Chapter 5

"Hey, can't we…put a muzzle on him or something?" Kim adjusted his collar for the sixth time that hour, shifting from foot to foot, "He's giving me the creeps, man."

Ivan sighed next to him, as still as a statue and staring straight ahead, "Don't look him in the eye Kim, he's a criminal."

"Does that mean he could hypnotize me?! He's still creepy! Look at him!" Kim straightened his back, hands wiggling impatiently behind his back.

Ivan risked a quick glance towards the blond man sitting on the couch, bright flashes of the TV bathing his form in light here and there.

Chat Noir's gaze was formidable, as if glaring daggers straight at them, his pupils almost resembled a feline's, at least that's what it looked like to their sleep deprived minds.

Did he even…move in the past hour?

"Ugh, when will Nette get back? Didn't she just have to report to Luka quickly?" Kim scratched the back of his neck, warily stealing glances at Chat Noir.

Ivan checked his watch.

8:00pm

Just what person needed two hours to give a verbal report?!

His partner and friend's annoyed voice interrupted his thoughts, "Well, 'talking' sure takes long!"

Ivan glanced at him curiously and Kim lifted his head, "What?"

"…Why did you say 'talking' so weirdly?"

Kim stuck his bottom lip out before scratching his head, "Uh, well…you know what the rumors say, right?" he discreetly nudged the bigger man, grinning innocently.

Ivan rolled his eyes, "If we'd listen to rumors, we'd already be strapped in tight jackets in a white room, idiot."

Kim shook his head, "No, no, no, no. There are rumors, but…but then there are also rumors, you know?"

Ivan allowed a tiny smile to cross his face, "Oh, like the ones about you and Alix?"

Kim's horrified expression was met with Ivan's rare, shit-eating grin, "How dare you- I- well, have I ever! I know you have something going on with Mylene!"

A long stare, "…She is my wife, Chien."

"Oh, trying to talk ourselves out now, are we?" Kim gave his friend the evil eye while Ivan simply sighed, counting down the minutes in his head, wishing that Marinette was on her way over here before he had to call for reinforcements to keep him from strangling a police officer.

Chat Noir huffed for the umpteenth time since the TV turned on.

What uncultured swine baked croissants without applying beaten eggs on them so they browned evenly in the oven?!

He couldn't look in the mirror, but he was sure his face was set in a permanent death glare since the ridiculous, apparently 'educative' cooking show began.

He hated that cook.

That cook was on his hit-list.

His eyes narrowed when the cook pretended the croissants were delicious to woo the audience.

What an amapurr!

His eyes stole a quick glance at the clock, sweeping over the two officers standing vigilant in front of the locked windows.

It was already eight o'clock.

Just what was that woman doing? He thought she would be back soon, he was getting kind of hungry.

He rolled his eyes, he was already letting his guard down too much, letting her feed him, as if he were some pet.

Then again, chained as he was, forced to remain in a cop's house, he might as well be some sort of pet.

He flexed his bare hands within the restraining cloth they were bound in, missing the feel of the protective leather and reinforced steel normally covering them. He missed his claws, he missed his gear, the wind in his face, the sensation of running along tiled rooftops and walls, away from naïve brady cops.

He sighed, letting his chin briefly rest against his chest, gaze discreetly watching the two bickering cops, the bigger one looking like he wanted to commit murder on the spot if the other one didn't shut his trap.

Chat Noir smirked in amusement, gaze sweeping over the kitchen.

He had no idea when the lady would be back.

It was late.

He was hungry.

Standing up to his full height, Chat Noir casually walked towards the kitchen table, wincing at the flash of pain shooting up his leg.

Two pairs of eyes were glued to his figure but he ignored them as he reached the fruit bowl.

"…What is he doing?" Ivan's eyes narrowed suspiciously, glued to the moving criminal.

Kim narrowed his eyes, "I don't know but it seems suspicious."

Kim rubbed his chin the longer he stared, "Uh…it looks like he's…getting a snack?" he watched the man go for the fruit bowl, eyes intensely trained on the way he near to effortlessly grabbed the grapes with his teeth on the stem and carrying them over to his previous position on the couch.

Ivan shifted, "He's restrained, how will he even eat them?" honestly, both Kim and Ivan felt a shot of sympathy, they had no idea when Marinette last fed the guy, if both were honest, she must've fed him at one point or another because it wouldn't be Marinette if she didn't feed people in her home.

They watched as Chat Noir sat back down on the couch, only this time, he swung his legs, with a bit of difficulty, over it and turned his back on them, "Hey! Now we can't see anything!"

The criminal bit off one of the grapes, swallowing it easily before grabbing the next one with his teeth and pulling it off its stem.

He would rather be dead than caught trying to eat like a dog, in front of cops no less. The ox and monkey outside didn't need to see this pitiful display, he still had his pride and self-respect.

Chat Noir huffed through his nose, trying not to fidget around impatiently.

Over two days passed since those assholes injured him and his release from the infirmary, in total, two weeks since his imprisonment. His men would've definitely caught wind of it, if not in the news, then through their underground networks. Word traveled fast when a top tier criminal got captured, especially one normally so cautious and nigh to untouchable as Chat Noir.

Still, he was curious about what those two cops that had visited so unceremoniously had meant with having information on The Fox.

Fox, or more commonly known among criminals by their Italian family name, Rossi-Vanetti, while well known, were difficult to catch. Chat Noir himself had tried numerous times, until a long-standing non-aggression pact of sorts was established between them after a ugly heist gone wrong.

The fox didn't meddle in the cat's affairs and vice versa.

Chat Noir smiled, "I wonder how they got caught, if I perk my ears, I just may hear something." He felt lighter, despite the heavy chains on him.

He hoped Tweedledee and Tweedledum outside were as oblivious as he hoped.

Luka rearranged the papers on his desk, hearing a soft snore coming from outside and he sighed softly.

Standing up, Luka grabbed his wallet and walked out, spotting the sleeping woman slumped on her own desk, face on top of her crossed arms, stacks of papers beneath them, files on her latest case regarding Chat Noir and a couple on the Fox.

The former marine shook his head, quietly walking closer to her. He couldn't fight off the low chuckle that left him, his jacket looked so big on her, tucked around her shoulders as it was, it shot an old but familiar warmth through his chest.

They'd poured over the files of both Chat Noir and Fox through the whole night, the only thing that made him get some semi-peaceful sleep was the fact that Kim and Ivan were still at Marinette's, keeping a close eye on the criminal.

He frowned, guilt creeping up his chest for not shooing Marinette off towards home to sleep, but the woman was too stubborn for him sometimes, firmly telling him off when he tried gently coaxing her towards the door, chastising him for disrupting her workflow at four in the morning.

He wondered how she didn't have large dark circles under her eyes from all the all-nighters she was known to pull over especially difficult cases, like their current ones.

Feeling slightly more confident, either because they were alone or he was operating on only three hours of sleep, Luka leaned down carefully, pulling his jacket closer around Marinette and rubbed her head affectionately, barely refraining from kissing her hair.

His lips were only inches away, but he forced himself to put more distance, lest the soft, sweet smelling scent of her shampoo or the tantalizing warmth she radiated trapped him too deep.

Like he already hadn't been trapped.

Luka shook his head, grabbing the keys to the precinct and heading out, buttoning up his shirt and fixing his slightly wrinkled sleeves.

Thankfully he had a spare shirt in his office.

It was cold and dark, like some of her nightmares usually started.

Next she would see the victims, victims in the conditions she usually found them in when they were dead and searching for clues on their murderers.

But this time, instead of the victim, a dark silhouette appeared before her.

It was strangely shaped, the head looked weird, two small protruding triangle-like shapes on top of the head and something long and thin hanging from the person's midsection, like a thicker rope of some kind.

Was that…?

Marinette squinted, taking small steps forward, 'Chat Noir?' why was she dreaming about him again? She usually dreamed of victims, or if she did dream of perpetrators, then how she was catching them or how they sat behind bars.

The silhouette moved away from her and Marinette broke into a jog to catch up to it, 'Hey! Wait! Come back here! You're still under my-!'

Light slowly seeped through at either sides of the figure and Marinette found her vision finally improving, the dark abyss she found herself in was bathed in light, '-watch…'

The figure turned and it was indeed Chat Noir, dressed in the dark leather he usually wore, the cat ears atop his head, the tail-belt hanging from his midsection.

He looked smug, dark grin stretched over his lips to show menacing white teeth, the green in his eyes looked haunting, even his eye shape changed to that of a cats. It was…almost demonic.

The light shone brighter and Marinette shielded her eyes, a sharp cry of pain cut through the silence of her nightmare and her eyes flew open to see what happened.

The scene changed.

Chat Noir was kneeling now, his dark suit gone, his hair was surprisingly combed, he looked…normal. Except the violent trembling of his body, tear marks on his cheeks, his clothes looked well-tailored, but they were rumpled, in disarray, his arms looked bruised, a cut was on his lip and when he looked up at her, Marinette's heart squeezed like a vice.

Incredibly watery, sad green eyes stared up at her.

'I'm sorry.'

Marinette lunged forward with a sharp intake of breath, papers falling to the floor and hands tightly clutching at the edge of her desk, mind swimming and body wracked with violent shivers.

Sad green eyes were still in her mind's eyes when hands settled on her shoulders suddenly.

Her body went on autopilot, hands moving to dislodge the ones on her back, before her own were grabbed gently but firmly and kept in place, "Marinette!"

The voice, she knew that voice.

"Marinette! It's me!" haunted bluebell eyes met concerned aqua ones and Marinette felt her heart sink in relief.

It was Luka.

It was just Luka.

He was holding her wrists, keeping her from performing a defense move and hauling him over her desk and dislocating his arm. He shook her gently, "Marinette, can you hear me? We're in the precinct, you're safe." His voice was low and soothing, her frenzied nerves finally, slowly calming down.

Her lip trembled, "I-I…L-Luka…" the man gathered her into his arms and Marinette gratefully welcomed the warmth that wrapped all around her like a blanket, hands clutching his dress shirt in her hands, the smell of coffee and the faint smell of his cologne helping her slowly come back to reality.

It had just been a nightmare.

She was safe.

Everything was fine.

Luka was here.

She was safe.

She wound her arms around his waist, clutching at his back and trying to mimic his calm, deep breaths, knowing he was trying to help direct her thoughts.

He was rubbing her back soothingly, whispering sweet nothings and Marinette was reminded of a time where they had been very young, still a bit naïve, she remembered soothing melodies and long talks on his house boat.

She sighed heavily, the breath she expelled took the demons of her nightmare with her and the female allowed her weight to gently sag against the sturdy support of Luka's body, "Feeling better, little melody?"

She smiled fondly despite her hands still desperately clutching at him, 'little melody', she thought he had forgotten all about it prior to joining the marines.

"Mhmm…" Marinette knew they were at the precinct, in their workplace, that this wasn't workplace-appropriate behavior, but she couldn't bring herself to care much, at least as long as they were alone like this, "Thanks Luka…" she nuzzled her face against his chest, the tallest place on his body she could reach and sighed again in relief.

The musician smiled, "Want me to play you a song? My guitar's in the closet." She completely forgot it he had a spare one right here in the precinct.

Coming back to herself, Marinette gently broke the close hug, running her hands down her face and gently slapping her cheeks, "No…I-I'm fine, thank you Luka. I…needed that." She took a deep breath and finally felt safe enough to stand on her own two legs.

Luka slowly let go of her elbows once he was convinced she could stand on her own, "You're welcome, you gave me a scare. Everything alright?" he knew she had nightmares, but this one seemed particularly bad again.

She smiled, a weaker version of her normally bright smiles, "Yes, yes, really I'm fine." She shook her head for good measure, "Let's start working again."

She was about to turn back towards her desk and pick up the discarded papers, until Luka stopped her with a hand on her shoulder, "It's still early, six to be exact. Work doesn't officially start until eight, or seven-thirty before some people pop up in here." Luka smiled, pulling a chair over and sitting down on it, grabbing two paper bags and steaming cups, "So, let's get some breakfast."

The warm smile stubbornly pulling at her lips made Luka's own widen and he unpacked their breakfast, setting aside her paperwork carefully and pushing her hot coffee in her hands.

She sighed, warming her cold hands on the paper cup, smiling at the warmth from the cup and from Luka's soft smile.

A few hours later… Plagg & Tikki arriving at the precinct….

Marinette was working like a machine again, the hearty breakfast and the wonderful morning Luka managed to create for her did wonders on her work ethic and overall mood, even Alya had teasingly commented how Marinette seemed to 'glow' oddly in the early hours.

Thank god Luka hadn't been anywhere in hearing range.

Unfortunately, poor Marc had and the man had promptly stubbed his toe against one of the desks in his stupor, Alya shouting laughing apologies at the blushing report writer and beaming like a fox at a blushing Marinette.

"Alya, would you cut it out? Nothing happened. We spent the whole night researching Chat Noir and the Fox case. Besides, we are at work!" the sharp tongue lashing didn't deter the reporter's wild imagination in the slightest.

The auburn haired woman's grin was even worse than the Cheshire cat's, "Pff, as if work stopped people from doing the deed. If it's Luka, I always thought you were the type to do that." She winked and Marinette used all her willpower to not swing a punch. Or three.

"The type to do what?" Marinette's whole back was wracked with shivers when she heard Luka's voice on her side and she could feel the evil aura rolling off of Alya in waves.

"Hi Luka! I always thought Marinette was the type to-"

"-work until I drop, right, Alya?" the bluebell death glare directed at her friend made the reporter thankfully shut up, not without a few sneaky giggles behind her hand though.

Luka rose an eyebrow, chuckling as he gave Marinette a side glance, "You're right about that, considering the night we had."

Luka's innocent comment did nothing to curb Alya's suggestive thoughts, it only fueled the devil's imagination, "Oh, really? Care to elaborate on that?" Alya already had her recording device out and Marinette promptly pushed her towards the exit.

"Oh, gee, look at the time! Aren't there any hot news or burning cars you need to go after, reporter Cesaire?!" with a final, rough push, Alya was directed towards the double doors leading out of the precinct.

The devilish grin and wink she shot Marinette suggested their conversation wasn't over and Marinette dreaded their next meeting in the weekend.

Luka was chuckling when his shorter subordinate and friend came back with puffed up cheeks, "Teasing again?"

The color Marinette's cheeks took on was similar to a certain blonde woman's lipstick, "Y-yeah." She cleared her throat, just like someone else did right next to them.

What was up with people sneaking up on her lately?

Her gaze instantly narrowed when she recognized who it was.

Tikki and Plagg.

Tikki smiled pleasantly, "Good morning you two." She nodded respectfully at Luka and gave a friendly wave at Marinette.

Marinette's expression softened towards her former mentor but hardened at the grumpy man next to her, "Morning."

Plagg, of course, noticed her disposition towards him, "Still angry, little kitten?" he grinned, but it held no real bite or ill intent.

Marinette frowned, "You went too far, you know." Her arms were crossed resolutely, and the older man sighed.

"Sorry about that, had to reign in the feral cat, so he didn't cause trouble."

A bit of a scalding retort was on the tip of Marinette's tongue, but Luka took the lead instead, "Thank you for coming you two, we already talked on the phone. Also concerning your behavior during your guard duty at Lieut. Dupaincheng's apartment." His own glare was directed primarily towards the dark-haired man.

Tikki's voice was soft and melodious when she spoke, "Yes, I apologize for that again. We entered Marinette's house without authorization or any emergency." She elbowed Plagg softly and the man cleared his throat.

"…Yeah…" another harsher elbow, "Sorry." Plagg felt his ribs hurt after the third blow, "Apologies for mistreating the criminal, sir." He rubbed his side, giving Tikki a glare.

Luka sighed, glancing at Marinette wordlessly.

"Apologies accepted, please don't do that again." She knew she could trust Tikki, she hoped the woman would stop Plagg the next time he let loose like that again.

"Moving on," Luka motioned for them to follow him, heading for his office, "You said you had more information concerning the Fox." Once the blinds were pulled down and the door was locked, Tikki produced a folder from the inside of her jacket.

"Yes, information about their last sightings in France and recent activity in Italy." Tikki's sweet tone remained soft but gained a professional edge all abiders of the law took on when speaking to authority.

She had been in that business for quiet a while, despite being off duty 'officially'.

Luka skimmed over the file, handing them over to Marinette to look at after he was done, "You're saying her husband is active again?"

Tikki nodded, "Yes, after two years of inactivity, it seems something prompted him to move again."

Marinette muttered quietly, "Or someone." She caught the three pairs of eyes looking at her, "I don't think it's a coincidence that both started suspicious activity, granted, it's months apart to be able to tell clearly and has no correlation with each-other, but I believe his wife gave him green light to act."

Plagg crossed his arms, "We thought that too. The Rossi-Vanetti's, ever since their coalition years back, had worked simultaneously and always in correlation to each-other. Either way, one of them is sleeping on the couch and acting up, or they try to avoid suspicion and act independently from each-other."

Luka rubbed his chin, glancing at the document again, "We can't ignore all these possibilities, since we don't have any reliable sources on their relationship. Marco Vinetti was never previously involved with drugs of any type, much less hallucinogens, that was mostly his wife's forte. The Vinetti's were more commonly known to illegally produce and sell alcohol to America, France and England." He scratched his neck, "It doesn't make sense why his M.O. suddenly switched to drugs, after two years no less."

Plagg shrugged half-heartedly, "Maybe he needed time to brew in his kitchen."

Tikki rolled her eyes, "Or Lila Rossi has a plan and tries covering it up by diverting all the attention to her husband in Italy."

Marinette huffed, "Wouldn't surprise me, she was always a snake." Luka winced slightly at the unadulterated venom in his friend's voice and the use of a nickname a former acquittance always gave him.

"According to your findings, Lila Rossi is…" Luka's eyes narrowed on the document, depicting the last known location of activity one of their men found.

"…In Paris." Tikki's voice cut through the air like a knife on butter and Marinette played with one of her pigtails.

"How could she be last seen in Marseilles and just suddenly show up in Paris without anyone noticing?" she was nervous, why had she been in Marseilles? For how long? How did none of their other colleagues notice her movements?

Luka bit his lip worriedly, "Marseilles is a center for trade and industry, for someone from the Mafia, trading routes like road, sea and airport are significant transportation options, especially for selling her…wares. She could've hidden them in large ship containers under produce which had gone unnoticed. Maybe she was gathering her financial resources or even men who came by ship."

"So, she was preparing her army?" Luka nodded at Plagg's question.

Tikki almost dreaded to ask, but she did anyway, even if she herself had a looming suspicion, "For…what?"

The look in Luka's eyes reminded Marinette of the times whenever he got lost in thought and thought of his service in his time as a marine, the word that left his mouth shouldn't have shaken her as it did, "A war."

Marinette's legs were heavy as she swung them out of her car, dragging behind her as she locked her vehicle and walked towards her apartment sluggishly.

She barely slept.

She had another nightmare.

On top of all that, a well known mafia family was planning a war?

She had enough.

She needed sleep.

Sometimes, she was glad Luka kept more watch over her health than she did herself, if Luka hadn't issued the order for her to go home and rest, with the promise of taking care of the two officers that had injured Chat Noir, she probably wouldn't have.

A wave of relief washed over when Kim and Ivan waved at her from their slowly moving car, heading back to the precinct to report and get some rest themselves after standing guard over Chat Noir the whole night.

She had to take them out to dinner for compensation.

Marinette's keys jiggled when she turned the lock on her door and released the deadbolt, another wave of tiredness hitting her as soon as her bare feet touched the carpeted floor of her familiar home.

The yelp she released when she bumped against something that felt like a wall jostled her awake again. She thought it was her bedroom door, but the warmth emanating from it wasn't inanimate. It felt distinctively human.

She completely forgot about her house guest.

Marinette took a staggering step back, rubbing her sore nose and finally spotting a grim-locking, downright pissed off Chat Noir, arms crossed and feet hip-length apart, resolutely staring her down and blocking her way of getting rest.

"Hey, call in one of your male buddies."

Thanks for reading! :3 Tell me what you think so far.