To Speckleflower and anonymousfriend27: Don't have long to wait to find out what happens…
To Rose Tiger: That is the mystery…
The transformation phrase died on Alya's lips as the glass patio door shattered to her right. On instinct she dove behind the coffee table beside Nino and the twins. Alya's heart pounded in her throat when something heavy landed inside the living room and let out a primal roar. Nino released one of the twins just long enough to pull Alya in close to himself.
Alya opened her eyes and looked through the glass coffee table to see the robber standing dumbly where he had been before, with the butcher knife still in his hand. Near the patio door stood another figure, this one wearing a dark-yellow padded bodysuit. The figure wore black sparring gloves on its hands and a dark-yellow helmet on its head with a black ski mask covering the entire face except for tiny eyeholes. Alya could see a black emblem on the figure's chest, though she couldn't make it out as the figure moved. Visitors had posted rumors on the Ladyblog of a new vigilante stalking the streets of Paris by night, but no one had provided an accurate description or even proof to confirm the vigilante's existence. At least until now. Alya mentally berated herself for dropping her phone when she dove to the floor.
The vigilante growled and lunged at the robber. The robber backed up a step. The knife shook in his grip. The vigilante spun around and kicked at the robber's head, but the robber ducked under the attack. He tried to counterattack, stabbing at the leg with his knife as it passed, but the vigilante moved quickly and immediately followed up the first kick with a second. The robber ducked to the side, only for the vigilante to punch him in the face. The robber fell backward into the entertainment center, and the television crashed down on his head.
Alya lifted her head to look over the coffee table and watched the vigilante kneel next to the robber's unconscious body and pick up something metallic from the floor. Then the vigilante looked over and met Alya's eyes before running to the patio door and disappearing over the railing into the night. The last impression Alya had was of vaguely-familiar golden eyes staring right at her.
"N-Nino?" Alya whispered, fumbling around to put a hand on his back.
"I'm okay, babe," he told her, keeping his voice calm and even. "Girls? Are you okay? You didn't get hurt did you?"
"No," chorused the twins. They started struggling against Nino's iron grip, and Alya reached down to pick the closest one – Etta – up, while Nino did the same with Ella.
"No, girls," Alya scolded them. "You could get hurt if we're not careful. There's broken glass all over the place and you have bare feet. We're going to put you in your bedroom, and you have to stay there, alright? Do not leave for anything! Do you understand me? And if the door opens, hide until you hear one of us, or Mommy and Daddy. Understood?"
"Yes, Alya," the twins chorused before breaking out into a fit of giggling.
Alya met Nino's gaze and rolled her eyes. Leave it to the twins to find something funny about an attempted robbery! She glanced over at the robber's prone form, unwilling to leave him alone while they took care of the twins, even if he did appear to be unconscious. As if sensing her conflict, Trixx flitted out of Alya's shirt pocket while the twins were distracted, at the same time that Wayzz appeared from his own hiding spot between the couch cushions. Alya glanced at the Kwamis, who both nodded in silent agreement and settled atop the entertainment center to keep watch. Trixx waved his hand in a circle, and the Kwamis vanished behind a Mirage.
Alya and Nino left the girls in the bedroom, shut and locked the door, and returned to deal with the unconscious robber. Alya knelt behind the upturned coffee table, looking for her phone. Nino put a hand on her shoulder, squatted next to her, and placed the phone in her hand. Her breathing hitched and she couldn't keep her hand from shaking as all the adrenaline left her system. Nino wrapped his arms around her and she leaned into his embrace, allowing the tears to flow freely. Trixx left Wayzz under the Mirage to continue watching the robber and settled on Alya's shoulder, nuzzling up to her cheek.
"We're okay, babe," Nino whispered, rubbing her back. "The girls are safe, you're safe, nothing's broken that can't be replaced."
"There's no way I'd let him hurt my kit!" Trixx squeaked, patting Alya's cheek.
Alya sobbed harder. "I just felt so… powerless," she mumbled. "He was going to kill us all, and–"
"And there's no way we were going to let that happen," Nino interrupted her, squeezing her tightly. "I was one second away from transforming and putting a Shell-ter over us all when that vigilante dude showed up."
"The vigilante interrupted my transformation phrase, too," Alya admitted, cupping her hand around Trixx. "In a way I'm glad. Marinette would have been so angry if I exposed my identity in front of that guy." She nodded toward the robber for emphasis. "But I'm pretty sure if I had transformed, we'd still have a television right now…"
"And there wouldn't be glass all over the floor," Nino agreed. "But it's no use crying over shattered glass, right, babe? Let's let the police take care of this nut. Then we can see about cleaning up the glass."
Alya's first phone call was to the police to report the attempted robbery. They agreed to send someone right away to arrest the robber and take statements. Her second phone call was to her mother.
"Mommy?"
"What is it, sweetie? Is everything okay?" Her voice immediately sounded anxious.
"Everyone is okay now," Alya began, "but there was a… incident tonight." She winced at hearing her mother's gasp. "Someone came to the apartment and I tried to stop him but he broke in and I tried to get him to leave but he wouldn't and there was this knife and then there was a vigilante and then everything went crazy and–"
"Slow down, slow down!" her mother said soothingly. "Have you called the police?"
"They're already on the way."
"The twins are okay? You and Nino are both unhurt?"
"Everyone is safe, and no one got hurt other than the robber."
"Then calm down. That must have been so scary for you! But I'm so proud of you for getting yourself and your sisters through that unharmed. We will be home as soon as we pay the check. I love you."
"I love you, too, Mommy."
Alya hung up to see Lieutenant Raincomprix standing in the doorway with a pair of officers, looking at the broken door with an expression of shock on his face. The Kwamis both hid, and Alya gave a resigned sigh and waved for them to come in. "The robber is under the television," she called. "This is going to be a long night," she muttered to Nino, who nodded ruefully.
Once Lieutenant Raincomprix had left with the prisoner, a crime scene specialist had to come and take photographs for evidence. By that time Alya's parents had returned home from the restaurant. They hugged each of them in turn and checked on the twins before the officers insisted on taking statements from both Alya and Nino about the incident. Her mother went into the bedroom to stay with the twins while her father sat with them while they gave their statements. As Nino was finishing up his statement, Alya slipped into the bedroom to help her mother with the twins.
Lieutenant Raincomprix returned as the interviewers were leaving, bringing with him a couple of cardboard boxes, which he broke down and then helped Alya's father and Nino to tape up over the smashed patio door. Then he ushered all of them out of the apartment before putting crime scene tape over the open front door.
Nino wrapped his arm around Alya protectively, and she squeezed him back tightly.
"Officer – Roger," her father asked as Lieutenant Raincomprix led them down the stairs, "where are we going to stay for the night?"
"It's already been arranged," he answered over his shoulder. "The Mayor called before I even finished booking the perp and insisted that you stay at the hotel tonight. Don't ask me how he knew; I only just got the call when I got home and had to run out on Sabrina!"
Alya glanced up at Nino and mouthed, "Chloe."
He grinned back at her and shrugged. Then he leaned close to her ear and whispered, "The vigilante was still out there while we covered the door." Alya gave him a questioning look, and he continued, "Roof across the street. Probably been watching this whole time. Might even still be there."
Alya turned to her mother. "Can I make a quick stop at Marinette's before meeting everyone at the hotel?"
"Of course, sweetie. Just don't take too long."
Nino squeezed her hand reassuringly and looked over at her family before returning his eyes to her. Alya smiled at him and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. Then she dashed down the stairs ahead of them and into the night.
"So you finally decided to show up, eh, hero?" The vigilante sat on the edge of the roof, legs dangling off the side, looking over at the apartment building, and didn't turn around as Rena Rouge clambered up on the opposite side of the building.
"I was busy," Rena Rouge answered, folding her arms. "This was the soonest I could get away."
"Yeah, that's the problem with you heroes, Foxy: you're unreliable," the vigilante retorted, standing up and turning to face her. "People start to rely on you, but you're not always there, are you? And when you and your pals take forever to show up, people tend to get hurt."
"It's not my fault I couldn't get here sooner! At least we don't cause as much damage as the bad guys," Rena Rouge replied, gritting her teeth. "But what about you tonight? You smashed through a glass door! With all that shattered glass on the floor, it's amazing one of those little girls didn't cut her foot! You could have hurt them!"
The vigilante growled and charged. Rena Rouge regretfully dropped into a crouch, tightening her grip on her flute. This wasn't how she'd wanted the conversation to go. The vigilante jumped and let loose a flurry of jabs at Rena Rouge's face on the way down. Rena Rouge raised her flute to protect one side of her face, using her arm to protect the other side.
"And if I hadn't showed up when I did, what would have happened then?" the vigilante demanded heatedly. "You weren't there to protect them! I had to do something!" she shouted, kicking at Rena Rouge's stomach.
Rena Rouge dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the kick. She sprang up to the vigilante's side and swung her flute at the vigilante's head, striking the helmet. The vigilante shook off the blow, turned, and growled before spinning around into a high kick at Rena Rouge's chest. Rena Rouge ducked under the kick and swept the vigilante's other leg out. The vigilante fell to the ground heavily and groaned.
"You could have hurt them just as easily as that lunatic would have!" Rena Rouge shouted, squeezing her fists tightly.
The vigilante grunted and kipped to her feet. "I couldn't just do nothing! That man was going to kill my sisters!"
Rena Rouge's jaw dropped. She looked closer at the vigilante: the size, the posture, the insignia that was finally visible in the reflected light from below. Her flute fell from her hands to clatter on the roof. "Anansi… Nora?" she whispered, staring at the insignia.
The vigilante paused mid-punch, her arms dropping to her sides. "How… how do you know my name?"
"Do you really think I'm that irresponsible? That I would ever have let that madman hurt the twins?"
"Wait… who are you?"
"Trixx, Let's rest."
Anansi's eyes bulged. "Alya? Baby sister?"