Note
To my marvelous readers, I give this gift: A second chapter in as one day! And, if we're very lucky and the muses smile down on us, perhaps a third will be forthcoming. In any case, we have the next installment in the thrilling tale of Ladybug and Chat Noir's perilous adventures in Lost and Broken.
I will warn you this: this chapter may seem a bit rushed. There is some time skipping. There are several moments when you may feel as though I'm not spending as much time as usual on each character. Well, that's because I'm not. Yes, it is supposed to feel rushed, because that is what they are feeling. Pressure. Like everything is moving too fast. Fear not, though, we do still see our favorite heroes dealing with a Paris that has been broken…a Paris lost in a sea of confusion and turmoil…
Also, this chapter is NSFW. Those of you who know my work know that almost all of it is NSFW. However, especially towards the middle of the chapter, definitely NSFW. Read at your own risk.
So, here you are. Enjoy. And if you like what you read, please, favorite, follow, and review! Until next time, my pretties.
The next few days were uneventful, though stressful. The entire city of Paris was on high alert, looking out for the final akuma—the worst akuma. One of the few akumas with a death toll. So far, only Gabriel Agreste had been declared a victim. But they all knew that the paralyzed people in the hospital were on borrowed time. There were no reported sightings of Queen Bee or any more of her victims anywhere for two full days. Ladybug, Chat Noir, and the rest of the police force were scouring every nook and crevice in the city for signs of her, with no luck.
The third day, though…
It started early. The static of the walkie cut through the silence of the apartment at 3:27 AM. Luckily, both of the heroes were already awake. Or, rather, both heroes had been unable to sleep. No sign of Queen Bee, but three paralyzed victims found at a bus stop. No trail to follow. Less than an hour later, more static: two more victims, this time at a gas station, no trail. Marinette and Adrien had decided to forego sleep after that, suiting up and heading out, this time sticking to each other like glue, in constant contact with dispatch and the other officers, keeping a tight perimeter. The city was awake, unable to ignore the sinister power buzzing through her streets. But it was silent as the light began to filter in over the skyline. A car alarm drew attention to find another victim, a jewelry store alarm to another. No trail anywhere to follow, no order to the attacks. In fact, the people found at the sites had no business being there. Meaning that Queen Bee had probably snatched them, paralyzed them, then dropped them off.
She was baiting them.
The entire day was spent the same way, finding unconscious bodies scattered randomly through the city with no way of tracking down the villain, all the while the pair of heroes and the police growing ever more ragged.
And then the next day was the same.
And the next.
After three days of this, the citizens were losing all faith. No one left their homes, but she still managed to sneak in and get to them somehow. No cameras caught sight of her. No one knew what was going on. But they were all thinking the same thing: they had been putting their faith in two people—some were even saying that maybe they weren't people; they had superpowers for crying out loud—when at least one, and probably both, of them was just a child, still in school even. And the police department was no match for a flying super villain with an army of super bees. The Ladyblog was so full of hurtful comments that Alya had to shut it down, at least temporarily, to keep fights from breaking out.
The message had been heard, though.
Ladybug and Chat Noir had failed. Paris was doomed.
Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Chief Raincomprix stood on a rooftop, a light, steady rain beginning to fall. "I don't know what else we can do." The officer was saying, his voice sounding at once dejected and angry, running a hand through his hair in frustration.
Ladybug and Chat shared a look. "We'll find her." She said with determination. "It only takes one slip up on her part."
Chat had a finger on his chin, eyes on the ground. "We can't keep going as we are, though," He said. "None of us has had any rest, and this show of force with no sign of gaining anything from it is killing morale." The others agreed with him. "She is playing with us, forcing our hands. She's dumping bodies wherever she wants, meaning she setting us up for something. She could just be trying to wear us down. But she could also be setting up a trap, using them as a distraction to keep our eyes off her real goal. After all, she doesn't even have to be there to dump them; she would just have to send some of her bees."
"Is she leading us somewhere? Does she want us to find her?" Ladybug mused. She stared off in the distance for a moment, eyes unfocusing, before she winced, placing the palm of her hand against her forehead.
"Mari? You okay?" Chat asked, worry tinging his voice.
She waved him off. "I'm fine. Just tired. Exhausted actually. We haven't slept in days, and we've been transformed for most of that time. We need to regroup, rest and eat. So do our Kwami." He nodded, raking a clawed hand through his hair, ears flicking back in annoyance.
"You two go. If you can't fight, we don't stand a chance." The police chief said firmly. Then he sighed. "I'll draw in our force. Split up into three units. Cycle them out. We'll call if we have any news. Until then…" They all nodded wearily. "I hope we get this taken care of soon." He said quietly. "I don't know how much more they can take."
"We have to." Ladybug answered solemnly. "If we don't, everyone in the hospital will fade away. We can't let that happen. I won't let it happen." He nodded to her, his eyes telling her that he finally saw them for the heroes they had become, instead of the children they had been. As equals.
As soon as the apartment door was shut behind them, Marinette and Adrien let their transformations drop, Tikki and Plagg fluttering away weakly to their den without a word. The humans followed suit, not bothering with silly mundane things like lights or pajamas. Adrien slipped off his shoes, shirt, and belt and pulled the covers back, collapsing on the bed with a grunt of exhaustion, while Marinette let her jacket pool on the floor around her tennis shoes, reaching under her tank top to release her sports bra, pulling it free and dropping it with a look of mild loathing before sliding into bed a little more gracefully and curling into her partner's side. Adrien had barely thrown the blanket over them before they were both dead to the world. And for the first time in a long time, maybe only because they had not slept in so long, they both slept without nightmares.
Fifteen hours later, Marinette lifted her heavy eyelids, letting the midday sunlight that filled the room bring her back to her senses. She was sore; her entire body felt like one big bruise. Her head throbbed. Her tongue felt thick and fuzzy, and tasted like sick. She scrunched up her nose and carefully extricated herself from the arms of her partner, who lay as still and silent as death but for the breaths that lifted his chest. She grabbed her phone on the way to the bathroom, checking for missed messages. A few from Alya, Nino, and Chloe, and one from her parents letting her know they made it to her aunt's house safely. She ran hot water for a bath, adding a healthy dose of bubble bath to the tub before stepping into her own room to grab a change of clothes and her silk bathrobe, letting the smooth, cool fabric ease over her skin. It was crimson, with round black spots spaced just right, reminding her perfectly of her suit.
Just as she was dropping the robe, preparing to step into the tub, Adrien appeared in the doorway, brow creased in discomfort. She just jerked her head towards the tub, then stepped into the water, almost moaning as the warmth soothed her aching muscles. She sank down until just her eyes and nose remained above the water, letting it ease the knots the last few days had worked up. At Adrien's tap on her shoulder, she raised up, scooting forward to allow him to sit behind her. She relaxed back against his chest, letting her eyes close peacefully. His hands moved to her shoulders, and he began to massage her neck, making her melt further against him, until she was a puddle of goo between his legs. Then, she remembered her phone. She sighed, then picked up the phone and dialed Alya's number.
She picked up on the first ring. "Mari?" She asked hesitantly, like she was scared it would be someone else, calling to let her know something terrible had happened.
"Yeah, it's me," Marinette said, voice a bit hoarse. She cleared her throat and started again. "It's me, Alya. Sorry I haven't gotten back to you. It's been a rough few days. This is the first time I've really been able to relax."
"Where are you?" She asked. Her voice was small. She was not untouched by the mood of the city.
"In our safehouse. In the bath. We were ordered to take a break after three days nonstop." Adrien had moved to kiss her neck, his hands slipping down to rub her stomach, brushing the underside of her breasts and making her shiver. "How has it been at the hotel? I know you can't be loving all the quality time with Chloe."
Alya chuckled, easing Marinette's fears that her friend had been broken. She would come out of this just fine. "Oh, she's been a peach." She answered sarcastically. "We stay up every night doing each other's nails and braiding Nino's hair and watching The Princess Diaries." She giggled again. "No, but really, it's been okay. We're all pretty tense here, but well-guarded. And she hasn't been that bad. In fact, we haven't had an actual argument even once."
"I'm glad." Marinette's voice came out slightly strained. Adrien's hands slid up, rubbing bubbles and that warm water over her breasts, squeezing them lightly, as he continued to kiss her neck.
"Are you okay?" Alya asked. "We've been keeping up with the news as best as possible, but even the reporters are trying to stay out of harm's way. Most of them are actually in the hospital now. So we don't know everything."
"We—" she cut herself to keep from moaning out loud as Adrien pinched a nipple between his thumb and forefinger, rolling the sensitive flesh. She could feel him grinning against the dark hickies he had just left on her collarbone. She cleared her throat. "We're being led on a wild goose chase, with no leads, no way to track her down. She's being too random, and we don't even think she's the one leaving the bodies. We can't figure out her next move, and we're all running on empty. Adrien and I have to go back out there soon, but with everything else going on—" She stopped herself, blinking. She didn't mean to say that. She had been planning on keeping the bonding a secret until the Queen Bee business was dealt with.
"Everything else…?" Alya was never one to miss important gossip.
Adrien lifted his head finally, almost making her sigh in relief. "She just means with planning our patrol roots and coordinating with the police." He said loud enough for Alya to hear.
"Oh, okay, that's—" Marinette's eyes almost bugged out of her head when Alya froze mid-word, realizing what she had probably just caught on to. "Marinette," She said calmly. "Is Adrien Agreste in the bath with you?" Marinette covered her face with one hand, hearing a couple of gasps from the other end of the line, probably from Chloe and Nino.
Adrien laughed, the vibrations tingling against Marinette's back. "Oops." He chuckled. "I guess the—"
Marinette turned her head and glared at him. "Don't you dare," she warned, but it was too late.
"Cat's out of the bag," he finished with a grin. Marinette groaned at the crappy pun and put the phone on speaker, setting it down on the stool outside the tub.
"Marineeeeeeette," Alya whined. "You let me speak for," She paused, probably to look at her phone, "four and a half minutes before getting to the actual freaking news?! Come on, I've been stuck in a hotel room for days with Nino and Chloe for entertainment, throw me a bone! Deets, girl!"
Mari blushed and briefly debated whether or not she could drown herself in the tub fast enough to avoid the questions, but, alas, Adrien laughed and clutched her tighter to him. "When this is all over, Alya, we'll get together and discuss it, but, for now, Milady and I have some things we have to discuss about our current predicament. We just wanted to call to make sure you are okay."
Marinette could hear the pout in her friend's voice. "I'll hold you to that, pretty boy." She said. "Yeah, we're fine. You two go on and save the world; we'll talk later."
"Love you, Alya," Marinette called.
"Love you too, Mari." The line went dead.
"I can't believe you let her find out." Marinette complained with a huff, which turned into a gasp before it had ended as Adrien growled and reached back down, lightly clamping his teeth down on her shoulder and palming both breasts. He brought his knees between hers and pushed her legs apart until her feet hung over the edge of the tub on either side, lifting her up.
"I need you, Milady," He rasped against her neck.
"Yes," She groaned.
Adrien suddenly pinched both of her nipples, a little harder this time, making her arch her back, before his hands moved to her hips, lifting her up. She brought a hand between their legs to position him just right, and he pulled her back down, his hard length filling her. Marinette cried out, throwing her head back and giving him more access to her neck and the tops of her breasts as he bounced her up and down roughly. Water sloshed over the sides of the tub, but neither of them cared. One of her hands went to her breasts, massaging it as she moaned, the other slipped between her legs and rubbed the hot button of need just above where his cock was stoking a fire in her.
"Minou!" She gasped as she felt herself tipping over the precipice, falling into an endless pit of bliss.
"Again," he growled, fingers digging into her hips as he sped up, hips thrusting under her bringing him deeper with each stroke. She cried over and over again as she shattered apart, until he moaned and slammed her down once more, biting down on her shoulder. They sat catching their breath a moment before Marinette raised up, wincing as he slid free, and sliding down into the water again, noticing that quite a bit had escaped the tub. The bathroom was a mess, water and suds everywhere. Adrien's arms wrapped around her stomach in a hug. "I can't ever get enough of you, Milady." He said softly as he nibbled at her neck some more.
"Good," she answered with a smile, turning to capture his lips with hers. "Now, come on, kitty, let's get this cleaned up. We do actually have work that needs doing.
He helped to pull her to her feet and step out onto the bathmat. She towel-dried her hair, then patted the water off her skin, before slipping back into her robe and pulling her hair into a damp ponytail. Adrien grinned as he watched her drop her towel on the floor, step on it, and waddle around the room, mopping up the water. He couldn't help it; she may be the most gorgeous woman in the world, but even she looked ridiculous doing that. He joined her, though, after shaking the water from his hair, drying himself off, and slipping on a clean pair of jeans. Before long, the bathroom was shiny and new again, spotlessly clean, their dirty clothes and towels spinning in the washer.
"Hungry?" Marinette asked when her stomach growled.
"Starved," Adrien answered gripping his own stomach. They quickly made themselves sandwiches and sat at the kitchen table, pouring over their notes and maps, a bag of Doritos and two cans of Red Bull between them.
"I think we should start here next," Adrien said through a mouthful of sandwich, finger hovering over their old high school.
Marinette blew away the smattering of cheese dust he had scattered on the map and nodded slowly. "It is a possible target, especially with school starting up again in a few days. But most of her targets there are already in the hospital. I don't know how many more victims she would take there. At least, for right now. Her main focus seems to be on us, and on evading capture. So, the more likely targets are going to be those related to us, or, more accurately, to you."
He frowned, swallowing. "So, you're thinking, the university, the hotel, and our houses?" She nodded, crunching a Dorito thoughtfully.
"If we assume that the body drops have been a distraction for her to sneak around the city, then she's probably already visited most or all of the marked locations. Meaning, she must have seen who has fled the city and figured where her real victims will be."
"The hotel." He finished.
Marinette nodded in grim confirmation. Then, she looked over to the stand where their radio sat. "You know," she said slowly, setting down the last few bites of her sandwich and standing up. "It's been awfully quiet." Adrien followed her gaze, brow creasing with worry. Marinette picked up one of the walkies. "Dispatch, this is Alpha Team. Status report?"
"Alpha Team, good to hear from you again. All seems quiet for the time. The last victims were found about four hours ago. No activity since then."
The heroes shared a look. Their Kwami had emerged, worried expressions on their faces as well. Adrien nodded, going to his room to finish getting dressed. "Dispatch, send two units to Le Grand Paris Hotel. We'll meet them there."
"Have you found something, Alpha One?"
"It's just a hunch, but…we think the mayor and a few…protected witnesses are in danger. Witnesses with valuable, dangerous information." As she talked, she rummaged through her things, Slipping into a pair of jogging capris and a tank top, picking her sports bra off of Adrien's bedroom floor, throwing on a hoodie.
"Understood. I'll have additional units on standby."
"Thank you, dispatch, over and out." She tucked the walkie talkie into the holster and carried it back into the living room, standing facing Adrien. Both of them wore matched serious expressions. "You ready?" He nodded. The Kwami agreed as well. Quickly, quietly, they suited up and raced along the Paris skyline, hoping they were wrong.