AN: It's not a secret that I am a huge fan of the S2 episode Glaciator. I've borrowed the Notre Dame-facing rooftop shown in that episode and used it throughout my other stories; Chat's initial appearance on the Bakery roof patio in this episode spawned the initial scene from Elegy. So I wondered: what might have happened if we'd seen an extended version of that episode? Forgive me for moving ahead in the official show timeline in order to tell this particular story. –ep

"Adrien?"

I was just about to get into the sedan when I heard my name called, and turned. At the top of the steps for the bridge was Marinette, holding her own Andre special and looking at me quizzically.

"Marinette?" I said, starting back up the steps. "I didn't see you! How long have you been here?"

"I was just leaving," she said, "and…" she blushed slightly, continuing, "well, I heard your car pull up and hung around to see if it was really you." She blushed deeper. "Sorry," she said.

I'd made it to the step she was on, smiling. "Why be sorry?" I asked. "I'm always happy to see you. You know that, right?"

Her eyes popped wider. "I guess I do," she said.

It had been months now since I'd accidentally heard the voicemail she'd never intended me to hear. As Chat, I'd repeatedly tried to find a way to make it easier for her to approach Adrien but had never really managed to seal the deal. In fact, I'd actually given up on my original mission and had been spending most of my free nights hanging out with Marinette – as Chat. I was well aware that she had significant feelings for me (as Adrien), but also felt like she'd become more comfortable around me (as Adrien) through my relationship with her (as Chat).

Confusing? Maybe. But it seemed to be working.

I, on the other hand, had finally made some progress with Ladybug. Two nights prior, she'd stood me up for dinner; I'd been incensed, but had put it aside to fight the akumatized ice cream maker. Once it was over, Ladybug had joined me the following evening on my favorite rooftop. While she hadn't exactly told me she would neverlove me, she had also finally told me how much I meant to her. Sure, she'd said that her heart was for someone else, and yeah, she thought it was Chat that was in love with her, but I conveniently told myself I could work with what she'd given me, and push that other guy right out of her life (whoever that might be).

I'd been flying pretty high after leaving her on that rooftop. So much so that I'd decided to celebrate the following afternoon with the ice cream I'd not gotten two nights earlier. It wasn't lost on me that my concoction, hand created by Andre, aptly represented the girl of my dreams. Now, as I looked at what Marinette was holding, I started to try and puzzle out who her true love was supposed to be.

Huh. Green – for the eyes? Pink – lips, maybe. What an odd combina-

My eyes widened. As a model, I'd seen enough photos of myself to know my personal coloring. But I also was well aware that someone else would fit those colors, too.

Oh no. No... no, no, no! I was only trying to help!

I looked up at Marinette, who had apparently said something to me. "Sorry?" I said, keeping my smile frozen in place.

She pointed at my ice cream. "Those are very unusual flavors mixed together," she said.

"Uh, yeah," I replied, holding it up again, and despite myself, smiled a bit. "It represents someone for sure," I said, looking back at her across the ice cream. "It…" I trailed off.

At the particular angle I was at, the blue scoop happened to line up with Marinette's eyes. I'd never noticed that they were the same blue as Ladybug.

"Adrien?" she prompted.

"Sorry," I said distractedly. "What was I saying?"

She looked pointedly at my now melting ice cream. "Who is the lucky lady?" she asked. It was a bold question from her.

"La-uh, well, just someone who doesn't know yet," I replied, narrowly avoiding possibly revealing my alter ego to her. Chat had spent many, manyhours now pining away for Ladybug in Marinette's company; she was smart enough to connect the dots if I wasn't careful.

I started scooping huge mouthfuls of the cone, trying to make it less obvious who it had been designed to represent. "I've got to go," I said around bites.

"Me, too," she said, smiling. "See you later."

I hurried back down the steps and into the sedan, hoping beyond hope she'd not caught either my embarrassment or near faux paus.

Later that evening, I was working through some amazingly difficult chemistry problems when there was a gentle knock. So gentle, actually, that I nearly missed it; I turned, and nearly fell out of my chair.

Ladybug was perched at the window, which I'd left open in preparation for bolting later to meet her for patrol. "Mil—Ladybug," I corrected. "Is something wrong?" I asked, unintentionally falling into the same assumption people made when Chat showed up unexpectedly.

"Nothing, Adrien," she said. "May I come in?"

I stood up and went over to her, offering a hand to help her down. "Of course," I said.

She stepped into the space, and we stared at each other for a few seconds, rather uncomfortably, before she spoke again. "I have a conundrum," she started.

My eyes widened. "Okay," I said.

"I, uh, can't tell you how I came into this information, but I've recently discovered that someone has fallen for me, deeply."

We. Are. Not. About. To. Have. This. Conversation.

I plastered an Adrien Model Smile on my face and tried to be empathetic. "Really?"

"Yeah," she said, and she moved over to sit down on my couch. Oddly, she took the spot Marinette often used when she visited.

I came around and sat on the other side. "You don't feel the same about them, do you?" I asked, heart firmly dropping to my feet.

"No," she said simply. "But I had no idea that this person felt the way they did." She looked up at me, and I could see the turmoil of emotion in her eyes.

I immediately realized this was not a simple binary discussion and was, in fact, nearly as complicated as my Chat-Ladybug-Marinette triangle.

"The thing is, I care about him, deeply, and it wasn't until he tried to do something wonderfully special that I realized it was not all—"

"Flirting?" I added.

She looked away. "Exactly," she said. "How did you know?"

You have no idea.

"Model work," I said simply. "You see things."

Ladybug nodded. "I think I hurt him," she said quietly, and sighed.

"You didn't," I said impulsively.

Ladybug turned toward me. "How would you know?" she asked.

"You are Ladybug," I said. "From what I've… heard about you, that is not in your nature." I turned away, a thought percolating.

Could I get away with that? One way to find out.

"And… he told me."

Her eyes flew wide open and then narrowed. "Explain that," she said forcefully.

"I… well, Chat's rescued me a few times, right?"

She nodded.

"So he knows where I live, obviously. He, uh, was looking for a friend to talk to a while back – it was that day the statue in the park was unveiled?"

She nodded again, intently staring at me.

"That was a particularly rough patch for him, and I guess, uh, things were said between the two of you…"

"I remember," she said.

"Well, suffice it to say he doesn't have many people he feels comfortable dropping in on. I'm one of two people he regularly visits, I guess."

Her eyes narrowed. "Who is the other?"

Not getting that one yet, I thought.

"I didn't ask," I shrugged. "Anyway, he stopped in last night and told me about the dinner."

"He did?"

"Yeah." I smiled. "I wish I'd thought of that. Sounded romantic."

"It was," Ladybug said distantly.

"Well, the long and the short of it is, after last night…" I paused. How far should I go?

She looked at me.

"Chat loves you, Ladybug," I said. "While he knows your heart is elsewhere, he's willing to work at bringing you around his view on the meowatter."

Whoops!

"That's a direct quote," I added hastily. Which was true.

Ladybug smiled. "That does sound like him," she said ruefully, and stood to leave. "I've got to run, he's going to be expecting me shortly." She paused. "Thank you for being a friend to him," she continued. "I have a sense he doesn't have many people he can turn to in this world – either as Chat or in his civilian life."

"He's got you," I observed. "That might be enough."

She smiled sadly. "Maybe. Good night, Adrien."

"Good night, mil—Ladybug."

She tossed her yo-yo out the window and was instantly gone.

I stood there at the window, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Ladybug? Coming to me for advice? Did I help myself in any way? Either one of me?

I knew I needed to see Marinette again. It bothered me that she might have fallen for Chat, meaning I'd made a bigger problem out of the original issue. And yet, just the thought of spending any time with Marinette warmed my heart and put me into a wonderful frame of mind. Just like I felt when I knew I'd be spending time with Ladybug.

I've messed this up.

Ladybug and I clearly had a similar problem. Maybe I could talk to her about it during patrol.

Plagg floated up from wherever he'd been hiding. "Odd that she visited, don't you think?" he said. His little kwami face was inscrutable, betraying nothing. And yet, I knew he knew something.

"We're going to be late," I said curtly. "Plagg – claws out!"