Ficlet Request 6

[mistkitt]

Originally Posted: 12/25/16

Prompt: Marichat

This one’s under a cut because it got too long. ((Reminder that requests are closed and I’m just fulfilling the ones I had!))

~*~

Chat Noir was in trouble.

Today’s akuma victim, dubbed The Idolater, had been blessed with the power to make people fall truly, madly, deeply in love with a designated target. Which would have been fine if the victim had chosen a traffic light or some other inanimate object to make mobs of people worship.

But that would have been too easy.

Chat Noir locked himself into one of Le Grand Paris’s many storage closets in order to catch his breath. He felt around for a light switch. Where the heck was Ladybug, anyway? She usually beat him to the akuma. Maybe she’d gotten stuck in a situation she couldn’t get out of, and at that very moment was making excuses to run off and transform.

He flipped on the lights.

And screamed.

Marinette stood in front of him, hands clasped behind her back, a coy smile on her face. “My, Chat Noir, I had no idea you were so desperate to be alone with me,” she purred. Chat stared at her in complete horror as she took one big step forward and walked two fingers up his chest. “Let’s talk about us.”

“Can we talk about us later?” Chat Noir asked. “I’m kind of busy.”

“Too busy for me?” She wrapped her arms around his neck and it took all of his manners and good breeding not to shove her away. Any other day, in any other circumstance, Chat Noir would have loved to be in this situation. He wasn’t in denial about that anymore. But this lash-fluttering, doe-eyed, disgustingly saccharine Marinette was so out of character that he couldn’t have been attracted to her if he tried.

The love in her eyes was one hundred percent akuma brainwashing.

Chat Noir grabbed her wrists and gently lowered her arms back to her side. “Marinette, you know that I’m almost never too busy for you. This is a special occasion. There’s an akuma on the loose, remember?”

A trace of recognition flickered across her face, then vanished. “What does an akuma have to do with our relationship?”

“At the moment? Everything.”

Marinette grinned. “I know what the problem is,” she said, and poked the bell on his collar. “Don’t worry, chaton, you don’t have to be shy with me.” She flung her arms around his torso and rubbed her cheek against his chest. “I don’t have much kissing experience either. In fact, you want to know a secret?”

“I want to go defeat that akuma and get you back to normal,” Chat whined.

But Marinette didn’t hear him. She leaned up and pressed her lips against the shell of his ear. “You’re the only boy I’ve ever kissed,” she whispered.

Chat Noir’s brain short-circuited. A stupid grin slid onto his face, but then her words caught up with him and he realized they didn’t make any sense. He pried her off him and held her at arm’s length. “We’ve never kissed before,” he said, but when Marinette opened her mouth to speak he pressed his finger against her lips. “Hold that thought. Princess, can you do me a favor?”

The dazzled smile returned. “Anything for you, Chat Noir.”

“Call Alya. Tell her to get in touch with Ladybug, okay?” There was that flicker of recognition again. Chat Noir looked her directly in the eye, hoping his instructions stuck. “I really need Ladybug’s help with this akuma,” he said. Then, with an inward cringe, he leaned closer and dragged his thumb across Marinette’s bottom lip. “And once we’ve taken care of it, I’ll give you a nice reward.”

Marinette shivered. He pulled away from her and yanked the closet door open. “Got it? Great! See you later!”

He tore down the hall without looking back.

~*~

More than an hour later, Chat Noir knocked on Marinette’s bedroom window. The fight had taken longer than he’d wanted it to because, much to Chat’s dismay, Ladybug had also been under the influence of the akuma’s power. Aggressively affectionate Marinette was one thing. Aggressively affectionate Ladybug was a nightmare. Nothing got done until he convinced her he’d be oh-so-impressed if she saved the day.

Marinette opened the window and stood back to let him in. “Hey,” she said, “heard there was an akuma attack today, but seeing as I can’t remember most of it, I’m guessing I got hit?”

“You guess correctly.” Chat Noir jumped over her chaise lounge, but he didn’t sit. “Just wanted to make sure you’re all right.”

“Yeah!” Marinette rubbed the back of her neck. Her cheeks were pink. “So… what did I do?”

Chat Noir blushed, too. “You were kind of madly in love with me. And, uh, very forward.”

She buried her face in her hands. “Oh God. I’m so sorry, chaton. That isn’t… I do have a tendency to go overboard with crushes, but…”

“Don’t worry about it! I know you don’t really feel that way. It was the akuma,” Chat Noir said, trying not to sound disappointed.

Marinette stared at the floor. “Right. The akuma.”

Silence. Chat Noir frowned, stepped forward, and wrapped his arms around Marinette’s shoulders. She flinched, but returned the hug with no shred of reluctance. “What’s this for?” she asked.

“I promised you a reward for getting in touch with Ladybug for me,” Chat Noir said. He pulled back and kissed her forehead while he still had the nerve. “Thank you, Marinette.”

She smiled at him. “You’re welcome, kitty cat.”