Notes: Ugh y'all. I had a cake order, then the weather was kicking my ass (what is this "was" it still is), and then I got bit with some plunnies that wouldn't shut up. One of them still hasn't shut up, but Dingo and I have compromised. (I want to say I had this half-done for like a week, but looking at how it ended up it was more like a third done… xD)

Marinette's 29 Valentine's Days

Day Twenty-Five, Loop Twenty-Four: Alone

Friday, 14 February, Valentine's Day, began just like every Friday, 14 February, Valentine's Day before it.

Marinette was in her bed, screaming into her pillow, feeling like she had just been thrown there. So. Normal, by this point.

Her phone was on the shelf above her head, beeping with her alarm. Telling her it was time to get up, get ready for school, and face the day. Also normal.

In a few minutes, her mother would be coming up the stairs to wake her up. To make sure she was up and ready for her big day, because as far as her mom knew this was the one and only Friday, 14 February, Valentine's Day and her and Luka were still just friends. So…also normal.

She rolled onto her back and glared at the hatch to her balcony. She grabbed her phone, silencing it without looking, and continued to watch the hatch. Any second now, she would hear Viperion land above her. It would be followed by a soft knock, and then…well. She could pull him down like she had the first time and kiss the living daylights out of him. That had been fun. Or, she thought as she saw Tikki fly over to her from the corner of her eye, she could just transform and meet him up there. There could still be kissing. She was really fond of the kissing.

…except enough time had passed that she should have already heard his boots. He should have knocked by now. So. Not normal.

What was going on?

She pushed herself up and looked at Tikki, who was wringing her paws nervously.

"He's not outside," she said. "I didn't see him on the corner, and I don't feel Sass nearby. I'm worried, Marinette."

She was starting to be, too.

Before she could answer Tikki, her phone started buzzing in her hand. She sighed in relief and went to answer, but it wasn't Luka calling her.

It was Juleka.

"Hello?" Marinette asked, hitting the green button that would answer the call.

"Thank God," Juleka sighed without any preamble. Marinette frowned. What was going on? "Marinette, it's Juleka. Is Luka there?"

"What?" Marinette asked. She heard Rose talking in the background, but she couldn't hear what she said. She could also hear the Captain shouting over both of them. They all sounded…worried. That was also not normal, even for what was proving to be a very Not Normal day. "Um. I don't think so? I haven't seen him yet. Is he supposed to be?"

"He wasn't in his bed this morning," Juleka said. Marinette's eyes narrowed, glaring at a spot of the wall in front of her. "He had said something last night about surprising you this morning. He wanted to pick you up for school. Y'know. Because of Valentine's Day."

Juleka sighed heavily, and Marinette heard her moving on the other end. Rose said something else she couldn't catch, and Juleka thanked her.

"I wasn't supposed to say anything," she continued. "It…damn it. He likes you, Mari. A lot. I think he was going to ask you out today, if you didn't beat him to it. It was gonna be great. You two are so stupid for each other you're a walking disaster, but in the fun way. I love it."

"Um…thanks?" Marinette said, laughing a little. She knew Juleka was ok with her dating her brother – she had made a point of clearing that with her, especially after all the Adrien Drama and how involved Juleka had been in that mess. She wanted to know Juleka would be ok with any relationship moving forward, so she had been the first person Marinette had gone to when she had first realized her feelings for Luka were getting stronger.

"I was hoping he'd just left early to meet you," Juleka said, "but Ma didn't see him leave, and his bike's still here. And he's not answering his phone. I'm…I'm scared, Mari."

"Has Dingo seen him?" Marinette asked. It was still weird that Luka would have left his bike at the boat, but she remembered the morning he had shanghaied Dingo into picking up a Valentine's present for her. It was possible he was with him, though Marinette didn't think that likely. Why would he go to Dingo now when he knew what was happening? When he knew they had an akuma to catch?

"Rose is texting him now," Juleka said. Marinette opened her hatch and climbed onto her balcony. She crossed to the edge and looked down at the street below, but Tikki was right. While it was packed with the normal morning traffic (M. Ramier was leaving with his morning bag of stale bread, and he waved when looked up after a pigeon and saw her standing there), there was no sign of Luka or his bike. Scanning the surrounding rooftops, she also didn't see any telling flashes of teal that would indicate Viperion running towards her. "He hasn't heard from him since last night. He's telling her to check with you."

"…Bri?" Marinette guessed, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in her stomach. Juleka went quiet for a minute, and she could hear Rose again.

"Bri's with Dingo," Juleka finally said. "Neither have seen him."

"…let's see how well you do alone, little bug."

Marinette was going to be sick.

"Juleka…" she said, her voice strangely steady and calm for the panic settling over her. Her grip tightened on her phone, her other hand clenching around the rail, as she stared at the city in front of her. The early morning sun shone brightly in the sky, a few heavy clouds drifting along. It was a perfect winter's day: cold enough to wake you up with just enough sun to warm you. It didn't match the dourness of her mood at all. Bad things weren't supposed to happen on sunny days. "…I have to go."

"What?" Juleka snapped, her voice biting. "Marinette. Luka is missing."

"I heard you," she said, swallowing thickly. That feeling was getting worse, sinking straight through her stomach and to her feet. Juleka sounded like she growled.

"Can you at least try calling him?" Juleka huffed. "He might answer for you."

"I really don't think he will, Juleka," she said. She heard something crash on the other end and winced.

"Damn it, Marinette! You keep saying you love him – why aren't you more worried?!" Juleka snapped. It was more than a little disconcerting. She had never heard Juleka so upset before. "You know this isn't like him! He doesn't just disappear like this!"

He would if an akuma was involved.

…but while Juleka would know that – anyone in Paris would – she didn't actually know there was an active akuma on the loose. She had no reason to think…

Marinette swallowed, blinking back tears. Tears weren't going to help the situation. Tears wouldn't get Luka back.

"..how well you do alone…"

Because she was ninety percent sure that the akuma had Luka.

She had been holding Viperion when she reset the loop. She had taunted Ladybug, telling her she would be alone. Somehow, she had abducted Viperion.

"Look, I'm sorry. I just…can you come over?" Juleka asked after a long moment, snapping Marinette out of her daze. She glanced at her phone, frowning. "Dingo and Bri are on their way. We're gonna skip school and go look for him. Ma's already calling Mlle. Damocles."

Rose said something else.

"…and Officer Roger," Juleka mumbled. Marinette's eyebrows rose. The Captain had to be worried if she was reaching out to Officer Raincomprix.

"I…yeah," she said, nodding even though she knew Juleka couldn't see. "I'll…I'll call him on my way. I'll be there soon, Jules."

"Thank you, Mari," Juleka said. Marinette tried to smile and couldn't.

"He's gonna be ok, Juleka," she said. "He has to be. We'll find him."

"I know," Juleka sighed. "I'll…I'll see you soon."

"I'll bring breakfast," Marinette said, only slightly joking. When Juleka hung up, Marinette turned back to her hatch to find Tikki watching her.

"I think the akuma has him, Tikki," she said. Tikki nodded, her face set in a determined glare.

"Then let's go get him back," she said, but Marinette shook her head.

"I…I told Juleka…" she started, and Tikki frowned.

"Marinette, you know the akuma has to have him," she said, "which means Hawkmoth has him. Which means Hawkmoth has Sass. We have to find them!"

"And that's exactly what I'll be doing with Juleka," Marinette pointed out. "She's really scared, Tikki."

"I understand that, but you can cover more ground as Ladybug, Marinette!" Tikki argued. Marinette clenched her fist around her phone. She knew Tikki was right, and yet…

"I have to do this, Tikki," she said. "Juleka is my friend. Luka's sister. And she's scared. I have to be with her right now. I can lead the search in the right direction and sneak away if I find the akuma. It'll be no different from any other akuma attack."

"You'll be intentionally putting civilians in harm's way if you find them," Tikki pointed out.

"This akuma has not been violent so far," Marinette countered.

"She can throw fire!" Tikki yelled.

"Yesterday was the most violent she's ever been!" Marinette yelled back. She groaned and pressed the heels of her palms to her eyes. "Tikki, please! We're going to find him, but this is how I have to do it! I'll sneak away from them as soon as I can, but I can't just…"

"You keep saying you love him – why aren't you more worried?!"

Juleka's words echoed in her mind, cutting through her. She did love Luka, and she was scared, too. That was part of the problem.

"We're meeting up with Juleka at the Liberty," Marinette said firmly. There was no room for debate in her voice. Tikki's little face pinched in a frown, but it smoothed when Marinette held up her hands for Tikki to sit and leaned forward, kissing her head. "We'll bring them home, Tikki. You know we will."

"…I know, Marinette," the kwami mumbled. She peeked up at her, her eyes swimming with unshed tears. "I'm scared, too."

Marinette lifted her hands so she could press her forehead to Tikki's. After a moment, they both nodded, and Tikki followed Marinette back inside.

"Marinette?" she heard her mom ask, and Tikki zipped behind her pillows to hide. Sabine was still climbing into the room, frowning as she looked up at Marinette's balcony escape. "What were you doing up there, sweetheart? You should be getting ready for school."

"I am," Marinette said, offering her a smile before she climbed down the ladder of her loft. She gestured in the general direction of the roof. "There was a crash up there when I woke up. I was just making sure the pigeon's hadn't knocked anything over again."

Sabine's eyebrows quirked, a look of amusement crossing her face. It wouldn't have been the first time the pigeons had wreaked havoc on her balcony, with or without M. Pigeon's help. It was what made the lie so believable. Sabine never questioned it.

"Was everything all right?" she asked. Marinette nodded and moved to her wardrobe. She hesitated as she reached for her blue kitticorn shirt. Her fingers brushed over the blue lightning bolt striking through the left eye, and the knot in her stomach twisted a bit tighter.

"…no, actually," she said after a moment. It was possible…she didn't want to hope – she knew better than to do something as foolish as hope after all this time – but she couldn't help it. Marinette was nothing if not a hopeful Ladybug. But it wasn't possible, was it? Tikki would have sensed Sass, and she had said she didn't. And she'd said that Luka wasn't outside. And even if Luka had run here as Viperion and had left his bike at the boat…and Juleka had said his bike was still there. But Tikki would have sensed Sass…but…maybe… "Maman, is Luka downstairs?"

Sabine's answering frown was all the confirmation she needed.

"Luka? No, he's not here," her mom said. Marinette closed her eyes and took a breath. She had known – of course she had – and yet… "Was he supposed to be, sweetheart?"

"I think so," Marinette said quietly. She finished changing, grabbed her bag off her desk, and turned back to her mom. She felt Tikki press a comforting hand against her leg through her purse, but she wasn't sure when her kwami had snuck in there. Still, it was all the confirmation she needed to know they were good to go. "Juleka called while I was up there. Luka's missing."

"What?" Sabine gasped. Marinette checked her phone, but there were no new notifications. Which made sense, right? Didn't Juleka say he didn't have his phone, or at the least wasn't answering it? Of course he wouldn't have texted her. That hadn't stopped her from hoping there would be a message waiting on her screen. "What do you mean, Marinette?"

She didn't know how many ways someone could mean missing. Missing was missing, wasn't it? There was never a good meaning behind saying someone was missing.

"He was gone when they woke up this morning," she said, trying not to sound too annoyed. She had to remind herself that Sabine didn't know. It was just another Friday morning, as far as she was concerned. And Valentine's Day, at that.

…bad things weren't supposed to happen on Valentine's Day. Today was supposed to be a good day.

"He had said something about surprising me this morning," she continued, tightening her grip on her purse strap, "so she had hoped he was here. I had hoped…"

"He wasn't when I came up, but maybe he arrived while I've been up here?" Sabine guessed. She was trying to reassure her, Marinette knew, but it wasn't really working. Tikki hadn't sensed Sass. She shook her head.

"He's not answering his phone, and his bike's still there. The Captain's even calling Officer Raincomprix, Maman," she said. She fiddled with her phone some more. She had to get going. "They're…we're all scared. This isn't like him."

"It's not," Sabine agreed. She sighed and turned to the steps. "Come on. Let's see if he's downstairs – maybe he accidently turned his phone off and just hasn't seen the calls?"

But Marinette couldn't believe that, either. That also wasn't like Luka, even if she had accidentally done that plenty of times (or had claimed to, in the heat of an akuma fight). Luka always kept his phone charged at the ready, just in case there was a late-night (or any time) call from Officer Raincomprix telling him to come get his mother.

"Yeah…yeah, maybe," Marinette said, but they both knew she didn't believe her.

Downstairs, Tom was singing along with the radio and dipping apples, just like any other Friday, 14 February, Valentine's Day. Normal. Painfully normal. A customer was perusing the case of macarons in the front. Also normal. But there was still no sign of Luka, and that was painfully not normal. Just like the lack of new notifications on her phone.

"Tom, dear, you haven't seen Luka this morning, have you?" Sabine asked as soon as they entered the kitchen. Marinette moved past her to grab an empty box. She started loading it up with croissants and other pastries. Her dad watched her out of the corner of his eye, his eyebrows raised.

"Luka? No, not today," he said. Marinette put the smaller box of macarons on top of the breakfast box. "All right there, sweetheart?"

"Luka wasn't home this morning," she said, already moving to the door. "His bike's still there, and he's not answering his phone."

"Is it possible he took Anarka's bike?" Tom asked, and that gave Marinette pause. She hadn't even thought of that. Luka had gotten his motorcycle license the previous summer in case of emergencies, but he rarely used it. But…Juleka would have said, right? If the Captain's bike was missing, too? Wouldn't that be one of the first things they'd have checked?

"…Juleka didn't say, but…I don't think the Captain would be calling Officer Raincomprix if they had reason to think he was on her bike," she said. Tom let out a bark of laughter, but at the looks Marinette and Sabine shot him he immediately snapped his mouth shut. He looked a little sheepish as he coughed into his elbow and fidgeted with an apple.

"Sorry, it's just Anarka willingly calling the police," Tom said. He chuckled again, sounding a bit cagey, and grinned. "I bet you Roger shit a brick."

"Tom!" Sabine hissed, but Marinette and Tom shared a secret little smile. She huffed out an annoyed breath as the customer at the counter rang the bell. She shook her head and moved past them to the front. Tom gave Marinette an encouraging smile and put another box – this one filled with candy apples – on top of the other two she was carrying.

"Go on," he said. "I'll call the school and let them know in case Anarka didn't think to include you."

"Thank you, Papa," she said, leaning up on her tip toes to kiss his cheek.

"I'm sure he's fine, Marinette," Tom said, patting her shoulder. Marinette smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes.

She knew he would be, but right now…right now she was pretty sure the akuma had taken him hostage, and he wasn't going to be fine until she brought him home.

Tom was already reaching for the phone as she raced out the door. She ducked into an alley to transform, and after a short dash above the city she was dropping into an alley closer to the Liberty to drop the transformation. She ran the rest of the way, making it to the boat fast enough that Juleka seemed surprised when she ran across the gangway. She took the boxes from her just before Rose crashed into her, wrapping her up in a tight hug.

"Marinette!" Rose wailed. "Have you heard anything yet? We've been looking everywhere."

"He hasn't messaged me, no," Marinette said. She looked at Juleka, who was fiddling with the lid of the top box. "Officer Raincomprix?"

"…Officer Roger said legally he can't do anything yet," Juleka mumbled. "He doesn't think it's a big deal, anyway. Luka's eighteen. A Boat Kid." Marinette could hear the derision in Juleka's voice and could tell exactly what she thought of Officer Raincomprix's assessment. "This was bound to happen, anyway. Asshole."

"Juleka…" Rose chided gently, but the tense set of her shoulders let Marinette know she agreed with her whole-heartedly. Even if she was kinder about how she expressed it. Marinette extracted herself from Rose, took the boxes from Juleka to give to Rose, and pulled her into a tight hug. Juleka tensed for a moment before she leaned into Marinette, tightly wrapping her arms around her and pressing her face into her shoulder. Marinette rubbed her back as Juleka shook, trying her best not to cry.

"He's ok, Jules," Marinette said softly, holding her tighter. "We're going to find him, and he's going to be ok, and then we'll both give him hell for scaring you like this, ok?"

"I'm going to kick his ass, Mari," Juleka mumbled into her coat, and Marinette laughed weakly.

"Ok," she said, nodding. She pulled back and winked at her. "But only if I can help."

"Deal. God, he better not screw things up with you. You're gonna be a great sister," Juleka chuckled, rubbing at her eyes. Marinette pulled a croissant out of one of the boxes and handed it to her, trying to ignore the light burn of her cheeks.

"Eat," she said. "You probably haven't had anything this morning, right?"

"She's been too worried," Rose said. She pulled out a croissant for herself and took a bite. "We all have. I'm going to take these downstairs and make sure the Captain eats something."

"We'll keep an eye out for –" Juleka started, but a whoop and holler cut her off and had them all turning towards the gangway. Dingo was running aboard, Brielle not far behind him. Before either of them could move, Dingo swept in and pulled both Marinette and Juleka to him in a bone-crushing hug. "Dingo!"

"Got here soon as we could, love," he said. He pulled away, looking between them. Rose quietly excused herself and slipped below deck. Juleka shook her head, and he pushed out a heavy sigh. "Shit. Shit, shit, shit, shit."

"When was the last you heard anything?" Brielle asked, grabbing the collar of Dingo's bomber jacket and tugging him back.

"Last night," Juleka said. She was fidgeting with her gloves. She looked worriedly at Marinette before looking back to Brielle. "He was…working on something when we went to sleep. But he was here. We didn't hear him get up. And I woke up a little after midnight, and I thought he was asleep…"

Marinette's hand pressed into her purse. She wondered what time the akuma was actually resetting them to. She knew she woke up at the same time every day, but when did the akuma's day technically start? Midnight? One? Two? There were a good seven hours between when the day technically began and when her alarm went off. As far as Juleka knew, Luka could have disappeared during any one of them.

"And he's still not answering his phone?" Dingo asked, checking his own to confirm what Marinette already knew. There would be no new messages from Luka waiting for him.

"No," Juleka said, "and we can't find it, either. His backpack's still here, his wallet's still here, and his bike's here, but his phone is missing. And he's missing. And I'm going to kick his ass when we find him."

"I'll help," Brielle groused. Her gaze snapped to Marinette, who was looking back out at the city as she fidgeted with her straps. "And he hasn't contacted you, either?"

When she didn't answer, Brielle called her name and repeated her question. Marinette feigned innocence.

"No…" she said. She pursed her lips. "But…I don't think he'd contact me before Juleka or the Captain. Or even you and Dingo. He –"

"Cut the bullshit, Marinette," Brielle said, a little harsher than she had intended. She didn't seem to regret her tone, though. "You're not that stupid."

"That's what I tried to tell her," Juleka mumbled, rubbing at her face. Marinette looked at her feet, twisting her hands on her purse strap again.

"…lay off, you two," Dingo said after a moment. He yanked Marinette to his side, tossing an arm around her shoulder. "I say we split up and search the city. He's gotta be somewhere – people don't just vanish. Well. Not unless Hawkmoth's involved."

He said it like a joke, but it just made the guilt coil tighter in Marinette's stomach. Brielle's eyes narrowed on her, but she didn't press the issue. Dingo squeezed her shoulders, making her look up.

"Mari and I will cover the area around the café. Bri, why don't you and Jules check out the music shop the Captain used to work at? Where he got Claire?" Dingo asked. Brielle nodded.

"So basically you guys go left and we go right," she said. Dingo shrugged.

"Gotta start somewhere," he said. "Hit the usual haunts. Anywhere he might have gone instead of school or the bakery. I dunno – maybe he wanted to pick up a last-minute gift for Mari? Yeah, this isn't like him, but if he got a crazy idea in his head – especially if he thought it would impress baby girl here – you know he'd do it."

"He would not," Marinette argued, squirming to elbow his side. Dingo's sunglasses slid down his nose, and he raised his pierced eyebrow.

"Mari, mate, I love you, but this is Luka," he said. "I know you think he shits rainbows –"

"I do not!" she protested, ignoring Juleka and Brielle's snorts, but Dingo only flicked her nose in response.

"…but my boy is a fucking dumbass when he wants to be," he said. "He's a Couffaine. Probably the chillest Couffaine on this boat, but he's still a Couffaine. He's like…"

"…when Uncle Fester got amnesia and thought he was normal," Brielle said, snapping her fingers. Juleka actually smiled at that. It was probably the first time she'd smiled since Marinette had arrived – or all morning. "Just because he said his name was Gordon didn't mean Fester wasn't underneath. Luka seems chill, but he's still the Captain's son."

"Chaos streak a mile wide," Juleka sighed, "and it becomes a stupid streak when you're involved. So yeah, Mari, he would do something crazy if he thought you'd like it."

Marinette didn't want to agree with them – she wanted to think Luka was smarter than that. And yet…well. Luka had been suspended for getting Jagged Stone to help him serenade her during lunch. With pyrotechnics.

"Ok, fine, I get it…" Marinette sighed. Dingo grinned and shook her a little before letting her go. "Let's just go. The sooner we start the sooner we find him."

"Oooh, I like it," Dingo cackled. He jabbed his thumb at her, grinning at Brielle and Juleka. "Little Captain in training here. No wonder he's so stupid for her."

"Dingo…" Brielle said in warning, but Dingo threw his arm back around Marinette's shoulders and started to lead her towards the gangway.

"Look, baby girl, if this thing with Luka doesn't work out, and my thing with Bri doesn't work out –" he started.

"It won't at the rate you're going!" Brielle shouted after them.

"…I'm weak for a girl who takes charge," Dingo stage whispered, leaning close enough that she felt his breath on her ear. She shivered, but it wasn't the pleasant kind of shivering Luka caused. It was more…no. It was disgust. It was just disgust. "What's say you and me –"

"Ding, I love you, but finish that sentence and I will not be held responsible for what Luka does to you when we find him," Marinette bit. Dingo cackled and clapped a hand against her back, pushing her towards the sidewalk. She turned back to find the others weren't far behind them. "Wait – what about Rose?"

"Someone has to stay with the Captain," Brielle said. "They're going to hold the fort down here in case he comes back."

"Ro doesn't want to leave Ma alone," Juleka said. Marinette nodded. It made sense. There were six of them, including the Captain. Three teams made sense. The more feet on the ground, the more likely they were to find him. It would be easier to sneak away if all she had to worry about was ditching Dingo, anyway.

They travelled together for about a block, but when the street ran out the two pairs went their separate ways. Marinette continued to glance at her phone, hoping Dingo would think she was checking for any missed messages. She was really checking the time, trying to keep up in her head. If she could lose Dingo, Hannah and Geoff would be on their way to work by now. She could catch up with them at their office, and hopefully find the akuma there. That was where she had attacked them the day before, at least. All Marinette could do was hope she would be there again.

They made it about another block before Dingo stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. When she looked back at him, his eyebrows were furrowed over his shades.

"Go," he said, nodding towards the rooftops above them. Her eyes widened. She almost dropped her phone.

"W-what?" she stammered out. Dingo shoved his hands in his pockets.

"It makes more sense if we split up, mate," he said. His lips quirked in a wry little smile. "Cover more ground. At least that's what I'll tell Juleka if she calls. Or I run into her."

"Dingo, I don't understand," Marinette said, shaking her head. Dingo rolled his neck. He probably rolled his eyes, too.

"Right. I'm not as stupid as you all seem to think, you know," he sighed. He tipped his head back and stared at the sky. "I saw you, Mari. When I made that joke about Hawkmoth…I've got a feeling you have a better idea of where Luka is than you're letting on. So go find him and bring his ass home so I can kick it, yeah?"

"I haven't heard from him, Dingo," she said. She held up her phone, as if the lack of notifications on the lockscreen could prove anything. "Not since yesterday. I don't have any better idea than you do here."

"All due respect, Marinette, but that's utter bullshit and we both know it," he said. He removed his shades and breathed on them, fogging them up so he could wipe them clean with his shirt. Something to busy his hands and distract himself, giving him an excuse not to look at her. To let her make her escape. He was still smiling. "You know where he is. You know what trouble he's gotten himself into. And I have too much love and respect for both of you to say how I know, but we both know you're the only one who can get him out of it. So go do it."

"Dingo, I…" she choked out, but he looked up and smiled at her.

"He didn't say a word," he said, as if he already knew the spiral her mind was going down. "I told you. I'm not the idiot you all peg me for. You really think Lu would keep me around if I was? I don't even know if I'm right. I just…have a feeling. A hunch. And that feeling's telling me you need to go that way," he nodded towards the sky, "while I go that way. We'll cover more ground, and you'll bring him home."

She pressed her lips together. It was too much. She knew what he was saying, but she couldn't process it. She was used to Dingo being the jocular dumbass. She wasn't used to his serious side. To a Dingo who could be as perceptive as she knew Luka was.

…to a Dingo who might just know her secret.

But Dingo had a good poker face, and he wasn't giving anything away.

"He worries about you, you know," Dingo continued when she remained standing there, staring at him in a blind panic. He looked at his nails, picking at his thumb as Marinette continued to have a mini meltdown in front of him. She was pretty sure her brain was shutting down. "Thinks you take on too much. I mean, I know I haven't known you that long, but I get it. I can see it. You carry the world on your shoulders, Marinette. And I think I know why, but…"

He reached out again, clapping his hand on her shoulder. He leveled her with an entreating, serious stare, and for the strangest reason Marinette was reminded of the Hey scene from Into the Spiderverse. It was an odd thought to have in the moment, picturing Dingo as a Spiderman, and it was jarring enough that it shook her from her spiraling thoughts. Dingo's lips quirked in a smile when he realized he had her full attention.

"…you're not alone, Marinette," he said, squeezing her shoulder. He said it with such sincerity, such confidence. A lump swelled in her throat. "I know you feel like you have to be, and I get why, but you're not. We're here. Always will be. You're one of us now, yeah?"

She swallowed around the lump, and then she was throwing herself at Dingo. She hugged him hard enough that his laugh sounded a little choked, but his returning hug was just as fierce. She pulled away a moment later and nodded at him, smiling. Her eyes were burning, but she refused to cry. Even though she doubted the akuma was watching (or it was – she couldn't be sure anymore), she wouldn't give her that satisfaction.

"Bring him home," Dingo said. He shoved his hands into his pockets and rocked back on his feet. Marinette nodded, rubbing at her eyes.

"I will," she said, and then she was turning on her heel and running off towards Hannah's office, looking for an alley to transform in on her way.

– V –

Everything had gone so much easier in Marinette's head.

She had had a plan (sort of, at least vaguely), even if the akuma was starting to make her think plans were useless. In her mind, it would go perfectly. She would ditch Dingo (done, and easier than expected), and once she was far enough away she would transform and make her way to the building where Hannah and Geoff worked. Once there, she would find the akuma waiting. Viperion would be tied up behind her, like every cliché Villain Takes a Hostage scenario, and she would probably even trick her into monologuing. It would be too easy to break her pendant and capture the butterfly after that, and then they would be free. She'd take Viperion back to the Liberty, where the others would give him multiple pieces of their mind for disappearing like that. Juleka and Dingo would probably even make good on their threats to kick his ass. And even if he didn't deserve it – because it really hadn't been his fault (if anything it was hers) – it would all be ok, because once the others were done castrating him they would escape to his cabin, and then…well. She could think of a few ways she could make it up to him.

Easy. Simple. It was perfect.

…except when she got to the office, the akuma wasn't there. And while she could see Geoff in his window, Hannah wasn't in hers. She waited, pacing anxiously on the roof of the building across the street, but Hannah never showed up. From the amount of times she watched Geoff check his personal phone, even while on calls on the phone on his desk, it was probably safe to assume she wasn't there at all.

Ok. So that meant she needed to adjust her plan. If the akuma was fixated on Hannah, and thus staying close to Hannah, it made sense to reason the akuma would be where Hannah was. The only other place Ladybug could think of would be Hannah's flat. Before any more time could be wasted, she was off and running back to Rue de Bretagne. As soon as she got there, she hooked her yoyo onto the ledge of the roof, gave a great tug, and swung herself towards the corner window on the third floor.

The window shattered as she crashed into the glass. She tucked and rolled, protecting herself from the shards as best she could before leaping to her feet inside Hannah's flat. She had her yoyo at the ready, swinging it as soon as it zipped back to her side. The room…

The flat was dark.

It didn't look like anyone was home.

"Hannah!" she called out, but there was no reply. She cursed and turned, kicking at the corner of the sofa. That didn't really make her feel any better. It really only made her toes hurt.

A quick search of the flat confirmed her suspicions. Wherever Hannah was, it wasn't at the office, and it wasn't at home. The akuma wasn't there, either. Neither was Viperion.

"Let's see how well you do alone, little bug…"

But she wasn't alone. She had Luka. She had Juleka, and Rose, and Dingo, and Brielle, and the Captain. She had Chat, even if he was away. She had her parents, even if they didn't know what was going on. She had an entire Miracle Box and friends willing to step up and bear the Miraculous within behind her.

"You're one of us now…."

She was a Boat Kid now.

She was not alone.

And she was going to kick the akuma's ass once she found her for trying to make her think she was.

She was going to get Luka back.

She had to. She had made a promise.

– V –

Ladybug spent the rest of the afternoon scouring the city, and while she spotted Juleka and Brielle below her a few times she never found the akuma or Luka. She swung back to the office to trail Geoff during his lunch break, but that didn't prove very helpful, either. He went to a food truck and spent most of his break fiddling with his phone.

"Hey, Han," she heard him say. She was crouching behind an elaborate sign on an awning, hiding above the bench he had occupied to take his lunch. "Call me when you get this? You haven't answered your phone all morning. I'm getting worried. I…I wanted to talk to you about something. Call me? Pease?"

He sat on that bench for half an hour, his lunch untouched as he bounced between checking various social media apps, his text messages, and distracting himself with a word game. He finally got up to leave, tossing his uneaten lunch in a nearby bin, and Ladybug followed him back to his office. There was still no sign of Hannah. The akuma was still absent from the adjacent roofs.

She made one last loop of the city before she found herself crumbling in a heap on a rooftop. She doubled over, screaming as she pounded her fists against the zinc roofing beneath her.

"Where are you?!" she cried.

There was no answer.

She hadn't really been expecting one.

She pushed herself up and tipped her head back, glaring at the sky. The sun shone brightly above her, which wasn't fair. Bad things weren't supposed to happen on sunny days. Not finding the akuma or Luka was definitely a bad thing.

Familiar voices below her drew her attention to the street, and she saw Juleka and Brielle running up to a waving Dingo. They all looked as anxious as she felt. With a jolt, she realized she was on the roof of their café. Her stomach twisted inside her.

"Anything?" Juleka asked, and Dingo shook his head. Of course he hadn't found Luka. He'd entrusted her with that, and she had failed. She had failed them all.

"No," he said. Brielle's eyes narrowed as she looked around.

"Where's Marinette?" she asked. Dingo shrugged, and her eyes narrowed into a pointed glare. "Ding. Where is she?"

"We split up," Dingo said. "Figured we could cover more ground that way. She hasn't found him yet, though. We were gonna meet up here before heading back to the boat. Any luck on your end?"

"Does it look like we had any luck?" Juleka bit. His eyebrows soared, and she groaned before rubbing at her face. "Sorry. Just…damn it. Where the hell is he?"

"We'll find him," Dingo said. He sounded so much more confident than she felt. He reached out and clasped a hand on Juleka's shoulder. "Besides. We ran into Ladybug this morning. Got her in on the hunt, too. If anyone's going to find him, you know it'll be her."

"…Ladybug?" Brielle asked, frowning. "Was there an akuma?"

"Nah, not that she said," Dingo said with a shrug. "Probably just a standard patrol. Figured it couldn't hurt though, right?"

"Right…" Juleka mumbled. Ladybug's head dropped, her hand fisting at her side.

Somewhere out there, hiding somewhere in her beloved city, was an akuma. Somewhere her boyfriend – her teammate – was a prisoner of Hawkmoth. And she had done nothing to stop it. And now she couldn't even find them.

She had let everyone down.

…and Tikki had been right. Hawkmoth had Sass. She had let him down. She had let Tikki down.

She lifted her head as her friends continued to strategize below her. She blinked against the sun, her throat tightening as she felt the first tear roll down her cheek.

Expect it wasn't the sun she was blinking against.

It was that damned wall of light, rushing towards her yet again.