Kwami Chapter 2: Closing The Net, a miraculous: tales of ladybug & cat noir fanfic

Hello, and welcome to the second installment of Kwami. I want to thank everybody who took the time to favorite or review my stories. There is nothing more motivating for me than knowing that people enjoy what I am writing. Without any further ado…

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Chapter Two: Closing The Net

The next morning came too soon, and Adrien found himself stumbling out of bed half asleep. He made his way down the stairs, making certain not to glance in the direction of his father's secondary office, the room where Nathalie was currently being scolded for something. He didn't listen in to find out what his father was so displeased about. He was fairly certain he already knew.

His morning routine was simple. He would get dressed, eat, and then have The Gorilla drive him to school. Typically, Nathalie would be watching to make sure he was doing everything on a very tight schedule, but she seemed a bit busy today. So he ate alone, and then had the Gorilla drive him to school. By the time he arrived, he found himself beginning to brim with excitement.

It felt so easy to shrug off the weight of his house when he was at school, surrounded by Nino, Alya, and Marinette. He smiled at the thought. There was just something about the clumsy, excitable, eager Marinette that helped his heavy life to feel just a little bit lighter. The thought allowed him to push the mysteries at home aside for a moment and focus instead on the fun awaiting him at school.

He found to his surprise when he arrived at the school that Marinette wasn't there yet. He shrugged this off, as the girl was quite often late, and instead smiled and waved at Alya and Nino. The two of them waved back, and it must have been his sleepy state that caused him to miss the fact that the two of them were now sitting in the same row. His quizzical look was returned with a sneaky smirk from Nino. Which was odd, but he shrugged it off and sat down in his normal seat. He supposed he'd be sitting with Marinette today then.

Marinette blinked, her eyes taking in the sunlight streaming through her bedroom window. She rolled over slowly to check what time it was and immediately jolted awake. School had started almost half an hour ago! She quickly stood up and climbed down the stairs to her bedroom floor. She once again questioned her desire to have a bed up in the air that forced her to climb down a ladder every morning while half asleep. Her clumsiness was difficult enough to deal with while awake.

In comparison to Adrien's room, Marinette's was small and cluttered. Directly underneath of her bed, she had an 'L' shaped desk where she kept her computer, with a screensaver of her beloved Adrian on it. Several pictures of Adrian hung around it. She also kept some of her school books, and a small dresser where she kept her art supplies, on the desk.

On the smaller section of the L, she had a giant picture from a time when she had been in a modeling shoot with Adrian, and below that was a board that she was constantly sticking sticky notes to in an attempt to never forget any of the countless commitments she took upon herself every day. It didn't do as much good as it should have.

The only other things in her room were a couch/bed that she would often sit on during the day, and sleep on at night if she didn't feel like climbing the ladder to her actual bed, a small counter for applying makeup, and another dresser where she kept some of her artistic creations, such as her Ladybug and Cat Noir dolls, and dolls of several of the villains they'd taken down together.

As soon as Marinette's feet touched the floor, she raced over to the counter and saw Tikki fast asleep in a little makeup case where she kept her bed. Typically, Tikki made sure Marinette didn't sleep in, but for obvious reasons she wasn't awake at the moment. Marinette looked down at her sleeping friend and shook her head lovingly. Tikki was going to be mad at her when she woke up, but Marinette had no intention of waking the sleeping Kwami.

She quickly pulled a note sticker off of her messy schedule board and scribbled a short note to Tikki, explaining that she was going to school and that she hadn't found herself capable of waking her up. Then she set the note next to the bed. She threw on her typical long pink pants, black jacket, and white short sleeved shirt with a flower embroidered over the heart.

Marinette spent about a minute or two on making herself look proper with a comb, make up, the works. She was going to be seeing Adrien at school, after all. She couldn't possibly go with a bedhead. Then she opened the trap door that led from her room to the bakery and headed down the stairs.

As she approached the school, Marinette was already having doubts about leaving Tikki behind, and despite how late she was, contemplating heading back home. It felt odd not having her little companion around, and it also felt dangerous. Considering what had happened just yesterday, there was no doubt Tikki would be very displeased with her when she got back to her room. She just hoped that was all she had to worry about today, because if Paris needed Ladybug… She didn't finish the thought.

Marinette pushed open the door to her room in the school, with every intention of sneaking in without being noticed. This didn't happen though. Instead she simply stood there, by the front door of the room, staring at her seat. Alya was sitting in the row behind, and grinning like a Cheshire Cat. Sitting next to Marinette's spot, and smiling at her with the smile that still made her swoon, was Adrian Agreste.

"Stop standing there like a buffoon and sit down already. Can't you see you are interrupting class?" The voice was none other than that of one of the worst human beings in Paris. At least, that was Marinette's opinion, and she wasn't alone in it either. Chloé Bourgeois, daughter of Paris' Mayor.

Miss Bustier, the teacher of the class, shot Chloé a look, but didn't say a word. Before motioning to the seat next to Adrian and saying, "Marinette, please sit down. The class is waiting."

Marinette fought hard not to mutter under her breath, or shoot a glare at Chloé, as it wouldn't do any good. Plus, every eye in the class was on her, so it wouldn't really have been appropriate. Instead, she slowly, awkwardly moved to the row that Adrian was sitting in and sat down next to him. As of late, she'd gotten to the point that she was less awkward around him.

She could speak to him now, instead of just the half words that used to come out of her mouth whenever she tried. Though, she did still say some really embarrassing things at times. After all, her thought processes were still somewhat delayed just by being in his vicinity. Which is why she was pretty sure she wasn't going to be remembering much of anything the teacher said in class today. Alya was going to have to provide her with her notes today. That's the least she could do after pulling this.

Just as expected, Marinette didn't accomplish much during first hour, or second. She would look up from her book periodically, and glance over at Adrian. She would look away the moment his eyes came in her direction though. This process was repeated multiple times.

Even when she wasn't looking, Marinette's thoughts were along the lines of 'I can't believe I'm sitting next to Adrien!?", "Adrien is SO cute when he is concentrating so hard!" and "I wonder what he's doing after class today?" There was no room left in her somewhat muddled and very busy prain to pay any attention to what the teacher had to say.

After what seemed like an eternity, second hour was over and they were given a moment to relax. "Marinette. you ok?" were the first words out of Adrien's head and Marinette felt her cheeks turn a bright red that she quickly attempted to hide. He was worried about her!? She gave a silent mental squeal of delight before realizing that she should probably address his question.

"Ye… No… I mean… Uh. Yeah, I…I'm alright. Why?" Marinette managed to stammer out.

"Well," Adrien frowned, looking a little awkward. "You were late to school, and have been acting a little unsettled the entire time you were here. I mean, we were reading a segment from The Hunchback of Notre Dame a couple minutes ago. I got a little lost, so I glanced over to see if you were at the right spot, and you had The Count of Monte Cristo open." He smirked. "And were pretending to follow along."

Marinette turned bright red, stood to her feet, announced she needed to go to the bathroom, and rushed out the door. Behind her, as the conversation was going on, Alya and Nino were exchanging a smirk. When Marinette raced out of the room, however, Alya quickly jumped to her feet and rushed after her best friend.

Marinette didn't stop until she got to the ladies' bathroom, where she promptly threw water on her face. Alya entered the room a couple of seconds after Marinette. "Look, Marinette," Alya said quickly. "Maybe me and Nino went a little too far with this. I just thought, you know, you might enjoy being able to sit next to Adrien for school one time. I didn't mean to make you feel like an idiot or anything. I'm sorry."

Marinette shook her head. "No, it was nice." She responded with a slight smile. "I just can't believe I did something that stupid, and that Adrien of all people is the one who noticed me doing it." She set her head on the sink, face first, in shame. "I am such an idiot. Why in the world can I still not be normal around him?! I mean, it's not like we haven't spent a lot of time together. I'm surprised he doesn't think I'm a complete braincase yet."

Alya smiled. "Probably because he likes hanging out with you almost as much as you enjoy hanging out with him?" Marinette opened her mouth but Alya held up her finger. "Don't try to deny it, Girl. I've talked to him on a number of occasions, remember. Such as when the whole Kung Food thing went down a couple weeks ago, remember? He was quite happy to go hang out with you." She smirked. "He sent me a smile emoji."

Marinette smiled. "Really?" She asked, her mood instantly improving.

"Yup," Alya replied. "You shoulda seen his face when he came walking into school today, too. At first he had this big, 'what's going on' look of confusion on his face. Knowing you, you woulda found it completely adorable. Then he sat down in the empty seat with this smile on his face, waiting for you to show up. There is no way you missed the way he smiled at you when you walked in the door."

She leaned forward and whispered conspiratorially. "I bet, if you were to tell him you liked him, he would totally ask you out on a date."

A date? With Adrien? She sighed dreamily. They'd go out to eat at a nice restaurant, and talk about home life, feelings, and adventures. He'd tell her what it was like living in a mansion, and she'd respond by telling him about living in a bakery. They'd go out to a movie and share a box of popcorn while laughing at some silly cheesy comedy. They'd walk home in the moonlight, and after walking her home, he'd… Marinette's face now became solid red.

"Yeah right, Alya," she said, though her voice tone didn't reflect the same emotions as her words. Then she frowned a little. "But I've tried telling him so many different times, in so many different ways, and I never fail to screw it up. Face it, Alya. The likelihood of me successfully letting Adrien know I like him is only slightly less than Hawkmoth deciding to join forces with Ladybug."

Alya nudged her. "Come on, Girl. You have to do it eventually, or else he is going to fall for some other girl while you are taking your sweet time. I don't know why, considering how popular and friendly he is, but he doesn't have a girlfriend. You leave him alone too much longer, though, and somebody else is going to step in while you wait. Somebody like, I dunno, Lila?"

The mention of Lila caused Marinette's face to change a little. Sure, after using Ladybug to reveal that girl a fraud and a liar, it was unlikely Adrien would be going out with her. But the fear that had seized her mind just the day before, and caused her to overreact so drastically, creating a new enemy and allowing for the girl's akumatization, was still fresh in her mind.

There was no reason to assume some other girl wouldn't try to take her Adrien away just as Lila did, just… without being a tool or a liar. If that happened, there really wasn't anything she'd be able to do about it. She'd have lost Adrien, and had nothing but her own stupid cowardice to blame it on. "Ok," she said, trying to resolve herself as best she could. "I'll tell him."

A scream came from the classroom, and both Alya and Marinette spun around towards the bathroom door. The scream was followed by a couple more, and just as Alya was about to announce she needed to go out and record… everything fell silent. Marinette and Alya stood rooted to the spot, glancing at each other in bewilderment. Their first thought had been an akuma attack, but… if that was really the case, the silence didn't bode well at all.

"Should… we go see what's going on?" Marinette stammered out. Alya nodded silently, finger to her lips. She pushed open the door and glanced in both directions. There was nobody there. Marinette fought back the impulse to call out, and instead made her way back towards the classroom. She pushed the door open silently, and her eyes widened. Everybody in the class stood, frozen in terror. Like, literally frozen to the spot with a look of terror on their face.

"Akuma," Alya whispered, and Marinette's eyes darted around the room. Adrien wasn't there.

"You don't think it was after Adrien, do you?" Marinette asked, the worry evident on her face. "He isn't here, Alya." She needed to get home. She couldn't go search for Adrien, couldn't turn on the news to see if they knew anything, couldn't evan stay with Alya. She needed to get home, and she needed to get home now. Tikki was there. And as long as Tikki was there, no Ladybug would be showing up to save the day. The question was, how?

She couldn't really tell Alya that they should split up. During an akuma attack, that would be the absolute stupidest thing for a normal person to say. Then again… "Alya," Marinette said, glancing out the window. "The akuma isn't here anymore. That means it's out on the street. Since it was already here once, it probably won't be coming back. I'm going to hide here."

Alya nodded. "I'll stay with you."

"I'll be fine," Marinette replied, thinking quickly. "I mean, you don't want to stay cooped up in here. You have your ladyblog to worry about. There is an akuma out there, and no doubt Cat Noir and Ladybug are fighting it as we speak. If you want to get something recorded, you need to hurry."

Alya glanced between Marinette and the door to the school indecisively. "Don't worry." Marinette said with a smile. "I'll be fine."

Alya glanced between the door and Marinette one more time. "Ok," she finally said. "But if that changes after I leave you, I'm going to make you regret telling me to do so. Got it?"

"Course." Marinette replied. "But nothing will. Now go." She motioned for Alya to hurry, and her friend did. Marinette now found herself alone in the classroom with a bunch of still-as-statue horrified classmates. Why couldn't the world leave her alone for even one day? Marinette wondered to herself.

She then waited about five minutes, enough time to know that she wouldn't be accidentally catching up with Alya, and raced out the door of her classroom. Adrien was missing, and Cat Noir was going to need Ladybug. She just prayed Ladybug wasn't going to arrive too late. Oddly, she found she wasn't sure which worried her more, being too late for Cat Noir or being too late for Adrien.

Adrien blinked, eyes wide as Marinette raced from the room. What… had just happened? Maybe he shouldn't have brought up her strange behavior, but he was pretty sure something was bothering her. Sure, she often acted oddly around him. He wasn't clueless. He knew that Marinette didn't trip over her words or stammer in incomplete sentences while talking to anybody else. He had his suspicions, but chose not to speak up about it. He didn't want to believe his suspicious were accurate. The last thing he wanted to do was hurt her.

Which was why he typically wouldn't have said anything. But there was something else going on today. Maybe it wasn't even something she was consciously thinking about. He wasn't sure. He'd never figured out how to read a girl's mind, let alone Marinette's. She was different than anybody he'd ever met before, not that he'd met all that many people his age, but he still got the feeling she was a very unique girl.

Something was bothering her, though. Something serious. The dark rings under her eyes indicated a lack of sleep, and the look she'd had on her face when she'd walked into class right before realizing she was sharing a seat with him was that of a person with massive weight on her shoulders. Something was wrong. He just… didn't know what.

It was as he sat dwelling on this that everything went to chaos. The window shattered suddenly as a small glass camera went flying through it. Then, a supervillian floated up to the window riding a video camera. She wore a dark flowing purple cape, a skin tight jump suit, and goggles with a red light indicating she was recording everything around her.

"I am the Petrifier," she announced to the startled class. "And I am here for Ladybug and Cat Noir."

Well, she's certainly not camera shy. Was the pun that was ready to leap out of Adrien's mouth, right before she made her declaration. Everybody in the room looked absolutely bewildered. She was here for Ladybug and Cat Noir? Why in the world would Ladybug and Cat Noir be here? All of the students glanced between each other in utter confusion, and Adrien fought the urge to crawl under his desk.

What in the world made her think she would find either of them him? Sure, he was here a lot. He attended school here. But she didn't appear to know that he was Cat Noir, as she glanced directly over him. In fact, it didn't appear she expected any of them to actually be the super heroes. After surveying the room twice, she snapped her fingers and one of the small flying cameras circling her snapped a picture of Miss Bustier.

The teacher immediately stopped moving, and the room arupted into terror. Flashes filled the room, and this time, Adrien didn't hesitate to throw himself under his desk. As soon as he hit the floor, he froze as still as a statue. He was a model. He'd had to stand without budging for several minutes at a time on many different occasions.

The Petrifier glanced around the room at all of the frozen students. Once more she called out, "Ladybug! Cat Noir! If you want to save your precious Françoise Dupont students, I suggest you show your face. No? Well, I'm going on a bit of a sight seeing tour." She hopped back onto her video camera and floated out of the window. "You have about an hour before this becomes irreversible, even for your 'Miraculous Butterfly' ability. The deadline is 12:15 sharp." As she called this out, the familiar voice and body shape clicked in his head. Nathalie.

As soon as she had disappeared below the window, Adrien snuck out from under his desk and made his way into the bathroom. He had no idea if the people in his classroom could still see, and whether or not they would remember him transforming their while they were immobile. Better safe than sorry. Once in the bathroom, he opened his shirt and whispered. "Plagg, claws out."

Nathalie the super villain. Why did she think Cat Noir and Ladybug would be at the school? What is her plan? Will Adrien be able to stop her, and will Marinette reach Tikki in time. Only time will tell.

~ Xanatos Stones