Chapter 1: The Day Chat Noir Found Out

Chat Noir found out Ladybug's identity.

He didn't mean to! He just slipped!

Literally, he just slipped. He'd been hurriedly jumping across Paris' rooftops trying to get back to the photo-shoot he'd abandoned because of an akuma attack when he slipped on a loose roof tile. Fortunately, the fire escape along the side of the building had stopped his fall. But he fell stomach first onto the railing and had his breath knocked from him.

He'd been so busy groaning in pain, draped across the bars like a used washcloth, that he didn't notice Ladybug dropping into the alley below and de-transforming.

He really didn't mean to see it. There was a bright light and before he knew it he'd turned his head towards the source. That was all he did.

The pink light had been fading when he did and his classmate, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, was standing in the middle of it.

That wasn't what revealed her, however. After all, just about anyone could flash some lights in a random alley way, strange as that may be, and it wouldn't automatically mean they were Ladybug.

What really revealed her was her conversation with her kwami. One he would not have heard if not for his enhanced hearing in the suit. He wouldn't have seen her kwami in the dark alley either if it wasn't for his night vision.

"Are you alright, Tikki?" Marinette had been saying to seemingly no one.

It was by sheer luck that Chat Noir didn't make his presence known to greet her. If he did, he wouldn't have found anything out. Whether it was good luck on his part, or bad luck on Ladybug's part, he didn't know.

"I'm fine, Marinette," a small voice had replied from seemingly nowhere.

"I'm sorry you had to stretch it longer than necessary, though. I couldn't find a place to de-transform."

"It's alright," came the voice again, "I'm the one who told you to keep your identity a secret. It'd be embarrassing if I was the cause for it to be revealed."

Marinette and the voice giggled together. "Here, have a cookie. Home is still a bit far so I need to transform again."

At this point, Chat Noir was beyond confused. There were bits and pieces of information that was coming together, but it was all going too fast that he couldn't put them in the right order.

It wasn't until Marinette procured a cookie from her bag and a little red, spotted thing floated out from somewhere to take it that his brain slammed all the pieces together like a freight train smashing into the side of a mountain made of other freight trains.

Because that red thing was definitely a kwami.

His suit didn't give him any zoom-in features for his eyes but he'd definitely zeroed in on that little floating thing and knew that it was definitely a kwami. A ladybug kwami.

Chat Noir couldn't breathe. It was miraculous how he managed not to scream or flail or give away his position. He definitely screamed in his head though. He internally screamed a long "whaaaaaaaaaaaaaat" that lasted until the kwami finished the cookie and Marinette transformed into Ladybug and yo-yo'd away into the sky.

He didn't know how long he hung lopsided on that fire escape railing. How long the scream of "what" in his head went on for.

It felt like hours.

He forgot about the photo-shoot.

He forgot about getting home.

Heck, he even forgot his own name.

Because Ladybug was Marinette Dupain-Cheng and he forgot everything.

He couldn't remember how he got home, but he did. Somehow, somewhere along the way, he managed that, even when all thoughts in his head consisted of only one thing.

Marinette, Marinette, Marinette. Marinette, Marinette, Marinette! Mari—

"I'm hungry!" a voice said from his right.

He looked blankly in that direction. "Marinette?"

"No, I'm Plagg," Marinette—no, uh, Small McFloaty Cat said. That was definitely not Marinette because Marinette had pigtails and bluebell eyes. The floaty cat had a name; what was it? It started with a 'P'… Marinette, right? "I'm hungry and I need some Camembert."

"You need some Marinette?" he said to Small Marinette Cat, confused.

"Is that a new kind of cheese?"

"Marinette isn't cheese." There was a beat of silence as he deliberated on this. "Is she?"

"Are you alright, kid?"

"I'm totally Marinette!"

"Kid," Small Marinette Cat began, slowly, "you know your name is Adrien, right?"

Wow, rude. Of course he knew that! "Of course I do!"

"Then can you tell me your name?"

Ad— "Marinette!" Nailed it.

"Uh—"

"See, I told you I'm completely Marinette."

Small Marinette Cat sighed and pawed at his face. "Oookay, I'm just gonna go over there until your brain works again, alright?" he said as he floated away to some direction Marinette probably wasn't in. "Then you can get me some cheese."

"Okay, Marinette."

Someone help this kid.

Crossposted in tumblr and Ao3. c: