Twenty-Five: Perspective

AN: I'm still on vacation, but for some reason Chat is insisting I keep writing. Who am I to deny his kind request? But be warned, this is another warm and fuzzy entry in this series.

As Adrien faces the end of summer and the start of a new term at school, he wonders a bit at the propriety of his relationship with Ladybug and manages to have some semblance of a conversation with Plagg. -ep

Playing the piano was just something I had to do; it had been built into the classical education I'd been given by Father up to the day I'd forced the issue and begun attending a normal school. While the education portion had been replaced by Françoise Dupont High School, the classical aspects to round out that experience had remained, including the endless hours I spent practicing at the baby grand. It had an upshot, of course: several days each week, I would use my phone to record my efforts, blemishes and all, and then play back that recording on evenings when I was actually out and about as Chat. So far, it had managed to fool anyone at the mansion into believing I was in two places at once.

Working through the music, I found myself thinking about the upcoming semester at school. So far, Father hadn't reversed his decision allowing me to attend Dupont again for the next term. I wondered if Marinette and I would be able to pull off the plan she'd concocted to slowly have our civilian alter-egos begin to become a couple. Especially concerning was the part where, inevitably, Chat and Marinette would need to "break up" in order for Adrien and Marinette to become a reality. We'd not walked through those particulars as yet, and I was perfectly happy to push that out as far as we could.

Plagg had stopped hovering and was watching the news over on my couch. We'd fallen into a comfortable habit where he'd keep a weather eye out for any reasonable emergency that I could use as an excuse to escape the piano – and the mansion – but nothing had cropped up on that particular afternoon. I continued to slog my way through the piece I was to play at some dinner gala in a few weeks, resigned to the fact that I had a few more hours yet before I could meet up with Ladybug.

My eyes flicked longingly to the open window behind Plagg's television and the twilight of the late afternoon. Paris always looked beautiful to me, and I could see the setup was in place for a beautiful sunset a bit later on. With luck I'd catch it with my Princess. Seeing Plagg relaxing made me a tiny bit jealous, so I decided to intrude on his personal time.

"Is it common for Chat Noir to fall in love with Ladybug?" I asked as I started over again from the top.

"Yeah," he said distractedly as he shifted channels. "Like, every time."

That sounded intriguing, although a tiny part of me was sad that I'd not been the first. "It's the particular pair of Miraculous, isn't it?" I mused. "We represent opposite ends of the spectrum, so it's natural we would be attracted to each other."

"You are an incurable romantic," Plagg said as he muted the television and floated over to hover above the sheet music. But he was wearing a smile, which was unusual for him. "But yes, that is a good deal of it. Much depends on the particular personalities that are selected, though, too."

"I could see that." I flipped a page and continued. "I knew from the first moment I met Ladybug, though. Is that normal?"

Plagg's smile widened. "Not really," he said. "Every now and then."

I rolled my eyes as he floated away to grab some Camembert. I practiced for another fifteen minutes before I'd decided I'd done enough damage for the day, and slid the cover over the keys. I sat there for a few minutes, though, pondering. "Aside from the obvious," I asked as I stood and wandered toward Plagg, "is there any danger in the two of us being involved?"

"We're already involved, kid," Plagg said as he slurped down another slice of cheese.

"Not us," I laughed, "me and Ladybug."

He rolled to his side, lounging on my coffee table. A year ago I would've freaked out to see him on my table; now, I couldn't imagine a day without him. "Everything the two of you do is dangerous," he answered sagely. "Add in the fact that you now care for each other, and you have a huge pressure point that can be exploited by someone like Hawkmoth." He tossed another piece from the package into his mouth.

I frowned. "Are you saying we—"

"No," Plagg said, more forcefully that I would have expected. He floated up to me. "I've seen my share of pairings, Adrien. The two of you have something special, and Tikki and I have no interest in breaking it up. In fact, that would be counterproductive at this point."

"Okay," I said, bemused a bit at how affected Plagg appeared to be. I had long suspected he had a heart buried beneath that curmudgeonly exterior but decided not to call him out for it. I flipped over the couch and landed on the seat, unconsciously Chat-like, and grinned at him. "So, can I ask you a personal question then?"

Plagg's eyes widened. "It depends."

"Are you and Tikki…?" I asked, trailing off, eyeing him expectantly. I had a hunch the Kwami of Destruction had a soft spot for a certain sugar-loving goddess.

"You know what, I think you're gonna miss that sunset unless you transform now," he said, looking purposefully out the window and away from my gaze.

"Plagg, you're embarrassed."

"I am not," he said curtly. But his tail was twisting the same way mine did when I felt the same way.

I leaned toward him. "I care for her, too," I said softly. "I'll protect both of them."

He looked at me. "Tikki doesn't need any protection," he said a bit defensively. "But if she did—"

"Chat Noir will be there." I looked at him earnestly. "We'll both be there. That's our job, right?"

Plagg's little green eyes turned back toward me. "One of them," he reminded me. He softened his tone a bit. "I'll deny it if you tell anyone, Adrien, but you are one of the best Chat Noirs I've worked with in a long, long time."

"That means a lot to me, my little friend." I thought better of hugging him, so I smiled instead. "Let's start the evening, shall we?"

"I don't say this often. But transform already," he grinned.

"Plagg – claws out!"

The green wave of transformation washed over me and a moment later I'd leapt to the windowsill as Chat Noir, tail flapping behind me. I paused for a moment there, turning to take in my bedroom. For so long, it had represented my entire universe; I stretched out an arm and twisted the skin-tight fabric in the light, using it as a reminder that my worldview had shifted significantly the day that Miraculous box appeared on my coffee table.

I knew why Master Fu had chosen me, and felt like for the most part I had lived up to his – and Paris's – expectations. It had taken me a long time to measure up in Ladybug's estimation, but I'd cleared that hurdle, too. I no longer felt like an imposter hiding behind the Chat mask. I was him.

And he was me.

I pushed off and vaulted over the fence, tumbling in the air and landing on the rooftop opposite. As I started to jog across the roof, I popped open my baton and checked to see if Ladybug's GPS was active. I raised a masked eyebrow when I saw she was already at our normal meeting spot, a good hour early. Leaping into the air to cross an alleyway, I landed and started running, simultaneously speed dialing her on the Cat Phone.

"Hey," I said, jumping again. "You're out early, Milady."

"Early bug catches the Chat," she said. "How far out are you?"

"Ten minutes, less if I hang up and helicopter."

"I have pastries, if that helps."

"Say no more," I laughed as I hung up and lengthened the baton for helicopter mode. I made excellent time and dropped in beside her on a gently sloping roof facing the Eiffel Tower. Sliding the baton in place behind my back, I drew her into a hug with one arm while trying to snake the other into the bakery basket beside her.

"Sometimes, I think you only love me for my baking," Ladybug said as she smacked my paw away and then smothered my response with a kiss.

Once I was able to pull away, I cocked a masked eyebrow at her. "I can't believe you think me so shallow, Milady." I paused. "There are your looks, too, of course…"

I managed to duck sideways from the yo-yo headed for my head, but just barely. But she was laughing. "Fine," she said, masked eyes crinkling as she drew back the napkin covering the pastries I had already been smelling.

We settled back against the rooftop tiles and watched the sun slowly work its way toward the horizon, eating croissants that I knew she had made by hand just for us. As the golden rays began to shoot through the girders of the landmark, I leaned my blonde mane against her shoulder and broke the companionable silence.

"I know, someday, this will come to an end," I said quietly. "Paris won't need us as Chat and Ladybug, and our kwamis will move on to another place they are needed."

"You're existential this evening," Ladybug said. "What brought this on?"

"I was talking with Plagg before coming out to meet you." I closed my masked eyes. "When that time comes, I'll have a hard time giving this up. But I know now that when I do, I'll still have you."

I cracked a masked green eye at her. "I will always be there for you, and I know you'll be there for me. Mask or no mask."

She leaned down and kissed me in that spot between my two feline ears. "Mask or no mask, you'll always be mine, kitty." Ladybug reached an arm around me. "Always."