All The Bright Places

Despair, Part 2

Chat Noir ran from building to building, his heart racing from the adrenaline buildup. He was only a few minutes away from the bakery when he saw the brunette. She had a proud look on her face as she gripped the bag that hung over her shoulder.
He landed softly on the ground behind her, making her turn around.

"Lila."

"Chat Noir? Can I help you? Is there an akuma attack?"

The green eyed girl held her hand to her cheek, acting surprised.

"You must be a very miserable person."

"W-What? What are you talking about?"

She let out a nervous and confused chuckle as the hero walked closer to her.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about."

"But I don't, Chat Noir. You must have me confused with someone else."

He grabbed her arm and pulled her away from the crowd that was starting to form around them. When they were finally alone, he gripped the collar of her shirt, pushing her against the wall.

"Marinette. Ring any bells?"

Her facial expression turned into a dark smirk as she flicked the bell on his suit.

"It rings plenty of bells. You should know that she did it for attention, Chat Noir. She does everything for attention. She probably told you that I did something to her just for the fun of it."

"Are you serious?"

He was inches from her face as he spit the words out in anger.

"Dead serious. You have to act like you care for her, don't you? You know, because you're the hero of Paris and everything."

He slammed his other hand against the wall beside her and narrowed his eyes.

"No. I actually care about her. I don't pretend and put on an act in front of people to make myself look good like you do."

"It doesn't matter! She deserved it. She deserved everything that happened to her and..."

Chat Noir was so angry, he was shaking. His vision was blurry as he cut her off with one word,

"Cataclysm"

•

Marinette sat on her bed staring off into space. She could only wonder what was happening this very moment.

Did he find Lila?
Did he confront her?
Did he hurt her?

She didn't think Chat Noir would do such a thing but from the way he acted made her rethink that.

She wanted to go after him and tell him it wasn't worth it but she couldn't. She couldn't make herself get up. It wasn't just because of the pain, she actually couldn't make herself move. She was frozen in place until Tikki sat on her shoulder, jarring her from her thoughts.

"Marinette, you need to find Chat Noir. This isn't good!"

"Tikki, I can't..."

"Yes you can, Marinette! The last time something like this happened to the holder of destruction, it didn't end well!"

"What are you talking about?"

"It could trigger the end of the world! What if he gets akumatized?"

A distant memory of Chat Blanc flashed across her mind, making her eyes widen. She couldn't let that happen again.

"Okay, okay. Fine. Tikki, spots on."

Her body ached as she made herself jump from her balcony, swinging from her yo-yo. She squinted her eyes, looking for both, Chat Noir and Lila.

She had almost given up until she landed softly on a building. She was about to swing herself away again until she heard his voice.

"Cataclysm"

Her eyes widened in fear as she then saw the two. Lila was pinned against the wall with a very angry Chat Noir in front of her.
He started to inch his way to her chest as Ladybug's yo-yo wrapped around his arm.

"Chat Noir, stop!"

He turned to look at the masked red hero who stood on the building above him as his adrenaline started to deteriorate, making himself aware of what he was doing. But that still didn't stop his emotions. He was still angry at the brunette.

"It's not worth it, please!"

He lowered his hand to his side and gave Lila a death stare.

"Touch Marinette again, and I'll kill you."

He spit the words out harshly, removing his hand from her collar. She looked up at him with a smirk, backing away from him.

"Will you? Because last time I checked, petty threats don't do anything, Chat Noir. They just piss me off even more."

Chat Noir yanked his arm away from Ladybug's yo-yo, racing towards the girl. A low growl escaped his throat.

'I'll show you petty threats!'

He thought as he held out his cataclysm in front of her but before he could touch her, she ducked under his arm and it smashed into the building beside them, instantly turning to dust.

Lila sneered at him before running off in the opposite direction. His head and ears hung low as Ladybug landed beside him.

"Cha-"

"I don't care what you have to say, she deserves it. And you out of all people should know that!"

He pulled his baton from his belt and launched himself into the sky, leaving a dumbfounded Ladybug behind.