"Will he be okay? Why isn't he waking up yet?"

Plagg? I could hear him talking frantically, but all I saw was darkness. I tried to move my body, but felt a sharp sting all over my body. What the hell happened to me? I remember going to the movies with my friends, walking Marinette home, and then...Hawkmoth. I let out a small groan as I felt something cold press against the wound on my stomach. I breathed in a fast pace as I felt a strange tingling feeling on my wound.

"He will be alright Plagg. This is a powerful elixir that should close up all his wounds in a matter of seconds." I could hear Master Fu say.

"Come on kid, wake up."

I opened my eyes slowly and the blurriness in my vision cleared. I saw Plagg floating above my face and Master Fu sitting next to me with a wash cloth and a small wooden bowl filled with a green liquid next to him. Ugh my head! It feels so light and the room was spinning. I slowly sat up to see that I was laying down on a blue matt in Master Fu's small apartment. I moved myself slowly, afraid of feeling nauseas if I moved too fast.

"Adrien you're okay!" Plagg flew to my face and I felt his tiny paws hug the tip of my nose. "That was way too close.", he said with the most worried expression I've ever seen on his face.

"Yeah," I said, "It was, Master Fu I thought my suit was made from magic? How did Hawkmoth manage to hurt me like that?"

Master Fu stood up without saying a word. He picked up the bowl full of the elixir that saved me. It was probably a recipe he found in one of his few books he saved from the temple when he was my age. I looked at the bowl as he set it down on his dresser. I noticed that the pain around my body was gone, I lifted my shirt to see that the wound was gone completely. I touched where it used it be with my fingers and felt a disturbing shiver up my spine. It was too much to think how I could have been dead a few minutes ago.

"Master Fu," I finally stood up from the matt, "What's going on?"

"Master I think it is time we tell Adrien." Wayzz floated high enough till he was face to face with us.

"Wayzz is right, we need Ladybug. It's time Master Fu." Plagg said.

"Hold up, who is Ladybug? Another super hero?" I asked. There was definitely something big that Master Fu was keeping from me.

Master Fu had enough with the three of us because he turned to us and sternly said, "Enough."

Master Fu sighed as if he had something hard to tell me. He looked to me as if he was questioning if I was ready for something. Then he turned to his small table where he kept the miraculous box and motioned me to follow him to it.

I sat on the floor in front of the box. I was prepared to listen to anything Master Fu needed to tell me, this time it was serious with Hawkmoth. It was literally life or death.

Master Fu sat in front of me and opened the miraculous box. I sat there in awe while looking at the other jewelry and accessories that were filled with all kinds of powers. Master Fu picked up a pair of red and black polka dot earrings, they shined beautifully under the light bulb and I felt something deep in me rise up. It was as if I got butterflies in my stomach just looking at the piece of jewelry.

"Aww yeah!" Plagg zoomed around Master Fu gleefully, "Me and sugar cube back together again!" Plagg hugged one of the earrings tightly.

"Plagg please," Master Fu shooed him away from the earring.

"Sorry Master Fu." Plagg flew to the top of my head to make himself comfortable in the ruffles of my blonde hair.

"Adrien, these are very important earrings. These earrings will be given to the other half of you, your partner, the person you will need to defeat Hawkmoth." He placed the earrings in a small box then carefully put the box in my hands, "I've taken so long to give these to you because I was not sure if you were ready to make such a huge decision. You will be given the responsibility to choose who you will want to fight by your side."

I looked at the box and couldn't help but grin at it. "Really? I'll finally have a partner! Master Fu this is awesome! We can find Hawkmoth and save Paris. I can't believe I can choose who gets to be my partner! Thank you Master Fu, I promise I'll pick the best fighter there is. I won't let you down."

"Adrien wait!" Master Fu came over to me and put a hand on my shoulder. "Adrien there's something very important you must know about your new partner."

"What is it?" I asked without looking at him. I kept my eyes on the small black box in my hands. I couldn't believe it, a partner who will have my back. I pictured the two of us fighting akumas and Hawkmoth, then fist bumping when we won each fight. Whoever my new partner will be could even become one of my closest friends. How can this get any better?

"You'll have to marry your new partner."

…...

…...

…...

"WHAT!"

I quickly gave the box back to Master Fu, suddenly that box came with the nightmarish sound of wedding bells.

"What do you mean marry? I can't get married! I'm still in high school!" I looked at Master Fu as if he lost his mind. Maybe old age was finally catching up to him.

"Adrien please calm down." He raised his hands at me and that's when I noticed how rapid my breathing had become. Did it suddenly get warm in here? I grabbed my shirt collar and began to fan myself with it.

"You don't have to marry your partner right away." Master Fu said to me as if that made it any better.

"Why would I have to marry them at all?" I asked. I looked at Plagg who was now beside me. Did he know about this?

"Adrien these things cannot be helped. Throughout all the years of the miraculous, Chat Noirs and Ladybugs have fallen in love with each other. It's tradition."

"He's right kid," Plagg said, "It just sort of...happens. We never plan them."

I looked at the both of them then the box, what kind of sick tradition was this? This couldn't possibly still apply in this decade.

Master Fu put the box back in my hands and looked me in my eyes. "I know this is so much to take in, but I promise you'll know who to choose as the new Ladybug."

"But how?" I looked at the box and the butterflies in my stomach suddenly turned into knots.

"You'll just know." Master Fu said.

I laid in my bed with my covers up to my chest. Plagg slept next to my head on the pillow we shared. He went on and on about how great it would be to have the kwami named Tiki with us and whoever this Ladybug person would be. I know he was just trying to make me feel better about this, but there was so much pressure. What if I chose the wrong person? I'd have to spend the rest of my life with them. I turned on my side away from Plagg who slept with no worry on his shoulders. I shut my eyes tight and saw my mom. I felt my heart strings tug as I thought of her. If she was still here, she would know what to say and exactly what to do.

I sat up from my bed, careful not to wake up Plagg. I walked over to my desk and picked up the picture frame I kept of her. I admired the picture till my heart couldn't take the pain anymore. I did this a few times during the night when everything in my life would become too much. Something about seeing my mom's smile calmed me down. I would just think of exactly what she would tell me or what she would do to get by in this crazy life.

I walked back to my bed and sat down, not ready to go back to bed yet. I looked at the black miraculous box on my night stand. I took one last deep breath. Tomorrow will be the first day of my search, who will be my Ladybug?

I'm sorry for how long this took. I tried writing a few times with the spare time I had, but things just kept getting in the way. I hope I still have everyone's attention, I'm really excited to start writing this story. I know this chapter is short and I honestly can't promise a new chapter this friday, but I should be less busy next week. Next chapter might have some good ole Marichat moments. So, stay tuned!