#2 heads and the flat bust and 2 pairs of eyes and a magic eraser and eye putty and neck modifiers and cat ears and magnets a

[elsaspants]

Galaxia🪽🌟 3.0

[callmeakumatized]

My Girlfriend’s Boyfriend - Ch. 18

Prev. Ch. Ao3 FF.net

Marinette and Plagg Flashback, part 2/2

Marinette clamped her hands over her mouth, but the scream wouldn't stop coming. And, dang it, she couldn't stop staring.

That…that seriously was exactly what she thought it was, right?

'Cause cats that talk don't actually exist.

When her lungs finally begged for mercy, Marinette let in a large gasp of air, preparing for Scream Session Round 2.

It only came out as a flat wheeze.

Luckily, her lack of oxygen to dive into a full-fledged scream turned out to be a bit of a blessing. Red-faced and close to hyperventilating or not, she was thankful she was able, in the slight lull from one frantic, panicked sound to another, hear what was going on in the room next door. Or, rather, noticed the deep, sudden silence that was once a busy fencing practice that had just been shocked into silence, presumably by some girl's blood-curdling scream.

Not a moment later, hurried footsteps and quiet voices could be heard coming up to the locker room.

AHHHHH!

Marinette looked quickly around, trying for all her might to keep her head on and think of some sort of plan – because that's what Ladybug does, dang it – and failing at everything. Tikki was currently busy being absolutely no help. The red Kwami was going in dizzying circles, deep in the throes of her own thorough freak-out. And the little Kwami in the locker didn't look like it would be of much use either, considering the large yawn he had just let loose before curling up in a ball.

Closing her eyes, Marinette thought hard...and came up with a plan. A…crazy plan. Per usual.

Shoes, phone, Kwami, locker, Adrien. Shoes, phone, Kwami, locker, Adrien.

Marinette's head did nothing but swim around with those thoughts, the sounds of footsteps getting closer.

"Tikki!" she yelled quietly (yes, it's a thing). "Spots on!"

Shoes –

Ladybug grabbed the pair of shoes from Adrien's locker, leaping over the set and reaching the door in a quick bound. She took the laces and wrapped them around and through each other and the handles until there was a thick, tight, and super cute bow holding the doors secure.

Phone –

Skittering back around a way where the students that had just tried to jimmy the door wouldn't see Ladybug messing around in their locker room, Ladybug wrapped around another row and skidded to a stop in front of Adrien's locker. Above all else, Ladybug was determined not to make this trip a total bust – while Chat Noir's secret identity had been a big blow to her internal functioning systems, she hadn't had time to deal with the emotions buzzing around that, and, therefore, still needed to nab that phone and delete that stupid message. She grabbed the phone and then stared at her next target.

Kwami –

This part was going to be a bit harder, maybe, and, depending on how fast she was, could blow up in her face.

A strained smile was the only thing she offered the suddenly suspicious Kwami before grabbing him around the middle. The banging on the large room's door and the excited voices on the other side of the row of frosted windows covered up the mewling yowl the kitten let loose.

Locker –

Nope. That part of the plan wasn't going as planned. She had hoped to make it look like Adrien's locker wasn't actually messed with, but as fast as Ladybug had grabbed the black Kwami from inside, said Kwami started fighting against her grip, phasing through her fingers almost faster than she was able to grab onto him.

"Get your paws off me!" he yelled at her, skittering around the air.

"I need your help!" Ladybug whisper-screeched back, landing hard on her stomach after another failed attempt to keep the Kwami still. "Please! I'll bring you back – I'm Ladybug for goodness' sakes! Can't you just trust me!?"

Plagg laughed humorlessly, settling on top of the locker she had just dropped ungraciously from.

"What's going on in there!?" a stern, pompous voice came from the other side of the door.

M. Dargencort.

Marinette looked back to the cat Kwami with the biggest eyes she could pull, begging him to please help her.

Plagg only stared back, tail flicking.

Just when Ladybug thought she'd lost all hope and was about to make her exit, the raspy voice replied, lilting in a way that was almost teasing.

"You're the baker girl, right?"

"Yes?" Ladybug whipped around, looking frantically between the kitty and the door to the locker room. Her feet directed her backward, but her eyes stayed on the cat who had just floated up to her.

"I like cheese. Feed me, and I will stay with you."

"Ah, yea-!"

"Mess with me or my boy, and you will wish that you had never laid eyes on me."

"-aaaauuuhhhhhhhh…" Ladybug finished with another wheeze. The door to the room banged, like someone was trying to push their way in.

Marinette didn't have a choice.

She'd already stolen a phone, anyway.

Could it really get much worse?

As she zipped away, Kwami in hand, she heard a loud, familiar voice yell out from the locker room.

"Plagg!? PLAAAGG!"

Although Tikki had seemed reasonably twitchy at the school, Ladybug resisted the urge to transform as of right now just in case her Kwami had come to her senses enough to scold her. For right now, Ladybug needed a clear thought process, not a little bug laying into her. That would inevitably come sooner or later, and, while she could still choose, Ladybug chose later for the time being.

Plagg, meanwhile, poked around in Marinette's room, ignoring Ladybug stomping around and pacing, and definitely ignored every probing question she shot at him, trying to make sure he really was Adrien's Kwami, that he was Chat's Kwami, that there weren't other cat Miraculous holders, and so on. He seemed to draw the line at a favorite colors comparison, choosing then to float away.

"So why am I here?" he finally asked, tone drawling lazily with an edge to it Ladybug did not like. In the next moment, Plagg tapped on the computer keyboard and, for some reason Ladybug couldn't make out, her hidden folder of Adrien pictures blew up in full view, Plagg viewing the horde with a wicked grin on his face. "Oooo, nice collection!"

Ladybug was frozen. How did he even find that!?

(No really? Where did he find it? Because she hadn't been able to find it the last time she looked…)

Another click on the keyboard and a collection of documents popped onto the screen.

"Save me, Adrien! Golden hair and lipid pools of green. How I long for –"

"AHHH! STOP DOING THAT HOW ARE YOU DOING THAT!?"

Ladybug leapt to the computer, exiting out of everything as quickly as possible

Where had that even come from!? GEEZ, 14-year-old Marinette was whack –

"AHHH! TIKKI, SPOTS OFF!"

Marinette was already rushing across the room – HOW DID HE EVEN GET UP THERE THAT FAST!? – to her loft bed where Plagg sat lazily, looking through the contents of her diary.

"February 14th, 2015," he read out loud. "Today was a crazy day! Adrien wrote a love poem to me and –"

Marinette made it up the stairs just to see that Plagg had already floated back down.

"Tikki!" she begged. "Help me!"

"I actually responded! It was amazing! Except I forgot to sign the letter. I am such an airhead!"

Tikki, finally realizing what was going on, darted after her other half, Marinette coming from the other direction.

"Then Kim got Akumatized because of Chloe (no surprise there) –"

Marinette ran smack into Tikki in midair, Plagg somehow suddenly sprawled out on her origami garland, swinging back and forth while continuing to read.

"…and I had to KISS CHAT NOIR – AH HAHAHAHA!"

The diary fell with a smack on the floor, and Marinette finally managed to grab onto the little imp, fingers unnecessarily tight around his scrawny middle. Tikki took the diary back to its "magic box", slamming it in place and snapping the lid shut. Both Tikki and Marinette took a breather from their sudden, completely unnecessary exertion.

"What," Marinette pushed out through a sharp exhale, "do you want to eat?"

Plagg grinned widely.

"Smart girl," he said triumphantly, phasing through her fists easily and up to her face. Tikki joined the two a moment later. When the Kwami looked at her ward and opened her mouth, Marinette waved a dismissive hand in a I'll tell you later, but it's messed up and you're not going to like it gesture. (Yes…it was a thing. Especially between those two.)

"Cheese, right?" she said, raking in a deep breath and shaking her head, thinking. "Cheese… What – What about…gâteau de fromage?"

Plagg went still, one whisker twitching, his eyes taking on a slight faraway look.

"Cheese…cake?"

"…because he would never give up on anyone, you know? I mean, yeah, he's just beautiful to look at, but…he's beautiful on the inside too. Not…Not perfect but…beautiful." A pause. "Adrien's genuine. I always knew that if he…If we were together, he'd never let me down."

Plagg, who was making gagging noises during the whole recorded speech, made an exaggerated gagging sound at the last sentence. Tikki slapped him.

"To erase your message, press 7. To save it in – "

A loud, long beeeep sounded through the speaker as Marinette hurried to erase the message.

"Message erased. To listen to – "

Marinette pressed the red button to end the call and heaved a sigh of relief. Her body flopped over the counter, face pressed into the cool surface.

"So…" Tikki began, Marinette only half listening (Incoming Lecture, T-2 seconds and counting!) "What are you going to do now, Marinette? You have Adrien's phone and his Kwami. And he knows his Kwami was taken. He's probably freaking out, Marinette."

"I know, I know," Marinette told the countertop. Another sigh escaped her that turned more into a raspy groan, as she raised her head. "I…I have a plan, Tikki, but…"

"But I'm not going to like it." It wasn't a question.

"But you're not going to like it."

"Bahaha then I'm probably going to love it!" Plagg said excitedly, shooting up in the air to touch cheeks with Tikki, giving the red Kwami a glinting look, before coming to sit in front of Marinette's face. A smirk made it onto her face despite herself. For the short time that she had known Plagg, he seemed a bit of a…troublemaker of sorts. A rule-breaker. This was something Marinette could get used to. Especially in the fact that suddenly she had someone on her team for her shenanigans. Suddenly Tikki's scolding glare toward the two of them seemed more humorous than guilt-inducing. She turned her gaze away from Tikki and settled on Plagg, coming to stroke his little head while she told her plan.

It was stupid. It was beyond stupid. It was ludicrous and he wasn't going to fall for it and he would know it was her and he'd break up with her and never speak to her again and – !

"Girl," Plagg said from the yarn ball cushion she had hastily made for him. "Chill."

Ladybug took a deep breath, trying to ignore the way it shook.

"So…it really has been Adrien this whole time?" she asked the Kwami for the sixth time that night.

Plagg promptly bit her.

While she sucked on her finger and scowled at the black cat, Plagg sat looking completely unaffected.

"I warned you what would happen if you asked me that again," was his only reply. "And I don't know why you do. You know him better than anyone. Well, anyone besides me."

"I thought I did…"

"Look, Chica," Plagg started, turning fully around and looking up at Ladybug directly. "The boy has to act a certain way at all times, never has a chance to be himself. He wears masks constantly."

Something Ladybug had definitely been piecing together in the last few hours.

"Who would want to act like 'Adrien Agreste' all the time? A superhero? Pft. No. The dude is the same person. So sue him if he acts like the free cat he is when he dons the ears. Which look fabulous on him, by the way. And I know how much you like the way he looks"

Ladybug smiled a little at Plagg's words. Adrien in cat ears…

That…

That was something she could definitely get used to thinking about. Mulling over. Fantasiz- NOPE. NOT GOING THERE RIGHT NOW.

Ladybug fanned her suddenly warm face. Chat Noir…was a good kisser. That…That meant that Adrien Agreste was a good kisser. And that she – she! – Marinette Dupain-Cheng, had macked on, sucked face with, kissed the Bejeebus out of Adrien That's-A-Fine-Pair-Of-Lips Agreste.

"Nnnnggg…"

Plagg rolled his eyes at his temporary ward, muttering something about 'hormones'. Suddenly his ears twitched and he froze, listening.

"Ladybug, one more thing before we wrap this up. Well, two. If you mess up my boy, I will mess you up. And the other thing. I need more cheesecake in my life."

Ladybug didn't have time to respond before she finally heard what Plagg must have noticed before: the sound of running feet headed their direction.

Briefly, Ladybug wondered if this was a wise decision. Sure, she felt more secure in the mask, but…technically, this was her boyfriend. If anyone would recognize her, it would be him. But if anything, Ladybug getting caught would just lead to something of an identity reveal. Marinette being caught would only lead to a disaster. Though hopefully, with all the changes she had made, her identity – classmate or girlfriend – would go unnoticed. Sneakers from her mother, a flowery swim cap over her hair, fluffy pink mittens, an oversized t-shirt, and a cheap black mask over her real Ladybug one, and she was set.

In all honesty, if he hadn't recognized her when she dressed up as a garbage-picking delivery girl with a motorcycle helmet and a gross poncho, he probably wouldn't notice her real identity now. It was too late to change anyway.

A wild-eyed young man came barreling around the corner of the alley. Though Ladybug had known he was coming, she was entirely unprepared for a solid mass of lithe boy to ram straight into her. The impact made her yelp and both of them were suddenly slammed against the brick wall. Ladybug was about to make a quip about the situation when she froze, feeling the sudden presence of a hand tracing up her side.

One look at his face and Ladybug could tell Adrien hadn't done it on purpose. He was still blinking dazedly, trying to steady himself, and seemed to just use her as leverage to straighten up. He hadn't moved, however, and Ladybug, who hadn't planned on being this close to him right now for many different reasons, panicked. One look in her eyes and everything would be over. She needed to do something! She needed to do something right now!

Hands deprived of their previous package (had Plagg and his cushion flown into the garbage can? oops), Ladybug looked somewhere – anywhere – for some sort of distraction, especially when Adrien, now bending down to inspect what his hand had grazed just a moment before, dragged his fingers across her waist again. Cursed suit! She was going to be figured out from her danged suit! Looking around frantically, she saw the picture still clutched in his other hand and made a mitten-fingered grab for it.

Ladybug was, temporarily – or maybe eternally, she hadn't decided yet – lost to the world. She had seen every photoshoot of Adrien's, every tabloid piece, every blog snapshot, and every phone photo she could get her hands on. Dating Chat Noir had toned that down considerably, and now, looking at this picture, Marinette felt her throat go very, very dry. It was evidentially a formal wear shoot, the lighting dark and dramatic and the promps and Adrien set in front of a bright green screen, as if he were posing at night in a scene that could be put anywhere. He must have taken it from the collection as something that definitely wouldn't be missed. In all modeling aspects, it was a bad shot – his face was scrunched up a bit, cheeks puffed out as if he was about to pop with laughter. His suit coat was hung carelessly over his shoulder and he slouched over with one hand on his knee.

It was perfect. A perfect shot of a carefree Adrien with the perfect backdrop to make his green eyes stand out. He was happy, and Ladybug was overjoyed.

When Adrien tentatively lifted up the shirt she had over her suit a little, and then lightly brushed his fingers over it again, Ladybug spoke automatically, forgetting what they were actually doing there.

"You can touch more of that if you want to," she almost whispered, still a little breathless from staring at her newest treasure.

When she felt the form next to her stiffen, Ladybug blinked slowly.

Well crap.

She whipped around to see the damage that had been done, the irreparable tear in their relationship that screamed of bad trust and ill-usage and overall realization gleaming from the tears in his eyes…

All she saw, however, was a red-faced boy frozen with his hand still outstretched, staring into space.

"You – Your phone and cat's in the garbage. Sorry. I-love-you-k-thanks-bye!"

Ladybug dashed out of the alley clutching the picture to her chest, laughing maniacally at what her life had become.

A few things started happening in the next week and following year since the Kwami Disaster.

Marinette started keeping cheese in her locker for her new friend.

For some reason, mysterious things started happening around the school. Some said it was a ghost pulling pranks. Pranks that Marinette and Plagg thought were quite funny.

And Marinette Dupain-Cheng was almost able to talk to Adrien Agreste full-on in the eyes.

…Almost.