Hello, lovely readers! Welcome back! The day four prompt is "Your Voice".
For this chapter, I collabed with runningash (on AO3). Her art is beautiful. (You can't put pics in fics on FFN, but you can find the art in the story on AO3). She is flashflashitsash on Tumblr and IG. Go check her out!
This chapter is a song fic. I used the song "Runnin' Home to You" from the musical episode of "The Flash".
With the tape measure in hand, Adrien stood at the other end of the table and kept his eyes glued on Marinette. His heart melted when he saw her stick out her tongue while trying to get an accurate measurement. After they finished, she smiled and bounced on the balls of her feet, causing Adrien to nearly combust.
While he watched her write down the measurements on a piece of paper, his mind began to wander. "She's always been beautiful, but my lady is the only one who's ever made me feel this way. What changed? Why now?"
"Adrien?" Marinette said, cutting through the haze in his brain, "Are you okay?"
He nodded. "Yeah, why?"
"You looked kind of out of it for a second there."
"Oh, I was just...thinking."
"Cool! I do that sometimes...ugh...wait, that was probably the dumbest thing I could have said." She shoved the paper with the measurements into her purse. "Please just ignore me."
"She's adorable. Maybe Plagg is right. The heart wants what the heart wants."
He took a step toward her. "I don't think I could if I tried. If anything, I think I'm finally seeing you for all that you are."
"No! What are you doing, Adrien? What about Ladybug?"
She squeaked. "Oh! I...um...d-do you see what you like? I mean...like what you see?"
"Marinette, I think I always have," he said without thinking.
"Maybe my heart wants her."
Marinette's face turned bright red, and her eyes grew wide. "School...us...go?
Adrien held out his arm for her to take. "Shall we?"
"Mmmhmm." She tentatively took his arm.
An explosion of warmth radiated throughout his body when she finally hugged his arm against her chest. For a brief and fleeting moment, all of the confusion from before melted away.
It felt familiar.
It felt safe.
It felt right.
Like the moment they'd shared in the classroom earlier that day, Adrien was struck by the strength of his feelings for Marinette. Just as he was about to let himself completely fall for her, visions of Ladybug flashed across his mind. His arms tensed involuntarily while he let out a frustrated huff.
"Is everything alright?" she asked quietly.
"Um, yeah." He scrambled to find an answer. "I...uhh...just remembered that I have to go home before I go back to the school."
"Oh, I can walk with you!"
"But you live right here. I don't want you to go out of your way."
"I don't mind. Honestly, before I met up with you, my plan was just to go back to my room and watch YouTube videos. It's a beautiful day, and I'd love the company."
Adrien's pulled his hood over his head. "You mean, you wouldn't mind walking with someone who has to hide their identity from nosy fans?"
She giggled and pulled the strings on his sweatshirt, cinching the hood around his face. "Nope. I wouldn't even mind if you were wearing a mask. I'd still hang out with you."
He loosened the hood and met her gaze. "Wait...really?"
"Of course. You're still you, no matter what you're wearing."
"Sounds like you have experience."
She turned her head and coughed. "Uhhh...no m-more than you!"
"It's getting awkward," his mind yelled, "Change the subject!"
He tapped his chin. "I wonder if Ladybug and Chat Noir act differently when they're civilians. Being able to hide your identity like that must give them the freedom to do things they can't usually do."
"No, Adrien, what are you doing?"
"Well," Marinette began, "everyone has a tendency to act differently when they're in different situations. It's probably the same for Ladybug and Chat Noir. For example, I can't imagine civilian Ladybug doing half the things she does when she's transformed."
"You just said that a person is still themselves no matter what they're wearing, so even if she's not swinging between buildings every second of the day, I'm sure she's still brave, selfless, and creative. I bet she's an everyday Ladybug...just like you."
Marinette took a sharp intake of breath. "We are going to run out of time if we don't get going."
Adrien pulled out his phone and looked at the screen. "Yikes, you're right. We only have an hour. Let's go."
As the duo made their way to the Agreste Mansion, they chatted about school, video games, and their hobbies. Even though Adrien did his best to stay away from topics that had to do with Ladybug and Chat Noir, he couldn't help but hear his lady in Marinette's voice. He found it amazing how both girls sounded so similar.
"I must have a really specific type," Adrien mused inside his head.
"Hey Marinette," he said, stopping at the wall behind his house, "why don't we talk more? I love hearing what you have to say."
She looked to the side and tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "Well, we usually don't get the chance to hang out alone with each other. Most of the time we're with Alya and Nino. And then you weren't there for a while because you were with…"
"Kagami?"
"Yeah. I heard about you two breaking up. I'm sorry things didn't work out."
"It's for the best. We were too alike."
She let go of his arm. "Oh?"
He took a step back. "Is everything alright?"
"Yes, sorry!" she said quickly, waving her hands in front of her, "It's just that a friend of mine said the same thing to me last night. You remind me a lot of him actually."
"That's interesting. You remind me of someone I know, too."
She smiled. "What a funny coincidence!"
He nodded. "I guess you and I just have certain qualities that we look for in friends."
"At least you don't pun as much as he does."
"I hate to tell you this, but I love puns."
"You do?" Marinette laughed. "Oh, no!"
He feigned mock hurt. "Excuse me, but I think you'll find that my jokes are quite claw-some. Why even the Queen of England liked my puns when I went to the royal wedding."
"You told puns to the Queen? Look, I'm not against puns, they're fine. My dad uses them, but my friend has terrible timing. I hope yours is better, Prince Charming."
"Oh, so, I'm a prince now?"
"Only a prince could tell puns to the Queen and live to tell the tale."
"And how would you know that? Are you a princess?"
"I'm not royalty."
"You could be."
"I'm just a baker's daughter. I'm not special."
Adrien leaned in. "Yes, you are. You're purr-fect."
Placing her index finger on the tip of his nose, she pushed him away. "I take back what I said before. You're not a prince. You're just a trusted knight who learned one too many jokes from the court jester."
He took her hands in his. "What if I was both?"
She let go of one of his hands and ran her thumb across his cheek. "That sure would make things easier."
He cleared his throat, let go of her other hand, and pointed to the grate on his wall. "Oh, um...we're here, by the way."
"Adrien, this is the back of your house."
"Yes, it is."
"Can you not walk in the front door?"
"No, I snuck out."
"Oh."
"But I'm going to go back in and try to convince Nathalie to let me walk with you to school. I think she'll say yes. Wait for me out front, and I'll text you if I get permission."
She shook her head and laughed. "I guess this is where I wish you good luck?"
Adrien patted his bag. "I still carry around my Marinette lucky charm wherever I go, so I have all the luck I need!"
"You do?"
"Of course, it's one of my most prized possessions."
"I still have yours. It's in a special place in my room."
Adrien felt Plagg poke his stomach from inside his sweatshirt. When he reached inside of his pocket to make him stop, his Kwami shoved his phone into his hand.
He pulled out the phone and looked at the time. "Yikes! We only have a half-hour left. I gotta get going. Hopefully, I'll see you in a few minutes."
"See you soon!" She waved and made her way down the sidewalk.
Once Marinette had turned the corner, Adrien knelt down, removed the bars from the grate, and shimmied through the small opening. He ran across the garden, climbed through the window, hopped into the bathroom, and snuck back to his room.
"I guess you're no longer in love with Ladybug." Plagg zipped out of the sweatshirt pocket.
Adrien sighed. "I don't know. Marinette and Ladybug are so alike. I have no idea how to choose, but at least I took your advice. She and I are going to hang out after school today."
"Good, but what about the food you promised me."
"Marinette's family owns a bakery. I'll buy you something there."
Adrien grabbed his books, shoved them into his bag, and made his way to Nathalie's desk.
"Yes, Adrien," the assistant said before he could announce his presence, "What do you need?"
He fiddled with the strap on his bag. "I was wondering if I could walk to school with my friend Marinette. It's such a nice day, and it's not that far."
"You know your father doesn't like it when you're not with your bodyguard."
"Please, Nathalie? She's waiting outside the front gate, and I don't want her to have to walk back on her own."
"Fine, but you two won't be walking. She will come with you in the car."
While it wasn't what he wanted, he knew arguing wouldn't help. "Okay."
She pushed up her glasses with her index finger. "Is there something else you need?"
"Could I hang out with Marinette after school? It's Friday, and I'm done with almost all my homework for the weekend."
"You have a photoshoot in the morning."
"I won't be out late. I promise."
Without responding, Nathalie stood up and walked into his father's office. When she returned, she sat down at her desk and started typing.
"You have until seven o'clock," she said without looking up from her computer.
A surge of excitement flooded his brain. "Thank you!"
He pulled out his phone, texted Marinette, and ran outside. When he got there, his bodyguard was opening the car door for his classmate. He quickly hopped into the other side of the vehicle.
"Sorry, we're not walking, but this was the best I could do," he said with a shrug.
She buckled her seatbelt. "Compromise isn't the worst thing in the world."
"You're right."
"Besides, we are running out of time. We only have twenty minutes of our lunch break left."
"We do? I was hoping to buy something from the bakery before we headed back to class."
"Did you not eat?"
"No, I didn't."
"I have to stop by my place anyway to grab my backpack and give my dad these measurements. Come in with me, and I'll have my mom give you something from the bakery."
"I have money."
She crossed her arms. "And it will be useless in our store. My parents are always forcing food on my friends, and my mom would be more than happy to give you something."
"Your parents are awesome," he said, feeling a pang of jealousy in his gut.
"They are. They're a little nosy, but they're great. My parents treat all my friends like family. You know you're welcome to come over whenever you want, right?"
"I am?"
"Yeah, I have friends over all the time."
"That would be amazing."
The car pulled up to the bakery, and both teens hopped out. They were greeted by two smiling faces when they walked through the door.
"Hello, Adrien!" Sabine greeted cheerfully.
"Sorry it took me so long to get the measurements." Marinette handed the paper to her father. "I ran into Adrien, and we started talking."
"That's fine, sweetheart."
"Maman, would it be okay if I grabbed a few croissants. Adrien didn't eat any lunch."
Marinette's mother gasped. "Well, that won't do! Come here, my dear, and we'll pick out a few things."
Adrien didn't try to contain his excitement. "Thanks, Mrs. Cheng!"
"Anytime."
While he looked at the case of treats, Marinette's father spoke to her with a booming voice. "I know it's short notice, but I'm going to need you to help me with setting up over at the venue tonight."
"But, papa, Adrien wanted to hang out with me after school." Marinette drooped.
Adrien couldn't stand to see her looking upset. "I can help out if you want."
"It's okay. You don't have to," she said sadly, "We can hang out another time."
"No, I insist. If I go home, I'd just sit around watching YouTube videos all night."
"Okay. Thank you, Prince Charming." She said with a curtsey.
He laughed and bowed. "Anything for you, Princess."
Once again, Marinette found it impossible to focus in class. She spent the rest of the school day daydreaming of blond boys in disguise.
Nothing made sense anymore. Her heart felt like it was being stretched to opposite sides of the earth, and she didn't know what to do.
Once school was finally over, she and Adrien made their way over to the bakery. They spent the next several hours carrying various items over to the venue. By the time they were finished, they were sweating and laughing. She never wanted their time together to end.
When Adrien finally left, Marinette sat alone with her thoughts. She did her best to focus on something other than her troubled heart, but memories of the time she spent with each boy continued to dance through her mind. She tried distracting herself by designing, watching videos, and working on homework, but nothing she did was able to calm her down. She felt restless.
Marinette climbed onto her balcony and allowed the cool breeze to caress her face. She closed her eyes and attempted to sort out her thoughts.
The time she'd spent with Adrien today was like a dream come true. It was everything that she'd ever wanted, and it seemed like he was starting to think of her as more than just a friend. At the same time, today made her realize that there were still so many things that she didn't know about Adrien. It was as if there was a part of himself that he kept hidden from the world. The thought of getting to know that side of him excited her.
As her mind began to picture what a relationship with Adrien would look like, her thoughts wandered to Chat Noir. Last night had been proof that her love for him had always existed, and there was no question that he was deeply in love with her. However, she also knew that their job as superheroes would get in the way of them having a real relationship with each other.
"If only I knew Chat as a civilian, Tikki. That would make all of this so much easier," she said, looking out at the Parisian skyline.
The tiny red being landed on Marinette's shoulder. "Well, as the Guardian, you are more than welcome to…"
"Wait!" she exclaimed, cutting off her Kwami, "I think I hear something."
Marinette closed her eyes and could just make out the faint sound of a piano playing in the distance. When her eyes landed on the park, she saw light pouring out of the gazebo in the middle of the venue.
"It's Chat," she whispered, "He came back, Tikki. I have to go see him!"
The kwami giggled. "Then go!"
"Tikki, SPOTS ON!" she yelled, letting the bright pink light wash over her.
She quickly unsheathed her yo-yo and swung down to the park. She landed inside the fenced-off area and quietly made her way to the gazebo. When she reached the decorated entranceway, she found Chat Noir playing the same song he'd played for her the night before.
"Hello, Chat." She sat down next to him on the bench.
He stopped playing. "Good evening, Ladybug. It's not a patrol night. Any purr-ticular reason you're here?"
"I've had an interesting day, and I heard you playing. I was hoping you would let me listen to your song again."
"Anything for you, my lady."
"Thank you."
He positioned his fingers on the keys, paused, and looked up. "Actually, I was wondering if you would indulge me for a moment."
She nodded. "Uhh...sure?"
"There are words to the song, and I was hoping you would let me sing them for you."
"You mean, it's not just the melody?"
"Is it okay if I sing?"
"Oh, yes, I would love to hear the words."
She rested her head on his shoulder, and he simply smiled and turned his attention towards the keys. When he played the first chord, her heart soared.
And then he began to sing.
"Can't say how the days will unfold,
Can't change what the future may hold.
But, I want you in it.
Every hour, every minute."
Tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. She could feel the ache in his heart, and she suddenly longed to hold him and never let him go.
"This world can race by far too fast.
Hard to see while it's all flying past,
But it's clear now,
When you're standing here now.
I am meant to be wherever you are next to me."
The depth of his love struck her soul. It was unlike anything she'd ever experienced before.
"All I want to do
Is come running home to you,
Come running home to you.
And all my life I promise to
Keep running home to you.
Keep running home
To you."
She tried to picture a relationship with Chat in their civilian lives. Ladybug did her best to remove the mask from his face, but to her despair, Adrien's face popped into her mind, reminding her of the decision she had to make.
"And I could see it,
Right from the start,
Right from the start.
That you would be
Be my light in the dark,
Light in the dark.
Oh, you gave me no other choice
But to love you."
She was hopelessly in love with both of them, and she had no idea what to do. Tears began to flow freely down her cheeks.
"All I want to do
Is come running home to you,
Come running home to you.
And all my life I promise to
Keep running home to you,
Keep running home,
Home to you.
Can't say how the days will unfold.
Can't change what the future may hold.
But, I want you in it,
Every hour, every minute."
When the last note faded away, they sat in a comfortable silence. They didn't move or speak for several minutes.
She sniffled. "Thank you, Chaton."
"No." He shook his head. "Thank you for letting me sing."
"It was beautiful." She got off of the piano bench and clutched her yo-yo in her hands. "I have to go. I'll see you tomorrow for patrol."
Chat kept his eyes glued on the keys. "I'll see you tomorrow, my lady."
She threw her yo-yo and vaulted into the night. When she landed on her balcony, she detransformed, collapsed into a heap, and sobbed.
"Why couldn't they be the same person?" she thought, before a pair of strong, familiar arms gently wrapped themselves around her.