AN: This is being published more as an anthology of one-shots set in the "RooT"-verse (or 2039-verse), the alternate timeline first introduced in "Running out of Time." I'd encourage reading that story first. If you want the short version, Marinette was killed in action in 2027, and Adrien went insane with grief, unified the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous, and slaughtered the majority of the world's heroes. Chloe was able to rally the survivors, and she brought "Mind Games"-verse Adrien and Marinette into her timeline to help her stop "Cat Bug Noir."

A large boy hid in the shadows of a filthy alleyway between two dilapidated apartment buildings. For the last two years he had moved around frequently, never staying in the same place for more than a week or so at a time, trying to stay one step ahead of CBN's troopers. Early on he had considered mingling in with the other refugees, perhaps trying to find a spot with the small group of homeless people camped along the Seine, but he had heard too many warnings about spies infiltrating those camps. And he had spent half his life being told that he had inherited his father's stature, to go with his mother's face: even if they didn't know about him, they might still recognize him. He was better off on his own – he clenched his jaw. He had been on his own for so long, even before he ran away.

But unfortunately, being on his own he had no news of what was happening in the larger world. Clearly something had happened two weeks ago, but what? Had they won? Had they lost? Was everyone he had ever known now dead?

The only reason he knew that something had happened was the strange swirl of red magic that had expanded through Paris from CBN's mansion lair. The Swirl had covered everything, filled in potholes, repaired long-damaged buildings… and then it had vanished over the horizon. Since then the troopers had been almost nonexistent – he had seen one, only a day or so after the Swirl, pulling off his helmet and armor and throwing it into a dumpster. After the Swirl, more and more people had been out on the streets, but still he had remained hidden. But now, after staying in the same place since the Swirl, it was past time for him to move.

The boy looked around cautiously before sneaking out to cut across the road. The street appeared deserted in both directions. The cannibalized shell of an old car lay across the street, blocking it to any ground traffic that might have tried to pass. But in the three weeks he had been here, he hadn't seen more than a handful of people; most likely he was alone. With another scan of his surroundings, he hiked his backpack up higher on his shoulder, hunched low, and prepared to sprint to the next alley.

Suddenly, he heard a whistling sound in the air above him and froze, pressing himself as close against the alley wall as he possibly could, though even as he did so he knew it was a useless gesture. A figure in red with a dark complexion and short reddish-brown ponytail swung past, level with the second floor of the apartment buildings. The boy's eyes narrowed suspiciously on catching sight of the polka-dot pattern. Could this be another of CBN's tricks, trying to lure out the Resistance? He tensed, watching the figure carefully. The figure turned her head and looked down into his alleyway, her eyes widening in surprise as they fixed on his face.

Crap.

The figure shifted in midair and veered straight toward him, angling to land within arm's reach. He tensed, slipping his hand into his backpack, his fingers closing around the pipe he had scavenged during his first month on the run. She landed in front of him, her yo-yo recoiling into her hand. He drew the pipe – it would hardly protect him from a miraculous user, but it was better than nothing.

"Alex?"

He froze, the pipe still only partway out of his bag. "You know me?"

She rolled her eyes. "Duh. Tikki, Spots off."

He blinked to hide his eyes from the bright red flash. Then– "Ana!?" His jaw dropped. "You're Ladybug now?"

"Who else?" she asked, placing her hand on her hip and arching an eyebrow at him. She fished in her pocket for a macaroon and passed it to the Kwami sitting on her shoulder – Tikki, if he remembered right.

The Kwami looked at him and beamed brightly. "Hello, Alex!" she squeaked. "It's been so long since I've seen you! My, and you've gotten so big in twelve years! Just like your Papa!"

He blinked at the Kwami in bewilderment before turning back to Ana. "What the hell are you doing here?" he demanded.

"Ridiculous." She gave him a deadpan look. "Isn't it obvious?" she asked rhetorically. "Looking for you! I've been looking for you for two years!" She threw her arms around him in a hug. Hesitantly Alex hugged her in return, awkwardly patting her back as he lifted her off the ground, her legs swinging up behind her. "I was so sad when you ran off," she told him. "I've missed you."

Alex frowned. "You missed me?" he asked dubiously.

"Of course!" She leaned back and stared at him in surprise. "You were my best friend – my only friend, really. Everyone missed you: Uncle Max, Aunt Sabrina, Mom–"

"Your mom," he interrupted, his frown deepening. The same one who had left his own mother behind to die…

"I'm sorry," whispered Ana in his ear, hugging him again. "I always liked your mom."

He snorted humorlessly. "That's because she wasn't raising you…" he muttered.

"She was always so sweet!" Tikki commented, smiling fondly. "She always had a cookie for me."

"Yeah, well, you didn't exactly see what she had become," he retorted, frowning. "She wasn't so sweet anymore then…" He glared at Ana. "At least you had a mother who loved you…"

"I can't imagine your mother not loving you!" replied Tikki, wide-eyed. "She was always so full of love…"

"Not after father."

Ana sighed. "I wish it could have been different," she admitted. "But you know Mom and Aunt Sabrina loved you – your mom did, too, I think. In her own way. But the others will all be so happy to see you!" she told him, a small smile on her lips. "They're waiting at our new headquarters."

He let out a humorless snort. "That's where you belong, Ana," he told her. "Not me. I just don't fit in there. Not since my mom…"

"You belong with us," she insisted firmly, a severe look in her eye, her mouth set in a thin line. "You are family."

He frowned and placed her back on her feet. "Did you forget what happened to my family?"

"I never could have forgotten." She shook her head. "I tried to be there for you after your mom… left," Ana replied, her lip trembling. "You pushed me away. You pushed everyone away. And then I woke up one morning and you had gone. Mom said we had to move that same day in case CBN caught you and found out where we were."

He scoffed. "I never would have talked!"

"I know; I told Mom as much," she replied. "But she said CBN could break anyone; it wasn't safe for us to stay. I wanted to stay, or at least to leave a note for you if you came back, but she wouldn't let me – she said it would be too dangerous."

"Good; I never went back there," he told her. "Too many memories."

She nodded sympathetically. "Aunt Sabrina started letting me leave a little more often after you…" She trailed off, sniffling. "I said I was training, or I was scavenging, or I was spying. But that wasn't really it. Every time I left, I was trying to find you."

"Well, you found me." He frowned, examining her closely. "Why?"

"Because you're my friend? Because everyone misses you? Because I'm looking for a partner?"

He cocked his head, eyes narrowing suspiciously. "'Partner'?" She fished around in her pocket and pulled out a dark brown box. Alex stared at it. "Is that…?" She nodded. "But how?"

"We beat him!" She exclaimed, grinning excitedly. "Didn't you know? It's been two weeks… CBN is gone! How else would I have these?" She gestured to her earrings for emphasis. "Mom told me I can pick my own partner, and you were my first, last, and only choice. If I'm going to be Ladybug, then you are going to be my Cat Noir."

Alex was silent, his eyes shifting between Ana and the box. She wanted him to take this thing? She wanted to unleash another Cat on the world, after everything the last one had done? She wanted to give him the power that had destroyed an entire country and practically destroyed the planet? He was supposed to bear and control the power that had almost destroyed the entire world, leading it to the brink of destruction under the dictatorship of the previous Cat Miraculous holder?

It was on the tip of his tongue to tell her where the miraculous could go, when he paused, staring at her and at the miraculous box in her hand. But still he made no move to take the box.

Finally Ana pushed the box into his hands and pulled out a sheet of paper. "Well," she began awkwardly, "This is yours now. We're at this address. So let me know if you change your mind." She pursed her lips and shared a look with Tikki, who nodded encouragingly. Ana sighed. "Spots on." Two minutes later, she was gone.

After she left, Alex started, finally looking up from the box in his hand. "Wait – Ana! I never even said yes!"