Marinette
She paced the length of the rooftop, starting to get annoyed. Where was Chat? He must've gotten the text too. The location was at an abandoned warehouse, and she had been waiting for him before checking it out. He landed behind her, throwing up some gravel as he did.
"Morning my lady."
She glanced back at him, ignoring the urge to run her fingers through his disheveled hair. He still looked sleepy.
"You're late."
"I had to do a few things first. Have you checked it out?"
"Nope, was waiting on you."
He grinned, and her stomach came to life with those damn butterflies.
"So what's the plan?"
"We're gonna walk through the front door."
He gave her a funny look, and she shrugged.
"If they wanted to trap us, they probably would have attacked while we were civilians."
He nodded, and they both descended to the parking lot below. The place was pretty run down, which would make it the perfect meeting spot. She pulled open one of the doors, and they walked in. It was surprisingly cool in there, despite it looking like it had no power. Extension cords streched across the ground, and they followed them down a long hallway.
"This feels like a horror movie, no?"
"Be quiet kitty."
She whispered, and he sighed. It was hard, trying to act how she normally did with him. Professional. He opened the door at the end of the hall, and gestured.
"After you."
She felt her face warm, and quickly walked past him. The room they stepped into was much colder, and she could hear an air conditioner running. Ahead of them were a few desks pushed together, with several monitors on top of them. All of the screens were off, and someone cleared their throat above them. They both turned, her hand already on her yo-yo, and his baton already off his belt.
"Relax. I'm not going to hurt you."
Marinette felt her stomach drop, staring up at the figure on the second floor. He was leaning against the banister, a cigarette between his fingers.
"Grant?"
They both asked in unison, Marinette turned to him, and they both unanimously agreed not to ask how the other knew him. So that bastard hadn't just been a kind stranger. He had probably been stalking her.
"Before we get on with this, I have to say, you two are by far the most entertaining superheroes I've caught."
He began making his way down the stairs, a trail of smoke following him as he did.
"It actually took me a little bit to realize that you two still don't know who the other is, and it makes for an interesting watch."
She glanced over at Chat, who thankfully seemed confused.
"What do you want?"
She snapped, before Grant could give any more away.
"And you. Showing up to fight an acuma drunk? That was probably the stupidest shit I've ever seen."
She flinched, and Chat slammed his baton on the ground, his glare fixated on Grant.
"Get to the point."
Grant seemed a little disappointed with Chat's attitude, but he quickly changed targets.
"Why are you getting so defensive? Don't you have a girlfriend?"
Just how long had this guy been watching them? The thought made her shiver, and Grant shrugged.
"You two aren't as much fun to talk to, when you're sober anyway."
Chat glanced at her sideways, and she quickly turned her face away from him. Grant was going to tell him. She just knew it.
"Anyway, I brought you here because I did all that work to find out who you are, and unfortunately, you made it easy. I like harder jobs. They're much more fun. At first I thought about you two paying me for my silence, but only one of you could actually afford my price. So I decided on something else that seemed more fair."
"How noble."
She snapped, and he shot her a warning look.
"I'd watch your tounge darling. Unless you want kitty here to know your secrets, I'd suggest showing a little bit more respect."
She closed her mouth, and tried to swallow her rage. What was with this guy?
"Let's get back on topic. What do you want?"
She was thankful Chat wasn't as eager to hear her secrets as he used to be, and she straightened back up. She could be respectful. For the time being. Even if she did want to ring this guy's neck.
"See those totes over there?"
He gestured to green totes stacked under the desk, and Chat nodded.
"In them, are probably hundreds of action figures and collectables of you two. And you're going to sign all of them."
Seriously? All of this just to sign some stupid toys?
"So you're not going to leak our identities?"
She questioned, and Grant shook his head. He stepped around them, pulling markers out of a cup on the desk.
"If I did that I'd get fifteen minutes of fame, but that shit doesn't pay bills. And I'm sure you think I'm a monster, but I wouldn't go as low as just outing you to hawkmoth."
If he found out who they were, maybe he had discovered hawkmoth's identity too.
"Do you know who he is?"
Grant shook his head, tapping one of the monitors. It came to life, a picture of hawkmoth now displayed.
"You two were easy. You come out and do patrols like clockwork. I just had to trace you back to your houses. But this guy? He strikes randomly, and since I've been in Paris he hasn't come out of hiding."
Chat stepped up next to the screen, staring at the image.
"Could you find him?"
"Are you offering me a job?"
Chat looked at him, as if sizing him up.
"I could pay you."
Grant grinned at that, nodding.
"Okay. Maybe I could. But you'd have to lure him out of hiding."
He reached across the desk, tapping another screen. The bakery came on, and Marinette slung her yo-yo at it on reflex, shattering the screen.
"What's your problem?"
She snapped, and Chat looked over at her.
"I might start working for you, but I don't want you to forget whose in charge, princess."
He ground out the last word, and she flinched, glancing at Chat. Luckily his back was turned, looking at one of the screens.
"Who are you?"
He glanced back at the two of them, and Marinette stepped away from him. She had to keep control of her temper. Or he was going to tell Chat everything.
"You already know my name, but I'm Grant. Hacker, tracker, and highjacker. At your service."
He bowed, and Marinette wanted to roll her eyes. He didn't seem full of himself at all.
"Alright. We'll sign the merchandise, and you start working on a way for us to get hawkmoth. Deal?"
Chat extended his hand, and Grant shook it. What was wrong with him? They weren't supposed to make deals with terrorists. Chat tossed her a marker and sat down in front of one of the totes, pulling out a box and signing it. He couldn't be serious.
"Go on, start signing. Or I could start dropping more clues."
Grant's tone made her face flush, and she plopped down in front of Chat, ignoring his questioning look. She yanked out a box and scribbled an autograph on it, before setting it to the side. This was ridiculous. They really expected her to spend her day like this?
"Hey bugaboo. This isn't as bad as it could have been. Let's just get it done."
Bugaboo? He hadn't called her that name in forever.
"You expect him to just stop after this? Never bother us again? You think he'll just keep his word?"
Chat frowned, and glanced up at Grant, who had taken a seat in front of one of the monitors.
"Maybe. Some people are still good for that."
She wanted to roll her eyes again, but focused instead on signing another box. Sweet, naive little kitty.
"I will keep my word. If I kept coming back to you, blackmailing you into signing toys, they would become worthless, because there would be so many of them."
She gritted her teeth, she hated this guy. She hated his logic, and his stupid threats. She wanted to destroy him. But, he was their only option for hawkmoth. They had been fighting the same person for years, and still hadn't found out who he was. This was their only option, and she hated every part of it.
* * * * *
Chat spun around in her chair, they were waiting on Alya. He was quieter than usual, and she was worried. What if Grant had given something away? What if he knew who she was?
"What's your favorite flower?"
He asked, and she looked up. Had Ladybug ever told him that? She couldn't remember.
"Lotus."
He hummed, and she wondered if she had said the wrong thing. Maybe he just thought it showed a picture of the bakery because he had been there so much.
"Is everything okay? You seem quieter than usual."
He smiled at her, sliding his chair into hers.
"I'm just thinking."
"About?"
His green eyes locked on hers, and she couldn't push down the nagging feeling that he knew.
"You. I heard your prom was coming up. Has anyone asked you yet?"
She blushed, and shook her head. Maybe he really was clueless.
"No one's asked me yet."
"I probably won't be able to go. If I can't, who are you going to go with?"
She frowned a little at that, she hadn't thought about him not going with her.
"Oh... I'm not sure. Probably a few friends or something like that."
He gave her a small peck on the lips, and she smiled at him.
"I wish I could take you."
"You have other plans that night?"
He leaned back in his chair, pulling her out of hers and into his lap.
"I've got my own prom. If I'm not there it'll turn some heads."
She nodded, and he wrapped his arms around her waist, sighing.
"I had a long day princess."
"I'm sorry kitty."
She kissed the tip of his nose, watching the way his cheeks turned pink.
"I love you."
She grinned, kissing both of his cheeks.
"I love you too kitty."
It felt different, saying it face to face instead of hiding behind a blindfold. But she loved it. It felt natural, even if the butterflies in her stomach tried to convince her otherwise. She wondered what color they'd be. Would they be normal? Or would they be like hawkmoth's butterflies? White, or black? She decided they would be white. Because everytime she felt them, it was happy. It wasn't sad, or angry like his were. They were happy. They both turned when they heard something outside the door, and she jumped up from his lap, her face turning red. Alya poked her head in and climbed up, shaking her head.
"I didn't interrupt anything, did I?"
Marinette shook her head, and grabbed the blanket from the loft, draping it over the railing of her bed. She didn't want anyone to realize the interview was happening in her room.
"So I was thinking if there's a question you don't want to answer, just veto it and I'll cut it out. Okay?"
Chat nodded, pushing his chair in front of the blanket. Alya sat down in front of him, pulling out her phone. Marinette moved behind Alya, not wanting to get caught in the video.
"Alright, filming in three, two, one."
She hit the record button, and Marinette sat down, watching him.
"I've got Chat Noir here for an interview for the lady blog, how you doing today Chat?"
Her reporter voice sounded completely different from her normal one, and Marinette grinned.
"I'm doing good Alya, how are you?"
"I'm good. Let's get straight to the good part. There are rumors floating around that you're in a relationship. Is that true?"
He chuckled, glancing up at Marinette.
"Uh, no. I'm not currently with anyone."
"And the rumors surrounding Ladybug's relationship status?"
He shifted, looking down at the ground.
"I'm not sure."
Alya seemed to notice his tension, because she leaned back, flipping through her notepad, skipping over alot of questions.
"Is it true that you and Ladybug have grown apart over the years?"
He flinched, and Marinette's gut tightened in guilt. It wasn't his fault they had grown apart. She just needed time to herself.
"She'll always be a friend of mine, even if we don't spend as much time together."
"I know the feeling."
Alya muttered under her breath, but Marinette heard it. She wanted to apologize, to both of them. She hadn't meant to shut everyone out. Not like that.
"We're going to play rapid fire trivia. I'll ask a question, and you answer it as fast as you can."
He nodded, and she cleared her throat.
"What color is Ladybug's suit?"
"Red and black."
"What color are her eyes?"
He seemed to be getting uncomfortable, but he answered anyway.
"Blue."
"How did you defeat queen wasp the first time?"
"We jumped in some water."
Alya flipped a page on her notepad, looking up at him.
"How did you defeat puppeteer?"
"Broke her wand."
"Are you in love with Marinette?"
"Ye- uh..."
He stammered, and Marinette's jaw dropped.
"Alya!"
She snapped, and Alya grinned at her.
"Don't worry, I'll cut that part out. I was just curious."
Marinette glared at her, and Chat cleared his throat.
"Three more questions, none involving Marinette."
Alya frowned at him, before looking down at her notepad.
"How do you feel about the PSA telling everyone to try to remain positive in these times?"
"I think it's a great idea. It means less people for Hawkmoth to acumatize. Less villains for Ladybug and I to have to fight."
He answered quickly, and Marinette could tell he was tired of the interview.
"Do you believe that it is helping? Hawkmoth's acumas seem to be tapering off in how often they occur."
"I believe so. Staying positive, even in the most stressful of situations is hard, but those of you fighting so hard for it are greatly appreciated. Ladybug and I are grateful for your help."
His stare was fixated on the camera, and his entire tone had changed.
"Okay last question. Are you any closer to solving who Hawkmoth is?"
"We're following new leads every day. But I believe we're getting close."
A lie. They weren't close, and they didn't have leads everyday. Hawkmoth was evasive. He was constantly avoiding them.
"Thank you for your time Chat Noir, and thank you for continuing to protect Paris."
"My pleasure."
She ended the video, and he stood up, glancing at Marinette.
"I gotta go. See you around?"
She nodded, and he walked over to the window, climbing out. She hadn't even gotten a kiss goodbye.