Hey guys!
Thank you so much for your responses on chapter 3. It means so freaking much to me. For real, it motivates me so much.
I know my posting schedule will be weird and random, and I'm sorry about that, but you guys' reviews and really anything you do like reading motivates me so much to write.
I was really motivated to write this chapter thanks to follows and favorites by:
Zoey2301, avaldenegro34, imdinosaurusrex, serenakino, Flpirate305, Mackenzie-1111, Harmony375, Rohain Taquil, PinkYellowRoses2 and SylverIscariot
For following and favoriting.
An extra special thank you to charmep87, and Harmoney375 for reviewing.
Hearing your feedback is so appreciated and important to me. I am obsessed with hearing your voices.
You all were so supportive and I can't thank you enough.
3 Mari
MARINETTE:
Ladybug looked around for her partner.
They had been closer than ever lately, ever since their moment on the Eiffel Tower, and she was happy.
He had been more open about his home life, and although she was careful not to ask specific questions that would reveal his identity, she really felt closer to him.
She was happy to tell him about her own drama, tip toeing around peoples names and details, and he listened intently.
It was incredibly endearing the way he would stare at her with those big eyes and listen to her talk about her mundane civilian life.
The one thing she tended to leave out was Luka.
She tried to tell herself that it was because she didn't want him to put the pieces of her identity together, but she knew it wasn't true.
She didn't want to break his heart. He was going through hard times.
She couldn't imagine what he would say if he found out that she had a boyfriend.
Still, it felt wrong to lie by omission.
She didn't know what to do. Ladybug was known for her leadership and morals, but right now, she felt weak and unethical in her decisions around Chat Noir.
She was deep in thought when something caught her eye.
A flash of black was all she saw.
She narrowed her eyes. What was that?
Another flash.
She smiled. Of course.
He was so cute.
And suddenly he was sprinting towards her.
An excited torpedo of blonde and black shooting towards her, and showing no signs of stopping. She braced herself, laughing as she prepared to take in his embrace.
Chat bounded toward her at the speed of a cheetah and hugged her tight, not letting go even as she fell backwards.
His momentum was strong, and Ladybug fell back several feet and continued to slide, even with Chat on top of her, clinging to her stomach.
They skidded to a stop as they crashed into a small tree planted on a pretty rooftop garden.
Luckily, the tree stayed intact, and as Ladybug got up and checked the damage, Chat gazed up at her from his position on the grass.
Once she was certain they had done no real damage to the garden, Ladybug turned her attention to her partner.
Hands on her hips, she shook her head at him, silently admonishing him for constantly ambushing her.
He just grinned.
His blonde hair was strayed out around him, and his eyes seemed to be greener than usual.
She smiled. She couldn't help herself. Those innocent kitten eyes would be the absolute death of her.
"Hey, kitty. What are you so excited about?"
"I have news."
"What is it?"
He quickly changed into a crouching position and grinned at her. "My father is gone for a full month!"
Ladybug frowned. "Huh? Why would he do that?"
"Business. It's his real baby. He's going to be off in Italy and Spain." He beamed. "Isn't that great?"
"But who will take care of you?"
He scoffed. She raised an eyebrow. "As if I can't take care of myself, milady."
"We're teenagers, chaton. Who will cook your meals?"
"What do you think take out is for? Besides, I have a nanny sort of person who will be around."
"What if you want a home cooked meal? What if you need a hug?"
He had to think about that one. Finally, he perked up, his little black ears turning upwards.
"I have a friend. Her name is Marinette. Marinette Dupain Cheng."
Ladybug froze. Chat kept going.
"You know her, right?"
Ladybug nodded and tried to keep from flushing as red as her suit.
When it got as meta as this, when she had to pretend she cooked her alter ego food and that they were friends, she hated being a hero.
She hated keeping her identity hidden. She knew Chat did too.
They were both tired of the secret keeping, even though she knew it was the only way.
"Well, sometimes she cooks for me," Chat explained. "She lets me into her home and feeds me. She's a great chef."
"Is that so?"
"Totally. She's the daughter of these bakers- oh right, you've known her longer than I have." He laughed at himself. "She's great."
Ladybug smiled softly.
It was so goddamn validating to hear when people liked both sides of her, both Marinette and Ladybug.
And Chat was definitely one of those people.
He was always so grateful for the small things. Tiny, domestic details that no one but him would notice.
She remembered those times, letting him through her window.
She remembered cooking his food.
12 weeks ago:
Marinette heard a strange sound coming from her window.
It sounded rapidly every couple of seconds, and it was annoying as hell.
She had to finish a couple more integral stitches before she could gift Adrien his hat. Sewing the feather in was particularly suspenseful, and this freaking knocking was making her jolt.
Finally, she huffed, stood up, and marched over to her window, ready to yell at the woodpecker making such a ruckus.
As she whipped open her curtains, she found bright green eyes staring back at her.
"Chat Noir?" she asked softly in disbelief. "What are you doing here?"
He seemed worn out, but even in his tired state, she couldn't help but marvel at his good looks.
As Ladybug, she didn't dare. But Marinette could stare a couple more seconds.
He sighed. "I was running from the freaking paparazzi- who are everywhere, by the way,- and I haven't eaten in two days."
Marinette's mouth dropped. "Two days?!"
As the daughter of a baker, despite her slim figure due to crazy fast metabolism, she couldn't imagine going more than eight hours without at least a snack.
Even at two AM, she got up to eat a couple of biscuits her parents would leave out for her.
But seeing Chat, malnourished, tired and overwhelmed… she had to do something.
"Come in, come in," she said as she hurriedly opened her windows to let the boy in.
He stepped into her room, grinning at her decor.
"What?" Marinette demanded, crossing her arms. "Is there something wrong with my room?"
"No," Chat said softly, smiling at her. "It's cute. It's very you."
Marinette blushed at the compliment and looked away for a millisecond, before she saw Chat wobble a couple inches and rushed over to him.
When she got to him, she grabbed his arm and ushered him over to her chair by her desk.
"I'm fine," the boy insisted, as Marinette rolled her eyes.
"You're stubborn is what you are," she told him as she walked to her door.
As she reached for the handle, she heard her squeaky chair turning, and Chat standing up.
"Where are you going?"
"To make you some food, alley cat," she said, turning and barely holding in her giggle at the formidable hero's pout. "Hold on a minute."
"Fine," he grumbled, and fell back into her chair. It made another squeak.
Marinette rushed downstairs to make something quick. Eggs, she decided.
She whipped up some scrambled eggs with peppers, onions and lots of salt. She scooped some onto a dish for her favorite hero, and added some peas for vegetables.
Then, with the nimble grace she had learned as Ladybug, she sprinted up the stairs without spilling a morsel from the very full dish she held.
She opened her door to find Chat smirking at her.
"I brought you food," she said. He kept his arrogant grin plastered to his face. "You have a cat plushy. And it's black."
Marinette blushed. "So?"
"So? It doesn't resemble anyone you know?"
Marinette feigned ignorance. "Like who?"
Chat sent her a knowing wink. "I'll let this go for now, but only because what you're holding smells freaking amazing."
She smiled. "I hope you like it. I didn't have much time."
Chat Noir shook his head. "This is amazing."
"You haven't even tried it yet," Marinette laughed as she set the dish and fork down in front of him.
"Doesn't matter. I haven't had a home cooked meal in forever."
She tilted her head sympathetically.
Chat Noir didn't notice however, too busy scarfing down his eggs.
"Jesus Christ, woman. Do you put crack in this?"
Marinette giggled. "No, in fact crack cocaine in not my special ingredient. It's called practice."
"Well, this is amazing," Chat told her between mouthfuls. "I needed this more than you know."
"You can come back, you know," Marinette blurted out. "If you need food or something. Or someone to talk to. You can come back."
Her new friend smiled at her. "I might just have to take you up on that."
And he did.
He came back around once a week to get snacks or a meal from Marinette, and she would scold him about his eating habits and she would care for him.
He would knock on her window, give her a big smile... That smile. That smile would convince her to make a thousand meals for that boy.
Then he would plop down on her chair or her bed, and they would talk for a bit. Marinette found that Chat Noir was just as charismatic with civilians.
Chat Noir's voice knocked Ladybug out of her thoughts. "Has she cooked for you?"
"Hm?"
"Marinette," he said, amused. It wasn't often Ladybug was off her game, and every time she was, Chat relished it. He adored teasing her.
Flustered and frustrated, Ladybug was forced to come up with something on the spot. "Uh, yeah, a couple times I think."
Chat nodded encouragingly. "She's super good, right?"
Her heart melted at his enthusiasm. It seemed those little meetings meant as much to him as they did to her.
She nodded. "Super good."
He closed his eyes and hummed, seeming to imagine eating her food. He subconsciously licked his lips.
It was the cutest freaking thing she'd ever seen.
"Are you sure you'll be okay, chaton?"
He gazed seriously into her eyes. "I'm sure. Besides, I'll have you."
She nodded, still unsure. "You will."
He sighed at her, giving her a fake disappointed head shake. "You worry too much. You always have."
"Yeah, probably," the girl admitted with a smile.
"So, any news with you? The Ladybug Scoop?"
Tell him about Luka.
Tell him so that it's simpler in the future.
Tell him so that you don't hurt him more later.
"Nothing, really," she said, inwardly berating herself.
God, she really needed to stop running away from her problems at some point. She would work on that later, though.
Chat Noir nodded. "Well, I'll be free a lot more, thanks to my dad. So if you need anything, let me know. And I can cover your patrols."
This freaking cat. Always too selfless.
"That wouldn't be fair. And you look like you need more sleep."
"Are you implying that I don't look impeccable?" He dramatically flared his hand to his chest.
"Never," she smiled, rolling her eyes. "Anyways, I like patrols. It's nice."
"Yeah, until an akuma shows up," Chat grumbled.
"Then it becomes exciting," she replied.
"Ugh," the black cat groaned. "Your positivity is suffocating."
"That's my real superpower," Ladybug replied, laughing.
"The greatest hero in all of Paris," Chat said sincerely.
Ladybug tilted her head in a chastising manner. "You know I'm nothing without you, chaton."
She saw his pupils get bigger, and she saw his gaze drop to her lips.
Shit.
Her swollen lips. Swollen from making out with Luka.
She pressed them together awkwardly, and gave a strange smile.
She would tell him at some point. Probably.
She hated lying to people, but him, Alya and Adrien especially.
They were her best friends, the most important people in her life. And now she couldn't remember a time when she wasn't keeping a secret from them.
She sighed inwardly.
A beep emitted from her earrings. She exhaled again, this time due to relief. Saved by the bell.
"Well, time for me to go, I guess," she said. "Bye, chaton. Stay safe."
"Always, milady."
And she took off swinging.
A jealous Adrien coming soon…..
Thank you guys so much for reading this!
I really pumped this one out fast, and honestly I cannot take credit for it.
This one is all thanks to you guys.
And a very very exciting side note… Moonlit Kisses has reached over 1000 views!
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After only three freaking chapters!
This is my fastest moving fanfiction, and fastest growing. I'm proud of myself and I'm proud of y'all.
It's been a rough couple days for me, (ugh home life and racist teachers) and fanfiction has always been my safe space and home away from home.
This has made me happier than I thought it possibly could. So thank you.
Love forever,
Mari