Chapter Text
Ladybug yo-yoed from street lamp to street lamp trying to go to champ de Mars, where the newest akuma was according to Alya's Ladyblog. She looked to her left where her partner, Chat Noir was hoping from rooftop to rooftop with the help of his baton.
"Eyes on the road, Bugaboo. I know I'm irresistible, but we wouldn't want for you to hit onto something now, would we?" He said, the same snarky comment he liked to use often, in the last 3 years, they were fighting crime for.
She rolled her eyes and dismissed his comment. None of the two took it seriously, still a light banter and flirting, mainly of his part, much to her satisfaction and his dismay.
It took them only a few minutes to arrive, much faster than if they were to take a transport to this overly full avenue. They stopped on top of a tallish building in front of the park, the akuma a few dozen meters in font and below them.
"So, what has our good friend amassed about the victim?" he asked from next to her.
"According to Alya's blog, his name is Bond Tester. He targets pairs, friends, couples, partners, that kind of staff. When he hits his court hammer on something, a wave is shot and if it hits a pair, one of them will be forced to ask an important yes or no question and the other will be forced to answer it." she told him a shiver running down her spine.
Next to her Chat sighed "I hate psychological enemies like that. Physical damage is easy to be healed with your yo-yo. Psychological, not so much"
"Yeah" She said, scanning the enemy. Chat kneeled and took her hand, kissing it. "Shall we, milady?" he asked, as the true gentlecat he often said he was.
Ladybug threw the yo-yo she was holding and descended towards the akuma. "Less kissing and more ass-kicking, chaton!"
"I can multitask, you know" and as if to demonstrate, he followed her with his baton while saying that.
The akuma, oblivious to the heroes' dissent, was kicked twice on the back, once from each one. "Who dares get in the way of bond building!?" He demanded as he rotated to see the heroes. As he saw them he spoke again, this time directly at them. "Oh? The bug and the cat? Do you want to have your bonds tested?"
"No thank you, our bond is strong as is, no test are necessary. Right minou?" She asked looking back at Chat who was in a ready to pounce, pose. "Of course LB. Our bond is purrfect as it is!"
"Children these days, thinking that their friendships will last forever! You know nothing about real life!" he screamed before smacking his hammer to the floor.
'If it was my maman that said that, I might have taken it seriously, but it's a bad idea to take advices from akuma, or advices from angry people in general.' She thought while she and Chat jumped to different directions.
'In fact I remember her telling me exactly that last year! Well, without the akuma part" she finished her thought, stood up and turned to her partner. "What do you say we teach her how good we work together, Chat?"
"With pleasure, milady." he said and charged, baton extended to his size. The akuma tried to block it with the head of the hammer and simultaneously create a wave but Chat managed to hit its handle.
The akuma still managed to repeal the attack but then Ladybug threw her yo-yo to try and yank his hammer from his hand. It latched but it seemed he had a strong hold of the weapon and instead yanked Ladybug. She was coughing off guard so she flew to the enemy and got punched to the stomach, throwing her back a few meters.
Then Chat grabbed her hand and pulled her with the help of his baton away from an incoming wave. "Did you find it?" She asked. He shook his head "No, not yet" he answered and she nodded.
He thew her above the akuma while he drop kicked him while he was observing Ladybug's trajectory.
The fight continued for a good 10 minutes before Chat said "Found it!" to Ladybug, who at the moment was next to him. "Where?" She asked back and quickly got an answer. "His wedding ring. He is extra careful when we attack near it."
"You have a point. So are you ready to put an end to this akuma?" She eyed him while in his face a grin emerged. "Born ready"
"Cataclysm!" He shouted and charged once again, but with a target in mind and claws extended instead of the baton.
He heard behind him a "Lucky charm!" and glanced to see a photo album falling from the sky to her hands. A thing that never stopped to amaze him. But to his horror, when he looked back at the akuma smacking his hammer to the floor.
Waves flew from the impact. Chat tried to get out of the way but got hit. He glanced at Ladybug who was absorbed by how to use the album, until she got hit too.
Both of them were blown away but Chat got further back as he was closer. They ended up next to each other with a bush behind them.
They both got up, not being hurt much, yet Chat felt a power that compelled him to face Ladybug and ask her a question. Not any question. The question. The question he wanted to ask her for years but never found the perfect moment. Not to mention that he wanted for her to respond to his flirting first.
It still was a bad moment to ask, but the akuma didn't give him the option to get away. If he were to be asked what the perfect moment was, he would tell you, on top of the Eiffel tower, over a candlelit dinner, with a clear sky and full moon. But now he had nothing of that but he would be damned if he didn't try his best.
So, he fell on one knee, took her hand in his and got ready to purr his heart out. All to ask the question. All to ask her out.
"L-Ladybug... I've known you for three years now. We...we've been fighting akumas together for three years now. You've already amazed me with your ingenuity and valor. You've been my sun on my bleak life, my guardian angel from my loveless life. I...I lo... I love you from the bottom of my heart. I've loved you since the day we met. Wi-Will you please go out with me!"
He-he confessed. He confessed full of stutter, but-but he confessed. He asked the question she was so skillfully avoiding the last 3 years. He asked the question she so desperately hoped to avoid. He confessed.
She knew she was going to break his heart. That's exactly why she was avoiding the question. Once answered, their relationship would change No mater the answer. But she knew that she was going to turn him down. Even if she wanted to pity him and give him a chance, the akuma's power wouldn't let her, as it would be a fake chance. The least she could do was to give him a reason. She had to tell him the truth. More truth than the akuma demanded
So, she took a deep breath and spoke."N-no" She could see the sadness overtake him but she had to push forward, so she continued. "W-we can't. If we were to be together, we would have to reveal our identities, for that to work and it's too dangerous"
"I don't care how dangerous it will be or if I will be forced to not know who you are beneath the mask! I... I just want to be with you! I just want to..." he cut her speech, desperation written on his face his tone getting lower as it went.
"But that's not the only reason." She continued without losing a bit. "I... I love someone else. I can't do that to him, to my love to him. If I were to agree, I wouldn't be happy, I would be plagued by guild." She finished solemnly, his hand letting go of hers to fall by his side, his head falling at the same time, as if to hide his emotions.
"HAHAHA, not such a strong bonds anymore!!!" Bond Tester chortled from ten meters away and jumps at them. "Now give me your miraculous!"
As if being shocked from their trans, Ladybug thew the album, landing in front of his feet, open. Pages with photos of a newly married couple was in full display making the akuma flinch, probably having something to do with the reason he got akumataised.
As if on queue, Chat Noir launched himself cataclysm hand fully extended and scratched the wedding ring, destroying and releasing a purple butterfly. Ladybug trew her yo-yo to capture the akuma and shouts "Miraculous Ladybug!" throwing the album at the same time.
Thousands of Ladybugs swarm the akuma, cleansing it and repairing any physical damage he did. Yet they still have the memories to hunt them.
Ladybug approaches Chat Noir and says "Pound it!" but both know that it's only for the traditional as both of them have forced smiles.
Chat approached the victim "Are you alright sir?"
"Hm? Ah! I-I'm so so sorry! I hope I didn't hurt anyone!" He seemed stressed out and shocked.
"It's alright sir. Everything is Hawk moth's fault. You are but a victim. But if you don't mind me asking, What happened?" Chat asked.
"Ah! Ah. My-my wife cheated on me. I... I believed that to be the case for a month now a-and I just found them red handed." He said soberly.
"Yup, that would do it" Chat said under his breath. "I understand sir. I am sorry for this. I hope your life gets sorted out for the best" and he got a simple thanks back. He hated such akumas. They were always dangerous and their anger was righteous.
He ring rang four times and he was shocked that he didn't hear the last three. He gave her a simple bye and propelled himself with the help of his baton.