💀 pour oublier ma peine immense

[bonnechance]

It had been a long and hard three years.

Ladybug had run out of fingers with which to count the sticky situations she and Chat Noir had been in because of Hawkmoth. But finally, finally, she and her partner had him dead to rights. As time went on, they had grown desperate, and they'd made mistakes - but nothing they hadn't been able to fix. He'd made mistakes, too, and that was how the two of them had managed to track him down.

Heart pounding, she cast her gaze down at the man that had been their adversary for so long. Hawkmoth stared back at the both of them with a dark glare full of loathing. There were a lot of things she had wanted to ask him when she finally caught up to him, but there was only one question she was actually able to form.

"How could you?" She whispered, her voice ragged. She was breathing heavily - the fight had taken a lot out of her. Out of her partner, and out of their enemy, too; had it gone on much longer, they all might have dropped dead out of exhaustion. "You hurt so many people."

Hawkmoth's eyes glittered, and he pressed his lips together into a thin line. Ladybug felt something roll down her cheek - sweat, she hoped, and not blood or tears, but she'd taken a hit to the temple earlier and she couldn't be certain that it wasn't bleeding (and in fact it was). But she was in better shape than him, at least. He was beaten down, he had lost.

All that remained was to take his Miraculous and make sure that Nooroo's power never, ever fell int the hands of someone like him ever again.

His refusal to answer stirred anger in her where there had once been pity.

"Men. Women. Children. You used them all - and for what? What on earth could have been worth it? I don't understand. Explain yourself, Hawkmoth."

He didn't answer. He looked between the two of them, seething. Ladybug scowled and knelt down in front of him, curled her fingers around his brooch, and yanked it away from his suit.

The magic holding his transformation together fell apart, and Nooroo emerged from the butterfly Miraculous at long last. Ladybug cradled him in the crook of her arm and watched as the facial features of their nemesis became clear.

A well-dressed man, middle-aged. Nobody she recognized. Without his Miraculous, he should have been powerless. Defeated. Done for.

She didn't catch his smirk until it was too late.

His hand darted into the suit jacket that hadn't been there before, and his fingers closed around something she couldn't see. "I'll make you understand," He snarled, and the next thing she knew his hand emerged from the jacket and the crack of a gunshot split the air. "Perhaps now we'll share the same wish."

There was a gun in his hand, Ladybug realized, as a dull roar and the man's twisted, bitter laughter filled her ears. He hadn't aimed at her. She turned toward her partner with dread.

He had aimed at him, and his laughter was not the laughter of a man who had missed his mark.

Comments

[sunsoutpunsout]

Immediately, Adrien's smile turned to a huge grin. Sure, he'd likely be subject to some minor scolding, but he was an invalid, what could it hurt to make a mess or two?

He'd probably be happy to have him occupied.

"Tell me more," he said eagerly, brightly, the most interested he'd been in anything since the injury.

[bonnechance]

Well, she sure as hell couldn't turn back from this now.

Marinette smiled, then held up her hand to tick off ingredients with her fingers as she listed them.

"Butter, white sugar, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, flour, baking soda, hot water, salt, chocolate chips... I can get them measured out downstairs, then bring them up here so we can combine them and make the dough." She grinned. "That's the fun part, anyway. If you've got cookie cutters somewhere, we can even make them whatever shape you want!"

[sunsoutpunsout]

Adrien listened to her, his widening smile growing brighter. He was finding, all over again, that he loved listening to her talk about what she loved, the way she lit up when she was excited about something. She had everything memorized already.

"I've got some cookie cutters in the kitchen," he said eagerly. They were... of cartoon characters, something she'd recognize from when they were much younger, but still.

"You'll know them when you see them." He winked.

[bonnechance]

He seemed genuinely eager.

That settled it, she was going. With a smile, Marinette rose to her feet, stopping only to lean in and press a kiss to his cheek.

"I'll be back before you know it," she promised. "You won't even know I'm gone."

A moment later, she realized what she'd done, and he'd see her cheeks flushed a deep red before she spun on her heel and booked it for the door, eventually moving onward to the kitchen.

Haha, whoops.

[sunsoutpunsout]

Adrien's eyes went wide, his cheeks pink, and he reached up to cover the spot with his fingers.

The door closed behind her, and Adrien smiled to himself, sinking back into his pillows as he touched both cheeks, as if that would keep them from heating up still more.

... he was in such trouble. So why couldn't he stop smiling?

It faded as he thought back to Ladybug, thought about what was surely a dream, had to be a dream, but seemed so real.

I love you.

Adrien waited, unable to stop the guilty fluttering in his heart.

[bonnechance]

As promised, she returned as quickly as she could.

Marinette nudged the door open with a foot, because her hands were full with a baking sheet on which she'd balanced the ingredients, already measured out into mixing bowls. The cookie cutters were dangling from her fingers.

...She was walking very slowly, very deliberately, and it was with a great sigh of relief that she set them down.

"Whew," she mumbled. "For a second I was afraid I was going to drop it..."

[sunsoutpunsout]

Adrien drew the covers back immediately to help her, then realized that he'd probably drop everything if he touched her. He couldn't even get himself up steadily, how could he help her carry things?

Instead he held out his hands worriedly, helped her to balance it as the settled it all on the bed.

"That was close," he agreed with a laugh. "You didn't have to bring it all in one trip, you know. I could have waited."

His smile was admiring.

[bonnechance]

Marinette blushed, because he had a point.

"I know, but I was excited to get started, so I thought it'd be faster..."

Smiling sheepishly, she rubbed at the back of her head. "Anyway, um, let's do this. The first thing we need to do is mix the two sugars and the butter together... Could you do that if I put the bowl on your lap or would that be too messy?"

[sunsoutpunsout]

"I accept the risk."

Adrien reached out with both hands, eagerly, tilting it to the proper angle to make sure they were adding ingredients to it instead of his shirt.

It was harder than it looked. To make sure it was stable he'd need to almost hug it, because his lap wasn't all that even.

Adrien, however, wasn't the least bit concerned about the mess.

[bonnechance]

She giggled as she passed the bowl over to him. The butter was there already; it was a simple matter to pour in the two types of sugars once it was settled.

With a smile, she reached over and curled his fingers around a spoon.

"You just have to keep stirring until it's all smooth," she instructed. "Go on, give it a try."

[sunsoutpunsout]

Adrien tilted his head, then cautiously started to stir.

His fingers were clumsy, and though the butter was soft, it still ended up with flecks of sugar sprinkled over the sheets and his shirt. Still, it ended up accidentally being good practice in helping his motor skills come back online.

He was struggling, but determined, and soon he managed to mix it until smooth.

"Next?"

[bonnechance]

It did her heart good to see him able to manage that. With a smile, Marinette reached for one of the eggs.

"These," she answered. "We need to beat them in one at a time, so let's tag-team this. I'll break them, you stir."

[sunsoutpunsout]

Adrien nodded again, fairly sure about what she meant to beat the eggs. The wrist movements were going to be a little tough because he was still store, but he was determined to manage it.

"Ready when you are, partner."

[bonnechance]

Partner.

Marinette's eyes widened, and for a moment, her hand trembled - but she managed to steady it before dropping the egg, and instead, nodded and rapped it sharply against the side of the bowl.

Miraculously, the shell came apart in two pieces, and the egg plopped right in.

"Y-you're up!"

[sunsoutpunsout]

Miraculously.

Adrien smiled up at her. "Tag in," he added, and stirred slowly, only managing to get a little egg on his fingers before he figures out how to do it more gently, keep it from splashing out of the bowl before he stirred it into the rest of the mixture. The butter had been difficult to blend earlier, now it evened everything out.

"Switch!"

[bonnechance]

She beamed at him, rolling the second egg over in her palm as he beat the first into the dough.

"You're a natural at this!"

Cookies were easy, but he was managing this as an amnesiac, so he had to have some kind of natural talent.

Marinette giggled when he tagged her in, and struck the egg on the side of the bowl before pulling the two sides apart.

"...And you're up again, partner!"

[sunsoutpunsout]

"I have a good teacher."

Marinette's giggling was the cutest thing ever. It chased out a laugh of his own, and he stopped the spoon to accept the second egg, breaking the yolk before he stirred everything in. It smelled sweet, but still looked kind of gross.

A little bit splashed on his hand, so he reached out, threatening to wipe it on her arm.

Of course, she was much more mobile than he was.

[bonnechance]

"Eep!"

She was indeed more mobile than him, but... she didn't actually want to get away. She shifted to dodge, but didn't quite make it, and then, with a giggle, she scooped up a bit from her arm and reached out to tap his nose with it.

"...gotcha."

It wasn't like they could have a pillow fight with him laid up like this, but - a little bit of cookie dough? This was fine.

[sunsoutpunsout]

Adrien made a sound that broke his voice a little, squeaked, then laughed breathily. His ribs were starting to hurt so he had to stop, just grinning, getting his breath back as he wiped it off, tasted...

Ugh.

He pulled a face. Sugary egg was not that tasty.

"Ew," he muttered, as if Marinette were to blame.

[bonnechance]

"They'll taste better once we're done, I promise."

Had he ever eaten raw cookie dough before? She wasn't sure. Probably not, knowing Gabriel. Well, they would fix that.

"Next is to stir in two teaspoons of vanilla extract, which will make it taste amazing. Let's call a truce on the food fights until we get all the good stuff mixed in, okay?"

[sunsoutpunsout]

"Truce," he agreed, holding up a hand to illustrate his sincerity.

Cat's honor, My Lady.

It echoed unsaid in the air, as Adrien moved on to the mixing without a glimmer of recognition, at least not outwardly. He was doing everything naturally, and every once in awhile these things would pop up.

He moved the spoon aside, held the bowl out for the good stuff.

[bonnechance]

Two teaspoons of vanilla made their way into the bowl, and Marinette looked up to meet his eyes.

...he was okay. This was working. He wasn't hurting, and he was enjoying himself, and they were both thinking about something other than his injuries.

In other words? It was perfect.

While he stirred in the vanilla, she shifted away from the bed so that she could dissolve some baking soda in the measuring cup of hot water she'd brought up. "...let me know when you're ready, and I'll have more to add to the bowl."

After that, it was salt, flour, and chocolate chips, and soon enough, the batter would start to thicken up into dough.

[sunsoutpunsout]

The bowl grew increasingly more difficult to mix, the more they added things, but it also stuck together, so less made it out of the bowl and onto the sheets, or either of them. Adrien's arm was starting to get a little tired, but he held out until they finally added the chocolate chips, and it looked like cookie dough.

"I could eat the whole bowl of it right now," he decided, staring at it with utter seriousness, lips pressed together.

Maybe don't, Adrien.

[bonnechance]

"Half of it," she corrected, "because I'd get the other half."

Only... yeah, don't, because they would make themselves both sick. But just a little bit couldn't hurt, and she scooped out a small amount before offering it to him.

"Try a small taste. It's like a preview of the cookies."

[sunsoutpunsout]

Adrien's stomach was still very sensitive from his all-liquid diet, but a taste couldn't hurt him too badly. Besides, they did need to wean him off it.

With a laugh, he accepted, and leaned forward. No need to get his fingers messy. His lips touched Marinette's fingertips, and he let the cookie dough spread over his tongue with a sigh.

"Mmmmh..."