To Lyger 0: A lot of questions arising from that last chapter, to be answered in a future story… but not the next one, unfortunately. The next main story will be "The Next Jagged Ride."

An hour after the attack, Chloe walked through the penthouse door and flopped face-first onto the bed, groaning with relief. She barely noticed the slight tugging on her purse as Pollen phased out of it and drifted away in the direction of the kitchen. Nor did she look up when the soft clicking of claws crossed the floor before Bee-atrice's slight weight jumped up onto the bed. The puppy started licking Chloe's fingers, and she finally sat up, as Zoe nervously perched on the edge of the bed opposite from Chloe, looking down at her hands.

It had been a long visit.

After the attack, the Knight and Valkyrie had searched the woods from one side to the other, searching for any sign of where the "wolves" had gone – if that was even what they were. Why would wolves have attacked them in broad daylight like that? Chloe let out a breath. If she hadn't transformed… Dietrich had almost been bitten, as well; Greta had shouted a warning just in time, and he had thrown himself in front of her as he transformed, protecting her from the other two wolves' attack. They had gotten away from the wolves safely, but the wolves themselves had escaped, also. While the other two had searched, Chloe and Zoe had waited by Dietrich's car, alone with their thoughts. Chloe was no stranger to unusual activity – she was a Hero of Paris! But she was still unsettled. For the wolves to have that level of coordination in their attacks…

Something was going on in Berlin, but Chloe's head hurt too much to really think about it. But, then, that was the Knight and Valkyrie's problem now.

Grabbing a bottle off her nightstand, Chloe took a couple painkillers and washed them down with a glass of water before reaching down to find Bee-atrice' head, rubbing the puppy behind the ears. Bee yipped expectantly, licking her wrist, and Chloe allowed herself a smile for the first time since the wolf had first appeared. Across the bed from her, Zoe had lifted her gaze; she sat still, clasping her hands and watching Chloe with wide eyes. Sighing, Chloe rolled her sore shoulders a couple times, placing a hand over her forearm where the wolf had tried to bite her. She winced, her arm throbbing; looking down, she could see the indentation marks of the wolf's teeth, pressed into her skin. Although her miraculous suit was still impenetrable – something her Sent-Bee suit had never been able to match – it still remained little more than spandex, lacking any rigidity or structure to absorb the force of a blow. Gritting her teeth, she rolled her neck and reached back to rub the back of her head – though her hair hid it, the knot forming at the base of her skull would last at least a week – unless Mira or Claire healed it for her. But she had gotten off lucky. She let out a groan, wincing and biting back curses. Zoe's gaze darted up to her face, wide-eyed and nervous.

"Are you alright?" Chloe finally asked her.

Zoe started. "Am I alright? You're the one who almost got bitten!"

Chloe stifled a wince. "I'll live – I've gotten much worse than that," she assured her, scoffing humorlessly. She coughed, pressing a hand to her ribs where the wolf had landed on her. "But you could really have gotten hurt. What were you thinking, trying to confront that wolf like that?"

"I was thinking that you could get hurt, and I needed to do something," Zoe retorted, folding her arms. "I was thinking that if I didn't help you, then you would be in trouble!"

"I had it under control," Chloe told her, pursing her lips. "I just needed to get to my top–"

"Didn't the wolf bite your top?" Zoe pointed out, giving Chloe a frown.

"Well…" Chloe let out a breath. "But regardless. You could have gotten hurt – it could have bitten you instead of me, and you didn't have an impervious super suit to protect you!" She sighed. "It might not have been my smartest idea to bring you with me."

"W–what?" Zoe's shoulders slumped, and she looked away. "I'm sorry; I didn't mean to cause you trouble. I'll… I won't come with you ever again." She looked away. "I should have realized it was all too good to be true."

Chloe cocked her head to one side, studying Zoe's posture more closely. "What do you mean?" she asked sharply.

Zoe flinched. "It's just… I've always wanted to have family – more than just Mom and me, I mean. And then I found out who my dad was, and that I had an older sister, and I… I don't know… I was so excited! You have no idea how much I wanted to tell my friends that I had a sister out there, even though I knew I couldn't say anything. But I wanted to get to know you, so badly. And since… all of this happened, getting to spend time together, and getting to meet your friends… that's all been so amazing! I've loved getting to meet Sabrina and Marinette. And I've been so grateful for the chance to see what it's like, being part of the Heroes of Paris. It's–it's something I'd never dreamed in a thousand years that I would get to do, and I'll never forget about it!" She paused, looking down at her shaking hands. "But I should have realized it was too good to be true, that it couldn't last. I should've known that you really wouldn't like me very much. My friend Yvette always complains about her little brother; I should have known it would be the same for you." She swallowed. "I won't bother you anymore."

Eyes widening in surprise, Chloe looked across the bed at Zoe and shook her head. "No; don't think that," she told her. "I don't dislike you, or think you're a 'bother', or anything like that."

Zoe's eyes shot up to Chloe's face, and Chloe swallowed anxiously. "But – I thought–"

"That's not why I was saying I shouldn't have brought you with me," Chloe explained. "I just don't want to see you get hurt!" Zoe nodded. "Now," Chloe continued, raising an eyebrow at her, "I would appreciate some 'me time' every so often. And I wasn't exactly expecting you to want to share my bed so much…"

"Sorry," Zoe apologized, flushing. "That's something I used to do with Mom, when I was younger. Whenever something scared me…" She swallowed, sniffling.

Chloe slid across the bed and put a hand on Zoe's shoulder. "I'm sorry. I guess I haven't really been the most accommodating or welcoming since you showed up. That's not something against you, though; you're a change, and the change… I guess it put me on edge a little. I've only ever been an only child – the closest I had to siblings was Sabrina and Adrien, but they had their own parents. I've only ever been the only child having to put up with all the crap that my parents threw at me… even if I didn't really recognize it as crap all the time…" She cleared her throat. "But suddenly I'm not alone anymore. Suddenly, you're here to compete for Daddy's attention. And that also means that Mother's abuse and Daddy's indulgence… it's also being directed at you. I'm happy to know you and have a sister – obviously I am. But…" She let out a heavy sigh. "I guess, I'm also a little worried: what happens if their crap rubs off on you the same way it did on me?"

Zoe swallowed, staring up at Chloe in surprise, her unshed tears shining in her eyes. "You–you mean that?" Chloe cocked her head. "You're happy to have me as your sister?" Chloe nodded firmly. Zoe suddenly threw herself across the bed, hugging Chloe tightly. "I'm happy, too," she murmured against Chloe's chest.

Slowly, awkwardly, Chloe put her arms around Zoe, breathing slowly and deeply. "Yes. I'm glad I get to know you. And I want to keep you from having to deal with all our parents' crap on your own. I promise, if I can ever do anything to keep you safe from them, I'll do it."

Zoe nodded. "Father said that they were going to give me a hotel room of my own, on the floor below theirs."

Chloe hummed. "Is that what you want?"

Zoe paused, glancing up at Chloe. "I…"

"Do you want to share my penthouse?"

Zoe's eyes widened, and she leaned away from Chloe to get a better look at her, her eyes shining. "Can I?" Chloe nodded. "Are you sure?" Another nod. Zoe sniffled. "I… don't want to be alone – not so alone, I mean."

Chloe sighed. "I know. And I won't do that to you. I promise. I… I know what it's like to be alone – even when you're surrounded by people. Although," she added, raising an eyebrow, "if I'm going to be going on Heroes of Paris business, and you're going to go with me, then we can't have you going out without knowing how to protect yourself."

"I thought I did okay today," Zoe protested.

"You did," Chloe agreed, the corner of her lip twitching up. "But still, you can improve. And I think I know exactly how to do it. So. How would you like to become the new Sent-Bee, now that I'm back to being Queen Bee?"

Zoe's eyes widened. "Wait, really?"

Chloe nodded. "You can be a superhero, and I can show you how to do it and teach you how to fight."

Zoe grinned, bouncing up and down on the best with excitement. "That would be so awesome! Y–yes! Absolutely!"

Chloe smiled, giving her a tender hug. "Excellent."

"Although," Zoe added, arching an eyebrow at Chloe, "I was wondering if the name is set in stone…"