midnight-lumiere

[midnight-lumiere]

Frozen hearts

After unexpectedly getting trapped atop a Paris rooftop on a cold winter's night, Marinette and Chat Noir come to terms with feelings long suppressed.

words: 1207

It was Christmas Eve, which meant another routine patrol for Chat Noir. Walking the snow-covered streets of Paris had become an all-too-familiar pastime.

Chat Noir had just graduated from high school, and patrolling the city gave him a welcome break from the everyday struggles of adult life.

I know this city like the back of my hand! he thought to himself happily.

He walked up to his favorite bakery, Le Pâtisserie de Lune. Staring through the window, he noticed a new cupcake—red velvet.

Chat Noir decided to buy one for his friend Marinette, whose birthday was quickly approaching. This also gave him an excuse to seek refuge from the cold.

As he walked out of the bakery, he heard the unmistakable scream of a girl in distress. Chat Noir's staff was out in an instant.

Sprinting through the streets of Paris, Chat Noir honed in on the screams, jumping over taxis and sliding under buses as he got ever closer.

Chat Noir stopped dead in his tracks, looming tall in front of him was Marinette's apartment. A sense of dread filled his whole body. Go! Go! Go! he told himself.

Running up the stairs and barging through the roof access door, he saw Marinette. She was standing there with her arms and legs chained.

She desperately motioned to a place behind him, and he quickly rolled out of the way as a large muscular man, clearly under the influence of an Akuma, smashed into the ground right where Chat Noir had been standing.

With a quick twirl and throw of his staff, Chat Noir sent the man flying off the rooftop.

"What happened? Are you okay?" he voiced worriedly as he rushed over to break her bindings.

"I don't know, he just appeared behind me," Marinette said, understandably shaken from the whole ordeal. "I'm okay though, thank you."

Chat Noir noticed a small box sitting on the ground; it must have fallen out of the man's pocket when I hit him off, he thought to himself.

He reached his arm down to pick it up. Time seemed to slow down, and Marinette could be heard saying something behind him. Did I hear her say, "Don't pick it up?" he thought. But it was too late.

An explosion threw him back against the door, and he could feel his powers exiting his body. This time it was Marinette who ran up to him.

"ARE YOU OK?" she asked, kneeling down next to him.

"Yeah, I'm fine, thank you," Chat Noir groaned back.

He stood up. "What was that?" he wondered out loud.

A realization overcame him, and he knew for certain it was a Flamboleux. A device that renders a miraculous's power useless when activated. My touch must have activated the device, he concluded.

The sun was setting, and the temperature was dropping. They walked to the door and turned the handle, but nothing happened.

"The door mechanism probably broke when I was thrown against it," Chat Noir said.

They tried to open the door again, and again, and again, to no avail.

The snow was coming down even harder, and the temperature was quickly falling. Paris was facing an unprecedented Christmas storm. The Ministry of Weather had recently sent out a warning that most government operations would be closed due to the extreme conditions.

"What do we do?" Marinette exclaimed, clearly concerned. She particularly hated the cold. 

"I don't know," Chat Noir replied. "But we'll be okay, I promise."

Suddenly, Marinette remembered something. She desperately rummaged through her handbag and pulled out a neatly folded navy blue blanket. She had knitted it mere days earlier and had somehow completely forgotten about it until that very moment.

Chat Noir looked at her with surprise. "Wow, you really think of everything, don't you?"

Marinette's cheeks, already red from the cold, seemed to turn even rosier. "I guess a good superhero has to be prepared for any situation," she responded.

They stood there for a moment, both clearly seeing the dilemma at hand. There was only one blanket.

"Come on, this blanket is big enough for the two of us," Marinette said, sitting down with her back against a vent.

Chat Noir sat down next to her, and Marinette draped the blanket over both of them.

Immediately, they felt some relief from the bitter cold. But Marinette was still shivering uncontrollably, so they moved closer to each other.

The blanket acted as their very own impromptu shelter, their bodies providing warmth as they sat in silence, overlooking the city.

Marinette couldn't help but notice that Chat Noir was having trouble keeping his eyes open.

"It's okay if you want to slee…" but before she could finish, he slumped over onto her, fast asleep.

She gently moved him so that they were both lying down. Chat Noir's head was resting on her chest. This was really the only practical position given the relatively small size of her blanket.

But Marinette did not mind this at all. Her feelings for him had grown considerably over the past several hours, and Chat Noir had evidently tired himself out from fighting the Akuma.

She examined his hair, some of which she could feel resting on her neck. Its texture was that of fine silk, and suddenly she had the urge to run her hands through it. How can a boy have such perfect hair? She wondered to herself.

Marinette was beginning to realize the full scope of Chat Noir's actions. How he had come out of nowhere and saved her from Akuma. How he had made sure she was okay.

Several hours later...

Chat Noir woke with a start. He immediately realized the placement of his head and the position they had found themselves in.

He quickly sat up. "Oh, I'm so sorry. Why didn't you wake me?" he asked.

Marinette blushed profusely. "I knew you were tired, and you saved me earlier. You really needed the rest."

Chat Noir smiled, understanding, and walked over to the door to check if anything had changed.

A tingle prodded at his heart, a feeling of something deeper, a feeling that could not be pinpointed nor named. As he felt Marinette's eyes watching him intently, all he knew was that this night had opened something new in his life, something he didn't know he needed...

Marinette started to shiver, and Chat Noir became aware of himself awkwardly standing there.

"Are you getting cold again?" he asked.

Marinette nodded. He could see a slight smile poking out from beneath her cold lips.

He quickly laid back down and wrapped his arms around her. His hands extinguished every ounce of cold.

They gazed out at the lights, basking in each other's warmth. Their hearts beat in tandem.

Paris gleamed below, the Eiffel Tower's spotlight slowly rotating, illuminating their rooftop every few minutes. During these precious moments of light, Marinette and Chat Noir gazed into each other's eyes before quickly looking away, embarrassed. Both coming to terms that this night had ignited something long building between them.

Chat Noir could feel his powers returning. “I think I can open the door,” he said quietly.

“Let's wait till morning,” Marinette whispered back. 

Chat Noir couldn’t agree more. 

“Would you like a cupcake?” he asked.