She went through almost an entire day without Chat Noir sending another gift again.

This time round though she didn't notice at all as she was completely absorbed in her task.

What had been just a vague idea yesterday was now a fully blown out red silk shirt as Marinette poured all her attention and concentration in making the perfect shirt. The only time she wasn't carefully cutting silk, sewing pieces together, rummaging for the right sort of buttons, and every other little task required in making a shirt was when she was eating her meals (that she was dragged down for by her mother) or when she was forced into working a shift at the bakery. She even spent ages fiddling about to make tiny little black velvet paw prints to decorate the breast pocket.

It was utterly time consuming.

But he was worth it and more. It would never truly repay every sweet, kind, and thoughtful gesture he had made before had but it would show that she truly did appreciate everything he had done.

Marinette had just been about to sew on the paw prints when Tiki gently tapped her shoulder. "Marinette," she said softly, "it's time for patrol."

Marinette blinked as she realised it was almost ten o'clock at night and that was when it occurred to her that Chat Noir had not sent her anything whatsoever. Perhaps that meant he intended to give it to her in person? She remembered his glee when he got to give her the rings in person and found herself rather eager to see that happiness in person again.

"Of course," she said as she dropped her sewing back onto her desk and stood up, "we can't be late. Tiki! Transform Me!"

Within seconds Ladybug flung herself off of her balcony and into the cold, drizzling, air of the Parisian night. She shivered as her cheeks and hair quickly got damp from the light, constant, rain and decided to move quickly to find Chat.

It took her quite a while to find him as he was not in any of their usual meeting spots and there was several drunks that needed sorting out (and now she remembered how much patrol on Saturdays suck. Why on earth did people feel the need to get that drunk and behave so badly on a Saturday?) and she hadn't had the time between incidents to actually call Chat and ask him where he was.

Fortunately though as she ventured a little further from the centre (and away from the drunks that feel the need to fight or cause disruption) she stumbled upon Chat Noir on his hands and knees on the flat top of the Arc de Triomphe.

At first, for one heart-stopping moment, she feared the worst - That an Akuma had attacked and he was badly injured.

But then she heard him curse under his breath and a small, yet loud, clicking noise coming from his hand and she knew he was just planning some sort of romantic gesture that was backfiring on him badly.

Well…his bad luck had to kick in at some point, didn't it?

"There you are!" she cried out causing Chat Noir to let out a strangled yowl of surprise as he leaped up onto his feet and dropped a plastic lighter that landed on the floor with a louder clattering sound. "I was beginning to think I was going to have to do patrol on my own. What are you doing?"

"My Lady!" Chat exclaimed. "I…erm…you see….I thought….I am afraid," he slumped in defeat, "that my gesture today is not going my way."

"Oh?" Ladybug tilted her head curiously. "And what was supposed to happen?" Chat Noir had wordlessly passed his note and she unfolded it eagerly. "On the eleventh day of Valentine," she read out, "my true love gave to me, eleven scented candles."

Chat Noir stepped aside to reveal eleven, big, fat, white candles that were deliberately placed to make a love heart shape.

"I deliberately sought out a nice flat roof with a good view of the city," he waved a hand at what was a stunning view of the city all lit up, "so we could sit down round them and I thought maybe we could also roast marshmallows over the flame."

"That is a lovely idea," Ladybug agreed, "but not practical. It's February Kitty," she stated, "There is a lot of wind, and rain, and cold. The candles would have never stayed lit."

"I've noticed," Chat muttered bitterly.

Ladybug smiled as she wondered exactly how many hours Chat Noir had wasted trying to set this up. "Perhaps we should try again," she suggested quietly, "in the summer when it's not so windy."

Chat's face lit up in delight at that. "I would like that!" he said enthusiastically. "I would like that very much!"

And that was when the heavens suddenly opened up entirely and the rain poured down on them. Hastily they gathered up the candles and shoved them into the plastic bag that Chat had the foresight to keep pinned under his baton before they then dashed for shelter.

They found an enclave high up and ducked under there as they waited for the worst of it to let up. Without a single word uttered between them they turned to look at each other, both soaking wet, and burst into childish giggles.

"I'm sorry," Chat said between chuckles, "it wasn't meant to be like this at all."

"I know," Ladybug reassured him as she reached out to push back a dark gold lock that plastered itself over Chat's eye. "The thought was still there though," she murmured as her red gloved finger brushed against the side of his face before she began to trace the outline of his black mask that was painted onto his face. "Thank you."

He blinked his stunning, glimmering, green eyes and smiled one of his sweet, lazy, smiles that made her heart skip a beat.

She wanted to kiss him.

Quite badly.

And not the just the once either.

She wanted to kiss him over and over again in as many different ways she could possibly manage. She also wanted to hold his hand, and she wanted to make him happy, and she wanted to spend lazy evening in his arms as they watched TV, and she wanted to laugh with him, and she wanted to fight crime with him, and she wanted to go on dates with him. To do things like go on long walks and to go to the cinema and to dance and play and all other little, silly things, she wanted to do it all with him.

She could suddenly see a life with him.

She could see Emma, Hugo, and Louis, all with his cheeky smile instead of Adrien's soft sweet one, and a hamster too.

And that was when she realised that at some point in this last mad, sweet, week of wooing Chat Noir had succeeded in his task.

She had almost forgotten about Adrien entirely as her heart had firmly decided upon a different, though just as wonderful and sweet and beautiful, boy.

She had fallen for him.

She, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, was irrevocably in love with Chat Noir.

…Marinette switches the direction her Claddagh ring was facing the moment she gets home and her transformation wears off.