It was a day that would change everything. Even though it started out normal enough, everything was about to change. But when I say normal enough, nothings ever normal with Nino and Alya around. They have far too much flare. Marinette, Alya and Nino were wandering down the street together. Nino was complaining again.

"But there was room on the door! She could have balanced it out by sitting upright and not being so lazy!"

"Dude let it go!" Alya groaned.

"And she could have stayed in the lifeboat! Then he wouldn't have had to worry about her, and someone else who deserved to live could live!" Nino insisted.

"She loved him," Marinette pointed out.

"She met him three days before!" Nino argued.

"The real crime is she dropped the jewel back into the sea. If I had listened to some daft old woman tell a stupid story about leaving the love of her life to freeze to death because she didn't want to sit up, I'd want my jewellery to make it worth my time," Alya huffed.

"Are we going to ignore the fact that that old woman basically just told her granddaughter she slept with a strange man she just met in someone's car that they just broke into, while engaged to another man, before leaving the stranger to die?" Nino asked.

Marinette stopped walking. This thought had never occurred to her before. She frowned. "Titanic is a weird film."

Alya and Nino agreed. Then they were distracted by a sudden and heavy tide of people hurrying this way. They weren't exactly running away, but there was a lot of people heading in the opposite direction to them, briskly. It wasn't really a calm and orderly fashion either. It was more like a crowd heading to a show of some kind, only instead of excited cries, there were nervous murmurs.

"What's going on?" Nino asked.

"Probably an akuma," Marinette said.

"It's probably Jack coming to get revenge for the idiot woman who left him to die," Alya grinned. She grabbed Nino's arm dramatically, and declared in a desperate, over the top tone, "Nino, this is where we met!"

Nino grabbed her by the shoulders, shaking her a little like he was declaring something from the depth of his heart. "You must do me this honour. Promise me you'll survive. That you won't give up, no matter what happens, no matter how hopeless. Promise me now, Alya, and never let go of that promise!"

"I promise," Alya sniffed dramatically.

"Never let go!" Nino shook her so drastically that her hair flapped.

"I'll never let go, Nino. I'll never let go. I promise!" Alya cried.

Marinette laughed at the impromptu street drama, but now she could see the akuma coming. The closer it got, the thicker the tide of people heading in the other direction became. They needed Ladybug.

"I gotta go," she said.

Alya flung around to look at her, horrified, "Where are you going? To him? To be a whore to a gutter rat?!"

Marinette put on her most scandalous tone, "I'd rather be his whore than your wife!"

"GASP!" Alya cried, clutching her pearls in horror.

"Hey look! It's Chat Noir!" Nino interrupted.

Nino's eyes shone in awe as the city's favourite stay came flying down to the street in front of them. He flashed them a grin, and urged them to hide. Nino took a step forward, like a kid in front of balloons. The akuma came around the corner. It had to be an akuma, their skin was pure green. She also had a robot creature creeping along behind her, ready to fight. Marinette frowned. Who needed a robot too? That was just over the top. But it meant that Alya and Nino were distracted, which was the perfect opportunity for her to make her escape.
Then she spotted something that made her freeze.
Chat Noir was beating off the robot with his staff, but his attention was completely on that. He didn't even glance at the akuma victim.
And she had another robot creeping down from her sleeve.
It aimed right at him.
Marinette didn't think. She didn't have time to become Ladybug, Chat Noir was in danger and he wasn't going to wait for her to transform. Her partner needed her.

Now.

Which is how Marinette found herself racing across the road, despite Tikki's protesting yell, straight towards Chat. She threw herself across the road, through the air, and straight into Chat Noir. The pair of them were thrown down to the ground, and she yanked him into a roll to pull him out of danger.
The akuma arm smashed into the ground where Chat Noir would have been standing, and shattered the tarmac of the road, tearing it up like an open wound. There was a pink and black blur as Chat Noir and Marinette rolled out across the road, together fast enough to blur into one another. They came to a crashing stop, Chat against the road, Marinette pressed on top of him. Their faces were inches away from one another. Each of them groaned in pain, but let their attention focus on the other.

"Are you ok?" They asked at the same time.

Her glorious midnight eyes sparkled mischievously, inches from his, and sparkled brighter as she grinned. Chat Noir turned fuchsia. He never noticed how gorgeous she was before. Before she was pushed entirely against him, in a very compromising position.
She giggled.
That sound rung in his ears like no akuma ever could. Her delicate fingers jingled the bell on his collar, playfully, and he blushed harder.

"Be careful Chat. Who will save Paris if you get hurt?" She teased.

That voice, that tone, it made him tingle. He forced a weak smile, and she pushed herself away from him. He propped himself on his elbows and watched her in awe as she dusted herself down, flashed him a grin, and ran off down the street. He watched her go, shocked. Marinette was far braver than he ever gave her credit for. He glanced back at the akuma. If she hadn't been there, he would be dead. That made him feel a little queasy.
Chat Noir shook his head. His cat ears flapped as he did. He set his jaw with determination and leapt to his feet. Ladybug came swooping to his side seconds later.

"Did I miss anything?" She grinned.

Chat Noir was a little shaken up, but he wasn't about to tell his lady that. He flashed her the best smile he could master. "Not a thing."

The whole thing had taken about a minute, but Adrien couldn't shift it from his mind. His entire view of Marinette shifted. He was wandering around his bedroom, too vamped up to sleep, even as the night crept later and later. Plagg was not impressed.

"I can't stop thinking about how brave that was!" Adrien gushed.

"Go to sleep," Plagg mumbled from where he was curled on Adrien's pillow, trying to sleep.

"I should go and talk to her," Adrien declared.

"You shouldn't," Plagg stated.

"She saved my life!" Adrien argued.

"And now she's asleep! Let sleeping girls lie, and go to sleep yourself!" Plagg raised his head to scowl at Adrien pointedly.

Adrien glanced at the clock it was nearly three in the morning and he had things to do in the morning. Plagg was right. He needed to lie down, close his eyes and try to get some rest. Except actually falling asleep is harder than decided it's time to sleep. Adrien's mind kept whirling despite all his tossing and turning. He needed to thank Marinette. Needed to. But it could wait until tomorrow.

"It. Was. AWESOME! Chat Noir came flying through and he stood right in front of us and he fought off that big ugly robot with his staff like this-" Nino made swooshing noises as he acted out how Chat Noir swiped with his staff.

This went on for quite a while. Alya and Marinette were sitting on the table top of a picnic table, with their bags leaning on their feet on the seat. They shared a look as Nino got a little too into imaginary staff fighting, and laughed together.

"And THEN the akuma, she had ANOTHER ROBOT on the arm, and it took over her whole arm like some kind of armour, and she was aiming it, right at Chat Noir-" Nino raised his arm like she had, and aimed it at a random point in the street, as if that was Chat Noir. His voice dropped low for the drama and he continued, "she had him in her sights... there would be no escape... she pulled the trigger, and then..."

With utter glee in his eyes he leapt around and pointed squarely at Marinette as she sat on the table top. She sat up in surprise, but grinned.

"Our very own Marinette raced across the street, threw herself sacrificially at Chat Noir, with no thought for the danger she put herself in, and saved. His. Life."

Nino clenched his fist in front of his face and breath the last words dramatically. Then he ran forward, threw an arm around her shoulder, and raised the other arm into the sky, like he was showing her something miraculous.

In a low, dramatic voice, he announced, "Marinette Dupain-Cheng: hero to heroes."

Marinette laughed brightly as Alya cheered and Nino beamed. He leapt to his feet and bowed.

"Thank you. Thank you. It was nothing. You can hear all about it in my new film, as soon as I'm finished casting the parts. Mari, would you do me the honour of playing yourself?"

"I would be delighted," Marinette smirked.

"I knew you would. You're a great friend, isn't she Adrien?" Nino said, pointedly.

Adrien grinned. He had been rather enthralled by Nino's way of telling the story. He usually was, Nino had a real flare for the dramatic when he wanted to. Especially if it was something he was passionate about. Now he glanced at Marinette.

"Sounds like Chat Noir had a lot to thank you for Mari. So does Paris too," Adrien said seriously. He reached out, around Alya, and touched her knee with his fingertips. "Thank you."

Alya grinned as Marinette blushed scarlet. She had to look away, but he could hear her grin in her voice.

"It was nothing... I mean cats always land on their feet, right?" She shrugged.

"Not in my experience. He could have been killed. You're amazing Marinette," Adrien said.

"Th-thanks, you are too amazing. I mean amazing are you too! I mean- urgh..." Marinette covered her face with her hands. It was impossible for her to go any redder.

Alya grinned to herself and laid a hand on Marinette's shoulder. It wasn't a lot but it was enough that Marinette didn't feel so embarrassed. At least Alya was there for her.

"And for dashing hero Chat Noir we need someone handsome. Smart. Daring. Funny. And practically, purr-fect in every way," Nino's gaze fell on Adrien.

Adrien's eyes widened, and his jaw dropped. "Me?!"

"Please? You're both blonde, you've both got green eyes, if we put you in a cat suit and made you a little taller, you could look just like him!" Nino begged.

"No, no, I- what'd you mean a little taller?!" Adrien demanded.

"Nothing dude, but Chat is a little taller than you. Like, not much, but enough that its noticeable," Nino shrugged.

Adrien frowned. That wasn't even possible. And besides, everyone saw Chat through the tv or videos or from very far away! They couldn't possibly know how tall he really was. And he stood on buildings all the time, that's sure to make him look taller! Adrien couldn't just stand on rooftops whenever he to, to make himself taller. He couldn't compete with a hero like Chat Noir. Besides, he knew he was just as tall as Chat. The exact same height some might say. Even so, he still looked or back up.

"What'd you think Alya?" Adrien challenged.

Alya shrugged, "I don't care about height. What does it matter anyway? It's not like Chat Noir is coming to take your crown, you're still the greatest model ever to walk these halls."

"What, so Chat Noir isn't handsome enough for you?" Nino challenged.

"Chat Noir is handsome, sure, mysterious too which makes him more attractive, but like, I wouldn't hire him to be a model. For one thing he's way too allusive. If there was an akuma and he had to leave, that's be a day's work wasted. Nah, he's great to film, but he's not exactly…"

"Not exactly what?!" Nino demanded.

"Not exactly reliable," Alya finished.

Nino turned blue for a moment as he was too busy forming an argument to remember to breath. "CHAT NOIR IS A HERO OF PARIS! IF THE ENTIRE CITY CAN RELY ON HIM, YOU CAN TOO!"

"I rely on him to save the city, I don't rely on him on a personal level. If I needed things moved out of my house I'd phone Marinette or you or Adrien way before I phoned Chat because I can rely on you lot being there when I need you," Alya argued back.

"BUT-"

"What Alya is trying to say is that Chat Noir is a hero. You'll never be number one with a hero, because the greater good comes first, so sometimes you can't rely on a hero," Marinette interrupted, calmly, to try and soothe Nino.

"Well put Mari," Alya nodded.

Nino didn't seem convinced. He still seemed annoyed. Adrien had been strangely quiet through all of this. usually if someone brought up Chat Noir he'd find a way to twist the conversation over to Ladybug. This time he seemed to be just a little less upset than Nino.

"Adrien? What's wrong?" Alya asked.

"I'm a model. I can't be relied on either, because my schedule is hectic. Does that annoy you too?" Adrien asked.

"Of course not. You warn us that you can't be there, or can't be there for long, so we can prepare if you have to leave. it's not Chat's fault he's unreliable, but it's not like Hawk Moth follows a schedule we can prepare for," Alya explained.

Adrien didn't seem any cheered up by that, but it did one thing. It made him determined to be someone who at least tries to be reliable. The first thing he was going to do, was go to Marinette as Chat Noir and thank her. then he'd figure out the reliable thing later.

Chat Noir tapped on the window to draw her attention. She looked surprised. Not as shocked as he expected, but more alarmed. He flashed her a grin as she opened the window.

"What are you doing here?" She asked.

"How are you?" He smiled.

"I'm fine. That doesn't answer my question," she countered.

"No... can I come in?" He asked.

Marinette glanced into her room, anxiously. It wasn't exactly clean in here, but she couldn't leave him out in the cold. February nights tended to be colder than they seemed. She nodded. He grinned, and slipped through the window, onto her bed, and shut the window hard behind him.

"Brrr, it's cold out!" He complained with a smile.

"Its winter," Marinette agreed.

She started climbing down from her bed and Chat Noir followed. "Yeah. This time of year, many cats seek warming in under the hood of car wheels because people forget to check before driving off."

Marinette frowned. "That's horrible!"

Chat nodded, his ears dropping. "I almost joined them the other day. You saved my life."

"Oh it wasn't a big deal, I mean, even heroes need saving sometimes, and you're always there for Paris, we should always be there for you, right?" She shrugged.

"Not everyone was. You were. If you weren't... I'm grateful," he insisted.

"Really its ok. Ladybug already told me she was grateful that she still had a partner. You don't have to keep thanking me," Marinette lied.

Tikki smirked. Clearly Marinette was trying to tell him she was just glad he was alive, but obviously Chat didn't know that. He perked up in surprise at this new information.

"Ladybug was here?"

"Yeah, she said you were her partner and she was glad you're safe," Marinette said.

If saving his life wasn't enough, this was perfect. He had proof that his lady cared about him. Really cared. She went out of her way to thank Marinette for him. His chest filled with such affection he leapt forward and threw his arms around her. She tensed for a moment. She hadn't been expecting a hug. Then she laughed and hugged him back.

"Really, it's nothing," she shrugged.

He held her at an arm's length and looked so deeply into her eyes she could practically feel them in her soul.

"I'm going to repay you. Whenever you need me, call this number. I'll be there. I promise."

He pressed his number into his hand on a piece of paper. Marinette shook her head.

"Chat you don't have to-"

Chat closed her hand around the paper he had placed in it, and repeated, firmly, "I promise."

Marinette reeled a little, more alarmed then she wanted to admit, but she forced a smile, and took a step out of his grip.

"Ok... Thanks," she said.

Chat Noir nodded firmly. He left without another word, and left Marinette feeling strange. The number was for his staff phone. She recognised it. She didn't need it. Marinette crumpled it up in her palm and dropped it into the bin.

"It's sweet though, isn't it? He wants to pay you back," Tikki said.

"Yeah... he's a good kitty," Marinette chuckled.