Ladybug wouldn't admit it, but part of her was hoping that Chat Noir wouldn't show up for their 'talk.' However, she knew that this had to happen in order for their team to still work. It wasn't like she wanted to leave Chat Noir behind; that had never been her intention.

However, that was up until a couple of weeks ago when she finally got the support system she needed so she wouldn't go in a downward spiral again - namely, the Phantom Thieves, Nino & Alix included.

Eventually, she heard the familiar click of Chat Noir's boots against the metal surface of the structure. Turning in his direction, Ladybug shot him a smile.

"Good evening, Chat," she greeted politely.

No answer. Chat was staring off in the distance.

"Chat…?" Ladybug said a little louder.

This, fortunately, shook Chat out of whatever trance he was in and he looked in her direction, "Um, sorry. Good evening, m'lady."

With a nod, Ladybug got straight to the point, "So… what's going on? Why did you snap at me earlier? When both Bombshell & Saruchame showed up, you didn't seem to have a problem with new temporary heroes turning up."

Chat sighed in frustration, "Ladybug, I get that with you being the Guardian there are things I'll likely never know about, no matter how much I ask you. But… even so, we're still partners, aren't we? So if you're choosing new heroes, shouldn't I at least know who they are so I can give input like with Kobra? We both agreed for him to join us full-time. Also, can't I give recommendations from time to time on who can get a Miraculous? If it's solely the Guardian's job to do that, why did Master Fu let you choose?"

"And while we're on the subject," he continued, "now that you are Guardian, shouldn't you know my identity too? Why are you stalling for that? Plus, why does it seem like Kobra knows more about the Miraculous stuff than I do? I get it, Luka's a good guy, and he's a great hero, but you never told me specifically why he's permanent now. You simply said 'something happened' and it would be safer if he had a Miraculous than if he didn't. And I accepted that at the time, I'll grant that. But… I want the truth. The whole truth now."

Ladybug was cringing on the inside, but sighed, knowing that it was only fair.

"Life has… been tough for me, Chat, and not just in regard to all this Miraculous business. Most of the time, I have no idea what I'm doing whatsoever. It's been unpleasant as both Ladybug & my civilian self. Until a few weeks ago, anyway."

Chat's face morphed from annoyed to concerned immediately, "What's been going on?"

"Someone was… mistreating my civilian self," she said quietly, "Bullying, manipulating my friends, spreading nasty rumors, the whole nine yards."

Chat's eyes widened in shock before he scowled angrily. Before he could demand who, Ladybug continued, "It was only a couple weeks ago that things have gotten a little better. I made some new friends from a different school. They've been helping me. They… they even called the girl out on her bullshit one time."

Chat blinked in surprise, "No offense Ladybug, but… 'called her out?' Do you mean they humiliated her? What good did that do? Making the bad guys feel bad never makes them a better person."

"If you're suggesting they should have lied down and taken whatever that horrid girl did to me and them, we're gonna have a problem," Ladybug sternly admonished, "That might be true, but being good to them is even less likely to succeed in fixing their behavior; haven't you heard the phrase silence is violence? Plus, it's not like I asked them to do it. They did it on their own because I'm their friend. That's what they told me."

Chat looked surprised, and there was something conflicted on his face, as he looked off to the side.

"Anyway, they've been helping me. I've honestly felt a lot happier than I have in a long time. I guess… I didn't realize I needed help until they came around."

"So… because they're helping you, you're giving them Miraculous?" Chat asked, trying to understand.

"They're good people, Chat," Ladybug insisted, "Because they've been helping me, I trust them, and that's why I've given them Miraculous. Plus, they live pretty far from where most akumas usually attack -uh, not counting city-wide akumas, of course - so it's safer for them, too."

"So that's why you insisted that I didn't know them? How did you know I lived so close to the akuma hotspot area?" Chat asked.

"So you do live close to College Francoise-Dupont?" Ladybug asked.

Chat gaped for a second, "Wha-Hey! You tricked me!"

"I suspected it for a while, you simply confirmed it. After all, it doesn't take very long for you to get to most attacks," she explained, "That's why I'm so sure you don't know the new holders, even if you knew their names."

"Then… wouldn't it be even more appropriate for me to at least know their names?" Chat asked.

"Chat, I appreciate that you want to help, but knowledge can be a burden too. If we both know their identities, Hawkmoth has twice the number of chances to find them out. Let's say he does! In that situation, he could shift the akuma attacks to places where they live or target their family members to trap us. That's exactly what he did to Chloe, remember?"

Chat cringed as that event. Seeing Chloe like that… he was honestly still trying to process it. He had thought that ultimately, deep down, Chloe was good and that her desire to be a heroine was genuine.

So why? She knew Hawkmoth was evil! Why did she do it?

"That's another reason I don't want to know your identity yet, Chat. It would be another burden to add to an already-heavy list. If I find out that you're, say, a friend of mine, it would be a hundred times harder to fight you if something happens to you. Or, say you get akumatized while in civilian form? Knowing you're Chat Noir underneath that… I don't know if I'd be able to fight you."

Chat was quiet for a few minutes. This had oddly touched him. He knew that Ladybug always wanted to protect people, even him; it was one of the things he had loved about her. But still…

"...What about Kobra, then? If the new strategy is to pick people that Hawkmoth is less likely to affect, why did you insist that Luka get the Snake Miraculous again? Heck, wouldn't it have made more sense to at least give him a different Miraculous? Being able to alter your hero form is cool and all but… it still seems risky."

Ladybug struggled not to gulp. This was the part of the conversation that she had been dreading a bit because she honestly didn't have a clue as to how Chat Noir would react to this. It was clear that Chat Noir must know Luka in civilian form too; otherwise, why would he have agreed so easily and quickly to his inclusion? If she said directly why Luka was made a permanent wielder, could that be giving him a clue to her identity?

But… she didn't want to lie to him either. How else is she supposed to show him that she trusts him?

"I wasn't lying when I said I wanted him to have the Snake Miraculous again for his safety. But I was vague about the reasoning for it because… I didn't want to hurt your feelings or have that affect our teamwork."

"...So what is it?" Chat asked.

"...Luka… he found out my identity," she admitted before she could stop herself.

Chat's reaction was about what she had expected. A look of shock, even anger spread across his face.

"What?! How?!" he demanded to know.

"I didn't tell him if that's what you're thinking!" Ladybug retorted defensively, "I was… I was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and he was in the wrong place at the right time."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he shot back.

"Chat! That's really all there is to it!" Ladybug shouted, "I was… I was struggling very hard that day and Luka happened to be close by to help me. And he happened to see Tikki as well. After that, we talked, and I gave him Sass and his Miraculous again for his safety. That same night, I talked to you about it."

"If I had known that that was the reason…" Chat practically growled. There was a glint of… something in his eye.

"Chat! Would you rather he be defenseless while holding dangerous information like that?!"

"You could have erased his memories or something! I mean, that's what Master Fu did to himself right?!"

"That automatically happens when the role of the Guardian is passed on! If Master Fu had a way to erase memories, he certainly never taught it to me!"

"You still could have-"

"You think I like knowing, Chat?!"

Wait, Chat thought, that's not Ladybug's voice!

Whipping around, the hero saw Kobra landing deftly from higher up in the structure. Chat could have sworn he saw someone else land behind Kobra, but his night vision wasn't picking anything up; he must have imagined it. He did, however, notice that Ladybug's eyes had shifted in the same direction. But if he didn't see it in the dark, how could Ladybug have?

"Wha-were you spying on us?!" Chat demanded to know.

"I asked him to come! In case something like this happened!" Ladybug growled out.

"Y-you-"

"Chat, you keep insisting to know Ladybug's identity, but that same knowledge can be a burden too! She explained that just moments ago why she didn't want to know your identity!" Kobra interrupted angrily.

Chat stopped and looked down, having the humility to look a little guilty. He hadn't meant to lash out at Ladybug, but his feelings just took over.

"Chat, I do trust you," Ladybug insisted, "but Kobra's right. Knowing identities is a heavy burden to bear. I just… I just don't think I'm ready to add another one to my plate right now. So please just… be patient, just a little longer. Please…"

"...All right. It's late - I'll be off now. Good night to you both, Kobra & Ladybug."

With that, Chat leaped off quickly - quicker than normal it seems - and disappeared into the night.

Now that he was gone, a transformed Akira stepped out of the shadows.

"For a second there I was scared we'd have to physically restrain him," he said with concern.

"...Are you okay?" Kobra asked her with a concerned glint in his snake eyes.

"Yeah… I'm fine as I'll ever be," Ladybug tiredly responded, "Let's all get home."

o~o

"Sir…" Nathalie addressed as she entered Gabriel's study.

"What is it, Nathalie?" he asked, slightly impatient. He was looking down at his computer, deep in the middle of a task.

"We just received a voicemail from Miss Rossi," Nathalie explained promptly, "She was quite distraught as she resigned from the Gabriel brand and refused to spy for you any longer."

This statement actually made Gabriel pause and look up at his secretary-slash-supervillainous sidekick.

"Did she give a reason?" he asked lowly, eyes narrowed.

"Perhaps you should hear it yourself," she said, pulling up the message on her tablet.

o~o

"...Well then," Gabriel said quietly after the voicemail was finished, "I can certainly say I didn't expect that."

"Sir…?" Nathalie asked, sounding confused. Did Gabriel expect for Lila to quit at some point?

"Those words she said, right at the end… 'What was I thinking?', was it?" Gabriel grinned sinisterly, "I think that Miss Rossi just perhaps might grant us one final golden goose."

o~o

AN: Oh dear, what does Gabriel have up his sleeve now?

You all are probably wondering which Miraculous Akira had right there. Well... wait to find out! Haha!

So, I know I mentioned this story would contain some character salt, and Adrien is unfortunately one of them. I honestly don't think he's a bad character, but he needs to get priorities straight and take his job as a hero more seriously. There will usually be time after the akuma attack for banter and jokes, Chat, but for now, while the city you're supposed to protect is in chaos, please do your job!

However, I also can understand that he would be frustrated with all of the things being kept from him for his own safety too, hence why he and Ladybug talked it over. I hope the conversation seemed realistic enough and that Chat's reactions and Ladybug's explanations are understandable. If anyone has any questions, feel free to PM me, please!

And before anyone asks because I know a lot of you have been wondering, no, Adrien won't have his Miraculous taken away from him. There won't be another Black Cat hero that replaces him either. He'll get better, we promise.

Hope you enjoyed this short chapter! R&R and see you next time!