THREE

Marinette's earliest memory is of her mother's birthday, and the cake she and her father had gotten up extra early to bake. She was just three then, almost four, and it was the first year her father had trusted her with the frosting, letting her curl her stubby little fingers around the bag while his hands – monstrously huge, in comparison – guided hers as they spelled out joyeux anniversaire, maman! in pink.

All these years later, it is her mother's eyes Marinette remembers most clearly – the way they'd gone from sleepy to sparkling in a blink, the way they'd danced with such happiness that the mere sight of her mother's eyes had her lips stretching into a painfully wide grin.

Sitting next to Chat Noir, watching him meticulously unwrap his gift with minimal damage to the wrapping paper, Ladybug can only hope to recreate that look in his eyes.

"You know you didn't have to," Chat tells her as he sets aside the wrapping paper. "Or you could have at least told me we were exchanging gifts. I would've gotten you something if I had known you're okay with Christmas presents."

"I don't need a present," Ladybug protests. "I just like giving them, that's all." All she wants is for him to like it. The look in his eyes is the only present she's after – not that she'll ever tell him that; the silly cat would most definitely take it the wrong way, and she doesn't have the patience to convince him that it's the same with her parents and Alya. She's always made a habit of getting or making them little gifts, just to see them smile. "Besides, it's nothing special. I made one for my mom and my best friend – my other best friend, that is – so I thought I'd make one for you too."

Chat carefully pulls his gift out of its box, revealing a patchwork quilt made of red and black squares, adorned with black spots and green paw prints respectively. "You made this?" He asks, running his knuckles through the blanket, careful to keep his claws from snagging on the material.

Ladybug nods when he turns to smile at her, a smile of her own tugging at her lips. "Something to keep you warm during those cat naps of yours," She says with a small laugh, nudging his shoulder with her own.

"Just what I needed," Chat sighs happily, holding the quilt to his chest. "I shall treasure it always, my lady," He says, taking her hand in his own. Just this once, Ladybug allows him to press a kiss to her gloved hand. It is Christmas, after all.

They sit in silence for a bit longer, until it starts to snow and they decide to get home before they freeze. Chat helps her to her feet and thanks her once more for the gift, and Ladybug bids him good-night as she swings away.

And that, as they say, is that.

… well, it should have been.

.

.

.

"Calm down!" Alya hisses as they approach the front door of the Agreste mansion, shooting a glare at her jumpy mess of a best friend.

"Sorry!" Marinette squeaks, wringing her hands. "It's just- Adrien! Christmas! The four of us! With Adrien!"

Alya laughs. "Are we playing 'complete the sentence' now?" She shakes her head at Marinette as Nino steps forward to ring the doorbell, only to stumble backward as the front door opens before he can reach it.

"Merry Christmas!" The trio chorus as the door swings back to reveal Nathalie.

"Christmas is two days away," Nathalie points out in her familiar flat tone as she holds the door open, wordlessly inviting them in with a tilt of her head. "Adrien is in his room. I trust you know your way?"

"I'll lead the way!" Nino announces, already heading for the stairs. Alya follows suit, dragging Marinette along by her wrist.

"Thank you!" Marinette calls back politely as she rushes to keep up with Alya, waving at Nathalie. She thinks she catches the smallest hint of a smile on the woman's face before they turn a corner and Nathalie disappears from sight.

Nino's been over a few times since getting into Gabriel Agreste's good graces a while back and having the ban on his friendship with Adrien reversed, so he confidently leads them down hallways and around corners until they reach the vicinity of Adrien's room, just as the boy himself steps into the hallway in search of them.

"Hey!" Adrien greets them with a wide smile and a wave, ushering them into his room. "You guys made it!"

"Of course we made it, dude," Nino snorts, giving Adrien a high-five as he walks into the room. "Have you seen this place? We wouldn't miss this for the world."

"Some of us came for more than just the rock climbing wall," Alya rolls her eyes at Nino's antics. "Thanks for inviting us over, Adrien. It's nice to hang out together," She says with a smile, disappearing into the room… leaving Marinette out in the hallway with Adrien.

"Hi, Adrien," She silently congratulates herself for getting that out in one attempt, with no stuttering or awkward pauses. It's been over a year, damn it. Her crush should have at least faded by now, if not disappeared completely. "Thanks for- I mean- wait, that is what I meant," Marinette mumbles. Adrien's quiet laugh draws her attention back to him, and she shoots him a small grin. "Thanks for inviting us!" She says in one breath, nearly tripping over her words.

"Thanks for coming," Adrien replies as Marinette finally walks into his room. "Make yourself at home," He says warmly, closing the door behind him. "Nino's pretty good at that, as you can see."

The boy in question is already sprawled out over the couch, feet propped up on the coffee table and lap full of candy he must've snagged from the crystal dish on the table. "Hey, your house is my house, right?" He counters, tearing into a bar of peppermint chocolate. Alya plops herself down next to him and swats at his legs, telling him to behave.

"Yeah, of course," Adrien hastily assures him, rubbing at the back of his neck. "I was just kidding," He tells Marinette. "Please make yourself as comfortable as Nino has. I just want everyone to have a good time-" He trails off when he notices the faraway look in Marinette's eyes. "Marinette? Is everything okay?" When she fails to respond, he follows her line of sight to… Nino? No, the couch – and the quilt draped over it.

"Where did you get that?" Marinette asks very quietly, her eyes still fixed on the familiar red and black squares. The Ladybug and Chat Noir themed squares she had painstakingly sewn together.

Adrien attempts to smooth things over with a laugh. "Oh, that? A friend made it for me. I'm a huge Ladybug and Chat Noir fan, and she said she was making quilts for everyone else so… cool, huh? I bet you can't find anything like this in stores."

Marinette shakes her head, still avoiding Adrien's eyes. "No, you definitely can't," She agrees in a murmur before falling silent once more. Her odd behavior is worrying, but before Adrien can question it, Marinette squares her shoulders, draws a deep breath and finally meets his eyes. "Ladybug gave that to you, didn't she?"

"What?" Adrien gasps. "Why would you- I mean, it's not like she and I know each- okay, there was that one time, or twice-" He finds himself silenced by Marinette's unwavering stare. "Fine. Yes, Ladybug gave me the quilt. How did you-"

"It's pretty easy to recognize your own handiwork," Marinette shrugs nonchalantly. "Chaton," She adds with a smirk.

Adrien blinks at her, and Marinette's smirk turns into a soft smile. He gapes at her, and her brows furrow in concern. "Chat? Are you- I mean, it's a lot to take in but-" Her teeth tug on her lower lip as she begins to fidget under his wide-eyed stare.

"Hey, lovebirds!" Alya hollers, twisting around on the couch to get a better look at them. "Are you guys just going to stand there all day or…?"

The disruption finally breaks Adrien from his stupor. "Ladybug?" He whispers, keeping his back to Alya.

Marinette nods, still biting on her lower lip.

"Guys, seriously," Nino says. "Are we getting this party started or what?"

"Um," Adrien turns to face their friends while one hand reaches for Marinette's. He ignores the way Alya's sharp eyes quickly catch the movement and widen with surprise. "Why don't you two pick a game or a movie or- or something? Marinette and I will join you in a while. Right?" Marinette nods when he turns back to look at her.

"And just where might you two be going?" Alya asks, arms crossed and a single brow arched in question.

"We just-" Marinette begins as Adrien tugs her toward his closet. "We need to talk. About… things. Yes, things." She gives Alya a nervous laugh as her friend tracks their movement across the room.

"No need to wait for us," Adrien adds with a note of finality, waving at Alya and Nino before he and Marinette disappear into his closet.

They emerge half an hour later, and Marinette blushes tellingly when Alya teasingly accuses them of ditching their friends to make out. Even Nino gets a quip or two in when Adrien reaches for the quilt folded over his end of the couch and drapes it around his and Marinette's shoulders.

At least their friends are too caught up in teasing the 'lovebirds' - as Alya won't stop calling them - to question their new bug- and cat-themed nicknames for each other.

This one's a bit short, and there's practically no post-reveal interaction at all. Sorry for that, guys!

E Salvatore,

May 2016.