"I said it before and I will say it again," Ladybug said firmly late one night on a patrol, "no means no. Now can you please drop the subject?"

"But My Lady!" Chat Noir protested. "I really think that after all this time we would be better off if we revealed our actual identities to one another."

"No!" Ladybug said curtly.

"But-"

"No!"

"Please consider-"

"No!"

"We would be better-"

"No!"

"We would work better as a-"

"No!"

Usually Chat Noir has been nothing but the most respectable and considerate of partners when it came to Ladybug's assertion that they shouldn't know who the other one was. She knows that he had many opportunities to open the door, or turn round to face her, or peer round that corner to see who she really is but had instead closed the door, or kept his back to her, or resisted temptation altogether because he was that kind of noble and highly principled guy.

Their bond as partners had meant more than who they were behind the masks

But recently, as in the last two weeks, Chat Noir had become strangely impatient and persistent that they should reveal themselves to one another. He was also hiding something from her because every time she asked what was wrong or what he was thinking whenever she caught him staring at her oddly her would quickly look away and blurt out 'nothing!' in the most unconvincing voice.

She already had one boy acting weird in her life. Adrien had suddenly taken to staring at her all the time with the weirdest expressions on his face, and jumping whenever she got to close, and blushing and stammering. She was struggling trying to figure out what that meant (as she was sure it didn't mean he suddenly realised she was the one for him. Life wasn't that kind to her) that she didn't need the other most important boy in her life to start acting weirdly.

"Just really think about it, Ladybug," Chat said persuasively, "if we know who the other is behind the mask we could strategize together in our free time, we could arrange alternative ways to contact one another when we're out of costume, and we will be a-"

"NO! I said no, Kitty!" she exploded. Her temper finally lost to her frustration and irritation that he couldn't take no for an answer. "Read. My. Lips." She enunciated loudly and clearly. "N. O. it means no as in no wa – Meep!"

Ladybug staggered back into the brick wall behind her as Chat Noir suddenly invaded her personal space. His arms had caged her in as he leaned in closely. His big, beautiful, green eyes zoomed onto her face making it impossible for her to look anywhere else.

She could feel her cheeks burn under the scrutiny as her treacherous heart raced at full speed, her hands suddenly felt clammy beneath her gloves, and her stomach lurched at the possibilities.

When Chat gently brushed a stray lock of her hair behind her ear, she had to really bite down on her bottom lip to prevent a sigh from escaping. Her body, however, didn't seem to get the message as her skin tingled with delight as Chat softly dragged his leather gloved fingers against her cheek.

"Ch-Ch-Chat!" she stammered out pathetically. Her frustration, and anger at his inability to drop the identity reveal and her own confidence and determination at keeping the secret suddenly vanished as she found herself completely lost beneath the intense, smouldering, gaze that Chat was giving her mouth. "W-W-What are you d-d-d-doing?!"

His fingers had now reached her lips as he gently traced their shape. "I'm reading your lips," he purred seductively, his thumb had flicked out to brush her bottom lip which caused her heart to almost leap out of her chest from the sensation of it all. "And do you know what they're telling me?"

Wordlessly, her voice seemingly lost forever, she shook her head.

He leaned in close, his lips mere millimetres away from the shell of her ear. His hot breath tickled against her skin sending a lightning-bolt shiver down her spine. "They're telling me," He murmured huskily in her ear, "that you want me to kiss them, Marinette."

Her knees buckled beneath her.

"….Guh!"