Symbiotic Whiskers
Chapter 6
Today was a much better day than Marinette could have predicted. Sitting in her chair, sewing a skirt she was excited to finally wear to school, the teenager was in bliss. A cheerful tune started to mumble in her throat, the girl finding a happy rhythm to zone out in.
"You're in a good mood." Tikki noted, resting on a small cushion in the bottom frame of the window.
"How could I not be?" Marinette spun around with a wide smile near her desk, not even accidentally hitting her leg against it by accident! "Adrien stood up against Chloe, her lying was caught on camera when she pretended to be me, and not even Sabrina is backing her up on her cruelty anymore!"
"Don't you feel kind of bad for her?" Tikki turned over onto her belly, spreading out across the soft fabric to watch Marinette's cheerful work. "The only friends she had, Adrien and Sabrina both lashed out at her, and Adrien wasn't even akumatized."
Just thinking back at the moment, reliving the memory in her mind of the perfect boy shutting down the girl who made her life miserable for so long. He became her knight in shining armor whose righteous anger was unleashed against the dragon.
It was just so perfect!
"Chloe has been an awful person, and no one has ever managed to discipline her for her actions." Putting in the final stitch, Marinette stood up to hold the skirt along her waist to see how well it turned out. "She deserves a lot worse."
"That doesn't sound very nice."
"It's true though!" Marinette turned it over, letting the light reveal the subtle details of the flowing midnight fabric. "Chloe has tortured me for years, making it impossible to make friends to the point I begged my mom to let me be homeschooled. It's not just me, she keeps ruining so many people's lives, sometimes just because she can!"
"Chloe isn't very kind-" Tikki would admit. "-but does she really deserve to have no friends?"
A life with no friends, Marinette was forced to live a life like that once, all because of Chloe. Her friends were taken away when she had done nothing wrong, but Chloe? "She drove them away on her own."
Turning away from the topic of conversation, Marinette focused more on the skirt and how it turned out. It looked like a dark wave of black yarn twisting together, with two green buttons at the waist. She should have paid more attention to what she was making when she was zoned out, because with a clear mind it was obvious that anyone who saw this would assume she was obsessed with Cat Noir.
She didn't try to do that, she just put together what worked together.
Tikki flew closer to it, letting out a pleased hum by the intricate stitching. But now both their minds were back on the hero.
"I hope he feels better soon." Marinette sighed as she glanced up to the window, wondering if Cat Noir would come to visit tonight. "I wish I could help him more."
"Maybe we can." Tikki came up to Marinette, deciding that they had too many close calls with Cat Noir, that he barely had control of his unstable position. "Marinette, we need to go and talk to-"
A distant glow of red in the night flashed across Marinette's window, the girl and her kwami's attention pulled outside. She approached, peering out through the glass as a distant fire began to erupt.
"We can talk to Cat Noir at the fight." Tossing the skirt onto the desk, Marinette readied herself for a second akuma in one day. "Tikki, spots on!"
A dark cocoon had spun itself, imprisoning not only the captive but the captor as well as their minds, their souls, until the process had finished. Within the comatose body inside, Adrien's thoughts were recollecting themselves as he awakened.
Standing in his hero outfit, Adrien looked around to try and see where he was. The distance was hazy, impossible to make out if anything was even there. Strange burnt twigs, twisted and coiled in on themselves stood all around like trees with glowing lime green veins pulsing through them.
He had control of his arms, Adrien reaching up to his cheek to feel the lack of a mask on his face. "Where, what?"
Normally he would chalk it up to a dream, given how crazy everything was, and the fact that his feet were glued to the reflective obsidian landscape. No, he was awake. His thoughts weren't muddled and running wild as he tried to make out what was happening.
"Hello?!" His voice echoed loudly like it was right next to him.
This felt oddly familiar, like he had this not dream before. If that was the case, if he looked down he would see himself.
Yep, there he was, only his mask was on in the reflection. Touching his own face, he confirmed he wasn't actually wearing a mask but just the copy. It copied his movements, it copied his suit, but it was just wearing a mask.
All alone, that's starting to become his life now.
Memories of his mother passing, isolation his father placed him in. Money, fame, none of it mattered when he was forced to live his life alone. Then came the suit, giving him freedom, strength, to do whatever they want.
No one else could help, no one else could understand them.
Again with the theys and thems!
Adrien's thoughts were so loud he felt like they were pounding all around in his mind, the boy kneeling down as he gripped his head, pushing his forehead against the ground with his reflection mimicking him, touching forehead to forehead. "Stop, whatever is happening just stop!"
"Why do you want us to stop?" His own voice, coming from right below him questioned as if offended. "We like being Cat Noir, don't we?"
His eyes snapped open, Adrien pushing himself up as he became frightened of his own reflection.
"Don't be afraid." The masked version spoke up in a calming tone. "We just want to help."
It didn't attack, it didn't make any threatening moves, it just reflected himself. Hold on, this happened the same night he got his powers, the ones that came from-
"You're the suit." Adrien gasped in realization. "You're my powers. You wouldn't get off, you wouldn't leave me you took me in here and-"
"We are only trying to help!" Cat Noir's image reached up, pressing its hand against the mirror as Adrien's own arm moved on its own to touch it. "Who else can? Don't you like being Cat Noir? Going to school, meeting people, going out and having fun. We made that happen."
That was right, his whole life changed the moment he got the suit, or the kwami, whatever Ladybug called it. She said it could speak, and now he was finally able to communicate with his. Good, he had an important question to ask.
"Why are you messing with my head?" Adrien demanded, cracks forming along the obsidian ground as his knuckles began to tighten. "Do you realize how awful I've been feeling lately?!"
"It's not our fault!" It spoke up like a hurt child. "We strengthen everything, your muscles your senses, and your emotions. The stronger our bond the stronger we become."
Adrien could recall how liberating it felt to take control of his life, to run around Paris like he could take on anything. He thought that's how anyone would feel to wake up with superpowers.
"Exactly! We did that!" Cat Noir pushed his hand against the broken parts of the ground, the cracks sealing themselves as his image became more clear. "We are so much more together."
"And what about the pain I've been feeling lately?" Adrien turned away in bitter realization. Ladybug was right, this thing made all his emotions overwhelming. "You're making it worse."
"Ladybug broke our heart, she doesn't deserve-"
"DON'T YOU DARE BLAME HER!" Adrien crashed his fist down, everything around him squirming in response. "You should know how I feel about her so stop trying to pin her and everyone against me!"
Taking a few steadying breaths, Adrien pushed himself off the ground to look up, seeing all the webs around himself just like the first time with the shadow keeping itself at a distance with its back turned, just barely in his sights.
"Do not reject us." It softly pleaded, Adrien stunned at how hurt it sounded. "We depend on our bond, our purpose."
It depended on him? But this was a magical suit that could make anyone into a hero or whatever they wanted to be! "Why me then?"
Within the gaps of the webs around him, Adrien could see his own memories being put on display. How many times he tried to do something outside his father's control, find a friend, or have some fun. All he could do was keep himself in line and closed off from everything and everyone, forced into a prison of his father's design.
"We understand." The emotions of the suit bled into Adrien's heart, the same ones he felt until the night they met. "We are the same."
Adrien, as much as he wanted to blame this thing for all his problems, feeling like he was losing control of himself after just obtaining some form of freedom, he couldn't. How far would he be willing to go to make his own life?
"You did let me be a hero." Adrien scratched at his cheek, looking at all of the angles on what was happening. "I got to go to school, make friends, meet Ladybug, and even be friends with Marinette as Cat Noir even though she doesn't like me as Adrien so much."
Cat Noir, or the shadow of his suit remained quiet, glancing back towards Adrien as the webs between them seemed to lighten. "We only tried to give you what you wanted, trying to protect you from anyone that was hurting you."
A small rumble shook everything around them, pulling Adrien and the shadow's attention towards something other than one another.
"Akuma." They both spoke out recognizing the threat, and that's when Adrien realized an important detail.
"I can't do this without you." He gave in, and in a blink he saw Cat Noir standing right in front of him.
"So you accept us? Our bond?" It held its hand out to him, hopeful and eager to reunite them.
But Adrien wasn't done yet. "No more turning me against my friends. I get it if you can't help making my emotions stronger but you need to dial that down as low as you can or else we're not going to be able to help Ladybug at all. And if that means we have to take breaks then you can hide in my pocket or a bag. Whatever works, and we need to make this work otherwise we're going to risk everything we've managed to get."
"We only want what you want." The hand spread its fluid fingers, stretching out as they hovered just over Adrien's own. "So, you accept us?"
"We're a team." Adrien clasped his hand around the glove, feeling it slip over its skin and conform to his will. "Teamwork makes the dream work."
His eyelids twitched, Cat Noir blinking himself awake as the dream ended. He was back wearing the suit, his powers returned and in his control, or their control. Also he just happened to be standing on the underside of the Arc de Triomphe upside down.
"Do you just take me for joyrides during my sleep?" Cat Noir looked down at his outfit, noting how bright the green parts were glowing at the moment. Waiting for a response, he couldn't make out any clear words like he was hearing in his sleep. "Guess we're back to the silent treatment."
But he felt good, better even. His emotions were more in check, but his thoughts were also less connected to the kwami. That must be the price to pay, less mental contact less emotional swings. That didn't sound ideal, but-
Another explosion rang out, colorful sparks blasting into the air.
"We'll hash out the details later!" Cat Noir struck his arm out, flinging out a string of yarn and yanking himself forward towards the fight. "But for now we are going to kick some serious butt!"
Letting himself spin as his momentum carried him forward, Cat Noir let go, kicked against the corner of a rooftop to jump up high, and fell into free fall as he felt himself reliving the same emotions the first time he put on the suit, or the suit put him on.
He couldn't wait to tell Marinette about the good news! Ladybug first actually, she should hear about this too given she had more knowledge about how their powers worked.
"RAGH!" Chloe's hands yanked at the tower of hat boxes in her closet, throwing them down across the floor of her room. It had become a mess, exactly how she felt. It didn't make any sense though, because she should always feel better than anyone else! Anything she wanted she could have, anyone she didn't like she could make feel worse.
So why was everyone having such a better time than her?!
At the center of her path of destruction lay the source of her current troubles. The ripped up Ladybug costume left in shreds. What did she have that made everyone like her better? Ladybug didn't have any money, any influential family, and she didn't have any blonde hair!
Yet everyone else, her teachers, her classmates, her father, even Adrien loved her for nothing!
Her phone blared, Chloe glancing over to the coffee table where she had put it previously. The screen flashed as the local alert overrode her mute function.
"Akuma alert, akuma alert. Please remain indoors until Ladybug and Cat Noir-"
Grabbing a high heel, Chloe struck the screen to pierce it. "JUST SHUT UP!"
"Chloe my dear?" Her father called out, knocking on the door to her room. "I can hear you're upset, please let me in and we can talk about how to make you happy. If you'd like, I can try having Ladybug show up for a personal meet and greet for-"
"I SAID SHUT UP!" Chloe grabbed the broken device, chucking it at the door to let out a loud bang. "I hate Ladybug and her stealing everything from me! Including the credit for what I did to stop Sabrina's tantrum!"
Thinking about Ladybug, wanting her erased from the world, Chloe recalled she was still wearing those stupid Ladybug earrings and ripped them off, ready to throw it out the window and be rid of it forever.
That's when a fluttering butterfly landed on the object, giving Chloe the strength to retake everything she had lost.
"SHABAM!"
Ladybug narrowly dodged the stream of fiery sparkles that darted towards her, the missile spinning out behind her and detonating in a bright firework.
"WAZZAM!"
She flicked out her yo yo, swinging it wide to intercept the second one as she jumped towards her foe.
"KERBLAM!"
The crimson robed wizard with a beard full of sparklers and eyes dancing with colors pointed his staff towards the heroine, summoning dozens of fireworks to launch towards her. "Everyone should enjoy the magic and happiness of fireworks. It is their right! No law should ban them!"
Ducking behind a dump truck, Ladybug watched as whistling streaks zipped past to hit several buildings nearby. Sparks rained out in loud clashes of art, the dying embers igniting anything flammable they touched. "Fireworks can be fun, but dangerous too!"
"That's what makes them fun!" The wizard maniacally laughed as he released twenty more to chase after the heroine, Ladybug forced to flee and gain some distance.
Hopping behind a taller building, Ladybug caught her breath as she tried dialing Cat Noir again on her yo yo. "Please kitty, you can do one more night and I promise I'll-"
"-enjoy a nice evening out on the town together?" The teasing and playful hero was right above her, Ladybug not having noticed Cat Noir hanging out on the dark side of the structure.
"How long have you been here?"
"Not that long." He flipped down, landing in front of her as light as, well a cat. He was in a really good mood, like how he was before February. "I've had a busy night."
"I don't think either of us are getting much sleep." Ladybug peeked around the corner, until what she said finally registered in her mind. "You know what I mean."
"So what's up with this guy?" Cat Noir stepped over to the otherside of the wall, watching as the madman was lighting up Paris in colorful flames. He tried getting close earlier but quickly found his body yanked away from direct contact with the flames. Fire bad, very bad. "Is he a wizard who can only cast fireball?"
"Not sure, but I'm betting the akuma is in his staff." Ladybug pointed towards the item, Cat Noir coming right behind her and holding his hands up to his eyes like binoculars. "It's his only weapon, and his outfit is too plain."
The sparkler wizard laughed, as the bottom part of his robe exploded out to send him hurtling through the air. Ladybug and Cat Noir gave chase, running, jumping, or swinging side by side as they were being brought to another part of Paris untouched by the fireworks.
"You think you can get close enough to restrain him?" Ladybug asked as she tossed herself over the street.
"This kitty likes water more than fire." Cat Noir vaulted between two chimneys before slingshotting himself forward.
"Then that means plan B." Ladybug and Cat Noir came to a halt, overlooking the wizard smashing into the Notre Dame.
"Lucky charm!" In a brilliant display, Ladybug watched an item fall down to her hands from her powers summoning the item they needed. "A fire extinguisher."
"Wow, that's pretty straight forward." The two recoiled as a barrage of fireworks shot out of several windows of the church, chaos exploded all around them in beautiful displays.
"We don't have much time!" Ladybug jumped ahead, landing atop the highest part of the building with her earrings beginning to flash. Cat Noir leapt right after her, landing into a crouch next to the girl. "But I really want to make some afterwards. You seem different."
"I feel different." Cat Noir proudly held a hand to his chest, rubbing the suit to internally thank the creature providing him a second chance. "I finally got to talk to my kwami and it sounds like we've worked things out."
"That's great!" Ladybug beamed towards him, before the smell of smoke hit her nose. "Come on, let's finish this quickly because I want to hear everything."
She tethered her yo yo to the top, swinging around as she found an opening to enter. Cat Noir's feet ran across the rooftop, the boy ready to leap into action and-
Akuma
He stopped, his senses homing in towards a building across the street. Something was there, watching him, and he could feel it. For a second, he thought he saw a figure moving just like-
"CAT!" Ladybug shouted out, explosions ringing out from inside. "Get in here!"
"Coming!" Ladybug needed him now, Cat Noir leaping off the side, shooting out a string to land just under an opening for him, and with a tug he was pulled inside to the fight.
Fires were starting all around, sparks and flames shooting everywhere as Ladybug was on the defensive being pushed into a corner. She was shielding herself with the yo yo, fireworks detonating against it in rapid fire as the loud bangs paired with the flashes blinding her senses.
Cat Noir had to shield his own eyes as he ran forward, his body nudging him at the right time to avoid having his head blasted off.
"I'll be celebrating your defeat today Ladybug and Cat Noir!" The wizard taunted, taking his attention off Ladybug long enough to throw the fire extinguisher overhead. "Because you're going to go out in a bang!"
"Couldn't agree more!" Cat Noir flipped above him, his claws extending out to slash through the metal container. The pressure popped open, releasing a burst of foam to rain down over the wizard.
His beard was extinguished, but he still had his staff that he pointed towards the cat. "Fool! No one can extinguish the flames of victory!:
A yo yo wrapped around his staff, being yanked towards Ladybug in a quick tug.
"NNOOOOOO!"
She snapped it in half, opening up her yo yo and ready to capture the…feather? The wizard vanished into thin air, leaving no victim behind.
"Where's the akuma victim?" Cat Noir questioned, keeping his head on a swivel.
"Not sure." Ladybug still swiped her tool at it, catching it within her yo yo before releasing a purified feather. "I don't think it was an akuma."
"But there was a cheesy villain!" Cat Noir called out in confusion as Ladybug grabbed her torn open fire extinguisher. "An object to break that released an evil thing that floats around menacingly."
"Do you think butterflies are menacing?"
"Ever since Hawkmoth somehow weaponized insects."
Tossing the lucky charm up, everything around them was fixed in a wave of magical ladybugs. Man that was a convenient power. Who knows how Paris would have reacted to hearing the Notre Dame was burnt a second time.
A brief shadow passed the building, Cat Noir narrowing his eyes to try and catch sight of whatever it was. Too big to be a bird, but they already beat the villain so it couldn't be anything dangerous.
"Let me go feed my kwami real fast." Ladybug swung upward to one of the windows to pop open. "Be right back-"
Akuma!
Adrien's mind flared, the boy's eyes pulled towards where Ladybug was as a leg kicked the girl up into one of the bell towers.
"Ladybug!" Cat Noir jumped up as someone leapt inside to chase after the heroine. They were dressed like her, only the colors were switched. Black outfit with red spots with a yo yo to match. The blonde hair tied back into a ponytail with the strong permeating odor of seven expensive perfumes, reminded him of-
Chloe
It was her, no doubt about it as Cat Noir followed the two up further into the church. Ladybug rolled onto one of the staircases, quickly getting into a defensive position to intercept a yo yo coming right for her face.
"You shouldn't have stolen from me Ladybug!" Chloe, akumatized and full of rising anger kept throwing her yo yo towards Ladybug, forcing the heroine to move up the stairs as the attacks pressed on.
"Chloe!" Cat Noir landed at the bottom of the railings, looking up towards the fight. "Don't do this!"
"I'm not Chloe anymore!" She spit out, Ladybug trying to find an exit but her attention had to be kept on the enemy in front of her or else she would get hit. There wasn't enough space to spin her yo yo as a shield, there wasn't enough of a gap to get around the enemy, all she could do was go up. "I'm Antibug!"
Cat Noir began running up, hoping to join the fight and give Ladybug some breathing room for her to transform back. But when two yo yo's collided, one of them ricocheted off to clang against one of the bells. He collapsed on one of the steps, feeling the vibrations rattle his body as his suit squirmed at the sensation.
Out of all the days to discover he has not one, but two weaknesses this was not the one he was hoping for. Still, his suit stayed on him, only becoming weaker. He would have to pick up the slack, use his own strength to try and win this fight. Picking himself up, Adrien began running up the steps, trying to keep up with the superpowered girls.
Another bell was struck, Ladybug having blocked a kick and hitting her back against another bell. They collided with one another, sending out a chorus that forced Cat Noir to bite back the pain.
"Anti Charm!" Chloe spun her yo yo up, Ladybug recovering as Antibug had summoned a large spiked hammer. The blonde swung hard and fast, Ladybug running up further to dodge the swipes as Chloe kept wrecking everything around her.
Cat Noir had to bite back the headache, his suit barely keeping itself together as the noise only escalated. His eyes stayed on the fight, because he knew he would have to calculate his next move carefully. He hated to think what would happen if he got hit by that hammer right now, or worse, if Ladybug couldn't escape in time before transforming back and facing it on her own.
"You don't know what it's like!" Antibug screamed as her hammer smashed away at the wooden supports around them, the stairs creaking in response. "I always had everything I wanted! I always got what I asked for! No one dared to mess with me!"
Ladybug flipped back as Antibug smashed the hammer down, collapsing part of the stairway as the internal structure of the church began to shake. Bells rung, wood splintered, and Ladybug's earrings were down to their last spot.
"I never took anything from you!" The heroine shouted, reaching the top most platform as she tried to find an opening she could take. Antibug broke through the floor, jumping through the gap she made as Ladybug threw her yo yo with her only means of ranged combat.
"I'm not talking about money or clothes!" Antibug cried as she allowed the yo yo to wrap around her hammer before yanking it back. Ladybug let go before she could be pulled into a deadly swing, her yo yo now lost. "I'm talking about my respect! My reputation! The only two people I even considered friends!"
More wood crashed as Chloe's rampage escalated, support beams falling around them as it could barely support the chaos. It made it worse for Cat Noir, who had to navigate the ever growing maze of obstacles and debris while also avoiding anything that looked like it would drop him if he stepped foot on it.
Out of options, Ladybug took a risk and went face to face with the girl, latching onto the hammer with her hands as they entered into a tug of war. "You have to take responsibility for your own actions Chloe!"
"I never have and I never will!" Antibug shoved Ladybug forward, letting go of the hammer at the same time.
Ladybug lost her balance, falling backwards and hitting her head against the bell making her head ring with it.
"Ladybug!" Cat Noir held his arms up, charging with as much strength as he could muster to break through the last pieces stopping him from getting to the top. It was a mess, shattered beams and several boards piling around with hardly any gaps larger than his head. All he could make out was the single plank holding up Ladybug's weight bending dangerously far, and a clear view of Chloe's painfully twisted face.
"I'm going to take it all back." Antibug kicked down, snapping the supports that were attached to the small platform Ladybug was cautiously maneuvering on. "Starting with your life."
It was too much, the ground underneath Ladybug caving in as she heroine fell with no yo yo to catch herself with. It was only a twenty foot drop to the next level still intact, she would easily survive that with her transformation still active.
But Antibug was delivering on her promise, throwing out her yo yo down to wrap around Ladybug's neck as she gave a harsh tug to tighten the line. Ladybug's windpipe was closed, her lungs squeezing in on themselves as they tried to clear the blockage. Her legs kicked out in the emptiness, her hands trying to pull the string away from her neck.
"STOP!" Cat Noir sent a tether out through the small gap he could find, sticking to the back of Antibug's head as he pulled. He heard Ladybug briefly whimper below, his mind racing to try and find an option. "Let her go!"
"No!" Antibug tightened the string of her yo yo, Ladybug's eyes widening in response as she could feel the blood in her neck pumping in her veins, trying to get past the thread that was only getting tighter. "I'm going to take her like she took him from me!"
Cat Noir's breathing quickened, his hands quivering as he tried to take a step forward. Everything shifted, the boy stopping before it all fell apart on them. "Don't do this!"
"You can't make me! I will get my friends back!" The girl didn't care anymore about life and death, Antibug was willing to kill to get what she wanted. "I need them to love me again!"
The bells kept swinging, clanging against one another as Cat Noir suffered from it. All he had was one thin string in his hands, and only one option he could see. "Don't make me do this!"
Ladybug's heart beat wildly to the point it was all she could hear, her brain screaming at her body to give it what it needed as its thoughts became dark and hazy. Her eyes were open, but her vision was fading as her hands weakened, her legs barely rocking back and forth as no ground came to their aid.
Dying!
Cat Noir closed his eyes, screaming out as he ran out of time. So he yanked back harshly, the following sound burning itself into his memory. The sickening crack snapped out, the resistance on his line falling as Antibug's grip went limp.
Ladybug fell down, the string around her neck coming loose as the girl flopped down onto the old wooden walkway covered in splinters. Her lungs gasped out, her mind and body still numbed as the burning coughs scratched out of her throat.
"C-Cat." Her frail voice called out on its own as she struggled to catch her breath again. Everything was shaking, Ladybug swaying side to side as she couldn't focus on anything other than trying to get up.
The bells had gone silent, only the groaning wood of what remained in the belltower meeting her tingling ears. She didn't notice as her costume vanished, Tikki rushing up to her face.
The kwami watched on in deep concern as Marinette managed to roll herself onto her rear, sitting in the cold church as her senses and her thoughts caught up. Without looking, Marinette's hand struggled to find the small bag she kept on her with emergency snacks. "Eat."
Tikki obeyed, moving down and grabbing a macaroon to eat as fast as she could. It was empty around them, no signs of movement or life besides the two of them. As her vision began to return, there was hardly any light to assist her, only the small figure of Tikki with a few crumbs on her face. "Spots on."
Ladybug returned, forcing herself back onto her feet as she remembered the fight. Chloe was akumatized, breaking everything around them, Ladybug had no lucky charm left and was running out of time, alone facing off against the screaming girl, the thread around her neck.
Her partner hadn't returned to her, Ladybug's fear escalating again to where it felt like the life was getting choked out of her all over. "Cat Noir!"
With her yo yo returned after resetting her transformation, Ladybug threw it up to one of the posts holding up the bells and pulled herself up to where she last saw Chloe.
All she saw was Cat Noir, hunched over the fractured platform with his back turned to her. Carefully lowering herself onto a piece that wasn't going to snap under her weight, ladybug treaded cautiously over towards him. "Kitty, are you hurt? Where's Chloe-"
Those expensive designer shoes were illuminated by the moonlight, Ladybug freezing as she saw Chloe's legs laid onto the ground. Ladybug's slow pace felt like an eternity, each step bringing her closer to the terrible truth of a lifeless body laying directly in front of Cat Noir.
She couldn't do it, she couldn't go any further because she didn't dare try to get a glimpse of her face. If she did, Marinette knew it would haunt her till the day she died.
Cat Noir's arms reverently moved under the body, Ladybug turning around to spare her mind of watching how limp it was. "I'm going to take her home."
Marinette could hardly breathe again, her hands over her mouth as her imagination kept picturing how Chloe looked as Cat Noir lifted her up before heading out. Standing there in the destruction, Marinette was paralyzed in complete shock.
How many times did she offhandedly mention Chloe's dying, or believed it to be for the best of everyone, or even wished for it on one of her birthdays?
It happened, Chloe had died and Marinette was waiting for the flood of regrets and guilt to drown her on the spot. Only it didn't, just a dull weight settled where her emotions should be. She wished there was someone she could ask a question, whether or not she should feel bad.
The quiet was deafening.
In the quiet hours of the night, the akuma taken care of and Paris allowed to get its beauty sleep, one father felt the need to check on his daughter before going to bed. Mayor Bourgeois arrived to her bedroom door again, giving a few soft knocks in case she was asleep.
"Chloe my dear? You haven't requested any dinner yet. I've kept the chefs on standby in case you changed your mind."
He unfurled his hand, resting the palm against the door, hoping to hear at least one insult. Nothing, and usually Chloe would have someone retrieve something for her because she didn't want to get out of bed.
"Chloe?" Paranoia bit at the corner of his thoughts, the man trying the handle to the room.
Unlocked, but she never would leave the door unlocked if she was going to sleep. Cracking the door open, he couldn't help but intrude to guarantee her safety. A cold breeze escaped the room, much colder than anything she would tolerate. A panic swelled in his gut, the mayor fully opening the door to look inside and see the mess left around. He knew about her tantrum earlier, but this seemed purely destructive.
The drapes around the glass door were swaying, the outside air rocking them back and forth. Taking a few more steps inside, he suddenly caught sight of someone standing next to one of Chloe's sofas.
"Who are you?" The mayor demanded, readying his phone to call the police. "You shouldn't be here-Cat Noir?"
He couldn't mistake those glowing green orbs, more prominent in the dark than anything else. The hero looked right at him, before darting out the way he came leaving the mayor alone.
No, not alone, someone was resting on the sofa. He went over to investigate, wondering who he could have dropped off. It only took a few steps for him to see the light blonde hair hanging off the side for him to be pushed into action.
"Chloe!" He came to her side, seeing his sleeping daughter resting there silently in her day clothes. Was she attacked again? Was she akumatized? What was Cat Noir doing here?
All the questions came to a halt the moment he touched her cold, lifeless hand.
Her room felt so quiet, too quiet to the point where she needed to fill it with something. Placing in her headphones, she tried listening to some music but nothing sounded right. There was no one she could call or text, because she wasn't sure who would know by now.
Marinette was left to sit in her room in the corner, legs folded up to her chest with the lights on. Not even Tikki said a word, just resting on Marinette's hand as a silent reminder she was still there.
She tried using a lucky charm again, using the item to conjure all of the ladybugs once again. It fixed the church, but Marinette wasn't sure it would undo death. Eventually she would need to know, but right now she preferred to just live in the potential that Chloe could still be alive.
The horrible part keeping her awake though, was she didn't know if she actually wanted it to work. "Tikki, I think I might be a bad person."
The kwami refused to entertain the idea, instead floating up and hugging Marinette's nose to look her straight in the eyes. "Marinette, you nearly died today."
Oh, right. She somehow forgot about that detail despite her throat still hurting.
"Think about how many people you've saved-" Tikki reminded the girl. "-how many people are safe tonight because of you. No one bad would ever do what you do everyday. If you truly weren't a good person, you would never have been chosen to be the wielder of my miraculous."
It brought a small amount of comfort, Marinette glad that at least Tikki wasn't having second thoughts about her being Ladybug. But if there was anything she felt truly guilty about doing last night, was leaving Cat Noir to take care of it alone.
She was completely undependable for him, dumping all that responsibility of dealing with something so traumatizing. Why did she have to be so horrible to him when he had to fight so hard just so he can feel happy?
Marinette got distracted when Tikki dashed away, hiding under a hat. There was only one reason she would hide without warning. She was getting a second chance to do right by Cat Noir, and she would not fail him. If Ladybug couldn't be dependable then Marinette would.
Getting up from her pity party, Marinette could see the shadow casted into her room by her frequent visitor. She was about to answer it when Tikki whispered out to her.
"Your neck!"
Her neck? Double checking the mirror, Marinette saw the angry red lines that were still encircling her throat. Thinking fast, she grabbed one of her many scarves that she made 'several practice ones for the one she made Adrien for his birthday' and threw it around her shoulders to hide the fresh wounds.
She was glad she did, because the moment she opened the window the brisk winter air flooded into her previously warm room. Cat Noir noticed, quickly moving in and letting Marinette close the window.
"Hey." This was the hardest part, pretending she didn't know what happened. "Do you need some chocolate? Someone to talk to?"
"Not right now." He wouldn't look at her out of shame. "I just….don't think I could handle being alone tonight."
Marinette didn't need to pry any further, anything she could do she would and she would not abandon him. Wrapping her hand around his arm, she pulled him over to where a large cushion lay in the corner of her room. He didn't fight it, Marinette guiding him to sit down on it as she quickly grabbed the blanket of her bed and brought it over.
She made sure he was not isolating himself, always keeping one hand on him while she sat down and draped the blanket over the two of them. Resting her head beside him, she ran her fingers through his raggedy blond bangs to look him in the eyes.
They were so enchanting how his suit filtered them. They couldn't be what they always looked like, but they were still so real and didn't hide the soul behind them. He kept his gaze slightly under hers, lost in thought as they filled the silence just by being there.
"Did you make this?" He pinched the corner of the fabric around her neck.
"Yeah, I make almost everything I wear. I could make you one."
He would have accepted, but the thing was he already had one. It was a gift from his father on his birthday, but it was the same workmanship Marinette did. To think, that despite Marinette's uneasiness around his civilian self she still wanted to try hard enough to be friends to make him a homemade present. She was, amazing.
"You're a good person Marinette. Don't forget that."
Here we are, the big events that will steer this series away from canon.
The peacock miraculous is now in use much earlier.
Adrien actually manages to find common ground with the symbiote and come to an agreement.
Chloe fucking dies.
After finally getting through the show and the movie, I have come to the conclusion that the only redemption for Chloe is to literally be killed before she can cause more damage. It's also early enough to where most people were just annoyed with her and there were still plenty of people who had hope that she could change for the better if given the chance.
Now the mayor will have to decide how he will deal with the death of his daughter. Gabriel and Nathalie now realize that at least one hero is not above lethal protection.
I think this is also as much speaking as we're going to get for a while from the symbiote. The bonding process is special so their communication was elevated, but now it will go back to Adrien having a silent co-driver who can give some hints of warning. I know a lot of people were expecting the stereotypical 'symbiote wants to do selfish things' and all that, but honestly most of the time it's just trying to please its host in a misinterpreted way.
Even the Spectacular Spider-Man symbiote was just trying to have Peter reward himself for his troubles, but just didn't have the same morality. Yes and also feed off his anger BUT I do think it would have been willing to sacrifice its greed to stay bonded to him.
Kamen Rider Sentry: Redemption complete
SSJB312: With a lot of my other stories most chapters do end up on cliff hangers.
As for what I meant, I'm talking about if Master Fu would allow a non miraculous holder to be in the loop of how they work, who has what, and being involved in the fights. Cat Noir would not pass up a chance to help Ladybug, or take down the villain who nearly had Chloe kill Ladybug.
Planar-Walking-Entertainment: I don't think I'll involve the crimson moth. Too many ways for that to be abused.
AlterInk: Spectacular Spider-Man was my main influence for the symbiote, but at the turning point of 'should I keep the suit or not' Adrien took a chance to strike an agreement with the symbiote.
This one I can say will be jealous, but overall if they make Adrien happy it will accept them.
Fire turtle: I think this chapter answered those questions.