Author Notes at the end.
Chapter Ten: The Twisted Path
Chat slammed his fist into the brick wall, watching the cracks web out from the indent his impressive strength created. "Claws in!" His voice held a dangerous, albeit, melancholy edge, the burst of light revealing a winded Kwami. The blonde pulled a piece of camembert with deft fingers from his pocket, and the being nearly caught his digits with the gobble before he pulled his hand free. "Hey!"
"Don't think I haven't noticed the smaller portions!"
Adrien rolled his eyes, sliding down to his butt on the ground in the abandoned alley. "Ladybug hates me now," he muttered.
"Probably," Plagg said, his voice muffled through his food.
The blonde couldn't be bothered to give his friend a scathing glance for not arguing. It was true. The woman had finally tossed him a modicum of interest, and Chat had just as easily dumped it on her.
Years he'd been waiting for that moment, and he'd pissed it away in an instant with one thought of his Princess. His Marinette. His heart contracted, leaving his chest a wasteland of a wound.
"She didn't even wait for my explanation," he complained, solemnly, using the wall to pull himself upwards.
"Maybe she was tired," Plagg muttered, "or something," he hissed sharply, and a single bubble dripped from his mouth, making the ancient belch, coughing a little haggardly. "Dumb curse."
Adrien quirked a brow, shaking his head. "What's going on?" Or something? Not tired? Did she have plans? She…had yelped in pain…her skipping had been—
"I'm not really sure," the cat admitted. "I think it's adapting to me. It knows I'm trying to be clever, cunning, like the wonderfully intelligent cat I am to tell you who—BLEGH!" An eruption of emerald and crimson orbs exploded so forcefully from the obsidian feline's mouth that he was propelled backwards several inches, tears leaking from his eyes.
"P-Plagg!"
"Whoa!" The fur fluffed over his entire body before he vibrated and flattened his ears in irritation, approaching his baffled owner again. "Dammit." His tail bristled, vibrant, powerful eyes narrowing. "Dumb magic."
"You're trying to tell me about Ladybug, aren't you?"
Destruction let out a growl, and his head twitched like he was attempting to give an indication, but his eyes only widened before narrowing considerably, and his shoulders slumped. "Sorry kid, apparently I can't even nod or shake my head now," he snarled, angry.
Adrien released a soft sound, shaking his head slowly. "Not your fault," he muttered. "We can at least go check on Mari," he whispered, his heart fluttering with the thought, and Plagg made a strangled noise in his throat. "Plagg—"
"This is the worst id—ahh!"
"Claws out!"
***POV Change***
Her immediate thought was coalescing with webs of thick confusion, leaving Marinette unable to decipher anything. Warm fingers snared her face, seething her skin on a metaphysical level, but they weren't flesh, the material was still pleasant and familiar though, coaxing a smile from her full lips. Or so she wanted to imagine.
"Mmm…"
"Are you okay?"
The voice beckoning her was thick and distorted, making her frown, but each time the bluenette tried to open her eyes, they felt glued shut. Something sticky held them closed, and overall, the function itself felt vaguely foreign for something so simple and second nature.
"Mmphh.." Her tongue was swollen inside her impossibly dry mouth, her lips numb and sewn together from the chap state making it difficult to actually answer. Nevermind the lead and cotton candy weaving intricately through her skull commanding the direction of her thoughts straight into nothingness. There was only empty, vague, confusion and that scathing touch on her starving skin.
Strong arms encircled her body, cradling the bluenette, snaring her…protecting her. Electricity snaked with languid ease down from those limbs, igniting her…possessing her. This body, the one she was pressed against, was the only one that truly mattered in the world. The contact settled every discomfort in her disjointed mind, and soon, only peace dominated the corners of her soul.
Mari tried to smile again, but her face was refusing to cooperate with the demands of her sluggish brain. "Mmm."
"I've got you," the jumbled voice murmured softly. "I won't ever let anything happen to you." She believed it. With every fiber of her being, she trusted this voice more than anyone.
My knight…my lover, my everything.
Suddenly, she was floating along a wisp of air inside her mind and gut, and it was disorienting. Only the reassuring feel of something hard, warm, rising and falling in steady rhythm against her cheek brought her back to center before it was gone, and she became enveloped in something else plush and fluffy.
"Why do you scare me like this?" The voice sounded, annoyed, really, but also intensely concerned before a touch of the voice wielder's hand caressed along her forehead and temple. "I'll make sure your parents check on you," the entity grunted, almost painfully, before Mari let its reassurance wash over her. She was safe…she could…drift away again.
***Later***
Marinette groaned softly, popping a single orb open to stare at the darkness of her room. She frowned, feeling like she'd been asleep for awhile, but then it would be daylight already, wouldn't it? She tried to move, but her knee screamed in agony and she flinched, whimpering.
"Marinette?" Tikki's voice sounded unsure.
"Ti—" The bluenette rasped, coughing on the dryness of her mouth and throat and swallowed several times before she could continue. "Tikki, what happened?"
The crimson being floated closer, nestling into her warm cheek, the lightness of her breath tickling Mari's skin. "You've been out cold for awhile," she whimpered softly. "I was a little worried, but your parents kept an eye on you."
"My parents?" Marinette shifted in her bed, groaning as her sore muscles protested before she managed to sit up completely, staring at the stars glittering beyond her skylight. "The voice," she breathed softly, frowning. After several prolonged moments of silence, she shook her head. "What happened?" She quirked a brow at her Kwami as she repeated her question.
"You, uh, fought the Akuma, came back here and passed out. You were having a fit," Tikki whispered, bright blue eyes widening in the dark. "I wasn't sure what to do, but then…Chat showed up."
The spotted heroine ran her fingers through her disheveled tresses, clearing her throat a little. "He helped me?"
"Y-yes. The moment he touched you the fit seemed to pass and you were calm," the ancient admitted softly. "He brought you inside, put you to bed, and told your parents he found you and to keep an eye on you."
Marinette's face twisted, cordoning the pain welling up deep in her chest as she eyed her ancient. "Chat helped me?" The repetition seemed unnecessary, but each time the words spilled from her marred and swollen mouth, a fraction of her heart shriveled, but expanded in the same instance.
Somewhere, beckoning in her mind, the notion didn't want to make sense. She had shunned him, as Mari, of course, and yet, he was still trying to care for her. He was an amazing hero with one of the kindest hearts she'd ever witnessed, but was that all? Chat wasn't one to detour from his duty, but technically, he didn't need to sneak by her bakery to continue home. Well, at least she didn't think so. Was there something more to his interference?
Was there still hope that the two of them could be together? Perhaps, not as Chat and his Lady…but maybe, more intimately…as Chat and Marinette? In the end, deep in the confines of her soul, she felt it was probably time to divulge their identities to each other. Wouldn't that be the most practical solution?
Each moment that dissipated through the finite scales of time made her throat constrict just a fraction more as her breathing became a little more unsteady. "What was I thinking," she whispered to herself, biting at her already abused lower lip.
She didn't want his mask anymore! She loved every portion of his being. She loved his smile, and yes, his metaphysical eyes. They were enhanced by the magic, but beyond that, the display of affection, loyalty, and fierce bravery and selfishness. She loved Chat….no matter what identity lie hidden beneath. He was her love. He was her protector. He was her everything.
The thought alone made her heart stumble over several beats, and her body shuddered as the sting of tears plagued her already tired eyes. How had she been blind for so long?
"T-Tikki," she bit out, her words woven with thick emotions even the bluenette was just coming to terms with.
"I know," the crimson being whispered just as heavily. "It was about time you understood." Her voice was stern with an edge of teasing, and Mari's eyes widened at the tangible implication behind each syllable.
"You always knew?"
Tikki nodded, sniffling. "Of course I did." Creation fluttered gracefully upwards, spreading her arms outwards, eyes glistening with knowledge and immense sorrow. "It is the duty and burden I carry with each master I serve. You and Chat are meant to be together. One way or another. I know his identity, from the moment of our pairing. The magic doesn't work on me."
The heroine had the decency to look abashed as she shoved her covers off of her already boiling form, sitting up on her bed. Her aqua eyes gazed through the skylight to the glittering diamond stars beyond, unabated by the crystalline wash decorating her cheeks.
"I need to find him," she whispered, barely able to breathe through the epiphany spiraling violently through her civilian form. It ignited every nerve ending, searing a brand of his smile….his presence on every molecule of her being. She couldn't be without him anymore. There was no more denying it. He was her future.
Tikki hesitated, several emotions decorating her delicate face before it fell back into the mask of concern she usually carried around her wielder. "I want this to happen, but I'm unsure as to whether this is the best time. You're still injured."
"You'll be there to help me, and anyway, there's no Akuma."
"Mari—"
"Spots on!"
The rush of power reinforced her resolve, sparking fresh electric fire through her young veins as she moved without thought. Her body propelled itself expertly through the skylight, crouching, unnoticed on the roof of her parents patisserie. Her eyes skimmed the darkening surroundings, but nothing stood out to alert her senses.
"Chat," she breathed, standing without hesitation. She was already moving. Her heart guided her feet, her wrist movements as her weapon slung outwards. She didn't want an inch between them that didn't need to be there. What had she been thinking? Why had she waited so long?
Adrien was amazing, perfect, of course, but in the end, what was he? A good friend, yes, but Chat….
Tears streamed down her face as she spiraled freely in an arc through the Parisian sky. Chat had laid down his life for hers more than once. Chat had protected her. Chat had loved her. Chat…had always been there….when she needed him to be.
Even when she didn't want him to be there, he remained firm and strong. Chat was her partner. Chat was her counterpart. Chat was her one and only. Chat was the only one she could see herself loving…for eternity. He completed her in ways that she didn't realize she needed to be filled. He made her better.
Marinette!
Something solid collided with her hip, propelling her off the ledge where she found herself perched, toppling rapidly towards the sidewalk. Her yo-yo string vibrated outwards, catching on something as it saved her from initial impact. However, her body slammed into a parked vehicle, the glass of the windscreen cracking minutely before exploding into millions of microscopic pieces as she lay on the top, fighting for a breath.
Marinette!
A faint buzzing filled her already swimming mind as her aqua eyes lazily shifted to the left, glimpsing a woman in a crimson and onyx fabric garb, almost free flowing in its simplicity. The vibrant strands of her sapphire hair were pulled taut into a bun, and a single piece of scarlet wrapped over her intense blue eyes.
"Hm?" Mari couldn't stop the frown rippling over her aching face as the woman neared, her gait confident as she retrieved a yo-yo from her hip, spinning it lazily.
As she spoke, the language was foreign, but edges of it beckoned a semblance of familiarity deep within Marinette, and she raised her brows. It sounded like Mandarin, or some version of it, but it wasn't a dialect she knew.
The spotted heroine rolled off of the car, finding her feet, but the intruder swept her ankles from beneath her just as swiftly, the agony resonating up her tailbone to her neck in a singular motion as she hissed her displeasure.
She spoke again, and the bluenette couldn't decipher the odd language.
"Look," she grumbled. "I don't know who you are, but I don't know what you're saying," she spat honestly.
Her words gave the woman pause, her fingers touching the golden 'crown' adorning the top of her head as she tilted it slowly. The stranger gave a quick swipe of her lips with a delicate tongue, narrowing her eyes to dangerous slits as she eyed Marinette gradually.
"Māo!" Her voice was concerned, passionate, and one of command as she said the singular word, giving Mari pause even as her senses alerted that she needed to move.
A form descended easily from the sky, twirling with grace, landing without a sound beside them, the brilliant obsidian mask covering the top half of his face. He was adorned in a similar cloth material, an emerald sash laced around his waist and wrists. His fiery green eyes peered from behind the cover, narrowing in suspicion at the current spotted heroine.
A bamboo rod jutted from behind his left shoulder, but he threw his hands wide, a guttural sound escaping before onyx and jade energy swirled angrily around all of his fingers, glowing with a power that Ladybug recognized without a singular doubt in her mind.
"Cataclysm," she whispered, swallowing heavily as her eyes widened with fear.
Trying414…I'm always going to appreciate your loyalty…and I hope that…whatever it is I'm doing to deserve your loyalty…I never stop. Thank you…so much. I really...truly…appreciate your presence. I hope you know that. Please, be safe!
Faefolk11, another person that gives me light in the end of my spiraling tunnel when I think I've got nothing left. I hope you're still there because you're truly a ray of hope in the dark circumstance. Please be safe, and I hope this was worth any wait I've caused you.
NotOften, they seem like they're always out of sync in the show. Get your butts in gear, NOW! Lol. Thank you for the support. Hope you're well!
Kazaa2182, I know! I really hate that he knows it and can't see it! dumb magic! I'm glad that you're still enjoying…although we haven't gotten to the Carapace conversation yet! Be safe, please!
Mayuralover, yes, yes it is. I'm sorry about that, and you're very welcome. Thank you for being around! Hope you still are. Keep yourself safe!
Alitablake, she certainly is an idiot. Hopefully this makes up for it a little. I would love nothing more just to get to the sexy parts, but angst drives the passion ;). Please keep yourself healthy!
Xionnevermore, I'm happy to give you one. Here's another! Please, be well!
I made a review, Lol, well, I believe we call that, writer's convenience. It's an actual thing, and as an author, we're horrible for it :P. Please, be cautious. Be safe!
Mrsbabby0611, I'm already bald! :S…oh…I mean…I got a haircut, but still! *patches your hair back in* don't go bald just yet! Stay with it, PLEASE! Also, please, practice safety and stay healthy! Thank you!
Guest, right? *blinks, staring between both boys, sighing* Don't want to be in the middle of THAT drama!
NotOften, I'm alright, just…working so much. I'm in retail! I'm an essential worker and I have, count them…THREE KIDS! School work at home is another job and a half and I already work full time so BLEH! ! Thank you for still being with me! Lol, I'm sooooo sorry. Thank you so much for you concerns, and I love you for it! Please, please, please, be safe!
