Carried Away

Hawk Moth snatched both miraculous earrings from Adrien's hands before Scarlet Peacock could reach them, but she got the ring. The Wasp sentimonsters were getting ready to inject their venom into the boy.

Adrien did not care if that happened, he was tied up, all his limbs and his body held by the Wasp sentimonsters. He managed to turn his face and his eyes towards Marinette. He could only see her soft red fleece onesie. The same onesie he bought in Lhasa. Her body was slightly curled up, as if she was sleeping. For a moment he wanted to curl up beside her and comfort her, to tell her that everything will be okay and struggle to believe his own words.

"No" Hawk Moth ordered to the wasps. The Wasps stopped their movement and looked at their master. Scarlet Peacock turned to Hawk Moth questioningly.

"We will not immobilize him?" Scarlet Peacock inquired. It was the logical thing to do. Or perhaps it was not. They won. They got the miraculous. She clutched on the ring in her hand. Why she did not feel victorious? Why she felt so strange?

"No. Take him, he will watch our victory." Hawk Moth ordered. He needed to gloat before his enemies. He even glanced towards the body of the motionless girl just few metres away. He felt sorry, not for her but for missing his chance to gloat over his victory before his arch nemesis.

"Should we take her too, sir?" Scarlet Peacock motioned towards the motionless body of the Ladybug miracoulous wielder. She looked at the girl's body. She wanted to turn her around and look at the girl's face. And at that moment it struck her. That was a girl. They fought a girl. She ripped the earrings from a girl's body. Mayura did not want to look at that face.

"There is no use." Hawk Moth snarled and dismissed her with his hand. "She is incapacitated. But we will take him." Besides, he had an army of Wasps, he might as well use them to carry the boy.

The Wasps tied up his body and took the boy up. He was tied in an uncomfortable position and carried by several Wasps. Fortunately, the tiny wasps were called off because they did not try to attack him any more.

"Should we look at his face?" Scarlet Peacock asked. She was curious at the identity of the wielders of the Ladybug and Chat Noir miraculous. She wanted to know. But Hawk Moth was the boss, he was making the calls.

"That is irrelevant. We can save that for later. If you want." he looked at the body of the boy all tied up, his face still covered with the scarf. He knew he did not win just yet. He needed to bring his wife back.

Adrien looked at Marinette and her body. Tears started rolling down his face. 'I have failed you' he thought as he was carried away. Although he was not hit by the sting, he felt just as immobilized. He did not say anything. He just looked at the body of the girl he loved and made a silent promise that he was about to fix this.

"Where are we going?" Scarlet Peacock demanded. She fidgeted with the ring and contemplated putting it one her finger, but Hawk Moth glared at the ring and then at her so she put it into her pocket.

"You will see." Hawk Moth replied quietly with a strange note in his voice that his fellow villain did not like at all. She put the ring into her pocket. She did not give it to him. It bothered him. It wormed itself through his gut and from the back of his brain.

The thoughts bothered the boy as he was carried by the Wasps up the cliff. They were not gentle, his body hit the stones and he was not protected by his magical armour any more. But he could not feel the pain and could not care less.

'Is she still alive? How can I save her?' Questions went thorough his head. Then he felt the charm bracelet around his wrist, the one Ladybug got when she called her lucky charm. It did not disappear when Ladybugs earrings were taken off. He still had it. It comforted him, it gave him strength. Why have not she kept it herself? Why did she tie it around his wrist and not hers? Perhaps it would help her, somehow.

'But of course.' The thought washed over him like a tide, he knew what he had to do. He had to take the earrings from Hawk Moth and use them. Then he could use the lucky charm to bring Marinette back, to wake her up. Together, they would go for the ring.

"Why are we going towards the temple?" Scarlet Peacock asked while they were climbing. She did not want to go there. They had the miraculous they wanted, why would they go there? It was time to pack up and go back to Paris to make his wish. That would give her a few days with Gabriel before they returned.

"You'll see." Hawk Moth brushed her off. He did not want to answer her. If it was not clear to her what were his intentions, then he was not about to share.

Adrien listened to the argument. The Wasp sentimonsters kept very close. The boy could not miss the intense sense of disagreement between the two villains. They were going to the temple. Perhaps he could get some help there. At least he hoped he would get untied. Then, he would attack Hawk Moth, with or without a miraculous, with or without the protections of the magical suit or the strength of the magical weapons and powers.

Hawk Moth watched Scarlet Peacock carefully. She did try to snatch the Ladybug miraculous before his nose. She kept the Chat Noir's ring. Maybe it was the heat of the battle, but he was there, right on top of the boy, it was his victory, it was his prize to take. But she was faster with the ring and she kept it. It was bothering him.

Then he remembered how Scarlet Peacock snatched the earrings from the girl and put them away. She did not tell him anything. She neither gave nor offered him the earrings. Was she trying to keep the two most powerful miracoulous for herself? He had the earrings now because the boy snatched the earrings from Scarlet Peacock.

"Congratulations, sir!" she finally acknowledged their victory, but her voice was calm and polite, she was as professional as always. Hawk Moth clearly felt she was not truly happy about it. "We have their miraculous, but why are we going to the temple? I thought we have all you wanted to have."

Hawk Moth contemplated her words and the way she asked her questions. And he could sense her distress and anxiety. Something was bothering her. She must have wanted both miracoulous for herself.

"And we are about to use it." Hawk Moth finally answered after a short break.

Scarlet Peacock could sense other peoples negative emotions too and he forgot about that. She could feel the despair in the boy dragged by the Wasps. But she could also feel Hawk Moth's doubts and remaining concerns. She also felt his sense of triumph and victory. She was proud of him, but she was also sad. It was finished. He will get his wife back and she was not sure what would be left for Nathalie.

He gloated, he triumphed, he was victorious, he had finally beaten Ladybug and Chat Noir. Her body was left there on that rock. And he took the boy with him because he wanted to watch his enemy defeated. He wanted his enemy to watch him as he transformed using both miracoulous and as was about to make his wish.

His wish.

His wish required the body of his wife.

They needed that teleportation sentimonster again.

He needed his akuma back.

Just before the main entrance to the temple he changed his mind.

"Give me the ring." Hawk Moth demanded.

Scarlet Peacock eyed Hawk Moth warily. He had his prize. He stored both the Ladybug and the Chat Noir miracoulous in his pocket. And now he was cold and distant to her. There was no celebration. There was no joy. He even looked at her with distrust. He was growing more distant each passing second.

They were already at the temple door. She turned around to face him. Hawk Moth stared at her. And then he concentrated. She was akumatized after all. A violet mask glowed on her head. She put her hand in her pocket and took the ring, she handed the ring over to Hawk Moth.

"Good." he praised coldly. Scarlet Peacock just stared at him, her eyes were empty of any emotion. She stood there like a puppet she was, he was the boss, he was pulling the strings, the invisible strings of the mental and telepathic remote control.

"We will need the services of the teleportation sentimonster." Hawk Moth stated matter of factly as if he was telling Nathalie to shift an item in his schedule (but sometimes creating a sentimonster took less time and effort than rescheduling one of his meetings).

"Use your weapon on him." Hawk Moth ordered the Wasp sentimonsters.

"Venom" one of them shouted and stung Adrien in the shoulder. Adrien collapsed to the ground.

Hawk Moth raised his hand towards Scarlet Peacock in the temple corridor.

"I will need your services but for a different purpose. And I will need a different akuma for that." he said as a violet butterfly fluttered out from her brooch. Then the violet butterfly turned into white and fluttered away through the dark hallway.

The Wasp sentimonsters disappeared, the strings they wrapped around Adrien dissolved, the venom they injected into their victims stopped working.

Adrien woke up after a few seconds and from his position where he was laying on the ground he just saw the two villains disappear behind the door.

He jumped to his feet and ran after them.

Hawk Moth went after the butterfly, but this was a wild butterfly and it landed safely on a narrow ledge just above the door. Hawk Moth jumped to catch the butterfly and it fluttered higher.

Adrien ran after the two villains. He wanted to throw himself onto Hawk Moth and grab the earrings. His whole body ached. His lungs were burning. He unwrapped the scarf from his head as he jumped inside the temple and ran after the villain. But Hawk Moth was busy catching the white butterfly that fluttered high, just under the ceiling of the wide hallway.

Adrien stood to the side and watched Hawk Moth.

Mayura was there, standing in the middle of the hallway, dazed and confused and stared at Hawk Moth too. She felt the pocket on her magical suit. There was nothing inside. She did not remember when she gave the ring and to whom. But, she had an idea. And it stung her inside.

Nobody noticed Adrien entered the hallway. Well, almost nobody. Because Tenzin watched the boy intently. Adrien never put his eyes away from Hawk Moth and his pocket wandering if this was his chance. While Hawk Moth was distracted by the disobedient butterfly.

Then the boy noticed Tenzin watched him. Adrien simply raised his right hand and turned to show how there was no ring. Adrien switched his eyes back to Hawk Moth's pocket. Tenzin understood.

The old monk turned his eyes towards the butterfly and concentrated. The old teacher trained previous holders of the butterfly miraculous, he had a few tricks up his sleeve that did not require ans miraculous gems.

Hawk Moth was now jumping around chasing the butterfly but the insect managed to escape his grip. He cursed the wild white butterflies, the customs and the animal import regulations and the quarantine.

"Mayura, go and get it." Hawk Moth ordered.

Mayura turned her eyes towards the butterfly and then back to Hawk Moth. She was not akumatized any more. She was less driven to help him. He was about to akumatize again, teleport the body of his wife and then make his wish. And then it would be all over. He will not need her, Nathalie any more.

Hawk Moth concentrated and kept his hands open, but he could not feel the butterfly. It fluttered around through the dark corridor with no respect towards its master. Actually, the only thing the animal was interested was to follow the light and find a way out from that dark place.

Tenzin watched the butterfly flutter freely through the corridor with satisfaction. Casual observer might interpret it as if the old monk was happy to see the beautiful wild creature. But those who knew a secret or two, knew better. Adrien smirked and waited for his chance. Because it was obvious Hawk Moth ignored them both.