So, I've had this story bouncing around inside my head ever since the theatrical movie came out last year. I'm actually a fan of the movie, particularly some of its songs. And I wondered what would happen if one of the main universe's heroes were to cross paths with the heroes of the movies. Let's find out, shall we?
Chapter 1-Portal
The more things change, the more they stay the same. For Adrien, his life had changed drastically in the months since Monarch's defeat. His father's death was a painful weight that hung on his shoulders, but the people in his life were something to lean on and made all the difference in working through it. And the pride he felt at his father's heroic sacrifice gave him something to aspire to.
His aunt Amelie and cousin Felix were the closest family he had left. Both had moved to Paris to help support Adrien in his time of need; although his aunt was out of town regularly for various business reasons, and Felix occasionally went with her. Natalie was also an essential part of his support system; far more of a mother figure than Adrien would have once believed possible. And while he had once thought (and secretly hoped) that Natalie would join the Agreste family through marrying his father, things were well on their way to Adrien calling Natalie his adoptive mother.
His friends were a large part of the formula too. Nino in particular, but the other friends he had made since attending public school, such as Luka, Max, and Kagami, were all endlessly supportive. Luka had been a special confidant to Adrien, as he was someone Adrien could relax more around and not have to worry about concealing his identity as Cat Noir. Plagg, of course, had shown his usual concern by making terrible cheese puns and analogies.
Becoming Cat Noir regularly helped with the pain as well. Before, he had wanted to transform as a way to escape the pressures of his father's expectations and to just help people as he wished. Now, it was an escape of an entirely different sort. Ladybug had noticed that he patrolled far more often than was expected, now that all members of the Paris miraculous team held their miraculous permanently. He knew her well enough to know that she suspected something was going on with him, but he also was certain that she didn't know what. She kept trying to watch him out of the corner of her eye while on patrols together.
And they did still need to patrol. Monarch was defeated, and most of the stolen miraculous were recovered, but the butterfly and Nooru had fallen into the hands of a new Hawk Moth. That was where things stayed the same. While they once again had a full team of support to help deal with problems in Paris, Akumatized villains were once again appearing every so often. This new Hawk Moth seemed interested in grabbing all the miraculous, not just the Black Cat and Ladybug, so the entire team was instructed to be on their guard.
But of all the things that helped Adrien cope with the loss of his father, a certain blue eyed, charming baker's daughter stood above all the others. Even outside of school, he got to see her every day; sometimes for meals at his home or hers, sometimes for outings in the park, and sometimes to see a movie. They spoke over the phone almost every night, sometimes just to talk or sometimes while playing online games (he had yet to defeat her at this). Adrien sometimes felt guilty about how much he relied on Marinette's support, but whenever he suggested this to her, she insisted (perhaps too strongly) that she wanted to be there for him in whatever way she could be. Adrien thought he knew her well enough to know that she was trying to help him through his grief, and he was grateful for it. This did nothing to decrease his feelings of guilt, however, and only strengthened his resolve to find a way to pay Marinette back for all she had done for him. He was unsure of how to do that, but he had already begun eyeing potential Christmas gift ideas for his girlfriend, most of them from jewelry stores, and asking Alya and Kagami for suggestions.
Such was that, a few weeks into the new school year, Cat Noir found himself perched on a building near his favorite bakery. He liked to pass by when he was out patrolling, knowing that his Marinette was close by, even if she was oblivious to his presence. Cat Noir smiled to himself as he recalled their earlier conversation.
"I don't know why you feel the need to make a new dress for the party next month." Adrien said, lounging on Marinette's chaise. "The ones you already have are great. Especially the one you made for the end of school year dance a few months ago. I never did get to dance with you that night. It'd be perfect for the party."
Marinette sighed, pencil passing across her notepad. "It just doesn't feel right." She explained. "This party your aunt is throwing is something high class, right? And so for that, I want to have a high class kind of dress that is absolutely perfect for our first formal event as a couple. I want us to look like the kind of couple it feels like we are. And for that, I need the perfect dress."
"I'm sure Kagami could lend you something." Adrien countered, fiddling with the rings on his left hand. "She's had to attend as many formal events as I have, so I'm sure she's got a pretty good stockpile of outfits for parties like this."
Adrien could tell Marinette was stressing far more about the upcoming party than he would have liked. He felt she was putting too much pressure on herself.
Marinette brushed his comment aside. "She offered, but I think it'll be better if I make the dress myself. I'm a designer, so it makes sense that I should design my own outfit."
Adrien glanced over at her desk and the multiple drawings on it. She was currently working on her fifth iteration of her current design. He rolled his eyes, a smile on his face as she looked up at him. "Marinette, I don't think you're capable of coming up with anything bad. Whatever you come up with will suit you perfectly."
Marinette smiled. "I just want your aunt and your extended family to like me. I think it'll leave a better impression if I can showcase my designing abilities. Felix likes us together, but I haven't really interacted much with your aunt Amelie. I want to make a good impression with her. I know Natalie seems to like me, but it would be nice if your whole family did."
"Well," Adrien said slowly, "it's not like she dislikes you. She just hasn't had the chance to get to know you, yet."
"Exactly." Marinette agreed. "Which means all she has to go off of is what she's heard from you and Felix, which you've both said isn't much. So she probably doesn't have much of any opinion of me one way or another yet. But that means that I've got the opportunity to make a really good first impression. And that's what I want to do." Marinette explained.
Adrien grinned, closing his eyes and leaning back. "I'm sure that after five seconds of talking with you, she will realize what a beautiful, charming, and wonderful girlfriend I have."
Marinette smiled. "I just want them to think I'm good enough for you. That's all."
Adrien frowned, sitting up on the chaise and turning to face Marinate. "Wait, who said anything about you not being good enough? Is that what all this stressing over the party is about?"
"N-no! Of course not!" Marinette stammered, trying to cover her mistake. "It, it's just…" She trailed off as Adrien crawled to the floor in front of her desk chair. He took the sketch pad and pencil, set them aside, and took both of her hands in his.
"I'm not nearly as worried about what my family thinks as I am about what you think. And you seem to be laboring under this ridiculous idea that you're not good enough for me. Am I wrong?"
Marinate found herself drawn into the soft intensity in her boyfriend's green eyes. She could see his concern, but also his resolve. She didn't answer.
"When my father was trying to push me and Kagami together," Adrien said slowly, "I told him that I feel better with you. That there was no one better than you. That you were creative, generous, and brave. And I meant every word."
Marinette looked to the side. "You're an Agreste. You're from a rich family; your father was a world famous designer, your mother was a movie actress, you were a famous model, and on top of all that, you're related to English nobility." Marinate shrugged. "It's hard for a girl to measure up to all that."
Adrien shook his head. "I think you're overvaluing all that stuff. Maybe it's different for me, since I grew up around everything you just mentioned, but I think most of it is overrated." Adrien sighed, then he looked up at Marinette again. "But you? You're an amazing talent that has the potential to be the kind of designer my father was. And you're probably going to leave just as big a mark on the fashion world as he did, once people figure out how good you are." Adrien said, with no small amount of pride. "But I can also tell you're not going to accept a word I say about all that, are you?"
Again, Marinette didn't answer.
Adrien laughed. "Then I'll just have to find a way to convince you."
"Maybe you're right." Marinette smiled slightly at that, her hand going to her ear. "And I suppose I do have one thing up on you." she said, "Besides designing."
"Oh?"
Marinette winked, seeming slightly more cheerful. "It's a secret."
Adrien frowned. He didn't like secrets.
Marinate laughed, correctly interpreting his reaction. "Sorry, but if I tell you everything then I'm not mysterious anymore." She winked again. "You wouldn't want to spoil all the fun, now would you?"
Adrien grumbled, but he had to fight the smile that her comment threatened to bring to his face.
Back in the present on the rooftop, Cat Noir looked at the light coming out of Marinette's window into the night. He couldn't see her, but he could just imagine her scribbling away, throwing sheet after sheet of paper trying to come up with the perfect design, no matter what he had said to bolster her. She was terribly like his father that way, but he tried not to be too forceful in his reassurance of his girlfriend's insecurities. Cat Noir had learned that lesson in his failures with Ladybug.
Just as he was turning to leave, however, Cat Noir caught a flash of light off in the distance. It didn't look like anything too menacing, but it seemed like a good idea to check it out. Rooster Bold and Caprikid were scheduled for patrol tonight, but he decided to see what was going on anyway. One could never have too many helping hands.
Had he waited even a few moments longer, Cat Noir would have witnessed the very curious sight of a certain red and black spotted superhero emerging from the roof hatch of the bakery.
A few minutes previously, Marinette paced around her room, looking at several different designs, unable to make up her mind on which one she thought best. Her kwami buzzed around her head, mildly amused at her holder's indecision.
"I just can't decide, Tiki." Marinette moaned. "This dress would match Adrien better, but this dress is classier. But then this dress is more of an English style, which Adrien's aunt would probably like more…"
Tiki was beginning to wonder how long her holder could maintain this pace without growing dizzy.
Just then, Marinette's phone emitted a familiar sound.
"Uh oh, Tiki. Akuma alert on the east side of the city."
"I guess the great dress debate will have to wait." The kwami chirped.
"Looks like it. Tiki, spots on!"
It wasn't hard to find the source of the trouble.
Not far from the Eiffel Tower, crowds of people were screaming and running in all directions, clearing a large area in the center.
"Now you can get out of my way, now you, and now you!" said a person pointing at the ground near three separate people. At each point, a small hole appeared in the ground underneath each person, causing the unlucky victim to fall into a black nothingness. A moment after they fell through, another hole appeared in the air somewhere else, resulting in the person who'd fallen in to land on the hard ground away from where they had been. Strangely, the exit holes were not always level with the ground; some were vertical and some at strange angles, causing people to roll away or even get launched away from the villain.
Cat Noir landed in the space recently vacated by the fleeing crowd. He could see Rooster Bold and Caprikid on the ground to his left. Looking at the center of the clearing, he saw what looked like a man with pure white clothes and skin, but covered in different sized black spots. "So who are you supposed to be, a poor excuse for a dalmatian? I'll warn you now, this cat's not much of a dog person."
The akumatized villain sniffed dismissively. "I am no dalmatian, I am Hole Spacer! All I am trying to do is to create a little more elbow room than these insufferable tourists will allow!" He proclaimed, spreading his arms wide above his head. That allowed Cat Noir to get a good look at his hands. His right one was covered in some kind of thick gauntlet with a glowing palm.
Well, finding the akuma was easy, at least.
"Except that you were launching them away from you fast enough to be dangerous." Caprikid said, scrambling up to Cat Noir. "We found him sending people flying through the air a few minutes ago." He told Cat Noir, pointing his thumb at Hole Spacer. "Apparently, he doesn't like being surrounded by people."
"Just a suggestion, but you might want to avoid the most famous monument in the world, if you're looking for personal space." Cat Noir called, pulling out his staff.
"Careful." Rooster Bold said. "His power seems a lot like Pegasus', except that he can use it repeatedly. And he can launch people out of the holes pretty quickly when he wants to."
"But on the bright side," Caprikid added, "he doesn't seem to be able to move people very far with the holes that he makes by themselves. And he can only open two or three at a time, it seems."
"That shouldn't be too hard to deal with, then." Cat Noir grinned. "Cover me." Cat Noir charged the villain with his teammates right behind him. He narrowly dodged the first hole in the ground on his path to the villain, as well as the second, running in a zigzag pattern. He raised his staff to strike at Hole Spacer, to throw him off balance, when another hole opened in front of him, between him and Hole Spacer. Cat Noir managed to avoid that hole by extending his staff into the ground and launching himself into the air.
Grinning to himself as he retracted his staff, he quipped, "You gotta' do better than that, buddy! Grab him, guys!" Cat Noir kept the grin on his face, right up until the moment when another hole opened above his head. A momentary blackness disoriented him and the sudden return to light blinded him long enough for the young hero to be launched at an angle away from the fight, sending Cat Noir flying across Paris.
"Whoooooah!"
Hole Spacer took advantage of this momentary distraction to drop both Rooster Bold and Caprikid through holes underneath them as well, sending them sprawling some distance away.
"Face it," Hole Spacer taunted, "you're never going to get close enough to beat me. My power creates a whole other universe to send people away from me. You might as well hand over your miraculous now!"
"Not if I can help it!"
All three turned to see a yo-yo launch out to circle around Hole Spacer and wrap him tightly.
"Good job keeping him busy, you two!" Ladybug called, holding her yo-yo tightly while walking over to them. "I'll keep a hold of him. Think you can grab his akumatized object?"
Across the city, Cat Noir was busy picking himself up out of a dumpster. He warned the crowd of people near where he crashed to keep away from the Eiffel Tower, while attempting, and largely failing, to maintain a dignified air. The fact that he presently smelled like old cabbage didn't help.
That's what I get for shooting my mouth off too soon, he thought, pulling a banana peel off of his shoulder and tossing it away from him. One of these days, I really need to work on that. He grinned to himself. Well, maybe.
Pushing his staff against the ground and extending it again, he launched himself back toward the battle. For the second time that evening, a curious sight was missed by Cat Noir. As he leapt back toward the Eiffel Tower, a young man wearing a pair of swimmer ear plugs ducked into a deserted alley. A flash of light followed, and another superhero climbed up out of the alley and clambered across the rooftops after Cat Noir.
As Cat Noir returned to the battle, he was surprised to see not two, but three heroes on the ground.
"M'lady, welcome to the party. I see you've met our newest villain."
"Sure have." Ladybug grumbled, picking herself off the ground. "This one's a real party animal. Nearly got the akuma when I had him tied up with my yo-yo string. But then he dropped us both into separate portals of his, and I lost him."
"At least you didn't get a free flying lesson!" called a new voice, as Monkey King landed behind Cat Noir. "I saw him send Cat Noir halfway across Paris. How's it going guys?"
"Nice timing." Ladybug greeted him. "This villain seems to be quick at sending us away from him; he knows to avoid letting us get too close. But he seems to need to see where he wants the portals to be in order to use them. If we can catch him from behind in his blind spot, we should be able to stop him."
"Any suggestions on how we do that, Ladybug?" Caprikid asked.
"Just one. Luckyyy Charrrrrrm!" Ladybug called out. As the energy swirled up around her, past her yo-yo, it coalesced into a solid object. In this case, a banana peel.
"Okay, that might just be the strangest one you've ever made." Cat Noir commented. "Including that time you conjured a pair of underwear. Making him slip up would be nice, but I don't think that's going to cut it."
Ladybug wasn't paying attention, she was too busy glancing around. Her eyes focused on King Monkey, then Rooster Bold, then Caprikid, and finally the banana peel.
Hole Spacer had stopped moving for a moment. Cat Noir looked over at him. He appeared as though he was concentrating on something, and Cat Noir thought he could guess what was happening. The new Hawk Moth was probably relaying instructions to Hole Spacer, telling him to act before Ladybug could make use of her lucky charm
"Whatever you're going to do," Cat Noir called to Ladybug, "do it fast!" He raised his staff and charged to ward Hole Spacer, being more careful this time, working to buy his teammates time to figure out a plan. Hole Spacer responded by using his power to teleport around the area, and to open random portals to hinder Cat Noir. Some he kept open only a brief time, others he left up, to further confuse Cat Noir.
Ladybug recognized her partner's distraction immediately and started instructing her plan to the others. "Ok, King Monkey, activate your power. We're going to create a distraction to let you get close enough to throw it at Hole Spacer to cause his power to go haywire. When it does, we'll be able to get close enough to grab his glove."
"Got it." King Money replied, twirling his staff. "Uproar!"
A flash of light encircled the weapon before, quite fittingly, condensing into a toy banana.
"Caprikid," Ladybug continued, "use your brush to draw up something to confuse Hole Spacer. Like a storm of papers or something."
"But I can only create one object at a time."
"Rooster Bold," Ladybug went on, "give yourself the power to boost other people's superpowers. That should let Caprikid create a lot of objects at once."
"Now that's a novel idea. I like it, Sublimation!" Rooster Bold called, whipping out his pen and starting to write on his hand.
Ladybug opened her mouth to continue, perhaps to say that she would assist Cat Noir in distracting Hole Spacer. Unfortunately, at that precise moment, three unfortunate things started to occur. The first was Cat Noir careening through the air straight at Ladybug. His momentum, having been shot through another one of Hole Spacer's dimensional holes, was enough to knock both of them into a nearby bush, tangling them both in it. The second was the appearance of two more black voids appearing just underneath King Monkey and Rooster Bold.
The third and worst thing to happen, however, was when the two transported heroes came out of the dimensional holes. King Monkey was transported high into the air, a small distance away from Hole Spacer. Rooster Bold, on the other hand, landed right on top of Hole Spacer. This was particularly problematic as his power had already been engaged, and he had indeed written, "the power to boost miraculous powers" on his hand. When Rooster Bold landed on Hole Spacer, his left hand touched Hole Spacer's chest, triggering the boost in power.
Hole Spacer started glowing with power and began to laugh. "Thank you. Now I'll be able to send people away to my other dimension permanently when I want to. Or just to send them as far away as I please." He grabbed hold of Rooster Bold before the hero could rise. Waving his hand toward Ladybug and Cat Noir, who had untangled themselves and begun to charge Hole Spacer again. "Luckily for you, Hawk Moth wants all of your miraculouses, so I can't send any of you to Antarctica. Yet." Another hole appeared underneath Ladybug and Cat Noir, too quickly for them to avoid, and a moment later they too were transported high into the air.
"This is so amazing." Hole Spacer cackled, opening dozens more portals around him, seemingly for the fun of it. He didn't even blink when King Monkey slammed into the ground a few feet away. "No one will ever be able to bother me ag-"
He cut off as something soft squeaked as it collided with the side of his head.
"Ha!"
Hole Spacer looked over to King Monkey, and saw a large grin on the hero's face. Rooster Bold used that moment to wrench himself free of the villain's grasp, and scooted back several paces. Caprikid, who had been unsure of who to help first stopped and stared into the sky above them all.
"Uh, King Monkey? I'm not sure that it was a good idea to hit him with that now."
As Ladybug and Cat Noir landed, though more softly thanks to Cat Noir's staff, they too looked around and witnessed the frightening combination of powers before them. Larger and larger holes were opening and closing, some large enough to drop cars that had been moved from the street. Indeed, entire trees, vehicles, and random blocks of stone and earth vanished only to appear, fall, and collide with the ground, leaving craters everywhere in sight. The portals seemed to be moving further and further away from Hole Spacer as well, indicating that he was now sending things further and further away.
"This is bad." Ladybug said. "With Rooster Bold increasing his power, it's only a matter of time before someone gets hurt if he can't control the portals."
"We may have an even bigger problem." Cat Noir added, pointing up.
A black mass, ten times larger than any of the other portals, had begun to open above their heads. Hole Spacer was staring at it, desperately trying to control the rips in space around him.
"We have to de-akumatize him, now!" Ladybug shouted, charging straight at Hole Spacer. Unfortunately, this time it was Ladybug who was not careful enough, and in her panic she fell victim to a black portal that opened between her and Hole Spacer. And by ill luck or a quirk of fate, Ladybug was dropped high into the air. Directly above the large mass.
Cat Noir wasn't entirely sure why he did it. In that moment, he knew full well that there was a chance that he would never leave that blackness if he entered it. Or that if he did, he might end up someplace that he wouldn't survive, like deep space. Perhaps because he knew that Ladybug was the greatest hero in Paris, and that the city needed her more than him. Perhaps because as much as he loved Marinette, his feelings for Ladybug had never really diminished. Perhaps simple selflessness drove him.
He knew that if he disappeared that it would hurt Marinette deeply, but that was part of being a hero, and being a miraculous holder was something that Marinette didn't fully understand. Yes, Ladybug had entrusted her with a miraculous once, but she didn't know what it was like to be a full time wielder. So he hoped Marinette could still forgive him if he didn't end up returning.
Regardless of his reason, Cat Noir could feel that he was doing the right thing. Extending his staff as quickly as it would go, he launched himself into the sky for one last time that night. He tried to grab Ladybug and continue going, but as he expected, she had been falling too quickly for that. However, he was able to knock her aside, and send her on a trajectory away from the black mass. But the collision halted his momentum, even with his staff propelling him, and sent him hurtling into the darkness.
Not too much happening in this chapter, it's mostly set up for the upcoming drama. My story will mostly focus on the relationships between characters, and less on fighting villains. Except when necessary for the plot. But I hope you enjoyed this chapter and that you will enjoy the ones to come. Until next time!
