We get to meet Plagg! I wrote this whole chapter giggling and I still giggle when I reread it.

sjsreader...Thank you! I hope you enjoy this as much as Cats Closet. This is definitely a darker story as well as a longer one. We get Adriens POV in this chapter though!

Marinette is a detective who can't keep a partner while hunting down the notorious Hawkmoth gang. Chat is the new cat burglar on the streets who never gets caught. After Marinette gets handed his case it's it won't be long before their fates collide especially when monsters start roaming the streets


( Climbing Frustration )

Adrien was pissed, flat out pissed as he walked into the precinct the next morning. He knew where to find her and when he did he was going to get that dammed stone back. Last night had been a disaster that bordered on insanity even when it came to his bad luck and it had all been Marinette's fault. Who in the hell chased criminals across rooftops and through abandoned buildings at ten pm at night? What kind of person fought against a monster when they knew they couldn't win? Then after kicking said monster in the butt, into a hole, simply tossed their weapon down to them without a SINGLE. DAMMED. WORD.

Marinette did that's who.

It was no wonder why the girl couldn't hold onto a partner if this is what she was like stuck out on desk duty. Out in the field with a good partner to cover her back she must be a true terror although, terror probably wasn't even a good word to describe her when she was really out on the streets. To be honest Adrien knew she was a terror since he had been playing with Paris' dirty criminal world for a few weeks now. He had heard the rumors (which he had scoffed at) and it didn't help that her name as well as Tikis was spoken with a healthy mix of awe or fear. Many criminals, the ones brave enough to approach him at least had warned him to not get caught in Marinettes crosshairs, yet somehow his bad luck has planted him smack dead in the center of them. When his father had unknowingly handed her his case he had almost laughed out loud thinking he was going to get a break. Now for the second time in a row he had been almost caught by this little, frustratingly adorable detective, and he still didn't know what to think when it came to her.

Case and point, she had saved his life last night with that sniper when she could have just let him take Chat out solving all her problems in one fell swoop. Instead she had knocked him to the ground and saved him. After he escaped from the cops Chat had gone after the sniper tracking him to his little nest and interrogated the man. No one would find his body anytime soon and it was his fault for taking Hawkmoths money anyways. Slamming the door to the stairwell shut, his emotions a raging mess, Adrien started climbing stairs.

"You know you're only mad because she kicked your butt. Literally actually." A small sarcastic little voice said from his pocket.

"Shut it Plagg." Adrien hissed as he glanced into his suit pocket to see the tiny kitten shaped creature known as Plagg gazing up at him with bright green eyes.

Plagg snorted rolling his green eyes at him. "Why? You're about to do something really stupid. She isn't going to give you the stone and she has already proven to be a more than worthy match against Chat Noir. In fact if she manages to activate that stone she will be a good wielder."

"We are stronger and faster than her." Adrien ground out ignoring Plaggs good wielder comment.

Plagg snorted "We are stronger and faster than everyone you nitwit. Yet she has gone toe to toe with us twice now and managed to steal that stone from us. No one has managed to go toe to toe with us at all since we became Chat Noir, much less get the drop on us. Face it she is smarter and if you don't quit letting your instincts rage out of control she is going to put you down. Well…us." He amended

"Me?!" Adrien demanded as he paused inside the stairwell that led to the second floor "You're the cat kwami thing who holds the magic and all that jazz. I'm just the driver. Besides she just… God she is infuriating! I've only run into her like two no, three times now and she is infuriating! She bit me! Who the hell bites a stronger half cat person when all they want is a little stone back?" He moved to swipe a hand through his hair in frustration, then grimaced as he remembered the gel he was forced to put in his hair just that morning. He hated having to gel his hair but his father demanded professionalism and until Adrien got what he wanted he would just have to deal with it.

Plagg on the other hand snorted at his antics, having already had this conversation with him several times over the previous night and decided to have no mercy. "What did you expect her to do beg for mercy? Maybe ask for a kiss? She punched her partner in the face be dammed the consequences for slapping her butt and you a complete stranger, and a criminal mind you, had her pinned by her wrists while feeling her up!"

"I WAS NOT!" Adrien snapped

"And that was after you stunned her with that blow to her chest! You're lucky her ribs didn't break! Both last night and the night before when you fought!" Plagg retorted ignoring Adriens words "And then you wonder why she bit you? Not to mention you clawed her by accident."

Adrien snarled hating that Plagg was right and threw open the door while slapping a hand over his pocket, squishing Plagg so he would shut up. There weren't many people up on the second floor at this time of the morning and he practically made a beeline for Marinettes office. Raising his hand ready to pound the door open if necessary he noticed the papers in her door had yet to be touched. The sight made him freeze allowing his temper to cool slightly. He couldn't hear any movement behind the door and Adrien wondered if she was even in yet. Taking a deep breath he sniffed the air taking note of her uniquely fragrant scent. It was faint. Faint enough that Adrien knew she wasn't inside.

"Plagg?" he questioned quietly and the cat kwami gave an irritated but resigned sigh.

"She has been here this morning but she isn't inside and the stone isn't here either." Plagg answered and Adrien nodded having already figured out the not inside part by the lingering scent.

Marinette was in the building but she wasn't in her office. Where else would she be?

"Excuse me are you looking for Marinette?" a female voice asked

Adrien turned to find Alya standing behind him. Since arriving back in town he had reconnected with his buddy Nino and he in turn had told him all about Alya. She was a reporter and a writer for a blog column both in the paper as well as online. Nino had shown him about five million pictures of her so he could recognize her anywhere at this point.

Slapping a charming smile over his features Adrien held out his hand. "You must be Alya. Nino has told me a lot about you."

Alya smiled back easily and shook his offered hand. "Yep I'm not surprised Nino has a mouth that runs like a leaky faucet. Why are you looking for Marinette?"

Adrien paused having to think of what to say since he couldn't very well say what he really thought. Which at this point was somewhere along the lines of wanting to strangle her, kiss her, or perhaps both. To be honest he really hadn't made up his mind yet.

"Yesterday she was helping me understand some of the paperwork we have to do here and I was hoping to continue the lesson since I had to leave early." The lie slipped easily from his lips and as he finished Alya had a very unusual grin on her face.

"She is in the basements Gym. Since you're going that way anyways you can take her breakfast too right?"

"Uh…" Adrien answered as she handed him a brown paper bag and a cup that smelled of tea.

"Great thanks so much! I have to get back to work so bye!" Alya called over her shoulder making a beeline for the elevator doors.

Blinking Adrien looked down at his now full hands. "Well I have an excuse to talk to her now at least." He muttered as he made his way back to the stair door.

Plagg poked his head out "Yeah, talk, right."

"Shut up Plagg and stay out of sight!" Adrien hissed at him as he walked back into the stairwell.

Adrein was determined to figure Marinette out but for the life of him he just couldn't imagine what in the world she had been thinking when she went up against him the second time. She had known at that point he wasn't fully human and she had known about his unnatural strength and speed. Yet she had faced him, defied him, and that made him curious. Truth be told he could easily find her when she went out walking later that evening and ask her then, but at this point both of their nightly meetings had ended rather badly and he had injured her both times as well. To be brutally honest he was wary of her. For someone so sweet and small looking she had a hell of a punch. Plus she had managed to leave her own bruises, not to mention his split lip which was thankfully almost healed already due to the kwami magic that ran within him.

As he hit the bottom floor and turned into the hallway he sniffed the air. Dust, sweat, a slightly sweet spicy scent that he recognized as Marinettes filled the air and although he could almost detect another scent in the mix he could at least tell that there was no other person down here for the moment. From the smell of things there hadn't been anyone down here but her in a long time. Stalking down the hallway he turned into the gym and froze in shock. When he had been a child he had played down here and back then it had been a few mats, a sad looking weight machine, and a rope that some fool had managed to anchor to the weirdly high ceilings. Now the place looked like the interior of a rock climbing gym. Along one wall some sparing equipment hung and in one corner there was a punching bag. Mats covered the floor everywhere and a bench sat fairly near the door. As he gaped he spotted Marinettes jacket, a change of clothes, and her tennis shoes. Walking over to them he placed her breakfast down on the bench and in a whisper hardly louder than his breathing asked Plagg

"Well is it in her jacket?"

Plagg shook his head. "The Miraculous isn't in her jacket. She either left it at home or she has it on her person."

Adrein grumbled and Plagg poked him. "Adrien look." He murmured an awed sound in his voice.

The whole backside of the basement had essentially been converted into one large bouldering cave and as he glanced up he found himself struck dumb all annoyance being tossed right out the window. She was wearing a pale pink skin tight sports bra with a black pair of skin tight leggings that stopped at her knee and left nothing to the imagination. Her phone stuck out of the waistband of her pants and she climbed barefoot with such fluidity, grace, and strength he almost couldn't believe she was human. He stood without thinking and walked towards her wanting to get a better look as she scaled the walls, her hands and feet alternating spots as she navigated the surface. Making it to one edge she suddenly inverted and began climbing along the roof over 6 feet off the ground. She was almost over the center when she paused suddenly and Plagg hissed in surprise. Flinching her free hand going to her chest Marinette missed her next handhold as she glanced down and finally registered Adriens presence. For a brief second time stood still and then she gasped turning red as her body tilted. Off balanced by the missing hand she tried to cling to the rocks with her feet but her balance had already shifted past the tipping point. Adrien darted forward as Marinette slipped from her perch twisting her body in an attempt to land on her feet. She didn't fall very far though because a second later she landed in his arms.

"It looks like you have fallen for me princess." Adrien said to a stunned Marinette

"Where the heck did you come from?" Marinette demanded wondering how she had missed him and what the strange buzzing sensation across her abdomen had been.

"Alya asked me to bring you your breakfast. Might I ask why you are down here so early and how all this got here?" Adrien asked as he turned and carried her from the bouldering cave.

"Y-you can put me down I-I'm t-totally fine!" Marinette squeaked as she realized he was carrying her and wiggled trying to break free of his arms. He was shockingly strong and with her body pressed against him the way it was she could tell he was toned with a capital T.

Keeping his face carefully neutral he allowed her to wiggle free of his grasp although he had wanted to keep her pinned against him. Her feet hit the ground and she darted to her things nervously picking up the cup of tea. She had been warm, smelled delightful and even though he was still annoyed, catching her as she fell into his arms had gone far to soothe his rotten mood. Marinettes eyes darted everywhere but him as she wrapped the towel around her shoulders and Adrien realized with a jolt that he made her nervous. For some inexplicable reason Adrien made her nervous when Chat was hardly a blip. It made him want to laugh even as he began to remove his jacket ignoring Plaggs small annoyed hiss at having his pocket disturbed.

"Uh… What?" Marinette began and froze as his eyes meet hers

"I want to give it a try. Do you mind if I join you?" Adrien asked as he began to remove his shoes.

Marinette didn't quite know what to say so she simply shrugged and gave an after you sort of gesture. Adrien grinned as he walked back into the cave area with Marinette following close behind once she got over her embarrassment and put her towel back down.

"So what's the easiest to start from?" Adrien asked eyeing all the crazy multi colored stones of every shape size and texture.

"Start wherever you like. I don't really make paths to be honest." Marinette answered her heart thumping loudly in her chest. She hoped he couldn't hear it and told herself mentally to chill out. Marinette had come down here far earlier than normal. She had awakened at 6 am fully energized and ready to go her injuries almost totally gone. The missing injuries had freaked her out a bit but she had been glad as well since the mass of purple rainbows that had covered her arm and side were mere shadows now. Besides the missing injuries it was completely odd for her to be awake so early since usually she was not a morning person. Today however she had energy to burn.

"Ok then I'll watch you for a second and figure out where to climb from there." Adrien replied and Marinette felt her face flush.

Moving to the wall she placed her hands on two rocks then positioned her feet. Her hands were sweating and she was nervous. After nearly slipping on two rocks that were easy moves she paused and took several deep breaths. Climbing was almost impossible when jittery, that's why she did it to help center herself. Climbing and Parkour were like meditation for her and breathing deep she allowed her nerves to settle. Then she began to move along the wall her hands and feet moving to the next handhold fluidly with a kind of grace that made it look impossibly easy. Her thoughts settled as she moved, yes the man she had a crush on was right behind her, yes he had caught her in his arms when she had slipped. Those thoughts almost made her slip again and she paused in her climbing to look around. When she finally caught sight of him she almost fell off the wall in shock. He was practically racing along the wall the biggest grin on his face as he lunged again and again to his next handhold. His movements were almost feline in nature and Marinette allowed herself to drop to the mats wanting to watch him climb. He inverted scrambling upside down and Marinette chuckled making him pause to look over at her.

He cocked his head at an odd angle his gelled hair straining to hang towards the ground in a comical way. "Princess?" he asked and for once Marinette didn't mind the nickname.

"If you're this good at climbing you should come free running sometime with me and some college kids." Marinette said

"Really?!" he yelped surprised by the invitation and in the next instant Adrien slipped from his upside down perch. Marinette winced as he twisted midair and landed on all fours glancing up at her with a sheepish smile. "I guess you shouldn't stop when hanging upside down huh?"

Marinette laughed a happy sound that made him want to purr. "No you shouldn't pause for long when you are upside down."

A beep came from her waist band and Marinette pulled out her phone. "Oh man its already 8:00?" she exclaimed and moved out of the cave.

Adrien followed his eyes drawn to parallel scratches across her side. "What happened to your side?" he asked and winced, internally berating himself for such a stupid question. However he did notice that there was only the faintest of bruising both on her arm and side where he had struck her previously. It would seem that Marinette healed fairly quick for someone who was just limping days before.

Looking down Marinette rolled her eyes her face gaining an annoyed expression. "A cat scratched me, nothing to worry about since I kind of deserved it." She muttered and Adrien decided to drop it although he desperately wanted to know why she felt that way.

"Do you have to be somewhere soon?" he asked changing the subject as she picked up her things.

"I wanted to go check on a crime scene that belongs to a case of mine." She answered

Adrien frowned "Which case?" he asked

Marinette sighed "Chat Noir and technically I shouldn't be going out but its daytime and its not like I am going to run into him during the day so it should be fine. I need to check something out on the scene and Alya promised she could get me in."

The words came out easily and as soon as she finished she slapped a hand across her mouth. She had not meant to say that much and fully realizing this Adrien grinned as Marinettes eyes flicked up to meet his. She gave him an odd look and Adrien held up his hands "Does this mean I can come?"

Twenty minutes later they walked out of the precinct side by side and made their way to the crime scene.