"Paris? Are you sure you don't mean some deserted island in the middle of the ocean?" Kim asks quietly on the plane, trying not to wake Ron or Rufus sleeping right next to her.
Wade nods, "That's what my intel says. I've got witness reports of people seeing Drakken around the city." He turns to his computer screen, "No idea of what he's planning yet though."
"Keep me posted." She signs out as the voice over the intercom signals their decent.
Ron stirs in his seat, causing Rufus to fall off his shoulder and into his lap. The awakened naked mole rat doesn't hesitate to wake Ron in return. "Hey hey hey, bud, what was that for?" Rufus squeaks in protest. "Well maybe next time you'll reconsider sleeping there!"
"Guys," Kim interrupts before it inevitably got out of hand.
"He started it."
They exit the plane and gather their things, dressed casually for the flight. Ron looks up at a clock on the wall, "Wait, it's 8am? It feels like it's the middle of the night!"
She keeps stride, "Yeah, time zones are crazy like that."
"How crazy, exactly?"
"8-hour difference."
He groans, "Ahhh, K.P., give me a heads up next time."
"For what? You literally slept the whole flight." She hails a taxi outside.
"Pfft," he rolls his eyes, "you don't understand, I take my sleep very seriously." Rufus nods in agreement.
A taxi pulls up. "I don't think I want to know." She leans down to the taxi window, "Le Grand Paris, s'il vous plait." The cabbie nods and Kim and Ron climb in.
"'La Grande Paris'? Is that where we're staying? Sounds fancy."
"Ooh la la" Rufus adds.
She lifts her suitcase onto her lap with a grunt, "No big, called in a favor from Dr. Rion. He was pretty grateful for us helping him out with that... infestation of his."
Ron scratches his head, remembering the mission, "Haha, yeah, who knew rabbits could qualify as weapons of mass destruction?"
"At least they do now."
Marinette lands on her terrace, ducking into her room to transform back from Ladybug. She runs to her desk and scoops up any and all notebooks laying there, shoving them into her backpack. "Why do these akumas have to happen right before school? Can't Hawkmoth follow a nine-to-five schedule?" she exclaims to Tikki as she rummages through a pile of clothes, revealing a hidden textbook.
"Sorry Marinette," Tikki shrugs, "I wish I had control over these things."
She slips on her shoes, "It's not your fault; it's just as if Hawkmoth's ultimate plan is to make me late for homeroom." She opens her purse to let Tikki fly in before running out the door.
She snags a croissant as she barges out the front of the bakery.
"Have a good day, honey!" She hears her mom call behind her.
She turns to wave back but clips someone's shoulder, causing her to twist and fall on her butt. "Sorry, sorry, sir." She looks up to the face of a man with grayish complexion, and dark eyes.
He snatches the croissant from the sidewalk, "Watch where you're going, girl." He snaps, ripping a bite from her fallen pastry. His face lights up, "Where did you get this? From that bakery across the street? Sheego, can we stop in? Sheego!?" He turns away and jogs to catch up to a lady in a green jumpsuit before Marinette even has a moment to react.
The school bell chimes.
"Ahhh!" She scrambles to her feet, trying to brush herself off as she climbs the stairs of the school. Her feet nearly slip on the tile floor of the interior. As she comes within sight of the classroom, she sees Adrien duck in ahead of her. Her pace falters as she slows to a jog before entering the classroom.
"Nice of you to join us Miss. Dupain-Cheng." Ms. Mendeleiev says without turning from the board. "Take your seat."
Marinette mouths, "Sorry" with her head dipped as she slides into her seat.
Ron flops onto one of the beds, he sighs with relief, "Oh man, K.P., it feels like I'm floating on a cloud...with just the right amount of back support." Rufus lies next to him, snuggling into the duvet.
Kim sits on the edge of the bed opposite Ron, taking out her communicator. "What's the sitch, Wade?"
"I think I've locked onto some of Drakken's plans. He's looking for someone." Wade responds.
"Of course he's looking for someone!" Ron interjects, "This is the city of love after all. Maybe the guy's just hoping to find that special someone."
Rufus shakes his head and spits, "Ew, nuh uh." He squeaks.
Kim rolls her eyes before returning her attention to Wade, "Who's he really looking for?"
"Some guy called 'Hawkmoth'."
"'Hawkmoth'."
"Yeah. Apparently he's a Parisian villain. Keeps everything within city limits though; probably why he's never come up on my radar." Wade explains, his eyes on his computer screen. "He creates villains too."
Her eyebrows furrow together, "Where are you getting this stuff?" She asks doubtfully.
He turns his screen towards Kim, "'The Ladyblog'. It's run by a local. It's also actually really informative." He scrolls down the page.
"Anything else we should know? Besides another villain and possibly henchmen-villains?" She asks.
He nods, "Um, Paris seems to also have their own superheroes?"
"You're kidding."
"Not at all. Sending you clips now." A video instantly pops up on the screen of the communicator. Ron leans over Kim's shoulder to get a view. The clip shows a girl in red and black spandex swinging across the screen, promptly followed by a guy in a skin tight, black cat outfit.
"I'll repeat myself: you're kidding, right?" Kim switches out of the clip and back to Wade.
He shakes his head, smiling, "Nope. That was Ladybug and Chat Noir: defenders of Paris."
She collapses back onto the bed, "Does everyone in this city have a secret animal identity?"
Wade chuckles, "No, just them, as far as I know. Just, if you run into them along the way, keep it friendly. They're on our side, but you may have to inform them of that."
"Can I have an animal code name?" Ron says excitedly. "Oh oh oh, how about... Ratman, or Giraffe Lad? Seal-man!" His eyes widen.
"Good luck." Wade signs out.
She takes a deep breath, "I just might need it."
Drakken shuts the hotel door behind him with his foot, his arms full with a large paper bag of breads and pastries. "Sheego, I told you to wait for me. Now you didn't get to choose anything from the bakery." He places the bag onto the bedside table; a round loaf of bread rolls out.
She looks up from her magazine, her legs outstretched on the bed, "Did you steal the entire store's worth?"
He takes a roll and starts to try to rip off a chunk, struggling. "'Steal'? No, no, I actually bought all this. Don't want to tip off the local authorities yet. Plus, the family that ran the shop were super nice." He strains, finally getting a fist full of bread.
She takes a deep breath. "If no one knows we're here, how are we supposed to get the attention of this 'Hawkman'?"
"Hawkmoth!" He corrects through a mouthful of bread.
"Whatever." She places her magazine aside, "What can he do for us anyway?"
He finishes his bite. "Did you not get my link?"
"Nope."
"Are you sure?"
"Uh huh."
"Oh, well then. Hawkmoth is Paris' number one villain! And he does this by making other villains out of civilians. If I could get him to share with me this level of mind control, I would be unstoppable!" He squeezes the loaf of bread in his hands.
"So how do we find him?" She asks, already knowing the answer.
"Ah," he pauses in thought, "I... actually don't know. No one has ever really seen him in person."
"Wow. Great planning on your part." She rolls her eyes before returning to her reading.
He wads the bread into a ball, "Don't patronize me, Sheego! I will find him! I will gain his powers! I will-"
"Is that a butterfly?" She points out a purple butterfly flying in from the closed window.
His fists tighten "Don't interrupt me with your sudden fascination for the local bugs! I said I will find him and so that Kim Possible can never stand in my way again! Ugh, get this thing away from me!" He yells as the butterfly nears him.
Sheegos eyes widen as the butterfly phases into the bread in his hand.
"How's your day been, M'lady?" Chat asks as he vaults onto their rooftop meeting place.
She shrugs, "Would've been better if that akuma hadn't woke me up." She yawns reflexively.
He smiles, "I don't know; I didn't mind waking up that early since the first thing I got to see was you."
She holds back the urge to roll her eyes, also holding back any comments. "Come on, Kitty," she leaps off the building and starts their patrol around the city.
"Was it something I said?" He calls out before using his staff to vault after her.
"Let's go, Ron. Put the cheese down."
He finishes slipping another few cubes of cheese into his pants pocket, "I'm coming, I'm coming. It may not be Bueno Nacho cheese, but it's alright for a snack on the go."
"That's some of the most authentic, real, cheese I've ever seen." She gestures to the half empty, complimentary cheese platter from guest services, "It doesn't even belong on a scale with Bueno Nacho."
He nods, "I know right? Bueno Nacho blows these cheeses out of the water!"
Kim rolls her eyes as she steps out onto the balcony. She looks down over the city, watching the cars loop around the streets below. She's just about to turn back to tell Ron to hurry up when something catches her eye. She turns back to the rooftops and sees two figures leaping over the buildings. "Ron, come on!" She uses her grappling hook to leap across the street to the rooftop of the next building. She runs and leaps to catch up with the strangers, leaving Ron behind.
He glimpses up in time to see her swing across the road. "K.P!" He fumbles for his own grappling gun. Rufus dives into his cheese-filled pockets, securing himself for the jump. He latches his grappling hook to the structure across the street, yanking him forward and off the balcony.
Kim looks back momentarily at Ron to make sure he's following, and hadn't just fallen off the balcony. She pushes herself forward, "Hey, you there!" She calls after the red and black figures jumping in front of her.
Chat's ears twitch. He looks behind them, "Uh, Ladybug? We've got company,"
She looks back and sees the two people following them across the buildings, "Akumas?"
He shrugs, "Should we ask what they want?"
Ladybug slides to a stop on the next flat roofed house, Chat stopping next to her.
The two strangers stop across from them, leaving a large gap of space. Ron nudges Kim, "It's them. The heroes that Wade talked about; Ladybug and Cat Noir."
"It's 'Chat Noir', thank you." Chat steps towards them, "You're not from around here, are you?" He leans on his staff, looking them over.
Kim opens her mouth to answer but Ron steps forward and speaks instead. "So what if we aren't? Hmm?"
"We protect this city. I just need to know if you're a threat or not." Chat continues, swinging his tail around casually, a smirk stuck to his face.
Ron moves closer to him, eyes narrowing, "Yeah, well, we're just here looking for our own threat. We'll be on our way as soon as we can, no reason to worry about us."
"You were following us." He points out.
"Ah-" Ron pauses, looks to Kim, unsure. She steps forward, "Yeah, hi, I'm Kim, and this is Ron." She gestures, "We're just passing through for a mission. One of our usual baddies is up to something here and we've come to stop him, simple as that." She explains quickly, getting Ron to back down.
Chat relaxes and looks back to Ladybug who then steps forward. "I guess you already know who we are, if the costumes didn't give it away." She smiles, "If you need help catching your guy, we'll be here to help."
Ron nudges his way back into the loop, "Yeah thanks. And if you don't mind, can I ask about the whole costume thing, and the animal code names thing, and, well, the whole superhero thing overall? Do you have actual powers?" His eyes switching between Ladybugs yoyo and Chats staff. "I've tried to convince Kim to let us wear more colorful outfits but it's never taken hold."
"Are you from America?" Ladybug asks, trying to redirect the conversation away from them, "What city do you guys normally protect?"
Kim and Ron look at each other, "We pretty much don't have one city that we protect." Kim answers.
"Yeah, we just go wherever the world need our help!" He punches and kicks the air energetically.
"That's actually kinda cool." Chat admires, "We never leave Paris."
"Oh, dude, you gotta get out there. The world is amazing, dangerous at times, but awesome." Ron puts his arm around Chat, "I can't tell you how many countries that I've almost been killed in, no joking, can't keep track, most people would consider it a problem."
"We couldn't leave." Ladybug pulls Chat to her side, "We have our own villain to constantly worry about. If we left, Hawkmoth would either turn Paris upside-down or follow us with his Akumas."
"'Hawkmoth'? That's who our guy is looking for!" Kim exclaims.
"That's impossible." Chat interjects, "No one has ever seen Hawkmoth in the flesh. Your guy..."
"Drakken"
"...Drakken, is out of luck, I'm afraid." He concludes.
Just then, a booming crash echoes through the streets; dust rises into the air like a mushroom cloud.
"We have to go." Ladybug zips away.
"Care to join us?" Chat asks before vaulting off in the same direction.
They look at each other for a moment before running off after them.
"They're just like us!" Ron exclaims as they try to keep up with Ladybug and Chat Noir. "A couple fighting evil doers side by side! Do you think they also have a small hairless animal companion?" His grappling hook falters, missing his grip. "Ahh!"
Kim swoops him up in her tow, "Focus, Ron. We have no lead on Drakken so we might as well help these guys out."
He gasps, "What if they aren't together as a couple? That'll be awkward when I ask them if they want to double date with us."
"Ron!"
"I'm just saying, I think these guys are cool. It's not every day that you meet people who are in the same line of work as you, especially when that work is saving the world and stuff. Plus, they have real superpowers? How awesome is that? How do you think they got them? Gift from the gods, or experiment gone wrong?"
Her grappling hook brings them down to the ground next to Ladybug and Chat, swinging to a stop at the corner where the explosive sound was heard. "So what's the sitch?" She asks as she moves up to evaluate the situation with them.
"The... what?" Ladybug turns around and asks back.
"It's, uh; so what's going on here?" She settles.
"An akuma is tearing up the city, we stop it." Chat lays out, stretching his arms and cracking his knuckles.
Ron hikes up his pants, "No problemo, let's go." He marches towards the noise.
Ladybug grabs him from the collar of his shirt, "Wait!" She pulls him back, "You can't hurt them too badly, they're just regular citizens. We need to find the akumatized item and crush it."
Ron stares blankly at her, "Okay, I was with you up until this point and now I'm just lost."
Kim pulls him to her side, "We'll follow your lead."
Ladybug shifts her weight nervously. "Well, maybe, it's actually best if we just handle this on our own." She shrugs, "You have to go find your Drakken guy, right?"
"Right." Kim accepts, realizing they were getting off track.
Ladybug smiles sweetly, "It was nice to meet you, maybe we'll run into each other again?" She and Chat wave before they leap around the corner to fight the akuma.
Ron groans, "Aw man, I was so ready to jump into action. Ron Stoppable doesn't run away from a fight." He holds his hands up like a boxer, punching the air.
"Really? You don't run from a fight?" Kim asks trying to suppress her laughter.
Ron lowers his arms, "Well, you know, most fights? Some... fights? I-I call them as I see 'em." He crosses his arms over his chest.
"Make way!" A familiar voice shouts out before skidding to a stop before them. Kim and Ron look up to the dark green eyes of Shego. "Kimmy? Why am I not surprised," she throws the Vespa she was riding aside and pushes her way past them towards the direction of the sound of destruction.
"Shego? Hold on." Kim blocks her path. "Where do you think you're going? Where's Drakken?" She questions.
She rolls her eyes, "I've been trying to keep up with him all day and now you're in my way." Another crash causes the ground to shake.
"Is that him? Is that what Ladybug and Chat Noir are after? Some new contraption of his?" Ron crosses his arms, leaning closer to her.
She shoves him away from her, "We didn't do anything. I don't know what happened. Drakken just got possessed, or something."
"Well we better let Ladybug and Chat Noir know we found our guy. We can probably help now that we have a better idea of the threat." Kim runs around the corner, promptly followed by Ron.
"Yeah, you go take care of that, Kimmy. I'm tappin' out." Shego calls after them as she takes a seat at a nearby café.
They run straight into the destruction; an entire block torn apart, the walls ripped off the sides of buildings, craters in the streets. People continuously run in the opposite direction through the cloud of dust and smoke. Looming at the end of the street is a 4 story tall lumbering creature. The grey-ish tint to its skin is instantly recognizable. His body misshapen and bulbous, ogre like. He swats at Chat and Ladybug as they try to get at him unsuccessfully.
"Hey, Drakken!" Kim yells across the way.
He turns suddenly; a single dark eye instantly locking onto her and Ron. "KIM POSSIBLE!" He roars.
"I'm here too!" Ron complains off hand, but ducks behind Kim as the akumatized Drakken lurches towards them.
"I KNEW YOU WOULD BE AROUND HERE SOMEWHERE," he growls, "HOW DO YOU LIKE MY NEW LOOK?" He gestures to himself clumsily.
"Honestly, man, you've looked better." Ron inserts.
His laugh reverberates between the buildings in the square, "I am unstoppable. Once I get rid of you two-" a purple frame comes over his eyes, distracting him. He nods to the voice only he can hear, "Yes yes, the 'miraculous', I'll get to those. It's just that I've got my own nemesis to worry about too, you know?... Yes, I have a nemesis, she's standing right there! Can you see what I see, or how does this work exactly?..." his fists tighten and his arms pin to his sides seemingly out of his control, "Fine, I'll get the Miraculous' now... where'd they go?" He asks, turning away from Kim and Ron.
Ladybug and Chat peek out from behind an overturned car on the road, out of sight of Drakken. "Psst!" Chat calls out to them.
Kim and Ron notice them and duck in cover with them. "This is your Drakken?" Ladybug asks in hushed tones.
"He's not usually like this... and by 'this' I mean this big." Kim corrects herself, keeping her head down.
Chat chuckles, "We figured."
There's another crash, debris falls down next to them, "Come on out Spot girl and Cat boy!" He roars, followed by the sound of a car being flung across the square.
"So what's the-"
"So what's the plan?" Chat and Ron ask their partners at the same time. They exchange a glance before turning back to Ladybug and Kim.
They look to each other, as if silently communicating.
"The 'akuma'-?" Kim starts.
"In his fist most likely. Got to get him to open it up." Ladybug confirms.
Kim nods, smiling, "I've got a few ideas."
"Same, plus a little something extra." Ladybug palms her yoyo for Kim to see.
"Ready when you are." Kim readies herself to leap out from behind the car.
Ladybug stands, "Let's go!"
Everyone springs out from behind the car as Ladybug tosses her yoyo straight up into the air.
"Lucky charm!"
Ladybugs swirl around her, dropping a coil of rope into her hands.
"Over here, Drakken!" Kim shouts from a rooftop.
He whips around towards her voice. "Kim Possible!" The ground shakes as he lumbers his way over to her. "You trying to hide from me? Can you not handle my new form?" He gloats, flexing his massive body.
She shields her eyes, "Yeah, you know what? I actually can't handle it."
Ladybug leaps around the car, out of sight of Drakken. She motions to Chat who's holding his place behind a bush. He comes over to her. She hands him the bundle of rope. "Follow our lead." She whispers, "Get Ron to help you; have him stand back there." She points towards the opposite end of the clearing. He nods before she swings off to the building opposite Kim.
"I will finally be rid of you, once and for all!" Drakken yells as he throws his fist in Kim's direction. As his fist nears, she jumps, nearly receiving the blunt of his impact. She lands on his arm and latches herself on. "What? Are you a spider monkey now? Come here,"
"Drakken!"
He turns his head to see Ladybug across the clearing on top another building. "Oh, ladybug girl, you're back." He says while continuously trying to shake Kim off. "I have no beef with you, just stay out of my way! I'll get your Miraculous in a moment." He warns.
She shakes her head, "Mm, sorry, I can't let you hurt my new friend that you got over there, let alone my city." She gestures to the destruction of the square.
He grits his teeth, "What's with teens these days? They're all crime fighting know-it-alls..." he mumbles as he marches his way over to Ladybug.
Meanwhile on the ground, Chat and Ron scramble, stretching the rope across Drakken's path. His foot catches and be begins to topple. His hands open reflexively to catch himself, releasing the akumatized object. Kim snatches it and leaps backwards off Drakken. Ladybug releases her yoyo, catching Kim and bringing her up onto the roof with her. The thud of Drakken's fall shakes the ground.
"Want to do the honors? You just have to crush it." Ladybug instructs, smiling gently.
Kim nods, "With pleasure." She drops the wad of bread onto the rooftop and crushes it under her foot. A purple butterfly frantically emerges, causing Kim to take a step back. "What the- "
Ladybug swings her yoyo around and snatches it right from the air. Once back in her hand, the yoyo releases a white butterfly which floats away on the breeze. She notices Kim's slightly odd look. "Don't worry about that." She insists, but quickly adds, "Or what's about to happen next." She descends from the roof top, Kim following in slight confusion.
Chat tosses the coiled up rope to Ladybug. She launches it into the air and yells "Miraculous Ladybug!". An infinite amount of red ladybugs form from the rope and zoom through the air, restoring any damages from the akuma. Kim and Ron are wide eyed as they watch cars turn themselves back upright, buildings instantly repaired, and Drakken shrink back to his normal self.
"That... was awesome." Ron sighs in awe as the last of the ladybugs disappear from sight.
A familiar groan comes from behind them. Drakken struggles to his feet. "No no no! Hawkmoth!" He yells into the sky, "I demand you change me back!" After a moment of silence he grunts in frustration. "You call yourself a villain? When I actually want to be changed, you won't help me help you?!" He stomps his foot, "Sheego!"
"What?" She emerges from behind the corner.
"Let's leave this forsaken city, and the selfish jerk they call a villain!" The last part he screams at the sky again.
She grabs him by the sleeve, "Yeah, I think that's for the best." She drags him away.
Chat speaks up once they were a good distance away, "Should we be worried about them?" He asks, raising an eyebrow.
Kim shakes her head, "Nah, we've already informed your police to keep an eye out and they don't seem to have much in the way of plans right now."
"So you guys want to get a pizza or something? Hang out before we catch the next flight out? You know, take the masks off, relax?" Ron asks, stretching his arms out in front of him.
They exchange looks, uncomfortably; Chat starts, "We-"
"We don't hang out...like that, outside superhero-ing" Ladybug says, finishing Chats thought.
Ron leans into Kim and whispers, "I was right; this is awkward..."
Kim shakes him off, her eyebrows pulling together, "Do you guys even know who each other really are?"
Ladybug adjusts herself, moving side to side, while Chat responds, "We're not... allowed to... kinda comes with the powers." He shrugs, his eyes shifting to look at the ground.
Ron's shoulders slump. "Well that's just not fair. I can't imagine not hanging with Kim outside crime fighting, she's my best friend! And my girlfriend!"
Chat smirks, Ladybug nudges him out of slight embarrassment.
There's an intermittent beeping coming from the miraculous'. Ladybug quickly brings the encounter to a close, "Well, it was really nice to meet you guys, it was cool getting to work with other people; but we have to go, our powers are going to run out and we're about to change back to normal. So, this is goodbye." She pulls in Kim and Ron for a quick hug, "Look for us next time you're in Paris." She adds sincerely.
Kim smiles, "Definitely."
"Aw, you guys are so cool! If you ever have an opening for another superhero, call me, Ron Stoppable, or we have a website, email us. You guys have email here?"
Kim takes his hand as a signal to shut up. "Stay in touch." She insists. "If you ever need help with one of those... 'akumas'...?" Ladybug nods reassuringly, "Don't hesitate to contact us."
"Thanks." Chat replies as their miraculous' give their second warning. "We better get going. See ya!" He vaults off around the corner with a wave.
Ladybug smiles warmly, "Be seeing you around." She says before zipping off in the opposite direction as her partner.
Ron sighs, "I still can't get over how cool they are. But, dude, if I were actually in their position, or if we were them, I couldn't keep my identity a secret from you."
Kim chuckles, "I've known you since pre-K, I think we would recognize each other."
"That's beside the point." He says as people begin to flood the square again now that the akuma was taken care of. He suddenly starts frantically looking around at the various people, "Do you think that they're changed back and walking by us right now?"
She hits him, "Stop that! Mind their privacy." She warns.
His eyes widen and he tries to inconspicuously point across the street. "Him! That guy has to be Chat, just look!"
Kim tries to resist but is too tempted from his excitement. She follows Ron's gaze to a guy walking down the street with swept aside blond hair in a white over shirt, striped black t-shirt and jeans. Her eyes narrow, "Am I looking at the right guy? With the orange shoes?"
He nods, "Yes yes yes, it has to be him!"
"I don't think so." She dismisses.
His jaw drops, "Oh come on, he looks exactly like Chat!" He says in hushed tones as people walk by them. He opens his mouth to argue again when something catches his eye, "And that's Ladybug!"
Kim looks behind her on the sidewalk as a girl with pigtails in a dark jacket and pink pants walks away. She turns back to Ron, "I think you're just tired from the time change." She leads him away from his suspects and towards their hotel. "Those people look nothing like Chat and Ladybug."
He sighs in defeat, "Yeah, I guess you're right." He admits as they disappear into the Parisian crowds.