CHAPTER FIVE:

THE SLIPPERY LITTLE FOX

Dawn came and went, and Trixx was no better than she was when she first started.

Tired, hungry, and bored out of her wits, the fox kwami lay sprawled at the top of the palace wall, just over the main gate. Pigeons fluttered about their business, paying Trixx no heed. The kwami ignored them too, wallowing too much in her misery to care.

"It seems like only yesterday," she whimpered pathetically. "Volpina was running the kingdom, and I was her right-hand fox." Then, just like that, the soppy demeanour fell and the old, bad Trixx hovered up with a growl. "But then she had to go mess things up! Now I'm stuck on the outside looking in!"

She groaned and rubbed her furry little face with her paws. What was she thinking, trying to get through life on her own? No one was ever going to trust her again, and no one was going to let her have her way.

Defeated, Trixx folded her little arms with a huff.

There was only one way she would succeed. She had to get back into the palace; back into power! She could still remember it all: the luxury, the servants, the gold, the street rat...

Wait... Street rat?!

Snapping back around to the red and black smudge that caught her eye, Trixx's jaw almost fell off her face.

Two figures were exiting the palace entrance. Both of them were dressed in fine travel clothes. Trixx recognised the male as the prince's puppy-eyed manservant, wearing a puff-sleeved uniform of sky-blue and poppy-red.

The female was the one that made Trixx's jaw drop.

It was the fiery redhead from the slums. What was her name again? Arianna? Alina? No... Alya. That was it.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Trixx heard Nino ask in a hushed voice. "If Adrien's Daddio finds out we went outside without an escort, we're in deep trouble."

"What the king doesn't know won't hurt him," Alya assured him, brushing her wavy auburn hair from her shoulders. She wore a skin-tight, black bodysuit with white gloves and boots, both of which were lined at the edges. In addition, a black mask with pointed corners lay plastered on the girl's face, and a weird four-bar symbol sat on her chest.

Now Trixx remembered: the kid was pretending to be her former alter-ego, Lady Wifi, just like she had when she first came to the palace with "Princess Ladybug".

Then who's Goofy-Eyes supposed to be? The "Bubbler"? Trixx chuckled.

"Besides," Alya continued, "it's not like we're committing a crime. We're just seeing what the beloved common folk are up to today... and picking up any scoop on D'Argencourt or Volpina while we're at it."

Trixx got really curious at that. D'Argencourt... Why did that name ring a bell? And Volpina? Ha! If only that kid knew.

"Well, what about Marinette?" Nino asked, the question sounding more like a challenge. "Don't you think she'll worry?"

Why would Blue-Beetle worry so much about –? Ohhh... Best friends. I forgot.

Alya sighed and replied, "Mari has enough to worry about already. I'm doing this to help her." She adjusted Nino's tunic and batted her pretty lashes at him. "But I'd feel a lot safer with you by my side."

Trixx stuck out her tongue with an "Eyuck!"

Nino grinned. "All right. I guess a little stroll won't hurt." He offered up his arm, and Alya took it with that funny-looking gleam in those amber eyes of hers. "But we'd better be back in time for dinner, or the king will put us both under house arrest."

As the couple walked together down the steps and through the gates, Trixx watched them go from up above.

Back in time for dinner?

"No way!" she almost shouted. "The street rat is leaving in the palace too?" Trixx let out a frustrated "Aah!" and covered her eyes with her paws. "That's it! All reports are in! Life is now officially unfair!"

A nearby pigeon now looked up at the kwami, staring unblinkingly. Apparently, it found her outburst amusing.

Trixx's white and-orange face heated. "Just goes to show you!" she exclaimed to the pigeon bitterly. "The only way you climb the ladder is if you know a girl who knows a girl... who knows a guy..."

The little fox trailed off, and her violet eyes widened with realization.

"Wait..." she breathed as she grabbed the pigeon and pulled it into a bone-crushing hug. "Wait. A. Second here!"

Alya knows Marinette. Marinette loves Adrien. Adrien is the king's son.

Trixx let out a delightful squeal and released the startled pigeon as she twirled up into the air, rubbing her paws together excitedly. "This is perfect! That girl is my ticket to power!"

Lightning-fast, Trixx zipped over the wall and down to the ground. She flew in and around the shops and houses until at last she spotted Alya and Nino coming towards her further down a narrow street.

Chuckling wickedly, Trixx ducked behind the corner she was hiding in. Then, she scooped up some cool dirt and began dusting herself with it, getting all over her chest, head, and tail.

"I'll just get Alya on my side with a little sympathy act," she murmured to herself as she lay down and squirmed along the ground. When she came back up, her fur was so stiff and ruffled it looked like she hadn't bathed in weeks.

Complete with the brown smudges of dirt, Trixx looked every bit the part of the wounded animal.

Brushing her paws off, Trixx sneered and said, "I'll be back in the palace again quicker than you can say "Easy street"."

Right on cue, Alya and Nino appeared and proceeded past the little kwami, the former smiling at something the latter said.

Show time, Trixx thought as she hovered into the sunlight.

"Alya!" she gasped.

The redhead turned at the mention of her name, and her boyfriend followed suit. The moment they both saw Trixx, their eyes shot wide open.

Coughing heavily, Trixx staggered her flying before collapsing face-first on the ground at the humans' feet. "Finally..." she wheezed as she crawled forward, her eyes fluttering. "... got free... of Volpina..."

She glanced up to see how Alya was reacting to this.

Well... it wasn't quite the reaction the kwami was hoping for.

The redhead's eyes blazed and her mouth drew up into a scowl. "Trixx! What are you doing here?!" she snapped unkindly.

This isn't working, Trixx realized as she rolled onto her back. "Where are you?" she whispered, reaching up towards the human girl. "Getting dark... Hold me..."

Unfortunately, it was Nino's hand that grabbed onto her, not Alya's.

"Aah!" Trixx cried as the boy got her entire body in a good, hard grip. She frowned at Nino and yelled, "Hey! I meant gentle-like!"

Nino snorted coldly. "You're not fooling anyone, Furrball! The fact that you even tried makes me sick!"

"Did you really think we were going to fall for that whole "wounded-animal" act?" Alya asked, folding her arms. "I'm not impressed."

Huh. Smart kid, Trixx thought.

"Now start talking," Nino said, bringing Trixx nose-to-snout. "Where is Volpina? Did she send you here to trick us?"

Left with no other options, Trixx called on the magic inside her... and disappeared.

She reappeared in a puff of orange smoke a second later, hovering right above the astounded Nino and Alya.

"No, wait! You've got the wrong fox!" she said hastily. "Volpina used me to get her out of that shrine! It wasn't my fault!"

"Again, not impressed," Alya called as she tried to reach up and grab the kwami.

Trixx dodged. "I'm serious! She had me under her spell! I was mesmerized by her enchanted pendant!" Her violet eyes went all swirly to prove her point. "Just like the king..." she said before returning to normal. "But I snapped out of it and got away!"

Alya's brow furrowed in thought, which meant Trixx was getting somewhere. Sort of.

"Where is the amulet?" the redhead demanded.

"Gone!" Trixx replied. "Sunk and buried at the bottom of a well in the middle of the desert. She's never coming back! Trust me – that witch got what she deserved!"

Nino shook his head. "I'm not buying it," he said to Alya while keeping his beady, brown eyes on Trixx. "I think she's trying to play us."

Alya shrugged. "Well, only one way to find out," she sang before smirking up at the kwami. "Let's see how your story sits with Marinette and Adrien. And I'm sure the king will be happy to see you again after you tried to turn him into a puppet."

Trixx gulped. Oh, yeah... I forgot about that. "Hehe... You know what? You're right. I've got some distant cousins to visit on the other side of the kingdom anyway. Maybe we'll do lunch sometime."

Alya and Nino eyed each other, and then nodded.

"Ah!" Trixx cried as they both leapt up and caught her in their conjoined hands.

Oh, for heaven's sake...

POOF!

She vanished again and reappeared behind the pair, who snapped around just as Trixx turned tail and flew off.

"Come back here, you traitor!" Alya shouted after her.

Trixx zoomed down a nearby alley, glancing over her shoulder repeatedly as Alya and Nino gave chase.

The dark corridor led to a dead end with overhanging metal bars.

Alya and Nino blocked her in, panting but grinning with victory.

Surprisingly, Trixx just sneered and did a raspberry at her human pursuers. Then, like water melting into sand, she phased completely through the solid rock wall.

Alya growled. That's just cheating.

Well, two could play at that game, and Alya knew these streets like the back of her hand.

"You go around and take the second alley down to the other side," she explained to Nino. "I'll stay on her tail."

"Got it," Nino said as he took off.

Alya turned back and sprinted forward. Then she jumped and grabbed onto one of the metal bars.

Like a monkey on a jungle gym, the redhead climbed and swung up and over the wall before landing gracefully on the other side. She just caught Trixx's tiny figure zooming around a corner, and she picked up the pace.

The kwami was fast, but Alya wasn't going to let her get away. If Trixx was here in Agreste, then that meant Volpina's amulet was too. Even if what the little fox said was true, Alya knew she had to find the Miraculous and get it back into Master Fu's safe hands. The Great Guardian would know what to do with it.

Alya rounded the corner...

... only to run face-first into a hulking body.

Something alive got squished between them, letting out a high-pitched "GAK!"

Disoriented, Alya fell onto her back and groaned. Trixx fell with her, right on top of her chest.

Sitting up, Alya blinked up at the man she had bumped into... and her heart stopped beating.

She recognised him. He was the thief who had spotted her back at the ruined temple. Behind him stood three more of his fellow criminals.

"What's going on here?" came a thin voice with a posh accent.

Ah, camel plops.

Alya cringed away as the tall form of Armand D'Argencourt stepped forward and glared down at her and Trixx.

"You..." he said, before his eyebrows rose curiously. "... look familiar."

Alya blinked.

Trixx glanced between the two humans.

Then, the rest of D'Argencourt's men chorused annoyingly, "It's Alya."

The Master of Thievery's eyes widened and he stammered, "What? It is? I... I knew that." He glared at Alya again and pointed at her. "Get her! Hurt her, and her pet rabbit too!"

Alya gulped as the thieves drew their swords, each one grinning maliciously.

Trixx screamed.

Thinking quickly, Alya got to her feet and back-flipped away just as three of the men pounced. They crashed together on the ground.

Alya stumbled back into a stack of empty barrels. Trixx clung desperately to her shoulder.

The burly thief they had bumped into charged.

Alya retaliated by knocking the stack behind her with her elbows.

Several barrels toppled over. One of them landed right on the man's head, and he cried out as he struggled to get it off.

But another thief – a scrawny-looking man with a beard – was coming back for another round.

Alya picked up a fallen barrel and used it to block the man's incoming sword.

Trixx, unfortunately, fell into the barrel. She cried out as the blade burst through and almost took her middle out.

Alya gritted her teeth and tried to wrench the thing free. When that didn't work, she tried a different tactic. She rolled onto her back, taking the barrel – and the thief – over with her.

Both man and barrel went flying over her and crashed.

Trixx toppled out of the burst wood, shaking her head from the dizziness.

The scrawny thief saw her, growled, and raised his sword. "Treacherous fox!" he said in a high-pitched voice.

The kwami's purple eyes shot up. "Look, I'm not with her!" she insisted. But the thief didn't listen, and Trixx disappeared before the blade came down into the dirt.

Alya knew she should be worrying about Trixx, but right now she had bigger problems to deal with. Literally.

The hulking man had taken the barrel off his head and was now red with anger. With his fists raised, he shadowed over the startled redhead and prepared to clobber her.

Something moved between them, and Alya heard an ear-ringing GONG!

"OOOWWWWW!" the strong thief hollered as he leapt back, messaging his sore fist.

Alya beamed when she saw Nino standing in front of her, lowering a rather heavy shield.

Her boyfriend turned to her and offered his hand with a cocky grin. "Remember what I was saying about an escort?" he joked.

Alya smirked and allowed him to pull her back up.

They both stood back-to-back as D'Argencourt's four cronies circled them.

Trixx panted from within the fruit stand, peering over a large watermelon at the chaos.

To her surprise, Red and her boyfriend were still standing: the former whacking the thieves away with a wooden staff she had picked up, and the latter blocking the deadly-sharp swords with his shield. Both of them danced around each other like their fighting had been choreographed.

Huh. They really do make a good couple.

Unfortunately, a good fighter could only last for so long. Nino's shield was wearing him down, and Alya's staff had been broken clean in two.

The thieves laughed cruelly as they swarmed the pair. "You can't dance out of this one!" one of them teased.

Before Trixx could see what was happening, a shadow fell over her.

Looking up, the kwami cried out as D'Argencourt came at her with a heavy fish.

The fish fell, but so did the Master of Thievery, and the fruit stand cracked under his weight.

Alya tried to wrench herself out of the thieves' grip, but once again they were too strong for her to break through.

Nino wasn't having any luck either. The third thief had one of his arms, and the fourth had him in full headlock. Nino squirmed, turning purple in the face.

"Leave him alone!" Alya shouted, struggling harder.

Just then, a calm voice declared, "Now, now, gentleman... let's settle this nice and cleanly, shall we?"

Alya shot daggers at D'Argencourt as he stepped towards her. He was filthy and he smelled like fish, but his mustache was curled up into a cruel sneer.

Leaning closer, D'Argencourt lifted her chin at him with his finger. "You have been quite the troublemaker, my dear," he said in a low tone. "Do you want to know what happened after that little stunt you pulled the other night?"

Alya jerked away from his touch, but she said nothing.

Not that D'Argencourt was asking. "Most of my men deserted me; they called me a "lousy" leader!" He waved his hands to the four men around him. "This is all that remains of my loyal, motley crew. I have nothing! No army, no treasure, no hideout – all because of you!" He now jabbed his finger in Alya's face. "You and your royal friends."

Alya couldn't help but smirk.

"So I said to myself, "What better way to get even then by coming back to Agreste to find that fiery little redhead... and make her pay for my humiliation?"" D'Argencourt voice became a dark snarl. "You robbed me of my chance to get rid of that feline prince, so now... I'll just have to settle for you."

D'Argencourt drew his rapier.

Alya went cold, and the other thieves laughed.

"No!" Nino cried, writhing like a helpless snake trapped in a net.

D'Argencourt hummed and tapped the pointy end with his finger, as though testing to make sure it was still sharp. "Perhaps I'll send both your heads to the palace in a box, as an example of what happens when you cross the likes of Darkblade."

Alya's amber eyes turned glossy. Marinette... God, what was I thinking?

She watched helplessly as the swordsman's rapier drew back.

Meanwhile, Trixx had been stuck inside a broken watermelon after her little scuffle with D'Argencourt.

But once she pulled herself out, she cringed with disgust. There was sticky juice on her fur. Again!

Trixx's violet eyes went feral. "Okay..." she snarled. "Now I'm mad!"

Soaring back up, she spotted the posh git standing not far away in the middle of the road, blabbering to Alya and Nino while his men held them in place. D'Argencourt looked like he was enjoying himself... not to mention he was utterly oblivious to the kwami's presence.

Trixx sneered and waved her paws.

At once, a flash of orange light appeared at the swordsman's feet just as he drew back his rapier.

The light flickered and changed into a vicious king cobra, who hissed menacingly.

D'Argencourt yelped away in terror, as did the rest of his men.

Alya and Nino staggered out of the thieves' grip and retreated against the alley wall, holding each other and watching with curious eyes.

D'Argencourt, on the other hand, slipped on a fish and fell backward onto a wooden plank, which had been laid precariously against a barrel.

Trixx looked up, grinning when she saw a heavy, potted plant on the window balcony above D'Argencourt.

Flying up, she glared down at the swordsman just as he looked up. "Mess with this kwami, heh?" she murmured.

Then, with a great heave, Trixx shoved the potted plant off the balcony.

It fell... right onto the other end of the wooden plank.

D'Argencourt screamed like a girl as he went high up into the air and crashed into a nearby cart full of chickens. The poor creatures squawked and gobbled away in fright, and D'Argencourt eased himself up. His hair, face, and chest were splattered with goopy, yellow eggs.

His four men glanced at Alya and Nino, then at Trixx. Then, they lowered their swords and hastened down the street as fast as they could.

D'Argencourt saw his men fleeing and scrabbled out of the chicken cart, his limbs sloshing as he moved. "Hey – wait for me!" he called out feebly before speeding after them, leaving a trail of egg stuff in his wake.

Trixx puffed out her chest and shook a fist at the thieves' retreating backs. "And there's more where that came from!" She snorted and smiled victoriously. "Jerks."

Alya couldn't believe what she had just seen.

But once the cobra illusion vanished and Trixx came swooping down to rest on a nearby stand, Alya realized she hadn't imagined anything.

She had been so sure she was about to be skewered alive. Now, here she was, safe in Nino's arms, watching D'Argencourt fly away like a frightened bird. Alya would be laughing right now if she wasn't so astounded.

Nino cupped her face in his hands. "Are you all right?" he said.

Alya nodded breathlessly. "Yeah..." she sighed. "I... Yeah. And... you might have been right about the escort."

Nino let out half-a-laugh as he embraced her. "Next time, we're taking the same alley."

Alya smiled as she hugged him back.

"Hey, get a room, you two."

Nino snapped around to Trixx with a narrowed gaze.

Alya on the other hand, couldn't help but smile – albeit a little awkwardly. "Uh... thanks... for your help," she said flabbergasted. "You saved us."

Trixx blinked in surprise. "I did?" She paused for a moment, and then nodded with a confident smile. "Right, of course I did! It's my nature. I'm always rescuing things: cats, babies, damsels in distress... Yep, always rescuing."

Something bag-like came down on the fox kwami, and she let out a muffled shout. "Ah! Hey, what's going on?!"

Nino held up the little, squirming sack in front of him. "You're coming with us, little dudette," he stated. "Don't worry – we'll make sure you get a fair hearing."

"You can't do this to me!" Trixx shouted. She managed to poke her head out, and her violet eyes found Alya's amber ones. "Al, come on! Is this any way to treat your rescuer?"

Alya bit her lip as she turned away.

But Trixx went on, her voice low with discontent. "You owe me, sister! I saved your life!"

Alya swallowed hard. Suddenly, she was thinking back to when Marinette had defended her from those guards. She had repaid her by helping Mari escape.

She still didn't trust Trixx, especially after everything she had done to Alya and her friends during Volpina's takeover.

But... Alya was still the good guy, and good guys always paid off their debts.

"Nino, wait!" Alya stated.

The dark-skinned man paused, looking at her.

Alya sighed bitterly. "She's right," she admitted. "I do owe her."

Trixx seemed to smile with relief.

Nino glanced between them and said incredulously, "Aly, we can't just let her go! One heroic deed doesn't exactly count as an apology."

"I know that," Alya said, "but she did save our lives, and I can't in good conscience lock her up." She took a deep breath. Marinette is going to kill me for this. "We'll take her back with us," she finally declared.

Nino moaned with his head to the heavens, but he let the kwami go.

Trixx flew up and grasped Alya's cheek in a bear hug. "Bless you, Al. You're a godsend!" she sighed. "I'm forever in your debt!" Then she began kissing the uncomfortable redhead.

"Hey, paws off, you gaseous sycophant!" Nino spat, batting the little fox away from his girlfriend.

Alya wiped her cheek and then patted her boyfriend on the shoulder. "Easy, hon," she said assuredly. "She'll play nice if she knows what's good for her. Won't you, Trixx?"

The kwami flashed an overdramatic, innocent grin, her fangs glistening.

Alya waved a finger in Trixx's face. "But if you try to double-cross me or my friends;" she hissed threateningly, "if I see one paw or tail out of line, I won't hesitate to hand you over to the king personally. Capiche?"

Trixx let out a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, sure! Absolutely! Cross my heart and hope to not die. I'm legit. I'll be a good girl. No more scams – I promise!"

To solidify that, Trixx held out her tail to Alya.

The former thief wasn't sure what she was doing at first, but then it came to her. "Oh. Right. Sure. Deal." She hooked her pinky finger onto Trixx's tail and gave it a gentle shake.

Nino rubbed his temples. "This is a bad idea, Alya," he sang anxiously. "The king's going to go nuts when he finds out." He folded his arms. "And I know you and Marinette are adept at keeping secrets, but I don't think this is one either of us can keep for long."

Alya bit her lip again. That had been one of the promises she and Marinette had made after Volpina's defeat: no more secrets, no more lies. Marinette wanted to turn over a new leaf, and Alya had always told her that honesty was the best policy.

Now here she was, staring into the purple eyes of the biggest secret of her life.

Alya nodded. "I know," she told Nino. "I'll... figure something out later, but right now we need to focus on kicking D'Argencourt and his men out of town for good."

But Alya knew that luck and survival skills weren't enough to stop the infamous swordsman. Army or not, he was still dangerous. It would take a magical miracle to...

Alya's smile broadened as an idea came to her. "And I think Trixx can help us," she finished off with a confident hand on her hip.

Nino raised an eyebrow. "How?" he asked.

Alya glanced between her boyfriend and the fox kwami. "She knows all of Volpina's secrets," she explained, her amber eyes gleaming with mischief. "Maybe she knows something that can give us an edge over D'Argencourt."

Trixx blinked, until she finally caught on. "Ahhh... Kid, I like your thinking." She rubbed her little paws together. "And I know just where to find what we need."