Standard disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir, and am not affiliated with them in any way. Which may be a good thing, 'cause I think my characters do way too much talking. These kids have a lot of issues to work through.

I also have to apologize for the change in POV halfway through this one. I was going to try to make this whole story Marinette's view, but Adrien and Plagg kept chiming in. I even wrote Clairvoyance purely from Adrien's POV in an effort to shut them up. It didn't work. (No, that one-shot is not a part of this story.) So, like the series, it'll mostly be Marinette, but we'll see Adrien's mind too.

And no, the lyrics I'm referencing won't be in any specific order. Sorry. I tried, and it was weird.

Issues

"Uh-uh-oh. Oh no, you'll never know." -Miraculous Theme

Chapter 3: In Which There Is a Misunderstanding

They ended up not making it to the nurse's office. Somehow, they completely missed the bell for their next classes and then, a few minutes later, another akuma appeared in the city. This one was another young girl who had been bullied in her class (apparently Hawkmoth had a theme going today), whose tormentor had been putting tacks on her seat.

Pincushion (ohh, Adrien was going to laugh himself sick for days!) proved to be much more formidable than her name and appearance suggested (sure enough, she was covered in pins, which made it hard to fight her hand-to-hand), shooting an endless supply of pins and needles at them.

Cat Noir, of course, was having the time of his life.

"Do you think she's made her point?" he called over to Ladybug as they dodged her latest barrage. His partner was trying hard not to groan at all the puns. They had been going at this for what seemed like hours! (Of course, it was mostly running away.) "She really needs to stick to it. I mean, she doesn't seem very sharp to me."

"Aren't you running out of puns yet?" she yelled irritably. He jumped over to her as they took cover behind a building.

"Why? Are they getting under your skin?" he asked, sidling up to her and wiggling his eyebrows. She rolled her eyes.

"Just help me find the akuma, kitty," she said.

"Her charm bracelet," he said immediately. She gaped at his instant response.

"Are you sure?" she asked, chancing another glance.

"Yup. She keeps using that arm for all of her attacks," Cat Noir said confidentially. "Why? You don't trust me?" he asked, thrusting out his bottom lip in a pout.

Ladybug giggled and scratched him under the chin. It was easy to fall back into their same patterns of teasing with the masks on. "Silly kitty, I know you've got a good eye. Just wanted to be sure. I don't think we're going to get another chance at this. Lucky Charm!" she cried, calling on her power. A small star-shaped tub of red goop fell into her hands.

"What the—"

"Gak!" Cat Noir cried, his face lighting up. He excitedly opened the lid and poked the red jelly-like substance inside. Ladybug touched it too, taking it out and making a disgusted face that Cat Noir laughed at. "I always wanted some of that when I was a kid, but my mom was afraid it would stain."

"Well, looks like we get to play with it now," Ladybug said, looking around. A plan started to form. It was a bad plan, and risky, but what part of this wasn't? "Cat Noir, see the street light above her? Think you can take it out?"

"With pleasure, milady," Cat Noir smirked. Together, they broke cover, running in different directions: Cat running to the side, where he would hopefully be forgotten, and Ladybug charging right in.

"Hey, Pincushion!" she called, spinning her yoyo to deflect the projectiles still coming at her, "don't you think this has gotten kinda dull?"

Oh ye gods. Cat Noir was rubbing off on her.

But it seemed to work, since she had to dodge more attacks as the enemy focused on her. Meanwhile Cat Noir used his parkour to climb the walls behind Pincushion and leap at the street light.

"Cataclysm!" he cried, grabbing it. It immediately crumbled, falling on a very-surprised villain. Pincushion barely managed to dodge it, but when she tried to do a cartwheel, the ground where she placed her hand felt strange; like landing on jelly. She slipped and fell hard on her back, knocking the wind out of herself. Gasping, she looked down to see her hand covered in some strange red goop.

"Feels weird, doesn't it?" Ladybug said, landing next to Pincushion and quickly sliding the charm bracelet off her wrist. "Definitely one of the strangest things my powers have given me."

Ladybug smashed the bracelet against the pavement and watched in amusement as a little, black butterfly tried to escape. Catching it deftly with her yo-yo, she released the newly-cleansed white butterfly back into the world with a cheerful goodbye. Soon, a swarm of ladybug lights were putting Paris back the way it used to be, and a young schoolgirl sat in the middle of the street, wondering just what had happened to her.

"Hey," said Ladybug, kneeling next to the girl and holding out her fixed bracelet. The girl's eyes went wide.

"Ladybug!" she cried. "I'm such a huge fan!"

They continued to talk to her until Lt. Roger got there, reminding her that it was okay to tell the teachers if someone's pranks were actually hurting her. With her promise to try to be more brave like them, and Roger's promise to get her home safely, the pair quickly leapt away before their time ran out.

They ducked into an alleyway just as their transformations faded, breathing a sigh of relief as their kwamis fell into their ready hands.

"Tikki? Are you okay?" Marinette asked anxiously, still worried about what had happened earlier that day. "I didn't push you too hard, did I?"

"Nope," Tikki said, sounding tired but still cheerful. "All good here."

"I'm starving," Plagg complained.

"I got ya covered, buddy," Adrien said, already holding up a piece of cheese. Plagg dove at it, crooning at it lovingly before devouring it whole.

Marinette wrinkled her nose at the smell. "What is that?" she asked.

"Camembert cheese," Adrien explained. "It's pretty much all he eats."

"Eww."

"Yeah."

"Well, Tikki, I don't have any cookies since we need to clean my bag out, but I think we're pretty close to home," Marinette said, looking around the neighborhood. They were only two blocks away from the bakery. And school was probably already out. Gah, that akuma had taken forever! Hawkmoth must've been pissed Marinette had gotten away or something.

"Can we get the chocolate chip ones again?" Tikki asked sleepily, burrowing into Marinette's collar.

Marinette smiled at her friend. "Sure thing." They started towards the bakery. Adrien hurried to catch up.

"So how come you get the kwami who likes delicious cookies, and I get stuck with the one who wants stinky cheese?" he complained, pouting.

"Just lucky, I guess," Marinette grinned. Adrien scoffed and looked at Plagg, who was cradling his current piece of cheese protectively.

"Oh no, kid," Plagg growled, "you do not want to see me on a sugar rush. Nuh uh. Not eating those. Not while I have this savory deliciousness right here!"

Adrien shrugged. "Your loss. But I still get some, right?" he asked Marinette hopefully. Marinette stopped short. They were almost to the bakery and she had just now realized that ADRIEN was following her home! He wanted to come in and have cookies! He wanted… to talk. She had promised they'd talk. About them. She felt her face pale.

"Yeah, yeah, of course," she said, trying to smile. Ugh, this was going to be so embarrassing! First, she had initiated their big reveal, then she had run off on him…. Then she had refused to look at him or talk to him at school…. Then she had almost gotten akumatized and cried all over his shoulder…. HE WAS GOING TO THINK SHE WAS A BASKET CASE! Which she was, currently, no doubt about that….

"Marinette?" Adrien asked, looking at her strangely.

AHHHH! SHE HAD JUST BEEN STANDING HERE THE WHOLE TIME! And he wasn't used to her spacing out!

"S-sorry… what? Did you say something?" she asked, finally, trying to smile. (Inwardly, she facepalmed. Nice one, Marinette.)

Adrien sighed. "Ok," he said, taking a deep breath and looking like he was steeling himself for something. "I get it. Look, Marinette, I know you hate me—"

WHAT?

"—and I'll respect your boundaries and all, but I really think we need to talk about this sometime," he said.

Marinette could only stand there, with her jaw gaping open. He-he thought...

"You think I hate you?" she whispered. (She didn't trust her voice not to crack right then.)

"Well, maybe 'hate' is too strong a word," Adrien said, pondering. "Extremely dislike, maybe?"

"WHA-?" she was right, her voice did crack.

He gave her an understanding smile. "It's all right," he assured her, "I'm not mad or anything. I mean, I didn't really make a good first impression. And we've hardly had a conversation that lasts for more than a few minutes at a time. Plus, I'm friends with Chloe, who you do hate. And I know you're trying. You're so nice to everyone, even if they don't deserve it. Heh, you even apologized to Lila and Chloe after they were akumatized because of you, and we both know they didn't deserve it."

"B-b-b-b-but—" She couldn't seem to form the words. Her mind was completely blank. Adrien thought she hated him?!

He waited for her to finish (even now he was being such a gentleman to her!), but after a moment, he sighed again. "Look, I'm just saying, you don't have to try so hard, okay? No-nothing has to change between Ladybug and Cat Noir. We've got each other's numbers now, so we can communicate that way if you want. At least we won't have to worry about where the other one is when an akuma attacks."

"Why would you think I hate you?" Marinette whisper-screamed, barely managing to even get that out.

Adrien blinked at her tone, then gave a little laugh. "Because you avoid me whenever you can and try to smile when you can't," he said, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow. "You were even friendlier with Cat Noir than me the few times you met him. Even when we partnered up for the tournament that one time, you kept trying to get us practice more and more to get me out of your house faster. I thought maybe you'd give me a chance when our best friends started dating, but… you'd just give me one of those smiles that says you didn't want to be there. I should know. I've put on that same smile for my father's parties for years." He gave a careless shrug. She gaped at him.

"That-that's not—"

"Marinette," he said with a knowing smile, "I've been modelling practically my whole life. I know a fake smile when I see one. And yours… are super-forced." With that, he gave her the big, wide smile that Alya sometimes made when making fun of Marinette about her crush.

Marinette hoped the ground would open up soon and swallow her whole. One big black hole, to go, please! That was what she looked like? No wonder Adrien had gotten the wrong idea.

"Adrien," she choked out, "I don't hate you! I actually lo—" A small gasp inside her collar make Marinette pause and lose her momentum. "I-I-mean, I-I-I…."

She couldn't do it! She couldn't finish that sentence! Not now! Not here! She couldn't find the words!

"Ugh, I've put you on the spot now, haven't I?" Adrien groaned. "I'm sorry. I'm really sorry. I mean, when we found out, I was hoping—no. No, Marinette, seriously, it's ok—"

But it was NOT okay. It wasn't even remotely okay! She couldn't let him leave like this! But she was a stammering, stuttering dinglebat in front of him, and she wasn't going to be able to tell him anything! So instead, she marched forward and grabbed him by the arm, dragging him into the bakery with her.

"Marin-?"

"Cookies!" she said, decisively. "We are going to get cookies. Now." There. A full sentence. Ta-da!

"You don't have to—"

"Cookies!" she insisted. "For you and Tikki. Then we'll… talk." She almost stumbled on that word, but forced it out just as they got inside.

"Marinette!" her mother greeted her at the front counter. Thankfully, there were no customers around to see her daughter manhandling a teenage model.

"Mom, you remember Adrien?" Marinette said, pulling said boy in front of her. He waved hello sheepishly.

"Oh yes, of course. How are you, Adrien?"

"Just fine, ma'am. How are you today?"

Her mother had barely replied before Marinette grabbed Adrien's arm again and dragged him back towards the apartment.

"Mom, Adrien and I are having a serious misunderstanding and we need to talk. Now. So, we'll be in my room, okay?" she said hurriedly, shoving Adrien in front of her.

Her mother looked startled, but smiled and waved. "Of course."

Marinette stuck her head back out the door. "Do we have any extra cookies?"

"On the counter, dear."

"Thanks!"

Sabine blinked as the door closed again, then shook her head. "Well, as long as he's okay with her wearing the pants in the family…." She giggled a little at the thought of green-eyed grandbabies.

Adrien, meanwhile, was pushed up the last set of stairs to his partner's bedroom. "Marinette, this really isn't necess—"

"You wanted to talk, so we'll talk. Oh, I almost forgot the cookies!" she disappeared back down the stairs, only to reappear a second later, putting Tikki on her desk. She shot him a look and pointed to a chair in front of her desk. "Sit. Stay." Then she was gone again.

Groaning, Adrien threw himself into the chair. When he had said he wanted to talk, this was not what he meant. Now he'd made her mad at him!

"What was that about?" Plagg demanded. Adrien looked at his kwami, wondering what he had done now, but soon realized his little friend wasn't talking to him. He was glaring at the other kwami, Tikki, who was sitting on the desk, looking ashamed of herself.

"I couldn't help it!" she said. "It just came out!"

"Gah! And after all the grief you gave me about our last reveal, you just had to go and ruin this one!" Plagg griped.

"What?" Adrien said, confused. "What are you two talking about? You've done this before?"

"Hundreds of times," Plagg waving it away like it was nothing.

"Yes, but back then Bridgette and Felix were much less ready to reveal themselves than Marinette and Adrien were," Tikki said, scowling at Plagg. "You could've tried to salvage some of their relationship!"

"Bridgette? Felix?" Adrien asked.

"Our last wielders," Plagg explained. "Don't worry about it. You're nothing like him; he was a real stick-in-the-mud. And a jerk to boot. He even tried to put me on a diet a few times!"

"Perish the thought," Adrien said, rolling his eyes.

"I know, right?"

"So, what happened to them?" Adrien pressed, unable to help himself. The two kwamis looked at each other uncertainly.

"Well, they were tricked into revealing themselves," Tikki said slowly (with an obvious glance at Plagg), "but they didn't take it well. They weren't ready…."

"Like Marinette wasn't ready?" Adrien said. Tikki quickly shook her head.

"No, I think she is ready, Adrien," she said. "She just… has to allow herself to be the person she wants to be."

"But Hawkmoth—"

"Hawkmoth was grasping at straws when he tried to akumatize her," Tikki said, sounding angry. "If her mind had truly been in chaos, you would never have been able to reach her."

"I'm back," Marinette called, coming up the steps. In her hands, she had a tray full of cookies, two glasses of lemonade, and… "I brought you some cheese bread," she said to Plagg, placing the tray on the desk in front of Adrien. "It's not Camembert, but maybe it'll do for a snack?" Plagg gasped in delight and attacked the bread. Marinette laughed at the happy sounds he made as she gave Tikki a couple chocolate chip cookies. While Plagg was rolling around the desk with the giant piece of bread, Tikki sat politely, eating her cookies bite by bite.

"So, what were you talking about?" she asked as she handed Adrien a glass of lemonade without looking at him.

"Hawkmoth," he said, feeling slightly put out. She was avoiding him again, even if they were sitting in the same room, talking. He wanted to talk about them! Him and her. Cat Noir and Ladybug. Adrien and Marin—

"Yeah, we need to come up with a plan to defeat that guy," Marinette said. She glanced at Adrien, then quickly looked away again. "Got any ideas?"

He sighed. Obviously, he was going to have to wait until later for the talk he really wanted. Might as well get this one over with. "We need more information," Adrien said, taking some cookies for himself. (They smelled sooo good.) "All we really know about him is he has a Miraculous that can turn people into monsters using little evil butterflies."

"It's not supposed to be like that," Tikki said sadly, in between bites. "Poor Nooroo. The Moth Brooch was meant to inspire people to become better, not worse."

"Nooroo?"

"Hawkmoth's kwami," Plagg explained. "He's nice enough, but waay too eager to please his wielder."

"You know him?"

"Pfft. We all know each other, kid. Kinda comes with hanging around together for a few thousand years."

"What else can you tell us about him?" Adrien asked. The two kwamis looked at each other again.

"Not much that's useful to you, honestly," Plagg said. "He can give people powers and influence them on how they use them."

"But he can't control them directly, like a puppet or anything," Tikki chimed in, "and they have to accept the powers. It was meant to create temporary superheroes to help if… things got out of hand and the other Miraculous wielders couldn't keep up."

"But having too many superheroes on the battlefield can cause… issues," Plagg said darkly. "Besides, the Moth Brooch went missing a long time ago. We had no idea where Nooroo or his Miraculous was."

"As soon as the Great Guardian sensed Hawkmoth take control, he sent us out to combat him," Tikki continued. "But Hawkmoth's kept himself very well hidden. Other than that, we don't have much information."

"Out of all of us, Marinette, you're the only one he's actually talked to," Adrien said.

Marinette suddenly found herself the focus of three gazes. "I, uh, don't remember much about it," she said.

"Try, Marinette," Tikki pleaded. "Did he speak to you? Show you images? What did he sound like? What did he say?"

"He introduced himself," Marinette said, thinking back to the possession. "I remember he had a deep voice, and feeling like I had to listen to him no matter what. Then he told me he could give me the power to—" she faltered, feeling embarrassed now that it was all over, "-well, to punish Chloe for all the bad things she's done," she admitted.

Adrien snorted. "Well, you wouldn't be the first to be akumatized for that. Or even the second. Geez, how many-" He started counting on his fingers.

"Still," Marinette said. "I shouldn't have let her get to me. I should know better!"

"Oh, Marinette, nobody's perfect," Tikki sighed. "The important thing is that you fought him."

"Yeah, by the way… got any tips?" Adrien asked, laughing nervously. "Now I'm the only one in our class he hasn't targeted yet."

Marinette paled at the thought of having to fight an akumatized Adrien. Adrien! Who knew fencing! And karate! And how to make her heart stutter to a bleary halt in his civilian form! Adrien! Who was Cat Noir! That meant she'd have no backup. And-oh God. Would he still have his Cat Noir powers? Would he tell Hawkmoth about her identity? Would Hawkmoth be able to figure his identity out? Oh, this was so not good!

"Breathe, Marinette," Tikki ordered. Marinette let out her breath that she hadn't even realized she was holding. The kwami turned to Adrien. "Don't worry, Adrien. Miraculous wielders can't be possessed by other Miraculous unless they're willing."

"Or they're having a really bad day," Plagg muttered.

"The point is," Tikki continued, shooting a glare at Plagg, "as long as you keep your head, you should be able to resist him. Marinette would've been able to throw him off eventually, and having you there just quickened the process."

"So, I can help Adrien if Hawkmoth comes for him too?" Marinette asked.

"Yup!" Tikki chirped, smiling at her wielder.

"Aww, hear that, Bugaboo?" Adrien teased. "You get to be my Lucky Charm once he decides to finish off our class."

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that," Marinette muttered. Her heart might stutter and jump when Adrien was around (like right now!), but there was no guarantee it would happen the other way around.

"It might not," Tikki said, obviously trying to calm them both down. "We don't know for sure yet if he's targeting your class specifically or not…"

"…but there's a pretty good chance he is," Plagg finished, floating up to hover by Adrien's head. "After all, he wants the ring and earrings, and you're both in that class."

"You mean he knows where to find us?" Marinette asked, panicking again. "Tikki, you said—"

"It's different with all of us," Tikki reminded her. "The Moth Miraculous's special power is sensing emotions, not other Miraculous. That's how he finds his victims. Maybe he's able to sense that we're in the area somehow…."

"Not true," Adrien countered. "Hawkmoth started attacking the class before I even got there the first day, remember? Whatever it is, it's not us."

"That's right," Marinette said, remembering. Ivan had been turned into Stoneheart before she had ever seen the little box that hid Tikki and the earrings inside.

"Do you think… he could be targeting… Chloe?" Adrien asked slowly.

"WHA-?" the other three gaped at him.

"Chloe," he repeated, sounding firmer. "She's been either the direct or indirect cause of most of our classmates being akumatized."

"That's because she's a bitch!" Marinette snapped. She clapped her hands over her own mouth, shocked at herself.

"But don't you find it odd?" Adrien pressed. (He didn't bother to contradict her. That was a lost battle.)

"Maybe it's just somebody who knows Chloe," Marinette said, "and knows that she leaves people bitter and angry wherever she goes. Maybe she's even working with Hawkmoth, to deliver people he can akumatize!"

"Nah," Adrien argued. "Chloe may be mean sometimes, but she's not evil. Besides, she's a huge fan of Ladybug, remember?" he added, winking at Marinette, who flushed. "I think she'd be pretty dead set against you if you were wrecking her 'dastardly plans to take over the world.' She tends to be a little… vocal."

"Understatement of the year," Plagg muttered.

"Yeah—well, what if Hawkmoth is just using her?" Marinette countered.

"She's been akumatized already," Adrien said with a shrug. "And she didn't get any closer to our Miraculous than the others did. You'd think if he was already using her, she'd get extra powers or something."

"But—"

"Marinette!" her mother's voice called from downstairs. The two kwamis quickly hid as Sabine's head appeared. "Is everything all right up here?"

"Yes, mom," Marinette sighed.

"Okay. Adrien, Miss Natalie called. She'll be picking you up in ten minutes," Sabine said.

Adrien paled. "Oh! Uh, thank you, ma'am!" he said as she was leaving. As soon as she was gone, he pulled out his phone. "Crap, am I gonna get the third degree," he muttered, pushing a button.

"Didn't you hear it?" Marinette asked, curious.

He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I kinda turned it off after we left class," he admitted, showing her it was currently booting up. "I didn't want to just leave you there alone."

Marinette stared at him, her eyes wide. A few awkward seconds passed before she ducked her head and sucked in a deep breath.

"I do not, and have never hated you, Adrien," she declared. Adrien blinked at her. They were really going to talk about this? Now? When he had to go? She looked like she wanted to say more for a moment, but then blushed and looked away again.

"Then why don't you ever talk to me?" he asked, still puzzled. He scowled. "Is it because of my father? I know he's a big name in fashion and all, but if he's said something to you…"

"No! No, that's not it!" Marinette cut him off, waving her hands. "It's-I just… er… get a little shy sometimes, that's all. I'll try to do better from now on, I promise." She hung her head a bit, unable to see the frown on Adrien's face that said he didn't believe her.

A few moments of very awkward silence passed. Then Plagg groaned, unable to take it anymore.

"We are never going to get anywhere with these two," he grumbled to Tikki. He floated over to where Adrien was sitting in front of Marinette's computer. Turning, he looked directly at Marinette.

"Oops," he said, and deliberately dropped onto the mouse, activating the sleeping computer. Marinette realized what he was doing a second too late, as her screen turned on, revealing—

"DON'T LOOK AT THAT!" she screamed, lunging for the computer, just as Adrien turned to see what his kwami was doing. Unfortunately, Adrien was in her way, and she ended up tackling him to the floor, landing in a heap on top of him.

HER DESKTOP PICTURE! SHE HAD FORGOTTEN TO CHANGE HER DESKTOP PICTURE! OhGodOhGodOhGod—

EEK! SHE HAD JUST KNOCKED ADRIEN TO THE FLOOR!

"SORRY!" she gasped out, quickly getting off him and scrambling to unplug her screen at the same time. Adrien sat up, rubbing his head and looking at her with a raised eyebrow. "I'm so sorry," she babbled. "I just—um, panicked and—"

"PLAGG, YOU UNEQUIVACAL BASTARD!" Tikki was screaming as she chased the other kwami around the room as he cackled madly, hitting him furiously with a pillow that was ten times their size. "HOW DARE YOU! HOW DARE YOU-!"

Suddenly, Plagg zipped in and tackled Tikki, throwing them both under the covers on the bed. Marinette and Adrien both stared for a moment as the pillow fell to the floor, expecting more shrieking, but the kwamis had gone silent. They looked at each other and Adrien shrugged. He had no idea what had gotten into his kwami.

"Well, well, well," came a voice from the window. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

The two Miraculous wielders gasped and spun. Their jaws dropped at the same time.

"LILA?"

End Chapter 3.

Additional disclaimer: I am also not affiliated with Gak. Buy it if you want to, but it feels freaky to me.

A/N: My apologies to any Felix lovers, but I don't like him. For those who don't know: Felix was supposed to be Chat Noir in earlier versions of the show, until they decided his relationship with Marinette wasn't believable and replaced him with Adrien (best call ever, IMO). So, now I'm using him as Adrien's predecessor. I used the name Bridgette because it's close to Marinette and a few other reasons that I'll keep to myself for now.

And before anyone thinks Adrien is OOC here, try watching the scenes with Adrien again, and how much of Marinette's facial expressions and over-the-top body movements he actually gets to see, while remembering he has no knowledge of her crush and basically no interactions with girls (except Chloe) until then. Major cringe. He's socially awkward, not an idiot. Ok, maybe a bit of an idiot….

Insert evil laughter here for le cliffhanger of doom.

Next, Chapter 4: In Which Adrien Really Hates Fangirls (like, a lot.)