No akuma attacks. For two weeks, Paris had been like every other city in the world; no magical butterflies flying around and akumatizing confused and upset Parisians.

Hawk Moth must be taking a break, Marinette thought to herself as she crossed the street. Well, it could also be that Chloe is on vacation in the United States visiting family at the moment.

She walked up the steps of her school. Even the students seemed happier now that Chloe was absent. At first, Sabrina had been lost without her "best friend" but she gradually started to mingle more and was now good friends with Rose and Juleka.

Marinette smiled. Everyone deserved to have good friends.

When she reached the school's entrance, Nino ran up the steps behind her. "Hey Mari!"

Marinette stopped at turned to face her friend. "Hi, Nino. What's up?"

Nino reached her and smiled down at the short girl. "Nothing much, just got a text from Kim and Max saying they need me in the library,"

"Why do Max and Kim need you?" Marinette asked.

Nino and Marinette walked through the entrance of the school and stood in the center quad. "We're working on an extra credit project for chemistry. We have to pick a molecule and create a movie centered around that molecule. You know, we have to name it, show what it looks like, what kind of bonds it has, etc. That sort of thing."

"That sounds cool. Especially since I know how much you love movies," Marinette smiled. She looked away from Nino and scanned the crowd of students, looking for her best friend. Her eyes finally found her talking with Adrien. At first, she thought nothing of it, until Alya leaned toward the blond boy and whispered something in his ear. Adrien laughed out loud and Marinette's heart shattered. Had the girl Alya been talking about been herself? Is she the one Adrien loves?

Marinette's hands curled into fists at her sides. Why hadn't Alya told her? She looked at the way Alya smiled up at Adrien and how at ease he was around her.

I guess that's it then, Marinette thought. I...I hope they're happy....together. She wanted to scream, yell, cry, jump around, and...well Marinette didn't know what she wanted to do. All of her thoughts were jumbled together at the sight in front of her. But one thought stood clear and solid in the midst of all the chaos. Cat Noir. It's always been him, hasn't it? I should've known. Tikki was right. I didn't know Adrien and I guess I didn't know my best friend either. But like I'm one to talk about keeping secrets. Well, now I know. There's no Adrien anymore so-

"Marinette? Earth to Marinette? Dude, are you okay?" Nino's voice broke through the jumbled chaos that clouded Marinette's mind.

"Huh, what?" she shook her head, hoping to clear her thoughts. "Oh, sorry, Nino. I didn't mean to doze off like that."

Nino shrugged. "It's alright. How's your cold?"

"It's...better, I guess. I feel a little better than yesterday."

"Well, that's good. I'm glad you're feeling somewhat better. How was patrol last night? Were you too sick to go?"

"Oh, um patrol...right. It was fine." Though I wasn't fine at all, Marinette thought to herself.

"What was Cat Noir's greatest pun this time?" Nino said, rolling his eyes playfully.

"Cat Noir....he didn't really have any puns this time. He was more worried about my cold."

"Yeah, I get that. I mean, I would be worried too if my partner wasn't feeling well," Nino said, oblivious to the emotions running rampant in Marinette's mind at the sound of Cat's name.

Nino pulled out his phone and checked the time. "Oh man! I'm late. Sorry, Marinette but I have to go. I'll see you later?"

Before Marinette had a chance to reply, Nino was already racing toward the library. Marinette watched her friend go before slowly turning her gaze back on Alya and Adrien. When she looked in their direction, she only saw Adrien leaning against the wall and looking at her. He gazed at her with such an intensity that Marinette quickly looked away and down at the ground. Why was he looking at her like that? He had never looked at her like that, like he saw right through her and knew her deepest and darkest of secrets. And yet there was a sweet kindness in his gaze that almost made her feel like he was still accepting of her, even with all of her flaws.

All of a sudden, a scream rang out across the yard. Marinette turned instinctively toward the sound and caught Rose before she fell and hit her head on the ground. The little blonde's possessions scattered across the floor as Marinette helped her to her feet.

"Are you okay?" Marinette asked, worriedly.

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine, Marinette. I just tripped over that crack in the ground. Clumsy me." Rose bent down and started to gather her school supplies from off the floor.

"Here, let me help," Marinette offered.

Rose smiled, grateful for the help.

Juleka, Ivan and Mylene ran over after the sudden outburst.

"Rose, are you alright?" Juleka asked, looking worriedly over the girl for any injuries.

"Yes, I'm fine, thanks to Marinette with her awesome reflexes."

Marinette smiled shyly as she returned Rose's belongings. "It was nothing."

Mylene turned to face dark haired girl. "Hey, Marinette, are you good with yo-yo's?"

Marinette turned her head slightly to the side. "Yo-yo's?"

"Yeah, there's a part in this movie I want to audition for and the character is supposed to know a few tricks with a yo-yo. Could you teach me a few?"

"Oh, well, I...I mean I know a few things with a yo-yo, but I don't know if I'm that good."

"Oh, please, Marinette? Anything would be good. I asked Ivan, but he doesn't know how to make the yo-yo come back up when you roll it down."

Marinette looked up at Ivan. He towered over her and looked like a friendly giant when he shrugged his shoulders and smiled shyly. "It's true. I don't know the first thing about yo-yo's."

Marinette looked back at Mylene and saw her pleading with her eyes.

What could it hurt? "Sure, I can show you a few things. What do you want to know?"

"Yay!" Mylene squealed. She pulled a red with black spots yo-yo out of her pocket and gave it to Marinette.

Marinette looked at the yo-yo in her hand that closely resembled her own except it was a little smaller.

She raised an eyebrow. "Ladybug-themed huh?"

Mylene smiled. "Yeah, it's the only yo-yo I have but I love it. Ladybug has her own, right?"

"Yes, she does." Marinette slipped the small ring attached to the string on her right middle finger and noticed just how similar the two yo-yo's were. The one in her hand felt like her own.

"Okay, so here's a simple move," Marinette flung the yo-yo away with her wrist and spun it around. It created an oval shield on her right side and even though she knew she should hold back, Marinette gave into the urge of the yo-yo. She swung the yo-yo around her and flung it up in the air like she was using her lucky charm. Using the toy came naturally to her and when the yo-yo came back down, Marinette was slightly disappointed that a random item didn't land in her hand.

When she caught the red yo-yo in her hand, she turned to face her shocked friends. Rose's jaw dropped and Mylene squealed again. "Wow, Marinette! That...that was amazing! You have to show me how to do that!"

As Mylene, Ivan, Juleka, and Rose dragged Marinette away, she glanced over her shoulder and saw that Adrien's jaw had dropped too, a knowing smile in his eyes.

~~~

"Where is the world is Nino?" Alya asked, agitated.

Adrien scanned the crowd of students for his best friend but couldn't find him.

"Why do you want to see him so badly?"

Alya huffed. "Because he's been deliberately avoiding me and I don't know why."

"And let me guess, you're going to go confront him?"

"Heck yeah. I'm going to find out what's going on. But anyway, enough about me. How was patrol last night?"

Adrien sighed. He didn't know what to think about last night. Ladybug denying his care had hurt him. Deeply. It was almost like she was rejecting him. She had to have known that she should have stayed home, but because she was so stubborn, she decided to come anyway. He tried to reason with her, be gentle with her, and be kind to her, but she still dismissed him. Why couldn't she see that he truly did care for her?

"Ehh....you know." Adrien shrugged, trying to appear casual. "Nothing out of the usual. No Akuma attacks. Just a silent, sleeping Paris."

Alya raised her eyebrow. She could spot a lie a mile away, especially when the liar was one of her close friends. "What happened?"

"It's nothing, really. Ladybug was just feeling out of sorts last night, so I told her she should go home and rest and I'll patrol in my own."

"And from what you told me about your Ladybug, I'm guessing that she didn't go back home quietly. She probably brushed you off and tried to trudge on like a trooper, didn't she?"

Adrien smiled, sadly. "Yeah. She's strong but everyone has their weaknesses. And hers was that darn cold she had."

"And let me guess," Alya leaned in close to Adrien and whispered, "your weakness is water isn't it, Cat Noir, because cats hate the rain?"

Adrien laughed out loud and Alya smiled. She was pleased to have made her friend laugh. She knew he rarely laughed so making him laugh and act his true age, made her happy.

A quick motion from the corner of her eye caught Alya's attention. She turned and saw Nino sprinting toward the library. Alya rolled her eyes and turned back to face Adrien.

"Hey, I've got to go. There goes Nino and I have to find out what's going on so-" Before she even finished her sentence, Alya was already chasing after the boy through the quad.

Adrien shook his head, his laughter turning into a soft smile on his lips. He scanned his eyes over the crowd of students before his eyes landed on Marinette. She must've felt his gaze on her because she turned around and met his eyes. She looked so familiar, and just as Adrien was about to point out what that familiarity might be, a scream rang throughout the quad. He instinctively stepped toward the sound, ready to fight whatever Akuma was attacking, before he saw Marinette catch Rose before she hit the ground. He couldn't hear what they were saying, but the smile on Rose's face told him that there was no danger.

Adrien's smile returned as he watched the two girls gather Rose's supplies from off the ground. He was about to make his way over there to help, when Ivan, Juleka, and Mylene ran over to the girls and helped pick up the last of Rose's belongings.

He watched Marinette again.!She had always been such a kind and caring person, one who was always nice to everyone. He noticed that she had fast reflexes for catching Rose before she fell. He also saw her kindness exude from her when she helped pick up the scattered supplies. She really was a good person, wasn't she? Yet there was something about her that he just couldn't put his finger on. Her eyes reminded him of someone. Her light sapphire eyes looked so familiar. Even her hairstyle reminded him of someone important to him too. Could she really be-

"Eyeing Marinette, are we now?" a small voice quipped from Adrien's concealed pocket in his jacket.

Adrien rolled his eyes at his pesky Kwami. "No, I'm just...watching."

Plagg humphed. "Sure, Adrien, and I just have a faint fondness of cheese. Could you stare like a creeper any harder?"

Before he could make a sarcastic retort, Adrien heard Mylene's squeal and saw her hand Marinette a Ladybug yo-yo.

Now something was really bugging him. Literally. Marinette looked so much like his masked love with the yo-yo in her hand. Marinette casually swung the toy around before he noticed something change in her expression. A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips as the dark haired girl threw the red toy up in the air and whispered every so faintly. Adrien didn't need to know how to read lips to know what she said. Lucky charm.

When she caught the yo-yo in her hand, Adrien felt his jaw drop in recognition. He saw her. He finally saw his partner without the mask. And when she glanced over her shoulder at him while being dragged away by her friends, Adrien knew that without a doubt that Marinette was his lady.

And he was determined to get to know her without the mask. He wanted to know everything about her and wanted her to know everything about him.

~~~

Nino saw her making her way towards him. He quickly spin on his heel and started in the opposite direction. He picked up his speed when she started to call out his name.

Please, please let someone get her attention. Someone take her focus off of me, Nino silently prayed.

"Nino! I need to talk to you! You can't keep avoiding me forever," Alya yelled.

Nino sprinted around the corner and stood behind one of the pillars at the front of the school. He pressed his back against the cool surface as he attempted to think of something to say when Alya caught up to him. And she would eventually catch up to him.

He slowly turned and peeked out from behind the pillar toward the school's doors. He scanned the crowd of students, trying to pinpoint where Alya was but couldn't find her.

Someone tapped Nino's shoulder and he yelped. He spun around and saw Alya giving him a frustrated look.

"Ok, what gives?" She practically yelled, exasperated. "You have been avoiding me for days and I don't know why. I just want to talk to you! Why have you been ditching me?"

Nino looked desperately around for a quick escape. He scanned his surroundings for a way out, an excuse of some sort, but he couldn't find any. Finally, he let out a sigh and met Alya's eyes.

"I haven't been avoiding you," he finally said.

"The heck you aren't. Seriously? What's going on?"

Alya placed her hands on her hips and Nino knew she wouldn't let him leave with getting an answer. Nino's mind raced to come up with a plausible excuse.

"It's just...uh...I mean...It's true. I have been avoiding you," he said lamely.

Alya punched her fist into the air. "Ha! I knew it! I knew something was up." Her expression quickly sobered up. "What's wrong? Did I do something wrong?"

Nino stared at at his friend. "No! It's nothing that you've done at all. Believe me. I just...found out something a while ago and I can't tell anyone about it is all. I'm afraid that I'll blurt it out at any moment around you because I can't help but just tell the truth around you. I want to tell you what it is, really you have no idea, but I promised I wouldn't." He sighed. "Do you know what it's like to keep a secret that you so desperately want to tell someone but you know you can't?"

Alya looked at the ground. "Yeah....I do."

Nino kicked his foot on the ground. "Well, I'm sure whatever your secret is it can't be as bad as mine."

Alya looked up at him. "What makes you think that it isn't?"

Nino laughed. "Believe me, if you knew..." He shook his head.

"Well your secret isn't like knowing...oh I don't someone secretly famous does it?" Alya asked, semi-jokingly.

Nino stopped laughing. "Like a superhero?"

Alya raised an eyebrow. "Yeah something like that."

They were both quiet for a moment before they spoke simultaneously. "Do you know something?"

"I may know something," Alya said.

"I may something too." Nino eyed his friend skeptically before bursting into laughter. "You can't possibly know."

"That my friend is one of Paris' most famous superheroes?" Alya exclaimed. Once she realized what she said, she slapped a hand over her mouth.

"You know?!" Nino yelled, shocked.

"And you know?!"

"Yes, I know!"

"Oh my goodness, Nino! This is unbelievable!"

"Tell me about it, Alya! I've been dying to talk to someone about it. I'm so happy you finally know but...but I thought you'd be a little....I don't know, hurt, though."

"Me? Hurt?" Alya said, confused. "Why would you think that? I mean, we're friends and all, but we're not as close as you two are."

Now Nino was more confused then ever. Nino hurt that Marinette didn't tell him that she was Ladybug? Sure he was shocked when he found out but when had Alya figured out that Marinette was Ladybug unless...

"Alya, who are you talking about?"

Alya placed her hands on her hips. " 'Who am I talking about?' Nino, I'm talking about your best friend."

"My best friend? But I'm talking about your-"

At the same time, it finally hit them.

"Oh my-"

"-gosh," Alya finished. "Marinette is...ladybug?" Alya whispered, hesitantly.

"And Adrien is Cat Noir?"

Alya felt her knees starting to wobble. She leaned against the wall for support. "But how-"

Nino looked over at his friend and saw that she was taking the news much harder than he was. He knew he needed to calm her down immediately before she did something she couldn't take back.

"Now, Alya-"

"You knew?!" she yelled at him. "How could you, Nino? How could you keep this from me? You knew how much I..."

Nino put up his hands in surrender. "Alya, please, listen. I wanted to tell you. You have no idea how much I wanted to tell you but I couldn't! I promised I wouldn't tell anyone. You of all people should understand that I couldn't say anything. You were keeping the same secret...more or less."

"I know, but still. I can't believe she didn't tell me. I'm her best friend and she couldn't trust me."

"No, Alya," Nino placed his hands on his friend's shoulders. "It's not like that at all. She wanted to tell you, but she couldn't. I'm assuming you know about Hawk Moth, right?"

Alya nodded, her gazed trained on the floor.

"Well, then you must know that she kept her identity a secret from you because she wanted to protect you." Nino was quiet for a moment before he said, "And I guess that's the same thing with me and Adrien, huh? He didn't want to put me in danger either."

Alya nodded. She slid her back down the wall and sat on the cold floor. Nino bent down and sat beside her. They didn't say anything for a while. They were lost in their own thoughts before Alya pulled her knees up to her chest. "Wow. Thinking about it now, I made an entire blog dedicated to my best friend and didn't even know it. And every time I interviewed 'Ladybug,' I was interviewing Marinette."

"Yeah," Nino nodded. "Hey, wait a second. Does that mean Adrien has a Kwami too?"

Alya nodded.

"Does he have a cheese fetish?"

"Yeah...why?"

Nino thrust out his arms in front of him. "That's why he love cheese so much! I always thought that it was so weird that Adrien loved cheese and always, and I mean, always had it with him."

Alya giggled. "Yeah, I guess that would be kind of weird." Alya now knew that her best friend was Marinettte and Adrien was Cat Noir. "Man, this is a lot of stuff to process isn't it?"

Nino nodded, still recounting all the times Adrien had "disappeared" into thin air and Cat Noir showed up a few seconds later.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to Alya. "Oh my goodness, Nino."

"What?"

"I...I wouldn't have if I'd known."

"Alya, what are you talking about?"

"Nino, I told Marinette to move on!"

Nino stood up from his spot and pulled Alya up as well. "What do you mean 'move on?' "

"What I mean is that I knew Adrien loved Ladybug, but I didn't know that Marinette was Ladybug, so I told her that maybe she should find someone else. Someone she knew better because I didn't want her to get hurt when Adrien never returned her feelings and... and now I think she's going to be with Cat Noir, because she knows that he likes her and he's her partner. But she does not know that he's still Adrien."

Nino's eyes widened. He thought about what he had said to the blond yesterday and he gasped. "Uh, Alya. I think we have an even problem."

"What?"

"I may I have told Adrien to move on from Ladybug since she wasn't returning his feelings and he may have choosen Marinette..."

"Oh my goodness, are you kidding me?!"

"I'm sorry! If I'd known-" He looked down at the ground.

"No, it's not you, Nino," Alya placed her hand on his shoulder and forced him to meet her gaze. "It's just that we told our friends to move on from someone we thought would never reciprocate their feelings, when in reality, they both do like each other. Only now, we only set them up for more heartbreak. Think about it. I told Marinette that Adrien loved another girl and that she should move on. And if I'm correct, she's going to try to be with the one person she knows likes her, Cat Noir. Only you told Cat Noir to forget about Ladybug and try to be with another girl who would like him for him. And the only person at this school with that kind of care for him in her heart, is Marinette. Nino, we set our friends up for even more rejection from themselves."

Nino's eyes widen even more.

"What did we do?"