The Evidence Presented

Me at the end of last chapter: And I'll leave it there because all my fics end in like kisses and I need something different, something frustrating… like canon.

Also me: But what if… this happened… *writes ideas that basically form into the whole rest of the fic* Oh dang it! Fine!

Not to worry, readers, I have more! You know I gotta fix it. That's what fanfiction is for! Enjoy!

"Whoever that letter is meant for must be really special."

"That's what I thought too." Adrien startled and turned around to see Mr. Ramier was slowly approaching his usual bench. "It was Ladybug's, but she hasn't shown back up to claim it yet. It's a beautiful note. I couldn't get rid of it, even if she gave it to the wrong person."

"Really?" Adrien asked in surprise.

"Oh, yes! Ladybug gave the note to a friend of mine here, but my friend thought it was from someone else and that it meant she would never see them again. She was akumatized. When everything was put back to normal, I was here with the letter. Perhaps it was wrong of me to do so, but I read it and couldn't throw it away. I hoped Ladybug might return for it, but she hasn't it seems."

Adrien was surprised. He knew Ladybug wasn't perfect; she made mistakes. This was curious information though. She had apparently written this note. Backwarder happened because Ladybug had mixed up a note…

Marinette handing Adrien a folded piece of paper flashed through his memory. But that had nothing to do with this. A constipation prescription had nothing to do with love letters.

"Well… I might be able to get it back to her…" Adrien found himself saying.

"Really?" Mr. Ramier was surprised. "By all means, take it then. I'd like to know it was back in the right hands and not just thrown away."

Adrien hesitated before moving the rock. "Okay. I… I'll see what I can do."

What was he doing? There was no way he could return this to Ladybug! There would be a lot of questions for Cat Noir if he handed her a love letter she had written. And what if it wasn't for him? She constantly said there was someone else. There was a big chance the letter wasn't for him, but he remembered the valentine. Could the writing match? If he took it home, he could check…

Sliding the letter into his pocket, he said goodbye to the pigeon man and walked briskly along the Seine. As soon as he could, he would transform and rush home.


They matched. The handwriting on the Valentine and the love letter looked identical.

Adrien was nervous and excited. Ladybug obviously had a thing for not signing things, but it didn't change the fact that it was highly likely she had written these two notes. He had no idea who the love letter was for. There was no evidence showing who it belonged to other than Mr. Ramier's testimony, and she obviously hadn't given it to Cat Noir. The Valentine, however… It was in his mailbox. It was obviously for him. It even described him! But why would Ladybug send him a valentine if she supposedly didn't like him? How would she even know his identity? Unless… there was no way… Ladybug turned down Cat Noir, but she had sent a valentine to Adrien. Could Adrien… be the boy she liked? There was no way he could be that lucky! He could figure that out though, couldn't he? Give Ladybug back her letter and maybe she would deliver it to the correct recipient, maybe she would deliver it back to him. What if she gave it to him in her civilian self?!

But then… someone was akumatized because of that letter, she might just want to get rid of it, think it was a mistake. Or maybe she would give it to another boy. Then he'd never know. But for now, he knew Ladybug had written this love letter and she had sent him, Adrien a poem on Valentine's day. That left him with hope.


At the end of patrol, the next day, Ladybug and Cat Noir stopped on a high rooftop overlooking another Adrien Agreste billboard.

Cat Noir's ears picked up a faint huff from Ladybug's direction. He looked over to see her suddenly looking closed off. She was turned away slightly, her shoulders and head ducked down.

"You okay, My Lady?" he asked, taking a step towards her.

She tentatively straightened her shoulders, sending a glance toward the giant billboard with his face on it. "Yeah. I just had something super embarrassing happen, today, and I keep remembering it." She glanced back at the billboard again and groaned. As she brought a hand to her face, he couldn't tell if the ad was reminding her of the embarrassing incident or if she was just trying to avoid looking at him in front of her.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" Cat Noir offered.

"NO!" Ladybug responded immediately, then doubled back, softer. "I mean… I could but I feel like saying it out loud will make it even worse. And… you'll laugh at me."

"I'd never."

She raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, I might a little, but we all do embarrassing things. It's part of being a teenager."

"Sure. Next time you accidentally ask your crush to get you constipation pills, you can tell me how that's normal."

Cat Noir blinked. That… was familiar. "Okay," he chuckled. "So that might not be regular teenage embarrassment…"

"See! You laughed!" Ladybug slumped over in frustration.

"It wasn't- I didn't fully laugh!" Cat Noir was trying to hide back more laughter at her reaction. He froze when her head whipped up and she sent him a glare. "Look," he started, walking forward and putting a hand on her shoulder. "You can't worry about every little thing you do in front of him. I mean you still messed up pretty bad there but drop it and let things go the way they do. I'm sure he's not as weirded out about it as you think. Confused, most definitely, but…" He remembered the love letter. "… if he's truly as special as you think he is, he's going to see how amazing you are and not care a bit."

Ladybug stared at him. She still looked despondent but surprised at his words. After a moment, she straightened back up and furrowed her brow. "Are you really giving me advice for the 'other' guy?"

Cat Noir grinned at her teasing tone, then shrugged. "You never know, maybe my civilian identity's the one that caught your interest." He sent her a wink and took a cursory glance at the billboard ad.

Ladybug's face looked horrified and he wondered if he'd said too much, his heart sinking for a moment. Then she laughed. "Yeah, right, Kitty."

Cat Noir smiled but it felt awkward. "Well, um, whoever he is… you might want to give him this." He pulled the love letter out of his pocket.

This was not how he planned to give it back. He was going to be much more subtle, drop it on the ground before leaving where she'd find it, that kind of thing, but here he was, facing questions and confusion and possibly wrath.

"I found it near the Seine. Mr. Ramier said you had left it there, but he thought you might want it back. I'm sorry… I read it before I knew…"

Ladybug looked wide eyed between Cat Noir and the note he held out to her. Shakily, she grabbed and unfolded it.

Cat Noir felt downhearted at her gasp. "That guy is really lucky, Ladybug," he said honestly.

"I… thank you. I… I don't think I can give it to him now. Not after everything, but… maybe someday I'll tell him."

Cat Noir gave her a sad smile. It wasn't for him. It couldn't be. He couldn't be that lucky.

"You're a really good person," Ladybug said softly. Cat Noir's ears quirked. "You knew this was for someone else. You could have thrown it away. You could have laughed at me and my failure to talk to the guy… the guy I love. But you gave the letter back and some advice. Thank you, Cat Noir."

Cat Noir gazed down at her softly. Her glittering blue eyes made his heart soar, but it was also bittersweet.

"I like to see you happy, My Lady."

She watched him with soft eyes before turning away and starting to swing her yo-yo. "I think I'm ready to go home now. Til next time?"

He produced a true smile in return to her dazzling one. "Same cat time, same cat channel!"

Ladybug giggled at his Batman reference before swinging away.


"Why does he have to say stuff like that?!" Marinette wailed after detransforming in her room.

It was obvious Cat Noir understood her, whether she had a mask on or not. She wasn't lying when she said he was a good person. In fact, he was an amazing person, the best partner she could ask for, a true hero inside and out.

Marinette gripped her letter to Adrien in her hands. Honestly, she could probably take more tips from Cat Noir. He was upfront about his feelings and didn't let her continual rejections get in the way of their friendship. She wished she could not worry about how Adrien perceived her at any given moment. Adrien had been nothing but kind about the constipation pills, even seemed to ignore all her friends gushing over his 'gift'. Yet all day, the memories returned, and she couldn't help but feel humiliated. She worried that one wrong step and he wouldn't want to even be friends with her, let alone date her.

Cat Noir was right. She shouldn't let it bother her now. The humiliation was already done, and she needed to move on. Adrien was amazing and he didn't seem to be bothered by her mistake at all. Maybe Cat Noir was right in saying Adrien wasn't too freaked about it either.

Still, it would be some time before Marinette could even attempt at handing Adrien another note. She wouldn't want him to think she was asking for another prescription. Besides, this note she had written for him to read on the train, to think about for a few days. It was irrelevant. Adrien wasn't going out of town and he wouldn't have time to react, at least not enough to really think about the idea of them together. Not to mention, the last time she had given this letter to someone, they were akumatized.

Marinette placed the letter on her desk. Maybe one day it would be relevant again. Maybe one day she would have the courage to face Adrien after the weekend's embarrassing events.

"Cat Noir is a good partner, Marinette," Tikki commented.

Marinette nodded. "He is. I just wish he wouldn't say things that make me feel like I'm hurting him. I want him to be happy too."

"I think he is. Being Cat Noir, being Ladybug's friend. I think he's happy, even if his love goes unrequited for now."

Marinette sighed and sunk into her desk chair. "I suppose. I worry that eventually, it won't be enough though. Hopefully one day, he'll find someone else who can love him in the way he needs."

"I'm sure he will."


Yeah, he will cuz it's you! Poor Tikki, always having to deal with relationship drama that has an easy fix but she can't do anything about it.

One more chapter!

Hope you enjoyed this a little more than the last chapter. ;)