"Now remember class," Miss Bustier said, "this Saturday is the day of our annual Picnic Basket Charity Auction. You will need to submit your baskets to the assembly hall by ten o'clock and the actual auction will begin at eleven. Whoever buys your picnic basket will get to have your company for the duration of the picnic." She paused for a moment to let the information sink in and smiled softly. "You are now excused."

The class immediately broke out into an excited babble as they got ready to leave the classroom.

"Dude, this is going to be awesome!" Nino grinned. "This year is going to be the year! I will win this time!"

"Pfft!" Kim snorted as he loomed behind them. "Yeah right, Lahiffe, you spend so much money on music that you'll never have enough. I'll bag the prize this year."

"I hardly doubt you have enough saved either," Max said sceptically and Kim instantly howled something about disloyalty, "I, however, have meticulously saved a percentage of my allowance since last year. So I believe I will be the victor."

"Yeah but do you have the guts to raise your hand?" Alix smirked. "Because I have the money and the boldness to come out on top."

"I don't understand," Adrien blinked bewilderedly, "I thought this was a charity auction not an actual competition….what's the prize?"

"There's no actual prize for best basket or anything," Nino reassured him, "we're talking about the ultimate prize, the best basket, the one everyone wants, the crème of the crop."

"…Which is?" Adrien pressed.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng's basket!"

Adrien was physically taken back as everyone – Nino, Kim, Max, Alix, all of them – sighed blissfully in unison.

"Marinette?"

"Dude," Nino grinned, "three words – bakers for parents! Marinette's baskets are just filled to the brim with amazing food."

"Croissants, pastries, quiche," Kim began to list on his fingers, "the most amazing baguettes, cakes, cream cakes, actual freaking Chinese food, and that's just the beginning!"

Adrien was not drooling.

He was a composed, respectable, well-mannered model. He did not drool.

(He was totally drooling.)

"Sounds amazing," he said in awe, "I hope Marinette is still submitting a basket."

Because knowing his luck this would be the year that Marinette decides she doesn't have time to make a basket.

"She's making a basket!" Alix said defensively. "She's always made a basket before! Marinette!" Alix cried out as Marinette and Alya wandered past. Marinette jumped and dropped her books onto the floor. Without giving it a second thought Adrien raced to her side and helped Alya gather them up. "You're definitely making a basket this year, right?" Alix asked worriedly.

"Of course," Marinette smiled reassuringly, "we just finished making the basket last night."

"Making the basket?!" Alya raised an eyebrow.

"Mum and Dad wanted a challenge," Marinette explained sheepishly, "so they've decided to make a basket out of some sort pretzel stuffed with cheese. They've been baking and sculpting the last couple days between the usual baking."

"Hmmm…" Kim drooled. "That sounds amazing."

"Wipe your chin Kim," Alix said arrogantly, "because it's going to end up on the floor this Saturday when I win the basket!"

"No way!"

And then they started to bicker over Marinette's basket and who was going to win the auction. Tuning them out, Adrien finished piling Marinette's books up with Alya's help and handed the pile to Marinette.

"Here you go Marinette," he smiled, "I can't wait to see your basket on Saturday."

Marinette took the books back and stiffened slightly when their fingers brushed against one another. Adrien swallowed back his disappointment that he still had that nervous effect on her. "T-t-t-thanks!" Marinette stuttered as her cheeks turned its usual pretty pink colour. "I can't wait to see you on Saturday. I m-m-mean your Saturday on basket!" she then hastily corrected herself. "No! Gah! Your basket on Saturday!"

Adrien couldn't help but chuckle at Marinette's tongue twisting ways. "I'm afraid you'll be disappointed," he informed her. "I'm not submitting one in."

"Oh," Marinette murmured.

"But I will definitely bid on one!" Adrien added hastily before Marinette began to think he didn't do charity events or something. Because that wasn't why he wasn't submitting as basket. He just couldn't cook and didn't dare to try as he didn't want to cause food poisoning in someone who was donating to charity. "Hey," he added a little more casually, "I'll probably bid on yours."

And then he winked which for some reason made Marinette's face go from pink to bright red. Alya then sighed heavily as she dragged Marinette away impatiently to their next class.

He will definitely bid on Marinette's.

It had been a long time since he had some seriously good food that wasn't on his dietician's approved list. Marinette's parents cooking was seriously the best and he only had a little bit that one time with the gaming practice. He would really like the chance to truly gorge himself on their cooking and he was willing to pay whatever price he had to, to do so.

Also….a day in Marinette's company?

That was always worth a fortune in its own right.

However this was when his typical bad luck decided to kick in. Adrien woke up on Saturday determined to get through his early morning photo shoot before he races over to the school and win's Marinette's basket. Instead anything that went wrong with a photo shoot, went wrong.

The make-up artist was late, there was a rip in some of Adrien's clothing, one of the light bulbs went out and caused the whole lights to explode (how Adrien would never work out), and the photographer had a near-breakdown because Adrien wasn't giving him what he wanted…

And so a shoot that was supposed to end at ten o'clock (starting at six, Adrien was exhausted) didn't finish until quarter past eleven and there was still a lot of loose ends to tie up before Nathalie would even consider letting him go.

So he was going to miss out completely on the auction and therefore lose the chance at winning Marinette's picnic basket.

"I'm going to miss the auction altogether!" he cried out miserably to Plagg. "Marinette's basket is probably already sold."

"You don't know that, kid." Plagg said reassuringly. "They're probably saving it last if it's as good as the other kids were making it out to be. It'll be the big sale."

"Yeah," Adrien mumbled dejectedly, "but even if I leave now I still won't make it in time."

"Only if you leave as Adrien and patiently sit through all the traffic of Paris," Plagg pointed out, "But if you were to leave as Chat Noir…"

If he was to transform now and leave as Chat then he could jump out of the window, avoid the fans, speed past all of the traffic, and be in school before the Auction ended, and hopefully before Marinette's basket was sold.

"That's brilliant Plagg!" Adrien cried out as she shot up to his feet. "You're a genius!"

"I know," Plagg preened.

"Plagg!" Adrien held up his fist. "Transform me!"

MLBMLBMLBMLBMLBMLBMLB

Sometimes Marinette wished her parents weren't so amazing at cooking.

Okay, that was a lie. She loved her parents food too much to ever truly wish that but when there was an auction like this, Marinette found herself sinking lower and lower in her chair as her cheeks burned in embarrassment.

"Twenty euros!" Kim shouted.

"Twen-"

"Twenty five euros!" Alix cried out.

"Tw-"

"Thirty euros!" Max yelled.

"Thi-"

"Thirty five euros!" Nathaniel interrupted quietly but firmly. Several people instantly opened their mouths and Nathaniel promptly spoke over them "Change that to forty euros."

"Girl," Alya whispered, "what on earth do your parents put in those pastries?!"

"God only knows," Marinette moaned as she covered her face, "tell me when it's over."

"Forty five euros!" Max said triumphantly.

There was a deafening silence and the auctioneer – the male co-host of the local news channel – looked rather relieved that it was finally over and he could wrap things up. "All right then," he said quickly, "forty five euros, going once, going twice, so-"

BANG!

Everyone jumped as the doors slammed against the walls. They all whirled round and their jaws dropped open as they took in the sight of a familiar blonde panting against the door frame.

"FIVE HUNDRED EUROS!" he bellowed. "Five Hundred euros for Marinette Dupain-Cheng's picnic basket!"

Marinette simultaneously squeaked and choked at the same time.

"All right," the auctioneer blinked. He looked rather dazed and Marinette couldn't blame him. The largest amount any other basket had managed to get was forty euros. "Five hundred euros. Going once."

No one spoke up. Alya was excitedly blogging beside Marinette, having already snapped a photo.

"Going twice."

Marinette wondered if the room was too hot or if it was just her as her face burned with embarrassment.

"Sold!" the auctioneer slammed the gravel down on the podium. "For five hundred euros to Chat Noir."

Chat Noir's eyes widened comically as he quickly glanced down at his attire. "Wait….what?!" He squeaked mortified.

It quickly became apparent, to Marinette at least, that he had never intended to make the bid as Chat Noir and had forgotten to de-transform.

Marinette face palmed.

That stupid cat…