Adieu

Hell was about to go down.

"Stay back, Marinette." Adrien urged.

"What is happening?" The confused bluenette stuttered.

"I'll explai-"

"What on earth is a Cat Miraculous? And former Ladybug? Why does he want to kill an insect?" Marinette asked.

"Mari, this is dangerous. I want you to go home." Adrien whispered, still glaring at the man in front of him.

"What do you mean?" Mari asked.

"What he means to say is, that you should let me finish him off and then, kill you, my dear Ladybug." The man in red and black smirked.

"Me? Ladybug? Was I an insect before I lost my memories?" Marinette asked.

"Could you be any more naive?" The man groaned in annoyance.

"What-"

"I SAID I WANT YOU TO GO, MARINETTE!" Adrien screamed.

"A-Adrien...?" She whimpered.

"Bid Adieu to your loved ones. Both of you. It's going to be a long night." The man smirked.

"She's being cut off from reality, Adrien. Tell her the truth. Why are you sending her away?" The man inquired evilly.

"Because I don't want her to get hurt." Adrien spat.

"Or..."

Adrien froze.

"You are afraid of losing her again?" Marinette concluded.

"..."

"Or maybe you don't want her to see you in your true form." The man smirked.

"You don't want her to see what kind of a monster you are. Did you know, Ladybug," He spat, "that his touch is deadly? He could kill you in the blink of an eye?"

No.

No. This couldn't be happening.

Why was this bothering him so much? Sure, his cataclysm could destroy anything it touched but that didn't make him a monster.

But...

Thoughts from the night when Marinette had said Adieu to all of the world, or so it was back then, rushed into his mind. Giving him an unpleasant sense of insecurity.

She was going to hate him now.

The way he put it sounded like Chat was some kind of a murderer.

She would go away.

Drift away right from his fingers.

Like last time.

Twelve years ago.

He couldn't save her then.

What if...

What if he couldn't protect her this time too!?

His heartbeat increased by the second.

She would go. Leave him alone.

Just like-

"And what psychopath would believe that?" the calm and composed voice of Marinette Dupain Cheng broke him from his panicked trance.

She shot him a quick smile to reassure him.

He felt his heartbeat get steady again.

"Adrien has a heart as gold as his hair, okay? Even if God himself told me that he was a killer, I'd punch him in the face and teach him some respect. Speaking of which, I think the only one with any intention of killing here is you. Which make you a monster. Not him. Nothing you say will change my mind and I AM NOT LETTING YOU DO THAT EITHER." Marinette stood her ground and crossed her arms with every part of her face screaming, 'Go ahead and try.'