*Author's Note*

I'm getting distracted by the Super Bowl now, so I might slow a bit with publishing, but I'm so close to getting these all published today, so keep an eye out!

**DISCLAIMER: This is an uncollaborated, unofficial, POV-swap, companion story to Twelve Days of Chatmas by Taurus Pixie. This story contains major spoilers for Pixie's story. If you have not read her story yet, stop what you're doing, and go read that first (it's published on this very site). I promise you, it will be worth it for the hurt/comfort, and this story will still be here when you come back.**


Chapter 10


"H-h-here, Adrien." Marinette bowed low as she held the green-wrapped gift over her head. Nino and Alya stood in shock behind her as the quartet stood beside the Agreste town car at the end of their last school day of the semester.

"I can't believe she actually did it," Alya whispered a bit too loudly.

"Wow! Thanks, Marinette." Adrien accepted the box and stared at it a bit uneasy. "I'm sorry. I didn't know we were exchanging gifts or I would have gotten you something."

Marinette's heart sunk. Her last hope that maybe Adrien did buy those rings for her – or, at least one of them – was completely squashed. That didn't matter though. She had expected as much. What mattered was Adrien having a happy Christmas.

"No! No-no, that's fine. Ferfectly pine- I mean perfectly fine. It's fine. You don't have to get me anything. I just-" She rubbed the back of her neck and looked at the sidewalk. "I wanted to show you how much you meant to me."

Alya squealed.

"-as a friend, I mean!" Marinette quickly added. Alya loudly groaned, and Nino escorted her away.

Adrien gave a quick check on Alya before turning back to Marinette. "Should I wait for Christmas, or open it now?"

"I mean, it's your present. You can open it whenever- No, wait!"

It was too late. Adrien had already torn open the wrapping.

"Wow! This is amazing, Marinette! Although, I really shouldn't be expecting anything less from you." He pulled out the knitted beanie and instantly put it on. It was a kelly green, and really made the emerald shade of his eyes pop. Marinette had wanted to go with blue to match the scarf she made him for his birthday, but she couldn't chance that he'd figure out the scarf wasn't from his father. The green suited him, and both blue and green went well with just about any other color, so it would still work.

He gave a few model poses to show off his new hat, making Marinette giggle at how amazingly adorable this boy was. He smiled and his eyes softened.

"Thanks, Marinette. This really means a lot." He pulled her into a tight hug, and Marinette did all she could to not melt in his arms.

The hug was cut far too short when Adrien's bodyguard gave a quick honk of the horn.

"Sorry," Adrien pulled away, leaving Marinette a little woozy on her feet. "I really have to get going. I hope you have a merry Christmas." He then turned towards Nino and Alya, who were at the corner of the block. He waved and shouted "Merry Christmas" to them as well before climbing into the car.

"Merry Christmas, Adrien," Marinette quickly said as the car door closed.

Almost instantly, the window lowered. "I'm gonna miss hanging out at school. I can't wait to see you guys again in a few weeks. Let me know if you want to hang out, and I'll see if I can sneak away." He gave her a wink before rolling up the window again, and they drove off.

"Girl, that was amazing!" Alya sprinted up and pulled Marinette into a hug, swinging her best friend around in a quick circle before planting her back onto the sidewalk. "I'm so proud of you!" She then leaned in to whisper in Marinette's ear, "Now, if only we can get you to do that without adding 'as a friend'." She playfully gave her bestie a nudge with her elbow, and then walked Marinette back over to an awaiting Nino.

~o~o~o~o~o~

The trio walked to the bakery for a quick after-school snack, then Alya and Marinette exchanged gifts. Nino was just as flustered as Adrien that Marinette gifted him something, but he had nothing in return. He promised to make her a killer song mix and send it to her by Christmas.

Just before dinner, the three of them gave each other tight hugs, wished each other a happy holiday, made plans for the next week, and parted ways. Marinette then blamed accidentally over-indulging in snacks with her friends to get out of dinner with her parents. Instead, she grabbed a small block of cheddar and a handful of grapes before heading to her room, claiming she had some Christmas gifts to finish off.

It wasn't entirely lying. She did still have Chat Noir's to polish up. She had all the players, she just needed to sort out what to do with them. How would she best be able to present them to Chat Noir? She didn't have time for that right now, though. She had a patrol to get to.

Once she was powered up, her yo-yo began to beep. Another message from Chat Noir to greet her. She sighed, knowing he was at it again with his own attempts to gift her something.

This time he asked her if they could meet up in front of the Grand Paris hotel.

"What on earth is he up to this time?" She had quite enough of Chloé Bourgeois already, and now they were going to her home? She knew there was only one way to find out, so she headed off to meet her partner.

Chat Noir was pacing along the sidewalk in front of the hotel, gesturing with his hands as if he were practicing a speech of some kind. Ladybug stayed hooked to the side of the building, just watching him for a moment; getting a gauge on how he was feeling that day. He did seem in good spirits. It was certainly better than arguing with Chloé, or being too tired to barely keep his eyes open, or having to fight against an akuma who just wanted to rescue an abused flock of chickens.

Ladybug dropped down in front of her partner, trying to not startle him the way she did the day before. "Hey, Chat Noir, what's going on?"

"Ladybug!" In a flash, Chat Noir closed the gap between them, his arm laced through hers. "I'm taking you out to dinner." He then used his free hand to adjust a cute little black bow tie he managed to tuck on top of his bell. Ladybug hated to admit it, but it was kind of adorable how he tried to "dress up" for this. "My treat," Chat Noir finished with a wink.

"Dinner?" Ladybug was glad she had already ditched her family meal, otherwise this would have been quite awkward. "Where?"

"At Mayor Bourgeois' restaurant." Chat Noir gestured towards the hotel.

"What?" Ladybug shrieked. There was no way she could allow that, for so many reasons. "But-"

Chat Noir placed a finger against her lips to stop her. He quickly pulled it away when he saw her scrunch her eyebrows. "Er- Don't worry. Chloé won't be there, I made sure that she wasn't." He gave a slight tug on their intertwined arms, trying to usher her towards the hotel's front doors. "It's just going to be the two of us having a nice, quiet meal together."

Knowing he checked that Chloé wouldn't be around did relax her a little, but there was still so much more wrong with this plan. Not least of which was how he was planning on paying for the meal. She hoped he didn't promise the mayor any favors in exchange for a free dinner. Knowing the mayor and his daughter, it would be cheaper to just pay.

"But this place is really fancy and expensive," she tried to hint. This was a bad idea. She knew it was. "I don't know." She glanced behind them as he inched her closer to the entrance. She had to find a way of getting him to take her anywhere else, or maybe a picnic again? It was a lovely idea, and she did think the rooftop one he made over the summer was sweet. Third time's the charm and all that, right?

"It's okay." Chat Noir swung around in front of her and squeezed her hands in assurance. "I'll make sure we're far away from everybody else, and don't worry about money. I'm paying."

That was precisely what she was afraid of. There was no way he could afford something like this! "Chat! I can't expect you to do that!"

"I insist," he said softly; soothingly. There was almost a sultriness in his voice that startled Ladybug a little. "It's my gift to you. Besides, wait until you try the soup here."

"Oh!" Ladybug quickly calculated if she could let him know she already had her great-uncle's winning soup. Of course, she couldn't include the "great-uncle" bit, but it wouldn't be too far of a stretch to let him know she had already tried it. He seemed so proud of this idea though, and it was sweet that he thought so highly of her great-uncle's soup that he'd want her to experience it. "R-right." Relenting, she let him lead her inside.

Despite it being two days before Christmas, the lobby of the hotel was dead-quiet. Ladybug and Chat Noir exchanged a glance. There shouldn't have been a reason for the place to look abandoned. Did Chat Noir let Mayor Bourgeois know that they were coming? And did the mayor shut down the rest of his business just so the two of them could have a private dinner? That didn't seem like the mayor, but Ladybug couldn't think of any other explanation. Something just felt off.

Chat Noir was starting to look a bit nervous himself, but he pressed on, leading Ladybug towards the restaurant in the hotel. She wanted to run and carry him with her, but this could finally be Chat Noir's win. She couldn't deny him that. Besides, if it turned out that they stumbled upon an akuma attack they couldn't very well ignore it. They were supposed to be patrolling right now anyway.

Getting off the elevator, Chat Noir inched them towards the closed restaurant doors. The only other times Ladybug saw the doors closed were when the dining area itself was in off-hours and when there was a private party renting the space. Maybe the mayor was throwing a Christmas party?

Chat Noir cleared his throat. "Don't worry. I talked to the mayor already. We should be good to go in." He gave an unsure smile before slowly pushing the doors open to peek inside. As the two of them poked their heads in, the room erupted in cheers; everyone inside excitedly staring back at the doors and them.

Mayor Bourgeois and Chloé were front-and-center to accept their guests. Ladybug choked down a groan.

"Our heroes arrive at last!" Mayor Bourgeois clapped and cheered the loudest out of the packed restaurant. He then motioned for the crowd to continue cheering as he approached the door.

"What's going on?" Ladybug leaned close to Chat Noir and whispered. "Did you organize a surprise party or something?"

"No, I did not." There was a low growl in Chat Noir's voice as he whispered back. He glared at the mayor as the man neared. "I just wanted to take you out for a nice dinner."

Mayor Bourgeois pulled the door open the rest of the way, and scooped both Chat Noir and Ladybug under each arm before escorting them the rest of the way inside.

"What gives?" Chat Noir hissed at the mayor as the superheroes were marched further into the crowded room. "You promised me and Ladybug a private evening."

"I'm a politician," the mayor chuckled dismissively, "I never keep promises. When you asked to dine here with Ladybug, I couldn't resist showing you off to all of my esteemed guests. They all wanted to dine exclusively with Paris' beloved heroes."

He wasn't wrong. It looked like every famous Parisian was in the room, clamoring for their attention. There were even people Ladybug didn't recognize, but they were dressed so exquisitely they must have been important figures, at least to Mayor Bourgeois' career. Ladybug tried not to glare at Bob Roth and XY as she was paraded past them.

"Right this way, please," Mayor Bourgeois said pluckily, as if Ladybug and Chat Noir had much of a choice with his large arms draped over their shoulders.

Ladybug caught sight of Nadja Chamack, and Jagged Stone and Penny Rolling. She hoped to be seated with either of them. Mrs. Chamack would be a bit much, but at least Ladybug liked her. Jagged could also be a bit over-the-top, but it would be nice to have a chance to catch up with Penny, plus, Ladybug did still greatly enjoy Jagged as both a performer and a person.

"Ladybug? Chat Noir?" Mayor Bourgeois pushed them to a long table set up in the center of the room. "I'd like you to meet the ten Lords of the Kingdom of Achoo." The mayor gave the teens a little shove on their backs, directing them towards the exceptionally tall men dressed in the finest suits. "They especially wanted to thank you for saving their prince from an akuma attack."

"Oh, umm, nice to meet you." Ladybug held out her hand for them to shake. The man closest to her quickly accepted it, smiling widely as he shook it with gusto. He then turned to the other lords, as if gloating that he was the first to shake her hand. Ladybug looked over at Chat Noir, who sheepishly mouthed 'sorry' before having his own hand scooped up for an equally enthusiastic shake by the lord closest to him.

The superheroes walked around the table, accepting hardy hand shakes from each of the men. Behind the duo, Chloé approached and held out her hand as well.

"And I'm Chloé Bourgeois, daughter of the hotel owner, the mayor, André Bourgeois." When no one took her hand she gave it a little wag. Still no takers. "You may have heard of me," she insisted, "especially since I'm all that Prince Ali likely talks about." She giggled and fluttered her lashes. When she still didn't get the attention she craved, Chloé shoved herself between Ladybug and one of the lords to make sure she was seen.

Ladybug and Chat Noir gave each other a knowing look and groaned.

"I-" one of the lords ventured, "don't think our prince has ever mentioned you." He looked at his fellow lords to see if any of them remembered Prince Ali mentioning Chloé in their conversations. They all shrugged and shook their heads.

"What?" Chloé squeaked before regaining her composure. She smiled and waved the men off. "I'm sure he's just being shy. Are you here to discuss with Daddy the possibility of Prince Ali and I becoming a couple? It's an alliance that would be utterly perfect!"

"No," one of the lords said flatly and without hesitation. The irritation plain on his face.

"In fact," another lord interjected, "maybe it is Ladybug that would be a perfect match for the prince?"

"What?" Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Chloé all yelled in unison, drawing the attention of the rest of the dining guests.

"There's no way Ladybug would ever date Prince Ali!" Chat Noir growled as he protectively stepped in front of his partner, his arms out to tuck her behind him.

"Hey! Excuse me, I can speak for myself!" Ladybug pressed on his arm, pushing him out of her way. It was sweet that he'd come to her defense, but she didn't need some White Knight. Besides, who was Chat Noir to decide who she would and wouldn't date? He was just as bad as these lords trying to pawn their prince off on her.

Men, she internally scoffed.

"Why would he want Ladybug when he's clearly got a thing for me!" Chloé demanded, stomping her foot for emphasis.

Guess I'm not on her pedestal anymore. Must have really upset her when I told her to apologize yesterday. Ladybug tried to decide whether or not this was a bad thing.

"Why would our prince want a little brat like you," one of the lords spat back at Chloé, "when he could have the finest superhero in all of Paris?" The man's eyes got all dreamy as he gushed about Ladybug and clearly pictured her as their princess. She shuddered at the thought of these men already picking out her wedding dress.

"Errr, perhaps we should get on with dinner," Mayor Bourgeois suggested through gritted teeth, furiously wringing his hands.

"Daddy!" Chloé stomped over to her father and tugged on his sleeve. "Are you going to let them talk to me like this?" She pointed an accusatory finger at the lord that had called her a brat.

The mayor bent down to meet his daughter and spoke in soft tones. "I'm sorry, sweat pea, but these are very important men, and it's important to be nice to the customer." He then stood back upright and nervously laughed. The Lords of Achoo continued to glare at Chloé. Ladybug couldn't really say she blamed them.

Pursing her lips, Chloé scanned the table. No one budged. No one apologized. No one even flinched in their unyielding looks of disdain for the teen. Throwing her arms up in defeat, Chloé screamed her frustration and stormed off. Ladybug couldn't quite catch what Chloé was muttering as she left, but she was certain it wasn't anything she wanted to hear anyway.

"Please, please take a seat." Mayor Bourgeois pulled out two seats and practically plopped Ladybug and Chat Noir into them. Once the superheroes were seated, the mayor motioned for the lords to also take their seats. He then motioned for the whole dining room to get back to their dinners before finally sitting down himself.

"I'm really sorry about this," Chat Noir whispered with pangs of guilt.

"It's okay." Ladybug wanted to blame him. He should have known better than to trust the mayor. He should have expected something like this to happen. She knew she did. At the same time, though, this wasn't his fault at all. He had trusted the man, and that was one of his most endearing traits: his faith in people. This whole thing was on Mayor Bourgeois; not Chat Noir.

The mayor clapped, and his wait staff filed into the kitchen. "Now, for starters, we'll be having Marinette soup, a recipe provided by a master chef all the way from China." The mayor puffed out his chest as if he had personally discovered Cheng Shifu.

The Bourgeois family truly were exhausting, but it was still a sense of pride for Ladybug that her great-uncle's soup was so beloved that the mayor would use it as an opening dish while hosting some of his most esteemed guests. Not only that, but Ladybug truly grasped how amazing the prize was to have one's dish added to the Grand Paris' restaurant menu. People all over the world – important people – could taste her great-uncle's recipe. She was the namesake of a soup that could have international renown much broader than China and France. The reality of it all finally started to sink in, and Ladybug beamed.

A few seconds later, the wait staff came back out of the kitchen, the whole brigade carrying two bowls of soup each. Like a finely tuned machine, they fluidly moved to the tables and placed the soup down as one unit. With refined bows, they all turned on their heels and headed back to the wall beside the kitchen, awaiting their next orders.

Amazed by the pristine training the workers in the hotel clearly received, it kept Ladybug an extra beat before she refocused on her dinner. The whole night might have been a social disaster, but at least she'd be able to enjoy the soup another time. She had tried to recreate it before, after her great-uncle showed her and Adrien how to make it. Hers never seemed to come out quite right though.

She quickly stirred the opaque, purple creamy soup, and reflected fondly on trying it for the first time with Adrien.

I'm gonna miss hanging out at school. Adrien's words from earlier echoed in her head, and she silently squealed. Lost in her memories, she drank a spoonful of soup.

"Aaaaah!" The lord to her right leapt out of his chair as he screamed and fanned at his mouth. There was a loud squeak of chair legs on marble as the lord across from Ladybug did the same: scream, leap from his chair, and fan his mouth. More squeaking as the rest of the table also leapt from their chairs, crying out in pain and fanning their mouths.

"Wh-" Ladybug gasped. Her eyes watered, sweat gathered on her brow, her face got warm, and her tongue and throat felt like they were on fire. The room got blurry, and it hurt to breathe, each inhale singing her throat and sinuses further. Using both hands, she began furiously fanning her tongue.

All around them, the entire dining room followed suit. The only exception was Chat Noir, who whipped around in his seat with confusion finely etched across his face.

"Careful, my lords." Chloé emerged from the kitchen, cackling. "I believe the soup is hot." She examined her nails as she walked up to the table and placed an empty shaker of one of the world's spiciest ground peppers on the table.

"Seriously?" Chat Noir squawked. He stared Chloé down as he reached for the large pitcher of water left on the center of the table and passed it over to a fumbling Ladybug.

She blinked enough tears out of her eyes to see the offering and snatched it from her partner's hands. Leaning her head back, she gulped as much water down as possible without drowning herself. None of it helped. She felt like she was burning, and she twitched in pain, uncaring as water sloshed out of the pitcher and dribbled down her front.

Like predators hearing their prey, the lords swarmed, all ten of them wrestling her for the pitcher. She was strong, though, and held firmly as she tried to continue to drink. The wrestling match didn't let up, and in the scramble the second half of the ice-cold water was tipped completely down her front. A small dribble of excess water was one thing, but the full wave of ice water – complete with ice cubes – hitting at once startled her enough to jump away from the men towering over her.

Undeterred by the fact that their relief was now on the floor, the men all flung themselves onto the marble to scoop up the ice cubes and shove them into their mouths to sooth their tongues and throats. Some of them sighing with faint relief. Meanwhile, Chloé bent over in laughter.

"Chloé!" Mayor Bourgeois yelled in the most irritated and stern voice Ladybug ever heard from the sleazy but otherwise meek man.

Chat Noir held up his cloth napkin for his partner to dry herself off with. "Ladybug, are you oka-"

"I'm fine!" Ladybug didn't mean to snap at Chat Noir, but she was in pain, and it wouldn't be very heroic if she punched Chloé. She'd just have to apologize for being so harsh with him later.

Clearly Chloé had added the spice to the full pot of soup, and not just to the bowls destined for Ladybug's table, because the whole room descended into chaos as people battled over water. Pitchers were knocked over, and puddles sprung up by every table. In a mad dash for the ice cubes, people slipped and slid across the slick floor. Shocked into action, the wait staff sprinted into the kitchen and rushed back out with large glasses of thick buttermilk. As fast as they were able, they passed the milk to the guests. Some weren't patient, though, and milk was added to the already slippery floor. As the wait staff raced for more milk they skated across the slick surface, slamming into tables as they went.

Heaving a long and anguished sigh, Chat Noir slammed his head on the table before him. There really wasn't a way of coming back from this night.

Alright, forget about being polite. This is insane. Ladybug tugged on Chat Noir's belt around his waist to get him to stand up. Before he could react, she wrapped her arm around him, hooked a pillar with her yo-yo, and swung them over the sliding crowd and to the restaurant doors. Landing in front of the large double doors, she grabbed Chat Noir's hand and pulled him out into the hallway. They ran to one of the windows, threw it open, and leapt out into the night.

"Ladybug, I-"

She held up a hand to still him. "Look, Chat, I can't really see, and I'm in pain. I'm going to need you to get me something cold and creamy to help sooth my mouth."

"There's André the Sweetheart's-"

"Nice try, Kitty," she wheezed before coughing on her dry throat, "but I'm not eating his ice cream with you. Besides, it will take too long to track him, if he's even out in this weather." She broke into a coughing fit as she struggled to breathe through the burn.

"I-uh-have some Camembert I keep on me to charge up Plagg."

Ladybug scrunched her face, a bit appalled at the thought of eating the cheese. Especially if it was kept at body temperature in his pocket. The cheese would be extra gooey. Ladybug shuddered. At the same time, though, it wasn't like she'd actually be able to taste the Camembert, and the creaminess of it could possibly help coat her tongue.

"What about your kwami though? Won't he need it once you detransform?"

"I have plenty at home. Here. It's the least I could do after everything. I'm so, so sorry, Ladybug. I didn't mean-"

It was Ladybug's turn to pause Chat Noir with a simple finger to his lips. "This wasn't you. It wasn't the most brilliant move to try to eat here, but other than that, it wasn't your fault." Another coughing fit cut her off. Her mouth and throat were too dry and too on fire to keep going. Pinching her nose, she snatched the cheese from Chat Noir's outstretched hand, and dropped it on her tongue. She then pressed her tongue against the roof of her mouth to smoosh and spread the cheese as much as possible.

She was wrong about not being able to taste it.

"I'm- I'm sorry, Chat Noir. I- I just-" she tried not to gag as her throat exploded in flames again. "I'm sorry, I've got to go."

"Will you be able to make it home alright?"

"Mmhmm," she whimpered, "sure. I gotta go!" She lassoed one of the window balconies of the hotel and swung around the building. It was a simple enough run home. The hardest part was getting herself on top of the terraced homes circling the Place des Vosges in the first place. Once she did that, it was just a matter of running across the roof until she reached her balcony.

Dropping onto her bed, she released her transformation. "Tikki," she squeaked, "Help." The tired kwami zipped through the floorboards then flew right back.

"All clear, Marinette. You can raid the kitchen."

Marinette gladly complied. She just hoped her parents wouldn't wonder where half a jug of milk, a pint of ice cream, and a jar of peanut butter vanished.


~ Thank you for reading. Comments are always welcome. ~


*Closing Notes*

I also had to change up some of the blocking from the original story, but the vast majority of this chapter is the same. I also had to figure out some sort of resolution for the Adrienette subplot I stumbled into.

Wonder how Prince Ali would feel knowing his lords are trying to strongarm Ladybug into dating him...