Dark Paris: The Beginning of the Conflict - Chapter 1
The streets of Paris, embracing the night, were as dazzling as always. However, that night, the city lights were fading against a shadow that approached from afar. Ladybug and Chat Noir, two heroes who had fought for years to protect the city and faced countless challenges, trusted each other. But that night, everything would change.
The mission they were on was not a normal one. They were facing a danger they'd never encountered before, and they had to work together more than ever. While both of them carried the responsibility of protecting the city, they were also feeling a great emptiness within themselves.
"Marinette, do we have to go this far?" Adrien's voice echoed in the darkness, like a lost echo. There was no trace of his usual innocence left. He felt that they had to pay the price for everything that had happened.
When Marinette looked at him, she noticed the dark glint in Chat Noir's eyes. She had once felt the safety of being with him, but now everything seemed terrifying. Once, they were emotionally connected, but now everything had become about duty and darkness.
"Adrien, we'll make it through this together. But we have to accept that some things have changed," Marinette said, her voice trembling. "We're not the same people anymore. Over time, we're changing."
These were the words they had both thought but never dared to speak. The darkness within Adrien was slowly eroding him, and Marinette... she was too suffocating in emotional emptiness. What they felt for each other now was something far different from the innocent love they once had; it was dependency, passion, and darkness.
As Adrien took a step, his eyes glimmered again. "I know that, Marinette," he said, his hands full of power. "But something has changed. Everything is different now. This city demands more from us."
As Marinette felt the power in Adrien's hands, her unease grew. Once, they fought only for their love, but now, they were starting to hurt each other, using each other's weaknesses. No one would win at the end of this path.
Even though they both knew that, they still tried to appear strong to others, while internally battling themselves. Every obstacle they faced pushed them a step deeper into darkness. But there was one thing they both felt: This darkness might actually strengthen the bond between them.
They remained silent for a while. Both of them felt the weight of the words they had spoken. Adrien, unable to hold back the storm within him any longer, took a step forward and gripped Marinette's hands tightly.
"We'll get through this night together," he said. "Together... and we'll decide what comes after. But nothing will be the same again."
Marinette closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She knew that with him, anything was possible. But at the same time, she felt that on this dark path, they had to be together. They had become more than just heroes; they had turned into souls intertwined in their journey.
In the darkness, they took a step towards each other. Heading into a journey where nothing would ever be the same again. And with each step, they sank deeper into the unknown.
Paris… It was no longer the city of love, but the city of fear.
The sky was constantly gray, the street lamps pale and flickering. At the top of the Eiffel Tower, a throne shaped like a ladybug had been placed. Ladybug watched the entire city from there; Chat Noir, on the other hand, was wandering every corner, like her eyes. Crime rates had decreased, but the people were not free. The heroes had disappeared, and only they remained.
But as the city had fallen into silence, a crackling light appeared within time.
"Time is breaking…" Bunnyx, the Rabbit Girl, blinked as she traced the remnants of the future. Many timelines had shattered, some as if they had never existed. And in all of them… Ladybug and Chat Noir were there. Different versions of them, but always together. They couldn't stop touching each other, couldn't look away. Chaotic, wild, and passionate...
"This can't go on," she said to herself. "I need to stop both of them."
---
In a shadowy street, Ladybug walked to a rhythm. Every step she took cracked the ground with red energy, like spider webs. Chat Noir followed, watching her. In his eyes, there was not only admiration, but addiction.
"What's our next attack plan, Ma Reine?" (My Queen)
Ladybug smiled without turning around. "Come closer first, kitty," she said. "I can only make plans when you're by my side."
Chat Noir appeared behind her in a single step, his hands reaching her waist. "I'll always be with you... even if the world burns."
"It's already burning." Marinette turned her face slightly, her lips so close to his chin. "And we're in the middle of that fire."
With that sentence, they raised their hands together and reshaped a street, along with everyone in it. Now, to their eyes, it was only "beautiful."
At that moment, time stopped.
---
Bunnyx appeared before them. Her blue and white costume was worn and torn, her eyes filled with despair but determination.
"Marinette. Adrien. You can't do this. You're destroying the timelines. This world... this world is not your toy!"
Ladybug squinted her eyes, while Chat Noir crossed his arms, watching her. There was a brief silence, and then Marinette's voice came, thin but sharp:
"Is there a world that isn't ours, Bunnyx? We created this city."
Chat Noir winked. "And we did it together. We'll keep it alive... or we'll burn it together."
Bunnyx closed her eyes. "Maybe it was foolish to believe I could still save you. But I'll try."
Chat Noir gently touched Ladybug's neck and lowered his head. "What do you think? Should I tear her apart?"
Ladybug's voice flowed like sweet poison. "No... Let her dance with us for a bit first. Don't let her learn the bitter truth so quickly."
And so, the three of them stood against each other. Ladybug and Chat Noir, hand in hand, smiling. They took their battle stances, eyes never leaving each other.
But this battle, for them, was a game in the middle of love. With every strike, they locked eyes. With every dodge, they smiled. And after each clash, there was a touch, a whisper between them.
Paris might be burning… time might be shattering…
But their love was so solid that even in the cracks of the entire universe, they never moved an inch apart.
The streets were silent, but there was a metallic tension in the air. Amidst the broken stones and crumbling buildings, the wind carried the echoes of the past. Once a place where children ran, now only three figures stood in the square.
Bunnyx stood tall, as if carrying the weight of time itself. Her left hand held a time-shaped staff, glowing with blue light; in her eyes, there was a spark of determination mixed with shattered hope. Before her, Ladybug and Chat Noir stood side by side, hand in hand, like the rulers of their own kingdom.
Chat Noir lightly rested his head on Ladybug's shoulder. "This is going to be so much fun," he whispered. "Just think about it... we could be the masters of time together."
Ladybug's eyes were fixed on Bunnyx, but her fingers were wrapped around Chat Noir's. "Time should stop for us. We should slow it down, twist it, break it... just to stay with you a little longer."
Bunnyx stepped forward. "Don't do this... Please. Marinette. Adrien. This isn't you. There was always a way. I thought your love would save you."
Marinette parted her lips. "This version of us... this is exactly who I am. Our love won't save us. Our love... consumes us." She gently stroked Chat Noir's cheek. "But I want to be consumed."
Chat Noir smiled. "And I want to consume you... forever."
Bunnyx ran forward. When she slammed her staff into the ground, time trembled. Everything around them slowed, lights twisted, and shadows danced. But before she could reach them...
Ladybug turned, swinging her arm in a circle. A ladybug energy explosion hit the ground, cracking the surface and shattering the slow-motion effect of time.
BOOM.
Chat Noir synchronized with her movement and leaped. He struck his staff into the ground, sending stones flying upward. Then, he landed and, with a single leap, tackled Bunnyx. As he brought his staff down, his eyes sparkled.
"Did you really come alone?" he taunted. "And you're going to be a time warrior..."
Bunnyx crouched down, swinging her staff to shove Chat Noir aside. "I remember you. Your goodness... your heroism..."
"They were just costumes," Ladybug said, spinning mid-air before landing. When her feet hit the ground, crimson cracks spread beneath her. "We're each other's reality now."
The battle exploded.
Each swing of Bunnyx's staff tore away a piece of time, every blow bringing a different memory back. As Chat Noir attacked, a vision from the past whispered: Marinette was looking at him, smiling. But that smile wasn't as crazy as it was now.
"What are you showing me?" he growled. "Are you... showing me our weak moments?"
Bunnyx snarled. "Not weak... human!"
Ladybug appeared between them in a single step. She split the ladybug-shaped energy like a staff and struck both Bunnyx and the ground. The surface cracked. Time reversed. And together, they surrounded Bunnyx again.
At that moment, Chat Noir leaned toward Ladybug. "Shall we dance?"
Ladybug smiled. "Always, my kitty."
And the scene... turned into a dance.
The two lovers, their attacks mixed with flirtation, charged at the time warrior. Their movements seemed pre-written. Their fingertips brushed against each other, then separated, disappearing into the shadows. With every touch, an energy exploded, and every time their eyes met, an entire universe trembled.
Bunnyx was out of breath. "You two... don't deny that you know love. But you... never understood it."
Ladybug approached her, tracing Bunnyx's cheek slowly with the tip of her finger. "Love... is poison for us. But in this poison, we've become immortal together."
And Chat Noir appeared right behind her. "That's why we won't kill you. We'll slow you down. Steal your time. Make you... eternal with us."
Bunnyx stepped back. But there was no ground beneath her feet anymore. Time was bending for them.