AN: More of Marinette's POV, superhero shenanigans this time. Enjoy! :D
Also, thanks so much for the comments! Of course, there will be more. :)
. o O o .
Chapter 14: Second Chance
Everything changed…
Unmoving, Marinette stared down at the object lying in her lap. She felt numb. How was she supposed to bear the weight of this responsibility? She—the guardian of the Miraculous? She wasn't ready for so much responsibility!
"Don't worry, Marinette." Tikki sat on her shoulder and leaned against her neck, her tiny arms pressing against her skin. "You know how Master Fu didn't know what he was doing, either. But he learned and became a fantastic guardian. You can do that, too. I have faith in you."
A weak smile tugged at Marinette's lips. "I hope you're right. I just feel so… so helpless. I don't know what to do or even where I'm supposed to start. I can't read the secret script of the guardians, so before I can continue Master Fu's research there, I first need to learn how to read these. Also, there is nobody I can ask for help or even just talk about any problems I might face because not even you may know what's written in there. And what about Chat Noir? What if something happens to him or me? We mustn't know each other's identities, so how are we supposed to get in contact then?" She slumped in on herself, the box slipping from her fingers and onto the ground. "It's all a mess!"
Tikki sighed, then flew up so Marinette had no choice but to look at her. "I'm sure it will all work out. You'll see, you'll find a way. If you need to contact Chat Noir, I could deliver a message for you, for example. I know who he is, after all. And…" Wringing her hands, she looked away, biting her lip before she continued in a quieter voice. "And you are the guardian now. That means you make the rules. I'm sure Master Fu and all the other guardians before him had their reasons for the rules they set. But they weren't you and they weren't living your life. Your situation is unique, so you are allowed to adjust the rules if necessary. Just do what you feel is the right thing to do and I know you won't fail."
Feeling lighter, Marinette cupped Tikki in her hands and cuddled her to her cheek. "Thank you, Tikki."
. o O o .
"Chat? I need to ask you for a favour."
Chat Noir, ready to jump off the roof to follow the akumatised firefighter, stopped in his tracks and turned back to look at her. "Anything for you, Milady. What do you want me to do?"
Ladybug gazed after the supervillain, then at her lucky charm—a box of matches—in her hand. "I know what we have to do. We need to lure him into a trap. It's simple. But…"
"But what?" he asked when she didn't continue.
Her shoulder slumped. "Me being the guardian makes everything so much harder. We can't risk making even the tiniest mistake, because if we do, there's nobody else who could fight in our stead. There's no backup, no safety net."
"No Second Chance?"
Ladybug looked up in surprise, catching the knowing smile on Chat Noir's face.
"Hey, I might not be as good as you are in coming up with all these brilliant plans, but that doesn't mean I'm stupid." He winked. "You want me to get Viperion; not because you actually need his help, but because you'd feel safer with him and his powers around, right?"
Mutely, Ladybug nodded.
"Well, I certainly won't blame you for wanting him around." Chat grinned. "And I'm sure he won't mind. I can go and get him right now if you want?"
"Yes, please." She opened her magical Yo-Yo and pulled out the Snake Miraculous. "I'll be looking for the right place for my trap. Find me there."
As Chat Noir jumped away, Ladybug let out a relieved sigh. It wasn't as if she'd expected Chat to resist her request, but it was still good to see his unconditional support of her decision. Master Fu never would have allowed this, would have called it too risky. Every Miraculous in use was always in danger of getting stolen or lost. But Tikki was right; she had to make her own decisions, to the best of her own consciousness.
And having Viperion around just as a precaution definitely felt like the right decision.
About ten minutes later, everything was ready. She'd found the perfect place—a large flat roof with a skylight on one side to hide behind—and she'd explained the plan to Chat and Viperion.
"I just need to destroy this plank as soon as Firefighter stands on it. Simple, just as you said. And until he's here, we just wait?"
Ladybug nodded. "Exactly. With all the current chaos in the city, it's going to take a while, but this is the only option we have."
"Works for me." Chat made of show of getting comfortable against the concrete wall. "Lazing around with my friends, now that's what I call a fun night out."
Viperion chuckled. "Why am I not surprised? But just so you know, complaining that you had to work so hard and need rest won't work tonight."
Chat stuck his tongue out at Viperion, and they both burst out laughing. Ladybug watched them with a fond smile. Ever since Luka had told her about him and Chat being a couple, she was seeing her partner with slightly different eyes. But him fooling around with Viperion like this… was this how he behaved around Luka, too? So carefree and relaxed? In a way, it was how he always was, and yet…
And yet, it felt different somehow. More genuine and unrestrained than when he was flirting with her.
Or maybe she was just less resistant to his charms by now.
The minutes ticked by, Chat and Viperion further joking around, but Ladybug tried not to listen too closely. She didn't want to intrude on them. Instead, she let her gaze wander over the city, spotting Firefighter still a good distance away.
"Hey, now I remember!"
At Chat's exclamation, Ladybug turned to give him a questioning look. But he just grinned, standing and with his baton ready to jump away again. "I'll be back in a moment. I have another minute or three, right?"
Nodding, Ladybug threw another confused look at Viperion, but he just shrugged as well.
"Don't ask me. He just jumped up as if bitten by a spider. I have no idea what got into him now." He chuckled.
Ladybug frowned, but let it go. They would learn soon enough. "I'm sorry for calling you in, by the way," she said instead. "You probably had other plans for this evening."
Viperion lifted one shoulder in an off-handed shrug and gave her a crooked smile. "It's all right. Chat explained why you wanted me around, and I understand. I don't mind being your safety net. Besides, I wasn't doing anything since my friend said he'd be late anyway."
Ladybug was itching to ask more but held herself back. Stretching one rule was enough for one day; there was no need to further pry into Viperion's life and identity. They fell into a strangely comfortable silence—only slightly disturbed by the occasional odd look he threw at her—until Chat returned.
Baffled and with wide eyes, she stared as Chat theatrically went down on one knee in front of her. "For you, Milady," he said with fervour, holding a single red rose out to her in one hand, the other pressed to his heart.
"Uh… what?" Her gaze jumped from the rose to Chat's gleaming eyes, to Viperion watching the show with fond curiosity, and back to Chat. He was grinning now, shaking with repressed laughter.
"Oh, come on. Really? You picked this roof but don't remember the last time we were here?"
Perplexed, she looked around. They've been all over Paris so many times. Was there something special about this roof in particular? Then it dawned on her.
"The delta-plane delivery express guy!"
If possible, Chat's grin grew even wider. "Smart as ever, Milady."
"Delta- Okay, now I have to ask." Viperion was coming over toward them. "Care to let me in on the joke? Because it sounds worth it."
Chat nodded for her to speak. "Ah, it's… been a while since then. We saved this guy who had the crazy idea of delivering an order of flowers with his delta-plane. And Chat swiped one of the flowers and…" She trailed off, not sure how much Chat wanted his boyfriend to know.
"…and I offered her the rose, along with a sincere declaration of my undying love for her," Chat said with an over-exaggerated sigh. "And then she broke my heart. It was right here where you spurned my feelings and my gift, Milady. And you don't even remember it."
Maybe Ladybug would have felt bad for her partner—had Chat not spoken with humour dripping from his voice and gleaming in his eyes. "You knew my reasons and feeling before, so you really only have yourself to put the blame on," she said airily, playing along. Then she grinned. "But this rose is too pretty to let it wilt just like that, so I accept your gift."
She took the flower and brought it to her nose, her eyes closed as she inhaled the lovely scent. Looking up again, she spotted the softest smile she'd ever seen on Chat's face, his eyes glowing with emotions. The sight made her blush. Did he think her accepting his rose meant more than she'd meant it to mean?
Did it mean more than she'd meant it to mean?
. o O o .
Later that night, Marinette stood on her balcony, gazing unseeingly out over the sleeping city. She should have been thinking about whether including Viperion in today's fight really had been necessary and a good idea—the fight had gone perfectly to plan, so maybe it had been an unnecessary risk after all.
But instead, her thoughts lingered on another topic altogether. Ever since Luka had told her about him and Chat, she'd seen her partner with different eyes. How caring and reliable he really was, and how much she truly enjoyed all his stupid jokes. Honestly, she couldn't blame Luka at all for falling for him.
But even though her feelings had been shifting for a while—since she'd talked with Chat about having feelings for more than one person, really—she hadn't considered what else this could mean.
Her gaze dropped to the rose Chat had given her.
Back then, when he'd tried to give her that other rose on that roof, he'd asked her a question. If he weren't here, would things be different between us? If her heart didn't belong to Adrien, would she instead have feelings for Chat? She'd never given him an answer to this question—partially because she'd refused to even think about it. Not just because a life without Adrien felt too devastating to even think about, but also because she'd been scared of what her feelings for Chat Noir might actually be.
Now, though…
Her fingers lightly caressed the smooth velvet petals of the rose.
Now, she knew and understood how loving one person didn't diminish her feelings for others. Now, she could examine her feelings without holding back or being biased. She loved Luka, and she also still loved Adrien just as much as before. And now, she could admit that she had an answer to Chat's question, an answer that would make both him and her happy.
And yet… she mustn't ever tell him.
"Ooh, why does everything always have to be so complicated?" she whined, her head dropping on the cool metal railing.
"What do you mean?" Tikki asked, concerned about her friend's torment as she flew closer. "Everything worked out, didn't it?"
"I don't mean the Akuma or the Snake Miraculous. I mean… Oh, Tikki. I think… I think I'm in love with Chat Noir."
Tikki blinked. "You are?" she asked, her head cocked to one side. "But… how is that complicated? Isn't that good? He made very clear how he feels for you. Shouldn't that make is easy for you to do the same?"
"Except that I mustn't do that," Marinette replied, muffled against her arm. Feeling shaky, she sank down on her knees, her head resting against the metal bars. "I love Luka. That is the one thing I am sure of. I want to be with him, no matter what happens. He makes me feel light, happy. With him, I can simply be myself. And all I want to do is to make him happy, too. I could never go behind his back and approach Chat with my feelings without telling Luka about it, could never betray him like that. But I can't tell Luka about it. Because it wouldn't be Marinette who declares her feelings for Chat. It would be Ladybug. And neither Luka nor Chat can know they're the same person."
Tikki was thinking her words through, her tiny brows furrowed. "And… If you told Luka that Marinette likes Chat Noir? They're together, after all. Maybe he can arrange a meeting and you tell Chat Noir then?"
Sighing heavily, Marinette shook her head. "That wouldn't make a difference. Because Chat isn't interested in Marinette. He doesn't even know her. And even if he were to grow into liking me… It would feel like lying to him. Not telling Luka about my other identity is one thing. Ladybug doesn't concern him, after all. But with Chat, it's different. I… I couldn't be with him as Marinette, but never tell him the truth about Ladybug."
Unless I bend even more rules.
With a low whine, Marinette chased that thought away as quickly as it popped up. She was too new to all this, couldn't grasp yet why all the rules were in place. She couldn't go and break them all in one night.
"No, Tikki," she went on in a muted voice. "There's no solution for this. We'll all just have to be content with how things are now."
. o O o .
Aaahhh, if only they knew... 😇
They're so wonderfully frustrating... O:-)
