His legs felt as though they might give out at any moment. As he gazed pleadingly at Plagg, Adrien leaned on a locker for support. Breathing was difficult, his heart thrummed erratically as blood raced in his ears. Just once, he prayed, just once let Plagg be easy to deal with.

"What's the matter with you? You just rushed out of there without saying anything! And your girlfriend said such nice things about you too," Plagg shook his head with an exasperated sigh, ignoring the embarrassed stutter from his companion.

"I just told you I need you to answer some questions. A-and she's just a friend!"

The scathing glance in his direction was enough to remind him Plagg was, in fact, a deathless magical being who'd lived for thousands of years. It was a look that stabbed him straight through his core and he shuddered, standing upright. Hopefully the guilt he felt would erase itself if Plagg confirmed his stupid, crazy, totally-never-going-to-happen-in-a-million-years theory.

"When are you going to wake up, Kid?" He heard Plagg grumble under his breath and Adrien's eyes snapped up to him.

"I'm trying to wake up, in case you hadn't noticed. Ladybug wants me to find her!" He cried, throwing his arms up in the air, "But there are millions of girls in Paris. Regardless of any suspicions I could have, I…I need your help."

Hurrying towards him, Adrien didn't give Plagg the chance to bite back a retort, to deny him or make any jeering comments. His nerves had had about all they could take.

"You told me once that Ladybug has a Kwami too. Couldn't you, I don't know, find her Kwami somehow? Couldn't you sense him or her somewhere?" His voice lilted upwards as he allowed himself to hope, "If I have such a strong bond with Ladybug, yours must be even stronger towards her Kwami right? You must have known each other for thousands of years, it should be easy for you to find them again right?"

Plagg rolled his eyes.

"What are you suggesting? I go find Ladybug for you?" He sneered, shaking his head up to the sky, "And just what'll happen if an Akuma attacks whilst I'm out doing the job your supposed to be doing? How will you do your job of protecting Paris?" Plagg didn't need to call Adrien an idiot, it was implied in every acidic word.

Burying his face in his hands, Adrien tried hard not to scream.

"Look," He cried, his voice strangled but muffled by his hands. Inhaling, he withdrew them and shrugged his shoulders heavily. When he spoke next, his tone was much calmer despite speaking through gritted teeth, "I'm not asking you to find her for me. That'd be cheating. Just answer two questions for me. Just two?"

"What's in it for me?"

Adrien tried not to grin and failed miserably. He'd hoped Plagg would ask that question. Leaning towards him, Adrien fixed Plagg with a Chat Noir smirk. Finally, he had a chance to play the card he knew would win Plagg over for months. It was something he'd discovered after a late night of browsing random things on the internet, avoiding sleep. As soon as he'd seen the advertisement, he'd known that he needed to save it for a rainy day. Adrien took his phone from his pocket, quickly bringing up a screenshot of the website he had saved.

"There's an international wine and cheese festival happening in a few months' time," He said, holding up the front page of the festival's website so that Plagg could read it as proof, "Answer my questions and I'll take you there." He waved the phone around, which Plagg followed in a trance, tiny mouth open in awe, a little pool of drool collected on his chin. Adrien's grin grew wider in triumph, "Think of all that cheese Plagg. Real Swiss, Italian mozzarella, English cheddar, and of course your precious camembert. If I were you, I would hate to miss such an opportunity."

Plagg shook his head like a wet cat, less transfixed but still unable to look away. He at least regained enough of his mental capacities to say to Adrien, "You're a real smug asshole you know."

Adrien chuckled, "Hey I learned from the best."

Plagg grinned, rolling his eyes in surrender. It was amazing, how such a simple gesture could make Adrien feel like leaping into the air for joy.

"Oh fine, fine. But you have to SWEAR you'll take me there. Swear on the miraculous."

"I swear," Adrien replied immediately, nodding his head numerous times so that Plagg wouldn't doubt his sincerity. His whole being lit up at the prospect of getting closer to knowing Ladybug's identity. A wonderful warmth spread through him at the thought, his nerves electrified with an energy which surpassed the vigour he gained whilst transformed. He swayed on the balls of his feet.

"First question," Plagg barked, startling Adrien out of his daydreams. He took a deep breath and looked straight into Plagg's eyes, wiping the smile off his face as he did so.

"Is it possible for you to sense Ladybug's Kwami?" He whispered in a hurry, aware that the time spent away from his friends was dropping into suspicious levels.

"Tikki."

Adrien blinked, "Huh?"

"Tikki," Plagg repeated, more annoyed this time, "Ladybug's Kwami is called Tikki. Also yes, I can sense her. I don't know where she is exactly, I'm not one of those GPS thingies but… I can feel her presence if she's close or if she'd distressed…" He trailed off, his eyes glazing over as he grew lost in thought. The locker room grew still and silent.

When it became clear Plagg wasn't going to carry on, Adrien continued with his second and final question, his voice shaking.

"And- and have you ever felt her close by? You know, in school?"

"Hmm?" Plagg responded with a callous shrug, "Oh yeah. Lots of times."

"Lots of times…" Adrien felt his soul lighten at Plagg's words. Lots of times. That's what his Kwami had said. Lots of times. He laughed, staggering backwards until he slammed into one of the lockers. Clutching at his hair, he gasped through his laughter as his thoughts and suspicions finally clicked into place. There could be no denying it now. She'd been right under his nose the whole time!

Ladybug went to his school.

That's what it had to mean! It was the only thing that made sense. If Plagg had felt Tikki's presence lots of times…

Lots of times.

Lots of times?

Lots. Of. TIMES?!

"Wait." The laughter died on Adrien's face. He threw himself off the lockers and fixed Plagg with a hard stare, mouth agape, "You knew didn't you? You knew that Ladybug went to this school! This whole time you've known?!"

"I'm sor-ry Adrien," Plagg replied with a smug smirk, floating lazily, his back to the floor like a lounging Roman emperor, "But I believe we only agreed on my answering two questions."

"Plagg-"

"Although I guess I'll say this-"

"Plaaaag,"

"You really are oblivious!"

"You- YOU BASTARD!" Adrien exploded, swearing as his civilian self for the first time in a while whilst he swiped at Plagg. The Kwami expertly dodged his grasp with a cackle, rolling in the air, "You total bastard! I should ban camembert from ever crossing my home ever again!"

Plagg snorted, which only enraged him further.

"Yeah good luck with invoking the wrath of a god, Kiddo," He shot Adrien a toothy grin to which Adrien responded with look that, in all honestly, would have killed a mortal being. Shoving his hands in his pockets, Adrien span on his heel and marched out of the room, trusting Plagg to hide in his bag but too annoyed to check. Leave it to Plagg to ruin what should have been one of the happiest discoveries of my life, next to actually finding out who Ladybug is.

As he hurried back to the common room, Adrien took a few deep breaths to quell his anger. Really he had more important things to think about. Ladybug went to his school; he was sure of it. Now he was even more convinced they were destined to be together. A million girls, hundreds of schools, and she just happened to be here all this time? Adrien smiled softly to himself as he thought of all the girls it could possibly be, but one girl stood miles ahead of the rest.

He needed to be sure. He needed some sort of proof, more clues at the very least. But, for the first time, he allowed himself to hope about her identity. He hoped it was her.

He hoped it was Marinette.

With all his heart, he wanted her to be Ladybug.

The thought made him stop dead in his tracks.

Before he had a chance to process those thoughts, someone came barrelling straight into his shoulder. Leaping back with a start, Adrien blinked out of his surprised daze, as if someone had poured water over him whilst he slept. Whoever it was had clearly not noticed they'd collided into him, or simply didn't care, as they'd continued to race down the hallway without a word. Adrien gave himself a few seconds to take in the bowed shoulders, the lowered head, the dark blue twin-tails bobbing frantically, before his brain jumpstarted.

"Hey! Marinette!" He called chasing after her. Something didn't feel right.

When Marinette ignored him, Adrien broke out into a light jog to catch up with her, still calling her name.

"Marinette! Hey, it's me," He puffed as he reached her, clutching her shoulder. She stilled at the sound of his voice and he reached to hold her other shoulder, gently spinning her around to face him. Horror struck him when he saw the tears clinging to the corners of his eyes.

Marinette bent her head down low, cursing her rotten luck. All she'd wanted to do was hurry away, as quickly as she could, knowing she couldn't hold in her tears. She just wanted to find a place to quickly cry, wash her face, and go back pretending nothing happened. Of all the people to catch her, it had to be him. She tensed every muscle in her body, every nerve, every organ. Air did not enter her lungs, nor did it leave, as she concentrated all her willpower on not crying.

And then Adrien had to ask her "What's wrong?" He had to ask, in such a caring manner, his words a soothing lullaby which twisted and pulled her apart at the seams. She scrunched up her face, willing, praying, but it was all for nothing.

Waves of tears spilling out of her eyes like an overflowing sink. She clutched her arms, shaking her head. Snapping her eyes shut, she tried to breathe, tried to calm herself.

"Alya," She choked and for a split second, Adrien's heart dropped to the floor. Had something happened to Alya? Is that why Marinette was so upset?

Marinette dipped her head lower, her fingernails leaving crescent moon shapes on her bare arms. She breathed some more, and found her voice.

"Alya tried to convince Nino and I- to- to research more about the World War II Ladybug and Chat Noir," She explained, her voice wobbling, "In the end she gave up but- but she told us some things about them. They- it was just so sad." She couldn't fight back the sob and hated herself for it. In front of Adrien of all people; And she knew what she looked like when she cried. It wasn't a pretty sight, "After- after the war the German's gave back a box of the belonging they'd t-taken from Edward and Catherine. There was a ring. An engagement ring."

Adrien felt his insides turn to ice.

His grip on Marinette's shoulders slackened. She didn't notice.

"According to the teammates they sacrificed themselves to save, Edward was waiting until after the war to confess his feelings. He was going to propose to her. He wanted to- to marry her," She brought her arm up to her eyes, wiping the tears away. It must have seemed so pathetic. Crying over people who, outwardly, had no relation to her in any way, "I know I'm probably being really stupid right now, I'm sorry. But it's just…so awful. These were real people."

Despite the shock he'd just received, Adrien felt himself soften at her words.

"You don't have to apologise," He said and, before he could think about it, reached to play with a loose strand of her hair. Adrien wondered if it was the same strand of hair that he'd played with last night… in Notre Dame, with Ladybug. Marinette stilled the instant he touched her and, when he realised what he'd done, Adrien snapped his hand back towards himself in embarrassment. Smooth, Agreste. Really smooth. How many more times are you going to touch her without thinking it through? He gave her an, admittedly weak, smile "I think it's really sweet actually, that you care so much about them. You're right, they were real people."

He thought about Edward then, his past counterpart. There might have been other Chat Noir's after him, but Adrien didn't know about them. Edward though? Adrien felt a connection with him, made even stronger by the tragic reminder of his predecessor's fate. It made him want to find Ladybug even more, made him want to make Edward proud.

Taking his hands away from Marinette's shoulders he gave an awkward cough. Only then did she look up at him. Her eyes were glassy from the tears, tragically beautiful and indescribably deep. The tip of her nose was red. Adrien's tongue found itself stuck to the roof of his mouth, which he had opened to say something. Now he found himself unable to formulate a word, let alone a sentence. All he knew was his Princess was hurting, and he needed to make it better any way he could.

Taking his arms wide, he lowered his head to her humbly. Willing himself to give her the warmth she needed, he fixed her with a smile sincerer than the one he'd previously given.

"Nino says I give good hugs," He suggested shyly, aware he was probably making himself a fool but not caring in the slightest, "It might help?"

She stared at him for a full five seconds and Adrien tried not to fidget under her gaze. After what seemed like an eternity, she stepped forward. Her head leaned into his chest first. Instinct lead his arms to her waist and around her back. Quite suddenly he felt as though he was watching a cold winter storm blowing outside, knowing he was perfectly safe from its clutches. An unbelievable sense of calm caressed his soul. Adrien's mind was filled with images of comfort, of sunlight breaking through those storm clouds, of rightness. Wasn't I supposed to be the one comforting her?

Eventually Marinette lifted nervous hands and wrapped them behind his back, shuffling closer towards him. He fought every urge in him not to burying his lips into her hair. She's just your friend. You don't know if it's her yet.

The unmistakable sound of a phone click snapped the silence in half like a broken bone. Marinette and Adrien pulled apart to see Alya standing in front of them with a smug grin. Her phone was clutched in her hand and she took another photo.

Before either of them could splutter out a protest, or denial of anything which her raised eyebrow seemed to imply, Alya shook her head exasperatedly. Spinning around, she skipped back towards the computer labs, laughing as Marinette hurried after her.

"YO NINO! YOU OWE ME TEN EUROS!"

---

It was unusual for Hawkmoth to strike to days in a row, though it happened occasionally. Of course, Ladybug thought bitterly, such a rare unwanted moment would occur on such an emotionally draining week.

Ladybug grit her teeth as she dodged another attack from the latest Akuma, The Trainer. She was a short woman, white haired with black hellhound eyes and a metallic track-suit. Ladybug could only watch as The Trainer blew on her blackened whistle, and another round of dogs came bounding down the empty street towards her. Growling, slobbering, mindless beasts, frenzied by the influence of their mind-controlled master.

Throwing her yo-yo to a lamp post, Ladybug swung herself upwards, barely missing the gnashing, snapping jaws of the rabid animals below. Chat had yet to arrive, and for the first time ever, she hoped he wouldn't. Her mind had been playing tricks on her all day.

Ladybug raced for cover across the rooftops, ducking out of sight so that she could surprise The Trainer with an attack from above. The infernal sounds of dog barks, at least twenty of them, filled the late afternoon streets, echoing off walls so that it felt like there were hundreds of them. Ladybug sniffed angrily. All she wanted to do was reach into her brain and pluck out all thoughts of Chat Noir. Thoughts of him were tainted, tainted by a dead man… a dead man and a never-worn engagement ring.

Just as she was about to throw her yo-yo down, she heard the unmistakable sound of her partner landing beside her.

"Dogs! Why did it have to be dogs?" He mumbled as her heart sank. He crouched beside her, smiling, "What do you say LB, time to take this Akuma to the pounditentiary?"

"Sure," She bit through gritted teeth, ignoring Chat's startled expression at her tone, "Akuma's in the training whistle around her neck. She uses it to control the dogs." With that, Ladybug leapt from the building without a moments pause, more determined than ever to finish the fight quickly. She swung down and delivered a swift kick to The Trainer's side, sending her flying across the road to smack into the wall of an apartment building.

Ladybug landed heavily, marching towards the knocked-senseless Akuma victim with a furious stare.

"Woah! Down you mangy mutts!" She heard Chat hiss and looked to see him standing on top of a car, drawing the mind-controlled dogs attention away from her. He used the height to his advantage, swinging his baton to knock the dogs out of his reach. But more swarmed around the car. Terriers, poodles, Chihuahuas; any dog in the area that had fallen under The Trainer's control was now trying to attack him.

Ladybug felt a sense of panic flood through her, images of Edward consumed her. Chat. Edward. Death.

No!

She hurried towards him, ready to fling her yo-yo out and drag him away, but caught herself just in time. Shaking her head, she let reason come back to her. Her Chat wasn't Edward. This was not a war zone. She had to trust him. He'd never let her down before, and she knew he could handle himself.

Spinning back around, Ladybug rushed towards the Akuma victim and yanked the whistle from her neck, crushing it beneath her heel. Without even pausing to breathe, she caught the purple Akuma and cleansed it, watching the newly metamorphosed white butterfly disappear into the sky. She threw he hand up in the air and cried "MIRACULOUS LADYBUG!" As the victim turned back into an ordinary dazed citizen, Chat made his way towards her, beaming.

"We did it! And we didn't even have to use our special attacks for this one!" He grinned, practically jumping for joy. He stopped to pose, "You might say we pawsitively rocked it!"

Chat lifted his fist up to her, which she bumped feebly.

Ladybug gave Chat a flimsy smile, wrapping her arms around herself. The air was brisk and hunger struck her with a ferocity that matched the blood thirsty dogs from earlier. She'd lost her appetite for much of the day but it was coming back to haunt her now. In the aftermath of the battle, Ladybug felt exposed, like she'd de-transformed without her knowledge. A crowd had started to gather and she turned to face the approaching police officers.

"I'll handle this," She mumbled, ignoring Chat's concerned gaze, "I'll see you tomorrow night for joint patrol."

Before she had a chance to turn away, Chat reached for her.

"Wait," He called cautiously, stepping around her so that he could read her expression more. Her brow crinkled and she refused to meet his gaze, "Is everything ok? You seem upset."

She shrugged him off gently, waving her splayed fingers in the air.

"Fine, fine! Don't worry about it! See you later!" Without letting Chat say another word, she ran away, knowing she was being a coward but unable to face the fact at that moment in time. As she spoke to the police officers, offering words of comfort to the Akuma victim, Ladybug noticed Chat linger for a few seconds. She could feel his eyes on her but was steadfast in her refusal to look at him. Eventually, from the corner of her eye, she watched him leave.

She didn't know if the sigh which escaped her was one of intense relief, or indescribable sadness.

---

Adrien was restless.

It was as if he was waiting for something to happen, but the thing he was waiting for refused to arrive. Like watching a kettle boil, having forgotten to turn it on at the plug socket. He tried distracting himself from the feeling by playing some video games, reading a book, hell he even tried doing homework. The Ladyblog made him feel worse, and the longer he sat in his room the worse it became. Minutes became hours, hours became days. The troubled teen sighed.

The niggling feeling in the pit of his stomach had been easy enough to ignore during a short photoshoot, had only made him off-key a few times during his piano lesson. But now he was alone with his thoughts, Adrien found himself lying on his sofa, toes curling and uncurling, fingers drumming against his chest, eyes staring at the ceiling.

Something was wrong.

He didn't know what it was, but something had been off about Ladybug during their last fight. She'd been brisk with him, more aggressive towards the Akuma, and then afterwards there'd been a sort of heaviness in her eyes which he couldn't put a finger on. Adrien felt the first bloom of anxiety blooming in his lungs, its petals like tiny daggers poking him sharply.

After an hour of trying to figure it out, he groaned and ran a hand down his face, fed up of getting nowhere. There was nothing left to do, if he wanted any peace of mind he had to find Ladybug and talk things through.

Relieved that Plagg was in a sleepy mood, and agreed without too much of a fuss, Adrien transformed into Chat Noir and disappeared into the night sky. The air was colder than previous evenings, a chilly breeze swept the city, making the hairs on Chat's neck stand up as he raced over rooftops, prowling and scaling up buildings using his trusty baton to help him. He didn't need to use his tracker to know where Ladybug was. He knew where she always went after her own individual patrol.

Ladybug sat perched on the ledge of the Eiffel Tower, close to the top. Her legs dangled heavily over the ledge. Chat was sure she'd heard him land further inside the jungle of ever-rising steel beams. For a moment he watched her, wondering if this was how she'd looked at him the night before. She looked so small, curled up and deflated, a light shiver running through her as the breeze ruffled her hair. Chat swallowed.

"Well good evening My Lady!" He chirped, inwardly cringing at how forced his cheer sounded even to his own ears.

Ladybug sighed, leaning back on her hands. She didn't look at him.

"You know there's not much point in separate patrols if we're going to show up to each other's anyway," She mumbled as Chat came to sit beside her. When he tilted his torso forwards, she turned her head away from him. The jagged knife of anxiety grew ten times sharper, dug into the space between his ribs.

"You started it," He retorted and bumped her shoulder playfully. When she still didn't respond, his smile finally faltered. The wind picked up, the coldness from his metal seat crept through his legs, down to his toes, up his spine and through his blood.

"Ladybug," He whispered, "I know there's something wrong. I've known you for years. I can tell. Please don't hide it from me. I want to help."

Ladybug said nothing.

"Is it something I did?" His voice trembled and he found he could no longer look at her. Instead, he stared down at his lap, at his clawed fingers gripping his suit. Still, she did not speak. Chat closed his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he tilted his head back and watched the spotlights pierce the darkness of the blanketed night sky, the orangey-brown glow of light pollution, ugly yet oddly beautiful at the same time. His lips parted.

"Do you regret it? What you said last night, I mean?" Please say no, please say no, please say-

"No!" The cry from Ladybug startled him and he jumped, gazing back down to note her panicked face inches from his own. Ladybug shook her head frantically, "No that's not…" She trailed off, leaning away and allowing a puff of air to escape her lips. Her shoulders hunched forward once again. When she spoke next, her voice was lower, further away, "You haven't done anything wrong. I've just- I've just been thinking."

Ladybug stared out at the city below her once again, watching the cars drive past, the headlights looked about the size of her miraculous from so high a vantage point. She hated this feeling, the feeling that she was free falling off of the very tower on which she sat, with no way of stopping. As guilty as she felt for thinking it, a part of her wished she'd never found out about Edward and Catherine.

"I'd give you a penny for those thoughts, but I left my wallet in my other super-suit," Chat bopped her side once more she smiled despite the turmoil she felt, "I could give you an I.O.U though."

She turned to him then, noticing the sincerity of his words and expression, despite the lame joke. Two feelings were warring in her, causing her insides to churn and twist and bite. She worried her lip and picked up her knees, getting to her feet.

"Chat, I'm not sure I'm strong enough," She admitted in a gasp, walking away from him.

It took a few seconds to register her words.

Chat leapt to his feet, panic hitting him harder than any Akuma ever had.

"What do you mean?" The words left him in an almost painful rush.

Ladybug wrapped her arms around herself tightly. Maybe it might protect her from the hurt in his voice. She tried to find her inner strength, forced herself to face him.

"It's not that I don't want you to find me. I was serious about that, I meant every single word I said," She trembled.

Chat blinked, his head swimming with mixed messages.

"Then-" He began but Ladybug held up a hand to stop him.

"Please, let me finish?" She asked gently. His lips slammed shut and he gave her a half-nod, his jaw almost vibrating as his teeth pressed heavily into each other. She sank a hand into her hair, the same spot he'd caressed the night before, the same spot he might have touched earlier that day. No don't think about that now.

"I guess I'm scared," She confessed, "Ok I'm terrified." She sighed once again, this time completely surrendering to the helplessness she felt. Ladybug shrugged, her palms turned outwards as she frowned, "Chat what are we doing? This is crazy! Beyond crazy- and I feel so… I don't know, and you're standing there with that look on your face and I know I sound like a freak, I know I'm not making any sense. I'm just scared of how deep my feelings run for you. And if you find out who I am, what happens then? What if I feel for you more than I've ever felt for anyone, and then I- and then I lose you?" She looked down, "I don't think I'm strong enough for that."

Ladybug felt him step forward and gazed up into blazing eyes.

"You don't think I'm scared too?" He replied, his voice rough with emotion. She didn't say anything, remembering how he'd admitted to her other self just how nervous but determined he was. Her heart thrummed, her chest rising and falling in time to its quick beat, which doubled as he reached out and placed a shy hand onto her hip. She moved closer to him, and the hand at her hip gripped her tighter, but still gently. His other hand reached up, and the backs of his fingers trailed down the length of her face, "We can be scared together you know, but we can also- you know- not be scared."

He paused, imploring, staring deep into the depths of her being. When he spoke next, every word was heavy, he wanted the promise to root in her mind, take away all the doubts she felt.

"It could be good you know. It could be amazing. No- it will be amazing, once I find you. You'll see. I'd stake every single one of my nine lives on that fact."

Ladybug couldn't help the upward tilt of her lips if she tried.

"We're playing with fire, Chat Noir," She whispered, dropping the smile as he lowered himself so that their eyes were level with each other.

"Then let me burn," He replied heatedly, "For both of us."

And that was the moment her doubts stilled, like a lake after the rain had ceased falling. That was the moment she realised what she felt for her partner ran far deeper than she'd previously thought, like there was an ocean inside her that she'd only just discovered. It was a quiet symphony, a silent burst of fireworks, a splash of paint strewn across a previously blank canvas, and it left her completely breathless.

Love.

She loved him.

She loved Chat Noir.

Stepping even closer towards him, Ladybug wrapped her arms around the back of his neck, one hand on top of the other. Her body pressed into him and, for the faintest of seconds, she watched his eyes widen as she threw away one of the few remaining barriers to her heart, tossing it to the wind which blew around them. It didn't bother her any more, the cold breeze, in fact not once could she ever remember being so warm.

"Never," She whispered, waiting until the last second to close her eyes, wanting to commit every feature to memory; the gentle blush across his cheeks, his luminous eyes going from wide and surprised, to heavy and lidded, the softness of his hair as it brushed against her own, tickling her forehead.

When their lips met, her eyes were shut.

Whether they went down in a blazing glory, like Edward and Catherine, or rose from these brand new flames like Phoenixes dancing in starlight, one thing was absolutely certain. That night, at the top of the Eiffel Tower, looking over the city they protected with almost the same amount of love they felt for each other, both Ladybug and Chat Noir came to a joint realisation.

Whatever happened, whatever trials or triumphs they faced, it would be together.