Adrien could immediately tell that something was seriously off.

One moment, he was jumping after Félix over the roof—the next, a solid fist slammed into his chest and hurled him backwards through the air. With a hard thump, he crashed against a surface that shattered into thousands of tiny shards beneath him.

"Ugh… What?" Through a hazy cloud of pain and confusion, Adrien rubbed his eyes and blearily blinked up at a white ceiling that looked suspiciously like the one in Marinette's apartment.

Marinette! Adrien's brain screamed as he flopped onto his side. His claws scrabbled over wickedly sharp fragments of broken glass, eventually grabbing the dented table frame to help get himself back to his feet.

"How do you keep getting in the way?" he heard an angry voice snarl, giving Adrien a very weird sense of déjàvu when he lifted his gaze to find Féilx standing before him, no Marinette in sight.

Hang on… Adrien's eyes swiveled to take in the spacious living room with its plush couch and neat little end tables… He even spied the photo frames that he had helped Marinette set out. I'm back in the apartment?

Then the balcony door flew open, and Adrien whipped his head around right as Marinette burst inside; somehow still transformed and not caught in Félix's grasp.

Which meant that... time had somehow reset?

Oh! It suddenly clicked in his head, and he realized he recognized the blinding sensation from before. That was Second Chance!

But he didn't remember seeing anyone with the snake miraculous, let alone knowing if they had even used their power. Or did he? He had been rather preoccupied with trying to chase after Félix before he could escape with Marinette. It cleared up a bit of the mystery, but it still didn't explain how Adrien could remember everything if he wasn't the one using its power.

"Look at the mess you're making!"

Whoops. Lost in his own thoughts, time was obviously not going to wait for him to figure things out. He grabbed his baton from the hallway and scrambled after Marinette onto the balcony, where she had already tossed Félix. Just like the first time, he found them grappling with one another, and to separate them, he simply repeated his actions from before. Félix jumped back from his weapon as it slammed against the railing, then shot Adrien a mocking sneer and quickly leapt off the building, disappearing from view.

Adrien joined Marinette at the edge, but he had no interest in following after his cousin. His gaze swept over the surrounding rooftops instead. If the snake's user was somewhere nearby, surely he could spot them from up here?

"He's trying to create a sentimonster!"

Or not. Adrien sulked. Regardless of his involvement, events just seemed to be repeating themselves, and Marinette didn't appear to remember anything at all.

What would be the best choice of action? Going after Félix would probably end up the same as before, unless the snake user already had a plan for their second run. But where were they? And did they know that Adrien remembered everything that had happened?

While he was trying to come up with a strategy, Marinette must have thought he was hesitating, because the next thing he knew, she had swung over the railing to chase Félix.

"Aah! Wait!" Adrien belatedly tried to reach out to her, then cursed and whipped his baton over the balcony to vault after Marinette. "Don't fight him!"

Marinette landed gracefully on the slanted roof, shooting Adrien a confused look before Félix took a swing at her and stole all of her attention. With Marinette fighting against Félix, it appeared as though things fell right back into the same flow as before.

Adrien tried to separate the two of them and get Félix to concentrate on him, but he was swiftly kicked over the edge and onto a flat rooftop below, groaning in pain and irritation from the fruitlessness of it all. Marinette was close to danger again and there was still no sign of any other heroes.

Back in the same position as last time and knowing that everything was most likely doomed to failure anyway, he didn't like the idea that suddenly presented itself in his mind. Adrien still helped Marinette to knock Félix to the ground, but once her miraculous started beeping desperately, it hurt everything in him to turn his back on her. While Félix focused on Marinette, Adrien lifted himself high into the air with his baton, balancing carefully while he tried to locate the snake's user.

He grit his teeth at Marinette's strangled cry, eyes sweeping quickly over the city for that little sign of hope to appear. Where… where… where were they?

There! Adrien's heart seemed to summersault against his chest when he finally caught sight of a green-clad figure in the distance. The familiar form dashed frantically over the rooftops of Paris, charging right in their direction.

He wasn't very far now, but whoever it was definitely wouldn't make it in time to help save Marinette. Her transformation had already dropped, and Félix was making a run for it.

The hero drew closer, and Adrien waved wildly to get his attention. He watched when the person he now recognized as Viperion jumped down from a chimney two buildings over. For a split second, their eyes met, and Adrien caught a glimpse of surprise before his attention shot past him to see Marinette unconscious in Félix's arms.

"SECOND CHANCE!"

A flash of white blinded Adrien's vision once again, and he immediately found himself back in the apartment.

Adrien remembered that it was going to happen. He really should have expected it. But that troublesome power brought him back to the past a split second too late to properly react. Right as his brain was able to register that time had reset, Félix's fist smashed him backwards into the living room table.

Back in the apartment, Adrien enthusiastically groaned to himself. Great.

At least Marinette was safe again, and this time he wouldn't fail to protect her.

Shaking off the flecks of glass, Adrien determinedly pushed past the pain and shot to his feet, ignoring Félix entirely and darting toward the balcony. This time, he threw the door open himself, running right into a very surprised Marinette already suited up for the fight. She skidded to a halt, and before she could say anything, he scooped her up and jumped out over the railing.

"Wha—Chat Noir!" she shrieked in surprise, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and digging her fingers into his suit. "What are you doing!?"

"This is the third time Viperion has used Second Chance!" Adrien explained as he pulled out his baton to catch their fall and vault onto the adjacent rooftop. "And for some reason I can remember everything that's happened!" He landed against the tiles as gently as possible, slipping slightly with Marinette's added weight. "You're in danger, so I'm getting you out of here!"

"Fleeing like the coward you are!" Félix's voice rang out as he leapt off of the balcony in pursuit.

Adrien growled, quickly sprinting around a line of chimney stacks in an attempt to lose him. Of course Félix would give chase when he was trying to put as much distance between them as possible.

Adrien sped on regardless, ignoring the villain behind him. They didn't have much time before Marinette's miraculous timed out and revealed her identity. In fact, they probably had less than the usual five minute countdown considering how quickly it had dropped before. Something was definitely wrong with her powers.

In the distance, Adrien spotted the familiar figure leaping over the buildings towards them. "Viperion!" he shouted.

As Adrien drew closer, Luka jumped a gap in the rooftops to meet them. "I thought something was up. Do you remember all of this?" he asked.

"Everything," Adrien answered quickly. "If you can take care of Paon, I'll get Multimouse to a safe spot."

Luka nodded determinedly, not questioning him any further. He was probably leaving that for later once they were all safe. While Luka darted the way they had come, Adrien bolted in the opposite direction, not wanting to stick around since Marinette's miraculous began to beep in warning.

One of her hands flew to her neck, grasping the medallion in surprise. "W-what's going on!?" she yelled in a panic.

"We'll figure that out in a minute," Adrien grunted, carrying her over a rooftop and carefully sliding down the other side. His priority was getting Marinette out of sight before her transformation dropped, keeping his senses alert to anything that might follow them. While he trusted Luka to keep Félix occupied, he wouldn't put it past his cousin to send a sentimonster after them. But apart from the usual bustle of sound reaching up from the streets below, nothing appeared to be chasing them. Once Adrien was certain they were at a safe distance and out of sight, he dropped down into a shaded alley. Tiny ferns decorated the ground where they stuck up between the paving stones of the sidewalk, far from any of the busy Paris avenues and safely hidden from prying eyes.

"Now can you explain what's going on?" Marinette huffed faintly as her miraculous let out another shrill beep. Her voice sounded strained, possibly already fighting to keep herself conscious even though her wide gaze seemed frantic as it darted to her necklace.

"I'm not very clear on it myself," Adrien answered softly, concern contorting his expression. "But I think something's wrong with your miraculous." He set Marinette down on the path as gently as he could, but he had to quickly catch her again when her knees buckled beneath her.

"I… I don't..." Marinette's voice shook, her eyes appearing to unfocus before they fluttered shut and her full weight bore down on him as her body went limp.

Adrien grasped her shoulders gently, dropping with her to catch her fall and cushion the blow. Her head flopped forward as a glow flashed over her, and he carefully adjusted her so that Marinette could rest easily against him.

Mullo appeared in the swirl of pink light, flopping to the ground in front of them with his eyes squeezed shut.

"Mullo, what's wrong?" Adrien tried to keep his voice calm, but he couldn't help the slight tone of panic from creeping through. "Why did Marinette's transformation drop so quickly?" he asked.

"Two miraculous!" Mullo moaned, not appearing to have heard him. "Plagg was right! He told her it would be dangerous!"

"'Plagg?'" Adrien repeated in confusion, causing Mullo to jump onto his paws and let out a shrill squeak. Adrien continued despite the interruption, "And what do you mean by 'two miraculous?'"

"Umm…" Mullo fidgeted uneasily, his large eyes flicking between Adrien and Marinette.

"Two miraculous..." Adrien mumbled, a contemplative gaze moving to the one around her neck. "Marinette has two?" Something about that stirred up a scandalous thought in the back of his mind.

Adrien's eyes flitted down to her wedding rings, then darted to her empty earlobes. She had always worn those earrings before, hadn't she? But now… He then focused on her right hand where it rested over her stomach. The pink ring around her finger stood out, almost like a beacon despite the shadows of the alleyway.

Present Adrien's words from that morning played back in his head. 'And it's just the one miraculous, right?'

Why would he need to be concerned about Ladybug giving Marinette more than one? At the time, Adrien figured it had to do with her early feats from facing Kwami Buster as Multimouse, but could it have been something more?

Adrien stared at the ring in wonder while Mullo fidgeted uncomfortably on the ground. He heard the kwami stammering out a nervous string of words, but they didn't register. His mind was too busy racing with a whirlwind of ideas.

Was it possible? Did Marinette have a deeper secret than her identity as Multimouse? That's why they swapped… His heart skipped several nervous beats.

"Ladybug isn't sick… Is she...?" he breathed softly, voice barely above a hope-filled whisper.

"Oh—oh dear—oh my, oh no…" Mullo squeaked, the reason for his dismay becoming all the more clear.

Without much thought, Adrien found his claws reaching out toward Marinette's ring, prepared to slide it off, unable to fight his curiosity any longer.

"Really, kid?"

At the sound of a familiar, nasally voice, Adrien snapped his hand back. He whipped his head to the side and instantly caught sight of the kwami that flew out from a hiding spot somewhere behind him. "At least go for the mouse, since it's his fault you figured it out," Plagg scoffed.

"Plagg," Adrien marveled quietly, staring at the future version of his kwami with wide eyes. There wasn't any difference in his appearance, since kwami didn't age, but it was obvious this wasn't his Plagg. Adrien's gaze quickly dropped back down to Marinette, a warmth filling his core as he took her in. "Then… Ladybug really is…"

"Yea, yea," Plagg grumbled. "Sheesh. And I can't even enjoy the irony that the mouse is the one who let the cat out of the bag this time." He shot a glare at the other kwami, who hid his face in shame.

"Marinette will be so upset!" Mullo wailed.

Adrien's ears twitched at that moment, catching the faint sound of Luka calling out to him some distance away. If he was searching for them, then it was a good sign that he had probably taken care of Félix.

"Plagg," Adrien started, getting his Kwami's attention. "Can you see if it's safe and lead Viperion back here? We probably need to get Marinette to a hospital."

Plagg promptly nodded and zipped away while Adrien adjusted Marinette's body more comfortably against him, his worry growing as he peered down at her face. It looked as if she was simply sleeping, but the circumstances leading up to her condition made him all the more concerned.

"You should remove the miraculous," Mullo suggested as he hovered into view, restlessly wringing his paws together. "Wielding two at one time is most likely the reason she fainted. I would do it myself, but kwami are incapable of doing so."

"Right." Adrien carefully shifted Marinette's position so that he could keep a hold of her while slipping his other hand behind her neck. He found the latch easily enough, but fiddled with it for a moment before managing to unlock it. "Thanks, Mullo," he said as he slid the necklace away.

Mullo had enough time to lean forward in a quick bow, then simply disappeared once the miraculous' contact was broken. Adrien stared at the necklace for a moment and eventually decided to zip it up into one of his pockets.

"Coast is clear!" Adrien heard Plagg announce shortly before his kwami flew back into the alley, followed by a nearby thump when Luka, still transformed, landed right across from him.

Luka immediately joined them, kneeling against the cobblestone path on the other side of Marinette. He leaned closer with a worried expression knitting his brow, his hands hovering hesitantly over her limp body as he asked, "What happened to her?"

"Mullo said it was because she was wearing two miraculous." Adrien tightened his grip and shifted her a bit so that he wouldn't drop her when he carefully stood. "Is Félix gone? Because I really think we should get Marinette to a hospital," he stressed.

Luka nodded with a grim frown. "Your cousin lost interest once he realized we weren't going to give her up. Also, dealing with a guy that can turn back time at a moment's notice? I don't think he liked the odds." Luka's eyes then flicked between Adrien and Plagg. "So you found out, huh?" he noted.

"Mullo spilled the beans," Plagg confirmed with a nod and crossed his arms.

Luka pointed at Adrien and said, "I'm not surprised, to be honest. The fact of the matter is, the longer you stay here, the more you're going to learn about your future."

Marinette let out a groggy moan at that moment, stirring gently in Adrien's arms while her eyelids fluttered open and she squinted up at them. "What happened?" she asked blearily, shifting her legs as she attempted to stand.

"Woah!" Luka laid his hand against her shoulder and stopped her. "You shouldn't move after fainting like that."

"I fainted again?" Marinette whined incredulously before flopping her head back against Adrien's shoulder and groaning. He had been holding her for a while now, but the fact that she had done that on her own set his heartbeat into a frantic rhythm that he really, really hoped she didn't notice. His lady was leaning against him so intimately, probably because she was used to… to this .

"You overdid it!" Plagg exclaimed as he flitted angrily above her head. "Didn't I warn you that wearing two miraculous while you're pregnant would be a catastrophe!? With you flip-flopping all over the place, it should have been obvious something like this would happen! But did you listen? Nooooo!"

Marinette stared up at Plagg during his entire rant before her eyes widened and darted to Adrien. Her mouth dropped open, but only soft, incoherent noises escaped before finally forming into a high-pitched, "Eeep!"

Adrien couldn't help the mischievous grin that spread across his face, and he didn't even try to restrain himself as he leaned closer and purred, "Hello, Bugaboo."

Marinette let out a startled shriek, and with unexpected strength, abruptly shoved him backwards. Adrien lost his balance and stumbled, an alarmed yelp escaping him when Marinette slipped from his arms. Luckily, Luka dove forward and caught her before she could hit the ground.

"This isn't a game!" Marinette shouted as Luka helped her to her feet. Adrien reached out to offer his own assistance, but froze when she turned to face him. She wasn't angry, oh no, but her distraught expression and eyes glistening wetly with tears was a sight that wrenched Adrien's heart and stopped him in his tracks. "You can't know," she sobbed.

"Alright, alright, easy," Luka comforted Marinette gently while patting her shoulder. "You're over stressing yourself. Just relax and take a deep breath."

"Right," Marinette mumbled and nodded slowly. Following Luka's suggestion, she covered her eyes and quieted down, her chest rising and falling in a few slow, easy breaths. After letting the last out as a lengthy sigh, she lowered her hand, appearing a bit calmer.

"How do you feel?" Luka asked softly.

"Honestly?" Marinette massaged her forehead and leaned back against the brick wall of the alley. "I feel like I'm going to throw up."

Luka exchanged a worried glance with Adrien and started, "Then we should probably take you to—"

"Luka," Marinette abruptly interrupted with a serious tone, shooting Luka a very stern frown. "If you suggest I go to the hospital, I'm going to scream."

"Wait…" Adrien balked and gave her an incredulous look. "Does that mean you're not going?"

"I don't think I need another examination," Marinette answered with a quick shake of her head.

"But you fainted again!" Adrien exclaimed. "And you just said you're not feeling well."

"My stomach's a little queasy, but it's getting better," Marinette mumbled, letting out a quiet sigh. "I don't think a trip to the hospital will be necessary this time. If it was a normal situation, I'd be more concerned, but so far almost everything that's happened has been miraculous related." She lifted her head suddenly, patting the area right below her neck as her eyes widened. "Where's Mullo?" she asked, her voice pitched slightly in panic.

"Don't worry!" Adrien quickly fished the mouse miraculous out of his pocket and dangled it in front of her. "I've got it right here. I'd give it back, but I think it's safe to say I'll hold onto it for now."

"Right," Marinette sighed dejectedly as he returned the necklace to his pocket. "And what happened to Paon?"

"You mean Félix?" Adrien growled. "I know he's done some bad things but… but this? This is too far, even for him." He clenched his fist, his mouth twisting into a furious scowl. "Especially this. Did you know who he was?" Adrien waved his claws in Luka and Marinette's direction. "How is he not already arrested?" he asked heatedly.

"He…" Marinette hesitated, her eyes flicking to Luka as they exchanged a look, and Adrien felt a spark of outrage, like a heated flame igniting in his mind. With everything he had already learned, were there really still more secrets between them? But Marinette eventually continued, "Félix... knows something... And we can't reveal his identity to the police without him destroying someone else's." She crossed her arms and chewed on her lip. "We're at an uncomfortable impasse."

"Oh." Most of Adrien's irritation deflated at that, though his animosity toward Félix didn't decrease in the slightest. "That sounds bad," he muttered.

"It makes things complicated." Marinette nodded and added, "But it doesn't stop us from dealing with Hawk Moth's schemes."

"Right, Hawk Moth," Adrien repeated with a hum. "Speaking of which, I found out about that secret too."

"Wha…" Marinette's gaze shot up, and her face seemed to pale for some reason, the freckles along her nose standing out in stark contrast. "H-how did you…?"

"I heard Félix talking with them," Adrien explained, and Marinette's expression shifted to confusion. "I don't know their identity, but Félix called them 'Farfalla' when they spoke through their little connection."

"O-oh…" Marinette seemed to relax, slumping against the wall with a sigh of relief and mumbling, "Félix said that…"

"How did you find yourself in this situation with Félix anyway?" Luka asked, looking pointedly at Marinette. "I thought you were lying low?"

"He must have gotten our address and pretended to be my Adrien to get into the building," Marinette surmised, folding her arms and tapping her fingers restlessly against her elbows. "And he probably ordered Duusu to pick the lock to get into the apartment."

"Then you're not safe at home as long as he's after you," Luka grumbled with a frown.

"It doesn't seem like anywhere I go is safe," Marinette groaned. "But at least now, Félix is probably clued in to the fact that Chat Noir is protecting me."

"And Foresight can't predict where I'll be," Adrien added with a grin. "So they might not risk another attack like that."

"Let's hope not!"

Adrien jumped at the sound of another voice as it echoed loudly through the quiet alley, but when he spun around poised for an attack, his alarm quickly receded. Alix stood a few feet behind them, slouched over and using her parasol to help prop herself up. Her breathing sounded ragged, and even her rabbit ears appeared to droop.

"That was a close call," Alix panted, massaging her forehead. "You know what? After all this is over, I'm taking a vacation." She marched closer and counted off on her fingers. "No more time-hopping, no more miraculous, and definitely no. More. Burrow!"

"Alix?" Marinette gasped. "What happened?"

"Oh, you know…" Alix muttered. "Just figuring out that even though I have the ability to hop through freaking time , the universe still operates on a tight schedule. At least I finally figured out what was throwing everything out of balance." Alix then straightened up and jabbed an accusing finger at Marinette and Adrien. "You two were almost the death of me!"

"What?" Adrien waved his hands wildly and shook his head. "I don't remember doing anything to endanger you."

"You wouldn't," Alix spat, folding her arms and shooting him a narrow frown. "The Burrow is too powerful, unlike the snake charmer's abilities." She jerked a thumb at Luka. "Not to say that resetting time isn't overpowered, but you wouldn't remember anything I erase through another time-line. However... That's not what I mean.

"With all this cockamamy time-loop business, it took me way too long to figure out that I actually needed to get our boy Viperion over here to be in the right place at the right time—because, before this?" Alix threw her arms into the air and exclaimed, "He was half-way across Paris and in no position to help! And why would that be a problem? Because you'd think Max might be able to do something, but nooooo. Changing one little thing winds up throwing the whole loop out of whack! And don't even get me started about Marinette's identity as Multimouse getting exposed!"

"Wait, what happened!?" Marinette cried.

"We already fixed that!" Adrien jumped up and quickly reassured her. "Luka used Second Chance, so Félix doesn't remember anything!"

"Yeah," Alix huffed, spinning her parasol around her wrist before propping it against her shoulder. "Granted, he didn't find out that you're Ladybug, but either situation wouldn't have ended well; not to mention it wouldn't have done Mylène any favors."

"Alix…" Marinette sighed as she smacked her palm against her forehead.

"Oh, right, secret identities. Well, not that they matter now." Alix waved her hand nonchalantly. "Apart from Hawk Moth's identity, our Kitten here has pretty much learned everything."

"What do you mean it doesn't matter?" Marinette asked and planted her hands on her hips.

Adrien's heart skipped a little beat, because he couldn't help but think he had seen Marinette do that so many times in costume and out of it. Alix may have just given away the fact that another of his classmates was one of their fellow superhero friends, but he wasn't paying that any mind, too focused on Marinette's movements now that she appeared to be feeling better. How had he not noticed the similarities with her behavior sooner?

"Because there's a simple solution to all of this," Alix explained. "Everything we're going through is just one big time-loop, which is why Fluff never sensed anything wrong in the first place." She tilted her head and scratched her chin. "Max has a theory that our mini-heroes will forget everything they learned about the future once Foresight's dealt with and past Marinette can use her Miraculous Ladybug. The not-so-simple part?

"Imagine my surprise when Fluff finally sensed that something was wrong. An imbalance that should have been obvious, because it's only started recently—like when you and mini-Adrien here started hanging out. I knew it would be a good idea to eventually get all four of you together, but I thought Chat Noir would be good enough for a while because I didn't realize how important Ladybug's presence was." Alix pointed her parasol at them and moved it from Adrien to Marinette. "Didn't you tell us that the Ladybug and Cat miraculous are two halves of the same whole? Yin and Yang? Creation and destruction?" Alix then folded her arms. "So what happens when you put two cat miraculous together for too long?"

Marinette's expression appeared blank for a split second before her head dropped into her hands and she groaned. "We're the problem!?"

"Hold up, what's going on?" Adrien asked in confusion. "I'm not following."

Alix's gaze flicked to Plagg for a brief second. "Simple. Ladybug and Chat Noir are a balance. While meeting yourself isn't as bad as most time-travel theories lead you to believe, it isn't so great when it's two miraculous of destruction in one place. For a little while, everything was fine. But eventually, the two cats created chaos because one of their Ladybug's wasn't nearby to balance it out. Got it?"

"Oh." Adrien turned his attention to Marinette and frowned. "So, because you have this time's cat miraculous, and I have the one from the past, it was like it was… creating bad-luck?"

"You could say it like that." Alix winked. "The good news is, I know Félix won't try that again, now that he knows you're with Marinette, but we're not sending her back to her apartment, just in case." She lifted her parasol and pointed directly in front of her. A moment later, a large portal spun into existence before them. "I've got a different place in mind that will make it easier for us to bring Mini-Marinette into the mix and hopefully fix this crappy time-line mess."

"Are you talking about the base?" Luka asked, stepping up toward the portal.

"'Base?'" Adrien repeated, twisting around excitedly. "You guys have a base? Like a secret superhero base?" His excitement grew when Marinette nodded with a smile, but his expression quickly shifted as he blinked in confusion. "Wait, if you had this secret base already, why didn't you just hide there in the first place?"

Marinette turned to Alix with a curious expression. "I was wondering about that myself, but Alix said no when I suggested it."

Alix shook her head. "Yeah, we did something like that in another time-jump—bad plan—didn't work. But that was before I knew Foresight couldn't see the futures of our mini-heroes." She then jabbed her parasol at Marinette and added, "Besides that, do you really think she would just hide somewhere safe while we're all dealing with supervillains outside?"

Adrien turned to Marinette and gave her a stern frown, mirroring the one his future self had worn just that morning while he answered, "Probably not."

"Of course not!" Alix slapped her hands together before turning to Marinette with a grin. "Ready to suit up again?"

"Uh…" Adrien tried to interject. "Is that safe? Transforming was what caused her to faint in the first place." He pointed at her Burrow tunnel. "And why does she need to transform if we're using your power?"

"Because thanks to Max, one does not simply walk into the Kwami Cave," Luka chuckled softly. "Alix can get us close, but we still have to do a little bit of our own traveling."

"I'll be fine." Marinette smiled at Adrien reassuringly. "I've only got one miraculous on me now." She turned her gaze to lock eyes with Plagg as he floated out in front of her. "Ready, Plagg?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing," Plagg drawled, shaking his head. "Looks like I'm not the one who needed a recharge this time."

As Marinette lifted her hand and called out the transformation phrase, Adrien couldn't help the soft gasp that escaped him. A familiar green light washed over her body, replacing her clothes with the suit that concealed her identity from the rest of the world. It was one thing to know who she was beneath that mask, but to see her transform in front of his own eyes?

He would never get tired of watching that.

Granted, it wasn't her Ladybug transformation, but Adrien's heart still gave him a little kick in the chest when she flipped her long braid over her shoulder. And then he pretty much forgot how to breathe when she noticed him staring and shot him a playful wink with those sparkling green eyes.

"I thought it was weird, but you look pretty calm considering he found out your identity," Alix remarked as they stepped up to The Burrow's opening.

"It helps that I experienced a similar situation when we were younger." Marinette shrugged. "Plus, I already freaked out earlier." She then pulled out her baton, spinning it between her claws as she hastily added, "Let's move. I want to get to the base before anything else happens today."