Chapter 4: Fall of four
Master Fu sighed as he closed up his shop for the day, the day had been uneventful as usual, except for one thing. He peaked out his window to see the same person waiting outside with a hat and sunglasses hiding their face, Fu had spotted them lingering outside his shop all day, but when he would go to confront them they would mysteriously disappear.
"Is that stranger still out there, master?" Wayzz asked.
"Yes." Fu said. "But they have not given any indication to their intentions. But just in case, activate the defensive charms."
Wayzz nodded and floated over to the wall, pressing his antenna against it, a symbol lit up from where he touched the wall, and then more symbols lit up along the wall, spreading out until they covered all of the walls. The symbols eventually faded away, leaving the walls blank again, but there was now a thrum of magic in the air.
"Hopefully, if they are ill-intent, that should keep them out." Fu said.
Fu made himself some tea and made preparations for dinner, as he was preparing he looked out the window again to find the stranger nowhere in sight.
"Maybe the protections scared them off." Wayzz suggested.
Fu hummed, feeling that Wayzz wasn't right.
Still, Fu was confident in his defences and finished making dinner, eating his meal before retiring early to bed.
Outside, a mysterious figure watched from the shadows with a grin.
It was 3 AM, the witching hour, when all should be asleep, but there was someone who wasn't. They crept across the street towards a massage shop, their form illuminated by the street lamps. As they stepped closer, a glowing dome of symbols flashed over the house, keeping them from advancing any further.
"Child's play." The stranger scoffed.
Reaching inside their pockets, they produced a glowing rock and stick, screwing the glowing rock to the end of the stick, the stranger placed it at the base of the protective dome before lifting it up. The protective dome rippled as it was lifted up by the glowing rock, almost as if it was fabric, leaving space underneath for the stranger to slip under and inside without touching the protective dome themselves.
"Too easy." The stranger commented.
The stranger left the stick in the ground to hold up the protective dome for an easy escape.
The next obstacle was the lock on the door, but it only took the stranger a few seconds to pick the lock and open the door.
Their footsteps were quiet, barely a sound being made, as they wandered into the house.
"Now, where would that old man keep them?" The stranger whispered to themselves.
They felt around until they felt a draw that led them to a door, quietly and slowly opening it they found it to be Fu's bedroom, the old man sleeping on a futon.
'Of course.' The stranger though, not daring to wake Fu up by speaking aloud. 'Now, where are they.'
The stranger crept around the room, feeling for the presence to get stronger, until they came to a stop in front of a gramophone.
'Yes, I feel them in here.'
The stranger picked up the gramophone, nearly exclaiming from the unexpected weight of it, but managing to keep silent. They then began to slowly navigate their way back around the room, not out of stealth but from the weight of the gramophone. What the stranger failed to notice was the Kwami who had been asleep inside of the horn of the gramophone, who was now very much awake from the constant shifting, and it only took Wayzz a few seconds to realise what was going on.
"Master! Master!" Wayzz launched himself out of the gramophone. "There's a thief in the room!"
Fu was awake and already rising from his bed to face the intruder.
"So, much for stealth." The stranger muttered as he quickly ran for the door.
"No!" Fu shouted when he realised what was being taken, giving chase.
The stranger quickly disappeared from sight, easily able to outpace the old man, but Fu had a trick up his sleeve.
"Wayzz, Shell Strong!" Fu wheezed.
In a flash of green light, Fu was dressed in Chinese-style green clothes, complete with a mask. In his powered form, Fu was able to catch up with the thief, who had just made it passed the protective barrier again, smacking the gramophone out of their arms. The gramophone fell to the floor and the horn broke off, but Fu didn't care about that right now, all he cared about was defending what was inside the gramophone from the thief.
"Who are you, and why are you stealing from me?" Fu demanded.
"I'm surprised you do not recognise me, Xuanwu." The stranger said. "And I'd hardly call it stealing, I'm merely claiming what should be mine."
"You remain unknown to me." Fu said, shifting into fighting stance. "And the Miraculous do not belong to you."
"Oh, they will." The stranger promised.
The stranger quickly attacked and Fu blocked with their shield shaped like a turtle shell before making an attack of his own which the stranger easily dodged. Fu attacked multiple times but each attack was dodged or blocked by the stranger, who didn't seem to be breaking a sweat.
"Face it, old man." The stranger sneered. "Your age has caught up with you, you're just too weak."
The stranger kicked Fu away from them, sending him to the floor.
"And, I'll be taking these." The stranger walked over to the broken gramophone and picked it up. "Still heavy." They complained.
"Then let me lighten the load." Fu said, getting back up and charging at the stranger.
The stranger raised the broken gramophone in front of them to protect themselves and the attack connected, knocking it from their hands, but also cracking it open to reveal a large ornate box inside.
"Well, thank you." The stranger grinned at Fu. "That does help lighten the load considerably."
Fu scowled and attacked again, this time managing to land a few hits on the stranger.
"Huh," The stranger said, rubbing their chest. "I'm impressed, I actually felt that. But, I am done playing now."
The stranger brought out their staff and aimed it at Fu, energy firing out of the end that he was too slow to avoid, he cried out as he was sent to the ground, unable to get back up.
The stranger walked over to the ornate box and picked it up, they opened it and looked at the jewellery inside.
"Let's see; Bee, Fox, Ladybug and Cat, that makes four." The stranger counted each of the Miraculous inside, opening the small compartment inside to look at the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous. "And I know where the fifth lies."
The stranger turned back towards Fu, who was struggling to get up, and stamped on his back to keep him down.
"You still have something I need." They said.
The stranger leaned down and grabbed hold of the bracelet around Fu's wrist, ripping it off and returning Fu to an ordinary old man.
"No!" Fu cried out.
"Yes." The stranger laughed darkly.
The stranger put the bracelet in its place in the box, but they failed to note that it was colourless, meaning the Kwami was not inside. In one last feeble effort to stop the stranger, Fu grabbed their ankle as they walked away while shutting the compartments in the box, tripping them up and almost causing them to drop the box. But the act did cause the Miraculous inside to go flying to the ground, a green blur quickly grabbing one of them out of sight before the stranger could notice.
"You're really getting annoying now." The stranger said as he kicked Fu in the head, knocking the old man out.
The stranger picked up the Bee, Fox and Turtle Miraculouses, the compartment doors to the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous were shut and they couldn't see either on the ground, meaning the Miraculous were safely sealed away in there.
With no further interruptions, the stranger walked away and disappeared into the shadows.
Once they were gone, Wayzz came out of hiding and flew over to Fu.
"Master! Master! Please, wake up!" Wayzz cried.
Fu groaned and weakly opened one of his eyes, it was clear that he wouldn't remain conscious for long.
"Wayzz," Fu said weakly. "I am sorry, I have failed you, I have failed all of you."
"All is not lost yet, Master." Wayzz insisted.
Wayzz showed the Miraculous he had rescued from the stranger, it wasn't his own but it was one of the most important. Fu saw the Miraculous and smiled.
"Good." He said. "Wayzz, you must hide them before the thief comes back for the earrings and before you are forced to return to your Miraculous. Here is no longer safe."
"Why can't you hide them?" Wayzz asked desperately.
"I'm afraid that I wouldn't get very far. Now, go!" Fu commanded his Kwami.
Tears dripped from Wayzz eyes as he nodded and flew off in search of a suitable hiding place for the Ladybug Miraculous from the stranger. He eventully found one and place the earrings in the hiding place, it admittedly wasn't good, but it was the best he could do with his small size and limited time. As soon as he had hidden the earrings, Wayzz no longer had the energy to live outside of his Miraculous without a wielder and faded away, pulled back into his Miraculous.
A couple of hours later, Fu was found unconscious by some early-morning joggers, who were quick to phone for an ambulance to take him to hospital.
Lights switch on as the stranger entered a large room, placing the ornate box on a stone table with symbols etched onto the surface. They opened up the box and began taking out the Miraculous inside, placing each on a different section etched into the table, only to pause when they opened up the compartment for the Ladybug and Cat Miraculouses, the Cat was there but the Ladybug wasn't.
"What? No!" They shouted.
The stranger tipped the box upside down and shook it violently, as if the Ladybug Miraculous was somehow stuck inside. Failing that, they then smashed the box around repeatedly until it broke, but that didn't reveal the earrings inside either.
"I must have left them back there." The stranger growled.
The stranger whispered some words while touching the carved table and the symbols began to glow, creating a magical cage around the table to keep the Miraculouses inside. They then left in search of the Ladybug Miraculous.
They arrived at the place where they had battled Fu, only to find it blocked off by police tape with many people wandering around to try and get a look, it seemed that Fu had already been found. Still, that wouldn't stop them.
The stranger, staying hidden, put out a hand and concentrated, feeling everything within the area, but they failed to feel the presence of another Miraculous.
"The old man must have already found it." They growled. "Still, no matter, I will recover it eventually." They then left.
They returned to their large room and regarded the four Miraculous they did have.
"Without all seven I cannot yet perform the ceremony." The stranger mused aloud. "But I do not know where the other three lie, no doubt the old fool has already hidden the Ladybug away since he is now so defenceless, he may have even already given it to a new wielder.
The stranger then grinned, an idea forming.
"If the other Miraculous are wielded by others, then what is best to draw them out than something for them to fight, or someone?"
The stranger walked over to the Miraculous trapped on the table and looked at each of them.
"I may not be able to use perform the ceremony, but I have enough power to turn one for a short time. The question is, which should I use?"
They waved their finger around in a circle, pointing at each of the Miraculous, weighing the pros and cons of using each, until they finally landed on one.
"Of course." They said, reaching into the cage. "Who better to receive the Ladybug than their own partner?"
They picked up the Cat Miraculous and examined it before taking it over to a different table with symbols carved into it, they used some chalk to write some more symbols on it before using an ornate-looking knife to cut the palm of their hand and letting the blood drip into a small well in the table, they placed some candles at strategic points on the table before setting down the ring in the middle and lighting the candles.
Feeling that was something was going on, Plagg emerged from the inside of his Miraculous.
"What's going on?" He asked as he took in everything around him. "Who are you?" He demanded when he saw the stranger.
"I'm your new Guardian." The stranger said.
Plagg looked sceptically up at him. "No, you're not." He said, unconvinced.
"Well, I am. And you're going to help me retrieve the others, a Guardian should have all of the Miraculous after all."
"There is no way that I'll help you, not even for all the Camembert in Paris." Plagg argued.
"After this spell, you'll be all too eager to help me." The stranger said with a disturbing grin.
"What?" Plagg looked around the table he was on, eyes widening when he realised what the stranger was talking about.
"No! No, don't!" Plagg tried to escape but was stopped by a magical barrier.
But the stranger remained unaffected by Plagg's pleas and began the incantation.
Feeling that something was happening with Plagg, the other Kwamis emerged from their own Miraculouses and were horrified by what they saw.
"Plagg!" They cried out in worry, unable to get past the magical cage that contained them and their Miraculouses.
The stranger continued to chant, as he did the blood in the small well began to travel along the carved symbols in the table until they were all red, contrasting against the white chalk symbols, darkness then began to emerge from nowhere and wrap around the Kwami and ring.
Plagg cried out with pain but the stranger continued their incantation.
The other Kwamis also cried out with pain, feeling the feedback from Plagg.
Eventually, Plagg was forced back into his Miraculous and there was a bright explosion of light, when the light faded the stranger looked back on the table and laughed in triumph. The other Kwamis looked at the table to and cried out with horror, seeing the corruption coming off of the ring, having a more jagged appearance and the paw pads now claws.
"No!"
"Plagg!"
"You monster!"
The Kwamis cried out.
"Pipe down or you're next!" The stranger threatened.
They would be next anyway soon enough, but they didn't know that.
The Kwamis went quiet and were eventually forced to return to their Miraculous without any wielders to keep them around.
"Now," The stranger said, holding the ring aloft. "The duty of the Guardian is to find suitable wielders. So, who should I choose as my minion?"
The stranger looked out of their window, over-looking Paris as they contemplated their decision.
Meanwhile, Marinette was sleeping peacefully with Nooroo also asleep by her head and a handful of butterflies scattered about her room. Marinette had managed to convince Nooroo to keep the majority of them back at the mansion's garden where they'd be happier and less conspicuous, but allowed a few to stay.
Suddenly, Nooroo jolted from his sleep with a cry of pain, clutching his head and tears springing from his eyes. Marinette was woken by his screaming but didn't have time to question what was wrong before she felt a sharp pounding in her head that then spread to the rest of her body, gritting her teeth to avoid screaming as well, she felt fear and anger but these emotions were not her own.
The pain and foreign emotions soon faded, but left behind aftershocks that left Marinette constantly shivering and feeling like she was going to puke. Nooroo, however, looked much worse.
"Nooroo, what's wrong?" Marinette asked gently, scooping up the Kwami into her hands. "What was that?"
Horror was plastered over Nooroo's face. "Something's happened to Plagg! Something absolutely horrible!" He cried.
"Who's Plagg?" Marinette asked, doing her best to sooth her Kwami.
"The Kwami of the Cat Miraculous." Nooroo whimpered. "Someone bad must have gotten their hands on it, and they've done something to it. It hurts to reach for him."
It took a while to get Nooroo to calm down, Marinette was still shaken herself, the Kwami constantly muttering about Plagg and the darkness he felt, not even attempting to eat the mashed-up banana Marinette had given him.
"Why did I feel it too?" Marinette eventually decided to ask.
"The Butterfly Miraculous is very receptive to the emotions of others, especially those we are close to their wielder, it is how we choose our champions. And even though you haven't transformed yet, you are still the wielder of the Miraculous and as such have a connection to me, and since I felt the pain Plagg went though, you also felt it, but to a lesser extent." Nooroo explained.
"I felt horrible." Marinette admitted. "I can't imagine Plagg having to go through worse."
The 'but he did' went unspoken.
"I wish I could help him." Marinette said.
Nooroo then brightened.
"Maybe you can." He said.
"How?" Marinette asked.
"My using your Miraculous. We can use it to find Plagg and stop whoever did that to him."
"But, how? I mean, I don't like to bring attention to my disability, but I'm not exactly going to be beating any bad guys while stuck in a wheelchair."
"You can create champions to help." Nooroo said. "They can search for you and…But, oh…They won't have incentive though." He then drooped.
"Incentive?" Marinette asked.
"A reason to join your cause. Champions are usually created in times of trouble, when the Champion has reason to accept the power, without a proper reason the connection between the Campion and wielder is very weak. Though, with what's happened to Plagg, we may get some incentive for Champions soon." Nooroo said, depressed.
Marinette sighed. "Look, I'm really unsure about this right now, and it's still the middle of the night, we should go to sleep and think about this more in the morning." She said.
Nooroo nodded in agreement.
Marinette and Nooroo settled back down into their sleeping places, but sleep refused to come again, leaving the both of them lying there in silence until day came.
Author's note: Next chapter, we may or not see Marinette become the Butterfly hero, it will depend on how much I'll write before that point, but we'll definitely see who the corrupted Miraculous goes to in the next chapter. So, place your bets now.
It's still a tossup on whether Marinette's hero name will be Nymph or if it will be Xin Jing (which is the name of a powerful nymph from W.I.T.C.H.) So, which would you prefer?
Also, if you go to my DeviantART gallery, DreamVixen2511, I have some concept art for Butterfly Marinette that you can look at and make suggestions for. And I have some alternate Ladybug costumes, one of which, the Ladybug in this story will be wearing; so, cast your vote on which of the alternate costume designs you prefer or any changes that can be made to them.