The Finding

Chapter Two

Adrien

  "Hi mama." Marinette greeted, smiling at her mother over the counter. Sabrine greeted her daughter before looking over at the rest of them. Her smile widened as she greeted them all in turn. Adrien couldn't help but smile back at the woman, her smile was a contagious one. 

  "So what can I get for you all today?" Sabrine asked. Alya gave her order first, already knowing what she was going to get before stepping into the doors. Nino gave his order easily as well, having been here before and all. But Adrien found himself struggling to pick, he wasn't normally allowed to eat bread or things like that because of his strict diet. Not that he would tell anyone that he decided to take a cheat day.

  "How about a croissant for Adrien, mama?" Marinette suggested, seeing the way Adrien was struggling to decide on something. Adrien smiled gratefully at Marinette which caused her to blush and look away. He never quite understood why she did that, but didn't say anything about it. It had become a normal part of their interactions.

  That is why he had started to visit her as Chat. He had been for a couple of weeks now. As far as he knew, it was a secret just between the two of them. Adrien didn't think that Marinette had even told Alya about his visits. Which he figured was for the best, if Alya knew about it she would press and pester the girl like there was no tomorrow.

  Hanging out with Marinette as ChatNoir was nice, he had to admit that. She didn't act like some crazy fan like she did the first time. No, she acted as if he was just another friend. He got to learn things about her that he would probably never get out of her as Adrien, do to her stuttering and shy behaviour while around him.

  He remembered how shocked she was to see him the first night he tapped on her window. It was just after a patrol with Ladybug. He was exhausted and just happened to be passing her house on his way home when he noticed the light in her room was still on. He didn't know why, but he felt compelled to stop by and say hello. So he did.

  "Chat? What are you doing here?" Marinette asked nervously. It was clear to him that she was tired, maybe more so than he was. Which didn't really surprise Adrien all that much, he was used to long nights do to patrol and sometimes late night photoshoots - luckily the later didn't happen much.

  "Just came by to say hello to a purrincess." He said rolling his Rs slightly. It was the first time he had said princess like that, since he had to fit a cat pun into his sentence somewhere. Even though he was a lover of cat puns - and puns in general - he couldn't help but feel off a bit about that one. Although he was sure to use it again.

  "Oh well hello to you too, Chat." Marinette said giving him a tired smile. She tried to hide a yawn behind her hand but it was no use. "I would let you in, but it's getting late, you should be getting back home."

  Chat nodded slightly at her words, fighting back a yawn himself. "Well then have a cl-awesome night. I'll stop by again soon to see you again, purrincess." He couldn't help but use it again, as odd as it was, it was really starting to grow on him.

  "Alright, it won't be long, since they're just coming out of the oven now." Sabrina said as Tom walked in, a tray of freshly made bake-goods. The scent hit Adrien's nose and he couldn't help but inhale it. Not that he hadn't caught a whiff of how good the bakery smelt before, it was just that the fresh food added to it greatly.

  "Here you are." Sabrine said handing a small tray to Marinette. Marinette thanked her mother before paying for everything and bringing it over to a free table. Adrien had offered to take it, but Marinette had refused although she had thanked him for the offer.

  As soon as Adrien bit into the croissant he felt as if he was in heaven. He had never tasted anything so good, not even by his personal chef at home. That first bite was enough to tell him why this was the best bakery in Paris. It had defiantly earned it in Adrien's opinion.

  He was just about to take another bite when a loud noise was heard reverberating throughout the streets. Without a second thought, Alya was up and out the door, saying something about the fact it had to be an akuma. It was exactly what Adrien didn't want to hear, he had been enjoying his time with his friends. It wasn't often he had time to hang out with the three of them.

  But knowing he had no other choice, Adrien made his way to his feet. He was ready to give Marinette some excuse to pardon himself, when she ran to the back of the bakery claiming that she was going to find somewhere to hide. Thinking nothing of it, Adrien left the bakery. If Marinette went to hide it just meant one less person he had to look out for.

  Adrien ran down the street, finding an alley to transform in. He looked right and left, up and down, making sure no one else was there. Upon seeing how deserted the alley truly was, Adrien opened his jacket, allowing his black catlike kwami to come out of hiding. There was no more time for delay, "Plagg, transform me!"

  Once he was dressed as a hero, he came out of hiding, moving to rooftops so he could get around easier. The streets were always hectic during akuma attacks. People running, or driving away, wanting to get as far as possible; unless you were Alya. From the building he stood on, Adrien could clearly make out the ombré haired girl making her way to the park.

  The park, of course it was the park, Adrien thought. When wasn't it the park? Taking a running start, he started to jump from roof to roof, making it to the park in no time. Standing on the closest building to the park, he took a moment to take in what was happening.

  A lady with what looked to be natural red hair stood by the fountain. She had a purple suit with what seemed to be ivy crawling up the arms and legs. Her mask was green with what looked to be roses on each side. She looked like a simpler akuma to deal with, or at least that's what Adrien thought.

  "Are you doing it for the Vine?" Adrien called out to her before jumping from the rooftop to a tree then to the ground. Once on the ground he extended his baton enough for him to lean on.

  "Vine?" The girl hissed, almost as if it was poison to even just say the word. "Oh please, Ivy is so much better. Take it from me since I am Purple Ivy."

  "So what? Is she an angry gardener?" He asked, turning to look at the ladybug themed superhero that had just landed beside him. He couldn't help the smile that made its way to his face upon seeing her. "But anyway it's very nice to see you M'Lady."

  "An angry gardener?" The raven haired girl asked. He could tell by the way her mask moved that she was raising an eyebrow. "Well that's new."

  "Enough chit chat! Hand over your miraculous' or I'll take them from you by force."

  "What do you say Chat? Does fighting seem like a good idea to you?" Ladybug asked glancing at Chat. She made it seem as if she was really weighing the possibilities of the two options. They both knew there was really nothing to be debated on.

  "I pawsitively think fighting would be the best option here, bugaboo." After that was said Adrien instantly got ready to fight.