Current One-Shot: Keeping My Distance. It wasn't fair. Not to Adrien, Paris, or her. But Marinette found out Chat Noir's secret identity, and now it felt like she didn't know him at all. She couldn't face him, not anymore. All hurt and basically no comfort. Lovesquare and Lukanette contained within

Keeping My Distance

Time for another angsty reveal that goes horribly wrong from yours truly! What can I say? I love the heartbreak. c; Plus I had the idea after reading another reveal and figured it'd give me a break from trying to write the many updates I have on my to do list. xD Woops! Ignore my procrastination and focus on the story, please. c;

Part of my reason for writing this is a sad reveal, but also, I'm going to explore a bit of Adrien bashing. I think a lot of sad or angsty reveals bash Marinette because she's seen as "getting the easy way out," but a lot of her habits Adrin also exhibits, especially with the crush. They just execute them differently. Now, please don't think I hate Chat or Adrien. I adore him, but I want to give him some fair treatment after Marinette gets bashed so heavily. (Especially after reading this story called "My Not-So-Secret Stalker," which was completely unfair to Mari's character.)

Marinette's Point of View

It wasn't fair.

Not to me. Not to Adrien. Not to Chat. Not to the citizens of Paris. Not to anyone.

I had tried so hard to make sure it never happened. I had never wanted to know who my partner was behind the mask. I didn't want to have to know how different he was while wearing his mask compared to his civilian self. I knew I was different when I wore mine. I was confident, strong, brave. I was able to command people's attention and respect, and that was exciting. Yet, I knew that Ladybug wasn't a real part of me, even if she technically was. I had no fears of disappointing anyone if they learned who lay behind the red mask, but I did fear losing the freedom of being someone I was not. It was why I was so vigilant, in Chat's case and my own. I did not want to see Chat as anything different than I already did. I did not want to be forced to reconcile two sides of him, to have to know that there was a life behind the mask, a side I didn't see to my partner. I didn't want to deal with the weight that would come with the knowing, the realization that my partner used that freedom to be whoever he wanted the same way I did.

That one wish was brutally destroyed, and I was furious for it. It had been after an attack, after Chat and I had cleansed the akuma and had to rush off to detransform. I had dropped into an alley, quickly calling Tikki out of the earrings and preparing to rush home. My parents didn't know I was out of the house, and Tikki would need cookies, so there wasn't any reason to dawdle. But right as I prepared to step out from behind the crates, Chat Noir dropped down.

I don't know how we ended up in the same alley. I suppose it was bound to happen eventually, but it was such rotten luck and timing. If I had been faster, maybe I wouldn't have had this issue, but there wasn't time to consider that anymore. All there was to think about was the fact that Chat Noir was detransforming before my eyes, and there was nothing I could do to stop it.

With a flash of inspiration, I threw my hands over my eyes, determined to avoid learning my partner's identity - especially on accident - at all costs. I'd even turned away from the boy, in case something happened and I could see through my fingers.

"Cheeese," Whined someone who I could only assume was his kwami. I realized too late what I had failed to prepare for.

All those precautions, and yet they still did nothing to stop me from recognizing the boy when he said, "You'll get your camembert at home, Plagg."

I shoved myself against the wall, trying not to hyperventilate as Tikki looked at me with wide eyes, trying to gauge my reaction. That voice. Oh gosh, why did it have to be that voice? I heard his footsteps as he quickly left, but it still took me a moment to pry myself off the wall.

"Marinette?" Tikki asked delicately, tapping my hand as I peered in the direction he went. "Marinette, are you okay?"

"Chat Noir...is Adrien. Adrien is Chat." I blinked, trying to let it sink in, but it just didn't fit together in my head. "Tikki, my partner who I've never seen as anything other than a great friend is my crush that I have basically been stalking since he started coming to my school. The two of them...they're nothing alike!"

My tiny kwami frowned, obviously not expecting this turn of events. "But of course they are! You've seen Adrien act like Chat before, haven't you?" When I don't respond, she poses the question I have been grappling with myself. "Why is this such a bad thing? Two of the most important guys in your life are the same person!"

"But I don't know anything about him! I thought I did, but now...I don't know if either side of him is what he's really like. What if neither is?" Now panicked, I slid to my knees. "This is why I have never wanted anyone to know mine. This is why I didn't want to know his!

"But Mari-" Tikki cooed.

I didn't let her finish.

"I can't do this. I don't want to know this. Tikki, please, everything is different now. Help me! Do something, please. Make me forget. I can't do this!"

"Calm down! This panic isn't helping anyone. Let's go home, Marinette. Then we can talk about this, after you have time to calm home."

The firm, commanding tone she took left no room for argument. Besides, she had a point. She dove into my bag and we walked in silence back to the bakery. I tried to keep talking to her after I snuck back into the house, but she makes me take a little bit longer to calm down from the shock.

In the end, Tikki heavily protested the conclusion I come to, but I didn't care. It was the only thing to be done. I had to distance myself from Adrien. The...disgusting obsession I had with the model had to stop. I couldn't even bare to look at his pictures as I tore them down, hating myself for how ridiculous I'd been. I'd been so stupid, so ridiculous! How had I missed what was right in front of my eyes?

Or more accurately, I thought ruefully, what was sitting right behind me in class.

Alya even told me Adrien looked like Chat, but I said they were nothing alike! As I slammed everything into a trash bag, Tikki whimpered, but I ignored her disapproval and distress at the turn of events that occurred. This was the only way. I had to put distance between myself and Adrien, between Ladybug and Chat Noir. I couldn't handle these duo, conflciting identities he had. I just couldn't. How could I have been so blind? There were so many signs, and I'd missed them all. For goodness's sake, he made the same excuses as me after akuma attacks! They just seemed so different that I had completely brushed the idea aside.

School the next day was miserable. When Adrien came in, he gave me a cheery hello, but his smile slid off when I gave him a rather neautral greeting back and didn't try to keep talking. Apparently he wasn't as oblivious to my normal treatment of him as I thought he was. Alya was shooting me the most startled wide eyes she could manage after that, but she didn't get to ask me anything because Nino got her attention to whisper about it.

But Nino only spared me for a few moments.

"Girl!" Alya hisses, kicking me in the shin to get my attention as Ms. Bustier walks in. "What the heck was that? You're never unhappy to see Adrien."

I shrug. "I dunno, Alya, I guess I just...got over him?"

Oh, it was such a blatant lie. I cringed to even tell it, knowing I was nowhere near over him. He was still as gorgeous and kind as ever, and I hated to do it. And yet I couldn't handle knowing who the boy was behind the mask. I couldn't reconcile identities and I didn't know which to believe was real. I had to stop melting around this boy. I had to steel myself, get over him. The barrier had to be raised.

Alya actually snorts at my comment. "There's no way you just 'got over' your giant crush, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Have you seen your room?"

I huff at that. "Everything is gone now. I threw it away."

"Is this a nightmare? Pinch me." Alya looks absolutely dismayed. "What did the boy do to you, Nette? I'll punch him in the face right now."

"Then you'll get a detention."

"A detention is worth supporting my best friend. What did he do to you?" Alya is absolutely seething, and I realize I have to calm her down.

Struggling to find something that isn't the truth but also isn't a lie, I finally quietly answer, "I just...am more disillusioned now. He didn't do anything."

"There's no way this is happening. You don't get over a major crush like that so fast! You had your life planned out. I was going to be your maid of honor!"

"And you still will be, Alya." I roll my eyes.

"But not at an Adrienette wedding! You guys are like my OTP, besides Ladynoir." I cringe. If only she knew. Thankfully, my best friend is on a roll and doesn't even notice, not that she hasn't had fights with me before over 'Ladynoir' as the fans call it. "Are you sure he didn't do anything? How can you just change your mind like that?"

"I dunno," is what I give her in response, accompanied with a shrug and a frown that tells her to back off.

Class flies by, and I'm impatient to escape, only for Miss Bustier to give us the last few minutes to do whatever we'd like. Alya shoots me a look, but apparently recognizes I am not in the mood to continue our discussion because she starts chatting with Nino and Adrien. They're laughing and enjoying themselves, but I just find myself watching our resident blond model, trying to see the Chat in him.

I can't, although the contemplation does lead me to another realization. The night that Chat wanted to meet as Ladybug, he had a prior commitment. He was supposed to come with the rest of us to go eat André's ice cream, but he ditched to try and land what was basically a date with my alter ego. My heart sinks in my chest as I realize Adrien would rather spend time with the girl in the mask than me.

And then he had the nerve to be angry at Ladybug for not showing up? I hadn't even told him I would come!

Of course, I know what Tikki would say. I should be over the moon; after all, I am Ladybug. Ladybug is a part of me. Adrien is, in effect, in love with me. But it's not the main part of me. It's a part where I can be someone I'm not; Ladybug is where I go to have the chance to be calm and collected in the face of danger, self-assured as I save Paris. She isn't the person I want Adrien to have fallen in love with. She isn't the part of me that he knows, the part that I've fought so hard to have become friends with him. He doesn't even know that much about Ladybug, does he?

"Earth to Marinette!" Nino waves a hand in my face, and I blink at him, not realizing they'd been talking to me and face flushing as I realize I must've been caught staring at Adrien. "You okay there, dudette?"

"Ya, sorry. What's up?" Hopefully they'll let me get away without explaining myself.

"I was inviting the three of you to my house after school. Will you be joining us?" Adrien smiles at me, obviously excited.

No. No, as excited as I would have been about this a day ago, I have to remember what I resolved to do. I can't be close to Adrien, not now that there are so many identities at play. "Well, I don't th-"

"She'll be there!" I scowl as Alya butts in, smiling deviously at me. Did she forget everything I said already?

"Great!" Adrien looks so pleased, and I feel like I've been stabbed in the heart. Because that face, that face, it's such a Chat face and seeing it on Adrien's face feels so wrong. How can I reconcile these two sides of him? I can't, and it hurts. It's not fair! "I'm just glad my dad let me invite you guys over. It'll be super fun."

Nino slaps him on the back and loudly proclaims his agreement, but I get a funny look from Alya as I nervously chuckle. Fun isn't the word I was thinking of.

And of course, life decided to continue to be unfair. We went to Adrien's house, and everything was fine. I was awkward, especially when he opted to have me be on his team during an eventually unfinished game of Monopoly. We cremed Nino and Alya, but that didn't make it any less weird to be on a team with him outside of our suits. At one point, my eyes caught on the lucky charm I gave him hanging around his wrist, and I had to look away because it also made my heart hurt. The charm he gave me for my birthday seemed to grow even heavier in my pocket. It was hard, but I was doing well.

Till Adrien asked me to put Monopoly away in his closet and grab Apples to Apples, that is.

"Hey Mari," I have to stop myself from flinching when Adrien says my name, "Would you mind sticking this in the closet and grabbing Apples to Apples?"

I grab the box from his outstretched hand, careful not to accidentally touch his fingers. "Sure." I offer a smile, but I think it must look more like a grimace based on his confused expression. "Anywhere specific?"

He shakes his head. "Anywhere amongst the game boxes is fine."

Nodding and gripping the box tighter, I turn and head over to the closet. As I open it to put the box in, I end up dropping it instead, eyes wide at the sight before me. It's what I can only describe as a Ladybug shrine, with every piece of merchandise for my alter ego ever piled high within. I stumble backwards, mortified. This...this is even worse than what I did over Adrien! And to make matters worse, Chat actually knows me. At least Adrien and I weren't very close friends, and I toned it down as we got closer, but this? He was always my partner; we always had to be close so we could fight together.

Why would he think this was okay?

"Girl, are you okay?" Alya reaches my side, grabbing one of my arms to stabalize me while Nino rushes up on my other side.

"Ah, sorry about that..." Adrien nervously scratches the back of his neck. "I forgot about the mess in there. I was reorganizing and deciding what should be in my room and what should stay in there and...well...you obviously can see I forgot to finish."

I try to compose myself for a minute. I'm okay, right? This is okay. I can handle this.

"I think I'm going to be sick." I shake Alya and Nino off as I stumble towards the door. "I-I'm going home. I'm sorry. You guys go on and have fun without me."

"Marine-" Alya begins.

"Bye!" My voice squeaks at the end as I hurry away, fighting to keep my lunch down.

I hear Nino's voice echo into the hall as I make my way to the front door. "Babe, let her go. She'll be okay. Let's chill out here and you can text her to check in on her later, okay?"

Alya had called me later to make sure everything was alright. I played it off as no big deal, especially when I heard Nino and Adrien in the background. She hadn't left Adrien's yet, so there was no way I would risk saying anything that might give away what made me feel so sick. Instead, I just told her I still didn't feel great, but that it didn't seem too bad.

But when I woke up the next morning, I found myself crying. Tikki tried her best to calm me down, but I just couldn't handle the idea of having to face Adrien after seeing his closet. Just the thought made me cringe. It was disgusting and disturbing, and made me realize just how bad I had it.

At least mine was never as bad as his.

When my mom came in and saw the state I was in, she said I should stay home. Granted, she also found out I wasn't feeling well - I didn't tell her why - but it was a relief nonetheless. I got more time before having to face Adrien, and that was what I needed right then. I had the sense of mind to tell Alya I was staying home sick before she spammed me, which meant I got to sleep peacefully.

But when I woke up in the afternoon and grabbed a late lunch from the bakery, Tikki reminded me in my room of something I really didn't want to do. "You have patrol tonight, Marinette. Don't forget."

"Can I skip it, Tikki? Please?"

"This is important, Marinette. You have a responsibility to the city. Surely that's bigger than you wanting to avoid Adrien?"

I hated that Tikki was always right. With a huff, I accepted that I'd have to face Adrien today after all. Except it wouldn't actually be Adrien, which complicated things even further. I didn't even know the real Adrien Agreste. That probably hurt the most, especially when I still found myself undeniably attracted to my...classmate. Calling him anything else felt strange. Besides, there wasn't really a word to descrive what he was.

Before I called up my transformation, I was struck with inspiration. After the whole Captain Hardrock incident, Juleka, Luka, and I had all hung out at their house. Later, Juleka told me her brother had gushed about me for a while after, and she had wiggled her eyebrows when suggesting I get his phone number from her. Not only that, but Luka had seemed rather nervous that day, and I'd caught him glancing at me multiple times when he thought I wasn't looking.

All the signs said Luka was interested in me, and there was no denying that he also had the ability to make my heart flutter. And, while I didn't want to use him as a rebound, focusing my attention on another guy would be a good way to break away from Adrien. It would also get Alya off my case.

Juleka responded almost immediately, sending a winky face along with the number. This whole situation brought a whole new side of her to light, and it was entertaining, despite the fact that I'd now have to deal with Juleka's teasing. That was something I never thought I'd face.

After shooting Luka a quick text saying hi and informing him it was me, as well as saying Juleka gave me his number, I finally called up my transformation and went to meet Chat.

"M'lady!" Chat's nickname is like a punch to the gut as I land on the Eiffel Tower next to him. He beams at me, leaning forward. "I was beginning to wonder if you stood me up. How are you, bugaboo?"

I have to force myself not to snap at him, instead just stating as neutrally as possible, "I'm fine, Chaton." My old nickname for him comes out unbidden, burning my tongue as it does.

He frowns, shaking his head. "No, you're not. What's wrong? You can tell me."

I shake my head right back, grateful I've been so firm in keeping our personal lives apart from our superhero identities. "Let's just get this over with."

"Okay, m'lady." Chat basically whispers the words, ears drooping and eyes downcast.

I sigh, not giving him a reply in fear of giving away what has happened. Instead I take off, and he follows after my lead, lagging a bit behind and obviously sulking. I go faster than usual, barely landing on a rooftop before leaping towards another one. I end up in a constant rhytm, and it's comforting. Distracting even. I lose myself in it, not paying attention to anything else.

"Ladybug?" The sudden question throws me off, and I slip, almost sliding off the roof till Chat Noir grabs my arm. I look up at him, eyes wide, as he asks, "Have I done something wrong?" I look down at his hand, tugging my arm free, and he says in obvious frustration, "You won't even look me in the eyes. We're partners! We're supposed to trust each other. What did I do, Bugaboo?"

That's the last straw. I shove him away, angry that he's still using that silly nickname. Or, maybe it's all pent up rage at how he loves this side of me that isn't me so devotedly whenever the real side of me has been right underneath his nose the entire time. Either way, I hurry off before he can say anything, furious at myself and at him.

I can't do this.

I can't face him. I can't look at him and see the same faces I've seen on Adrien. I can't handle that.

It hurts so much to land on my balcony and detransform, desperately trying to ignore Tikki's frowning expression.

Luka had texted back by the time I returned from patrol. I texted him a bit before saying goodnight and heading to bed, ignoring another frown from Tikki. Even if it didn't feel the same as it did with Adrien, this was new and exciting, and Luka definitely gave me butterflies.

But that didn't fix my dynamic with Chat or Adrien. Those had only gotten more awkward. I straight up ran away from him at school, only speaking to him when I absolutely had to. Even then, I tried to find ways around it, and Chloe definitely made that easier, since she didn't want to share him anyways. Sadly, I couldn't solve my Chat problem by just avoiding him. We were partners, and we needed each other so that we could fight akumas. It was tense, and our movements were nowhere near as fluid and in sync as they once were. I knew he was desperate to ask what the heck had happened; I didn't blame him. But I made sure he didn't have the chance, avoiding actually having to talk with him afterwards by hurrying off and using the excuse of my earrings. Patrol was a bit harder to navigate; I ended up just saying it would be easier for us to be more efficient if we alternated nights instead of both patrolling together.

He was furious. I couldn't blame him. It wasn't fair to him, but this burden of knowing wasn't fair to me. His adoration for my supersuit's identity wasn't fair either. What was I supposed to do there?

He tried to call me a few times. I ignored the calls and listened to his voice mails as detached from emotion as possible. It still hurt to do. Chat Noir was my partner, at one point even my friend, and he had to be hurting to have that suddenly ripped away from him. But I couldn't do it. I just couldn't.

Luka and I continued to text, and even called a few times. After hanging out at his house with Juleka again, he finally had the courage to ask me out. It still didn't feel the same as I'd dreamed, but that was because the dreams had been Adrien exclusive. I wanted things to work with Luka, so I went with him. He didn't disappoint. We ate dinner and went for a walk, and he asked me if we could do it again soon.

I readily agreed.

Alya was still disappointed. She so desperately wanted 'Adrienette' to become 'canon,' whatever that meant, and still tried to advocate for it. But once Luka officially asked me to be his girlfriend, she dropped the subject, and supported my new relationship. I still found myself dwelling from time to time on Adrien and Chat, but it was easier to forget in the beautiful chaos that was Luka. He brought out a side of me that I hadn't even known was there, and was exactly what I needed.

I couldn't have asked for a better guy, and I really did care about him. I'd feared he would just be a rebound, but he wasn't; he was more than that. Sure, he and Adrien were different. The pounding in my heart was different for Luka than it was for the blond, but that wasn't bad. It was good, actually. Refreshing.

When he finally kissed me, I didn't ever want to let him go.

Chat and I only proceeded to grow more frigid as my relationship with Luka grew. I managed to separate myself, and he finally gave up trying to talk to me. He didn't know who it was or anything about it, but somehow he'd picked up on the fact that I had someone in my life. He gave me the space I fought so hard for, and even though I wanted it, it still hurt to see him give up fighting for us. This wasn't fair to him, or me, or anyone, but life wasn't fair. It was the way the cards had fallen. But how downcast he was was so odd. He was aloof, at times even cold. He only referred to me as Ladybug, if he even spoke to me at all, and I returned the favor by using his full name. There were no more puns and the flirting stopped, and one day, Chat didn't even bother to show up for an akuma fight. We hadn't had one since, but it worried me nonetheless. What if he stopped coming because of me?

Tikki didn't say anything, but she pursed her lips and mainly seemed disappointed in me. She didn't say anything on the matter, but some of that natural happiness had disappeared from her voice. She was oddly quiet, and it made things awkward.

Adrien was no better. Some days he didn't even show up to school, and when he did, he always looked sleep-deprived and sad. He never was cold to anyone, but he was very distant. Nino was hurt over it, but eventually he and Alya began to accept he wasn't going to bounce back to normal. Something different had happened, yet I was the only one who knew what that event actually was.

One time, he'd even found me on patrol as Adrien. I don't know what he intended to do, or say, because I ran away before he could reach me. I was terrified to face him. I couldn't bare to find out the damage I caused him with both of my identities, and I was even more scared of slipping up and giving away that I knew his identity if he wasn't wearing the mask.

That had all culminated into the situation I was currently stuck in. None of it was fair, none of it at all, but I started to realize just how big of an effect my actions had had on the blond when he landed on my rooftop balcony beside me.

"Marineeeette," He practically sings my name as he lands on my railing. "Purrincess, how are you on this lovely night?"

I stare at him, eyes wide and slack-jawed at the sight of him. One thing is obvious: he's been akumatized. Gone is his black suit, instead traded in for a pure white one. His bell is silver now, like his baton, and his teeth are jagged, more like fangs. But most jarring is his eyes. His beautiful, green eyes are now pink and glowing dangerously as he slides off the railing and stalks towards me.

"Chat Noir?" I ask, trying to carefully shuffle backwards towards the door so I can get into my room.

"The name is Chat Blanc now, cutie." He winks, and I freeze, face flushing red.

"What happened to you?"

He shrugs. "I became more powerful."

I sputter, shaking my head. "But why? Why did this happen? What caused this?" Was it really that bad for him?

I take another careful step towards the door, and then another, before whipping around and diving for it. I don't actually reach it, instead getting yanked back by an arm that slid around my waist. Terrified, I look up towards my captor.

Chat Blanc grins back at me, and lightly tsks as he ignores my question in favor of saying, "Now where do you think you're going?"

I throw my hands up in front of my face in the best defense I can muster, because I can't summon Tikki here. "Please don't hurt me!"

Chat chuckles, running a thumb over my cheek, and I instinctively flicnh away, earning a wider smirk. "Don't worry, Marinette. I'm not going to hurt you. I have no reason to...my lady." My breath stops, and I can only stare in horror at this akuma who was once my silly kitty. Oh gosh, what have I done? The white cat shakes his head and tsks again. "Scared, Bugaboo?"

The teasing and grinning, the cute nicknames, they all feel so wrong coming from his mouth now. I'm so startled, so unsure of how to react, that I don't think to move. All I can do is stare, and I realize too late what Chat Blanc is doing as he snatches my earrings from my ears.

"Chat, no!" I kick into action, trying to snatch them away, but he pushes me down, putting a finger to my lips.

"Sh, Princess, don't worry. I'm not going to give them to Hawkmoth." He winks as he slips my Miraculous into his pocket. "I killed him."

Tears pricking at my eyes, I manage to whimper, "Killed him?"

He nods, disturbing me even further. "Yes. He was my father, Marinette. All along, you were right, but I never would have accepted it without this experience to enlighten me. And yes, I know all about you knowing my identity. Don't pretend it's a shock."

"I'm so sorry, Chat." I whimper, so afraid he's going to hurt me for how I hurt him.

He frowns, shaking his head. "Your apology is sweet but unnecessary. I'm not angry with you, not anymore. I realize you were scared, that I came on too strong, but it's alright. I still love you. I will make things right."

I don't even try to deny his statements about me not caring for him, instead just asking, "Why are you still akumatized if you...killed your da-Hawkmoth?" We both know what my other, unspoken question is. Why is he still akumatized if he's not angry with me?"

"Just because Hawkmoth has fallen doesn't mean the akuma goes away. After all, my father akumatized himself with an akuma. Besides, I control the Butterfly Miraculous now. So I get to stay like this, and this is the best form of myself."

"No, no, Kitty...Oh gosh, what have I done?"

"Oh, don't cry. I never could have become this without you. Don't you love it?"

"I-" I'm afraid to say no, but this isn't him.

He shakes his head. "Don't worry, my precious bug. You'll grow to love it."

"I have a boyfriend, Chat." Desperately I scramble for something to stop him.

"Luka? Oh, you don't need to worry about him anymore." His eyes darken, and for a minute I fear the worst, horrified. "No, Princess, I didn't kill him. Have a bit more faith." He smirks, suddenly scooping me up bridal style. "But I'm not going to let you out of my sight again. I lost you once, but now? Now I'll make sure that never happens again."

"Chat Blanc, what are you going to do?" I use his akumatized names in hopes of separating him in my mind from both my Chat - if I can even call him that anymore - and Adrien. I can't think of this akuma as the same as them, or I'll never be able to fight.

As I say the words, I let one hand creep towards the pocket he stuck my earrings in, but he swats it away. "Those aren't yours anymore." He warns, and though he says it teasingly, his eyes narrow threateningly. Then he grins again, answering my question. "Why, you'll be staying with me now. I thought that would be obvious."

I stare, sputtering. "N-no! Adrien, this isn't right!" It's the first time in months that I've actually said his civilian name. "I-I don't love you!"

"You will." His voice is harsh again, a stark contrast from the adoring look in his eyes. "You are Ladybug, and you are Marinette. I love both sides of you, even if you don't love either side of me. But you will. You'll have to. After all, you won't be seeing anyone else."

"You can't just keep me locked up!" I protest, trying to smack his chest. Sure, we're on the rooftops, but I'd rather be dropped before we reach his house. Once we're there, I will be at even more of a disadvantage.

He blinks innocently. "Can't I?" He sounds too smug and sweet, distressing and angering me even further. I don't know whether I want to punch him or break down in tears.

"Please, Chat." I whimper, voice cracking as I tug at his chest. "This isn't right. Where's your akuma? I can destroy it, and if you give me the earrings, I can purify it too. Please, we can make things right."

"No. This is right. This is me, Marinette."

"But it's not." My heart breaks when I hear it. "Kitty, I-I did love you. I think I loved both sides of you, even if I thought I didn't love Chat. But when I found out who you were, I couldn't...I wasn't able to reconcile both sides. I didn't know if I even knew the real you, and so I pushed you away. That was wrong and I'm sorry. Please, please, just let me make this right!"

He doesn't answer, instead gracefully landing outside his house and pushing the door open. "Welcome home, Princess."

I roll out of his arms, rushing up the stairs to try and find some way out. I have to get out of here. I can't stay here with him, not like this. I have to fix things, but I can't do that in here. How am I supposed to fix things without Tikki? How do I fix the mess I've made? This is all my fault. What I did wasn't fair; it was selfish, but I've realized that too late. So how am I supposed to fix things now?

"You can run, but you can't hide." Again, Chat Blanc's teasing voice rings out, and I glance back to make sure he's not right behind me only to collide right into him. "Found you." He leans down, whispering the words into my ear. "Don't worry, I'm a gentleman, but this is for the sake of safety."

I don't realize what he's doing till it's too late, and I feel the cool metal of the handcuffs against my wrists. I whimper, wanting to sink to my knees, but Chat picks me up again before I can.

"So defeated already?" He tilts his head, staring at me for a moment before placing a kiss on my forehead. "Don't worry, my lovely lady. You'll grow to love this, to love me."

"Not like this, Kitty.""Then I'll do whatever it takes. You will love me, Marinette. I will do whatever it takes to accomplish that. I will take any Miraculou and kill any person it takes. Do I need to take Luka out?"

"No!" I shake my head furiously. "Please, don't hurt him."

He sneers, pushing a door open into a bedroom I can only assume must have been his mother's at one time. "He's pathetic. But don't worry, you'll soon forget all about him. He'll be nothing but a distant memory." He sets me on the dark blue bed, and I realize now that it has no windows. Perhaps this wasn't Mrs. Agreste's room after all, or perhaps she was a very strange person. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm not a monster, Marinette. You'll see that eventually. Go on and take a nap, I'll be back later with dinner. There must be a lot you want to think through on your own." As he leaves and shuts the door, he adds a casual, "I love you," and then shuts it.

Even though I know it won't work, I manage to wiggle onto my feet and hurry over to the door, trying to knob. There's no lock on the inside - who builds a door like that? - and when I push, nothing happens. Just as I thought: he locked it. Sighing, I retreat back to the bed, staring at my cuffed hands in despair.

"I did love you," I whisper, wishing I could tell him that in a way that would get through to him, "but I was too afraid to admit it. I was afraid of you being complex and more than the boy on a pedestal in my mind, and you suffered because of it. I'm so, so sorry, Kitty."

I lay down on the bed, and it is only now that the tears are fully released.

What do you guys think? Was it good? Bad? This is probably the longest one-shot I've written in this fandom, so I hope it was at least enjoyable. Leave a review letting me know your thoughts so I can know for next time what works and doesn't work. c:

Also, let me know if you have any prompts/ships/concepts you want to see me write about next time! I'm always looking for new one-shot ideas. :p And I promise I'll respond to your reviews the next time I add a one-shot here! I just can't right now.

See you the next time I update!

~ Dagger