A Miraculous Tale: Hawk Moth

Ch. 10

Adrien plopped onto his couch. Plagg looked at him expectantly, and Adrien fished around in his pockets for a piece of cheese. He gave it to Plagg, who took it greedily, then he told the kwami what had happened.

"I wonder what Hawk Moth has planned." Plagg said.

Adrien rubbed his face. "I don't know! I thought I knew, but I didn't!" It was just too much for him. The time travel was supposed to fix everything!

"Hey, don't stress out, kid. You'll defeat him."

"How can you possibly know that, Plagg?" Adrien snapped. The stress was overwhelming him. Did Master Fu say anything about the past changing? His mind whirled frantically as he looked for an answer to his problem.

Plagg obviously wasn't bothered by Adrien snapping at him. He flew into Adrien's face, and looked him right in the eye. "I know you and Ladybug will succeed because you two never give up. You stand up for what you believe in no matter what, and your hearts are pure. You both want to make the world a better place, and you never hesitate to help those in need. You protect the innocent, and are the heroes Paris needs and looks up to. That's how I know you'll defeat Hawk Moth."

Adrien was dumbfounded. Plagg had never said anything so sincere, which was how he knew Plagg truly believed they could win.

"Maybe you're right, Plagg, but I'm still stressed. Sadly, I can't tell you why."

Plagg nodded. "There are many secret missions when you're a hero. Are you going to stress about it, or are you going to do something?"

"I don't think there's anything I can do."

Plagg nodded. "If I may, besides the secret mission, why are you so worried? You've faced Hawk Moth before, and you've faced his minions dozens of times without fail."

Adrien nodded. "I don't know." He stayed silent as he thought. "I guess I am worried about something happening to Ladybug. I couldn't live with myself if something happened to her."

Plagg made a face. "You and all your sappy romance."

Adrien smiled, then an idea struck him. "I think I'm ready to tell her." He said slowly.

Plagg's eyes widened. "Tell her you love her?"

Adrien nodded. "I've loved her for so long. I think it's time to tell her." He stood.

"Now?" Plagg whined. "We just got here!"

"It has to be now, Plagg. Who knows what might happen tomorrow night? I need her to know before then. Plagg, claws out!"

******************************

Cat Noir landed on Marinette's balcony with a light thud. He was holding a small pink rose which he placed gently on the ground. He then jumped onto the sill in front of Marinette's bedroom window, and he rapped on the window three times. Please be here. Cat Noir thought. Marinette opened the window a minute later, and she smiled when she saw Cat Noir.

"Hey, what's up?" She asked him.

"Meet me on your balcony." Cat Noir told her. She nodded, so he jumped up onto the balcony again. He picked up the pink rose and slipped it behind his back as the trapdoor opened.

"What brings you here, Kitty?" Marinette said with a smile.

"Oh, you know. I was in the neighborhood and thought I'd stop by to see you." Her cheeks grew pink, and she looked down at her shoes.

He thought it was cute that she looked so bashful. He cleared his throat. "I brought you a gift."

She looked up at him. "Really?"

He pulled the rose out from behind his back and presented it to her with a sweeping bow.

"A pink rose for the most beautiful princess in all the land."

She took the rose from him with a shy smile. "Thanks, Kitty. It was nice of you to drop by to give me this. It's so pretty."

"Marinette, there's actually another reason I stopped by."

"What is it?" She asked; a small crease appeared on her brow.

He gently took the rose and placed it on the small table, then he grasped her small hands. "I wanted to tell you how beautiful you look. I wanted you to know that I love spending time with you. I love how adventurous you are, how determined you are, and how kind you are. There's so many things I love about you I can't even begin to list them all, and there's so much more for me to discover about you. I love you. I love you so much, Marinette, and I was hoping we could be something more than we are."

Marinette's cheeks blazed red, and her blue bell eyes were wide. She was quiet for an uncomfortably long time before she gently pulled her hands out of Cat Noir's. His heart had begun to beat nervously.

"Cat Noir, I... I don't know what to say."

"Do... do you not feel the same about me?"

"Yes... no... I don't know."

"Oh." Cat Noir didn't know what to say. He was positive she loved him too. "Don't you feel that connection though? I thought you felt it too."

"I don't, Cat Noir. Maybe? It's just, how would we work? You're a superhero; your identity is a sworn secret that's supposed to be guarded above all else! How could we be together with that between us?"

"We'd find a way." Cat Noir grabbed her hands and squeezed them tight. "Don't let that hold you back, Marinette. We can figure it out together."

She pulled her hands away again. "It's not just that. I'm not... I'm not exactly sure how I feel about you."

Cat Noir nodded. "I see." Though he clearly didn't. He could feel his heart breaking more and more by the second.

"I'm not even sure I want to be dating anyone right now." Marinette took a step toward Cat Noir, and he stepped back. "Please try to understand, Cat Noir."

He was in fact trying very hard to understand, but he wasn't quite able to wrap his head around it. If she feels our connection, why doesn't she want to be together?

The open balcony was beginning to feel much too small for Cat Noir. "I need to go, Marinette."

"Cat Noir..."

"No, it's okay. I just... I need to go." He jumped off the balcony before Marinette even had a chance to say goodbye.