Chapter 12

CHAT NOIR VERSES ADRIEN AGRESTE?

The stoic female assistant was quiet as Marinette descended the staircase for school. Her finger scrolling through the pad in her arms, she hardly looked up as she said, "Don't forget the photoshoot tomorrow, Adrien."

"I won't," Marinette replied meekly, nervousness swirling inside - before she remembered. Stopping on the first landing, she pressed her lips together, twisting Adrien's silver ring on her finger.

"Hey, um… Nathalie?"

"Hm."

"I, uh, I have other lunch plans today, so I won't need to be picked up during break."

That caught the assistant's attention. Unfeeling eyes flicking over Marinette, she gave her a thin stare before turning back to the electronic pad.

"I will put this on your calendar for your father to approve. You will receive a confirmation notice shortly."

Confirmation notice? Put on the calendar? Green eyes danced around the cold room and she involuntarily shivered. Steel grey, black tile. Turning to look over her shoulder, the portrait of expressionless Adrien and his equally unfeeling father sent chills down her spine.

Cold - superciliously controlled and restricted. Compared to the warm bakery, the sweet smell of pastries and laughter, Adrien's lavished mansion was empty and quiet as a cell.

Yet Adrien was so warm. So kind.

Head down, eyes on the patterned flooring, she hurried out the front door, entered the backseat of the car, and let out a sigh of relief. A flood of warmth pooled inside her stomach and she ran a tan finger against the old lucky charm in her jean pocket.

Plagg had said he'd kept it close. She hoped he'd gotten some comfort from it.

Such a small gesture, easy on her part, treasured on his.

Another buzz from the phone in her pocket and Marinette sighed. The Ladyblog was still exploding with Marichat fever: yet another thing she'd have to figure out how to fix.

Not that she was worried. It would be more of an inconvenience if anything. She just had to stay away from him while she was Chat Noir, right? Everything would die down eventually. The blog would move on to some other topic and that would be that.

Or maybe…

A bud of a plan suddenly blossomed. As the idea grew, she felt a taste of her old Ladybug confidence settle on her shoulders. Back straightening against the leather seat, she thought this through. Perhaps she could take matters into her own hands. Dissolve this Marichat nonsense once and for all. Adrien would be grateful, and they'd be one step closer to being the team they'd always been.

She just had to make sure she phrased it right.

Also - no shouting.

"You're planning something," Plagg whispered interestedly from her jacket. Marinette let out a thin squeak, her eyes crunching angrily at the kwami.

"Hush, Plagg! The driver can probably hear you!" she hissed, blond hair sweeping into her eyes. Marinette glanced worriedly at the rearview mirror.

So far, the giant man hadn't looked back - or changed expression at all, really.

"You have that look on your face Adrien gets when he sneaks out of his room. Whatcha got planned?" he asked.

"It doesn't concern you, so get back in my pocket!"

"I guess I'll have to wait and see. Who'd have thought you two switching bodies would be so entertaining?"

"Yeah, glad you're having a good time with it," she sighed bitterly, tucking him in the jacket. The phone vibrated, and she pulled it out to see "Lunch Approved" on it.

Well, that was one concern down.

Now she just had to fix everything else in her life.

Her plan had to work.

It just had to.

"I should've stayed home today," he groaned softly at the phone's screen before shutting it off. Waiting at the stoplight, the cars rushing past whipped the loose raven hairs from his messy pigtails.

Despite the delicious breakfast of toasted almond croissants spread with apricot jelly, the food hadn't done much to settle the churn of worry inside. Even Sabine's serene presence, which was usually such a natural comfort for him, hadn't been enough. Keeping quiet, he'd avoided Marinette's kind parents with one word answers and ate quickly.

"Aren't you going to lunch with Marinette?" Tikki chimed curiously from the purse.

"I am, but that doesn't mean I have to go to school, right?"

"Keeping up appearances is the best chance of blending in. I promise, Adrien. I know it doesn't look like it, but the more you two live each other's lives, the better everything will be. Marinette needs you to be her and that means going to school. Besides, Alya would be suspicious if you skipped. She needs you to mend her sweater, remember?"

"And let's not forget I'm the Ladyblog's new hot topic," he added sourly.

"That is… an unfortunate prefix to the situation, yes," the kwami agreed quietly.

He was two steps up to the school's front doors before-

"There you are, girl!"

Adrien released a short bracing sigh before screwing on a tight smile. Straightening the pink bag on his small shoulder, he turned to the redhead racing up to meet him. Clutching her phone in her hand, her amber eyes glimmering mischievously behind her thick glasses: it was the look of journalistic trouble. Looping her arm through Adrien's, she escorted him through the school doors with her head held high like a queen.

His face flushed.

Immediate whispers, giggles, eyes pricking at him like needles, phones chiming in a chorus of notifications.

This was bad.

"Everyone is going insane over this Chat Noir business."

"Chat Noir nonsense, more like," he said dryly, blue eyes flicking from one chuckling face to the next.

"He kissed your hand. And called you 'princess'. And head over to your house just to thank you. And-"

"I get it, Alya. He gave me special attention one time and now suddenly Paris is going nuts over it." He rolled his eyes.

The reporter's expression turned thoughtful - and suspicious. "You know, you're pretty harsh on the Marichat, girl."

Adrien scoffed. "Why shouldn't I be? This is completely ridiculous! Me? With Chat Noir? As a couple?"

Alya shrugged. "It's not the worst thing in the world. Having a rumor that a superhero likes you might not be as bad as you'd think."

The look of incredulousness made the redhead pity smile.

"Alright, girl, you need to look at the bigger picture," she said, eyes flipping to something over Adrien's head.

"What picture?"

"This might help someone else notice what's been in front of him all along."

Adrien scoffed. "Like who?"

"Hey, Marinette." His own voice broke over the back of his neck and Adrien felt his limbs freeze.

She was here.

Words tangled in his throat and he attempted to straighten them before turning to her. Catching kind green eyes, he was relieved to see his normal white jacket and black t-shirt attire on his body.

"A-Adrien!" He stumbled. "Hi! How-how, um, how are you doing?"

"I'm… fine?" Eyebrows lifting curiously at him, she cleared her throat and her shoulders squared. "I need to talk to you, Marinette - privately."

"I'll just be…" Alya pointed at the staircase - not before shooting Adrien a quick thumbs up.

Cheeks touched with a blush, he glanced back up to see her taking a slow, deep breath.

"I have a plan," she announced quietly.

"You do?"

"I think I know how to take care of this 'Marichat' issue."

He leaned closer - relief beginning to grow inside. "How?"

"Just… just follow my lead." She suddenly grinned brightly, very reminiscent of her Chat Noir bravado, and both hands rose to snag his shoulders.

"Hello, Marinette!" Her voice carried across the school, catching the attention of every student in the vicinity.

Adrien squeaked. Fear, nerves, and something unidentifiable clenched his stomach tightly.

"Wait - what are you-"

"I want to ask you out on a date!"

Several phones clattered to the ground.

Adrien's voice echoed much louder than she wanted, rocking against the stone walls of the large courtyard. It was quiet. Still. Like the hush before a gathering tsunami.

And then-

"Adrien Agreste just asked Chat Noir's girlfriend on a date!"

Marinette's heart dropped as shrilling screams, clicks of phones, bodies of students rushed towards the pair of them. Confusion, pandemonium, mass chaos. Green eyes tossing from one chattering, excitable face to the next, she looked back at Adrien - only to see he was frozen in utter disbelief. Mouth hanging, eye twitching, hands limp at his side, he looked like he was ready to faint.

"I m-mean, if you are available-" she added, but her words were covered up with screeching-

"Adrien Agreste asked out Marinette!"

"He is moving in on Chat Noir's territory-"

"I can't believe it!"

"You've got guts, man!"

"Chat Noir is going to kill him-!"

"He won't kill him! He's a superhero! They don't kill people!"

"But he'll fight for her affections-!"

"A superhero or a supermodel!"

"Oh, my God! She gets all the boys!"

A hand grabbed her arm, yanking her out of the crowd and away from her partner. Instantly, Adrien was swallowed up by the sea of classmates. Reaching, fingers still stretched for glimpse of raven hair, she let out a small cry as the hand gripped her tighter.

Turning, she spied a blue t-shirt and red cap.

"Nino!"

"Come on, dude!"

Letting herself get dragged across the courtyard, up the stairs - half the crowd hovering around Adrien and the other half following her up to the second floor - she finally got her thoughts collected as Nino pulled her into the boy's bathroom and pressed his back against the door.

The yells were still loud outside, muffled, but it was at least quiet enough to hear: "Are you mad, bro!?"

Nino's eyes were wild behind his glasses. Mouth open, head slowly shaking, Adrien's best friend stared at her as if she were a stranger.

"What are you thinking asking out Marinette like that?"

"I-I…" The words were sticking like glue.

"Have you read the internet this morning? Marinette is practically Chat Noir's property, man!"

"Marinette is no one's property!" She snapped back sharply, the indignation finally loosening her tongue. "Least of all Chat Noir's!"

"That's what the blog's been reporting." Nino let out a long breath, his eyes closing tightly. Crossing his arms, his mouth was a tense line. "This was seriously the worst timing ever, dude. If you liked Marinette, you should have told me and we could have planned something. Like what you did with me at the zoo."

"I'd rather take matters into my own hands." She scowled, stuffing her hands into her jeans defiantly. "And what do you mean 'the zoo'-?

"You can't tell me your spacing on that as well! You helped me with Marinette, remember? That turned out alright for me getting locked in the cage with Alya, but I don't see things going well for you. You don't know Chat Noir, man. I've seen him in action against the akumas." Nino bit his lip, a secret flashing behind his topaz eyes. "He's someone you can't win against."

"Chat Noir doesn't like Marinette!" she cried. "This is all just a misunderstanding!"

"And how do you know that? You weren't there! Alya told me what happened! Chat Noir was practically all over her yesterday!"

"What!? No, I-" The rest of the sentence was thankfully trapped as her lips snapped shut. Yes, she'd screwed up being Chat Noir, but this was supposed to fix it! If Adrien asked Marinette out publicly then people would concentrate on that instead, right? The entire infatuation with Marichat would be showcased as slander and they could move on with their lives!

Head falling forward, she groaned.

"It's alright, dude. We'll think of something." Nino stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "If you really like Marinette that much then… I'll help you stand up to Chat Noir."

That caught her attention.

"Help me?" she stumbled, eyes widening. "You mean like fight?"

"Not fight!" Nino quickly shook his head. "We'll get killed! Besides, Chat Noir is a cool dude. He wouldn't want to fight you. I'll back you up when he realizes he has competition."

"But he doesn't have competition!" she cried.

"But you said you liked Marinette."

"I do!"

"So how is this not a competition?"

"Because Chat Noir doesn't-"

Nino's phone dinged, cutting off her rebuttal. Likewise, Adrien's phone vibrated in her pocket. Reaching into the white jacket for the device - heart in her throat, fingers trembling slightly - she caught a glimpse of Plagg's glittering green eyes before turning to the phone's lit up screen.

"Who are you going to choose?-"

"Marinette, we're best friends, right?-"

"Obviously, she'll choose Chat Noir! He's a superhero!"

"But Adrien actually asked her out!"

"Whichever one she doesn't choose, I'll happily take the leftovers!"

"I bet Chat Noir is so angry right now!"

"Agreste moving in on his turf-"

"I bet they'll duke it out!"

"And hurt Adrien's beautiful face? I hope not!"

He walked as one condemned, Marinette's pink flats tripping up slightly on the stairs.

Around the hall.

Past the art room.

Into the open door for his homeroom class.

The crowd of schoolmates followed behind him like bees to a flower - buzzing and jittering excitedly. Many were taking pictures of him. At least four recorded his silent walk. Brushing past the threshold, Adrien's stomach twisted painfully. Despite the early hour, half his class was already there - staring at their phones in slack-jawed awe.

In the back, Rose clicked on her screen and Adrien's voice was heard saying: "Hello, Marinette! I want to ask you out on a date!"

As one, all eyes left their screens to stare at him.

Marinette's phone chose that moment to beep and he pulled it out slowly from the purse. Tikki's small face was lighted with worry inside the pink pouch. He gave her a strangled half-smile before blue eyes landed on the notification.

"Forum - Subject - Sub-Category - Polling: MARICHATS! CAST YOUR VOTES: CHAT NOIR VERSUS ADRIEN AGRESTE!"

In the span of him walking up the stairs to class, a voting poll had started.

And Chat Noir was winning by over 200 votes already.

Huh.

"Girl! Someone made it!" Alya started, her eyes full of panic. She stood up from her seat to join his side. "I'm trying to take the poll down-"

"There he is!" Someone shrieked over his shoulder and he glanced down the hallway with deadpan eyes. Amidst the catcalls and excited chatter, the crowd parted like the sea: to showcase Adrien Agreste.

With Nino attempting to lead her by the arm, Marinette stopped short and, to Adrien's horror, she looked like she was about to cry. Lips pressed tightly, chin trembling, cheeks blooming red, the blond hair fell over green eyes and she ducked her head further to her chest. Releasing Nino's grip with a nudge, she swiftly hurried for the relative safety of the classroom.

Brushing past, he caught the faint, "I'm sorry," before she ran to his seat, dropped his bag, and buried her face in her arms.

It doesn't matter - the revelation hit him sharply.

It gave him strength.

It doesn't matter.

Chat Noir, Adrien Agreste. Ladybug, Marinette Dupain-Cheng. It didn't matter. They were one and the same. A unit. And if people wanted to talk - let them. If people wanted to judge - he was used to it. She was crumbling, but he was here.

And he'd take care of her.

Gentle Marinette - who selflessly knitted him a scarf, gave him her lucky charm, and was by his side whenever he needed a friend.

Confident Ladybug - who saved his butt more times than he could count, always had a trick up her sleeve, and would never back down - even if it cost her everything.

Leaving Alya at the doorway, he clutched the beeping phone tightly - which was still counting votes - and trekked the short pathway to her messy golden hair. The crowd, their classmates - even Alya - sucked in a collective breath, waiting - watching - tense.

"Hey, you asked me on a date, right?" he said, fishing for his most genuine model smile. It came easier than expected, spreading on his lips happily.

Marinette's head whipped up to stare at him in shock. Slowly, she nodded. Reaching with gentle fingers, he boldly tucked the blond strands of hair behind her ears, nails slightly scratching that one simple spot on the back of her jaw. Pupils dilating, throat swallowing down the purr, the beginnings of a smile were creeping on her lips.

"Adrien - I'd love to go on a date with you."

All around them were screams, some cheers, many cries of dismay-

But to Marinette and Adrien, Ladybug and Chat Noir, one and the same…

It was a moment they hadn't known they'd been waiting for.