"Marinette! You had the chance of a lifetime to be with Adrien, and you, like, hardcore rejected him!" Tikki sighs as she hands me another tissue, and I blow my nose and toss it in the trash.

"He rejected me, Tikki! He got his own ice cream. Which means I'm not the one for him! He doesn't love me the way I love him. It's about time I move on from him. I need to find someone else." Easier said than done, the other part of my brain says. Remember when you tried to do that before? You ended up falling for him even more.

"No you don't, Marinette!" Tikki flies right in front of my face, and I jump backwards. "You were so close! Adrien could have fallen for you just then! How could you leave him? A kwami's advice; go back and talk to him. Then after you said that you were sorry, and he said that he was sorry, kiss him hard on the lips! And then you'll be a thing! Besides, who else could he possibly have a crush on?"

I roll my eyes. "Kagami. And the other person, who likes cherries and looks like me."

"Well…" Tikki takes a deep breath. Oh no. She's hiding something. "What if it's Ladybug that he has a crush on?"

I don't need to look in a mirror to know that my eyebrows have darted out of my head. "Whoa whoa whoa! Ladybug? No way!" But I can't help but keep hoping. What if I asked him out as a superheroine? He couldn't possibly say no, right?

"Well, he can't refuse a date from Ladybug!" Tikki laughs. "Besides, I'm sure that is something his father would approve of! And you know just how much Adrien wants approval from his father."

"You're right he does! I'm gonna do it Tikki!" Leaping out of my chair, I run over to one of the pictures of Adrien, and kiss it. "I love you Adrien! I'm gonna do it! It's going to be okay! It's….. Ugh this is not going to work."

I scream when my phone rings, and I smile when Alya's face peers up at me. "Hey Alya! What's up?"

"You aren't going to believe what's happening!" Alya says, her face full of ecstasy and excitement. "Clara Nightingale's cousin from New York has just come over to visit! She's coming soon! And Ladybug and Cat Noir have to be there too! This will be so cool for the Ladyblog! And you're coming with me and my boyfriend, like it or not."

I laugh. "If Adrien's coming!"

Alya's face immediately falls. "No… he says that he can't make it. His father will be there, though. He says he's sick and needs to catch up on homework. But he'll be seeing that new girl around a lot. She's going to attend our school for the next month! Until she moves back to New York. But Adrien and Chloe are going to give her the official tour! Oh, and great news! Lila's coming back to school!"

That liar! That brat! That- okay, calm down Marinette, do not start cursing. "Oh, well, that's terrible! I mean uh, yeah, that's uh, great. Just great. Well, unfortunately, I can't come."

"Uh huh. And why not?"

"I'm uh… sick and need to catch up on homework."

"No you don't! You're copying Adrien's excuse now."

"Okay okay fine, I'll meet you there." Hanging up, I groan at Tikki. "Please don't let that brat come back to school. She's even worse than Chloe. And there certainly are not a lot of people worse than her. And if Adrien falls for her, I swear I will toss her off a cliff without second thought."

Tikki sighs. "I know Marinette. But you'll just have to cope with her. Why don't you and Chloe team up against her? That way, maybe Chloe will be less of a brat to everyone, and you'll prove to Adrien how good at making friends you are! He'll be very proud of you."

"You're right. Tikki, spots on!" I shout.

"Adrien, are you sure you don't want to come with me to welcome this newcomer all the way from New York? You've always wanted to go there." My father looks at me with what I hope is genuine concern, but I can't be sure. Not yet.

"I'm sure, Father. You guys go ahead. I'll be seeing her a lot lately. Besides, Chloe and I are giving a tour to her for our school!" My father nods and smiles at me. "If you'd like, you can add another friend for the tour. What about Nino?"

I smile. I still remember when my father absolutely hated Nino and claimed that he was a bad influence on me. He's changed now. And that's a change that I like.

"Uh, actually I think I'd like …" I think about it for a moment. Alya? No. Lila? No way. Marinette… "I'd like Marinette to tag along. I need to apologize to her for what happened yesterday." My father's eyebrows press together in a thin line of suspicion, but he knows that I won't elaborate. "The girl who won the fashion designing contest? I'm glad you're hanging out with her. She's one cool girl, she is. I would actually be very happy if you two became a thing. It would pass on the fashion to the new age. The new Fashion Designer Marinette Du Pain Cheng, and the famous model Adrien Agreste!"

I laugh. "She's a very good friend. And I love her in my own way." Faking a cough, I continue. "We actually did go on a date yesterday. Sort of. It just… didn't really end well. I'll give you the details after the welcoming."

My father nods, and leaves, calling for Natalie. Sighing, I walk over to my door and lock it. Plagg flies out of my jacket, tossing a slice of camembert in his mouth.

"Well, we'd better catch up to your father and his colleagues," he says, while I gag in the smell of stinky cheese. "Okay yeah, let's go. Plagg, claws out!"

Arriving at the welcoming stage, I walk over and shake Clara Nightingale's hand, and my father's. Clara twirls. "Thank you all for coming today! I'm sure my cousin has many thanks to say!"

"Well well, I wonder where milady is," I say, looking around for any familiar faces. Maybe I'll spot Marinette in those sea of faces. Or Chloe. Or Nino and Alya. And maybe Lila. Sighing, I know that she won't come. She's got this thing against Ladybug, when Ladybug ruined her chances with me. I didn't really want to date her in the first place, though. At least now I don't have to 'kindly reject' her.

"Ugh, where is Adrikins?! He's supposed to be here!" I turn, and see Chloe and her mother glaring at my father. Smiling, I walk over.

"Well, if it isn't for the famous Style Queen Audrey Bourgeois and her amazing daughter?" I say, fiddling with my stick. Chloe flips her hair. "Well, of course. Where's Ladybug? Aren't heroines supposed to stick together?"

I smirk. "Hey, what about me?"

"You're just Ladybug's second in hand." Chloe waves me away, and I shake my head, smiling. "Chloe Chloe Chloe."

"Well, I was wondering when you would start to miss me," a voice says, swinging in from the windowsill.

"Miladybug," I say, bending down to kiss her hand. She laughs. For some reason, she doesn't pull away like she usually does. Again, a change that I like from someone I love.

"Well, at least I know that you're never going to lose hope in me," she sighs. "Talking about hope, I uh, I need your help with something. But we can do that after the welcoming."

"Anytime, milady," I smile, winking at her. She laughs again.

"Ladybug! Cat Noir! The heroes of Paris! Here? To welcome a measly high school student? Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous." Audrey Bourgeois puts on her sunglasses, and she and Chloe go into their sassy pose, as if they were too good for the world.

"Don't forget, this is a celebrity's cousin we're welcoming, all the way from the United States of America!" Ladybug smiles. I smile as well, remembering when Ladybug used to absolutely hate Chloe Bourgeois. When Nathaniel was akaumatized, Ladybug refused to stay behind and protect her. Now, Ladybug is almost understanding towards Chloe.

"The United States?" a voice says from behind, laughing. "I've been there so many times! Prince Ali took me there, with my boyfriend Adrien Agreste." Rolling my eyes, I don't look back to know who it is.

"Lila, Adrien's not your boyfriend," Ladybug states angrily, I could almost say with jealousy, rolling her eyes. "We know your lies too well."

"Well, that's rude, from a superheroine," Lila laughs, and Ladybug narrows her eyes. "You probably don't know that, since you probably couldn't care less about the common lives of the people in Paris. But since you're not interested, I won't fill you in on the details. Pleasure to meet you, Cat Noir!"

Ladybug sighs and facepalms, receiving Lila's annoyance through a scowl.

"Cat Noir, let's go." Taking my hand, Ladybug drags me over to the stage, where Clara immediately wraps her arms around both of us.

"Ladybug! Cat Noir! The heroes of Paris! The ones who have protected all Parisians and refused to let us perish!" She shouts, as the crowd cheers. Ladybug waves shyly, her posture and nervous smile reminding me of Marinette. Taking a closer look, all of her features remind me of Marinette. No. That can't be.

"And here she comes!" Clara shouts in delight, pointing at a black-haired girl who walks confidently on stage. She has dark brown eyes, and shoulder-length hair. Her face in a permanent smirk, she walks forward and shakes Clara's hand.

"The cousin of mine! Is there anything I can do for thine?" Clara twirls as she spins the girl with her right hand.

"Thanks Clara, but no, I'm fine. This is my first time here!" She says in fluent French, looking around. The first thing I see is her black, phoenix tattoo on her neck, with golden flames dancing around it. Like, legit dancing. It was a freaking moving tattoo. Narrowing my eyes, I realize that she's really pretty. Her almond shaped eyes survey every inch of the room, and every face in it. Reminds me of milady when she's thinking of ways to use her lucky charm.

"Oh! Ladybug! Cat Noir! The heroes of Paris!" Clara drags her cousin over to us, and I wave, winking at her in what I hope was a charming way.

Immediately, she blushes a little, but keeps up her guard. "Heroes of Paris? Well, it's nice to see another miraculous holder! I'm Nightingale, by the way. Well, that's my miraculous name."

Another miraculous holder?

I don't need to look at Ladybug's face to know that she's as surprised and confused as I am. The girl laughs. "Why do you guys look so surprised? Anyhow, tell me your miraculous and your powers!"

Ladybug and I exchange a suspicious glance. Her glare tells me; Don't tell her. We can't trust her yet. She might be another Lila.

I wink at her in response and kiss the new girl's hand. She blushes even more fiercely. "Just wanted to introduce myself. I'm Cat Noir," I say, leaning on my stick. "Miladybug and I fight villains here in Paris. Why don't you tell us your miraculous first, then we'll give you our information?"

Ladybug looks up at me in an approving smile. Good job Kitty, I can almost hear her words in my ear. Even the thought makes me smile proudly.

She smiles again. "Why not? I'm Cassidy Nightingale. My miraculous is my tattoo. And I have the power of silence. That's… all I'm going to tell you for now."

I nod at her. She seems pretty cool. But I know that Ladybug's not going to be satisfied with that little info. Her pushiness is so…. Irresistible! I think that's why I couldn't talk to Marinette the other day. I don't want to lie to her. Like what Ladybug said to me, about the other boy she was in love with. I sigh internally. She'll discover how much we're meant to be. I know she will. I trust her to do so.

"Really? You're not going to be another Volpina, are you? Besides, all miraculouses are supposed be something you can wear, usually a piece of jewelry. How can you possibly have a miraculous that's a tattoo? And why are you so open about your secret identity?" Lila curls her fists when she hears Ladybug emphasize Volpina.

Cassidy just tilts her head in confusion. Then she shrugs. "I don't know who Volpina is, but I'm sure that she was horrible." Lila's eyebrows furrow and she leaves the room without saying a word. I find that kind of funny.

"And as for the miraculous question… I thought that a miraculous had to be attached to you! Otherwise someone could just steal it!"

I sigh. "Exactly."

She shrugs again. "I suppose things in New York are different from things in Paris. Oh, and why am I so open about it? Well… no one can really take my miraculous, since it's literally attached to my skin. Until my kwami senses that I can no longer be a superhero, the tattoo dissolves from my skin and reappears on the next Nightingale's skin. Kind of creepy, but totally awesome too!"

I laugh. "I have a feeling I will enjoy being partners with you, even if it is for only one week. Do us a solid and transform will you?"

She smirks. "Why not?"

She straightens, and shouts; "Lunar! Silence reigns supreme!" She runs her hand down her hair, and her originally down hair automatically braids itself. I feel my jaw drop. Huge, black wings sprout from her shoulders, and a feathered coat lines her back, ending with a mini-cape thingy for her tail.

She smiles again. "That's it. And… Ladybug… I know that you don't trust me yet. And I completely understand that. But you have my word. I will never lie to my fellow superheroes. Because birds of a feather flock together. And I trust everyone in my flock. Including you two. So if you don't trust me, just know that i trust you. And I think I've had enough for the day. Audrey Bourgeois, I mean, Queen of Fashion, will you and your beautiful daughter take me to where I will be staying in your hotel? I can't wait for my tour later today!"

Chloe pushes us aside as she walks forward sassily to greet Cassidy. Ladybug and I both facepalm at the same time.

"Hey Kitty…." she whispers. "I need to talk to you. About everything. Can we meet up tonight at some place?"

I have to admit that I'm startled. Ladybug asking me to meet up with her? As superheroes? Usually it was me trying to get her to go on a date with me. Has she really started developing feelings for me? I can't help but hope.

"Sure. Let's meet up 6:00 PM at the eiffel tower?" I wink at her and she smiles. But not in her usual confident smile. This is more… sad.

I put a hand on her back. "Hey, what's wrong?"

She just smiles again. "You'll find out at 6:00." With that, she wraps her yoyo around the windowsill and tugs, flying out of the room. I sigh in amazement, like I do every time I see her dramatic exits.

A hand lands on my shoulder, and I jump backwards in surprise. "Oh. Cassidy."

Cassidy smiles kindly at me. I'm starting to worry if she's like Lila; just another liar trying to get my attention and love through her despicable lies.

Half expecting her to lean forward and kiss me, a look of terror crosses my face. Instead, she leans towards my ear. "No matter what, I will make sure Ladybug loves you." and she flies off. Legit flies off. I can still feel her warm breath on my ear.

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