Chapter Six
"Trixx, let's rest," Rena Rouge said softly as soon as she and Ladybug were hidden from any prying eyes, having left those reporters who wanted an interview about the Frozer fight behind. Usually Alya would be among them, but when Ladybug had shown up with the Fox Miraculous once more there had been no way she could say no.
"Thank you for the help," Ladybug said, leaning up against the wall. "There was no way I could have done that on my own, not when Frozer could control the battlefield."
"Shame you had to waste time retrieving my Miraculous," Trixx muttered, fur puffed up. "That allowed the akuma more time to freeze everything."
Ladybug glanced at him. "You know this isn't my choice to make."
"I know," Trixx muttered. "I can still voice my opinion though, right?"
Ladybug took in a deep breath, before turning back to Alya, who didn't want to take off the necklace. She held it close for a moment, but when she looked up into Ladybug's eyes she knew that she couldn't break that trust, and took it off, handing it over to Ladybug. Trixx huffed as his Miraculous was placed back into its container, and he vanished in a flash of gold light.
"So," Ladybug said, pausing as her earrings let out a chirp. "Would you be available for an interview this weekend?"
Alya blinked, perking up. "An interview?"
Ladybug smiled. "Of course– the Ladyblog should be the first to get an interview with the new hero Rena Rouge, don't you think? Of course we might need a Mirage or two to pull everything off... but I think it is important to have Rena Rouge and Alya be seen in the same place. I know you can't capture every akuma fight, but it might be too much of a pattern if you can never get the ones with Rena Rouge, right?"
"You want me to... interview myself?" Alya asked, blinking.
"Secret identities are the number one rule when it comes to being a superhero," Ladybug replied with a smile. "You're my partner, aren't you? It's time to make sure yours is safe."
Partners. Alya would never get sick of hearing Ladybug call her that.
"Y-yeah," Alya whispered. "Partners, that's..." She shook her head, forcing herself to focus. "Interview this weekend– you got it, Ladybug. Maybe I can catch you and Rena Rouge on patrol? Make it look like one of the interviews I often do when I catch you out and about?"
"Sounds perfect," Ladybug agreed, and her earrings gave another chirp. "I need to go now– but I'll see you soon. Thank you for helping me with this fight."
She threw her yoyo to leave, and Alya couldn't help but reach out to stop her. "Wait– Ladybug!"
Ladybug paused, smiling back at her. "Yes."
Alya's heart thumped, and she wondered where her sudden courage had come from– and where it had just gone. Her mouth opened, but no words escaped. This... this had gone beyond fan and hero, or even interviewer and interviewee– Ladybug trusted her enough to fight alongside her. To trust her with magic and secrets. To call her partners.
Would it be okay to say something...? To say how these feelings of admiration had grown so much...?
"Ladybug... are we friends?" Alya asked instead, voice quiet.
"Of course we are."
"I... I mean," Alya stuttered out, before swallowing. "You have your mask, and secrets you have to keep... but that doesn't... affect anything, right?"
Ladybug paused, before turning to face her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Alya," she said seriously. "When I was entrusted to find a holder for the Fox Miraculous, I had to find someone I could depend on. I didn't pick you because of your blog, or because it was your sisters who were akumatized– I chose you to use this Miraculous because I trust you. Because I knew any secret I told you would be safe."
Alya's throat closed up.
"Yes, I have a mask, and yes I have secrets," Ladybug said softly, and Alya wondered when she had gotten so close. "But don't you think for a moment that there's anything between us. I trust you. You are my friend, my partner– and when I need help I know I can count on you."
Alya gave a short nod. "Thank you, Ladybug. I don't know what I did to deserve this trust, but..."
"You deserve it because of the kind of person you are," Ladybug said with a smile. "You're wonderful, and I know that will never change." She raised her hand in a small salute, earrings beeping even faster. "I hate to cut this short, but I have to go now– bug out!"
With a tug on her yoyo she took to the roofs, racing away. Alya watched her go until she was no longer in sight, before letting out a soft sigh.
"Ladybug thinks I'm wonderful," she whispered, grinning.
"But just think of all the pranks you could pull with the power of illusions," Kim said. "By far the coolest power out there."
"Yeah, but the Ladybug power actually does something," Alix countered.
"Well," Max said, leaning forward as he joined the conversation. "You have to quantify 'something'. If that's defined as something physical and tangible, then yes, the Ladybug Miraculous is the only one that does 'something'. However if 'something' refers to an effect or outcome of some kind, then the Fox Miraculous indeed do 'something'. Mental strategy and mind tricks can be a very effective tactic, and therefore Rena Rouge's illusions should not be underestimated."
"Yeah!" Kim said proudly. "What Max said– the Fox is the best Miraculous."
"Of course you come running to your boyfriend's defense," Alix replied, rolling her eyes. "Besides, you can't justify strategy when Kim just said he would use it for pranks."
"Pranking and taunting an opponent can be an effective strategy–" Max began.
"Oh yeah?" Alix asked, leaning back onto the boy's desk. "If you could have any Miraculous, Max, which one would you choose?"
Max swallowed, glancing at Kim. "Well, personally, I would find the mental puzzle the Ladybug Miraculous seems to provide a fun and interesting challenge, and probably align more to a style I could fight with if I were a hero. But that does not mean it is automatically the best Miraculous–"
"Hah!" Alix said triumphantly. "Your boyfriend agrees with me, Kimmy! Ladybug is the best one!"
"I didn't say that–"
"Perfect!" Kim beamed. "That way we would be a duo if we had the Miraculouses. Renard and Beetle, wouldn't that be awesome?"
"...I would probably pick the name Coccinellidae, referring to the family ladybugs come from in the scientific classification–"
"Boring," Alix said, cutting them off. "Mylene– Ladybug or Fox– which is the best Miraculous?"
Nino sighed as he found the classroom focused on nothing but Miraculouses, and he couldn't help but wonder why that was the topic everyone seemed to find themselves discussing. Like, yeah... magic– but it wasn't helping his worry or guilt!
It turns out that thoughts really liked to linger about, and even though it felt like ages since he had watched that butterfly come through his window that was the only thing his mind went back to. He and Papillon's conversation had ended on a bitter note, and he wondered if the boy hated him.
He felt on edge, and when he had seen an akuma on the news he wasn't thinking about who was attacked this time, or when Ladybug would show up– he was wondering if it was Papillon or Hawk Moth that was whispering in that akuma's mind. Whenever a discussion about akumas would pop up he'd try not to flinch, knowing that he had willingly become one. If someone were to find out... where would that land him? What would people think of him? How could that impact his family?
Nino felt like he was being drawn into something he should have no involvement in, and he wasn't sure how to get away.
"What about you, Nino?" Alix asked, causing him to jump. "If you could have any Miraculous, which one would you have?"
It seemed the conversation had gone from Alix and Kim to involving the whole class, because it felt like everyone was looking his way. He swallowed, trying to pull his focus away from his thoughts and into the conversation.
"Um..." He began. "...The Butterfly?"
The class stared at him, and he began screaming in his head. Why did you say that, why did you say that, you absolute idiotic–
"...The Butterfly?" Alya repeated slowly.
"The one that turns people evil?" Ivan echoed, and Nino wanted to wither under the stares.
"W-well, think about it," Nino said quickly. "If I had the Butterfly Miraculous, then that means Hawk Moth wouldn't have it. Then there would be no akumas, period. I m-mean, I can't see myself with the Ladybug or the Fox and fighting crime– so why not go to the root of the problem?"
"Makes sense," Juleka said with a shrug.
"But what would you do with the power to turn people into villains?" Rose asked uncertainly.
"Um... turn people into villains against Hawk Moth?" Nino said uncertainly. "I could be like: 'I give you the power to punch Hawk Moth in the face'."
He was relieved to hear several snickers across the classroom, and felt his shoulders relaxing.
"Okay, what about you, Alya," Alix asked. "Ladybug, Fox, or um, Butterfly's an option too, I guess."
"Oh, I don't know," Alya said swiftly. "Heh, I don't think either of those would work for me. No one is a better Ladybug than Ladybug, and um, Fox would be better for someone like Marinette or Nathaniel– creative, an natural artist."
"Joining me on team Butterfly then?" Nino asked with a grin.
"I d-didn't say that!"
"Come on, we'd have the power to make people punch Hawk Moth in the face," Nino said, flashing a grin back at her.
"A very tempting power," Marinette agreed. "Who wouldn't want to punch Hawky in the face?"
"Petition for Ladybug and Rena Rouge to punch Hawk Moth!" Kim cried, earning snickers and murmurs of agreement.
Nino relaxed slightly, deciding that he didn't have anything to feel guilty for. Yes, he had accepted an akuma, but he felt his reasons were justified. Someone had needed his help, and it would have been wrong to have said no.
He just hoped that Papillon was doing alright.
"Well?" Duusu asked, flying right in front of Adrien's face. "Is it working?"
"It seems like it," Adrien said slowly, and Duusu flew even closer, their paws pressing up against his nose– which was lacking its normal itch. He had taken his first dosage of allergy medicine the night before, and another this morning, so now was the moment of truth– but it seemed that Nathalie had selected a good brand.
His nose wasn't itching, he felt no urge to sneeze, and his eyes didn't feel puffy. Duusu lingering close to him didn't seem to change this, and with a smile he reached up and touched the small kwami. They let out a loud cheer at this, before zipping across the room with a burst of speed.
There seemed to be no side effects from the medicine either so far– which Adrien was thankful for.
"Come on," Adrien said with a smile, and Duusu zipped back over and landed in his hair. "Let's go tell Nathalie that it's working."
"Can you get me something to eat too?" Duusu asked as Adrien headed to the door.
"What would you like?"
"Chocolate!" Duusu cried, throwing their arms up.
Adrien grinned. "I think we'll get along just fine."
Nathalie was waiting for him in the dining room as she always did, and gave a mere nod when she found Duusu lingering near Adrien with no issue. The kwami had zipped into Adrien's jacket when the chef had brought out Adrien's breakfast, but had popped back out just as quickly to steal the chocolate biscuit that had been included with the meal– either his father or Nathalie making sure Duusu had something to eat.
"Come to your father's office as soon as you're finished," Nathalie said, scrolling through her tablet. "Your father wishes to see you transform for the first time, and from there we can gauge your involvement in battles."
Adrien couldn't help but pause for a moment, not that he had forgotten, but while Duusu meant he wouldn't be akumatizing anyone he would still be involved in the fights. But it was for Mother, and no one else had to be involved except for him, father, Ladybug, and the avatars. No controlling anyone.
"I'll be quick," Adrien promised when he realized Nathalie was waiting for a reply, and began eating. Her footsteps echoed through the dining room as she left, and Duusu had already finished their biscuit and was now eyeing his bowl of fruit. "You can have that too, if you'd like."
"Yessss," Duusu said with a grin, picking up a strawberry, swallowing it whole. "Mmm– almost as good as the biscuit!"
"You have a sweet tooth, huh?" Adrien asked with a smile.
"I don't have any teeth," Duusu replied. "Or a beak. A lot of holders asked me why I don't have one, and you know what– why don't I? Other bird kwamis have beaks. Like Orikko, Prrince, Liiri, Ecco–"
"What kwamis are those?" Adrien asked, fascinated. He only knew of the existence of four Miraculouses– well, five, considering there was the Black Cat they needed, though Adrien didn't know exactly why yet. But it made sense that there were more.
"Rooster, Swan, Eagle, Parrot," Duusu recited, plopping a blueberry into their mouth. "Vigor, Loyalty, Freedom, Language." She tilted her head. "I haven't seen them in a really really long time, I think. Last one was Orikko, but we're in the same box."
"Box?"
"That's where we live! Except for I live here now, with Nooroo," Duusu was now eating the banana slices. "Nooroo wants to go back to the box, but I like it here. But I would like to see everyone else again." They perked up. "When we get the Ladybug Miraculous I can see Tikki, right?"
"I'm guessing that's Ladybug's kwami?" Adrien asked, swallowing a bite of his own food.
"Yep!"
"...How many kwamis are there?"
"There's me, Nooroo, Xuppu, Ziggy, Emburr, Renn, Sass, Longg, Verriti, Yuume–" Duusu began, and they didn't stop, listing off as many strange names as they could as Adrien continued eating. "–Graay, Pollen, Fluff, Shii, Passtel, Zipp–"
Duusu only paused to catch their breath, Adrien not able to not to get another word in edgewise. So instead he listened to the many names they were reciting, most of them blurring together, and Adrien was trying to wrap his head around it all. As soon as his plate was cleared he pushed himself to his feet, and Duusu drifted after him, still rambling on about kwamis.
"And Daizzi came into existence not long after me, so did Kicc," Duusu said. "Oh man, that was a long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long long–"
"...A lot of longs?" Adrien offered with a small smile.
"Yep~" Duusu chirped. "A lot of longs, but not Longg or Long-Long!"
"...Neat," Adrien said after a moment, not quite sure what they were talking about.
"What's wrong?" Duusu asked as they headed out of the dining room, frowning slightly. There was a noticeable slower step in Adrien's pace, and the kwami zipped so they were right in front of Adrien. "Why are you scared? Is it of transforming? Doesn't your medicine fix everything?"
"I'm not scared," Adrien said swiftly. "Just nervous. Father wants to see my transformation after all, and I..."
"You're scared of your father? Why?"
"Just nervous," Adrien reassured the kwami, whose magenta eyes watched him for a moment, unblinking. If they had anything else to say, however, it was cut off as the office door was thrown open, Nathalie standing there waiting for him to enter.
She inclined her head, gesturing for him to enter, closing the door behind him and Duusu. His father was over near his desk, working away on his computer. He didn't look up as he entered, the only eyes on him being the wide-worried eyes of Nooroo. The small kwami was looking at Adrien with an expression he didn't know how to read, the kwami hovering over Gabriel's shoulder.
"Nooroo!" Duusu squealed, becoming a blue blur as they charged towards Nooroo. They slammed into their fellow kwami, wrapping them in a tight embrace. "Me and my new chick are going to transform, isn't that so exciting?"
Nooroo's mouth opened and closed a few times, but no words came from it. After a moment, he managed to shakily say: "I'm glad to see you're happy."
"Of course I'm happy!" Duusu cried, throwing their paws up as they zipped around Nooroo. "Why aren't you happy? Why are you scared? What's there to be scared about? Why is everybody scared?"
"Duusu, enough," Gabriel said, looking up from the screen. "Don't pester Nooroo, you should be with Adrien."
"Okay!" Duusu said, bolting back towards Adrien's side. They settled on his shoulder, their fan of feathers spread out with a flick of their tail.
Gabriel pushed himself away from his work, rising to his feet. Nooroo drifted behind him as he walked forward, a small flicker of purple light flaring up behind Nooroo, and unseen force dragging him after his holder, even though it was clear he was trying to maintain as much distance as possible. Adrien glanced at the kwami uncertainly, he knew his father could control his ability to speak, but could he really confine the kwami in such a way?
"Um, Father?" Adrien asked uncertainly, and those cool gray eyes fell onto him. "Can't Nooroo be allowed to go around the atelier? I mean, it's just us in here–"
"I fail to see how that's any of your business, Adrien," Gabriel said coolly.
"He... he doesn't look happy, Father," Adrien whispered quickly, flinching back as the man stepped forward. Gabriel's hand reached out, grabbing Adrien's chin, forcing him to look him in the eye.
"Why are you feeling sympathy for him?" Gabriel asked quietly.
"Wh-wha–?" Adrien winced as nails dug into his cheeks.
"Nooroo is not a being you can trust, Adrien," Gabriel continued. "He has no desire to help your mother. If it wasn't for my orders he would be doing all he could to stop us. I'm well aware that he suggested that you give him his Miraculous."
"I didn't–!"
Gabriel's grasp on Adrien loosened, the man turning on a heel, walking towards the painting of Emilie. "I am not stupid, Adrien. I'm aware that you didn't– or else Nooroo wouldn't be here. I am sure he would have led those 'heroes' straight to our home if he were freed– and make sure that your mother could never be healed."
"She can't!" Nooroo cried, shaking. "She's too far gone, she's–"
"Nooroo, I order you to be silent," Gabriel snapped, and the kwami found himself unable to say another word. He glowered at the kwami, who shrank back, but was looking at him in pure hatred. Adrien didn't understand– Nooroo had been so meek when he had first met him, but in the last few days there was a bitterness in his eyes. "You say she can't be healed, but yet when I order you to tell me what could be done with the Miraculouses we seek, you say she can be brought back to us with the Ladybug and Black Cat."
"We get to bring Emilie home!" Duusu cheered.
Gabriel glanced back at Adrien. "Nooroo isn't afraid to lie to get his way, Adrien. Kwamis may be a tool to help us, but unfortunately they are free thinkers. Take what they say with a grain of salt."
"I..."
"Now," Gabriel said, cutting him off. "I need you to transform and create a sentimonster. I don't care what it is, as long as it can fit into this room, but I need to evaluate your ability. See how well you can work with the Peacock, and see how useful your creations will be when I send out an akuma."
"I think Adrien is going to be an awesome Peacock!" Duusu said, beaming.
"I'll be the judge of that, Duusu– after Adrien transforms," Gabriel said, finally turning to face him. "Whenever you're ready, son."
Adrien swallowed, touching the Peacock brooch pinned to his chest. It was warm to the touch, silver with three segments angled downwards. He glanced at Duusu, who was trembling with excitement, then towards Nathalie and his father. The former gave a single nod, while the latter watched him with emotionless gray eyes. Adrien didn't know why he felt on edge, he had transformed with a Miraculous before, but there was a tension in the air that hadn't been there before. Nooroo was watching him in what looked to be terror, the kwami's gaze making him pause.
It was just a few feathers, it was nothing to worry about. Any side effects of the medicine were preferable to the allergies themselves, he didn't need to get worked up over this. So he closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath. "Duusu, spread my feathers."
"Woo-hoo!" Duusu cheered from his shoulder, turning into a burst of deep blue energy, being summoned into the Miraculous on his chest. Silver turned to indigo, the blue aura radiating out from the Miraculous, draping him in its light. The transformation started off like Nooroo's– a costume materializing in place of his clothes, a mask appearing on his face, and a weapon at his side– but the similarities ended there.
Nooroo's aura had been soft, but in comparison Duusu's was sharp and chaotic, boarding on painful as it danced across his skin. He let out a gasp as he and the kwami became one– their presence not being calmly tucked away into his mind, but instead their sporadic emotions racing through him all at once. Those weren't the only emotions he sensed– the Miraculous on his chest pulsing as a new sense was opened up to him. He had felt the empathy the Butterfly Miraculous granted– but that was a mere sliver to what he could sense with the Miraculous of Emotions on his chest.
It hummed through him, tingles racing across his arms as he tried to comprehend it all. Impatience, panic, fear, curiosity, indifference, frustration, awe– there was too many to list. He could feel them all, yet they remained separate from him in a way he could not describe. They were there, but not his emotions, and he knew that. He had no time to try to understand it though– falling to his knees with a gasp of pain as his back began to burn.
He could feel the magic dancing along his skin, before pulsing outwards from his back in a horrible sensation. New muscles and bones shifted, blood flowing to unfamiliar limbs. He could hear the shifting of air, and the chills that raced through him ran down his back– and spread far beyond what he should be able to feel.
The transformation had only lasted for a few seconds, the blue light having flared across his body, but the moment it died down it felt like an eternity had passed. He sat there kneeling on the ground, trembling as his hands hit the floor to keep him balanced– dozens of new sensations rushing through him– and it was all too much, it was too much–!
He felt Duusu's presence shift within his mind, and suddenly the surge of emotions he had been sensing dimmed, Duusu's mental presence seeming to sweep them away from him, leaving them as a dim awareness in the back of his mind. He could still sense them– the sheer shock and awe that was emulating throughout the room, but they were no longer consuming him as they had before.
Duusu's interference did nothing to ease the horrible sensation of the new limbs shifting on his back, twitching and moving with a panic beyond his control. He could feel what felt like goosebumps running across his arms, except they were racing along something he knew shouldn't be connected to his body, but the foreign entity was there nonetheless.
Shaking, Adrien slowly shifted his head, staring at the large feathery wing that stretched out from his back, the feathers ruffled as the chills raced across it. His breathing turned ragged, and he turned his head to look at its twin on the other side of him, the large wings limply stretched out.
"Nooroo," Gabriel snapped, taking in a sharp breath. "What just happened?"
"...You got exactly what you wanted," Nooroo said after a moment, and Adrien didn't dare look up, trying to make sense of what had happened. "A holder that perfectly fits the concept of their Miraculous. Unlike you and Emilie– Adrien can truly connect to Emotions."
"Father?" Adrien croaked, shivering– and hundreds of blue feathers puffed up in reply. "Father, what's happening, Father what's happening–?"
"Hush," Gabriel said, stepping forward, and Adrien felt tears stinging his eyes. He felt a hand brush against feathers– and the forgien limbs flared out in reply. Gabriel jerked back at the sudden movement, the tip of Adrien's wing hitting a vase on the man's desk– sending it falling to the ground, where it shattered.
The boy instantly coiled in on himself. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry–"
Gabriel didn't even glance at the vase, simply stepping forward again, looking at the impressive wingspan that filled his office– each limb easily stretched ten feet across, if not more. "Beautiful," Gabriel mused. "Absolutely beautiful."
Adrien finally managed to find the courage to look back at his wings once more– both of them still stretched wide open. He didn't know how to close them, even though he tried to will them shut they remained flared out. His feathers were a soft turquoise in color, shimmering in the light of the atelier. They looked nothing like the actual wings of a peacock, but the long primary feathers that lined the bottom of the wings did carry the signature eyespots you'd find on the tail of a peacock– green and black in color.
"Tell me, Nooroo," Gabriel said softly, tracing Adrien's feathers with a finger, causing his wings to twitch and quake. "Is this the result of the Miraculous'... state? Or something that can happen with other holders?"
"The manifestation of something such as wings results when holders truly embody the concept their Miraculous represents," Nooroo replied. "I have had holders with wings too, in the past."
"But not with me?"
Nooroo shot Gabriel a bitter look. "Do you consider yourself a Generous man, Master?"
Gabriel smirked softly. "Perhaps not." His hand traveled to the top of Adrien's wing, carefully, but firmly, pressing down. Muscles and bones that Adrien did not know how to control shifted, one of his wings carefully folding under Gabriel's guidance. "And what about our dear friend Ladybug? Didn't you say she was the perfect holder of Creation?"
Adrien still had not risen to his feet, merely watching as his father walked behind him, placing his hands along the brim of his other wing, guiding this one as well, letting it naturally fold with the pressure he applied. Adrien's breathing felt slightly more controlled as his wings were carefully pressed closed by his father, the limbs no longer flared open and free. They pressed up against his back like a large feathery cape, and Adrien looked up at Nathalie and Gabriel, not sure what he was waiting for– just merely something.
"Ladybug is lacking her Black Cat," Nooroo replied. "Her full potential cannot be reached without them– they are two halves of a whole."
"A limited Ladybug, hmm?" Gabriel mused, glancing at Nathalie, whose gaze had yet to leave Adrien. "I am just fine with that. And these beautiful wings... they most certainly seem large enough to take him into the air."
"That... that is what they are for," Nooroo said quietly, uncertainty in his voice.
Gabriel smiled down at Adrien. "Well, in that case, I see no reason for you to create sentimonsters hidden away in my lair, son. No, I think you could be of far more use when it comes to claiming the Ladybug Miraculous."
Adrien didn't know why, but he felt so small. His father's words, his smile... this was praise, wasn't it? His father was happy with him, he was doing something right, this was a good thing... but he wanted to do nothing more than curl up where he sat.
Gabriel placed his hands on Adrien's shoulders, guiding him to rise to his feet, Adrien's eyes never leaving his. "You are going to do great things, my son."
"...Of course, Father," Adrien said quietly, and it seemed that his reply was the correct one, as his father smiled.
All OC kwamis mentioned in this chapter are mine, except for Renn, who belongs to SilverSlate203. I love Renn.
I've always liked the idea of Miraculouses based off of winged animals giving their holders actual wings, and while we do see ways for holders to get wings in canon, like the space power-ups in the New York special, I still wanted to explore the idea. So in this AU holders can gain traits like wings if they align with the concept their Miraculous embodies. It's based around the concept, not the kwamis.
So, even if Duusu was fully able to comprehend what they and Nooroo were being used for, Adrien would still manifest wings as he's a very emotional and empathic person. If Adrien wasn't using Nooroo selfishly, he would probably be able to manifest wings with him too. Meanwhile Gabriel could never gain wings with Nooroo, as Nooroo is Generosity in this AU– something Gabriel is not.