, a few shades darker than hers, but still captivating nonetheless. Their hue contrasts her pale skin so much they look like precious gems, worthy of being protected by those long lashes. How is this lady so pretty? She’s just like a doll.

And her long luscious black hair, just like hers. If only she could let hers grow as long as the lady’s on the screen. Marinette wants to run her hands into hers, curious to see if it’s as soft as they look. She’s pretty sure they are. And maybe pull them a little? Nah. She wouldn’t be able to feel how soft they are if she does a little tug. How about slightly harder? Would Chat Noir thread his hands through those locks as well? No. He wouldn’t! Why would he when he has hers—

“My Lady.”

Ladybug snaps out of her thoughts and regards him. Chat Noir has scooted closer to her and his face is right beside her.

“You okay?”

She blinks at how close he is. Seeing him this up close has allowed her to focus on the visage that made him a sight to see.

The black mask covers almost half of his face, yet it still didn’t hide the features that made him him. His intense green eyes shine through the mask, always so brilliant and demanding of her attention. They seem to glow more as the seconds pass. She looks to his lips and bites her own. What a beautiful smile. His lips look so smooth—not chapped like how she has seen on a couple of people. The more she fixates, the more welcoming they become. She wonders what they taste like.

Marinette thought that he couldn’t get any closer, but he leans into her ear and she shivers at the sudden heat that invades her space.

“You were growling.”

She pulls back so suddenly she would’ve fallen off the high stool she was on if it wasn’t for his quick reflexes circling his arms around her waist.

“Désolé, Mabel.” Right, Mabel. Adorable and loveable. Exactly how she is right now… Just. Great. “I’m afraid we have to cut short our time together. There’s something Ladybug and I have to attend to. Thank you for your support and your lovely messages.” Lovely. Super! “Au revoir!”

Chat Noir gives Mabel his signature salute and hooks his arm under Ladybug’s knees, carrying her off the chair and leaving the studio to find a secluded area.

He carefully places her down after coming to a stop. “Buguinette, are you okay?”

Ladybug faces away from him, choosing to remain quiet after nodding.

“Sooo, why were you growling?”

She whips her head towards him, face-red, and glares. “Growl— I wasn’t growling! Why would I growl out of nowhere?!”

“It was a pretty soft growl, but I still heard it.”

Marinette puffs her cheeks and crosses her arms. Looking towards the scenery that presents itself to them. Oh, he had brought her to the top of the TVi studio.

“Or could it be that purr-haps,” he walks to the edge of the building, standing between her and the night lights that filled the scene before her, continuing with a wide smile on his face, “you’re jealous?”

Ladybug widens her eyes and uncrosses her arms. They gesticulate wildly as she speaks. “ME? Jealous?” She gasps. “O—Of who? That girl, M—Mabel? Psshhh. Why—Why would I be jealous of her?”

Chat Noir, still having that cheeky smile on his handsome face, shrugs. “You’re right, why would you be?”

She flushes at his comment, all the while thanking the night sky. He’s impossible, she thinks. Ladybug stomps her foot and crosses her arms once more, facing away from him.

He laughs and sits on the edge of the building, patting his side to get her to sit down as well. She does so after she cools down a few moments later.

And it has gotten too quiet to her liking.

She grabs his arm. “Does— Does anyone else call you ‘mon Chaton’?”

Chat Noir lifts his head and raises an eyebrow as he watches her. “No, only you. And of course, just now when Mabel was sharing her message with us. Other than that, only you.”

“Then,” she swallows, clenching and unclenching her other fist on her thigh. It’s such a trivia question, would Chat Noir think of her differently if she asked? He likely would. But she feels like something is eating at her if she doesn’t ask soon.

Marinette decides to go ahead with it since she has already uttered something—and anything is still better than the silence from before, “do you call anyone else ‘My Lady’ or ‘Buguinette’?”

He gives her a look. The look that Marinette knows so well. That one soft look that Chat Noir gives when she’s spiralling and he needs to ground her. She lets go of his arm and lowers her head.

She’s aware that it’s stupid. That there’s no way he would call anyone else but her ‘My Lady’ or ‘Buguinette’. Right?

There’s just no way.

Right?

His gaze softens as he notices her increasingly tight grip on the edges of where they sit. Chat Noir reaches out and tucks a strand of hair behind her ears, his thumb brushing across her cheek. Surprised at the tenderness of his gesture, Ladybug could only stare at his face. The feeling of her cheeks becoming warm slowly catching up to her.

“No, my Lady. Only you.”

Marinette releases a breath she didn’t know she was holding in. Relief floods her chest and she feels warm all over. She gently removes her face from his palm, looking down again. “You can’t just do that, that’s illegal!” she mumbles.

He smiles. “Nothing illegal about assurance, Buguinette!”

She exhales a tiny laugh, shaking her head at the silliness of it, but she still loves it nonetheless. Ladybug slides closer to him, thighs touching, and plants a kiss on his cheek. She makes sure it’s a kiss with added pressure, not those with a light peck of her lips that she has been giving to him all this while.

“See you around, mon Chaton!” She ruffles his hair as she witnesses his awestruck face with glinting eyes of her own. She leans forward, over the edge. “And don’t you worry. I use that pet name on you and you only. No one else.” Ladybug winks and leaps off the building, into the lights that blanket the city in the dead of the night.

——————-

Marinette’s running away from the scene, running away to find a hidden area so that she can transform into Ladybug and save the poor soul that got akumatised. What she fails to realise is that a car is heading straight for her as the driver got hit by a ray beam from the Akuma.

A loud noise erupts from behind her, and before she could fully process what had just happened, she finds herself in Chat Noir’s arms.

Marinette’s shoulders relax instantly as she sees him. Her partner is reliable as always.

Chat Noir scales up the Grand Paris Hotel and lets her stand on her feet once he assesses that the area is free of danger.

“You’re safe here now, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Stay here while we handle the Akuma,” he winks before jumping off the building and heading back towards where she was running from.

Marinette’s eye twitches. How dare he do that? It’s a Ladybug and Chat Noir thing only.

“Marinette!” Tikki squeaks. “Paris needs Ladybug.”

She shakes her head to stop the thought from encroaching further into her mind. Tikki’s right, the Akuma’s causing significant damage and needs to be stopped as soon as possible. That can wait for later.

“Tikki, transforme-moi !”

That cannot wait for later. Ladybug wasn’t fully focused on the task at hand, often finding herself distracted and about to get hit by the Akuma’s ray beams. Luckily, Chat Noir was always there to make sure it didn’t hit her.

But he could only protect her that number of times.

Maybe she had gotten hit, she isn’t sure. What she is sure of is that Chat Noir’s face is very close to hers, and he’s quickly pulling away.

What’s going on? She just remembers Chat Noir’s desperate cries of ‘Ladybug’ from before, and then she whips her head to see Chat Noir removing the wires that had rendered her immobile. It’s as though a part of her memory is gone. When and how did she get herself tangled in her own wire? How embarrassing!

“Chat Noir, what happened?” She asks as he pulls her to her feet.

“I’ll explain later, my Lady.” He turns away, ready to engage in battle with the Akuma again. “I figured out where the akumatised object is, let’s go!” And he hastily jumps away. Marinette has no choice but to swing her yoyo towards the direction he has gone in. She chides herself for causing the delay of the purification and adding more to Chat Noir’s plate. Ladybug really has to focus. She can only hope that she gets the answers she seeks after all this is over.

She did not get the answers she wanted, as Chat Noir left the scene swiftly, attributing his necessary departure to his transformation wearing off.

Marinette stares at his retreating figure, confused. She’s always the one who departs earlier than him, maybe he really had somewhere to go? If it didn’t warrant the need for them to stay and talk, she guesses that nothing too serious had happened before they managed to free the Akuma. She pats herself on the back, another day of protecting Paris done, and heads home.

Just before she detransforms, she receives a chime from her bugphone. Chaton!

“Can we meet tonight?” She reads out.

“Sure,” she replies, always happy to see him whenever.

Ladybug sits facing the Eiffel Tower, waiting on Chat Noir’s arrival. Sure she’s 15 minutes early, but it’s not like she’s eager or anything. Oh no. She just wants to enjoy the sight. Yes, that’s totally the reason why.

Marinette hears him land behind her and turns her head. She smiles and pats the area next to her. “Come sit, Chaton,” before facing the Eiffel Tower again.

She hears no movement from him and looks at him again, only to see his head lowered.

“Chat Noir?”

Still no movement.

Ladybug stands and walks to him. She holds his arm to gain his attention. “Chaton, what’s wrong?”

His hands suddenly grab her shoulders to push her back a bit, putting a distance between them. “I’m so sorry.”

“Huh?”

“I took advantage of you.” He lifts his head and his eyes look particularly shiny. “I kissed you without your permission and I really enjoyed it.”

“Sorry what?”

“You got hit by the Akuma and started turning really violent towards me.” He elaborates. “I don’t know why. You kept trying to bind me with your yoyo and I just kept running.” He has removed his hands from her shoulders to act out all that he’s saying, possibly for extra brownie points? Marinette doesn’t know. But it’s hilarious to see him run on the spot. “But I saw a couple kissing after the man got hit and turned violent against her, same as our situation, but anyway, they kissed and he’s fine afterwards, so it’s a possible route to take, and the city really needed you, Ladybug. So I somehow managed to cat-ch and bind you, haha, feralbug memories, and kissed you and what do you know! It actually worked. I really enjoyed the kiss and I’m really sorry, please forgive me!”

The outpour of information stunned Marinette. She has a feeling she knows exactly why she got so violent towards him, but she isn’t about to let him know why. He’s currently squeezing his eyes shut and refusing to look at her. It must be so embarrassing to admit that out loud. But really, all she got from this is that Chat Noir’s lips had touched hers, but she has no recollection of it!

“You kissed me.”

He flinches. “Yes, and I’m really sorry.”

And she didn’t get to experience it.

Because of her jealousy from earlier, her carelessness led to her 'demise', and then she missed an entire kissing episode with Chat Noir! What?

No. This won’t do. She needs to fix this.

“You… can make it up to me if you do something,” she begins slowly.

Chat Noir lights up. “I’ll do whatever! Anything to be in your good grace again.”

Marinette shakes her head, he doesn’t need to do that. He’s already in her good grace.

“Kiss me again.”

Chat Noir stops moving. He’s so still that his hair isn’t even moving and Marinette wonders if those three words alone made his soul leave his body.

She moves in and blows his face. “Chaton?”

He shakes his head and stares. “What?”

Ah, he finally reboots.

“What?” Ladybug folds her arms. “I c—can’t determine the appropriate punishment if I don’t know what it feels like, right?”

“True,” he drawls, “but uhh…”

“Do you want to make it up to me or not?”

“Yes.”

She unfolds her arms. “Then kiss me.” And when she sees that he has yet to make a move, she whispers, “please.”

Chat Noir closes his eyes, as though having an internal turmoil with himself, and Marinette feels bad. She was about to drop the topic when his hands wind around her waist and cup her cheek.

He gazes into her eyes. “Forgive me.” And he presses his lips onto her.

‘Soft’ is the first word that comes to mind. They are so very soft as they land on hers. But they are also hesitant. She holds onto his wrist and angles her head, pressing herself against him. Ladybug feels him pulling back and she circles her arms around his neck to stop him.

Chat Noir whimpers as she nibbles on his lower lip. And Ladybug finally opens her eyes when his hands travel to her ribs to push her back slightly. She sees his lower lip trembling.

“My Lady,” a shaky voice escapes his throat, “this feels too good to be true. Please tell me this is real. Please tell me you’re really kissing me.”

She blinks and glides her lips softly over his. “I want to kiss you again, Chaton. Can I kiss you again?”

“Please.” And he cups her cheeks to press his lips firmly against hers.

Chat Noir lifts his head to see the person responsible for his current state, and he realises that the room’s too dull, far too monotonous. It’s as if the shadows have consumed her vibrant and colourful essence. She, the shining symbol of hope for all, is stained in all the wrong colours. 

Seated right across him, with elbows on the table as her head rests on her palms, she grins. The glinting of her eyes and the eagerness on her face are a stark contrast to everything in the room. 

Especially when she’s smiling at him like that. 

That playful smile. One that he always witnesses as they banter and tease each other. One that, as soon as she flashes it at him, he knows that it’s her. He recognises it, but there’s a degree of eeriness to it that leaves him uneasy. 

“Lady… bug?” 

“Hey Kitty.” She waves at him, but the way she wiggles her fingers at him suggests something playful. Flirty, even. 

“Ladybug, what’s going on?”   

“Aww, not even gonna call me your Lady? Booo.” She pouts and brings her hand back to where it was a few seconds ago. But she’s still looking at him with those brightly coloured heaven eyes. 

Chat Noir struggles, “You’re not my Lady!” 

“Nonsense, Chaton.” 

He gasps. That tone of voice. He’s drawn to that inflexion anywhere. 

Akumabug raises her arms as if to present herself to an audience, but there’s only him. “I’m right here.” 

Chat Noir wrestles against the metal string around his wrists, knowing that he’s too late, but he needs to do something! Anything!

“I would advise against that, Chaton. Don’t want those strings to cut any deeper, do you?” she coos. 

“Then release me!” 

This is wrong. So wrong. Everything has gone horribly wrong. 

Why can’t he remember anything? 

Akumabug stands to reach out for his hands, but Chat Noir snatches them away as soon as he feels the heat of her touch. He tries to stand as well but finds himself tied to the chair by more ropes. 

He whips his head towards her, attempting to counter whatever she’s planning, but all he sees is her stunned in place—face painted with utter disbelief as she stares at the palm of the hand she had touched him with.  

Chat Noir feels a drop in his stomach. His spine tingles and he sits up straight on his chair. 

He messed up. 

Akumabug looks up at him, face unreadable. She suddenly appears right beside him at breakneck speed, and he winces when she grabs his face, nails digging hard into his head. She drags him as she stands to her full height, straining his neck and pulling him towards her, as far as his body allows her to. Chat Noir breathes in quick successions at how fast it all happens; how close he is to her face. 

Her eyes dart between his own as if searching for something he doesn’t know he holds. 

Then, she releases him. He falls backwards onto his chair, rocking with it. He feels his chest heaving and his blood pumping in his ears, but he’s keeping his eyes on her. That's the least he can do. Akumabug walks backwards, away from him, her expressionless features morphing into delighted ones as she nears the table again, “What you need is food!” 

She snaps her fingers and a ball of spaghetti falls onto the plate right before him, sauce splattering everywhere on the grey cloth. 

“Bon appétit !” She bends over and puts her elbows on the table again, head propped up on the back of her hands. Akumabug watches him and smiles, like a lover who can’t take her eyes off of him. 

“Uh…” 

“Oh, silly me,” she laughs and goes behind him to push the chair closer to the table. Chat Noir struggles again but quickly stops as a sharp, cooling sensation presses against his neck. 

Her face suddenly appears right next to his and he feels the pressure against his neck increasing. “What part of ‘stop doing that’ do you not understand, Chat Noir?”  

Flinching at the sting on his neck, he blinks and eyes her hard stare. Something must be very wrong with him because he still finds her beautiful even when she’s holding a sharp blade to his neck. Chat Noir chooses to stay silent. 

She searches his eyes further before removing the metal—a dagger with traces of his blood—from his neck and settling it down on the table. Akumabug moves to his plate and starts mixing up the spaghetti with utensils that appeared out of thin air. Once she rolls a mouthful of spaghetti onto the spoon, she holds it out to him, “Here.” 

Chat Noir leans as far back as he possibly can, to not open the wound she has just given him any further, while still being cautious enough to not trigger another terrifying event like the ones before. 

“It’s not poisoned if that’s what you’re worried about?” She asks with a smile and brings the food closer to him.

Chat Noir looks away from her. 

Akumabug sighs. “Don’t you trust me, Chaton? It’s delicious too! I know my way around the kitchen.”

“Hard to believe when all I see is you creating food out of thin air.” His eyes widen at his own remark. 

Why did he say that?! This isn’t his Lady! 

She huffs. “How mean. I made this just for you and you won’t even try it.” She directs the spoon to her own mouth and chomps on the utensil. Chat Noir flinches at the sound of the impact. 

“Mhmm!” She hums while chewing on the mouthful, eyes closed and swaying her body side to side, “My creations don’t disappoint!” 

Akumabug licks her lips clean and swallows; Chat Noir gulps at the sight. 

“Come on,” she holds out another spoonful again, “I know you want some. You’re starving.” 

As if on cue, his stomach starts growling. Chat Noir sets his jaw and closes his eyes. 

And it’s quiet again.

He knows that she’ll probably threaten him more, and he’ll deal with what she throws at him when the time comes. But for now, he‘ll cut off any contact he has with her and focus on centring his Cataclysm at the tip of his claws. Any wrong move could spell disaster on his part.  

The sound of her yo-yo opening reverberates around him, and then it’s deafening stillness again. It’s his signal to act. 

He whispers, “Cata—”

“Please eat.” 

He still doesn’t want to open his mouth, but he does anyway. Chat Noir opens his eyes and parts his trembling lips. 

Akumabug pushes the spoon into his mouth gently, surprising him. He regards her as his lips slowly wrap around the spoon, and she pulls it out. A burst of flavours colours his mouth when he chews, but everything outside is bland and stale. Except for the tears trickling down one of her cheeks. Huh?

He swallows, “Ladybug?” 

“Still won’t call me your Lady, huh?” She sniffs as she rolls another ball of spaghetti onto the spoon and brings it to his mouth. 

He pushes the spoon away with his cheek and peers at her, “Buguinette, what’s wrong?”  

Eyes wide, she stares at him with a slightly open mouth. 

“Buguinette?” 

“You haven’t called me that in a while…” 

“I—”

She grabs his cheeks to open his mouth, pushes the spoon into his mouth again, and releases her hand as soon as he bites. 

He quickly gulps and tries to get her attention again, but she shoves another spoonful into his mouth as soon as he opens his mouth. 

A smile returns to her face; her body posture exudes contentment. The way she smiles is so familiar, he almost forgets that she’s currently not his Lady. God, this isn’t his Lady!! Chat Noir racks his mind for what he can do. How he can get rid of the Akuma. But he has no idea where to even find the Akuma. 

“What a kitten,” she suddenly giggles, “you’ve made a mess of yourself. Let me clean that for you.” 

Chat Noir expects her to create a serviette out of thin air, but instead, she leans into his space, and he jerks backwards as soon as he feels something wet touch the skin next to his lips. 

He stares at her, feeling his eyeballs about to pop out of their sockets and his face hot. He can’t believe she just did that. 

She raises a brow, moving towards him again. 

“Wait!” 

She grins at his reaction. “What a rare sight. Is mon Chaton shy? It’s just a lick, we do this all the time.” 

“What?!”

She grabs the back of his neck to stop him from moving. 

“Please, don’t,” he begs as she moves in. 

The glee is still on her face. “Oh well, since you asked so nicely,” she pulls back and summons a serviette from her hand. “I can at the very least wipe it off of you, hmm, Chaton?” 

Chat Noir inhales and slowly nods. Akumabug beams as she once again gets into his space, this time climbing effortlessly onto his lap. Her index finger reaches for the bottom of his chin and tilts his head upwards as though evaluating him. The other hand dabs on the excess tomato sauce on his skin, and the tightness in his chest makes its presence known again. 

“There, all clean!” She boops his nose. “It would’ve been so much more fun if I could lick those off though.” 

Chat Noir whimpers. 

“I’m just teasing!” she pats his head. “Wouldn’t want you to feel uncomfortable now, would we?” She smiles. 

Her smile is really starting to get unsettling. “Er… right…” 

She removes her hand and goes back to sit right across him, in the same manner as he first saw her. 

“Why are you grinning like that?” He decides that her smile is sinister now. 

“Hmm? Because you’re amusing.” 

Chat Noir raises an eyebrow. “I’m not doing anything but staring at you?” 

“Oh? You sure that’s all you’re doing, Minou? Aren’t you trying to think of something to get me to give up my Akuma?” She says as she stalks over again to sit near him on the table, eyes never leaving him. 

His eyes widen a little and she cackles. “Oh, what a cute little kitten.”

Akumabug once again reaches out to him and pats his head. “Don’t worry your pretty head over this, Chaton.” 

He tries to say something, but she cuts him.

“I’m still Ladybug.” 

“Monarch akumatised you! You even admitted that you have an Akuma!” 

She tilts her head and considers him. 

“You must’ve hurt your head pretty badly.” 

“Huh??” That’s what she got from that?

She moves closer and ruffles his hair softly, until a sharp pain erupts from the back of his head. She must’ve caught him scrunching his nose because she immediately jerks her hand away. “Shit, it wasn’t enough.” Akumabug looks at the plate of cold spaghetti and starts mixing again. “You need food to gain more energy, Chat Noir.”

“Ladybug,” he rasps softly and she looks at him. “What’s going on, really?” 

“You really don’t remember?” 

He shakes his head lightly, but quickly stops as the pounding gets harder. “Argh…” 

Chat Noir hears Akumabug snap her fingers again, he peeks and catches a glimpse of a first aid box on the table. 

“It’s going to hurt for a while, Chat Noir,” she informs as she comes closer again. “Bear with me.” 

“What are you…” 

“I’m going to use some alcohol swabs to disinfect the area, then I’ll use my superpower to enhance the healing process.” 

“You can… do that?”

“Creations of new cells. It won’t heal perfectly now, but the road to recovery will definitely be a lot quicker.” 

Chat Noir looks at her, “Talk to me about what happened to distract me from the pain?” 

The seriousness on her face dissipates, quickly replaced with a smile. God, she looks so beautiful. Even as Akumabug, her determination never wavers. That’s what made him fall in love in the first place. 

She leans in and plants a kiss on his cheek, and cackles as his expression morphs into disbelief once again. 

“Right, so you must know I was fighting Monarch, to end up in this state right? And because we’re a team, you’re always there with me.” 

He hisses when she applies pressure on the spot. “Yeah?” 

“Well, basically you got flung across the room and hit your head real hard.” She stops her movement. “Must’ve cracked some bones, I’ve never heard anything like it.” 

She hovers her hands lightly over his wound and begins her magic. “So he went into this whole monologue, something something final battle with me, something something ‘I’m doing this for my family’. Whatever he said affected me so much that he thought he could make use of my emotions against me. Well, wrong move! I took him out and here we are.”

“But—” 

“That’s really all you need to know, Chat Noir. Now just relax, I’m going to hasten the healing process.” The pain—on both his head and neck—increases for a while before dulling.

Once Akumabug removes her hands from him, she turns around and takes the plate of spaghetti again. 

“Please Ladybug, I don’t think I can eat anymore.”

She looks between him and the plate and puts it down. 

“Alright. Since you don’t want to eat, how about some dessert? Everyone has space for dessert! And you still need to heal.” She begins walking away to god knows where. 

There’s really no way to reach out to Akumabug, huh? She doesn’t seem to understand what he meant when he said he can’t eat anymore. His appetite doesn’t exist anymore as long as she’s like that. 

And this is really the time to use his Cataclysm if he ever wants a chance to escape. However, it’s a risk now that he can’t concentrate well. Not with the slight pounding in his head. 

Besides, there’s something that’s been nagging at him ever since he regained consciousness.  

And suddenly, he remembers. 

He hears Akumabug’s footsteps getting closer and closer. She walks past him, a huge plate with a cloche in her hands. She drops the plate on the table and it lands so roughly that he’s surprised everything still looks as presentable as she had first held them. 

Her fingers reach for the knob. “Do you want to know what his last moments were like?” 

That. 

A chill runs down his spine. The intensity of her gaze reveals that she’ll accept no other answer but yes. 

Chat Noir gulps. 

“Wha… What did you do?” 

“Ah, I still relish in his screams and his blood on my face as each slash tore through his skin.” Her eyes brighten as she recounts. “Dangling the illusion of being able to get away from me right in front of him, as I slowly walked after him and he got further and further away. The desperation of his panting increasing as he kept going, but found no escape anywhere. My presence constantly overshadowed him, waiting to pounce. The sweet despair in his eyes when he finally realised that he had nowhere to run. The final sensation of the metal gliding across flesh, and the satisfaction of witnessing it rolling, until it comes to a stop at my feet.” 

The pounding headache has come back in full force, and he tries to breathe deeply to calm his heart that’s slamming against his rib cage. But he can’t. He can’t do anything. His body has chosen ‘freeze’ as the optimal response to what’s happening around him.

Akumabug bites her lower lip, as though she’s really eager to show him something within the cloche as she slowly lifts it away from the plate. 

“I hope you enjoy your dessert.” 

His breathing quickens. She raises the cloche open but Chat Noir slams his eyes shut and screams, “No!” 

When all he can hear is his loud panting, he slowly peeks open his eyes to glance at the plate. 

A cake like any other. 

“Sheesh, I’m not that crazy.” She proceeds to throw the cloche high in the air, and it hits something as she walks back to her seat.

Chat Noir looks up—to see Monarch hanging from the ceiling. 

He whips his head back down to his lap. This can’t be happening, this can’t be happening, this can’t be happening! Shit shit shit! What happened to push one of the kindest and most loving souls he knew to this length? 

What was it!! 

“…Adrien?” 

Chat Noir tenses. He directs his attention to her, a pleasant smile now present on her face, but she isn’t looking at him. Rather, she’s looking at her palm. 

“I asked,” she repeats nonchalantly, “how’s Adrien?” 

He remains dumbstruck. What is even happening anymore? 

“Is he fine? Is he coping well? How’s he feeling?” She looks up from her palms and at him.  

“Wha— Why would I know how he's doing?” 

“Because,” Akumabug approaches him and gently takes his left hand. Chat Noir allows her to stretch his palms open—holding them out as though she had just proposed and he had said yes—and pushes two rings he knows very well onto his ring finger. 

“He’s you.” 

The battle starts on the outskirts of Paris. Once it is done and dusted, the next one begins. The area suffers damages during the few minutes the superheroes take to feed their Kwamis, and while this second battle is insanely difficult to deal with, they manage to stop the Akuma.

They always do. 

But even before Misterbug releases the purified butterfly from his yo-yo, another Akuma appears and Lady Noire’s growling in frustration.

“Hawkmoth’s really having the time of his life, huh? To have this many Akuma appearing in the same place at the same time!” 

Misterbug can’t disagree with her. He’s only glad that at least they don’t need to rely on food to recharge their Kwamis anymore, although the immediate energy boost that comes with feeding them would be amazing at this moment.

But he’s running out of macarons, and if there are more Akumas, it’ll severely impair his ability to fight. 

“I’ll go first!” is the only thing he hears Lady Noire huffing before she’s gone from his sight.

When he arrives at the scene, Lady Noire is showing no mercy against the Akuma. Hopefully, she has some food left to feed Plagg to gain back the energy she’s lost. 

After countless consecutive battles into the next day, both of them are excessively tired. Misterbug is trying to stand as tall as he can on the rooftop for a lookout for Akumas, and Lady Noire is sitting beside him, leaning her whole body against his leg.  

He concludes that that was indeed their last battle and thanks his lucky ladybugs because they only had to fight one Akuma without a recharge. 

He thanks them again when Lady Noire sleepily tells him that there’s an empty place nearby they can sleep in before heading back home. 

Misterbug’s too tired to care about the implications, he just wants to crash. So he reaches down for Lady Noire. With her cheek in his palm, he gently lifts her head off of his leg as he squats. He holds onto her shoulder and softly taps her cheek to wake her up and get her to climb onto his back. 

He once again thanks his lucky ladybugs.

On his back, Lady Noire groggily directs him to their destination and he lands clumsily on the balcony. 

He opens the heavy balcony door to the room and immediately looks for a bed, only to freeze in his place from the realisation that there’s a problem with the whole setup. 

The fluffy and comfy bed that everyone climbs in at the end of the day—there’s only one. 

Misterbug sits heavily on the bed, unwrapping Lady Noire from him to get her to lie down before searching the apartment. The cold hits him on all sides and every ache in his body protests. He misses her warmth so badly that he just wants to abandon the chore that his brain thinks he should do. He turns around, ready to snuggle beside Lady Noire, but when he sees her unmoving figure and peaceful face, he forces himself back to the task at hand.   

The faster he completes the task, the faster he can sleep. Misterbug bounces to his feet, which proves to be a bad idea as he feels the whole floor wobbling. He grabs onto the wall nearby to steady his balance. 

He runs his hands down his face and gets to work. 

It isn’t a very huge apartment, so he knows with one look that there are no other beds. He does find a sofa in the living room, though, and he decides that he can and will be sleeping on that. He just needs to check on Lady Noire one last time to make sure she’s nicely tucked into bed before he crashes once and for all. 

He returns to the bedroom to see that she has shifted from the position he had left her in. She’s now upside down with half her body off the bed, stretching in a way that has Misterbug blushing and rooted to the ground. How is it possible for him to feel hot, but cold at the same time?

“Oh, the bed is so comfy, Buguinet,” she purrs and continues stretching, “Do you want to lay down and sleep with me for a bit?” 

Misterbug clenches his fists. He wants to. He desperately wants to. He just wants to lie down somewhere to stop the pounding in his head. And what better way to spend the night other than in his Lady’s arms? 

His headache will go away too.

Now, that’s an added bonus!

Lady Noire looks so welcoming he just wants to lay down and cuddle against her warm kitty body, bask in her scent, and sleep the night away. 

Pain burns the sides of his face before he can fully comprehend that he had slapped both of his hands on his cheeks. 

The exhaustion is messing with his mind.

And probably hers too. 

Misterbug steps towards her and kneels on the bed. Lady Noire is smiling ever so sweetly at him that he almost gives in. His thread of reasoning almost burns away with how warm he’s feeling, but he quickly grabs the sides of the blanket and wraps her into a burrito, lifting and flipping her over so that her head is on the pillow. Lady Noire is too stunned to move but now that her head is right side up, she thrashes as much as the burrito allows her to.

“Wh–What the hell are you doing?!” she hisses. 

He leans in to kiss her forehead before pointing to where he’ll be sleeping, “You can take the bed, I’ll sleep on the sofa. Good night!” 

Misterbug leaves the room without bothering to answer her question. She’s too fatigued to understand him anyway. 

He plops onto the sofa as soon as he gets there. Even though he’s sleeping next door with windows closed, slight chills crawl up his spine. He’s so tired. Misterbug tries his best to ignore it—it’s just a minor itch after all—and shifts around until he gets into a position comfortable enough to fall asleep with ease. 

Just as he’s about to fall into Slumber’s embrace, his ears pick up on soft whines. 

“Misterbug, release me!” 

He blinks multiple times to consciousness, and he hears her soft pleas again. 

“Buguinet, please! I can’t sleep like this.” 

Lady Noire’s pull is amazing. Misterbug is drawn to her; she sounds just like a little wet kitty begging for his attention, but he can’t risk it. He knows what she’s capable of, and now that her filter is completely gone, Misterbug isn’t sure he can handle it. 

Who is he kidding? He could never resist her even if every fibre of his being is screaming at him to do so. If she mewls one more time, he’ll go to her. 

But the next mewl never comes. The apartment is deadly silent now. 

Misterbug rolls over, about to leave the sofa when he feels warmth descending upon him. 

Lady Noire has gracefully made herself at home on top of him and her cheek is pushed against his own. She is attached to him from head to toe. 

He is too tired to do anything about their current position, and besides, the weight pressing down on him and her warmth against his skin are really welcome. She’s like the weighted blanket he has at home and he couldn’t be happier. 

Misterbug swiftly drifts to the edge of snoozing when she starts purring, and he can’t help but chuckle. 

“Lady Noire.” 

“Oh, sorry.” She shakily stands up—her left top cap hitting against the floor so heavily a loud thud resounds around him—and lifts his arms awkwardly to wrap them around herself, so she can snuggle into his chest. “Ah, you’re so warm.”

He laughs. What did I expect? Misterbug looks down to see her constantly shifting. 

“Chaton. I’m trying to sleep.” 

Her shifting continues. “Well, so am I.” 

Misterbug exhales, amused at her tactics.

Oh, his poor needy kitty. 

He knows that she wants him to hold her, but he lets go and strokes her head instead. 

Lady Noire looks up from his chest with a pout. “Why don’t you want to sleep with me?”

His hand stops. “It’s a small bed. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable. Besides, you don’t know what you’re asking for.”

She pushes her face into his chest again and shifts some more. 

“My Lady…”

“I’m not uncomfortable, and I want to sleep with you beside me.” She slowly peeks at him again, “Unless… you’re… you’re not comfortable sleeping with me?”

Misterbug can’t believe that she would even come to that conclusion. He wants to squeeze her pouty cheeks, chiding her for arriving at that deduction, but mainly because she looks so cute. 

And very wrong. 

Lady Noire can’t be further from the truth.

He tightens his arm around her waist. “Why wouldn’t I be? I like having you around.” He scratches her under the chin, “You’re my favourite kitty.”

Lady Noire purrs, as though very content with him, reminding him of his feelings for her. The soothing sound goes on for a while. Until she, Misterbug deduces, remembers that she’s supposed to be angry with him for not wanting to sleep with her. Because she suddenly bites him. 

She chomps his index finger. Misterbug’s too tired to pull his hand away in time, so he allows her to continue nibbling on it until she’s satisfied, letting go and snuggling into his chest even more. 

She’s such a kitten. 

He should carry her back to the bed because there is no way she is letting him go now and there’s more space there for them to have a good night’s rest. 

Her legs wrap around him when he sits up, and she clings onto him like her life depends on it when he stands. 

Lady Noire locks her thighs behind his waist and curls her tail around his left leg as he stumbles towards the bed. 

“I’m not going anywhere, my sweet kitty.”

“No.” She secures her arms around his neck even tighter, pushing her face into his neck. “You’re gonna put me on the bed again and wrap me into a burrito and then go back to the sofa and leave me—”

“Purrito.”

“What?”

“Wrap you into a purrito.”

She loosens her hold and raises an eyebrow at him. “Wrap me into a purrito and then go back to the sofa and leave me all alone on the bed again.” Her face is back at his neck again. “But this time you’re gonna make sure you coil your yo-yo around—”

“I’m not going to do that.” He chuckles and climbs onto the bed. “Even though I should.”

Lady Noire whines as her back lands on the bed, but she stops when she sees the blanket draped over them. 

“You’re safe, my Lady.” Misterbug gently pries her arms away from his neck so that he can give her a forehead kiss. “Now, sleep, mon Chaton. We really need it.”

He turns away, moving as close to the edge of the bed and as far away from her as possible. 

He said he did not care about the implications of sleeping in the same apartment together, but in the same bed? Now, that’s scandalous. No one must know—not that it matters. Literally no one else is there nor has seen them in the dead of the night. 

The public can’t know.

The bed covers rustle before he feels two hands wrapping around his waist. 

He must’ve used too much of his lucky ladybugs’ magical powers earlier because nothing seems to go according to his plan ever since he stepped into this apartment!

“Er, Lady Noire?” he wheezes. This is too much contact. Her whole body is pressed against his back and he’s enjoying it too much for it to be considered appropriate. “What are you doing?”

“Hug the bug.”

“What?” He has enough air to expel from his lungs? How is he still breathing? His insides should’ve melted by now.

“Hug the bug,” she explains, as though repeating the same sentence would get him to understand her. “I saw it online: your fans use ‘hashtag-hug-the-bug’ to show their gratitude to you. And I’m your fan too.”

He swears he’s having a heart attack right now. “B–But isn’t that inappropriate?” he squeaks. 

“Hmm, you’re right.” 

Misterbug’s sure she’ll release him, and he’ll be able to breathe again and go back to sleep. Instead, he releases the most unrestrained squeal when Lady Noire squeezes him tighter.

“I’m not just a fan. I’m your friend too! And friends sleep together!”

Hhhhhhhhggggggggggggnnnnnnnnnnhhhhhhhhhhhh! 

He should’ve listened to every fibre in his being from before. Lady Noire is actively trying to kill him. 

“N–No?”

“Yes.”

“What? No!”

“Yes! I sleep with my friends all the time!”

Misterbug has never flipped around so fast in his life. 

Even in the face of death. 

“What!” 

She can’t be serious.

Lady Noire releases her hands and snuggles into his chest once again. “I sleep with my friends all the time.” 

He grabs her upper arms and shakes “No, no, no! My Lady, look at me! What do you mean? With who?!”

A frown etches itself onto her mouth as Misterbug once again pushes her away from his chest. “Argh, let me sleep!” 

He hugs her against his chest and asks again, “Lady Noire, what do you mean you sleep with your friends?” 

She looks up at him and smiles. “You know? Sleep and cuddle in the same bed together, like… like a— a sleepover! Yeah, that’s the word! I have sleepovers with my friends all the time!” 

Oh.

A sleepover. That’s what she meant. 

Misterbug releases a sigh of relief. Yeah, that’s normal, something he knew people his age do all the time. 

But wait. 

“You mean with girl friends and guy friends?” 

His eyes widened as soon as she replied without hesitation. 

“Yep!” She buries her head into his chest as though she’s too shy to admit it. 

No way. No freaking way! 

He understands she has her own life outside of superheroing, but to have another guy snuggling with her? Before he even has the chance to? 

Unfair!

She peers at him again. “Oh wait, no I didn’t. Only with girls.” 

YES! He’s the first!! 

No wai—

“But you’re my favourite, Buguinet.” 

Misterbug quickly flashes her his teeth. “I’m your only Buguinet.” 

She pushes her face into his neck and giggles. “My favourite Buguinet in the whole wide world!” 

He smiles fondly as she circles her arms around his neck, bringing herself impossibly close to him. In response, he wraps his arms around her too and feels the vibrations of her soft purrs with his touch. 

Misterbug plans, really plans, to leave the bed as soon as Lady Noire falls asleep. But after learning that he can be the first guy she sleeps in the same bed with? He isn’t strong enough to ruin his own opportunity like that. 

She has also been pretty adamant about sleeping with him, even though he has tried his literal best to prove that she’s not thinking straight—to no avail.

So, he’ll just go with it for now and settle for cuddling and snuggling with her for the rest of the night. He has waited long enough for this to happen. His future self can deal with what could possibly happen later. 

Because for now, Misterbug will just embrace his Lady and have this very platonic sleep with her. With her hands around his neck, his around her waist, and her on top of him, weighing him down like his weighted blanket on this cold quiet night. Except it isn’t a quiet one anymore with her purring so contently, but that’s like a lullaby pulling him towards sleep. 

Misterbug’s so blessed. 

A feather-light sensation that he feels all over his body brings him out of his head, and he sees the Ladybugs encasing him. They use their magical powers to heal the heavy blow he had sustained from the enemy and undo the damage he had suffered after being propelled across the city. The healing process is painless and Chat Noir is back on his feet again, feeling as upbeat as he had before the start of the battle. 

Once the Miraculous Ladybugs have done their job, they proceed to scatter in all other directions, and all Chat Noir wants is to be by his Lady again as soon as possible. He heads towards where he last saw her, hoping that she’s at least in the vicinity and not somewhere else. He can’t fathom the thought of her being punched like the way he was. 

That’s when Chat Noir notices that the Ladybugs are still flying around, restoring the city to its former appearance. 

Was their battle that extensive? 

He’s getting more worried by the second and he quickens his pace. 

As he nears the area, he sees Ladybug comforting the rescued akumatised victim, paying no attention to the magical Ladybugs that surround her briefly. One of her hands is on the victim’s shoulder, while the other is clenching onto her yo-yo. 

She isn’t usually this impatient to leave after a battle…   

“That was another job well done, My Lady!” He comments as he lands right next to her, holding his fist in midair. She whips her head towards him, eyes wide and darting between his own pair of eyes. Ladybug seems to be reaching out to grab his arms before she suddenly retracts them. She bites her lower lip, lowering and clutching her hands before she raises one to fist bump him softly.

Her eyes never leave his, as though she’s searching for something. 

Chat Noir hears the crowd approaching, and that’s their cue to leave. He readies his baton, but he feels a tug on his belt. 

“Chaton, wait!” She swallows and clears her throat. “Your injury. Let me see it.” Ladybug lets go of his tail. 

“It’s gone. Your Miraculous Ladybug can heal, remember?” He says as he turns to face her. 

She isn’t looking at him now, she’s fixated on his rib area, where he was punched. She moves closer, hands extending to his “wound” before she decides to put them on his arm. “You can never be too sure.” 

Chat Noir sends a smile. “I’m feeling superb, my Lady!” 

Ladybug lifts her gaze, eyes shinier than what he remembered, and peers into his, tugging at his arm this time. “Please.” 

It’s only then that he realises her insistence is more than her desire to look at and treat his non-existent wound. She wants to be closer. Ladybug has always been close, be it physically or in his mind. But since the fallout of the battle against Strike Back, she has been clinging onto him like he’s her lifeline. 

Chat Noir really doesn’t have a problem with her wanting to be close. That much attention on him? Who is he to complain? 

Her change in behaviour is getting a bit worrisome. They aren’t bantering as much as before, like she’s too afraid of offending him with her sharp tongue. 

As if sharp words would be enough to drive him away after they’ve been through so much together. He has seen her at her worst. Besides, bantering is his favourite pastime with her.

Ladybug has since then, begun giving him a pat-down on his body every time, making sure to check that zero injuries are left on him before she lets him go. She isn’t as rough as she used to be with him, as though she thought Chat Noir would just suddenly disappear without explanation if she manhandled him too much.  

The beeping of their Miraculouses catches his attention, and Ladybug looks like she’s about to cry at the sound. 

Chat Noir surveys the growing crowd before facing her again. “Okay, let’s get away from this place and recharge, then you can have me.” 

Her eyes light up immediately, and she pulls him along, heading to another rooftop far away from the crowd. 

They stand at opposite sides of a giant pillar and call off their transformation. Adrien feeds Plagg his beloved Camembert silently—the Kwami takes his time to savour that disgusting cheese—and he thinks about what to do to comfort her once they are suited up again. 

Ladybug was already worried as heck when he got Cataclysm-ed the last time, even though he could still move around and fight. 

He doesn’t know how to put her at ease. How does one calm their partner down when one doesn't even know what has happened? 

It was all a blur, all Chat Noir knew was that he felt a heavy impact on his ribs, and then, he could hardly move and breathe anymore. 

Plagg finishes his Camembert, and Adrien suddenly remembers that Plagg can feel whatever Chat Noir feels. 

“Plagg, are you okay?!” 

“After my beloved Camembert? Definitely! Now let’s go!” 

Adrien exhales, amused. Plagg will always be Plagg. He calls for his transformation and is immediately tackled to the ground by something. 

That something? 

Ladybug. 

━━━━━━

Pain flares in her hands with the force of her tackle as they fall onto the rooftop. But she couldn’t care less about that right now. Not after what he went through. 

“Buguinette?” 

Ladybug wraps her arms around him, refusing to let go. She tries hard not to remember the sound that could be heard from his ribs when Clout was used on him. She tries not to think about how far he flew away from her when it happened. She tries not to imagine how messed up his body was after that. 

She tries, but they keep replaying in her mind. 

Ladybug tightens her arms around his waist and presses the side of her face into his chest.

Sturdy. 

Warm. 

Healthy. 

A beating heart. 

“I’m so glad you’re okay, mon Minou!” she cries. 

Chat Noir wraps his arms around her and rubs his hand along her back. “I’m okay, My Lady. I’m still here.” 

“Will you stop being so reckless?” 

“And give up the opportunity for you to tackle me every time? Never.”

Ladybug lifts her head from his chest with furrowed brows, her hands reaching his cheeks to squeeze and pull.

“Ow!” His hands rush to her forearms and quickly tighten around them. 

“I’m serious, Chat Noir,” hoping that her face shows how stern she is now that she’s up close to his. 

He chuckles, messaging her arms to coax them into releasing him. “Will you stop being reckless too?” 

Ladybug looks away and releases her hold on his face. “I can’t, the Miraculouses…” 

Chat Noir rubs her arms. “Then you should know that I can’t either.” 

Ladybug stares back at him, wanting to be angry at him for his response, but she’d be a hypocrite if she did. And it’s unfair for her to react like this, because she knows that this is affecting him as much as it’s affecting her. 

It’s her and him now. The ever-present weight of the world falls on their shoulders, not just hers anymore. A weight they can only share with each other.

Yes, she has Alya to support her too, but she wants to be able to support Chat Noir too. She doesn’t want him to be alone again when they are fulfilling their superhero duties. 

Never again. 

Ladybug surges forward and circles her arms around his neck, placing her chin on his shoulders. 

“At least be careful. Promise me you’ll be extra careful from now on.” 

Chat Noir wraps his arms around her, bringing her closer to him. “I promise.” 

Despite his word, Ladybug still doesn’t feel at ease. She buries her head into his neck, trying to be as close to him as possible. 

Being this close to him, feeling his warmth and his heartbeat against her own, lessens her worry a bit. So she continues laying on top of him. She has plenty of time before she detransforms again, after all. 

It’s so nice and cosy being this close to him, with his hands rubbing soothing circles on her back, and him being okay with enveloping her in an embrace. The light of the day drains away as time passes, painting their surroundings with the soft colours of lavender and pink before dark blue descends upon them. Ladybug knows it would be a sight to witness, especially with him by her side, but all she sees is gold.

His hair tickling her face should’ve encouraged her to move away, but she needs to feel all of him against all of her, even that tingly sensation. She moves to breathe in his scent, and now, all her senses are filled with him. 

The more she breathes him in, the more she loves his scent. But Ladybug really hates her brain sometimes, because the moment she thinks of something as enjoyable, her brain will steer her away from the pleasure and present to her the worst-case scenario. 

What if she’s never able to smell his scent again?

Memories of her Chaton in white, cold and distant, flood her brain. Chat Blanc was still Chat Noir deep down, but she couldn’t recognise him at all. 

Ladybug couldn’t even get close to Chat Blanc. She realises now that she took for granted how easy it was to be close with Chat Noir. 

“My Lady.”

The recollection sets her heart racing again and she pushes her nose into his neck, nuzzling and inhaling him as deeply as she can. She’s so focused on the act that she didn’t even notice Chat Noir’s hands have stopped in their tracks. 

“My Lady.” He starts to pull back, but isn’t able to move far with the grip she has on him. “What are you doing?”

“Nothing.” She speaks and she feels her own lips vibrating against his neck, causing him to suck in a gulp of air. “Just enjoying your scent. Partners do that right?” 

“I—”

“Partners bathe in each other’s scent when they hug and cuddle and get cosy, right?”

Ladybug doesn’t move, waiting for his answer, hoping it’ll be permission to continue… whatever she’s doing. She doesn’t want him to push her away. Not now, not ever. 

She feels herself sinking as Chat Noir exhales, realising that he’s been holding his breath for who knows how long. “Yeah.” 

His voice is so close. Ladybug shivers as she remembers how Chat Blanc had called to her. How desperate he was to get out of that place of loneliness that he was willing to fight her.  

And as though that memory wasn’t painful enough, her brain reminds her that she’d pushed him away a second time, to the point where he left his Miraculous with her. 

He was gone just like that, like a part of her vanished, and no way to reach it. She was just extending her arms aimlessly, hoping to grab onto something that was long gone.

It awakens memories of how distressed she was when he wasn’t around. But Chat Noir is right here with her now. Words can never describe how thankful she is to be able to be in his embrace like this.  

Ladybug feels a hand at the back of her head, just above her nape, pushing her against what she now recognises as his neck. 

“I’m still here, My Lady.”

And she feels her own tears leaking from her eyes, completely unaware that her vision has been blurry for a while now. 

Chat Noir directs his attention to her, “Oh I was stiff? Haha, I didn’t notice…”

He visibly arches his back, bringing his hands above his head to stretch his whole body.

And her hand falls from where it was so comfortable being.

“Thank you, my Lady, for always looking out for me.”

She smiles at him, then continues staring into the blank space from before, crossing her arms over her knees and tucking her head into them.

Ladybug is not expecting the breeze that’s flowing through her hair to be as calming as this, and she can’t help but close her eyes at the ease it brings her. 

That is until she feels something pushing her bangs out of the way to reveal her eyes. 

She blinks, then stares at black gloves before moving her eyes to see his greens. 

“What’s gotten you so sad, my Lady?”

Sad? 

Well, lots of things, and mainly one. But she doesn’t want him to feel responsible for it, she’ll never do that to him. 

Ladybug smiles again, “Sad? Oh no, you must have mistaken it for tiredness, I did sleep later than usual last night, so don’t have to worry your pretty—”

Both of their eyes widened. 

“I-I mean… don’t have to worry your head over me. Just need a couple more hours of rest and I’ll be fine!”

“Speaking of which,” Ladybug slowly stands up, “I should go before I look any more tired huh?”

She’s looking up now, Chat Noir has risen to his feet together with her. 

Something is lingering behind his eyes too. 

Ladybug waves, “see you soon, Chat Noir,” and reaches for her yo-yo, only to feel his hands on hers soon after. 

“Ladybug, we’re still friends right?”

Ah.

She drops her hand and grabs his. “Yes, of course! Why wouldn’t we be?”

“You’re not… letting me help you…”

Ladybug bites her lower lips, “Of course I am! You enabled me to know how I truly am feeling! That’s plenty of help—”

“Buguinette.”

If she has any other lingering thoughts to share, they all disappeared when he uttered that nickname. 

She lowers her head and releases her hold on his hands, gently running both of her hands up his palm, waiting to see if he’ll move away from her, waiting to see when he’d grab her forearms to ask what the hell she’s doing. 

Chat Noir does none of that, instead, he lets her trace her palms to his elbows, and she moves forward, bit by bit, slowly lifting her hands away from his arms, and steadily circles his waist. 

Ladybug carefully steps into his embrace, worried he’ll pull back anytime. 

Again he remains rooted to the rooftop. 

When she’s chest to chest with him, it brings back memories of how tightly he had hugged her a while back. 

She looks away from him, blinking, and fails to notice his sudden hitch of breath.

“It’s… complicated…”

Ladybug feels his arms shifting, circling them around her shoulders. 

She blinks even more. 

Chat Noir tucks his face into the space beside her neck, “I’m always here.”

Ladybug shakes and Chat Noir pulls back, not too far, but just enough to look at her. 

“I understand Ladybug, it may be difficult now, but know that I am always here for you.”

She gazes at him, and he gazes back. And slowly, she sees that he’s leaning into her as if he’s so shy to do so. 

Ladybug continues looking, and Chat Noir doesn’t stop, until he places a cheek kiss on her. 

Her breath gets stuck in her throat before she focuses on him again. 

“I—”

She places a hand on his cheek and caresses him while smiling. “Thank you, mon Chaton.”

The smile she shows must be a genuine one, because Chat Noir shares a grin of his own, “Anytime, my Lady.”

Ladybug pulls back, her hand still lingering on his as her other hand reaches for the yo-yo. “I’ll be going, see you soon.”

“Yeah, see you.”

But their hands are still connected. 

She shifts her fingers slightly, and so does he, stroking each other’s hands as gently as possible, afraid that too much force would yank them apart.

It’s as if they wanted to hold onto each other a while longer, and she believes that to be the case because she definitely wants to.

But she slowly retracts, and he stops his caress.

What a kitten. Ladybug wonders if he’s like this when he’s not Chat Noir. 

She really wants to know. 

“So that they last forever, silly,” she boops his nose as he pouts.

“But you’re supposed to admire their beauty!”

“That I’m doing Chaton. They haven’t exactly left my face the moment you gave them to me,” Ladybug wiggles the roses a bit in her hands, “but I prefer to still have them a few years down the road.”

He plops right beside her, grumbling, “But Buguinette, they won’t look fresh anymore.”

She scratches his chin, “Trust me Chaton, they might change a little, yes, but they’ll still be as beautiful as before.”

Chat Noir purrs, closing his eyes at the sensation. “Show them to me once you’re done hanging them by their feet.” 

She runs her fingers through his hair, “Of course!”

Chat Noir moves in and rests his head on her shoulders. He takes a piece of Chouquette from the packet and brings it to her mouth aimlessly, and Ladybug moves to bite it from his hand. 

“You're planning to share that right?”

He looks down into the packet. 

“Er…”

“Chat Noir!”

He takes shelter from her as Ladybug starts raining down soft blows on him with her pillow. “Shh! My Lady, it’s past midnight, keep it down!”

“Nobody sleeps past midnight in Paris, now come here!”

They continue their pillow fight, except it isn’t exactly one when Ladybug is chasing Chat Noir and hitting him with her pillow while he runs away and protects himself from her harmless swings. Both having fun and not really caring how loud they get as they laugh at the top of their lungs, and that’s when Ladybug finally catches him. 

They end up on Chat Noir’s section of the makeshift blanket bed, Ladybug sitting on him while he protects his face with his arms from her attacks. 

She throws her pillow beside his head and takes her yo-yo, reaching in to pull out another packet of Chouquettes.

Chat Noir stares at her hands, wide-eyed. “We went through all of THAT, only for you to already have another packet?!”

Ladybug smirks as she rolls off of him, plopping into the spot next to him, “You’re telling me you'd rather not play?”

He puffs his cheeks and immediately tries to steal the packet from her again.

“Chat Noir! NO!” Ladybug hurries to shove as many Chouquettes into her mouth as possible.

He seizes the packet, “Oh no you don’t!”

They continue wrestling until the remaining Chouquettes fall onto the blankets. 

“Now wef nouere to sheep!” she crosses her arms and munches aggressively to get all the food down. 

“Ue do,” Chat Noir grabs Ladybug to get her to stand somewhere else, and he gathers the ends of the blankets and starts shaking the crumbs off, all the while chewing. He then flips it over so that they have a clean area to sleep on. Once the blanket looks like how they first were, he swallows, “et voilà !”

“Ew.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, my Lady. What do you mean ew? May I remind you that we nap together after Akuma battles? After we actually sweat?” 

Ladybug sticks her tongue out at him and returns to the blankets, easing herself into them. “I’m gonna sleep, nights.”

“Hey!!” Chat Noir dives into the blankets, coming face to face with her, “who sleeps this early in Paris?” he grins. 

She groans and tosses the blanket away, taking her flask and two cups from their picnic basket situated beside their sleeping spot. “Okay, fine, here,” Ladybug pours the contents of the flask into each cup, “have your hot chocolate so you’d feel tired.”

“What am I, seven?”

Ladybug raises a brow at him. 

Chat Noir grumbles and leans against her, drinking his hot chocolate. “Miam, this feels so homey!”

She lightly hits her cups against his, “cheers!” and leans into him as well, taking sips from her cup. “Mhmm! This is delicious!”

“Share the recipe with me?”

“Sure,” Ladybug replies as her hand absentmindedly travels into her hair to pull the twin ribbons off. 

Chat Noir starts rubbing his head against her shoulders and she looks at him, brows raised. 

“Tie your hair ribbons onto mine?”

Ladybug bursts out a laugh, “You’re very needy aren’t you, mon Chatounet.”

“What can I say?” he flips his hair and grins, “Kittens are very needy creatures.”

She sets her cup down and turns around to see Chat Noir already lying before her on his belly and his head on his pillow. 

Ladybug chuckles at the sight and moves to his side, allowing herself to be closer to him to work on his wild mop of hair. She takes just enough to tie circles around his hair, giving him a pigtail that is similar to hers, yet all the more shorter. The tiny amount of hair sticking out from the ribbon resembles a bunny’s tail, and it’s too cute of a sight to ignore. Ladybug gently tugs at them, much like how an unsuspecting victim would run their hand over a cat’s tail.  

Chat Noir shifts slightly, but she pays him no attention as she wonders how it’d feel like to run her bare hands into his hair. Would it be as soft as a kitty’s fur? She wouldn’t stop running her fingers through them if that were the case. They are the softest things she has ever had the pleasure of laying her hands upon, and now she’s just hoping his hair is as soft as those are. 

They better be!

But with how easily she’s combing his hair, Ladybug knows that that would be the case. 

Tying hair ribbons shouldn’t have taken this long, but Ladybug’s so engrossed with running her fingers through his hair that she still has yet to tie the other half of his hair. The soft purrs that reverberate around the open space and the lightweight now present on her thighs bring her out of her trance. 

Chat Noir has the left side of his face pressing against her thighs; the side of his hair not yet done up is left exposed for her to do her magic. Ladybug should’ve been upset at him for messing up her work, but she finds herself not bothered by that fact. Not when she is free to stare at him for as long as she likes. 

The purrs that she loves to listen to have stopped since she came out of her daze, and Ladybug continues to pet his hair, once again wishing that she could remove only the hand area of her magical suit to feel his locks against her palms.  

His purrs fill up the air around them again, and Ladybug finally works on tying the rest of his hair into the pigtails she’s frequently associated with. 

Now that she’s done, Ladybug has all the reasons to push him off of her lap. But even with the possibility of suffering from leg cramps after, she finds herself not minding that one bit. 

Is that why no destruction has taken place? 

She heads towards the victim, hearing their endless iterance of apologies for succumbing to the powers of Monarch. Ladybug reassures them that it wasn’t an issue and asks if they had seen Chat Noir, only to be slightly dejected with their answer. She knows it’s normal for them to not remember anything after an akumatisation, but still, having some information would be nice.

Cheers for her saving the day once again erupt as she leaves the scene. Ladybug prefers to claim credit only where it’s due, and this is certainly not one of those situations. 

She does have a naggy feeling at the back of her head though, that something is a little weird with the state of affairs. And so, she hangs around and searches the area for a little while more, trying to find something, anything that could put her at ease or at least explain that feeling.

Again, she finds nothing out of the ordinary.  

With no choice but to move on, Ladybug returns home, taking detours before landing in her own house and releasing her transformation. Marinette goes about her day as if the Akuma battle had never happened in the first place, before allowing her head to hit her pillow. 

━━━━━━

Being swamped with work has made Marinette forget all about the bizarre event that happened just two days prior. 

With a cup of tea in her hand, she’s about to leave for work when she sees a cat by her window. He’s just observing her as though he has never seen a human before. If that’s true, though, his reaction to her is somewhat peculiar, as a cat that was unfamiliar with humans would normally bolt away if it ever encountered one. But this cat continues staring at her, and Marinette has never seen such a pretty cat in her life. His eyes are so big that Marinette can’t resist taking a picture. 

She sends it to Alya, and she receives an enthusiastic reply instantaneously. The cat remains fixated on Marinette as she texts Alya, and after she has finished her conversation with her, she walks over to the window where the cat is and takes a closer look at it. 

No collar… it’s a stray… better keep away from it.

But she notices his wide, curious, green eyes, and his jet black fur reminds her of her Chaton. 

Where is he anyway? He normally texts her random stuff with the communicative devices that come with their suits, something she secretly loves—especially when it’s done out of the blue—but he hasn’t done that since the last Akuma. She misses him but she figures she’ll see him during their patrol tonight. 

Marinette leaves her apartment and heads to work, far more focused on spending time with Chat Noir in the dead of the night than she is on anything she does at work. 

Ladybug sits at the edge of a rooftop, waiting for Chat Noir to show up at their meeting spot, but he is again, nowhere to be seen. She starts swinging her legs as more time passes, until she sees a black cat in her peripheral vision. 

She watches the cat as it approaches her, and her eyes widen as she recognises him to be the one by her window earlier that day. Ladybug feels her heart pounding against her chest until she remembers that animals can’t speak and thus, can’t expose truths.

She slumps from her previously stiff posture. 

With her knees now under her chin, she takes her bugphone and calls Chat Noir, but to no avail. Ladybug would give it another try if it isn’t for the pressure she feels against her calf. Her eyes leave her yo-yo to see the black cat encircling her and rubbing himself all over her. 

Ladybug thinks that there is no harm in caressing him, so she reaches down to his head. She scratches the back of his ear, and he starts purring, leaning into her hand. 

Chat Noir also likes ear scratches. 

“Since Chat Noir isn’t here, he’ll be missing out on ear scratches, and I’ll be giving them to you instead, er, Chaton Noir.”

He continues purring. The black cat pushes against her hand and Ladybug relaxes her legs over the edge of the building once again. He must’ve seen that as an invitation because he climbs onto her lap straight away, his head now pushing into her stomach. 

“You’re really attached huh?” Ladybug has one hand under his chin while the other thumbs his ear. “This will be our little secret, okay?”

The constant purring soothes her, but her mind drifts to Chat Noir’s purrs when she gives him scratches, something she likes to do right after he does something impressive, or whenever she feels like it—which is most of the time. 

Ladybug misses her Chaton. It’s been a while since she last saw him, and she really hopes to see him soon. 

No, she yearns for it. 

A meow brings her out of her thoughts and the cat is now grabbing her arm with his little bean paws, rubbing his head against her, and Ladybug can’t help but think how cute he is. 

“You’re so affectionate, I wonder if my Chaton would be jealous if he sees you rubbing against me so intensely,” she chuckles. 

Chaton Noir meows in response and Ladybug stares elsewhere, willing that Chat Noir would appear soon with her magical ladybugs. 

The cat jumps off her lap and onto her chest, startling her in the process. He clings onto her shoulders as he rubs his head against her neck and Ladybug’s hands land behind her to steady herself. 

“Are you trying to mark me?”

Chaton Noir continues doing what he has been doing all this while and her fingers wrap around the cat, pushing him away from her and putting some distance between them. 

“Alright, that’s enough. Only one cat is allowed to do that, and sadly he’s not here.” She stands up and puts Chaton Noir down. “I’m sorry, but see you around I guess.”

She takes off towards her apartment, throwing glances at her back to make sure that the cat isn’t following her. 

━━━━━━

The next morning, everything’s the same as usual. 

Except. 

Marinette sees the black cat at her window again. 

“Oh la la, you shouldn’t be here, Chaton Noir,” she says as she takes out her phone to snap a picture of him. 

He gazes at her with those big familiar eyes and they remind her so much of a certain cat. 

Or maybe she’s just projecting again. 

“It’s not gonna work. And I have to get ready to leave as well. See you later.”

Marinette continues preparing for her day and as she exits the door, she sees the black cat just by her stairs. 

“Erm.” She begins walking down the stairs and Chaton Noir walks with her, and she has to take a photo again, this time sending it to Alya. 

Marinette: the little cat came to see me this morning!

Alya: gurl he’s escorting you 

Marinette: absolutely! he was waiting for me outside my door, and we walked out together!

By the time she finishes texting Alya, she realises she’s a few metres away from the entrance to her workplace. 

Marinette sees the cat sitting at the foot of the staircase and she feels the need to thank it, so she returns to the cat’s side—his pupils have definitely enlarged—and she pets his head a few times, before rushing to work. 

━━━━━━

Marinette sends a picture of the cat outside her window to Alya again. 

Alya: You saw him again!! 

omg he’s meowing 

Marinette: yea, he really wants to come inside 

Alya: LET HIM IN

KEEP HIM

Marinette: NO or i’ll have to take care of him for the next 15 years lol

Besides, she already has a cat in her heart, not that Alya needs to know.

Alya: but he’s so cute!! 

HE HAS CHOSEN YOU 

Marinette: he’s adorable not gonna lie

i’m sure if i open the window one day, i’ll find him in my kitchen

━━━━━━

And another. 

Marinette: look who welcomed me home after work

Alya: HE'S ASKING YOU TO KEEP HIM 

we really should give him a name

Marinette: chaton noir!

Alya: but don’t you already have a chaton noir?

Marinette: no, that's chaton

this is chaton noir

Alya: and what is—

nevermind

chaton noir it is 

━━━━━━

Marinette’s texting Alya the same topic again, but now, it’s for a different reason. 

Marinette: omg alya

this morning I opened my window to let some air in, went to the toilet, and when i came back, he was on my desk 

Alya: HAHAHHAHA

Marinette: alya please help me, this is not the time to be laughing at my misery 

Alya: what? this is a blessing! he’s a stray looking for a home, and he really wants you. 

Marinette: ALYA!

Alya: ok ok erm

don’t feed him any food, i think he’ll leave eventually 

and maybe don't pet him too 

Marinette: i didn't do any of the above, but he’s still coming to me!

She may or may not have forgotten about petting him. A couple of times no less. 

Alya: awww

mr handsome cat liking a pretty lady

makes sense

Marinette: aww thanks

BUT NO!

━━━━━━

Her hand reaches into her yo-yo. This is probably a bad idea. She knows that it’s a bad idea, however, she can’t help but feel bad about how she’s treating Chaton Noir. He merely wants a home, but she isn’t able to give him one. 

The kitty in her heart has already taken up too much space to let another in. 

Ladybug continues putting some other snacks and toys into her yo-yo. She won’t play with him as Marinette, but it doesn’t mean she can’t play with him as Ladybug. 

She makes sure that the cat in question is nowhere to be seen before she leaves for her meetup with Chat Noir. 

Well, if she can even call it one at this point… 

Her heart squeezes at that thought. She understands that Chat Noir has only missed one patrol, but that’s one too many. 

He never misses patrol. 

And she really wants to see him again. 

Ladybug makes sure to bring the snacks that Chat Noir loves too. Yes, she’d be angry at him for his absence, but that doesn’t mean she can’t offer him food. 

She descends upon their usual meeting place, and sure enough, the black cat is waiting for her, tail swaying like the waves of a calming ocean. 

Ladybug feels like she should be scared of the cat—he seems to know the entirety of her schedule, and not even Alya knows that!—but nothing about the cat sends any malicious vibes towards her. 

Maybe he’s just really really really affectionate.  

“Hello, Chaton Noir,” she runs her fingers through his fur as he climbs onto her lap and makes himself at home, tail curling around her forearm. “Is there a reason why you fancy me so much?”

Chaton Noir peers into her eyes again, with those big green kitty orbs, and she longs to see her Chaton. She misses the way he lays his eyes on her, as though she hung the moon and stars in his sky. “I’m sorry for treating you like that as Marinette, I’m making it up to you as Ladybug now.”

She yanks out a small ball of yarn for him to play with, but Chat Noir’s favourite snack falls out of her yo-yo in the process, and Chaton Noir immediately jumps at it. Ladybug tries to snatch it back but he’s too fast, and the snack is now clutched in his paws. 

“Oh no!” Ladybug cries as Chaton Noir rolls onto his back and savours the snack, oblivious to her internal dilemma. “That’s for him…”

She retracts her hand as she sees how happy Chaton Noir is. “You’re lucky you look so cute.”

Ladybug hugs her knees as she watches the blissfully ignorant kitty lay on his back as he munches on the snack. “I miss you, Chaton, where are you?”

All of a sudden, Chaton Noir is by her side, rubbing his head against her thighs. Ladybug mindlessly caresses his head, “Thank you for comforting me Chaton Noir, but it just isn’t the same without him, you know?” 

Her gaze focuses on him and realises that the snack he was holding onto was gone. There’s no way he could’ve finished it in such a short time. Chaton Noir couldn’t have gobbled it down, it’s too big for his tiny mouth. She scans her surroundings and notices that the snack is slightly smaller in size now, and it registers to her what he had done.

Ladybug carries him into her arms and snaps a picture of him. She rubs her cheeks against his, “Thank you so much, Chaton Noir.” 

━━━━━━

She should’ve bought the fan when she saw one. 

She really should’ve, else she wouldn’t be in this situation right now. 

And there’s a really simple solution to solve all this. 

Marinette just has to open the window to her apartment, and that’ll allow the precious and cooling air to enter and ventilate her room. 

But she knows that once she opens the window, he’ll be there. 

He’s become a permanent fixture in the view from her window now.  

And it’s… kinda weird now that he’s not there. 

Still, should she risk it? Marinette knows that he’ll appear out of nowhere—he always does—but her neurons are melting in the heat and the solution to it is quite literally right in front of her. 

She sighs and makes up her mind. She’ll be sure to buy a fan on her next trip to the department store. 

But for now, she’ll open the window. 

Marinette walks towards it and her knee knocks against something hard. She looks at the object, only for a smile to etch itself on her face. 

She proceeds to fold said object and carries it over to the window. Making sure that the coast is clear, she opens her window and places the huge piece of cardboard horizontally against the opening. It covers half of the window, but it still allowed the wind to enter her apartment. Marinette sits back and relaxes as the cool air gushes in her face, finally relieved that she wouldn’t have to bake to death.  

But of course, it doesn’t last long. 

Marinette hears the cardboard being nudged aside and she opens her eyes to see Chaton Noir trying to get into her house through that small opening she left at the side of the window. 

At first, she wonders why he didn't just jump over the cardboard. Marinette knows that cats are more than capable of jumping to insane heights, but her pondering got interrupted when Chaton Noir began to scratch the cardboard. 

She scrambles to her feet to grab the handle of the window. However, she trips and falls in the process—her entire body weight pushing against the window—slamming it shut. She didn’t mean to, but the force of the slam startles even her, so she makes sure to check that Chaton Noir is scared away. What she sees instead, is him still trying to push the cardboard aside. 

“It’s impossible, Chaton Noir,” she takes out her phone, “shutting the window has locked it in place. I’m so glad you don’t have Cataclysm to break it down.” 

Marinette snaps a photo of Chaton Noir’s attempt, snickering at how cute and dumb he looks. 

“Gotta keep this for memories’ sake.” 

━━━━━━

Marinette’s phone rings beside her. 

Alya: hey just a thought

Marinette: ?

Alya: could chaton noir be chat noir?

Marinette: chaton noir and chaton are different 

Alya: yea no i mean like think about it

chaton noir is black and has green eyes

chat noir disappeared one day

and there haven’t been any akuma attacks since then

and then there is this random cat that appeared out of nowhere and is like so super overly attached to you for some reason

a cat that you have never seen in your life might i add

Marinette: OMG 

could it be that they got his ring?!

Alya: omg gurl calm down

if they did, wouldn't they be more relentless in getting yours too? 

anyway

why not try calling him chat noir and see how he responds?

Marinette: er, what if he’s just a regular cat?

me calling him chat noir is like i’m projecting my feelings onto him, not that i have any

Marinette knows very well what her feelings are. 

Alya: just try and who knows, he might be by your side all along

Marinette: … 

okay… 

━━━━━━

Pacing around at the top of the Eiffel Tower with a few sweat drops on her forehead, Ladybug ponders as to exactly what to do with the suggestion Alya has thrown at her. 

On one hand, it’s ridiculous, so so ridiculous. Because there is no way in any universe possible that Chaton Noir is her Chaton. It’s just— Ladybug believes that she would’ve known if that were the case. She knows that it isn’t logical but she can’t help but believe that she would know if it was him. 

On the other hand, ever since Alya planted the seeds of possibility in her mind, Ladybug has been playing her carefully created moment of truth in her mind on repeat, even though it goes against all that she stood for. She feels guilty for wanting Chat Noir to be Chaton Noir, but if it really were the case, that means she’ll finally be able to see him again. 

Not to mention, even though her heart belongs to Chat Noir, she has really been enjoying Chaton Noir’s company as of late.

Is she cheating on him if she feels this way?! 

Her hands fly into her hair, who is she kidding, she’ll feel guilty either way, it’s a fucking mess now. 

Ladybug sits down on the platform and takes deep breaths. She doesn’t know what to do! Just address him as Chat Noir? What if she calls him Chaton Noir instead of Chat Noir? Habits die hard. Also, Chaton Noir has always been responsive to her regardless of what she said, like he doesn’t understand human language and just looks at her curiously and with all his attention. That or he has been looking at her exactly like how Chat Noir focuses on her when she speaks… 

Which is it?!

She’s officially going mad. 

She needs to jump off the Eiffel Tower. It’s dangerous enough to preoccupy her mind, she’ll think about the others later. Ladybug drags herself across the platform, and steps off of it, plummeting down straight to the base of the structure. She needs to act fast if she doesn’t want to smash into the metal that is already beginning to curve outwards. Ladybug throws her yo-yo, and she hastily retracts the wire so that she doesn’t smack face down onto the ground—she still needs to find her Chaton—and Paris still needs her as their protector.

After being flung into the air again, she soars across the bridge, her trajectory that of an arc, attaching her yo-yo to lamp post after lamp post before reaching her destination. She gracefully lands on her feet at the top of the Trocadéro, adrenaline pumping through her veins from the novelty of doing something that crazy. Ladybug finally looks back at the Eiffel Tower, trying to imagine how she looked when she was speeding through the route she had just taken. 

Her mind was definitely not thinking about the Chaton Noir situation as intensely as before, and now she has to deal with it. 

But first, she has to find him. 

As she reaches for her yo-yo again, the meowing of a cat catches her attention, and Ladybug immediately whips her head in the direction where it came from. She sees an orange cat and is relieved but sad at the same time. She really needs to find him!

Another meow of a different octave catches her attention and she sees the cat that has been in her dream for a while now. 

Ladybug dashes to him—the cat alarmed at the speed she is approaching him—and snatches him in her arms. She throws her yo-yo and zips away, with Chaton Noir screaming and meowing at the top of his lungs.

Once they land on a rooftop, she gently places the now shaking and shivering black cat down, and proceeds to sit right across it. Chaton Noir shakes his head and blinks a few times before approaching her.

“Stop,” Ladybug thrusts her right hand towards him, and he looks at her before sitting back down on the spot where he barely moved, ears drooping. 

“Chaton Noir,” and immediately his tail moves and curves. 

She audibly smacks her own head, of course it was impossible to call him Chat Noir, but the movement of his tail gave her an idea to work with. 

“Stop moving your tail.”

Chaton Noir stops and lays it flat on the tile, ears still droopy, but head tilted nonetheless, still staring at her with those wide green eyes. 

“I’m going to need you to cooperate with me,” Ladybug physically cringes at what she’s saying. “Move your tail.”

And she sees him tapping the end of his tail against the tile. 

“Stop.” And it relaxes again. 

Okay, I can work with this. He understands me perfectly well. Here goes…

“Chato— ChAT Noir!” He wiggles his tail again, and Ladybug physically jumps on her spot, blood coursing through her veins as she has finally found him!

“Chaton Noir, it’s really yo—” 

Her heart beats faster as he keeps wiggling his tail. He’s not Chat Noir?

Think! What can she do right now?

“Carapace?” He continues moving his tail, albeit less than before. Until it finally stops. 

“Please help me here,” she pleads, “move your tail when it’s you and don’t when it isn’t.”

“Carapace.”

His tail immediately lies flat.

“CHAT NOIR!”

The black cat rises on all fours and runs towards her, tail swivelling behind him as he crashes into her open arms. 

 “Chat Noir!” she cries as she rubs her cheeks against him. “I’m not crazy! I’m not crazy!”

“Oh my god!” she suddenly drops him as she stands up with unwavering clarity. “You know my identity! Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!”

Ladybug starts pacing around in circles on the rooftop again, hands in her hair, and Chat Noir follows close behind, meowing loudly to gain her attention. She eventually feels a weight on her shoulder as something bumps against the side of her face.  

She turns to her left with wide eyes and remembers that she has a more pressing issue to deal with. 

“Oh my god! How can you become human again? This is a nightmare!!” Then she faces forward. “Unless… Lucky Charm!”

And Chat Noir fell off her shoulders at the gesticulation she had just busted out. 

A plate of spaghetti falls into her hands, drips of tomato sauce landing on her face in the process. 

“The heck am I supposed to do with this?!” Ladybug asks out loud as she glares at the messy plate of spaghetti. “Gah!!”

Chat Noir climbs her figure once again, stopping beside her shoulder and licking her face—to get her to calm down or to lick the tomato sauce off her face, Ladybug does not know. What she does know is that doing so has formulated a new idea in her mind.  

“Ha, there’s no way,” Ladybug places the plate down on the roof and grabs Chat Noir from her shoulder, enabling her to face him directly. Her cheeks begin to redden and her arms begin to tremble, “There’s no way this is going to work but let’s try anyway.”

Ladybug brings Chat Noir closer, she sees his tail wiggling endlessly, and she knows straight away that he has been waiting for this moment since forever. That makes the two of them. She angles her head to the left, nuzzling her cheek against his squishy ones, just to tease him. But it wasn’t as much of a tease as she would like it to be, going by the purrs he releases. She pulls back and eyes a certain spot, making sure she would not miss it before closing her eyes, lips pressing against the cute forehead space between his eyes.  

The effects are immediate. A cloud of magic surrounds the black cat as she feels herself losing her grip on him. She lets go when she sees the silhouette of a human. 

Her hands clutch themselves close to her racing heart, recalling the list of things she can do once human Chat Noir appears. She can finally tackle him into a hug, run her fingers through his hair, press herself against him, enjoy the feeling of his arms around her, and on and on it goes. 

Ladybug gasps as she sees a face that she recognises, a face not concealed by a black mask, a face that isn’t her Chaton. Instead, she sees— “Adrien?!”

She witnesses Adrien’s look of adoration directed at her, eyes that make her heart beat even faster than before she’s becoming dizzy from it. 

Even so, before she could succumb to the dizziness, she blurts out, “But— But you’re not Chat Noir!” 

Adrien takes a step towards her with a face so soft and so in love. She can’t take it anymore. 

Where is her Chaton?! 

“No, no. Wait, how are you a black cat? I could’ve sworn that you’d be an orange cat if you ever turn into one. Where is my Chaton!” she cries, hands grasping the side of her face. 

Her light protest of asking him to stay where he is must not have been clear enough, because Adrien is now wrapping his arms around her, pulling her in and removing her hands from her face. Ladybug’s eyes grow wider at this, and she directs her attention to him, desperate to ask what he’s doing but he beats her to it. 

“One,” he starts, bright green eyes still admiring her, “I am your Chaton, my Lady. And two, aww, you thought about me turning into a kitty before.” He teases her as he boops her nose. 

Ladybug wonders how her eyes have yet to pop out of her sockets. 

“WHAT?!” 

“Plagg, transforme-moi !” 

It’s Chat Noir’s hands that are around her now. Adrien’s lovely and heart-racing smile is Chat Noir’s. He has been by her side this whole time. Chaton Noir is Chat Noir. Everything that she has ever said to Chaton Noir, Chat Noir knows. And Chat Noir, in other words, Adrien, her first and only love, has heard all the embarrassing declarations she has made about him. 

Ladybug feels hot as her cheeks flush red. “Cha— Chaton?” 

He flashes a beautiful smile. “My Lady.” 

Ladybug buries her face into his neck, hitting her fists against his chest. “How dare you… You heard… everything…” 

Chat Noir places his hand on the back of her head and pulls her closer, his own face nuzzling her hair. “You’re every bit as crazy as I am about you.” 

Ladybug jumps onto him so suddenly Chat Noir loses his balance and they both fall onto the rooftop. “Ah—”

His breath hitches when soft lips land on the side of his face. “You better make it up to me for disappearing on me for so long,” she says as she plants a kiss with each word uttered. Chat Noir cups both of her cheeks to bring her lips over his own.