Talk to Me, Princess | Marichat - Miraculous Ladybug

Chapter Thirty - In The Eye of the Hurricane

We drop down into the streets of Paris just a few blocks away from the Agreste mansion.

"Viperion, Rena, keep an eye out from the rooftops. Notify me of Nathalie and Hawkmoth if they come near. I need to speak with Chat Noir."

They nod, both jumping back up onto the roofs to keep watch for us.

"Adrien." I say softly, stepping close so I don't need to be any louder than a whisper. "I need you to go back to the house boat, and wait there. I'll save Nathalie, okay? Then I'll come by and get you."

"No, I-"

"Adrien. Please, trust me. You're in no head space to handle this, and more importantly I need you somewhere safe. You're the key to everything here."

"How? All I am is the dumb son of some self-obsessed maniac." He grits out, jaw visibly clenched. I can tell he's both hurt and royally pissed off.

"You're not dumb, and you're nothing like him. I can save Nathalie, I have an idea. It's going to require bringing you to her. As Adrien. I'll have Viperion come get you from the houseboat as Rena and I handle this. Okay?" Chat Noir slowly nods, his stubborn nature giving way to my relentless orders.

"Nathalie is coming!" Rena Rouge calls down to me, making my eyes tear away from Chat Noir for a moment.

"Okay." He says, drawing my attention back. He bites down on his lip like he's trying to gnaw away any rebuttal.

"Be safe." He adds, grabbing my elbow and offering it a small squeeze. I smile in return, tapping his cheek lightly.

"Always."

We part ways, forcing myself not to turn back and watch him retreat. It's better this way, plus if my plan works out then this shouldn't take long.

"Fall back. I'll call out if I need help." I rush forward, my hands in the air. Nathalie falters in her steps, stumbling to a stop a few feet away from me. She's decked out in all black, purple lacing around her bust and hips. With dark purple boots and gloves, she looks pretty cool.

"You want Adrien?" I call out, watching her eye me up and down carefully. "I promise to bring him to you if you fight off this Akuma."

"I could just take your Miraculous by whatever means necessary and then go get him myself." She smiles, hands propping up on her hips.

"Sure, you could try. But then I'll just defeat you anyways, and you'll never see Adrien again. You can join Gabriel in prison, and there will be no one left to look after him." She snarls as I say this, clearly striking a nerve.

"Nathalie. You are better than this. Gabriel is manipulating you and your loyalty to him. Adrien matters more than all of this. Prove to me you care about him, and this can all be over with."

"You're wrong. The only way to finish this is to give Gabriel what he wants."

"And then what? Something catastrophic happens because he defied the laws of the universe? And he goes to jail anyways? Maybe even with a harsher sentence? Do you think any of this is what Adrien wants?!" I counter her argument, trying my best to reach through to her humanity.

"No! That's not going to happen!" She yells, her nose scrunching up in distaste, eyes filled with anger. Yet I watch her lips quiver, like she's fighting back her heart break.

She's close to cracking. I can do this.

"Adrien has no one to look after him! His mom is dead, and nothing Gabriel can do will ever change that! You're the only one he has left, so prove to everyone that you're not just Hawkmoth's disposable pawn!" I yell back at her, watching her falter as she clutches her head in her hands like she did when she tried to resist Gabriel earlier.