I wanted to clarify that Marinette's secret identity scenario here is inspired by emblian's hair dye AU gifs on Tumblr (where Marinette's natural hair is black & her eyes are grey, and both turn blue when she becomes Ladybug).

I also eliminated Marinette's crush on Luka because her life is complicated enough in this AU.

Prompts: Innocent and The Press

Chapter 2

Marinette bounded into class on Wednesday with a wide smile. Alya wouldn't be there because of a big project, but the members of Kitty Section were finally back, and she couldn't wait to see them.

When she arrived, they were being bombarded by her fellow classmates. Marinette laughed when Rose spotted her and launched herself forward at light-speed. Marinette caught the exuberant blonde and hugged her close.

"Marinette! I'm so happy to see you!" Rose squealed.

"It's been so long!" Marinette said, squeezing Rose tightly.

"Like forever," Juleka said, hovering over Rose's left shoulder as if she wanted to be close, but wasn't quite comfortable initiating a group hug.

It was true. Their touring schedules didn't line up, so Marinette hadn't seen the members of Kitty Section in months. She hadn't even run into them as Ladybug, which was odd since they were signed to the same record label.

Rose guided Marinette over to where their other classmates were gathered and presented her like a trophy. Ivan gave her a fist bump and Luka mussed her hair playfully.

Marinette pouted and smoothed it back down.

"Hey, Marinette! Long time, no see," he said with a bright smile.

Luka Coffaine had the unique ability to evoke a sense of calm in most everyone he encountered. His laid back personality allowed him to befriend people no one else would ever be able to reach, and Marinette really admired that about him.

"Hey! How was the summer tour?" Marinette asked.

"Great. Yours?" He asked.

Marinette giggled, "Probably a lot less exciting! It wasn't a tour, I was interning at the fashion label in London all summer."

Luka shrugged, "I'm sure you were great."

"Why is no one paying attention to me?" A shrill voice demanded.

Marinette didn't need to turn around to know who that voice belonged to. The temperature of the room dropped a few degrees, and her classmates lapsed into uneasy silence.

Chloe Bourgeois marched into the middle of the room with an angry scowl. Her expression changed the instant she spotted the members of Kitty Section.

"Oh, it's you," she said, feigning disinterest.

Luka waved at her, and Chloe made her way over as if it were some sort of chore. She stood before the members of Kitty Section and inspected her fingernails.

"I suppose your tour wasn't absolutely horrible," she said.

Rose giggled, "We'll take that as a compliment."

Chloe scoffed, "Good, because it's the closest thing to a compliment you'll get."

Marinette rolled her eyes.

"Did you get the invitation to our End of Summer bash?" Luka asked Chloe, patient as usual.

Kitty Section had invited the entire class and a myriad of famous musicians. It was gearing up to be a high profile party, and Chloe would be daft to turn down an invitation.

Chloe flashed a sickly sweet smile. "Of course! I wouldn't miss it," she said.

The whole class murmured their assent. After all, it wasn't every day they got invited to an event of that caliber.

"What about you, Marinette?" Luka asked.

Marinette shifted nervously. Ladybug had gotten an invitation too, so Marinette obviously couldn't attend.

"I wish I could, but I have a really busy weekend!" she said. It wasn't a lie. She was always busy.

"Aww! I wish you could come! We'll miss you," Rose said, all sincerity.

"I won't," Chloe snapped.

Marinette was sure that was sincere too.

Luka gave her a warm smile. "That's okay! There's always next time," he said.

Nino arrived just before Ms. Bustier did, and the class scrambled to get into their seats. Once seated, their teacher greeted them warmly.

"Good morning, class! And welcome back," she said, nodding toward the newly filled desks.

"Before we get started, I'd like to talk a bit about professionalism. As a class, let's discuss how to conduct ourselves in a manner that commands respect. As young professionals, I'm sure you've learned some great things," Ms. Bustier said.

"Simple. You put people in their place. That's how it's done in the professional world," Chloe said with a flip of her hair.

"That's an…interesting perspective, Chloe," Ms. Bustier said with a strained smile.

Marinette straightened up in her seat.

"Actually, if there's anything I've learned from working at Papillon Records, it's that the best way to command respect is to treat others with respect." Marinette said.

"Oh don't act like you're so high and mighty, Marinette," Chloe spat. "You and your little design internship at Papillon Records are a joke. If you were a real professional like the rest of us, you'd be working at a proper fashion house."

Marinette growled in frustration and opened her mouth to release a scathing retort, but Nino's steadying hand on her shoulder diverted her attention. Marinette took a centering breath.

"Marinette is a real professional, Chloe. Everyone here has different perspectives, and diversity is a wonderful thing. Please try to be more considerate," Ms, Bustier said in a disapproving tone.

Max glanced up from his current robotic project to glare in Chloe's direction.

"If Marinette were not a professional, she would not qualify this class," he said matter-of-factly.

Chloe pursed her lips and turned away, "Whatever."

…

"Kitty Section's party is next Saturday," Plagg said in a bored tone.

"I'm not going," Adrien said, eyes focused on the sheet music he'd been staring at for the past two hours.

He played a few chords on the keyboard and huffed in annoyance when they still didn't seem right.

Plagg raised an eyebrow at him in question. Adrien did his best to ignore the way Plagg's eyes were boring into the back of his skull, but he could feel his resolve slipping. That look never ceased to get under Adrien's skin.

"What?" Adrien demanded.

"Well, you've finally managed to surprise me," Plagg said.

Adrien scoffed and crossed his arms defensively.

"The chords weren't that bad," Adrien argued.

Plagg shook his head.

"Not that. You get a golden opportunity to get outta here and party with your friends, and you turn it down?" Plagg said with a dry laugh. "You've gotta be the weirdest kid I've ever met."

Adrien rolled his eyes and scribbled out a line of the song he was working on.

"I don't have any friends," Adrien said evenly.

He positioned his fingers over the keys and played another few chords.

"Well, according to the press, you do. We need the publicity," Plagg said.

Adrien struck the wrong key.

"I have enough publicity," Adrien said with a carefully neutral face.

"Let me clarify. You need good publicity." Plagg said with a roll of his eyes.

Adrien laughed humorlessly. "I thought you said any publicity is good publicity?"

Plagg grinned.

"Oh, but imagine the speculation about why you didn't show up," he said.

Adrien caught his drift and sighed. "It could be bad for Kitty Section," he surmised.

"Bingo. That's why you're showing your face at that party whether you like it or not. Sneak out the back door if you have to, but do not mess this up for them," Plagg said, a threat in his voice.

Adrien weighed his options. Of all the people he could be stuck with, he supposed Kitty Section wasn't the worst. Actually, their parties tended to be much more authentic than the usual events he was forced to attend. It wouldn't be too terrible to make a quick appearance.

"Fine, I'll go to the stupid party," he said.

"Good." Plagg clapped Adrien on the back and walked out of the studio, whistling cheerfully. At least he closed the door that time.

Adrien shook his head and repositioned his hands over the keyboard. Oddly enough, the rest of the melody came much more easily than before.

…

It was a Friday night and Marinette had been in the studio working on her songs for almost ten hours. Nino had fallen asleep under the sound board and Alya was only semi conscious where she sat beside Marinette on the couch. Marinette scrubbed her burning eyes and checked the clock. It was 4:35 in the morning.

"You ready to call it a night?" Alya asked through a yawn.

Marinette shook her head.

"I'm in the zone," she said.

"If you say so," Alya replied, looking rather skeptical.

Truthfully, it didn't do much good to be in the zone when she couldn't keep her eyes focused anymore. Marinette had been stuck on the bridge of this particular song for a good while.

Alya's head dipped as she lost consciousness and began to teeter toward the floor. The girl jerked awake with a scowl and sat up straight again.

Marinette resisted a laugh at her friend's exhausted state.

"You can go to sleep if you want. I've got a few blankets stored in the coffee table," Marinette offered.

"I'm gonna do that. If you're gonna stay up, you should take a walk or something," Alya suggested.

"Good idea," Marinette said, rising to give Alya the whole couch.

Marinette sincerely doubted anyone would be out and about at such an odd hour, but it was better to err on the side of caution. Though her cover story justified "Marinette's" presence at Papillon Records most of the time, a fashion design intern had no business accessing the studios after business hours. She had to be Ladybug to roam the halls in the wee hours of the morning.

Marinette tucked her hair into her wig cap and pulled her wig on with practiced ease. She'd never taken out the blue contacts she wore to the studio that morning, so that wasn't something she needed to worry about. She did a quick check in the mirror and frowned at the contrast between the tidy wig and her haggard appearance. She mussed her wig a bit and exited the studio.

Ladybug closed the door as quietly as possible, careful not to disturb the sleeping occupants. She began walking aimlessly through the halls before she remembered that the vending machine on the third floor had bottled cold coffee.

Ladybug set a course for the third floor, tapping her foot impatiently as she waited for the elevator. The mirrored doors began to open with a beep, and she squeezed through the little space before they were even fully open.

To her immense surprise, the elevator was not empty. Her foggy brain took a little while to recognize him because he was usually a lot more put together, but the person standing there was definitely Adrien Agreste.

Those unmistakable green eyes narrowed in disdain and Ladybug briefly considered stepping right back out of the elevator. She was much too tired to deal with him.

But then it would take her longer to get the coffee, and he would think he'd intimidated her.

"Ladybug," he said by way of greeting.

Adrien Agreste had a way of saying her name that was somehow both dismissive and venomous. It actually reminded her a lot of the way Chloe said "Marinette Dupain-Cheng".

Ladybug ignored him and turned to press the button, only to realize that the elevator was already headed to the third floor. She leaned against the back of the elevator as it slid shut and began to move. Adrien was busy scrolling on his phone, so she snuck a peek at him out of curiosity.

He wore baggy joggers, old orange sneakers, and a black v-neck that was so faded it was actually grey. The little bit of blond hair that peeked out from under his hat was a tangled mess. She'd never seen him so disheveled. He almost looked like a normal teenager.

Ladybug felt the stirrings of compassion sparking in her heart, but the scowl he sent when he caught her staring snuffed them out.

"Can't keep your eyes off of me?" He taunted.

Normally, a comment like that would spark an argument, but Ladybug didn't have the energy for it. Actually, he didn't seem very energetic either.

"You look awful," Ladybug said.

It was true. There were dark circles under his eyes and his skin was pallid.

"Right back at ya," he shot back, smirking when her mouth twisted down in anger.

"Ugh, you're so- so…" Ladybug scrambled for words to characterize the thorn in her side.

"Handsome? Talented? Charming?" He supplied, ticking the words off on his fingers.

"Infuriating!" Ladybug corrected him with a huff.

Adrien's insufferable grin stayed in place while he leaned forward as if sharing a secret.

"I guess that's one thing we have in common, Bug," he whispered.

Ladybug rolled her eyes and prayed that they would arrive on the third floor soon.

"I heard your songs were garbage. I suppose that's why you're here at four in the morning on a Saturday," Adrien said, as if he were talking about the weather.

Ladybug glared at him.

"They're not garbage. They just needed revisions," she said, crossing her arms defensively.

"Uninspired," Adrien said, raising his hands to make air quotes.

Ladybug blinked in surprise.

"I was there, you know. I heard what he said." Adrien said, eyes hard in a way that reminded her of his father.

"Then what are you doing here at four in the morning on a Saturday?" She challenged.

Something indecipherable flashed in his eyes before he settled on his signature smirk.

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

The elevator finally opened and he gestured to the door.

"After you," he said cooly, as if he hadn't just been antagonizing Ladybug.

She stepped out with a sniff and turned left toward the vending machine. Forget Adrien Agreste and his perpetually sour mood, the cold coffee was calling her name.

It took her a second to realize that they were both walking in the same direction. She narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

"Are you going to the vending machine?" She asked.

Adrien sighed wearily, "I need coffee."

"Same here," Ladybug said.

They stopped in front of the machine, and Ladybug's blood ran cold. There was only one cold coffee left.

Adrien seemed to realize it at the same time, and suddenly they were racing to dig the change out of their pockets. Adrien found his first and lunged for the machine, but Ladybug swatted the money out of his hand before he could fit it in the slot.

She finally procured the money from her pocket while he stooped to snatch his own off the ground.

Adrien hip checked her, but it wasn't enough to throw her off course. She grabbed hold of the machine with her left hand while he tried his hardest to wedge himself between her and the slot. Ladybug strained to push her other arm past him.

She finally shoved her money into the slot with a triumphant shout, and Adrien huffed in frustration. Ladybug snatched the coffee from the machine's dispenser with gusto and waved it tauntingly as she marched back toward the elevator.

Adrien followed her, so she tightened her grip on the coffee and eyed him with distrust.

"I get it. You won fair and square, Ladybug," Adrien said, expression softening as he stepped forward.

She raised a skeptical eyebrow, "Really?"

"You probably need it more. I mean, this is your first time pulling a long night," he said, voice dropping pleasantly as he reached out and trailed his fingers over the back of Ladybug's hand. She stiffened at the unexpected contact, and he flashed her a disarming smile.

"I mean, if either of us deserves the last coffee…" he said softly.

Ladybug's traitorous heart leapt in her chest at the hypnotic intensity in his beautiful green eyes. His fingers wrapped around hers and her head felt like it was spinning.

"It's me," he finished, flashing an impish smile as he slipped the drink from her hand and disappeared behind the closing elevator doors.

"Ugh! You stole my coffee, you jerk!" She exclaimed, stomping her foot childishly.

Stupid Adrien Agreste, with his stupid smile, and his stupid green eyes.

He was infuriating.

And if he thought she would forget about his coffee theft, he was dead wrong.