I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I hope my readers like it as well.
Sheeba was fascinated by the modern world. When she was in her world, she often imagined what was happening in the human one. At that moment, what she was seeing was beyond even her dreams.
Music that could be heard from far away places. Learning knowledge with a tap of your finger. Lights that weren't produced by candles. It was a remarkable world indeed.
Adrien was practicing on the piano while Plagg was watching a show about cheese making. Sheeba decided that she was going to have a relaxing bath in the bathroom sink.
Just because she looked similar to a praying mantis didn't mean she couldn't enjoy things they were incapable of doing. Phasing into the bathroom, she admired the marble sink and the floor-length mirror next to the infinity pool.
"Hmm, I really need to plump up a bit. My legs are not looking their best right now," Sheeba said to herself. She closed the drain and filled the sink with steamy warm water.
She pumped a bit of hand soap into the water and stirred it up with an unused toothbrush. The sink quickly filled up with lavender-scented bubbles. "Ah, perfect!"
She dove in and let out a relaxed sigh. The temperature was just right as the water soaked her legs. The steamy water helped expanded the flaps on her feet that resembled flower petals.
The kwami used her raptorial arms to poke at the bubbles, giggling when they popped. Pulling the bubbles closer, she started to scrub under her arms. A clean kwami was a healthy kwami.
Sheeba's bubble bath lasted a little longer than she intended it to. She had finally finished cleaning her body when she heard a little cough.
Opening her eyes halfway, she stared at her "cousin." "Can I help you with something, Plagg?"
"Sure, you can dry yourself quickly. The kid's got his Chinese lesson in ten minutes. We need to be ready to go with him because the tutor is taking Adrien on a field trip to practice with real people."
"Chinese lesson? But that wasn't scheduled for another hour and a half." Opening her eyes all the way, she glanced at the clock. "Yikes, I didn't realize my bath had lasted beyond its normal half hour."
Plagg mentioned this was why he avoided baths. Sheeba flicked some water at him as she got out. She dried herself carefully as she didn't want to drip water on the floor.
As a final step, she made sure she her legs were plumped up. "Alright, I'm ready to go."
"Finally! Come on!" The usually lazy cat pulled his "cousin" through the door and into Adrien's bag. Plagg gave a tiny whine to indicate they were in place.
The lavender scent was inescapable. Plagg was doing his best not to sneeze. "Did you have to use so much soap?" he moaned.
"If I didn't want to smell like stinky cheese, then yes, I did. I would prefer to smell like an orchid. Sadly, Adrien's lavender-scented products were the only ones available."
Plagg rolled his eyes. He didn't understand why female Kwamiis were obsessed with their hygiene. Who cared if they got a little stinky? It wasn't as if the humans would stop believing their wielders were the cause of the scent.
Sheeba wondered if all male Kwamiis liked to be stinky. Her "brothers" except for Vollo, tried to stay clean. She knew Vollo couldn't help being covered in mucus like his animal counterpart. That didn't mean she enjoyed the smell of it.
The car ride lasted for a long time. When they arrived at their destination, the Kwamiis heard the clang of dishes along with voices yelling. The bag rocked back and forth violently.
Plagg fell on top of Sheeba who quickly shoved him off. His "cousin" started grooming herself to get rid of the tiny bits of fur that had gotten stuck to her arms. She threw him a disgusted look.
It wasn't even his fault! Adrien was the one carrying the bag. It was his fault he fell onto Sheeba. Besides, it wasn't like he shed profusely on her.
Once Sheeba had brushed the fur off she decided to stroll to the opposite end of the bag. Hopefully, Plagg wouldn't roll on top of her again. Did he not comprehend her desire to be primmed and polished every day?
Some of her "sisters" called her snobby at times. Her last wielder had even called her snooty. How easily they forgot she was also very resourceful, and that she had pulled her wielders out of jams because of it.
Plagg watched as his "cousin" settled down to meditate. Grateful she wouldn't be complaining for a little while, he decided it was a great time to take a nap. He padded the bag and curled up in a cozy nest to sleep.
Meanwhile, Adrien was enjoying this outing. It was rare for the tutor to take him out to practice with native speakers.
They had come to a family-run Chinese restaurant. He was the only European in the restaurant. He did his best to overlook the stares as he ordered jiaozi dumplings with sweet soy milk.
"How was my accent, teacher?" the boy asked in Mandarin.
"It has improved slightly. You need to focus on how the word sounds not the word itself. Are you practicing the vocal exercises I gave you regularly?" the tutor questioned.
"At least three times a week. I am a very busy teenager."
"Yet, you're not a full-time model anymore. You should use some of that free time to work on your language skills. You don't need to see your friends after school every day, correct?"
The blond managed to hide the hurt he felt inside. Being a part-time model was not turning out like he wanted it to. His three activity teachers all thought he could use his free time to improve in their domain.
What will it take for the adults in my life to realize I want some me time? Did Marinette feel incredibly frustrated like this when Alya kept palming the twins off to her?
When the meal was served the tutor ignored his food. He kept a close eye on Adrien to see if the teenager recalled proper meal etiquette. There was no opportunity for the teen to slip some of the food into his bag for the Kwamiis.
He hoped that Sheeba wouldn't try to get any potatoes on her own. She was more responsible than Plagg, right?
Sheeba was more responsible than Plagg. That was only because she knew how to wait for the right moment. Presently, she was hanging upside down just underneath the edge of the table.
Crawling a few centimeters closer, she watched the tutor intensely. The man had to be getting hungry as he watched the teenager eat. Her eyes lit up as the man pulled the dish closer to him.
When he picked up his first dumpling a tiny sliver of potato skin fell off. Her raptorial arms rushed out and snagged the skin. A second and third sliver fell as she snagged them as well.
Her appetite quenched she hurried back into the bag. Luckily, Plagg was still asleep. Sheeba patted herself on the back for a job well done.
Back in the USA, Ning was filling out a request form. Her supervisors had started introducing them about a year ago when it became clear that she would be needed in Paris more often until the terrorist was caught.
Since she had duties to the rest of the world, she had to give a reason why this request should be granted. To keep Monarch from becoming a global threat, she needed to see his power firsthand.
"Even with my extensive knowledge of the Miraculouses and magic in general I am unable to determine how to keep Monarch in check. The news broadcasts are not detailed enough to create an effective strategy to prevent Monarch's power from spreading.
"I urgently request permission to travel to Paris to check in on Team One. They can update my findings while also reviewing the protection grid layout. More importantly, I can see first-hand Monarch's new tactics to devise a strategy to prevent him from becoming a global threat."
"I also request permission to share details of the UN Security Council's ongoing plans with my contact and team. They can determine if the plans would succeed in the long term."
After triple checking to make sure there were no grammatical errors, she emailed the report to all her supervisors. She would have to wait a few days for a response.
The Security Council was busy dealing with rising sea levels creating instability and conflict for several nations. According to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, "The impact of rising seas is already creating new sources of instability and conflict."
He had warned the Security Council that a few nations were experiencing problems because the rising sea levels had tripled in the last few years. Their coastlines were rapidly disappearing.
Eventually, several countries would disappear leading to wars over resources because of the mass exodus from sinking countries. If they didn't get ahead of this, in fifty years there might be four hundred million people displaced.
It was a frustrating situation. With more countries accepting magic as real, it would only be a matter of time before people would begin dabbling in it. Then the world would have even more messes to clean up.
"None of this would be happening if the people in charge focused less on profit and more on the world around them. I narrowly convinced my supervisors about the dangers magic poses in governmental hands," Ning said to her adoptive mother.
"I know that was a real struggle for you dear. I believe though this is a battle you won't be able to win in the long run. Magic was regulated by governments in the past, and it will be in the future."
Ning rolled her eyes as she sighed. "My retrocognition visions have revealed to me how inadequate it was. Ask Father to use a memory stone on you. Then you'll see why I keep fighting to keep magic out of governmental hands."
Marianne assured her daughter that it was unnecessary. Her husband had told her stories about the old days. "As your mother, I'm anxious about what happens if you push back too much against your superiors."
"I've spent my whole life holding back. I will always respect my superiors. They can respect me by listening to what I have to say."
Marianne was pleased to hear this. That didn't stop her from worrying her daughter might get in trouble if she started snarking off to the wrong person. "Just be cautious when you speak, Ning."
"I will, Mom. I will."
It was another lovely day in Paris. The sun was shining and a gentle breeze wafted through the city. At city hall, Mayor Bourgeois and Deputy Mayor Anne Hidalgo were meeting with Ms. Veronique Berecz, curator of the Grévin Wax Museum.
Ms. Berecz had made this appointment to find out why the city had given her an injunction against opening her new exhibit. "I don't understand why the city council is against my new exhibit. It is a tribute to all the hard work the heroes of Paris have done."
Mayor Bourgeois apprehensively wrung his hands. He glanced at the true mayor of Paris who only lifted an eyebrow at him. He was the "official" mayor so it was his duty to justify why the injunction had been filed.
Tugging on his collar, Mayor Bourgeois did his best to sound confident. "On the advice of my colleague here, I have decided the new exhibit would be too tempting of a target for Monarch to attack."
Ms. Berecz was thunderstruck by this absurd belief. "Why would a terrorist care about a new exhibit? He certainly never went after the museum itself when it had him and the Akumas on display."
Deputy Mayor Hidalgo replied, "While your statement is true, we can't forget that Monarch is more powerful than Hawkmoth was. The recent assaults have the entire city council concerned."
She locked eyes with Ms. Berecz as she pointed out the Akuma attacks had become more dangerous. "No one is certain how the terrorist is bequeathing the magic to his victims. The council is troubled by the danger that your exhibit could bring. It might help Monarch boost the stolen magic in unforeseen ways."
Ms. Berecz retorted that the heroes would have said something if this was the case. Mayor Bourgeois reminded her that the heroes themselves had yet to figure out Monarch's technique.
"I promise you Ms. Berecz, your exhibit will be open at one point. Until then, perhaps you could work on a different exhibit? Perhaps even doing some rearranging of current ones," the mayor helpfully suggested.
The curator gave both officials a scathing look before storming out of the office. Mayor Bourgeois slumped in his chair happy that the woman was gone now. He looked over at the real mayor and grunted, "Couldn't you have told her everything from the start?"
"Yes, but we need to keep up appearances. If you hadn't been misappropriating funds for your daughter's sake, then neither of us would be in this conundrum." Ms. Hidalgo commented snarkily.
Mayor Bourgeois's head thunked on his desk. Did that woman have to keep reminding him of his mistake every time they were together? Being shrieked at by Audrey was better than this.
When Veronique arrived at the museum, she squared her shoulders. What was she supposed to do now that her exhibit was canceled? She had spent weeks advertising a surprise exhibit for tomorrow night.
Several wax statues had been swapped out or put into storage to make space for an exhibit that wasn't happening. There wasn't enough time to make new statues or create a new exhibit. The hero statues were the only new figures that hadn't been seen yet.
"I can't believe I have to cancel my first big event," the woman cried to herself. She had been planning this debut even before Monarch stole the Miraculouses magic.
She had put a rush order to finish the last statue. Blue Ox had been a real challenge to make due to his proportions. The sculptors had spent days painstakingly removing the right amount of wax to make it as accurate as possible.
Without conscious thought, she made her way to the exhibit space. She clenched the glossy brochures she had requested for the event. All her hard work was for nothing.
"The mayor doesn't know what he's talking about! If I was a Miraculous wielder, he would have to let me open my exhibit!"
Veronique didn't even notice when the akuma infected the brochures she was holding. Without notice, a dark voice spoke in her mind.
"Manipula, I am Monarch. I can give you the power you need to make the mayor change his mind."
"NO! I will not be one of your Akumas!" She wouldn't betray the heroes of Paris. Not after all they had done.
Monarch latched onto that thought realizing he could twist her belief. "The heroes of Paris have betrayed you despite their promises, haven't they? They swore that I would be defeated and I haven't been yet."
"Because you're a coward who hides in the shadows!"
"Maybe they were not attempting hard enough. They had a whole team to help them search for me. Why didn't they find me? Perhaps they were receiving bribes not to find me. That way they could continue pretending to be heroes."
Veronique faith started to waver. The heroes wouldn't take bribes for selfish reasons, right? No, Monarch was trying to trick her, she was sure of it.
"Why don't I prove to you this isn't a trick? If you give me the heroes Miraculouses, I swear that I will stop attacking Paris." He could sense she was ready to submit so he went in for the kill.
"I shall grant you the power of the Ox Miraculous. Use the power of wealth against them."
"I will Monarch!" Veronique replied in determination. Seconds later she was transformed into Manipula, with the power to bring her wax statues to life.
Tearing down the curtains, she yanked a brochure out of her fan before pressing it against Blue Ox's head. The statue blinked before bowing. Pleased, she repeated the process until every hero statute, including the ones of Ladybug and Chat Noir, came to life.
"I am your new team leader. Together, we'll ensure Paris's safety once and for all!"
Ms. Bustier's class was walking around Paris with Mr. D'Argencourt for gym class. The gym teacher/fencing coach thought a bit of fresh air would help the kids feel better.
The civilian resistance was increasing as several groups had formed over the past few weeks. The former heroes were the most dedicated group. It just wasn't the same as being superheroes for them.
"Come along children. You need to pick up the pace! Remember, this is a power walk!"
Chloe groaned that her feet were killing her. She had forgotten her comfy walking shoes today. Short heels were not ideal for walking miles around the city.
"Statistically speaking, the more often you wear heels the more likely you are to have foot injuries. Those include fractures in the toes, constant pain all over your body, and your gait could be affected causing several problems," Max commented.
Chloe wailed again and asked if anyone had a spare pair of walking shoes she could use. Kim did have a pair and he would be happy to give them to her but warned her they would be a tad big on her.
At this point, the blond didn't care. All she wanted was some relief. Kim handed her the spare sneakers. Without complaining, Chloe quickly swapped her shoes out, relieved that her feet wouldn't hurt anymore.
Alya slowed down so she was next to Marinette. "I'd never thought I see the day where Chloe would wear sneakers, let alone Kim's. She must be desperate."
Marinette shushed Alya, reminding her that the blond had been working hard the last few months to change. Her best friend was about to retort when the girls crashed into their classmates who had abruptly stopped walking.
Alya opened her mouth to demand what was going on when she looked up. Her skin paled greatly while her heart started beating fast. On the rooftop above, the Miraculous team was following an Akuma.
Alya saw Rene Rouge use her move to slow the Akuma down. The Akuma used her fan to brush the spirit foxes away. How was this possible?!
Mr. D'Argencourt was grinning from ear to ear. "Glorious! The Miraculous Team has returned!"
Nino blurted out, "That's not the real team!" Realizing what he just said he hastily added, "Ladybug and Chat Noir would announce if they were back."
"Yeah, Nino's right. The heroes have always acted responsibly when it came to informing the city about their efforts," Ivan pointed out.
"Something was off about those knockoffs. Their skin was too shiny yet hard looking at the same time," Nathaniel spoke out.
"As members of the civilian resistance, it is up to us to find out the truth of the situation. Come on everyone, let's go!" Kim shouted. The entire class, except for Marinette and Adrien, took off sprinting toward the danger.
The gym teacher sternly told the couple to stay put as he dashed after the rest of the class. The teens looked around discretely for a place to transform. Suddenly there was a sizzle and all the cameras in the area blew.
"You're welcome. Now hurry up! The sooner this is done the sooner I can eat my cheese!" Plagg hissed.
The kids ducked into a basement stairwell before transforming. Once on the rooftops, Ladybug opened her yo-yo to check the LadyNoir blog. "According to Alya, the Akuma, and the fake team are heading in the direction of city hall."
"We need to figure out who the Akuma really is and their motivation fast," Chat Noir stated. They took off hoping to answer these questions quickly.
Manipula was halfway to city hall with her wax soldiers when she heard shouting. The civilians who were out were cheering at what they thought was the team's return.
What caught her attention was several teenage voices calling out that the team was fake. That she was playing a trick on everyone. Livid the Akuma stopped in her tracks.
Snapping her brochure fan shut, she glared at the teenagers below on the ground. "What did you say about me?" she demanded.
Alix responded with her usual brashness. "We called you out, Ms. Akuma! We know those heroes are fake! You're not going to get everyone's hopes up only to bring them crashing down because of your boss!"
Manipula scowled at the teenager. "You are mistaken, child! I'm using these powers to save everyone from continuously suffering because of Ladybug and Chat Noir's incompetents."
The Akuma spread her arms wide to encompass all the wax statues standing next to her. "I'm bringing back the team that those so-called heroes failed to protect. I'm going to show the mayor why he shouldn't have interfered with my new exhibit."
Most of the kids were confused, but Prince Ali connected the dots rather quickly. "You're Veronique Berecz! I received your invitation to the opening of your hero exhibit tomorrow night. I had no idea it was canceled."
The Akuma shouted that her name was Manipula. The only thing being canceled would be the mayor's life. She might take down the deputy mayor for filling the mayor's head with falsehoods.
In fact, she was willing to give them a demonstration of what she planned to do. "Eponia and Viperion, take out the trash."
The wax statues leaped down with their weapons raised. Suspecting the statues could use the corresponding heroes' power, the group scattered in multiple directions.
Eponia flung her horseshoe at Mylene's head only for Ivan to pull her down. The horse-themed heroine caught the weapon as it came back to her. She marched towards the couple.
"Reuse!" Eponia called out. The cobblestone street was ripped out from under their feet. With a flick of the statue's finger, the couple found themselves trapped inside a stone dome.
Max and Markov had Viperion on their tail. He was strumming the lyre loudly as he got within range.
"Run Max! I'll hold him off!" Markov shouted as he swung back to face the wax hero. He hoped that Max had done what he asked. "Do your worse imposter!"
"Rhythm!" the statue shouted. Viperion curled his hand together before pretending to hurl something on the ground. Markov broke into several pieces upon impact on the sidewalk.
Manipula dispatched another hero to handle these naughty kids. "Henwen, teach these kids so manners."
"Of course, Master." The pig-themed hero took a running leap and did a few aerial flips before landing in front of Chloe and Sabrina. The girls had been hiding under a bus shelter.
"Manner…" Henwen started to say when Chloe shoved one of her low heel shoes in the statue's mouth. Sabrina rushed up and used her whole body to knock the wax statue over.
It fell to the street and broke into three pieces. The girls smirked at one another. They looked up to see what Manipula's expression was only to see the Akuma had left with the rest of the figures.
"I'm calling city hall to warn them. See if you and the others can topple the wax statues," Chloe commanded. Sabrina saluted her before rushing off to complete her mission.
Manipula was halfway to city hall when she heard the whiz of a yo-yo. She dodged to the right to avoid being hit. The weapon instead hit the fake Ladybug taking out part of the chest.
The same thing occurred to the fake Chat Noir, who now had a hole in his chest. The rest of the wax statues stopped moving as Manipula whipped around. The real Ladybug and Chat Noir were on the rooftop behind her.
"You think you are very clever don't you two? Take out your doppelgängers so I can't use them against you," the Akuma scoffed.
"Yeah, pretty much," Chat Noir preened. "You need to stop what you're doing Veronique! Your heroes aren't as effective as real ones."
Veronique pointed her brochure fan at the two heroes accusing them of failing to protect the other heroes and taking bribes to stay heroes.
Ladybug sputtered in disbelief. How could anyone believe that load of garbage? "We would never do something like that!"
Holding her hands together she pleaded with Manipula to see through Monarch's lies. He wasn't going to keep his promise at all.
"Shows what you know. He swore he wouldn't do that. If he's sworn something he has to keep his promise," Manipula told them smugly.
"Not if he didn't swear by his Miraculous! Did he mentation that part when you made the deal?" Chat Noir questioned.
The Akuma hesitated for a second before shaking her head. The heroes were trying to confuse her. "Rene Rouge and Honeybee! Take care of Ladybug! Carapace, Sirius, your target is Chat Noir. The rest of you come with me!"
The four wax statues broke off and started to attack. Rene Rouge and Honeybee called on their powers first.
"Spirit Foxes!"
"Swarm!"
The spotted heroine quickly spun her yo-yo around to form a shield. The attacks bounced off it. She charged the wax statues knowing they would try to attack again.
Rene Rouge redirected her attack, shouting for the spirit foxes to bite Ladybug's ankles. She jumped over the foxes and somersaulted under the swarm of bees.
She kicked the flute and trompo out of the wax statues' hands. She swished the yo-yo back and forth quickly. The wax figures crumbled to pieces. She heard a crash and turned to her boyfriend.
Carapace and Sirius had taken each other out with their weapons. "I love when a classic move works so well."
"We still have tons of statues to eliminate. It's going to take time to get through them. Time that we don't have."
Chat Noir groaned they didn't have a prayer's chance of getting through all the statues before Manipula made it to city hall.
"Yes, you do. Me!" Sheeba exclaimed as she crawled out of Chat Noir's pocket. She hovered in front of Chat Noir and grinned. "My power functions by answering a single prayer for deliverance."
"So, if we pray that we want to reach city hall swiftly, then you can make that occur?" the teen questioned. Sheeba nodded proudly.
The duo pressed their hands together and bowed their heads. They prayed for nothing to get in their way until they reached city hall.
Sheeba started glowing brightly. Spreading her arms wide she called on her power, "Deliverance!"
The wax statues that had been stationed along the route started glowing a pinkish-white. They tried to move and found themselves incapable. The only statue not affected was Blue-Ox because he was with Manipula inside the city hall.
The heroes hurried towards city hall unhindered. Upon reaching the building, they saw Manipula in the mayor's office. Chat Noir wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and they swung inside the room.
With the glass shattering, the Akuma and Blue-Ox retreated to avoid being cut. Mayor Bourgeois and Deputy Mayor Hidalgo pressed themselves against the bookcases for the same reason.
Chat Noir put himself in front of the two adults as Ladybug bore her eyes at Manipula.
"How in the world did you get here so quickly?! My team should have slowed you down significantly!" Manipula demanded.
A small smile formed on Ladybug's face. "It's funny when your prayers are answered, isn't it?" She kept smiling as she raised her yo-yo. "I already know what I need to do to defeat you."
"Lucky Charm!" a spotted bowling ball fell into her hands and she tossed it to Chat. "Can you bowl her over, please?"
Chat smirked as he put his fingers in the holes. He started to roll the ball when Manipula used the Ox's power. "Possession!"
The bowling ball vanished and reappeared in the Akuma's hands. "Hold this for me, will you?" Manipula asked as Blue-Ox took the ball in his hands.
"It appears your plan failed, Ladybug." That's when she noticed the heroine was still smiling. Manipula was confused until she heard something beeping.
She rotated around just in time to see the bowling ball blow up thanks to Chat Noir's Jinx power. When the hero had stuck his fingers inside the holes, he made sure to scratch them.
Wax exploded all over the office. Seeing a flash of purple, Chat snatched a purple brochure out of the air. He used Cataclysm to destroy it.
The akuma flew out trying to get away. That was not going to happen. Ladybug snagged it for purification. A few seconds later the damage was cleaned up by Miraculous Ladybug.
Veronique fluttered her eyes several times as she realized what transpired. "I can't believe I let Monarch trick me."
"Don't blame yourself. Monarch knows how to twist something good into something wicked," Chat Noir told the woman. Ladybug handed the woman a double-sided charm.
Deputy Mayor Hidalgo cleared her throat. "I want to apologize for what happened earlier. I was the one who pushed the mayor not to permit your exhibit to be opened. I see now it was a mistake. On behalf of Mayor Bourgeois and myself, I look forward to seeing your exhibit tomorrow night."
Veronique wept tears of joy hearing this. The heroes slipped out of the office. They had to hurry if they wanted to get back before the class and the gym teacher showed up.
Two days later, Marinette and Adrien were discreetly checking on the protection grid. Master Fu combined two spells to create a new one to allow emergency personnel through the shielded areas. He wanted to do a small test to see if it was working properly.
"Are you sure this is going to work, Tikki?" Marinette whispered to her kwami. The teenager was in her favorite fabric store picking up an order she placed. The store also happened to have a plaque on the roof.
The kwami nodded. "Plagg has improved greatly in controlling his power. There will be a smokey smell, but that's it." She didn't add if Plagg caused a lot of damage she was going to wring his neck.
A few blocks south of the store, Adrien was at his first photoshoot since becoming a part-time model. Today, he would be modeling different glove styles to wear when an Alliance ring owner was out in bad weather.
The photo shoot had the perfect view of the street. If an emergency vehicle drove passed, he would see it.
Back at the store, Plagg was in the back hovering over several bolts of fabric. Sheeba was keeping an eye out for trouble. "No humans are coming this way. You're good to go. Remember, don't overdo it."
Plagg did a silent impression of Sheeba before getting started. He positioned one paw/hand on a bolt before sending a small pulse of magic into it.
A small corner of the fabric turned black, the edge of the fabric curling. He repeated the process until all the bolts were singed slightly. The two Kwamiis worked together to push the smokey odor toward the front of the store.
Marinette was paying for her purchase when her nose crinkled. "Do you smell that?" she asked the clerk.
The clerk took a sniff and also smelled something abnormal. "Stay here for a moment." The clerk hurried to the stock room.
The employees back there were coughing slightly as they made their way through the different aisles. Finally, they located the source of the smell near the loading docks.
Several bolts of brand-new fabric were charred. The different fabrics were releasing several different smells that were combining one. The store manager appeared just then and took a look at the mess.
"Everyone out! I'm calling the fire department to come to take a look at this. Move it people move it."
The customers and employees were pushed out into the street. The smell stuck to their clothing and filled the air. People walking by changed directions to get away from it.
Marinette felt Tikki nudge her from inside the bag. She carefully handed her wielder the magic meter. The teenager clutched it in her hand tightly.
A glance showed her the magic from the plaque had been released. The glow got somewhat brighter as the low-level barrier formed around the store and four blocks in each direction.
At the photo shoot, Adrien was modeling some biker gloves when the sound of a fire truck could be heard. Everyone stopped what they were doing as the truck sped by.
The blond kept his eyes on the truck as it approached the edge of the barrier. The truck went straight through the barrier. About two minutes later a car coming from the opposite direction tried to get past the barrier.
The car tapped the barrier and stalled. The staff continued to watch as the car tried to start up a few times, but it wouldn't turn over.
The head of the photoshoot asked some of the stagehands to see if the driver needed any help. In the meantime, it was back to business as usual. Adrien slid into a new pose trying to keep his relief from showing on his face.
The initial test was successful. They would need to perform a few more tests to make sure it wasn't a one-time thing. Once the protection grid was perfected, the heroes could start using it to keep citizens safe during Akuma attacks.
Subsequently that night the teenagers snuck out of their homes to visit Master Fu. He had something significant to tell them. It would also be a good time to collect the last three Kwamii whose turn it was to see the modern world.
When they arrived, Marianne welcomed them inside. "Good evening. I hope there was no trouble getting here."
Marinette commented it had been easy. Adrien had to be cautious because Nathalie had kept coming in to make sure he was asleep instead of staying up late.
Runner and Sheeba levitated over to Marianne. They rubbed their heads against her affectionately. They had missed her while they were gone.
"I'm glad to see you both as well. Why don't you tell Tazzy, Raffa, and Vollo to come here? We'll be ready for my husband to join us in a few minutes."
The Kwamiis hurried to gather their siblings. Marianne told the teenagers they could take a seat in the main room. "My beloved will be out soon. He's just preparing to show his surprise to you two."
A few minutes later, the last three Kwamiis and Master Fu, who was carrying a few things, appeared. Vollo and Raffa zipped over to Marinette. Tazzy jumped on Plagg as the two rolled around on the floor.
Fu sat down and placed his items on the low table. Three vials filled with a fuchsia-colored liquid, the Miraculous book, and a decretive rock. He smiled at the two heroes.
"Thank you for coming so late. I know you have school tomorrow so I will endeavor to make this quick. I believe I have perfected the size-changing potion."
The teenagers were surprised to hear this. All the Kwamiis except Plagg were looking excited to try out a new potion.
"The recipe was unbalanced before which is why it was never finished. Thanks to living in Paris I have access to a vast amount of ingredients that were previously unavailable."
He held up one of the vials. The light glistened off the glass.
"I combined a single piece of a stilbite crystal with leaves from the lucky bamboo and Chinese evergreen plant. I let them boil in the spring water for a bit before adding in grapefruit seeds and a single feather from a peregrine falcon."
"Once the water was done boiling, I added a tear of joy. This potion was the result. I used a tiny drop on a pebble and it got an inch bigger. Two drops made it smaller."
The old man carefully removed the stopper. He poured a single drop over the decorative rock. To everyone's astonishment, the stone got bigger. Two drops made the rock much smaller."
"I believe that once a kwami has ingested the potion, the wielder will be able to decide if they want to get bigger or smaller simply by willpower."
Plagg pointed out he could not know if that was true or not. He also added if he wanted a volunteer kwami, under no circumstance was he going to be it.
Tazzy volunteered to try out the potion. He wanted the glory of going first.
Master Fu poured a few drops into a spoon. Holding it out, Tazzy lapped the potion up. The teenagers braced themselves for whatever happened next.
Tazzy felt a little funny like he was becoming squishy. He felt his body change until he was very round. "Not what I was anticipating. I'm not in any pain."
Vollo asked his "brother" if he change back to his regular form. Tazzy tried and nothing happened. Vollo asked the Celestial Guardian if Tazzy was stuck like this.
The Celestial Guardian told him to be patient. The potion would eventually wear off. After ten minutes, Tazzy returned to normal. "That was fun. Can I do it again?"
Master Fu shook his head. "You have shown us the potion does transform Kwamiis. We need to know if the potion has the right effect when a wielder powers up."
Plagg had skedaddled to some other part of the apartment not taking a chance his kitten would be chosen. Adrien snorted at the humerus actions of his kwami.
Marinette was a little crossed that again, she and Tikki had to take the lead. Tikki drank a bit of potion and transformed, becoming squishy and round.
Marinette called on her transformation. Her costume was a long black sleeve leotard that covered her up to her hips. The top part was red. She had on red shorts with black paneling. Her knee-high socks were red with black spots. Her shoes were now black ankle-high boots.
Her pigtail ribbons were replaced with twirly red bows. Her mask had gotten larger, covering the entire top half of her face.
Strapped to her thighs were small tool pouches. The one on her right had the yo-yo in it. The left one had a gauge with three lights on it.
Ladybug reddened terribly. "This is the absolute worst costume ever. I feel like a little kid in this getup."
"You look amazing, Marinette," her boyfriend assured her. He then suggested she took a look at the gauge.
Pulling it out, she examined it closely. Under the three lights were buttons labeled tiny, normal, and giant. She deduced this would control what size she was.
Guess Master Fu's theory wasn't correct she thought to herself.
"I'm going to try going small. No one move." Ladybug pressed the tiny button. She started shrinking rapidly until she was only three inches tall.
It was certainly a weird experience. From her perspective, the table had become a mountain. The pillows were giant fields of fabric. She tapped the button to return to normal size.
Marianne cleared her throat. "I believe it would be a bad idea to try going giant inside this small apartment." Her husband agreed with her.
Before Ladybug could call off the transformation, her costume went back to normal. Adrien theorized the potion only allowed the user to go tiny or big. The transformation ended when the wielder was of normal size again.
Master Fu stroked his goatee as he mused over the results of his potion. It would help in tight situations as long as the wielder knew what size they wanted to be.
He needed to refine the recipe to ensure that a wielder could change size more than once. Fu was proud of himself for finishing a transformation potion. As he hand each teenager one vial, he hoped his new potion wouldn't be needed in the near future.