A/N
Sorry for the late update. Lots of stuff kept me busy, especially school starting, vacation, and getting sick. I wanted to upload both of these parts together and I had finished the first a lot faster, but I waited. I'm a huge procrastinator and the absolute worst at writing fight scenes, so I surprised myself with how I wrote. Hope you like these chapters anyway. :)
-Alice Pink
"No . . . " Ladybug gasped.
Hope gave an amused chuckle as her piecing red gaze frightened Ladybug.
Ladybug clenched her fist. "But why would you-"
"I can't lose this power." Hope interrupted. "I will follow the boss's orders as long as I remain this way. I have no intention to return to my previous life and frankly I can hardly remember it anymore. The longer I'm happy here, the less I know." Hope looked off in thought. "But I never forget the pain . . . "
"So your solution is to create even more pain?" Ladybug asked, trying to understand the girl.
"No." Hope said, still in thought. "I want to create a world of peace. One where no one has to live through hate and hardships."
"But-"
"And for me to fully accomplish that goal, I must first gain yours and Chat Noir's miraculouses." She clenched a fist and smiled at Ladybug.
"Wait . . . " Ladybug gasped. "Were you the one who tried to take Chat Noir's miraculous? The one who attacked him last night?"
"Well who else would it be? I have the power to read people's lives." She said, shaking her head at Ladybug. "Too bad I didn't get it, but I guess I'll just have to get yours first." Hope held her umbrella in the air above her head.
"You don't have to do this. You can stop." Ladybug reasoned.
"But I must and I will." Hope said as she started to rise into the air, gripping the curved handle of her parasol. "But don't worry Ladybug, I won't steal it from you. You will hand it over or lose it in battle."
"And why would I just hand it over?" Ladybug gritted, crossing her arms. "I protect this power with my life. It's not something to give up so easily."
"I've been ordered to get your miraculous, but I'll make you give it up. You can either surrender it to me and I'll stop this attack for now, or . . . you can lose it in battle and nothing will change." Hope grinned, flying higher as she looked down at the street below. "People of Paris!" She bellowed, catching their attention. "Your beloved heroes, Ladybug and Chat Noir, have hidden great power from you. They have kept it from you and because of this, you've been attacked by horrendous monsters."
"What? Huh?" They all looked at each other before turning to Ladybug.
"She's lying!" Ladybug warned. "She's just a pawn of Hawkmoth's."
"No. I'm not a pawn!" Hope denied. "But aren't you one, Ladybug?" She cocked her head to the side. "After all, Hawkmoth draws you out to protect the city. He knows you won't abandon the people and ends up using you and the people in an attempt to get the miraculouses."
Ladybug looked down at the pavement with her arms at her sides.
"You're not wrong." Ladybug mumbled. "Afterall . . . look where I am . . . again."
"Don't worry, citizens. I'll protect you better than Ladybug and Chat Noir." Hope ensured. "I'll help you. You'll all be free . . . " She trailed off.
Hope gave Ladybug a smile before spinning her umbrella at the citizens. After, she aimed the tip of her parasol and started blasting the Parisians. They stumbled back from the hit, looking dazed. Hope held it over her again after hitting them all.
"What did you do?!" Ladybug whipped her head around, demanding an answer.
"I've freed them." Hope said, blankly.
The people remained still as their pupils sudden grew large. A pulselike sound beat through the air as each of their pupils enlarged to the finished size. Their eyes seem to sparkle as each of them sprung a childlike, joyful smile. One woman turned to girl next to her and played with her long hair.
"Oh my gosh." She awed dumbly. "Your hair's so pretty."
"Huh!" Another gasped, running over to the girl, touching her hair as well. "Yeah. Yeah. It is."
More possessed people ran over to the woman and creepily pet her hair like children. Their eyes shined and their mouths hung open as they brainlessly acted and spoke.
"Oh my." A girl touched the shirt of the man next to her. "I love this fabric." She felt it between her fingers.
"I know. This is so comfortable." The man cheered back. "I love it too."
"I love this trashcan!" Shouted another man as he hugged the bin. "Such a pretty green." He rubbed the side.
"You didn't free them." Ladybug contradicted Hope. "You turned them into zombies."
"No. I've helped them." She insisted. "I've freed their minds from any drama, stress, or conflict. They can now live happily and accepting of everyone and everything." Hope looked at Ladybug. "Isn't it peaceful?"
"No!" Ladybug insists. "You're robbing them of their personalities, their identities, their lives . . . they aren't who they should be."
"And who are you to decide who they should be?" Hope asked. She pressed her finger to her lips with her thumb on her chin and tilted her head. "I just simply let them decide for themselves without hurting each other."
Ladybug glared daggers. "Why you-"
"You have a choice to make, Ladybug." Hope slowly backed up in the air. Ladybug watched her. Hope winked her right eye with a sparkle and smiled at Ladybug. With her umbrella above her head, she flew away.
Ladybug leaned against a building wall and slid down to the bottom. She thumped on the ground and let out a stressed sigh. She looked at Chat Noir's contact on her yo-yo that was open, but she didn't press the call button. Ladybug's thumb hovered over the button, but was too unsure to ever press it.
"Should I . . . call Chat Noir?" Ladybug asked herself before putting her head down.
There were many pros and cons of calling him, but both would include an explanation that she didn't have. Ladybug's thumb shook over the screen. There was no guarantee that she would reach him and if she did dial, she wasn't really good at leaving voicemails anyway. But were these legitimate reasons? She thought to herself. Or were they all just excuses to avoid the painful truth? She didn't know and most importantly, he didn't know.
"I didn't do my job and got us into this mess." She sighed and buried her head in her knees while snapping her yo-yo shut. "No. I wont. He'll probably hate me." Ladybug got quieter. "If he doesn't already."
"Now how could I hate someone like you?" A familiar voice asked. Ladybug gasped and looked up to see Chat Noir smiling with his hand outstretched towards her. "It'd be a shame to hate the one I love."
"Chat Noir!" She excitedly sprang up and wrapped her arms around him, tears welling in her eyes. "I missed you." Ladybug buried her face in his chest and he loosely hugged her back.
"How could you miss me? I'll never leave you, Ladybug." Chat looked down as she looked up at him. "I'm always beside you, here to hold your hand."
"But . . . I sent you away." Ladybug cried. "I wished you to leave me alone and your love for me died with the old you. You should hate me right now!" She hit her first against his chest, but her strength left and her hand slid down the fabric of his suit.
"But I will never hate you." He lifted her chin up and looked into her eyes. "For I . . . have always loved you."
Ladybug wiped the tears from her cheeks before lightly pushing him away, sniffling. "Too bad you're not real." She said depressingly.
"The me before you may not be . . . but my feelings for you always have been." Chat Noir smiled and held his hand out to her as he slowly started to disappear. "Don't you remember?"
Chat Noir disappeared, but so did everything around them. Ladybug looked confused, but had sadness written on her face. The environment around her transformed to the Bourgeois hotel. She saw Chat Noir, but not just him, but Ladybug also. She was watching herself.
"Stay!" Chat Noir insisted as he grabbed her arm. "I won't tell anyone who you are. Chat's honor."
"Nobody must know who we really are. Not even us." Ladybug turned away and closed the closet door behind her.
The door was left open a crack and the flash of her miraculous could be seen. Chat Noir hesitated, but finally closed the door fully. The real Ladybug witnessed the pained look on his face as he ran out of the hotel room.
"I never realized I hadn't shut the door completely." Ladybug gasped. "He could've peaked at any time. He could've saw my face, but . . . he shut it for me." She looked down. "He let me go."
With a swoop of the scenery, the area changed again. Wind blew her hair around her face as Dark Cupid zoomed by. The Ladybug in front of her hung over the rooftop by her yo-yo string.
"Falling for me already, my lady?" Chat Noir grinned up at her while balancing on his baton that was stuck in the side of the building. "I need to talk to you." He said, reaching out to her.
"It's going to have to wait. Dark Cupi-" Ladybug started, but Chat Noir pressed his finger against her lips and shushed her. Her eyes went wide in surprise.
"I swore to myself that I'd tell you as soon as I saw you." He began. "Ladybug, I-I-look out!"
Chat turned her around and took the hit from Dark Cupid. His lips turned black as he started to get taken over by the enemy.
"I remember that." The real Ladybug said, watching the scene before her. "I wonder what he was going to say."
"Really?" Chat Noir asked with a laugh. He leaned against a wall with his arms crossed.
"Chat Noir!" She gasped, turning to him. "You're back!"
He shrugged. "Like I said, I'm always here."
"You're really dense if you don't know what I was going to say by now." Chat chuckled. "Do I need to spell it out for you."
"I love you." She sighed. "That's what you were going to say."
"I tried to tell you or at least show you several times." Chat Noir walked up to her. "But I never got the chance to say it."
"I never let you." Ladybug countered, shaking her head before smiling. "But you did today."
"No." Chat Noir held up a finger. "You know I'm not the real one." He looked down and a red flower formed in his hands. "I'm a creation from your memories. The real me hasn't been given the chance."
Ladybug scrunched her eyebrows. "Who created you?" She asked, confused.
Chat Noir grabbed her yo-yo out of her hand and showed it to her. With the yo-yo open, she could see her reflection in the mirror. Ladybug thought nothing of it, but then she saw it.
"What?!" Ladybug blinked a few times, but it remained there, unchanged. She tried turning her head and checking from different angles but it looked like it was a part of her. Ladybug then remembered Hope winked at her before leaving. She had had the same red sparkle in her eye when she did.
"Hope did this?" Ladybug concluded. "But why? And . . . how?"
Chat Noir shrugged his shoulders. "Beats me. She did something. I don't know what, but I'm not the real one."
"Maybe you're here to help me." Ladybug thought aloud as she put her yo-yo at her side. "Maybe these memories are supposed to help me to realize or remember something." Ladybug put her fist under her chin. "Or maybe you're here to distract me." She thought again.
"Possibly, but . . . I'm not sure. I don't entirely know why I'm here." He informed. "All I know is that I appeared before you, wanting to show you three of your memories. I don't know the purpose or reason why. It's basically some unknown mission for me."
"Three of my memories?" Ladybug laughed. "Are we in the Christmas Carol?"
"I'm not sure what this is, but like you said, I might be here to help you remember something." Chat Noir said, scratching the back of his head. "Well . . . I appeared here when you imagined I'd hate you and I had three specific memories in mind, so that gives us some clues."
"Wait. What's the third memory?" Ladybug asked.
"I guess I should show you that too." He looked down at the flower still his hands.
With the scene around them finally setting with a candlelit rooftop, Ladybug recognized it immediately. It was the date Chat Noir had planned when they fought Glaciator. Suddenly Ladybug found her mouth moving to form words all on its own.
"Listen, I don't wanna play around with your feelings. It would be the same as lying to you. I don't wanna do that." She began. "You're more than a partner, Chat Noir. You're my friend. And I'd never wanna lie to a friend."
Even though Ladybug knew these lines and she had said and meant them before, they felt different. They seemed harsher than before. Maybe it was her better understanding of both feelings. It didn't feel right either way.
"Why do you think it'd be lying?" Chat asked.
"Because there's this boy I . . . " She began.
Chat Noir stared into her eyes, giving her a different feeling than before. "There's a boy? Who is . . . "
Ladybug turned away from his piercing gaze. "It's-i can't tell you who it is. We can't know anything about each other." She began, but this time she felt a little broken by her words. "Our identities must remain a secret." Ladybug recognized that sentence that she's uttered many times. "We're both superheroes, Chat Noir. We don't have a choice . . . " That last sentence echoed in her head.
Chat Noir moved closer, making her blush. He handed her the rose, which she nervously took.
"I get it, Ladybug. Your friendship means everything to me." He spoke kindly before kissing her cheek. "You can keep the rose. It goes with your costume."
Ladybug was stunned for a moment as Chat Noir left. Her blush still painted her face as she remembered their moment. She looked back and watched him leap across the rooftops. Ladybug had a new feeling inside her as she looked down at the flower she was twirling between her fingers.
"Thank you, Chat Noir." Ladybug turned to the ghost one behind her.
"You're welcome, but . . . I didn't really do anything." He smirked at her. "It was all you."
"I don't know about that, but . . . " Ladybug walked up to him and got close. She handed him the rose and smiled. "I won't forget about you." She looked up at him. "The real you . . . is trapped somewhere. And once I face my problems, I'll save him."
"Did these memories change anything?" Chat Noir asked as the scenery changed back to the street corner in Paris.
"I think they did." She nodded. "I know what to do now."
Chat Noir smiled, giving a two fingered salute before disappearing.
Ladybug turned away with teary eyes and a smile. She gripped her yo-yo on her waist before sling-shotting herself over the city.
"I have to fix this." She told herself. "I've done too much but not enough." Ladybug felt relived but anxious at the same time.
She swung from building to building, following the path of subtle destruction until she found the cause. Looking down, she knew what to expect, but in all honesty, she didn't want to face it. It wasn't Hope, or Hawkmoth, but Chat Noir and her feelings. Chat Noir didn't know what was going on at the moment, but she worried for when he'd find out. He'll probably hate her or even worse, turn his back on her. Even though the other Chat Noir insisted he wouldn't, he's still not the real thing. But right now, no matter how much her anxiety will keep pushing her back, she'll do it. She'll tell him the truth and no matter his reaction, there won't be any secrets. No more hiding. No more mysteries. And whether he despises her or not, she'll fight with him.
Ladybug hopped along the last few rooftops until she was above the end of Hope's path, passing multiple groups of dumbly, possessed citizens. Hope was facing the other way as she flew above the streets. Ladybug noticed Chat Noir already on the scene, pushing back possessed people. They crowded around him, shoving back and forth. Chat Noir, surrounded by even more now, struggled against their force.
Ladybug shut her eyes and gripped her yo-yo as she mustered up a shred of confidence. Just enough to face the dilemma. Ladybug took her yo-yo and threw it at a lamppost, swinging herself down to the street below. She landed against the pavement, with her leg out in a pose as she collected herself in a swoop.
"Ladybug!" Chat Noir called, popping his head out of the crowd.
Ladybug couldn't look. She was facing her problems and Char Noir had helped her, but she couldn't face him. More like she couldn't look at his eyes. They started into her soul and displayed overwhelming emotion. Even though she must save him, she'll have to do it without looking in them.
"Stop!" Hope commanded her militia of citizens. They simultaneously stood straight with their hands at their sides and eyes unfocused, awaiting orders.
Chat Noir fell back at the sudden halt to the fight. He propped himself up and watched the two in front of him. Hope floated down till she was just hovering over the ground. She grinned as Ladybug and moved closer.
"So you finally came. I was afraid that you'd given up." Hope smirked and her feet touched to the ground. "So . . . have you given up? Are you here to meet my demands or . . . will you let all these poor people to continue to suffer?"
"I'm here to fight!" Ladybug announced.
"Well if that's the case . . . we don't want anyone else intervening" She looked over at the possessed humans that had halted. "Keep him quiet!" Hope ordered. "Sit tight for a bit kitty-cat."
The group stood Chat Noir up and held on to his arms and legs. One stood behind him, covering his mouth. He struggled against their hold, but failed.
"If we're gonna do this, it'll be between just the two of us." Hope informed before sighing as she turned back to Ladybug. "So . . . you're actually gonna fight?"
"Yes. I'm here to fix my mess." Ladybug answered. "I won't let you hurt this city because of me."
"You think you can beat me? With what power?" Hope snarled, walking towards her. "You are weak. You don't even have the confidence of a hero." She circled Ladybug like prey, making her feel smaller. "I'm surprised you even showed up. You're late, but still cowardly. Still afraid."
"I let this happen. I created your hate and I let you do this." Ladybug stated, looking down. "How could I fear my own creation? I can't run away from that."
"Your own creation?" Hope stopped in her place. "I hate to break it to you, but I've always lived to help people. These powers are Hawkmoth's and my will is my own. You don't have anything to do with this."
Ladybug chuckled. "You know . . . your powers work both ways." Ladybug looked up to meet her shocked, but confused expression. "Back when you showed me some future created from my memories, I also saw your memories." Ladybug moved towards her with a kind smile. "You may have forgotten what it was like before because of how long you've been akumatized, but I saw . . . I saw who you were-"
"Forgotten?!" Hope interrupted. "I have not forgotten. I've done all of this because I remember." She insisted with a growl. "I was poor. I . . . I wanted to help everyone. I . . . I-ugh!" Hope closed one eye as she hit a hand against her head. "I can help people now with my powers and I can achieve my goals. I am no longer helpless." She stated robotically.
"You sound like you've practiced that. Almost like you wanted to believe that, drilling it into your brain." Ladybug put a hand on her shoulder. "But I saw differently." Hope's nostrils flared with anger. "I saw a little girl who looked up to Paris's heroes from a very young age and aspired to be like them. And even though she didn't have much, she offered some of her own to others, such as food or kindness. That little girl was a hero in herself and that girl . . . is still you."
"No." Hope denied, brushing the hand off her shoulder. "I couldn't be a hero the way I was before. I was alone, defeated and most importantly . . . powerless!" She spat.
Hope glared at Ladybug and Ladybug stared back. Two different looks in their eyes that fought and back and forth, almost creating a comical spark of lightning. But neither side faltered, for each one had a solid argument and confidence behind them.
"You were anything but powerless." Ladybug consoled, reaching out to put her other hand on her other shoulder. "You're twelve and I'm sixteen, but you are more observant and intelligent than me. You may be taller and older looking now in your akumatized state, but that's just an illusion so that people take you seriously. You're still young. You're still that girl. And I've been Ladybug for three years now and I still don't understand the environment or people like you do. It's amazing how you see everything." Ladybug praised. "From a young age, you watched and you studied people. You understood the ways of the world and took every perspective. Even I couldn't do that-"
"No! No no no no no no no!" Hope screamed, covering her ears. "Whether all of that nonsense is true or not, I won't quit. I won't give up! I'm not gonna lose!" She insisted, roughly shaking her head back and forth. "My life is better now. I look older and am taken more seriously. I have a good job and a boss. I'm happier and I can help everyone. I'm no longer helpless. I'm better now!"
"But-"
"I'm a hero!" She shouted, pressing her palms harder against her head.
Ladybug gasped, taken back from her reaction.
"I'm more of a hero than you are." Hope muttered. She released her hands from her scalp and glared at the spotted heroine. The sound of her umbrella snapping shut echoed through the air and she rested it back on her shoulder. "How can you even call yourself one? I mean . . . " She crossed her arms. "I may seem like a villain now, but who started it all? Who let a "villain" run free for her own selfish reasons?" Hope circled Ladybug like a predator. "Who hid from her own partner and ruined the lives of those around her?"
"I did." Ladybug admitted strongly. "I caused all of this and I hurt my friends and allies around me. I know what I've done. That's why I'm here."
"But why?" Hope smiled, swinging her umbrella up before resting its tip on the ground beside her, loosely gripping the handle. "You aren't confident. You aren't bold. You cower in fear at your own secrets. And even as you stand here now, you still wear a mask. Both sides do, either hiding your identity or true emotions. You will always have something to hide or fear."
Ladybug's head sank. "I'll accept that. You're right in those aspects."
"Hmph." Hope chuckled. "What's even worse is that you thought you'd have a chance with Adrien. With what little confidence you have, he wouldn't have even turned his head. And now after what you've done, I doubt he'd even give you the time of day. But . . . you wouldn't deserve him anyway."
Ladybug remember Adrien as an image of him popped into her head. She remembered who and what he used to be before she ruined it all. She regretted it and felt sorry, but there was no use in apologizing. That was not nearly enough to make up for her crime. Ladybug could be imprisoned after this fight if Paris finds out about her betrayal. After all, she did endanger the whole city for selfish reasons and she was prepared for the hate and unforgiveness.
"He never wanted me anyway." Ladybug said, biting her lip. "Adrien never paid attention to me before and definitely won't now. It was just a sad crush that I had." She gave herself a halfhearted laugh. "Ladybug is the only attractive part of me and you're right about my self consciousness. I didn't have much confidence before, but at least I accept it now."
"You accepting it won't fix anything." Hope told her, raising her eyebrows.
"No." Ladybug admitted. "But it'll change who I am as a person."
"But what about Chat Noir?" Hope asked, giving a questioning glance. "He definitely paid attention to you and he professed his love to you all the time. He even tried to kiss you whenever he got the chance, but was tragically rejected. How could you be self conscious when a superhero is chasing after you? It's not like he wasn't an option. With all of those chances, why not turn to him?"
"I hid and . . . I ran away . . . afraid." Ladybug stated. "And I know that sounds really stupid and harsh, but I'll admit it now. I'll be honest."
"Honest?" Hope squinted her eyes in speculation. "Is there something you're still hiding from us?"
"Not anymore." Ladybug had a small smile. "No more secrets. Only truths. Now sit down and listen up because it's story time." Ladybug said, sitting down in the middle of the road. "And I only just thought this through on the run over here, so try to keep the judgy comments at a minimum."
"Wait. You expect me to just sit down . . . in the middle of the street . . . in the middle of a battle . . . between us?" Hope questioned, giving Ladybug a dumb look. "You know your lover's right over there. Like right there." She pointed over at the restricted feline who looked completely lost at the scene before him. "I may have a few people holding him down and covering his mouth so he doesn't scream, but you're taking quite a long time to rescue him. And he's just watching us. Who knows what he can hear, but you wanna sit down, right now, for a little chit chat?"
Ladybug sat on her legs and put her hands on her knees. "Yep." She smiled.