Chapter: 10
Marinette watched her parents eye Chat Noir with a suspicious glare, a type of look she didn't think she'd ever seen on them before. Obviously, they were suspicious of her and Chat having been alone together in her room, and Marinette became paranoid watching them.
Chat Noir would have to leave as soon as the police were gone, otherwise her parents might walk into her room every five seconds as a precaution.
Chat and Officer Roger were deep in a conversation about Marinette's safety measures, deciding all the actions that she could take in order to help keep her safe. "Right, okay. Tom, Sabine, make sure you either drive Marinette to school everyday or have her walk there with a friend. When she gets home from school, it might not be best for her to stay all alone in her room all evening. The police will come as often as we can and update you on any recent information until the villain is caught," Roger said confidently. Marinette's parents nodded in unison.
"Will that be all?" Sabine asked.
"I believe so. Chat Noir and Ladybug will probably be on a constant watch for this supervillain, so we'll mostly leave it up to them to obtain the culprit," Roger said, suddenly looking disappointed at putting his faith in the superheroes.
Marinette coughed lightly, turning to face her parents. "Um, I have some homework I need to finish before school tomorrow. If the police are leaving, can I go back up?" she asked timidly.
Her parents glanced at each other hesitantly, looking at Chat Noir one last time. "Sure, honey," said Tom when his wife failed to give a straight answer.
"Thank you," Marinette told Officer Roger, then quickly hurried to the white staircase. "No problem, Marinette," Roger said, indicating for the three policeman to wrap up their investigation.
Marinette paused at the bottom of the stairs, and gestured for Chat Noir to follow her back up. "Nice meeting you," Chat said quickly to Marinette's parents, trying not to cause more tension. They nodded their heads slowly as they watched him hurry after Marinette and disappear into her room above.
"That was...awkward," Marinette said, giggling. The trapdoor was shut and she was positive that the police were heading out, which meant it was time for Chat to leave. "I think they hate me," he said, smirking. "Your parents."
Marinette rolled her eyes as she grabbed his arm and led him up the ladder to her bed platform. "I think we just made ourselves suspicious, that's all," she said.
Chat Noir watched as Marinette climbed back onto her bed and pushed the trapdoor open above her head. The cool night air filled into the room, causing a shiver to run down her spine. Marinette looked back at Chat, who was standing by the corner of her bed.
She didn't want him to leave, not at all. His glowing eyes captivated her entirely, forcing her instincts to want to stick to him like a magnet. The urge to kiss and touch him grew almost unbearable, and her better judgement knew he needed to leave as quickly as possible.
"I'm guessing you want me to leave so you can finish your homework?" Chat asked sarcastically.
"No, I finished my homework while I was in school. I want you to leave so that my parents don't start barging in every five seconds while you're here," Marinette replied matter-of-factly.
She pulled herself up onto her balcony, suddenly able to see much better in the moonlight. The night was cold, and it gave her arms goosebumps.
Marinette hugged her arms as she looked out at the city, seeming so silent and lifeless. Transporter could be hiding anywhere out there, just waiting for the right moment to plunge his knife into her body.
"You don't need to worry, you know," came Chat's voice from behind her. Marinette jumped slightly, surprised she hadn't heard him come up.
"Worry? What do you mean?" she asked quietly, turning around to face him. "This guy won't be a threat to you, I promise," he said, locking his gaze onto hers. This was about the time that Marinette felt queasy around him, like she wasn't able to properly function and think.
It wasn't until now that Marinette realized that she was truly afraid for her life. She was scared, and she was definitely worried, but she believed Chat Noir when he said he would protect her. She felt his gloved hand as it cupped the side of her face, gently stroking her cheek.
"I know," she whispered.
Chat tilted her chin upwards, leaning forward as he kissed her. Marinette slowly unfolded her arms and wrapped them around his shoulders, immersing her fingers deep within his blond hair.
She felt the warmth of his body shield her from the cold air, just like the way he'd shield her from the Transporter. Their tongues grazed one another as Chat slowly pulled away.
"I have to go now, Marinette," Chat said, heading towards the balcony railing. Marinette watched him walk away longingly, wishing they could stay like that all night.
"Can I count on seeing you again soon?" Marinette asked, her blue eyes twinkling with a sort of eagerness.
Chat took his baton from his lower back as he stepped onto the concrete railing. His figure was hard to see in the dark, but she could easily spot his shining weapon.
"Very soon, princess," he said, and just like that, he was gone. Chat extended the staff and used it to heave himself out and into the dark city beyond. Marinette leaned against the balcony railing dreamily, staring at the spot that he'd last appeared in her sight before disappearing behind a high rooftop.
Never did Marinette ever imagine that one day she'd fall in love with Chat Noir, much less ever believe one hundred percent that his secret identity was Adrien Agreste.
...
"I hate myself right now," Alya scowled, and Marinette rolled her eyes for the fifth time.
Alya had been off on a frenzy ever since Marinette arrived at school, having actually been on time for once. Marinette was walked over by her mother, who was very content on following the police's instructions for the safety measures.
"Are you sure you're not mad at me? I mean, I totally freaked out when I saw that psycho! I didn't even notice that you tripped, much less see that creep attack you."
Marinette shook her head and smiled weakly. "Alya, for the last time, I'm not mad at you. It's not your fault for anything that happened, trust me," she said.
They were seated at their usual spots in home room, Marinette having been eyeing the seat in front of her, dreading the moment that Adrien walked through the door. She was almost positive that he was Chat Noir, which would mean that he had been in her room last night, kissing her senseless on top of her bed.
Marinette had lazily thrown on a pair of blue jeans and a blue and white striped jacket that she had made by herself in her spare time. Her hair was strewn in a high ponytail, and her shoes were the usual pink flats.
Alya seemed to have been just as stressed as Marinette had; her hair was down by her shoulders, frizzy and sticking up in every direction. She wore a simple purple t-shirt and jeans that Marinette noticed wasn't her usual fashion style. Obviously, Alya had been worried sick for her friend.
"I'm still sorry, Marinette," Alya said, frowning and leaning her head against her hand. "I will make it up to you, I promise."
Marinette nodded and put a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder, flashing her a warm smile. The class was somewhat quiet, and hardly anyone had shown to school yet. At that moment, the few people in the classroom turned in their seats turned to see Kim, Alix, Nathaniel, and Mylene walking in through the door, interrupting the silent atmosphere with loud talking.
"No one is going to believe that, Kim," said Nathaniel, rolling his eyes. "Oh please, Nath, everyone saw it! Right, Alix?" Kim said, running an overconfident hand through his hair.
"Kim, we saw Ladybug about to kill herself from just talking to you. No, she was definitely not interested in you," Alix scowled.
Marinette went red as she watched them start to walk up the aisle, suddenly remembering that they'd been on the metro train while she was Ladybug. She should've guessed that they'd want to brag about their adventure with two famous superheroes at school.
The four of them received angry glares from the limited students in the classroom. As they passed Marinette up the aisleway, they suddenly stared at her and stopped. "Omg, it's Marinette!" Mylene said triumphantly, turning to face her. Marinette sighed, having forgot she'd told them about Transporter's victims.
"Dude, you realize you're an actual victim to this new supervillain, right?" Alix asked with glee. "Ladybug told us herself. Can you believe we actually met and talked to her? It was crazy."
"Yes, Alix, I do realize I'm a victim, thanks. It's kinda hard not to when I was almost killed by a green-skinned maniac with a dagger in a metro station," Marinette retorted tiredly.
"You sure you're okay, Marinette?" Nathaniel asked shyly, his cheeks blushing red. Marinette grinned at him.
"I'm fine, Nath. I was saved by...Chat Noir," Marinette said, finding it hard to say her partner's name. To think that he'd walk through the door any moment as his civilian form was frightening.
Was it true that Adrien loved her if he was her partner in fighting crime?
Could he really be Chat Noir, the one who had made out with her just the night before?
"Ladybug promised that she'd watch you two," Kim said, putting his hands on his hips. "You and Adrien. Apparently, he's a victim too. Geez, how'd you guys make him that violent? What did you do to piss him off that badly?"
Marinette frowned at him, suddenly angry. She was not in the mood to remember her guilt for accusing an innocent boy of murder, much less confess her stupid story of running around a five star hotel with Adrien.
"None of your business, Kim. It was all an accident, by the way. Adrien and I just happened to stumble across him at a really bad time, I guess," Marinette snapped, glaring up at the nosy group.
"Didn't you and Adrien get lost up on a roof or something?" Alya asked, suddenly peering at Marinette with interest. "I don't think you even told me the whole story, girl."
Marinette sighed, deciding the story wasn't personal enough not to tell. "Adrien and I were up on the roof of the hotel, and we noticed a kid we thought was drowning someone else, so we called the police and accused him of murder," Marinette blurted, turning to everyone's facial expressions.
"Happy now?"
"What were you doing with Adrien up on a roof at night, anyway?" Kim asked, smirking. Nathaniel looked at him angrily.
"Seriously, Kim?" he growled.
"Back off, Nath, I wanna hear this," Kim said, failing at his attempt to whisper. Marinette felt herself filling with more rage by the second. The last thing she wanted was to be in the middle of high school drama that the whole class was watching.
"That's none of your business either," she muttered feistily.
"Woah, slow down, girl, I want to hear this too. You never exactly told me why you were up there with him, either," Alya said, showing a more upset expression than an interested one.
Like the way you tell me about you and Nino? she spat in her head.
Marinette felt herself go red; there was nothing to tell about the story that the group would like to hear. She was fully enraged by now, and her best friend wasn't doing anything to help her. Marinette had always been used to dealing with her anger that seemed to so often emerge, but this time was different.
This time it was about Adrien.
"We got split off from you and Nino, remember? We thought the safest place to go was the roof, so we went and stumbled across the murderer. Damn, you guys, there's nothing to the story, I don't know why the hell you think this is some movie or something," Marinette snarled annoyedly.
"Split off from what?" Mylene asked meekly, hiding behind Alix to shield herself from Marinette's obvious rage.
"We were running from Chloe," Alya said, suddenly realizing what she'd just put her friend through. She had been so caught up in her own curiosity she forgot Marinette had been through too many traumatizing events.
"So she's not Adrien's lover?" asked Kim, sounding slightly disappointed. "I mean, I guess that would make sense, considering all the drama those two had at the beginning of last year." Alya felt her anger level rise up to Marinette's. Standing up in her seat, Alya crossed her arms and stared Kim down angrily.
"No, and even if she is, that's none of your business, douchebag. Actually, that's none of all your businesses, so if you'll just -" Alya was suddenly cut off, and everyone whipped their heads around.
"What's going on?"
Marinette's brow was furrowed low on her forehead in a frown, and her cheeks were pink with heat. When she heard that voice, she quickly lifted her head to see Adrien walk through the door, closely followed by Nino.
Oh great.
She could honestly say she didn't want him around, not if he was Chat Noir, not if he was going to jump into the drama and make more problems.
"They're bugging Marinette about her personal life," Nathaniel said. He began to make his way to the back of the classroom, shaking his head with annoyance. He was never one to ever be involved in drama, and everyone knew it.
"All we want to know is if you two are dating," Alix said defensively. "What's so wrong with that?"
"What's wrong with it is that one, it's none of your business, two, we already said no, and three, you weren't even asking that in the first place," Marinette said, her anger that had been directed at Alya from before fading as her friend suddenly took her side.
Adrien frowned when he noticed Marinette's enraged face, and he walked over to his desk to put his bag down. "Just leave her alone right now if she's not in the mood," Adrien said coldly, facing the three nosey teenagers. "What's so wrong with that?"
"Well, I'm sorry!" Kim shouted, throwing his arms in the air dramatically. "We were almost attacked by an evil supervillain, nearly lost our heads being thrown around in an out of control subway bus, and we even had to deal with that stuck-up Chat Noir!"
Adrien scowled and rolled his eyes. "What does that have to do with harassing Marinette, Kim?" he snapped.
"Well, for one, we want some answers if we're going to be dragged into this somehow. All we are is curious and technically we have the right to know," Kim said smartly.
"You have nothing to do with this and it's not your right to know," Alya said, slamming a hand down on her desk.
Marinette was fed up with all of this; everyone was acting like five year olds, and for no reason. There was an argument going on, but it was over nothing.
"Guys, can we please just all shut up? This is so pointless, just everybody mind your own business and sit down," Marinette said.
"Ugh, whatever. You guys just overreact about everything anyway," Alix said, waving her hand as she walked towards her desk with Mylene. Kim shook his head at Adrien and started making his way to his desk.
"You know, you remind me a little bit of Chat Noir," he said, eyeing Adrien with an annoyed expression.
Marinette couldn't help but blush when she heard him say that, especially since she was almost certain Adrien was, in fact, Chat Noir. The strange coincidence made Adrien blush as well, glancing quickly at Marinette to see if she had any suspicion.
There's no way she doesn't know my identity by now, he thought as he locked onto her gaze.
Kim, Alix, and Mylene started arising class chatter as they explained their adventure on the subway with Ladybug and Chat Noir. The conversation was loud, but Marinette could still feel their eyes on the back of her head.
"What's their problem?" Nino asked from his chair, taking his headphones off and wrapping them back around his neck. Adrien and Nino turned in their seats to face Alya and Marinette, excluding themselves from the rest of the class's discussion.
"Apparently, they were with Ladybug and Chat Noir at the subway while the new villain was there. As of right now, they're bragging about their experience to the whole class," Alya said, leaning her elbows against the table. "They were wondering how Marinette and Adrien pissed the guy off and got him akumatized."
Marinette sighed heavily, blowing her breath. "They were also wondering if Adrien and I are boyfriend and girlfriend," she said miserably. "Thanks for trying to cover for me, Alya, but with our class it won't remain a secret much longer. Besides, Nino's a trustworthy friend, you don't need to lie to him."
Nino shrugged as he pulled out his phone and started scrolling through his play list. "Not that it's big a deal, really. They'll forget about it in a week, trust me. Well, as long as Ladybug and Chat Noir manage to capture that guy's akuma. I mean seriously, those two better hurry up if they want to save your guy's skins," Nino said casually.
Marinette and Adrien were startled by his comment. There was no way he could've possibly known of their identities, but a mixture of guilt and failure suddenly stirred up in the superheroes heads.
Nino noticed both of his friend's sudden agony, and waved his hand quickly in dismissal. "I mean, not to worry! I'm sure they're working on the case as we speak."
Alya shook her head and scowled. "Nino, just shut up, you never help the situation." She looked at her friend and laid her hand on Marinette's shoulder. "Nino's right, though - well, sort of. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you guys," she said, looking into her best friend's eyes.
They were blue, sparkling like the ocean sea. It wasn't until this moment that Alya truly realized what the gravity of the situation could mean for her friend. Marinette smiled, watching her friend's hazel eyes glimmer with worry and concern.
Honestly, she didn't know what she'd do either; Alya was definitely the type of friend who had been destined by fate to enter her realm of friendship. Without her, she wouldn't be worth much, with or without her secret identity.
The words of both his friends sunk in, and the situation had never felt so heavy and dangerous. Adrien knew that there was the horrible possibility that Marinette could be the one who was hurt in all this, and vice versa. He'd never be able to live with himself if he was still alive and he'd never see Ladybug or Marinette ever again.
He looked up at Marinette, silent as he watched her gaze turn slowly over to him. They stared at eachother, comforting one another, reassuring the other that they'd make it through while still worried sick for their lives.
I love you, Adrien thought, wishing he could say it to her aloud, no matter if it would reveal his identity to her or anyone else.
They gave each other a sad smile as Adrien slightly shifted in his seat, Ms. Bustier walking through the classroom door. They locked eyes until the teacher spoke and Adrien was forced to turn around, a certain longing glistening between them.
I love you, Marinette thought, wishing she was alone with him to be able to tell him that.
Class started to commence, whispering floating through the room behind Marinette. She should've known this would happen when she became a victim to a famous villain on the news; she'd have to deal with rumors and the painful teasing of her classmates.
Apparently, being a victim with Adrien makes everyone automatically assume they're together, which would forever infringe upon their real relationship.
Marinette felt Alya nudge her arm with her elbow, attempting to gain her attention secretly.
"Hey, Mari, I'm sorry about earlier. You don't have to tell me about anything you don't want me to know. I should've been on your side while those jerks were trying to get information out of you," she whispered sadly.
Marinette suddenly gasped quietly when she started to see what was happening.
Was Alya starting to get used to their broken friendship?
The way that Marinette was constantly lying to her and making things up?
That wasn't okay to her. Marinette wanted to be able to tell her best friend anything she could that wouldn't endanger her identity. Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot going on in Marinette's life that didn't concern being Ladybug.
"No, Alya, I'm sorry. I should've remembered to tell you about all that, it's partly my fault," she said quietly, smiling warmly. For more reasons than you know, she thought miserably.
Slightly confused, Alya raised her eyebrows but decided not to push her traumatized friend. Smiling, Alya grabbed Marinette's hand on the table comfortingly.
"I'll always be there for my best friend, you know that, right?"
...
The lights above in the classroom had been flickering for the past ten minutes, stressing out all the students. Ms. Bustier insisted that everyone pay attention to her, despite the constant flashing, as she informed them on an upcoming project. "As you all know, break will be approaching before we know it. In that case, I wanted to hand out your project paper in order to give you a head start on it, just so that you're not all -"
Gasps emerged from the room as the entire classroom filled with sudden darkness. Marinette felt her heart drop with fear; this couldn't mean anything good, especially if she was in the same room as Adrien.
"Class, class, calm down! No one move, I'm going to run down to the principal's office to discuss the situation, I'll be right back." Ms. Bustier was invisible in the darkness, but her heels echoed off the walls as everyone heard her walk out the door.
"What the hell?" Marinette heard Alya mutter beside her.
The whole classroom was full of quiet chatter from the confusing situation. Marinette's heart started beating quickly as her blood filled with adrenaline. "Marinette, I - umphf!"
Startled, Marinette turned quickly in her seat to watch as Alya's blurry outline was suddenly pulled away by an unidentifiable force. "Alya!" she gasped, reaching her hand out to her left. Marinette saw another figure replace Alya's spot, a larger figure with a distinguished bright red hair color. The figure, with a matching striped suit, lunged at her hastily.
Marinette screamed as she was flung out of her seat and onto the ground, feeling the figure collide into her as she laid on the ground. Groaning, Marinette sat up and scooted her back against a desk in the classroom, trying to get as far away from the person who'd pushed her to the ground as possible.
The lights flickered back on as the loud bustling and commotion from her classmates ensued, startled by her sudden scream. Everyone was standing and screaming, running about the room, but Marinette knew none of them had anything to worry about; she was the current target. Transporter ignored them all as he walked on his knees towards the cowering Marinette, his knife raised.
"Wait -" she yelled in fear, her hand outstretched in front of her head, kicking her legs out. The class was scattered about the room, and Alya was lying on the floor, dazed and rubbing her head. Marinette had never feared for her life more than this moment before.
As her eyes shut, Marinette didn't notice the new figure who suddenly appeared from her right and rammed into Transporter, knocking them both down on the aisle steps. "Adrien, what the hell -"
Transporter wrestled Adrien on the floor, trying to stab him with the dagger as Adrien clenched the villain's wrist away from him. The classroom was filled with screams as everyone sprinted around uselessly, heading noisily towards the door. Nino pushed his way through the crowd that jammed past him to get out of the room, making his way towards the fallen Alya.
Alya shielded her head as she lay on the ground to avoid being stepped on as the crazy mass passed. When the students cleared, their distant screams audible from the hallway, Alya raised her head up slowly as Nino grabbed her arm and quickly pulled her to her feet.
Marinette felt somewhat relieved when she noticed that every one of her classmates had vanished down the hallway, but her attention was fully drawn to the fight on the ground. She stared in shock as Adrien and Transporter wrestled and fought one another, kicking and punching.
"Marinette - go!" Adrien yelled, avoiding an angry punch by kneeing the villain in the stomach.
"I'm not leaving without you!" Marinette shouted, standing up slowly, her eyes trained wearily on Transporter's shiny dagger. Adrien managed to kick the knife out of his red and gray striped hand as the supervillain hovered above him on his knees, only to receive a sudden punch in the face as Transporter dived back down on top of him. Marinette couldn't take the fight any longer.
"Dammit, Marinette! Just leave!" Adrien groaned, continuing to struggle on the floor as he tried to avoid being kneed in the chest.
Marinette suddenly realized she could save him herself by quickly transforming into Ladybug once she got out of there. Being Marinette would only make the situation worse. Spinning on her heel, Marinette bolted away from the fight and hurried towards Nino and Alya, who stood holding each other by the door.
"Hurry and leave!" she shouted, grabbing their arms and pulling them after her as she bolted out the door. Nino swiftly pulled out of her grasp, doubling back into the classroom. "No way, are you crazy? You're just going to leave him in there?"
"Nino, there's no time! You'll only make things worse, we need to call the police!" Marinette shouted, standing in the hall with Alya.
Nino glanced back at his struggling friend inside the classroom, and back to the two girls. As if it was the hardest decision of his life, Nino ran over to them. When they saw him coming after them, Marinette and Alya sprinted down the hallway, Nino close behind.
…
Marinette burst into the bathroom doors, checking quickly to make sure no one was with her before Tikki flew out of her purse. "What about the police?" Tikki asked, floating up to face a frantic Marinette.
"Trust me, I'm sure they've heard from the principal by now," Marinette said heavily, panting. "Nino and Alya will be fine with the others. Tikki, spots on!"
Soon after, Ladybug was in a huge hurry, adrenaline taking over her veins and bloodlines. Worry for Adrien spread throughout her as she realized she was the only one who could save him. The police would never get to the school in time, and besides, what good were they with a villain like this?
I'm being stupid, Ladybug thought as she dashed out of the bathroom and down the hallway, heading back to her classroom. Chat Noir will show up any time soon, and I'll have - oh.
Marinette forgot how hard it was to be a superhero and the victim as her civilian form at the exact same time; what was worse was that it was both of them Transporter was after, not just her.
As soon as she approached the large door, Ladybug barged through, kicking the door wide open with her foot. She leapt through the air, grabbing her yoyo and spinning it angrily. She flew through the air above Transporter and Adrien, who were almost oblivious to her presence.
Landing on Chloe's desk, Ladybug threw her yoyo right away, watching it wrap around Transporter's wrist that held the dagger, only inches away from a dazed Adrien's face. Ladybug yanked his arm backwards, Transporter yelling in a startled surprise as he was flung back against the desk.
He was now only meters away from Adrien, who was laying on his back, groaning with some sort of pain. Ladybug's yoyo made its way back to her hand as she clutched it tightly.
"Leave him alone, Transporter!" she yelled, glaring at him as he stood up slowly, rubbing his red head.
"What is it with you?" he snarled, defensively posing a stance with his dagger. "You'd have a lot less problems if you'd just let me kill him!"
"What's the difference? You're going after my miraculous when you're done anyway," Ladybug snapped, eyeing his knife closely.
"You mean Hawkmoths miraculous," Transporter said with a grin, and without a warning, he threw his knife at full speed towards Ladybug.