Okay. So now we know the heroes' plan for defeating the villains. Sounds simple enough. But before they can save the day, our heroes are going to need some time to rest.

Chapter 11: Late Night Confessions

Marinette sighed as she laid down.

Master Fu and Tara had set up mats for everyone to sleep on that night. Marinette's mat wasn't nearly as thick or as soft as the one on her bed above the bakery. But after a morning of running from akumatized villains, and an afternoon of Tara's training, laying down on the mat felt absolutely luxurious.

After Master Fu had gone over the battle strategy, Tara had spent the rest of the day teaching a crash course on basic fighting techniques.

One would think that a former model with magical superpowers wouldn't know the first thing about martial arts. But it turned out that Tara had an extensive knowledge in various fighting styles. Even without transforming she was quite an opponent- during their first spar, Tara was able to pin a transformed Alya to the ground in less than a minute.

Tara spent over three nonstop hours to teach Marinette, Adrien, Alya and Chloé about pressure points and pinning opponents. After such a grueling workout, Marinette thought she would fall asleep immediately, even on such a thin mat.

…

Unfortunately for Marinette, sleep wasn't so easy for her to come by that night.

She estimated that it was now about midnight. Master Fu was snoring softly. Tara would occasionally sigh in her sleep. Alya had been checking her phone for news updates, but her phone had been off for approximately the last hour. Chloé had whined about the sleeping conditions for five minutes prior to laying down, after which she immediately collapsed on her mat. And Adrien hadn't moved since he laid down to sleep.

Marinette was examining the dust motes floating by the closed window shade when she heard someone whisper her name.

"Marinette?" Adrien's voice broke through the silence. "You awake?"

Turning onto her other side, Marinette looked at Adrien, whose mat was a short distance away. "Yes."

Adrien abandoned his mat, crawling closer to where Marinette was laying. "Thinking about the battle tomorrow?"

"No," Marinette admitted. "It's funny, I spent so much time yesterday worried about it, that I think that part of my mind just turned off."

Adrien chuckled. "Yeah, I get it. It turns out I have a twin sister, a Chinese grandfather, my mother doesn't love my father, and my father is a supervillain. My brain switched off a while ago."

Marinette stared at Adrien. That funny feeling where she didn't see him as Adrien or Cat Noir had returned. She didn't know what to make of it.

"I can't imagine how difficult this must have been for you," Marinette found herself saying.

Adrien shrugged. "Anyway, that isn't why I came over."

"Why, then?"

"To tell you this," Adrien took Marinette's hands in his own. Green eyes locked into blue.

"Marinette Dupain-Chang, I love you."

Marinette gasped. "What?"

Holding own hand up, Adrien said, "Let me explain.

"Ever since meeting Ladybug, I knew I was in love with her. No matter who she turned out to be behind that mask, I just knew that she would be the one person I couldn't live without.

"I was so happy when you turned out to be her," Adrien's eyes glistened. "You were one of my first friends at school. You are the guardian of Paris. You are the girl of my dreams.

"I love you, my Lady."

Marinette looked away. The funny feeling inside her grew, and at last she was able to identify it.

Marinette hadn't been in love with Adrien Agreste, classmate and fashion model. She had only been infatuated.

Cat Noir had become more than a partner. He had seen the truth about their relationship long before she had.

The boy in front of her… Marinette wasn't feeling torn between him being Adrien or Cat Noir. And she certainly wasn't seeing someone new.

Her infatuation with Adrien was Marinette seeing him as a perfect being. Her dislike for Cat Noir was Marinette seeing him as a more flawed being. Her eyes had been opened wide to the true Adrien Agreste, a boy who was just as flawed at Cat Noir.

And she didn't mind.

At last, Marinette knew what she was feeling. "Oh, Adrien…"

Adrien's eyes found Marinette's. She could see that he expected to be rejected, as he had been so many times with Ladybug.

"...I love you too."

Adrien slowly grinned, and Marinette felt her mouth doing the same. The two superheroes hugged tightly, crying softly.

…

Marinette woke to the sun on her face. The first thing she noticed was Adrien laying right next to her, their hands entwined.

Someone cleared their throat.

Marinette and Adrien looked up to see Alya standing above them, fully transformed and holding her flute in one hand.

"It's time."