The plan was a bit far-fetched, even by Ladybug's standards. It was sloppy and rushed but she hoped that it would work.

If not, then everything good that's been happening to her for the past few weeks might just crumple beneath her fingers once again.

And she refused to have that happen.

Her talk with Alya calmed her nerves for a little but now they were back in full swing. It was as if someone poured a bucket of ice-cold water on her in the middle of winter.

Ladybug shut her eyes, counting to ten as she did the breathing exercises Master Fu taught her.

She unclenched her fists and forced her whole body to relax. She's got this.

If she can face akumas ten times her size alone then she can face Chat Noir.

Right?

She shook her head, "Stop it Marinette." she scolded herself, "Those types of thoughts will only set you back. Remember what Xavier told you?"

Ladybug felt the corners of her mouth twitch at the mention of the musician. "You got this," she whispered once again. "You're gonna defeat Chat Noir and then you'll defeat Hawk Moth and then you'll finally tell Xavier that you're ready to date and then you'll punch Lila in the face."

She grabbed the picnic basket, clenching on it tightly as she took one more breath in.

"You got this."

Throwing her yoyo at the closest building, she began to swing and make her way towards the Eiffel Tower. The same tower where sheknows that a certain cat would be waiting for her.

She felt the wind blowing in her face but instead of the exciting rush it used to give her, it only made the knot in her stomach continue to tighten.

It only took her a few minutes to reach the top of the tower.

Ladybug took in her final deep breath. She wished that it took longer.

"M'lady." a voice said behind her, "I knew you would come to your senses."

Ladybug didn't have to turn around for her to know that Chat was smirking. She shut her eyes for a few seconds before gathering up enough courage to turn around.

Chat Noir licked his lips the moment her eyes met his and the way he was looking at her made Ladybug feel like she was nothing but an object to him. An object that belonged to him.

Where did everything go wrong?

Chat Noir, the one person in the world that she thought she could trust with everything, was nothing but a monster deep down. He was worse than Hawk Moth could ever be.

With Hawkmoth, at least she knew that he was a villain. She knew what he wanted and the lengths that he would go to get it.

But with Chat, Ladybug didn't know.

He was manipulative. He would make you feel special with his words in order to sink his claws into your brain, hoping that with enough flattery, he could make you do everything he wanted.

He was a wolf in sheep's clothing.

Chat Noir walked closer towards her, each step purposely louder than the last.

His eyes stared at her deeply. As if she was a snack that he couldn't wait to eat.

She forced a smile onto her face, "Hey, kitty."

"Hey, bugaboo." Chat cupped her face, tracing her jawline with his claws.

Ladybug froze and this time she couldn't hold back her shudder. She saw Chat smirk and he pressed his fingernails even harder against her skin. If he pushed it an inch deeper, he would draw blood.

She could see the threat for what it was. One wrong move and he could tear her skin open.

Ladybug let him have this 'victory' for a few more seconds before leaning away, gently taking her hands off her face. "Let's eat first, shall we, Chaton?"

She purposely made her voice lower, more seductive, when she said the last word. She needed his guard to be lowered.

"Whatever you want, m'lady." Chat smirked and for a few seconds, she felt her heart stop.

That was the same smirk he used whenever he told a bad pun. The same smirk he gave her whenever they outsmarted the akuma. The same smirk that used to give her comfort now made her feel like ants were crawling all over her body.

She felt his cold hand tightly gripping her wrist.

It was a warning and a reminder.

She gave him the brightest smile she could muster, "Lead the way."

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