Chapter 3

Adrien just fiddled with his pencil and chewed his lip as he ruminated on last night's events. He had competition for the hand of Ladybug and was supposed to pop the question later tonight. Sure, Chat Noir was his flirty, confident and charismatic alter ego, but this was a huge step forward, even for him. Nino watched him from the corner of his eye and nudged him.

" Hey dude, did you forget your wallet or something? You've been spacing out throughout the period and I'm thinking that it can't be due to today's lunch menu," Nino quipped as Adrien stirred from his daydream and blinked several times to comprehend his surroundings.

" It's nothing, Nino but thanks for asking. I was just mentally planning my revision timetable for next week's mid semester examination. I still can't believe that I scored a sixty for the last Geography test," he cleared his throat.

Marinette was no different than her crush- she had been thinking about last night's near kiss experience with Chat Noir which actually made her re-evaluate her feelings for Adrien. She frowned as she disliked the fact that their flirty banter wouldn't be as fun anymore due to the nature of their relationship now. Ladybug had done enough to convince her partner that she harboured the same romantic feelings for him even though she intended to keep it platonic,

She squiggled some notes on her notebook and watched Adrien stare at Ms. Bustier's explanations on the board. To Marinette, it looked as if Adrien was really locked into today's literature's lesson. She smiled wistfully from behind as Alya was busy updating her Ladybug blog.

" Why hello there….Marinette, who is this handsome hunk of a superhero fighting alongside Ladybug and Chat Noir last night? Don't tell me that Paris has another superhero watching over the city," she hissed in excitement. Marinette was jolted from her reverie as her attention was focused on the so-called 'handsome hunk', as mentioned by her best friend. She blushed slightly as the memory of her amorous encounter with Dick came flooding back. She just gave Alya a nonchalant shrug before getting lost in thought again about her azure-eyed suitor. She had a fuzzy feeling whenever she remembered his sweeping statement regarding his pursuit of her. He didn't intend to give up on her without a fight.

She shook her head and took a good look at the blackboard before hanging her head. She didn't want Dick to clash with Chat Noir as the situation could deteriorate from there. Marinette squawked in surprised as Alya clapped her gently on the back.

" Marinette, I've been trying to get your attention for some time because our last class for the day is over. So….I was thinking that we could take a walk along the Seine because I heard that there was going to be a pantomime show in the afternoon," Alya flashed her a sunny smile. Marinette immediately perked up and nodded her head enthusiastically.

" It's something like a mime show, right? It's been sooo long since I've seen an actual performance at the theatre," she sighed and stole a glance at Adrien who was still packing up. Alya adjusted her glasses and smirked. Marinette gesticulated wildly to her best friend not to do anything that might embarrass her but to no avail.

A minute later, Adrien was agreeing with Alya to join them at the show today. "Marientte, I recalled you saying that you usually spent your free time walking around the Seine and feeding the pigeons. This could definitely be a different experience for you then," he cracked a wry smile as Marinette blushed furiously before giving him an awkward thumbs up.

"I really hope that Ladybug isn't called into action today. Not yet, at least because I can't even look at Adrien straight in the face anymore," she muttered to herself as she walked back to her family's patisserie.

As she walked to the Seine with Alya, her jaw dropped as she took in the huge crowd that had gathered around the riverbank. Two actors who were dressed as elves took to the centre and started carrying out their silent act, accompanied by a steady flow of classical music. Marinette soon lost Alya in the sea of people as she wriggled her way out of the crowd and stood at the far back.

" This is precisely the reason why I couldn't stand concerts," a chuckle came from behind as she quickly spun around upon hearing the familiar voice. Dark blue eyes met bluebell eyes as Dick wore a small smirk on his face before ruffling her hair affectionately. She giggled and smacked his hand away as he pretended to look hurt.

"Geez Dick, not everyone has short and hassle-free hair like you. If I wanted bed hair, I wouldn't have bothered to comb it all this morning," she snorted and fixed her slightly mussed up hair. He chuckled and stole a glance towards the crowd that had erupted into cheers as the pantomime act ended its first act. " I really didn't imagine that I would bump into you today! Plus I haven't seen you around since…." Her voice faltered as she felt the heat slowly rise to her cheeks.

"Since that night?" he casually finished her sentence as she nodded solemnly. " Like I said, I'm here on a business trip and hence my availability is dictated by my client's own schedule," he replied.

She was about to open her mouth and respond when the sound of Adrien's voice caught her attention. The blonde boy was running towards her with a big smile on his face. " Marinette, that's where you were. I've been looking all over for you," he wiped his brow as Marinette felt embarrassed. She was supposed to meet Adrien at the Seine after all but instead, she completely forgot about it after meeting Dick. Adrien turned to Dick as he politely extended his hand. " Are you a friend of Marinette's? I'm Adrien, her classmate. It's a pleasure to meet you, sir," he smiled.

Dick shook his hand and flashed him a smile. "I'm Dick Grayson and it's a pleasure to meet you too." He squeezed Marinette's hand softly before excusing himself.

Adrien narrowed his eyes and turned his attention back to Marinette who was whistling a jolly tune. " He's uh….the new helper for the family patisserie! He's here on a student visa from the States and decided to come to us for a job," she said quickly as Adrien relaxed. " You guys seem to be good friends- if you're allowing him to hold your hand albeit a brief moment," he cocked his head as Marinette shook her head. " Where he come from, physical contact among friends is nothing special," she assured him. It suddenly dawned on her that she was alone with her crush at the festival. " OMG, OMG, OMG," she mentally calmed herself down. " Is this like a date or something?"

Adrien who was none the wiser began clapping and cheering as the two actors resumed their routine. Someone accidentally knocked into the young heroine as she stumbled onto Adrien for support. He staggered and instinctively put his arms around her to shield her from the pushing and shoving of the crowd. " Are you alright?" he looked down at her. Marinette's heart started palpitating as she couldn't believe that she was wrapped in his arms.

" I'm fine," she mumbled and detached herself from him before turning her attention back to the act.

" And now ladies and gentleman, for our final act, we would like to dedicate it to our beloved mayor, Andre Bourgeois," the taller of the two actors gave a dry smile as the crowd erupted into cacophonous cheers once more. Marinette felt her phone vibrate in her pocket as she fumbled to fish it out. Her eyes widened as it was a message from Dick. Adrien saw this from the corner of his eye and pretended not to care.

She clicked on the message only to feel a lump get stuck in her throat as the ominous words of ' Marinette, you have to hide now!' flashed on her screen. Adrien put his hand on her shoulder and looked concerned at her. " Marinette, are you alright? You look a bit pale now…." But he was cut off as the sounds of gunshot filled the air as the situation was turned into pandemonium in the blink of an eye. The mayor's bodyguards were gunned down by the tall actor as his accomplice forced him to kneel on the ground and shot his pistol into the air.

Marinette was shell shocked as she had never seen anyone get murdered in cold blood before. " Damn it, this is a job for the police not Chat Noir!" he thought as he took Marinette's arm and led her away quickly. " Adrien, where is Dick?" she pulled on his arm and looked frantically at him. Adrien looked confused before his eyes darted left and right to spot the tall young man. " Marinette, we have to get to safety now! I'm sure that Dick is already in the comfort of his own house," Adrien quickly assured her.

Marinette chewed her lip nervously before seeking refuge at the local deli with him. She spotted Nightwing emerging from the alley armed with his Escrima sticks and she felt another wave of fright wash over her. "Adrien, stay here and don't go anywhere. I'm going to make a call to mum and dad to check up on them," she told him before running to the back of the store to transform. Adrien was about to protest when he heard the blaring sirens of the French police cars fill the air.

" Plagg, I know that this goes beyond the scope of our objective but our job is still to keep the people of Paris safe and this is no exception! So I'm asking you to lend me your power to combat this evil doe," Adrien fished the kwami out of his pocket. Plagg put down the block of cheese that he was eating and gave him worried look. "Just be careful master because this is one enemy that you can't afford to make a mistake against."

The mime handcuffed the mayor and gagged him to prevent any further screams. " Mademoiselles and monsieurs, I am Pierrot Lunaire, and I have taken your beloved mayor hostage. I'm requesting that the Parisian government wire me a modest sum of $50 million Euros in exchange for the safety of Monsieur Andre," Lunaire said aloud and did a little jig at the middle of the square.

Nightwing gracefully jumped down from the ledge and narrowed his eyes at the killer mime. " Lunaire, you could always just rob the bank. Why is there a need to take the Mayor hostage?" he demanded as the mime's lip curled. " Honestly, Nightwing, I never expected you to follow me all the way to France. You Yankees always have to poke your noses where it doesn't belong," he growled.

He glanced at his Lunaire's accomplice who was still pressing the barrel of his pistol against the side of the terrified mayor's head. "Let the mayor go and we can talk it out. If you kill him, it won't be just me going after you- but the French authorities as well." Lunaire hummed and rubbed his fingertips together to point out that he wanted the money first before complying with his request. Nightwing slowly reached for a projectile but Lunaire clapped his hands promptly. Nightwing cursed and dashed towards the accomplice who drew his pocket knife instead and was about to stab the mayor.

His eyes widened as the accomplice was sent tumbling into a coffee cart as he was met by a swift kick to the head by Ladybug. "If you want to yell at me, save it for after we take him down. Dick, I mean Nightwing, this isn't your city. You can't just tell me to run away and hide, knowing that I could do something about it," she raised her voice. Lunaire clenched his fists and was about to say something when he calmly blocked Chat Noir's surprise strike with his staff.

" Hey milady, hope you didn't have to wait too long to see your prince save the day again." Chat Noir grinned as he dodged Lunaire's punches with agility but the mime decided that he had enough of playing games with the young hero and sent him crashing against the wall with a kick to the solar plexus. Adrien slowly slumped against the wall before clutching his side.

" Chat Noir! Don't hurt him!" she yelled and charged at him but Lunaire pulled out a pistol and aimed it at her.

"N'essayez pas d'être un héros madame", he flashed her a deranged smile before squeezing the trigger. (It's French for 'Don't try to be a hero, madame')

" Oh no, I won't be able to use my yo-yo in time," she thought and closed her eyes. She was tackled to the ground by Nightwing as the gunshots cracked into the air as loud as thunder but without the raw power of a storm. She heard an amused chuckle escape the mime's lips as she opened her eyes and looked around to find that she was lying on the pavement.

She stared at Nightwing who was on his knees and bent over her, his arms supporting his weight and placed right next to her respective ears. " No thanks necessary, Marinette. Just agree to coffee with me after this is done," he said in a low voice. Her lips started quivering as she spotted three holes in the middle of his suit. He soon slumped to the floor lifelessly as she was rooted catatonically to the spot.

" No, no, no. What a shame that my little monsieur had to go so soon," Lunaire shook his head in mock disappointment as he started advancing towards Ladybug. "My legs won't move! Get up Marinette!" she screamed to herself as Lunaire staggered after getting slugged to the jaw by a banged up Chat Noir.

"Don't you dare lay a hand on my woman," he said dangerously and gripped his staff tightly. " Ladybug, I'm not forcing you to fight with me but I need your help…." He faltered as Marinette stroked Nightwing's face tenderly and punched the ground.

" Nightwing needs medical attention now! Please don't die on me, Nightwing ! I like you so much, you have no idea!" tears started streaming down her face as Chat Noir was stunned by her reaction. " Chat Noir, I have to get him to a hospital now, I'm so sorry," she hiccupped as the blonde hero hung his head and flashed her a smile.

" Hurry then, milady. I'll take care of things here. Just answer me this before you leave. Were the feelings that we shared that night, on the rooftop, real? Did you mean what you said about having feelings for me?"

She dried her eyes and nodded. " I've always been in love with you but things have changed now."

A/N Apologies for the ultra-late update as I've been really busy with uni and work. First and foremost, I'll be wrapping up the story very soon as I'm taking the opportunity to finish it during my summer break (yes, it is summer in Australia now). Pierrot Lunaire is actually a French villain from the DC world and I definitely would like to see Marinette face a situation that involves actual criminals. Don't forget to leave a review and tell me what you think. Your words of encouragement is what keeps me going. Is Dick dead? Has Marinette finally made up her mind? Will evil triumph? Stay tuned and find out in the next chapter.