"the moth's apprentice" chat noir x y/n

Me and You

He was always one step ahead of me. Like a moth fluttering at my window. He was a stubborn moth that refused to leave. It was a twisted and crumbling puzzle — the fragments of his master plan were slowly coming together, but I couldn't see all of the pieces. I couldn't see past the sheen of mystery that he'd covered his thoughts with. 

All I could see was Adrien — and wonder how he fit into the whole scheme. The days were falling away, and I was running out of time. It was slipping through my fingertips — Adrien was slipping through my fingertips and I had to find a way to save him. 

I also needed better strategies for avoiding him. 

Thankfully, he hadn't seemed to remember our altercation in the tunnels when he was a poisoned Chat Noir. He instead had taken to either glaring at the ground when I walked by, or angrily blushing when we randomly made eye-contact in class. 

Hawkmoth—or I meant, Gabriel Agreste had been coming around to our house much more often now that the Cat was out of the bag. I'd even go as far to say that he'd been staying later and later...into the dark hours of the night. 

I stood at my balcony, staring out into the expanse of darkness. Paris was beautiful at night, all the twinkling lights from buildings keeping the city alive. I could hear my Mom and Gabriel talking in the next room. 

Gabriel was different than Seth — different in a good way. They seemed to be having an actual conversation, instead of yelling at each other. It still didn't mean that her dating Gabriel was a good thing. In fact it was bad that she couldn't even see through the fact that he was an evil monster. However, I was glad that he wasn't slapping her. Or you-knowing her. 

I mean, like father like son though. 

The moon was full that night, and it seemed to shimmer its reflection on the canal, bouncing off the metal panes of the Eiffel Tower. 

I could see Marinette's bakery on the other side of the street. Her lights were off and curtains closed, so she must've been sleeping already. 

Some parts of the city never slept though. Especially those with two ears and a long black leather tail. The kitten superhero was bounding off rooftops in incredible speed. I could tell from here that he was training. Hawkmoth put me through the same training when I first became Raven. 

Chat Noir sped over the rooftops like a fiend, spinning over chimneys and flipping the ten foot jump between two buildings like it was nothing. He was slowly getting closer — whether or not that was intentional, I didn't know. 

I didn't notice I was staring loudly, but I must've been because I saw his left ear pick up as he paused on Mari's roof. He turned his head, and his green eyes beelined for me. Even in the dark, he was striking. 

I looked away, pretending to be very interested in the moon. Chat Noir's footsteps were soft as he leapt off and for a second, I thought he'd left. I was hurt — and relieved. 

I turned around to go back in my room when someone landed on my balcony rail. They creaked under his weight. 

"Awake this late, darling?" His smirk was audible through his tone. I looked back, pausing with my hand on the doorframe. Chat Noir's hair was messed up ten-fold, a thin line of sweat at his hairline. His blonde curls fell all over his mask and stuck up in different directions. He was still breathing slightly heavily, chest moving up and down in a steady rhythm. 

"It's only ten o'clock," I pointed out, taking a careful step away from the door and closing it so that Mom wouldn't come out to investigate. "And I can't sleep with all the noise in my house." 

Chat Noir's eyes flashed and his face became riddled with the unmistakable expression of embarrassment. I realized that he probably knew his father was here. 

"Yeah. I bet," He hopped off the balcony, leaning against the railings. He was almost acting normal, like he would usually come to random girls' windows and talk to them. "I heard that your Mom is dating Gabriel Agreste. It's all over the tabloids." 

I nodded slowly. "You got a close relationship with Gabriel Agreste?" I arched an eyebrow. 

Chat did a soft double-take. "Y/N, you can't ask me questions about my identity?" He phrased it like a question. 

"I can't?" I grinned. "What, are you some thirty year old pedo, talking to a high-school girl?" 

The corners of his mouth twitched as he fought a laugh. Chat Noir stared off into the dark for a second — reminding me of a cat watching something that wasn't even there. 

"I'm not a pedo," he yawned. "I can assure you that I'm the same age as you." 

I shrugged. "I don't know, you could be lying," I took a breath. "You're not exactly short, so you could be anywhere between the ages of thirteen and thirty two." 

Chat made a gesture to himself. "I'm not thirteen either. That would make you the pedo." He ruffled his blonde hair and hopped back up on the railing, sitting comfortably. 

"How do you know how old I am?" I crossed my arms. "I could be thirteen." 

"You're not thirteen," he challenged. "You're dating Luka Couffaine, and he's like nineteen." 

"He's eighteen," I corrected. "And what does that have to do with anything?" 

Chat Noir shrugged. "I don't really care how old he is. It just doesn't seem like he's your type, that's all. You seem...different." 

I raised my eyebrows. Regardless of the fact that I knew he was Adrien, he wouldn't have any knowledge about me. Even as Adrien, we hadn't really talked yet. 

"I seem different?" 

"Luka's kind of a...free soul, you could say. He's too nice to have opinions" Chat Noir started. I wanted to yell at him that he was basically exposing himself. He looked away from me, a tiny crease appearing in his forehead. 

"And you, you know exactly who you like and who you don't. You're competent, and strong-willed. No one's taking jackshit from you unless you want to give it to them." He grinned, making eye contact with me again. "You're the most beautifully stubborn person I've ever met, Y/N L/N." 

I was speechless. How could he possibly know all that about me? 

Chat Noir stared at the ground for a second when I didn't reply. 

"Anyways," he waved his hand. "Forget it. Who am I kidding? I don't know anything." He scoffed. "I'm just the superhero with a secret identity, who no one really knows." He said it quietly, turning to leave. 

"I know you," I blurted out. "I can't tell you exactly how, but I see who you are." I backpedaled. "I mean, I don't know your identity — " I lied. "—but I see how you are with the people you're around. I see how you put everything into keeping people safe, but you never allow yourself to be saved. You're always there for Ladybug, and you'e so fucking committed. It's admirable how you—" 

I cut myself off when I found myself face to face with him. It was like my feet had moved on their own during my little speech and we were eye to eye. Him on the railing, and me standing in the gap between his legs. His eyes searched mine, so desperately, looking for the person he wanted to love. And me, not able to pull my eyes away from the lost soul I saw reflected in him. 

"Y/N —" 

The door behind me opened.