lil-miss-purple's LOVELY ART OMG I LOVE IT

I think I scrutinized her work for something like an hour in total when I was writing this because I wanted to get the feel of it right, the mood, the lovely teenage hormones, etc. I kept flicking back between tabs and my writing because I was like, DID THE ARM MOVE? WHAT'S IT LOOK LIKE IN THE NEXT PANEL UGH IT'S SO BEAUTIUFL

Paris after dark was beyond beautiful. The night lights, the night life, the moon shimmering across the reflection of La Seine, the cool breeze to offset the warm night, it was perfect. Springtime in Paris was magical, all the flowers blooming, love was in the air and life was coming back to the world.

Chat didn't usually patrol alone, but Ladybug had been quite specific that tonight she would have to do some other work. He sighed happily. She was probably volunteering at an orphanage for sad kittens or something like that. She was just too good sometimes. And he had the pleasure of holding her confidence and being able to call her a friend, maybe even more than friends.

Chat didn't like being alone. Adrien did, sometimes anyway. Being Chat was great and fun and freeing! He just wanted to experience the joy and fun he could have with Ladybug and other people, so being alone when he was Chat was lonely. He could leap across Paris and climb the Eiffel Tower and perform acrobatics only thought to be seen in carnivals or exotic performances. He was confident to express himself the way he remembered reading about it books, about how the daring, young do-gooder man (boy-man, guy) got the girl by sweeping her off her feet. There were times that Chat felt like Ladybug cared for him far more deeply than she portrayed, and other times where she was even farther than before.

Ah, his Lady. She was the most beautiful rose, being held beyond a gate of vicious thorns. He could get closer and closer to her dazzling self and then pricked without warning. Some would have given up by now, but not him. Adrien would have given up, just content with being around her, or just even hearing about her. Chat was greedy, though. He loved every interaction between him and Ladybug. He wouldn't stop because Ladybug has never told him no. She never told him to back away, or stop it, or give him a reason to not pursue her. She giggled and flirted and sassed him right back. If she were truly not interested in him, she wouldn't do any of those things, would she?

With that lovely realization tucked under his belt, he resumed his patrol with a spring in his step and a wide smile on his face. Walking over the rooftops of Paris, darting in and out of alleyways, keeping the citizens safe, it felt romantic. Part of it was really boring, sometimes distracting Chat to see how many cartwheels he could do before he couldn't walk straight, or to see how many cats he could attract towards him. Adrien was expected to have perfect focus, Chat was free to let his mind wander.

And wander it did. He had been through a few of Paris' districts, stopping to look into Chloe's home and see how she was. Bossing around people like always he saw with a tight smile. He stopped by Nino's place, peeking into the recognizable house of his best friend. With a snort he realized that Nino and his brother had been acting out a scene from a movie that he hadn't seen, with arms waving and his costume box flung open onto the floor of his room. He sat atop the roof across the street, his feet swaying back and forth off the edge, and smiled. This was what he wanted to protect, the laughter, the normalcy, yes even Chloe's normalcy, of his friends.

"Well," he got up, arching his back in a big stretch, his tail swishing behind him, "I suppose that's good enough for one night." And with that he began walking along the edge, his arms out to the sides to help him balance just like he was on a tight rope. He looked around, pretending to be a trapeze artist, bowed to his imaginary crowd and jumped.

His body felt light, just as if he was flying like a bird. His arms flew foreward to catch himself into a roll along the next roof and he began to run again. He jumped over chimneys, danced along the balconies and accidentally collided with a pigeon's nest, awarding him with a face full of feathers, a nose full of sneezes, and a headache complimentary of the poor birds who lived in it. Er, scratch that, used to live in it.

He swatted at the feathers still in his hair and rubbed at his nose until he caught a whiff of something delicious~. One of the perks of having these powers were his enhanced senses. Those adorable cat ears weren't just for decoration, but allowed him to detect the vibrations of things a lot farther away than his regular ears. His suit and tail seemed ergonomically perfect in all ways, helping him stay as balanced as possible, giving him a strong suit of armour, and making him look devilishly handsome as well. His nose could smell the faintest of scents, Adrien couldn't always identify the smell, but he did smell them nonetheless. And boy did he smell something good.

Letting his nose guide the way, he tiptoed across the top of the house, feeling something like a kid who was trying to get to the cookie jar unseen. Although the streetlights were on, many of the houses around him had their lights off, it being very late in the evening. It was if he could see the waves of the scent leading him towards his destination. Maybe he could pick up some of whatever was making the fragrance for himself and if there was any cheese for his Kwami companion. Plagg had been great lately, well as great as Plagg could be. The little guy could be trouble, but Adrien was thankful that the two had met.

He vaulted over the last chimney top on his side of the street and looked over to the other street corner to see a vaguely familiar house. There was a delicate looking white entryway, tinted windows with gold accents that he remembered were of the Dupain-Cheng Bakery. The bakery's door was open, bathing the walkway in a warm, yellow light. Looking up the side of the building, there was a small balcony that opened into what looked like an apartment. And looking even further up there was a small rooftop garden. It was a quaint little home, but Chat smiled, if somewhat bitterly, but it was a warm home. A home that he was happy that Marinette lived in safely.

Chat closed his eyes took a long inhale, really smelling what he knew know was coming from the bakery of his friend. It was sweet, sugary, airy scent. Being closer to the shop now, he could pick out scents like fresh bread, icing and icing sugar, and melting chocolate. He licked his lips and opened his eyes. Just thinking of all of those treats were enough to get him hungry, but as he crept closer to the edge of the rooftop, he noticed a small Chinese woman and a big tall French man exiting the small business. Tom and Sabine Dupain-Cheng, his mind supplied him. Tom began pacing outside the residence as Sabine calmly watched him.

"Tom…" the woman cautioned

"Yes, sweet, I know. But you know I trust her and trust her judgement. We raised her well. But…"

"But?" Sabine warned.

Tom sighed. "Nothing, love of my life. But she should be back by now."

"Marinette is a smart girl, dear. She's out late like this a lot. She probably is meeting up with a boyfriend." And at that Tom stopped pacing and shot over to his wife, hugging her tightly.

"Nooooo! Marinette is too young to have a boyfriend, she's too young for that!" and Sabine giggled, hugged her husband, and led him back into the bakery.

Chat crouched down, kneeling on the rooftop and frowned. It was bordering on early morning, why wasn't Marinette back at home yet? He couldn't imagine the shy girl being involved in anything bad. And both extracurricular and work activities should be done by now. Maybe she's with Alya, and lost track of time? Could… could she be with a boy? He tapped his claws against the water drain. Marinette didn't seem like the type of girl to stay out all night with a boy. Knowing Marinette, she probably just lost track of the time. He knew Marinette…

But then again, he frowned even deeper, he didn't really know Marinette as well as he could. And neither did Chat.

As the superhero thought about the young Chinese-French girl and where she could possibly be, he heard a familiar scream. Looking towards the sound, he bolted towards it, bounding across rooftops at a breakneck pace. Paris wasn't too too dangerous, well, getting away from the Akumas anyway. There were gangs and muggers and drug dealers for sure, there wasn't a modern city that didn't have them, but that had been a terrified voice. That had been Ladybug's terrified voice. His peaceful nightly patrol had been interrupted from a scream from his Lady. Ladybug didn't scream, she yelled and screeched, but definitely didn't scream, and so that alerted him that she was in big trouble. Chat's back tensed, his hands tightened, no doubt if he could see underneath his gloves his knuckles would be white.

Was she being held captive by Hawkmoth? Was she being thrown against the hard bricks of the Parisian architecture? Had she already used her Lucky Charm? Was she running low on time? Chat couldn't think. If he thought, he would lose precious time away from what he should be doing, protecting one of the people that truly matters to him.

Another scream pulls him out of his reverie. After a look around and hearing short, heartbreaking whimpers from below him, Chat jumped off the roof and flipped forward through the air, landing lightly on his feet at the end of the alleyway. Whoever was hurting his Lady was sure to feel his wrath. He clenched his hands in dark anticipation and narrowed his eyes, letting his powers adjust his vision to make everything seem brighter. If anyone had been able to see him, see his dark suit, and see his bright eyes, they would have seen a flash of green in his pupils, and his body crouched, ready to pounce.

They also would have seen him reel back in shock when he saw who he was actually getting ready to save.

There was Marinette. Sweet, sweet Marinette. Sweet, delicate, honest Marinette. Sweet, delicate, honestly in danger Marinette.

She was backed up against the wall of the alley, palms backward and bracing herself for something. Her shoulders hunched forward, and her head tilted to the side, her bright blue eyes tightly shut. She was taking quick, shuddering, open-mouthed breaths. Chat thought he could faintly see Marinette's journal lying at her feet, opened and pages torn out. Her usual attire, her grey jacket, pink jeans, cute shirt, everything seemed to be shrouded in darkness.

The worst part? It looked like Marinette had been crying.

The soon-to-be ex criminal was a dark figure in a dark robe. Tall, even taller than Chat himself, a hunched back, and a long pointed nose were the only features Chat saw that could distinguish the person. An eerie purple mottled hand crept out of its robe, trying to gently caress the poor girl's face. The other hand, seemingly ghost white in comparison held a familiar insect, was held towards the girl's journal, trying to coax it into Marinette's heart, her special designs and her most secret secrets.

A dark purple butterfly awash with evil that made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. This guy was trying to Akuma-ize Marinette. Marinette. Akuma Marinette.

That made Chat and Adrien flush with anger. Marinette had to be the nicest person he knew! She was always giving out advice, and volunteering her time to others. She brought in snacks from her family's bakery to share with the class all the time! She stood up for the people in her class who were being bullied! She put up with Chloe's antics! She helped Nino out with costumes and took lots of responsibility whenever he wanted to make a movie or a short! She helped Alya out with the Ladyblog whenever she could! She smiled sweetly and was passionate about herself and others! She cared about people!

She cares about me!

And with that Chat sprinted forward with a hiss, hand grabbing his baton behind him and breaking it into two. The figure jumped backwards, and as if floating, gracefully landed at towards the opening of the alleyway. He grasped the Akuma butterfly in his palm, then opened his hand again and it was gone. Chat zigzagged through the alley, pushed his arms up above his head in and X and as he got closer and closer to the figure, was preparing to bash the guy from over the head straight down his sides.

The figure raised both arms up, and as they shook, deep purple foam appeared from his fingertips. As they hit the ground, wisps of shadows appeared from where the foam made contact with the concrete. The wisps seemed to collect and converge, creating a giant shadow. Chat slammed his feet down, braking before he hit the mysterious cloud of darkness. The figure walked in front of the cloud, bowed deeply, but it looked as though he was looking through Chat. As the figure began stepping backwards into the shadow, he spoke, his voice deep and filled with dark promises:

"I'll be seeing you then, sweet little Marinette…" he breathed, but Chat could hear it plain as day.

"You'll have to go through me to even touch Marinette, got that?" Chat snarled back as the robed man just chuckled. He entered the darkness and disappeared without a trace.

Chat ran a hand through his unruly hair, breathing deep to get his pulse back to normal. It wouldn't do to have Marinette worried about him, though he knew that she would worry about him anyway. He rubbed at his temples and steeled himself back to the mischievous Chat Noir, slayer of hearts and Akumas alike. He plastered on an easy grin, clipped his baton back together, stuck it to his hip and began to turn to speak to Marinette-

Until a small, warm, very feminine body collided with his back, wrapping their arms around his waist and stopping whatever words he had begun to say.

Chat was stunned for a moment. Here they were, Chat Noir, a funny, handsome superhero, who may or may not be this lovely girl's classmate by day, and Ladybug's one and only partner by night, and Marinette, a sweet, passionate, confusing girl who sticks up for things and people she believes in, but can't seem to let Adrien into her life. As Chat he got to see her how she actually was, bright and confidant and helpful to those around her. But as Adrien he didn't get to see those things, and he was pretty sure he was the only one. Marinette was cheerful and exuberant with everyone in his class, probably save for Chloe and himself. He understood why she wasn't really buddy-buddy with Chloe, but he's never understood why she didn't like him when he was Adrien.

Maybe she was intimidated by him, maybe she was scared. Maybe she froze up because he had done or said something careless to her, or about her. Growing up alone hadn't done much to help him with social relationships, and he knows that he can be thoughtless, especially when it comes to other people.

And as it turns out, he can be especially thoughtless when it comes to girls. Judging by the way that Marinette's arms were tightly wound against Chat's chest, and the sounds of shuddering breathes and soft sniffles, jumping in to rescue her the way he did probably wasn't the best way to do it.

"Oh merde, I'm sorry Marinette." He spoke out, concern and guilt lacing his words, his face matching his words.

He had left her. Yes, it was to get that creep away from her, but he left her vulnerable and alone, and seeing the tricks that the robed man had, he could have easily have distracted Chat, made him think that he had left, and turned around and hurt Marinette.

Or even worse, he could have possessed Marinette with an Akuma. Ladybug had said she couldn't do anything tonight, and while he knows that Ladybug would come running to help at the first sign of trouble, Chat didn't think that she would be able to get here for a while, if she could even come at all.

Chat didn't want to think what would happen if Marinette was transformed into an Akuma and he couldn't do anything to help her.

Marinette took a deep breath, tightening her arms around him even more which frankly kind of started to hurt, before she spoke, sounding nothing like the strong-willed girl that Chat has come to know.

"You… you should be! Leaving a girl l-like me in an alley like this?! And wha-what was with you heading after that guy anyway? You saw that stuff that was co-coming out of his hands! You could have gotten hurt!" she was babbling, or in shock.

Or both, poor girl.

Marinette came up to just about his shoulder, but with her tucked in like that, embracing him from behind, she seemed much smaller. Chat looked down towards his chest at the tiny arms with even tinier hands that had encircled him. She was so small! Her hands tiny, her wrists looked like he could wrap his hand around them and still have room to click his fingers together. Still though, underneath all that he could still feel the muscles unwinding beneath her jacket. Still feel the tightness of muscles expanding from her breastbone all the way to her abdomen and oh-

She's still hugging him. Marinette is still very much hugging him.

He raised his arms slowly, moving them up and down, unsure if he should just leave them down by his sides or try to comfort her by putting his hands over top of hers.

Marinette gave a breathy laugh at his actions, or inaction he should say. She began to relax and let go of him, unraveling her arms from their place around him. Her arms weren't as shaky as before, but he still felt bad about the whole ordeal. Though he was allowed to breathe normally again, he wasn't pleased about the hug being over. Before Marinette could completely extricate herself from Chat's personal space he stopped her by grabbing onto her wrists.

I knew it, I can totally wrap my hands around her wrists.

"I… Chat…" she breathed.

"I'm here… I'll always be here." He returned with the same lightness in his voice. He felt her head drop down to press her forehead in-between his shoulder blades, nodding in acknowledgment. Feeling her smile against his back was like a warm spring breeze that made it easier to breathe again.

And with that he spun slowly around, making sure to move Marinette's hands so that she wouldn't get tangled in him again. Though that wouldn't really be a problem.

Finally seeing Marinette's face after the whole ordeal made his heart go out to his classmate. Her regular bouncy pigtails were loosened, one side uneven from the other. Her usually red face (in the face of Adrien of course) was another few shades of red, the blotchiness coming from her tears. Her hands, still wrapped securely in his own, gave slight shakes here and there, but weren't as bad as earlier. And even in this dark alley, with his night vision and the dimmed lights of the streetlamps, she was already looking better. Her eyes half lidded and looking down slowly inched their way up from the ground to his face, and then to his eyes.

Revealing Marinette's impossibly blue eyes that he was sure stopped his own heart for a moment.

Chat stared at Marinette glinting in the nightlight, hearing her breathing, listening to the gentle ba-dum ba-dum ba-dum of her heart. She had sheen to her face, courtesy of her fright, but she still looked great. Her eyes that could pierce the heavens themselves searched his face, and as though she found what she was looking for, smiled that big, sincere, honest Marinette smile.

It's so bright…

And as long as that moment was, it disappeared in a flash. Marinette looked away, just as embarrassed as though Adrien was here himself (and he was). Chat coughed and turned to stare away from the blindingly pretty girl, knowing that he would make a grave mistake if she continued to stare at him like she had been earlier. He gave a little sigh and rubbed the back of his neck, before he saw movement out of the corner of his eye as Marinette began moving backwards.

Confused for a moment, until Marinette's back hit the wall of the building and she let her head drop against it and let out a long exhale of relief. It dawned on him that it was extremely late in the night, or early in the morning, and the average person would be at home sleeping soundly in their beds. Shaking his head and walking forward, he leaned against the wall beside Marinette, giving her his comfort.

She turned to him, closing more distance between them and gave another blindingly bright smile of gratitude. She brought both her hands up to rub down her face, shaking her head and making her pigtails bounce, not as though Chat noticed or anything. Marinette took one last shaky inhale and shake of her head before she let her left hand drop down to her sides while her right hand dabbed at her eyelids, taking some of the last glittering tears with it, a blush beginning to grow ever larger and larger on her rounded face.

Turning on his charm once again he plastered his grin on, more like a genuine smile though, he couldn't bear to be transparent in front of this girl, at least not now, and placed his arm above her head, swiveling around to stand in front of her. Having the "regular Chat" here would relax her more and be ready for him to bring her home safely. After this night Chat Noir, one of Paris' illusive superheroes would be keeping his eyes on the girl's door, and giving the cityscape a more careful look around, in case she was still out and about.

Upon his word, nothing like what happened tonight would ever happen to Marinette as long as he drew breath.

Chat opened his mouth to start talking, but ended up opening and closing it like a fish. Marinette was looking down now, and Chat cursed his difficulty in saying the right things to girls. He took a breath and started again.

"You should be more careful, Princess." He purred, hoping to elicit a positive reaction, or something like the one the two had shared not a minute earlier.

"…" That was the wrong thing to say

Marinette looked up, staring into Chat's chest, or past him and began raising her hands. He gave her a questioning look.

"Chat…" she started.

"Yes-"

"Chat… I'm sorry for this…" Puzzled, Chat looked down at Marinette, trying to identify what she was seeing in her eyes, her face getting even more red, if that could even happen.

"For what?" he asked, getting more and more confused.

She took a daring step towards him, getting off of the wall and staring straight into his eyes, maybe even down into his soul. With the proximity between them closing second by second he felt his face warm up. Marinette's hand was drifting up and up, getting closer to his face. He didn't know what to concentrate on, her hand, her face, or her lips.

"For…" bringing her other hand up, just as slowly as the other. She was beginning to close her eyes, slightly parting her lips, was she wearing lip gloss?

Chat's hand that was on the wall began to shake, his fingers twitching and he could see his arm slowly start to retract, seemingly by itself because he definitely wasn't moving it. She took another step forward and Chat's senses were invaded with Marinette~. Marinette's warmth, her smell, the sound of her breathing. All that was missing was her taste… He almost missed what she was saying when she placed her soft, warm hands of his cheeks.

"For what I'm about to do…" she whispered. And Chat just about broke, his face no doubt startled into a frozen mask and his colour more than likely the same as Ladybug's…

Merde, merde, merde, shit shit shit-

Marinette closed her eyes and hesitatingly lifted her face towards his, feeling her raise herself up on her tiptoes and just as gently as before, slid her left hand from its spot on his cheek, down his neck to settle on his shoulder, while her right hand fondly caressed his cheek. Chat could feel his own eyes start to droop when they darted to her lips, enticing him. His arm that had once been on the wall of the alley had fallen down, interestingly to just in front of Marinette's cheek.

And with a moment that lasted far longer than forever, Marinette's lips pressed against his own.

Yup, definitely lip gloss

Marinette had let her right hand fall onto Chat's shoulders and clutched herself to him, while Chat, not within his own mind, gently placed his hand against the warm cheek he's been eyeing. Her mouth, sweet and hot against his, tasted like powdered sugar, light and airy and fluffy. That enticing mouth that he had noticed earlier was intently pressing against his, and Chat couldn't bear not to press back just as insistently. She was making little gasps and these adorable squeaks that did little more than goad Chat on, making him eager to hear any other sounds emanating from that lovely throat of hers. Chat can hear a sound rumbling deep in his chest, low and comforting. This was too much, Marinette was too much.

Her smell, her sound, her taste, her look, it was all too much. And in that second that he was thinking about Marinette (How could he possibly be able to think right now? Marinette was kissing him), her lips tore away from him her eyes snapping open and staring at his face. He must've looked desperate, because she giggled. She took a second to breathe, getting even more impossibly closer to him. He didn't stop himself, and neither did she, when Chat gently ran his fingers down the side of her face, nearly stopping breathing when her eyes fluttered and leaned into his touch.

She looked beautiful. With a blazing red finish racing across her cheekbones, her smile so wide it looked like it hurt. Her eyes, bright and shining like the clearest bluest water. Her little button nose, dotted with freckles Adrien had never seen before. But Adrien wasn't here right now. Chat was. And Chat was very much enjoying seeing Marinette licking her lips, and hoping they could return to that very enjoyable activity they were just doing.

"Mon Dieu, you're purring." She rasped out, and a second later she threw herself back into the kiss, jumping up and wrapping her arms around his neck.

But this time, Chat made sure Marinette knew he was a very willing participant in all this. He let his hand drop off her face to curve into the lovely dip of Marinette's neck, being careful to not nick her with his claws. His other hand snaked out and around her waist to pull her as close as they had been earlier. Marinette wasn't a bombshell, or curvy to the extreme but Chat let out a whine when he felt her delicate body, still feminine and sweet settle very close to his body. With Marinette letting out her own sweet sounding gasp he thought it prudent to smirk. There wasn't a space between them, and if the both of them had anything to say about it, that space would be getting even smaller.

Another gasp had Chat swallowing it up with his own mouth, opening his even wider to reign Marinette's mouth in. Now there was a whole new level to this intimacy they were experiencing. Now that their mouths have been opened, it's like all anarchy struck out.

Chat was placing big, open-mouthed kisses along her lips, while Marinette was very boldly trying to wrestle out Chat's tongue, it seems. If this were a movie, Chat's leg would have pinged up and dipped, like in those cheesy romantic comedies. Though his tail moving on its own, moving in weird, flappy motions seemed to be good compensation enough. Marinette seemed to not get enough of his handsome face and painstakingly slowly danced her hands up his skin, over his suit, and over his now weirdly sensitive neck to gently frame his face.

With a sweet smelling puff, and the willpower of a goddess it seemed, Marinette pulled away again. But this time there was protest, earning a whiny, confused whistle from the superhero. Marinette just giggled again, barely a sound there with her voice being used up from kissing Chat.

Marinette kissing Chat, I could get used to that.

With all the tenderness in the world Chat bumped foreheads with the girl, reveling in the way she couldn't look away from him. With one final burst of courage, Chat placed a soft kiss against Marinette's forehead, loving the way she seemed to sigh in happiness. Content, she slipped her hands down his face and onto his chest. With nowhere else to put them without seeming too forward or too distant, because that had been magical, Chat slipped his arms around her waist, locking together and locking the girl there. Though she didn't seem to mind with the way she snuggled into him, and feeling her smile against his chest.

"Chat… thank you…" she breathed into him, though without his ears being what they were he probably wouldn't have heard them.

"Anything for you, my dear Princess…" he said with equal emotion.

She pulled back, not enough to leave his embrace all the way, and not far enough so that she couldn't hold onto him anymore. Her face was still flushed, but in a very good way. And there was that smile, that gorgeous, megawatt smile. Oh if he could take a picture of this, he'd never need to be troubled again. There was someone who he cared about, and deeply cared about him.

"Chat…" he held his breath.

BEEP

"Chat.. I think…"

BEEP

"Chat, I think I lo-"

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

And Adrien's eyes opened.

He could feel the heat searing his face, his covers way too tangled onto him to be coincidence. The coolness in the air around his hands, his toes, his face, did nothing when the wonderful memories of his dream slowly reared back into the forefront of his mind. The sweetness of her taste and smell, the loving way she looked at Chat.

It was a dream, a really really REALLY nice dream

He heard the familiar, totally unwanted snicker and snapped his head to the left, feeling his face explode into heat.

"Anything for you, my dear Princess, huh? Well then, I would like a large plate of Camembert cheese, with sliced Estonian, cubed Taleggio, and a bowl of Mascarpone. Chop chop!"

That Kwami was going to kill him.

"Get up, lazy butt, or you'll be late for school~"

Crap, how am I going to even look at Marinette without seeing her kissed silly?

The image of Marinette's face, her crystal blue eyes shining, her cheeks blushing prettily, her mussed up hair falling out of their pigtails into gorgeous blue curls, the upwards turn of her lips…

Her lips

Adrien sighed, his face flushing again. Oh right, I'm not.

And with that Adrien turned over, trying to get the last vestiges of sleep again before having to leave for school. And to deal with the inevitable fate that awaited him, because

Marinette was really really really pretty