Who's Got The Akuma
Chapter 4: "Under Control"
A Miraculous Ladybug fanfic
by Bill K.
After a tense dinner, the Dupain-Cheng family retired to their family room to watch television. Marinette watched as well, as all of her electronics were confiscated and there was nothing to occupy her attention in her room except for her thirty-five pictures of Adrien Agreste. But television didn't capture her attention, either. The girl worried about what was going on outside, on the streets of Paris. Simon Says was out there. Cat Noir was looking for him, alone. And while she trusted Cat Noir's abilities, she trusted them more if she were beside him in battle.
And poor little Manon was still out there. That was even more puzzling and worrying. If she had been turned into The Puppeteer again, why hadn't she made an appearance? And if Simon Says was the controlling hand behind the akumatized people, what had become of Manon?
Absently Marinette got up from the sofa and looked out the window. Tom and Sabine looked over at her. They knew how bored and frustrated she was. But at least she was safe.
"It's really storming out there," Marinette commented absently. "Between the wind and the rain, I can barely see across the square."
"It came up suddenly, too," Sabine commented.
"I don't remember the weather forecast calling for rain," Tom added. "But they've been wrong before."
"Dad," Marinette spoke up suddenly. "There are people out there in that heavy rain!"
"Probably got caught on the way home or something," he shrugged.
"No," Marinette persisted. "Dozens of people! It looks like down the block that the entire street is filled with people just standing there."
"In this rain? Don't they have any sense?" Sabine asked
Marinette looked harder. "Maybe they don't. The one man that just passed by looked like he was hypnotized or," and instantly Marinette thought of Simon Says, "something."
"Anything is possible in Paris these days," Tom sighed. He brought up the television remote. "Maybe there's something on the news casts."
Lingering at the window, Marinette turned and looked at the news cast. A banner across the bottom of the picture read "breaking news".
". . . are advised to avoid this section of the city until police can get the situation under control," the newscaster advised. "Again, a reappearance of the supernatural being known as Simon Says has brought a section of the city to a halt and put approximately seventy-five citizens in immediate danger."
"Marinette!" Sabine said sharply when she noticed her daughter headed for the door. "Stay away from the door please!"
"Simon says," Marinette replied distantly, "must go to him."
Like a flash Tom was up out of his seat. But Marinette was already out the door. The burly baker burst out into the rain swept street.
"Marinette!" he bellowed anxiously. But there was no sign of her. The man glanced around furtively, then ducked back inside to call the police.
Once she heard the door close, Marinette emerged from her hiding place behind a potted plant outside of the pastry shop. Her clothes and hair were soaked, but all she could do was stare after her stricken father.
"Oh, Tikki," Marinette moaned as the Kwami floated up beside her head. "I am for certain going to Hell for this!"
"Sometimes we do what we feel we have to for the greater good, Marinette," Tikki answered. "Stopping Hawk Moth will make it up to them."
"Right. Tikki! Spots . . .!" Then a realization came over her. "I can't transform! I'll fall under Simon Says' control again!" Frantically she thought for a moment. "I'll just have to see if I can help as Marinette. I've come this far."
"You don't need magical powers to help," smiled Tikki. "But you might want to be a little extra cautious."
Pushing through the crowd of mesmerized citizens filling the intersection, Marinette strained to get a better view while at the same time trying not to be conspicuous. The last thing she wanted was to come to Simon Says' attention. She knew what being under his control felt like and it was a chilling sensation. Glancing at the people gathered in the street, Marinette could see they were completely under Simon Says' control. But why? Were they just hostages to threaten in order to lure her and Cat Noir out into the open? And where was Cat Noir?
Immediately Marinette ducked down behind two people standing in the street. She had spotted Stormy Weather hovering above the area. So that was the explanation for the elements. Seeing her just made the odds Marinette faced skyrocket. And it made her think: Hawk Moth had never demonstrated the power to infect more than one person at a time. Had he gotten stronger? Was his plan to swarm her and Cat Noir with old enemies until one of them got lucky? Or they were defeated by sheer numbers? Or was it Simon who had forced their resurrection through his akumatized deck?
Snaking through the crowd, Marinette got closer. But the closer she got, the more her spirits sank. Volpina was in her line of vision, too. Was that it? Was Simon and Stormy Weather, and Stoneheart before just cunning illusions? No, Stoneheart was real. Simon's control over her was real, too. As Marinette worked her way closer, praying that one of the three akumatized villains didn't glance her way, she wondered what she could do. Simon Says was visible now, too. The three were gathered around something, some poor creature they were about to victimize. The urge in Marinette was strong to intercede. But what could she do without her Ladybug powers?
"Take his Miraculous," she heard Volpina say with wicked delight. Marinette's brain seemed to explode. They were talking about Cat Noir.
"No!" Marinette cried, shoving her way out of the protection of the mesmerized crowd. She lurched forward, hoping to cut the distance between them before any of the villains could react. Maybe she could reach Simon Says in time to knock his deck of cards away. Maybe she could be enough of a distraction that Cat Noir could get up and get away.
Or maybe she could be Marinette Dupain-Cheng at the worst possible moment. Her flat soled shoe hit the pavement slick with rain water and slid out from under her. Bereft of her balance, Marinette toppled to her side and impacted with the pavement. Looking up timidly, the teen saw Volpina, Stormy Weather and Simon Says standing there looking at her. The disdain and contempt on their faces was clear.
"Well what do we have here? A hero?" Volpina mocked. Then her expression hardened. "I hate heroes."
"No, you don't!" Marinette shouted back, up on her knees in the puddled rain. "That's the akuma talking! You're not terrible people! You're not this! You're not something twisted by jealousy and hatred into a perversion of humanity!" Her eyes locked with Volpina's. "There's a person inside of you who just wants to be liked and respected. And you listened to Hawk Moth when he told you this was the way to achieve it and you believed him! But it's a lie! It doesn't work! You're not liked this way! You're not respected! You're just feared!"
"Maybe I've decided that I like being feared," Volpina sneered.
"Why?" Marinette asked. "Why would you want to be feared?"
"It makes you safe from the people who want to hurt you."
"It makes you alone," Marinette argued. "It's a trap. Don't fall into Hawk Moth's trap again."
Stormy Weather merely hovered blankly over the scene, waiting for instructions. Volpina stared bitterly at Marinette. Simon Says, though, brought up his fanned deck and moved to pick a card.
"You bleat very nicely for a sheep," Simon said. "Maybe you should be one. Simon Says . . .!"
Interrupting him was a hand clad in black. It shot up from below and locked around the fanned cards.
"Cataclysm," Cat Noir grunted through clenched teeth.
In shock, Simon Says fell back. His deck stayed in Cat Noir's hand. Black energy formed around the hand and in moments the cards disintegrated. A beat passed and Simon Says' colorful suit and bowler disintegrated. Simon Grimault staggered back another pace, slipped and fell against the side of a building. He stared at his now normal again hands.
The spell broken, the crowd began looking around in confusion. Then they noticed Cat Noir, Volpina and Stormy Weather. Instantly panic broke out and the crowd scattered. All the while Simon Grimault put his head in his hands and lamented the new wrong turn his life had taken.
"Bad kitty!" snarled Volpina. She struck Cat Noir across the head with her flute. Cat Noir spun back to the pavement, clutching his head. While he writhed in pain, Volpina bent down next to him. Her hands sought the ring on his hand. As he clutched his head, she tried to work the ring off.
Out of the darkness came a red and black yo-yo. It wrapped around Volpina's upper torso, trapping her arms to her sides. The line drew taut. Volpina was jerked away and landed in the gutter, her flute bouncing away from her. Twisting her body, Volpina saw Ladybug leaping toward her with that familiar determined look in her eye.
"Stormy Weather! Defend!" Volpina shouted.
Stormy Weather turned and pointed her parasol at the oncoming Ladybug. Instantly the rain turned to snow. Propelled by the howling winds, the snow pelted Ladybug in mid-flight, causing her to cover up into a ball. She landed at an angle and rolled to her feet. Her leaping ability allowed her to avoid two blasts, but Ladybug had to retract her yo-yo to defend herself. Now free, Volpina scrambled to her feet and retrieved her flute.
Keeping Volpina in peripheral sight, Ladybug turned to Stormy Weather's latest assault. The akumatized teen launched ice pellets at her. Ladybug spun her yo-yo and deflected the pellets before they could hit her. But that meant she was too busy to stop Volpina as the girl put her flute to her mouth.
A haunting song emanated from the wooden flute. And suddenly Ladybug found that the entire world was literally upside down. Perspective was reversed for her. The street that should have been below her was above her now and she somehow clung to it. Likewise Volpina, Stormy Weather and the entire square were above her line of sight when they should have been below it. The flute lowered from Volpina's mouth, revealing a triumphant grin.
But the grin disappeared when Ladybug expertly executed a forward somersault in spite of the skewed perspective and lunged for her. Volpina barely avoided a thrusting kick.
"How are you able to move so confidently? You should believe that you're upside down!" Volpina gasped.
"I do," Ladybug smiled with annoying confidence. "Doesn't bother me. I'm funny that way."
Her yo-yo shot out and knocked the flute from Volpina's hands. Turning, Volpina scrambled after it. Ladybug turned back to Stormy Weather. But in the time she had spent focused on Volpina, Ladybug hadn't noticed that Stormy Weather had flash frozen all of the pooled water in the street. When Ladybug started to move, she found her feet frozen to the pavement. Looking up, she found Stormy Weather hovering above her, bringing her parasol to bear for the kill shot.
Again the yo-yo shot out, wrapping around the mid-section of the parasol. With a mighty jerk, Ladybug yanked down on the yo-yo and pulled the parasol out of Stormy Weather's hands. The parasol no longer in her hands, Stormy Weather had nothing to control the elements with and no way to stay aloft. As Ladybug swung her yo-yo down to break the ice around her feet, she heard Stormy Weather fall to the sidewalk like a sack of flour.
Once free of the ice, Ladybug crouched for any new attack. It wasn't long in coming. Volpina's flute, elongated into a staff, swung at her head and Ladybug narrowly managed to avoid the swing. Flipping over onto her feet, she swung her yo-yo by her side so she could deflect any new attack. That's when she saw she was confronted by ten Volpinas, each ready for any attack she might make.
Bounding forward, Ladybug launched herself at the nearest one. That Volpina reacted, and Ladybug twisted to avoid the swing of her staff. But when her yo-yo struck that Volpina, it disappeared in a puff of smoke. Seeing two others attacking, Ladybug swung her weapon at them. They, too, evaporated upon being struck. Minutes later, all ten Volpinas had been dispatched. Ladybug looked around. There was no sign of Volpina and Stormy Weather was gone as well. But Cat Noir was still there and still clutching his head.
Running over to him, Ladybug knelt by his side and cradled his head in her lap. Her teeth bit into her lower lip in anguish, for Cat Noir was bleeding from a nasty head wound opened up by Volpina's flute. For a panicky moment, Ladybug was afraid Cat Noir was going to die. The absolute, utter horror and desperation that filled her was more than she expected. She found her hand caressing the side of his face.
"Calm down," she told herself. "He needs medical attention." Then she noticed his ring. It was flashing on its third countdown light. "He'll revert before I can get him to a hospital! I have to do something now!"
"Hey, M'lady," Cat Noir smiled weakly. "Thanks for giving me a hand. Although . . . I could have taken them . . ."
"Sure," Ladybug smiled to hide her anguish. "Everybody knows that. But let's get you fixed up now."
"I'm all right," he sighed distantly. "Laying in your lap . . . is the best medicine I could get . . ."
Cat Noir began to close his eyes and Ladybug was irrationally gripped with the fear that it would be for the last time. Galvanized into action, she threw her yo-yo up in the air until the string reached its end. "Lucky charm!" rang out over the area. Appearing in the air was a plastic bandage colored red with black spots. It fell into her hand. "That's all you could manage, Tikki?"
Without other options, Ladybug placed the bandage over the wound on Cat Noir's head. Once in contact with his skin, there was a brilliant flash of light. When the light died away, the bandage was gone. So was the head wound. Cat Noir opened his eyes and got to a sitting position with no apparent ill effects. Ladybug felt the sudden urge to hug him.
But she refrained.
"Thanks," Cat Noir said.
"Thanks for protecting me when Simon Says had me," Ladybug volleyed back. She'd never noticed how cute his mouth was before. Then she noticed his ring was down to its last light.
"Looks like I'm running out of time," Cat Noir observed, noticing the ring as well. "You too," and he nodded at her earring. "We need to meet - - figure out what's going on and what we can do to stop this."
"How about nine a.m. tomorrow on the roof of College Francois DuPont?" Ladybug suggested.
"Our first date," Cat Noir grinned.
"How one human being got to be so full of himself," Ladybug smirked. "Don't be late," she warned him. With that she got to her feet. She was about to run off, but a voice stopped her.
"Ladybug!" Simon Grimault spoke up. He looked down when she turned to him. "Thank you. And I'm sorry it happened again."
"Don't apologize," she told him. "You're just as much a victim here as everyone else."
"Yes," he sighed. "But I'm the one who is going to pay for it."
"Why didn't you keep attacking?" Hawk Moth asked the little girl sitting at the table in his attic observatory. He had to be careful not to allow the frustration he felt to affect the timber of his voice.
"Ladybug was there," Manon replied as if Hawk Moth had just asked the most foolish question in the universe. She reached over and pulled the dolls of Volpina and Stormy Weather to her. "She's too strong. I can't beat her with just two dolls." Manon was wearing the mask and the blue and black costume of The Puppeteer.
"Perhaps if you tried. . ." Hawk Moth suggested.
"No!" Puppeteer said sharply. "I lost my Simon Says doll because of her! And I lost Antibug and Stoneheart! I can't lose anymore dolls!"
"They're very strong. And Ladybug is weakened . . ."
"I NEED MORE DOLLS!"
"How about I get you Ladybug and Cat Noir dolls?" Hawk Moth ventured. "They you can control them directly."
"No," Puppeteer shook her head. "I have to beat her. Then I can have dolls again. Then I can do whatever I want again. I have to beat her."
"All right," Hawk Moth replied patiently. "Who would you like?"
"Not Evillustrator or Lady Wi-Fi," Puppeteer frowned. "They lost last time, so they're no good." The child thought. "How about Princess Fragrance? And Animan! They were good!"
"And together with Volpina and Stormy Weather, they can't help but defeat Ladybug and Cat Noir," Hawk Moth said smoothly.
"Yeah! They'll beat them good!" Puppeteer said, smiling her toothy grin.
"And secure two Miraculous for me," Hawk Moth added to himself.
Continued in Chapter 5