The Fearless Kitten | Miraculous Ladybug

Chapter Twelve - Forget Me Not

I wake up feeling astronomically better than I have in a long time. My body is still sore, and the tips of my fingers throb where my nails were ripped out. But overall, I don't feel terribly empty and my headache is much quieter for once.

I don't feel incredibly cold, either. The air is a bit nippy, sure, but nothing I can't handle on my own. The summer sun is blazing high in the sky once again, and I can relish in her warmth.

"Tikki, spots off." I say, thankful Damien didn't show up during the night to find out the truth about me. I had the Miraculous that his employer wanted so badly this entire time.

"How are you feeling?" Tikki asks as I hand her a cookie, watching her take it without a moment passing.

"Much better, thank you Tikki."

However I do notice that I look and smell awful. I'm covered in mud, blood, cuts, bruises and my hair is absolutely matted. If I had a mirror to stare at myself with, I'd probably be able to add barf to the long list of revolting substances on me.

Not the ideal way to be found, but it's better for Damien to see me like this rather than stumbling across my corpse.

Funny enough, death doesn't scare me at all. We all die one day, and it sucks but it happens. However, I found out that when you die you end up releasing whatever is in your bladder and bowels. The idea of my dead body being found in that condition?

Now that's terrifying.

"Tikki, can you please observe the area and let me know if there are signs of anyone nearby?" I watch the little Kwami light up, nodding her head confidently.

"I'll look after you, Emma. You just focus on resting until help arrives." She flies away, leaving me alone with my thoughts.

I picture Damien running into trouble on his way to get to me, and possibly getting hurt. Or worse.

If he dies, that's not on me. I refuse to let myself feel guilty. He's working with the enemy, chances are he might not even come back. Maybe him getting me set up here was his attempt to ease his conscious, and now he'll wipe his hands clean of me.

On the other hand, I want to see him thrive outside of this criminal organization he's working for. A kid his age shouldn't be involved in such serious and deadly business.

If I get the chance to ask him, I'm going to figure out how he ended up in their clutches.

Tikki flies back into our cozy hideout a little while later, and I pry my protesting eyelids open. They feel like sandpaper on my eyeballs with each blink.

"There are no signs of anyone searching for you, strangely enough. On the bright side, I found a small river you can clean yourself up at. The downside? You can't drink it, and you shouldn't get that water in your cuts. It's most likely contaminated water, you'll get sick or develop an infection." She debriefs me like a good soldier reporting back to their captain. I almost giggle at the thought of us dressed up in military gear, having the worlds most intense nerf war.

I think I've officially lost it.

"It would be great to clean up, but I really don't think I have it in me to move around yet."

"Can you use one of the water bottles to at least clean off some of your wounds?"

"It's be pointless, honestly." I shrug, looking at my arms and legs that are littered with small gashes, dried up blood and smears of dirt. "All of the wounds are shallow enough they've started scabbing over. Any dirt thats inside is trapped by now."

"Then it's best you rest up, so once help arrives we can move quickly and get you to a hospital-"

"I'm sure it's not that serious, Tikki. None of these cuts are terribly deep, I'll bet some good money that my natural antibodies can fight off any infection that may attempt to kick my ass." I smile at the little Kwami, but the concern doesn't wipe off her face. "I think I'm just gonna try to sleep some more, and we'll see how things are going later, okay?"