Miraculous Short Stories

Trust Love One More Time

Ladybug knows that her feelings for Chat Noir have been growing, but in the aftermath of Strike Back, the rise of Monarch and her own fears since Chat Blanc can she learn to trust her partner, herself and the love they could share?

Ladybug hung her feet over the edge of the rooftop, the setting sun splashing the horizon in golds and ambers. She closed her eyes and felt the warm breeze on her face. The streets below were filled with summer holiday makers who were making the most of the longer warm days and the conspicuous lack of akuma attacks.

Whatever Monarch, as he was now known, was up to was something Ladybug could only speculate. One thing she knew for sure though was that whatever it was, it wasn't going to be good and the longer this hiatus went on the more worried she began to be.

"You beat me back again m'lady." Chat Noir said, landing beside her and sitting down. "In my defence I was held up by a poodle puppy caught in some shrubs. I'm just glad our suits are indestructible." He chuckled, shaking his hand. "I don't think he appreciated my help somehow and my hand almost became his new chew toy"

"Excuses, excuses." Ladybug waved her hand around dismissively. "I still beat you back here fair and square." She flicked his bell which always brought a smile to his face.

"Indeed. The victory goes to you LB. Ask away, I'm ready for your interrogation."

Ladybug smiled to herself and thought for a moment. It was a new game they had begun to play recently, a little way to get to know each other a bit better. Since that fateful day where Ladybug lost all the Miraculous, she had resolved to open herself up more to Chat. She had realised one of her biggest mistakes was that she mistook Félix for his cousin Adrien because she didn't know Adrien as well as she thought she did. With Monarch holding the miraculous of the Fox, and Félix the miraculous of the Peacock, Ladybug knew that one of her best defenses against deception was to know more about her partner.

The first time they tried to have a heart to heart Ladybug clammed up. She had to admit that being vulnerable was harder than she thought, which was why it had been Chat's idea to make it into a game. Whoever was last back from patrol would have to answer a single question. She knew that for the most part he was 'losing' on purpose in order to allow her to ask the questions without feeling pressure to answer too many herself. It was just like him to do that.

If it had been anything that Chat had shown her since that fateful day Monarch made his threats to the people of Paris, it was that he could be trusted. It wasn't that she didn't trust him before, but she had let her own fears get in the way of her better judgement and she hated herself for that. She had let him down, but more than that she had let herself down. Her own insecurities led her to try to micromanage everything to her own detriment in the end - and yet he was still there, still standing beside her.

Ladybug turned her head to look at Chat, the soft orange glow of the sunset falling across his face as he looked out over the horizon, waiting for her question. He seemed different to her somehow now. There was a strength and determination there that she hadn't seen before, or perhaps she had just failed to notice. It reminded her that she didn't need to be the strong one alone. Master Fu had chosen them to work together for a reason. They shouldn't have secrets between them and yet there was one secret she was still keeping close to her chest, one secret she was afraid to tell him about. Maybe it wasn't so much that she hadn't trusted him, maybe the truth was that she hadn't trusted herself.

Chat turned to her, a playful smile on his lips and she could feel a treacherous fluttering in her chest. She shouldn't feel this way looking at him. His smile shouldn't make her heart feel like putty. She had only ever felt like this around Adrien but she had put that part of her heart to one side. She can't be focused on a relationship while Monarch was at large, and she shouldn't be feeling like this when she looks at Chat Noir. Loving Adrien was a risk, but having feelings for Chat... that was the end of the world.