A Teenager, A Gorilla, and an Assistant part 3
So here is Chapter 3, a few months later than expected. I hope you all enjoy!
Sometimes people remember a little bit about being akumatized. Bits and pieces of what they did. Nathalie was glad she wasn't one of those people. Her body, however, apparently did. Her entire body ached in protest as she brought herself to the edge of the stairs. Apparently, she had gone inside. “Hello?” she called out as best she could. A few feet away, she saw someone turn to her. She caught a glimpse of green before her legs grew too weak and she fell.
“Are you alright?” The person in green, who Nathalie vaguely recalled from the Anansi incident, asked her. She weakly nodded, and felt his arm wrap around her to help her stand. “Let's get you outside, ok?” She nodded, leaning onto the turtle hero.
The manor was in pristine condition, Nathalie noticed as they slowly walked towards the door. It was odd to think a battle, probably a large one if Nathalie's powers had been what they had planned on. “Is Adrien okay?” she asked, the thought of him being hurt, or worse, sending pangs of guilt and grief through her.
“Well, I mean, his dad just went from 'kind of a dick’ to 'literally a supervillain’ so I imagine he has a lot going on,” Carapace commented, though Nathalie could tell he was biting his tongue, “But I didn't see him near the battle, so he probably didn't get physically hurt.” Nathalie nodded, grateful for that. Carapace paused to open the door, and then led her outside, where other akumatized victims were laying or sitting down, being tended to by various medical professionals under the light patter of rain.
“There are… a lot of people here. Doesn't Ladybug usually have this kind of stuff fixed?” Nathalie pondered as Carapace helped her sit underneath a tree.
“I'm kind of new at this,” Carapace admitted, “so uh… maybe? I mean, she definitely got all the physical damage fixed but I don't know about the other stuff dude.” Carapace stood there awkwardly for a moment, obviously uncertain about what he should be doing. “I'm gonna go see what I can do to help. If you need anything me and Rena will be around.” He waved his hand towards the main activity just within the manor's courtyard. Nathalie nodded, and then furrowed her brow.
“What about the other heroes?”
“Well, Chat took off right after everything was finished. Dude didn't even listen when Ladybug called for him. She said she was gonna go see what was up. And then Chloe…” he trailed off, and Nathalie nodded. No answer necessary. Queen Bee wasn't exactly subtle about only being there for the fame. Carapace shrugged and took his leave, trotting over to Rena Rouge.
Nathalie was joined a few moments later but the Gorilla, who sank to the ground beside her. They sat in silence for a few moments before the Gorilla spoke, “I’m sorry.”
“What?”
“I knew he'd be desperate, and I should have known you'd be upset, but we still came here to find Adrien and he managed to Akumatize you and-”
“It isn't your fault. If he hadn't gotten me, he would have Akumatized someone else and nothing would have changed.” It was another silent moment before Nathalie asked, “What happened?”
“You jumped into the fight. The butterflies turned red and then…” The Gorilla trailed off. Nathalie didn't need to know any more. So his plan did work, but he still failed. Nathalie wasn't sure if she was relieved or upset. She had supported Gabriel's efforts for so long, and now it was just… done. The finality was almost overwhelming.
“Do you think Adrien is alright?” The Gorilla asked, voice thick with worry.
“Yes.” She didn't want to think about the alternative. Clearly the Gorilla didn't either, as he didn't challenge her answer. Of course Adrien was alright. He hadn't been at the battle when they got there, and he wasn't there now. He was alright. He had to be. Unless one of the akumas had attacked Adrien on its way to the battle. Ladybug’s Miraculous Cure would have fixed that, right? But Adrien wasn’t here.
Nathalie felt a sense of guilt weigh down on her chest. If she hadn’t come to the battle, Gabriel wouldn’t have akumatized her. If it weren’t for her, Adrien would have been totally safe from Hawkmoth. Why did she think Adrien would head home when he knew Gabriel was Hawkmoth? He’s not one for confrontation. “Maybe one of the heroes knows where Adrien is?” suggested the Gorilla. He was still worried too, then.
“Maybe,” Nathalie agreed. She waved to grab the attention of Rena Rouge.
Meanwhile
Chat Noir sat on the edge of a roof, his back turned away from Ladybug as she landed. "Chat, are you alright?" she asked.
"I'm fine my lady," he responded quietly. He was lying, and they both knew it.
"It's finally over," Ladybug tried to prompt him, moving to sit beside him.
"It is," he answered. He hoped Ladybug couldn't see the tears in his eyes or hear the fear in his voice.
She could. "What's wrong?" she asked.
"I always thought that," Chat took a minute to find the right words, "I always thought that it would feel different. I thought we'd feel satisfied. I thought we'd be happy. But…"
"I know what you mean kitty. This has been so much of our lives the past couple of years. Things are going to be different now."
"Do you think we'll still see each other?" He tried to hide the desperation in his voice, but he knew that he'd failed.
"I don't know," Ladybug answered, and Chat felt his heart clench a little. "Now that Hawkmoth is done…" she didn't need to finish the sentence. This could be the last time they ever meet. "We could finally reveal our secret identities!" Ladybug added with a bit of cheer. "I know you've want-"
"I don't think I'm ready," Chat cut her off, to Ladybug's audible surprise. "I'm sorry, I'm just… I can't right now." He stood up as his ring beeped, signalling how close it was to his detransformation, "I've got to go."
"Oh… ok," were the last stunned words he heard from Ladybug as he rushed away, finding an empty alleyway to collapse in as his transformation fell. He sat against the wall of the building with his knees brought to his chest.
"Plagg…" Adrien whispered, barely holding back sobs.
"I'm here," Plagg answered, pressing himself into Adrien's chest as Adrien began to cry. Adrien cried for quite a while, holding Plagg close to him.
"I can't lose you too Plagg." Adrien whispered through his sobs,"You're all I have."
"I'm not going anywhere kid," Plagg promised.
"But Master Fu-" Adrien tried to explain, but was cut off by the kwami.
"Is old, for a human," Plagg answered, "He's not taking me away. You're my Chat Noir." Adrien began to sob harder, holding Plagg tightly. It was a few moments before Plagg spoke, "Hey, you should probably head somewhere so nobody worries. Why don't you go to that bakery?"
"That's probably a good idea," Adrien said as he stood up. Aftera moment he added, "Thank you Plagg. For everything."
“Don’t be getting mushy on me,” Plagg groaned, to which Adrien rolled his still-teary eyes. Adrien made his way out of the alley, careful to keep his face downturned so no one would spot him. Thankfully, Ladybug had stopped him near the Dupain-Cheng’s, so it was a very short walk, made even shorter when he stopped across the street. He wondered if they would accept him, now that his father was the supervillain behind the akuma attacks that had terrorized all of Paris, and even their family directly. “Why did you stop?” Plagg asked.
“I’m worried,” Adrien answered, “My father’s, well, Hawkmoth. What if they force me out of their bakery?”
“Then I’ll Cataclysm it,” Plagg answered nonchalantly.
“Plagg!” Adrien seethed
“Relax, kid,” Plagg tried to soothe the situation, “You’re a good person, and they know it. They’ll probably drown you in baked goods. Make sure to get some cheese bread.” Adrien rolled his eyes, but appreciated Plagg’s comfort nonetheless. He crossed the street and took a deep breath, before opening the door and walking through.
