My first reveal! I've been thinking it was about time I did one so was super excited when this idea popped into my head. I don't own anything.

'Got you again, Bugaboo!'

'Hey, I was totally first! And do not call me Bugaboo!'

The two heroes landed with a thump on the topmost balcony of the Eiffel tower – the finishing point of a long race over the rooftops.

'Guess we'll never know. But I'll let you win this time,' he decided.

'Yes, because I did win,' she retaliated, rolling her bluebell eyes.

The pair gazed out over the city, which was all lit up beneath the night sky.

'Beautiful, isn't it?' she observed.

'Very. And there's no-one I'd rather share this view with than you, m'lady.'

Ladybug tensed uneasily.

'Don't worry,' he sighed, sensing her discomfort. 'I just meant…because you're such a good friend.'

'So…you've gotten over your crush on me?'

'Well…sort of. I actually tried dating someone, you know.'

'And?' she asked hopefully.

He shrugged.

'I guess it just didn't work out. We're still pretty good friends though.'

'Well, good for you for giving this person a chance, whoever she is, and for admitting that it wasn't working. And I'm glad you're still friends.'

He nodded sadly.

'Yeah. What about you? How are things going with the…the boy you're in love with?' She could have sworn his cat ears drooped a little.

'They're not. He only sees me as a friend.'

'Have you at least tried asking him out? Or telling him how you feel?'

'Oh, believe me, I have. And our friends keep trying to set us up together. But every time I'm near him I just totally freak out and have no idea what to say.'

He leaned over the railing, deep in thought.

'Hmm…that's not like you at all. You're the bravest person I know. You always have a plan, and know exactly what to say and do, and when to say and do it. I would have thought something like this would be easy for you.'

'Yeah, well.' She shrugged. 'There are different ways to be brave, Kitty. I can stand up to Hawkmoth and his akumas, but I can't tell a boy I love him.'

'Well, I always say, if you have feelings for someone, don't hold them inside. You never know…you might just get lucky. And anyway, who in their right mind would say no to Ladybug?'

'Well, that's the thing, isn't it? He has no idea I'm Ladybug. To him, I'm just plain old…me.'

'Hey.' He placed his hands on her shoulders, his green eyes glowing brighter than ever in the dark. 'I don't know who's under that mask, but she is anything but plain. My Lady wouldn't know plain if it hit her in the face.'

She smiled sadly. She didn't believe for a minute that he had gotten over his crush on her. But she appreciated his kindness.

'I suppose you're right.'

'Seriously though. You should just go for it.'

She eyed him warily.

'You...don't mind talking about this?'

'I think I'll live. And if I don't, I've got another eight lives.'

She chuckled.

'Okay. Well, what do you suggest? I suppose you'd tell me to just go up to him and tell him the worst jokes I can think of?' she teased.

He crossed his arms and pouted.

'Worst jokes? Well, he might find that incredibly funny.'

'Hmmm…more likely he'd think I was insane. Or making fun of him.'

'Do you think I'm insane? Or making fun of you?'

She considered this for a moment.

'Insane, yes. Making fun of me, no. You only make yourself look ridiculous.'

'You've got quite the cattitude tonight, m'lady.'

They caught each other's eyes and giggled.

'But anyway…no changing the subject. You are going to ask out your crush…Cat Noir style.'

'And what exactly does that involve? I can hardly go up to him and start making cat puns about how great he is.'

He considered this for a moment.

'I guess I'm the only one clawsome enough to pull that off, eh?'

She put her hands on her hips.

'Are you saying I wouldn't be able to tell him jokes?'

'Well…no. But cat puns are kind of my thing, aren't they? And you're…usually the more serious out of us two.'

'Ladybug can be funny when she wants to!'

He shrugged, smirking playfully.

'Prove it, then.'

She was silent for a minute, considering the possibilities.

'Do they have to be cat puns?'

'Oh, yes. And you have to flirt. Just like I've always done with you. And ask him on a date.'

'No chance, Kitty! I'll make a complete fool of myself! This isn't some sort of plan of yours, is it? To make me run to you for comfort when it goes wrong?'

'You wound me, Bugaboo. Would I do that to you?'

'Okay, maybe not. But I still think this is a terrible idea.'

'Fine. If you're too much of a scaredy cat…' He narrowed his eyes, lip curling.

'I am not! I just…don't think this'll work is all.'

'I bet it will.'

'I bet it won't.'

They stood facing each other, arms folded stubbornly against their chests.

'Okay…if I win this bet and this boy of yours says yes…' he chewed his lip thoughtfully as he came up with a suitable forfeit. 'You have to…pay for Plagg's cheese for a month.'

Ladybug raised her eyebrows.

'That's not much of a punishment, Kitty. I thought you'd make me do something embarrassing.'

'Oh no, trust me. That stuff costs a fortune. I'm just trying to save myself some of my allowance. My parents are starting to think I'm cheese-mad.' Of course, by parents he meant his father and Nathalie. No harm in twisting the truth a little to protect his identity. 'And I think I'm embarrassing you enough already.'

She laughed, shaking her head.

'Fair enough. I think my parents should already have some cheese lying around in the ba- er, in the house. Okay…well, in that case it's only fair if I embarrass you too. If I win, if he doesn't fall instantly in love with me the minute I start making cat jokes, you have to…tell everyone you think Queen Bee is a better superhero than me.'

He cringed at her devious smile.

'Me-owch, m'lady. I'm hoping for my sake this guy shares my impeccable sense of humour.'

I wouldn't count on it…Ladybug thought to herself. A certain Agreste was going to be seriously weirded out.

'So, do we have a deal?'

'We do.' He clasped her small hand in his larger, clawed one, and they shook on it.

'And I'll know if you've done it or not because I know first-hand how you feel about liars, Ladybug,' he leaned in to whisper in her ear. Ladybug gulped. She was so screwed.

'Tikki…what on earth have I agreed to?' Marinette asked as she climbed into bed. 'Is there any way I can get out of this?'

'You gave your word, Marinette. Maybe Adrien will like the cat puns,' she said with a knowing smile.

'That darn cat. Why did I say yes? Now Adrien's going to think I'm a complete dorkasaurus! On the plus side, though…I'll be able to have a good laugh at Cat Noir talking about how much he loves Queen Bee. Though it'll probably inflate Chloe's ego even more. Ugh, I am such an idiot!'

'Oh, Plagg. I wish I could be there to see Ladybug making cat puns,' said Adrien wistfully.

'You're sure about this? I mean, helping set Ladybug up with someone else? Aren't you jealous at all?' Adrien's kwami tried to hide his excited grin by inhaling a large piece of cheese.

'Well…she's been turning me down for months because of this boy. I don't want that to be meaningless. She must be pretty crazy about him. I want to see my Lady happy, Plagg.'

Plagg rolled his eyes. That boy was a cinnamon roll. He couldn't wait for the next day.

Adrien got out of the car and strolled over to Alya and Nino, who were chatting on the steps leading up the school entrance.

'What's up, my dude?' Nino asked.

As they chatted away, Alya glanced over Adrien's shoulder just as the bell went to signal the start of class.

'Here she comes.'

Adrien turned round to see a red-faced Marinette legging it down the street towards the school. She ground to a halt at the bottom of the steps and almost toppled over.

'Am – I – late?' she wheezed. Her three friends giggled.

'You're on time. Just.' Alya took her best friend's arm to steady her. As the four of them entered the courtyard, Adrien winced.

'Oh no.'

'What?' Nino asked.

'My new photoshoot just came out. Everyone's going to be talking about it all day. Look.' He was right – many students were clutching magazines with pictures of the blond model on the front.

'Well, um…that's not a bad thing,' Marinette said very fast, fiddling with her purse. 'I already saw that photoshoot and it was…purrfect.'

Adrien's head whipped round. Alya and Nino looked at her curiously.

'It was what, Marinette?'

'Perfect! You're perfect! I mean… The totographs…the grotographs…ugh!'

Adrien smiled warmly. He knew Marinette was a fan of his, and of his father's work. For a second, he'd thought…but he must have imagined it. He had cat puns on the brain.

'Thanks. I'm so glad you liked it.'

Lunchtime came, and the group of friends decided to stay at school and eat in the cafeteria. Marinette was the last to buy lunch. She came and sat between Alya and Adrien, carrying a plate of what looked like vegetables in tomato sauce.

'What's that, Marinette?' Adrien asked.

Marinette froze.

'It's um….Catatouille.'

'Huh?'

'RAT! Ratatouille!' She gave a very loud, nervous laugh. Adrien forced an awkward laugh too, but his mind was reeling. Marinette often messed up her words around him. But…could this be a coincidence?

'Ugh, we've got Mendeleiev next,' said Alya. 'Did you guys all do that homework?'

'Sure, I did,' Adrien replied, his emerald green eyes trained on Marinette. He was going to hang on to her every word.

'It took me a while,' said Marinette, shifting uncomfortably under Adrien's stare. 'Because I spent a lot of time procatstinating.'

'Procrastinating?' Adrien corrected her, his heart skipping a few beats. Surely not. That was impossible.

'What were you doing?' laughed an oblivious Alya. 'Sewing?'

'Yep,' said Marinette. Her cheeks had gone an adorable shade of pink. 'And I probably won't get the best grade because I did the bare…mewnimum.'

Adrien had no idea how the rest of the conversation went. He didn't hear any of it. He knew a cat pun when he heard one, and Marinette had made four. Unless he was very much mistaken, he was sitting right next to his Lady.

School finally ended, and Marinette was now feeling suitably embarrassed. But she knew she wasn't out of the woods yet. She hadn't done nearly enough flirting, nor had she asked Adrien out. How did Cat Noir pull this off all the time? She could hear his voice echoing in her mind, taunting her. You'll have to do better than that, m'lady.

'A-Adrien?' she called to her crush as they all gathered up their bags for home.

'Yeah, Marinette?' He gave her that model smile that made her forget who she was.

'I…uh…need to ask you something.'

'Okay. What is it?' He didn't seem at all surprised at this request.

She looked nervously at all the departing students.

'Do you want to wait until everyone's gone?' he asked kindly, guessing her thoughts.

'Please.' They stood in awkward silence as their classmates cleared out, occasionally making eye contact and rapidly glancing away again.

'So,' Adrien asked as soon as they were alone in the empty classroom. 'What's up?'

'Well…um…the thing is…' she faltered, and took a deep breath. 'I think you're…thctsmeow,' she muttered to the floor.

'What was that?'

'You're…the cat's meow. Feline going to the movies?'

Her cheeks burned as she used a direct quote from her black-cladded partner. This was it. He would never want to speak to her again. They would never have the house, the three kids, or the hamster…

She'd been expecting him to be super confused, and then politely decline. What happened next was something that she had not anticipated. An ecstatic look spread over his face. Then, he burst into hysterical laughter.

'I - can't - believe - this!' Tears rolled down his cheeks. Marinette stood rooted to the floor, wishing it would swallow her whole. She'd never thought he would laugh at her. And so unashamedly, too. This wasn't her Adrien. Next time she saw that stupid cat, she was going to throw him off the top of the Eiffel tower. Or perhaps in the Seine, since cats hated water.

'So…um…is that a no?' she asked, mortified and bewildered.

'What? Oh…' He took a deep breath to calm himself, seeming to realise how embarrassed she was. 'No, Marinette. It's a resounding yes. I most definitely…feline going to the movies with you.' He let loose another giggle.

'Okay…uh…great.' Well, that was weird. It seemed Cat Noir had been right after all. He had found the puns funny. Who knew?

'So…you…like my jokes?'

'I love them.'

He was giving her a weird look – one that she'd never seen before. At least, not on him. It was…smug, satisfied, an expression that she'd only ever seen on…

'So…you think I'm the cat's meow, do you…Bugaboo?'

Bugaboo?! Her heart stopped. Her mouth fell open. The ground swayed beneath her feet.

No. Way.

'It's…it's…you?'

'It's me. Excellent cat puns, m'lady. You've learnt from the best, after all. But when we made that bet last night, I wasn't expecting you to come and ask…meow-t!'

Marinette couldn't decide if she was horrified or delighted. A bit of both, perhaps. She'd told Cat Noir that she loved him…using cat puns! And he was really Adrien!

'You're Cat Noir? But he's so…him…and you're so…you!'

'And you've always been my everyday Ladybug and my real one. It makes perfect sense now.'

There it was again – that warm smile that she now recognised as both Adrien's and her Kitty's. She facepalmed.

'You're never going to let me forget this, are you?' she said with a sigh.

'Nope.'

'I am so gonna get you back for this. And for laughing at me.'

'Oh…yeah. Sorry about that.'

Just when she thought things couldn't get any weirder, a familiar black kwami floated out from Adrien's schoolbag.

'Well, well. Guess who's buying me cheese for a month? You'd better get the good stuff, Marinette,' he teased.

Marinette rolled her eyes.

'Hi, Plagg. It's Camembert, isn't it?'

'You got it. Can I just say…that was purr-iceless!'

'It was pretty funny,' said Tikki, emerging from Marinette's purse.

'Tikki! You knew! You've known all along!'

'Sorry, Marinette. I couldn't say anything. But it was about time you both found out.'

'If it makes you feel better, Marinette, m'lady,' Adrien said, 'I'll swing by your place and get a big box of macaroons for Tikki.'

Plagg huffed. 'You're no fun.'

'Oh, yes please, Adrien!' Tikki replied, ignoring Plagg. 'And you can finally try Marinette's special passion fruit macaroon that she makes just for you!'

'What is this, 'embarrass Marinette' day?' her owner chastised.

'Passion fruit macaroon?' Adrien's face lit up. 'That sounds delicious.'

'Oh, it is!' the little red kwami promised. 'Anyway, you know the drill, Plagg. They need some alone time.' She dragged him off through a wall, leaving the two heroes by themselves. The two gazed upon each other's unmasked faces, each wondering how they had never recognised their partner.

'So the boy you're in love with…it's me? It's always been me?' Adrien asked as if he couldn't believe his luck.

'Yes.'

'Not Luka?'

Marinette raised her eyebrows.

'Do you see me making puns to Luka? Of course it's you, you dumb cat.' She paused. 'And since I'm Ladybug, then…you've been in love with me this whole time!' Her heart swelled as the embarrassment finally wore off and she comprehended this for the first time.

'Sure have.'

'We are such idiots.'

'Guess we're made for each other, eh?'

'I could get used to hearing that. But I do not want to hear another cat pun for a long time.'

He laughed.

'You know what I'm gonna say to that, right?'

'Yes.'

'But I suppose I could save them for when I'm in the suit. Adrien can keep the puns to a minimum. But next time there's an akuma, just you wait.'

'You know, I think I can live with that. Which is just as well, since Ladybugs only have one life, unlike cats.'

He slipped his hand into hers.

'Then let's make the most of it, m'lady.'

She squeezed back, expecting to wake up at any moment and find it had all been a dream.

'We should probably go. The Gorilla will be wondering where I am. Can we give you a lift home?'

'Of course, Kitty. We can arrange that movie date too.'

'After what you went through to ask me, you can choose the movie. And I'll buy the popcorn.'

'It's a date.'