Chapter Two
With the magic surging into his cane, ready to use, Hawk Moth flicked his cane to grip the end and thrust forward. The cane, spectral fire and all, phased into the girl before her and latched on to the deepest parts of her. The soul, the spirit, the essence, the life force; whatever you called it, he could feel it inside her.
With his empathic powers, a butterfly mask of light appearing before each of them, Hawk Moth felt her confusion, her sudden fear, and above all her pain. The unearthly energy flowing inside her. And he felt it grip at something, like the claws of a hawk gripping a hare.
"Now, open your heart!" he commanded. "Surrender to your Darkness! Relinquish your Darkness to me!" As soon as his grip was secure, Hawk Moth jerked his cane from her and stepped back. He spun the cane above his head and plunged the blackened crystal into the ground. He lifted the cane, the viscous black mass remaining, and looked up.
With his empathy, he could feel the change. But then, even a mundane onlooker could see something was not right. Lila was hyperventilating, every inch of her skin red with blush, tears streaming down her face. And her mouth was hanging open in pure ecstasy. She was trembling, her nose bleeding, her body unable to adjust. He hoped she did not die, truly. She was a worthy pawn.
As if reaching some sort of shaky balance, Lila's eyes rolled up into the back of her head and she collapsed with a heavy thud, her body still trembling. Tiny moans and gasps emanated from her, even in deep unconsciousness.
The light mask around Hawk Moth's face changed, turned a deep purple, and he looked down at his handiwork. The mass of dark energy had grown, swelling into a huge bulb. A chrysalis, he thought with grim amusement. The bulb contorted, taking on the shape of a kneeling human being, before it coloration settled and it stood up.
"Marea," Hawk Moth greeted, "how do you feel?" The figure turned in the moonlight, revealing an entity that looked like Lila's reflection - in a cracked mirror.
"I feel strong!" she grinned. "And ready for vengeance!"
Wayzz snoozed in his matchbox-bed, silently at peace with the world. His master was tidying up, preparing for the customers who would come for traditional Chinese healing in the morning, both regular and new. Wayzz smiled in his sleep, dreams of the newest Ladybug and Black Cat bringing the corruptive Butterfly to justice.
And like a lightning bolt, that peace was shattered by a wave of sheer malevolence that drew a wailing scream from the turtle kwami as he zipped out of his bed. The sudden scream drew Master Fu's attention and he bolted to his gramophone with agility that belied his age.
"Wayzz! What has happened?!" Fu was more than willing to admit he was stunned by Wayzz's sudden shriek. He had never heard his kwami react so … strongly to anything before. Wayzz was trembling as he looked to his master.
"Master Fu, it's Hawk Moth! He's … he's …" Wayzz took a deep breath and steadied his nerves (or whatever kwamis have instead of nerves). "He has … enacted the Forbidden Power." Fu's eyes shot open, his skin visibly paling. Oh, merciful Balance, no! This was … "bad" didn't even begin to describe it.
Fu clenched his fists, mental gears turning as he considered this development. Considered the implications and what he knew of Hawk Moth's temperament. He tried to anticipate what the non-Chosen would do with this newfound power. After several moments, he came to a number of conclusions.
"We must warn Ladybug and Chat Noir," he said calmly.
"But Master," Wayzz argued, "we can't make it to them before Hawk Moth releases his Heian!" Fu held up a palm to halt the ancient kwami.
"He won't do that immediately. If Hawk Moth has shown anything, it's that he has an instinctive dramatic flair. He will wait until tomorrow, likely the middle of the day, to release his new weapon. A time when he can have all of paris see how strong it is. Perhaps even turn the populace against their heroes." … Again, he thought.
Wayzz considered this line of reasoning for a moment before nodding. Fu took a deep, cleansing breath, preparing himself for what was to come. "It is time to trans-" he bit back a groan at his twinging back, "-form! Shell on!"
In a flash of green light, Fu was transformed into the fabled Lao Wugui and hopping across the rooftops of Paris.
Marinette was putting the finishing touches on a new blouse, a gift for Alya, when she heard a familiar tapping at her skylight. She chuckled and stood, quite familiar with the sound. In the last few months, Chat Noir had been visiting her on his nights to patrol the city. While she wasn't entirely comfortable with it, her thoughts on her identity, she couldn't think of a reason to send him away that a normal person would use.
Plus, she had to admit, she really did enjoy spending time with him outside of fighting Hawk Moth's akuma or patrolling the city. Though she felt only friendship for her Kitty, if she were truly honest with herself, she might admit that if she hadn't met Adrien, she probably would have fallen for Chat (even his ridiculous puns).
Marinette lifted the skylight and gasped at the sight of a very non-feline masked hero. The man before her was short, dressed in what appeared to be a grass-green, skin-tight Chinese robe, a symbol in Mandarin on the right breast, with yellow-brown gloves and boots. A mask extended past the collar and covered his face up to the hairline, all but the chin and eyes. This was …
"Master Fu?" Marinette asked, eyes wide. The old master chuckled and nodded.
"Lao Wugui," he supplied before the smile slid off of his face. "Ladybug, there is a grave emergency. Hawk moth has discovered a power of the Butterfly that holds far more danger than any akuma. We must find Chat Noir so I can explain further." He turned, revealing the ornate shield strapped to his back. "Meet us at Notre Dame as soon as possible." With that, he leapt away, almost bouncing across the roofs of the city.
As Marinette stood there in stunned silence, Tikki zipped up beside her. "You heard him, Marinette!" she urged. That broke the ravenette out of her reverie and she nodded.
"Tikki, spots on!"
Chat stared at the new hero as they bound across Paris to the famed cathedral. Another Miraculous wielder! And he even knew about kwami! (After Volpina, Adrien had devised a foolproof way to test if a person truly had a Miraculous. He asked if they knew the true source of a Miraculous's power; it was vague enough to be impossible for a non-Chosen, but specific enough for someone who knew.)
As they ran, Adrien thought over how he had reacted upon seeing the, apparently old, user.
Adrien was finishing his physics homework, simple as always, when he heard a whoosh of air and a thud in his room. His heart leapt as he immediately thought of Ladybug, but turning in his chair, he was surprised to find it was not ladybug at all. It was … a turtle hero?
"Hello, Chat Noir," the Turtle said, his tone reassuring and serene. "You do not know me, but I know you. I am the one who Chose you to wield the ring and Ladybug the earrings. I am the Great Guardian, Master Fu. Or, in this form, Lao Wugui." Old Turtle? "Something has happened that puts Paris in far greater danger than ever before. We must meet Ladybug at Notre Dame. Come!" With that, he turned toward the window.
"Wait!" Adrien shouted. "Just to make sure, what's the true source of a Miraculous's powers?" The old turtle grinned at him and tapped a bracelet on his wrist.
"Our kwamis, of course." With that, he leapt out the window. Adrien shook of his surprise and turned to Plagg. "Claws out!" he shouted.
In retrospect, maybe he shouldn't have trusted this Master Fu so easily, but if his Lady was waiting, who was he to argue. Especially since he could see her outline on Notre Dame.
Lao Wugui landed with a dull thud, Chat without a sound. Ladybug turned to them, radiant in the moonlight even as a concerned frown marred her features. "What is so dangerous that you would transform to tell us, Master?" she asked.
So it was true! Chat carefully kept a straight face, but inside his inner-anime-nerd was squealing like a crazed fanboy. They had an old master! Like Master Roshi or the Third Hokage or Master Splinter! One that had Chosen them to face the threat of Hawk Moth and his akuma. He had always suspected as much, but it was still freaking awesome to confirm. The transformation around Lao Wugui faded to reveal a familiar Chinese man in a red Hawaiian shirt.
"Wayzz, my kwami," that last part was for Chat's benefit, "sensed a powerful-"
"Disturbance in the Force?!" Chat interrupted, unable to help himself. Ladybug crossed her arms, an unamused look on her face.
"Yes," Fu chuckled, "you could say that." Back to seriousness. "Hawk Moth has pressed a dangerous Forbidden power out of his kwami, Nooroo. It is called 'Emergence,' and the result is far more dangerous than even the most powerful akuma."
Chat chuckled, hoping it was a joke. Fu's level gaze told him it was anything but, and the grin dropped off his face.
"Oh, man," he said, unable to think of anything else to say.
"What exactly is this 'result', Master?" Ladybug asked. Fu regarded her with concern, thinking over his words before answering.
"The entity is called a Heian." Darkness? "And they are very powerful. They are as strong as the negative emotions that give them life, and will only grow stronger as those emotions grow. Hawk Moth will likely attack some time tomorrow, in the middle of the day." He looked at them both. "Be prepared, heroes. Have excuses ready and prepare yourselves mentally. Tomorrow will be a hard day."
Fu removed a pair of tea bags from his shirt pocket. "Steep these and drink them tonight. They will help you to sleep deeply in preparation for what is to come." Both heroes took a teabag each. "I wish I could offer more help, but at the moment I cannot. I am, sadly, too old to fight this threat. And I cannot explain the danger; you must experience it to understand it. Shell on!" Green light enveloped the old master, leaving Lao Wugui in his place. "Sleep well, young heroes. You will need it." With those comforting words, he leapt away.
Chat took a moment before glancing at Ladybug. "Think we should be worried?" he asked with a grin. Ladybug looked back with steel in her eyes.
"Considering he came out here in the middle of the night to warn us? Yes, I do." She unlatched her yoyo. "Be careful, Chat." She swung away across the Seine, lost to the night.
As Chat Noir rushed home, he couldn't help the dread wriggling in his gut as the gravity of the situation set in. "This ought to be fun," he groused.
As Mrs. Bustier's class settled in, the entire class was stunned by the arrival of Marinette Dupain-Cheng. Her presence itself wasn't a surprise; it was her timing. There was a whole ten minutes before the bell rang! And it looked like she should have slept those last few minutes … the girl looked like she hadn't slept at all last night.
As Marinette shook her exhaustion off and plopped into her seat, Alya watched her with concern. Normally she would be ecstatic that Mari had been able to beat her perpetual tardiness even once, but her BF just didn't look right. She seemed … tired, but jumpy. Like anything might come and attack the class. (Of course, given the last several months, that wasn't even close to impossible. But Marinette had never acted like this!)
So exhausted was the girl, she didn't even look up when her crush, the fabulous Adrien Agreste, walked in. Come to think of it, he looked little better than Mari. Alya briefly wondered if their shared exhaustion was connected, but cast the idea aside. If they had been up to what she was thinking of, they would have been smiling. Or something.
Adrien all-but-collapsed into his seat, for once not-at-all happy about being at school. As Nino took his spot, he glanced at Alya, who flicked her gaze over to Marinette and gave a slight nod. What was up with these two? Before they could begin to think of an answer, Mrs. Bustier walked in and began the lesson.
It was at lunch that Alya finally reached her limit. Ignoring the slimmer girl's protests, Alya dragged her to an empty classroom and fixed her with her trademark-pending "no nonsense" look.
"Marinette, what's wrong? You, not to mention Adrien, have been zoned out all day. Girl, you look like you haven't slept in a week! And don't even think about lying about some nw project or something; you know I can tell when you're dodging the truth!" Marinette's slight flinch was enough to tell she'd hit the nail on the head with that one.
"I- I'm just a little stressed, Alya," Marinette mumbled, her shoulders falling under the weight of exhaustion and guilt. The journalist's eyebrow rose in confusion. Stressed? About what? There weren't any big tests coming, Class President work was manageable (she would know as deputy), and Marinette hadn't mentioned anything else that might be stressful.
But Alya prided herself on her intuition, and she could tell that Marinette was being truthful.
"Stressed about what?" she asked, tone even yet concerned. Marinette looked away for a moment, her brow crinkling in thought. Seriously, what could be so bad that she wouldn't share with her best friend?
"Well-" Marinette's explanation was cut off by a slight tremble that ran through the school. Which, of course, meant an akuma attack.
In the same vein as his girlfriend, Nino used lunch to corner Adrien about what was bothering him. However, he was more gentle. He knew Adrien's schedule was insane. No matter how little he actually complained about it, Nino knew it could overwhelming. But he got the feeling something else was wrong.
"Dude, come on. If you need someone to vent to, you know I'll always have your back." He punctuated that with a soft punch to the shoulder, the kind that always perked Adrien up. But the DJ's grin faded at his friend's continued downcast look.
"I know that, Nino," Adrien all-but-whispered, "but it's something secret. Something … personal." That sent red flags up in Nino's head. Holy crap, he couldn't mean- it couldn't-
"Adrien, is this about your Pops?" he asked, gently to avoid spooking the blond. Adrien's eyes widened in surprise.
"Wha- no! No, no, no, Nino! Nothing like that, I promise!" Damn those green, kitty-cat eyes. Adrien was telling the truth, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. Then what-? Adrein's eyes brightened ever-so-slightly, as if he were gathering himself, but whatever he was about to say was cut off by screaming and a faint shaking of the ground.
Both boys looked to the courtyard to see a dark silhouette rise from a slight crater in the ground. Oh boy, another akuma? But as the thing turned to them, Nino felt a wave of primal fear wash over him, like a deer being watched by a lion. Without knowing how, he knew: this was way worse than any akuma.
Lots of translations in this one:
"Marea" is an Italian girl's name that means "bitter".
"Heian" is the anglicized word for "darkness" in Mandarin.
"Lao Wugui" means "old turtle" in Mandarin. I think that Fu would go by that even when young; to uphold the ruse.
*For those Kingdom Hearts fans out there, yes this is a combination of Ansem/Riku 'unlocking' Maleficent and the creation of Vanitas. Those scenes are what inspired the fic; I thought it would be awesome for Hawk Moth. (Occasional bone-headedness aside, he's an awesome villain.)
Leave a review if you like what you see! This probably won't be a very long one.