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The moment the boulder crashed down, sealing the narrow cave behind them, Chat Noir's breath caught in his throat. A dull boom echoed through the confined space, and a thick cloud of dust filled the air, making it difficult to see, difficult to breathe.
Ladybug coughed and waved a hand in front of her face. "Well… that could have gone better." she pulled out her ladybug phone and turned on the flashlight
Chat Noir forced a chuckle, but his voice came out strained. "You think?" He turned quickly, running his gloved hands over the rough rock wall, feeling for any gaps, any way out. His breath was already coming quicker than it should.
“Great and we only have 5 minutes until we transform back, let me try and get a hold of the team first” Ladybug Said
The walls pressed in. The tunnel was barely big enough for them to stand side by side, and with the way the debris had fallen, their only escape route had vanished. The air was heavy with the scent of damp earth and dust, and the flickering glow of Ladybug’s yo-yo screen cast long shadows against the jagged rocks. Ladybug let out a deep breath and activated her communicator.
"Rena Rouge, do you copy?" Static crackled in response. She frowned, adjusting the signal
"Anyone? We’re trapped underground near the Pont de Grenelle, We need—" The transmission cut off
Ladybug pressed her lips together in line and tried again, but all she got was more static.
“Chat noir you think you can detransform and cataclysm us out?”
Chat Noir didn't respond.
“Chat?”
“Huh? Oh, sorry what d-did you say” Chat said, trying to stop his voice from shaking
“Can you detransform and us cataclysm out of here?”
“I- I shit i didn't bring any cheese for Plagg”
“It's fine, ill figure something else out”
Great now you disappointed Ladybug
His heart was already hammering against his ribs, his lungs suddenly too tight in his chest. The air felt thin,too thin. The tunnel around them seemed to close in, the bumpy walls shifting, shrinking.
They were trapped for God knows how long
He stumbled backward until his shoulders hit solid rock. The pressure against his back only made it worse, like the walls were closing in, pressing against him, squeezing the breath from his lungs.
Not again
His breath hitched, coming in quick, shallow gasps. His fingers twitched at his sides, curling and uncurling, his claws scraping uselessly against his palms.
Darkness
No space
No air
His breath came in shorter, sharper bursts. He tried to pull at the collar of his suit, but it wasn’t tight. It wasn’t really suffocating him.
Then why couldn’t he breathe?
His vision blurred at the edges. The dim glow of Ladybug’s yo-yo flickered like a distant light at the end of a dark tunnel, but it felt so far away.
No air
No space
“Ok chat I'm going to detransform really quickly and then use my lucky charm”
Great his ears were ringing
He squeezed his eyes shut, as he faintly heard the magic sparkles of Ladybug detransformation. This was bad, he had to focus and stop being an idiot, the walls weren't moving, right?
“Now time to get us out of here”
His chest rising and falling too quickly, too unevenly. His body wasn’t listening to him anymore—his limbs were shaking, his claws digging into his arms in a desperate attempt to ground himself.
"Are you listening?"
A voice?
“Chat Noir?”
His name…
Somewhere in the fog of his mind, he recognized it, Ladybug
He tried to focus, but it was like trying to reach for something after spinning around 20 fucking times.
"Look at me."
A hand touched his arm, cold, but real. Slowly, he forced his eyes open. Ladybug was right in front of him now, her hands gripping his shoulders. Her blue eyes weren’t just concerned, her eyes were focused, determined, like she was pulling him back from the edge of something.
"Breathe with me" she said, voice steady. "Follow my breathing, In… and out."
He tried; he really did. But his lungs wouldn’t cooperate. His whole body felt like it was being squeezed by an invisible force.Ladybug didn’t let go. She tightened her grip.
"Chaton, listen to my voice, you’re safe, we’re just waiting together."
Together
The word cut through the fog like a lifeline. His breath stuttered, but this time, it wasn’t quite as sharp. He squeezed his eyes shut, focusing only on Ladybug’s voice.
"That’s it. Again. In… and out."
She exaggerated her breathing, making it slow, deep, deliberate. He tried again.
In—shaky, unsteady, but deeper.
Out—still uneven, but better.
His fingers unclenched, just a little. Ladybug’s hands moved from his shoulders to his own hands, her fingers lacing through his. She gave them a small squeeze.
"Feel that? I’m right here, focus on that."
His vision slowly cleared. The walls were still there, still too close, but they weren’t moving anymore.
“How are you feeling now?” Ladybug asked
Hm..well better obviously, but he owed ladybug a better answer than that, with more details and shit…
So
How did he feel?
Well lets see, his breath was still ragged, but it wasn’t choking him anymore. His pulse was still too fast, but it was no longer a deafening beat drumming in his ears.
“Chaton?” Ladybug said softly “You still with me?”
He shakes his head yes, slowly, due to his rising headache.
Ladybug gave him a small, encouraging smile. "It's okay, you don't have to answer my question now "
He shakes his head yes again in response. He swallowed hard. His throat felt raw, his muscles ached from the tension, but the worst of the panic was fading.
Ladybug was still holding his hands, interlocked with each other, she didn’t let go until he said to. They stayed like this for a while. Only after those minutes did she lean back slightly, still watching him carefully.
"Better?" Ladybug asked
He let out a breath. "Yeah….not my best moment though" he admitted hoarsely.
She smirked. "I’ve seen worse"
A weak laugh bubbled out of him. "Remind me never to go even remotely close to a cave again."
"Noted," she said, then turned serious. "Are you okay to stay in the battle?"
Chat Noir straightened, rolling his shoulders,shaking his hands, releasing off the lingering fear,his heart still beat too fast, but at least his hands were steady now.
"I’ll be okay"
Ladybug gave him one last searching look, then nodded. "Then let’s get out of here."
Summoning her Lucky Charm, a crowbar materialized in Ladybug’s hands.
Chat Noir raised an eyebrow. "Really? couldn’t have been a jackhammer?"
She smirked. "Where’s the fun in that?"
With newfound determination, they worked together, prying loose rocks and shifting debris. Every now and then, Ladybug would glance at him, checking in without words.And every time, he met her gaze and nodded.
Minutes stretched into what felt like hours, but finally ,FINALLY, a sliver of light peeked through.Fresh air rushed in.
Chat Noir practically launched himself through the opening, tumbling onto the cool grass outside. He inhaled deeply, the crisp night air filling his lungs.
Ladybug followed, dusting herself off. "Better?"
He let out a slow breath, then nodded. "Much."
They run to the battle which is still going on and join Rena rouge and Carapace in fighting the akumatized villain.
Later, after the battle had finished, on top of a rooftop far from the citizens' eyes, Ladybug and Chat noir sat side by side.
For once, neither spoke, sitting together in comfortable silence, just sitting there, legs swinging over the ledge, letting the quiet settle between them.
Ladybug finally broke the silence. “How are you feeling now?”
Chat Noir didn’t answer at first. He tilted his head to the side, watching the stars blink to life one by one above them. When he finally spoke, his voice was softer than usual, stripped of its usual charm.
“Better, Tired… but better...”
“I'm glad! I was really worried, especially because i didn't know what triggered it”
“I... it was my claustrophobia acting up”
Ladybug turned to look at him fully now. He missed a perfect pun opportunity. His body language was watered down, his shoulders slightly slumped, his hands together fidgeting in his lap.
“You scared me today” she whispered.
“I scared myself” he admitted. “I don’t... One minute I was fine and the next....” He swallowed hard “Everything just... closed in.”
Ladybug’s gloved hand found his in his lap
She didn’t squeeze, just held it gently.
“You don’t have to explain the feeling” she said. “I'm glad I was there for you though…”
“You always are” His voice cracked, and he gave a small smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “You don’t even know who I truly am, but somehow you always know what I need, isn’t that strange?” he says with a slightly broken voice and a shallow laugh at the end
Ladybug felt a twist in her chest. She had never seen him like this, not in battle, not in quiet rooftop moments, not in their playful banter. This was deeper.
“It’s not strange,” she said. “I may not know your real name, but I do know you, I know the REAL you. The way you protect people even when no one sees. The way you make jokes to cheer up strangers after they are akumatized. The way you stay and comfort me on this rooftop, even when you’re tired.”
Chat Noir looked down at their joined hands. “I just wish… i didn’t want you to see me like that.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’m supposed to be the funny one, I’m the one who makes you laugh when the weight of the world gets too heavy, and today, I just... I broke, like a fucking loser”
Ladybug leaned her head on his shoulder, surprising him.
“You didn’t break,” she said. “You bent. You bent under something really heavy, and you let someone help you. That's not a weakness, Chat- that’s a strength.”
He was quiet again
“I hate that you had to see it” he said, repeating the thought.
“I don’t,” Ladybug replied. “I’m glad I was there. You’ve always been there for me, when I was angry, when I was scared, when I didn’t know what to do. Today, I got to return the favor.”
She finally looked up at him. His eyes mirroring the brightly glowing moon and his mouth opened slightly, as if words were forming but couldn’t quite make it past his heart.
“I wish I could tell you everything” he said, voice tight with emotion.
She wanted to ask what he meant, his real name? His life behind the mask? But something told her now wasn’t the time. Instead, she nodded.
“Someday,” she said. “When we’re both ready.”
Chat Noir looked at her then, really looked. Then, before he could overthink it, he turned and pulled her into a hug.
Ladybug stiffened for a split second before relaxing into it.
"Thank you" he murmured against her shoulder
She smiled, squeezing him briefly before pulling away. "Always, Chaton"
The wind picked up slightly, rustling her pigtails and the fur trim of his suit. The city stretched out below them, full of light and movement,but up here, it was just them. They released from the hug and then Ladybug shifted just slightly, her head still resting on his shoulder, her eyes turned up to the sky.
“You ever think about what it’d be like,” she murmured, “if we weren’t wearing masks?”
Chat tilted his head toward her, just a bit. “All the time.”
She looked at him then, really looked. She saw him. The boy underneath it all, Gentle,Hurting,Brave,and she realized that she had never truly looked at him without the noise in her head,without the worry. Without the fear of feeling too much.
Until now.
He must have sensed something shift between them because his eyes flicked down to hers, then to her lips, quickly, barely noticeable, but enough.
Enough for her heart to skip.
Enough for her to whisper, “Can I kis-…”
Her voice caught halfway. She didn’t know what she was asking. Permission? Clarity? If he even still liked her like that?
But Chat Noir nodded once. Just a small, breathless motion, His voice was hoarse
“Yeah” he said. “If you want to.”
Ladybug leaned in slowly, giving him every chance to pull away, but he didn’t. Their lips met in the space, soft and slow and warm,
Not desperate
Not rushed
Just a quiet kiss, full of gratitude and all the things they’d never said. A kiss that said: You’re not alone anymore.When they pulled apart, it wasn’t awkward, Ladybug pressed her forehead gently to his.
“Still feel like you broke?” she whispered.
He smiled a real smile this time. “No, Not with you here.”
She chuckled softly. “Good. Because I’m not going anywhere, we’re stronger together”
Neither had their bond ever felt so loud and then Chat Noir knew no matter what darkness tried to swallow him, no matter how small and suffocating the walls became, Ladybug would always be his light at the end of the dark tunnel, because as long as Ladybug was with him, he was stronger.