Candle In The Wind - Miraculous Ladybug Movie Rewrite

Chapter 13: I'm trying to crawl up and burn just right

Ladybug's entire world crumbled down around her in a way that had nothing to do with the collapsing Eiffel Tower.

She stood frozen as her partner hurtled toward the river, just a small speck of black among the masses of metal waste.

He fell so slow, it was torture to watch. So fast, she'd never reach him in time. So close, she could see his hands desperately flailing. So far away, her yo-yo couldn't swing him to safety.

Her nerves fractured like ice as she watched him soundlessly hit the surface and sink under the currents.

"KITTY!" The scream tore from her throat, and her limbs broke into a sprint before her brain could even give them the command, stumbling over the scattered debris in her desperate haste to get to him.

She took a deep breath and dove into the Seine headfirst, cutting through the waves like a bullet. Her eyes frantically scanned the water, hazy with distortion and tinted orange from the fires above.

Everything was quiet down here. So calm and peaceful. Fragments of the ruined monument floated lazily around. Even Chat - with his eyes closed, and his arms languidly spread out in front of him, as if they were reaching for her - looked like he was in a tranquil slumber.

Chat.

Heart thudding against her held breath, she swam towards him like he was the provider of oxygen, battling against the heavy body of water that dared to slow her down.

Releasing a grunt in the form of bubbles instead of sound, she shoved away the twisted scrap of metal that was pushing down on him and grabbed him around the waist with both hands, holding him securely against her. With her arms indisposed, she kicked her way towards the surface, the remaining dregs of her breath spilling out of her in another tumble of bubbles that reached the top long before she did.

Her lungs screamed as she tried to refrain from sucking in the horrid liquid. Because for all their suit's incredible powers, breathing underwater was not one of them. And the terror sweeping through her wasn't only for herself.

Ladybug broke the surface with a deep inhale, welcoming the frigid air against her damp face and within the fissures of her empty lungs. Her ears popped and the madness flooded into her senses once more: crackling fire, rumbling thunder, and strikes of lightning.

Arm still around Chat's waist, she pulled at him until his cat-ears sprung up beside her, void of motion. His limp head fell onto her shoulder, and she briefly leaned her cheek against his sodden blond hair (if only to assure herself that she had him), before casting her free arm forward and using it to slowly propel them both toward the nearest riverbank.

She spared a quick glance over her shoulder, and the frantic panic in the pits of her stomach only spun faster. The color of glowing magnum was spreading like wildfire across the river, turning soothing water into vicious lava that hissed and spat as it leered towards them.

If she didn't hurry up, drowning would be the least of their worries.

Ladybug pushed herself harder. She fought against Chat's dead weight and her own exhaustion, keeping the momentum of her kicking legs going to ensure neither of their heads slipped back under the surface. Fatigue snared through her muscles like fire, lactic acid building up until she almost felt compelled to give up and succumb to the elements.

(But even if she gave up on the whole world, she knew she'd never give up on him.)

She lunged forward with one last burst of energy and her fingers managed to grab onto the edge of the Seine's neighboring concrete like a grappling hook.