Thirty-Five: Purrfect Therapy

Author's Note: Unexpectedly diverted to the Bakery after meeting with Alya, Chat and Marinette spend the night in her old chambers – and take solace in the company of each other.

Author's Warning: Please remember that the characters of Chat and Marinette as depicted in Roommates are consenting adults who have graduated from University and are chronologically in their early twenties. Stated simply, they are grown-ups in a serious, loving relationship with each other. While this story remains firmly within the bounds of the Teen rating attached to it, there is plenty of innuendo within this chapter that readers who are uncomfortable with suggestive content may wish to avoid. No one will think any less of you for skipping to the next chapter. ;-)

Despite normally having no issues sneaking in or out of the apartment through my side balcony entrance under the cover of darkness, I generally still took a circuitous route on the off chance anyone tried to track my movements. With my ring chirping as it was, however, I'd nearly opted to make a beeline for my safe harbor when that undefinable bonus feline sense I had kicked in. Marinette picked up my sudden shift in direction despite being emotionally compromised at the moment and whispered into a feline ear. "What is it?"

"Rena," I said simply as we dropped out of the sky and onto a rooftop.

Marinette said some nasty words as the two of us dashed behind a chimney and pressed ourselves into the darkness.

"Milady, such language," I teased quietly as I peered around an edge to see our pursuer.

"I don't even know her any longer," Marinette replied with a deep sigh. "This whole thing has been totally out of character."

"People can change," I murmured, masked feline eyes narrowing as they caught sight of the Fox. "Damn. She's just a few blocks behind us and closing." Pulling out my baton, I clicked over the to the tracking app and held the screen out to Marinette. "She had to have picked us up shortly after leaving the hotel."

"Why? Why would she follow us, especially after our conversation?"

"I am very much wanting to know the answer to that myself." I smiled grimly. "My guess? She's trying to divine the location of our apartment," I said as I snapped the baton shut. "I should have anticipated this move, though, for I caught her outside the hotel arriving as Rena."

"She what?"

I turned toward Marinette. "I heard what you said to her – about using her Miraculous for purrsonal reasons." My masked eyes widened. "In my defense—"

"We'll talk about that later. For now, though, we need to evade Rena. And that means not going home with her hot on your cute-but-recognizable feline tail."

I smirked. "You noticed? How sweet," I purred.

She pushed my nose away from a potential kiss. "I'm open to suggestions, kitty."

Looking out across the cityscape, I smiled a bit wider. "We're just a few blocks from the Bakery," I pointed out happily. "Will your parents take in some strays for a night?"

"Are you kidding?" she asked as she held her arms out for me to pick her up. "Papa wanted to adopt you that first time you came over for dinner."

I frowned at her as I leapt up to the side of the wall. "That would've made it hard for me to marry you," I observed.

Marinette turned her head toward me. "You haven't, yet," she said softly.

I shrugged as I leapt into the night with my precious cargo. "It's on my timeline," I laughed. "This little reveal courtesy of Alya has thrown my plans into disarray." I glanced at her quickly. "Trust me, you won't escape my attentions that easily."

"Good," she said as she leaned back into me.

In moments, the Bakery loomed large and I landed on the familiar confines of the rooftop patio. Setting Marinette down, I stood guard as she descended the skylight to inquire as to room availability at the impromptu inn; turning, I watched as Rena not-so-subtly landed on the roof opposite. I couldn't help the two-finger salute with accompanying partial snarl and was rewarded with my baton buzzing.

"Nice diversion," the small image of Rena said when I snapped open the phone.

"What makes you think Marinette lives anywhere other than here?" I asked, arching a masked eyebrow. My ring chirped again and I knew I was down to three pads.

"That seems doubtful. Sooner or later, I'll manage to trace one or both of you."

My masked eyes widened. That actually was good news, for it told me this was Alya's first attempt to track down Marinette's apartment. She'd hate my recommendation, but probably wouldn't argue with coming and going as Ladybug so she could keep a watchful eye out for Rena. "Why the obsession with us, Rena? We're your friends and teammates for crying out loud."

"I need to get to the truth," Rena said in a brief moment of candor. "I'm owed that."

I blinked. "I don't understand. What is it you think you don't know?"

"It's not just for me," Rena said. "Paris deserves to know who the Miraculous Vigilantes are – revealed to the world. No secrets."

Vigilantes?

"Rena," I said carefully, "those secrets protect our friends – our families! If you follow through on this, you'll hand Hawkmoth what he needs to get to us."

"Chat, it's not right – it's not fair that Ladybug knows who we are, and we aren't allowed!"

"It's part of the deal," I reminded her.

"Does she know who you are?" Rena asked suddenly. "The person under the mask?"

"No," I said smoothly, leaning on my model training to keep from betraying anything.

Rena looked at me. "You seriously expect me to believe that Marinette is willingly living with someone who is hiding their true identity from her?"

"Yes," I replied. "For while she might not know my true name, she does know who I am. And at the end of the day, that's all that matters, isn't it?"

She glared at me. "It wouldn't be for me."

"You're not Marinette, either," I shot back.

"Chat—"

"Good night, Rena," I said as I clicked the phone shut and quickly dropped through the skylight.

A rather surprised Marinette greeted me in the space. "I was just coming up—"

"I just spoke with Rena," I explained with a tiny growl appended.

"That good?"

Shaking my mane, I hopped onto her chaise, somewhat amazed that Marinette's old room was nearly intact from her days of living at the bakery. "It would be best if you didn't go up there right now. She's keeping watch."

"Why?"

"She appears to be on the anti-secret brigade currently."

Marinette rolled her eyes. "That's rather extraordinary, given she, herself, is a Miraculous Holder."

"Exactly." I blew a bang away from my mask in frustration.

"Speaking of keeping secrets, my parents are fine with us staying over; unfortunately, the guest room is full of supplies, so we'll have to stay here in my old room." She grinned at me wickedly. "Together."

My masked eyes narrowed. "Your father must not have liked that."

Marinette slid onto the chaise next to me, and I curled my tail around her waist. Continuing to grin wickedly, she tapped my bell with a finger. "I reminded him I am no longer his baby girl; that we are, in fact, two grown – consenting - adults."

"One of whom is currently a cat," I reminded her with a meaningful look at my ring. "For a few minutes more, at least."

"Then I'd better get started," she said softly.

My masked eyes widened. "Mari—" I started.

Before I could say anything, she leaned up and kissed me very, very slowly, making my insides go all gooey. "I may or may not have told Papa that it would be in his best interests to leave us to our own devices tonight."

I was certain my heart was thumping hard enough to burst through my costume. "Milady," I said slowly, sure my masked eyes had gone wide, "are you saying what I think you're saying?"

Marinette responded by gently tugging on my bell; while there was technically a zipper attached to it, I'd never actually used it. My feline eyes widened in shock at the metallic sound as Marinette ever-so-slowly started to expose more skin. "I always wondered what was under this," she said softly as she leaned up to plant a soft kiss on the recently revealed real estate.

Her eyes flicked back up at mine and she smiled wider. "Don't be so surprised, Kitty. The costume is what you want it to be, remember?"

I found I had to shift slightly to relieve some pressure. "I'll keep that in mind moving forward," I said quietly. "But it appears to give lie to what I told your Father."

Marinette lowered the zipper a bit further. "How will we ever repay that sin of omission, I wonder?" she asked, each word blowing a warm breath against my skin. The act made me shudder involuntarily, and she laughed a little. "You are far more sensitive than I expected."

"I'm still technically Chat," I reminded her. "Heighted awareness of... everything..." I said, taking a deep breath to attempt focus on something other than the finger making tiny circles around a particularly sensitive portion of my chest, "comes with the deal. And while I admit to being ready... very ready-"

Marinette smiled. "I can tell," she smirked without missing a beat.

"-my, uh, supplies, shall we say, are back at the apartment." I rolled slightly to pull her closer. "We've not exactly discussed this yet, but I assume neither of us are ready for kittens at this stage in our careers."

Looking at me with those drop-dead gorgeous blue eyes, she nodded slightly. "Not yet," she replied as she slowly rolled away from me. "I may or may not have planned for this eventuality," she continued with a bit of a knowing grin as she slid off the chaise.

"That doesn't surprise me, Princess," I said softly as my masked eyes carefully watched her move gracefully away from me.

"Come hither, feline of my heart," Marinette beckoned.

As there was very little I could refuse Milady at this stage, I smoothly tumbled off of the chaise and stalked over to her on all fours, winding my tail around her hips as I slowly stood. Marinette was in front of the small bureau in the corner, atop which she'd stashed her purse earlier. I caught sight of my slightly bared chest in the mirror just behind, amazed again that my zipper, well, unzipped.

Gonna have to ask Plagg what else I can do, I thought as Marinette opened her purse and started to dig.

After a moment, she turned toward me and deftly pulled me close; as she leaned up for a kiss, I felt her press something into my paw. "I've already done my part, Kitty," she whispered as she pulled back. "But like my best Lucky Charms, you have your own, very special role to play as well," Marinette added with a gleeful twinkle in her eyes.

My masked eyes wrinkled with the smile dancing across my lips. "Ladybug leaves nothing to chance," I observed with a sly smile.

"She does not," Marinette laughed as she pulled me toward her again for another, deeper kiss. Parting again, I could tell her breathing had grown a bit more pronounced – mirroring my own heightened respiration.

"Milady," I said a bit huskily, struggling to keep several competing feline instincts in line, "I won't lie. I've fantasized about this for… years." Given her height, she was able to slightly nibble at the edge of my collar as I tried to continue. "I have to admit, I never expected it would be here-"

I stifled a gasp as she continued to work her way along the edge of my collar and then exquisitely slowly planted one kiss after another as she retraced the path the bell had recently travelled. Each kiss sizzled like a bolt of electricity along my exposed skin, and I involuntarily threw my head back with a groan. Hastily, I wrapped my paws around the edge of the desk that she'd somehow managed to maneuver me against, gripping hard in an attempt to steady my rising emotions.

Marinette seemed intent on getting me to cross that line, though; I shuddered again at her gentle touch as she snuck a hand inside my costume, forcing me to squeeze my masked eyes shut as the sensations threated to overwhelm what little was left of my rational fur brain. "I… oh, boy… I really need to detransform…" I warned her as I chanced to open my eyes again. "I'm not sure I can control-"

Marinette pressed a finger to my lips. "Kitty," she breathed, her breath warm against my Adam's apple, "for God's sake, please stop talking."

I would never have imagined her childhood bed would be big enough for two grown adults, but as I leaned on my arm, watching my partner sleep nestled into my chest, it occurred to me that being Miraculous holders had made us something close to professional gymnasts. Somehow, we'd performed more than a few moves in that small space impressive by any Cirque du Soleil standard – and that was after my ring had chirped its final warning, releasing a grateful Plagg who quickly made himself scarce. I wasn't sure, but it looked a bit like Marinette was still smiling, possibly mirroring what I felt was a goofy grin I was wearing myself.

Carefully sliding the sheet over her bare shoulders, I shifted slightly to watch the stars through her skylight, still amazed we had finally reached this moment in our relationship. That it had happened at the Bakery seemed somewhat poetic, given how what I now viewed as my courtship of her had more or less taken place there; how many hours I had spent with her on that rooftop patio, I wasn't entirely sure. But every last one had led me directly to cuddling next to her in the wee hours of the morning.

Sighing, I knew we still had the whole Alya issue to deal with; and certainly, Hawkmoth was still out there, waiting, watching and plotting our downfall. We both needed what this night represented, though, as well as what it portended for our future together as a couple. I wasn't being hyperbolic when I'd told her I planned on marrying her; asking Marinette to share the rest of my life was very much top of mind, more so purrhaps after this special evening together. My scheduled had been dashed courtesy of my maybe-former friend, but maybe that was a good thing in the end.

I felt a Chat smile appear on my face as I turned to look at my slumbering princess. Valentine's Day was coming up, and as cheesy a character as I could be as Chat Noir, the beginnings of a plan were forming in my feline brain that would require my alter-ego extensively. For the moment, though, I was happy to snuggle back into my future spouse, curling around her and closing my eyes as I took in her perfume. It wasn't as strong or as exotically multi-layered for me as Adrien, but still firmly said Marinette as I luxuriated in the closeness of her.

I may have even started to purr as I drifted off to sleep.