Hello beautiful people! O. M. Goodness! I feel simply horrible for taking so long to update, but between a nasty case of writer's block and a busy summer schedule, I've had a harder time getting anything posted. I hope you all enjoy this chapter! :3

Chapter 7

Louis' jaw dropped to the floor as he stared in shock at the floating cat before him. First, Ladybug made a reappearance in Paris, then there was a freaky creature that literally 'poofed' into his life, now he would be responsible for the reappearance of Cat Noir? It was only his first day of junior year and he already had so much piled onto his plate. This cat kwami, this Plagg, pretty much just screamed in the bluenet's face that he was officially a superhero and tasked with leading a double life—things like that didn't just happen every day.

"Cat Noir? Me? The Cat Noir?" Louis repeated Plagg's statements as questions out of disbelief. Heck, there was a talking cat-thing hovering in front of him and he still didn't believe the events that had just transpired.

"Kid, you didn't tell me that you're partially deaf…" the black cat kwami retorted dryly, "So let me spell it out nice and loud for you: You, Cat Noir! You, superhero! You, save Paris from Hawkmoth! You, kick bad guy butt with Ladybug! You-"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Wait up…Ladybug? I get to meet Ladybug?" the blue-haired boy's green eyes lit up with such glee, like a child who just found out he or she can experience his or her wildest dream. "I get to fight with Ladybug! This is gonna be so—oh no, I don't know how to fight! When I throw a punch, the worst I can do is knock out a butterfly…"

Plagg seemed to take a bit too much delight in his new chosen's worrisome antics, in fact, he found it all rather amusing. Yes, this new kid of his would be much more amusing than Adrien had been.

"Actually, that works," Plagg remarked, delving into thought about Louis' self-degrading. A crash sounded from not far away, causing the cat-like creature to snap back to his original train of thought. "Lou, what're you just standing there for? Say 'claws out' then get out there!"

Louis fumbled with the silver band around his forefinger as he became at war with himself. In his brain, he went back and forth in a heated debate about whether he should do as his kwami said or not. In the end, his morality won…of course he had to protect his city from the likes of his grandfather, he wouldn't leave Ladybug to fight whatever akumatized victim was out there by herself.

"Okay, okay…just breathe, Louis…you got this…Plagg?" the nervous teenager looked to the flying cat who gave a supplementary nod of his head, causing his whiskers to bounce, "C-Claws out."

The ring flickered with light, then turned to black as Plagg was sucked into the miraculous, all the while vocalizing his hatred of the process of activating his.

"Wait! I forgot to tell you about-" before the petite kwami could finish his cry, he was completely absorbed into Louis' ring and a flash of green light engulfed him.

The bluenet had to squint his eyes to shield them from the almost blinding flashes of light and jolts of electricity. When the green luminosity faded, Louis shot his emerald eyes open. He had never felt such a rush of adrenaline before—it was like all of his senses were heightened, surpassing his norm. He figured that with these heightened senses, came amazing reflexes and perhaps the ability to move in ways he couldn't have before.

Cat Noir decided that before taking his leave to the battlefield, so to speak, he had to at least look himself over in the mirror, so casually the bluenet casually made his way to the bathroom he and Hugo also shared. Imagine his surprise when he saw himself clad in black with completely green, cat eyes.

His suit resembled the Cat Noir's before him, in that there were black cat ears on his head, the same boots, same gloves—claws would be something he had to get used to, of course—and belt tail at his hips. He didn't recognize what material his spandex-like suit was made from, however it looked somewhat familiar to what he saw in Ladybug's suit on the blog.

The major differences that he could easily pick out were the black shoulder, elbow, and knee pads with silver details that had that seemingly clung on to nothing, just rested over those joints. Cat briefly wondered to himself if they would hold up in the fight or not. Instead of a golden bell at his suit's flared collar, there was a silver bell. But, there was also his mask…it was just a generic, black mask that came to a point at the tip of his nose, but it also came down the outer sides of his cheeks in two points on either side all the way down to his jaw. Cat Noir's guess was that the four points were meant to emulate whiskers on a cat. The only thing that bugged him about his alter ego, was the fact that the long hair on top of his head seemed longer and more wild, like he just rolled out of bed and messed it up even more. He wouldn't dare let anyone see him with his hair as such a catastrophe…but heroes must make sacrifices.

Cat Noir gave a curt nod at his reflection, still not completely used to his new appearance, especially his cat-like eyes. Without hesitation, the cat-boy pushed open his bathroom window and slipped out to crawl down the side of his family's mansion.

As soon as Emma had heard the shriek from outside, she made up an excuse—a pretty lame excuse that her parents surprisingly bought—to remove herself from the room that Hugo, Marinette, and Adrien occupied. She had dashed to her room to transform into Ladybug immediately following Tikki's brief run-down on how to fight and deal with an akumatized victim as well as going into detail about her lucky charm and miraculous clean-up spell. The petite, red kwami made sure to drill into her chosen's head the importance of her secret identity and the fact that her miraculous will time out once she uses her special power.

Now, Ladybug stood above the scene of what appeared to be a boy with hammers for hands destroying whatever he could reach. He was clothed in metallic-looking spandex with a chrome bowtie, had copper skin, and black hair spiked up at least a foot high in every direction. She tried her hand at thinking up several ways to defeat him and purify the akuma, taking note of his weaknesses…for one, he moved rather slowly. Finally, the akumatized victim stopped in his tracks and yelled out for all of Paris to hear.

"Where is Fabrice?!" he cried with a venom-dipped tongue, "You dump me for Paul?! You crushed me so now I'll crush you!"

Ladybug's eyes widened as she felt a knot in her throat, fighting back tears to see what had become of her friend. She leapt down from the building top, with assistance from her yo-yo, to the street littered with demolished cars, sidewalks, store fronts, and more.

"M-Mathéo?" she voiced, unsure if that…thing…was her lifelong best friend.

"I'm not Mathéo anymore, I'm Crusher! My boyfriend decided to dump me the day after our three-month anniversary…well, I guess I should say ex-boyfriend now," Crusher boomed with fuming anger. A glowing, butterfly shape outlined his steel eyes as he went silent, as if listening to someone. "Hawkmoth wants those earrings of yours, so hand 'em over, bug!"

The spotted heroine was taken aback by the cruelty of Crusher's words, it was the polar opposite of the Mathéo she knew and loved. Grandfather, she bitterly thought, but that pause to spite her grandfather made an opening for the metallic boy to strike her with one of his large, hammer hands.

Ladybug was sent flying back and smacked into a brick wall behind her, leaving a pretty big dent and cracks. Surprisingly to her, though, the pain was nowhere near as bad as she would've expected. Not only that, but her suit remained unscathed after the impact of the blow that hit her.

She popped up off the crumbled sidewalk and ran her fingers through her free-flowing, medium-length hair. She then adjusted the ribbon that was tied around her head before brushing her long bangs back, only for them to fall forward again. Ladybug was ready to go all gangster or something similar on Crusher, but she looked up to see she was alone in the demolished street.

For the most part, the civilians had fled and or hid away from the danger, but that didn't mean the metallic boy wouldn't cause destruction and mayhem in other parts of the city. The red-clad girl unhooked her yo-yo from her waist, ready to swing off, when a voice stopped her. She was sure that all civilians had left the area, but the figure running towards her said otherwise. Once he got closer, she was able to identify ears and a tail on the teenage boy bounding over.

"Ladybug!" he called, flagging her down until he finally reached her as a panting mess. As if his blue locks couldn't look any more scruffed up.

"Let me guess…you're my Cat Noir?" she joked, reattaching her yo-yo and extending a friendly hand to the black-clad hero.

"Y-You're Cat Noir?" Cat gasped in response, gently taking her hand and placing a kiss on the back of it.

As if the action didn't faze her, Ladybug pulled her arm back and placed both hands on her hips in a defiant pose. She smiled brightly before giggling at her new partner.

"Well, I would imagine you'd be my partner…how many cat-boys are out there roaming the streets of Paris?" the brunette countered, a smirk playing at her lips.

"G-Good point…heh…um, sorry for being a bit late to the fight, I ran here as fast as I could," Cat Noir stammered as he rubbed the back of his neck as a blush tempted to play at his cheeks.

"You…you ran here? Like, by foot—or should I say, paw?" Ladybug questioned before contorting her face into one of false confusion and, in a joking manner, continued, "Why didn't you use your staff?" The spotted heroine pointed to the silver baton resting above Cat Noir's belt tail and stifled her laughter at his genuinely confused face.

The blue-head whipped his head around and snatched the cylindrical weapon he didn't realize he had. He studied the staff before bowing his head in shame; Ladybug found it amusing that his cat ears also drooped as if they were real.

"Are you kidding me right now? I must look really stupid right now," the green-eyed hero mumbled as he crossed his arms, still grasping onto the baton.

"Nope, not kitten you, but I'd stick to that mode of transportation in the future," Ladybug quipped, pointing to the silver staff and struggling to swallow her impeding laughter at her own pun.

Cat absolutely hated puns, that was true, but he didn't want to get upset at Ladybug like he did his sister and dad. Such actions of disinterest and utterances of annoyance would never win over her beautiful, bug heart.

"Heh…that was…good, I guess, funny…heh," the feline hero attempted to hide his cringe at the bad joke, but his white lie made her eyes light up with joy. Fortunately for him, Ladybug remained oblivious to his stiffness of trying to compliment her rather unimpressive humor.

"Well, let's get to purifying that akuma!" Ladybug smiled in return, "What do you say, partner?"

Ladybug and Cat Noir were on the move, chasing after Crusher across the rooftops. Since the red-clad heroine pointed it out, the cat-boy had used his staff to help propel himself forward—likewise, Ladybug used her yo-yo. Crusher had made his way to the park and had scared all civilians who previously were there, so now the space was empty. However, the empty park was no less safe from the akumatized victim's wrath.

The spotted girl landed just outside the gates to the park and crouched behind the mailbox, and Cat Noir soon joined her after. He started to get up but was stopped abruptly when a tug on his tail pulled him back behind the yellow box.

"Okay, we need a plan to save Mathéo," Ladybug asserted as she brushed her long bangs out of her face.

The blue-haired hero began to nod his when he shook it suddenly and his emerald eyes widened in disbelief. His jaw dropped as he looked to and from his new partner and Crusher, who was causing chaos and destruction.

"That's Mathéo?!" he cried and dramatically pointed an accusatory finger at the akumatized victim. Ladybug nodded and smiled sadly when Cat Noir spoke up again, "Wait…how do you know-"

"Uh, no time to explain!" the brunette cut him off, "We have to go help!"

The two young heroes agreed and raced into the park, weapons in hand, as they approached the metallic boy thrashing his hammer hands around in a frenzy.

"Hey, Crusher!" Ladybug called out from across the park, capturing his attention. The akumatized victim turned to face them and started to slowly walk towards them. "Let metal you something! We're gonna kick your shiny butt!"

Cat Noir rolled his eyes at the spotted heroine's pun and verbally groaned, too, making the girl with bluebell eyes squint at him. He was quick to flash a cheesy grin and let a fake chuckle slip past his lips, which made Ladybug smile in return and nod her head in appreciation. Once their little exchange ended, the two jumped into fighting stances.

Crusher, who started out in a slow-moving stroll, burst into a slower-paced jog and was gaining on the duo. He raised his large, metal, hammer hands in the air, ready to smash the teenage heroes to pieces. It was pretty clear that Hawkmoth had instructed him to seize the pair's miraculous.

"Hawkmoth wants that fancy jewelry of yours…it clashes with your superhero getup anyway," Crusher quipped as he still ran towards the pair, "Hand them over!"

Ladybug was quick to whip out her yo-yo and swing it around as a shield in front of her. Cat hesitated a moment before copying the red-clad girl with his baton by twirling it around; he was still impressed that the stick extended into a full-length staff for him to use. Both Ladybug and Cat Noir's eyes grew panicked as they realized how close Crusher was getting to them.

The two teenagers performed a tuck and roll in opposite directions to the side in order to avoid the oncoming attack. Rather than bashing the miraculous holders, Crusher demolished the ground where they once stood.

Ladybug, however, didn't intend to dodge the entire battle, so she hooked her yo-yo around one of Crusher's hammer hands and tugged it towards her. She realized her mistake when he started to swing his hammers at her. As the brunette struggled to hold down her akumatized friend, she noticed the chrome bowtie around his neck and how it was really the only similarity between regular and akumatized Mathéo.

The wheels turned in her head as she pieced together what her kwami told her about how akumas work. Naturally, her instinct told her the cursed butterfly was in her best friend's bowtie, and so her bluebell eyes widened with realization. Ladybug cocked her head up to yell to her partner about how to defeat Crusher, but the metal boy had other plans.

Before the spotted heroine even had the chance to call out to Cat Noir, she was pushed off and chucked at the fountain in the middle of the park. She hit the statue, causing it to crack, and landed in the water. The spotted heroine popped up and shook her head, her damp locks and ribbon swaying as she did so. Ladybug surveyed the area and watched Cat Noir fight off the akumatized victim as she thought of a way to save Mathéo.

"Mathéo!" a voice called from behind Ladybug. Curiously, the brunette turned her head to see none other than Pascal running towards the battlefield. "Mathéo!"

The teenager in the orange hoodie dashed up to the fountain and stopped when he saw Ladybug standing in the water, staring at him with worry.

"Pascal—I mean, kid…that I don't know…what are you doing here?" the red-clad girl asked him, furrowing her brows.

"My brother…his boyfriend just broke up with him to be with this other dude…Mathéo got really upset about it…then, next thing I know, he's this metal guy and calling himself 'Crusher' and he's doing…that!" Pascal frantically pointed to the akumatized boy as he thrashed around, destroying park benches, trees, pathways, and more, all while battling it out with Cat Noir.

"Well, that's good to know," Ladybug spoke to herself aloud before whispering, "Poor Mathéo." The brunette lifted her eyes to meet Pascal, his face etched with worry and fear for his twin. "You need to get out of here, Pasc—uh, past the park…yeah, just run right past here and don't look back. Cat Noir and I will save Mathéo."

"Look, lady," Pascal began with a hint of irritation in his voice, "I get that you're trying to play hero and all, but that's my brother out there. He doesn't need some rookie, little girl on her first day—I saw the news, I know you're not the same Ladybug…so don't go acting like you know what you're doing. We need a real hero to save my brother, not some 'wannabe' and her newbie partner."

The blue-eyed girl felt tears stinging in her eyes, so she turned away from her best friend—her best friend that started to make her cry with his venomous words. But she wouldn't give him the satisfaction of seeing the new girl's salty streams run down her freckled cheeks. No…instead she would put on her brave face and be Ladybug.

"Listen up," Ladybug whipped her head around with an element of power, "I'm Ladybug now, whether you like it or not, and we are the only ones who can save your brother. Yeah, it's mine and Cat Noir's first day on the job as Paris' heroes, but we're Mathéo's best chance here. If you can't give him his best chance at being saved from Hawkmoth, what kind of brother are you?"

Pascal staggered back a few steps and looked to his feet, as if conversing with himself on what to do. Finally, the brunet trailed his eyes to look back at Ladybug, but the annoyed glint in his eyes remained. He mumbled something that the red-clad girl couldn't make out, but it resembled something along the lines of 'fine'. Ladybug breathed a sigh of relief as she watched her friend backing away from the scene slowly before stopping at the gates.

"By the way, lady," Pascal spat as he started to step out of the park, "You look like a soaking mess."

Ladybug looked down at herself standing in the fountain and grunted before lifting her head to sneer at the brunet. However, by the time she did, he had already dipped out and left behind his echoing snickers. Yes, Pascal was a real confidence booster for the red-clad heroine, alright.

Ladybug shook her head free of the thought that her best friend just practically laughed in her face and called her a joke. She focused back on the fight and how Cat Noir had been thrown around, but now laid in a heap of black and silver by a tree. Crusher had made his way to the other side of the park, destroying all he could get his hammer hands on.

"Cat Noir!" Ladybug shouted as she jumped out of the fountain and ran to him, "Cat Noir, oh gosh, um…Cat Noir? Hello? You okay?"

She didn't receive any response from the blue-haired cat-boy, so she thought, Why not just do to him what I do to get Louis up in morning? Without thinking it over anymore, she held his chin in place and lightly hit his cheek. Still no response. I guess I have to hit him harder? She lifted her red-gloved hand and slapped him across the face.

Cat Noir's emerald eyes snapped open as he howled in pain, clutching a claw to his cheek where there would surely be a red hand-print. As if he didn't get beat up enough by Crusher, now his partner was slapping him around, too? Why, she was just as bad as his sister to be beating up on him.

"Ow!" Cat cried as he sat up stiffly, "Why would you do that?!"

"You wouldn't wake up?" the brunette offered weakly in return.

"Couldn't you have, I don't know, poured water on me or something?" the cat-boy whimpered as he cradled his face.

"I didn't think cats liked water," Ladybug giggled as she helped her partner to his feet.

"Yeah," Cat Noir began, "Well, we don't like getting hit in the face either."

The crashing sounds from across the park alerted both teenage heroes as they pivoted their heads around to see Crusher doing what he did best: crushing things. Ladybug thought for a moment, then turned to face the bluenet.

"Did you use your special power yet?" Ladybug inquired.

"My what?" he asked in full bewilderment.

"Your…what's it called…I think my kwami said your power is your cataclysm," the brunette nodded as she touched a finger to her chin.

"Cataclysm?" Cat Noir questioned. As soon as he spoke the word, an orb of light appeared around his right hand and black bubbles soon engulfed it. The blue-haired hero gaped at his hand, wiggling his fingers in slow-motion as if what he saw wasn't real. "This is so-"

"Look out!" Ladybug cried as a park bench came flying at the two teenagers.

Cat Noir raised his clawed hands in front of his face as Ladybug leapt to the side and used her yo-yo as a shield. The blue-haired hero's hands touched the bench, nearly catching it before it crumbled to pieces and fell in a pile before his feet. Cat's emerald orbs widened in shock, replaying in his mind how he destroyed the bench with a single touch as it came barreling at him. He figured Ladybug would be just as impressed with his newfound power, but when he turned to smile at her, she pouted and rolled her eyes as she folded her arms.

"Okay, I get that was self-defense and all, but you just totally wasted your one shot with your special power," Ladybug punched the bridge of her nose and shook her head, "Now you only have minutes before you turn back."

"Wh-What?!" The black-clad hero shrieked as he stared at his hand, now lacking the black bubbles, and then at his partner. He felt a shiver go down his back and winced at the fact that he just embarrassed himself while looking like an idiot. There goes my shot at impressing her, he thought.

"Don't worry just yet," Ladybug asserted as she began twirling her yo-yo at her side, "I still have a few tricks up my sleeves—er, gloves—uh, sleeves with gloves—um, spandex? No, that sounds weird…the point is, I still have my special power."

The superheroine launched her red and black-spotted weapon in the air as she called out, "Lucky charm!" A trail of ladybugs circled around the yo-yo's string as they climbed up to the highest point where a cluster of red and black burst into a trickle of light. Following the scatter of ladybugs, an object fell from the sky and landed in red-clad girl's open palms.

The sudden weight of the red and black-spotted, summoned object in her hands caused Ladybug to almost drop it. The brunette fixed her blue eyes on the oversized polka-dotted magnet entrapped in her dainty fingers. The red-clad heroine lifted her head and pivoted it around as she surveyed the area for an idea of how to use the given tool to defeat their foe.

"Um...does this magic stuff expect me to fight off Crusher with a magnet?" Ladybug turned to face her feline partner with a dumbstruck face.

The blue-haired superhero pondered on the spotted girl's remark and his mind melted into one of intense thought as he, too, scanned the scene. As if a lightbulb went off above his head, he snapped his fingers and grinned widely before pointing across the way where the akumatized victim started slowly making his way to the park's exit.

"Where did you say the akuma thing is?" Cat Noir asked with his hands on hips.

"I was thinking the chrome-looking bowtie around his neck," the superheroine answered as she tried to match her partner's train of thought and where he was going with his strategic question.

"Well, what are the chances that bowtie is magnetic?" the cat-boy smiled as he faced Ladybug in a proud stance for figuring out how to use the lucky charm item provided for them.

"If it is chrome, then it should be…that way we can break the object, capture the akuma, and purify it!" Ladybug squealed, giddy with the idea of saving Paris for the first time. Their plan was full-proof, so the duo was excited to successfully be heroes of their beloved city. "I must say, I'm attracted to this plan. Get it? 'Cause magnets...and attraction..."

"I get it," Cat Noir rolled his eyes, but not so obviously that Ladybug would see...if she thought he liked her puns, then she might like him back.

The bug and cat team shared a nod before running off in separate directions to sneak up on Crusher. Ladybug kept a death-grip on the large magnet as she snuck around the back side of the boy with hammer-hands whilst Cat kept the akumatized boy occupied.

"Hey! Over here, you walking necklace charm!" Cat Noir jumped up and down and hysterically waved his hands about to capture Crusher's attention. The bluenet's method proved successful when an enraged metallic boy began jogging towards him, screaming incoherent words.

As Crusher drew nearer to Cat Noir, Ladybug charged at her akumatized friend with the red and black magnet an arm's length in front of her. Crusher didn't even have time to react as the magnet pulled the chrome bowtie off from around his neck, for he was so slow-moving. As the akumatized object flew through the air, Ladybug reached up and caught it before it could fulfill the path it wished to follow to the magnet. Frozen in shock of his sudden defeat, Crusher fell to his knees and buried his face in his enormous, hammer-shaped hands.

Once the brunette's slim fingers wrapped around the chrome bowtie, Ladybug took the liberty of ripping the metal-lined fabric in two. The akuma radiated negative energy as it squirmed itself out of the object it had inhabited. Ladybug watched in awe as the creature began to flutter away, mesmerized by how the eminence-winged insect traveled a small distance before her.

"How do I capture it?" the spotted heroine inquired to herself as her bluebell orbs trailed after the akuma.

"I saw a video of the old Ladybug throwing her yo-yo at it," Cat piped up from beside his partner in crime-fighting, equally eying the dark-winged butterfly.

"If you say so…" Ladybug hummed as she unhooked her yo-yo from around her waist and chucked it at the butterfly without a second thought.

"Not like that!" the blue-haired hero screeched before collecting himself to add in a calmer voice, "I-I mean, you might wanna hold onto the string…instead of just throwing your weapon several meters away."

The brunette face-palmed as she cursed her mistake under her breath and gathered her red yo-yo from the grassy carpet it rested on. Her second attempt at purifying the akuma went more smoothly, mostly because Ladybug actually encased the black butterfly with her miraculous-given weapon and engulfed it in white light. The red-clad heroine caught her yo-yo in her gloved hands and opened the outer-most shell of the device, creating a window for a pure white butterfly to float out and ride the winds above the pair of teenage heroes.

"Well, I don't know about you, but I'm thinking that little guy butterfly far away and not transform anyone else," Ladybug quipped as she victoriously placed her hands on her hips.

Cat Noir was too enamored with the sight of the brunette standing dominantly that he completely ignored her crack at a joke. His jaw would most likely come unhinged and his mouth would catch flies as a result. The bluenet didn't mind, however, because being in the presence of this beauty made him feel close to careless about everything else around him.

"Okay," Ladybug sang, snapping Cat Noir out of his thoughts, "My kwami told me how to clean up this mess…" The spotted heroine picked up the magnet she'd previously dropped to the sidewalk and tossed it effortlessly above her head while she shouted, "Miraculous Ladybug!"

The red and black magnet dissolved into several clusters of ladybugs that swirled about the city in different directions. They erased all evidence of Crusher's damage to the copious streets and buildings throughout Paris, lastly restoring the park to its former glory.

Crusher remained on his hammers and knees when an aura of inky black lifted from his person, leaving Mathéo in Crusher's place. Confused, the boy in glasses perched himself on his feet and practically bounced up off of the ground. He rubbed his head before lifting his hazel eyes to scan his surroundings.

"Wha…what happened?" the brunet questioned, drawing the heroes focus over to him.

"Nothing that bad," Ladybug assured as she placed a hand on Mathéo's shoulder, "You were, um, akumatized…but don't worry! Everything is fine now thanks to Cat Noir and I."

The cat-boy smiled over Ladybug's shoulder at the disoriented boy and meekly waved at him, fearing that the brunet would recognize him. As it turned out, Mathéo seemed to have no idea who was under Cat Noir's mask, since he just smiled and said a simple 'thank you' to him.

"Oh, and by the way, Mathéo, your brother should be outside the park over there," the blue-eyed girl pointed past the gates where she directed Pascal to exit. Almost instantly, Mat scurried away from the superhero team of two and slipped past the gates, merrily shouting his gratitude on the way out.

"Nice work there, Spots," Cat Noir shyly commented, causing the red-clad heroine to spin her head around and look him in his cat-like eyes.

"Spots?" Ladybug giggled back.

"Sorry," Cat ran a claw through his messy, blue locks and sheepishly stared at his boots, "I probably should've run that nickname by you first."

"No, I like it," the brunette smiled before a lopsided grin twisted her lips, "It doesn't bug me at all, Rum Tum Tugger."

"Seriously?" the black-clad teenager deadpanned and folded his arms.

"You should take what you can get, Thackery Binx," Ladybug joked, "I'm gonna need more time for your nickname."

Wow...that had to be the longest chapter I've ever written that wasn't a double chapter. I always struggle with fight scenes (especially painting the picture vividly for my readers) so that was part of the reason why it took me literally three weeks on this chapter alone ;) Should I have broken this chapter up? Probably. Do I regret making such a long chapter, though? Heck to the no.

I want to thank all of you who have followed and or favorited my story- it simply warms my heart! If you would also take the time to review about what you like, what you don't like, what you want to see, or any predictions you have for future chapters, that would be amazing of you. I love reading what you lovelies have to say.

Until next chapter, toodles! :D

(P.S. Let me know in the reviews as well if you have any other pop culture "nicknames" for Cat Noir...let me know if you get the two cat references, as well!)