Marinette smiles at her partner. "What are you doing here, Cat Noir?"
He walks over with a smile. "I heard it was Adrien Agreste's birthday today. I was out on patrol, and I saw you standing in the garden, so I decided to stop and say hi." Pause. "Hi."
"It sounds like you were the one who missed me," She teases, and Cat Noir chuckles.
"I did miss you," He admits, stepping closer. "I miss you all the time, Marinette."
Marinette's confused by his all-of-sudden affection. It must be his casual flirting—she assumes—and doesn't question it. "It's nice that you were thinking about me."
"How's Ladybug doing, by the way?" Cat Noir randomly asks, kicking away a stray rock. "She doing good?"
"What?" She asks, tilting her head at him. "I wouldn't know."
He laughs. "Come on, you two are friends, right? You don't check up on your friends?"
Marinette crosses her arms. This conversation is taking a weird turn now. "I don't know where you heard Ladybug and I were friends, but we're not."
Cat Noir's eyes darken and his intentions change as he takes a step forward. Out of instinct, she backs away. "Do you know who Ladybug is?"
Why is he asking me this? She shakes her head. "No, I-I don't. Why are you asking me all these random questions, Cat Noir?"
"Just a curious cat," He states simply.
"Know what happens to a curious cat?" Marinette counters, almost threatening, raising an eyebrow.
Cat Noir chuckles and it quickly fades into an angry glare. "I know you know who Ladybug is."
"I don't—"
Cat Noir jumps forward and her back hits the wall. She realizes how close he is as he towers over her. "I think you do, Marinette."
Marinette stares up with wide eyes. What's wrong with him? Why is he acting weird? Asking me questions about Ladybug and ignoring personal boundaries? "This isn't you—"
"You look so pretty in this light," Cat Noir whispers as he leans in close. "I never noticed before."
"I-I have a boyfriend," She whispers, hoping that'll send him off.
He leans in with a smirk. "If you wanted a kiss, all you had to do was ask. You don't need to lie."
"Did something happen, Cat Noir?" She asks, desperately wanting to find out the truth. "You're acting—"
"I'm fine," He interrupts with a wide grin. "I feel fine. Just in the mood to uncover a secret today."
"This isn't like you."
"Take it in, Marinette, because this is me," Cat Noir whispers, raising an arm and pinning it by the side of her head. "And I'm not leaving until you give me Ladybug's secret identity."
Had Cat Noir been akumatized? Is that what's making him act different? Has someone else been akumatized? Is this Copycat again? "Are... are you Copycat?"
He laughs and says, "Why can't you understand that this is me? I'm Cat Noir, not some cheap copy."
Marinette shakes her head. "No, this isn't you, Cat Noir. I know you. You're not like this. You're just some cruel imitation and I don't know what you want."
"I already told you what I want, Marinette," Cat Noir whispers, leaning in close. "Ladybug's name."
"I-I don't know," She gasps out, crying now. What the hell is she supposed to do? Transform and fight? Risk her identity in front of all her classmates inside? Adrien, included? "I don't know who Ladybug is."
Cat Noir pouts. "Oh, you don't?" He raises his hand, "Cataclysm," and as his power activates, he inches a claw close to her face. "Come on, Marinette. I don't have all day."
Her eyes widen and her chest tightens with panic. She really didn't know what to do now. All she knew was that though this may not be Cat Noir, his cataclysm is all too real. What happened to make him act this way? Maybe he's been brainwashed by an akumatized villain? "Please..."
"Please, what?" Cat Noir taunts, using his free hand to tuck a stand of hair behind her ear. "Just give me a name and I'll get out of your hair."
Angry and scared, she shouts back, "How many times do I have to repeat myself? I don't know who Ladybug is! I've never even met her in person."
"But she's saved you before, right?"
Marinette nods. "Yeah, but I mostly interacted with Cat Noir—"
"I am Cat Noir."
"No, you're not because he would never talk to me this way."
He grins. "Maybe this is just a side of me you haven't seen yet." Tempted, he moves his hands by her neck, silently daring her to rile him up, and he says, "Now, you have five seconds to give me a name before we find out what happens when I cataclysm a human."
"You wouldn't dare."
"And unfortunately for you, you don't have an indestructible suit to protect you."
Marinette's sobbing now. "Please—"
Cat Noir shoves his free hand into her shoulder and she falls back against the wall, bruising the side of her head. "Five... four... three—"
"HEY!" Marinette and Cat Noir look over to see Adrien standing there, bug-eyed and confused. He throws a potted plant at this supposed Cat Noir. He's just as confused as Marinette. "Get away from her!"
Senti!Cat-Noir wraps his arm around Marinette's neck as he drags her back, holding his activated claw close to her chest. "Careful, birthday boy. One wrong move and I might accidently touch her. Ashes don't fit back together so easily."
"Mari..." Adrien stares at her, angry and scared.
I could transform to save myself.
I could transform to save her.
No, it's too risky.
Senti!Cat-Noir shakes Marinette. "I just want Ladybug's name and then she's all yours."
Adrien freezes. He knows Ladybug's name. Would revealing Marinette save her? No, it couldn't. That's a disaster waiting to happen. He can't stop staring at his doppelganger. Why is there another Cat Noir? He didn't get an alert of an akumatized villain, so it's probably not Copycat.
"Do you know Ladybug's name, Adrien?" The sentimonster questions.
Adrien would never sacrifice Marinette. "Of course not."
Marinette takes in deep, steady breaths as she calms herself down. She slowly raises her arm, waiting, and makes eye contact with Adrien. She hopes he'd understand what she's about to do. She gently nods at him before swinging her arm back to elbow her capturer in the gut, and ducks in time as he reaches for her. "Be careful, Adrien!"
The sentimonster snickers. "Cheap trick. Cute. But I bet mine's better." He leaps at Adrien and Marinette and they both dodge his attacks. Senti!Cat-Noir kicks Adrien in the chest and the birthday boy flies on his back.
"Adrien!" Marinette shouts.
As Adrien stands up, the sentimonster charges forward with his arm raised. Without another thought, Marinette runs over and tackles Adrien out of the way. The activated cataclysm touches his mother's statue and it crumbles to ashes.
Hidden in the bushes, Mayura's eyes widen and she jumps up. "Senti!Cat-Noir, I release you from existence!"
As Adrien takes a protective stance in front of Marinette, the feline superhero disappears and a white feather takes its place. They share a worried look. It was a sentimonster? Why would Mayura create a sentimonster of Cat Noir?
Adrien turns and grabs Marinette's face. "Are you alright?"
She nods, but keeps crying. "I... I think so. What Cat Noir—I mean the sentimonster—said to me... I was so scared it was really him."
"That wasn't him. That wasn't Cat Noir," Adrien reassures her. "You know that, right? I—uh, he—would never hurt you."
Marinette frowns. "I know, but it's still scary to think about."
Gabriel comes storming out to the garden, followed by Nathalie and a few of their classmates. "What is going on out here? I—" He gasps when he sees the ashes of his late wife's statue. "Emelie..." Glaring at Marinette now, he shouts, "What the hell happened?"
"I—"
Adrien steps forward. "There was a sentimonster of Cat Noir and he was trying to hurt us. His power—"
"I don't believe I was talking to you, Adrien," He snaps at his son as he steps forward and stares down Marinette. "If what Adrien said is true, then that means that senti-whatever came after you. You put my family and my son's guests in danger, Miss Dupain-Cheng. I've invited you into my home and allowed you to date my son, but after today that's all over."
Adrien's eyes widen. "Father, you have no right to talk to her like that!"
Gabriel steps even closer and whispers to her, "If you still want a chance at the internship in New York, it would be wise to go home now before I make all of that go away."
Marinette slowly nods and avoids eye contact with Adrien. "Goodbye, Adrien," She he mumbles and runs back inside.
"Marinette! Wait!"
"Go after that girl and this party is over, Adrien. You'll never be allowed to attend that school again," His father threatens and Adrien stays put. He didn't want to, he wanted to follow her out, but getting grounded will only prevent that. "Don't disappoint your guests, son. You still have a party going on." He walks back to his office with Nathalie.
Adrien's hands form into fists as his eyes start to water. "Everyone go back to the party. I'm going to my room."
"Adrien—" Nino starts, but gets ignored.
He storms inside and goes straight to his room, grabbing his phone to call Marinette. She doesn't answer and he tries again.