Chapter 10
Chat Noir stood still, expression guarded as he mustered the man outside curiously.
With his hands only handcuffed with the flimsy standard issued cuffs, he easily bent his fingers and wiggled his hand out of one, the rest of the chain dangling from his other wrist as he slowly unlocked the French double windows. He was silently thankful Tweedle-dee and Tweedledum had forgotten to lock the other side as he stepped outside.
The air was cool and crisp, the night pitch black, telling him it was well past midnight.
The man was short and well-dressed, fitting clothes that looked just a little too expensive sat on his mildly rounded frame. Chat Noir usually tried refraining from passing judgement onto others, but the man didn't look the part of a first-class thief to be able to steal such expensive clothes, much less posses the stealth needed to accomplish such a feat.
His gaze narrowed suspiciously, "Who are you?" moving closer, nose moving imperceptibly to discreetly take a whiff of the man, "You're not one of my own."
The man fumbled nervously, "W-why of course I am my lord! I'm a new recruit y-you see!" he smiled amicably, bowing respectfully, "Please my lord, we mustn't waste time, you must get to our lair, I'll personally finish off-"
Green eyes narrowed further, lips stretching to reveal an angry snarl, "You're not a kitten." Chat Noir moved slowly, gracefully despite his injuries, not willing to show any hint of pain or discomfort on his face, circling around the man like a predator did to prey.
He leaned forward, smelling the nervous sweat accumulating at the man's nape, "You're a rat." He ran a hand over the by now trembling man's neck, fingers tightening slightly in warning, eyeing him critically before he took another look at his wardrobe and the strange scent that messed with him, "No…you're not a rat. You're…" He took a deeper sniff of the man's strange scent.
Mixed with shampoo and sweat was an underlying scent he couldn't have washed off no matter how often he tried scrubbing it out of his skin.
Ammonia
A hand roughly seized the man by the throat, another harshly applying pressure to the man's solar plexus, above the stomach but just below his chest.
"-a fox."
The man recoiled in fright, eyes blown wide and hands pushing against Chat Noir's shoulders violently, but the criminal planted his foot firmly on the man's own, slamming his hand with the chain dangling from it on the shorter man's mouth to muffle his scream of pain.
Chat Noir moved closer, whispering into the panting man's ear. "Let's have a little chat, shall we? Did the Rossi-Vanetti's send you hmm, little fox cub?"
At the man's silent, trembling form, Chat Noir's fingers dug deeper into his chubby flesh and the man heaved. "I suggest you cry me a little tune, otherwise I'll notify the cop sleeping inside. She's not one to be trifled with, cross her and you'll have to fear more than just me knocking the breath from your lungs." The hand curled around the man's throat tightened and pulled back sharply. "Talk little fox cub, now."
The criminal waited several beats for the man's heartbeat to slow down. "Scream and you'll have more than vomit splashing onto your polished shoes." The threat was clear and real, Chat Noir's hand traveling from the panting mouth to the man's neck, thumb pressing harshly beneath his chin and pushing his head back uncomfortably.
The man was hyperventilating, eyes haphazardly moving from the house to Chat Noir's toxic green eyes, the black mask surrounding them giving them an odd glow. "M-M-Mistress, M-Mistress sent me! P-Please, I-I-I haa-am a new recruit, I d-don't know- a-anything! I was sent, sent to, to bring you to her! That-that's all, please! Please sir!"
Chat Noir didn't budge, eyebrow raising in question. "Why pretend to be a part of my group? Did the puttana order you to?"
At the mention of his mistress in such a derogatory term, a brief flash of anger flickered across the man's eyes, but Chat Noir effortlessly curbed it by pressing his fingers sharply on the man's rapid pulse point. A whimper escaped the man and his body was wracked with shivers. "You're disposable wares, little cub, your mistress doesn't much care for your life if she sent you here to me."
The man huffed, eyes moving rapidly to try and determine what to do next until Chat Noir's warning glare made him rethink his decision. "S-Sir, please, pp-please sir, I beg of you, I-I don't, don't know I swear!"
"I have a purrpostion for you, little fox cub." At Chat Noir's sneer, the man cowered into himself, body trembling violently. "I'll send you back to your mistress, with a little message."
The man's eyes flew open in unadulterated terror. "Merda!"
A few unsettling minutes later…
After Chat Noir watched his struggling figure vanish into the empty roads ahead, he turned back around, voice low. "I still got things to do here…" he cleaned his bloody fist against the already red bandage on his torso. "So, don't interrupt me."
The night fell quiet again, only the occasional, distant whines from the man and the chirps of birds disturbing it, but the noise died down as soon as Chat Noir closed and locked the windows again.
He'd just settled back into the covers in his original position when the clicking of a lock sounded and Chat Noir quickly pushed his hand through the other handcuff and waited, with baited breath and impossibly still. Listening in for the soft footsteps padding against the floorboards to the living room where he slept.
It was the lady cop.
From what little he could recognize her silhouette, her head turned to his general direction. He didn't dare move a muscle, he barely breathed, mentally panicking she might have heard the conflict outside.
Her soft voice reached his hyper alarmed ears, it sounded loud in the quietness of the room. "Chat Noir?"
He waited a few beats, not sure if he should respond. "Are you awake? I heard groaning."
He laid as still as a statue, eyes following her every move as she carefully advanced towards his form, far away enough to grant him space, but close enough that he felt the warmth of her body as she sat down at the edge of the bed. "Are you in pain?"
She'd heard a few muffled groans from her room, she'd nearly bolted out of her bed, before remembering Chat Noir might react very negatively if she intruded upon him like this, in the middle of the night.
She'd only pondered it for a second, not being able to bare listening how he was suffering from the pain.
She was anxiously sitting at the edge of the couch, close to his legs, as close as she dared and allowed herself to be.
Chat Noir finally responded to her questions with a fake sleepy, husky voice. "Nrghh…did I wake you up?"
She shook her head, even if he couldn't see it. "No, do you need painkillers? I have strong ones in the cupboard." She was already standing before Chat Noir could even answer, navigating through the dark to try and reach the kitchen.
"Yes…thanks." She hummed in acknowledgement, mildly aware of how many times the man had thanked her in the time they'd forcibly lived together.
He heard the rustling of boxes, then foil, she'd obviously found the medication and started unpacking it.
He winced when there was light, thankfully very low and he realized she'd adjusted the small lights over the sink to dim, so it didn't hurt too much on the eyes but bright enough to see her surroundings clearly.
He blinked and watched her walk towards him slowly with something cupped in her hand and a glass of water in the other.
She was dressed in her PJ's, attire he was seeing for the first time, a pink loose T-Shirt and comfortable white-pinkish boxer shorts that reached a little over her knees, above toned legs.
There obviously were still some police officers who worked out, at least if her figure was anything to go by.
He snorted, and quickly tried covering it with a cough, trying to pass it off as reacting to the pain.
When she settled on the couch again, closer to his torso to hand him the medicine, she arched a brow, suspicion written all over her face. "If you comment on my wardrobe, you're not getting any medicine."
He frowned, remembering the embarrassing, atrocious clothes Couffaine had bought him and her not commenting on it. He nodded in understanding, accepting the glass of water and a pill from her hands. "I'm not stupid enough to look a gift horse in its mouth."
She scoffed, wincing in sympathy when Chat Noir tried sitting up, only to hiss in pain. Marinette leaned over. "Wait, let me help."
Chat Noir didn't dare move, he had overestimated himself tonight a bit, despite having shown zero signs of being in pain in front of that spy, the punishment he'd dealt after had been too much for his still fresh wounds. His body was screaming at him for his foolish actions.
Still, having the woman so close to him, so close he scented a hint of something sweet, most likely her hair conditioner, kept him on guard. He could admit to himself, silently, in the privacy of his own thoughts, how the sweet scent was more than welcome after smelling the pungent smell of ammonia on that man earlier.
He still wondered why the Fox had sent one of their cubs after him.
Had word gotten out of his imprisonment that fast? What was happening with his group?
His gaze moved towards the woman again, feeling her hands pressing lightly against the uninjured spots on his back and pushing him upright slowly, carefully.
He hissed through clenched teeth and her hands were off his body in a second. "I'm sorry!"
Chat Noir quickly waved a placating hand, shaking his head. "It's alright, it wasn't you." He sucked in a breath before letting her help him settle into an upright position against the propped-up pillow, her own body coming dangerously close to his own.
The man tried to ignore the soft press of her chest against his own solid one, firmly reciting addresses in his mind he'd robbed in the past to distract himself. He was finally leaning against the propped-up pillows and she moved away from him, his tense body relaxing finally.
Chat Noir grabbing the pill and water and swallowed both.
Marinette observed him quietly, trying to gauge his reaction after he set the glass down on the small coffee table. "I didn't think the medication would've worn off so fast."
Chat Noir wiped his mouth clean with the back of his hand, the chain rustling from the movement. "You didn't have to." He shifted, gritting his teeth at the pulling sensations, disturbing the carefully bandaged wounds which began to sting. Did he…have stitches?
He pressed his fingers carefully against his bandages, feeling small raised ridges beneath his chest, "What's this?"
The lady cop moved closer, gaze seeking permission to inspect him closely. Chat Noir nodded his consent and her fingers pressed ever so gently against the tough bandage. "The doctor had to stich some wounds closed from…your scuffle in the cell." The criminal nodded in understanding and the silence settled over them once again.
The woman stared at her hands before speaking quietly, so quiet Chat Noir strained to hear, "I…I'm sorry for earlier, I…wasn't thinking. Running low on sleep."
He swallowed thickly, eyes downcast as the…moment from before replayed in his mind again, like a movie, the warmth from where her hand had touched him was still there, a phantom sensation.
He shifted. "It's me who should apologize." Marinette lifted her head bravely to meet his gaze and he cleared his throat. "Couffaine could've suspended or fired you, you could've lost your job when you defended me."
"I didn't mean-"
"I know what you meant." Green met blue and it seemed like none of them blinked since their eyes locked, the silence between them mutually shared.
The criminal rubbed his neck, messy blonde hair falling partly into his eyes. "You're an odd one, you know." He finished the sentence he hadn't earlier in the evening.
At Marinette's confused, mildly offended look, Chat Noir elaborated. "For feeling compassion for a criminal like me, I mean. I'm the big bad guy you finally caught, for the first time, if you should feel anything toward me, it's pride for capturing me."
The look in his eyes told her he fully believed in his own words and Marinette's hand curled into a fist, wringing the material of the blanket in her death grip. "You're not a prize to be proud of, Chat Noir. You're human beneath your mask and the criminal records."
He scoffed, turning his head away. "Oh really? Then why do I feel anything but-" a finger to his nose made him abruptly stop and he blinked quizzically at the cop, who pulled back her hand and shook her head.
"You're an odd one too. From the bunch of criminals I've met in my life so far, none of them called me a lady before." There was a hint of a little, amused tone in her voice and Chat Noir bristled.
Wait…
"He didn't-" before the words even left his lips fully, Chat Noir knew the truth.
He did.
Marinette nodded, "Don't blame Nino, he was so shocked, it's not every day a high-class criminal compliment an officer like me."
Chat Noir snorted, "I didn't compliment you, you are a woman, aren't you?" his eyes unwittingly traveled down her torso, quickly moving away to stare at the boring wall instead.
"Lady' is far more polite than ' cop' or 'woman', don't you think?" she practically spat out the words, trying to mimic the way he'd told them before. Chat Noir huffed, not believing he was being interrogated like this.
"Shouldn't you catch up on your beauty sleep? Cops should be alert at all times, shouldn't they?" he rose an eyebrow, lips slowly forming into a smirk.
Her own smile never wavered, standing up to put the glass to the sink. "I'm not the one requiring beauty sleep, besides with us both injured as we are, I highly doubt you'd try anything." Her fierce expression mildly softened, it still had the hardened edge like a passing warning addressed specifically to him, but not enough to intimidate. "Especially after I saved your ass."
More casual words only left her lips in company of Alya, due to the reporter's own occasional potty mouth, but Marinette was feeling a bit more carefree that night, she blamed it on the lack of sleep.
Chat Noir chuckled, a deep husky sound. "My ass never asked to be saved, princess."
"And yet it whined in that cell." Marinette stopped, suddenly feeling embarrassed at herself. Was she…bantering with him? She shook her head.
"Hm…don't forget, I saved you too." A secretive smile settled on his lips and Marinette rose an eyebrow in question.
"What?"
"Nothing." shaking his head, the criminal slowly settled back into the covers, remembering the words of the man from outside.
"…I'll personally finish off that cop!"
It didn't take a genius to guess what the pathetic man would've said, perhaps it was intuition among criminals, but Chat Noir felt unnerved.
His enemies knew he had been imprisoned, they knew where he was, they even knew about the cop.
How did that information leak outside so quickly? Who could've notified his enemies? Did his group know?
No, one of his kittens would've already tried contacting him had that been the case. It didn't make sense that the enemy knew before his own allies.
Only the police know the truth so how-
Unless…
"Chat Noir?" again, his thoughts came to a halt, head whipping up to look at the lady cop.
"Yes?"
She shifted her weight, despite the darkness, he could still recognize her silhouette. "I'm sorry."
Chat Noir blinked, thoroughly stumped by the sudden apology. He couldn't place the cause. "What?"
"I'm sorry." She repeated.
"For… what?" he echoed his confusion again, sure he misheard. Was he making sense? Was she making sense?
She shifted again and took a breath. "Had I known you…didn't like being enclosed in small spaces, I would've seen to it that you got a bigger cell of your own." To someone else, the words may have sounded strange, but given their relations as criminal and cop, it fit the frame.
"You… know?" then again, the doctor must've deduced it, based on camera footage he assumed, his attack must've been evident even through a lens.
"While the offer is very generous princess, I don't believe you should be so considerate. I don't extend the same courtesy, you must know." He tried sounding nonchalant, but he underestimated the woman's perceptiveness.
"You may pretend not to care and you think you may hide it well…" A pause. "Why did you call that prisoner 'kitten' after he thanked you?" Chat Noir didn't need to see to guess the suspicious expression on the cop's face.
He huffed, "It's a pet name."
"I doubt that." Her voice was surprisingly firm, as if she didn't believe him one bit.
"An insult really."
"You're lying."
Chat Noir clicked his tongue. "Oh really? What did you think it was for a man I've never met in my life?" he smirked, waiting patiently for her answer.
She didn't disappoint. "A term od endearment. A code." She paused again, as if pondering seriously. "A rank."
Chat Noir froze, but covered his surprise with a loud laugh, the chains rattling from his hand moving up to run a hand down his face in disbelief. "You seriously think 'kitten' is a rank? What comes next, big cat? Wild cat? Tiger? Honestly, expected a bit more from someone of your caliber, lieutenant."
Marinette didn't let herself be undeterred, sitting down on the edge of the couch, Chat Noir jumping slightly when her hip touched his foot accidentally. "It makes sense, your image resembles a cat. I even heard a joke or two you made about cats. Wouldn't it make sense if the top cat of a group called their minions 'kittens'?"
A burst of something white hot, constricting and powerful spread through his chest and Chat Noir's amused expression melted away to imperceptible traces of anger. "Minions, you say? For your information lieutenant, there are more idiotic groups out there calling each-other minions, make no mistake in assuming my organization does the same."
Marinette rose a brow at the oddly defensive, almost annoyed tone in the criminal's voice, the moment she uttered the word 'minions' and his group in the same sentence.
"So, you're trying to tell me you're the lion mother of your pride and you have your…" she tried refraining from giggling out loud, but a few snickers escaped, "-cubs?"
A peeved sigh left the criminal's lips and he slowly rolled onto his side, hissing at the sharp pain from his wounds and throwing himself back onto his back again, crossing his arms over his head, "Not a lion mother and certainly no cubs."
He rolled his eyes when he heard a few barely suppressed snickers. "Just you laugh lieutenant, I could say the same about your lap dog Couffaine."
Marinette abruptly stopped, not expecting such a jab at her, much less her superior and friend. "Don't call him that, he's not my lap dog, he's my superior and friend."
Chat Noir, unimpressed, barked. "Woof."
"I understand why nobody came to save you." Marinette smiled wryly at the snort coming from the man.
"You're lucky they hadn't yet, my kittens are smart, unlike some dogs." He huffed, arms crossed. "They wouldn't come where there are too many guard dogs on the watch, but you know that as well of course."
Marinette rose an eyebrow, trying to curb down the feeling that he was hiding more from her. Of course he was hiding valuable information, maybe she should strengthen security more.
"What's the history between you two?" Marinette was burning up with curiosity, if Luka wouldn't tell her fully, perhaps Chat Noir would, while injured, sleep deprived and on painkillers.
The criminal chuckled, pulling the covers up to his bandaged stomach. "Shouldn't you head to bed soon lieutenant? It's quite late." Chat Noir spied the clock on the wall of the kitchen, just barely making out the two pointers, showing past 2:00am.
Marinette lingered on the edge of the couch but stood up, head turned toward him. "What are you hiding cat?"
Another chuckle. "If I tell you that, it wouldn't be a secret anymore, now would it?"
"Touché." was her answer and the criminal laughed.
"Good night, lieutenant."
Her voice seemed farther away than before, probably somewhere in her bedroom. "Good night, criminal cat."
"Good night, justice lady."
This time, he heard a quiet giggle and a smirk curled his lips.
He heard the door close and the lock set in place, carefully readjusting himself Chat Noir closed his eyes.
Sleep didn't claim him for hours to come, ears listening keenly to his surroundings, senses on alert for any other wandering foxes strolling about.
Foxes were normally scared of dogs, but Chat Noir learned they were much more terrified of cats.
Especially big ones.
Only the sounds of the occasional laughter from the playing children gave them a much needed reprieve of the suffocating silence.
Silence that had permeated their den like a veil of miasma since their leader's disappearance.
"It's been weeks." A tiny rock was flung against the opposite side of the wall, bouncing off it harmlessly.
"He's known to scout the area for any parasites, you should know that."
The female voice from before growled and continued her restless pacing. "I know that." The small black paw symbol on her shoulder moved as she stretched, hissing at the pain in her back. "But he's never been out this late. He always returned after a week, maybe two if he encounters trouble. He's been gone for over three weeks, Roger."
The blonde-haired woman twirled her umbrella, leaning it against the wall to cross her arms. "We should go look for him!"
"You think he got captured?" a much younger member, barely the age of fifteen, asked quietly, foot digging into the floor uneasily.
An older man snorted in disbelief. "Don't be silly. Chat Noir getting captured? It'd take fifty of those blue pissers to hold him down and another fifty to restrain him completely."
"A hundred people? Aren't you overexaggerating, Roy?" Aurore leaned her hand against her umbrella, fixing her friend with a skeptical look.
"Tch, if he's serious, it would take a lot of men to take him down, weather girl." The woman rolled her eyes at Roy.
"Maybe he left us for a lady cat?" Roger proposed, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
Aurore hummed. "…Erm…well…he's known to be a bit of a lady killer."
Roy shook his head, "Yeah, but he wouldn't leave us for some woman."
"M-Maybe uncle Chat's waiting for us to get him…" the younger member meekly added, flinching at the older man's booming voice.
Roy shot to his feet energetically, brows drawing into a glare. "Bullshit! As if a living legend like him would get captured! Listen boy, in all my years of loyal servitude to him, he's not been caught once. Why would he be caught now!?"
For his age, the boy's voice was fierce despite the tears filling his eyes. "Because we weren't there to back him up! We got ambushed suddenly and he was alone in enemy territory! We weren't there to back him up!" Aurore placed a calming hand on the boy's shoulders, pulling him into her side while fixing a death glare up at Roy, who only scoffed and crossed his arms.
A younger man sitting next to Roger rose up, attracting the gazes of everyone. "It's a possibility we can't ignore, right? We can't rule that out." Renier, a longtime friend of Chat Noir and right-hand man in everything tactical and technological spoke up calmly, hands shoved in his pockets. "He would've contacted us already had it been anything else. Other scum started gravitating towards our den more because they hadn't seen Chat Noir here in a while."
He took a small rectangular device out of his pocket, a green blinking dot flicking on the radar. "Me and a few others will have a search party. Aurore, you and the thieves disperse and sniff out our latest targets. Send out snipers to guard the entrances and leave Zero with the kids."
Aurore placed a hand upon Renier's shoulder. "Hold on, you want to leave the explosive maniac with the kids? He hates anything shorter than him and louder than a bulldozer, he'll go ballistic!" the umbrella in her hand was tapping against the ground impatiently.
Renier smiled, running a comforting hand through the sniffling boy's hair and walking out of the room. "Exactly. He'll be more alert because he has babysitting duty, but also more pissed off if anyone crosses his path. That way, the kids are even safer than if any of us stayed behind."
The former weather woman grimaced, silently agreeing with the older male before she walked the other way to gather the rest of the cats.
"That's right. Let's get our leader back." Aurore's gait was filled with purpose, the umbrella twirling with more power.
The vibrations from her phone chased away any lingering sleep she had, a hand blindly reaching for her phone, only for it to fall to the carpet.
Cursing silently beneath her breath, Marinette cracked her eyes open and grabbed her buzzing phone, answering. "Lieut. Dupain-Cheng."
The voice on the other line shook her out of any sleepiness she had. "Colonel Couffaine here."
Marinette shot up to a sitting position like a bullet, back straight and eyes wide. "Y-Yes, sir!?"
An amused chuckle filled her ears and Marinette briefly stared at the device before pressing it against her ear again. "Um…hello?"
Luka responded once again, sounding highly amused. "Good morning little melody. Sorry for waking you, I assume you didn't have much sleep? You sounded like you were expecting me to order you to do push-ups." Marinette's groan made Luka laugh again.
She fell back onto her pillows, rubbing her eyes. "Sorry. Sleep didn't coffee any drink."
"You barely slept and didn't have your coffee, yet?" this man's smooth voice in the morning would be the death of her, Marinette swore. "Want to get coffee together?"
A small smile lit up Marinette's tired features, but the hand slapping the side of her face broke it like a spell. "Sorry Luka, I have to change Chat Noir's bandages and go grocery shopping and everything. I think it's…uhm…" she tried wracking her brain for the date and day, but came up empty handed.
Thankfully, Luka read her like an open book. "It's Saturday, Miss Dupain-Cheng."
The dark-haired woman giggled, wedging her phone between her shoulder and cheek and putting on a bra. "Right, thank you Mr. Couffaine, noted." She paused, trying to remember if she had anything she had to report. "By the way, did the doctor tell you anything else about Chat Noir's condition? Should I do anything else other than change bandages?"
There was rustling on the other line before her superior and friend spoke up again. "Change bandages two times a day and check for any bleeding on the wounds. Apply a cooling ointment on the open wounds and a disinfectant powder on the closed ones." He recited the instructions he'd received from the doctor himself.
"Alright, I'll write that down for later. Thanks Luka." Marinette slowly grabbed her phone again and looked at the screen, finger hovering over the 'Call End' button.
"Wait!" the phone was pressed to her ear in seconds, eyes flying open.
"W-What?"
The former marine's voice sounded a bit hesitant, a rare occurrence. "There's this…small concert Kitty Section will throw in about a week…wanna watch? First row seat?"
A blush colored the officer's cheeks and Marinette couldn't fight off the stupid goofy grin she'd had since her teenage years. "S-Sure, I'd love to!"
"Great! I'll get you tickets and pick you up before it starts."
There was only one problem. "W-Wait, what about Chat Noir?"
"…I recall Kim skipped out on a few shifts due to his illegal races against Alix with duty cars…" Marinette giggled, hearing Luka chuckle. "Don't worry, I'll think of something."
"Alright, if you say so. I'll see you on Monday for breakfast. Greet Juleka from me!" after getting an affirmative response, Marinette hung up and stretched with a yawn.
A flash of pain made her cave in on herself, body shivering from the unexpected pain.
Her ribs.
She completely forgot.
Wincing, she slowly lifted her shirt upwards, biting her lip at the ugly sight.
Her midsection looked like Nathaniel's canvas after using dark blue and green colors, with a splash of red.
Chat Noir sure did a good number on her.
Gingerly getting up, Marinette slowly walked towards the ironing board in the corner of her bedroom, the elastic band hanging off it the doctor gave her.
She dreaded putting on the compression bandage after her night of freedom, but orders were orders.
Taking a deep breath, Marinette held one side to the center of her stomach while she wrapped the other one around her mid-section, connecting the two ends by four hooks.
She winced, adjusting it again before she moved to get dressed in comfortable pants and a simple shirt.
She had expected to have a foreboding feeling when she unlocked the bedroom door, or heard Chat Noir moving about, but she had none of them.
Silence.
Peaceful silence, not the kind before a predator pounced on prey.
Marinette quickly rushed into the bathroom, almost done getting ready for the morning.
It took only minutes and she was out again, hair in messy pigtails and face still tingling from the cold splash of water.
The sight that greeted her in the living room had her frozen at the doorway.
It was Chat Noir.
Asleep.
Rubbing her eyes in disbelief, the policewoman blinked again.
Was this a dream?
Why was he still sleeping?
It was…
A glance at the clock told her it was 7:15am. Not too early, but definitely later than she usually awoke. No wonder Luka had called her, he'd expected her to be asleep.
She fondly remembered her teenage years of always sleeping in, now as an adult, she'd be off to work earlier than she needed to.
Her attention focused back on the silently sleeping criminal, sheets strewn about, face half pressed into the pillow, blonde hair a messy bird's nest. How the mask managed to stay planted on his face, she would never know.
She couldn't recall seeing the man asleep, he had always been awake earlier than her, even if it was at six in the morning. It was odd. Maybe he had a weird inner clock like she had since her twenties.
Perhaps he'd learned those skills as part of being a criminal and living on the streets.
She took the rare opportunity to look at him a bit longer, since he was usually alert and could notice her gaze.
Marinette had seen from a few occasion's how well-built he was, all the running from authorities and lifting heavy stolen goods must've done him good. He wasn't too bad looking if one overlooked the black mask and the death glare.
A very miniscule part of her wished he still had the cat ears, they made him look a bit better, if only a bit.
He had surprisingly white teeth for a criminal, she'd seen all sorts of poor hygiene, black teeth, yellow-ish, even gold ones.
His hair was always messy, maybe purposefully unkept.
And he had red-
Red bandages.
Bloodied bandages.
Marinette's heart turned to stone and her feet were quicker than her brain in the early morning hours.
Normally, she'd politely ask and gently wake him up.
Now, she leapt.
And pounced upon the sleeping male like a mountain lion on a slumbering rabbit.
The reaction was similar.
If Marinette had known what would've happened, she would have definitely reconsidered her approach.
A startled yell reached her ears, followed by strong arms attempting to pry her off.
What followed was a frantic mess of limbs and sounds, alternating between shouts and startled yelps.
Even in the midst of all the commotion, Marinette could tell none of his movements were wasted. They were practiced. As if he regularly warded off people off himself.
Her hand reached his stomach amidst the mayhem and the accidental pressure on his wounds caused Chat Noir's actions to increase tenfold in intensity and speed, trying to push the threat away from his sleep riddled body.
Chat Noir slammed a knee against her hip, thankfully weak in their scuffle, and Marinette tried to reach his upper arms to hold him down. His hand slipped somewhere underneath her outstretched one to stop her.
Her thoughts and the chaos of tangled limbs came to a halt when she felt a hand press against the side of her breast and her instincts kicked in.
"Pervert!"
She slapped him.
Hard.
Chat Noir's cheek stung and his head whipped to the side, his own hands still holding onto the woman by her waist and shoulder.
When he turned his head towards her, his green gaze was livid. "What…What the hissing fuck was that?!" they were both panting, him from the shock of his rude awakening, her from the adrenaline and the surprise of his accidental inappropriate touch.
"W-What were you thinking touching me like that?!" her arms were protectively crossed over her chest, cheeks a rosy pink.
"And what were you thinking jumping me like that?! I was sleeping! If this is your standard interrogation technique then you can-" the enraged criminal tried moving away until he froze, eyes widening in alarm.
His body convulsed, the tremors spreading through the entirety of his body until Chat Noir clutched at his stomach and fell back onto the bed.
A pained cry escaped his lips and Marinette's previous embarrassment was immediately forgotten when she spotted the bandages darkening with more blood.
She never thought the doctor's number she had on speed dial would ever be put to use.
It definitely would be now.
A few minutes later…
Marinette was pacing back and forth behind the closed door to her living room, anxiously biting her fingernails.
She waited.
And waited.
And waited.
What was that doctor doing so long?!
Minutes passed after her internal panic subsided and the doctor finally called her back in after half an hour of treating the man inside.
She couldn't remember the last time when she opened a door so fast.
Chat Noir was laying flat on his back, torso covered in gauze, face set in a disapproving grimace.
Marinette winced, hoping silently that it wasn't as horrible as it first looked.
The doctor rubbed his forehead, a heavy sigh escaping him when he removed the mask. "The worst is over, I've managed to close his wounds and clean them properly. Lieutenant, could you tell me how his stitches have opened?"
Marinette stiffened like a statue, the scenes replaying in her mind like a broken record. Lawsuits of domestic violence, abuse of power, physical abuse against a defenseless man swam through her mind at a rapid pace.
How would she explain her intense worry had spurred her to irrational thinking and led to her jumping the poor man and accidentally injuring hi-
"I fell off the bed."
The policewoman broke out of her thoughts, wide eyes staring at the criminal.
The doctor turned towards him and Chat Noir met his gaze fearlessly, repeating himself. "You fell off the bed?"
She'd never seen a man look so miserable in her life. "I tossed and turned in my sleep and fell off this damn couch. If you didn't notice doctor, this thing's not exactly made for my size."
Marinette wasn't a twig, but she wasn't as broadly built as a man, the couch fit her quite fine and Alya when the woman came over for snacks and a movie. Chat Noir's feet were just on the edge, not dangling off but the width was more of a problem. It was a bit slim for his frame.
The aged doctor rubbed his chin thoughtfully, shifting his attention back to the officer. "Do you have any other more suitable sleeping accommodations?"
The word left her mouth before she could even think of the repercussions. "My bed."
Chat Noir's head snapped towards her like a bullet, green eyes so wide she feared they would pop out of his head.
The man in the white coat nodded, as if agreeing with her suggestion. "Well, until his stitches come out, I suggest keeping him rested on a bigger sleeping surface to prevent such…" he gave a sidelong glance at the criminal, who huffed. "…accidents from repeating. You have my number lieutenant, call should you need anything. I assume you've written down my instructions for his bandages and medications?" he arched a grey eyebrow.
Marinette nodded quickly, too stunned to speak.
The doctor sighed. "Very well, I'll take my leave. Take care lieutenant, Chat Noir." He nodded at the criminal, who returned his respectful head nod.
"Thank you, doctor."
Both adults were dead silent until the doctor completely left the apartment. Silence settled over them like a heavy veil and Chat Noir's gaze was set on the still surprised cop in the room.
"So…your bed, huh?" the question served its purpose.
It ripped her violently from her thoughts.
"W-Wh- y-you-! You pervert! You touched me inappropriately!" Marinette crossed her arms defensively, common sense having lost since abandoned ship.
Chat Noir's brows shot to his hairline. "Excuse me?! Just who jumped whom violently while the other was sleeping and assaulted them so badly to open up their wounds?!" Chat Noir was oddly laying still, gesticulating with his arms would've hurt too much with the freshly applied bandages.
"I-I apologize! You-I saw you bleeding through your bandages and I-I wasn't thinking, it was early and I just woke up and-!" Marinette ran a hand through her hair, feeling the fine sheen of sweat gathering at her scalp from all the morning stress. "I didn't mean for your injuries to open I swear, I was concerned because I saw the blood and you were sleeping so I thought you might've lost consciousness!"
The criminal sighed, shaking his head. "Tch, you're lucky I'm not an asshole otherwise I'd have filed a complaint, cop."
Marinette huffed, resting her hands on her hips. "From the injuries you have given me it's you who should be lucky that I didn't throw you in the cell on that island, cat."
Chat Noir snorted, eyes refusing to look at her directly. "Look, it's not like I did it on purpose. I was aiming to get you off my sore ribs."
Marinette knew Chat Noir hadn't meant to touch her like that during their scuffle, she knew from experience while training, accidents could occur, especially since she ripped him out of his sleep suddenly.
Gathering all her patience, the woman stepped forward but remained a safe distance away. "Let's forget this. I wanted to change your bandages but since the doctor already did… Let's have breakfast, we need to head out."
Chat Noir warily watched the hand extended at him, as if it would bite him. "We?"
"I have to take you with me. It's Saturday, my colleagues don't have time to watch you so you'll have to accompany me grocery shopping." It wasn't entirely wrong either. Ivan had plans with his family and Kim was off on a swimming competition with his rival Ondine and the rest wasn't available.
Luka came to mind, but she didn't need any more drama than she already had gotten this morning. She wasn't sure how Chat Noir would react being so close to him, alone at that, not with the way they last saw each-other.
Marinette also started to worry how Luka himself would react in Chat Noir's presence, if his last outburst was anything to go by. They still hadn't talked about that, Marinette had to approach him some time before or after work hours. Maybe she should've accepted that breakfast offer.
A look at Chat Noir immediately shut that thought down. Even injured and restrained, he was a threat.
And still a suspect.
Someone to be looked after.
Marinette waited patiently, waiting for Chat Noir to grab her hand so she could help him stand up.
The criminal's gaze flickered from her hand to her eyes, distrust so painstakingly obvious that Marinette almost cringed. It was her fault, his distrust wasn't surprising.
He sighed but didn't take her hand, instead Chat Noir leaned back only to use the momentum and swing forward with his body, feet moving aside to land on the floor and stand upright, a head taller than her.
"See? I don't need your-ugh!" his body suddenly fell forward, shoulders shaking and leg just barely catching his own weight as it almost gave out.
"Chat Noir!" Marinette's hands immediately latched onto his shoulders to hold him upright, head leaned onto her shoulder and Marinette stayed perfectly still, eyes wide at their sudden close proximity.
Chat Noir seemed to think the same, if the sudden muscles turning to iron beneath her hands was any indicator. He leaned away from her, voice strained from pain. "I'm fine, lady cop."
"No, you aren't. Just…just stay still." Taking a deep breath and mentally bracing herself, Marinette slipped through Chat Noir's arm.
She could feel how he tensed even further and sighed. "Listen, this isn't any easier on me so just…bear with me until we reach the table."
His warm breath hit her neck when he breathed out a strained: "Fine."
Marinette had no idea where it came from, but a sudden violent shiver raced down her spine and she almost fell back when Chat Noir's weight settled against her side. "Too heavy for you, lieutenant?"
The side eye he got made him chuckle, but a light jab to his side shut him up very quickly. "Very funny, criminal. Now be quiet and lean on me."
Another long-suffering sigh, before he leaned some of his weight against her, his larger frame somewhat dwarfing her side. Why did his shoulders have to be so broad? Or his chest? How could running away from authorities do that?
Focusing on the task at hand, Marinette slowly helped the man walk to the kitchen table, the table which was usually so close now seemed so far away.
The places where their bodies touched seemed so unbearably hot, despite the moderate temperatures outside. Marinette tried reciting information about him to distract herself, distract herself from their scuffle before, from their too inappropriate closeness now.
'He is injured, protocol doesn't apply here. He's injured, he's-'
Marinette's eyes flew open when Chat Noir turned slightly, stomach pressing against her arm holding him up.
If she hadn't gone through rigorous training, if she hadn't dated before, if she hadn't had the little sleep she did and was still like her teenage self, Marinette would've been a blushing mess at the firm press of hard muscle against her hand.
Thankfully, they continued their snail's pace without interruption, Marinette putting a deadbolt lock on the fleeting, purely physical reaction she'd had.
She was a professional.
After excruciatingly slow seconds, they finally reached the kitchen table and Marinette carefully helped Chat Noir settle into the chair, a relieved sigh escaping them both when he was safely sat on the stool.
"Next time, I'll file a complaint on domestic abuse."
"Next time, I'll file a complaint on sexual harassment."
Green eyes swirled to her back while Marinette made coffee. "You can't do that! It was an accident!"
A smirk curled her lips. "The exact same words I'll use to defend myself, because it was an accident."
Chat Noir mirrored her smirk, trying to cross his arms but hissing at the pain it caused. "Oh, so me accidentally touching you in self-defense was sexual harassment, but your full-body slam on my own body on top of a bed was…accidental? My, my purrincess." Something akin to mirth reflected in his green eyes and Marinette tried to curb the feeling of annoyance bubbling in her stomach.
"I told you not to call me that, criminal." She set his steaming mug of coffee in front of him, fixing herself one too.
Absentmindedly rubbing the spot Chat Noir's hand had accidentally touched, she grumbled to herself silently, trying to burn the feel of his hand there away from her mind.
His voice, now much closer and an octave deeper, whispered softly to her ear. "Only if you stop calling me 'criminal', little lady."
She turned around and Marinette had to brace her hands against her kitchen counter when Chat Noir's intense green eyes stared right into her own, face so close she could feel his breath fan her cheeks and the miniscule details of his mask.
In a moment of absentmindedness, Marinette's hand slowly rose to touch Chat Noir's cheek, fingers pressed against the edges of his dark mask.
His eyes portrayed his shock at her unexpected touch and Marinette's brain tried to analyze the strange high-quality material she was touching when a voice called her name softly from somewhere behind them.
"Marinette?"
Thanks for reading everyone! What did you think so far?
Translation:
Puttana – bitch (in Italian)
Merda – Shit! (in Italian)