Chapter 13-Fate
So, the main universe Adrien learned a lot from his Marinette's counterpart. What might the main universe Marinette learn from the movie Adrien?
As CosmoBug touched down at the address her partner had texted her on her flight back, she saw Cat Noir lounging in the mid afternoon light, his back against a chimney on the roof of a large building. Cat Noir's head turned as she stepped toward him. Eyeing her up and down, Cat Noir commented, "So this is what your flight suit looks like. I'm not sure which one I think is cooler. Yours, or my counterpart's."
Well, I know which Cat Noir he is.
"Power Down."
Ladybug stepped over and settled down on the rooftop across from Cat Noir. "You two don't have this ability yet?"
"Nope." Cat Noir answered, a small amount of jealousy in his voice as he pulled a pastry out of the pack beside him and bit into it. He tossed her a pastry as he swallowed. "Your Adrien told us about them, but our Master Fu hasn't figured out the formula yet. And apparently he didn't want to be told. Wants to figure it out himself for the challenge, I suppose."
Ladybug smiled, remembering all the things her Master Fu had tried while figuring out the ingredients to unlock extra kwami powers. "Sounds like Master Fu all right."
Cat Noir grinned. "My counterpart said using the peacock miraculous went well. How do you feel?"
Ladybug shrugged. "No different. Duusu warned there might be side effects, so we're watching out for that. We can't be completely sure it works without testing them, and I have an idea for that. But in the meantime, I'm feeling a lot more secure about knowing my partner's identity."
Ladybug looked around, just now realizing that she didn't recognize the building they were standing on.
"What is this place?"
Cat Noir gestured across the rooftop. "Warehouse for a shipping company. They store building materials for various projects in Paris. But workers sometimes need to stay the night for round the clock shifts. So there are living quarters with showers and everything. But it's not hard to tell when a place like this isn't in use. Lots of dust on the doors, no goods for shipping, and no signs of people coming and going."
"How'd you find this place?"
"We scouted a bunch of places to use as alternate safe houses in our universe," Cat Noir explained. "Just in case we ever got caught at the theater. We made a list of places to check when we got here last night, and this was the first on the list that worked."
"But there's still the chance of someone catching you here." Ladybug argued, mildly concerned.
Cat Noir just shrugged. "We'll only be here two more nights, and this building isn't used much. Odds of us getting caught are pretty slim."
"You still planning on staying with my Adrien tonight?"
Cat Noir nodded. "My Ladybug is looking forward to the sleepover with you."
Ladybug smiled, imagining Alya's excited reaction when she met two Marinettes. "I am too. It'll be fun."
Cat Noir grinned back. "Let me guess, you want to introduce your counterpart to your Alya?"
Ladybug started. "How-how did you-?"
"Your Cat Noir told my Ladybug that she was on the team, and he even mentioned how she had helped the last time you guys had 'out of town' visitors." Cat Noir shrugged again. "It wasn't much of a stretch to guess."
"He shouldn't have told her that." Ladybug fumed.
"Well, before you storm off to berate the guy, it's not like we hadn't guessed." Cat Noir reasoned. "I mean, he had told us that you had hand picked most of the miraculous holders here. And it wasn't exactly a huge leap of logic to guess that you would recruit your closest friend to the team."
Wait a second, Ladybug thought. How did my Adrien know she was on the team? The only people left who should know that Alya was Rena Rouge were herself, Alya, and-
Ladybug froze as she remembered the other person who knew Rena's identity.
"I'm gonna' kill him." Ladybug swore.
"Hey now," Cat Noir fretted, some concern in his voice, "I just said-"
"Not Adrien, the person who told Adrien about Alya." Ladybug corrected. "Adrien wasn't supposed to know. And there's only one other person who knew Alya was on the team."
"Safe bet he's the one that told my counterpart." Cat Noir agreed. "I'm not sure who you're talking about, but that doesn't matter. I think it's safe to say that my counterpart is trustworthy when it comes to secret identities. And you don't have to worry about him getting akumatized anymore."
Ladybug was about to argue when she realized this Cat Noir had a point. This would impact her idea about separating the team into two divisions, one under her and the other under Cat Noir, and she wasn't happy about Nino shooting his mouth off. But on the other hand, she didn't know exactly why he had done so. And while Nino probably didn't know it, the person he had told was a miraculous holder, so the secret was still reasonably safe. There might have been a valid reason for him to reveal the information too.
But if there wasn't, Carapace was going to need that protection shield by the time she was done with him.
Taking a deep breath, Ladybug pushed thoughts of torturing Nino out of her head. She focused on the Cat Noir in front of her. And in doing so, she realized something she should have noticed immediately.
"Where are my counterpart and my Cat Noir?"
Cat Noir relaxed, clearly glad that she was not stressed about Alya's identity any longer. "My Ladybug wanted to stretch her legs after being cooped up inside all day. So your Cat Noir took her on a patrol of the city."
"I think it's Polymouse and Minotaurox scheduled for patrol today," Ladybug commented, glancing up in thought, "but as long as your partner has mine with her, that shouldn't be a problem."
"There are perks to having a full team like yours, huh?"
"It has its advantages." Ladybug agreed. "All the holders being made permanent increases their ability to help in an emergency, even when not on patrol. Most members of the team show up to help if they can when something happens, whether they're scheduled for patrol or not."
"Sounds like you picked the right people." Cat Noir sounded impressed. "If we have to pick more holders in our universe, I sure hope we do as good a job."
"Scheduled patrols definitely frees up more time for a social life." Ladybug admitted. "And I'm more glad to have that than ever, since Adrien and I became a couple."
"That's actually something I wanted to talk to you about, if you don't mind." Cat Noir said carefully.
"What do you mean?" Ladybug asked, curious.
"Well," Cat Noir offered, "I can't help but think this is a good opportunity for both of us. And I'd like to take advantage of it."
"Take advantage of it how?" Ladybug questioned.
"Well," Cat Noir repeated, "there are some things that I'd like to pick your brain about. Some things that I'd like to get your opinion on how they happened in your universe and just in general. And I'm happy to offer whatever insight I can to your Cat Noir's mind."
Ladybug considered that for a moment. He had a good point, this would be a great way to find out more about Adrien in a way that wouldn't be unspeakably embarrassing. But at the same time, it felt a little off. Did asking another version of her boyfriend for information constitute an invasion of privacy?
"Before you get your spots in a twist, I'm pretty sure your boy did the same thing with my Ladybug." Cat Noir reassured her. "The morning after he got to our universe, he spent a while alone with her at the theater. I only caught the end of the conversation, but I'm pretty sure they were exchanging information and advice about you and me." He winked at her. "Turnabout is fair play, wouldn't you agree?"
Ladybug grinned. That did sound exactly like the sort of thing her Cat Noir would do. Adrien was extremely confident in many respects, but when it came to their relationship, he was as nervous as she was sometimes.
"What exactly did you hear them talking about?"
"Not sure, but it was something about quitting a 'charming kitty-cat' act."
Ladybug groaned, her hand going to her forehead.
Cat Noir laughed. "I'm guessing he didn't exactly impress you with that?"
"Nope." Ladybug confirmed, remembering some of the many, many times she had turned away Cat Noir's affectionate advances. Remembering the times she'd hurt him. If she had only known…
"I hope you knew better than to try winning over your Ladybug that way."
Cat Noir offered a nervous chuckle in response to that. "I can't say that I never did that. I may or may not have been a little cocky early on in our partnership. But I learned very quickly how stupid that was." He smiled more sincerely. "Eventually, we connected more personally, and she realized that I was genuine in my feelings for her, and I poured my heart out to her. But of course, she said her heart already belonged to someone else."
Ladybug grimaced. Clearly, her counterpart and this Cat Noir had experienced a similar conundrum that she and her Cat Noir had. And as the thought occurred to her, she thought back on what she and her Cat Noir had discussed on their flight to Mumbai. Their situation had truly been ridiculous.
"I had a similar experience with my kitty-cat."
"That's actually one of the things I wanted to ask about." Cat Noir took a deep breath. "If this is too personal, I understand. But why Adrien and not Cat Noir?"
Ladybug smiled. "It's not too personal, but it's a little hard to explain." She paused, trying to organize her thoughts and memories. "The first moment I really felt a connection with him was right after school started last year, in the rain on the school steps. He held out his umbrella toward me, and he just looked so concerned. " She paused again. "I don't know why it hit me so powerfully then, but the concern in his eyes, the compassion written on his handsome face, and the humility he'd shown. It all just kind of hit me at once. That's when I fell for him. Like the first spark catching on kindling to start a flame." She smiled at Cat Noir, who looked transfixed. "Did you two have a moment like that?"
"Not exactly." Cat Noir confessed. My first meeting with my Marinette was in the school library. She had stumbled into it…and then stumbled around it." He smiled in remembrance. "Looking back on it, I really should have realized I felt a connection with her too. I think that was the closest I'd come to laughing since my mom died."
Ladybug smiled a compassionate smile. "Working with Cat Noir, I knew he was a partner I could trust, but it was a long time before I realized he was serious in how he felt about me. He put on the 'charming kitty-cat' act for a long while before he finally showed me how he really felt. Until then, I thought he was just playing around. And by that point, I was completely head-over-heels for Adrien."
"But what is so special about Adrien Agreste?" Cat Noir asked. He seemed to be asking himself the question as much as her. "I get how you fell for him. But I just don't understand how plain old Adrien can compare to Cat Noir."
"There's nothing 'plain old' about my Adrien. No one had ever blown me away without even trying like he did. And I can't say for sure, but I think that applies to you and your Marinette too." Ladybug cocked her head. "Why does it matter?"
"It's just," Cat Noir started, but he clearly was having trouble voicing his thoughts. "It feels like the connection we had in costume didn't matter as much to her as just a guy she knew." He pulled a face. "I know that sounds like I'm complaining, and it's stupid when I'm the guy she knew. And we were friends out of costume. I just…I feel like Adrien doesn't stack up to Cat Noir."
Ladybug just grinned at him. "I told you, there was just something about my Adrien. I can't really put it into words; it was just something I felt when I looked at him. Not just how he looked or anything like that, but his whole demeanor. I wasn't just nervous around him. I could barely think straight around him; he knocked me flat and made my head spin without even knowing he was doing it."
"Have you ever told him all that?"
"Some of it." Ladybug admitted sheepishly. "And maybe someday I'll be able to tell him the rest. But the point is, from the beginning it felt like he was something special, something life changing. He stole my heart by how good a person he was, and I'd bet almost anything you did the same to your Marinette."
Cat Noir waved the compliment aside. "But that doesn't seem like anything that Cat Noir wasn't. I mean sure, coming from money, and having family connections. Yeah, there are people who think a lot of 'Adrien' for that sort of thing. But we both know that Marinette Dupain-Cheng isn't one of them. That had nothing to do with why you fell for him."
"You're right." Ladybug agreed. "It had nothing to do with how I fell for my Adrien, and I'm sure it had nothing to do with how your Marinette fell for you."
"Then I just don't see how Adrien compares to Cat Noir." Cat Noir repeated, seeming baffled. "My Ladybug was falling for Cat Noir too, I could see it in her eyes, but she chose Adrien. Not the hero who helped her save Paris time and time again, who adored her, and who tried to prove he loved her, but Adrien." His tone shifted to something more melancholy. "I don't know what I did wrong."
"Love doesn't always make sense." Ladybug offered. "I'm sure it wasn't that there was anything wrong with you as Cat Noir. In fact, I fell for my Cat Noir too, after I finally saw how good a person he really was. Just as good as Adrien." She smiled, reminiscing again about her conversation with her Cat Noir, this time the previous night. "I know my Adrien feels foolish for not realizing how I felt about him, but I was always so nervous around him that it makes sense that he didn't see that I loved him."
"Yeah, he kind of told us about that."
Ladybug blinked, wondering what her Adrien had told them, then realized it didn't matter. She was basically doing the same thing, and probably for the same reason. She shook her head. "If either of us was foolish, it was me, for not seeing what I had beside me, as Ladybug, all that time." she concluded.
"You know that you just admitted that he feels the exact opposite, right?" Cat Noir asked, skeptical. "And I don't think he's wrong. I feel the same as he does, about me not seeing my Marinette for how amazing she was, all that time."
"We could argue for days without either of us winning this debate."
"I guess." Cat Noir agreed, laughing. Then continued, "Me falling for Ladybug makes more sense. I told my Ladybug that it was the girl behind the mask that saved my heart, and I meant it. Before I met her, I was so depressed that I felt like I was drowning. And she was dry land."
Ladybug did not need to ask what he had been so depressed about.
"That's actually something that I'd like to ask you about, if you're up to it."
Cat Noir perked up immediately. "Certainly. What do you want to know?"
Ladybug smiled to herself. Her Adrien acted almost completely differently as Cat Noir, but one thing they had in common was a desire to help people who needed it. A trait that this Cat Noir clearly possessed too.
And he wonders what's so special about Adrien, she thought.
"My Cat Noir was in love with me, pretty much since the beginning." Ladybug began. "I didn't believe it at first, but looking back, I can see that he was more serious than I gave him credit for." She took a deep breath. "But was that just him being starstruck by a superhero? You said before that some people admire 'Adrien' for coming from money, but is this similar? Did you idolize your Ladybug because she was a superhero, or was it really the person behind the mask you loved?"
Cat Noir waited before answering. He looked as if he was mulling over the words in his mind. Finally, he spoke. "I'd be lying if I said that I wasn't amazed by my Ladybug the first time we met. And I can't deny that the thrill of being a hero with her made her more attractive to me." He paused again. "But that's not what made me love her. She tries not to show it, but I know she worries about how I fell for her as Ladybug not as Marinette. But it wasn't that she was a hero. It's the kind of hero she was. The kind that was scared but acted anyway. The kind that placed everyone else before herself. The kind that had the bravery, passion, and desire to help people that she demonstrated time and time again. I've never known anyone like her. Like I said, the girl behind the mask saved my heart."
Ladybug was quiet at that, but felt herself blushing. She looked at the ground as she felt her face grow warm. Is that how my Adrien thinks of me? The way Cat Noir was talking made it seem like his Ladybug was the most amazing person to ever live. True, she was a superhero, but she was just the leader of the team. And whatever her own Cat Noir thought, she never would have been able to save Paris as many times as she had if she didn't have him by her side. Her Cat Noir was the perfect partner to Ladybug.
"So, no," Cat Noir finished, "it definitely was not me being starstruck. And I guarantee that your partner is the same. I've seen the look in his eyes as he described you. That's not idolizing, that's love."
Ladybug heard his words, and while a small bit of doubt lingered in her heart, she believed him. She and her Cat Noir had been partners. It made sense that he wouldn't idolize her, since they were both superheroes. But he still clearly thought highly of her; perhaps too highly.
"I think you might still be putting your Ladybug on a pedestal," Ladybug responded, "which means my Cat Noir probably does the same for me. Don't get me wrong; I believe you that he doesn't idolize me like some people do, and I'm confident that I'm a capable hero and leader of the team. But I've made a lot of mistakes. And the only reason I've done as well as I have is because of the support of everyone else. One person in particular," she gave Cat Noir a pointed look, "has been more supportive than I've had any right to ask. But saving Paris has always been a team effort."
"Maybe," Cat Noir admitted. "But I don't think it's as high a pedestal as you think. And speaking of the team, there's something I wanted to ask you about the team you put together."
"Fire away." Ladybug said simply.
"So, part of the reason my Ladybug and I were so close was because it was just the two of us." Cat Noir began. He seemed to have difficulty getting the words out. "That created a kind of intimacy between us."
Ladybug felt herself blushing at his choice of words, but replied, "Same with me and my Cat Noir."
Cat Noir seemed reluctant to continue, but Ladybug had heard enough to guess what was worrying him. "You think adding more members will change things between you two? I don't think you need to worry about that. She fell for Adrien first, just like I did, and chose him, remember?"
"I know." Cat Noir forced out. "I'm just worried that she won't, well, need me the same way if we expand the team."
Ladybug gave him an understanding smile. "My Cat Noir and I went through that too. Didn't he tell you?"
"Couldn't bring myself to ask him." Cat Noir muttered.
"Well, long story short, he was upset that I wasn't calling on him as much and thought I didn't need him anymore, so we tried things with a different holder for Plagg."
Cat Noir's eyes widened.
"It didn't work out, obviously." Ladybug reassured him. "And in fairness, that mess helped me realize how much I need my Cat Noir. He apologized for acting the way he had and accepted his miraculous back when I sent Plagg back to him. And he realized that my needing him less often didn't mean I didn't still need him very much." She eyed Cat Noir. "The same way your Ladybug will need you, even if your team gets new members."
Cat Noir seemed to consider that before nodding. "I know it probably seems silly to you, being insecure about something like that. But part of the reason I like being Cat Noir so much is because it lets me do something worthwhile. After my mom died and my dad cut himself off from me, there was no one who really needed me. That changed after I met my Ladybug." He paused, and seemed to come to a realization. "Maybe that's part of how I fell for her, too. Because she was the first person to really need me in so long."
Ladybug smiled at him again, this time trying to convey her understanding. "Not silly, not silly at all," was all she said.
Cat Noir smiled at her. "Wouldn't surprise me if that's part of how your Cat Noir fell for you, too."
A comfortable silence fell, as neither seemed to know what to say next. Eventually Cat Noir asked, "So, have they started calling you Cinderella yet?" His tone was conversational.
"Cinderella?"
"Yeah," Cat Noir said. "People like to call us Cinderella and her prince charming back in our universe."
Ladybug started in response to that. "Wait, do you mean as Ladybug and Cat Noir?"
"Oh, no. I mean as Marinette and Adrien." Cat Noir laughed. "We've gone out of our way to avoid people knowing Cat Noir and Ladybug are together. I mean," he made a dismissive gesture with his hand, "the media and paparazzi are always gossiping about us, insisting we must be a couple. But we make sure they don't know for certain. Your counterpart doesn't want to draw any connections between our civilian selves with us in costume."
"I'm trying to do the same with my Cat Noir." Ladybug acknowledged.
"Of course, one person is completely convinced Cat Noir and Ladybug are a couple and is determined to prove it." Cat Noir rolled his eyes. "A certain superhero enthusiast, future reporter loves to talk about it online."
Ladybug giggled. "Why am I not surprised?" Still smiling, she asked Cat Noir. "So, they'll probably start calling me Cinderella here too, you think?"
"Yeah, but it's not something to look forward to." Cat Noir's voice took on a fanciful and mocking tone. "The lowly commoner girl who caught the eye of the crown prince," his voice had shifted to something close to disgust, "and managed to court him, despite her humble upbringing." Cat Noir shook his head at this, displaying his annoyance visually, as well as verbally.
Ladybug gave a light laugh. "Well, no one is calling me Cinderella, yet, but there are definitely some people who think I'm only interested in Adrien for his money or connections." She tried to play it off as if the situation didn't bother her, but in truth, it was frustrating. Chloe might not be in her life anymore, but there were other people who thought like she had; people who thought money alone determined a person's worth. It helped that she knew that she didn't love Adrien for his wealth or status (now more than ever did she know that) but still, it was frustrating.
Cat Noir eyed her, and clearly, he did not completely believe her show of indifference.
Ladybug sighed. "Okay, it's annoying. It's mostly girls and they all think I'm just trying to use him as a way of becoming a professional designer or something like that. Adrien and my friends all say they're just jealous, and I think they're right, but that doesn't make it any less irritating."
"It bugs my Marinette too." Cat Noir said, after a moment. "But not as much as it bothers me."
Ladybug looked at him in surprise.
"I don't like that they make her out to be some kind of peasant girl." Cat Noir offered, seeing the look on her face and then focusing on the ground. "She's an extremely brilliant and talented girl with a good shot at being a world class designer and she comes from a perfectly respectable family. Are they the wealthiest family in Paris? No. Should that matter? Hell no."
Ladybug saw the indignation on Cat Noir's face, and felt a warmth inside at his words. "Thank you," was all she said.
Cat Noir looked up at her in surprise.
"Adrien always tells me I'm being silly about it, but it's not just the others at school that think I'm not good enough for him," she admitted. "And I've wondered for a long time what Adrien thinks of me, as Marinette. Thinks," she said with emphasis as Cat Noir looked like he was about to argue. "Not feels. I know he loves me. But it's nice to know that he isn't just saying things like he doesn't care about what kind of family I come from, or that he really does think I have the potential to be a designer."
"He means it." Cat Noir assured her. "I promise."
Ladybug smiled, but didn't answer.
"Hey, if his and my words aren't enough, believe my father's words. I sent him some of my Marinette's work after we got together. He wanted to know about her, and he seemed really impressed with her drawings."
"Really?" Ladybug asked, and Cat Noir nodded. But then she hesitated. "Wait, when did all that happen?"
"After we recovered the butterfly miraculous." Cat Noir answered.
Ladybug froze in response to his words. Gabriel was still alive in their universe?
"Oh, that's right." Cat Noir said softly. "I forgot, things worked out very differently here." He grimaced. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring up unpleasant memories."
"You didn't." Ladybug assured him, her voice quiet. "But I'd like to know how things ended up so differently in your universe."
Cat Noir nodded and began to explain.
He told her about his big romantic gesture to Ladybug and how she had turned him down, and his feelings of rejection pushed him to not only reject Marinette's overture, but to shut himself in his room listening to sappy music. He told her about finally realizing the city was being destroyed and rushing to help Ladybug. He spoke of how his bitter feelings made him stupid enough to challenge Hawk Moth alone. His voice clearly expressed his disappointment at himself.
He told her that his costume was damaged at the end of the fight, including his mask, and that had allowed Gabriel to recognize him. And that recognition, that he had been fighting his own son, was enough to get through to Gabriel, who broke down and transformed back. Allowing both the ladybug and butterfly miraculous to be recovered.
"A lot of people think I'm the real hero, stopping Hawk Moth that day." Cat Noir concluded. "The public doesn't know how I did it, but they know Cat Noir was the one that defeated him. Personally, I think they give me too much credit. I mean, yeah, I was able to get through to my father, but if I had been there fighting with Ladybug from the start, then it might not have gotten that far. And the only reason the entire city wasn't completely devastated was because my Ladybug repaired the damage my father had done. Our victory was a team effort."
"It usually is." Ladybug agreed, speaking for the first time in a while.
"Stronger together." Cat Noir whispered. It seemed to mean something to him, something personal, so Ladybug didn't ask him about it.
"And considering how my Marinette saved me in that fight, I really don't think I deserve to be called the hero."
"What do you mean?" Ladybug asked.
Cat Noir fidgeted, not wanting to answer. But Ladybug just calmly looked at him, not letting the matter drop. When Cat Noir finally realized he wasn't going to be able to get out of answering, he sighed.
"I didn't know about it until a couple of days ago, but my Marinette had to protect me during the final battle with my father. Marinette did," he clarified, "not Ladybug."
That did nothing but confuse Ladybug more.
"I lost consciousness during the fight, so I didn't know about this until she told me," Cat Noir admitted, guilt easily discernible in his voice, "but while I was out Marinette pushed me out of the way of an attack my father sent my way. She did that after my father got his hands on her her miraculous."
Ladybug's eyes widened in understanding.
"I'd like to think I'd do the same for her, especially now," Cat Noir continued, "but I hate that she had to take such a risk for me. I don't know how I'm going to pay her back for that, but I'm going to. Somehow."
Ladybug placed a hand on Cat Noir's shoulder. "I'm sure you will."
He looked at her, shaking his head as if to clear his mind. "Anyway, my father is serving out a prison sentence, but we've been working on trying to repair our relationship. I visit him when I can, and we send each other letters pretty regularly. I sent some of my Marinette's designs to him and he was really impressed with her abilities. So, you can absolutely trust your Adrien's opinions on your talent as a designer."
Ladybug laughed as they circled back to their previous topic. They had taken a very long detour to assuage her insecurities. Smiling, she asked, "You've been working to repair your relationship with your father?"
"It's the closest we've been in years, as weird as it is to say, considering he's behind bars." Cat Noir admitted. "He's been acting like a father again, and really making an effort to connect with me again. And he's been really supportive of my relationship with Marinette."
"Really?" Ladybug asked in surprise. Our universe's Gabriel sure didn't share that sentiment.
Cat Noir nodded. "I think it's partly him trying to make up for not being there for me after my mom died, but still, he's making an effort." He gave a chuckle. "On my last conjugal visit with him he told me that if I let a girl as beautiful, brilliant, and talented as my Marinette get away from me, then I'm no longer his son."
Ladybug gave an amused snort.
"Yeah," Cat Noir agreed, seeing her expression, "But I think he's finally ready to move forward with me as a family. It might be part of the reason why he approves of my Marinette, but even so, I'm not complaining."
Ladybug nodded, understanding. But Cat Noir had a point. And if their Gabriel had been able to let go of his wife's death and move forward with his son, then that was probably the best her counterpart and this Cat Noir could hope for.
A while later, after more general conversation and a snack break from the out of town heroes' supplies, both Ladybug and Cat Noir were relaxing, just as the sun was starting to dip toward the horizon.
"Has my counterpart started learning any instruments yet?" Ladybug asked, keeping the conversation casual.
"Not yet." Cat Noir answered lightly. "She's still trying out different ones, but she wants to find something so that we can play together."
"That's where I'm at too." Ladybug laughed. "I'm trying to find something that I can play together as a duet with my Adrien. Luka was teaching me the guitar, but that doesn't work too well with a grand piano."
She thought Cat Noir would laugh, but he looked strangely nervous at her words. She looked at him curiously.
"You're pretty close with, uh, Luka?" Cat Noir asked awkwardly.
It didn't take Ladybug long to figure out why he was nervous.
"My Cat Noir told you Luka and I had been together, didn't he?" She asked, fighting a laugh at the look on his face.
Cat Noir just swallowed and jerked his head in a nervous nod.
Still fighting the laugh, Ladybug told him, "Luka is very special to me, and he's been an amazing friend. To both me and Adrien." She eyed Cat Noir. "But there's no competition. One of the reasons he and I got together was because Adrien was with someone, at the time, and I was trying to move on." She managed not to laugh, but couldn't help grinning. "But being with Adrien makes me feel like the luckiest girl in the world. Especially now."
"I'm still going to keep an eye out for him." Cat Noir grumbled, sounding jealous.
"Well, I'm sure my counterpart will be keeping an eye out for Kagami too."
Cat Noir cocked his head. "Kagami?"
"Kagami Tsuruggi, my Adrien's first girl…oh..." Ladybug trailed off as she realized what Cat Noir's confusion meant. "You never dated her in your universe, did you?"
Cat Noir shook his head. "Your Cat Noir mentioned he'd been together with someone else, but I didn't ask for her name. But that name does sound familiar." He appeared to be thinking hard.
Shaking his head, he seemed to come to a realization. "It's not like it matters. I'm with my Ladybug, my Marinette. And I couldn't be happier about it."
"And I'd bet just about anything she feels the same way." Ladybug informed him gently. "So don't worry so much about Luka."
Cat Noir looked like he wanted to argue, but struggled to find a side to do that from. Eventually he heaved a great sigh and smiled at her. She grinned back, but after a few moments, his expression grew more hesitant.
"So, I've been meaning to ask," Cat Noir said, a certain trepidation in his voice, "about this other secret you're planning to tell your Cat Noir."
Ladybug froze. She had been worried that this Cat Noir would ask her about this subject, but she had also hoped that he wouldn't.
"Do you think it's something that applies to me?" Cat Noir inquired carefully.
Ladybug deliberated before answering. Gabriel Agreste had obviously wanted a wish for the same reason in both universes, and this Cat Noir had confirmed his mother was dead. Of course it was possible that Emilie Agreste had 'died' of some other cause in that universe, but the situations were too similar to ignore. On the other hand, this Cat Noir hadn't acted like his father had been overly domineering like she knew Gabriel had been with Adrien in this universe. So there was a chance that he hadn't been using an amok to control him, at least.
"I'm not sure." Ladybug admitted honestly. "There's a good chance that it does, but I can't say for certain. There are a couple of ways to confirm it, but I can't do that without going to your universe."
"Then can you tell me what it is?" Cat Noir asked gently. "I promise I won't tell my counterpart."
Ladybug shook her head. "I don't want to put that on you, especially if it turns out that things really did go differently for you." She hesitated, then made a decision. "But if you're okay with it, I'd like to tell my counterpart, so that she can find out if it's true, and then she can tell you what it is."
It was Cat Noir's turn to hesitate. "Whatever this secret is, do you think it will upset her?"
Ladybug smiled reassuringly and shook her head. "It was a big surprise for me, that's for sure, but like I said last night, it didn't change how I feel about my Adrien at all." She thought back to before she had known he was a senti-being, to all the times that she had orchestrated plans to get to know Adrien. Knowing he had an amok helped explain why he'd been so submissive to his father, but that just helped her understand him better. "Once the shock wore off, it was just one more thing to know about the love of my life."
Cat Noir thought about that for a moment, then nodded. "Okay, see if she's up to hearing it first and confirming it, and if she is, then I'm fine with that plan."
"Perfect." Ladybug chirped brightly.
Ladybug was about to ask more about Gabriel, but Cat Noir cocked his head as if a thought had just occurred to him.
"You called him the love of your life just now, did you really mean that?"
Ladybug winced, and then offered an embarrassed smile. She had been thinking of all her past plans to get close to Adrien when she had been so nervous around him that she could barely speak in his presence. Even if this Cat Noir wasn't her Adrien, he was still Adrien, and it would still be mortifying to explain all the things she had done in her pursuit of her Adrien in the past.
The look on Cat Noir's face, however, suggested that it was his turn to refuse to let the subject drop, so she offered a different explanation that was equally true.
"I've fallen for him twice so far," Ladybug explained. "In costume, out of costume, and maybe even a third time with how he forgave me yesterday," she admitted. "That doesn't feel like something normal for most couples. And now I know that another version of me fell for you? That just feels like the universe is trying to tell me something."
She thought about the time she and her Cat Noir had fought Darker Owl. The fantasy that they had experienced was something they had written off at the time, rationalizing it as Monarch changing the power of Jubilation somehow. But in hindsight, it was clear that she had been falling for her Cat Noir then too.
''Yeah, it's comforting to know." Cat Noir agreed, nodding. "It all seems like it can't just be coincidence. Maybe something led me to my Ladybug and you to your Cat Noir."
Ladybug looked at him curiously. "You really think so?"
Cat Noir shrugged. "I mean, I wouldn't complain if something had. Maybe some higher power guided me to finding her, but I fell for her because of the person she is, not because something made me. Maybe us loving each other was just fate."
Ladybug thought on that. Considering what she knew about Adrien and the limits of his free will, she had a feeling this Cat Noir's thoughts on the matter might change if he turned out to be a senti-human too. But he did have a point. Nothing had made her love Adrien or Cat Noir, and she suspected the same was true of her counterpart. And if the powers that be had guided her to Adrien, then that would be something she'd want to thank them for, too. She hoped that her own Adrien felt the same as this one, and that those feelings wouldn't change after she told him what he was.
Pulling out two cans of drinks from the pack at his side, Cat Noir tossed her one and then snapped to top on his. Ladybug opened hers as well.
"To fate, then?" Ladybug offered, raising her can toward Cat Noir.
"To fate." Cat Noir agreed, touching his can to the side of hers.
The Adrien of the main universe always wanted to tell Ladybug his identity because he thought he would be able to connect with her more and win her over if she knew who he was (if he only knew). But the Adrien of the movie never seemed to express that idea. He was clearly smitten with Ladybug, and wanted to know who she was, but never seemed eager to reveal himself to win her over. Obviously, this was cut out of the movie for time constraints, but since it was, it gave me the idea of exploring Cat Noir's insecurity about why his Marinette picked Adrien over Cat Noir.
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~Sneak Preview~
I think I know where he is.
He used that word too.
I just handed you my miraculous.
