Chat was about three seconds away from strangling the thief. He'd only asked one thing of her, and what does she do? Announce herself to the akuma in as grand a fashion as possible. How was that not being reckless?! The hero grumbled to himself as he snuck into the auditorium. Staff in hand, he kept his green eyes trained on the stage. If anything went wrong up there, he wanted to be ready for it.
Up on stage, Operetta sized up the strange girl before her. She turned up her nose. "Hmph. You call that an entrance?"
"As if you did any better," Spades said, motioning to the gaping hole in the wall. "You do know 'bringing down the house' is just an expression, right?"
"You're just envious of the power my voice holds," the villainess said.
"And now I'm beginning to see why you didn't get that callback."
Chat felt his eye twitch. 'Oh yes, Luna! Keep goading her like that! I'm sure nothing will go wrong, there!' he thought to himself. He caught movement out of the corner of his eye and frowned. Was that Nino? Was he filming this?
A hand shot up from below and dragged the DJ back down. Quirking a brow, Chat moved in closer to investigate. His supercharged ears picked up the hushed conversation.
"Be serious, Nino! Alya would care more about your safety than a stupid video!"
"We both know that's not true."
"Is this really the time to argue?" Chat asked as he finally made it to his friends.
Three sets of eyes blinked at Chat in surprise.
"Hey, you're-mmmmpphh!"
Marinette quickly silenced Manon with her hand. She shushed the girl before giving her partner a smile. "It's great to see you, Chat."
"Likewise, princess. Though, I wish it was under better circumstances." He glanced back at the stage. "Come on. Let's get you out of here while the akuma's distracted."
The three of them nodded then followed Chat out to safety. Back on stage, Spades caught sight of them and held her breath. Why hadn't they gotten out with the crowd? She didn't have long to ponder it before Operetta grabbed her by the collar, pulling her off her feet.
"Listen here, you little brat," the villainess sneered. "I don't have the patience to deal with you. So if you're done with the sideshow commentary-"
Spades threw up her hands. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! No need to be hostile, now."
"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't blow out your eardrums."
The thief blinked. "You can do that?"
"You really want to find out?" Operetta asked with a smirk.
The thief gave her a nervous smile. "Not really. Maybe we can talk about this?"
Chat ushered his friends into the lobby. He stole a glance back at the stage and gritted his teeth. "You guys keep going. I'm going back for the akuma."
"Good luck, man," Nino said, giving the hero a thumbs up.
"Paw-leese! Who needs luck when you got skill?" Chat gave them a two-fingered salute before running back into the auditorium, only to look up at the sound of a scream. His eyes widened at the sight of Spades flying towards him. He barely had time to lift his arms up before the thief crashed into him, sending them both to the floor. Chat groaned.
"Falling for me, again, Spadesy? This is turning into a habit for you," he said, trying to laugh. Her weight on his chest made it more than a little difficult.
"What girl doesn't like being swept off her feet?" the thief quipped back. "Nice catch, by the way."
"No problem. Now, can you please get off of me?"
"Aww, but you're so comfy."
The hero rolled his eyes before scooping up the thief's legs and unceremoniously flipping her off of him. She rolled with a yip before giving him a glare. Chat returned the look with a smirk. As he stood to dust himself off, the akuma approached them.
"Well, well, what do we have here?"
"Show's over, Operetta! I'm here to close the curtain on your evildoing."
Operetta laughed. "How rich! Though I will thank you for saving me the trouble of hunting you down. Now, if you'll kindly hand over your miraculous-"
"Pssh! As if!" Chat extended his staff with a smirk. "Let's see you try and take it from me."
"With pleasure," the villainess purred.
"Okay, seriously? Could you two be any more cliché?"
Both of them gave Spades sour looks. She dusted herself off, paying them no mind. Operetta growled.
"That is it!" she screeched, jutting a finger at the thief. "You have long overstayed your welcome!"
Spades smirked. "What's wrong, dollface? Afraid to take us both on?"
"Uh, no offense, Spadesy. But I'm with her on this."
The thief's smile vanished. "You're kidding."
Chat set his staff in front of him, resting his hands on top of it. "This really isn't your area of ex-purr-tise. So, why don't you just sit back and watch a pro at work, 'kay?" He gave her a playful, and more than a little smug, wink.
Spades folded her arms, clearly unimpressed. Still, she shrugged and claimed a seat for herself, kicking up her feet to rest on the back of the next row.
"With pleasure," she mocked.
Marinette bit her lip as she tried to come up with a good enough excuse to break away and transform. If it'd just been Nino, things would've been easier. But Manon was going to be harder to convince. She looked down at the little girl with a frown. What was she going to do?
Nino let out a curse, causing Marinette to cover Manon's ears. "Nino, seriously?" she said with a glare.
The DJ rubbed his neck. "Sorry, Mari. It slipped." He frowned down at his phone.
"What's wrong?" Marinette asked, mimicking his frown.
"I can't get ahold of Adrien. He's not answering his phone."
Another tremor shook the building, making them jump. Fear sparked in Marinette's chest.
"You don't think he's trapped somewhere, do you?" she asked with concern.
"I dunno. But why else wouldn't he answer?"
It was as good enough an excuse as any. In the worst possible way. Marinette knelt down by her young charge. "Manon, I need you to stay with Nino for me, okay. I'll be right back."
Nino frowned. "Wait a minute, Mari-"
"I'm going after Adrien," she said with absolute conviction. "You two get out of here!"
Nino's mouth hung open as she ran off, vanishing around a corner. The DJ groaned. Talk about double standards. Scratching his head, he glanced down at the child he was now saddled with. Manon looked up at him, expectantly. She pressed the Ladybug and Chat dolls close to her chest in a childish attempt to calm her nerves. Nino sighed and gently took her hand.
"Alright, Manon. Let's-"
He was cut off by a sudden wail. Nino pulled Manon towards him and tried to cover his ears at the same time. The lobby began to shake and crack. A chandelier that hung just above the entrance dislodged itself from the ceiling and came crashing down in front of the doors, blocking their escape. Manon let out a scream as she hugged Nino. He held onto her, tightly doing his best to cover her small frame with his. The tremors soon died out, and Nino looked about them with dread.
What was he supposed to do now?
Manon sobbed into his shirt. With a grimace, Nino stroked her back and cooed in her ear to little effect. The DJ found himself wishing Marinette was still there. Was she even okay? Nino shook the thought away. He had to believe she was okay. For Manon's sake, if nothing else. Sinking down to his knees, Nino took the Chat doll out of her grasp and propped it up by her shoulder.
"Hey, don't cry, Manon," he said, mimicking the hero's voice. "Everything's gonna be just fine. Ladybug and I won't let anything bad happen to you, cat's honor."
Manon peeked over her shoulder at the doll. "Y-you promise?"
Nino made the doll nod. "Leave that big bad akuma to us! For now, you and Nino need to find someplace safe to cover your heads. Think you can do that?"
The girl wiped her eyes and looked about. Her gaze landed on the confection counter and she pointed to it. "What about there?"
"That's a great spot, Manon!" the Chat doll said.
"Don't you mean 'purr-fect'?" she said with a giggle.
Nino smiled. If she was correcting his performance, then his job was done. "Come on, squirt. We'd better do what the cat says."
He handed the doll back before picking up the little girl and heading for cover. All he needed to do was keep her distracted long enough for Paris' heroes to save the day. That, he could handle.
Marinette ran as fast as her legs could carry her. She looked high and low for the blond boy but came up blank. Her mind wandered to every dark possibility. Was he trapped somewhere? Hurt? What if she didn't get to him in time?
"Marinette, stop!"
The blackette threw open a closet door, ignoring her kwami's cry. She had to find Adrien. She had to-
Tikki flew up to look her chosen in the eye. "Marinette! Listen to me!"
"I can't find him, Tikki! What if-"
"Stop and think this through," the kwami said. "He might have gotten out with the crowd."
"But Nino couldn't get ahold of him!"
"That doesn't mean he isn't safe. The only way to know for sure is to stop the akuma. And for that, we need Ladybug!"
Marinette worried her lip. "You're-"
The whole building shook at the sound of a shriek. Both of them covered their ears. The tremble passed, leaving Marinette with a new fear.
Nino and Manon! Did they get out?!
"We don't have time, Marinette!" Tikki told her.
The blackette closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Tikki was right. Worrying solved nothing. She had a job to do. Her partner needed her, and who knew what sort of trouble that damned thief would cause. Opening her eyes, Marinette gazed at the little god with newfound resolve.
"Tikki, Spots On!"
Oh, what Spades wouldn't have given for a bowl of popcorn. Chat was definitely living up to his "pro" status. He'd only been thrown across the room five... nope, make that six times. Spades tried to stifle her laughter, but ended up in stitches when his next botched attempt at rushing the villainess landed him upside-down in the seat next to her.
"Gotta say, kitten. You are definitely putting on a show for me," she said between giggles.
Chat rolled to his feet with a pout. "Like you were doing any better."
"I only remember being thrown once."
Operetta sucked in a breath and aimed a shriek at the pair. Chat and Spades leapt out of harm's way as the resulting soundwave tore up the seats. They both landed in a crouch, ready to dodge, again.
"So, you caught me on an off-day. Sue me," Chat said.
"Or maybe you can just admit that you might need a little help on this one?" the thief suggested. Even as she spoke, her hand was already searching for something in her utility belt.
Chat readied his staff with a smirk. "You're just trying to steal my limelight."
"Well, it would be in the job description."
"Stop ignoring me!" Operetta screamed, sending another soundwave hurdling towards them.
Spades threw herself at Chat, knocking him out of the way. She narrowly managed to get herself to safety but hissed when a piece of shrapnel caught her in the side. The two of them rolled together before coming to a stop, this time with Chat on top. They shared a look, only mildly embarrassed by their positions.
"Someone's a bit of a diva," he said as got to his feet. He helped the thief to hers and noticed her small gasp of pain. His eyes soon found the small gash in her side. Concern colored his features. It was hard to tell against the black of her suit, but Chat could've sworn he saw blood.
"Spades-"
"Say it, and I drop-kick you," she quipped, folding her arms.
He pursed his lips. "This isn't you're fight, Spadesy."
"Yeah, well, you can't just expect me to leave you by yourself and pray your dream girlfriend gets here fast enough to save your ass."
"Excuse me-"
Spades held up a finger to silence Operetta. "Give us a minute, dollface."
"Spades, I don't need you worrying about me," Chat told her.
"If that's the case, then you can sure as hell show me the same courtesy!" she countered. "I told you I don't need superpowers to be useful. Would it kill you to have a little faith in me?"
"If you two are quite done-"
"Bitch, we are having a moment!" Spades snapped.
"You are hurt, Spades. Like it or not, you are still a civilian in this situation. I can't-"
"I am standing right here!" the villainess said.
Chat growled. "Lady, what part of 'moment' do you not get?"
Operetta looked like she was about to blow a gasket. Not that either of them particularly cared.
"Look, kitten, it's sweet that you're worried about me," the thief said. "But, I'm not some fragile damsel. This," she gestured to her side, "is nothing. I can hold my own just fine. So if we're done arguing, do you think maybe we can try this my way?" She held up her hand for him, revealing three smoke bombs between her fingers.
Chat studied her for a moment longer. Every fiber of him screamed that this was a bad idea. But he knew stubbornness when he saw it. He had a feeling she wouldn't go even if he told her to. The boy sighed. She really was going to be the death of him.
It was at that moment that Operetta officially lost it. Her voice rose to an ear-piercing shrill, causing the building to crumble around them. Chat's heightened senses were thrown into overdrive. He covered his ears and hit his knees, praying she'd stop. But dammit if that akuma didn't know how to hold a note. Thankfully, the screech wasn't as severe for Spades. The thief gritted her teeth and tossed a smoke bomb at Operetta's feet. A thick dark smoke enveloped the villainess and began to fill her lungs. She was forced to stop her scream and thrown into a coughing fit.
"You- *cough, cough* -you little bitch!"
"Serves you right for throwing a tantrum!" Spades' voice boomed over the speakers once more.
As the smoke cleared, Operetta's crimson eyes scanned the room. Neither the thief nor Chat were anywhere to be seen. She growled.
"Hiding again? And here I thought you might actually put up a fight."
"Some of the best performances are done in the shadows, dollface. A fact a spotlight hog like you will never grasp."
"I grow tired of your games, brat! Show yourself!"
"Not a fan of suspense? Why don't you come find me, then? I should warn you I do have more smoke bombs ready if you start screaming again. I would just hate for that pretty voice of yours to get all scratched up."
Operetta's eyes narrowed. She took in a deep, menacing breath before she began to stalk the aisles. The clacking of her heels reverberated throughout the room. It was an eerie sound against an otherwise silent atmosphere.
"Getting colder, dollface," Spades taunted.
The villainess spun around, straining to hear something- anything -that would give their positions. She continued on in another direction, slow and calculated. She absolutely refused to be taken lightly any longer.
"Getting warmer."
It was an insult! A total farce!
"Warmer..."
Once she got her hands on that little wretch-
Chat's staff seemed to come out of nowhere, slamming into her midriff. Operetta stumbled backwards and tried to regain her breath in order to scream again. She had begun to inhale when a piece of cloth was shoved over her mouth in a gag. She grabbed at the thief's wrist and struggled to get free.
"Don't think so, prima bitch!" Spades said with a grin. "I think we've had enough of you're tone-deaf tunes."
"We need to get ahold of the akuma!" Chat called out.
Spades blinked. "Uh, don't we have her?"
"No, the butterfly! We need to purify-"
Operetta slammed her elbow into the thief's wounded side. Spades yelped, losing her grip on the gag and giving the villainess the perfect opportunity to send her flying into Chat, again. The two of them hit the floor rather painfully.
"Oww," Chat groaned.
Spades cupped her side as she stood. "Tell me again about this butterfly?"
"It's what Hawkmoth uses to possess people," the hero said, getting to his feet. "It's usually hiding in an item of some sort."
"Wait, you mean her-"
Operetta sent out another powerful shriek, this time hitting the pair point blank. They covered their ears and hit their knees, heads pounding from the sheer force. Operetta moved closer, still holding the sour note. She decided to make good on her earlier threat. Their ears were going to bleed.
A blur of red swooped in from above, knocking the villainess aside. Operetta hit the nearby wall and landed on the floor, holding her head. She sent a glare at the all-too-familiar pigtailed girl smirking back at her.
"I think you could use a break, Operetta!" Ladybug said, folding her arms.
Chat's ears rang from the attack, but he still managed to look up at the love of his life with amazement and relief. Spades, on the other hand, snorted a laugh.
"See, dollface? Even Spots knows how to make a better entrance than you!"
Ladybug was not impressed.
I've said it once, I'll say it again: Action scenes are not my strong suit. I'm sorry to leave on another cliffhanger, but I promise next chapter will be up soon. This one had gotten a bit too long for my liking. So look forward to that, and Imma start answering reviews.
Alex: She's becoming one of my favorite characters, too.
Sophie: I'm not sure that's fair. It's one thing to hate a ship, another thing entirely to hate a character because of a ship.
Junior VB: Who knows, you might get another chance to find out.
Davey: I know! I'll try and keep a decent pace. And now I'm curious. What is Gone?
MadelVer: But cliffhangers are so much fun! Still, I'll try not to keep you guys waiting for too long.
Typicalbooklover: That's high praise. Thank you.
See you all next time!
Playlist:
Confident (Nightcore)- Demi Lovato
Forgotten Voyage- Lindsey Stirling
Wonderland (Nightcore)- Natalia Kills
Handclap- Fitz and the Tantrums
Absolute Zero- Stone Sour