Sorry for the long wait! This had a bit plot point and it was taking forever to figure out how to start it, and of course, right in the middle of the climax I just... stopped. But it's done! It's finally out and is apparently the 2nd longest chapter in LFP thus far (the first is Ch 6, almost 15 k in words, this is a little over 14 k).
Also, as a heads up, for personal reasons moving onto Archive of Our Own, I will update LFP and Beeing in the Mewment to completion here, but everything new that I post up will be on Ao3. You can also follow me on tumblr (imthepunchlord) to learn when I post up a new fic or update, I plan on releasing notices to spread the word. Hope I'll see you guys there!
Nino hummed as he looked through his paperwork, lips pursed as he studied his notes. Bustier brought up that they had to do their project soon, talk about what they learned about the jobs at the hotel and has been hoping that this has been enough time to get it sorted out. Though, Pixelator's appearance has cut short much of that experience, which Bustier did know.
It was to a point Nino overheard her mumble, "Perhaps I should just call it off..."
Just as a precaution, Nino was going to go over his notes and make a point to meet with Ali at the end of lunch, see if he'll have any free time for them to talk it out and possibly get a presentation done.
Well, preferably when Ali was alone and there was no Chloe to glare at Nino while he talked with the prince. How someone as sweet as Ali could stay in Chloe's presence was truly beyond Nino. It seemed like all Chloe wanted to do was bite heads off, though surprisingly has yet to…
Dismissing those thoughts, Nino pulled out his cell, checking for any messages from Adrien. He cracked a grin when he saw Adrien had snuck in a selfie, with a blond boy in the background, arguing with the photographer.
'Rough waters ahead'
Nino's smile dropped as he squinted at the picture. That boy looked a bit familiar…
There was a tap on his head and Nino jumped, turning around to see who had come up behind him. His brow furrowed when he saw no one. What the—
There was a giggle above and Nino looked up to see a grinning Tikki floating over him, waving her small arm.
"Hi, Tikki," he greeted with a small smile, turning to see Alya approaching him with a small smile. "You ready?"
"Are you?" she wondered, "You looked like you were looking through something."
"Just keeping up with upcoming homework," he waved off, nodding his head to the entrance. "Shall we? The lady first."
He grinned at the flat look Alya gave him, his smile growing as Tikki let loose a soft giggle, wiggling into Alya's hair. As Alya headed for the entryway, she declared, "You've been hanging out with Adrien for too long."
"We are best buds, it's expected for us to rub off each other. Plus, he hogs the puns, I barely get to pun."
"Poor you."
"I know. I love my bro, but sometimes, he's just not good with sharing, especially puns."
"I didn't know it was possible to fight over puns."
"You'd be surprised. It's a matter who gets to pun first and Adrien's always eager to be that first so…"
As Alya replied and the conversation continued, the two continued forward, unaware of the bedlam approaching them.
Ali hummed happily, leaning back and patting his stomach, full and content. "That is good sushi," he declared, glancing down at his bag, watching Pollen gobble up the calissons he got her from the Dupain-Chengs. As they were leaving she revealed that was her favorite and hasn't had them since Melodie.
Who was Ali to deny the sweet kwami a sweet treat?
Across from him, Chloe pushed her plate away, lips pursed as she stared at the few pieces on her plate.
"Not going to finish them?" he wondered.
"I'm full," she said.
"What's got you sad?"
"Actually kinda mad too."
"So… you're smad?"
Chloe gave him a look.
Ali smiled. "Sorry."
"Why is everything against me?" Chloe wondered.
"Well…"
"First the school turns against me and my papa can't do anything to make it better. Lila steals Sabrina away from me, and now I've gone and ruined a chance for a lifetime—" Chloe cut herself off, taking a breath, face set in her hands.
"...sting away…"
How does she make this better? How does she get past this? She honest to god wants to know.
Across from her, Ali frowned, heart going out to Chloe. He glanced down, meeting Pollen's dark stare. The kwami gave no indication of what Ali should do, watching him as she nibbled on candy. On his own, Ali glanced to Chloe, considering what to say.
He offered, "You… could start being nice."
Chloe glanced at Ali.
He continued, keeping his voice sure. "And let things go, leave them be, try not to start anything."
Chloe raised a brow.
"Could help," Ali offered. "You can start small, you know what they say, a little bit goes a long way."
Chloe looked away. "How do you be nice?" How can people do it so naturally? To Chloe, being nice was sucking up. It was coming in with a motive. It was being a doormat and having people walk all over you, to be a puppet having your strings pulled along. And all that's done is getting taken from over and over again.
"Give a dog a bone," her papa said once, "and he'll beg for more and more, and next thing you know, mon ange, he'll make off with your meal."
Being nice was being taken advantage of. Chloe has seen it growing up in the world of politics. Power got what she wanted, power kept her above them all, kept her from being taken advantage of.
And now… that power has been ripped from her. She's not on her throne anymore. She's in the streets with everyone she used to look down on, seeing their cold stares directed at her and having their backs to her. It was frightening.
Across from her, Ali tapped his chin, puzzled on how to really explain how to be nice to him, it's just doing it. He has been told to be cautious, that his kindness would be taken advantage of, but, for Ali, in the long run, there were so many benefits to kindness. It made friends. It worked off karma, it spread, kinds acts would be returned. For someone to not know how to be kind…
He was going to need time to think on that. He'll talk it out with Pollen. Actually, maybe she could still help Chloe, perhaps not be her kwami, but she can still guide her; they were going to have to reveal her either way, so she could still help.
With a glance around to make sure no one was paying attention to them, Ali leaned closer. "Chloe," he started, reaching for the miraculous in his pocket. "There's something I have to tell you—"
"Prince Ali!"
He jerked back, he and Chloe tensing as Lila plopped down at their table, smiling brightly. Behind her, Sabrina hung back, eyes set to Chloe, wary. "Funny seeing you here! I didn't know you liked sushi!"
"Lila," Ali greeted with a small smile, sighing as he let go of the sushi. Another time then.
"What do you want?" Chloe growled, glaring at Lila.
"I'm here for lunch and to see my friend," Lila said, setting her hand on Ali's wrist. Turning, she called, "Sabrina, come join us. Chloe was just leaving, I'm sure."
"I am not!" Chloe snapped as Sabrina crept closer.
"Please, calm down," Ali pleaded as Lila answered back with her own growl, both of them ignoring him. Ali sighed, running a hand over his forehead, feeling his hair curl bounce under his fingers.
"Hello, Ali," Sabrina greeted as she sat down, hunched up and looking small at the table.
With a tired smile, Ali returned, "Hello, Sabrina, how are you?"
In Ali's bag, Pollen popped another calisson in her mouth, humming as she listened to the argument outside. If Ali was set to help shape up both of them, they had a lot of work ahead of them. Her little bee will need to learn to be a firm ruler.
The zoo was pleasantly empty at this hour. Most people were off eating at cafes and restaurants, not making use of this time to hang here, leaving for Alya and Nino to relax and wander, undisturbed. Even Tikki was able to pop out here and there, able to sit on Alya's shoulder and nibble on a chunk of cookie Alya bought for her.
The whole time, Nino and Alya just hung out, talking about school, friends, whatever came to mind.
It was nice.
It was relaxing.
She was glad Tikki had nudged her to this. Perhaps she can do it again, maybe ask Marinette if she'd like to hang out at the zoo during the weekday, hang around when there weren't a lot of visitors about.
"This guy brings back memories," Nino said, stopping before the panther cage, staring at the black cat that peered back. He made a face when it licked its chops. Animan truly had been a little too spot on in his appearance for Nino's comfort.
"Yeah, that was crazy," Alya agreed. And seemed to be so long ago.
"Would you believe me that Marinette kicked the panther in the jaw?" Nino brought up, cracking a smile that was a mix of awe, amusement, and unease.
"She did?"
"Yep. It was pretty wild."
Alya's brow furrowed at Nino's tone. She wondered, "Do you… like Marinette?"
"No… yeah…" Nino reached up, adjusting his hat, frowning. "I've been trying to get over her but…" He shook his head. "Never mind, we're not here to talk about that."
"Sounds like you want to though," Alya nudged, open and reassuring.
He did. It wasn't something he hadn't talked about yet. He couldn't with Adrien, dating Marinette now. Definitely not Marinette, it would just be awkward if he told her his feelings. Kim and Max… Nino didn't think they would understand or really have a good answer for him. Rose, she would be the one to talk to, she'd perhaps know what to say, would give him a hug and make sure she would be there. But, there was a big chance that she would also mention it to Marinette or Adrien.
There really wasn't anyone for Nino to really talk about this.
He glanced down at Alya, seeing her peering up at him, open and patient, waiting for him to speak. Tikki peeked out her hair, peering up at him with her big eyes. He looked away, adjusting his hat, a little shy under their stare.
Moving his hat about, he said slowly, "I… I do still have feelings for Marinette. I know she and Adrien are dating, they're pretty happy together, a really great pair and I'm trying to move on, not think about it but…" He did. He tried hard, tried to ignore it, but sometimes it just back to him.
His ears caught Marinette's laugh, vigorous and warm. Caught a shine of blue in her hair when she walked by, the light hitting it just right. The blue flame that will ignite in her eyes when she ready to stand her ground, to get involved.
He pulled his hat down, letting the red lip of his cap fill his vision. He took a shaky breath, trying to collect himself, calm down, not get overwhelmed. He turned towards Alya, his gaze settling on Tikki. "How do you get over it?" he asked, his voice quivering with more emotion than he wanted to share.
Tikki gazed at him sadly, her gaze old and wise. She answered, "It takes time."
"How, how much?"
"It varies, sometimes a lot. Sometimes a little. For sure, it takes time."
Nino sagged where he stood, leaning on the railing. Alya leaned on him, pressing her arm on his, allowing Nino to leave over and rest his head on hers, looking past the brown strands of her hair to stare at the ground of the panther's cage.
For a moment, they just stood in silence, soaking it in and leaving it be.
Adrien sat down, downing half his bottle of water in one big gulp. The other boy sat beside him, a small scowl on his face, uncapping his bottle and taking a small sip of his water. With a loud sigh, Adrien slouched back, grinning as he glanced at the pale blond.
"Modeling is a lot harder than it looks, huh?" he asked.
The pale blond hummed, staring out with that slight scowl.
Adrien faltered a little, lips pursed as he looked ahead as well. The temporary model Vincent grabbed has been stubborn and cold. Actually tried to walk off a few times before Vincent ran after him, pulling him back.
Adrien did try to help, let him know that he can't force the boy to stay but Vincent tutted that this was needed. And he only needed one good picture.
Personally, Adrien thought was reasonable. Just one good picture and the boy could go. But the pale blond was still being difficult.
"It is illegal to keep me here," the boy muttered. "This is practically kidnapping."
"It's not so bad," Adrien reasoned. "It's just one picture."
The blond gave Adrien a flat stare.
"Vincent can be stubborn and determined," Adrien warned. "It's just faster to go along with him."
"A man who expects everything to go his way will continue to have that expectation. And rule over others," the boy declared. "He has to realize that he can't have everything go his way all the time."
"Might be a little late at this point," Adrien said jokingly.
The blond narrowed his eyes, looking like he was ready to accept the challenge. He got up and started to head off, speeding up when Vincent shouted, "Hey! Come back here! You are too perfect for this to let you go!"
Shaking his head, Adrien pulled out his cell, sighing when he saw that it was lunchtime and that he was missing out.
He missed his girlfriend and friends.
"Poor kid."
Adrien glanced down, seeing Plagg peeking out of his bag, looking a little amused as he watched Vincent pull the frustrated blond back. "He just can't get away."
"Yeah… Vincent is filled with determination."
"Yep… guess nothing can be done," Plagg declared, dropping back into the bag.
"Yep, nothing at all…" Adrien trailed, frowning as he thought about it. Well, maybe so. Vincent wanted a sibling vibe, there was another option.
"Hey, Vincent!" Adrien called up, hurrying after the two, making them pause. "How about, instead of a brother, a sister instead?"
Vincent frowned, narrowing his eyes at Adrien. "Are you suggesting…"
"We could pass as siblings," Adrien pointed out.
"But she takes over the shoot!" Vincent snapped, grimacing as he thought back to the few times they tried. Adrien barely had a presence in the picture with her.
"She won't," Adrien promised. He didn't think so with how Chloe's been lately. She's been down, trying to act like everything was fine and she wasn't upset. Maybe this could be just what she needs to perk up. Adrien added, "Plus, she'll be a lot more willing to work with us."
He and Vincent glanced at the scowling blond.
"Alright," Vincent said slowly. "You can invite her here. Till then! You will stay and we shall try for the perfect picture still."
As Vincent prowled off, ready to pick off where they left off and to get it going, still hoping for a perfect picture with a brothers theme. Adrien turned to the boy, expecting a thankful smile, only to falter as he was met with a neutral stare. With a small frown, Adrien turned away and dialed up Chloe.
This was being a bit of a drag today…
"Hey, Papa!" Alya called out, waving to her father as they approached him, her smile growing as he waved back. She sped up, racing up to give him a hug, listening to his deep laugh as he returned.
"Hello, my little cub."
"Little Cub," Nino repeated softly to himself with a tight smile, "that's funny…"
Otis looked up, beaming when he saw Nino. "Hello, son! I think I've seen you before…" he said, offering his hand to Nino.
"Uh, yeah, I'm Nino, I visited once," Nino answered, taking Otis' hand and returning his friendly shake. "It was a… wild experience."
Alya gave Nino a look while Otis beamed. "That's good!" Otis said, "Hope that means you'll be returning a lot for future wild visits!"
"Yes, sir."
When the peacock in a near pin cried out a loud song, drawing Nino's gaze to it, Otis turned to Alya, pulling her close and giving her an affectionate shake. "Look at you, hanging out with a friend."
"I wasn't that bad," Alya whispered.
"Yes you were, Little Cub," Otis said, grinning. "I've only ever seen one friend drop to visit you. And now you're at a zoo with another. It's a good sign."
Alya's brow furrowed. "Who dropped by?"
"A girl with pigtails, looking for you. It was a long while ago, though. Back when the news about the prince was big and hyped up."
Alya paused, brows rising.
Back during Prince Ali's first arrival, Marinette came to see her? Why?
Before Alya could ask, Nino voiced, "That is one loud peacock."
Otis laughed. "Yes, quite the singer, isn't he? He's probably one of our biggest songbirds that we have here—"
Otis was cut off when there was a light at his feet, rushing up his body and making his bigger and bigger. Alya drew away, watching as the light faded to reveal a giant tyrannosaurus rex looming over them. He stomped his claws, throwing his head back as he released a roar.
"Not again!" Nino shouted, moving to run, Alya hot on his heels.
With a growl, Animan followed, bellowing, "Raaaawr! I'mma eat you! Rawr! Rawr!"
"Sounds like a kid!" Alya shouted, glancing back at the dinosaur, only to stumble as Nino grabbed her wrist, pulling her along, not giving her a chance to get a good look at the akuma, her mind flying. It made no sense. Her father was fine and now he's an akuma? How? And Animan's behaving differently than before. What was going on?
Nino turned sharply and the two dove for the bushes, watching as the akuma turned dinosaur stomped by, singing, "Dinosaur! Dinosaur! Everyone wants to be a dinosaur!"
"What is going on?" Alya wondered, brow furrowed. Tikki echoed her, peeking out of Alya's hair, frowning.
"I don't know but we should get out of—"
He was cut off as a light surrounded him, rising up and replacing him with Bubbler.
With a gasp, Alya jerked back, watching as the colorful akuma grinned as he turned to her.
"Booo!" he shouted, jumping up high in the air with a laugh, landing right beside Animan. As the dinosaur turned to him, Bubbler shouted, "More! I want more! I want them all!"
"Moooaaaar," Animan echoed, waving his little arms.
Bubbler jumped away while Animan stomped behind, shouting, "Rawr! I'mma a dinosaur!" He laughed as the few people around ran away screaming.
Alya stood up, eyes narrowed. "Tikki, spots on," she ordered.
Coccinelle raced after them, ready to find out what was going on.
They could not get rid of Lila.
Chloe huffed as she stomped ahead of the small group, well aware of Lila clinging to Ali's arm, talking up a storm as she kept his attention, talking about all the places she's been. Ali had a small smile on his face, humoring Lila, while Sabrina trailed behind, looking like she was hanging onto every word.
Chloe rolled her eyes as she walked ahead, shaking her head at them. When Adrien called, extending an invitation to model with him, Chloe readily agreed, eager to get away from them since Ali was just too nice to shoo Lila away.
Only, guess who followed?
Chloe growled as Lila's voice filled the air, prattling on behind her. Did she ever shut up? Would she ever leave Chloe alone?
Chloe stopped at the crosswalk, glaring at the light, trying to pressure it to change, tensing as they all came to stop beside her. She spared a glance down as Sabrina stood beside her but the girl wouldn't look at Chloe, her eyes set forward, hands tightly clasped in front of her. There was an uncomfortable pit in Chloe's stomach and she turned away, shoulders sagging.
When the light changed and Lila pulled Ali along, Sabrina moved to follow.
"Sabrina," Chloe called out.
The girl stopped for a moment then continued, moving fast away.
Chloe slowly followed, eyes set to the ground.
How does she get past this? How does she make this better? Chloe had no idea how.
As Chloe trailed behind, Ali's gaze settled on Adrien as they drew near, blinking a little when he saw Felix there. With a beam, Ali patted Lila's atm, making her pause.
"Pardon me," Ali said, breaking away from Lila to greet Felix.
"Hello, Felix!" Ali greeted, smiling as the blonds turned to him. "It's nice to see you again!"
Adrien blinked in surprise. "You know him?"
"Yes! He's a friend of Marinette."
Adrien glanced at Felix, surprised. "You know Marinette?"
Felix bit the inside of his cheek. "What does it matter to you?"
"Oh my," Lila called out, hands set to her cheeks as she gazed up at Felix with starry eyes. "Are you Felix L'Amour?"
Felix spared her a glance.
She held out her hand, introducing, "Lila Rossi, such a pleasure to meet you!"
Felix stared down at her hand, not taking it. Lila's smile went tight, brow furrowed. As she opened her mouth, Vincent called out, clapping his hand as he tutted, "Alright! Enough! Let's get this going—"
Everyone jumped when there was a blur of red and blue landing beside them, standing up to reveal Bubbler.
"Nino?" Adrien whispered, surprised.
The akuma turned to them, shouting as he jumped up in excitement, "I'm super boingy!" Bubbler paused, when he saw Ali. He smiled, reaching for his wand, making everyone tense. Bubbler announced with his black eyes set to Ali, "You're going to play with us."
"Run!" Adrien shouted, pushing everyone in action, just as Bubbler swung his wand, sending bubbles flying. Everyone scattered, avoiding the bubbles as best they could, some rushing away on their own.
Ali was one of them. He thought he was as he ran around the corner, his green eyes settling on Pollen as she popped out of his pocket, turning to him with her dark eyes.
This was it. It was time for him to finally transform!
"Pollen," Ali started, heart pounding in his chest, giddy with excitement. "Fly—"
"Look out!"
Ali squawked when he was shoved from behind, him and Chloe falling to the ground, a bubble zipping over his head. Before them, the white bee miraculous clattered to the ground.
Chloe and Ali stared at it.
She turned to him slowly, blue eyes sharp. "Is that…"
"Uuuuuuuuh."
"It is the bee," Pollen confirmed, holding up the miraculous. "But now is not the time." She held it up to offer to them but quickly pulled it back as her eyes widened. She darted away, a golden blur that went into the bushes. Ali and Chloe turned around, gazing up at Bubbler as he came to loom over them, wand in hand.
"Time to play," Bubbler said, raising his wand high.
Ali shoved Chloe away as Bubbler brought the wand down, encasing Ali in a bubble. The prince wobbled as the bubble rose up, watching as Bubbler grinned at him, tapping the tip of his wand on the bubble and pulling Ali along, declaring, "Time to get the rest!"
"No!" Chloe cried, getting up and racing after them. "Stop! Stop! You stupid clown!"
Bubbler ignored her, jumping away from Chloe, taking Ali with him, and Chloe could only watch as Ali slammed his fist on the walls, his eyes locked on Chloe as he was carried away. Chloe still ran after them, a fear filling her, fear of what was happening, of her friend being taken. She fell when Huli landed beside her, tripping her up and sending her to the ground. She looked up to see a mean smirk sent down at her as the fox rose up, giving Chloe a start.
Chat dropped down beside her, helping Chloe up, wondering, "Are you ok?"
"He took Ali," Chloe said. "Go save—"
Boom. Boom. Boom. Boom.
Everyone tensed, slowly turning to see a tyrannosaurus rex walking around Paris, roaring out and making people scattered, moving to snap at Coccinelle as she sped past him.
Huli swore, "What the f—"
"Animan?" Chat uttered, jaw-dropping as he watched the dinosaur go. "How, why is, what?" He shook his head, shouting, "Come on, Huli!"
With a wary face, the fox followed, her long ears flopping back.
"What about Ali?!" Chloe shouted after them. She received no answer as they ran off, focused on the dinosaur akuma.
With everyone focused on it, they didn't see the shadow rush out, following Bubbler.
With a frustrated growl, Chloe turned, at a loss on what to do, till her eyes settled on Pollen, floating before her, holding the dormant bee miraculous.
"I, I thought I was a wasp," Chloe said, not moving to take the bee miraculous.
"Bee or wasp," Pollen replied, "help is needed. And even a wasp will rise up to protect its home and friends." She held out the miraculous. "We will talk about this afterward. For now, save Ali."
Chloe took the bee miraculous, slipping it into her hair.
"Fly high activates it, fly low will have you detransform. And the power—
"Is gardening," Chloe said.
Pollen breathed in and released it. "Try not to sting, if you can. I don't know how helpful a sting would be."
"Fly high," Chloe commanded, watching as Pollen became a yellow blur, diving into the miraculous in hair. In a flash of yellow, Chloe gave a start to see herself wrapped in a yellow and black suit, and with a bee themed trompo wrapped around her waist. She plucked it off, moving it about with a puzzled frown.
"What am I supposed to do with this?" she wondered, miffed. Pollen had only mentioned plant-related powers, nothing about the tool. She pulled the string, finding it stretched on. With a hum, she wondered if it possibly worked the same as Coccinelle's yo-yo.
"Ok," she muttered to herself, starting to spin the top like she's seen Coccinelle do. She's got this, she's got this, she's got this. She was going to save Ali.
Chloe threw the trompo out, watching it fly and zip through the air, a loud hum filling the air as it went. When she felt it snag on something, Chloe felt the string tense and shrieked when she was suddenly pulled forward.
She was suddenly having doubts about this…
Almost… almost… so cloooooose….
"Aaaand… done!" Marinette declared, pushing her seat back, holding up the fixed Coccinelle, beaming as the plush smiled down at her with her arm all fixed and sewn back together. The crisis has been avoided. Coccinelle doll shall get to play for another day.
Marinette relaxed, setting the doll down on her desk, leaning on her hand as she stared down at the orange-red ladybug hero, her cape splayed out behind her, smiling as she laid next to the heroes. Marinette glanced at them, listing off the heroes names.
Coccinelle, Chat Noir, Huli…
She picked up the last doll, considering the smile fox hero, feeling bittersweet. "Might have to change you up," she murmured.
Sh wasn't Huli anymore, after all. There was a new fox now.
Marinette shook her head, gathered up all the dolls, and dropped them back in the chest. No need to dwell on it, to continue to be hung up on it. She was resolute that she was going to help one way or another. She was a hero with or without a miraculous. She brought Ladybug and Huli to life. She was going to help no matter what.
But just as she moved to close the lid, Marinette paused, taking in the number of the dolls in the chest.
Bubbler was gone. She gave that to Manon to borrow and play with. But, someone was missing. Frowning, she moved the plushies about, taking out one to help her search, trying to find it. Where was—
Thud!
Marinette paused, slowly turning and looking up towards her loft bed, a cold feeling settling over her. Who was on her balcony?
She stood up slowly, calling out, "Uh, hello?"
She was answered with a roar.
Marinette went to the window, gaping to see Animan out in the streets, snapping and twisting about as he tried to get Chat, Coccinelle, and Huli as they ran and jumped around them. "What the—"
There was a chuckle behind her and Marinette turned to see Bubbler looming over her, bringing his wand down, his dark eyes gleaming with excitement.
"You're going to play with me too!" he shouted, ready to encase and entrap her.
Before it could touch her, a gloved hand grabbed the wand and pulled back. Bubbler twisted around, seeing a bird themed vigilante behind him, dressed in brown and white with black spots and gleaming red eyes. He almost looked like a sparrow. Marinette sucked in a breath. That's who she saw last night.
"No!" Bubbler shouted, slamming his foot and pulling at his wand. "It's mine! Mine! Mine! Mine!"
The sparrow vigilante didn't answer, digging his boots to the floor as he pulled back, the red goggles on his black mask flashing in the light. Marinette dove forward, wrapping her arms around Bubbler's middle, pulling back on him.
"Break it!" she shouted. "Break the wand!"
"Noooooo!" Bubbler cried, tugging sharply, twisting about in Marinette's grip, trying to get free.
The vigilante brought out an arrow like dart and brought the point down hard on the wand, making it snap and break. Marinette and Bubbler fell back, Marinette wincing as she was slammed against her wall. She rubbed her head, glancing up, expecting to see the dark butterfly. Only there was no butterfly flying out. Bubbler was still Bubbler.
"No!" Bubbler cried, jumping up and grabbing his broken wand. "No, you meanie! You broke it! I hate you!"
Marinette rubbed her head, wondering, "Manon?" That sounded a lot like Manon… She glanced up when there was a touch on her shoulder, looking up at Bird Boy.
"I think Manon's an akuma," she blurted out.
Bird Boy tilted his head, not knowing who Manon was.
Bubbler threw his wand down, furious. Bird Boy tensed, moving to be in front of Marinette, red eyes turned to Bubbler as Marinette leaned over to see. She gave a start as Bubbler started to go for the toy chest.
"No!" she cried, moving to jump up, wincing when a slight dizzy spell hit her. Bird Boy moved to stabilize her. "Don't let him get the toy chest!"
As Bird Boy moved to charge, there was a loud bellow and boom boom boom!
Bird Boy whipped around, grabbed her, and pulled her away as Animan jumped up, slamming his snout into the window, making glass and bits of the wall go flying. Bird Boy barely had time to twist around, letting his back take the brunt of it, Marinette pressing her face against his chest to try and avoid the shards and debris. Animan fell back, leaving a gaping hole in her room, Bubbler ran past them, chest under his arm, jumping onto the rex's head.
"I hate you!" he shouted as Animan turned and lumbered away, a bubbled Ali following them.
"Oh no," Marinette whispered as she leaned past Bird Boy's arms, the brown hero rising as well to look back.
"Marinette!" Chat cried out as he jumped into the opening Coccinelle close behind, Huli trailing behind him. He tensed when he saw Bird Boy, his arms wrapped around Marinette. Wasn't that who he saw last night, the one he was chasing? Why was he here?
He reached for his baton, wondering, "Who are—"
"Chat! The akuma!" Marinette cried, getting past Bird Boy and approaching the cat hero who immediately reached for her, setting his claws on her shoulder.
"Are you ok?" he asked.
"I'm fine, but the akuma, I think it's Manon!"
"Who?" Coccinelle asked, coming near.
"A girl I babysit," Marinette answered. "I made dolls for her to play with and gave her a Bubbler doll and now Bubbler's out and I had made an Animan and now he's—"
"So this is your fault?" Huli voiced, arms crossed.
Chat's ears went down as he turned to Huli, surprised. "Huli!"
"Now is not the time," Coccinelle said, sending Huli a sharp look.
Before Huli could reply, there was a trailing screaming getting closer and closer. They all turned just in time to see a bee-themed hero coming down and slamming on the edge of the whole with a grunt. As the bee started to fall down, she shrieked out, "HELP ME!"
Chat and Coccinelle dove forward, grabbing the bee hero and pulling her into the room.
"You ok?" Chat asked brows raised high in concern at how shaken the bee looked.
"And who are you?" Coccinelle wondered.
"I hate this," the bee hero said instead, trembling as she sat back on her knees and hands, staring at the floor. "I hate this so much." This was not how she was expecting this to go.
Marinette came near, setting a hand on the bee as she sat down, wondering if this was the new hero Fu promised, his precaution. "Are you ok?"
The bee sat up to answer, only to pause, looking around Marinette's room. With brows furrowed, the bee turned to Marinette and stated, "You know, your room is a mess."
Marinette, Coccinelle, and Bird Boy all gave the bee a flat stare. Marinette said, "I had a dinosaur shove his head into my room, it's bound to be a mess."
"Can you tell me who you are?" Coccinelle asked again, sparing a glance out the window, tense.
The bee hero stood up, dusting herself off as she tilted her chin high. "I'm… Queen Bee. Here to help."
"Another new hero in Paris," Huli huffed.
"I'm here to help," Queen Bee repeated, crossing her arms, defensive.
"Help doesn't sound too bad," Chat said.
"And who is this?" Huli wondered, pointing to Bird Boy.
Everyone looked to the quiet vigilante; he stared back, not offering a response.
Chat voiced, "Yeah, I would like to know too, I chased you around last night."
Bird Boy gave him a glance.
Coccinelle raised a brow. "You were what?"
"He's a friend," Marinette cut in, drawing all their eyes back to her. "Besides, we need to focus on Manon. She made off with all the other dolls..." Marinette trailed, eyes landing on the one doll left behind. "Except for this one," she said, picking up Wordplay. She faced them again, her gaze sharp and serious. "There aren't only akumas in that chest either, there are heroes too." She glanced at Huli, watching her tense. "If she can possess previous akumas…"
"She could possess us," Coccinelle finished, turning and head to the hole. "We need to move now. Get those dolls and find Manon as quickly as possible."
Chat asked, "Any ideas where Manon could be?"
"Try the tv station. Her mother usually takes her there."
"Let's go!" Coccinelle ordered, racing off.
"Wait! I'll come too!" Marinette declared, looking to Chat.
Chat stopped her. "No, no, Princess, you stay here. Don't worry, Coccinelle will fix your room soon." With a wink, he turned to follow Coccinelle out, calling out, "Come on, you three! If you're going to help, we can use it!"
As Queen Bee released a loud groan, she and Huli followed, Huli jumping out as Queen Bee threw her trompo out, taking a leap of faith and screaming she flew through the air.
Marinette went to the edge, grimacing as she stared after them, feeling restless and agitated. Surely there was something she could do? She turned, ready to grab anything she could use, but paused when she saw the sparrow hero still standing around, red eyes set on her.
She came up to him, declaring, "You're going to take me there."
Bird Boy stared down at her, crossing his arms, not moving an inch.
She set her hands on her hips as she stared back up at him. "I'm going there one way or another."
She was Huli and Ladybug. She was a hero, with or without the miraculous. She bought those heroes to life with who she is, she was their success. She was capable. She could help.
Bird Boy stared down at her, the red goggles shining in the light. He released a soft sigh before taking out the little dart he carried. He went to the edge, stopping to glance back at her. With a smile, Marinette came to his side, putting her arms around him when he wrapped it around her. Holding her close, he pointed the dart, shooting a pale pink pink arrow, a stream of light following it.
He gave a warning squeeze.
Marinette squeezed back, resolute in going.
Bird Boy dropped forward and together they soared through the air, following the heroes.
Lila liked to think that she was always in control. That she was in charge, on top of everything, and everything was going to go her way and play into her hands.
But… at this point, it didn't feel like it. As they all dropped down in front of the tv station, Queen Bee stumbling with her landing, she couldn't help but fold her ears back as she stared up at this. This… this was really out of her control. She didn't like this akuma, didn't like this setup, didn't want to go in there.
This akuma could control others, and now had dolls of the heroes, including a Huli doll. Volpina didn't know if this Manon would be able to control her since she wasn't Huli but… she was scared to find out the answer. Didn't want to find out the answer she didn't want to go in there.
It made her think back to Trixx's warning, about how she was playing with fire. This, this was going to go up in smoke, Volpina could feel it.
And that feeling of control that she had was gone as she stared up at the building.
"You coming?"
She blinked, looking down to see Chat standing at the doorway, his arms crossed, a frown on his lips. Coccinelle and Queen Bee were gone, no doubt already inside.
With a shaky smile, she pointed back towards Marinette's home. "What about, uh, him?"
Chat followed her point, his frown deepening when he didn't see the brown bird based hero (at least, he hoped they were a hero). He shook his head, waving her inside. "We'll worry about him later. Right now, we need to move."
With a wince, Volpina drew near him, ears going down on her head as she gazed up at the building, feeling sick from the anticipation of trouble.
"By the way," Chat murmured beside her, "what was up back there? Why were you so passive aggressive with Marinette?"
She spared him a glance, offering a tight smile. "We wouldn't be in this situation if she didn't make those dolls," she pointed out.
"Not like she knew this was going to happen."
"What does it matter to you?" she snapped.
"Marinette's my—" Chat cut himself off, lips pursed. He reached out, asking, "Is something up, Huli?"
She darted away from his touch, walking ahead and missing the look of hurt on his face. "Nothing! Nothing's wrong at all, let's go find this akuma."
Sagging a little, Chat followed. He hoped he'll find out what was wrong soon.
Ahead of them, there was tense silence as Coccinelle and Queen Bee prowled through the halls, peeking into every room they came across, searching for the akuma.
"I wonder who Marinette has made," Coccinelle murmured, frowning as she glanced to Queen Bee. She dreaded the possibility that Marinette had made a doll for every akuma they faced. What if they were all here?
Coccinelle felt overwhelmed at the possibility, a little queasy even. All the akumas she can recall, the majority were a struggle. She and Chat were on their toes all the time with them, scrambling.
Mindful, they did have more help this time but… would it be enough? Could they handle a lot of akumas at the same time? And the risk that they could fall under the akuma's control.
Coccinelle was unsettled.
"Are you always this unsettled before an akuma?" Queen Bee voiced, huffing as she shut one door a bit hard, making a face. Where was this damn akuma?
"No, usually, they don't really hide like this," Coccinelle answered. "And we haven't really dealt with an akuma like this… one that could make others, that could control us…" Coccinelle moved her hair behind her ear. "Most of these guys Chat and I struggled with and there's a chance they're back…"
"Get over it," Queen Bee ordered.
Coccinelle paused, raising a brow to Queen Bee. Queen Bee stared back, hands set on her hips.
"I'm the real newbee here," she sneered out, "I don't know what I'm doing. I don't know how my miraculous will really help. I'm having a mental freak out right now but I'm still going! So, get over it. You mess up and freak out, we're all in deep shit."
With a harrumph, Queen Bee prowled past the surprised Coccinelle, walking with a trembling purpose, internally screaming as she went ahead and berating herself for the chance she came across the akuma first. Behind her, Coccinelle shook away her unease and followed. Queen Bee was right, she had to focus, had to get better, had to get focused. The weight of success fell on her.
Where it was a fact that she had embraced before, it now left her wary and a little overwhelmed. But she needed to do what she can if she failed then… Coccinelle didn't want to think about it.
"Ali!"
Coccinelle looked up, seeing Ali sitting against the wall, nestled in the corner, looking small, peeking over his knees. Queen Bee ran to him, falling to her knees as she set a hand on the prince's arm. "Are you alright?" she wondered.
He stared the bee hero with wide eyes before shaking his head and drawing away from her. "Noooo."
"No?" Queen Bee repeated, whipping around to look around. "Who hurt you? I'll—"
"You're not supposed to beee here."
Queen Bee paused as the slight tune in Ali's voice.
Coccinelle drew near, gazing down Ali warily. "Did, did he just sing?"
"I'm playiinnng," Ali sang, "waiting to be saaaved by the princeess."
Queen Bee and Coccinelle exchanged a look, an unease filling their gaze. There was only one that could make people sing and obey. Princess Fragrance was here.
"Beware the dragooon. He'll eat youuu."
No sooner had Ali warned them, there was a loud clicking noise filling the air behind them. Queen Bee and Coccinelle turned to see a raptor at the end of the hall, growling as it grinned toothily.
"Oh shit," Queen Bee whispered.
"That's a no-no wooord!" Ali pointed out.
"Shut it!"
The raptor screeched, charging at them.
Down the hall, the cat and fox tensed, seeing a raptor race by, no doubt rushing to Coccinelle and Queen Bee. Before the two can rush up to help, their ears twitched back when they heard a rush of air. They dropped down, just in time to avoid being slammed against Rogercop chestplate.
"How did he sneak up on us?!" Chat demanded, jumping away from the akuma.
"I am very sneaky!" Rogercop declared, pointing his arms to them as he followed. Behind him was a grinning white akuma with red hair Chat's never seen before coming out, with Princess Fragrance behind him.
"I don't have fond memories of you," Chat muttered as the akuma grinned at him, pointing her perfume gun at them.
"Ring of the Eclipse!" Chat summoned, grabbing Huli as he slashed at a small shadow, making an opening for them.
And just as they raced in, Chat gazing ahead, orange smoke fell away from Huli's body, the fox's hero feeling cold with terror.
Bird Boy came to a stop on a roof across from the tv station, crouched down as he gazed on it, Marinette seated on his thigh, arms wrapped around his neck. For a moment, neither moved, gazing at the building with consideration.
Marinette didn't like the plan of charging in through the front door. While she had an idea where Manon could be, she didn't know what akumas were active or what was even going on inside. She didn't want to go in blind, leaving it to chance on who she may come across. They needed something that provided more advantage…
"There!" Marinette pointed out, drawing the vigilante's gaze after her finger. An open window, close to where Manon should be. If Marinette's memory was correct, Nadja's room should be right next to it. They could sneak in.
Tightening his grip on her waist, he pointed his dart and fired the pink line. They fell forward, Marinette holding him tight as they dipped closer to the window. As soon as his boots hit the window frame, Marinette dropped out of his hold and slid into the dark room. She didn't wait for him as she ran off, heading for the adjacent studio. With a soft grumble, Bird Boy followed quickly, not willing to risk Marinette rushing into danger.
Slipping in, Marinette crept close, grimacing as she took in Manon as an akuma, floating in the air like a fairy, a lot of the dolls Marinette made floating around her. Before her was a grinning Bubbler, gathering an armful of dolls. He turned, presenting Miss Fortune to the akuma. The doll floated up, ready for the akuma.
Marinette rose up, ready to charge or do something to stop her when Bird Boy jumped ahead of her shooting off an arrow that went right through the doll, tearing it apart.
"What?!" the akuma cried out, turning to them just as Bird Boy fired off another, destroying the chest, sending bits of Pixelator, Gamer, Timebreaker, and Huli to the floor.
"Noooo! My toys! You killed my toys! Bubbler! Puppeteer commands you to put him in a time out!"
Bubbler took out his wand as he dropped the other dolls to the floor, behind them, civilians drew near, Nadja among them.
"Hope you're ready…" Marinette whispered, trailing as she spared a glance to the hero, unsure of his name.
"Sparrow," came the soft answer as he turned his red eyes to her. "Stay low."
"What? But—"
"She doesn't know your here."
Marinette went quiet, eyes widening at the fact. With a nod, she crouched down, watching as Bubbler and a few few civilians charged. Sparrow charged back, jumping high into the air, summoning his arrow, and firing it at one of the civilians. Marinette tensed for a second before she saw that civilian stumble, shaking their head and looking around. Their eyes widened in fear at the sight of the akuma and turned and ran away.
He can break Princess Fragrance's spell.
Marinette smiled, turning her gaze back to Puppeteer, calculating and planning.
The wand had to be the possessed item. A wand that could be easily knocked out of her hand…
As Sparrow dodged and raced around the room, freeing the civilians as he went, Marinette slowly prowled around the room, watching Puppeteer as she threw tantrums in the air, angrily shouting, "Stop taking away my toys!"
She turned her gaze to the floor, a little queasy to see what dolls were left.
Coccinelle and Chat Noir.
Marinette couldn't let Manon possess those. No matter what.
Chat grinned as he came out behind Queen Bee and Coccinelle, landing right next to a wide-eyed Ali, seeing them facing them off a raptor. They should have a lot more advantage here than being split up, Chat calculated.
"Get away from me you angry ugly overgrown lizard!"
At least, he hoped.
"You ready, Huli—"
Chat went when he turned to his partner. Only, that wasn't his partner. Gone was Huli behind him, instead stood Volpina.
She wasn't entirely the same as her akuma, her hair kept in a long braid with a white tip, with a rustic orange between the white tip and her dark brown hair. She had dark eye spots over her scared green eyes and white marks under her eyes and framing around it. Small differences enough to separate her from the akuma, but just enough that it made it clear that this was Volpina.
Her longs ears fell back on her head as she watched his eyes widened, releasing her as he turned to face her, gripping his baton tight, his tail slashing behind him. She held out her black gloves, offering him a tight smile as she tried to ease, "N-now Chat…"
"Where is Huli?" he asked slowly, a growl lacing his words.
"She's ok!" Volpina hurried out, backing away from him.
"Chat we need you to—" Coccinelle went quiet when she turned, eyes landing on a different fox, who met her stare with wide, nervous eyes. Queen Bee turned as well, sucking in a tight breath when her gaze settled on Volpina as well.
Both of them jumped when Animan snapped at them, drawing away and getting closer to Volpina.
"We need to focus," Coccinelle declared through her gritted teeth.
"But she's not Huli," Chat protested.
"I know," Coccinelle snapped, "but now isn't the time. Later."
"There'll definitely be a later," Queen murmured, sparing a sharp glance to Volpina, making the fox wince, her ears going down.
Overwhelmed by the situation, the many opponents and the harsh, furious stares of her comrades, Volpina did the only thing that was sensible to her, she turned and ran away.
"Hey!" Chat shouted after, jumping away as Rogercop swung at him.
Volpina didn't respond, running on and on, till she came to an empty room and disappeared inside. As soon as the door closed behind her, she whispered, "Ears down."
The transformation fell away and the fox kwami floated before her, ears perked, purple eyes staring up at Lila neutrally, watching as she drew away from the door, arms wrapped around herself.
"Are you ok?" Trixx asked, reaching for Lila.
"No!" Lila snapped, sliding down a wall, trembling. "That, that was too much. I, did you see the way they looked at me?"
"I did warn you—"
"I know! But, that, that was too much!"
"Huli was a good friend to them. And you pretended to be her, makes sense that they weren't going to respond well."
Lila bit her lip, feeling a frustration settle on her. She said, "I'm going home."
"Runaway?" Trixx murmured, tilting her head.
Lila didn't answer her, she got up and slipped past the kwami, hurrying away and heading out. Trixx followed, murmuring, "So, you're going to leave that fire alone?"
"Did you see the way they looked at me?" Lila snapped. "They looked ready to attack!"
"Well, you were—"
"Playing with fire, I know," Lila huffed, hurrying away from the kwami, from the truth and reality she shared, not liking what she heard.
"Just know," Trixx voiced as she trailed behind Lila, "fires get worse when left unattended."
Lila stopped, turning to eye the little fox, watching her float and hover behind Lila, a lazy, neutral smile on her lips. Lila turned away and continued in a fast past. Trixx didn't follow immediately, turning to glance back towards the fight, her ears perked towards it. With a slight twitch of her tail, the kwami followed, not giving up yet.
Down the hall, the three heroes remaining gave a start when all the akumas they were fighting paused, then turned and hurried away. With a shared glance, they followed, set to not let them get away.
Marinette moved slowly and carefully around the room, keeping to the shadows and out of sight, watching as Sparrow danced and race around, avoiding bubbles and slowly releasing the civilians that were trapped, keeping the focus of the two akumas so they can escape.
Marinette though found herself sitting with quiet frustration as she waited, keeping a lookout for the best chance. That chance has yet to arrive with Bubbler, both him and Puppeteer have turned to the other two dolls left on the floor but Sparrow was always able to get their attention back.
Part of Marinette was considering dashing out there, grabbing the dolls and racing away. The worse outcome was that she got bubbled, but at least the dolls would be out of Puppeteer's reach. And for them, her having control over Coccinelle and Chat Noir would make or break this battle.
Marinette rose up, watching as Sparrow dove at Bubbler, grabbing his wand and struggling to get control. Puppeteer was turned away, chanting, "Get him! Get him! Get him!"
Marinette crept out into view, eyes set to Puppeteer. This was her chance, she was going to go for it.
She dove at the dolls, scooping them up just as Puppeteer turned down to her.
"Hey!" she cried, "Those are my dolls!"
"No, they aren't," Marinette answered, holding them both close, backing away from Puppeteer as she floated after her. "I didn't give them to you for this, Manon."
"It's Puppeteer!" the child akuma snapped, shooting at the dolls in Marinette's arms, only to miss as the pigtailed girl jumped back. Marinette paused, tensing when the wall disappeared and the other akumas rushed in, Animan giving a loud roar as a panther.
Not far behind them, the other heroes came, all their eyes locking right onto Marinette.
"Marinette!" Chat cried, alarmed and surprised.
With her attention averted from the newcomers, Puppeteer took her chance, firing down and hitting the Chat Noir doll.
"No!" Marinette cried, reaching for the doll as he zipped out of her arms. As a light washed over the doll, Chat shifted in the doorway, dropping to the ground with the doll. There was a shift to his body as he rose up, his eyes cold and sharp, his smile playful. He leaped forward, racing towards Marinette, claws outstretched.
Before he could reach her, an arm wrapped around her middle and carried her away from the possessed cat. Before Chat could follow, a yo-yo wrapped around his waist, jerking him back.
"Down kitty," Coccinelle growled, straining as she tried to hold Chat back.
With a loud growl, Animan and Rogercop charged towards the two heroines, while the white akuma and Princess Fragrance ran after Marinette and Sparrow. With a shriek, Queen Bee threw her trompo at them. "Stay away!" she cried, hoping that it'd be enough to stop them.
Much to her horror, the trompo went right past them and into a potted plant. Yellow dust rose up and covered the plant and Queen watched as it twitched and shudder, then the leaves burst to life, rising up and growing, twisting about like a giant, leaf-like snakes. They dove at Animan and Rogercop, wrapping around the two and pulling the two away, constraining them.
Queen Bee and Coccinelle stared, jaws slacked.
Queen Bee smiled. "I get to be a force of nature." Now, this wasn't so bad. That could be far more up her alley.
Coccinelle squawked when Chat jerked forward, sending her to the ground and freeing him. Chat twisted in the air, landing next to Puppeteer, letting loose an angry hiss.
Coccinelle rose up as Queen Bee caught her trompo, both of them facing forward. Evillustrator gritted his teeth, starting to erase the plant that held the other two.
Sparrow set Marinette down, ordering, "Destroy the doll—"
He was cut off when a pink mist washed over him, Marinette hurried away from him, covering her mouth as Sparrow fell under Princess Fragrance's influence. Marinette backed away as Sparrow turned to her. She moved to rip the doll when she was grabbed behind by Bubbler. As Coccinelle and Queen Bee raced towards her, Animan and Rogercop were free. Animan leapt ahead as a panther, sliding before the two heroes with a hiss.
Marinette struggled to keep the doll away from Bubbler, moving it away as the akuma reached and tried to grab it. Chat and Sparrow drew near, reaching for the doll.
"Queen Bee!" Marinette shouted out, throwing the doll up. "Destroy it!"
The trompo came flying, a soft hum coming from as it came at the doll. Only, instead of destroying it, the trompo swatted the doll away, closer to Puppeteer.
"Damnit!" Queen Bee shouted.
"Nooo!" Coccinelle shouted as Puppeteer giggled as she loomed over the doll.
"Got you now," Puppeteer giggled, waving her wand at the doll. A light washed over the doll, with Coccinelle stumbling back as a light washed over her as well. A mean smile crossed her lips as she turned to Queen Bee.
Queen jumped back, giving Coccinelle a trembling point. "Don't you dare!"
Coccinelle pulled her yo-yo, making the cord tighten, her almond eyes locked on the bee. Backing away, Queen Bee walked right into Rogercop, squeaking as his broad arms wrapped around her.
Puppeteer giggled in delight as Marinette and Queen Bee were brought before her. Princess Fragrance came forward, her perfume gun pointed to them. Marinette and Queen exchanged arms wild glance to each other, fear filling Queen's gaze. Marinette met it with determination, looking away as she looked around, trying to come up with arms plan.
"You two will join us," Ali said as he came up under Puppeteer, holding her like a princess as she floated down into his arms, clapping her hands, giddy.
In struggling in Bubbler's arms, trying to stomp her feet on his, ran her head into his chin, or even get her elbow free enough to ram it into his gut. Anything to get free. In the back of her mind, logic poked at Marinette, whispering and reminding that it was a useless effort.
They needed a distraction. Something that could scatter or confuse everyone. There were too many focusing on her and Queen to get a chance to escape and regroup.
Where was—
The doors burst open and in slid in Volpina with a smirk that faltered when she saw all she was against, her eyes landing on Marinette and Queen Bee, held captive by two akumas.
"Who are you?" Puppeteer demanded. She waved her wand, glancing around her puppets, ordering, "Get her!"
As many of them charged at her, Volpina brought her flute to her lips and played a fast song, making an orb of light flare at the end. With a twirl, she slammed that orb on the ground. Orange smoke flared out around the entryway, making all the puppets pause as they couldn't see the fox anymore. They jumped when hoards of Volpinas rushed out at the same time, rushing around them, trails of smoke following them, adding to the confusion. The puppets swung out wildly, making wild grabs at the foxes only for them to dance away, laughing.
Bubbler and Rogercop held tight to their captives, watching the mess around them warily. Their eyes set to the chaos, they didn't see Volpina run up behind them, slamming her flute down on Bubbler's back.
With a loud squawk, Bubbler released Marinette, dropping her down into the dense orange smoke. Marinette hurried away, struggling to see through the smoke and legs, moving to get free. When she found the wall, she clung to it, trying to sort through the chaos.
Puppeteer shouted out in frustration, fed up with not seeing what was going on.
"Lucky Charm!" Coccinelle shouted, drawing Marinette's gaze to her, catching sight of a red and black dotted blanket. Marinette went for her, eyes locked on where she last saw Coccinelle, listening to the flop flop flop of the blanket being flapped about, trying to blow away the smoke, ignoring the warning chirp of the earrings.
When she was able to make out Coccinelle, Marinette charged. She tackled the ladybug hero, running along till they went right into a closest, Coccinelle shouted out and drew the attention of Animan before going straight to the ground. From the force of the fall, one earring fell away, letting her detransform under Marinette. Marinette grabbed that earring and jumped up, racing to the door and slamming it closed as Animan let out a roar, stomping straight towards them. She stumbled when he slammed at the wood, nearly knocking the door open. Back pressed against it, Marinette popped that one earring into her lobe.
"What the…?" Alya mumbled, hand on her forehead, rubbing it.
"The other," Marinette stressed, holding out her hand, digging her feels to the floor as she felt the door shudder again.
Alya looked up, eyes going wide to see Marinette before her, Tikki floating above, cramming a cookie into her mouth, also pushing at the door in a small effort to try and keep it closed. A kwami Marinette didn't look surprised to see at all.
"You…" Alya whispered.
"The other!" Marinette repeated, tensing as the wood started to creak, the door opening enough for Animan to stick his snout in, blowing hot breath into the room.
Alya moved without thought, taking the earring out and handing it to Marinette who immediately set it on her other ear.
"Tikki," she called out, her voice firm with command. The kwami turned her eyes to her, antennas perked. "Spots on!"
Before Alya's eyes, the pink washed over Marinette, transforming her into Ladybug, into the hero that was before her, that had chosen her as the hero. A whole new hero, far different than where she started out, her blue eyes fierce, her body tense and ready, and a new suit to echo off her mettle. Black "boots" slid up past her knees, dotted with bright red spots, black lines that connected with the spots on her legs, encircling them. A black "plate" on her chest and biceps, with three red dots, two on her collar and one on her chest. From it, a black line went down her arms to a black glove with red fingers. On her stomach, a line curved down the middle of it to the center dot, stretching around and hugging her sides. When she turned to deal with Animan, Alya was met with the black covering her back, a dark shell framing a red outline of a Ladybug symbol.
Shoving that door open, Ladybug jumped over the panther on the other side, keeping his gaze on her as she moved over him and ran back into that mess, drawing him away from Alya.
In the closet, Alya didn't move to follow, sitting still as she watched the door slowly close.
Outside, Ladybug grabbed the dropped blanket, settling into the center as she called out, "Queen Bee! Volpina! Follow me!"
Yellow and orange jumped out of the smoke, looking a little surprised to see a different spotted hero. They shook their surprise off as they followed her as she ran, the Lucky Charm held tightly in her hand. There was a pound of feet behind them as the puppets raced after them, shouting and snarling. Looking ahead, Ladybug spotted a smoke alarm high above.
"Volpina!" she shouted, pointing to it.
Volpina threw an orb at it, making a small burst of gas around it. The smoke alarm went off and the sprinklers sprang to life, pouring cold water down in the halls. The puppets all stopped, making displeased noises as the cold rang down on them allowing the three heroes to escape. They slipped outside and hid a few roofs away, watching as the puppets followed, searching for them.
When they didn't see them, they all wandered back inside.
Ladybug sighed, slouching on against a chimney. They were safe, for now—
"What is going on?"
She looked up at Queen's growl, seeing her glaring at Volpina, the fox's ears set back, also glaring back at Queen Bee.
"You aren't Huli!"
"No, I'm not. I'm the real vixen hero, Volpina—"
"The akuma!" Queen Bee snarled.
"That akuma was actually inspired by me."
"Oh, so, you're not Lila," Queen pressured, coming near to glare at her.
Before Volpina can snap back, Ladybug called out, "Enough."
The two turned to her, Volpina crossing her arms while Queen Bee's gave her a guarded look.
"You're not Coccinelle," Volpina pointed out.
"No, she's Ladybug. Huli with the earrings."
"Who's probably Marin—"
"I sent Marinette away," Ladybug dodged, setting her hands on her hips. "This doesn't matter. What matters is the situation." She pointed to the tv station. "Right now, there's a dangerous akuma in there, and only the three of us are left to handle this."
"Unfortunately, one of us is a real newbee," Volpina jabbed.
"Oh, like you have this all down, Volpina the cowardly fox."
"Hey!" Ladybug snapped, clapping her hands loudly, stopping the coming argument. The two turned away, arms crossed, teeth clenched. Ladybug took a moment to close her eyes and breath in. She asked, "Do you two know your powers?"
"I know mine," Volpina said, giving Queen Bee a sneering glance.
"I…" Queen Bee trailed, holding up the trompo. Pollen was still relatively vague on powers. For sure, she learned that the sort of pollination that she did brought control over plants. And Pollen has said to not sting… perhaps that was a power?
Ladybug glanced back to the building, humming thoughtfully. They were up against Rogercop, Princess Fragrance, Animan, Chat Noir, Sparrow, Evillustrator, and Bubbler. Bubbler had his wand back. Princess Fragrance can extend control over other people, and three of them were powerhouses that can easily overpower her, Volpina, and Queen Bee. While their miraculouses did provide them with more strength, some did have more than others; like Chat she noted had greater strength than the ladybug holder. They couldn't dream of overpowering them but outwitting…
With a hum, Ladybug brought up her yo-yo, curious to see it would work.
"What are you doing?" Volpina asked, brow raised.
"Miraculouses answer to what you want. They provide you with what you need, it's pretty wild magic stuff." She drew near, showing the two the open yo-yo, smiling as the yo-yo tapped into the security cameras, showing them what was going on.
"Woah," Vopina whispered.
"And thus, we have our peek at what's going on inside," Ladybug said, pleased. It looked like Puppeteer and her puppets where playing. They weren't looking for them at all. They had time on their hands. How lucky.
Ladybug snapped her yo-yo closed, making the two jump before her. Ladybug grinned, her eyes settling on Queen Bee. "Hope you're ready to do some gardening."
Queen Bee raised a brow at her.
Ladybug instructed, "Go around and gather up as many potted plants as you can, they don't have to be big, actually smaller, the better. And Volpina, we're going to need your great acting skills." Ignoring their surprised looks, Ladybug turned away, wrapping the Lucky Charm around her arm, lips pursed as she tried to think on what this could be for. Every Lucky Charm had a use that would help with success, both small and grand. She just needed to figure it out. If not here, it'll have a use inside.
Shaking her head, she turned to the fox and bee, still staring at Ladybug in bafflement. Ladybug clapped her hands, commanding, "Let's go! Every small potted plant you can find! I don't care what, grab everything that you can find and carry!"
With that, Ladybug tore off, hoping that the two would follow her instruction. This was going to work, she knows it will.
Puppeteer giggled and squealed as she rode Animan around the room, cheering on the horse turned akuma, "Faster! Faster!"
Animan whinnied and snorted, throwing his head about as he trotted around the room. Near them Prince Ali and Princess Fragrance stood, clapping their hands in delight as they watched the show. Evillustrator stood a little behind them, drawing a small sun to follow the akuma, shining a light on the giggling girl. With all the focus kept on the akuma having fun, none noticed the warm colored heroes peeking in and sliding little potted plants into the room, making sure to put them in hiding or have them easily overlooked.
When all the plants were set, Ladybug gave Queen Bee a nod.
Queen Bee threw her trompo out, nervously watching as it zipped away, a soft buzz coming from it as it headed for all the little plants. Bouncing on them, scattering yellow dust on them, it came zipping back into Queen Bee's hand.
Unlike the first time, these plants didn't burst with life. They slid slowly across the floor as long thin vines, heading towards the puppets. Holding up the blanket, Ladybug drew into the room as much as she dared before she threw the blanket outwards, watching it fly and slide over the floor, landing behind Evillustrator.
Hearing the soft flutter of fabric, Evillustrator moved to turn around, his brow furrowed, only for his foot to land on the sleek cloth and squawk as he slipped on it, his pen going flying. The vines stretched, wrapping around that pen and snapping it in two. They slid back away, out of sight as the other puppets looked around.
They didn't see anything though, only watching as Evillustrator crawled over the floor, brows furrowed and concerned.
Where was his pen?
Pleased, Ladybug nodded her head out, beckoning Volpina and Queen Bee to follow, missing how Chat frowned as he gazed down at the blanket, positive that it wasn't there before. Ears twitching when he heard a disturbance, he slipped away, eager to figure this out.
Unaware of the cat hero drawing near, Ladybug pulled a bigger plant along, Volpina pushing helping her move it while Queen Bee stood close, clutching her trompo as she listened as Ladybug explained, "With this, we'll trap Animan and Rogercop. With Evillustrator's pen gone, there's no easy way to get free, outside Chat's Cataclysm. He'll be the next to figure out. And then Bubbler who can trap up but we break his wand, we should be good. I think I could do that."
"And you have an idea for him?" Volpina wondered, tail swishing behind her.
"Well, get him to use to early on something extendable. Shouldn't be too har—"
"I knew it!"
The girls all froze, turning to see Chat standing behind them, his ears down, teeth bared. He turned, moving to sound the alarm, only to get cut off when a yo-yo slammed into the back of his head. He stood still, tail straight up, looking surprised. The yo-yo came back, this time poking at his tail, which gave an agitated twitch. As he turned to growl at Ladybug, he jumped to see the fox diving at him, flute arching back to bring it down on him. Chat dove away, jerking back to avoid the humming trompo diving past him. He slid along the floor, ears flat on his head as the three turned to him.
"Not fair!" he snapped, charging at them, eyes set to Ladybug, slashing at her wildly. When Volpina closed in to swipe at him, he whipped around, slashing at her. Before he could get to close, Ladybug grabbed his tail and pulled him back. With a growl, Chat twisted around, claws racing to her as he shouted, "Cataclysm!"
Ladybug's eyes widened, not anticipating having the black, destructive power come racing at her. She couldn't get away in time. It was going to hit—
"Sting!"
A yellow light covered Chat, letting his eyes widened for just a moment before he wound up freezing up, not moving at all, standing still, his claws outstretched towards Ladybug, inches away from her. Ladybug drew away, wide-eyed at the frozen cat.
Queen Bee and Volpina drew near, watching as Chat's eyes flick around, frustrated growls coming out of him.
"So that's what sting does," Queen murmured. She jumped when there was a beep in the air.
"You have five minutes," Ladybug revealed, hurrying away, coming back with a blank sheet of paper, pressing it to Chat's hand, letting it disperse. "Chat probably has five minutes too to stay frozen, and to stay as Chat." Hooking her arms around his middle, Ladybug dragged him into the office, setting him on the floor and closing the door behind him. "Let's move," she commanded.
"But my timer—"
"You have enough time to help," Ladybug reassured, setting her hand on Queen's shoulder and giving it a squeeze before heading off, dragging the plant with her. "With Chat out of the way, that just leaves Animan and Rogercop as the heavy hitters. We need them taken out, Bubbler will be useless when his wand is broken, we need to knock that dart out of Sparrow's hand, and Volpina, your smoke might be able to counter Princess Fragrance's perfume."
"That's quite the hunch," Volpina murmured.
"One we have to try, once the rest get taken out, she'd be our biggest risk with that power. If not, we need to separate her or take out that gun." She glanced to Volpina expectantly.
The fox raised an eyespot, unsure of what Ladybug wanted.
"A little element of surprise," Ladybug probed.
With a slight nod, Volpina tapped her head with the flute, washing herself in orange smoke and leaving a frowning "Chat" in front of her. "This better work," Volpina said as she walked by, heading for the room of puppets. She struggled to calm her beating heart, well aware of the danger she was walking into. This better work.
Ladybug and Queen Bee followed, set to stay by the door and act accordingly.
Queen Bee spared a nervous glance to Ladybug, very aware when her comb gave another beep. "You sure about this?" she asked.
Ladybug rocked her hand about, unsure.
"That's real reassuring," Queen muttered.
Ladybug shrugged. She couldn't promise that it would, but she knew what had to be done, and this was the best course of action. For their sake, she did hope it'd work.
Miraculously, no one looked towards her as she slipped in and joined them, watching Puppeteer play around with Animan. With no one watching her, "Chat" snuck to the back, waving his baton to make more illusions, watching them dart into the shadows, waiting to act. She saw the little trompo go by, dusting the plants they hid, just to be sure they were ready to act when it was time.
She looked up when she saw movement, seeing Ladybug crouched over her on a beam, giving her a nod. With a nervous twist in her stomach, "Chat" turned and considered her targets.
Bubbler's wand, Princess Fragrance's gun, and Sparrow's dart. Those all had to be taken out. Once she makes that move, her illusion will fall away and they'll be turning on her. She'll be the focus since Ladybug and Queen Bee would be hidden. They'll all be coming after her.
She felt sick by how scared she was.
Her with a thin flute that hardly did any damage when used like a staff. She was going to be on her own this fight as soon as she moved. The thought left her trembling, feeling overwhelmed as it came down to her.
She didn't want to do this. She couldn't do this. She couldn—
Ladybug landed down in front of her, threw her yo-yo out and lassoed Bubbler's wand, reeling it back and breaking it over her thigh.
All the puppets jerked, wide-eyed as they saw her and she dove at them, her yo-yo a pink angry blur. Behind her, the hidden plants sprouted to life, wrapping around Rogercop and Animan, pulling them out of the fight, leaving Ladybug to tangle with Sparrow.
Princess Fragrance was knocked out as trompo came zipping out, piercing through the tube to the gun, leaving her weaponless.
But as the fight went on, "Chat" still didn't move, frozen up. Not till Queen Bee landed beside her and gave her a shove, snapping, "Move!"
The illusion broke away and Volpina raced in, her ears set back on her head, nervous to join. Queen Bee, in turn, ran into a closet, closing the door behind her just in time to catch Pollen as the transformation fell away. With her dark eyes, Pollen gazed up at Chloe, looking tired.
She murmured, "That's the reason why bees should be careful about stinging… wears them out."
Chloe winced, looking away. "I… sorry. I just—"
"You did well."
Chloe gave a start, seeing Pollen smile softly at her. "Bees sting to protect their hive, while wasps sting to hurt or out of rage. Better to sting protecting than to sting just to hurt. You did good, Chloe."
Chloe trembled a little as she slid down, leaning on the door as she gave a breath. She did good, she helped, she protected. It wasn't a hopeless case for her after all.
When the ladybugs rushed by, telling her that they won, Chloe got up, letting Pollen rest in her pocket and slipped out. Her eyes immediately landed on Ali, rising up, looking like he was in a slight daze, rubbing his head. His gaze settled on her and she nodded her head away, walking off into a secluded hall. Ali followed behind, looking apologetic and sore.
"You had the bee," Chloe murmured once they were alone.
"I did, I'm sorry," he murmured, leaning on the wall, ready for the fog in his mind to clear. "It was originally given to me, but… I thought you could've used Pollen's help more."
He glanced at her, admitting, "I did take it back. I was going to tell you but…"
Chloe nodded, reaching up to remove the miraculous from her hair, only to stop when Ali set a hand on her arm. With a small smile, he told her, "You saved the day, you did it. You did well."
Ali wasn't sure of his choice, wasn't sure of his decision. Pollen had warned him that sometimes the good intentions weren't always the best ones. But, he couldn't unsee how the bee could help Chloe. She'd be helping people, she'd find friends in her comrades and guidance from Pollen. As much as he would love to join them…
He still thought she needed it more than him, to grow and help her in life. Ali glanced to Pollen, just to see what she thought. He received a neutral frown, neither encouraging or discouraging.
Ali looked to Chloe, taking in her watery smile. He decided it was the best choice then.
As Ladybug used Miraculous Ladybug, Volpina hurried away, ready to go home and get the day over with. She ignored how Ladybug glanced back at her, just set to rush away. She didn't stop till she got onto her balcony, only then did she let her transformation fall away. She ignored Trixx as the fox gazed down at her, walking by and dropping onto her couch.
"What's the matter?" Trixx wondered. "You did good today."
Lila didn't answer, glaring at the back of the couch.
Trixx sat on the back of the couch, leaning down to reassure, "Hey, it's ok. Things can be a little scary sometimes, but it takes real courage to act—"
"It wasn't supposed to be like that," Lila said, turning to glare up at the kwami. Trixx tilted her head, tail swishing behind her. "I'm supposed to be the hero, I'm supposed to wow everyone and be admired and…" But she wasn't. She choked. Twice.
Embarrassment, humiliation, frustration, and anger burned in her. And upsetness that made her sick, that made her eyes sting at the ugly feeling. Everything seemed to be going against her. The others all found out, she couldn't take the pressure, she was easily outshined and kept choking—
"Lila."
She glanced up, seeing Trixx gaze down at her. "Fear is nothing to be ashamed of. There is no true glory like facing your fears."
"Fear is everything to be ashamed of, real heroes aren't scared."
Before Trixx can respond, Lila got up and stomped away, muttering bits about Queen Bee and Ladybug showing her up, making her cowardice even worse. The kwami's ears went back as she released a soft sigh. Seemed like that no matter what, she couldn't get through to Lila.
It left the little kwami weary.
As Trixx floated after Lila, still up to try and talk to her, another found herself nervous as she walked through Paris, aware of the little kwami leaning on her neck.
Marinette had hurried out after cleansing Puppeteer and returning Manon to Nadja, rushing away as she asked questions, her earrings going off in warning. And again, off she was, with the earrings in her hold again, Tikki set on her neck, tired yet content.
She stopped when she saw Alya waiting in a nearby park, eyes to the ground, hands in her lap. Marinette came by, sitting down beside her, taking out the earrings and letting the dark jewels in her palm.
"So," Alya started, the first to break the silence between them. She glanced to Marinette, taking in Tikki sitting on her shoulder. "You were Ladybug."
"I was. I gave you the earrings," Marinette said.
Alya broke into a trembling chuckle. "It was always you."
"Yes, it was, I was… I'm so sorry. It's become a bigger mess than I thought it was, that things were better than I thought and now…" Marinette sagged, sighing. She admitted, "You were so brave and heroic and bold. When I failed I, I thought you could do it better. That I couldn't and…" Marinette turned to her, her hands open for the earrings to be taken. "I'm sorry for the trouble I caused. I liked to think, persisted to think that things were working out and… it wasn't the best choice, was it?"
Alya peered at her, taking in how small Marinette looked, then to the dark earrings in her hand. She reached out and closed up her hand, letting Marinette keep them. "It really didn't work out," Alya agreed. "That wonder and fun of being a hero quickly faded away to a chore that took over my life more than I anticipated. I got really isolated, didn't I?"
"I'm so sorry," Marinette repeated.
Alya gave Marinette's hand a squeeze. "You didn't know," she said, "and… we all could've been better." She glanced at Tikki, seeing the kwami nod in agreement, another whisper of an apology coming from her.
Alya stood, hands on her hips, her shoulders sagging. She felt both light and tired. She couldn't say if she felt happy or sad. She took a deep, shaky breath and turned to Marinette. Alya said, "Be Ladybug. I… Coccinelle is done."
Marinette stood. "Alya—"
"I'm… miraculous done. I, I should work on my civilian life more. Make some more friends so my parents stop worrying." Alya chuckled, wiping a strand of hair behind her ear. At Marinette unsteady look, Alya reassured, "I am glad I got the chance to be a hero, even though it didn't work out. I, thank you for giving me that chance."
Marinette moved to give her a hug, only to falter, unsure if she should push boundaries. Alya moved instead in, wrapping Marinette up in a hug. Marinette returned it tightly, nestling her face into her hair.
Marinette murmured, "I'm sorry it didn't work out, I really am."
Alya took another breath, this time pressing her face into Marinette's neck, feeling the corner of her eyes sting, feeling a wetness slide down her cheek.
It was done. Her time as Coccinelle was done.
As Alya breathed shakily, warm tears sliding down her cheeks; Marinette held tight, her own lip trembling as she pressed back.
Tikki wiggled between them, patting them both while she leaned on Alya, wishing she had done better instead of being so against her.
For a moment, all three stood, just letting the emotions swirl and settle around them, letting the reality settle upon them.
Coccinelle was done, and Ladybug was back again.
For those that want to see my take on LB's new design, you can see it on my tumblr page, should pop up when you search Lucky Fox Paradox.