-Julian's POV-
"C'mon Lian, you have to make your move!"
I frown, staring at my best friends in fake confusion. "Why?"
Alix groans, slapping her forehead in exasperation. "Do I have to spell it out for you?" She looks around before leaning in. "Marinette's been getting bolder and bolder, she might actually ask Adrien out soon!"
I huff, she had a point. In the past week, Marinette's been getting closer to forming proper sentences towards our mutual crush, but all of them so far have ended in panicked excuses and running away. Everyone else had been supportive of her efforts, Alya especially, but I've been a little distant, some might say I've been avoiding the entire thing.
Mainly because I didn't want to feel the same heartbreaking anticipation every time Marinette tries to ask the boy out. Seriously, Marinette should just rip the bandage off and do it already, the hurt of rejection can't possibly be preferred over the stress of doing nothing.
"Julian?"
I looked up from our group project to our homeroom teacher Miss Bustier, who had walked up to our table. "Y-Yes?"
"Principal Damocles has requested you to visit his office." She explains.
"Ohhhh someone's in trouble~" Alix whispers before getting smacked in the head by Nathaniel. "Hey, what are- Oh, Julian."
I looked at her with wide eyes, not registering that I was starting to hyperventilate.
Is she right? Did I do something wrong? Why am I suddenly being sent to the principal's office for no reason?
"Julian." I jumped, looking back at our teacher, who's smiling gently. "You're not in trouble, don't worry."
Oh, okay. I look down, trying my best to calm myself breathing before croaking out an "okay.", getting my things since class is ending soon anyways before leaving the class.
Adrien sends me an encouraging smile from his seat, which I definitely don't swoon over after leaving the room.
Gods, can Marinette either date him or can the weekend come sooner? My heart can't take this level of pining anymore.
Taking the steps up to the office, I give the doors a sharp set of knocks before hearing a "Come in!", opening the doors and entering the room.
"Y-You needed to see me? Principal Damocles?" I ask timidly, looking around the room again. The principal is sitting by his desk as usual, however, there's an unfamiliar student sitting in front of him. This girl has a vermillion jacket over a dark gray sleeveless polka dotted jumpsuit with a bow on top. Light gray legging and ankle length high heel boots, a rather ostentatious design for attending school.
"Ah, yes." Principal Damocles clears his throat. "Julian, you must remember Miss Lila Rossi, she just transferred over to our school and will be attending your class."
"Oh." I blink, am I supposed to remember her? "Good to see you again?"
Lile giggles, brown hair sweeping over her features. "It's good to see you too Julian, it's been way too long."
Has it? I think, frowning at the incredibly bizarre interaction.
"Lila here mentioned that both of your parents are close friends." The principle explains. "Since you and her know each other, why don't you show her around the school, her schedule will be ready by the end of the day."
What? I tilt my head in confusion. "S-Sure." I say anyways, because why would I ever go against a teacher?
After a couple more words, the principal lets us go. I hold the door open for her as the two of us exit into the courtyard.
"So, there aren't many facilities here, and most of them are classrooms. We have an art room, a science lab, the cafeteria but no one ever eats there for some reason, and the library." I say, pointing to the various doors of the campus.
"Hi Julian! Oh, who's your friend?" I turn to see Rose ask as she and Juleka walk up to me, I give them a small wave. "Hello, this is Lila, our new student. I'm just showing her around."
"Nice to meet you." Lila greets before noticing Rose's backpack. "Oh, you're a fan of Prince Ali?" She notes, instantly causing a shriek from Rose.
"Of course! Isn't he just the second most kindest, coolest person out there?." She giggles, hugging her girlfriend closer.
"He is, do you know, he and I are really close, he even let me fly on his private jet once." Lila continues, earning a shocked gasp from the blonde.
"No way! Seriously!?" The girl shrieks, almost passing out in Juleka's arms, who chuckles. "I'm going to take her away before she jumps you." She says, slowly pulling Rose away from us.
I cough awkwardly. "You really know a lot of famous people, huh?"
Lila laughs again. "Of course I do, my parents are pretty big diplomats, they travel all over the world for their job so I get to meet a lot of people."
I nodded in thought. "How did they meet my parents then? I haven't heard them mention a Rossi before-"
"Oh! Who's that?" Lile interrupts, gesturing to Chloe and Sabrina.
"That's Chloe, she's one of our classmates." I explain as the girl in question walks up. "Hey Chloe, this is-"
"Sh!" The blonde interrupts too, glaring at her phone. "I can't believe Jagged Stone refused to have dinner with Adrien and me, again! I even offered his favorite meal!"
"Oh, the rock star Jagged Stone?" I turn to Lila again, who shrugs. "Not to brag, but he actually wrote a song about me once. After my parents and I got him to one of his concerts on time in our helicopter."
"He did what!?" Chloe asks in wide eyed shock before quickly schooling her expression. "W-Whatever! Why would I care?" She says, grabbing Sabrina and pulling her away.
I stare at the scene in confusion. "Did Jagged Stone really do that?" I ask the brunette.
" Obviously. Now c'mon, you haven't finished the tour yet." She answers, grabbing my arm and dragging me to the science lab.
Through the tour, Lila continued to tell our classmates incredible stories of herself. When Alya appeared, Lila offhandedly mentioned how Ladybug saved her life once, which immediately led into a fifteen minute long interview for the Ladyblog. After Alya left, we ran into Nino, who was busy filming something for his new short film. She promised to mention him to Steven Basielberg whom she was close friends with, which is crazy because I didn't know Uncle Steven even had friends.
"And this is the art room." I say, showing her into the large, paint covered room. Alix and Nathaniel are in the middle of a spray painting contest, both of them looking up at us as we enter.
"Lian! You're alive." Alix says, removing her gas mask and smirking. "Nathaniel and I thought the Principal had abducted you by now, we were planning to break into his office at midnight."
I frown. "There's no way Principal Damocles would still be holding me captive in his office by midnight."
"That's the point, we just want to investigate and avenge your death, not go up against a possible kidnapper."
I roll my eyes, typical. "By the way, this is Lila, she's our new classmate." I turn to the brunette. "Lila, this is Alix and Nathaniel, the embodiment of my nightmares." I barely flinch as Alix jabs me in the shoulder.
"It's nice to meet you guys!" Lila chirps and looks around the room in wonder. "So, you two like spray painting, huh?"
Does she know someone who spray paints too? Hmm, maybe I can test this.
"They are!" I say happily. "Mostly Alix though, she recently submitted a photo to Grégory Descoteaux for his competition."
"Grégory Desco-what?" Alix asks, confused.
I scoff. "C'mon, are you so nervous that you forgot his name or something? Mr. Descoteaux is the best street artist in Paris, you've looked up to him since you could walk, ring any bells?" I smirk, turning to Lila. "Alix hasn't stopped panicking about her submission for a week now."
"Julian, have you finally lost it or something?"
"Well!" Lila turns to my friends with a bright smile. "I happen to know Mr. Descoteaux, he painted a mural of my face once. If you want, I can put in a good word for you."
Alix and Nathaniel share a look as I snort.
"Nah, Alix would never accept help like that, said she must 'protect her honor.' or whatever."
"Well, I'll do it anyway, anything for friends right?" Lila turns to me with a curious look. "May I go to the bathroom for a bit?"
After giving her directions and watching her leave, I turn back to my friends, both of them giving me wary looks.
"Julian, I have no idea who Grégory De-whatever is." Alix starts saying slowly, Nathaniel nodding beside her.
"I haven't either, who is he exactly?"
I snicker. "Someone I just made up."
"What." They both say as I shake my head, keeping an eye on the door in case Lila comes back.
"Something didn't feel right about Lila." I mutter, explaining to them how she basically bragged to knowing everyone our classmates looked up to before getting here.
"So she knew your parents, and all other movie directors in Hollywood, Jagged Stone wrote a song about her, and Ladybug saved her life once?" Alix repeats, shaking her head in disbelief. "That sounds like one hell of a life."
"Almost impossibly so." Nathaniel adds as I nod.
"Mhmm, that's why I made up Grégory Descoteaux." I explain. "If she said that she knew him too, then we can assume that she was lying about the other cases as well."
Alix snorts. "So you lied to catch a liar?"
"To expose a liar, you have to do so psychologically, only then will they reveal themselves, hiding underneath a layer of deceit." I quote ominously before snickering again. "I didn't think that would work though! Looks like video games help after all."
"So, what're you going to do?" Alix asks deviously. "Are you gonna expose her to the class and make her confess to her lies? Can I help?"
I hum in thought. "I'm gonna do… nothing."
"What?" Nathaniel asks, confused. I sigh.
"If I quote unquote 'expose' her as a liar, there's no telling how she'll react. I think it's better for us to just leave her alone, once she realizes that her lies aren't getting as much attention, she'll stop. Probably."
Lila returns after that. Saying goodbye to my friends for now, I lead her to the final area, the library.
"It's the best thing about this school." I explain, climbing up the stairs alongside her. "I-It's very extensive, plus it has a fiction section too."
She laughs really loudly, grabbing my arm tighter. "Oh Julian, you're so funny!"
I tilt my head in confusion. "But… I didn't say anything funny?"
"Oh my god, is that Adrien Agreste?" She points out, eyes wide in wonder as I whip my head forward, spotting Adrien walking to the library too. The blond turns around as he hears his name being called.
"Oh, hi Julian." He says brightly before noticing Lila. "And Julian's friend."
"This is Lila, she's our new classmate." I shrug. "Lila, this is-"
"Adrien Agreste, I know who you are." She quickly grabs his hand with her free arm and shakes it. "It's really nice to meet you."
Adrien looks caught off guard for a second before smiling in return. "It's nice to meet you too." He says before sending me a wary look. "By the way, can I talk to you for a second Julian? It's about our…" His eyes linger on Lila. "Our… History homework!"
"Huh?" I looked at him, confused. "Since when did you need help with homework?"
"Oh, haha, well, you know, I didn't have much time this week so…" He says as I get it, he probably needed to talk to me about something private and couldn't do so with Lila around.
"Sure, the tour's over anyways, Lila can-"
"I can stay and help too!" She says brightly. "My dad graduated Harvard with a history degree, and he never shuts up about it whenever we're together."
"I thought your dad was a diplomat." I ask as she rolls her eyes.
"He wanted to be a historian at first, but that didn't work out."
Wow, she's good . I send Adrien a helpless look, but he looks just as confused.
"That's really nice of you Lila, but do you really want to help with something so boring?"
She snorts. "The son of Hollywood's power couple and the hottest teen model in Paris inviting me to hang out with them? How could I refuse?"
We didn't invite you though. I think to myself as Adrien just blushes and sighs in defeat (he doesn't like it when he's called that). "Alright, after you I suppose."
"Yay! C'mon, let's go!" She exclaims, grabbing both of our arms again and dragging us into the building.
"So, what are you learning?" She asks as we sit down.
Adrien looks hesitant to reply, so I sigh, turning to her. "The French Revolution, we're supposed to write an essay about it, right Adrien?"
"R-Right."
"Awesome, let me just go get some books I think you guys can read, brb." She says before making a swift exit. I groan in relief. "Thank the gods , a breather…" I joke, smirk falling off as I realize that Adrien isn't replying. "Are you okay?"
"Huh? Oh! Sorry, I was just thinking." He says, looking away. "Does everyone see me like that? The whole 'hottest teen model' thing?"
I blink. "What?"
He blushes. "Nevermind."
"N-No, wait! I mean." I sigh, scratching the back of my head. "I can't speak for the rest of Paris, but at least I know that I don't, Alix and Nathaniel too. It's honestly the dullest thing about you, you're much more interesting than that." I say, heart lifting a little when he finally laughs.
"Thanks Julian."
"No problem." I awkwardly look at my hands. "Was that why you wanted to talk to me?"
"Oh, no, actually." He says, looking around suspiciously before reaching into his bag. "I wanted to show you something, but it's top secret, okay?"
I nod, suddenly nervous all of a sudden, watching Adrien take out a rather old and dusty tomb of some sort, flipping the page open to reveal-
"Is that Hawk Moth ?" I ask in shock, looking at a picture of the villain on one of its pages.
Adrien nods. "Yeah, I think it is, I found this book in one of my father's safes and I just- I don't know what he's doing with it, or how he even has something like this, you know?"
Frowning, I look over the page once more, the language looks old, really old, that I can't even make sense of the text. If only I was alone, I could probably get Ossi to read it for me.
"Is your father-"
"I'm back!"
Letting out a yelp, I quickly push the book back to Adrien, who hides it under his math textbook (gods he's so bad at hiding things, and lying).
"Now we can get going on your history homework. It's so much more fun doing it together, don't you think?" Lila says, sitting between us (forcing us apart) before noticing the obvious old book under Adrien's arm. "What's that?" She asks, pulling it from under him and studying it.
"Uh nothing! Just stories about superheroes." Adrien says.
Lile looks at the book for a second before holding the blond's hand. "I love superheroes." She says sweetly. I frown, the unpleasant jealous feeling coursing through me again. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice Lila looking towards me and smiling too.
I nearly dropped my own book in realization. So that's it! She wants me to be jealous because she's doting on Adrien! She's been trying to get us to like her so that we would fight each other over her! Like some kind of sick real life soap opera!
It's so stupid! How did I fall for such a cliché!?
Whatever, this soap opera has a plot twist, the male leads are gonna fall in love with each other, ditch her and live happily ever after.
Oh geez that was a sudden thought, nope, stop that right there, no more fantasies. I smack my face lightly, trying to snap myself out of it before looking back at Lila and Adrien.
Lila had let go of Adrien by then, continuing to flip through the book.
"Ladybug?" She says in surprise, prompting us to look at the book too. An old rendition of the Ladybug superheroine displayed on the page.
"Woah, she looks pretty badass in that one." I comment. The girl huffs before flipping the page.
"Wait, stop!"
I gave Adrien a questioning look before looking back at the book and felt my jaw drop. The page shows an old depiction of Faon Vert, the blowgun gave it away, but it looks much more different than how I look. Kind of like the Holder is equipped for forest trekking.
Adrien stares at that page with a slowly reddening face, which in turn is making me flustered too. Can we just rip that page off and burn it or something?
"What? You wanted to look at Ladybug a little longer?" Lila questions the blond, earning a surprised look from the both of us.
"What? No!" Adrien says truthfully, but the panic makes it sound like he's lying.
I scoff, agreeing with him, like c'mon, old Faon Vert was way hotter than old Ladybug.
Lila seems taken with her Ladybug theory though, sitting an inch closer to the blond, looking at me as well. "So you two got a little soft spot for the bug, huh?"
Poor Adrien looks like he's about to slide off his seat and- Wait, me too?
"Wait, what ?" Adrien and I ask at the same time.
Lila doesn't look convinced. "You know I actually happen to be very close friends with Ladybug."
"Really?" Both Adrien and I ask again, the former more in shock while I was saying it in a more suspicious tone.
"We can chat about it if you want." Lila says to us. "Not here though. Why don't we meet at the park after school and I'll tell you everything."
A loud SLAM rings from the other side of the room, startling us out of our conversation as I stand up.
"I'll go check it out." I say, walking off before feeling a hand grab my arm.
"So, after school?" She asks, and if I wasn't worried that the crash might've been someone having an accident or something, I probably would've made up an excuse to avoid it, but as of now.
"Alright, fine." I say, at least I would be able to hang out with Adrien a little bit.
-Marinette Dupain-Cheng's POV-
Watching as Julian runs after the errant cart of books that I accidentally knocked away. I hold my breath, doing my best to hide under their table without being heard or seen.
Luckily, Adrien's phone rings and distracts them.
"I gotta go! I've got a lesson in 58 seconds." Adrien says, followed by a lot of packing.
A bag suddenly drops in front of me and I yelp, watching Adrien's bag tumble onto the floor, the book Tikki was so excited to check spilling out.
"So, the park?" I hear Lila ask with obvious fake interest, her feet slowly stepping on the book and pulling it away from the bag before holding the bag up to the blond.
"Uh, sure!" Adrien says brightly, accepting his bag from Lila, and hightailing it out of there, shouting a "Bye Julian!" before leaving the room.
"Oh, uh, bye!" Julian shouts before being shushed by a nearby reader, he blushes and continues organizing the books in silence.
Lila picks up the book, flipping through a few pages before muttering "A vixen superheroine? Hmm, interesting…" She says ominously before peeking her head to find Julian again. "I'll be going too, Julian, see you at the park~" She says sweetly.
"Bye." Julian whispers this time before huffing, returning to handling the books with care.
"Marinette!" I hear Tikki whisper-shout to me.
I sigh. "I know ! Could this have gotten any worse? Not only is Faon Vert trying to make me confess, but now there's another one too!" I grumble. To say I was surprised when Faon Vert showed up on my rooftop unannounced is an understatement, but the bomb the deer hero dropped afterwards, that was truly devastating.
He likes Adrien, he wants to go out with Adrien!
I didn't know my teammate felt that way at all. I mean, I had a suspicion, but I didn't expect him to be so forward about it.
Now he's forcing me to confess before he does, and not only is that not fair, it also doesn't make sense!
If Faon Vert wants to confess, he should at least do it in his civilian form. Doing so as a superhero would not only endanger our partners, but may also come with the pressure of keeping them secret in the public eye. If Parisians find out that Adrien Agreste is dating one of the three superheroes of their country, being famous is the least of the blond's worries.
Why can't Faon Vert just see that? Instead he keeps trying to make me the bad guy whenever I do my best to make sure that whatever we do, we won't endanger anybody. The brunet's so emotionally driven that he can sometimes defy all forms of logic or reasoning, and it's too risky for us to do that when we're protecting actual lives.
I'm not perfect as Marinette, I'm clumsy as heck, and I say things without thinking sometimes (which is what caused the rift between Faon and I in the first place), and I might be a little bit of a control freak. But you don't see me hanging out and confessing to Adrien as Ladybug, because that's a line that I will never cross.
Now Faon's trying to endanger someone that I love because he's too selfish to think of the bigger picture, and that's something I would not let stand.
If I can't confess to Adrien by tonight, I'm going to talk to Faon as Ladybug, hopefully I can get him to see some reason this way.
That is for tonight though, for now, some evil vixen is trying to win Adrien's heart by stealing his book? I won't let that happen too.
"I gotta talk to Adrien before he meets up with Lila at the park. He needs to know that she's a total thief." I say to Tikki with a nod, crawling out of the table.
"No! You can't say anything to Adrien yet. I need a chance to check out the book first. If it's the one I think it is we have to get our hands on it!" The Kwami urges as I look at her in confusion.
"I don't get it. Exactly why would we need it?"
"I'll explain to you once I know for sure. Please, we mustn't let Lila out of our sight!"
"Marinette?"
I yelp as Tikki quickly flies into my pouch, looking up, I notice Julian walk up to me with a perplexed look on his face.
"What are you doing under the table?" He asks slowly.
"Oh! I was just- Making sure there wasn't any gum down here!" I quickly excuse, standing straight up and laughing a little awkwardly. "It's important for libraries to be clean, you know?"
"I guess?" The brunet says, still confused. "Did you meet Lila at least? She's our new classmate."
I sigh, Julian probably got dragged into this against his will, he deserves to know. "I don't think you should trust everything Lila says, everything she's saying is kind of sketchy."
"Huh?" The boy asks again. "You think so too?"
Too? I look at him with wide eyes. "What do you mean too? You knew already?"
He shrugs. "I tricked her into lying to my friends."
Woah, who knew he was so devious?
"Does Adrien know?" I ask again.
Julian thinks for a moment. "I don't think so, but I think he's a little suspicious."
"No, that's not possible." I shake my head. "Adrien's too innocent, he'll believe everything she tells him if we don't do something about it."
"I think you're underestimating Adrien a little…" Julian mumbles, frowning.
I sigh. "We can't take that chance regardless."
Looking at him with determination, I grab his hand. "Julian! When you meet at the park later, you need to tell Adrien that he has to stay away from Lila!"
"Wait, how'd you know about the park?" The brunet asks, baffled. "And I can't just tell him what to do."
"Just tell him you get a weird vibe from her then, you're his friend, he'll believe you." I quickly say.
"But, doesn't that feel kind of… wrong?" The boy asks hesitantly.
I shake my head. "What are you talking about? Julian, Adrien's going to be snatched by Lila!" I plead, not even sure why I'm telling him this, that fact is only important to me anyways.
"I don't think Adrien likes her like that anyways…" Julian mumbles, thinking for a moment before nodding. "Alright, fine. Better safe than sorry, right?"
"Better safe than what?" I ask, what is he talking about? Why does he need to be safe?
"I'll get going to the park then, see you." He quickly changes the subject, packing up his things with a slowly reddening face and leaving the room promptly after.
"What is up with you Julian?" I say quietly.
-Julian's POV-
After school, I find myself waiting by the school doors for Adrien. Marinette's request is still swirling around in my head.
Why did Marinette ask me to do it? I mean, I wouldn't mind, of course, but she could've easily told him herself, plus, she would get extra time to talk to him too, it just doesn't make any sense.
"Hey Julian."
I yelp, snapping out of my thoughts and jumping to the side. Adrien steadies me from falling. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He says, looking apologetic.
"I-It's fine!" I say, brushing myself off for no reason. "Sometimes I daydream too much and kind of zone out, s-so, thanks for waking me up."
The blond laughs. "Anytime, you're heading to the park too, right?"
Giving him a nod, the two of us start walking towards the meeting place with Lila.
"Hey, Adrien?" I start, hearing a hum from the boy.
I gulp. "Does Lila seem a little… off to you?"
Adrien blinks. "Um, not really?"
I bump my shoulders with him. "C'mon, it's just us right now."
He sighs. "Okay, maybe a little. But, I shouldn't judge her on that alone, if she wants to be friends then I shouldn't turn her down."
"I don't think she just wants to be friends." I mutter, looking away. "Just, don't take everything she says at face value. Okay?"
Walking up to the park, we see Lila already sitting by the bench.
"Hey!" I hear Adrien call out, surprising the girl as she stands from the bench, running up to us.
"Hey Adrien! Julian, you're here right on time." She says, grabbing both of our arms and dragging us onto the bench (sitting in between us again).
"So, you do know Ladybug, for real?" Adrien wastes no time in asking, ignoring me rolling my eyes. What are we even doing here?
"Not only did Ladybug save my life, we've become very close friends because we have something very special in common." Lila says, looking at the two of us. "It's what I wanted to tell you about. I'm the descendant of a vixen superheroine myself, Volpina."
"What." I deadpan.
"Volpina?" Adrien asks, confused too before realizing. "Wait a minute, I think I read about them in my book!" He quickly opens his bag, before a hand slaps it shut again.
"Uh- of course it's in your book! She's one of the most important superheroes. More powerful and more celebrated than Ladybug." She says, leaning towards me this time. "Between us, Ladybug doesn't even make it to the top ten."
I move away, a little uncomfortable. "I-I don't think that's true, Ladybug's pretty strong."
"Trust me, it's the truth." Lila smirks, pulling out what looks like a tail necklace. "My grandmother gave me this necklace."
-Marinette's POV-
Sprinting away from the scene, anger courses through me, it might be the frustration of not being able to even talk to Adrien as casually as the rest, or the stress of being forced to confess in a week or risk losing him forever, but I'm even more ticked off than usual at the obvious lies she's saying about Ladybug.
"Marinette! You need to calm down!" Tikki pleads, flying around nervously.
I shake my head, glaring at the girl sitting on the bench. "No, I'm not letting another person steal Adrien away from me. You've got your book, it's time to transform. Tikki, spots on!"
-Julian's POV-
"You're telling me that this is… a Miraculous?" I hear Adrien say in surprise, examining the necklace carefully. Even though I'm pretty sure that she's lying about this too, I can't help but wonder if it's true too, so I stay quiet, waiting to see if Lila contradicts herself.
However, it seems like that wouldn't be the case, as all of a sudden, Ladybug, the actual superheroine Ladybug , lands right in front of us.
"Well hey Lila! How's it going? Long time no see. I saw your interview on the Ladyblog, awesome job." She steps on the bench with her foot, asserting dominance as the three of us just stare in shock.
"Oh sure! I remember our instant connection when I saved your life and we've been really good friends ever since! Practically BFF's!" She leans away in faux thought. "Uh actually, when did I save your life again, Lila? I don't recall. Oh yes! Of course, now I remember. Never!"
Lila curls in on herself, covering her eyes in fear. I can't say that I don't feel the same too with Ladybug talking to her like that.
"Ladybug, what're you-" I try to say, but she just kept going.
"And we're not friends either!" She says before turning to Adrien. "Miss Show-Off here was trying to impress you and everyone around her."
"So I guess you aren't the descendant of a superhero either?" Adrien asks her and I honestly just want to slap my forehead in exasperation, what is happening right now!?
Ladybug scoffs. "She's more like a super liar." She says, executing Lila.
"How DARE you!" The girl screams, grabbing her bag and running off.
"Wait! Lila!" I shout, watching the girl run away, fist curling up in anger, I turn to the two of them. "What the HELL was that about!?"
Adrien and Ladybug both jumped at my outburst, the latter finally seems to have snapped out of it.
"I… I can't stand liars, especially when they're about me." She says, throwing her yo-yo and running away.
She's just going to run!? I scream internally, what just happened? Why did Ladybug do that?
"Julian, calm down." I hear Adrien say from a distance, whirling around, I barely register my heavy breathing.
"No Adrien, I will not calm down." I grit out. "Ladybug doesn't get to do that. She can't just- out someone like that, it's not fair to Lila." I turn to look at the various Parisians nearby who are busy checking their phones, no doubt one of them had taken a video of that.
"Look at that! No one should be outed like this!" I shout, no doubt attracting more attention, I glare at the people. "I-IF ANY OF YOU UPLOAD THIS, I SWEAR TO GODS I'LL-"
"Julian, let's just go." Adrien grabs my arm.
"But-"
"Please?" I stare at the blond, green eyes pleading and worried. I growl, shaking off his hand.
"Whatever." I mutter, grabbing my bag and running off too, ignoring the blond's panicked shout. I ran past the school and towards the river, sliding down the stairs, finally finding a secluded spot under the bridge.
"DAMN IT!" I shout, throwing my bag against the wall in frustration, taking a deep breath to calm myself down before kicking my bag away in anger, repeating the process.
Adrien and Ladybug won't get it. They won't understand what it's like to be bullied by the internet, what Ladybug risked doing to Lila right now, and because of what? Because Lila said she and Ladybug are best friends?
What a load of bullshit.
"It's alright kid, let it all out." I hear Ossi attempt to soothe me, softly landing on the top of my head. I can't help but laugh at him.
"I just don't get it Os. Why would Ladybug do that…" I whisper, voice hoarse.
"Maybe she was just in a bad mood, Ladybugs aren't known to be all that great outside of the battlefield anyways." I feel Ossi shrug above me.
I shake my head. "Don't treat this like some kind of chosen one thing. Our Ladybug's just emotionally constipated."
"Well, maybe that's why we're here then." Ossi hums in thought. "Chat Noirs are great and all, but they're more like the face of the group, ya know? Kinda like that sidekick for the Batguy."
"Chat Noir isn't a sidekick." I grumble, slumping over in defeat. Finally calm enough to just think about everything.
"I need to talk to her." I say, standing up and grabbing the pen. Hopefully I can sort things out before things turn out too bad, and maybe get an explanation out of this entire mess.
"Uhh, kid?" I turn to look at my Kwami with a raised brow. "Ya might wanna take a look at this."
Huh? I walk up to peek out from under the bridge and gasp in horror. A huge meteorite seems to be quickly falling towards Paris.
"What?" I say in shock, before looking at Ossi more seriously. "We need to stop this, let's go. Ossi, Horns Drawn!"
Ossi immediately dives into the tip of the pen, causing a deer head to appear in front of it. Swiping the pen across my eyes, the mask gets drawn and materializes onto my face, I drag the pen from my left hand back to my right as a brown suit slowly starts to appear from my arms towards the rest of my body. Twirling the pen around effortlessly as it slowly grows longer, I toss it upwards before reaching towards my back and pulling up a newly made hoodie, ears on its side and antlers on top as I catch the pen which has turned into blowgun as I lean against it with a frown and a peace sign raised in the air.
Quickly leaping onto the roof, I run through a list of possible things I can turn my blowgun into that might be useful in stopping meteorites, but before I could, a bright orange blur shoots right past me and I nearly trip over myself.
The orange blue turns out to be a person flying towards the meteorite, positioning themselves below it, they grab the meteor with their hands as the force almost flings them back. Landing on the building closer to them, I stare in amazement as the new hero flings the meteorite back into the sky.
The hero stands on top of the Louvre, looking down at the citizens. "I am Volpina, the only superhero Paris needs!" She declares, the crowd below starts chanting her name.
Looking around, I spot my teammates on the roof too, leaping forward, I land next to them.
"Hey deer." Chat greets cheerfully. "Looks like we got another partner."
"Hey." I greet back, smiling gently before looking back at Volpina. "Volpina, huh…?" I mutter, that sounds eerily like what Lila said her ancestors transform into, which I thought was a lie back then.
Could it be a coincidence that Volpina actually exists? And that she would show up now?
"Don't you think it's weird, this superhero just appearing out of nowhere?" I hear Ladybug ask.
Chat shrugs. "Well, at least she got the job done. If she hadn't been here-"
"I could have easily stopped that meteorite myself." Ladybug retorts, crossing her arms defensively.
Chat realizes his mistake. "Hey! Relax! I'm just saying she seems seriously awesome. Right Faon?"
He looks at me for help. I let out a huff instead. "Yeah, maybe check your ego a little Ladybug."
I feel the superheroine's glare on me. "What?"
A flash of orange and the new hero, Volpina is in front of us now.
"Hey guys! Glad you dropped in, I need a hand. Come on!" Volpina says before running off. The three of us share a confused look before following her to a nearby rooftop, hiding behind a chimney, we peek over alongside Volpina to see-
"Is that Hawk Moth ?" I ask in shock, looking at the man in question standing suspiciously still on the roof in front of us.
"I can't believe it! It's him! in the flesh!" Chat gasps too.
"He never shows up! Something big is going on. Really big!" Ladybug adds as I nod along, previous grievances temporarily put aside for now.
"We can take him down, but it's gonna take all four of us. We better make the most of our individual talents." Volpina says before looking at Chat.
"You can count on us!" The blond says as the fox heroine moves closer.
"Very nice to meet you by the way Cat Noir! Cool outfit." She comments, clearly checking him out.
The cat hero blushes, scratching the back of his head. "Why thanks! You too Volpina."
Ladybug gags while I just frown, is my outfit not considered cool then?
Ladybug peeks over the chimney once more. "First the meteorite, now Hawk Moth appearing both on the same day. Don't you think that's a little bit unusual?"
Volpina snorts. "Why would you say that?"
"I was talking to Chat Noir and Faon Vert." The spotted superheroine shot back, annoyed.
"I find you unusual today milady. Everything okay?" I hear Chat ask and I can't help but snort, talk about an understatement.
The bluenette holds up a hand. "I'm fine, just fine." She dismisses the blond before turning back to the new superheroine. "Say Volpina, what's your Miraculous?"
The girl in question smirks. "My necklace." She says, holding up a fox tail necklace and huh, it does look like what Lila has this afternoon.
Ladybug isn't convinced. "What power does it give you?"
"The power of flight and super strength." Was the answer.
I frown, looking at her in thought. Flight and super strength wouldn't be the powers I would've chosen for a Fox Miraculous, the power of flight especially, it should've been something more trickster-like.
Wait a second.
"He's getting away!" I hear Volpina shout as I look at her in further suspicion. All of us chase after the man regardless as he seemingly teleports from rooftop to rooftop before finally landing on the top of City Hall.
"Ladybug, go to his left, Chat and Faon, you take the right and I'll come from behind." Volpina orders.
"No! I...I take the right, Chat and Faon go from behind and you... take the left." Ladybug orders too, and I sigh. Seriously?
Volpina snorts. "Fine. Makes no difference to me."
"Good." Ladybug says before the fox superheroine flies away.
Chat and I share a look before turning to Ladybug.
"Can you chill out a little? She's one of us." The blond says before smirking at me. "Ready to go deer?"
"You know, I'm starting to think that you might not be joking when you say that anymore." I quip, not expecting the cat hero to blush suddenly.
"Uh, maybe not, haha." He jokes, leaping away before I could question him further.
Everyone's acting so weird today. I think to myself, following Chat chase after Hawk Moth. Landing behind the villain, the two of us peek over the roof to see absolutely no one standing there.
"Where did he go?" Chat asks in bewilderment, looking around before gasping. "There!" He points to another rooftop as Hawk Moth seemingly teleports further and further away from us. "Let's go Faon!" He says before leaping away.
I follow him from behind, deep in thought about the current circumstances. Volpina, a fox hero with super strength and flight, appears out of nowhere to stop a meteorite from crashing in Paris. Not long after, Hawk Moth shows up and right now he's just… standing around?"
"Chat, wait." I say, holding him back by the collar, wincing at his yelp of surprise. "Sorry, something just doesn't feel right."
The blond sighs. "Not you too, what's so wrong about this?"
"It just doesn't make sense, why would Hawk Moth show up now after the meteor didn't destroy Paris?" I say, peeking over to see the villain standing there, menacingly.
"Maybe he just wanted to watch the world burn." Chat offers as I shake my head.
"No, of that were the case he would've gone back into hiding when it failed." I raise my blowgun and take aim at the villain, firing a shot at his cane.
The shot passes right through it, and Hawk Moth disappears.
"What the-" Chat says in surprise.
"It's not Hawk Moth." I say, suspicions confirmed.
"Well then, what is it?"
I hum in thought. "It's just a theory, but I think Volpina might be responsible for this." I give the blond a questioning look. "Don't you think a fox hero with super strength and flight is kind of weird?"
"What do you mean?"
"Ladybug is a symbol of good fortune, so her Lucky Charm symbolizes that." I point to him. "Cats, or more specifically black cats, are signs of misfortune and destruction, and you have your Cataclysm."
"Do deers mean imagination then?" Chat asks.
I sigh, shaking my head. "Not that I know of." I admit. "But it definitely fits better than flight , of all things."
"Well what powers do you think the Fox Miraculous should have then?"
I hum in thought. "It depends, foxes typically symbolize trickery or deceit, so their powers should reflect that, right?"
Chat gasp. " Illusions! That would explain how Volpina can fight off the meteor!"
I look at him in wide eyed realization. "If that's the case, then Hawk Moth's probably an illusion as well!" I look around us. "She wanted us to split up, so she sent us on a wild butterfly chase!"
"Ladybug!" Chat says worriedly, the two of us not saying anything else as we quickly make our way back to City Hall.
Looking around, Chat's phone suddenly rings.
"Ladybug!" Chat answers in relief. "Are you okay? Is Volpina with you?"
"What? No, I thought she was you." Came the reply. "You can stop chasing Hawk Moth, he's not real."
"Yeah, Faon Vert discovered that too." Chat says, sparing me a glance. "We think Volpina's responsible for this."
"You thought right, Volpina just attacked me after splitting us up. She's not a superhero, she's just an akumatized victim of Hawk Moth with the power of Illusions!"
Nailed it. I can't help but have a self-satisfied smirk, patting my own shoulder as a joke.
Even Chat looks impressed, but continues his conversation with Ladybug. "But how could Hawk Moth make an Akuma like that?"
The line was silent for a while. "I think it's my fault. I ruined her chances with a guy she likes."
Chat gasps. "Lila?"
I grip my staff tighter, glaring at the phone. Of course Lila would've gotten akumatized, why didn't I think of that? Ladybug has a lot of explaining to do after this.
"I'm sure she's going to his house. I'll send you the address. Meet me there!"
I freeze in place, Adrien!
-Adrien Agreste's POV-
"Got it." Hanging up the phone, I look up. "We have to get to- Faon?"
Faon Vert's not here, he was standing here just a second ago. Looking around, I see him leaping away towards my house. My heart skips a couple beats at the concern the deer hero has for me, but now's not the time for that, I need to make it back before Faon Vert does!
Luckily, I know all the shortcuts to get back to my home quicker. Faon, as great as he is, is terrible with directions and normally gets around by jumping around or listening to things. Quickly sliding through my bathroom window, I detransform back into Adrien.
Plagg flies out of my ring and onto my hands, glaring at me. "Wouldn't Chat Noir be more useful in this situation?"
"If Volpina's got a thing for me, I can make her see sense without Chat Noir. Maybe then she'll listen." I explain, walking out of the bathroom with the Kwami.
"You really think you can take down Volpina without your super powers? Without me!?"
Before I could reply, I spied Volpina flying towards me. "Hide Plagg, she's coming!" I say as the cat Kwami flies into my jacket.
"Adrien!" Volpina lands on my window, flinging it open and walking in like she owns the place.
"H-Hey, who are you…?" I greet, internally cringing. Maybe I should let Julian help me work on my bluffing skills.
"Do you remember this necklace? I didn't know how to tell you the truth, but at least this way you can see for yourself that I'm not lying. I am a superhero."
" Lila?" I ask again, pretending to be surprised.
The girl walks closer. "You can call me Volpina. I'm sorry about the scene in the park earlier today. Ladybug's jealous because she's not as powerful as me."
"You mean not as powerful as me!" I hear a familiar voice shout.
"Faon Vert!" I shout in delight, watching the deer hero take out his blowgun, spinning it around before aiming it at the Akuma.
"Ladybug and Chat Noir are going to be here any moment. So give it up Volpina."
Volpina scoffs. "You mean you can't take me on your own? Don't you get tired of being bossed around by that girl all the time?" She says before smirking.
"That's none of your business." Faon snarls. "Now leave Adrien alone."
"I'm here!" Ladybug says too, landing on the windowsill. "Give up Volpina, you're outnumbered."
The Akuma groans before turning to me. "See what I mean? They're all jealous of me, of you, of us, but this time you aren't going to ruin our date Ladybug."
"Well, it wasn't technically a date." I correct, before the Akuma turns to glare at me and I feel a sudden chill run down my spine. "I mean- what I meant was it could've become one right? No need to get bent out of shape!"
"You're not making this any better fawn." Faon Vert comments drily as Ladybug turns to me too.
"Excuse us, but I need to have a chat with super liar." She says before glaring at Volpina. "You! Stop thinking your illusions are reality!"
Sneaking into the bathroom as Ladybug and Faon argue with Volpina, Plagg flies out of my pocket, looking smug.
"So, was I right or was I right?"
I give him a deadpan look. "C'mon Plagg, Claws Out!"
-Julian's POV-
If I were to stat out Volpina's abilities, I would rate her offense at a D. Her illusion abilities are great, but with a flute as a weapon there was just no way she would be able to keep up with Ladybug and I.
Planting my blowgun on the floor, I spin around it quickly, kicking the Akuma backwards, she uses the momentum to dodge all the ranged attacks from Ladybug before landing on a nearby ramp, glaring at us.
"Sorry I'm late." I hear a certain cat hero say as he jumps through the window. "I had some trouble finding the place."
"You're just in time, actually." I greet, turning to face the Akuma with a smirk. With Chat here there's no way we can lose (Chat's offense is a clear A+).
Volpina seems to realize this too, blowing her flute as a bright orange ball forms on the tip and throwing it down. Immediately Volpina clones start popping up all around the room.
"Illusions." Chat says in awe. Ladybug was less impressed, spinning her yo-yo around violently and destroying all the illusions, but Volpina is nowhere to be seen.
"Chat, Faon! She's taken Adrien!"
" What? " I shout, looking outside the window, watching Volpina drag Adrien away.
"That's an illusion too!" Chat reassures.
"How are you so sure?" Ladybug asks.
"Uh...my..um...feline sixth sense. It's legendary!"
Ignoring them, I run towards the bathroom door, yanking it open.
It's empty.
"Really? You don't say! Adrien's gone!" I heard Ladybug shout before the sounds of a yo-yo, but I couldn't move, my body locked up in shock.
Adrien got captured when I was right outside, again ? This whole time I've been saying that I can look out for him when he's in trouble, but that's clearly not the case right now.
"Hey, Faon."
I turn to Chat, trying my best to hide how broken I'm feeling. "Y-Yeah?"
The blond bites his lip, hesitating. "I-I really think that the Adrien Volpina took just now was an illusion."
I sigh. "We need to check it out anyways, c'mon." Walking past him, I climb up onto the windowsill before following Ladybug and the Akuma.
We end up at the Eiffel Tower, looking up, I notice in growing horror, Volpina dangling Adrien off the tower, laughing menacingly.
"Give me your Miraculouses or I will drop him!"
"I thought you loved him!" Ladybug shouts back.
"Not as much as seeing you three defeated!" She gives Adrien a sadistic smile. "No hard feelings right?"
"Faon." I turn to face Chat, looking at me with pleading eyes. "It's an illusion, you have to believe me."
"You want to bet on that!?" Volpina shouts, releasing a finger from their grasp.
"NO!" I hear Ladybug scream. I look at Chat again with wide eyes, he nods at me.
I trust Chat.
Letting out a cry, I leap directly to the top of the Tower.
" FAON !"
Chat's baton flying past, it harmlessly flies through the illusions of Volpina and Adrien as I let out a sigh of relief. Landing at the top, I see another Volpina quickly jumping up too.
"Sticks can act as handcuffs, Mind's Eye!" I quickly turn my blowgun into long, bright green chains with cuffs at the ends, spinning one end, I lob it at the Akuma.
The cuff locks around one of her legs as she lets out a growl, blowing her flute, she tosses the ball of energy down, creating many clones of herself again.
Smirking, I grab the chains and pull. The real Volpina yelps as she flies away from all of her illusions and falls in front of me with a grunt.
"Can't pull the same trick twice foxy, gotta use your imagination a little." I taunt.
"Faon Vert!" I hear my teammates yell as they run up to me. Chat takes one look at the Akuma before laughing. "Trapped, just like a fox."
Ladybug snatches the necklace from Volpina and crushes it, purifying the Akuma, ladybugs fly out too, but only to repair the destroyed necklace fox necklace.
"Where am I?" I hear Lila say, I frown, looking at Ladybug.
"Do you want to handle this?" I ask with a glare.
Ladybug looks surprised, but nods anyway, walking up to Lila.
"Ladybug…?" The brunette asks.
"Lila, I... totally overreacted and... never should've spoken to you like that. I'm sorry." Ladybug says.
Lila looks deep in thought, before letting out a huff. "Forget it Ladybug; you were right. We'll never be friends." She slaps the leader's hand way, picking up her powerless necklace and walking away from us.
"Me-owch." Chat comments as I scoff.
"Makes sense, not everyone's gonna fall for the Ladybug is awesome kool-aid."
Ladybug stands up abruptly, turning to me with a glare. "What's your problem!?"
" I'm the one with the problem!?" I shout back. "I'm not the one who caused an Akumatization !"
"Would you two please STOP FIGHTING?" The two of us turn to face Chat, who's glaring at the two of us now. " We're a team! If one of us makes a mistake, then it becomes all our mistake!"
"Why are you defending her!?" I ask venomously, causing the blond to reel back in fear, before turning to Ladybug. "You need someone to tell you when you're being too full of yourself. Today's fight was wholly, one hundred percent your fault and you need to accept that."
"I am accepting it! And while we're on the topic of today's fight." She points to me. " You shouldn't have jumped after Volpina like that, what if it was actually Adrien and not an illusion? You could've gotten him killed!"
"Because I trust my teammates." I snap. "What would the alternative be? We all give up our Miraculouses? Something had to happen, if I jumped ahead, the two of you could've saved him. Way to deflect the subject though."
"Guys, people are staring." Chat says nervously.
Dammit. I turn to see the stupid civilians and their stupid phones again, the new reporters on their damned helicopter broadcasts staring at us from the Tower platform, and let out a guttural growl. "If you don't want your phones smashed in the next thirty seconds you will TURN IT OFF, NOW."
I breathe, looking around, nothing's changed, this conversation has gone to shit, again. My blowgun rings, signifying that my time's running out.
"I'm out of here." I grumble, walking past my teammates. "So much for a truce, you're the same as always." I say darkly to Ladybug before leaping off the Tower, latching the handcuff around a bar and swinging myself away from everyone and towards my house.
A couple hours later, I lay down on my bed, glaring at the news articles on my phone.
"Infighting Within the Miraculous Team, is Faon Vert Leaving For Good?"
"Ladybug vs Faon Vert, What Their Fans Say."
"Faon Vert Rebellion Part II, Ladybug Beware."
"Screw this." I throw my phone in a random direction, letting out a frustrated groan. The sound of my screen cracking did nothing to alleviate my frustrations. Ossi for once doesn't say anything.
Why can't people just mind their own business? Why can't Ladybug and I just get along? How are we supposed to defeat Hawk Moth this way?
My room door shakes, but doesn't open since I locked it.
"Uh, sport? Your mother and I have something to talk to you about."
I sigh, what could they possibly want now? Trudging over to my door, I swing it open, giving my parents a glare. "What?"
"Woah, did they cancel Star Force or something?"
I narrow my eyes. "What do you want dad?"
My mother scoffs. "It's more like, what do you want Julian."
"What are you talking about?" I growl, not in the mood for games.
"I'm talking about this." My mom shoves her tablet to me, a news article displayed on it.
"Son of Hollywood's Power Couple, Julian Le Beau Caught Arguing with Ladybug."
"What?" I whisper in horror.
"There's more." My mother informs me as I scroll to the other tabs.
"Ladybug and Julian Le Beau Battle at Paris Park."
"Adrien Agreste and Julian Le Beau, Romantic Rivals For Ladybug?"
"Julian Le Beau Fights Ladybug! Video Included!"
"The video." I say quietly, frantically scrolling down and clicking the first link I see.
"What the HELL was that Ladybug!?" I hear myself in the video shout before it cuts to me glaring at a camera. "I-IF ANY OF YOU UPLOAD THIS, I SWEAR TO GODS I'LL-"
"Julian."
I look up to see my parents, breathing heavily. My mother gives me an unimpressed look. "Why did this happen? You're not seven anymore, we can't keep cleaning up your messes."
I gape at her, eyes wide. "I-I didn't ASK for this!"
She scoffs. "No one does, breakdowns are perfectly normal, but you should've been able to control it. You're an actor for god's sake."
"NO! YOU'RE AN ACTOR, I'M JUST- I'M TRYING TO-" I stutter, looking at my dad for any form of reassurance, anything at all!
He gives me a hesitant smile. "Son, I think it's best that we call Mr. Toussaint."
I take a step back. "Y-You want to call a therapist?"
My mom rolls her eyes. "Of course Julian, you're having a panic attack."
"Y-Yeah? Well then, shouldn't you be doing something about this? Since you're I dunno, MY PARENTS?" I pant, screaming my lungs out. "OR I DUNNO, MAYBE JUST A HUG OR SOMETHING WOULDN'T KILL YA!"
My parents share a look before turning to me, my dad reaching out. "Julian, please, you need to calm down."
"NO!" I shout, grabbing the door. "Don't tell me to calm down when you're doing nothing to help me!" I slammed the door in their faces.
"Julian, please!" My dad pleads from the door. "Elle, do something!"
"Julian, when you're ready to talk to us like adults, we'll be in the kitchen."
"That's not what I meant!"
"I will not be made the villain here Andray, let's go."
I hear two sets of footsteps walking away, heaving a sigh, enjoying the temporary moment of relief.
I can't stay here, not even my house is safe anymore, I need to get out. Standing on shaky legs, I reach out and grab a box before even realizing it. I blink, it's a gift that I was preparing for Adrien for the end of the week.
Adrien, he would know how to calm me down.
"Kid?" I turn to see Ossi as he floats closer, hesitant.
"I just want ya to know, that whatever happens, I'll always be on ya side, okay?"
I blink away the tears, not even realizing that I had been crying. "Y-Yeah, of course, let's go Os." I point the pen at him. "Horns Drawn."
Turning into Faon Vert, I quickly barricaded my doors with a closet. No way I'll allow my parents in my room after what they said to me.
Leaping up on the roof, I stare at the moon for a moment, enjoying the fleeting tranquil feeling before making my way to the Agreste Mansion.
Landing quietly on the fence, I look at Adrien's window with my night vision. The blond thankfully looks safe and sound, but he seems to be searching for something in a hurry. I frown, maybe he lost something important, I can help him out, it'll get my mind off everything that's happening.
Taking one step forward, my ears pick up the familiar sounds of a yo-yo.
"Faon." Ladybug lands behind me. Cursing in my head, I turn around to face her.
"Ladybug." I try my best to sound my normal self. "What are you doing here?"
"What are you doing here?" The bluenette fires back, I sigh in exasperation.
"I don't have time for this, I'm leaving." I say, turning around to do just that before-
"I know what you're planning to do."
Freezing in place, I gulp, holding the present closer.
Please, not right now.
"And what exactly do you think I'm planning to do?" I spit out.
Ladybug walks closer. "You're going to confess your feelings to Adrien, aren't you?"
Dammit, how did she find out?
Ladybug walks in front of me, glaring. "Faon, you can't-"
" Stop." I interrupt, fists clenching the present tightly. "I-I don't care what you have to say, just- Not now, okay?"
"Faon listen, I'm just trying to say that I don't think-"
"What the fuck does 'not right now' do you not get!?" I spit out, glaring at her venomously. "Can you just leave me alone? I don't have time for this right now."
Ladybug looks shocked at my outburst, but quickly covers it up with anger. "I was trying to resolve this peacefully but you're making me come right out and say it? Fine. You can't confess to Adrien as Faon Vert."
I grit my teeth. "Gods, I'm so sick of you're above it all bullshit. I do what I want, and if I want to confess, I'll confess. Besides, I don't even know if he'll say yes."
"But what if he does!?" Ladybug finally shouts, frustrated and angry and sad. "What if he does, and he gets targeted by Hawk Moth!"
"Then I'll protect him!"
"Oh, like you did with Simon Says?" I wince at her words but she continues. "Like how you 'protected' him from Volpina today?"
"You mean the one that you caused in the first place?" I fire back, holding back my urge to just throttle her.
"You're missing the point!"
"No, you're missing the point!" I shove past her. "You may not understand, but I actually need to feel things, bottling them up drives me insane. And if I'm in love with Adrien, then he damn well needs to know that I love him."
Ladybug for once was silent from shock, before finally asking. "Y-You, you love him?"
I laugh humorlessly. "Great job detective bug, you found out." I step up the roof. "Now, I'm going to give this present to Adrien and we're going to hang out. I'm not confessing, I just need some relaxation." I turn around. "I'm going whether you like it or not." I say, finally taking a jump off the building and towards his house.
" NO!"
Something taut wraps around my ankle and yanks, I hear a sharp POP sound as I yelp in pain, the force of the wire trips me over as I fall down, the wire slamming me right into a wall before I fall down in a heap.
"Oh my god! Oh my god oh my god oh my god!" I hear Ladybug say in a panic, but before I could reply, a sharp pain hits me.
" FUCK!" I scream, looking down at my feet. The yo-yo has completely wrapped around the joint, the force of my jump probably dislocated my entire ankle.
"WHAT THE FUCK!" I shout again, frantically trying to unwrap the damn thing. Ladybug lands and the yo-yo quickly retracts.
"Faon, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to-"
"G-GET AWAY FROM ME!" I scream, crawling back with terrified eyes. This is bad, without my feet, I can't jump at all. How am I supposed to move around as Faon Vert now?
"I-It's fine! I can fix this!" Ladybug assures. "Lucky Charm!" She tosses her yo-yo in the air as a first aid kit falls into her hands. She looks at me, panicked. "I-I don't know first aid, but I can still fix it!" She throws the box in the air. "Miraculous Ladybug!" She says desperately.
But nothing happens.
"Wh-What?" She tries to say, but I can't help it, I burst into laughter.
"D-Didn't work!? Lemme guess, is it because there aren't any Akumas around doing damage!? Because this is your fault and ONLY your fault!? CAN THE MIGHTY LADYBUG NOT FIX THIS?" I scream. "I told you! I said that you rely on that shitty ability too much! NOW LOOK WHAT HAPPENED!"
"Faon, please." Ladybug says, walking closer, eyes welled up with tears. "I-I didn't mean to, let me get you some help."
"N-No! Fuck off! I don't want to see you anywhere near me!" I fire back, using my blowgun as a walking stick, glaring at her with all the hate I can muster.
"Please! I can help!"
"I DON'T NEED HELP!" I glare. "I don't want your help, I don't want anyone's messed up version of help! I-I just want Adrien, is that really too much to ask!?" I turn around, wincing at the immense pain on my right foot. "I-If you follow me, I will fight you. Don't test me." I say, crouching down and taking off with my good feet, leaving Ladybug in the dust.
Quickly diving over the various buildings and away from Ladybug, I end up miscalculating a jump, tripping over my bad feet, I fall onto the floor with a pained cry.
Ladybug doesn't seem to be following, which is good, she didn't call my bluff. I sit up, examining my ankle. I can't take off my boots, but I can't move my feet or feel my toes, that's bad, that's really bad. How can I be Faon Vert now? I'm just a deer with their legs cut off, ready to perish to the hunters.
I fall back on my back, looking up at the starry sky, clutching his gift close to my chest. I can't visit Adrien like this, he doesn't deserve a broken superhero. The sharp pains of my feet snapping me out of any thoughts I try to distract myself with so much that I can't help but cry, and cry, and cry.
Stupid internet, stupid parents, stupid Ladybug, stupid superhero responsibilities, stupid Hawk Moth, stupid Ladybug, stupid Ladybug, stupid Ladybug. She shouldn't be in charge, the world would be a better place.
Yes, the world would indeed be a better place .
I gasp, sitting back up straight and wincing at the splitting headache.
No.
Yes, Faon Rogue, I've waited a long time for this moment, and that moment is now. Your emotions are too strong, give in to it, you will obey me.
"N-No." I whimper, fuck, this is bad. I start crawling to… somewhere, anywhere that can help me.
Come now, do you not wish for a better Paris? For a perfect world? A world without Ladybug? I can help you achieve things beyond your wildest imagination.
"G-Get out of my head." I grit my teeth. "G-GET OUT!"
It's simple, just get me Ladybug and Chat Noir's Miraculouses, and I will allow you to make your dreams a reality. Do not fight it, it is inevitable.
Letting out a pained gasp, I feel my brain slowly sealing itself off, Hawk Moth's will replacing my own.
"A… A perfect world…?" I whisper, feeling the powers of the Akumatization rapidly coursing through me. "B-Beyond my wildest imagination?"
Yes Faon Rogue, all you need to do is- Wait, what are you doing!?
I smirk, coughing violently at the sudden stinging headache. "T-Testing out these new powers is all." I answer, because if I'm going to be akumatized, he's not going to get away with it unscathed.
STOP! AS YOUR MASTER, I COMMAND YOU TO- ARGGHHH!
I snicker, soft quiet laughs slowly turning into raucous laughter.
My laughter dies out as I look at the sky above. So this is the power of Akumatization? Huh?
"Oh silly Hawk Moth, when will you learn." I hum, enjoying this amazing feeling, letting my body transform into my Akumatized self.
"You can never control my imagination."
