Aaaaand back to fluff we go! Although this concept was one I'm so excited to write, hopefully I can do it justice. -Colorado

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The first time it happened, Chat Noir could've sworn he was going mad. That he had hallucinated the whole ordeal. But when the sunrise peeked through his windows and he woke up the next morning, he could still remember the night before.

"My favorite color is pink," Ladybug said, a smile playing on her lips. "It's what I wear all the time as a civilian."

He didn't know why she had said that, all he had asked was what her favorite color was. She was normally so careful about everything identity related. But last night Chat Noir had gotten another look at the girl behind the mask. The girl who apparently wore pink. It ran through Adrien's mind all day, a hum pulsing through his body. She wore pink, and suddenly every girl with dark hair in pink was making him catch his breath.

That was until they turned around and he could see that their eyes weren't blue enough, or their smile wasn't sweet enough, and it was simply his delusions tricking him. Besides, how could Ladybug be so close to him?

On a side note, Marinette wasn't there that day. She had come down with a cold according to Alya, poor girl.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Patrol felt different to Chat. He and Ladybug followed the same route, as always, stopped a couple of bar fights, prevented a couple of muggings, but there was something in the air. It was the way Ladybug looked at him as if he was a lucky charm. The way his heartbeat sped up just a little faster whenever she smiled. It was the way she laughed at all of the stupid jokes he made, even if several of the laughs were accompanied by eye-rolls.

"I'm telling you, Bug!" He was saying as they ended their usual route. "No other school has gotten akumatized as much as them."

The two had passed Françoise Dupont, and Chat Noir had brought up the shockingly high percentage of akumatizations that had come from the school. Most of which were his own classmates, but she didn't know that.

"You know I'm actually around that school a lot as a civilian," Ladybug laughed. Chat Noir felt his heart stop, for multiple reasons. "You would think my Ladybug Luck would rub off on them, huh kitty?" She nudged his shoulder, but he couldn't properly hear her.

"I'm around that school a lot as a civilian." It rang through him like a silent call, or what's more, a promise. Maybe she didn't go there, maybe she was a relative of a student or lived nearby, but either way, Ladybug was much closer than Adrien had thought.

He had been so caught up in the revelation, he had missed Ladybug's silent sneezes and hidden coughs.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The akuma raged through the streets of Paris, picking up cars in some sort of beams and crashing them into buildings. Chat Noir had cursed Hawkmoth for his timing before, but this had to be the worst offense. He was just about to see Marinette to drop off her missed schoolwork but nooooo, there just had to be an akuma! He just hoped it would be over soon.

Ladybug landed next to him on the rooftop, flashing him a confident grin.

"What do we have here, kitty?" Her eyes surveyed the scene.

"The akuma calls himself Car Crash, and he, you'll never guess, picks up cars in a beam and uses them as a weapon. The beam comes out of this white glove, I bet that's where the akuma is," Chat Noir reported. She scratched under his chin as a reward.

"Great job ki-." A yawn interrupted her sentence. Chat Noir glanced over at her, noticing her face was a bit more red than usual.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"I've got a cold," she replied, sniffing. "So I haven't been sleeping very well. It's okay though, more time to design clothes." With a wink and a grin, Ladybug flew off towards the akuma.

Chat Noir's feet stayed firmly planted on the rooftop, did she know what she was doing?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

And that's what he asked her as soon as their nightly patrol was over.

"I mean, you've been letting more and more details about your civilian life slip. I don't know if it's because you're sick and you're not thinking straight, or if you actually mean it. I hope it's the latter, but I need you to be aware of it," he told her, his hands on her shoulders as his eyes bored into hers.

Ladybug gave him a soft smile, a hand coming up to pat his.

"I am aware of it, kitty," she reassured him. "I promise you, I know exactly what I'm doing. Now I'm sorry I can't stay for long, I promised my parents I would help them prepare tomorrow's batch of macarons." She shot him an apologetic smile that did absolute wonders for his heart.

"Careful, bugaboo, at this rate I'm going to find you," he warned her, picking up her hand and placing a small kiss on it. She only smiled.

"Good night, Chat Noir."

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Adrien might have been going crazy, but he swore it was going to be worth it. One impulse buy later, he stood over a bulletin board with sticky notes. Each note held a different detail about the girl under Ladybug's mask. She was leaving him a breadcrumb trail, and he was going to find what was at the end of it if it was the last thing he did.

The biggest clue yet was the one about his school. Part of him hoped she was a student there, part of him didn't. After all, he always held the belief that he would easily recognize Ladybug if he knew her as a civilian, but if she went to his school, that obviously wasn't true.

"I wouldn't worry about it too much, kid," Plagg told him as they surveyed the board. "The miraculous has some sort of glamor that prevents you two from recognizing each other in real life. It's very hard to break that glamor unless you're met with some undeniable proof. You're not as oblivious as you think."

Adrien smiled, even if it wasn't some heartfelt speech, Plagg still managed to make him feel better... most of the time.

"Do you think she wants me to find her?" he whispered into the night, hope blooming in his chest.

"I think that may be a very big possibility." Plagg ate his last piece of cheese.

Adrien beamed, not even minding the smell of camembert. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"I hate physics homework," Ladybug groaned, her head falling against Chat Noir's shoulder. His heart sped up, another clue! If she was taking physics, she had to be around his grade, right? He laughed, the noise blending in with the buzz of Paris at night.

She had stayed after patrol again, apparently no baking duties awaited her tonight, and Chat Noir couldn't be happier.

"Don't laugh," she pouted. "My physics teacher is the worst. She's super strict and once paired me up with my bully and her... minion, I guess, for a group project. That wasn't fun." She rolled her eyes. Chat Noir swore his heart was going to beat right out of his chest, especially when a devious smile crossed her lips. "But then an akuma showed up targeting her, so I at least got to escape the project mainly unscathed."

Something itched in the back of Chat Noir's mind. Something about that story sounded familiar, achingly familiar.

"Maybe your Ladybug luck worked then, unlike with that school," he was prodding and he knew it, but he couldn't help himself! Her being involved with Françoise Dupont in some way was the biggest clue he had to her identity. She gave him a look, a twinkle in her eye.

"Not really," she shrugged, a grin tugging at her lips, "seeing as the akuma victim goes to that school."

Chat Noir could've sworn he stopped breathing.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

She was starring again. Not that Chat Noir minded, no, he was almost a bit prideful. But still, it was odd that all throughout the night's akuma attack, Ladybug couldn't take her eyes off of the newest Gabriel billboard. The billboard that just so happened to have his face plastered over it.

"Like what you see, My Lady?" Chat Noir teased. Ladybug pulled back from the billboard, pink spilling out from under her mask.

"And what if I do?" She humphed, crossing her arms. Chat Noir laughed, ignoring the little pitter-patter his heart made. He had long grown used to his love for her being an unwavering constant.

"I never knew you were such a big fan of the Agrestes. But considering you love fashion, I suppose it makes sense," Chat Noir hummed, looking over at the billboard himself. He was perched precariously on the rooftop, but he didn't care. Cats always landed on their feet, after all.

He was modeling the spring line, this particular outfit included a pink lace shirt and some light gold jewelry. Now that he was a bit older, his father had no reservations about showing a bit more skin. Chat Noir supposed he would take the lace over another swimsuit shoot any day of the week.

"It's not just that," Ladybug began, biting her lip. Chat Noir glanced over at her, seeing the debate on her face. He frowned, hopefully everything was okay.

"Oh? Are you a fan of that boy? What's his name, Adrien Agreste?" He gave her his best cheshire grin, hoping it would be enough to cheer her up. It did the trick. Her face cleared, and she met his eyes with a fierce determination that had his heart jumping into his throat.

"It's more than just that. I'm friends with Adrien."

Chat Noir fell off the roof. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He ran home that night. He was close, so unbelievably close. She knew him! She was friends with him! Adrien felt like he was on cloud nine. If Ladybug was doing what he thought she was doing, he would figure her out by tomorrow. He just had to!

He called off his transformation like lightning and ran over to the board. Who did he know who had dark hair, blue eyes, was around Françoise Dupont, was friends with him, designed clothes, baked, loved pink, and apparently one time a student of Françoise Dupont came after her bully?

A face popped into his mind. A truly dangerous, hopeful thought occurred to him.But he had seen them at the same time! Right next to each other, that had to be proof it wasn't her, right?

Then again, Ladybug has been known to do the impossible before and she did have access to all sorts of magical powers. A smile grew over his face. It was a dangerous hope, he knew. There was still a possibility it wasn't her, but oh how Adrien hoped it was.

Nothing else made sense.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When he arrived on patrol that night, Ladybug was swinging her feet back and forth on the roof.

"Good evening, My Lady," he greeted her, bowing as he did so.

"Good evening, Chat," she responded, patting the spot next to her. He walked over and took her invitation to sit down.

"Is everything alright Ladybug? It's not like you to skip out on patrol," Chat Noir asked gently.

"Everything's fine. It's simply a beautiful night, and I wanted to chat with you a bit." She flashed him that smile that made him absolutely melt. What was he going to do with this girl?

"Oh? And just what did you want to chat about, Bugaboo?" he purred. His grin only grew wider as she rolled her eyes.

"Oh you know, I was just curious if you had any questions for me," she shrugged, an innocent look on her face.

"Just what would I have questions about, Bug?"

Two could play at this game.

"Alright fine," Ladybug relented with a smile, but there was a twinkle in her eyes. "Just so you know, I wouldn't recommend using Trixx's power too much, creating a mass illusion can be tiring."

Chat Noir furrowed his eyebrows, just what did she-?

Oh.

Oh.

A goofy smile grew over his face, it really was her.

"Shall we patrol, kitty?" Ladybug asked, brushing off her legs and standing up.

"We shall, My Lady."

Marinette.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Adrien bounced into school the next day. He knew on some level he should probably hide his obvious excitement, but he couldn't!

He knew who his Lady was! And she was the kindest, bravest, friendliest girl that he knew. Of course Marinette was Ladybug, he really didn't know who else she could possibly be. His grin only grew wider as he climbed up the steps, today was going to be one of the best days of his life.

Nino and Alya were waiting for him at the top of the steps, as per usual, but Adrien was only focusing on finding one dark-haired goddess. He knew his friends could tell that he was distracted, but hopefully they would write it off as him being tired.

"Yo Adrien!" Nino called, waving. Adrien walked over to him, keeping his eyes peeled for any signs of Marinette.

Rational thought told him that she was always late, so why would today be any different? Plus she had that cold.... Adrien felt the color drain from his face. What if she wasn't here today? What if she was so sick that she couldn't bear to be around people and he would never see her again? They'd never be able to run away together and have a hamster named-!

"Are you feeling alright, Adrien? Marinette didn't give you her cold, did she?" Alya placed a hand against his forehead.

"I'm fine," Adrien sighed, "just worried about Marinette."

"Oh really?" Alya's eyes twinkled in a way he didn't quite understand. "Well don't worry too much, She's apparently coming back to school today."

"Oh thank God," Adrien breathed out. His two friends gave him a skeptic look. "I mean, she missed most of last week, right? I would hate for her to fall super behind on schoolwork and whatnot." The looks on their faces told him they didn't buy it.

"Sure, Adrien. It's okay if you miss her bro," Nino patted his back, "I think all of us do."

"Yeah, yeah," he muttered, trying to fight the blush on his face.

"Ugh!" Alya suddenly shouted, typing furiously on her phone. "Apparently Marinette can't make it after all! Something about her parents needing help with an order.

"It's okay, babe, why don't we all go there after school to visit her?"

Adrien nodded in agreement, trying to hide his disappointment. But it was okay, he could move on to plan B.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Well Chat? Just what did you call me out here for?" Ladybug asked, hands on her hips, but there was no malice in her voice.

"Hello Ladybug," he greeted her, spinning around the red rose in his hand, "or should I say, Marinette?"

Her lips twitched as her face morphed into one of confusion.

"Marinette? I'm not Marinette, silly," she scoffed, an all too innocent look on her face.

"Now Bug, you and I both know that's a lie," he hummed leaning down into her face.

"Oh yeah? And just how do you know I'm Marinette?" Ladybug challenged, a fierce look in her eye. How had he never noticed that before? Marinette got that same look whenever she was designing something.

"All of your little hints you've left me," he replied, tapping her on the nose. "They led me straight to you, Princess."

Ladybug's eyes turned soft, a new brilliant smile came on her face.

"I found you," Chat Noir sang, slowly putting his arms around her.

"So it seems you did, kitty. But still! There are many Marinette's in Paris what-?"

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng, you are incorrigible," Chat Noir laughed.

"Just making sure!" Ladybug put her arms up in surrender before throwing them around his neck. "You found me, kitty," she breathed into him.

"And now that I've found you, I'm never letting you go. But why? Why reveal your identity to me?" It had been nagging him in the back of his mind ever since she started this charade.

"Have you really not figured it out yet?" Ladybug whispered, her eyes meeting his.

"Sorry, Bug, I'm afraid I'm a bit slow."

"Tikki and I both decided that it was time for you to know my identity, it would only be fair that way," she explained, biting her lip. The million implications of her words settled between them.

"You know," Chat realized. Ladybug nodded. "For how long?"

"Just a week and a half! I uh, accidentally saw Chat Noir coming out of your window, once."

"How do you know that maybe I'm in love with this civilian boy?" he teased, laughing at Ladybug's face of absolute disgust.

"Adrien Agreste, you quit it," she threatened, turning away. It only made him laugh harder.

"Mari, come here," he said through laughter. He grabbed her arm and pulled her in for a hug.

"So it is you then?" Ladybug whispered, her eyes so hopeful Chat Noir could drown in them.

"It's m-mnph!" He could barely get the words out before Ladybug (Marinette!) was kissing him.

The love of his life was kissing him! He was so shocked he hadn't registered that he kinda sorta really needed to kiss her back. She pulled away slowly, frowning. But before she could say even a word, Chat Noir pulled her in for another kiss.

"So I didn't misread the signs, good," Ladybug whispered when they broke apart.

"I've been madly in love with you since the day I met you, and I've had a crush on my classmate for the longest time," Chat Noir admitted, a blush coming over his face. "This," he gestured to the rose, "is for you."

He held it out for her and finally, she took it.

"I've been in love with you forever, too. Adrien, I mean. From the very moment you gave me that umbrella, I was a goner," she admitted, the sweetest smile Chat Noir had ever seen on her face. "But if it wasn't for Adrien, it would've been Chat Noir. Turns out you guys are the same person."

"We certainly are," he whispered, his eyes flickering down to her lips.

"Please," she whispered, and that's all it took for his lips to crash down onto hers.

He kissed her pouring every ounce of love he had into it. He had been dreaming of this for years now, he wasn't going to let Ladybug go. She melted into him, so hopefully he was doing something right.

"I love you Adrien Chat Noir Agreste," Ladybug said as she pulled back, her eyes twinkling in the starlight.

"And I love you Marinette Ladybug Dupain-Cheng," he said, brushing her nose with his. "And I found you through your beautiful hints, so don't you think I deserve a reward?"

His devious smile didn't hold a candle to hers.

"Sure, what are you doing on Friday?" she began, crossing her arms.

"Ugh, photoshoot but that should end around 18h," he groaned, rolling his eyes.

"Well after, clear your schedule, because you have a date. Pick me up at 19h, don't be late!" With a kiss on the cheek and wink, Ladybug went off into the night.

Chat Noir grinned, she was going to kill him, but his death would be the sweetest. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Honestly I absolutely love how this one turned out, definitely one of my favorites of this series! -Colorado