Marinette can hear shuffling coming down the stairs. She stifles her sobs so that Hawk Moth will see her be strong in her last moments. Her mind still wants to prepare for a fight, but her body knows it has nothing left in it to do so.
The girl bites down hard on her bottom lip to keep her emotions at bay as she hears the lock mechanism click and the door creak open. She puts her head down, deciding not to give the villain the benefit of witnessing her fear.
"If you're going to kill me," She says weakly to the presence in the doorway, "Just do it and get it over with."
All of a sudden, the door slams open on the wall and a pair of arms wrap eagerly around her neck.
"Marinette..." The person says through obvious tears.
'Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, it's Chat Noir.' She realizes.
"CHAT!" She screams, her throat immediately regretting it, but she's too relieved to care.
"I can't believe it's really you!" Adrien's face is overcome with worry as he takes her face gingerly in his hands, surveying the damage across her entire body, "Oh my gosh, Marinette. Who did this to you?"
"H-Hawk Moth..." Is all she can muster.
"We need to get you out of here." He wastes no time untying her bound ankles and summoning his Cataclysm to destroy the shackles around her wrists. Chat finds himself catching her for the second time that week due to her buckling knees.
"I've l-lost a lot of blood, Chat. I don't think... I'm gonna make it." Marinette croaks, applying pressure above her right hip.
"I'm not losing you a second time! We're gonna get you through this."
He picks her up, being careful not to hurt her, and starts running at full speed up the stairs and out the door in the direction of the nearest hospital, Marinette going in and out of consciousness.
Glancing down at his ring, Chat realizes he has only three minutes left before his transformation wears off.
"Come on, Plagg, you need to hold it for longer!" He mutters under his breath. But his ring continues beeping.
Two minutes.
'Come on, come on, come on. Almost there.' He thinks. Chat jumps down from the rooftops and finally bolts through the doors of the ER.
"SOMEONE HELP! She's lost a lot of blood. An akuma attack!" He cries as soon as he crosses the threshold.
Nurses and doctors immediately take notice of the superhero in their lobby and set to work bringing out a gurney and stemming the girl's blood flow. They roll her through a pair of double doors. Chat is about to follow, but is stopped by a pair of nurses saying the staff is handling it.
His ring beeps once again, and he makes a beeline for a secluded area outside, his transformation quickly retreating right as he gets there.
Adrien leans against the brick exterior, clutching his hair in his hands, "Tikki, please tell me she's going to be okay."
"You found her and brought her here, now it's out of our hands." The kwami says simply, on the verge of crying herself.
Plagg is completely out of it, so the boy gently places him in his pocket for a catnap.
Tikki finds her spot in his other pocket, and Adrien makes his way to the lobby, checking in and waiting for any news, good or bad. He also searches up the bakery's phone number and leaves a message for the Dupain-Chengs to come immediately.
Now, to wait.
YOU ARE READING
Always Find You
FanfictionLadybug and Chat Noir have been a team for nearly three years. Although they're the best of friends, they still don't know the others' identity. After his frequent visits, Chat makes Marinette a promise on her balcony one evening, "If you need me...
