Chapter 16:

Wind. Weightlessness. Snap.

Marinette hit the ground like a sack of potatoes. Her body stung, aching in pain.

She moaned, trying to gasp in as much air as her lungs could hold. The heat had died down, but she could still smell smoke. She hadn't gotten very far, that was evident. Patting herself down, she tried to rid herself of the last bits of flame from her remaining clothes. She cried out as she moved, thumping her burned body.

Then, she heard rustling. Somebody was close.

'Oh, please don't let it be an enemy Charm... Please, I'm already in enough pain.'

"B-back off," she managed, trying to stumble to her feet. "I-I'm warning you..."

The next thing she knew, she was swept off her feet. She yelped, gripping the person tightly.

"Let me go!"

"Ladybug, it's okay. It's me."

Blinking, Marinette looked up into their face. It was Nathanael. She breathed out.

"Fox... Oh, I am so happy to see you..."

He smiled. "Same here." Around them, the trees began to catch fire. The flames were not done with Marinette.

"We need to get out of here," Fox muttered. "Hold tightly."

"Nathanael, what- Woah!"

He took off in a sprint. Marinette wrapped herself around him, her arms linked around his neck. Pain stung her arms, legs, and chest. She wanted to scream, but she knew it would only distract Nathan from his task. As a substitute, she grasped his shirt and clenched her teeth. She risked a look over his shoulder.

The fire was chasing them. It was after her.

"We need to find shelter," she rasped, her voice spent.

"I know where we can go."

Jump, dash, weave, repeat. Dozens of trees raced by them only to be caught ablaze in a few seconds time. Finally, Nathanael's grip tightened around her.

"Hold on!"

They dropped. The weightlessness returned and Marinette's grip slackened. After a second, they hit rock bottom. Literally. Nathanael screamed out in pain, Marinette slipping out of his arms. Both tumbled over the rocks, scraping themselves on the hard ground. Marinette spun onto her back, looking up at the top of the hole they had just fallen into. Flames surrounded the opening, but due to the lack of shrubbery, it couldn't come down after them. After a few minutes, the fired died into a dying smolder of ash.

Marinette swallowed weakly, pushing herself up. She winced and looked down at her right hand. It was starting to blister.

Nathanael groaned, rubbing the back of his head.

"Mari, are you okay?" he asked.

Marinette shook her head, her arms trembling. Without even saying a word more, Nathan surged forward. He rested a hand on her back. Ladybug didn't respond to his touch. Fox was cautious with his movements, attempting to touch her where she had no burns.

"Can you move?"

Marinette shifted, then grit her teeth. The adrenaline of the fire and chase had worn off, leaving Ladybug in excruciating pain. "No," she replied between her teeth.

Nathanael bit his lip, looking around at where they were. Marinette was in no shape to climb out of the hole. Putting another hand on her shoulder, he whispered, "I'm going to lay you down, okay?"

She didn't respond immediately. Her jaw slackened, her teeth no longer clenched. She could feel her body starting to become weaker, turning itself off. Lifting her head slowly, she looked into Nathanael's eyes. Her pupils were severely dilated. She opened her mouth to say something, but as she did so, her vision blurred and began to go black.

The pain faded. She heard Nathanael exclaim something, but before she could discern what it was, she was gone. She blacked out.

* * *

Chat landed on his small balcony, tumbling into his bathroom. He wasn't sure how long he had been gone, but he was hoping less than an hour. After quickly changing and stuffing his costume under his sink, Adrien looked at himself in the mirror. His cheeks were crusted with dried tears and his eyes were red from crying.

He turned away and rubbed his eye, trying to make it look like he hadn't just been sobbing on the way back home. For good measure and so Natalie didn't question his story, Adrien wet his hair down and attempted to towel dry it. When he finished, he stepped out of the bathroom.

Outside, Nino was sitting on the couch, balancing on the edge of one of the cushions. He looked back at Adrien.

"Dude, you have to see this."

He already knew what his friend was talking about. The TV he was watching was turned on to the coverage of the Miraculous Games. The clips they were showing the audience made Adrien's stomach twist into a knot.

A camera had somehow been able to capture the entire incident with Ladybug, Fox, and the fire. Adrien couldn't pull his eyes away as he watched Marinette get trapped in the blaze, screaming and crying out for...

Him.

She had needed him, but he couldn't have gotten there in time. He had let her down and now, she was burned and helpless. That was until Fox came running in to save her. Part of Adrien relaxed when he saw that Nathanael had been there to help her, but something inside of him recoiled with a hiss. No one touched his lady.

With teeth clenched, he watched the rest of the scene take place. Fox and Ladybug had barely been able to escape the blaze by jumping into a cave behind some rocks, where the fire couldn't get to them. Once they were there, however, Marinette passed out. The burns on her body were so serious, it was hard for Adrien to look straight at them. The blood, the nerve damage...

He was visiting her. Tonight.

* * *

Marinette moaned. She rolled over, then winced as pain shot up her spinal cord. She gritted her teeth and winced as the pain of her burns came back to her, pounding her body with endless torment.

"Shh... It's okay. I'll help you."

Ladybug looked up to see Fox laying next to her. He sat up and scooted closer to her. After a few minutes of agony, Marinette finally was able to move into a position that was comfortable for her. She let out a relieved breath, then looked up at Nathanael.

"Thank you."

He smiled and shrugged. "It's the least I could do." He fell silent as he looked around at the cave nervously. A few minutes passed before he spoke again. "Marinette, I've been thinking for the past few hours and, well... I think it's time I tell you my true feelings."

Marinette bit her lip. She recognized that line and it wasn't a good sign. It was the code phrase.

Her mind drifted back to the night before the games had started when she and Chat had sat atop a rooftop and talked. For some reason, she felt like drawn to that, almost like proof that it was right. But then again, Chat had chosen to protect her in the games. Was she reading too much into it?

Yet, she couldn't let her or Nathanael die in these games. The only way to get support for the both of them would have to make them... well, together -- both literally and metaphorically. Nathan was her friend, after all.

She sighed, then gave a single nod. "Okay... but how are we going to make it look realistic?"

He smirked. "What do you mean, look realistic? It is real."

"W-what?"

Ladybug opened her mouth to say something, but the next thing she knew, Nathanael's lips were tightly pressed against hers. Her eyes widened, but before she could pull away, Nathanael pulled just enough away to whisper: "Play along."

He went in again. Marinette forced herself to shove her emotions deep down into her soul, resisting the urge to slap him. Nathanael was right, she had to play along. She finally understood his logic. A kiss would equal people rooting for them, thus helping both of them in the process. Besides, his lips were actually kinda soft...

Without passion, she kissed him in return, holding him as close as she could without hurting herself. Her fingers ran through his hair softly before he slowly pulled away. She could feel his warm breath on her lips.

"We can do this, Mari... I promise we can win this."

She nodded, knowing that he was right. Deep in her heart, she knew they could win.

Outside, something began to jingle. The pair furrowed their eyebrows and turned their attention to where the noise was coming from. Marinette moved to stand up, but Nathanael put a hand on her non-burned shoulder.

"No, stay here. I'll take care of it."

Ladybug nodded then leaned back against a rock. It supported her enough time for Nathanael to climb out of the cave, find whatever the noise was, and bring it down. With a smile on his face, he handed a small, tin canister with a note on top to her.

"It has your name on it," he reported, even though she could see that with her own eyes.

With trembling hands, she picked up the note. It read the following:

I know what you're playing at, dudette, and, by golly, don't let it backfire on you. Everyone can tell that Adrien is rooting for you. -- Nino

A spark of interest flared inside of her. She continued to open up the tin container. Once the top was popped open, she reached inside and pulled out a small jar. On top in black sharpie, it read: Fast-Healing Burn Cream.

Marinette looked up at Nathanael. He gave her a proud smile; his plan must have come together perfectly.

---

HEY HEY HEY.

GUESS WHO UPDATED??? MEEEE!!!

I hope I didn't anger anyone in this chapter. Trust me, Adrien finds out and things WILL get sorted. THIS IS JUST FOR SEXUAL TENSION. I SWEAR ON THE LOVE SQUARE AND ALL THINGS KWAMI.

And, just for proof, Nathanael is not an idiotic character. He's smart too! He can plan just as well as Mari. So yeah. I can leave now.

I forgot how much I loved writing fanfiction... I really should do it more often.

Don't forget to leave a comment and/or a vote!

And, as always, have a miraculous day!