It was a nice day outside the shop. Honorra sat on the windowsill looking at the blue sky and warm sensation on her feathers. The urge to fly through the sky was intense. She fought to suppress the urge by looking for something else to do.
Floating into the bedroom she phased into the small closet, looking for something interesting to play with. That's when she noticed something tucked away in the back corner of the top shelf. It was a stack of letters tied together with a pink ribbon.
"What is this?" she wondered curiosity drawing her in. The letters smelled very old and she picked up the faint scent of green tea on them. Untying the ribbon she looked at the first letter noting the date was a few months after the end of WWII. They were addressed to someone named Marianne Lenoir.
Who is Marianne Lenoir? I thought that the Great Guardian only love was his fellow recruit Shufen? Honorra started reading the letters. As she read them she slowly came to cognize what they were.
They were love letters. Ones that had never been sent. In them, the Great Guardian spoke of Marianne as being his second chance at love. In a few letters, he recalled their days together, hiding from the Nazis and how he never regretted telling her about his duty as the Great Guardian of the Miraculous.
Later letters talked about their promise to meet at the Seine on a certain day in the year to rekindle what they had. Judging by the number of letters the Guardian had never gone once.
"What are you doing in here?" a voice asked behind.
"SHRIEK!" Honorra squawked. Twisting her head she saw it was Socco eyeing her questionably. "Wayzz sent me to look for you. The Guardian has closed the shop for lunch and wanted to talk about what happens when we combine our Circle's powers with one another."
"Don't alarm me like that "brother"!"
"Apologizes "sister". That was not my intent. It does make me wonder why you are in this closet and going through the Guardian's private correspondences."
Honorra murmured her reasons before grabbing her "brothers" paw/hand and dragging him over to view the letters. "Look at these letters. They're love letters he never sent. According to them, the Guardian is supposed to meet with Ms. Lenoir tomorrow, but he hasn't said anything about it. Why would he not comment on the fact he wasn't going to be here tomorrow?"
"Dozens of reasons come to mind. If you want, we can discuss this with Wayzz later. Right now; we're needed in the kitchen."
The magpie kwami had to wait until after lunch to corner Wayzz, who had been sunning himself in his little sand garden. He opened his eyes in surprise seeing her so close to his little garden. She had avoided it completely since her one time use.
"Can I help you with something?"
Honorra pointed to the closet and explained what she had been up to earlier. Of course, Wayzz was furious at her for going through his wielder's personal belongings. The only reason he did not seek out him at the moment was that Honorra asked if the Guardian had told Wayzz if he was going to meet with the lady tomorrow.
The turtle kwami let out a sigh. "Every year he ponders if he should go. Then it takes all day so she won't be there if he decides to go out to meet her."
"I never knew the Great Guardian was so indecisive about his love life."
Wayzz shrugged his shoulders. "Everything a turtle does is done slowly including telling someone you love them."
"Don't you think we should try to encourage Master Fu to go? I know you don't like to rush people, but this woman might not have long left to live if the dates on those letters are correct."
"Honorra we can't force Master Fu to do anything he doesn't want to do. We could have stayed in Paris and help Ms. Lenoir fight the Nazis, but Fu decided to go to Hong Kong instead to keep them safe."
"Which eventually brought him back here after meeting Ning. Why chose Paris of all places in the world unless he intended to honor his promise? Don't you think he deserves a little happiness with everything going on?"
The two Kwamiis told the others what was going on as the Great Guardian continued working with his customers. The Humanities Circle and Wayzz talked about what they should do. Everyone wanted to thank Fu for his continuing efforts to keep them safe and letting them out of their Miraculouses for a time.
They determined that encouraging Master Fu to go see his friend tomorrow wasn't interfering with his life. They would go over the reasons why he should and leave him to make the final decision.
When Fu entered his residence after finishing with his clients he saw all the Kwamiis perched on his the kitchen table looking at him with whimsy in their eyes. In the middle of the table was a photograph. Peering closely, he realized which photograph it was.
"Where did you find this?" he asked sharply.
"I did in the closet underneath the love letters. I didn't mean to snoop Guardian, I was simply looking for something to play with and stumbled upon them," Honorra admitted to Fu.
Wayzz chimed in before his wielder could lecture her. "Master, she asked me if you would not be here tomorrow because of the date in the letters. When I explained what happens each year, we told the others."
Ellery trumpeted her trunk and spoke up. "We are not here to force you to go. We only wish to encourage you to go. With Honorra's help, we discovered Ms. Lenoir has gone each year to the spot waiting for you. That shows real loyalty."
The others in the Circle pointed out the benefits of going. He had regretted never finding out the fate of his first love. Did he really want the same thing to happen with Ms. Lenoir? Lastly, there was only so much time left to tell her how he felt about her.
Master Fu chuckled and held up his hands in defeat. "Alright, I will go tomorrow. If I know Honorra, you found her email address and figured out a safe way to send a confirmation I'm coming?" Honorra nodded so he continued." I expect each of you to behave while I'm gone."
The Kwamiis cheered happily. Honorra quickly dashed off to start writing the email with a pleased smile. They just knew tomorrow would be a good day for everyone.
The next day things took a turn for the worse. Master Fu woke up in a serious amount of pain. He had a severe case of constipation, no doubt from the stress from worrying about both Hawkmoth and Ms. Lenoir.
"Ugh, I feel as if I'm dying! I'm going to pass away I just know it," he moaned in his bed.
"Master, I don't think your dying, I would have sensed it," Wayzz told him patiently. When Fu moaned again he looked at the others and gestured for them to move into the hallway.
"He obviously needs a doctor to convince him he's not dying. A prescription for constipation medicine would help out greatly."
"Agreed, but we have another problem. Ms. Lenoir is expecting him to show up in an hour. Even if we asked Marinette to come over to check on him and pick up a prescription, she can't do both while she's a civilian," Cammie stated plainly to the group.
It was true and if she became Ladybug then they risked revealing a person who knew about the Guardian being discovered by Hawkmoth. The other problem was they didn't know Ms. Lenoir's phone number and they had erased all things related to her email address including their memories, thanks to a special potion, to prevent discovery.
"Perhaps one of us could go and explain the situation. We're small enough we can avoid being seen. If she knows about Master Fu's duty, she would know not to stay in the open if we deliver the message," Huhu suggested.
It would be risky if one of them left. There was a reason they stayed hidden and didn't journey out on their own most of the time. The consequences of being captured would be too excessive.
"If no one shows up, Ms. Lenoir would possibly be heartbroken and a prime target for akumanzation. Honorra is the least likely to draw attention to herself. If she's spotted, humans will no doubt think she's a baby bird learning to fly," Gigi pointed out.
Honorra nodded and in a serious tone, she stated. "I started this mess, so I need to fix it." According to the love letters she would be wearing a broach with a Chinese ideogram on it. With the blessing of the other's she took off and the others went to call Marinette.
The little magpie hoped she would get to the meeting place on time. How long would this woman wait after waiting for years for Master Fu to show up? Flapping her arms was tiring work, but she had to if she was going to look like a bird learning to fly.
She arrived at the meeting spot forty five minutes later. It took so long partially because of her need to pretend. The other reasons included staying out of sight and avoiding other birds who had a habit of being attracted to her.
Cautiously, she approached the bench hugging the wall the whole time. Sitting on the bench was a man she recognized as the civilian form of Mr. Pigeon. He was talking to a petite lady with green eyes and her gray hair was held in a bun, who was leaning on a cane.
She was dressed in a yellow shirt with her trench coat covering the rest of her body. Pinned to the collar of the shirt was the broach she was looking for. "If I can get to her coat pocket, then I can alert her to my presences."
She inched closer and closer, keeping one eye on Mr. Raimer and the other on the other side, Ms. Lenoir. Just a little closer and she would be able to slip into the coat pocket.
Ms. Lenoir abruptly stood up, startling Honorra who fell to the ground and rolled under the bench.
"Why would he make a promise if he didn't intend to keep it? If something came up surely he would have called or left a message. It seems I've lost so much time waiting for someone who turns out not to be the person I thought I was."
"Ms. Lenoir, wait!" Honorra cried out only for her voice to be covered up by a large flock of cooing pigeons passing overhead. Ms. Lenoir started walking away and Honorra picked herself off the ground going after her when she saw something that made tremble.
An akuma was flying straight at the old woman, aiming for her broach! "Ms. Lenoir, look out!" Honorra shouted.
This time, the old woman heard Honorra. She was turning around to see who called out to her only for the akuma to take possession of the broach. Within a minute the kind old lady transformed into a supervillain named Backwarder.
She now had pale purple skin with yellow eyes and light lilac-colored lipstick. Her helmet is black and teardrop-shaped, with a yellow circle in the center of each side with a large yellow wind-up key. There was also an upside down teardrop-shaped pale purple face mask with holes for her eyes and mouth, a small nose, two black dots beneath each eye hole, and a golden heart on the forehead, resembling a porcelain doll's face.
The main body of the outfit was yellow and black, with a rounded shape resembling a clockwork doll. In her chest was a stylized clock face with her brooch acting as the dial. On each of her shoulders, there were yellow spherical shoulder pads. The main body of her costume is yellow and black, with a rounded shape resembling a clockwork doll. Her chest has a stylized clock face on the front where her akuma lay with her brooch acting as the dial. Her cane now resembled a clock hand which she held like a sword.
"I am Backwarder and I'm going to get back the time my former sweetheart made me waste." Mr. Raimer was running towards her to help save her. She touched him with her sword and he suddenly started moving backward as time reversed itself.
Honorra quickly zipped up the wall and hid behind a tree, watching Backwarder and listened to all the ways she planned to make Fu pay for her lost time.
Not good, this is my fault! I never should have been snooping in the first place! I have to do something, but what?
Ladybug and Chat Noir appeared saving people from colliding with cars moving backward or falling into the fountains in the park. Each was doing their best to avoid being touched by Backwarder's sword. They had a few close calls already.
Honorra watched for an opportunity to get involved. If she used her power, it would only increase Backwarder's power. Luckily, she had another idea. Levitating in the air she waited until the Akuma was not looking up and that the two heroes had a chance to hide.
Dropping from the air, she landed on wind up key and held on tight. "Marianne, you know better than to let Hawkmoth use you like this."
"Who said that? Where are you?" Backwarder growled. Her eyes darted about in all directions.
"Your sweetheart still loves you, he got sick this morning and I came to tell you that."
Honorra braced herself as the Akuma twisted her head violently, trying to find the source of the voice. "Lies! He tricked me!"
"How can you question the honor of someone who trusted you with such an important secret Marianne? If you just listen to me, the little voice in your head, everything will be fine."
She jumped out the way just in time as the Akuma smacked herself when she tried to swat Honorra away. Just as the kwami hoped, the Akuma started going backward making it easy for Ladybug and Chat Noir to capture the possessed item and cleanse the akuma.
As Miraculous Cure covered the city she spotted Master Fu walking at a brisk pace towards Ms. Lenoir. Knowing she was in a lot of trouble, Honorra made her way to the Great Guardian to face her punishment after he had a chance to talk to his sweetheart.
All the Kwamiis were subdued when Master Fu returned when he returned home hours later. Honorra looked dejected as she went over and sat down on the Miraculous Chest with the others.
Master Fu gave each of them a stern look. They all bowed their heads in shame knowing this Akuma had been their fault. Seeing the Great Guardian was about to speak, Honorra spoke up first, to help protect her "siblings" from getting into trouble.
"Master Fu, please don't punish my siblings. I'm the one at fault here. I should never have snooped among your personal belongings. Nor should I have told the others what I found and ask them to encourage you to go. My actions led to the akumanzation I take full responsibility for this mess."
Fu's face soften. He was pleased by what he heard. "I'm glad to hear you say that Honorra. Admitting you made a mistake is the first step in change. I am disappointed in you for snooping and risking yourself by leaving the apartment, but you are not to blame for Marianne's akumanzation."
Honorra blinked in confusion. "I'm not?"
Fu shook his head. "Hawkmoth is to blame for the akumanzation, but Marianne's emotional breakdown was because of me. I let her down because I was indecisive."
Taking a seat he looked at each of the Kwamiis one by one giving each of them a half smile. "Your Circle is responsible for encouraging the best traits humanity has to offer. Your actions reflected your purpose and I was ignorant that you were unconsciously showing me my fatal flaw."
Puzzled about what he meant, they talked amongst themselves in hush tones. Occasionally they looked at Master Fu, who was waiting patiently for them to finish speaking to one another.
Finally, they broke apart and Socco approached Master Fu who held out a hand for him to land on. "It appears I need a refresher about why my flaw is fatal and what I should do about it."
Socco smiled as his scales flashed brilliantly as the sun started to set. "You are a good Turtle, Great Guardian. You are wise, observant, and look at the big picture. You plan for everything and figure out who is the best person for each job."
Fu agreed with the assessment of his character. He knew he was the best person to wield the power of protection. While Carapace also wanted to protect people, he still hadn't reached the maturity and the spiritual faith, a true Turtle needed. One of the reasons Ning would become the next Great Guardian and not Nino.
"While you are good Turtle Master Fu, there are times those traits can be harmful. As I stated, you look at the big picture all the time, without considering the small picture. Miraculous wielders need to have a good relationship and trust among them to work effectively.
When Hawkmoth first appeared you were unsure of who should wield the Ladybug and Black Cat because of a past mistake. I know, Guardians are not to get too involved with the wielders, yet you weren't involved at all.
There were many times you could have stepped in and helped with Ladybug's and Chat Noir's partnership discreetly. An example is after the first akuma made copies of Stoneheart.
Ladybug needed reassurance one mistake was not a reason to give up. Instead, you left it up to Chat Noir to reassure her, not knowing if she would use the Miraculous again.
Other times include Copycat and Antibug. Both were caused by careless actions of the heroes and should have been addressed fully, but once again you didn't because of your indecisiveness."
Fu knew what Socco was pointing out was true. He had seen troubles in the partnership and had wanted to help them, only to debate with himself if that was the correct course of action. If Ning had not inadvertently revealed their identities to one another, their partnership could have become strained.
Socco eyed the man, his little eye bulging out a bit more. "If you need to make an important decision you cannot be indecisive. Make a choice and stick with it. As long as you are determined to carry out this choice, then you will have a better chance at achieving attainment. Do you comprehend?"
"I certainly do Socco. Thank you for the refreshing lecture. I will do better next time."
The next day, Chloe was out shopping at her favorite shoe store. There were so many options to choose from. "I want to try on the gold Choo sandals, the latest shoes in the Tailor Made shoe line by Charlotte Olympia, oh and would love to wear the latest jeweled heels made by Giuseppe Zanotti."
"Right away Ms. Bourgeois," the sales clerk said as she went to track down the shoes for her to try on."
"Make it quick, you don't want to keep the mayor's daughter waiting!" Chloe sighed wondering why it was so hard to find good help these days. She tapped her feet impatiently.
Finally, the sales clerk came back with the shoes. Slipping on the sandals Chloe looked at the full length mirror. "These sandals are amazing! They make my feet look perfect."
She tried on the other two pairs. She gushed about how fabulous they made her look and that they fit her feet perfectly. "I need to try more on. Bring me the latest shoes by all high fashion designers. After all, you can never have too many shoes.
For the next hour, Chloe kept trying on shoes. She gushed over several pairs while belittling the sales people for not being fast enough or bringing the wrong pair of shoes by accident.
Finally, after settling on fifteen new pairs of shoes, she had the sales clerks bring her purchases to the counter. Whipping out her credit card, she slid it through the scanner with ease.
She wasn't prepared for the buzzing sound that came after she swiped it. "What was that annoying noise for?"
"Your credit card has been denied, Ms. Bourgeois."
"Ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous! Your scanner must be broken." Chloe swiped the card three more times and the same message came up. Frustrated, she swiped every credit card she had and none of them worked.
Since she didn't carry cash on her, she had no way to pay for purchases and she had no choice, but to put everything back and leave. She had never felt so humiliated in her life.
She jumped into her limo demanding to get home at once. "I'll have Daddy fire those people. They'll pay for cheating me." She speed dialed her father, but the phone just kept ringing. Angry, she called his office demanding to speak with him.
His secretary informed her that her father was in a meeting with the deputy mayor and was not to be disturbed. Chloe threatened the secretary with the loss of her job if she didn't do as she asked.
"Young lady, you have no power to fire me. As for your father, he could dismiss me, but I know for a fact he won't because I'm the only one who can tolerate him and he would be without of a secretary if he did. Good day!" The line went dead.
Astonished by the fact someone talked back to her, Chloe stormed through the door to the hotel and rode the elevator her floor. She huffed as she walked towards her mother's room. She was about to barge in, but a faint instinct told her to pause and listen.
"I did what you asked Andre so don't get upset about it! Canceling her credit cards and informing the stores she no longer has a preferred customer discount anymore was your idea."
What was going on? Her father told her mother to cancel her credit card cards and now she wouldn't even be getting any discounts. She was the mayor's daughter! She deserved it!
There was a short pause then Chloe heard her mom speaking a little louder. "You're the one who decided it would be a good idea to redirect funds from different departments and conspire to use those funds to make two heroes Chloe's personal bodyguards! It was a ridiculous idea, utterly ridiculous idea. The police had every right to arrest you."
Chloe stopped breathing as she felt herself go into shock upon hearing those words. Her father had been arrested for trying to do something for her? She flinched as she heard her mother commenting on how the police were letting him finish out his term before taking him in.
"Stop whining Andre about Mayor Hidalgo scrutinizing your work orders. There is no reason for every limo service in the city prioritize transporting Chloe over other clients. Honestly, Andre, you need a strong powerful woman in your life because you certainly don't have a real backbone. Making you a figurehead was honestly a blessing."
There was a pause in the conversation for a few minutes before Audrey replied. "I know it's partially my fault, I'm trying to do better! I stayed in Paris to be her mother. I've been making strides in not being belligerent to everyone, considering I haven't insulted you once, during this phone call. It's time for Chloe to stop being otiose and actually work for what she wants."
There was another long pause. "I don't want you to go to jail either Andre, but you know if Chloe cleans up her act the judge is more likely to give you a lighter sentence."
The blond teen heard enough. She ran to her bedroom and slammed the door shut. Her mind was racing as her mother's phone conversation replayed in her head over and over. Her father was not the mayor and was going to jail after his term. All because of her.
She slid down the door as she recalled bits and pieces of strange behavior, comments, and actions from her father and the staff after his akumanzation. Her father spending less time at his office in the town hall. The hotel staff whispering about possible layoffs in the future, her own butler trying to get her to act nicer and do her own homework.
Clutching her head, tears started to stream down her face. For the first time in her life, the reality was hitting her hard. Years of ignoring her conscious about her words and actions came tumbling down. Her memories may it impossible to refute the truth.
She was a spoiled, conceited, brat. She bullied others to cover up her own insecurities and anger at her mom's abandonment. That she took advantage of her father to give her things just to make her feel good about herself. Her treatment of Sabrina was wrong. Worst, she had to admit a hard truth.
She didn't love Adrien romantically. He was a dear friend and the closest thing to a brother for her. She didn't hate Marinette, she was jealous of her for having loving parents who supported her and took care of her instead of having someone else do it.
Chloe hugged her knees and kept crying. What had she done to her family?
In the city of Kyiv, Ulyana Bereza was giving her report to Minister Klimkin. "I apologize for not succeeding in getting the DPR and the LPR to agree with reunification with the rest of the country. I knew it would be a longshot, but I had hoped my negotiating skills would at least persuade them to consider the idea."
Minster Klimkin looked over the report she had handed him. While disappointed she wasn't able to fully persuade the two proto-states to reconsider the idea of reunification, she had succeeded in other aspects.
The report contained current information about the population's feelings towards reunification. Confirming the people currently holding posts in the proto-states government. Bullet points on ideas for further peace talks. Statements about staying committed to the ceasefire.
"What you have given me in this report will greatly assist in future affairs with the DPR and LPR. The rest of the Cabinet will able to use this data for future goals. The Prime Minister and the President will also be pleased with what you have gathered considering how helpful it will be to the Prime Minister and the President.
Most impressive is you were able to travel through the conflict zone and return without any injury or weapons fire. Not one attack on your person. That's a miracle if I ever saw one. "
"Thank you, sir." In reality, she could thank the Kwami Charm necklace for keeping her safe. Any time she suspected there was trouble, she discreetly used the powers of the charms to ensure safety for her party and her.
That night after sending her report to the UN and a few other meetings, Ulyana sat on her bed and looked out at the sky above. The pollution distorted the view of the stars.
Sighing, she laid down on her side and thought about her mission. While she had completed her mission outline objectives by ensuring the ceasefire held and she did talk with the leaders of the proto-states into listening about the benefits or rejoining with Ukraine.
Technically speaking, she hadn't achieved the goal of ensuring a united Ukraine to stand together as they worked on achieving peace with Russia. It was the first time she had "failed" in fully completing her mission.
"Am I losing my touch? Was there something more I could have done? Am I letting my emotions get out of control?" she pondered out loud. She had never felt this lost before.
The Security Council wants me to stick around Kyiv for a few more days to observe the events happening after my mission. Yet, my heart is telling me I need to go to Paris and speak with Master Fu.
She fell asleep with this question in her mind. When she woke up the next morning she knew what her choice was.
It was an interesting day in Paris, at least for the students of Ms. Bustier's class. When the students arrived, they were surprised to see Chloe already in her seat with her lips pressed and her eyes on the floor.
On each desk was an envelope with each student's name on them. Marinette was the first to open hers. Inside was an apology card. Curious, she opened it and read the message inside.
I, Chloe Bourgeois, formally apologize to Marinette Dupain-Cheng, for bullying you since grade school. There is no excuse for my hurtful comments, physical attacks, or stealing your hat design.
What I want to apologize profusely for were my attempts to interfere with your relationships with Adrien. I admit he's more like a brother to me and I refused to acknowledge that fact.
I know this one card cannot make up for every horrible action I have committed against you. I will try to earn your forgiveness.
P.S. Thank you for helping me with my mom.
Marinette looked up from the card and glanced at Chloe. It was clear Chloe actually wrote the apology herself because of how messy it was. The blond kept her head down as the rest of the class read their apology cards.
"Who does she think she's fooling? Chloe would never apologize for anything in her life. This is another trick," Alya said out loud not directing the question to anybody. Turning towards Chloe, Alya loudly stated she wasn't going to fall for Chloe's trick and promptly ripped the card into small pieces.
"Alya! That wasn't necessary!" Marinette exclaimed in a horrified voice.
"I'm just making a point Marinette. I don't like being tricked by people. If you're smart, you'll toss that card away."
Nino heard what Alya was saying and he frowned. "Not cool babe. Don't stoop to Chloe's level otherwise you're just like her."
In the end, only a few kids; Marinette, Adrien, Sabrina, and surprisingly Rose and Juleka, kept their cards. The blond had a small smile on her face happy that someone believed she was making an effort to change.
When class was dismissed for lunch, Marinette was surprised to see Juleka waiting for at the door. "Can I help you Juleka?"
Juleka fiddled with her hands as she mumbled something. Marinette gave her a puzzled look. Taking a deep breath the shy girl spoke up. "I'm sorry Marinette."
"Juleka?"
"I'm sorry about the way I treated you a few weeks back when Lila was in our class for a day and afterward. Luka reminded me that a true friend doesn't hold a grudge against a person who is following their beliefs."
Marinette's eyes soften. "Thank you for apologizing. I really appreciate it."
Juleka smiled at her. "Do you want to come over to my houseboat after school? I'm sure Luka wouldn't mind you helping him figure out what he should wear for Kitty Section's next concert."
"I would love too. Want to have lunch at the bakery?" Juleka nodded eagerly and the two girls linked arms as they headed to the bakery happy to have made up.