Could she be strong enough?
Could she fight hard enough?
Could she swim against the current and win this battle, despite all the odds stacked against an outcome favourable to her?
Marinette could feel herself getting closer to the final fight that would end it all, and she wasn't sure if it would be her left standing or Hawkmoth. She was quickly approaching a future that would mean her safety or her death, and the uncertainty of it was eating away at her soul.
She was so afraid of dying. She had people that she loved – and who loved her – that she didn't want to leave behind. She wanted the opportunity to be able to give them the answers that they all deserved herself, rather than leave them wondering and conjuring up stories that would never satisfy their wish for the truth.
She was so afraid of dying. She wanted a future so desperately that it hurt. She wished with all her heart to grow up and into a life she had only ever dreamed, where she had a man whom she loved and who loved her back with everything he was (who may or may not look like Adrien, she would admit), and she had dreamed of their children being safe and carefree.
Marinette was so afraid of dying, but it felt inevitable. Because it would take everything in her—in Tikki—in Chat—in everyone—to win this finale that was long overdue, and even then it didn't feel like it will be enough.
It would have to be enough.
She could do this.
She would win the war.
For herself.
For her friends and family.
For her future.
For Paris.
And not even the big bad Papillion could stop her now.