That moment when you need to design a vehicle for a school project and you just HAD to make it difficult for yourself by designing Ghost Rider's motorbike as a car -_-
Marionette entered the room and stretched, sighing in relief as she was let out. She didn't really like the idea of sharing a body with Miss Fortune; but she couldn't really help it, now could she? Marinette just had to be Ladybug.
She could hear Miss Fortune yelling and cursing, not too happy with being locked up until the sun set. She could also hear Tikki whimpering and pleading for her to come to her senses, and lastly, far in the back of her mind, she could hear Marinette screaming in agony. The girl hated being forced to watch how two completely different personalities from her own swooped in and took control of her body, even if it was her own fault.
Besides, Marionette and Miss Fortune weren't even strangers; they were a part of her, as suppressed as they may have been. It was Marinette's Akumatisation after all.
Surprisingly enough, the girl still had some amount of control over them; as little as it may be. In the classroom, she had purposefully slowed Marionette's threads down so that Adrien could escape; and when Miss Fortune was fighting Chat, she had completely snapped. For some reason, she hated the way Fortune threated the cat-themed hero and was damn near boiling when her 'alter-ego' started using her nicknames for him. Miss Fortune could've offed him from the start, and she would have, if Marinette hadn't started struggling as best as she could. Fortune had been annoyed at first, but then she took the opportunity to taunt and hurt him even more, purposefully angering their shared 'host' even further.
Unlike Miss Fortune, who found pleasure in bullying and taunting the cat, Marionette just found it boring. She didn't feel anything as she watched his shocked face, full of despair and pain. The only thing she felt was the slight sense of surprise at seeing Marinette struggle so much for the cat before she got bored of that too. The puppeteer was just content with sitting still and watching from the side-lines when it was her 'partner's' turn to go for a spin.
Miss Fortune had picked up on the girl's protectiveness too and had started to wonder if she cared more for the blond boy or the hero; but while she was trying her best to figure that out, Marionette just couldn't care less.
All she needed to do was get Chat's Miraculous, nothing more, and nothing less.
She mentally gave the order to all of her puppets to go home for the day and not do anything stupid, knowing that they would be forced to comply. She dropped in a little present for Miss Fortune, forcing them to act lifeless in front of their families, just like real puppets; just to satisfy her partner's sadistic urges.
Marionette dropped down on the bed and closed her eyes, well aware of the fact that Miss Fortune was throwing some very colorful curses at her and Marinette and Tikki were still screaming to be let out; but she just ignored that. As powerful as she may be, she needed sleep or else she wouldn't even be able to fight ChloƩ, let alone Chat Noir.
"Chat, care to explain where we are going?" Melodie hissed quietly, still a bit nervous from seeing Miss Fortune change into Marionette like that. It was...unsettling, to say the least; one Akuma was already bad enough, two in one was just terrible.
Chat glanced behind him, sighing when he found her looking very uneasy and Mercury bouncing in place; not liking the fact that they were walking so slow. Kid Mime didn't seem to have any negative reaction, but then again, he was in full-on thinking mode. "You probably don't know him, but he's the one who gave me and Mari our Miraculous."
He suddenly felt a familiar surge of power course through him, and figured that Plagg was powering up again. He had been weakened the whole time because of Tikki, so him powering up again probably meant she was resting; which most likely meant that Marionette was resting.
"Come on, Mercury, let's go."
The speedster blinked. "What?"
"She's asleep, so it's safe to leap from the rooftops," he explained, pulling his baton out. "And I know that you're uncomfortable with walking," he didn't wait for an answer, just extended his baton and disappeared into the sky.
"I...will never understand the connection between those two," Mercury muttered before running off, while Melodie and Kid Mime nodded in agreement.
The brown haired boy picked Melodie up without warning, holding her bridal style before running after the two heroes at rapid speed. He wasn't nearly as fast as Chat, and Lord forbid he was as fast as Mercury; but he could probably match Ladybug's speed.
He was a little worried he was going too fast though, Melodie's face seemed really pink as she stared at him with wide eyes. He'd have to ask her later.
Finally, they arrived at a tiny Chinese antique shop; Chat and Mercury waiting for them. Both boys smirked when they saw the state Melodie was in, not really helping with Kid Mime's confusion, but he ignored it and put the girl down.
"I have to warn you," Chat grinned, his eyes shining with mischief. "He's a little...slow."
The Quantic Kids glanced at each other in confusion as the cat-themed hero walked into the shop. They hesitantly followed him, not sure if they should trust that look or not.
Chat detransformed and knocked on an old wooden door hidden in the back of the shop. "Master Fu? You there?" He pushed the door open, finding the old man sitting in the middle of the room and seemingly meditating.
The elderly man cracked one eye open and smiled warmly. "Ah, Adrien, my boy, what brings you he-" he froze as his eyes landed on the three others standing behind him.
"It's them!" A green creature called, appearing out of nowhere and staring with wide eyes.
Kid Mime frowned, for some reason; both the man and the Kwami gave him a sense of familiarity.
Master Fu rolled his eyes and got up. "Wayzz, mind your manners, please."
Melodie groaned and slapped her forehead, remembering Chat's earlier words. "Turtle Miraculous, of course."
Mercury rolled his eyes while Kid Mime snickered and high fived the blond boy.
Adrien looked up at him as if he had just found his new best friend.
"It's been a while since I've seen you three," Fu spoke, his hands clasped behind his back as he looked up at them with a nostalgic smile.
"Uh.." Mercury shifted in place. "Do we know you?"
Master Fu smiled sadly. "I've been watching over you ever since I caught wind of you getting your powers, so no; you don't know me." His eyes shifted to Kid Mime and a knowing look crossed his face. "But he does."
Kid Mime jerked back in surprise, almost as if to say 'I do?' While Melodie, Adrien and Mercury voiced his thoughts by echoing "He does?"
Master Fu nodded.
The brunet scanned his memory for any sign of the man, his blue eyes widening when he realized who was standing in front of him. He promptly detransformed, not hesitating to give the old man a hug and not even worrying about harming the Turtle Miraculous holder; he was way tougher than he looked. "Master Fu!" He cried happily once he had pulled away.
"He remembers!" Wayzz cheered.
Adrien blinked. "Well, that was unexpected."
Claude grinned and turned to face his friends, looking even more hyper than usual. "It's no secret I got my powers before you two," he nodded at Mercury and Melodie. "And while I was still learning about everything during that time, Master Fu showed up and taught me the basics until I met Melodie," he explained; nearly bouncing on his feet.
Mercury and Melodie glanced at each other before shrugging and changing back. And Plagg thought that was the right moment to make his presence known to the others. He zipped out of Adrien's jacket, or, at least tried to. The moment he increased in speed; he started feeling lightheaded and dropped down, until Fu caught him.
Wayzz zipped down, nothing but concern filling his tiny form. "Plagg! Buddy, what's going on?!"
Plagg groaned and sat up. "It's Tikki, you know how we work."
"That just made it worse!"
While Plagg and Wayzz were busy 'arguing', Fu looked up at Adrien for an explanation, who sighed.
"It's Mari," he explained, looking away. "I don't know how or why, but she ended up getting Akumatized." And so, he explained everything that had happened so far, not liking the fact that Fu's expression seemed to darken the longer he talked, until nothing but worry was left on the old man's face.
"Two forms, you say?" He repeated, and the four teens nodded in confirmation. "This is bad."
Adrien pulled the butterfly brooch out of his pocket and handed it to Fu. "We also found this in her room, but it's probably a fake."
Fu carefully took the brooch from the boy, examining it closely. The teens found it strange how both Plagg and Wayzz suddenly seemed very uncomfortable and looked torn between backing away from it or rushing to help it. The Kwami's locked eyes, almost as if asking the other what to do.
"This isn't a fake," Fu finally concluded, making all the heroes in the room do a double take.
"Wait, what?" Melodie blinked.
"This is the real butterfly Miraculous," Fu explained further.
Adrien frowned. "You mean...she actually defeated him? On her own?" His eyes darkened as he tried to keep his cool, was she crazy?! Both of them knew damn well how dangerous Hawk Moth could be, what in the world was she thinking, going after him alone like that? But then again, she did manage to beat him.
Fu sighed and glanced up at the two Kwami's floating in the air, looking away when Wayzz sadly muttered 'Nooroo' underneath his breath while Plagg flinched. "Technically, she did, but if what you are saying is true...then she most likely did it wrong."
"How can you even do something like that wrong?" Allen asked incredulously, hands in his pockets.
Claude nodded in agreement. "Yeah, isn't she just supposed to cleanse it and be done with it?"
"Usually, that would be the case, yes. But with this particular Miraculous, it's different." Master Fu explained. "You need to cleanse an Akuma or else it will multiply, right?"
Adrien nodded, remembering all too well how they screwed up on their first Akuma.
"Now, when you destroy and cleanse the butterfly Miraculous- if it ever turned evil, that is -you need to make sure there are absolutely no darkened butterflies left. Ladybug most likely didn't know that, when she broke the brooch, she probably didn't even get the chance to cleanse it before the butterflies attacked her and shaped her into what she is now."
"But...I remember you once saying that we needed to be more careful than the Miraculous holders because we actually could get Akumatized," Claude spoke up. "You said they were safe because of their Kwami's."
Allan and Allegra glanced at each other before turning their accusing gazes on Claude; not aware of that little fact.
Claude smiled sheepishly and took a small step back.
"That is true," Fu nodded. "A normal Akuma couldn't, but because she destroyed the brooch, all of Nooroo's powers got unleashed. She was basically fighting against a Kwami instead of an Akuma."
Plagg scoffed and crossed his arms. "Tikki always had a soft spot for him, it was obvious she wasn't going to fight back; especially since he had no control."
Wayzz smirked and nudged him. "Relax, Mr. Lazy, Tikki has a soft spot for all of us. That's just how she is, no need to get your whiskers in a twist."
He glared at him. "Shouldn't you be hiding in your shell?"
"Boys," Fu sighed tiredly. "Quit it."
The tiny creatures echoed their apologies while Adrien smirked at his Kwami; eyes nearly shining as he thought of all the teasing he could come up with from the little bit of information he just heard. Plagg really was a hypocrite, teasing the blond for his crush on Ladybug while he had a thing for said girl's Kwami himself.
If he hadn't been so worried at the moment, he really would have said something.
"Wait," Allegra raised both of her palms, blue eyes looking worried as she looked up at Claude. "You once told us that Ladybug was the only one who could cleanse an Akuma, right? Then how can we save her if we need her for it?"
As all three boys paled in realization, Fu and Wayzz shot accusing looks at Plagg.
"You didn't tell him?" Fu asked, seemingly surprised. "I thought you would explain everything to him beforehand."
Plagg glanced at Adrien, catching his gaze before looking away and sighing. "There's a reason I didn't."
"Didn't tell me what?" Adrien asked, furrowing his brows as he tilted his head in confusion; looking like a little kitten with curious green eyes as he did so. That didn't make it any easier for the Kwami as the little black creature puffed his cheeks and huffed in annoyance.
"Ladybug isn't the only one who can cleanse Akumas," he finally admitted, refusing to look at him. "You can do it too."
The reactions were instant; the Quantic Kids just looked surprised, Master Fu and Wayzz shot worried looks at each other, Plagg just looked uncomfortable, and Adrien...
Adrien just looked pissed off.
Allegra whistled lowly. "Maybe we should go..." She muttered quietly, bouncing on the balls of her feet as her blue eyes went back and forth between Adrien and Plagg. Her discomfort was obvious, although she didn't really do much to hide it.
Both Claude and Allan started to protest, but shut up when she set her eyes on them.
"Boys," she spoke, her tone still as kind as ever but having a slight, demanding edge to it as she glared daggers at them. "I said that we should go," she hissed, putting emphasis on the last part to make sure they wouldn't protest.
And they didn't, as soon as those words left her mouth, they rushed out of the door; fearing for their lives. Compared to them, Allegra was tiny, hell, Adrien figured she might be Rose's size; if not smaller. But, despite her tiny frame, the girl was scary. Allan was the usual victim for her wrath because he was just an idiot and she liked Claude too much to do anything, but she wouldn't let her crush get in the way on the rare times that he needed to be set straight.
In short, the boys learned to listen to Allegra if they valued their lives.
The fact that she was usually a sweet and kind girl made it even scarier for some reason.
The blonde sighed and brushed the strands of hair that had gotten loose from her braid out of her face, smiling kindly at Adrien and Plagg before turning and walking after the two idiots that had just ran out like scared little girls, rolling her eyes as she did so. Fu and Wayzz stayed behind for a second or two, before walking out as well.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Adrien spoke stiffly, expression a mix between angry and hurt as he crossed his arms and stared at the Kwami.
Said Kwami of Destruction sighed. "Trust me, Adrien, I have a really good reason for that."
"Let's hear it then."
Plagg sighed again. "I was going to tell you at first, but you were too excited at the beginning and didn't even let me finish speaking, so I figured I'd do it later. But I didn't."
"Well, you should have!" He yelled. "Do you know how many times Ladybug and I could have cleansed an Akuma without her getting in any type of danger? She wouldn't have to risk her life so many times!"
"Yeah but what about you?" Plagg shot back. "You were just going to end up like all the others if I told you!"
Adrien frowned and forced his heavy breathing to slow down. "What are you talking about?"
"I'm talking about the fact that you're reckless, Adrien," Plagg rolled his eyes. "You don't even hesitate to jump in front of Ladybug whenever she's in danger. She's the only reason you're alive, you know? Because if she hadn't been there, you would have been dead because of all your stunts!"
The boy's mind flashed back to the words Miss Fortune spat at him and his jaw clenched. "So she's said."
Plagg's eyes widened. "I.." he sighed. "I didn't mean it like that, Adrien, you know that."
"But you said it."
"What I meant was that you should learn to think before you act," he explained, toning down his voice a bit. "And yeah, I know that must be rich, coming from me, but it's true. You don't know this, but you actually died once, you know?"
Adrien frowned. "What?"
Plagg crossed his tiny arms. "I can only tell you what Tikki told me because well; we were dead. But when we had to fight Timebreaker, you jumped in front of Ladybug and took the hit for her; erasing from existence in the process."
"But...we saved Alix," his brows furrowed. "There were even two Ladybugs at the time, for some reason."
"Because she went back in time," Plagg explained. "All I could sense from Tikki was pain, but not the physical kind, I was trying to figure out what was wrong the whole time until she finally told me. Ladybug was acting protective too, remember?"
"So that was what that all was about..." he muttered lowly, before looking up. "But this still doesn't explain why you didn't tell me about me being able to cleanse an Akuma."
"On the contrary, it explains everything," he said. "You see, you don't really cleanse the Akuma, you absorb it."
Adrien did a double take at that. "Come again?"
The black cat Kwami couldn't help but smile at that. "Ladybug can cleanse Akumas without a single problem, Chat Noir absorbs all the evil energy it has. The more he does it, the more evil he gets...or, he could end up dying. I didn't tell you because I know you, Adrien. You wouldn't mind dying if it was to save her and Paris."
"As a hero, you shouldn't care about that."
"Even if that's true, for a Kwami it lies differently." Plagg argued, frowning. "It hurts, okay? Do you know how many kittens I lost because of that single ability? Be it corruption, or death, I lost them because I couldn't protect them enough. Tikki tried to help me many times, even if we had to fight against each other when my kittens turned bad. She's lost some bugs too, so she knows how it feels, but most of hers turn out okay. I'm the one who usually screws up." He admitted and Adrien's green eyes softened.
"Plagg..."
"Losing an 'assignment' is really painful, Adrien. Because they aren't just assignments, you start seeing them as your own children because of the bond you have. Nooroo used to be really happy and a social butterfly, but after he lost one of his caterpillars, he turned into the nervous and emotional wreck he is now.
It all does something to us, you won't see it with Tikki, because she's good at hiding it. But with the others it's different. Wayzz stopped smiling when his first hatchling died, Lizzie* already was a paranoid wreck to begin with, but she got even more paranoid after her first larva. Riin* got a lot more defensive after her first peachick. And, out of all of us, Nadie* probably suffered the most. She's already very motherly to begin with, and as much as I hate her babying us; I don't even want to know how she feels when she loses one of her cubs."
"Okay."
Plagg looked up. "What?"
Adrien shrugged. "I said okay," he smiled. "I understand why you didn't tell me. And I promise I'll only do it once, and that's to save Marinette."
Plagg smiled, but that faded quickly when both of them heard Allegra scream.
*If you've read my Unfortunate fic, then you recognize Lizzie and Nadie. And yes, I know that I said that this didn't tie in with that story, AND IT DOESN'T! But I already created those two as Queen B's and Volpina's Kwami's, I'm not going to create two whole new Kwami's with different personalities for the same characters.
*As for Riin, if you hadn't figured it out; she's the Peacock Miraculous Kwami. I got the name for her from tumblr user mellymiraculous.
Okay, yes, this is an uneventful chapter; I know. But it's needed to push the story forwards.
