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“So, are you joining me or not?"
She should have said no.
Parrying another hit, the echo of his confident voice taunted her, looping louder and louder with every hit she blocked.
Marinette was sweating in the supersuit, out of breath, wobbly on her feet but still putting up a good fight. Every muscle in her body ached from exertion.
She should have said no.
Ladybug was crying. Tears streamed down her cheeks, silent and free, and there was nothing she could do to stop them.
They were losing. Chat Noir had led them straight into a trap and she had followed, trusting him blindly. How could she have known it would turn out so badly?
Logic said she couldn't have, but her mind backtracked to the question. Had she said no then, everything would have played out differently.
She should have said no.
Chat Noir was fighting a battle of his own, against a duo of bodyguards intent to keep him from reaching her. He was held down by invisible shackles, pushing and pulling, holding him in place.
He could not shake them.
He called her name. He roared it, desperation carrying his voice to her, begging and pleading. She couldn’t tell if he was asking her to save him or if he was hoping for her escape. It didn’t matter. They were both doomed anyway.
She ducked when her opponent made a grab for her earrings, dropping out of the man’s reach at the same time Chat Noir’s claws demolished the invisible chains.
He made a desperate leap for her. Their eyes met, and what she saw in them frightened her almost as much as the arm of her enemy winding around her neck, choking her.
There was no hesitation in his eyes. He looked like a guy that would sacrifice everything to save her, the good and the bad, the innocent and the guilty alike.
She should have said no.
There was no way out.