The Miraculous Marichat

Part Six

Marinette stumbled around the dark purple void, searching for any kind of wall or barrier or anything.
"Tikki, what am I going to do?" Marinette wailed in frustration.
"Everything will be alright, Marinette!" the floating red bug proclaimed.
"I bet a lucky charm could get me out of this," Marinette mused.
"It's not a good idea," Tikki responded. "If The Magician puts Marinette in his hat and then later pulls out Ladybug, the whole world will know your secret identity."
Marinette groaned in defeat and flopped down to lay on the ground.
"So I just have to sit here and be useless?"
"Chat Noir will help you."
Before Marinette could respond to her kwami, a giant shadow loomed above her.
The young designer cried out as a giant hand reached toward her. In the next moment, she felt herself being pulled upward, a moment of weightlessness and then the sinking sensation of falling.
She blinked open her eyes to find herself sprawled across a bridge overlooking the Seine. Marinette flipped onto her back to see The Magician towering over her. A helicopter buzzed nearby and Marinette could almost feel the news camera pinned on her from the craft.
"Everyone give a hand to my lovely assistant," The Magician said with a grand gesture to the camera.
Marinette tried to flee, but upon standing, a straight jacket poofed into existence across her chest and a number of chains criss crossed her form.
Marinette gasped and tried to pull her arms from their restraints, but it was no use. A large glass box appeared around her. Small holes in the top and bottom allowed air to reach her, but Marinette had never felt more claustrophobic.
Finally, a large crane appeared on the bridge, and Marinette slipped against the walls of her box as she was lifted up and over the edge of the bridge.
Marinette gulped audibly as she saw the dark waters of the Seine rushing below her.
"Ladies and gentlemen," The Magician proclaimed to the news helicopter once more. "Today, I bring you the greatest of all spectacles. Can Chat Noir's girlfriend escape her bonds before becoming submerged in the Seine? And will her masked sweetheart appear in time to destroy the box and free her? Stay tuned to find out."
Marinette rolled her eyes but didn't bother correcting the akuma. She struggled against her restraints as her prison began to slowly lower towards the rushing water.
A dark figure darted over some of the buildings along the river.
Marinette smiled as she watched her partner spring towards the akuma.
She could hear the sounds of the battle, but could not see it as she was lowered further. She looked up desperately to try and catch a glimpse of the cat hero as the water loomed ever closer.
She heard a cry from her partner and watched in dismay as he was flung backwards, colliding with the arm of the crane which held her aloft.
Marinette cried out as the box pitched and fell, crashing down into the river below.
Freezing water immediately began rushing around her as the heavy glass box sank.
Marinette managed to get one deep breath before she was submerged completely.
The water was freezing and her ears popped in protest as she sank deeper. Marinette pulled desperately at her restraints, but they remained firm.
The box landed at the bottom of the river, kicking up silt and muck.
Marinette kicked and thrashed, but to no avail.
Tikki suddenly appeared in front of her. Marinette nodded in affirmation and the tiny kwami began to dart in and out of the locks and clasps, releasing the young girl from the straight jacket and chains.
Marinette kicked off the restraints and began pulling at the holes in the box.
Her lungs were burning. She didn't know how long she had been underwater, but it felt like forever.
Tikki tried to help, but the glass box was completely solid. No latch or door in sight.
Marinette's vision began to blur as her lungs screamed for air.
Tikki's eyes widened in worry as Marinette's fingers fell slack and she breathed in water, desperate for any air.
The last thing Marinette was aware of was a distant splash and a dark shape approaching her.

---

Chat Noir swam desperately towards his classmate. It had been too long since she disappeared beneath the surface, but The Magician had done everything in his power to keep Chat from jumping in after her.
Marinette wasn't moving. Somehow, she had managed to shed the straightjacket and chains, but she was floating limply inside the glass box.
"Cataclysm!" Chat Noir called, his voice muffled by the breathing apparatus in his mouth.
Without wasting a moment, he destroyed the box around Marinette and grabbed her around the waist. Pulling his staff from his mouth, he used it to launch the two of them out of the water. He vaulted away from the bridge and the Magician, only stopping when he felt they were far enough away.
"Marinette!" he cried as he laid her down in front of him. She was dripping wet and her face was pale. Her lips were tinged blue, probably from the cold. Chat was too panicked to notice the chill.
"Come on, princess," he murmured as he began putting her in position for CPR.
Chat had looked up how to do it ages ago spurned by fantasies of reviving Ladybug after a hard-fought battle.
Somehow he had never imagined the terror pulsing through his heart.
Marinette's had a pulse, but she wasn't breathing.
He sealed his mouth over hers and breathed for her. Waited a moment. Did it again. Waited. Again.
The third time, her chest spasmed and Chat sat back and helped her tilt to the side as she coughed and hacked.
Water, not a lot, but enough to be worrying came sputtering out of her as she coughed and breathed greedily.
"Are you alright, princess?" Chat gasped. He laid a hand on her back and rubbed gently as she shivered and coughed.
Marinette blinked blearily and met Chat's gaze. She looked dazed and confused, but the color was returning to her face.
"I'm fine," she coughed.
At that moment, Chat's ring began to beep. One of the cat pads disappeared in a flash.
Marinette's eyes grew wide, but Chat wasn't even concerned. He kept his gaze roving over his friend to make sure she was alright, intact, whole.
"Your ring," she rasped.
"Don't worry about me," Chat said, "We need to get you to a hospital."
"But the akuma," Marinette croaked right before another cough raked her form.
"No buts," Chat said as he laced his arm beneath her knees. "You breathed in water and were submerged for a while. I'm taking you to the emergency room."
Marinette looked like she wanted to protest, but was too weak to do anything except hold on as Chat bounded into the sky with his baton, ignoring the flashing of his ring.

---

Marinette clutched onto Chat's shoulders as they careened over buildings towards the hospital. The beeping of Chat's ring was growing more insistent as they arrived.
"You have to go or you'll detransform," Marinette said, a tiny modicum of strength returning to her voice as they landed just outside the emergency room.
"I'm not going to leave you," Chat said despite the rapid flashing of his ring.
Marinette squirmed out of his grasp and stood, albeit shakily, on her own two feet.
"I'll be fine, thank you for getting me this far," She insisted.
Chat's brow furrowed in conflict and he finally glanced down at his hand, seeing the last paw pad flashing dangerously low.
"Stay safe, Princess," he finally relented before rushing off out of view.
As soon as he was out of sight, Marinette made her way as quickly as possible around the side of the hospital and into an alley.
"What are you doing, Marinette?" Tikki asked as she appeared in front of her chosen's face. "Chat Noir is right, you need to go to the doctor!"
"I can't, Tikki," Marinette replied weakly. "Paris needs Ladybug."
Marinette coughed and shuddered.
"Marinette—" the kwami tried to dissuade her.
"Tikki, spots on!"

---

Something was wrong with Ladybug. After feeding Plagg and retransforming, Chat found The Magician and Ladybug near where he had rescued Marinette. Excited for the battle, Chat Noir had plunged in, ready to release this akuma quickly so he could make sure Marinette was alright.
What he didn't expect was to have to worry about his partner. He only noticed because of how familiar he was with her, but she seemed slower in her movements and was struggling to swing herself through maneuvers that were usually a breeze. When she called her lucky charm, it took her a great deal more time than usual to figure it out and the akuma caused a lot more damage than normal because of it.
As the cure raced across Paris and the white butterfly finally fluttered away, Chat approached his partner.
"Pound it?" she asked, producing the customary fist bump. Chat saw right through how tired she was.
"Are you alright, m'lady?" he questioned as he tapped his fist to hers half-heartedly.
"I'm fine!" she replied much too brightly. "No problem at all! I should get going,"
"Bug," Chat said, stopping her with a hand on his shoulder. "I know you're not alright. You don't have to lie to me. What's wrong?"
Ladybug looked back at him, her beautiful blue eyes guarded and hesitant.
"I'm sorry, Chat," she relented as her earrings beeped once. "I have a cold. It's not a big deal, but it's why I was late and why I'm not myself. Don't worry about it."
Chat gazed at his lady in concern.
"Get some rest," he said with a squeeze of her shoulder. "Even superheroes need a day off sometimes."
She smiled at that and her face seemed to glow unlike it had since the start of the battle.
"Thanks, chaton," she said before swinging her yoyo. "Bug out!"
Chat watched her go with a heavy heart. His ring beeped to remind him he wasn't in the clear yet and he scurried to an alleyway to destransform.
"Plagg, do you really think Ladybug is okay?" he asked as the tiny kwami chowed down on Adrien's reserve cheese.
"I'm sure she's fine," Plagg responded through bites. "She's tough that one."
Adrien nodded.
"What about Marinette?"
"Your girlfriend is probably fine too," his kwami reassured him.
Adrien sighed and shook his head, but didn't correct Plagg as he peeked out of the alley to check if the coast was clear.
He would go to Marinette tonight to see if she was okay. Until then, he had to play the role of a normal civilian for a while and pretend he wasn't eating himself up inside with worry.