The weekend breezed by and Amira went back to college the following monday. There hadn't been many akumas during the past few days, maybe the new hawkmoth works on the weekends? That made her laugh, a supervillain with a schedule? Yeah, right. It did feel satisfying to stop a few muggings and diverted a runaway truck from causing a major accident. However, Monday felt normal except for the addition of the tiny god in her purse. Tikki happily munched on a cookie, hidden out of sight, though Amira was worried about her getting caught in such a crowded and public place. One wrong glance, one and her cover would be blown.
"Are you sure you want to come with me?" She asked the kwami beforehand, "Didn't you say you had to be kept out of sight to protect the miraculous?"
"I'll be fine, Amira. Besides, kwami can't be seen on cameras or videos." Tikki explained, "It's a part of the magic that keeps humans from viewing us, even if they did, human minds do tend to look for the rationale first before the fantastical." She did have a point. Even in a world where real superheroes with real superpowers existed, many still looked to fact and logic for reasoning.
"Alright, but if any of my classmates find you, I'll just claim you're one of my sister's toys." It was better to be embarrassed than someone figuring out her secret.
"Amira!" Her father shouted from down the stairs, "You ready to go?!"
"I'm ready, dad!" She quickly grabbed her bag (Tikki flew into one of the pockets) and dashed off.
Nino Lahiffe sat in the driver's seat of an suv. The man had matured over the years with more casual yet neat attire, his hair was a little bit longer going down his neck and he wore thin framed glasses. Though one thing hasn't changed from his appearance: his red hat.
"So, how was the festival?"
"It was fine. You would know if you were there." Amira mumbled the last part as she sat in the back seat. Yes, she was still salty about him leaving for work again and breaking yet another promise. She wasnt afraid to voice her disappointment in him.
"It was cool! I got to have some treats and I got to meet the Miraculous Squad and I got that Mini Mischief and I was saved by Miss Chance!"
"I've heard about her. She's a new hero, right?"
"She was so cool!" Nessa squealed in her seatbelt, "She just swooped in and defeated the akuma!" It wasn't that easy, but Amira wasn't going to argue with her new found fan in her own sister. Once the battle was over, she had rushed over to them and was panicking that Nessa had gotten hurt somehow (or traumatized), but instead she was going on and on about being saved by a woman in red and black spots.
"I actually knew the last Ladybug."
"Really!? What was she like?!
"Ladybug was-" He stopped as if it was caught on her tongue, "There was this one time when I…" His eyebrows narrowed as if lost in his own mind.
"Dad? You alright?"
"I guess I just forgot." He waved it off, "It comes with age."
"Right."
"Oh we're here. Have a good day at college, Amira." He smiled as the door swung open and she stepped.
"Bye, sis!" Nessa waved from her seat.
Amira waved back as the suv drove off. As the girl lingered at the steps of the college, she glanced at the small kwami who gave her an encouraging grin from her hiding spot in her purse.
"One step at a time."
Amira didn't realize how fast word spreads across the city. As she stepped into her homeroom, her classmates were buzzing with excitement. She silently walked past as her classmates talked among themselves.
"Did you see what happened at the Hero Festival? It was all over the news!"
"Miss Chance looked so cool. Who is she? Where did she come from?"
"I know, Do you think she knows Ladybug?"
"Do you think she has a boyfriend? Or a girlfriend?"
"What about the Miraculous Squad? Are they working together?"
"Would she at least sign my chest?" Okay that last one was weird, but at least she was being prais-
"You were at the festival, right, Amira?" Immediately everyone's eyes were on her, "Did you see her?"
When sitting at the back of the classroom once made her feel safe, Amira now felt as if she was being backed into a corner like a mouse.
"Well, I-I didn't quite-" She sputtered to make a lie on the spot.
"I saw her!" Lucia said from the front of the room, "She saved my life."
Amira nearly choked on air at her statement, when did she do that!? Almost everyone in the class rushed around Lucia to get the full story. The dark haired girl stared at the auburnette in confusion, she hadn't saved her or even seen her during the battle, why did she say that?
"Really?!"
"That's amazing! What was she like?"
"Oh she was incredible, she came swooping in and…" As much as she liked hearing people compliment her alter ego, it felt weird coming from Lucia, like a cold breeze crawling up her back. It was uncomfortable,especially when she knew she didn't rescue her.
"Actually I don't thin-" Her voice was blocked out by the louder voices. Amira said nothing and sank lower into her seat.
"How's your sister doing since the festival?" His desk partner was Arielle, a red haired girl with a tan tone and muscular figure. She was a part of the swim team and the daughter of the olympic swimmer Undine as well as the swim couch, Mr. Le Chien. The two girls had actually known each other since they both took swim lessons as kids. While Arielle naturally took to the water like a mermaid, Amira was more like a fish flopping around on the surface, gasping for every breath she took. They still kept in touch and had each other's phone numbers to chat or hang out.
"She's fine, if she was scarred by nearly dying, she isn't showing it.".
"From all your texts, it sounds like you were the one who was traumatized."
"Can you blame me? My sister nearly got torn apart by a Clout." What was Carnivore thinking? Did they even check to make sure civilians weren't hiding in the area? She was no expert, but even she knew that civillains' safety came first for heroes.
This made Arielle shrug, "I'm sure it was an accident, the heroes probably didn't see her."
Amira paused, not really sure what to say, then spoke, "Right, an accident."
"Alright, class, let's resume our lesson from friday." Mme Bustier soon arrived which caused the kids around Lucia to scatter to their seats.
She wasn't sure what to think of the Miraculous Squad now. She always had some conflicting thoughts about them. They didn't act like heroes, even before the akuma, but it always felt unnatural. They had their own social media accounts, they would stop and do autographs while out on patrol, they had photo shoots after stopping criminals. The Miraculous Squad was much more like celebrities than protectors.
But they wouldn't deliberately put a civilian in harm's way, right?
Carnivore Reign stood on the edge of a rooftop, looking down at the city from below. He enjoyed the feeling of seeing the world from above, watching people down below like they were ants. Not to mention the adrenaline of just running across rooftops, with his speed he could run forever if he wanted to. It was a sensation like no other.
"Shouldn't you be at school, king of the urban jungle?" Honeycomb dropped down next to the tiger miraculous holder.
He smirked, "I'm excused for the day, told my parents I had the flu and they called the school immediately to report my absence."
"You don't look sick."
"It's called faking it. And I could say the same thing about you, wasp."
"First off, I am a bee, not a wasp. Second, I'm on my lunch break, I can just sneak out whenever I want."
"Lucky you. So what did you want to talk about?" He had gotten a message earlier that she wanted to meet up with her.
"I wanted to discuss the proposition that I suggested earlier." She smiled an all too eager smile "The one that will increase our image?"
"You mean the proposition that involves dating you?" He laughed, "No offense, but vapid and vain girls aren't my type."
"The public already ships us. Why not turn those rumors into reality?" Her hand lingered on his face, only to be swatted away with Carnivore's claw.
"No thanks, but I would rather jump off the eiffel tower than go out with you."
She huffed, "It doesn't have to be real, I'll even take fake dating if you're so against it. But we need an edge, especially with this new heroine running around."
"Miss Chance isn't going to be a problem much longer. I'm going to convince her to join us."
Honeycomb started laughing, but Carnivore wasn't laughing along with her, "You're actually serious? Why would you want her to join us?"
"The power of the Ladybug would be beneficial to have on our side. It is of good luck, healing, and creation." He recalled what he had researched on the Miraculous, how each era's Ladybug would bend the tides of great conflicts, calamities, and disasters to their will. Great kings rose to power, plagues stricken entire nations, He would very much prefer to have such power on his side especially with the black cat still missing. "Do you really want the wielder of one of the most powerful miraculous in history as an enemy?"
"We have the numbers, the adoration. We don't need her." She tried to wrap her arm around his, but he brushed her advance off.
"If you're that blind, then I won't explain it further."
Honeycomb's smug gaze turned into a dissatisfied pout.
"Fine, but I'm not going to play along with some newbie who has no clue what she's doing." With that, she swung off, leaving Carnivore on the rooftop alone.
He stared out to Paris, his mind wandering to the red and black heroine once more. She clearly had potential, but she needed to be persuaded first then molded to his vision just like the rest of the team.
"What the he-" Honeycomb's communicator was acting up, static now consumed the screen.
The symbol of a lavender butterfly appeared on every tv screen, in every home and in every device across the city. "Hello Paris."
As Amira listened to ms. Bustier's lecture, the board suddenly went black only for a purple butterfly to appear on the screen.
"Hello Paris." A feminine voice came from the screen as the butterfly disappeared to reveal a woman wearing a butterfly mask that covered her entire face. Her hair was light purple and curly like an old French royal aristocrat. Even her outfit screamed royalty with jewelry strung across her body. An unsettling design in the form of eyes along her dark purple dress. She appeared shrouded in darkness though that could have been the black on her bodice and a translucent cape that resembled wings fluttered behind her, "You may know me as the new Hawkmoth, but I prefer a more elegant name: Chrysalis. Now you all probably have a million questions. Who's behind the mask? Why am I doing this? Why am I such a monster? Blah, blah, blah. But enough about me, I am here to send a message to several parties of interest." Her smile felt off, it was meant to be reassuring, but to Amira, it felt menacing.
"I have a message for the so-called heroes, the fakers, known as the Miraculous Squad." She gritted her teeth as if holding back her rage. "You don't hold a candle to the original heroes and you never will. I know your dirty little secrets and I know you won't be able to stop me. You can't protect this city, you can't even protect yourselves!" She let out a bitter laugh.
"To the Miraculous Squad's manager, Lila Rossi." The butterfly holder's gaze turned dark, "You may have this whole city fooled, but not me. I know of the lives you've ruined, the people you've destroyed along the path towards admiration. You stole what was not yours and you will be punished for it."
"And to Miss Chance, I actually admired your little stunt yesterday." Amira didn't like how that compliment made her stomach knot up. It didn't feel right coming from a supervillain."It was unexpected, but I look forward to seeing if you have any potential to be like her. I held Ladybug in great regard, I still do, it would be a shame if I had to hurt you."
"By the way, I have akumatized a disgruntled office worker of a very influential company, he's headed down the street now, better go devevilize him, heroes!" She waved at the camera before the screen went black. Ms. Bustier's class stared at the TV screen in shock and confusion.
"Is this real?"
"This has to be a prank."
"Everyone remain calm, and please evacuate in a orderly manner." Mme Bustier tried to coax the student out of the class with some semblance of control..
No one noticed Amira sneaking off with Chrysalis' words echoing in her mind.
Miss Chance barely had time to dodge as the akuma brought down a large inky fist down onto the concrete. He called himself Paperback and had manipulation over office supplies. That may not sound intimidating. His crude paper esque appearance made him less human and more like a child's paper mache project.
"I worked here for 15 years! Over a decade of loyalty and hard work! And they just fire me with a snap of their fingers!" As he spoke, a tornado of paper formed around him. "They will pay for throwing me out of my office!"
"Sir, please-" Miss Chance froze as Honeycomb tried to approach the akuma from behind.
"Venom!" Her smirk faded as her top went through the akuma and hit nothing. The top had missed its target as the akuma's body was made out of paper. It was the akuma's turn to smile as the bee holder was tossed into the wall and stuck to it by black ink.
"Do you know how much this hairdo cost!?" Honeycomb shrieked as she struggled against the ink.
"You can't trust anyone nowadays, not even your coworkers!" With a wave of his hand, the akuma was now hidden in a tornado of ink, paper, and cardboard.
"Seriously, are you really having trouble with a pencil pusher?" Mischief started to walk towards the twister with overconfidence.
"Don't touch it!" Miss Chance attempted to warn her.
"Aw, is the little bug scared of a little paper cut?" She taunted as she tried to enter the twister. A large slash cut through the air as the mouse miraculous holder clutched her hand, the paper had gone through her glove and through the skin. She was bleeding, the blood dripping onto the concrete.
"Lucky charm." Miss Chance sighed as a red and spotted newspaper came floating down.
"Does the lucky charm ability have to be so complicated?" Wyvern glanced at the comically large folded up gazette, "Can't we just hit him in the head with it?"
"If it were that simple do you think I would have done it by now?" He admitted she had a point, "Why don't we work together on this one?"
"Why would I do that?" Wyvern eyed her suspiciously, "For all we know, you could be working for this Chrysalis woman."
"Because you are down two members and your leader isn't here, so that makes three of your members out. You need my help." She pointed out to the trapped (and screeching) Honeycomb, the bleeding Mischief who was wailing over her injury, and the absent Carnivore Reign.
The dragon miraculous holder said nothing, then sighed, "Fine, what's the plan?"
"What happens when you spill water on paper?" She eyed the tornado then Wyvern's blade.
It took a few minutes until he realized what she meant, then it hit him, "What do you want me to do?"
"Get ready to fly, dragon." She grabbed him by her yoyo string, the pair went soaring far above the paper tornado.
"Now!" Wyvern pushed himself off her and aimed his blade towards the twister below.
"Water dragon!" His necklace glowed brightly in blue and Wyvern transformed into a being of pure water. He soared effortlessly down onto the tornado. Nothing could hit him, not even a thousand razor sharp sheets could touch him.
"No!" The akuma could only scream as his tornado collapsed around him, soaked sheets of paper fell from the sky.
"I still have my ink!" Black goo came from his hands, but before it could reach Wyvern, Miss Chance caught the ink in the newspaper, rendering it useless.
"Time to clean up." Miss Chance quickly snatched the crumpled up piece of paper out of akuma's now open hand. It was a termination letter. An all too familiar sight for Amira, she had seen it before on her father's desk too many times.
"Oops." She tore it in half, relishing a bit too much pleasure in the destruction. She swiped the butterfly out of the air and purified it, "Miraculous Miss Chance!"
"Thank you, Wyver-Hey!" She narrowly missed the swing of his blade. "What the hell?! I'm on your side!"
"Do you really expect us to believe that?" Honeycomb sneered, the cure freed her from the entrapment, her top at the ready. "It can't be a coincidence that the amazing Miss Chance shows up just as Chrysalis begins her reign of terror."
"You're both bugs, it wouldn't be out of character for you to be working together." Cracking sounds came as she swung her jumping rope like a whip.
"You do realize you're working with a bee, right?"
"That's enough out of all of you." Carnivore stood between his squad and Miss Chance.
"Look who finally decided to show up." Miss Chance frowned, "You're late to the party, stripes."
"I was caught up, our manager wishes to speak with you."
"Your manager?" Amira was surprised, what does their manage want with her? But she kept her cool, "Sorry but I don't do interviews."
"She's also the guardian of the miraculous and she's very excited to meet you. "
"The guardian? What guardian?"
"Duh, she's the one who gave us all of our miraculous in the first place." Mischief scoffed.
"And she's been looking for the lost ladybug miraculous for some time now and would very much like to meet its new holder."
"I'll think about it." And here comes the reporters with the cameras at the ready, "I gotta bug out, maybe next time, tiger."
"You let her get away!" Honeycomb screeched, "And she ruined my hair!"
"At least no one saw you screeching your head off, except for us." Mischief snickered, as she saved a video on her phone. "Priceless."
Carnivore said nothing, instead he flexed his claw around the silhouette of Miss Chance as if trying to catch her in his grasp.
A/N:
*Knocks down your front door with a single kick*
I'M BACK, BABY!
Sorry for the lack of updates, my summer kicked my butt (and stole my credit card) as the first weeks of the new school year have been tiring. I'm vey much excited to get back to writing on this fic and these characters. No new players this time, but I very much like describing Chrysalis' appearance: royalty with a sinister tone underneath.
As always reviews, favs, and follows are appreciated!
Until next time,
FallenFairy20