Periwinkle

"So you take the top, I'll do the bottom," Marinette said, leaning down as best she could with her bulging abdomen to remove the lid off a paint can.

Standing behind Marinette, Adrien reached down to slip a little white mask over Marinette's face to cover her nose and mouth.

Straightening back up, without having opened the paint can, Marinette gave Adrien a faux exasperated look. "Ah, don't distract me!"

With an innocent look, Adrien raised his hands. "Hey, gotta protect my girls, you know? Can't have those dangerous fumes hurting you!"

Touching Adrien's arm gently, Marinette quipped, "I'll be fine. It'll take more than just a few fumes to take Ladybug down." Behind the white mask,her lips curved into a soft smile.

But instead of letting them start working, Adrien wrapped his arms around Marinette. His arms cradled her rounded midsection, fingers intertwining beneath her belly for support, locking Marinette in place. Adrien leaned down to rest his chin on Marinette's head, peppering her hairline with chaste kisses.

Marinette tipped her head back, giving Adrien easier access, and laughed, "That tickles!" She raised her hands to form a barrier between her and Adrien's lips so she could catch her breath.

"Come on, Adrien, we need to finish this room and we haven't even started yet!"

With a smug grin, Adrien caught one of Marinette's hands and brought it to his lips so he could kiss the knuckle. "Whatever my lady wishes."

It did not take long for Adrien to realize painting with Marinette was no easy task. Marinette was just as messy a painter, as she was a baker. It was adorable, and Adrien loved how Marinette never shied away from getting down and dirty, but sometimes the mess was just too much for Adrien.

Setting his roller against the unpainted section of the wall, Adrien stepped over the tray of paint to join Marinette. She was struggling to reach the crevice where the wall met the ceiling. Little droplets of paint dripped down periodically, colouring her fingers purple and leaving traces of paint in her hair and on her face.

Adrien stopped at Marinette's side. "My lady, as much I hate to interrupt your artistic endeavors, I do believe you are now purple than the wall," Adrien said while laughing, reaching up to remove a still wet blob of paint from Marinette's cheek. The paint had already partially dried, so Adrien's thumb still left behind a splotch of purple on Marinette's cheek.

Marinette's nose scrunched up in an adorable manner and her paint stained hand rose to swipe at Adrien's hand.

"What are you talking about, Adrien?" Marinette asked, turning her head to face Adrien. Her eyes widened, giving Adrien an innocent questioning look.

Though he stopped laughing, Adrien continued to grin cheekily. "Darling, you're all purrrr-ple!"

Marinette continued to look at him, confused. "What? I'm not wearing anything purple?"

"I mean," Adrien said holding up his now purple thumb, "that you're covered in purple paint, Mari."

"Oh! Silly cat!" Marinette laughed, her eyes lighting up with realization. "This isn't purple! This is periwinkle!"

Adrien stared at Marinette, dumbfounded, while she giggled. Lowering the still dripping paint roller, Marinette dropped the roller on the ground, where it landed with a thunk.

"Isn't periwinkle the same as purple?" Adrien asked, looking at the dried paint on his thumb.

Still giggling slightly, Marinette wrapped her hand around Adrien's thumb. "Of course not!" she said, pushing Adrien's thumb at his own face. "Periwinkle is much lighter than purple! Purple is far too dark and cold for a nursery! It would scare our baby. Look at how much warmer periwinkle is!"

Adrien pulled his thumb out of Marinette's grasp, though he still held his thumb before his eyes. Turning his thumb, Adrien studied it from different angles, trying to see what exactly Marinette was talking about.. Finally, his gaze flickered back up to face Marinette, though his thumb remained between them. "My lady, I don't mean to offend, but I am paw-sitively sure that periwinkle is a shade of purple."

Pouting, Marinette crossed her arms. "It's periwinkle!"

"Aw Princess, don't give me that face! You know it makes me feel paw-fully guilty when you pout like that!"

Shaking her head, Marinette reached down to coat her fingers in periwinkle paint, then slashed her hand across Adrien's chest. Her fingers left a trail of periwinkle on Adrien's ratty shirt and he looked at her with feigned hurt.

"Why, my lady! How could you betray me like this!"

Marinette smirked innocently.

Adrien got his revenge by capturing Marinette in a giant bear hug, rubbing the wet paint on her clothes as well. Squealing at first, Marinette settled for hugging Adrien back. The paint had not yet dried on her fingers, so she rubbed the remaining periwinkle all across Adrien's back where he wouldn't notice until much later.

In the end, Adrien ended up calling Nino to help him paint the nursery.