Adrien returned to the hotel at midnight. Marinette had gone upstairs to check on her son –the son he was no longer as anxious to see –and came back downstairs to tell them it was time to leave. He hadn't minded and now that he was free from prying eyes, he could start phase two of his plan.

Admittedly he hadn't thought it through, but he didn't have any other choice. He had to find Ladybug, to set things right between them and hopefully rekindle what they'd lost when he left. It was a long shot, but if Marinette wasn't Ladybug then there wouldn't be any other way to find her.

Locking the door to his room, Adrien switched off all the lights and opened his jacket. Plagg flew out and the kwami's cat eyes shone in the dark. "Kid, are you sure about this?"

Adrien ignored him and stepped out onto the balcony. It'd been a while since he'd transformed and knowing he'd have to find his way down five storeys without the use of stairs or an elevator frightened him much more than it had when he was sixteen. He was out of practice but his father had insured he hadn't gotten out of shape.

"At this point I'm not sure of anything, Plagg, but I have to try." he replied. The kwami sighed heavily, his tiny body slouching forward as he floated up to Adrien's face.

"Plagg," his heartbeat thudded in his chest. "Transform me!"

The kwami was sucked into his ring and in a flash of green light the leather suit clothed his skin. He felt his body changing, a magic that felt so strange and yet so familiar filling his veins. His muscles loosened and a broken laugh slipped past his lips.

The leather felt warm against his skin, sending a wave of memories flooding to the forefront of his mind. Of Ladybug, the akumas, his awful jokes that always managed to bring a smile to both their faces and times he'd sneak out the house just to breathe.

A weight removed itself from his chest and his steps felt lighter, more agile almost as if he'd spent the last seven years moving through water. He gripped the baton tightly in his hand and with the push of the button he'd extended himself onto the highest floor of the hotel.

He raced forward, the night air ruffling his shaggy hair and he extended his baton towards the street, launching himself off the root top towards the one in front of him.

It was exhilarating, his motions fluid and his muscles acting on memory. He'd forgotten how wonderful it'd felt prowling the nights in Paris as a teenager and the thrill of being hidden in the shadows where no one would find him.

Launching himself from street to street, Chat Noir howled with laughter, crying out into the night with so much joy fresh tears formed in his eyes. He'd make his presence known, drawing out Ladybug to their favorite meeting spot.

There was no guarantee she'd come to see him, much less speak to him, but he had to try.

He heard the excited whispers around him as bedroom lights flickered on and people crowded their windows and balconies to catch a glimpse of him. He'd forgotten what it felt like to have fans praising him not for his body, but for something much more meaningful.

He reveled in it, basking in happiness and freedom that he hadn't felt since he'd resigned to leave Paris. But he was home now, where he belonged, and adrenaline propelled him faster.

Lunching himself along the beams of the Eiffel Tower, he climbed to the highest point. The metal was strong and study beneath his clawed fingers and the memories of their first battle fogged his mind.

He could still remember his first time in the suit like it was yesterday. He'd been so proud and eager to take on the responsibility of a hero, carefree at the thought of saving damsels and beating villains the way all his favorite superheroes had.

But he hadn't planned on meeting Ladybug the way he had, tangled up in her yo-yo, and he'd been even less prepared for her to steal his heart so unexpectedly.

She'd been so shy and unsure of herself, clumsy and awkwardly swinging around like she didn't have a clue as to what she was doing. He'd found it funny, considering her kwami had actually told her how to do her job and he'd resigned himself to be the leader of their small group.

Her shoulders had been hunched together, her eyes wide in fear and he was ashamed to admit that he'd doubted her. But he'd been wrong. They all had.

And he'd never been more awestruck than the moment she challenged Hawk Moth with all of Paris to see, brave and radiant, showing everyone exactly why she was chosen.

She was a hero. And he was the son of a villain. How poetic.

His sensitive cat ears flickered as he picked up the sound of her soft footsteps and heaving breathing behind him. It made his palms sweat beneath the suit and his heart race uncertainly.

"Hello, Chat Noir," she mumbled, her voice like a melody in the wind. He turned around and his breath caught at the sight of her.

Ladybug didn't look at all how he'd remembered her. Her body was curvier, filled out but firm with a thin waist and long legs that reminded him how much more of a woman she'd become. Her face had thinned slightly, giving way to a delicate jaw and skin that sparkled in the moonlight.

He still couldn't believe she was real, after all his years stuck in his own imagination. It felt like a dream. "L –Ladybug?"

He took a step forward, itching to reach out and touch her, to feel her soft hair brush against the exposed skin of his cheek and the warmth of her suit melt into his.

But she didn't give him the chance.

"Stay where you are," she snapped, glaring at him with so much hatred that his body grew cold.

"M –Milady?" he whispered. She looked away from him, crossing her arms over her chest and he dropped his hands to his sides. Shaking his head he inhaled deeply. "I know I haven't been around –,"

"Haven't been around?" she hissed, "You were gone Chat! I searched for you day and night and you were gone!"

"I can explain –,"

"I don't care," she replied. Clenching her jaw, Ladybug took a menacing step forward and he instinctively moved away from her. "You abandoned your duties when Hawk Moth was defeated. You let down Paris when you took the miraculous with you, the people you swore to protect and you let down me."

His heart was pierced by every word that flew from her mouth. "I didn't mean to hurt you –,"

"But you did!" she cried. She brought her hands to her eyes and turned her back to him. "I worried about you, I looked for you...I trusted you!"

Chat Noir didn't think twice. He reached forward and encased Ladybug in his arms, pulling her against him. She struggled in his grasp, fighting against him, but he wouldn't budge. He'd already let her go once. He wouldn't do it again.

"Let me go!" she cried, "Get your filthy claws off of me!"

"Please," he whimpered, "Let's just talk about this. We can move past this, put this behind us –,"

She elbowed him in the stomach, swung her yo-yo around his leg and tugged it forward, sending him sprawling to the floor. He tried to get back up, but Ladybug pressed her heel into his chest and pushed him down with an inhuman strength he didn't know she was capable of.

"It's been seven years, Chat Noir. Seven years that you want me to put behind us. You used me!" She dug her heel deeper into his ribs and Chat Noir winced, but made no move to stop her. "We were a team!"

He didn't move, not when he saw her shoulders shake with sobs or the tears falling from her haunted bluebell eyes. He'd broken her. He'd broken the girl he loved.

Putting on a brave front, he remained silent as he watched her vent out all her anger and frustration. She needed this and he did too.

"I'm sorry, Ladybug," he murmured. "I was young and I screwed up, but I never wanted to lose you. Please, forgive me."

"You may think we can just pick up from where we left off, but things have changed Chat. I –I've changed."

"That won't change how I feel about you." He replied. Her bluebell eyes widened and the pressure on his chest when lax. Chat Noir reached up, gripping her leg tenderly and pushed it off him so he could rise to his feet. "All these years I've loved you. I've always loved you."

"Stop!" she cried, as if his words were acid to her skin. "It doesn't matter how you feel. There's someone else now."

Someone else... Chat Noir didn't know what to hope for. Either way she meant it would mean that there was no way to redeem himself.

"I –I'm with someone else now. Someone better." she muttered. "And I won't make the same mistake twice." Her words were laced with so much venom it hurt to stand before her, watching those same eyes he'd dreamed over and clouded with so much pleasure turn vile and hateful at the sight of him.

She walked away from him, towards the edge of the Eiffel Tower and Chat Noir's eyes widened. "Wait! Don't go!" he cried, "Please don't leave me!"

Ladybug stopped at the edge and glanced at him from over her shoulder, her eyes filled with tears. "I never left you Chat." She smiled bitterly. "You're the one who left me."

And then she was falling.

Racing to the edge Chat Noir grabbed his baton from behind him and watched in horror as she threw her yo-yo to a nearby building and flew towards it. He chased after her, a single phrase chanting in his mind like an oath and a prayer.

Don't lose her. Please, I can't lose her again.

He was quick and agile, but she was better. More familiar with the terrain than he was now, she disappeared between the buildings and he lost sight of her. Searching desperately in the dark, he tried to find any hint of where she'd gone but there wasn't any.

She'd left and the knowledge that he would never again see her sent him to his knees, alone in the dark just like he'd wanted all those years ago.

I'm actually supposed to be studying since for the next four weeks I'll be writing all sorts of subjects  that will determine if I can get into the university of my dreams, but darn it all I had to post something after all the nice comments you guys posted asking for an update!

Now I won't be doing this often, but I wanted to surprise you guys and show you how much it means to have readers like you reading my work. So thanks for all the lovely comments and don't forget to vote or keep it up until next time.