Okay, okay. So season three was a disaster. But who knows? Maybe it'll pull a RWBY Volume 5 on us and get better next season. It's possible, right? Right???

Well, whatever. I didn't come this far to give up now.

Chat Noir often fell for Ladybug--usually in more ways than one.

With a jolt, he found himself dangling by his ankle, his head mere inches from the ground. He struggled to look up and saw that Ladybug had caught him with her yoyo--yet again.

She pulled him up, grabbing his hand and helping him onto one of the cross-beams of the Eiffel Tower. She snickered as he clambered up, his face pale.

"Nice save, milady," he said, brushing himself off and pretending not to be disturbed with how close he'd just been to breaking his neck. "That was, uh, close."

She grinned cheekily. "What would you do without me?"

Chat glanced over the edge at the pavement below. "Die, probably."

The akuma they were fighting seemed pretty tame, so neither of them were particularly worried--at least, no more than usual. Besides flying around and generally creeping everyone out, it didn't seem to be up to much. So Ladybug and Chat Noir were taking their time, using the news to track the akuma down and chasing after it. As soon as they'd get close, though, the akuma would abandon its perch and fly away on its giant, opalescent wings. It was actually quite beautiful to watch.

"Next sighting is by the Louvre," Chat said, watching a report on his staff. "We should probably come up with a better strategy to take it down, or this could take hours."

Ladybug sat down, her legs hanging over the side of the beam. "I know," she sighed, "but it's such a nice day, and the heat is making me so tired."

"You think you've got it bad? My suit is black." He sat down next to her, taking a moment to rest in the shade. "Maybe you should use Lucky Charm?"

To his surprise, Ladybug rested her head on his shoulder, her eyes slipping shut. "Just a few more minutes," she muttered.

He looked down at her softly, a look meant for no one but her. "Have you been getting enough sleep, milady?"

"When do I ever?" she murmured.

He snorted. "Same."

They sat like that for a while before Chat forced himself to break the spell. He nudged her awake, smiling fondly when she nuzzled against his shoulder, her brow furrowed in sleepy defiance.

"Come on, Bugaboo. Now's not the time for a catnap."

Finally she sat up, rubbing at her eyes and stretching. "Sorry," she said through a yawn. "I've been staying up way too late trying to solve this festival conundrum."

"Oh, you're going?" He got to his feet and helped her up. "I figured you wouldn't want to."

"I don't, but my kwami convinced me that I should. Why, are you not?"

Chat shrugged. "I'll go if you're going."

"What are you going to wear?"

"No clue. You?"

"I'm working on it." She grabbed her yoyo, stifling another yawn. "Come on, let's go take down this bird-thing."

"You got it."

It didn't take them long to realize that they weren't going to be able to sneak up on it. They decided they'd try to draw it out, but in order to do that, they'd have to figure out what it wanted, and this akuma didn't seem as talkative as the others usually were. Eventually, they decided to just watch it from afar for a little while, see what it would do.

"This thing is starting to weird me out," Ladybug commented, falling into a crouch. They were watching from the roof of some giftshop and snacking on some candy Chat had bought inside. "Why isn't it moving? Why isn't it coming after our Miraculouses?"

"It may be time to use your Lucky Charm," Chat said, munching on a handful of jellybeans.

"Yeah, you're probably right." She threw her yoyo up, saying, "Lucky Charm!"

A pair of binoculars fell into her hands. Chat gave her a questioning look. She shrugged and held them up to her eyes.

The pale, hawklike figure sat perched atop a lampost, gazing down at Paris with its beady black eyes. Its feathers shimmered, reflecting hues of purple and green and giving the impression of movement, though the figure was perfectly still. Ladybug watched as a purple mask appeared around its face and its mouth opened, forming sentences she couldn't hear.

"What do you see?"

"It's talking to Hawkmoth," Ladybug said, almost to herself, "but I can't tell what it's saying."

"Here," Chat said, holding out his hand. "I can read lips."

Ladybug seriously doubted that, but she handed the binoculars over anyway and took the opportunity to steal a few jellybeans. Chat watched the bird for a few seconds before giving up and handing the Lucky Charm back to Ladybug.

"I cannot read lips," he admitted.

She snorted. "Uh, yeah. I kinda figured."

She looked through the binoculars again. The purple mask was gone, and the bird still hadn't moved. Her earrings beeped.

"This isn't working," she growled, resisting the urge to just chuck the binoculars at it. (She was pretty sure she could hit it.)

"Relax," Chat said. "Just go feed your kwami and then come back."

"But I'll lose the Lucky Charm. What if we need it?"

"Well, do you know anyone who might have real binoculars?"

Ladybug sighed. "I guess my dad might..." She shook her head. "I still have four minutes. Let's keep looking."

She decided to change her approach, looking at the ground beneath the bird rather than the bird itself. The park below was crowded with people setting up for some event, hanging banners and constructing booths. She spotted a red and black flag, and suddenly, everything became clear.

"It's watching over the festival preparations," she realized. "Hawkmoth must be planning something."

"Well, that settles it, then," Chat said. "We have to go."

"You might be right. If Hawkmoth is planning something big for the festival, we have to be there to protect the people. Unless..."

"Unless what?"

"Unless he wants us to go," Ladybug said, standing up. "Maybe he's planning to take our Miraculouses while we dance, or--"

"Hold up. We're going to dance?" He grinned brilliantly. "You and me? We're going to dance? Together?"

Ladybug flushed and glared at him. "No."

"But we were? Before I said something?"

"No!"

His smile grew wider. "No, but--I want to. I would love to dance with you, my lady."

Her blush deepened, and she pouted. "Well, are you going to be a jerk about it if we do? Telling reporters we're a couple and stuff?"

"I won't, I promise! Cross my heart," he said, and did so.

She crossed her arms, looking away. "...We'll see."

He beamed at her.

Ladybug's earrings beeped again, and she looked back at the akuma one more time. "I don't think it'll do anything, do you?"

Chat shrugged and stood up. "If it does, we'll take care of it."

She nodded. "I'll get going, then. Let me know if you hear anything, alright?"

"Sure thing, Bugaboo."

She gave him one last smile, then jumped off the roof, swinging through the city and finally disappearing.

Chat didn't stop smiling for the rest of the day.

"Marinette!"

Marinette jumped at the sound of Alya's voice and quickly shoved Ladybug's skirt into her desk drawer before the trapdoor opened. Alya poked her head in, smiling. "I've got a surprise for you~!"

Alya climbed up, a dress cover in hand.

"Oh, Alya, you didn't--" Marinette began, but Alya shushed her.

"I saw it when I was picking out Nino's tie and just had to get it for you!"

She unzipped the bag and revealed a pink, off-the-shoulder dress with a long, flowing skirt and a black ribbon around the waist. Marinette had to stop herself from gasping; the fabric was absolutely gorgeous, and it moved so perfectly for the shape of the skirt.

"I knew you'd like it!" Alya said.

Marinette pursed her lips, trying to hide how much she really did love it. "It's beautiful, Alya, but..." She found herself touching the skirt gingerly, entranced by its beauty. "I told you already that I'm not going to the ball..."

"Just try it on! If you still don't want to go, I won't make you."

"Oh...alright," Marinette relented. "But just for a minute."

Alya squealed, and Marinette disappeared behind the pink-and-brown folding screen in the corner of her room. She felt strange putting on such an elegant dress, like she was playing dress-up. When she came out from behind the screen, Alya gasped, her eyes lighting up.

"Whoa! You look amazing, Marinette! You're gonna be turning heads at the ball!" She caught herself. "Er, if you go."

Marinette stood in front of the mirror, admiring the way the dress clung to her waist. The skirt was a bit long, but it would be an easy fix. She could even add her own designs to the borders.

"So? So? Will you go?" Alya asked, jumping up and down.

Marinette shook herself out of her designer's trance. "Well...it is very beautiful... How much did it cost?"

"Oh, don't worry about that. Consider it an early birthday present." She grabbed Marinette's shoulders, grinning at at her in the mirror. "So?!"

"Oh...alright."

"YES!"

Alya pumped her fist, and Marinette smiled. Looks like Alya's getting her way again, she thought, though this time, she didn't really mind.

I gave Marinette a Shoji screen because she should have one. It would be so cute, and plus, her mom is Chinese.

(Before you yell at me in the reviews, Shoji screens did originate in China, even if Japan is more famous for them. Don't believe me? Look it up.)

I gave y'all some LadyNoir today because I like it, and also because canon has been doin' us dirty. Also, just so y'all know, I started this fic in, like, 2016 or something, so pretty much none of season two or three has happened in this. That means no Rena Rouge, no Carapace, no Luka or Kagami, etc. I could just pretend it hasn't been three years since I started writing this and put them in anyway, but I'm not going to.

Thanks for reading!