"S-Shadow?" Ladybug sputtered, shaking her head. "That's impossible! He's a cat and you're clearly not!"
"Come now, Ladybug... Don't you recognize these alluring green eyes? I've often been told that they're unforgettable."
Ladybug paused for a moment and looked Chat Noir in the eyes. She looked a little shaken, but she still wasn't entirely convinced. "You still don't believe me?" Chat Noir pouted, looking hurt. "I can prove it. That mask of yours keeps your identity a secret, right?"
"Yes..."
"Well it's not much of secret if other people knew it. Wouldn't you agree, Marinette?"
Ladybug jumped forward and clamped her hand over Chat Noir's mouth. "Quiet down!" she whispered, giving him an angry glare. "No one is supposed to know who I am. Tikki said it's dangerous. I believe you now, but you can't go around saying stuff like that out loud."
Beep!
"Marinette, you're going to detransform. We need to find someplace to hide!"
Tikki's voice filled Ladybug's head. She only had a few more minutes befores she would return to normal and people were beginning to crowd the area. But she couldn't leave Chat Noir behind. She still had far too many questions for him, so he'd have to come along. He knew her secret anyways.
Ladybug removed her hand and grabbed Chat Noir's arm. "Let's go," she commanded. "We need to get out of here, but I'm not letting you out of my sight. You have a lot of explaining to do." Chat Noir gulped, but held tightly onto Ladybug. She pulled out her yo-yo and swung away to the one place she'd knew they'd be safe, her house. While Ladybug and Chat Noir fled, neither noticed a girl with a notebook who was hiding in the corner, documenting everything she had just seen.
They arrived on the bakery rooftop just in time. The moment Ladybug's feet touched down there was swirl of light and she transformed back into Marinette. Tikki came flying out of the earrings and landed in Marinette's pocket. Chat Noir watched the girl detransform with wide eyes. Despite seeing the magic himself, it was still difficult for him to wrap his head around it though his own predicament was far stranger.
"Let's go down to my room," Marinette told Chat Noir as she opened the trapdoor to her bedroom. "It'll be better to talk in there instead of hanging out of the roof. I'm sure you're already familiar with it anyways." Chat Noir obediently followed her into her room and she gestured for him to take a seat on the bed. Tikki came flying out and landed on Marinette's shoulder.
"So you're saying that you're Shadow, correct?" Marinette crossed her arms and gave Chat Noir an inquisitive glare. She was going to get answers even if it meant standing there all night.
"Yes, princess. That's actually what I-"
"Please let me finish first," Marinette said, cutting him off. "I'm not done yet. Anyways, if you're Shadow, how come you look like a person right now?"
"Your guess is as good as mine. When you were about to fight that monster, I felt a strange rush of energy and all of a sudden, I became human. I didn't have much time to stop and think about it because you were in trouble."
"But you aren't fully human, are you? You've still got cat ears and a tail. That's definitely not normal. You're a black cat like Shadow though and you knew I was Ladybug, so I'm have no choice but to believe you. I can't say I understand, but I believe you. Tikki, what do you think about all this?"
Tikki left Marinette's shoulder and floated over to Chat Noir. She flew around him, examining him closely. She tugged on his ears to which Chat Noir shouted, "Careful! That hurts!" They were real alright, but his ears weren't what bothered her most. There was a silver ring on his finger that looked exactly like the one in her memory. It seemed impossible, but maybe...
"Marinette..." Tikki said slowly. "There's something else I need to tell you about the miraculous. I didn't tell you before because I didn't think it would be necessary. Having Chat Noir here completely proves me wrong though."
"What do you mean?"
"Ladybug has the power of creation and good luck, but there must be a power to counteract that. That is the power of destruction and bad luck. There must be balance. Since the beginning of the era of Ladybug, she has always had a partner who represents her other half. They have a kwami like me and have always been a black cat named Chat Noir."
"Me?" Chat Noir pointed to himself. He seemed more confused than Marinette now. He never had a kwami and definitely didn't have magical powers. Up until an hour ago, he thought he was a normal cat or at least pretended to be. He didn't understand how he fit into this larger picture.
"It seems that you are Chat Noir," Tikki continued. "But that shouldn't be right. Chat Noir is a human, not a real cat. When I first saw you, I thought you couldn't be him until I saw that ring on your finger. That is Chat Noir's miraculous. I can tell. It's a sign that you are the chosen one."
Chat Noir admired his ring. It was black and had a green pawprint in the center. "But I've never seen this ring before," he protested, holding up his hand. "It only appeared when I became human."
"The ring seems to be attached to your human form then. It'll only appear if you transform. And if you use Chat Noir's magic spell, you will return to being a cat after five minutes. That's what I'd assume," Tikki explained further. "But this should be impossible! You can't be a cat! You're supposed to be a human and have a kwami named Plagg! Do you know him? Have you seen him at all? Marinette noticed a hint of worry and panic in Tikki's voice.
Chat Noir shook his head. "I'm sorry, but I don't who you're talking about. Do you want this ring back then? Maybe it'll help you find him. I don't think a cat like me should have magic like this..."
"You must keep it," Tikki said firmly. "If you have the miraculous, it must belong to you. You couldn't have stumbled upon it by accident. Plagg chose you for some reason. Where could he have disappeared to though? He normally never leaves his miraculous user's side. Something must be wrong."
"That's not the only thing that's wrong," Marinette added. "Care to explain more about these akumas? You didn't tell me I would be fighting giant rock monsters. Do you know how many times I almost died?"
"I'm sorry," Tikki apologized. "I thought if I told you everything right away, you wouldn't agree to be Ladybug. But now I'll tell you everything I know."
"Yeah, you'd better." Marinette sat down beside Chat Noir, prepared to hear a story. He scooted close to her, allowing their shoulders to touch. Marinette was surprised by the sudden contact, but didn't say anything. A flirty cat was the least of her concerns.
"I'm not sure where to start, so I'll start from the beginning." Tikki took a deep breath. "The Ladybug and Chat Noir miraculouses are not the only miraculouses in existence. There are five others, most of which are harmless. However, there is one that has the power to bring great destruction. It isn't inherently evil, but can be used to bring harm if put in evil hands. It is the butterfly miraculous possessed by the kwami, Nooroo."
"The butterfly miraculous allows its user to grant temporary magic powers to someone in need. It's intention was to help people selflessly as it doesn't give the user any true power. But when abused, it can be used to create vengeful monsters that obey their creator's demands. These monsters and the vessels that give them power are called akuma."
"These akuma stem from one person. They are a great threat to Paris and maybe even the world. That is where you and Chat Noir come in. While part of your job is to defeat the akuma, you must also try to find whoever is harboring the butterfly miraculous and defeat them. Until they are stopped, their evil influence will continue to spread."
Marinette pursed her lips. "This is bigger than I thought," she worried, biting on her fingernail. "One of those akuma took out an entire chunk of the city today. If Chat Noir or I hadn't been there, then all of Paris could've been obliterated. How am I supposed to take on someone that creates monsters like that?"
"So we have to stop this person?" Chat Noir asked as he shook his head. "You must be mistaken. I'm not supposed to take out villains or fight monsters. Up until yesterday I was scavenging through an alley just trying to find enough food to eat. This was fun and all, but you've got the wrong cat. Sorry."
"Don't you get it?" Marinette stood up, knocking Chat Noir off her side. He was startled by her sudden outburst. "There's someone out there threatening to plunge this city into chaos. Our city! Cat or human, this is where we live and if we've been chosen to save it, we're gonna save it! Where's that sly attitude of yours from earlier, huh? You were so confident before and now you're going to back out?"
"I-"
"I don't want excuses. I'm scared too, but I'm going to fight and protect my city with or without you." Marinette's legs were shaking. Scared was an understatement. She was downright terrified. That akuma frightened her and she never wanted to see anything like it again. But she didn't want Paris to face something like that on its own either.
"You told me I was a hero. You believed in me!" Marinette said, shooting Chat Noir a determined glare. "And that was the push I needed to actually do something. Now the tables have turned. I can't do this alone. So Chat Noir, can I believe in you?"
She offered him her hand, taking a chance by holding it out to him. Chat Noir looked at it and then back at her. His heartbeat quickened and a cheeky smile bloomed on his face. He grabbed her hand with his paw and shook it vigorously, failing to notice how strangely sweaty his paws were becoming. "You've changed my mind," Chat Noir grinned, feeling a sudden spark ignite within him. "You've got spunk, princess. You'll be a fine hero."
"Thanks, but what's with the nicknames? Princess? My lady?"
"I just thought of bugaboo! That one's pretty cute!"
"Let's not with that one," Marinette laughed. "We can just call each other by our real names. I'm sorry for calling you Shadow. I don't want to make that mistake again. So is your name really Chat Noir?"
"Yep! It's the only name I've ever had. It's purr-fect, don't you think?" Chat Noir did an eyebrow wiggle to accompany his pun. He wanted to make Marinette laugh again. It was oddly pleasing on his ears.
"And you're a joker? Wonderful..." Marinette rolled her eyes. "He's an unique character to say the least. It'll be hard to put up with this all the time. Not to mention, there's not anywhere to keep him now that he's human. He can't sleep on the bed and he probably eats more food in this form. And if my parents find out I'm hiding a cat boy, they'll flip!"
"There's one last thing I have to tell you two!" Chat Noir and Marinette turned to Tikki. She was so small and quiet that her words were easily ignored. "We have a problem. Chat Noir is human for now, but like I said earlier, he'll eventually turn back into a cat."
"What?" Chat Noir exclaimed. "Aw man, I was justing getting used to looking like this! Having thumbs is claw-some! You can pick stuff up and hold cute girls' hands." He grabbed Marinette's hand and gave it a delicate kiss. "See?" he smirked.
She frowned and flicked him hard on the forehead. He recoiled in pain, giving her a pouty face. "Not the time," Marinette muttered.
"Anyways, Chat Noir should be able to maintain his human form as long as he doesn't use his miraculous spell. If he does detransform, he can hopefully regain energy by eating and sleeping like a kwami. Then he should be able to transform back!" Tikki tried to look hopeful, but she wasn't sure if her words rang true. She had never seen a situation like this. There were no guarantees.
"Let's test it out then." Chat Noir stood up and cracked his knuckles. "We won't know unless we try. Just give me the magic words! But I want a good meal after this. Got any camembert cheese?"
"Cheese?" Marinette gagged in disgust. "Gross. Can cats even eat cheese?"
Tikki's eyes narrowed at Chat's meal request. She knew someone else with a similar food addiction and the similarities couldn't be a coincidence. The more she learned about this new Chat Noir, the less things made sense. She didn't feel the same energy from him as she did Marinette. Marinette's aura was distinctly human even as Ladybug. Chat Noir, however, gave a much different reading. There was some cat, some human, and most importantly, some kwami. He was a mishmash of three things that shouldn't have been mixed.
"Tikki?" Marinette asked. "Are you okay?"
"Huh? Oh yes... I'm fine. I just got a little distracted. Back to Chat Noir! You can harness the power of destruction with your magic spell. All you have to do is yell 'Cataclysm' and the spell will activate. But you must be careful when you use it. It'll destroy anything it touches."
Tikki scanned the room for something of low value. She spotted a small piece of blue fabric lying on Marinette's desk. "This should be fine!" she announced as she flew over and grabbed the fabric. Chat Noir opened his paws and Tikki dropped the piece of fabric. "Make sure you only touch this," she instructed. "We don't want to ruin Marinette's bedroom!"
"Okay..." Chat Noir said. "Here I go... Cataclysm!"
A sudden black glow formed around his paws. Chat Noir admired his hand in both fear and interest. He looked at the fabric in his other paw and touched his glowing hand to it. Instantly, the fabric faded into a dark brown color and began to crumble into dust. The glowing disappeared and the fabric was only a pile of debris on the floor.
"That...was... so cool!" Chat Noir shouted, pumping his fist in the air. "Can I do that again? Give me something bigger!"
"I'm afraid you can only use it once," Tikki laughed. "And let's keep the destruction to a minimum. You should only use that spell when fighting an akuma. The same goes for Ladybug's Lucky Charm. You only get one chance to use that magic, so use it wisely."
Beep!
"What was that?" Chat Noir's tail stood up straight at the noise. His ears wiggled, trying to find its source. With all his attentive cat senses, he failed to notice the flashing on his ring.
"That's your miraculous, right?" Marinette interjected. "Once you use Cataclysm, you have five minutes before you return to normal. It's the same for me. That's why you have to be extra careful when using that spell!"
"Marinette's right!" Tikki nodded. "You don't want to turn into a cat in the middle of a fight. I'm sure you can handle it though. Marinette has done a very good job. You can learn from her. She's come a long way in a day."
"Thanks. While we're waiting for his clock to tick down, I'll go grab us something to eat. We missed breakfast due to all the chaos. I think we might have some cheese." Chat Noir's face lit up. "Tikki, you want to come with? I'll let you pick out some cookies."
"Count me in!"
Tikki flew over to Marinette and hid in her sleeve. Before heading downstairs, Marinette turned to Chat Noir and said, "Stay here, okay? You definitely can't get caught by my parents." Chat Noir nodded like a good kitty. "I'll be back in a minute," Marinette laughed, shutting the trapdoor.
She and Tikki walked down to the bakery storefront where dozens of people were running in and out. Marinette grabbed an empty tin and then walked over to the display where her father was working. "What's going on?" Marinette asked as she filled the tin with cookies. "Doesn't the breakfast rush usually end an hour ago?"
"It seems like something happened downtown that messed up people's schedules," Tom said. "Customers were coming in telling me that they saw a giant monster made of stone. Apparently, he destroyed an entire block of the city. Then, two magicians appeared out of nowhere and stopped the beast. I heard one looked like a cat and the other like a ladybug."
"What?" Marinette exclaimed, trying to look shocked. "How is that possible? There aren't any magicians living around here anymore."
"That's what I said. I think it's just some prank some kids came up with. Now they've sent the whole neighborhood into a panic. Until I see proof, I won't believe such nonsense. There's only a handful of magicians left in this kingdom and I can bet they wouldn't waste their time saving other people. They're all greedy, corrupt bas-"
"Calm down, Papa. I bet you're right. There's nothing to worry about. The whole thing sounds like a joke. What kind of magician would dress up like a ladybug?" Marinette patted her father on the shoulder to reassure him. "By the way," she added. "Do we have any cheese?"
"Cheese? Check the back. Third shelf on the right."
"Thank you!"
Marinette sprinted to the back before her father could ask her why she needed cheese. Since the area was clear, Tikki came out of hiding. "Guess word of Chat and I is starting to spread?" Marinette chuckled nervously. "Hopefully that doesn't mean more trouble in the future. I don't think I can handle an akuma and a crowd."
She got on to her toes and looked into the shelf. To her surprise, there was camembert and a lot of it too. "Why do we have this? "I don't think anyone in my family even likes cheese that much. We certainly don't use it in any of our pastries. Maybe it was a present? Whoever gave that to us has bad taste." She grabbed the cheese and almost fell backwards at the smell. "It smells rancid too! If Chat actually eats this stuff, he's going to have to stay as far from me as possible. Yuck!"
"Marinette! Someone's coming!" Tikki whispered, quickly retreating back into Marinette's sleeve. Marinette slammed the lid on the tin shut and turned around to escape when she ran straight into her mother.
"Maman!" Marinette shouted after nearly knocking Sabine to the floor. "I didn't see you there. You snuck up on me!"
"Sorry dear. I was in a bit of a rush." Sabine did look flustered. Her cheeks were pink and she was out of breath. "Have you heard the news? Your father says it's ridiculous, but I'm not so sure. I've heard of stranger things. It's good to know there's someone fighting on the public's side though. It puts my heart at ease."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm talking about those two heroes. People have lost faith in magicians these days, so I'm glad to see there are still some out there trying to do a good job. I'll give them my full support!"
"Thanks?"
"What did you say?"
"Huh? Nothing!" Marinette answered, taking a step around her mother. "Y-you should... um... help Papa! There's a lot of customers right now and he seems overwhelmed! I'm going back upstairs! See ya!" Marinette rushed back towards the stairs, leaving her mother bewildered.
Meanwhile. Chat Noir was still sitting on Marinette's bed, watching his ring count down. "Less than a minute," he thought as he watched the last piece of the paw print begin to flicker. "Hopefully Marinette will bring that food soon. I don't think I've ever been so hungry!"
All of a sudden, there was a green flash and the world around Chat Noir began to warp. He shook his head and opened his eyes to find that everything looked much larger than before. He looked down and saw cat paws instead of human feet. He didn't have fingers anymore and when he tried to speak, all that came out was a meager "meow".
"That was short lived," Chat Noir sighed. "Now I really have no choice but to sit here and wait. Being human was way more convenient. For it only being my second time, I think I did a damn good job. Hands aren't that hard to use and my French is pretty great."
"Oh... I completely forgot! I didn't tell Tikki or Marinette the entire truth. They think that I really am a normal cat, but that wasn't the first time I've been human before. Should I tell them? They haven't answered any of my questions yet. Neither one of them recognized my human form and Tikki seems to think my entire existence is an anomaly. They both seemed stressed enough. I don't want to overwhelm them. The whole thing sounds too absurd to even be true."
"But I have this feeling I'm definitely connected to this miraculous thing! It can't be a coincidence that I have it, right? Tikki's friend, Plagg, might have the answers. She said he's in charge of my miraculous. We just have to find him. And the person who created that akuma might know something too. I have to follow any lead I can get. I don't want to live my life not knowing anymore. I just want to know who I am!"
"Chat! I'm back and I brought food!" Chat Noir's head perked up as Marinette entered the room. He wasn't sure if he was more excited to see her or food. He ran up to her and pawed on her leg, begging her to feed him. She looked down and laughed. "You turned back already! You really are just a cat!"
She opened the tin and set the cheese down on the floor for him. "You'd better eat that all," she smiled. "I don't want any of it left on my floor. It smells disgusting! How can you eat something like that?" Chat Noir bit into the cheese and was delighted by its gooey goodness. He didn't know why, but cheese satisfied a deep craving inside him.
"Now it's time for our breakfast!" Tikki smiled as she flew into the cookie tin. "Yippee!"
"Don't eat so fast, you two," Marinette advised, taking a seat on her bed. "You'll get a stomach ache and I won't play doctor if either of you get sick." Marinette laid down against her pillow while the others ate. "And I'm getting a headache," she thought. "I've fought monsters, found out my pet cat can turn into a human, and had to touch stinky cheese. Today's been even more hectic than yesterday. I wish the world would just slow down for a moment. I need a break..."
She let her eyes close. "A little nap won't hurt..." All Marinette could hear was the sound of little creatures nibbling on their food. It was oddly peaceful. Marinette adjusted her position and pulled her blankets up. Now she was getting comfortable. A warm body jumped up next to her. It was Chat Noir who had finished eating.
"Now that I know he's half human, I really shouldn't let him cuddle this close to me," Marinette yawned. "But I'll let it slide today. We're all tired and need a cat nap."
"Marinette! Your friends are here!" Sabine called from downstairs, interrupting Marinette's short lived slumber. Marinette sat straight up with a scream. Chat Noir jumped in panic, on alert, and fell to the floor, ready to attack whatever was threatening Marinette. Tikki dropped her cookie and flew over to Marinette.
"What's wrong?"
Marinette gulped and buried her head in her hands. "We forgot about one important thing..." she muttered. "Alya."
