They had finally found him. They knew where Hawkmoth's lair was, but the problem with Chat Noir was the fact that the lair was in his house.
Which meant his father was Hawkmoth.
Ladybug didn't know this, of course, so she didn't understand why his face went ghost white when he found out. She just thought he was surprised. Which was good. He didn't want her to know how evil his family was, and he didn't want to drag her into his problems.
"Ready?" Ladybug asked him as they landed on the Agreste Mansion.
"Ready as I'll ever be," Chat Noir muttered in reply, his eyes full of sorrow that she wouldn't understand.
"Are you sure you're okay?" She asked for the hundredth time. "You're making me worried..."
He immediately plastered a fake smile on his face. "No need to worry, M'Lady. I'm fine."
Ladybug only frowned, and muttered, "If you're sure..."
They jumped through the window into Gabriel's office, and walked up to the portrait of Emilie Agreste. Ladybug and Chat Noir had taken turns watching Gabriel open his lair, so they would have it memorized.
Chat Noir reached up, and pushed in the correct shapes in the portrait, causing a small circle in the floor to start to travel down. He pulled his lady into his arms in order to keep both of them on.
"This is a great excuse to cuddle..." Chat Noir thought with a smirk.
Ladybug didn't look happy about their close contact, but she didn't complain. He had never seen her so serious. That's when he realized...
This was extremely dangerous, and deadly.
No wonder she looked so serious. These could be the last moments of their lives. The thought made him tighten his grip on her.
He couldn't lose her
She suddenly pulled away from him, and he looked around to see a dark room, with millions of butterflies flapping around.
"Hello, Ladybug, Chat Noir," his father's voice echoed around the room. Chat's ears twisted, trying to detect where the voice was coming from. When that didn't work, he used his night vision.
Hawkmoth was standing on the other side of the room, staring at them, hunger flashing in his eyes when he caught sight of their miraculouses.
His stomach twisted with emotions, and it took all his will power to not break down right there. He had to stay by his lady. He could melt down later, when he was alone.
"Hawkmoth," Ladybug replied evenly, taking a step forward. Chat Noir stepped forward with her, knowing that his father was a dangerous man, and feeling uncomfortable with her being so close without protection.
"We came to end this," Chat growled. He was surprised that his voice worked, and even more surprised that it hadn't cracked with emotion.
Hawkmoth raised an eyebrow. "You're going to give me your Miraculous? Or are you planning on doing this the hard way?"
Ladybug spun her yo-yo in response, and Chat spun his baton, following her lead.
The man's eyes glittered with amusement before he pulled a sword like weapon out of his staff. Chat Noir shifted his weight. Great. Just what they needed. More danger.
He and Ladybug ran forward, bracing themselves for contact. Hawkmoth raised his sword, and tried to strike Ladybug.
Yeah, Chat wasn't allowing that. He blocked it with his baton, and kicked Hawkmoth in the chest, sending him flying. He couldn't care less about the fact that he had just hurt his father. She was more important.
They continued to fight, having many close calls, and getting many bruises, and cuts. Well, Chat got most of the cuts and bruises. Ladybug just got small bruises from hitting the floor everytime Chat Noir would pull, or push her away from danger.
"You have to stop doing that!" She exclaimed. "I don't like it when you get hurt because of me!"
"And I don't like it when you get hurt!" He retorted, dodging a blow from Hawkmoth.
Chat was momentarily distracted when Hawkmoth managed to disrupt his balance by sweeping his legs under Chat Noir's feet.
Ladybug, too, was distracted, giving Hawkmoth a chance to lunge at her, and pin her to the ground.
The black cat on the ground growled with anger. "Get away from her!" He spat, jumping up just in time to see the pink light flash over his lady's body. He covered his eyes to block out the blinding light, and slowly uncovered his eyes when it dissolved. Underneath the evil man, was small, cute, beautiful, and the downright amazing Marinette Dupain-Cheng.
"Marinette..." Chat Noir breathed. No, it wasn't a question. It was a statement. It was him excepting her for who she was.
"H-hey, Chat..." The bluenette replied hesitantly, glancing up at the beaming Hawkmoth, who had her earrings in his hand.
Chat Noir turned his attention back to his father, and immediately lunged at him, knocking him off of Marinette.
"Run!" Chat yelled at her, not wanting anything bad to happen. When she de-transforms, all her luck disappears, which only leaves his bad luck. Something bad could happen very easily.
"And leave you? Are you crazy!?" She yelled back, running forward. "Just because I'm de-transformed, doesn't mean I can't help! We're partners! We stick by each other!"
He sighed, knowing that there was no use trying to reason with the stubborn girl. They continued to fight Hawkmoth, but now Chat was even more careful. He made sure he was always closer to Hawkmoth than she was, and that the evil man wouldn't get a chance to touch her.
The only difficulty was the fact that Hawkmoth was targeting her more, since she was defenseless. And he knew that if something happens to her, Chat Noir would have a break down, and wouldn't be able to fight.
"We need to retreat!" Marinette exclaimed when Chat Noir howled in pain as Hawkmoth cut his leg open.
"But... your earrings!" The whimpering cat pointed out.
"Let me take care of it," she said confidently, running towards Hawkmoth.
"Marinette, no!" Chat yelled, reaching one hand out, as if he was trying to grab her. Panic rised in his chest as he watched Hawkmoth raise his sword, ready to strike the defenseless girl. Ready to kill. Ready to destroy Chat's world.
The bluenette grabbed his arm, and slid under his legs, causing him to fall over. She grabbed the earrings that were in his pocket, and placed them in her ears.
Chat Noir was by her side in seconds, and picked her up, holding her bridal style.
"We'll be back," he promised Hawkmoth, his voice dark, before disappearing.
Ten minutes later, he and a now transformed Ladybug were sitting on the Eiffel Tower together, their feet dangling off the edge.
He kept glancing at her, and worrying. He was mainly worried about the fact that Hawkmoth now knew her identity. He could now have akumas target her, and try to destroy her in civilian form. He shivered at the thought.
But another thing that worried him was his own identity. He knew hers, so should he show her his? He wanted to, but her reveal had been an accident, and she might not want to know...
"So..." She started, looking up at him. He avoided eye contact, looking down at the city streets. He heard her let out a giggle. "Funny. I thought you would show me who you were as soon as you had the chance to."
"Do you want to know?" He asked quickly, and eagerly, his head snapping around to look at her.
Her bluebell eyes widened in alarm. "Yes! I mean, no! I mean, sure, I-I don't know!"
He chuckled, and leaned in, feeling his heart pick up speed as they got closer to one another. "If you want to know, M'Lady, I would be purr-fectly happy to tell mew."
Ladybug groaned, and rolled her eyes, pushing Chat Noir's head back. "I mean... I guess it's kind of fair... for you to tell me."
He nodded, and smiled. "Then, I guess I'll tell you."
Her blue orbs seemed to light up with excitement for a moment before she got the feeling under control, causing him to laugh quietly. She was so cute!
He took a deep breath, and said the words that would change their lives forever. The words that will cause their friendship to grow into a deep, and romantic love. The very words that would bring them happiness.
"Claws in."