Chapter 6: Mistakes Were Made
So this is what my life has turned into, thought Sabine. I woke up this morning thinking that I had a normal life, a normal daughter...
...and now, here I am dangling her magical hamster over her computer keyboard, moving it around the keys so that it can type out what it wants to say to me.
This city, sometimes...
"All right," she began. "That monster that's on television. You know something about it, obviously. Is it as dangerous as it looks?"
The hamster gestured in various directions, motioning for her to move it within range of desired keys. Watching its tiny paws reach out and actually type, even if it couldn't quite manage the Shift key and was too agitated to take the time to insert punctuation, creeped Sabine out in ways she wasn't letting herself process yet.
yes very dangerous
"No surprise there," she muttered.
is mnette safe is she near it
Sabine considered that for a moment. "If the monster's where they're showing it," she replied, "Marinette's halfway across the city from that. So, yes, she should be safe... I guess? How do you know what it is or what it can do?"
The hamster paused before answering.
long story
"Oh, I'll make the time to hear it. Believe me, I will."
not now would rather stop that thing
"You think that you can stop it?" marveled Sabine. "I mean, obviously, you're not normal. But you're this little tiny thing and that's..."
i can help lbug
"You know Ladybug. Of course you do," she nodded. "My daughter is involved with Ladybug, somehow?"
Again, the hamster paused, as if measuring its words very carefully.
mnette very very good girl asked to keep me safe
"Ladybug... asked Marinette to keep you safe?" reasoned Sabine, putting the pieces together. "Here?"
long story yes
The immediate frown on Sabine's face made Gigi extremely nervous. He gestured to continue typing...
dont be angry with mnette trust her
"I do trust her," she protested. "I don't trust you. I have no idea who or what you really are in there."
a friend i promise
"Uh-huh," she pondered. "What is it that you think you need to do now?"
contact lbug
"And how do you propose to do that from in here?"
i have my ways get you somewhere safe first
Suddenly, Gigi found himself turned around and facing Sabine up close.
"You are not going to turn this neighborhood into a battleground. Right?" she insisted. "Contacting Ladybug from here, however you think you can do it, isn't going to bring that thing here and put us all in danger?"
Gigi shook his head, frantically.
"How about this?" she suggested. "I'm going to go and discuss this with my husband, if he'll believe a word of it... if you swear that you are not bringing Akuma chaos down on this house with whatever you're doing next. But you're not leaving this room... and when Marinette gets back, she and you and Tom and I are all going to have a very long talk."
He gestured to type once more, and she obliged.
deal
"Very well."
Before she left him, she assisted him in hammering out one last message:
mnette lucky to have you
"I like to think so," Sabine concurred, as she sat him down and left the room. "We'll see if you still think so after our talk."
Gigi did his best to settle his nerves. A hamster's extremely rapid heart rate was not the best thing for remaining calm, cool and collected under stress.
You've done it now, Gabriel, he told himself. You've drawn a straight line between Marinette and Ladybug for her mother, created a cover story that Marinette knows nothing about yet, and set her up to be blindsided by questions she will not want to answer!
And if I know Marinette at all, the instant that she gets wind of the creature, she will be off as Ladybug to face it. And there are important things about it that she NEEDS to know first!
I must get out of this room. Quickly! I need to find and warn Marinette, using all the tools at my disposal...
He stared down at his tiny front paws.
...those tools being what they are, he grumbled. I can barely get down off of this desk without help, let alone open a door -
As the realization hit him, he whirled and stared at Marinette's closet door.
Blast me for a FOOL! he exclaimed. I should have found some pretext for her mother to open that closet door! How I would have done that without giving way that the Miracle Box lies inside, I do not know, but... well...
Unhappily, he took a running leap off of the desk, bouncing off of the chair seat and to the floor. The impact was less than when he had taken a header off of the table previously, but still enough to rattle him somewhat.
Waddling over to the closet door, he stared up at the far-out-of-reach doorknob, then back at the door. The crack beneath it was far too small for even a tiny hamster body to navigate.
Well, here goes, he thought, backing up a short distance. I can only hope that Marinette took one of my other pieces of advice...
"It's been far too long since we've done this."
"Hasn't it?" grinned Alya, as she and Marinette strolled down a sidewalk by a long row of trendy shops. "Seems like it's been months."
"Maybe not that long," said Marinette. "But it does feel really nice to get out like this."
"Where should we look next?"
"I'm not sure," Marinette considered. "The game shop on the corner is tempting... but I'm trying to think up something more romantic than video games? Adrien's birthday is coming up before long."
"Hah. I thought you had presents picked out for him until his 27th birthday," Alya teased her.
"Oh, I did - I do, still. Kind of. But most of those were things I made or picked out when Adrien and I were... not there yet?" reasoned Marinette. "There's a big difference as to what you can pick out when you're his girlfriend. Which I'm still getting used to saying... though it's so much fun to say."
"Well... I did point out that one little outfit two shops ago," suggested Alya.
As she'd expected, the result of her remark was a crimson Marinette. "We're... not THERE yet, and you know it," she blushed. "With everything that's happened, I'm not rushing him one bit. We go at his pace, and I love where we're at now."
"True, but-"
"Besides, I don't think that outfit would fit him."
Alya burst into laughter. "Girl, I promise you, if he sees you in that outfit, that's a present for him. For both of you. I think that-"
A familiar set of alarm tones - two rising tones, repeated twice - ended the frivolity quickly, and sent the girls scurrying into a nearby alley to check their phones.
"Oh, no," moaned Marinette, looking crestfallen. "An Akuma alert. I knew that we weren't... done with this? But I didn't think that it would start again so soon."
"This is a weird one," Alya pointed out, watching the footage. "Think you'll need any help?"
"I'll tell you something," Marinette offered. "You might be more... frequent help soon. A lot of people might. We've been discussing that. Let me see what's up with this one first, though."
"Fair enough. I'll cover for you, and if you need me, shoot me a text and I'll get to where you can find me. Good luck!"
"Spots on!"
WHUMP!
WHUMP!
WHUMP!
Gigi's body, while small, made enough of an impact to rattle the closet door slightly and make a reasonable noise. He steadied himself, as the door made enough of an impact to rattle him slightly.
Can anyone in there hear me? he projected. Is at least one of you outside the Box?
WHUMP!
This is imperative, he insisted. Can SOMEONE HEAR ME?
I can hear you.
Thank goodness-
And would you knock it off, already? You know you're not getting in.
Marinette - Ladybug - is in danger. Entities from my past are manifesting - SOMEHOW - and unexpectedly! Her mother is now aware of my presence here, and that Ladybug has something to do with it. I must contact Ladybug, and quickly!
There was a silence as the speaker considered that.
I may look like a hamster, but in reality, I am-
I know exactly who you are, said the voice in his head, coldly. You're the one who kept us in cages for months. Who abused our powers. Who used MY power to capture the rest of us!
Do you think that I would be disturbing you like this, drawing your attention, if this was not imperative?
Once again, the logic asserted itself.
Put your paw under the door.
What?
You heard me. Reach your paw in the crack under the door, as far as you can.
He did so, straining a bit... and felt something soft touch his extended limb.
And suddenly felt as if he was flying...
FLAWLESS VICTORY.
Adrien let out a small happy sound at that, while behind him, Plagg yawned audibly.
"You're never going to beat her at that. You know that, right?" the Kwami snickered. "She's a prodigy."
"She is," agreed Adrien. "But she hasn't played the Ultimate Mecha Strike IV: Second Remix version yet. I have a few days' head start to work out the moves and the character tier list."
"And fifteen minutes after she gets it at her place..."
"...she'll probably wipe the floor with me. But those first fourteen minutes are crucial for my ego," Adrien grinned.
When his phone let out a series of familiar tones, Adrien's finger stabbed at the controller's Pause button.
"Really?" Plagg grumbled. "I thought we settled his hash for good."
"I still want to know what happened in that final showdown with Monarch. You know that, right?" said Adrien, pointedly, as he scanned the news sites for information about the Akuma sighting.
"And I've told you that when the time is right... I'll tell you all you want to know," evaded Plagg. "I will. But for now, what've we got?"
"I'm... not sure. This is a weird one, from the looks of it," frowned Adrien. "A pretty good hike from here."
"Then maybe we should get going?"
Gigi recovered his balance, very slowly. Being magically transported to wherever a certain Kwami was would not get his recommendation, going forward.
Barkk, I presume, he projected. Remind me not to request that form of travel again. Now I know how toothpaste feels when it goes through the end of the tube.
Even in the nearly pitch-black closet, lit only by the light around the edges of the door, Barkk's angry glare was obvious.
"Yes, I"m Barkk," the Kwami confirmed. "Ladybug has me playing watchdog when she's not at home. If someone tries to break in and take us - like you, for instance - I can go somewhere that you can't follow and 'tag' the Box along with me, out of your reach."
Good. That's an excellent new layer of security that I had suggested-
"Which doesn't explain what you are doing here now," Barkk snarled, "or what makes you think I won't drop you into the sewers for how you treated us."
Please don't do that, whimpered Gigi, quietly. I promise that I called to you for very good reasons. You may need to move the Box very soon, if Marinette's mother decides to investigate further. I have vital information to pass on to Ladybug... and I may need to get out of here to preserve the general peace.
Briefly, Gigi ran through what he knew of the situation, regarding both Sabine and the creature at large.
"Hrrmph," snorted Barkk. "If you're not lying..."
Go and see for yourself! Gigi squeaked. Watch the television broadcast that's on in the bedroom, showing the creature I spoke of. Snoop downstairs and listen to her parents discussing what just happened. Move the Box to where I can't get anywhere near it. But this is urgent, so please do something quickly!
"...yeah, this would be a big deal," Barkk agreed.
Who is the wisest amongst the Kwami? The one most capable of making a decision in a crisis? asked Gigi. Outside of Tikki, who is with Marinette across town, and... er... please tell me that Plagg isn't nearby?
"Plagg is with Chat Noir, wherever he is," replied Barkk. "So you're safe on that front... for now. As for whom you'd most want to talk to... well... I have an idea. You're not going to like it, but I have an idea."
Go ahead, then.
Gigi watched as Barkk touched the Miracle Box, floated up and out of the closet... and then as, in a flash of light, the Box zipped up to where the Kwami had gone. When Barkk returned, a paw stretched out and touched Gigi on the head, lightly.
"Step two is for me to go where the other Kwamis are, inside the box," Barkk grinned.
As Barkk disappeared, Gigi wondered what was in store for him. What good does that do me? I can't go inside the-
Oh, hell.
If he thought that his last trip was unpleasant...
As Ladybug approached the strange creature, its erratic behavior and shifting form set off alarm bells in her head, but she did her best to ignore them.
Chat will be here soon. He always is, she told herself. And if we need to, we can take this thing down. But let's see if I can try and save us some hassle before we even start, this time around...
She landed slightly down the street from it, light footfalls drawing its attention momentarily before a passing car distracted it.
"HEY!" she called out to the creature. "Over here!"
Its head tilted to the side as it turned her way, like a dog that was not sure of what it just heard.
"Whoever is sending this thing out. The new Hawkmoth, or Monarch, or whatever you'll call yourself. I want to talk to you for a minute," she offered. "The first time that Hawkmoth appeared, he made the Akuma spit out a butterfly-face that told Paris who he was and what he wanted. Can we do that now?"
She braced herself for an attack, but the creature stood still. As she watched its mutating form, purple lightning gave way to armored panels, then to some shimmering substance that made her ears hurt. Its changing patterns reminded her of her father's old Lava Lamp... oddly soothing, if it hadn't taken the corner off of a nearby building with its last random swipe.
"If there's one thing that I learned from battling Hawkmoth, it's that all of these superfights solved absolutely nothing. People got hurt, people suffered, and nobody got what they wanted. Not even Monarch," reasoned Ladybug. "So instead of punching each other for no good reason... who are you? What do you want? Can we avoid senseless fighting and talk this through?"
In the center of the creature's chest, a face began to form, slowly. Its eyes glimmered, its mouth was curled upward in a mocking smile... just looking at it made Ladybug furious, for some reason. The longer that she stared at it, grinning at her and seemingly laughing silently, the more unsettled she became.
"FINE!" she screeched, leaping into action. "I'll break that smile in half, you... um..."
In mid-leap, Ladybug's rational mind reasserted itself.
It pointed out to her in a flash of insight that she had no idea what the creature could do, but the lightning and the iron fists and the shimmering energy looked like they could really hurt and she was now leaping straight towards it and this was probably a really bad idea and the lightning was getting brighter now and what the hell did she think she was DOING?
She lashed out to the side with her yo-yo and yanked, just as a plane of savage lightning erupted from the creature. Twisting as she dodged, she avoided most of it...
...but a searing pain flashed across the back of her left ankle.
I will preface what I have to tell you by saying that I am very, very, VERY sorry for the inconveniences I have caused all of you, and I apologize for all indignities suffered. So, so, completely and utterly sorry. You cannot imagine how sincerely I mean that right now.
Being faced down by over a dozen angry Kwamis was a frightening prospect under any circumstances. Particularly when you had personally caused them considerable anguish and imprisoned them in your villainous sub-basement...
...but doing so while embedded in the body of a hamster, on their own mystical turf, was an entirely new and fresh set of terrifying nightmares for Gabriel.
He stared around the circle of Kwamis surrounding him, not expecting to see any sympathy or mercy, and not finding any there, either.
"Hold him still," he heard one of them mutter in a gruff voice. "I'm gonna pee on him."
"Stompp," another hissed, "Kwamis don't urinate."
"I'll make an exception."
"I will remind everyone here," a calmer voice declared, "that while a strong desire to turn this manifestation of Gabriel Agreste into hamster sauce is completely understandable..."
Abruptly, Gigi felt a need to visit a certain small cardboard box.
"...that he is already serving a punishment, courtesy of Tikki, and we would owe it to her to inform her before scattering him to the four winds. SO," Wayzz snarled, "I am waiting for an explanation."
The explanation, Gigi began, is twofold. One is that Marinette's mother has discovered my supernatural nature, and thus alternative living arrangements for me may need to be procured in order to protect Marinette's more important secrets.
Someone in the background mentioned "down inside a volcano" as an option, but was shushed.
And the other is a direct threat to Ladybug that SHE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT IMMEDIATELY.
"What is that threat?"
"Remnants from my previous existence."
OWWWWWW!
Rolling to a stop, Ladybug decided that this would be an excellent time to put some distance between her and yon beastie. A pair of quick leaps did so, landing her on top of a streetlight.
What the heck did he just hit me with? she wondered. I've been punched and kicked and blasted by all kinds of Akumas before, but this felt different! As if...
She inspected her ankle and gasped aloud. Where the electricity had nicked her, her costume showed a tear! A superficial cut underneath explained the pain that she'd felt - not too deep, thankfully, but she shuddered to think what would've happened if she'd been just a fraction of a second slower.
As she watched, the magic slowly knitted itself together, restoring her uncut costume pantleg. She shook her foot briefly, making sure that she hadn't imagined it, and a small flicker of pain reminded her that she hadn't.
Whatever that was, it PASSED THROUGH my costume's protections! she realized. Like a knife through butter! NOTHING'S ever done that to me before, has it?
The implications were obvious, as well as terrifying.
If that energy hits me straight-on, it could take my head off! Or cut me in half! she scolded herself. What was I THINKING, running straight at it like that? I was a sitting duck!
It just made me so angry that...
...Wait a minute. WHY was I so angry?
She thought back to the appearance of the mocking face that had triggered her emotions, and put two and two together.
The brute force. The lightning. Whatever that face did to my mind. This thing doesn't have one power - it's a one-man army!
And I still don't know what that one section does...
As if summoned, the shimmering portion shifted to the foreground. A sound filled the air - not the kind of sound that could hit the Top 40 charts on a slow week, but a deep throb that seemed to be trying to enter all of her pores at once.
Whoaaaaa...!
Her balance failed her as her ears rang in pain. Slipping off of the streetlight, she plunged to the ground with a thump, then let out a wail when the creature followed that with a mighty blow that sent an earthquake screeching down the street at her! She lunged to the side with a distinct lack of grace as the pavement cracked beneath her, grunting as the shockwave rolled her around a bit.
A tiny part of her voiced an obvious thought - that this was perhaps time to run, not to fight. Go back, get the rings, get the rest of the team to help out, maybe call in some fighter jets...
But another thought pushed that aside. It was one of Chat Noir arriving on the scene, deciding to take this thing on by himself, and then...!
I'm not going anywhere, she told herself. I have no idea what to DO about this... but others will get hurt if I run.
She kept one eye on the nearby rooftops, hoping to intercept her partner, while maintaining a very careful distance.
It wouldn't do for it to decide nearby people are targets instead of me, she decided. But if it charges straight at me...
...I'd better be ready.
When I was Hawkmoth, Gigi described, I bedeviled my young adversaries with a vast variety of superpowered villains. But they did not battle and purify all of them.
"And why is that?"
Because I did not release all of them into the city, he explained. On several occasions, I made my connection with my Akuma, empowered the host... and decided for reasons of my own that they were unsuitable. Some were too dangerous...
"Pull the other one," Daizzi scoffed. "You made Sentis so powerful that Ladybug had to send them into the SUN. You drowned Paris, literally. You let an active volcano grow in the middle of Paris!"
I concede that I did not always show such restraint, allowed Gigi. But I wanted their Miraculous, not their corpses. So there were at least a dozen Akumas that I simply dismissed, calling the Akuma back to me. I assumed that that would be the end of each one.
"It should have been," mused Wayzz. "But what have you found now?"
This creature that is loose in Paris now appears to be a COMBINATION of several of those discarded Akumas. Their energy was never purified by Ladybug, so... it seems that something remained of them, and in the reconstitution of the universe as the result of my Wish, they have manifested as one shapeshifting, gestalt entity. An addled entity, due to a lack of human will directing it from within... but obscenely powerful. And if it does gain sufficient will and self-direction to choose targets intelligently...
"Thaaaaat's not good," mumbled Xuppu.
"What Akumas did you recognize?" Wayzz asked.
Crackler, a conduit for searing magical lightning that might prove able to penetrate Miraculous defenses, Gigi recalled. Rumble, a sonic generator whose low, deep frequencies could numb minds or shatter bones. Double Dare, who was something of an upgrade to Risk; if it caught one's attention, it could goad them into acting unthinkingly, diving headfirst into danger without thoughts of self-preservation. Piledriver, an armored behemoth that hit like a... well, you get the idea. Those four, I saw for certain. I may have caught a glimpse of Hysteria, who could make victims laugh themselves into unconsciousness or even death... and a vile, vile entity that called itself, simply, 'Bob.'
"What could Bob do?" wondered Sass.
Pray that you never find out.
"This is all nonsense," Trixx protested. "We are talking about Akumas from what is now another universe!"
I AM TELLING YOU, I witnessed it on a television broadcast. I can sense the energies at play, and Tikki agrees with me on that ! I know what I had created-
"It is not nonsense."
Wayzz looked thoughtful. "As we know, this Wish was tempered by Gimmi's judgment. Modified from its original intent," he considered. "Tweaking the universe on the fly, making spur-of-the-moment changes to another's conception... loose ends could have been left behind, especially if the Miraculous tied to them is still being abused, which may well be the case. And if the human that created them is also in a state of considerable flux, which, obviously, he is."
"You're questioning Gimmi's judgment?" wondered Pollen. "Tikki and Plagg are to blame for this, somehow?"
"I am merely stating the obvious," countered Wayzz. "That aspects of Gabriel's former creations may have survived the transition, and been transformed as well. Energy resists destruction in many ways. Evidence of that sits before us now, in this magic-infused spirit directly tied to them, persisting just as they persist."
What are you saying? Gigi asked. That I must, in fact, be eliminated to destroy these entities from my past?
"Not... necessarily?"
Wayzz stared Gigi down. "We thank you for your warning, Gabriel," he allowed. "This is indeed a matter worthy of our notice and concern. It is also a crisis caused by your own hand, however unintentionally. What do you propose to do to combat it?"
The tiny head sank in humility.
Whatever it takes, he volunteered. I will see my son, my son's beloved, my city, its protectors... safe from my handiwork. But my first concern is to inform Ladybug of what she faces BEFORE she engages with it!
"What, you like her now?" scoffed Daizzi.
Ladybug and Chat Noir may be in mortal peril. They do not deserve that, Gigi snapped back. Would you leave them to such a fate lightly?
"Do you know where they are?"
Gigi turned back to Wayzz, his flash of anger gone. I know where the entity is, he reasoned, so I know that Ladybug will pursue it there once she is aware, and where she goes, he is always close behind.
Wayzz turned and glanced at Kaalki, who nodded.
What would you have me do to help? asked Gigi. I am yours to command.
"OVER HERE! QUICKLY!"
When Chat arrived on the scene, he was prepared to engage with the villain... but found a startled and wary Ladybug hanging back, instead. Her insistance that he join her at a distance seemed unusual, so he followed her around the corner of a building, each of them peeking out at the entity with caution.
"Looks like we're back in business, my Lady. Darn it," Chat exclaimed. "What've we got here?"
"I'm n-not sure. This thing is not normal," she gasped. "I'm trying to figure out what it is, and how to even begin to purify it."
"One of those, huh?" he sighed. "What's it done so far?"
"Nearly cut my foot off with lightning. We need to be extra careful, because our costumes... they're not enough."
His eyes widened at the sight of a small scorch mark on Ladybug's ankle.
"It went THROUGH it?" he gasped. "Are you all right?"
"It hurt my pride than anything else. But listen to me," she insisted. "It's got a whole set of powers besides that. It's strong, it vibrates, I'm not sure if there's some sort of mind control, but it taunted me into doing something stupid."
"Greeeeat. It's like Strike Back all over again," grumbled Chat. "What's the plan?"
"Now that you're here with me, I'm about to try and find out."
Lifting her hand skyward, she cast her yo-yo upwards and declared, "LUCKY..."
And at that specific moment, before her intonation could finish, a portal opened up above her head and something small and fuzzy dropped down through it, landing squarely in her outstretched palm.
"...Well," Chat managed, seeing the look of utter shock on Ladybug's face as she studied the new arrival. "There's something you don't see every day."