I wanted to finish off the Reverser arc before beginning work on the final arc. Stay tuned at the bottom for the final arc reveal!
Queen Bee launched herself across the sky. She wanted to beat the group to the Eiffel Tower. This mission was going to be tough. Not only was her father under an akuma's control, but the guy she was developing feelings for was on the villain's hit list! As Bee grumbled to herself, she felt a warmth radiating from her Miraculous.
Pollen was right- focus on the task at hand. Dwell on emotions later. A bright glimmer from the sky caught her attention.
"Stars?" The girl muttered. Not stars! The dumpsters her father were controlling were getting closer! "I need to hurry!" Queen Bee threw her spinning top, navigating behind the Eiffel Tower as to not be seen by Reverser. She crouched low on a higher platform.
She squinted at the bright light that flashed at the base of the Tower. Peering over the edge of the platform provided the girl with a view of her friends. She saw a boy with bright red hair holding a black and red spotted object.
"Ladybug must have used her Lucky Charm." Bee muttered.
"Reverser! We're over here!" Queen Bee could see Ladybug using a megaphone to project her voice. She flattened herself onto the platform as to not be seen.
"I'll only reverse the mayor back if you give me Chat Noir AND Nathaniel!"
"Please don't do it, LB… I know that you've got some sort of plan!" Chloe was never one to whimper, but her emotions were beginning to get the better of her. Slapping both sides of her face, Queen Bee attempted to get her focus back. Whatever Ladybug had planned, it was going to happen soon. She needed to be ready.
"Go Chat Noir!"
Snapping her head up, Bee was taken aback as she witnessed a clearly terrified super-cat run off the side of the Eiffel Tower, connected to a homemade kite. Reverser dodged the movement, pulling his arm back to throw the paper airplane at a vulnerable Nathaniel. Queen Bee dropped next to the boy. She grabbed his hand.
"Time to go, Kurtzberg!" The blonde shouted.
"Queen Bee?"
"Yes, it's me. I'm here to save you. Would you mind not talking while I'm trying to aim?"
"Aim whaaaAAA!" Nathaniel clung to the girl as she flung them off the edge of the Eiffel Tower.
Only at the last second did her spinning top catch and stop their downward protectory. The two bounced as the cable held their weight. Queen Bee set them down behind the Visitor's Center, away from the action.
"Wow! Queen Bee! You rescued me!" Nathaniel's legs were still shaking as he released his savior. "I didn't think Ladybug had time to call for backup." Bee checked their surroundings, hearing Chat Noir's terrified scream of "CATACLYSM!" around the corner.
"Um, well…" She racked her brain for an excuse. "I heard about it over the news. It seemed serious and I hadn't heard from Ladybug, so I hightailed it over here in case she needed back up. I saw you with Reverser and Chat Noir when I arrived on scene."
"TIME TO DE-EVILIZE!" Pink and red butterflies surrounded the base of the Eiffel Tower, dispersing into the city where they were needed.
Queen Bee sighed. It was finally over. "Looks like you're safe, Kurtzberg. Stay safe." She was about to launch herself away from the scene when Nathaniel grabbed her arm.
"Wait! I-I doubt you've seen any of my artwork on the Miraculous Heroes, but you're the only one I don't have good reference photos for. Even Carapace let me take some of him during his first days. I've noticed that… you tend to keep to yourself." The girl glanced to hand on her arm. Nathaniel hurriedly removed it. "Would you mind if I took some quick photos?"
Bee checked her watch. "Why not. Just a few, though."
For several minutes, Nathaniel directed her into different poses at different angles. Luckily, he still had his phone on him to take pictures with. The sun had nearly set when the pair called it quits. Queen Bee queued up spinning top.
"I had better see those new art pieces on Twitter, Kurtzberg." She winked and was whisked away.
Nathaniel smiled and shook his head as he walked around the tower to join Ladybug and the others. "You will… Chloe."
xXx
The next week, the art room was a buzz with excitement. Nathaniel and Marc were proudly displaying their new comic book. It featured the entire Miraculous Squad, with Queen Bee and Mighty Illustrator front and center in the debut issue.
"Guys, this looks AMAZING!" Marinette flipped through the pages, marveling at how professional it looked.
Chloe smiled at her boyfriend, squeezing his arm. "Those photos of Queen Bee you showed me really helped make her look as realistic as the others." Nathaniel patted her hand. He reached for another comic laying on the table.
"I don't know if you guys have heard, but Marc's dad is a printer and helped us mass produce the book! One of the local newsstands saw us reading it and wants to pick it up for Heroes Day next week." Everyone applauded. Marinette nudged Marc.
"What did I tell you about what would happen when you found like-minded people?" The boy blushed and ducked his head.
"I admit that I needed that push to talk to Nath, Marinette. Thanks for that. However, I may be more direct in my approach next time."
It was Marinette's turn to blush as the rest of the class laughed. It was a perfect moment.
Too bad it wouldn't last…
Ooooooh! So begins the end...
The final arc will be... Project Catalyst! It will debut in February, so get hyped and ready! Things will never be the same again...
Until next time, STAY CREATIVE!