It was the kind of beautiful day that had the young people of Paris on the streets and vulnerable. Passions were flying with everyone out of school they having nothing to do but indulge in their love affairs and break them off. As the negative emotions flooded Paris along with its youth, Ladybug and Chat Noir were feeling more exhausted than ever.
"Another Akuma?" Marinette sighed as she flopped into bed for what she thought was the night.
"I'm afraid so," Tikki said, looking just as exhausted, somehow macaroons didn't seem to be doing the trick so much anymore. "It seems like everyone is feeling very negative these days."
Marinette yawned, "Tikki, Spots on." Usually her transformation gave her some energy but right now all she could think about was crawling into her nice warm bed. The only thing that perked her up was the sight of Chat Noir looking like he'd had a bath in the Seine.
"What's wrong, Kitty," She giggled, amazed at how he got his ears to turn downward—weren't those part of his costume? "Didn't get your beauty rest?"
"This is the third Akuma today," Chat responded shortly, "What the heck is going on? Doesn't Hawkmoth sleep?"
"Apparently not," Ladybug sighed, looking at the young girl calling herself "quits-it", another brokenhearted lover. Marinette, beneath the spotted mask, felt her own heart break a little for the girl. If she weren't Ladybug she might be finding ways to ask Adrien out, and then maybe she might be that girl. "I'll go high, you—"
"Go low…" Chat Yawned. They'd unconsciously worked out a system between them. They could glance across a pavilion and know exactly what the other was thinking. Marinette dodged a few black hearts, what the brokenhearted teen was throwing at her, and charged forward, jumping up to catch the charm bracelet as "Quits-it" made a grab for her. Meanwhile Chat made sure that grab got nowhere as he tripped her from behind and she fell backwards. The bracelet was ripped a part like a piece of glass.
A small black butterfly fluttered up and was about to fly away before Ladybug captured it and de-evilized it. The two superheroes ended their ritual as usual with a "Pound-it." And it was a few minutes before they realized they hadn't exactly used their powers. Marinette and Chat stood in front of their adoring fans feeling a bit awkward for a moment before Marinette made an executive decision, "What's that? Oh? Gotta go!" She grabbed Chat's hand and used her Yo-yo to reach a rooftop with Chat in tow.
"Hey, trying to get me alone, bugaboo?" Chat smiled, leaning in just a little too close.
"I'm just not the adoring fans type," Marinette teased right back, leaning against the spire. She sighed, thinking about the ease with which they had taken out yet another enemy. "Oh Chat…Will it ever end?"
"I don't know," He said seriously, then smiled, "But I know that together we can take on anything!"
Ladybug laughed, a spotted hand coming up to cover her mouth, "You know, you're quite the optimist for someone who brings bad luck."
"Bad luck?!" Chat frowned, placing a hand indignantly on his chest, "I'm offended m'lady."
"Isn't it common knowledge that black cats bring bad luck?" Marinette mused, taking a seat, feeling even more exhausted than she had before. Her partner sat next to her and she leaned on him just a little. She didn't see the blush that crossed his cheeks, but who's to say if she had it would have made a difference.
"I know one that does," He yawned, "And his name is Plagg."
"Is that your Kwami's name?" Marinette sighed, looking out at the moon and the stars that danced above Paris. She felt quite different up here, separated from the souls of the city. "You know, we never talk…" She mused, "We're the only two people in Paris that understand what it's like but we never talk about it, there's never time."
"Well, you're the one whose so bent on keeping our identities secret," Chat Noir smiled, teasingly, "Maybe we should power down and get a coffee sometime."
Ladybug batted him on the arm lightly, "Be serious."
He was silent for a moment. Ladybug did not try to fathom what he was thinking, rather she was considering the same concerns. They never did talk. And shouldn't they? If they were to take down Hawkmoth why were they playing whack-a-mole with the Akumas? Why not actually strategize and train and learn more about what they were capable of? "We should get coffee." She said suddenly, sitting up straight.
Chat's expression was partially hidden behind his mask but his mouth parted slightly. The gap between his lips said more than words ever could, he was shocked. "Uh-uh-uh-uh-whuh-wh-what?"
"So we can plan!" Ladybug explained, "So we can talk, so we can practice, so we can…well because we're not really partners if we only come together to fight." She clapped her hands in determination.
His ears—again, weren't they part of his costume? How was he controlling them?—turned downwards, and he looked like someone had dumped a bucket of water on him. Ladybug was blissfully unaware as she envisioned some sort of training montage in a dark warehouse somewhere.
"But we can't get coffee," Chat Noir chuckled nervously, "I know a place my d—a friend owns it, it's an empty apartment." He pushed his fingers through his golden hair, turning to perch on the roof with a little more feline inflection. He took a claw and carved out the address on the roof. Ladybug looked down at it, brows coming together and committing it to memory. "You're pretty into this training thing, huh?" He chuckled a little nervously.
Ladybug looked up at him from behind her mask. For a moment she felt that he must see Marinette. She was still that too-eager girl rushing head first into everything, "If we go on like this, we'll never catch Hawkmoth." She said finally, "We need to get…better."
Chat smiled, evidently, he liked her resolve. "You're right, it's time Hawkmoth was caught."
She held her fist out playfully and Chat responded just in time for them both to say "pound it!"