Adrien rushed out of the classroom, his head turning rapidly before he dived into a nearby storage closet.
"Adrien?!" He heard, Nino's voice muffled due to the heavy door.
Adrien bit his lip and sent a silent apology - he knew that his frequent disappearances during Akuma attacks gave his friend more than a few grey hairs.
"He's fine, that boy always stays safe somehow," came Alya's voice next. "Wha - Marinette!"
"Sorry!"
There was a rush of several footsteps as they all ran, and Adrien gave a brief sigh of relief at that. Plagg flew out of his pocket and scrutinized his face.
"You like that Mari girl," Plagg snorted, and he seemed undecided on whether to be amused or exasperated. "I don't think I've ever had a kitten more lovesick than you."
Adrien flushed and he scowled. "Plagg, claws out!"
Chat Noir rummaged through his bag, his claws tightening around a blue jacket before he tugged it out. He hesitated before taking the smallest sniff, and the eucalyptus surrounded him. He purred softly within his throat, and resisted the urge to rub his cheek against the fabric.
He roughly coughed, and it dispelled the purr deep inside his chest before he pulled it on and tightened the hood on his head.
Chat burst out of the storage closet and he dashed down the hallway on all fours, grinning at excited students who screamed in his direction with obvious delight. But he had no time to indulge them and talk - the Akuma was on a rampage.
He skidded to a halt at the doors, and he hesitated, but then he felt the soft fabric of the jacket rub against his cheek and he could smell eucalyptus. He burst out into the rain, and he hissed when he felt the moisture hit his face.
Still, he pushed on, and using his baton, he leapt in the direction of the Louvre.
It seemed like Plagg knew what he was doing - the rain was still a problem (Chat resisted the urge to claw at something), but he didn't feel completely weak or on the verge of vomiting anymore.
"My Lady!" Chat greeted with a partially forced smile as he spotted ( ha ) the red heroine leap in his direction.
"Hello, kitty," she said, and something glinted in her eyes before she reached over mid-swing and touched his nose gently with a spandex-covered finger.
He blinked at the action. Ladybug's nose boops were familiar, but they'd always been used to push him away. They'd never been… teasing? His face heated slightly, and some part of his heart sighed at the attention his Lady was giving him.
The other parts were waving big 'Luka' and 'Marinette' flags, and he flushed even more when he remembered the numerous touches to his nose Luka had granted him that day.
Ladybug looked satisfied for some reason before she put her attention back to leaping over a roof and racing across with Chat by her side. "The Akuma's near the Louvre. Sure you can handle yourself, kitty?" She frowned lightly before biting her lip and eyeing the blue jacket covering him. "I know Marinette hasn't finished your coat yet - "
"It's okay!" Chat interrupted, and he extended his baton to jump over a ledge. "My princess is working hard on it. I wouldn't worry, Buginette. I know whatever she makes, it'll be worth the wait."
(If he had been paying attention more, he would have noticed the flush bloom across Ladybug's cheeks.)
"I don't LIE!"
Chat stopped on top of a lamp post, crouching in a very cat-like position with his tail raised to balance him. Ladybug wasn't too far behind, and they both stared at the scene below them.
The Akuma looked like a person from Ancient Greece. He had on a white toga, his hair wildly blond and curly and his arm furiously firing golden arrows at nearby people. When the arrows hit, the victims began to talk, and Chat's ears twitched underneath the hood as he heard many voices overlapping each other and nearly overpowered the sound of the rain.
" - ole Hanna's last cookie - "
" - atch Voltron, and I write fanfict -
" - cheated on the physics test! - "
They were wailing at the top of their lungs their secrets, Chat realized. He scrutinized the Akuma, at the toga and the bow, and he blinked as he realized who he was resembling.
"Apollo," he muttered.
"Chat?"
"He's Apollo," Chat confirmed, before turning his head to look at Ladybug. "He's the god of truth - when the arrows hit, it makes people tell their secrets."
Ladybug's brows furrowed, and she nodded before crouching with yo-yo in hand. "Be careful, kitty. One slip-up and we're out with our identities. Keep moving and we won't be hit."
Chat's skin prickled underneath his suit, and this time, it wasn't because of the rain. Chat may not have been the greatest supporter of keeping their identities a secret, but that was only between him and Ladybug. His stomach twisted at the thought of blurting who he was at the top of his lungs.
"Ladybug and Chat Noir!" The Akumatized victim shouted. "I am Apollo, the god of the truth, the unveiler of your lies - come forth and receive punishment for your wrongdoings against me!" He roared before flinging arrow after arrow at the duo.
Chat leapt to the side just in time to avoid a golden arrow, which stuck into the metal of the lamppost before actually sinking in a good two inches. His tail twitched. So he was better with a bow than he thought.
"Any idea where the Akuma is?" Ladybug asked, having dodged an arrow herself and now crouched beside him, the two heroes eyeing the area warily.
"Nope!" And with that, Chat launched into action, his baton extending as he took a hit at Apollo. The Akumatized victim screeched and dodged, and they clashed, Chat's baton striking against his golden bow. Sparks flew as the two metals hit, and Apollo glared at the hero with cold blue eyes.
Chat winked cheekily and stuck his tongue out. "Sorry, but you're gonna have to bow out soon!" He broke away and dodged an oncoming swipe.
"Your secrets will be revealed!" Apollo screeched, before a purple mask in the shape of a butterfly glowed around his eyes and cheeks. He seemed to pause for a moment, listening, before shaking his head and snarling. "First their truth, then their Miraculous! Stay out of my way, Hawk Moth."
"Whoops!" Chat leapt back just in time, narrowly dodging an arrow. "My Lady, help would be much appreciated right now!"
Apollo strung an arrow and he pulled back the string, but this time, it was directed towards the scared civilians watching from the sidelines. Alarmed, Chat was quick to apprehend him, and in the flurry of metal clashing, he yelled over his shoulder. "Run!"
Thank god. They listened.
"My Lady!" Chat said more urgently now, twirling his baton to ricochet the arrows off in random directions.
"Got it!"
Ladybug swung in, and similar to his baton, she rapidly spun her yo-yo to create a shield from any oncoming arrows. "Chat, do you see his necklace?"
Chat squinted his eyes, barely able to see in the rain and the twirling of his baton, but he caught sight of a blue glinting upon Apollo's throat.
He was about to respond, but then there was a sudden gust of wind - a loud, ugly hiss escaped his lips as it resulted in a splattering of rain to hit his face. A headache bloomed almost immediately, and his tail lashed in aggravation.
Vaguely, he could feel Plagg begin to lose control, and he felt a sense of panic well in his chest. He was overdoing it, and Chat wasn't sure how long either of them could handle it longer.
"Chat?"
"I'm sorry, Ladybug." His voice cracked, and the energy he had before was slipping away faster than sand in his hands. "I-I don't know if my kwami and I can handle much more."
Ladybug looked alarmed at this, and she hesitated, glancing back at Apollo, who was momentarily distracted as he seemed to be arguing with Hawk Moth. The bad part? It was evident that the said argument was seriously angering him, and anger is good motivation. He was going to explode any second.
"Kitty," Ladybug said softly, and he could barely look at her without his ears flattening in shame. His claws tightened around his baton, and he resisted the urge to dig the claws into the metal.
"It's okay, we can make this quick," Ladybug said swiftly, and she seemed a little off-put, which Chat understood. I'd hate having a partner like me, he thought bitterly.
"I'm going to cast Lucky Charm soon," Ladybug said, her mind obviously clicking fast to try and figure things out. "You get Cataclysm going, and I'll keep Apollo distracted long enough for you to grab the necklace and crush it."
He nodded and tried not to let a bitter frown twist his lips. He wasn't sure it worked, and after one nod between the partners, they leapt into action.
The battle was a blur, for the most part. Chat's mind went quite hazy, and he wasn't sure what exactly happened - all he knew was that by the time that the swarm of magical ladybugs fixed the city and they had a confused victim in their hands, a lot of time passed.
He felt weak, really weak - and Plagg wasn't going too good either, judging by the practically dormant presence in the back of his mind. His heart jumped in worry.
"Go visit Marinette tonight," Ladybug said softly, and he managed to focus on her face as she frowned gently at his almost swaying form. She reached out and scratched under his chin, and he purred lightly, though it cost him almost too much energy to do so.
"She'll be working on the coat," Ladybug murmured, her eyes worried. "Chat, are you sure you can get home okay?"
"I'll be fine, my Lady," he said in a thick voice, and blinked rapidly to dispel the fogginess in his vision. He shook his head lightly (and immediately regretting it because of the headache), before smiling as best as he could. "See you soon, Ladybug."
(He failed to see how the frown deepened in disappointment at his lack of his usual kiss on her hand.)
He leapt away, heading to the direction of the school building, head muddled and his fumbling obvious as he nearly tripped and fell several times.
He landed on the school's roof and just crouched there for a moment, trying to get his bearings, because god he felt awful right now -
"Chat?"
He jumped, tail sticking up straight in shock before he blinked and slowly looked down to see a surprised Luka staring back up at him. He was holding a plain black umbrella over him to protect himself from the rain, and Chat's heart lurched as he realized - Adrien was supposed to meet him.
"You okay, kitten?" Luka asked softly, worry now turning his expression into a frown as he eyed Chat's shaky shoulders and wide eyes. "Come on down, I have an umbrella here."
"Okay," Chat muttered, because why not? He couldn't transform, not right now anyway, and he was desperate for a dry place as of the moment. He jumped off in one leap and landed almost silently before scrambling under the safety of the umbrella.
"I thought you didn't have an umbrella?" Chat said, his head still a little foggy but clearing up slowly. He failed to notice the amused smile on Luka's face.
"It's not," Luka said smoothly. "It belongs to my friend Adrien - he left it in class, and he was supposed to meet me here, but I guess he went home during the attack."
Chat swore in his mind, and he prayed that Luka wouldn't notice the sudden blush spreading across his face. He had been too distracted earlier to really realize it, but holy crap, he was sharing an umbrella with Luka. Oh my god.
"You don't look so good, kitty." Luka's hand entered his vision, and Chat couldn't do so much as even blink as his fingers loosely played with one of his ears. He resisted the urge to turn into a pile of goo or purr like crazy, but there was nothing he could do about the scarlet blush racing across his face.
"Good thing you have my jacket," Luka said softly.
Chat's claws dug into the too-long sleeves, and he swallowed thickly before saying, "I should give it back. Marinette's making a coat - "
"I gave it to you because I wanted to," Luka interrupted, and his expression was gentle yet firm as he stared at Chat. "Cats generally don't like water."
Chat jumped at the familiar sentence, and he hesitated before nodding. "Thank you," he said quietly.
"Does it help?" Luka's hand trailed down to the large sleeve, before he trailed his fingers inside and grasped Chat's claws softly, and Chat swallowed the stone in his throat, his face hot and his tail straight up as he slowly wrapped his claws around Luka's palm.
"It does," Chat said. His face heated up more (somehow) and he murmured shyly, "you smell nice."
Luka's hand squeezed his leather-clad one as he grinned widely, and Chat's heart jumped at the sight. (It sucked a little, because he thought that maybe the tail and mask would help him become less… Adrien and more Chat around Luka, but he's never been interested in someone like Luka before.)
They stood there under the rain, just silently staring at each other, quietly content with each other's presence and the sound of the soft pitter-pattering around them.
"Luka? Chat?"
Chat blinked at the familiar voice, and he turned his head to spot wide blue eyes staring at them from under the protection of the school's overhang.
Chat's face heated up, and he glanced back up at Luka. There was only utter delight in his eyes as he said, "Marinette! Chat's here. He's walking home with us."
Inexplicably, her cheeks went a soft pink at that, and she nodded before asking, "w-what about, um… Where's Adrien?"
(Oops.) Chat's cheeks heated up and he turned his head to cough lightly.
Luka laughed, and said, "he's a little busy. Come on, Mari. We have a superhero with us, he'll keep us safe, right?"
Chat averted his eyes shyly before nodding, his neck heating up as Marinette approached them and somehow managed to squeeze in underneath the umbrella. Chat looked at them, at the taller boy to his right and the small girl to his left, and his Chat personality managed to come back a little as he grinned teasingly and said, "anything to protect my beautiful purrincess and handsome purrince."
His tail lashed in satisfaction as a pale rose blush spread across their cheeks. Marinette squeaked, wringing her hands while Luka seemed flustered for the first time. Chat mentally cheered.
"Let's go," he said cheerily, and extended a clawed hand to Marinette. Her expression softened, and with a smile, she nodded and placed her hand in his. He grasped it gently, careful to not prick her skin with his claws before he grinned.
"Alright! Onward, my fair prince and princess!" Chat crowed, and he marched along, Luka laughing and Marinette sighing with fondness as he headed in the direction of the Seine.
"Beep-beep! "
Chat froze at the warning sounds of his Miraculous, and he smiled sheepishly as two blue gazes looked at him in curiosity. "Ah, quick change of plans. Give me two minutes?"
Marinette rolled her eyes and pushed him lightly in the direction of the school building, a smile tugging on her lips. "Just go, you silly cat. We'll wait."
"We're patient," Luka smiled calmly at him, and Chat's heart fluttered.
"I'll be back."
And, in a moment of confidence (he suspects that Plagg must have done something despite his exhaustion), Chat bent down and swiftly brought both of their hands to his face and softly brushed his lips against both of them.
Face red and a wide grin on his face, he glanced up to see an equally flustered Marinette and Luka.
Tail lashing in satisfaction, he dashed away from the umbrella and after a quick run through the rain, slammed the door shut to the building just in time as a green flash surrounded him and a practically unconscious Plagg fell out of his ring.
"You did so good," Adrien said softly, his voice fond as he dug out a small tin of camembert from his pocket and presented it to Plagg. The kwami groaned, but started eating, taking slow bites and making little noises of enjoyment between each chew.
"I really owe you one, Plagg," Adrien said. "You're keeping the, er, reaction against the rain away. Extra camembert for you."
"No problem, kid," Plagg smirked, having gained enough energy to talk as he gorged on his cheese. "You need the ears and mask, anyway. You may be the most lovesick out of all my kittens but you're also the most easily flustered."
"Hey!" As if to make Plagg's point, Adrien felt his face flush and he scowled at a cackling Plagg. "Marinette and Luka are nice. It's not my fault I blush so easily!"
"Please," Plagg sniffed, and floated up to Adrien's face with a piece of cheese between his little paws. "Anyone could do the same as they were and you wouldn't even blink an eye. It's because they're - what, Marinette and Luka that you're so affected."
As Plagg floated back down while munching on his cheese, Adrien stared at the tiny god in slight awe. That… actually made sense, and almost sounded wise - which was a big surprise coming from someone who sang his love for camembert.
"I guess so," Adrien laughed a little breathlessly, and he leaned back against the door, tipping his chin up. "God, they're amazing, Plagg. I know I met Luka only recently, but… How did I miss Marinette? I've been her classmate for ages now."
"Kid, sometimes," Plagg grunted, mouthing at another piece of cheese. "We don't see things that are right under our noses. Ladybug's your Ladybug; she's the good luck to your bad luck. But she's not yours. Get it?"
"She's my friend," Adrien countered immediately. "And my partner."
Plagg grinned up at him with a fanged smirk before inhaling the last of the camembert. "If I said that a few days ago, you'd be arguing tooth and nail that she's your soulmate. You humans change minds a lot, but the heart is a steady thing."
The tiny god suddenly zoomed up close to Adrien's face, and in his green eyes and slit pupils, wisdom of being an ancient deity shined as he said, "your love for Ladybug was pure, but you decided to pursue Marinette and Luka instead. She'll always be your Ladybug, but your heart decided to reject her as a lover."
Plagg's face contorted, and the serious expression fell away as he made a face of mild disgust. "That's the stuff that Tikki'd say, anyway."
"Who's Tikki?" Adrien said faintly, before he focused back on Plagg. He hesitated, and he asked, "if that's what this… Tikki would say, what wouldyou say?"
"Me?" Plagg cackled and flew forward to tap Adrien's forehead with his paw. "Do what you want."
Adrien slowly felt a grin tug on his face, and he laughed, because he truly loved Plagg for moments like these - he was selfish and a glutton, but he gave good advice (sometimes) and offered Adrien guidance. And in his heart, Adrien knew that Plagg was telling the truth. "Thanks, Plagg."
"Bah!" Plagg scoffed, and he crossed his arms as he frowned teasingly. "Now, are we gonna go and meet your girl and boyfriend or what?"
"We're not dating!" Adrien flushed. Goodbye, bonding moment.
"Yeah, sure, kid. And I hate camembert."
Adrien groaned, but he was smiling.
"Plagg, claws out!"
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I'm slowly moving all the chapters to here again. However, I highly encourage you to check out my AO3 or tumblr, both of which my handles are redyarns. Those are my main platforms for writing, which means faster updates and more previews.