I do not own the characters, etc.
Ladybug circled the major areas of Paris, but there was no sign of Mystic. The akuma victim had all but disappeared. After what should have been about half an hour, Ladybug gave up on finding Mystic. Landing on a nearby roof, the heroine of Paris began to pace worriedly.
"Where could she be? I've searched all the major places that akumas attack, and some of the out of the way places, too. This one has me confused, Chat. Utterly confused." Ladybug looked around her. "Chat? Chat Noir? Where are you?"
Except for the lingering echoes of her call for Chat, Paris was silent. With time stopped, there were no background noises. Birds had ceased to serenade the city. Crickets had ceased to play their songs for passersby. Cars had ceased to rumble and cough as their tires ate up miles of asphalt and brick roads. The hum of an active city was no longer present, and what it left in its absence was stifling, eerie silence. It was the silence of horror movies multiplied ten times over. Her own breathing and heartbeat were deafening to Ladybug's ears.
"Chat?" she whispered, trying desperately to break the silence she had become acutely aware of. "Chat, where are you? Please, I need you here."
Ladybug felt her body begin to tense up and shiver. Her senses kicked into high gear, but still there was nothing moving. Slowly, she sat on the roof and drew her knees to her chest. Oh how she wished Chat was here. Or Alya. She just wanted someone to be there to ward off the silent oppression of loneliness.
"This is how my heart felt when I first heard my mother was gone."
Ladybug whipped her head around to see Chat standing behind her, leaning on his baton. A sudden wave of relief washed over her, and before she knew what she was doing, she had leapt over to hug him.
"Aww, were you scared bugaboo?"
Ladybug scrambled backwards and protested. "Of course not. I was just concerned that Mystic had gotten you. Yeah, that's it."
Chat chuckled, but let it slide. "Nah. She almost had me, but let me go. Speaking of Mystic, I have some news I need to share with you."
"What is it, Chat?"
"Well, as you heard, Mystic took control of Hawkmoth. You also heard her threatening to force us to share our identities. I think she is a threat unlike any we have ever seen before."
"Of course she is. However, none of that is news. Besides, she can't force us to share our identities."
Chat rubbed the back of his head with a clawed hand. "That's what I thought, too. She said she wouldn't force a reveal yet, but she must have changed her mind. I went to check up on some friends while you were getting your kwami fed, and something came over me. I could still see and hear, but I had no control over what I was saying. I blurted out my identity to the room of my frozen friends. Now, I know they were frozen, but I'm not sure if they could still hear."
"I'm pretty sure they can't," Ladybug said dismissively. She had to change the topic. They had to refocus on Mystic.
Chat, oblivious to Ladybug's tone, continued. "Once I left the room, I tried to leave the building, but my legs were no longer under my control. I sat by the room for several minutes, silently forced to listen to everything going on inside." He gave an embarrassed and apologetic smile. "I know you said we needed to focus on Mystic first, and I tried to do that, I really did. However, I just couldn't shake the feeling that we wouldn't be able to work together effectively with this hanging over us."
"And how do you know that the unshakeable feeling wasn't from Mystic?"
"I just do. It's different."
Ladybug groaned. "Chat, this is a bad idea. We have to focus on the akuma."
Chat shook his head emphatically. "Look, you're the planner. Have you had any plans on how to defeat Mystic?"
"Not yet, but talking about that won't help at all."
"Could you please just try?"
Ladybug sighed. "Fine."
"Great, I'll go first." Chat gave her his signature smirk. "Hi, I'm Adrien Agreste, but you already know that because you were hiding in the akuma shelter with the rest of the class. My kwami's name is Plagg, and he's a glutton for cheese, especially Camembert. I like being Chat Noir because I can escape my overbearing father, his strict rules, and his cold and unloving non-attention to me."
"You make it sound like we are in some sort of AA meeting." Ladybug rolled her eyes.
Chat grinned. "Hello, welcome to Superheroes Anonymous. This is a safe place to share your identities and commiserate with each other over the struggles of saving the world. We have just heard from the absolutely stunning Chat Noir, so now we give the floor to the lady of the hour, savior of Paris, the one and only Ladybug!"
"Oh my goodness, Chat." Ladybug giggled. "Okay, I will go along with this, mon minou. Hi, I'm Marinette Dupain-Cheng, but you already know that because you were forced to stay outside the akuma shelter and listen to my conversation with Tikki. My kwami's name is - surprise - Tikki, and she is the sweetest, most helpful friend you could ever have. I really didn't want to be Ladybug at first, but I continued out of a sense of duty when I saw Alya get attacked by Stoneheart."
"Bravo, bravo, m'lady." Chat applauded. "But there's more."
Ladybug blushed a scarlet nearly as deep as her suit. "I-I-I'm not-t-t sure wh-wh-what you're talk-k-king about."
Chat put a finger under her chin and lifted her face until she looked him in the eyes. "I love you too."
Ladybug started stuttering in the gibberish that was so familiar from Marinette's mouth. Chat just laughed at his adorable partner before leaning down to kiss her cheek. Somehow, that caused her brain to kick back into high gear.
"Chat! I have it!"
"Have what, bugaboo?
"The answer to defeating Mystic - and Hawkmoth at the same time!"
Chat grinned. "This is going to be good."
