A/N: Well, it finally happened, guys. I finally wrote my first ML fanfic.

Before you go on, some things you should know:

a) This is not how I want the "secret identity revelation" to happen on the show. I just wrote it this way because of a theory of mine.

b) This is not a shipping love story. This is a friendship story. So don't get too disappointed with Mari and Adrien reactions at the end, ok? They were more worried with their friends than their secret identities.

I hope you guys like it. M-rated ML fanfic is on the way, so be pacient! Reviews/likes are appreciated! I will thank you all.

Alya found her at a side street.

Marinette had bruises all over her body and a nasty cut on her cheek. Alya wondered how she got all those injuries. She feared moving her, but couldn't leave her friend there, when there was so much danger all over town. Alya retrieved her friend's small purse from the ground, and half carrying half pulling Marinette along the way, she managed to deliver her home.

Her parents took care of her, and an hour later she was safely in her bed, with Alya beside her. It wasn't long after that that she woke up.

"Alya?! Where am I? What happened?" she tried to sit down but the pain was too much.

"Hey, calm down! You're in your room. I found you on the street, wounds everywhere, passed out."

Marinette bit her lower lip and suppressed a cry. Her memory was coming back now. Hawkmoth got her miraculous, she de-transformed and fell. She remembered vaguely Chat Noir trying to save her, but all went black after that. Was he alright? Did he managed to escape? Her breathing became rapid and shallow. Alya was worried.

"Marinette, what happened to you? When Hawkmoth's villain appeared everyone ran away. What were you still doing there? Did you came back, was caught or something?"

"Alya, I-"

Her excuse was interrupted by Alya's phone ringing. She thought about turning it off, but when she saw it was Nino calling, she decided it was better to know if he was ok.

"Nino! Is everything alright with you? Did you got hurt when we fled?"

She listened his answer, and Marinette had a horrible feeling. Alya looked more and more worried.

"But you're taking care of it, aren't you?" another pause. "Ok then. Call me if anything happens."

"What was it?" Marinette demanded.

"Nothing, everyone's fine. Now you need to rest. Have faith in Ladybug and Chat Noir, they'll save us all, like they always do."

Alya went downstairs to give the Dupain-Chengs an update on their daughter, while Marinette remained on her bed, feeling more alone than ever.

Tikki was gone.

That single thought made a warm tear to come down and leave a wet spot in her pillow. What was she going to do without her adored friend? She needed to save the city, yes, but more than anything she wanted her friend back. And Chat Noir. She was so worried about her partner. But nothing would resolve itself if she stayed in her room, crying.

With that resolution in mind, she got out of bed, put her everyday clothes and prepared to leave. Alya came back to find her putting her small purse on her shoulder.

"Where, on God's name, do you think you're going?"

"Alya, you don't understand-"

"I sure do not! You can barely stay on your feet, and now you want to go outside? What is so urgent that you need to risk your life for it?"

Marinette raised one hand to stop her friend's rant.

"You asked me to have faith in Ladybug. Well, I do. But she will not save the city if I stay here."

"What do y-"

Marinette hugged her friend tight.

"I'm so so sorry. I wanted to tell you so bad. Tikki said I couldn't, it could put you, and me, in danger. All I can do now is to ask you to put in me the same faith you put in Ladybug."

Still shocked, Alya couldn't say a word.

"I have to find Chat Noir. We need to stop Hawkmoth."

And then she managed to sneak out of the house without her parents seeing her. Alya would cover her, she was sure. Oh god, they'd have so much to talk about when she get back! A cold feeling went down her spine. Would she ever come back? How could she defeat her archenemy without her powers? But she had to try. And se was sure Chat Noir would come up to help her. He always did.

When she was already on her way, Alya received another phone call from Nino.

"Alya! You will not believe this."

"What is it?"

"Adrien is Chat Noir! Our Adrien! He. Is. Chat. Noir."

Alya gasped. What the hell happened to the world?!

"In that case, I have something to tell you too…"

"Wait. There's more. He left. I just went out for one second…"

"What do you men he left?! You said you were taking care of him at your house!"

"I'm telling you, he just dropped that bomb that he is Chat Noir and slipped away when I wasn't looking! I think he is gonna try to stop Hawkmoth."

Returning to the same spot where she fell, Marinette had a shiver. This is it. Her chance to prove she is more than a costume, that she needed more than just magic powers to fight. She gave a deep breath and was about to go inside the building when someone called her name. she turned and saw Adrien going towards her, using an arm sling and limping.

"Adrien! What happened to you?!" she helped him to sit down.

"I tried to-" he panted, trying to regain his breath. "I tried to run and get here as fast as I could, but my leg…"

"Why were you trying to get here for? It's dangerous! Hawkmoth is inside that building with a crowd of villains!"

Adrien opened his mouth to answer, but then he noticed something.

"I could ask you the same. What are you doing here?"

Marinette stood up and looked at the building in front of them.

"I'm here to stop him."

"Well, that's my answer. I'm here to stop him."

Marinette looked anxiously at him. Why would he throw himself in the middle of the chaos when most people were just waiting for Ladybug and Chat Noir to appear?

"I can't let you do it. You're already hurt. You would only hurt yourself even more."

Adrien looked at the huge bandage covering half of her face.

"You look as hurt as I am. What happened to you?"

"I… I fell. And you?"

"I tried to save… someone. But I failed, now I don't know if I almost got killed for nothing, because she might be dead."

His voice failed at the last word. Marinette felt a sting in her heart to see him in pain like that.

"What are we saying? We can't even save ourselves, what could we do against Hawkmoth, now that he has Ladybug's miraculous?"

Adrien felt all blood leave his face.

"He got her miraculous?"

Marinette didn't even noticed she was crying again. The silent teardrops fell from the corner of her eyes.

"He did. And now Tikki is gone, and I don't know what to do without her!"

Her legs failed and she dropped to her knees. Adrien rushed to her side, putting one hand on her back and holding one of hers with the other.

"I'm sorry, Marinette. Tikki is a friend of yours? How did you lose her?"

It didn't mattered anymore. She could tell him now. She was no longer Ladybug.

"Tikki is my kwami."

Adrien felt his head spinning. He fell back, not touching Marinette any longer. Could it be…

"But if you have a kwami then it makes you…"

"…Ladybug, yes. But I'm not Ladybug anymore. Hawkmoth captured Tikki, and I'm just Marinette now."

Adrien got up, helping her do the same.

"Marinette, you're never ever 'just Marinette'. You're the only person brave enough to come out here and try to stop that lunatic, even without any special powers. You're amazing, that's what you are."

For one second, Marinette forgot about her worries, the danger they were in, all she had to do to make things right, and let herself to get lost on the smile Adrien gave her. Her only visible cheek was pink. Then, like a wrecking ball, it hit her. 'Adrien knows what a kwami is.'

"Adrien…"

"I'm so sorry, my lady. I was late. And I'm afraid we can't use this nice afternoon to talk about ourselves. Not today, at least. Tomorrow, how about that? The only thing we have to do is defeat Hawkmoth once again and survive this day."

Marinette was desperately trying to understand his words, the way he was talking. It could not be, could it? Adrien could not be…

"Chat Noir?" she gave one step closer to him.

"My lady."

He let her scan his face, he could almost see her brain trying to compare the face she was seeing now with the one who wears the black mask.

"Chat…"

"Marinette, you need to call me 'Adrien' for today. I swear to you, we will tell each other everything, but we must go in and rescue our kwamis now. Plagg was taken too."

"His name is Plagg?"

"Yes. And I feel just as lost without him as you feel without Tikki."

Marinette looked down and closed her eyes for a moment. When she managed to calm down her racing heart, she looked at him again.

"Let's go."

"Hem-hem."

They heard someone loudly clear his throat behind them and looked back. A small man in a red shirt with a flower pattern hold a staff and looked amused. A green kwami flew beside him.

"Now now. You didn't think I'd just let you two go in there without any help, did you? But I do appreciate your courage to do so. Come kids, it's time to teach that man a lesson."