Chapter Ten
The metallic thumps of Marinette's shoes dancing down the stairs was almost at an end when a second set of thumps sounded from higher up. A cold droplet of sweat trickled down her spine. As her feet hit the ground she rotated her head slowly to see who it was descending. Blue eyes met determined green, and she swallowed. Now was not the time for Adrien to put the pieces together, there was an akuma currently seeking a victim. She needed to give him a reason for her sudden departure. "Did you forget your library book too?"
The rhythm of his footsteps slowed until he came to a stop beside her. His searching gaze was fixed on her face as he began to fiddle with his ring. "Um, yeah."
Now what could she do? The most obvious place for their library books to be was either in the locker room or at home. Unfortunately, the akuma had headed in the direction of the locker room. "I think my book is in there." Forcing a smile, the girl stepped into motion. Adrien was quick to match her pace as he walked alongside her. Having him so near meant she couldn't seek the akuma without alerting him to her secret.
Sneaking a glance at the sky, she realised the purple butterfly had disappeared and she had to hide her frustration. No doubt it was searching for a substitute victim after Adrien's negative emotions had dissipated. The pair entered the locker room together. She assumed her crush would peel off to his own locker but was surprised to see he was still by her side as she swung open the door. "Is something wrong?"
Adrien was staring at her still, and she jumped as his hand suddenly covered hers while she held onto the locker handle. He stepped closer to her and his voice was thick with emotion as he said her name.
"Y-yes," she stuttered in answer as her mouth tried to communicate in some intelligible fashion while her brain shorted at Adrien's touch.
"Are you, are you…" his lips pinched together and uncertainty lined his brow. "Have you found your book?"
Marinette had been mesmerised by his eyes and it took a moment for his words to filter through when she was free of his gaze. "I, uh…" she made a mediocre attempt to search her locker, knowing full well that there was no book inside. "…m-must have left it at home."
As she turned back to him their heads almost collided due to his closeness. Adrien sheepishly rubbed his neck and stepped back. "Sorry, I thought I might have spotted it."
She blinked slowly at the way he'd enunciated 'spotted' since it had been said in a way to draw attention. "Not there," she managed to say. Suddenly the akuma alarm sounded. Marinette stared at Adrien and he stared right back at her. "We should get out of here," she prompted.
He nodded but didn't move. With his hand still over hers, Marinette shut her locker and reluctantly moved away from Adrien. The heavy clunk of the closing door seemed to jolt the blonde out of his daze and he finally stepped away. "Right, going."
It dawned on Marinette that the safest place to transform would be at home. She raced into the mass of students making their way to the front exit. Not once did she turn to look for Adrien, instead she dashed directly for home. Safely in the alcove that covered her home's private entry, Marinette did a quick scan of the area and transformed.
Shouts for help were usually the easiest way to locate an akuma and this case was no different. Ladybug made her way from building to building, following the noise until she found the source. The akuma victim was easy to spot, his skin, hair and clothing were all shades of light blue. But it was the water jetting from his hands that cemented the fact that this was the person causing trouble.
A quiet thud turned her head, Chat Noir had landed beside her. He gave her an easy smile as he cocked his head towards the akuma. "What do you think this one will be called?"
Ladybug was mid-shrug when the akuma shouted to the streets. "I am Washaway! No longer will I sully my hands in fixing your plumbing, instead you will be going down the drain!"
"Wow, why didn't Hawkmoth just call him Dark Plumber."
"Maybe he's reserved that one for another time." Ladybug rose up and scanned Washaway. "There's nothing that stands out as the akumatised object."
Chat Noir extended his staff. "Looks like it's time to get up close and personal, bugaboo."
Ladybug raised her hand to caution her partner but as usual Chat Noir rushed headlong into battle. Pulling her yoyo from her hip, she considered rolling her eyes at him but he was acting normal this time, so she followed.
Chat Noir dropped to the ground first, spinning his staff into a makeshift shield. As expected Washaway shot a blast of water at the boy. With the akuma distracted, Ladybug tossed her yoyo with the intention of entangling Washaway in the string, but as she pulled it tight it simply slipped through his body. "He's entirely made up of water!" she shouted in warning.
"What?" Chat Noir replied with disbelief. As if to test the theory he swung his staff at Washaway and watched as it slid through the akuma's body leaving him unharmed. Completely stunned, Chat Noir left himself wide open for retaliation, and was hit with a blast of cold water that hurled him several metres.
With her partner down, Ladybug went into action, but every attack was thwarted by the inability to actually do any damage. A kick's momentum was slowed as her foot dragged through his watery form, a punch softened as the water sloshed and reformed into a body part. Grabbing for Washaway's arm was just as futile, she couldn't normally hold water in her hands in such a way, nor could she with the akuma.
Seeing her desperate struggle, Chat Noir raced towards them as he called out, "Cataclysm!" He charged at Washaway with his powered hand open, ready to make contact. But at the last moment Washaway's form split into two waterbodies and Chat tumbled forward. Before he could hit the ground, the water shifted to catch him and his face remained submerged within Washaway's form. Somehow Chat Noir had reacted quickly enough to close his right fist prior to it touching anything.
Ladybug's yoyo twisted around his left wrist as she attempted to yank him free of Washaway, but each tug was fruitless. Washaway simply moved with Chat Noir and already her partner's face was turning blue. She shouted for her lucky charm and a handheld fire extinguisher dropped into her grasp. At first, she looked dumbfounded as there was no fire. Then as she looked up she realised what it was for.
Having no time to waste, Ladybug immediately sprayed the akuma with the fire extinguisher and watched as the water congealed. Dropping the extinguished, she reached for Chat Noir's right hand and placed it on the foam. It instantly turned to ash and the purple butterfly immerged. Ladybug ignored it for the moment and yanked her partner free of the ash. Chat Noir gasped and his mouth opened fully as he urgently sucked in air. With her partner out of immediate danger she cleansed the akuma and tossed the chunky lucky charm into the air.
The moment it left her hands she dashed to Chat Noir and pulled him into a fierce hug. "Are you alright?"
He nodded his head against the side of hers as the magical ladybugs surrounded them and restored the damage. Chat Noir's panting began to decrease. "I'm okay now, thanks to you."
She pulled back to look at him but still held his arms. Tears threatened to fall from her lashes. "You scared the heck out of me."
Chat Noir's face was a mix of astonishment and awe. "I guess that means I'm more than just a pretty face."
Ladybug rolled her eyes and slapped his shoulder. "Trust you to make light of a situation like this. You could have died."
A gloved hand cupped her cheek as Chat Noir turned serious. "I know, LB. Yet you managed to save me." His miraculous chirped in warning.
"You better go, you used your powers well before mine."
A crooked smile spread across his face. "There's something I need to do first." As she opened her mouth to reply, Chat Noir's hand slid from her cheek to her nape and his lips met hers in an avid kiss. She didn't have time to react as he pulled away too quickly and smirked at her stunned face. "Until next time, milady."
Oh dear, Chat Noir may have caused his lady a serious conundrum. What's a girl to do?
Find out next chapter! Thanks for reading! And I love getting reviews too ;)
