Here's some lore coming at you~
Chapter 8
Régalien flew off to the other side of the street to avoid a potential sighting from Chamack. His Miraculous gave a warbling beep, and he dived behind the crop of chimneys of a residential complex. It took that long for the festering anger and distrust within to leak out. Régalien kicked a loose shingle off the roof and glared at a chimney, tempted to punch it.
He'd done nothing wrong! It wasn't his fault Seeing Eye was a bit more invasive than any of them liked. Diamantte had been defeated. Chamack had been pacified. That was a clear success in his book.
Régalien glanced out into the city as a horrible possibility befell him. Maybe there was no meeting. He scanned the horizon, wondering if it was too late to catch up to Ladybug and Chat Noir. He shouldn't have agreed to ten minutes. That was far too long!
Breathe, Nino, breathe, Duusu advised him somewhere in his head. What you're feeling right now are the negative emotions you just took on from your teammates. Let them go and relax.
He didn't have time to relax. He had to—
Nino, she said again, far gentler that she normally was, breathe. This is the magic talking, not reason.
Régalien breathed in, out, in, out, and eventually realized how irrational his rant had been. It was logical to be mistrustful of a stranger with powers that suddenly crashed the fight. There was nothing wrong about splitting up while their Kwamis recharged.
His fists unclenched. Régalien massaged his temples. "Does this always happen?"
Unfortunately, but it's short-lived. Emotions are powerful things. You'll be right as rain in a minute.
With a final beep of his Miraculous, the transformation fell in a cascade of blue. As Duusu floated up in front of him, Nino took one steadying breath that verbalized as a low groan from his lips. Seeing Eye was definitely not for the faint of heart.
Sliding down in relief, he flattened himself against the brick and let out a stream of consciousness in a single breath. "That was completely and absolutely terrifying, and I never want to do it again."
Duusu snorted and leaned to take in his face. She seemed a lot more tired now than during their late night training, but she still smiled like his own mother did whenever he brought in a good grade from school. "You don't mean that. You did very well! Seeing Eye is tough, but now you know what to expect for next time."
"At least Ladybug and Chat Noir finally gave me a chance." Nino grinned, the last of those negative emotions from Seeing Eye fading. They were certainly not happy about him crashing the party, but they hadn't outright ran him out of the area or taken his Miraculous to try and see if it was the real deal. It was a lot better than what he'd started off with.
Duusu took it upon herself to root through Nino's pocket for any food. Somehow she found some carrots he had taken from her back when she was eating them on top his Chemistry textbook. "Thank Seeing Eye for that," she said with half her head inside a pocket. When she came back with her prize, she settled in his lap and continued only after a bite. "It relieved most of their anger and frustration, so you were left with them mostly calm and clear-headed."
Nino blinked at that. "Otherwise they would have probably drowned me in the Seine."
Nino glanced around the chimney and began tracing the path he would take for the Arc de Triomphe. He would have to read the street signs for help.
"Hey, Nino."
"Yeah, buddy?"
Duusu put down her slice of carrot to give him her undivided attention. "Make sure you listen to the Guardian. He's very knowledgeable and will serve as a great ally."
"He sounds important."
"He is, but he'll help you."
Nino nodded and waited for the carrots to be gone.
The run was short, too short, and Régalien feared that he would walk and find Ladybug and Chat Noir ready to boot him over the edge for the entirety of Paris to see. Maybe it was all one big ruse to capture the elusive Blue Akuma.
There they stood, stiff, but waiting for him. Régalien touched up beside them and offered a wave. "Got here just in time."
Ladybug tightly smiled back. Even though she was the one who had initiated the meet-up, she looked like she rather be in the middle of traffic than in front of him. "Thanks for coming." When there was nothing else she shoved Chat Noir with her elbow. "We really appreciate it."
Chat Noir rubbed his ribs but nodded. He was still standing far enough to have him in his sights, but it was a lot less predatory than before. Chat Noir placed his hand on his hip rather than on his baton. "Yeah, thanks for showing."
"Wouldn't miss it."
Régalien followed them through the eight arrondissement. They maneuvered the rooftops with ease, glancing ahead instead of the streets. Up close, they really were as graceful and powerful as the media made them out to be. Despite the burn on her thigh, Ladybug was the quickest, her feet gliding over the rooftops with the smallest adjustments of her hips.
And Chat Noir. It was getting harder and harder to see Adrien under the mask. Each jump was planned yet powerful, bolder than any move he'd shown in his fencing at school. Whenever he planted his staff into the street for his next leap, Régalien could imagine him swinging it his way if he dared to so much as look at Ladybug the wrong way, a far cry from mild-mannered Adrien.
Régalien was completely lost by the time they landed on a small roof littered with sun-bleached lawn chairs. He followed dutifully behind them as they entered the rooftop door and went down a dark stairwell, Chat Noir and his night vision leading the way. Their footsteps were muffled and reminded him just how close he was to them, should they choose to corner him and rip away his Miraculous right then and there.
Régalien chuckled to dispel those thoughts. "This is creepy, yo. Are you sure we're in the right place?"
Ladybug answered without glancing back. "This is the place, alright. Don't let the parlor fool you."
"Parlor?"
They entered a room on the second floor, fully carpeted and furnished for a small gathering, complete with a coffee table of pastries. Chinese scrolls were pinned to the walls and next to bookshelves of books of various languages. Though there were no windows or furnace, there was a cozy warmth settling over them, banishing any leftover adrenaline from the fight.
When he heard voices floating up front the first floor, Régalien held his breath, standing stock still and gazing at the wooden stairs that led down with the intensity of a hawk. Ladybug and Chat Noir, however, silently went to one of the small sofas situated at the far end of the room and took a seat.
Régalien fiddled with the end of his glove. "Does he know we're here?" he dared to whisper.
Chat Noir cocked his head, focusing on a point just beyond Régalien's shoulder, but when Régalien turned there was nothing there except a table with some type of phonograph and various bottles with yellowed labels. "He has his ways."
Despite the manners his parents drilled into him, Régalien's curiosity got the best of him. He picked up a bottle of what may have been some kind of tonic or salve. Even closed, the odor was strong and threatened to make him sneeze.
"Strong, isn't it?" Chat Noir asked from behind him. "But it certainly works."
So this was the Chinese medicine Adrien had mentioned. He would bet his laptop there had be some magic involved. Régalien put it back before something exploded. Magic was unpredictable like that.
Not a moment after, a voice bid a person a farewell, even as the person tried to ask more questions about when his next appointment would be. A door closed with a jingle of a bell. Régalien stepped back as footsteps climbed up the wooden steps, wringing his hands in an effort to calm his building nerves.
"I see you have decided to join us," a man's voice floated up.
"Yes?" Régalien, now lingering beside the sofa where Ladybug and Chat Noir sat, straightened to his full height.
Even as he realized that the man was no taller than five feet and wearing the signature Hawaiian shirt of a tourist, Régalien knew he was important. It showed in the way the man carried himself, eyes meeting his, hands clasped behind him. Ladybug and Chat Noir stood to greet him.
"I'm Master Fu," he announced, voice strong and clear despite his age. "Guardian of the Miraculous and occasional tutor to the Wielders, depending on what they need of me."
Régalien held out his hand before his nerves got the best of him. His tail feathers fluttered in apprehension, but he stomped on that notion quickly. Act cool. Be presentable. He smiled wide, imagining a friendly relative he hadn't seen in a while. "Nice to meet you."
And there, faint but visible only to him, was Master Fu's string: a low bass, almost too soft to heart. He was the foundation of this whole Miraculous thing, as unassuming as he seemed on the outside.
Master Fu clasped his hand and shook it. Then he stopped, gaze intensifying. "Do you go by anything?"
"Oh, um, Régalien, sir."
Régalien braced for a chuckle, or even a raised eyebrow, but Master Fu merely nodded. "It suits the Peacock Miraculous. I'm guessing Duusu approved, or otherwise she wouldn't have let you step foot outside."
And he smiled. Master Fu, Guardian of the Miraculous, and perhaps the most important man in France, smiled. Régalien perked up and chuckled, remembering that conversation after school clearly. "Yeah, she said it was alright. She's super proud and shot down the first two suggestions."
They stepped back, Master Fu clasping his hands behind his back once again, Régalien releasing his breath. Master Fu's gaze lingered, though, taking in his suit, the mask, and the train of feathers on the ground. "All peacocks are proud, but I think it has to do with confidence."
Seated once more, Ladybug and Chat Noir waited with bated breath, their glances meeting in silent communication.
"So he's the real deal?" Chat Noir cut in, then caught himself. "I mean, he's the person you gave the Miraculous to and not some kind of impostor?"
Master Fu shook his head. "Oh no, I was not the one to gift him the Peacock Miraculous. He obtained it by himself."
Ladybug gaped, and her face paled enough to match the white carpet at her feet. She seemed to physically restrain herself from rushing over between Régalien and Master Fu. "Hold on, Master, you didn't actually give him the Miraculous? He wasn't chosen?" And Ladybug snapped to Régalien, her string vibrating so much in her rush of emotions that Régalien was surprised no one else could see it.
Master Fu raised his hands to placate them while Régalien wanted to hide in the stairwell they passed through as Chat Noir joined Ladybug in unabashed scrutiny. "This will require some explanation on my part." Master Fu glanced back at him and nodded to the seat across from Ladybug. "Please, sit. I'm sure you must be tired after that fight."
He had been fine just standing there, away from the two heroes and their suspicion, but he hadn't been raised to be rude.
Régalien rounded the coffee table, swept his train aside, and sat down on the edge of the cushions, unfortunately still in yo-yo and baton range. Ladybug didn't scoot back, but neither did she relax. A glance at him was enough to bring her back to Master Fu. Instead of speaking out, she pursed her lips and waited.
Duusu leaned over in her metaphorical chair, far enough to brush Régalien's awareness more than usual. He remembered with a small start that Duusu didn't know why she hadn't been in Master Fu's care like she remembered.
Master Fu faced them, still standing. Régalien tried to tap into Fu's string to try and find out what exactly he was feeling, but it was like trying to grasp water. "The Peacock Miraculous was put in someone else's care a while ago, someone whose had a history of helping me in the past. Unfortunately, the Peacock Miraculous is more sought out by others than other Miraculous for reasons I'll get to in a bit, so having it with the rest of the Miraculous was too big of a threat to have."
That had to be Gabriel Agreste. It had been among his things, after all. He'd known it was in the truck when he'd ordered it returned to his mansion.
Gabriel Agreste was the person the Guardian had entrusted with the Peacock Miraculous? Of all the people in Paris, it was him?
"So who gave him the Miraculous?" Chat Noir asked.
"It is not my place to say. However, I can assure you that Duusu would not have stayed if Régalien was not a worthy candidate for the responsibility."
Régalien felt Duusu trill in affirmation. So even with his wishy-washy conviction, Duusu still thought he was worthy?
Master Fu left them to shift through a bookcase near the stairs. Régalien tapped his knee in an even rhythm, ignoring Chat Noir's critical gaze and Ladybug's open judgment. Even Chat Noir's puns would have been a welcomed respite.
Luckily, Master Fu returned before it got even more awkward. "I want you to flip through some of the pages of this book and tell me what you see."
The most ornate book Régalien had ever seen lay in Master Fu's hands. The smell of aged leather wafted over to them, followed by the whiff of old pages weathered with ink and time. Ladybug's eyes honed in on it, and she shifted for a closer look. Chat Noir tensed and grabbed the edge of the cushion with his claws. His string was pure nervousness and guilt. Régalien easily imagined Adrien's closed off expression, the one he had used when he'd been dodging questions about his injuries.
Wait, was this the book Adrien had lost?
Régalien accepted the book and carefully laid it on his lap before it fell to crush his toes— just how was it so heavy? He traced the design on the cover, magic seeping into his gloves and ghosting up his arms. He wetted his lips, but it did nothing to dispel the immense pressure the tome exuded.
"Umm, sure," he said when his mind finally remembered the instructions. When Master Fu gave no further directions, Régalien opened the book.
The pages were soft and aged an amber color reminiscent of scrolls he'd once seen in a museum. Régalien smoothed out a random page, careful not to be too rough. To the right of the spread stood a lean figure with an elaborate armor of orange and white. He glanced at the cursive alongside it, the words colliding into one another in a mess of words teeming with magic. Régalien shut his eyes, breathed in, then picked out the ones that jumped out at him.
Fox Miraculous Wielder.
Member of the Chinese army in the year 1675.
Headstrong yet calm in battle.
Régalien flipped to another random page. He ignored the stares in the room, the magic in his fingers guiding him to another person— another Wielder. The next one wore an intricate lilac dress with a sheer head cover. The text battled for his attention. Régalien mentally brushed away the superfluous information to concentrate on the most important tidbits. It was like trying to read without his glasses, hard but doable if he squinted.
"What can you tell me about her?" Master Fu asked from a million miles away. He was sitting on the couch across from them.
Régalien gulped. His thumb brushed over the six inches worth of pages he had to flip through. Did he have to memorize everything and pass some sort of test? Did he just have to study the Peacock Wielders?
"Well, she…," he started, brushing a hand over the page to stall for time, "she was a nurse for the Union Army during the American Civil War. She used the Butterfly Miraculous to give powers to soldiers, especially those who were injured and most likely to die."
Régalien looked up, ready to admit that he knew nothing about American history. Ladybug and Chat Noir shared looks of awe. Chat Noir leaned closer, eyebrows coming down as he tried to see all this information for himself.
Master Fu remained impassive. "What about who she was?"
"She was kind." Régalien glanced at the serene expression drawn on her face, just visible behind the veil. A warmth seeped into him, easing his nerves. The text sorted itself out, and Régalien had the distinct feeling of reading the diary of a close friend. "She was very patient and forgiving. It wasn't a bad thing, but sometimes that meant her anger was harder to tap into. Sometimes it would fester, like the wounds of the injured soldiers she tended to."
While Ladybug and Chat Noir were literally on the edges of their seats, their knees touching as they turned to Régalien and the book, Master Fu continued to smile. "Beautiful. The book is yours to keep, for as long you remain the Peacock."
"Wait, he can actually read all those scribbles?" Chat Noir blurted out from his stupor.
Master Fu nodded. "Only the Peacock can read the Grimoire. The 'scribbles' that everybody else sees, including me, is to protect sensitive information about Wielders and their powers from the wrong eyes. So to elaborate from earlier: this is why the Peacock Miraculous is highly sought after. Which means that his Miraculous is genuine."
It also meant that Gabriel Agreste had possessed both parts of what it meant to be the Peacock Wielder. That was no coincidence. He really was the person Master Fu had entrusted these items to.
Chat Noir frowned but accepted the explanation. His tail curled around him and closed him off. Ladybug remained on the edge. "But what does the Grimoire do? You didn't explain anything about it when I brought it in."
Though Chat Noir didn't outwardly react, his vexation turned into a mix of surprise and betrayal. Régalien straightened, almost toppling the book to the floor. Ladybug brought the book, but Chat Noir didn't know? So Adrien had been worrying himself sick when Ladybug knew where it was all along?
This was not the type of drama he had expected when he saw Chat Noir turn into Adrien.
Master Fu regarded the three heroes with sharp eyes. "It was no use to explain the Grimoire if there was no Peacock to wield it." He glanced over to a point over Ladybug and Chat Noir's sofa. "Wayzz, could you bring us the tea I set out downstairs?"
Régalien shook off the remaining magic in his mind to catch a glimpse of a green streak whizzing down the stairs. Feeling a heavy conversation unfolding, he closed the Grimoire and slid it to his side. There was a perfectly empty coffee table in front of him, but even that seemed too far. Something told him that he couldn't let it out of arm's reach.
Chat Noir kept staring at the Grimoire, then back at him. Régalien smiled, but Chat Noir narrowed his eyes. His tail flicked back and forth on the couch.
"Master, the tea." A tray floated down the coffee table between them. A small, green turtle floated up to settle next to the pile of pastries beside the tray. Régalien's jaw tightened in a muffled gasp. So this was another Kwami.
"Thank you, Wayzz." Master Fu poured the tea while Wayzz took up a cookie. Régalien accepted his teacup and took a generous sip. He hummed, recognizing the green tea but without the mint leaves his parents added. His dad would have raised a fuss at the crime.
Master Fu left his on the coffee table. "The Grimoire is a guide for the Peacock. In it the Peacock documents the active Wielders during his or her time and notes their powers, their position in society, personalities, and anything else that may be relevant in the battlefield. The Peacock uses all of this information to create a specific spell for Seeing Eye that will benefit them the most."
Régalien put his tea aside and flipped to the Fox Wielder he had read about, ignoring the stares. He pushed through the magic assaulting his eyes to read the last paragraph, the one that was more technical than the biography above. Wonder gave way to confusion. "This is like, a dance instruction manual."
He shut his mouth, floundering for something a lot less insulting, but Master Fu chuckled lightly. "Seeing Eye is a dance, but to maximize the positive effects for the team it should be tailored to each Wielder, or pair of Wielders if possible. That includes different feet position, fan position, and hand position." Régalien spluttered in shock. "Don't worry, I don't want you to create any new spells for quite a while. I want you to use the spells already documented in the Grimoire for the Ladybug and the Black Cat."
Régalien thumbed through the thick pages before putting the book aside. "There's a lot."
"Just use your best judgment when picking which ones you want to use. Duusu will help you."
"Sure, awesome." Régalien gulped more tea to calm his nerves, even if it burned going down.
"I'm not sure if I like this Seeing Eye thing," Chat Noir groused. He ran the tip of a claw around the rim of his teacup, contemplating the dregs at the bottom. "It feels like he's digging into my mind whenever he does it."
"It… helped," Ladybug amended, "but it does feel very weird. Does he just find out things about us whenever he does that? And just writes everything down?"
Their frustration coalesced into a dark, rumbling symphony of woodwind and brass. Régalien gripped his teacup brighter. They weren't addressing him— nor looking at him— but still felt the spotlight shining down.
Master Fu steepled his fingers in front of him, mouth thinning. "As weird it may seem at first, this is the role of Peacock and it must be followed, just as the role of the Ladybug is leadership and the role of the Black Cat is to enforce."
Ladybug nodded, a blush shading her cheeks. Chat Noir sighed, then eventually gave his own, stiff nod.
Master Fu turned to Régalien. The firm set of his frown didn't lessen. "Of course, that is, if you accept the Miraculous. I understand the circumstances were rather dire."
"What do you mean?" he asked as his heart picked up speed.
"The person who I entrusted the Peacock Miraculous to would not have given it away without my explicit permission, and Duusu would not have accepted a thief. So I assume you had no other choice but to accept the Miraculous as a means to defend yourself."
Ice water ran down his spine. The truck. The truck from a Gabriel Agreste fashion show that Nino Lahiffe walked into.
And never walked out of.
The CCTV footage recovered only started with him in costume and already outside the truck. No one else had come forth with additional footage. It would have been all over the news.
Master Fu waited, his expression and string unwilling to share exactly what he knew about that day. Régalien glanced over at Chat Noir, but there was no flicker of recognition. He stared down at the Grimoire to even his breath, but he didn't relax until the book was in his arms and against his chest. Régalien pushed the truck matter aside to ponder later.
"Duusu told me you could break the Bond between a Wielder and Kwami." The words sounded muffled and strange.
"I can, but if you decide to leave then you would be leaving Ladybug and Chat Noir without the emotional support they need." His emotional string grew taut. The calm became the storm. Master Fu fixed him with a stern gaze. "Picking Wielders is a time-consuming process. Duusu has already begun teaching you."
Régalien held his breath. His fingers clutched the edges of the Grimoire until they numbed.
His cards laid, Master Fu, waited for Régalien to make the correct move. Even Wayzz offered an encouraging smile.
Ladybug and Chat Noir said nothing, and Régalien resisted the urge to shake them out of their stupor. Didn't they see this was more than a little manipulative? Did they really want a Peacock that was being guilted to be at their sides? When they looked for Master Fu for his verdict, Régalien fisted his hands on the Grimoire. He couldn't rely on Ladybug or Chat Noir for a way out; it was clear they respected Master Fu too much to go against him.
Here was his chance to back out. Duusu wasn't here— technically— to tell him to keep the Miraculous.
"I can handle this," he found himself saying. Régalien gave them the best smile he could muster. His heart was beating like crazy, nervous but sure. "Like you said, Master Fu," he waved a hand around them, "I'm already getting the hang of this. I can't leave my bros hanging, right?"
He wasn't going to give Master Fu the power to choose Adrien's next protector, not when he'd picked Gabriel Agreste to guard the Miraculous in the first place.
"I'm glad to hear that," Master Fu said for all to hear, and it sounded sincere enough for Chat Noir and Ladybug to relax "We will need your help in the upcoming fights. We still do not know why the Cure is being affected as it is. We can only continue the good fight and hope it leaves with us clues. Régalien," he started, "you will serve as the Protector of the team and will provide a strong defense that has been absent until now. Duusu will coach you on your role."
Master Fu stood up, a clear sign of dismissal for Ladybug and Chat Noir. Régalien followed suit, Grimoire in hand, until Duusu nagged him with a, I need to talk to the Guardian alone. It was insistent and left no room for argument.
As Master Fu passed out a cookie each for them to take on the road, Régalien awkwardly started with, "Uhh, Duusu says she wants to talk to you."
Master Fu gave him the cookie, then nodded. "I'm sure Duusu has many questions now that she has a new Wielder."
As Ladybug and Chat Noir dawdled at the staircase leading to the rooftop, Régalien waited, until he was the one who had to eventually ask, "Is there a place where I can… you know, detransform?"
Guardian or not, Régalien still had his secret identity— if Master Fu didn't know it already— and he was not ready for Adrien to know who he was. When he got better and knew what he was doing, then it would feel like he actually earned the spot.
And maybe Régalien was a bit a petty and wanted to draw out the secret after a year of Adrien doing the same.
"We'll go up first and you can use the stairwell," Chat Noir said when no one volunteered a solution.
Régalien only had enough time to nod his thanks before both heroes ascended. It wasn't until he heard the rooftop door close did he follow, entering the dark stairwell and stopping near the middle. He felt Ladybug and Chat Noir's strings even through the closed doors. They lingered in a confusing mass of relief and frustration. Régalien glanced over his shoulder, hoping the heroes didn't entertain their curiosity and peek.
When nothing of the sort happened, Régalien sat down on the steps and whispered, "Wings Down."
Duusu appeared with the cascade of magic. She patted his cheek. "I won't be long."
She flew down the stairwell and turned the corner back into the parlor. Duusu gave a joyous cry of glee and excitement, and even without the Miraculous active, Nino felt the love she had for her Guardian through their connection. Nino smiled, feeling his eyes well as Duusu's happiness and relief grew. Master Fu said something in that soft-spoken manner of his. Duusu began to talk a mile a minute. Master Fu hummed, until their voices faded the farther away they got.
Nino resisted the urge to move and eavesdrop, though he did try to stretch his magic. Unfortunately for him, Master Fu's string still didn't tell him much, and there was even less for him to pick up without the Miraculous activated. Maybe it was a Guardian thing to resist magic from another Wielder, or he just had better control of his emotions than most. He probably had a ton of Peacocks to practice with— Master Fu was definitely older than he looked.
Nino sat in the darkness of the stairwell, nibbling his cookie. He threw his awareness instead to the heroes on the rooftop. They were still there, and he didn't know whether that was a relief or worrisome.
They obviously didn't get all the answers they'd wanted and were definitely not happy about the whole "tapping into their emotions" thing. Nino didn't know who Ladybug was, but he knew Adrien didn't open up to everybody. Even as his best friend, Nino only saw the real Adrien when they were in the middle of hanging out and he didn't have to worry about keeping up his image.
Being Chat Noir was probably the only time he could let loose and be himself. And now some stranger in costume was picking his brain.
I can't tell him yet, he told himself with a mouthful of cookie. Adrien would probably march him back to Master Fu's if he found out it was Nino struggling to fight in a battle. He had to prove himself first to the point that Adrien was glad to have him there, not worried. That was the whole reason he had turned down his help back in the tent.
After a while of of Nino hastily wiping away the cookie crumbs from the Grimoire, Duusu returned with her own small bottle of Chinese salve. Nino started to ask what that was all about, but Duusu patted his nose. "Don't worry about it. I needed to ask Master Fu how I should proceed to train you now that the Grimoire is back in our possession."
It was hard to read her expression in the dark, and her magic just told him that she felt relieved. But so far, Duusu hadn't led him astray.
Nino shook his head to clear the doubt. He accepted the small vial and wondered when Master Fu noticed his wrist. At least he had a backpack to put it in because he still couldn't find the pockets in his suit. "Okay, well, as long as you don't make me memorize the whole thing." He stood up with the Grimoire in his arms. "Wings Up!"
Back among the lawn chairs, the heroes dawdled, only to straighten and turn around when Régalien walked through the door. With their expressions so guarded, he guessed he walked in on a conversation about him.
Ladybug toyed with the string of her yo-yo. "We'll have to talk about patrolling now that there's three of us. We don't patrol every night, so I'll call you through your communicator when it's time." Régalien tried to pick up if she was lying— was that considered an emotion?— but Ladybug continued in a rush. "You don't need to be transformed to wait on us or anything. Your Kwami will let you know if you have a call from us."
"Don't expect to sleep in," Chat Noir joked, but it sounded more like a warning.
Régalien stood tall and nodded, the Grimoire held tightly against his chest. "No worries. I'll be ready."
Ladybug and Chat Noir exchanged a look before they stepped onto the roof's edge. "Be safe!" Ladybug called over her shoulder before using her yo-yo- to swing herself across the street, Chat Noir close at her heels.
Régalien stood there, taking it all in, before making his way home. With Ladybug and Chat Noir off somewhere, together, Régalien only had the Seine to guide him back home.
Nino thanked whichever god a Miraculous Wielder prayed to that it was Wednesday and there were no classes after lunch. Already he had to field a missed text from his mother about why he wasn't home yet. If he had walked into school an hour late, Nino would have been grounded until Hawkmoth retired.
A block from his apartment, a de-transformed Nino finished answering Saliha's text. His wrist ached as he juggled his phone and the Grimoire. Nino stepped out of the alleyway and glanced once more at the street signs. Through the haze of a developing headache, he determined his apartment was right around the corner.
When he rounded the corner, his tired mind reminded him he lived on the seventh story. Nino tested his aching knees and decided he didn't want to risk damaging a millennia-old.
He swiveled his backpack to the front while awkwardly balancing the Grimoire in one arm. It was a tight fit, but he managed to zip his backpack closed.
Nino stood there, backpack held by the straps, muscles aching. His heart swelled painfully in his chest, and the first tears sprung into his eyes. Nino shook his head. He bit his lip to try and stop himself from crying.
"Nino?" Duusu rested inside his hat, her voice echoing. "Are you okay?"
The tears kept coming. Nino started up the stairs of his apartment as fast as his legs could take him. He couldn't pinpoint why he wanted to curl up on his bed with a box of tissues. All Nino could feel was the overwhelming sense of responsibility on his shoulders and in his backpack. He'd known since Duusu had spelled it out for him that this Miraculous thing was a big deal, but it hadn't felt as heavy as it did right now.
Nino stared at his front door until the tears stopped running down his cheeks. He'd survived his first battle and made a good impression on Master Fu. He should be happy, proud even!
He shoved his key into the door. "I'm home, Mom," he called out once inside.
Saliha hummed from the kitchen. Dishes clattered as she washed by hand and ignored the perfectly good dishwasher beside her. That was the designated drying rack, and Nino had long ago given up the fight about it. "Did you have a nice lunch?"
Sliding his backpack onto the couch for some respite, Nino wandered into the kitchen with only an aching hunger guiding him. Master Fu's cookie had been neither magical nor filling. "It was nice. I ate at the park under a tree for a change of scenery."
Saliha watched him rummage through the pantry, hands on autopilot. When he couldn't tell what she was thinking based on facial expression alone, he extended his powers to catch a sense of curiosity mixed in with exasperation.
"Looks like you didn't eat enough," she commented when he brought down a box of unopened crackers. Saliha scrubbed another plate, eyes on him.
Nino ran his finger along the unopened flap. He read the nutrition column on the box to bide for time. Under unspoken rules, he was obligated to stay until he came up with a satisfactory answer. "I had homework to finish," he finally said.
Akumas to battle. Guardians to impress. It was technically homework for superheroes.
Nino broke open the box with more force than necessary and caught a flying cracker. Nino popped it into his mouth and grabbed a handful to take up to his room. He would have to make time to buy more carrots for Duusu.
"And what happened to your wrist?"
Her words slapped the tiredness away. Heart picking up speed, Nino slowly turned on his heel and refused to look down at his reddened wrist. It stung now that her stare lingered on it, then burned when her accusing gaze met his.
Nino straightened, lowering his arms so that his bracelets covered the worst of it. He swallowed and wished for a second cracker. "I tried climbing a tree and fell. Guess the bark scratched me up real bad."
She held him down with her piercing gaze. Saliha rinsed a glass as the silence stretched on. Even Duusu squirmed on top of his head. Then she said, "You should clean it up before it gets infected."
Nino nodded, went back to the living room, and dragged his backpack with him before she decided to bandage him up right then and there. Behind his closed door, he took a deep, steadying breath that pushed the stinging pain aside.
Duusu burst from his hat and wagged her tail feathers in excitement. "Open up the Grimoire, and we can get started."
She dragged him by the hand to his bed. Nino fished out the first aid kit he had bought yesterday for himself from his nightstand as Duusu unzipped his backpack. He broke the plastic seal of the kit with a half-hearted chuckle. Between this and Duusu's food, he hoped Alya didn't expect something fancy for their weekly date.
"Oh, it's as beautiful as I remembered!" Duusu crowed, laying the Grimoire on the bed with a significant thunk.
Nino sat back against the headboard, the first aid kit opened beside him, Master Fu's salve fished from the backpack's outer pocket. He settled the Grimoire on his lap and let Duusu flip throughout the pages. The Wielders' portraits blurred in a rush of colors. Text swam in and out of focus in a dizzying display. Nino fished out the package of antiseptic wipes to read something less headache inducing.
"Good, good," Duusu said under her breath every couple of pages. "Everything looks to be in order."
Nino dabbed at his cut with one of the wipes. It stung, but that meant it was working. "Why wouldn't it be?" he asked when the worst of it was over.
"The Grimoire is powerful but ancient. It can still be damaged." Duusu fluttered down onto the open spread. She caressed the page with a wistful smile. "I'm glad it's alright. While I was trapped, I had no way of knowing if it was alright."
"Gotcha." After applying some of Master Fu's salve, Nino wrapped the bandage around his wrist. Then he jerked upright, toppling the book and Duusu onto the blankets. "Wait, you were trapped? Like, you couldn't get out?"
Duusu huffed. Her magic wavered but settled with a firm press of her mouth. "When a Miraculous is dormant — when we have no active Wielder— a Kwami cannot sense what is happening outside. We can guess how much time has passed, but it's rarely accurate. We are at the mercy of whoever is keeping our Miraculous."
Nino bit the inside of his cheek. "Dude, that sounds… harsh."
Duusu floated up, mouth pursed, tail feathers quaking with pent-up anger. She continued flipping through the Grimoire faster than Nino could keep up with. The flipping became audible, then transformed into Duusu's heated muttering.
Nino leaned forward as he clipped his bandage in place. "Buddy, you good?"
Duusu continued to flip through the Grimoire, this time with only her magic instead of her paws. Duusu's eyes stopped following the text, and her mutterings became short and louder. Something about pages and permission and how dare they—
"Duusu!" Nino grabbed her just as the Grimoire began to levitate off the bed.
She curled up in his hands, hot as a coal and shaking in her anger— Nino suspected it was the Miraculous that made the heat bearable. Duusu resorted to hitting his palms with her fisted paws. Her words became garbled but remained short and heavy with emotion. Magic thickened the air.
"Duusu, you're alright," he tried to comfort her even as he wondered what the Hell had happened. Since the moment Duusu popped out of that Miraculous, she'd flip flopped from kind to direct whenever he was being difficult about his commitments to being the Peacock Wielder. This, however, was new and not unlike his own tantrum back on the rooftop.
Nino petted the feathers on her head with shaking fingers. When she continued to abuse his hand, Nino cupped his hands around her and drew her nearer. "Duusu, hey, tell me what's wrong?"
She stopped squirming and slouched against his curled fingers. Duusu met his eyes, tears running down her cheeks. "I…" She turned to glance at the Grimoire abandoned on the bed, then back to him with a pensive frown. "I'm sorry. Sometimes my emotions get the best of me."
"Does Seeing Eye affect you, too?" he asked, then immediately regretted it when her expression closed off.
Duusu pushed off to float back to the Grimoire, train of feathers uncharacteristically low. Nino scooted closer on his knees. Duusu settled back on the bed. "Don't worry about me, Nino," she said without turning back to him. She laid a paw on the Grimoire, reverently. "I am the Kwami of Emotion, and sometimes the burden I bear is greater than the Wielder's."
There was more to it, Nino could tell even without using his powers, but there was no use in prying. Duusu would tell him in time as long as he didn't step on any toes.
"You said people can still damage the Grimoire," he started when the silence stretched on. Nino edged closer until he was beside her. "Is that why some pages are torn?" Even in her mad episode, he'd seen the uneven edges where pages should have been.
Her anger tapered off enough for the magic to dissipate from the air until only the usual buzz of Duusu and the Miraculous lingered. "Some Peacocks come up with spells that aren't in the best interest of the team. We can't have future generations using these spells and jeopardizing the efforts of the other Wielders. So they're taken out." She narrowed her eyes. "Although there are more torn pages than the last time I laid eyes on the Grimoire. Whenever Master Fu decides to take pages out, it is always with my permission."
That sounded like a pretty big deal, even to an inexperience Nino.
"Do you know which pages were torn out?"
Duusu stared at the book until she admitted softly, "…No."
Afraid of another tantrum, Nino patted her head feathers. "Don't worry, we'll figure it out. How about we just get started with whatever you were going to teach me?"
Duusu perked up and waved him closer. "Come, flip through the Grimoire, now that you don't have everyone's eyes on you."
Nino was drawn to the Grimoire now that he was so close to it. He flipped to the beginning, and without his gloves, he felt the magic imbued in the pages. It was the same magic he felt whenever he transformed but slightly different, as though someone had changed a single ingredient in the recipe. When he landed on the first page and smoothed the aged paper, there it was again, different but the same. It had to be whatever magic was left over from Peacock Wielders of the past.
They were surely dead and buried if the ages on the pages were anything to go by. Yet here, in his two-bedroom apartment in the middle of Paris, they lived on.
Duusu saddled up on his shoulder. "The Grimoire is in chronological order from the time the Miraculous were created," she began to explain, tail feathers curling and brushing his neck. "There's a page for each specific Wielder that has interacted with a Peacock at one time or another."
The first Wielder was the Turtle Wielder dressed in a green robe. Nino turned the page to the Ladybug Wielder in a dress fit for a queen.
Duusu continued. "Each Miraculous has a role. The Ladybugs are Leaders because of their Luck. Black Cats are Enforcers because of their Destruction powers. Turtles are the Guardians because of their longevity."
Nino felt a sense of relief. If there were roles, then there were rules he could follow. No more guessing
Nino flipped to another era in history. "I don't see any Peacocks."
Duusu chuckled lightly. "We're the ones that do the emotional labor. We don't need a page. Master Fu was not putting it lightly when he said we're the emotional crutch. The Peacock is the Protector, the foundation. Seeing Eye is used to help other Wielders, not ourselves. We don't need detailed spells."
"I guess that makes sense." Another rule to file.
"That is why we'll focus on defense, not offense, during our akuma fights." Duusu leaned in, draping herself on his shoulder. "Okay, now I want you to find the Bee Wielder from the year 1963."
Wielder after Wielder flipped pass, each page calling to him with its taste of magic, but his own magic led him to the appropriate page without the need to look at the text. Nino's fingers froze on a page somewhere in the last third of the Grimoire. A man dressed in a two-piece yellow suit stared back.
"Cool." Nino marveled at his fingers, then brushed the raised texture of the page.
"Read about him."
The text came easier to him than back at the parlor. French replaced scribbles, slowly but surely, like water spilling onto the page. Nino read over the rim of his glasses.
"Honeycomb was a lawyer in Nice, twenty-three. Family-oriented and was always the one to comfort the victims of an attack before anybody else. Honeycomb was the scouter of the team and reported back with a plan of attack." Nino moved to the second paragraph. "He was prone to over analyzing during scouting and second-hand grief when it came to consoling victims. With his team, Honeycomb occasionally experienced feelings of resentment when he felt he was doing the majority of the work."
Nino pulled back with a wave of goosebumps. Ladybug had a point about prying in their minds. He would never meet Honeycomb, but he already felt like he knew him better than most of the relatives he was forced to chat with during family reunions.
"Bees are the Workers. Their job is to make sure the other Wielders do not carry too much of the physical burden, like scouting. Honeycomb fit the role perfectly." Duusu inclined her head with a soft smile. "Read the spells, and I want you to take a guess about how they match up to him."
Each spell had a name. The first one focused on Honeycomb's resentment. Then Nino read the second line and furrowed his brows. He read it slowly. "Fan swept in an arc above the head while the dagger is clutched behind the back. Right foot in front, left in back. First one is thrown in front of Honeycomb while the second is thrown between. Third dagger is thrown in front of Wielders with right pointed toes."
Duusu nodded even as Nino openly balked. "Ahh, yes, the Honey Jar."
"What the…" Nino pushed his glasses up, stared at the page, and fixed Duusu with raised eyebrows. "Dude, this is so needlessly complicated. Did it take him like two hours to do this?"
"No, it did not, and it's not going to take you two hours." Duusu floated up in front of him, her tell-tale listen to me because this is important pose. "Each movement has a reason. The arc above the head refers to the fact that Honeycomb felt he was doing everybody's work. The dagger behind the back signified he was a reserved person who kept his resentment hidden from the others." She fluidly copied the motions with each explanation with her own paws. "The feet copy the dagger movements, in this case."
Nino threw his head back to stare at the ceiling. He would have to put a poster up there with all the groaning Duusu made him do. "Geeze, at least I don't have to make any spells right now."
Duusu vibrated with more to say. Nino turned to her, waiting for an onslaught of information. Instead she flipped to the very end of the book. She proudly presented him with two blank pages.
"Nino, take a look. Right here." She put both paws on two lines of text.
Nino squinted and recognized it as his own loopy handwriting next to a picture of a young Wielder in black.
Chat Noir is a young model and student. He puts others before him.
Nino stared first at the writing he had definitely not written, then to the picture of Chat Noir posing confidently for a nonexistent camera. Duusu smiled wider. "Your magic has already started to fill in the information for Chat Noir. The moment you accepted the Peacock Miraculous, you were connected to the Grimoire, even thought it was still in Master Fu's possession. This right here," she patted the page, "tells me you are more than capable of doing a great job."
"Holy shit." He brushed his fingers on the text and found it dry. Nino reverently picked up the Grimoire. "Thank God Adrien can't read this."
"You don't have to know your team's civilian identities, but it helps." Duusu perched on the book's spine. "Just make sure you observe Ladybug during battle, so you can start taking notes on her. Actually, let's make that our goal for the next akuma battle."
"Yeah, sure," he said while he analyzed Chat Noir's page. The picture looked like a cross between watercolor and ink. Was the picture based off his own perception of Chat Noir? He certainly looked proud in the picture but without the cockiness most media pictures captured during interviews.
Duusu turned to a page depicting a Ladybug clothed in Victorian clothing. "From what I observed, our Ladybug shares similar traits to Flutterby. Let's pick a spell and work on it."
Dragging him to the middle of his bedroom, Duusu walked him through the spell. Nino followed as closely as he could, using two pens for his daggers and a folded paper for his fan. He felt silly moving around his room with pointed toes and swinging arms. Duusu flew back and forth with the energy of a firecracker. She prodded his limbs to the correct position every other second.
After a while, Nino started to hum one of his newest DJ mixes. After Duusu almost twisted his ankle, he went to his laptop and put on the mix. He'd last worked on it the day before the trip to the Jardin des Plantes, but what he had so far was actually decent.
"What is that?" Duusu exclaimed when the first beat dropped. She glared at his laptop, head feathers flat.
"It's my latest project." Nino grinned. "Now how did that part go again?"
Nino adjusted his steps under Duusu's strict correction. The mix didn't go perfectly with the spell, but having a steady rhythm was miles better than dancing to complete silence.
Alya would absolutely lose it if she saw him right now.
Duusu allowed him a small break while she consulted the Grimoire for a spell from one of the Black Cat Wielders of the past. After she demonstrated the routine, Nino picked an old DJ favorite that had Duusu recoiling away from the laptop. She was positively annoyed now, her feathers puffed up like a wet cat.
Nino ended up cupping Duusu in his hands. She pouted up at him and flew back. Nino followed her to the bed with a perfect execution of pointed toes forward and pencil-dagger held out like a sword.
He ended the move with a flourish and a grin. When she continued to grumpily stare at him, Nino beckoned her with his fingers. "Hey, you wanted me as your Peacock, so you gotta deal with my music."
Duusu crossed her arms. "You're a lot less shy than some of my other Peacocks." She glanced at the laptop. "And louder."
"Whatever helps, right?"
She made him take the spell from the top. By the end, Duusu was bobbing along with the music. If the beat dropped and she twirled along with it, Nino kept his mouth shut.
There was no pleasing Duusu. Ms. Mendeliev's rubrics had nothing on Duusu's idea of perfection.
Nino practiced the two spells they selected for Ladybug and Chat Noir whenever the chance arose. An idle wait for the teacher to walk in became practice with his tablet pen and his sheet of homework. Physical education was another excuse to perfect his pointed toes, even if it meant getting odd looks during basketball— Kim outright ogled the first time he noticed. Duusu continued to prod and criticize when it wasn't up to her standards.
And yet there were things Duusu had no control over. When she had another burst of anger when Nino messed up his fan position for the umpteenth time, Nino had to sneak off to the bathroom to calm her down before someone wondered why his cap was cursing up a storm. Duusu's anger had turned to worry, which led to actual tears.
"If you mess up, you may be killed because the spell didn't work," she'd wailed. Nino had to miss the last part of French to console her back to her normal self.
Nino could deal with the emotional outbursts if only his team would call him. Nino wasn't proud to admit that he tested Ladybug and Chat Noir's strings to see if they were active after school. Adrien seemed to transform more frequently and for longer stretches of time, while Ladybug preferred short bursts out in the city. How often did they patrol? Did they patrol at the same time?
"Did you see the interview yesterday?"
Nino started, and his tablet pen flicked out of his hand. Alya stared down at him as he reached for it before it rolled off the edge of the table. Her hair was in a tussle: a telltale sign that whatever Nadja Chamack had said frustrated her.
"The one with the new hero?" Nino resisted the urge to spin his pen. That hadn't been an interview, more of an ambush, but he figured it was the best piece of footage they had of Régalien to date.
Students were trickling into the courtyard as their lunch hour dwindled. Benches and tables filled up as everybody waited for their next class to begin.
"If you had spent more than five minutes of lunch with me, you would have seen it," she bit back.
Nino flinched. The pen tumbled across his knuckles as he fished for words. After inhaling the leftovers his mom had packed for him, the rest of lunch had been spent in a shadowed rooftop practicing his spells. "I was finishing up homework."
"Still?"
Nino grinned sheepishly and tried not to think about the finished essay sitting at the bottom of his backpack. "So that interview was cool."
Alya sat in front of him, dumping her bag with his in the middle of the table. Her frown waned as her excitement built. She leaned in closer, but her voice was nothing short of raucous. "How cool is it that we get a third hero?"
"Very cool." Nino smiled. Régalien got the seal of approval of none other than his very own girlfriend. Things were looking up.
"Definitely cool," another voice piped up. They turned to find Alix and Kim finishing up their lunch at the neighboring table. Alix raised her sandwich above her head in a weird fist bump. "If Volpina shows her face again, I bet he would give her a piece of his mind."
"Plus those daggers are cool as Hell, especially because he hides them in his fan," Kim added with a sage nod of approval. He stood up and mimed holding out a fan; Duusu would have a field day correcting his form. "Like, first you think he's going to kiss your hand or something then bam!" Kim sliced the air with his invisible hand. "Your face is toast."
Nino's smile grew, then a spark of emotion ran down his spine and to his toes.
Ladybug.
He swiveled in place and surveyed the growing crowd of students. Ladybug's string was faint, a murmur of flute notes in a sea of echoes. Nino reached out with his eyes and magic.
The girls blurred into a hotchpotch of emotions. Chloé's irritation of being proven wrong about her supposed akuma mixed in with Rose's excitement and Juleka's quiet satisfaction. Nino spread his reach out, pinpointing Sabrina's irritation and Marinette's smugness. Then there were the students loitering on the second floor, and Nino couldn't tell if the string extended that far. There were definitely students up there that matched Ladybug's height and hair color.
Try as he might, Ladybug's string remained just out of his reach.
They moved on to their next class. Nino gave up when, even as the students separated, Ladybug remained hidden. Apparently one meeting wasn't enough to key into her string as a civilian.
Inside the classroom, Adrien took his seat beside him. Pointedly ignoring the fresh bandage peeking from under his shirt sleeve— and the faint odor of Master Fu's salve— Nino asked before he could think twice about it, "So what do you think of the new hero?"
"He's okay," he said after a pause and left it at that.
"Just okay?"
"Yeah." Adrien shrugged and gave him a significant anything Chat Noir is off-limits stare.
It wasn't outright anger at Régalien, so Nino would take it.
During note taking, Nino learned to occupy himself with the spells. Adrien noticed the fancy flourishes of his tablet pen, as well Nino's insistent humming that synced with the slight swaying of his shoulders. "New mix?" he asked when Nino began to tap his foot to the beat.
Nino laid his tablet pen down just as the teacher turned back to face the class. "Kinda, still not finished, though."
"Is there a dance that goes along with it?" Adrien asked, teasing.
"Maybe," Nino said and continued the routine with his pen before Duusu chastised him from her place under his cap. One breakdown per day was enough.
Anybody else here have parents who don't use the dishwasher? My parents are on their fourth one, and it's still the designated drying rack.
Y'all, I'm so excited about the Grimoire. Nino now has everything he needs to kick some butt.
Next chapter on the weekend~ Now I gotta start packing. lol