For a few moments, it didn't quite register.

She just looked at the stain on her clothes blankly. It could have been some spilt tomato sauce for all that she could find her in itself to react. Slowly however, there was a mounting sense of terror which settled in. It started with some trembling. An instinctive dread. Panic took over both for her and those around her. She wasn't too sure just what was going on. Instinct however caused the blood to drain from her arms and legs, leaving her faint.

Adrien was quick to take her in his arms. Fretting instinctively. She felt lost confused but desperately felt that she needed to check her wound. She pulled up her shirt but found no immediate puncture mark or cut which might potentially be the source of the fluid. She she began feeling behind, convinced that somehow he must have managed to get her in the back. Yet her fingers encountered no wet. It was a simple enough realization to allow her to come to somewhat.

Less startled, she was able to feel around. Eyes open, she came to a startling if somewhat relieving conclusion:

"It-It isn't mine."

It wasn't. There was no blood there or rather no wound. She couldn't however deny the fact that there was some on her shirt, albeit perhaps not as much as she had originally feared. It was located mostly around her side. There was some on Adrien as well but only a few splatters, much of which was on his hand. He fixed it, turning a little paler. It was only then that he thought to glance down towards the blade which had been discarded without a second thought next to him.

There was blood on the blade. Enough of it to indicate that it had been driven in deep or at the very least nicked something important. Nearby, some of the others approached nervously. Adrien couldn't take his eyes off of the knife. He frowned, brow creased. Clearly the young man was troubled. For her part, Marinette glanced over her shoulder. All of her friends and her parents, whilst a little the worse for wear were all present and accounted for.

Still, something wasn't right. That much became clear. The colour drained suddenly from his face.

"No..." He turned to look behind him, to something or rather someone else. "Nathalie!"

Adrien's panicked scream echoed throughout the room.

Despite everything, the young man scrambled to his feet. His head was spinning but the one thing which remained crystal clear was the figure of the woman lying motionless on the floor. Everything and everyone else seemed to fade into unimportance. She'd changed back to her civilian self but lay motionless a few yards away, resting on her side. She didn't respond to his call.

Adrien reached her a few moments later. Astonishingly, she was still conscious. Her eyes drifted up to meet him but asides from that, she showed few signs of responding. Carefully, he took the woman in his arms. She said nothing, only grimacing briefly with pain. Her left hand was resting around her lower abdomen. Stubbornly however, she refused to remove it, keeping it there. Despite the young man's insistence:

"Let me see!"

His heart sank as his eyes met those of the woman. There was pain behind her blue orbs, a reluctance to carry out his request. It was one of the first times he'd seen her hesitate in such a way, to contemplate disobeying him. It was a tearful regret, as if removing her hands would somehow break a magic spell and make everything all the more real. An understanding passed between the two of them, silently, without the need for words. Bitterly, Adrien forced himself to watch as her left hand shielding her stomach slowly slipped away. He knew before she even followed his instruction what he would find. The lower part of her abdomen continued to rise and fall irregularly as she struggled with her breaths. It took a few seconds however for his gaze to find a dark patch, it was barely even visible against her purple suit. All he could do was stare at it, watch it grow steadily soaking the fabric and running down her side. Hand shaking, she turned her palm round so that he could see for himself the dark crimson staining her flesh and that there could be no room for misconceptions about just what the liquid was. The wound, whilst covered for the most part, was deep even without a proper examination, the young man could tell that much. It felt as if it was possible to see with each of her heartbeats pumping more blood which only flowed out uselessly, unable to fill the hole which had been left. He could feel it beginning to drip down onto the floor, forming a puddle in the dust.

His mouth ran dry as he felt his stomach turn. No doctor or medical expertise was required. What felt like a chisel was abruptly rammed into his heart, prying it apart and threatening to split it right through the centre. Turning away was what his instincts demanded that he did. As if the mere fact that his eyes were no longer resting on the injury would somehow wipe it from existence. Instead, his eyes met those of the woman in his arms once more. The suffering was apparent as was the shared unspoken knowledge of what was to come. An inevitable fact which Adrien, in those few moments found himself desperate to fight back against.

Dread began to take hold causing him to physically shake. With a deep breath, he managed to recover some presence of mind, enough at any rate to realize that he would have to do something. First on the list was of course to try and slow the bleeding. With no medical supplies around, he found himself with only a few choices. He reached out, desperate to apply some pressure to the wound. The action earned a pained groan as Nathalie tensed up. He tried to ignore the unpleasant sensation of the warm and sticky liquid against his hand. The woman's breathing hitched for a few seconds before returning to its previous strained rhythm. Despite his efforts, he could feel ever more blood leaking out. Cursing under his breath, his mind kicked into overdrive, trying to both find a solution and distract himself from the reality of the current situation:

"Someone, please, call an ambulance!" He turned back to the others yelling at the top of his lungs before facing the assistant once more. He spoke more softly to her, trying to sound as calm as possible. "It's okay... I've got you."

"Nice to have you back..."

His eyes widened, startled to hear her voice. It was weak, trembling as she struggled to speak. Each syllable she uttered robbing her of another breath. As he looked into her eyes, whilst they might have been duller than usual, he saw that she was fully aware.

Adrien felt his heart sink just that little bit more. Whilst he was glad to be able to interact with the woman, it also meant that she was fully aware of what had happened. He knew that she wasn't an idiot. Much like him, he must have known that it was a bad wound. Still, she appeared to be perfectly calm. He couldn't take his eyes off of the woman. He could see what had happened in his mind's eye. She'd saved Marinette, shielding her from Kahn's blow. He hadn't cared… Well, he had a little bit but only in his own perverse way.

Now… He didn't want to even think about it.

With a trembling hand, she reached out, handing something to him. His eyes widened, realizing just what it was. His ring, well, Cat Noir's and the Ladybug earrings. She offered them back to him, pleading silently for him to take them. If he did, it was only so that Plagg would rematerialize next to him. He could do with the support and so that she no longer felt obliged to strain herself. As soon as she was finished, she tensed up, groaning with pain. Terrified, Adrien looked up and away from the woman towards the others still present. A feeling of terror the likes of which he couldn't describe had come over him.

"Pl-Please..."

They nodded. Already, he could see Marinette frantically keying into her phone. It was then that suddenly, seemingly without any rhyme or reason, Nathalie started to stir a little more urgently.

He reached out, keen to ensure that she didn't somehow manage to harm herself through moving around. Upon looking down at her however, rather than find her frantic as he had anticipated, he found himself realizing that she was, in fact, remarkably calm. The woman looked up to him, even offering him a slight smile, her lips trembled slightly as she did so. Breathing heavily, her eyelids fluttered. She was fighting to remain awake, that much was clear. He wanted to tell her that everything was going to be alright, that it wasn't serious.

"It's okay." She managed to get out with some effort. "No need to worry..."

"We'll get you some help." Adrien promised her, trying to sound as convincing as possible.

"No…" The woman let the word out in a sigh.

The young man frowned, not understanding. He put it down to confusion. Already, he could tell that she had lost a fair amount of blood. That must have been having some sort of an affect on her ability to process the world around her, he reasoned. That and she'd spend the past few days being bashed around more or less severely. He told himself that she was confused, didn't know what she was saying. Of course she wanted and needed help. The doctors and nurses would be able to stitch her up, dress her wound and take away the pain. All they needed was to get here.

"Adrien…" It was Plagg who spoke, floating near to him, his voice disconcertingly slow. "The wish..."

It was like a slap in the face to him. He hadn't thought about just how Kahn had come out of his body, being too preoccupied and elated by his freedom, he hadn't given any thought as to just how that had happened. He contemplated the jewels in his hand. It was Nathalie who had given them to him having already used them. A wish was a terrible thing. It was the one thing that Master Fu had always forbidden him from even contemplating, if only because it was so impossibly unpredictable. There was always a consequence, the universe had to maintain balance but beyond that? It was a risky choice and one he had been discouraged from ever taking a chance with.

A terrible sinking feeling settled in the pit of his stomach. He looked down at the woman in his arms, remembering that she was the one to save him.

"Nathalie." She seemed to have drifted off, so he shook her gently, bringing her to once more. "Nathalie what did you wish for?"

"For you to be free." She managed, her gaze softening as she fixed him.

"-But Kahn..." Adrien began, trembling slightly.

"Transfer him to somebody whom he couldn't possible use..."

She smiled sadly, silently acknowledging what had been done. Adrien could only stare at her, realizing just what the implications were. The woman tensed up abruptly, taking him by surprise. Her breath hitched. Instinctively, she clung to him. Her eyes were wide with fright or pain, he couldn't have said which it was. Instinctively, he held the woman a little closer to himself, hoping that somehow the proximity would be enough to provide at least a modicum of comfort. He didn't know if she would appreciate it given that she wasn't very comfortable with physical contact. She didn't seem to object however, resting her head against him.

Adrien turned towards the others. He didn't know what to do, what could be done or said to fix this. A wish would do it but then they'd be back to square one… He could feel the miraculous that Nathalie had given him in the palm of his hand. Maybe, if he wished for what had been done to her, to be done to himself that would surely transfer not only the wound but the monster. Nathalie Sancoeur would be safe… His friends watched in pained silence. At this point, he didn't know if help was on its way or if they'd given that much up.

"Oh… The murderer becomes the murdered, how ironic."

He recognized the words despite the fact that they were coming out of Nathalie's voice. The young man stared down at her with horror. Her eyes were different. They were the same shade of blue, with bags underneath, highlighting just how much these past few days had cost her. There was a malice behind them which he hadn't seen before. It he was safe, it was only because the woman's body was as badly damaged as it was. Still, there was something taunting behind her orbs, it seemed to be taking a particular pleasure in this.

Rage coursed through Adrien's veins. It took all of his self-control not to instinctively lash out. Unfortunately, his enemy was buried deep within the skin of a woman he cared for. To strike at them would be to harm her. All he could do was take out his rage audibly:

"Let her go!"

For a moment, Nathalie just smirked. It was as if she was saying: "What are you going to do about it?".

Then, suddenly, she tensed up and let out a gasp of pain. Adrien held her a bit closer, knowing what was going on inside of her mind. A silent battle was raging. Kahn was a ferocious adversary. Nathalie however was able to fight her way through it. She came out exhausted on the other side of it, breathing heavily. The woman leaned over, pressing part of her face against his chest trying to block out the world. He could do nothing for her other than hold his hand against the wound, slowing the blood flow to the best of his ability.

"You need to let me die."

He didn't want to hear those words. Instead, he closed his eyes, desperately trying to either forget what was going on or wake himself up from whatever nightmare this was. No matter what though, he couldn't quite ignore the weight in his arms or the warmth of her shaking and unsteady breaths against him.

They forced him to open his eyes and look back down at the woman in his arms. She seemed relaxed, accepting of her fate. She must have known, he realized. From the moment that she'd accepted the jewels and made her wish. He didn't know if she'd always intended to use herself as Kahn's new vessel or if her injuries had made the decision somehow seem obvious and easier. He didn't care to ask Right now, that didn't matter all that much. She looked up at him with a tender understanding, almost as if she could read his mind. He gave her a watery smile, one which failed to hide his pain:

"You saved me. Saved all of us..." Facts that she was no doubt aware of but that he felt compelled to inform her of none-the-less.

"'you think I might qualify me for a bonus?"

He couldn't quite recall the last time that he'd heard her crack a joke and to the best of his knowledge she'd never before asked for a raise either. Her comment earned a snort of amusement despite the dire situation. If anyone on the planet deserved both a raise and a vacation, it was Nathalie Sancoeur. There was so much that he found himself wanting to say to her, to let her know but for the life of him, he couldn't think of how to say it. So instead he just held her close, silently praying for some manner of a miracle, anything that would allow him to save the woman whom he knew he was going to lose.

She coughed a few times, a terrible melody that he hadn't heard since the time of Mayura. These were weaker. It was the sort of noise which seemed to indicate that her lungs were struggling. Every second, the woman was growing weaker, still, she found it in herself to speak:

"Thank you... For giving me another chance."

"I- You..." Adrien shook his head, unable to pull himself together enough to speak.

"You're making this hard..."

He didn't respond. The pain in his throat made it difficult to speak. At this point, he didn't even attempt to conceal the tears behind his eyes, unable to hold them back. They fell down his cheeks as a few sobs escaped despite himself. Plagg settled next to him, trying as best as he could to comfort his human partner. Adrien couldn't express his gratitude. All he knew was that Nathalie was dying and that some part of that was his fault.

Something warm stroked the side of his cheek, banishing the few tears. He looked down, somewhat surprised. It wasn't just that she still possessed the strength for such things but also that she was doing them in the first place. Never before could he recall her showing him such gentle tenderness. It was a mark of affection that had always seemed to be a bit beneath her. He'd longed for some from her. Just a little touch or a hug, even a word or two would have been nice. She smiled sadly looking up at him but managed to summon the will to try and reassure him:

"It's okay..." The soft way that she spoke made everything change. Adrien shifted from the one providing comfort to the one being comforted. "This is- okay."

It was with the gentlest of touches that she eased his hand away from the wound. He resisted for a few seconds, aware that his strength was greater than hers. He could have stopped her, made sure that he continued to stem the blood flow. Allowed her to live just that little bit longer. Draw out her unseen torment by extension. She pleaded silently with him, letting him know that this was what she wanted, perhaps needed. Shaking, he allowed his hand to slip away. Nathalie let out a soft sigh, closing her eyes for a moment.

"He's very loud..." The woman muttered weakly to the best of her ability, before her dull gaze turned to fix him. "Adrien, I'd rather be- Nathalie Sancoeur, than that monster."

"It alright." His voice was a bit firmer now. "I understand."

For the time being, he resolved to focus on other matters. Nathalie was fading away slowly but surely. The blood which was flowing far faster now that he was no longer making any attempt to slow it. He didn't know how much longer that would give her. She seemed relaxed however. There was no accounting for the battle which was going on in her mind though. He knew what it was like, how Kahn would rip and tear at her psyche until she gave in and he was able to wrestle the controls from her. After that, she would be little more than a spectator.

Even now, so close to the end, it was clear that something inside wasn't quite right. Kahn was knocking, desperate to find a way out. She was alternating between periods of evidently being awake and others where for a few moments, he thought that she might actually be drifting off. When her eyes were open however, her gaze found fall upon him, almost as if to assure that he was still there with her.

The others were pulling themselves together slowly but surely. They would need a good few days before they could recover. That didn't seem to matter however. Whilst they might have chosen to remain at a distance, all knew what was going to happen. From time to time, a few quiet words were exchanged. Adrien laughed, it mixed itself with a tearful sob but there could be no denying the amusement just what could have been said to him to earn such a response at a time like this remained to be seen:

"I am..." Was what he whispered as a reply.

"It wouldn't be so bad…" She was forced to pause, panting for breath. "If I didn't have someone to miss."

She stopped suddenly, closing her eyes. Adrien wasn't enough of a doctor to know if the fact that her breathing was growing faster was a sign of the end coming or if it was a result of the unseen battle raging within her. He held her loosely but took the opportunity to turn to Plagg. The kwami said nothing but gave him a look which he understood. He battled against the urge to sob, to beg her to stay with him and continue on fighting. Even if he had wanted to speak, he doubted that any words would have come.

The woman gasped abruptly. She raised her hand to her head, pressing her palm against her temple. The attack seemed to last for a few seconds, throughout which her breathing became laboured. When it was over, she returned to a state of apparent weakness. A single tear trickled down the side of her face.

"Adrien..." Came the woman's weak and trembling voice.

He wasted no time, instantly realizing what she meant, what she wanted. Nodding slowly, he held the assistant a little bit closer. Turning towards Plagg, he received a tip of the head both to comfort him and also to let him know that he wasn't alone. He spoke the words needed to transform himself, ensuring that he didn't let her go. It gave him some strength, physical if nothing else.

He got to his feet. At this point, Nathalie was almost entirely limp in his arms. He took care to support her neck, cradling her head. She weighed almost nothing or seemed to at the very least. He turned around to face the others. They all stared at him. Did they know what was coming? He didn't pause to question them focusing solely on the task at hand. He wanted to do it properly but found himself facing a slight obstacle. As much as he might not want to involve his friends or any of the other spectators, he found himself without any other option. So he tried his best to remain as composed as possible:

"C-Could you hit that control over there please?"

He didn't particularly care who did it, so long as someone helped him. It was Rena Rouge, somewhat confused and uncertain about just what he was trying to do. After a few seconds, she saw what he was referring to and made her way over to a control panel. In the past, Gabriel had been able to use a remote. That had since been lost so they found themselves left only with a few switches up against the wall. After a few attempts however, Alya succeeded. There was a creak as a part of the wall appeared to open, revealing a window. A moment or so later, the window opened fully to reveal the city of Paris.

The sun was just starting to come up, marking the beginning of a new day.

Moving slowly, Adrien carried her over towards the window. The air was somewhat chilly and it was clear that there was a fine dusting of snow covering the city. It caught pleasantly in the orange light, casting a strange glow. Kneeling down, he allowed the woman to rest once more. Her gaze rested on the city for a few moments. He wondered if she could appreciate the beauty of the scene or if she was just slipping further away.

The woman's hand reached out to touch his. It started him slightly. He looked down to see her. She offered him a gentle if slightly watery smile. It was a comfort which he couldn't quite explain or express. He was trembling as he held her but the way that she looked at him seemed to say that everything was alright. He wished that he could believe her. Behind her eyes, every now and then, there was a familiar flicker. Just a little bit of insanity slipping in, threatening to take over. He realized that she wouldn't have long. A minute or so, maybe less.

Adrien held her close to him, so that her head rested against his chest. He wondered if she could hear just how loudly his heart was pounding. Taking a deep breath, he readied himself. He found himself glancing towards the others, only briefly. They kept a respectful distance. He could see the pain behind their eyes. At this point, they must have known that Nathalie was in trouble, probably that she was going to die. Whether or not they knew the entirety of it, he couldn't have said. So he looked away from them, gradually building up the courage that was required. There was so much which he wanted to say in those few moments and yet none of it would come out.

He closed his eyes, feeling a few tears begin to trickle down his cheeks. This time, Nathalie lacked both the strength and the ability to wipe them away. Both were spent fighting back both the inevitable and keeping Kahn in check. That left him alone, with only one word that still needed to be said:

"Cataclysm."

He felt the woman shudder in his arms. She gasped, tensing up abruptly. The young man held her just that little bit closer. He felt her breathe out a sigh as the darkness and destruction spread. He didn't know if it hurt. He reasoned it must have. It was quick though. In the space of a few seconds, it covered her. He didn't want to see just what it did to her. He judged that much to be too obvious and inevitably painful. Instead, he concentrated on providing her with comfort and a sense that she wasn't alone in her last few instants.

Then, it was as if she simply dissolved. The resistance and weight of her body vanished. He opened his eyes to see her become dust. She slipped through his fingers, vanishing as a wind carried the dust and ash away, out of the window and over the city which was just beginning to awaken.

On his knees, Adrien looked at just where she had once been. He continued to keep his arms in the same position as if she was still there. He blinked a few times, as if he couldn't quite process what had happened. What he'd lost. For a few moments, he was just staring. His mind was strangely blank. A part of him knew what he'd done but it refused to admit as much. Nathalie was gone. She'd taken Kahn with her. It was over. He'd killed both of them. That single thought went round and round in his head, inescapable.

Behind him, the others could only stare. Marinette had witnessed all of it. She hadn't dared to intervene, as surprised and horrified as she had been to see the woman turn to dust… That would be something that she would reflect upon later, with a clear head. Right now… She only had eyes for Cat Noir. She felt some pain for the woman that had been lost. Nathalie Sancoeur had been many things, an enemy and a friend, kind and harsh… They owed her a great debt. The young woman suspected that she had even saved her life… None of that seemed to matter right now so much as the fact that she was gone.

The sound of a sob cut through the silence. She took a step forwards towards Cat Noir. Tears marked his features as he changed back to Adrien Agreste, staring out over the city. Her hand on his shoulder barely even seemed to register as he through his head back and let out a wail of anguish for what had been lost.