Things weren't going for the Parisian dynamic duo in the last few days. Not only Hawk Moth was creating even more dangerous akumas, new villain had decided to show up.
Le Paon was cold, cruel, cunning and unscrupulous. They still have to face her personally, much like Hawk Moth, and only discovered about her due to strange marks appearing along with Hawk Moth's violet butterfly in the face of his victims and of course thanks to Chat's taunting one quite outspoken akuma.
Chat Noir himself learned the hard way what the nasty lady was capable of. She would enhance the akuma's power, turning it into a killing machine. Moreover, to makes matters worse, she held a much tighter grip on the akuma's consciousness than Hawk Moth did.
The first time they suspected something was wrong was when Gabriel Agreste was turned into the Collector and captured one tenth of Paris in his book. Not only was his sorrow vast, which powered Hawk Moth's corruption, he was much stronger and faster than any other foe they had met.
The suspicions were proven to be correct after the fight with Troublemaker, Jagged Stone's assistant, when Master Fu called Ladybug and Chat Noir to his place, properly introducing himself as the Great Guardian and the turtle kwami, Wayzz.
He mentioned then that the peacock kwami have been awakened and, together with the information obtained from Troublemaker, proved the existence of a relationship between Hawk Moth and Le Paon, as named by Troublemaker.
Such combination of new foes was too much to the heroes even when Master Fu deployed the fox and bee kwamis to their chosen ones, thus the true Volpina and Queen Bee entered the stage. Day after day, they battled the increasing strength of the evil duo while altogether felling themselves nearing their limits. It was after their battle with Style Queen, a model who failed an audition, when Chat received a significant injury, the first to ever leave a lingering pain even after Ladybug's cure.
That scared all teens as the realization of the risk they took every day they donned their mask and rushed to the rescue of their cities. That happened four days ago and now Adrien was finally free of the bruise, much to his relief. He had managed to brush off any suspicion claiming as an injury he got when he lost his balance during fencing training.
However, Adrien now knew that this day would be one of those days when his bad luck decided to show up. All because he had anticipated his rare free afternoon. He was a living example of the application of Murphy's Law.
After just waking up he was greeted by Nathalie with a message from his father, he would have to retake the last three photo shoots right after class because there had been some sort of accident with his photographer and he wouldn't be able to delivery everything in time. His mood turned sour immediately as he had been looking forward to an afternoon without being caged by his schedule to hang out with his friends, Nino, Alya and Marinette. Though the bluenette could barely keep a conversation with him, he considered her his first and special friend nonetheless.
When he arrived at school and broke the news to his friends, Nino was the first to console him, knowing well how his father could be one hell of a heartless workaholic. Alya's outburst came soon after, he was already used to her dramatic reactions, but it did warm him that she cared that much for him.
Still, it was Marinette' small pout that broke his heart. Her shining bluebell eyes were definitely sad with the news. That was something he wasn't used to: someone actually thoroughly disappointed by not spending time with him.
It was a look he now could perfectly see in her eyes whenever he had to cancel their hangouts and it made his heart soar knowing that the dedicated and talented Marinette anticipated those times as much as him. In his little group, he felt a caring he thought he would never again feel ever since his mother disappeared. Also, he was thrilled that the bluenette had finally begun to socialize more with him, for some time he wondered if she still was holding him for the bubble gum incident when they met, but now he knew she was just shy around him. However, that left another question in the air: why it seemed it was just with him?
That bugged him from time to time, though he would eventually brush off and enjoy her friendship. "It's okay, guys" He said, though still sad for bailing out, he was glad he had the best friends one could hope for.
"But it's not fair" Marinette's voice was closer to a whisper but all of them managed to hear her, turning their heads to her and making her blush a little.
"Hey, Mari" Adrien turned to her, placing a hand on her shoulder and Marinette had to remind herself to breath by such simple gesture. She crushed the model REALLY HARD. "I promise to make up to you, ok?". He already had plans to visit his princess that night to at least put a smile on her face.
Only then he noticed what he had just said and how such words could be taken, but the damage was already done. Their two friends were already grinning madly and Marinette look more like a tomato.
Much to his and Marinettes relief, Mr. Damocles entered the classroom alongside Miss Bustier, silencing the entire class in a few moments. "Alright class, everyone takes your seat" Miss Bustier seemed happier than usual and the same could be said about Mr. Damocles, who was smiling quite fondly behind his beard. "You too, Chloe" Miss Bustier eyed the blond, who insisted on acting just like a spoiled brat whenever she could, with annoyance and authority. Mr. Damocles coughed nervously as he would always do every time the mayor's daughter was a source of problem. He was really uptight with the possibility of losing his job on a whim, as opposite to Miss Bustier who was unfazed.
Chloe simply ignored the teacher silent rebuke and went to her seat like nothing had happened and she was the center of the world. Adrien was mortified, he couldn't belief that his oldest and closest thing to a friend he had before going to school turned out to be so futile and empty.
What no one notice was the flinch the blond gave as soon as she sat on her seat and a pair of small black arms retracting to her purse nor the stern look two blue eyes shot the teen.
"As I said last week, a friend of Mr. Damocles has returned to Paris last week and since he is the owner of a famous bookstore near the Grand Palais and a professional book restorer, we thought it would be a good change to let him teach you a few history classes with me". A loud grunt in unison was heard in the entire class. History was hardly an exciting subject even with the energy of Miss Bustier.
That was especially true to Adrien, although he did have good grades, he would always doze off during this boring lessons. Unbeknown to him, so did Marinette, which in turn would leave Nino and Alya desperately trying not to burst into laughing at how similar they friends were and to add fuel to the fire, they both knew that Marinette was head over heels about Adrien.
A heartily laughter brought everyone 's attention to the door where a tanned young man not much older than him clad in a slim black leather jacket, a white tight t-shirt with a black pentagram, a pair of navy blue jeans and black boots. His pitch black hair was pulled in a small tail at the base of his head, while his shining white teeth contrasted with a pair of very dark brown eyes.
"What did I tell you, Caline?" The young man raised an eyebrow with a crooked smile on his lips "History isn't for everyone and now you own me that pork ribs recipe of yours, Damocles". The teens were stunned...did they really bet a recipe of ribs on how they would react? Well, all but one.
No one reacted when a flash of pink, black and green jumped from her seat and tried to tackle the young man. " Arthur! You're back!"
Only Adrien noticed how Arthur sidestepped while catching Alix by the arm, swinging her over his shoulder. Those were moves of somebody who not only was used to fighting, but was a true pro at it. "What?! Come on!" Alix was trying to break free of his hold, but to no avail as Arthur was taller than even Ivan and thanks to his shirt they could see that he was particular muscular. "How did you do that?" Alix inquired after Arthur had dropped her back at her seat beside Mylene "I was sure I could get you this time!"
He simply laughed, walking back to the front of the class "Doing the impossible is what I'm best at" stopping on his track only to turn his head to give an honest smile to the pink headed tom cat "I missed you too" Said girl blushed slightly and earning a thumbs up from Mylene. The answer to that was a roll of her blue eyes and burying her head in the book.
Arthur clap loudly bring everyone's attention to him. "Alright, class! As Alix said my name is Arthur, but a proper introduction is in order". He brought his right hand over his left chest and performing a small bow "I'm Arthur Wicthcraft, owner of The Black Ink at the 8ème and a book restorer and for a while, I will be your history teacher at Damocles' request" He gave a Cheshire smile towards the headmaster "After all, we always try to please our customers".
Afterwards Mr. Damocles and Miss Bustier left the class in Arthur's care and so that the lesson could start, but not before the headmaster eyeing him nervously "Go easy on them, Witchcraft" He said in his best stoic pose. A two fingers salute was his answer.
Arthur asked for everyone's name before starting and inquired about personal topics of interest with a promise to provide quality material to all of them as best as he could. Chloe was the only one who didn't answer, but before could finish her petulant remark she was silenced by a cold and stern stare, much to Marinette and Alya's delight, finally someone who could put a stop on their spoiled classmate.
Marinette introduced herself as the class representative and Alya as her deputy, that got a approvingly nod from Arthur. Alix simple shrugged "You already know me", but she held no malice in her voice, it was in fact somewhat affectionate. Finally, it was Adrien's turn and he now noticed he was a little shy to talk about himself to the whole class.
Thankfully his fame did that job to him "Adrien Agreste, I presume, no?" The blond teen nodded, confirming his identity. "I may have something special to you and I hope that you like" Arthur gave Adrien a mysterious smile with a gleam on his eyes. Adrien didn't know how to react, setting with a soft smile.
Arthur then started the class and much to their surprise History, for the first time, looked interesting and appeasing. However, as Adrien had predicted, he was slowly dozing off. He jolted awake when his face escaped his hand and almost hit the hard book under him. Nino at first was the only who had noticed since Alya was trying to keep Marinette awake. At least until he turned to Arthur and noticed him side looking at him. He knew he would hear about it later.
The bell finally rang ending the class and everyone packed their things to go for the lunch. "Mr. Agrest and Ms. Dupain-Cheng, if you may I would like to talk to you for a moment" He then turned to Alix who was waiting for him by the door "I promise to be quick, ok?" She nodded and closed the door after all their classmates have left and went to the stairs.
Both Adrien and Marinette gulped nervously, they didn't know what to expect. "I know both of you have erratic schedules" That made both of them even more uncomfortable thinking he could knew their identities, despite now side by side, they were oblivious to each other being their crime fighting partner and important half.
"Being a teen these days isn't easy and since I hate when someone can't cope with everything overburdening them, I'm opening my book store to you whenever you want" He placed a hand on their shoulders, giving them a fond smile "School can be a pain, but I'm sure with a little help you will be able to cope with everything" He handed each a piece of paper with an address noted on it.
Only then it clicked in their heads that he was referring to them sleeping during classes and how close to each other they were. "Thanks!" Adrien was glad he didn't even get an earful. "I-I...th-thanks!" She was stuttering a little due to her proximity with her crush. The three on them finally left the room and went for their lunch. Adrien and Marinette left to meet Nino and Alya while Arthur joined Alix.
The four teens started thinking what sort of relationship did their new teacher had with their classmate, but the best they managed to come up was that they were already friends. Alix wasnt the type of girl who would swoon an older boy...or any boy in fact at the moment.
They sat on an empty table anxious for the treats that Marinette had prepared for them today. When she brought forth four smoked glass pots only to reveal generous cuts of chicken and spinach quiche for each one of them, Adrien entranced to say the least.
"Mari's cooking is the best!" Nino exclaimed taking in the delicious scent that were coming from the quiche and was eager to dig in.
"That's right, babe!" Alya was clearly salivating in anticipation of the taste that would flood her mouth in moments. "Not even mom can best Mari when it comes down to bakery".
"Don't even begin with that, Alya" Marinette poked Alya's nose "Your mom is one of the best chefs in Paris"
"But you are the daughter of the best bakers in town" The brunette brushed the bluenette's hand. She knew Mari was always happy when someone praised her parents.
Adrien on the other hand was to entranced by the wonderful piece in front of him. He did notice that it was also slightly bigger than the others, which meant that Mari knew he loved it or just that he would eat more than the others, either way he was glad to have more of her amazing cooking.
He beat the others and gave the quiche a big bite, stuffing his mouth with such a deep and rich flavor and a softness and tenderness that even his personal chefs had trouble coming up with.
His three friends were waiting for his reaction, as Marinette was also getting anxious and had to hide her sweating hand under the table. When Adrien melted, relaxing while savoring the delicacy, a content smile on his face, she knew she had aced it.
"Whoa, Mari!" The blond model had to control himself to not devour the whole thing "This is one of the best things I have ever had!" He shot her a sincere smile, though with a piece of spinach over a tooth.
Marinette was giggling uncontrollably, pointing at her own teeth for Adrien to get the cue. At that moment, while struggling to get the stubborn leaf, he did a mental note that he had never heard anything as beautiful and cute as Marinette's giggles. He hoped he could hear it more times in the future.
Their joy was short lived when a loud scream came from outside the school and a thick and heavy gray mist burst from the gates and flooded the entire floor. Everyone rushed to the stairs, the mist stinging their eyes and making them cough.
In the chaos that followed the initial attack from the akuma, even civilians were entering any building and climbing the floors to get away from the smoke, and that included the school. The teens were separated, each being dragged to a different direction.
Adrien was worried about his friends, but he knew there wasn't much he could do as Adrien. He forced his way through the crowd, looking for a hidden corner to transform and was fortunate to find a good spot behind a large trash bin and a vending machine.
Plagg sensing his chosen coming to a halt, came out from his hiding. "Hey, kiddo, I smelled something wonderful back then. What was it?" As usual the black kwami was more worried with food than with the akuma.
"Marinette made spinach and chicken quiche. Didn't you hear our talk?" Adrien tried to urge the little god as much as he could, but he was already out of breath due to the smoke and the running, his lungs and throat burning every time he inhaled. But having Plagg consent meant he wouldn't have to smell camembert for a week which is always important for his career.
"Nah, too busy napping, you should try someday. It makes wonders!" The blond was incredulous by how lazy his partner could be. "And you better get me a piece of that quiche latter." And glutton, he forgot glutton.
"I will see about that, but now Chat Noir is needed!" Pressing even more against the vending machine to make sure no one could see him, he clenched his right fist and commanded his kwami "Plagg, claws out!".
A green light engulfed the model and soon Chat Noir was jumping the roof of Paris looking for the akuma as it was the most likely origin of the gray smoke. From afar he could see that Queen Bee was already on the hunt, scanning for anything that could give the identity of the akuma.
He heard the familiar sound of her yo-yo before he could see her. Ladybug appeared after being pulled by her weapon to the top of Gallery Lafayette where Chat had stationed. "Glad you are ok, LB". He's attention for once was focused on the task head much to Marinette surprise.
"What? No flirting? Did the cat get your tongue?". She tilted her head, placing a hand on her hips. Only then she noticed the seriousness in his eyes. "What is biting you, Chat?" A small part of her brain noticed she had made two puns already, but the rest simply ignored that fact.
"Well, My Lady, if you ask in such an irresistible way I could even fight Hawk Moth on my own and come back to you in one piece" And there was the good and old Chat, grinning mischievously while wiggling his eyebrows, but it was short lived as he remembered the reason of his worries. "It's my friends…we were separated when a mob rush inside my school fleeing from the smoke".
Ladybug though it was oddly familiar, but shrugged it off. There were several schools in the city and half of it was already under 5 meters of a thick and dark gray smoke. Perhaps…if only perhaps, but it was too much of a dream and, although Adrien could be a little dork with Nino, he wasn't as outspoken as Chat.
"I know they are ok, Chat!" She placed a hand on his shoulder, giving a reassuring smile to him. "After all, if they can put up with your puns and still take care of you, they must be really dependable". She couldn't help, but tease her partner from time to time, especially when he was a little down.
"Oh Bugaboo! You wound and flatter me at the same time!" He set a dramatic pose, feigning an injury "But what would I do without you?" He knelt near her, trying to kiss her hand before she could pull away.
"Stop this akuma to begin with" She poked his nose with her other hand with a satisfied expression. Her partner was back to his old self and they now need to look for the newest victim of Hawk Moth's lunacy.
They joined Queen Bee on her search and were soon followed by Volpina, but the akuma still eluded them. No sound, no explosion, no scream. The only sign of its activity was the slow pace the smoke was rising.
In a matter of and hour every two-story building was already completely engulfed by the smoke and constant coughing filled the air. The situation was dire, yet they still had no clue about their enemy.
They regroup at the top of the highest building nearby which was the Louvre, all of them edgy and antsy. "Why isn't the akuma attacking us?" Queen Bee was the first to speak "I'm certain it already saw us!"
"Maybe it is waiting?" Volpina's eyes were frantically scanning their surroundings. "But waiting for what? To tire us out?"
"No" Ladybug had one hand on her chin with a thoughtful expression on her face, her brain trying to come up if answers. "If it has been waiting this long that means it plans to take us by surprise"
"A predator-thinking akuma" Chat expression was grin. From experience he knew that this kind of akumas were the most dangerous to handle.
"Exactly! And which would be the best scenario for a predator?" Ladybug turned to her leather clad partner, already falling into their pace, completing each other.
"Camouflage…hiding as close as possible without being seen!" Chat completed the train of thought, but gulped nervously at the realization.
All of them tensed even more. This new akuma was going for the kill right from the beginning. Ladybug approached the edge of the roof, hoping for a sign of the akuma. And she got it. Right on the face.
A ball of smoke was thrown at her from somewhere below. She caught a glimpse of the arm of the attacker before the ball hit her face, sending her flying across the roof.
"Ladybug!" Chat came rushing to her side, his expression darkening when he saw blood dropping from her nose. He knelt protectively over her until she could stand again.
Her world was spinning, but the stinging pain on her face brought her quickly back to reality. "Ouch…that was like a basketball, but felt way harder." She stumbled to her feet with Chat's help, while brushing the blood from her face.
"What was that?" Queen Bee inquired while Volpina was on guard. "That ball hit you like a cannon ball, but dissolved into smoke afterwards."
"That's a good way to put it, a cannonball of smoke" Ladybug grunted again when she touched her nose. She hoped her cure could deal with broken noses too. "But I saw a large black sleeve with yellow stripes".
"And putting it together with a lot of smoke and we have what? A firefighter?" Chat paled when he tough that someone who chose to protect lives at all cost could be turned into a puppet.
"That's our best guess" Ladybug shared a look with the only boy in the group and knew exactly what he was thinking…could they also be akumatized? She need to ask to Tikki and Master Fu later.
Soon after, others smoke balls came flying towards them. Evading them, the team of heroes noticed the clear marks that those shot left on the stone of the building after exploding in a cloud of smoke on contact.
It was a matter of time before they couldn't avoid all hit anymore, being hit twice each, except Chat who took others three in place of Ladybug, was barely able to stand now as the pain seared his body from the inside, maybe he had broken a few bones in this fight.
The smoke covered most of Paris already being 20 meters tall. That reduced their footing and mobility. They were nearing a terrifying end and couldn't even risk using their powers as they had yet to know how the akuma looked like and where could the damned butterfly be hiding.
They were exhausted. Chat was trembling from the pain and couldn't stand anymore, Volpina and Queen Bee were panting heavily, though Ladybug herself wasn't much better. They were out of options and ideas, despair falling over the teen heroes.
The villain must have sensed their distress and lunched an even more deadly attack, a bloody axe on flames aimed at Chat Noir, him being the weak spot of their team now. Ladybug saw the weapon coming and knew where it was headed.
"CHAT!" She lunged at her partner determined to shield him for once. It was the least she could do for the one who was always there when she needed.
"LADYBUG! NOOO!" Chat managed to scream, but it was useless, he couldn't move or stop her. Volpina and Queen Bee wouldn't reach in time.
The axe came down and Ladybug braced for blow that would likely end her, closing her eyes while waiting for the worse. She was sad she wouldn't be able to do anything else for her friends.
But the blow never connected. Just as axe approached, Ladybug felt a hand gripping her waist and throwing her away from the trajectory of the killer blade.
She opened her eyes and saw her friends hurrying to her side carry Chat and a caped figure with a tricorne standing in front of them.
"NOOOO!" A howl filled with rage echoed across the buildings and a frenzied akuma jumped on the roof across the street. "I NEED HER DEAD!" They were right on their guess, the akuma was a firefighter.
He moved his hand and the ax came back flying to him. "IF SHE DIE HAWK MOTH WILL BRING MY LOVE BACK!". The akuma charged at them having lost himself in fury after his initial attack failed. Hurling himself over the one who stopped his prior attempt, but whoever the mysterious figure was, he or she knew how to fight.
Sidestepping the swing the possessed firefighter delivered, their savior grabbed the akuma and shoved him away from them. That was the moment when the designer mind of Marinette decided to kick in and study the both combatants' outfit.
The firefighter was wearing the classic uniform, a heavy black jacket and matching pants, thick gloves and combat boots. Sets of yellow stripes were place on each end of the jacket and two small chimney were sprouting from his shoulder blades. However, it was the black helmet that caught her attention, as it had a distinct dark purple tint and thankfully the visor was down, because she doubted she would like his face in this instant.
Their savior, on the other hand, was wearing a black cape that covered most of his body when standing, stopping near the ankles and had a golden strip on the edge. When he moved, evading every blow thrown at him, she could clearly see that he was a man and was wearing some Renaissance attire, a white shirt that hanged loosely on the body, a pair of black pants and shin high black leather boots. He also wore a bauta of gold filigree that managed to perfectly hide his face, only showing his dark brown eyes, and a black tricorne with a golden lace and a large red blood feather.
They continued fighting, the firefighter madly swinging his flaming ax and producing smoke ball from the chimneys that were soon shot towards the other, but the man managed to evade all, while distancing the two of them from the wounded heroes. At that point, Volpina was the only one how could still see the fighting, but, like the others, was frozen on her spot, mouth agape as how the stranger was dealing with the akuma.
She hadn't seen, but heard the stranger snap his fingers and a staff appear in his hand. The wood was red colored and while the tip had twigs entwined in a glowing sphere, the bottom had a 30 centimeters blade attached to it. He began spinning the staff around, alternating between shooting fireballs and ice spikes and thrusting or swinging the blade around. His movement were fluid, on step calling for the next, such finesse and strength in his attacks that the akuma was being pushed in a moment.
He then thrust the glowing sphere creating a shock wave and lightning that sent the firefighter flying. The akuma landed near Ladybug with a loud grunt, the helmet shattering with the impact and a small black butterfly emerged from its shards. Ladybug took that as her cue and managing all her remaining strength stood and cleansed it before it could escape. She then released her cured and immediately felt the pain in her body subsiding.
The stranger jumped across the roof, the miraculous magic undoing all the damage from the fight and from the smoke on the lungs of the Parisians. Volpina climbed down the building to deal with the press, while Queen Bee went to tend the akuma's victim. Chat had finally managed to sit properly, but was still hurting from the shots he took "Ouch..." He hissed from the soreness "That is sure to leave a mark". Ladybug must have heard it because she rushed to his side, hugging him in one of the rare openly demonstration of affection they shared. Chat accepted the act in silence, much to Ladybug`s relief.
"That was quite a close call, wasn't it?" The duo didn't notice the stranger coming, but broke apart as soon as he spoke. "I take introductions are in order". His voice was soft and vaguely familiar. "You can call me Magus and I'm here..." Just as he was about to explain himself, their miraculous beeped simultaneously. "Uhmm...it seems you over extended your transformation and now your kwamis can't hold much longer".
To confirm his statement Volpina and Queen Bee chose that moment to return "We need to go" they said in unison, which left both girls staring at each other.
"Wait!" Ladybug tried to stop the them from parting. "We need to tell us what is going on!" They need answers..she need answers. She always felt guilty whenever Chat ended up wounded because she had been to careless or him too selfless.
"And you will have, but not here." Magus wave at their miraculous, they had less than three minutes and Ladybug knew they would never make to their homes in time as she presumed they all lived somewhat nearby to each other or, at least, had a part of their daily routine in the area, so they could to respond any call for help so quickly. "I know and you shall have them".
"But.." Ladybug tried to argue, but was stopped by Chat's hand on her arm. He gave a understanding look, nodding his head as if saying that wasn't the place nor the time.
"One thing I can tell you tough" Magus began to wave his staff around, a blue smoke was being released and engulfing them "I know more about you than you know about yourselves" With that he tapped the floor with the tip of the blade and Marinette found herself in her room, transforming back the next moment and an exhausted falling on the lounge chair.
"Tikki!" Marinette hurried to her little friend's side, holding her on her hands and taking her to the little bed she had made for her when she took the mantle of Ladybug and so to not crush the little god while sleeping. Marinette could move quite a lot during the night.
"I'm ok, Marinette." Tikki yawned, already pulling the covers over her petite figure. "I just need to sleep and eat"
Marinette knew it would be cruel to force the kwami to do anything else for now, but she was worried about her friends and how did Magus know exactly where she lived and how was she sent to her room.
She place a large cookie near Tikki so she could eat after waking up. For now she would have to wait... and hope for the best.
Phew...that took a while. Seriously, I just couldn't stop writing in this chapter, as I wanted to complete the entire sequence and only leaving a small cliffhanger to instigate your curiosity and give you enough reading material for a while.
Hope you enjoyed so far!