Miraculous Ladybug, "The Tell-Tale Kiss" Ch. 3

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 Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug & Chat Noir
Title: The Tell-Tale Kiss
Chapter Title: Three - Affectionate Kitty
Pairing/Characters: Marinette (Ladybug), Adrien (Chat Noir), Tikki, Plagg, Marinette/Adrien
Word Count: (for this chapter) 
Genre: Humor/Romance
Rating: T
Spoilers: Up to Season 2 (for now)

Notes: This is a new multi-chapter fic though it won't be too long. I've written a few chapters and have the rest outlined. For now, this first chapter is written for my "major" prompt for the Summer Mini Challenge. Characters are aged up about a few years, around 16 years old. Canon divergent from Season 2/3.

Notes for this Chapter: There's no way Chat Noir was going to stop flirting...

Other Links: FFnet | AO3

Summary: Adrien has had enough. If Ladybug won't accept him as Chat Noir, well, then maybe she'll say yes to Paris's top male model? When she gives her answer, he doesn't expect what comes next.

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Chapter Three: Affectionate Kitty

The rest of the students dispersed as the school continued to shake and rumble from a supposed earthquake. Someone yelled “akuma!” and Adrien took that as a hint to retreat out of sight.

“What are you waiting for?” Plagg yelled at him from his pocket, and Adrien rolled his eyes before he said the magic words. Transformed into Chat Noir, he bounded into the fray past the scared stampede of students and headed toward the source of the destruction.

He gravitated to Ladybug in the center of the disturbance, and she was already hard at work, focusing on the poor person turned akuma by Hawkmoth’s schemes. 

His gaze swept over the scene as he surveyed the situation, looking over the akumatized victim and trying to gauge weaknesses and ways to distract him. Leaping at the monster, he watched Ladybug jump back, letting him take over as they fell into a synchronous dance. 

“Nice of you to show up, Chat Noir,” Ladybug said smiling wryly. He noticed her wide blue eyes of concentration and confidence, and it made his heart beat faster. He shot her a sly grin.

“Always, my lady,” he said, and continued to jump at the poor akumatized human, who was now calling himself Quake Maker - how original, and Chat Noir surmised that the villain was focused on attacking one particular person - the fitness teacher. 

“Rawwwrrrr!” it screamed, shaking the earth beneath their feet some more. The monster was big and looked really beefed up from Hawkmoth’s magic, glowing with orange energy and yellow eyes. His muscles were huge, pounding on any surface to cause the earthquakes that were currently destroying their school. He roared at any students running past him, and slowly lumbered toward the teacher who was cowering behind the metal stairs. Chat Noir extended his staff at him, poking him in the eye, taking his attention off the teacher. The monster glared at him, showing him glowing red teeth.

“Someone’s a bit crunchy,” Chat Noir said. “What’s this guy’s deal?”

“From what I’ve heard, he seems to have something against the way the fitness teacher motivates him in their weight lifting class,” Ladybug said. He watched as Ladybug squinted, her eyes trailing over the monster looking for where the akuma might be hidden. Her eyes widened and she grinned. “Gotcha.”

“Chat Noir, the akuma is in his sweatband on his head! See if you can disorient him enough to get it off him. I’ll try to subdue him,” she said, and she was already slinging her yo-yo at the monster and wrapping it around him like a tourniquet. He struggled, as he gained strength to stretch free of her bindings.

“Lucky Charm!” she yelled, and a ladybug spotted chain appeared, and Ladybug wasted no time and retracted her yo-yo and began binding him with the spotted chain, which froze him and made him unable to move, let alone break free.

With his partner hard at work, Chat Noir bounded around the monster, poking the monster with his staff. The monster was slow, only able to shift his head toward Chat Noir when the hero was already gone from his vision. Chat Noir finally circled around in the air, used his staff as a support, and landed on the thing’s head. By that time, Ladybug had bound him again, and he started to struggle angrily from his restraints, using every bit of magic left to try to escape. 

Chat Noir spotted his prize, and the monster tried to shake his head to fling him off, but it was too late. 

“Cataclysm!” he yelled, striking the headband on the monster’s head. Ladybug had removed her restraints, ready as the akuma flew upward from the destroyed headband so she could catch it and neutralize it.

“Bye bye little butterfly!” she said. “Miraculous Ladybug!” The call echoed in his head like a mantra, and while Ladybug’s power returned everything back to normal, he felt his shoulders relax with relief. His ring beeped at him, so he knew he’d have to leave soon.

Still, it was almost tempting after his confession to let her see who he was.

Instead, he approached her and took her hand. He kissed it before they went into their usual fist bump celebration. Ladybug narrowed her eyes at him and he gave her a cheeky grin.

“Well done, my lady,” he said. “Quick thinking and a perfect ending.” He looked over to the skinny boy who was shaking his head, not remembering much after being akumatized. His teacher made his way over to him, helping him up from the ground and apologizing for his treatment. 

Her earrings beeped. “Well, I gotta go. Until next time, my kitty.”

He grabbed her hand again, kissed it twice. “Not soon enough, but I’ll always be your kitty.” He flashed her another smile, before pulling her toward him. She started a bit as he slid their bodies against each other, cool leather against her strong mesh material.

“Chat Noir…” she started, and he noticed a frown. “You know…”

“I know you love someone else,” he said with a shrug, and he pulled her closer, his nose almost touching hers, her hot breath against his skin. His voice dropped to a whisper. “It makes me want to chase you even more.”

She laughed nervously at him and tapped his nose with her finger teasingly. “You’re wasting your time, kitty. I’ve already confessed to him.”

He feigned surprise. “Oh, so I really have lost, haven’t I? Are you already together or…”

“I can’t say anymore, just that...I’m sorry, but you’ll always be my best partner and friend,” she said tenderly. He let out a sigh, continuing the charade of his disappointment. 

“I cherish your friendship, bugaboo, I do,” he said. He still hadn’t released her, but he did hold her tighter, and she wiggled a little when his touch turned into a sweet embrace. He leaned toward her ear and whispered. “But I will always love you.”

He heard her gasp, and when he pulled away, their Miraculous devices both beeped again. It was getting close and he would lose his transformation soon. He paused and shot her another smile, and he enjoyed the rosy blush on her face from their closeness. 

“Gotta scat!” he said, and he saluted her before bounding off. The Cheshire grin on his face remained and he delighted in the happiness he felt. There was no way he wasn’t going to keep pursuing her as Chat Noir even if he’d confessed to her as Adrien. After all, he was Adrien, and he knew that she’d figure that out soon enough. 

Either way, his love wouldn’t change for her, and he would show her that, as both Adrien and Chat Noir.

*

Ladybug shook her head at Chat Noir’s antics, and when he was gone, she retreated to a private space and undid her transformation.

“Wow, Chat Noir was certainly amorous today,” Tikki said immediately, and Marinette rolled her eyes. 

“I don’t know what gets into that cat. He knows that I love someone else,” she said with a pout. Tikki only giggled at her.

“It’s not funny,” Marinette complained, and Tikki turned from her, not wanting Marinette to see any more amusement in the kwami’s face. It was hard for Tikki to restrain herself from spilling the beans about Chat Noir, especially when she was well aware of his identity. She always knew that they would find out each other’s identities, but as far as the romance part, Tikki really enjoyed the mystery behind it and to see the story play out. It’s not like as a kwami she could do anything more than be supportive of her handler, and she certainly couldn’t outright tell Marinette who Chat Noir really was. 

Besides, it was fun seeing these two kids come together and learn more about each other.

Tikki watched Marinette sigh heavily. Throughout all the chaos, it looked as though classes were cancelled for the day, and many of the students had already returned to their homes. Marinette texted Alya, Nino and Adrien to make sure there were okay, and then she headed toward the bakery. Her bed was calling to her, and she had a lot of emotions to figure out. Tikki settled back into her purse, and she heard the kwami munch on some butterscotch cookies that she had saved in case of an akuma attack.

When she arrived home, she hugged her parents who had heard of the akuma attack, and then she excused herself to her room. She supposed she could do her homework to distract her thoughts, but she was too tired. She flopped on her bed and tried to sleep. 

Sleep didn’t come, so she stared at photos of Adrien on her wall and hung onto an impulsive thought.

“Tikki, I have to go visit Adrien,” she said, and the kwami buzzed over to her, finishing another cookie. Marinette met her eyes. “If you don’t mind, I need to see him as Ladybug. We need to figure out --  this thing between us.”

“Have you decided what you’re going to do?” Tikki asked curiously. Marinette turned and stared at the skylight window. Outside stars were glittering against a clear night sky, twinkling at her as if they were trying to send her a message.

“Yeah, I think I know what I need to do,” she said. She rose from her bed and inhaled a deep breath.

“Tikki, spots on!”

Ladybug bounded through the streets of Paris, making her way to a familiar mansion. She navigated upon the highest point of the mansion and jumped down to the balcony outside Adrien’s room. She felt a nervous flutter in her stomach as she peered inside. She spotted Adrien at his desk hunched over what she assumed was his homework. Crap, she still hadn’t done hers.

She inhaled a deep breath, and then she lightly knocked on his window. She watched him stiffen, and when he turned around their eyes met. 

She smiled at him as he gaped at her, and soon he was running toward her to let her inside.

“Ladybug!” he said happily, and she put her finger to her lips to shush him. He whispered, “What are you doing here?”

“I needed to see you,” she said simply. Ladybug shivered from anxiety; even as a superhero, she had never visited a boy at his room during the evening. She saw him blush from her words, but then he quickly opened his balcony door and gestured her inside. 

Still nervous, she slowly made her way inside as he slid the door behind her. He came up from behind her and she felt his warmth. He immediately drew her into a hug and pulled her against him. “I missed you,” he said, and his words made her heart beat faster. Her face felt hot, and she cleared her throat.

She leaned into his hug and said, “Adrien…” She let her words trail into a whisper as she enjoyed their closeness in the dark, only illuminated by a small yellowish light from his desk lamp. 

She exhaled a heavy breath and said, “We need to talk.”

He stiffened from her words, but he didn’t release the hug. Ladybug wondered if he would ever let her go ...

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