Bonus Content - A Year in Review Part 2

Following the Midseason Premiere, Episodes 13-18 are what fans call "filler," but that's not to say NOTHING important happens…

We see LB and CN grow as a team…

As they simultaneously fall in love with BOTH of their partners' identities. Marinette falls for Chat Noir AND Adrien, while Adrien falls for Marinette AND Ladybug. To add to the love square dynamic, each of them feels guilty for having romantic feelings for two people at once. As if they're somehow being unfaithful (LOL, the joy of not knowing…).

Meanwhile, Chloe is going through her redemption arc as was seen in the show (minus the terrible finale.) And we also get more from the Cult of Hawkmoth.

Everyone wonders what the future will hold and how everything will work out. Not for the first time, Adrien wishes Bunnix were there to burrow back and save Plagg…

Ep. 19 - Bunnix

The show flashes forward ten years, where Bunnix is inspired to change the past to prevent Adrien's son from being born with superpowers. But instead of fixing things, Bunnix' changes trigger the end of the world.

In the end, she manages to send a warning to her younger self to stop her from changing history.

Ep. 20 – Lila

It begins like any other school day.

Nino, Alya, and Adrien are chatting in the courtyard when Alya's phone dings. She has a text from Marinette. She is sick with the flu and won't make it to class.

While Alya, Adrien, and Nino debate how they can cheer up their friend, the camera pans to Lila Rossi who is listening in. Lila eyes narrow, and she slips away, as the camera returns to Alya, Nino, and Adrien.

"We could send her flowers," Adrien offers, hoping his blush isn't too visible. He's fallen hard for Marinette these past few months and he'd love an excuse to do something nice for her.

"Flowers and maybe a card? Signed by all of us of course," Adrien adds quickly.

"Hey, what if instead of a card, we recorded a video message?" Nino suggests. "Do you think she'd like that? Alya? Earth to Alya. Come in?"

But Alya is focused on something at the top of the stairwell. Nino and Adrien turn to see Lila standing there arguing with… Marinette?

"I thought she was sick," Nino says, looking to his girlfriend, but she doesn't hear him. She's fixed on the shouting match going on at the top of the stairs. Marinette and Lila get so loud that they soon have the whole courtyard's attention.

Then out of the blue, Marinette shoves Lila, and the girl goes flying backward down the flight of steps.

There is a stunned silence, before Lila wails in pain, and someone calls an ambulance. While a few jump into action to help Lila, everyone else is dumbstruck. They can't believe their eyes. How could Marinette do such a thing?

Marinette herself is in shock.

Then, when the Principal goes to grab her, Marinette ducks and darts down the stairs. She runs past Lila, who is still crying on the ground, and heads outside.

Alya is the first to react. She chases after her bestie, with Nino and Adrien hot on her heels. But when they get outside, Marinette has vanished, and her friends are left wondering 'What on Earth just happened?!'

Deciding that Marinette is worth it, the three friends ditch school to track her down. To their surprise, they find her in the last place they expected: Sick in bed at home.

Marinette's mother exposits that Marinette started feeling sick yesterday, and today she can barely lift her head much less leave the apartment. Alya, Nino and Adrien are naturally confused. They KNOW they saw Marinette at school – the whole courtyard witnessed her shove Lila down the stairs – but when they make it to her room, they see that Mrs. Cheng is right. Marinette is sick as a dog.

Before they can ask further questions, the phone rings, and Mrs. Cheng leaves to answer it. As soon as she's gone, Marinette's friends grill her about what happened in school, but she has no idea what they're talking about.

Suddenly, Marinette's mother bursts in, "That was the Mr. Damocles! He says you pushed a girl down the stairs?!"

Marinette insists she's innocent, but it's no use. The Principal has dozens of witnesses. In the end, he expels Marinette from school.

Marinette's family is horrified, but her friends vow to get to the bottom of things.

From there, the bulk of the episode focuses on her friends' investigation, and they discover that somehow, Lila Rossi has developed (or possibly, retained) the power of illusion. They follow her home and catch her casting illusions as she gloats over her victory.

Naturally, Alya, Nino, and Adrien assume her powers are from an akuma, but they're wrong. Lila now has the superpower to create illusions. But how is this possible?

Did she get her hands on a miraculous? Is it some sort of technology? They know she wasn't born this way, or she would've had the powers before Hawkmoth recruited her. So how did she get them?

Finally, Adrien remembers Crown Jewel, the thief, who could teleport without Hawkmoth's influence. Was there a connection between Crown Jewel's powers and Lila's?

Adrien (now as Chat Noir) investigates other past akuma victims and learns that several have retained watered-down versions of their villain powers.

But how is this possible?

The truth hits him like an avalanche. It happened each time Chat Noir cataclysmed akumas instead of letting Ladybug purify them. Think about it: Lila retained Volpina's power, not Chameleon's, even though she was akumatized into both. The only difference was that one akuma was purified the other faced a cataclysm.

Adrien feels like he'd taken a cataclysm to the heart. He's in love with Marinette… and now he is at least partially to blame for getting her thrown out of school.

Worse still, even though he (and Soya and Nino) know Lila fabricated the illusion of Marinette shoving her down the stairs, there is no way to convince anyone else, much less to get Lila to confess.

In the last scene of the episode, Alya, Nino and Adrien plead with Mr. Damocles to let Marinette return, but he refuses to hear them out.

Marinette's expulsion stands.

Ep. 21 – Love-eater/Heart-Hunter

This episode is basically the same as what aired on tv, except that it's Nino, Alya, Adrien, and Marinette hanging out and dodging bodyguards together, since they can't see each other in school anymore.

In the course of the battle, Ladybug collects the turtle and fox Miraculous from Master Fu so that the four friends can fight together as well. This really hurts Chloe who is still hoping to work with Ladybug again.

Ep. 22 – Miracle Queen

Author's Note: There is a serious chance that one day I will write this one out as a full fanfic sequel to the Death of Chat Noir, but in case that doesn't happen…

This episode begins much like the canonical one, with Chloe upset after seeing her parents akumatized, and Hawkmoth tempting her to the darkside.

The audience can see that the temptation is real. Chloe REALLY wants to show up Ladybug for choosing other allies instead of her, but in the end, Chloe rejects Hawkmoth, insisting she'll 'never let him akumatize her ever again!'

Strangely, Hawkmoth is not upset to hear her answer. If anything, he seems pleasantly amused. This makes Chloe suspicious. "I'm not going to join you, so WHAT are you still doing here?" She demands.

"My dear, Chloe," Hawkmoth purrs, "Your mind chose one thing, but your heart has betrayed you." The audience sees an amok slip into Chloe's phone and bubble outward. Seconds later, a sentimonster emerges, looking every bit like a dark reflection of Chloe.

"Ms. Bourgeois," Hawkmoth says, "please meet the future Miracle Queen."

End Scene.

After the commercial break, the episode cuts to Rena Rouge, Carapace, Chat Noir, and Ladybug in the park. They're discussing the bizarre way things ended with Heart-Hunter, when everyone's devices chime.

There is a message alert. Opening it, they see a video sent to them by Hawkmoth.

"To Ladybug, Chat Noir, and all Miraculous holders across Paris –

I would like to make you a once in a lifetime offer. Today, I ask not for the Miraculous of Ladybug and Chat Noir, but instead for the Bee Miraculous. Bring it to the Mayor's office, and I will give you something very special in exchange."

The camera zooms in, and everyone sees a black stud earring resting on his palm.

"Ladybug, how would you like to have your missing Miraculous back?"

Hawkmoth's smile is predatory as the video clip ends.

It takes a moment for them to process, but Rena is the first to recover. "Psh, like you'd ever fall for that. You HAVE both your earrings. What game does he think he's playing?"

Ladybug and Chat Noir exchange a nervous glance. "That's not exactly true," Ladybug starts out. She explains that she did lose one of her earrings the day Chat was akumatized, and that's why she hasn't been able to 'Miraculous Ladybug' the damage away after fights ever since.

Chat Noir admits this sounds like a trap, but Ladybug worries it's her only chance to get the earring back. She sends Chat Noir, Rena and Carapace to scout the Mayor's office, while she goes for the Bee Miraculous.

The Team splits up, and Ladybug heads straight to Master Fu… oblivious to the fact that she is being followed.

End Scene

Back at the Mayor's Office, Chloe is tied up (but not gagged) in a corner. Hawkmoth and Mayura left, but the "Dark Chloe Sentimonster" is there guarding her.

The real Chloe demands, "So, what is the plan here? You really think Ladybug is going to just give you a Miraculous? That's ridiculous, utterly ridiculous!" She laughs haughtily.

"Hawkmoth came up with this plan himself. It's foolproof." The sentimonster says.

"Foolproof? Hawkmoth?!" Chloe throws her head back laughing. "He's lost to her enough to know that she will never turn over a Miraculous to any of you."

The sentimonster glowers, before turning thoughtful. "Just like she'd never knowingly give one to you?"

That sobers Chloe's mood. "I'll have you know I was a GREAT superhero. In fact, I was best Queen Bee there's ever been!"

Now, it is the sentimonster's turn to laugh. "You can lie to many, but not to me. I AM you, remember? And I know what you already do..." The dark reflection stoops down to look Chloe in the eye. "I know how worthless you really are, Chloe Bourgeois. No one will ever want you, much less trust you to be a superhero EVER again, especially not a REAL hero like Ladybug."

Chloe huffs, and turns away, unwilling to talk about it anymore. But the audience can see the unshed tears in her eyes, just before we cut to another scene.

Elsewhere, Ladybug meets up with Master Fu to get the Bee Comb. Like Chat Noir, Fu thinks this trade reeks of a trap, but LB believes it's a necessary evil to get her Miraculous back. Fu gives her the comb and relocks the Miracle box as the heroine flings her yo-yo to swing away.

When Ladybug is gone, Fu looks up, and there, we see Hawkmoth looming over him. "Hello, Guardian, we meet at last…"

End scene.

We switch to Chat Noir, Carapace, and Rena Rouge scouting the Mayor's office. They can't find a way in without alerting the villains that they're there. As they debate back and forth, Chat's phone rings. He answers, "So, my Lady, are you on your way or already here?"

"On my way. I have the Bee Miraculous."

"You're not really going to trade it are you? It sounds like Hawkmoth might be set to sting us all."

"Chat, if this is what it takes to get my earring back, I'll do it. But if all goes well, it won't come to that."

Long story short, it does NOT go well.

LB does the exchange with Mayura, and it blows up in her face. Mayura gets the Bee Miraculous, Hawkmoth reveals that he's stolen the Miracle Box (although it's locked and he can't get it open), and the earring that LB risked everything to get turns out to be a fake.

The full impact of her failure hits Ladybug as her team falls back to regroup.

Meanwhile inside the Mayor's office, Chloe and the sentimonster are going at it again (yes, Chloe is fighting with a manifestation of her darkest self, but sometimes that sort of thing is even better than therapy!).

Hawkmoth and Mayura enter, and the two Chloes fall silent. We see Hawkmoth try to open the Miracle box again, but to no avail.

"Hah!" Chloe shouts triumphantly, "You'll never get it open! Certainly not before Ladybug stops you! Now that she has both her earrings, she'll stop you ALL!"

Oh, if looks could kill…

Mayura puts a calming hand on Hawkmoth's shoulder, and then, turns to address their hostage. "That will be very difficult with a fake Miraculous."

"A fake? You mean you never had the real one?"

"Oh, we have it," Mayura says, "but we've worked too long to get it just to give it back." Turning back to Hawkmoth, "Sir, are you ready?"

"Yes, Mayura." He tosses the Miracle Box aside in frustration and refocuses on the lone akuma suspended in his staff. The akuma steps out onto Hawkmoth's gloved hand, and he closes his fist around it, allowing the dark energy to pour in. "Miracle Queen, are you ready?"

The sentimonster stands tall as the dark akumka infects the Bee comb. Then, the sentimonster takes the comb and puts it in her hair, causing a black and yellow kwami to swirl out.

Pollen takes one look at his new mistress and cowers, "Is… Is there something I can do for you?" He gulps. "My Queen?"

"Yes," Miracle Queen says with pride. "Pollen, Buzz On!"

Once she has transformed, Miracle Queen sends a swarm of bees to infect everyone near the mayor's office, turning them into an army for Hawkmoth. She tries to sting the heroes, but she only gets Rena Rouge and Carapace.

Chat Noir and Ladybug escape the swarm and circle back to the Mayor's office where they fight Hawkmoth, Mayura, Rena and Carapace.

In the middle of the battle, Mayura falls into a fit of coughing, and Hawkmoth realizes he has to get her to safety. He scoops her into his arms, grabs the Miracle Box, and tries to escape. Ladybug merges Barkk (the Dog Miraculous with the power of tracking) and Tikki to chase after them.

That leaves Chat Noir to deal with Carapace and Rena Rouge. Chat collapses a ceiling in on them, knowing Carapace will throw up a shield, and then Chat darts off to face Miracle Queen.

Chat Noir sneaks into the Mayor's office, but he can't emerge from his hiding spot without Miracle Queen seeing him and hitting with her swarm LONG before he could reach her.

Fortunately, he has an ally in the room.

Chloe talks to the sentimonster, distracting her so that Chat Noir can get close enough to break the phone with her amok. Miracle Queen vanishes, and her Bee Comb collapses to the ground.

Without a host, the dark akuma emerges from the comb of its own accord, and Adrien gets an idea.

He brings Chloe close and deliberately cataclysms the akuma where wisps will fall back to Chloe and absorb into her skin. Softly, he says, "I saw what you did to help me against that sentimonster. Never let it be said that Chloe Bourgeois wouldn't make a GREAT Hero.

Chloe tries to act above it all, but we can see she's touched. She's misty-eyed at Chat's kind words, but when he calls her on it, she says "As if! Daddy's office is terribly dusty. They really need to find a new maid to do something about it."

Back to LB…

Ladybug tracks Hawkmoth and Mayura, engaging them in battle. Mayura is too weak to fight, so Hawkmoth has to choose between escaping with the Miracle Box or leaving it behind to save Mayura.

He chooses to save Mayura, dumping the Miracle Box as they make their escape.

Oh, the heroes may think they've won, but the day wasn't a total loss for the city's villians. In the final shot, we see that Gabriel and Nathalie have Master Fu locked up in the basement of the Mansion…

And with that cliffhanger, Season 3 ends.

That means that going into Season 4, Hawkmoth has:

- A translation of the Miraculous book, taken from Fu's tablet

- The restored Peahen Miraculous (and of course, the Butterfly Miraculous)

- Ladybug's missing earring

- The key to the Miracle Box, which they found on Fu after they lost the box to Ladybug.

- Allies such as Nathalie, Lila, and the ever-growing Cult of Hawkmoth

- Master Fu as a captive

While our heroes have:

- The locked Miracle Box, which is practically useless without the key

- 5 ½ Miraculous (Ladybug, Black Cat, Dog, Fox, Turtle, and Bee)

- Allies such Nino, Alya, and Chloe, who has a new superpower (if she touches your skin and gives you an order, you must obey)

With that set up, Season 4 in broad strokes goes something like this…

We have the usual episodic drama for awhile, before things pick up. Then in the midseason finale, Ladybug gets her missing earring back (Yay!)… But we also kick off the Butterfly War, which lasts to the end of the season. In the finale, we officially stop Hawkmoth and Mayura and end the war. (Hooray!)

But wait, if Hawkmoth is defeated, is the show over?

Absolutely not! Why do you think I introduced so many others with superpowers?

We have Lila making trouble with lies and illusions.

We have Chloe, who may or may not abuse her powers before she grows into a better person. Plus we have some "villain-of-the-week" thieves and opportunists. There's plenty to keep our heroes busy, all while they deal with the normal challenges of being teenagers.

And so, there you have it. That's my Fanfic outline of seasons 3 & 4. I hope you liked it.

Author's Note:

For any who wonder when I might publish again, I might expand "Miracle Queen" into the official story sooner rather than later, but I make no promises. (There is also an outline I've been playing with, where a teenage Emil ends up trapped in the past and gets to meet his parents when they were his age. But we'll see if it goes anywhere)

I have a lot of other projects I'm working on, not the least of which is an original fantasy novel. I usually write fanfiction when I hit writer's block with my "Let's-be-original Muse," so we'll see how it goes. I might be back sooner than you think.

Till then,

Bye folks! Best wishes to all!

This is Firewings Scepter signing off