This chapter is much like the last, rehash of chapter 15, in perspective of Alya and the others.
—
Believe it or not, there were a handful of people in Paris that actually hated Ladybug and Chat Noir. Salo and Hawkmoth were the obvious ones, of course. And then there was Lila Rossi, who had been spurned by Ladybug time and time again. But she tended to keep her distaste a secret.
But there was one other in the City of Lovers whose life was continually complicated by Ladybug and Chat Noir.
Minster of the Interior, Arthur Vanderguard.
As Minister of Interior, one of his most important jobs of late was to protect the city in the event of an akuma attack.
Something that he was wholly unprepared for every time.
It was getting increasingly frustrating to do his job when his men, the police, decided to listen to a little girl before listening to him. Everyone listened to Ladybug first. And then when her plans failed, he had to pick up the slack. He had to hold off hoards of zombies or knights or whatever the akuma of the week was, while she was given the floor to do her little superhero routine and stop the big bad. Of course, she always fixed everything afterwards, which was the only reason he hadn't resigned completely.
But if anyone, the mayor, his chief of police, anyone at all, decided to listen to his plans, he would be able to stop Hawkmoth with ease.
But no.
It was always, "Ladybug and Chat Noir know what to do!" "They'll stop them for sure!"
Arthur couldn't believe the people of this city could be dense enough to trust children with the safety of a highly populated and historic city. It floored him really.
And of course, when things went catastrophic and people got hurt, who did the media, the mayor, and the people of Paris blame?
I'll give you a hint: It wasn't Ladybug.
No, the amount of times he had to speak at a press conference and apologize for a gruesome mistake that one of his men made because they listened to Ladybug was astounding. And then he had to thank the little insect, for fixing her mistake with her magical Ladybugs. And then the cycle would continue on and on in a dizzying spiral.
The day Salo appeared on the TV and announced that she had captured Ladybug and Chat Noir, he was elated. But only on the inside, of course. Ladybug and Chat Noir were out of the way!
But now, he was fairly certain that he would be responsible for rescuing them.
Why this punishment? What had he done in his life to deserve this?
Then Salo had taken the Miraculous, and Arthur was met face to face with the children that kept stepping on his toes. Children, for sure.
Marinette Dupain-Cheng was 17, Adrien Agreste 18.
If he wasn't so pissed, he might have been impressed.
But as it was, his boss, the Mayor, his men, and Paris itself was completely enraptured by a baker's daughter and a model.
As he watched the stream, he couldn't help but feel bad for them. This was torture, and they didn't deserve this at all. Because Ladybug did fix everything in the end. So even when his job had him stressed, things still worked out okay.
But as of right now, he was off the clock, and it wasn't his problem.
Until his phone rang.
An unknown number.
"Hello?"
"Is this the Minister of Interior?"
"Who is this? How did you get this number?"
"This is Chloe Bourgeois. The mayor's daughter. Daddy gave me your number."
Arthur groaned and slapped a hand to his face. Not this. "What do you need, M. Bourgeois?"
"I demand to know how you plan to save my Adrikin's and Marinette Dupain-Cheng!"
He rolled his eyes. It hadn't even been ten minutes since they were revealed to everyone! Surely it wouldn't be a problem, right? "I assure you, I will do everything in my power to save your friends."
"See that you do." And she, blessedly, hung up.
Great. Another thing he was getting blamed for.
Well, maybe if he saved them, people might finally start listening to him again. If he was really lucky, he might get a raise. Who knows? Maybe he could swing this in his favor.
He'd meet with the mayor in the morning.
—
Chloe went back to the Agreste estate with Alya and Nino after school.
They gathered in Adrien's room, and Nino hooked the computer up to the TV, so they could watch the stream.
Marinette and Adrien still hung from their wrists, as they had for hours now.
"Let's go over our facts." Stated Alya, looking at her notebook.
"We know the 'who.'" She took out a piece of paper, which was a photocopy of the folder Detective Bertony had. "The Detective gave me this to give to Rena Rouge and Carapace. This is the most pertinent information he has, but I can get copies of the rest of the file. Bianca Furtoli, age 46. Lover of Edward Savauge, the drug dealer that Ladybug and Chat Noir captured two days ago. That's also the 'why.' Apparently, this is revenge for sending him to jail."
"We also know a vague 'how'. Ladybug and Chat Noir were fighting a very large akuma when they were thrown into a building and disorientated. From there, Salo administered 'GHB' a drug commonly used to knock people out for assault."
"Now we're just left with the 'where.'" Said Nino.
Alya smiled slightly, "But I have a pretty good guess. Marinette and Adrien were last seen in Paris at 12:15, according to my post on the blog. Give or take a few minutes. Salo had them at least by the 6 o'clock news. That gives them a little over 5 hours to get them to the location that they are in now."
A map of France and its surrounding countries laid on the coffee table, with a circle drawn around it. "In a five hour period, you can get to most of these destinations. Most of France, and the outer edge of England, Belgium, Germany, Luxembourg, and Switzerland. Now, with the word 'Notausgang' that Marinette stated she saw on the wall, that boils it down to a primarily German speaking country. 'Notausgang' means emergency exit, which would be written in French too if it was in a area that spoke several languages like Alsace-Lorraine. So we are looking at, of course Germany, and maybe Luxembourg, depending on the area. But if we are looking at Germany, we are somewhere between the border, Cologne, Frankfurt, and Stuttgart."
Chloe and Nino both frowned at the map. "That's still a lot of ground to cover."
"True."
"But," added Nino, "we also need to point out this little location in Montparnasse." He drew a little dot on the map.
"Yeah, but Rena Rouge and Carapace already checked there. That's where they are broadcasting from, and where their servers are."
"Sure, but I think we shouldn't forget about it."
"Fair."
Chloe looked at the map, as she had been silent this entire time. "Is that everything?"
Alya crunched her face up as she flipped through her notes. "Well, I think they're in a cellar or basement, given the cement walls. Maybe an old building."
Chloe tapped her chin. "Well, I'll just tell my daddy that we're going to Germany, and we'll borrow the private jet and get over there!"
"It's not that simple, Chloe." Alya said calmly, "We can't just up and leave for Germany. Especially if we go with you, and then Rena Rouge and Carapace are seen with Queen Bee! Salo figured out how to catch Marinette and Adrien like that." She snapped her fingers. "If we're not careful, she could take our families too. I have little sisters—" She cut herself off before she became too distressed. "And, if Salo finds out we're on to her, what's stopping them from moving somewhere else?"
"What do you expect us to do?"
Alya frowned. "We need more time, and more clues."
"We don't have more time! How long do we have before they're killed?"
"118 days." Alya stated, blank faced.
Chloe blinked. "What?"
Alya got her notes out again. "Sorry, I missed this part. 'Salo' is a name of a torture porn from the 70s. Its surname is '120 days of Sodom'. Salo is leaving us a clue for a time limit."
"Are you sure?"
"That's what the detective believes."
"And you trust him?"
Alya shrugged. "I really don't know who to trust anymore."
Chloe stood and walked to the window, holding herself. Pollen floated up next to her, nuzzling her cheek. "I'm not used to things being bigger than me." Chloe confessed. "The world, no matter how big it was, felt small. I could go anywhere, do anything…If daddy couldn't fix something, he had people for that. So…not being able to lift my finger and have it fix is…it's really messing with me. Sorry."
Alya and Nino shared a look. "Chloe," Alya said, trying to be comforting. "We didn't recruit you so that you could fix it with a snap…although I wish you could."
Chloe gave a watery chuckle.
"We gave you the Miraculous because you want to help, and you're capable of it. We might need that private jet. I don't know. But just you being here, ready to help, says volumes about you."
Chloe gave a shaky nod and then came back to sit at the couch, feeling like she could breathe better. "Gotta make Dupain-Cheng proud, right?"
—
It was around 6pm when something started to happen on the stream.
"Well well well, how are we doing now? 12 hours is a long time to leave you hanging around. I'm so sorry, I meant to come back sooner, but I had errands to run."
Alya turned the volume up, and got her notebook ready. The main hope was that since Salo was so cocky, she'd let something else slip.
"I heard your little speech, Ladybug. Very moving. I'm sure mommy and daddy loved to hear all about how you lied to them over and over for years. And the Ladyblogger! Oh, she must be absolutely crushed. Her best friend, her hero, lying selfishly. Dangling that one bit of knowledge that she always wanted just out of reach. What a friend!"
"Bitch." Alya muttered.
"But I'd like to correct one thing, however. You told Paris to be kind and all that junk, to make sure it stays safe until you could come back. Sorry, Ladyliar, you're not leaving. Gabriel Agreste blew the only chance of Adrien getting out, and you…you have no chance. I have you right where I want you…So much spirit in you still. That's fine, we'll cure you of that soon enough."
The group watched as Marinette and Adrien were re-chained behind their backs, and forced to stand on galvanized buckets. Salo brought a black sack over, and went to put in on Adrien's face.
"No…no, no please don't! Please!"
"Oh, what's wrong kitty cat? Afraid of the dark? Or are we…claw-strophobic?"
"Oh dude…" Nino breathed. "He is. He is claustrophobic!"
Chloe buried her face in her hands. "I can't watch!"
Thankfully, they were spared, as someone spoke off screen. "Incoming call ma'am."
"Oh, a call, hmm?"
"The facial recognition program found a match."
"Oh goody. We mustn't keep him waiting then!"
One of the camera's switched from showing the room, to showing the caller.
Hawkmoth, looking as stone cold as ever.
Alya bit her thumb.
"My my, took you long enough. I would have thought Hawkmoth would have the Ladyblog as the home screen on his computer."
"Did you summon me to antagonize me?"
"Summon you? What, like you're some sort of demon? Some kind of god?"
He remained emotionless.
"Your face says I'm wasting your time, but your eyes say you're jealous."
"Get on with it."
She chuckled, "And impatient too. No wonder you always lost."
Salo walked off camera, and when she returned, she held both of the miraculous in her hand. "Here, the Ladybug earrings and the Black Cat ring. Bonafide jewels of magic. Now, what will you give me for them?"
Hawkmoth narrowed his eyes.
"I knew she was going to try this." Said Alya, pressing her fingers to her temple. "I should have taken down the blog when I had the chance."
Salo went on. "I have no idea what you want with these. I can't see the appeal of a grown man running around playing superhero. Perhaps you want the Black Cat to use for heists? But I couldn't fathom a use for the Ladybug earrings. Unless you want them to be a circus performer."
Hawkmoth remained emotionless and silent.
"You know, in bartering, there has to actually be, you know…bartering."
"What about the children?" He asked. "If I want the gems, and those two along with them. What's the price?"
Alya's heart dropped into her shoes. What on earth did Hawkmoth want with them?!
Salo barked out a laugh. "You-you want—oh that's rich! What? You want to torture them yourself?" She shook her head. "No can do, Hawkman. I have business with them. But that was a good joke." She wiped a pretend tear from her eyes. "Look, these are useless to me. I have all the power anyone could ever want. I'm being reasonable by offering these to you first, since you so desperately want them. But if you don't want them, then I'll just put them for auction up online. You can try to get them there, before some other yahoo outbids you. So, do you want them, or not?"
Hawkmoth's lip twitched in a scowl. "Oh, I want them. But I'm not making any deals with you. I abhor torture."
She scoffed. "Oh yeah, and what would you have done with these two if you had gotten their miraculous on your own?"
"I would have sent them home. I have nothing against them personally. It is their job to fight the akuma. And once relieved of that duty, they are free to go. In the same way, they have a duty to Paris to stop criminals. But now they're only teenagers. What you're doing goes beyond revenge, it's insanity."
The notebook slipped out of Alya's hands. This was…unbelievable.
"Oh, so now the terrorist is trying to lecture me? You're playing all high and mighty, now that you're not the villain anymore. But I guarantee you, if it was you verses them, and the Miraculous were in sight, you would do anything, including killing them, to get them. Don't talk to me about insanity."
Hawkmoth grit his teeth in anger, a fire of hatred burning in his eyes. "I will be taking those Miraculous on my own."
"I'd love to see you try. Tell you what, I won't put these up for auction until I've disposed of these two maggots. Go ahead, akumatize any random, innocent civilian you want and send them to me. But unlike them," she thrust a thumb over her shoulder, "I won't hesitate to kill your little minions."
Hawkmoth 'hmph'ed and the call ended.
The room was silent for a moment, as everyone digested what just happened.
"What…the…ever-loving—" Started Nino.
"That is…not what I expected him to do."
Salo laughed. "What a moron! No wonder he loses all the battles. No strategy, no thinking, just 'I'm gonna get them'. It's pretty sad actually. You weren't even good heroes, just better than the villains you faced."
Chloe was staring ahead, blankly, and then turned to look at Alya. "What…what did Hawkmoth want with the Miraculous?"
"We don't know." Alya answered, just as listlessly. "I never understood why he wanted those two, specifically…Marinette might have a guess."
The group was startled as Adrien darted forward, head butting Salo in the face, before running towards the door.
A gunshot ran out over the speakers, and Chloe shrieked.
"Next time I won't miss."
The gun was trained right between Marinette's eyes, who stared her down fearlessly.
"It's your decision kitty cat. The door is right there. You can run, or you can save your little girlfriend."
Adrien hesitated for just a second, and Alya thought that was the end.
But, blessedly, he walked back to his place.
"What do you say?"
"…sorry, ma'am."
She punched him solidly in the gut, knocking the wind out of him, and sending him to the floor.
He rolled onto his side, desperately gasping for breath.
"What do we say?"
He gasped over and over, trying to breathe. "I'm—I'm sorry, ma'am."
She kicked him in the side, making him cry out.
"What do we say!?"
"I'm sorry! I won't do it again!" He all but screamed.
Pasolini grabbed his arms and hauled him to his feet.
"Then stand on the bucket."
Salo slipped the hood on, making sure it covered him completely, before she stepped away.
"I can't breathe," he choked.
"What was that, kitty cat?"
"I can't breathe! I can't breathe!" His shoulders hunched as he flailed his head. "Please, I can't breathe! Get it off!"
Salo ignored him, and slipped a hood onto Marinette.
"I can't breathe!" He wailed. "Help!"
"Adrien!" Marinette cried. "Take a slow, deep breath."
"I-I can't! I-I-!"
"Sshh…" She hushed him. "Just inhale….and exhale…"
Marinette continued to comfort him, as Salo and her men got out ladders, and began to tie rope to the ceiling. At the end were nooses.
"You said we had time!" Chloe shouted at Alya.
"I thought we did!" She shouted right back.
"What's happening, my lady?"
"I…I don't know. Just keep breathing…"
"I'm—I'm scared."
"Me too, kitty. Just keep breathing."
Then the nooses were around their necks, and those watching began to sob.
"Do you know what this is?"
Adrien shuttered.
Marinette answered. "It's…a rope…Oh god…" She started to cry.
"This is a very easy game to play." Said Salo. "All you have to do, is stay very still. As long as you don't fall, you won't lose! Now won't this be so much fun?"
Adrien made a noise that sounded halfway between a sob and heave.
"Oh come now! You've been standing for 12 hours already, what's one more?"
It was agony. This woman sure knew her stuff. Salo walked off screen, as Marinette and Adrien stood, waiting for their demise.
All of Paris listened to the heartbroken sobs of their heroes. Terrified out of their minds.
As Adrien cried out, Marinette spoke to comfort him, but Salo smacked her in punishment.
She began to wobble.
"Oh Mari, no…please don't fall." Alya whispered. "Girl please…"
The bucket toppled, the rope tightened, and Marinette let out a choked gasp.
"No!" The three leapt from the couch and screamed.
"My lady!" Adrien shouted.
Marinette was standing on her tippy toes, her neck extended as far as it would go. And she was desperately gasping for air.
"Marinette! Marinette please say something!"
Alya's pulse pounded in her ears. How long could she stay like that? How long could she survive?
Finally, the rope was cut and she collapsed on the floor.
"My lady…my lady…" Adrien kept calling for her. Begging her to answer.
She was freed of her hood, as she continued to lay on the ground.
"Adrien…" she whispered. "Hang…hang in there…"
"My lady!" His voice was wet with relief, and he outright sobbed.
The hour ended, and his noose and hood were pulled off as well. He was weeping, tears soaking his face, as his lips pulled into a grimace.
They watched as they were both led from the room, Marinette having to be dragged.
"I'm going to kill her." Alya stated, not for the first time. "I'm going to put her in a noose for an hour and see how she likes it!"
"Al, calm down."
Alya shot to her feet. "No! I won't calm down! Maybe I'll attract another akuma! I'll take it this time! Let me be Lady Wifi again! Akumatize me!"
But there was no akuma to be found, and Alya collapsed back onto the couch, crying into her palms. "I'm a superhero, damnit…why am I so useless?"
"How do you think everyone else in this city feels?" He asked. "Yeah, we have Miraculous. Yeah, we know them personally. But what about all the other people who love them? Who were saved by them?"
Alya shook her head. "But we're the ones who have a chance! We can save them!"
"Alya…we're just kids."
Her hands flopped down to her legs, as she stared at the floor in silence. "So…we give up?"
"No, of course not." He petted her hair. "I just think you're being too hard on yourself. We can't help them if we're too busy having a pity party."
The stream was still going, even though there was no one in the room.
"Last time, Salo had a message of when the next stream was."
"Then we'll just wait for it."
About a half hour passed until the stream changed. The camera views were different, and the footage was only in black and white. Marinette and Adrien were sitting on the floor, eating something.
"They get food!" Chloe cried with relief.
"It doesn't look like much." Nino added.
Alya just watched with wet eyes.
Marinette was speaking."Oh…I just…I was thinking, earlier, when we were chained up and waiting…I was looking at you, as you slept. And…I felt like I was looking at a stranger. You're my best friend, and I care so so much about you, but…You're not Adrien anymore, and you aren't Chat. You're just…different."
"Oh…yeah, I see what you mean. I…I kinda feel the same. I'm so used to seeing Ladybug so fearless and sassy, and then Marinette shy and adorable…seeing Marinette being rebellious and…humiliated like this is…foreign."
"Were you disappointed?" She whispered.
"What?"
"Were you disappointed? You said, a few days ago, that you were in love with Ladybug. Were you disappointed when you found out I was her?"
"No…Well…I was disappointed in myself. I promised that I would know you immediately, out of the mask. And so allowed myself to fall head over heels in love with you. In fact, there was a handful of people I would have been disappointed with if you had turned out to be them. But you were with them in person, so I didn't worry."
"Oh, like who?"
"My father for example."
That managed to give smiles to those at home. "Your father, Gabriel Agreste, as Ladybug!? How the hell did you think that as an option!?"
"You don't know! The miraculous could drastically alter someone's appearance! If my father wanted to look like a 15 year old girl…then that's on him, I guess."
She giggled some more. "Boy, I hope Salo doesn't have cameras in here right now."
"In case she does…sorry father, that was a joke."
This was a private moment. A conversation between two partners. Two friends.
No one had the right to listen in.
And yet Salo broadcasted it to everyone.
It was kind of uplifting, hearing Ladybug and Chat Noir admit, in some capacity, that they loved each other. Although, they didn't outright say it.
"I looked for you." He said softly. "I looked everywhere for you. But…you had been there, all this time. And I never noticed. I'm so sorry."
"You don't have anything to apologize for."
"What about you?" He asked. "You have, or had, a crush on me. But you always rejected Chat Noir."
"I'm so happy that you're my kitty." She croaked, emotional. "I always thought that you were so kind and forgiving…it makes sense that you're him."
"I'm glad." He hummed. "Back before all this, before the photo thing…I thought you hated me."
"What?"
"Yeah! I mean, you were always so…uncomfortable around me. I thought maybe you were still holding a grudge a little from the whole gum incident."
"What! I would never!"
"I know that now." He snickered. "I just...I'm sheltered. I still haven't picked up on all social cues."
"Oh, I think you're doing pretty okay."
"Yeah?"
"Most of the time."
He hummed. "Then I guess you'll just have to stay with me to help me with the few I miss."
There was a pause, and Adrien made a confused face. "What?"
"What what?"
"Didn't you just say my name?"
"No...?"
"You so did! Just now!" Adrien turned in his cell towards her.
"I said 'most of the time' and that's it!"
"I could have sworn—What?"
"I didn't say anything!"
"Well someone did! I just heard my name! I keep hearing someone calling for me!"
Marinette was sat up a little bit, "You…you didn't just say my name, did you?"
"No…and I didn't hear it either…Ugh this is freaking me out! Is it a ghost?"
Marinette scoffed. "More than likely, it's a tiny speaker that Salo hid in your cell. Mine too."
Almost instantly, Marinette's body went slack and she slumped against the wall.
Adrien called out for her, but likewise, he collapsed.
"What's happening to them?" Asked Chloe.
"I have no idea. They were fine just a minute ago."
Marinette's mouth opened, and she called out for him. "Cccccchhhhhhaaaaatttttt…" Her voice was slow and drawn out, some drool tripping off her lip.
Adrien started flailing, like he was losing his balance. Then he pulled at the door of his cell. It opened without any resistance and he wandered out.
The camera changed angles to show the room they were in. The three could see the cages they were being kept in, that looked like old duct work. The rest of the room was mostly empty. Some junk scattered around, and a plank of wood over the doorway.
Adrien stumbled out, swaying back and forth, looking like a drunkard. He turned towards Marinette's cage and started walking, with a heavy lean backwards, like he was fighting gravity.
"What is wrong with him?" Chloe demanded. "He looks drunk."
Nino opened his mouth a few times, then said, "Dehydration?"
Alya shook her head. "Not like this. It has to be drugs. Of some kind. Maybe in the food."
"I'm not dreaming am I?" Adrien asked aloud.
He turned around in a circle, then tried to swing his bum arm around. "I'm not dreaming, am I?" He asked again. "Didn't I just say that?"
He wobbled and finally reached Marinette's cage. Opening the door, he leaned against the opening.
"You're not Marinette." He said.
The camera showed Marinette looking up at him. He was definitely looking at her, but he was seeing someone else. And so was she.
"I'm not?" She asked right back.
"Have we met before?"
"Have we met before?" Parroted Marinette.
"Yes of course!" Said Adrien, then muttered something incomprehensible.
Marinette stood slowly, her world swaying.
"You're my mommy!" Adrien giggled, his hands over his mouth.
"They're hallucinating." Alya breathed.
"That's sick." Nino spat.
Then Adrien screamed. Screamed bloody murder, blowing out the microphones. He scrambled, his movement frantic, but graceless, as he whirled around in space.
Marinette was scrambling after him, rage on her face, and thus began the slowest chase anyone had ever seen. Multiple times, they both fell on the floor, rolling around like they were drowning.
Adrien gathered his footing and ran at full speed at the wall, colliding with it, over and over and over again, like if he hit it hard enough, he would break through.
Nino winced with each impact.
"Oh, did that hurt?" She asked, as Adrien slid to lay on the floor.
"I'm not dreaming am I?"
"You already said that."
"I'm losing my mind."
"Quite possibly."
They reached out for each other, taking hold of the other's wrist. They both pulled, Adrien raising off the floor, only to fall back down again. They were both screaming incomprehensible garbage at each other.
Adrien just started rolling around on the floor, squawking and squealing, making ungodly noises of pain and fear.
They couldn't begin to imagine what he was seeing.
Marinette wasn't much better. She wasn't on the ground, but she was still screaming. Alya heard her call out for Chat once or twice. She staggered a few steps, her foot colliding with something metal on the ground. She stooped and picked it up.
A crowbar.
"Put it down, Mari." Alya begged. "Drop it!"
With a shriek, she started to hack at Adrien with the crowbar, hitting him in the chest as he continued to scream.
Blood came out of his mouth with each hit.
Finally, Marinette stopped, just at the apex of her swing.
"My lady?" He asked softly.
The crowbar clattered to the ground loudly.
"Chat? Is that you?" She asked.
"I…I don't know." He answered honestly. "I feel like…I'm not me."
"Me neither."
Marinette staggered backwards, and started screaming again. And Adrien started to roll around. It was starting over again.
—
Many hours passed. The sun had set, and the streetlights had gone on. Chloe wandered over to Adrien's bed and collapsed. She laid there crying for several hours before she finally fell asleep. Nino watched for much longer, but his head lolled, and he fell asleep on the couch.
Alya was the only one still awake, watching as Adrien and Marinette continued their drug induced haze. Her eyes burned, her tears all dried up.
Trixx floated up to her face. "You should go to sleep, pretty girl."
"Can't." Alya shook her head. "I have to…have to watch for clues."
"If there hasn't been any so far, I don't think there will be any."
Alya rubbed her eyes, blinking back the emotion that threatened to take her. She glanced at her phone. "School starts in two hours."
"You aren't going to school," her kwami scolded gently. "You need to sleep or your going to start hallucinating too."
"I…don't think I can sleep. Even if I wanted to."
Trip swooped over and turned off the TV. "Then do something else for a little while. If you watch this any longer, you're not going to be any help to them."
Alya sighed. "Fine. I'll do something else."
Adrien's computer was just over there. Maybe he wouldn't have a password on it. She sat down, and shook the mouse, the screen coming to life. His wallpaper was him with his mother, which was almost too painful to look at.
She clicked on Chrome, pulling up the internet. His most recent page was the Ladyblog, and he was logged in.
As Chat Noir.
Alya chuckled to herself. "If anyone had gotten on this computer at any time, they would have figured you out."
Allowing him some privacy, she logged him out, and logged in as herself.
Salo's post to Hawkmoth was gone. Whether she took it down or Max did, Alya didn't know. And she didn't really care.
She opened a new post, knowing she should probably do this before things got out of hand, and people starting asking questions. They probably were, but she hadn't checked her notifications since they went missing.
Hi Ladybloggers, Alya here.
I'm sure you've seen the news. If you haven't, it is with a heavy heart that I announce that Ladybug and Chat Noir have been captured by a woman going by the name Salo. She has them held hostage somewhere undisclosed. She's been streaming on this site (WARNING: What she is doing to them is graphic and not for the faint of heart. Those under the age of 18 probably shouldn't look.) They have had their Miraculous stolen and their identities exposed.
Ladybug is my best friend, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, who I have talked about several times on the blog.
Chat Noir is also a good friend of mine, Adrien Agreste, head model for Gabriel Agreste. He's in my class.
I'm sure many articles and news sites will try to get the scoop on what kind of people they are. I'm in contact with their parents right now, and I'd just like to say, if a story is not endorsed by my blog, it most likely is not factual, and not authorized by either family. (This does not include any interviews that Adrien did prior to being captured.)
When I am ready, I will share some clips of Marinette that we took together. I want everyone to know how amazing, wonderful, thoughtful, helpful and kind they both are in their other lives. They took the superhero duty above and beyond the mask and always tried to help others and do the right thing.
Soon, I will also be making a detailed transcript of what happens in the stream, for those of you who are unwilling to watch it. Anyone willing to help with this endeavor, please message me.
First thing first though. Marinette, Ladybug, had said something earlier today that I want to share and hammer home.
"If you're watching this, you…you're probably feeling a little hopeless. I don't blame you. I feel…pretty hopeless too. I mean, I'm stuck. I'm not sure how I'm going to get out of this. But Ladybug always saves the day, right?
My name is Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I'm 17 years old, and my favorite color is pink. I'm the daughter of the best bakers in Paris, though I might be a little bias. Before I became Ladybug, I was a normal girl, with a normal life. What made me extraordinary, was my willingness to help others, and my kindness. So Paris, I have a favor to ask:
"Be helpful and kind. Go out of your way do something nice for someone once a day. If you can do this for me, then I know Paris will be safe until we return."
This is Ladybug's favor to us, and it's the least we can do.
More info to come.
Alya out.