Ladybug in a Half Shell
Chapter 1
"Why do I, the great Casey Jones, have to be reduced to just a plan cameraman at this dork convention." The teenage vigilante gripped dramaticly into the ear piece connected to the video camera he held in his hand.
Back in their underground lair Donatello, the mutant genius who built the camera Casey was using from spare parts him and his brothers salvaged from the dumpster behind a Radioshack, snickered lightly at his friend/rival's discomfort. "You, the great Casey, somehow thought it was a good idea to challenge a trained ninja and a certified expert on trajectory to a game of darts." Hitting a few switches on his computer, also a technical marvel that he had thrown together from spare parts and later modified even further with parts from the alien bo staff Fugituid had given him. He adjusted the video feed streaming live from Casey's camera. "Besides I wouldn't call the first ever science expo showcasing cross engendered Krang tech a dork convention. We may be looking at the greatest scientific breakthroughs in this century."
Casey snorted loud so that he knew Donnie herd it on his end. "Booorrrrinnnng! None of these eggheads have anything on the cool tech stuff I've seen you throw together. I mean there's not one armored van in the bunch."
Donatello took a second to figure out if Casey had just paid him a complement and decided the human teenager's mind was too much of a chaotic mess to decipher on the best of days. Truthfully Jones had accidentally touched on a sore subject for Donnie. His personal work with Krang tech not only predated anything that the other scientist were working on, he was ahead of the curve for most of things he had learned to be on display. The cold lump of regret wasn't really that he's work was ahead of everyone else, it was that he would never be able to show his work to the world. No matter what breakthrough he found or what cool devices he invented he would never be able to share it with the world because of what he was. Pushing back the feeling of regret and self pity he hit the button to speak to Casey. "Besides isn't it time for you to be meeting up with April and the french students that your class is sponsoring?"
Donnie saw the video feed swivel scanning the room for a second as Casey let out a wolf whistle. "Oh yeah french girls." The world on his computer became a blur as the young man scanned the convention center. Only to stop and zoom on the familiar form of April O'Neil across the massive chamber. The konunchi in training wore her usual denim shorts and yellow shirt combo having had hung up the yellow jumpsuit after their return to Earth. Donnie did not disapprove of the return of what Casey had dubbed "April Dukes." It was a look that not only was burned into his memory but showed up in his dreams nearly every night since him and his brothers saved her from the Krang. She was the prettiest girl he had ever seen then, even thou as Raphael pointed out she was the first girl he had ever seen. She still held that title in his mind as the penicale of perfection all human female's should aim towards. Unfortunately Casey Jones reminded Donnie that he wasn't the only one who thought that way as he did a slow pan up shot of the red head that Donnie couldn't bring himself to call his rival on. After all the video was recording to his computer files.
The mutant scientist hoped that the girls from the school in Paris that April and Casey's school was sponsoring to see the Expo were pretty enough to distract the sports themed vigilante from Donnie's crush. Each student in their class had been assigned two students from the french school to show around the Expo. Casey had been late because he had to stop to pick up Donatello's camera so hadn't even met his two yet. Of course April being April had covered for him.
As Casey walked up Donnie checked out the two girls and two boys from Paris. Both girls were pretty. The first girl had light brown skin with a birth mark over her right eye. She had a smirk on her face as she shot rabbet fire questions at April. The dark skinned boy standing to her side held her hand in his in a way that suggested intimacy. So Donnie quickly summed up the two must be an item so marked the girl off a list he was mentally making of ways to get Casey away from April. The ninja briefly wondered if the boy was fallowing the conversation or just nodding his head to the music playing on his headphones. The second girl whose features showed she may have Asian decent of some kind mixed in with the french had dark hair done up in two braids and an open friendly smile. Donnie noticed the smile was slightly forced around the edges as the girl looked at the blonde boy in the their group. The blonde was the closest to April as they spoke which is what made Donatello finely take full notice of him.
April was in touching distance of the boy as he was speaking just as animatedly with her as the girl had. April was in touching distance of a boy who even Donnie could tell was attractive and smiling at him while they talked.
Before he's mind caught up with the rest of him he had already pulled up another screen on his computer the facial recognition software he had designed last week as a hobby already scanning the boy's features. The info came back in a second and Donnie's eyes widened in panic.
Pushing the button to speak to Casey he shouted so loud into the mike it caused the young man to jerk his head causing the live feed to jump wildly. "Move you tail Jones."
"Whats wrong D?"
"That boy that April is talking too is Adrien Agreste. He's a top fashion model in Paris who's father also creates one of the top fashion lines in the world." There was a slight pause while Casey registered what Donnie had just said. To Donettello it seemed to take forever so he decided to stream line it for the boy. "Our April is talking to a famous rich fashion model from the city of Love."
With a "Oh crap," the video feed shot forward quickly as Casey locked his roller blades into place eating up the distance between him and April.
Stay calm Marinette, stay calm Marinette, a tiny voice that sounded a lot like her kawami Tikki was repeating inside the Parisian superhero's head as she once again registered how close the red headed American was to her Adrien as the exited boy bombarded her with questions not only about the Krang but New York City in general. Turns out the model hadn't gotten to travel much outside of Paris because Gabreal Agreste was highly over protective of his son. And the Big Apple was one of the places he had always wanted to see.
Seeing her crush this exited and happy about something would usually have had her so happy it would have over loaded her brain, except the one answer his questions and causing him to smile was one April O'Neal. A redhead New York girl their age whose smile and easy way she interacted with Adrien made Marinette feel like a raving psycho in comparison.
The real problem was two fold. The first being the two had started standing closer to each other. Over the course of the last fifteen minutes since they got to the expo and was assigned to April, and someone else named Casey Jones who April insisted to the teacher would be here, Adrien had started asking questions and April answered the one's she could. And with each answer the two seemed to take a step closer to each other. Neither one seeming to notice how close they were except Marinette.
The second problem was a odd one to the amateur fashion designer. It was the fact that April wasn't a bitch. When Chole and Lila hit on Adrien there was usually something underhanded she could call them on. Except April didn't have any ill intent towards her crush, hell she didn't even seem like she was flirting.
If they take one more step closer together she was going to scream like a crazy woman.
Just then a scruffy looking boy with a grin missing a few front teeth bumped into Adrien causing the blonde to stumble forward a bit as he inserted himself between the American and French teens. "Sorry about that the breaks on these things are tricky", he said indicating the roller blades on his feet. Marinette's mind was torn between being annoyed that this boy had nearly knocked her crush down to overjoyed that the boy now was firmly standing between Adrien and April. Her extensive knowledge as a over crazed crush holder herself she recognized someone trying mark someone as their own without saying it out loud.
With a roll of her eyes April walked up to the new boy, "Smooth move Jones," she said emphasizing the point with a sharp elbow to the ribs that caused the boy to grunt in pain and also caused his smirk to turn into a full grown smile. "Nino, Alya, Marinette, Adrien let me introduce you to the as usual late because he wants to go to summer school Casey Jones." Casey started to grin and open his mouth to say something when April deadpanned. "Trust me he'll be more impressed with himself than any of you guys will be."
The cocky boy in the sleeveless hoodie visibly deflated at not only April's words but Donnie's sudden laugh and declaration of, "She's got your number Jones," coming from the ear piece. The teen smiled at April then turned to the four Parisian students, "Nice to meet you and I hope your enjoying New York," he said in perfect french with only a slight hint of a accent that the four other teens could notice. April's jaw hung open for a moment as he herd Donnie spit out his almost always present cub of coffee.
April looked like her whole world had turned upside down, and for a girl who befriended mutant ninja turtles and faced alien monsters without batting a eye that was saying something. "Okay wait a moment, I have to threaten physical violence, and at times use said physical violence, to get you to barely study for history test and you somehow learn to speak french. Spill Jones."
"Great-grandma Jones was from France," he answered visibly happy that he had been able to surprise the red head. "And she had two things you don't."
"And what's that?"
"A wooden spoon and home cooking you were not allowed to eat unless you asked for it in her native tongue."
As the four foreign students burst out laughing at the new arrival's antics April huffed. She made a mental note of adding food and violence to Casey's next study session. Apparently she had missed something when her and Donatello had set down and planed out the boy's study plan.
Bringing Donnie's camera up to his face he panned a shot of the four Parisian teens as he talked reminding Adrein and Marinette of the times they had been interviewed by the public as Ladybug and Chat Noir. "So you guys seem to speak pretty good English."
"That thanks to our girl here," Alya said indicating Marinette who's happy smile went a bit askew and her face bright red as Adrein nodded his encouragement. "She went all Study Sargent on us when our teacher informed us that if we couldn't at least speak passing french we wouldn't be going. It was almost like something else was motivating the girl," Marienete went even more shades of red at Alya's teasing. Her friend knew perfectly well what the young girl's motivation was. She had been with her when Marienete over herd Adrein say he had always wanted to go to New York City. Despite all the modeling he had down for his father's line over the years Gaberial was super over protective of his son and kept nearly all the shots in Paris except for a select few ones that coincided with business trips he himself were making.
The only reason he had agreed to this one at all was that his company had invested heavily in some of the technologies being presented. This had seemed strange to the youngest Agreste as his father had never shown any interest in anything but his clothing line in the past, but he was happy for the opportunity so he didn't question it too much.
Armed with this knowledge Marinette went about making sure their whole class could at least speak enough English to order their own food at any fast food place in New York. The members of her class who hadn't attended had been Sabrina and Chloe of course. Luckily Sabrina actually already spoke English, as well as Japanese, Chinese, and German. Chloe only needed to know how to say "My Daddy's the Mayor," in her native French for Mr. Damocles to declare that it was okay and the whole class could go.
"So are you a blogger as well?" Alya said taking notice of Casey's strange looking camera.
"Nope, I got a nerdy friend who is home schooled and not able to leave to come here and geek out," Casey said easily lapsing into the cover story Donnie and April had thought up and cleared with Master Splinter on while Casey would have the camera. What he didn't expect was hearing Donatello voice coming from the camera itself and not his earpiece.
"Your lack of scientific appreciation doesn't surprise me but still makes me feel kind of sad." All the teens stopped and stared at Casey's camera where a small speaker had popped out of the top in response to a command from Donatello's computer. "Bonjour à tous,''
"Okay now your showing off too D," April said smirking at the camera visualizing the ninja turtle's grin as he pulled his latest surprise. "The camera doesn't surprise me too much, I've seen what you can build with junk and a few hours of free time, but when did you start speaking French as well?"
"When did you and Jones find out your school was hosting the Paris students?"
"About four days ago."
"I've been flaunt in French for three days now then." Donnie smirked at the shocked look on April's face. He long knew that with what he was Casey had a advantage in their rivalry for April. The fact that he was not just human, but that he seemed to be at least somewhat attractive to the opposite sex of his species was probably the biggest obstetrical to him ever winning the heart of the woman he loved. But there was one advantage that he could use the Casey Jones could never match him at. April O'Neil respected intelligence, and there were few that could match the young mutant in that department. That's why he liked to do these kind of things to remind her just how smart he was.
Casey cursed lightly under his breath at he noticed April's smile aimed at the little microphone Donnie's voice had came out of. Apart of him wondered briefly why it was so hard to win a girl when his only true competition was a six foot tall talking turtle. But he knew just like him April's perspective of their unique friends no longer focused just on the weirdness of their existence and like him just saw then as the best friends he had ever had. Close as, if not more so, as any family he had by blood. If only D could be a bigger asshole than him then their might be a chance.
Introductions were made again and Casey found Alya standing in front of Donnie's camera excitedly asking questions when she found out the he had made the thing himself. Casey set there letting the two have their conversation as he stole looks at the two attractive Parisian girls when their male counter parts weren't looking. Sure he was serious about his feelings for April, but he was also a healthy teenage boy who could at least enjoy the sights.
The group started to move around now looking around at the exhibits. Most were boring the young vigilante, but a few seemed like something out of a science fiction movie. Although these wouldn't have been able to hold his interest for too long either, he lived in a real life space ship for six months so some of this stuff was way less cool than stuff on the Ulixes. But Donatello being able to speak through his camera turned the whole experience into something fun.
D would notice what the scientist had missed and speak up from his mike, this would soon follow with a slight debate, that would usually turn into a argument, and then one of two things would happen. The scientist would either right out dismiss Donnie as a stupid kid, or try what he suggested and see it worked and then get even madder.
For Casey Jones who loved being in the middle of any kind of scrap, even verbal ones, this just made the whole thing a lot of fun. It helped that the kids from Paris they got were also a lot of fun.
Alaya was sassy and quick witted. He soon found that her favorite subject was a pair of superheroes who saved Paris from these things called Akuma. Casey figured that Chat Noir was a cool name but how did the name Ladybug strike fear in criminals.
Adrien, who hadn't seemed to notice that Casey had inserted himself between him and April, was way smarter than Casey had thought with him being a model. The boy was also as far away from stuck up as anyone could get. Adrien was way different than the few rich kids he had met in his life.
Nino was a super chill guy who at first seemed to not really be passionate about anything until Casey asked what he was listening too and found out it was a remix from a DJ season that Nino had thrown together himself. The guy's taste was nowhere near as metal as his own but even he had to admit that the beats had his head bobbing.
Then there was Marinette. Casey at first had a hard time getting a fix on the girl. Mainly because every time Adrien would glance her way the girl would turn into a babbling mess. The girl was so lovesick about the boy even April and Casey could tell she was head over heels over the blonde. The only one that didn't seem to know the girl's feelings was Adrien. He seemed so oblivious about the girl's feelings that Casey wondered if maybe the guy wasn't interested in girls at all. He sure knew that if a girl as pretty as Marinette looked at him the way she did he sure as hell would have noticed. Maybe it was a model thing.
But when Adrien wasn't talking to her or looking in her general direction Casey found not only was she funny and smart but she was so genuinely sweet that he worried that he might lose some more of his teeth. Also from a conversation she had with April he learned she was just as passionate about her fashion designs as he was about his hockey, meaning a lot more than just a passing hobby. The girl was serious about what she wanted to do in life.
Everything was going great with the group quickly becoming friends as the day progressed until one word was shouted as someone grabbed on to Adrien. "ADREIKINNS!"
The first thing Casey noticed was that another attractive girl had ran up to their group and latched herself on to the young Agreste. The second thing he noticed was that everyone in their group that wasn't from the good old U.S of A had a look of utter annoyance plastered on their face, including the model with the hot blonde holding/crushing him into a hug. Geez maybe he really does swing a different way Casey thought before the new girl pulled away from Adrien looked at the group as a whole, including Casey and April, and then addressed them all in french with such a tone of discuss you would have thought she was talking to something on the bottom of her shoe.
"Not only did my poor Adrien get stuck with this nasty dumb Americans but with the loser squid as well." As she was saying this a girl with orange hair, sea-green eyes, and glasses ran up behind the blonde.
Adrien looked up towards the heavens like he was hoping something would swoop down from there and take him away, the rest of the Parisian teens looked ready to commit murder at the rude girl's antics.
Casey felt he needed to say something for "dumb Americans." He addressed the girl in french which caused her eyebrows to shoot up. "You know only cowards insult someone when they don't think they can understand the language."
"How dare you," the blonde girl's eyes narrowed. "I'm Chloe Bourgeois, my Daddy is the Mayor of Paris."
"My Dad holds the record for most time spent in a penalty box in the semi-pro league. Guess which one I'm more exited about?" Then Casey did the one thing he had always found to infuriate snobby self important people everywhere. He turned his back on this Chloe and pretend she wasn't there. The look Chloe gave the American made Adrien wish that he wasn't standing so close to her for more than just the usual reasons. The mayors daughter looked like her head was going to explode and take out half the city with it.
April from the fuming blonde to her friend who had the same smirk him and Ralph wore when they came back from what they had both started calling a night of Purple Dragon Kickball. "Case what are you doing?"
She swore his smirk got even more cocky. "Just using the old Jones' Charm."
April notice the girl pull herself away from Adrien, much to the model's obvious relief, and start stalking her towards Jones, the meek looking orange haired girl hurried to keep up. "I see that it has the usual stellar results."
Chloe grabbed the shoulder of the arrogant boy that dared turn his back on her, this boy would dare talk to her like this when he looked like he probably slept in the clothes he was wearing. "How dare you talk to me you unwashed hooligan."
Marienette and Alya had enough with their class snobs attitude. It was one thing to be horrible back home when the whole class knew what a bitch you were, but they were in another country and both felt Paris should be better represented than by the likes of Chloe Bourgeois. But just as both of them started to say something Casey just let out a short laugh right into the snobs face. "That all you got? In America you have to step up your game when it comes to insults. Must be our hooligan nature."
"Besides I personally know a sewer rat who is not only better groomed than you but has better manners to boot," this got a laugh from Donettello through his camera mike and a smirk from April as soon as Nino translated for her what was being said. Only they knew he wasn't just being a smart ass but was speaking truth. Master Splinter was one of the most well mannered and hygienic people either human teen had ever met.
After that opening salvo of insults the war was on. Chloe would make some kind of remark, usually about Casey wardrobe or his spell and Casey would counter with a shot at anything from how insecure he figured the girl was to facts about allegations of bribes and voter tampering that her father had been accused of. April knew Donnie was helping him when he started popping up with these cause she doubted Casey could even tell you who the mayor of New York let alone facts about Paris's politics.
The bed headed kunoichi noticed that they had gathered a crowd, a mix of students from her school and the Parisian students had all gathered around. She quickly noticed that none of the Paris teens were rotting for their classmate except the shy looking girl standing behind here. How bad was this girl that she had no allies among her own classmates.
In the middle of a rant about how Casey probably got his clothes from a dumpster which he replied to, "Yes, but it was from a fairly upscale neighborhood," causing the crowd to once again laugh at her expense the Parisan Mayor's daughter finely shouted, "ENOUGH!" as her hand shot into her jacket pocket. It was either the hostile intent she was broadcasting or the quick threatening motion she made going for her jacket, either way it caused both Casey and April to over react.
It wasn't anything obvious, a narrowing of the eyes and a loosening up their posture, but the entire group fell silent as the two went from everyday teen mode to life and death battle mode in an instant. Even Chloe stopped in mid movement her arm still in jacket. The only ones to react differently was Marienette and Adrien who eyes narrowed and posture loosened in almost the same way in response to sudden feeling of danger.
Chloe slowly pulled her cell phone out of her jacket pocket and didn't breath until the two Americans visibly relaxed. Casey's easy grin coming back making everyone wonder if something had just happened or if it was their imagination. "What do you plan on doing with that, send me a sexting pic?"
Chloe turned on her heels almost knocking Sabrina over as she stormed off shouting over her shoulder, "I'm calling Daddy!" Casey Jones laughed so hard at that he almost dropped Donnie's camera.
The blonde storming off send to signal that it was time for the crowd to break up as well. Marienette waved to Alix Kubdel as she shot past on her roller blades. The pink haired girl grinned as she shouted, "About time someone put Chloe in her place," loud enough for the retreating snob to hear.
Alix zoomed up to a man in his late teens early twenty's circling him once obviously laughing about what had just happened. It took Marienette a second to recognize the man as Alix's older brother Jalil Kubdel. How had he manged the trip, last she had herd from Alix he was struggling with paying college expensive.
Before she could think on it more a short unshaven man walked in front of the siblings. Marienette knew his name as well. Otis a zookeeper from Paris, further down looking at a exhibit was Theo Barbeau, then further down she caught sight of someone who could be non other than Xavier Ramier with the crazy way he walked.
Jalil Kubdel, Otis, Theo Barbeau, and Xaveir Ramier, but Marienette knew them by other names as well. Pharaoh, Animan, Cobycat, and Mr. Pigeon, all former Akuma victims that had no ties to her school except for Jalil's sister going there.
So why where they here and why did it make her uneasy.
/
Hawk Moth stood in a dimely lit room surrounded by his butterflies. This wasn't his usual base of operations, no that was a ocean away in Paris. Instead of a big automated window that he would send his Akuma out in the world there only set a raised dais with a stone about the size of a mans head setting on it. The surface of the stone was smoother like it had been polished and the color darkest obsidian.
"Is all ready?" a deep voice came from the shadows behind the super villain. Hawk Moth didn't try to turn, he knew that if the man didn't want him to see him his skill was so great he would see nothing staring right in the shadow the man hid in. So instead he fell to one knee in servitude.
"I am gathering the energy needed. The former Akuma victims have gathered in the city like you instructed. I shall be ready for tomorrow."
"Good," Hawk Moth felt the man open the door behind him and exit. "Do not fail me servant, or you will find that I can clip a Moth's wing easily enough."
"I will never fail you Master Shredder," with that the door slammed shut as Hawk Moth's master left him to his task.
Next Chapter/ Murakami's and Dragons Oh May.
