Written with powderdragoonmoon on tumblr, the fic companion to our summer collab with 15 amazing artists here: hchano . tumblr post / 162412404681

Happy Summer! Enjoy!

The heat of the sun beat down upon the Parisian skyline as Xavier Ramier made his way through the park. Dressed in one of his signature grey suits—complete with a bright blue bowtie—Xavier found himself numb to the complaints of those around him: tourists who fanned themselves in passing; locals going on about the "heatwave" sweeping through the city; and children who wished for nothing more than to be at the pool. No, for Xavier weather was never an excuse for poor fashion choices, in fact he thrived in it, enjoying the security of the shade of his hat as he settled on one of his usual park benches.

He reached into his pocket, bringing out his whistle, along with a bag of treats. Around him pigeons of varying shades gathered. Cooing through his whistle, Xavier welcomed his friends. He generously scattered breadcrumbs before him. The pigeons seemed delighted, happily pecking against the ground for some share of their daily bread.

So enraptured was Xavier in his daily duties, that he barely even noticed the dark shadow looming over him. In fact, it would have most likely gone unnoticed, if not for the disruption to his feathered friends, who immediately seemed uneasy and took flight, leaving piles of crumbs in their wake.

That was when Xavier noticed.

He looked down at the shadow, and a sudden wave of uneasiness passed through him.

Xavier turned around, but before he could even let out a scream, he felt a shift. The very thing he stood for taken from him in a blink of an eye.

And then it was all a void of white.

Marinette peeked out of the change room, looking out across the pool in search of something—for someone.

"Girl!" Alya called, bumping in into her from behind. "Let's go! It's hot and I need that sweet, sweet, cool chlorinated water."

Squeaking out a sound of protest, Marinette gripped the towel she wore wrapped around her tighter, glancing back at Alya, who was pool-ready in her sporty orange swimsuit.

"You got this, Marinette!" Alya continued. "Remember what we practiced?"

Marinette nodded weakly, before quickly changing her mind, realizing she was gravely mistaken. Her nod morphed into a vigorous head shake.

"No," she began, stepping out of Alya's hold. She turned to face her friend, "Oh, no, no, no. I can't do this. What if I stutter? What if someone throws a banana peel and I slip in front of him? What if—Alya! What if he's in a Speedo and he's too beautiful that I get a nosebleed and faint from blood loss and he flies off to some glamorous tropical island where he can live the rest of his life like a summer movie so he wouldn't ever need to go watch movies?!"

"Okay," Alya chuckled, placing her hands on Marinette's shoulders. "Girl, relax! You are confident, powerful, and in an awesome bikini of your own design! Plus, your hair looks super cute! You can do this. Just remember, no phone stealing, alright?"

Marinette pouted, a self-conscious hand reaching up to the high bun atop her head. Alya held back her laugh to stare at her friend once more, "Seriously, Marinette, you're just asking him to the movies. I'm sure he'll say yes! You can do this!"

Blinking her bright blue eyes at her friend, Marinette mustered her courage. She stood up a bit taller and shared a nod with Alya, who gave her a dual thumbs up before—

—they were both pushed out of the change room.

"Ahhhh!" the two girls shouted, flailing awkwardly, as they were forced out of the doorway.

"Sabrina," Chloé's distinct drawl came from behind them, "there's a walking towel blocking my way."

Sabrina jumped to action, stepping forward to address Alya. "Please talk with your towel elsewhere. Chloé needs to work on her tan."

Without waiting for a response, Chloé walked past them with her nose in the air, as if they weren't worth her time or attention. She made her way to the pool, her blond ponytail swinging perfectly behind her as if it was choreographed. Sabrina, weighed down by various bags and pool accessories, followed.

Marinette and Alya watched as Chloé pointed to one of the chairs poolside. Sabrina immediately followed suit, moving the chair just out of the shade, and laying various towels upon it. When she finished, Chloé took her place, like a queen sitting upon her throne, as Sabrina whipped out a giant palm frond and started fanning her.

"Well," Alya began. "I am both shocked and not at all surprised."

Marinette sighed, "Same here."

"Hey bros!" came a call from across the pool. Alya perked up at the sound, turning to see Nino and Adrien walking outside of the fence, along the sidewalk.

Marinette, on the other hand, jumped in surprise, waving her arms so wildly that her towel dropped to the floor. She briefly fumbled for it before abandoning it entirely to hide herself behind Alya.

"Be cool!" Alya whispered, shaking her head as she tried to force Marinete out from behind her. Ultimately, Alya gave up, instead waving out to where the boys had paused on their way towards the pool's front entrance. "Hey guys!"

Dressed for the weather and still clad in his signature hat and headphones combo, Nino had switched out his regular shirt for a baggy blue tank top with its neckline dipped well below his collarbones, while his bottoms were bright blue board shorts striped with white and orange at his hips.

With him stood Adrien, and even though they were more than a pool length away, Marinette felt her heart catch at the sight of him in his summer outfit.

He was beautiful, ever so effortlessly stylish in light khaki shorts and a white T-shirt under an ultra-faded thin denim button up shirt, the sleeves of which were rolled up to show off his toned forearms. Marinette could feel her soul leave her body as she swooned.

And while Alya may have been hardpressed to admit it, perhaps the two girls spent a shared moment praising the sunny weather for bestowing them with the opportunity to lay their eyes on such a blessed sight.

"I see you ladies are ready to catch some waves," Nino grinned at them, shooting finger guns good-naturedly.

"Waves?" Alya looked taken aback before countering, "You know this isn't a wave pool, right?"

"Yeah, Alya," Nino shouted, attracting more attention from onlookers, "But just you wait! My patented super awesome mega-ultra cannonball is going to create the sickest waves!"

The two shot comments back and forth, egging each other on, but Marinette tuned them out, her thoughts and eyes focusing elsewhere. She took the moment to further enjoy the sunlight glinting off Adrien, creating a heavenly glow around him—

—until she suddenly realized he was staring right back. His blonde hair shifted as he tilted his head, the corners of his lips lifting into a small, curious smile.

"Awww, whatever!" Nino's voice cut through her daze, as he reluctantly admitted defeat against Alya's quick wit. "We'll be there in a sec! Right, bro?"

"Yeah," Adrien agreed, his eyes were still locked with Marinette's, until he finally, and somewhat reluctantly, looked over to Nino, "ready when you are!"

As soon as the boys turned away, Marinette blurted out, "Did you see that?"

"See what?" Alya answered. "Nino getting wickedly burned?"

Marinette grabbed her friend by the shoulders, giving her a quick shake. Her voice came out in a high-pitched, panicked whisper, "No, Alya! Did you see Adrien!?"

"Sure I saw him, he was right there—"

"No, Alya...did you see? He tilted his head while looking at me!" she squealed, bringing her hands to her chest as she wiggled in pure excitement. She was completely elated and over the moon, until suddenly she froze, her eyes wide as she grabbed Alya's shoulders once more —albeit, this time, a bit more aggressively than before. "What was the head tilt for?" she asked, "I mean, gosh , his hair looked so nice and shiny when he did — but what did it mean?"

"Breathe," Alya coached. "He was smiling! That's a good thing! Right?"

Marinette was just about ready to launch into another hypothetical—this one involving moving to the Antarctic to study the social habits of penguins—when a loud crash blasted out from behind them.

"I AM POOLBOY! LADYBUG! CHAT NOIR! GIVE ME YOUR MIRACULOUSES OR YOU'LL BE IN THE DEEP END!"

"Yep," Marinette groaned, as Alya gasped, reaching for her phone, "just perfect."

As far as akumas went, Chat Noir thought that Poolboy was one of the more harmless ones.

The victim was just a guy stuck at work in a stuffy office, when he would have much rather been enjoying the warm sunny day at the pool. His power, while unique, wasn't quite as destructive as previous akumas had been.

Equipped with an obnoxiously bright water gun—one that practically screamed, "There's a dark magical butterfly within me! Cure me!"—Poolboy zapped random citizens, causing their outfits to transform into swimsuits. It caused mass confusion and shocked awkwardness, especially when M. Ramier flitted about in a wetsuit reminiscent of M. Pigeon's villain garb.

By the time Chat Noir arrived at the scene, Ladybug was engaged in combat but had already been hit by Poolboy's gun. While her mask and weapon remained intact, the rest of her suit had melted away to be replaced by a more beach-ready version—a tasteful high-neck bikini of Ladybug red and trademark spots.

She seemed to struggle momentarily as a mob of scantily clad Parisians rushed past the scene, getting in the way of her yo-yo's strike. Glancing around the square, Ladybug reevaluated the situation, looping her yo-yo around the nearest lightpost to gain the higher ground. Chat Noir followed suit, bolting forward, keen on joining in on the fight. He vaulted towards her.

Balancing himself on his extended baton, Chat Noir situated himself on her level, as she was poised atop the lamppost. He turned to address his partner, keeping his eyes away from the very distracting new costume. And that's when he noticed her hair.

Gone were her signature pigtails. Instead, her hair was swept up into a bun, held together by her usual red ribbons. The new hairstyle—and costume—exposed the gentle curve of her neck and shoulders in a way that her pigtails hadn't allowed.

Oh, he thought, trying and failing to focus more on the battle at hand, Cute.

Chat Noir couldn't do anything but gape at her like a fish out of water—

"AH! LOOK OUT—"

—which was precisely why he found himself blasted off-balance, tumbling onto the street, and suddenly in black, square-cut swim shorts with gold accents on the side. His belted tail remained wrapped around his waist, now a part of a very different ensemble.

Looking down at his new garb knocked some sense back into Chat Noir, because as much as he was a healthy teenage boy blushing at the sight of his Lady, he was also a gentleman—not to mention a hero of Paris—and neither gentlemen or heroes would idly stand by while people were robbed. Some part of him wished that Ladybug's Lucky Charm would be a towel so he could cover her up.

"At least we're in the same boat now?" he called as Ladybug dropped down to his side. Together the duo found cover behind a car.

"Yes, we're quite the pair," she replied, looking down at her now bare hands. "I just hope our powers aren't watered down!"

Chat Noir's face lit up, beaming with joy at her comment. Leaning in close, he added, "I'm sure things will go swimmingly, My Lady!"

"Well then, follow my lead, mon minou," she replied, tapping a finger at his nose, "try to go with the flow."

"Dolphin-etly! After you!"

And with that Ladybug swung forward, Chat Noir right behind her. The rest of the fight was challenging dressed only in swimwear—feeling wind on skin instead of the protective armor was a little disorienting. But the akuma himself was relatively easy to battle, and soon enough Ladybug was bidding a purified butterfly goodbye.

"Awwww," Chat Noir lamented as the white butterfly fluttered away, "it's too bad we also have to say goodbye to the Ladybikini and Shorts Noir." Ladybug raised her eyebrow at that, but didn't protest otherwise. He leaned in towards her, and she didn't back away. "Would you care for a swim first, My Lady?"

"I thought cats hated water," she countered.

"They don't when you're in it," he waggled his eyebrows.

Ladybug scoffed, taking one last lingering look at her partner in his so-called Shorts Noir. "Well, it's a shame that I'm not in it, then." She smiled ruefully, picking up her Lucky Charm off the ground—who knew a pool noodle could come so handy in this situation? She threw the polka-dotted floaty into the air, calling out, "MIRACULOUS LADYBUG!"

Magical ladybugs burst forth, scattering above them in the sky, zipping towards all those who were affected, and curing all signs that an akuma had ever gone on a summer makeover rampage across the streets of Paris. The Miraculous Duo themselves were promptly engulfed by a passing red blur and their altered supersuits were returned to their original designs.

Chat Noir looked down at their suits, masking a face of disappointment before saying, "Well, I guess I'd take this over those swim shorts. Much easier to fight in, even if it is really hot out!"

"Oh, I don't know," Ladybug shrugged as Chat Noir offered his knuckles, "you had a James-Bond-at-the-beach kind of thing going on for a second there."

Chat Noir froze, his hand still in the air untouched. His green eyes blew wide and his mouth opened in shock, the cat ears on the top of his head perked up, as if they were trying to ensure that he had in fact heard her properly. "...W-what?"

The afternoon sun painted a pink hue on Ladybug's cheeks, but Chat Noir knew that the heat rising on his face wasn't due to the weather.

Ladybug, for her part, seemed to realize the her own words. "Oops!" she said, shaky and rushed, "Gotta go—Bien joué!—Bye!"

Ladybug quickly bumped his fist with her own and spun around. The red ribbons in her bun waved farewell. And then she was off, swinging away, the sound of her earrings beeping signaling her need to find a place to detransform.

It was then that Chat Noir realized that her hair hadn't gone back to the usual pigtails. He tilted his head in consideration. That meant…that meant that her new hairstyle wasn't because of Poolboy's powers; Ladybug, probably even before she transformed, had already fixed her hair up in a bun. Like Marinette.

Marinette looked cute in a bun, too.

Huh, he thought as he vaulted back to the swimming pool, I guess hair buns really are popular in summer!

When Marinette made her way out of the change room for the second time that day, she was back in the swimsuit of her own creation—a bikini with a halter top in her favored pink shade, detailed with dainty white flowers. She held her head a little higher, taking confidence in the fact that she was able to fight evil while dressed in an outfit similar to what she was wearing now.

She wiped the lingering sweat from her forehead, eyes locking on the welcoming blue of the swimming pool. The akuma wasn't that difficult to defeat, but the heat of the midday sun did not help, regardless of her outfit. Her partner's eye-catching summer outfit did not help either.

She really needed to dunk her head in cold water.

And so she walked faster towards the pool and surveyed her surroundings, attempting to swat away images of messy blond hair and toned muscles and tan skin and that smirk—

Alya said to not steal phones, but she wondered if it was okay to steal someone's cold drink instead.

—Surroundings! She was paying attention to her surroundings, that's what she was doing. Marinette shook her head, as if that would help clear any of the lingering thoughts from her mind.

As expected, everyone had quickly recovered from the recent akuma attack, and were already enjoying the summer day.

Alya was excitedly typing away on her phone, most likely updating the Ladyblog. Max sat with his legs in the pool, keeping time for Alix and Kim, who looked like they were having some kind of race that involved water wings. Ivan and Mylène were also in the water, lightly volleying a beach ball with Juleka and Rose. Nathanaël had his sketchpad on his lap, and was bewilderedly sniffing his bottle of sunblock. Sabrina was still fanning Chloé, but Chloé herself looked like she was about to get up from her lounge chair, her own expensive bottle of sunblock in hand.

"Oh! There you are girl!" Alya called, walking up to Marinette, "I thought I lost you! Where'd you hide all this time?"

"Sorry, I ran back into the change room…" Technically it was the truth. Marinette just didn't think it necessary to also say that she did it to retrieve Tikki from the lockers. And she did really hide from everyone, she just transformed and left to face an akuma right after.

"It's alright," Alya said. "Just don't back out of your goal for today."

Marinette pursed her lips. Of course, her goal. She was going to do it: ask Adrien out to the movies. If she could save the city in only a bikini, then she could ask Adrien such a simple question, easy peasy.

"Right," she nodded determinedly. She brought her fists up, strengthening her resolve. "I can do this...I can do this. I can do this!"

"That's the spirit!" Alya cheered her on. And then, with a nod of her head, she gestured behind Marinette. "Now, don't panic, but he's right over there."

Marinette barely kept herself from jumping in surprise. Trying her best to remain level-headed, she slowly turned around.

And her eyes immediately locked on toned muscles that required no photoshop, and smooth tan skin accented by the towel thrown over broad shoulders and the dark swim trunks hugging slim hips.

For one fleeting moment—or perhaps time had slowed down, stretching out for forever—Marinette stared in awe, and one small corner of her mind wondered what on earth was Chat Noir doing at this swimming pool.

Except, instead of that familiar mess of hair, she saw perfectly coiffed golden sunbeams. Instead of a mischievous grin, there was that small, sweet smile that always made her heart soar. Even from the greatest distance, the sparkle in those green eyes was one that Marinette would never fail recognize.

How could Marinette have mistaken him for anyone else, really?

"Sorry!" Adrien was saying. "I went back to get stronger sunblock. I can't get sunburned! Model and all, you know."

Before Nino could respond, Alya burst out laughing, catching the boys' attention. "What, pray tell, is that on your arm, Lahiffe?"

Nino raised an affronted eyebrow at Alya, lifting it so high it went past the frame of his sunglasses. "I'll have you know that these are all the rage! It's this season's new trend! Just ask my boy Adrien." And at that he deftly swung the inflatable duck around his wrist. His other hand went to his hip, as if to challenge Alya's laughter with sass of his own.

"Well," Adrien began, his smile slightly twitching, "those ducks are flying off the shelves, I hear. And with my summer schedule, Nino had to find himself a new wingman."

"Dude," Nino said, giving Adrien a look of betrayal.

Trying to contain her laughter, Alya snorted into her hand. "Yeah," she said, wiping tears from the corner of her eyes, "I think he took that a little too literally."

Marinette tried to keep up with the conversation, but Adrien's words kept echoing in her mind.

"Flying off the shelves," he had said, " wingman."

Her eyes widened as she realized...he was punning? Her Adrien? She wasn't sure whether to go drown herself in the pool or push him in it.

Caught between two extremes, she giggled instead, an uncontrollable bout of laughter that immediately caught Adrien's attention. His eyes sparkled as Marinette's crinkled in mirth.

"Well," Adrien said, smiling gratefully at Marinette, "at least someone likes my puns."

"Believe me," Alya mumbled, "she likes more than your puns."

"What?" asked Adrien, glancing between the two girls in confusion.

"What?"

"ALYA!"

"NINO!" Alya turned towards him, ignoring the glower that Marinette was giving her. "What was that super-jumbo-kick thing you were bragging so much about?"

"Super awesome mega-ultra cannonball," Nino corrected. "Get it right, at least."

"Yeah, that," she replied, grabbing his arm and dragging him towards the pool, "I need to see if it's really as 'awesome' as you claim. I need visual proof!" She glanced back over her shoulder at Marinette, shooting her a stern look from behind her glasses that screamed, "Do the thing!"

And so Adrien and Marinette were left behind, standing in silence. Shyly, she glanced down at the ground, peeking up quickly out of the corner of her eyes to see him rubbing the back of his neck, staring up at the sky.

"So, ummmm, I…"

Marinette's eyes widened, realizing it wasn't her tripping over her words, but Adrien.

"Y-yes?" she asked.

Adrien cleared his throat, smiling a bit, before quietly continuing, "Your swimsuit looks nice."

"Oh!" Marinette exclaimed, looking down at the topic of conversation. "Th-Thank you! Umm, I made it."

"Ah, of course."

Marinette looked up to see Adrien staring down at her, but upon meeting his gaze, his eyes darted back up to the sky. A lovely shade of red colored the apple of his cheeks.

"And, you-your hair!" he added. "It's, um, different today! That's nice too!"

Marinette felt like she was going to faint—in the best possible way. If anything she would have the chance to be caught in Adrien's strong arms. He would whisk her off, carrying her princess-style towards the nearest First Aid Station, and, if she was really lucky, he'd perform CPR on her. That thought just about brought on another wave of swooning...

But with the determination of someone who had waited a long, long time to blurt out her feelings for the boy in front of her, she willed herself to stay conscious.

"W-Well you, too! Look nice, I mean. Not different...just less clothes. And uh, um…wow you have really nice abs." Her brain caught up with her words one sentence too late and she quickly slapped a hand to cover her mouth.

Adrien, on the other hand, turned even redder.

"Thanks," he replied, his gaze flickering to her before turning his focus down at the pool in front of them. Marinette was probably imagining things, but it almost seemed like he meant to say something else…

Trying to recover from her blunder, she quickly glanced around as she fiddled with some of the stray pieces of hair that had fallen loose around her face.

The pool around them bustled with activity, offsetting the awkwardness between the two. Mylène was putting a flower necklace around Ivan's neck, and out of the corner of her eyes she noticed Max kneeling beside the pool, perfectly content with a portable gaming device in his hands. Kim and Alix were nowhere to be seen and she vaguely wondered where they had gone off to.

Marinette didn't spend much time thinking about it. She had a mission, and she wouldn't let the chance slip through her fingers once more. So she tucked her hair gently behind her ear, biting her lip in nervousness.

She was confident, powerful, in an awesome bikini, and her hair was cute. Even Adrien said so! She could do this!

"Um, Adrien?"

"Yes?"

"Would you…umm…" Marinette paused, licking her lips, trying to block out the nearby snickering.

Confident! Powerful! Cute hair and awesome bikini!

Marinette opened her mouth to continue, and the words were right there on the tip of her tongue, when—

"Wha—HEY!"

—Marinette felt the world tilt as forceful hands pushed her towards the pool. Barely having time to gasp, she squeezed her eyes shut, and in the next breath she hit the water, creating a splash that might have rivalled Nino's cannonball.

Disoriented but trying to regain her bearings, she kicked out, only to feel her feet hit something, and suddenly she was caught in a tangle of limbs. But it didn't make her feel more panicked. Instead, it brought on an odd sense of déjà vu—one that made her feel safe and warm. So she reached forward, feeling someone reach for her too, and she instinctively wrapped her arms around them.

And then they were moving upwards together, cutting through the water in tandem until they broke through the surface.

Marinette gasped for breath, one arm holding onto what was keeping her afloat. With her free hand she rubbed at her face, wiping the itchy chlorinated water from her eyes.

"Marinette?" a worried voice called out in front of her, "Are you alright?"

She blinked, remembering who had been standing right there beside her, and who had probably joined her for her impromptu pool plunge.

And there Adrien was, dripping wet with his golden hair matted and flat on his forehead, still looking absolutely breathtaking. There were arms around his neck, and she recognized with a jolt that they were her own, even more shocking was the touch of his steady hands—Adrien'shands—on her waist. Her mouth ran dry and she nodded, not quite remembering the question or how to form words.

Up on the pool deck, Kim and Alix cackled, trying to get away from Alya, who was threatening them with Nino's duck pool tube. Nathanaël seemed to be having some kind of crisis involving his sunblock, and much to everyone's surprise was being helped by Chloé. And Nino was handing over Alya's phone to Max, quickly telling him not to get it wet and to, "film this, dude."

And with that, Nino leapt into the pool, successfully performing the greatest super awesome mega-ultra cannonball ever to be witnessed.

Cheers erupted and one by one, classmates were either pushed or voluntarily jumped in. Even Sabrina threw her palm frond aside, joining the pandemonium with a whoop. More and more people leapt in, turning the pool into one huge fountain of laughter and splashes of water.

And there, amidst the chaos, were Adrien and Marinette. Her arms were still wrapped around him. She was torn, not quite willing to let go, but also understanding that the moment couldn't last forever, no matter how much she wanted it to. But as she felt his hands tighten around her, she thought—or hoped—that maybe he didn't mind so much.

As pool water rained down upon them, they both chanced a shy glance at one another. Their cheeks mirrored innocent pink blush as their eyes squinted against the random sprinkling of water against their faces.

"Uh," Adrien began, "sorry, what was it that you were going to say before?"

"Oh!" Marinette replied, removing one arm from around him as she reached up to make a futile attempt to fix her hair. Her bun was surely in shambles at this point. "I was going to ask you—"

Out of the sky, something bright, and very yellow, landed around Adrien's head; it was Nino's plastic inflatable duck, somehow lost in all of the commotion. The two of them stared at one another, frozen in surprise, as the offending object settled crookedly around his shoulders.

Before she could stop herself, Marinette burst out with laughter. Adrien, trapped by the most ridiculous pool accessory she had ever seen, was not only hilarious, but was also incredibly endearing.

He stared at her, his mouth open, caught up between embarrassment and shock. But then a bright smile broke out across his face as he joined her in filling the space between them with laughter.

It was a laugh that she had heard before, but not very often from Adrien. One that was free and bright and pure. One that had to be earned and that was hidden beneath all his soft smiles and reserved gestures.

Marinette reached out to help lift the inflatable ring from around him, smiling brightly as they caught their breath and their laughter settled. Adrien ducked his head down in thanks before running a hand through his wet hair, leaving it more a mess than before—but of course it was a look that he was able to pull off perfectly.

The sound of rain echoed in Marinette's mind, and she felt her heart flutter. And while she may not have found the right time to ask Adrien out, she felt that perhaps fate had a funny way of stepping in and ruining everything. She could blame the well-timed interruption of another akuma attack, Alix and Kim's usual shenanigans, or even her own awful luck.

But as she shared another smile with Adrien, she couldn't help but think that every misfortune she seemed to cross along the way was all worth it, for this one perfect moment.