Isekai'd as the new French Miraculous Superhero Team.

Chapter 67: Befana Not.

(Quantic Universe Earth 19274729568301958374, Paris, France, April 2nd, 2016, Chloe Bourgeois' POV...)

I watched over everyone doing their hardest to get everything done on time.

We were finishing up the preparations Marinette's surprise birthday party in the Place des Vosges, at Alya's request.

Sure, we can't exactly have a birthday party for everyone in the hotel all the time, but this is definitely the best we can do since the Dupain-Cheng bakery is big enough for four people and since we can't have anyone in the Akuma Class, even those who are now in the know about my origins, Marinette's origins, and our identities of Ladybug and Queen Bee, know about the location of our headquarters. The risk is too great to ignore.

As for whether or not Marinette knows about the party, in Alya's paraphrased words, Marinette may be onto us about whether or not we're planning her surprise birthday party, especially since neither of our classmates know the meaning of discreet.

Along with the fact that Marinette has the stealth capabilities of a ninja, thereby allowing her to catch our class in the act of making preparations for her birthday party.

But nevertheless, nowadays, Alya owes me, so I'm using her blog as a place to advertise the next big news thing, other than competitions and contests.

I had everyone doing the same jobs for Marinette's party that we did for Adrien's, but this time, there was no craft supplies needed, and Adrien was there. He'd never miss his girlfriend's birthday party, even if Hawk Moth decided to lock up Adrien in a room packed with cameras and microphones.

And, based on what we knew about Marinette's foreknowledge shared with me, as I just said, nobody knew how to be discreet, and now Marinette's on to us. But since Marinette willingly erased her memory of the birthday party without realizing it, let's just say it would take until she gets escorted to the party by her grandmother, Gina Dupain, to remember what was really going on.

I then said, "Sabrina, I'm gonna go make sure that the cake is ready. Can you please keep everyone focused and stop Kim and Alix from having any arguments that can get out of hand?"

Sabrina replies, "You got it, Chloe."

Sabrina rushed over to where Alix and Kim were having an argument, again, so she can stop the argument before it gets out of hand, either by being turned into a contest or by escalating into a physical fight, even despite the fact I was hoping Kim was intelligent enough to know that ancient men hitting ancient girls has long since become illegal. In the United States, in Canada, in France, in Italy, in Germany, et cetera.

Then I made my way to the Dupain-Cheng bakery.

(In the meantime, Marinette's bedroom, third person...)

In Marinette's bedroom, Tikki remarks, "Marinette, this is quite a special day for you!"

Marinette replies, "You bet it is, Tikki!"

Tikki then says, "Anyway, Marinette, there's a ritual we kwamis perform on a day like this."

Marinette replies before saying coldly, "I know about the kwagatamas, Tikki, and no, you will not give me one."

Tikki asks in shock, "Why not?"

Marinette answers, "Because, Tikki, the way kwagatamas are made is utterly disgusting. And, this may be too difficult for you to f(bleep!) understand no matter how many times we Miraculous holders and your fellow kwamis have to tell you, but we humans prefer our presents to not come from anything as disgusting as saliva, no matter if it's human saliva, kwami saliva, or animal saliva."

Tikki replies in a crestfallen tone, "Oh."

Marinette then hugs Tikki and says, "Oh, Tikki. I understand that it's the thought that counts, but you gotta understand, we humans are very particular about how clean we want our presents for our birthdays, for Hanukkah, and for Christmas."

Tikki replies, "I'll try harder to understand, but no promises."

Marinette nods sharply in understanding.

Marinette then looks at her phone and she says, "Hmm, still no call from Alya."

Tikki asks, "Why are you expecting a call from Alya this time?"

Marinette answers, "Because she's supposed to be taking me to somewhere to celebrate my birthday, but she doesn't want me to know where that is."

Tikki deadpans, "I scanned your memory, Marinette; and based on what you told me about modern humans using code words to conceal messages during joyous occasions or military operations in times of war, you're expecting a call from Alya to take you to your birthday party, aren't you?"

Marinette replies, "(Sighing) Yes, I am. Guilty as charged. But the thing is, my classmates weren't exactly discreet enough to escape my notice of them preparing my party. (Shows flashbacks) Juleka, for example, was jumpstarted when I caught her holding a bicycle pump, but even though it's technically for the bicycle she owns, she nevertheless is gonna use it to inflate the balloons at my party. Even despite the fact that I had explicitly said to my class that I'm scared of balloons."

Tikki then inquires, "But how can your birthday party be a party without balloons?"

Marinette points out, "Tikki, do you seriously want me to get so scared of balloons to the point where I pee myself or I end up fainting or I end up suffering a heart attack?"

Tikki exclaims, "Oh, goodness, no! Of course not!"

Marinette replies before explaining further, "Exactly my point. Also, yesterday, (Shows another flashback) I caught Nino listening to one of my favorite songs, I Wanna Dance With Somebody Who Loves Me by Whitney Houston, one of the most popular songs for a girl's birthday party."

Tikki then says, "Maybe it's one of his favorite songs too?"

Marinette replies, "No, no, no, he hates that song, and he knows that any rage out over the song being played, even outside of my birthday parties and even outside of Gabi abusing the Butterfly Miraculous, will call for severe punishment. Anyway, the only reason he has for listening to it while trying to exhibit patience over it is because he's coming up with a song playlist for the party."

Tikki gives Marinette a skeptical look, and Marinette grunts in annoyance before asking as a third and final flashback plays, "Okay, if you don't believe me, then can you tell me why was Alya having a secret discussion with Adrien in Ms. Bustier's classroom after class ended, hmm?"

Adrien and Alya see Marinette in the classroom, and Adrien says, "Okay, Alya, I see your point. I know a good dentist who's proficient at his job like so many other famous ones before him. Here's his phone number and email."

He gives Alya a paper and leaves.

Marinette then says, "And that means he's attending the party. Mwah hahahahahahahahaha!"

Tikki remarks half teasingly, "Or it means Alya is taking her sisters to see Adrien's dentist."

Marinette snarls like an angry tiger, and Tikki squeaks like a scared mouse.

Marinette then asks, "Seriously, Tikki, do you really come from an era where everyone literally meant everything they said?"

Tikki answers, "Unfortunately, yes, and the only ones to blame for not allowing us to learn modern idioms is the Order of the Guardians before and after Grandmaster Su-Han took over as leader of the Guardians."

Marinette replies back, "Hmm. I see. But you know, you always could access my memories to learn more about modern idioms."

Tikki retorts, "And accidentally stumble across any memories of alternate Miraculous Ladybug universes where things for our counterparts took various dark turns as you observed from using your power over viewing alternate timelines? No, thank you."

Marinette gives off a deep growl before saying, "Your loss."

Meanwhile, Chloe has just gotten to the bakery's front door when she spotted Marinette's paternal grandmother, Gina Dupain, stopping and parking her motorcycle.

Chloe asks Gina in Italian, "Mi scusi. Tu sei Gina Dupain, vero? La nonna paterna di Marinette Dupain-Cheng?/ Excuse me. You are Gina Dupain, right? Marinette Dupain-Cheng's paternal grandmother?"

Gina answers in Italian as she also eyes Chloe suspiciously, "Sì, io sono./Yes, I am."

Chloe replies back as she explains in Italian before asking, "Oh, bene. Sono Chloe Bourgeois, la migliore amica di Marinette e rappresentante di classe della nostra scuola. La nostra classe sta organizzando una festa di compleanno a sorpresa per Marinette nel parco. Volevo chiedere ai suoi genitori di tenere occupata Marinette finché la nostra compagna di classe blogger Alya non verrà a prenderla, ma visto come sei arrivata tu, potresti farlo per noi?/Oh, goody. I am Chloe Bourgeois, Marinette's BFF and the Class Representative for our school. Our class is planning a surprise birthday party for Marinette in the park. I was intending to ask her parents to keep Marinette occupied until our blogger classmate Alya comes to pick her up, but seeing as how you've arrived, can you please do that for us instead?"

Gina replies with a hearty laugh, "Ahahah, ovviamente! Nessun problema, ragazzo. Inoltre, il tuo italiano è fluente. Hai praticato per anni?/ Hahaha, of course! No problem, kiddo. Also, your Italian is proficient. Did you practice for years?"

Chloe smiles as she answers before requesting, "Si l'ho fatto. Per favore, posso avere il tuo numero di cellulare? Ne ho bisogno per poterti mandare un messaggio con il segnale per portare Marinette alla festa./ Yes, I did. Can I please have your cell phone number? I require it so I can text you the signal to bring Marinette to the party."

Gina replies as she shows Chloe her phone number, "Ovviamente. Ecco qui./Of course. Here it is."

Chloe tests the phone number, and after Gina's phone rings, she hangs up.

Chloe then says, "Oh, e un'altra cosa. Sono assolutamente sicuro che Marinette abbia capito cosa stiamo progettando, e il motivo è perché i nostri compagni di classe non conoscono il significato di discreto, e quasi tutti sono dei pessimi bugiardi. Quindi, con ogni probabilità, proverà a verificare la situazione tramite una telefonata o un messaggio di testo, quindi scusami in anticipo, Gina./ Oh, and one other thing. I'm absolutely sure Marinette has figured out what we're planning, and the reason why is because our classmates don't know the meaning of discreet, and almost all of them are terrible liars. So, in all likelihood, she's probably gonna try to check on things through a phone call or a text message, so, sorry in advance, Gina."

Gina replies, "Hahahaha, nessun problema, Chloe. Posso gestire la mia piccola polvere magica./ Hahahaha, not a problem at all, Chloe. I can handle my little pixie dust."

Chloe smiles at that before approaching the door, adopting her best angered expression, and knocks on the door.

Marinette comes up and opens the door.

Marinette starts to say, "Chloe – "

Chloe says angrily, "Move it, Mari! I need to check on the cake your parents are making."

Marinette asks, "What cake?"

Chloe looks at Marinette like she was her ultimate enemy that had to be killed to save others as she snarls, "Don't even think about talking about it to anyone."

Marinette questions, "Why? What's wrong?"

Chloe answers, "My mother, she... she relapsed into old habits, and she's requested a cake for her imminent visit for the Parisian fashion show. Because of this change back to old attitudes and old habits, I have to make sure that it meets the preferences that she wants, never mind the preferences of whoever else wants to eat a piece of the cake, so unless the world is ending or Hawk Moth is on the loose in person, don't talk to me for the next six months, otherwise I'll force you to massage my feet for three weeks."

Marinette looks disgusted even as she inches away at Chloe's icy scowl.

Suddenly, the doorbell rings.

Marinette scaredly opens it and exclaims in Italian, "Nonna?!/Grandma?!"

Tom sticks his head around the corner and asks in shock, "Mom?"

Sabine does likewise and asks in shock as well, "Gina?"

Marinette laughs in satisfaction as she hugs her grandmother, with Chloe observing that Marinette was just as tall as her grandmother.

Gina remarks, "Marinetta! You're so tall for a fourteen year old girl. Did you get my letter from Patagonia?"

Marinette answers, "Yes, I did. As well as the ones from Australia, Bali, and Estonia! But did you really get chased by a bear?"

Gina replies, "Hahahaha, yes. But we wound up becoming good friends in the end."

Tom whispers, "(Softly) Mom, it's her birthday, remember?"

Gina replies, "Of course; why do you think I'm here, sonny? (She hands Marinette a package from inside her motorcycle helmet) Happy birthday, my big fairy! My Inuit friend knitted them especially for your fourteenth birthday!"

Marinette opens the package, and the second shirt is obviously too small for her.

Marinette then says, "Okay, for the second shirt, I happen to have an idea for how I can use it."

Gina replies, "And your Nonna has brought you one of the candies that you said is your favorite these days."

She places a tin in Marinette's hands.

Marinette remarks happily, "Oh, wow! You remembered!"

Gina replies before saying, "I may be getting older, Marinette, but I still remember important things like what you like and what you don't like. And that's not all, my fairy! We'll have a wonderful day, you and I! Just like the last time four years ago, we'll go to the merry-go-round, and the zoo, then – "

But Tom interrupts to ask, "Uh, Mom? Can I have a word with you, just the two of us?"

Gina asks, "What is it, Tom? Is it because I don't know Marinetta anymore because I'm always traveling?"

Tom answers, "No, Mom, it's just – "

Chloe whispers, "(Softly) Mr. Dupain, she knows about the party."

Tom replies, "Ooh-kay, never mind."

Gina shrugs.

Gina then says, "Come on then, Marinetta! We're gonna have a ball!"

Gina pulls Marinette out of the house.

As soon as they were out of hearing range, Chloe asks in a whisper, "(Softly) How is the cake coming along?"

Tom answers in a whisper, "(Softly) It's almost done."

Sabine says in a whisper, "(Softly) It's gonna be beautiful."

Tom adds in a whisper, "(Softly) We wouldn't willingly do anything less for our little girl."

Chloe replies in a whisper, "(Softly) Great. Again, please bring it to the park when it's finished."

Chloe then notices that Marinette and Gina have gone to a different area of Paris, and she goes the short way back to the park.

There, she notified the class about their new ally in Gina, much to their shock since Marinette never brought up her grandparents and since even she didn't know that Gina was gonna show up.

Meanwhile, Marinette and Gina go around Paris, going to a merry-go-round, where Marinette waves on her grandmother while going on the ride.

Then, they go to the zoo, where Marinette and Gina see some animals in their "natural" habitats.

Then, they go to a local gym where Gina shows she exercises on a normal scale despite her advancing age.

Then, they go to a yoga class, where Marinette and Gina show themselves to be quite flexible and acrobatic, much to each other's respective surprise.

And then the journey ends up on the Pont des Arts bridge.

Gina is ordering ice cream from a vendor, revealed to be Andre Glacier, and Gina notices Marinette is meditating in the sunlight.

But what Gina doesn't know is that Marinette was meditating while being careful not to use any of her powers.

Gina's phone dings and she checks it to see Chloe's signal saying that the party was finished with being set up, and that she can bring Marinette to the park.

Gina then says, "Sorry, Andre; my granddaughter's classmates just notified me that her birthday party is ready for her."

Andre replies, "Go, Gina. There's plenty to do with someone's birthday besides having celebratory ice cream."

Gina nods and pays for the ice creams before approaching Marinette, who appears to be in deep meditation.

Gina then sets down the ice creams and starts tickling Marinette's sides, making her shriek in surprise.

Marinette asks, "What was that for?!"

Gina answers, "To get your attention, of course. Your class and I have a surprise for you at the Place des Vosges."

Marinette inquires, "A surprise? For little old me?"

Gina replies with a smile, "You bet."

Marinette then asks while politely taking her ice cream, "Well, what are we waiting for?"

After eating their ice creams without accidentally getting brain freeze, Marinette and Gina go off to the party.

After arriving, Marinette sees the class standing there with a banner that says, "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" and Adrien is holding a noise maker.

Everyone says in unison while Adrien plays the noise maker, "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!" "Surprise!"

Marinette goes up to Alya and Adrien, and she bear hugs them both in tears.

Everyone was shocked at seeing Marinette cry joyfully, as this had never happened before, to their knowledge.

Adrien says while struggling against Marinette's grip, "We love you too, Marinette – Ack! – but please, you're crushing us!"

Marinette lets go and wipes her tears before blowing into a hankie she packed.

Marinette then says, "Thanks, guys!"

Everyone replies, "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!" "Happy Birthday, Marinette!"

Mylene then gives Marinette a book while saying, "This is for you, Marinette."

Marinette accepts the book and bends down to hug Mylene just because of the height difference.

After the present opening was finished, Marinette blew out the candles for her birthday cake, and she got the first piece of cake to go along with the healthy food she has on her plate.

But before Marinette can dig in after finishing her prayer, Adrien comes up and says while giving Marinette his present for her, "Marinette, this is for you."

Marinette hands her plate to her grandma before opening her present, and she's delighted to see that it's a handmade charm bracelet along with a rose gold ring and a ladybug charm necklace.

Adrien says, "I couldn't think of anything other than these to give you for your birthday, so I came up with these."

Marinette remarks, "They're so wonderful... Thank you, Adrien."

Adrien and Marinette kiss on the lips, causing people to cheer.

Pretty soon, the party is underway, as Nino begins playing Marinette's birthday song playlist at the DJ station and everyone begins dancing.

Marinette is with Tillyan in the trees nearby, with Chloe and Sabrina watching over everything.

Marinette remarks to Tillyan, "Can you believe it? He made a birthday present for me, by his own hands."

Tillyan remarks, clearly still miffed about earlier that morning, "Yeah, well, it's a weird present if you ask me."

Marinette growls at this, and Tillyan slowly unfolds her ladybug wings.

But then, Tillyan stops when she sees Marinette's kwagatama, now on another necklace around her neck.

Marinette says, "I may not like the actual method of making kwagatamas, but that doesn't mean I'm unwilling to learn more about kwagatamas in terms of how they work in the yin-yang symbolization. The important thing about a present, Tikki, is not just about the thought being what counts, but it's also about the person who's giving it."

In Marinette's bedroom, after the party, Marinette says while crossing off Befana from her list, "My grandma's Akumatization into Befana, averted. Up next is the Tales from Paris webisode called Repetition, with the entire webisode already being used as the prologue in the first issue of Miraculous: Adventures of Ladybug and Cat Noir that also serves as the first half of the comic book in question. And the next Akumatized villain to deal with makes her debut in a few days: Kagami Tsurugi, also known as Riposte, Oni-Chan, Ryuko with the original Dragon Miraculous, Lies, Ryukomori, and Riposte Prime with Monarch's Turtle Alliance Ring channeling into her the power of the Turtle Miraculous. (Sighs) I gotta find a way to recruit Kagami without Gabriel or Tomoe finding out about it, and even after I throw Gabriel, Nathalie, and Lila in prison, I gotta find a way to throw Cash, Techno-Pirate, and Tomoe among others in prison while taking away any powers or resources or personnel they have to ensure that they would escape from prison or have the charges against them dropped. And also, if Adrien and I encounter Kagami, we gotta be sure that she's not a Sentimonster invented by Kagami's late father for Tomoe to give birth to and to control even despite being rendered permanently blind through unknown means. And even with that, we have to show Kagami that second chances are an actual thing in the world no matter what the leaders of China, Russia, or Japan have to say about it."

Marinette forwards her intel to Adrien through telepathy, and he asks telepathically, "And you think Kagami will willingly listen even despite knowing that she's not a good liar and even despite what you and the others plan to do if Tomoe accelerates her and Gabi's plans regardless of whether or not he gets thrown in prison?"

Marinette replies telepathically, "Hey, it doesn't hurt to try. Besides, if Tomoe is smart/foolish enough to even attempt to accelerate her and Gabriel's plans, my spies will notify us. And trust me, because I sent them fifty thousand years into the past to train themselves with the best teachers throughout history while granting them permanent immortality to prevent them from aging and dying, they stand a chance against that old hag."

And with that, Marinette and Adrien started debating the best contingency plans and they started debating how to best impress Kagami enough into a friendship circle that Tomoe would approve regardless of her doubts.

Marinette mentally says after she and Adrien are done and after they hang up for the night until patrol, "Please, God, let this go well."

The End.

(Author's notes: Yes, Befana Not means that Gina Dupain never got Akumatized. It's not just (insert Akumatized villain name) Averted that lets you know if an Akumatized villain's Akumatization is averted; it's also (insert Akumatized villain name) Not that lets you know if an Akumatization of a specific chronological Akumatized villain doesn't happen whatsoever.

Anyway, see you all in chapter 68: Repetition.)