Day 15 – Comfort (Miraculous Ladybug)

Summary:

Now that Ladybug knows the secret behind Chat Noir's identity, Marinette must come to terms with the knowledge. Maybe she can find a bit of comfort somewhere between a baking frenzy and a late night chat with a good friend.

Written for Writer's Month – Day 15: Comfort

For the last forty-eight hours, Marinette hadn't left her apartment. She ignored work, and school, and her friend's increasingly desperate requests to know what was wrong. She hadn't spoken to anyone about what had happened between her and Adrian. Her and Chat Noir. How could she? After all, it wasn't Marinette who knew Chat Noir's identity, it was Ladybug.

Of course, when Alya arrived home late Monday evening, she didn't know any of this. She and Nino had spent the last week in New Orleans visiting family and attending her cousin's wedding. It was late when Nino dropped her off at the apartment she shared with Marinette and her first inkling that something was wrong was the heavy scent of sugar when she opened the front door. Every flat surface of the apartment was covered with pastries. Croissants perched along the windowsills. Macarons in every color of the rainbow lined the table. The end table was piled high with delicate choux pastries, while Marinette's design table was covered with tarts. Rows of madeleines cooled on the ironing board. In the kitchen, Marinette stretched out paper thin layers of filo dough.

"Thank goodness you're here!" Tikki flew across the apartment to Alya and fluttered around her head in a fretful buzz. "Maybe she'll talk to you."

Pinching the bridge of her nose under her glasses, Alya exhaled a deep breath. Between jet lag and the nonstop activities of her vacation, she was beyond exhausted, but Marinette needed an intervention. When she got in these creation frenzies, it usually meant Marinette was feeling stressed and like the situation was over her head.

Okay, she could do this. She needed to be strong so she could comfort her best friend.

Alya held out her hands so Tikki had a place to rest. The kwami sagged gratefully onto her hands. "What's wrong with Marinette?"

Biting her lips, Tikki shook her head.

"Do you know what the problem is but can't tell me?" This would be easier if Alya didn't have to play investigative reporter before finding out what was wrong. But, if the kwami couldn't speak, that certainly limited the scope of the problem.

"Is it about Chat Noir?"

When Tikki's eyes grew larger at the suggestion, Alya figured she was on the correct line of inquiry. She could work with that. "How long has she been like this?"

Tikki hummed as she considered. "Since Friday night…no, Saturday morning."

This left Alya with the impression that Marinette had probably been out on patrol as Ladybug and that the clock had ticked from one day to the next. "Okay, I'll talk to her."

"Thanks." Tikki smiled. "I think she's made more sweets than even I can eat."

Despite the situation, Alya laughed. She doubted that even this surplus of baked goods was more than the kwami could eat. It was probably more along the lines of more than Tikki should eat.

"Go on, I've got this."

Following Alya's instructions, Tikki took flight. Before disappearing into Marinette's room, the kwami gathered as many macarons as she could carry.

"Salut Marinette." Alya joined Marinette in the kitchen. She filled the kettle with water and set it on the stove to heat. "It looks like you've been busy."

Marinette grunted in possible acknowledgement of Alya's presence. Or, prehaps telling her to buzz off. It was hard to tell the difference.

"The wedding was wonderful. Thanks for asking." Alya figured she'd keep a running stream of conversation going until Marinette reacted. After all, Tikki had inferred Marinette wasn't talking to anyone. Reaching for the cupboard, Alya retrieved two mugs and the tea caddy. "Nino and I got some ideas we want to incorporate into ours. I know there's not much time to make changes, so we're not looking at anything drastic. Since you're helping, I'd love to have your opinion if it's doable.

"And, the food was amazing. Did I tell you my grand-père is a chef and he insisted on cooking for all of us while we were there. I was afraid we were going to have to drag the twins away kicking and screaming. Thankfully, mom was able to get a few of his new recipes. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that he was great 'cause he taught mom. Speaking of parents, does the bakery have a big event coming up? I haven't seen you attempt this much on your own since the day you promised a tasting picnic for the whole school."

"Alya, I'm fine," Marinette ground out between gritted teeth. She yanked on the corner of the dough, causing a large tear to form in the nearly translucent pastry.

Laying a comforting hand on her friend's shoulder, Alya turned her away from the counter. Marinette's eyes twitched as they tended to de when she was on the edge of a breakdown. Under red rimmed eyes, dark smudges from worry and a lack of sleep marked the drawn and pale features of her face.

"No, you're not fine," Alya said softly. "C'mon, let's take a break."

Broken from the frenetic spell, Marinette allowed Alya to lead her trancelike out of the kitchen. Alya decided to have their chat in her room since the living room was filled with baked goods and her room was less likely to have reminders of whatever set Marinette off than her friend's room. Situating Marinette on the bed, Alya wrapped her in a quilt. Without making a sound, Marinette clasped the blanket around her shoulders.

Before she get any further in comforting Marinette, the kettle whistled. "I'll be right back."

Returning to the kitchen, Alya set the chamomile tea to brewing. Neither of them needed any caffeine right now. While the tea brewed, she rummaged through the refrigerator to find a non-sweet snack for both of them. Marinette tended to forget to eat when she spiraled into worry. Hopefully some food would help. Alya hesitated as she reached for the cheese. If her supposition about Chat Noir being involved was correct, maybe it would be better to forgo the cheese for the present.

As the timer for the tea beeped, Alya gathered the food and mugs on a tray and returned to her room. To her surprise, Marinette had left her spot on the bed. She moved across the room and stared at the contents of Alya's bulletin board. The quilt laid in a rumbled heap in the middle of the floor.

"Marinette?" Alya set down the trey and studied her friend.

Marinette had plucked a photo off the bulletin board. It was a recent picture of the four of them—Nino, Alya, Marinette, and Adrian. It was taken on the day they helped Adrian move into his new apartment. Though the entirety of the shoebox sized apartment was minuscule in comparison to his room at his father's house, that had been the start of a new era for Adrian. They'd never seen their friend happier or more confident. It was almost as if part of his personality had been freed from an invisible restraint. Alya wouldn't say this out loud, but there was something in the way Adrian behaved which reminded her of Chat Noir.

"That was a good day." Alya moved Marinette back to the bed. It was more comfortable than the desk chair, the only other place to sit in the room. With her friend settled, Alya exchanged the photo for a pink polka-dot mug and a plate of food.

"It was," Marinette whispered. She rapidly blinked several times. Almost mechanically, she sipped the tea and nibbled the edge of a croissant. After a moment, the dazed expression slipped from her eyes and Marinette was fully present.

Sitting in the desk chair, Alya breathed deeply. She waited as the comforting aroma of the tea soothed her frayed nerves. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Shaking her head, Marinette refused to meet Alya's eyes.

"Is it a Ladybug thing?"

Marinette took a too large bite of croissant and mumbled her answer around the bit. "Sort of."

"Chat Noir?" Alya prodded.

At the mention of her partner's name, Marinette's cheek flushed a brilliant scarlet and she began to cough and splutter around the croissant. Her arms flailed and she shook her head in a vehement no, which in Marinette freak-out meant yes. Alya hadn't seen Marinette act this way since…since she'd been tongue tied over Adrian. Her crush on the boy had faded over the years until Marinette could treat Adrian like any other friend. While a trace of her crush remained, Alya suspected the intensity of her feelings had transferred to her partner in opposing Hawkmoth.

Had Marinette finally admitted to herself that she was in love with Chat Noir? It would explain quite a bit. If only Marinette allowed herself to be honest about her feelings.

"Breathe, girl, I've got you." Alya moved to sit beside Marinette and pulled her friend into a hug.

They sat like that until Marinette's breathing calmed. Eventually, she pulled away from the embrace and offered Alya a sheepish apology. "Sorry about that."

"You know that isn't a problem. Remember, you don't have to carry everything on your own." Alya stifled a yawn.

"I know." Marinette stared down at her hands. Absently, she rubbed at the dough dried to her fingers. "Have you ever found out something so incongruous with the way you view the world that you don't know how to deal with it?"

"Yeah." Alya brushed her fingers along the necklace from Nino she wore now instead of Trixx's pendant. "My best friend told me her secret identity."

"Oh, yeah." That almost brought a smile to Marinette's face. "I…I learned Chat Noir's identity."

The reporter in Alya was instantly wide awake. Yet, as much as she wanted to know the answer, she knew she could never actually report on that knowledge. "Does he know yours?"

"No. I panicked."

"Oh." A crease furrowed Alya's brow. "Is he someone bad?"

"No. The opposite." Marinette's voice dropped to a whisper. "He's someone good. Really good."

"Then why did you panic?"

A breathless sob escaped from Marinette. "I've caused the both of us a lot of heartache. I pushed him away for no reason…I…I …don't know what to do. He still loves me…."

"That's a good thing. I've watched you all these years. You love him too…." Alya's eyes grew wide with sudden insight. "Wait! Are you saying…Chat Noire is…" Marinette clapped her hands over Alya's mouth so all that came out was a muffled, "…A-dwee-an A-gues."

"You can't tell anyone," Marinette pleaded. "It would be the end of the world."

Alya removed Marinette's hands from her face. "I won't tell. It's not my place. Though, I do think you need to talk to him. You love him as both his identities. I think you're hurting each other by keeping this secret."

"But…"

"I know it's a risk. But neither of you are middle schoolers anymore. You're both stronger people because of your time as heroes." Alya handed Marinette the photo of the four friends mugging for the camera. "I was thinking earlier how you and Adrian have become a lot more like your heroic alter egos in your civilian life. And before you try to deny it, know that it's a good thing. You're both more confident, bolder. You both have good hearts and that's what makes you both good holders of your Miraculouses."

"I'll think about it." Marinette's head drooped as her eyelids grew heavy.

"Remember, when you explained everything to me, it was the right thing for you to do. I think it's the right time to share with him. And, I promise, he'll do a better job at keeping and coping with your secrets than I did at fourteen."

"Alya…"

"You don't have to tell him right now, but don't keep shutting everyone out. That definitely won't help." Alya gave her friend's hand a squeeze. "Are you feeling better?"

With a pause which resembled Tikki's when she was thinking, Marinette finally nodded. "Yes. Thanks."

"That's what friends are for." Alya yawned. Her last reserves of energy were fading quickly. "And I am happy to help anytime, but right now I really need some sleep and so do you."

"You're right." Marinette pushed herself off the bed and headed for the door. "Good night, Alya, sweet dreams."