Adrian unlocked the door of the luxury apartment his father had bought for him. After his last heart attack, Gabriel Agreste had wanted Adrian to move into the mansion with him, back into his old room, but Adrian had put his foot down. He was an adult now, with his own life and he needed his own space.

He would move back from America, he could visit regularly and make sure his father was receiving the best care, but he would live in his own apartment, one that he would pay for himself.

His father had protested, Adrian had protested back, and finally they had reached a compromise. Gabriel could choose the place, make sure it was safe and was furnished to his specifications, but it was far enough away from the mansion for Adrian to feel like he wasn't living on his father's doorstep and close enough so that he could visit a required three times a week without trouble.

Adrian opened the door to the balcony and looked out at the view. He had to admit, his father's choice of location was perfect. His apartment was part of a series of new luxury buildings that were situated close to his old neighborhood-but not too close-only four blocks from the new job Alya had gotten for him, and also boasted a gorgeous view of the Seine below. He could visit all of his old childhood haunts on foot as Adrian within ten minutes or take to the roof as Chat Noir in seconds.

The sound of gorging came from the direction of the kitchen. Plagg had gone exploring and had found the stash of camembert Adrian had ordered for him.

Seconds later the kwami emerged, his cheeks bulging like a chipmunk's, a half-chewed cheese wedge in his paws.

"This is a pretty sweet pad, kid." Plagg belched, "I've got enough cheese here to last me a week."

"I bought enough to last three months!" Adrian protested. The greedy kwami shrugged.

"Hey, what can I say, I've been sleeping in your ring for five years, a guy gets hungry."

He opened his mouth extra wide to swallow the last of the cheese in his paws, and burped again.

One of the hardest things Adrian had ever had to do was remove the ring that housed his closest friend, put the ring in a box and store it in the back of his sock drawer. He had missed the slightly nasal voice begging for cheese, complaining about being cooped up, even the accidents that had happened as a result of Plagg's curiosity. The cat-like kwami might be greedy, selfish and impulsive, but he was also loyal, inquisitive and caring. He listened to Adrian's problems without complaint, was always there to cheer him up, and was the only person besides Master Fu who had known about his secret identity.

Master Fu.

Adrian had only received two postcards from the Miraculous Guardian, the first to wish him a Bon Voyage when Adrian left for the United States, the second a week before Master Fu had passed away, begging for Adrian to come home. But Adrian had been taking the month to go backpacking across the Appalachian Trail, and had come home, too late, to find the postcard and an invitation to the funeral, dated for the week before.

The guilt still gnawed at him, after all Master Fu had done to help him, Adrian had let him down when he was needed the most. Now the only one who knew about his superhero life was Plagg and Ladybug.

Ladybug. She was still...exceptional. Full of the same bravery, intelligence and determination that had made him fall for her all those years ago. But now, time had changed her outward appearance, filled her out, transforming her slender, girlish figure into that of a young woman.

He still remembered how it felt to hold her in his arms, the way her supple body had pressed against his. Adrian wasn't sure he'd be able to restrain himself next time he saw her, now that he knew what it was like to kiss her, to hear the breathy little gasps she made when he'd nibbled on her neck. He definitely would have to try that again, soon.

"Jeez, are you going to stare off into the distance with that dopey look on your face forever?" Plagg complained, hovering in front of Adrian's face. "You're thinking of Ladybug, aren't you, kid?" Adrian signed gloomily, leaning on the balcony railing.

"I'd hoped going away would help me get over her, but seeing her again...she's just so perfect." Plagg swooped down to pat Adrian's shoulder with a tiny paw.

"Five years, and you're still a sap, kid. But hey, maybe she'll finally fall for you now."

A spark of hope stirred in his heart, the first he'd felt in a long time.

"You really think so?

Plagg chuckled.

"Trust me, if she hated you, she wouldn't have kissed you for that long."

Suddenly, the city with its twinkling lights was a beacon with thousands of possibilities for him. Ladybug could be out there, running across the rooftops, swinging around the city on patrol, waiting for him as she watched the streets below. And no doubt Paris had grown and changed in the years he had been gone. There would be so many new things to experience, so many things to see.

"Plagg," Adrian said mischievously, "I think I could use a little fresh air." Plagg continued to eat, not noticing as his master climbed up on the balcony rail.

"What, being here isn't enough fresh air for you?"

"Plagg, CLAWS OUT!!" Adrian shouted as he jumped.

"Just be sure to be back by-wait,wait, aww come on!"

Plagg's last bite of cheese dropped to the ground as the kwami was sucked inside the ring. Next second, Chat Noir was vaulting through the air, leaping over the rooftops toward the heart of the city. The night was full of adventure, and Chat was in the mood to have some fun.

....

"You seem distracted tonight, Babe, what's going on?"

Marinette jolted back to reality. She'd been staring out the small window behind her kitchen sink, a half-washed dish in her hands.

She patted Jacques' thin, freckled arms encircling her waist with soapy fingers, and tried not to compare his arms to Adrian's. It wasn't fair really. Jacques was a musician she had met when Alya had dragged her out for a girl's night of barhopping. He spent his days strumming chords in local coffee houses, and was not required to have the sculpted muscles of a Greek God.

"It's nothing, just had a long day," Marinnette said, turning to her boyfriend and kissing him on the cheek. He was trying to grow a goatee in order to look more chic, and the stubble scratched her mouth. "I was up late designing some new clothes for work."

Not convinced, Jacques peered at her through his vintage granny glasses.

"You should get more sleep," he informed her and a touch of petulance crept into his voice. "You weren't even listening when I told you Francois is bringing in a new musician to take my Friday slot."

"That's good, right?" Marinette asked, turning back to the dishes. "Don't you usually call in sick on Fridays?"

Jacques pouted at the back of her head. It was true, he often called out sick at least once a week as he believed himself to be a free and carefree musician with the right to do what he wanted.

"I've had that spot for two years though! Francoise is obviously trying to push me out of a job. Just watch, first he'll have my Friday slot covered, then my Saturdays, then Sunday, and that's all my good days!"

Marinette began washing the wine glasses they'd used during dinner.

"Maybe you should take this as an opportunity to find a new place to play at. Didn't you complain that Francoise was stifling your artistic creativity?"

Now Jacques scowled. He'd started the story as a way to gain a little sympathy - maybe use it as a way to finally get into her pants. (The little prude had been holding out on him for six months and he was getting sick of 'taking it slow.') A man was not designed to hold out for so long, he thought bitterly, letting his hands stray down her waist. And, as usual, Marinette caught his hand in a firm grip before he could cup the tight derrier hidden under the colorful, floral skirt.

"Sorry Jacques, not tonight."

He groaned, rubbing against her suggestively.

"Come on babe, you've been saying that since we started dating!" He nibbled at her ear. "I want you. Tonight."

Marinette turned, fixing Jacques with a steely glare.

"I said no. And I'll continue to say no until I'm ready."

Jacques gave her his best puppy dog eyes, a trick that usually turned women malleable putty. Marinette was unmoved.

Frustrated, Jacques pushed away from her.

"We see each other once a week at most, you won't let me sleep with you, you barely let me touch you...are you fooling around with someone else?"

Marinette thought of Adrian's mouth against hers, the electric feel of his hands as they traced a line down the small of her back, enfolding her, enclosing her, embracing her as if she was a precious treasure. She could still feel the thump of his heart through his damp shirt, seeming to beat in a race against hers.

Jacques' voice filtered through, seemingly from far away.

"Babe? I want an honest answer. Are you fooling around with someone else?"

Marinette forced the image of Adrian out of her head. She wasn't fourteen anymore, obsessed with the handsome, blond boy who sat in front of her in class. She had grown, matured. She shouldn't go running after the boy who had broken her heart and left without saying good-bye.

"No."

Jacques relaxed slightly.

"Okay then. But if we're going to stay together, I think you should be a little more...intimate."

Marinette considered. She thought of his hands on her and shuddered slightly. Maybe she shouldn't be with Adrian, but she deserved to be with someone who made her happy, not someone who pressured her to go outside her comfort zone.

Marinette turned back to the dishes.

"No."

...

It took another hour to make Jacques go home, but once he was gone and the door firmly locked behind him, Marinette climbed the stairs to her balcony and sat in her desk chair, breathing in the fresh, Parisian air. She'd chosen this apartment almost a year ago when she'd moved out of her parent's house and loved every inch of it. It was affordable, close to work, but best of all it featured a small balcony –similar to her own at home- where she could sit and draw, or relax like she as doing now.

Unfortunately, her argument with Jacques still hovered in the back of her mind, and spoiled the quiet evening view. To hear him talk, you'd think that he had been a saint, putting up with Marinette's "goody-goody routine" the whole time, when in fact most of their dates had started off pleasant enough, then ended with him guilt-tripping her to take things to the bedroom.

She rubbed her aching head, tempted to go inside for another glass of wine. It wasn't her fault she had no interest in Jacques sexually, only the fact she had taken two months to realize it and break it off with him.

Marinette itched to call Alya and get everything off her chest. But then she remembered a similar conversation she'd had with her best friend last week.

"Girl, I don't know why you're still with that loser," Alya had said, her exasperation carrying through the phone.

"Hey, you're the one who said I needed to go out and find someone to clear Adrian out of my head."

"Yeah," Alya had snorted. "Find a good guy who actually deserves you. Jacques doesn't even come close to your level of awesome."

Marinette sighed and put her head in her hands. Alya had been right, of course, she had deserved someone better, but she wasn't in the mood to call and tell her that. She wished that there was someone else, anyone else she could talk to.

A sudden movement out of the corner of her eye alerted her and she spun, catching the hand of a figure clad in black leather and judo-throwing them over her shoulder. The mysterious person collided with a jumble of potted plants she kept in the corner with a yeowl of surprise.

Snatching up a broken umbrella, Marinette brandished it like a bat.

"Don't move! Who are you? What do you want?"

There was a groan, then a familiar voice answered groggily from her crushed foliage.

"Well hello Princess. Did you miss me?"

Hello my fellow Miraculers!! I apologize for the lateness of this update but I made it extra long to make it up to you!! 

I'd like to open up some discussions on my story page as well. Firstly, what is it that makes Miraculous special to you? I remember when I started, the first season captured me with the sweet romance and fun battle scenes, but now it seems a bit redundant. Now the thing I enjoy the most is the little tidbits they give us about the Miraculous and how it works.

What about you guys?

Sincerely, Your Authoress, Cantrella