Marinette made it home just before the sun set and Adrien said goodbye at her front door.

"It was perfect, Tikki!" swooned Marinette, "I mean just listening to him speak was like listening to an angel." She sighed and spun around until she landed in her desk chair. "I was magical."

"I'm glad to hear that, Marinette." replied Tikki, "And you handled everything quite well." She sat down on the desk and Marinette passed her a cookie. She bit down on the edge and swallowed a hefty portion. "It will be even better next time. I'm sure of it."

"Truly Tikki?" asked Marinette.

Tikki nodded, "Of course it will. He was even looking for you afterwards. Adrien cares for you and the more you go out with him, the more you'll get to know each other. This is another step in the right direction!"

Marinette squealed happily and switched on her computer screen. The pink, heart-shaped collage of Adrien was all she had now that she'd taken down the rest of his pictures. With Chat Noir appearing whenever he liked it was just safer to keep them down. At least he wouldn't go snooping through her stuff.

A soft knocked echoed through the silence of her room and Marinette sighed. Why was he here now? She climbed up the steps to her bed and opened the latched to her balcony. Chat Noir stood outside with a sheepish grin on his face and waved.

"Hello, Purrincess. May I come in?" he asked.

Marinette rolled her eyes, "Only if you stop making all those ridiculous cat puns."

"But they're my specialty." He pouted, "Every superhero needs a thing –like a signature. Mine's the puns and Ladybug's is her charming personality."

"I always thought it was that she could cleanse akumas." replied Marinette.

Chat shook his head with a sudden far-off look in his eyes that made Marinette's heart beat a bit faster. "No," he mumbled, "It's got to be her stubbornness." He sighed and Marinette fought the urge to giggle. He actually looked kind of cute whenever he spoke about Ladybug.

She groaned, "Fine. You can come in, but don't touch anything." She moved back down and Chat leapt inside her room, closing the latch behind him. Marinette rolled off the side and climbed back downstairs, switching off her computer screen before Chat landed behind her.

"So my day was eventful, I got punched in the face by a damsel -," Marinette couldn't help but grin, "Fought a remake of Ladybug and another copycat –though who wouldn't want to copy me?" Marinette turned around and found him flexing again.

She shook her head, "And I'm hearing all of this, why?"

He lowered his arms to his sides and shrugged, "I heard the akuma had you real worried about your friends. It must've been scary being all alone in there." Marinette glared at him, but she couldn't deny how her body stiffened as she relived the incident. She'd been vulnerable –completely at Hawk Moth's mercy.

Ladybug wouldn't be affected. Ladybug would laugh in the face of danger. But she wasn't Ladybug right now and Chat wouldn't make the connection if she confided in him. "I guess so." she wrapped her arms around herself, "Are you?"

Chat Noir walked towards her chaise and sat down, stretching himself against it. "Am I what?"

"Are you ever...afraid?" she asked. "Aren't you ever worried about losing to an akuma?" Marinette didn't know what prompted her to ask him, but it had been on her mind for a while now. She wanted to mention the miraculous and perhaps even his kwami, but she wasn't supposed to know about them. No one else was.

She looked up and saw Chat staring thoughtfully at the ceiling, his arms crossed behind him. His expression was somber and miserable. She immediately regretted asking. "It's okay –really, you don't need to answer –,"

"Yes." he breathed. His voice was soft and shaky. "I'm terrified, but not for me. For Ladybug." Marinette frowned, but she kept her mouth shut. "She's the only one who can cleanse the akuma. She's more important than I am. If anything happens to her...Paris is doomed."

Marinette swallowed hard and sighed, "Chat –,"

"But it's more than that." he added, "If I lose her...I don't know what I'd do. She's..." his voice trailed off into a faint murmur and the silence felt heavier.

He was being sincere, no puns or pretenses. This was how he really felt and listening to something so personal about Ladybug made her chest ache with guilt.

She stepped up to him and sat down on the chaise by his feet. "What about you? Chat you're important too. Ladybug could never do what she does without you. Don't you ever...?"

Chat sat up and her gaze snapped to him. He sent her a cheeky smile, "Hey, I still like to think I'm pretty tough. After all, cats have nine lives don't they?" He winked at her and Marinette rolled her eyes, shoving his feet away from her.

"Silly kitty." she muttered, "You know what I mean."

"I do." he replied. Marinette looked back up at him and found his vivid green eyes staring right back at her. They were illuminated in the shadows of her room and seemed to glow brighter as he drew closer.

He pushed himself with his arms, until his body was right beside hers and their faces were only inches apart. Until her eyes could clearly see the texture of his mask.

She thought of Adrien and she wanted to pull away, but something felt different now. It wasn't like all the other times when she was Ladybug. Something had changed between them, but she couldn't figure out what.

Chat grinned and bobbed her nose with his clawed finger. "But that's a story for another time. Are you going to be okay after tonight?"

"What? Does the cat plan on sticking around?" she smirked at him.

"Only if the Princess wants me to." he replied and Marinette fought to keep herself from blushing. She turned away and her eyes fell on her desk.

"I'll be fine, but I can't have you leave without a treat, now can I?"

Chat's grin widened and he leaned back. "Now we're talking!" He clapped his hands together and licked his lips. "So what's on the menu?"

Marinette laughed and walked over to the small plate of macaroons beside her computer, both strawberry and chocolate. She grabbed a chocolate one for herself and handed the plate to Chat Noir. And he accepted it with open arms.

He moaned and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, practically swallowing the treats until there was only one left for her. And Tikki would not be happy about that. "Sorry," he mumbled, "But they're just so good. You probably think I'm a real pig don't you?"

Chat placed the plate beside him and his tail curled on his lap. "I don't think that at all." she smiled sadly and reached out to scratch him behind the ear. And she was surprised to feel how soft his hair really was.

He closed his eyes and leaned into her touch. "That actually feels...nice." he murmured.

Marinette quickly withdrew her hand, realizing what she'd done and chuckled nervously. She insisted he take the last macaroon for himself and he ate it on the way back to her balcony door.

But then he stopped outside, his tail curling and uncurling through the door and swaying in-between them, "May I have a request, Princess?"

"What is it?" she asked.

Chat gave her a shy smile and leaned his head down to her. "Well you see..." his tail wrapped around Marinette's waist and he sent her a flirtatious wink, "I really love your food, but I can't be chivalrous and have you feeding me every time I come around."

Marinette frowned, "Does this mean you plan on making these visits a regular thing?"

"Since you always seem to be in danger? Yes." He smirked down at her and Marinette didn't know whether to be happy or worried. It was dangerous having him a part of her civilian life like this, not just for her own secret identity but for her family as well.

He was paying too much attention to her and if Hawk Moth found out about this he'd no doubt exploit her every weakness she had. But standing there, looking up at him, she couldn't bring herself to say no.

Chat was carefree but he was somewhat responsible and she'd trusted him with her life plenty of times. Why was now any different?

"So what are you getting at?" she asked.

Chat licked his lips and his eyes brightened, "I want you to teach me how to bake."

Marinette's eyes widened. "You...never learned? How -"

Chat pressed a clawed finger to her lips and shushed her. "If you agree you'll find out tomorrow." She had half a mind to throw him out and tell him to never returned, but another part –a bigger part –was genuinely curious about him.

"My parents will be away on Saturday for their anniversary. The bakery will be closed then." she replied.

Chat reached down for her hand and gently kissed the back of it, "It's a date then." Then he disappeared out into the night.

Tikki flew out from the drawers up to Marinette and frowned at her. "Marinette, you know this is a bad idea."

"Come on Tikki, you and I both know he'll be bored soon. He probably flirts with a ton of other civilian girls and besides..." she shut the trapdoor and glanced out at it one last time. "Don't you think there's something...I don't know...sad about him?"

Tikki glared and Marinette frowned. "What?" she asked.

"Marinette, as a miraculous holder your job is manage your double like in secret. Those burdens are meant to be shared."

She sighed, "I know you're right, Tikki, but he's stubborn and arrogant. I'm sure he'll forget all about me soon enough."

Tikki shook her head, "He may not be Adrien, but he was still chosen for a reason. Deep down he's a hero and heroes don't forget about the people who mean something to them. Just be careful, for your sake and his."

The kwami flew back towards Marinette's desk and Marinette was left staring at the darkening sky. Chat Noir wouldn't knowingly put her in danger. He just needed to be discreet and he prided himself with that.

Besides, he claimed he was in love with Ladybug and plain, old Marinette couldn't compete with that. He'd move on soon and then everything would return back to normal. She was sure of it.

The release dates for Season 2 episodes are out! Apparently there will be one episode released this Sunday and every Sunday after that for the first 13! I've never been so grateful for subtitles before!

I saw episode 7 yesterday and it's totally awesome! Funniest thing EVER!

Thanks for all the reads guys and please don't forget to vote or comment if you enjoyed it.