"And the next episode is… The Pharaoh."
Alix cheered, "Yes! That's my brother!" She smirked mischievously, "Maybe I'll get some good blackmail material out of this." Her eyes sparkled with mirth at the idea.
Marinette rolled her eyes, glad that Alix at least seemed to be over the actions of Timebreaker and hit play.
Scene: Dupain-Cheng House. A video of Alya in Paris is being viewed.
Alya: Don't blink now, 'cause we are live from Paris. Yo peeps, Alya here, bringing you the one and only Ladyblog.(Helicopter noises) Huh? What is that? (Ladybug flies by, hanging on to her yo-yo, tied to a helicopter. She drops a book.). Ladybug in action. Hang on 'cause we're going for a ride. (Alya runs over and picks up the book.) Freak out! What you got here is no ordinary book, it's a tenth grade history book. And I should know, 'cause I've got this very same book. Could our very own Ladybug be a high school student, (zoom out to reveal the Ladyblog website, which Marinette is watching the video from) in real life? Whoa!
Adrien blinked, focused on what Ladybug's costume looked like, then looked over to Marinette. "Where did you put that, Marinette?"
Marinette, for her part, simply winked at him. "A girl's gotta have some secrets, Adrien." She smirked at him and turned back to the screen.
Marinette: I told you from day one Tikki, I'm a total klutz!
Tikki: What's done is done; we can't change what happened. We can only move forward. Alya must not find out who you are. You know how persistent she can be with her blog totally dedicated to Ladybug.
Marinette: But how? Maybe I'm not cut out for this whole Ladybug thing.
Alya gasped, and Chloe looked torn between despair that her favorite superhero would contemplate quitting, and exalted over the idea that Marinette would no longer be Ladybug.
Marinette put a hand on Alya's shoulder before she could say anything, "This was early days, Alya. I'm much more secure in my role as Ladybug now."
Alya let out a sigh of relief.
Chloe was stuck in the exact same conundrum as before.
Tikki: You are the chosen one, Marinette. It will all work out, trust me. Everyone has a past they can learn from. (Tikki types on the computer, bringing up a page on Egyptian pharaohs.) This will show you why.
Marinette: An exhibition at the Louvre? On the pharaoh Tutankhamun? What does that have to do with my book and Alya?
Tikki: You must persuade Alya to go there with you, and make sure she brings the book. You'll tell her you found out something about Ladybug.
Marinette: At the museum?
Tikki: You'll see!
Marinette: Well, I don't know how I'm gonna convince Alya to go to an Egyptian exhibit, much less convince her that I'm not Ladybug!
Tikki: She will be interested, and so will you. Promise .
Marinette rolled her eyes, "Are all kwamis so purposefully vague, or is that just you, Tikki?"
Tikki smiled enigmatically at her holder, "You'll just have to wait and see, Marinette!"
Marinette let out an explosive sigh perfectly in time with her kwami's giggle.
Tikki however, smiled once again at her holder. "It wouldn't have had the same impact if I'd just told you, Marinette." Tikki said quite seriously. "I wanted you to understand that you were part of something greater than you even thought!" Her smiled returned, "You needed the reassurance, and the knowledge that came with seeing Henite, my holder from that time," she added at Marinette's confused look, "and me on that papyrus scroll." Her eyes narrowed in thought, "Though I don't remember being known about in that time, at least, not at the time of Tutankhamun using black magic to try to bring back Nefertiti from the dead." She shook her head and motioned for Marinette to start the episode again.
Scene: Louvre. Alya and Marinette are going into the Louvre museum.
Alya: Can you believe it? All I gotta do is find to do who this history book belongs to and BAM, I figure out Ladybug's true identity! I'm so on this one!
Marinette: You really think you could figure out who Ladybug is from a textbook that every high school student owns?
Alya: Yep. 'Cause our school is the only school that uses that book! HA! So, all I gotta do is find out which girl in tenth grade lost her history book last week. There are forty-three girls, not counting myself-
Marinette: Forty-two! Not count you... or me.
Alya: (elbows Marinette) Hmm, yesterday somebody didn't have their textbook in class.
Marinette: (worried) Uh- I left it at home. You know how I always forget my stuff.
Alya: Hmm... (chuckles) Just messing with you, Marinette. Of course I'll only drop you from my investigation when you bring your history book back to class.
Alya finally decided to speak up, "Girl, you're lucky I wasn't tipped off by your nervousness." She raised an eyebrow at her best friend/favorite superhero, "Did you actually remember to put your name in the textbook?"
Marinette smiled sheepishly while pushing her index fingers together.
Alya groaned loudly in annoyance and facepalmed, a loud 'slap!' echoing through the theater.
(Jalil Kubdel runs between Alya and Marinette carrying a folder full of papers. He pushes past them and trips, papers flying everywhere. His medallion falls, and he picks it up.)
Jalil: It's not broken!
Alya: (annoyed) Uh, I'm okay too, thanks for asking.
Jalil: I'm sorry. Hey, you're in the same grade as Alix, right? I'm her older brother, Jalil Kubdel. So you're into Tutankhamun too? (looks up) Dad!
Alix shook her head at her brother's antics. "Always got his head in a book." She looked down at Alya, "You should see him at home, it's even worse."
Alya: Weird. So again girl, why are we here? This exhibit's got something to do with Ladybug? For reals?
Marinette: Well, uh... (She looks at Tikki in her purse. Tikki points at an Egyptian papyrus.) Yeah, it's over there. (She takes Alya over to it. They look at it, Marinette trying to see the significance, Alya looking bored.)
Marinette rolled her eyes, "And yet, we still didn't find that image of Ladybug until Alya saw it flying past her." Alya pushed her glasses up her nose with a smug expression.
"I'm just more observant!" Marinette stuck her tongue out at Alya and pressed play.
Scene: Adrien's room. Adrien Agreste is watching the same video from the Ladyblog shown earlier.
Alya: Hang on, 'cause we're going for a ride. Freak out! What you got here is no ordinary book, it's a tenth grade history book. And I should know, 'cause I've got this very same book. Could our very own Ladybug be a high school student, in real life?
Adrien: That's crazy! What are the odds that we have the same textbook? Maybe we even go to the same school!
The class snickered at Adrien's excitement.
"And who knows?" Alix began in a faux-excited voice, "Maybe you're even in the same class!"
Adrien rolled his eyes, but kept facing the screen.
Plagg: Don't you think you know her then? (eats his cheese) Why bother yourself with ladies when you could be enjoying this?
Adrien: For one, ladies smell about a thousand times better than that cheese. And they're much better-looking.
Plagg: Suit yourself. Your loss.
Plagg nodded in agreement with himself, prompting Tikki to fly up and smack the back of his head.
"Hey!" Plagg whined, Tikki smiled innocently at him in response.
Adrien: My only loss is my appetite.
Scene: Louvre. Marinette and Alya are still on the exhibition.
Alya: Come on, tell me what it is already!
Marinette: No, no, cause... it wouldn't be a surprise then... (under her breath) for you or me.
(Marinette and Tikki look at an ancient Egyptian papyrus)
Jalil: I'm telling you, father, it's right there in the hieroglyphics. (He pushes Marinette aside.) Excuse me. ("Jalil! What the hell!" Alix yelled at the screen.) There, as you know, the one with the scepter is Tutankhamun, the first. And there, opposite is Nefertiti, his princess. There are exactly one hundred mummies beside them. She died several years before him, and the sun god Ra took her as his goddess.
Mr. Kubdel: Yes, I know all that. I'm the director of this exhibition, remember?
Jalil: Then you also know that Tutankhamun wanted to bring his princess back to life, by offering the sun god a new wife. This seemed to illustrate the ritual he devised. Nobody has ever fully deciphered the hieroglyphics, but I have! It's a magic chant that needs to be recited in order to complete the ritual! I'm sure of it!
Marinette: He kinda reminds me of someone else with crazy ideas... you!
Marinette winced as she turned towards Alix, who was now glaring at her. She went to apologize, but was cut off before she could say anything.
"I know my brother can be odd, and a little bit rude sometimes, Marinette, but I'm the only one who's allowed to insult him, or his work, got it?" She asked, a not so subtle threat in her voice.
Marinette nodded, "I'm sorry Alix, that wasn't very nice of me, I apologize." Alix nodded agreeably, and looked back at the screen, signalling Marinette to press play.
Alya: You might think my theories about Ladybug are crazy, but you watch, girl, I'll prove you wrong.
Mr. Kubdel: Jalil, these types of frescoes are almost always the illustration for a legend. They called it a legend for a reason...
Jalil: That's what everyone thinks. But I know it's real. I can prove it!
Mr. Kubdel: Really? Exactly how are you going to prove it?
Jalil: I just need to get my hands on Tutankhamun's scepter and recite the spell!
Mr. Kubdel: Are you serious? Don't even think of touching that scepter. I'd lose my job on the spot. It's a priceless historical object! Not a toy!
Jalil: Come on, dad! We have to try out the spell! What if Tutankhamun had found out how to bring people back to life?
Mr. Kubdel: Listen, Jalil! That's enough! Get your head out of those papyrus scrolls and focus on the real world! This one! (He leaves. Jalil drops his papers, looking sad.)
Scene: Hawk Moth's lair.
Hawk Moth: There's nothing wrong with living out a fantasy. Espscially when I can make it a reality. (turns a butterfly into an akuma) Fly away, my evil akuma, and transform that young man!
This time, instead of flinching, or otherwise shying or looking away from the screen, Alix glared at the image of Hawk Moth with such loathing that the class half expected her to get akumatized on the spot.
Kim looked Alix with concern, and after a moment of thought, wrapped an arm around her shoulders, shocking her out of her attempt to kill Hawk Moth by glaring at him. Kim smiled shyly, and slightly fearfully, but Alix smiled back and scooted her chair slightly closer to him.
Scene: Louvre. Marinette and Alya are still at the exhibition. Marinette tries to figure out the significance of the symbols.
Marinette: Uhhh... ahhh...
(Alya yawns and takes the history book out of her bag.)
Marinette: Gah! Put that down! I'm gonna show you the secret I found out about Ladybug!
Alya: 'Bout time. This better be blog-worthy.
"I have far too much patience for you, girl." Alya said teasingly, causing Marinette to smile.
"That's part of what makes you such a great friend." She said back, causing Alya to give her a nearly blinding smile.
"Aww, girl, you're too sweet!" Alya said happily, leaning over to give her best friend a hug, before leaning out of it to give her a mock serious face. "Don't think this gets you out of giving me all those interviews you owe me though." Marinette rolled her eyes.
"Wouldn't dream of it, Alya."
Scene: Outside the Louvre. Jalil is upset, and an akuma flies into his amulet.
Hawk Moth: Pharaoh, I am Hawk Moth. I have endowed you with the magical power of the ancient gods. You must do me a favor in return for this gift.
Jalil: My precious Nefertiti will come back to life! (Jalil turns into the Pharaoh)
Alix snickered, "When I get home, I am so teasing him for that!"
Scene: Louvre. Marinette and Alya are still looking at the papyrus.
Marinette: Uhhh.. ahhh...
Alya: This thing's making my eyes hurt. (She starts to get her book out again, but Marinette stops her.)
Marinette: Look closely! It is in there. (sees the Pharaoh) Huh?
"You know, at this point I really should have noticed you didn't actually know what type of secret you'd dug up about Ladybug." Alya said, she paused, thinking for a moment. "Then again, something tells me this entire episode is going to be like this for me."
Marinette didn't reply, she simply smiled impishly.
Museum employee: (blows a whistle) Hey, you!
Kim looked confused, "But he didn't do anything wrong yet… why would you try to stop him?" Max gave him a look that seemed to both pity him, and question his intelligence all in one.
"Kim, there was no way that wasn't an akuma, I mean, look at him!" Max waved an arm towards the screen, Kim shrugged sheepishly.
Pharaoh: Tut, give me time! (His face changes. He traps the employee and the civilians in golden bubbles. Marinette and Alya avoid one. Alya grins and gets out her smartphone.)
Nino narrowed his eyes at screen, "Come on Hawkmoth! Bubbles were my thing! Get some originality!" Alya rolled her eyes fondly and smacked him lightly on the back of his head.
Marinette: Alya, hide!
Pharaoh: Get out of here, faster! (The bubbles fly out of the room.)
(Marinette hides from the Pharaoh)
Marinette: Time to transform!
[Transformation Sequence]
Marinette: Tikki, spots on! Ha! (Marinette turns into Ladybug.)
Alya stole remote from Marinette and paused it, staring at the screen incredulously before looking at Marinette and Tikki, who both looked amused.
"You know what, girl?" Alya said, her voice deceptively calm. "I'm not even mad. I'm just annoyed at this point." She pressed play, muttering under her breath about how blind she must be.
Marinette giggled.
Alya: (whispering, recording a video on her phone) OMG. Coming to you live, Ladyblog viewers, I'm at the scene even before Ladybug or Cat Noir! This is insane!
Adrien and Marinette both laughed at the comment, and quieted down to snickers when Alya turned to glare at them.
The scene shifts to Adrien's room. Adrien and Plagg are watching Alya's video. Adrien is shocked.
Plagg: Wow! I love the face changes! You could use that one!
Marinette turned to look at Plagg, "I'm quite fond of Adrien's face, thank you very much." She said, smirking when Adrien's cheeks turned a very pretty - in her opinion- shade of red.
Alya rolled her eyes, preferring this Marinette to the one that couldn't even say a word in the presence of her crush.
Adrien: Time to transform!
[Transformation Sequence]
Adrien: Plagg, claws out! (Adrien turns into Cat Noir.)
Scene: Louvre. The Pharaoh steals the scepter and the papyrus.
(Ladybug slides under a gate just as it closes.)
Ladybug: You know that's considered stealing.
Pharaoh: Actually, I'm taking back what rightfully belongs to me.
Ladybug: Maybe if you were the real Pharaoh, which you're not!
"Now that I think about it, she has a point." Max said, staring at the screen with narrowed eyes, "The Pharaoh is the only Akuma to ever think he was someone else completely, rather than just a demonized form of their frustrations." Max pursed his lips, "Odd, yet interesting."
Alya: Look at Ladybug go! If I'm dreaming, don't wake me up! (Ladybug shoos her.) Ladybug waved at me! No way!
Marinette's facepalm echoed through the theater. "How did you get that confused with a wave…." She muttered, her voice just barely making it through her hand.
Alya looked slightly sheepish now that she had context. "Heh. Heh. Oops?"
Marinette pinched her nose in exasperation. "We need to have a serious talk about safety during akuma attacks, Alya." Adrien nodded in agreement.
Alya looked even more sheepish.
(Ladybug uses her yo-yo to attack the Pharaoh, but he grabs the yo-yo and swings Ladybug away, making her crash into a wall.)
The class winced in pain, and looked to Marinette, who was rubbing her back in phantom pain.
Then the moment was ruined when someone began humming "Walk like an Egyptian."
Pharaoh: Sekhmet, give me your strength! (His face changes. He uses his strength to bend the bars, but Cat Noir appears.)
Cat Noir: How nice of you to hold the door open for me! (He attacks the Pharaoh, but the Pharaoh grabs him and throws him into a coffin.)
"Thanks for showing up, Cat Noir." Alix said, clapping sarcastically.
Adrien blushed and rubbed the back of his neck in sheepishness.
Marinette, though at the time she'd been worried, couldn't help but find his reaction to it now hilarious, and it showed by her letting out a very poorly disguised snicker as a cough.
Adrien pouted at this, but his slight hurt was assuaged by his lady playfully ruffling his hair.
Pharaoh: Enjoy your coffin! (laughs)
Alya: (recording Ladybug as she tries to open the coffin) This is hecka crazy! Keep your eyes peeled! (sees the Pharaoh standing over her) Hiya!
Nearly the entire class facepalmed in unison to Alya's chagrin.
"You're not supposed to talk to akumas…" Marinette mumbled into her hand again, wondering just how little of a survival instinct her best friend had.
Alya however, was feeling slightly defensive, and defiant in the face of all the negativity and lack of faith in her she was facing, and so showed it by trying to make a counter argument.
"A reporter has to take risks to get their footage! I can't just stay a few hundred meters away and still get good footage." Alya said, though her argument sounded weak, even to her, and it showed by the amount of doubt and concern she saw on her friend's faces. "What? The Ladyblog wouldn't be half as popular as it is if I went with grainy footage taken from hundreds of meters away! I have to do what's best for my blog!" Marinette's face looked very interesting at this statement, like she wanted to argue, but also like she somewhat agreed, she was saved from finding something to say, however, by Adrien.
"Just don't go trying to interview akumas, okay?" Adrien asked, his eyes shining with concern and worry over her wellbeing. "It works out for all of us in the end," he started, not allowing her to reply, "Marinette and I don't have to worry about an akuma trying to sacrifice you again, which lets us do our jobs even better, and your life expectancy goes up by a few decades in exchange." He gave her a very Cat-like smirk. "Sound like a fair deal?"
Alya nodded defeatedly, but her eyes still held fire in them, "Don't go thinking that I won't be on the sidelines filming, I may not get as close as usual, but I'm not going to stay in some remote location," her eyes flicked over Adrien specifically, "even with that fancy camera you promised me." Adrien and Marinette both nodded in agreement.
"We wouldn't have it any other way, Alya." Marinette turned to her partner, "Right, Chaton?"
Adrien nodded, leaving no room for argument on the matter.
Pharaoh: (Places his hands on Alya's face) Your face. Fate has placed you on my path. Come with me! (He slings her over his shoulder and walks out.)
Alya: Hey! Hands off the threads. I can walk myself!
Ladybug: (sighs) Seriously?! (throws opens the coffin and runs after the Pharaoh) Let her go!
Cat Noir: Hiding behind an innocent bystander! You're weak, Pharaoh!
Pharaoh: I'm way more powerful than you are. (He uses his strength to close the bars and walks away)
Alya: (slightly nervous) And don't forget! All the latest behind-the-scenes are on my blog!
Cat Noir: That Alya is one brave chick.
Ladybug: If by brave you mean bossy, feisty, and bold? Yup, that's her! Come on, get us out of here, Cat Noir!
Adrien's eyes narrowed at the screen, "You know, now that I think about it, and we aren't in a hurry to save Alya's life, I really should have known only someone who knows Alya really well, like you, Marinette, would call Alya those things." He turned to see what Marinette had to say, and saw her smiling sheepishly at her best friend who now looked slightly annoyed.
"I meant that in the best possible way, Alya! I swear!" Marinette said nervously, an incredibly fake grin plastered on her face. Alya's face immediately turned from annoyed to amused as she laughed at the anxious expression on her best friend's face.
"You're my best friend, Marinette, if you had agreed, then I would have been insulted." She said with a smirk, gaining a fond eye roll from Marinette before she turned back to the screen.
Cat Noir: Cataclysm! (uses his Cataclysm to break the bars) How are we gonna find them?
Ladybug: Alya's got a livestream on her blog! (Plays the video from the screen of her yo-yo)
Max's eye twitched.
Alya: (from video) Hi, everyone! Alya here, liveblogging from the shoulder of the terrifying villain! Huge scoop to come, stay tuned!
Cat Noir: (his Miraculous blinks) Uhh, you go ahead. I'll join you as soon as my Miraculous is charged up again.
Ladybug: Hurry up. It's gonna take both of us to defeat him. (They run separate ways)
(Outside the Louvre, the Pharaoh throws Alya to the ground.)
Alya: Hey!
Pharaoh: On to the next phase. Anubis, bring me mummies! (His face morphs again. Beams of light shoot from his eyes, transforming civilians into mummies.) Soon, we'll be together again, my Nefertiti! My long-lost love!
Alya: This is gonna be one major scoop! (She taps the Pharaoh on the shoulder.) Uh, excuse me, Pharaoh, but, uh, what exactly is going on?
Pharaoh: I'm going to carry out the secret spell, to bring Nefertiti back!
Alya: Ahh, hmmm. Gotcha! You're talking about the spell on the papyrus, right?
Pharaoh: Correct! The one hundred mummies and the offering!
Alya: Offering. What offering?
Pharaoh: To persuade the sun god Ra to give me my sweet princess, I must give him something in return. A pure soul!
Alya: Dude, that's hard to come by.
Pharaoh: But I've already found her! You look so much like her!
Alya: Say what?!
Marinette nodded, "Now you're appropriately freaked out for being held hostage by the bad guy."
Alya stuck her tongue out at her.
Pharaoh: (laughs)
(Zoom out to Ladybug watching the video on her yo-yo.)
Ladybug: Hold on, Alya! (Ladybug runs into a time bubble, which traps her.) Whoa! Oh, no, I ran right into one of those time bubbles! (Outside view; her voice is in slow motion) I've got to get out of this!
The class all laughed at the sound of Ladybug's voice slowed down as it was, causing Marinette to laugh along as well. Adrien smirked and leaned over to her.
"And here I thought he'd actually caught you himself, Bugaboo." His smile took the sting out of his words, and simply earned a stuck out tongue for his comment.
Alya: (from video) Ladybug, this is Alya! I just found out I'm the sacrificial offering to the sun god! Please hurry!
Ladybug: Hold on, Alya. (Outside view as she starts running inside the bubble; slow motion) I'm nearly there!
The class snickered again, and Alya gave her friend an amused look.
"You do know that I couldn't hear you, right?" Alya asked, with a raised eyebrow, she looked back at the screen, then to Marinette again. "You weren't anywhere near me either."
Marinette simply giggled sheepishly.
(Cut to Adrien and Plagg.)
Plagg: Oh, do you seriously think this mumbo-jumbo with the sun and mummy stuff is gonna work?
Adrien: You have no respect. Your batteries are charged up enough!
Tikki turned to glare at Plagg, who put his hands up peacefully. "In my defense, I was still dormant in my Miraculous back then! I didn't actually know about that whole fiasco until centuries later!" Tikki continued to glare at him, Plagg shifted uncomfortably in his Holder's hair. "I'm sorry okay!" Tikki smiled and nodded at him, then turned to an amused, but confused Marinette and waved for her to press play.
[Transformation Sequence]
Adrien: Plagg, claws out! (Adrien turns into Cat Noir.)
(Cat Noir arrives and bursts the time bubble Ladybug is trapped in.)
Ladybug: Whoa! (Cat Noir catches her)
Cat Noir: Thanks for waiting around for me!
Ladybug: No problem! We've gotta find the hidden akuma and free it before he sacrifices that poor girl!
Alya poorly disguised a snicker as a cough.
"It's like Superman trying to cover up how he knows anyone other than Lois Lane and Jimmy Olsen, but worse!"
Marinette pouted, "I was panicking! I said the first thing that came to mind!"
(They arrive at the front door, and see rows of mummies.)
Ladybug: I don't see her or Pharaoh.
(They reach the roof.)
Cat Noir: Over there!
Scene: Outside the Louvre. The ritual is about to begin.
Alya: (sees a figure in the papyrus) Whoa, back up! Who's that goddess chick with the black spots! There, on your papyrus!
Pharaoh: Ladybug, my sworn enemy! My nemesis may have kept me from carrying out my ritual 5000 years ago, but she will not stop Nefertiti from coming back to me this time!
Alya: Did you say... Ladybug 5000 years ago?!
(Ladybug and Cat Noir are shown watching the video, surprised.)
Ladybug: Everyone does have a past they can learn from.
Cat Noir: Well, you don't look a day over 3000.
Alix whistled, "Talk about a cougar fetish." Adrien and Marinette's mouths dropped in mortification, and for just a moment, the entire room was dead silent.
Then, Plagg broke out into hysterics, and everyone else in the room followed.
Alya eventually got her laughter under control, then looked back up at a still Adrien, who's face seemed to be frozen, and broke out into laughter all over again.
A few moments later, she finally stopped, and with the largest shit eating grin Marinette had ever seen, pressed play.
Ladybug: Now you know why I'm so much wiser than you. Hm!
Pharaoh: (starting the ritual) Oh, sacred Ra, god of the sun, I Pharaoh, offer to thee a pure soul! The sacrifice for the return of Nefertiti! (The Louvre pyramid lights up, and as he
speaks, it shoots a beam into the sky that starts spreading darkness.) I bow to you, and present this gift with my mummies! In company, we pray to you the safe return of princess Nefertiti! Awaken, Nefertiti! Awaken! Awaken, Nefertiti! Awaken!
Mummies: Awaken, Nefertiti... Awaken...
Alya: (as the mummies carry her toward the pyramid) Ladybug!
Ladybug: We've gotta save her before he completes the ritual, or Alya will be gone, forever!
Myléne shivered at the thought of one of her friends dying, especially in such a terrifying way.
Ivan, noticing this, wrapped an arm around her shoulders and squeezed her reassuringly.
Myléne smiled tremulously at her boyfriend, leaning into the embrace.
Cat Noir: What should we do?
Ladybug: Hold back the mummies while I take on the Pharaoh.
Cat Noir: Why do I have to deal with these freaks while you get to slip calmly round back?
Ladybug: Because I'm the only one who can capture his akuma, and because you are the bravest one out of both of us! (winks)
The class snickered at Marinette's little manipulation.
Cat Noir: Sure.
(Ladybug swings away.)
Cat Noir: I know you don't really think that, but I'll pretend you do.
The class broke out in laughs at this point, while Marinette furrowed her brow.
"That's not true, y'know." Marinette said, scooting slightly closer to Adrien -almost sitting in his lap as a result-, "I do think you're braver than me." She saw Adrien about to interject, and quickly covered his mouth with a finger. "You've reveled in this stuff since the beginning, I was terrified out of my mind, and you jumped directly into the line of fire." She shook her head, "You're way braver than I am, Minou."
Adrien blushed slightly at Marinette's honest praise before smirking mischievously and licking her finger.
Marinette yanked her finger away and wiped it on Adrien's shirt. "Ew!" She exclaimed, though there was a hint of amusement in her tone, that only Nino, Adrien, and Alya picked up on.
Mummies: Awaken, Nefertiti, Awaken... Awaken, Nefertiti, Awaken...
Cat Noir: Hey there, you bunch of bandages! What do you say we wrap this up!
The class groaned miserably.
Alya: Cat Noir!
Pharaoh: Seize him! (The mummies run after him.)
Cat Noir: Is that really as fast as you can go? (He jumps between lamps.)
Pharaoh: Wait, this looks... like a trap!
Chloe raised an eyebrow at the Pharaoh's exclamation. "It took you this long to figure that out?"
(Ladybug swings down and grabs Alya.)
Ladybug: Gotcha!
Pharaoh: Horus, give me your wings!
Alya: (recording) Peeps, you just witnessed another insane feat from Ladybug! Thanks for saving my butt!
Ladybug: Oh, uh, you're welcome. But it's not over yet. Not until-
Alya: Not until Ladybug destroys the pendant containing the akuma, and turns everything back to normal! I pay attention.
Ladybug: The pendant! Good eye!
Alya snorted, "I thought you already knew that," she smiled at her best friend, "If I hadn't been so terrified, I would have been fangirling over the fact that I helped Ladybug."
Marinette smiled, "While I was thankful that you managed to spot the akuma, I really would have preferred having to find it out on my own if it meant you weren't in danger." Alya shook her head with a smile.
"Believe me girl, I would have wanted the same thing."
Alya: (sees the Pharaoh flying in behind Ladybug) Ahhh!
(The Pharaoh knocks Ladybug off the roof, but she uses her yo-yo to land safely.)
Alya: Way to go, Ladybug! (The Pharaoh lands behind her and throws her phone away.) No!
(Ladybug catches the phone.)
Alya squealed happily, hugging Marinette around the neck with both arms. "Girl, do you know how excited I was to see the Ladybug save my phone?" She leaned back with a smirk, "Although, you saving my phone makes a lot more sense now than it did then."
Marinette smiled, patting one of Alya's arms, "Well I couldn't let my best frend's phone get destroyed, could I? That thing is basically your life."
Pharaoh: You're not going to win this time, Ladybug!
Alya: Help me, Ladybug!
Pharaoh: Crush that insect!
(Ladybug is surrounded by mummies. She witnesses Alya being thrown onto the beam of light and carried upward.)
Cat Noir: What the? (He sees three mummies about to throw a car at him, but Ladybug wraps her yo-yo around his ankle and pulls him to safety.)
Ladybug: Cat Noir! This way!
(Ladybug runs onto a bus. The mummies follow her on, and she exits. Cat Noir turns the bus on its side.)
Ladybug: We have to save Alya before she reaches the circle of darkness!
Pharaoh: You will not stop me from bringing Nefertiti back! I'll finish you off! Anubis, bring me mummies! (He shoots beams at Ladybug and Cat Noir, but they dodge them. Ladybug uses his yo-yo to grab the Pharaoh, while Cat Noir tries to rescue Alya.)
Marinette tilted her head to the side. "Hey Tikki, is his personality based off of the actual Pharaoh, or is it just an exaggeration of his obsession with Egyptian history?"
Tikki's eyes glazed over in thought, and her head cocked cutely to the side.
"I think it was a bit of both, actually. This was thousands of years ago, Marinette, but I do know that he was extremely obsessed with getting Nefertiti back, although at that point, he was more controlled by his own magic than his own ambitions."
While pretty much everyone thought this was all extremely interesting, they were quickly reminded of what they were supposed to be doing when the television unpaused itself.
Pharaoh: Horus, give me your wings! (He lifts himself and Ladybug into the air. While airborne, Ladybug grabs the Pharaoh's pendant and drops it.)
Ladybug: Cat Noir! The pendant! That's where the akuma is!
(They run for the pendant, but the Pharaoh lands on it.)
Pharaoh: Sekhmet, give me your strength! (He uses his strength to make a sonic wave that knocks Ladybug and Cat Noir off. The mummies surround them.)
Pharaoh: (grabs the pendant) It's over.
Alya: (coming closer and closer to the circle of darkness) Ladybug, save me!
Pharaoh: Oh, Ra, god of the sun, accept this humble offering and return the princess to ME!
The class shivered slightly at the dark tone of the fight, all but seeing the proverbial countdown reaching zero. Myléne was all but being held by Ivan at this point, and Marinette, even though she saved her, was holding Alya's hand as tightly as she could without breaking it, and Alya was doing the same in kind.
She might have put up a brave front, but she had been absolutely terrified at the time.
Ladybug: Lucky Charm! (A Ladybug costume appears.) A Ladybug outfit?
Cat Noir: That's our last hope?
Plagg snickered, "Yeah! He could have just grabbed his from home!" The rest of the class joined in on the opportunity to lighten the mood, snickering along with him.
(Ladybug uses her thinking vision, and the earrings in the costume appear)
Ladybug: This offering isn't good enough for Nefertiti!
Alya: Hey! Thanks a lot!
Alya only noticed that she had shouted that along with her onscreen self when she saw the amused looks of her friends and classmates.
Marinette stuck her tongue out, "You're welcome."
Pharaoh: Too late, Ladybug! The ritual has begun!
Ladybug: Set Alya free and sacrifice me instead! Wouldn't that be the sweetest revenge? 5000 years later! After all, I'm the one who kept Nefertiti from you all these years!
Pharaoh: It's true that you make a much more precious offering than this mortal. (He takes Ladybug's hand.) Horus, give me wings! (He flies with Ladybug up to Alya.)
Alya: Seriously? (The Pharaoh throws her off the beam. She falls, slides down the pyramid, and lands safely on the ground.) Excuse you, but I make excellent sacrificing material!
Nino, Marinette, and Adrien all facepalmed together, "So not the point." Marinette muttered, giving Alya a gimlet eye.
Nino let out a half terrified chuckle, "Yeah dude, seriously!"
Alya simply shrugged sheepishly.
Hawk Moth: Take her Miraculous! The earring!
Ladybug: You win, Pharaoh... (She pretends to take off her earring, then tricks the Pharaoh and grabs his pendent.) You want my Miraculous? Go get it! (throws the fake earrings)
Hawk Moth: Get it!
(The Pharaoh grabs them, but he sees they're fake.)
Pharaoh: A toy? You tricked me!
Plagg snorted quietly, which then turned into a chuckle, followed by a full laugh before Marinette looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "What's so funny?"
Plagg, whose face was now somewhat red from laughter, replied, "His reaction was so stupid!" He snickered again, "I mean, the second a Miraculous comes off, you detransform! Without us to hold the transformation, it ends immediately." Adrien smirked as well, a small snicker leaving his lips.
"And how would you know, Adrien?" Marinette asked, mock archly, with an undercurrent of actual concern.
Adrien simply tried to look coy and shrugged his shoulders, "You'll probably find out soon." Marinette rolled her eyes with a smile.
Ladybug: (She punches the pendant and breaks it, releasing the akuma, then slides down the pyramid and lands on the ground.) No more evil doing for you, little akuma. Time to de-evilize! (catches the akuma) Gotcha! (turns the akuma into a normal butterfly) Bye bye, little butterfly. Miraculous Ladybug! (She throws the Lucky Charm into the air. It explodes into a blast of energy that turns everything back to normal. The Pharaoh turns back into Jalil.)
Jalil: What happened?
Marinette tilted her head to the side, "Y'know, I've got to wonder, why does no one realize they were akumatized after being freed from it?"
Alya quickly perked up to answer, "Pretty much everyone I've ever interviewed after being akumatized, myself included of course, is confused because we can't remember anything about being akumatized, and because some people" she said, with a smirk and a raised eyebrow towards Marinette and Adrien, "leave as soon as they make sure we aren't hurt, it's only a few minutes later that we tend to put two and two together to realize we were akumatized."
Marinette rubbed her head sheepishly, but nodded. "Well, to be fair, if we weren't about to change back, we'd stay a little longer, it's just that, you know, we can't let somebody learn our secret identities." She looked around the theater, eyeing the class, who were all looking at her with undisguised interest. "But since everyone here has already been akumatized, my point still stands."
(Ladybug gives Alya her phone back.)
Alya: Thanks, Ladybug! But, uh, I still gotta ask: how old are you, really?
Ladybug: Um, much older than a high school student, that's for sure! (swings away)
Nobody even had to look to know that Alya was currently berating herself.
"So, so, so, so, so, so dense."
Cat Noir: Don't you wanna know how old I am?
Alya: In a sec, looks like I'll be able to tell for myself.
(Cat Noir sees that he is about to turn back, and runs away.)
Alya: (laughs)
Marinette giggled quietly, lightly bumping Adrien in her humor, who simply smiled and shook his head.
Scene: Inside the Louvre. Alya walks back in and sees Marinette.
Alya: Where have you been?
Marinette: You won't believe this! I got mummified!
Alya looked over at her friend, "For all of your weak excuses, you do occasionally make annoyingly good ones."
Marinette smiled and shrugged. "Well, after the first few times trying to explain why I wasn't around, it got a lot easier."
Alya: Hope you weren't one of the ones trying to swap me for Nefertiti! Creepy!
Marinette: What?! You were almost... sacrificed?
Alya facepalmed. "And then you make those comments, and I wonder how I never figured it out myself."
Marinette shrugged sheepishly this time.
Alya: If it hadn't been for you I'd never have found out that Ladybug is at least 5000 years old!
Marinette: Hey! What are friends for?
(Alya grabs her bag, and they head out.)
Alya: I still don't get it though, what was she doing with that tenth grade history textbook?
Marinette: Uh, she... she probably had to find out what's been going on for the past 50 centuries!
Alya: You're probably right. It's tough staying in the loop. Hey, Ladybug's textbook! It's gone! (Marinette giggles to herself.)
Alya looked over at Marinette pleadingly, "You have to tell me how you did that Marinette, it's been confusing me since day one!"
Marinette, very much enjoying getting to play coy for once, and not feel guilty about it, smiled mysteriously. "I think you've got enough of my secrets for one day, Alya."
Alya's groan went very well with Adrien's laughs.
Hawk Moth: (from his tower) You might have gotten away this time, but I assure you, Ladybug, some day, wherever you are, I will have your Miraculous, and you'll be nothing! Nothing at all!
Adrien sat up straighter and put on a dramatic voice"Yes, someday, somehow, you will finally…" he paused dramatically, grabbing Marinette's hand, "lose horribly to the unstoppable Ladybug and Cat Noir!" Adrien made hushed applause noises, much to the amusement of Marinette, who was once again enjoying getting to hold Adrien's hand.
'Scene: Marinette's room. Marinette is talking with Tikki.
Marinette: I don't get it. I know I'm not 5000 years old, so... who exactly was that Ladybug in the papyrus?
Tikki: Kwamis like me and superheroes like you have always existed!
Marinette: So...that wasn't you in the papyrus either?
Tikki: What do you think?
Marinette: You don't look 5000 years old.
Tikki: Well, I'm not! I'm older than that! I'm the kwami who's watched over every single Ladybug since the very beginning!
Marinette: You must have known much less klutzy Ladybugs than me, right?
Tikki: Every Ladybug is different.
Marinette: That's what I thought.
Tikki: Marinette, you are different. But different as in surprising, unpredictable and endearing. And very talented. You learn fast.
Marinette: Really?
Tikki: Yes.
(Marinette kisses Tikki on her forehead)
Rose 'awwww'd' and squealed happily.
Tikki: You better get to sleep. Remember, you have that history test tomorrow!
Marinette: Oh yeah! Good thing it's on Ancient Egypt.
THE END.
"And guess who aced it?" Marinette asked rhetorically.
Alya smirked, "Well I mean, with Tikki as a study buddy, I'm sure your history grades have skyrocketed." Marinette shook her head fondly.
Marinette, feeling slightly cramped from sitting too long, decided to stand up, and only then noticed that she was still holding Adrien's hand. She blushed slightly, but instead of letting go like she expected him too, Adrien stood as well, pulling on her hand just hard enough to cause her to stumble slightly into his arms.
Marinette looked up at Adrien, who was doing a good job of not combusting from the amount of heat rushing to his cheeks as the two of them stood, Marinette still held by Adrien, staring into each the other's eyes.
The moment was broken when Alya cleared her throat, looking at the two of them with a smirk on her face. "Oh I'm sorry, did I interrupt something?" She asked coyly, holding the remote up.
Marinette jumped out of Adrien's hands like she'd been burnt, coughing awkwardly at the many amused stares from her classmates.
Adrien, looking for anyway to get away from awkwardness quickly jumped on the opportunity to get out of the awkward situation. "So uh, anyone need to go to the bathroom? No? Good!" He quickly pulled the remote away from Alya and turned towards the screen.
"The next episode is…"
AN: So… It's been awhile, huh? Sorry about that gap, I've just been busy, I got laid off my job, and I've been trying to set up an ASMR channel, so it kinda… sorta… slipped my mind.
I can't promise a concrete update date, but I can say that I don't plan on abandoning this story, I can only hope that my muse doesn't keep abandoning me like it has been.
Anyways, I'll see you next time, with Chapter 8 of Watching What?!