Talk to Me, Princess | Marichat - Miraculous Ladybug

Chapter Twenty Five - All The Pieces Crumbling Apart

"Listen, Marinette. Please. I really would like it if you left Paris for a few weeks until this gets sorted out."

"And what? Come back if you defeat Hawkmoth? What if that doesn't happen, am I supposed to never come home?" I argue back, looking at a frustrated Chat Noir pacing around my room. It's Saturday night, exactly one day after our awful phone call with Hawkmoth.

He didn't give me much details, so I have to pretend I don't know anything besides what he's told me.

"No, but I can't focus on protecting Paris if I'm worried about you." His eyes meet mine, a look of pleading and desperation within them. I want to cave, to give him whatever he wants. But I can't. This is my home, and more importantly I'm Ladybug.

Ladybug can't be here to fight alongside him if Marinette is hiding in a different city.

"Chat, we talked about this before. That no matter how you feel, your hero duties have to come before me. The people of Paris have to come before me."

"Bullshit. You are a person of Paris, therefore-"

"Chat Noir, you know what I mean." I say sternly, cutting him off. I take a few deep breaths as I get up and approach him. "I love that you want to keep me safe. But I'm not going anywhere. I'll stay out of danger, okay? I can't leave my friends and family behind, and I can't leave you."

He sighs, leaning into my touch. My hands cup his face gently, holding him steady to force him to stare at me. I need him to understand how I feel about this.

"I love you, Marinette." He whispers, making me freeze completely. I try to say something, to make my lips form some sort of response, but I can't.

I know that I have strong feelings for him. I know that those feelings could easily be considered love. But I can't say that right now, not until I give myself time to really think of what that means.

To openly love someone, or even acknowledge it, is really hard. There's so much that could go wrong, like a breakup that ruins everything.

He could hurt me. Leave me. Decide I'm not worth the effort, because loving me isn't easy.

Honestly, now isn't the time to be thinking about all of this. Hawkmoth has some giant plan he threatened us with that he could take action on anytime now.

"You don't have to say anything back. We don't need to label our relationship and it doesn't change our dynamic. It's obvious that I love you. And with so much uncertainty right now, I want you to hear it from me." His voice is soft, easing my troubled mind.

"Hear it from you in case something bad happens?" I whisper, my heart both full with warmth and also absolutely terrified. Chat Noir loves me. Me of all people. But he's talking as though he might never see me again.

A world without Chat Noir is not a world I want to live in.

"No, I won't let anything bad happen. Not to you at least." I can't tell if his confidence is real, or if he's desperately trying to convince himself the same thing.

I'm Ladybug. Im Ladybug. Im Ladybug. The words lay flat on my tongue, wanting so badly to roll out and tell him the truth. Even though it wouldn't be smart, maybe we'd be stronger together if we knew our identities?

Or we'd be a huge liability to our safety.

"I have to go. I need to meet up with Ladybug soon for patrol." He leans in, peppering my lips with a few feather light kisses.

"Please be safe." I pull him in for another kiss, his hands on the small of my back as he holds me against him. Breaking apart, he leans in to hold me tightly. Sighing against the crook of my neck, I return the hug and let him stay there for a few moments.