She pulled one of the white petals off the daisy in her hand, and let it drift into the wind. "He loves me," she counted.

She plucked another, and let it fly after the others. "He loves me not."

She pulled the next one. "He loves me."

Another. "He loves me not."

She was getting near the end now, the circle of petals almost all gone, and she could barely stop herself from just counting to see if there were an odd or even number left.

"He loves me," she chanted again to herself, so focused on her little game that she didn't notice the shadow creeping up on her.

His green eyes shone in the dark. Little lights dotted the city all around them, but this tiny rooftop garden was unlit, leaving him nearly invisible to stalk his prey with an amused, cheshire grin.

"He loves me not," she continued. He crept closer, hoping he'd be able to surprise her this time. Usually she realized he was there before he could get too close.

"He loves me." He was so close. Just another two steps and he could clamp his hands down on her shoulders. He was already thinking of something witty to say. His brain immediately came up with 'she loves me,' following with the game she was playing, but he thought it might be too forward, and he couldn't say he wanted to hear her deny it, as she inevitably would.

"He loves me not," she said with finality and a frown, plucking the last petal and releasing it into the wind. She sighed, minorly disappointed that her game hadn't ended how she'd wanted it to.

Chat inhaled deeply and silently, raising his hands up in preparation to drop them on her.

Without moving, without turning her gaze from the Parisian skyline, Ladybug said, "Good news for you Chat, it looks like you still have a chance."

Chat exhaled and drooped anticlimactically. "How long did you know I was there?" he asked, strolling around the little bench she was on to sit next to her.

"I heard you touch down on the roof a couple minutes ago," she admitted with a small, smug smile.
He grinned at her. "I'll just have to try harder next time, then."

She laughed. "That's what you say every time." She glanced down at the flower stem she was still holding, and after a second of deliberation, offered it to him.

Chat chuckled and accepted it. "It's beautiful," he insisted. He tucked it into his wild hair and turned to her, holding his chin up at just the right angle and smiling as he did so often in photoshoots. "How do I look?"

"You'll be the prettiest cat at the ball," she answered, trying not to laugh at his antics.

Satisfied, he grinned and leaned back into the bench.

Ladybug stood. "I hate to run, but I have to get back home before anyone notices I'm missing."

"It's okay," Chat assured her. "It was nice to see you. And I probably have to get back soon, too."

"I'll see you around then, Chaton," she bid, and she stepped to the edge of the roof.

Just before she swung off, though, Chat said, "Hey, Ladybug?"

She turned back, offering him her attention.

He looked a little conflicted, and certainly more serious than a moment before, but he managed to say, "He, um, whoever he is, with the flower. He'd be an idiot to love you not."

Ladybug was shocked for a second. Chat was rarely serious, and though he flirted with her endlessly, she was pretty sure this was the first time he'd paid her a straight, genuine compliment.

"Oh," she finally said, immediately feeling like an idiot for that being her brilliant response.

"Well anyway," he excused, trying to brush away the awkward moment and turning to leave in the other direction.

"Chat," she called him back.

He turned, still looking embarrassed.

"Thanks," she said, smiling brightly at him. "You're something of a catch yourself, you know?"

He cheered immediately, straightening up and beaming at her with his wide cheshire grin. "So I've heard," he told her. "In fact, just recently, I was told I might have a chance with the Ladybug!" he bragged.

She rolled her eyes. "Good night, Chat," she dismissed, throwing her yo-yo and hooking it on a chimney across the street.

"Good night, my Lady!" he called after her as she zipped away.