Chapter Six
It was fortunate that Ladybug had not retracted her yoyo, as it was still firmly twisted around Chat Noir's staff. With him bent over in a bow she could see the imminent threat of the second goop ball. So, she tugged on the string and whirled her partner into a spin that sent him in her direction.
Lacking any control of his movements, Chat spun dizzily into his partner resulting in them landing heavily on the ground. Entangled together in a mix of limbs, he managed to grin at the girl he was now lying on top of. With a grunt, Ladybug shoved him into a tumble with her, escaping the line of fire to settle under the metal staircase. There had been one bonus in spinning Chat Noir, her yoyo was now free of her partner. If only his tightening arm around her waist would ease off.
Giving Chat Noir a pointed look, Ladybug pushed away from him and quickly got to her feet. The blobby akuma was undulating their way. She took a moment to scan the creature, the mess of pink and orange goo dripped like melting ice cream. Its head seemed to be merged with its torso and its limbs were its only distinguishable feature. It was then that she noticed its left hand was curled closed.
"Chat, look at its fist." She said as she pointed. "Do you think it could be holding something like Stoneheart did?"
"I guess. It's the only thing that seems to stand out."
With nothing else to go on, Ladybug decided it was time to call on her lucky charm. A confused expression plaster across her face as a keyboard piano dropped into her hands. "What am I meant to do with this?"
Suddenly Alya's phone began to ring. Her ringtone was an energetic tune and Ladybug watched as the creature began to bop in time with the beat. As she glanced at Chat Noir his gloved hands came to her attention. "Can you play?" she asked while holding up the keyboard.
"Of course," he grinned as he laced his fingers together and stretched them until they cracked. "Shall I play you a romantic melody?" he asked with a smouldering gaze as he laid his fingers on the keys with a gentle caress.
Ladybug was unable to put any distance between them as she needed to hold the instrument in place. "How about something that makes you want to dance," she said with a lift of her chin towards the creature.
He threw her a wink, "Got it."
Then much to Ladybug's surprise Chat Noir beat out a song with the skill of a professional. She stood in complete awe as he played. It took her a full minute to turn away from her masked partner and look at the akuma bopping to the groove, and when it clapped its hands a blacked marble fell to the ground.
Raising her knee, Ladybug held the keyboard in place and swung her yoyo in an arch to come smashing down on the marble. Then she handed over the keyboard to her partner so she could purify the akuma. Once it was done, Chat Noir threw the keyboard into the sky as she called, "Miraculous Ladybug!"
Ladybug watched the magic, fully aware that Chat Noir was watching her. She didn't understand why he seemed suddenly bewitched by her presence. He'd always been into her but the intensity of his gaze seemed to have increased by tenfold. The question was why? She couldn't think of anything that would have triggered this additional interest.
The chirp of her earrings prompted her to move but Chat Noir caught her arm. "Before you go, what did you think?"
"Think of what?" she blinked in confusion.
"Of how I played," he said as he wiggled the fingers on his free hand.
A warm smile spread across her face and she swore he melted a little. "You're very talented, Chat. I'm guessing you're a musician out of the mask."
"I'm a lot of things bugaboo." He edged closer. "I'm pretty certain you'd be pleased to see who is under this costume."
Placing a finger on the tip of his nose, she playfully pushed him back. "As eager as you are to share your identity with me, now is not the time. Speaking of time, I need to leave. See you next time." She said with a wave as she swung away, leaving Chat Noir to watch her depart with a dreamy sigh.
Chat Noir's distraction allowed Ladybug to easily swing back into the classroom from which she came, tuck under the same desk and transform back into Marinette. Opening the clip of her bag, she watched Tikki swoop in. "I wonder what was with Chat today."
The kwami raised her paws and shrugged. "The only way to know would be to ask him."
"Right, like I'm going to ask him why he was extra flirty. Somehow I think I'd prefer to remain blissfully ignorant to that answer."
"Chat Noir is not so bad."
"I'm not saying he is. It's just that I'm not interested in him."
Tikki gave her a look she didn't understand.
"What? You know I want Adrien."
"Yes, but he wants Ladybug."
"So?"
Tikki closed her eyes and shook her head as if calling up additional patience. "So, he doesn't know that you're Ladybug, nor does Alya. How do you expect to juggle the truth without letting slip?"
Marinette grabbed both her pigtails and gave them a slight tug. "Okay, it's starting to get messy. I just need to think this through."
"If you want to pursue Adrien that's fine, but you need to do it as Marinette. Putting your Ladybug persona into the mix is just going to make things confusing for both of you. Think about it, how are you going to feel when you see him out of the mask? You'll have to pretend that you know nothing of what happens between you when you're not Ladybug and you'll have to be completely hands off as Marinette."
The girl let out a groan. "Geez, I hadn't thought about that."
"No, all you were thinking about was kissing Adrien."
A deep blush stained her cheeks. "And he did kiss me, how am I supposed to catch his interest out of the mask when he's infatuated with me in it?"
Tikki thought for a moment. "Perhaps you need to see him as Ladybug and say that you've given it a lot of thought and it's too dangerous for you to see him. Give him some excuse as to why it's a bad idea to pursue a relationship and that leaves things open for you as Marinette."
Frowning, she gave a nod. "I guess so."
"I know you're disappointed but this is for the best."
"I get it, Tikki. I just really wanted it to work." With a dejected slump to her shoulders she closed her bag and walked out of the classroom.
Alya was still standing at the top of the steps but now with a crowd gathering as she replayed her recording. As Marinette made her way towards her Adrien stepped across her path. "Hey," he said as he adjusted the strap of his bag on his shoulder. "Ladybug was pretty awesome out there."
She nodded but kept her eyes on her toes. "Another akuma defeated."
"Yeah, um, did you… actually it's stupid. She would have been in a hurry to leave so there's no way she would have had a chance to talk to you."
Marinette blinked, here was the opportunity to Tikki was suggesting. She grabbed the turned-up cuff on his sleeve to stop the boy from leaving. "Actually, she spotted me on her way to the akuma fight. She said she needed to see you again tonight."
Adrien's chest puffed up and the goofy smirk returned to his face. "Well isn't it fortunate that I'll be home."
Will it be fortunate? Will Ladybug push Adrien away, find out next chapter!
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