Sometime later, Ladybug and Alya are still walking through the hallway without any turns or intersections among their path.
"I don't remember this building to be this big. Or at least for this corridor."
"Yeah… makes me wonder just exactly what happen to make her like this."
"Oh, so… you do think about the face behind the akuma?"
"Of course," Ladybug calmly answers, "it's part of the job. Hawkmoth makes use of strong emotional feelings, so in that essence, the stronger the feelings the stronger the akuma's powers are. More so, seeing what kind of powers they use, I can guess more or less what happened to the victim if it's clear enough."
"So you do you perhaps know who's the… victim?"
"No. In some cases I do know the person when I see them as my civilian self, but I never met that person before, so I didn't recognize anything familiar. Although, from the things she spoke of and her actions, it seems to me she was affiliated with this studio.."
"Really?" Alya said in surprise. "Just from that conversation."
"Yeah. I'm a very observant person; I do need the skill to use Lucky Charm to its full potential."
"Ah, true" Alya remarks, thinking of all the videos she recorded on Ladybug's fights.
"Lady Araneae talked about this place as if she was very familiar about it. She probably wouldn't be able to transform this place fast and effectively if she didn't. Also, there's always something they want that makes them accept Hawkmoth's offer, and for her she said she wants her own show. Something bad must have happened to Lady Araneae, like she was fired or wasn't given enough attention like Stormy Weather."
"Urgh, I don't really want to think about that time" Alya says, shivering from the reminiscing cold of Stormy Weather's trap. "You must be good at catching things quickly both in and out of the suit there Ladybug."
"Ah, well, I wouldn't say that" Ladybug slowly remarks, looking away in hopes that Alya doesn't suspect her true identity. "I mean, at least between Chat Noir and I, one of us has to."
"Chat Noir? So he's the brawns and you're the brains?"
"Hmm, I guess. But he's pretty smart as well. Our minds are just different out here in the field, but he'll get what he wants if he tries hard enough."
"I see" Alya catches with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah. He's very reliable; I'm glad I have someone like him to trust my back with."
"Oh… So, there wouldn't happen to be, I don't know, any 'other' deep meaning behind those words."
"Huh?"
"Well, haven't you ever wonder if Chat was more than just a partner? Maybe something even more?" Ladybug stops and jumps back slightly at Alya's hopeful words (at least for the aspiring reporter), too shocked for words at what her best friend is asking.
"No no no no no. No! Chat is just a good friend of mine."
"C'mon, I've seen how you two act around each other. You can totally be mistaken for a couple if it wasn't for the additional crime fighting you have to do."
"Really?" Ladybug questions as she continues to walk next to Alya.
"Totally. You should see what people talk about you two in my blog. Don't you think Chat is a good man? Smart, handsome, funny…"
"I honestly don't know how I feel about the puns, but it's seriously not like that. Our mission comes first before anything else. Including love and relationships other than our current professions."
"Please? Just one thought about him aside being hero partners? For your fans?"
"You're not even recording this. Now that I think about it, have you been recording at all for your blog?" Alya sighs.
"I wish" she dejectedly says with her head down. "Without wifi, I won't be able to record huge videos. I can't just save every awesome fighting moments with such a small memory. And I've yet to backup my most recent photos and videos because I overslept."
Isn't 32 GB big enough? Did she already use that much space?! Ladybug thought, remembering the time Alya got a new phone.
"So Ladybug, what do you think about Chat Noir as a man?"
"Alya?!"
"Please?"
"No."
"Please?"
"No."
"PLEASE?! With a cherry on top?" Ladybug was about to answer again when she noticed sounds of movement behind them.
"Wait, be quiet. Do you hear something?" Both girls stop and listened to sounds growing closer to them.
"Is it… footsteps?" Alya asks.
"It's not as loud as I thought footsteps would be though." They decide to look back and waited. Within a few minutes, they noticed a stampede of spiders start to come their way, and never-ending.
"Oh no, not like this. Now of all times?!"
"Let's go!" Ladybug grabs hold of Alya's hand,a dn the two start sprinting ahead down the corridor. They keep running with the spiders on their trail even when obstacles begin to appear. There were pitfalls, gigantic spider webs, and even more spiders, but Ladybug manages to help evade them with her yoyo when needed.
'I hope Chat Noir and Nino are having an easier time than us' Ladybug thinks continuing down the hallway with a panicking Alya in hand.
'I hope Ladybug and Alya are having an easier time than us. Curse cliche labyrinth traps!' Chat thought as he ran with a screaming Nino. Both of them ran at full speed away from a gigantic ball from who-knows-and-who-cares-where-it-came-from.
"CHAT! CAN'T YOU USE YOUR SPECIAL MOVE OR WHATEVER!" Nino yells.
"I CAN'T! I DON'T HAVE ANY CHEESE WITH ME!"
"WHAT DOES CHEESE HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING?!" Fear grows stronger in the air as the two run even faster than ever before down the corridor. Eventually, Chat notices the hallway coming to an end soon with a corner at the distance, and turns his head to his friend.
"Keep it up Nino! We're almost there!" They run around the corner when Chat notices a door nearby.
"This way!" he yells while grabbing Nino's hand. He jumps both of them through the door with a kick to another room. They roll around the floor in pain, panting, while Chat looks behind to see the ball passing by outside.
"Whew~ glad that's over" Chat sighs with a groan before he lies down again. Nino just kept lying down on his spot, still trying to catch his breath.
"Why… Why… WHY?!" Nino complains. "Where… did… she… even find… such a… thing here…"
"...Who knows… we're lucky enough to come by this place." Chat looks around as he sits up to see they were in some storage room, finding only boxes all around them. At some point, Nino sits up as well with enough rest, and looks curiously at Chat Noir.
"Hey," Nino starts with a smile, "Thanks alot."
"No problem. Always glad to be of service" Chat happily replies. Silence filled the room once again when the boys went back to their own thoughts until Nino breaks it.
"Um, if you don't mind me asking, why are you here Chat Noir?"
"What? Of course to stop the akuma."
"I know that, but I mean why are you here in this studio before all of this? You appeared all of a sudden, and behind Lady Araneae of all places."
"Oh! Well… uh… to give the element of surprise of course!"
"...What are you, Black Star(1)? Does the element of surprise include you introducing yourself when you're behind the enemy?" Chat's hand twitches back.
"Well, you see, I saw her…"Chat says, though his lack of confidence in his lie didn't go unnoticed.
"You saw her?"
"Yeah! I thought I could get her, but she - she... already saw me coming! I saw her looking at me when I looked through the backdrop, so I thought I could at least stall time until Ladybug comes." Nino still didn't look like he believed him.
"Cat's honor" Chat promises, putting a hand over his hearts. "I'll stake one of my lives on it."
"Hmm… sure. If you say so." Nino says. Chat released a breath in his mind, but he still kept his guard up seeing Nino suspect who he is. He felt like he was being interrogated for a crime all of a sudden.
'Man, first the akuma then the traps, and now this. Today is just not my day.'
"So Chat," Chat Noir suddenly hears, "did you happen to see Adrien while you were there?" the hero gulped down more fear and nervousness down his throat.
"Adrien? Adrien Jolivet(2)?"
"No, Adrien Agreste. He was suppose to go on a show today when Lady Araneae came."
"Oh, that guy! Yeah, no, didn't see him." Chat quickly answers
"He was suppose to be on stage, but I didn't see him anywhere."
"Have you thought he wasn't needed on stage, but rather somewhere else? He probably headed out in the back doors in that room."
"No, I'm pretty sure I heard he was suppose to be on stage, Chat Noir."
"Well I didn't see him, so I'm sorry about that."
"Chat," Nino warns him. Chat wished Lady Araneae had trapped him instead.
"Would you-" Suddenly, they heard something fall behind Nino. Nino turns while Chat leans to the side to see a box fall down from its spot. Soon, another box fell with its contents spilled, and then another. They boys look up to see spiders from up above somehow pushing the boxes down on them.
"Chat!" Nino says again, but this time with as much fear as his companion. The spiders start to crawl.
"RUN!" They sprint out again, continuing down the path they were in before as a horde of spiders chased them.
"NOT AGAIN!" Nino yells.
Ladybug and Alya keep running away from the spiders, though Alya felt done as she loses speed and feels her feet burn for too long. As predicted by herself, she trips down with a thud, making Ladybug stop and turn back to her.
"Alya!"
"Ladybug, go on without me." Alya says, struggling to get up. Ladybug runs back towards her and picks Alya up.
"I won't leave you behind like this!" She finds a tv nearby to see they only have 30 minutes left. "Hang on."
Ladybug keeps running with Alya in tow. The spiders slowly start to catch up as Ladybug slows down with the additional need to jump more pitfalls. Ladybug kept looking around as she ran, hoping something around them could help them out, when she saw something coming in her view.
"Alya, hold onto me tight." Feeling Alya do what she was told, tightening her hold around the heroine's neck, Ladybug prepares her yoyo on her free hand before she sprinted to jump down the middle of a spiral staircase. Alya began to scream by the unexpected choice, but Ladybug was unfazed. She waited until the right moment where she could use her yoyo to grab onto one of the railings near the ground and pull them over to the stairs itself. As effectively as it was, despite the risks, Ladybug landed perfectly on a flat surface and looked at a stunned and scared Alya.
"Sorry about that, we should be good now. At least, for a while that is." Alya nervously chuckled.
"Hahaha- d-don't worry about me L-Ladybug. I-I'm alright."
"Are you sure?" Ladybug asks. Alya squirms a bit until Ladybug sets her down. At first, her legs felt a bit weak, but Alya somehow managed to stay upright.
"Y-yeah. See?" She nervously states. Ladybug knew how stubborn Alya was and decided to go along with it. She looks around, waiting for Alya to get used to the the feel of the ground, only to see only a door near them aside from the 2 sets of stairs going up and down.
Up, down, or in there? We don't have much time left. Ladybug began to think, until Alya called for her.
"Ladybug?" the one in question whips her head around to her companion.
"Ah, sorry. Are you ready to head out now?" Alya gave a small nod.
"Yeah, it's just… I'm so sorry. You wouldn't have to worry about those spiders if it wasn't for me."
Ladybug shakes her head. "Don't worry about it. There's no way I can leave you like that."
"But-"
"Alya, you've done so much for us. I'm glad you're here instead up on a spiderweb." You're my best friend after all. She thought afterwards.
"Ladybug!" Alya happily chirps.
A weird sound rattles in the door behind, prompting Ladybug and Alya to look behind. Alya gulps in worry, though Ladybug stayed fearless and heads towards it.
"L-Ladybug, are you going in?! What about Chat Noir?"
"Don't worry Alya. Just stay here." Ladybug puts her hand on the handle, and was going to push it until she turned her head back one last time with a smile. "Like I said, I trust in Chat Noir. He'll definitely come, and we'll put an end to this."
Ladybug starts rushing in as Alya tries to reach for her, but holds back to follow her advice. She sighs in relief as she waits for the other hero to arrive, and decided to lean on the nearby wall when she felt something grab her. Then all went dark…
Chat and Nino run across the hallway and far away from the spiders, or so they thought. Unlike Ladybug and Alya, the boys became lost in the particular area they're in. All other doors they try to open, more spiders come out and chase them. In some turns they make, a group of spiders would also be waiting for them. At one point, Chat opens another door to see the ball that chased them instead of spiders, and immediately shuts the door before running away.
"Stop opening doors Chat!" Nino remarks.
"Oh, like you have any good ideas?!" Chat shouts back.
They keep encountering more and more spiders thereafter; some had the ability to break down the doors Chat and Nino pass by, making the two freak out from it. In the end, one turn lead them to a giant pitfall between them and a door at the end. They try to run back until the spiders show up, and then they start to walk backwards away from them till they felt the edge at the ends of their feet.
"Uhh, are those good ideas popping up in you yet?" Chat asks, looking at the spiders.
"S-Sorry, I got nothing… What'll we do now?!"
Seeing his best friend panic, Chat quickly looked around for a solution.
Urgh! If only I had my staff!
Anxiety surrounded his thoughts when all he could think about was the pitfall that was behind him, but decided to just screw it all. He grabbed Nino's shoulder to grab his attention.
"Nino, do you trust me?"
"What?"
"Do you trust me or not Nino?! Hurry, or our heads may get fed at this point!"
Nino looked back and forth between him and the spiders before he hesitantly shook his head. CHat nodded, and proceeded to pick Nino above him with his hands (somehow) on Nino's back.
"WAHH! Wha- Chat?!"
"Sorry if this hurts!" Chat then threw a screaming Nino with a little bit more strength than usual over the pitfall. Nino's fear quickly turned pain and hurt from his buttocks, but slowly turned to see Chat Noir. He ran in the little space he had to one side of the other end before sprinting as he yells, ignoring the spiders almost touching him, to the other wall and wall-ran from that end to Nino's.
"W-Woah…" Nino said to himself, earning a smug grin from the hero as he watches the spiders watch them at the other end.
Is he really who he I think he is… then why - why does he seem so different then? part of Nino wanted to think Chat was his best friend, but then he had no idea what to think as he bit his lip.
He looks back up; in all honestly, he was scared if Chat was Adrien, because then it would mean he continuously keeps risking his life with Ladybug. Chat was witty, strong, and sometimes dumb. Not always thinking straight and going for the gun, yet when he tries he does it, and does everything he can to get what he wants.
It was different from the Adrien he knew. The reserved, and sometimes quiet boy with a love of physics and admires their other hero Ladybug. The one who he grew to understand how lonely he was, and how cool yet fun he can be with despite the fact he grew up very similarly like Chloe (of course they were two different people with opposite personalities, but then they grew up together so Nino couldn't completely ignore it). Nino liked being with Adrien. He was glad to be his friend. He also liked Chat Noir just as equally as Ladybug for their passion to stop akumas.
It's not that there would be any consequence if he was right. Adrien would most likely just shrug it off, then everything would be as usual. But if he was… everything would change. He would have a reason to keep his identity a secret; he wasn't dumb to know that after all the comic books he read. Still, he had his doubts his he want to learn, because then it made him feel like he never knew truly knew Adrien as he keeps looking at the boy - no, at the man before him.
Then what have I've been doing this entire time? Am… am I that weak…
"Are you ok?" Nino hears Chat ask. He gasp, but decided to lower his head again, feeling ashamed to look at him.
"Yeah." He saw Chat hold out his hand, and decided to take his offer after a short moment back in his thoughts.
"Thanks Chat" he bluntly replies; Chat didn't seem to notice the implied sad tone in his words.
"No problem. Shall we?" He point to the door and calmly walks to it without a worry. Nino just watches his back slowly getting smaller, curling his hands into fists.
"Um, Chat Noir?"
"Yeah?" Chat answers, turning back to his friend.
"Chat… Why do you do this? Why did you decide to fight?"
"Eh, why?" Nino nods.
"Hmm, well…" Chat scratches the back of his head. "For my lady of course!"
"Chat…"
"Ah, hold on, it's not technically a lie. I swear!" Chat waves his hands, trying to defend himself. "It's just, I do like fighting and helping Ladybug, but there is more to that than it sees." Nino expectantly stares at Chat.
"I... I like the freedom that comes with this job. Some parts of my life just felt restricting to me - like I wasn't allowed to be myself. They are people that allow me to, but with this mask, I don't feel that restriction. No one knows who I am, so I can do whatever I want, or at least much more than what I can do as my normal self. You could say I'm somewhat addicted to it."
"No, I understand to a certain extent. I know someone who could use that bit of freedom in his life. Heck, sometimes I do as well."
"Heh- Isn't it what everyone wants? To be free to be who they are without any worries. Still, I didn't just accept this position because of this freedom. I also chose it for this city, because I love it. There are so many memorable things I witnessed and became a part of here. Some of the most important people in my life love this city, and I as well love this city. I want to help protect it, along with them - the ones who love and want to protect this city."
"...Like Ladybug?"
"Yeah" Chat answers with ease. "That's one of the many things I love about her!"
"...Well, we shouldn't keep the ladies waiting then." He walks forward, past Chat Noir. "You should hurry up to your lady in particular, or she'll be fighting Lady Araneae all by herself."
"You don't need to remind me!" They walk through the door to a set of stairs, along with a tv near the start to see they have 10 minutes left. Through this, they ran again up the stairs for sometime until they saw a door around halfway of the staircase. Nino panted while Chat, because of his enhanced endurance, looked around the area before putting his ear(s) against the door.
"Sounds quiet… S-Should we?" Chat asks, not wanting any more spiders to appear.
"Your call dude." Nino answers. Chat looks up, then down, thinking before turning back.
"I- I'm going to open it."
"...Alright. Let's go."
(1) Refers to one of the main characters of the manga Soul Eater, Black Star. For those who haven't read it yet (which I recommend) or don't read manga, let's just say he's a loud ninja. That's just as spoiler free as I can get in this reference.
(2) Adrien Jolivet is a french actor and composer. Honestly, I just searched up famous actors with the same first name as Adrien. :P