Mirrored Secrets: A Miraculous Tale

Monday Night

Marinette was sitting out on her balcony under the moonlight finishing her sketching on her design pad. The Miraculous Team that was patrolling tonight should be finishing soon and knowing they were out made her feel safe.  Although they had defeated Hawkmoth by collecting all the Miraculouses back, the Peacock and Butterfly were still missing. There hadn't been any akuma attacks for a month now, but Ladybug wasn't going to be lured into a false sense of safety.

Chat Noir suddenly jumped onto her balcony startling her. "Sorry, Princess."

"Ah! Oh, it's just mew," she punned and giggled at her playfulness. He must be rubbing off on me, I keep finding myself making puns!

"Wow, you really are punny! What are you doing out so late?" he said with his charming smile, walking closer and trying to see what was on her pad.

"It's not that late, I'm just finishing up my plans for my graduation dress."

"Are you going to make your own dress?" Chat said in astonishment looking at the design. "That is really paw-mazing!"

"I've been working on it all last week but there is just something missing.  I want to use it as my application to intern with a Fashion company! I've already been accepted to start school at the IFA of Paris and I start in the fall," Chat watched her as she talked excitedly about her future and thought how beautiful she was. She was always so different when he was around her as Chat Noir instead of Adrien.  "If I was able to intern with the famous Gabriel Agreste fashion company while going to school it would really kick start my future!"

"You want to work for Gabriel Agreste?" Chat said a little shocked since that was his father.

"Yes! I doubt I would work directly for him because his company is so big and he only works from home. I would probably be a nobody fetching coffee for all his designers, to begin with. But I have to start somewhere, right?"

"With designs like yours, they would be fools to use you to run for coffee." There was something about the way Chat talked about her that made her blush.

"Really?" Why am I blushing so much? Stop it! He is just being nice. Why is he always so sweet when he is being nice??

"Yes really," he emphasized but was still being serious, "just look at that dress!"

"You say that about everything you see me draw."

"That's because everything you draw is purr-fect."

Marinette loved talking to Chat, he had started to have just the right amount of charm to go along with his cocky attitude. It was so easy and comfortable now that they have been meeting so often. "Hey Chat, can I ask you something?"

"Huh, sure."

"Why do you - uh - you know - um," she was searching for words, but as she looked into his green cat eyes her heart started to pound harder and she couldn't breathe. What is going on? As Ladybug, she had relied on him so much and couldn't help but start to fall for him while they had been working together. He always supported her and even though he still would be a goofball sometimes, he had become such a strong partner.

"Uh, Marinette? You okay?" Chat said, bringing her out of her mind.

"Yes. Of course, I was just wondering why you come here!" A blush spread across her face and she wasn't exactly sure she wanted to know so she spurts it out in a hurry.

"That's easy Princess, I love hanging out with you," he said without thinking, "Uh, I mean not love, I don't love you, what I meant to say was like. I like hanging out with you because you're so...paw-some."