Ladybug waved to Cat as he disappeared into the fog. They had just finished a akuma fight, and with the fog rolling in, it would have been almost impossible to see where the victim had been hiding.
She should leave and go home, back to the comfort of knitting, cocoa and dry socks, but Ladybug stood rooted to the spot, beads of water gathering in her black hair. It hadn't been long since her latest nightmare of Cat Blanc, and her eyes were playing tricks on her.
Her heart thudded as she saw the place where she'd first seen the pure white cat with ocean blue magnetic eyes.
Was that a movement?
"M'lady?" Oh, maybe this wasn't a dream after all, and Ladybug fell to her knees, heart pounding. He would always be her Cat Noir, but Cat Blanc was her greatest fear.
"M'lady, what's wrong?" Cold hands found and shifted her, and she felt herself staring into the eyes of Cat Blanc, but instead of being crazed and feral, he looked concerned. And when you were sleep deprived, your mind could play all sorts of mental tricks on you.
Cat loosened her hair, stroking it gently. "Do you have a greatest fear, Kitty?" Cat sighed, his breath cold and wintery. "My only fear my love, is losing you."
Was it wrong to cuddle into his chest and hide? "Rejection and my fear of losing you. And there are days…"
They were completely shrouded in the fog now, like a white cat's tail curling all around them. "I feel so alone." "Ladybug, I will always be by your side." A cold tear ran down her cheek. "Even if Marinette Dupain-Cheng is behind the mask?" "Even then." He leaned forward, kissing her.
This was a different Cat Blanc, and she would take this. Comfort, if only for a moment.
The shrill ringing of Marinette's alarm woke her, and she found herself in her bed. A new day was about to begin. But today Marinette didn't feel fearful, and the lonely ache in her heart wasn't quite as strong.