After recent akumas, specifically Heartbreaker, posed a risk to reporters, the news copters were smart enough to keep further away from the actual fighting. They still got a great view of the action, though, allowing Nathalie to watch in satisfaction as Hawk Moth's latest victim, Binder, fought Cat Noir on the roof of some building, Ladybug already out of commission.

Nathalie was sitting up in bed, watching the news from her tablet. Lately she'd been spending a lot more time in bed. She wasn't in pain, per se, but she lacked energy. Everything she tried to do took more effort and exhausted her faster. She couldn't stay on her feet for long, she couldn't carry much, and even breathing caused her to break into a fit of coughs on more than one occasion.

All this had happened thanks to her second use of the peacock miraculous. Using it only once had left her a little weakened, but it was more an inconvenience than anything else. Using it a second time was a lot rougher and had directly impacted on her productivity. She wasn't sure what would happen if she used it again, but she was hoping she wouldn't have to find out.

Still, she wouldn't hesitate to use it again if she felt it was necessary. She had made a promise to herself, that she would help Gabriel to accomplish his goal of reviving Emilie, no matter the cost. She wanted him to be happy, even if that meant taking herself out of the picture and restoring him to his lost wife.

"This is unbelievable!" the reporter was saying. Cat Noir had just plummeted off the edge of the building and out of sight, all wrapped up in chains. The camera was now zooming in on Binder. What was that in his hand? "It's Cat Noir's ring!" the reporter exclaimed as the camera came into focus, seeing the black jewel held between the villain's fingers, "Cat Noir has lost his miraculous! This is a disaster!"

Nathalie felt a jolt of excitement. She wasn't one to express emotion very often, but that doesn't mean she didn't feel it. This is it, she told herself, he's won! With Cat Noir's miraculous in hand and Ladybug still chained up, the fight was over. Hawk Moth had won!

"What's going to happen now?" the reporter went on, clearly distressed, "Wait, there's Ladybug! She's back!"

Sure enough, the red-and-black superheroine had flipped onto the roof, no longer chained up and looking determined. The cameraman tried getting a close up of her, but she moved too fast, attacking swiftly. The view panned and zoomed out, allowing Nathalie to watch in horror as, with just a couple rapid attacks, Ladybug had knocked Binder to the ground and reclaimed the miraculous.

"No!" Nathalie shouted, before launching into a fit of coughing. We're so close. So close! She couldn't let Ladybug win, not this time, not when victory was at hand.

Gabriel had forbidden her from using the peacock miraculous again, but nothing would stop her from helping him win. She pulled herself from her bed, moving as fast as she could. Gabriel had moved the miraculous in an attempt to make sure she didn't use it again, but she still knew where it was.

She moved as quickly as she could, down the hall to Gabriel's room. She may be just an assistant, but she was the de facto custodian of this house. There was no hiding place in the whole mansion she didn't know about, and no safe she didn't know how to open. Try as he might, Gabriel couldn't hide anything from her.

She found her way to his room, coughing as she pulled out the small safe under his bed. She was still carrying her tablet, listening to the reporter exclaim about the amazing turn around. She glanced at the screen one more time. It's not too late, she told herself, but it will be soon.

She entered the code, opened the safe, and pulled out the miraculous. No matter the cost.

The cloud of darkness surprised Ladybug enough to make her drop the helmet. She was forced to jump back as a giant eagle appeared in front of her, its wingspan probably twice her height. It screeched at her threateningly before striking.

It's claws and beak shot out, trying to snatch her earrings. With its massive size and strength, though, it was more likely to tear off her entire ear. It also made some attempts for the hand where she now wore the miraculous of destruction.

Using her yoyo to protect herself, she warded off the initial attacks, forcing the eagle to move back and try to make another dive. Now Binder came back as well, his helmet loosely shoved back on his head and his determination restored. He attacked at the same time the eagle dove again. Despite her burst of strength and energy, Ladybug was finding herself backed into a corner, coming up on the edge of the roof.

With no other choice, she tossed her yoyo into the air with an emphatic shout of, "Lucky Charm!" The ancient magic of creation, which she was relying on to save her from this dire situation, decided to supply her with… a cat plushie?

"What am I supposed to do with this?" she looked at it with distaste. It's not even very good craftmanship.

She moved around the roof, trying to gain some distance from her attackers while she looked around. There was a billboard on the opposite side of the building from her. She looked down at the cat plushie, seeing the miraculous on her finger. A smile started to form as she looked to her yoyo and gave herself a little nod. Sometimes, the lucky charm was just pointing her in a direction, without needing to actually use it. In this case, it reminded her of a different cat.

Since she wore the miraculous of destruction on her finger, she could call out the kwami currently hiding in it. She focused on it now and it responded instantly, Plagg materializing in front of her.

"Plagg!" she said quickly, still moving and dodging attacks, "I need you to knock over that billboard, but not the whole building."

"Oh, but I'm sooo hung…" he started to complain, rubbing his belly.

"Not now, Plagg!" she shouted at him, her tone harsh and impatient. The little kwami looked at her with shock, as though no one had ever not put up with his complaining before.

"Yes, ma'am!" he said at once with a little salute, suddenly very serious.

"Wait until I'm ready!" she said as he flew off. She started to move toward the billboard herself, weaving past the swinging fists and diving talons that came at her. As she got nearer, she stopped and turned around, watching her attackers come closer. Once she felt they were close enough, she turned and met eyes with Plagg, however briefly, and gave a little nod.

Binder charged, the eagle dove, and at the same time a tremor went through the rooftop. Please don't collapse the whole building, Ladybug silently pleaded, seeing the shadow of the billboard pass over her. The bird came in close, but she ducked under it, slamming a fist into its chest to send it into the falling structure. Then her yoyo shot out, wrapping itself around Binder's leg. She yanked him as hard as she could, dragging him along the ground. His helmet, still loose on his head, was left behind.

All this transpired in a few, vital seconds. The moment Binder was next to her, Ladybug let out the string of her yoyo further than usual and spun it in a wide circle over her head, just as the billboard came crashing down on her.

I hope this works like it did with the bus! was her last thought before the billboard hit.