Logline: After a winter season of peace for Marinette and friends, Papillon makes his grand return when he akumatizes dragon-dance performers into Dragonne during the Chinese festival.
Featuring
Marinette as Armadilla
Adrien as Mr. Bug
Seline as Tiger Snake
Gérard as Lion Dog
Paris, France had been experiencing an entirely new forecast the past couple of months—it was a chilly winter of fun and excitement as the citizens had been free of any akuma attacks! It was the most normal the city had been in a while.
As days, weeks, and soon months rolled by, Paris was finally resembling what it was before Papillon came to disrupt the peace. At least, that's what our heroine, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, thought…
Marinette was dressed in her pajamas when she found herself in a mysterious lair. She sidled up against a wall, watching the domineering silhouette of Papillon facing the butterfly-shaped window.
"Ladybug and her cohorts can't fool me any longer," said Papillon to himself.
His voice made Marinette's heart drop. It was now when she realized she was in the lair of her archnemesis. Luckily, the villain hadn't spotted her yet. Marinette took cover inside the hole in the floor that held the lair's elevator, hiding in the shadows for fear of being seen.
"It seems she goes wherever I go," said Papillon. "She thinks that she's got the upper hand, her and all her little friends, but she's got it all wrong! I will get my revenge, and I will see that she never has the chance to ruin my plans ever again!"
"They will not be able to deny you," said Mayura, stepping up to stand beside Papillon. "You will be the most feared person in France by the time we're through with these vermin."
Marinette's heart kept pounding faster and faster as she sensed the unrelenting rage that Papillon was feeling right now.
"Yes, Mayura," said Papillon. "I will dispose of Paris' mightiest heroes, even if I have to destroy all of France to do it!"
Marinette woke up wearing the same pajamas she wore in the dream, breathing heavily like she just ran a marathon.
"Marinette," said Tikki, still half-asleep. "Is something wrong?"
"Oh, no," lied Marinette. "It was just a bad dream."
Marinette tried her best to close her eyes but she was completely incapable of falling asleep after what she just experienced. When morning finally arrived, Marinette got ready and headed over to the stylish yet subdued Marc residence.
Now that Marinette knew that Seline, Timothée, and Gérard were Tigresse Blanche, Léopard, and Lion, they all made an effort to regularly get together off the battlefield to become closer. Timothée and Gérard came from the fridge with four pints of ice cream in their arms, handing some over to Seline and Marinette.
"Ice cream at 10am?" asked Marinette. "You guys are a bad influence."
"We know," said Timothée with a mischievous smile.
"You-know-who hasn't caused trouble in a month," said Gérard. "Maybe he… retired?"
"I don't think so," said Marinette. "Not after that huge announcement in Tokyo. I think he's been waiting to make his perfect comeback and today might be that day."
"Does that have anything to do with that dream you've been meaning to tell us about?" said Timothée.
"That's right," said Marinette. "In my dream, I was hiding in Papillon's lair, and I overheard him declare that he would get his revenge no matter what. Even if it meant destroying all of France or even… destroying us."
An uncomfortable silence followed after this. Seline tried her best to keep her cool, turning the living room TV on and browsing through YouTube.
"You know what?" said Seline. "Today is the Chinese festival. After we talk with Master Fu, we should just relax and enjoy ourselves."
"This Chinese festival is going to be so much fun!" said Marinette, taking the hint she should drop the doom mongering. "Living in France means I'm always surrounded by my father's culture. I don't get many opportunities to take part in my mother's culture."
"Gonna have to sit this one out," said Timothée. "I'm hanging out with the boys today."
"Don't you have to be a boy to hang out with them though?" teased Seline.
Timothée made a pouty face.
"Do you see what I have to deal with, Marinette?" asked Timothée, earning laughter from the others.
Marinette felt a genuine warmth in her heart. It felt so freeing to be herself with friends without having to hide her life as a superhero.
The Agreste mansion was as pristine as always, glowing in the warm sunlight. It was a little rowdier than usual, though.
Adrien, Nino and Timothée were playing a video game in Adrien's room. The video game characters brawled relentlessly.
"Stop launching me!" shouted Timothée.
"That's not how the game works," said Nino. "If you don't wanna get launched, then just do better."
Timothée grunted, making Adrien and Nino laugh.
"Did you hear about the Chinese festival that's happening today?" asked Nino. "Are either of you gonna go?"
"No," said Timothée. "We can just stay in. I need a break from socializing. Not to mention, would Monsieur Agreste even allow you to go, Adrien?"
Adrien mulled this over. His father, Gabriel Agreste, was acting moodier than usual. Something was making him feel incredibly distant.
"Maybe," said Adrien, letting the idea drag. "Maybe I'll go ask him."
Adrien walked out of the room. Timothée looked to Nino, displeased with the idea of going out today. Adrien caught up to his father while he was walking down a hallway.
"What is it, Adrien?" asked Gabriel.
"I was wondering if I could go to the Chinese festival today," said Adrien. He tried to ignore the fact that this conversation was already off to a bad start.
"No," said Gabriel tersely. "You already know you can't."
"But father," protested Adrien. "Everyone is going. Think of it as extra credit for my Mandarin lessons."
"That's a charming way of putting it," said Gabriel condescendingly. "Yet it's insufficient. I forbid you from going to that festival. You are to stay here and focus on your studies."
Gabriel's words cut Adrien with their biting coldness. Adrien noticed there had been a change in his father's demeanor in the past few months, and it wasn't for the better. He went back to his room with a somber face, letting the other guys know immediately that his father declined.
"That's too bad, dude," said Nino.
"But," said Adrien with a gleam in his eye. "He didn't forbid me from sneaking out."
"Why do we always go on adventures?" whined Timothée.
Meanwhile in Master Fu's massage parlor, Marinette took the afternoon to visit Master Fu with Seline and Gérard accompanying her.
"Today's the day, Master Fu," said Marinette gravely. "I can feel it."
"She's just imagining things," said Seline. "Right? There haven't been any akuma sightings in a long time, so maybe Papillon gave up?"
"I wouldn't be so quick to doubt Marinette's intuition," said Master Fu, making Seline even more uneasy. "The heart can feel what the mind can't see."
Master Fu placed the Miracle box on a table where they could all see its contents. Several different ideas were floating through Marinette's mind, each one sounding more ludicrous than the next.
"Maybe we should switch Miraculouses?" asked Marinette.
"Perhaps," replied Master Fu, hand on his chin. "Maybe you could take as many as you think would help you."
Marinette rummaged through the Miracle box. Similar to how she figures out how to use her Lucky Charm, she thought about the possible needs of each Miraculous. She took the ones that she knew for sure would help.
"What's the plan, exactly?" asked Gérard.
"The plan is to confuse Papillon," explained Marinette. "If he thinks Ladybug is no longer around, it might make him less vengeful and out for destruction."
Seline and Gérard looked at each other nervously, and then to Master Fu who just shrugged—Marinette could be onto something.
"I'm not too sure about this," said Seline.
"It makes sense in my head," said Marinette, clearly frustrated and trying to find a way to make the situation better. "If he thinks there are a bunch of new superheroes around, he could think of a different approach than putting out these 'titans' he was talking about."
"Whatever you say, leader," said Gérard.
Marinette smiled warmly at that, feeling like she was part of a united front for the first time in a while.
"All right, then," said Marinette. "I got the Armadillo Miraculous for myself, the Snake Miraculous for Seline, and the Dog Miraculous for you, Gérard."
"Do we just transform into the Miraculous you gave us then?" said Seline, turning to Master Fu for guidance.
"You may also fuse your current Miraculous so that you can have even more abilities," said Master Fu. "That might be a better idea if the supervillain that presents itself is particularly dangerous."
Marinette, Seline and Gérard placed their Miraculouses in inconspicuous places so as to not raise any suspicion.
"All right, then," said Marinette. "Let's go to the Chinese festival."
"And let's hope beyond all hope the only thing we have to fight is a tummy ache from all the food we're gonna eat," joked Gérard.
Marinette and Seline giggled. Master Fu also smiled.
"See you later, Master Fu," said Marinette, leading Seline and Gérard towards the exit.
"I hope you all have fun," said Master Fu.
They bid farewell to Master Fu. The door chimed as the three of them made their way out of the parlor. Master Fu held his cup of tea when he felt a breeze move the tea leaves in his cup. He interpreted it and what the leaves foretold worried him.
There was a beautiful festival in full swing at the nearby park. Marinette had brought her parents, Tom and Sabine, along with Alya, Seline, and Gérard.
There was a group of synchronised drummers playing red Chinese style drums. It felt like the ground underneath them was shaking to the beat. The drummers all moved as one fluid entity.
"Mom, look!" said Marinette.
A group of dancers in a shared dragon costume undulated through the crowd.
"Remember when you used to do that?" asked Tom of his wife.
"Oh, memories," sighed Sabine. "I used to be a dragon dancer when I was young."
"Really?" said Marinette. "That's so cool!"
"I was the head," said Sabine proudly. "I wouldn't settle for less."
They continued walking and found a street vendor.
"Moon dumplings!" said Alya.
"My mother told me a story about moon dumplings when I was a child," said Sabine. "It was about a peasant farm girl and a rich prince in ancient China. When the prince was on his travels, he spotted a farm girl in a rice paddy field and they fell in love at first sight."
Marinette found herself daydreaming about the story. She imagined herself as the farm girl and Adrien as the prince, naturally.
"But they couldn't marry," said Sabine. "The prince's family arranged for him to marry the princess of a distant land, so the farm girl and the prince sent each other moon dumplings with messages of love hidden inside."
Marinette imagined opening a moon dumpling and reading the little letter hidden inside.
"I think about you everyday," read the letter. "It pains me to be away from you. I wish I could hold you in my arms and never let go."
Marinette imagined holding the letter close to her heart. Sabine continued telling the story.
"At the prince and princess' wedding," she said. "The entire kingdom was in attendance, but the prince stopped the procession right before saying, 'I do.' He declared his love for the farm girl and married her instead. This angered his family, who disowned him, making him a pauper, but he didn't care. They lived the rest of their days as a farm couple, had children and lived happily ever after."
"What?" said Seline, snapping Marinette out of her little daydream. "He gave up his riches for a farm girl? I would've kept the money."
"But that's what true love is about," said Marinette. "Sacrificing what you want for the person you love."
"Love?" said Adrien. "What are you guys talking about?"
Adrien was standing right behind Marinette. He had probably seen her zoning out when she was imagining the story. Her cheeks turned red immediately.
"Oh, you know!" said Marinette. "We were just talking about a Chinese love story."
"Are those moon dumplings?" said Adrien. "I've never had those before."
Adrien walked up to the food truck.
"I'd like two, please," said Adrien, handing one to Marinette. "Here, one for you and one for me."
Seeing Adrien holding out the moon dumpling to her made Marinette see him as the ancient Chinese prince. The thought of him being a prince who loved her despite the odds made Marinette lightheaded.
"Oh, no, I couldn't!" said Marinette.
She backed away from Adrien, bumping hard into one of the dragon dancers. This caused a domino effect of dancers falling until the entire dragon went down. A cacophony of groans and complaints came from the dancers as they got up from this embarrassing scene.
"We practiced so hard for this," said one member.
"Months of work," said another. "Completely tarnished in a moment!"
As Marinette profusely apologized to the angry dancers, there was one person relishing in the chaos. He was standing in a dark lair somewhere in Paris. It was Papillon staring out his large window, holding a little white butterfly in his hand.
"Public humiliation," said Papillon. "My most trusted friend. Go, my little akuma. Turn these pitiful performers into the monstrous Dragonne!"
The little butterfly flew out the window and into the Parisian sky. Before anyone could blink, the group of dragon dancers transformed into a real serpentine dragon. It was red with a yellow underside. It swiped at people with its lengthy tail, making the entire crowd descend into chaos.
Marinette and friends jumped out of the way.
"I was right!" said Marinette excitedly before deflating. "Oh, no… I was right."
Marinette, Seline, and Gérard all looked at each other and knew instinctively what they had to do. Marinette told Adrien to take her mom somewhere safe. They all split up and hid behind buildings for privacy. Marinette opened her purse and Tikki flew out.
"Well?" said Tikki. "Is it time to save the day?"
Marinette looked from Tikki's expectant face to her open purse. Inside was the Armadillo Miraculous in its dormant form, waiting to be used.
"Actually," said Marinette. "I've got a different idea. I hope you don't mind, Tikki."
"Don't worry about me," said Tikki. "Making hard decisions is what being a great Ladybug is all about."
"Thanks, Tikki," said Marinette.
Marinette hugged Tikki one last time before taking off her earrings. Once the earrings came off, Tikki resided inside them. Marinette opened the box for the Armadillo Miraculous. A cute little Armadillo kwami came out of the bracer.
"I'm out again?" said the little kwami with her squeaky voice. "Oh, yeah! I'm ready to fight the bad guys!"
Marinette giggled.
"That's right, uh..." said Marinette, forgetting the kwami's name.
"The name's Shelly!" she said.
"Shelly," said Marinette. "Transforme-moi!"
Marinette as Armadilla rejoined the chaos of the Chinese festival. She couldn't find her friends until she saw two superheroes on the scene already.
"Oh, hey, Armadilla," said Seline as a superheroine Marinette did not recognize.
"Who are you?" asked Armadilla.
"I'm Tiger Snake," she replied, her smile looking rather eerie to Marinette what with the irises in her eyes being slits like those of a snake.
Tiger Snake's costume was reminiscent of her Tigresse Blanche costume except for the fact that she had green, scaly boots and gloves. Her hair was styled in such a fashion that the top of her hair looked like the hood of a cobra while the length of her hair was braided into a ponytail.
"And I'm Lion Dog," said Lion Dog cheekily. He still had his golden brown costume but now he had floppy dog ears on his head along with a furry tail and oversized dog paws for gloves. His dog paws were holding onto a boomerang. "Pleased to meet you."
"Great," said Armadilla. "Now that we've formally 'met,' it's time to save the day."
The three heroes scaled nearby walls, attempting to gain height advantage over Dragonne.
"Do you see that?" asked Lion Dog.
Armadilla and Tiger Snake tried to see what Lion Dog was talking about. Dragonne's body seemed to be sectioned into three parts.
"Yes," said Armadilla. "We separate its body and tackle its head."
"Sssplit up!" hissed Tiger Snake.
"Of course you'd make a joke while there are people in trouble," said Lion Dog judgmentally.
"Someone's gotta do it without Timothée here," giggled Tiger Snake, making Armadilla laugh as well. "Anyway, let's go!"
The three heroes jumped to the ground, fighting their hardest with Dragonne who continued to tear through buildings in a rampage.
"Got the tail!" shouted Lion Dog.
"And I got the torso!" yelled Tiger Snake back.
"So the head is—" started Armadilla before being launched through a storefront window by Dragonne.
"Lady—I mean, Armadilla!" screamed Tiger Snake, trying to wake an unconscious Armadilla.
"Think fast, Seline," whispered Lion Dog. "The Snake Miraculous gives you the power to revert time. Do it!"
"Right," said Tiger Snake, pushing the head of her snake bracelet. "Second Chance!"
Suddenly, the three heroes found themselves on top of the building once more right before they were about to jump.
"No, don't!" said Tiger Snake. "I'm from the future; it won't work."
"Then what do we do?" asked Armadilla.
"We need help," said Lion Dog. "We'll create a distraction while you find someone."
"All right," said Armadilla. "I'll take your word for it."
Tiger Snake and Lion Dog leapt down to the ground, trying their best to apprehend the wrathful Dragonne while keeping a safe distance.
"Come on, Marinette, think," thought Marinette/Armadilla in her head. "Got it! I can ask Adrien for help."
Armadilla scurried past the wreckage and the injured civilians until she could speak with Adrien who was hiding under a table with Marinette's parents.
"Aren't you from Japan?" asked Adrien.
"No time," said Armadilla. "Adrien Agreste, I present you with the Ladybug Miraculous."
Armadilla stretched her hand out, revealing the Miraculous nestled in her palm. Adrien was confused.
"Earrings?" said Adrien.
"Don't be a wimp," said Armadilla, putting them on Adrien's ears. "Just put them on."
"Ow!" said Adrien, feeling the sting of the earrings piercing through his ears. "How does Ladybug wear these all the time?"
In a flash of bright light, the ladybug kwami came out of the Miraculous.
"I'm Tikki," she introduced herself. "And I'm gonna make you a superhero!"
"All right, then," said Adrien. "Tikki, transforme-moi!"
With the blink of an eye, Adrien's clothes were replaced by a red costume with black polka dots.
"Come on, Mr. Bug," said Armadilla. "We need to be quick!"
Armadilla and Mr. Bug joined Tiger Snake and Lion Dog who were doing a great job of keeping Dragonne busy.
"Let's see if I can do something about this," said Armadilla, crossing her arms into an X. "Diamond Hard!"
Armadilla's bracers were enveloped by indestructible diamond shards which she then launched at Dragonne, making the monster crash into the paper lanterns strung about the park and getting stuck in the string.
"Perfect!" said Tiger Snake. "Now get him, Lion Dog!"
"Way ahead of you," said Lion Dog, tossing his boomerang at the monster.
The boomerang sliced through one segment, turned and sliced through the other before returning back to Lion Dog's oversized paws. In a poof, the illusion of Dragonne was nothing more than a line of people covered by a piece of cloth cut into three parts. From the tattered piece of dragon cloth, a little butterfly flew out and attempted to escape into the sky.
"Take it away, Mr. Bug," said Lion Dog.
"Let me see if I remember the words," said Mr. Bug, clearing his throat. "Your days of evil-doing are over, little akuma!"
Mr. Bug swung his yo-yo at the butterfly and caught it.
"Je t'ai eu!" said Mr. Bug. "Bye-bye, petit papillon. Miraculous Mr. Bug!"
The butterfly became purified after being released from the yo-yo and healing ladybug essence rushed over the city, repairing the damage. Armadilla looked proud.
"Great job, team," said Armadilla.
"The pleasure was all mine," said Mr. Bug, smiling at Tiger Snake and Lion Dog as well.
"Beep, beep," said Lion Dog as he heard the timer for their costumes go off. "Let's do this again sometime, guys."
"But first," said Armadilla. "I hope you don't mind, but I have to return those to my good friend, Ladybug, Adrien Agreste."
"I understand," he replied, detransforming and handing Armadilla the Ladybug Miraculous.
"See ya!" said Adrien as the three heroes took cover away from the eyes of civilians.
Armadilla, Tiger Snake and Lion Dog reverted back to their normal selves, looking both happy and concerned about what this whole ordeal would mean.
"Supervillain vacation's over," said Gérard.
Somewhere in Paris was a dark lair that belonged to Papillon. In it, the supervillain smiled widely at the view of Paris from his window. He didn't look at all like a person who'd just lost.
"Do you think they received the message?" asked Mayura, encroaching from the shadows.
"I'm sure they did," said Papillon. "This was just a warning shot. We'll have to put up more of a fight from now on..."
A devilish smirk formed across Mayura's face, silently fantasizing about what lies ahead for our heroes.
Back at the festival, the heroes were contemplating the meaning of this fight.
"Well, I guess you were right, Marinette," said Gérard.
"She's always right about everything," said Seline, teasing Marinette.
"Trust me," said Marinette. "This is not something I wanted to be right about, but at least we were prepared. He was much tougher than your average supervillain."
"Marinette?!" shouted Sabine from a distance.
"Mom!" said Marinette under her breath. "Let's get back to my parents."
Marinette, Seline and Gérard rejoined their friend group as well as Tom and Sabine who were ecstatic to find Marinette was safe.
"Oh, I'm so glad," said Sabine.
"We thought you might have been hurt," said Tom.
"No, I'm fine," said Marinette, turning to Seline and Gérard. "We all are, thankfully."
"Now that the craziness is over," said Alya. "Why don't we get back to the festivities?"
"I'm ready to eat," said Nino, making everyone laugh.
"Mind if I join?" asked Adrien who was walking up to Nino.
"You're safe too!" said Marinette. "And of course you can join us."
"And what about me?" asked Timothée, who showed up seemingly out of thin air. "Did I miss anything?"
"You don't know the half of it, Timo," said Marinette.
They ended the day enjoying authentic Chinese cuisine and taking in the sights and sounds of Chinese culture.
A/N: We're happy to finally be back after such a long hiatus! We hope everyone had a great holiday season and in light of the current health situation, we hope everyone is taking the proper precautions to stay safe during this crazy time right now. Many people, including ourselves, are being ordered to stay in their homes and so if we might be able to help you take your mind off the stress you might be experiencing now, we'd be very proud. Again, we're happy to be back and we hope you guys come along with us as we enter this new, exciting chapter in our Miraculous story.