Chapter 19: Ballroom Blitz
Reptile and Brutus had been looking for the recent patient records for more than 20 minutes, and there was still no sign of them. More than once, Brutus had to warn the lizard man not to make so much noise. The risk of getting caught was big, and he did not want to start a fight that could alert the authorities. Neither he, nor Reptile were afraid to take on the police, but if they had to do so, they would lose time doing it. Precious time that could be spend finding that night's akumatization victim.
It did not take long for the ground to be covered in all kinds of papers, as they emptied the drawers, one by one, in search of the recent patients records. Finally, Reptile found them and warned Brutus, so he could give him a hand. Going through the records, most of the patients did not qualify as Akuma material. There were a few that had the right traits, but were not what they were looking for. As they began to lose hope, a record discovered by Brutus looked like the answer to their prayers. Reading it, he felt like he had found the perfect victim for akumatization.
"Take a look at this one." -Brutus said, as he showed the record to Reptile, who read it. –"With this kind of prognosis, she will take whatever deal the master makes with her. I'm sure she will be a perfect victim for akumatization and she will become a powerful Akuma." -he declared.
"I don't know. Depressive, suicidal, and suffering from severe anxiety … it doesn't sound like A-material to me. Wouldn't it be easier to just get a psychopath who loves blades and wishes to carve out people's bones from their flesh, while they're still alive?" -Reptile asked him.
"As much as that sounds like the perfect pick, I don't think we'll find a patient with those specific attributes, around here." -Brutus said. –"Besides, you're not seeing this through the right perspective. A homicidal maniac, who's also a psychopath is dangerous, and will most likely be turned into a powerful Akuma. But a someone who has suicidal tendencies, could be just as dangerous, when turned into an Akuma. An Akuma that may not be as flamboyant as the one who's a psychopath, but may be just as powerful as the psychopath one." -he told him.
"And since when are you an expert in psychology or whatever? I don't know why, but tonight, you seem like you are an expert in everything. Or at the very least, the way you talk, makes it sound like it." -Reptile scoffed at him.
"Just because my voice gives you that impression, it doesn't mean I'm trying to sound like I do. I'm not an expert. But I saw my share of mental illnesses in the battlefield. It's not pretty. I, myself, have been through that path, just like you have gone through the path that led you to become a stain on the carpet that is society, in the eyes of everyone. Both of them difficult paths." -Brutus said. –"Besides, mental illnesses can either cripple you or give you the strength to fight them. Perhaps this woman will make use of that illness, to become a powerful Akuma, once the master akumatizes her." -he said. –"Now, let me see where is she? Where's her room? Ah, here it is! Room 23, Intensive Treatment Wing."
"Intensive Treatment Wing… sounds like a highly secured area." -Reptile said.
"It probably is. And if my memory's not playing tricks on me, the map we saw placed that wing that's on the other side of this building." -Brutus commented. –"Looks like we'll have to use the same trick we used to get her, again." -he said.
"Fine, give me a moment." -Reptile sighed, as he changed appearance once more.
Back at the Le Grand Paris, things were starting to heat up in the ballroom, where Chloe Bourgeois had just yelled at Ambroise Delay, after this one attacked and insulted the Miraculous Team, calling them menaces, criminals, sociopaths in disguise, and comparing them to Hawk Moth. Standing next to her was Sabrina, who had gone after her, to try and prevent her from doing something that could get her into trouble, but who failed. When she got in front of Ambroise, Chloe wasted no time in yelling at him, because of what she heard him say.
"Go on! I dare you!" -Chloe exclaimed, staring him directly in the eyes.
"Do you even know who you're talking to?!" -Ambroise asked her, not realizing who he was actually talking to.
"I don't care if you're the President of France, or the Secretary of the United Nations, buster! What you said about the heroes of Paris, is downright disrespectful and criminal, to say the least!" -Chloe berated at him.
"Disrespectful and criminal?! I don't know who you think you are, but you're just a child and you should have more respect for those that are older than you!" -Ambroise scolded her.
"You're calling me a child, when you're acting like one, right now?!" -Chloe snapped at him.
"How dare you?! Do you know who you're talking to?!" -Ambroise asked her, as he began to lose his patience.
"Oh, I know, who I'm talking to… I'm talking to a jerk, who can't handle his drink, and spends most of his time criticizing people, just because he's too dumb to put himself on another's persons shoes!" -Chloe yelled at him.
"Y-You better take back what you just said, or…" -Ambroise threatened her.
"Or what?! Or you will start to insult me, like you're always doing to everyone who disagrees with you? I've seen you on the television, and I've seen those stupid videos that you make, and let me tell you this… you're a bully!" -Chloe shouted at him. –"Trust me, takes a former one to know one, and I can tell you that you're one. Whenever someone disagrees with you, the first thing you do is to insult that person and telling it that you're the one who's right, which is exactly that you're doing right now! If that doesn't make you a bully, I don't know what it does." -she told him.
Looking at her friend, Sabrina wanted to do something, but she did not what. On one hand, she wanted to tell Chloe to stop that, fearing that she would get into trouble. But on the other hand, she just wanted the blonde to continue to teach that guy a lesson. Just like the rest of her class, she also detested Ambroise Delay for all the nasty things he said about the Miraculous Team. And so, she remained in the spot she was, as if she was on auto-pilot, waiting to see how things unfolded.
Not far from where the commotion was taking place, Marinette and Adrien were also watching the blonde going at Ambroise. Just like Sabrina, their first instinct was to go to their friend and stop the whole scene. But just like it happened to the redhead, they could not help but to remain still and watch the whole thing unfolding. They did not know if they were doing that because they agreed that Ambroise deserved to be yelled at like that, or if it was because they knew that Chloe did not need any kind of saving from that situation. Years of talking down to pretty much everyone, had given her the uncanny ability to humiliate anyone, with a snap of her fingers.
Up on the ceiling, or better yet, on the crystal candelabrum that adorned the ceiling, Tikki, Plagg, Pollen and Mikka, also watched what was going on. Not wanting to stay hidden inside their holder's pockets or pochettes, the four kwamis decided to hide, where no one could see them, and also enjoy the party. And like everyone else, when they heard what was going on, they could not help but to check it out, with their own eyes.
"That guy chose the wrong person to piss off tonight." -Mikka said.
"This shouldn't come as a surprise. Chloe's incredibly sensitive tonight." -Pollen said. –"Though I wish this wasn't happening. She'll get into trouble with her parents." -she sighed.
"Come on, Adrien! What are you waiting for?! Join the fight! The guy's practically begging to be insulted by more people!" -Plagg exclaimed, as he looked at Adrien, who was not moving from where he was.
"He's clearly trying not to get into trouble, Plagg. Chloe's already going to get herself into trouble, thanks to this. There's no need for anyone else to get themselves into trouble." -Tikki said. –"And knowing that he sometimes has a short fuse, when someone he cares about is insulted or mistreated, I'm glad that Marinette is by his side. Probably preventing him to do something he might later regret." -she pointed out.
"I thought you hated that guy!" -Plagg told her.
"And I do hate him. But there's no way they'll be able to win a fight against him. Not in these circumstances." -Tikki declared, as she continued to observe what was going on.
"Now you listen here, young lady, I don't expect a mere child to understand what I'm trying to say, but whoever your parents are, they haven't raised you well!" -Ambroise told her. –"Interrupting people, while they're in the middle of a conversation isn't civil." -he said.
"Call me a child once more, and I swear to God, I'll have security guard throw you out of this hotel, buster!" -Chloe shot back at him. –"And as for being civil, I bet you don't even know what that word means! This might be a free country and you can say whatever it comes to your mind, but that doesn't mean you should, especially when you have that kind of hate speech, and a brain the size of an amoeba!" -she said, insulting him.
"You go, Chloe." -Marinette thought to herself, while watching.
"Right now, I wish I was in her place, humiliating that guy." -Adrien thought to himself, feeling a little envious of the blonde.
"This guy's getting roasted." -Sabrina thought to herself. –"I know I should be stopping Chloe from getting into trouble, but this guy deserves every insult she's throwing at him." -she thought.
As it was expected, it did not take long for the rest of the guests to hear the commotion between Chloe and Ambroise, and for them to be attracted to it, like moths to a flame. And among those who were attracted were Chloe's parents, who came to see what was happening, not knowing that their daughter was the reason that whole commotion was happening.
"What's going on here?!" -Audrey asked Ambroise.
"What's going on here?! I'll tell you what's going on! This child here has insulted me!" -Ambroise stated.
"I didn't insult you! I only asked you what's your problem with the Miraculous Team, and why you're always badmouthing and insulting them! You're the one who started with the insults!" -Chloe remarked.
"Now see here, you…" -Ambroise berated at Chloe.
"Enough! This child as you call her, is my daughter!" -André snapped at Ambroise, for yelling at Chloe. Just like most of Paris, he was not a fan of the man, who he considered to be an idiot with a mouth too big for his own good. –"And you will not talk to her that way, or I will personally escort you outside of my hotel, you hear me?!" -he threatened Ambroise.
Seeing her father coming to defend her, Chloe could not help but to smile inwardly. The feeling she was feeling inside her chest, could only be described as a mix of love, respect and security, which she loved.
"Well, that explains the lack of education! But what would you expect from the daughter of the worst mayor this city has ever had?" -Ambroise asked rhetorically, as the alcohol continued to affect what little judgement he ever had. –"It's like they say, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree!" -he sneered at the mayor.
"Excuse me?!" -André asked him, not having liked to hear what he had said.
"You've heard me. I said you are the worst mayor that Paris has ever had!" -Ambroise Delay told him. –"A proper mayor wouldn't allow that Ladybug and her companions to roam around free! By now, a proper mayor would have ordered the police to arrest them on sight, and put them in a cage, alongside that crazy Hawk Moth!" -he exclaimed. –"Then again, if you can't even raise your own child properly, it's no surprise that you can't run this city as it should! I myself would make a better mayor than you!"
"I won't even dignify myself to give you a proper response." -André said, trying to remain calm, as he did not want to start a fight with a man who had already drank a glass too many.
"You won't dignify yourself to do it, because you can't come up with a proper response! As the mayor of Paris, it's your job to keep the city's civilians'' safe, and you have failed to do so, by allowing a group of teenage psychopaths, who are in cohorts with an even bigger psychopath!" -Ambroise shot at André.
"Failed?! Now, see here… have you even listened to yourself?!" -André exclaimed, as he started to get sick from all those commentaries.
"Enough! This is a party, not a boxing match! And I will not have any kind of fighting in it!" -Audrey exclaimed, growing tired of that. –"André, in order for us to put this behind our backs, you will apologize to Monsieur Delay, and so will you, Clarice!" -she ordered both father and daughter.
"Audrey, you can't be serious, honey?" -André asked her.
"What?! Mom, I'm not going to apologize to this man! Especially after all the nonsenses and lies that he talked!" -Chloe exclaimed.
"That's an order, Christina! I will not have you ruining this gala, because you can't behave!" -Audrey told Chloe, yelling at her. –"Now, apologize, this instant." -she ordered Chloe.
"No!" -Chloe yelled back at her mother. –"I will not apologize to this creep! Not even for all the money in the world!" -she told her.
"What did you just say, Carmen?!" -Audrey asked Chloe, outraged by her daughter's behaviour. –"I've ordered you to apologize!" -she exclaimed.
And it was then that something inside Chloe snapped. Something that had been lying dormant inside her for far too long. Audrey had called her every name started with the letter "C", except her own, hundreds if not thousands of times. And all those times, Chloe ignored it and corrected her. But this time, that did not happen. This time, Audrey calling her by a name which was not hers, while reprimanding her for something Chloe believed she had no business in reprimanding her, was the last drop.
"It's Chloe! My name is Chloe!" -Chloe snapped back at her mother, after she called her by a name that was not hers. –"Is it that hard for you to remember that you have a daughter, whose name is Chloe, you blasted woman?!" -she yelled at Audrey. –"All these years, and never once you called me by my real name! And as a good daughter, I never, ever got mad or angry, when I had every right to be! Well, I had it!"
"W-What?" -Audrey asked, startled by Chloe's words.
"Not once, have you called me by my real name, not once! Do you imagine what it feels, when your own mother doesn't call you by your own name?! Because I do, and let me tell you, it's awful! It makes you feel like you don't mean anything to your mother!" -Chloe continued to yell at Audrey. –"But what was I to expect from someone who's only obsessed with her career, her good looks and how she looks on the photos, next to her loving family?! Nothing, that's what! Sometimes I wonder if you didn't marry dad, just so you could get pregnant and have me, so that way he wouldn't be able to divorce you!" -she shouted at her.
That last statement from the blonde shocked almost everyone that was near her, including her parents. And feeling that her daughter had gone too far with it, Audrey's first thought was that she needed to be taught a lesson. Guided almost by instinct, her right hand was about to slap Chloe on the face, when Sabrina placed herself between them, thus preventing her from slapping the blonde.
"Get out of the way, you insignificant girl!" -Audrey ordered Sabrina.
"No, I won't! I won't allow you to hurt Chloe!" -Sabrina warned her, as she remained between the two of them, looking Audrey in the eyes.
It took Chloe's brain a couple of seconds to realize why Sabrina had put herself in front of her. And when she realized it, two thoughts went through her mind. The first was that once again, Sabrina proved that she was her best-friend and would always be there for her. And the second one, was that she had struck a nerve on her mother.
"I said, step aside, immediately, you utterly ridiculous girl! This is between me and my daughter. You have no right to stick your nose into this!" -Audrey told Sabrina, who did not move an inch. –"Whatever you think this will accomplish, let me tell you that makes you look both foolish and pathetic!" -she told her.
"Oh, so now I'm your daughter?!" -Chloe asked Audrey, her voice filled with sarcasm. –"Because last time I checked, you didn't even care about me! All you cared about was this stupid party!" -she exclaimed. –"And one more thing, that utterly ridiculous girl, as you call her, has a name! It's Sabrina, and she's my best-friend!"
Unlike what happened the last time Chloe was near her mother, and she treated Sabrina like trash, breaking her heart, this time, the polar opposite happened. Sabrina's heart rejoiced, filled with happiness, after hearing the blonde saying those words, and more importantly, for standing up for her. That alone, gave her the courage to stand her ground.
"Thank you, Chloe. Thank you for standing up for me." -Sabrina thought to herself.
"You take back everything you said to her, you hear me?!" -Chloe shouted angrily at Audrey. –"Last time, you made me treat her like she was a piece of trash! Well, this time I'm not going to do it, and neither are you!" -she warned her. –"You apologize to Sabrina, right now, you hear me?! Apologize to my friend, this instant!"
"Friend?! I thought I had taught you that people like us don't have friends, Charlotte! Friends are nothing more than obstacles in your path to success!" -Audrey berated at her. –"And instead of bringing that useless girl as your plus one to this gala, you should have come with Adrien Agreste, who by now you should be dating!" -she said, while pointing to Adrien, who remained silent.
"You really don't get it, do you?! Adrien is one of my best-friends, and he's dating another of my best-friends, who's right there, and who you were anything but nice tonight!" -Chloe told her, as she pointed at Marinette and Adrien. –"Why would I do that, when the only thing I would accomplish, would be hurting my friends' feelings?!" -she asked her Audrey.
"There you go with that ridiculous word! Friends… once again, people like us don't have friends!" -Audrey berated at her.
"Maybe people like you don't, but I'm not like you! I've got friends and they are more my family than you will ever be, you hear me?!" -Chloe yelled, this time even louder. By then, she did not care if all of Paris heard her screaming. She just wanted to yell as loud as she could, so her mother could hear her.
"Chloe, honey, surely you don't mean that…" -André told his daughter.
"Oh, yes, I do, daddy. I mean every last word I just said." -Chloe told her father, before turning her attention back to Audrey. –"And you want to know something else, mom?! Because of you, I almost lost every friend I had!" -she told her.
"Because of me?! Now, you're being ridiculous! If you weren't being utterly ridiculous before, you're being it now." -Audrey said, dismissing everything Chloe had told her. –"Why would I be the one responsible for you losing every friend? As if that was something truly bad…" -she scoffed.
"Because of the way you are! All you do is talk about yourself! All you do is making others feel like they should kiss the floor you walk on! And on top of it, you treat people like garbage! Not only that, you make them feel like garbage!" -Chloe exploded once again. –"For years, I tried to imitate you! I tried so hard to be just like you, that I ended up becoming a horrible person… the exact same kind of person you are!" -she exclaimed. –"And doing it, almost made me lose the friendship of all my friends!"
When she heard her daughter saying that, Audrey had to restrain herself from beginning to laugh hysterically. In her mind, she could not see how it was her fault something like that almost happened.
"And you want to know what else?! I did it all for you! I tried to be just like you, so you would notice me! For years, I tried to make myself noticeable! Every time I learned something new, I wanted to show it to you, so you would be impressed, and tell me you were proud of me! And not even once you did that! Not even once you told me you were proud of me!" – Chloe said.
"And why would I have to?! You're my daughter, it's obvious the requirements and standards you have to reach! It should be a no brainer for you, what I expect from you, obviously!" -Audrey told her.
"Well, guess what? You're wrong! It matters to me! Just because I'm your daughter, that doesn't mean I'm someone who doesn't like to hear compliments! I'm not a machine, I'm a human being! And most importantly, I'm your daughter, and it's your job, as a mother to be there, to help me grow as a person! Doesn't matter how lousy of a mother you are, you could have told me that you were proud of me, to make me feel like I was loved, and to help me grow! Even if it was just one time! One time, mom!" -Chloe exclaimed, with the anger inside her growing.
"Make you feel loved? To help you grow?! Please, if anything you should be thankful to me and your father, for the things you have in life! Do you know how many children would kill to have half the things you have? Or getting away with half the things you did? You've benefited from my work and celebrity status your whole life! Not only mine, but also your father's! Since when, have you done anything by your own power alone for me to be proud of? Everything you have is an extension of me, so why would I praise you? If anything, it would have probably all gone up to your head even more! This is why I tell your father he's too lenient on you. Also, the company you keep beside you, is not up to the standards you were raised with." -Audrey declared.
"That makes no sense! She's your daughter! You should love her on the basis of that alone! She shouldn't have to earn your love and approval. It's something to be given freely and from the start! She didn't ask to be born! You are the one who decided to bring her into this world! It's your duty as her mother, to provide her emotional and unconditional support and love! And you failed to do so, over and over!" – Sabrina yelled at her.
"She's right. I shouldn't have to earn your approval. And for your information, I'd rather hang out with my friends, who unlike you don't feel like I need to earn their love and affection, than with you who does! I wish I wasn't your daughter!" -Chloe yelled, as she began to cry, her anger turning into sadness.
André Bourgeois did not know how to react to all of that. It pained him to see both his wife and daughter exchanging hard words like that, and not know what to do. He just wanted the two of them to stop arguing and make peace. He knew that their relationship was not the best, but he never thought something like this would happen, because of it.
"Chloe, honey, I know you're angry, but you can't be serious about it. I know deep down, that you don't really mean that." –André said, trying to appease things between his wife and his daughter.
"I'm sorry, daddy, but I do. I do mean what I say. My relationship with my mom is as unhealthy as it gets! She's a bad mother, and I have to think about my own my mental well-being." -Chloe told her dad, as the tears continued to roll down her face.
"Hmph… let her say it, André. Let her complain like the privileged kid she is. If she actually knew suffering and hard work, maybe I would listen. But I don't have to stand here and listen to the ramblings of an ungrateful child!" -Audrey declared, - "Ever since I can remember, you have been a distraction in my life and career. I knew I should have put you in a boarding school, instead of that private college you go to. Maybe then you would know what's needed to contribute to society, and more importantly, you would have understood that we aren't like most people! For all intents and purposes, we aren't like them, because we're on a different level. A level that requires you to socialize with people of the same level as yours! But you were always too stubborn to understand that, and insisted on socializing with people that were on a lower level than you! If instead of listening to your father, and allow you to go to that school, I really should have sent you to a proper boarding school! That way, you would have been out of my way, and I wouldn't have to worry about making this kind of a scene at a gala that give me so much work preparing and organizing!" -she said.
When Audrey finished that sentence, Chloe felt like the world had ended. Audrey had told her that she did not care about her. Maybe not in those words, but she had told her that. Her first thought was to just yell again. To yell and call Audrey the nastiest insults there was. But the sadness inside her heart, quickly spread into her mind, and she realized that she just wanted to be alone, so she could cry her eyes off. Turning her heels, she began to walk away, pushing aside everyone that had gathered around to see what was happening, as she made her way out of the ballroom.
"Where do you think you're going?! You come back here, right this instant! We're not finished! As your mother, I demand that you obey me!" -Audrey ordered Chloe, who looked over her shoulder.
"Well, then you're a lousy mother, who can't even love me, for just being me! I wish you and daddy were divorced, because if you were divorced, then I wouldn't have to see you, ever again!" -Chloe yelled from the top of her lungs, her voice filled with anger, as she started to run.
On the outside, Chloe looked angry and furious, but on the inside, she was feeling heartbroken. She had heard her own mother saying that she had no business in telling her that she was proud of her, or that she loved her. For someone like her, who through most of her life only wanted to hear her mother say that she loved her and was proud of her, hearing her say the things she said, it was like being punched in the stomach or shot in the face. Sobbing almost uncontrollably, she ran out of the ballroom, not caring where she was going. All she wanted was to get away from there.
Seeing this happening, Marinette and Adrien quickly ran after her, to make sure that she was alright. The kwamis too, came out of their hiding spot and flew after them, while being careful not to be seen. As for Sabrina, she glared at Audrey, before joining her friends. She wanted to yell at Audrey for the things she had said, and for hurting Chloe the way she did. But she knew that her energies would be better spent on Chloe, whom she knew was going to need a hug, some comforting words and a shoulder to cry on.
Using the same routine as they did before, Reptile pushed the gurney where Brutus was lying on, covered with a white sheet. They both believed the ward they needed to go to, would have a lot more security, not to mention, more people roaming around it. But knowing that they could not back out, they hoped that they did not run into anyone on the way to it. Following the signs that pointed the direction to the Intensive Treatment Wing, they used an elevator, to get to the third floor, where it was located.
Inside the elevator, the two men exchanged a couple of words, to ease off the tension.
"I don't know what bugs me more. If the stench of antiseptic, or the cringing noise the wheels from this gurney make on the linoleum." –Brutus pointed out.
"Personally, what bugs me more is that we're still not there. We are taking too long!" -Reptile sighed, impatient.
"Patience is a virtue. We will get there, when we get there. If I wanted security to know we are here, I would have had us entering through the main door, without a care in the world." -Brutus said. –"Remember, we're here to akumatize someone, not to start a royal rumble and notify the Miraculous Heroes about it, before the time." -he told him.
Once the elevator's doors opened, Reptile pushed the gurney out of the elevator and looking up, he saw a sign saying "Intensive Treatment Wing" with an arrow pointing forward. Remembering the map, he knew that the entrance to the ward was just at the end of the corridor in front of them. Telling Brutus to get up, he jumped out of the gurney, leaving it behind. Avoiding the cameras in that corridor, Brutus and Reptile made their way through the corridor. At the end of it, they saw a double-door that gave access to the Intensive Treatment Ward. Stopping in front of the double-door, they noticed that it had a key-card reader. Pondering on what to do, Brutus wondered if it would be possible for Reptile to find a key-card that would open the doors. But the lizard man, growing impatient, and not being in the mood to go look for a key-card, told him the best thing to do was to break open the door.
"Break it open. The hardest part was to get here unnoticed, and we did it. From here on, we just need to find the room the woman is in, and then ask the master to send us an Akuma Butterfly." – Reptile said. –"And if security shows up, we'll barricade ourselves in the room, or I'll slit their throats." -he told him.
"It's crude… but perhaps you're right. We just need to find the room. And I doubt the guards will get here, before we do it." -Brutus said, as he produced his war hammer, by pulling it from his chest. –"Stand back. And once the doors are open, sprint into the corridor and look for the door with the number 23 on it." -he ordered the lizard man, as he took balance and swung the hammer against the doors.
Shattering the glass doors into pieces, the alarm went out. Doing what Brutus had told him, Reptile sprinted over the corridor, looking for the door with the number 23, with Brutus following closely behind. Passing by several doors, it did not take long for them to find room 23. Trying to open the door, Reptile saw it was locked. Looking in his pockets, for the skeleton key he had used before, he realized that he had left it behind in the records room. Acting on an impulse, he tried to break open the lock, by ramming his body against the door. Doing that, the lock did not budge. Knowing that he did not have much time, he tried to ram it once more. But once again, the lock did not budge. Seeing Reptile having difficulty in opening the door, Brutus told him to step aside, as he launched himself against the door. Due to his massive physique, Brutus broke the lock, opening the door, while also landing on his face. Quickly picking himself up, he looked over his shoulder, and saw Reptile closing the door, and barricade it with, by breaking a nearby chair and jamming a piece of under the door's sweep. That would give them a couple of seconds.
The alarm's syren could still be heard, but because of the door, the noise did not sound as loud as before. Focusing on what had brought them there, the two villains approached the bed, where the person they had selected for akumatization was lying on. She was a woman in her late thirties, with auburn hair and fair complexion. She was wearing a white hospital gown, and was covered until her midriff. No one would suspect she suffered from the illness she suffered, just from looking at her at first. But a trained eye would see the scars from cuts on her wrists, under the medical restraints she had.
"She definitely doesn't look like the kind of person I would pick to become an Akuma." -Reptile said.
"Maybe not. But she will do. Just feel the emotions that are inside her… they are slightly dormant, no doubt because of the drugs they are giving her. But they are strong." -Brutus said, as he looked at her, lying on the bed, and saw her name on the bed's footboard: Lorayne Travers. –"It is time to contact the master." -he declared, as he prepared to contact him, through his psychic link. –"Master Hawk Moth, can you hear me?"
What a chapter this one... this truly was one ballroom blitz, with everything that happened. I have to admit that I needed a little help with Chloe and Aubrey's argument... I'm the first one to admit that I'm not the best at writing that kind of situations. But luckily, I do have a few friends who are better at it, than I am. And it was one of those friends of mine, who I consider like a younger sister, who helped me out with it. I knew I didn't want my version of Audrey to be as despicable as the OG show version of her, but I still wanted her to be nasty enough to punch a hole through Chloe's feelings, and I think I did manage to do that, with a little help, of course.
Anyways, the real fun starts on the following chapter, with the Akuma making its appearence. What do you think? What kind of Akuma could that one be, and which powers might it have? Also, will Chloe be able to overcome the sadness that is in her heart? Be sure to come back to see what it happens, on the next chapter. As always, feel free to comment, fav and leave suggestions to improve this and future sequels. :)