DECAY (ᴀᴘ)

good luck keaton!!!! i believe in you!!!!

                        “  et ...  dèsolè,  would  ?  --------  you  mind  repeating  that  ? ”

                “   c’est  pas  grave  quand  même  !!  ”     both hands raise MODESTLY, a soft laugh clasping the undertone of his words  &.  he  leans  down  a  bit,  extending a gesture to offer help.    “  can  i  give  you  a  hand ?  ”

                         “  hey alya !  ”     he  lifted  a  loose  gesture  in  polite  goodmorning  as  she  entered,  a  warm smile tugging at both ends of his mouth   &.   he  straightened  slightly, feet shifting a little under his desk.   “ i  saw  the  footage  you  got  of  ladybug  and  chat noir  last  night.  that  lucky  charm  was  incredible !!  ”

                          malice curved the edge of words meant to  TAUNT and  STALL,   irritation rubbing the edges of adrien’s patience as his chest heaved and he elected an attempt to  IGNORE  how much his hands had started to shake. they’d never come face to face with him before, never been this close;  &.  ladybug had left it up to him to keep the FIGHT up until she could engage a PLAN C. but  —-  now that it was just him and PAPILLON, he —- why was there a ROCK lodged in his lungs where determination SHOULD be ?  

                                   a thumb lifted to swipe thickly at the blood leaking  HAPHAZARDLY  from a broken nose, straightening long enough to swing his baton over both shoulders and toss a shrug in NONCHALANCE that betrayed every inch of his skin that burned.       “   y’know, à vrai dire, when i imagined your costume, i ——– i just  thought  there’d  be  a  lot  more  BUTTERFLIES.   ”

                        previous  duties  concerned  a  little  more  with  HEROICS   fleet  a  mind  more  often  occupied  with  STARS  when  surrounded  by  her  anyway  &.  he  grins,  letting  nerves  go  slack  with  the comical  curve  of  his  mouth.  STRETCHING  leisure,  chat  braced  one  claw  against  weathered  bricks  succeeding  identical  ribbons  turned  in  the  opposite  direction,  EXHALING  on  an  only  half-joking  note  of  flirt  to  announce  himself. 

                          “  ALORS   ------------------   you  come  here often ?  ”