Interlude – I Saidn't Have Should That

Everything hurt. Someone had taken that moment you wake up and immediately realize you've got the flu and dropped it on her with the full force of a church behind it. She tried to take a breath, but dust filled her lungs and made her cough. She opened her eyes just enough to see light come in through the fissures in the collapsed walls.

Get up, a little voice inside her head that sounded suspiciously like Tikki whispered. The longer you're in here, the more likely you are to get stuck.

Right. If the rubble collapsed in on itself, she could get hurt.

She sat up, quickly finding that she barely had enough room to do that. This was going to take some interesting maneuvering. Her left leg had some weight on it, but it didn't quite feel trapped.

"Okay," she told herself, "I can do this." Slowly, she began pulling her leg back in towards her body, watching as the rubble around it caved in inch by inch. "Please don't collapse, please don't collapse, please don't collapse…"

Her leg came free and she winced, waiting for the remains of the building to fall on her head, but they never came. She opened one eye, then two. She was okay; she was alive. She maneuvered into a crouch, looking for a safe exit and letting her mind wander.

What had upset Chat so much that he got akumatized? She knew his home life wasn't exactly great- had his father finally done something to push him over the edge?

God, she hoped not. Chat was sure his father would make him give up his miraculous if he found out, but Ladybug had a different theory. He was, according to Chat, always wrapped up in his business to the point of neglecting anything else- even his own health and his child- so Ladybug's theory was that he would make Chat the poster boy for the company, and if word got out that a local small business was able to get Chat Noir as a spokesperson, it wouldn't be long before people connected the dots.

She pushed on a slab of concrete and felt it move under her hands. Ha! She pushed again, and light flooded in, blinding her. Almost there. Almost free.

One last shove, and the rock fell out of her way. The rocks around it began to fall, and Ladybug jumped out before they could land on her.

It took a moment for her to gather herself and adjust to the blinding orange light hitting her. How was it already sunset? How long as she been out?

"Ladybug!"

Ladybug jerked her head to see a paramedic running over the rubble towards her. She stopped when they were only a foot apart.

"Holy shit, we thought you were dead," the paramedic breathed.

Ladybug recognized her from the other day, when Chat has been in that car accident. "It's, uh… Bernard, right? Maria Bernard?"

The paramedic nodded. "Call me Maria," she replied with a soft smile. "Come on, we need to get you checked out; you may have a concussion."

"I'm sorry, I can't stay," Ladybug replied. "I still need to track down the akuma and-"

"You mean Chat Blanc?"

Ladybug cringed. She'd hoped no one would find out about that. "Um… yeah. Him."

Maria shook her head. "He went dark after he dropped the church on you. He hasn't shown up once."

Her frown deepened. "All the more reason for me to go and find him. We have no way of knowing what he's doing right now, and I don't think anyone wants to find out what he's planning."

"I guess," Maria replied with a slight scoff. "It's just… he could've broken down the rubble and gotten your miraculous while you were unconscious, but he didn't. Maybe that wasn't his goal- or the one Hawkmoth gave him."

Ladybug shook her head. "If Hawkmoth wasn't going after my and Chat Noir's miraculous, what was he looking for?"

Maria shrugged. "Ask Chat." She looked Ladybug over one more time. "Are you sure I can't convince you to get checked out?"

"I'm sure," Ladybug replied. "No one else was hurt?"

"Not a soul."

"Then I need to go. Thanks for your concern, Maria!"

Ladybug cast out her yo-yo and headed off, running across rooftops and keeping an eye out for anything that looked like Chat's handiwork.

It didn't take her long to realize that was a fat lot of nothing. The roads were pristine (well, as they ever were), and it looked like the church was the only building Chat Blanc had taken down. This called for a bit of good fortune.

She called for a lucky charm, stunned when a large, white, pentagon-shaped piece of plastic landed in her hands. Her eyebrows furrowed as she studied it for a moment, trying to figure out what it could be for. Her eyes darted around, but she stopped when they landed on the Agreste mansion. Gabriel, Helena, and Adrien were near the gate, Gabriel pulling his keys out of his pocket.

Well… no harm in talking to them, right? See how Helena was doing after the crash- at least in part. It was also an excuse to talk to Adrien.

Ladybug dropped down in front of the trio, noting the stunned looks she received. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's fine, Ladybug," Gabriel replied with a heavy sigh that made her feel like it most certainly was not fine. "It's just been a very long afternoon for all of us."

Ladybug nodded in understanding. "Believe me, I know the feeling. I don't suppose you came across Chat Blanc, did you?" If she'd known what to look for, she would have noticed Adrien's whole body tense up.

"Chat Blanc?" Adrien asked, voice squeaking a little. He cleared his throat nervously. "I, uh, I didn't know Chat Noir had been akumatized."

Ladybug nodded, a concerned frown on her face. "It was his asshole father, I'd bet you anything," she grumbled. Another squeak escaped Adrien, and Ladybug jerked her head up. "I-um- gah- um- I saidn't have should that. Shouldn't have said that. I'm sorry, I will leave you to your night."

"Why do you have that?" Helena finally spoke up.

Ladybug's attention jerked down to the pentagon still in her hands. "It's my lucky charm," she explained. "I haven't figured out what to do with it yet."

"A baseball base?" Adrien asked. "How are you supposed to use that?"

"I think it would be rather obvious," Gabriel muttered, averting his eyes to the lock on the gate so he wouldn't meet Ladybug's eyes.

Ladybug furrowed her brows together. How was it supposed to be obvious? "What do you mean?" she asked.

Gabriel hesitated before turning to Ladybug again. "It's not just a base; it's a home base. It's telling you to go home. If Chat Blanc isn't causing chaos chasing you for your miraculous, he's probably not an akuma anymore. Hawkmoth probably realized he couldn't convince him to take your miraculous or turn either of them over and gave up. Deakumatized him himself."

"You really think Hawkmoth would give up that easily, even on one akuma, especially when that victim is Chat Noir?" Ladybug shook her head. "I've gotta find him before it's too late." A heavy sigh escaped her, and she braced her head in her hands. "I've gotta fix this."

"Go home, Ladybug."

Ladybug couldn't help but jerk her head up to stare at Gabriel strangely. Sure, she hadn't spoken to him many times, but from the few times she had and what Adrien had to say about him, Ladybug never would have expected such a kind, nurturing tone to come from him. He actually sounded concerned.

If Gabriel was in any way unsettled by her reaction, he didn't show it. He kept his cool and continued on in a voice that sounded more like her own father's than a fashion mogul's. "Chat Blanc obviously isn't showing up tonight, if at all. The only thing you're going to do is wear yourself out to the point that you can't properly function tomorrow. You look like you're my son's age; you must have school tomorrow! You can't go in exhausted, and if you do, you'll just make yourself sick. Go home."

Ladybug considered it. The past few days had been crazy with akumas every day and the whole Helena debacle to boot. She felt like she was running on fumes, and she desperately needed sleep. But…

"Every second Chat's under Hawkmoth's control is a second he's in danger," she replied with a shake of her head. "I'm not sleeping until I know he's safe. Have a good night, all of you."

She turned and took off running, knowing she'd had to stop to refuel soon anyway. She dropped behind another building, out of the Agrestes' sight, and let her transformation wash over her.

The first thing Tikki did upon popping out of the earrings was say, "Gabriel's right, Marinette."

"You were listening in?" Marinette asked, followed by a sigh as she began to dig through her purse for a cookie. She pulled out a macaron and handed it off to Tikki. "I know I should go get some sleep, but I can't stop thinking about poor Chat, stuck out there akumatized. His father might suck, but I'm sure his house is better than sleeping on the streets!"

Tikki ate her cookie, patiently waiting for Marinette to finish her rambling. "It wouldn't be the first time a butterfly wielder- even Hawkmoth specifically- withdrew a senshi."

Marinette furrowed her eyebrows together. "A senshi?" she asked. "What, is that another name for the butterflies or something?"

"Not quite," Tikki replied. "Only kwamis, the butterfly wielder, and their champions can feel the difference, but a senshi is like an akuma, only without malicious intentions. They may not be completely pure, but they're not bad. They're warriors, plain and simple. Chat Blanc really wasn't after your miraculous, Marinette. Neither of them were, or it would have been an akuma."

"And it was a senshi? You're sure?" Marinette asked. "It wasn't some akuma disguised as a senshi?"

Tikki shook her head. "You can't disguise the energy difference. Maybe something happened that was more important to him than the miraculous. Usually the senshi are at least a little selfish, even if they're doing the right thing. If they weren't, they'd be seijin."

"Which means…"

"Saints. It's not the best translation, but it's close enough. Holy men. Do-gooders. People fighting because it's the right thing to do, not for their own sake. They're hard to come by because they require such little concern for the champion's situation on their own behalf. They have to be detached from the situation, and the ones around it rarely are."

"So whatever Chat was doing was personal," Marinette realized with a heavy sigh. She looked away, then back over to Tikki. "I really need to find him now. Tikki, spots on!"

The familiar pinkish-red light washed over her, and she took off running again.

It was at least another half hour before she found Chat, back in his regular black suit. She practically barreled into him.

Chat let out a little 'oof' as he felt to the rooftop he was standing on. He turned, mind catching up as he realized who had tackled him. "My- my lady, I swear I'm not-"

"I know," Ladybug cut in. "My kwami told me that you were a senshi, not an akuma." She glanced down and realized she was still on top of him. A bright red blush came to her cheeks, and she crawled off him but didn't bother standing up. "What happened?"

Chat hesitated, pursing his lips together. "I'm not sure if I should tell you," he confessed. "It was… really personal."

"If it wasn't, you would've been a seijin." At Chat Noir's strange look, she clarified, "Tikki."

Chat nodded.

After a moment of silence, Ladybug continued, "If you do need to talk about, I'm always here for you. Even if you do have to leave out chunks of information. I just can't figure out what it could be that Hawkmoth was involved, too."

A dry laugh came from Chat Noir, and he shook his head. "God, I wish I could tell you," he replied. "But, um… I don't think he's going to be a problem anymore."

"Something you found out while you were his champion?"

"Yeah." He looked away from her then, like he was afraid he'd say something he shouldn't. Ladybug couldn't exactly blame him. It killed her not to know what he'd found out, but if the danger was gone, was there really any harm in letting him keep it a secret?

After a long moment of silence, he spoke again. "Did Master Fu ever tell you about why he left the Guardians? That the temple, uh…"

"The bad chosen," Ladybug replied with a nod.

"They aren't all gone," Chat continued. "Well, I think they probably are now, but… before. I-I don't think Master Fu even realizes- he said he was too young to know all their secrets when it happened- but the chosen who destroyed the temple, he saved the kwamis from a lot of pain."

Okay, Ladybug had to admit: she was even more curious now. What the hell had Chat Blanc been up to? He clearly remembered what happened, and Marinette only saw that in two other cases: Lila the second time she'd been Volpina, when Hawkmoth withdrew the akuma after she made the illusion of Ladybug being akumatized; and her own father after Marinette had gotten the rose, fulfilling his 'mission.' So… "How did you get desenshi'd?"

For a moment, Chat Noir didn't answer, like he was wondering whether or not to tell her the truth. Finally, he said, "An interdimensional portal forcibly separated me from Plagg, and without him to power my miraculous, the senshi was forced to stay on the other side of the portal."

…

…

…

"Okay, keep your secrets."

A snort bubbled up from Chat Noir, followed shortly by all-out laughter. It was contagious, and Ladybug couldn't help but fall apart, too, and the two superheroes let out all their exhaustion on the roof before practically passing out atop one another.

Sorry for the delay in this, everyone! I got diagnosed with narcolepsy and have been fumbling around trying to get my medicine set straight ever since. So tell me: what do you think Gabriel's going to do when he realizes Adrien isn't home in the morning?