Author's Note: Something to consider before reading this chapter: seeing as how Chat Noir's infiltration mission is a secret, the police must continue with their charade of catching her… Please enjoy ;D
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Adrien/Chat Noir
"So, Adrien, how did your night in the Underground World go?" Nino snickers, pulling a chair out from across his friend at the lunch table. The police station is buzzing with its usual activity – yet Adrien seems rather oblivious to it.
The blonde's head shoots up, embarrassed to be caught dozing. Last night had been surprisingly exhausting…for entirely innocent reasons of course…
Would it be safe to say that I had my hands in women's underwear all evening? Adrien muses, mind still half in the clouds. Probably not…he dismisses the thought, rubbing at his eyes.
"It was good," he says instead, stifling a yawn. Understatement of the century; it was the best day of my god-damn life. "We stayed up pretty late sewing lace on…" he trails off, noticing Nino's expression. "What?" Adrien asks, genuinely confused.
"We?" Nino hisses. "Who is we? Don't tell me you found Ladybug already-"
"-and got a part time job in her kink shop," Adrien interjects, taking a long sip from his coffee.
Nino's gaping at him, he's sure, but he relishes the precious moment of silence before –
"Oh my fucking God!" Nino exclaims, slamming his hands down on the table.
-that. Adrien smiles slightly. "Yeah," Adrien continues on casually, warming up to the situation. "It's great. She's teaching me how to sew and everything. I pricked my fingers a lot, but -" Adrien glances up at his friend's awed expression, savoring the moment. "Totally worth it."
"I bet man, like literally wholly fuck!" Nino says again, eyes going wide. He looks around the room warily, lowing his voice slightly. "What's she like? You spent the whole night with her, right?"
Adrien opens his mouth, then blushes as the image of spending the night with Ladybug sashays into his mind, effectively making his mouth go dry.
Nino takes a moment to realize his own insinuation, but then his face cracks into a wicked shit-eating smile. From that smile alone Adrien knows that Nino's mind is deep in the gutter. (Perhaps Adrien's was too…) "Ohoho~…" Nino begins, leaning forward onto the table. "I see-"
"-No you do not" Adrien instantly interrupts, flushing. "It's not like that," he hisses, hands fisting on the table. "Yes, I did spend a lot of time in Ladybug's presence last night. No, we did not do anything."
"Like anything anything?" Nino pries, voice taking on the quality of a whine. Their foreheads are practically touching; they are so close.
"Well…" Adrien starts. Nino begins to smile. "We sewed." Nino's smile falters, then falls entirely flat.
"I thought you were going to say 'screwed,'" he mutters dejectedly, hardly loud enough for Adrien to hear. "Really?" he begins again, deadpan. "That's it? You just sat together sewing like two old ladies?"
"I was getting to know her," Adrien spits, chest rising in indignation. "Gosh why are you being so…so…" he fumbles for the word, gaze sliding to the table. "Judgmental!" Adrien finally says, a spoon flying to the floor when his hand hits the table roughly.
"I'm just saying," Nino's hands rise in defense. He leans over to pick up the spoon. "If I were alone with Ladybug for an evening, I think my itinerary would have been vastly different."
Nino's smiling in a teasing way, but for some reason the humor ruffles Adrien the wrong way. Perhaps it was his lack of sleep, or perhaps the predatory grin on Nino's face.
"She's not a sex toy," Adrien hisses, surprised by his own tone. He looks down, finding his fists clenching tensely. He relaxes them slightly, inhaling before finishing his thought. "Just because she's supportive of expression doesn't mean she participates in it herself."
Nino stares at his friend, then takes a long sip of his coffee. He grunts softly, the smile long gone from his face, and looks out across the room. "I can see where you're coming from, Adrien, don't get me wrong." Nino says, catching Adrien's eye.
All humor has left his expression. "But do keep the circumstances in mind," Nino says softly. He pushes the spoon across the table to Adrien. "It won't last forever."
Adrien avoids his friend's eye, lip stuck between his teeth. He wishes he could take the words back, reword them maybe, but then…no, he doesn't want to take them back. They're true.
He exhales through his teeth, seeing Nino stand out of the corner of his eye.
Adrien looks up, but Nino's back is already through the door, leaving Adrien to mull over his thoughts with a slightly bent spoon and a cold cup of coffee.
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Marinette/Ladybug
Marinette knows that she's been staring at the piece of cloth for too long, but she can't break her gaze from it.
Something about the paw prints stitched on the hemline of the underwear keeps her attention hitched on the garment. Normally she wouldn't have given them a second thought; panties like these ran through her hands day-in and day-out.
And yet, it brought memories of last night to the surface.
Last night had been unusual for her:
She hadn't been alone.
For once, it wasn't her humming that disturbed the silence; it had been Chat. He was surprisingly talkative for being a complete stranger – but then again, he did seem genuinely interested in learning how to sew. He'd asked about her suppliers, and the demand she had, and had listened intently to everything she had said. He'd squealed when he first pricked his thumb (much to his adamant arguing that he had "not squealed"). He'd smiled when she talked to him, looked her in the eye, and mirrored every one of her stitches.
It was…refreshing, having someone as a companion.
But, of course, she had to keep her distance. She had been intentionally vague when answering his questions, not wanting to give too much away, and he had been just as vague when she had asked when he would come again. He'd just said "tomorrow."
It is tomorrow.
Granted, it's only noon, and she wouldn't be heading to the Underground World until after nightfall. And yet, she is anxious for his arrival.
She'd scavenged in the back room and found some simple stitch patterns that he could try. She'd used that as an excuse to come down here in daylight hours, but now…she is just standing in the middle of her shop, wondering what to do.
Realization slaps her a moment later, and she whirls to face the door.
Who am I kidding – I always have stuff to do, she sighs, hiking up the stairs to her day-job.
She pauses at the top of the stairs, the gray wash of clothing subduing her expression.
Her gaze drifts critically over the masses of clothing, then to the windows at the front of her shop, the sunshine from outside calling to her.
On second thought, perhaps I'll take a walk, she thinks, mentally shoving the orders she has piled on her desk to tomorrow. No one's going to come here during lunch anyway.
She heads back down the stairs to grab her jacket, humming lightly to herself.
As she's glancing around the room to find it, another garment draped on the back of her chair grabs her attention.
Her breath catches slightly, and her hand arrests its motion towards her jacket, her attention glued to the other garment.
Ladybug.
She stares at her Ladybug costume a long moment, fingers itching to touch the red fabric. She bites her lip, indecision weighing on her brows.
Was it too early? Too risky? She would be in broad daylight – but then again – did she care?
I never did find out if the Chief got my present, she muses, brows knit together.
An unwarranted chuckle escapes the heroine's lips, and a streak of exhilaration shoots through her veins.
She smirks, picking up the costume to toy with the collar.
I should go see if he likes it.
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Adrien/Chat Noir
Patrol that afternoon is quieter than usual. Nino seems to sense the cloud of brooding thoughts hanging over his partner's head, and remains silent for most of the ride.
Nearly an hour passes, Adrien staring stoically out the window, solitarily confined to his own mental prison.
Suddenly, he realizes that he's been staring at the same park bench for more than a minute.
Adrien turns to Nino. "Why'd you stop?" He asks, noticing that the car is parked.
"I think you need some time alone," Nino says simply, head turning slightly towards Adrien. "Want to take a walk?"
Adrien stares at his friend a moment, surprised. He blinks, contemplating the offer. "Are you okay with that?" Adrien asks.
"I wouldn't have asked if I wasn't okay with it," Nino chuckles lightly. "I can tell you don't want to be here. Take a breather."
"Alright," Adrien says, chest lightening slightly. "I'll meet you back at the station?"
Nino nods, giving his friend a slight smile.
Adrien slips out of his seat, boots meeting the curb a moment later. The air is refreshingly cool – on the verge of being chilly, but the sun is still hours from the horizon.
Adrien waves at Nino as the police cruiser pulls from the curb, giving his partner a thankful smile.
He starts wandering into the park, relishing the momentary freedom from his duties. There's a decent amount of people in the park, most wandering in pairs and enjoying the beginnings of the spring blossoms.
He's just rounding a bench when he hears someone shout, and he instantly swivels to the noise.
"It's Ladybug!" The man shouts again, pointing across the street.
Adrien's eyes instantly scour the area, and sure enough, there she is, standing on a rooftop in all her red glory.
After an initial moment of feeling like his legs are made of jelly, a boot kicks Adrien into action.
Shit, he thinks, whipping his walkie-talkie from his belt. So much for that breath of freedom. I guess it's up to me to put up the charade that the police are still after her.
"Nino, I have eyes on Ladybug," Adrien shouts into the walkie-talkie. "I need backup. Do you copy?"
There's static on the other end.
"Nino!" Adrien shouts into the receiver again, breaking into a sprint. Ladybug is on the move, leaping gracefully from rooftop to rooftop, but she stops when she catches sight of him.
Her eyes light up, and he can see her mouth twist from a frown into a smile.
"Officer!" She shouts down to him, leaning over the edge of the building to see him. "Did your Boss get my present?" Ladybug asks, and her expression is purely devious.
Adrien flushes scarlet, but not for the reason she thinks. "Oh, he got it," Adrien growls, practically crushing the walkie-talkie in his grip. "And I'm sure you'll be glad to hear that he's using it, too." Well, not him specifically, Adrien amends.
"Oh, really?" Ladybug's smiling, her red lips gleaming brightly. "I'm glad it's being used."
You have no idea, Adrien thinks, the conversation with Nino the day earlier coming to mind.
"I'm not used to seeing you out in daylight," Adrien says, glaring up at her.
"That's because my radiance is too dazzling for mortal men," Ladybug snickers, cocking one of her hips.
Adrien's breath gets stuck in his throat slightly. He tries the walkie-talkie again, wanting to distract himself from her preening form up on the building. "Nino," he says, both quietly and urgently.
No response.
When he looks up again, Ladybug is gone.
Ahhhhhhhhh! He thinks, wildly looking along the rooftops. A moment later he sees her again, heading deeper into the city.
The police officer takes off after her, walkie-talkie in hand.
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Author's Note:
AND LET THE CHASE BEGIN. This seems kinda like a filler chapter but I need it to set up the most glorious of glorious chapters. I'M SORRY IT'S TAKEN SO LONG FINALS GOT IN THE WAY
Also: I know that Adrien wasn't supposed to be on the hunt to capture Ladybug or anything, but (again) the next chapter/scene REQUIRES this to happen (and I love it too much not to share with you guys). Don't hate me for ignoring my own plot *sniff
Fun fact: the next chapter is actually the first chapter I wrote for this story. Expect a bit of smut ^3^
Also: Is it hard to tell if Marinette is dressed as Ladybug or not? If it is, let me know and I can change the headers to indicate who is speaking more specifically (As in: just "Marinette" or "Ladybug," not "Marinette/Ladybug").
Thanks all for reading! Feedback is always appreciated!