Chapter 28
Nathaniel stood behind his SUV with his smartphone in his hand hoping to reach his friend Luka.
"Come on, Luka. Attend the call," Nathaniel begged while his smartphone was doing long breaks while beeping. Karaa flew out of his jacket to look at her owner wondering, how he was worried about his friend's wife. "He's taking so long. He didn't reply to my message yet,"
"Okay, look be bettew go now. We don't know what this bad guy wants to do with Mawinette. This could be vewy sewious," Karaa stated making Nathaniel nod.
"Karaa, stripes on!" Shouted Nathaniel transforming into Super Nathan, then used his tablet to recall his jet pack and flew up in the air to cross the arrondissement from above the sky.
At the Couffaine household, Marinette sat on a chair with her head down, while tied around a chair with the sheet of the bed. Marinette opened her eyes, then looked up to find Durant in front of the closet studying the safe while taking notes on a newspaper he found somewhere inside the apartment.
"Hey, what are you doing there? Ever heard of invasion of privacy?" Questioned Marinette as Durant noticed down another number.
"As if you knew that," Responded Durant making Marinette frown.
"You really think you can figure out a 6-digit number so easily? After each time you fail three times, you gotta wait 15 minutes, after it happens again you gotta wait 15 minutes again. I don't think this will work out that fast, don't you think?" Questioned Marinette with a little smirk from knowing the safe was safe enough.
"And let me guess, you won't give me a help or anything?" Questioned Durant making Marinette shake her head.
"I had since I saw you the first time a bad impression. I had thought you would have changed,"
"Well, I did in a way, if you believe me. But knowing, that the miraculous guardian would be in the near I thought about if there was a chance to get closer to them,"
"I have no idea, what you're talking about," Spoke Marinette.
"You know, all those superheroes above Paris do all have a secret identity, and sometimes, there are moments they have to lie to their friends and other people to protect their identities," Mentioned Durant. "You, do remind me a lot of that one red-dressed heroine, what was her name again….ah Ladybug,"
"You're wrong. Ladybug and I aren't that similar. She's confident and stable, I'm clumsy and my confidence isn't as high as hers," Marinette made up making the man chuckle.
"I'm certain over these years as superheroes you've gained the skill to lie to people without any evidence of it. But you know, there's one thing I noticed in these past days. Your actress friend there, Lila Kurtzberg…..she used to be in her younger years the fox miraculous holder Miss Vixen, wasn't she?" Questioned Durant making Marinette gulp from remembering her accident back in her teenage years. "How high's the chance, that she and Ladybug know each other in both lives?"
Marinette pondered about his words, then frowned about it, making the man smirk.
"I would be careful if I was you. At some point, my husband will return and you will regret having tied me up here," Warned Marinette watching the man stand up and walk towards the bathroom, where he had stuck the key in it, that used to be in the inside. Durant unlocked the door, then opened it back to see Rouven stay on the other side of the bathroom. Durant frowned at the boy, which did the same and the boy ran towards the man moving his arm up hoping to punch him, but Durant stopped the boy by his body and pulled his arm down making Rouven cried.
"Ouch!"
"Shhh!" Durant replied leading the boy into the bedroom, where Marinette was located and she shrieked to see Rouven was around.
"Rouven!" Shouted Marinette panicking her son.
"Maman!" Yelled Rouven, then Durant held his hand in front of the boy's mouth to quiet him down.
„No word!" Ordered the man annoyed, then Rouven bite him on the hand making him yelp. „Hey!" Shouted the man watching Rouven get down to her mother's legs, then Durant pushed Rouven by his shirt's collar, making him gasp at feeling the shirt around his neck.
„Leave him!" Marinette ordered the blonde, which held Rouven now tight in his arms.
„Tell me the code for the safe and I let him go," Suggested Durant watching an angry Marinette shake her head.
„You won't get away with it, Durant,"
„Really?" Questioned Durant. „And if I hurt your cute, little baby?" Questioned Durant shrieking Rouven, then Durant covered the boy's nose to panic him as he was unable to breathe by the nose. Marinette got frightened about the man's deed, seeing him observe Marinette while holding Rouven tight.
„Eighteen, September, Twenty-three!" Yelled Marinette making the man smirk and shove the boy at Marinette's legs, then Rouven held himself on her legs to cough, while sobbing. „You're alright, baby?" Asked Marinette worried, then Durant ran to the safe to set the code in and smiled as he managed to unlock the door, then pulled the door open.
„Superb," Commented Durant. „I'm pretty sure at least one of the miraculouses can help me change the past or no, that would mess up the timeline…..but I think I can get to know how to….."
„We need help!" Cried Rouven loud, shrieking Durant, which was about to put his hand on the circle of the miraculous box. Durant growled while picking out a miraculous, that resembled a thumb ring and he moved towards the kid, which shrieked and hid behind his mother, which growled at the man.
„You're really getting into my nerves, boy," Commented the blonde stern, then heard a loud noise, followed by a yell and he looked at the door to see Super Nathan appear along with a shirtless man, making Marinette furrow her eyebrows surprised at seeing the neighbor like that.
„Diogo, please get him out of her," Begged Marinette, while Rouven looked at Super Nathan relieved at the hero's appearance.
„Mr. Costas your friend is evil. He wanted to kill me!" Mentioned Rouven annoyed making Durant roll his eyes.
„He doesn't know me!"
„I don't know him!" The neighbor said at the same time as Durant, while Super Nathan looked around the room confused.
„I have no idea, what's going on, but stop whatever you're doing Mr. Lefevre. There's no way out of here," Warned Super Nathan watching Durant look at the window, then back at the blocked entrance. Durant rolled his eyes down at Rouven, which shrieked and ran toward Super Nathan distracting him for a second, afterward Durant shove Marinette's chair down at the ground and took the chance as she was on the ground to run towards the safe to try to take another miraculous out.
„Super Nathan, look!" Warned Rouven, then the neighbor ran towards the man, which shrieked and removed his hand out of the safe to throw against the neighbor's face a circlet, then ran beside him and Super Nathan grabbed the man by the arms, making him growl.
„Nice try," Super Nathan commented, then Durant looked up at the superhero, which stared at him with his ice-blue-colored eyes making Durant wide his eyes as he felt like he had seen those eyes before. Durant had an idea, of how he could get out of there.
„I know where your wife lives, Super Nathan," Stated Durant making Super Nathan puff.
„Yeah, she lives next to Miss Gaga in La La Land," Super Nathan responded ironic making Durant chuckle.
„Your wife Lila Kurtzberg lives at the allée rouge. I've seen her there a few times," Spoke Durant making Super Nathan widen his eyes in shock and look at the man's face, which smirked at the superhero.
„I would be careful, we'll never know, who wants to harm her," Spoke Durant, then he elbowed Super Nathan against the stomach to distract him and Durant got off his arms, then ran off closing the door of the main entrance to leave.
„Nathan, why did you let him escape?!" Questioned Marinette loud, while Super Nathan shook his head from his caused mistake and looked at the door he had closed. „Stop standing there and follow him!" Ordered Marinette, then Super Nathan ran out of the living room to go downstairs, then looked on the road around to see, where Durant had go. Super Nathan groaned, then used his tablet to get his jet pack and took off in the air to observe the houses around the road, then flew down to begin to analyze the road.
Back in the apartment, the neighbor helped Rouven tie off Marinette from the chair and Marinette had made a brief story about, what happened.
„I already had found it strange, that he couldn't find your door here. That he had been lying about it, was the last thing I expected," Spoke Marinette making the man nod.
„The one good thing, for now, is, that the police are on her way and Super Nathan is going behind that guy," Commented Diogo. „Funny, I had come across him just last week when we had that car accident. I wasn't expecting him to break into my house through the window,"
„He broke into your room?" Questioned Marinette surprised.
„Well, he erased the window to be correct. All three of us were shocked to encounter each other in the same room. The fact he didn't come a little earlier was lucky. I don't think the reaction would be similar if I and my girlfriend would have been…...you don't want to know the rest," Spoke Diogo making Marinette nod.
„I think I had a similar issue back years ago. I broke into a room of a couple and it turned out to be, that they had no idea their daughter got akumatized and was on the outside causing chaos," Stated Marinette making the man nod. Marinette stretched her arms as she was finally free from the cover, then got up and Rouven hugged the mother tightly making her smile.
„Rouven, my little prince," Marinette commented pecking her son on the forehead. „You're alright?" Asked Marinette caressing her boy on the cheek to notice, that his eyes were a little red from having cried before.
„I'm better now," Spoke Rouven, then they heard a male voice and looked at the entrance to see Luka run into the apartment to see his wife together with Rouven and the neighbor.
„Marinette, is everything okay?" Asked Luka entering the room to see his son embracing his mother. „What happened?"
„Durant was here trying to take the miraculous box. I don't remember how I landed tied up on the chair, but he was willing to hurt Rouven to get the code. I would have continued to distract him if it wasn't about Rouven's life,"
„Did he take out anything?" Questioned Luka looking at the floor to spot the monkey miraculous on the ground, then picked it up. „He really made it to open it,"
„Mommy had to, because he was taking my air off with his hand. He covered my nose with his hand," Rouven mentioned walking towards his father, which placed his arm behind the boy's back. „He stole one miraculous I think," Mentioned Rouven watching his father take the box out to analyze it to spot two boxes open, which were from the rooster and monkey miraculous.
„The monkey miraculous is here with me and the rooster one, that's not around anymore," Commented Luka. „The rooster one, that's the one shaped after a thumb ring, right?"
„Yeah," Responded Marinette. „This…...oh no, this is going to be a problem, Luka,"
„Why?" Questioned Luka. „Are the powers so bad?"
„The rooster miraculous nearly makes you wish for any time of power you want. Depending on how well he phrases he wishes he can literally defeat us easily,"
„Okay…...okay, don't worry. We will find a solution….I know Super Nathan was here for you. We both unite together and get the others of the team as well, at least the ones, who are willing to come along after those many years,"
„Alright, I think for the plan we should discuss another location. Somewhere, where it's very unlikely for us to be found by anyone," Commented Marinette making Luka nod.
Super Nathan landed at the front of the house, then made his way to the entrance of the house and dropped down his suit to get back to his civilian self. Nathaniel placed the hand on the doorknob, then Karaa pointed up at the sky to earn the man's attention.
„The SUV we fowgot," Commented Karaa making Nathaniel sigh, then he entered into the house to spot Nathalie walk upstairs, then she looked down to see her father and ran down to embrace him.
„Welcome home, daddy," Greeted the daughter making Nathaniel smile a little and embrace her. „Where have you been?"
„You know Super Nathan had something to do, but…..everything's okay now. You can go up to bed," Spoke Nathaniel making Nathalie nod, then kissed him on his cheek and ran up to her room.
„Good night, daddy," Wished the daughter, and Nathaniel closed the door, then made his way into the living room to see Lila on the smartphone texting with somebody. Nathaniel sat down on the couch beside her, noticing her focused on the device.
„You took a little coming home?" Asked Lila making Nathaniel shrug his shoulders and slowly slide closer to his wife.
„I was with Luka," Answered Nathaniel, then Lila lied down with her head on his lap as she finished typing a message, then looked up at her husband noticing he seemed a little down.
„What's wrong, Nathy?" Questioned the Italian woman, then Nathaniel shrugged his shoulders. „Is Marinette alright?"
„How do you know about the assault at her house?" Questioned Nathaniel making Lila cackle.
„Haven't you checked the messages on the Facestargram group?" Questioned Lila showing Nathaniel the group with the messages of worried friends. „People were wondering, what happened Marinette and I had received a text from Kagami,"
„I was there by Marinette's house before the bad guy left," Mentioned Nathaniel. „It was that one cousin, that had kidnapped Adrien's mother years ago. Nothing bad has happened to her there,"
„You saw the guy there?" Questioned Lila curious making Nathaniel nod. „You shouldn't put yourself in danger, baby. He could have hurt you as well," Lila mentioned placing her hand under Nathaniel's chin, which pondered about her sentence.
„Uh Lila about the encounter there at Marinette's house, the guy there….had threatened me he was gonna hurt you," Commented Nathaniel making Lila grin.
„But since when does he know me?" Questioned Lila. „Or personally at least,"
„Well, he knows you used to be Miss Vixen years ago," Commented Nathaniel. „And…...it's not only that the issue when he told me that I wasn't myself,"
„What do you mean?" Asked Lila a little confused while getting up from his lap to have eye contact with the man. Nathaniel sighed, then whispered his kwamis name to see Karaa get out of his jacket to reveal herself to Lila.
„Tada," Commented Karaa as Lila observed the kwami present herself at the woman.
„It looks like Super Nathan…...wait a second…...you were Super Nathan all this time?" Questioned the raven-haired woman making Nathaniel nod and get up to say his phrase and turn into the said superhero.
„You're Super Nathan?" Lila asked surprised making Super Nathan nod. "Is that why you've got that tattoo with his symbol?"
"Yeah, that's my miraculous," Explained Nathaniel. „I know, I know. I could have said it earlier. I wasn't sure if it was a good idea or not with the ongoing issue of the amnesia. As well I didn't want something to go wrong during the process or worse. Eventually, you would only show interest in my superhero side and not both sides. The confident side, the more athletic one, the uhm…...more talkative one….,"
„Basically the polar opposite of what you're in your own shoes," Questioned Lila making Super Nathan nod. „I have to be honest, I don't remember anything about you, besides your kindness. And now that I know it's you, I can see why it reminded me a little of you," Lila spoke, then Super Nathan turned back into Nathaniel without his command and noticed Karaa burp, then hold her hand in front of her belly.
„I should have eaten befowe the twansfowmation," Commented Karaa making Nathaniel nod.
„Oh good, I assumed we had gotten you the wrong cereals again," Commented Nathaniel making Karaa nod.
„Okay, so now that I know you're Super Nathan….You were there as him or as yourself?" Questioned Lila her husband.
„Super Nathan," Responded Nathaniel. „After he had threatened me to hurt you I was socially blocked and only ran after me as Marinette had yelled at me….the worst part about this, he said he knew our road was this one here. This means he could easily just look for Kurtzberg and find our house easily,"
„Alright, but what do you think he would want to do with me? I'm pretty sure I could use Pencak Silat to defend myself, in case nobody's around,"
„The problem is, he's got one of the miraculouses and he could use it to hurt you more, than normally," Nathaniel warned watching Lila roll her eyes down. „What about the miraculous I used to have in my hero days? I could use it as well?" Questioned Lila making Nathaniel shrug his shoulders.
„Well, I don't know, what Marinette would say about this. I think for now on, the most important part is for you to stay safe. I don't know, maybe, when I'm at work, you could be around Rose, Kagami or at the theatre. Anywhere, where you're not alone," Explained Nathaniel, then Lila placed her hand on hi cheek to caress him.
„You're sweet, but I don't want to hide the entire time away from that guy," Warned Lila making Nathaniel nod.
„Yes, I know. You're not someone, who runs away from those things," Spoke Nathaniel. „I will later call Luka to see how she's doing and will question him about this. Who knows, maybe right now they have a plan to get back the miraculous," Announced Nathaniel positive making Lila smile.
In the meanwhile, Durant was under a bridge with the miraculous and he looked at it wondering if he would be able to use it. Durant shove the ring into his thumb, then saw out of the ring a dark-yellow light shine to reveal it's kwami, which was a yellow anthropomorphic rooster.
„Good evening, I'm Orikko and I'm ready to play," Announced the kwami making Durant chuckle.
„So am I," Commented Durant. „How do I….uhm become a mighty rooster miraculous holder?" Questioned the man making the kwami smile proudly.
„Oh, I'm so flattered. I'm almost blushing," Commented Orikko making the man nod. „So open your ears, my friend, I'm going to tell you about how to correctly use the rooster miraculous in a way. Despite being from lower class, there are certain ways you can use it well enough to defeat your enemies easier…." Orikko explained making Durant nod as he paid attention to the little creature.