Chapter: 1
Ladybug dashed across the rooftop, high above the streets of Paris. At this hour, the roads were mostly empty of any traffic or pedestrians as the glowing orange sun set below the horizon. Ladybug's blue summer sky eyes squinted as she rounded a shady roof and ran into the light. Her skin tight ladybug suit glinted bright red in the yellow sunlight, her black bangs whipping in her face against the wind.
Pushing off the tall building, Ladybug jumped high through the air above the road underneath, throwing her magical yoyo across the street. The limitless string latched around a skinny chimney, and the super heroine swung like an acrobat through the air. Landing on an air vent on the other side of the street, Ladybug pulled on her yoyo until it came flying back to her finger. She raced across this new row of buildings, flipping over tall walls and somersaulting down hard on the twisty rooftops.
Great, she thought, swinging from her yoyo around a large building sign. I'm going to be late, and Alya's going to kill me.
Ladybug sighed as she swung through the air, breathing heavily from the constant movement. She'd have to think of another excuse to make up for the fact that she was too busy saving a bank from a robber gang. Honestly, she was quite surprised her best friend hadn't realized she was a famous, top secret superhero undercover by now, especially since Alya led an investigation to reveal Ladybug's true identity and she was practically right under her nose.
Ladybug had dropped accidental clues about her identity several times at school, and none of her teenage friends could guess her secret. It wasn't too hard to put together; the one person who's late twenty four seven, is always strangely disappearing right before an akuma attack fight and can never remember her things must be leading a double life as the superheroine of Paris.
Ladybug hated keeping secrets from her friend; wasn't the whole point of a trustful and strong friendship to be able to tell each other secrets and deep things about each other?
But how would she know what that was like?
All she did was lie to her friend in order to cover her identity, and for all Alya knew, her best friend had no secrets. Ladybug finally came to a stop on a building ledge as she stood looking down at a deserted road. Good. The last thing she needed was citizens stopping and gaping at her.
She checked one last time that she was completely alone before tossing her yoyo down at the road, and twisting it around a lamppost. Pulling on the string, she leapt off the building and swung across the street, her outstretched feet only inches from the blacktop.
Ladybug front flipped and landed on the sidewalk, and she tugged at her yoyo and unlatched it from the metal pole. Ladybug placed the yoyo back on her hip and raced around a corner off of the building wall and into a bathroom. Exhausted, Ladybug plunged through the bathroom door and checked once to make sure she was entirely alone.
"Spots off," she muttered quietly, panting.
There was a bright pink flash up her body as a red object came swirling out of her earrings, landing in the palm of the untransformed girl. Ladybug's bodysuit and eye mask seemed to have disappeared, and in her place stood Marinette, wearing her favorite pink jeans and white shirt with a flower design.
Marinette was tired and breathing heavily, and her hair was a disaster from the wind, but she was happy and relieved. She'd been Ladybug all afternoon at the bank robbery, and though she loved her job as a superhero, Marinette only portrayed her true persona out of costume.
Ladybug was loved and admired, cherished and celebrated for many reasons; Ladybug was brave, heroic, and known for her unstoppable amount of victories against akumas. Marinette didn't exactly hold some of Ladybugs traits that people loved her for, and it bothered her.
If Ladybug could be loved for being herself, then why couldn't Marinette be in the same way?
At times like this where she became frustrated and jealous of Ladybug, she had to remind herself that no one could know her true identity, and that without Marinette, Ladybug was nothing. They were both equally special; and Marinette was just a little bit more, even if no one knew it yet.
Marinette's kwami sat in her hands, peering up at her and looking dizzy. "That took way longer than what I'd prepared for," Tikki groaned, her eyelids drooping as her head swayed.
"Ugh, I'm sorry, Tikki. Trust me, I didn't want to stay there that whole time either. Hell if Alya actually buys my excuse this time," Marinette mused, thinking about her fragmented friendship with her best friend.
"Speaking of which, you should get moving, Marinette, or you'll be more late than you already are." Tikki flew up next to Marinette's head, watching her fix her hair in the bathroom mirror.
"I know, Tikki. I tried to convince Alya I couldn't come when I saw that the police were crowded around the bank, but.." Marinette ran a finger through her black bangs, untangling them from knots and straightening them out around her face. "..but when I heard Adrien was coming, she sorta won me over." Tikki shook her head in disapproval as Marinette pulled her phone out of her pink purse to check the time.
"Let's go, Tikki, and it better be worth it."
She held her purse open and threw her phone inside, seconds before her kwami zoomed into concealment. Snapping the bag shut, Marinette awkwardly walked out of the bathroom and around the corner, glancing around nervously to check for bystanders. When she figured she was clear, Marinette regained the energy enough to bolt down the sidewalk, this time enclosed beneath in the big city instead of hopping and swinging from rooftops.
…
Alya and Nino looked miniscule from Chat Noir's view. He was perched high on a building ledge, leaning his back against rooftop shingles. He was concealed, being high above the streets and sitting under a shady spot. The evening sunset had almost blinded him from his former position, and he had began to heat up as the sunlight beat against his skin tight, black spandex, leather cat suit.
Chat Noir had debated whether or not he should detransform right away and go down the street as Adrien to meet his friends, but he had decided not to go yet. Sure, he was late, and Nino was going to kill him for it, but he was annoyed by now with his friends schemes.
Nino and Alya were constantly trying to get together, dragging along their two best friends along, Marinette and Adrien. Despite Nino's resistance to admit he was dating Alya and using Adrien as a cover to meet with her without making it look like they were together, Chat Noir knew exactly what was going on.
It was a clever excuse, really; but it'd be less painful for the two of them if they'd admit their love for one another, and quit taking their best friends everywhere with each other as an excuse to meet. Chat didn't care if he was late to meet up with them, they deserved to be stranded together out in the open. Besides, Chat couldn't miss an opportunity to be Chat Noir for as long as he could.
His miserable life as Adrien prevented him from being able to say or do whatever he wanted, much less be himself. Chat Noir was just as famous as the model Adrien was, but Adrien was loved just a little bit more. Most people didn't accept him as Chat Noir when they met him, but no one really knew him in that form, as a top secret superhero. The only one who had really gotten to know him for who he truly was was the love of his life: Ladybug.
Yet even she barely accepted him like that.
Adrien was much more likable to people, which only made Chat Noir jealous of his own self. He watched the pair below, standing in front of the entrance of Mayor Bourgeois' Grand Paris Luxury Hotel and obviously waiting for their friends.
It was unfortunate for Adrien to be forced to meet there, of all places; Chloe Bourgeois was the mayor's daughter, who lived in the famous hotel and happened to be his classmate at school.
He'd known her since he was very young, and she'd been the only friend he'd had until his father let him attend school for the first time. It was only until he arrived at his first day in high school that he realized she wasn't a nice person.
Being the only other kid her age he interacted with, her behavior to him was normal. When Adrien saw Chloe's cruel treatment towards Marinette and her lack of friends, he began to drift away from their friendship. Unfortunately, Chloe still acted as they had when they were five, and her unwanted presence was hard to avoid.
Adrien was happy with his new friends, especially Nino.
Chat Noir was not in the mood to change into Adrien, even if the bossy couple below on the street would yell at him. He decided to go down there when Marinette showed up, who he was sure was dragged by Alya the way Nino dragged him around to meet up together.
Marinette; she was one of those people at school who he didn't think he'd ever figure out.
The truth was, he didn't think she liked him; they'd completely gotten off on the wrong foot when they first met, but that was Chloe's fault. Marinette was smart and outgoing, and very expressive of her opinion during class. Chat Noir found her to be nice and sweet, a girl who was pretty determined about her goals. But she was just so awkward around Adrien; and he'd even met her as Chat Noir and she hadn't acted that strange.
The memory of meeting her as Chat for the first time came into his mind, when he'd followed her, as part of the plan, on a birthday date with the Evillistrator. The way that she had practically controlled the situation had almost reminded him of Ladybug, plus he'd seen a side of her that Adrien never would have.
The streets below him were deserted of cars, and Marinette didn't show any sign of rounding the hotel corner to meet them. Sighing, Chat Noir stood up to detransform back into his regular self. He flipped with drained energy over the pointed rooftop that he'd been leaning against. Chat walked along the building ledge, headed behind the building he was on top of to avoid Alya and Ninos' eyesight.
Checking one last time for any cars riding along the road, he jumped off the building's edge without looking below him and landed on the sidewalk, turning to search for a concealed spot. As Chat Noir turned around, a body suddenly collided with his, causing him to jump back in startlement. Whoever bumped into him let out a feminine sounding yell, and turning around to see who it was, he noticed black pigtails and bangs that flipped as she flung herself backwards.
Chat Noir couldn't help a grin slide across his face. He could honestly say he loved meeting Marinette as Chat Noir just to see the sarcastic and cocky side of her that he liked.
Marinette was glad she'd ran into someone, just to have an excuse to stop running. Exhausted and panting hard, she wiped sweat from her brow with the back of her hand and leaned forward on her knees.
"Whoa, you seem a little out of wind today," said Chat Noir.
Frowning, Marinette lifted her head to confront the person whom she'd ran into. "I'm fine, thanks, I-"
Oh, great.
Marinette paused when she saw the blonde superhero, debating whether or not she should keep running. "Oh, um, it's you." Marinette stood up straight and folded her arms, leaning her back against the building wall as she decided to still catch her breath. "I'm flattered that you remember me, Marinette," Chat Noir said as he stepped in front of her, his hands on his hips.
"Don't you save countless people every week? The real question is how you remember my name," Marinette muttered, raising her eyebrow questionably.
"Well, there are a few that stick in my mind," Chat said, "Especially the pretty ones."
Marinette rolled her eyes. She suddenly wondered what he was doing out here on the road, still transformed. Hadn't she just stopped a bank robbery with him only ten minutes ago?
"Shut up, you stupid cat. What are you doing out here, anyway?"
Chat Noir folded his arms across his chest, mimicking Marinette's position. "I mean, I could tell you, but then I'd be jeopardizing my identity. Wouldn't want to let the cat out of the bag, y'know?" he said.
Scowling, Marinette noticed him lean one hand against the wall next to her head. This is way too close, she thought. For some reason she wasn't getting as annoyed with him as Ladybug normally did. The last thing Marinette wanted to do was admit it, but she felt as though she was actually enjoying his flirtatious manner with her. It was almost like he was flirting with her the same way he would with Ladybug, which was strange on many levels. She'd never felt this way about Chat Noir before, and it was a strange and familiar feeling at the same time.
"Where are you headed, Marinette?" he asked.
"Nowhere fancy or of any importance," Marinette said casually, "And also none of your business."
She playfully tapped his yellow bell below his collarbone, and Chat Noir felt a wave of heat spread throughout his cheeks, turning the skin below his black eye mask red. He could see a great resemblance between Marinette and Ladybug in the way she was acting. Marinette was different though, a bit more gentle and soft, and not as much scolding of him the way Ladybug always was. This feeling around Marinette was foreign to him, since he never saw this in her as Adrien.
Marinette was like a reality version of Ladybug; Ladybug was a mystery, considering he had no clue who was under her mask or what that person acted like. Ladybug was too good to be true for him, since she had completely changed his life when he first obtained the cat ring. She was beautiful, smart, intellectual, determined, brave, and heroic, and that was what he loved about her.
But he respected her wish to not show him her identity, and she remained further away from his life. It was quite early to tell, but Marinette was a more realistic version of her, a girl with a normal life, who was smart and beautiful like Ladybug, but not as much a mystery and lacking superhero abilities.
"Plus, I happen to be very late and you bothering me isn't helping."
Marinette noticed the irony in her words; she sounded as if she wanted to leave him and run as quickly as she could to get away, but her firm position against the wall indicated every intention of staying with him.
"If it's true you're very late, maybe you'd let me be so kind as to escort you to your destination?" Chat Noir had already realized the problems his proposal would cause for Adrien, but he didn't care.
Marinette blushed a hot pink, an acceptance to his offering on the tip of her tongue. "Well, um, actually, that might not be the best idea. I wouldn't want my friend getting the wrong idea if she saw me with you…" Marinette found it hard to avoid his gaze as he smiled matter-of-factly.
Taking his hand off the wall beside her head, Chat Noir began to turn and walk away. "Okay, fine. I see how it is." He strolled slowly down the sidewalk, making it obvious that he was grinning and looking back at her. Marinette broke into an uncontrollable smile.
"Really, Chat? You don't have to make me feel bad about it!"
Chat smirked as he spun around and walked backwards. "There's nothing to feel bad about. I'm just not your knight anymore, purrincess." Marinette laughed instead of groaning at his sad attempt at humor. "You know what, I'm done with you. I'm not apologizing anymore," she laughed.
Marinette quickly spun on her heel and began to head around the corner of the sidewalk, a large grin overbearing on her face. "I don't think you were actually apologizing in the first place!" Chat Noir called.
She paused in her tracks when she felt her phone vibrate in her purse. In order to conceal Tikki, Marinette checked the text message with her phone hidden inside before clicking it shut again.
"I just got a text message from my friend saying to hurry up," Marinette shouted behind her shoulder. "So I'm going to be in trouble because of you anyway."
"What a knight-mare!"
Marinette shook her head and giggled before leaving Chat's sight around the building. He stared after her, realizing that there was only one other person who had ever made him feel that happy; Ladybug.
Marinette dashed across the road walk, a large smile imprinted on her face even with Alya and Nino's angry gazes up ahead. It was hard to avoid the stares of her friends, yet thankfully they both wore large black glasses and all Marinette could see was a bright reflection of the sun.
Alya's brown wavy hair, with red dyed at the ends, had been drawn up in a fancy bun, and she wore a red plaid skirt instead of jeans. Marinette came to a quick stop at the head of the famous hotel, standing before her annoyed friends. "We've legit been waiting for like 30 minutes," Nino said, his eyelids dropped and eyebrows raised.
"I know, I know, I'm sorry. There was, um, a last minute order at the bakery," Marinette said apologetically. Alya folded her arms in doubt and frowned at Marinette's joyful expression. "Right, whatever - why are you so happy?"
Marinette hadn't realized her excitement at being with Chat Noir was noticeable, and she ran a nervous hand through her hair. "Uh, what? Happy? Um, I don't know…w-what I'd really like to know is why you two are constantly trying to get us all together lately, that's what's strange," she said. Alya suddenly went red, and glanced nervously at Nino.
"Oh, um, we're all friends, right girl? There's nothing weird about getting together," Alya said, shrugging. Marinette laughed and shook her head as she adjusted her purse.
"Come on, why can't you two admit that you're dating? You're obviously just making excuses to see one another without anyone thinking you guys are together," she said, and watched them grow confused.
"That's what you think this has been about?" Nino said, and suddenly burst out with laughter, followed by Alya. The pair looked at the confused Marinette with tears in their eyes, laughing loudly. "Girl, that's a good cover! Never really thought of that one!" Alya giggled, giving Marinette a playful punch on her arm.
Marinette suddenly felt awkward being the only one who had no clue what was going on. She put her hands on her hips and frowned. "What's going on you guys?" she demanded annoyedly. "We're not the ones who're trying to date, this whole thing is actually about you and-" Alya's elbow dug hard into Ninos side, cutting him off as he yelped in pain.
"Ouch!" Nino gave Alya a dirty look as he rubbed his stomach. Marinette stopped herself from laughing at his deserved pain from not telling her the truth.
"Oh look, there's, um...Adrien," Alya said, and shotNino a mean look before turning back to Marinette and looking innocent. Marinette suddenly tensed at the sound of that name.
Adrien.
She'd completely forgotten she'd have to meet Adrien tonight. Marinette fell into the same thought process she always did whenever she needed to talk to Adrien; her life was only seconds away from coming to an end, as she'd die from embarrassment at not being able to properly speak to him. It was kind of strange to her, having just met Chat Noir and feeling an attraction to him, and yet when Adrien comes she feels the exact same way.
"It's about time, I'm going to kill that dude. Sorry if your mom has to wait longer, Alya," Nino said, rubbing the back of his neck.
Alya shrugged. "No biggie. Adrien wasn't the only one who was late," she snarled, glaring angrily at Marinette.
Marinette groaned in frustration. "I told you, tonight was not a good night for me to come, but miss bossy just had to insist, didn't you?"
"Trust me, you won't regret it in the end," Alya said. With a wink, she added, "You'll thank me later."
Marinette became more than suspicious when she saw Nino and Alya grin mischievously at one another, and rolled her eyes.
"Hey guys!"
The usual form of Adrien ran up to the trio, dressed in a grey sweatshirt and jeans. Marinette lost her hope of being able to speak to him when she saw the way his blond hair shone golden in the orange glow of the sunset, and how his green eyes illuminated a happiness he didn't usually portray.
"I think we can finally walk in now, Alya, now that everyone's decided to show up," Nino said coldly, staring at Adrien with annoyance.
"It's nice to see you too, Nino," Adrien said, raising his eyebrows. "Um, sorry, Alya."
Alya shook her head and started walking towards the entrance to the hotel. "Whatever, pretty boy. I guess I'll forgive you, even if you were probably taking an hour long shower, anyway," she snapped. Nino snickered as he turned to follow her.
Adrien looked at Alya in puzzlement. "Hey, what's that supposed to mean?"
"Ninos told me all about the model side in you. Don't worry, Marinette was probably doing the same. Knowing her, there was no 'last minute order in the bakery,'" she said smartly. Marinette went red as Nino laughed and walked through the front doors behind Alya. Marinette was currently unable to move seeing that Adrien hadn't bothered to follow them, and he turned to her and smiled warmly.
"There's definitely something up with them, don't you think?"
Marinette almost felt intimidated by his gentle gaze locking onto her own. "Well, uh, no, I don't really think so..I mean, yeah I think they're secretly dating, but I don't think that's what this is all about, since they, uh, practically told me it wasn't.."
She wanted to punch herself.
Why is it that I only have self confidence when I wear a skin tight ladybug costume? That just sounds plain stupid… Adrien's mood seemed to dim as she finished her awkward sentence, and Marinette felt guilty.
She acts so much different around Chat Noir…Who knows if that's a good or bad thing, Adrien thought gloomily, and reminded himself he still had the rest of the night. He only wanted to bring out the side of her that he'd fallen in love with in Ladybug.
Maybe then he'd be closer to finding out her true identity.
"Well, should we go inside then?" he asked, gesturing his hand out to the door. Marinette nodded quickly and walked beside him. The hotel doorman stepped aside to allow the teens to enter through the doors. "Seems like you two have really done it to upset your friends back there," he remarked snidely, causing Adrien and Marinette to pause in their tracks.
"I've been watching them for about an hour while they waited for you, complaining and gossiping about you two, probably."
Marinette scowled and frowned at the doorman. "Really? Well, thanks for that helpful and obvious observation." She smirked at him as she disappeared through the door with Adrien. The two entered the fancy lobby, Marinette caught up in her pride over handling the overly snobby doorman.
Adrien couldn't help smiling at her in admiration, and Marinette jumped slightly when she saw him staring at her. "That guy totally deserved that," he said, laughing. "That was awesome."
The corners of her mouth flickered into a half smile at the sight of him laughing. "Oh, yeah, uh, thanks," she said nervously. Mayor Bourgeois stood behind the front desk off to the left, in the middle of a frantic discussion with a butler employee. Alya and Nino were at the foot of the stairs by the end of the lobby, talking to Alyas mother, the head chef of the hotel. Adrien and Marinette waited for them by the group of chairs off to the right by the elevators.
Maybe I should...give her a compliment? Adrien glanced at her pink-flushed face, realizing she had something he loved about Ladybug, coincidentally.
"Your eyes are really pretty," he blurted, watching her turn to him nervously.
What the hell was that?
"S-seriously? Um, thanks," Marinette said as brightly as she could. "Blue's my favorite color," Adrien said. Marinette smiled, obviously trying to avoid his gaze.
"Really? So's mine," she replied nervously. Adrien went red, realizing that she may have actually accepted his compliment.
You need to relax, Marinette. She thought, taking in a few helpful breaths. Just try and talk to him the way you would any other boy in the class. Is it that hard?
No, it wasn't.
That was her problem.