Finding Christmas

Chapter One

Adrien readjusted his position so that he was more in the light. It felt so weird posing in beach trunks on a fake tropical set when it was raining and cold outside. Of course, the Gabriel brand didn't just sell clothes in Europe and there were parts of the world where Christmas time meant sun, sand and surf...he just couldn't really picture it though. To Adrien Christmas had meant hot chocolate with snickerdoodles, open fireplaces, warm blankets and snuggling up to his mother to read Christmas stories before bed.

He tried not to let out a sigh. Christmas had never been the same since his mother left. Adrien's father, Gabriel, had always struggled to find any joy in the season at all, or any other time of the year for that matter, preferring to shut himself away most of the time. Adrien was lucky if he saw his father for dinner Christmas Day. His father's assistant, Nathalie, had tried to observe the season by decorating a tree in the mansion foyer and making sure Adrien always had a nice present (he had known for some time Nathalie had been picking his gifts), but it lacked the kind of joy and family atmosphere that he had seen in his friends' families. There was nothing special about the season anymore in the Agreste household, not that he ever let on to anyone else. This year though, Adrien hoped things might be different.

"Adrien, you are losing focus." Vincent the photographer complained.

"Sorry."

Vincent waved his hand dismissively. "Why don't we take ten and you can have a break to refocus."

Adrien grabbed his shirt, slipping it back on and making his way over to the snack table. He didn't get far though when Marinette came over to him with a steaming hot cup of coffee made just the way she knew he liked it. "Here, you look half frozen." She said, passing him a sandwich as well.

"You always know how to warm me up m'lady." He said with a cheesy grin. Marinette just smiled and bopped him on the nose.

"You only have ten minutes Kitty. I'm going to get your other outfit ready in case Vincent wants to move on to the next piece."

Adrien took a bite of his sandwich and watched as Marinette readjusted the messy bun in her hair and talked to Nathalie who had just scurried in with some papers. He let out that wistful sigh he'd been holding. So much had changed in the few years that he was still trying to catch up with it, but there were three things in particular that marked the biggest changes to Adrien's life.

********
The first was when a particularly bad akuma had kept Chat Noir and Ladybug up most of one spring night. Night time akumas were always the worst, not only because they happen in the early hours of the morning, (seriously, does Hawk Moth even sleep?), but also because they were usually fed off nightmares making them extra complex.

Completely exhausted by the time they defeated the akuma, they collapsed together on a favourite concealed rooftop to catch their breath and get some strength to try and get back home. After almost six years of chasing akumas together, Ladybug and Chat Noir were extremely comfortable in each other's company, having a close bond that floated somewhere between friendship and maybe something else? Maybe? One day? Perhaps that was more Chat's wishful thinking. Ladybug was his best friend, his partner, but he still loved her even though she had told him that a romantic relationship wouldn't be prudent between superheroes, not to mention the other boy she liked who never seemed to notice her. Despite the time that had passed though, his heart still belonged to his spotted partner.

Entwining their gloved hands, they leaned against one another. Chat loved these quiet moments with Ladybug, how much she trusted him and how safe he felt when he was next to her. In the peaceful night, he could imagine them always being this way, preferably without the akumas. Before too long, the two heroes had fallen asleep. It wasn't until the sunrise had begun to peak over the horizon that Adrien woke up to find himself curled up with his head in the lap of a warm body - a detransformed body that his foggy brain realised was most definitely an unmasked Ladybug. Adrien laid frozen with his eyes open towards the sunrise, unsure what he should do until he felt soft fingers run through his hair.