…

( writes a shit ton of drabbles to take out my frustration on missing the origin episode that I THOUGHT was TOMORROW )

Note: Although I used the French names for the akuma and for the dialogue, the poem was taken from the English episode because it flowed better to my ears. Did that sentence flow? No.

…

Ladybug let out a sigh of relief as she dangled from her yoyo, staying out of Le Dislocoeur's sight. Love was a wondrous thing, but it was literally going to be the death of her if things kept up.

"Ahh, you came at just the right time, My Lady," came a familiar silky voice, prompting the superhero to tilt her head to see her partner balancing himself on his staff below her.

A smile graced her lips as she lowered herself, trusting him to catch her even as he remarked, "I have something to tell you".

Not wanting to deal with his flirtations at the moment, she attempted to cut him off and get his attention on the akuma with a firm, "Now is not the time; Disloc-"

Except Chat Noir was more persistent than usual as he pulled her close and gently pressed a clawed finger to her lips, effectively shushing her.

"I promised myself to tell you as soon as I saw you," he murmured, his voice more sincere and forlorn than usual. In fact, it was the tone of his voice that made her gape at him and actually listen. "Ladybug, I…I…"

The wielder of destruction took a deep breath and despite the lack of time, Ladybug couldn't help but wonder about what he was going to say – what could be so important an akuma had to wait?

"Your hair as dark as night, your pretty bluebell eyes, I wonder who you are beneath that strong disguise; every day we see each other and I hope that you'll be mine; together our love could be so true; please, will you be my Valentine?"

If she was bug-eyed before, she didn't want to know how wide her eyes were now that she had heard Adrien's words spill from Chat's mouth. She didn't want to know what the implications of that could mean. She didn't want to know.

Chat was looking at her so expectedly, such pure loving eyes, and she wondered how she had never seen it before – the looks he gave her. Was love really so blind? Maybe that was why Adrien never noticed her crush when everyone seemed to; he was so in love he was blind to the affection someone was practically throwing in his direction. She was so in love she had been blind to the affection he had been throwing at her.

Without realizing she was doing it, Ladybug leaned in closer, sounding almost breathless as she murmured, "Chat…"

A warm smile began to form on his lips when suddenly he spotted something behind her and called out her name, grabbing her and spinning her around. Just as she realized what he was doing, she heard the impact of Le Dislocoeur's arrow hitting her partner's back.

"Ladybug, I l-l-loathe you!" Chat suddenly snarled in her ear, tightening his embrace around her.

"Chat Noir," cried Ladybug, anguished as she struggled to get out of his grasp. "Let me go!"

Still reeling from the revelation of who he was behind the mask, her reflexes were not as reliable and all she could do was stomp her foot on top of his to make him let her go.

Biting her lip, the polka-dotted hero quickly latched her yoyo around a nearby building's tower to get away from her beloved partner.

Oh, Chat.

…

Marinette didn't know whether or not she wanted to cry.

She finally got to kiss Adrien, the boy who had stolen her heart since the moment they met, but he didn't remember a single second of it. Perhaps that was for the best.

Curling up on her bed, the aspiring fashion designer became lost in her thoughts and her kwami companion could only provide moral support by resting by her side.

"You know, no matter what, Chat Noir will always be your partner," murmured Tikki comfortingly. "But you know and I know that it's not right to keep it a secret that you know his identity."

Marinette closed her eyes and sighed. "You're right. Of course you are."

A wistful smile graced her features, causing her to resemble a miserable angel.

"Thank you, Tikki…for everything."

…

Marinette gripped the strap of her bag as she anxiously made her way into the classroom. For once, she was on time – no, she was early. The strange and baffled looks she was receiving would have offended her another day, but the young superhero was on a mission.

Her eyes were locked on where Adrien and Nino sat, the two boys laughing and talking about all the chocolate that was going to be on sale later that day. Because she was utterly obsessed, of course she noticed a familiar pink paper sticking out of Adrien's notebook.

Taking a deep breath, she convinced herself that no one else in the room mattered at that moment and she marched straight over until she was standing right in front of Adrien's desk, still gripping her bag strap like it was a lifeline.

Nino noticed her first. "Oh, hey, Marinette!"

Adrien looked her way and for once, the awkwardness and anxiety she normally felt around him was absent. He cocked his head to the side curiously when she didn't answer.

Marinette took another deep breath but did not break eye contact.

"Your hair shines like the sun; your eyes are gorgeous green; I look at you and wonder your inner most thoughts and dreams; yes, your Valentine I will be; our love will be so true; together for eternity, my heart belongs to you."

Her voice did not shake – there was not a single stutter. It was if she was oozing with confidence as she spoke and the only indication that showed her anxiousness was the death grip on her bag.

Adrien was staring at her, various emotions crossing his face: surprise, recognition, disappointment, joy…it was difficult to figure out exactly what he was thinking, but Marinette hoped it would be good.

"You…" Adrien began, his voice barely a whisper.

She continued to hold his gaze even as the rest of their classmates seemed to hold their breaths; even Chloe was silent – but perhaps she was waiting for Adrien to reject her so the blond girl could laugh and taunt her properly.

However, Marinette was not done just yet.

She leaned down, across his desk, and whispered so that only he could hear, "Happy Valentine's Day, minou."

And she tapped her earrings – a gesture that made his eyes bulge as she could see realization dawn on his face – before she smiled warmly at him and began to move towards her seat, passing him as she did so.

However, before she could make it to her desk and before Alya could interrogate her and before Chloe could emotionally shred her, Adrien's hand shot out to grab her wrist and even he seemed surprised by the sudden movement as he met her eyes.

His eyes – his beautiful chartreuse eyes – were still wide, still full of shock, but she recognized the same adoring look Chat had given her earlier. His mouth moved silently, as if it was impossible for him to formulate what was possibly going through his head, but they weren't partners for nothing; she understood him perfectly.

Marinette gave him another reassuring smile – a sweet, kind, genuine smile that made normal men weak in the knees, and evidently superheroes too.

Adrien, whose fingers were still wrapped around her wrist, brightened considerably and pulled her down. Luckily, she seemed to know what he was trying to do and her smile grew as she felt his lips press against her now warm cheeks.

"I'm glad it's you."

…

SO BY THE END OF THIS CHAPTER I WILL HAVE WATCHED THE RAW ORIGIN EPISODE AND I AM WEAK IN THE KNEES

NO SPOILERS WORRY NOT BUT I A K

Also: I have lost almost all interest in publishing on this site for various reasons. I will continue to post once in a while here and read some of my currently subscribed stories, but you will be more likely to see me on Archive of Our Own, where I recently made an account. Pen name is the same, and all Ladybug stories are posted there as well.