oh my god when was the last time i actually updated this fic pls forgive me i scrapped so many ideas for this chapter i forgot all about it

also shoutout to my beta because without her i will most likely be sitting in a ditch leaving this fanfic to rot

Chapter 3: The Timebreaker

This has got to be the most awkward situation I've ever been in.

He'd been walking with his new partner for more than 10 minutes now and both of them had yet to say a word. Ladybug herself was focused on a map, and the further away they were from the lively part of the city and into the suspicious outskirts, the more nervous he grew. The ravenette's uneasy expression did not help.

"So, um..."

Think of a good conversation starter c'mon you can do this Agreste-

"Ladybug, huh? Why a ladybug specifically?''

Good, good, not the worst you've done.

"Ah. It's not that special, really. Ladybugs are a symbol of luck, so I figured that if I was going to run around the city doing crazy detective work and try to maintain my normal student life, I'd need all the luck I can get. " She laughed awkwardly. ''That, and actually solving the cases, too. My mind isn't really the sharpest."

"Nonsense," He cut in. "I bet you're a real smart person. I, on the other hand, have no idea what the hell I'm doing. Or why I signed up in the first place."

I thought this was meant not to make you look bad, you idiot.

Shut up, okay?

"Well, Fu has his ways of persuading people. He can be very mysterious sometimes. That, or downright crazy. Like the one time I found a turtle costume in his closet..."

"Maybe he's magic! Like one of those old people you see who look normal but are actually wizards in disguise or gods or something that grant people wishes!" He rambled childishly.

The response was better than what he expected. She burst into a fit of giggles before saying, ''I think you're referring to a genie in a lamp, chaton. Besides, magic isn't real.''

''Nonsense! Magic is everywhere m'lady, you just can't see it. Besides, you're the one relying on luck!"

"Luck and magic are two different things- speaking of which, did you dress up as a black cat to jinx us or because that strange mind of yours thought it was practical?''

"I wasn't thinking straight, remember?''

''That, I can believe."

The two fell into a comfortable silence before the pigtailed girl asked timidly, ''So, uh, what's the actual reason? For joining, I mean?''

''I don't know. I was sort of desperate for a job, I guess. So desperate I was willing to follow a possible lunatic inside his house. Now that I think about it, I was being a real idiot back then. All of this a bit new to me..."

"You still are one now,'' She pointed out. "But I'm sure you'll get the hang of it. Also, I was wondering if you were poor or something? I don't mean to pry, but I can't think of any other reason- then again, you still wouldn't be here if it were the case."

"Uh... something like that, just not money wise.'' He couldn't really think of any other way to phase it without possibly having her call the cops on him. Ladybug shot a suspicious glance but didn't question any further.

"What about you, buginette? To what reason must I thank for giving me the pleasure of being acquainted with you?''

A sigh. "You shameless flirt." Then, ''Let's say I owe somebody a favor and this is the only way of repaying them."

"Ah."

"..."

"My lady, didn't we just pass the intersection?''

''Shit!"

''So are you gonna ring it or am I?''

The newly acquainted duo stood in front of the tall door to an apartment. Their client was supposedly occupying the space behind the entrance, and yet the two had done nothing but stand rooted to the doormat for the past 10 minutes.

''U-Um, you do it.'' Ladybug had a nervous tremor in her voice. It turned out that she was, like Chat, just starting out on the detective business with no experience whatsoever. The thought of actually running around solving crimes and mysteries didn't seem to affect her until now, much to the blonde's amusement.

''My lady, I get that this whole thing is frightening and that you have no reason not to be overwhelmed, but we're not going anywhere at this rate if we don't get past the door.''

''Then why don't you ring it?''

''Uh, ladies first?'' He grinned cheekily. Truth be told, he was just as anxious as his partner, but in his defense she was the one who grabbed his arm and dragged him here in the first place. So sue him.

''Hmph.''

''Unless, of course, you're scared? Then I wouldn't mind if it is for the sake of my buginette.'' Chat offered slyly. Please don't say yes please don't say yes please don't say-

The nickname and the tease seemed to do the trick. ''I'm not!'' Ladybug snapped, the tension suddenly disappearing from both her body and tone. ''Fine, if you're too much of a scaredy cat, then I'll do it!''

He brushed off the insult for once and thanked whatever gods there were out there that he had been stuck with a girl who chose pride over anything during life or death (maybe that was a bit of an exaggeration) situations. It'll probably be the death of me sooner, though.

Said girl was now marching up to the steps in a rather dignified manner, rolling up her sleeves and putting her hands on her hips. She glared at the doorbell before mercilessly jamming it.

There was no reply.

After another 10 minutes of waiting, a mixture of anger and humiliation swirled inside the young ravenette as she began to repeatedly ring the doorbell, until she began to attack it with a fist-

''Hey, what's with the ruckus out here!?''

The door opened abruptly to reveal a tall tanned blonde staring out at the space below him with an annoyed expression. He was dressed in a rather hurried state and his nose looked like it had been beaten from the side. Both teens were now gazing at him with shock. Ladybug was in the midst of punching the button before stuffing her hands in her hoodie pockets embarrassingly.

''Erm, are you Mousier Wilson?''

''That I am, miss!'' The man's mouth curved upwards seeing she knew his name. ''Cameron Wilson, at your service. How can I help you? Autograph? Interview? I'll give you 10 minutes, tops.'' He spoke with a heavy Scottish accent for a Parisan.

''We received a message from you saying you were being threatened?''

''Oh yeah, I was,'' Cameron shrugged. ''But it doesn't seem like such a big deal to me now. Still, come on in! My place is a bit messy, sorry 'bout that.''

Understatement of the year. The ground was practically covered by the sea of remains from party decorations and food along with things that probably didn't belong in the room of an apartment. The female attempted to casually stroll in and ignored the person that laid passed out behind the couch. After stepping in an unidentifiable substance somewhere below the trash, she internally started to curse herself.

The wave of a hand signaled her partner to follow behind, though he came in more cautiously. Fingers pinching his nose so that he wouldn't have to inhale whatever the hell was down there, he instantly regretted wearing his only pair of 'normal' clothing. The uniform would need some seriously scrubbing and washing, maybe a hose had to be taken into consideration as well. God, and the smell. Natalie will have his head if he didn't die here first due to intoxication.

''Well, wait are you waiting for? Have a seat!''

Cameron fished out 3 (unbroken) stools and a pack of beer. He offered some to the teens to which they politely declined and helped himself to one before settling himself on one of the chairs. "Right then. Well, it all started when I was chosen to compete in the Paris-Versailles. You kids know what that is, yeah?''

"Yes." Ladybug was well informed of the event. It was an annual race people competed in, starting from the Eiffel Tower to the Palace of Versailles. Her family always volunteered to provide food at the pit stops.

"Good, because once I got in, everything went downhill from there. And when I say downhill, I mean down all the way to the fiery pits of hell. I had to be watching my own back 24/7 ever since."

"What exactly happened after you got in?''

''At first, it was just little things. Easily looked over, y'know, that kind of stuff. But man, all that shit escalated to the point where it's probably someone trying to kill me. Wouldn't be surprised if it was just a jealous competitor though, I get loads of those.''

"And what were those things exactly?''

''Like I said, little things. I wake up everyday at 6:30 and go jogging like usual, yeah? But one day I started tripping over things that weren't there at first, almost being hit by stuff I had no idea where the hell came from, and losing some things. No biggie, though."

The black clothed teen opened his mouth to suggest that the items his client had lost may have been due to his nonexistent cleaning habits, but remained shut.

"And then it started getting worse. Real worse. I stopped eating out because I'm always feeling dizzy later- let me tell you, cooking your own food is not fun. And sometimes I wake up in weird places. Like, places that are weirder than the places you usually wake up to in a hangover, I mean. And one time I almost got shoved over the Pont des Arts!"

"How long has this been happening, exactly?''

''More than 2 weeks, I guess. But it's stopped now, so I'm just guessing my bad luck decided to spare me some mercy for a while.'' Cameron laughed. "I mean, I'm still alert and all, but now I can throw parties without having to worry about being buried 6 feet under the next day."

"Ah. I'm glad you feel more relaxed now, Mousier Wilson, but please remember to put your safety first before anything else."

''Of course! If anybody tries to mess with me, I'll just punch 'em in!"

"Right..."

The duo said one last goodbye before (finally) leaving the residence. Before closing the door, the man shouted to them, ''By the way, think you kids can make it to the marathon and watch me run? I'd appreciate the support!"

"Oh, um, maybe. Although, you seem to have enough confidence in yourself, Mousier."

"Yup! I just want enough people to be there to see me leaving everybody in the dust before they've even started! They don't call me 'Timebreaker' for nothing!"

When they were finally within foot of the more safe streets, the blonde opened his mouth, ''Well, now I know why he was willing to take in a bunch of teenagers to solve his case. The guy's a self-absorbed idiot."

"Much like yourself, hm?''

Chat was getting ready to shoot back a witty reply before he noticed the concentrated look on his lady's face. ''Wait- don't tell me you're actually taking him seriously?''

"Of course I'm taking him seriously. As stupid as he is, whatever has been happening to him isn't normal."

"He could've been making it up for all we know! He seems like the kind of person to, anyways."

Ladybug bit her bottom lip. True, he was a egoistic and hardheaded person, but she could tell his words were sincere. That, and he seemed too dumb to lie and get away with it. "No, he wasn't. Somebody has it out for him, Chat, and it's our job to track them down."

The fact that these 'attacks' had suddenly stopped days before the race worried her. She recalled the bruises and scars across Cameron's body and thought it not impossible for him to have enemies.

"So let me get this straight. We, two teenagers who have no idea what the hell we're doing, are dressed as animals playing detective that can get us killed for a narcissistic drunkard who may or may not possibly be lying about his situation."

"Yes."

''...Okay, count me in."

Adrien found himself screaming into his pillow that night.

Notes:

-I made Cameron Scottish because I felt like making him Scottish. I have nothing against Scottish people. Also, 'Cameron' literally means 'bent nose'. I have nothing against people with bent noses either.

-I'm writing this in third person, not just Adrien's point of view. So you'll see Ladybug's thoughts throughout the book too.

-The Paris-Versailles does exist, but it happened in September. It's not September here at the moment. Also, I'm most likely going to tweek it a little in the future.

-The Pont des Art is famous throughout Paris and has been seen in Miraculous Ladybug. It's a large bridge where couples declare their love by engraving their names onto a padlock and and locking it on the rail. This may or be not be crucial later on.

-I stuck a couple references here. See if you can find them!

Sorry that this took so long to update! I rushed this one a bit last minute, but looking back it seems pretty plotless... (I promise the next chapter will be faster and have more plot ;-;)