Demigods: In Paris (a Miraculous Ladybug and Percy Jackson crossover)

The Eiffel Tower is a good meeting place

Marinette couldn't believe she'd never noticed it before. But it was in that moment after she'd opened the door and seen him standing there, that perfectly innocent expression on his face, that she'd realised.

Adrien was Chat Noir.

She didn't know if it was because seeing him so unexpectedly had helped to overcome some mental hurdle, or because Tikki had told her about the so-called 'Mist' magic, but now she could feel herself seeing past it. As the evening went on, she noticed more and more evidence. His hair, those green eyes, his posture, the way he spoke... It was so obvious, she couldn't believe she'd never realised before. No wonder Tikki thought the plan was fine - Adrien wasn't going to be kidnapped, he was in control the entire time! No wonder Percy and Annabeth had been able to work out both of their identities so quickly - if they had the ability to see through this Mist, the way Marinette could feel herself doing now, it was probably blindingly obvious.

Despite this sudden realisation, it wasn't until Alya asked Adrien that question during Truth or Dare and Adrien answered so quickly and wholeheartedly that she connected the final dots. Chat Noir loved Ladybug, but she'd always turned him down for Adrien. But Adrien was Chat Noir, which meant... She'd been rejecting her crush all along! It was also then that she'd realised she loved Chat Noir, too. She been restraining her feelings out of loyalty to Adrien, but now that she saw both sides of him... she liked him even more. That was why she'd answered Alya's second question the way she had.

When Alya had pulled her aside and pointed out her lack of stuttering and tripping around Adrien, Marinette had realised that she'd been seeing through his untouchable-supermodel mask to the playful, pun-loving kitten beneath. And viewing him as Chat Noir had released a bit of her inner Ladybug, too.

All the while, Marinette couldn't forget about her upcoming meeting with Hawkmoth. She kind of wished she could tell Adrien, and have him come with her. It felt right, for them to finally defeat Hawkmoth together. Hawkmoth... Adrien's dad. Oh, poor him. No wonder he wanted her to do it.

Marinette found a way to excuse herself from the group before 9pm, the scheduled meeting time with Hawkmoth. She wondered if he'd actually show up or not. She went up to her room, and opened her purse.

"Tikki, sp- Tikki?" Tikki wasn't in her bag. "Tikki!"

"I'm here, Marinette!" Tikki flew out from under the bed.

"Tikki! What were you doing under there?"

"Ummmm... I was just..."

"Ohhhh," Marinette had a sudden realisation. If Adrien was Chat Noir, he had to have a kwami too, and she'd seen how excited Tikki had been at the prospect of going to see him the other day. "You were talking to Adrien's kwami."

"Wh- no! I wasn't-"

"How did you figure it out?" An unfamiliar voice asked, and a black cat-like kwami joined Tikki floating in front of Marinette. "Not that my holder isn't obvious, but-"

"The plan," Marinette said. "When I saw him at the door after thinking he'd been kidnapped... it just clicked. But Ladybug needs to be meeting Hawkmoth right now, so Tikki, if you don't mind...?"

"Of course," the red kwami said, giving Marinette her best impression of a thumbs-up.

"Tikki, spots on!"

"I wish Adrien was that polite to me," Plagg grumbled.

"You're adorable!" Ladybug called over her shoulder as she jumped off the balcony and started to swing towards the Eiffel Tower.

She really hoped that Hawkmoth would be there and would hand over the Miraculous without any trouble. After all, it was her birthday, and despite all the weird stuff going on around her, all she really wanted was to relax and have fun with her friends.

Unfortunately, for the second time that week, she got to the Eiffel Tower only to realise that the Agreste male with a secret identity whom she'd arranged to meet up with, was not there.

At least, not the one she'd expected, anyway. Within a minute of her landing at the Tower, a familiar black cat showed up by her shoulder. She almost jumped out of her skin. 

"Chat Noir!" She yelped. "You can't sneak up on people like that!"

"Aww, did I scare you, bugaboo?" He asked, but he sounded nervous. Ladybug fought to keep a blush off her cheeks. This was the same Chat Noir she'd fought with for a year. The fact that he was Adrien, her biggest crush... it changed nothing. 

"No, I'm just... This is really it, huh?" The end of their time fighting akumas. Obviously, the fear and destruction had been bad, but the thrill of the fight, exchanging banter with Chat Noir, being able to release that more confident side of herself... She wasn't sure if it was something she was ready to lose.

"I guess so," Chat seemed sad. Ladybug had to remind herself that this was his dad they were going to fight. "Is he here yet?"

"No, I guess his last act of evil will be making us wait out here in the cold, then?" Ladybug let out a brittle laugh. 

"I don't mind, so long as I'm with my bugaboo," Chat Noir cuddled up to her where she sat on a beam of the famous landmark. She froze for a second, unsure whether to pull away or let him hold her, then she slowly resumed kicking her legs, leaning into his warmth.

Hawkmoth could take as long as he liked.