Grimacing as they blinked the dazzling stars from their eyes, Devotion wondered what exactly Chat Noir had thought was going to happen when he used his Cataclysm on them.
Was he expecting them to be an Akuma? A victim of Hawkmoth, that he could just murder without a thought to the person who was being controlled?
Was he expecting them to be a Sentimonster? Who would then go out of control on a deadly rampage, with no way for him to stop them?
Well. One thing was for certain, whatever Chat Noir was expecting to happen when he purposefully tried to murder them with his Cataclysm…
He wasn't expecting to be blasted back by an explosion of red and white light, that's for sure.
Devotion sighed in exasperation as their vision finally cleared, and they saw Chat Noir's tail go sailing over the railing of the observation deck, knocked unconscious by the power of his attack rebounding back on him, no holds barred, no cheap imitation by an akuma; his life was saved only by the fact that he was still suited up with Plagg's powers.
If he had been wielding any other Miraculous, he would have been nothing but dust on the wind.
Then again, if he had any other Miraculous…they wouldn't even be in this situation right now, would they?
Growling under their breath, Devotion extended their wings and, in a blink, had dived off the platform, twisting in the air to spiral around to where Chat Noir's form was tumbling through the air, limp and silent, knocked out cold.
Grabbing hold of Chat Noir's wrist, Devotion hauled upwards, and, carrying Chat Noir gracelessly as such, flew back up to the platform roof before Chat Noir had even fallen a third of the way down the Tower⏤
Chat Noir, if he had cared to, could have rescued Devotion earlier in a similar time frame, if he had simply extended his staff down for them to grab hold of.
But he hadn't.
He had let them fall.
A new hero, an amok, an akuma⏤ it was all the same, because it would have ended all the same:
Someone innocent would have died, and Chat Noir would not only have let it happen, but would have caused it in the first place.
Devotion's suit could take a fall from the Tower just fine⏤ heck, they had upgraded their suit so they could fall from orbit to earth with minimal injuries, but Chat Noir couldn't, and he most certainly didn't know that Devotion could.
He had thought they were just as vulnerable to damage as he was, and he had still let them fall, despite knowing full well how terrifying an experience it was, because it happened to him often enough.
Dropping Chat Noir back back onto the metal grating so he was slumped against the railing, Devotion considered their options.
Obviously, if there was an opposite idiom to 'passing with flying colors', that was Chat Noir right now.
He had failed spectacularly.
Devotion would have loved to ask 'master' Fu what kind of test he had presented Chat Noir with initially; would have loved to know if Chat Noir also had to race into speeding traffic to save the old man, or if Fu had simply gotten bored with his task, and gotten lazy by the time his test for Chat Noir had rolled around, and done something useless as a superhero test, like tripping on the sidewalk with no danger to Chat Noir if he chose to act.
There was a strange moment, where, just for a second, Devotion was confused. How did they know about Fu testing Ladybug?
But then they shrugged it off; Ladybug had told them, of course. Before she passed her mantel onto them. Yeah. That's what happened, that's how they knew how bad Fu was. They would have loved to give Fu a price of their mind…
But Fu was gone, and good riddance.
Devotion might not be the Guardian, but they had common sense, and that common sense was screaming: why would you give someone the power of Destruction instead of literally any other Miraculous when you know that power is what the supervillain wants?
Chat Noir's Miraculous chimed it's first warning, and Devotion shook their head, their anger and exasperation growing⏤
Chat Noir used his power so often and so recklessly, it made them wonder just how long he would have lasted on his own without Ladybug as a partner⏤
Actually, scratch that, because they didn't need to wonder⏤ Chat Noir had wasted his power on the very first fight against Stoneheart, and would have lost his Miraculous in that battle if Ladybug hadn't been there to carry the day, no matter how uncertain she had been about her own abilities.
Ladybug hadn't thought she was up to the task, was ready to give up being a superhero because she felt someone else would be a better hero, she hadn't believed in herself, or her ability to keep Paris safe, but had still fought through that low self-confidence and become the hero that Paris needed, stepping up to the plate to fulfill the role that was forced on her.
…Chat Noir, instead, had been full of himself, supremely overconfident, and never learning to think before he leapt, even when Ladybug was forced to catch him time after time.
Chat Noir never doubted his ability to be a super hero⏤ he flaunted his unearned confidence and bravado every single time he almost lost the day because he was too busy goofing off, or flirting despite being told no over and over again, even when it was far past the point he should have known better.
Chat Noir would never change, he'd had far, far too many chances to do so, and had flaunted them every single time. He would never change because he saw nothing wrong with what he did, in fact he refused to acknowledge he could ever be wrong, because Ladybug had told him over and over again to stop, but he deliberately crossed every boundary he could.
Chat Noir's Miraculous beeped again, and Devotion didn't feel like waiting for the timer to run down. Or maybe they should, just to hammer it home to him, when he finally woke, just what he had done, how much he had risked with his petty attempt at murder.
Risked, and lost.
Devotion needed to get their bearings anyways⏤ they had never seen Paris from this high up, after all.
Keeping one of their antennae focused on Chat Noir, Devotion leapt to the very top point of the Tower and perched there once more, casting their senses out over the city and scanning the skyline for signs of trouble.
Starting at the Dupain-Cheng Bakery and moving outward, people were moving in the streets, going door to door, or walking through the park, or entering alleyways in groups, each of them distantly calling out: "Marinette?"
Chat Noir's Miraculous beeped its third warning.
The more doors that were visited, the larger the search group grew, and the more lights that were turned on all over the city.
Devotion sat and absorbed everything, feeling the wind ruffling their hair, watching the people in the streets move about, some in a slow, organized manner, while others ran to and fro, dashing across streets and vanishing into houses, while others still went and sat in the park, their faces lit from below in stark white by the light of their phone screens.
Everything was so clear, every detail so vibrant, so alive… Devotion felt like they were seeing everything for the first time.
Chat Noir's Miraculous beeped it's fourth and final warning.
There was a distant sound of a helicopter approaching, and Devotion turned their head to see a media chopper approaching the tower. Either they had caught wind of that girl Marinette's disappearance, or someone had spotted the light show Chat Noir had set off when he tried to kill them. Either way, it was time to leave.
Sighing in exasperation at having to abandon their perch and their first real view of their city, Devotion landed on the platform, and grabbed hold of Chat Noir once more.
With a leap, they had vaulted off the Tower; with a twist of their wings they had dove into the cover of the Tower's support structure, away from prying eyes as they dove to the ground⏤ the Guardian needed to know Chat Noir's identity, but unless drastic action was needed, revealing his identity to all of Paris would only spell trouble, at least while Hawkmoth was still at large.
Keeping Chat Noir's identity a secret known only to the Guardian would effectively isolate him; unless he willingly outed himself to someone or the city at large in an effort to get his Miraculous back, they would be the only ones that knew where Chat Noir had vanished to yet again⏤
And no one in Paris would question his absence either, not with the way he had been neglecting to show up to fights these last few weeks.
Devotion scowled at the reminder, and hissed out a breath as they landed in a secluded, dark corner, trying to rein in their anger.
Depositing Chat Noir on a public bench, Devotion glared down at his hand where his Miraculous sat, flashing constantly now as its timer was wound down to just a few seconds left. Breathing in deeply, Devotion reached for his Miraculous and⏤
Before they could even begin to slide the Ring off his finger, there was a brilliant flash of green⏤
And Chat Noir vanished, replaced by an unconscious boy in designer clothes. His hair was the same blonde that it had been when he was transformed, and he looked like he was only a year or two older than Ladybug had been.
Devotion looked from the unconscious boy to the fashion billboard across from the Eiffel Tower, and back again.
The first thought that popped into their head was, What the hell? Why the FUCK did Fu choose a fucking MODEL to be a permanent Miraculous holder!?
Flabbergasted, Devotion skipped back a few steps, just staring at Chat Noir's stupid, unmasked face.
…Fu might have been an idiot, but surely he hadn't been this stupid, right?
Surely Fu wasn't stupid enough to make a celebrity a full-time Miraculous holder!?
But then Devotion remembered that Fu had allowed Chat Noir to continue on active duty, despite clearly refusing to live up to the responsibility, and Devotion was forced to accept that the old man really had been that fucking stupid and irresponsible.
Fu could have taken Chat Noir's Miraculous at any time after Adrien Fucking Agreste proved unworthy of taking his duty seriously, but Fu had never even considered it, and now the new Guardian was forced to act in his stead, when the damage had already been done.
Scowling in disgust, Devotion shoved the Black Cat Miraculous into their watch and backed away, more than tempted to leave Adrien Agreste to rot on a park bench on his own, but knew that was just their anger and spite talking; there was no telling what could happen to him if they left him here, as a defenseless kid, let alone a defenseless kid who was a famous super model.
Fu was a fucking idiot, but unlike the unworthy Adrien, Devotion wasn't going to put their emotions before their sacred duty as a Miraculous Wielder, as a Superhero.
If Devotion left him here, Agreste would probaby wind up kidnapped or something else equally stupid.
Leaping up to perch on a lower strut of the Tower, just high enough to see over the trees in the park, Devotion cast their gaze and senses out, and quickly spotted one of the search parties that were looking for the missing girl headed this way.
Clearing their throat, Devotion opened their mouth and let out a short, but loud scream⏤ not in their own voice, but in the voice of Adrien Agreste.
The search party closest to the Tower all stopped short for a moment, before sprinting in their direction, shouting questions.
Devotion didn't respond and instead let the silence ring ominously, then hopped down from the strut, walked over to where Adrien was sprawled on the bench, and pulled him onto the pavement instead, letting him ragdoll naturally so it looked like he'd fainted.
Leaping up into the pillars once more, Devotion cocooned themselves in their cloak and vanished into the shadows.
After a long few seconds, the first member of the search party arrived, saw Adrien sprawled on the ground, and shrieked his name. The petite girl dashed forward and knelt at Adrien's side, grasping his hand and shaking it, trying to wake him up.
Moments later, the rest of the group arrived, and they all crowded around Adrien, calling his name and asking each other frantic questions. One of the girls, with dark hair and a purple shirt on started to lift Adrien by his shoulders, but a tall boy in a red hoodie quickly stopped her before she'd even gotten her grip.
"We don't know what happened to him, so we shouldn't move him! It looks like he fell, and he could have hurt his back or neck⏤ so we shouldn't move him, unless where he's lying is too dangerous for him to stay there." The boy explained, to the girl, then turned his attention more directly onto the unconscious boy, "Adrien, can you hear me?" he called.
He paused for a moment, and Devotion watched him place his hand in the space in front of Adrien's nose.
"He's breathing." The boy announced after a moment, "Did anyone call an ambulance yet?" He called out to the group at large, and another boy raised their hand.
"Already called, they're dispatching now." The boy said, and Devotion knew they had stayed long enough to ensure Adrien was safe, that the former Chat Noir was safe.
Far, far more effort than he probably would ever have put in to even hide their body, if he had killed them like he planned.
Restraining a growl, Devotion knew that Adrien probably would have simply gawked at their body before fleeing the scene entirely and left them to rot.
If he had tried to do this to a hero… who knew how many civilians he had done worse to?
That no one would ever know about?
Closing their eyes and letting out a breath, Devotion centered themself, then flowed between the support struts until they had emerged on the outside of the Tower once more.
They had a grieving family to talk to, and they needed to try to get this girl's disappearance solved.