!Trigger Warning! Panic attacks and a general theme of panic throughout (The most descriptive panic attack has a TW before and after so you can skip it)
Marinette and Chat Noir are laying on the chaise. Her arms are wrapped around him and he's holding two fistfuls of her shirt. She's playing with his hair. Spirited Away is on, but neither are paying attention.
"Do you wanna talk or do you just wanna lay here and listen to the movie?" She would have said watch, but with his head buried in her chest, he isn't able to see the screen.
His hold on her tightens. "I could use a distraction… You were gone for a while, earlier. It doesn't take that long to walk to school and back. Did something happen?"
"I actually ran into Kagami and she asked me to spar with her."
"Oh." Is all he says, but his head buzzes with thoughts. I haven't even thought about Kagami. Marinette was only gone for a couple hours and I missed her terribly, but I haven't seen Kagami in a week. Do I not like her as much as I thought I did? Or is Marinette just special?
"Hey, don't feel guilty about leaving her without a fencing partner, okay? It's Hawkmoth's fault, not yours." She presses her chin on the top of his head.
He wasn't feeling guilty before, but now that she's brought it up, he somehow feels guilty for not feeling guilty. "Y-yeah, I know."
Marinette sighs. "I know you said you wanted a distraction, but I don't think I'm doing a very good job of that anyway so, I just wanna say I'm sorry about today. I don't know what I did to upset you but-"
"You didn't do anything; you don't have anything to apologize for, Marinette. You're like this kind, angel human that actually cares about me. I'm incredibly lucky to have you in my life."
"But at dinner you-"
He cuts her off. "I realized for the first time that it's normal for other people to care if I'm hungry. I thought that was just a 'you' thing, because you're so nice and you just care about everybody all the time. I wasn't upset with you. I just… It was a lot to take in."
She smiles, "O-Oh… Well, lucky for you, being friends with the baker's daughter means you get free food for life."
Instead of responding, he nuzzles her chest with his head and purrs softly. Marinette bites her lip to keep from laughing and instead focuses on running her hands through his hair. He purrs louder when she moves to scratch behind one of his ears.
"Y'know, I think that's one of my favorite sounds." She doesn't think before the words tumble out and he can tell she regrets them when he abruptly stops and her hands tense in his hair.
He hugs her closer, "I'm really self conscious about it."
"Well, I like it." She pokes him in the nose to emphasize her point, "It's because of the Miraculous, right? You can't do it when you're not transformed?"
He looks up at her, eyes wide. "I need to detransform! I can't believe I almost forgot again. Plagg, claws in." In a quick flash of green, Adrien takes Chat Noir's place and Plagg appears in the air above them.
The kwami plops down on Marinette's forehead. "You guys are cute and all, but I still haven't gotten any camembert today after SOMEONE forgot to release me from my prison before falling asleep."
"Plagg, we fed you this morning." Marinette waves him off, "Don't be so dramatic."
"You fed me BRIE! It hardly compares." He narrows his eyes at her.
Adrien sighs, "Brie is a fine cheese and there's more of it on the table over there. If you're in such dire need of food, it should suffice."
Plagg stomps on Marinette's face, "Do you have camembert downstaIrs?"
"Irrelevant." She swipes him off of her with her hand.
He lets out an offended gasp, "So you do, and you're just going to let this poor kitten starve."
"Oh, put a sock in it." She turns back to the show and continues stroking Adrien's hair. She doesn't get to stay for long though because her phone starts ringing. She pats the bed around her in an attempt to find it when she realizes she left her phone sitting on the chaise.
She turns around and looks over the railing to see Plagg floating over the phone and smiling at her. She bites her lip, "... Who is it?"
He looks down at the phone to check, "Alya." Marinette's eyes widen and Plagg's smile grows as he flies closer.
"Plagg." Marinette musters as much warning into her tone as she can.
He bares his fangs in a menacing grin, Click.
She grimaces, "Alya?"
"Marinette? Why do you sound so far away?"
She scrambles towards her phone, "One second! I dropped my phone off of the bed, I gotta come get it!" She pulls the phone up to her ear and after a few deep breaths says, "Okay, I'm here."
"How have you not broken your phone yet?"
She laughs. "I have. Like 20 times. Luckily Max has always been able to fix it."
"That makes sense." Alya takes a deep breath, "Okay look, I'm sorry I reacted the way I did yesterday, I can't believe I thought for even a second that you would bully someone."
"Thanks, Al. I'm glad you finally came to your senses."
"I mean, I'm trying to picture sweet, innocent Marinette Dupain-Cheng as a mean-spirited bully in my head and I just can't. It's honestly kind of funny if you think about it."
"Yeah," She snorts, "I totally bullied Lila."
Alya laughs, "You evil, evil girl. What was your motive?"
Marinette quotes their earlier conversation, "It was fun. I mean, how could it not be? She deserved it."
"Listen, Marinette, I'm really glad we could clear the air, but what was it that you were going to tell me?"
"Oh, well… it's just that… Oh! My mom's calling me, sorry Alya! I have to go!" She abruptly hangs up before letting out a long sigh of relief.
"What was that?" Adrien calls from behind her.
She whips around to face him, "I forgot you were here for a second." She shrugs, "Alya was just calling about another lie Lila tried to spread about me. Luckily she didn't believe it this time."
He raises his eyebrows. "This time? Another lie? It's happened before?"
"Oh yeah this happens all the time." Marinette waves her hand, dismissively.
Adrien looks away from her and there is a brief moment of silence before he shifts his gaze back. "Can I go to school?"
Marinette blinks. "What? Why?"
He leans his forehead towards her before replying in the most serious tone he can,"I would like to take out Lila."
Marinette barks out a laugh, "Take out Lila?"
"Yes. As in get rid of her forever." There's still no trace of humor in his words.
She frowns. "As much as I would like that, you can't go to school. He'll find you."
He raises his pointer finger. "Not if I'm fast."
"We can't risk it." She shakes her head.
He puts his head in his hands, "You know, he said he wouldn't, but I'm pretty sure he was going to take me out of school even if I willingly gave him my Miraculous. No matter what choice I made, as if it even was a choice, I was going to lose both of the things that give my life meaning. Now someone's targeting my best friend and I can't even do anything to help."
She sighs. "I'm sorry, Adrien. It's sweet that you want to protect me, and the fact that you even want to makes it so much more bearable, but you're the one who needs protecting right now."
He furrows his brows. "I know but-" She cuts him off.
"I'll be fine, okay? I can handle Lila and she's nothing compared to Hawkmoth." Marinette places a hand on his shoulder.
"I know you can handle yourself, but just thinking about anyone trying to hurt you makes my blood boil." His expression changes to one she can't recall seeing on his face before.
He means it. He's actually angry on my behalf. She returns her hand to her side. "Well, soon, you and Ladybug will take down Hawkmoth. Then you can come back to school and do whatever it is you plan to do about Lila…. If I haven't offed her myself by then."
"Oh no, you're not allowed. At least not until I'm done with her." His face softens and he speaks with a more playful tone.
"I know how you feel, y'know. I'd love to give your dad a piece of my mind." Marinette hits the palm of her hand with a tight fist.
Adrien grabs her hands and gently lowers them. "You leave that to me and Ladybug."
"Right… Okay, why don't we watch some anime and take our mind off of the borderline terrorists for a while?" Marinette suggests.
His eyes light up. "That sounds like a great idea."
Marinette is cuddled up onto Adrien's chest as they watch a movie from the chaise. She's about to drift off to sleep when she gets a notification on her phone. She looks down at it with an expression that Adrien can't quite place.
"What is it?" He tries to peek over her shoulder to see.
"Ummm amber alert! Yeah! Nothing you need to worry about. I need to go to the bathroom- I'll be back!" She shoots up and darts out of the room before Adrien can question her further. She clutches her phone to her chest so he can't catch a glimpse of the screen on her way out.
"Any idea what that was about?" He locks eyes with Plagg. The kwami shrugs in response. Adrien rushes over to Marinette's computer and pulls up the news.
"...akuma has been recognized as Chad Astruc whom you might've seen in this viral video that has been circulating." Nadja Chamack explains on the screen before her image is replaced by a video of Ladybug in a hospital. Adrien knows it well; he's watched it countless times since he first discovered it. Once the video ends, Nadja's face returns to view while a side by side of Chad and the Villain is shown next to her. She continues, "Parisians are advised to steer clear of this area," A map pops up next to her, "though, Idler's powers do seem to be contained and the rest of the city is relatively safe."
"Plagg, claws out." Adrien punches the air a bit more intensely than he usually would, excited to finally be allowed back into action.
His anticipation is quickly replaced by confusion and worry when he doesn't transform. "Plagg?" He looks around the room. There is no answer. He looks down at his hand, relieved to see that the ring is still on his finger. That relief is short-lived when he's hit with the flashing images of the last time he needed to transform, but couldn't.
He thinks back to the few sessions of therapy Nathalie had somehow convinced Gabriel to sign him up for when his mom died. "Okay, identify the problem and then focus on acceptance." He breathes. He closes his eyes and begins rhythmically tapping his eyebrows with his fingertips. "Even though I can't transform, I am safe and I completely love and accept myself exactly as I am." He moves his hands down to the sides of his eyes. "I don't know where Plagg is, but I know that he will come back and I will be okay while he is gone. I completely love and accept myself exactly as I am." His fingers travel inwards, now tapping beneath his lower eyelids. "Paris is under attack and I can't do anything to help without Plagg, but…. But…" His breathing quickens and his hands begin to shake. He stops the tapping and hugs himself.
The memories of his father are replaced by ones of his failures: Ladybug dying over and over again when he was Aspik, Ladybug crying when he went to New York without telling her and Paris was left unprotected, the akumatization of Copycat, his breakup with Kagami. Tears stream down his face and he looks around again. "I need you, Pagg!"
Adrien begins frantically searching through everything, nearly knocking a lamp over in his frenzy. Anything in his way ends up on the floor. He realizes it's unlikely the kwami is even in the room if the transformation failed, but he doesn't know what else to do. A quiet sob escapes his mouth when he registers the fact that he just destroyed Marinette's room. He sits down on the floor and drops his head in between his knees, trying to remember what else he learned in therapy.
"Why don't you want Adrien to know about the akuma, Marinette?"
She gestures wildly, "Because he's healed now and if he finds out, he's going to want to fight it and I'm not going to be able to stop him. Then his father will try to kill him again. I don't want Adrien anywhere near him. Not yet."
"If Chat Noir doesn't go after the akuma, how do you plan to get out of here to fight it yourself without him noticing?"
"I…" She furrows her brows and hugs herself. "I… I don't know! I don't know what to do, Tikki. It's too late for me to use my delivery excuse. I… Maybe I could face the akuma as Multimouse? But then I'd have to explain why I ran out of the room and why Ladybug asked for Multimouse and not him! Maybe I could tell him that Ladybug wants me to use his miraculous again and then take it to Chloe? No, that still doesn't explain why he can't go. Oh my god, I have to let him go, don't I? But I- He- He can't! This is a disaster!"
Tikki flies up to eye level, "Calm down Marinette. Breathe. It'll be okay. Maybe it's time you carried out the plan."
Plagg phases through the door just in time to catch the end of Tikki's sentence. He looks from her to Marinette. "So, we're all on the same page then?"
She takes a few deep breaths to calm herself before nodding. "You're right, Tikki. I totally forgot about the plan. We can start now, yeah! That should be fine, right?" She looks at her kwami in desperate need for reassurance.
She shrugs, "You were going to try it eventually, regardless. Why not now?"
Marinette clasps her hands together, "You're right. Okay, okay. I just gotta trust the plan. It's a very good plan. Tikki, spots on."
Ladybug pulls the snake, bee, and horse miraculous out of her yoyo and puts all of them on in order to summon the kwami's.
"I'll stay in here until you get back." The kwami flies over the sink and sits down, resting his back against the wall.
"Thank you, Plagg. Tikki, Kaalki, unify." After her second transformation, she opens a portal and walks into Chloe's bedroom. She's sitting on her bed, looking through an old photo album that Pegabug recognizes from their childhood. There's a photo on the cover of Marinette kissing the blonde's cheek. Chloe's hands jerk at her sudden arrival and she throws the book up to the ceiling. It falls back down on Pegabug's head before sliding onto the floor.
Chloe's hands fly up to her mouth, "Oh my god! What are you doing here? Wait, it is you, right?"
It takes her a moment to answer; she's distracted by the photos in the book that's now laying open at her feet. There's one of them with linked arms, each taking a bite of ice cream as if it were the first bite of a wedding cake and another of-
"What? Oh, yeah." She blinks back at her, before shaking her head as she remembers why she's there. "You- I need you to… to.. I just need you." Old memories dance through her head instead of any useful thoughts that might have helped her finish the sentence. She holds the bee miraculous out to her and hangs her head in defeat. "Please help."
Chloe stands and tentatively takes the hairpin from her hands and places it on her head. "Of course, LB. Wait, should I call you that?"
She shrugs. "It doesn't really matter, I won't be joining you in battle, but the name's Pegabug. You'll be fighting with Viperion."
"What? Why? Are you okay?!" She rushes forward and puts her hand on Pegabug's cheek searching for any indication of pain or injury.
"I'll fill you in later, but right now I really need to go." She places her hand on top of the blonde's and holds it for a second before returning it to her side, "I won't be back for your miraculous until tomorrow, so take good care of it!"
She opens up a portal and abruptly steps out of Chloe's room and into Luka's. He's sitting on his bed strumming his guitar, but stops when Pegabug appears before him. He looks her up and down, but waits for her to say something instead of questioning her.
She stares back at him for a moment, expecting him to speak first. She awkwardly clears her throat when she realizes he's not going to. "Luka Couffaine, this is the miraculous of the snake. Chat Noir and I won't be able to partake in the battle today, so I'm counting on you to use the power of second chance wisely. I won't be there to fix the damage when the battle is done." She holds the bracelet out to him and he nods before setting his guitar down and slipping it onto his wrist.
"Are you sure about this…. Um, Horsebug?"
"Pegabug," she corrects, "And, yes. I trust you. Just make sure nobody gets hurt and try to leave the city with the least amount of damage possible. There's bound to be some without my cure, but property can always be fixed."
He gives her a single nod, "You can count on me."
She smiles at him before opening one last portal and stepping back into her bathroom. "Tikki, Kaalki, divide." Kaalki appears before her and she tosses the kwami a cookie before taking off the glasses and placing them back in her yo-yo. She opens up the bathroom window and hops out of it, using her yo-yo to propel herself up onto the balcony. She lands with a thud and then knocks three times on the trapdoor before opening it and hopping onto her bed.
When Adrien hears the sound of something landing on the bed, he wipes the tears off of his face and walks out from under it to see what caused it. His eyes light up when he does. "Ladybug! There's an akuma, but I don't know where Plagg went. I think he's hiding from me."
"That's alright, kitty. It's time for phase 1 of our plan." She climbs onto the railing of the bed before leaping off of it. She softens her landing by rolling over her shoulder and then stands. She notices he's holding the brown cat head that normally sits on her desk and looks behind him to see that several other items are on the floor.
He stares at her for a moment, trying to think of some witty line about how she appears to be showing off her stunts for him, but ultimately fails when his mind refuses to get past the implication of her words. "I'm finally able to fight again and you want me to sit out and watch?" He frowns.
"Sorry kitty," she places a hand on his shoulder, "but this was your idea, remember? Besides, it's a good one. He's after our miraculous, so it makes sense if we don't show up. Everytime we do, we're giving him exactly what he wants." Now that she takes a closer look at his face, he appears to be on the verge of tears. Or maybe it's actually that he's already been crying? A wave of guilt surges through her.
He barely manages to keep his voice even when he replies, "I know, but what if people think I abandoned Paris? What if they think we both did?"
"They might, but it doesn't matter what anyone thinks as long as they're safe. I'm sending Queen Bee and Viperion to take care of it."
"Queen Bee? Viperion? M'lady, are sure it's a good idea to send them? Chloe doesn't have the best track record with the miraculous and Luka's trustworthy, but Hawkmoth knows his identity too."
She crosses her arms. "Are you questioning my judgement, Chaton?"
His eyes widen, "N-no! Of course not! I would never."
She laughs. "I'm just kitten around. Look, I know Chloe's messed up a lot in the past and she hasn't always been the best person, but I do trust her. I also think her powers will be particularly useful for destroying the akuma since I won't be around to purify it. Plus, we've brought Viperion into battle plenty of times since Miracle Queen and Hawkmoth hasn't threatened his friends or family yet."
She blushes when she notices him staring back at her with a wide grin. "I'm gonna be honest, my brain didn't register a single thing you said after that cat pun, but I'm too proud of you to care."
She smiles back at him, thankful that all hints of worry have left his face. "I thought you'd ap-purr-eciate that one. Un-fur-tunately, that's all I have time for. I have to go hand out the miraculous'."
He laughs with a wink before taking her hand in his own, as he's done many times before. "Well then, I bid you fur-well, my lady." He brings her hand up to his lips and places a gentle kiss on her knuckles.
She can feel her face heating up and tries to ignore the intense fluttering in her chest as she pulls her hand back. "I-I'll s-see you soon, Chat." She stammers before rushing away from him, up the ladder to her bed, and out the trapdoor.
She had accepted that Adrien and Chat were one and the same the second she learned his identity, but it still leaves her flustered to see Adrien treating her the way Chat always does. She doesn't know if she'll ever get used to that. As she swings back through her bathroom window, the thought crosses her mind that she'll probably never have to. Adrien won't act that way around me once he knows the truth… if I even manage to tell him before his father kills him.
Plagg rushes out of the room the second he sees her, but she doesn't notice. Her mind is too busy replaying the night she found Chat on her balcony.
(TW SKIP)
Marinette sits down in front of the tub as she drops her transformation. Her breathing is heavy, but she assumes she just rushed out of her bedroom too quickly. She breathes in through her nose and out through her mouth, trying to ease back into her normal pattern. She reaches a hand up to her face when she realizes her vision is blurry. She slowly forces her shaking hand back down to her side when she feels a cool liquid on her fingertips.
She's not sure when she started crying or when she completely lost control over her breath. She's not sure when her limbs began vibrating or when her heartbeat managed to spread through her entire body, but suddenly every inch of her is pulsing. Her head feels foggy; almost dizzy, but from what little she can see, the room doesn't appear to be spinning. It's impossible to form a coherent thought. When she tries, she notices her ears are ringing and she covers them before laying her head between her knees.
She starts rocking to distract herself from the sound, but it just keeps getting louder and her breathing quickens as she fails to quiet the noise. Stop. That one word is the only tangible idea in her mind. She wants to rid herself of the high pitched hum invading her mind, for her eyes to stop leaking without her permission, for her body to still and her heartbeat to retreat back into her chest where it belongs. Stop.
She's never felt this out of control before. She begins rocking back and forth faster, needing to do something of her own volition, but it only makes it more difficult for her to breathe. She slides her still shaking hands into her hair, digging her nails into her head like claws. She doesn't know how long she's there, but eventually she feels hands guiding her own back down.
(TW END)
Plagg enters the room to find Adrien sitting on the chaise watching the news. His leg is bouncing up and down.
"Hey, kid." Plagg flies over to him.
"Plagg!" Adrien pulls the kwami into his face for a hug. After a moment, the kwami reaches his arms around the blond's cheek to return the gesture.
It doesn't take long for the two to pull apart, "Where did you go? Why did you leave? There's an akuma! You really had me worried."
"Yeah, I'm sorry. I… went off to look for some camembert since Pigtails wouldn't get it for me." Plagg crosses his arms, genuinely annoyed when he recalls that he still hasn't gotten his cheese.
Adrien sighs. "It doesn't matter, anyway. Ladybug wants us to sit this one out." He casts a dejected look at the floor.
"Isn't that a good thing?" Plagg raises his brow, "You guys came up with that idea for a reason."
"I know Ladybug is right," Adrien groans, "but I just want to be back out there again, fighting for Paris."
"Kid, you know you can't do that. What if someone sees you leave here? You would put Marinette and her family in so much danger." He flies directly into his holders' face.
Adrien opens his mouth to argue when he hears a crash from the computer. His attention is quickly focussed on the news. "-o sign of Ladybug and Chat Noir though it appears that Queen Bee is fighting the akuma so they must be on their way."
"Hey Mar, what do-" He turns around, "Where did Marinette go?"
"Go? She never came back."
"She never…" He trails off. At this point, if she never came back, Marinette has been gone for at least half an hour. He weighs his options back and forth for a moment before deciding to go check on her.
He walks down the stairs, hoping she'll just be on her way back and that he's worrying over nothing. Adrien is about to walk to the kitchen when he notices the bathroom light is on and the door is closed.
"Mari, are you okay?" After he hears no response, he knocks on the door but again is greeted with only silence. "Marinette, I'm going to open the door." He presses his lips before trying the handle, but it's locked.
She has to be in there, but if she's not responding something's wrong. He takes a deep breath to calm himself before reaching up and running his hand across the door frame. Luckily, there's an emergency key for the bathroom. He jiggles the key in the door a moment and is relieved when he hears the lock click.
He calls out her name and slowly pushes the door open, giving her time to yell at him if he needs to stay out, but she never does. Instead, when he finally opens the door, he hears rapid breathing and whimpering. He looks down and sees her rocking with her head between her knees. Her hands are digging into her scalp and he rushes forward to gently pull them away in an attempt to keep her from hurting herself.
"Marinette?" He ducks his head in an attempt to search her face for any acknowledgement of his presence. She doesn't say anything, but she squeezes his hand. "Squeeze my hand once if you don't want me to touch you and twice if you do."
After a few seconds, he starts trying to formulate a Plan B. His train of thought stops when she squeezes his hand once and then after a couple seconds, squeezes it a second time. He scoots forward so he's sitting cross legged in front of her. He holds both of her hands and rests his forehead against hers. "Can you breathe with me?"
She squeezes his hand again and when he breathes in deeply, she tries to match him. Her breaths are more shallow, her chest feels hot and no amount of air would feel like enough even if her throat wasn't constricting against every inhale, yet she manages to follow his pace. They continue like that for a while, Marinette following Adrien's full breaths with her short ones.
After her shaking has mostly slowed and her breathing no longer resembles hiccups, she opens her eyes slightly and he kisses the top of her head, "Can you tell me five things you can see?"
She looks up at him and her voice comes out slow and scratchy, "What?"
"Just trust me." He reaches out and tucks her disheveled hair behind her ear, "What are five things you can see?"
She nods slowly and looks around, "I can see the tile, the mirror, and the sink." Her voice is still hoarse, but it's getting easier for her to speak.
"Good job," he squeezes her hand once more, "What else?"
She looks back up at him, "You. Your eyes."
He smiles at her, "What are four things you can feel?"
"I feel the ground beneath me, I feel your hands," She reaches up and runs her fingers through his hair, "I feel your hair, and I feel my clothes."
"What are three things you can hear?" He keeps his eyes fixed on hers.
"I hear breathing, I hear my own voice," She pauses and tilts her head, "I think I hear the air conditioner." He laughs and she smiles, "I hear your laughter."
He raises his eyebrows. "That was four."
She shrugs, "Extra credit."
"Two things you can smell?"
She taps her chin, genuinely thinking it over. "I can smell either the aftermath of a bathbomb or lotion, and I smell Adrien the fragrance."
He laughs "No you don't."
"I can smell your breath and you are Adrien. Therefore, Adrien the fragrance" She boops his nose for emphasis.
He rolls his eyes, "And finally, one thing you can taste."
She licks her lips, "Salt."
His eyes trail down to her lips and he stares at them for a moment. A thought crosses his mind about how close his face is to hers, but he shakes it away before he has time to dwell on it. His gaze flicks back up to her eyes. Focus on making sure she's okay.
He lets go of her hands and maneuvers his body until he's sitting next to her before draping an arm around her. He starts rubbing gentle circles into her shoulder with his thumb. "Are you feeling better, princess?"
"Mhm, I'm fine now. Just tired." She lays her head on him and he leans his own head to rest on hers.
His thumb begins to lazily draw patterns over the fabric of her sleeve. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"I got the akuma alert on my phone and I knew that you would want to go fight now that your wounds are gone, but I couldn't stop thinking about what he did to you. I-I don't want him to hurt you again," She sniffles, "You nearly bled to death on my floor." Tears return to her eyes and she hugs him, sitting halfway in his lap to do so, as she grabs a fistful of his shirt.
He wraps his arms around her, pulling her all the way into his lap. "I didn't go. Ladybug and I decided to sit this one out, to see how he'd react." He snakes a hand into her hair, massaging the base of her neck. "But, I'm going to have to face him eventually. The difference is, I'll be prepared. I'll be transformed and I'll have Ladybug there to help me. No one is going to die on her watch; we'll have the cure if anything goes wrong. It won't be anything like last time, I promise."
"Okay." She says in a half whisper.
They stay like that for a while, before Adrien breaks the silence. "Aaand scoop." He says, as he stands, lifting Marinette with him. One of his arms is wrapped around her back while the other rests under her legs.
She lets out a squeak before stuttering, "I-I c-can walk."
"Nonesense! A tired princess such as yourself shouldn't have to journey the treacherous staircase on thine feet, especially not when one has a noble knight to carry her." He slips into a strange accent, undoubtedly trying to sound more knightly.
"B-but-"
"Forgive me, princess, for I do not have time for questions, comments, or concerns. I must focus on the task at hand." He cuts her off. She doesn't protest further and instead allows herself to enjoy the feeling of being in his arms as he walks up the stairs and enters her bedroom.
Adrien carries her up the ladder and dumps her unceremoniously on the bed before pulling her back into his chest. When her arms wrap around him, he tenses for a moment before relaxing into them. It strikes him that he's never felt more loved than he does in this moment.
BUZZ BUZZ
-CHLOEBEAR-
Akuma has been defeated, minimal damage.
I got Luka's miraculous for you & I'll bring them
to you tomorrow.
Are you okay? You seemed kinda freaked earlier.
Okay great. Yeah, I'm okay now.
I'll explain everything later.
Marinette clicks off the phone and drops it on the pillow beside them. Adrien's thumb brushes her arm gently and she smiles. No traces of her previous stress or anxiety are left; there is only calm and a familiar warmth in her chest.