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Chapter Two: Out of reach.
"Marinette, is that you?"
He must be delirious from the anesthesia. It's impossible otherwise. Unless… all this is actually a bad dream. Yes, that's what it has to be: a nightmare. Hence the presence of Marinette, in an attempt to soothe himself. His subconscious is trying to end the nightmare with the first sweet thing he can think of, so who else but the meek Marinette? If he thinks hard enough about her, he's going to wake up soon—there's no doubt about it.
"It's me! Oh my god, I can't believe it's you, Adrien."
No, it can't be… the sweet Marinette can't be trapped here with him, right?"
It's just a dream. Just a freaky bad dream. He keeps repeating this to himself like a mantra.
"Are you okay?"
Adrien closes his eyes, his eyelids firmly sealed. He needs to wake up right now because there's no way Marinette is trapped in this labyrinth-way to hell with him.
"Adrien?!"
No, no, no!
"Ouch!" Adrien jerks at the onslaught coming from his kwami as the little rascal fiercely pulls on his ear before pinching his cheek.
"It's not one of your fantasies. Get back on earth, pigtails needs you!" Plagg hisses in his ear.
"Adrien, please answer me. Is everything okay?"
Adrien pinches himself once more, the prick palpable, and he realizes that Plagg is right. Placing both palms of his hands against the mirror in front of him, he leans in, bringing his face closer to the glass.
"Uh, sorry… I thought I was imagining your presence here."
"I'm real," she says. "Unfortunately, this is real. We've both been trapped here by who-knows-what insane akuma." Her voice sounds very close now that he's nuzzling his nose against the glass. Almost as if she's doing the same on the other side to get closer to him and… wait.
"An akuma? How do you know that?" Adrien inquires, raising a brow as his reflection imitates his questioning look.
"Uh… wild guess?" she replies. "I mean, they had to carry our sleeping bodies here, the mirrors move by themselves, and it also seems that no matter which way I go, I'm back to square one; I've already tried a few times," she explains. "This can only be magical stuff, right? It's not like we're in a movie."
Adrien hums and looks up, glaring at one of the cameras hovering above his head. "Hopefully not. I'm definitely not up for a SAW remake," he muses out loud.
"Adrien!" Marinette yelps. "Don't say things like that!" she pleads, her voice sounding a little out of breath.
He reaches for the nape of his neck, rubbing it awkwardly. Well, yes, it's not smooth of him, but joking around is his subconscious way of releasing some of the tension currently coalescing inside of him.
"I'm sorry; I'm not good company in stressful situations," says Adrien, apologizing for his tactlessness. "I tend to joke to lighten the mood and I know for a fact it can be pretty unnerving."
"It's okay," she reassures. "I'm used to such behavior. The boy I like tends to do that too."
"T-the b-boy you… like?" Adrien gulps, his hands fisting against the glass as he glares at his own reflection.
"I did say that out loud, didn't I?"
"It's okay," Adrien whispers. His fists tighten even more, his nails leaving a fair mark in his flesh.
At least that Buttercup has some humor.
"Marinette, are you back?" Adrien asks after they both agreed to try to find a way to each other about an hour ago—to no avail.
"I am," she whispers breathlessly. It sounds like her breath is coming out in erratic, short puffs as if she's just run a marathon—which is quite impossible between all the lanes and walls of mirrors standing between them.
"It looks like you've been going around in circles too." He has also experienced the same failures a couple of times—always back to square one. Although, he's not out of breath at the end of his journey through the labyrinth. "Are you sure everything's okay?"
"Sure," she breathes out.
Yet, her answer doesn't sit quite right with the catch in her voice.
"Marinette Dupain-Cheng, are you actually lying to me?"
He hears a faint groan on the other side.
"Maybe. Listen, I think it's just a reaction to the anesthesia. I'm slightly out of breath; it's not a big deal. Don't worry about it. I'll be fine."
"Fuck!" he hisses before pursing his lips in a cringe grimace. "Sorry… I'm not usually one to swear but I do think you need a checkup, Marinette." His voice conveys so much worry; it's enough to bring his anxiety back and make him swear again. "Damn it. What the fuck's Ladybug doing!" Both his hands come to cradle his face and he has to resist the urge to pull on his hair.
"And Chat Noir," Marinette supplements in a sigh.
Adrien looks up at his clenched fist, staring at the silver band adorning his ring finger. Well… the cat themed hero is already here actually—not that she knows and not that he's useful anyway. Fidgeting and twirling his Miraculous around his finger, he lets out an exasperated groan. There's no way he can do that, not yet. If an akuma is truly involved, jeopardizing his identity will only be their very last resort.
Until then, if they have a chance to get out of here, it will be all on Ladybug's luck.
"How did it happen for you? I mean… before you ended up stuck here."
Marinette's sudden question after a pretty long silence spent waiting for their fate startles him, his whole body jerking at the sound of her voice. Leaning back, he throws his head against the mirror and slightly tilts it, his face turning toward her supposed position just behind the thick glass.
"I was leaving my fencing practice. I was the last one still in the locker room. That's all I remember. After that, I was in a complete blackout before I woke up here. What about you?"
"I didn't see it coming either. I was watering the flowers on my balcony and suddenly I felt a tangible sting on my shoulder. I thought it was a wasp but then… nil."
"On your balcony?" he gasps. "Okay, this is not a coincidence, you were clearly targeted and whoever kidnapped us wanted to have both you and me. But it makes no sense, why would an akumatized villain want us?" He scratches his head, the thought really hitting him for the first time since he woke up here.
"Well, you're rich. Maybe the new Papillon needs money…"
He swears Marinette just banged her head against the mirror separating them. If he closes his eyes and focuses hard enough, he can make out the color of her flushed face and the fluttering of her eyelids as her eyes widen. It's so similar to the Marinette he knew during the first year of their friendship, when she kept acting a little awkward around him. The memory soothes him and brings him a sense of familiarity until the face he pictures turns into The Bride in Black, all sallow and wrinkled to the bone—thank you spine-chilling melody for ruining his reverie.
"Uh… sorry!" she shrieks. "It came out all wrong! I tried to joke but it's obviously not my strong point."
"Ahah, it's okay, Marinette. I think you're one of the funniest girls I know and the ransom idea was pretty good, even though that actually would have been easier. I'd have given everything I have just to know you're safe and out of here." The longing in his voice is so evident that one could have probably been able to actually touch and burst that bubble of daydreaming with a fingertip.
"T-that w-we are safe here… I mean… out of here," she corrects him, "the t-two of u-us." That cute stutter of her is back in full force and he can't help but smile before she resumes with more aplomb, "I won't get out of this freaking labyrinth without you."
"You won't: it's you and me against the labyrinth, Marinette."
Next thing he hears coming from Marinette's side is a rather loud bang, followed by a swear… in Chinese—it sounds like she has practiced it over the years.
"You alright, Marinette?!" He immediately worries.
"Peachy!" she squeaks. "I just head my bang…" she squeaks again before coughing and clearing her throat. "I just banged my head against the mirror. I'm fine."
"I know you're hard-headed but that thick skull of yours won't break the mirror that way, you know," Adrien chuckles but his hearty laugh instantly dies in his throat when the light suddenly goes out throughout the labyrinth.
It only lasts a few seconds, but it's enough for Marinette to cry out and for Adrien's breath to suddenly be held captive inside of his burning lungs. Then the light goes on again, and he realizes that the mirrors around him are now all adorned with words written in red lipstick.
«Out of reach»
Three words. Not more. Not less.
It utterly confuses Adrien, until he eventually spins around, and sees Marinette appear through one of the mirrors. At a neck breaking speed, he runs toward her, only for him to be abruptly stopped by a hard, cold surface made of transparent glass.
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See you next Saturday. Miraculous Kisses!