Truth and Masks
Chapter 1
Ladybug dropped onto the shadowed rooftop and ran her bluebell gaze to the beauty of the Eiffel Tower, standing out all lit up in contrast to the late-night darkness. She quickly scanned for Cat Noir, this being one of their pre-agreed upon meeting sites. The area had plenty of nooks and crannies to conceal them from possible prying eyes or camera lenses. Even when people were just curious about Paris' superhero duo and had no malignant intentions, constantly being photographed or having questions or compliments shouted their way was inconvenient when stealth was more often their best tool.
She walked a slow circuit around the broad chimney that dominated the space, bending over to pick up a stone and bouncing it absently on her palm but her slow search did not produce her shaggy blonde kitty. Sitting on the low ledge, she idly swung one leg slowly in a gentle circle. On their own accord, her thoughts strayed to the preparations that she and the rest of the fall dance committee were hammering out. Though at this point, even she had gotten her fill of talk of banners, color schemes, refreshments, and themes.
She was so absorbed by her own reflections that she failed to notice Cat Noir's quiet arrival behind her. Tapping her lips slowly with one finger, Ladybug stared off into nothing. Cat Noir took the opportunity to soak her in unobserved, feeling his heart quicken as it always did around his Lady. He paused, mesmerized by her beautiful features bathed in moonlight. A mischievous smile suffused his features and he swaggered over to stand right behind her.
His arm slipped around her lightning quick and took hold of her free hand, spinning her and pulling her to her feet in one fluid motion. Raising her arm above her head, he twirled her in an improvised dance maneuver, dipping her at the end. Their noses swung close, just failing to touch, and he stared deeply into her surprised eyes. He simply enjoyed her closeness for the count of several heartbeats.
"Evening, milady. Dreaming about me again I see. But don't worry, I'm here to make all your dreams come true. I'll whisker you away and give you the world. But first a kiss," he said flirtatiously, smiling like he really was a cat and she his snared mouse.
"Now who is dreaming, kitty cat," she replied, laughter heavy in her words. Her hand rose and she gently nudged his chin away from her while skillfully slithering from his grasp.
"Ha! You're underestimating how purr-suasive I can be, Bugaboo." He twirled his tail in lazy circles and leaned against the nearest chimney, adopting a signature cocky pose she knew only too well.
"Don't call me that," she said offhandedly. She stared off into the city again. "Did you run into any trouble on the way here, Cat? It's been so calm recently and that tends to make me nervous. What is Shadow Moth up to I wonder. It's exhausting anticipating an akumatized villain waiting to jump out of every shadow." she mused, brows drawing together in consternation. The only sign of the fatigue that washed over her was a small sigh, but her fingers moved to pinch the bridge of her nose.
"Shadow Moth has been uncharacteristically absent, it's true. Never fear, you know I'll always be here to keep you safe from shadows that might stalk you, milady." He waggled his eyebrows suggestively. "I didn't see anything out of the ordinary creeping in the night either. I did a quick patrol around the neighborhood before you got here, and nothing is stirring out there." His features transformed into seriousness for the first time.
Ladybug nodded her acknowledgement. "Well, it's not getting any earlier. Shall we get this done, kitty?" Without waiting for an affirmative, she threw her yoyo at a distant building and zipped off into the darkened sky followed closely by the once again grinning Cat Noir.
"I would follow you anywhere, milady." He said it very low, but at the small shake of her head he knew she had heard the comment.
He saw the tension dominating her posture as they skipped from building to building in great bounds and was determined to raise her spirits and return a smile to her lips. Great lips he mused, losing track of his thoughts for an instant. A cat could dream, right? He increased his speed and bounded effortlessly along the Paris rooftops to overtake her.
He began a complex series of tumbles followed by an elaborate double barrel roll finished off by a perfect landing. He posed dramatically in front of Ladybug with a flourish and grinned widely at her. Of course, he felt the need to narrate the performance with energetic gusto.
"Ta-da!" He gave her his most dazzling crooked grin and winked at her.
She stopped in front of him, and he was rewarded with a small chuckle. "Cat. Cat." Shaking her head she continued ruefully, "Turns out the good news is that you have the career security of the circus to fall back on if everything else fails, kitty." She chuckled and gently stroked the underside of his chin.
"I can see it now," he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and waved his hand in an arc, indicating a scene unfolding in front of them. "Come one, come all. See the great and marvelous Cat-dini: rescuer of innocents and lover of Ladybugs." He laughed then and she couldn't help but join him.
"You're incorrigible."
"I'm adorable," he proclaimed and jumped off the roof letting out a 'wwwweeee'.
They went through the rest of their patrol, bantering lightly and laughing together with the ease of long hours spent in each other's company. He never had this much fun with anyone else. They eventually closed the circle and landed back at their starting point.
"I have to be getting home now, Kitty. It's late and I'm afraid I still have a long list of things to do before I get to enjoy my bed. Goodnight. See you soon. Bug out!" She was away before he could ask her what was so important or offer his help with her worries.
"Night milady." His call was carried after her on a light breeze.
She was gone. And he was all alone, again. Cat wasn't able to fight off that feeling. He didn't want to go back to the cold silent house that awaited him. He found himself wondering the city aimlessly without a purpose or destination. Usually the freedom of being in his Cat Noir persona was enough to make him joyful and carefree, but tonight the loneliness overtook him fiercely with the absence of Ladybug.
How long had he been out roaming Paris? He scanned his surroundings until his eyes fell on a slight figure leaning against the iron railing of a small rooftop balcony. Marinette. He smiled and extended his staff without conscience thought, moving towards his school friend. He landed gracefully beside her, balancing on the small platform a few feet from her. Marinette squeaked and jumped backwards. Her arms flailed in wild circles as she tried to regain her balance and keep from falling on her backside. As she had done so too many times for comfort. Her clumsiness caused her no end of headaches. But Cat moved fast. He reached out and caught her with one arm, pulling her close.
"Cat Noir! What are you doing here? Is everything alright? Is there an akuma?" She looked with unrestrained concern for the threat before noticing the arm gently wrapped around her waist, steadying her.
"N-no no! Nothing like that. Everything is fine. I was out…you know with Ladybug. I-I just happened to be in the area and saw you out here. It's been a long time since I haunted your little hide away. Eh ha ha ha." Why was he here he asked himself?
Though of late he had been seeing more and more of her. Not as Cat Noir, of course. But they had worked on several team projects recently, the group had gotten ice cream more than once and he got to see her at all the Kitty Section events. He was always impressed by her creativity. She did all the costume designs for the band and brought all those ideas to life, making everything herself. How could he forget when he found out she was the mind behind the newest Jagged Stone cover art. That particular piece of signed memorabilia held precedence in a frame on his bedroom wall.
She was always eager to help a friend out and her kindness drew him towards her. He had even trusted her enough to seek her out for relationship advice. Plus, she was really smart, and he felt he had to always do his best in the classroom to match her. He was no slouch in school if for no other reason than to deny his father the smallest excuse to remove him from it. An Agreste must always be the image of perfection after all. He would have to wait and see which of them would take first place in grades for their class.
Marinette wasn't used to seeing Cat Noir as anything but exuberant and cocky. But right then he clutched the back of his neck and laughed at her nervously, though the laughter never reached his eyes. Instead, they looked pinched with a faintly hopeless darkness.
"Oh…ok then." She couldn't hide the puzzlement she felt from seeping into her voice. Marinette moved away from him and put a small space between them. "But wouldn't you rather be home with your family or friends? It's pretty late." She looked into his emerald eyes that seemed to glow in the low light and smiled sweetly up at him. The sadness she perceived in them concerned and confused her. What was wrong with Kitty? When she left him, he had been about his antics, making her laugh and flirting shamelessly.
He smiled back but it failed to reach his eyes. She does have wonderful eyes and so kind. She used those eyes to take him all in, openly appraising him. His thought took him aback. It was true though that if anyone could be counted on to tackle any problem, fix any issues or solve any problem on account of a friend, it was Marinette. He had seen her spring into action on many occasions for friends and causes alike, himself included. Maybe that was the reason he found himself on her balcony with the strong sensation of being a stray kitten.
As tired as Marinette was her partner's odd demeanor had her worried and she intended to find out why. "Do you want to take a seat, Cat Noir?" she asked softly. He looked around, seeing only one chair, which was covered by a familiar binder containing a multitude of papers for the upcoming dance he was a part of planning along with her at school.
"There's only one seat. My lady." He bowed theatrically, waving at the chair.
"I insist," she giggled and gave his chest a little shove.
He moved the binder aside carefully and sat with a sigh. Enough of his brazen confidence remained for him to draw on liberally enough to lounge in a cocksure manner. He reclined at his apparent ease, arms behind his head. He even shot her a wink and a smile.
"So, do you want to tell me what is making you avoid your own house to haunt mine in the middle of the night? Did you have plans that fell through with Ladybug again?" At his slight start, she rushed to add, "Not that I'm complaining. The famous hero Cat Noir paying Marinette Dupain-Cheng a midnight visit." She gave a half-hearted shaky laugh. "You certainly have built up your credit, saving me on more occasions than I'd like to recall." She turned from the railing and gave him her best beaming smile, eyes wide and open with honesty.
The mischief returned full force when he replied, "You do seem to find yourself in a scratch more often than anyone…other than Chloe Bourgeois that is. I would not have imagined you capable of causing enough chaos to get so many villains' attention. You're so sweet after all. I can tell how much you care about your friends and them about you!"
"Um, t-thank you. Who would imagine you knew so much about me?" She couldn't stop a light blush and her eyes darted to examine her shoes for an instant before returning to his. "You know you're amazing yourself. I follow all your exploits on the Ladyblog, which isn't really a matter of choice at times when Alya is your best friend." She shot him a conspiratorial glance that was gone in a flash. "Ladybug is very lucky to have you as her partner!" She rushed out, voice hitching up an octave. He preened under her compliments and her heart lifted a bit at the sight. There you are kitty.
"She really is, isn't she!" He took a hand away from supporting his head long enough to perform a little flex. Marinette just shook her head with a snort. It was her own fault; compliments went right to his head.
He looked at her then. Really looked and was surprised by the fatigue playing across the planes of her face. He sat up in concern and leaned towards her.
"Are you alright, princess? You seem really tired, even taking into account it's after midnight."
She sighed, her shoulders slumping a fraction.
Her voice came out so low he barely caught the words at first. "I just have a lot of responsibilities of late. It can feel like a mountain on my shoulders at times, weighing on me." Her voice grew stronger with positive determination. "I simply cannot fail. For everyone. For the greater good. I must stay positive for everyone's sake," her voice trailed off just as softly as it had begun. Then as if she had just heard her own words she brightened and picked up speed. "Oh, you know. I'm just a little tired. Everything is fine. No! Great! Everything is great. Great. That's what it is." It all spilled out so fast he had trouble keeping up.
He wondered what in her life could be stressing her out to the point of exhaustion. Was it school? Working part time for her parents? Class rep? The greater good…what did that refer to? Was she talking about the school dance? None of it seemed to add up to the picture of a strong but exhausted combatant he saw before him.
"I understand. I feel like I am forced to wear a mask day to day also. There are lofty expectations placed on me and it forces me to sacrifice the things I would truly like to be doing. It can feel as though I'm trapped in an existence not of my choosing. Forced to play the parts dictated for me."
The bone deep sadness that crept over Cat Noir shocked Marinette, but he felt he could unburden himself here with her whereas Ladybug always vetoed any details of their lives that could unmask their identities. But this was Marinette, his friend, and she couldn't possibly know that the Cat before her and Adrien were one and the same. He trusted that friend enough that he could drop the façade that was Adrien and unburden himself of the darker self-inspection that the carefree cat that was known through Paris could not.
She had never seen anything like this in him before. She knew how much he loved being Cat Noir, so that surely couldn't be the source of this. She couldn't count the number of times he had gleefully declared his love of being a hero. So, what was it then? A feeling of familiarity caused a series of questions to tumble through her mind about a different blond. But in her memory, this was all so totally foreign in her sweet, joyful, almost childlike Kitty. And where were his distinctive cat puns hiding?
A gust of chilled wind picked up the edge of her thin excuse for a jacket, more style than function, and she shivered. Cat didn't miss her discomfort and felt a jab of gilt for keeping her out, but he was loath to end their chat. He patted the seat beside him in compromise.
She moved to his side, and he wordlessly made room for her on the small chair, which left them pressed flush. Their sides huddled together, he served as an effective wind block. They passed a few moments in companionable silence enjoying what stars the Paris lights didn't drown into non-existence. He took the time to enjoy how her presence warmed him, both physically and emotionally. Their heads turned and she sent him a steady gaze, it seemed the heat of the sun beamed from her eyes. The ice that held him in gloom melted under that blue warmth.
"Although I don't know what your 'other' life entails, I do commiserate, Cat. If you need a shoulder, I have two pretty good ones. It seems to me like many of my choices have been taken from me too in recent months." He turned away from the pleasant view of Paris to look down at her, their closeness registering in Cat Noir's mind fully and making him wonder how her simple touch could provide the solace he was soaking up thirstily. He didn't get to see her this way often. It was nice every time he did. She had talked this openly and confidently around Adrien on occasion.
He stopped gazing at her long enough to find his voice. "Anything I can help you with, Marinette? I am a famous hero after all. It's what I do. Official black knight ready for battle, princess. I see a damsel in distress and must pounce into action," he joked, utilizing his patent Cat smile. He bumped her with his shoulder lightly.
She chuckled and patted his hand in a friendly gesture. "Put that shining armor away for now, sir knight. I know you would help anyone who needed it. Thank you anyway for the kind offer. You're a really special person, Cat." She took him by surprise again by laying her head on his shoulder. "You just being you and listening is enough for me," she smiled so brightly once again, and he shocked himself by restraining the unexpected desire to pull her into a hug. He could only imagine how fast she would run off at that little unexpected and unexplained gesture.
He didn't know quite what to do next as a - not uncomfortable - silence once again crept over them. As he thought it over, he felt her small form relax against him and her head slipped a fraction down his shoulder. His mind absently wondered for a few minutes just letting her rest and Cat found he was enjoying seeing this side of Marinette. They were friends but this wasn't how a lot of their interactions went. He ran his eyes down to her, realizing that she had fallen asleep. He huffed out a small laugh.
"Sweet dreams, Marinette."
What kind of guy would he be if he just left her on this balcony all night, but what was he to do? He noticed the hatch leading down to her bedroom a few steps away but hesitated. Was it going to land him in hot water to just go into her private space without an invitation? After taking a beat to consider, he supposed it was just going to have to be an acceptable risk. He turned and, as gently as possible, pulled her into his arms, doing everything in his power not to wake her. She looked almost angelic in her sleep. He took a private moment to study her, features completely relaxed.
"It's ok," he whispered to the motionless figure. "I've got you."
He rose slowly and slipped smoothly down into her bedroom with a cat's grace. It was dark inside, but his improved night vision made everything appear sharp and clear. He placed her gently on the small mattress, only briefly looking at the photos adorning the corkboard beside the mattress. He was the subject of quite a lot of them.
"Research," he mumbled, remembering her nervous and disjointed explanation beside her locker. He pulled the blanket around her carefully and sighed. Time to go home while he still had a chance of getting any real rest. He slipped out soundlessly not being able to suppress the little smile lifting the corners of his mouth.
A/N:
I love to hear all your thoughts. I've even been known to edit based off of comments. So, comment away. It's not as easy as I remembered so I'm trying to shake the dust off this ole keyboard.