CHAPTER FOURTEEN:
DEPARTURES AND ARRIVALS
Bridgette got her first taste of sisterhood just after sunrise.
She stood frigid as a frightened camel while she, Plagg, and Alix watched Marinette swing around her on her yo-yo between a pair of giant, stone guardians that marked the edge of the mountain city.
Around and around and around...
"Whohoo!" Marinette squealed with excitement as she rose up into a dive, nearly giving Bridgette a panic attack. "Come on, Sis – you've got to try this!"
The Queen of Thieves tried to regain her composure. "Ohhhhh no," she stated resolutely, twisting her neck left and right to follow her sister. "It's a yo-yo. You play with it, you hit stuff with it, but you don't fly on it." Bridgette frowned. "At least, I don't."
"Hey, nothing puts flying to shame better than kwami magic," Plagg argued gently from Bridgette's shoulder.
"I wish I had one of those things," Alix mused beside her queen as she followed Marinette's trajectory. "Looks like my kind of fun."
Bridgette glanced at her second-in-command with a scowl. "Anything fast-paced and exceedingly dangerous is your kind of fun, Timebreaker."
Just then, Marinette appeared upside-down before Bridgette, bobbing above the ground on her fancy toy. "Don't be so afraid," she cooed with a teasing smile before launching back up.
"I am not afraid!" Bridgette declared proudly, waving at finger at her sister. "Now stop swinging around on that thing before you break your neck!"
To her relief, Marinette actually listened and lowered herself back down. Bridgette's tension lessened once her sister was standing on solid ground again.
"I trust this thing with my life," Marinette insisted as she showed off her yo-yo. "It's gotten me out of more tight spots than I can count. Who knows? I might use it to save you someday." She winked at her older sister.
Bridgette rolled her eyes. And I thought I was the reckless one in the family, she thought. "Come on now. We'll want to move out quickly if we want to make it to Agreste by mid-day. And we're taking horses," she added with an irritated tone, "not that dusty, old rag you call a magic carpet."
Marinette giggled.
"What's so funny?"
"You sound just like our mother," Marinette replied with a delightful twinkle in her bluebell eyes.
Bridgette blinked... and then smiled.
The carpet came with them anyway, flying alongside Marinette as the three ladies saddled up and made their way out of Mount Sesame.
Flying yo-yos and living rugs... What's next? Bridgette thought. Giant snakes and talking caves?
They exited through one of the secret tunnels rather than use the magic entrance. It led them to the top of the high cliffs overlooking the Agrestian Sea. Bridgette knew it would have been risky to open the magic entrance in broad daylight, even though they were far from civilization. A passing traveller or a nearby ship would easily notice the minor earthquake and the flash of golden light.
It was strange leaving home without the rest of the Forty Thieves, but it was also like a breath of fresh air. The peace and quiet, the open sun, the free feeling of not having eighty eyes watching your back... Bridgette decided it wasn't so bad, especially when her younger sister and her best friend were accompanying her.
Bridgette, Marinette, and Alix took one last look at the great mountain before turning tail and trotting gently into the desert.
Plagg returned to the safety and comfort of Marinette's pocket for a morning cat-nap. "Wake me up when we get there," he yawned as he snuggled in.
Marinette smirked. "I'm still surprised Adrien can tolerate him," she hummed aloud.
The prince's name made Bridgette look back at her sister. "So... this Adrien..." she said with half-hearted kindness. "What's he like?"
Her sister seemed to sigh as she looked up into the pink-red haze above. "He's absolutely amazing," she said. "Funny, handsome, smart, brave, sweet, handsome..."
"You already said that."
"I did? Oh." Marinette put a hand to her blushing cheek. "Well, let's just say he's more than what I ever wished for."
"Wow," Alix called over, her sarcasm as clear as the smugness on her face. "Sounds like a real Prince Charming."
"And you believe he's good for you?" Bridgette pressed on. "He takes care of you? He respects your decisions? And Mother and Father approve of him?"
Marinette cocked an eyebrow at her sister. "Overprotective much?"
Bridgette snorted and looked forward, as though the vastness of the desert was more interesting. "I just find it hard to believe that a man as stiff and straight as King Gabriel could ever have a son as warm and romantic as you've described him to be. And you're marrying him. I can't help but wonder."
Marinette giggled again. "Now you actually sound like an older sister," she mused.
Alix laughed from behind.
Now Bridgette was the one trying to hide her blush.
Lieutenant Roger couldn't hide his self-satisfaction as he and his squadron of guards arrived at the edge of the salty bay.
The pointy-capped mountain sat right on the other side of the massive mouth of water... just like the silver-masked stranger had said.
"Halt!" Roger called to his men, and the horses came to cluster together at the bank.
One of Roger's privates – a scrawny-looking man with a curly, black goatee – frowned at their surroundings. Or maybe his face always looked like that. "This is the hideout of the Forty Thieves?" he asked skeptically. "There's nothing here."
Roger shot him a grin. "Not yet," he corrected. "Watch."
He urged his horse to turn so that he had a perfect view of the mountain. This is it, Roger thought with glee. This is my moment of redemption.
He opened up his arms and called out, "Open... Carroway!"
Silence.
Grim, taunting, annoying silence.
Roger's excitement dwindled, and his arms fell.
"There is still nothing here," the scrawny guard grunted.
Several of the other men chuckled, and Roger's face turned beet-red.
You fool! He cursed himself. You let that silver-tongued conman get into your head, and now you've made yourself an even bigger fool!
Roger growled and yanked on his reins, preparing to set back for Agreste. All the while, he muttered heatedly under his breath, "When I get a hold of that no-good –!"
"Uh, sir?" a large, dark-skinned soldier asked curiously. "Didn't you say that the words were... "Open Sesame"?"
The ground jerked underneath them.
The soldiers cried out and tried to calm their startled horses, all while gazing with wide-eyed terror at the great mountain in the distance.
Only Roger didn't respond to the sudden carnage. Surprise filled his beady, blue eyes as he turned back to their destination.
A loud crack filled the air...
... and Lieutenant Roger grinned darkly from ear to ear.
It was great to be home again.
It was early afternoon, and the city was at its warmest. The familiar scents of the palace alleviated Marinette from the tang of salt water and mildew that stuck to her clothes.
Bridgette and Alix appeared tense the whole time, but Marinette assured them that everything would be all right as long as they were with her.
They left their horses in the royal stables, and then proceeded up to the pavilion to take a look at the renovations. It looked brand-new; even better than how it had looked before.
Marinette grinned and placed her hands on her hips. Looks like Tikki outdid herself again, she thought.
Alix whistled. "How did you guys manage to fix all this in so little time?" she wondered awestruck.
Plagg bore a fanged grin. "You can thank Sugarcube for that," he said with a dreamy sigh. "She's an angel."
Bridgette lifted an eyebrow. "Sugarcube?"
"That's what he calls Tikki, my kwami," Marinette replied.
That made her sister's eyes widen. "You have another kwami? Have you used all three wishes yet? How many more kwamis are there?"
Plagg shot the heavens a glance as he groaned. "Oh, don't bother, sweetheart. It's just too painful. I'm serious – I'd have to break down the whole story into two books."
POOF!
Bridgette and Alix shrieked and jumped back when something pink and sparkly exploded in front of them.
Only Marinette wasn't surprised to see a tiny, ladybug kwami zoom over to her with bright, bulbous, blue eyes and an adorable smile.
"Marinette, you're back!" Tikki squealed as she tackled Marinette's cheek for a hug. "And your front! You're both here!"
The young blunette giggled and patted her little friend affectionately.
Then, another voice sounded from inside the pavilion. "She's here! Guys, Mari's home!"
Yep, that was definitely Alya.
But someone else beat the redhead to Marinette first.
The sunlight in his golden hair gave him away. And that broad, gorgeous smile that rose up on his face as he cried, "Marinette!"
The young blunette's heart soared as Adrien ran onto the outer walkway and scooped his bride into his arms, lifting her in the air.
She laughed, and he said her name again, more tenderly this time. In that moment, Marinette didn't care that her older sister was watching. As soon as her feet touched the ground again, she pulled her prince in for a deep, long kiss, as though they hadn't seen each other in years.
When they finally pulled away – much to the relief of the others – Adrien whispered, "I was beginning to think you stood me up, Milady."
Marinette smirked and flicked his nose. "On our wedding? Not a chance, Kitty."
It wasn't long before the others appeared. Alya threw her arms around her best friend, and Marinette squeezed her back happily. Nino patted Marinette on the back when he took his turn. Tikki, Trixx and Wayzz were welcoming Plagg home with head-crushing hugs.
Yes... It was really great to be home.
Sadly, the joyous moment was cut off when Alya nudged her head past Marinette. "Who are your new friends?" she asked, her amber eyes narrowing at Bridgette and Alix's dark attire.
Marinette rubbed her lips. Perhaps she should have given the two thieves proper disguises before entering the city. Well, no time like the present. "Guys, I –" she began.
"Shh!" Tikki suddenly put her tiny hand to Marinette's mouth, glancing left and right suspiciously. "Security's tight," she whispered like a secret agent. "These girls need special clearance. No big crowd; immediate family only."
"Perfect," Marinette said as she edged away, "because this is my –"
"No low-lifes this time," Tikki stated, obviously too excited to pay attention. "Well, other than Stinkysock, of course."
"Hey!" Plagg moaned.
Once again, the ladybug kwami brushed it off and summoned a tiny remote control into her hand. "I've updated the palace security system. Observe!" She pressed a red button on the remote.
Just then, a trap door opened up on the walkway, and something massive and metallic rose out of the hole.
Marinette could tell Bridgette and Alix were just as astounded as she was.
The contraption looked like a giant, metal statue of Tikki, with angry, red eyes and strange mechanisms on her arms that pointed directly at the companions. "You have violated the perimeter of the Adrien and Marinette Wedding," the statue stated in a booming monotone. "Prepare to be vaporized. Thank you!"
Red beams of energy shot out of the statues' hands, but everyone ducked just in time before the searing lights took them out.
"We tried to tell her it was too much," Alya told Marinette with a shrug as they all straightened up.
Tikki grinned proudly as the robot sank back into the ground. "Armed and dangerous," she said. "I'd like to see one of those Forty Thieves get within an inch of your wedding."
Bridgette and Alix exchanged a sly grin, and Plagg coughed "Heh-hem," at the same time.
Marinette giggled awkwardly, but she couldn't bring herself to speak anymore.
Then, Adrien's emerald eyes took a good, long look at Bridgette. "Wait..." the prince murmured suspiciously. "Do I know you?"
Alix sidestepped away and gestured to Bridgette with a broad sweep of her arms. "Allow me to introduce..." she announced with a dramatic pause.
Bridgette chuckled and drew herself up regally. "The Queen of Thieves," she finished with firm confidence.
A second passed without any reaction.
Then... Adrien's eyes widened, Alya gasped, Nino went pale and rigid, and the kwamis (with the exception of Plagg) let out a unified shriek, their skins rippling as their tails and antennae stood on end.
Then, Tikki held up a walkie-talkie and shouted into it, "All units – we have a Code Red!"
Marinette was the one reeling now as several dozen Tikkis appeared out of every nook and cranny of the pavilion, each one wearing black Kevlar uniforms labelled "S.W.A.T." and holding a miniature gun.
"Code Red! Code Red! Code Red!" they all shouted at different intervals as they swooped out of windows, zip-lined off the roof, and crawled out of secret passages in the ground. They surrounded Bridgette and Alix like a swarm of angry bees, separating them from Marinette and the others.
The Queen of Thieves and her lieutenant stood back-to-back, their hands raised and their eyes scanning the squadron of Tikkis.
"HALT!" the horde of Tikkis all barked at once, jamming their guns into the girls' faces.
At the same time, a single S.W.A.T. Tikki – who Marinette assumed was the real Tikki – held up a megaphone and called out, "Do not attempt to move or we'll be shooting ourselves!"
Oh, boy – not good. Marinette carefully squirmed her way through the cluster of Tikki troopers and yelled, "Tikki!"
"Mari!" Alya latched onto her best friend's shoulder. "That's the Queen of Thieves!"
"Yeah, that creep's got a yellow sheet as long as my arm!" Nino agreed.
Marinette rolled her eyes and declared with a firm tone, "Everyone, meet my sister Bridgette."
Every Tikki in the vicinity gasped and lowered their guns in shock, their blue eyes turning into pinpricks.
"You're... what?!" Alya rasped.
Nino glanced at Wayzz with a "Huh?!", and the turtle kwami shrugged with a smile that said, I knew that.
Marinette rubbed her temple with a sigh. "Hey, I was pretty shocked too... but it's true. This," she beckoned to Bridgette, "is my sister."
Adrien was blinking several times as though he hadn't heard right. Then, he craned his neck back at Bridgette – who frowned at him – and he put a hand on his chin. "So... let me get this straight. You are my lady's sister. The same sister who crashed her wedding and tried to steal my mother's brooch?"
Bridgette looked like she swallowed a lemon, and her cheeks went all rosy. "Um... Sorry?"
Trixx hummed. "Well, there's something you don't see every day," she said to Alya, who still looked absolutely dumbstruck.
Plagg flew out of Marinette's pocket. "If you guys don't believe Mari, ask me. I saw the whole thing."
The Tikki with the megaphone looked at Bridgette, then at Marinette... and then she sighed. "Stand down, troops. Smoke 'em if you got 'em."
POOF!
All of the extra dozen Tikkis vanished into pink mist, and the last one returned to her normal self. She hovered by Marinette with a beady-eyed look at the Queen.
Alya's own eyes glowed with orange light, and she stepped up to Bridgette. "If you're Mari's sister," she said lowly, "and the Queen of Thieves..." Alya drew forward so that she and Bridgette were now nose-to-nose. "I just want to know one thing."
The older blunette returned the stare-down. "Yeah?" she snapped.
Alya held the stare for what felt like a long time... until she smiled and asked kindly, "Will you and your friend be having the chicken, or the sea bass?"
Bridgette blinked and stepped back. "Excuse me?"
The redhead smirked and folded her arms. "Let's just say I know what it's like to be in your shoes. And you seem like a pretty decent girl. So what I'm trying to say is..." She extended her hand. "It's nice to meet you, Bridgette. I'm Alya."
Marinette smiled with relief, and when her sister looked over at her curiously, she nodded with approval.
So the Queen of Thieves took the Chief Advisor's hand and shook it gently. "Thank you," she said. "And... it's an honour to meet a fellow thief."
"Ex-thief," Alya corrected, "but I appreciate the gesture."
The Queen's lieutenant stepped up now. "I'm Alix. I'm Bridgette's... friend."
Nino blinked at the little, pink-haired girl. "Hey, aren't you the little gnat who tried to pommel me at the wedding?"
Alix squinted at the captain of the guards and held a finger up, as though covering a part of Nino's face. "Oh, yeah," she said with a smirk. "I thought I recognised that chin."
Nino grunted.
Bridgette put a steady hand on Alix's shoulder. "My friend and I mean none of you any harm," she addressed everyone around her, "and I truly apologise for the fiasco we caused. Had I known it was my sister's wedding I was dropping in on, well..." She straightened up with soft, glistening eyes. "I know you all think you should just lock me up for what I've done, and I wouldn't hold it against you to do so. But..." She smiled at Marinette. "I would face incarceration gladly if it meant getting the chance to see my little sister's marriage."
Marinette smiled back warmly, especially when her friends seemed to ease up a little at Bridgette's words.
Then, the Queen of Thieves walked over to Adrien... and knelt down before him.
"My sister must have been born under a lucky star to have found a treasure such as you, Your Highness," Bridgette said, crossing a hand over her chest in respect. "So permit me to state how grateful I am to you for being the one to win her heart."
The prince stared at Bridgette for a long time, and Marinette was relieved when she saw a thoughtful smile appear on his face.
"You are definitely Marinette's sister," Adrien said at last in that princely tone of his, reaching down to personally raise Bridgette back to her feet. "And you are definitely welcome to our wedding."
Marinette beamed, and her groom-to-be winked at her.
Nino's lip quirked up a bit. "Hey, if Aly and Adrien think she's cool, I guess that's all right," he said.
"Indeed," Wayzz said. "Sometimes the greatest allies come from the most unexpected places."
Trixx fluffed her tail. "Hey, I'm just happy to meet a fellow girl with a fine taste in fancy jewelry."
"So... you guys are okay with this?" Marinette asked.
Even Tikki brightened up a little. "She's your sister," she said. "How can we do anything else?"
Marinette placed a hand on her heart. "Thanks, guys. This means a lot to me." She turned to Bridgette and took her by the hand. "Come on, Sis. Mama and Papa are going to be so happy to see you."
"Ahem," Trixx cleared her throat loudly. "Mari? Don't you think we ought to lose the "Agreste's Most Wanted" look first?"
The fox kwami flew over and pulled down a "WANTED" poster over Bridgette's face, revealing her with her blue hood and face-cover.
Bridgette yanked down on the poster, and it flew up into a spinning roll before vanishing. "What's wrong with the way I look?" Bridgette asked Trixx haughtily.
The little fox opened her big mouth to say something rambunctious, but Alya held up a finger and shook her head.
"She has a point," Adrien said regrettably. "I highly doubt my father will be as open with you as I am. There are some laws that even he can't break."
Marinette bit her lip, knowing her prince was right. King Gabriel may have altered the marriage law so that she and Adrien could be together, but Marinette had been a 'special case'. Criminals, on the other hand, were another story entirely... and Bridgette was Number One on the blacklist.
"He's right, Bridgette," Marinette said, taking her sister's face-cover off. "When you're here, you're not the Queen of Thieves. You're just my sister."
Bridgette's forehead crinkled with worry, and she pulled her hood off, letting her long, midnight tails tumble down her back. "Heh..." She chuckled half-heartedly. "I don't think I can remember a time when I wasn't the Queen of Thieves."
Tikki blew out a raspberry. "Aw, come on. Enough of this dark past," she said cheerfully. "Let's roll out something a little new." She waved her glowing hands.
POOF!
When the smoke cleared, Marinette saw Bridgette and Alix standing with perplexed expressions on their own cushy ottomans.
Wait. Ottomans?
And the open armoire of dresses, with the long, ovular mirror?
Marinette couldn't hold back her laughter. This was exactly what Tikki had used when she had turning the younger baker's daughter into Princess Ladybug.
"Ohhh, this should be good..." Alya mused as she covered her mouth.
Tikki reappeared as a French fashion designer. "You are the sister of the bride, so you must wear something befitting a guest of honour," she told Bridgette with a thick accent. She circled around the Queen of Thieves and did a quick sketch on her drawing pad. "Love the blue, don't love the style. And those leathers! What is this – McJagger?" The pad vanished and Tikki started taking some measurements with the good, old tape measure. "You need something brighter, more flowing... Tell me, are you a winter or a summer?"
Bridgette's face heated with embarrassment. "Is this really necessary?" she growled, casting a pleading look at Marinette.
Her little sister just kept giggling.
Adrien shrugged. "Hey, when you live in a palace, you've got to look the part," he said.
Alix snorted and folded her arms. "Ha! Good luck getting me into a dress." She leapt off her ottoman and tipped a two-fingered salute to the gang as she walked away. "I'll just wait inside."
ZAP!
The pink-haired girl cried out as a rope of red energy surrounded her and yanked her back onto the ottoman in one pull.
"Oh, no you don't," Tikki sneered. "I've got just the thing for both of you." She waved her hands once again.
POOF!
More pink smoke exploded around the unwitting thieves.
The two girls who stepped out of the mist were no longer the same girls from before.
"Whoa!" Adrien and Nino exclaimed in unison.
Bridgette staggered off the ottoman while holding her head. "I feel... strangely... light-headed," she muttered.
"Huh? What?" Alix shook her head of dizziness. "What just happened? What... Whoa!" She glanced down at herself once she realized that her usual thief fabrics were gone.
Instead, the little speedster had a thin, black suit with lime-green stripes. A red, hourglass-shaped symbol sat on her chest. Her wheeled shoes looked better than ever, with two white wheels on both feet. Alix also wore a black helmet with large, green visors that reminded Marinette of bug eyes.
Nino whistled. "Now you look more like a soldier and less like a thief," he noted.
Alix nodded with intrigue. "Not bad," she mused. "Hey, how fast can I run in these things?"
Marinette was more interested in her sister's new outfit. "Bridgette – look at you," she breathed.
The Queen of Thieves looked down... and her eyes widened with awe.
The sapphire cape and leathers had been replaced by a fancier suit than Alix's. The neck, arms, lower-bodice, and legs were completely black with bordering stripes. The rest of the suit was sapphire blue, including Bridgette's fingers and the bottoms of her pointy, chunky-heeled shoes. Though she didn't wear a mask like Marinette did, Bridgette's hair was done up into one large, ponytail at the back, swirled together with black ribbon.
"Mmm-mmm!" Plagg hummed. "Looks like Cinderella's going to the ball!"
Bridgette struck a few poses as she looked over herself more and more, and she began to smile. "This is... quite astounding," she said.
"You'll get used to it," Marinette said, patting her sister on the shoulder. "At least Tikki didn't dress you up in polka-dots like she did me."
Alix snickered. "I would have loved to have seen that."
Marinette smiled up at Bridgette. "So... are you ready to see our parents?" she asked.
The Queen of Thieves – no, Bridgette – stared down at the ground for a moment. Then, she looked at herself in the mirror, as though the woman staring back at her was someone she hadn't seen in a long time.
I guess seventeen years of being a thief will do that to you, Marinette figured.
No one said a word, until Bridgette finally pulled her little sister into a side-hug and said bravely, "Yes, I am ready."
MB: I confess: I stole *Queen Bee's outfit, dyed it blue, and gave it to Bridgette (but only for a short while - I promise!). I stink when it comes to designing outfits.
*I don't own Queen Bee, or Miraculous.