Marinette felt a bit out of place in the beautiful Japanese-style apartment. She looked at the pages Master Fu had spread out and made notes on. Of course the "Ladybug" and "Cat" designs had been translated first. Tikki looked over the drawings, darting here and there mumbling quietly under her breath. No one had said anything directly to her for nearly an hour and her cheeks were starting to hurt from her awkward smile.
"U-uhm…Master Fu," Marinette said finally, "I have…a…question."
"What is that, Marinette?" The small old man said, giving her a sage smile. Every time she spoke to him she had the sense that he already knew what she was going to say.
"Well, Chat Noir and I have been meeting up to train for a few weeks now…and well…I was just wondering, why is it that we can't know each others' identities?"
Master Fu chuckled, "Well, there isn't a specific reason," He said, "And I'm sure the two of you will know in time, but for now, because you are both so young, you want to protect your families and friends. When you have grown a little and can fully trust one another, then you can know each others' identities."
"Oh." Marinette frowned, feeling a bit like a child being told "wait 'til you're older."
"There used to be a large ceremony," He mused, clearly reminiscing about his younger days. Marinette wanted to ask but figured it was better not to intrude.
"So…is it okay if we work together outside of just fighting akumas?" Marinette wondered.
"Yes, of course!" Master Fu smiled, "You and Chat Noir were chosen to protect the city out of a great need, but there were always superheroes that protected people from danger." He looked up into Marinette's large blue eyes, "In earlier days, those warriors trained for a long time before being chosen by previous holders of the Miraculous." Beside him, Tikki nodded and flitted over to Marinette.
"It wasn't always like that." She clarified in her sweet little voice, "But for a long time…" she sighed and didn't continue.
"Oh," Marinette laughed nervously, "Well that's…interesting. I wish we had everything that those heroes did…"
Tikki flew up to the girl's cheek and held up her hands, "Oh Marinette, it's not that you're not supported, many heroes were born out of crisis and they usually save the day."
She decided to let usually go, not wanting to think about the alternative. "I wish there was more information about this. It's hard to protect a legacy if you don't know what it is."
"Where is it you are meeting?" Master Fu asked.
"14, rue Nationale," Marinette said, without thinking, "Why?"
"Perhaps I could join you two once in a while, and help you to learn the legacy you are so interested in." He smiled warmly and placed a small hand on hers.
Marinette smiled brightly, "Yes! That would be fantastic! We meet on Tuesdays!"
"I shall be happy to join you." He smiled, and returned to look at the images with Tikki.
Adrien stared at the ceiling and listened to the sound of Plagg munching on cheese. It was lucky that summer was mostly filled with fighting Akumas, or he'd have died of boredom already. He'd been homeschooled before he didn't love being stuck in his house all day again. He was beginning to miss his friends, but wasn't exactly sure how to contact them—especially Nino who was still on his father's list.
Two more hours until his meeting with Ladybug. He hoped there would be another akuma before that in the darkest places of his heart, just so he could see her. Oddly, he found his mind wandering to Marinette. Maybe he would be able to make plans with her. She'd probably be deemed a suitable companion, as she had better manners than Nino did and could share his father's love of fashion. There was something about her…she may not be his best friend or oldest friend, but somehow his mind often wandered in her direction. Maybe it was because they'd both changed so much. She'd stood up to Chloe at every turn, and yet she fought more for others than herself. Adrien sat up and envisioned her in a spotted mask and costume. The image was hard to hold in his head.
"Hey Plagg…" He said, "A few months ago…when you and Tikki saw our alternate identities…did you see who ladybug was?"
Plagg stopped eating cheese for one long moment, "Adrien, are you serious?" They had gone over this about a million times. It turns out even Plagg had integrity, he would not reveal who Ladybug was, under any circumstances.
"I just need to know. I…you know how I feel about her." He sighed, crossing his arms. "Besides, it's not the same as it was, Ladybug and I are together more than ever and I just feel weird not knowing who she is. She seems so…familiar."
"It's not happening." Plagg turned back to his cheese in order to end the conversation.
Adrien flopped back down on the couch, feeling just as hopeless as before. "Maybe I should just forget her…I mean…she's not real. Not…not really." If Plagg was listening to this philosophical crisis he didn't show it. Adrien continued to talk to himself, "I mean…Marinette, Nino, Alya, and Chloe…I actually know them. I don't know Ladybug at all, I don't even know her real name." But that wasn't quite true if he was being honest with himself. He may not know the details about Ladybug, but he knew who she was where it counted. He knew how she acted under pressure, how she faced her enemies, and how she protected her friends. She was clever, funny, kind, and so many things that he couldn't quite describe. In many ways, she was the only person he really knew.
"You're probably right," Plagg said finally. "Ladybug is too cool for you anyway." That earned the little floating cat a scowl.
"I just wish I knew who she was." He said, for the final time, ignoring Plagg's muttering about the number of times he'd heard that. "I want to know what school she goes to, what she likes to do for fun, what are her hopes and dreams, what animes does she watch?"
"What if she doesn't watch anime?" Plagg said, licking his…paws? and floating over to Adrien.
"She must watch anime." Adrien said, frowning. "Or, I could always introduce her to it."
Plagg opened his mouth to say something but flitted quickly behind a pillow as the door opened. Natalie came in with a frown, "Adrien? Were you talking to someone?"
"Er…no, must have had the TV on a little too loud." Adrien smiled nervously. "What's up?"
"Your father requested you come to dinner early so you can say farewell before his trip to Japan."
"Oh, okay." Adrien sighed and picked himself up. Dinner with his father before a trip was always a little awkward. Gabriel never actually said goodbye, he just reminded Adrien of his expectations and requirements. Oh well, at least tonight he and Ladybug were going to meet in his father's old offices to train. These weekly meetings were getting to be more of a highlight than ever.
Ladybug hopped through the window a few minutes late, as usual. Chat got the impression that she wasn't the most organized person behind that mask. "I hope you don't mind," She said cheerfully, "I invited a friend to join us this evening."
"A-a friend?!" Chat said, "You mean someone you know outside of this?" He gestured between them.
"No, actually, he's got his own miraculous." Ladybug held up her hands nervously, "He's a healer and helped me once when my Kwami was in danger. He has some information that might help us."
"Oh…" Chat felt his face fall, he'd thought he might get a clue as to who she really was. He perked up when he realized what Marinette was actually saying. "Wait, there's more miraculouses…miraculi…miraculous?"
"Yes." She said, cutting him off before he could try more versions of the plural. "Yes, there are more, and—"
"Then why isn't this guy helping us out?" Chat demanded, frowning.
"Well, he's um…" She was trying to put it the best way she could when the door opened, and a shorter older man walked into the room. Chat could have sworn he'd seen him before.
Chat's ears perked up, and Ladybug went to meet the man. "Chat Noir, this is Master Fu, he's the one that gave us our Miraculous."
"Nice to meet you," Chat said, suddenly remembering the day he'd tried to sneak off to Chloe's school. He glanced over Master Fu as he came in.
"This is not the first time we've met," Master Fu said, "I am glad to see you two working together!"
Ladybug smiled brightly, "I just thought it would be better if we were all on the same page." It was then that she launched into her tale. Apparently she had met Master Fu officially when her Kwami got sick. He healed Tikki but that wasn't the end. She came into possession of a book of superheroes—she was oddly vague on that point—and brought it to Master Fu who told her the story of the Miraculous and how he may be the last expert on them.
"When I was a boy, we trained endlessly and the best of us were chosen to bear the Shenqi—the miraculous." He explained, "I was chosen to protect them," He held up his wrist revealing a small jade bracelet. "But I…I failed and they were lost…some of them were anyway."
"But you remember how to train us, then?" Chat said, a little too eagerly.
"Yes." He smiled, "You two have focused on physical training, but your physical forms are changed by the power of the miraculous." He explained, "You should instead, learn to focus your mind and learn new powers. With determination you may be able to change your appearance, connect to your Kwami, and even to past miraculous holders whose memories are contained in your miraculous."
There was a heavy feeling in the air. Ladybug and Chat Noir glanced at each other, feeling suddenly like they were in an epic poem instead of an old office. "And…uh…you can help us with that?" Ladybug said finally.
"Yes, I can, but it will not be easy, and first we must do something else." He pulled two boxes out of his pockets. One he handed to Ladybug and one he handed to Chat Noir. "There are too many akumas for just the two of you. It is time you had some help."
"This is…this is like the necklace Lila had!" Ladybug said suddenly. Chat Noir opened his own box, seeing a beautiful little hair comb.
"These are…real miraculous." He said quietly. "You want us to pick other heroes."
"Yes," Master Fu said, smiling, "I want you to choose friends you really trust. They will help you in your fight against Hawkmoth while you all train."
"Will do, Master." Ladybug said,"We'll do our best!"
Chat Noir felt a little uncomfortable at the thought of picking someone else to be a hero. Sure it had been his dream, but wasn't it a lot to ask of someone? He supposed he would just have to be careful about who he picked. "Thank you," He said sincerely. "We're on our way to getting answers."
"It's up to us to protect Paris," Ladybug said quietly. "But we can't do it alone…I know just who I'm going to choose."
Chat Noir wished he shared her enthusiasm. He couldn't think of anyone who'd want to have this burden, especially if they weren't in love with Ladybug like he was. He gripped the box close to his chest and nodded. He'd just have to do his best to make the right choice.