The evening was warm but the lightest breeze kissed the back of his neck. He bounced from foot to foot, bounding circles around an amused Ladybug.
When she smiled at him like that, he knew he'd made the right decision to come out tonight in spite of his own discomfort.
"You seem like you're raring to go."
"Yep!" Chat stretched languorously, limbering up in preparation to sprint and leap onto the next roof over. "I was anxious to get out here. And once we finish with patrol, I can finally eat..."
"Wait." Ladybug gaped at him, her yo-yo slipping in her grasp. "You didn't eat before you got here?"
"Honestly, my Lady, I didn't really get the time before I snuck out. Things...ran a little longer than I had expected, and I was anxious to be here."
Her lips pressed into a thin line. "Alright. When did you eat?"
"I'm...not really sure." He tilted his head, crouching down on the edge of the roof as he puzzled. His food was usually bland but nutritious, so while he did eat it wasn't usually anything worth remembering.
"Think. When?"
His eyes scanned the horizon aimlessly. "Maybe around lunchtime?"
"Chat!" His eyes widened as she advanced on him. "That's not okay. You need to eat. Patrol can wait. I can wait."
He smiled softly, watching her grow agitated in fascination. Even in the dark, her eyes were the most amazing shade of blue. "If you need me here, I will be here, whether I get to eat first or not. Besides, my Kwami is almost always eating."
She rounded at him, landing a finger on his chest. "That's not the same thing. I need you to eat. I can't imagine coming out here hungry."
"But," His cheeks warmed as he grinned, pointedly glancing at where her finger lingered upon his chest. "It's too wait now."
Ladybug grumbled, rolling her eyes. "Tomorrow then. I would rather patrol on my own if I can't trust you not to run yourself ragged."
He sighed, dropping himself down onto the brick ledge, claws pricking lightly into the stone. "I'd rather be out on patrol. I like to be out here with you, Bugaboo."
Her eyes narrowed, as she crossed her arms over her chest, not budging even one inch. " I need to know that you won't be out here exhausted and hungry, especially when we never know when we might be needed."
Chat met her gaze, wishing for the millionth time he could explain to her in more detail. "My schedule is...unusual. And it isn't like we have a reliable way to talk before we're transformed."
Ladybug blanched, her eyes growing distant. He knew what keeping their identities safe meant to her, not that either of them had came up with a good idea for dealing with their inability to communicate outside of their transformations.
He knew the exact moment that her inspiration struck. He had seen in mid battle often enough. He knew he would never tire of the way her eyes lit up with the tiniest hint of mischief. The way her lips curled up in a self-satisfied smirk.
""Well." Her fingers were at her yo-yo, spooling it into another direction before he was on his feet. " If you can't eat before, then we'll eat on patrol."
"I happen to know of a rather excellent bakery..."
Chat lifted his baton from its holder and leapt off the edge to catch up, reasonably sure he knew where they were headed. His stomach growled in anticipation.. "I croissant wait, my lady."
His grin widened as her annoyed groan rang out into the night.
Author's Notes:
It's after midnight where I am, so I'm dropping this tonight so I can get moving with a heavy writing weekend! *fingers crossed*
Fair warning, I will probably be at least a little behind hitting the prompts on time because REAL LIFE (TM). I'm using this exercise to improve my writing speed and focus to help me work through my works in progress.
Feedback is always greatly appreciated. 3
I'm also on tumblr with the same user name.