Ladybug wasn't sure where to go, but one thing was for certain, she didn't want Chat Noir to find her. She'd been heading to the direction of their usual rooftop only to quickly divert herself backwards and towards the boulangerie. She needed her Maman.

Landing gracefully on the balcony, amazing considering the turmoil happening inside her, she flung open the skylight and fell down onto her old bed calling off her transformation prior to landing. She curled in on herself, hell bent on keeping everyone out, especially those who would make her turn around and go running back into his arms.

His strong, masculine, secure arms.

Dammit! This wasn't just a crush or a boyfriend, this was her husband who she loved and adored more than anyone else, who for some reason had had a personality transplant.

Her phone began ringing in her pocket and she could only imagine it would be either her parents, Alya or Luka. The news of Gabriel's release would be out now for all to see, but not only that, the uncontrolled display that Chat Noir exhibited outside the courthouse was sure to have made the news sites too. She could just imagine the headlines.

'Unhinged Superheroes roaming the street?

Was Monarch the real villain?'

Pulling her phone from her back pocket, she ignored the lingering looks Tikki was giving her. She didn't need anyone to feel sorry for her, or try to calm her down. She needed a break. She needed time alone.

Finally gazing over the missed calls she was correct. Alya, Luka and her parents.

She pulled up Luka's name quickly, typing a message explaining she'd contact him if she needed him. Then switched to Alya.

Marinette: At parents. I need to see you.

She closed her phone down and looked at Tikki, the kwami staring absentmindedly back.

"I know you have something to say," whispered Marinette.

Moving down her ladder and into the main area of her old bedroom. She looked around the room, the entirety pretty much exactly as she'd left it before she moved out for university (regardless of her parents teasing of turning it into a nursery); pictures of her friends (and Adrien) graced the walls, along with the random pictures of a fresh faced Ladybug and Chat Noir, riding high on their mission to take down Monarch.

God, they'd been through so much together. Many couples could say they had history but that was nothing compared to what she shared with her Kitty. The intensity of their lives from when they were 14, the power they possessed and had to control, the fights they both won and lost. There was just so much to lose if this didn't work; and she really wanted it to work.

She stepped forward taking a picture from her wall, a picture of the two of them the day they announced Monarch's defeat to Paris, once again on their rooftop; side-by-side, the power couple they always were. Standing strong - together.

Trailing a finger over the picture it was the first time she'd ever noticed the sadness in Chat's eyes, the supportive stance of his arm around her waist overpowering the hurt in those luminescent globes she adored. How could she have missed it? He displayed only half the usual pizzazz of his larger than life personality, slinking back to blend in with the crowds as she greeted and congratulated the other heroes on a job well done.

Turning back to her wall she began to pull some of the other pictures down, almost all post Monarch's defeat, each displaying the heartbroken eyes of the one she loved. How had she never noticed this before? She pulled another one down, one of Adrien the day he left to go to Stanford. They were all sporting red rimmed eyes from their emotional goodbye, but laying it next to the others there was something so familiar about his expression. One she should have understood.

Grabbing her phone once again, she pulled up the Ladyblog, flicking back a couple of years to their victory interview.

'[Ladybug] We're so proud of everyone for sticking beside us in this final battle for victory. Without all of you our plan would have been futile. We would also like to send out heartfelt thanks to Adrien Agreste, who worked alongside us to make this happen.

[Chat Noir] I would also like to thank Adrien for looking out for M'Lady. Unfortunately, Chat Noir couldn't show his face in the ultimate battle, but knowing Adrien was there for M'Lady... it's something I'll always be grateful for.'

He'd mentioned himself in third person, not first.

He was broken because of Gabriel Agreste - twice.

He lived in America.

But that couldn't be true. She couldn't be married to him. He wouldn't and couldn't be the same person. That just didn't make sense; for her own sanity it couldn't make sense.

A little voice in the back of her head began to talk (she didn't know if it was 'Joy' returning or Alya) telling her that she knew that it could very well be true. That this wasn't a drug induced dream she was having, though the dizziness hitting her felt like she might have been tippling with something. This could actually be her reality; she could be married to him.

The room began to spin, her eyes rolling with an extreme tiredness as she grabbed hold of her work desk and attempted to lower herself into the chair.

"I'm telling you Mrs Dupain-Cheng, she is-" the voice she heard bounding up the staircase stopped abruptly, until the pounding of feet against her wooden floor became louder and louder, as it grew closer and closer.

As she moved uncoordinatedly towards her chair she felt four hands steadying her, four hands meaning two people were here with her now, two people who hopefully could give her the answers; or at the very least guide her in the right direction, dammit, any direction would do at the moment.

"Marinette, are you okay?"

She couldn't focus, her eyes rolling backwards and forwards and her eyelids closing in a desperate need for rest.

"Should I call a doctor?"

"Tom?"

"She's really pale."

"Marinette, have you eaten?"

"Marinette, please talk to us. Anything, say anything. Please."

Her blank eyes remained glaring forwards, staring at nothing but everything at the same time.

"Him." That was all she could get out. One word which meant more than any she'd ever said in her life. "Him." She repeated, eyes still void of any emotion. How could she put into one emotion the entirety of what she'd just been through?

Her eyes were dry and wide, somehow the natural need to blink alluded her and she was frozen in shock and horror? No, she wasn't horrified? Just...confused? She wasn't even sure if that was the correct word. How could she live with someone for six months and not realise they were one of her best friends; they'd even messaged each other just before seeing each other and even worse whilst in the same apartment - in the same bed.

She turned her gaze to Alya, suddenly realising she was holding both her mothers and Alya's hands in her own clammy ones, keeping them hostage in her lap with an intense whitening grip.

"Him," she said again, her breathing heavy and her head shaking from side to side.

"What's -" before Alya could continue Marinette turned her head to her mother.

"Him," she whispered, her eyes filling with wet feelings of joy, frustration and grief. "Him," she whispered again. Each time she said it, it became truer and the hurt became more. He needed her, like, really needed her and she'd walked away. What had she done?

She went to stand up, only for her legs to give way, Alya catching her before she hit the floor. As Alya's arm cupped around her, the forearm brushed past her chest, and an intense pain shot through her breasts. A yelp left her mouth as a hand came across to protect herself.

"Marinette?" Her Maman's voice was reminiscent of when she'd talk to her when she was a young child. Soft yet secure, asking nothing more from Marinette than the truth which they would then handle together.

Marinette looked into her Maman's eyes as her bottom lip quivered. A wave of understanding rushing over her as though Sabine was inputting what she thought directly into her mind, from pure eye contact alone.

"Sweetheart?"

Her mother's affection suddenly broke her. The tears she'd been holding in exploded through the flood gates, her body shaking as Alya held onto her for dear life. Without Alya, she would have fallen apart. The strong hands of her best friend being the only hope she had of not falling completely apart; matched only by the gentle words of her mother.

Her phone began to ring. Chat's name and picture flashing on and off the screen. She couldn't talk to him, not right now. She was broken and confused, not a suitable position for either of them to be in. She just needed a little more time to come to terms with this.

The phone screen went black and her stomach lurched. A queasiness took over until it started ringing again when a strange lightness shone over her heart. He wanted to speak to her, and that in itself made her feel hopeful.

"I'll turn it off for now," Alya said. Reaching over for the device. Marinette was quite sure Alya had typed a quick message out to him before shutting it down.

"Marinette?" Sabine asked again, making sure her daughter's eye contact was solely on hers before she spoke again. "When did you last have your period sweetheart?"

She heard Alya gasp behind her, but she couldn't even react. She was numb...and obviously dreaming, because there was no way she'd be pregnant with his child. That was just a childhood fantasy, and everyone knew that childhood fantasies didn't become your real life.

"I - um - what?"

"When were you last on your period?"

Marinette looked at her mother, her mouth drying up at the possibility that this could actually be happening, a hand automatically (and protectively) falling to her stomach.

"I can't remember," she murmured, her eyebrows creasing with the attempt to calculate her dates. She was on the pill though, so how could this still happen? Apart from Chat Noir/Adrien had mentioned to her over a dozen times about how irregularly she took them, and even recommended making her an appointment in a private clinic from something more substantial. She was stubborn though and wanted to prove him wrong, that she could take care of herself. Obviously, that hadn't worked out.

They hadn't really spoken about children, only that right at this moment they didn't want one. It was a conversation they put off, one they avoided like the plague because as much as being married was real, having children was so permanent. Was she really in a position for that? To have a child with her partner and best friend...and her husband.

She'd married Adrien Agreste.

"I think," her eyes scrunched together as she thought back over the past couple of months, her focus trailing to the floor trying to access her memory.

She hadn't been on yet this month ...

Nothing over Christmas or New Year...

She had a lot of orders in November, she was extremely stressed out which was probably why it never happened then...

October? Yes, towards the beginning of October. About two weeks before Halloween.

"I think it was..." two weeks before halloween, halloween...Halloween night. "Maman," she spoke quietly, afraid her voice might break if she spoke louder. "I don't think I'm tired from overworking myself." She looked directly into Sabine's eyes, not wanting anyone but Chat Noir/Adrien to be the first to hear such a life changing declaration from her mouth. Yes, her Maman, and by chance Alya, may now know the news but she wouldn't say it, or confirm it with a test, until she was side by side with her husband.

She needed her Kitty.

"Do you need to call him? I can if you want me to? I can get him to come over?"

She shook her head, a clear indication that now was no time to call, her head wasn't anywhere near ready to face him. There were too many things to organise in her mind; him being him, his father's release, the chance she was carrying his child, her shouting at him...the fact he was pretty much in love with another. Her heart broke again.

"We had an argument," she started, unable to look her mother in the eye. "I said some rather unforgivable things to him." Her voice was barely a whisper as she relayed the story, a horrendous feeling sinking in her chest as she thought of how hurt he was and how she rubbed salt in his freshly opened wounds.

You didn't know, a small voice said, she wasn't sure if it was in her head or from Tikki. Where was Tikki anyway? She'd completely ignored the little kwami to bathe herself in her own self pity, alone, ignoring the one entity which could help her and support her.

"He was really mad," she sobbed, taking her hands from her stomach and covering her eyes, her knees coming up in defence, a wall to keep her alone and away from any additional grief. "I left, I couldn't stay and face him, and I don't know if he will want to see me again? It was really horrible, Maman."

"As far as I can see," Sabine explained, "you have to make a choice, one of the hardest in your life. You need to decide whether to walk away or try harder, and it's okay to feel like the world is collapsing around you, that you're struggling and frustrated. Just try to find the courage to face it because it will be okay."

"He hates me."

"I'm sure he doesn't Marinette, I've seen him with you, he's besotted. You need to talk to him. You two have always suffered from communication problems, it's about time you got over that. You're married, you have a life together and, maybe, even a family on the way." Sabine squeezed Marinette's hands, and she knew her mother was trying to make her see the light. "You're not teenagers anymore, Marinette. When you decided to marry each other you entered into a commitment, one that's give and take, where you need to talk it out. It won't be all sunshine and daisies, but I promise it'll be worth it."

"He won't tell me the one most important thing in the world, he won't tell me who he is." Her voice was a mere sound in an empty room, the cars passing in the street below covering over the breaks in her speech, the issues she suddenly had with talking. But she didn't need him to tell her anymore...she knew. It was not a futile argument, completely and utterly pointless.

"Have you wondered why he's struggling? He might need you to be the support he needs, to help pull him out of whatever fear he has; because we all need a little help sometimes, someone to help us hear the music in the world. Remember what I said about seeing to his needs too, he can't always be the one to come running." Sabine stood, letting go of her daughter's hands and Marinette already missed the feeling of having her mother there by her side, the additional support only a parent could bring. "I'm just going to get something and I'll be back. Alya, can you help Marinette to the chaise lounge please? It'll be more comfortable than the floor."

She felt her friend help her to stand as her mother exited the room and dropped the trapdoor closed. The sudden sound was an unwelcome interlude for the headache slowly but surely forming. As Marinette grabbed a cushion to hold onto tightly, her arms wrapping around it similar to how she would her kitty, she couldn't help the whimpers still coming in gasped breaths. Alya settled next to her and took one of her friend's hands in her own.

"I'm sorry I didn't notice how exhausted you were earlier, I just thought, maybe the time difference between you and Chat Noir had finally caught up on you. I should have asked more questions, or done more, or-"

"Stop," Marinette said, turning her attention to her friend. "It's fine, you have your own things going on, I don't need to put more of mine on you. God, I've already offloaded onto you enough."

"Don't you dare do that Marinette, don't you dare hold the burden alone. I should have seen it! We see and speak to each other everyday, you were throwing up all Christmas...how could I not tell something was wrong! Damn, even Adrien saw it! The guy has only been back for two weeks and he knew something was wrong!"

"A-A-Adrien? When did you speak to Adrien?"

"This morning, just after he met up with you."

She began to shake, a feeling so overpowering, her blood turned icy and her body cold. "You spoke to Adrien? Today?"

"Yeah, just before the trial verdict. He called me asking what's wrong with you."

"Alya? What did Adrien say?" she needed to know everything, and she needed to know it now. Had she actually made this worse than it needed to be. Had he been speaking to Alya about her? Oh God, she had messed up! She had messed up so badly!

"He was worried about you? He mentioned visiting you and giving you 'what for' to make sure you eat. Apparently he could wrap his arms around you twice. The guy still has an entertaining way with words." Alya let out a little chuckle but Marinette wasn't listening. Chat was talking about her. Adrien was talking about her. She was married to Adrien Agreste, and she was quite certain she was having his child. Everything she ever wanted was now seated in the palm of her hand, she just needed to do something to go and get it.

Standing up from the chaise lounge, she shouted her transformation, her eyes betraying her and releasing tears of frustration and guilt. She needed to get to him, to grovel on her knees and beg forgiveness, to love him the way he deserved because now she knew he never had love from home; that his father was a cruel heartless bastard who didn't deserve such a wonderful son.

"Tell maman I'll call her later, you too Al." She unhooked her yo-yo, set to swing away before retracting it and coming back to her friend. She bent down and hugged Alya tightly around the shoulders, so tight the reporter squealed and begged for her to let go, mutters of super strength hugs not being nice hugs. "I love you, Alya. Thank you."

"Is this safe for you to be doing? You don't look well Marinette, you can hardly stand up straight."

"Do you think you can stop me?" she said, her frame bigger than it had been a minute ago, Ladybug coming to full strength. "Tikki supports my body, as long as I'm suited I'm fine, I promise."

Alya sighed, and Ladybug knew well the girl wouldn't dare challenge her. "Fine, but stay in the suit and please be careful, and I love you too, M, but not as much as Adrien does."

"How long have you known?" Ladybug asked, her heart nervous and stalling..

"I've been considering it for a while, but he forgot to remove his wedding ring on Christmas Day and it just pieced together. I'm really happy for you, so is Luka, we both agree you deserve this. You deserve to be happy with your true love after everything you've done for everyone else. Hell, if it wasn't for you I wouldn't be with Nino, so now go. It's time to live your happily ever after."

For the first time in weeks, Ladybug felt her mood lift with excitement and hope. Pulling her second phone from her yo-yo, she typed a quick message to Chat Noir asking him to meet her at their rooftop.

Finally bounding free from the constraints of her old home she set off for their rooftop, praying he would be there. She felt like she could fly, like there was hope.

She ran through her apology time and time again in her head. Trying to find the best way to make him believe her, for him to accept it.

A final thought in flight had her landing in an alleyway and detransforming.

Roses.