The next few days were a fog for Marinette. Small mercies; Chloé and Adrikat made no more public showings. Marinette waited, counting down the days to her next evening with Cat Noir. What Ladybug had wound up she could unwind. She could fix her mistakes, she could take away the hurt somehow. She could erase the terror in her heart when a trick of the mind had briefly turned those green eyes blue.

Alya knew something was up, but what to say to her? Alya would probably laugh off the entire thing, since Marinette still had Cat as herself. Alya didn't know about the risks, about what a sad Cat Noir could become. She hadn't seen the ghost of another choice living in a world of ruin.

Adrien knew something was up, and was showing signs that he was uneasy as well. Marinette caught him looking at her on more than one occasion. Sometimes there was concern, other times there was resolve in those eyes. Whenever she caught him looking he'd jump as if burned and quickly find interest in anything else at all, with the lightest of pink to his face. Those moments got her through the day.

Being Ladybug right now was awkward. They never spoke of that moment and Cat Noir still joked as much as he helped, but there were little tells; hitches in body language or a mumbled answer. She had only herself to blame but there was nothing she could think of to do for him as Ladybug. She needed to be herself for this to work.

The night of his visit was full of anticipation. Would he come? He would. How would he be feeling? Should she make a production of it and comfort him, or should she pretend everything was normal? She spent more time dressing for this date than she had for anything in her life. She switched in and out of outfits, second and third guessing herself. In the end she went completely casual, her only changes to her normal look being an oversized zip up sweatshirt instead of her jacket for warmth and his scarf on hand to wrap around her neck when she went outside.

It was still early when a scratching at her rooftop door pulled her from yet one more runthrough of how tonight might go. Around her room a few adventurous kwamiis startled and fled for the safety of the miracle box. Marinette picked up her scarf but approached the trapdoor with caution. There was more than one stray who knew just whose door this was.

"Cat?" she called, a hand to the door.

"It's me Marinette." his voice was soft, even more so than the barrier would account for.

Marinette lifted the door, and revealed Cat Noir's face. She caught an instant where his eyes were to the side and a sadness clouded those lovely features but his eyes snapped to her and his Noir grin spread quickly across his face, though it didn't quite fill his eyes,"Do you get that many gentlemen callers sneaking to see you by rooftop Marinette?"

Marinette opened the door all the way, buying herself a moment. She wasn't ready yet. The smile she had for him came easily enough though and her reply,"Maybe I just like to hear you saying my name." was something pulled out of daydreams where she wasn't such a wreck.

It worked though. The smile reached his eyes this time,"If you'd like I could sing it from the top of the Eiffel tower for you." he said. Reaching out he took her hand for a kiss.

Marinette allowed the kiss, and returned the affection by ruffling a hand through his hair, ending with a scritch behind one ear,"I don't know kitty. I'm not sure anyone else would appreciate your cat-erwauling."

Cat Noir's ears perked, and he grinned, leaning into her touch,"and she puns too. Is there anything you can't do, Marinette?"

"Apparently keep track of time. I thought we weren't going to meet until 9 kitty?" She made to step out of the doorway but Cat Noir snapped out of his scritch-bliss back to reality.

He held up his hands,"I know, but I-" he looked at the ground, was Cat Noir nervous? "I was going crazy waiting, I was hoping I might catch you early. Can we talk inside?"

What was this? Was he worse off than she had expected? So much from a moment's carelessness. She could hurt her Cat in so many ways, it was a little scary being that important to someone. "Of course kitty, come in."

Cat Noir skipped several steps, jumping down. He stopped in the middle of her room and sat cross legged on the floor, looking back up at her. Marinette sat herself down opposite him, hands in her lap and waiting attentively.

He smiled, but his smile had a pause,"It's hard to begin, to get this all out right. I've been thinking about it for days." His eyes searched her face, then he began again,"Ladybug tried to kiss me the other day."

Marinette was screaming internally. This was all so unnecessary. She was her own other woman. Relationship drama with too few actors for all the costumes. Her frustrated look must've passed for shock well enough because Cat Noir continued,"She's under a lot of stress lately. She was confiding in me. I think it was just a mistake." there was a lot of emotion in his words,tangled up worse than a Cat Noir in a yarn ball.

"It's okay kitty." Marinette reassured him. She reached out between them, and his hand met hers in the middle. She gave him a smile,"I know Ladybug well enough. I know you are special to her, and I can't blame her for her taste." Marinette tried to turn her smile into a grin for him, to let the joke pull up her sad cat.

He already had his next words on his tongue though, and the joke did nothing to stop the flow,"It made me think. This is entirely unfair to you Marinette. We can only meet rarely. I'm stuck here in this costume half a person and half an idea. You deserve more Marinette."

Was he breaking up with her? From sure calculations to an emotional pitfall Marinette blinked back sudden wetness in her eyes,"Kitty? What are you saying?" she squeezed his hand harder, pulling it into her lap, trying to keep him.

"I'm saying there are three words I want to share with you Marinette, more than anything, but I can't" He squeezed back then let go,"So, first I have to share three more." He tried a smile, but nerves killed it almost as soon as it began. "Plagg, Claws-"

Marinette dove across both their laps, clamping a hand over his mouth. He fell backwards in surprise and she ended up sprawled across his chest, their faces inches apart. His eyes were wide and Marinette felt her own body reacting to the sudden shock. Her pulse was burning in her veins. She felt his heart pounding against her chest. So close, they were so close but,"Not like this." she found her voice in a bare whisper,"Kitty, not like this."

Marinette didn't move right away, not until she trusted her limbs. Even then she just gently moved her hand to the side. She brushed her thumb along his cheek, tracing the bottom of his mask. Their eyes stayed locked; his held so many questions. Marinette answered the most important one,"But soon, please."

She scooted just a little bit down, and curled up atop his chest, her head under his chin. He moved finally, his arms came up and held her. One of his hands moved up to brush soothingly through her hair,"When Marinette?"

She was drawn up small, her hands under her chin. His heartbeat was slowing, returning to normal. Marinette opened one hand to spread her fingers against the warm black leather of his chest,"When you're happy." she tilted her head up towards his face,"When you can give me one of your big smiles as you do it. That's how I want to see you kitty, smiling in the moment."

A gentle chuckle in response. It wasn't a full throated Cat Noir laugh, but it was a little release. The vibrations under her made Marinette giggle in response. Cat Noir let out a small sigh, another release, his clawed fingertips still played absently in her loose hair,"Well if I'm not baring my soul, this is definitely a wonderful alternative."

"Mmmm." Marinette snuggled up a little smaller, but cozily this time, not panicked. With sheer force of will she pushed herself up and smiled down at his curious gaze,"Let's go run across rooftops until we can't stand up." she grinned.

Cat Noir sat up under her, and returned her grin,"I think purrincess, I may have an edge on you there." he tapped her nose with one claw.

Marinette scooted around in his lap to face him, resting her arms on his shoulders,"That just means I get to be carried home again, what a shame."

Their faces were inches apart. There was anticipation mixed with the happiness now in his eyes. No, not yet, almost. She would burn the fears out of her system with exhaustion first. Marinette stood and with a playful mimicking of Cat's own gentlemanly manner she bowed and offered him a hand up.

Cat Noir took the hand up, and as they ascended to the rooftop he commented,"This is one of the things that amazes me about you Marinette. I can come here in any number of moods, but I always end up happy."

Marinette remembered her scarf, wrapping it around her neck as she followed him,"And when I know you're coming, it's enough to shake me out of any mood I'm in."

Cat Noir scanned the street below them, then stepped up to the rail in front of her,"Your chariot awaits." he hunched slightly, hands back. Marinette jumped and clung to his back. He clasped his hands under her and scooted her to a proper position.

She'd loved this even before. Being bridal carried had its charm, but this way her arms were around him and she could nuzzle in against the back of his neck. He glanced over his shoulder,"ready M'Lady?"

It was a slip, he couldn't know. The look in his eyes proved that much. Marinette pulled herself up to quickly kiss his cheek, covering for him,"Ready M'kitty." she replied to share in the faux pax.

With his first true Cat Noir grin of the evening he turned and leapt into the night sky.

Marinette ran. She ran harder than she ever had before. She lept, tumbled, and scraped herself as they vaulted and skipped across the roofs of the city. Cat was beside her, in front of her, behind her. He would laugh at the jumps she refused to surrender to. He would be there to catch her as she scrambled up by fingertips. He would crouch on chimneys, dangling his tail down to tickle her hair as she scrambled for purchase and called him a dozen pet curse-names.

They'd done this before, and there was a purifying fun to it every time. This time Marinette ran as if she had a goal, because she did. She pushed harder, chanced more, and fought to rise without help time and again. She pushed until she couldn't go any further. Halfway up the scaffolding around Notre Dame she just couldn't climb another rung. Her limbs burned, her lungs burned, and most importantly, her head was completely empty.

Cat Noir curled from a handstand down to her level from the one above. His green eyes blinked once as he stepped over to her, leaning in with a grin,"You're still standing…"

Marinette grinned back at him, he wasn't even winded. How far could Ladybug and Chat Noir run if they chose? Why hadn't they ever thought to find out? How far from everything could they get? In response to his observation she grabbed his bell and let herself fall, collapsing onto her butt and dragging him down with her.

She ended up with a cat in the lap, and had no complaints with the arrangement. She ruffled his hair, eliciting a purr, and this time she could just let it happen and enjoy it. "Looks like you'll have to carry me home after all Cat."

Cat Noir rolled himself onto his back, head still in her lap and eyes half-lidded. He continued to purr unabashedly and his gaze stayed on her, drinking her in,"I'd carry you to the ends of the earth Marinette, just to spend that much more time in your company."

Marinette's flush rose gently, invisible in the last blues of twilight before the night. The cool air was pulling the heat from her and leaving space for thoughts to creep back in. She had to act fast. She gently lifted his head from her lap,"Up a moment kitty."

He sat up, and Marinette arranged herself cross legged. Cat Noir faced her, sitting back on his heels. He tilted his head to the side curiously.

Marinette brushed her hair back behind her ear, "I know I told you I want to wait before you show me what you look like." Marinette chose her words carefully,"But I already know who you *are*. And that person is the reason we're even here to begin with. I don't want you to ever forget that. So-" He was watching her so intently, but his eyes weren't on her eyes, they were on her- Oh.

There had been more to say, but no; there really wasn't. Marinette took hold of his bell again, but this time it was a gentle tug, pulling him forward. She leaned in and the low rumble of a different sort of purr drifted to her ears as their lips met.

It was a gentle kiss, but she didn't want to let it end. She kept him in place by her grip the first time he sought to part. Without taking her lips from his she leaned in slightly, touching her forehead to his and renewing the moment a few breaths more. Only then did she let go, it took a few seconds to find her way back to her body again.

When her eyes decided to focus again it was on his face. Cat Noir, completely defeated. It was adorable. He looked like he didn't know if he should puff up, fall over, or run in circles. She couldn't help it, Marinette giggled.

Her giggle unlocked his own laugh. The two of them both leaned back into a snuggle, heads nestled and just holding each other as a giddy mirth shook them. Cat Noir spoke first once the laughter had drifted into a perfect silence,"I should take you home now Marinette. We don't want anything untoward to happen." that happy playful tone.

Marinette was playing the fingers of one hand along his forearm; no reason, she could just touch all of him,"Cat Noir, I am quite sure you are nothing but the perfect gentleman."

He pulled back, a full Noirish grin across his face,"I am. That is why I am 'quite sure' that I should definitely take you home."

Marinette giggled again, but threw her arms around his neck. He scooped her up and with one more shining smile down at her jumped from their impromptu nest and sped her home. It was only back in her bed letting the night replay that she realized. She hadn't split him in two once all night. They were all Cat now. Her Cat.

"Sir." The clipped feminine voice broke the silence in the atlier.

"Nathalie." Gabriel Agreste raised his eyes from his digital drafting table,"I left orders not to be disturbed."

"Yes sir, but I thought you would want to see this immediately."

An image window popped open on his workstation. Gabriel stared at the image for a long moment before speaking,"Nathalie, contact our pawn in the school. Dawn will see the sunset of Ladybug and the final reward for our efforts."

"Yes sir."

Closing the channel, Gabriel touched the screen. A black cat and a girl sharing a kiss. He looked up at the painting dominating his office,"Love can give so much, but when that which we cherish is stolen it brings only pain. We know that well don't we Emile?"

Gabriel crossed to the painting,"I can not wait to see you again."