A Wolf's First Howl {A Miraculous Ladybug Fanfiction}

Chapter 19: Alliances

The streets of Paris were silent. No one roamed the city for an afternoon stroll nor any travelers were window shopping or glimpsing for souvenirs. Instead, citizens and tourists sheltered within abandoned buildings, houses, apartment complexes, and even stores. Some managed to peek through their windows, eagerly searching their surroundings on what was currently transpiring. A few people spotted the superheroes and the villain feet apart from them, which was a thrilling, yet horrifying sight all at once.

Ladybug and Chat Noir struggled to balance on their feet after the Akuma thrusted them towards the concrete street. Disparaître hovered before them angrily as he noticed the Wolf miraculous' motionless body laying on the sidewalk. Resting mere inches away was a black notebook cloaked in dust and pebbles. A thin, purple mask was visible on the Akuma's face, and as it faded away, he lifted his wand once again, pointing it directly at Howlene. Instantly, Chat Noir jumped in front and rapidly spun his staff, reflecting the blast from Disparaître's wand, rebounding the cloud of purple smoke back to the Akuma, which he successfully dodged. Disparaître growled with vexation, then glanced towards the horizon, pondering something maniacal that would for sure pressure the heroes into giving up their miraculous'.

"I'll be back," Disparaître stated. "I'll be much stronger and there will be no denying that you give up your precious miraculous!"

As the villain dashed away through the air, Chat Noir knelt down beside Howlene and shook her body vigorously. His eyes became red and cloudy as he forced himself to hold back tears. His black cat ears flattened as he started to lose hope, realizing that the Wolf miraculous must be imprisoned within a coma—or at least unconscious as of now. Chat Noir turned his head and faced Ladybug, who was standing directly behind him with her arms crossed.

"She's not waking up...," his voice trailed off in the form of a whisper. He gazed at Ladybug with dismay, which, out of pity, compelled her to jump in and assist Chat Noir.

Ladybug steadily approached her partner's stationary body and crouched down uneasily behind her. She was accompanied by Chat Noir, who once again attempted to sway her body. Within mere moments, Howlene's eyes slowly opened as she lifted her hand to rub the back of her head, allowing an overjoyed grin to smear across Chat Noir's face.

"Hey, Howlene, you're up! Are you okay?" asked Chat Noir anxiously. 

"I think I have a concussion," groaned Howlene as she sat up, continuing to rub her head.

"Don't worry, you're going to be alright," reassured Chat Noir with a smile. The Cat miraculous stood up, brushed some dust particles off his black spandex suit, and approached Ladybug, who anomalously disappeared once Howlene awoke.

Howlene noticed the two whispering amongst each other. She was curious to know what was so important to them that needed to be kept a secret. She would be able to eavesdrop on their conversation if it was not for her head throbbing from the impact. Instead, she turned her head slightly and noticed a black notebook placed right beside her. She picked it up, swiped off some dust, and flipped through the notebook, recognizing most of the sketches. The notebook belonged to no one other than Nathaniel.

Her ears instantly compressed. Her mind went blank for a few moments, until a memory flashed in her head. She recalled the redhead on the streets, minding his own business, until the Akuma was about to strike him and wipe him out of existence. Without hesitation, she fled the battle in order to save him, which in return, he aggressively shoved Howlene out of the way just to save her instead. As her body smacked onto the burning concrete, her vision blurred; and the last thing she noticed before her eyes rolled back was Nathaniel's body being cloaked within a purple cloud, thus turning his body into dust. The entire experience felt like it took place in slow motion.