#but oh boy would it take so much time compared to a sewn version

[muffinlance]

Interest Check: Isopuppy Plushies

Anyone interested in buying isopuppy plushies?

Either as a pattern or actual sewn-by-me toys. Because I have crocheted So Many Toys over my children, and I am thinking it's time to go back to sewing for awhile, but I should also stop rampantly making toys without homes to send them to. So. Casual interest check. I am absolutely making one for myself; this just determines if I should go through the effort of making an actual pattern so I can replicate the process.

[paganinpurple]

MariChat May - It Was You - Day 8: Fashion

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Wow. I’m still doing these? I guess I must be so far behind because I’m so stressed and exhausted from work. 

Look at that a chapter number matches the prompt day number!

It Was You

<<Chapter 1     Chapter 7     Chapter 8     Chapter 9

You Did This For Me?

She was so far beyond feeling nervous, she no longer had an adequate word to describe it.

He knew she had been working on something new. But he had absolutely no idea what her latest project was and now that she was ready to show him, she was no longer sure it was such a good idea. She didn't want to give him any strange impressions by basing a piece on him, but her chest felt tight and painful whenever she thought about keeping it secret, and she honestly wanted him to know just how much of an inspiration he'd been. Maybe it would lift his spirits.

She didn't know why, but her kitty had been feeling down lately. He was coming over more and more often these days, despite her parents stepping up their teasing game, and he never quite seemed to smile genuinely anymore. His recent smiles reminded her more of Adrien's when he'd assured them a couple of weeks ago that his dad forgetting about their meticulously arranged father-son dinner together and running off to a Milan show instead wasn't a big deal. She hated that kind of empty acceptance they both seemed to be using to cover up their pain. Even if she was basically a hypocrite who'd done exactly the same thing when Adrien had uncomfortably told her he only liked her as a friend.

She was dealing much better with that now though. After getting a definitive answer to her previous speculations about what could ever be between them, she had found it easier to push aside her awkwardness around him and try to be a real friend instead of a bumbling love-sick fool. She still had feelings for him but they weren't in the forefront of her mind lately. Now she could tease him on his taste in jokes or help him with his art project and creative writing assignments and generally try her best to cheer him up whenever he was down.

Just like she was intending to cheer up one mildly depressed kitty-cat.

It was almost time for the blond dork in question to show up, if the last fortnight's arrival times were any indication, so she slipped behind her changing screen in the corner of the room and started to undress before putting on the black jeans and green t-shirt she'd laid out for herself earlier. Just as she was lacing up the black biker boots to complete the look, she heard him drop down onto her bed and leap to the floor at the base of her ladder.

“Marinette?” he called out, “Princess, are you up here or do I have to go downstairs and risk your parents picking on  me?”

“Just a minute!” she shouted back, “I'm just changing!”

“O-oh,” she heard him say, and she squirmed a little, nervous at the way his voice cracked when he spoke.

It's now or never, she thought to herself as she shrugged on the jacket which was the focal point of her outfit. She hauled the zip up half-way and stepped out from behind the changing screen, seeing Chat turn towards the movement in his peripheral vision.

He gave such a comical double-take that Marinette was sure she'd imagined it; things that ridiculous didn't really happen in real life, did they? As his head whipped back again suddenly, she hoped he hadn't hurt his neck somehow despite his protective suit.

“What-is that-but-you're...?” he stuttered nonsensically at her, eyes and mouth widening with realisation. He snapped them both shut and shook his head a little before looking at her outfit again,  his vision only scanning her skinny jeans, tucked into the boots and simple T-shirt visible since she hadn't zipped the jacket all the way up, but fixating on the jacket.

“What do you think?” she asked him anxiously. She rubbed at her arm self-consciously and looked out of her nearby window at the building across the street, too nervous to keep eye-contact with him on the off chance he was offended in some way.

“You made that...based on me?” he asked in a disbelieving tone, a small smile working it's way up one side of his mouth crookedly. She turned to face him again and found her gaze drawn to those smiling lips. She made herself clear her throat in embarrassment before trying to speak.

“Yeah,” she said, surprised at how normal her voice sounded, “You've been great company to me lately and...I've always been kinda annoyed that there's so little Chat Noir merchandise compared to all the Ladybug stuff out there, so I, um, decided to add to your side a bit.”

She bit the inside of her cheek hard when he started to walk towards her, clawed hand outstretched to touch the arm of her jacket. It was a feminine cut version of the classic biker leathers that seemed to be everywhere in Paris at the moment. The black leather sleeves had large oversized cuffs added to the ends in an imitation of where his suit met with his clawed gloves. She had replicated the piping on his magical armour to recreate the shape of his shoulders and sewn in small zipped pockets, just like his own.

The real feat had lay in the details. Instead of a plain zipper on the main fastening, she'd added a tiny golden bell, the stitching surrounding all of the zippers was done in the same green as his eyes, and there was an additional belt fastening at the hem, which looked exactly like his tail. Lastly, she'd embroidered a green paw print over the spot above her heart, like a signature. She'd thought about stitching her name into it, but she hadn't wanted to take away from the sheer Chat-ness of the design.

As his hand stroked down her arm, he caught sight of the paw print and she prayed he wouldn't comment on it's placement. He didn't but she noticed his eyes softened from his previous shock to something more relaxed.

“Do...do you like it?” she asked hesitantly.

“You did this for me?” he asked back instead. She nodded silently in response. She watched as his face morphed from it's relaxed expression into a sentimental one and she thought she saw his gaze drift down to her lips before quickly snapping back to her eyes. He grinned widely.

“I love it!” he shouted at her, arms throw into the air and a tear slipping down his cheek, which he didn't seem to notice in his sudden excitement. She didn't mention it; there was no reason to bring attention to how emotional he was.

“Merci Princess,” he told her quietly, sweeping her up into a tight hug. She gasped at how tightly he clung to her before sinking into the hug and wrapping her arms around him in return. She expected to smell leather from either him or her own jacket, but instead she caught a whiff of his shampoo and body spray. It was a shockingly normal smell.

“No problem Kitty,” she told him, inhaling the scent of normal teenage boy. As he pulled back from the hug she felt the loss of his warmth and essence immediately.

“Have your parents seen this yet?” he asked, suddenly wary. She groaned in response.

“No. That's the next challenge, if you're feeling up to keeping me company through it.”

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