"Plaaaagg," groaned Adrien as he flopped face-first onto his bed, burying his face and shame in a pillow.

His kwami flew up to sit on his shoulder, the cushion up Adrien's nose not enough to prevent the stench of camembert from reaching him.

"You're a mess." Plagg informed him, nibbling away. Adrien snorted into the pillow.

"Thanks, Plagg. But tell me something I don't know."

Plagg thought for a moment.

"Ladybug loves you."

Adrien rolled over, Plagg fluttering over to sit across the bed from his charge. The boy frowned.

"Again, something I know. But what is it with everyone today? I know Ladybug loves me. Of course I do."

"Do you?" Asked his kwami, and Adrien frowned. "Because it seems to me that the only reason you haven't told her who you are is because you're afraid she won't love you when you do. Are you really so self-deprecating and secure in your self-loathing to think so little of her? Do you honestly think Marinette would really give too much of a damn?"

Adrien furrowed his brow again.

"It's… it's not that."

Plagg rolled his eyes, and the last of the cheese disappeared, much to the delight of Adrien's nose.

"Well, what is it, then? You know you're worrying her. She's scared you don't trust her, she's scared you don't love her enough to tell her."

Adrien sat up in horror, his hair bouncing around his face as he stared at Plagg.

"She can't think that. She knows I love her more than anything!"

"More than your secret?" Asked Plagg calculatingly. Adrien opened his mouth to counter him, but closed it a moment later.

"I… I'm just concerned." He replied feebly. "She's loved me for ages, it's only recently that she's even given Chat a second look."

"So?" Plagg prompted. "She loves you. Both of you. What's the problem?"

"What if it's a different kind of love? What if she wants to keep the two separate? What if what she feels for Adrien could never... coalesce with what she feels for Chat?"

Plagg sighed and flew over to float in front of Adrien, making determined eye-contact.

"Here's the thing, kid. She loves you, and you love her. You're clearly the one with doubts about the relationship- and that's making her doubt it, too. It's only going to get worse the longer you wait, so you've got to pull yourself together. Cat up, and just tell her already!"

Adrien groaned and flung himself backwards, staring straight up at the ceiling. Plagg floated into his line of sight again.

"Look, Adrien." He stated, more serious and urgent than before. "You'll never know what Marinette's reaction will be until you tell her, okay? Now, I know Tikki, and I know Marinette. Tikki doesn't choose anyone that either of us would deem unacceptable, otherwise everything gets uncomfortable. If Tikki chose Marinette, she's the kindest, bravest and basically the best girl in Paris." That was nothing Adrien didn't know already, but he let his kwami carry on. "And after all these years, I can tell you that it's true. I can also tell you that she freakin' loves you, kid! You couldn't ask for a better partner, especially now she loves you back. But there's a lot of other stuff going on in her head right now, as well."

Adrien frowned.

"Like what?"

"Well for a start, she's feeling guilty." Plagg replied casually, sitting on Adrien's pillow.

"What! Why?"

"For liking Adrien still."

Oh.

"She's in love with Adrien, but dating Chat. She doesn't know you're both of them. She's feeling guilty for liking someone other than Chat, she feels disloyal. And then, there's her guilt over wanting you to tell her who you are. After the lengths she went to protect her own identity, wanting you to just tell her feels hypocritical. She thinks you'd tell her so, too. She thinks you'd be mad at her for wanting you to tell her when she did everything she could to stop you from finding her out."

"I don't mind." Mumbled Adrien, feeling small. "She's allowed to want to know." He had no right to make his Lady feel so awful, but his own insecurities were too damn persistent.

"Doesn't matter. She still feels that way. And then, there's her fear. Lotta that hanging around."

"Fear?" Adrien questioned nervously.

"Uh-huh."

"Of what?"

"Well for a start, she thinks you've got a girl on the side." Snorted Plagg. Adrien sat up abruptly.

"What?"

"Or she's worried that she's the girl on the side." Plagg shrugged. "Ladybug told Tikki that she thinks you're not telling her because then you'd have no excuse not to go out publicly, and obviously your 'current girlfriend' wouldn't be too happy with that. She's also scared because she thinks, in that scenario, you'd be ashamed to be seen with her."

"I'm not- I could- I wouldn't ever be ashamed to be seen with her! And she's the only girl in my life!" Spluttered Adrien, aghast and incredulous. Plagg rolled his eyes.

"Well I know that- she doesn't. But it's not like she actually believes any of these things- yet. Marinette's just paranoid, thinking up new reasons every day you don't tell her. She respects your privacy and she'll never ask you outright to tell her, but she's worried. That's what tonight was all about, she was making sure she'd done everything she could to make sure you felt okay with telling her. She had to make sure you knew she loved you and would love whoever you turned out to be."

"How do you know all of this, Plagg?"

The kwami rolled his eyes.

"You are, by far, the most obtuse and unobservant Chat Noir I've ever had. 'Course, it helps that I'm attuned to Tikki's emotions- and therefore Ladybug's- but it's not hard to see. She's like an open book, kid, you just need to read it."

Adrien groaned and buried his face in a pillow, feeling absolutely awful.

"God, Plagg. What do I do?"

Plagg landed on the bed in front of him, a serious expression on his face.

"You tell her."

Adrien shook his head.

"I can't. I just- I can't. I'm not ready."

Plagg sighed.

"Let me tell you, kid. You gotta do something."

oOo

"Tikki…" moaned Marinette, curled up in her desk chair as it skidded and twirled across her room.

"Oh, Marinette." Murmured Tikki sympathetically, fluttering over to land on her charge's shoulder as the girl miserably buried her face in her knees. "I know this is hard, but you can't let your imagination run away with you."

"How can I not?" Sighed Marinette plaintively. "Every day he doesn't tell me, I keep imagining more and more terrible reasons why he doesn't want to."

Tikki stroked her hair soothingly.

"Mari, he's probably just nervous."

"I know… but it's hard to wait."

"Well you're going to have to! After what you did to keep yourself a secret, you can't ask him to reveal himself. That wouldn't be fair."

"I know that, Tikki!" Cried Marinette exasperatedly. "That's why I feel so rotten and awful. I'm such a hypocrite, but I can't help it! What if he's this awful play-boy with skeletons in his closet the size of dinosaurs? What if he's already got a girlfriend? What if he's married?" Her voice rose to a shriek.

"Marinette! Calm down." Ordered Tikki. "Don't be silly. Of course he's not married. He's too honest and kind to lie to you like that."

Mari sighed and slumped back down.

"I know… I know, of course he is. I just need to know he's not… I... just want to know."

Tikki fluttered upwards to look Marinette directly in the eye.

"Think about it Marinette. Would it really bother you all that much if Chat turned out to be so different out of the costume? Don't you love him more than that?"

Marinette frowned.

"I… I do. I think- yes. I do. Absolutely."

Tikki placed a light kiss between her eyebrows.

"Then you'll just have to wait. You'll have to trust that he loves you enough not to keep anything dinosaur-sized a secret from you, okay?"

Marinette giggled, her shoulders relaxing.

"Okay."

The two smiled at each other, when suddenly a voice spoke.

"Marinette?"

"Chat!" She yelped, jumping up from her chair. She turned to see him crouching uncertainly on her bed above them. "What are you doing here?"

He leapt down lithely and landed beside her.

"There's something we need to talk about."

"Uh… okay. But shh- my parents are asleep." She hushed him and gestured him over to her chaise. Once they were seated side by side, she looked at him expectantly, their hands entwined.

"I've been talking to Plagg since we got back. He's told me how you've been feeling guilty and scared and stuff…" Marinette squirmed uncomfortably. "So I'm here to put a stop to that."

Her heart sped up, breathing quickened.

Was this it? Was he going to tell her?

"I don't want you to feel like that any longer… but I'm also not ready to tell you. I'm sorry…"

Marinette frowned, disappointed. She swallowed her feelings though, knowing everything was in his hands. This wasn't up to her.

"Okay. Uh, what's your plan then?"

"It's rather clever, actually." She could hear the smirk in his voice, even if she couldn't see it in the darkness of her bedroom. "I'm going to de-transform- in front of Tikki."

Mari tilted her head.

"Oh… kay?"

She heard him chuckle at the questioning confusion in her voice.

"If Tikki knows who I am, she'll be able to assuage any fears you have about my civilian self. She'll be able to assure you that there are no skeletons in my closet- dinosaur-sized or otherwise."

Marinette snorted, then blushed.

"How much did you hear?"

He wrapped her in a hug, and she felt him shaking with silent laughter. "Enough." He pulled away, leaving one hand on her shoulder. "So what do you think?"

"I think it's a good idea." Marinette admitted. "I think she'll be glad to help. And Tikki can keep a secret, she won't tell me who you are. Right, Tikki?"

Her kwami nodded.

"Promise, Chat!" She squeaked dancing around excitedly on Marinette's floor.

"Alrighty then." Marinette could hear the nervousness in his voice. "Let's go up to the roof."

Tikki floated along behind him as he gracefully leaped onto her bed, then unlatched the skylight.

Marinette waited impatiently down below as he left. Her bedroom was briefly illuminated by a green flash as he de-transformed, and she fought the urge to clamber up her ladder to sneak a peek.

No, Marinette. She scolded inwardly. This is hard for him, it's a big step. This is enough for you for now, okay?

A couple of minutes later, there was another flash. A moment later, she heard the skylight being thrown open and the squeak of her mattress as Chat entered her bedroom again.

"All alright?" She asked quietly as he flopped onto the chaise beside her. He nodded nervously and she turned to Tikki.

"Okay, Tikki?"

The kwami stood on the armrest of the chaise, staring between the two superheroes. Plastered onto her tiny face was the biggest grin Marinette had ever seen.

"Oh, definitely."