La Magie est Perdue à Minuit

Part One, Chapter Four

Not even a half hour later the Miraculous makeover, Marinette stepped into the black convertible. She unfolded the piece of printed Tikki, her designer tucked into her palm as she finished her job. The Magic is Lost at Minuit. She opened her phone and video called her best friend, seated in the car behind her. They screeched that girl-scream only best friends scream, looking at each other’s magnificent outfits through the phones. Alya was wearing a beautiful black gown with a twinning mask (“It’s called Lady Wifi for some reason”, Alya announced) with lilac accents around the waist that almost seemed to be glowing. Her matching holographic nail polish shimmered as she nervously drummed her fingernails on the leather seats in pure anticipation. Her normally frizzy, bushy hair was straightened and curled, and hung in loose waves like a waterfall. Alya’s makeup contained hints of black and gold, an edge to a soft appearance. It suited her, and Marinette’s style to her own dress. The car arrived, and the girls slid on their masks and entered the main entrance of the beat-thumping beach clubhouse.

A slick, leather and silk-clad man and a friend at his side walked into the south side of the building. The black suited one had a very expensive leather mask on, a design almost like cat ears sticking out the top. His normally shaggy, messy sandy blonde hair was slicked up to look quite suave and sophisticated, yet still suited his age and personality. A black and green ring added a final touch to his suit. It agreed with his eyes and was the final piece. Nobody was noticing the tall and athletic boy as he adjusted the coat of his suit and looked around. His friend, however, was quite the funny looking guy, with a mismatched suit to match his personality, bopping to the beat. His mask was blue and red with a few black dots. He saw Chloe, without her mask and crying fake mascara tears, going off about how her Adrien wouldn’t be coming. His green eyes crinkled as he fought to keep from laughing.

The two boys looked out onto the crowd and Nino shrugged. “Let’s enjoy this night, bro!” and started to dance freely towards a girl his eye was on, wearing a black and lilac gown. Adrien Agreste was left looking out into the crowd, standing there alone like a cat in the night.

And then he noticed her.

Marinette nervously walked into the north entrance, wondering where to go. Alya saw a funny-looking multicolored costumed guy, so to speak, and with a wave to him, she said Good Luck to Marinette and left her by the stairs. Marinette saw Chloe and Sabrina, going for who they thought was the most good looking. Clearly, identity did not matter to the two girls, for they ditched the masks in order to re-apply makeup every five seconds.

Marinette slowly walked to the base of the stairs, where the heat of the party was happening. She twisted her Chinese paper fan in her hands to almost channel her nerves at one pinpoint.

She wore a beautiful dress. It was a red and black chiffon cocktail dress that swished as she walked. There was just enough shine so it stood out, but not enough to be the center of attention. The dress had black ribbons and accents that reflected her shiny twilight hair. It was layered and ruffled around her perfectly. The girl had a braided crown hairstyle that pulled into a loose bun in the back. The stray hair was curled dramatically and circled around her back. Silver hair ornaments were tucked into the braided sections, that matched the simplistic jewelry she wore. She had an aged silver and red bracelet around her wrist that seemed to be made for her.

As he walked toward her and calmly asked her name, he could see shockingly bright bluebell eyes, huge under her dark lashes and light makeup.

The world turned into slow motion, the beauty looked at the beast, and their eyes met, sky blue to emerald green.

She opened her mouth to reply, and as she turned her head, Adrien could see her silver-tipped red earrings were spotted with black, and the mask around her eyes were red with black spots, almost like a…

“Ladybug.”   “Chat Noir.”

His heart beat fast, as did hers. The black cat, unlucky to most of the world, held out his black-gloved hand.

In mock elegancy, with a bow he asked her, “My lady, would you take this dance?” She took hers in his, laughed a beautiful, light laugh, and together they took the dance floor. He knew what he was doing, as he led her across the floor.

She was a quick learner and got his fast-paced, smooth style down as he taught her how to dance. When the other couples made a circle around them to watch, he lifted her up and they glided across the floor like it was an ice rink, twirling and spinning around to the live orchestra in the background.

Throughout the night, they got to know each other despite their masked identities. Chat loved playing the piano, wrecking people in video games, yet he also had a flair for fashion and the culinary arts. He had such a flirty personality in interaction with Ladybug so unlike the boy she first saw standing alone. He was tough but he grew soft as more and more things were opened up. His father was strict, and his caring, compassionate mom gone. He felt hopeless and stuck in his work and busy lifestyle. Chat just wanted people to stop looking at his outward appearance and for once look in his heart. His friends didn’t see who he really was, and he felt stuck in a tornado of emotions. Ladybug expressed her understanding, losing her home and family, being stuck with a replacement family that treated her like a slave.

The music shifted into a slower, more relaxed mood, and Chat Noir held Ladybug close to his heart, as they danced to the song in silence. After a few minutes, Chat  needed a break. He took his Lady’s hand, and they walked to the boardwalk by the doorway to the beach. They sat on a bench, watching the water lapping against the rocks, the stars in the night sky shining down on the water. The two said nothing for several minutes.

“What’s on your mind, Chat Noir? Marinette asked. After looking over, she noticed that the black chat had tears in his eyes under the mask. Ladybug gently took his gloves off and squeezed his hand reassuringly, resting her head on his shoulder.

“I- I don’t deserve this. Someone to hear me, to listen to me. Someone who understands me for being me and not a celebrity. I don’t see why you aren’t like all the others and-”

Adrien choked up, embarrassed and ashamed, “and, why. Why is it that after all this time, why there aren’t more people like you. Even my best friend, he… doesn't see anything else other than a cool guy who has millions of fans and is fun to hang out with. But you…”

He turned to Ladybug, where tears formed in his green eyes and in her own.

“You’re different.”