Element of Hope - A Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Chat Noir Fanfic (On Hiatus)

Chapter Nine: Nightshade

Sophie had been having a wonderful time for the first half an hour of the dance. She and Luka hadn't stopped dancing the whole time. Just as they awkwardly began a slow dance, an akumatized supervillain landed on the dance floor and cackled evilly. "Come out, come out, Thibault. Time to face Nightshade and your deepest fears!" The akumatized supervillain, Nightshade, called out. "It's time to pay for what you did to me!"

Luka grabbed Sophie's hand and raced away from the crowd as everyone started running around in fear. "Come on, let's get to safety."

I have to get somewhere alone. I can't go with Luka and transform, or he'll find out about Barkk and Clawdette! Sophie had to come up with an excuse fast. But yet, her feet were following quickly behind the cyan blue-eyed boy. "I—Luka I need to go somewhere alone. I can't explain why, but I have to go alone."

Luka stopped, and turned around to look at the girl he loved. "No! You have to come with me. I can protect you."

"How? How can you protect me?" Sophie asked him curiously, as Viperion's face flashed in her mind. "Luka are you—?"

"Watch out!" Suddenly, Luka pushed Sophie against the wall with his body, just out of the way of Nightshade's shot from his gloved hand that would have made them face their deepest fears. When they looked at each other, they were frozen for a moment there. Their deep feelings were holding them to each other. Then, Luka found his voice. "Are you okay, Soph?"

"Y-Yeah. Fine."

Luka smiled. "Good." He took her hand, and pulled her towards the nearest room. "Now, come on. I'm not letting you out of my sight."

"No, Luka, I have to—!"

After pulling Sophie into the nearest room, which happened to be the music room, Luka pushed Sophie to sit down, cutting her off. "No, I told you. I'm going to protect you."

"Luka, I can't stay here. I'm—" Sophie cut herself off. I can't reveal my superhero identity to Luka. Not yet.

"You're who, Soph?"

Sophie shook her head. "It's nothing. I can't..." She sighed. "I can't tell you."

Luka closed the door and moved a chair against the handle to keep anyone from coming in. Then, he sat down next to Sophie before they both looked out the windows that faced out to the courtyard. Ladybug and Chat Noir had already arrived. They could hear them talking to each other.

"We're going to need the power of Second Chance because if we get hit by Nightshade's power and reveal our deepest fears, we might accidentally reveal our secret identities." Ladybug explained to her partner.

"Right. And where is Clawdette? She usually shows up by now." Chat Noir mentioned.

"Hmm." Ladybug thought as she looked around the room. "I don't know, but if she doesn't show up soon, we'll have to deal with Nightshade without her." Sophie frowned. I'm sorry, Ladybug and Chat Noir. The original duo had been twirling their weapons to fight off Nightshade's shots to try and make them face their deepest fears. "Ugh, enough of this. Chat Noir, cover me." Chat Noir jumped in front of her, and kept fighting off Nightshade's shots. Ladybug tossed her yo-yo in the air. "Lucky Charm!" She called out. The yo-yo twirled in the air and Ladybug's ladybugs swirled around before an object dropped down and Ladybug caught it in her hands. "A compact?" She opened it. "It includes a mirror. Hmm." Ladybug looked around the courtyard, which had been decorated with a stage, lights, and streamers for the Autumn Semi-Formal that Collège Françoise Dupont had been having that night. "Nothing, there's nothing showing up in my Ladybug Vision."

"What do we do, Bugaboo?"

One of the students who had been attending the dance suddenly jumped up and clung onto Ladybug in fear. "Save me, Ladybug! There are ghosts everywhere!"