Kagami slid in next to Marinette on the backseat of Nino's car, a look of determination on her face.

"Alya informed me on the phone of the situation." She said without even so much as a hello. "Why Adrien doesn't just say you are his girlfriend instead of this substitute nonsense I have no idea, but when I suggested cooking meals for him, being his fake girlfriend wasn't quite what I had in mind."

"Yeah, I know." Marinette cringed slightly. "The truth is the situation is a little more complicated than just that." She tilted her head towards Nino in the driver's seat. While her an Alya had determined that keeping Scarabella a secret from Alya's fiancée would be unwise, for his own safety they hadn't yet told him about Adrien being Chat Noir, or Marinette being Femme Chat.

"Later then." Kagami said, understanding the silent message. "So what is on the shopping list?"

Alya held up a notepad where she had been jotting down ideas. "Aside from the obvious like food, Marinette wants to get a Christmas tree and some decorations."

"A Christmas Tree? Won't that just create clutter?" Kagami frowned.

Alya turned in her seat to face the Japanese girl and passed her a photo. "Exhibit A. We came across this picture in one of Adrien's drawers."

Kagami looked over the photograph. The picture was of Adrien around five or six years old decorating a Christmas tree with his mother. Wherever they were, it didn't look like the mansion. Above their heads were hanging fairy lights and a table covered in treats. The look on Adrien's face was one of pure happiness. Kagami noticed Gabriel wasn't in the picture, although it was possible he was the one who took the photo. Somehow she doubted that though. "I see. You want to recreate this for him. Well if you are going to have a tree then you might want to put some presents under it."

Marinette's face lit up. "Kagami, that's brilliant." She declared. Kagami looked at her confused.

"What's brilliant?"

"We can ask Adrien's friends if they want to send him a gift. He's been feeling really down since the National Fencing Team told him he had been replaced. Maybe this way we can let him know that we are all thinking of him."

"Nice call Dudette." Nino said as he pulled up to the marketplace.

"I'll get onto it." Alya added, thumbs flying across her phone. "There, I've sent the message out so Operation Christmas tree is a go. I'll call you when we're done babe." She added, leaning across the car to give her fiancée a quick kiss before all the girls piled out.

When Nino had driven away in the car, Kagami grabbed Marinette by the shoulders and looked her square in the eyes. "Okay Marinette, what aren't you telling me?"

Marinette swallowed and then gave a too wide smile. "Maybe we should sit down first, get a coffee or something?"

"Judging by that deer stuck in headlights look you have, I think I'm going to need something a lot stronger than coffee. Now what is it?"

Marinette bit her lip as she cowered a little under Kagami's intense eyes. Kagami was one of her closest friends besides Alya, and she knew how much the Japanese girl cared about Adrien. She balled up her fists by her sides and screwed her eyes tightly shut. "Adrien is Chat Noir." She blurted out. She opened one eye to see Kagami just blinked at her.

"You're joking?" She said, but Marinette slowly shook her head. Kagami narrowed her eyes and Marinette could see the wheels turning before Kagami pointed an accusatory finger at her. "You're Ladybug." Marinette just gave her a weird lopsided smile with a half shrug. Kagami shook her head with an eye roll and looped her arm through Marinette's. "I was right, we need something stronger." She said, taking the two other girls over to where they were serving mulled wine.

After getting their drinks, the three sat down at a small round table, Kagami in the middle of the other two.

"You don't seem that surprised." Marinette said. Kagami shrugged.

"We chase down badly dressed magical powered akumas in our spare time. Not much surprises me anymore." She said, taking another drink. "I wouldn't have thought Adrien was Chat Noir, but then again it does make sense. However, you are obviously not Scarabella now are you?"

Kagami then looked at Alya, or more specifically the small bronze earrings she was wearing. She then picked up Marinette's hand and saw the unusual rose coloured ring that was suspiciously shaped like Adrien's silver ring. "Uh-ha." She hummed knowingly. "He's not going to like this when he finds out." She stated as a matter of fact before letting go of Marinette's hand. Marinette cringed slightly. There was no point denying anything, Kagami was far too smart for that.

"That's why I haven't told him anything yet." Marinette said in a quiet voice, twiddling with her fingers. Kagami pinched her nose between her fingers.

"You can't be serious." She said flatly. "He doesn't know you're the same Ladybug he has pinned for all these years?"

"See girl, even Kagami agrees you need to tell him."

"I know I need to tell him." Marinette said exasperated, feeling as though her friends had ganged up on her. "Right now though I need Adrien to concentrate on getting better, not just physically but emotionally. Being removed from the team hit him hard and I'm worried about him."

"And you don't think telling him that the love of his life is right there being his "fake" girlfriend wouldn't be an emotional help to him?" Alya asked.

"No, I don't." Marinette insisted.

Kagami rubbed her temple. Being friends with someone so illogical was difficult sometimes. As Ladybug, Kagami trusted she knew how to plan and defeat an akuma, but as Marinette her reasoning lacked any kind of logic whatsoever.

"Alright, fine. We'll do it your way. But you can't let this drag out Marinette. Adrien has been crushing on you just as much as he had been on Ladybug. We've all seen it. Whatever you have convinced yourself of, you are wrong."

"I'm just not ready yet, Kagami. I'm not Ladybug without Chat Noir anyway."

"And what if he is never Chat Noir again?" Kagami asked.

"Whoa, Kagami girl, let's not be negative." Alya said, looking at Marinette with concern

"Being factual isn't being negative. There is a difference. I saw Adrien the other day and he can't put any weight on that leg whatsoever, even with the crutches. What if he never can? Would you continue on as Ladybug, because you can't keep this Scarabella and Femme Chat thing up forever."

"I'll cross that bridge if and when we come to it." Marinette said, staring into her warm beverage as though the answer was hidden somewhere in his rich depth. "Right now I have to believe he will be Chat again. I...I don't think I could go on as Ladybug with someone else as my black cat."

"Here, here." Alya said, toasting her cup against her best friend's and taking a swig.

"Alright, I'll drop it then." Kagami said, placing a hand on Marinette's shoulder and holding up her cup. "Operation Christmas Tree then?" She asked with a smile.

"Operation Christmas Tree." Alya and Marinette said in unison, clinking their three cups together.

By afternoon, the girls were loaded up with bags. Several friends had also messaged Alya back that they had gifts for Adrien and would drop them around to the apartment. While Alya and Marinette busied hanging decorations, Kagami would answer the door and gather the gifts. Rose and Juleka stayed for a while to help with the decorating, hanging lights and helping bake some cookies, while Alya sneakily placed a few personal items in Adrien's en-suite bathroom to make it look more like a female shared the space. By the time they were done and everyone left, Marinette was exhausted, but was looking forward to bringing Adrien to see it in the morning.

~~~~~

Monday had rapidly begun to turn into a nightmare. It started with Nathalie locked in multiple phone calls trying to find where the shipment of faux fur had gone for the Rena Rouge dress, then Gabriel came through the design floor to rip a new one through all the staff over the leaked Vesperia dress, making all kinds of threats if another design leaked out. The last straw then came when Adrien rang to say that the doctors were holding him until the end of the day before they were letting him come home because they wanted to run more scans. Marinette had really been hoping to leave early and just get Adrien home, but now she would be stuck in the office all day.

By afternoon, she had flopped into her desk chair, with her head buried into her arms. Was this day ever going to end? Thank goodness after today they were heading into a two week break.

Marinette was far from interested in the knock that came to her door, but she was more surprised when Gabriel and Nathalie walked it. "I trust you are not unwell Marinette." Gabriel asked dryly at her dishevelled appearance.

"No Sir, not at all." She assured him. "Just a busy day with everyone going on holidays from tomorrow."

Gabriel huffed in response before picking up the Chat Noir and Viperion designs up from Marinette's desk and looking them over.

"The subtle scale pattern in the Viperon suit is agreeable. It's an unusual shade of green, but it works. I'm not so sure about the embroidered roses on the lapels of the Chat Noir jacket." He said, looking over his spectacles at her.

"I talked it over with Alya, she is the Ladyblog expert after all, and she agreed that Chat Noir is best known for offering Ladybug red roses. Even local florists have reported an uptake in red rose sales over the years among young men wanting to emulate their hero. After all, red roses are the universal symbol for love."

"And yet Adrien sends you blue ones." Gabriel pointed out with a raised eyebrow. Marinette looked at the bunch of blue roses sitting on her desk that Adrien had sent via courier that morning. She felt somewhat foolish for all the red roses she had refused from him over the years. "I do hope that you are not finding this task to be impossible."

"Not at all." She assured him. "We will be on schedule as soon as the faux fur arrives."

"Good, we will need the Rena dress ready after the holiday break. Audrey is hosting one of those tedious winter soirées and she wants one of the outfits on display as a promotion of sorts for the Miraculous Couture Collection. I guess it doesn't hurt to rub up the sponsors, but still." Gabriel's displeasure for public events was evident in the way he started loosening the cravat around his neck. "Since Adrien will be unable to accompany you to this event, you may invite a friend. May I suggest not a male friend as you are dating my son and it would look inappropriate."

Marinette thought for a moment. As much as Alya would have loved it, her and Nino were going to be away until late January. "May I invite Kagami Tsurugi to attend?"

Gabriel gave a brief nod. "That would be suitable." He then turned to Nathalie and held out his hand, his assistant handing him a sheet of paper. Giving the paper to Marinette, she saw a design on it for a wedding dress in an off the shoulder fit and flare with a plunging neckline and a low cut back. "When you take the Miraculous designs to Ricardo, I want you to add this dress with them."

Marinette looked at the page he handed to her and her mouth practically fell open. The design was of the most stunning vintage styled wedding gown she had ever seen. "Mr Agreste." She gasped. "This is absolutely beautiful, but it doesn't fit with the Miraculous collection."

"I took on board what you said about the bridal collection needing to be more romantic. This is an old design, but I thought it could serve as an inspiration for a new collection. I don't want this particular dress being made though."

"That's a shame." Marinette said. "It would be stunning."

"It was." Gabriel said quietly. Marinette looked up from the page and could see nostalgia in his eyes. "It was Emilie's."

"Oh." The young designer said. "I understand. I'll make sure Ricardo knows it's for inspiration only."

Gabriel went to leave but hesitated before turning back to Marinette. "I believe Adrien's return home was delayed."

Marinette nodded. "The doctor wanted new scans done before he was discharged."

Gabriel hummed in thought. "Nathalie and I are leaving in the morning to spend the holiday break in London with Amelie and Félix. Adrien was supposed to have joined us, but naturally that won't be happening." Marinette could see that Gabriel was trying to convey something but was not finding the words to express himself.

"I'll take good care of him Mr Agreste." Marinette said.

Gabriel stiffened slightly, painting a stoic look on his face. "Of course. I would expect nothing less of you. Please utilise the limousine to collect Adrien. It will give him more room. I will see you in the new year." He concluded abruptly before leaving, Nathalie following behind.

"You know, sometimes I think he cares." Plagg said with a heavy dose of skepticism. "And then there are other times I just want to..."

"Plagg!" Marinette interjected.

"You have no idea how frustrating it was listening to the way he talked to my kid at times and not being able to say or do anything about it. How many times has he even been to the hospital since the accident?" He growled, pointing an accusing paw at the door Gabriel had left through.

Marinette pursed her lips. Plagg was right, as far as she knew Gabriel had only been near the hospital once. She picked up the sketch of Emilie's wedding dress, taking in the smallest of details that had been drawn in, the care that had been taken in its design compared to some of Gabriel's more recent designs. This had been drawn with love.

"I think maybe he doesn't know how to express himself with words, but you just have to look at this to see how much he loved Adrien's mother."

Plagg folded his arms and flicked his tail around as he floated near her head. "Maybe that's something you two have in common."

Marinette furrowed her eyebrows. "Have what in common?"

"Neither of you can express how you really feel and my kid is the one that has to suffer for it."

She let out a sigh. "I'm trying Plagg, believe me I'm trying." Marinette then gathered up the designs. "Come on, let's get this over with."

Heading down into the design hub, Marinette heard Ricardo talking loudly down into a phone. "You were only supposed to look at it... you're making my life very difficult you know... I don't care what you want right now, we are doing this my way or you can do it on your own... You are very lucky things didn't turn out worse..." Ricardo startled when he suddenly became aware of Marinette near the door. "I have to go, I'll see you in a few days. Ciao."

"Oh I'm sorry, was I interrupting a lovers quarrel?" Marinette said sarcastically. She was sure she felt Plagg holding back a snigger.

"You can choose your lovers my dear, but you can't always choose your family." He said, picking up his jacket and putting it on. He wasn't even trying to be flirty for a change so clearly something had his back up. Marinette opened her folder and took out the Miraculous designs.

"Gabriel asked me to bring down the finished designs. Aside from the Vesperia and the Rena Rouge, the Viperion and Chat Noir designs are ready. Once the faux fur arrives, the trims on the Rena dress need to take priority so it can be showcased at the Bourgeois event next month."

Ricardo went over the designs before picking out the Chat Noir outfit, giving it another look over. "And here I was thinking you only crushed on blond models." He smirked.

"What are you on about now?" Marinette said, sounding irritated, but Ricardo continued to chuckle.

"You went to a lot of trouble with the details on this one. I wouldn't have pictured you would be into guys in tight leather with cat ears?" He said, pointing out the lapels and the delicate embroidered edges she had painstakingly drawn in.

Marinette was sure the tips of her ears were turning pink. "I...I take pride in my work." She defended herself. "Chat Noir along with Ladybug are the centre of the team. Of course I will make sure to add some extra effort to the designs."

"Sure." Ricardo looked like he wanted to make another jibe, but thought better of it. "I'll take care of the Rena dress as soon as the break is finished. Don't worry about it. The fur should be here by then. Was there something else?"

"This." Marinette said, handing the bridal sketch over.

"The future father in law already getting ahead of himself? Or are you hiding a fake engagement as well?"

Marinette gave him a flat look. "It's not for me you idiot. This was the design of his late wife's dress."

Ricardo raised an eyebrow. "The mysterious dead wife? Now I've heard about her. Isn't that why he kept his son so sheltered?" Marientte wasn't sure she liked the look on Ricardo's face.

"Yes, well, Gabriel would like this design to be the inspiration for the next bridal collection - vintage and romantic. I'm putting you in charge of the design team. This dress is not to be recreated though, it's just the inspiration."

"You putting me in charge? What an honor Mrs Agreste."

Marinette ignored his sarcasm. "This collection will run alongside the Miraculous Couture and needs to be ready for the spring release. We are behind schedule so against my better judgement I'm deciding to trust you with this."

Marinette's phone pinged with a text and she couldn't help smiling when she saw it.

Adrien: They are finally letting me out of this prison. Please Princess come and save me.

Marinette: I'll be there as quickly as I can, just dealing with something annoying ;)

"Is our little model going home today?" Ricardo asked.

Marinette held her phone away from him with a scowl. "Not that it's any of your business, but yes."

"I told you, Marinette, I don't bear Adrien any ill will. I genuinely hope he does walk again, but let's face it, tall poppies always get cut down in the end. You can't be a model and a champion fencer and win the girl."

"You know jealousy doesn't become you Ricardo." Marinette said, turning and walking away.

"Enjoy playing house with your boyfriend." Ricardo called out after her. Marinette stopped and looked back expecting a smug grin on his face, but was surprised to see something more serious. "I really do hope you have a pleasant holiday break with Adrien."

"Are you actually being nice?" She asked. Ricardo shrugged as he walked closer to her and stood in her personal space.

"I think things are going to start getting rough around here, especially with this new collection. The sharks are circling cara mia, don't let them bite you." Ricardo walked past her and out down the hall.

"You know, if you just say the word I'll cataclysm that smug look right off his face." Plagg said, poking his eyes and ears over the top of Marinette's bag.

"Don't give me ideas." Marinette chuckled. "You know you are such a bad influence. I don't know how Adrien puts up with you."

"Nah, the kid's heart is too good to ever follow through with my ideas, no matter how brilliant they are. That's why he was chosen for Chat Noir."

Marinette smiled at the little Kwami. "Well, it's time we went and took our Kitty home."

~~~~~

Marinette felt her heart skip a beat at the way Adrien's face lit up when she entered his hospital room. He was sitting up watching the TV with his leg still resting on a pillow on the bed, his bag packed and ready. He was wearing baggy pants with one leg rolled up above the fixture on his leg. She sat on the edge of the bed next to him and he held her hand in his. "They are just finalising the discharge papers."

"That's good." She replied. "Your bodyguard has the limo in the carpark. I think someone tipped off the press and they are all hanging around outside."

Adrien rolled his eyes. "You would think that they would find a more interesting story to cover." He chuckled. "Not the invalid ex model and fencer who just wants to go home. Imagine how much more tragic they would paint me if they knew I was Chat Noir."

"You're not tragic Adrien." She said, patting his good knee, but something on the TV had caught his attention. She turned her head to see Nadja Chamack on the screen with that picture of Ladybug kissing Chat Noir after Oblivio. Honestly, knowing Adrien was Chat suddenly made that picture make so much more sense but also filled her stomach with butterflies.

"That's right Alec, while Paris have gotten to meet the new heroes Scarabella and Femme Chat, everyone is asking, where is Paris' favourite couple Ladybug and Chat Noir?"

"That certainly was a cryptic message they left us with." Alec commented.

"And we believe there was a good reason for that." Nadja continued. "Ladybug and Cat Noir said they were taking a step away for a few months, this could only mean one thing."

"What's that Nadja?" Alec asked.

"Ladybug is pregnant."

Adrien practically choked on thin air. "What?"

"That's right folks, you heard it here first." Alec continued. "We all believed for a long time that the heroes of Paris had been dating in secret and what other reason could there be for their sudden absence than a secret marriage and..." Adrien turned the TV off and ran his hands down his face.

"She's going to be so mad." He said. Marinette could see a genuine look of panic in his face.

"Adrien, it's just idle reporter gossip." She said, trying to placate him, but he shook his head.

"Ladybug always got mad whenever the reporters said we were a couple. She won't find this funny at all, and I can't do a thing about it."

Marinette watched him wringing his hands together and felt a huge prang of guilt. Yes, she would get mad back then, but that was largely because she didn't understand her own feelings, plus she was trying to protect her partner. Now things were even more complicated!

"I'm sure Alya will release some kind of statement on the Ladyblog to debunk all this." Marinette said, making a mental note to message her best friend. "There isn't much that can be done about it right now. At least if they think Ladybug and Chat Noir are on their honeymoon, they won't think they are in Paris, right?"

Adrien looked at her questioningly. "I suppose so." He conceded. "Can you just tell Alya to let her know I didn't say anything. I don't want her to think I started this rumour."

"I'm sure she knows that." Marinette said. "Even if you are in love with her, she would know you would never betray her confidence."

Adrien went to say something when the doctor came in with his discharge papers. "Here you are, your freedom papers." He said, handing an envelope over to him. "Now as we discussed earlier, keep the holes where the fixture is clean, Marinette, you might need to help him with that and if any infection appears, come back and get antibiotics, don't let it fester. Until the gap where the bones are broken begin to knit together, make sure you keep off that leg. Don't try to do things yourself, ask for help. I'll see you again for a follow up in two weeks."

Nurse Esme wheeled in a wheelchair and Marinette helped Adrien shuffle into it. She then insisted on taking him down herself to the carpark where the Gorilla waited with the limo. Adrien stretched out his leg on the wide seats while Marinette sat opposite.

The ride back to his apartment was quiet. Adrien looked tired, but also troubled. Marinette worried that maybe it was because he didn't know what he was coming home to. It wasn't just his home anymore, it was their home and while she had tried not to take over too much, Alya had been through every room finding ways to make them look more "Marinetted" as she had put it. She just hoped he wouldn't feel like his space had been invaded.

Adrien didn't want his bodyguard to carry him to his apartment stating he "wasn't a damsel in distress." Instead he let Marinette help him on his crutches get into the lift. He leaned against the wall as the lift ascended to his floor before letting Marinette go ahead of him to open the door.

"Just let me put the lights on." She said, opening the door as he made his way up the hall.

By the time Adrien made it to the door himself, the first thing he noticed was the smell of cookies and there was a soft glow from the kitchen illuminating the doorway. A string of hanging lights caught his eyes and he shuffled forward following it until he saw Marinette standing beside a beautiful Christmas tree all lit up in the lounge room. Shuffling closer, Marinette saw a tear streak down his cheek when he saw the picture of him and his mother decorating the Christmas tree in a beautiful silver frame sitting on his piano near the tree.

"Was...um...is it okay that I did this? I mean when I saw the photo I..."

"You know, I've lived in a mansion all my life until I moved into this apartment. For the first time, I felt like something was actually mine, like I had a space of my own."

"Adrien I..."

"But I never felt like I lived in a home until I came in here tonight." He said, leaning heavily on his crutches. Looking around he saw more photos of his friends, his fencing trophies that had been taken out of a box and put up on a shelf, the cookies he could smell on a plate on the table, even down to the pink cushions that had been placed on the couch. It was so Marinette. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Marinette said softly. "Did you want me to make you some dinner?"

Adrien shook his head. "I'm really kind of tired if that's alright." He said, hobbling towards his bedroom.

"Do you...would you like me to help you?" Marinette asked.

"I don't want to bother you..."

"It's why I'm here isn't it? To take care of you. Isn't it about time I make good in my substitute girlfriend title right?"

She put a supportive arm behind his back as he made his way into his bedroom. Sitting on the end of the bed, he let Marinette take off his shoe. She then paused and looked up at him. "Did you want to get changed?"

Adrien looked down at his leg. "I'm not sure any of my pajama bottoms will go over that fixture. I think maybe I'll just sleep in my boxers with a baggy shirt. Would you mind turning up the heating?"

Marinette got up and changed the thermostat before getting a shirt out of Adrien's drawer. She had to hold back a gasp when Adrien took his shirt off. Yes, he was incredibly sexy, there was no denying that, but since the accident it was clear he had also lost weight. His muscle definition had given way to ridges of his ribs. She was going to have to make sure she fed him up over the coming weeks.

He looked self conscious as he took the shirt she handed to him and put it on before giving her a sheepish look. "Can you help me?" He asked, tugging at his pants.

Marinette was sure her cheeks were turning pink. Get a grip, she scolded herself, this is exactly why you are here. Adrien pushed himself up to standing on his crutches while Marinette hooked her fingers onto the waist of his pants and carefully separated them from his boxers and over his backside. "It's okay, you can check out my butt." He smirked and she knew he was delighting at making her blush.

"Shut up." She said, helping him to sit back down. His eyes twinkled with mischievous, a look she had seen before behind his cat eyes. Marinette crouched down and carefully rolled the pants down over the external fixture, trying not to let it catch on the metal bars. Once the garment was off, she stood up and folded the pants, sitting them down on the chair. She shyly looked back at him and was sure he wasn't as unaffected as he was pretending to be.

"I'll, um, I'll just go to the bathroom before going to bed. Can you wait for me?"

"Of course." She replied, tucking her fringe behind her ear. "Do...do you need help?"

This time she was sure Adrien was blushing. "No, it's alright. I've been practicing this one to do on my own."

"Right, yes, of course." She flubbed, bringing a smile to his face. She helped him to stand and held back the bathroom door for him before closing it again. On the other side of the room she could see Plagg snickering into his cheese and she mustered the nastiest glare she could, not that it seemed to have bothered him.

She heard the toilet flush and running water. "Um, Mari? I think there is something of yours in here."

Matinette popped open the bathroom door and was mortified to see a packet of pads sitting proudly in his bathroom cupboard.

"Ugh, Alya!" She exclaimed, burying her face in the door frame. "I'm so sorry Adrien. Alya pointed out that it didn't look like you and I were, well you know, looked like a real couple who spent nights together... that is..."

"I get it." He said with a soft chuckle. "I remember going to Nino's before Alya moved in. She's smart Alya, I wouldn't have thought of that myself. I don't mind if you use my bathroom, you know."

"I guess we are both a little naive going into this." Marinette admitted, helping him back out through the door and over to his bed. She placed a pillow behind his head and tucked one under his leg. With the heater up, she didn't need to worry about him getting cold.

He reached over and took her hand in his, bringing it to his lips and pacing a soft kiss on her knuckles. "I'm glad you're here with me Marinette." He said. "There isn't anyone else I'd rather have here with me. I mean that."

"I'm glad I'm here too." She replied with a soft smile. She then leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on his forehead. Adrien closed his eyes and savoured the feel of her soft lips on his skin. "I'll see you in the morning with a special Christmas Eve breakfast."

"Can't wait." He said, giving her a wave before she closed the door. She rested her head against the door and let out a breath she didn't realise she was holding.

"See, it's a piece of camembert." Plagg said, waving said cheese under her nose. All Marinette could muster was a groan.

This was going to be a long fortnight.