Chapter 65: Fate
School rolls around the next day. Rose Lavillant, Mylene Haprele, and the rest of their friends are happy to see Juleka Couffaine back in class after her absence. Luka Couffaine's older friends also greet him, as they believe he's returning from rock camp. Luka smiles and goes along with the lie—Luuna is in his jacket pocket at that moment. Juleka mostly mumbles to her friends, but that's nothing new for her, so they don't consider anything out of the ordinary.
With the B Team following new guidelines, Jean Duparc shows up without his glove, Giselle Winters-Blanchet isn't wearing her mother's bracelet, Aurore Beaureal left her comb at home, and even at a different school, Ondine isn't wearing her anklet. It is hard to lay down their abilities, even for a while, but the prior day was a major scare to all four of them. Jean Duparc is frequently checking his cell phone and the Team B Discord to figure out when he should plan on attempting his own power surge. He's also a bit anxious as yesterday it was revealed that Chip Bluestone's first name is "Jean"—he's just banking on it being a common enough name that no one will figure out it's him. Giselle frequently rubs her wrist. Her two friends, Meera Pugliese and Raissa Deschamps, come alongside her to see what's okay—they know what happened yesterday. Giselle explains it all, commenting again about how guilty she feels for troubling everyone; she also explains that she isn't to use her bracelet for now until they make sure "Blood Leopard" won't happen again. Meera comforts Giselle, and Raissa encourages her—but they both don't yet know that the bracelet in question is an antique akumatized item. Aurore's parents were alarmed too by what happened and took Aurore up on her request to lock the bee comb in their safe. Le Chien Kim sends multiple text messages to Ondine, assuring her that he has her back no matter what.
Kagami Tsurugi finds Adrien Agreste at his locker; she reminds him about their study date that afternoon at the library. Adrien assures her that he'll be there. He remembers that Ladybug suggested he try to be more like his Cat Noir persona around his friends because "if they're real friends, they won't reject you." So Adrien tries to crack a joke with Kagami. Kagami merely looks at him, confused. So Adrien lamely explains it's a joke. Kagami tells him that joking doesn't really suit him—but she does like it when he smiles like that. Adrien is happy!sad by the mixed message, but then his phone gets a text message. Adrien checks; it's from Ladybug. She asks him how solving his newest riddle from Master Fu is going. Adrien replies with his Cat Noir screen name, admitting that he's been so busy with other superheroics as well as family stuff that he hasn't focused on the riddle like he should. Ladybug admits she's been in the same situation; too busy to think about it. When she does get a moment, it stumps her completely. Adrien replies back that maybe they should work together again—after all, they can't leave the remaining miraculous Master Fu had hidden outside in Paris. Ladybug agrees. Adrien also says he remembers he promised to look into Chloe for her, to learn more about Queen Scorpion—and he will. Ladybug thanks him, and they end their small text conversation. Just a few lockers down, Marinette Dupin-Cheng puts her cell phone back in her locker for class. Next to her, she notices Alya Cesaire keeps her phone with her. Marinette comments that Alya should put it away, but Alya comments that she's going to continue to record Miss Bustier's lectures. It's getting her better grades—and it comes in handy for things like catching Lila lying. Marinette acknowledges that this is true.
Max Kante greets Gilles Chastain and Nicholas Sancoeur, who are hanging out before the first bell. Both Max and Gilles actually notice that the usually stoic Nicholas seems depressed. They ask him if he's okay, and he insists he is. He can't actually admit he's a senti monster having an existential crisis because his aunt, who is also his creator, won't akumatize him—which is the primary reason she even created him in the first place (him being Adamantus is the second reason). Max wonders if it's something in Nicholas's diet that's getting him down. He suggests that Nicholas talk to Stella Tenebrae. Max Kante got to know her at the Young Scientists Symposium. She's a whiz with anatomy and has recently branched out into nutrition. She could probably recommend mood-lifting foods. Nicholas raises an eyebrow but thanks him. Gilles Chastain suggests aromatherapy—his family's flower shop sells some. Nicholas is a bit confused by the fact other people care about him.
Meanwhile, Lila Rossi has come up with a new devious plan to restore her reputation. She tells Lapinna to go and trip Miss Bustier. Lapinna protests, but Lila darkly insists, giving her kwami no choice. Lapinna darts ahead, twisting around Miss Bustier's ankles. Just as Miss Bustier topples, Lila catches her arm and stabilizes her. Miss Bustier thanks her, and Lila brushes off the praise in a pseudo-humble way. This convinces Miss Bustier that Lila is turning over a new leaf. Once the teacher is gone, Lila smiles darkly.
Monique Imhof tries to flag down her best friend, Nicolette Lacroix. Monique has decided to tell her boyfriend, Mathieu Anciel, that she cannot have kids—and she wants her best friend's support. However, Nicolette doesn't notice; she heads right to Etienne Fontaine. And they talk. Monique raises an eyebrow at Etienne having a conversation about anything that isn't himself.
(Everyone's pictures are here: (( photos . app . goo . gl / cgLSrNi71rxfep9e8 )).)
The bell rings for first period, and everyone heads to their classes. Everyone except Nicolette Lacroix—she makes right for Madam Gros's office (after getting permission from Ms. Mendeleiev). Madam Gros is surprised to see someone enter so boldly, but she puts up a professional front and asks if she can help Nicolette. Nicolette first makes sure the door is closed and then sits down across from Madam Gros at the desk. "Etienne told me you're the one who gave him a miraculous. I want to help."
Madam Gros is so surprised by the assertion that she momentarily loses her poker face. She tries to deny it, "Why would you think something like that is true?" and "Doesn't it sound preposterous, someone giving miraculous?" However, Nicolette sees through her body language and insists it's true. After all, she saw Etienne de-transform the other day as well as meeting Bubbles and Betta for herself.
Madam Gros simmers internally. She knew there was a highly likely chance someone she chose for an ally would totally blow it and she'd force to play clean up. She is very irritated at Etienne for being so careless with his identity—less than 24 hours after her got the Pisces, too! However, her elephant hair pin is perfect for messy situations like these. It'd be a cinch to erase Nicolette's memories. And since she's going to erase those memories, Dolores Gros might as well see how much Nicolette knows and where her personality falls.
Madam Gros acknowledges that Nicolette's accusation is true; she represents the Western Order of the Miraculous who are working to keep magic out of the world. Nicolette asks if what Etienne said about the miraculous magic spawning chaos magic is true. Madam Gros lies and says it is. (Now, under any scrutiny, it wouldn't hold up. Too much use of miraculous makes chaos magic, so Madam Gros is releasing more miraculous into the world? Yeah… But Madam Gros is again banking on Oblivion to hide that fact.) Nicolette repeats that she wants to help.
Madam Gros tells her she can't accept just anyone—she wants people with "strong mental and emotional fortitude (aka—easy to control)." Nicolette insists she's those things. Madam Gros decides to figure out if that's true and asks Nicolette how she handles stress and what kind of support group she has. Nicolette admits to frequently indulging in "retail therapy" when stressed but insists she has a healthy relationship with her family and friends. Madam Gros asks her what she thinks of Hawk Moth and Ladybug. Nicolette admits she used to see Ladybug and Cat Noir as heroes—but then, yesterday, she saw Etienne Fontaine limping home after they beat him up. She just can't respect them anymore. And if Hawk Moth really is creating chaos magic…she has to do something.
Now this reveals enough to Madam Gros that she can tell Nicolette has a pretty big blind crush on Etienne (who is also the Pisces wielder, Reef). Plus, Nicolette is a jaded ex-fan of Ladybug and Cat Noir and is almost desperately throwing herself in Madam Gros's lap to be manipulated. Madam Gros decides to seize the opportunity. And if things don't work out, I just make her forget.
Madam Gros reveals her miracle box. Nicolette gapes in awe at all the pretty accessories and wonders aloud if they're all miraculous. Madam Gros confirms they are and hands Nicolette a pair of red earrings. She tells her that these earrings represent the zodiac sign of Cancer the crab. At that moment, a crab kwami forms. Nicolette blinks in surprise with one earring on and then squees that the kwami is so cute. The kwami introduces himself as "Trapper" and waspishly says he is not cute. He's dangerous. Madam Gros scolds him, reminding him that his name is "Trapper" and not "Snapper." Trapper sulks a bit.
Madam Gros turns her attention back to Nicolette and tells her that the Cancer miraculous has a very potent ability—it can cause a lot of harm if Nicolette does not use it responsibly. Nicolette blurts out that she will—she'll be careful and use it to stop Ladybug and Cat Noir from hurting people like Reef and to bring an end to Hawk Moth and his chaos magic. Madam Gros tells Nicolette it will take more just a promise. Nicolette is going to have to learn how to control her new powers so she doesn't cause widespread damage. Nicolette accepts this, and Madam Gros tells her to head to the roof of the public library after school—she'll be shown the ropes then. Nicolette again agrees, and the counselor sends her back to class.
Madam Gros then pulls out her own cell phone and contacts her inner circle: Dr. Gerald Theroux/Tarantula, Brynne Theroux/Rhino, and Zenon Theroux/Draco. She reports she found a useful pawn for the crab miraculous; a girl who is literally love sick. Dr. Theroux replies back about how dangerous Cancer is—especially if she decides to turn on them. Madam Gros acknowledges this, which is why she, personally, will be overseeing the Cancer's training. And while she's at it, she might as well also test one of her other new pawns. Dolores Gros sends out a second text message…
Elsewhere in Paris, deep under the Agreste manor, Nathalie Sancoeur/Peacock Moth is busy trying to alter the enchantments she placed on her handcrafted magical items—namely the opal chameleon bracelet and the peridot raccoon choker. However, she can sense that her enchantments with her akumas have not changed any. Is it because I chose to align with the darker use of the butterfly and peacock miraculous? It's too late to change that now. No, that can't be it because Nicholas has not once fallen into corruption. She studies the two items in front of her as well as remotely scanning the diamond unicorn cufflinks. What makes this different? Nathalie breaks her transformation and discusses the matter with Duusuu and Nooroo. Nooroo still looks cowed when Nathalie is around, but he's outright less terrified than when he was around Gabriel. Duusuu has fun, playing with the leftover bits of wire and clasps from Nathalie's jewelry crafting.
"Why do my handmade pre-miraculous become akumatized items except the unicorn? Why didn't any of the B Team's items turn them to akumatization when they got scared or upset?" She knows the wielders had to feel fear and anger during the prior months—they're teenagers, after all. Duusuu casually remarks that they must have something that her two wielders (All-star Rex and Ruddiger) don't have. "But what?" Nooroo sorta whimpers. "You know, don't you, Nooroo?" Nathalie says. Nooroo admits he doesn't know for sure because this power of the butterfly has been so very seldom used in the past that it hasn't been properly studied and… Nathalie cuts him off, insisting on an answer. She's his master, so he can't refuse. But at least she's nicer when asking than Gabriel was.
Nooroo replies with. "I think…I think it's free will."
Back at Francoise Dupont High School, afternoon classes have begun. Madam Gros needs to keep up appearances as a counselor, so she calls Alya Cesaire into her office. Alya is calm when she enters, and Dolores invites her to sit down.
They go over the usual questions: friends, emotions, family, homework, ambitions etc. Alya says she loves her life; living is just too fascinating. She loves blogging and is currently considering becoming a professional journalist. She also loves her family, though her three sisters drive her nuts at times. She's in a steady dating relationship and has been taking on more responsibility to ensure her grades stay high—and they've been better than they've ever been her entire academic career. The session is fairly short because as soon as Madam Gros learns Alya is a Ladybug fan whose primary blog is called the Ladyblog, she sends her back to class. There's no way she could even manipulate someone like that.
Back at the Agreste manor, Nathalie (not transformed) is pondering Nooroo's suggestion. Is the missing ingredient free will? That severely handicaps my plans as I can no longer forcibly control my targets. I have to make people willing to work for me—for Hawk Moth. And thanks to his reputation, he's the most hated person in all of Paris. How can I make it so I obtain willing allies? She again researches using her tablet, flipping between the digital grimoire as well as her notes on previous akumatized victims. She stops at the pages of prior butterfly users, trying to glean all she can about their powers and how they used their abilities. She asks Nooroo to tell her about these previous users, but Nooroo replies that he's still forced to keep that a secret. Rather than getting angry with him, like Gabriel would, Nathalie pushes on, working through one plan after another, discarding the bad bits and perfecting the good bits. "You're attuned to people's emotions, right? And you can escalate them?" Nooroo affirms this. "I wonder…just how slowly you can do that?" Nooroo doesn't understand. Nathalie replies that this is going to be a chess game that'll take time to win—then, she'll sweep the board.
After school, Jean Duparc and Jakeel Aristide perform their tandem juggling act for a small crowd, earning quite the energetic applause. Jean is happy to see Rose Lavillant in the audience. Kagami Tsurugi heads to her locker and gives both Longg and Tiia a snack before heading to fencing practice; she's thrilled she has a study date with Adrien Agreste after that and whispers as much to the kwamis. Max Kante and Markov find Le Chien Kim, and Max asks him how Ondine is holding up after yesterday. Kim admits she's "as good as you'd expect." Before Max can ask more, Principal Damocles clears his throat…and awkwardly asks for Max's help. It seems Principal Damocles accidentally glitched his new KnightOwl video game and asks for Max's help fixing it. Max accepts and looks over the console. While Kim's waiting, Alix Kubdel approaches him and asks if he wants to join her at the local skate park. Kim agrees and texts Max to let him know. Not so far away, Monique Imhof finds her boyfriend, Mathieu Anciel, coming out of the upperclassman classroom (the same one Luka Couffaine is in). She says she wants to talk to him and takes him aside.
Nicolette Lacroix makes herself scarce. She ducks into the drama room, which is empty, and lets Trapper out of her purse. The crab kwami complains about being stuck in a tight, dark space all day. Nicolette tells him that she needs to meet Madam Gros on the roof of the public library. Trapper sighs and teachers her how to transform. "Snap, Trapper!" Nicolette repeats those words, transforming herself into the Cancer antagonist (though in her mind, she's a heroine).
Nicolette's empowered outfit is red all around. Her hair has been staggered with mini-braids, the ends of which look like crab claws. A comb holds them all in place. Her gloves end in slight points—not quite claws but noticeably sharp. Her body suit is segmented; it holds the appearance of natural armor. Her mask is a half mask that also covers her entire forehead. A single-eye scope rests on her forehead. On her back forms a massive pair of scissors—or perhaps more accurately, shears.
Nicolette hears applause and turns around. Madam Gros is there, also transformed. (And I can't believe I haven't described hers yet!). As the elephant user, her outfit is mostly grey with some white and pink accents. The overall shape is that of a vintage woman's business suit complete with a large, floppy hat (to mimic elephant ears) and an elegant silk scarf (to mimic the trunk). Her ensemble even includes tights and high heels.
Next to Madam Gros is Reef—whom Nicolette immediately recognizes at Etienne Fontaine, her crush. Madam Gros congratulates Nicolette on her transformation and asks for her name. Nicolette starts with "Nico…" but Dolores interrupts her. "Not that, your superhero name."
Nicolette has to think a long moment. "Cancer" can also be taken as a disease (at least in English), and "crab," "shrimp," and "lobster" also have negative connotations. Finally, Nicolette decides. "Call me 'June.'" After all, part of Cancer's time period falls in June—and among those specific days is actually Nicolette's birthday.
Etienne introduces himself as "Reef. Because I am as handsome as a coral reef." Madam Gros tells them to refer to her as "Ivory" while she's transformed. Both promise to do so.
June asks Ivory what she's supposed to do. Ivory explains that the Cancer's ability is "Sever." "But not just cutting cloth or pieces of wood. The Cancer miraculous can cut through the threads that tie people together: friends, coworkers, lovers, even strangers on the street. All of those are fair game. Family too, but those are much, much harder to cut." She explains that June will be able to use her shears to break the link between two people—or even one person and a thing, place, or event. In addition, the Cancer can also repair. Madam Gros points to the comb in June's hair. "Sometimes the threads that bind us together get frayed—that comb can strengthen and fix damaged relationships."
June feels the weight of her powers—it's a huge responsibility, and she might really hurt someone if she's not careful. June asks if she can tie threads back together if she accidentally cut them. Ivory replies that it has happened in the past, but not every prior Cancer wielder has grown strong enough to do so. As she is now, June won't be able to. So she has to be careful (again, "be careful." How many times is that?) It also is incredibly difficult (if not impossible) to forcefully tie threads together that have never been connected before—so it's not as if the Cancer wielder can make two people fall in love or whatnot.
June takes her shears off of her back and stares at them. Then she wonders what Reef and Ivory's abilities are. Reef explains his is "Fabricate"—the creation of fabric and physical threads as well as controlling existing fabric and threads. Ivory adds that's why she thought they'd work well together, which thrills June. (Also, Ivory just wants them to practice as she knows she can't throw rookies against Ladybug and Hawk Moth untested). June asks Ivory what her ability is, but Ivory says she'll get to that later.
For now, it's time for June to test her abilities. Ivory tells her to lower the scope over her eye. June does so. In that eye, the world comes alive with colors as she can see millions of threads all over Paris, marking the relationships people have. She gasps; it's amazing. She sees beautiful blue threads for friendship and deep red ones for love. There's some that are dark from toxic relationships, and there are those that are frayed as people struggle. There's threads connected to spouses, threads connected between students and teachers, threads between people and their pets, and even threads that link people to sports, video games, homes, toys…you name it. June begins asking Ivory about all the things she's seeing. Ivory raises an eyebrow. "Your vision is incredibly enhanced and detailed. Previous users have not been able to see so much. The Cancer is a good match for you." June thanks her. Then she asks what she should do next.
Ivory suggests that June use her powers to help people. Perhaps she should select one of the black, toxic threads and end an abusive relationship. June looks down at her shears; they're heavy. It seems like a huge responsibility—not to mention meddling—to decide for herself to end two other people's relationship. Ivory asks "even if it is abusive?" June hesitates.
That's when she notices her best friend, Monique Imhof, below. She had been out with Mathieu Anciel, both riding on his skateboard. They stopped at a bench to rest, and Monique is clearly stressed out. Mathieu asks her what's wrong. June leaps from the roof to a lower balcony to eavesdrop. Monique, after much difficulty, is finally able to explain to him that she cannot have kids due to a medical condition she was born with. She's come to terms with it long ago…but she wants him to know. She loves him like crazy, but if he were to want biological kids…even though they're both still in high school, she feels their relationship is serious, and she shouldn't continue it under false pretenses… As June watches, she sees the red cord between Monique and Mathieu fray and start to snap. Because Mathieu really does want biological children one day. He looks away from his girlfriend; he's clearly very hurt too. Because he loves Monique…but is it right for him to continue dating her when it ultimately won't work out?
June bites her lip and takes her comb out of her hair. She yanks the teeth through Mathieu and Monique's thread, bringing the frayed edges back into line. The couple shows relief even though they don't know what's going on. Mathieu admits to Monique that he truly does want children of his own—but he also loves her very much. He doesn't know what to do, but he knows deep in his heart that he does not want to say good-bye to her. He wants to continue dating her. And they'll figure out the rest as they go along. After all, they are still teenagers. And if their love is to last a lifetime, they have many years to figure things out. Monique is moved to tears and hugs him, and June herself is even letting a few tears of happiness leak on behalf of her friend.
June decides to give Monique and Mathieu their privacy and returns to Ivory and Reef. Reef is examining his hair in his miraculous. Ivory commends June on her excellent use of her miraculous. She also reminds June that should she use her shears and declare "Sever," she will only have five minutes left of her transformation. June likes this news, as it means she can help a lot of people but can only snip off one relationship per transformation.
Ivory then encourages June to tell her what else she sees as well as to try Severing something. June ignores the latter and focuses on what's around her. She sees hundreds, maybe thousands, of threads connected to the library. They're all colors, signifying how much people enjoy (or don't) going to the place; many people have important memories associated with the building and the things inside. June even notices there's a connection between her and Ivory and Reef. It resembles a business connection at the moment, though it also has shades of student/teacher too.
That's when June notices Reef's red thread—the thread that symbolizes who he is fated to be with. And his red thread of fate circles back to himself; he is his own true love. June just about staggers because she like-likes him pretty seriously, but now she knows she stands no chance with him. June turns away, trying to block the tears that are falling. She looks down at her own left hand—her red thread heads off into the city and vanishes from her sight; she's connected to someone she hasn't met yet. I'm destined for someone I don't even know while Etienne is right beside me and out of reach?! Ivory asks what's wrong, but it's all June can do to keep from crying. And she's failing.
In her lair, Peacock Moth senses the negative feelings of a broken heart—of a love that will never come to fruition. It's a feeling she, personally, is very familiar with. And she also senses that the wielder is pretty powerful in and of herself. Peacock Moth creates her akuma and sends it into the world.
Meanwhile, Reef is getting bored with standing around. He asks if they're done with this whole "practice" thing so he can return home and see if his newest line of conditioners have arrived in the mail—he wants to get his reviews for those produces online as soon as he can.
Ivory senses the akuma a mere half second before it lands on June's comb. She can barely blurt out "No!" before Hawk Moth (Peacock Moth using a vocal synthesizer) promises to increase June's power. "If I can't have the man I love, no one else will either!" June is akumatized into a supervillain named Fate, who inverts June's red with black—as well as having unnatural red skin now. Reef is surprised by what happened and braces his arms, on guard.
Peacock Moth immediately senses she has akumatized someone with a miraculous. And her first order, after what happened the prior day, is "Fate, tell me your true name."
Fate begins to speak. "My name is Nicol—"
"Oblivion!" Ivory hits June with the elephant's special ability, causing her to forget everything that can put the Western Order at a disadvantage.
"My name is…I don't know my name," says Fate. She also no longer knows anything about Ivory or Reef and thus can reveal nothing about either of them either.
Peacock Moth, looking through Fate's eyes, notices Ivory (and Reef in the background). She speaks through Fate's mouth, using a lot of heavy professional sarcasm. "So you must be the leader who has been opposing me. A pleasure to meet you. I can see your power controls the memories of the target."
"It's great to finally meet you too, Hawk Moth," sneers Ivory. "You might as well hand over your miraculous right now. You cannot win against us."
"You're in no position to be making demands," says Peacock Moth. She then orders Fate to withdraw in order to send the crab miraculous right to her.
Fate takes off. Ivory demands that Reef follow her and detain her. Reef complains that that'll mess up his hair and that "he might get a bruise." Ivory fiercely demands Reef follow—he relents and gives chase.
Peacock Moth realizes that she has two options. She could force Fate to detransform, which would reveal Fate/June's true appearance even if she doesn't know her own name at the moment. Knowing Fate/June's face would help Peacock Moth find her for real, which could lead her back to Ivory, Draco, and the rest. Or Peacock Moth could keep Fate transformed and akumatized—this gives her augmented speed and leaping—so that she can get within range of Peacock Moth faster and unimpeded, so Peacock Moth can get the miraculous faster. After all, a teenage girl with no powers can't get across Paris very quickly at all. Fate glances back and notices Reef is following her. Peacock Moth decides on the latter option.
Fate knows she needs to keep Reef off of her back so that she can deliver the Cancer miraculous to Hawk Moth without being stopped or without her lair being discovered. So she reaches for her shears and looks for something to Sever. The first thing she cuts is the relationship between Fate and Reef. Reef halts, dazed. "Why should I follow her again?" This allows Fate to get away.
She pauses to catch her breath atop an apartment building and notices Theo Barbot and Mireille Caquet, holding hands as they walk in the park. Fate is furious. "How come you get to be together when I have no one?!" She Severs the romantic relationship between the two (and only the romantic relationship). Theo suddenly blurts out that "I think we're better as friends," to which Mireille instantly agrees.
Fate moves on, working her way across the city to where Peacock Moth is waiting. Being akumatized, it's easy for her to use her Sever ability multiple times without needing to transform back. Fate crosses paths with Roger Raincomprix, who is helping to direct traffic. She Severs his tie between himself and his job, causing him to throw down his badge and walk away. –And also causing a dozen people to notice the akuma victim leaping around and report her on the Akuma Alert app.
Adrien Agreste gets the notification as he's changing after fencing practice. He slips out of the locker room, away from the other fencers, to find a place to transform. Likewise, Marinette finds a bathroom not far from the school's art room and transforms herself. Both head towards where Fate was last spotted while both the A Team and the B Team members log into their Discord servers to keep abreast of the situation. Even the B Team members who have been benched (Dauphin, Dauphine, Snow Leopard, Honey Bee, and Chip Bluestone) log in to keep an eye on things.
Adrien as Cat Noir greets Ladybug as soon as they meet up. He's been keeping an eye on their opponent from the distance, commenting that "it looks like we're fighting a burnt lobster today." Ladybug actually chuckles a little at that, which causes Cat Noir to be happy!shocked because Ladybug has never laughed at his puns before. Ladybug tells him to keep focused and they dive in to deal with Fate.
Because they have the element of surprise, Ladybug is initially able to ensnare Fate with her yo-yo. Fate struggles and then is able to cut the line with her shears. Cat Noir comments that he thought their weapons were nearly indestructible, which tells them that this isn't the usual opponent they're after. Ladybug tells him that they need to work together to pin her and find out where her akumatized item is.
Fate, seeing them together, becomes even more livid. "Why is your red thread so strong?!" Ladybug and Cat Noir have no idea what she's talking about. Fate lunges to grab their thread, but both see it as an ordinary attack and leap out of her way. Fate instead winds up grabbing the thread of Ivan Bruel and Mylene Haprele, who have taken cover from the attack nearby. This makes that thread visible to everyone else who isn't using the Cancer miraculous. Both of the heroes get a bad feeling as they see the red thread (representing the current state of romantic love feelings between two people) manifest in Fate's hand. Cat Noir shouts at her to stop, but Fate Severs the thread. Mylene and Ivan, who were hugging each other protectively, push each other apart. Mylene wonders what she even sees in such a big oaf, and Ivan comments he's not interested in small mice. They leave in separate directions.
Ladybug is furious and demands to know what Fate did. Fate gives a basic explanation of her powers—she can cut the relationships between people. "And you two will be next! You make me sick!" She swings her shears again, trying to catch their cord. The golden duo evades, to Fate's frustration. Peacock Moth is also irritated as she had hoped Fate would deliver her crab miraculous right to her—now she has to get Fate away from Ladybug and Cat Noir (or defeat them) because she can claim the crab—because she certainly doesn't want Fate to lead the heroes right to her.
Ladybug and Cat Noir have to do their best to keep their distance as they know they could completely lose the will to fight if Fate grabs any of their cords (this isn't limited to red threads). They keep her off balance with long-range attacks from their weapons, but it's not an effective strategy. Ladybug comments that maybe they should call for back up. Right as Fate gets tired of them playing leap frog with her and decides to target civilians instead.
"I'll show you that you can't fight Fate!" She turns her attention to a nearby bakery—namely, the Dupin-Cheng Bakery. Inside are not only Tom and Sabine, but also Wayhem and Manon Chamack and a few other civilians who have taken cover. Ladybug can barely scream "No!" when Fate Severs the tie of the entire building with that of reality, sending the bakery itself into the dream world.
Ladybug sees the empty lot where her home and family used to be and demands to know what Fate did, enraged. Fate explains that her powers aren't limited to just interpersonal relationships and that she Severed the bakery from the realm of awake. Since they're no longer in this reality, they must have drifted into another.
Ivory, who is watching from a very far distance, lets out a low whistle. She had no idea that the Cancer miraculous could be so powerful. Other wielders never showed so much potential. She is now glad she picked Nicolette for her pawn.
Peacock Moth is also amazed by this power. "I must have it for my own! I cannot let it fall into the hands of Ivory or Ladybug!"
Ladybug is about to get reckless when Cat Noir grabs her and pulls her out of the way. "Calm down, milday! Fate's power does not cause things to stop existing. All those people still exist somewhere. We just have to find them!" It takes a moment, but Cat Noir gets through to Ladybug. It helps that he is also Adrien Agreste.
"You're right, Cat Noir, they have to exist somewhere in time and space. You know who we need." Cat Noir agrees, but he doesn't like that it means he has to leave Ladybug alone against Fate while he makes a quick ally run. Ladybug smiles and uses her "Lucky Charm!" She then says, "I'll be fine, kitty, get going." Cat Noir blushes at her smile and then bolts for it—the sooner he leaves, the sooner he can get back. Ladybug rounds the corner and confronts Fate again.
At this point, with the bakery gone, the B Team wonders if they should send anyone in to help. Firefly suggests his Beacon ability; Froppy acknowledges her skill set is not the best for this opponent. Tsukuyomi reminds them that now is the perfect opportunity to seek out Hawk Moth's lair since Fate is clearly an akuma victim judging from her skin. Alpha agrees and tells Froppy and Tsukuyomi to start searching while Firefly should go and assist Ladybug. The rest, the ones who don't have kwamis, need to stay back. They all agree.
Cat Noir, while racing back to his school, quickly sends a text through his phone to the Team Ladybug Discord server. "Bunnyx? Are you there? Get to Ladybug pronto!"
A moment later Cat Noir lands on a window ledge; inside, Max Kante is working on an extra credit assignment in Ms. Mendeleiev's classroom. Cat Noir taps on the glass; the teacher doesn't even notice as she has her headphones in again and is listening to classical music (as she was way back in Accelerator). Max is very surprised to see Cat Noir's face outside. He looks over to Ms. Mendeleiev, who isn't paying any attention, and then heads over and opens the window. "What's going on?"
"I'll explain on the way!" Cat Noir grabs Max and hauls him outside before he can protest.
Meanwhile, Ladybug is struggling against Fate, even with her Lucky Charm (whatever it is). It's all she can do to keep Fate from grabbing her threads and cutting her connection with her family, friends, allies, true love—even reality itself.
Bunnyx lands first. "I heard you could use a paw!" Ladybug says it's great to see Bunnyx again and welcomes her aid. She points to the empty place where the bakery used to be and explains that she needs Bunnyx's help to rescue to people who were inside at the time. Bunnyx scratches her head, admitting that her Burrow could help with time…but if they're in another place…
That's when Cat Noir lands with Pegasus. "Did I hear someone needs help getting to another place?" Ladybug and Cat Noir appoint Pegasus and Bunnyx in charge of rescuing the civilians while they return to dealing with Fate and purifying her akuma. Bunnyx raises an eyebrow, pointing out that Cat Noir and Ladybug haven't been doing so hot at that so far.
Which is when Firefly lands and offers his services. Ladybug welcomes him and tells Bunnyx and Pegasus to hurry; who knows where those innocent people are, they're probably scared. Pegasus and Bunnyx acknowledge this and activate a unison "Voyage/Burrow." They enter and vanish.
Fate doubles her efforts and targets them again. She accuses Ladybug and Cat Noir of flaunting their deep red thread just to mock her when she is not destined for the man she loves. Cat Noir takes a moment to process this. "Does this mean…I am destined for Milady?" Ladybug stammers, telling him not to listen to Fate as she's clearly not in her right mind. Ladybug/Marinette knows she won't be able to focus at all if this conversation continues.
Fortunately, Firefly is hyper focused and starts to pelt Fate with orbs of light from above while he hovers in the air. Fate sneers at him as she dodges with a series of flips. "You don't have anyone you love either. But I can see your red thread. It's like mine; it leads to someone you haven't met yet. Isn't it disgusting? Expecting you to love a stranger? No…wait. I was wrong. You have met her. You just don't know it yet." Firefly calls Fate a lunatic.
Meanwhile, Ivory catches up with Reef and, very impatiently, demands to know why he isn't pursuing Fate to stop her. Reef gives her a blank look. "Who's Fate?" Ivory begins to explain that Fate is the akumatized form of their newest ally, June, but Reef clearly doesn't comprehend. "I see…she Severed your relationship." Reef is still clueless. Ivory remarks, mostly to herself, that she finds this information about June/Fate and the Cancer miraculous very useful. She definitely cannot let Hawk Moth or Ladybug get it—and she'd be at the most advantage to keep Nicolette Lacroix as its wielder too. She orders Reef to interfere with the fight regardless of his memories. Reef is eventually convinced to comply. (After all, Reef has already been affected by Sever. It'd be foolish of Madam Gros to send more of her people only to have them Severed too.)
Elsewhere (truly, somewhere Elsewhere), Bunnyx and Pegasus are working together to try to locate the missing civilians. Pegasus notes that Ladybug should be able to restore the bakery with her "Miraculous Ladybug" once Fate is defeated. Bunnyx reminds him that that's not a guarantee (because look what happened in the Hawk Moth chapter)—and even if it did restore things, they're better off not letting innocent people suffer the stress of being locked in another dimension any longer than they have to be. Pegasus concedes her point.
It's worth noting that Pegasus has a bag over his head as they are in Bunnyx's Burrow. She's frantically swiping through the windows to find the Dupin-Cheng Bakery. But she can't let Pegasus see the other windows, which show the future, hence the brown paper bag. Of course, Bunnyx already knows that Pegasus is Max Kante. She also knows that since Ladybug is Marinette, Ladybug would be in a better state of mind to know her parents had been rescued, hence Bunnyx's insistence at saving them. Finally, Bunnyx locates the Bakery floating in the very surreal dream world. She tells Pegasus to open his portal, which he does. Both heroes step into the floor of the bakery.
Sabine, Tom, Wayhem, Manon, and the others are very happy to see heroes come to rescue them. Since Bunnyx and Pegasus have been fairly low-key in the news up to this point, both introduce themselves, adding that they're allies of Ladybug, and that they're there to help. Pegasus urges everyone to enter the portal before it closes. Manon is scared of the portal, but Pegasus offers to give her a "horsey back ride," which cheers her up and gets her to safety. The adults follow. Granted, this leaves the bakery floating in space, but at least the people inside are all safe.
Outside, Fate has succeeded in Severing one monument's relationship with gravity, leaving it floating. She's Severed Xavier Ramier's relationship with pigeons, causing him to be chased by the birds in the background. And she's Severed a few civilian's relationships with the heroes, causing them to see the heroes as villains and throw trash at them. Ladybug is getting frustrated at tells Cat Noir that this cannot go on much longer. Firefly uses Beacon to get them out of the way as Fate tries to stab them again.
That's when Pegasus, Bunnyx, and the civilians reappear. Pegasus announces to the heroes that everyone is safe and urges the civilians to flee the area—they all do. Then Bunnyx and Pegasus take their places aside Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Firefly. They declare that Fate is out-numbered and should surrender (even though they're all counting down except Cat Noir).
Fate attacks in the middle of their speech. Bunnyx shoulder-tackles Cat Noir aside, causing one of her own threads to get caught by Fate. "You time travel, right?" Fate says. "So I'll Sever your relationship with the present." Without warning, Bunnyx is suddenly sucked into her Burrow and vanishes, leaving the heroes to call out her name in vain.
Ladybug insists Fate will pay for that. A new voice cuts through—"No, you'll be the ones to pay. Leave her alone." Reef steps off of the rooftop where he was posing and stands beside Fate.
"Wait, you're with him?!" Cat Noir exclaims. Ladybug wonders then if that means Fate is also a Western Order miraculous wielder which would explain why they have such a hard time with her. Reef merely tosses his hair for dramatic effect. Fate barks at Reef, telling him not to get involved. Reef admits he has no idea who Fate is or why he should care—he was just ordered to do so by his "sponsor." Which confirms to the heroes that this is likely Western Order involvement.
Firefly and Pegasus offer to take on Reef while Ladybug and Cat Noir focus on Fate. They agree and split. Reef activates his special ability, Fabricate. In tandem with Fate's ability, this causes everyone's threads to become visible. Ladybug and Cat Noir are baffled for a moment too long, which causes Fate to grab their red thread.
"Sever!" She tries to slash it, but it won't cut. She shouts, screaming, "Why won't it cut?!"
Pegasus theorizes she isn't strong enough to cut everything. He knows his own powers of Voyage have an upper limit on the distance he can travel. Though he ponders to himself if that distance can be expanded with practice. Not that he expects to get much chance to practice, as far as he knows, him becoming Pegasus is a very rare, blue moon thing.
Fate rages and tries to brute force Severing the bond between Ladybug and Cat Noir, but she simply can't pull it off. This allows Cat Noir an opening. He Cataclysms her shears. No akuma. However, it does prevent her from using her most devastating ability and frees the heroes up to move more aggressively.
But the Western Order isn't out of the fight yet. Reef manipulates the threads he made visible, causing them to move like living snakes to bind his opponents. Despite Firefly's altitude, he is the first ensnared. Pegasus dodges many and deflects the rest with his horseshoe boomerang. Ladybug nods at Cat Noir; she'll be the decoy for Reef. He needs to beat Fate. Cat Noir agrees and disappears beneath the massive amount of threads Reef is controlling, using them as a cover to get close to Fate. Ladybug mocks Reef's fashion sense, which enrages him. Then she finds a use for her Lucky Charm and uses a combination of objects so that Reef's arms wind up bound behind his back (I suspect this has something to do with a giant magnet at one point).
Within the same breath, Cat Noir leaps over Fate's head and steals her comb. It takes a bit of effort, but he snaps it in half and releases the akuma. Ladybug quickly captures it and purifies it. This reverts Fate back into June, confirming for everyone present that June is using a real miraculous.
Cat Noir and Pegasus also pin June down and demand to know her name and who gave her the miraculous. June introduces herself as "June, the Cancer Crab." When they ask her her civilian name, she honestly admits she doesn't know. She also doesn't know who she works for; she doesn't think she works for anyone. She also has no idea who Reef is. The heroes are a bit skeptical at first, but they can see that June is being genuinely serious—she has no memories. Cat Noir wonders if this is something Hawk Moth did. Pegasus and Ladybug agree it's the most likely.
Ladybug quickly has to use her "Miraculous Ladybug!" because she is lowest on her timer. (Because this all totally happened within five minutes). This clears up all the threads and restores the physical bakery as well as healing other damage. Bunnyx is returned too. She looks very frazzled. "You guys wouldn't believe what I've just been through!" Pegasus asks her if she's all right. Bunnyx nods, though she's obviously battered. Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Pegasus invite her in their "Pound It."
The downside of Ladybug's world-healing wave is that it also restored June's weapons as well as her memories. In the brief moment the heroes were distracted by Bunnyx's return, June grapples with her shears and uses her feet to cut herself and Reef free. She tugs on Reef and both flee for the rooftops. Pegasus notices them leaving just as their shadows vanish. He shouts "Voyage!" intending to follow them, but nothing happens. Bunnyx reminds him he can only use his ability once, and his glasses are beeping quite loudly.
Cat Noir offers to follow them as he's the only one left with any time whatsoever on his timer. Ladybug discourages him—she doesn't want him to go on alone and fall into an ambush by the Western Order. She throws her yo-yo to latch onto a building and leave before she transforms back. Cat Noir calls her to stop. "Um…Ladybug…About that red thread?" Ladybug's eyes grow wide. "Bug out!" she leaves before he can ask.
Firefly and Bunnyx also slip away. Pegasus and Cat Noir head off together where Pegasus turns back into Max Kante. He hands the sunglasses and Kaalki back to Cat Noir, but Cat Noir turns him away. "We need you to look after these now. Our Master is missing, and we need to keep the miraculous separate so they're safe." Max asks what's going on, but Cat Noir insists he can explain no more at this point in time due to having seconds left. However, he does remember about the Team A chat server and tells Max the details so he can create an account. Max promises to do so, and Cat Noir leaves. Max smiles a bit awkwardly at Kaalki. "I guess we're going home together."
"Only if I get to do something about your wardrobe," Kaalki says.
Meanwhile, at the public library, Kagami Tsurugi is waiting and waiting for Adrien Agreste to show up. She has all of the study materials ready, but no sign of him. And no text either. But still she waits. She figured maybe traffic delayed him because of the recent akuma incident. But after an hour and a half, he's still no there. The hurt on Kagami's face is palatable. (He forgot due to everything happening with him as Cat Noir driving his study session out of his mind.)
Peacock Moth growls in frustration at such a wonderful miraculous escaping her grasp in the crab. However, she now has a name and a face to her opponent: Ivory. Something Ladybug and Cat Noir do not know. And she's seen the extent of June's powers, so she knows to be more than careful—she knows to set up a counter strategy.
She calls Adamantus in and hands him three new handcrafted items. "Give these to the people I've indicated. I have a new plan. I'm going to slowly change their hearts and make them want to serve me." Adamantus is about to insist again that she can use him, akumatize him. But seeing her determination, the words die on his lips. He accepts his newest task and departs. He knows his three targets. Peacock Moth has selected people who made powerful akumatized victims. And she's now set her sights on Shadow Boxer, Dungeon Master, and Party Crasher. (Which leaves her with five unused items in the secret compartment of her briefcase as Nathalie is not the type to put all her eggs in one basket and let all the items go until she's certain of her plan and its success.)
That, however, is not the limits of Peacock Moth's plan. She reverts back to Nathalie Sancoeur and picks up her tablet. Then, she logs into the Team B chat server using Chip Bluestone's screen name and sets his status to invisible so she can poke around without anyone becoming suspicious…
Chapter 66: Miraculous Thief…