Marinette hated how she'd pulled away from Chat, but the feel of his warm skin around her wrist frightened her. Seeing who he truly was, no matter how much she wanted to, would put him in danger and that was the last thing she wanted.

Besides she had a job to do. One she couldn't do as Marinette.

She ducked and allowed the crowd to flow out around her, before quickly sneaking back. She hid behind a dark sculpture and felt around for the clasps on her purse. "Tikki?" she whispered. The spotted kwami flew out from the purse and frowned, her antennae glowing faintly.

"What's going on?" she yawned.

"Chat Noir's here and I think he's in trouble." she replied, "Tikki! Spots on!" In a flash of pink light the kwami was sucked into her earrings and she'd transformed into Ladybug. She could feel Tikki's aura flowing over her skin, giving her the confidence she needed.

She ran through the halls, following the sound of voices and flashes of white light glowing through the passage ways. Then it stopped and Ladybug couldn't make out anything in the darkness.

"Chat?" she called softly. She blinked and a flash of bright light flew towards her. Ladybug flinched back and two arms circled around her waist from behind, throwing her to the side. She felt Chat's weight on top of her and saw the outline of his head as the light flashed and faded above them.

She had to fight the warmth rising to her cheeks. He quickly yanked her up with him as he ran a few feet away and suddenly stopped. "Milady, so nice of you to drop by." he said.

Her heart fluttered involuntarily and she brushed it aside. She could feel his erratic heart beat against her palm and heat from his body through their suits. It was so tempting to lean further into him, to surrender to his embrace and –

No. She had to focus. She was Ladybug, not Marinette. She had to defeat the akuma. She had to use her head.

She pushed away from him and glanced around the room, but it was still too dark to see anything aside for the rapid flashes of light bouncing off the walls and the artefact that shielded them.

"I know you're there." murmured the akuma, cackling loudly, "Da Vinci won't hurt you so long as you give me your miraculous."

Chat Noir nudged her hip and whispered, his breath brushing against the shell of her ear. She stiffened. "There's a sky light above us," he whispered, "But it's covered by a tarp. If we get it down you should be able to see."

Ladybug gripped her yo-yo, tighter than usual and smiled in what she thought was his direction. "Guess we'll need to light it up then. You with me, Chat?"

"Never doubt me, Milady. I always will be."

Ladybug cleansed the akuma and one by one the lights flickered back on. Every artefact was restored the people quickly broke out of their clay tombs. The struggle was over. But Chat Noir was frantic.

She raised her hand to fist-bump him, but he was distracted, glancing around the room in a desperate and wild manner. "Chat?" she asked, "What is it?"

"Marinette." he breathed, "I have to find her." Chat ran away from her before she could stop him and wondered if he knew he was only minutes away from timing out in a very public place.

"Chat, wait!" He rounded a corner, prying open the doors to random storage closets and peering inside. After about the tenth one, she finally caught up to him.

"Marinette!" he called. He moved quickly, but Ladybug reached out and grabbed his tail, tugging him back.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

His breathing was laboured and his eyes were narrowed, "I lost her. I need to find her. I need to make sure she's okay."

"But she's fine." replied Ladybug.

Chat shook his head persistently and clenched his jaw, "How do you know that? What if she's stuck somewhere? Locked in a room or injured." He shivered and his ears fluttered atop his blonde head. "I have to find her."

He moved forward and Ladybug groaned in annoyance. How was she supposed to explain this to him? "What about your identity?" she replied. Chat stopped dead still and snapped his head back to her. "You can't reveal who you are under any circumstances." She walked towards him and grabbed his gloved hand in her own, pointing to the only paw pad left.

"Go. I'll find her and make sure she's okay." she added. Chat Noir wanted to argue. She could see it. But his eyes were firmly glued to his ring and deep down he knew she was right. He closed his eyes and sighed in defeat.

"Thank you, Ladybug." His coy green eyes bore into hers and the sincerity in them almost made her stumble back. He disappeared down the halls towards the front of the museum and before Ladybug knew it, people were filing back inside. As if nothing happened in the first place.

She quickly hit inside one of the closets Chat searched and transformed back into Marinette.

"Good job, Marinette." said Tikki, "Another akuma successfully defeated."

Marinette frowned, "Chat was so worried about me. I feel really bad about leaving him behind like that."

"You did the right thing." she replied, "He'll probably come by again tonight."

Marinette couldn't help but grin, "You really think so?" She thought about how protective he'd been and then again at how desperate he seemed to make sure she was okay. He could've revealed himself, but he was willing to take the chance anyway. For her.

Not Ladybug, but meek, clumsy Marinette.

She felt a slight pressure on her knew and found Tikki watching her expectantly. "I can sense that Nathaniel has strong feelings for you, Marinette. I think you should be honest with yourself and tell him your own."

Marinette knew what Tikki meant. She didn't love Nathaniel. She couldn't. Not with Chat Noir filling ever crevice of her heart and mind. She was falling for the sly cat, hard. It just wasn't fair to Nathaniel.

"You're right, Tikki. Let's go find him."

It didn't take long to reach the doors, following a bunch of the victims and a few who were lucky enough to hide in time. They looked a little shaken up, but they still smiled as they relived what they'd seen and how Ladybug and Chat Noir had yet again saved the day.

She jogged down the steps onto the pavement beneath the afternoon sun and Alya lunged for her. "Girl! When I heard what happened I was so worried. The akuma didn't get you did it?"

Marinette gave her a reassuring smile and shook her head, "No, it didn't. I hid in one of the rooms before it found me." She glanced over her shoulder at Nino and noticed that, unlike earlier, Adrien wasn't with him. "Where's Adrien?"

"Oh, he –um..." Nino swallowed nervously and chuckled, "He went home. You know how his dad is, one minute here and another there. You –uh know...so uncool of him."

Marinette didn't miss the glare Alya sent his way and Nino cleared his throat, ignoring her. "How'd you know it was safe to come out anyway? Weren't you totally freaked out or something?" he asked.

She shrugged, "The lights came on so I assumed Ladybug just worked her magic."

Alya enveloped her in another hug and groaned, "Man, I wish I could've been in there with you. Nathaniel was worried sick."

"Nathaniel?" Her heart skipped a beat. The red head came up behind the brunette, smiling sadly. Alya moved to the side and gave Marinette some space. Space soon filled by Nathaniel's own embrace. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin lovingly on her head.

"I was terrified for you, Marinette. When I couldn't find you I though the worst." He pulled back slightly, but his grip on her didn't loosen. "I'm so glad you're safe."

Marinette offered him a reassuring smile, "T –Thanks Nathaniel."

Alya nudged Marinette's arm and winked suggestively, "Why doesn't Nathaniel walk you home? I'm sure you've had a pretty long day already."

"Oh, Nathaniel, you don't have –,"

"I want to." he insisted. He unhooked his arms from around her and grabbed her hand gently in his. "It's the least I could do for you."

He stared walking, lightly pulling her forward and her feet moved reluctantly. She felt another pair of eyes burning into her back and turned her head around. But she couldn't see anything out of the ordinary.

Then she raised her gaze over the people's heads towards the roof of the museum and found Chat Noir standing in the exact same place they'd sat the last time they were here. His silhouette blended with the shadows of the adjacent buildings, but his green eyes were piercing, burning into her soul.

Her heart melted at the sight of him. He was watching her, making sure she was safe before he left.

He'd stayed for her.

Hey everyone, I just WOW. The fact that this story alone has already gotten 10K reads and it's barely been on Wattpad for two months is beyond amazing. It's miraculous and I can't thank you enough.❤️

This is a major turning point for the story and you'll see why in the next couple chapters. This is where things get more in tune with the plot instead of the random fluffiness from before.

BUT THERE WILL ALWAYS BE MARICHAT MOMENTS!! ;)

Please don't forget to vote or comment if you enjoyed this chapter and if all goes well the next one should be posted on Friday.