The Eiffel Tower was as beautiful as ever. With how much time she actually spent on top of it—both at Akuma fights and on patrols—Marinette only rarely got to see it from down below anymore. In fact, she was sure that this was the first time this year she actually stood at the foot of the famous landmark for longer than a minute. Much longer than a minute. Adrien and she definitely weren't the only ones who had gotten the idea to visit it on Valentine's Day.

Well, technically it had been Adrien's idea. While Marinette was in no way short on ideas for romantic outings, seeing how excited Adrien had been with the prospect of surprising her with something on their first Valentine's Day as a couple, she had let him go ahead with whatever he was planning. As the hopeless romantic that he was, it wasn't that much of a surprise when he had given her a huge bouquet of all her favourite flowers—most of them simply chosen on the specific colours she liked the most and others with a special meaning in mind. They stood in a vase back home and most likely filled her room with a lovely smell.

Adrien also had praised her to heaven and back for her outfit of choice and given her a few pecks and kisses while she hadn't been able to stop blushing and grinning like a lovesick fool. The blue dress she had chosen was fancy, but not too fancy and coupled with a bun—her hair was finally long enough for one again—and a silver necklace she looked perfectly suitable for whatever place he was planning to take her to. "My beautiful winter princess," he had said when he had first seen her, and the memory drew a quiet giggle out of her again.

"Something funny?" Adrien asked from right next to her.

"It's nothing," she said with a grin and then looked up. "No matter how often I see it, it just never stops being amazing how huge the tower is."

"You really only realise it from up close, don't you?"

Marinette nodded. "Especially from ground level." Then she couldn't help but giggle again. "We sound like tourists."

Adrien grinned mischievously. "Even better. That way we blend into the crowd."

The queue in front of the ticket booth moved slowly and the middle of winter—even though it was a mostly sunny day with a few scattered clouds in the sky—made the wait seem even longer than it probably was. Having a boyfriend she could cuddle up to was quite practical, especially since the cold made her quite sluggish as of recently. At first, she had blamed it on her general exhaustion with class tests, Akuma attacks and even commissions she needed to get done. Tikki had, however, pointed out that it was possible that she had adopted a little bit of a ladybug's traits through extensive exposure to the Miraculous' powers. And, apparently, ladybugs hibernated. Now that gave a rosy outlook into her future. If they wouldn't defeat Hawkmoth before next winter, she was dreading how much her state would worsen.

She had also talked to Chat Noir about it who had ashamedly admitted to have caught and eaten a mouse just the other week. While she was glad that she wasn't alone in this boat, she was also in equal amounts horrified by how much worse her partner had it. She fought down a shudder as she thought about that specific incident. Hopefully it didn't mean that she'd eventually start eating aphids off of her balcony plants.

To bring her thoughts back to a more pleasant topic, she pulled down the edge of her glove a little to have a look at her bracelet. Three new charms had found their place there recently. A four-leafed clover, which she had gotten for Christmas; a flamingo, which Adrien had gifted her for their six months anniversary in January and which symbolized the vacation in the Camargue on which they had become a couple; and a heart, given to her less than an hour ago. She smiled as she ran a thumb over the latter. It was beautiful with a silver base and red and pink stones—she very much hoped they weren't real but merely made out of glass—encrusted in it. She turned it around, reading the tiny words that had been engraved there in elegant, sweeping letters: Je t'aime.

Marinette smiled and snuggled a little closer to Adrien who had his arm around her. She didn't know if it was to keep her warm or if he did so protectively, but she loved it either way.

"It's probably not much of a surprise anymore at this point since I have the smartest girlfriend in the world, but could you at least act surprised once we get up there?" Adrien asked with unfairly potent puppy eyes.

"Flattery will get you everywhere," Marinette giggled.

In reality she was still freaking out. Internally.

Le. Jules! Verne!

Adrien was taking her to one of the fanciest and most expensive restaurants in the city! He probably had reserved a table there months ago already and the only thing that softened the shock a bit was that it was lunch time. If he would have taken her out to dinner there, she probably would have…spontaneously combusted or something. It just proved that he knew her well and therefore had arranged the reservations this way.

If she hadn't known him as well as she did, she might have voiced concerns about his money spending habits. But even when he was paying with his own money and not his father's, she couldn't possibly be mad at him for it. Fact was that he was rich and that he loved seeing her happy. If he wanted to spend his money on her happiness, then that was his choice. Just as it was her choice to spend her money on wool and fabric to make him gifts. It was rare that she gave him something store-bought and to see his happiness, in turn, made her happy.

And even though it clashed horribly with his current outfit—though that wasn't visible under his black winter coat at the moment—he had insisted on wearing the scarf she had given him as a Valentine's Day present. She had protested, saying that it wasn't fancy at all and that it therefore wasn't appropriate for wherever he was planning to take her. Adrien hadn't taken 'no' for an answer though.

Marinette regarded her finely-knitted masterpiece as it peeked out from under his coat. It was held in various shades of blue and black, with brighter patches strewn all over and sometimes even a shimmering sequin. She had tried to capture a night sky like it was visible in places beyond Paris. It had turned out beautiful in her humble opinion, but it still wasn't suited for a place such as Le Jules Verne.

Eventually they got their tickets and before they knew it, they were stuffed into one of the elevators. The ride was suffocating and loud and Marinette decided then and there that her preferred method of getting up the tower was by means of a magical yo-yo.

When they got off on the second level, the first thing she did was taking a deep breath of fresh air. And then she saw the restaurant, a sight she should be used to with how often she was on this very tower. The reality of the situation was, though, that she suddenly felt quite…insecure.

Le Jules Verne was one of these places one heard about when growing up, but in her head, it had always been reserved for Paris' Elite or for tourists who liked to spend a lot of money on fancy food accompanied by an amazing panorama view of the city. Never in her life had she thought she'd ever enter the place, much less on a date.

She immediately started to pluck at her coat self-consciously, stroking flat invisible creases. When she was about to get a handheld mirror out of her bag, Adrien's hand stopped her.

"Hey, don't worry. You look as beautiful as always, Princess," he said with the kind of soft smile that always made her legs go weak.

She tried to return the smile, but some of her internal nervousness must have shone through because Adrien didn't just take her hand, but offered his arm for her to hook hers into. Yes, some further physical stability was very welcome right now. Expensive or not, this was like a dream come true. A dream she had never known that she had.

When they entered, Marinette wasn't surprised that they had to wait in yet another line. Just this time, luckily, they were inside. Even at the less popular hour, the restaurant was completely full. There really would be no way to get a table here without a reservation. A fact that seemed to be true for a couple of tourists in front of them. Marinette followed them with her eyes when they exited the restaurant again. To her relief, they didn't seem to be that upset. The last thing she needed right now was an Akuma attack. All she wanted was to spend one Valentine's Day in peace with her wonderful boyfriend. She hoped Hawkmoth had better things to do today than to terrorize the City of Love.

As it turned out, their reservation was not only met with a smile, but the name Agreste also seemed to have a certain weight to it. At least she didn't think that regular guests would get a secluded table away from prying eyes per request.

"Look at you, using your name to get places," Marinette said with a grin as they sat down.

"Finally it's good for something," Adrien said with a similar expression. Neither of them had time to say more, as a waiter already approached them with menus and the question of what they wanted to drink.

"You know, I said that you should pretend to act surprised, but I didn't expect you to hyperventilate there earlier," Adrien said.

As she glanced over her menu, she could see that he was still grinning.

"Oh, that reaction was one hundred percent genuine. This place is just…very out of my price league so I never really thought I'd be able to go here."

"And that's a reason to almost faint?"

"Hey, it wasn't that bad! I just had to convince my brain that this was real, that's all. And that, on top of all of this, I'm here on a date with you. It seemed more like a dream than reality for a bit there, that's all."

A smile crept back on her boyfriend's face. "So, I picked well after all?"

"You picked perfectly," she assured him with a soft smile of her own. "Though next time maybe choose something less ostentatious. I think I need to be eased into all those high society hot spots."

"Don't worry, I will. But seeing how this is our first Valentine's Day as a couple," he took her hand and placed a kiss on the back of it, "I wanted it to be something extra special."

Marinette smiled, probably lovestruck. He was just the sweetest.

The food was as extravagant and delicious as one expected it to be of a restaurant of this sort. She was quite glad that she hadn't eaten a lot earlier that day so that she had room for the entire five course menu. To be fair, she mostly hadn't eaten much because she had been too busy picking out the perfect outfit and not messing up her subtle yet precise eye makeup.

"So," Marinette said with a grin. "You said something about a 'next time' when it comes to going out, but now it's my turn to pick a location, Kitkat."

"Oh, I wasn't trying to steal your turn, Princess. But my 'next time' will come eventually."

She giggled when Adrien winked at her.

"So, what will it be then? Some lesser known five-star restaurant perhaps?" she teased.

"You're welcome to keep guessing but I'm not gonna tell you. It's nicer to surprise you, especially when I can actually surprise you with it upon arriving."

"I was surprised when you dragged me to the Eiffel Tower and I put two and two together."

"Yeah, but waiting in line kinda ruined it. That won't be the trouble next time."

"I'll take your word for it."

"Now," Adrien said and raised his glass of water. "Let's enjoy this date before thinking about any future ones, shall we?"

Marinette raised her own glass and clinked it with his. "To a wonderful Valentine's Day," she said.

They spent hours at the restaurant and Marinette lost track of time. More than once had she paused eating to just look outside the window to the structure of the Tower and down to the city beyond. This was Paris, the city under Chat Noir's and her protection. People had even started to call it their city, which was crazy. Paris was unique and to have her name associated with it in a sense of ownership made her both proud and willing to object the notion. It was her home, and that was really all she could claim. Still, she loved looking down at it and thinking about all the people that could feel safer because she and her partner were there. That was nice too.

When she and Adrien were at the foot of the Eiffel Tower again and the city stretched over and beyond them once more, Marinette was in high spirits. Paris was safe, her boyfriend loved her and she was on one of the most amazing dates with him. Life was good.

"Any more plans for today?" She asked as she once again snuggled closer to him while they walked to the Metro.

"Nothing in particular. I thought that Le Jules Verne should be the highlight so I didn't want to overshadow it with anything else. If there's still something you want to do today then you can take the lead, Princess."

The last comment was accompanied with a peck on her cheek.

"You know, I actually just want to get out of the cold again," she said without much hesitation. Not for the first time did she wish for Valentine's Day to be at a warmer time of year.

"Then how about we go back to your place, change into something more comfortable and then get all the snuggly blankets we can find."

Marinette smiled. "Sounds perfect," she said.

The thought alone of wrapping herself up in a pile of blankets and cuddling with Adrien made her that much more eager to get home.

"Found another one," Adrien said as he stood behind her and pulled a hair pin out of her bun. Black pins on black hair were generally a good idea for securing a look, as they were practically invisible. They proved to be a problem when it came to getting them out though.

"Thanks," she said as she took it from him and put it down with the others on her dresser. She had already changed into a much more comfortable sweater and sweatpants shortly after they got home. As beautiful as her dress and the leggings below it had been, neither of them was made for comfortably lounging around. Adrien's clothes, too, had been exchanged for more comfortable ones.

At some point during their relationship he had just started hoarding his clothes at her place. Not many, if pictures of his entire wardrobe were anything to go by, but enough to have a change of clothes in case of emergencies. Usually those included snuggle emergencies like this one.

"Why did I think it was a good idea to use that many hair pins?" Marinette lamented as she fumbled around her head to find more of the invisible culprits.

"Because you didn't want your bun to fall apart," Adrien said as he found yet another one and pulled it out. "Let me tell you, those things are a nightmare during runway shows. Father once fired a stylist because she didn't put enough hair pins into a model's hair and it fell apart halfway through the show."

"Yikes, that's harsh," Marinette said and let out a small victorious noise as she found two hair pins at once.

"That's the fashion business for you," Adrien said and his mirror image shrugged.

"I think I just went paranoid because I haven't worn my hair this way in a while and I wasn't sure if it was long enough to hold."

"It's about as long as it was when I met you now, maybe even longer."

A pleasant shiver ran down her spine when Adrien suddenly kissed the back of her neck. It wasn't the first time he had done it since they had started their mission of finding all hidden hair pins and every time he did it, the more she wanted to kiss him back. Only the knowledge that being poked by yet undiscovered hair pins would be quite uncomfortable held her back from turning around that instant and pressing her lips to his.

Judging by the teasing smirk his mirror image threw her, he was very well aware of what effect he was having on her. And he seemed especially aware of the fact that tenfold payback was approaching with every new hair pin that was found, at least if his efficiency at finding them was anything to go by.

When half of her bun fell apart, she let out a sigh of relief. Now it was only a matter of maybe five more hair pins until she was free of them once more. Adrien was unsurprisingly efficient at finding those last few culprits and once the very last one was pulled out and her hair fell freely around her shoulders, she instantly whirled around to him.

Marinette didn't waste time with going through her hair one more time to find a possible stray pin or even brushing it after it had been held in one position for so long, like she usually would have done. Instead, she threw her arms around Adrien's neck and kissed him. A kiss he returned without a moment of hesitation.

"You're evil," she said as she took a breath before kissing him again. "How dare you—" kiss "—kiss me—" kiss "—when I can't—" kiss "—kiss you back."

Adrien's grin broke the kiss and he laughed. "Well, in that case," he said and she let out a squeak when he picked her up. "you're an evil temptress."

Marinette was absolutely lost in the kiss that followed. She only vaguely registered that she was carefully laid down on the chaise lounge. Her hands were in his hair and she gasped as his lips found her neck. Well, at least scarves weren't an unusual accessory for this time of year.

There was a sudden discomfort at the back of her head, but Marinette decided to ignore it. A stray hair pin wasn't worth her attention at this moment.

"I love you," he whispered in her ear.

She knew he loved her. He showed her just how much he did every day, in every gesture, in every smile, in every kiss. Yet the words themselves were used sparingly, so whenever he did say them, it was like a gift. And even though 'I love you too' sounded like much less of a declaration, she was sure he knew that she meant it just as much as he did when she said it.

Marinette didn't have the opportunity to return those words though as his lips were on hers again. Her brain had a blissful silent period in which not much came through except for oh and ah and more. If love was said to make stupid, then kissing apparently made her braindead.

Despite what other people—Alya—might believe, Adrien was always the more tender and careful one of the two of them. Especially when it came to things like kissing and making out, it was usually Marinette who was more…aggressive. She was the one who bit his lip and sometimes even left scratch marks on his back. Hickeys were usually a clear 'no' because of his photoshoots and she definitely wasn't brave enough to leave some in places where no one would see. They both weren't quite that far yet. In turn, Adrien loved to leave hickeys all over her neck, except for when she specifically told him not to.

What Adrien didn't like was to have his hair pulled but he never objected to her running her fingers through it. In fact, he loved it. And she loved it too, as his hair was usually so very soft. Besides, he was adorable when his hair was all messed up. Thus, she did just that.

Marinette giggled as he let out a pleased noise when she scratched his scalp exactly where she knew he loved it. Their kiss deepened and she absentmindedly continued letting her hands wander, running on autopilot. The sensation of something velvety and warm filled her senses and she was briefly reminded of the times when she was petting Chat Noir's ears. They always felt like they were real.

She was about to chastise herself internally for letting her mind wander to thoughts of her partner while she was kissing her boyfriend, since that was just inappropriate, if it wouldn't have been for one thing. A thing that briefly pulled her out of the blissful mist of thoughtlessness and maybe even stupidity. A thing that made her break the kiss and open her eyes.

The thing was that the sensation wasn't just a flitting memory…it was real.

Marinette stared and tried to make sense of what she was seeing. Like in a bizarre dream though, nothing wanted to make sense.

"Princess?" Adrien asked, probably noticing her more than obvious hesitation.

She, however, couldn't tear her eyes away from the top of his head, where she could clearly see two black-furred cat ears that definitely hadn't been there a minute ago. The sensation of the soft fur on her fingers was real as much as she could tell. Warm and velvety, just like Chat's ears.

Finally, Marinette managed to tear her gaze away from the foreign and yet so familiar appendages to look into Adrien's worried eyes instead. His worried, very cat-like eyes.

To be fair, Akuma-weirdness was a common thing in her life at this point. If she wouldn't be used to those kinds of things by now, she might have reacted differently. Maybe she would have screamed, or worse, shoved Adrien away. She was used to these kinds of things though, so her voice stayed concerningly calm when her brain spat out one excessively stupid question that didn't think of passing any logical departments before it made its way to her tongue.

"Why do you have cat ears?"