Author's Notes:

Thanks to Kellarhi and Enberlight for looking over this one! 3

To LNC and Yunyin: Whose prodding really made me create a 5 chapter or so sequel to the lonely one shot I've made in I can't even remember how long... :3

(Sequel to A Breath of Fresh Air)

They walked in lockstep back towards class - an impressive feat since Adrien was at least a full head taller.

Marinette risked a peek over at him and blanched, swallowing hard. She knew his height - and that particular view up at him - all too well.

She knew all of him all too well…

Marinette closed her eyes, lagging a bit as she tried to calm her suddenly erratic breathing. She had spent the entire last year with him, racing across the rooftops and fighting to keep the city safe- there was no reason to freak out. That was why it was just so baffling just how much she must have missed. She bit her lip, crossing her arms over her chest.

When she felt brave enough to look up, she found Adrien with his hands jammed into his pockets, peering back over his shoulder at her. His shoulders had been hunched and dejected, heavy with a burden she'd only just realized they shared. It wasn't often that Adrien had drawn the censure of the teaching staff, and it wasn't wise for either of them to test the limits of Madame Bustier's patience. "You alright?"

She nodded and gave him an empathetic smile as she increased her gait to catch up. Neither of them could afford to dawdle; it was bad enough that she had discovered his secret- they couldn't afford for anyone else to get suspicious.

Gently, she patted his forearm. "Don't worry about me, alright?"

Adrien smiled in response, and carefully straightened his stooped posture as they approached the classroom door.

His eyes darted back towards hers, as he pulled on the handle, gesturing for her to enter first.

Even in such a small gesture as holding the door, she couldn't help but be mesmerized by the precariousness and pride of Chat Noir's warring in those familiar green eyes.

Especially now that she knew…

She bit her lip. Adrien must really be worried since Chat's odd sense of humor wasn't shining through...

Marinette peered down, wanting to make doubly sure that Plagg was tucked safely away in her purse. She blinked, finding both Kwami staring each other down instead.

Carefully closing the latch on her purse, Marinette sighed. She had to trust that Tikki would have Plagg safely in hand. She could worry about the superpowered pair later after she had a chance to breathe...

Or at least to think...

Marinette inhaled, steeling herself to re-enter the room. She glanced over at Adrien - at Chat Noir, she reminded herself. She could only imagine what must be going through his mind. Outwardly, the only indication that anything was different was how he'd been a little more reserved... and a little more quiet than usual.

Clutching the strap of her purse, Marinette smiled back at Adrien, desperate to reassure him that all was well as she stepped through the door that he was holding open for her.

Tilting his head back towards her, Adrien gave her an all-too-familiar, winning (if crooked) smile. "Thanks, Marinette."

Her cheeks flushed as she brushed past him, paying a little too much attention to the scent of his soap as she did so.

Walking up the few steps to her seat, Marinette shook her head, forcing herself to focus. Kwami only knew that she had enough on her mind for now, but he was counting on her to keep it together.

Slumping into her chair as discreetly as she could manage, Marinette felt as battle-drained in the aftermath of their little chat as she had from even the fiercest of fights.

She stared forward, feeling her purse swing heavily at her side with the weight of two Kwami and far more secrets…

Alya beamed over at her, proud of whatever small progress she'd assumed was made. She seemed more than ready with a high five, but it was probably best not to press Madame Bustier's goodwill with another disruption...

Her nose wrinkled up. It was progress for her, even if it had come in such an odd way. A year ago, she wasn't sure that she would have been able to hide her own panic at the revelation. Though a bit forced, Marinette smiled at her friend softly, before picking her pencil back up to resume her notes.

Marinette ran a hand over her hair, fussing with her bangs.

From the moment she'd realized that Adrien was her kitty, she was oddly calm. Far calmer than she'd ever thought she'd be.

Maybe it was just the urgency at that moment. Maybe it was the fact that she was perpetually over-tired. But, when she'd stared back into Adrien's wheat-green eyes, watching him struggle to maintain composure as the precarious situation struck, she instinctively felt all the panic he must have been feeling.

And at that moment, it was as if someone had flipped a switch to put her into "avert crisis" mode.

For better or worse, Marinette had learned to handle a crisis in the past year.

And this? Well, this definitely counted as a crisis.

Being unmasked was her own worst nightmare. Not because she didn't want the credit; it might even be nice to be recognized for once. Not because she didn't feel worthy; she knew full well that she had grown leaps and bounds to become the hero Paris deserved.

But with Hawkmoth still on the offensive, anyone knowing who she was would put everyone she knew and loved at risk. Hawkmoth had no compunctions about Akumatizing even very small children for his own nefarious ends. The old adage of "taking candy from a baby" was probably a principle he held dear. She had no doubt he wouldn't hesitate to use anyone and everyone against her if he ever found out.

She doodled aimlessly in her notebook, attempting to look busy even if her heart - and her mind - wasn't ready to process anything else just yet. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the moment she'd spotted Plagg's lazy grin and the half-lidded green eyes when he'd foolishly left Adrien's side… how she'd practically pounced, fighting both the rise of bile and surge of adrenaline which were warring for her attention. She'd known she had to act - and fast.

It was pure, dumb luck that Sabrina had misidentified Plagg and given Adrien a viable excuse for what had happened.

Alya was much, much too close - and was far too observant for her own good. Even Chloe or Nino might have noticed the tiny god's seemingly random appearance.

This was the risk in having so many secret superheroes in such close proximity. Too many people who knew exactly what a Kwami was. It was miraculous that no one had ever pieced it together before, honestly...

Marinette exhaled heavily, bringing herself back to the present moment. She watched Adrien fidget, his anxious gaze slipping back occasionally to meet hers.

Now - with the initial crisis averted, and Plagg safely nestled with Tikki in the bag at her side - it was her turn to not-so-quietly fret… and the full weight of everything started to sink in.

She gnawed her lower lip again, struggling to tune in to Madame Bustier's lecture on the finer points of the book she hadn't been able to get more than a chapter into the night before. But, it was hard to pay attention when her eyes kept mentally trying to place Kitty ears on the head of the boy in front of her.

She'd stared - entirely smitten - at the back of his head for so long that it was almost a little jarring to try to concentrate on class now.

However, the more she looked at him, the more the Adrien is Chat thing made the oddest bit of sense.

Her mind was slowly filing away the tiniest of details, the slightest of ticks. It was oddly fascinating just how much she had unknowingly ignored and oddly comforting to realize just how much the miraculous magic must have been keeping them all safe.

When they had originally met, Plagg had mentioned that Chat Noir tended to mimic his own actions. She closed her eyes at the memory of the tiny but fierce Kwami, dismissing a whole host of his old misadventures and adamant that he step in when Adrien could not. That little bit of Plagg's ridiculousness had made her feel most at ease when Chat Noir was missing.

Realization hit her, and suddenly, Marinette sat back in her chair, gaping in stunned silence. She felt the weight of guilt settling on her shoulders for believing Plagg's fib at the time. Chat Noir hadn't actually lost his Miraculous… he had lost use of it, except it very definitely hadn't been his fault.

She herself had been helpless to do anything but watch as Style Queen trapped Adrien as her very first victim.

It was just lucky that Plagg hadn't been trapped as well.

Marinette was still a bit dazed after class as she trudged down toward the Chemistry classroom at Alya's side.

Alya merely smiled, clicking her tongue at her. "I'll lend you my notes later."

"Thanks." Marinette smiled ruefully and hoped that one of these days - when she wasn't rushing off to save the city or confounded by her current predicament - she might actually be able to return the favor…

She'd hardly even noticed when Adrien stealthily snuck up to her other side. Not until he leaned over to whisper into her ear. "You're still okay to finish up our Chat?"

Marinette snorted at the half-purred pun. That was the part she was really struggling to reconcile. "Really?"

Adrien lingered close, and she absently noted the soap-scent still teasing her nose. At her continued silence, his brows rose in question.

She nodded, still not trusting her words to rush out and betray her.

"Great!" He beamed, winking with all of his alter ego's subtlety. "Then I'll walk you back once we're dismissed today."

She'd blinked after him in disbelief until Alya butted against her with a shoulder.

Marinette blew out a long breath before smiling widely. He might be her Kitty, but this was one thing she'd been dreaming to hear from Adrien's own lips.

Adrien was far more than a boy on a billboard. He had proven as much every day in class.

And Chat was already so many things to her at once, even if she'd always struggled to put a precise name to just what those things might be...

She was really irritated with herself for missing so many clues... she failed to notice that it was her crush who had been standing - and fighting - beside her all along. Was it because she had been so enamored by the idea of being in love?

Chat Noir gave her hope and confidence. From the very beginning, Chat Noir had built her up when the world tore her down, in a way that she never would forget. She also knew she could be Ladybug... that she could save Paris without him. Point of fact, she'd already had to on more than one occasion. But she just didn't really want to be a hero without him.

Fighting Style Queen without him had been an immense challenge. Plagg had even had to go against Master Fu to see them both safe. She had seen for herself just how lazy he tended to be, which was a testament to how dire the situation had been.

So while she could physically do the job without him, she trusted that he would be there for her - unless he physically couldn't be at the time.

He was the irreplaceable friend she couldn't do without.

Alya jostled her shoulder, snapping her focus back to attention once they reached the next classroom. Marinette peered down anxiously at the pink fabric of her purse. At least one of the Kwami was still in there, the bag still subtly swinging back and forth as they got to their seats and settled in.

But as Adrien's - ahem - hamster - was supposed to be inside, no one would think twice.

Of course, if Tikki read Plagg the riot act - as Marinette strongly suspected her Kwami wanted to - it would tip all of their hands...

It was only minutes before Adrien began anxiously trying to turn around, clearly fretting about Plagg… and maybe about what she might accidentally say about his secret. He clearly couldn't sit still, though she didn't blame him. Her own thoughts were wholly occupied by the situation at hand.

And very much centered on her partner who had been secretly sitting in front of her in school for the past year, fighting by her side for the whole time.

They had come a long way, in that time. As a team, they were now a well-oiled machine. She could read his actions in an instant and move to the safest spot to make up ground on taking down an Akuma. Likewise, he'd been growing wiser to the ways she thought… and could make a fair split-second guess where she'd need him.

Directly taking on Hawkmoth on Heroes Day had only proven that she'd really needed Chat Noir - how much she'd needed Adrien. So, while technically she could "do it without him", she didn't even want to try.

She couldn't afford to mess up the amazing dynamic they already had. That was why keeping things professional between the heroes had always been so necessary.

Keeping Paris safe - and the pair of them focused on that task - was the main reason she'd kept him at a distance even after she'd found Chat Noir's feelings for her were genuine.

Well, his feelings for Ladybug at least. Marinette frowned at that.

She bit her lip, mulling over the mysteries of the blond in front of her with fascination, noting he was bright red at to the very tips of his ears. He kept peeking back at her, apparently blushing a bit under her scrutiny.

Unfortunately, Marinette wasn't the only one to notice the not-so-subtle peeking. Mme. Bustier had been relatively understanding.

Mme. Mendeliev… not nearly so much. She wasn't known for being tolerant of people zoning out during class. And it looked like Adrien was going to be the focus of her ire today.

Maybe it was just all that she was processing, but she was surprisingly fine with allowing him to act as a distraction for now.

It was funny. All the positives she'd ever seen in Adrien were there in Chat Noir… and all the negatives she'd seen in Chat was in Adrien.

But instead of frustrating her, she was only more certain; now that she knew the whole of him, she wanted him - flaws and all - to stand at her side… whether it was fighting an Akuma, or the toughest Physics problem Madame Mendeliev could concoct.

And if the smug grin on Madame Mendeliev's face was any indication, they both would need all the help they could get.