"Thanks for your help, Yusuke," Ladybug smiled as the artist detransformed and fished into his pocket for Trixx's treat.

"Grape or melon?" he asked, pulling out two mini candy floss packets.

"Oh! Grape, please!" Trixx requested eagerly. Yusuke just smiled as he tore open the package and casually tossed the floss in the air, which Trixx caught easily before taking a large bite out of it. The Phantom Thieves decided that it would be a good idea to carry some kwami treats with them in case Marinette needed them to suit up. That way, she wouldn't need to worry about feeding the kwami herself afterward.

"I swear, I'll never get used to watching them eat," Yusuke shook his head with a smile, "From the way their anatomy looks, it shouldn't be possible to eat very much at all."

"Yeah…" Ladybug giggled, remembering the first time she saw Tikki swallow a macaroon whole.

"By the way…" Yusuke suddenly asked, "Was that behavior I saw Chat Noir do common?"

Ladybug raised an eyebrow, "You mean the joking part or the… tantrum part?" she asked with a small wince at the last part.

"Both."

Ladybug grimaced, "The joking and punning is something he's always done. And I'll admit, it has caused problems before, and that doesn't even cover when he used to flirt with me all the time. He's backed off on that greatly ever since Kobra became a permanent team member though, but it was bad when we were still single… As for the hissy-fits…? They're kind of on and off. He hates secrets and it frustrates him that I have to keep some from him."

"...Even so, that shouldn't excuse him from disrespecting you like that," Yusuke frowned, "Secrets come with the superhero territory, whether in fiction or reality. He doesn't seem to understand that very well. Also, you two have worked together ever since you've received your Miraculous, so why doesn't he trust you more?"

"He does trust me!" Ladybug defended, "As I said, he isn't fond of secrets, and even I don't think it's fair that he's kept in the dark about so many things. But as Guardian, there's certain knowledge that's too dangerous to share with anyone in case someone like Hawkmoth gets a hold of it."

"...I apologize if I overstepped my bounds, but it seems Luka knows more about the Miraculous than Chat Noir does, and yet he's known about them even less time than either of you."

"Luka knows so much because it's for his safety," Ladybug explained, "The reason he has a Miraculous at all is that he knows my identity. Had it been a different situation, I wouldn't have given the Snake Miraculous back to him, but it would've taken too long to figure out what other one suited him too. That doesn't mean that he knows everything, though. There are some things I haven't told him either, and won't tell him because they're for a Guardian's eyes only."

"And…" Ladybug swallowed as she felt tears gather in her eyes, "After what happened in the boys' bathroom… it wasn't until then that I realized that I needed help. Not just with my school life either. I'm only fifteen! My master was over a hundred years old-" - Yusuke's eyes widened immensely at this piece of information - "- and it was barely enough for him to handle! I just… I needed support. Support that Chat simply can't give me as a superhero."

"I never meant any offense to Luka, but what's stopping you from finding out Chat's identity so that his civilian form could be that support?"

Ladybug sighed sadly, "It wouldn't be fair to him. He's wanted to know my identity since day one. If I asked him to tell me who he is, but I still can't tell him mine, it wouldn't be fair! I have to keep my identity secret so that Hawkmoth won't find the Miracle Box again. It's bad enough that Luka knows… Not that I'm not glad that he knows, but…" she whined and covered her face in frustration.

"...Or is it less the fact that you don't want him to know your identity… and more that you don't want to know his ?"

Yusuke's statement stunned Ladybug. She scowled and was about to retort when her yo-yo exploded with an Akuma again.

"What the-" she gasped before a live video message appeared on the screen. Swallowing, she pressed the link, with Yusuke leaning curiously over to look as well.

"Citizens of Paris! I have an announcement to make!" a clearly akumatized Alya shouted into the camera. Her akuma form wasn't that of Lady Wifi though. She looked fairly similar to her Rena Rouge form, but the color of the suit was more of a darker orange-red, and the weapon that she had on her back looked spiky in some places. "Kijutsu or whatever you call yourself - I, Rena Rogue, challenge you to a duel! The prize for the winner will be the Fox Miraculous that you stole from me! I don't know what possessed Ladybug to give it to you, but that Miraculous was mine first! And I deserve it if Ladybug chose me for it!"

Ladybug groaned and rubbed her forehead, and Yusuke scowled. Did Alya still not get it?! That was not how it worked! She lent the Miraculous to Alya; that didn't mean that it belonged to her! She knew that Alya's delusion wasn't completely her fault thanks to Lila's lie about Ladybug's integrity, but this was going too far.

She heard Yusuke sigh next to her. "Well, if that's how she wants things to be..."

"Yusuke-"

"If this is what finally convinces her to let go of her fantasy, so be it." the art student said, glancing over at Trixx who floated over after finishing his snack. Ladybug wasn't sure what the kwami was thinking right now, or how he felt about this situation. She would have to talk to Trixx later after they dealt with this Akuma.

Unfortunately, Ladybug heard the familiar sound of her earrings beeping rapidly just as she transformed back into Marinette, and Tikki landed in her hands.

"...I'll distract her while you recover," Yusuke decided.

"Good idea. Be careful, though," Marinette warned, "it looks like she's a copy of the Fox hero like Volpina was."

"Understood. Now hurry, before she finds us," Yusuke called over his shoulder; before he ran out of the alley, he said, "Trixx, Let's Pounce!"

o~o

Kijutsu-shi grunted as he leaped from rooftop to rooftop, searching for the new akuma. He'd admit, he was planning to use himself as bait to lure the akuma out since she was the old Fox Heroine, but he knew this could also backfire immensely in a number of different ways.

He suddenly stopped as the hairs on the back of his neck stuck up. The fox ears on his head twitching as he glanced around (it was quite an unusual feeling).

His gaze drifted to the right where a slight reflection was cast off of one of the metal chimneys-

Kijutsu-shi barely managed to backflip out of the way as a small dart whizzed just inches away from his form. The dart landed in the wall in front of him hard enough that it made an indent.

He didn't have time to catch his breath as a flash of red & orange charged him, swinging something wildly at him. He whipped out his flute to block the strikes. He was thankful that the instrument was sturdy enough to take the strikes.

"Give it back!" Rena Rogue screamed, her hand swiping at Kijutsu-shi's chest for the zipper-tab. Kijutsu-shi leaped away out of reach, scowling, "You have no right to steal that from me!"

"I believe this never belonged to you in the first place, so you're incorrect to assume it's been stolen," Kijutsu-shi responded coolly.

"Shut up!" Rena Rogue roared, "Ladybug gave it to me first! What the hell do you have that I don't?"

"For one, my identity is known to no one but myself and Ladybug," Kijutsu-shi riposted, parrying another strike of his foe's blowgun.

"Being revealed wasn't my fault! There was nothing I could do!"

"Then why are you so angry?" Kijutsu-shi asked rhetorically, "Had she continued to give you the Fox, Hawkmoth would target your family to hurt you, just like Miss Bourgeois, if I'm not mistaken."

"She didn't need to stop using me altogether!" Rena Rogue raged, "I could use a different Miraculous! I was almost given the Bee Miraculous once!"

"It still isn't your decision to make," Kijutsu shot back, "If you still haven't been chosen, though, perhaps there's a good reason behind it? I'd wager you did something wrong in your civilian life…"

"I haven't done anything wrong!"

"If that's true, how would throwing a tantrum fix it?"

Rena Rogue screamed again as she leaped towards him, swinging down from above that he blocked expertly. She then grunted in surprise as she felt herself being dragged back to the other side of the roof.

"Alya! That's enough!" Ladybug shouted as her yo-yo zipped back to her. Kobra and Chat Noir both leaped up, landing behind her.

"I'm not Alya! I'm Rena Rogue! And once I take back what's mine, it'll be Rena Rouge to you!"

"Alya! You can't have the Fox Miraculous again!" Chat Noir exclaimed, "You know Hawkmoth knows your identity!"

"So what?!" Rena Rogue stopped her foot, "You gave Chloe the Bee Miraculous, and Hawkmoth knew her identity!"

"Yes, and that was a mistake on my part!" Ladybug admitted, "But I'm not going to make that mistake again!"

"So you've replaced me, huh?" she shrieked, "Why haven't you asked for my help yet?! I was a good hero!"

"Yes… you were," Ladybug said sorrowfully before throwing her yo-yo up, "Lucky Charm!"

In a swarm of ladybugs, a small object landed in her hands. It was a police badge.

"Huh, well I guess we could call the fuzz as a last resort," Chat Noir quipped.

"Ladybug…" Kobra muttered, eyeing the pin.

Ladybug gasped, "I'll be right back!"

"Wait, where are you going?!" Chat Noir gasped.

"To get help!" Ladybug shouted as she ran off.

"Who?!" Chat Noir exclaimed. He didn't even notice that Kobra had zipped in front of him until the snake hero was blocking another dart from the former fox hero. The akuma growled and lowered her weapon, which upon closer inspection wasn't just a flute, but a blowgun as well!

"Just trust her Chat!" Kobra insisted, "She knows what she's doing!"

"...Do I, though…?" Chat Noir muttered softly enough that no one heard him as the three boys all charged towards Rena Rogue.

o~o

Ladybug once again zipped towards her house, but this time she didn't flip into her room as she had the Horse Miraculous with her already.

Chance: Makoto, you're up!

Queen: Shujin Academy Student Council Room.

One Voyage later, Shujin Academy's Student Council President joined Ladybug on the roof of the Dupain-Cheng Bakery.

"So, what's the plan?" she asked, Pollen hovering anxiously above her head.

"It's Alya. Hawkmoth must have akumatized her when she saw Yusuke with the Fox Miraculous. She's likely still bitter because of what Lila said about Ladybug replacing all the heroes."

"Huh?" Makoto gasped, "What did she say?"

Ladybug blinked, then felt like face-palming. She never told them!

"It was after Ryuji debuted as Saruchame. The next day at school Lila was telling everyone in my class that Ladybug was planning to replace the heroes all along, and Miracle Queen was advantageous to Ladybug as a result!"

Pollen flinched a little at the sound of her old holder and Ladybug felt her heart clench. Ever since her betrayal, Chloe had always been a touchy subject for the Bee Kwami.

"Well, that's stupid," Makoto scowled, "and they still believed her?"

"Yes! They still believe that she's my 'best friend'," Ladybug exclaimed, "But never mind that right now, we have to go!"

"Right! Let's get this over with!" Makoto nodded in determination.

"You know what to say, my queen!" Pollen exclaimed eagerly, having shaken off the sorrow already.

"Please don't call me that… Pollen, Buzz On!" Makoto shouted, and Pollen vanished with a giggle into the rose gold hair comb nestled in Makoto's locks.

With a spin, Makoto's body was engulfed in yellow light. Unlike Chloe's skintight suit, Makoto's outfit seemed a bit looser but still form-fitting. Her pants were mostly black, with yellow zig-zag stripes running up the legs. Just like Ann, Makoto's knees were sporting some knee-pads, but these ones were pure black. Her arms had golden yellow armored gloves that ran up to her elbows. She even had a gold breastplate around her midriff and shoulders. Throwing her head back, a gold headband wrapped around her head, the ends flapping in the wind. Swiping her hand upon her face, a black mask materialized and across her face, with gold highlighting around her eyes. She spun her spinning top around as if it appeared in her hand, before clicking it to her side before folding her arms.

She was ready for action.

Ladybug whistled and even clapped a little. "Nice! I like it!"

"Thanks! You can call me Mitsubachi! Honeybee in English."

"Cool! Now come on, let's back our boys up!" Ladybug grinned, spinning her yo-yo and launching it at a lamppost. She let it drag her across the skylight. She heard a zipping sound behind her and nearly laughed out loud when she saw Mak-Mitsubachi swinging right after her with her top.

This was going to be fun!

o~o

Shortly after Ladybug left, the boys figured out what exactly happened if someone got hit by one of Rena Rogue's darts. It happened when one of the darts missed Kijutsu-shi and hit an unsuspecting civilian. Once the dart hit, the man's eyes went blank and he began to scream in absolute terror. It seemed that getting hit by the darts caused someone to hallucinate their greatest fears, so avoiding the darts became top priority.

Fortunately, Rena Rogue's attention only seemed to be focused on Kijutsu-shi, and due to her rage, she wasn't aiming very well, so he could easily dodge most of the attacks.

Still, dodging only worked for so long, and the more they dodged the more civilians got hit as well. Kobra had been hesitant to turn on Second Chance since Ladybug hadn't gotten back yet.

"Ugh, this is getting ridiculous!" Chat Noir exclaimed, finally losing his patience, "Cataclysm!"

With Chat's hand now swirling with dark energy, he attempted to charge at Rena Rogue.

"Chat, wait!" Kobra exclaimed, leaping after him.

Fortunately for the cat hero, two zipping sounds met their ears and one wrapped around his waist while the other smacked the incoming dart out of the way.

"Sorry to keep you boys waiting!" Mitsubachi greeted with a grin, recoiling her top back.

"What's this, another replacement?" Rena Rogue snarled, "Well, at least she looks competent, unlike Chloe!"

Mitsubachi scowled, but held her tongue, knowing the akuma was trying to rile her up.

"What's going on?" Ladybug demanded, noticing the panicking civilians.

"Those blow darts make people hallucinate," Kijutsu-shi reported quickly, "it seems of one's worst nightmares."

"Good to know," Ladybug nodded, spinning her yo-yo rapidly. Chat Noir carefully got up, making sure he didn't destroy the building below them, "the akuma is likely in her flute-gun thing."

"Well, how exactly can we get close enough?" Mitsubachi asked, "If we try to charge her directly, she can just shoot us, and we likely won't be able to dodge in time!"

"You're right. Lucky Charm!" Ladybug shouted and once again, in a shower of Ladybugs another object fell from the sky. This time, it was much bigger from a police badge.

"Laundry detergent?!" Ladybug gasped as she stumbled from catching the polka-dotted red crate it fell down in.

"Perhaps it's a sign for you to clean up your act, Ladybug!" Rena Rogue taunted as she blew more darts at the group, who promptly scattered.

As Ladybug flipped in the air, she spotted a fire hydrant that lit up with her lucky vision. Then as she landed, Chat Noir lit up, followed by the laundry detergent, then Kijutsu-shi, specifically his flute, then Kobra, and finally Mitsubachi.

With a grin, a plan formulated in her head.

"Chat Noir! The fire hydrant!"

His eyes shifted between her and the hydrant before he grinned mischievously. With a feline yowl, he leaped for the hydrant, his Cataclysm dragging across it.

With a *boom* the hydrant exploded, shooting water everywhere.

With a grin, Ladybug dropped the detergent into the now flooded street. Immediately, soap bubbles started foaming everywhere.

"This should not be possible…" she heard Mitsubachi mutter somewhere behind her. She barely stifled a snigger.

Rena Rogue yelled in frustration as her field of vision was suddenly obstructed by the bubble barrier. No vision, no heroes to shoot after all.

Taking her distraction to her advantage, she signaled to Kobra to finally activate his power and she leaped towards Kijutsu-shi. Pulling the fox artist closer, she whispered urgently in his ear. With a nod, he leaped towards the other building.

Finally she swung towards their newest recruit.

"Once she charges at Kijutsu-shi's mirage, use your power to paralyze her," she instructed.

Mitsubachi winced, "I haven't had a chance to practice it yet. Will it work?"

"It should. Just pull the string on your top and say 'Venom'. That'll activate the power. Once she's distracted, stab her with it, like a bee!"

Mitsubachi smirked, "With great pleasure, Ladybug!" Doing exactly what Ladybug instructed, Mitsubachi pulling back the string of her top, "Venom!" Instantly, the top's size increased and pulsed brightly with yellow light.

Moments later, the familiar sound of Kijutsu-shi's flute rang through the air. There was a flash directed in the bubbles below and Rena Rogue's eyes widened.

Instead of simply shooting the figure though, she charged at it, swinging her flute like an ax…

...Only to swing through Kijutsu-shi's as he vanished into mist.

"What?!" she screamed, "Are you trying to mock me?!"

"Ever heard the phrase 'to see authenticity, one must be dispassionately realistic?' It seems even when you had the power of illusion, you still fail to see through the illusions of others even now!" Kijutsu-shi's voice chastised.

"What the hell does that mean?!"

Before Rena Rogue could do anything else though, she felt a sharp pinch on her back. Unfortunately, she couldn't move to turn to see who had hit her.

"All yours, Ladybug!" Mitsubachi shouted with a grin, snatching the flute and flinging it towards the heroine.

Quickly catching it, Ladybug glanced at Kobra, "How many times?"

"Just three. Took him a few tries to get the right illusion," he smiled, "I had to convince him to just keep it simple. He can go crazy some other time."

Ladybug chuckled as she snapped the flute in two and the akuma emerged.

One Miraculous Cure later and 'pound it!, Paris was returned to its former glory.

Alya was laying in a ball on the ground.

Ladybug looked at her with pity, and looked back at the quartet.

"Can you give us a minute?" she asked softly, "I'll come collect your Miraculous in a bit."

The group looked uneasy, but with a jerk of Kobra's head, Kijutsu-shi and Mitsubachi both turned and leaped up to the rooftops.

Chat Noir was still there.

"...I'll talk to you tonight Chat, okay?"

Chat grimaced but nodded, noticing his ring beeping. He quickly fled as well.

"Miss Cesaire. I understand you feel... betrayed. That was not my intention… but I made it clear that I couldn't give you the Fox Miraculous again. I thought you understood that-" she began.

"Why wasn't I good enough?" Alya whispered.

Ladybug stopped and carefully considered her words.

"You were... It depends on the situation..."

"King Monkey... Ryuko... that rabbit chick… Pegasus... Chloe freaking Bourgeois?! Now these new guys?! Why didn't you come to me to help?" Alya hissed, sinking her head deeper into her arms.

"Alya... each situation calls for a unique solution…" Ladybug explained carefully, not understanding where all of this bitterness to the other heroes was coming from, "I couldn't always call on the fox… there's sometimes not enough time to find you or-"

"That's bullshit!" Alya shouted, leaping to her feet, "You follow my blog, you know I keep an eye out for akumas all the time! So why?! Why haven't you picked me again?! I deserve it!"

Ladybug breathed slowly through her nose to squash the emotions of sorrow and grief rising to the surface. If only Alya knew how untrue that statement was right now.

"Being a hero isn't a game. It's a massive responsibility! Regardless of how we feel, Hawkmoth knows your identity as Rena Rouge!" Ladybug exclaimed, noting her earring was beeping in warning, "And if you think you're so entitled for a Miraculous only proves that you don't deserve one!"

Alya blinked and backed up at that proclamation. No… Ladybug couldn't be serious!

"But-"

Ladybug raised her hand, silencing Alya with the gesture alone, "The decision is final. There's a new fox now. Rena Rouge and all the old heroes are officially retired… I'm sorry."

With that final utterance, Ladybug swung away down the road, leaving one fallen hero behind.

o~o

AN: So... yeah, I'm sure everyone knew this was coming at some point.

I hope you enjoyed Bee!Makoto. I kind of gave her Samurai-ninja look as you can see. I think Pollen could really use someone with Makoto's personality to help her get over Chloe.

Also, as to why I'm updating on a 'Voltron week', technically I finished this chapter last night but my beta couldn't look it over until this morning, so I technically didn't break any rules.

But, now I'm back to Voltron. Not sure if I'll update this week, but the next chapter for that is about halfway done. I'll try to grind through it, but I won't be making promises.