Feline Fur Mew

Marichat Week Day 4: Kitten(s)

Summary: "I had a feline you needed a little cheering up."

The first thing he heard were the shout of angry words coming in from the classroom. His kwami poked from underneath his shirt and said, "Wow. That sounds like a cat fight."

"Plagg, shh!" Adrien warned. He reached for the doorknob but then it was wrenched open by an upset Marinette. His eyes widened as he saw the tears stream down her face. He rushed forward and grabbed her shoulders. "Marinette, are you okay?! What happened?!"

She opened her mouth, then closed it and ran out. Adrien reached out for her, but then stopped. Maybe she needed a little space.

He went inside the classroom and saw Chloe snobbishly snickering with Sabrina while the whole class glared at them. Alya was shouting at them, Nino barely holding her back.

On the floor lay a ruined sketchbook.

Adrien knew immediately what happened. He turned to his childhood friend. "Chloe!"

Chloe raised an eyebrow. "What? It's not like what I said is true. Sure she can have fun with playing dress up, but it's not like her works are going to be famous or anything."

He balled up his fists, trying to say something back to her, but failed. With a growl, he picked up Marinette's sketchbook and stomped out of the classroom, ignoring the ringing school bell.

...

Adrien looked up at the bakery in front of him, his throat dry. How was he going to explain this to her without intruding too much? Well, he could just say that he was her friend coming here to return her sketchbook and comfort her. They were friends…right?

"I didn't think this through." He mumbled.

"You never think things through." Plagg piped up.

Adrien rubbed the back of his neck, "Maybe I should do it tomorrow."

"And what? Let Marinette fall victim to an akuma?"

Adrien's eyes widened. This was not good! If she'd let her rage take over her, Papillion would definitely akumatize her!

"So the tomorrow plan is a no." Adrien mumbled. But then he spotted a little something at a hidden shop a little ways away.

Curiously, Adrien peeked through the window. It was a small gift shop with hand-made plushies and other miscellaneous things. What caught his eye, however, was a plushie of a black cat with green eyes and a collar with a bell.

He went inside the shop, opening the door with a ding.

A girl with reddish-brown hair and half rimmed glasses looked up from the book she was reading. She smiled brightly at him. "Welcome to Le Misc. How may I help you?"

"Um…" Adrien picked up the black cat plushie and set it on the counter. "How much is this?"

"That'll be 4.50 Euros." She said. Adrien handed her his credit card and she swiped it. Giving it back to him, she asked, "Do you want it wrapped or…"

"It's fine. I'll take it as it is." Adrien said. She nodded. "Thank you!"

As he walked out the door, she said to him, "Good luck!"

He jumped and turned to her with wide eyes. She winked. He blushed and nodded before rushing to find a hidden alley.

A few minutes later, Chat Noir bounded over the rooftops and landed silently on the balcony of a certain princess.

"Princess?"

Marinette curled deeper under the crook of her desk. Tikki hid inside the purse as Chat opened her trapdoor. "Princess? Sorry for intruding, but are you there?"

"Go away Chat."

Chat landed on her bed and climbed down the ladder before crouching down in front of her. She wrapped her arms around her knees and drew them nearer, as if she wanted to curl into a smaller ball.

"Marinette." He touched her arm gently. "Come here, princess."

After a slight insistent tugging, Chat finally managed to make her crawl out underneath her desk, but she refused to stand up. With a determined look, he slid an arm under her legs and another around her back, picking her up in his arms.

She squeaked, but then curled her arms around his shoulders and hid her face in the crook of his neck. He said softly, "Rough day?"

"You have no idea." Marinette mumbled.

He chuckled. "I have an inkling about it."

Chat carried her up and laid her gently on the bed. She buried her face on her pillow and he rubbed circles on her back. He said, "You know, Adrien – that handsome boy in your class – he was pretty worried about you."

Marinette stiffened. She gave him a sideways glance, her cheeks tinged with pink. "Yeah?"

"Yeah." Chat grinned. "I ran to him a while ago. He said sorry in Chloe's behalf."

"Chloe doesn't deserve any forgiveness." Marinette said with venom in her voice.

Chat hesitated for a moment, but then shrugged. "Well, she can be insufferable at times."

"She's a malicious power-hungry bi- snake." Marinette snapped. But then she paused. "How do you know about Chloe?"

"I- I erm!" Chat stuttered, "The mayor always talks about her! And Ladybug and I had to deal with her a few times because she was the main cause of a majority of people turning into akuma victims."

Marinette laughed. "That's true."

"A-Anyway," Chat, who was eager to change the subject from Chloe lest it angered the French-Chinese girl more, reached out to the balcony and took out a plushie and her sketchbook.

Marinette sat up as Chat handed the items to her. He said quietly, "Sorry about your sketchbook. It's kind of ruined. Your designs are amazing though!"

"Well, too bad they won't see the light of day." Marinette said bitterly. Chat's eyes widened.

"Marinette," He put her hands on her shoulders, "Do not ever think that you're anything less than amazing. You have a very precious talent that's given to only very few people. I have never seen such beautiful and creative designs in my life, and trust me, I've had my own share of fashion. You could even surpass Gabriel Agreste!"

"Now you're just exaggerating, kitty." Marinette laughed. He shook his head, and her laugh petered out into a hesitant smile. "You really think I can make it?"

"Everyone will know your name! Everyone will fight tooth and nail for your every design and wait impatiently for your latest line! And," He wriggled his eyebrows, "A certain model would even love to work with you."

Marinette grinned as she tucked her sketchbook under her pillow. "You really have a lot of what ifs."

"They're not what ifs." Chat said. "They're whens."

Marinette smiled gratefully as she stroked the plushie. But then her smile froze. "Is this a cat plushie?"

"Yup!" Chat chirped. "When you sleep at night, whenever I can't visit you, this kitten will protect you at night!"

"And it just had to be an exact replica of you?" Marinette said with a raised eyebrow. Chat grinned cheekily at her. She stroked the head of the stuffed toy before using her other hand to run her fingers through his hair. He leaned in her touch. "Thank you, kitten."

He cracked an eye. "Excuse mew, but I am an adult cat."

Marinette snorted. "Could've fooled me."

Chat pouted at her and she laughed again. Leave it all to her chaton to make everything better. She smiled warmly at him. "But really, thank you, Chat."

"Anything for you, princess." Chat said, and he meant it. "Don't let anyone see that they get to you."

"I will." Marinette nodded. But then there was a jump as Alya's voice shouted from downstairs. They exchanged looks. "You better go."

"I'll see you later tonight, princess." Chat said, giving her his two finger salute before bounding away just as Alya opened the trapdoor to her room.

"Marinette?" Alya said gently. "Are you okay?"

Marinette popped her head out and smiled at her best friend. "Never better."

...

"It's not fair."

"What isn't?"

"You spend more time with that cat plushie than with me."

"You gave this to me."

"I know."

"Sometimes I don't know which ones the kitten here, Chat Noir or Chat Noir."

"…what?"

Yes, she named her plushie Chat Noir. And yes, I had no idea where this was going.

Oh well.

See ya'll next time!