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“Pound it!” the three superheroes, Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Rena Rouge said as they bumped their fists together.
“C’mon, Rena, let’s go!” Ladybug said as she grabbed her friend’s arm and started to pull her away.
“Where are you guys going?” Chat asked.
“Oh, um, I just need to get her miraculous back, that’s all,” Ladybug lied.
Ever since Alya had gotten her miraculous permanently, the girls usually left akuma attacks together. Chat didn’t know Alya kept her necklace, so he was oblivious to what was actually going on with the other two.
“Before you two leave, can I talk to you?” Chat looked towards Ladybug and then towards Rena who started to nod her head. “Alone?”
Ladybug quickly looked back at the other girl and hesitantly nodded toward her partner as the two started walking away from Rena Rouge.
“What’s up, Chat?” she asked nonchalantly. Her earring beeped, with a three minute warning.
“I’ve noticed that I haven’t had to use my power very often anymore. Ever since Rena started showing up to almost every single akuma battle.”
“Oh, er, I guess since we have her power of illusion now, your power isn’t needed as much. Isn’t that a good thing, though? You don’t have to worry about your detransformation timer running out!”
“No, it’s not a good thing,” he said angrily.
“What? Why not?”
“Because I’m useless now!”
“You’re not useless! What are you talking about?!”
“I am, and you know it. If you don’t need my power, you don’t need me. That’s the only thing I’m there for anymore! My cataclysm! Nothing else! And half the time, you don’t even need it!”
“Chat! That is so not true!”
“It is.”
The timer on Ladybug’s earrings beeped again, leaving her with two more minutes until she detransformed.
“I-“
“One more thing, before you leave me in the dark again. I know Rena and Carapace know each other’s identities.”
Ladybug gasped. “What?! How?!”
“That doesn’t matter! The thing that matters is that you’re perfectly fine with them knowing each other’s identities, but you can’t stand the thought of us knowing each other’s!”
“Chat, whose miraculouses are Shadowmoth after?”
“Ours, but-“
“Rena and Carapace’s miraculouses are not what Shadowmoth is looking for, Chat, it’s our miraculouses that he’s after! It’s way too dangerous for us to know each other’s true selves!” Her earring beeped for the last minute before she detransformed. Her hand flew to her ear as she started to turn around.
Chat Noir grabbed her arm as she started to leave. “Ladybug, I’m not finished!”
“Listen, I’m about to transform back and I still have to get Rena’s miraculous back, so we can finish this another time.”
“Just meet me on top of the Eiffel Tower at 9:00 tonight.”
“OK, fine, but I really have to go now.” Without saying a goodbye, she ran back over to Rena Rouge, and the two girls jumped one way, while Chat slowly walked the other.
———
Ladybug arrived at the top of the tower at nine sharp, and sat down waiting for Chat, who was usually a few minutes late.
Five minutes passed. Then ten. She took out her bug phone and called her partner, who wasn’t picking up.
“Where is he? He said to meet here at nine, and it’s almost 9:15,” she muttered to herself.
She got up and searched for him. “Chat? Chat! Where are you?” Ladybug wandered around the top of the Eiffel Tower, but Chat Noir was nowhere in sight.
“Chat! CHAT-“ She paused when she saw something shiny on the ground. Ladybug stepped closer to inspect the shiny object, and immediately recognized it.
Chat Noir’s ring. His miraculous.
Tears started flowing the second she identified the object. “No, no, no, this can’t be happening. CHAT! CHAT NOIR!” she yelled, hoping for his civilian form to still be nearby.
No answer.
Ladybug slid the ring onto her finger and Plagg appeared, looking distraught.
“Plagg, what happened?! Please tell me! I need to know what happened!”
The kwami, who rarely showed any type of sadness, curled up in the superhero’s hand. “He left.”
“Why?!”
“I-I don’t remember exactly what he said, but something about how you don’t need him anymore, and how Alya replaced him.”
“He knew her identity?”
Plagg took a deep breath. “Nino told him everything.”
“Who is he? Who is Chat Noir? I need to find him. I need to get him back!”
“I thought you weren’t supposed to know each other’s identities.”
“This is more important than that, Plagg. Tell me where he is!”
“OK, he’s at the airport. With Lila.”
“L-Lila? The Lila who hates me? The Lila who we both hate?”
“Yes, but they won’t be there for long, his plane is taking off soon.”
Ladybug grabbed her yo-yo and as fast as she could, swung to the airport.
———
“Now boarding, Flight 417. Flight 417, now boarding.” The loudspeaker on the wall said.
“C’mon, Adrien! Let’s go! We wouldn’t wanna be late to the photo shoot tomorrow morning!” Lila grabbed the boy’s arm and pulled him out of his chair. “You look sad. Aren’t you excited? It’s gonna be so much fun!”
“I didn’t leave things right with someone I’m still in love with.”
“Don’t tell me it’s that Marinette.” Lila rolled her eyes as she kept trying to pull Adrien up from the chair.
“It’s not Marinette. I’m not in love with her. It’s… someone else.”
“Lemme guess, Ladybug? Because if it’s that insect, then you’re better off without her. All she did was ruin everything.”
Adrien thought for a second. “You know what, Lila, you’re right. She did ruin everything.” He stood up and started to walk towards the door leading to the plane, but looked back once more to make sure there was nothing left behind. Adrien turned around and saw a flash of red and heard a giant crowd. “What’s going on?”
“Lila! Lila Rossi!” a voice from middle of the crowd screamed.
Adrien turned back towards Lila. “Lila, someone’s calling your name from over there.”
“Wow, fans already?! Amazing! I’ll be right back, lemme go sign some autographs!”
Lila ran off towards the crowd around the red flash and Adrien followed behind, but from a distance.
“Everybody move! Out of the way!” the person calling Lila’s name yelled to the crowd that was formed around her. “Lila!”
“Oh, it’s just you. I don’t sign autographs for girls like you, Ladybug.” Lila started to make her way back towards Adrien.
“Wait, Lila! Please! I have one question!”
“Fine, what do you want this time?”
“Who are you here with?” Ladybug looked behind Lila, searching for anyone she knew.
“Uh, why?”
“Please tell me!”
“Fine, it’s Adrie-“
Before Lila could finish her sentence, the superhero made eye contact with a boy just behind her.
Ladybug’s heart dropped. “Adrien?” she asked softly.
Adrien spotted the ring on her finger. “Don’t even try,” he said as he shook his head and made his way to the door leading onto the airplane.
Ladybug pushed through the crowd as she tried to make her way to him. “Adrien! Wait! Please!”
He turned around one more time to look at her pleading face, but decided it wasn’t worth the pain.
“You know, sometimes luck isn’t always on your side, Ladybug.”