Marinette closed the door to her apartment and headed down the staircase, out into the sea of Paris' midmorning crowds. Where usually on a Saturday morning she would be heading off to help her Maman and Papa at the bakery, today was going to be a little different.

After speaking to Adrien on Thursday and being invited to a movie premiere of some sort, she decided to take another leap, to go and have a makeover — gifted by none other than Adrien himself. Things like this were never high on her priority list. If anything they moved lower and lower by the day. If her hair needed doing, she'd get a quick cut and carry on with her day. Her nails were short and broken, and her makeup... What makeup?

She'd mentioned to Adrien, in joking terms of course, that she would be the troll on the red carpet. But the statement seemed to send Adrien straight on a mission: Get Marinette ready. He'd made appointments with a couple of his old artist friends in Paris, booking Marinette in for the whole shebang. From hair to makeup, Adrien had booked her a day of rest and relaxation at one of Paris' top salons. Obviously he wasn't overly happy with a troll appearing on the red carpet either. He'd even gone as far as offering a stylist to come and help her, but one thing was for certain, she'd got that covered.

The last day and night had been awkward to say the least. Between conversations with an invisible Chat Noir, and trying to locate Su Han, she was teetering on the edge of insanity. She still wasn't sure whether she was hallucinating or her partner was actually there.

After searching high and low, it became apparent the master was nowhere to be seen. She'd looked in the normal place (the Chinese medicine store Master Fu kept) and also any other of the Guardian's hang outs, each venue coming up empty. She'd sent Tikki out and nothing.

So, she was stuck. No help, no guidance and an over-enthusiastic partner. Along with scouring the obituaries for anyone who could resemble a young Chat Noir (and unless he was a 65-year-old called Rick, she was clearly out of luck), they spent an abundance of time trying to figure out some plan for an Akuma.

Her partner walked beside her as they made their way in the direction of the salon, walking through people as he went. "I can't believe you're letting this guy tell you you're not pretty enough."

Reaching into her pocket, Marinette messed around on her phone before putting it to her ear and continuing the conversation with Chat Noir. "He hasn't said I'm not pretty enough. He just gave me an option if I wanted to get ready for tonight, and I do. A change could be good for me."

Chat Noir snorted, his step remaining in sync with hers as they glided down the sidewalk. "You don't need to change, M'Lady, you're perfect as you are."

She shook her head, turning left and dodging a crowd of tourists in yellow t-shirts. "Kitty, you only know me as my alter ego. You have no idea what this side of me is like. I'm not..." She looked around and lowered her voice to speak. "I'm not Ladybug when I'm in summer dresses and converse."

"Well, from what I've seen, you're just as cool."

She stopped, turning her attention to look at him (which thankfully meant she was looking out over the river). "You don't know me. You know a part of me. I'm boring, and normal. You have this idea in your head and believe that I'm this person who will stand up for what's right and can fight crime, when really it's lucky if I make it through the day without making a colossal idiot out of myself. I'm not the same girl you dated back when we were teens. Then, I had aspirations and I was doing it, I was making something of myself. But then it all went wrong. I couldn't cope with it, and I came back to Paris. I settled for the first job which came up in the career I was interested in and I've coasted along ever since. It was as though someone had turned the world against me. There was no dream job, no want to push harder and... Never mind."

He hopped up onto the wall and looked at her, her own eyes focused on the river.

"No. Tell me, please," he implored.

She sighed, a hand wiping across her forehead. "And there was no you. I didn't realise how much I needed you until you weren't there anymore."

Silence fell between them. Only the sounds of excited tourists conversing in different languages filled the truth suddenly unveiled between them.

Chat Noir was first to break the silence. "I think that's what you want to believe —"

"Listen," she interrupted. "By the time we sort all this out, you'll be glad to be gone from my life."

She pretended to end her call, before marching her way down the sidewalk. He seemed so sure she was more than this. He'd been with her two days and still didn't believe she was not just Ladybug, that Marinette was a big part of her personality too – and it wasn't the most favourable.

Only a few feet from the entrance, she turned and eyed Chat Noir again. "Try and control yourself here. My papa's still worried I've been working too hard after trying to cover our conversation last night."

As usual, she had been to visit her parents for dinner on Friday night — pizza and games night. Unfortunately, Chat Noir seemed to be quite the geek when it came to games and progressed to 'jumping' on the sofa and screaming as she misspelt word after word during Scrabble.

As she screamed 'I know the 'i' is before the 'e'' into thin air, her father demanded to know her work schedule. It seemed he was growing concerned about her behaviour and he remembered the beginning of his friend Maurice's mental breakdown. One which involved shouting at thin air.

Standing outside the salon entrance, Chat Noir pretended to zip his mouth shut before placing his hand to his heart. He looked the 'epitome of innocence', yet she didn't believe an inch of it. There's no chance they would survive this without him making his point. She rolled her eyes, stepping forward and opening the door.

The salon was modern. The walls and floors were intricately designed in black and white, with the addition of chrome features on the walls and floors. Everything about the place said wealth, and she knew for certain she couldn't afford anything they offered in here. The mirrors and workstations were well equipped and tidy, unlike the cheap hair salon she used where they had you in and out in under 15 minutes. There were hairdryers, sinks and dazzling spotlights all around, and she was tempted to turn on her Converse and leave. She wasn't entirely sure she belonged in this world.

A quick spin around and she noticed the number of pictures on the walls containing Adrien's face and...was that his torso? She felt the need to fan herself as Adrien Agreste stood there half-naked and toned. Yikes!

"Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng?"

Spinning back to the main area of the salon, she came face to face with a rather eye-catching male. He was dark and exceptionally handsome. He had a goatee and neatly trimmed stubble framing his mouth. She suddenly felt like his picture should be up on the walls, not standing in front of her with scissors poking out of his pocket – that couldn't be safe.

"H-hi! Yes, that's me."

She could feel Chat Noir's eye roll from where she was standing. "What is it with girls and guys with pretty faces?" He began to walk around the room, leaving Marinette to converse with the hairdresser and panic about what her partner might try to do.

"Excellent. Adrien said you were after a makeover for a movie premiere tonight? Is that right?"

Marinette smiled, attempting to look 'the part'. If only her mouth would work with her. "If that's not too much trouble."

The hairdresser stared back at her. "Girl, it's my job. I'm Dominic. My husband, Leonardo, will be coming along a little later to do your makeup."

"That sounds amazing. I just want to check the costs first. I haven't exactly – " Marinette sighed.

"Monsieur Agreste will be paying for it all. You have no need to worry. He's told me whatever you want, you get."

Chat Noir laughed. "If Mr Flash the Cash is paying, then they can do my locks too."

Marinette snorted before turning it into a cough. The last thing she wanted to do was look insane here and end up with Dominic calling Adrien, resulting in the ex-model removing her from his contact list.

Dominic began to guide her into the main area of the salon, Adrien's faces stared back at her as they walked.

"I heard you were in London earlier this week. Adrien said he's back in Paris and is going to be working with you for the next few months."

Marinette nodded. "Something like that, yeah!"

"He's a good guy! Quite the laugh too."

"Yeah, I'm sure," snorted Chat Noir, before moving to another picture on the wall. Marinette caught him out of the corner of her eye, looking at a picture of Juleka. She knew that Juleka had continued with her modelling, and to see the picture she could tell why. She looked beautiful!

"She looks cool!" Chat Noir said. His head tilted from side to side as he seemed to be studying her.

Marinette turned from Chat Noir to Dominic, pointing in the direction of the photograph her partner was looking at. "I didn't know you styled Juleka Couffaine, too. We're old friends from collège and I'm close with her brother."

"No way! She's Bittersweet Symphony's sister?" Chat Noir gasped as he studied the photographs closer.

"Yeah she's one of our top clients." Dominic swapped Marinette's denim jacket for a black robe. He led her forward to the chair, seating her in front of the mirror and checking her hair lay flat down the back.

Using the mirror, Marinette searched out her partner, making sure he wasn't attempting to draw moustaches or beards on Adrien's pictures. Instead she found him studying a rather abstract photograph of two women, one which was making him twist and turn his head from side to side, an action which had her giggling.

Dominic grabbed a brush and began to brush through her hair. She was quite sure he was wondering what the hell he was dealing with. She was certain her hair was dry and had quite the lengthy split ends hanging around her shoulders. She couldn't help but watch in the mirror as Dominic picked up a section of hair and studied it.

"That guy's so fake!" Chat Noir cried. "Look, they've obviously airbrushed those abs on! No one can have muscles like that unless they're The Rock."

Marinette had been so caught up in Dominic's exploration of her hair, she almost launched herself out the chair at the sound of Chat Noir's voice, swivelling around to not only apologise to the hairdresser, but also to figure out what Chat Noir was looking at.

There was only one way of describing it: An ode to Adrien Agreste.

The wall was full from top to bottom, wallpapered in many, many pictures of Adrien. Headshots, full shots...incredibly toned half body shots.

And now she was staring too.

"Sorry," she squeaked. "I had a shiver run down my spine." She smiled politely, her eyes still fixated on the unbuttoned shirt pose Adrien was displaying – hands in pockets and the waistband of his boxers on show. Oh boy, she hoped she wasn't drooling.

"He's quite the sight, isn't he," said Dominic.

Awkwardly blushing, she nodded her head and sat back down, attempting to tune Chat Noir out and concentrate on what was happening to her.

Her partner continued walking around, every now and then whistling, or commenting on the amount of makeup Adrien was wearing and wondering if the guy was actually ugly in 'real life'. Marinette found herself biting her tongue again. Ugly and Adrien Agreste didn't belong near each other. She'd been up close and personal, after all.

"So, you're heading to Zoé Lee's premiere tonight? What would you like doing? Adrien has said you can have whatever you want."

"Whatever I want?" Marinette questioned, watching as Dominic pulled his fingers through the strands of her unkempt hair. She felt her cheeks heat in embarrassment. She didn't even know what to ask for.

"Sure. You can have it dyed, cut shorter, restyled...?"

"Extensions?" Chat Noir questioned, moving closer towards her and dropping his chin to her shoulder. "You'd look amazing with longer hair, M'Lady. How many years have you had it like this? Maybe it's time for a change."

She tilted her head side to side, watching her reflection mirroring the actions in the mirror. Longer hair would be nice? She'd always wanted to grow it out. She just hadn't had the time or the patience.

"Hey, man." Chat Noir turned to Dominic, before moving closer to his ear. "Don't you think she'd look wonderful with hair extensions?"

Marinette watched as Dominic went into some sort of trance, his eyes staring off into the distance and his hand stilling in her hair.

Chat Noir moved closer to Dominic's ear, whispering at a level she couldn't hear.

"Luscious long locks for the sweet Princess," Dominic hollered. "How about we try extensions?"

Chat Noir moved away from Dominic, a sparkle dancing in his eyes, making every hair on Marinette's arms stand on edge. "Well, that was awesome."

Marinette sat in shock as it dawned on her what Chat Noir had just done. He'd influenced Dominic.

She tried to picture her hair, before finally making a decision. "Ok, let's do it! Let's go extensions!"

"Extensions? Yes, sure." As though snapping out of the trance, Dominic dropped the strand of hair he was holding and began to move towards a doorway on the side of the room, one she hadn't noticed when she first arrived.

"And makeup?" he called back.

Marinette looked at Chat Noir in the mirror, the feline hero dropping her a wink.

"Definitely. Make me look fierce."

*****

Marinette had been sitting in the chair for hours, and although she loved the changes being created by Dominic and his magic hands, having Chat Noir constantly mumble about what was wrong with Adrien was starting to grate on her nerves. She found herself snapping a couple of times, having to cover it up by saying a fly was annoying her. Unfortunately the lack of creatures buzzing around the air just made her seem slightly insane. A theory she was starting to associate with herself.

To add to all this, Chat Noir's newfound 'mind control' trick had become the world's worst Chinese whispers game. After finding out a whisper in a person's ear could send them into a 'do as I say' trance, he just couldn't seem to help himself.

He'd almost persuaded Dominic to give Marinette blue highlights — until he remembered Luka's hair colouring and aborted the mission quicker than he could swallow a whole cone of ice cream – and that was quite a sight. Watching him like a kid in a sweetshop was both endearing and slightly terrifying. Especially as he was making decisions for her.

Dominic and Leonardo had disappeared into the back of the salon to grab some lunch, leaving her alone for some 'relaxation time' with cucumbers on her eyes, relaxing music surrounding the room, and her partner who sorely lacked the ability to shut up. She swore he hadn't been like this when they were together. It was as though his annoying parts had been bottled together into this apparition, doomed to stalk her for the rest of her life.

He'd wandered back to his favourite place, staring at Adrien Agreste, and was once again continuing his commentary about her new found friend. "Do you think Adrien botoxes his abs? There is no way that is natural. I heard this story once about a guy who used fake tan to draw on his own six pack. That must be what he does."

"I don't think Adrien fake tans his abs," she snorted. As much as he picked on Luka, it was nothing compared to the harsh roasting he was giving Adrien. It seemed he'd found himself a new target.

"Just because you think he's Mr Darcy and will take you on a romantic whirlwind adventure –"

"Let me stop you right there," Marinette snapped, pushing a piece of cucumber back up from where it had slipped. "There is nothing between me and Adrien. He needs someone to get him reacquainted with Paris. Nothing more and nothing less."

"Is that why you constantly check your phone to see if he's messaged?"

"I do not!" she squealed, a little louder than she probably should have.

"You won't mind if I read this latest message off him, then?"

Marinette shot up in her seat, the cucumber flying onto the ground as she reached for the phone. Grabbing it from the counter, she was sorely disappointed when only Alya's name greeted her from the home screen.

"Is everything okay?" The pounding of two sets of feet entered the room.

Marinette looked up from the phone screen and at both Dominic and Leonardo's panicked expressions.

She flicked her eyes between the men and Chat Noir trying to think of some sort of reasonable excuse. "I - um - I fell asleep and had a nightmare about a giant talking cat."

She watched Chat Noir facepalm as Dominic gave her a worried look. To be honest, if she met someone actually as crazy as she was at the moment, she would be worried too. "I think the return of Akumas has me a little unnerved."

The two men nodded as though it was the most normal thing they'd ever heard, and Marinette took the moment for a deep breath to calm her nerves.

Clapping his hands together, Leonardo moved forward. "Well, time's up on the face mask, so let's get this makeup done."

An hour later, as Leonardo began to clear up his supplies, Marinette was left to stare speechless in the mirror. Her hair now fell in loose waves partially down her ribcage, a shine radiating from where the sun was hitting against it and causing her usual jet black hair to shine with streaks of blue and purple. But that wasn't all. Her usual bare face was coated in a thin layer of foundation and accented with smoky eyes and pearl pink lips.

Her eyes looked big and vibrant, and incredible.

"Woah!" Chat Noir appeared behind her, his arms crossed over his chest and his eyes looking at her the way that always made her stomach flip.

"I know," she whispered back.

He walked around in front of her, looking over her face and smiling. "You look phenomenal, M'Lady. Not that you didn't before, but...this is something else."

She nodded, completely understanding what he was saying. It wasn't that she thought she looked bad without the added layer of makeup, but she couldn't deny how she looked at the moment – or how she felt.

"I can't believe the change."

They both continued looking at her. Her head twisted slowly side to side, taking in the sheen on her cheeks and extended length of her eyelashes – she needed to ask Leonardo what he'd used.

Chat Noir smiled at her, a smug grin on his face. "Darcy isn't going to know what hit him."