Marinette
She tried losing herself in his kiss, like she had done so many times before. It just didn't work this time. It was an excellent kiss of course, but it didn't quieten her soul like they did normally. It was why she had agreed to kiss him in the first place. She wanted to see if knowing who he was, affected his ability to silence her thoughts. And it had. But something else had happened. The pain she was feeling, the pain she had been trapped in for so long, felt dulled. Like if he kissed her hard enough, or long enough, it could go away altogether. Wishful thinking, she knew. There was only one way to escape her pain. A complete reset. A part of her longed for him to find out, to stop her, but that part was so far beneath the surface, he wouldn't be able to dig it out in time. She focused on his lips, trying to distract herself from the thoughts of impending doom. He was being so tender, as if she would break. She hated that. One of his hands was at her side, playing with the edge of her shirt. The other was tangling itself in her hair, and it pained her to realize how perfect it felt. How right it felt, to have him. Chat, Adrien. She belonged with him. And she was going to destroy all of her memories. But he would still have them. He would keep them. She wanted him to remember the old Marinette. The happy one. Not the hot mess that lay beneath him. She wanted his memories of her to be good ones. He pulled away, brushing her bangs out of her eyes.
"As much as I would love to assume that blush is because of me, I don't think it is. Where's your thermometer?"
All the way downstairs, tucked into some nook and cranny of the bakery. She didn't care about fevers.
"I don't have a fever. If I do, you're the one causing it."
Flirty, sure. But she didn't feel like being fussed over again. Ladybug didn't get sick, she sure as hell didn't need help from anyone. He smiled, shaking his head.
"Lying again Mari. Where is it?"
"I'll check it in the morning before school. Speaking of, won't your father be pissed that you were out all night?"
He made a face, one that told her he knew exactly what she was doing. Changing the subject.
"For all he knows, I'm at home. I walked here, so the GPS says I'm still there."
He moved back to laying next to her, and her gaze once again returned to the ceiling. She couldn't be with Adrien. Yet, she wanted her last days with him to be memorable, at least for him. She desperately wanted him to come back to her, once she lost all of her memories. Would he even want her then? He would find out she had been Ladybug. The one who had constantly turned him down. The one who had pushed him away, over and over again. Who would want someone like that?
"You'll check your temperature before I leave."
She wanted to roll her eyes, but a small smile touched her lips instead. Adrien was worried about her. Adrien loved her. After so long.
"So my parents let you stay the night?"
"I'm not sure. I told your dad I was gonna come up and talk to you, and I ended up dozing in and out. I don't think either of them came to get me."
It was weird, she had never had a boy sleep over before. Not one that her parents knew about anyway. Adrien moved closer to her, laying his head on her pillow, his breath brushing across her neck. It sent chills through her, the good kind. She closed her eyes, trying not to think about the times she had slept with Chat, who had been Adrien the entire time. Of course, trying not to think about it made images tumble into her mind, one of them sticking out in particular. The night he had gotten her to moan Adrien's name. She started giggling, covering her mouth as she did.
"What's so funny?"
She giggled harder, so much so that her sides ached. He leaned up, looking down at her.
"Seriously. What?"
"You're pretty smart for a cat."
She managed once the giggling had subsided.
"Excuse me?"
"I was just thinking about that night you got me to say your name. Adrien."
He smiled slightly, plopping back down on the pillow.
"You have no idea how badly I needed to hear you say it. If that was the only way I could get you to say it, then so be it."
She closed her eyes, her head was starting to pound again. What was with these stupid fevers? She hadn't had them like this before.
"I love you."
He whispered, and her eyes shot open. It was so weird, hearing Adrien say it instead of Chat.
"I love you too."
* * * * *
She maneuvered out of the classroom, heading away from the locker rooms. Adrien had been pestering her all day, demanding a visit to the nurse or for her to call her parents. But she was fine. The fever wasn't as bad as last time. Last time she was freezing. This time she was drenched in sweat. Which was good, because it meant her body was working out the fever. She avoided any familiar faces, heading straight for her house. Adrien wouldn't have to know about how much worse it had gotten since this morning, and her parents could be as oblivious as usual. She took the path she always took, but for some reason the walk seemed so much longer.
"Marinette, where are we going?"
Tiki peeked out of her purse, looking at their surroundings.
"I... just wanted to take a longer route."
She mumbled, glancing up the street for a street sign. She didn't recognize anything anymore. She closed her eyes, trying to remember if she had taken a wrong turn, but everything felt so out of place. Her memories felt scattered. Was this because of the fever? She wasn't hallucinating. She was just lost. She dug out her phone, pulling up her GPS. That was a much better option than calling for help. She waited for it to load, before a sound caught her attention. Someone was groaning. She quickened her pace, glancing down the alley next to her. Someone was laying on the ground, clutching their stomach and whining.
"Are you okay?"
She called, slowly moving further into the alley.
"Help me."
The person breathed, looking up at her with pain filled eyes. She jogged over, looking at their body, trying to access the damage.
"What happened?"
"A chance encounter."
He mumbled, before sitting up, pointing something at her. It took a second to realize that the thing being pointed at her was a gun.
"Sorry, but times are tough. Take off the bookbag."
Fear solidified her stomach, and she took a small step back. He had been faking? That didnt make any sense. Who would do something like that?
"Now."
She fumbled with the straps, sliding them off of her shoulders and dropping it on the ground. She couldn't transform, not in front of this person. This person who obviously was not on the good side.
"Purse too kid."
Absolutely not. She wasn't going to hand Tiki over to some stranger. This particular stranger, would be at the bottom of the list to get Tiki.
"No."
He stood, holding the gun in front of her face.
"Take it off, or I'll shoot you."
"I won't."
She felt her purse wiggle, as if Tiki was trying to tell her something. He lowered the gun, stepping forward and grabbing the strap. She tried to yank away from him, and he lifted his arm, slamming the gun down against her head.
"Just give me the stupid purse! I don't want to hurt you, but I will."
Pain blossomed across her forehead, and she struggled to breathe. He pushed the barrel into her stomach, trying to get the strap off of her arm.
"Stop struggling."
He snapped, and she grabbed the barrel of the gun, shoving it to the side of her waist, not wanting it pointed at her. It went off, and all she could feel was pain. She stumbled back, tripping and landing on the ground. The guy looked horrified, his face devoid of all color.
"I-im sorry, I just need the purse."
He mumbled, reaching down and grabbing the strap again. She gripped her purse as hard as she could, she would rather die than give him Tiki. A thud sounded behind him, and they both looked at Chat, who was seething. He ripped the guy off of her, slamming him into the brick wall. He slid down the wall, looking dazed.
"I didn't mean to hurt her..."
He started, but Chat apparently didn't want to hear it. He kicked him, and Marinette struggled to get up, trying to ignore the pain pulsing at her side.
"Adr...Chat! Stop."
He ignored her, picking the guy up again, throwing him against the other wall. He crossed the alley in seconds, and the guy raised his gun, directly at Chat. Ladybug couldn't fix bullet holes. She started forward, her heart pounding. Chat was going to get shot. Chat kicked the gun away, sending it skittering away from the two. He grabbed him by the front of his shirt, slamming him into the brick wall, once, twice. She grabbed his shoulder, trying to get him to focus on her, instead of the man well on his way to unconsciousness.
"Chat please. Let him go."
Adrien glanced at her, and she almost recoiled from the anger she saw there. He exhaled sharply, throwing the man one more time, to the ground at their feet.
"Apologize."
He commanded, and the man coughed, blood splattering onto the concrete.
"I'm sorry."
He wheezed, and Marinette closed her eyes, not wanting to look at him, at either of them. She heard Chat pace away presumably to retrieve her bookbag, and felt his arm wrap around her, sending them both into the air. She wrapped her arms around his neck, not daring to look at him. She knew he was pissed. Not like it was really her fault, it wasn't like she had picked a fight with the guy.
"I'm sorry."
She whispered, and he didn't respond. She could feel tears stinging at her eyes, but she wouldn't let them fall. Not in front of him. Not when he was this angry. He landed on her balcony hard, and a gasp escaped her lips from the pain. He still said nothing, leaning down and opening the skylight. He lowered them down, instead of laying her on the bed he took her down and plopped her into a desk chair. She opened her mouth to apologize again, and he held up his hand.
"Unless the next words out of your mouth are telling me where the first aid kit is, don't."
She looked away, her heart aching. He hadn't sounded that harsh in a while. It felt exactly like the time Adrien had scolded her for trying to save that kid that was drowning.
"Under the bathroom sink."
He opened the trap door, and disappeared from her view.
"Tiki? You okay?"
Tiki popped out of her purse, looking horrified.
"You're bleeding."
Marinette stood, moving over to her mirror. A steady stream of crimson ran down the side of her face, and there was a dark spot on her hip, where it hurt the most. Her hand had a deep gash across the palm, and she pressed it into her shirt, trying to ease the bleeding. Adrien climbed back up the steps, no longer wearing his suit. Deciding not to ask him about it, she turned to face him.
"Sit down. And take off your shirt."
His tone was controlled, but she could sense the impending lecture. She moved back to the desk chair, tugging off her purse and shirt as she did. He knelt in front of her, assessing the damage.
"It wasn't my fault."
I'm gonna be honest with anyone reading this. I hate those mugging scenes, because oh my god why. I don't know why I put it in here, I'm not even sure if it was useful to the plot at all, nevertheless I hope you enjoyed it.