Hey, Star here! Sense today Solecrusher is supposed to air today, I'm celebrating with this fanfiction! I personally don't want to see Chloe and Zoe be enemies, and still kind of want Chloe Redemption, so this is both of that. If I got Zoe's personalty wrong, sorry but this was written before the episode, and I was going off of what little information we had.
Also warning: There is some language but it's very mild. And canon parental I-sucks-a-lot.
"You're ridiculous! Utterly ridiculous!" Zoe was shaking, shaking fast and shaking hard. She promptly ran out onto the balcony, tears streaming down her face. The words cutting through her being like a knife. Why? Why was this turning out to be such a nightmare?
"Excuse me?" She turned around and saw the butler, holding something under a silver bin on a plate. He regarded her with kind eyes. "You seem distressed."
"Yeah it's Chloe." she sighed as she rubbed her eyes. "I thought moving here would mean at least I'd get a sister out of it, but she's a total brat!" she huffed and crossed her arms as she stared at the butler. "What's she got to complain about?"
"Mademoiselle has often been left alone to her own devices for extended periods of time." the butler replied.
"So have I, she has a dad!" Zoe protested, balling her hands into fists. "I only had that bitch of a mom."
"Her father was always very busy. Lots of love but so little time. He tried to show his love through riches. But he ended up spoiling the apple."
A moment passed. And while the sun was shining, Zoe barely felt its warmth. "What are you saying?" Zoe asked, tilting her head at the butler.
"I'm saying that she's never had an equal relationship. And that she would benefit greatly from someone who never gives up on her. Even Ladybug in her eyes abandoned her for her own goals." The butler replied. "You may be the only thing capable of giving her what she needs."
"Ok, but how would I get to her?" Zoe asked, and the butler opened up the bin revealing a teddy bear. Zoe gasped, her eyes widened. "I have one just like that!"
"This is Mr Cuddly." he explained. "He used to cheer up Mademoiselle when she was sad."
"I have Mr. Snuggly." The words slipped out before she could stop them, and she blushed, but the butler simply had kind soft eyes.
"Get her to open up." the butler said quietly. "She could benefit from a family member who doesn't leave her." Zoe sighed, and grabbed the bear. She then walked back into the room. Chloe was lounging on the bed.
"What do you want?"
She took a deep breath in, trying to summon every ounce of strength. "Chloe, I think we need to have a talk."
"About what? The fact that Mom obviously preferred you to me?" Zoe's jaw dropped, as she stared at Chloe for a few minutes, not sure how to explain. Chloe was also quiet, and Zoe suspected that that had been a slip of the tongue.
"You're crazy if you think that." She finally settled. "She only kept me to keep me in line. Now she's bringing me here to bolster her own reputation. She doesn't prefer me. She doesn't prefer anyone besides who suits her needs at that exact moment because she's a bitch."
"Well what's it in for you?" Chloe snapped. "Someone obviously talked to you to get you to talk to me. Was it Jean-Alex?"
Yeah, because he cares about you moron! Zoe thought, taking a deep breath in. That's more than I had. "Chloe. I don't want to be enemies." Zoe said firmly. "I don't know what happened before I came. But I do know this: If you're the only family I have that's not a completely irredeemable bitch, I'm going to take that chance." Chloe stared at her.
"You're lying." Chloe's hands balled into fists as she got up from her bed and matched over at Zoe. "Ladybug tried to redeem me, and even she gave up on me."
"And I imagine that's hard." Zoe replied, wincing internally. "Do you know how much it hurt when I realized my own Mom didn't care for me? That my own father didn't even know I existed?"
Chloe shook her head. "You don't get it. If the savior of pairs, freer of the damned or whatever can't redeem me and deems me beyond hope, what hope does a middle class of the likes of you have? She'll probably scoop you up and turn you into the next Queen Bee! There's no hope for me. I'm the Queen in Hawk Moth's board game."
"Well for starters, we live together." Zoe said, getting around the room. "I bet Ladybug would be a lot more sympathetic if she knew of your home life. And unlike Ladybug, I don't plan on giving up. And about the bee thing, well even if I can't say no, I still think you're the OG. As for Hawk Moth, he's the king. He can't do anything without the queen, you. So don't let yourself be his pawn."
Chloe narrowed her eyes, and for a moment all was quiet. Zoe's heart was pounding in her chest, and she was sneaking peeks back at the balcony. Holy crow where the hell did I get all that crap? "You're lying." Chloe finally spat. "No one gives anything without demanding anything in return."
"You're right." Zoe agreed. "Which is why in exchange for me not giving up on you, I want you to improve yourself." she pointed a finger right at Chloe's nose. "Like it or not we're sisters. And if I'm stuck with that bitch for a mother, I want at least one good thing to come out of it. You can either become it, or someone or something else will become it. It's your choice." she held out a hand. "So what do you say?"
Chloe stared at it, then stared at the bear in her hands. "Where did you get that?!" she demanded, making a grab but Zoe jumped back.
"Mr Cuddly, your butler." Zoe replied, holding the bear out of Chloe's reach. "How about as a show of good faith, I'll keep Mr Cuddly, and you can keep Mr Snuggly. If either bear is damaged, the deal is off. But I'll still keep trying. Got it?"
"Mr Snuggly?"
"My bear toy. Mom gave me one just like it." Zoe said, her face softening. "I'm sure they'll make great friends." She held Mr Cuddly up. "Do you want to let them play? Let them be friends with each other? And have fun with a fellow bear?"
Chloe growled as she stared at the bear. "ARGH! I hate that you know how to guilt trip me!" she pointed a finger at Zoe. "FINE! I agree with your ridiculous deal! But know that if you go back on your word Mr Snuggly is never going to see the light of day again!" Zoe gulped. What the hell did I just do?
But she swallowed again, and replied. "Well remember anything you do to Mr Snuggly I'll do to Mr Cuddly." Chloe nodded, eyes narrowing.
And with that, they shook hands.
I want to know how you felt about this. Was anyone besides Zoe out of character? Would you be interested in seeing more? This is important, because I am legitimately wondering if I should make this into an AU because I'm 1000% sure Canon's going to disprove this. Also, I wanted to use the butler because I feel like he was wasted potential. That's all for now, have a good day and see you later! -Starmaker5.