A/N: I am.. so sorry this took me so long to update. I hate leaving things unfinished but hey! Here it is! The final installment of this masquerade fiasco. :) This is the first fic I've ever written for ML and I'm honestly, as long as it took, really proud/happy to see how it's developed up until now. I'm glad I can finally say I've finished this, haha. Anyways. I hope y'all enjoy!

"Don't worry, Marinette, you did the right thing."

Tikki was hovering over a dejected Marinette's shoulder and patting her head, which was resting on her arms upon the railing of her balcony. She had spent the entire Saturday after last night's visit with Adrien feeling miserable and was now spending much needed alone time with the peaceful night sky around her just thinking about the last two weeks. Although in the morning and afternoon, she had helped out with the bakery, done some homework, and talked to Alya on the phone—everything that amounted to a reasonably productive day—nothing Marinette did made herself feel any better. It was all Tikki could do to try and cheer her up.

"I know, Tikki," she said. "But that's not what's bothering me."

Adrien liked Ladybug . The truth was out. And while she supposed his affection was what she wanted, this new development did the opposite of ecstatic for her. She touched a finger to her lips. She had kissed Adrien—twice! And both times felt so incredible and magical and it gave her butterflies to relive the moments in her mind but… Could he really like her if he didn't know her true identity?

Then there was the complication of Chat Noir. She had been stubbornly preventing her thoughts from straying anywhere near the midnight rendezvous they had. There was just no way she was jealous over that stupid cat. No way. She refused to think about it, yet it kept cropping back up in her mind and demanding her attention.

She lifted her head and looked out into the city, letting the beauty of the lights below consume her. Closing her eyes, she took it all in: the fresh air, the sounds of cars whooshing by, the smell of pasta from a nearby restaurant. Her kwami sat down on her shoulder and touched her cheek.

"I'm sorry, Marinette, but I know it'll all be okay."

Despite feeling terrible, Marinette appreciated this small show of solidarity, that even if nothing could be said to cheer her up, Tikki would nevertheless always be there for her.

"I don't know, Tikki," she said. "I'm confused."

"It's okay," the kwami smiled. "Just talk it out with me."

"Well for starters," Marinette said, "I'm confused about why I was so upset when Chat Noir said he was with another special someone that wasn't me. I'm confused because I know I like Adrien and so how could I like Chat? And worst of all, I'm confused because all I've ever wanted is for Adrien to notice and like me, but it just…didn't turn out the way I expected, and I don't know what to do with that."

"But you are Ladybug without the mask," Tikki reminded her, "so what's so wrong about Adrien liking that? I'm sure he sees that, too!"

"How do you know, Tikki?"

"He seems like a smart boy. Who you are shines out in Ladybug more than you realize."

"I don't know, though," Marinette said. "Even if that were true, you can't deny that Ladybug has more shine than I do."

"You'll never know if you don't spend more time with him," Tikki said.

"Ugh, I don't think I can face him right now," she groaned.

"It'll be okay," Tikki said with an assuring tone. She floated over to face Marinette, who caught the kwami in her hands. "Everything will work out in the end. You'll see."

"I don't see how life could get any more confusing," Marinette said, brows furrowed. Her lips curled in thought, wondering how in the world she even got herself into this mess. Maybe going to the Masquerade was a bad idea after all.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a voice spoke, breaking her out of her reverie.

"Fancy seeing you out here."

Marinette jumped, still holding Tikki tightly in her hands. Panicking, she hurriedly shoved her poor kwami into the flowerbed next to her before turning back around.

Apparently, her life could get more confusing. Reclining there right beneath the Wi-Fi antenna was none other than Chat Noir.

"Ch-Chat Noir!" she said, trying to recollect herself and remain calm. "Uh, what are you doing out here?"

"I was about to ask you the same," he said, swinging that ridiculous tail of a belt of his around like a lasso.

"Well, it's my house, isn't it?" she said, crossing her arms at once. He looked down at her with his usual sidelong smirk, the corners of his lips stretching to reveal perfect white teeth. It struck her then how mildly attractive he was and, annoyed at herself for feeling that way, immediately decided that she didn't want to see his face anymore. "What do you want, anyway? I'm not in the mood."

"Hey, relax," he said, holding his hands up in defense. "I just happened to be in the area tonight, spotted you, and decided it would be fun to say hi to an old friend."

"Since when were we 'old friends?'" she asked, smiling in spite of herself.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe since I saved you a couple times over the last year or so?" he responded, still grinning. She wanted to smack that infuriatingly cute smile off his face.

"I don't need saving," she said proudly, her hands on her waist. "But I appreciate the sentiment."

"What's got your whiskers all tangled up, Princess?" he asked, turning over onto his stomach and propping his chin up with his fists. He tilted his head towards her and winked. She rolled her eyes.

"None of your business. I'm just not having such a great day, that's all," she said, walking towards the trap door leading back down to her room. She could not believe Chat Noir would show up unannounced like this while she was going through an emotional crisis. She grabbed the handle of it and looked back up at him. "So goodbye. Have a nice night."

"Wait, don't go!" he yelped, holding his hand out. "Er — I mean…"

He scratched his head, ears drooping, suddenly shy. This notion did not improve Marinette's determination to stop finding him attractive.

"What's going on?" Marinette asked.

"Um — hey," he said. "Didn't you drop something in your flowerbed when I scared you earlier?"

Tikki! she thought as her heart gave a violent jolt. Did he see her?

"Uh, yeah! You're right!" she said, laughing slightly and letting go of the door handle. "It was my phone!"

Running over to the flowerbed, she discreetly pulled Tikki out and quickly deposited her in the inner pocket of her jacket. Sighing with relief, she turned back around, fully intending to go back down to her room, but before she could take a single step forward, her heart dropped in horror. Chat Noir had unapologetically plopped himself down right on top of her trap door and was casually admiring the ring on his gloved hands.

"It's a nice night, you know," he said airily. "It'd be a shame if you went back inside so soon."

Marinette was too shocked for words. Her heart rate was steadily increasing. What was Chat playing at? Was he flirting with her? And if so, didn't he supposedly have a special someone out there that he had missed the Masquerade Ball for?

Someone special…

Taking a deep breath, she regained her tact. As conflicted as she felt over the new and strange developments that had been happening over the last week, she couldn't resist taking this opportunity to quench her curiosity.

"Alright," she said, her voice steady. "I'm all yours."

When Adrien arrived on Marinette's balcony as Chat Noir to try and talk to her, he wasn't expecting it to actually work. So when she sat down on the ground next to him, he had no idea where to start. He tried to cast about for something to say, but it was her who spoke first.

"So why isn't Ladybug with you tonight?" she asked, leaning her back against the walls of the balcony.

"Does she have to be with me everywhere I go?" he said with a grin. When he saw the look on her face however, his smile faded. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing." She corrected her expression, forcing her eyes to crinkle at the corners in false cheeriness. "I mean, even Ladybug can't tame a wildcat like you, huh?"

Adrien studied her face carefully. If she was Ladybug — which, she was — she was clearly playing some sort of game with him right now. He just couldn't quite figure out her intentions.

"What's it to you, anyways?" he asked.

"Nothing," she repeated, shrugging. "I mean, you're right. She doesn't always have to be with you wherever you go. It doesn't take a genius to see that you didn't go to the Masquerade with her, for example."

He raised an eyebrow at that. Was she going to scold him about it even out in her civilian form? "Even superheroes have a life outside of saving the world you know? And besides," he paused, gazing at her out of the corner of his eyes. "Ladybug forgot to attend Theo's inauguration."

"Yeah, I, uh, guess you're right," she shrugged again. "I have to say I'm curious though. Why didn't you go to the Masquerade? It looked so amazing — anyone with the opportunity to attend should have wanted to go."

"Of course I wanted to go, it's just—"

"Just what?"

He narrowed his eyes at her, confused at how to best navigate this conversation. He had to steer it towards his favor somehow. Marinette must have taken his silence to mean discomfort because she reached out and put a hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay, you can tell me," she said. He knew that smile. It was the same smile Ladybug used whenever she was trying to work something in her favor.

Okay, he thought. Two can play at that game.

"I don't know, Princess," he said, throwing an arm around her and pulling her close. "Superheroes keep their identities secret for a reason."

He looked down at her but was not prepared to see her wide eyes staring up at him with deep curiosity. He was struck suddenly by the blueness of her gaze and wondered how on earth he never noticed they were the same brilliant blue that shone out from behind Ladybug's mask. Whatever witty retort he had prepared for her response vanished from his mind, only to be replaced by the thumping of his heart and the proximity of her lips. Just when he felt as though he would soon lose control of himself, Marinette coughed and gave him a smirk.

"Alright, kitty. I see how it is," she said, but he couldn't help noticing that she didn't pull away from his arm's hold.

Adrien was thoroughly enjoying himself. This was the Ladybug he knew, in the flesh. He had never known Marinette to be so conniving, but he was pleased to experience this side of her.

"If only you knew what it was like, Princess," he said airily, "keeping your identity a secret."

"Yeah, if only," she said, looking down at her hands.

The last time he saw her as Ladybug, she had also seemed down, so he squeezed her shoulder and asked, "What's up?"

"Chat, can I ask you something?" she lifted her head up to him.

"Anything," he said softly.

"Since you wear a mask, do you ever wonder if all those people would actually like you for the real you?"

"All the time," he answered.

"Well, say you had someone special in your life. Would it kill you to wonder if they truly loved you for you?" she asked.

"Er, this is all hypothetical, right?" he said. Her question triggered the memory of Ladybug leaving his house the other night. You don't even know me, she had said. Maybe that what was upsetting her so much. Was Marinette suggesting he was someone special?

"Of course," she said slyly. "Unless… you do have someone special in your life other than Ladybug?"

...Or it was all a trap.

"Alright, you got me," he said, holding his arms up in defeat. Might as well give her the satisfaction of thinking she had the upperhand. "That's who I was with during the Masquerade night."

Really, it was worth saying this just to see the excited triumphant grin that split her face. When Ladybug felt victorious, it was infectious.

"But…" and her smile faded somewhat. "Does it kill you that she might not truly love you for who you are?"

"I think," he began, reaching out a hand to stroke her bangs back, "she's sharp enough to know the real me regardless of the mask. And I hope she trusts that I know her, too."

He gave her a small smile and without thinking, cupped her face in his hands. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion as she contemplated his words. It was incredibly cute to watch. He was starting to feel bad; it probably wasn't fair that she was still clueless about his identity, but he had to give her the chance to try and figure it out herself first.

"I'm sure she'll accept you for who you are," she said.

"I hope so, too," he smiled. She blinked and shifted her eyes away from his face. Sensing this was the end of the conversation for tonight, he dropped his hands and stood up.

"Welp, it's getting late," he said, turning towards the balcony ledge. As he walked towards it, Marinette grabbed his arm.

"Wait," she commanded. "Can you tell me who this 'special someone' is?"

"Paris is huge, what are the chances you'd know her?" he winked before jumping off the building for home.

For the next three days, Marinette's internal conflict waged on. Despite Chat admitting to having "someone special" on the side, the moment they shared on her roof got too intimate for comfort.

She didn't know why she felt drawn to him that night and she refused to accept jealousy as the answer. The problem was, the situation with Adrien was equally confusing, so her usual excuse that Adrien was the one she loved most aired out and fell flat on its face. Every time she saw Adrien that week, she wanted to hide. Unfortunately for her, Alya was beginning to grow concerned.

"You've been acting weird all week, girl," she told Marinette one morning. "I thought you had helped Adrien with some homework but now you're avoiding him all over again? Did something happen that you're not telling me?"

"Everything's fine, Alya. I just—" she broke off nervously at her best friend's sharp glare. "I just think maybe he likes someone else."

"Have you confirmed this?" Alya asked, going straight to the facts.

"I — uhh—" the truthful answer was yes. Hadn't Adrien told Ladybug he liked her ? Explaining it to Alya was a whole other thing. "I'm pretty certain."

"Oh, yeah? How?" Alya demanded. It was so typical of her not to drop the subject.

"I don't want to talk about it," Marinette said honestly. "Maybe later?"

Alya's expression softened and she threw her arms around Marinette.

"It's okay. I understand," she said. "Tell me whenever you're ready, okay?"

"Yeah," Marinette nodded as Adrien walked out of his limo in her line of vision.

When Marinette returned home that day, she went straight up to her room and collapsed in her bed. Tikki flew out to try and comfort her but life felt much too complicated at the moment.

Tap, tap. Tap, tap.

"Did you hear that?" Marinette asked.

But Tikki had already hid beneath the pillows, a sure sign that Marinette hadn't imagined it. Pushing herself up onto a seated position, she stared at the trap door leading downstairs to see if her mom was about to come up.

Tap, tap.

She turned her head towards the source of the sound. It seemed to be coming from the rounded window across from her bed but she couldn't see anything out there due to the dark. Climbing down from her loft, she walked over to it cautiously.

As she drew near, a pair of bright green eyes blinked back at her through the glass panes. Marinette's eyes widened.

Chat?

Whipping around, she checked her trap door again to make sure nobody was on the other side of it before fiddling with the hatch and pushing open her window.

"Couldn't even stay away for a week now, could you, kitty?" she teased as Chat's leaned closer in towards her room.

"Don't get your whiskers tangled up again too soon, I can't stay long," he winked, resting his elbow upon the sill.

"Oh?" she smirked, crossing her arms. "To what do I owe this visit then?"

Chat took a deep breath before continuing on.

"I've decided to tell you what I was up to during the Masquerade night," he said.

That sent Marinette's heart rate racing again.

"W-what?!" she exclaimed. Realizing her outburst, she quickly composed herself again and looked away from him. Stay cool, Marinette, stay cool! "I mean — haha — yeah, okay. Completely up to you, whatever you want."

Chat raised a brow. "Yeah, okay. Not here though."

"Huh?" Confused, Marinette looked back at him, trying to understand what he just said. "Not… here? I mean, of course you weren't… here?"

"No, no, no, I meant — I won't tell you here, " he clarified.

"Oh." Now she felt stupid. "Why not?"

Chat pursed his lips, then smiled. "I need to show you something. Meet me at the Trocadéro at half past midnight tomorrow?"

She blinked, wondering what on earth would warrant him to drag her out in the middle of the night for. But on the other hand, she really wanted to know the truth.

"Oh. Okay," she nodded. "I, um, I guess I'll be there."

"Don't worry, you won't regret it," he said, winking again.

And with that, he took off into the night.

The next twenty four hours were hell for Marinette. Even with Tikki's comforting speeches that she was probably overthinking it and she ought to just grit her teeth and go meet with Chat, she couldn't shake the feeling that everything would change if she went to see him. The way Chat had brought up the whole meeting thing had made everything feel way more severe, and even when Adrien gave her a reassuring smile that morning in class after he returned her dropped pencil, nothing was helping in terms of calming her nerves.

"Look, whatever happens tonight," Tikki started saying, later on that night after dinner, ten minutes shy of their arranged meeting time. "You and Chat Noir will always be partners. And you'll always know Adrien definitely has a crush on Ladybug. It's going to be fine."

"I don't know," Marinette said nervously. "It also still doesn't change the fact that I'm freaking out about this whole thing!"

Flying up to her, Tikki grabbed her cheeks and steadied her face.

"You're going to be fine, Marinette," she laughed. "Just breathe."

Marinette sighed. "I hope you're right, Tikki."

"I usually am," she winked, leaning back with her arms crossed. "Just say the magic words."

Marinette took a deep breath and let it out.

"Alright. Tikki, transform me!"

In a flash, she was out of her apartment. At this rate, she was going to be five minutes early, but she just couldn't stand the waiting anymore. She knew she was driving Tikki crazy with all the pacing. Better to just grit her teeth and get this over with.

Upon reaching Trocadéro, Marinette ducked down behind a wall and transformed out of Ladybug. Once Tikki was safe and secure in her purse, she stepped out onto the plaza, greeting the cool night air against her skin. Any moment now, she was sure the cat would be here, perhaps lurking in the shadows with his green eyes lit with a smirk.

"Here petit minou," she said softly with a teasing smile. "Where are you?"

A gentle padding of feet reached her ears. Turning around at once, she looked for his landing. — She'd recognize that sound anywhere.

"Chat?" she whispered, searching for those familiar green slits in the dark. "You here?"

As the faint shadow of a cat drew nearer and nearer, Marinette could make out the outline of her trusted, faithful partner.

"Hey," she said as the dirty blond hair and cat ears came closer. Stopping right in front of her, Chat bowed deeply.

"Hi, Purrincess," he greeted, taking her hand and brushing his lips over her knuckles. She was suddenly glad it was dark enough around them to mask her deep blush.

"W-what did you want to tell me?" For the life of her she couldn't keep her voice from shaking. "You said you wanted to show me something?"

"Right." He stood up straight and reached his hands back behind him. "You know how I said I was with someone special the night of the Masquerade?"

She nodded. "Yeah?"

"So that part is completely true," he said with a slight tilt of his head. "As to who I was with — well — you definitely know her."

"Oh." Marinette wasn't sure what to make of that. A part of her felt a twinge of jealousy while the other part rolled her eyes at herself because she was with Adrien the whole time and she knew she wanted to spend time with him anyways. Chat was therefore well within his right to spend time with somebody else. They weren't even an item yet. "Were you going to tell me who it is?"

"Patience, young padawan," he said, holding a hand up with his index finger pointed upwards. "First, I'll give you a hint."

"I despise guessing games," Marinette groaned, crossing her arms at once in defiance.

"Don't worry," Chat laughed. "It should be an easy one. Close your eyes."

She upturned her lips, hoping to hear him wave off that last command as a joke. When it was clear that he meant it, she sighed and let her eyes fall shut.

"Alright, do your worst."

She felt his warm hand grab hers and lift it up between them, palm up. For a minute, nothing happened. She was tempted to open her eyes just a peek when something soft and silky grazed the tips of her fingers before falling in a pile into her hands.

Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Er — can I open them now?"

The hairs on the back of her neck stood up as she felt him whisper close to her ear.

"Yeah, go ahead."

Slowly, Marinette cracked open an eye, then the other. Lifting her hand up to her face so that she could see better in the dim light from the Eiffel Tower across the way, she looked down at the item in her hands.

Her mouth fell open.

The first thing that caught her eye was a bundle of red. She blinked once. Twice. A long red sash covered in polka dots. She'd recognize her own work anywhere.

"H-how did you get this?" she breathed, unsure what to believe. Were Chat Noir and Adrien friends? Were they conspiring against her? Was the universe conspiring against her?!

He simply shrugged and smiled, white teeth gleaming down at her.

"You gave it to me."

"I — what?"

"Plagg, detransform."

A flash of light, then —

"Adrien?! " she gasped, clapping a hand to her mouth.

There before her, no cat suit, no bright green eyes, stood none other than the very blond boy she'd been crushing on since the beginning of her middle school career. Her face flushed, and she found herself looking around at everything but him.

"Oh my god, this isn't happening, this isn't happening…"

"Hey, hey, it's okay," Adrien chuckled as he reached out to try and pry her hands away from her face. "You're saying that like it's a bad thing."

"It-it's — it's not! " she stammered, shrinking away still. "I'm just — this is a lot to take in at once, okay?! "

Adrien laughed again at that.

"You're adorable," he said, causing her eyes to widen at once.

"I — I just — I just—" Breathe, Marinette, breathe! She shook her head and forced herself to look him in the eye. "How long have you known?"

"Since we bumped into each other in the hallway and you dropped your notebook full of designs," he said, scratching the back of his head apologetically.

Marinette blinked, trying to do the math in her head. That meant he knew when she visited him as Ladybug! How embarrassing, she wanted to kick herself. He had known it was her all this time and hadn't lost interest at all?

"And… you weren't disappointed? When you found out it was me?" she asked, looking down at the ground.

"Au contraire, " Adrien said.

"S-so…" she twiddled her fingers, feeling incredibly shy. "When you said — as Chat — that you were with someone special—"

"It was you," he smiled. He took a step closer to her. "It was you the whole time."

"I… I don't know what to say," she said, avoiding his gaze. She didn't take a step back.

Reaching out his hand, Adrien cupped her cheek and tilted her head up to face him.

"You don't have to say anything," he whispered.

His eyes bored into hers, pinning her in place as she looked back up at him. Her entire body seemed to have frozen completely as he held her there, waiting. Before she could fully comprehend what she was doing, her fingers tightened around the sash in her hands as she lifted her heels off the ground.

Just as she remembered, his lips were soft and warm. They moved gently against hers now, sending a sudden tingling buzz straight down her spine as he angled his jaw and opened his mouth to hers, deepening the kiss. Sinking her fingers in his hair at the nape of his neck, she tugged him closer down to her, his hand steadying her at her back. He was handling her as delicately as he had when she was Ladybug, his thumb softly stroking the line of her jaw as he licked into her mouth, causing a small whimper to escape from the back of her throat. She felt him smile against her lips at the sound of it so she shoved aside her embarrassment and pulled him in even closer.

They broke apart after some time, hair mussed and lips swollen, but eyes bright beneath the moonlight as they smiled shyly at each other. Giggling, Marinette threw the sash around Adrien's neck and tied a classic scarf-like knot at his chest before pulling him back in for another kiss.

For all the stress this one piece of fabric had caused her throughout the past few days, Marinette was glad she had incorporated it into her design in the end.

After all, it was always meant to be her lucky charm.

~la fin~