"I feel bad, you know. Doing this to you. I wish it didn't have to be this way, Sabrina." Chat Noir scolded as he stripped her of her miraculous.

"I understand. I made a mistake. Just promise me that you'll go to the address I gave you. Em- Lila needs to be taken down. The warehouse has proof."

"We'll do what we have to in order to end this." Ladybug answered vaguely, turning to her partner. "Go ahead."

Chat Noir nodded and placed a hand against Sabrina's temple.

"Erasure."

Sabrina blinked and looked around, taking in her surroundings as Adrien and Marinette hid around the corner. Adrien was happy to have gained new powers over the years, but this was one he hated to use, especially on someone he had once thought to be an ally. Marinette slipped her hand into his and squeezed. It was the right thing to do.

———

"How are you feeling this morning, Marinette?" Myléne greeted as Marinette entered her office and took a seat.

"I feel…okay." The girl answered with a small smile. "I think for the first time in a long time."

"And what do you think is causing that? What's changed?" Myléne watched as Tikki and Mullo took off to chat alone, a good sign that Tikki wasn't worried about her holder. "Besides your relationship with Adrien, I mean."

"Myléne." Marinette blushed, hiding her face in her hands. "I think it's a lot of things. With all the secrets off my chest…I feel lighter. I have a good team behind me that believes in me and cares about me, even with my mistakes. And then..there's Adrien."

"I sense some hesitation there. Is anything wrong?"

"No! It's perfect!" Marinette hurried to assure her friend. "Well, I guess maybe not perfect. There's a supervillain targeting Paris again and we are moving kind of fast all of a sudden and I just..I kinda feel overwhelmed? But not in a bad way! I'm happy! It just feels so sudden, you know? Like I want it to be! But I'm afraid that people might think..you know..that we're jumping in too soon. Do you think that?"

"It doesn't matter what I think, Marinette. Or anyone else for that matter. You and Adrien have been running circles around each other since you were fourteen. If anything, I think your relationship has moved so so slowly that any new development would seem like a rushed move. That's not to say you have to jump into bed with him, but the hand holding and kissing are-" Myléne stopped talking once she caught sight of Marinette's deepening blush. "Oh. Well, in that case it probably is a little fast. But still, you've known each other for years. I believe you're safe with Adrien. He makes you happy, right? That's all that matters."

"Thanks Myléne."

"That's what I'm here for."

———

"Alright. I'm leading the bot in now." Max announced as their team gathered around his monitor. Sure enough, the warehouse Sabrina had informed them to check out was completely empty.

"They've moved base." Nino frowned, crossing his arms. "To be expected, but was worth checking out I guess."

"They moved base or it was never their base to begin with. Either way, it must have been a trap. Any heat signatures, Max?" Alya asked from her spot next to her husband, leaning into his side as Max scanned the area with the Bug Bot.

"Yep. At least ten or so in the grass. Should I get closer?"

"If we can get good visuals we might be able to identify a few of them, Lila included." Marinette answered, nodding her head as Max obeyed, moving the Bug Bot closer to the figures waiting in the grass. He hovered over the figures, allowing everyone plenty of time to scope out the faces displayed onscreen.

"Well there's the butterfly." Myléne pointed out the woman dressed in dark purple. "But can we be sure it's Lila?"

"Not with the glamour." Adrien answered with a frown. "But at least we know what she looks like now. What's that heat signature off to her right?"

"Just a sec." Max maneuvered the bot until it focused in on a very familiar face.

"Is that..?" Myléne began in shock.

"Gabriel Agreste." Marinette spat, shaking her head. "Of course they're working together."

———

"So you came all this way to Paris just because you'd heard of the new butterfly?" Felix asked, sipping on his coffee as he stared at the girl over the rim of his cup.

"I wanted to come back when the original..Hawkmoth? Was active. But I was a student and had no way to travel here routinely. My guardian thought it best I stay in my homeland until I could be more readily available. The week before I completed my training, we received word of Hawkmoth's defeat. I was no longer needed. So I stayed."

"Until you heard about the new butterfly. You got here pretty quickly, considering news didn't spread outside the city until a few days later."

"I began packing immediately. I took the first flight available to me."

"And then you just so happened to bump into me, another miraculous holder, twice." Felix frowned, eyebrows creasing.

"I am not working with the butterfly, Felix Graham De Vanilly. It was merely a coincidence. Though, I suppose if my story is so unbelievable to you, I should focus my efforts elsewhere. I'm sure Ladybug would be happy to have me." Bridgette huffed and stood from her seat, gathering her things and turning away, only to be pulled back by a hand on her arm.

"I apologize. Stay. I will take you to Ladybug."

"That sounds more like a demand than a question or an apology."

"Will you stay?"

Bridgette raised an eyebrow.

"Please?" Felix grumbled, causing the girl in front of him to smile and slide back into her seat.

"So you do know Ladybug? Wonderful!" Bridgette began to blabber on about how she looked forward to joining their team as Felix put his head in his hands, wondering how in the world he'd managed to end up across from her in the first place.

———

"You know, game night is kinda weird without Myléne." Alya commented, taking a sip of her punch. "What are she and Ivan doing this year?"

"I think just a video call. Kitty Section has a concert tonight so they couldn't schedule much of anything else." Marinette answered, tossing a piece of candy into her mouth as he phone began to ring. "Ooh speaking of Kitty Section," Marinette answered and put her phone on speakerphone. "Hey Luka, I'm at game night, everyone can hear you. What's up?"

"Sorry to interrupt game night, but I couldn't wait to tell everyone." Luka's voice chimed through the device.

"Oh no." Alya whined as she began digging through her purse.

"Zoé and I are engaged! I asked her this morning at brunch!"

Alya handed a wad of cash to Marinette who took it with a smug grin.

———

"Well, I sure had fun wiping the floor with your asses at several rounds of monopoly, but I think it's about time we head home." Kim yawned, wrapping an arm around Alix.

"Yeah and we've got work in the morning." Nino reminded his wife who groaned and lay her head back against the couch.

"Don't remind me. I've got so much to do in the morning."

"You all are so lame." Chloé complained, rolling her eyes. "It's not even midnight yet."

"Hey guys!" Max suddenly called, looking at his phone. "You're gonna want to see this." He held up his phone as they all gathered around, eyes skimming over the headline of the news article he'd pulled up.

"Daughter of Police Chief Found Dead." Adrien read as he stared at the phone of the crime scene. "Under the Eiffel Tower..just like Natalie and Amelie."

———

"There's a riot breaking out near the tower, more of Lila's goons I'm sure. Someone is bound to be akumatized. Who..who would kill Sabrina?" Max paced up and down the hallway.

"Well it was obviously Lila." Alix interjected. "You know, because we figured out her plan at the warehouse?"

"But Sabrina's memory was wiped. She doesn't remember any of that." Nino argued, watching the live footage of the riot on his phone.

"Lila doesn't know that. Nobody does besides us." Alix argued back, hands on her hips. "If I was Lila I'd assume that Sabrina tipped us off and kill her in retaliation. Well, I wouldn't kill her, but you know what I mean. Lila might."

"They just confirmed an Akuma at the riot." Max announced, shutting off his phone and stuffing it into his pocket as he transformed. "I'll head that way and try to hold it off while you guys transform." Max created a portal and stepped through into an alleyway, detransforming, feeding his kwami then retransforming before engaging with the akuma.

"Alya, Nino and Chloé, take the south, come up from behind and stay hidden while Adrien and I draw it's attention." Marinette began to rattle off orders. "Kim-"

"My water just broke!" Alix exclaimed, eyes wide in surprise.

"Kim, you're going to the hospital!" Marinette ordered at the same time as Alya asked "Will the Miraculous Ladybugs clean that off my carpet?"

Marinette didn't answer, instead transforming and pulling a newly transformed Chat Noir along with her as Alya groaned.

"I'm gonna take that as a no."