Turned out Fu was right. Damn it. She'd waited too long, spent too much time as Ladybug. She'd felt so strange as she purified that akuma, like she was in a dream. The world around her had seemed fluid, everything moving and shifting. Even Chat's concerned face had become distorted in her hazy vision. She'd just managed to smile at him before slipping away to who-knows-where.

MLBMLBMLB

Chat felt his Lady's sudden warm weight in his arms as she collapsed onto him. He managed to catch her before she tumbled off the building. He stared at her. Her eyes were closed, face somehow both pale and flushed at the same time. There was a peaceful smile on her rosebud lips, like she'd simply fallen asleep and was experiencing a pleasant dream. However, Chat knew that this was something more serious than just a snooze.

"Ladybug?" he said urgently, sitting down and arranging her so that her head was resting comfortably on his lap. "Ladybug, wake up!" Chat Noir began to squeeze her hands, but there was no response. He pinched her arm lightly, then slightly harder. Still nothing.

There was a groan from the street, and Chat saw a chocolate-haired teenager kneeling at the mouth of the alleyway. She must have been akumatised into Scarlet Letter. Normally, Chat and Ladybug would be with her, reassuring her and filling her in on what had happened, as akuma victims tended to forget everything they'd done under Hawkmoth's control. But this wasn't a normal situation. Ladybug was unconscious in his lap, and Chat had no idea why. The girl below him would just have to wait.

Ladybug's earrings beeped again. Four minutes.

Chat cursed and looked around, desperate for help. But there was no one.

Then a flash of movement caught his eye. Someone was crouching beside the akuma victim, their hand on the girl's shoulder, speaking to them gently. Chat's spirits lifted a little as he recognised the person.

"Alya!" he shouted. "Up here!"

The flannel-wearing blogger glanced up at him, then said something to the girl, who nodded gratefully and began to walk away, pulling out her phone as she went. Alya made sure she was gone, then turned her attention back to Chat.

"I can't help you if you're up there!" she yelled. Chat nodded, stood, and tried to pull Ladybug up. She went floppy on him, on real fear began to pool inside Chat.

He managed to cradle her in his arms and land gently in front of Alya, who gasped and put her hand to her mouth, rushing over. "What's wrong with her?" she cried, lifting one of Ladybug's limp arms. "Is she- is she breathing?"

Chat immediately glanced down, and put his hand on her chest. He felt it rising and falling, and breathed a sigh of relief. "Yes, she's breathing, thank God. But I have no idea what to do with her."

There was a sudden sharp voice in Chat's head, which he recognised as Plagg's. Adrien! Take her to Master Fu's! She needs urgent attention!

"Should I get an ambulance?" asked Alya, about to dial.

Chat shook her head. "No. My kwami's telling me that I have to take her somewhere. I need to go, right now. Thanks for your help, Alya." Chat stood, Ladybug in his arms. "Goodbye." Without any more hesitation, he began to run, following the directions Plagg gave him and hoping with all his heart that Ladybug would pull through.

MLBMLBMLB

Master Fu was expecting Marinette to burst through the door any moment now, with Tikki in tow. He'd prepared more medicines for the kwami, and was ready to administer them at a moment's notice.

What he was not expecting, however, was for a fully transformed Chat Noir to burst through his door, Ladybug in his arms. The blonde superhero crashed in, and looked at Master Fu with wild eyes.

"Sir, Plagg told me to come here. It's Ladybug, she collapsed after doing the healing spell and I don't know what to do," he said.

Master Fu blinked, then leaped into action (figuratively, of course. With his back the way it was, there was no way he was leaping anywhere). "Put her on the mat," he ordered, pointing. "Now leave."

Chat blinked in surprise. "Uh, what?"

"She is about to detransform," explained Fu, as Ladybug's earrings gave their final warning beep. "You cannot see her."

Understanding, Chat scrambled out the door and shut it quickly, breathing heavily. He heard a whooshing noise from inside, and pink light flashed from under the door. Ladybug must have dropped her transformation, he realised.

Chat felt a tingle of excitement as he became conscious of the fact that Ladybug was inside, without her mask. All it would take was one little peek…..

But he wouldn't do that to his Lady. Not without her permission. One of the things his mother always told him was to respect a person's boundaries. Ladybug had drawn a firm line, and he wasn't going to cross it- at least, not yet.

MLBMLBMLB

Marinette groaned and opened her eyes as something bitter trickled into her mouth. Resisting the urge to spit out the liquid and spray anything that was in front of her, she sat up. Master Fu crouched beside her, a spoon and a cup in his hands. Marinette gulped down the unpleasant liquid. Her eyes suddenly widened, and she looked frantically for Tikki.

"Master Fu!" she cried. "What happened? Where's Tikki? Is she okay?"

The old man raised a finger to his lips. "Hush, Ladybug," he whispered. "Tikki is resting, and she is fine, for now. I do not know what truly happened, but there is someone just outside who does. Perhaps you can speak to him."

Marinette tilted her head, thinking. Then she went pale, and gulped. "Ch-chat Noir is outside this room, isn't he?" she asked shakily.

Master Fu nodded, smiling.

"I can't talk to him!" said Marinette wildly. "I need to be transformed, and Tikki...oh, god."

Master Fu shook his head. "If you want a detailed account of what happened, then your partner is probably the best person to tell you. And yes, you can talk to him. Through the door. He won't see you. You won't see him." Fu retrieved a teacup from a table and sipped, smiling slightly. "Do not let fear cloud your mind, Ladybug."

Marinette nodded, then got to her feet, walking unsteadily to the door and placing her shaking hand on the handle, to prevent it from opening. Putting her face close the the screen, Marinette called out, "Chat Noir?"

On the other side, Chat scrambled closer. "My lady! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine, Chat," replied Marinette. It felt very weird to hear him call her 'my lady' when she wasn't transformed. "I can't open the door, though. I'm not transformed."

Silence from the other end, except for his breathing. "You-you're not?" he said at last.

Marinette shook her head, then remembered that he couldn't see her. "No. So whatever you do, don't open the door!" She tried to make her voice light and joking, but it came out rather shrill. When Chat didn't respond, Marinette asked her question. "What happened to me, kitty?"

"Well, you purified the akuma, and did your healing spell," said Chat slowly. "Then you looked at me and go,"Bye-bye" in this really weird voice. And then you just collapsed into me. I got Alya to help, and we checked that you were breathing and stuff. Alya was gonna call the ambulance, but then my kwami told me to take you here." He lowered his voice slightly, though marinette had no idea why. "We were so worried, Ladybug. You just went floppy."

Marinette took a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Chat. I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay. You're safe now." He paused. "Why did you collapse?"

Marinette sighed. "My kwami's been really tired. I was meant to finish off the akuma as quickly as possible, and try not to engage in combat. That was why I asked you to do all the dirty work. Sorry."

"Why's your kwami tired?" he asked curiously.

"I don't really know," replied Marinette.

Chat thought for a moment, humming. "Patrol tonight?"

It was a Monday, and Marinette was tired. After all the emotions of the day, she just needed to rest. "Sorry, Chat," she said. "I think I'll stay in tonight, if that's alright."

"Of course," he replied. "I'll be going then." A pause. "Take care, my lady."

Marinette smiled to herself. "I will, kitty. Thanks for everything."

He didn't respond, but Marinette heard the creaking of a door, and knew he had gone. She heaved a sigh, and turned back to Master Fu. "What's wrong with Tikki, Master Fu?" she asked bluntly, determined to get an answer from the healer.

Much to her disappointment, Fu shrugged. "At this stage, I cannot say," he replied. "Come back tomorrow and perhaps I can tell you."

Marinette nodded wordlessly, and looked at her kwami, lying still on the pillow. Colour was slowly trickling back into Tikki, and she looked less delicate. That, at least, was some good news.

"If I take her home, what can I do for her?"

Master Fu slowly stood, and limped over to Marinette. He looked her dead in the eye. "Marinette, I will not know the full details until Tikki is well again. But I can tell that you are immensely sad and hurt. Marinette, promise me that whatever happens, you will not succumb to Hawkmoth. Do whatever it takes to fight him. That is all I can offer you." He stepped back, looked briefly at Tikki, then back at Marinette. "Unfortunately, you cannot take Tikki home. If she is to truly recover, she needs three things; rest, medicine, and your emotional wellbeing. I know it may be difficult, but try to ignore your sadness and stay positive. Do you understand?"

Marinette chewed on her lip. She and Tikki were almost inseparable. Since the day Marinette had gotten her miraculous, there had only been a handful of times when they were apart. But if Tikki's health was at stake, Marinette would do anything. She would not lose her friend. "I understand. Thank you, Master."

MLBMLBMLB

Adrien hadn't detransformed after he left Fu's. He stayed in his suit, travelling over the rooftops with no clear destination in mind. He had hoped that the night sky stretching out about him and the city sprawling around him would clear his head, but unfortunately, he'd been wrong.

Eventually, the blonde superhero stopped, his back resting against a random chimney. Gazing up at the sky, he felt a strange sense of hopelessness overcome him. Would his plan ever truly work?

Maybe he just needed some advice. But from who? Nino didn't know about his crush on Ladybug. Alya would probably post it on the Ladyblog. Well, no, she wouldn't but she'd make a big deal out of it. Chloe would just be furious that Adrien liked another girl, besides her. She'd probably try to kill Ladybug, which was the last thing Adrien wanted. Marinette….she gave good advice. She was a good listener, and would probably know how to handle the situation. If Adrien was to talk to anyone (besides Plagg, of course), Marinette was probably his best option.

There was a problem, though. After the events of this afternoon, Chat Noir highly doubted that Marinette would even want to speak to Adrien. Sure, she'd acted like she was fine, but even Adrien, with his terrible people skills, could tell that she wasn't okay with it. He'd probably hurt her quite badly. Unless he talked to Marinette as Chat Noir…

Chat began to smile. Yeah, he would do that. He would visit Marinette as his superhero self, and request some advice. He was sure she would help him. He and Marinette were on good terms, and she was one of the kindest people he'd ever met.

Chat Noir stood and stretched out, yawning. Better make this visit snappy, as it was a school night, and he had a maths test tomorrow.

Hi guys! Hope you liked the chapter.