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Chapter 8: Please Feel Better

She would make a very good counsellor. Marinette was a brilliant baker and a phenomenal artist in terms of her designs, but the way she listened… It was so liberating.

"And then?" she prompted, hands set in his blond hair. Every so often, the tips of her fingers would brush against his mask, gentle and unassuming.

"And then I hid my friend in the closet and my attendant went away," he said, laughing. "I think it was the most exciting thing I'd ever done."

Marinette nodded, her own mouth curving into a smile. "But you're Cat Noir. You've done tons of exciting things, you know? You are a superhero after all."

Cat Noir sighed. "It was the most exciting thing my civilian self had ever done. Not like you, though." He gazed at her, green eyes appreciating the light his friend seemed to radiate. "You're all over the place."

She blinked curiously at him. "I am?"

Thinking on his feet (or rather, on his back) Cat Noir covered for himself, saying, "Anyone who is anyone knows the work you did for Jagged Stone. You were on the covers of a lot of magazines. And Gabriel Agreste acknowledged your hat."

Her hand stopped moving. "How did you hear about that?"

"I get around. I have my sources." Cat Noir inched closer to her fingers as a silent prompt for her to continue.

"Sure you do." She scratched at his scalp affectionately. "You sound plenty exciting as a civilian, although I can't imagine him spewing as many puns as you."

"He's actually the most boring person I know."

"He's my competition then," Marinette said idly, her gaze out at the starry sky over the city of lights. "As interesting as you think I am, I'm pretty plain."

"You're purr-ty. Period."

"You flatter me." Marinette pushed the plate of cookies closer to Cat Noir's head. "That earns you another one."

He winked at her from his spot on her lap. "Thank you, Marinette." She continued petting his hair, an echo of another pretty woman dancing in his memory.

"Marinette? I'm not a princess anymore?" she teased lightly.

"You are. I-" He paused. Should he be saying this? Ladybug had always been careful to make sure they didn't let slip who they were as civilians to anybody; not the press, and certainly not each other. The Ladyblog was full of speculative guesses on who Ladybug and Cat Noir could be. Marinette was friends with Alya, who ran the Ladyblog herself. It would be dangerous to give her that much insight into who he was, right?

"Yes?" That one word coupled by her innocent smile was enough to commit him to the truth. She was so easy to talk to. Too easy. So maybe Ladybug didn't want them spilling the truth about themselves in great detail to each other. Maybe that was safer.

But Marinette wasn't Ladybug. She was his friend. He felt as safe as could be in her presence, and divulging just a little wouldn't hurt. If anything, it would be a relief to share something less than beautiful with her. She'd already seen his worry once. She hadn't been scared away by it. In fact, she'd seemed to welcome his visits, saying that if it put him at ease, she'd gladly meet with him more often.

"I miss my mother."

"Oh."

They were quiet together, his tongue burning after the words. "I'm not the same person I was when she disappeared. She was pretty too. And plenty kind." Marinette's mouth took on a soft smile, a sad smile, and there was something familiar in it that he couldn't place. He wasn't sure if it made him happier or more melancholic to see it on her face.

"I'm sorry, kitty." Marinette tapped his shoulder and he sat up, sitting before her with green eyes wide and worried. She pulled him in carefully, giving him ample time to pull away if he desired.

He did not.

Her hug was warm and plenty welcome. It had been so long since he'd gotten a real hug from a someone. He had been limited to Nino's arm slung over his shoulder, Chloe's body desperately thrown against his in an attempt for attention, and Ladybug, bare and strong on the rare occasions that she allowed for hugs. His father's hugs were rare and always left him feeling a bit out of place. Marinette, though, was warm and kind and completely open to affection in a way Ladybug had never been, and Cat Noir soaked up the attention, drinking it through his suit to plaster the crack on his heart.

"I'm sorry," she said. Her breath landed softly against his hair as she hugged him tighter. "I didn't know."

"How could you?" Cat Noir said bitterly. "You don't really know me." Not for the first time, he wished that he, as Adrien, was closer to Marinette. What were the odds that he could get Marinette's kind affection both with and without the suit?

"You're brave and clever and kind and that's what matters." Marinette's voice was firm as she said, "It's not your fault."

"What are you talking about?" he mumbled into her shoulder.

"No amount of bad luck will ever make it your fault, okay?" she continued. "Maybe you thought it and maybe you didn't, but whatever you feel towards this, it isn't your fault. It never will be."

His head rubbed affectionately against hers as he nodded and felt oddly at peace despite the topic. That Marinette could so clearly see through him made him happier than he thought it would. This was nothing like Ladybug's escape. This was acceptance for who he was and what he was about. This meant the world to him. He had not needed to tell her that his mother was gone; simply missing her had warranted a kind word and a sympathetic hug from his classmate. It meant the world to him.

"Thank you." Cat Noir's voice might have been low but he knew Marinette had heard it, and he hoped that his hug could convey how thankful he was that they were friends