Luna shouldn't have slept as soundly as she did. In her opinion, she should've been wide awake all night long, sick to her stomach over the atomic bomb she'd detonated. But sleep came to her the moment her head hit the pillow. That either meant she was too emotionally exhausted to let herself dwell on it, or she was officially too fucked up to give a damn. The former sounded a little too convenient in her book. So she fell back on bad habits. She kept her door locked and music blaring, hid under the covers, ignored any and every attempt Collins made to talk to her. She didn't want to talk. She just wanted to be done.

It was well into the evening when her stomach finally had enough of her moping and demanded to be filled. She tried to be stubborn about it, but a nagging voice told her she'd regret not eating something at least. So, with a heavy groan, Luna stiffly crawled out of bed and made her way to the kitchen. She'd only planned on getting a bowl of cereal or something equally convenient, but to her surprise she was greeted to a warm bowl of soup waiting for her at the table.

"Figured you'd be out sooner or later," Collins said as he was cleaning dishes. "It's chicken and rice. I have a whole pot full still warming if you want seconds."

Luna didn't say anything, but she's doubted Collins was expecting her to. She sat down and set to work on her meal. She didn't bother trying to savor it; it didn't matter what it tasted like. Only that it was filling her up. When her bowl was empty, she brought it over to the pot and filled it once more. Silence hung over them like an unwanted guest. And of course, Collins was the only one making any attempt to break it.

"Ms. Gray missed you at your meeting this afternoon," he said, nonchalantly. "That makes two sessions in a row."

"I'll make the next one," Luna mumbled, her voice husky.

"It's not about making the next one. These sessions are important."

"And I'll make the next one. It's not the end of the world."

Collins eyed her over his shoulder. "Luna, your mother isn't going to like you skipping out on your therapy. Part of the deal of you being on your own was that you kept up with your meetings."

The teen went silent again, pushing bits of chicken around with her spoon. After a moment, the nanny set down his dish rag and turned to face her.

"I also got a call from Mr. Agreste's secretary. Apparently, Adrien's gone missing, again."

Luna frowned but kept her mouth shut.

"You wouldn't happen to know where he might be?"

She glowered at him. "I didn't smuggle him into the house, if that's what you're asking. Go ahead and search my room."

"Luna, if something's going on-"

"Can you please quit it with the third degree? I don't know where he went. He's probably just running around as Chat or something."

Collins' eyes narrowed. "Do we need a break?"

"Collins, seriously?!"

"Like it or not, Lunabelle, I am your caretaker. I need to know if something's going on with you. If you don't want to talk to me, that's fine. That's what you have Ms. Gray for. But I cannot and will not let this turn into another Callie situation. So. Do we need a break?"

She stared at her bowl for the longest time. Luna hated having her mistakes thrown at her, but she couldn't really blame him. There was no leg for her to stand on, here.

"I'll make the next one," she mumbled, again. Her voice was just as feeble as the excuse.

With a sigh, Collins made his way over to his young charge. He pulled her into a sidelong hug and kissed her temple.

"You want something sweet?" he asked.

Luna set her spoon down and slid the bowl away. "I need to stretch my legs."

"Alright, then." He gave her a squeeze. "Make sure you're home by ten. And tell Adrien to wait a bit before going home. It sounds like his dad's more livid than worried, still."

"I will if I see him."

As Luna got to her feet, Collins grabbed her bowl to clean it. He had just set it in soapy water when a pair of arms wrapped around his waist from behind. Luna buried her face in his back and breathed him in. Collins patted her hand with a smile.

"Love you too, brat. Watch yourself out there, okay?"

She mumbled a soft "'kay" before finally letting go. Collins listened to her footfalls as she left the room. He still wasn't used to how withdrawn she'd become. He missed the spark she used to carry, and for a little while, it seemed like she was getting that part of her back. Now? He was beginning to think they were heading right back to square one. And that wasn't a place he ever wanted to return to.

Marinette tried to convince Chat to stay a bit longer. Even if he insisted he was fine, she knew her minou was still hurting. She wanted so badly to take that pain away. He thanked her for the concern with a weary smile. He still had patrol to do, and she'd done more than enough for him, already. With a kiss on her cheek, Chat said goodbye and sprang off, leaving Marinette once again alone with her thoughts. It wasn't long after that she took to the skies as well.

Ladybug wasn't sure how she was going to convince her partner to take the night off. As she traversed the rooftops, she tried to think of a good excuse. She could say she was restless from the night before and needed to blow off some steam. That would probably work, assuming she could find him. When she did finally spot movement, she knew right away that it wasn't Chat. Ladybug came to a stop. She watched the thief's movements with a scowl. A cool, familiar anger grew in her chest. Ever since that damned woman showed up, everything had fallen apart. It was her fault Chat was breaking.

She'd be glad when Spades was finally gone.

Except...

Except she couldn't just disappear. Damn her, but Ladybug knew she couldn't let that happen. Not if she wanted to have a partner, afterwards. When the thief came to rest on a roof's edge, the heroine made her approach. As soon as she landed behind her, Spades gave her a wave.

"Y'think we could skip the cops 'n' robbers chase, tonight? Not really up for the headache," the thief said, not even turning to look at her. "Or are you just here to hit me, again?"

Ladybug put her hands on her hips. "We need to talk."

"Could've sworn we did that last night."

"You left a few things out," the bug said. "Like the fact that you planned on forcing him to go through with it?"

"Really?" Spades asked, glancing over her shoulder. "That's what you're upset about?"

Ladybug glared at her. "You don't have the right, thief."

Spades huffed. "Oh, don't act like you weren't going to do the same thing. We both know he never had any real choice."

"That's not the point!"

"What is the point, then, Spots? Did you seriously come out here to snap at me for making your cat do his freaking job?"

The heroine growled. "Can you be any more heartless?"

"Why do you even care?!" the thief snapped, getting to her feet. "I thought you of all people would be on my side for once."

Ladybug clenched her fists. "Look, I don't like you. And I doubt I ever will. But Chat-"

"You cannot be serious, right now."

"Can you let me talk, please?"

Spades threw up her hands. "I can't believe this! You're actually saying you agree with him?"

"I'm not against wiping your memories."

"Then, what's the big deal?!"

"The big deal is that Chat is! You're not being fair to him, Spades."

"This isn't about what's fair!" the thief spat out. "Life isn't fair!"

Ladybug closed her eyes. She wanted to scream right back at her. Instead, she breathed. Three deep breaths. She'd keep a level head for Chat's sake. She wouldn't let him feel alone anymore.

"Hear me out," she said, evenly.

Spades groaned. "Ladybug-"

The heroine held up two fingers. "Two weeks. That's all I'm asking for."

"I can't believe I'm the only one that sees this isn't negotiable!" the thief said with a humorless laugh.

"If you force Chat to wipe you, it'll destroy him."

"We can't afford to coddle him! Your identities are on the line, here!"

"Volume, Spadesy."

The thief went silent, but her whole body shook. Ladybug watched her for a moment, slightly pleased. It was nice to be the one getting under her skin for once.

"I know it's risky," the heroine said. "If it was just me, I'd have no issue wiping you and being done with it. But I can't do that. I'm not losing my partner because of you."

Spades jaw locked up. "Why two weeks?"

"I told Chat I'd help him look for another option. Maybe there isn't one, but he needs to know we tried. Spades, if you care at all about him-"

"But I can't wait this out, Spots!" Spades cried. "I... I'm not in a good enough place to do that... Jesus-Fucking-Christ."

The thief sank back down on the roof's edge and hugged her leg. Ladybug pursed her lips. She knelt down beside her and stared out at her city.

"I don't like this any more than you do."

"You don't even know what you're asking for, Marinette."

"Enlighten me."

Spades shook her head. "He'd get over me."

"Do you really want him to?"

"It'd be better if he did."

"That's not what I asked," Ladybug said.

The thief huffed. "What do you want me to say?"

"I just want to know you care about him, too."

"Of course I care," Spades said. "Why else would I want this?"

"Well, you have a funny way of showing it." When she was met with silence, Ladybug touched her arm. "Meet him halfway, Spades. Don't just cut him off. Whatever issues you're dealing with, I know Chat would help you."

"It's not that simple."

Ladybug rolled her eyes. "Yeah. It is."

Spades glanced at the hand on her arm, then at the girl in red. After a long pause, she sighed and muttered under her breath.

"Sugar for blood."

"What?"

Spades shook her head. "You really want me to wait? Two weeks."

Ladybug frowned but gave her a nod. "Yeah. That's it."

"Alright. I'll wait."

"Good-"

The thief held up a hand to silence her. "On one condition. You two need to take the masks off."

"... You're hilarious."

"Yeah, cause this is such a laughing matter."

"Spades, we can't-"

"You're seriously telling me that you're completely comfortable with a known criminal knowing your secret identity, but not your partner?" The thief quirked a brow as Ladybug floundered. "What will it hurt, Spots?"

"I... I don't see the point in this," the bug said, folding her arms.

Spades sighed. "Look, if you asked Chat a week ago who he was in love with, he'd have said you were the sun, moon and stars. That's an awfully short time to change your mind. I think the only reason he's even interested in me is because the two of you keep letting the masks get in the way."

Ladybug scrunched her face. "You think he'll fall back in love with me if I tell him who I am?"

"I think when you finally see him, you'll realize what an idiot you're being."

"What's that supposed to-"

Spades looked her dead in the eye. "You're going to regret this, Marinette."

They held each other's gaze, emotions flitting between them like electricity. Ladybug let her hand fall from the thief's arm. Regret it? Why would she? As long as Chat was okay in the end... That was the only thing that mattered.

"I'll do it," she told the thief. "And, I won't regret it, either."

Spades gave her an odd smirk. "I really doubt that." Then she stood and stretched. "But, alright. Let's go find him."

"Wait, now?!"

"Well, yeah, why not? Might as well get it over with."

Ladybug got to her feet. "Do you even know where he is?"

"No, but I bet he'd come running if we open a tuna can." The deadpan look she got made the thief grin.

"Don't be ridiculous," the bug said.

"So, you don't wanna try it?"

"... I know where we can get a can."

Hey, look! Three in a row! Bet no one was expecting that. Granted I am noticing a lot of spelling mistakes, but I'm way too happy to be writing again to care too much. Once again, I'm skipping the review responses because I'm posting so soon after the last one. But I still look forward to reading your thoughts. Catch you in the next chapter!

Playlist:

Damaged- Danity Kane

Never Forget- Gréta Salóme and Jónsi

Nerves- Icon For Hire

Boy Problems- Carly Rae Jepsen