Chapter 2:

Enter the Villain

Université Sorbonne

"You… you can't do this to me! I have given this university the best years of my life!" Professor Gerard Cheval protested.

"I-I'm afraid we have very little choice, Prof. Cheval," the Dean explained. "There have been numerous complaints from both students and faculty about your… shall we say, methods? I'm very sorry… but as of now, I'm afraid we have to let you go."

"It is not my fault that the students are too stupid to properly appreciate my lessons! I should not have to be the one to suffer for their failure!"

"I'm sorry, but these are some very serious complaints. We simply cannot keep you on our faculty at this time. Now…. If you would, please clean out your office."


Cheval regarded the box on his desk. Years of service to the university… years of shaping young minds… reduced to this.

He picked up the pointer that he'd used to illustrate his points on the blackboard. For years, it had been the instrument with which he'd passed on knowledge to the next generation. Now, it was just another thing to be packed away in this box.

Imperceptible to human eyes, a tiny black butterfly, drawn by Cheval's feelings of anger and betrayal, flew toward the pointer and alit on it. Upon contact, the butterfly, or akuma as it was called, merged with the object and infused it with its dark energy.

And, as if a switch was flipped, Cheval knew that he deserved revenge. And he didn't care who had to suffer to make it happen.

"Headmaster," a sinister voice resounded in his head. "I am Hawk Moth, and let's say I have taken an interest in academia. For years, students have failed to take heed of your lessons. Now, you shall teach this city a lesson it shall never forget!"

"Yes," Cheval declared, fist clenched. "I'll give them all a master class in suffering!"

"All I ask in return is that you defeat Labybug and Cat Noir, and bring me the source of their power," the voice demanded. An image appeared in Cheval… no, Headmaster's mind, a pair of red polka-dot ear studs and a ring imprinted with a cat's paw logo. "Their Miraculous."

"A small price to pay for the opportunity to shape the minds of the future," Cheval agreed, as dark energies enveloped and transformed him.


Madame Toussaud's Wax Museum

"Isn't it amazing?" gushed Alya. "They have heroes from all over the world here!"

"I don't know," Marinette answered. "I've always found wax statues to be… kind of creepy. Don't let me stop you from fangirling, though." In truth, what really put her off was the large, lifelike statue of Ladybug, one-half of Paris's premiere crimefighting duo.

For, you see, Marinette herself was Ladybug. The Kwami in her purse was tied to the earrings she wore, the source of her powers. And while she was proud to serve, large ostentatious tributes like these were kind of embarrassing.

"As if anyone could! I mean… look at this collection!" She indicated a figure of a male in a black-and-brown tiger-themed uniform, and his partner, a blue-haired woman in a heavy-metal-rock-inspired outfit, wielding a guitar like a weapon.

"El Tigre and Thrash," read Nino off the plaque next to the exhibit.

"They're based in Miracle City, Mexico," elaborated Alya, grateful for any chance to expound on her favorite subject. "She has an enchanted guitar that she won from the Queen of the Dead, and he gets tiger-related powers from his belt-buckle."

"A boy-girl duo protecting a city, one of them cat-themed…" joked Nino. "Sounds kind of familiar."

"What sounds familiar?" asked a familiar voice.

"Nice of you to finally join us, Adrien," Nino remarked sardonically. "So, where's this new old friend of yours?"

"Rhonda was tired from the trip," Adrien explained, "But she promised to meet up with us later. I think you guys'll like her." He looked around. "So, superhero exhibit, huh? I assume Alya's giving us the guided tour."

"Naturally," admitted Alya, moving on to a muscular blue-and-gold-clad superhero with a rather ridiculous looking yellow cowl-and-mask combo. "Here, we have the UK's superhero, Banan-"

"Oh, ADRI-KINS!" a shrill voice called out.

Marinette groaned inwardly. Of all the people to intrude today…

Chloe Bourgeois, spoiled, obnoxious daughter of Paris's mayor and wealthiest resident, shoved her way through the crowd. "There you are." She threw her arms around Adrien, much to his clear discomfort. "Thank you so much for inviting me along today!"

"I… just said hi to you outside," protested Adrien.

"Yes, but ours is an unspoken bond," gushed the snooty blonde. "You don't need to invite me to come inside with you, because the two of us are so close I can practically sense it!"

Ugh, if I have to listen to much more of this, I'm going to have to start seeing a dentist for teeth-grinding, thought Marinette.

Adrien cleared his throat. "Anyway, I think Alya was about to tell us about Bana-"

"BO-RING," Chloe declared. "How about we ditch this place and go somewhere that isn't totally lame?"

Unseen, Marinette rolled her eyes. She knew full well that Chloe was a huge Ladybug fangirl, possibly even as big as Alya.

"There's nothing lame about superheroes!" protested Alya, understandably upset that her life's passion had been insulted. "They're out there risking their lives to protect the people!"

"More like embarrassing themselves," Chloe scoffed. "I mean… look at that one!" She gestured dismissively at a statue of an American hero named Joule. "She's a literal monster. How does she even leave the house looking like she does?"

Marinette could see Adrien bristle visibly at Chloe's display of narrow-mindedness. "You really shouldn't judge people by how they look, Chloe," he scolded.

"Why not? I mean, sure, not everyone can be as perfect as me, but they could at least make the effort."

"Who cares?" Marinette snapped back. "So she's purple! So she has some extra body parts! She still does her best to help the people of her city! I… I bet someone like Ladybug would be proud to work with someone like her if she got that chance!"

"She'd probably be a great interview, too," commented Alya. "I've heard she's really charming in person."

"Hmmph," huffed Chloe, turning up her nose. "Well, there's no accounting for taste, I suppose, C'mon, Adrikins, let's lose these losers and you can go buy me an ice cream."

"Actually… I promised Nino I'd hang out with him today. Maybe some other time," Adrien replied unenthusiastically. Even he had had his limit of Chloe for the day, it seemed.

"Well, if you get tired of slumming it, I'm sure you know where to find me," Chloe retorted, turning her back and strutting out, much to Marinette's relief.

Now, if only she was able to speak a full, coherent sentence to Adrien, she'd be sitting pretty.

"So… which one's your favorite, Marinette?" he asked.

"The… um… Cape…. Guy… Man?" Off to the side, Alya facepalmed, hard.

Looks like today wasn't the day.


Meanwhile…

A bizarre figure floated above the streets of Paris, a gaunt man with a pale green complexion, clad in academic robes and a mortarboard hat, wielding a long pointer stick.

"So, let me go, will they?" he declared to no one and everyone. "Well, fine! The university was holding me back, anyway! Now, all of Paris shall be my classroom! You there!" He indicated a passerby with his pointer. "Tell me the melting point of lead!"

"Um… I… don't know?" the man answered, confused. "I mean, if you give me a chance to look it up…"

"You are unprepared! You FAIL!" He gestured with his pointer as if it was a magic want. A bolt flew from it towards the unlucky man, who froze in his tracks, an F appearing on his forehead. "Such is the penalty for ignorance in my classroom!" He turned his attention to a woman who had just witnessed the exchange. "You! Atomic weight of zinc!"

"How am I supposed to just know that off the top of my head?" she protested indignantly. "I mean, I could probably check my phone for the answer…"

"Cheating will not be tolerated! FAIL!" declared the Headmaster, paralyzing her as well, then flying off in search of more victims.


L'Hotel Bourgeois

/"I really wish I could have taken you with me, Nadine,"/ lamented Rhonda to her girlfriend, with whom she was Face-Timing on her phone.

/"Oh, sure… you and me, alone in a hotel on another continent with no adult supervision. Even my parents would balk at that,"/ teased Nadine.

/"I think you might have a point there,"/ agreed Rhonda. /"My dad would probably have an even bigger heart attack then he will when he sees my long-distance bill. Speaking of… how is Jamaica?"/

/"Oh, it's great! I saw a Jaeger's Anetia today. They're one of the more elusive nymphalid butterfly species. They can have a pretty varied range of wing patterns…"/

/"I meant, like, how's the family, how's the surf, but… I guess Nadine gonna Nadine no matter where she is."/

/"Oh, sorry… it's just, you know how I get when I see a species I've never see before. Anyway, it's been nice seeing Grandma again, and the weather's been perfect for butterfly-spotting. What about you… shop yourself raw yet?"/

/"Hardly. I just got to the hotel a half-hour ago, and I had to revert after the plane ride. Adrien invited me to hang with his friends today, then tomorrow of got the shoot to cover, and the next day I'm going home. Not a ton of time just for myself…."/

/"So, this Adrien… handsome guy, huh?"/ Nadine prodded.

/"I mean, if you're into the male model type,"? I downplayed.

/"If I was an insecure girl, I'd be very upset that you were spending time around him. If I was an insecure girl."/

/"Oh, you know there's no competition, Butterfly."/ Her fingers drifted to the clip in her hair, a gift from Nadine just before they'd departed on their respective trips. /"A bit of you is always with me."/

/"I can't believe you're still wearing that,"/ Nadine marveled. /"I bought it at 'Everything's Two Bucks or Less'. I'm pretty sure it's so cheap they legally can't call the stuff it's made out of plastic."/

/"Of course I'm still wearing it! For you, I'd wear a fez, tutu and clown shoes combo! I'd wear…. white after Labor Day for you!"

/"Wow, you really are serious."/ joked Nadine.

/"Hell yeah I-"/ Rhonda had the news station on in the background while taking to Nadine, only vaguely aware of it, but the sting of a breaking report suddenly seized her attention; as a superhero, she instinctually found herself paying attention to such things. /"Hold up, sweetheart…"/ She shifted her attention to the TV.

"This is Nadia Chamack." The reporter announced. "I am here near on site at Champs-Elysees, where an individual calling himself the Headmaster, likely yet another victim of Hawk Moth's akumas, is terrorizing the citizenry by…" she looked offscreen…. "are you kidding me? He's asking people chemistry questions and paralyzing anyone who can't answer? I swear, these villains are getting stranger and stranger…"

"You there! Reporter!" a voice called from offscreen. "Name the six noble gases!"

"Oh! Uh… let's see… there's neon… helium… I know one of them reminds me of Superman…"

"FAIL!" A beam struck the reporter, freezing her in place and marking her forehead with an F.

/"What's going on over there?"/ Nadine asked, unable to see or hear the news.

/"Trouble on the Champs-Elysees."/ answered Rhonda. She dug around in her luggage for a hidden compartment, designed to be undetectable by airport scanners. From within, the violet-skinned mutant fished out a distinctive red-gold-and-navy outfit with a customized eyeshield. /"It looks like I'll be getting some quality time in Paris's finest shopping district after all."


By now, the commotion had reached the street outside Madame Toussaud's. Noting the commotion, Marinette made a hasty exit. Once secluded, she released her kwami from her handbag. "Looks like trouble, Tikki," she said. "Spots on." Instantaneously, the sprite merged with her earings, and the girl was enveloped in a form-fitting red bodysut and matching mask, complete with a grappling yo-yo for swift transport.

Simultaneously, Adrien also excused himself, ostensibly to use the bathroom. Once inside, he roused his own kwami from his slumber in his jacket pocket.

"Uhhhh…" whined Plagg. "I told you to wake me only if it's the end of the world or if someone put out a cheese platter."

"Well, no such luck on the second one. But… well, it's probably not the end of the world, but we do have ourselves a villain problem. Claws out!"

Upon speaking his two-word command, Adrien's outfit was transformed into a black uniform with matching mask and seemingly superfluous cat ears and golden bell at his collar. For Adrien was, in fact, Paris's other resident superhero, Cat Noir.

The two, exiting from opposite sides of the building and taking different routes through the streets, converging at the Headmaster's location.

"Looks like school's back in session," remarked Cat Noir.

"Hopefully, it's obedience school. You could use it," snarked Ladybug. For, irony of ironies… while Marinette was head-over heels for Adrien, she was completely unaware of his double identity… and utterly indifferent to his super-powered alter-ego, who, compounding the irony into some kind of super-mega-ultra-irony, was utterly smitten with her own, and made no secret of it.

"You're thinking of dogs, m'lady," the Cat replied smoothly. "We cats aren't known for following the rules."

Ladybug groaned. "Less jokes, more crimefighting." The two descended on the scene, where the Headmaster had, by sheer coincidence, cornered none other than Chloe.

"You!" he demanded. "What is the chemical composition of common table salt?"

"Pfft." dismissed the haughty girl. "I don't even bother with that kind of thing when I'm in school, do you think I'm going to care now?"

"Talking back to the teacher is not tolerated in my classroom! You FAIL!" The Headmaster flicked his pointer out at the bratty blonde and fired his paralysis beam. Chloe, realizing that maybe provoking the villain hadn't been the best idea, braced for the hit, but was yanked out of its path at the last second by Ladybug's yo-yo.

"You wrinkled my sweater," she complained, ever ungrateful.

Next time I'm letting her get frozen, Ladybug told herself.

"You!" the Headmaster declared. "Interfering in the discipline of another student! FAIL!" He fired, but Ladybug nimbly evaded it.

'Sorry, Headmaster," she quipped, "but if you're in charge, consider me a drop-out!"

"Delinquency! FAIL!" He fired again and again, coming closer each time until he had a nearly point-blank shot. He would have finally nailed Ladybug, had not Cat Noir deflected his aim with a swing of his baton.

The Headmaster whirled. "You! Name all the halogens!"

"Flourine, chlorine, bromine, iodine, and astatine. " the Cat rattled off smugly. "Most people forget the last one."

"Very good…." The Headmaster said, grinning… "except you still forgot TENNESSINE!"

"Aw, come on, they didn't even name that one until a few years ago!"

"Ignorance is not tolerated in my classroom! FAIL!" He fired his paralysis beam at Cat Noir; Ladybug, thinking quickly, flung her yo-yo into the beam's path, deflecting it in another direction…. Which, unfortunately intersected with a bus driver. Paralyzed, he was unable to remove his foot from the accelerator, and the bus careened down the street, out of control, running the light and barreling down on the always-hapless Chloe, who had not left the scene like she should have, but stuck around to watch her secret idol Ladybug in action. And with both our heroes occupied with dodging the Headmaster and trying to keep other bystanders out of danger, it looked as though her umber had finally come up.

Suddenly…

"Look, up in the sky!" remarked one of said bystanders.

"It's a bat!" added another.

"In the middle of the day? Are you crazy? It's probably a drone!"

"No, it's-"

And with a heavy thud, a violet, winged, blue-and-red-figure planted herself in the bus's path. Steeling herself for the impact, she held her four hands out to catch the bus, using her superhuman strength to brace the vehicle, slowing its forward momentum until it finally stopped, mere inches away from Chloe.

The wealthy girl looked up, realizing the very superheroine whose appearance she'd insulted in the museum had just saved her life.

"You know, there are way easier ways to catch a bus," she joked.

"Not that I'm not grateful for the help, but aren't you a bit far from home, Joule?" Cat Noir asked, landing nearby after a dodge.

"Superheroes take vacations too, kitty cat," she replied, smiling. "Though this seems to be turning into a working vacation… speaking of which, shouldn't you guys be wrapping this up?"

"You!" The Headmaster had taken notice of the newcomer. "Name a chemical catalyst!"

"Oh, I know this one," Joule answered, voltage crackling around her fingers. "Electricity!"

"Corre-" The Headmaster realized too late that her answer was really just the setup-quip for an attack, as she hurled a stun-bolt of her own at the villain. He barely dodged the attack, aiming his pointer at the mutant girl. "Attacking the teacher! FAIL!" He fired at the two heroes, scattering them.

"This has gone on far enough. School's out! LUCKY CHARM!" Ladybug launched her yo-yo into the air; it released, of all things, a custard pie in a red polka-dot tin. Guess luck has a sense of humor today, she thought. Her signature power, which would instantly conjure up an object to aid victory, could definitely be random at times. Oh well, you play with the hand you're dealt. Chuckling inwardly at the absurdity of it all, she flung the pie directly at the Headmaster's face, hitting it with a satisfying splat.

"Slapstick is the lowest form of comedy! You FAIL!" the Headmaster sputtered through a face full of custard and whipped cream, swinging his pointer blindly looking for a target.

"Sorry, but class is no longer in session," declared Cat Noir. "CATACLYSM!" His hand, now charged with destructive force, lunged for the pointer, instantly disintegrating it on contact and releasing the akuma within. Smoothly, Ladybug whipped her yo-yo out and swung it to capture the dark butterfly, purging it of its evil and releasing the now- cleansed butterfly to its freedom. With his corrupted object now destroyed, Professor Cheval once more reverted to a now-unemployed science teacher.

"Well, that's done," Joule commented with a bit of uncertainty, "but his victims are still frozen. How are we going to restore them to normal?"

"Just wait," Cat Noir replied. "This is my favorite part."

"MIRACULOUS LADYBUG!" Ladybug declared, hurling what was left of the pie into the air. It exploded into a swarm of sparkling ladybugs that swept over the city, restoring the frozen victims to normal and repairing any damage that had been done, right down to the imprints Joule's hands had left in the front of the bus. Even Cheval's destroyed pointer was restored.

"Well, that's awfully convenient," marveled Joule. "Could you teach me how to do that?"

"Afraid that's a trade secret," Ladybug replied. "But thanks for your help." She held out a fist in her direction.

"Wow… am I being included in the traditional post-victory 'pound it'?"

"You've earned it," Cat Noir confirmed, holding out his own fist.

"Well, far be it from me to turn down a three-way," Joule replied with a smirk as she returned their fist-bump, causing Cat Noir to stifle a snicker and Ladybug's cheeks to turn almost as red as her uniform.

"Um… anyway," she said… "If we're all done here…"

"Wait, what do we do with that guy?" inquired Joule, indicating the recovering Cheval.

"Akumatized villains never remember their actions, so it's pretty pointless to punish them," explained Cat Noir. "Especially seeing as there's never any permanent damage anyway."

"I wish it was so easy where I come from," Joule replied. "Crimefighting tends to be a bit more messy when we're done. Anyway… I'm just glad I got the opportunity to work with Paris's cutest superhero."

"While I'm always flattered by the attentions of a lovely lady," Cat Noir replied graciously, "I'm afraid this cat's heart belongs only to my one-and-only Bugaboo."

"I never said it was you, kitty-kat," retorted Joule, raising her visor to deliver a wink to Ladybug, who felt herself blushing even harder.

She was never so grateful to hear the telltale beep of her power running out (for those who don't know, once a Miraculous bearer uses their signature ability, a countdown starts until they're forced to transform back to normal). "Oops, looks like my time' almost up… Gotta bug out!"

"Yeah, I'd better pussyfoot it outta here myself," joked Cat Noir.

"Yeah, cat ya later!" Joule echoed.

"I hope we have claws to meet up again soon," added Cat Noir, clearly happy to have someone who appreciated his puns.

"Oh, brother," Ladybug muttered.

"Oh c'mon… we're just kitten around!" Joule quipped as Ladybug swung off. One flirtatious punster was enough… two was way too many.


Eleswhere…

In a dark room illuminated only by a single stained-glass oculus window, a tall, sinister man in a dark suit and silver cowl scowled.

Once again, Hawk Moth's gambit to retrieve Ladybug and Cat Noir's totems had failed. He'd grown used to failure…. After all, he learned from each one, and in truth, he actually had the easier time of it. They had to win every time… he would only have to win once.

This foreign superhero, however… this was an unwelcome development. He knew how Ladybug and Cat Noir worked together, how they reacted to situations. He was used to him. Joule, on the other hand, was a wild card. He knew very little about her abilities or her methods.

He would have to find some way to deal with her…

..or, perhaps, use her…

"Dark wings in", he spoke, reverting from his costumed form to his everyday civilian identity, knowing such things would have to wait.

After all, Hawk Moth's work was done for the day, but Gabriel Agreste had a fashion show to prepare for.


A.N.: Yes, spoiler alert… for two seasons ago. Anyway, I apologize for going a little too heavy on exposition in this chapter, but I know not everyone reading this is going to be familiar with the lore of Miraculous Ladybug, so I tried to provide as much as possible.

Anyway, because I forgot to do this last chapter: Hey Arnold and all related characters were created by Craig Bartlett and are © Nickelodeon; Miraculous Ladybug and all related characters were created by Thomas Astruc and are © Zagtoons; El Tigre and all related characters were created by Jorge Gutierez and Sandra Equihua and are © Nickelodeon; and the character that never gets fully named (can you guess who?) was created by Steve Bright, Dave Donaldson and John Geering and I have no idea who owns him.

Jose: Talk about Dark Arnold…

Next: Rhonda meets the gang (unaware she already met a couple of them), and finds out just how much Chloe has changed since they last met.