Author Note: I do not own Miraculous, or any of the characters contained within the show. Any other characters referenced are of my own creation and are of my own design. The story is original, but it references other episodes.

I've watched 'The Puppeteer 2' a few more times, and I'm convinced Marinette was going to confess to Adrien in the car when she was apologizing, but he cut her off prematurely, this is my own theory.

Other than that, this story WILL be taking a leap forward in years (over a few chapters), but I hope you enjoy this steamy/dramatic Marichat story. Have a great day!

Chapter One: The Thread The Moirai Snip

Adrien glanced over his shoulder for, what felt like, the millionth time during their short class period. Marinette avoided him continuously, her behavior increasingly erratic since their close encounter at the wax museum with Manon…Puppeteer.

On their journey home, when the apologies were being made, she was absolute in assuring him that their friendship was fine, but…but something had changed. Now, the blue-haired friend couldn't even glance in his direction. He was almost confident nothing else had soured between them, but the first time he saw her following their apology, had been in class, and she was notably skirting his presence. Now, a week later, he was adamant it was solely him and not an encompassing behavior.

"Is everything okay with Marinette?" Adrien's voice was barely a hoarse whisper as he leaned closer to his best friend, Nino.

"S'far as I know dude," the youth countered easily without affording the blonde a glance. "I mean, her and Ayla have been spending enormous amounts of girl time together, but that isn't really that unusual," he continued, scribbling notes on his worksheet as Ms. Bustier talked.

Adrien's emerald eyes shifted to catch a glimpse of the girl once more, but she was pointedly staring in the opposite direction. She didn't even bother to try to pretend she was paying attention to what the teacher was spewing. To be honest, he wasn't either. Something about Marinette ignoring him made his insides twist with an indescribable discomfort, leaving him nigh breathless.

Of course, he knew why he felt this way. She was one of his closest friends. He would never want any discord between them. Marinette was the glue that forged their group of friends into a cohesive bond, and letting her feel down about something he couldn't even put a name to just felt wrong. However, since she was avoiding him, how would he get her to open up about what was causing her hesitation and turmoil?

***POV Change***

"Marinette," Adrien called gently from behind her, but the blunette visibly started, stumbling as her pace quickened around the corner to disappear. She wasn't ready to face him.

Marinette knew that avoiding him was only causing problems that could otherwise be resolved by sucking it up, but each time she caught site of Adrien her heart contracted into a painfully tight knot of sorrow.

I know. I'm not good with jokes. The girl I'm in love with doesn't like them either.

The words kept replaying, over and over in her mind, creating a continuous vacuum of agony and depression in the recesses of her stammering mind. To think, just a moment earlier…she had almost confessed to him that she truly liked him.

I'm sorry, I shouldn't have kissed the statue, but I didn't know it was you. And if I had, it wouldn't have been a prank because I—

Adrien cut off her confession with his own apology, but her commitment to go through with it wavered with the conversation, and finally, those brutal words killed any resolve she had left. The girl I'm in love with.

Just the thought made the backs of her brilliant blue orbs prick with fresh tears as she rushed to the nearest hiding place. She shoved the girl's bathroom door open, vanishing behind the definitive barrier to escape the man she loved.

The girl I'm in love with.

"Oh, Tikki, I'm such a mess," she admitted before emitting a soft sob. She awaited the Kwami's reassuring presence, but Marinette frowned when the crimson being didn't zoom out to comfort her.

Another voice yanked a yelp free from the bluenette's lips. "What's a Tikki? Who are you talking to girl?" Ayla, her best friend in the entire world, approached cautiously from the entrance. "Has the pressure of school finally cracked your brain?" She offered a half smile.

"N-no," she blurted, wiping furiously at her face. "I just, I was talking to my uh—"

Alya crossed her arms, quirking one of her brows in quiet analysis. "This has to do with Adrien. You haven't been yourself since the trip to the wax museum, so spill it."

Marinette chewed her lower lip, a fresh wave of torture ensnaring her already brittle heart, and she shook her head sharply. "I can't, it's too awful."

Ayla stepped closer, her strong hand gripping her friend's shoulder. "Did he hurt you?"

The implications and surprise in her tone were enough to spin the blue-haired heroine in her direction. She knew what Alya was thinking, and she shook her head rapidly. "N-n-no, nothing like that." Her friend gave an unconvinced look. "I s-swear! He doesn't even know w-w-what he did, and I can't f-face him," she sobbed again.

"Oh, girl, I'm sorry," Alya's voice softened, pulling her into a hug. "We'll get through it, I promise. No matter what it is, we can face it together. You'll always have me," she cooed. This only pulled stronger sobs from the bluenette. She was lucky to have such a loyal friend.

***That Evening***

Marinette flung her small bag onto her bed with no regard for the living creature within. It wasn't that she didn't care about Tikki, but her mind was raging and her soul was splintering into needled fragments of agony.

"Ow!" The red Kwami emerged, almost cautiously, from the gaping zipper of her pink bag.

Marinette all but cringed, a bright crimson flushing her cheeks with the guilt that bubbled up inside of her chest. "Sorry, Tikki," she murmured. "I'm just so…so…" her fingers grasped at the empty air, physically clawing for the word she wanted to form with her soft lips.

"Angry?" Tikki tilted her head as she floated closer, pawing at her owner's cheek. "Scared?" She lowered her bright ancient eyes, averting them. "Hurt?"

The bluenette gasped, trying to delay the sob building within the confines of her being, but the pain twisted her heart with such fresh vigor, that she slid to the floor of her room, dropping her forehead against the edge of her bed. "Y-yes," she whispered, defeated. "I know you told me to have hope," she admitted, a sob escaping. "But he loves someone else, and I will never be worthy of him."

Crystalline sorrow flowed freely down her cheeks, and her bluebell eyes slowly became outlined with angry pink lines as the torture grew, wracking her tiny body with each wretched sound.

Tikki cringed, but the Kwami stayed close by her face, patting, soothing, even cooing in reassurance as the secret heroine suffered through her teenage problems. Another heart clenching cry edged up her throat, but before it could escape, a sound pulled her attention to the skylight.

It was hard to see through the wavering world her tears created, but she swore she saw the shadowy figure of her partner. Well, Ladybug's partner. "Ch-chat?" Marinette rubbed angrily at her scarlet blotched face, scrambling to her feet. The red Kwami had already made herself scarce, and Marinette wondered, albeit, briefly, how soon Tikki had noticed him before herself.

She plastered a fake smile across her normally easily cheerful face, inching towards the entrance. In reality, the portal was already cracked open, but she thought, perhaps, he was trying to be respectful of her privacy, not wanting to jump in on her when she was vulnerable.

She watched his lazy movements as he swung into her room, his Cheshire grin nowhere to be found. "Princess?"

The singular word shouldn't have held so much meaning, or emotion, but it trickled along the air, her lower lip wobbled uncontrollably. She was NOT going to cry in front of Chat Noir, no matter the circumstance. After all, she was a big strong heroine, too.

"I'm fine," she insisted.

"Your tears would suggest otherwise," he stated flatly, reaching a clawed hand towards her face.

Marinette jerked away, not from fear or disgust, but for her own humility. She didn't want to be soothed by anyone. Especially not by him. "I'm fine," she hissed. "What are you even doing here?"

Their relationship, as a crime fighting duo, had always been light and flirtatious. Chat had even declared his admiration for Ladybug on more than one occasion that she could recall. She had never been particularly mean in shutting him down, but she had always rejected him. How did she deserve his comfort in the exact same situation? The simple answer was, she didn't. It was almost like the fates were delivering their ironic sense of justice.

"I was passing by on patrol, and I heard your cries." He shifted an inch closer. "Princess." He repeated the affectionate term, but this time, his tone held a lot more authority, and his fingers pried at her chin until she was staring up into his vibrant cat eyes. Had they always been so beautiful?

"No, Chat!" Marinette felt another emotion mingling with the agony, something stronger, something worth snagging. Her metaphysical fingers clasped tightly around the vivid anger coursing through her veins, and she immediately felt stronger, confident. It might have been an illusion of her grief, but she clutched onto it, desperately. "I am fine!"

"Puuurrrincess," he tried, his tone softer now, and she felt the vibrations off his chest riding the air as he literally purred the term at her. The concern in his voice didn't do her any favors.

"No!" She screamed, slamming her fists against his solid chest. Of course, she knew better than anyone the armor they wore was more than mere leather. Even with her strength, she knew she couldn't hurt him, but he still stumbled back a step, looking taken aback, but only for a moment.

"Princess," he whispered.

"No!" She slammed her fists into his chest as he gathered closer again, but this time, he seemed ready. His body never wavered, and she pounded at him again. He didn't move to stop her, he didn't try to fight her, and he murmured her pet name again, just to set her off. "Stop saying that! I'm not a princess, I'm nobody's princess!" The tears sprung free from her angry eyes, spilling freely down her face. "I'll always just be stupid, clumsy, plain Marinette," she sobbed, hitting his shoulder weakly with a closed fist.

All of her anger drained immediately, and her knees buckled under the weight of her exhaustion. Chat caught her, slowly lowering her to the floor as he slid to his knees. "I don't know who would make you feel plain, but Mari, you are NOT plain, I promise."

The bluenette dropped her face against his shoulder, sobbing. "He's in love with someone else," she grumbled between blubbering hiccups. "Of course he's in love with someone else."

She felt him stiffen, or it might have been her imagination, because just as quickly, his catlike fluidity returned, scooping her up to put her in bed. "Talk to me," he coaxed, but she saw the disappointment fleeting over his face as she rolled away, exhaustion tugging at the corners of her tumultuous brain.

"I can't. It's nothing," she said, all inflection leaving her voice as her brain began to shut down her emotional response. It was better. She felt better. She felt…nothing. Another trick of the mind had Chat Noir tensing near her side, but sleep tugged firmly at her mind, and the darkness swept over her before she could ask what was wrong.