Hello, hello, hello! I've been looking at the metrics of this story across all the platforms it's on, and it is by far the most viewed and interacted with story I've posted. We have readers across the globe, more comments than I know what to do with, and enough reads to fill a small town. Thank you all endlessly!

I have more Chloe insights, but I'm starting to get down to more of the results of the character study rather than affecting variables, so I'm going to save them for the end when I tell you all the conclusions I've come to.

This chapter is a bit of a filler, sorry, but I got a bit carried away with this particular idea and scene. Expect about 10 chapters total to this whole thing, and as always there is another chapter coming down the pipeline, no matter how long it may take to arrive.

The rest of the weekend was slow and heavy in Chloe's stomach. She couldn't sleep the night she bought the necklace, so she sat up against her headboard and tried not to think about meeting Pollen for the first time. Chat Noir had given her an odd look the first time he heard Pollen call her 'my queen', but to Chloe, it was a show of loyalty and support she hadn't been able to find anywhere else, from anyone else.

Saturday Chloe took Sabrina out shopping for her well-deserved gift after her help last week. It was a nice distraction, being somewhere everyone acted as shallowly as Chloe was used to doing. The rules were simple here, just 'accidentally' mess up by saying daddykins instead of Mayor Bourgeois, and Chloe was the VIP. Besides, if Chloe didn't pay back Sabrina for her help now, it could very well be much more

Chloe tried to sleep in her own bed that night, but couldn't banish the feeling of Pollen sleeping on the pillow next to her. So she put on an overcoat, grabbed her bag pre-packed with everything she would need overnight, and walked the three blocks to another much smaller hotel, known as the Sixty Lions. It wasn't nearly what Chloe was used to, but this was not the first time she'd needed an escape for a night, and the place was neat and clean without the lavish of the Mayor's hotel. Chloe had no idea whether or not the person behind the front desk had any idea who she was, or if he recognized her from her past escapes. Nevertheless, he took her cash, and accepted her fake ID without too much thought. Chloe took the plastic card and arrived at her room by 1:15 in the morning. She set her bag on the floor beside the bed and pulled out everything she would need to sleep for the night. With a sinking feeling, Chloe realized she'd forgotten her sleep mask. Normally it wouldn't matter, as she was usually up when the dawn stained her windows, but it was already early rather than late, and Chloe could waste a portion of the next day sleeping in since it was Sunday.

Chloe considered calling Sabrina, who undoubtedly would have another one on hand, especially if Chloe didn't want to step foot into the Mayor's hotel for at least the next eight hours. But Sabrina had never been to the Sixty Lions, and Chloe wasn't sure if she wanted to share that secret with anyone. As far as even the hotel staff knew, Chloe was still in her regular room sleeping away within the most lavish walls in Paris, and she wanted to keep it that way.

So, Chloe took the tie from the robe she brought and tied it around her head, grimacing at how much this would definitely mess up her eyelashes. She placed a rock, about pollen's size and weight on the pillow next to her, and fell asleep.

The robe tie worked rather well, and Chloe was asleep for long enough that she had missed the complementary breakfast. Not that the complementary food was ever worth eating anyway, other than the lemon brioche that always disappeared too fast. So, Chloe dressed, packed up, and checked out, stopping at a little café between the two hotels.

While she was waiting for her food at an outdoor table in the corner, Chloe tried to decide what she was going to do for the rest of the day. Sure, she had a bit of homework, but that wouldn't be able to keep her attention even if she had the resolve to do it. She could go and see Sabrina, but Sabrina probably already had plans, and the two girls had spent the whole day out yesterday.

Chloe didn't have much more time to think of other ideas before the bell from a bicycle interrupted her thoughts. She ignored it, there were other people here, and the street was busy, but to Chloe's surprise, Luka had pulled his bike up to her table.

"Hello." He greeted with a small smile, hand on the strap of his guitar across his chest.

"What do you want?"

Luka's smile faded, but his grip remained loose, unperturbed. "Have you seen Marinette? I went to the hotel and I was told you two would be here for lunch."

Chloe puffed a bit of air from her lungs, no one had noticed she had been gone, or that Marinette was gone either. The staff assumed she'd gone out to eat lunch, and told Luka the place that probably created a couple too many card charges. Which was saying a bit, considering they never noticed when Chloe withdrew the usual 700 cash she kept on her person for emergencies, or trips to the Sixty Lions. Now the trick would be to make sure no one spoke about the guy who'd come looking for her, she did not want anyone associating the two of them, and she definitely did not want her father even finding out that he existed. If Chloe's mother was here this would be a scandal of the highest order, but Audrey had left only a couple months ago. Last time she had been gone for thirteen years, so there was little risk of that happening.

"She went home with Alya last night, for a sleepover. She'll probably be there."

Luka nodded, and took off his bike helmet, as if he was not going to turn around and leave. "Do you mind?" He asked, gesturing to the seat across form her.

Chloe looked around, but there was no one important around and they were a decent distance from the hotel. "Fine. But I'm not paying for you."

Luka nodded, propped his bike up against the café wall, and sat down. When the waiter came over with Chloe's tea and brioche, he gave Luka a menu and scampered off again.

Luka looked idly at Chloe's choice of food, and the large bag underneath Chloe's feet, but didn't say anything. Instead, he asked about her tea.

Chloe gave him a curt answer, pulling out her phone. The waiter came back to take Luka's order, and silence fell again. Chloe wasn't exactly sure when he started playing his guitar, but she found herself bouncing her foot to the slow 1, 2, 3 of a waltz. There were plenty of traditional French waltzes, but this one in particular she knew as the dance her parents chose for their wedding, and their anniversary.

"Can't you choose something better to play?" Chloe asked scathingly.

Luka looked up from his guitar strings. "But I thought you liked that one." He said, gesturing to Chloe's foot, sticking out from the table a bit since she'd crossed her legs.

Chloe uncrossed and recrossed her legs so they were both hidden under the table. "Just pick something else."

So, Luka tried again with a different dance, knowing Chloe at least liked that style of music. Chloe recognized it as the dance Marinette had shared with Adrien at Chloe's birthday party.

"Stop."

Luka didn't need further explanation, and changed tack again without too much more pause. He began playing an acoustic version of Jagged Stone's new song. To his surprise, Chloe's face lost its disgust. Luka didn't get to finish before his food arrived, for which he thanked the waiter.

Chloe was surprised to see that he had ordered a familiar thick yellow-white soup.

"That's the best one on the menu." Chloe supplied without thinking.

Luka chuckled at the way Chloe was eyeing his soup. "Would you like some?"

Chloe nearly flushed, mortified. "No." She sat back with her half empty tea cup, sipping it. The two ate in relative silence until Chloe asked the waiter for the check nearly twenty minutes later. The waiter brought it back with a smile, and walked away before Chloe realized there was only one check. Before she could call the waiter back, Luka looked over at the check and said, "I can take it."

Chloe looked Luka up and down, trying to tell if he was serious. There was no way she was going to take his dingy money, if only on principal.

But before she could say a word, Luka was standing with the check in his hands to go inside and pay. Chloe hurried after him, intending to beat him to the punch and swipe her card first, all thought of splitting the check gone out the window. But Luka paid with surprisingly crisp bills from a nice leather wallet. The cashier counted his change while Chloe sucked on her tongue.

Luka chuckled at her again. "If it's really that big of a bother, you can pay me back."

Chloe nodded. The bills she carried around were just a bit too big to pay exactly what she owed Luka since she preferred bills to coins, but she could pay him a bit extra and hopefully nothing would ever be mentioned about it again. Chloe pulled out her gold wallet and found that she had given all her cash to the Sixty Lions, and the only thing she had was the receipt that she hadn't bothered to get rid of yet.

Luka must've noticed this too, "It's alright. Hotels can be expensive around here."

Chloe followed Luka back outside to their table, where she picked up her bag and Luka put his helmet back on. "Do you want a ride back?"

Chloe gave Luka's bike a look, which he took as a no with a small smile on his face. "Hey, next time you need to escape, I have an apartment a couple blocks from here. I use it as a music studio, but it has a bed, if you need it."

"Don't you dare say a word, or-"

But Chloe didn't get to finish. "I would never." Luka promised, hoisting a leg over his bike. He rung his bell and waved over his shoulder as he sped away.

Chloe set off in the other direction, there was an ATM at the bank on the other side of the building, and she needed exactly €11.17.