Cliff hanger is resolved! Hope everyone out there is staying healthy and not panicking. Good news is I now have two weeks off to relax and catch up on my writing! Looking at that silver lining... Be safe people!
frustration... Thank you so much! I certainly hope my writing has improved at least a little! 300,000+ words will do that to ya!
Scrumblenut... There are some other things going on but that for our peeps to discover later...
(Slow Burn Detective AU!) Marinette is used to working alone on the streets of Paris as she strives to take down the Hawkmoth gang. When the thief Chat Noir comes crashing into her life things are bound to get magical, especially when co-detective Adrien returns to Paris and seems to want to be her new partner. Will their fated partnership end in a capture or a kiss?
Fighting Back
Chat scooped Marinette up the second they hit the deeper shadows and launched them to the rooftops once more. The sounds of fighting were already echoing through the night, proof that some people hadn't been able to fall back to the Hub in time. Unfortunately, they didn't have time to break off and seek out every fight that was going on around them; which made Marinette grateful that she didn't hear screams or gunshots accompanying the racket. While she was worried about those people she also knew that the individuals that ran this far out were usually the fittest and the most daring. Unless they were ambushed before the alarm sounded most of the runners should be able to outrun any thuggish Hawkmoth member that attacked. For the most part everyone appeared to have taken the alarm to heart so they didn't actually see any more people until they arrived at the Main Hub a few minutes later. Hitting the edges of the last lower rooftops they were able to see the fighters breaking apart as the Watchers fell back to the doors of the Hub. It was obvious they were outnumbered by the pack of thuggish looking Hawkmoth members and since they had made a retreat to the doors Marinette knew they were in trouble. One Watcher slipped inside as she watched, possibly to warn those within to start the escape out the back.
"Chat I need you to check the escape route out the back of the Hub and make sure it's totally clear. If it's not, clear it out and try not to scare any Watchers protecting the area." Marinette hissed, looking for the best way down into the courtyard. She could jump from this height but she would land to the side and have to make her way to the center. Landing to the side put her at a disadvantage for throwing her weapon and if she had to run for the middle it would take more time; giving the Hawkmoth members an advantage when attacking. Marinette needed a better angle and she glanced at Chat wondering if he would be willing to drop her into the center of the yard.
"You seriously want me to leave you here to fight these guys alone?" Chat demanded in disbelief.
Marinette pursed her lips. "Actually I want you to drop me into the center of the yard since the Hawkmoth members are being kind enough to give the Watchers a second to regroup. The fighting should halt for a minute since a person dropping out of the sky is a little terrifying. Just be quick."
Chat made a low snarling sound, "How about I go down there and take out the goons while you go check the escape route?"
One of the Hawkmoth members pulled out a gun raising the weapon so it was level with the group of Watchers and Marinette slung her manriki so that it wrapped around his arm with a snapping sound. Without thinking Chat reached over and hauled back on the line with Marinette, jerking the now screeching man sideways through two others before slamming him into the wall below them. Heads jerked up, locating their position as the man below slumped to the ground unconscious.
"I don't care but we need to move now! Choose!" Marinette snapped taking a few steps back from the edge as she reclaimed her chain.
Still making a snarling sound in the back of his throat Chat grouched, "I'll drop you dead center and be back in two minutes. Do not get shot while I am gone."
Marinette kissed his cheek as he snatched her up. "No promises." She chuckled then fell from his grasp as he leaped through the air.
It probably would have been smarter to let him drop down to the courtyard with her before taking off again but Marinette needed him to check the escape route to make sure it was actually safe. As it was the drop was a paltry 12 feet and Marinette did a swift tumble to bleed off the impact; even though it hadn't hurt a bit. Sometimes a landing from that height could sting a bit but Marinette didn't even really notice the impact. It was like her body was becoming more resilient to impacts in the same way it was becoming stronger so she could jump farther and move faster. Drawing upright Marinette snapped her chains out, not even giving the surprised thugs time to recover. Two more men went down as her weights collided with their skulls and the remaining men bunched together one of them snapping "Who the hell are you?!"
"A protector." Marinette snarled, knowing that saying her name would only encourage these idiots to attack further. "Get the hell out of here now or end up broken like your buddies."
At least three of the thugs before her flinched back, but they didn't turn tail and run like she had hoped.
"You're outnumbered." The talkative thug snapped, and Marinette smiled as she heard the Watchers stir behind her.
"Oh I don't know, I rather like my odds." Marinette chuckled flicking her chains so the weights flew back into her hands.
The thug sneered at Marinette even as he shifted nervously, "Hawkmoth members in the crowd it's time to show your loyalty! Attack and we won't kill you along with the rest of these idiots!"
Marinette tensed, that could be a problem since some people might actually take the offer. After all there was no guarantee that the Watchers would win this fight. Bad odds and less than superior weapons made this fight hard enough. If anyone switched sides in this attack the Watchers might actually suffer casualties. For a long moment no one moved, nor breathed, until suddenly a voice from behind Marinette answered, "No. We will not attack innocents. There is no gang turf to defend or take here, nor are there enough enemies congregated to warrant such an attack. Hawkmoth has gone mad if he truly ordered this."
Relief made Marinette grin even as she rolled her shoulders. From the stormy looks on the thugs faces they clearly didn't like that answer and before she could say anything the talkative thug demanded, "So you stand with this scum?"
"We do." Several voices chorused.
"Fine then, what's another body or two." The talkative thug sneered as he reached into his waistband and pulled out a gun.
Several nervous murmurs echoed at the sight of the weapon, and as if it were a cue a few of the other thugs pulled out guns as well.
"Not happening, these people stand with honor. Maybe you should try it sometime." Marinette snapped whipping her chain out so the weight slapped the gun sideways, making the thug yelp and drop the weapon.
Marinette was already on the move before the guy could even think, her other weight snaking around a second thug's legs. The unfortunate man had a split second to glance down in confusion before Marinette yanked them out from under him a moment later. His gun went off as he slammed into the ground but the bullet ricocheted harmlessly off into the darkness. No one else had the chance to even try shooting at Marinette before she was close enough to dive into their ranks. Someone in the group cursed in alarm since she had just rendered their guns useless, unless they wanted to risk hitting their own people. Marinette knew that some of these idiots might just try for the hell of it so she decided to take them out as fast as possible.
"Back her up!" Kim yelled, awe in his voice. His call spurred the others into action and the sound of pounding feet echoed in the Courtyard as he led the Watchers renewed attack.
Marinette hardly paid any attention to the Watchers at her back as she spun a foot out to crack it across a thug's jaw. Tossing her chain out as the man dropped she blocked a blow to her ribs with her arm as her chain snagged around another man's neck. Yanking savagely on the line, Marinette twisted out of the way of a knife aimed at her throat and tossed the guy on the end of her chain at the knife wielder. They went down in a tangle of limbs and Marinette leaped into the air; her foot connecting with a third idiot's temple. As they dropped the other thugs from Hawkmoth seemed to pause for a long moment as they reevaluated their life choices. Two broke and ran only to be taken out by a black shadow and a flash of silver. Grinning, Marinette settled herself into a fighting stance, her weights in hand.
"Still standing…" Marinette taunted making multiple thugs frown down at her.
Before any of them could say a word, Chat hit them from behind and Marinette went on the attack again with the Watchers close by at her back. The Watchers were reinvigorated by Marinette's successful attacks and Chat was careful to stick near the edges of the fighting in case a Watcher didn't recognise him as friendly. Many of the attacking Hawkmoth members were in either dark purple or straight black clothes and Chat didn't want to take the chance. Marinette lost sight of him more than once and near the end of the fight she ended up back to back with Kim who sported a bloody nose.
"Max is going to kill you for that." Marinette hummed blocking a punch that had been aimed at Kim. Marinette twisted the man's arm in an attempt to pin him but the man jerked the wrong way. Feeling the bone snap she released him in surprise as he buckled over his arm with a gasp of pain. She hadn't meant to break the guys arm but even still the guy wasn't smart enough to give up. As the man tried to stand upright again Kim brought a hammer like blow down on the back of the guys neck, dropping him to his knees, and Marinette delivered a swift kick to his face sending him flying onto his back where he remained.
Kim swiped at his face wincing as he brushed his nose a little too hard. "Damn Marinette, I think you become a more vicious fighter every time I see you in action. How many guys is that?"
Marinette rolled her eyes as the last few conscious members of the attacking group finally surrendered. "I stopped counting and don't change the subject."
Kim shrugged and winced, "It's not broken, tweaked my shoulder though. Do you know if the escape route is clear?"
"It should be." Marinette answered, throwing her chain a final time to trip up a thug who had tried to run while everyone's attention was somewhere else. Chat pounced on him from the shadows then tossed him back into the courtyard. The fight was over with all the Hawkmoth members who had attacked the zone lying either passed out or groaning in pain on the ground. Retracting her chains fully Marinette came up out of her fighting stance; breathing even and calm.
Kim swallowed while glancing to the side almost nervously, his breathing ragged, "Yeah well, I'm going to go check up on Alex. I hate clean-up."
Patting her shoulder with a strained grin Kim started moving away, all the while keeping an eye on the shadows. Marinette followed his line of sight and realized that Kim's sudden nervousness was probably due to Chat slinking closer rather than anything she had done. At least she hoped that it was Chats presence rather than her fighting ability that had him nervous. This was the first time Marinette had really fought with her chains in the presence of most of the Watchers. With her added speed and strength Marinette wouldn't be surprised if many of them would be wary of her now. Some of them were already sending her shifty looks although again, it might have been due to Chat coming over. With a bit of a sigh Marinette crooked her head, inviting Chat to her side. Noting the movement he slunk over, keeping his body language relaxed since everyone left standing in the courtyard area was wound tighter than a grenade about to blow.
"Soooo… Hawkmoth seems rather pissy this evening. Who tweaked their nose?" Chat asked ironically as he moved to Marinette's side.
Marinette put her hands on her hips, grimacing a little since she knew she had to act as if she didn't want to check him over for injuries and kiss the daylights out of him. Before she could speak and possibly say something inappropriate or sarcastic someone answered for her.
"These thugs are not what Hawkmoth should be. We were more."
Chat turned to the voice that had come from a girl with a green pixie haircut. The purple butterfly in her hair told him that she should have been on the ground unconscious instead of standing there with bloody knuckles. The very fact that she wore Hawkmoth's symbol made Chat wary, even if she had fought against her own gang to protect the innocents in the building at their backs.
"Then you have leadership issues because I can see several fighters here who are supposed to be Hawkmoth and yet you didn't switch sides." Chat snapped his tone far harsher than usual.
The girl nodded once glancing around at the others, "Mime was right. It's time to get out of dodge. Marinette can you let us get a head start? We will need time to send out warnings before people are killed."
Marinette nodded once. "Run, I'll give the all clear to those inside. Kim just went in there anyways."
The girl and several others took off without another word as they tried to get ahead of the storm that was about to break over them. This was a major attack on a safe zone and it made Marinette wonder just how many people had followed these insane orders. No matter how many people Hawkmoth poured into this attack someone would survive to tell about it. There were too many runners, too many fighters to contain and unless this whole attack was a ruse to cover up something else she couldn't understand why Hawkmoth would even pull this. Attacking a safe zone essentially painted a target on the back of every known Hawkmoth gang member which was why the girl had asked for a head start. There would be no where those members could go other than their own territory that would be considered safe. Even in their own territories it wouldn't be safe for much longer. The Hawkmoth gang had essentially called down on their members a free for all and the other gangs would be all too happy to claim a piece of them.
Worried about what this attack would mean for her city Marinette didn't notice as Chat suddenly went stiff beside her. "Marinette?"
Hearing the oddly stressed tone Marinette glanced up at him. "What Chat?"
"Mime sent out the alarm right? What's the protocol for a Watcher once an alarm is sent out?"
"Watchers move to negate the threat or fall back to protect those who need it." Marinette answered, confusion coloring her features before alarm suddenly took over. A curse flew from her lips as she bolted past Chat, snagged the door, and wrenched it open to disappear inside. Several of the fighters in the courtyard flinched back at Marinette's sudden unnatural speed, and Chat had to force himself not to follow. He did not want people comparing their speeds, besides he had a feeling that they would be taking off again in just a minute.
Inside Marinette startled two people as she flew past them but she didn't have the time to say sorry. "Alex! Where is Mime? Did he check in?" Marinette shouted into the tense silence the second she made it to the edge of the banister.
Numerous faces glanced up at her, but Alex answered even though she seemed to have questions of her own. "No he didn't… or hasn't… was he not out there?"
Cursing again Marinette spun around, "Fights over, tag the unconscious idiots, then get them out of the Zone before calling in the cavalry. You also have a group of four thugs and two injured runners north west of here at the pogo sign. I'll be back as soon as possible!"
Alex didn't get much of a chance to agree or disagree since Marinette was back out the door and charging at Chat. "Roof now!" She snapped as she came even with him, but Chat was already ahead of her.
Moving in time with Marinette Chat wrapped an arm about her waist then extended his staff, using their momentum to shoot them in the direction they needed to go. Gasps echoed out behind them as their feet touched down on the rooftops but Marinette didn't have time for explanations as she took point, since Chat wasn't really positive of where he needed to headed. They moved fast, far faster than they had been going the other night, or even tonight, and Chat could tell Marinette was pushing her body to its limits as they flew across the rooftops in the dark. There was no sound except the sharp exhalations of breath, and a deep uneasiness sank into his gut as they blitzed through the night sky.
Barely three minutes into their run Marinette skidded to a halt, nearly face planting against the roof as she tried to go from full speed to nothing in only a few footsteps. Chat didn't have to ask why she had stopped, a thug was face down on the rooftop, a barely visible, colorless blade in his back. Blood had pooled around the body and Marinette didn't bother to check whether or not they were alive. It was obvious they were dead and Marinette spun in a circle hoping to see Mime hiding in the shadows. Mime wouldn't have resorted to killing unless he was forced to and it made Marinette's unease that much worse. There had been a nasty fight up here and throwing caution to the wind she called out, "Mime?! Are you here?!"
Chat jumped at her sudden yell but he remained quiet as they listened to see if anyone responded. "Was that wise?" Chat asked after a beat of silence and no one answered the hail.
"Probably not… But Mime is good at hiding and I don't want to accidentally end up with a knife in my back either." Marinette responded, looking about the rooftop again and spotting the second body propping open the access door.
"There." She hissed darting for the door.
Grabbing her arm before she could leap inside Chat forced Marinette to pause as he demanded. "Let me go first. You don't have night vision or a weapon proof suit."
From the initial look on Marinette's face she probably really wanted to swat him for slowing her down, but the common sense of his demand hit her just as fast as her irritation. "Go, we clear floor by floor as we follow the bodies. If you hear fighting, get there as fast as possible, even if you leave me behind."
Jerking the door wide open Chat nodded then leaped into the dimness with Marinette right on his tail. They moved through the darkness swiftly, passing another body as they went down a floor and into an open space where a final body lay on its side.
"Mime!" Marinette gasped as she bolted past Chat, recognizing the white and black stripes on the shirt he wore.
Following far more cautiously, Chat allowed his senses to spread out through the room, searching for any danger that might pop up. There was no one in the room other than them and Chat couldn't hear any disturbances nearby that might indicate another human. That didn't mean that there wasn't anyone there, it simply meant they had stopped moving when they heard him and Marinette come crashing in. There was someone else in the building though. Their presence just barely tickled the edges of his senses but he couldn't tell where they were or if they represented a danger to them.
"Mime! No!" Marinette whisper shrieked again as she rolled him and realized his throat had been slashed. His hand had been loosely clasped around his throat along with a blood soaked scrap of fabric as he had attempted to keep his lifeblood in. There was so much blood on and around him that Marinette thought he had to be dead when his eyelids fluttered slightly then lifted.
A sound gurgled from Mime's bloody mouth and Marinette's hands shot forwards pressing to the sluggishly bleeding gash. "Hold on Mime. Don't try and speak."
Reddish pink light surged down her arms and into Mime's throat as a noise echoed somewhere nearby. Marinette's head jerked up as Chat let out a low growl. "We have company."
"Take them out Chat. Try not to get shot." Marinette answered, most of her attention focused on Mime as she tried to heal him before he finished bleeding out.
It was all the permission Chat needed and he darted off into the darkness in complete silence, ready to chase after the rat that scurried through the shadows. Wanting to watch Chat's back yet unable to move, Marinette desperately shoved at her power as she tried to hurry healing Mime along. It wasn't just impatience, or the fact that she wanted to take out the person who did this to Mime that made her try to hurry the process along. Mime had lost too much blood and Marinette was fighting a losing battle as she tried to repair the damage done to his neck. From the sound of it, fighting broke out within the building a minute or so later but Marinette hardly noticed. She was utterly focused on trying to save Mime and as her gaze met his she could see the fear and wonder in his eyes. It was like their connected gaze allowed for a brief mental connection because suddenly she could hear Mime speaking even though his lips never moved.
"Let me go Marinette. It will be alright, just tell Mylene I love her and will never stop protecting her." His voice whispered.
"Shut up Mime. I'm healing you and then we are going to go kick your bosses ass. I've already had to take out like ten Hawkmoth thugs tonight, and I'm real tired of your gang's bull." Marinette snarled right back.
Surprise filtered through her mind as she finally sealed the gash across his throat and attempted to start burning off the blood that had seeped into Mime's lungs. It was hard, far harder than she expected and Marinette briefly wondered if she was getting tired. It didn't help that her power kept trying to slip from her grasp and go to the other injuries that were scattered about Mimes body. Those other injuries that told Marinette that Mime had been engaged in a wicked fight, one that included weapons besides knives. Bruises were the least of Mimes worries though when he had a broken floating rib, damaged shoulder, and gashes of varying depths scattered across his body. None of those injuries were life threatening at that second on their own, unlike the now healed slashed throat. Accumulated, the smaller injuries could be life threatening on top of the blood loss. Mime's body could just shut down from all the trauma and Marinette hoped she had been in time. Knowing she couldn't heal everything Marinette focused on the blood in the lungs since it could prevent Mime from getting the oxygen he desperately needed. Provided he lived past tonight, the blood could also lead to a nasty lung infection and cause other complications.
"You are healing me… how is that possible?" Mime asked, his wonder palpable.
"You can't know." Marinette retorted her mind like ice on that subject. Hopefully Mime wouldn't even remember this and if he did he would probably attribute the idea to blood loss… hopefully.
Unfortunately Mime didn't get a chance to reply any further because clawed hands broke into the connection, ripping Marinette's hands away from Mime's neck as she was hauled backwards up onto her feet. Snarling Marinette tried to twist away only to find her legs wouldn't support her; and she slumped against Chat as sudden exhaustion slammed through her.
"Wha-what the hell…" Marinette slurred as Chat lowered her to the floor, glad he'd been in time.
"You've used too much energy Marinette." Chat hissed, concern and fear lacing his tone, "Had I not come back when I did… you might have poured your very life force into him."
Grimacing Marinette shook her head as she tried to clear the sudden dizziness hitting her, "Thank you Chat but… I wasn't quite done… is he… alive? Please tell me I at least managed to heal his neck?"
Not wanting to shift away from Marinette, Chat moved to the side just enough to press two fingers to the now smooth if bloodstained skin, and held a breath as he waited for the faint thump of a pulse. It was there, weak and a bit thready but it made Chat grin as he supported Marinette.
"He is alive Marinette." Chat whispered pressing a gentle, fleeting kiss to her temple, "He's going to need further medical attention but he is alive."
"Oh good." Marinette murmured letting her eyes drift closed. "We need to get him to Fu."
Chat snorted then realized Marinette was serious, "Uh Marinette… I can't carry you both and I am not leaving you."
Letting out a heartfelt grumble of annoyance Marinette forced her eyes open. "You need to take Mime to Fu. I will join you in a bit. I'm sure Stormy is already on her way to the zone so I will have her take me. I don't want Mime to die when I just finished healing him Chat."
Chats mouth opened then closed as he realized he didn't have much of an argument. Even still he refused to leave Marinette in such a dangerous place, weakened as she was. "Call Stormy now. See where she is and find out where Fu is. I can't be running around aimlessly while hauling an injured person."
The logic of Chat's statement made Marinette grimace in turn and she sighed as she pulled out her phone. Stormy had clearly been waiting for her call because it connected before it even finished ringing once.
"How many bodies are we dealing with and please tell me Mime has survived." Stormy demanded and Chat could hear wind whistling in the background.
"Mime's alive but in need of further medical attention so we need to know where Fu is. There are four bodies-"
"Five… one succumbed to the wounds that Mime had already inflicted and the other one should still be alive. I zip tied him." Chat broke in. "He didn't put up much of a fight. I think he was still worn out from fighting Mime."
Stormy swore. "I'm on my motorcycle. I'm guessing Mime isn't going to be conscious enough to hold on?"
"No he's not." Marinette huffed, allowing her eyes to close as she leaned against Chat, her body relaxing slightly. "That's why we asked for Fu's location if you knew it. Chat will be taking Mime to Fu. He will be faster since he can cross rooftops and I will ride with you. Three people wouldn't fit on your motorcycle even if we wanted to."
Another breath hissed out of Stormy and in the distance Chat could make out the sound of a motorcycle. "I'm less than a minute from the zone. Where are you Marinette?"
Wearily Marinette gave her their location and Stormy promised to pick her up before she hung up. With a bit of a sigh Marinette called Fu next and handed the phone to Chat once she confirmed the fact that she was alive, just exhausted. One extremely short conversation later Chat hung up and handed the phone back to Marinette.
"Fu is calling Stormy now to tell her where to bring you. They will send someone for the bodies and the idiot I hogtied. Fu wants me to haul Mime to him now before there are further complications. I want to get you to street level first though." Chat murmured, shifting Marinette so he could stand and pull her up with him.
Marinette grumbled at the movement, having almost fallen asleep during the short conversation. "I'm just a little tired Chat. I can make it to the street on my own."
"Humor me." Chat snorted while ignoring her not so intimidating glare.
Knowing she didn't have much of a choice since she was too tired to kick his butt at the moment, Marinette rolled her eyes and pointed at Mime. "He doesn't have time for this Chat. The second we are at street level take off. I can handle myself for the 30 seconds it will probably take Stormy to get here."
Accepting the concession Chat merely nodded then collected Mime from the ground. The poor man stank of blood and his shirt was stained with enough of it that Chat really was shocked that he was breathing. His pulse was slightly stronger than before even though his breathing wheezed and gurgled to his ears. Mime really did need expert medical attention but Chat patiently waited for Marinette to make her way out of the building before even thinking of taking off. It was selfish of him Chat knew but Marinette's life far outweighed Mimes in his eyes, and he couldn't bear to leave her alone when danger lurked nearby.
"Go Chat… Please." Marinette whispered as soon as fresh air kissed her cheeks.
They could both hear a motorcycle engine rapidly closing in on their location but Chat still bared his teeth in an unhappy grimace. "I will see you very soon, and as soon as Fu gives the ok I am taking you home tonight, got it?"
Marinette rolled her eyes, but a large part of her didn't mind the idea of Chat taking her home one bit. "I'll hold you to it, now shoo."
Still grimacing Chat finally took off, allowing Marinette to pull out her phone to call Alex and let her know what had happened. They had been gone for nearly 15 minutes and Marinette was a touch surprised no one had been dispatched to see what was taking them so long. Alex was relieved to hear that Mime was alive, albeit injured, while Marinette was just fine. She did ask if Chat was still around but Marinette simply told her that he took off since she didn't want to elaborate. Thankfully Alex didn't push or ask any further questions and Marinette knew that she didn't have to tell her to keep her silence on Mime's condition. It was his own people who had hurt him and Alex wouldn't risk his life since she knew what the gang world was like at times. After all she had once been in a gang herself and only survived the experience because she had gone to Tiki.
Stormy finally arrived, yanking her helmet off the second she came to a full stop. Hanging up with Alex Marinette waved a hand at Stormy, who raised an eyebrow at her the second she had put her phone away. "I know fighting a few Hawkmoth goons didn't wear you out that bad… How badly are you injured?"
Marinette shook her head, "I'm not injured Stormy, I just didn't sleep much the past few nights and I probably ran a bit too much tonight before Hawkmoth popped into the picture. Mime was barely hanging on when I gave him emergency care; thankfully I know how to treat knife wounds. Fu made sure of that."
Marinette was careful not to mention the slashed throat. There wasn't a whole lot you could do for such a wound other than put pressure on it and hope that the blood loss didn't kill them before you got to a hospital. Since Marinette had healed the wound and didn't want Stormy to find out about her new healing abilities she didn't elaborate further.
Stormy didn't look as if she believed Marinette when it came to being injured, and she couldn't believe that Marinette was so exhausted from simply fighting. Unfortunately, she didn't have much of a choice but to accept Marinette's word, unless she wanted to forcefully check Marinette over. Since Stormy knew that wouldn't go over very well she walked a slow circle around Marinette who watched her blearily. As it was Stormy couldn't see any wounds on Marinette, and the only blood she could see was the dried blood on Marinette's hands. With a final sigh Stormy turned and went back to her bike. Baby wipes magically appeared in Marinette's hands a minute later making her jolt and Stormy tapped her foot.
"You sure you will be able to hang on? Fu isn't far from here. Chat could probably be back in a few minutes to get you."
Forcing herself to concentrate Marinette wiped at the dried blood, "I'm fine Stormy, I was just thinking about how much trouble this is going to cause for work and stuff. Though maybe not since I'm not on the clock… It's no big deal."
Marinette was lying of course, she had almost fallen asleep again but she knew she didn't want Stormy to start getting even more suspicious than she was. Thankfully riding on the back of a motorcycle kept Marinette wide awake and they pulled into the place where Fu was in just a few short minutes. Stormy led Marinette inside and Fu met them about halfway down a hall.
"Thank you Stormy. Do you mind returning to the zone and helping them move some of the Hawkmoth members?" Fu asked.
Stormy's eyes flicked from Marinette to Fu, clearly wanting to stay, but then she let a breath out her shoulders slumping, "Yeah, yeah I'll go. Let me know how Mime is tomorrow. Oh, and Marinette… Whatever you did, don't do it again. You look dead on your feet."
Her words startled Marinette into a laugh, "Don't worry Stormy I just need some sleep. I appreciate the ride though."
Stormy waved her words away but didn't comment any further as she made her way back out to her bike. Gently taking hold of Marinette's arm, Fu led her down the hall to a room that looked very similar to the one she had brought Chat to just a few days previously.
Chat was already in the room drinking something out of a coffee mug and he jumped up as Marinette moved inside.
"Hey Chat how's Mime?" Marinette yawned almost stumbling as she crossed the threshold.
Chat caught her before she even started tilting towards the ground and Fu relinquished his hold as Chat simply picked her up despite her protests. Moving over to a tea set that was on the small table, Fu poured a large cup of the brew, then sweetened it as he listened to Marinette and Chat snipe at each other.
"Marinette how are you feeling?" Fu finally asked as he pressed the cup into her hands.
Marinette frowned at him then glanced at the cup. "It's not drugged is it?"
"It's not Marinette. I'm drinking it too, see?" Chat said raising the cup he had set down to his lips and took another sip.
"It will help you recover your energy faster Marinette." Fu commented as Marinette finally took a long sip of the tea. "Now, how are you feeling? Chat said you nearly went too far again."
Rolling her eyes Marinette took another long sip of tea, realizing that whatever was in the stuff was actually making her feel better the more she drank. "I feel worn out but the tea is already helping. I'm probably going to sleep till noon tomorrow though. How do I know I am going too far when healing a person Fu? I can't keep doing this. Chat or you won't always be there to stop me or to help me if I collapse."
Frowning Fu sat down next to Marinette and started checking her pulse. "I am not sure what you are feeling while healing…"
"Panic?" Marinette supplied startling both Chat and Fu into a laugh.
"Yes well that is expected. When you heal minor injuries you haven't gone too far; which makes me believe that once an injury is life threatening you automatically try to heal everything at once. When it comes to large injuries you need to start by evaluating them and only heal the injury enough to keep the person alive, sort of a spot healing. It won't work for every one of course. Chat was injured badly enough that he might have died if you had only spot healed him simply because his body was also being affected by Akuma corruption. Using his abilities had also drained him to dangerous levels so you may have actually restored some of his powers when you healed him."
Chat looked sheepish as Fu continued. " Mime however is a different story. He was badly injured yes, but there are some things your healing powers cannot do. If you had simply healed his neck wound you would not feel so drained, but it appears you were instinctively trying to restore his blood volume as well. Mime will survive although he will have trouble breathing for a bit due to the blood in his lungs. Not to mention the other injuries you couldn't heal as well. You need to understand though Marinette; you will come across those that are outside your powers to save. When that happens you cannot pour yourself into healing them. At best you will kill yourself, at worst you will break on a mental level and you will go insane."
Swallowing hard Marinette nodded, "I'll do my best Fu. I didn't mean to go overboard with Mime though. I was just trying to patch up his neck so that he didn't bleed out the rest of the way initially. It took so long though… I didn't realize I was fixing the blood loss as well. I'd hoped I could get the blood out of his lungs before it affected him negatively but obviously I couldn't do it. I think I was too tired or something because it didn't seem to be working very well when I tried it earlier. I guess I will have to try again when I am stronger. How did I give Mime blood?"
"No Marinette, you didn't give him blood, you were reversing the blood loss. His neck wasn't healing because you were essentially reversing the flow of time locally. Chat said the puddle of blood under Mime was smaller than it should have been and just before he interrupted, the blood around Mime was glowing from your power. It's how he knew you were going too far." Fu murmured patting Marinette on the shoulder.
Marinette yawned, her exhaustion seeping into her very bones. "Oh… I guess that means I shouldn't do any healing in public or else I'll probably get ousted by the light show. Can I go to sleep now or are you watching me for something?"
Fu smiled indulgently at her, "Finish your tea and you may go home and sleep. Chat had already said he is taking you home. Once you feel better we will see how Mime is and perhaps you can help him heal a little faster. Depending on continued attacks we might need your abilities again sooner rather than later."
Drinking the rest of her tea Marinette yawned, "Probably sooner. The Hawkmoth members we took out at the zone were little more than brainless thugs. It's like their leader is running or killing off anyone that has more than three brain cells. At this point I am not even sure Hawkmoth is the same person who had Tiki killed. This Hawkmoths actions don't appear to be logical or planned. It's almost like they are acting out in anger against whatever annoys them at the moment."
Fu frowned, his face turning solemn. "You know that Hawkmoth has switched leaders before. I believe I have a story to tell you although it will have to wait for a different night. Chat, are you ready to take Marinette home?"
Chat placed his empty cup on the table next to them and peered inside Marinette's cup as she yawned again. "Once she is done with her drink I will."
"I'll hold you to your promised story time Fu. As for the tea…" Marinette glanced up at him then swiftly downed the last of the drink. "Done, let's get going."
Losing the solemn look Fu smiled faintly and took the cup from Marinette as she stood. "Thank you Marinette. If you can drop by tomorrow in the afternoon and I will give you some more tea to help with the energy loss. Also I am sure you will want to check in on Mime."
Marinette nodded and started to move forward only to be swept off her feet again by Chat. "Chat!"
Chat ignored her complaint. "I told you I am taking you home. I can either carry you like this or you can ride on my back or slung over my shoulder. Your choice of course."
Marinette crossed her arms in a huff of air, but she didn't argue any further which told him just how worn out Marinette really was at the moment. Fu walked them out and Marinette was practically asleep before Chat even made it out of the building.
"She will be ok right?" Chat whispered to Fu as he cuddled Marinette closer to him. She sighed against him, her body relaxing as she drifted off.
Fu smiled a knowing smile, "You two are made for each other. Stay at her side and she will be fine."
Chat took Fu's words to heart, and nodding once in thanks he took a sleeping Marinette home.
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