Red String • Marichat

Chapter Twenty

Marinette couldn't find Tikki. She had skipped school today just to look for her but she couldn't find her. And her room was suffering the price.

Everything was thrown everywhere, her covers on the floor as her fabric scattered across the floor.

There was a knock at her window and she sighed in relief.

"Chat Noir, I'm glad you're-" she looked up at an unfamiliar person. "Well you're definitely not Chat Noir."

The man laughed, an ugly sound resonating through her room.

"That's right. I'm Sandman." He introduced himself and let himself in. He was about the same height as Chat, with jet black hair and dark brown eyes. His costume consisted of dark purple and black latex the clung onto his slim figure and a dark purple mask.

He picked his way through her messy room before settling himself down on her chaise. But not before moving the loose papers and fabrics on it over.

"What are you doing here? What do you want?" She questioned as she stayed by the window. The cold winter breeze blew through her room, freezing the young girl who was wearing a pair of sweatpants and a tank top.

"Easy. I came here for you. But first, I want to talk. I believe you know Chat Noir, no?"

She glared at the akuma as he asked a question with an obvious answer.

He smirked. "I'm taking that as a yes. Well then, I should expect him to come after me if I take you, correct?"

Marinette shook her head in answer as she secretly tried to dial Chat behind her back.

"You're lying." Sandman's eyes narrowed as he inspected Marinette. "Please don't try to call for him just yet. I still want to talk."

Marinette froze, her actions causing her to drop her phone.

"You're the akuma who's been giving everyone nightmares, aren't you." She asked the question that she already knew the answer to. This was a ground that she'd have to tread carefully on. She can't transform, not without Tikki, and she wasn't sure what this akuma was capable of as of yet. She's have to rely on her wits for this fight.

Easy. Be a distraction until Chat Noir gets here. He does it all the time, so it can't be that hard, right?

She was soon to be proven very wrong. And gained more respect for Chat's distraction ability.

"Yes, quite beautiful, isn't it? The screams through the night as their nightmares spread through their minds, eating them up, until you slowly end up with only two emotions. Fear and anger." He laughed at his own sick manner of amusement. "But you already knew that, didn't you Marinette? Watching Chat Noir die, saving you, as everybody watched in pity at you trying to move the blackened bricks to get to him, nobody making any effort to help."

Marinette's throat swelled at the horrid nightmare. Flashes of it ran behind the back of her eyelids like a movie screen as she tried to blink away the tears. It wasn't real, and it would never be real. She was Ladybug, Paris' badass super heroine, partner of Chat Noir. She would do everything in her power to keep him and the rest of Paris safe. So why was she so affected by this?

"Ah yes. I know your nightmare. I know how you felt. You felt scared. Scared that you had no one else to protect you. Scared that your one safe place you could call home was gone. Scared that the love of your life was gone. But you also felt anger. You hated that nobody helped, that he sacrificed himself for you. You hated yourself for not being strong enough to save him." He continued with a maniacal grin. He was enjoying this. Tearing down this girl in front of him, watching her cry in fear. There was something pleasurable in being able to pull a strong person, such as the girl in front of him, into shreds until she was nothing.

It was revenge for him. For all those times as a child he had those seemingly endless nightmares with no one to come into his room to comfort him. Leaving him alone until the day he lost it. It's not fair that everyone else had someone to come and cradle them when they cried. It's not fair that everyone else has someone to tell them it was just a dream, that there was nothing to be afraid of and that they were there for them. It's not fair that nobody cared until something dramatic happened to him.

"Now, Marinette. Do you want to do this the easy way, or the hard way?"

"Simple." Marinette answered, as she inched closer to the door leading to the bakery. "I want the way where I escape."

She dashed down the stairs and Sandman sighed. "Hard way it is."

Marinette was stopped at the from doors of the bakery by the black wolves. They had blood red eyes that seemed to glow in the dark and razor sharp teeth.

They bared their teeth at her and she ducked just in time for the wolves to leap over her. Using the counter to her advantage, Marinette hailed herself over the glass container. Unbeknownst to her, the black wolves dissipated before reappearing in front of her.

"Sweet nightmares, Marinette."

Before she could move, or even scream, black shadow looking swirls came out of his hand and consumed Marinette and she lost consciousness, entering a deep part in her mind.

Sandman sighed again as he lifted the unconscious girl up. "You just had to choose the hard way."

He walked back up the stairs to where she had dropped her phone. He scrolled through her contacts with one hand as he held her weight with his free arm.

When he found Chat Noir's emergency contact, listed under as 'The Stray', he pressed call. He set the phone on speaker and set it down on the window will as he placed an arm under Marinette's legs and held her close to him. Her kicking and crying was apparent as she thrashed in his grip with tears rolling down her face.

She was a tough one, that was for sure. Out of everyone in Paris, she screamed the least in her nightmares.

She was an enigma wrapped within a challenge, and he just loved taking down challenges.

He grinned in satisfaction as her nightmare began and Chat Noir picked up.

"Marinette? Marinette what's wrong? What's happening?"

"Hello, Chat Noir."

The line was silent for a few seconds before Chat Noir spoke again.

"What have you done to Marinette?"

Sandman chuckled as he glanced down at the squirming and terrified teenage girl in his arms.

"Nothing much. But I will say, she's a real kicker."

"Let her go!"

"I don't think you want me to do that. Now listen to me, Chat. Unless you want your worst nightmare to come true, you will meet me at the top of the Eiffel Tower at two in the morning, tonight. Not earlier, not later. Two a.m sharp." He concluded before disconnecting the call and setting her phone on her desk. He called up the wolves from the bakery. Once they got outside, he placed the kicking girl on his lap and held her against him with one arm. Lights turned on around the area and he took off in the night, carrying Chat Noir's princess to the Eiffel Tower.

It's time we meet, Chat Noir.

Hey! What do you think about Nightmare? Better get used to him. And also, this book will be ending on Chapter Twenty Three. And you guys are gonna hate me for the last chapter on the way it ends but I promise, it's to lea for a sequel.

Until next time, peace!