Puns! Puns! And more puns! Yes, I had fun writing those. No, I only used about a third of what I came up with. I am more than willing to spam anyone who wants me to annoy them with puns. Marinette starts recruiting her promised allies... and Adrien admits some things to himself.
Marinette and Adrien decided that they should get together to study over the weekend, and tried to work out a time. Saturday was out, since he was busy in the morning, and she had obligations in the afternoon, but they settled on late Sunday morning at her house, with a plan to get outside and do something after lunch.
The rest of the evening was spent on lighter topics, playing Monopoly (he won) and eating chouquettes (raspberry), but both teens held a heaviness in their hearts that they tried desperately not to show the other. As the hour grew later, Adrien's phone chirped, telling them that his ride was outside. Marinette walked him downstairs, pausing at the door to throw her arms around her partner, enveloping him in a tight hug. After a moment of surprise, he returned the hug with the same desperation. The two clung to each other for a minute, before separating, and Adrien headed outside. As he reached his car, he turned and waved, before slipping into the back seat.
As his car pulled away, Marinette turned back into her home, locking the door behind her and heading back up to her room, which already seemed emptier without her kitty's presence. She picked up her phone and texted her partner a reminder that she would always be there for him. Then she sighed and texted Alya, who she knew was dying to hear how her evening had gone. "We're just friends, and I'm OK with that… for now".
Her phone pinged almost immediately with two incoming replies. A "Thanks. I'm here for you, too." With a kitty emoji from Adrien, and a brief diatribe from Alya about how she shouldn't be a pushover. When Marinette pointed out that it wasn't just her feelings involved, and they'd had a real discussion about it, not to mention the fact that she had actually asked out Adrien Agreste, Alya backed off.
Sleep was slow in coming that night, as she thought about Adrien, and how anyone who loved him, or claimed to love him, used him for their own purposes… including her. As Ladybug, she had often relied upon Chat's trust in her in a battle, half explaining plans, or just pointing and expecting him to blindly follow. That trust was what made them such a good team, and she knew that she had the same kind of belief in him. That was the foundation of their partnership, and what made it work so well. On the other hand, her personal interactions with Chat Noir haunted her. She had often been annoyed at his over the top ways, the constant flirting and declarations of his love. She'd become frustrated with his insistence that they belonged together, regardless of how she felt, or what she'd told him. Knowing who he was behind the mask, and understanding the limited social interactions he'd been allowed in his life, and the form that many of those interactions had taken, she felt guilty for never looking too closely at the lonely boy beneath the jokes and cocky banter. Sighing, she resolved to spend more time with both sides of her partner.
The next morning, after the early rush in the bakery, Marinette asked her mother for a few moments of her time. She trusted her mother's advice, and knowing her parents to have always been loving and accepting of any friends she brought home, she briefly outlined her conversation with Adrien the night before. Confessing to Sabine how everyone he loves had used him, and because of this, he valued friendship much higher than anything else. She cried when she got to the part where they were attracted to each other, but he didn't want to date her because he didn't believe she loved him, conveniently leaving out any mention of Ladybug and Chat Noir. "So, Maman, I want him to spend time here. I want him to know that families and love are about so much more than what they can get from each other. Even if he never wants anything more than friendship from me, he deserves to be loved for who he is."
Sabine had tears in her eyes, but her heart swelled with pride at her daughter's thoughtfulness. "Of course we can, dear. Anytime you want to bring him over is fine, just give us a heads up. We'll make sure to feed him properly, too."
"Thanks, Maman!" Marinette threw her arms around her mother. "You and Papa are the best!"
Marinette was in the back of the bakery late that afternoon, decorating cupcakes, when she heard the screams. Running out of the work area to the front windows, she saw that the street had been yarn-bombed. Colorful yarn hung from every surface: street signs, trees, cars, even pedestrians. All were draped in warm scarves, blankets, sweaters and socks. A middle aged woman dressed in a short leather skirt, lace up leather corset and thigh high boots strode down the street and into the park, brandishing a whip in one hand and a pair of knitting needles in the other.
Yelling to her parents that she was going to run out and gather any stragglers into the bakery for safety, then hide out at the school, Marinette hurried the few stragglers (some trailing yarn and unravelling socks) into the bakery, before ducking into an alleyway and calling for her transformation.
Ladybug swung out of the alley, and over to the edge of the park where Domiknitrix was lamenting the lack of respect that hand-made items received. Perching on top of the merry-go-round, Ladybug watched as the Akuma pointed her needles at a bench, and yarn shot out, making a lemon yellow, woolly slipcover, completely hiding the bench from view. From off to her right, she heard "Don't come unraveled, you needle listen to my purls of wisdom!"
Chat Noir hopped down from the fence, leaping and flipping his way across the park, as he avoided getting buried in a giant knit scarf that seemed to be chasing him. "Milady! I'm having a ball out here, but if you want to hook me up with your lucky charm, that would be purrfect!"
For a split second, Ladybug considered letting him get wrapped up in the fluffy white wooliness that was coating everywhere that he had just been, if only to avoid hearing any more yarn-related puns, but she obliged him, tossing her yo-yo into the air, and receiving a red and black spotted hairbrush in return. Looking around, she grasped a branch from the ground and a handful of wet leaves, quickly tying the hairbrush to the end of the branch. With a swing of her yoyo from behind Domiknitrix, over her head, scattering the wet leaves out in front of her over the cement walkway, Ladybug gave one last flip, landing neatly behind Chat Noir. As the akuma slipped on the wet leaves, Ladybug whipped out the branch with the hairbrush, using it like a fishing rod, tangling the bristles of the hairbrush into the blue sock that was appearing at the end of the knitting needles, yanking the bundle from Domiknitrix's hands, dropping the bundle in front of her partner. He disintegrated the needles with a cry of "Cataclysm", gathering the black energy in his right hand, then touching the needles gently with the tip of his fingers.
The deep purple butterfly was caught and purified as it emerged, and, as it was released, Chat said, "Wool you look at that! The tension here was unbelievable! You cut it no problem." When Ladybug face-palmed, he sighed. "My jokes are worsted on you." After a pause, he added "I'm just ribbing you. I know you cannot re-stitch my charms."
In that moment, Ladybug was sorely tempted to throw the hairbrush at her partner, but refrained tossing it up in the air instead, with a cry of "Miraculous Ladybug!", settling for shooting Chat a dirty look. He grinned and offered up his fist to bump, commenting, "You know, there is a great bakery just around the corner, if you're hungry."
Laughing, she bumped his fist, and said, "Are you angling for free pastries, kitty? You know me and my family are always happy to feed you." Ladybug's earring beeped, and she was about to swing off when she realized that she didn't need to. Instead, she reached out and grabbed Chat's wrist, giving him a little tug. "Over here." Releasing his wrist, she swung over to the alley she had transformed in, pulling him back to a secluded corner. Using his body as an additional barrier between her and the world, she said "Tikki, spots off."
Knowing that Ladybug was Marinette and seeing Ladybug become Marinette were two very different things. Chat Noir had spent the past week knowing that his partner was one of his closest friends, but this was the first time he'd ever seen her transform. And frankly, he was more than a little stunned. He didn't realize quite how much he had been staring until Marinette reached up and closed his mouth with one finger, grinning at him. As he continued to stare, Marinette started to get nervous, the smile slipping off her face. "Is it really so bad, Kitty? You knew it was me under the spots."
Her voice kicked his brain into gear again, and he shook himself. "Sorry, that was just… wow. That was just amazing. Plagg, claws in." As Chat Noir faded into Adrien, Marinette understood how he had felt. She'd see the others turn back into their civilian selves, because she had needed to return their Miraculous, so the process wasn't new to her, but seeing her partner change for the first time was different.
She smiled at Adrien, said "Come on, my parents will worry.", and led him back towards the bakery. Entering together, they let the people hanging around know that it was safe, and that the heroes had taken care of the akuma. Most of them were happily standing around talking, enjoying pastries and coffee that her parents provided during akuma attacks. Marinette ran to her Papa, saying that she had made it to the school, and finding Adrien sheltering there, they had hidden together, until they saw the magical swarm of ladybugs, removing yarn from the front steps of College Francoise Dupont.
After a quick hug from each of her parents, for both her and Adrien, Marinette headed back to where she had been working on decorating cupcakes before the akuma had attacked. She pulled up a stool and grabbed a couple of croissants for Adrien, palming a cookie under the counter to where Tikki was hiding. She offered one to Plagg as well, but he just gave her a completely disgusted look. "I'm sure that some people appreciate them. Adrien here raves about your pastries, but I need something with a more delicate flavor." Adrien sighed and reached into his shirt pocket, pulling out a slice of camembert, handing it over to his kwami, who zipped off to join Tikki.
Giggling, Marinette picked up her decorating tools, and was creating violets out of spun sugar, when her mother called out that she had a visitor. Alya came into the room in a whirl of activity, clutching a bag of her own pastries. Noting that her normal stool was occupied, she grabbed a stool at the other workbench, and started talking a mile a minute about the battle, the akuma, and about how Ladybug and Chat Noir seemed to be back on more normal ground… none of the squabbling they had been doing in the weeks leading up to Oblivio, and definitely more at ease than they had immediately after the kiss. She also speculated on the fact that they headed off together in the same direction after the attack. Fortunately, Alya didn't look up to notice the slightly embarrassed look that passed between her friends, or the wholly Chat Noir smirk on Adrien's face when she complimented some of his fancier moves from the most recent fight.
Marinette had her back to her friend, focusing her attention on the cupcakes, but Adrien didn't miss her eyeroll at his preening. Turning his head, so his expression was hidden from Alya, he stuck his tongue out in response to her eyeroll. She crossed her eyes and made fish faces, leaving a streak of icing across her cheek. Adrien tried to make a face at her in return, but burst out laughing instead. That snapped Marinette's control, and she stepped back from the counter, so no harm could come to her work. Alya looked up from the footage on her phone, not knowing what was so funny, only to see Adrien bent almost double on his stool, and Marinette with her back against the wall next to him, hands covering her face, shaking with mirth. The two had almost completely stopped snickering, and Adrien was able to sit up straight, when they made eye contact. Adrien widened his eyes and cocked an eyebrow at her, which set Marinette off again, to the point where she toppled over, ending up practically sitting in his lap. He just wrapped his arms around her so she didn't fall to the ground, and started shaking as laughter overtook him once more. Alya watched them with a shake of her head and an indulgent smile. The second time they'd calmed down, Adrien still held his partner in place with an arm around her waist, Alya asked, "What was that all about?"
With a glance at each other, the two answered in unison, "I have no idea."
Shaking her head, Alya went back to polishing up her post for the Ladyblog. When she was done, she posted with a triumphant "There!" and Adrien immediately picked up his phone to read it, as Marinette shuffled back to the counter to finish up the last of her cupcakes. As she was boxing them up, Adrien's phone pinged, signaling that his bodyguard was outside to pick him up. With a wave at the girls, and a "See you tomorrow" for Marinette, he headed out into the evening.
Alya turned on her best friend. "Spill. What was that all about, girl? And talk to me about this 'friends for now' ridiculousness."
Marinette could feel herself turning pink, but she looked at Alya as she cleaned up the last of the decorating supples. "What? He was making faces at me. It was funny!"
"Girl, you ended up sitting in his lap. He held you there. You still say you are just friends?"
"Yes, Alya. He stopped me from falling on the floor. Come on upstairs, we'll talk."
Knowing she'd get answers, she followed Marinette upstairs to her room. Alya lounged on the chaise, while Marinette sat in her desk chair. "So…" prompted Alya.
Marinette recapped the past twenty four hours for her, "Basically, everyone who has claimed to love him has used him, so he things friends mean a million times more. I want to show him that he is wrong, but I'm not going to push him or pressure him, because that would make him continue believing the way he has. By his definition, I am okay being his friend."
Nodding, Alya hugged her. "That's really horrible. Whatever you need, I'm here for you. Both of you. We'll show him what love really is."
Back in his room, Adrien was supposed to be practicing his piano. Instead, he was pacing his room, tugging on his hair, trying to figure out Ladybug. Who was Marinette Dupain-Cheng. "Plagg, During that akuma fight today… I told her what to do, and she just did it. No question, no hesitation. Why?"
"Kid, she is your partner. You both do that. You trust each other. Yes, she is usually the one with the plans, but when you suggest something, she always listens to you."
Thinking back on it, Ladybug had always listened to his plans and his advice. He was just usually too busy throwing himself at the akuma to come up with any ideas of his own. He distinctly remembered a few times when she'd been stumped and asked his advice. How could he have forgotten that? It was a very Marinette thing for Ladybug to do.
His thoughts of Ladybug turned into thoughts of the new Marinette. He realized that she hadn't really changed that much, it was only in how she acted with him – Adrien him. He thought about how her stutter had disappeared, and her blushes were mostly gone, too. He thought bout how she treated him as a combination of Adrien and Chat Noir, which he guessed he was. He thought about how she rolled her eyes at him, or smacked his bicep when he was trying to get a rise out of her. He thought about the way she smelled like vanilla, cinnamon and sugar. He shook his head and pushed that thought away. She was so much more than her beautiful face and breathtaking smile. She was a friend, she cared about him, and he wasn't going to do anything to jeopardize that. He loved her, Ladybug and Marinette, he knew that, but he was so scared of losing her, he couldn't imagine his life without her warmth in it. He couldn't wait to see her tomorrow, even just doing homework. Considering and discarding the idea of visiting Marinette as Chat Noir, he settled in to wait, making sure he had everything ready for the next day.