Chat Noir dodged another red thing. He was pretty sure that they were words but had no idea why the akuma was rapid-firing words around Paris. Maybe they'd missed the word count requirement in an essay?

He scanned the scene with his glowing eyes, leaning on his staff and frowning. Akuma? Check. Screaming civilians? Check. Ladybug? Uh-uh. There was no red-suited girl darting around the akuma. Where was she?

Chat quickly brought his staff to his face, deftly turning it into a mobile phone and punching in Ladybug's number. One ring, two rings, three, four, five, six….

On the seventh ring, Chat Noir hung up. She wasn't going to pick up, and there were civilians in need. Despite what some people said, Chat Noir was capable of fighting most akumas without Ladybug, and vice-versa. The only problem was that Chat couldn't actually purify the akuma, and after Stoneheart, he wasn't about to let one escape again.

Twirling his staff, the leather-suited boy jumped off his perch and landed on the street, facing the akuma and crouching. "Hey! Over here!" he yelled, attempting to get the akuma's attention.

It turned to him. Seven meters tall, dressed entirely in black, with red words shifting across the fabric. Seemingly female, though Chat couldn't be sure. The villain raised its hands, which began to glow red, probably about to fire more words at him.

"Chat Noir," growled the akuma. "Give me your miraculous!" It pushed its left hand forward, and a bright red word shot past him, reading ugly.

"Hey!" cried Chat Noir. "I'll have you know that I'm also a model!"

The akuma fired again, and Chat deflected the word with his staff, rolling away. He spotted Alya, dressed in her familiar flannel, hiding partially behind a flipped car, and recording the whole thing. At the top of his lungs, Chat yelled, "Ladybug, a bit of help?"

He narrowly avoided another word, stupid. Glaring at the akuma, he tried to think of what he needed to do. Oh, right. Find the akumatised object. Scanning up and down the villain, he wished his partner was here. She was better at the finding-the-akuma thing than he was.

MLBMLBMLB

Marinette tried to breathe deeply and calmly, and was doing pretty well until a massive explosion rocked the entire building, causing Marinette's eyes to snap open, wide and panicked. Unable to stand back any longer, she pounded on Master Fu's door. This was one of the worst situations she'd ever been in, and she was freaking out.

Master Fu's soft voice called from inside. "Enter quietly, please."

Marinette scoffed. There'd just been a huge explosion, and he wanted her to enter quietly?

She tiptoed in, gently closing the door and trying to block out the creams from outside. They weren't helping her anxiety very much. Fu was kneeling on a mat beside Tikki, who lay on a pillow, as pale as ever. Marinette saw her tiny chest rising and falling and heaved a huge sigh of relief. Tikki was alive, at least.

Master Fu motioned for her to kneel opposite him. She obeyed, and clenched her fists in her lap, trembling with fear. "Master Fu, there's an akuma," she blurted, trying to keep her voice soft. "I've got to get out there and help!"

The man held up his hand, signalling for quiet. Marinette closed her mouth and waited.

"Your kwami is very unwell," he began. "It would not be good for her to go into battle in this state."

"Master, I'm the only one who can purify the akuma. Surely there's a way-"

He silenced her again. "Of course there is a way, Marinette. There is no problem that cannot be solved. I have given Tikki as much healing as I can. No, it would not be good for her to go out and fight. What she needs is rest. But… as long as you don't overuse your powers, and are very, very careful, I see no reason why you cannot transform. "

Marinette nodded gratefully. "Thank you very much. I promise to be careful."

"Actions speak louder than words, Marinette. See that you are."

The bluenette gazed down at her pale, seemingly lifeless kwami. She didn't see how it was possible for Tikki to transform, but she had to trust Master Fu's judgement. "Master Fu," she began hesitantly, "why is Tikki like this?"

Master Fu shook his head. "That is something I do not have time to explain to you now. Once you have purified the akuma, quickly detransform and come here as Marinette immediately. Tikki will need urgent attention. Now go, and remember your promise."

Marinette hesitated, then nodded fiercely and scooped up Tikki. "Tikki, spots on!"

The whirlwind of light and colour faded away, and Ladybug stood in Marinette place. The superheroine rushed out the door, her limbs feeling strangely heavy.

MLBMLBMLB

Chat Noir was having no luck finding the akumatized object. The attacks were coming in thick and fast, giving him only moments to search before he was fired at again. In an attempt to take a quick breather, he rolled behind an upturned car, chest heaving.

Suddenly there was a smartphone in his face. Blinking, he turned towards it. Oh, right. He must have hidden behind the same car as Alya. Great.

"Chat Noir!" said the blogger excitedly. "Where's Ladybug?"

Chat held up his hand. "Miss, you've got to leave. It isn't safe here for you."

Alya shrugged. "I'll be fine. The akuma hasn't seen me yet, right?"

The superhero shook his head. "Maybe not, but that doesn't mean it won't find you soon. I understand you have a blog and all, but your safety needs to come first."

"Oh!" At the mention of her blog, the girl's eyes lit up. "Chat Noir, are you and Ladybug planning to attend the dance? Did you read the message on the Ladybl- AHHHHHH!"

A scarlet word slammed into their car, throwing the two backward. Chat scooped up Alya and sprinted away, carrying her bridal-style. Alya yelled frantically as more words peppered the ground around Chat's feet until he ducked behind a building and set her down in an alleyway.

"Stay here," commanded Chat. "You'll be safe."

Alya's face fell, but her phone stayed upright, continuing to record. "Fine. Can we talk after the fight, then?"

Chat's staff began to beep and light up. He slipped it into phone mode and answered immediately. His lady's face filled the screen, and Chat's heart filled with joy. "Ladybug!" he cried, aware that they had an audience, who was eagerly filming their exchange.

"Hi, Chat," she replied. "Listen, we have an emergency on our hands. Do you know where the akuma is?"

"Uh, no," admitted Chat.

Ladybug sighed. "Well, that's just great. Where are you?"

Chat showed her the alleyway. "Some alley, not too far from the akuma."

Ladybug frowned and squinted. "Is that Alya?"

The blogger waved excitedly at her idol. "Sure is! Hi, Ladybug!"

The superheroine shook her head, clearly confused. "Okay then….I'll meet you there in two." She hung up the phone.

Chat leant back against the wall, staring into the clouds above, until a gentle thump told him that Ladybug had arrived. His eyes snapped open, and he beamed at her. "Buga- Ladybug!" He had remembered that Alya was filming, and didn't want his pet name for Ladybug broadcasted to the entire city.

"Hi, Chat," she replied. "Look, I'm sorry for being late, but...there's some stuff going on."

"No problem."

Ladybug's eyes fell on Alya, and she gave a tight smile. "Hey, Alya."

Alya grinned back. "Hey!"

Ladybug turned back to Chat. "Where's the akuma?", she asked, now completely business.

Chat tilted his head towards the villain's location. "Over there. What's the plan, m'lady?"

Ladybug bit her lip, then glanced at Alya. "Can I talk to you?" she asked Chat quietly.

He nodded, concern flickering in his eyes, and let Ladybug pull him aside. "Is everything alright, Bugaboo?" he whispered.

She shrugged, and Chat noticed that she looked kind of pale beneath her mask. "Like I said, there's stuff. I promise I'll tell you later, but right now, we need to take down this akuma." She paused and took a deep breath. "The thing is….well, I hate to do this to you, but I'm not really meant to go into combat."

Questions started popping up in Chat's mind, and he was desperate to ask each and every one of them. But not now. He'd do it later, while Ladybug was explaining the stuff to him.

She continued quickly, probably sensing that he wanted to interrupt. "I really, really don't like the plan, but here's what I'm thinking. We check out the akuma, find the object, I get my Lucky Charm, work out what to do with it, then get you to use it. I would do it myself, but like I said, well, I can't, really."

Chat took her hands in his and smiled at her. "Don't stress, Bugaboo. I'm fine with that, and besides, I trust that you have a good reason. Ready to pound this akuma?"

She nodded, smiling weakly. "Ready."

The duo walked back to Alya. "Alya, I know you want to film this," began Ladybug, and the blogger's face fell slightly, anticipating bad news, "but it's not safe. We can't let you do it. If you insist on filming, go into a building and do it from the window. I understand that it isn't ideal, but we won't let you put yourself at risk. All right?"

Alya nodded. "No problem."

Ladybug relaxed slightly. "Great." She turned to Chat Noir. "Ready, partner?"

"Sure am." The two superheroes ran out of the alley, leaving Alya alone. Chat guided Ladybug towards the akuma, which wasn't really necessary, as the could have just gone towards the explosions. They crouched on a rooftop, the akuma in their sights. Ladybug surveyed the scene, and judging by the lack of civilians, it was only a matter of time before the akuma realised they were there.

"Ladybug and Chat Noir!" bellowed the akuma, raising its hands, which began to glow red. "Give me your miraculous!"

"Never heard that one before," muttered Chat, causing Ladybug to crack a smile.

"Who are you?" she shouted.

The akuma glared at her. "I am Scarlet Letter! Taker of your earrings, Ladybug, and your ring, Chat Noir!"

Chat cocked his head and frowned at Ladybug. "Wasn't that a book or something?"

She nodded silently, thinking hard. "Where's the akuma?" she asked Chat urgently.

Chat put his hand on the back of his neck. "Ah, well, I don't really know," he said sheepishly, causing Ladybug to make a frustrated noise- almost like a growl.

"Of course not," she muttered, then began to study the akuma. The constantly moving red words made it difficult for her to pick out anything unusual on the suit. Her eyes drifted upwards.

"The mask," she murmured to herself.

Chat frowned at her. "Uh, what?"

"I said, the mask." Ladybugs eyes suddenly widened, and she shoved Chat hard. "Look out!"

Scarlet Letter had apparently gotten tired of waiting and had fired a word at them. Ladybug just had time to read it before it flashed past- stupid.

"Hey!" cried Chat Noir in an offended tone. "Enough with the insults!"

Scarlet Letter laughed. "Oh, insults aren't so bad. You get used to them, but obviously, you haven't been exposed to them the way I have."

"She's been bullied," said Ladybug quietly. "The words she's throwing; it's stuff she's been called."

"Oh. Right." Chat Noir eyed the akuma warily. "Let's get cracking-"

All of a sudden, Ladybug earrings began to beep. She put a gloved hand on the side of her head and groaned, muttering something under her breath.

"But you haven't even used your power!" cried Chat. "How is tha-"

Ladybug shook her head at him, then hurled her yo-yo up. "Lucky Charm!" she yelled.

A massive roll of duct tape landed in Ladybug's hands. She stared at it for a moment, then scanned the scene again. A slow smile crept across her face.

"Chat, I don't like asking you….but could you distract her for a moment?"

Chat Noir grinned and nodded at her. "Anything for you, my lady." He bowed low and kissed her hand, then jumped down to street level. "Hey!" he called up at the akuma. "Over here!"

Scarlet Letter snarled and began firing at him, completely forgetting about Ladybug, which was exactly what the polka-dotted heroine wanted. She ran lightly over to an alley and wound the end of the tape around a nearby chimney. Still holding the roll of tape, she jumped over the alley and wrapped the rest of the tape securely around someone's television antenna.

Chat looked around for Ladybug as he dodged the akuma's blasts, and spotted her (pun not intended) standing on the edge of a building. She was waving at him and motioning towards the tape, which was strung across an alleyway. She pointed at her mask, then at Scarlet Letter, then mimed running into something. All of a sudden, Chat understood, and he grinned.

He shouted up at Scarlet Letter. "Bet you can't get me!" The leather-suited boy ran into the alleyway, and to his delight the akuma followed, growling.

She was so focused on Chat that she didn't notice the length of wide tape stretched across her path and ran straight into. Scarlet Letter fell back, snarling, unaware that her mask had stuck to the tape and was now suspended several meters above her, easy for Ladybug to reach. She tore the inky mask apart, and purified the little black butterfly that came fluttering out of it. Chat jumped up to watch her.

"Bye-bye, little butterfly," said Ladybug. "Miraculous Ladybug!" As soon as the pink light had stopped rushing around, repairing the damage Scarlet Letter had caused, Ladybug turned to Chat and smiled at him. "Bye-bye," she muttered dreamily, before collapsing into his arms.

Sorry, another cliffhanger! I know this chapter took a while to get to you, but I have a habit of hitting the 'snooze' button on my alarm. I wanted to get this up this morning, about six hours ago, but I had to stop typing and run to catch the bus. No, Australians don't ride kangaroos to school, despite what some people may think. Anyway, I'll try to be more consistent in my posting. Bye!