Chapter 3
"Hey there Milady! What is it this time?" Landing expertly next to her, Chat Noir peered down cautiously into the foray below.
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"She's calling herself Allura and is blasting people with heart-shaped gold arrows." His partner replied, mind already on the task of figuring out ways to defeat their current adversary.
"And let me guess, they turn into her minions?" The cat superhero asked with a grimace. Better not get into her way then. He did not have a favourable history of being mind-controlled.
"Seems like it. Let's go!" Ladybug spoke over the noise and action, readying her yo-yo.
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The two of them dived headfirst into the scene of action, the evening sun slanting off their magic suits. An akuma attack right after school wasn't exactly Marinette's preferred form of recreation, but they were heroes and their responsibility remained.
Allura, as the akumatized person was calling herself, was outfitted in a white dress with gold overtones. She seemed to want everyone to bow to her orders and be the one in control, as she put it, 'I will be the most desirable one in Paris."
Ladybug nodded towards her partner, who nodded back. He ran in front of the akuma, distracting her, as was their usual routine, while the spotted heroine swung up on the low roof of a nearby building to try and get a closer look at the akuma.
Now, where could the akuma be? The bow and arrows were the most likely contender, but what about that gold bow in her hair?
Suddenly, while Ladybug was still puzzling it out, Hawkmoth's signature purple mask appeared over the akuma's face. Before either of the superheroes could react, she reached up to fire an arrow.
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A red one.
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Chat Noir paused, tensely, baton at the ready, waiting to deflect the expected onslaught.
Ladybug's hand reached for her yo-yo, ready to jump back into the battle and pry the bow and arrows away from Charmer.
In a move neither of them anticipated, Charmer changed course at the last millisecond and fired the red arrow…..
Straight towards Ladybug.
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"NOOO! Ladybug watch OUT!" Chat Noir's terrified voice screamed out as the arrow shot towards her. She turned, rapidly, meaning to duck, but it all happened in a blur. The arrow hit her, between her shoulder blades, and a weird, burning sensation shot through her, as she slumped down onto the roof in pain.
Vaguely, she registered the blurry sounds around her; Chat Noir holding her in his arms, calling her name; the clang of his baton as it fell, forgotten, to the floor; and the akuma laughing sinisterly in the background.
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"Seduce him properly for me, Ladybug! Or should I say Lovebug." Cackling evilly, the akuma disappeared, no doubt to find the person who had caused her to become akumatized.
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Then everything went black.
Chat Noir shook her desperately, trying to get her to wake up. "My lady, please," he begged, akuma and everything forgotten. Nothing else mattered in that moment. "You can't- you can't leave me like this."
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I can't lose you. Not you too.
The surroundings, so noisy before, were eerily silent as he frantically bent over her limp form, pressing a shaky hand to her chest. She was breathing, at least, but he didn't know how long that would last. After all, the akuma had shot her with a red arrow, not a gold one. That didn't seem to bode well.
"Okay, Chat Noir, focus," he breathed in and out a few times, passing a trembling hand through his sweaty hair. "She's not d…. She's alive. She's alive. Just calm down."
A thought flitted into his distraught mind and he sat up. Of course. Master Fu. He would know what to do.
He stiffened suddenly as his ears picked up a small sigh. With a hopeful glance, he touched her face, eagerly watching for the slightest movement.
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After what seemed like an eternity, but in actuality was only a few moments, Ladybug's eyelids fluttered a few times, and she opened her eyes.
Chat Noir lunged forward immediately, pulling her in a fierce hug. "You're alright! Ladybug. My love, you're alright!"
He couldn't help it, that term of endearment that escaped him. She was in his arms and she was alright and he was so relieved that tears stung his eyes.
She's okay. She's okay. She's okay.
He pulled away suddenly, concern building when she remained silent. "Ladybug? Are you-"
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Gasping, he let go of her and stumbled backwards in shock. For, in place of those cerulean blue eyes which he had always adored, glancing at him with a strange emotion now were bright pink ones.
Ladybug had been mind-controlled!
He scrambled backwards, reaching for his baton. Oh no. No, no, no. This is bad.
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"Chat Noir," Ladybug finally spoke and he froze in surprise at her sultry tone. "Did I ever tell you how hot you are?" she purred seductively.
Whaaaaaaaaaaat?!
She sashayed over to him, hips swinging and all he could do was stare, his mind screaming get away from her all the while. But she was still Ladybug and she had just said he was hot.
Heat spread all over him, from his cheeks to his stomach. The air escaped from his throat, leaving him breathless.
And then a cold feeling of dread washed over him as Allura's voice suddenly resounded in his head.
"Seduce him properly for me, Ladybug! Or should I say Lovebug."
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"Ladybug. Stop. This isn't you. Snap out of it," he tried weakly. The prospect of being sedu- err, romanced- by Ladybug was an attractive one. A very attractive one. But this wasn't her. And, hurt as it might, she would never say those words, not in her right senses.
"I'm not Ladybug, I'm Lovebug," Gosh, when did she learn to speak like that? Did she even know what that did to his insides?
She pressed closer to him, and belatedly, he realized that he had nowhere to go. "Chat Noir, haven't you always wanted me to say it? Those three little words?" she walked her hands up his chest and his mouth felt suddenly dry.
Yes, YES, he had always wanted to hear those words from her mouth. How many times had he dreamed about it? Longed for it? Fantasized about it?
Her confessing her love for him and then the sweet kiss that followed, almost invariably, in all of his dreams.
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Say it, his heart screamed. Say those words which I've always wanted to hear.
His mind screamed at him to snap of the trance she had seemed to put him in. It wasn't real. It wasn't real.
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….But how he wished it was.
As he struggled with his internal conflicts, Ladybug-or rather Lovebug- took advantage of his momentary distraction and stretched out her hand towards his ring.
But when he felt her fingers brush against his miraculous, reality suddenly hit him like a ton of bricks.
He grabbed her hand and pushed it away, quickly extending his baton and leaping onto the next building.
"Chat Noir, wait!" Lovebug had thrown out her yo-yo and was following him in hot pursuit. "Come back here, kitty, kitty!" she purred.
His heart clenched painfully, but he forced himself to keep going, somewhere, anywhere.
Glancing back after a moment to take stock of her position, he stopped when he saw her.
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She had stopped chasing him and was perched atop a lamp-post, staring intensely at a billboard, an unreadable expression on her face. A billboard of him, he realized. Adrien-him. The latest modelling gig he had done only a few days back.
Taking advantage of her distraction, he jumped down into an alley and hid behind a dumpster, releasing his transformation. "Plagg, Claws In."
She was looking for Chat Noir, not Adrien, so he was safe. For now.
He waited till he saw Lovebug jumping away, still calling out for his alter-ego, then whispered to his kwami. "Plagg, what do I do now? Ladybug's been mind controlled and I have absolutely no idea how to snap her out of it."
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"You could try releasing the akuma," Plagg said slowly, his green eyes serious for once as he assessed the rather dire situation they were in. "But that will be a long and difficult process, and with both Ladybug and the akumatized person against you, your chances of succeeding are slim."
"What else can I do?" Adrien was not looking forward to try and capture akumas without his partner.
"There is one way," Plagg said, slowly, reluctantly, as if he was unwilling to share it.
"Tell me then! What is it?" Adrien asked impatiently.
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"You could kiss her." A blush stole over Adrien's cheeks as Plagg continued rather distastefully. Romance was not his genre. "She's being mind-controlled by a love spell. True love's kiss, and all that mushy stuff. But I'm not sure if it will work." He warned.
"Even if I try to do that," Adrien rationalized, trying to ignore the heat creeping up into his cheeks, "How am I going to get close without her taking my miraculous?"
"You could kiss her…." Plagg paused. Conflict and uncertainty was written all over his face.
"As Adrien."
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"As Adrien?" Adrien didn't even care that he was talking about himself in the third person, he was so confused right then. "But why? What good will that do? I mean, I get that it will be safer to do so, but….. why? I don't think that will even work!" he protested.
He was Adrien, so whether he was transformed or not, he still loved her. But there was an irrational part of him that just wanted her to love him for being Chat. If she even had any feelings towards any of his forms.
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"Listen, kid," Plagg looked desperately around, as if the walls could give him some inspiration on what to say without giving away too much. "I don't know, okay? But if you want to save Ladybug and Paris, you have to do as I say and try." He gulped, the images of Dark Owl a few months back resurfacing in his head with a vengeance.
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Plagg sometimes wished he could put an end to all of this stupid secrecy and just tell the kid everything. It was incredibly frustrating sometimes, to hold back what he knew. Rules were something he never really cared for anyway; but apparently, Master Fu and Tikki did.
Adrien frowned. Plagg seemed to be hiding something, but he really didn't have the time to argue or reason with him. "Alright, I guess. But you'd better tell me later what you're hiding. Plagg, Claws Out!"
"Wait- no, don't transfoooooooooorm….." Plagg's panicked cries were cut off as he was sucked into the ring.
It's fine, Chat thought to himself as he began scouring the rooftops for his partner. I just have to find her, detransform, and kiss her. Then everything will be back to normal.
Too bad things never seemed to go according to plan.
Out of nowhere, a yo-yo suddenly wrapped itself around his arms, and his baton clattered to the floor uselessly.
He could almost hear Plagg facepalming and yelling I told you so!
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"There you are," Ladybug-Lovebug smirked, pulling her yo-yo so that he spun around to face her. "You've been a bad kitty," she walked around him slowly, his eyes following her all the while in silent consternation. "Whatever shall I do to punish you?" she pretended to think, then suddenly snapped her fingers. "Oh, I know. Take your miraculous."
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Chat Noir felt a cold sweat running down his back. What do I do? Think, Noir, think!
He could try to cataclysm her yo-yo. But….. if he did that, how would she purify the akumas? Or perform the Miraculous Ladybug cleanse? Would cataclysm even work on it?
As these desperate thoughts pounded in his head, she stepped closer, reaching for his right hand, and he struggled in vain, trying to free himself.
He closed his eyes, feeling a hot rush of mingled fear and despair. Goodbye, Plagg.
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He felt her sliding the ring off his finger, and the tingly swoosh as his transformation was ripped away from him.
Then suddenly, there was a clink as something dropped to the floor, followed by a Watch it, lady! and a horrified gasp.
"Adrien?!"
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Opening his eyes finally, he was confronted with the sight of Ladybug covering her mouth with her hands, staring at him in shock and disbelief.
"You're…..you're Chat Noir?!" she mumbled.
"Umm…..hi?" Adrien tried. When she didn't respond, but continued to stare at him, he wriggled his fingers. "Could you let go of me? It's rather uncomfortable."
She released him almost mechanically, her yo-yo zipping back towards her hand.
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Adrien approached her slowly, as if any sudden movement would scare her off, and placed a hand on her shoulder. Now was his chance.
Gently, he lifted his hand, brushing away her fringe from her face, tracing the edges of her mask. She started and blushed, staring up at him in shy wonder. "I just wanted you to know," he whispered as her eyes fluttered towards his, "How much I love you."
Ignoring her gasp, he leaned in and captured her lips with his.
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He poured out all his emotions into his kiss. The shock of nearly losing her, the pain and frustration of his unrequited love. All the love he had ever felt for her.
After a few seconds, she tentatively responded, moving her lips against his, and his heart felt like it had grown wings.
They pulled away, breathless and blushing, and Adrien watched her, torn with longing and despair.
She would forget all of this, as soon as she came back to her senses. If only he could prolong this moment, rewind it a thousand times.
"Adrien," she gasped out, evidently struggling to recall something. "I-I love you too!"
His heart felt like it had stopped and he stared at her in shock and wonder.
Before he could question what she meant, the pink in her eyes faded away and her normal, baby-blues were back.
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It worked. I should be glad, but…..
Ladybug, now back to her normal self, blinked her eyes, looking confused. "Adrien?" she said his real name for the second time that day and his heart lurched. "What are you doing here? What's going on?" she looked all around, trying to gain a sense of bearing from the surroundings.
"You don't remember anything?" he asked, disappointed even though he knew that that would happen.
"No, I- There was an akuma!" she gasped, looking around frantically. "Where's Chat Noir? We have to stop her!" She stared at him questioningly.
"The akuma went that way," Adrien offered dully. A wave of sudden exhaustion and tiredness washed over him. "And Chat Noir, I think I saw him go after her." He lied.
"Okay, thank you!" she turned away to go, then suddenly paused and looked back, a small blush tinting her cheeks. "Stay safe, okay?"
He could only nod as he watched her yo-yo away, determination blazing in her eyes.
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Plagg flew up to him, holding out his ring for him to take. For once, the usually snarky kwami was silent, looking at his holder sympathetically.
Adrien rubbed a hand over his eyes. Now was not the time to be upset.
"Come on, Plagg," he muttered as he replaced the ring on his finger and called for his transformation. "We've got a city to save."