Updated 4/26/23

May 7, 2015

As he flew over the Paris rooftops that night, Chat Noir still could not get the situation from earlier out of his head.

Why would Ladybug give up her Miraculous for Adrien… I mean me… ADRIEN… AHH! He had to get some answers, maybe during his patrol tonight with Ladybug.

Their meeting spot was a few blocks from the Dupain-Cheng bakery where the best pastries in all of Paris were sold. If they're still open, I'll swing by and pick some up after patrol… He landed at the rendezvous spot and noticed Ladybug was already there. She appeared shaken up after their battle with Volpina earlier that day. He softly padded over.

"You alright, milady? You seem a bit… distracted…"

Ladybug jumped, not noticing that he had arrived. "Oh, hey Chat… I'm fine. Just tired after a long day." She looked down then looked out over Paris from where they sat. Chat Noir said nothing as he sat to observe their beautiful city with her.

"That was amazing, what you were going to do for that boy earlier." Chat Noir broke the silence.

"Yeah… I, uh… just didn't want an innocent to fall to their death…" Ladybug mumbled into her arm.

Chat noticed she blushed a little. He poked her arm playfully to make her look at him.

"Ah! Do you have a soft spot for the young man? Maybe a…" His voice went an octave higher, "crush?" Ladybug turned as red as her suit with that comment.

"Whhaaa? I-I-uh… Nooooo…" She looked at his teasing face and knew it was impossible to refute him at this point. "Oh, shut up." Ladybug turned to look out at the city again when she felt Chat turn her towards him.

"No. Seriously, do you?" He had an urgent, almost desperate look in his deep green eyes. If the girl he loved liked his civilian side, it was only a matter of him before she fell for the hero, right?. "Why don't we talk about this kind of stuff, Bugaboo? It can't be battles and villains all day every day. If we're going to really be an effective team, we need to be able to open up to each other."

Plus, this might help me figure out who you are.

Ladybug considered this olive branch and sighed. "Fine, okay. Yes, I like him. I like Adrien Agreste… maybe more than like..." she mumbled the last bit, Chat pretending to not have heard. "I'm just like every other girl, crushing on the hottest model in Paris!" Ladybug hit her face with her palm.

"So… do you only like him for his looks?" he asked, treading lightly. Chat needed to know if there was something more at stake here.

Ladybug peeked out from behind her hands. "No! I mean, well, he is the handsomest boy I've ever laid eyes on –yes, present company included," noticing Chat's smirk, "but there's so much more to him than that! I've seen him around and Adrien is one of the kindest, sweetest people on the planet." Ladybug's gaze wandered as she described the boy.

"He'll play and pose with younger kids for photos, he's kind to his classmates, even if they sometimes don't deserve it, and he just has this…peaceful demeanor that I haven't seen in anyone before."

Chat's heart warmed as he heard how the love of his life described his secret identity. Hearing how she talked about him made him want to be all of that and more. "See, you're NOT like every other girl in Paris."

She looked at him quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"Other girls swoon over his posters. You see past the posters into the person itself." Chat Noir tilted her chin up to meet his green gaze. "You always see the best in everything. That's why I love having you as a partner." He stood up to leave.

"Wait! Chat!" Ladybug scrambled to her feet. "You haven't told me who you like yet!"

Turning to face the way he had come, Chat Noir turned his head back and gave Ladybug a sincere smile. "Don't you know?" And with that, he was gone.