Chapter 4: Coma Dose
School the next day was buzzing with rumors about Hawk Moth.
Adrien wasn't there. Lila was also absent (she sent people texts that she was going on a round-the-world trip with her parents).
The class began to gossip about Adrien.
"I think Gabriel Agreste sent Adrien to our school to spy out opportunities to make akumas," said Kim.
"That makes sense," said Alix. "That's why so many in our class were targeted!"
"The first akuma victim was Ivan, the day before Adrien came to school," said Marinette.
"But the next day when he was there, Ivan got akumatized again," said Max.
"If Adrien was working for Hawk Moth, then you would think he would try to get people upset. He never did – Adrien was nice to everyone," said Marinette.
"Yes, it's ridiculous, utterly ridiculous," said Chloé. "Adrikins would never do that. You might as well suspect me of working for Hawk Moth."
"Maybe we should," said Alya. "You're caused a ton of akuma victims. Maybe Adrien recruited you to do the dirty work. You're an old friend of his."
"Not a chance! When I upset people I always have a good reason," said Chloé.
"Alya, we don't know that Adrien knew anything about what his father was doing," said Marinette. "I can't believe all of you of all people would turn on him without proof!"
"You're right, I'm sorry," said Alya.
Nino gave Marinette a thumbs up of agreement.
There was some muttering in the rest of the class about how Marinette would of course defend Adrien since she was sweet on him, but for the most part the talk died down.
Marinette went back to Master Fu's shop as early as she could after school.
"I have spoken to Duusu about what happened to Emilie Agreste," said Master Fu.
"What was it?" asked Marinette.
Master Fu said, "The Peacock Miraculous was lost because of my careless mistake. It was passed down in her family for years."
"What does it do?" asked Marinette.
"The power of the Peacock is Expression. It can help someone to express their feelings, summoning up a powerful creature under the Miraculous wielder's control. The Peacock's magic weapon is a feathered fan. The wielder can pluck a bit of fluff from the fan, charge it with magic, and send it to an object belonging to a person. It makes a mental link."
Marinette asked, "So it's just like the power of the Butterfly?"
"They are similar, and both have often been used together to empower a hero and a companion animal."
"What did Emilie Agreste do with it?"
"She used another aspect of Expression which can affect the wielder's health. She used it only to preserve her youth and beauty."
"I saw a picture of her at age seventeen," said Marinette. "She looked almost exactly the same in photos taken years later."
"It must have been useful to her as a model and an actress," said Master Fu.
"A Miraculous isn't supposed to be used for anything selfish," said Tikki, hovering beside Marinette.
"That is correct," said Master Fu. "Years of misuse damaged the Miraculous, which in turn damaged Emilie herself. The side effect of trying to keep herself from the ravages of time slowed her down."
"What did she do then?" asked Marinette.
"Emilie and Gabriel went to Tibet. They followed clues in her family records to a secret cache where another Miraculous and a secret grimoire were hidden. They hoped to find a solution to her problem, but it was too late. She slipped into a magical coma, and remains in that state to this day."
"And Gabriel has been trying to get the Cat and Ladybug Miraculous to wish her out of it."
"That would be an even worse abuse, and the universe would require a balance."
"So Hawk Moth had the Butterfly and the Peacock, but he only used the first," said Marinette.
"He was afraid to use the damaged Miraculous in case it also hurt him," said Master Fu.
"Is there any way to help Emilie Agreste now?" asked Marinette. "Adrien needs his mother back."
"She will have to pay a price to recover," said Master Fu. "The years she has kept from showing will come back, and even a little more."
"That seems fair in exchange for being awake again," said Marinette.
"Yes, but it cannot be imposed on her without her consent," said Master Fu.
"How can we get her consent when she's in a coma?" asked Marinette.
"There is a way, but it is very dangerous," said Master Fu. "Someone must use the Peacock Miraculous to summon a magical creature to enter her dreams. They must speak through the creature, and persuade her to come back to life for the price of her beauty."
"But... you said the Miraculous was damaged. Is it fixed now?" asked Marinette.
"I've done what I could but it is still unstable," said Master Fu.
"Then, whoever used the Miraculous could..."
"Yes, they could become ill, or even fall into a coma themselves. It would be safest for an experienced Miraculous wielder, one with pure motives..."
"Like me?"
"It could be Chat Noir. But since his mind is upset and the stakes are so personal for him, he would be much more at risk."
"I'll do it," said Marinette.
"Marinette, you don't have to!" said Tikki. "You have a personal stake in this, too. I don't want to lose you!"
"I've made up my mind," said Marinette. "Adrien needs his mother, especially now."