A Snap in Time

Chapter 21 (Adrien)

"Pound it!" Chat Noir stood with his fist out for Marinette and Luka to bop, his smile was wide and for the first time in months the buzz of the win was overpowering. The akuma's had gotten more difficult when Hawkmoth had begun combining the Miraculous of the butterfly and the peacock and Adrien was nostalgic for the olden days.

The seconds passed and he still stood there, Viperion and Ladybug in some sort of heated debate.

Lowering his hand he watched Marinette crumble behind the mask of her costume. He saw the strongest girl he'd ever known dissolve down to pieces. She turned her head to face him, wiping aggressively under her eyes, just below the mask, before Luka took her into his arms and held onto her.

Every fibre of Adrien's being wanted to go to her, to wrap her in his embrace instead. To let her know he was there and he would always be there, but unfortunately he had to stay on the sidelines, he had to stand back. She wasn't his to comfort.

Adrien couldn't help but link her behaviour to that of a girl who had chewing gum on her chair. A girl who'd never stood up to Chloe, and considering what had happened in class earlier ... Maybe that was the case here. Had the chewing gum happened? Had someone tried to remove it? He had no idea, but something in his gut told him he needed to find out.

His heart was progressively torn into more pieces as he watched Luka hold her face delicately in between his hands and wipe away her tears with his thumbs. The way he moved his lips to hers was so soft and slow he could hear his heart weep for what he never had but always wanted. He loved her to a point of no return, and he knew it was crazy, and he knew he was selfish, but she was his. She was his other half and this hurt more than anything.

"What's your name? Who are you?" Alya ran up alongside Chat, camera firmly placed in hands, and began to ramble off question after question, after question, but he couldn't take his eyes away from the two heroes in front of him. The two now fixed in a familiar embrace. He'd never seen Luka and Marinette like this.

He couldn't breathe. Watching them hug and kiss hurt more than anything he ever thought possible. He felt like his heart had been ripped out and trampled on. A heart that was nothing more than a means to live.

He turned his focus to Alya. He had to stop watching before he crumbled apart. "Im Ch-"

"He's no one." Luka's voice sounded from behind him and Adrien could feel him walking over. The walk was more of a stomp than Adrien remembered Luka's being. The guy was usually light on his feet, a hero with hidden skills, but this ... this was not Luka, and the realisation hit him hard. He'd been so caught up in Marinette, in Ladybug, in his girls, only to completely neglect the fact that this was different. These weren't his girls and this wasn't his dimension. He held himself back, angry at himself for his own naivety as Luka approached him.

"A word?" His voice was laced with poison. It was fair to say he'd pissed the snake hero off, big time. He nodded, following Luka over to the side, away from prying ears. Whatever was about to happen he deserved it ... this wasn't a time for him to be playing the hero, this wasn't his time at all.

"I was just helping," Chat started, "I - um -"

"I was willing to give you the benefit of the doubt," Luka said, his voice unusually calm considering he looked like he wanted to bury Chat alive, "you can thank her for that." He pointed over to Marinette who was currently speaking to Alya. "But let me just tell you this. I am the leader around here, I make the plans and win the battles. That girl over there is terrified of this job, but she doesn't give up, which is exactly why I take the burden. You haven't been there for the anxiety attacks, or that first day when she needed someone to comfort her and tell her to not worry. You haven't seen that scared little girl fumble and trip through the days to try and look like a hero. You have no idea what we've been through. I don't know where you come from but if you have any sense you would go back."

He deserved that.

He deserved it all. Luka was right he didn't know what they'd been through or what they'd done, but he couldn't stand there and see him destroy Marinette's personality like that. The girl was strong, and brave, and yes, it might have taken a while to get there, but she did it! She'd made it!

"She is stronger than you think, she would do anything to protect the people she loves."

"Don't you think I know that!" Luka shouted out. "Why do you think it takes us repeat after repeat after repeat to get things right. I don't use 'second chance' for laughs and giggles. I do it so she survives. She can't keep sacrificing herself."

"What did you just say?" Adrien asked, his eyebrows frowning with realisation.

"I don't have time for this." Luka turned to walk away, only for Adrien to grab his arm and pull him back.

"What about sacrifice?" Pulling his arm out of Adrien's grasp, Luka turned and began to walk away, breaking into a run and bounding onto the Parisian rooftops. Adrien watched as his mind began to whirl.

She sacrifices herself to win because he isn't there to do it.

"Something must die so that others can live."

Snap.

A voice sounded through his head, but he couldn't place it. The dizzy spell came and went in a flash and he quickly turned his head to see Ladybug stumble too, her eyes searching for his. It was obvious that she'd heard it too. Seconds passed by as they just gazed into each other's eyes, a conversation taking place with no words like in his world, with his Marinette. He nodded. She wanted to see him later, he could tell without asking.

But first things first, he needed to go back to the mansion. There was something there he needed to see if he could find. Vaulting away on his staff, he entered the mansion and dropped his transformation.

"What are we doing here, Kid?"

Adrien stood in the entrance way, pulling out a piece of Camembert and handing it to Plagg. There was something he was missing. Something wasn't right.

"I think ... I think I'm dead, Plagg."

"Dead?"

Adrien began to walk up the grand staircase, turning left instead of right to his old room.

"I'm not completely sure, but I think, no, I know the balance is out. She's not doing what she's meant to. She's playing my part."

Plagg didn't need to ask who 'she' was. Understanding straight away that he meant Marinette.

Adrien continued walking until he reached his parents room. If his incline was right, these next few moments were going to be life changing in more ways than one.

Making his way into the room he noticed a cot. It's white frame covered in a thick layer of dust. A dust which has been building for over thirteen years.

He took a deep breath and made his way to the object, his eyes scanning for what he knew would be there, for what had changed the balance. As soon as it reached his eyes the tremors took over his body.

In the middle of the cot sat a single white feather.