She sent a quick and simple text to Alya, leaving out the details of the events that had taken place after she departed. Marinette assured her friend, though, that she would fill her in the next day. Alya didn't take it as a suitable enough answer, but begrudgingly agreed to meet with her early before class the next day to talk.

Marinette was satisfied enough, as she immediately became preoccupied with a few more important matters.

Her injuries had been nothing but a few cuts and scrapes along her hands and wrists, though Chat had looked at both like they had been completely decapitated from her arms. His tail had swished from side to side while his hands balled themselves into fists, watching intently the entire time she cleaned away the blood and applied her bandages.

It was only after five minutes of looking her over again for any other injuries that he begrudgingly let her deal with his.

Although the process had been a little awkward, and she had finally gotten to see the muscles beneath his suit (and she claimed the pink in her cheeks was from the heat kicking on when he asked), Marinette managed to clean the blood away and bandage the purpling bruise near his stomach.

Chat mentioned he needed a quick break as the last print on his ring beeped dangerously, signaling the near end of his transformation. Offering him the bathroom as needed, Marinette had brought back a handful of leftover macarons from the bakery and left them outside the door. She had been safely around the corner of the hall when she heard a higher and rougher voice ask if "the lovely baker girl" had any good cheese options stashed away.

She hadn't been able to contain her chuckle when Chat had scolded his kwami and told him to eat the desserts whether he liked it or not. Though he tried to fake his dislike for them, Marinette hadn't missed the moan of appreciation from the kwami at the sweets.

A few minutes later, and the two had been back in her room, ready to take on the second daunting task.

The cut near his arm was just as nasty, and she had to offer him a stuffed animal to dig his claws into when she wiped at it with rubbing alcohol. A few wrapped bandages and a shredded stuffed animal later, and she was down to just the cut and bruises across his face.

Marinette rifled around in her first-aid kit, pulling out a white cloth and another small bottle of rubbing alcohol. Chat winced at the sight of it, but didn't make any protest.

The feline leaned back against the wall, letting his head loll to the side as he simply watched her prepare the designated cleaning supplies. They had moved up to her bed again to try and make the setting a little more comfortable, on the condition that Chat wouldn't destroy anymore of her stuffed animals.

He had promised sheepishly and apologized again to the stuffed ladybug in pieces at the bottom of the ladder to her loft bed.

Although neither of them knew how they ended up in the position where Chat had his back to the wall with his legs sprawled out in front of him, while Marinette's were carefully draped across his to the point she was almost sitting in his lap, neither of the teens made any move to change their position.

"Ready?" Marinette asked softly, dabbing a bit of ointment onto the end of the rag.

Chat eyed it wearily but nodded all the same.

Raising the cloth to just above his mask, she carefully dabbed at the dried blood around the cut running across his forehead. He clenched his teeth with a small hiss, but nodded at her to keep going when she paused.

"It's bad, isn't it?" he asked, closing his eyes as Marinette worked her way around cleaning the wound.

"You'll bruise for sure," she sighed, her eyes tracing over each of the marks and bruises across his chin, cheeks, and temple. "Maybe a small scar, too."

"Won't it make me look cool to have a scar on my face?" he winked. "It'll make me all the more dashing, don't you think?"

He ignored her eye roll as she pressed a little harder against the cut. He flinched back, sending her a glare that she easily faked innocence towards.

"If that's what you tell yourself, Chaton," she hummed, a small grin poking the corner of her lips up as he lightly scowled. It lost its effect when he quirked a grin of his own a moment later.

Silence lapsed between them again, and Marinette made it her mission to keep her eyes trained on anywhere but his. She could feel him staring into what felt like her very soul, watching as she brushed away every smudge of dirt or blood, carefully dabbed at the cut that barely poked out from behind his mask, and mapped the bruises along his jaw and temple.

Her brows furrowed at the sight of each one.

"You had to take on three of them at a time, didn't you?" she mused to herself. Placing her hands on either side of his face, she turned his head to get a better angle of the blood still lingering on the tips of his blond hair.

Chat chuckled and raised a hand to brush against the underside of her arm, almost as if to steady himself. "Well, yeah, I guess so."

Marinette couldn't stop herself from worrying her bottom lip with her teeth as she gently brushed a finger against the purpling bruise on the underside of his jaw. It had been the first hit to make him go down.

"Does it hurt?" she mumbled, finally raising her gaze to his, even though her heart was starting to stutter.

"A little," Chat replied, glancing down to the spot she had just retracted her hand from. "It wasn't too bad, though."

"Chat, he punched you in the jaw."

"Correction, I actually stopped his fists with my face," he said matter-of-factly. A grin spread out across his face as she angled his head to inspect it again for any other bruising. "Besides, it was either me or you, Princess."

Marinette dropped her hands from his cheeks and jerked back a little. His smile started to slip as a frown masked his features. She took the moment it did to poke him roughly in the chest, earning her a small yelp and a quiet laugh.

"Ow! What was that for?"

"I almost had a heart attack out there when I saw you go down," she hissed, a new lump rising to the back of her throat at the image of Chat on the ground, her frozen in place as one of the muggers landed blow after blow. "Chat, please, you have to understand that I am beyond grateful that you stepped in when you did. But your life is just as valuable as mine. I didn't know what was going to happen when you - "

"Princess, it's okay!" he conceded, putting his hands up in mock surrender as he placed a hand beside her on the bed to steady himself. "We're both okay, we're both safe, and we're both here."

"But you almost weren't," Marinette snapped back, her fear from earlier that night catching up with her as she felt her chest tighten. She had to tell him, she just had to.

"Princess - "

"Chat, you nearly scared me to death," she blurted, shaking her head as she wiped at her eyes. "And it makes me feel even worse to know I just froze and stood there, and I didn't even try to do anything at first - "

"Mari I - "

" - to go in and help you, and just the thought of what would have happened if I hadn't tried to do something? It…Chat, I can't even imagine it, okay? I don't know if you understand, or maybe you will, but - "

"Princess, you - "

"Chat please," she whispered, and he cut himself short at the way her voice cracked. Marinette swallowed, her throat going dry at the horror that could have easily been a reality had she not finally willed herself to intervene.

"When I saw you go down out there, I thought I was about to watch one of my best friends be killed, while I stood there and watched. I can't even begin to describe to you what would happen if something happened to you. You're one of my best friends, Chat. You have been for a long time now. And the thought of you hurt, or the thought of you gone in ways that you can't come back, it - "

Marinette cut herself short as she choked on her words, glancing to the side as Chat stayed silent. She only lifted her gaze back to his when she felt the gentle brush of a clawed finger against her cheek. He took it away and hovered his hand between them, waiting with bated breath for her to continue.

"It breaks my heart," she croaked. "It shatters it to think of you completely out of my life. I know it might sound stupid or silly, but…but you're my other half. You're my partner, my friend, and my dumb little alley cat. So don't for a second think that your life is less valuable than mine. More than anything in the world, I'm happy to have you by my side no matter what. But I just want you to be careful, and look out for yourself just as much as you did for me tonight. And I know I don't say any of this nearly enough. But I just…I just wanted you to know I don't want to lose you, Chat."

Marinette didn't know when she had moved her hand to his chest, resting it just over his heart. It raced through the fabric of his suit, and she was confident her heart could have matched it. He was closer than he was before, his nose only inches away from her's.

Chat's smile had fallen away, and his ears were pressed flat against his hair. A few blond strands were still swept in front of his eyes, which he hadn't taken off of hers. Neither of them moved. Neither of them breathed. They simply watched the other as her words sunk in between them.

Finally blinking, a signal tear escaped down Marinette's cheek.

Moving slowly, he raised his hand back to the side of her face again, lingering just a hair's breadth away. He paused, staring back at her as he swallowed thickly, his Adam's apple bobbing as she saw tears of his own forming.

She nearly frowned before realizing what he was doing; he was waiting for her. He wouldn't touch her until she told him to.

Barely able to formulate a nod, her lips parted as his clawed thumb ever-so-gently touched her skin, brushing away the tear. His eyes followed the tear trail down past his fingers still lingering against her cheek.

With a jolt to her stomach, the bluenette quickly realized he had paused at her lips.

"And I just want you to know this," he murmured softly, voice barely above a whisper as he leaned in another inch. His gaze slowly traveled back up to hers, and he paused his slow approach immediately when her eyes widened. "You're my partner, my friend, and my princess. I would gladly give myself up a thousand times again if it meant you were safe. But it breaks my heart just as much to know I scared you tonight. I'll do as you ask and take more caution upon myself, but know that if push comes to shove, I'll be right by your side, Marinette. I know for a fact I don't say this enough. And I want you to know that this dumb alley cat isn't going anywhere."

Marinette felt her eyes drift down as he inched forward again, lips parted as he released a shaky breath. Their noses were nearly touching, her hand still against his chest as the distance slowly shrank.

His heart was pounding as he muttered, "You're never going to lose me, Princess."

She couldn't even tell who moved in closer, or if they had needed to move at all. His lips were almost brushing against hers. One hand still lay next to her, the other reached forward and tucked a strand of hair back behind her ear.

"May I?"

His voice rumbled down through his chest, and she barely hid the shiver that ran down her spine. Emeralds stayed locked on hers, waiting for the moment she directly told him he could move forward. And inevitably break the final barrier that she knew kept her heart from falling in love with him.

A part of her told her she already had a long time ago.

"Yes."

The first thing her mind was able to register as her eyes slipped shut was a soft warmth. His lips, warm and gentle, brushed against hers. He didn't move, didn't try to deepen anything or take another step forward. Marinette was mildly shocked at how quick he parted, glancing down at her again as she cracked her eyes open again.

"If you don't want this, please tell me," he whispered, his breath fanning against her cheek. "I would never force myself on you, Mari."

"I want this," she replied, voice equally as hoarse and as quiet. "And I know you wouldn't push it if I didn't. That's exactly how I know why."

Chat was barely able to nod before she slipped her hand from his chest and up to the back of his neck. The blond froze completely, a pink stain erupting from beneath his mask as she fingered a strand of hair on the nape of his neck.

Never one to deny his Princess, he leaned forward again and gently slanted his lips over hers. Once again, all the bluenette could feel was a soft and glowing warmth. It spread from the moment his lips brushed hers, and only grew when he slowly moved and molded his lips with hers. There was no hurry, no desperation, but a slow and even burn she didn't know she had had for the feline until a few weeks prior.

When he didn't break away, instead bringing the hand not on her cheek up to her waist, Marinette ran a slow hand up the back of his head and drew him in closer. A content sound rose from the back of his throat, and she nearly laughed against his lips. He was actually purring.

Chat seemingly took no notice, and he ran a hand down to the side of her neck, tilting her face with his as the two slowly explored. There was a fiery passion she could feel just beneath the surface of their kiss, an all too alluring want to drag their kiss farther into other areas.

But there were other nights for that. Other nights for the passion and desperate need to have the other.

But for now, Marinette was beyond content when they finally parted, both slightly pink-faced and breathing harder than before. Her hand was still tangled in his hair, musing the already messy locks. His hand gripped her waist, a firm grounding reminder that both of them were there in that moment. Finally together.

He turned his head in the direction of her hand, and she let it slip forward. She missed the warmth of his hand as soon as it parted from her skin, but a warm blush soon took its place.

Never taking his eyes off hers, he brought her open palm to his lips and planted a delicate kiss in the middle. He planted another, and another. And another.

Working his way around until he reached the back of her hand, he placed a kiss on each finger before finally pulling his lips away, a satisfied and near smug spark to his eyes as she felt the heat from her cheeks creep up into her ears and down to her neck.

"Will you spare this poor chaton of a lonely night?" he asked, wagging his eyebrows at her as a coy smile made its way across his lips.

Marinette was tempted to kiss them again, if only to put him out of his rotten smugness.

But she couldn't stop a smile of her own from poking at the corners of her mouth. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she leaned forward and pressed her forehead against his, her eyes slipping shut in a bliss she never wanted to leave.

They were there. They were safe. They were okay.

"I suppose I can make an exception for my knight in shining leather," she sighed, bringing a hand forward to flick his bell with a finger. A light jingle filled the room, followed by a chuckle that ran through his chest and down to her core. "As long as he promises to behave."

"Anything for you, Princess."

And he sealed the promise with a kiss.

Hey guys!

Hope you enjoyed the second part of this Marichat hurt/comfort fic! This was my first time writing with darker themes, and writing scenes like this, so if you have any constructive feedback, drop it in the reviews. And be sure to keep a lookout for future projects (a lot are in the works right now)!

And as always, I hope all of you have a wonderful morning, afternoon, evening or night! :)

-Summerwinds