Marinette and Adrien stood side by side outside of the Dupain's bakery. Both adults wore weary expressions that matched the now harsh autumn evening. The wind howled and the temperature dropped. Even the weather knew that something was wrong in the city of Paris.
It had been a while since the akuma was defeated and the other heroes had gone home with their children. They could remember the smiles on their friends' faces as they were reunited with their children. Finally back where they belong. Smiles were on every face and crying infants were wrapped in hugs and showered in affection. They were safe and found. Warm and loved.
Journalists were at the scene immediately, and soon it was all over Paris that three of the four missing children were found. Only one more remained missing. Lost and still in the grasp of Luna Moth. Alone and captive. The worst combination. And that missing infant was Emma Agreste. The couple's only child. So you can't imagine the worry and pain they were feeling. Doubts and dark thoughts snaking around their minds, the feeling that the world was against them, thinking the worst. It came to both of them.
Knowing that their only child was all alone with the creature Lila was. Most probably being subjected to the brunette's schemes. The thought alone made their hearts break.
However there was still some hope. The two had been told to go to the bluenette's parents' bakery and from the tone of her parents' voices she knew something great had happened. It wasn't often that her parents were so excited.
So here they were. Standing outside of her parents' bakery in the freezing cold as the stars began to come out. Both anticipating what was to come.
"You think they found Emma?" Adrien was the first to speak.
"Maybe," The bluenette bit her bottom lip, "I'm just as nervous, Kitty."
"I can tell," He chuckled.
Hesitantly, they pushed the door and stepped inside. They entered the warm embrace of the bakery and smiled as its aroma filled their noses. Both looked around to bakery, expecting to find the bluenette's parents, but instead finding bubbly Emma eating cookies.
She hummed a little as she watched her grandfather bake, taking another bite. She then turned, spotting her parents in the process. Her green eyes lit up immediately.
"Mama! Papa!" The infant slid off her chair and dashed towards her parents who scooped her up into their arms.
"Emma!" Tears of joy escaped her bluebell eyes as she hugged her baby.
"We missed you," The blonde placed a kiss on her cheek, "Who brought her back?"
"A local customer," Tom beamed as he stopped kneading bread, "A teen named Celeste. She comes around often. She ran away from Rena Rouge to get her somewhere safe."
"She did?" Marinette stared at her parents wide eyed.
"Yes dear," Her mother nodded, "She even twisted her ankle. She did seem a little upset though, I think she thought of Emma as a sister. Such a kind soul."
The infant hummed in reply, nodding. Her green eyes were filled with certainty and she had a smile on her face.
"Nice," She smiled, "Friend."
The two adults smiled. Knowing that someone had been looking out for their daughter was good news and they were glad to hear it. The thought of Emma finding a friend in whatever environment Lila had her in was pleasing. It made them feel better about the situation. But something about this Celeste girl seemed familiar and the heroes couldn't shake the thought that she was someone they knew.
"Does Celeste ever come in here with any friends or her mother?" The bluenette raised a brow as she tried to place a finger on it.
"No she doesn't," Tom sighed, "But she's nice enough. Apparently she likes to escape from her mother every opportunity she gets. Well that's what the gossip says. Hey!"
Sabine had nudged the man in the side. She knew that telling her daughter this would cause her to go on a downward spiral and the last thing they needed was for it to happen so soon. She wanted Marinette to be stress free for at least a little while.
"What your father meant to say was that she goes stargazing every night, so she comes quite late," The female smiled.
"Yes, she does!" The male agreed, "Has a telescope and everything."
"Ok then..." The bluenette looked over her shoulder to see Adrien playing with Emma, "So how can we thank her?"
"Come by tomorrow," Her father suggested, "She usually comes every night, buys the same thing and then leaves. So she should be here."
"I'll be sure to come by then," Marinette smiled, "Could you look after Emma tonight?"
"Of course!" The couple smiled.
"She's always a joy to have," Sabine smiled.
"Thank you, Maman, Papa," She gave them a hug, "We'll be back tomorrow."
After saying their goodbyes the couple left the bakery, the cold autumn air chilling them immediately.
"What are you up to?" Adrien's eyes flashed with curiosity as he watched the bluenette think.
"You'll see," Marinette smirked, "Just follow my lead."
"As always M'lady," The two then set off into the night.
Sapphire Paonne landed in an alleyway by her home. The sun had set long ago and the streetlamps had began to turn on. The brunette let out a sigh as she detransformed. Luckily, the akuma hadn't damaged her too much, the only thing she felt was a slight pain in her heart. Like a slight twinge that turned into throbbing as it slowly cracked. But she was used to feeling that. It had only become more prominent.
The deep blue kwami zipped towards her, her tiny brows furrowed.
"Celeste!" The kwami floated in circles as she panicked, "This is bad! Really bad! This has never happened before and now you may be in danger! You need to give Ladybug your miraculous before-"
"I'm fine Duusu," The teen gave a weakened smile, "Just a little hurt, but that's all. I'm used to feeling the pain anyway, that's all I bring after all..." A single tear rolled down her cheek.
"Oh Celeste," Duusu wiped the tear away, "You're the first chosen I've had in a while and you're amazing! The rest were similar, but you're different. You understand emotions more than they ever did! Your experiences made you the perfect Peacock user and without them you'd just be an average teen."
"Thanks Duusu," The brunette sniffed, "Your the best."
"Not rally," She nuzzled herself against her chosen, "Now let's get home!"
The kwami slipped into Celeste's jacket pocket and made herself comfy as the teen began to travel down the darkened alleyway. The air was stale and smelt of rainwater and anger. A salty taste entered the girl's mouth as she came to the end of the alleyway. She had a bad feeling about tonight.
Like every night, the teen turned her key in the lock. Instead of being greeted by her mother and the infant, the teen was alone with the beast. She knew fully well where the infant had gone. But she didn't feel regret or remorse like she usually did, she felt anger and hatred. She'd tell her mother what happened and show her that she was done once and for all. Maybe even fulfill her darkest desire...
In complete silence, the teen took off her sneakers and hung her jacket on the rack, ignoring her mother's fiery gaze. She then adjusted her bag, before turning to her mother. Her green eyes were determined and she had a poker face as she stared back at her senior. Today she was ending this daily argument. She would have the final say.
"What happened?" Her mother's words seemed forced, like she didn't want to speak to the teen, "Where's Emma?"
"She's back with her parents," Celeste glared at her mother, her voice stiff, "The ones you stole her from. I can't believe you sunk that low!"
"Excuse me?" The female's eyes filled with a fire as she stared at her daughter, "Me? Sinking low? You went behind my fucking back and betrayed me! You're own mother!"
"You're not my mother!" Tears pricked at her eyes as she balled her fists, "You're just a bitch who got raped and gave birth! You made me this way! No-one else! If you weren't such a self-centered scum, then maybe I'd be a better daughter!"
The girl pushed past her mother tears pouring freely from her olive green eyes. She wiped them away with her sleeve, not wanting the demon to see, before feeling her mother's grasp on her wrist.
"Let me go!" She tried to yank her hand away, only to feel pain in her wrist.
The female's hand was tightly wrapped around the teen's wrist. It squeezed the flesh and the brunette couldn't help but let a few stray tears slid down.
"No! Just listen to me!" The woman yelled her expression firm, "You think I haven't tried to be a good mother! I've done this for you! Everything!"
"As if you care that much!" The teen continued as she continued to struggle, "I'm just a reminder of that night!"
"Celeste you're not. You're much more than that," The brunette spoke, her voice calm and sweet. She knew her words were working and she could see the teen hesitating. Lila then loosened her grasp.
"The fuck I am," Celeste shook away her mother's hand, her voice laced with venom and disgust, "But not to you. All you care about is that damned bastard of a dream guy you so piously love. If he really loved you, he'd be here."
"Celeste-"
"No! I don't wanna hear it!" She covered her ears with her hands, the akuma side was beginning to show and she could feel it calling to her. She didn't want to hear this, she wanted the woman to be quiet, to leave her alone.
'Kill, kill, kill.' It droned on and on,'Do it now! Look what she's doing, she's made you like this. You won't miss her and all the pain will be gone...'
"Leave! Me! Alone! I never asked to be broken!" The brunette pounded against the wall as she tried to quiet the voice. It was getting louder and louder, like deafening church bells.
Lila noticed this and immediately eyed her daughter.
She was expressing the same thing that the Peacock hero had earlier. A struggled against the akuma's hold. It linked directly to to the akuma from earlier. The one that snapped in half. The only one of its kind. The one that proved her daughter was Sapphire Paonne.
The female's olive eyes narrowed as she glared at her daughter, reasoning replaced with anger and betrayal. Was this what pain felt like? It was terrible. No wonder the victims of it acted out, like she did now.
"You did betray me..." The older brunette hissed as she eyed her daughter, "I should've known! Siding with Marinette to prance about as a hero. The one person I didn't want you to be around. Was it worth it? Betraying your mother's trust for some whatless fashion designer and her fuckboy?"
"Excuse me?" The ringing stopped inside of the teen's head as she let the dark side take over. Blood boiled in her veins and she could feel her logic slipping away. Her vision became clouded with red and her pupils dilated as her irises turned violet. Her unstable demeanor was gone and she was fueled with pure unpredictability. She was like a predator spotting its prey, she could attack or just continue her business.
Lila froze. This wasn't good.
"What is wrong with you?!" Celeste now held a fan made of silver blades. They glinted in the dim hall light and the woman's green eyes focused on each individual blade. They were shaped to look like peacock feathers and each had an edge that looked like it could cut you just from looking at it. They were insanely intricate and looked as if they were formed from a piece of the girl's broken soul. Jagged and irregular, like the chunks that were forced from her one sanctuary, and it showed.
"She's more of a mother to an infant than you've ever been to me in thirteen long years!" The girl's eyes narrowed as the lights flickered off, her violet irises dancing in the shadows, "So tell me how's it feel to be me? How does it feel to be like a mouse trapped in a cat's territory?"
There was a slight whistle as something was thrown. The brunette then felt a slight movement beside her and winced as a cold, jagged material passed beside her. She touched her side to feel blood on her fingertips. It trickled down her side and dropped onto the floor, staining it red.
"Celeste?" The female called into the darkness. She needed to remove that akuma before her daughter did something dangerous.
"Nooroo, dark wings-" She was cut off by the lights flickering back on and Celeste glaring at her. Yet something was different, the teen's eyes showed something else.
"Don't waste your words," She pulled a face at her mother, "I'm done with you. I'll see you in Hell."
She then stomped up to her room, slamming the door. Tears trickled down her cheeks as she thought about how she'd lost control. How she'd thrown a blade and aimed for her mother. Purposely aiming to harm her. Losing control nearly made her- It was a close call.
The teen then went into her wardrobe and began to fill her bag with clothes and other possessions she'd need. She looked around her room for a final time.
The posters all over her room, the many drawings she had littered over her desk, her shelf of books, the box she had underneath her bed. All of those things she'd leave behind, just to feel stable. Opening her window, the teen crawled through the gap. She was leaving this toxic environment before she did something drastic, something she couldn't take back. Even if she had nowhere to go.
Lila fell to her knees as her daughter slammed her bedroom door. Tears slipped from her eyes as she fell into a crumpled heap on the floor.
"Nooroo, what have I done?" She spoke in a whisper, "What have I created?"
The kwami floated beside her, his face blank. He'd seen this happen before and it hadn't ended well. Gabriel had been all too similar to Lila and now she was following his path, it was like all his chosen were meant to spiral downwards. All of them becoming villains instead of being heroes. An endless cycle.
The kwami sighed. All he could do was give advice.
"What is broken can't be fixed," Was all that left his mouth, "But instead can be mended."
The kwami then left the young woman alone. Hopefully his words had sunk in, or she'd end up just like Gabriel: old, mad and alone in a world that no longer cares for him.
"Nothing," Ladybug sighed as she met up with Chat Noir.
They'd both patrolled the whole city for the girl named Celeste. They'd asked many people who knew of her, but all said she hadn't come to the places she usually did. She just disappeared, like that.
"Maybe she's not feeling well," The blonde shrugged, "Your parents did say she ran away from Rena Rouge."
"I know, but I just have this feeling," Ladybug sighed as she looked at the city below her.
"What sort of feeling?" Chat raised a brow as he leaned against his baton.
"I don't know," She bit her lip, "But I feel like it has something to do with Lila's mystery daughter."
"Maybe Alya would be able to shed some light on it then," He suggested, "Maybe she could find a name."
"Maybe," The bluenette responded.
She then threw her yo-yo into the distance and took off.
"Where are you going?" He called after her.
"Just one more check!" She called back, "I'll be back in a few!"
Chuckling the blonde shook his head. Sometimes she was just too much.
"So? Why'd you wanted to meet so late?" Alix raised a brow as she sipped her drink.
She'd met Chloe in a bar not too far from both their homes. They both sat at a table and the pink haired woman was confused as to why the blonde wanted to meet her. They'd just gotten the children back and everything seemed to be back to normal. Well everything except from the fact that Sapphire Paonne was now a rebel and had half an akuma controlling her. But that wasn't too far from what they usually did.
"I wanted to talk to you," Chloe pulled out a planner, "I know you know who Lila's daughter is."
"You do?" The pinkette blinked, "How?"
"My father is an ex-mayor," Chloe rolled her eyes, "It was easy. Anyway, why didn't you tell me?"
"I didn't want you guys to worry," She smiled sheepishly, "You all had a lot going on and I didn't want you guys to be stressed out. Ok?"
The blonde smiled at her words, glad to know that the pinkette cared about her and the others.
"So did you only ask to meet to expose me or do something else?" Alix returned to her usual demeanor.
"Well, since you didn't want to tell the others about Celeste to pressure them," The blonde grinned, "I thought that I could help you with the investigation."
"But that's the thing," Alix toyed with her miraculous, "The investigation's more or less over. I need to find a way to confront the teen without seeming suspicious."
"That'll be easy then," Chloe smirked as she opened the planner, "My mother's got a fashion show under the stars on Tuesday. I can make her give away two tickets to the school for a prize draw and then rig it so Celeste wins them."
"Sounds great," The pinkette nodded, "But I'm not sure if Celeste will participate. She's the quiet type. Never gets involved in P.E."
"So we make the school give out the tickets for free," The blonde nodded, "That way she has to get involved and she'll win."
"Sounds fool proof," Fluff spoke from Alix's pocket.
"It may actually work," Pollen agreed from Chloe's handbag.
The two females chuckled at their kwamis' input.
"Thanks guys," Alix smiled, "But to make the plan work we might need some help."
"Count us in then!" Fluff spoke again, "Right Pollen?"
"Definitely," The kwami poked her head out of the blonde's purse, "To help my chosen and the rabbit miraculous holder would be an honor."
The two adults just laughed at the kwami's formality. She was like that a times often calling Tikki and Plagg the honorable Ladybug and Black Cat kwamis.
Their laughter dying down, the women finished their drinks and headed out. They'd have to hope for the best until they knew that their plan would actually succeed.
A/N: I may not update this weekend as I'm really busy. Updates will also go back to every weekend after this weekend as I'm going back to classes. However I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and thanks for all the kind reviews! :)
Till next time,
D.L.D