Disclaimer: I do not own Miraculous Ladybug or it's characters.
Chapter 8,
Turns out the roof Adrien had jumped unto was Le Grand Paris Hotel. He knew he had to get Tikki some food, and so he just had to find his way to the kitchen without getting caught. Everyone in Paris was going after Adrien and Lady Noir. It wasn't safe to be out in the open for too long.
"How you doing Tikki?" Adrien whispered and he had Tikki in his hands.
"I'm fine, I just need to fuel up." Tikki whispered back and Adrien nodded. Adrien was going down the stairwell he found on the roof. Most people use the elevator, so in the staircase, Adrien only had to avoid the occasional mask.
"Finally. This is the floor with the kitchen." Adrien said.
"Tread lightly, Adrien." Tikki said and she flew into Adrien's jacket, to help Adrien focus. Adrien took a deep breath and slowly cracked open the door. He saw a few masks on the floor and the wall, but otherwise nothing unusual. He could hear some chatter down the hall, coming from the kitchen. Adrien was about to step into the hall when the kitchen door burst open. Adrien backed up, and kept the door cracked so he could hear and see some faces that came out, but he wasn't sure who they were because he only saw them for half a second.
"My daughter is so obsessed with that blog on Ladybug, and that stupid Cat Noir keep getting in the way of my daughters glory." A woman said.
"You kidding? My daughter wants to be a famous fashion designer, but with that Adrien Agreste kid gets all of the attention. He models a hat that she made and Everyone remembers his name instead of my daughter." A tall male said.
"You think that's bad. My daughter told Cat Noir to assist her in a project and he abandoned her. Not only that, but my daughter arranged for a fashion show with her and Adrien later today, and he told her to 'grow up'." That last voice sounded like Mayor Bourgeois. They all got on the elevator and Adrien sighed, and then he dashed to the kitchen. Seeing no one he went over and locked all of the doors. Once he felt safe, he set Tikki on the counter and took a deep breath.
"You don't eat Camembert, right? You have a sweet tooth?" Adrien asked and Tikki nodded.
"Yes, that's true, but you need to get back out and fight, so anything will do." Tikki said and Adrien blinked.
"You sure are better then Plagg is. He basically refuses to eat anything but Camembert." Adrien said and he walked over to the fridge. He quickly found a plate of macaroons. He pulled it out and handed the plate to Tikki.
"I haven't really seen people put these in the fridge, but here you go Tikki." Adrien said, not really wanting to question it. Tikki took a bite of food.
"Some people do that to make it last longer, others do that to cool the food down before serving." Tikki explained and Adrien hopped up in the silver table and sat down.
"I just don't get it." Adrien muttered.
"A fridge is a neutral way of lowering temperatures in food." Tikki said and Adrien shook his head at her.
"No, no, not that. Masquerade said that she couldn't remember her friends and family. But she remembers me, because she is mad at me? I just don't get it. How can she remember one and not the other?" Adrien asked and Tikki paused.
"I think I have the answer, but I am unsure of how you will take it." Tikki said and Adrien looked at her.
"As strange as all of this is for me, Tikki, Ladybug and I could use this experience to better understand Hawk Moth and how he picks his victims... so... Even if... I don't like the answer... I think that I still need to know the truth. So please, Tikki, tell me what happened to my Ladybug." Adrien said and Tikki was silently chewing for a moment as she thought about what she was going to say.
"You hurt Ladybug, and she was upset, and her negative emotions caused her to be Akumatized." Tikki said slowly and Adrien paused.
"I hurt... I... I'm the reason Ladybug changed?" Adrien asked and Tikki looked away before she nodded.
"Yes, Adrien. And because her emotions towards you are the reason she changed, that's the emotion that Hawk Moth is fueling back to Ladybug. And because of that, she is losing the rest of her memories." Tikki said and Adrien threw his head back until it hit the metal table with a loud bang.
"AGH! I am such an idiot!" Adrien shouted and Tikki hoped no one heard that, even if the doors were locked.
"You're not an idiot, Adrien." Tikki said.
"Yes, I am Tikki." Adrien groaned and he placed a hand on his forehead.
"Plagg was right. I let my feelings for Ladybug get in the way of everything else. I was really, really mean to the people I really care about." Adrien said and Tikki sighed.
"I'm sure that your friends will forgive you. But that is a problem you can deal with later." Tikki said and Adrien sat up.
"I know, now I have to focus on Masquerade, and she has turned the whole city into her mask-wearing followers." Adrien said and Tikki grabbed another macaroon.
"What do you think we should do?" Tikki asked.
"I mean, I guess I could get the masks wet. I noticed upstairs that the masks dissolve in water." Adrien said and Tikki nodded.
"Makes sense. Most masks are made out of paper or cardboard, so water would be a natural enemy." Tikki said.
"Well, I suppose I could get a fire hose and free the Parisians with a fire truck." Adrien said.
"But what if Masquerade throws a mask at the hose or the truck? She made a metal fence come alive and attack you." Tikki pointed out and Adrien blinked.
"Well, what if I go around and I break the fire hydrants?" Adrien asked and Tikki shook her head.
"I don't think so, Adrien. That would take quite a long time, and Masquerade could always send out a second wave of masks." Tikki pointed out and Adrien grunted.
" then I guess I'll do as Ladybug does and take out the source." Adrien said and he stood up.
"Do you know what you're going to do?" Tikki asked.
"Whose in there!" Someone yelled as they punched the door.
"I'll need to lure her to water somehow. If the duplicate masks are made out of paper, then hers should be too." Adrien said and Tikki took a final bite of macaroon and flew into the air.
"I'm charged, but how will you lure her without a partner?" Tikki said and Adrien sighed.
"Perhaps I could free one person. Someone who is completely mellow, without a grudge on Adrien or Cat Noir. And someone who could get the attention of all of Paris." Adrien said and he unlocked the second door, but saw people rushing towards his so he closed the door again and quickly relocked it.
"Do you know anyone like that?" Tikki asked and Adrien looked around for another exit
"Nino would get nervous, Alya would probably have a secret grudge I don't know about and... hm... there might be one person. He is a new friend of mine, so I don't really know much about him." Adrien said as more people banged on the door.
"Someone get the key Adrien is in there!" Someone shouted and Adrien dove into the dumbwaiter.
"Seems like it's my only shot to get Masquerade's Akuma and save Ladybug." Adrien said and Tikki shut the dumbwaiter seat before the doors threw open.
"Sounds like something Ladybug would do. I support you." Tikki said and Adrien hoped that he was right.