Mira woke up the next morning just as the sun was starting to shine through the window and onto her face. She sat up with a yawn, stretching her arms to either side, twisting her neck to work out the kinks. For as much as she was used to sleeping on different surfaces – she'd spent a week sleeping on a garbage bag in a homeless camp under a bridge when she thought the Bat was stoking a gang war in Croatia – the last year of sleeping in the same bed every night had made it a little harder to go back. She frowned, running her fingers through her hair to work out some of the knots, and glanced down at the side table where Paxx had made a nest for herself. The Kwami was missing.

Something rustled from the direction of the kitchenette, and Paxx returned with a package of dried berries larger than herself. "I could get used to this," she observed, tossing a dried blueberry in the air and catching it in her mouth.

Mira chuckled. "No more 'roughing it'," she agreed. "Although in a way this has been a return to what we do best: travel to a new city, search for hints of the Bat…" She frowned. "What do you make of this illness?"

Paxx chewed slowly on her berry. "You mean, could it be Bella?" Mira nodded. Paxx tapped her chin thoughtfully. "It could be – we can't say for certain until we find the origin. But it does have some of the same symptoms as some of his other handiwork, especially with how contagious it is."

Mira opened her mouth to respond but froze when she heard someone shift in Luka and Kagami's bedroom. She waited a moment to see if the sound would be repeated, but the suite fell back into the previous early morning silence. She smiled affectionately. "I suppose that's one way it's different…"

Paxx giggled lightly. "It's so nice that you're – we're – working with others! The last time a Dove worked with another miraculous user, we were teamed up with Bella!"

Mira hummed, shaking her head in disbelief. "That's still such a foreign concept…"

"Which part?"

"Both," admitted Mira, pursing her lips and looking back down at the sofa bed. "The idea that a Bat and a Dove worked together once, back in the days of Atlantis… And then to think about the team we have now. Luka and Kagami and Juleka and Rose… they all care about each other so much."

"And about you," Paxx pointed out, raising an eyebrow at her. "They've included you in their group, too."

"Yeah…" Mira blushed, a fond smile on her lips. The last time someone had really cared about her while she was fighting had been before her mother fully relinquished the miraculous, when she had still been in training. But now she never had to face an enemy alone – she had people who really cared about her and wanted to protect her. Even though the Bat now had allies, she had friends – family, even – of her own. Though they had never said as much, Luke, Kagami, and the others would do anything for each other – for her. She sighed heavily.

"I know that look…" Paxx furrowed her eyebrows and cocked her head. She held out a handful of dried strawberries to Mira, who took one and popped it in her mouth, chewing pensively.

"It's just… I know how much Luka wants to keep everyone safe," Mira explained. "It's not that hard to see why. I know Juleka worries about Rose. Kagami's arm is still healing. They're all more than capable fighters, but I also know what the Bat is capable of. We both do. He will kill without hesitation."

Paxx nodded sadly, her shoulders sagging. "He is not an enemy to be underestimated. You just need to be that much faster than him."

"I know." She frowned. "But what if I'm not? What if the others get hurt because of me? Because of my mission? I can survive – I've survived this long against him–"

"–not without some injuries," Paxx interjected, frowning, a worried look in her eyes. She glanced down at Mira's shoulder.

"–but what I can't keep them safe?" Mira continued, gesturing toward the bedrooms. "Or what if Luka really is put in the position of having to choose between me or Kagami or Juleka or Rose?"

Paxx cocked her head, wide-eyed. "Are you worried he would choose the others over you?"

Mira scoffed, shaking her head. "Of course not; I know he would choose Kagami or Juleka or Rose over me." She folded her arms, letting out a breath. "Honestly, I wouldn't blame him. And I can accept that – if it means stopping the Bat finally after all these centuries, I would gladly give my life for that purpose."

Paxx patted her shoulder, a far-off look in her eyes. "I wouldn't want to see you killed."

"I wouldn't exactly want it, either," agreed Mira, holding up her hand for the Kwami to alight. She stroked Paxx's head gently, the Kwami leaning into her finger without looking away from her. Mira sighed. "My greatest fear if that were to happen is that he might get his hands on you, meaning that he would win after all these centuries… That's a nice thing about having a team now: if anything happens to me, I know that Luka and Kagami will keep you safe, that Ladybug and Cat Noir will take care of you. But the Bat isn't their problem. This has been my family's problem – our mission – for so long… if that's what it takes to complete the mission…" She shrugged "… I would be okay with it." Her shoulders slumped. "But I don't want to see anyone else get hurt or killed because of my mission."

Paxx frowned, examining her face carefully. "What are you suggesting?" Her eyes widened. "You're not thinking about leaving the Heroes of Paris, are you?" she fretted. "You know we're better off working with other miraculous heroes than we are on our own. Miraculous work better together than apart."

"What? No!" Mira shook her head adamantly. "Of course I'm not going to leave them! Certainly not while the Bat is still working with the Lynchpin and his group. I mean, if he moves on from Paris, then I'll have to follow. That's the mission, after all." Paxx's shoulders slumped, and Mira stroked the feathers on the top of her head consolingly. "Don't worry; now that we know these miraculous groups and temples and where they are all located, we're not going to lose touch with them," she assured the Kwami. "If we're lucky, we might even end up close to one of their temples. I know how much you appreciate seeing the other Kwamis."

"It is nice to see Carro and Kheaa, and even Dorreen, regularly," Paxx agreed, bobbing her head. "But I'm not just concerned for myself, you know…" She sighed. "You have been doing so much better now that you have friends and teammates to support you. I don't want you to lose that support."

"I don't think I want to, either," Mira answered. She pursed her lips. "But still… if I can take the Bat by surprise and defeat him without anyone else around to get hurt…"

"If you can do that, you will have done something that a millennium of your ancestress Doves haven't managed," Paxx pointed out, giving her a meaningful look.

"Well, there's a first time for everything, right?"

Paxx eyed her dubiously. "Do you have a plan?"

Mira shrugged. "I mean, those people yesterday were from out of town, so that might be where this illness began. And if that's the case, then the Bat could be close to where they live."

"Or he could have gotten them somewhere else, between there and Rio," Paxx pointed out. "Or he could have started somewhere else entirely, and someone could have brought the illness to their town. Or he might have started it there but moved on like last time. This could go nowhere."

"Well, if it does, then I'll come back and find the others and we're no worse off than we were before, aside from having one less lead to check out."

Paxx cocked her head. "Shouldn't you bring the others with you for backup?"

Mira shook her head. "I can move more quickly and quietly on my own. If it's all of us, then he could see us coming and be prepared for us. And if this really is a wild goose chase, then he might still be in Rio, and it would be better for the others to stay here and keep an eye on Carnival."

Paxx folded her arms, her mouth twisted around in a frown. "Okay…" She raised an eyebrow. "Are you at least going to leave a note?"

Mira furrowed her brows in thought. If she did leave a note, then the others wouldn't be worried about her. But at the same time, what was she going to say? "Found a lead; be back for supper"? She didn't know how long this would take – she might return in hours; she might return tomorrow. What if her note distracted them from Rio? Wouldn't a note just worry them unnecessarily? "No," she decided. "Worst-case scenario we can call."

Paxx let out a slow breath and nodded. "It's your decision, kiddo."

Mira quietly dressed, repacked her duffel, and refolded the foldout bed, setting her duffel on the floor next to the sofa. Slinging her purse over her shoulder, she grabbed an apple for breakfast and left, closing the door quietly behind her. Seeing no one in the hallway, she climbed the stairs and stepped out onto the hotel roof. The sun was still low in the sky as she stretched her arms out, twisting to work out her tension. "Paxx, Bring peace." The moment her transformation had finished, she whispered, "Aripi," and her wings sprouted from her shoulder blades. Coiling her legs she sprang into the air, pumping hard to gain altitude. Finding an updraft she spread her wings wide, gliding north over the Guanabara Bay.