WARNING: Contains graphic-ish descriptions of violence. It also mentions some quite gruesome snaps in time that you shouldn't stop to visualize if you're...uhhhh...I don't know how to word this. Just don't visualize it.

Rating is T/M/PG13 since I'm terrible at rating things.

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Also, the timeline of this story is...well, I consider sometime after Desperada. It can be seen as happening after the season 3 finale, but I don't really care about specifics.

This is an AU.

(:)

Suspiciously, the spot next to Nino was empty. Of course, this wasn't surprising. Suspicious, sure, but not surprising that Adrien was no longer by his side. The first time Adrien had been allowed to hang out with Nino in what felt like forever, and then…

Well, the Akuma had showed up. Tumbler, if Nino remembered properly. Ladybug had shown up but three seconds later, barely managing to yell at the crowd to run before being smashed into the pavement. Nino and Adrien had taken off running down the street along with the hoards, but now…

Adrien was good at running in crowds. Nino could be tossed this way and that, but Adrien would stay, as he said, 'on your left' the whole time. So why had he vanished?

As much as Nino wanted to get away from Tumbler, who was currently battling Ladybug, he cared about Adrien more. And as a part-time superhero, he had to be brave.

Nino pivoted, surveying the area around him. Nino was near the back of the crowd - not a good defensive position - and was able to see the battle area, too.

Tumbler had Ladybug pinned; the super heroine barely supported on her elbows, one leg twisted at an ugly angle.

She was trying to struggle away, yet, alas, her leg was crippled, and she was unable to escape easily.

That was about when Nino saw Adrien. His best friend was running toward Ladybug; the hero and Akuma having yet to notice him. Nino reached out a hand, feebly trying to call for Adrien, to stop being an idiot. It wouldn't work, of course, and he knew that. The crowd, also, was ignoring the model, oblivious to what was happening behind them.

As Nino watched his best friend sprint away, his world crumbled and got flipped upside down.

For, as Nino watched in silent horror, Adrien leaped for Ladybug; leather encasing him in a sudden snap, and Chat Noir in his place. He clutched Ladybug, who hadn't even noticed him until it was Chat Noir instead, and pulled her out of the way.

His own legs barely managed to avoid being crushed by Tumbler's fists, the large being snarling at Chat Noir's apparently sudden appearance.

Nino felt his heart squeeze in his chest, restricting his movement as he tried to comprehend what just happened. Adrien, Adrien, weak, mild, quiet, obedient Adrien was Chat Noir. The same Chat Noir who regularly got beaten to death or very close to it, who was typically left in a state where he wasn't even recognizable as human anymore. That was his best friend out there who was risking life and limb for a woman who didn't give him the time of day. No, for a city which didn't even bat an eye when he got his arms ripped off. Which didn't care when he got his bottom half of his body was placed blocks away from his upper half. Heck, Nino hadn't even really paid attention to Chat Noir's consistent predicament until right this second.

And now that he properly thought about it…

Adrien...Chat Noir… whomever never got rewarded for his actions. He only got the privilege of being able to see another tortured day when the Lucky Charm healed him. He went home to a cold, icy family, to a loney meal, to an empty room. He suffered all day long.

Nino...Nino thought Chat Noir had a big family. A happy family. He thought the same about Ladybug. But were they both just depressed kids? His age? Ones that were never respected for almost dying day in and day out?!

Nino watched as Chat Noir swooped Ladybug up high to a rooftop, leaning down and carefully resetting her leg as she managed to keep her expression calm. She briefly resisted a cry of pain, and then the procedure was done. Nino briefly wondered if they often were forced to reset dislocated or even broken limbs to keep each other going.

Ladybug gave Chat Noir a grateful pat, and then the two turned to face Tumbler. The DJ bit his lip, not daring to leave the scene for fear that something would happen if he did. His legs were rooted to the spot, and he didn't dare wander even an inch away.

Captivated, he gazed on as Ladybug and Chat Noir dove down and began to weave between Tumbler's legs, tossing the yo-yo back and forth as they tried to trip Tumbler up. Unfortunately, the Akuma kept moving and kept undoing their progress, tossing punches at them when they got turned around. Yet Ladybug and Chat Noir kept avoiding the hits.

Nino regretted staying when Chat Noir backflipped over Tumbler's fist, superhero and civillian's eyes meeting. Chat Noir's eyes widened, and when he landed, he stumbled, giving Tumbler the upper hand. Fortunately, the blow he landed upon the feline wasn't as powerful as it had previously been, and it only sent Chat Noir rolling, not even breaking an appendage.

Ladybug stared in surprise at her partner, faltering enough so that Tumbler could whip around and pin Ladybug between his fingers, squeezing the life out of her. As she gasped for breath, he slammed her into the wall, and she cried out, back arching.

Tumbler released her for a moment to prepare his fist again, the female beetle so embedded in the wall of the building that she had hardly begun to teeter forward when Tumbler's fist came down.

However, when the fist came, so did the cat. Chat Noir grabbed Tumbler's hand and redirected it towards the ground with a growl of determination, driving Tumbler off-balance, then leapt for Ladybug, pulling her safely from the wall. Tumbler righted himself, then swung a punch at Chat Noir.

The feline had enough time to shove Ladybug out of the way before the fist swung into his head and knocked him into the building. Chat Noir released a scream, and then...

And then a resounding crack sounded across the courtyard, echoing off of the surrounding buildings.

Nino stared in horror as Chat Noir's body flopped to the ground, neck twisted at an unnatural angle. Because, dude, that was his bro, bro! And even though he had seen Chat Noir get punched in the face, dragged through the dirt, forcefully drowned, cough up a lung full of blood, faint from exhaustion, or get roasted alive - and that was barely scratching the surface of what the hero had gone through - it was nothing compared to the knowledge that it was his best bro who went through all of that.

A shriek that didn't sound human at all followed the thump of Chat's body hitting the ground, and it took Nino too long to realize that it wasn't him who was screaming.

On the contrary, it was Ladybug, tears rushing down her face.

Nino had never seen her look so terrified, at least, not since that one time Chat's eye was ripped out of its socket. Most of the news footage showed her being untouchable, uncaring even whenever Chat got his hair ripped out by its roots or trampled by a stampeding rhino.

Though, it was entirely possible that the news - and Alya - edited out her fear so that Paris would believe that Ladybug was never scared, because if she panicked, they panicked.

And now Nino knew she cared about his dude almost as much as he did.

It was terrifying.

Tumbler crashed away from them, laughing loudly as he retreated from the crime scene, Ladybug ignoring the chase in favor of limping over to her partner, - her leg still bothering her to some extent - and lifting him into her arms.

His neck lolled backward, like jelly, and Nino was fairly certain that human necks - and cat necks, for that matter - were not supposed to act like that. It was…revolting.

It was about then that Nino realized that the feline hero's eyes were still open, staring at nothing as they were glazed over.

Oh…oh, please, no.

No.

No.

No!

Nino choked on a breath he didn't know he had been holding, and he rushed forward, skidding to his knees beside the duo, Ladybug taking no notice of him as she sobbed into her partner's chest.

Nino tried to resist, but found himself staring into his best friend's unmoving, cold gaze. Green eyes that were supposed to hold a lot of life, and so much joy, that were supposed to sparkle.

"I-I can't hear it…" Ladybug cried, trembling as she raised her head to face Nino. "His-his heartbeat. He's…oh, sweet Tikki." She didn't do anything to fight back the tears hammering at her cheeks, quivering.

Dead.

The unspoken word.

Dead, dead, dead, dead.

Unspoken, but acknowledged by both of them.

"I need…holy Kwamis on a cracker. What am I going to do?" Ladybug ran his arm across her face, trembling. "Okay, okay. I've gotta…gotta… I need to stay with him, but the Akuma…I can't just leave Chat Noir while I go-"

"I'm so sorry!" Nino wailed, clenching his deceased best friend's hand desperately. "This-this is my fault! He saw me earlier, and that's what distracted him! That's why…oh, Wayzz... Ladybug, I'm so sorry, this is…this is-"

"This isn't-" Ladybug hiccuped, burying her face in Chat Noir's locks. "This isn't your fault, he just… every time!" She sobbed, pounding her first on Chat Noir's still chest. "Every time he says he'll be more careful, and then he gets killed again! I don't…I should have been faster! I… I… should have…"

"I'm so-" Nino tried again, but he was cut off by Ladybug clutching his shirt sleeve desperately.

"Carapace-" she started with a sniffle, rubbing at her eyes. "Nino, you're…you're Carapace, you protect! Right now, I need you to protect Chat Noir, and-and the ring. Don't let the Akuma near him, use the-the baton to call me and to fight. You've done it before, right? I-I don't have enough time to get the Turtle Miraculous; I'm sorry. I just need you to do your best, please!"

"I'll take care of him." Nino promised, breaking her off before she could go into a tangent. "I promise. I'll protect him. It's the least I can do for my best bro- uhhh, I mean, the heroes of Paris."

Ladybug luckily didn't notice his slip-up, leaning over the carcass between them to give Nino a thankful hug. She broke away, then leaned down, brushing away Chat Noir's hair and giving Chat a quiet kiss on the forehead.

"Nino's going to take care of you." She told the still body. "I'll be back soon, I promise." Ladybug hefted Chat Noir into her arms, standing up. Nino followed in her wake, and she carefully placed her partner in Nino's arms.

Nino pulled Chat Noir into a more comfortable position, watching Ladybug cast one last worried look over her shoulder before she swung away.

Quietly, Nino pivoted and hurried to the nearest alley, hoping it was secluded enough that nobody would stumble across them. He nudged any garbage on the ground out of the way with his foot, creating a clear patch on the ground to settle Chat Noir down on, carefully adjusting him so that the model was sitting up straight.

Chat Noir's head flopped roughly to the side, refusing to stay straight, his glazed-over green eyes unnerving. Nino gulped at the sight, wringing his hands in fear. What if this time, the Miraculous Cure couldn't bring Chat Noir back? What if this time, he was gone for good? What would he do then?

Nino dropped beside Chat Noir after unpinning the baton, tiredly holding it as he draped his hands over his knees, blearily staring forward as tears began to glisten in his eyes.. Quietly, he glanced down at Chat Noir's ring, admiring the way it glinted in the half-light.

His best friend was the protector of Paris. That ordinary ring, the one Adrien claimed was his mother's last gift to him before she vanished, that was the ring. That was the magical entity that granted him so much power, that allowed him to conquer so much. So tiny, yet so mighty.

Nino chuckled weakly at the sloppy rhyme, staring dejectedly at the wall opposite him, tearing his eyes from the ring.

His grip tightened on the baton, and he fiddled with it, wondering just how often Chat Noir depended on this metal stick to save his life. Nino pondered how common it was for it to be the only reason Chat Noir lived or escaped torture.

Nino conjectured how grateful he should be for the inanimate object.

He pondered if the baton was actually useful, or if it were just a burden for Chat Noir to carry.

Nino closed his eyes, visions of all the times the baton had failed to save Chat Noir. One time, it had put him in more danger, as it acted as a lighting rod for an electric Akuma, who fried Chat Noir so bad that the feline could do little more than convulse upon the ground. The baton had once gone off target and knocked down construction materials, the wood and metal reigning down on Chat Noir and killing him upon impact.

Nino bit his lip as he realized once again how much he had ignored Chat Noir's pain, how often the secondary hero had been beaten to death without anyone batting an eye. (Okay, maybe most people turned off their televisions at the gorey scenes, and/or covered their children's eyes whenever Chat Noir came on screen.)

Nino covered his head completely with his hands, sobbing into his arms quietly. Because it wasn't fair! It wasn't fair that everyone paid attention to Adrien instead of Chat Noir, it wasn't fair that nobody cared about Chat Noir, nobody cared if he died! Even Nino hadn't cared; even Nino himself brushed it off! Nino was thankful that he had seen that Ladybug, at very least, seemed to care about her partner. He had always assumed she had been like the rest of Paris. Uncaring, or, at very least, used to him constantly being fatally injured. He was so glad that she wasn't, and that she loved him, albeit not romantically.

Nino reached down and gripped his best friend's arm with his free hand, not wanting to let the hero go, even for a moment; his grip on Chat Noir was very well the only reason he didn't begin crying hard enough to lose bearing on reality.

Nino wasn't sure how long he held his bro's arm, but Chat's body had long since lost any sign of warmth and was now as cold as stone and as limp as a wet towel by the time a swarm of magical bugs came pouring into the alleyway.

The ladybugs swarmed about Chat Noir, so thick that Nino could no longer see the hero. The DJ backed off a safe distance away to watch and wait, still crouching and drying his eyes, hoping that the Miraculous Cure would work as advertised.

The ladybugs hovered around Chat Noir's body for about ten seconds, each agonizing tick seeming like an eternity of waiting. Nino bit his lip and waited, shoulders hunching.

Finally, the magic cleared away, leaving Chat Noir still unmoving, but his eyes were now closed and his neck was straightened. Nino cautiously approached the hero, reaching out a hand tentatively, but then Chat Noir's eyes flew open and he choked, back arching as he inhaled as much air as he could, inhaling sharply.

He rolled onto his stomach and coughed, spluttering weakly.

"Dude!" Nino cried, placing a comforting hand on Chat Noir's back once the feline's coughing fit had petered out. "Are you alright?"

Chat Noir released a weak cry, flinching back from Nino's hand and slapping at it weakly, pressing himself against a few garbage bags until he got herrings or his surroundings. The first thing he focused on was Nino.

"Nino?"

"Yeah, bro." Nino said, slipping down beside Chat Noir. "It's me. I…uh…didn't know you were the hero of Paris, ya know? Took me by surprise, but…haha, I guess that was the point, right, dude?"

Chat Noir blinked, then glanced down at his hands, as if confirmed that they were still covered in leather. "Uh…" Rotating then back and forth, Chat Noir made double sure he was still transformed. "Okay?"

"Oh, right, 'drien, I saw you transform." Nino noted, handing back Chat Noir's baton. "Dude, you've got to find a better place to do it then the middle of the street."

Chat Noir flinched at that, hunching his shoulders. "…yeah, I know… Nino, please…I'm…you can't tell Ladybug, please, she worries enough, and I don't…" He gulped. "I'm supposed to find somewhere safe to detransform…"

"You don't seem as messed up as I thought you'd be about a) dying, b) me knowing your secret."

"I figured you'd find out eventually…" Chat Noir admitted, sinking into himself. "I mean, I figured out you were Carapace petty quick…"

"You what?!"

"Hey, you've got to stop calling everyone 'dude' and flirting with Alya whenever you save her. And making out with her. Don't make that face, I saw you - or at least Carapace, who I'm now praying is actually you - doing that once."

"I'm not that great at keeping my identity secret, then." Nino mumbled. "But, seriously, dude, I just witnessed you get your neck snapped! That's not…that's not something anyone wants to witness happen to their bro, unless if they're psychopaths, and even then—"

"It's normal." Chat Noir mumbled, ears flattening. "I'm…I'm not supposed to…it's… I'm more surprised I only got my neck broken instead of… Nino, you're making that face again."

"'Only'?! Dude!"

"I mean…yeah? You've seen what kinda stuff happens to me Nino, and…" Chat Noir closed his eyes, whimpering and releasing a self-soothing purr. "Don't tell M'la- don't tell Ladybug. Please. She can't know that you know, or-"

"Okay, bro, lips are sealed! Just…try not to die again, it's…it's not… I've seen you die so many times now, and it just got, like, renewed now that I actually know who you are, and...dude, just be more careful!"

"…I'll try."

"Ladybug says you never go through with that."

Chat Noir tossed his head back at that and laughed. "I mean… she knows best, right? She knows me better then anyone...or, like, she did?" He winced, cat ears flattening against his head. "I'll...I'll explain everything, Nino, I promise, just don't tell Ladybug you saw me, okay? Don't let her find out; she has enough on her plate without having to worry about my identity, too."

Nino shook his head, sighing at that. "Fine, dude, I won't tell Ladybug I know. But only because you're my favorite dude. If you were anyone else..."

"Thanks." Chat Noir gratefully beamed, looking so much different than he had only a handful of minutes ago. His eyes were actually bright, and he was beaming with positive energy. He shoved himself to his feet, dusting his shoulders and legs off as he stood.

"And I'll cover you when you have to run off." Nino continued, nodding slowly as if he was thinking deeply about it. "So if you claim that you, say, have a photo shoot, I can claim that 'Yeah, my main dude has a photo shoot; here's the get out of school-for-free card' you know? But don't die again, or deal's off."

"Thanks, Nino." Chat Noir smiled, ignoring the last part of the statement. His grin showed off his fangs, letting the white teeth glisten in the alley's half-light. "You're the best, dude."

"And you're the greatest bro, bro." Nino returned, punching him in the shoulder. "I'm just glad you're okay and junk, y'know?"

"I know." Chat Noir sighed, shoulders sagging in relief before glancing at the time on his baton. "Anyway, I've got to go. If Ladybug can't find me within five minutes of the Miraculous Cure being cast, she'll panic. And I'll bet my share in Father's Will that she's going to be crying her eyes out by the time she finds me."

"Go, dude. Your lady awaits." Nino grinned, leaning against a wall. "We can have bro-time later."

"You're great." Chat Noir beamed, extending his staff to leave the alley.

And then collapsed back down as a smear of red suddenly appeared from above, smashing Chat Noir back into the ground.

"OhChatthankgoodnessIthoughtIlostyouandwhenIcouldn'tfindtherightalleyoryouIpanickedandIamsohappyyou'reokaypleaseneverdothatagainyouknowhowIgetandIcannotbarethethoughtofyoudyingagainandnowIamramblingandIamsosorrybutsogladyouaresafeand-" The red figure whimpered into his chest, refusing to move off of him.

"Shhh…" Chat Noir hummed, claws running through Ladybug's hair, smoothing out all the tangles. "I know, I know… shhh…I'm here now, and that's all that matters." His gaze carried up to Nino quietly, asking him wordlessly to give them a moment, and Nino conceded, backing off several steps but still hung around. He wasn't ready to leave quite yet.

"You were dead! Why do you keep letting that happen to you? I can't...I can't keep living like this, Chat!" Ladybug sobbed into his chest. "Why do you do this to me?!"

"Hey, hey…" he said quietly, resuming with the comforting motion against her. "M'lady, it's okay, alright? I'm here, I'm alive, you brought me back, like always! There's nothing to be sad about, because I'm breathing, right?"

"You scared me! Every time, Chaton, every single time, I think that this'll be the time where it doesn't work! And you don't even think about it, and-!"

"I do, M'lady…" Chat Noir purred, the noise barely audible to Nino, but there nonetheless. "I do, and it's worth it to me to have myself be out of action instead of you. I value your well-being so much more than my own, and so does Paris and just about everyone. I can't bring you back if you get injured. I can't purify that akuma, right?"

"Please, just be more careful." Ladybug mumbled against his shoulder, sniffling. "I don't want you to die again…"

"I'll do my best." Chat Noir murmured, claws digging into her back comfortingly. "No promises…"

"You're the worst." Ladybug hissed, drawing back, her eyes downcast.

"I know." He hummed, taking one of her hands into his, pressing his lips gently against the back of her wrist. "I have to head out, Little Bug." His eyes flickered over to Nino, telling the DJ quietly to catch up when he could. "Meet you for patrol later?"

"Okay." Ladybug acknowledged mildly, not looking at him as he vaulted away on his baton.

Once he was safely out of sight, she turned to Nino, blinking sorrowfully. "Thank you for looking after him...it meant a lot to me."

"Yeah, no prob." Nino gave her a weak thumbs-up, gaze following after Chat Noir. "Hey, do...do you know who he is? Who's risking life and limb for you?"

"No." She answered quietly, not bothered by him intruding on secret grounds. "I don't, and I think...I think it might actually hurt worse because of it? I don't know. If I knew who he was, then I could go find him afterwards and make sure he's taking it easy! Or if something happened for him once and for all, I would need to find his family, but...I don't know him! And if his transformation dropped, what if he was beyond being recognized? I don't want…" Ladybug bit her lip, staring at the sky above them. "...I don't want to be alone. I don't want to be lost without him. Nobody can replace him, nobody, but I don't think he realizes that."

Nino bit his lip quietly, and nodded, because, honestly, that sounded too much like his bro. "Yeah, uh...identity issues?"

"I don't know." Ladybug huffed with slight annoyance, shaking her head. "He keeps score of all the times he saves me, you know. I don't know why, though. It's not to boost his ego or anything. He doesn't seem proud of them. I think he's trying to make up for something, but I can't figure out what. Maybe it has to do with his social or family life, maybe it has to do with a timeline or reality I can't remember - and yes, those do exist FYI - or maybe it's just him trying to best how many times an anime character saved his girlfriend."

Nino snorted, because that last one really did sound like Adrien.

"But, anyway, his whole "protect-Ladybug-even-at-the-cost-of-my-life" phase that he's going through is getting really reckless and stupid. It's...it's getting worse. All he did originally was break a leg or something, but now...this past month has been...it's been horrible! He's getting mauled, or impaled, or even poisoned!"

Nino hesitated, before deciding against telling her that he'd been dying way longer than a measly month. She must not check the news about Akuma attacks all that much. She didn't really need to, since she was personally present for them all. (Except maybe Reflectadoll, since Lady Noire and Mister Bug were present then instead. He'd have to ask Chat Noir if it was just them switched around or temporary replacements that they were training up.)

"I can't keep trying to take care of him, and he can't keep doing this without supervision!" Ladybug tugged at one of her ponytails, groaning. Her earrings beeped, and she straightened in surprise. "I have to go. Thanks again, Nino, for taking care of him." She turned to go, but Nino reached out and grabbed her wrist.

"I'll look after him, Ladybug, as much as I can." Nino told her, knowing that meant more than she thought it did. "I'll take care of him whenever you need me to, and even more."

"Thank you." Ladybug smiled back, sadly, as if not quite grasping the statement. "You really were the right choice for the Turtle Miraculous." Pivoting, she turned around and tossed her yo-yo into the air, letting it pull her up and out of sight.

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This is a oneshot, and I will not be continuing it, so nobody should give me kitty-eyes! I will be looking away now, and you can't stop me!