The blow sent the bus behind him flying down the sidewalk, taking out bins, benches, and stalls in its way.
Chat jumped aside, not sparing a glance towards the damage, eyes only focused on the general form of the new missile that was being thrown his way. The air was a whirlwind of dust and dirt that burnt his lungs when he breathed and blurred anything eyes could lay upon, making it all the much harder not to just focus on surviving . It didn't help that he was trying to survive the only person he was ready to die for .
He lunged again, feeling the ground shake beneath him when it collided with Ladybug's yoyo, and dashing towards the closest alley for safety. He inhaled, catching his breath, and when Ladybug's laughter echoed in the chalky haze, he hurriedly turned his head towards the exit of the alleyway. He could discern the glistening of the Seine at his right and the sky, bluer than ever and oblivious to the chaos below it, when he looked upwards. Chat quickly weighed his options. Jumping into the water could give him a few minutes of hiding, but he knew that the cursed Ladybug and the Akuma wouldn't think twice about destroying the city to find him, or putting civilian lives in danger. On the roofs, he was more likely to be seen by the flying Cupid and Ladybug, but civilians didn't hang out on roofs, and Chat would be safe from debris up there. Decision made, he grabbed the wall behind him and started climbing.
It had all happened too fast. And in the worse way.
One minute, the sky was blue and the birds were singing, and the next thing he knew, he was running away from Ladybug's yoyo and flying stones.
She had turned from the sweet and noble hero to an evil cold-hearted madwoman, to something he wasn't ready to deal with. All of a sudden, she was laughing uncontrollably, throwing her yoyo around with a strength that was nearly as destructive as his own Cataclysm. All around them, the people had started to scream and abandon the cafés and shops, running as fast as they could. All at once, the streets were turning to battlefields of reversed cars and shattered glass, and somewhere in the middle of the chaos, the Akuma had seen the opportunity to give free rein to his powers and arrows had started to rain on Paris, turning the screams to growls of anger and hysterical hatred. Things had definitely gone to hell.
"Come on, kitty! Where are you? Do you really think your luck will let you flee for so long?"
Chat hurried behind a chimney, praying the Akuma wouldn't notice him. Just let me catch my breath, please . His breath was ragged and he felt his blood burn in his veins. He was struggling to tidy his thoughts, but he knew he had to come up with a plan. Fast. Before his luck turned on him again.
He couldn't cleanse the akuma, his powers weren't of that nature, but Ladybug's were. He needed to cure her. But how? He had never seen any magical curse lifted without using her Lucky Charm to fix everything. He rubbed his face and a long sigh escaped him. First, he needed to get Ladybug away from Cupid and make sure that he wouldn't follow them. Suddenly, a crashing noise resonated from the street below and he jumped in a fighting stance.
"I can never trust you!"
"What do you mean you can't? You're the untrustworthy one here! You made me believe we were a team!"
Chat raised an eyebrow. He didn't know the voices, but it sounded like it was an argument between two men. He risked a glance beyond the roof edge and confirmed his suspicions when he caught sight of two boys fighting down the street. One of them had pushed the other against a car and caused the noise that had caught Chat's attention.
"You promised you would help me! Not that you would betray me! How does that make me untrustworthy?"
"I didn't know that she was the one you were hitting on! She came to me! And maybe I would've reacted differently if you hadn't lied to me about the whole situation!"
Realisation hit Chat like lightning.
Of course.
All he had to do was set Cupid against Ladybug and have her use her Lucky Charm against him! Hopefully, she would heal and the case would be closed.
He just had to fake the third wheel and say the right annoying things.
Luckily, that happened to be his speciality.
Chat glanced down at the dissipating mist, and the silhouettes of Ladybug and the Akuma emerged from the dust, letting him clearly observe his enemy for the first time.
It was a boy, probably no older than himself. He wore black and red and on his back, and Chat could discern huge velvet wings, assorted to his body-fitting suit that was adorned with a broken heart. The Akuma held a bow in a hand and an arrow in the other, testing the flexibility of the string. The arrow itself was quite the spectacle; reddish black in a cloud of black particles that betrayed its poisonous nature, and just like every akuma victim, the pseudo-Cupid had a mask that made it difficult to know exactly who it was, though it was easy to guess that it had something to do with the outcome of his Valentine's Day.
Broken hearts should happen to all or not happen at all, huh.
By his side, Ladybug was playing with her yoyo, seemingly annoyed at whatever the Cupid was telling her. Chat felt a pinch in his heart and took a deep breath. He could do this.
He let himself fall from the rooftop and used his baton to land a few steps away from the evil duo, a smug smirk immediately finding its way on his face as he approached.
"Hey, Cupid, nice costume! Diapers aren't trendy anymore in Olympus?"
The boy spun and pointed his arrow at him, making Chat immediately raise his hands in surrender. The cat boy laughed, "Wow, calm down there, heartbreak. I want a deal."
"Broken hearts don't do deals."
From the corner of his eye, Chat saw Ladybug bring a hand to her mouth to stifle a chuckle at Cupid's answer. The wicked aura that accompanied the simple gesture felt like a bitter sting to him. He wasn't used to this new Ladybug yet. But nevertheless, he preserved his cheeky façade, grin glued on his face as he made a great deal of stepping away from the arrow's sights.
"Wow," he exclaimed. "Did your mom forget to bottle-feed you?" When he was met with no answer, he went on. "What I mean is that… I'm sure we have common interests. I think you have all the rights to break people's hearts. I feel you." Cupid slightly lowered his arrow and Chat took it as his cue to close the gap between them, wrapping a friendly arm around his shoulders and effectively suppressing the chances of being shot. He nodded towards Ladybug. "My Lady here has broken my heart. Very painful considering that today is supposed to be a big day. And you know what? Hers is intact. She doesn't know what it's like to gather the courage and confess to the one you love with sweaty hands and a racing heart. What it feels like to end up rejected.Humiliated ."
Chat felt Cupid tense, he knew that he had struck a chord. The akuma had opened the door he needed. His grin cracked wider, hiding his threatening sneer as he leaned closer towards the boy's ear.
"Let's make a deal, heartbreak."
"Kitty."
The shot was thrown before he could dodge it. It was a flash of red and the strange sense of being paralysed, the wire entrapping him was suddenly the only thing he could feel. He fell to the ground and realised in horror that he couldn't move anymore, panickedly looking up at the smirking Ladybug who now towered over him, fingers tightly holding the stretched cable of her yoyo. She crouched, and the movement pulled on the black wire, tightening its grip around Chat who stifled a gasp.
"I didn't break your heart," she purred. "You did that all by yourself, fooling yourself into thinking I could reciprocate the feelings of a dirty stray."
Her gaze was heavy with scorn and annoyance, frigid as she spoke the words that felt like gashes in his very soul. They ricocheted in his head like a pin-ball, untiredly smashing his heart like it was nothing more but a set of ninepins that shattered everytime they hit home. They hurt. They were unexpected, and they had a ring of truth to them that left too much of a bitter taste in his mouth. He stared up at the foreign new Ladybug that one could simply never imagine, only witness, and she held his gaze like a silent challenge.
"You want his miraculous, right?" She asked Cupid.
At that, the Akuma seemed to snap out of a sort of trance, his words resonating louder than they probably should've. "Y-Yes!"
Chat's eyes widened. Wait, what? "W-Wait! Who's gonna help you get hers?"
"We have a deal," Ladybug retorted, poised. "He lets me destroy you and I give him my miraculous."
For a moment, all thoughts of hurt and pain left the cat boy's mind as his brain tried to process the situation. Give him her miraculous? She was out of her mind! He tried to move in the clutch of the wire, but his body refused to obey. He bit back a curse and hastily assessed the situation at hand. His plan hadn't blown up yet, right?
"What makes you think Cupid won't snatch away your miraculous as soon as you get mine?" Chat asserted, drilling his gaze into Ladybug's. "And what makes you think Ladybug is trustworthy enough that she will fulfil her part of the bargain? After all, a girl like her rejected you."
Ladybug's hand froze halfway to his ring and she frowned, glaring at Cupid as if daring him to believe Chat, but his moment of hesitation was enough to break the semblance of alliance between them. She pursed her lips, and Chat pressed.
"I can help you get her miraculous much quicker," he went on. "I have cataclysm, and not even all of Paris can hide her from it. I can't purify akumas, so I can't possibly betray you. I'll give you her earrings because I want the same thing as you. Revenge."
"Shut up, silly cat," Ladybug interrupted, furious. "We have a deal already, stop meddling in other people's business!" She grabbed his numb hand and Chat felt her fingers dangerously wrap around his miraculous. He closed his eyes and stopped breathing.
"Stop, I have another idea."
A sigh of relief escaped Chat's lips. He shot an eye open and stared at Cupid as he snaked his way towards Ladybug. A nasty smirk was stretching the Akuma's features and the sight was sickening, but when his fingers reached out to stroke her cheek, Chat could've gouged out his eyes for all he cared.
"You still love her, don't you?" Cupid sneered. "And it hurts, huh? It hurts to care ." He leaned closer so that his face was mere inches away from Ladybug's, savoring the flash of pure horror on Chat's face as he struggled to keep a straight façade. "You see, Chat Noir, only weak points hurt, and love is a weak point while hate is not. That's why hate always triumphs over love, you should understand that better than anyone since you're so heartbroken. So why won't you hate Ladybug?"
Chat's jaw loosened and he stared at the Akuma with wide eyes. Weak point, huh?
He thought of his own father who never showed an ounce of love and still managed to take over Paris, worshipped by thousands people. He thought of how love was a weapon the fashion designer preferred to use to manipulate all around him. A son who craved for his father's recognition, employees who were willing to work all day long, all year long, to keep taking care of their families, consuming people who thirsted for trends, even a mother's love to get an heir before throwing her out of the picture.
He thought of all the akuma victims who fell in Hawkmoth's nets because they loved too much and couldn't stand the disappointment of their failure. How twisted their feelings became and the grotesque form they took to make themselves stronger than they could ever wish to be.
He looked at Cupid who probably had the highest hopes of wooing the girl he loved and felt the most hurt because he loved too much. He thought of how his strength had been his most destructive weakness.
And for a moment, the prospect of letting himself be engulfed by hate was tempting.
If not for the smile that flashed in his mind like a call to order.
'Do you sometimes get tired of the nightmares? Of the blood and the screams and the chaos that blaze from all sides in the middle of the night until you wake up alone in your bed?'
'It's not a question of getting tired or no. They never go away. You just get used to them.'
'... Aren't you afraid of this? Of getting used to restless nights and still coming every night for patrol? Of getting addicted to our own demise?'
'I don't mind it if the outcome is worth it, kitty. Nightmares are a small price to pay if I can sit at my balcony and have Paris' lights comfort me for what I do to protect what I love.'
Chat inhaled.
Love was a risky bet. Too much to lose for the slightest mistake. But he had learnt with time and patience that it regenerated just as quickly as it could shatter.
It wasn't in the big things, it was the feeling of the stinging cold of the night against his skin, sitting on the dome of Les Invalides and listen to the uproar of cars beneath, it was eating a dripping sandwich so gross Nathalie would probably jump into the Seine, laughing at Nino's horribles jokes, feeling the rush of adrenaline as his body hit wall after wall and still getting up again to fight, the scratches and the scars and the bruises and the nightmares. It was the silhouette of a petite red-clad girl that cut into the scenery of an enlightened Paris at night, and her ocean-like gaze that peered into him more than words ever could, like all the bliss beneath them was thanks to him.
It was something that had become a permanent part of him, an unsnatchable part. And he wouldn't give it up for all the wonders Cupid could ever hold out to him.
But Chat simply smirked. "I hate her. I want her destroyed."
He probably expected some sort of hurt to flash on Ladybug's face, some kind of proof that she cared , but the girl remained composed, eyes only sending daggers of annoyance.
Cupid's voice felt like miles away. "We'll do something, then. You two will fight. Destroy each other for all I care, what I want is to get your miraculouses from your battered bodies once you're satisfied. Win-win." Chat tore his gaze away from Ladybug to look again at the Akuma who was now holding the girl's hand in a gruesome caricature of a gentleman. "My Lady, let go of him."
If eyes could kill, Cupid would've been long since dead for that the nickname, in his mouth, sounded creaking, disgusting, dissonant. But suddenly, the iron string loosened around Chat and he could move again. He rubbed his sore muscles, suppressing the urge to jump at the Akuma's throat and slit it with his teeth. Instead, he took a deep breath and reminded himself for the hundredth time that he couldn't afford to blow up his plan, that he needed to go forth with it regardless of his personal feelings.
Pulling out his baton, he stretched it towards the oblivious Cupid's legs and felt himself sneer when it collided with the bone and let out an ugly breaking noise. Immediately, he bolted towards Ladybug and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her close enough to make it hard for her to pull her yoyo against him. His baton didn't retract, ready for its master's action when Chat started spinning it to shield him and Ladybug from Cupid's violent outburst. The cat boy dashed, as fast as his legs could, and behind him, Cupid screamed. In pain, in anger, in rage.
Chat tightened his grip around his partner, pressing a hand against her mouth to stifle her protests as he rushed down one alley, then another one, and another one. He had to shake Cupid, whether on land or from the air where the Akuma could easily spot them despite his injured leg. With a quick glance around, Chat made his way towards the familiar streets of Le Marais , avoiding the crowded arteries and the cursed parisians who could blow their cover. Finally, they reached a seemingly safe and quiet alley, and he stopped to catch his breath. However the protesting Ladybug in his arms was flailing, kicking, biting and making it all too hard to truly rest. Sighing, Chat pinned her against a wall, bringing her wrists on top of her head.
"Let me go!" She screamed, glowering. "Stop touching me!"
"Sorry, My Lady, but I can't bear to leave you in the company of that horribly tactile character. I am pretty paw-ssessive with what's mine."
Despite the pun, he knew that he meant every single word. His gaze was piercing, hard, full of suppressed anger when it fell on the cheek Cupid had touched earlier. Oh how he wanted to wipe that bastard's trace from her forever. Suddenly, a noise caught his attention and he abruptly turned his head, tensing in anticipation.
A cat had landed on a trash barrel and looked back at Chat, slightly tilting its head in curiosity before sprinting away, making him freeze in the realisation that they only had a few minutes to spare before Cupid caught up to them. A few minutes to bring back the girl he had so desperately fallen in love with.
The same girl who was still trying to break free from his grip and growling.
"I said stop touching me with those filthy hands of yours and let me go, you stupid cat," she spat. "What's your plan even? Make me fall in love with you?"
He looked back at her, slightly dazed, and a sly smile stretched his lips. "It could be that."
She scoffed. "I told you that I'd never like back a failure like you."
Ouch.
"Well, if it's not liking me, how about loving me instead, My Lady?" He retorted, wriggling his eyebrows in a suggestive way.
Ladybug simply made a disgusted face. "Would you just stop it with this abominable flirting of yours already? It's repugnant. I'm tired of having to smile and act like it's actually entertaining so as not to break your poor kitty heart ."
"What?"
"Did you really think cat puns were enjoyable and romantic? Or did you think they were original?"
He felt like he had just been punched in the stomach and his expression seemed to please Ladybug because her lips formed a malicious line as she leaned closer to his face. "What is it, kitty? You thought I was a nice and loving person? That I truly enjoyed your company? You just do the dirty jobs I wouldn't do myself."
In his head, the memories started to twist in a horrible grimace. Or maybe he was just realising how wrong he had always been.
Ladybug's encouraging smiles were turning into forced ones, and the reason behind each of her hesitations became all too clear.
'Kitty! I didn't hear you coming.'
'Yes, of course everything is alright, kitty cat.'
'No, kitty, I'd rather leave our identities a secret.'
He shook his head and cleared his throat. Come on, Adrien. She's saying the opposite of what she thinks.
"You hound me, My Lady."
But his voice came out softer than he would've preferred, more pained than coy, barely a whisper, and he bit his tongue.
"You're annoying, Chat. A bother, a hindrance. I'm glad I don't have to keep this in anymore for the sake of our so-said friendship. Now would you let go of me?"
He stared at her, at the stranger in front of him. They had the same hair, the same nose, the same freckles, the same skin, height and glistening miraculous earrings. Her familiar flowery scent filled his nostrils, but it made him feel nauseous and lonesome now. In front of him stood a whole different person than the Ladybug he knew.
Or so he wanted to convince himself.
'You know what I like the most in Paris, kitty? The life buzz.'
'Did you just invent that, My Lady?'
'Very funny, kitty cat.'
'Hey, what's life buzz for you?'
'How from small little things like friendship, love, kindness, even greed and pride, mankind manages to build anything in the world.'
'And Paris?'
'It preserves it. It exposes its scars as a story of everything that life buzz created of battles and poverty and victories and joys. From the small children who were running down this street centuries ago to the old woman who sweeps the paving stones every morning.'
'Oh. It better keep scars of my purr-fection!'
...
'Hey, alley cat. I'm glad you're my friend.'
"I wanted to make today special," Chat felt himself murmur. "Well not something that special, but something that would make you smile and be happy. Something spontaneous and authentical. Probably something life buzzing ." He let out a joyless laugh and averted his gaze, fixating on the bricks behind her as he continued. "But then, you… Took the arrow for me, and I-" His voice broke and he took a deep breath. "Come on, m'lady! What more do you hate?"
She didn't reply immediately, in such a way that Chat had to look back to check on her. But his heart nearly stopped when he was met with a vulnerable gaze. Shattered glass in a sea of ice, something he wasn't supposed to see. Ladybug frowned and scowled, but the glint remained and Chat couldn't tear his gaze away.
"I hate Alya," she declared. "She keeps putting her nose in people's business like she owns the world. I hate Nino too. Always repeating 'dude, dude, dude' like I'm sure he's got -50 vocabulary. And there's Adrien, that little spoiled brat who thinks he can model, ha. He's the one I hate the most. I can't stand anything in him. You know his dad, Gabriel Agreste? Adrien thinks that his father loves him, and that's probably the most ridiculous thing I ever got to witness. Who would like such a useless kid? He's full of crap, doesn't have a life. Walks around the city in a limo and fakes being the humble prince charming when he's just a spoiled rich kid." She glanced at Chat, pouting, and turning her head away again to mumble. "I really hate him. Will you let me go now?"
Not really.
He had his heart pounding in his ears and it hurt more than being crushed by a full-speed train. He didn't quite know how to react to the fact the girl he loved just admitted he was a loser as both Chat Noir AND Adrien Agreste. He reminded himself that she was cursed, that she didn't mean it, but it was getting harder and harder to convince himself. Yet, as much as it hurt, he couldn't shake off the impression that her gaze was just… Different.
And it kept him from speaking a single word.
Rays of a setting sun were escaping the sky to sneak into the alleyway and cast a fiery colour on Ladybug's jet black hair. Her shadow, along with his, painted a strange and deformed figure on the brick wall on which Chat held her wrists. Truly, she felt strong, even as she didn't struggle. Her arms stood firm, not giving up the slightest to the tiredness of her position and he surprised himself admiring her even as she embedded burning stakes in his heart. He looked in the pool of her eyes, where yellow reflections batlled with black-dotted blue, then lowered his gaze to her freckled nose, and thought that he wouldn't mind kissing each of her freckles, and finally, it rested on her lips, pitch cursed, ugly-coloured, yet so utterly kissable lips. Ladybug's voice broke the magic when she spoke, but even it had lost some of its harshness.
"He acts like a little prince who's so humble it becomes disgusting, it's like he has to lower himself to peasant level when he's with other people, because he pities them. And you, you're so painstakingly clingy, loyal to the point it's just… Plain hideous. You're hideous, Chat. I wish we never met. I'm so tired of you and I hope you remain forever sad and alone and miserable." She started to shake her head, biting her lower lip as if the words burnt to tell, chest heaving. "I want you dead and out of my life, Chat. No more puns, no more sneaking, no more flirting, no more having to fake enjoying your company. Paris doesn't need you. It needs Ladybug the hero, not Chat Noir the second rate. Your luck will lead Paris to its doom."
And then, the tears started to pour, endless, unceasing waterfalls that trickled down her cheeks and glimmed in the sunset light. She looked up at him, and her face, once cold and inexpressive, was crinkling in agony and sadness, eyes voids of despair and unspoken cries of help. Chat could only stand there, frozen, wondering if she was hearing herself speaking words she didn't mean or if it was the accumulation of everything she had genuinely ached to tell him. He didn't know which stung deeper, all he knew was that either way, his Lady was in pain because of him.
She didn't seem to notice the wetness on her cheeks or the jerk of her breath as she sobbed.
"I hate you," she breathed. "I hate you, why won't you let me go?"
And it was the break in her voice that did him in.
He let go of her wrists and his hands found her moistened cheeks. Her skin felt hot against the fabric of his gloves, and, as he leaned in, he could feel her shaky breath on his face. He didn't think twice.
Her lips were soft, melting, jelly-like as he brushed them against his own. He could taste the salty tears on them, and a faint jolt of licorice that drove him crazy. He sighed and pressed her further against the wall to close the gap between their two bodies. Time seemed to freeze and his lungs barely dared to breath. When she wrapped her arms around his neck, he wanted to faint. Tentatively, he tilted his head and darted his tongue out to lap her lower lip, growling when he met her own. His eyes slightly fluttered open at the unexpected movement, but he took it as his cue to deepen the kiss, tongue hungrily exploring each inch of her mouth to revel in its warmness. His hands slid down her shoulders, her back and her sides to entrap her waist in a firm embrace as he pulled her up. She bit his lip and his mind exploded in a thousand of warnings and bright lights.
Ladybug was kissing him back .
Her legs instinctively wrapped around his waist and her fingers knotted in his hair, pressing him closer to her, desperate that if he ever pulled back, he would disappear any second. He answered her with a groan and pressed his claws against the small of her back, tearing a moan from her. It was intoxicating to feel her hands awkwardly toying in his hair, the shivering of her breath against his lips, the firm grip of her legs around him. He wouldn't have minded dying right then and there. Wouldn't have minded spending an eternity in that tiny street with her.
His eyes half-opened and he slightly pulled back, inhaling Ladybug's familiar scent as he heaved. He looked down at her flushed cheeks and darkened eyes, but didn't notice that her lips were pink again, only that they were swollen and enticing as ever. He didn't notice the confused look on her face and the bewilderment in her eyes. It was only when he leaned in to kiss her neck and she spoke that he froze in realisation.
He really didn't mind dying right then and there.
But for a whole different reason than before.
"Chat, where are we? What's going on?"
Alright tada tada here we are!
3 chapters out~
I would like to point out that I decided to give up on the stats request. Some of you here have reviewed about it and after some pm discussions, I realised that it made me look and my work like something I didn't want.
BoundlessImagination especially showed me that there are other ways to deal with the situation so I'm gonna try again, if you don't mind.
Once again, I would like to apologise to anyone I offended or disgusted from my work because of any author notes. I deleted them.
THEREFORE!
I'LL JUST START THROWING POLLS AROUND AFTER MY CHAPTERS HOPING THAT YOU WILL ENJOY THEM :^D
I particularly love this poll idea because that way I can really have a grasp on what you think of my story, so make sure to seek them out at the end of each of my chapters!
Thanks for the support and once again all my thank to arouria who simply does an amazing beta reader job!
What did you think of Chat's and Lady's portrayals through this chapter?