A Masked Getaway

Ladybug

Things could most certainly get worse.

When Ladybug thought she'd hit rock bottom by hitting her partner with a condom wrapper, she was surprised to see her day move progressively downhill. For example, Chat Noir had found it hilarious that she'd struck him with such an item, asking her to at least take him for dinner first, but the cringeworthy story didn't end there.

It seemed she might not have 'beef' with Adrien Agreste, but Chat Noir most certainly did. She knew at one point he had had a thing for Kagami but it seemed he was playing up for her benefit again, constantly smack talking Adrien as they swam in the pool outside their villa. She hadn't realised cannonballing could be so competitive. But there they were, splashing around as though they were in a newly-proclaimed Olympic event.

Only being able to take the slanging match between her new and old crush for so long, she snatched up her dress for the evening, taking it into the bathroom to change, along with her annoyance.

Grabbing her toothbrush aggressively, she squeezed some toothpaste onto the bristles and scrubbed the little bones like she was trying to get the black burn marks from a pan—hard and without consideration.

"Slow down, Ladybug," Tikki yelled, looping around and trying to take the toothbrush out of her holder's hand. Swatting the red bug away, Marinette continued her molar massacre with hard, uncoordinated strokes.

"No," she retorted in the most adolescent way.

"Marinette," Tikki hissed quietly, using unknown ninja skills on the toothbrush and sending it flying across the room. If she wasn't so pissed off, she would have been impressed. "What is wrong with you?"

Marinette walked to the toothbrush and grabbed it from its spot near the toilet. She'd have to bin it and get a new one now—another thing to add to the list. "What is wrong with me?" she replied in disbelief. She threw the toothbrush into the bin before walking back to the sink and cleaning her face. "Me? I'm not the problem."

Tikki placed her tiny flippers on her hips and stared Marinette down. She recoiled back from the ferocious gaze of her kwami.

"Okay, okay. Maybe I'm not handling this situation too well."

"You think?"

Never had Tikki seemed this disappointed by Marinette's behaviour. She was almost certain she was going to get sent home with a note or put her in kwami detention.

"What do you expect me to do? Adrien tells me he loves me and wants to be with me then runs back to his ex two days after I tell him no."

"You told him 'no', Marinette! That's the point! What do you expect him to do? Wait around forever?"

Marinette huffed. "He's meant to wait more than two days."

"Pot calling kettle."

"You can't compare me to him."

Tikki shook her head. "Yes I can. Two names; Luka and Chat Noir."

With a scoff, Marinette took her tee off, followed by her shorts and discarded it in a pile on the bathroom floor. "That was different."

"How?"

"I didn't love Luka," Marinette exclaimed, turning on the shower and removing her underwear.

"And Chat Noir?"

She stepped under the steaming hot water, closing her eyes as she considered how to respond to Tikki. "Chat Noir is a..." She didn't know how to finish that sentence. What was Chat Noir? Was he a growing love, or just a current infatuation?