One Way or Another

A Nightmare and A Lack of Personal Space

The sun was shining.

In sharp contrast to the glorious day, however, everyone was dressed in black. And they solemnly made their way past the other headstones until they reached the spot.

Adrien moved right up front, his tear-filled eyes landing on the coffin being held up above the rectangular hole in the earth. But it wasn't a normal coffin; it was a white cryogenic pod with a glass covering, which allowed him to see the person inside.

Marinette looked absolutely beautiful lying there. Her hair had been styled into loose waves, and she was wearing soft makeup that let her natural beauty shine through. Her dress was completely red, except for an area about twelve centimeters in diameter on her abdomen that had been stained black. In addition to being exceptionally beautiful, she looked so incredibly peaceful.

Adrien started crying again as he stared at her. He couldn't do anything else. He couldn't move, he couldn't think, he couldn't speak. All he could do was stare at the woman behind the glass.

Then he looked to the side as he felt someone clasp his hand. And it was the last person in the world he wanted to see at that moment.

Lila smiled at him. "Don't worry, Kitty," she whispered. "I'll be your Ladybug now."

He tried to pull his hand away, but he was frozen in place.

With a bigger smile, she leaned toward him and gently connected their lips together.

Again, Adrien tried to move. But he was helpless to stop it. Then after she pulled back, he turned his head the other way as he heard another voice.

"Why did Ladybug die?" Annabelle cried, clutching her toy yo-yo that she got for her birthday to her chest.

Next to her, Emilie simply shook her head as she was too overcome with despair to speak.

"Why didn't Chat Noir save her?" the little girl continued, tears falling down her cheeks.

"I don't know, baby," Emilie replied, looking over at Adrien with intense disappointment in her eyes. "I just don't know."

"Don't worry," Lila said, getting his attention again. "We're going to get married. And we're going to have kids." She reached up and caressed his cheek. "You're going to be so happy."

And now Adrien turned to his father as he heard him speaking.

"I told you they'd make a great match," Gabriel said to the woman beside him. And Nathalie nodded emphatically.

"See?" Lila continued. "We're made for each other, Kitty. Now don't you worry, you'll forget all about Marinette soon enough."

It was too much. With all of his strength, he finally pulled away from her. "No," he cried. "I'll never forget about Mari..."

And he stopped as he looked back at the coffin, only to find that it wasn't there. It had already been lowered down into the grave and the hole had been filled in with dirt.

"No," he cried again, falling to the ground. "No, I need her earrings." And he started clawing at the earth, which was now covered with grass.

Lila laughed from behind him. "Silly Kitty, her earrings are right here!"

And sure enough, when he turned to look at her, the red and black jewels decorated her ears.

Adrien immediately jumped up. "Give them to me!" he demanded, approaching her.

Lila tilted her head in amusement. "Why would you need earrings?"

"I need them to save her! I need to combine them with my ring and bring her back!"