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Adrien was confused, that much was clear. That strange feeling of being so close to figuring out his lady’s identity, to knowing her name, to knowing all of her, had left him light-headed.
Of course, he took Plagg’s advice to heart. The kwami was a pain with his constant demands and complaints, but Adrien knew he was still attached to his holder, even if he had strange ways of showing it. He wouldn’t have reminded him of Master Fu’s rules if this wasn’t the case.
So he tried his best to shake off the suspicions, the almost near certainty that he’d got it right. Because it made so much sense for Marinette to be Ladybug. She was always missing during akuma attacks, she was always late, she was so smart and so kind and a force to be reckoned with when she put her mind to it. Who else could it be?
Of course, he’d be very happy if it was her. But while he really wanted to know for sure, he knew this was a risk he shouldn’t be taking. If he did, he’d lose her forever. He would not only have to return his ring but he’d also have to live with her disappointment. Because there was no way she’d be happy with his discovery.
Well, he obviously wasn’t doing a good job of not thinking about her. Since he was on the run from Kwamibuster, trying to protect his own identity at all cost, while also being worried for her, for Ladybug, and yet he also couldn’t help wondering what would have happened if he’d caught a glimpse of her without the mask. Would it have confirmed his suspicions?
He now had more urgent matters to take care of. Like hiding from the world while he was on the run and without a kwami. Finding a discarded banana suit gave him a brilliant idea. He needed a cover-up and this would offer one.
Of course, he wasn’t in the clear just because his identity was temporarily saved. Kwamibuster wasn’t content with getting the kwamis, to do Hawk Moth’s bidding she also needed the Miraculouses that went with them.
It turned out, however, that not all was lost. He knew he could count on Ladybug to think of a plan and come back to deal with the villain and get Plagg back to him. So when he saw the army of kwamis storming the building, he knew it must be her doing.
While Kwamibuster was busy with the kwamis, he was approached by one of them, a little red dragon. But this wasn’t the only surprise. Inside the kwami’s mouth was nestled a girl. A girl who looked very familiar.
“Psst! Cat Noir, is that you?” Even her voice matched, he thought giddily. It was his lady with a different Miraculous. One which somehow made her look even more like Marinette.
“Ladybug? Just when I think I finally know you, you manage to surprise me again!”
“That’s very sweet of you, but I’m not Ladybug,” she said, pointing to her bare ear. Hm. “I’m Multumouse and Ladybug has sent me to fetch your Miraculous to defeat Kwamibuster,” she explained.
Oh well. Once again he had to put his annoying suspicions on the backburner.
“How do I know I can trust you?” He asked the mysterious girl.
“Ladybug trusted me when she gave me a Miraculous, didn’t she?” Multimouse replied.
Well, he couldn’t argue with that. So he took his ring off and gave it to her.
“Tell her I'm relying on her to bring Plagg back.”
She put the ring around her waist, she was that tiny. Regardless of his suspicions, she was absolutely adorable.
“Okay, thank you. Oh yeah! Ladybug said you should meet her on the roof.”
He could do that. There, he could watch Multimouse work her magic, with her using Cataclysm to free the kwamis and the akuma. She ran to him with the ring, while an army of tiny mice kept the butterfly captive.
As he transformed back, he noted Plagg’s advice to think of a way to lead Ladybug off his trail. He didn’t think that she was that interested in his identity anyway, but it was better to be safe than sorry.
Once he was transformed, he returned to the scene of the fight just in time to see Ladybug land next to the little mice. So he’d been wrong after all. He felt a pang of disappointment for a second.
But he still had to admit that the girls’ plan had worked.
“Awesome plan, girls!” He called out to them.
What he hadn’t been prepared for after Ladybug cleansed the akuma and repaired the damage, was to see Multimouse return to her full size and suddenly detransform into Marinette.
Something, right there, didn’t feel right.
He watched the exchange between the two. About how Marinette couldn’t have the Miraculous again because her identity was compromised. About her apologising. It seemed right, but something was bugging him.
He tried to shake it off, to apologise for his kwami while trying to feign ignorance about the exact school where the whole drama had taken place. But as he watched the girls disappear and then led Ms Mendeleiev away, he couldn’t stop the insistent thoughts.
He’d thought that Marinette could be Ladybug. Then when Multimouse had first appeared, he’d taken her for Ladybug. His heart had told him that it was her. Then Multimouse turned out to be none other than Marinette! What were the chances?
When he left Ms Mendeleiev on the street, he fought the desire to get back to the rooftop. He didn’t know how this could help. If anything, it would put his chance at being a superhero at risk. But he also couldn’t put the turmoil in his mind to rest. He needed to know.
Before he could convince himself to run off, he returned to the rooftop just in time to see all the damage that had been repaired by Ladybug reappear. As if the whole thing had been… an illusion.
Adrien’s blood ran cold as he watched the Multimice and the bowl under which the akuma was trapped puff back into existence. Another Multimouse, which looked a little different, with orange lining her suit, appeared with a familiar flute in her hand. Illusion, yes. Because Ladybug had all the kwamis, including the one who could create any kind of illusion.
He watched her get separated from the fox kwami then get united with her copies and then… turn into Ladybug. So easy. He’d been tricked so easily.
It was done. He had the confirmation he’d needed. He watched as she did the whole purification thing, this time for real, and repaired the damage.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t make himself forget what he’d seen. So when she left with all the kwamis in tow, no doubt to return all the Miraculouses to Master Fu, he followed her.
It was surreal. To see where the guardian was hiding, to see Ladybug talk with the same old man who had surprised him in his home not so long ago to introduce himself. She’d always been the one in contact with him. She was the trusted one. With a pang of fear, Adrien wondered if his figuring out her identity would mean that she couldn’t be a superhero anymore as well.
He could still turn back and pretend he didn’t know a thing. But he owed it to her and to Master Fu and mostly to himself to be honest.
“Master Fu, Ladybug,” he called as he stepped through the window just as she detransformed. Marinette gaped at him.
“Chat, what are you doing here?”
“I figured out your identity, so I had to come and return my ring,” he said, bending his head as he muttered the phrase to let Plagg go. One last time.
A gasp made him look up to see Marinette become bright red as she held her hand to her heart.
“Oh my God,” she muttered.
“Well, that was quite an entrance, Adrien,” Master Fu commented. The old guy didn’t look mad, but intrigued by the scene unfolding in front of him.
“I’m sorry, I no longer deserve to carry this,” he said, taking off the ring.
“Adrien, no!” Plagg called out helplessly.
“I’m sorry, Plagg. I’ll miss you terribly. But I didn’t follow your advice. I needed to know. And now it’s too late.”
It hurt, it hurt so much that Adrien silently cursed his curiosity, even his love for Ladybug. It was all doomed anyway. He couldn’t have her no matter what he did. Why did he have to go and do what was explicitly forbidden? He’d ruined their lives.
“Master.. “ Marinette said quietly. With tears in her eyes, she took off her earrings and handed them to him. Adrien’s own heart broke anew as he saw the pain written on her face.
“Well, well, well” Master Fu sighed, holding their Miraculouses. “What am I going to do with the two of you?”
What did he mean? Was he going to do something to them, to erase their memories of their whole time as heroes? Adrien hadn’t even considered this possibility. That months of his life could disappear. That he wouldn’t know Marinette as Ladybug and have no memory of their time as partners. But it made sense. It was dangerous for them to know so much.
“It’s all my fault,” he said, tears stinging his eyes.
“No, it’s mine,” Plagg said, looking sadder than Adrien had ever seen him. “Me and my love of cheese.”
“Or maybe it’s mine,” Master Fu said, surprising all of them. “You two know each other without the masks. It was too much to expect that neither of you would figure it out.”
Adrien looked at Marinette and found her looking at him. There was no accusation in her eyes, just fear and a hint of resignation.
“I underestimated your desire to find the girl that you love, Adrien,” Master Fu said, a smile dancing on his face.
“But I knew the rules. I shouldn’t have done this,” Adrien reminded him.
“The rules are what happens when an old guy is alone and scared for a long time,” he sighed. “I don’t know about a written rule forbidding holders from knowing each other’s identities.”
The admission made both Adrien and Marinette gasp.
“I’m sorry. I put so much responsibility on your shoulders without you asking for it. I asked the impossible of you - to hide, to lie, to risk your lives. And to do it alone, without always having your partner to rely on. I know this has put you in danger. So it’s me who needs to apologise. You two have proven that I made the right choice - you two are heroes, with or without Miraculouses. I wouldn’t find anyone more fitting for your roles. You can have these back.”
With this, Master Fu handed the ring to Adrien and the earrings to Marinette.
“I guess you needed to know and this is why this happened. Also, this would make things more simple between you, right?”
“What do you mean?” Marinette asked, as she put on her Miraculous while Tikki nuzzled her cheek. Adrien had never known a greater relief than to feel the familiar weight of his ring on his finger again, while Plagg looked ready to hug him.
“Well, with you having feelings for him and him having feelings for you,” Master Fu explained. He looked like he was enjoying this. It took Adrien a second to catch up.
“What?” He looked at Marinette in astonishment.
“Master Fu!” She gasped, her face as red as her superhero suit.
“Marinette, you need to tell him. Look what a great sacrifice he made to find you,” Master Fu told her.
He, Plagg and Tikki were all looking at her.
“Oh, well. He already knows anyway,” Marinette sighed eventually.
“Great. I’ll leave you two to it then!” With a clap of his hands, Master Fu dismissed them.
In a daze, Adrien walked outside, right behind Marinette. The kwamis disappeared when they were on the street so it was just him and her.
“I hope you’re not mad at me,” he said in a small voice.
“For you being as smart as you are?” She laughed, surprising him. “No way.”
“It would be a lie if I said that I didn’t want to do it. This has been my greatest desire since day 1. To know the girl behind the mask. Because while I loved you before, knowing your name makes it even more real for me!”
He hoped that if he explained to her his motives, she’d be more lenient.
“I would have felt the same way if i were in your position, don’t worry,” she said. Which reminded him of the startling revelation back in Master Fu’s studio.
“Is it true? What Master Fu said?” He asked.
The day had been a rollercoaster of emotions. From the unexpected discovery, through the pain of saying goodbye to Plagg to him finding out that he might be the mysterious guy she was in love with.
She nodded, her cheeks turning a lovely pink colour.
“So it wouldn’t be a stretch to suggest that you feel as happy as me?” He said, hope filling his heart.
“I’m happy it’s you, Adrien, yes,” she said softly.
This was the moment when it all became too much. Without a warning, he pulled her into his arms, holding her tightly to him. It was real. They had found each other, they didn’t have to give up their Miraculouses and he actually had a shot at being with her! This was the best day of his life.
She was trembling in his arms, but her hold on him was surprisingly strong.
“I love you,” he whispered in her hair, trying to commit to memory every detail - how she smelled, how she felt in his arms, how great it all was. And then she went and made it even better by pulling back with a shy smile and kissing him. More details flooded his mind - the softness of her lips, the gentleness of the kiss, the promise of more.
“I love you too,” she whispered between kisses, her breathless laughter tickling his lips. She sounded so happy, making his whole being fill with even more love.
Maybe following his heart hadn’t been a mistake after all.