Hey everyone! This chapter worked me .over. I rewrote it multiple times so hopefully this one is the winner!

Thanks to everyone for the reviews, favs, and follows! Melty Camembert Hearts! And a special thank you to my beta SunshineMLB!

Also, I do not own the characters, just the plot! Enjoy!^-^

Theories


Chat sighed heavily, staring up at her beautiful face from where he was perched on all fours next to her bed. He let his chin rest on the bed at her side, silently pleading for her to wake up. He wanted to see her eyes staring back at him again, to hear her laugh and see her smile. This waiting, it was driving him crazy, especially because they had no idea how long she would be like this.

He lifted her unmoving hand from its resting place at her side, giving it a gentle kiss as he watched her chest rise and fall in soft, steady breaths. His thumb absentmindedly ran along the same small line on the top of her hand as his thoughts ran away with him.

It had been three days, and she still hadn't woken up. The wound on her shoulder had mostly healed after Master Fu gave them the okay to use a healing elixir on it, so she was hopefully resting comfortably. With her magic being so low, the elixir hadn't healed her completely.

He closed his burning, tired, eyes and took a deep breath, more questions racing through his head than he had answers to. The image of that butterfly mark on her left shoulder blade haunted him. It couldn't be an akuma. He refused to believe that.

And, even if it was, why didn't she have a greater power? Akuma's granted power. She would be easily as powerful as any of them.

But she wasn't.

So, what could it be? What kind of mark would have reacted negatively to Plagg? What was strong enough to actually hurt the source of Destruction's power?

It didn't make any sense.

He let his head fall softly against her side, sighing softly.

It was starting to really get to him, how his life had practically turned upside down. One run in with Chat Blanc, one wound healed by a beautiful girl under the moonlight. One night of patrol, a night where he shouldn't have even been out. That was all it had taken to change everything.

He shuddered slightly, thinking about how differently things could have been if Viperion had been out on patrol instead.

Would Viperion have even noticed her power? With his second chance, would he have even been hurt to the point where her power would have presented itself?

Would she have, actually considered going with Blanc, if Viperion happened to not come across the fight at all?

He frowned to himself.

No, she was refusing Blanc before he came along. She would have never gone with him.

Never.

He felt a small hand run gently through his hair and his eyes snapped open as he sat up quickly. A bright smile formed on his face seeing her beautiful bluebell eyes staring up at him as he stood, "M'Lady."

"Sorry Kitty, I didn't mean to wake you up." She said hoarsely, clearing her throat slightly.

He smiled at her brighter, "You didn't, I was just resting my eyes." He leaned over and put his forehead to hers, telling her softly with his eyes closed, "You scared one of my lives out of me."

She laughed softly, "Sorry." He grabbed her hand and sat on the bed next to her as she asked, "What happened?"

He asked instantly, "What do you remember?"

She frowned, looking up at the ceiling, "Leaving work. I was walking with a friend when it started getting cold for some reason. There was a laugh and," she sat up quickly, startling him slightly, "Chat! There is an Akuma and it is looking for you! You can't go out there!"

He smiled at her, stifling his laugh, "Thank you for the warning, but I found her, and she was defeated."

Lady let out a relieved breath before asking, "Wait, you defeated her?"

He nodded, "Me, Viperion, Carapace, Rena Rouge, and Queen Bee."

She asked instantly, "Are you guys okay? Nobody got hurt?"

His smile fell slightly, "No, most of us were hurt in some way. Stormy was throwing around hail and lightning like there was no tomorrow, on top of that freezing cold wind."

She instantly looked him over and he asked her quietly, "You were there right, at the fight?"

She nodded slightly, "I saw her, and the friend I was with was trying to find us somewhere to hide where we would be safe but," her eyes widened, "Oh my god, I need to call him and make sure he is okay!"

She was frantically searching for her phone, knowing it had to be somewhere nearby and eyeing the end table to her left as he told her quickly, "Easy, everyone who was at the fight is fine. Anyone who was hurt, and everything that Stormy damaged was all reversed as though it never happened."

Her eyes widened in shock, "E-Everything?"

He nodded, a bright hope shining in his eyes as he stared at her, "Someone," he started slowly, "released an incredible blast of power into the air. Something that was easily on par with mine." Her eyes widened as he explained, "It moved through the entire city where there was damage, putting everything back to normal. Spirals of that magic branched off and healed everyone who had gotten hurt."

She frowned. Her hand going to her lightly bandaged right shoulder. If that was really the case, and someone had healed everyone, why hadn't it worked on her? Was that really her luck?

She remembered that flash of pain that tore through her from the lightning seconds after pushing Adrien out of the way. She had passed out almost immediately after hearing him yell her name, but that lightning was caused by the Akuma. It should have worked on her too. Unless, there was another reason that power hadn't healed her.

He watched her face, seeing her starting to understand, "All except one person was healed." Her hand fell from her shoulder in shock.

"The one we suspect is responsible for doing the healing in the first place." Chat finished, her eyes snapping to his as she fully understood.

"You think, I did it?" She asked in shock.

"I went to the spot where the power erupted, and instead of finding who I thought I was going to find," he smiled at her, "I find my Lady suited up and unconscious instead."

She smiled but it instantly fell, "But Chat that's, it's impossible."

He told her still smiling, "Think about it, whenever people are hurt, you want so desperately to help them that your power rises and does what it has to in order to heal them. You must have wanted to help the city so much that,"

"No, you don't understand." She said sadly, "I got hit with lightning pushing my friend out of the way."

His smile vanished as she said it, "I couldn't have done it because I was completely knocked out. The last thing I remember is him yelling my name through the pain when I got hit instead, and then waking up here."

He saw the truth of it in her eyes, his head shaking in denial, "It had to have been you. You, you were the only other person around with magic besides us."

"I've never used my power without at least being conscious of wanting to help." She reminded him before asking as she realized it, "Wait, who did you think you were going to find before you found me?"

Guilt ate at him as he looked away from her ashamed. He didn't even get a chance to collect himself before she said it knowingly, without judgment, "Ladybug. Of course."

"It wasn't like that I just," he tried but she smiled at him sadly, "It could have very well been her. Ladybug is the only one with the ability to completely reverse the effects of an Akuma."

His tail twisted sadly next to him, "Are you upset with me?"

She shook her head instantly, "No, I promise I'm not." Even though her eyes were glassy, she held back her hurt with a smile, "I know how important she is to you Chat Noir."

"You, are important to me." He said hard.

"I know." She said, feeling her heart swell, "But you have been looking for her for so long, I know that she is always going to have a piece of your heart."

He frowned, "That's not fair to you."

"It's my own fault for coming into your life," she said looking down, "for falling for someone who has a soulmate."

He lifted her eyes back to his, telling her pleadingly, "Please, don't ever regret coming into my life m'Lady. The day I met you, you changed everything, in the best ways possible," he kissed her forehead gently before smiling at her, "Don't let anyone tell you otherwise."

She gave him a shy smile before he told her somewhat stubbornly, "I still think that power came from you."

She asked honestly confused, "Could I have done something that big being unconscious?"

He shook his head, "I don't know, but we have already seen that your powers put you in some state of trance when you use them, right? If you were unconscious but knew about the Akuma, maybe you somehow unconsciously called the power out. You are such a unique case that we honestly can't rule it out."

Lady couldn't argue against him because he was right. There were still so many questions around her powers and why they were acting the way they did. It was frustrating to no end.

Chat saw her frustration and smiled, lifting her hand and kissing it, "Hey don't worry. We'll figure it out."

"You are extremely confident." She said defeated.

It came out easily, "I just trust in myself, the way I trust in you."

They smiled at each other and Chat told her hesitantly, "So, while you've been, unconscious, a few things have happened."

She waited, worried by how nervous he seemed to suddenly be. "Okay?" She said simply.

"Well, one, Rena talked to your parents, and sent a message to your boss." He started.

She frowned, "Why? It's only been a few hours, right?"

His hand went to the back of his neck and she instantly started to worry when he hesitated, "Chat."

"It's been a few," it left him reluctantly, "days. It's Saturday."

Her eyes widened, "Saturday?!"

He nodded, "That's another reason I think it was you. We used an elixir to heal your shoulder, but being that your magic had significantly lowered, it didn't take completely. Your powers always drop like that after you use them so we weren't even surprised."

He smiled slightly, "We've made a bit of a connection to how long you are passed out with how much power you used. The greater force of power you use, the longer you stay unconscious after. The only reason you would have been unconscious this long is if you had used a greater power on that large of a scale. Not just healing people, but healing the city too."

She leaned back against the headboard, staring towards the wall opposite of her without seeing it.

Three days.

She had been unconscious.

For three days.

Could it really, could she really have been the one to heal everyone, and repair the city?

"What time is it?" She asked emotionless.

Chat reached into the drawer at her bedside and pulled out her cell phone, telling her as he saw it, "Just after noon."

She took the phone and stared down at it. What other explanation could there be? It had to have been her.

"Chat, this is really starting to freak me out." She said shakily.

He waited until she looked up at him, seeing the panic on her face, "Why does this keep happening? How can I keep using my power like this without being able to know that I'm doing it? Why do I keep losing all this time just for using it? Why me? What am I doing wrong?"

He pulled her into his arms, hugging her tightly, "You aren't doing anything wrong."

"But something has to be wrong with me!" She said emotionally as she buried her face in his chest, "No one else has this problem. I have to be defective or,"

"You are not defective." He said defensively, holding her tighter, "You are perfect exactly the way you are. I don't know why this is happening to you but I swear I am going to find out. We are going to find a way to stop this from happening to you." He lifted her head slightly so he could caress the side of her face, staring into her eyes so she could see his resolve, "Okay?"

She stared into his eyes for a few seconds before nodding, "I'm sorry. It's just,"

"Frustrating." He said knowingly.

She took a deep breath, no doubt trying to calm down. He noticed her nervous shifting before she asked, not doubt trying to get the subject off of her, "Did you, look into Anthony and Rebecca anymore?"

He sighed heavily, his own frustration about that situation coming back, "I did, but I can't find anything. All of the records we have on them talk about their power and their abilities, but I can't find anything on their relationship." He ran his hand through his hair, "The last few reports on the assignments they went on were all related to what they believed was leading them closer to finding the Butterfly holder; who was the one who originally stole the Miraculous from the Guardian of that time."

"Did you find anything on that person?" She asked, knowing that was another issue at hand; trying to discover who Hawkmoth could be.

"The last known holder of the Butterfly Miraculous was Olivier Marcel. He was in the same class as Rebecca and Anthony, but renounced the Miraculous to be with the girl he fell in love with. I found his letter to the Guardian in his file explaining why he had to give it up." He told her.

"He gave up his power to be with her, because she didn't have power, did she?" She asked.

"No, and he didn't want to drag her into the Miraculous world. I can't say I blame him." He said understanding the choice, "It was a few weeks after that when the Butterfly was stolen by an unknown source and was used against them. Its power hadn't been seen out in the open until a swarm of akuma's erupted from the middle of city," he said it still slightly frustrated, "which led to the fight where Anthony and Rebecca took on all of those akuma's alone and lost their lives."

They sat in silence for a second, letting the information settle around them until Lady shook her head, "That doesn't help us understand why Rebecca would have turned on Anthony."

Chat sighed and leaned up against the headboard with her, putting his arm around her shoulders. She instantly leaned into him, and he leaned his head on top of hers comfortably, "No, but it all has to be connected somehow."

He rubbed her arm affectionately, "If the Butterfly abuser was someone Rebecca knew, if it was someone she loved, it could have affected how she was fighting. If Anthony knew she wouldn't be able to fight, and fought anyways to protect his Ladybug, she would have been torn between someone she loved and her Black Cat. If Anthony ended up accidentally killing whoever it was in that instant,"

"Then she could have felt desperate enough to feel like taking his miraculous was the only choice she had." She finished for him, both of them sighing heavily.

"But again, we can only theorize." Chat said a little frustrated. "Which still poses the question of why her Miraculous was bound in the first place."

"Do you think Rebecca had the power to bind the Miraculous herself, maybe to try and keep it safe from whoever stole the Butterfly Miraculous?" Lady posed curiously.

Chat wasn't sure though, "If she wanted to use the wish so badly that she turned on her Black Cat, why turn around and bind her own Miraculous in such a way? Why make it so that only another sacrifice would be able to unbind it? It's all so contradictory, nothing makes sense."

Lady frowned slightly, grabbing Chat's hand and pulling it into her lap. She idly played with his fingers, running her fingers lightly over the tips of his claws, thinking out loud, "They are conflicting, which means that something in there has to be a lie. There has to be something vital missing to this story. Blanc said she killed her black cat to make the wish to bring back the love of her life who died protecting her. Tikki and Plagg both confirmed for us on Tuesday that Anthony and Rebecca had feelings for each other."

She was so confused, "If he was the love of her life, then she would have been making the wish to bring him back after he died protecting her."

Chat said it sadly, "Unless there was someone else. Plagg wouldn't talk to me about Anthony besides saying that he would have done anything for Rebecca, including sacrificing himself to save her."

He sighed heavily, "And Tikki said that Rebecca had been in love with the same person her entire life, but even she wouldn't confirm if that person was Anthony. It makes me wonder if they weren't in a situation similar to ours, but in reverse. Maybe Rebecca fell in love with someone who wasn't her Black Cat, and then when Anthony appeared, she had conflicting emotions."

Lady laced her fingers with his, sitting up slightly, "Do you think, maybe something could have happened to Anthony that caused him to see her as the enemy during that last fight?"

Chat frowned, "It's possible, but if he had turned on her first, and she killed him in self-defense, that still doesn't explain the binding."

He repeated it slowly, "Someone with high level healing magic has to be sacrificed the way the Black Cat was, that's what Master Fu said. That means Anthony had to have sacrificed himself in some way, but why would that have affected the Ladybug Miraculous and not his own?"

He let his head fall back as Lady said it heavily, "I wish we had a way to talk to them directly, to find out what really happened."

"Me too. I've even considered having Bunnyx take me back in time to find them, just to observe and see for myself without interfering." Chat admitted.

Lady sat up and looked at him, "She can do that?"

Chat smiled, "She could, but she would never actually let me. Time is such a finicky thing, and any disturbance in the timeline at the wrong moment can cause huge ripple effects. If I went back and accidentally caused something to change, I could very well find myself coming back to a completely different present."

They sighed together before Chat told her, "Well figure it out, somehow."

She smiled at him slightly, "Somehow."

She stretched her arms out in front of her, Chat smiling, "Do you feel ready to be up?"

She nodded, "I think so. My body doesn't feel as heavy as it did when I woke up." Chat stood and let her pull her legs over the edge of the bed, watching her carefully for any sign that anything was wrong. When she stood without being in any obvious pain, he smiled, "Well, it is Saturday."

He wrapped his arms around her waist, letting his hands rest at the small of her back as her hands rested on his chest. He said it in mock-hurt, "Since I have been denied of your presence for three days purrincess," he smiled brightly seeing her roll her eyes at the nickname, not missing the slight smirk or light blush on her cheeks. "I'd love to take you out to lunch. If you're feline up to it."

She smiled with a small nod, "I think that's a great idea, but I think I'd really enjoy a shower, and some clean clothes." She looked down at her outfit, realizing it only then, "Wait, I wasn't wearing this before."

Chat smirked, "I figured you hadn't noticed. Rena brought you some clothes."

"But, these are my clothes." She said still confused.

Chat said it a little sadly, "She told me, that you guys revealed to each other. She went to your house and grabbed you a few things. They should be in your room here."

She must have seen the disappointment on his face because she hugged his middle, "She found me out, I'm sorry."

"No don't apologize. She is not someone you can keep secrets from, especially when she is digging for answers." He said quickly.

She looked up at him, admitting it with a shy smile, "If we didn't have to keep it a secret, you would have been the first person I showed."

She lifted her hand to his face, causing him to stare into her eyes with a smile, "I trust you that much Chat Noir. I have since day one."

She reminded him, hating that it was the truth, "But you, are the one person whose identity cannot be found out by Hawkmoth. He wants YOUR miraculous, and you are a direct tie to the Ladybug Miraculous."

He frowned, putting his hand over hers as she said it, "The best kept secrets are the ones you never tell. I'm not strong enough yet to protect myself, to know that I could protect your identity. I would hate being the reason that anything bad happened to you. I'd never forgive myself."

He told her in a defeated whisper, "I hate that you are right."

She stood on her toes and kissed his forehead, "But I am anyways. And you know that no matter who you are underneath, my feelings are never going to change. When we are sure that your Miraculous, and Ladybug's Miraculous, are safe from Hawkmoth, there won't be any more reason to keep the secret."

He sighed slightly but smiled, "You sure about that? What if I was the ugliest guy you had ever seen in your life?"

She raised an eyebrow at him, but then started to smirk. He always teased her with his flirting. Maybe she could do the same.

She traced his jawbone lightly with a finger, "Well," she let her thumb trail under his mask, following the contours of his cheekbone up to his temples as he started to blush, "even if you were ugly, mister I-model-on-the-side," she ran her hand through his soft hair once, seeing an ember come to life in his eyes, "that wouldn't matter to me." Her heart was racing as she let her thumb caress his bottom lip with the lightest contact she could manage, "Your heart is what draws me in."

His lips were on hers before she could say anything else, and she didn't hesitate to return the kiss in full. He lifted her up slightly as her arms wrapped around his neck, letting her cup his face with her hands as she kissed him with every ounce of passion she had.

He slowly set her down, a slight daze in his eyes as he grinned wider than the Cheshire cat, "Feel free to kiss me like that whenever you want."

She giggled, hitting his chest lightly, "Come on you flirt, I really should take a shower and change. Then we can go have a proper lunch date."

Someone cleared their throat at the door, and they looked over to see Carapace and Rena Rouge. Both of them with huge grins on their faces.

Chat shook his head, a slight blush dusting his cheeks while her face went straight to red, as he asked, "How long have you two been standing there?"

Cap kept smiling, "Long enough."

Rena walked over to them, Chat reluctantly letting her go so that Rena could pull her best friend into her arms, "I'm so glad that you are okay. You really had me worried for a minute there."

Lady instantly hugged her back, "I'm okay, I promise."

Chat had a frown on his face, "I thought you two were going on midday patrol."

Cap nodded, "We were, but," he looked over at Rena who was already frowning as she looked over at Chat Noir, "Viper, slipped."

Chat's eyes widened, "About the,"

"Yeah." Cap said sadly, "Master just pulled in all the Zodiacs."

Chat's eyes hardened, "He did what?!"

"You know how he is." Rena started, "He's just,"

"Overreacting as usual." Chat said annoyed, glancing at Lady and seeing the worry in her face. He shot her a small smile, "Why don't you go ahead and grab that shower and change if you want. Then we'll get out of here."

Cap said it with a frown, "He isn't going to,"

"I'm going to go talk to him." Chat interrupted quickly, staring at his friend so he knew Carapace understood, "Nothing happens to her. Nothing."

Cap nodded after a second, seeing the fire in his friends' eyes, "We'll keep an eye on her."

Chat ran his thumb over her face softly as he asked, "Promise you'll stay with Rena until I get back?"

She nodded and Chat was out of the room in seconds. Rena and Carapace both sighed heavily before she asked, "What does that mean, being pulled in?"

Rena smiled at her slightly, "It basically means that we are all grounded until further notice. We can't leave campus."

"Why?" She asked worried, staring out of the door Chat had rushed out of.

Carapace and Rena shared worried looks before Carapace told her, "There might be, an Akuma on campus."

Her eyes widened, "Oh no, but, how? How did they get in?" Her heart dropped, "Chat, they are going to go after Chat Noir!" She ran towards the door, Rena and Carapace on her heels as she bolted down the hall, "Lady!" "Lady, it's just a precaution!"

"Chat! CHAT!" She called out, not caring who heard the desperation in her voice, "CHAT NOIR!"

She didn't know where she was going, but her body was moving automatically through the halls, making unconscious turns for her. She found a large set of oak double doors carved with the Miracle Box symbol.

Here. Something whispered in her mind.

She pushed open the doors and instantly heard his voice, "You are being ridiculous!"

"Chat watch your tone." Viperion was telling him warningly, Chat pulling his arm away from Viperion's outstretched hand.

"Or what? I know what we saw but she isn't!" Chat was saying angrily.

Master Fu was standing a few feet away from them. The rest of their classmates were standing around the large hall loosely. Pillars lined each side, and she guessed this was an audience chamber of some sort.

"We don't know that, and YOU should have been the one to come straight to me when you saw it." Master Fu was saying, sounding disappointed.

"Why? So you could put her through a witch trial?!" Chat said loudly in anger, Manticore and King Monkey both keeping him from moving towards Master Fu.

"Chat," she said breathlessly.

He instantly turned to her. She rushed up to him, holding him tightly as he opened his arms for her. "Thank goodness." She whispered, glad that he was okay.

He held her protectively, kissing the top of her head, "Go with Rena please."

She looked up at him, seeing how angry he still was, "No, I want to stay with you."

He flashed her a quick smile, "I'm not asking this time."

"She isn't going anywhere Chat." Ryuko said sternly.

Chat glared over at her, "Don't start."

"You shouldn't be anywhere near her until she's been cleared. Don't be so naïve Captain." Ryuko said in her usual even tone.

"There is nothing to clear." Chat hissed.

Master Fu said it quickly, "We can clear this up now in front of everyone, or in private, but it needs to be done."

Chat's arms tightened around her, "No."

"Venom."

Chat looked behind her with wide eyes, instantly flipping their positions and groaning before going completely still as his arms dropped from around her, "Chat!"

Queen Bee huffed, "Well, at least that is one problem out of the way. You are being an idiot Chat."

Chat Noir didn't move and Lady asked angrily, "Why did you do that?"

"I knew he would take the hit in your place and he needs to calm down." Bee said like it should have been obvious.

Master told her gently, "Thank you Bee."

Queen Bee nodded, "He's an overly emotional being, he always has been."

Master Fu looked at her and asked her with a small smile, "I'm sure Rena and Carapace told you about the issue at hand."

She nodded instantly, "About a possible Akuma being on campus. How would they have even got in? Doesn't the barrier specifically stop that from happening?"

"Yes it does." Master Fu said. "Thus, the delicate issue at hand, but first things first, are you feeling okay?"

She nodded, "Yes sir, I feel a lot better. My shoulder doesn't even hurt that much anymore."

He smiled slightly, "Good." She saw the worry in his eyes and asked a little confused, "If there is an Akuma on campus, shouldn't we be looking for it?"

"He didn't tell you then." Master said with a small nod, "His trust in you is unwavering."

She frowned, "Tell me? Tell me what?"

Master asked, "Would you mind answering a few questions for us?"

"Ask me anything." She said instantly, not sure what was going on.

"Lieutenants." Master Fu called.

Rena, Viperion, Bunnyx and Ryuko all stepped forward. Everyone but them moved back slightly and the four Lieutenants stood around her. They each put their own fists together, creating right angles as they pulled their fists to their chests. Almost instantly a golden energy erupted from each of the four lieutenants. The energy connected all the way around, boxing her in.

She asked shakily, "What's going on?"

Master said it sadly, "I'm sorry, but the barrier is unfortunately necessary while you answer my questions Lady."

"But why? What did I," she stopped, seeing the same look on the rest of her classmates faces. Fear.

"Y-You think, I'm, the Akuma." She whispered.

Master told her instantly, "We don't think that. We want to rule it out."

She felt like she was going to be sick. This was exactly the kind of luck she had always had. Whenever anything seemed to be going right, something had to go wrong.

She said it bitterly, "Rule it out, which means it's a possibility and you are actually thinking it."

Master Fu didn't contradict her and she said it heavily, "Ask me whatever you want. I am NOT an Akuma."

The golden barrier flashed white suddenly and everyone collectively let out a heavy breath. Even Master Fu.

"The barrier doesn't lie." Setta said, sounding happily relieved.

"That doesn't explain the mark." Roost said still sounding slightly worried.

She asked confused, "Mark?"

Master Fu asked her a new question, "Are you aware that you have a mark on your left shoulder blade?"

She nodded, "Yes, it's a birthmark."

The barrier flashed blue and Carapace said it quickly, "She believes that's the truth."

Queen Bee said it hard, "But this confirms that it is NOT."

She asked shaking her head, "Why does that matter? I've known that birthmark was there for as long as I can remember."

"Because it isn't a birthmark," Queen Bee told her angrily, "and it is conveniently in the shape of a very particular,"

"Butterfly." She whispered, already knowing what the mark looked like. She looked straight at Master Fu, "Is that why you think I'm an Akuma?"

He told her gently, shaking his head, "The mark on your back reacted negatively to Plagg, repelling him away from you and causing him pain when he tried to touch it. However, I don't think you yourself are an Akuma, the mark on the other hand, could be."

Pegasus asked with a frown, "How could an akuma be attached to her without turning her into one?"

"Exactly." Queen Bee started, "How do we know that her akumatized form isn't this form, weakened so that she could get past the barrier and get closer to all of us, to get to Chat Noir to steal his Miraculous!"

She yelled it angrily, "I WOULD NEVER STEAL HIS MIRACULOUS!"

The barrier flashed an intense bright white before cracking. All four Lieutenants lowered their arms and the barrier fell, each of them taking a step back as an invisible force of power pushed them away from her.

Master Fu told them all quickly, "Calm down, all of you. We are not jumping to conclusions here. I do not believe Lady is an Akuma, but I do believe that mark on her back may be something more."

Tigerlilly asked confused, "But what could it be?"

Master Fu stared at her sadly, "A dormant akuma."

Viperion asked with a frown, "How can an akuma be dormant?"

"And how could it not have affected her all this time?" Rena asked concerned.

Master Fu kept his eyes on her, and she started to understand, "That's, that's it, isn't it? That's why I've always been invisible, why everyone always leaves, and why my powers are so unstable."

He nodded and she felt the tears in her eyes, saying it pleading, "Get it out, get it out of me!"

"You said you have had that mark for as long as you can remember. It will take time to find a solution to remove it without waking it if it truly is dormant. If your emotions fall to an extreme low, and not just a bout of high stress, but something that affects you deeper, or if we make the wrong move to remove it at the wrong time, we may trigger you turning into an Akuma. It will give Hawkmoth a direct link to your mind, to the things that you see,"

"And to everyone here." She said, feeling her stomach turn.

"I'm not," Chat's voice groaned behind her, making everyone turn to see him breaking out of Queen Bee's temporary paralysis, "going to, let that happen." He took a hard step forward, erratic trails of black magic skirting across his skin as he completely broke through the paralysis.

He closed the distance to her in seconds, holding her tightly in his arms as she started to break down.

Chat said it again harder, "I'm not going to let anything happen to her. She won't be akumatized. I won't let that happen."

Rena said it instantly, "That's right. She is one of us, and we can keep her safe."

Carapace pounded his fist on his shield once, "We'll protect her with everything we have."

The four of them stood together, a prominent line being drawn between them and the rest of the Zodiacs.

Viperion asked calmly, taking a single step towards them, "Are you really doing this you guys? Picking sides?" He waved his hand out behind him, "We are a team. All of us. That's how it has been for a long time. We are all on the same side."

Chat asked hard, "Then why are the rest of you acting like there is a side to be chosen?"

Ryuko pointed it out immediately, "Whether that thing on her back is a dormant akuma or not, the fact is that it is there. It caused harm to a kwami, a primal source of magic. She didn't even release her power and caused a Lieutenant-level barrier to crack."

Bee said it hard, "And since the second she got here, she's been attached to you. Look at what you are doing now, protecting her. How do you know this isn't all part of Hawkmoth's plan to,"

"She isn't an Akuma!" Chat, Carapace, and Rena all yelled angrily at the same time.

"I'll go." She said quietly, letting go of Chat and facing the others, "If you guys don't want me to be here, I'll go."

Chat looked at her shaking his head, "No, you can't,"

"Just until we can find a way to get, whatever it is, out of me." She said turning back to him sadly, "If it will make everyone feel safer,"

"It will." Queen Bee said hard. "So leave, and don't come back."

Chat growled a low sound at her, "That's not going to help anyone."

Lady stared around at the torn faces of the classmates she had come to know, to think of as friends. She nodded seeing their uncertainty and turned to leave, but Chat grabbed her wrist, pulling her back gently, "You are one of us, you don't have to go anywhere just because,"

"It's better this way." She whispered, gently moving his hand from around her wrist before walking out.

Chat was seething, watching the Audience Chamber door close softly behind her before turning angrily back to his classmates. He shot a look at Rena who nodded before bolting out after her.

He started the second the door closed again, "How dare you." He said, his voice shaking in anger as Bee stared at her nails without a care, completely unaffected by her actions. "Lady has done nothing wrong. Since the moment she arrived all she has done is be kind to everyone in this room, and no one has the heart to give her the benefit of the doubt?"

Pegasus said it quickly, "It's not that simple Chat."

"Why not?" He asked hard, "Don't you think if she was 'up to something', Hawkmoth would be a bigger threat than what he already is?"

"He attacked on a large scale, specifically looking for you." Ryuko pointed out, "Which is something he had never done before. All of a sudden she shows up and he decides to make a scene? It can't be a coincidence." She was scowling, "Then you happen to find Lady unconscious after you saw that power, but if she was there, why didn't she do more to help?"

"She doesn't have a Miraculous!" He said loudly, waving his hands in the air frustrated, "What did you want her to do, jump in front of that Akuma and get herself killed?"

Carapace put a hand on his shoulder, trying to calm him down, "We can still watch out for her, without them."

"And what happens when we can't?" He asked Carapace instantly, "We're supposed to trust our so-called friends to look out for her in our place when they can't even,"

Bee interrupted him loudly, "Stop being so naive! You have no idea who that girl is or what her true intentions are!" Bee was glaring at him, "She hasn't even been here that long. We don't care about her, we care about YOU! Instead of realizing that, you would rather put everyone here at risk for one person who doesn't mean anything to anyone,"

"She means something to me!" Chat said, taking a hard step in Bee's direction. "Just because you don't have the capacity to care about anyone but yourself,"

"Enough!" Master Fu called, a tremor of power blasting out towards all of them.

The entire hall went silent.

Master's voice was stern, "Lady isn't going anywhere." He held up a finger when Bee looked like she was going to protest, "She needs to be here to be evaluated. We took her in to protect her from Hawkmoth, that has not changed."

Chat heard the hesitation and pressed instantly, "But?"

Master Fu took a step towards them, "But until then, it would be best that we keep an eye on her. The last thing we want is for Hawkmoth to turn her emotions against her, and have her be used against us." He glanced around at the other Zodiacs, "If you are uncomfortable with doing so, it will be your choice if you want to be involved in that or not."

Chat hated that he saw a few people relax, being given a choice. He knew that was wrong, they were owed that choice, but he hated it none the less.

"And in spite of what any of you may think, she is still a student here. Let me remind all of you that the phrase is 'Innocent until proven Guilty.' Not the other way around. Is that clear?" Master asked, putting is hands back behind his back as everyone nodded in understanding.

"Good. This group is special." He said a little softer, "Don't make me forget why."

Chat felt a small smile come out as the others finally had the audacity to look guilty. Master looked over at him and Carapace, "When I find a way to help her, you'll be the first to know."

Chat nodded, looking at Carapace who nodded before following him out of the room, and out after their girls.

They would protect her, even if it was just the three of them.

No matter what it took.


Thanks for reading! More will be coming soon so don't fret!

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Au Revoir for now!