Flutter

Chapter 8

Heiress

Marinette had a hard time remembering exactly how she ended up sandwiched between Chloe and Nino in the small, unisex single toilet bathroom. Chloe held her hair back while Nino explained to her what was going on. It took too long to realize that Marinette was hacking into the toilet, a gruesome mixture of blood and the poison sprinkling the seat and floating atop the water. With a few more shuddering gasps, she sat up straight, batting Chloe's gentle hands away from her neck.

"Get away from me!" she growled, wild and rabid, like a feral cat. She hastily crab walked over to the corner of the bathroom, pressing herself against the cool, cement walls as much as possible. "When did I get here?" She locked eyes with Nino, who she trusted more than Chloe. "What's going on?"

"You don't remember?" Nino asked, shock coloring his voice, though he had a handle on his expression, which remained calm.

"No," the word was a sharp hiss of air.

"How can you not—" Chloe started in that tone that made Marinette want to throw a rock at her.

"Chloe, chill," Nino put a hand on her shoulder before moving slowly towards Marinette. He was treating her like a wounded animal. "You called out for me when Chloe was helping you. She brought you here and grabbed me from class. You've been…purging the poison for almost fifteen minutes now."

Marinette shuddered, stinging sweat bubbling across her skin. She needed to get it off, though that wasn't the issue at the top of her mind. She glared daggers at Chloe, shuddering in tight breaths. "You know."

"I do," Chloe's tone softened, her eyes painted with pity. Pity. From Chloe, of all people. Marinette must have really been fucked up.

"It's on me," Marinette wheezed, flicking her attention back to Nino. His eyes widened, anxious teeth worrying his bottom lip. "I need it off."

"Ok. Ok. Your parents are home…my mom has been working from home lately…"

"The locker rooms?" Chloe suggested.

"Gym class," Nino explained.

"I…grab her, and follow me," Chloe sighed the words, as if she really didn't want to do what she was about to.

Nino made his way towards Marinette, who pushed herself further back out of instinct. "I'm going to help, ok?" he cooed. "Chloe and I are going to help you. I promise."

Marinette finally relaxed a little, nodding quickly and letting Nino scoop her up. She wheezed, her vision going black from the pain shooting up and down her limbs. "Shit shit, fuck this hurts, Nino. Nino it hurts."

"I know," Nino's words were strained as she felt him walk her out of the bathroom. "Just hold on, ok? We'll take care of you. I promise."

Marinette opened her mouth to say something else, only to be cut off by a burning pain that radiated across her entire form. Her mind went blank, body falling limp as all other stimuli was shut off.

When Marinette came to again, she was bundled tightly in a cocoon of blankets. Her hair had been tied back at one point, and she was in a set of soft pajamas. Blinking her eyes open, she cringed back against the sunlight streaming in through the microwave sized window. She turned away, holding a shaking hand against her pounding head.

"Ugh," she moaned, "where am I?"

She wasn't expecting a response, so when someone who sounded suspiciously like Chloe began to speak, it made Marinette jump out of her skin. "You're safe, Ladybug."

Marinette sat up straight, ignoring the pain that flared through her and looking around the room with wild eyes. As soon as her gaze landed on Chloe, the blonde raised her hands in surrender, clearly something she'd picked up from Nino. "It's just me."

"Just you," Marinette spat, swinging her legs over the side of the bed and trying to stand. Upon putting a fraction of her weight on her legs, she nearly toppled over, Chloe catching her just before she hit the floor.

"Ladybug!"

"Stop calling me that!" Marinette's words were as sharp as the pain shooting into her chest. "You're not supposed to call me that."

Chloe deposited Marinette back on the bed, taking a few steps back and hanging her head. "I'm sorry, La— Marinette. It's just…I've always wanted to help Ladybug, you know? Even when she…when you stood up to me, you were still a hero. I guess I just want to be a part of that."

Her sincerity shocked Marinette, her brows furrowing. "You want to help me?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

Marinette didn't know whether to be flattered or offended. On one hand, Chloe was helping her. She'd brought her…somewhere safe, and she must have been the one to help clean her up and get her changed. But she was also doing it for Ladybug, not for Marinette — that much was clear. The real question was, was she trustworthy? Could Marinette really put her secrets in the hands of a spoiled rotten heiress? With a shudder, she realized she didn't have a choice anymore. The cat was out of the bag.

"Where am I?" Marinette asked after a few moments, causing Chloe to look away quickly.

"Sabrina's apartment. Or her parents', I guess. She gave me a key, like, a year ago. Just in case, you know?" Chloe explained.

Marinette nodded in response, considering her next words carefully. "You can't tell anyone. Not Sabrina. Not Antoni. No one."

Chloe's attention snapped to Marinette, blue eyes turning icy. "How do you know about Antoni?"

She realized what she'd said too late, looking away to avoid the frigid glare. "I was patrolling, and I saw you. And his friends, I'm guessing."

Chloe sighed, drawing Marinette's attention back to her. "Ok. Well, don't worry about Antoni. We don't talk that often, so it shouldn't be a problem."

The heroine wanted to ask more about the relationship, though she didn't know if it was her place. After all, she wasn't even supposed to know about the older man. Deciding to come back to the topic at a later date, she leaned back against the plush pillows behind her. "And Sabrina?"

"She'll be harder to keep a secret from. We tell each other everything." Chloe sounded so sad as she spoke, her gulp a swallow of rocks. "I'll try my best, though."

Marinette nodded, letting her eyes close for a few moments. "Where is Nino?"

"He went back to school. He's gonna bring you and I the assignments we're missinf, and then the three of us are going to have a conversation."

"About what?"

Chloe laughed — the kind of cold, empty laugh that she gave when she was annoyed. "You can't seriously…Marinette, you're throwing up poison. We have to figure this out."

Marinette stared at her in surprise, trying to lift her jaw off the floor. "Why do we have to figure this out? It's my problem."

"No it's not. You're dying because you're protecting us. You shouldn't have to deal with this alone."

"But Chat—"

"Doesn't know you behind the mask," Chloe's tone took on a protective edge. "Besides, that dumb cat would probably mess things up worse. Best you leave him out of it."

Marinette's blood boiled, the pain fleeing from her bones to make room for the onslaught of emotion. "Chat does not mess things up. He's the best partner I could ever have — I'm not cutting him out of this."

"But—"

"Look, this is my problem, so either we work on my terms, or you get the fuck out of my life."

Chloe raised her brows at Marinette, chuckling lightly. "Wow, this stuff's giving you an attitude, huh?"

Marinette froze, the anger dripping from her mind, immediately replaced by the throbbing, shooting pain. Chloe was right. Marinette hadn't been able to control her emotions since the poison had gotten worse. She'd just thought she was stressed, but the ever present — unless she was over emotional — pain begged to differ. Something else was going on here, and she had a bad feeling about it.

"I guess it is…"

"Wait, you didn't realize that?" Chloe snorted now, earning a sharp glare from Marinette. "Sorry, jeez. It must be bad. You only ever lose your temper when I push you too hard."

Marinette pinched the bridge of her nose. "Could we please not talk about you shitting on me?"

"Well, sure. I'm not gonna mess with you anymore, you know."

Marinette snapped her eyes open. "You won't?"

"Of course not. Nino and I are the only people who know what's going on, and we're going to help you. For all the times you've helped us."

The sentiment was almost enough to make Marinette cry, though she didn't know how much the poison was adding to her emotions. "Thank you."

Chloe nodded tightly, as if showing the small amount of compassion she'd displayed was difficult. "Of course."

By the time Nino got back, Marinette had eaten as much as she could, which was about a quarter of what she usually had for lunch, and managed to keep it down. Chloe had brushed and braided her hair — a complex series of loops and knots that looked like something someone would wear to prom.

"Where did you learn to do hair like that?" she had asked.

"My mother," Chloe's answer had sounded so bitter that she didn't dare press for more information.

After letting Marinette change into the spare set of clothes Chloe kept at Sabrina's, the heiress talked with Tikki, asking a series of questions, when Nino came into the small apartment.

"Sorry it took so long. Alya and Adrien…" Nino shuddered and tensed up, like there was something he wanted to tell Marinette, but his uncertain gaze towards Chloe gave away that she made him nervous. "Anyways, I've got the homework. Did everything go alright here?"

"Yeah," Chloe looked between Nino and Marinette skeptically, having picked up on the silent glances they were sending one another. "I got her cleaned up, and talked to Tikki for a bit, so things are ok."

"Good," Nino sighed in relief, setting his bag down and taking a seat on Sabrina's green-sheeted bed next to Marinette. "And you're feeling better?"

"Of course," Marinette bumped his shoulder with her own. "No need to worry about me, mom."

"Woah now, that's offensive to your mother," Nino joked, ruffling Marinette's meticulously done hair.

"Hey!" both Chloe and Marinette screeched at the same time, Nino cracking up in response.

"Wow, Chloe and Marinette? Agreeing on something? Now that's unheard of."

"I always agree with Ladybug," Chloe interjected, causing a scowl to fall onto Marinette's lips.

"Ok, so that needs to stop," Marinette managed not to yell the words in spite of her growing frustration.

"What?"

"They whole calling me Ladybug thing. If you're going to help Ladybug, than means you're helping me, too. Ok?"

Chloe paused for a second before crossing her arms in front of her. "You don't think I know that?"

"Well you're not acting like you do," Marinette rose to her feet, the anger quickly replacing her pain. Oh no.

"Look, this is, like, brand fucking new to me," Chloe spat, causing Marinette's anger to flare.

"I don't give a shit!"

"Like hell I care about what you think, Marinette!"

"Oh, now that you're angry, you can call me by my name. But when you like me, it has to be Ladybug? What the hell?!"

"Woah, there," Nino stepped in between the two girls, holding his hands up on either side of him to add to thee distance between them.

"Stay out of it, Nino!" they both snapped at the same time, continuing to glare at one another.

"Look, Marinette, why don't I walk you home, then," Nino grabbed the bluenette's arm, pulling her away from Chloe.

After shooting Chloe another hard glance, Marinette finally nodded, focusing her attention back on Nino. "Ok. But I swear to god that if she tells one soul—"

"I won't," some of the edge fell from Chloe's voice. "I promise."

"Whatever," Marinette mumbled, letting Nino drag her out of Sabrina's room and out of the apartment.

Hey all! What do you think?

Thank you so much for you well wishes concerning my dog - it really does mean so much.

Also! Chloe's involvement? How do y'all feel? She's taking it kinda better than Nino, but...well, you'll see what happens ;)

Anyways, thank you so so much to those of you who review, favorite, and follow! It means the world!

Until Saturday,

~Ashtyn