The shock in both Hawk Moth and Dark Void's eyes gave Ladybug the edge she needed. She thought quickly, wrapping her yo-yo around Dark Void's arm and pulled her forward. Then she jumped over her and lunged for Hawk Moth.

He ducked to the side; faster than she'd expected him to be and Dark Void pulled her back. Ladybug fended her off and noticed the locket hanging from her neck. It was the only thing with color on her person. She reached out for it, but Dark Void knocked her back and aimed her palm at her.

She dove to the side as a silent blast bounced off the ground behind her swallowed it into oblivion, leaving behind only a perfectly round crater in the concrete floor. "Chat!" she called, "Chat the akuma's in the pendent."

Ladybug glanced to her right and saw Hawk Moth running towards the door, but she slung her yo-yo out and hooked it around his ankles, tripping him. Dark Void lunged for her again and she jumped up, barely dodging her.

For a frightful second she was afraid for Chat. That he'd reverted back to his civilian self and been exposed, but she couldn't look at him without leaving herself open for Dark Void.

Dark Void raised her hand to Ladybug and she fumbled, unprepared, but Chat's baton swung between them knocking the akuma off balance and his gloved hand effortlessly wrapped around her pendent. He yanked it upward as she fell and the golden chain snapped from her neck.

Chat Noir crushed the pendent in his hands and the akuma slowly squirmed out. Ladybug eyed it cautiously as it fluttered dangerously close to the other akumas and saw Hawk Moth stagger back towards the door. "Chat, Hawk Moth -,"

Chat ran up to him and tackled him to the floor. Grabbing his collar, the superhero raised him off the floor and Ladybug allowed her yo-yo to unravel from his feet. She retrieved it, caught the akuma and in a matter of seconds it was cleansed.

She released it back into the dome, the woman unconscious, and turned to Chat, both bewildered and fearful of the sight in front of her.

Her partner slammed Hawk Moth against the wall, the rough texture scratching at his face and Chat snarled, "How dare you touch her! How dare you harm her!" Her yanked Hawk Moth back and threw him on the floor.

Hawk Moth's head bounced off the ground and Chat was on him before he could catch his breath. He raised him hand in the air, his eyes glowering dangerously, "Cataclysm!"

"Chat! No -," Hawk Moth pulled the sword from his cane and swung it at Chat, forcing him back. He swung again and Chat dived to the side as it cut through his shoulder, leaving a small tear behind. He stumbled backward and Chat's hand fell on the railing behind him, turning it to dust.

Using the end of his cane, Hawk Moth slammed it against Chat's forehead and he fell limply to the floor. "It's just you and me now Ladybug. Come and give it your best shot!" He stood taller with his heel digging into Chat's back and smirked, "I've been waiting for this moment."

She eyed Chat warily, alarmed at the small trail of blood leaking through the cut beside his neck. His body was limp, his face calm and Ladybug felt dread bubble in the pit of her stomach. She couldn't do this alone. Ladybug was never meant to fight alone.

"Lucky Charm!" She threw her yo-yo in the air and a small compact mirror fell from where it'd been. She turned it over in her hand, unsure of what to do with it and Hawk Moth laughed.

"To think that the fate of Paris and your identity would rest on that small trinket." He walked forward and shook his head, "How pathetic. Truly."

The beautiful white akumas in the room suddenly froze in mid-flight, shaking and vibrating with a strange energy. They turned swiftly and swarmed around Hawk Moth, moving faster and sucking everything around him up in an tremendous torrent of wind.

Ladybug forced her weight on the ground and charged for him, the mirror held tightly in her palm. She shielded herself from the flying debris with you yo-yo and started capturing the akumas around him one by one. They attacked her, blinding and injuring her but she wouldn't stop. She couldn't.

She reached for another, but Hawk Moth's sword glinted in the light from the window and she narrowly missed it, dodging to the side. "I'll never let you win." she growled.

"You won't have a choice," he replied, "My intentions are pure and my aim true. I'm the good guy here and good guys always win." He swung again and Ladybug did her best to dodge his attacks, leaping and ducking away from him. Then her eyes fell on his miraculous and she moved towards it.

Their weapons clashed violently, perfectly in sync with the timing of their attacks. But she wasn't strong enough. Through the bellow of the akumas she saw Chat's silhouette groggily stand against the wall. He looked beaten, broken and as much as she didn't want him to fight, she needed him to.

"Chat Noir!" she cried, "I need you!" For a what felt like forever, she and Hawk Moth were stuck in a never-ending brawl, each evenly matched in every way. And then Chat emerged from the white akumas and Hawk Moth was pinned beneath him.

She lunged forward then, extending her yo-yo to help him, but the akumas flew solely towards her and the beating of their wings sent her upward, deflecting her attack. Her body was raised higher until her back slammed into the ceiling and she was left to watch hopelessly as Chat Noir fought Hawk Moth in the same fruitless way she had.

Ladybug defended herself as the akumas became more agitated and violent, searching for any way the mirror in her hands could be useful. But she couldn't see anything beside the blindly white suffocating her.

Hawk Moth swung at Chat Noir and a sickening chime echoed through the room as it connected with his baton. "The miraculous is a curse!" he cried, "I'm trying to get rid of them -to rid the world of them! Give it to me!"

Chat knocked him back and Hawk Moth stumbled, raising his hand in the air. The akumas froze, twitching again and Ladybug fell back to the floor, landing hard on her side and hissing in pain. She peered her eyes open and watched as the akumas flew towards him, merging together and darkening with corruption.

"Chat move!" she cried. But he didn't. He stood strong, staring Hawk Moth down as he braced for the impact and Ladybug nearly lost her mind. She couldn't watch him die. She couldn't do nothing.

Forcing herself on shaky legs, Ladybug ran towards him and turned them. Her chest was pressed against his, feeling the force of his beating heart with her back to Hawk Moth. Chat knew was she was doing, what she had planned and the horror in his eyes proved it.

She could only bury her face against his chest in return. There wasn't any time to tell him she loved him, but she took comfort in knowing that was something he already knew. Chat's ring beeped and his transformation faded in a flash of light the same time a searing pain scalded her back.

Her eyes squeezed shut, all the sounds around her drowned out by her scream.

And Ladybug no longer had the strength to fight.

The room was dead silent. The Hawk Moth's attack vaporized all the akumas and Adrien was blinded. He felt Ladybug on top of him completely still, but breathing. And he was painfully reminded of the way she'd been willing to sacrifice herself for him.

He crawled out from under her and gently cradled her against his chest over his lap. Slowly his vision began returning and he noticed a portion of her red suit looked bleach. Along the whole of her back there wasn't any red or black. Only white and he felt a familiar fear pierce through him. The same fear he'd felt looking into his father's eyes the day his mother died.

There wasn't any blood, but her skin was deathly pale. He counted them both fortunate and stared down at her face. The mask had hidden her well these past two years. He remembered spending nights awake wondering what she looked like. Now it did nothing. Now it was nothing.

She was his first and last love. The one who loved him. The one he loved. The one he'd rejected and been rejected by. The irony of it all sent a bitter laugh past his lips.

He heard a clatter from behind him and turned his head to where he assumed Hawk Moth was standing. His back had been towards them, towards the window and his body inclined towards the door. But his entire body was frozen, his arm outstretched and the mirror shattered on the floor.

Slowly his head turned towards Adrien, the utter cruelty etched there moments ago now replaced by grief. "Adrien?" he whispered. Purple light encased Hawk Moth's frame and slowly the clothing of an older man came to view. Gabriel Agreste.

Adrien couldn't believe it. He felt disgusted, repulsed and shattered. His own father had fed off the despair of Paris, akumatising them -akumatising him for his own personal gain. He'd wanted Marinette dead - the girl Adrien was willing to die for. He couldn't move.

His father walked towards him, but Adrien's face twisted into a rotten sneer. "Don't come any closer!" he snarled, "Don't touch me."

Gabriel flinched back, "Adrien?"

"You're a monster." he roared. Adrenaline and grief consumed him, burning through his body. "You did this? All along it was you. You hurt innocent people every single day. That was you!" He gently set Ladybug down behind him and stood to his feet, angry tears streaming down his face.

"I would've killed her if not for my love for her! All because of you!" he screamed. Gabriel had the decency to look ashamed, but it quickly washed from his face, replaced by the facade he'd worn since Adrien's mother passed away.

Adrien clenched his fists at his sides," Are you proud? Are you finally satisfied with what you've done?"

"Everything I did was for this family." he replied, the same monotone way he always did. Adrien had accepted it, tolerated it, but it was too much now.

"This family?" he spat, "We haven't been a family in years!"

"But I can fix that! I can fix it all!" Gabriel took another step forward, a desperate plea in his eyes, "I can bring her back and we can be a family again. With the miraculous I can make it so the accident never happened. She could still be here with us."

Gabriel tentatively reached out and lay his hand on Adrien's shoulder, "Wouldn't you want that? Just give me your ring, Adrien. Be a good boy and give it to me."

Adrien eyed his ring. His mother had died and as hard as it'd been-he'd accepted that.There'd never been a way for her to return and he'd been telling himself for a long time that she was in a better place. He believed she was. But the chance to hold her again, to hear her voice, to see her draw again...

He forced his eyes back to his father and shook his head stubbornly. It had to be done. No matter what it cost him. "No."

"No?" Gabriel's eyes hardened. But Adrien wasn't afraid, not anymore. This was wrong. There would be consequences. A second chance at life didn't come so easily. What would his mother say of them now?

"She'd be ashamed of what you've become." growled out Adrien. His mother had been loving, sweet and gave to all who needed. She'd never approve of what his father had done.

Gabriel gritted his teeth, "Adrien -,"

"There's no excuse for what you've done! Not to me and not to her!" he pointed in Ladybug's direction, "I may not have known my mother the way you did, but I knew she wouldn't have wanted this. She wouldn't want her life as the cost of someone else's! She was pure. She was good. She was..." His voice broke and Adrien glared up at his father, "I won't let this happen."

No matter how much it hurt.

His father nodded. "I understand, Adrien." he replied, "But this is for the best. I'm sorry you don't see it that way. But in time you will."

Adrien's face fell. No. He couldn't mean -

"And you'll be thankful for everything I've sacrificed for this family." Gabriel's hand went for Adrien's ring. He had to do it. For Paris, for Ladybug, for Marinette, for his family. And for his grieving father.

Adrien latched onto the broach on his father's shirt and ripped it off, tearing the fabric of his father's scarf. He forced his body backwards as he brought it to his chest and Gabriel's eyes widened.

He attached the broach to his shirt and the purple butterfly kwami appeared in front of him. It floated between them and glared up at Gabriel, "I, Nooroo, pronounce you free from the butterfly miraculous. No longer shall you hoard it's power."

"Adrien don't do this!" roared Gabriel.

Adrien's voice felt hollow as he summoned both kwamis. "Transform me."

He felt Plagg flow into his ring and then the purple kwami into the broach. The power from them both felt unnatural, as if he were pulled in two different directions. But it didn't matter how he felt, all that mattered was that his father had nothing.

"No!" Gabriel lunged for Adrien, but he sidestepped at a speed he never knew possible and lightly shoved his father back. Instead, Gabriel flew through the air and smacked into the wall on the other end of the room. He sunk to the floor, unconscious and Adrien's eyes widened.

"Adrien." A small, meek voice called out to him and he glanced back in Ladybug's direction. She'd transformed back into Marinette, her hair tussled and her clothes burnt. Her kwami flew towards him and frowned, "Don;t be afraid. Don't be corrupted."

He couldn't speak. He felt the power buzzing through him at such an alarming rate he wondered if his words would come out coherent at all.

"You don't have much time. Nooroo and Plagg were never meant to fuse together. You only have a few minutes, but you can change everything." Adrien's mind fogged, but Tikki's words were clear, "Hawk Moth can manipulate emotions and memories, and Chat Noir can destroy anything he touches. Destroy his memories of the miraculous, Adrien."

He hesitated. Though it wouldn't happen, he wanted his father to give up this ambition of his own accord. Destroying his memories just felt so wrong. "Sometimes the right decision is the hardest one to make." added Tikki, "Don't let you emotions cloud your judgement. Hurry."

Adrien thought back to all the people he'd fought with Ladybug, all the danger they'd been in and how sweet Marinette had been chosen to stop all the chaos his father had caused. This way no one would ever know it was Gabriel and sometimes, he supposed, ignorance was bliss.

Raising his palm up, Adrien suddenly saw his father's memories extend like strings from his head and fill the dome. They twisted, turned and coiled around him and Adrien lightly brushed his gloved hand over them, listening to them thrum like the chords of a guitar.

He was in awe. All it would take was one scratch, one move and his father would lose everything. It made him shiver.

"That one." said Tikki, pointing to one behind him. Unlike the other blue ones, this was dark purple. It coiled tightly around the others, pulling them in and Adrien knew he had to be careful. He placed his clawed hand beneath the string and breathed in deeply, strengthening his resolve.

For his father's sake.

He severed the memory, cutting ties between Hawk Moth and the miraculous forever. There was a flash of white light and then all the threads dissipated. Pain surging through Adrien sent him to his knees and he convulsed on the floor, writhing in agony.

He felt the kwamis pull harder, splitting apart inside him, as if his own soul were tearing in two. His both flashed with light and the two kwamis flew out above him to meet Tikki. Adrien looked up from the floor, breathing hard and saw all three kwamis staring down at him.

"Tikki." whispered Nooroo.

"It is done." she replied.

The purple kwami looked relieved and when Adrien felt the strength return to his body, he stood. Staring at his father's limp body he pulled a small cube of cheese from his pocket and held it out to Plagg.

He pulled the pendent from his chest and placed it in his pocket, "Let's get out of here." Taking one last glance inside the dome, Adrien transformed into Chat Noir. He took the victimized woman out first, laying her down gently on a bench in the park.

Then he returned for Marinette and his father. Once each and everyone was safe in bed, Chat returned to the dome one last time. He didn't want it to remind his father one day if he stepped inside or saw it in the street. All that pain, agony and grief was best left in the dust.

He would destroy it himself and insure it was never raised again. Hawk Moth was finally defeated and Paris was at peace.

But Chat Noir felt far from it.

Hey everyone, so this concludes the final battle. There are only two chapters left so be sure to stick around for the conclusion to this Marichat Love Story. It really has been an adventure. I know this battle was unusual, but I'm quite proud of myself.

Please don't forget to vote or comment if you enjoyed it.