Miraculous: Tales of Blaze and Artemis
MDM: Okay, before you can tell me that well-deserved "I told you so", I have been working my tail off the past several months at my job, the Internet over there sucks, I'm always so tired when I come home, and I've gotten sick three times in the past three months. It's like the world was against me writing this chapter!
PokemonFreak90: Maybe you should try to find a less strenuous job, then. Anyway, this is one of my favorite episodes of season 1, so I hope that we do it justice. Roll it!
Chapter 16
One Reflekta Too Many
It was school picture day, and all of the classes at Francoise Dupont High were having their photos taken. Mr. Damocles even hired Adrien's usual photographer to handle the photo shoot. At the moment, Allen was watching one class have their picture taken, along with his and Bianca's new friend and elemental Miraculous holder: Nicholas. Or Nick, as he liked to be called.
"So your class is up next, Allen?" He asked him.
"Yeah. What about yours, Nick?"
"My class photo is the first one after lunch."
Just then, Bianca came over to them. She had been talking with some of the other girls in her class before coming to the boys. "What's up?" Nick asked her.
"I just heard some of the girls trying to comfort Juleka." Bianca explained. "Apparently, she has some really bad luck when it comes to school pictures, or photos of her in general. In some way, it's like her face is always blocked by something or someone, right at the last moment."
"Oh, you mean that ugly goth chick who never says anything to anyone except you or Rose?" Allen asked her nonchalantly.
Bianca narrowed her eyes at him sternly. "Yeah, her." She answered, sounding defensive for Juleka. "She may seem goth, but she's actually pretty shy. More shy than me, and that's saying something!"
"Well, I'd keep my distance from her if I were you." Allen continued, ignoring Bianca's tone. "I'm getting bad vibes from her." Her response was just another glare, but she didn't say anything else.
Just then, they both saw an unfamiliar girl sitting alone on the stairs nearby where they were. She had pretty tan skin, dark brown almond-shaped eyes, and long, straight black hair. She was wearing a sea green blouse with short flutter sleeves, a navy blue knee-length skirt, white socks on her feet, and black shoes.
"Hey, Nick. Who's that?" Allen asked the Greek student, pointing towards her as the girl began reaching into her backpack.
"Oh, she's a new student in my class. Today is her first day." Nick explained. "Her name is Jasmine Sari. She recently moved here to Paris from the Philippines."
"That's quite a big move. This is like a whole other world away to her." Bianca said. "No wonder she's keeping to herself."
"She hasn't said a word to any student since she arrived." Nick continued, starting to sound a little desperate. "I want to be friendly and say something, but she looks so nervous that I'm afraid I'd make things worse for her!"
He then turned to his best friends and continued, "What should I do, guys? I haven't been in Paris long, but you two made me feel welcome. I want to be that same kind of support for Jasmine. But how can I, if even approaching her could scare her off?"
"You can just smile and wave to her if you ever make eye contact with her." Bianca suggested, patting Nick's shoulder. "Just friendly little gestures from afar can be a good first step towards someone who is very shy."
"Once she seems a bit more comfortable around you, then maybe you can approach her." Allen added. "Maybe by then, she won't be so inclined to shy away."
But then, Chloe came up to them, having overheard. "Well, that new girl is definitely like that nobody in our class, Juleka." She mocked. "Maybe even more pathetic."
The other three students just rolled their eyes before glaring sharply at the prissy blonde. "Anyone can be really shy if they had to move to a completely different country than the one that they lived in for their whole lives." said Bianca.
"Imagine if you had to move away from France and live somewhere like Egypt? Or even India." Allen added.
But it was Nick that was glaring at Chloe the fiercest. "So you'd better move along, or I will cut off that ponytail and shove it down your throat!" He exclaimed angrily.
Chloe gaped at them with shock and horror, her hands immediately going up to her hair and she ran off, screaming her head off. The three elemental Miraculous bearers just covered up their snickers while smirking mischievously.
But then, when the three of them turned to look over at Jasmine, they saw her pull out a small box from her bag. Something about that box seemed a little familiar. The shape, the size, the color…
Suddenly, it hit all three of them. The box was identical to the ones that once held their own Miraculouses! That meant that there was a Miraculous in there as well! But then, they saw that she was about to open it… in the open, in full view of everyone! But why would she even think of opening it at this moment?
Quickly, they realized that she must not have known what was inside, because her Kwami would've warned her before. As soon as it would be opened, the Kwami would automatically fly out in that bright ball of light! In front of everyone! They had to stop her!
However, it seemed like all of them had the same idea as they all bolted over to her when they saw Jasmine about to open the lid. Due to their panic and the surprise that they were thinking the same thing, they all tripped over each other and fell into a pile in front of her, startling her and causing her to close the box, holding it close to her chest. Allen was on the bottom, Bianca on top of him, and Nick was at the top of the pile.
When Nick looked up to see Jasmine's startled face looking at him and his friends, he smiled with evident embarrassment. "Uh, hi." He said, lifting up a hand for a wave. "We're so sorry for scaring you like that. It's just that we came to advise you on not opening that box you have right now."
"H-How come?" She asked in a barely audible whisper.
"Well, it looks like it's pretty important." Allen said simply as he lifted up his body from the ground, pushing both Nick and Bianca off of him.
"We happen to know a thing or two about valuable objects." Bianca piped up.
"Maybe you should put it away for now." Nick added. "Unfortunately, if it's pretty valuable, some mean people may notice it and try to take it from you. Once you're home, then you can see what it is without worrying about it getting stolen."
Jasmine blinked at him and the other two with confusion. She was still a little suspicious of why they were so adamant about her protecting her little box, but they seemed nice enough if they were giving her sound advice. She had immediately recognized the boy with dark brown hair from being in her class, so maybe she could trust him and his friends.
"Uh... okay." She whispered before putting the box back into her bag. Then, she slung it over her back. "Thank you." With that, she walked away to head to the cafeteria.
The three elemental holders all sighed with relief as they headed back to the other side of the courtyard, discussing what had just happened. "Did you see that box?" Nick asked. "You don't think that she's...?"
"It looks just like the boxes that came with our Miraculouses." Allen replied. "It's possible that there was a Miraculous in that box, too."
"So her family owned one of the Miraculouses that belongs to the group that ours came from!" Nick realized, touching his ring. "Which one do you think it is?"
"I'm not sure." Bianca said. "There's nine in the elemental group, and we only have a third of them figured out."
"Do you think that we can trust her?" Allen asked. "Like Hawk Moth, not everyone will use their powers the right way."
"Let's just keep an eye on her and see what she decides to do later." Bianca replied.
Just then, they heard the photographer call out for Ms. Bustier's class. Allen and Bianca turned back to Nick. "Wish us luck." Bianca said, heading over to the photo shoot.
"Save us a spot at lunch!" Allen waved to the Greek brunette boy while following his best friend. Nick just returned the wave and began making his way to the cafeteria.
"Okay, time to flash your pearly whites, guys!" The photographer exclaimed. "You kids take a seat on the front bench." He instructed while gesturing over to Max, Alix, Rose, Marinette, Mylene and Bianca. "Quickly, please. I've got sixteen other classes to shoot."
Everyone who would be sitting at the front obeyed and came over to their spots. They waited patiently and whispered to each other as the photographer began to get everything else ready. Adrien even came over to see what had been done so far, and he was looking very impressed.
"Look, Sabrina! They're up front in the baby seats!" Chloe mocked the people in the front row, laughing. "Go on, rugrats. Don't forget to take your thumbs out of your mouths!" Allen, Bianca, and Marinette scoffed at her while everyone else simply ignored the rude blonde.
"Well, next row!" The photographer continued on with the shoot, looking over at the remaining students. "You, you, you, and you go stand on the rear bench, please." He asked, pointing over towards Nathaniel, Alya, Sabrina, and Chloe.
"Wait just one minute!" Chloe shrieked. "I'm supposed to be in the middle row, right next to Adrien. Preferably the center. Look, we're the same size!" She waved her hand over herself and Adrien's head, who just rolled his eyes.
Luckily for him, his photographer noticed his client's discomfort and annoyance. "Nah, go stand in the back row, behind the rest." He said, waving his hand dismissively.
"How dare you put me behind the rest?!" Chloe demanded. "Do you know who my father is?!"
"Is he a photographer?" The man asked.
Chloe gasped loudly in horror. "NO!" She shouted. "He's-"
"Bummer, I could really use an assistant." The photographer cut her off. "Now hurry up and take your place, or I'll put you up front with the babies!" Chloe only growled in annoyance and frustration before going to stand in the back row.
Both Allen and Bianca bit back a smile, finding it funny how the photographer basically shot her down, not caring about her position or her wishes. Finally, another adult other than the teachers who didn't let Chloe walk all over them by using the daddy card!
"The rest of you boys, go stand in the middle row." The photographer said to the remaining boys of the group. They obeyed and went over to stand in the middle row. However, it seemed that there was still one person missing from the class.
"It's no big deal, Chloe." Adrien tried to assure his childhood friend. "As long as we're all in the same photo, right?" But the prissy diva didn't seem pleased by his statement.
"Perfect! You guys are awesome!" The photographer said. "Now stop squirming and let's get this photo shot!"
Off to the side, Juleka looked down at the mirror charm that was on her hand. Marinette noticed her and quickly got the photographer's attention. "Uh, excuse me, sir. You forgot Juleka." She said, pointing over to the goth girl on the sidelines.
"Huh? Ah, sorry. My bad!" He apologized to Juleka, who only smiled shyly. "Go stand in the middle row, next to Adrien."
Juleka obeyed and scooted past the others to stand next to Adrien, much to Chloe's anger. "And you're gonna be right in the center!" Marinette said to Juleka cheerfully. "All eyes will be on you! No more jinxed class photos!"
After a few more seconds, the photographer was once again feeling frustrated. "No, this isn't right!" He exclaimed. "Something's not working here!"
"Uh, of course it's not working!" Chloe came in, as if the answer should have been obvious. "I'm in the wrong spot!"
Everyone just ignored her as the photographer came to Ivan. "You, move over there, will you?" He asked the surly boy, pointing towards a different spot. "Let's see…" He then began to look over the group to see if the shot would work. But it was only taking up more time.
"Excuse me, but do we have a problem?" Mr. Damocles asked the photographer impatiently.
The man just sighed. "It doesn't matter where I put him, it throws the whole picture out of whack!" He explained, gesturing to the group as a whole.
Finally, Chloe had had enough. "My spot is unacceptable!" She exclaimed stubbornly, and jumped down a row, pushing Juleka. But the goth girl bravely pushed her back, making Marinette, Rose, and Bianca smile proudly at her. For once, she was standing up for herself!
"That's right, Juleka. Don't let her push you out of the way!" Marinette cheered for her.
"Ms. Bourgeois, behave yourself!" Ms. Bustier reprimanded the prissy blonde.
"Hey! Nobody asked you, loudmouth!" Chloe rudely protested back with a glare, making most of the group gasp at her rudeness to their teacher.
Then, in a rare act of annoyance and frustration, Adrien glared at his old childhood friend. "This isn't gym class, you know, Chloe!" He shouted at her. The queen bee was shocked at how her usually kind and patient friend was acting.
"You, over here, you here, and you here." The photographer instructed to some of the others, and the students obeyed without hesitation. "There, perfect!"
"Uh, no! It isn't! It's not perfect at all!" Chloe shouted. "I'm totally not next to Adrien!" Her outburst only caused the exasperated sighs of annoyance from Adrien, Marinette, Allen and Bianca.
"Please, Chloe. We still have sixteen classes to photograph!" Mr. Damocles said in a rare act of sternness to the prissy blonde, who only pouted in annoyance as the principal turned back to the photographer. "Go ahead, Vincent."
The photographer, Vincent, then got his camera ready. "Say spaghetti!" He exclaimed.
"Spaghetti!" The students exclaimed, smiling widely, except for Chloe, of course. But then suddenly, as if the universe was conspiring against them, the signal on the camera showed that it had a low battery.
"Oh, I don't believe this!" The photographer groaned in annoyance. "I'm sorry, I have to go and fetch another battery. Nobody move!"
The class all groaned as well. Juleka, however, only sighed sadly. Honestly, she should've known that something like this would happen.
She then looked over at Ms. Bustier and shyly raised her hand to get her attention. "Can I go to the bathroom?" She asked.
"Yes, Juleka. But hurry!" The teacher allowed her to head in that direction, but then the principal cut her off after she left.
"Ms. Bustier!" Mr. Damocles shouted to her. "He said that nobody is to move!"
"It's an emergency, sir!" Ms. Bustier retorted back, narrowing her eyes at him sternly. The owlish man only growled in response. However, nobody paid any mind to Chloe whispering something to Sabrina, who also left for the bathroom.
After a few minutes, Sabrina came back, as did Vincent, with the camera now having a full battery. "We're back in business!" He exclaimed.
Suddenly, Chloe jumped from her assigned spot and landed in the empty spot next to Adrien. "Hey!" Marinette shouted. "What are you doing? Where's Juleka?" Upon hearing this, Bianca immediately began looking around for the goth girl.
"How'd you get here?" Adrien asked, moving a few inches away from the prissy blonde, slightly disturbed that she would go to great lengths just to stand next to him.
"Ugh, who cares?" Chloe scoffed, regaining some of her previous proximity to Adrien. "At last, I'm in the right spot!"
Before either Marinette or Adrien could answer her, Vincent got the camera ready. "I want you to flash your best smiles!" He exclaimed. "Because it's the last time we are doing this!"
"WAIT!" Marinette and Bianca shouted at the same time. But it was too late. Vincent already took the picture.
"Thanks, kids!" He said to them before heading over to where his equipment was.
"Oh, wait!" Marinette tried to stop him, but then she focused her attention on the principal. "Please sir, we have to redo the photo!" She pleaded.
"Why's that?" He asked her.
"Because Juleka's not in it!" Marinette explained as Bianca came to stand next to her.
"Jule-who?" Principal Damocles asked. It seemed that Allen wasn't the only person who didn't think much of Juleka.
"Juleka!" Bianca shouted incredulously, as if the answer should have been obvious. "The tall one with the purple streaks! The one who went off to the bathroom literally three minutes ago and for some reason never came back from there!"
But then, Chloe came over to him. "Uh, Mr. Damocles, aren't we meant to be heading off to lunch?" She snottily reminded him. "And aren't you paying the photographer by the hour?"
"Why, yes!" The man remembered. "No time to retake. Class, move along now!"
"Okay, lunch break!" Vincent announced.
"Are you f-?!" Bianca was quickly silenced from the possible string of curses that were about to come out of her mouth by Allen, who had covered her mouth with his hand and quickly dragged her away before she could cause a scene.
After she calmed down, Bianca grabbed an apple from the cafeteria, not really very hungry. Allen had gone to have lunch with Alya, and Bianca didn't feel like talking to Nick about what had happened, either. She took a deep breath, trying to focus on the apple she was eating.
Ever since Claaw warned her about her developing wolf-like tendencies both in and out of the suit, Bianca realized that she could become much more outspoken than she had been in years, particularly when she's angry. However, one wolf attribute that greatly helped with her new calming techniques was her sense of smell. Sometimes the scent of one of her favorite smells, like foods or scented candles, was enough to help calm her down.
Cat Noir even admitted to her during one of their patrols that while he now had some cat-like tendencies as well, his own sense of smell was heightened because of his Miraculous, sometimes even out of the suit, and having such a keen sense helped him a lot as well. He confessed that before he got his ring, he had never dreamed that he could be so carefree and suave, even if it may sometimes seem stupid or silly.
Bianca was glad that at least she could relate and indulge the punny cat hero with his cheesy sense of humor more than once. The guy seemed starved for personal attention, and Ladybug always seemed way too strictly professional to allow him to let loose, although that had somewhat started to change as well, ever since the battle with Puppeteer.
After she swallowed her seventh bite of apple, Bianca ran into Marinette, who seemed to be in a hurry. "Whoa, what are you doing, Marinette?" She asked her.
"Chloe had Sabrina lock Juleka in the bathroom, causing her to miss the photo." Marinette explained.
Bianca gritted her teeth. "Seriously?! All of that, just to stand next to Adrien in the photo?!" She exclaimed. "That girl is such a-!"
"Okay, okay, I get it, and I agree." Marinette cut her off, and Bianca took a deep breath through her nose, savoring the sweet scent of her apple before taking another bite. "But I have an idea."
Bianca only raised a curious eyebrow as Marinette continued on. "What if the photo suddenly disappeared and the principal would have no other choice but to ask the photographer to retake it, this time with Juleka?"
The auburn-haired Canadian girl swallowed her bite of apple. "And how is that going to happen?" She asked her rhetorically. "Are you going into the principal's office to erase the picture?"
Marinette's answer was just a cheeky little smile. "Oh no." Bianca said, shaking her head. "That's a really bad idea, Marinette. What if you got caught?"
"Well, I'm lucky that I ran into you." The French-Chinese girl replied. "We worked great as a team last time. How about you watch my back while I get into Mr. Damocles' office?"
"Are you talking about the time you got me to help you break into Adrien's locker just to erase a message?" Bianca asked, crossing her arms. "It wasn't like I had much of a choice."
Marinette clapped her hands together pleadingly. "Please, Bianca." She asked. "For Juleka? She ran off, pretty upset, from what Rose told me. Please?"
It took a few tense seconds, but then finally, Bianca groaned in annoyance and defeat. "Fine." She complied with a small huff. "For Juleka."
Marinette beamed brightly. "Great!" She exclaimed. "Let's go."
Bianca took one last bite of her apple before throwing it into a nearby garbage can. Then, she followed Marinette up the stairs towards Mr. Damocles' office. When they got there, they hid until Mr. Damocles left the office, closing the door behind him.
"So all the material stays in the Principal's office during lunch break." Marinette said.
"I still think this is a bad idea." Bianca replied.
"There's no time!" Marinette whispered. "We have to break Juleka's class photo jinx before the photographer leaves the school!"
She approached the door and tested the door to see if it was locked. To her good fortune, it wasn't. "Okay." She said before entering the office.
"There has to be another way. Marinette!" Bianca quietly shouted, trying to sway her, but the French-Chinese girl only closed the door, leaving Bianca to keep watch.
The Canadian girl only huffed again before turning around and standing in front of the door. However, neither of them were aware that a certain bratty blonde witch had been recording the whole thing. But that didn't go unnoticed by a tiny pair of wolfish green eyes.
Meanwhile, just underneath them, Allen and Alya were sitting together on one of the benches, finishing up their lunch. After he was done with his apple, Allen's eyes remained focused on his girlfriend's face as she looked through her photos of Ladybug. Several seconds ticked by before Alya shifted her gaze to see her boyfriend staring at her.
"What?" She asked, slightly giggling when she saw his brown eyes widen a bit before he turned away, clearing his throat as his cheeks turned a soft pink shade.
"Alya, I've been wondering this for a while, but… why do you have that brown spot on your forehead?" Allen asked. "Is it a mole or something? I'm not trying to be weird or rude or anything, I'm just curious, since none of the other girls in school have skin blemishes like that. Why just you?"
"It's just a beauty mark." Alya replied, as if it were the most obvious thing. "It happens to some girls as they grow older."
"Oh, I see." Allen said, the pink in his cheeks turning a little more red from embarrassment. Then, he dispelled it before smiling at her, his fingers brushing against her cheek. "Well, I'll always love you. Beauty marks, and all." He then kissed her forehead's mark.
Alya just laughed. "And I love you, too. Even when you get really sweaty sometimes, from playing basketball." She then briefly kissed his lips.
Back with Bianca, she was anxiously waiting for Marinette to come back out with the memory card. "Come on, Marinette." She whispered to herself in a sing-song tone, rocking back and forth on her toes. "Hurry up, please."
"What are you doing here?" A familiar snooty voice asked, making Bianca jump. Chloe was standing by the stairs.
The auburn-haired girl snuck a glance behind her, at the door. "Uh, I was just, uh, waiting for Mr. Damocles." She lied through her teeth. "I need to talk to him about, uh, something."
"He's just downstairs." Chloe replied as if it was obvious, pointing a manicured finger down the stairs. "You can just go right on down."
Bianca froze. "Oh, o-okay." She slightly stammered. "Th-thanks, I guess." How was she going to get out of this one?
"CHLOE! Where are you?!" A loud voice demanded.
"What was that?!" Chloe asked.
Suddenly, there were people screaming, and sounds of energy being fired. Both girls looked downstairs and saw that someone dressed as a fashionable female clown was firing energy beams at people, changing them into perfect clones of herself. An Akuma!
However, thanks to the Akuma's distraction, nobody was aware that Claaw had managed to magically hack into Chloe's phone that was back in her purse. He quickly deleted her video, and got back to Bianca before the blonde could see him. Bianca only slightly patted her purse to subtly thank her Kwami for his quick thinking.
Downstairs, Alya quickly pushed Allen out of the way when the Akuma fired a beam in their direction, but she got zapped instead. After seeing his girlfriend become a clown, he immediately ran to find a hiding place as the Akuma started to come up the stairs.
"There you are! At last! Chloe Bourgeois!" The Akuma proclaimed, her voice sounding very familiar to a horrified Bianca. It was Juleka!
"Who are you?" Chloe demanded.
"Take a good look at me because I am your future face!" The Akuma replied.
"Eugh! Gross!" Chloe exclaimed in disgust. She tried to escape, but the Akuma only zapped her, turning her into a perfect copy. "What in the? Do you realize how much my outfit cost?!" The former blonde witch demanded.
The villain only started to laugh. "You should be thanking me! You look a thousand times better looking like this!" Chloe only ran off, crying.
Thinking fast, Bianca backed roughly into the door, pretending to hit her head against it as if she had been blasted into it. In reality, she only banged her fist hard against the door to get Marinette's attention.
"Marinette! An Akuma!" She yelled before running off to find a place to transform. That place just happened to be the same classroom where Allen had run to.
"I told you that I was getting bad vibes from that girl!" Allen said to her. "Believe me now, when I say to keep your distance from her, Bianca?"
"Can you blame her for being upset enough to get akumatized, though?" Bianca asked. "I mean, you would be pretty upset too if someone took your assigned spot just to flirt with someone."
"I'm not blaming her for getting akumatized." Allen explained. "I'm just saying that I saw all of the warning signs about it coming. Some people are just natural magnets for Akumas, and are easy to spot because of their personality. So because of that hazard, that's why I told you to not get too close with her. Just remember that for the future, okay?"
Bianca just growled, looking away from her best friend. "I just really hate Hawk Moth right now." She muttered, crossing her arms. "He made it seem like everyone's a ticking time bomb, waiting to explode just because they feel negative emotions. It's normal to feel negative feelings, but now it's like... Argh! It's not just right."
Allen sighed and placed his hand on her shoulder. "Yeah, it's not." He said. "I wanna get that guy just as badly as you do, Bea. But for now, we've gotta transform!" Bianca only smiled in determination before taking a stance with Allen.
"Fenixx, Flames Up!"
"Claaw, Let's Prowl!"
In a flash of gold fire and silver ice, Allen and Bianca transformed into Blaze and Artemis. They burst out of the classroom and quickly spotted the akumatized Juleka fighting with Ladybug, who had already arrived on the scene.
"Juleka, stop this now!" Ladybug pleaded.
"I'm not the Juleka nobody notices anymore!" The villainess exclaimed. "Now, I'm the unmistakable Reflekta! I'm sure you'll love your soon-to-be new image, Ladybug!"
"Thanks, but no thanks. I prefer the one I've got!" Ladybug retorted back.
"Are you sure?" The one now known as Reflekta asked. "Ask Cat Noir. I'm sure he loves his new look!"
Immediately, Ladybug's eyes went wide with fear, but then they narrowed fiercely. With clenched fists, she let out a battle cry and tried to attack Reflekta, but she fired an energy beam at her with a laugh, forcing the superhero to back away.
"Oh no, she didn't!" Artemis growled before grabbing her bow and pulling back the string, an ice arrow magically appearing. She fired it and the arrow went right past Reflekta's nose, hitting the wall and turning a section of it into ice.
When Artemis and Blaze landed on the platform and were about to attack Reflekta, they saw that she had already backed Ladybug into a corner. "Soon, like everyone else, you will look just like me!" She proclaimed.
Ladybug tried to hit her with her yo-yo, but Reflekta just grabbed her arm that was holding it. "But first, I'm gonna take your earrings as a trophy!" She made a reach for one of her earrings, but Ladybug backed away as best as she could. However, it was obvious that her attempts wouldn't last long.
Suddenly, there was a very familiar voice shouting with determination, "Time to face off!"
Everyone turned around and saw that behind them, there was one Reflekta clone in front of a whole group of clones. "Catch her!" The leader commanded.
The clones all charged at her, forcing Reflekta to release Ladybug. However, the villainess just jumped out of the mob and onto the roof. "You're no match for me, Ladybug!" She shouted. "This will all be over soon for you and your team!" With that, she jumped over the roof and out of sight.
Once Reflekta was gone, the clones came over to the heroes, mostly asking Ladybug their questions about how she would fix the situation. "Don't worry, we'll figure it out!" She replied, silencing the crowd.
"Yeah, these shoes are killer on the feet, My Lady!" One of the closest clones to the group answered back, looking down at the admittedly painful-looking heels on their feet. Their voice sounded very familiar.
The other three heroes froze. "Oh no." Artemis muttered in horror as the pieces came into place.
"I know that voice." Blaze added with a similar tone.
"Cat Noir?!" Ladybug exclaimed in shock.
The affected Cat Noir just sighed and gently grabbed Ladybug's wrist. "Excuse us, move out of the way." He politely said, dragging her through the crowd and leading her and the other two to a private place for them to talk. They went upstairs, away from the crowd, and Cat Noir let go of Ladybug.
"Cat Noir, is it... is it really you?" She asked, looking at his new appearance from top to bottom.
"'Course it is!" He exclaimed, acting like his new look wasn't bothering him that much. "Can't you tell by my swagger? Am I still the cat's meow, or what?"
Artemis only raised a brow while Blaze just crossed his arms. "You seem to be handling this way better than I thought." The latter said.
The affected Black Cat just crossed his own arms in retaliation. "Then how about a thank you for getting you out of that tight spot?" He asked, narrowing his eyes.
However, his expression only made Ladybug laugh. "Sorry, Cat Noir." She giggled, "But you... you just... you just don't look like yourself! But, uh... thank you!"
"You're welcome." Cat Noir accepted it and got right to business. "And in case you guys have forgotten, we've got to de-akumatize Reflekta!"
"But what about you?" Ladybug asked him. "Your powers are gone, so what are you gonna do? Throw your shoes at her?" She then laughed again at her own joke.
But Cat Noir didn't seem to find her joke funny. "Remind me who just saved you guys a minute ago?" He asked her sarcastically.
"I might have to agree with the bug, man." Blaze said. "You're basically powerless in this form, since you can't use your Cataclysm for anything."
"Blaze is right. We have to find Reflekta fast. You'd slow us down." Ladybug added.
"Maybe, but you know... sometimes I do have ideas." Cat Noir reminded his teammates.
"The cat does have a point." Artemis pointed out. "He might be an annoying kitty, but he's not stupid."
"Thanks." Cat Noir said. "I think."
Ladybug sighed with defeat. "Okay, yeah, sorry." She apologized. "And?"
Cat Noir just smiled victoriously before getting back to business. "I don't think taking on Reflekta face-to-face is the best idea unless you guys want a facelift, too." He said.
"I sure don't." Blaze piped in.
"I don't even like clowns." Artemis added.
"You're right." Ladybug said, her eyes lighting up in a familiar gleam. "And that gives me an idea!" She came over to Cat Noir and wrapped her arm around his waist.
"Where are we headed?" He asked her.
Ladybug then threw her yo-yo as far as she could until she felt it get caught on something. "To the TV station!" She replied. "Here it goes. Watch your nails!" With a great tug, she launched her and Cat Noir onto the roof with Blaze and Artemis following.
"Your jokes are so lame." Her affected partner muttered.
"You're one to talk, Pinkie Pie." Blaze teased Cat Noir.
Artemis rolled her eyes and said with an annoyed snipe, "Your timing with the jokes really needs work, 'cause both of you are not being funny right now."
"Hey, at least my jokes actually make sense!" Blaze countered back angrily as he followed his teammates. Like Bianca and her wolf-like abilities affecting her in new ways, Blaze was becoming more hot-tempered when people offended him, which was a result of having the Fire Miraculous.
Within minutes, the heroes had made it to the TV station. When they rushed into one of the studios, they were met by Nadja and her crew. "Ladybug?" The pink-haired woman asked.
"Not the best time for an interview." Ladybug said before anyone could get a camera ready. "There's a villain out in the city, but we have a plan to stop her. Would it be okay if we borrowed your studio?"
Blaze could tell that they were a little unsure of her idea, so he tried a different approach. "If you don't help them, then it's only a matter of time before they would get changed into exact replicas of this new villain, Reflekta, like Cat Noir has."
He then showed them the changed superhero, his hands on his hips and a dry look on his face. Everyone immediately took a step back, shocked at his new appearance.
"If you say so, Ladybug." Nadja said, and everyone else nodded in agreement.
"Thank you. Now please find a place to hide so that Reflekta can't find you." Without any argument, everyone left the studio, leaving the superheroes alone.
"Do any of you guys know how these cameras work?" Artemis asked, looking at the studio camera.
"Leave it to me." Cat Noir said before coming behind the camera and aiming it at Ladybug. "Okay, we are rolling in three, two, one."
"People of Paris! Reflekta is not invincible!" Ladybug began her speech. "You can help. All you have to do is put on a disguise! Then we'll be able to spot the real Reflekta and bring her down! Remember, put on a disguise! We're relying on you all!"
"And cut!" Cat Noir said after he pressed the button to end the rolling tape.
Ladybug came over to him and the other two heroes, and they shared a four-way high-five. "We got it. Sorry, but isn't your plan a bit complicated?" Cat Noir asked Ladybug.
"This isn't my real plan." Ladybug explained to her team. "The real plan is now that Reflekta knows that we're in the TV station, she'll come right here to get us!"
Everyone smiled at her real plan, and then Cat Noir took her hand. "And fall right into our claws!" He said, and then kissed the back of Ladybug's hand.
"You mean into your nails." She teased him.
"Still not funny." He answered dryly, while the other three heroes just laughed. For the first time in a long while, it was nice that they could tease and have a little fun while they waited for an Akuma to fall into their trap.
Several minutes went by, and by then, they had gotten into position to wait for Reflekta to make her appearance. Finally, she came in, looking for any signs of a trap. Suddenly, Ladybug threw her yo-yo and tied her up.
"Gotcha!" She exclaimed. Cat Noir, Blaze, and Artemis then popped out of their own hiding places.
"The Akuma has to be in her bracelet!" The transformed cat hero theorized. He quickly came over to the Akuma and pulled off the little mirror charm on her hand before throwing it to Ladybug.
"Checkmate, Reflekta!" She exclaimed before breaking the little mirror on her bracelet that hung on the back of her hand. But strangely, nothing came out of the broken bracelet.
"Huh?" She wondered aloud before she came to the scary realization. "This isn't the real Reflekta!"
Just then, the real Reflekta began laughing evilly out of sight, and all of the heroes stood back-to-back with each other, looking for the villain. The fake one that was tied up looked downcast.
"I'm sorry, she promised that she'd change me back if I tricked you." The voice of the fake sounded very familiar.
"Mayor Bourgeois?" Ladybug asked.
Suddenly, there was the sound of Reflekta firing a ray. Blaze and Artemis jumped out of the way, but Ladybug was right in its path. Luckily, Cat Noir jumped in front of her, taking the ray.
"I've already been changed, so I'm safe." He assured her.
"Thanks, Cat Noir!" Ladybug said gratefully.
"Over there!" Blaze said, pointing to one of the posts of the studio. There was Reflekta, glaring at the heroes, mad that she'd missed her target.
Cat Noir just smiled at his partner cheekily. "Go ahead, use that charm of yours!" He said with a wink.
Ladybug smiled and then threw her yo-yo into the air. "Lucky Charm!" She exclaimed. In a flash of red and pink colored ladybugs, a red camera with black polka dots appeared and fell into her hands.
"A camera? Okay…" She said to herself.
Her vision turned monochrome, and certain objects appeared highlighted in red with black spots. First it was the studio lights, then Reflekta's eyes, and then the little mirror charm on her bracelet. She then got an idea, and just in time, as she dodged another ray.
"Cat Noir! Turn off the lights, quickly!" She said to her partner before running off to hide.
Cat Noir obeyed and turned off the lights before hiding himself. In the pitch-black darkness of the studio, Ladybug was able to start snapping photos of Reflekta, the camera having the bright flash on, temporarily blinding the villain as she tried to get a clear shot.
"Over here, Reflekta!" Ladybug taunted the Akuma.
Reflekta kept trying to fire her rays at Ladybug, and even tried to tackle her. But either Ladybug would dodge her attempts, or Artemis would fire ice arrows and form ice walls in front of her.
"Come and get us!" Blaze teased, igniting his sword for a moment before letting the flames die. Reflekta tried to get him, but she missed him.
Ladybug then took another picture and Reflekta made a mad dash for her. She did grab someone, but it wasn't Ladybug or any of the other unaffected superheroes. It was Cat Noir, who was invulnerable to her powers, since he had already been affected.
Ladybug took one last photo of Reflekta, and then the villain made one more attempt to transform her. But then, she realized that the mirror charm on her bracelet was gone. Ladybug had taken it off her while she was blinded that last time.
The red and black-spotted superhero threw the charm on the ground and then smashed it under her foot. From its remains, the Akuma butterfly squeezed out and began to fly away as Artemis turned the lights back on.
Ladybug got out her yo-yo and opened it to reveal the sparkly pink inside. She then swung it around and threw it towards the retreating Akuma. "Time to de-evilize!" She exclaimed.
The yo-yo caught the black and purple butterfly before it got too far away, and then trapped it inside as Ladybug brought her yo-yo back to her. She then opened it again and a pure white butterfly flew off and out of the studio.
"Bye-bye, little butterfly." She said to it before she got out her Lucky Charm camera. "Miraculous Ladybug!"
The camera started to glow pink as she threw it into the air, and then it transformed into magical swarms of red and pink ladybugs. They spread out across the entire city, fixing all of the damage that had been done, and turning everyone back into their original appearances, including the mayor and Cat Noir.
"So much better." Blaze said as he and Artemis came over to said cat hero and his ladybug partner.
"You were awesome, Cat Noir!" Ladybug praised her partner, turning to face him.
"And with those shoes on, too!" Cat Noir added. "By the way, those things should be illegal!"
"I know, right?" Artemis said with a smile. "I can't understand how some women can wear shoes like that and stay vertical."
Then, they turned towards the powerless Reflekta. In a cloud of black and purple ooze, she changed back into Juleka. "Where... where am I?" She asked, not sure of how she had gotten into the TV studio.
The four heroes just smiled kindly at her before facing each other. Their fists all met in a four-way fist bump. "Pound it!" They exclaimed, proud of another job well done.
Ladybug gently took Juleka by the hand and guided her over to the grateful mayor. "Could you take this girl back to her school please, Mayor Bourgeois?" She asked him.
"Yes, of course, Ladybug!" The mayor said with a smile.
"Thank you!" Ladybug said to him before hearing her earrings beep out a warning. She turned to leave, but not before giving her team a smile and a wink.
"See you later, team! Bug out!" Then she ran out of the studio, her teammates also grinning from ear to ear.
Minutes later, since they didn't use their powers, Blaze and Artemis headed back to the school and transformed back into Allen and Bianca in an empty classroom. When they left it, they were immediately found by Nick.
"Hey, guys!" He said. "Great job on defeating Reflekta."
"No problem." Allen said with a smile. "All in a day's work."
"I wished I could've come and helped." Nick continued. "But I got zapped by Reflekta. My feet still hurt from those crazy high platform shoes."
Bianca giggled. "Well, maybe next time, Nick." She assured him.
Allen then said, "Honestly, I liked her better when she was akumatized. She was a lot more talkative and didn't mumble. Too bad we couldn't just leave her like that."
Bianca crossed her arms and glared at her friend. "But that was the worst part of herself." She said. "I doubt anyone would want to be akumatized forever. Otherwise, in the end, they'll eventually realize that they have nothing left. But maybe one day she'll find the confidence to speak up without having to be akumatized. If you have faith that I can open myself up again, then try to have that same faith in her, then maybe, one day she'll finally find her voice."
Allen only nodded, taking in her words. "And she'll hopefully get a wardrobe change, too." He added. "Her look just screams 'self-deprivation'. Our friend Hannah could help her with that if she were here, since she always has good fashion sense. Too bad she's still living back in Canada."
Bianca slightly glowered at the mention of this Hannah for some reason, but then quickly erased it from her face as Alya ran over to them, her focus on Allen. She then hugged him in relief.
"You're alright!" She exclaimed before backing away slightly, not leaving his arms. "When everyone was changed back to normal, I couldn't find you. I was so worried."
"I'm okay." Allen assured her before giving her his lie. "Thanks to you pushing me out of the way, I was able to find a good hiding spot with Bianca."
He then smiled cheekily at her. "You look much prettier, now that you're back to normal again." He then kissed her lips, making her giggle.
"You're really smooth, you know that?" She asked him with a mischievous glint in her eyes before kissing his lips. "But that's one of the reasons why I love you."
Bianca then spotted Marinette nearby and quickly headed over to talk to her alone. "Hey, Marinette." She said to the French-Chinese girl. "How did it go in the office? Did you delete the class photo?"
Marinette just shook her head with a smile. "Actually, I had a better idea." She replied as Alya came over to the two of them. "We can persuade the photographer to do a mini photo shoot over at the park to get Juleka in the class photo."
Bianca smiled back at her. "Great idea!" She exclaimed.
Marinette and Alya then left to find Juleka to tell her about the photo idea at the park. But then they stopped. "Are you two coming?" Alya asked Allen and Bianca.
Nick answered for them. "Well, Allen and Bianca won't be joining you. They promised to help me with something."
The other two just nodded, going along with his story, although they weren't sure why he needed them. After Marinette and Alya left, they turned to ask Nick. "What did you mean by that?" Allen questioned.
"I think that we should all go and pay a visit to Jasmine." Nick suggested. "I managed to ask my teacher for her address. We have to let her know the full story of what's going on in Paris, since she likely has a Miraculous."
Allen and Bianca shared a glance and they both came to the same conclusion. They turned back towards Nick and nodded in agreement. They then began heading out of the school to head to Jasmine's house.
But when they got to the main doors, Allen stayed behind for a minute. The events of the day had put Juleka on his mind and all that she had been through during the day. At first, he didn't think much of her, but after seeing what she was like when akumatized, it changed his opinion of her, and that maybe he was too hard on her in the beginning.
He then thought to himself that she does have a voice that isn't afraid to speak up, since her akumatized form proved that. He supposed that since becoming a hero brings out one's true side, an Akuma does too, just in an evil way.
Allen was already helping Bianca open up to people again, but Juleka had never opened up to anybody before… except maybe Rose. She had Bianca's emotional troubles... but hers were even worse! The two girls had that in common, so he decided to help her too, and he knew just how to do it. Juleka had been alone all her life with almost nobody to talk to, so he decided to be someone that could be there for her.
If she could open up… and change her looks and self-image for the better, she'd have lots of friends. She already proved that day that the possibility was there, she just needed help from someone to make it happen. And the first step to doing that was to be a better friend and eventually take further steps with her as they go. Juleka had low self-esteem, very few friends, and she wanted to feel wanted, someone that she knew that she could rely on, and would be there for her.
He supposed that Bianca was right about trying to give her a fair chance. So Allen went over to Juleka, who was alone for the moment. "Hey, Juleka." He said, getting her attention.
Her face flushed pink as she immediately turned away from him, too shy to look him in the eye. Allen lightly flinched at her reaction, but continued speaking.
"Hey, listen. I was wondering… if you would be interested in hanging out with me this weekend?"
Juleka peeked up at him through her bangs. "Wh-what will we do?" She asked.
"Anything that you wanna do. We can go somewhere in the city or just simply hang out. I just want to start showing you that I'll be there for you, since you hardly have anybody that you can hang out with, besides Rose and Bianca."
Juleka stared at him with surprise for a few seconds, but she shyly nodded her head with a little smile. "Sure." She said. "But I'm not always by myself."
When Allen slightly tilted his head to the side in confusion, she continued to explain. "I've always had someone in my corner, just like you always had Bianca. Maybe one day, they can meet."
"Huh? Hasn't Bianca already met Rose?" Allen asked.
"I wasn't talking about Rose." Juleka clarified, a knowing smile on her face. "I meant someone who had always been there for me ever since I could remember."
Allen just raised a brow. "I wonder who you mean, if it's not Rose?" He said aloud to himself before seeing that his friends were waiting for him by the curb.
"Well, I'll ask you more about it later. I've gotta catch up to Bianca and Nick right now. See ya soon, Jewels!" With that, he waved to her before heading outside.
Juleka stared at him with surprise at the nickname he'd called her, but then smiled, with a little pink blush on her cheeks. Somehow, she had a good feeling about Allen and his intentions.
Meanwhile, Jasmine Sari had arrived back home after picture day was done. She entered her room, closed the door, and sat down on her bed. She then reached into her backpack and pulled out the strange black box that she had gotten from her mom that morning. She was a little curious as to why those three stopped her from opening it while at school. They seemed nice, though, especially that admittedly cute boy with the brown hair and blue eyes.
When she opened the box, though, she saw that there was a beautiful armlet made out of little turquoise and aquamarine beads with a sapphire droplet in the middle. But before she could get a good look at it, a flash of ocean blue light came out, flying as an orb around her head, making her shield her eyes. Then, when she looked again, she saw that the orb of light was vanishing, and it materialized into a strange little floating thing.
It was grayish-blue in color, and it looked like a humanoid dolphin. It had deep blue eyes with little eyelashes from the sides of its eyes, and coming out from its back was a dolphin tail, despite the fact that it had tiny arms and legs. It smiled at her kindly and waved to her.
"Aah!" Jasmine screamed, backing away from the creature. "What is that? A giant bug?!"
"It's okay, I'm not a bug." The little creature assured her in a cute feminine voice. "Don't be scared."
"Aah! The bug is talking!" Jasmine screamed again. "Mom!"
The creature looked panicked, and began begging for her to stay quiet, but Jasmine didn't listen. Finally, when she heard someone coming, she quickly hid in Jasmine's jewelry box.
Jasmine's mother came into the room. "Jasmine, is everything alright?" She asked her daughter.
"There was a giant bug thing that came out of the jewelry box you gave me this morning!" Jasmine told her, looking around before finding the creature's hiding spot.
"What do you mean, honey?" Her mother asked again, not sure of her story. "Maybe you just got scared of a bug that was in your room somewhere. Just calm down and leave it alone. If you see it again, then just squash it."
"No, it wasn't exactly a bug." Jasmine said, and pulled her mother over to her desk where her jewelry box was.
Sensing the danger, the dolphin creature phased out of her jewelry box and into the wall before zipping up to a corner of the room. When Jasmine opened the jewelry box to show her mother, there was no weird dolphin creature inside it.
"I swear, it was in here!" She exclaimed.
"Jasmine!" Her mother said loudly, getting her daughter to look her in the eye. "Take a few deep breaths."
Both mother and daughter began taking long, deep breaths. After several seconds, Jasmine began feeling a little better. "It's alright. There's nothing to scare you if you don't let it frighten you." With that, she left so that Jasmine could be alone to process her words.
When her mother left, the dolphin creature made herself known again, flying out of the corner, making Jasmine jump again at the sight of her. "Please don't scream again." She pleaded, and thankfully, Jasmine remained silent. "I'm not gonna hurt you, Jasmine. I'm a friend."
"What are you?" Jasmine asked her suspiciously. "And how do you know my name?"
"I'm a Kwami." The creature explained. "My name is Marinaa. You have been chosen to wield my Miraculous. With that armlet, I can give you the power to control water."
"Control water?" Jasmine asked. "What do you mean?"
"I can give you that power if I am powering your Miraculous; your armlet." She pointed to the armlet that was still in the box. "You can control water when I transform you into a superhero, just like those other four heroes you might have seen today."
Jasmine remembered watching the news and seeing those four superheroes that the people called Ladybug, Cat Noir, Blaze, and Artemis. If they didn't want to say all of them at once, then they would just call them the Heroes of Paris. But becoming a superhero like them sounded pretty scary, the more she thought about it.
"You have certain phrases to say, whether to transform or de-transform. To transform, it's 'Marinaa, Waves Up'. To change back, it's 'Waves Down'. When you transform, you can control any water nearby or channel water into your weapon for a more powerful attack, but your true power is called Downpour, where you can summon rain for as long as you can, no matter the current weather, and you can also make it rain as hard as you want it to as well."
"Okay, this is a lot to process." Jasmine said, gently holding her temples. "Way more than I could even imagine."
"Jasmine?" Her mom called out to her, and Marinaa quickly hid again. "You have some friends here to see you!"
The girl blinked in confusion. She had just started school that very day, so why would her mom think that she would have friends already? Before she could continue thinking about it, her bedroom door opened and Allen, Bianca, and Nick entered the room, the last one closing the door behind him.
"Hi." Allen said to her, while the other two just waved at her politely.
Jasmine only raised a brow at her surprise visitors. "How did you find out where I live?" She asked them.
"I asked our teacher for your address." Nick said, coming up to her. "We're in the same class. I'm Nick, and these are my friends: Allen and Bianca." He gestured to the other two.
"Nice to... meet you." Jasmine replied, still a little suspicious. "But why are you guys here?"
"We saw you pulling out that box in school." Allen began to explain. "It looked a lot like these."
Then, he, Bianca, and Nick pulled out their own boxes that housed their Miraculouses, making Jasmine's eyes widen in shock. They were identical to her own box!
"These were what were in them." Bianca added, showing Jasmine her pendant. Then Nick showed her his ring and Allen showed his wristband. "Was there jewelry in your box as well?"
"Y-Yes." Jasmine answered, wondering how eerily similar all of this was.
The other three looked at each other, and then opened their bags, or in Bianca's case, her purse. Fenixx, Claaw, and Terra came flying out. Jasmine yelped in surprise.
"Those look a lot like mine!" She exclaimed.
Marinaa then came out of her hiding place. "Guys?" She asked, not believing her eyes.
"Marinaa!" The other three Kwamis exclaimed with joy, and they zipped over to her, hugging her tightly. The little dolphin Kwami tried her best to hug her friends that she hadn't seen in five centuries.
"Fenixx! Claaw! Terra! It's been too long!" She cried happily.
"Wait, then that means…" Jasmine trailed off, the pieces falling into place.
Allen just shrugged. "I'm Blaze, the holder of the Fire Miraculous."
"I'm Artemis, holder of the Ice Miraculous." Bianca added.
"And I'm one of the back-up heroes: Onyx, holder of the Earth Miraculous." Nick concluded, giving her another little wave. "So now that you have a Miraculous as well, you will be joining me as a reserve hero."
Immediately, Jasmine shook her head. "No, no! I have no intention of becoming a superhero!" She then grabbed the box that held the turquoise and aquamarine armlet and quickly snapped the box shut.
The other three were surprised that Jasmine wanted nothing to do with her Miraculous. "Well, even if you don't want to be a hero, you can still wear it, at least." Bianca suggested.
"Our Miraculouses have been lost for centuries, and now that ours have been found, including yours, we can't lose either of them again or let them fall into the wrong hands." Nick added. "It will be safest with you."
Jasmine looked down at the box in her hands, and then up at the three other people in the room. They all had pleading eyes, but they didn't say a word.
Finally, she sighed heavily, opened up the little black box again, and slid the armlet up her left arm to her bicep. Immediately, it changed from its usual appearance to take on a more blue and green camouflage. The water droplet charm in the center had changed from a sapphire to a golden pearl.
"Now, you'll need something to carry your new little friend around in." Allen said, looking over at an excited Marinaa.
Jasmine looked around the room and found one of her little old satchels that she'd brought with her from the Philippines. "Will this do?" She asked shyly.
"Perfect!" Marinaa answered for everyone as she twirled around her new owner.
"Now we're back together again, bestie!" Terra chirped up, the little cougar hugging her dolphin counterpart.
"What do you mean?" Jasmine asked.
"Just like how Claaw and Fenixx are counterparts, since they represent Fire and Ice, Terra and I also balance each other out, with Water and Earth. Kinda like the land and the sea." Marinaa explained.
"Hey, I have an idea." Nick piped up. "How about we spend the afternoon together?" He then turned over to Jasmine. "You're new in Paris, and don't know the city. It can be kind of hard moving to a completely different place, especially if you came from the other side of the world. You may not have friends yet, but we would like to be your friends, if you want us to. We all have Kwamis, so that can be something to bond over."
Jasmine was not too sure about it at first, but then she realized that it would be nice to have people to talk to, especially those who know about the Miraculous. And like she had noticed before that the three teens seemed really nice.
"Sure." She answered, nodding her head.
Minutes later, all four of them were walking down the street. "So why do you not want to be a hero?" Allen asked Jasmine.
She was silent for a few seconds before she answered his question. "I'm scared." She admitted. "It's too big of a responsibility for me, and I'm not strong enough or brave enough. Not like you guys."
The other three shared a brief glance with each other before Bianca changed the subject. "So... what do you like to do?"
"Well, I like to dance. And swim." Jasmine replied.
"In that case, it's a good thing that you ended up with the Water Miraculous, huh?" Nick asked her with a little teasing smile on his face.
Jasmine just blushed a light shade of pink because of that smile. "Thanks." She said shyly. She might not have thought that she was meant to be a superhero, but who knows? Only time would tell. Right now, she was just enjoying some time with her new friends.
But then, Allen asked a very big question. "I've been wondering... The Miraculouses in our group have been dormant for 500 years." He said. "And now all of a sudden, the Kwamis choose to reveal themselves, sensing that the world is in danger because of Hawk Moth."
The other three elemental bearers looked over at him, wondering where he was going with this. "But that's not all." Allen continued. "No holders of the elemental Miraculouses have ever lived in Paris, the site of that danger, until recently when Bianca and I moved here. Not long after that, Nick moves here, followed by Jasmine, both of whom are holders of Miraculouses of the same group as ours. And it's not like we all lived close by, either. We all came from completely different parts of the world!
"It seems... too convenient. Too perfect to be a coincidence, how the pieces are just... falling into place. All of us just move to Paris, the site of Hawk Moth's reign, all around the same time? It's almost like... fate or some greater force wants our Miraculous group to be reunited. Like we're being brought together to fulfill some great purpose that can save the world. Don't you guys see the pattern here?
"And if the four of us have all moved here close to around the same time, then what about the other possible holders of our Miraculous group, living out there, elsewhere in the world? Are they going to follow in our steps and move to Paris in the near future, too?"
After hearing his long monologue, everyone grew quiet as they tried their best to process Allen's words. It did seem way too weird for all of this to be coincidence. What might happen next? Will there be more coming?
It was way too soon to really be sure. But whatever does happen, then at least they will have one another to rely on for whatever may come next.
PokemonFreak90: Allen overcomes his initial view of Juleka and decides to take a chance to become her friend. What will come of this, do you think? And what was up with that nickname, "Jewels", that he called her by?
Plus, it seems like his Miraculous is affecting his emotions in a similar way to how Bianca's Miraculous is affecting hers!
And it seems like Allen has discovered a pattern in the recent series of events surrounding the Miraculouses' holders of their group. What could be happening here? Is it really fate? And are the other holders coming to Paris soon? If so, then from what parts of the world?
Do you have any thoughts about this pattern of events, MDM?
MDM: It does seem way too weird to be just coincidence. Well, we'll just have to see what happens next to determine if all of this was written in the stars.
But hey, sorry to keep all of you guys waiting so long. Think of this as our Christmas present to all of you!
Next time, please don't ask me when the next chapter will come because I am terrible with deadlines. I'm glad that you guys like this story, though. It keeps us writing more, when we have time.
Well, until next time, y'all! Please leave a review about what you think, and remember to stay healthy. It helps a lot, believe you me. Happy Holidays!
Got to fly! ;)