Quick notes

This was mostly written before season 2 started, but I was waiting for my proof reader to read it. That still hasn't happened, so I tried to proof it best I could. My apologies for typos and such.

I do not own these characters, I'm just borrowing them for now.

And if you haven't read "The Straw that Broke the Camels Back or The Return of Anti Bug" you'll probably be a little lost.

Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir 2

The Legend of the Storyteller or Switched

"Isn't it weird that Chloe and Marinette are getting along?" Rose commented to Juleka as they sat eating lunch watching as Marinette offered Chloe a pastry from her family's bakery. It wasn't unusually for Marinette to bring in food, but neither could remember the last time they had seen her offer one to Chloe. That Chloe accepted it was also amazing,

"Very much so." Juleka replied as she took a bite of her own Dupain-Cheng Pastry. She let out a little pleased noise as she ate. Rose giggled.

"I know Chloe is a meanie and all, to pretty much everyone, or at least was, but she's always been harsher with Marinette, do you know why?" Rose asked keeping the conversation going.

"I don't know. I know they've been in class together for years, but I don't think any of us where with them the first year." A surprising long sentence from Juleka. Rose smiled a moment.

"Aren't they both in love with the same guy?" She whispered. Adrian strained to hear the girls. He'd been listening to all of his classmates more often when it came to Marinette, hoping to learn more about her. He was a little ashamed of himself for not knowing more about her when he thought about it. He knew she was into Fashion, video games, and occasionally dressed up as a superhero.

"Do you really think Chloe is capable of love?" Juleka responded. Rose giggled again.

"I suppose everyone is capable of love, but it is hard to imagine her actually in love with someone." She giggled again. "Maybe they'll both be possessed by an Akuma and fight over him." Juleka shook her head, but she was smiling as she did so. Adrien groaned to himself. Why couldn't they just say a name? Why? And who does Chloe love? I mean she hits on me all the time, but I know it's just because she wants to use me to become famous.

Maybe I should have told her I knew when I had the chance. Adrien frowned and laid his head on the table in front of himself. But, no, I had to be sneaky and try to learn on my own. Why am I so stupid at times? He sighed.

"It's so frustrating!" He yelled out loud without realizing it. He noticed all of the sounds from the lunch vanished. He looked up to see everyone staring at him. Chloe stood up and walked over to him. She sat down and put her hand on his shoulder. She spoke, but he wasn't paying any attention to what she was saying, he was looking at Marinette and her annoyed expression. He realized he saw that expression a lot from her. He was pretty sure they were friends, at least friendly enough. Did she still hold a grudge about the gum on her seat? Adrian was fairly certain that he'd cleared that up with her that first week of school. She'd even smiled at him at that time too, although since then she always acted so weird around him or just looked annoyed or angry at him. What do I need to do to make sure things are cool with us? I can't admit to her I'm Cat Noir or that I know she's Ladybug until I figure out where we stand with each other as Marientte and Adrien.

"Well?" Chloe asked sounding a little annoyed.

"Huh?" He asked. Chloe actually looked a little hurt. "I'm sorry, I was lost in my own thoughts." He admitted to his childhood friend.

"Oh Adri-kins, if you have a problem and need someone to talk to, you can always talk to me. I've been told I'm really good listening." The room was suddenly filled with giggles and laughter at that statement. Chloe lifted her head and let out a somewhat angry scream, before turning and walking out of the room. Sabrina got up and ran after her. All in all, it was pretty tame for a Chloe freak out. She was certainly maturing. He glanced over at Marinette who quickly looked away from him and studied her sketchbook with Alya.

Alya, I can ask her what the deal with Marinette is. She's her best friend after all. Adrien smiled broadly as he leaned back in his chair. He would need to meet with her when she was alone, probably after school. He had a short period of time between the end of the school day and he was picked up for fencing practice.

Class couldn't end fast enough, only a few minutes left before Adrien would be able to try and get Alya alone. He'd coopted Nino into distracting Marinette so she wouldn't get in the way. The good thing about Nino, he didn't even ask why Adrien wanted to talk to Alya without Marinette around. Being that Alya and Nino had gotten closer, and Adrian knew so, he figured Nino wasn't worried about him trying to hit on her. Or has Nino noticed my sudden interest in Marinette? He wondered as he rushed out of the class behind Alya. He heard the sound of a crash behind him and grinned. Sounded like Nino used Marinette's civilian clumsiness against her.

"Alya, do you have a moment, I have a question for you?" He asked. She paused and smiled getting out her phone. "Off the record please." He added. She frowned a moment. The problem with being famous with a blogger as a classmate, she often wanted to record the goings-on in case it was blog worthy. The more hits the merrier.

"Sure, what about?"

"Is Marinette angry with me? She always acts so weird when I'm around her, and often looks at me likes she's annoyed about something I'm doing." He stated. Alya blinked confused.

"You've noticed Marinette? I mean noticed her odd reactions when you're around?" She smiled. "And you figured she's angry at you, like doesn't like you?" She asked. He nodded and frowned. It was sounding to him like he was right about it with how Alya was reacting.

"Yeah, I thought we were friends, or you know, friendly, but just sometimes, I wonder what she's thinking about, like does she secretly hate me." Alya couldn't help it, and she started to laugh. "It's not funny, and you can't tell her I asked. I feel like I'm already on thin ice with her." He added. Alya doubled over laughing.

"That's the funniest thing I've heard, Marinette hates you." She spoke through her laughter. Adrian didn't find it funny, not at all and said so.

"It's really not funny at all."

"It is, it really is, if you only knew… Marinette hates you. I'm laughing so hard it hurts." She gasped through her laughter. It took her a few moments to recover herself enough to speak and really answer his questions, but by then he was gone. Her eyes wide she saw Adrien was being carried by The Gorilla and getting a lecture from Nathalie Sancoeur.

"You were late to practice yesterday Adrien, and you're father was very upset about it. I'm sorry we had to go to such lengths today, but it is not only you who gets into trouble when you're late of miss an appointment." Alya could hear Nathalie say as they walked out of range. She could see the rather depressed look on Adrien's face as she was slung over The Gorilla's shoulder.

"Oh no." She gasped as she ran after them. It was too late. They already made it into the Limo. She pulled out her cell phone and quickly called him. Is Adrien that upset because he thinks Marinette really doesn't like him? She heard a phone ringing behind her and saw Marinette walking towards her carrying Adrien's school bag.

"Is Adrien still here, he left this behind." She stated. Alya rolled her eyes

"Figures." She groaned. "I'll have to clear things up with him later." She breathed under her breath, "Or maybe…" She smiled and louder "Marinette, why don't you deliver this to Adrien at fencing today. You know where he practices after all." She smiled sweetly.

"I'm um, not really sure that's a good idea." She remarked. "I would just make a fool of myself like I usually do. You know I can't talk to him."

"I know, but you really, really need to get over it." Alya insisted. Because I think he likes you. She added in her head. Adrien asked her not to say anything to Marinette and she felt she should, but she didn't want to break Adrien's trust either. That didn't mean that she couldn't push the two of them.

"But, but." Mariette protested.

"No buts, except maybe his in those tight fencing pants." Alya added. "You really want to see that don't you?" Marinette was actually drooling a little.

"All right, I'll do it." Marinette grabbed Alya's hand. "And you're coming with me." She started to drag her best friend with her. I guess I asked for this. Alya smiled to herself.

The pair made it to Adrien's fencing practice just as he was sitting down next to Nino, who had stopped by as well. Marinette frowned a little and steadied herself to go speak with him.

"Bug-a-boo." She heard him say. She looked up at Adrien and met his eyes. Adrian turned to Nino and continued to speak.

"Huh." Nino had asked.

"Bug-A-Boo." Adrien said again looking at her with his peripheral vision and noticed Marinette's eye start to twitch and a panicked look appeared on her face. "I heard Cat Noir call Ladybug that the last time I saw them together." He stated. He glanced at Marinette and saw her face move to a more relived expression. "I kind of think it's adorable." He added. The look of pure horror that appeared on her face after that, said it all. I think I really screwed that up. She's never going to be okay with me now.

"Um, this is yours, you left it behind." Marinette said and practically tossed his bag at him. She grabbed Alya's hand and ran off pulling her friend with her. Alya looked like she wanted to say something but barely kept up with Marinette's pace.

"Ugh." Adrien face palmed himself. Nino glanced at him, head cocked to the side.

"Dude, you okay?" He asked, concerned for his friend.

"I guess." He sighed. Nino shook his head. "Dude, just tell her."

"What?" Adrien looked panicked.

"Never mind."

"We're not the American news media, you can't just make up stories and put them in the paper!" The head editor of the Paris Newspaper yelled at Sherrie Roux. She'd been caught for the third time, making up a sensational story to put in the paper. "This is the third lawsuit I've had to deal with. What is it the American's you're so fond of emulating say, Third Strike and You're Out. Clean out your desk and don't darken my door any longer."

"You'll regret this." Sherrie stated as she turned and slammed the door behind her. A crack formed in the glass. Sherrie went to her desk a pulled out all of her personal items, while considering how hard it would be to download some Malware into the newspaper's servers before she left. She finished and left the office without doing anything malicious.

"How dare he fire me over a few made up facts." She grumbled as she walked through the park. "I'll show him, I'll make him pay." She stated as she swung her favorite pen around. It was a gift she received from her father when she graduated university. She always used it to take notes, or in many recent cases, make up notes for her articles. She squeezed her hand on it as a butterfly with a dark glow landed on it. She watched as it merged with her pen.

"Storyteller, I am Hawkmoth. I can give you the power to get revenge on your editor, with the ability to, unlike the so-called Journalists in American, make your false narratives come to life. All you have to get is retrieve the Miraculouses from Ladybug and Cat Noir."

"I will do as you ask." Storyteller replied with a smile as she transformed. Her short cropped brown hair turned yellow as her cream colored pantsuit changed into a newsprint dress with a slit along the left side, with neon filled images as the photos. "And I will have my revenge!" She cackled.

"A what?" Adrien asked the TV and he turned to face it.

"You heard me, a giant Cyclops is attacking the Paris Newspaper Office." The reporter repeated almost as if she were answering his question."

"Claws out Plagg." He cried as posed for transformation. Once he'd changed, he stopped briefly to grab a couple of individually wrapped snack sized cheeses from his mini-fridge and slipped them into the hidden pockets of his costume. He quickly made his way out into the real world, jumping from rooftop to rooftop or using his pole to vault over the larger gaps. It didn't take him long to reach the building that housed the paper. He quickly spotted Ladybug as she landed on a nearby roof.

"Ah, Bug-A-Boo, I'm happy to see you here already." He stated and realized what he'd said. He really wanted to stop calling her that since she hated it so much and he could tell how much she did when he saw Marinette's reaction. He looked at her expecting to see her eye twitch, instead he noticed something odd instead. She's Blushing? What the Hell? He wondered.

"Cat Noir, lets try and take care of this quickly." She remarked and started to swing her yo-yo.

"Of course, My Lady." He replied as the two headed towards Giant Cyclops. "Do you see anything that is likely holding the Akuma?" He added they got closer.

"No, I do not. We'll just have to play it by ear." She swung her Yo-yo up up towards a rooftop so she could swing at the giant Cyclopes' head. She placed a kick to it's head as Cat Noir stuck his staff between it's legs. The Cyclopes fell and fell hard. As Ladybug landed next to Cat Noir, the creature vanished. The pair stared at the spot it had fallen and the cracks left behind in the concrete.

"Ohhhh kay My Lady, where did it go?"

"I have no idea. It must have been some creation, not the actual Akumatized victim." She replied always feeling stupid for being put in a position to state the obvious. She started to look around for any sign of someone who might have been controlling the creature. "Lets split up and search." She suggested. Cat Noir nodded as they both headed in opposite directions. Since neither of them used their powers they were able to stay transformed for hours as they searched. Unfortunately they did not find anything and eventually had to give up.

"Did you see the story I linked to my Ladyblog?" Alya asked as Marinette took her seat in class. Marinette shook her head. She would never admit it to Alya, but she rarely looked at the Ladyblog. She lived most of the stories on there. Alya showed her the link on her phone.

"Ladybug and Cat Noir Leave Massive Damage" She read the headline out loud and continued with the story. It appears that Paris's young heroes decided not to use their powers to fix the destruction they caused in their battle." As she read, Marinette's voice became louder with anger. "Who writes this kind of garbage? Ladybug and Cat Noir wouldn't leave a mess like that if they could help it." She cried.

"I know, I thought it was strange when I saw it." Alya remarked. More students started to pour in. Marinette was about to go on when Adrien walking in the door with Nino, Distracted her. Alya just shook her head at the googely eyes her best friend was showing. Alya knew it would be a while before she would be able to get Marinette's mind someplace else.

"Okay Class, settle down. Now I want to pair everyone up for a project." Alya smiled and shoved Marinette over the table and onto the bench, upside-down next to Adrien.

"Nino, quick up here." She exclaimed to pull Nino away from Adrien. The teacher sighed audibly watching the antics of some of her students. At least Chloe and Marinette aren't going at each other's throats yet.

"Um, do you need some help?" Adrien asked turning to look at Marinette's rear end at face level while her head under the desk and her arms the only thing holding her up and keeping her from totally sliding under it.

"This is so embarrassing." She whispered to herself. "Yes, please." She said a little louder. Adrien helped her sort herself out so she was sitting on the bench next to him. Marinette did her best to not mimic a giggling fan-girl, but failed miserably at the start of the project. Adrien kept giving her odd looks, truly confused by her giggling persona, compared to the more irritated one he was use to seeing from her. Sometimes he wished she was as transparent as Chloe, who obviously only wanted to use him to gain fame for herself. They'd been friends well before he started really modeling for his father, but he'd noticed her getting a little jealous of it, especially after his father rejected her as a model candidate.

By the end of the project, Mariette had recovered her sensibilities and worked well with Adrien on it. Much to her disappointment, they managed to finish it in class, which meant they didn't have to get together outside of class. She sighed softly and looked back at Alya and Nino, who both gave her a thumbs up. She responded with an irritated glance. Unfortunately for her, Adrien choose that moment to look back at her, thinking she was once again annoyed with him, causing him to frown. That in turn gave Marinette the impression that he was unhappy with her. It was a vicious circle, that could only be fixed by telling the truth, so naturally, it wouldn't be fixed anytime soon by either of them.

Two days in a row, an enemy had attacked the city of Paris, and two days in a row, the enemy vanished when Ladybug and Cat Noir tried to defeat it. Two days worth of Damage around Paris that went unfixed because neither of the teen superheroes were able to find the mastermind behind the attacks. Whoever was behind it, was staying well hidden. Ladybug and Cat Noir were both a little frazzled.

"Storyteller, I am feeling a little impatient with you." Hawkmoth stated as he spoke to his Akumatized warrior. "Why don't you just write that they handed over their miraculouses?"

"I tried that Hawkmoth. It didn't work. My powers seem to need some more of a basis to them. I've been trying test the limits of my powers as well as turn the people of Paris against them. It's a slow process, but it's working. I have a new plan to try and defeat them." She explained with a smile.

Marinette woke up and yawned. She was a little surprised to see that Tiki wasn't already flittering around the room as she tended to do. Something felt a little off to her though. She raised her hand to her ear and felt nothing. Her eyes opened wide as she checked her other ear. Both of her earrings were gone. She panicked as she started to rip apart her bed searching for them. She stopped there breathing hard while she was looking around the room. On her desk was a box similar to the one that her Miraculous was originally in. Well not quite, it was a different color. She opened it up and saw inside was a ring.

"Is that Cat Noir's ring?" She asked aloud. As she touched it, a small flying black cat thing appeared.

"What happened, why was I in the box A…" Plagg started to say and froze when he saw Marinette. The Kwami started to look around quickly.

"That's what I'd like to know." Marinette replied. "You're Cat Noir's Kwami, aren't you?" She asked. Plagg nodded, keeping surprisingly quiet and looking around concerned. Marinette suddenly freaked out. "What am I saying, I have no idea what a Kwami is, none what so ever." She added and frowned. "You can't tell him anything." She stated when she saw the look on Plagg's face.

"I won't tell him anything." He replied with another nod. "Do you have any Camembert Cheese, Marinette?" He asked. Marinette sighed with relief then panicked again.

"How do you know my name?" She asked. Plagg looked a little shocked now.

"Well, um, you helped Cat Noir and Ladybug with that Evilistrator guy. I remember you from that." Once more Marinette looked relieved as she headed down to the family kitchen to see about some cheese for her guest. Okay, my earrings are gone and I have Cat Noir's ring. Does that mean he has my earrings and if so, how did they get switched? She thought to herself as she dug out the cheese. She cringed as she got a whiff of it. How her mother could stand it, she would never understand.

"What should I call you?" She asked.

"Plagg." He replied as he flew up and snagged the piece of cheese from her hand and started to wolf it down.

"So, I'm pretty sure my Miraculous is gone. Do you think Cat Noir has it?" She blinked her mouth dropped open. "Did Cat Noir figure out who I was and steal my earrings because Ladybug won't go out with him?" She leapt right out with a terrible conclusion.

"I can honestly tell you Cat Noir did not steal your Miraculous because Ladybug wouldn't go out with him." Plagg spoke to comfort her, knowing that Adrien did not want her to know she knew who she was. It appeared to work.

"Can you take his ring back to him?" She asked. "And if he has mine, Tiki can bring it back?" Plagg shook his head.

"We can't transport the Miraculouses like that." He explained. "And until Cat Noir is willing to tell you who he is, I can't tell you either. Same with Tiki, she can't tell him who you are without your permission."

"How do I give him back his ring and get back my earrings?" She questioned with her hands against the sides of her head with worry and a headache. "What happens when another attack happens?" She asked, and almost if on queue, the radio announced another strange attack.

"I think perhaps you shouldn't have asked that question." Plagg commented. Marinette gave him a somewhat dirty look. He shrugged.

"You have to tell me who Cat Noir is Plagg, I need to get this ring back to him, and I need to get my earrings back otherwise we can't fight this enemy."

"You can use the ring yourself."

"What?"

"You can use the ring yourself."

"How can I do that? It's not my Miraculous."

"While it's true some people are really compatible to with certain Miraculouses, anyone can use any of them. You can use the ring and A…erm Cat Noir can use your earrings. Knowing him, he'll probably do it too. He liked being a hero."

"Okay, what do I need to do?" She asked. Plagg smiled a moment later Marinette slipped the ring on her finger. "Plagg, Claw's Out." She cried. She felt the shock of a first transformation, as she energy surrounded her and changed her into Cat Noir. She looked at herself in the full-length mirror she had and smiled.

"You know, I like this uniform." She stated as she pulled out Cat Noir's expanding staff and climbed out her skylight. She expanded the staff and used it to vault to the next roof and head towards the attack.

"But I don't have pierced ears." Adrien stated when Tiki announced that he should use the Earrings to transform and fight.

"Then it's really going to hurt." Tikki replied.

"Can't I just take them back to um Mar-ahh iii Lady, Ladybug?"

"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you who she is. She doesn't want you to know right now, and I can't and won't break that trust." He's not as suave when he's not Cat Noir, She thought to herself. "Do you have a raw potato anywhere, maybe some ice?" She asked in a helpful tone. Adrien frowned.

BREAK

Marinette as Cat Noir could see the Red and Black Ladybug uniform in the distance. She smiled despite herself. Looks like Cat Noir does take the Super Hero thing seriously, at least enough that he'll use my Miraculous when needed. She vaulted over and landed next to him, startling him.

"Bug-A-Boo." She cried in joy as he often did to her. He turned to look at her, his ears a little red, like they were freshly pierced.

"Ah, My Lady." He remarked and smiled, looking at her. She looked him over and froze mid body on him.

"Wow, that, um uniform does not hide anything on you does it?" She asked. His face turned so brightly red, the mask practically disappeared. "Not that there is anything wrong with that." She fumbled with her words. "I mean it's pretty impressive really." She added. He crouched down, and held his hands over himself.

"My Lady, in one of those upper pockets, should be, at least I hope, some money. Would you mind getting it out for me? I would, but I think it would be a little improper for me to touch you there." She nodded as she unzipped a pocket and found some folded bills there. She handed him the cash and watched and he snuck away, unable to pull her eyes from his rear as she did.

"Wow, just wow." She breathed feeling a little flushed. She couldn't believe how attractive she found him in that outfit. No wonder he's always after me when I wear that. She distracted herself long enough that he had returned. He was wearing a pair of black jeans over the bottom half of the uniform. She looked at him and started to laugh.

"What, I thought it looked fine." The former Cat Noir, currently Ladybug remarked.

"No, it's fine, it's really fine." She giggled. "I'll miss looking at your physique though." The words came out before she could stop herself.

"Cat Noir!" He exclaimed. "It's time for us to get serious. Lets see if we can take care of this enemy with minimal damage to the surroundings." He shook his head and swung the Yo-Yo towards one of the buildings. Cat Noir followed using her staff to vault towards the creature.

Ladybug and Cat Noir ran from the crowd after the defeat of the newest creature that went after Paris. The pair had been more then a little stunned by the reactions of so many people on the streets. People were booing them, throwing things at them and just yelling obscene stuff. They had to run away from what would be best called riots against them. What had turned so many in Paris against them? They were mostly beloved only a week ago.

The pair escaped the attacks and hide out of sight under one of the bridges at Seine River. Ladybug and Cat Noir took some cardboard boxes that were left under there and piled them out to create a barrier. The pair both went to opposite sides.

"Well, lets switch back our Miraculouses while we have the chance." Ladybug suggested. The pair both called for their transformations to end. Adrien tried to remove the earrings and couldn't. Marinette tried the same with her ring. It was firmly stuck in place.

"It's not coming off." Marinette stated.

"Neither are these." Adrian replied. I should just tell her who I am. With everything that's going on, maybe that would be for the best, but I can't. I need to make sure Marinette likes me before I tell her. He thought as he continued to try to remove the earrings.

"With the fear of jumping to conclusions again, which I know I have done on a couple of occasions previously, I'm thinking this has to do with our current unknown enemy." Marinette suggested. "I just don't know how they were able to pull this off."

"I'm as confused as you are." He replied. Tiki and Plagg both flew over to the original partners to get a chance to speak with them.

"You'll take care of her right?" Adrien asked the cat Kwami.

"Of course I will, and I'll keep your secret until you tell me otherwise."

"I want you to do whatever you can to help him, Tiki," Marinette stated. "Just like you have with me. I don't always approve of how he acts, but he's my partner, and I do care about his safety." She whispered to make certain she wasn't heard. It wouldn't do for Cat Noir to know that Ladybug actually cared about him. He'd probably jump to the wrong conclusion.

"I will." Tiki replied with a smile. She wanted to desperately tell Marinette who Cat Noir really was, but unless she was allowed to she wouldn't do it. It wasn't her secret to share, just as she wouldn't share Marinette's secrets, either of them. Before they parted, Marinette gave Tiki a cookie to eat, just as Adrien gave Plagg some cheese. Once they finished saying their goodbyes the pair transformed again and split up.

"Why did I say those things?" Marinette cried once she got home and transformed back. She hadn't put much thought into what had occurred earlier because she was busy with trying to take off the ring and then speak to Tiki. Plagg floated near her head and replied, even if she wasn't really expecting an answer.

"It's because you were merged with me." He stated as he looked at the posters on her wall. He wasn't surprised to see them, but he realized she must take them down every time Adrien had been over at her house, not that it happened very often. "Being merged with me makes you a little less filtered. I'm the more fun Kwami between Tiki and myself." He continued. "We have somewhat of an affect on how you act. Sort of how you are clumsy and kind of a spaz as yourself, but graceful and more analytical when merged with Tiki."

"What?" She asked confused. She hadn't thought about it before, but even if she had a few clumsy moments as Ladybug, she tended to save herself from really falling apart. Then something else occurred to her. Plagg knows way more about how I am to just known me from the couple of incidents I ran into Cat Noir as myself.

"Just like how Aaa, ahh Cat Noir is really more focused as himself, but when merged with me, he acts more like a kid his age should act." He added. If Cat Noir is like me, he must normally have Plagg with him like I do with Tiki. If that's the case, then he has to be someone I know, and know well enough that Plagg would see how much off a klutz I am. That means, classmates, regulars at the bakery, my sewing circle maybe? She started to look over the class photos she had. She mentally X'd the people who'd been Akumaized. Her eyes widened. She started looking at the ring she was wearing and then looked at Adrien's photos and posters.

"Not one shows it clearly." She said out loud, irritated that she couldn't see the ring, Adrien always wore, in any of the photos. At least not clear enough for the comparison. She tried to think about it, part of her head pushing her to remember the number of times he'd been a victim, captured by some Akumatized student. She needed to check on him and the other students in class and school. She would also need to look at some of the other people she knew as well.

"I'm glad it's cold out today." Marinette commented to Plagg as she walked to school. "I can wear gloves and no one should notice the ring." She added. Marinette had spend some time the night before make a pair of copycat earrings to replace her Miraculous, so no one would notice she wasn't wearing her usual pair. She'd actually considered wearing a different pair, but with everything else going on, and Alya being Alya, she didn't want to add to her friend's list of reasons she could be Ladybug. Speaking of Alya, she rushed to Marinette in an obviously angry mood.

"Can you believe this garbage!" She exclaimed as she shook the Paris newspaper in front of Marinette's face. Trying to read the moving paper made Marinette dizzy. Alya stopped and held it in front of her best friend's face.

"The True Hero is HawkMoth." She read aloud. "What?" Marinette continued to read, speaking up occasionally. "Anonymous Sources? Russian Interference? More anonymous sources? Ladybug and Cat Noir Destroying Paris?" Marinette shook her head, her face clearly showing her confusion.

"Apparently this quote, journalist is claiming that she has anonymous sources telling her that the only reason we consider Hawkmoth to be a villain while we think of Ladybug and Cat Noir as Heroes is because of Russian interference. Now with the damage those weird Cyclopes have been causing, that Ladybug and Cat Noir are out to destroy Paris." Alya stated in anger. "This reporting is garbage. She obviously hates Ladybug and Cat Noir, even the information she has correct is intentionally misinterpreted to make it seem bad. Even good stuff is misreported."

"I saw what happened yesterday, what she called a protest was a riot. Did you see the damage those people did to the streets? One car was even flipped? Who flips a car in Paris? Those things just don't happen here. And to suggest that Ladybug and Cat Noir exchanged powers because they were bored, seriously?" Ayla finished.

"I don't understand how she has sources telling her what they are telling her." Marinette commented trying to wrap her head around the report.

"A real reporter wouldn't list anonymous sources like that. They would use that information to find sources that could confirm it, people who would go on the record, or physical proof. If she's just quoting them like this, it's because either her sources are not truthful and don't want anyone to be able to look into them, or she is straight out lying. This isn't a news story, it's a bad fan fiction!" Alya finished with a yell.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm obviously biased myself when it comes to Ladybug, but I try to keep my personal biased out of my articles, and be as open with my reporting on the Ladyblog as I can. You've seen the bad and embarrassing stories I've posted since Ladybug showed up." She was still breathing a little hard.

"Yes, yes I have. "Marinette turned to look away from her friend, although she couldn't keep all her irritation out of her voice. She could still see the photo of her and Cat Noir tangled together on Alya's Floor with the caption of "Merry Christmas" on it.

"How this woman has a job as a reporter, let alone has a front page story is beyond me." She continued as they made it to class. She huffed a little longer and didn't notice Marinette was looking around at some of the boys in class. She froze as she saw Adrien enter. She had some expectations that she would see her Earrings on him, but like most of the class, he was dressed for the colder temperatures, including a hat that had flaps covering his ears. She frowned.

"Okay class, we will be doing a special Project and will needs groups. . . " Ms Bustier stopped as she watched all kinds of carnage unfold in front of her. The carnage included Alya shoving Marinette over their table at Adrien, while pulling on Nino's shirt to pull him up to her. As that was happening, Chloe jumped across the gap between the two columns of seats, also towards Adrien. The timing was perfect in that Chloe and Marinette ended up being tangled up together, but that wasn't all. With the force Chloe had jumped, the Marinette/Chloe tangle crashed into Adrien, sucking him inside, rolling all the way across the bench so the three ended up in a nearly unidentifiable pile on the ground.

Ms. Bustier lifted her hands to rub her temples with her fingers closing her eyes and sighing.

"We will be doing this in groups of three. Since Marinette, Chloe and Adrien are already together, they will be group one." She stated. "Sabrina, you will join with Alya and Nino, everyone else, break up into groups of three however you want."

"I want you as a group to pick out your favorite piece of literature that we have covered this year and put together two outfits. One will be as it is described in the story. The second one will be a modernized version of it. We have a lot of creative people in this class, so I want to allow you to use that creativity. And I really can't deal with another set of short stories from you, She added in her mind. "And this will be a fully student only project, no parents, no friends, and no outside designers." She looked over at Chloe as she said the last part. Chloe may have been offended had she been untangled enough to see the teachers look, however neither her nor Marinette appeared to be in any hurry to disengage themselves from Adrien. Adrien however, had one arm out of the pile and stretched towards Nino as if begging for help.

"Once you have your costume, you will then speak on the passage you used for the original version, then tell the class about how you came up with the modern version and what changes would need to be made to the passage and maybe even the entire story to have that version." Ms. Bustier finished the assignment description with a smile. "Now you may discuss your plans until the end of the period."

Adrien managed to extract himself from the tangle of limbs without Marinette or Chloe noticing right away, leaving them in a humorously awkward position. Once they realized who was missing, the pair practically jumped apart. Marinette landed Awkwardly on the nearby step and fell at the teacher's feet. She groaned and looked up at MS. Bustier.

"Um, I like your new pumps." She stated.

"Please Marinette, just go to your group and get to work. Marinette Apologized and went back to the bench. Adrien was in the middle of the two girls, feeling a little uncomfortable, trapped between mortal enemies, even if he had witnessed the enemies making out before.

"I will come up with the ideas, Marinette, you'll be adequate enough to design, with my help, and make the outfits, while Adrien will model them." Chloe stated taking charge of the situation.

"Hey." Marinette complained, but before she could say anything else, Adrien spoke.

"I'm okay with Modeling them, just don't stick me in a dress or any. . . " He paused as he looked back and forth between the two girls. "Are your eyes sparkling?" He asked concerned. "Um, I think I see some drool." He added. He wanted to escape but there was no escape for him. By the time class was over, Marinette and Chloe planned to go to Les Halles to see some of the new Fashion and Fabric stores in the underground portion, while Adrien would end up going to fencing. The part that concerned him was that the girls hadn't picked anything out to make yet, or if they had, they didn't mention it to him. He suspected they had decided to put him in a dress after all.

"I have enjoyed watching you destroy the reputations of Ladybug and Cat Noir, Storyteller, but I am starting to grow impatient. I want those Miraculouses." HawkMoth stated in irritation.

"I will have them for you soon, Hawkmoth. I can't believe how perfect my plan has been going. I didn't expect those Protests to be so violent." She added. "I've really turned people against them, and more accepting of you."

"I paid people to Riot, Storyteller." Hawkmoth admitted. "To hurry your plan along."

"Oh, well, that still works." She added. "I don't mind a little help. I have a two part plan starting today that will end with you getting their Miracoulouses." She grinned.

Adrien leaned back in his chair as he pulled out a copy of the afternoon paper to read. He figured his dad wouldn't mind him going over it ahead of him. He looked at the front page with the headline EXPLOSIONS AT LES HALLES. Adrien sat up.

"What the heck is this?" He asked. He had the TV on, if there had been an explosion like that, he was certain it would have been on a live news report, but it wasn't. He read through the story. People were trapped, and it blamed Ladybug and Cat Noir for it. Now he knew it hadn't happened. He wasn't anywhere near there. As he finished the Article, breaking news came on his TV. A series of explosions had just rocked Les Halles.

"No!" Adrien yelled. Tiki looked at the screen in horror, frozen by the scene she was watching. "Marinette and Chloe went there. We have to go Tiki." He stated getting ready to transform. Tiki still wasn't moving. She was obviously worried about Marinette. "Don't worry Tiki, Marinette will be fine, she's got Plagg with her." He stated as matter as factly as he could before realizing what he'd just admitted knowing. Tiki finally turned her head, looking at Adrien with eyes so large, he was surprised they didn't pop out of her oversized head. He nodded. "Yes, I already know." He added.

To Be Continued

I know I screwed up on at least one aspect of the previous Miraculous Fic I wrote. The Akuma was in Chloe's earrings when she was Anti-Bug. I don't know why I thought it was the mask.

The rest of this is done, but I'll probably wait about a week to post it.

Reviews are great, even the flames (Most reviews from "Cursed Charming?" were negative and I still read them.

I hope you've enjoyed this installment.

Peace and Love!