"Hey, Marinette!" Myléne called, running to catch up with her friend. "I know we usually have your sessions on Wednesdays, but this Wednesday-"

"Your anniversary! I totally forgot!" Marinette groaned, a hand pressed to her forehead. "I would have canceled sooner. I'm so sorry."

"No, no. Don't be. I was just going to ask if we could reschedule. How about tomorrow, same time as usual?"

"Uh.." Marinette glanced around the airport as she tried to remember her plans for the next day. "I guess I'm free. I expected Alya and Nino to be on their honeymoon this week so.." Marinette's sentence trailed off as she thought about her friends. Kitty Section had just boarded their flight back to America. Nino and Alya had gone back to their apartment after seeing their friends off, determined to spend some time alone together, even if their honeymoon had been canceled. Adrien had wanted to come to the airport too, but had been scheduled to work in the bakery that morning and Marinette could tell that Kagami was disappointed he didn't show. Marinette had hugged her extra tight as they said their goodbyes.

"Great! I'll see you in my office tomorrow. Nine o' clock." Myléne made her way outside as Marinette began to aimlessly pace.

"Marinette?" Tikki asked quietly from her holder's purse.

"Fine, Tikki. Just..on edge. With Marc and Nath losing their miraculous, Sabrina missing and Kitty Section and Kagami leaving.."

It was left unsaid. Nine of their holders had been taken out of the fight.

———

"Anything you'd like to talk about today?" Myléne asked Monday morning as Marinette walked into her office.

"I'm not sure." Marinette began to play with the hem of her shirt as Tikki and Mullo greeted each other, flying off to chat.

"Well, let's start with your progress with Adrien. How do you feel about the kiss after the battle on game night?"

"Myléne, I already told you. It was small. It was barely anything." Marinette denied even as the blush crept up her cheeks.

"Adrien didn't seem to feel that way. I don't feel that way. That was a big step for you Marinette. You've avoided touching him since what happened. A kiss, whether on the cheek or not, is a gesture shared between two people who care for each other and trust each other. That's a good thing."

"I'm..I'm so confused." Marinette's eyes began to fill with tears and Myléne frowned, standing up and crossing the office to hug Marinette by the shoulders.

"What do you mean? Confused about Adrien?"

"I thought he hated me! Why wouldn't he hate me? Why doesn't he? I..I killed his mother. I'm no better than Monarch. I'm a villain. I'm-"

"You're panicking, Marinette. Slow down. Breathe. You are not a villain. I can't tell you why Adrien feels the way he does for you. But he can. You need to talk to him, Marinette. Really just sit down and go over it all. Your feelings for him, defeating Monarch, why you've avoided him since..all of it. Be truthful. He will appreciate it. I know he will."

———

"Bugaboo?" Chat asked as he landed on the rooftop next to her. "I got your call. Is something wrong?"

"No." Ladybug's voice trembled. Chat approached her tentatively, eyes locked on the back of her head.

"May I?" He asked, rubbing his boot against the spot next to her.

"Okay." Ladybug didn't bother to look at him as he sat next to her, flinging his legs over the edge of the roof to match her positioning. They sat in silence for ages.

"Why did you call me out here, Bug?" He tilted his chin to get a better look at her and she turned away.

"Why don't you hate me?" She refused to look at him, hair shielding her face from his gaze.

"Huh?"

"Why don't you hate me?" This time, Ladybug whipped around to face him, tear-filled eyes finally meeting his own. "I killed her..I took her from you, I-" Her body convulsed in tremors and before he could talk himself out of it, Chat pulled her to him, pressing her head to his chest as he cocooned her in her arms.

"M'lady, I could never..I never, ever blamed you for what happened that day. I can't hold you accountable for my father's actions." Chat held her tightly to him as she sobbed, her fingers dug into the leather of his collar with a grip only Ladybug could muster. "Is that why you avoided me after? Because you thought I blamed you?" At Ladybug's nod, Adrien swore. Together, they detransformed. "Marinette, I thought you hated me."

"Hated you?" Marinette asked with an incredulous laugh.

"I thought once you found out my father was Monarch that you might..you know..think I was like him or something. Especially because Felix had already tricked you using me once before..I felt responsible and like an idiot for not realizing who my father was before then..I thought you would think so too. Especially with the way you acted around me before the reveal."

"How I acted..?"

"You were uncomfortable around me. Since the gum incident. First it was Adrien. But then it became Chat Noir too. I just assumed I made you uncomfortable with my flirting. And then you found out I'm the son of a super villain and I just..I knew there was no coming back from that."

"Uncomfortable? Uncom- Adrien!" Marinette exclaimed, eyes wide. "I was in love with you!"

"You what?" Adrien pulled back just as the words began to flow from Marinette's mouth.

"I was in love with you. Since you gave me your umbrella. But..but then I started falling for Chat Noir. And I could never get the words out to tell you and then I found out you were the same person and I couldn't..it took so long for the two of you to mesh into one person in my head and once it did..I loved you even more. But- but I had just killed..I had just killed her."

"Marinette, I was in love with you too."

"No you weren't. You were in love with Ladybug. Not me. Not us both."

"No, Marinette. I was in love with you too."

"Name one moment. One moment in time where you loved me without my mask."

"That time we were practicing for the gaming tournament and touched that controller at the same time." Adrien began, not missing the way Marinette tensed up at his words. "That time I caught you mocking me when you didn't think I was paying attention when Nath was akumatized." Adrien made the same hand movements she had made all those years ago and Marinette blushed a deep scarlet. "Our almost kiss when we shot that movie in class…our conversation by the lockers after I saw all your photos of me in your room..when you fell asleep on my shoulder on the stair train..when you helped me see my mom's movie and became known as 'Pajama Girl' in all the tabloids" He laughed, running a hand down her arm. "When we danced at Chloe's party…" Adrien swallowed as he whispered, "New York."

"That all?" Marinette tried to joke, heart pounding in her ears.

"No. I could go on all night with a million other times I loved you without the mask, Marinette. But there's one moment you need to know about. One that matters more than any of the others."

"When- when was that?" Marinette turned to peek at him and Adrien placed a hand on each side of her face.

"Now." He leaned in, pressing his lips into hers.

"I..I.." She stuttered as they pulled away, eyes blown wide in surprise.

"I love you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng."

———

Gabriel paced his cell, his whole body on edge. He'd been unable to sleep.

Something was going to happen. He was sure of it. He could feel it in his bones.

Suddenly, as if bidden from his thoughts, the whole corridor went dark.

"Gabriel Agreste. Your freedom has arrived."

Gabriel sat up and peered into the darkness.

"How so?" He questioned, sliding into a defensive position.

"I come to free you, courtesy of Empress. Though, freedom will come with a cost." Miss Hound stepped out of the darkness with a smirk on her face.

"What cost? Why should I come with you? You're just another one of Ladybug's temps." He snarled, fists raised and ready.

"Gabriel!" Miss Hound laughed. "Maybe on Ladybug's team I was just a temp. But with Empress, I can finally have the power to stand alone. No more following, no more obeying. Empress can give you what you want too. Anything. Fame. Fortune. Power. A wife's life restored perhaps.."

"At what cost?" Gabriel relaxed his stance, his expression curious but guarded.

"Loyalty to the Empress, of course. In return for your freedom and help towards your goal, Empress requests your knowledge."

"My knowledge?"

"Empress seeks the miraculous, same as you. Ladybug's team obviously owns the majority, minus mine, Empress's and the two we've managed to plunder. But there's one unaccounted for. One that hasn't made an appearance in quite awhile."

"You mean-"

"Do you know where it is?"

"Unless it has changed hands while I've been locked up here..I do."

"The Empress can use you. Come with me and we will provide anything and everything you need in order to locate the missing miraculous. Once you've collected it, returned it to Empress and this war has ended with us on top…"

"I'll be given my wish."