Adrien stalked around the apartment, his feline intuition playing its part in the uncertainty of the apartment. He didn't want to be there. Not without her. What was the point?

He made his way into her office, picking up her latest creation and looking it over. She had started it one morning last week, one morning after they'd cuddled and laughed in bed, Ladybug noting how his clothing was plain and boring, 'just like him'. They had ended in another pillow fight, laughter and screaming ensuing around the bedroom.

They didn't make it out of bed for another hour or so, instead collapsing in a tangle of limbs, lips exploring and hands caressing. She'd lost so much weight recently, it was worrying; his hands almost met as they grasped her waist, leading into another argument about her seeing a doctor. From that moment on, she'd covered it well, plastering on the makeup and wearing his clothing, answering any questions using his tee's as a cover up. She wouldn't even remove it to make love with him.

"It's your tee, Kitty." she said, moving up to him and placing her hands on his bare, muscular chest. "You're just a lot bigger than me, that's why I look so small." Her sultry eyes and wandering hands always distracted him, making him forget why the conversation had started in the first place.

He knew he shouldn't have allowed it to happen; but having her distract him was welcoming from the idea that she may be suffering the way his mother did. He couldn't deal with that. He had experienced so much loss in his life, losing one more, the one that mattered the most would kill him...he couldn't live without her, his heart just wouldn't allow it. So ignoring it had become his defence mechanism; if he didn't make a fuss about it, it wasn't happening.

Holding the garment out in front of him he noticed it was vile, and he didn't mean it in a harsh way.

"Kitty," Ladybug said, bounding out of her office and into his arms. He'd been to his mother's grave to place some fresh flowers before returning home, careful to make sure he wasn't spotted by anyone as Adrien.

She placed her lips on his, both soaking each other up in the best possible way. Their kisses always made his stomach flutter, the constant want for more shared the constant need to keep her holed up in the apartment and never allow her to leave. Preferably in the bedroom.

"Now, that's a welcome home I like," he said, wiggling his eyebrows.

"And you're going to get it often, Bugaboy."

"That doesn't work when I'm in this suit, M'Lady. But nice try." He dropped her a wink before moving to the kitchen and grabbing a glass to fill with water. Coming home to his wife after visiting his mother's grave always helped his reason for living. She was the air that he breathed, the touch that he needed, and the smile which pushed him on, making him feel worthwhile.

"Come," she said, grabbing his free hand and dragging him to the office, he just about caught the counter with his glass as she moved him through the hallway.

"If you really want me to?" he said, wiggling his eyebrows at her, only to be met by a slap on his chest.

"Now, now, pussy cat! All in good time."

She was being so playful recently, so loving, and he was just taken by her more and more. She was breathtaking in so many ways, and he doubted she'd ever not leave some kind of lasting effect on him.

"So what did you want to show me?"

"This!" She announced, presenting the material she'd been out to purchase that day, and what a material it was.

Purple, gold, and tiny sparkly black cat heads all over it. He burst out laughing, her own smile blinding his reaction.

"Hey," she giggled, placing both her hands on her hips, "is that the thank you I get for finding you the most perfect material." She hid her mouth behind her hand, suppressing as much of her laughter as possible.

"Oh it's devine, Bugaboo, I can't wait to wear it! You've got my tastes purrfectly with this."

She started laughing again, looping her arms around his neck, pulling her body into his.

"Well, Mr Noir, now you've said that, you can't take it back. It'll be a privilege to see you wearing such wonderful fabric."

"I hope you know, Mrs Noir, I will be wearing this on our next date." He kissed up her jaw, causing her to drop her head backwards.

"You wouldn't," she said, her head returning to look at him and her eyes sparkling with amusement.

"Oh, I would, and I will!"

"If you're wearing that, I'm making a matching poncho for myself."

"How sexy!"

"I know! You're going to be all over me from the time I put it on."

"Oh believe me, I will most certainly want to get it off."

Adrien laughed, viewing the material from front and back. She'd finished his tee and by the looks of it started her matching poncho. They were such dorks and he loved their relationship so much, even when they argued. It was so raw and so real, and he loved her so damn much.

He took the tee with him back to the bedroom and settled on the bed, the thin fabric clutched tightly to his chest. He should have revealed. He should have just told her why he was reacting the way he had. What difference would it make now anyway? They were married, they loved each other, so what if his father was the biggest prick from here to the moon? Together they could make this work, together they could do anything. They've proved it time and time again. They didn't need disguises, they didn't need to live almost 24/7 in their suits, they needed to just be them. At the end of the day, they were Adrien and...

His heart flipped.

Marinette.

It had to be Marinette. The woman he was worried about so much that he shouted at her and made her run away. He wouldn't be surprised if she never wanted to see him again, that this was the end to a very short fairy tale.

"Kid, you know you can rectify this right? That this isn't the end?" Plagg flew down and hovered in front of him. Plagg; the only entity that had always been there for him, even when he tried to push the thing away, he would always come back. He was as stubborn as a common cold.

"How? How can this be rectified when I was horrible to her? I raised my voice, Plagg! I was cold, and insensitive and..." He shook his head. Tears cascading down his cheeks in squiggly patterns, painting his cheeks a damp mosaic of pain.

"You need to reveal, Kid. She needs to know why you acted the way you did. I know her, and I know she will understand, you don't need to worry about that Adrien. She will take you back with open arms."

"I know," he said before stilling. He looked up to his kwami, and felt the panic set in. "I'm just scared. My father is back out there -"

"Don't you dare use that piece of trash as an excuse. You're the one that's scared she won't love you. You think you'll reveal and she won't want to be with you anymore, that you won't be good enough."

"Plagg-"

"No, Adrien. I'm sick of the way you see yourself. That you ran halfway around the world to get away from all this, to defend your heart once again. And I get it! I'm not an idiot, but listen to me. She loves you, and I don't just mean Chat Noir, and I don't just mean Adrien, I mean all of you."

"How do you know?" Adrien asked, a glimmer of hope reflecting against the remaining signs of sadness in his eyes.

"Because I've been around you both for nine years now, and I'm fed up! You both get drunk, decide to marry, reveal and do the dirty many, many times. I'm quite sure she would have left you there and then Adrien." The small kwami flew down and pressed a hand to Adrien's heart. When he spoke again his voice was so soft, almost soothing. "She loves what's in here, Kid, and you know it as much as I do. Just think of it this way; who has kept in contact the most since you moved away?"

"Marinette," he replied.

"Who made sure they saw you at least once a week since you've been living in the country of plastic cheese?"

"It's not plastic."

"Answer the question, Adrien."

He sighed. "Ladybug."

"Who has sent you gifts every birthday and Christmas, and has come out to the states every year for your first and last games of the season?"

"Marinette."

"So why are you still worrying?" Plagg said, exasperated.

Adrien stood up and walked to the window, the fabric in his hands doing its best to not rip under the tense pull of Adrien's grip. "Because if I lose her, I lose everything! I can't face her and have her reject me."

"And what if she doesn't reject you?"Plagg made his way over, and looked at Adrien, the latter doing his best to control the thickness in his throat from overpowering his emotions. "What if you reveal and she accepts you? If she accepts thisrelationship and everything that comes with it?"

"Then I'd have all I ever wanted."

"And everything you deserve. So, Kitten, why are you still here? Fight for her Adrien, apologise, tell her the truth. Tell her everything. You know as well as I do, as well as Tikki does, you both deserve your happy endings. Just..." Plagg sighed, and for the first time ever Adrien believed he looked his age. "It's time for you to let go, let go of the fear and let go of your father."

Adrien looked to the wise old kwami, his head slowly progressing itself into a nod. Making his way out the room he threw the tee on the bed, and went to find his phone.

Picking it up, he called once, twice, three times...no answer. He slammed the phone down, damn!

A couple of seconds later, the phone chimed with a message, and he almost dropped the damn thing. His hands were shaking so much.

M'Lady: She's safe, just a little shaken and confused. She'll be back. Rena <3

Rena? She was with Alya. Which means she must have gone to Alya's apartment.

"Plagg!" he shouted, his kwami appearing seconds later, complete with cheese wedge. "She's at Alya's, we need to go now."

The kwami threw his cheese into the air before guzzling it down rather unattractively in one foul swoop.

"Plagg! Claws out!"

His transformation circulated around his body, and he wasn't sure if it was his determination or Plagg, but suddenly he possessed an additional strength, one which was going to get him his Lady back.

Launching out of the covered patio, he made his way onto the rooftops, bounding around on his hands and feet as he went in search of his Princess. He could hear the shouts of citizen's questioning him on Monarch's release, of Gabriel Agreste being allowed back on the streets, but that was a question for another day. Right now, all that mattered was his Lady, his one and only...his true love!

A block away from Alya's he noticed something on the street below, or should he say someone. Dropping down, he headed towards the woman stumbling around in the alleyway, his thoughts fluctuating between this woman being drunk or, possibly, sick.

A chiming sound from his pocket signalled the arrival of a new message from his Lady, diverting his attention away from the citizen he was intending to help and to pulling his phone out of his hip pocket.

He read the name on the screen, M'Lady, a message received just over two minutes ago.

M'Lady: We need to talk. It's you and me against the world and I will do whatever it takes to make this better. Meet me at our meeting point in 10 minutes. I love you ❤️

Placing his phone away he looked up, only to notice the woman had gone. He was torn between searching for her, or heading straight for their rooftop. He looked once more at the entrance of the alleyway, only for her to be nowhere to be found.

Taking his baton once more, he extended it up onto the rooftop, and began to make his way to their meeting point, slowly, looking below him for any signs of the damsel in distress.

A couple of roofs over, he noticed her once again. Sighing, he decided that even though he needed to get to Ladybug he was still a hero and this woman looked like she could do with some sort of helping hand.

Dropping down just in front of her he was met by her body slamming into his, a body which had stumbled before collapsing in his arms. At first he thought that she was definitely drunk, hell, he couldn't blame her after hearing today's verdict, he was sure most of Paris was not going to appreciate their villain being let off for 'good behaviour'.

"Madam," he said, moving her in his arms to try and study her face, "I think it'd be best for you to-"

He sniffed. A familiar wonderful smell filled his senses, a smell of home, of comfort and of her. She turned her head. The piercing blue eyes of her stare gazing into his eyes before hers rolled back, her body slumping to make friends with the ground. He moved swiftly, lowering her down only for her eyes to continue fluttering open and closed, and a very faint 'Kitty' leaving her lips.