Chapter 3
{A/N: AHAHA. I BET YOU ALL THOUGHT I WAS DEAD. WELL, I AM ON THE INSIDE.}
I was miserable after school and I knew it.
I couldn't say the exact reason, the mountain was growing: my 'mother', my father, the divorce, Nathaneal, my credit cards were frozen, and Adrien was still swamped at photoshoots that were preparing for his father's next release.
And I was stuck in this old, ugly, and poor house, forced to unpack my things by myself.
I scowled, glaring at the small closet as I hung up a shirt that deserved an extraordinary walk-in closet.
I began to feel grief and I pushed the sadness from my mind and let it be replaced with anger.
Why do I have to unpack? I grumbled, It's not my job.
A strand of honey blonde hair fell in my face. Angrily, I swept it behind my ear and screamed, "Uh! My hair!"
Almost immediately, the bedroom door swung open and Abella rushed it. "Chloe!" she said, "What's going on?"
I threw my hands up in frustration, "EVERYTHING!"
She seemed to age five years, "Chloe-"
I sneered at her, turning my back on her. "-You wouldn't understand-!"
"-Let's go get some fresh air-"
I rolled my eyes, "It's not like there's no air inside."
"-Why don't we go shopping?"|
"You absolute liar!" I hissed, crossing my arms over my chest. I huffed, dragging my feet as I walked behind the shopping cart.
I glared at Abella as she stopped pushing the court to drift off to focus on which sauce she needed.
I stomped my foot, "You said we were going shopping!"
"We are shopping," she said simply, grabbing one off the counter and throwing it into the cart.
She pulled out a folded and wrinkled piece of printer paper from a cheap-looking blue purse. She hummed, unfolding the list and smoothing out the creases on the bar of the cart.
"Let's see," she muttered underneath her breath. "I have spinach, apples, cookies-"
"-MOM!" I snapped.
"-What do you want for lunch at school?" she asked, not bothering to look at me as she fiddled with the pen in her hand and scribbling down occasionally. "PB&J, pastrami, chicken, room-temperature grilled cheese-?"
"-MOTHER!" I screamed, raising my voice higher. A few peasants glanced over at us and a baby began to wail loudly in a nearby aisle.
Seriously, I scowled deeply. Who brings a smelly baby into a grocery store?
Abella rushed over in front of me, hand crumpling the shopping list in her hand as her grip tightened. "Chloe!" she hissed, "Watch your tongue! We're in public-"
"-I own the public," I scoffed.
Fire seemed to dance in her eyes. She held out her hand with the pen. "Phone."
I clutched it in my nails, pressing it against my chest. I shook my head.
"Chloe," she said, grinding her teeth. Her voice scratched as if she were struggling to keep her temper down. "I will not continue putting up with these rude remarks. I understand that what's going on doesn't make anyone happy, but this has gone too far," she stated.
My stomach tightened. I glared at her angrily, my body tense.
"Phone," she demanded.
Never challenge authority, my father's voice rang in my ears.
I inhaled, shoving the phone in her hand. I scowled, refusing to meet her eyes.
Abella sighed, putting my phone- which definitely cost more than her outfit- in her purse. "You'll get it back when we get home."
I scoffed, my hands gripped my shoulders. "You mean, your home," my voice cracked.
She inhaled deeply.
I winced.
I tried to feel little remorse and what I did, I shoved back down and bottled up.
We didn't talk as Abella finished her shopping list and paid for the items. As the cashier bagged them, she finally sighed. "I'm sorry I yelled at you, Chloe," she apologized. She swiped her card on the reader, quickly signing her name, and slowly lowering the stylus pen.
You should be, I thought, my lip trembling.
I said nothing.
The cashier dropped the plastic bags into the cart. Abella thanked them before we walked out of the automatic door.
The cart rattled as the ground changed from smooth pavement to the ruff parking lot. We walked along the edge of the building, the car parked far away.
I whined, my feet throbbing painfully in my shoes. They were meant for class and sass, not parking lots with cars that needed to be replaced twenty years ago.
Along the side of the peasant grocery store sat a homeless old man on the dirty ground. He appeared to be from Chinese heritage, his hair was gray and streaked with white, and a cardboard sign with the words 'Wisdom for Free. Tips appreciated' was propped on the wall next to him. He was ancient, his skin wrinkly and thin like paper. He wore a hideous red and white flower print Hawaiian shirt and tan capri shorts. And around his wrist was a surprisingly expensive looking bracelet with a carved jade stone and black cord.
My mother stopped pushing the cart, she kneeled down to the man's level.
He smiled, the skin around his face wrinkling further. "Would you like an ounce of wisdom for your day, my dear?"
My eyes widened. His voice was strong, alluding to his age and health.
Abella smiled, "No, thank you," she answered. She shuffled around in her purse, pulling out her wallet. She handed him five euros, her expression sympathetic.
The cart began to roll away and I grabbed it, staring at the homeless man and Abella.
"I'm sorry," she apologized. "This is all the cash I have. If there was an ATM-"
"-I do not need your money, ma'am," he said. "One Euro would be fine, except I haven't-"
"-Please," she smiled. "I have more than I would care to have. Money is nothing if you cannot share it."
"Words of experience," his eyes sparkled. "You are a very intelligent woman, my dear," he praised, accepting the money into his hands.
Abella laughed, standing up. "That's not something I hear every day."
"I wonder why," I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes, they both turned to look at me. I looked sharply at Abella, snarling, "Can I go now?"
She smiled apologetically at the man. He smiled, "Thank you. There seem to be less and less kind people in the world these days."
"Are you talking about me?" I demanded, sneering.
Abella glanced at me. "I'm sorry," she apologized to the man, "but I really have to go. There's dinner to be made."
Finally, we walked away and found the truck. Grudgingly, I opened the door and got into the passenger seat without helping unload the cart. Abella placed all the groceries in the back seats then escorted the cart away, and got into the car after a million or so years.
"Why would you do that?" I demanded. "He's homeless for a reason. He'll probably use those Euros for drugs. You could've bought donuts with that-"
"-Because, Chloe," she said, "it's the right thing to do."
I scoffed at the ridiculousness of the cliché statement.
I swung the door open when the car stopped, quickly lowering myself down onto the ground so I could rush up to my 'room' and avoid Abella Roussea as much as possible.
But before I could even get to the door, she yelled after me, "Can you help me unload the groceries, Chloe?"
I groaned, forcing myself to turn around. "No, I have to unpack the boxes," I sneered, turning my back.
"Chloe," she warned.
I huffed, turning around again to see her holding up my phone. "I could buy a new one," I challenged.
"And who's gonna buy it?" she shot back, raising an eyebrow.
I gritted my teeth, stomping back over to the car as I helped take the groceries into the peasant house. Abella put the groceries away then left to water the flowers.
I grumpily walked up the stairs to my room when something caught my eye. In the center of the table in the kitchen was a box that certainly hadn't been there before.
Scoffing, I walked back down the stairs to examine it. The box was a hexagon, the wood a deep red, the lid covered with golden Chinese symbols.
I placed my phone on the table. Curiously, I opened it.
Years later, I'm sure I would laugh at my reaction, but when I had no idea what I was in for, it was absolutely terrifying.
An explosion of yellow light burst from the box. I screamed, dropping it immediately.
In horror, I watched as the light warped, twisting into a large bug-like creature. Th-the-the thing was the size of my hand and looked like a huge bee.
I scrambled backwards, my heels caught on something in my hurry and I tripped, falling roughly to the ground. I whimpered, trying to scoot backwards even though it might ruin my pants.
The creature- the thing- the whatever it is!- stared at me. Its large, pupil-less, navy blue eyes seemed to glow.
My hand clamped down over my mouth to cover my screams. I could feel my nails digging into my cheek, and I grew upset at the thought it ruined my peticure.
It tilted its head curiously, "And who are you?"
Wtf is that thing talking about?! Everyone knows who I am!
I sobbed, ripping my hand off my cheek briefly to scream, "LADYBUG, HELP ME!"
It swooped down from the air, zipping over to me in a blink of an eye. I cried into my hand, leaning backwards.
This bug and now, my pants are dirty!
Fear grasped my heart, my stomach tightened, and my temples throbbed with the warning of an incoming headache. My stomach churned and a wave of nausea swept over me.
"Please don't cry!" cried the bee, pressing its large body to my cheek. Its little bug arms spreading and engulfing my cheek into a hug.
I screamed, whacking it off. The creature was sent flying backwards, but just as it was about to slam into the wall, it phased right through it.
"WHAT THE FUCK?!" I screamed, distressed. "TH-THI-THIS IS ALL JUST AN ILLUSION FROM ALL THE STRESS I'M GOING THROUGH RIGHT NOW!" I shouted. I sobbed, my chest shakily trembling with my rapid breathing, "Yeah, that's it!- WHERE'S DADDY?!"
I want my father! My awful mother even!
The bug reappeared again, phasing through the floorboards. It crossed its ugly little arms over its torso. "That was rude," it huffed.
"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?!" I demanded, eyes wide. I could feel my shoulders trembling and my hands shaking as I removed them from over my mouth.
"If you lower your voice," it bargained, "I'll tell y-"
"-NO!"
The door swung open and I jumped in paranoia. Abella rushed over to me, kneeling on the ground. The bee flew behind a vase, watching silently.
"What's going on, Chloe?" she asked, her expression full of fear and worry. She touched my shoulder and for once, I'm not sure if I cared that my jacket was wrinkled.
I shook my head. My vision grew watery with tears. I refused to answer. I was still mad at her.
She shook my shoulders, "Chloe?" she bit her lip, eyes wide.
"-Th-ther-there's a b-b-bug!" I stuttered out, "We need bug spray- bee spray-"
"Chloe, it's just a bug," she lied. "It's smaller than you." She pulled me to my feet, dusting my clothes off.
"-MO-"
"Get some rest, Chloe," she said, grabbing my head. She kneeled down, picking up the red box, snapping the lid shut, and handed me my phone. She led me up the stairs and I grumpily followed.
I glanced behind me to see the bee fly out from behind the vase and phase through the wall.
Mom stopped in front of the weak excuse of a bean bag, letting me go, and I plopped down on it. "It's been stressfully lately," she whispered, brushing my loose bangs out of my face. She pressed a kiss to my forehead, "I'm gonna go make dinner. Take a nap, okay?"
I scoffed quietly.
Abella attempted to give me the box, but I shook my head, trying to show that I certainly did not want it.
She raised an eyebrow at my odd behavior, "Well, it's not mine," she promised, setting it on the ground near my feet.
She walked out, softly closing the door behind her. Just as the door clicked the shit, the bee flew out from behind a box, and I yelped, nearly falling off of the beanbag.
"What the hell are you, you giant, creepy ass bug?!" I hissed. "Is this a trick? An illusion? A hologram? Did Marinette set this up?!"
"Wow," the bee said, rolling its eyes, unimpressed. "I've been called worse."
"What are you?" I demanded, "Tell me or I'll call Daddy!"
The creature floated higher in the air, its little wings buzzing behind it. It seemed to raise an eyebrow as it asked, "Aren't you a bit too young to call someone your Daddy?"
I shouted, "WHAT? NO!- That's not what I-!"
The bee exploded into laughter, giggling intensely. "HAha! Oh, that's funny-!"
"Argh!" I snarled, stomping my foot on the floor.
"Ok, ok," the thing laughed, giggling, and attempting to stop its laughter.
I glared.
It grinned after finally gaining its composure. The bee bowed dramatically, "My name is Pollen-"
I scoffed, wrinkling my nose. "Pollen? Because you're a bee?" I scoffed, rolling my eyes. "How unoriginal-"
"-and I am a Kwami."
I blinked, "A what?"
"K-W-A-M-I, kwami," it spelled out. The bee flew down to the box, opening to reveal a shiny yellow comb.
"-How ugly-"
The bee made a hurt noise, "My comb is very fashionable!"
I rolled my eyes, "Right."
The creature stuck its black tongue out at me. "Kwamis are attached to ancient magical stones called Miraculouses-"
I blinked, gaping in surprise. "-Miraculouses?" I interrupted, "Like the jewelry Ladybug has?"
"And Chat Noir," added the Kwami. I rolled my eyes at the thought of the mangy alley cat.
"This is a Miraculous?" I asked, unimpressed, grabbing the box. I tilted it and the comb's shiny yellow coat glinted in the light.
"Yes," it answered. "Miracle stones were forged into jewelry to easily disguise and carry them. Miraculouses grant-"
"-Unimaginable power at your fingertips," I concluded, grinning, as I tucked the comb into my hair.
Suddenly, I felt so much more powerful and alive.
This is what Daddy must feel ruling over Paris.
Pollen nodded, "Your job is to protect anyone who needs it and aid all those whom need help."
Selectively, of course. I snickered at the thought.
"And HawkMoth?" I asked.
"Fight with Ladybug and Chat Noir to defeat him."
I'll defeat HawkMoth single-handedly, proving I'm the best superhero in existence. Ladybug will adore me and Chat Noir will be so heartbroken over his stupid crush he'll move on from her and adore me too.
I stood up from the beanbag chair, walking over to the full-length mirror in the corner. I scowled at my reflection. My hair was messy, strands of my ponytail were coming out and sticking to my neck. My clothes were wrinkled and dirty. I looked like crap, but a Miraculous in my possession made me look like a queen.
"Queen Bee," I grinned at the name. "I'll be Queen Bee."
{AHHH, THIS CHAPTER IS AWFUL, BUT CHLOE GETS THE MIRACULOUS. WOOOO.
There are a few things I would like to address: Chloe's attitude, her opinions/beliefs and her father, and a couple things involving Abella.
Firstly, I'm not really sure how Chloe would react to seeing a Kwami which is my excuse for Chloe's slight OOC-ness. Secondly, I do not- in any way- agree with Chloe's current opinions. Right now, she is a cruel, selfish, and clingy person who's beliefs are forged by her father. Her father has been elected mayor twice: he is powerful, rich, and popular. Chloe wants to be exactly like him which is why she follows after his opinions because she thinks he's right. Obviously, Andre has messed his daughter up quite a bit. Next, Abella is my OC (so like, please don't steal her) and Chloe's absent mother. Yes, she is flawed. She left and she should've kept in contact, but she didn't. She could react differently to Chloe, she could reach out better to Chloe, but she's trying. This is her daughter who she hasn't talked to in years. She's trying to give her space, comfort her, apologize, and prevent her from being a public nuisance all at the same time. Also, if you don't understand, the old man was Master Fu and Abella 'helped' him. The Bee Miraculous was meant for her, but Chloe accidentally intervened and received it instead- AND AHH. I WANTED TO CUT THIS CHAPTER OFF WHEN SHE FOUND THE BOX BUT THE CHAPTER WOULD BE TOO SHORT.
Comments/Replies:
Celestia's Paladin: I will try to draw the line if things go a bit too far. Even if Chloe deserves a lot of things, she is still human.
Thank you to everyone who has commented, favored, and followed :)!
-Book117Worm
Ellie
