*picture isn't mine* Enjoy! PG-13 ahead

Marinette had grown anxious Kim wasn't returning. Sure, Volpina had taken an individual time which each of them, but Kim had taken the longest. Not to mention Marinette recently heard cries-familiar cries. Theo Barbot  had opened her cell and thrust Manon in. Poor, terrified Manon. Marinette had wrapped the crying child carefully around her arms as she slept. Nathaneal rarely spoke now, but he would sometimes scribble things in the floor, besides her drawing that still mesmerized her. 

"We need to leave." Marinette said as Manon snored in her arms. Nathaneal turned around to face her, his eyes smoothing like a calming ocean. "We can't stay here any longer. Whatever they want with us, it's not good. I don't want none of you to get hurt." Marinette's eyes trailed down to Manon. Just a child. Nathaneal's hand cupped around her chin and he lifted it so they were at the same eye-level. Looking at him....she couldn't look at anybody else. "Why would they want a kid?"

Nathaneal shrugged. "Maybe the same reason why they want you and me. Everybody who's here has been akumatized."

Suddenly, the cells whipped open. Marinette jolted and Nathaneal's body went rigid as Volpina snickered at them and signaled to follow her. For a moment, every body trapped in the prison hesitated, afraid of what the future might bring, but eventually, Marinette struggled to stand on her feet and followed Volpina outside. She may not have her suit now, but she was Ladybug and she knew her friends would want this information. 

Nathaneal ran to catch up with her. From the narrow hallway, only two walking side by side, his hand slipped into hers. With Manon soundly asleep on her shoulder, Marinette was glad she had someone to lean on. She eyed every person that has been incarcerated. Rose helped Aurora up and the two of them walk behind Fred and Sabrina who seems close in crying. Kim is nowhere to be found. Eight. What would they want with eight, akumatizeless people?

"Sit down and don't say anything." Volpina snapped, leading them into a much bigger room with bright lights. In there, were fourteen chairs like the people were counted. Kim was sitting in one of them, without shackles. He could've easily attacked Theo who was working with the sound but didn't. He stayed right where he was. There was a podium next to the machines Theo was working with and Gabriel Agreste sat down in one of the chairs. Next to him, Volpina snickered. 

Marinette sat down on the closest chair next to the door, Manon finally awake sitting next to her and was starting to cry again. She was in the middle of her and Nathaneal. In front of her, Rose and Aurora sat down with dirty clothes and face. Fred sat next to Nathaneal and Sabrina next to the two girls.  

"Welcome," Gabriel Agreste said through a microphone. There was literally no reason. There were only eight people in a tiny room. Maybe Theo was just bored and wanted something to work with. "I'm sorry we had to drag you into such conditions, but if we just talked to you freely I'm afraid you wouldn't understand. As you can see, six people are missing. Don't worry, they'll join us soon once I have my hands on them. We should also thankful the arrival for Manon, our littlest member."

"Let's talk business!" Volpina said, rising to her feet and silencing Hawkmoth. "You are here because you were chosen, not because you were special. Here, in front of our very own eyes, is Hawkmoth, the villain that messed with your heads and akumatized you. He needs help. The ridiculous band of heroes have taken his miraculous, but we've taken one of theirs. We have a plan-there is a way to akumatized people without the miraculous and that is...human sacrifices."

Just as Volpina said it, chains grew out of the chairs to shackle the prisoners towards it. Marinette gasped in pain and Nathaneal struggled to get rid of them. Rose started praying, Aurora's face turned into the color of ashes, Fred was speechless, Sabrina was shaking her head over and over again, Manon started crying and Kim was...he was...

smiling.

"We are missing six other's, but we ran out of cells and we need to empty our load before we move on." Volpina informed them, Gabriel handing her a jar. "It is painful, you're going to die after all. But worry not, your sacrificing will change Paris-for the bad part. Hawkmoth and I will rule and we'll kill Master Fu. Without his guidance, the band of heroes is destroyed not to mention they don't hold their kwamis anymore.  Without Ladybug, victory is an open path."

"You're insane!" Marinette yelled, her wrists starting to throb over the gazing with the chains. "Gabriel, redeem yourself! Think about Isabella, think about Adrien"

"I think I know what our first sacrifice will be!" Volpina snapped and took a step closer. She took out her flute and started to play a melody that slowly made Marinette sleepy. Then, out of nowhere, the room started to shake. Volpina stopped playing and Marinette shook her head to wake herself up, her eyelids had almost fallen over. 

They were cries, victorious ones. Battle ones. Marinette cried in relief and with her feet, she kicked Volpina in the stomach. Volpina yelled and clutched to the ground, suddenly, as if Volpina was controlling the chains, they broke free and everybody was released. Marinette rose to her feet and grabbed her chair. She slammed it down to Volpina's back and she cried out in agony. Marinette picked up Manon in her arms and threw her at Nathaneal. 

"Take her to safety," Marinette managed to choke out over the pandemonium that exploded on the room. Everybody was either running, hiding or beating Volpina as if to say they weren't going to be sacrifices. Sabrina, who always seemed like an angel, was throwing so  many chairs Volpina was under a mountain. 

"What about you?" Nathaneal asked uneasily, taking the child gently in his embrace. "Marinette, where are you going?"  

"We're safe," Marinette said to him, leaned in and her lips brushed against his. "I'm going to say hello to an old friend." She knelt so she and Manon were at the same eye level. The poor child's warm, chocolate eyes were blurry against the intensity on her tears. "Don't worry. Nat will take good care of you. I'll go get Ladybug and the heroes. They're here. I know it."

Manon smiled and Nathaneal staggered her away.

The room was mostly empty, only Sabrina, Volpina, Theo and Gabriel left. Volpina had wrapped her arms around Sabrina and was playing the same melody that she did before. Sabrina was slumped on the ground, her eyes closed as if she was giving her last wish. Marinette cried out her name, but her voice was mute to Sabrina's ears. Volpina flashed her an annoying look as she knelt down to pick up Sabrina's soul, a turquoise mixture of light that had come out of her chest gracefully. 

She had to do something. What would Tikki say? If she were her, at her side? You are Ladybug, with or without the mask, Marinette. You have so much strength and potential inside you, you need to stop using me as a way to show it. 

Marinette breathed in and braced herself to throw herself at Volpina, when a hand touched her shoulder and she yelped, whirling around to face the starling green eyes she wasn't ready to see. Adrien's eyes were brighter than she remembered, deeper with beauty and direction than she recalled. Marinette swayed, afraid that one moment or one word might break the sudden connection she felt tethered close to her heart. She had to keep in the back of her mind that she was with Nathaneal now, but seeing Adrien in flesh and bone was much more painful.

It was even worse that he was Chat Noir, Queen Bee, Crystal and Green Shell moving behind him.

Marinette swallowed and braced herself for whatever she had to say. Whatever she needed to say, had to come out now. It's not like this was the boy that horribly broke her heart. To her surprise, words failed to come out. Instead, and to her surprise, Chat Noir didn't talk either. He just wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. Marinette gasped in surprise, but relaxed in his embrace. These were the arms that held her when she needed it the most, the eyes she looked up to and disintegrated all pain, the lips she kissed when she needed a distraction.

She relaxed into his arms sooner than she expected, learned to breathe the scent of woods and lemons he radiated. Marinette sighed and wrapped her arms back around him, letting every single wall she had put up thinking nobody could see through, collapse. She was crying now as Adrien smoothed down her messy hair. She could hear his voice, shushing her, encouraging everything would be alright which caused her to sob even harder. Her heart used to leap at that voice, her tears were no longer sadness, thinking of all the pain Adrien had brought down to her. Her tears were out of happiness that her heart, when he spoke, didn't leap at all.

It just stayed there. 

She broke apart and stared into his eyes, they were bigger than an avalanche of forest mushed down together. Reality clicked back into her. She spun around, but her words continued to fail. She swore and grabbed Chat Noir's stick from the back. He started asking her questions but she ignored them and threw the extended stick at Volpina's direction. The stick landed right on her temple. Volpina slumped next to Sabrina and was clearly unconscious. The blue light returned back to Sabrina's chest and she stood up, panting and clearly happy she wasn't dead yet. 

"They wanted to use us as human sacrifices." Marinette explained and Chat Noir nodded, eyeing her like there was no girl in the world. She was staring to hate him. It was like a cycle and it had just begun again. His face remained the same like her statement hadn't surprised him at all. "How did you know?"

"They're kidnapping them for something!" Chloe spat and Nino, finally taking off his headphones nodded. Adrien sighed and slumped down on his chair. Alya was leaning next to Nino and didn't think the conversation had anything new. After they all admitted their identities, they gathered around Adrien's house to talk about it. As much as his mother wanted to join them, she had a modeling shoot. She was busy, just like his father. "Even Master Fu is worried, it must be something big."

"To be honest, I think Master Fu is only nervous because Trixx is missing." Alya said sadly. "It's not fair. Why would Gabriel take Trixx? Why not Tikki who is much more powerful?"

Adrien shrugged. "We need to have theories on who is the new Volpina and the warrior that attacked Chloe. What did you feel again?"

"Like I had countless of needles in my brain instead of cells." Chloe replied and looked down at her shoes. "It still hurts, whatever he did with my bees it must've affected me as well."

"Before I thought you were Volpina, but now, I think you're right-it could be Lila." Nino admitted. Chloe threw her hands in the air as if to say I told you so, and slumped in Adrien's couch where Plagg, Wayzz and Queen were enjoying the feast the holders had brought down to them. "Who else could it be?"

"Let's just assume it's Lila." Alya said, swallowing. "Why would she walk over to the dark side?"

"Maybe she was always in the dark side and we were too blind to see it." Adrien said and the others agreed. "Why would she want Nathaneal, Sabrina, Fred, Aurora-what do they all have in common?"

"They were pretty close in taking your miraculous." Alya suggested and all eyes were on her. Even the kwamis had stopped eating and centering their attention on her. "I'm a blogger, I know everything you and Ladybug did. Think about it. Let's go first with Nathaneal, with his crush on Marinette he kept Ladybug from transforming and Chat Noir didn't exactly do good. Aurora, she wasn't that close, but she was certainly smart enough to develop a plan that had probability with her taking the miraculous. Kim, he broke Ladybug and Chat Noir apart, he turned her against him and Chat was at nothing to snatch away her miraculous.

Sabrina, since she was invisible, she was at nothing to rip away Ladybug's miraculous if it hadn't been for Chat Noir's yells and if it's not that, she did tackle Ladybug and had her at her disposal. Fred, he wasn't close but he was certainly hard to beat. Perhaps Gabriel wants akumatized victims that are tough to beat. Rose and Manon have simple reasons, they divided the team apart, both charming Chat Noir under their spells and left Ladybug to do everything else."

"You made me sound like an idiot." Adrien said and Chloe snickered. "Why would he want Marinette?"

"Did you see her shooting ice blasts and drawing whatever the hell she want come to life?" Nino asked. "I did-she was unstoppable. Of course Gabriel would want to have his best creation at his disposal. You'd be good too, but not that much."

Adrien frowned. "Why are you two suddenly attacking me? I thought you hated Chloe!"

Chloe scoffed. "Rude! Why would they want to do with them? Gabriel doesn't have the miraculous anymore, he can't turn people into akumas without it-that was until Master Fu told us about the Akuma 2 plan. 14 human sacrifices to change into an akuma. Gabriel and Lila are so sure they will win, they are willing to risk the lives of 14 people to create 14 akumas  to akumatized people."

"They want to kill Master Fu." Adrien said. "It's the only obvious reason."

"Where do you think they'd be?" Nino asked, scratching his head. "Where would Gabriel keep 8 people and a secret assassination?"

"I took the pleasure to scout Paris while you were doing god knows what." Chloe said and took a map out of her purse and placed it on the floor. Adrien leaned in to observe what she had jotted down, Alya and Nino doing as well. "They're in his maze which might easily be the most hidden attraction of the world. Everything with a miraculous has this sight that can see the maze. If we have our miraculous, we can get into the place. I can't see why we didn't see it while we transformed, the maze is literally on top of the Eiffel Tower."

"It could explain how Adrien fell." Nino said.

"What are we waiting for?" Alya asked anxiously, opening the door for them to follow. "Save Marinette! I want to see her!"

Adrien smiled and shared a familiar look with his kwami. 

"Plagg, CLAWS OUT!"

"Queen, FLY AWAY!"

"Wayzz, TRANSFORM ME!"

Chat Noir shrugged and pulled Marinette away from the battle, towards Crystal who was gathering the kidnapped and instructing them where to go next. Adrenaline was already bursting inside him, mixing with his blood-adrenaline that would last for a year. He took out his stick and extended it, whirling around so the image itself turned into a blur. He stepped closer to Volpina and took the necklace away. Immediately, Trixx appeared as she yawned. The orange light trailed Volpina's body from head to toe, and after it was gone-

Chat Noir saw Lila sleeping in the ground.

"I'm never going to forgive her." Green Shell mumbled next to Chat Noir.

"Where's my father?" Chat Noir asked, he scanned the room, but his father and Theo were no longer there. He cursed and look back at Queen and Crystal gathering the kidnappings. Nathaneal had two girls wrapped around his arms-in the left one he had Manon who had hot tears streaming down her face, and in the right one, Marinette was tightly gripping back.

If his heart hadn't fallen into an abyss, it certainly had fallen now.

The world stopped spinning, every sound was mute, every light was a blur besides Marinette and Nathaneal. For a moment, even after their breakup, Chat Noir liked to pretend Marinette was still his, that he could lean in and kiss her any moment he wanted, but the image of her eyes glinting as she saw Nathaneal broke that illusion. It reminded him the way her eyes glinted...they used to glint for him with that passion. He sighed and his eyes trailed down to the ground.

That was it. He lost her. He was stupid enough to let her go because of her safety and in the meantime, she had found someone else. It was funny, how at one point, you think you are soulmates with one person, and the next-they're already blushing at someone else's smile.

His heart burned with the ache by realizing the glint of Marinette's eyes wasn't because of him. As much as he wanted her to turn around and face him, to perhaps get this back to the way they were was fantasy. She was too busy hearing something Nathaneal had said and cracked a smile. She seemed more relaxed, her chest rising and falling like all the commotion was gone. His father was still missing-nothing was right.  

"Chat!" Queen Bee called, standing next to him. Now that he knew this girl was Chloe, he couldn't help but to feel awkward. He liked Queen Bee when he didn't know she was Chloe. Queen was maybe a way to escape of the monster Chloe seemed to be. Queen was the representation of the Chloe Chat Noir met when he was younger. When Chloe wasn't afraid of hiding herself. "Is everything okay?"

His eyes trailed back to Marinette and Nathaneal and realized he had dropped Manon and had lifted her off the ground, spinning her round and round until he lowered her down and drew his lips to hers. It was a straight bullet to his heart. Queen Bee sighed next to him and to his surprise, she looked hurt too. "I'm sorry."

"I broke up with her." He reminded Bee. "This things should happen, don't you think?"

"Surprisingly, I have no advice on that. I haven't deeply fallen in love like you have." Chat Noir whirled around to meet her blue, startling eyes. "Sure, I had this obnoxious crush on you-but I was never in love with you. It was more like a Nathaneal crush to Marinette type of thing, not Adrien loves Marinette type of thing."

Chat Noir laughed and passed his fingers through his hair. "Have I lost my charm already?"

Queen Bee rolled her eyes and nudged his ribs. "Look, you and I might not always be...good, but don't let Marinette break your heart. We both know it wasn't her intention, she was only mending her heart, but you're too poor to break, Chat. Not now. Not while you just got your mother back, not while we just got our kwamis back. In the moment of darkness, there's always a blinded spark of hope."

"Never thought you'd be so poetic." Chat Noir said and sighed. He picked Lila up, her head rolling backwards. "But thank you."

Queen Bee nodded, then broke into a grin. "What? Making Marinette jealous already?"

"Shut-" Chat Noir couldn't finish his sentence. The room had started shaking rocks from the roof had started falling out. From the commotion of new panicked screams, he was able to shout, "Everybody duck for cover!"

Despite having broken up with her, despite her having all the reasons in the world to hate him, despite the feeling of neglect she would have for him, Chat Noir ran towards Marinette, noticing Nathaneal had used his own body to cover Manon's. He grabbed her waist and pulled her close, her body colliding with his. He pushed her away, the two of them collapsing to the floor, tangled-Chat Noir trying his best that in the fall, Marinette wouldn't come out hurt.  

Their faces were inches apart, the passion Chat still held against Marinette vibrating around them. Her blue-bell eyes were mesmerizing, they were like an ocean he was happy in drowning in. In that particular moment, her eyes didn't seem like only one shade of blue, they seemed like every shape of blue there was. Her lips were pinker than usual and even if her face was cut and bruised, Chat Noir thought she couldn't have looked prettier.

"Chat-I'm fine, thanks." She choked out and he stood up abruptly, brushing off the dust and rocks that had fallen over. He checked around and nobody seemed hurt, thank god. Up in what wan't destroyed from the roof, Chat Noir, if it wasn't for the blast of sun light, thought he saw a black silhouette with the colors, green, purple and black coming out of it's bare hands. His eyes seemed to look like a wounded animal.

Chat Noir didn't hesitate. He grabbed his stick that had fallen up and jumped into the roof, his stick moved with such quickness, it didn't seem like a stick at all. He used to do this movement soaring through the streets of Paris, Ladybug usually in front of him. Only bringing her up caused his heart to throb, as if someone had wounded him.

"Who are you?" Chat Noir asked, taking a step closer to the black silhouette that was only starting to clear. It was a man, clearly. The way his bulky shoulders tensed, the muscles of his arms, legs and back. He seemed much more stronger than Chat Noir could ever be. He, in that moment, was sorry his mask didn't cover his eyes. He wished his enemies couldn't see the fear in them. "I'm not repeating myself!"

From the light, Marinette stepped into the darkness. 

Marinette.  

He gasped and backed away. He was sure whoever was walking in the roof certainly wasn't a girl. Certainly wasn't Marinette, yet, the spark in her eyes was unmistakable. She took a step closer to him and her hand cupped his cheek. This was wrong. As much as Chat Noir wanted to melt into her touch and stay there forever, like he needed some kind of protection, her hand was cold, not warm or hot like Marinette's usually was. 

Her face seemed paler than usual, her eyes were dull and blank. It was like the spark he had seen in her was never there. Yet, he was glad she was so close to him. He was glad she stood on her tiptoe and brushed her lips with his.  Thousands of memories came back to him, but the pressure on her lips, transforming into his, didn't feel like before. She kissed with much more intensity, passion, like she was ready for anything the world threw at them. 

Usually, that was his roll.

In the end, what the hell? Chat Noir wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer. Marinette, once their bodies touched, gasped with a mixture of a moan and her hands tangled up in his hair, her fingers passing through every individual golden lock. Marinette moved him so his back was pressed against a wall nearby. This attitude was new when it came to Mari. Chat Noir decided to be the puppet, letting his strings run wild. 

Marinette gasped against his lips. "Runaway with me."

He jerked back, blinking. "What?"

"Runaway with me." She repeated taking a step closer and grabbing his hand, interlacing her fingers with his claws. "Didn't you enjoy just that? I could do much more."

"Marinette-"

"Don't say anything," She said and moved closer to him, her lips hot on his throat. Chat Noir gasped in surprise, but he had to admit, her kisses weren't that bad. They moved from the bottom of his throat, the only skin his suit allowed to show, and up his jawline, then to the corner of his mouth and then back at his lips. Their lips stayed interlocked for a long moment, until he pushed her away. "I want you, Chat Noir. I don't want Nathaneal. He was only something to get my mind off things."

"This isn't you." Chat Noir replied, breathless. His skin hot by her kisses. "Why would you like to runaway?"

"We'd go were nobody would bother us." Marinette said. "It would only be you and me."

"Here we stand, your ears, my voice,

You don't even have a choice,

You will obey to all I say,

You will throw everything you love away.

My voice is our path,

You will forget all wrath.

Your mind will go mute,

You will see me as you illusion of cute.

Illusions and lies,

I can hear your painful cries.

I am only an illusion,

Picking your love and creating a fusion."

After her singing, Marinette held out her hand, seduction in her hands. "Let's runaway together, Chat Noir."

He nodded, his fingers interlaced with her and moving away with her. He called her something, something he couldn't quite respond to.

Who was Chat Noir?