So I don't think ive mentioned this before, but this story is not necessarily set alongside any specific episodes, but they will sometimes reference one or two occasionally as incidents or memories or current events only slightly altered. This is just because I could possibly struggle to fit the current scenario into a few of the episodes until certain events happen, and because of the chronology of the show being shown in different orders in different countries. Apologies to those looking for a correlation in canon, it is there but less obvious and im trying to stick to canon best I can.

Longest chapter so far! Enjoy ~Midnight


The school day ended fairly quickly for Marinette, way too quickly in her opinion. She had gone from the worst morning in history straight into the best day of her life. She was now friends with Adrien. ADRIEN. And he had said her designs were good. And he showed her somewhere only he knew about. And he hugged her and didnt let go until he had to.

That last one was the one that made her go from elated to downright starstruck, cloud nine had nothing on this. Of course he probably forgot he had her in a hug when she started laughing herself silly all over him, but still.
She glanced to her left towards him packing his bag away and blushed when he caught her staring. He was grinning and winked.

"See something you like My Lady?" She rolled her eyes, trying to hide her blush by looking away again. The obvious answer being yes. Honestly he was actually worse than Chat with the flirting and the puns.
It was a very weird side to suddenly discover on somebody that up until now she had viewed as the pinnacle of perfection, quiet, kind and handsome. To find out that he made terrible jokes and could flirt like a trooper was ridiculous. Like somebody had taken over his body. She knew it was him though. He probably thought the same of her in some way, seeing as she was finally speaking in sentences rather than, quote unquote 'confused and incoherent Marinette noises'.

She sighed, packing away her things into her own bag and standing up ready to leave. Alya had squealed quite loudly in the middle of lesson when she had heard them talking in the row now behind hers. Adrien had asked to borrow a pencil from 'his lady' and obviously Alya couldn't handle this development. Although Marinette generally wondered why she was handling this so well instead of freaking out.
Now she knew she was in for it though. It was a good job her phone would be left at home on patrol tonight or she was going to get bombarded.

She walked to the front of the room, her new attachment following suit as the teacher took Alya for a detention due to disruption of the class, and they walked to the entrance together in comfortable silence. They had literally been talking for most of the remaining lessons. It was mad how much they had to say to each other now that particular wall had crumbled.
It was only once outside that the situation became slightly awkward, him needing to take the car home whilst she was required to walk. Her house was literally a stones throw away anyway so there wasn't much point in transport. He seemed sort of... dare she think... shy about whatever he was thinking of saying just then before he went over to it. How adorable could this guy get. The grin that hadn't left his face for hours now no more than a questioning but happy tilt of his lips.

"Did... um... did you want to exchange numbers...? I mean you don't have to or anything..." She stared at him in shock, this time without the poorly disguised affection, before practically ripping her bag open to retrieve her phone, very nearly revealing a sleeping Kwami in the process. Immediately opening a new contact option on the small screen and purposefully ignoring the three messages she had already received from an excited, confused and demanding Alya.
He was instantly laughing again.
Good god.
Way to look over eager Marinette.
Ladybug would never be that uncool.
He casually retrieved his own phone from his pocket and they quickly exchanged the 10 digits that she never thought would even enter her vicinity. Alya had them and had offered, but it had meant nothing unless he had given them to her himself. She saved his name and after contemplating the screen for a moment, decided to include a small cat emoji after it to honor his new nickname.
It was stupid yes, but it made her giggle a bit when she looked at her phone all the same.

She had nearly had a coronary when he called her My Lady the first time. The way he said it sounded so familiar. The voice, the lilt to it, the tone. It was like in the middle of the night when she was being awoken on a rooftop after drifting off following an akuma attack. The way he always did, no, the way Chat always did. She was terrified that a difference now had to be established in her head because the two of them were waaaaay too similar now.
There had been a brief element of worrying for her own identity also, but honestly who the hell would peg her as the cool and unflappable hero of Paris when she falls over her own feet 90% of the time and gets even the most simple of sentences muddled.
Even Alya, super fan and author of an entire blog dedicated to ladybug, who had all the inside scoops and had known her for like a decade, had no idea she was Ladybug. So she was not all that contemplative of the idea.
Somebody would find out eventually, but the chances that it was Adrien, and that it was this quick, were minimal.

She must have been smiling at the screen like a frigging idiot because as soon as she looked back up towards him she could see him trying to contain his laughter. He was biting those soft lips made for sin and looking like he was going to burst. She raised an eyebrow and poked him in the chest.

"One more peep out of you and you wont get any replies from me kitty" she watched as he choked back the laughter brimming to the edge and bent over slightly sweeping his arms into a mocking bow, a damnable smirk that would have made the devil blush gracing his perfect face.

"As the lady wishes" She shook her head, disbelieving. Oh how quickly things had changed and in such a weird direction, if only her past self could see her now. "I'm busy on Tuesdays and Thursdays anyway, so a message you shall not receive tonight im afraid" She frowned minutely, her mind instantly jumping to the drop down calendar of his schedule she had in her bedroom. Oh dear god she would definitely have to take that down.
Tuesdays and Thursdays were empty. Did he do something she wasn't aware of or...? But she wasn't going to push it, she was busy on those days as well. Tuesdays and Thursdays were patrolling days for Ladybug so she wasn't likely to reply even if he did text her.

"And as luck would have it so am I, I guess I will not be hearing from you until tomorrow morning in class" He snorted at the mention of luck, straightening up properly to his full height once again, which was a considerable half a foot taller than her at the least. Obviously he thought it wasn't that lucky.

"I will see you tomorrow morning then" The smirk returned "Make sure you actually get some sleep this time, you don't want another repeat of this morning" She blushed deeply and half scowled at him, laughter that brought her heart to a stop each time rang out yet again, for not even the 5th or 6th time today, and he waved goodbye before spinning on his heel and heading off to the car before she could think of a scathing enough response.
She grumbled a bit before walking in the opposite direction towards the bakery. She would drop off her stuff and start patrol immediately... as soon as she had taken down his schedule anyway. It was easy to slip into contemplation on her short journey home of all the things she had learnt in just one day.

She might still believe that he was the love of her life, but after talking to him on a equal level for most of the day she realized that she had been thinking of somebody that didnt actually really exist.
Sure he was still kind and gentle, but he wasn't reserved like she had originally thought at all, and he was far from the cool and collected boy that she had been chasing after for months. Adrien made crazy jokes and silly puns on the spot that came out of no-where. A great deal of them cat related she had noticed but that was more likely to be because of his new nickname than anything else. And the way he complimented and flirted with her practically with no limits or foreseeable end.
The way he tilted his head ever so slightly to one side whilst listening to her talk, and how he never stopped fidgeting or moving until he was 100% comfortable where he was and then wouldn't move in forever.
She had learnt that he had a very tense relationship with his father and they didnt talk very much, which she knew in passing before but never realized it was quite to this extent. He was also an anime, television and film nerd apparently, which surprised her to no end and she suddenly found herself understanding a lot more of his references than she had before.

She felt a little bit like she had just unlocked millions of hidden features on a game that she previously didnt know had any extra's on it. They aren't written on the box and when you stumble across them its like gaming heaven. Thats what it felt like. Definitely.

Shaking her head and wondering what sort of logic that even was, she raised her hand and pushed open the door to the bakery, immediately engulfed in the cinnamon and vanilla smell she had and always will associate with home. It created a faint blush when she remembered that the scarf she had made still smelt that way after months.
She had learnt long ago that unless somebody has a particular aversion to it, that this scent was not worth the bother of trying to rid her clothes of. It was delicate and spicy, with warm undertones. And the fact that it impregnated all of her washing no matter what she did probably was another reason. It overpowered anything and everything whether cheap or expensive. She shouldn't complain really, it could be worse. She could live in a cheese shop or something and smell constantly of cheese.
Camembert for instance.
Bleugh.

Whilst it wasn't very hectic, she could still see that the shop was busy today with a few customers so she managed to catch her fathers attention whilst he was with somebody, gesturing to herself and then the shop in a silent communication, asking if they needed her help at all. She hoped they didnt or she was going to be late, but it happened occasionally.
She was quite relieved when he chuckled to himself and quickly and silently made a shoo-ing motion to indicate that they would be alright before turning his attention back to the man in front of the counter. She smiled, giving him a quick thumbs up before dashing off up the stairs to her room on the top floor.

She had always loved the setup of this house, with the bakery on the bottom floor where it was accessible to everybody on the street there was a staircase for their home at the very back of the shop, next to their official front door for the house which she rarely ever used these days. This led upstairs to a small kitchen, she was always told never to use the bakery kitchen for normal food or meals so that it didnt affect the bakes at all that needed to rise or cook in certain conditions.
The kitchen was attached to a fair sized airy living room with a sofa with a TV, a lovely soft rug and faint pink colors and neutrals on the walls and for furniture. Just enough room for a family night with the three of them or for one or two friends to come round and entertained.

From there next two floors were the two bedrooms. The master bedroom, her parents room, was on the third floor and hers occupied the top floor. Essentially an attic room she had the whole floor to herself and had gone with a fairly similar color scheme to downstairs, sticking more to the pinker side of it. Her favorite part was the terrace she had created for herself at the very top of the house though as it had an excellent view and was always brilliant for fresh air. It wasn't originally an area to relax in, but after a little begging and the installation of a skylight, she had transformed the little area into her very own.
It helped also that nobody would catch her transforming up here and just swinging away into the night as she did every week now, regardless of actual threats. It was high enough not to be seen from the street with any sort of detail so she could continue her frequent outings without worry or panic.

This was where she was heading now, taking the stairs a few at a time like she had done for... most of her life actually, once she was big enough to skip steps anyway. She reached her own bedroom door (well...hatch anyway, but she thought of it as the door) and entered, Tikki immediately flying from their bag now that they were in private territory.

"Sooooooo. Kitty Cat huh?" She blushed deeply, striding past her to put her bag down onto her desk, fishing today's homework out so that she could do it once she had returned. "I thought only one person had managed to acquire that nickname" Marinette frowned and crossed her arms defensively.

"It just sorta... happened. I don't know... You were there Tikki in my bag. What the hell happened today? Have I been dreaming or something? Did I ever actually wake up this morning?" She stood there for a second before pinching herself as hard as she could. Ouch. Yeah, no. Not a dream. Today actually happened.

"Hey, i'm just as confused as you are Marinette, but you have to admit, he is quite a bit like Chat now that we know a bit more about him" Marinette sighed shaking her head, glancing over to the drop down calendar and feeling vaguely awkward about it now. She would definitely take that down. Later. She was more attached to the modelling photos on her walls though... maybe they could stay.

"He isnt Chat though, and I have to keep that in mind still when I talk to him. I really don't want to accidentally let something slip" Tikki nodded thoughtfully, floating up towards the bed and skylight. "Besides, how could I let slip to Adrien who I really am when in all fairness... I kind of owe that to Chat himself first" She had never seen Tikki's head whip around so fast, its like someone had said that the Queen of England was there. Marinette followed her up, contemplating some scenarios as she went.

"You would really reveal yourself to him at some point?" She thought about it. She had known Chat for months now, even before the school year had actually started, and throughout those months he had done everything he could for her in every way. She still shuddered when thinking about the Timebreaker incident. When she had finished returning everything to normal, her and the other Ladybug had fused and she retained both sets of memories, but his remained blank of the risk he had taken to stop her time being stolen.
He could have died. Died.
She would never let him do that again, she was very much reliant on her partner and as much as she would hate to admit it, they were quite good friends.

They would probably be much better friends if they knew each others identities, but she was holding herself back. He had asked her multiple times whether she would reveal herself and the answer had always been no. So why was she considering it now...? Marinette shook her head to clear it, pushing the skylight open and allowing Tikki to fly through.

"I will probably have to some time, but I don't feel like it would be soon... I'm afraid of the two halves of my life mingling so much." She climbed out onto the terrace, hugging herself tightly and leaned on the rail.
"In the daytime, im just Marinette, an ordinary girl with an ordinary life. I live here, I go to school, im clumsy as all hell and cannot... or could not talk to my crush in more than stuttering 3 word sentences." She smiled sadly at Tikki, turning away to look over the Parisian skyline.
"Ladybug is so very different. Strong, confident, not afraid to let people know who is boss. She never makes mistakes and things always work out for the best..." It was making her quite sad now, thinking of all the differences between the two. It was like the difference between white and black. Day and night. It felt like there was an all too vast valley between the two personas that only joined themselves by a flimsy bridge in moments like these. Or earlier, when she had finally managed more than that 3 word stuttering with Adrien.

It was a massive leap for her to adopt Ladybug's traits when in her civilian form, because she had never been like that, only wanted to be. The mask gave her the opportunity to let that shine. There were some things that bled through from that other life though, all the little scars she had accumulated after her powers had healed her that she could still find littering her body, they were faint, like the thinnest of silver lines when caught in the light. She found herself tracing one particular one on her left wrist. She had no idea where it had come from, just that it was an injury Ladybug had received. She couldn't imagine how many of them Chat must be covered with. Tikki floated next to her arm, her miniature hand rubbing tiny calming circles into it.

"You are much more like the Ladybug that you turn into than you know Marinette, and I think it would be good for you to realize that" Marinette looked down at her tiny form contemplatively, thousands of years of knowledge, one itty bitty living space. She giggled slightly when she realized that she had inadvertently likened Tikki's brain in her head to the genie and his bottle. Straightening herself up.

"Well, all this behind us, we do actually have some where to be don't we?" A smile spread itself over her lips and it was mirrored on the tiny Kwami and it nodded.

"We should go then"

One quick transformation later and they were already swinging onward and outwards over all of Paris. She need only meet up with Chat afterwards like normal to see if he had found anything on his own patrol and they covered more ground separately, they were each only a call away on their devices anyway.
Possible akuma victims hanging about, any area that Hawkmoth might be hiding away to create them. But tonight, as it was most nights really, was quite quiet. The world was still and no trouble was arising, her yo-yo didnt alert her to any calls from him, she couldn't find any moth dens or whatever they should call it. They hadn't been able to agree on the name. She was really glad that their transformations only wore off after using her main powers like lucky charm because then they wouldn't get anything done otherwise.

Deciding to finish up, she immediately made her way towards Pont Neuf. The bridge had unintentionally become the regular meeting spot that they used after going on patrol, neither were entirely sure when and why this had been agreed, but it was a lovely area and it was an easy point to finish. The real bonus was La Seine though, the river never failed to relax her after a long day, no matter what stresses had occurred.

She could already see him leaning against the side of the bridge when she arrived, swinging herself gracefully to land beside him. He barely acknowledged the movement, but she could see a smile start to spread across his features.

"Good afternoon My Lady" He turned, sweeping into a dramatic bow, keeping eye contact with her at all times. She observed him thoroughly though, he seemed off somehow. Wrong. His shockingly green eyes seemed to be...troubled? and the smile did not reach his eyes as it normally would.

"Is something troubling you kitty cat?" He seemed to twitch oddly at the nickname, and indeed she herself couldn't help the weird feeling and flash of Adrien's face in her mind. She quickly persevered, jumping up to sit on the wall beside him as he straightened himself up again. Inclining her head to listen to his woes.

"It was just an odd day my lady that's all, a few things happened that I would never have thought" his words didnt have their usual spring to them and seemed more thoughtful than anything else, Marinette knew he wouldn't go any further with his initial explanation unless she asked, it was encroaching on civilian territory and therefor normally made her uncomfortable. "Did you find anything on your half of the patrol?" She shook her head, sweeping her arm in a motion that was meant to indicate the whole of Paris.

"Paris seems to sleep quietly tonight as well." Nothing major had happened over the last few weeks at all, so it really was quiet right now. Not even any akuma had shown up. She looked at him long and hard as he turned to gaze back into the water. He definitely needed to say something, ask something, think about something... she was never entirely sure what it would be. He looked up to her questioningly as she continued to consider him. "So tell me your problems kitty, ive got the time" He blinked, obviously taken aback by how casually she was asking for details on his normal life today when normally she would be running for the hills. A lot of things had changed today. He must have eventually decided she wasn't joking and sighed, looking back down, following a fish with his eyes.

"Ok then... but first, I promised myself I would ask you something" Now it was her turn to stare at him. God she hoped this wouldn't go into dodgy territory. She hoped she could at least answer some of it for him. He really seemed to want to know today. She nodded, giving him the go ahead. He obviously thought he was never going to get that go ahead because he continued to stare stupidly at her before shaking his head.
"I wanted to know... do you like somebody right now?"

Oh. oh... He must be upset because he figured she would like somebody else. Which is absolutely true. It was painful to look at him after that and she herself turned her head down to the waters. He was reminding her too much of Adrien as it was, she didnt need to see a repeat of a face discovering unwanted information as she had done with the scarf earlier reply was a quiet whisper on the wind.

"I do"

The reaction she was expecting was sadness. Or displeasure. Or disappointment. Anything but the casual nod of acceptance she did receive. It confused her a great deal, normally he was quite vocal and exuberant with any aspect of hi love life, but not much happened. He just continued on in the same voice as before.

"What are they like?" She sighed, facing out over the river, watching a cyclist on one side until they were out of sight.

"He is kind and gentle, sweet and never assumes anything. Tall and handsome and good at his job. But I recently found out that he has a silly side too, he flirts and makes terrible puns and does funny things just to make you laugh..." She considered him for a moment, smiling and giggled slightly. "He actually reminds me a lot of you in some ways" She heard Chat chuckle a bit as he stood straight running his hand through his hair.

"Aah so I lost out to myself then My Lady?" She didnt answer. There was a small and fragile looking smile on his face and she felt like he was gonna turn around and leave at any second. So Marinette asked the first question that came to mind.

"Do... you you like somebody Chat?" God she should just throw herself backwards off of this bridge right now what if he really was 100% in love with her like he says and she just smashed his feelings into a pulp. She watched his smile falter and his mouth open as if to say something. Then close and he looked like he was thinking deeply about something. He then tried again.

"I...I think I do actually. And I have no idea how it happened" She blinked stupidly before grinning, maybe she shouldn't have worried.

"Why what is going on here... does Chat Noir have a crush on somebody?" He chuckled and shook his head a bit, turning around and leaning his back against the wall, looking up at the darkening sky.

"Not so much a crush I think just yet, I did only start talking to her properly today after all, but it think..." He blushed deeply, biting his lip a little. "I think it might end up that way" He smiled indulgently and laughed a little bit to himself whilst she continued to listen.
"It is all sorts of ironic you know, you saying that your crush reminds you of me. When my possible one reminds me so much of you" Marinette couldn't help but laugh a little at that one. She joined him in gazing up at the sky, soon it would be dark enough to see the first stars shining through. He sounded like he had seen something truly beautiful and felt guilty about it.

"What is this girl like then, I can tell by your voice that she must be something to behold" He was silent for a little while and she continued watching the sky change color. She wouldn't push the information out of him because he would talk when he was ready, and it wasn't a long wait.

"She's... how can I say it. She isnt somebody that goes out of her way to stand out like other people that I know" He seemed to shudder at that and she wondered who he was thinking about then. Honestly it sounded like someone like Chloe. Ugh. He smiled again afterwards though, moving on.
"But she can take charge of a situation, She had always seemed rather shy to me until recently, like if I talked to her that she would scream. But in reality she is just as sassy as you are. Absolutely adorable and so very cute. Small in stature but not in personality I guess" Marinette looked back down at him just as he scratched the back of his head nervously, It was odd to see Chat using the same mannerisms as Adrien now that they were so close to each other in her head. But she was grinning like a Cheshire cat on the outside. She couldn't help it, she needed to tease him, it was compulsory.

"It sounds like you are already in love with the girl Kitty Cat" She'd never seen him lost for words before but tonight she'd already seen it twice. It was a nice change of pace and honestly seeing him opening and shutting his mouth like a fish was hilarious. He was blushing so hard now. His tail batting all over the place in agitation.
Honestly she would never understand the dynamics of his outfit, because it wasn't like the ears and tail were real or anything, they were leather. But they still moved like real ones.

She didnt push his buttons any further though, what she was thinking about was how they had each said that the person they were talking about reminds them of each other. Adrien reminds her of Chat, and whoever it is Chat was talking about reminded him of Ladybug. It was like some weird criss-crossed love square or something Chat liked ladybug and the mystery girl, but Ladybug liked Adrien and... if she thought about how similar the two were, she also like Chat. But damned if she ever told him that. She laughed a little bit, suddenly thinking of the nicknames her and Adrien were using now.

"Maybe we should come up with names for them so that we can talk about them, and not reveal their identities?" He seemed to contemplate that for a second, whilst his blush calmed down. Bless him.

"I think I should go with 'Princess'. I already have My lady so my princess sounds good. And what was it you said earlier about how handsome yours is? I vote you go with 'Handsome Boy'" If she hadn't been blushing so hard then she would have been laughing her ass off.
The thought of accidentally calling Adrien handsome boy... god it was like a nightmare waiting to happen, especially now that she already called him kitty cat, hell if she got the two confused. She liked it though. And if she ever met Adrien whilst in costume it gave her something to call him then. God forbid she called him kitty cat when she was suited up, he would immediately know who she was. She managed to reply through her internal panic at the thought of that.

"Sounds good Kitty" Another thought crossed her mind then, something that she hadn't thought of before now really. It was out of her mouth before she had any time to process the idea.
"hey, what if we know each other as civilians and we are actually crushing on each other" He looked genuinely surprised at the observation, closing his eyes in thought.

"Well then I guess that we would know when one of us met the other out of costume." He smirked, gazing up at her where she sat on the wall. "I would love to know that I was Ladybug's Handsome boy" The smirk lessened, turning more into a wistful smile now.
"Just as I would adore knowing that Ladybug was My Princess." He closed his eyes again and a pang went through her heart. He really did already love this girl, even if he had no idea himself. It made her feel... a little lonely perhaps.
He had always professed his love for Ladybug as openly as possible and it made her wonder if he would do the same with the princess once he figured it out. If he would forget about her.

"Lets make a deal" His low tones shook her out of her stupid little moping session and she watched as he stepped away from the wall and turned around, offering her a hand to help her down which she took automatically. Gracefully jumping down in front of him.
"If you meet Handsome boy when you are in costume and call him as such, and it turns out to be me, I will reveal my identity. If I should happen to see Princess, I will do the same. If you happen to be my princess, I shall let you decide whether to tell me or not, with no pressure." He looked so sad when he finished voicing this that she heard her heart start to creak as if it would break. He really wanted to know so badly who she was and he was giving her a free pass should she need it. He would absolutely reveal himself to her but she didnt have to do the same in return.

It made her want to cry. How could she not accept that. Although she would really feel guilty should one of them reveal and the other didnt.

"...Deal."

It was a dangerous game they had started to play here, and if fate had really matched them together that way she had no idea how she would react. It would have been some higher power's idea of a hilarious joke for Adrien to actually be Chat. But hopefully he wasn't, and she would never have to worry about it. Until then, it was time for her to be heading home for food and to do her homework, and thus time to bid her feline friend adieu.

Impulsively she hugged him quickly, the body feeling familiar under her touch, before she left. Leaving him standing there in shock she had to laugh a bit. Her good luck and his bad luck. Which would fate decide would win this scenario. The only way they could know was to find out. And for the second time today as she was swinging back home, she wondered when and how they would reveal each other.

And despite every part of her logical brain screaming that it was a bad idea, spying the first star in the sky as she went. She made a wish with an old rhyme she was taught as a little girl silently in her mind.

Star light, Star bright. First star I see tonight. I wish I may, I wish I might. Have the wish I wish tonight.
I wish for both chat and I to get the person of our dreams, no matter who they may be and no matter how long it takes. Whether it is already us, or another person.
He deserves it.

She felt a little silly as she touched back down on the terrace above her house, but she also felt like it had made a difference. Like her luck would kick in and get him the girl. But who would know until it played out.

All's fair in love and war. And love would always win in the end. But who said it didnt deserve a little extra help.


And that's that, phew its a lot of writing and im sorry if it doesn't flow quite right. Im not sure how long the next chapter will take, but I hope it wont be too long. I hope you enjoyed this Mari/Ladybug POV ~Midnight