One: Squeaking By

A surprise revelation spurs Chat to convince Ladybug to give Marinette a second chance as Multimouse.

The pain was intense, like nothing I had ever felt before in my life.

I had absolutely no control as the blast I'd absorbed threw me across the sky, ultimately smashing me through the glass-walled side of Montparnasse multiple stories above the ground. My muscles continued to spasm as I slid in an ungainly mass of tangled, twitching limbs on my back across the flooring of some office or another, all of my normal instincts trying, and failing, to protect me from the shards of glass raining down everywhere.

My feline body crashed through cubicle partition after partition, throwing office supplies into the air until I slammed, hard, into the far wall, finally arresting my motion and resulting in another wave of pain. The most movement I could muster was to squeeze my masked eyes shut against the vertigo, trying hard to ignore the intense stabs of pain from my right side as I tried to take a deep breath.

I added broken ribs to my list of injuries, and then decided to stop the inventory when I was wracked with a full-body cough that left blood on my paw.

Sagging against the textured carpet, I was vaguely aware of the office workers who'd appeared from the rabbit warren of cubicles I'd smashed through. It was a Tuesday after all, so why wouldn't there be a crowd of workers? The realization civilians were in harm's way spurred a last jolt of adrenaline, and I managed to commandeer some modicum of control back over my feline body.

Using my tail for leverage, I pushed up into a crouch and ignored the warning stabs of pain from my side. My feline ears pivoted forward, for the akuma had honed in on my erstwhile landing spot. "Find a safe spot!" I cried, trying, and failing, to stifle another cough that produced more blood that I very ungentlemanly spat against the wall.

Surprisingly, I still had my baton, and as I lengthened it for battle, I could hear the office workers behind me evacuating. I tried to go into my partial crouch, but it was a bridge too far for my battered frame; something snapped in my leg, sending a new bolt of white hot pain through me. I crumpled there at the edge of the broken window, my damaged body no longer able to go on, Miraculous magic notwithstanding.

I had to have passed out, for when I regained some sense of who I was, Multimouse's deep blue eyes were there, and I could feel her hands beneath me. "Chat? Chat!" she cried, and I could see there were tears there, too. "Why? Why did you do that?"

"It's… what I do," I said, unable to take more than a shallow breath.

"You stupid, silly, trying kitty," she admonished as she leaned down to me.

"Mon ami," I gasped. "Go… go get Ladybug."

"You need help!" she said as she struggled to get me up.

"Ladybug… says that… a lot," I wheezed as I tried to wave her off, but the most I could muster was waggling a claw. "I'll be… fine," I gasped again, and then tried to give her my most charming Chat smile. "Go. Now."

"But-"

"It's… okay," I said, my energy flagging. "Just need… to catch… my breath."

The last thing I saw before my world faded to black was a single gossamer tear as it slipped out of Multimouse's red-rimmed masked eye.

Seven Days Earlier

"Why is it any different?" I asked.

"It just… is," Ladybug replied.

I recrossed my arms and turned slightly against the wall I'd been leaning on, and knew my eyes were flashing with the anger I was trying to keep under wraps. Her eyes flicked to my traitorous tail, which was madly swishing back and forth, telegraphing to my partner my true feelings. "Then you should apply your Golden Rule equally, Milady," I said quietly. "Across the board."

"I can't," she said quickly. "We need Viperion."

I laughed coldly. "Oh, I know just how much 'we' need Viperion."

"What is that supposed to mean?" she demanded.

Shaking my mane, I turned further away from her, hoping the blush on my cheeks was hidden by the darkness. "He looks at you the way I do, Milady." I tossed a look back at her. "The difference being you seem to have accepted his advances."

"It's not like that!" she said.

"Right," I snarked. "Well, if we're keeping Viperion, despite the fact that I'm not the only one who knows who he is and his identity was blown years ago in front of Hawkmoth, then Marinette should get a second crack at holding the Mouse Miraculous." I looked up at the moonless sky. "Contrary to what you may be thinking, I am purrfectly capable of keeping secrets."

"Chat," Ladybug said, "it's far more complicated than that. You don't understand-"

I whirled on her, my tail snapping out as I did. "Is it?" I replied icily. "Enlighten me, Ladybug."

It was her turn to look away, and my night vision clearly highlighted how crimson her face had become.

"I'm not blind," I continued, "and you've told me nearly from the beginning there was someone else that had captured your heart. I was naive to assume it was just another civilian." I leaned back again, tail continuing to swish, and went in for the kill. "I've honored every rule or request you have made of me, followed your every direction without question. I've always been there, always taken the hit to protect you, and then vaulted away with nothing more than maybe a smile and brief conversation to sustain me. I accepted it, embraced it even."

I looked back at my partner, who'd gone white. "I think you can spot me a solid, Milady. Give Marinette another chance."

"Chat… I had no idea…"

I looked away, not wanting to relitigate my ongoing feelings for her between us; nor did I want to revisit that moment a few hours earlier when I'd found her and Viperion passionately kissing behind the half wall on our rooftop meeting place. My feline ears had refused to comprehend what I was hearing before I landed on the half wall, surprising all three of us. I'd been hurt beyond words, and had blundered away from the rooftop in a confused whorl of emotions that had propelled me around Paris until I'd exhausted my soul.

In a cosmic irony, Ladybug had finally caught up with me on the same rooftop where I'd warned her about playing with my emotions many, many years earlier. We'd been barely been teenagers then; now, at nineteen, I was ashamed that I was feeling fourteen all over again. Our positions had changed somewhat since then; she was now Guardian of the Miraculous with all that entailed.

I was still the indispensable - and apparently disposable - Chat Noir.

In an ill-advised attempt to calm me down, Ladybug had explained she and Luka had been dating as civilians for some time; that had sent me into orbit again, discovering the one thing she'd steadfastly said was unsharable had, in fact, been shared with someone else first. My anger - and no small amount of angst at the final extinguishing of the flame I'd carried for Ladybug - had led to my spontaneous demand that Marinette get a second chance. I'm not sure exactly why, but it seemed to offend my sense of fairness that she'd been cashed out after one mistake. And at that moment, I was wanting very badly to re-align the scales of justice.

"You owe me this much," I said tightly. "And as Guardian, it's well within your purview to grant it."

The silence stretched between us for a minute, then two. I continued to glare at her, my masked eyes firmly planted on those bedeviling blue ones I'd fallen for years ago.

"All right," she said once the silence between us had become oppressive. "She'll have to agree to it, though. I'll go to her-"

"No," I said firmly. "I'll be the one to go to her. If she says no, I want to be the one to hear it, not from a third party I'm currently experiencing some trust issues with."

Ladybug stepped back as if I'd slapped her, and perhaps I had, verbally. "This is out of character for you, kitty."

"I've not been a kitty for some time now, LB," I said coldly. "And as it appears you've turned a page on our relationship, so have I."

Ladybug pressed her lips together. "Fine," she said as she pulled out her yo-yo and cracked it open. Reaching into her storage compartment, she pulled out an octagonal box and handed it to me. "Guard this-"

"I am well aware of the drill, Mil-Ladybug," I said as I took the box in a paw and set it inside the baton's storage area. "I'll text you if she declines."

"Chat-"

I turned and leapt away into the night, crossing the moonless sky as quickly as I could. Marinette was attending the same University as I was, though her dorm was nowhere close to mine. I'd convinced Father to pay for a single, allowing me to come and go as Chat Noir undetected; Marinette was sharing with Alya, despite the fact they were in two different degree programs (Fashion for Marinette and Journalism for Alya). I knew the way well, for Marinette was a good friend - both to Chat and Adrien. I wasn't able to visit her as regularly as Chat now that we were both at University; what nights I wasn't battling Hawkmoth with Ladybug were spent catching up on classwork. As Adrien, I made a point of connecting with her in what classes we had in common, and every few weekends when the entire gang from Dupont - me, her, Nino and Alya - got together, though admittedly those were becoming rarer and rarer as our lives got busier.

Her room was in an older set of buildings, ones that had classic balconies that a feline was capable of perching upon. I alighted on a particular one sixteen stories up and waved a paw at Alya, who was sitting cross-legged on the floor. Smiling, she stood and slid open the balcony door. "Hey Chat. It's been a while since you've graced us with your presence."

"Alya," I smiled, trying to batten down the last of the anger that had fueled my flight over. "It has, hasn't it? But, alas, a feline hero's schedule is not his own."

My friend laughed. "Ditto for an undergraduate."

"Is Mari around?"

"She stepped out several hours ago," she said, and a slight frown appeared. "I thought she'd be back by now, actually."

"Oh," I said. "Do you mind-" I started, before my feline ears pivoted forward.

The door to the dorm room unlocked and Marinette appeared; she was carrying a grocery bag and when she looked up, I could see her eyes were red, as if she'd been crying. I slipped off the balcony and was immediately by her side. "Princess," I said, using my longstanding nickname for her, "what's wrong?"

"Allergies," she said quickly as she looked away and shrugged out from my paw.

"It's that time of year," Alya said, but the look she shot me confirmed how dubious she thought the excuse was, too.

"Why are you here?" Marinette said abruptly as she dumped the groceries on the small kitchenette's counter.

My feline ears shot up. "I… wondered if I could speak to you for a few minutes," I said, looking back at Alya.

"I'm kinda busy tonight," she said tersely. "Maybe some other time?"

I felt my ears brush backwards at the rebuff. "Uh, of course," I said. "I'm sorry to have bothered you."

"And call ahead next time," she added as I moved toward the balcony.

I'd coiled up and hit the railing and was preparing to leap into the night when she called me back. "Hang on, Chat."

Pivoting on my three-point stance, I looked at her as she approached. "What did you want to say?" she asked.

"It's kind of sensitive," I replied, my masked eyes flicking over her head to Alya. "Do you mind if we go somewhere?"

Marinette seemed to weigh something and then nodded. I slipped down and wrapped an arm around her, then used the baton to spring out into the night. I didn't go far - just to the bell tower atop the main administrative building, but a spot I knew from experience was quiet and undetectable from the ground.

Releasing her, I stepped back a bit and then cracked open my baton's storage area. Marinette's eyes widened when she recognized the octagonal box I retrieved. "Marinette, I had a long chat with Ladybug tonight. Specifically," I continued, seeing something flash across her face, "around offering you a second chance at being a Miraculous holder."

Marinette's eyes flicked from the box to my masked visage. "Why would you do that? And why me?"

I smiled a bit craftily. "I have my reasons for the first," I replied. "As to the second, I know you, Mari. Probably better than you realize. There isn't anyone in Paris with the heart, the raw compassion that you have to right the wrongs - to keep balance in all things." I looked away for a moment, thinking until recently that had described Ladybug. "It's a key part of being a holder, actually; and believe me, we need courageous souls such as yours on the team."

I looked back at her and partially held out the box. "Despite what you might see on Alya's blog, it's not a glamorous job, and the hours suck. But the work we do is so infinitely fulfilling, it more than pays back for all of the hardships we endure." I paused. "Well… most of them, anyway."

Marinette had an odd look on her face.

I fully extended my arms to her. "Marinette Dupain-Cheng, this is the Miraculous of the Mouse-"

"Chat, wait."

Pausing, I arched a masked eyebrow.

"I appreciate what you think you are doing on my behalf," she said carefully. "And I'm honored that you think I am Miraculous material. But it's been years since my outing as Multimouse. It was a one time ask from Ladybug, and I'm not sure I'm up to the job."

I smiled at my friend. "I know you are," I said, putting one paw on her shoulder. "And if you accept, I will be there by your side every step of the way. Just like I am with Ladybug."

She looked at me again. "I have obligations, Chat. I can't guarantee I'll be available or even reachable if you need me."

"I'm not asking you to be a permanent full-time member," I replied. "Just one that we can go to when we need some extra help."

Marinette looked away.

"You don't have to say yes," I said as I pulled back my arm. "At the very least, I wanted to give you the chance - the option - if you wanted it."

Sliding the baton open, I started to put the small box into my storage compartment when Marinette put a hand to my black-cladded wrist. I looked up.

"Yes," she said. "I'll do it."

"Are you sure?" I asked, trying to keep the cheer out of my voice. After the way the day had gone, even a small bit of joy would be welcome.

"Yes," she repeated. "I don't know how I'll do it, but I will."

I held the box back out to her. "If you accept this, you promise to use it for good, and to return it when asked."

Marinette took the box. "I will."

"Good," I smiled. "I'll take you back now, but we'll start your training tomorrow night."

"Chat, I don't think that's necessary," she started.

I wrapped an arm around her and prepared to leap over the edged. "It is," I smiled, and thought to myself, more so I won't have to be with Ladybug on patrol tomorrow night.

"If you think that's best," she said dubiously.

"I do," I smiled. "I do."