Chapter 1
Adrien couldn't believe his luck. He has a date with his dream girl. At least that what he thought.
He has a date with Kagami, who he believes is actually Ladybug.
When he first met Kagami at his fencing class, he already felt like he knew her.
When she defeated him in their duel, he immediately had a familiar feeling.
Later, when she took off her helmet after class and he saw her face for the first time, he thought he already knew the person.
During the fencing lessons he was often able to talk to her. And with each of their conversations, he came to believe more and more that Kagami is actually Ladybug.
Kagami takes fights pretty seriously, much like Ladybug takes Akuma incidents seriously. In addition, she is smart, resourceful, brave, beautiful, and has a similar hair color and similar height like Ladybug.
Apart from that, she is very busy in her civilian life, as is Ladybug, who leaves immediately after most Akuma incidents, presumably so that she can get to her strict mother in time.
Then after a long time she agreed to a date with Adrien, after which he immediately sought help from his good friend Marinette.
With the help of Marinette, he then invited her on a double date at the ice rink, which unfortunately didn't last long as the Akuma Frozer ruined everything.
With the Akuma incident, however, one thing has become clear to him. Ladybug prefers his civilian identity to his superhero identity. For that reason he thought that Ladybug has no feelings for Chat Noir because she is in love with Adrien Agreste. Therefore, he has set his plan to invite Kagami on a romantic and extravagant date where he will end up telling and showing her that he is in reality Chat Noir and thus she has to stop hiding her identity and her feelings from him.
But before he can have the date with her, he needed help from Marinette so that she can plan the date for him.
When he asked her about it at school during lunchtime, he didn't notice the heartbroken look on her face.
To help him and make him happy, she told him that he should first take her to a romantic restaurant for dinner, then take her to Andre's Ice Cart for dessert, then they could see a movie at the cinema, followed by a romantic carriage ride under the moonlight and at the end he could give her a well-considered present.
When Adrien agreed, she writes him a list of the most romantic restaurants and places in Paris.
When she's done with the list, Adrien practically snatches her the list out of her hands and checks it out with a lovesick expression on his face, while Marinette looks at him with a pained expression on her face.
He asked her if she could tailor him something for Kagami while he was checking out the restaurants.
Marinette didn't even get a chance to refuse, as Adrien quickly makes his way out of the school as he has a few things to do before he can take Kagami on their date. It didn't even occur to him to thank Marinette.
Marinette looked after him with a heartbroken expression.
———————————————————————
Later that evening, in Marinette's room.
Marinette has been working on a design for Kagami's present since her conversation with Adrien.
She was already working on a sketch during her lunch break. It was a cardigan what is based on Ryuko.
She has also bought after school high quality and very expensive fabrics from a fabric store.
While she was working on the cardigan, Tikki said worriedly, "Marinette, you've been working on this design since you got out of school. I think you should sleep now."
"I can't. Adrien needs it in two days and I'm not even half done.” Marinette replies as she continues to work on the jacket.
"You're going to ruin yourself." says Tikki as she tries to pull Marinette away from the cardigan by the collar.
"No, I won't." Marinette defends herself.
Tikki flies in front of Marinette's face, causing Marinette to take two steps back.
"Tikki-"
"If you don't get some rest right now, I'll fly to your parents and tell them what's going on."
Marinette replies skeptically, "You wouldn't do that."
"Are you sure you want to risk it?" Tikki challenges.
Marinette and Tikki stare at each other until Marinette admits defeat.
"All right, you win." says Marinette with a groan.
Tikki nodded softly, "It's for your own good."
Marinette knows Tikki means well, but she still didn't want to disappoint Adrien.
Tikki leads Marinette to bed, causing Marinette to yawn.
As she lies in bed and almost fell asleep, she and Tikki heard a familiar sound land on Marinette’s balcony.
Marinette covers her head with her pillows, hoping that if she ignores him long enough, Chat Noir would go away.
Her hopes were dashed when Chat Noir knocked on her balcony trapdoor and called out to her.
Marinette groaned and got out of bed.
"You're not going up to him now, are you?" whispers Tikki worried.
"You know him. He'll stay up there and knock until he gets what he wants.” Marinette whispers back.
Tikki sighs but nodded. When Marinette opens the trapdoor to her balcony, Tikki hides.
As Marinette climbs to the balcony, the first thing Chat Noir says was "Hey Purrincess! Do you have some pastries left?”
Marinette breathes in and out before saying "Wait."
She went down to the Bakery, grabbed some leftovers and took them to Chat Noir.
When Chat saw it, he immediately took the leftovers and started eating them without thanking her.
When he gets to the last pastry, he asked, "Wasn't there anything fresh?"
"If you want fresh baked goods, you should come during opening hours and not when most are sold and only leftovers are left." replies Marinette bluntly.
Marinette doesn't really have anything against Chat Noir per se, but after spending some time with him as Marinette and Ladybug, Chat Noir has changed a lot, and not in a good way.
During the early stages of Chat Noir, Ladybug could rely on him, but after some time he stopped his work as a superhero and stopped taking her seriously and preferred to joke around and flirt with her instead of helping her.
After the Glaciator incident, he began visiting Marinette every now and then, to talk and beg for leftovers.
At first Marinette thought it was funny and she could talk things with him that she wouldn't speak with anyone. After a while, however, the conversations started to get one-sided and Chat Noir no longer asked for leftovers, he demanded them and even then he didn't even thank her for them. Suddenly it was only Chat Noir who was allowed to talk. He always complaints about things like Ladybug keeps turning him down or telling him to take things seriously.
Marinette kept telling him that he should indeed take this seriously, after which maybe Ladybug might like him better, but Chat Noir never listened to her. It's as if her words are coming in one ear and out the other.
When Chat Noir finished eating, he says happily, "You'll never believe what happened."
Marinette pretended to care and replies, "Let me guess, you finally managed to stop joking during an Akuma incident."
Chat Noir laughs a little before saying "You'll never experience anything like that."
'Unfortunately.' thinks Marinette.
Chat continues "No, I have a date!"
Marinette blinks twice "What?"
"I have a date with a first class girl!" exclaimed Chat.
Marinette really didn't know what to make of it. She can't imagine anyone would date Chat Noir. Not because of his looks, but because of his personality.
She asks seriously, "I hope you didn't tell her you were one of the protectors of Paris."
Chat Noir waves his hand in a dismissive way "Don't worry. She doesn't know I'm Chat Noir." He thinks afterwards with a lovestruck smile, 'At least not yet.'
Marinette nodded relieved "That's good."
Chat ignores what she said and says "I'm here to ask if you could make something for my date."
He already asked her as Adrien, but when Nathalie then made the restaurant reservation, it occurred to him that one gift for Ladybug wouldn't be enough, so he decided to ask Marinette again as Chat Noir if she could make another gift for him.
"When is your date?" asks Marinette more to get him to leave than out of interest.
"Exactly two days from now on Saturday," Chat says with a smile that's a bit too wide.
He figured that of course Marinette would help him out. After all, she always provides him with other things, so why shouldn't she help him this time too.
His smile dims when he hears "I'm sorry Chat but I can't help you there."
Chat blinks twice "Why?"
"I'm already making a gift for a friend's date, which is also in two days."
Chat demands more than he asks "I'm sure you can bring in my gift as well."
Marinette groaned internally, "I can't do that. It's already a lot of work to get the present for my friend ready." She ruffles her hair as she adds, "And I'm not even half done with it."
"But I'm sure if you manage your time better you'd be able to finish both presents in two days." Chat says, not noticing the scowl Marinette gave him.
Marinette says with suppressed anger, "How am I supposed to get two presents ready in two days? Normally a commissions work already takes at least a week.”
Chat didn't seem to understand what Marinette was saying as he asked "So? Can I pick it up in two days?”
"No you can't!" Marinette burst out "I already told you I can't make two presents in two days!"
Chat looks at her disappointed "I thought you were better. Can't you just do me this favor? Don't be so selfish."
Marinette narrows her eyes. She doesn't say anything for now. She turns her back on him as she says "Goodnight Chat Noir, never come back here."
Chat didn't get a chance to say anything as Marinette went through the trap door to her room and locked the door behind her.
Chat stares dumbstruck at the trapdoor. He stayed on the balcony for a while, hoping that Marinette would see the point and make him the gift after all.
After an hour of waiting, it was clear to him that Marinette wouldn’t come out.
He murmurs, "Maybe I should try again tomorrow."
———————————————————————
Two days later.
Marinette finished the cardigan in time. She was sitting in the living room and put the finished cardigan in a gift box and then wrapped it in wrapping paper.
The last two days have been nerve-wracking for her. Not only did she have to fight Akumas and shoo Chat Noir off her balcony, but Chat Noir has been hinting at Ladybug all along that he's going on a date. If she hadn't been so busy at the time, she certainly would have asked him about it just so he would shut up, but she had to finish the gift for Kagami.
She's been working on it non-stop for the past two days and has had to turn down time with her family and friends.
But it was worth it in the end. The cardigan is finished and turned out beautifully.
As she packed the cardigan, the doorbell rang. As she opened the door, Adrien was behind it, who was all dressed up in a suit and holding a bouquet of flowers.
Marinette blushed for a second before realizing why he dressed up like that.
"Marinette, I stopped by to see if you got the present ready."
"Not even a hello," Marinette mumbles so softly that Adrien couldn't hear her.
She went to the coffee table and grabs the gift box and handed it to Adrien.
Adrien practically rips it out of her hand. His face lights up when he sees the gift box.
He asks curiously "What's in there?"
Marinette happily replies, "I made a cardigan for Kagami. It is based on-"
"A cardigan? I thought you would make her a dress, or a piece of jewelry?” Adrien interrupts.
And suddenly Marinette's hard work was for nothing.
Marinette breathes in and out "If you knew exactly what you wanted, why didn't you tell me from the start?"
Adrien looks at her disappointed "I didn't think it was necessary because I thought you were thinking the same thing."
Marinette really couldn't take Adrien anymore. In the last three minutes, not only did he spoil her good mood, but he also slandered her hard work.
She says with the last kindness she can muster, "Neither you nor I have time to get a new gift for Kagami. So either you take the cardigan I've been working on 24/7 for the past three days, or you don't give her anything. The choice is yours.”
Adrien sighs "I think the cardigan is better than nothing," he says as he leaves without thanking her or saying goodbye.
As she closes the door, tears begin to flow down Marinette's face.
Tikki flew out of her purse and asks anxiously, "Marinette, are you alright?"
Marinette sobs. She could barely say, "He didn't even thank me."
Tikki hugs Marinette's cheek "Oh Marinette. I am so sorry."
Marinette suppresses her sadness as she says, "It's okay Tikki. I just hope he gets happy with Kagami."
Tikki says worried "Maybe it's better if you go to your room and sleep. After all, you'll have to go on patrol later on by yourself."
Marinette didn't have the strength to argue, so she went to her room and got into bed.
———————————————————————
At the same time.
Adrien rings the bell at Kagami's mansion, whereupon the family butler opens the door shortly afterwards.
Adrien explained that Kagami was expecting him so they could go on their date together.
The butler relayed it to Kagami, who walks to the front door after a few seconds.
Adrien blushed when he saw Kagami in a beautiful red kimono.
After giving her the bouquet, he led her to his limousine, whereupon his bodyguard drove them to a romantic restaurant where it is very difficult to get a reservation.
As Marinette recommended, after visiting the restaurant, he took Kagami to Andre's ice cart, where they got an ice cream that has the colors of Ladybug, then they went to the cinema, where they watch the latest Ladybug movie.
Instead of taking a carriage ride like Marinette suggested, Adrien took his date to a certain location after they finished the film.
At a building, he led Kagami up a fire escape.
Kagami didn't understand why she should follow him up the fire escape, but she did.
Once they were on the roof, Kagami was amazed. Not only does the roof have an incredible view, but candles burned along the edges of the roof making the roof look brightly lit.
Kagami was beyond fascinated. She says, "This is really beautiful."
Adrien scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, "Yeah, I wanted to invite you here weeks ago, but unfortunately you were otherwise busy."
Before Kagami could say anything, Adrien from a hiding spot on the roof pulls out the gift Marinette gave him a few hours ago and says as he hands it to Kagami, "This is for you."
Kagami looks at it carefully and realizes how expensive the wrapping paper is likely to be. But she didn't think much of it for someone as rich as Adrien. Nevertheless, she carefully tears off the wrapping paper and opens the box.
When she opens the gift box she was taken aback. Inside the box was a beautiful red cardigan that reminded her very much of her superhero identity.
She held it up in front of her and examined the cardigan carefully.
Adrien also looked at the jacket carefully, but unlike Kagami, he wasn't thrilled with the cardigan’s motif. He was hoping that Marinette would design something more like his lady and not some other hero.
He's thinks, 'Damn, I should have looked at the gift first. Why didn't Marinette tell me what motif she chose? I look like an idiot now. What will my lady think now? Will she think I'm into Ryuko?'
His flow of thoughts was interrupted when Kagami puts the cardigan on and says "The cardigan is really beautiful."
That seemed to reassure Adrien. "Only the best for my lady." he says with a wide smile.
Kagami didn't understand why he called her "my lady", but that didn't matter to her right now. Instead, she asks, "This cardigan looks like it was professionally made."
Adrien confidently says, "It's homemade."
"Who designed the cardigan?" Kagami asks interested.
Adrien waves it of "It doesn't matter who made it. What is important is that the cardigan suits you very well, my lady.”
'Why does he call me all the time "my lady"?' Kagami thinks. She says, "That cardigan must have cost you a lot."
"Not as much as you might think." Adrien says, not mentioning that he didn't pay Marinette for the cardigan.
Before Kagami could say anything, Adrien walked up to her and stopped a step in front of her and said, "There's something I've wanted to tell you for a long time, my lady. Something I've wanted to say since we first met.”
Kagami blushed a little "Like since we met in the fencing class?"
Adrien chuckles a little. He thought it was cute that she was still pretending to be clueless. "You don't have to pretend anymore that you don’t know what I mean, my lady."
Kagami has had enough. She needs to know. "Why do you keep calling me 'my lady'?"
Adrien says with a flirtatious smile "I think you know exactly why."
Kagami narrows her eyes "I really have no idea what you mean."
"Perhaps now you will understand." He took a step back and shouts in delight "Plagg, claws out!"
Kagami watched speechless as Adrien transformed into Chat Noir before her eyes.
Chat Noir smiles at her "What are you saying?"
"You're Chat Noir." Kagami says, stunned.
"The cat is out of the bag, my lady." says Chat with a purr.
Kagami got a little angry. After Ladybug first entrusted her with the Dragon miraculous, she told her that no one should ever know their identities.
Kagami says matter-of-factly "Why are you showing me that you're Chat Noir? You should keep your identity secret. If Ladybug finds out-"
She was cut off when Chat takes her in his arms and says "You don't have to pretend any longer my lady. I know that you are ladybug. I knew it from the day I met you in fencing class."
Saying that, Kagami tears herself away from his hands. She looks at him in dismay, "Wait a minute. Does that mean you only dated me because you thought I was Ladybug?”
"Yes- I mean no- I mean- argh!" says Chat frustrated "It doesn't matter! We are Ladybug and her cat. Yin and yang. Two sides of the same coin. We are meant for each other."
Every single sentence hit Kagami like a stab in the heart. Her tears started to come. She tries to hold back the tears and wipe them away, but it doesn't help.
Chat Noir noticed that she was in tears, but ignorant as he is, he thought they were tears of joy.
He says with a flirty smile, "Finally you see you don't have to hide your true feelings from me Ladybug. Since the Frozer incident, I've realized that you're more attracted to Adrien than you are to Chat Noir, so today I wanted to show you that you can feel as much for Chat Noir as you can for Adrien.”
It felt like forever as Kagami barely audibly says, "I'm not Ladybug."
Instead of bothering or asking about Kagami's feelings, Chat Noir started laughing heartily "Oh come on Bugaboo. You can talk to me openly. We no longer need to pretend. I'm Chat Noir and you're Ladybug. We will be Paris Power couple.”
Instead of Kagami becoming overjoyed as Chat Noir expected, she became angry.
Tears streamed down her face as she yelled in anger, "You idiot! I'm not Ladybug!"
Chat exhales exhaustedly. He looks at her a little disappointed when he says "Why are you denying it? You don't have to keep it a secret from me."
Out of frustration and anger, Kagami gave him a painful slap in the face.
Chat took startled a step back, clutching his cheek.
Kagami looks at him with an angry and heartbroken look, "You idiot! I'm not Ladybug! I can't believe you were only interested in me because you mistook me for someone else!"
'Is she still trying to keep her identity a secret?' Chat thinks while still rubbing his cheek.
As Chat was about to reply, he noticed an Akuma approaching Kagami.
"Be careful behind you! An Akuma!” Chat yelled while pointing behind Kagami.
Kagami turned around and saw an akuma indeed fly towards her. The Akuma almost reached Kagami when out of nowhere a yo-yo caught the Akuma.
Kagami and Chat watched the yo-yo being pulled in by none other than the true Ladybug.
"Bye bye little butterfly." Ladybug says as she releases the purified butterfly.
After purifying the Akuma, she lands on the roof and went to Kagami and Chat Noir. She asks worriedly "Are you two ok?"
"L-Ladybug?" Chat asks confused.
Ladybug looks at Chat in amazement "Chat? What are you doing here? Didn't you say you have a date today?"
Chat looks first at Ladybug, then at Kagami, then back at Ladybug as he frantically says "I thought you were my date!"
Ladybug tilted her head "What?"
Ladybug was about to say something when she noticed Kagami 'Shouldn't Kagami be on a date with Adrien?' she thinks to herself.
Chat Noire says "Ladybug I didn't mean to betray you."
Ladybug ignored what Chat said and went to Kagami, who seemed sad.
Ladybug asks "What's going on here?"
Kagami glares at Chat as she says "Your partner asked me out on a date because he thought I was you."
A million thoughts ran through Ladybug's mind, but only one thought stood out 'Chat Noir is actually Adrien!'
Ladybug slowly turns to Chat as she demands "Explain it to me right now."
Chat gulped as he started explaining, "I thought Kagami was actually you, so I asked her out."
Ladybug narrows her eyes "So let me get this straight. You don't care who I really am as long as the person is Ladybug."
"Yes- I mean no- I mean-"
"Shut up Adrien!" Ladybug and Kagami shouted at the same time.
Chat was taken back. He asks in amazement "How do you know who I am?"
"The better question is why does Kagami know." replies Ladybug sternly.
Kagami answers for him, "He showed me."
Ladybug rubs the bridge between her eyes as she tiredly says "Of course."
Chat tries to defend himself "I thought she was you."
"Even if she was me, you shouldn't have shown her." Ladybug replies matter-of-factly. "I've told you a hundred times that our identities must remain secret."
“But Master Fu is no longer here. There's no reason to keep our identities secret anymore.” argued Chat.
"There are many reasons for keeping it secret," says Ladybug. "But the most important reason is so that when Hawkmoth akumatizes one of us, we doesn't give the other away."
"He won't akumatize us!" snapped Chat "He can't! It’s impossible!"
Ladybug groaned "According to Master Fu and the kwamis that would be possible." She doesn't mention the Chat Blanc incident.
She didn't give Chat a chance to interrupt, "I'm not going to get into an argument now. There's something I've been thinking about for a while and you made my decision a lot easier.” She moves close to him and takes his hands in her own.
Chat blushed as Ladybug took his hands. He thought Ladybug would forgive him and tell him that she couldn't stay mad at him for long. What happened instead surprised and dismayed him greatly. Ladybug removed his ring with a quick yank, causing him to de-transform back into Adrien.
When Plagg appeared, Ladybug was a little startled. Plagg looked thin and had no mouth.
Adrien says shocked "What's that?! Give me back my ring!”
Ladybug ignores him and puts the ring on. Now that she is the holder of the ring, she says to Plagg, "Speak."
Plagg gasped as his mouth reappeared. He says, relieved, "Thank you Ladybug."
Ladybug pulls out a macaron and holds it up. "I know it's not camembert, but you should eat it anyway."
Plagg took the macaron without complaining and devoured it.
"What happened?" asks Ladybug concerned.
Plagg glares at Adrien as he says "He's insane and won't listen to reason!"
'If someone like Plagg says that himself, then it must be true.' Ladybug thinks, “Please continue.“
"I've been telling him since day one that you have to keep your identities secret, but he won't listen." He glances at Kagami, who is watching everything intently “He would do anything to get closer to her just because he thought she was you. When I tried to talk sense into him, he ordered me to not speak anymore and stopped giving me cheese.”
What Plagg said made Ladybug more than angry.
She looks at Adrien and says more than ask, "You seriously gave your kwami such a harsh order just because you didn't like what he had to say."
Adrien gulps but couldn't say anything.
Plagg sneers “That's not all. You should have seen him during the Syren incident."
"Don't Plagg!" Adrien shouted pleadingly.
Plagg glares "You have nothing more to say to me." He looks at Ladybug and explains, "First he tried to bribe me with cheese to tell him your and Fu's secrets. Then he refused to save people from drowning because you couldn't tell him either. Then he threatened to throw my miraculous into the sea if I didn't tell him anything. I had to lie and say that he was the best holder I've ever had."
"What?!" gasped Adrien "That was a lie?"
Plagg rolls his eyes "Duh! I had to say something or you would have abandoned Ladybug."
Adrien defends himself "I wouldn't have let her down!"
Plagg huffs "I saw it in your eyes. You would have let her down if Fu hadn't shown up."
Adrien glares at Plagg "Master Fu had nothing to do with it! I would never have let Ladybug down!”
"Even if it were true, you still failed everyone else who drowned that day." says Plagg unhindered.
Adrien points at Ladybug as he angrily says "It doesn't matter much if people die during Akuma incidents anyway! My lady always undoes everything!”
"But no emotional trauma." says Ladybug in a calm yet serious tone.
Adrien opens his mouth to say something, but Ladybug didn't give him a chance. "Do you know how many people have died since Hawkmoth showed up?"
Adrien shrugged "Dunno who cares if they don't stay dead for long."
Although his answer doesn't only anger Ladybug, everyone present remained calm.
"I care!" snapped Ladybug "Every single one who died from the Akumas I have in my memories! The Syren incident, however, was the first time I saw floating corpses! And the fact that you don't care tells me you're not the partner I thought I knew!”
Adrien asks anxious and worried "What do you mean by that?"
Ladybug looks at Plagg before looking straight at Adrien and says "Plagg does not deserve to be stuck with you any longer."
Adrien's eyes widen "What's that supposed to mean?! I'm Chat Noir! Your partner! Your soul mate!
"You were Chat Noir. You were my partner And we were never soulmates.” Corrected Ladybug.
"You can't take my ring away from me! Being Chat Noir is the only freedom I have!”
What he said made Ladybug even more angry. 'Even in a situation like this, he only thinks about himself.' she thinks to herself.
She was about to snarl at him, when a thought occurred to her. Ladybug says "Just answer me one question and I might think about it."
Adrien nodded Hopefully.
Ladybug asks "What does it mean to you to be Chat Noir?"
Adrien had a confident smile as he said, "Being Chat Noir is a liberation for me. Being Chat Noir is different from being Adrien. As Adrien, I always have to watch every step I take, but as Chat Noir, I can do whatever I want without fear of repercussions.”
Ladybug asks "So you would say that Adrien is your mask and Chat Noir is your real face?"
Adrien nods triumphantly, "Yes, Adrien is a mask that I show to the public. Chat Noir is my true face, which I show when I wear the mask.”
If Ladybug still had any feelings for Adrien or her partner, they would be gone by now too.
Ladybug was beyond disgusted by Adrien's true colors, but it was Kagami who said, "And I thought I knew you, but I guess I was wrong."
Adrien looks questioningly at Kagami and says confused "But you know me."
Kagami slowly shakes her head "No, I don't know you. I thought I knew you, but I don't. You're more deceitful than one of Lila's lies and twice as bad." She didn't give Adrien the chance to interrupt her. "You pretend to be a naive boy who wants nothing but the best for everyone, but that's just a facade. In reality, you are this antisocial harasser who can't take a 'no' and therefore manipulates people into doing what you want. If I had known you were Chat Noir I would never have dated you.”
Adrien gaped.
'She speaks to my heart.' thinks Ladybug.
Kagami looks him straight in the eye as she says "And just so you know, I never thought of Chat Noir as a true hero."
Adrien's eyes widen "What do you mean?! I'm out there every day rescuing people from the Akumas."
Kagami slowly shakes her head, "No, you don't protect people. You fool around and flirt instead of protecting anyone. You treat the Akuma incidents like a game.”
Ladybug supports her by saying "More than half of the Akuma incidents could have been solved faster if you had only focused half as much on the assignments as you did on your puns."
"I'm a true hero!" Adrien snapped. He looks at Ladybug angrily "I've protected you so many times! I've put myself in danger so many times for you! Shielded you-"
"What you didn't have to do." Ladybug interrupts him. “But you always wanted to show off how ’brave’ you are.”
Adrien looks at Plagg as he says in a begging tone, "Please tell her I'm a good hero."
Plagg slowly shakes his head "I had many holders before you. Most of them, like you only had silliness on their minds, but when things got serious, they always focused on their tasks. Like the true heroes they were.”
"I'm a true hero." Adrien replies like a broken tape.
Plagg sighs "A hero is a person who helps when there are people in danger. A hero doesn't stand or sit around when there is a catastrophe happening. They rescues people. A hero is someone who takes their job seriously and doesn't see it as a game. A hero is someone who respects the boundaries of others and doesn't torment their superhero partner with unwelcoming flirting and doesn't understand no." Plagg looks him straight in the eye as he says, "So, you are not a hero."
Adrien trying to think of something to refute what Plagg was saying but he was drawing a blank.
Ladybug wanted to say something but Kagami was the one who says "You know Adrien, I'm kinda glad now that I know your real face. Because now I can warn others about it.”
Adrien's eyes almost budgeted out "You want to tell everyone I'm Chat Noir?!"
Kagami shakes her head "No, but if someone asks me about you, I won't hide the fact that your personality is different than everyone thinks."
Before Adrien could say anything, Ladybug says to him, "I think you should go home." She looks at Kagami and asks, "Would you like me to drop you off at your house?"
Kagami thinks about it. She certainly won't get into Adrien's limousine and she doesn't want to call her mother this late at night, so she accepted Ladybug's offer.
Just as Ladybug was about to pick up her yo-yo, Adrien says, "Wait a minute. You still have my ring."
Ladybug raised a brow "What makes you think I'll give it back to you?"
"You said that if I tell you what being Chat Noir means to me, you'll give it back to me."
Ladybug rubs the bridge between her eyes "You only hear what you want to hear, don't you?"
Adrien tilted his head "Huh?"
Ladybug exhales exhaustedly and says "I told you that if your answer convinced me I might think about it." As Adrien looks at her hopefully, she says "It haven't. It even strengthened my decision to take the ring away from you.”
"You can't do that!" Adrien pleadingly yells "Master Fu chose me."
"But I would never have chosen you." replies Ladybug matter of factly.
Adrien was taken back "What?"
"You heard me right. I would never have chosen you to wear the ring."
Kagami was interested to know the reason "Why?"
Ladybug explains, "When I choose people to wear a miraculous, like Rena Rouge, Carapace, Viperion, Purple Tigress, or Ryuko, I go by their character. How they conduct themselves in public, how trustworthy they are, and how determined they are to help others. With or without miraculous." She narrows her eyes at Adrien. "None of that applies to you."
Adrien stutters "W-what … a-are you… talking a-about? Everything applies to me.”
Ladybug asks, "How?"
Adrien replies, "I'm well behaved in public, I'm trustworthy and I'm determined."
Plagg slowly shakes his head, "No, you're not. Neither as Chat Noir, nor as Adrien Agreste.”
Adrien glares at Plagg "Give me just one example."
Plagg says in disgust, "You let sausage hair lie to your friends and classmates without doing anything about it. And on top of that, you let pigtails take the blame for it.”
Adrien scoffs "Marinette is fine. She knows well that we have to shut up, otherwise Lila's feelings will be hurt and she will be akumatized."
"That's the dumbest thing I heard today," says Kagami. "And you mistook me for Ladybug."
Adrien narrows his eyes "In what way?"
Kagami crossed her arms "You care more about the feelings of a pathological liar than the feelings of someone you call your friend."
Ladybug says "Kagami is right." She shakes her head in disgust "You really care more about the feelings of the bullies than your friends feelings."
"I'm not doing that." says Adrien, stunned.
Ladybug says, "This isn't the first time one of your pieces of advice has made Marinette feel bad just because you care more about the school bullies feelings than hers."
Adrien huffs, "You're exaggerating. I've always cared about my friends feelings."
"What about the day Chloe wanted to leave Paris and all your friends and classmates were happy about it? You made Marinette feel guilty for being happy that her bully was leaving the country."
"Chloe is my childhood friend." Adrien replies angrily.
"Your childhood friend is a bully." Ladybug replies matter-of-factly. Adrien opens his mouth to deny it, but Ladybug continues "Chloe was responsible for the most Akuma incidents. She bullies her classmates and those below her. So Marinette and her classmates had every right in the world to be happy if Chloe had left Paris. And just so you know it, I'm not happy that Chloe stole the hat design and diary from Marinette. And let me not even talk about the train wreck where nearly all the passengers, including Marinette's parents, would have been injured or killed."
Adrien hesitantly and embarrassed asks "How do you know all this?"
Ladybug waves to the nearby bakery “You're not the only one who visits Marinette from time to time. But unlike you, I don't ask her for free food or just demanding that she listens only about my problems."
Adrien says dejectedly "But Chloe can change. Just think of the times she helped us as Queen Bee.”
"Think of the time Chloe allied with Hawkmoth to get revenge." replies Ladybug bluntly.
Adrien was dumbstrucked.
Ladybug continues “Besides, if she really wanted to change, she would have done so by now. A miraculous as a reward for changing should never be a motivation.”
Adrien didn't know what to say.
Plagg flew in front of Adrien and says "See it kid. Your childhood friend is a bully. But the liar with the sausage hair is worse.”
"But she can change. All Lila wants are friends. At some point she will realize that she doesn't have to lie."
Plagg shakes his head, "Kid, you'll never understand it. Sausage hair doesn’t will or want to understand it.”
"But she could-"
"Nothing!" snaps Plagg. He couldn't stand Adrien's cluelessness any longer. "She doesn't want to change! Just as little as your childhood friend! Finally get it!”
Adrien takes a heavy breath in and out. "Even if they don't want to change, I still think they're not that bad."
"Not that bad?!" Ladybug repeats, stunned. "Thanks to Lie-La, Marinette was almost expelled from school. Not to mention all the lies she tells about Marinette.”
Adrien was about to scream before a thought occurred to him about what he thought would score with Ladybug. "Yeah, but thanks to me, Lila got Marinette back into school."
"In what way?" asks Ladybug "I know from Marinette that Lila told the principal and teacher that she has a lying disease."
Adrien says with a proud smile "Exactly! I told Lila she needed to tell another lie, one that would get Marinette off the hook and back in school."
Ladybug's eyes widen, but not in admiration "What?!"
Kagami was shocked to hear such a thing and disgusted. She asks, "Couldn't you have just gone to the principal, or better yet, to the school board?"
"No, that would have just gotten Lila akumatized." Adrien explained as if it were obvious.
Ladybug and Kagami gaped at him.
"You're a bigger idiot than I ever thought!" Kagami burst out.
Adrien took a started step back "Huh?"
"You mean to tell us that instead of coming forward and exposing Lila as a liar, you instead gave her the opportunity to make sure she could never be held liable for anything she says in the eyes of the school?" Ladybug asked, disapproval clear in every word.
Adrien winced, he muttered "It sounds bad when you say it like that."
"It sounds bad no matter how I say it." replies Ladybug sharply.
"It's just harmless lies that don't hurt anyone." Adrien pleads in defense.
Ladybug crossed her arms "So Marinette is a nobody to you?"
"What…? No!" Adrien sputtered, "Marinette can handle her lies."
Ladybug shakes her head in disgust "Marinette can't handle her lies." Adrien opens his mouth to deny it, but Ladybug didn't give him the chance. "She's only trying to put up with the lies because she promised it. She's trying to hold on just because she had liked you."
Adrien's eyes widen "What? She likes me?"
Plagg let out a "Duh!"
Ladybug facepalmed "Typical men. I said liked it." Ladybug narrows her eyes at him "She told me just recently that she was working 24/7 on a date gift for you."
Kagami gasped "What?"
Ladybug continues "And although she had little time to do so, you visited her that same evening as Chat Noir, and asked her for another gift."
"But only because I thought I had a date with you." Adrien whined "Especially since you deserve more than one cheap gift."
"Cheap gift?!" repeated Ladybug and Kagami stunned.
Kagami marches in front of Adrien and says, "This 'cheap gift’ is of the finest workmanship. It's designed in such detail that even seasoned fashion designers like your dad could complete it in at least a month. That Marinette was able to complete it in such a short time is a true feat.”
Ladybug didn't think Kagami would have such words of praise for her.
Kagami asks Adrien, keeping her tone neutral "Did you even thank her, or even pay anything for it?"
Adrien opened his mouth, but not a word came out.
Kagami took that as a no. Kagami breathes in and out before saying "I can understand that she doesn't like you anymore. You only think of yourself.”
"I'm not!" Adrien snapped.
Plagg huffs "You do. The Syren incident is the best example.”
Adrien was ready to deny it, but Kagami was quicker. "I'm glad our date was such a flop. Otherwise I would never have known your real face. I would like to say that I never want to see you again, but unfortunately I can't because of the school and our parents. But if you ever get too close to me again, I'll make sure our parents end their partnership."
Adrien paled. He knows how it would affect him if his father and Tomoe ended their partnership.
Kagami turns away from him and was planning to go home when Ladybug offered her again "Would you like me to drop you off at home?"
"Are you sure?" asks Kagami.
Ladybug replies with a friendly smile, "It's on my way."
Kagami smiles softly "Then I gladly accept your offer."
As the two were about to leave, Adrien calls out to Ladybug, "Wait a minute, where are you going? We aren’t done yet."
Ladybug replies without turning or looking at him, "But I'm done. And in more ways than one.”
She didn't give Adrien a chance to say anything as she swings away over the rooftops with Kagami.
Adrien watched dumbstruck afterwards as the two girls he loved disappeared over the rooftops.
Plagg was the only one who stayed behind.
Adrien had a small hope that Plagg would stand by him and convince Ladybug that she would give him his Miraculous back.
But instead of Plagg saying anything to take his worries off his mind, Plagg quickly flew into Adrien's jacket and came out with a piece of Camembert.
Plagg says after eating the cheese "I'll miss the cheese the most."
Adrien feels like someone has slapped him in the face painfully.
Adrien started to say something, but Plagg didn't seem to care as he flew in the direction of where Ladybug has disappeared.
Adrien was left alone on the roof. As he stood there alone there was only one question on his mind "What did I do wrong?"