Chapter 21: Now You See Me, Now You Don't
If there was a place in Paris that was the centre of attentions that night, that was La Defense. Built in 1958, it was known for being the largest purpose-built business district in Europe. It was named after the iconic statue La Défense de Paris by Louis-Ernest Barrias, to commemorate the soldiers who defended Paris during the Franco-Prussian War. The whole district was built to be a second heart of the city of Paris, and its most famous landmark was none other than the Grand Arche de la Défense, also known as the Grand Arche.
From the top of it, Madame Romani waited impatiently for midnight to come. She had chosen the place in question because of how theatrical she thought the building and its square looked. To those who looked at it, it looked like it had been built to stand out of everything else surrounding it. To her, it was like the most important piece in the centre of a stage. Knowing that there would be an audience to see what was going to happen, that was indeed perfect place for what she knew, was going to be the place where the Miraculous Team would fall, once and for all.
Though they had been warned by the gypsy witch to stay away from the Grand Arche, the police and the military surrounded the square, not only to keep any civilians from entering it, but also to try and negotiate the release of the child Romani had as a hostage. The various news channels tried to catch a glimpse of the two of them, but their cameras were not powerful enough to get a distinctive shot of the child, who was still inside the cage she appeared on, when the gypsy projected herself in the sky of Paris. Some of those channels tried to get their choppers in the air, but the military forbid them. With numerous people gathering behind the blockade set by the police, to see how that would end, they decided to send a negotiator to talk to villainess, in an attempt to get her to release the hostage. Seeing the negotiator below, approaching the Grand Arche, Romani decided that he had gone far enough, and so used her powers to create a barrier of fire, around the Grand Arche, preventing him from going any further.
"These idiots really can't take a hint." -Madame Romani thought to herself. –"When I said that I didn't want them near this place, I meant it!"
Snapping her fingers, the barrier grew in height, until it was too high for anyone to attempt to cross it. Though it was only an illusion, none of them knew it was just a mere illusion. To anyone looking at it, the whole wall of fire was real. She had made sure to create it to emit the same kind of heat a fire of those proportions would emanate. Plus, anyone who would
"There, this will keep them from coming any near… and to make sure that those snipers up on those buildings can see me, let me make myself and that little brat invisible to their eyes." -she thought to herself, using her powers once again. Now, only people from the ground could see her and Manon, if they approached one of the buildings ledges. To the snipers up on the surrounding buildings rooftops, they were invisible. –"Speaking of which, let's see if the little pest is still asleep."
When she approached the cage, to her surprise, Manon was still asleep. All the commotion that was going on did not wake her up. Madame Romani was impressed with herself and her abilities. She had hypnotized her in such a way, that a train could pass near her, she would most likely not wake up. Looking at the time on a giant clock that was being projected on the front of one of the surrounding buildings, she saw that it was nearly midnight.
"It's almost time." -Madame Romani said, as she heard someone calling her name. –"Now, what?!"
Turned out, one of the commanding officers was using a powerful loudspeaker to communicate with her. Since they could not approach the building, though the fireman kept trying to extinguish the wall of fire around it, without any success, they felt that was the only way they were going to be able to talk to her.
"What is it?!" -Madame Romani projected her voice, using her powers to make everyone in the square hear her.
"Miss, please, release the child. There's no reason for her to be there. You already showed us that our weapons aren't a match to your… abilities. The Mayor has given us orders to grant you anything you want." -the commanding officer told her. Of course, nothing he said was true. He had orders to rescue the child, no matter what, and he was going to do it, even if that meant striking a deal with Madame Romani, just so to betray her later.
"The only thing I want is Ladybug and the rest of her team, here, in front of me!" -Madame Romani exclaimed. She knew what the police game was, and not for a second she was going to believe in a single word they would tell her. –"And as for the child, I'm keeping the pest around me. I want to make sure Ladybug comes!" -she exclaimed. –"oh, and before you, or the other army guys decide to send one of the helicopters to try and get me and rescue the kid, here's what will happen to them."
Clapping her hands, she created yet another illusion right in front of people's eyes. This time, it was a creature similar to a hydra that began to attack everyone that was near it. The military quickly fired against it, only to see that it did not affect it. The bullets pierced its skin, but did nothing else. Roaring, the creature charged against the
"The same will happen to them. I'll conjure a creature that will destroy the helicopters and send them flying through the air, until they crash against something, or someone, and erupt into a giant fire ball!" -Romani yelled at them. –"For your own good, stay where you are and don't move a muscle!" -she exclaimed, as she turned her back on them, disappearing from the ledge.
The gypsy believed that she had made her point, when she conjured that creature. Not only did she managed to create chaos and confusion, by destroying the improvised command centre, but she also made a point that she was not in a mood for silly games. The only thing she wanted was for ladybug to show up and surrender her miraculous to her, along with the miraculouses of the rest of her team. Once she had them, she would take them to Hawk Moth, so he could destroy them himself. She could do that herself, but, she felt the honour should befall the future ruler of the world, her master.
"Where is she? Don't tell me she chickened out?" -Madame Romani thought to herself. –"If she did, I might have to hurt the kid to send her a message."
"Quite the show you are putting on. A little too flamboyant for my taste, though." -a voice was heard inside Madame Romani's head. It was Hawk Moth, communicating with her through telepathy.
"M-Master…" -she stuttered at the sound of Hawk Moth's voice.
"I'm watching you right now… where are Ladybug and the rest of those infernal brats?" -Hawk Moth asked her with a neutral, yet still scary voice. –"You promised me their miraculouses… so where are they?"
"I-It's just a matter of time, master. They will come. Ladybug wouldn't dare to leave this little girl I kidnapped be hurt by me." -Madame Romani told him.
"You better, because if you fail me… you know what will happen to you." -Hawk Moth warned her, with a menacing voice.
"I won't fail you, I promise." -the gypsy said, as she broke contact with Hawk Moth. –"Those infernal brats better show up quickly, or I will have to do something a little more drastic, to force them to show up." -she said.
"Ladybug will save me!" -a voice was heard. It was Manon who had awakened. –"You heard me, you bad lady! Ladybug will save me and she will teach you a lesson!" -she said. Manon was still afraid and did not know where she was, but she had faith that Ladybug would come to her rescue.
"Oh, you're awake, you little pest… Well, guess what? I hope that Ladybug comes to your rescue, so she and I can have a little chit-chat." -Romani smiled evilly. –"Let me ask you something… do you like heights?"
The way she asked Manon that question, made the little girl shiver like a leaf. Though young, Manon knew that whatever she answered, she was not going to like what Madame Romani had planned for her.
"N-No…" -Manon answered her.
"Well, too bad, because it's nearly midnight and that super-zero and her friends hasn't showed up. I guess, I'll have to force them to come, and you're going to help me." -Madame Romani lifted the cage where Manon was, using her powers to make it hover in the air. Seeing herself hovering in the ait, Manon screamed for help again. –"Go ahead, scream all you want. The more, the merrier. I want that red and black spandex-wearing girl to hear you crying for help." -she smiled wickedly.
Brining the cage alongside her, Madame Romani approached the building's ledge. Taking a moment, she watched as the firemen kept trying to put out the fire, as well as the police's SWAT Team, who had decided to join the party. Smirking, she saw just how everyone who had gathered there, waited to see what she was going to do next. She could not help but to feel like the belle of the ball, with all eyes on her. It was amazing how every time Hawk Moth, Reptile, herself or one of the various akumas created by Hawk Moth's Akuma butterflies, challenged the Miraculous Team, people came running like crazy to see it happening. They were like moths drawn to a flame, waiting to get burned by it. Or better yet, they were like sheep… mindless sheep, in need of a strong shepherd, which was what her master was.
"Well, since Ladybug has failed to show up, I guess I'll have to force her to come." -the gypsy smirked, as she watched the clock striking midnight. –"Ladybug! It's midnight and I don't see you or your companions anywhere! And since you didn't show up, I should just drop this cage with the kid in it!" -she projected her voice into the air, laughing maniacally, as she made the cage fall a couple of feet downward, before bringing it back up. Manon, who was already scared, was now terrified and had begun to cry.
The people down on the ground did not dare to take their eyes off her, afraid they would miss a single detail of what she was doing. Seeing they could not reason with her and that she was willing to kill an innocent just for the sake of it, the commander in charge of the operations decided they would have to find another way to stop her. But before he could give any orders, Romani projected her voice once again, to send a message to Ladybug, who she hoped, was hearing.
"Listen up, you, teenage brat! I'm going to count to five, and if you don't show up, they're going to need a spatula to remove your biggest fan from the ground!" -Madame Romani warned.
"N-NO! D-on't d-rop m-me!" -Manon begged her.
"Oh, quiet you cry-baby!" -Madame Romani snapped at Manon, who was getting more terrified with each passing minute. When the gypsy screamed at her, Manon cried even harder than before, tears rolling down her face, as she wished that was all a bad dream, and wishing her mom was there. –"Let's start the counting! ONE… TWO… THREE… FOUR…"
The gypsy was about to say "five", when suddenly, the sky lit up with a flurry of colourful rockets. Where they had come from, no one knew, but the fact was that they prevented Madame Romani from dropping the cage with Manon in it. Her eyes scouted the area, looking for where those rockets had come from. And then, she saw it. Coming out of the crowd, were Ladybug and the rest of the Miraculous Team. The rockets had been Panda Rouge's doing, who wanted to signal their arrival, and turned out to save Manon from falling to her doom. The people who saw them leap from the audience, asked themselves how they had gotten there, without being seen. Madame Romani also asked herself how they did that. Still, it did not matter; they had come. Snapping her fingers, she opened a gap in the flaming wall surrounding the Grand Arche, inviting them to come closer. Trading looks, they decided to accept the invitation, knowing that it was a trap.
The police officers that were closer to them, asked if they needed help, but they did not answer back. Instead, they slowly turned their heads back to them and winked at them, while giving a thumb's up, as if they were saying, "Trust us." The whole scene looked like something taken from Terminator 2: Judgement Day. As they walked towards the flaming wall, people behind the grids snapped photos of the heroes, while cheering for them. When the last member of the team crossed the gap, this one disappeared, leaving everyone to wonder, what would happen next.
Smirking, Madame Romani welcomed them with the most sinister smile they had ever seen in their whole lives.
"So, you came…"
"Let the kid go, Romani! This is between you and us!" -Ladybug yelled at her. She was not in the mood for games.
"Oh, I'll let her go… I'll let her go, so she becomes a bloody smudge on the pavement, if you don't give me what I want!" -the gypsy warned them
"Let the kid go, and we'll give you our miraculouses!" -Carapace yelled.
"First, your miraculouses, then I'll let the kid go." -Madame Romani told them, as she made the cage wobble in the air. She could see in their eyes that they wanted to jump on her and teach her a lesson, but would not dare to do it, because of Manon. They were not going to risk her safety.
"No deal! First the hostage, then the miraculouses!" -Flamingo exclaimed. There was no way they were going to agree to that. Not when Romani was known for being a backstabbing wench.
"I'm not stupid, kid! If I give you the brat now, you'll just attack me with your powers, instead of surrendering your miraculouses." -Madame Romani said. They were now in an impasse.
"And what insurances do we have that if we give you our miraculouses, you'll give us the kid, huh?" -Louve Grise asked her. She, just like the rest of the others, did not trust a word that came out of her mouth. –"Or better yet, what insurances do we have that when we give you the miraculouses, you don't blow us into tiny little bits, and then do the same thing with the kid, huh?!"
"I guess we'll just have to trust each other, then." -the gypsy woman smirked. Her smirk looked like the one from the Evil Witch from the West.
"Trust you?! I wouldn't trust you a toothpick, let alone something else!" -Grizzly Bear said.
"Yeah, that's not going to happen, you hear us?!" -Chat Noir exclaimed, as he looked the villainess in the eyes.
"I'm starting to get impatient… do you really want me to drop this kid?" -Madame Romani kept menacing them.
"Not before you give us the kid!" -Panda Rouge said.
"Enough!" -Ladybug exclaimed. –"This is not getting us anywhere, and the kid there is scared to death. I have a deal for you." -she said, which made the others look her in the eyes with the expression "This is not part of the plan."
"Really? What kind of deal?" -Madame Romani asked, rising her eyebrow in suspicion.
"I'm not talking to you… I'm addressing your boss, Hawk Moth. I know he's watching. Come down here and let me talk to him. Do that and I'll tell him what this deal is all about."
Before Madame Romani could answer, she felt her body being controlled by something, other than her own will. It was Hawk Moth's doing, he had taken control of her body. Though she could still think for herself and her thoughts were her own, she could also see her master's thoughts in her mind. She could see that he was interested to hear what Ladybug had to tell him, but at the same time, he was suspicious. Still, he was going to hear her out. Controlling the gypsy's body, he made her float to the ground, along with the cage where Manon was. Once she had touched the ground, Hawk Moth spoke.
"Good evening, Ladybug. You're right, I have been watching and hearing everything that has been going on." -Hawk Moth voice came out of Madame Romani's mouth. –"I admit that Madame Romani's way to get you and your friends here is a little too flamboyant and showy for my taste, but I can't argue about the results." -he said, as an smirk appeared on Romani's face. –"Now, you were saying you had a deal to propose. What kind of a deal is that one?"
"Let the kid go, and I'll join you." -Ladybug told him with a serious voice.
"What?! You've got to be kidding to be kidding us!" -Rena Rogue exclaimed, shocked with what her friend had just said.
"This was not part of the plan!" -Queen Bee said. –"Are you insane?! You can't work for that psycho!"
"No, I'm not! It's my fault she's here. It's because she's a fan of mine. If she wasn't my number one fan, she wouldn't be in this mess." -Ladybug said. –"And you and the rest will just have to accept my decision, because I'm your leader, you hear me?!" -she snapped at Queen Bee.
There was silence from the remaining Miraculous members, who did not say a single word, as Ladybug turned to face the Hawk Moth-possessed Romani.
"Like I said, the deal is simple. You let the kid go and I'll join you. I will do whatever you want… my powers will be at your command, to do as you please." -Ladybug said with an incredibly serious voice.
"Interesting… are you really willing to sacrifice your freedom, because of this little girl?" -Hawk Moth asked her.
"Like I said, if she wasn't a fan of mine, she wouldn't be in this mess." -Ladybug told him. –"I know that me offering my powers and myself to your cause isn't the same thing as having all the miraculouses, so you can destroy them, but… if you gave back Manon
"NO, LADYBUG, NO!" -Manon exclaimed. –"She's mean, you can't let her win!" -the little girl told her.
"It's okay, Manon. As long as my number one fan is alright, nothing else matters." -Ladybug smiled tenderly at her.
Hawk Moth thought about what the heroine said, and though he felt that all of that could just be a ruse to get the kid to safety, he decided it was worth the shot. If she was telling the truth, she would serve him and then get the miraculouses from her friends, whether she wanted, or not. But, if all of that was nothing more than a trick, he was sure that Madame Romani would be able to take care of her, and the others. Smirking, he said:
"Very well, I accept the bargain."
"Don't do that!" -Rena Rogue exclaimed
"I've got no choice." -Ladybug looked Romani in the eyes, knowing she was actually staring Hawk Moth directly in the eyes, -"Let go of her, then."
"First, kneel and give me your miraculous… as a sign of trust." -Hawk Moth asked her.
When Hawk Moth said that, the rest of the team's hearts skipped a beat. If Ladybug did that, he would know how she looks like in her civilian form. Plus, he would have in his possession her miraculous. If she handed it to him, there would be nothing to stop him from just destroying it in front of everyone, before attacking them and taking their miraculouses as well. Ladybug kneeled, and bowed her head, as her hands reached for her earlobes, gently touching her earrings. As she did that, she could not help but to feel her heart pound harder inside her chest, just like when she thought about Adrien. Only this time, her heart was pounding harder, fuelled by fear, instead of love. Since she was taking a little longer that she was supposed to, Hawk Moth
"Hurry up… do it, and the kid goes free." -he said, as Manon kept yelling to Ladybug, telling her not to do it.
"Very well… as a sign of trust" -Ladybug said, as her lips formed a smirk –"NOW!" -she exclaimed.
Before the villain understood what was really happening, something hard stroke Madame Romani in the back of her head, breaking the connection between her and Hawk Moth. It had been Chat Noir's staff, as he appeared behind her. As she turned around, one by one, every member of the Miraculous Team appeared out of the blue, as the ones behind Ladybug disappeared. Turned out, they were just copies of the real ones, illusions created by Rena Rogue. It all had been part of the team's plan to get near Madame Romani and snatch Manon from her claws. Once the little girl was safe, there would be nothing preventing them from teaching some manners to the psycho gypsy.
(Flashback)
One second they were in the Garden of the Ancients, the other they were on top of one of the buildings of the Avenue Charles de Gaulle, with the Grand Arche on their back. That was where the battle would take place, and where, with some luck, they would save Manon and bring her home, safe and sound. The wind was blowing from the north, and everyone could not help but to shiver a little.
"So, let's recap the plan once more, so there's no chance of error." -Ladybug said.
"Alright. We'll go in. Once we arrive, I'll create doubles of all of us, with you being the exception, girl." -Rena Rogue pointed to Ladybug. –"And then, they will follow you, while we follow after you, using Doe's invisibility power to conceal all of us." -she said. Master Fu had told them that Forest Doe's ability to turn herself invisible could also extend itself to those nearby, if she desired it, but only for a few minutes. And they were going to make use of said power to the fullest.
"And then, you tell Romani that you want to make a deal, but that you will only talk to Hawk Moth." -Panda Rouge said.
"Once he possesses Madame Romani, as we are all expecting he will, to talk to you, you will tell him that you are willing to join him, if Manon's released." -Chat Noir said. –"And once you see an opening, you give us the signal and I whack that witch in the head!" -he chuckled, already imagining the whole thing in his head.
"And finally, the one that is closer to Manon, grabs her, as the rest of us take care of that gypsy witch." -Queen Bee said.
"It couldn't be easier." -Dragonfly giggled. –"Both Madame Romani and Hawk Moth are in for a surprise." -she laughed.
"Yeah, but we need to keep our heads in the game, and most of all, we need to be careful. Romani won't go down without a fight." -Flamingo stated.
"I know that. But we won't go down without a fight either." -Ladybug smiled to her friends. –"Before we go, thank you guys. Thanks for making me see that all of this was not my fault, but most importantly, for being here for me and for showing me that there is always a solution, if we keep our heads cool." -she told them.
"It was nothing." -Arachnid said.
"It's our job to always be there for our talented leader, namely you." -Antelope chuckled.
"Oh, come on, as if you needed to thank us for being there for you, bugaboo." -Chat Noir joked, calling her one of the numerous affectionate names he came up for her.
"Don't call me bugaboo, Chat. I don't like it." -Ladybug giggled, blushing lightly. The truth was she loved it when he called her that, but she was not going to tell him that. Sighing, she then put on her fighting face and said –"Let's do this! Let's save Manon, and teach that gypsy witch the meaning of the word "pain" in all its extent."
(End of Flashback)
"Grab her!" –Ladybug exclaimed, pointing to Manon's cage, as she swung her yoyo in the air.
"You got it!" -Carapace said, as he jumped and grabbed the cage with both his arms, landing safely a few feet ahead. With no time for pleasantries he used his tonfas to break the cage open. –"Don't' worry, kid, the good guys are here. We're going to get you out of here and take you home, in no time!" -he said, always smiling. –"Hey, Louve! Could you help me out by freezing this cage?!"
"Coming right up!" -Louve Grise exclaimed, as she somersaulted over Arachnid and made her way to where Carapace was.
"You're going to regret this, you brats!" -Madame Romani said, as she got back on her feet. The back of her head still stinging with pain from the blow Chat had given her with his staff.
"You're the one who's going to regret having kidnapped that innocent child, you witch!" -Ladybug exclaimed, as she threw her yo-yo at Romani's face, missing it by mere inches.
"You fell for our plan, you crazy witch!" -Corbeau Noire exclaimed, as she used her powers to control the shadows that surrounded them. She was going to use them to wrap the gypsy woman like a mummy, and suffocate her, until she passed out from the lack of oxygen.
"Now, we're going to show you what happens when you mess with one of our fans!" -Dragonfly said, as she cracked her knuckles in anticipation.
"We're going to teach you never to kidnap innocent little kids again, you monster!" -Forest Doe said, as she pulled out an arrow, placing it against her bow and pointed it to Romani's head. At the same time, Louve Grise and Carapace managed to break the cage, and spring Manon free.
Hearing those warnings coming from the kids, Madame Romani began to laugh uncontrollably. The heroes did not know why she was laughing like that. Not only she was outnumbered, but she was about to get her butt kicked, by all of them.
"Sorry to disappoint you, but you are the ones who fell right into my trap, you blasted kids!" -Madame Romani laughed maniacally. Clapping her hands, another of her illusions appeared out of the blue. This time it was lightnings, which blinded the heroes, giving her time to spring out her trap.
Springing from the ground, several dark tentacles wrapped themselves around the heroes, grabbing them either by the waist, or by the arms or legs. They tried to break free, but the more they tried, the tighter those things became, strangling their muscles. Those who had those things wrapped around their chest, struggled to breath. With all of them captured, Madame Romani snapped her fingers, and one tentacle from each of them sprang towards her, wrapping themselves until they formed a sort of rope, which she caught with both her hands, holding it steadily.
"Now, comes the fun part! Let's see what really scares you." -Madame Romani laughed.
Wrote this one in almost record time. I'm really proud of myself with this one, because it came out even better than I expected. Like I said, this is going to be a battle different from the others... and it's not going to be an easy one. Still, I bet that you were really thinking that I was going to write Ladybug handing her earrings to Hawk Moth, didn't you? Fooled you for a couple of seconds, didn't I? xD Truth be told, I would never do that... mostly because I make a stand, by stating that whatever hero I'm writing about, I'll never let them surrender like that. In the words of my OCs "I don't make deal with scum", and the same thing goes for the Miraculous Team... they'll never make a deal with Hawk Moth, not on my watch.
You know what? Season 2 is almost here... I'm actually lukcy, because Portugal is going to be the second country in the world to debut season 2 (the first one is going to be Spain in just a couple of hours. We're going to have to wait until Monday to watch the first episode), and that means, new adventures and new villains! I'm actually thankful, because I want to know more about the Collector and Le Paon, so I can insert them in my stories (still don't know when that will happen, but I have to lay down the way for that to happen, eventually). Can't wait for Monday... until then, I'll try to write another chapter. :)