Work Text:
Nathaniel walked along the Seine, the water bobbing up and down some gulls following along the tide. A few gusts of wind blew every so often, pushing the boy along the bank side. The sun, despite being high in the sky, not covered by any clouds, shone a cold frost over the city. Shivering in his jacket he picked up the pace he was walking at, not wanting to be late, but also not wanting to catch a flu.
Headphones covering his ears, hands in his pockets Nath strode down the path at great speed, not watching the line ahead of him. Every so often a person would bump into him. He would mumble a half-assed apology, and carry on, not wanting to delve in conversation. Occasionally he would have a near miss with a parked bike, swearing under his breath of the carelessness people had when parking their vehicles.
In front, a street vendor was drawing a small landscape of the skyline in front, paints in one hand, pens in another, intricately etching the view which he gazed at.
The red haired was walking in his direction, eyes still on the ground, avoiding the freeze of the winter morning. Crashing into the person, the two went tumbling to the cobbled ground, pencils and paper cascading down into the water next to them. The boy blinked in confusion, rubbing his head, hood being left down. The man first stood in silence, disbelief. Then a face of pure anger washed over him as if a hurricane has crashed into him.
A small purple insect joined the duo. The crowd now drew nearer as words of fustration filled the air like wildfire.
"Hello there," spoke a voice in the vendors ear.
---
Marc lay back on his floor, head propped up on a stack of pillows, paper and books. Eyes gazed up at a notebook page which currently only had 'something' written on it. Orikko rested himself on the other's shoulder. He was waiting for Nath to come, they were going to be working on more of Sun Heart and Rain Piercer together. After the final copy they still had so many ideas of how they would carry it forwards.
A thin sheet of frost covered the windows to his bedroom making the light in the room appear dimmer than usual. A few string bulbs were hung sporadically across the beams, dangling down like icicles, winter decorations adding to the Christmas wonderland.
Not too long after a buzzing ran through his ring, alerting him that Ladybug needed his assistance.
"Seems like we're needed," he giggled, sitting up right. "Orikko, sunrise!"
---
A tall person stood in front, skin shaded like graphite on paper. A pencil the size of the average human was gripped tighly in one hand. With the instrument they drew lines along the pavement of paris, causing new walkways and walls to sprout from nothing. The self proclaimed 'drawerer' was now rapidly approaching where the red haired lay on the ground.
"Well shit," Nath awkwardly laughed as he stumbled upwards and backwards, trying to run as far away as possible.
The akumatized villain followed pursuit, running at a faster speed than humanly possible.
"Look, I'm sorry!" The boy attempted to apologize, realizing it was pointless in trying to escape.
The item and man split paths. The villain focused on the idle passers by, asking if they'd seen Ladybug or Chat Noir, turning them into different art supplies if they answered with an 'I didn't know'. The other edged closer and closer towards the boy.
It was futile trying to get away, the pencil ran a track in front, blocking the path, pushing him further towards the river. Ladybug was fighting the akumatized villain now, using her yoyo to make sure he didn't cause any more damage.
Nathaniel tried to dodge around the moving art supply, which edged him closer to the bank and the drop into the frozen pool below. The hero hadn't realised, she was too focused on helping the scared children, protect the many other civilians in the area.
Nath had lost words, trying to mumble out a cry of help to ladybug. The front of his feet now balanced centimeters away from the icy crash.
One push.
Falling towards the Seine below.
He closed his eyes tight, expecting the plummeting cold to hit him like a freight train.
But it never came.
Instead he felt warm hands around him and the soft beating of a heart against his ear, followed by a splash of water as a pair of heels hit a slightly frozen puddle. He looked up to see Rooster Bold, running across the streets of Paris, finding a safe place for his boyfriend.
Trying to mumble out a thank you, Roo layed a gentle finger on his lips, telling him to save his breath until they got somewhere quieter.
They ended up back in Marc's room, a far enough distance from the attack.
"Are you okay?!" The writer asked, panicked, transforming back to his civilian form.
A nod followed in response, a drink of hot tea quickly shoved into his hands.
"Drink this."
As the beverage was sipped, Nath slowly began feeling his fingers and toes again, his whole body feeling less like he'd just stepped foot out of the North Pole.
"That better?" Asked his slightly less concerned boyfriend.
"Thank you," he smiled, resting a still mildly cold hand on the other’s cheek gazing up at the ceiling. "I like your Christmas decorations, they new?"
"Yeah, my mum insisted we put them up today, not complaining though, the winter comfort is always nice."
"This time is always so nice. Except the cold. Hate that"
A notification rang across Marc's miraculous, 'can you bring Nathaniel back, the man still needs an apology.'
"Ready to go back outside?" Asked the blue haired.
"Not in the slightest, guess I need to go however," he sighed.
"Yeah, I'll bring you right back after."
The two flew back across Paris, landing back at the Seine next to the bug and the cat. Nath gazed down at the ground, trying to find words, being nudged in the back by his love, telling him to speak.
"I'm sorry, I should've looked where I was walking," he rushed out in a very hushed tone, barely audible to any passers by.
Roo laughed under his breath, rolling his eyes at his boyfriend's minor inability to apologize properly.
"It's okay, Ladybug fixed things anyway," the man nodded.
The two shook hands before parting ways. A rather rushed forgiveness, but neither seemed like they wanted to be there.
"I'll take him to where he's going," smiled the rooster, picking up the ginger in his arms.
The two other heroes agreed, turning and heading back home.
"Come on princess, we have a comic book to brainstorm," Roo spoke before setting off across the city once more.