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Adrien tended to see the bright side of things. To always believe that it would get better. He was there to give Ladybug courage and help her find a way out when she no longer saw it.
But sometimes even he had to admit defeat. To accept that they weren’t getting out of this. That it was over.
“I don’t have anything, I’m sorry,” she cried out after trying to think of a plan and coming up empty. There was no one to call for help. No other Miraculous to give them an extra boost. Nothing.
It was literally him and her against the world and they were losing.
“It’s ok, m’lady.”
“It’s not, kitty, it’s over.” She looked so wretched and he just wanted to make her feel better but he couldn’t.
“It doesn’t matter if I get to spend my last minutes with you.”
Something flashed in her eyes.
“Don’t say this. Don’t say it and mean it.”
“It’s the only truth I have,” he shrugged.
“It can’t be. Don’t you have dreams you’re sorry to let go? Don’t you have people you’re going to miss? Don’t you wish for it to be different?”
The truth was that he rarely gave thought to the uncertain future ahead of them. With them being superheroes, it was fraught with danger as it was. Why waste time thinking about the future when he could live in the present and make the most of it?
Of course, his lady was a planner so she probably couldn't understand this.
“Actually, I think I finally know what I want to be when I grow up. But it’s not a conventional answer.” It sounded so innocent, as if they were talking casually during patrol, not as if this could be the last talk they would ever have.
“What is it?” She obviously didn’t mind the distraction, so he played along.
“To be happily in love,” With you, remained unsaid. “And have a little family I can dote on and take care of. It’s not something admirable or something you can get by studying hard,” he chuckled. “But that's all I want.”
“That’s actually a great dream to have, Chat,” she said softly. “It suits you.”
“Am I sad that I won’t see this happen? Yes. But also, I have you here with me so it’s a comfort like nothing else.”
“I’m grateful that you’re here with me as well. It’s easier than facing all this alone.” Her smile was still sad.
“The beauty of it being the end is that we don’t have anything left to lose. So no need to worry about this.”
He still had her to lose. And he’d do anything within his power to keep her safe. Unfortunately, all the options had been exhausted already.
“You’re right. We don’t have anything to lose.”
There was something different in the way she spoke. As if this meant more to her than he could imagine. As if a weight was lifted off her and that freed her.
She didn’t have a lot to do with this newfound freedom, at least in his eyes. And not a lot of time left.
When she looked at him, though, it was as if she had exactly what she wanted in front of her. She moved faster than he thought possible. He felt a hand on the back of his head and then her lips against his.
It didn’t take a lot for him to surrender to the softness and warmth of her. His eyes fell shut and his whole being became that point of contact. It was everything.
If this was her answer to what she wanted to do with her last minutes, he’d take it gladly.
It wasn’t a gentle and loving kiss. It was desperate and a little rough. She wasn’t kissing him for comfort. She was kissing him as if her whole life depended on him. As if only he could give the air she needed to live and she drank it eagerly from his lips.
Her fingers tangled in his hair, holding him tightly to her. Not that he was looking for a way out as he pulled her to him.
He kissed her with all he had and felt that she gave all of herself to him as well. At that moment, they were just two people who needed each other. The secrets, the impending doom, the hopelessness of it all - it didn’t matter.
When they eventually broke apart, he was different. Now he actually had something more to lose. It was in the lingering touch that left his lips tingling. It was in her arms still tight around him. She wanted him there just as much as he did her.
A beep from her earrings reminded them that they were running out of time. They had been before as well, but now it was measured in the remaining dots that flashed at him.
She looked different as well. More determined. More self-aware. For a second she looked as if she was his. It felt like that.
“I need to recharge,” she gasped, looking around. They were hidden behind a chimney, the world falling apart in the distance. There was no one to see them there.
“I’ll go to the other side,” he said readily.
“No. I need you here,” she said firmly, holding his hand.
“But..”
“The world is ending, kitty. I don’t care about this anymore.”
She closed her eyes while he looked on in wonder even as the bright light blinded him and he had to blink a few times. The magic left behind Marinette. But not the Marinette he knew. She looked serious as she gave a macaron to Tikki, none of her usual goofiness and generous smiles.
“Marinette..” He needed to say it. Just to be able to call her by her name felt so unreal.
Her lips, the same lips he’d just kissed, curved into a small smile as she looked at him.
“We’re not giving up yet,” she said.
“No?”
“No. I just need to transform and call for a new Lucky Charm. But we’re fighting.”
“I thought that this was because it’s over,” he motioned between them.
“Well, it turned out this was what I needed to fight harder. Thanks, kitty.”
There was something more in her eyes. Something unspoken. But before he could ask, Tikki chimed in that she was ready.
In no time at all, his lady was back in the game, whipping up a plan and firing directions at him. He was more than happy to follow her lead.
The surprising thing was that it worked. That they saw through the villain’s defence that had seemed impregnable before. They powered through and before they knew it, it was over.
The sun was out again, bathing the world in warmth and cheer. It no longer looked as if it was ending. It looked as if it was reborn.
Not long after they found themselves on the same rooftop as earlier, but feeling vastly different.
“Great job as usual, m’lady,” he grinned. It sounded horribly inadequate for what she’d done - she’d brought them back from the brink, she’d given them a second chance. But he wasn’t sure if she wanted to be reminded of the darkness that had surrounded them earlier. After all, it was over.
She surprised him again by rising on her tiptoes and kissing him in lieu of an answer. Gone were the despair and overwhelming need from before. Now it was soft and sweet but somehow just as powerful, filling Adrien’s whole being with hope. She might not rely on words as much as him, but she was eloquent in other ways.
“What was this for?” He asked when she pulled back, looking flushed and happy. “I thought the world was no longer ending,” he teased her.
“Precisely. It’s for a new beginning,” she smiled and then laughed in surprise when she found herself being lifted in the air as he turned around and around, grinning. He felt giddy like never before.
It was not over. They hadn’t lost. Instead, they had won something more in addition to their life and freedom. They had each other.
It was his ring that beeped this time, reminding them that they needed to get off that rooftop before they lost their transformations. He carried her to the ground as she giggled and hid her face into the crook of his neck.
It was a little unnerving to stand in front of her and wait for her reaction as the magic retreated and sent Plagg next to Tikki. But to his delight, her reaction was to just kiss him again.
“I take it that you’re happy?” He chuckled.
Marinette, beautiful, blushing Marinette, looked up at him with bright eyes.
“I have never been happier,” she whispered as his hand caressed her warm cheek.
“Well, remember that this is only the beginning. It will get even better,” he promised. With her, all the futures suddenly seemed possible. If they were lucky, they would make all their dreams come true. Together.