A.N. - Decided to update early because of the release of the Mayura airing on Saturday. I'm blown away by the response from you all. Hope you enjoy chapter 2.
Marinette always wondered how brides felt on their wedding day. She assumed it was an overwhelming amount of love, and support, and nerves. Her hands went to smooth the dress, but the butterflies continued to flutter against her stomach. In less than 24 hours, she would be Mrs. Marinette Agreste and married to the love of her life. The dream of owning a home with him, three beautiful children and at least a hamster could finally come to fruition.
Her nose scrunched slightly. No, another memory gap wouldn't bother her and ruin her wedding. All the decorations looked immaculate, exactly what she would pick for her wedding without a doubt; the problem was she didn't remember planning any of it. From decor to her dress, she couldn't conjure up a single memory from the planning stages. If asked, she couldn't even answer what her color scheme was or who all was attending her big day off the top of her head. Maybe it could be considered that her nerves are repressing her memories, after how long she waited this day; it would explain the missing memories.
She needed Adrien's touch; his hugs and kisses never failed to calm her. He had even been so patient with her when their times together were nothing but blank spaces in her mind. Adrien hadn't mentioned any battles that she had been in that would spark the memory loss, but at this rate, she might as well woken from a coma.
A sudden moment of weakness caused her knees to give way, and she collapsed on the bed. The house echoed the silence back to her. She hadn't seen a single decorator or anyone for that matter on her trip up here. Adrien assures her that everything for the wedding would be taken care of.
Marinette reached out to grab her cell phone and called her mom; she would surely have advice for her. Disappointment settled in when it was sent to voicemail.
When she thought of weddings, it was laughter and love and surrounded by family. Then the bride and groom would go to their new home. Right now, it felt like an empty shell of a house.
"You're so beautiful," he hadn't meant to say anything, but as soon as he laid eyes on Marinette in that dress, he couldn't help himself. He always knew that Mari was beautiful but seeing her standing there in front of the mirror in her wedding dress, it took his breath away.
"Chaton, what are you doing here?" Marinette crossed the room closing the gap between them. "Is it Hawkmoth?" His eyebrows furrowed, the fact that she was concerned for him touched him, but Marinette shouldn't be anywhere near a battle.
"Yes," He found himself hesitating, how could he explain why he was there? "It's not safe, we need to leave, now." Chat grabbed for her hand, and their hands instantly lace and guided her towards the window.
"Wait," She tugged on his arm. "We can't. Not without Adrien." Every muscle in his body tensed at his name, and yet, she had no knowledge that the real Adrien Agreste stood before her.
"No!" he blurted out then quickly backtracked, "he's under Hawkmoth's control!" It couldn't have been a believable lie by the way that she crossed her arms.
"No, he's not. I would be able to tell if he's been akumatized when he looks into my eyes…it's like he's searching my"- Before she could finish her thought Chat walked towards her, his black leather hands gently gripped her cheeks, not once did his gaze waver off hers. His touch, even through his glove, set off a fire within the pit of her stomach and spread to every inch of her body. She found herself grasping for words, but her throat dried up the second his eyes flickered down to her lips and back. It's not that she never considered Chat Noir romantically, but Adrien had already laid claim to her heart. That didn't stop the butterflies and the fact that they were inches apart, and all she wanted to do was kiss him. Her head spun making her knees weak, but his gaze held her in place. How could her partner make her feel more in one instant then the man she was supposed to wed tomorrow? "Soul," she finished lamely.
"Are you sure about that Princess?" Her breath hitched again when he leaned in ever so slightly, and his nose traced parts of her face. The hot breath mingling on her face evoked a new wave of dizziness and desire.
"I-I," all ability to form words failed, and she fought her initial instincts.
"What, Chat got your tongue?" He had the control at that moment, and they both knew it. Chat couldn't explain his behavior if he tried. Year after year he claimed to love Ladybug, but at this moment with Marinette, thoughts of his partner faded. The way she reacted to him- for a moment he thought she wanted him to kiss her and everything in his body screamed to oblige. Marinette had been a close friend over the years, but something had changed. Feelings swelled inside him, thoughts that didn't pertain to the just friend category.
Thoughts of make out sessions under the summer sun and cuddling sessions in the dead of winter. The temptation to dip down and steal a kiss raced through his bloodstream, how could he have these thoughts if she was just a friend? He supposed he could blame her scent that overwhelmed him- cinnamon, vanilla, and raspberries. It sent his mind reeling back to the bakery, her parents, a second kind of home. It was undeniable; he wanted that and her.
"Come with me," he cooed in her ear as his thumb ran across her lip. So maybe he was giving into his temptations and desires for her to agree, but it was for her safety. The Adrien she had fallen for was nothing but an imposter, and he desperately wanted her to experience the genuine article.
"Kitty I"-
"Sweetheart, where are you?" The third voice snapped the two out of the trance they kept each other under.
"You need to leave, like now." She pushed back on him with surprising strength. Chat managed to grab her hand, stopping her in the tracks.
"I'm not leaving without you." The footsteps were approaching, and the two met a stalemate.
"Fine, stubborn cat, then hide," she hissed the last word with importance.
"Just a second darling, I'm in my dress. We wouldn't want to bring on bad luck." All the meantime her hands started shoving her partner towards the closet. "Wait," Marinette pulled him back towards her. "Undo the zipper." Chat's eyes grew to saucers and swallowed hard.
"Yo-you want me to-"
"I don't have time to argue Chaton, he's on his way up, and I need help to get out of this thing, please."
"I won't look, I promise." His words were more said for his benefit. If he allowed his eyes to linger, he would have more problems to deal with. His fingers grasped the zipper and started to pull downward. He had closed his eyes as promised but the contact he had with her skin more than fueled his imagination. When he felt the zipper hit the bottom, he gulped, "Done," he announced to no one in particular.
"Closet. Now. " Chat had to peak through one eye to prevent running into the wall with the way she pushed him. The door closed before he could protest further, but not before her wedding dress got shoved into his hands. Through the slots, he could see into the room but remain hidden from the outside world. His own outside looking in; if even an inkling that something would happen to Marinette he had to be on the fly ready to defend her.
"Come in," he froze as Marinette's word clung to the air and the imposter opened the door.
"There you are," He leaned in and planted a tender kiss on her lips. The urge to gag had to be suppressed, Adrien didn't know whether to be offended that she couldn't tell the genuine article.
The wedding dress in his arms still lingered with her warmth; it was hard to watch her fawn over "Adrien Agreste" with the knowledge that she had the wrong guy.
"I was on the phone, darling. We have something called a wedding tomorrow." She teased, but on the inside, her stomach lurched. When he kissed her, it was numb in comparison to her almost kiss with her partner. If Adrien hadn't interrupted them, who knows what would have happened. Her gaze betrayed her and lingered at the closet, which behind the doors Chat probably clutched her wedding dress. It would be hard enough to explain without telling Adrien who she was, but that secret had to come out eventually. She couldn't in good conscious hide something that big without shielding off a section of herself.
"Is something bothering you, my love?" Marinette's lips curled between her teeth. It would make sense to tell him now in case he reacted poorly; it could give him a chance to back out.
"I-" This was never how she imagined this conversation would go. "I miss Alya, that's all." The excuse tumbled out of her mouth before she could stop. What? Where had that come from? Of course, she missed Alya, but that wasn't the current thing on her mind.
Adrien's hands laced through her hair, and his forehead came to rest on her own. "Are you sure that's all?" Her secret clawed at her throat, not to be relieved by anything including Adrien's touch. Her confidence swayed. Was she hesitant because she knew she would lose him because of it, or because she wasn't ready to tell? The pit in her stomach tightened. Adrien might be her future husband, but Chat was her partner for so many years. Her eyes wandered to the closet where Chat was currently hiding; he couldn't find out, not from a side confession.
"Yeah," she breathed out. "That's all." Adrien leaned in to kiss her once more, and once more his lips didn't provide comfort or warmth. She raised her hands to dig into his hair only to feel a grainy texture against her fingertips.
"Why is your hair all sandy?" She laughed into another kiss. Adrien froze for a moment unable to answer.
"I-uh took a walk along the beach earlier." The answer won over any insecurities she had of desperately wanting to feel something. But with every kiss, Marinette felt the numbness spread throughout her body.
A cough pulled him back out of his jealousy; especially when he realized he wasn't in here alone. There wasn't a lot of room for him to move around the closet thanks to the wedding dress in his possession. His eyes wandered until they landed on a small bed tucked in the corner with a creature whose ragged breaths staggered in and out. Without warning, Plagg released the transformation and raced to her side.
"Tikki!" Adrien could have scolded his kwami for making enough noise to draw attention. But his civilian self still wore the Chat Noir outfit from earlier, and he could probably fake it if "Adrien" caught him red handed.
Wait. Tikki.
He had only heard that name a couple of times because of its uniqueness. Plagg had been the only one to mention Tikki and when asked, was told, that she was Ladybug's kwami.
"Sugar cube, are you ok?" The black cat nuzzled her head affectionately. Adrien wasn't sure he had ever seen Plagg so affectionate towards anyone; it almost reminded him of how he acted around Ladybug.
"Plagg?" The red creature whispered weakly. "What are you doing here? Where's your chosen?"
"I'm here," Adrien whispered the words clinging to his throat. His mind swirled with possibilities. Ladybug's kwami didn't look too good, but if Tikki was here that meant that Ladybug was in her civilian form. They weren't supposed to wander off from their owners, which meant Ladybug was probably be held captive in this house. He could grab Mari and spread out and look for her-
'You don't even know what she looks like out of the mask, " his mind reminded him. All the reasons she had given for them not to reveal their identities seemed to weigh on him heavily.
"Kid, she's in bad shape. You need to do something."
"What could I possibly do?" Even though he had a kwami, his knowledge only skimmed the top of everything that he could know.
"I don't know, talk to Marinette!"
"Marinette?" He mumbled quietly. What could she possibly know about-
The realization hit him in the gut. Eyes wide and mouth agape, Adrien was glad he didn't yell and give away his position.
"You don't mean..." His voice trailed off once more head spinning in a million directions. "She's-"
"Been under your nose the whole time, we get it. Tikki and Master Fu made her promise to keep it a secret, but given the circumstances"-
"Wait, you knew?" Adrien shot back his adrenaline skyrocketing.
"You can punish me later, take away my beloved Camembert. I don't have time for you two to dance around each other until you figure it out. You two were really blind."
Adrien didn't hear his kwami; his mind was running three words on loop. Marinette is Ladybug. Marinette is Ladybug. Marinette is Ladybug.
The talented, smart, beautiful, brave girl that sat in front of him in class also risked her life on a daily basis to selflessly save Paris. How could he possibly miss the connection? Could Plagg be right and he had been blind? The one thing Adrien knew, he was way over his head.
Marinette was already out of his league, to begin with, but now that he knew what she did with her spare time, it made her untouchable. She had to like him as more than a friend to an extent because their supposed wedding took place tomorrow. For the life of him, he couldn't imagine why she was settling for him.
Sure, on the surface, going to galas or traveling for photo shoots or fashion shows sounded exotic, but if it got stripped away, his life lay bare. His father barely made time for him; mother had been gone for over a year. He had some friends but very few he felt he could confide in, and he hadn't the first clue how to be the good, let alone the perfect boyfriend she deserved.
Now Plagg wanted him to go out and face her like he was asking her what they covered in class.
"Plagg claws out," he called his kwami back into his miraculous the moment he heard the door shut.
Coward, his mind spat, and Adrien knew he couldn't argue. But who could blame him when the love of his life could do so much better than boring old Adrien Agreste. He stood more of a chance if he never shared his name.
What in the world got into her? Marinette turned, so her back met the door before her legs turned to mush. She had lied to the supposed love of her life, but the part that scared her was that she would do it again in a heartbeat. How could she expect for her marriage to Adrien to bloom if she started hiding things from him, or worse not feel guilty?
What's worse is that Adrien's behavior reflected her lie. After he started giving short answers, the glimmer in his eye faded. He was the last person that she wanted to disappoint. She didn't doubt her love for the model until Chat-
Until Chat showed up.
She had lived in her bliss until her partner had shown up. He had gotten in her head and made her doubt her beloved Adrien. She needed time and space to clear her head. Marinette tore open the closet doors, eyes narrowed.
"You need to leave," Marinette started with her arms crossed.
"That's the spirit, now gather everything that you need, and I'll have us out of here in a blink of an eye," Chat added with a wink.
"Without me," she watched as his eyes widen in shock and her wedding dress dropped to the floor.
Stay strong Marinette.
"Wait, what?" He held up his hands, "Mil-Princess, what's wrong? Talk to me." His cat ears drooped weighed by disappointment and confusion. Adrien didn't understand how her mood shifted so much.
"You said that you wanted to go, but I'm not going without Adrien." The urge to ram his head into the wall grew by the second. How many times did they have to cover this? He was running out of excuses besides the fact that he was, in fact, Adrien Agreste.
"Trust me. You're too close to the situation, and Adrien can't come." Inviting anyone working for Hawkmoth was out of the question. He had a job to protect her.
"I trust Adrien with my whole heart. I need more than just your word that he's under Hawkmoth's control. So, tell me Chat, what's one good reason why can't he go?"
Adrien lost it. Without warning, he closed the gap between them and smashed his lips on hers in a needy fashion. It wasn't conventional; he hoped that he would be able to show her exactly who he was. Instant electricity flowed between them as she melted into his touch. The contact didn't last for longer than a minute before he got shoved away followed promptly by a sharp stinging sensation to his check.
Marinette couldn't deny it; she felt something. The emotions that stirred inside of her caused more confusion and anger for the feelings arose in the first place.
"This is what I'm talking about Chat. This unnecessary flirting has to stop; I'm about to get married to Adrien Agreste tomorrow. You can't just swoop in and change that just because you're jealous. You have to accept that you're my partner and nothing more." The words stuck the air chilling the room. Marinette wished she could take back her sharp words, especially when she watched his face crumble. She went too far.
"Fine, I'll go." Adrien all but growled. "But don't blame me when you find out that I"- His words caught in his throat. He couldn't tell her who he was, not like this. Adrien always pictured the moment of the reveal to be sweet and vulnerable not born out of anger. "That I was right." Every bone in his body screamed to stay as he made his way to the balcony. "I hope you and your perfect guy are happy together."
"Chat"- Marinette's voice dropped to a whisper, but she still eyed him like a wounded animal, and he couldn't stand it. With a quick motion, his staff launched himself towards the roof.
Marinette flopped on her bed, no energy left to give the day. Tears pricked her eyes, but she held them back. Why did it feel like she had a fight with her fiancé rather than Chat Noir? He had to be jealous; that was the only explanation especially since he knew who she was. He probably wouldn't care if Marinette married Adrien Agreste. His behavior could only be a result that another man won his lady's heart. Chat would get over her eventually, and find someone that would overly enjoy every cat pun that could roll off his tongue.
Like you ? Her mind quipped. Instantly, the memory of Chat interrupting her earlier flashed in her mind.
Her mind would betray her like this. The tears flowed freely; her body laid like a rag doll until she couldn't fight the sleep that drifted over her.
A permanent scowl found Sandboy's lips. So that pesky cat had made an appearance but going in and confronting her would not aid his current plan. His disguise started to crumble because someone caused her faith in him to waver. Sandboy had no doubt who had "helped" her come to the doubt-filled conclusions. Chat Noir would have to be dealt with if he wanted any chance of keeping Ladybug to himself. Once she committed herself to him, then she couldn't leave, and the effects were irreversible. A dull pain grew to a roar in the back of his mind. That could only mean one thing.
"Yes, Hawkmoth."
"If you had Ladybug in your clutches, then why do I not possess her miraculous?"
"Chat Noir stole her before I could, but not all is lost. I have her in a dream state, and in a few short hours, she won't be able to wake up. Then we scour the city to find her and take it."
"What if Chat Noir is guarding her, then what?"
"He won't," Sandboy replied as confidence oozed off his voice "because he's here. If he doesn't leave, he'll become a prisoner to her mind."
"Very well Sandboy, just remember my patience is thin." A numbing headache evaporated, and he let out a sigh. His powers were weakening, and if he didn't do something drastic, then he would lose her for good. Bringing others into this world would drain more power than he would like, but it was the only way to ensure he got what he wanted. Ladybug, with him, forever.
Not even an hour later, the door to Marinette's balcony cracked open, and Chat slipped back inside.
"Claws in," He mumbled. The second Plagg released the transformation; he raced over to the closet where Tikki rested. He had remained close after their fight. Nothing was worse than listening to Marinette cry knowing he caused it, Adrien decided. When the crying ceased, he spent the next ten minutes solely focused on her heartbeat. His gaze shifted to the mirror, and instantly he ripped off his mask and fake ears in a moment of anger. The thoughts ran through his head of how he could fix this, but he was one person. Normally he looked to Ladybug for direction, but that wasn't an option. There couldn't be any communication with Master Fu. He was alone with full reign on his rescue plan, and he absolutely hated it.
He glanced back at the sleeping girl who had won his heart so long ago. His feet betrayed him, and within a couple of steps, he stood beside her. The itch to reach out and push aside a strand of hair in her face was met with caution, but Adrien gave in. Marinette stirred but sleep kept its claim on her. If Plagg wasn't as busy tending to Tikki, Adrien was sure he'd be getting an earful.
"I wish I could tell you who I am." But he couldn't, not really. "How much I'm in love with you." Adrien leaned down and ghosted his lips to the top of her head. "Sweet Dreams Marinette." Plagg refused to leave Tikki's side, so he put on his mask once more and curled up in the corner of the room. He would be ready in case she needed protection. His ears twitched as he focused back on her heartbeat until it lulled him into the security of sleep.
A.N-Marichat! because the show needs to show more of it. Let me know what you all think! Chapter 3 (and it's intense) is written so if I get chapter 4 out quickly I might update early.
