Miraculous Weasel

by Tang Ri Shan

Alice Bourgeois, the twin sister of Chloe, grew up in New York City with her mother. But shortly after she is sent to live with her father and sister in Paris, she comes across the Weasel Miraculous, which grants her the power of transformation. She becomes the superheroine Ermine to help Ladybug and Chat Noir protect Paris, but her mission soon becomes much more...'complicated'

2. Chapter 2- Stoneheart

Miraculous Weasel CH 2: Stoneheart

"The stone beings are scattered all over Paris and, for the time being, show no signs of movement. Police are cordoning off the areas where the transformations have occurred" The news report I was watching showed police working to set up fences and barriers around the numerous stone beings across the city.

The screen shifted to show my father, the mayor of Paris. "I pledge to you; we will not stop until we find a way to get these people back to their normal selves!" My father declared, before hanging his head. "But alas, as of now, I confess we have not made much headway on that"

My heart ached for my father as the screen shifted back to the news announcer. It must be hard for him, having to deal with superheroes and supervillains. This was unfamiliar territory for him. It wasn't exactly a concept that the political and business arenas had prepared him for.

"Paris is now relying on its new guardian angels, Ladybug, Ermine, and Chat Noir to save us. The lives of the petrified people, and perhaps even the lives of everyone in the city, now depend on them"

Having heard enough, I switched off the news report and flopped back onto my bed with a groan.

Minkk, my kwami, floated over from the nightstand, where she had been watching the report. "Don't be upset Alice, it was only your first time. You'll get better at this" She said soothingly.

"I'm not upset about what's happened, Minkk. I'm upset that I can't do anything about what's happened!" I groaned, pounding my mattress in frustration.

Needless to say, my first day of being a superhero had not been one for the highlight reel. Upon discovering Minkk yesterday, I had transformed for the first time into Ermine, a weasel-themed superheroine with the power of transformation, and had assisted two other superheroes, Ladybug and Chat Noir, in defeating Ivan, a boy from my class who had been infected by an akuma, which had turned him into a rock-bodied monster called Stoneheart. The three of us had managed to separate Ivan from the akuma that was controlling him and revert the boy back to normal, but we had forgotten that his akuma needed to be captured. The blasted thing had escaped us and now it was apparently multiplying, infecting random people throughout Paris and turning them into Stoneheart copies.

What really annoyed me was that apparently only Ladybug had the ability to capture and purify akumas, as well as repair any damage that akumatized people caused. Unfortunately, the last time I had seen Ladybug, she had been suffering from a serious lack of confidence. She had eventually managed to overcome it, after I had given her a pep talk, but I had a strong feeling that her newfound confidence would be shaken by what was happening now. However, since I didn't know who Ladybug really was, this meant there was precious little I could do except keep vigil over Ivan to make sure he didn't become Stoneheart again and just…wait for Ladybug to get her confidence back.

Fortunately, keeping tabs on Ivan wouldn't be too hard, seeing as he sat in front of me in class. Keeping him pacified however, would be a lot harder. Ivan struck me as a sensitive spirit, who was quick to anger. He'd threatened to punch another boy just because the boy had given him a teasing note the other day. According to Minkk, if Ivan got angry again, and turned back into Stoneheart, he could bring the other stone beings to life to serve as his army. I shuddered, and my nose ached, remembering how much damage Ivan had done last time. One Stoneheart had been bad enough, Paris did not need an entire army of those things running around.

My thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a knock on my bedroom door. When Minkk had dove out of sight, I called out "Come in!"

The door opened to reveal Jean, the butler in charge caring for me. "Miss Alice, breakfast is ready downstairs. Your sister and her friend are already there." He said with a bow.

"Thank you, Jean. I'll be down in a minute" I smiled at him. He bowed again and left.

Rising from my bed, I gathered the materials I would need for school and swept them into my shoulder bag.

Minkk floated over from where she had been hiding. "Don't forget to save me some breakfast, okay?" She begged, giving me big puppy-dog eyes, which looked funny on a weasel.

I giggled at the sight. "I won't forget. Come on" I motioned to my shoulder bag. Minkk dove into a small compartment that was attached to the strap, and I sipped it up just enough to hide her, but open enough to help her breathe and watch what was happening, and left the room.

I took the elevator down to the main floor of the hotel, where the rest of my family was gathered around the main table in the hotel restaurant.

"Good morning" I said as I joined them. My twin sister, Chloe, ignored me and continued examining her nails. Her friend Sabrina shot me a smile when Chloe wasn't looking. I smiled back, but the smile faded when I saw my father. He was muttering to himself as he cut up his eggs and buttered his croissant, he looked nervous.

"Daddy?" I finally said aloud, causing him to look up. "Are you okay?"

A small smile crossed his face. "Oh yes Alice, I'm alright. I guess I'm just worried about what's been happening."

"You mean about those stone-beings?" I asked. "Have you made any progress in curing them?"

My father shook his head. "I'm afraid not" He admitted. "I've been in contact with the best scientists in the city, but none of them have any idea how this could have happened, let alone how to cure them. All of Paris is demanding answers, but we have none to give them. This is a nightmare!" I bit my lip at the look of stress on his face. I wanted to badly just to come out and tell him what I knew, but I knew that wasn't an option.

"I don't understand why those darn superheroes don't just hurry up and use their powers to put everything back to normal" Chloe snorted.

"I don't think superpowers work that way, Chloe" I said, turning to her. "Even superheroes have limits to what they can do"

Chloe scoffed. "Well then, they're not really super, are they?"

I frowned at Chloe, but deep down, I wondered if maybe she had a point. If we really were superheroes, maybe Chat Noir and I would have figured out a way to cure the affected people ourselves by now without needing to rely on Ladybug, or at least we could have found Ladybug and convinced her to help us come up with a way to free them.

"Daddy, has there been any word from Ladybug, Chat Noir, or Ermine?" I turn back to my father.

My father shook his head. "No, I've issued a city-wide bulletin asking the three heroes to contact us with any information they may have about the affected people, but none of them have answered."

"Probably because they don't know what to do and are too embarrassed to show themselves" Chloe smirked as she painted her nails. "Some heroes!"

I grit my teeth to keep from snapping back at Chloe. I didn't want to admit it, but maybe Chloe was right. Maybe the three of us weren't cut out for this hero thing.

No! I shook my head fiercely. I couldn't start thinking that way! If the three of us lost hope, then it wouldn't be long before all of Paris followed suit. I was not going to let that happen, especially after all the happiness I had recently found here. I had true friends, hopefully, a family who actually loved me, sort of, and I was living in one of the most beautiful cities in the world! I had gotten a shot at living the kind of life I had always wanted to live, with no pretend friends, no overbearing parents, and no false promises. I was not going to let it go to waste! I had to find Ladybug and give her another pep talk! Hey, it had worked once before yesterday, so here's hoping it would do the job again. The question was, how to find her? I spent the rest of breakfast wracking my brain, trying to figure out how to do just that.

I was still thinking a half-hour later, when our limo had dropped the three of us off at school. Chloe and Sabrina had headed right in, but I lingered by the front door, waiting for my friends Marinette and Alya. At least, I hoped they were my friends. We seemed to hit it off okay yesterday, but our bonding session had been interrupted by Ivan's transformation. Maybe they had some ideas on how to find Ladybug now. Alya in particular, seemed like the kind of person who knew all about superheroes, including how to find them.

Finally, I saw the two girls meet in front of the school and walk towards me.

"Marinette! Alya!" I called, waving at them.

Both girls looked up. "Hi Alice!" Marinette waved back.

"Hey girl!" Alya added. She looked excited about something. "Check it out!" She thrust her phone in my face.

I blinked in surprise, then noticed that the screen of her phone showed a particular website.

"The Ladyblog?" I read the title, and fought the urge to laugh out loud. A blog dedicated to Ladybug? Wow!

"That's right" Alya crowed as she took her phone back. "Ladyblog: bringing you all the latest news about the coolest Superhero, Ladybug!" She held the phone out for Marinette to see. "How awesome is that?" She continued as she took her phone back. "Check out the number of views since I posted my video!"

"Wow, Ladybug's pretty popular" I commented as I looked at the view-count, which appeared to be over 5,000 views, which was impressive seeing how the video had only gone up yesterday. "But…what about the other heroes, Char Noir and Ermine?" I asked hesitantly. "Did you make blogs for them too?"

"Huh? Oh well, I talk about them as well, of course, but Ladybug's obviously the leader of the group, so naturally she gets the spotlight" Alya replied.

"Oh" I felt a twinge of envy inside me that I didn't have my own blog, but I quickly pushed these feelings down, knowing that if Ladybug saw this blog dedicated to her, it might help restore her confidence. That was more important right now. "Yeah, I guess you're right" I said, shrugging my shoulders.

"But…why do you both trust Ladybug so much?" Marinette's voice made us both stop and turn around. She stood a few feet behind us looking…somewhat torn. "I mean, all these stone beings…"

"She's gonna handle them" Alya scoffed, not looking worried in the slightest.

Marinette's expression didn't change. "But…what if she's not really cut out to be a superhero, even though everyone thinks she is?"

I raised an eyebrow. That was a weird thing to say. "Marinette, what are you talking about?" I asked.

"Oh, wait a minute" Arya suddenly stepped forward. "I think I know what this is about"

To my surprise, Marinette looked flustered and panicked as Alya leaned towards her. "Y-you do?" She squeaked.

"Of course, I do. You're scared" Alya said soothingly, placing a hand on Marinette's shoulder. "But you shouldn't be. I've seen it with my own two eyes, girl!" Alya pointed to her eyes as she spoke, causing me to chuckle. "Ladybug is a true superheroine!"

"Alya's right" I added, smiling at Marinette. "And even if Ladybug somehow does manage to come up short, she's not alone in this fight. She's got Chat Noir and Ermine there to help pick up the slack."

"But…but what if they don't want to work with Ladybug anymore, after what's happened?" Marinette asked, looking at me.

I snorted "Why would they abandon her? She makes one mistake and suddenly it's game over?" I shook my head, then chuckled as Alya gave me a queer look. "I mean, I'm no expert, obviously, but I'm pretty sure that's not how a superhero team works"

"Exactly" Alya nodded as she straightened up, looking back at Marinette. "Ladybug, Chat Noir, and Ermine will protect us all!" She exclaimed, clenching her fist. "I believe in them, but in Ladybug most of all" With that, Alya turned and walked into the school. Marinette followed a few seconds later, a smile on her face.

As I moved to follow them, I suddenly spotted Ivan, sitting heavily on a bench, surrounded by a small knot of his classmates.

"Uh oh" I said under my breath and began moving towards him.

"So, you really don't remember anything?" A girl named Alix asked. Ivan shook his head.

"You were totally going ballistic. It was so cool" A gothic girl named Juleka said, making Ivan look at her funny.

"You were seriously out to crush me, dude!" Kim exclaimed; his hand clenched into a fist.

"Hey! HEY!" Alya suddenly darted in between Kim and Ivan. "I'm sure Ivan feels bad enough about what's happened, right Ivan?" She said.

"I…I'm sorry, you guys, I…I don't…I wasn't myself…" Ivan's gaze traveled from one face to another.

"Exactly, so how about we not make things any worse for Ivan than they already are, okay?" As Alya was speaking, I saw Ivan glance a certain direction and followed his gaze. He was looking at Mylene, a short girl in my class with her hair pleated into multi-colored dreadlocks. Realizing that Ivan was looking at her, Mylene looked away.

I felt a small smile creep across my face as I remembered the note that Kim had written to Ivan the other day, about how Ivan was afraid to admit that he liked Mylene. Maybe Mylene was the key to keeping Ivan under control.

"Pff!" A scoffing sound made me look around to see my sister leaning, arms crossed, against a support beam, Sabrina at her side. "Too late for that!" Chloe said when she saw that all eyes were on her. "Once a monster, always a monster!"

I groaned. "Seriously, Chloe" I muttered under my breath. It was like my sister was deliberately trying to make my task more difficult, without even knowing it!

Everyone gasped as Ivan suddenly stood up, an angry expression on his face. We all took a step back, as Ivan stomped away.

"Don't let the door hit you on the way out!" Chloe sang after the departing Ivan, a smug look on her face.

I took a deep breath to sate my rising anger. As much as I wanted to rip into Chloe, keeping Ivan's emotions in check was the bigger issue right now, so I reluctantly turned my back on the group and went after Ivan.

"How could you say that to Ivan? You're the real Stoneheart!" I heard Alya say angrily as I walked away, and I smiled. Looks like I wasn't the only one who wanted to have a go at my sister.

I followed Ivan to the locker rooms, and upon entering, saw him slumped down near the far wall. His eyes were closed and he was wearing headphones.

Approaching quietly, I knelt down and tapped Ivan on the arm. When he looked up and saw me, his eyes narrowed and he looked away.

I gave a small sigh and tapped his arm again, harder this time.

This time, Ivan took off his headphones. "What do you want?" He snapped.

Ignoring the jab, I gave Ivan a smile and said simply "You should tell Mylene how you feel, Ivan"

Ivan's anger faded and was replaced by uneasiness. "I…don't know what you're talking about"

I gave a small chuckle. "Come on Ivan. I heard about what Kim wrote to you the other day, and I saw the way you looked at Mylene just now. Just because I'm related to a 'dumb blonde', that doesn't make me one too." I joked, and was rewarded when Ivan's scowl turned into a chuckle. "It's clear that you have feelings for Mylene. But the question now is, does Mylene have feelings for you?" I continued.

Ivan snorted and shook his head. "No way. She'd never be interested in someone like me"

"Don't be so sure" I said, feeling my smile widen as Ivan looked up at me. "From the way Mylene was acting earlier, I'm inclined to think she actually might"

"Really?" A flicker of hope appeared in Ivan's eyes.

"I think so, yes, but of course, this is only based off what I noticed." I said quickly. "The only way to know for certain, is for you to go talk to her"

Ivan made a scoffing noise. "I'm no good with words anyway" He said.

"Well then…" My mind whirred as I searched for the right form of inspiration. The answer came in a flash. "You'll just have to find another way to communicate. You don't need words to tell someone how you feel. You could draw her a picture, you could send her flowers, you could…"

"I could…write a song?" Ivan interrupted.

I gasped happily. "Oh Ivan, that's a wonderful idea! What girl wouldn't love a special song written just for her? I remember a boy in my last school wrote a song for a girl and she said it was the greatest gift she had ever received! I'm sure Mylene will love it!"

"You…you think so?" Ivan looked happy now, almost excited.

"I know so. Go for it, Ivan! Just remember to speak from your heart…" I tapped Ivan's big chest. "…and stay positive. Okay?"

Ivan nodded as he leapt to his feet. He was practically giggling as he headed for the doors.

Good luck!" I called after Ivan as he disappeared.

Minkk suddenly floated up into my line of vision, giggling. "Wow, you certainly turned his mood upside down!"

I giggled as well. "I hope this works. Ivan's a lot easier to handle than Stoneheart"

Minkk nodded, then dove back into her pouch as I picked up my bag and left the locker room.

As I crossed the schoolyard, I noticed that a large crowd was gathered by one of the stairs, so I crossed the courtyard to the stair opposite it and made my way up to the second floor. As I crossed the hall towards the classroom, a familiar voice stopped me, "Alice?"

I looked around and my eyes widened when I saw Adrien Agreste staring at me with Chloe on his arm, his eyes wide as well. A second later, my face cracked in a big grin. Even though Chloe had been going on and on about it for weeks, with all that had been happening, I had almost forgotten that Adrien would be in the same class as me.

"Hey Adrien!" I said happily as they walked up to me. I saw that Chloe was no longer smiling.

"Well, this is a nice surprise!" Adrien beamed at me as we clasped hands and then hugged each other. "What are you doing here?"

I shrugged my shoulders as we broke apart. "I go to school here now"

"Really? That's awesome!" Adrien's eyes widened before turning to Chloe. "You never mentioned your sister would be going here too, Chloe!"

"Oh, didn't I?" Chloe gave Adrien a fake smile. "I'm so sorry, it must have slipped my mind"

"Yes, I'm sure your mind was otherwise occupied by something" I jabbed. "Now if I could only work out who it was"

Chloe's smile faded and, to my delight, her cheeks flushed.

Adrien laughed. "I see you haven't lost your witt" He commented as Chloe began pulling him towards the classroom.

"And have to deal with all the trouble of finding it again? No thanks!" I joked, causing Adrien to chuckle as we entered the classroom.

Once inside, Chloe detached from Adrien and stood in front of him. "Well, here is your seat, Adrikins. I saved it for you, right in front of me!"

"Don't you mean in front of you and Alice?" Adrien looked at me.

"Oh please, Alice had nothing to do with it!" Chloe snapped. "She just stood there and watched while I did all the hard work"

"Yeah, and the guilt's been tearing me up ever since" I rolled my eyes and muttered just loud enough for Adrien to hear.

He chuckled at me, and moved to take his seat. "Thanks Chloe" he said as he passed her. As I moved to take my seat, I found Sabrina and Chloe blocking the way. As I watched, Chloe took her gum out of her mouth and passed it to Sabrina, who stuck it where Marinette had been sitting the other day.

"Chloe, what are you doing?" I exclaimed, frowning.

"Yeah, what's that all about?" Adrien asked, getting to his feet.

"Oh, the brats that sat here yesterday need a little attitude adjustment." Said Chloe as she and Sabrina took their seats. "I'm just commanding a little respect, that's all."

"You think that's really necessary" Adrian asked, moving towards the gum and kneeling down over it.

"Ah, you have a lot to learn about school culture, Adrikins. Just watch the master" Chloe said loftily.

Adrien began prodding at the gum. Knowing that it was only a matter of time before Marinette and Alya walked in, I knelt down beside him. "Go sit down, I got it" I said to Adrien.

"Are you sure?" He looked concerned.

I nodded. "I know the girls that sit here. I think they'll more likely believe an explanation from me, than from you" I knew that I was taking a risk by doing this, but Adrien had never been to public school before, so he didn't realize what complex environments they could be, and how first impressions tended to make a lasting impact. I didn't want him making enemies right off the bat. Rejection was something I could handle, but I didn't know if Adrien could live with it, especially considering how nice he is.

"'Okay" Adrien moved back and I began scraping at the gum with my thumbnail. Unfortunately, the gum was still soft and resisted my efforts to pry it off. I altered my stance to try from a different angle.

"HEY!"

"Ow!" A loud voice made me jump and I hit my head on the seat. The classroom echoed with laughter as I rubbed my head and looked up to see Marinette standing over me, her hands on her hips, and her face angry.

"What are you doing?" she demanded.

"Marinette! I was just…" I started to say, but Marinette's eyes widened, then narrowed, when she saw the gum. Unfortunately, this only made Chloe and Sabrina laugh even harder.

Marinette's eyes darted from my laughing sister to me, then to the gum, and narrowed farther. "Oh, I get it now. Very funny!" She snapped.

"N-n-no, Marinette! You don't understand! I was trying to get this off!" I argued as I got to my feet.

"Oh really?" Marinette stuck her angry face into mine. "And here you were telling us yesterday that you weren't like Chloe" She snarled.

Chloe and Sabrina were laughing their tails off as Marinette pushed me aside and knelt over her seat, gagging as she touched the gum.

"Here, you can use this" I pulled my handkerchief out of my pocket and handed it to her.

"Thank you, but I think you've already helped plenty" Marinette's voice and her glare at me were both so cold I felt like shivering.

"Hey wait a minute!" Adrien spoke up. "She was only trying to get the gum off the seat, I can vouch for her!"

Marinette looked at Adrien, but her expression didn't change. "Why? Because she's Chloe's sister and you're friends with Chloe?"

Adrien groaned. "Why do people keep saying that?" He muttered.

"It's okay Adrien. Don't worry about it" I assured him, placing a hand on his shoulder.

Marinette had covered the gum with a paper towel and sat down, not looking at either of us. Adrien exchanged a sad glance with me and took his seat.

"Now do you see what I mean about respect?" Chloe said smugly as I climbed past her to get to my seat.

"Sometimes I don't believe we're related" I muttered under my breath as I finally got to my seat next to Nathaniel, who had his head down on his desk.

I had just at down when Miss Bustier walked in. Through the gap between Sabrina and Chloe, I saw Nino and Adrien shaking hands, and I couldn't help but smile. I had known Adrien for a long time, even thought we had only seen each other during holidays when my family and his family would occasionally mingle. Chloe had adored Adrien and claimed Adrien adored her as well, but as far as I could see, only Chloe seemed to think that way, and she tended to treat Adrien more like a show dog than an actual friend. Maybe that was why Adrien and I always had such fun on the rare times we could get together without Chloe in the way. He once told me that Chloe and I were his only friends. It was good to see him making new friends.

As Miss Bustier stood up to take roll call, Mylene suddenly burst into the room, breathless. As she apologized and rushed to her seat, I suddenly realized that Ivan wasn't here either. I wondered if he was still trying to write that song for Mylene.

"Agreste, Adrien" Miss Bustier called.

I saw Nino whisper something to Adrien and the boy suddenly stood up, stretched his hand towards the ceiling and said "Present!"

The class laughed as Adrien sat down and fist-bumped Nino.

"Bourgeois, Alice"

"Present" I raised my hand, then winked at Adrien as I put it back down. He grinned at me sheepishly.

"Bourgeois, Chloe"

"Present" Chloe replied sweetly.

"Bruel, Ivan"

I was about to answer that Ivan was probably going to be delayed when the door to the classroom was suddenly blasted off its frame into the room.

Everyone gasped as Stoneheart rushed into the room. "PRESENT!" He roared.

Oh no! I felt horror flood through me. Not again!

Chloe and most of the other girls screamed. Chaos erupted as Stoneheart stalked forward, calling out "Mylene?" while the rest of the class scrambled to get out of the monster's way.

I saw Nino, Adrien, and Nathaniel, finally awake, bolt from the classroom. Chloe had crouched under her desk while Sabrina appeared too terrified to move. I crouched down in my seat, hoping Stoneheart didn't see me. I had a feeling that Ivan's song idea hadn't worked too well and I didn't want him blaming me for it.

Mylene also seemed frozen with fear as Stoneheart finally spotted her and moved towards her, ripping Marinette and Alya's desk out of the way. Alya darted sideways towards the window, but Marinette ran back towards my desk. I scooted over to make room for her and she crouched down beside me without hesitation, though when she noticed me kneeling next to her, she scowled at me, causing me to roll my eyes.

"Let go of me, Ivan!" Mylene's voice caused me to peak over the top of the desk to see Stoneheart clutching Mylene in his hand.

"I'm not Ivan anymore. I'm Stoneheart!" As Ivan spoke to Mylene, I slowly began creeping towards the door so I could get out to find a place to transform.

"Why are you doing this?" Mylene asked.

"So, you and I can be together, forever, as I was trying to tell you earlier!" Stoneheart replied, causing me to grit my teeth. This was all my fault! I must have made Ivan too eager with my encouragement, and he must have presented his song to Mylene in a way she either didn't like, or didn't understand. Ivan had been re-akumatized because of me! I had to fix this!

By this time, I was level with Chloe and Sabrina's desk. Both girls were crouched under their desk, Sabrina was curled up into a ball, while Chloe was dialing on her phone, no doubt calling daddy. I straightened up as I prepared to dash for the door.

A floorboard creaked under me, just loud enough for Stoneheart to hear.

"You!" Stoneheart growled as he looked around and spotted me. I gasped in fear as he started to reach for me. I guess I was also right that Ivan might have a grudge against me.

"Daddy! The monster is back!" Chloe's voice suddenly made him freeze. I peered under the desk to see Chloe speaking into her phone and making no attempt whatsoever to keep quiet.

"YOU!" Stoneheart, having spotted Chloe, ripped up her table, causing it to almost fall on top of me, and grabbed Chloe.

"Aaah! Please not the hair!" Chloe wailed as Ivan held her up. I snorted. She was being kidnapped and she was worried about her hair? My sister was weird!

Peeking out from behind the upturned desk, I saw Stoneheart move over to the outer wall, kick a large hole in it, and then jump through it to the street below.

"Put us down, Ivan!" I heard Mylene yell as Alya rushed to the gaping hole and peered through it.

Having seen enough, I dashed out of the classroom and down the hall, but paused as I felt my phone vibrate. I checked the caller ID, it was my father.

"Hello?"

"Alice? Is Chloe with you? She was in the process of telling me something when we got cut off!" My father sounded concerned.

"No, Chloe's not with me, dad. She and another of my classmates were just abducted by Stoneheart!" I said as I rushed down the stairs towards the ground floor.

"Stoneheart? You mean that thing from yesterday?"

"Yeah, somehow Ivan transformed again. He busted into the classroom, grabbed both of them and then busted out through the wall." I said as I reached the ground floor and sprinted towards the girls' restroom, which I felt would be the safest place for a transformation.

"Oh dear! Are you alright, Alice?" I felt a grin flash across my face, normally my father appeared to dote on Chloe more than me. It was nice to know that he actually cared about me as well.

"I'm fine dad. Not even scratched." I said as I opened the restroom door and looked around. The room appeared empty.

"Good. I'm mobilizing the police as we speak. Stay at the school until I come and get you, alright? I'll see you when this is all over" My father's voice took on a more formal tone.

"Sure thing dad" I said as my father hung up.

I sighed as I put my phone away, then rushed around checking to make sure all the toilet stalls were empty before ducking into one. As I bolted the door, Minkk suddenly flew out from under my shirt where she had been hiding since Stoneheart reappeared.

"So, how's your day going?" She asked with a teasing grin.

"Very funny" I gave an amused snort as Minkk giggled. "Minkk, Showtime!"

Minkk flew into my belt buckle and I transformed into my Ermine costume, a furry white bodysuit with black accents and thicker fur around my neck, forearms and forelegs and a long white tail with a black tip.

Leaping up onto the top of the stalls, I made my way over to a window in the room, eased it open, and slipped outside.

Finding myself on the street, I unsnapped my whip, lassoed a nearby chimney pot, and vaulted up onto the roof of a building opposite the school. Spotting Stoneheart out near the front doors, I began following him.

"Well hello there" A voice right behind me made me jump and whirl around to find Chat Noir standing behind me, leaning on his stick and grinning at me.

"Don't scare me like that!" I scolded, but I couldn't help smiling.

"Sorry." Chat Noir said before we turned to look down at Stoneheart. "What's the situation?"

"Stoneheart is back" I said, even though that should have been obvious. "And he's abducted two girls, Mylene Haprele and Chloe Bourgeois."

I thought I saw a flicker of recognition in Chat Noir's eyes, but it was gone in a second. "Great, so now we've got two problems to take care of"

"I know right?" I rolled my eyes, before using my whip to catch onto a nearby light pole. "Come on!"

"Wait! Shouldn't we wait for Ladybug?" Chat Noir asked, making me pause. "My kwami told me we can't capture the akuma without her."

"Mine said the same thing" I nodded. "But even if we can't cure Stoneheart, we can try to free his captives. Now, come on!" I jumped off the roof and pulled myself to the lamp, then lassoed and pulled myself to the rooftop of the school.

By now, I was close enough to Stoneheart to hear Chloe complaining loudly. "You don't know who you're dealing with! My daddy, the mayor, will bring in the police, the army, the entire cavalry!" I rolled my eyes at Chloe's banter. It was gonna take a lot more than that to intimidate Stoneheart, I was certain.

"And don't forget the superheroes!" Chat Noir suddenly yelled as he leapt up and sailed over Stoneheart, whacking him in the back of his head with his stick.

My mouth dropped open. Did Chat Noir really just do that? Didn't he remember what happened to Stoneheart last time someone tried that?

Sure enough, as the hero landed in front of Stoneheart, and I jumped down next to him, the monster seemed to glow and increase in size, making him even bulkier than before.

"Uh oh!" Chat Noir gulped when he realized his error.

"Uhh, seriously?" I growled, shooting Chat Noir an annoyed look.

"Sorry, my bad!" He said sheepishly.

"Ugh. Super-incompetent, you mean" Chloe snapped, and for once I was inclined to agree with her.

Stoneheart snorted at us. "You want the cavalry? Where here it is!" He yelled and the other stone-beings raced up to us from all sides.

"No!" I growled as I quickly realized we were surrounded. I was really hoping Minkk had been wrong about the whole private-army thing.

"Seize them!" Stoneheart ordered his new minions.

The stone-beings lunged at us, forcing us to evade their attacks, as Stoneheart walked away with his captives. Seeing this, I growled and tried to race after them, but two of the being blocked my way, holding a small ink car above their heads.

"Oh boy!" I gulped as they threw the car at me. Thinking quickly, I dove forwards, flattening myself against the ground so the car passed harmlessly over me, then I sprang back to my feet, just missing the rocky fist of another being that had been trying to crush my head.

Slowly, but surely, Chat Noir and I worked our way down the street in the direction Stoneheart had gone, though he was out of sight by this point. Many of the beings had followed him, leaving only five or so to deal with us. I dodged the swipe of one and Chat Noir backflipped away from another, causing us to meet up in the middle of the street, with the five beings standing between us and our target. One of the beings had picked up a yellow car and now it threw the car at us, forcing us to dart to opposite sides of the street. Chat Noir darted behind a parked car while I took shelter behind a trash can.

"Hey Ladybug, if you can hear us, we could really use some help!" Chat Noir called out from his hiding place.

What is that bug waiting for? I thought as I prepared myself for another attack. The attack came in the form of another car, that was thrown straight at me by two of the stone-beings. I leapt back towards the center of the road to doge it, but paused when I heard a cry of terror behind me.

I turned, and terror flooded through me as I saw Marinette's friend Alya running away from the trash can I had been crouched behind. She must have been right behind me without my realizing!

I started to move towards her, but Chat Noir's stick zipped past me and slams into the car, altering its trajectory, but not enough. The car slammed down, not hitting Alya, but trapping her against the wall of a building.

"Chat Noir! The girl!" I cried out.

"Right! I'm…ooff!" His muffled grunt had me whirl around to see one of the stone-beings had grabbed him. The being lifted him up and all I could see were his legs flailing.

"No!" I growled before being forced to dodge a wild swing from another stone being. I flipped over his hand and landed near where Alya was trapped.

"Ermine, help me!" I turned to see Alya had managed to climb up the wall and was now struggling to climb through the gap between the wall and the underside of the car.

"Hang on miss! I'll…YEOW!" I moved towards Alya, but suddenly froze and screeched with pain as I felt one of the stone-beings grab my tail. Unlike Chat Noir's tail, which I suspected was just a belt, my tail was a real one, complete with feelings, and right now I was feeling so much intense pain that I would up dropping my whip.

With both of us secured, the stone-beings began to march down the street. I heard Alya yell for help, but there was nothing either of us could do.

"Let go, you rockhead!" I heard Chat Noir exclaim from inside the grip of the being that held him. I was too busy whimpering in pain to say anything. My tail felt like it was being stretched, in a very painful way, as I dangled from the grasp of the being holding me. I hit and scratched at its big hand, but it didn't even seem to notice what I was doing.

"Ermine, a little help!" Chat Noir called out as we were carried down the street.

"Sorry Chat, they got me too!" I called back as I twisted in midair, and grasped onto the being holding me, wrapping my arms and legs around his enormous arm. Sure, this position wasn't much better, but at least my tail didn't hurt as much now that it didn't bear all my body weight. The being glanced down at me and I growled up at it, flashing my fangs. I slashed at it's face with the claws on my glove, but its head was too high for me to reach. The being snorted and shook his arm, trying to shake me loose, rattling my bones and jarring my brains inside my head.

When the stone-being finally stopped I was left somewhat winded, but through the dizziness I noticed that my tail hurt even less now. At first, I thought it was due to my new position, but when I snuck a glance back, I saw that more of it was visible now.

How did…? My eyes widened as a sudden idea struck me. I didn't like it, but frankly I also didn't have much of a choice.

"Hey!" I turned and yelled at the stone-being holding me. It looked down and I lunged for its head, swiping with both claws at its eyes. As I expected, it growled and shook its arm again, but this time I was ready. I grabbed onto its arm, held on tight, and tried to pull my tail out of the being's grip. In addition to my tail having feelings, I could also control it, like a fifth appendage. Of course, I didn't have much experience in controlling my tail yet, and it was hard to concentrate when I was being shaken violently, but as I had hoped, the being was so focused on shaking its arm that its grip on my tail wasn't as strong as earlier, and after about a minute, I was able to pull it loose.

"HA!" I barked happily as I jumped up, backflipping away from the stone-being, who roared as it realized its prey was now free.

I performed another series of black flips to give myself room, flipping over another stone-being, but while I was in midair, I felt something grab me and I yelped, shutting my eyes, thinking it was another stone-being.

"Ermine?" I opened my eyes to see Ladybug holding onto me, her blue eyes wide with surprise.

"Ladybug!" I let myself relax as we landed on a light pole. "Where have you been?"

"Just doing a little soul-searching. Oh, and I think this is yours." Ladybug gave me a smile before holding her hand out. Laying on her palm was…

"My whip!" I cried joyously as I took my weapon back from Ladybug. "Thanks!"

"No problem" Ladybug's smile widened, but faded when she noticed the Stone-beings turn to face us, including the one holding Chat Noir. "Excuse me" She said before leaping high into the air and throwing something at the being holding Chat Noir, his stick.

"Chat Noir! Extend it!" She yelled as the stick vanished between the fingers of the stone-being. A moment later, the being's hand was forced open and Chat Noir emerged, tumbling down onto the asphalt in front of the being, who made a wild grab to reclaim his prize. But Ladybug threw her yo-yo around Chat Noir's legs and yanked him out of harms way.

"Sorry I'm late, you too" Ladybug said to us.

"Hey, better late than never, right?" I smiled at her, swishing my tail. "And your timing is certainly impeccable"

"I'll say, Milady" Chat Noir spoke up from where he was dangling, upside down and still wrapped in Ladybug's yo-yo, from the lamppost Ladybug and I were both crouching on. "Have I ever told you that you turn my world upside down?" He said with a wink.

I rolled my eyes at the joke as Ladybug smiled "Oh, you're quite the jokester, aren't you?"

A series of angry roars made all three of us look up to see the Stone beings charging towards us.

"Yeah, but your comedic timing needs some work" I added

"I agree! We gotta get out of here!" Ladybug and I jumped towards a nearby rooftop, dragging Chat Noir with us.

"Follow me!" Ladybug called as we reached the roof and Chat Noir managed to get himself free from the Yo-yo. Ladybug took off running along the rooftops away from the stone-beings, with Chat Noir and I on her heels.

"Hey! Aren't we going to take care of them?" Chat Noir asked as we left our captors in the dust.

As the two of us caught up with Ladybug, I saw her looking down at her yo-yo, which was open and displaying an image, like a phone screen.

"No" Ladybug said mid-leap. By this point, by had reached a square that was across the river from the Eiffel Tower. "If we want to save them all, then we go to the source. That one!" She pointed to the original Stoneheart who had, by this point, climbed partway up the Eiffel Tower and was now roaring defiantly at the police helicopters flying around him, in a fitting imitation of King Kong.

From what I could see, the police had set up barricades at both sides of the bridge between us and the Eiffel Tower. But they couldn't get any closer because a handful of Stone-beings were prowling around the tower's base.

"I demand my daughter's safe return!" My father shouted through a megaphone. He was standing in front of the police barricade at our end of the bridge.

"Daddy!" Chloe cried out, her voice carrying out across the river unaided.

"Huh, you know what? You're welcome to her!" Stoneheart growled as he looked at my sister. Then, to my horror, he threw her off the tower towards us.

"Sis" I hissed, then I was moving. Chloe may be a spoiled brat and a world-class snob, but she was my only sister.

I ignored the shocked cries of my partners and the police as I leapt up off the stairs we were on, flew over the barricade, used my whip to lasso a nearby light pole and swung myself hard, using the inertia of my momentum to catapult myself high enough to grab Chloe in mid-air. I landed hard on the bridge, the impact forcing me to one knee, but I was otherwise unhurt.

"Gotcha" I smiled at Chloe, who opened her eyes.

"I didn't promise anything" Chloe said when she saw she was safe.

"What?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Chloe!" My father called, running towards us. Chloe broke free of me, ran over, and threw her hands around our father. "Oh, my little princess!"

I felt a small smile cross my face as I watched the reunion. Part of me wanted to be in that hug, but I knew that wasn't an option right now.

"Wow! That was come catch!" Chat Noir exclaimed as he and Ladybug joined me on the bridge.

"Thanks" I smiled at him.

"We're clear to attack!" I heard the officer with the broken arm order. The other officers readied their firearms.

"No Wait!" Ladybug turned to them. "Don't attack them! It'll only make things worse!"

"I have a new plan, unlike you!" The officer yelled back, making a shooing motion with his free hand. "Why don't you move aside and let the pros do their thing? You've already failed once!"

I stiffened at the officer's accusatory tone and glanced at Ladybug. Sure enough, Ladybug looked taken aback.

"He's right, you know" She said, turning to look at us. "If I'd captured Stoneheart's akuma the first time, none of this would have happened! I knew I wasn't the right one for this job!" She put her head in her hands.

Seeing that made me mad. I was not going to let Ladybug lose her confidence again! I framed the officer with a dark look that wiped the smirk off his face, then stepped forward to reach under Ladybug's chin and tilt it up until she was looking at me.

"He's wrong" I said, giving Ladybug what I hope was a reassuring smile. "When it comes to things like this, we're the pros, not them." I tilted my head towards the officers "And even if you didn't get it right the first time, at least we managed to accomplish more than they did"

"Ermine's right" Chat Noir came forward and placed a hand on Ladybug's shoulder. "Without us, without you, these guys won't make it. They don't have the skills, and apparently they don't have the smarts either" He winked at me on that last part, making me chuckle.

"But he said…" Ladybug still looked doubtful.

"Listen, we know what went wrong last time, and we know what to do to make sure that doesn't happen this time." I cut her off. "We still have a chance to save Paris, and you still have a chance to show Paris the hero you truly are." I glanced at Chat Noir before adding. "and the leader that we both see you as"

Ladybug's face lit up with surprise, but I saw a flicker of hope in her eyes as she said "You mean that?" Wow, I was getting pretty good at these pep talks!

I nodded and so did Chat Noir.

"Just trust in yourself. Just like we trust in you. Okay?" Chat Noir said.

Ladybug's doubt appeared to fade away, with raw confidence taking its place "Okay!"

I felt my smile widen, but it froze when we heard a loud retching sound coming from behind us. We whirled around to see Stoneheart was coughing violently, roaring like something was caught in his rocky throat. Eventually, a swarm of what looked like akumas burst out of Stoneheart's mouth and he collapsed. The other Stone-beings suddenly froze, becoming statue-like again.

Before our eyes, the swarm of akumas rose up and took the form of…a face? A face that blinked open dark eyes and opened a grim-looking mouth. "People of Paris, listen carefully!" The face hissed. "I am Hawkmoth!"

"Hawkmoth?" The three of us repeated curiously?

"Ladybug, Chat Noir, Ermine. Give me the Ladybug earrings, the Cat ring, and the Weasel belt now! You've done more than enough damage to these innocent people!" Hawkmoth's image boomed.

"What did he just say?" I couldn't believe my ears. If this Hawkmoth was able to control the akumas, then he must be the mastermind behind everything that had happened both yesterday and today! And now he was trying to make us into the guilty party? I felt my lips part in a snarl and my hand gripped my whip tightly.

Chat Noir must have come to the same conclusion I had because his eyes narrowed to angry slits and he extended his stick until it was the length of a spear. "Why that nasty little…bug?" Our anger faded slightly as we became aware of the sound of applause behind us.

Chat Noir and I turned to see Ladybug pass us, clapping her hands as she calmly strolled towards Hawkmoth's image. "Nice try, Hawkmoth, but we know who the bad guy is. Let's not reverse the rolls here! Without you, none of these people would have been transformed in the first place!" She called up as she reached the end of the bridge and looked up at the face of Hawkmoth.

I felt my mouth open partially in surprise. The Ladybug we were looking at was nothing like the Ladybug that had been here a moment ago. I exchanged an image with Chat Noir. He looked surprised too.

"Now you listen carefully, Hawkmoth! No matter how long it takes, we will find you! And when we do, you will hand us your Miraculous!"

No sooner had she finished speaking when she suddenly ran forward spinning her yo-yo. Before our eyes, Ladybug used her weapon to lasso two lamp posts and used her yo-yo string to slingshot herself, first forward to the base of the Eiffel Tower, then up into the air, until she was level with the Akuma swarm.

Still in midair, she spun her yo-yo and cried out "Time to De-Evilize!", before lashing out, capturing akumas from the swarm in her yo-yo. The Hawkmoth image roared with anger as Ladybug swung her yo-yo again and again, capturing more akumas with each swing. Finally, the image vanished as the remaining akumas scattered. Ladybug snapped up one more in her yo-yo before landing on the Eiffel Tower's platform and turning to face us.

My jaw had dropped open. Chat Noir's jaw had dropped open. Had I bothered to look around, I would have seen that everyone else was as surprised as we were. Ladybug had undergone a full metamorphosis, from timid rookie to a full-fledged hero in mere minutes! I had thought such quick personality transformations only existed in comic books!

"People of Paris, let me make this promise to you!" Ladybug called to us, her voice ringing loud and clear across the water. No matter who or what wants to harm you, Ladybug, Ermine, and Chat Noir will always be there, doing everything in our power to keep you safe!" With that, she threw her yo-yo up into the air. The device burst open and the captured akumas poured out, but they were white, instead of black, as if they had been purified. As they spread through the air, their silvery wings seemed to make the sky shimmer.

The display seemed the break the spell of silence that Ladybug's actions had caused. Everyone started cheering. I looked back to see even the policeman with the broken arm was cheering. Chloe was whooping with happiness while rising around on my father's back. The scene made my chuckle.

"Wow. Whoever she is beneath that mask, I love that girl" I turned to see Chat Noir gazing at Ladybug with a look of what appeared to be total devotion. Though I smiled, feeling a rush of happiness that Ladybug was finally showing her true heroic self again, I felt a pang of something else in my gut, disappointment.

Wait, what? I paused and shook my head. Why was I feeling disappointed about Chat Noir's admiration of Ladybug? He was just a teammate…wasn't he?

Before I could ponder this any farther, a rumbling sound made me look up to see Stoneheart, who had been lying motionless the whole time the akuma swarm had been there, getting to his feet.

"Uh oh, looks like Rocky's on the move again, come on!" I exclaimed as I charged forward.

"Right behind you!" I heard Chat Noir say.

We raced across the bridge and leapt/climbed up the Eiffel Tower to join Ladybug.

As we reached them, I saw Mylene waving from where she was still trapped in Stoneheart's grip. "Help me!" She called to us.

"Huh! You'll never take Mylene away from me!" Stoneheart roared before turning and leaping over to one of the tower's support beams, his landing creating a shockwave that knocked all three of us off our feet. "Come to me, my Stone-beings!" Stoneheart ordered as he started climbing the support beams.

I heard rumbling and growling below us, meaning that the Stone-beings surrounding the tower that that had been frozen before were now heeding their master's call.

Cat Noir glanced over the railing, while Ladybug rubbed her chin thoughtfully. I kept my eyes on Stoneheart as he made his way up the side of the tower.

"We're surrounded!" Chat Nir said a moment later rushing back over to us. "What do we do now?"

"Well, we can't attack them directly, we know what that's going to accomplish" I growled, my tail lashing in frustration. If only there was a way to get to the akuma controlling Stoneheart!

As if homing in on my thoughts, Ladybug spoke up "Yes, but we know where the akuma is"

"Yeah, in his clenched fist" Chat Noir answered.

"The same one he's holding Mylene with" I added, looking at Ladybug. "So…?"

"So, we know he's in love with her…" Ladybug's face suddenly lit up. "That's it! We don't separate Stoneheart and Mylene, we bring them closer together! They're made for each other! It's just they don't know it yet!" She emphasized with her hands as she spoke before bringing out her yo-yo and using it to swing up after Stoneheart.

"Um… I'm not really following, but I guess we'd better trust her" Chat Noir said to me.

I chuckled. "Better get used to it, Kitty. I think this is how it's gonna be from here on out" I said before the two of us leapt from beam to beam after Ladybug.

Ladybug used her Yo-yo to scale the Eiffel Tower while Cat Noir and I made use of our climbing abilities to leap up the side of the structure. Due to this, we soon overtook Stoneheart, moving up on the opposite side of the structure so he didn't see us. At the Top, Chat Noir waited at the top-most platform, while Ladybug and I flew ourselves up to the very top of the tower and perched on a pair of antennae that jutted out from the tower's spire, like a pair of large birds.

By this point, Stoneheart was nearly at the balcony where Chat Noir was waiting. He was saying something to Mylene in a low voice. Mylene looked away timidly, and saw us looking down at her.

"Help! I'm scared of heights!" She cried out, reaching for us. Her actions made Stoneheart look up and he growled at us.

"Everything's gonna be alright!" Ladybug yelled back. Stoneheart's glowing eyes seemed to narrow and he let out a roar of defiance that made the tower shake. It was so forceful that even the police helicopters that had followed Stoneheart up the tower backed off a little.

I heard more roaring from down below and saw that a trio of Stone beings had been climbing up the tower after us, and were now climbing over the balcony railing. One of them reached for Chat Noir, forcing him to leap away. "So, how do you plan to get them closer than they already are?" He called up as he extended his stick and swung it around like a baton.

"By using our powers!" Ladybug called back before throwing her Yo-yo up into the air "LUCKY CHARM!" A cloud of ladybugs swarmed out of the yo-yo and formed a…

"A parachute?" Ladybug looked confused as she caught the red-and-black contraption. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Beats me" I shrugged.

"Okay Ermine, your turn" Ladybug said to me.

I nodded and stood up straight. "ANIMORPHIX!" I cried out, raising my hands. A cloud of white light enveloped my body and I felt myself begin to change. My arms grew longer and my chest grew thicker. I felt my nose shrink and my toes felt like they were being moved. The light faded a few seconds later and I found myself on all fours.

"A gorilla?" I turned to see Ladybug looking at me quizzically as I landed behind her.

"Huh "I examined myself. Ladybug was right. I now had a gorilla's long muscular arms, powerful hands, and a thick, barrel chest, all covered with white fur. "Not sure how going ape is going to help us" I said, then I groaned as I realized I had just made a joke without even trying.

"Wow, your jokes are just as bad as Chat Noir's" Ladybug chuckled.

"Thanks" I gave Ladybug a deadpan look.

"Woah!" The two of us looked back to see Chat Noir being thrown by one of the Stone-beings. He managed to avoid the grasp of another one and leapt up onto a beam, out of their reach. "You sure you know what you're doing?" He yelled up to us.

"We'll find out soon enough!" Ladybug called back as she buckled on the parachute. She spun her yo-yo before launching it at Stoneheart. The string wrapped around Stoneheart's arm and neck before coming back to her.

"His hand!" Ladybug called down to Chat Nor, before turning to me. "Get ready!"

I nodded and sprang off the antennae, to land on a small outcropping about halfway between Ladybug's perch and the platform where Chat Noir was battling the Stone-beings. Stoneheart glared at me and I glared right back at him. I felt a sudden urge to beat my chest, but I managed to quash it.

Ladybug pulled hard on her Yo-yo, drawing Stoneheart's hand up until Mylene's face was up against Stonehearts', their lips meeting.

Startled by the kiss, Stoneheart opened his hand, causing Mylene and a purple ball of paper to fall out. Screaming, Mylene lunged for Stoneheart's fingers and only just managed to grab one.

"Chat Noir! The Akuma! Ermine, secure Mylene!" Ladybug ordered.

"Right!" Chat Noir leapt off the tower, extended his stick to jam into the railing and used the stick to extend out over the akumatized paper. He then retracted the stick and started to fall after the paper. Upon reaching it, he used his stick to bat it like a baseball back towards Ladybug.

Meanwhile, I leapt up and landed on Stoneheart's shoulders. The giant roared, but there was nothing eh could do as I climbed down his rocky arms towards Mylene, who was holding on for dear life.

"Mylene! Take my hand!" I called, reaching for her.

"NO! You will not take her from me!" Stoneheart roared, shaking his arm in an attempt to throw me off, but he stopped when Mylene cried out in terror.

"AHH! HELP, I'M SLIPPING!" Mylene suddenly screamed, making my blood run cold. Without pausing to think, I lunged forward as Mylene started to fall. I leapt after her, grabbing Mylene's arm with one hand and Stoneheart's pinkie with the other hand. Flexing my new gorilla muscles, I pulled Mylene back in and, pressing her against my chest, swung myself back up onto Stoneheart's arm. Stoneheart roared angrily and tried to grab me, but he was too slow to stop me as I climbed onto his back, leapt over his head back onto the Tower and climbed up beyond his reach.

"Home Run!" I heard Ladybug cry happily and looked up to see her use her yo-yo to retrieve the akumatized object from midair. I snorted in amusement; I hadn't pegged Ladybug as a baseball admirer.

In a whirling mass of black smoke, I saw the akuma fly out of the paper and away from the tower. Ladybug opened her yo-yo and prepared to capture the akuma. "De-Evilize…huh?"

We all gasped in horror as Stoneheart was suddenly consumed in black mist, reverting back to Ivan. But the process also caused Ivan to lose his grip and he started falling.

"Ivan, no!" Mylene cried out.

Grunting, I leapt down towards Ivan. Flipping myself over the platform railing, I hung on with one hand and reached for the boy with the other hand, but he was too far away! I watched helplessly as the boy plummeted towards the ground below.

"IVAN!" Mylene's scream rang in my ears.

Twisting my gaze upwards, I saw Ladybug's gaze shift from the falling Ivan to the escaping akuma, and back again. I saw her eyes narrow, then she leapt off the antennae. "Chat Noir, you take care of Ivan!" Ladybug called as she threw her yo-yo up towards the akuma, capturing it.

"Got it! CATACLYSM!" Still hanging from the railing, I looked down to see that Chat Noir had extended his stick and jammed it into the side of the Eiffel Tower to keep from falling. Now, having activated his power, he vaulted off his stick and leapt up at the tower, brushing his hand along a section of it as he started falling again.

With a groan, a section of the tower broke away and fell outwards, forming an extension that Chat Noir slid down. Reaching the edge, he grabbed Ivan just as the boy fell past, his other hand holding onto the extended section.

Mylene and I both sighed when we saw that Ivan and Chat Noir were safe. Meanwhile, Ladybug had deployed her parachute and was floating down to the ground.

I turned to see Mylene looking at me. "Umm…" She started.

I snorted and reached up, picking up Mylene again and pulling her over the railing towards me. She yelped with fear.

"Just hold on tight, and don't open your eyes until I tell you" I said soothingly as I cradled her against my chest, and let go of the railing. Using my gorilla reflexes, strength, and my three remaining 'hands', I navigated my way down the side of the tower in pretty much the reverse way that Chat Noir and I had climbed up the tower, leaping downwards from one beam to the next. I could hear Mylene whimpering against my chest, but I ignored her and focused on getting us down.

"Hey! Wait up!" I heard Chat Noir call as we passed him and Ivan. The two of them had just gotten off the rusted extension that Chat Noir's cataclysm had created.

I paused, looked up at him, and snorted. "Come on then!" I clapped my shoulder with my other hand pointing to my back. Chat Noir helped Ivan climb on and I leapt off again, jumping down the inside of the tower with Chat Noir right behind me.

By the time we reached the ground, Ladybug had shed her parachute and was straightening up. I helped Ivan climb down and told Mylene she could open her eyes now. Mylene smiled and sighed with relief when she saw she was safely on the ground again.

"Nice work, you guys" Ladybug grinned at us.

"You too" I nodded back at her "What about the akuma?"

Ladybug opened her yo-yo. A white butterfly popped out and flew away.

"Bye bye, little butterfly" Ladybug grinned at the sight.

"So, what now?" I asked. "We've cured Ivan, but it's gonna take a while to recover from all the damage Stoneheart caused, not to mention there's still the Stone-beings. You think we should go help…with…what are you doing?" I narrowed my eyes as I saw Ladybug was looking at something on the screen of her yo-yo.

"Hmmm, I wonder" Ladybug frowned thoughtfully. Before I could ask, she began grabbing up her parachute.

"Again, what are you doing?" I asked.

"Trying something" Ladybug answered. She threw the parachute up into the air and called out "MIRACULOUS LADYBUGS!"

To our amazement, the parachute glowed white before exploding into an enormous swarm of what looked like ladybugs. The swarm split up into smaller groups and zipped through the air. As we watched, the ladybugs swarmed around the Stone-beings, obscuring them form view. When the swarms finally lifted, I was shocked to see that the Stone-beings were regular people again.

"Woah!" My eyes widened and my mouth dropped open as I watched the swarms of ladybugs flying around town, repairing all the damage caused by Stoneheart and the Stone-beings.

"Wow, are you all seeing what I'm seeing?" Chat Noir sounded awe-struck.

"Yeah, it's beautiful!" Ladybug exclaimed.

"It's amazing!" I added in awe.

"It's…uh…MIRACULOUS!" Ladybug cried out as the swarms of ladybugs flew upwards and vanished, causing both Chat Noir and I to laugh.

Suddenly, my body was haloed in a blinding white light, and when the light faded a few seconds later, I found myself human again.

"Aww, too bad. I was just about to buy you some bananas for a job well done" Chat Noir joked.

I smirked. "Careful Chat Noir. Comments like that could prove hazardous to your health" I said, flexing my claws playfully at him.

"Ooh" Chat Noir's eyes widened and Ladybug giggled at my gesture, making my smile widen. I had a feeling working with these two was going to be a lot of fun, regardless of whatever future problems Hawkmoth decided to throw at us.

With the excitement over, some of the police began taking down and moving the barricades, while others were escorting former Stone-beings away to take statements.

As Ladybug and Chat Noir began speaking with one of the officers, I moved over to where Ivan and Mylene were standing awkwardly next to each other.

"I have a feeling that the two of you need to talk about something, hmm?" I asked, winking at Ivan.

Realizing what I meant, Ivan's eyes widened. "Oh,um…I…uh…." He stammered and quickly looked away, playing with his fingers in a gesture of timidness that was just so cute that I couldn't resist giggling.

"Okay than, we'll try this a different way. Ladybug!" I called, causing the hero to turn around. "Can I see that paper, please?" I pointed to the akuamtized paper.

Ladybug glanced down at the paper, then realization, and a smile, broke out on her face. "Sure!" She trotted over and passed the paper to me.

"Mylene, since Ivan can't seem to find his voice right now, why don't you just read what he has to say?" I said, placing the paper, really Ivan's song, into Mylene's hands before stepping back.

As I rejoined Ladybug and Chat Noir, Mylene read the words on the page. A moment later, she looked up and grinned. "Wow, it's really beautiful! It's a shame you can't hear them when you scream…uh I mean…heh heh, when you sing" Mylene quickly corrected herself.

"It was scary, wasn't it? Was that why you left?" Ivan asked.

Mylene didn't answer, but I could tell from the look on her face that it probably was.

Ivan turned back to Mylene. "I'm sorry, I'll be gentle" He says in a soft voice.

I chuckled as Mylene grinned and threw her arms around Ivan, causing the larger boy to freeze and his cheeks to turn red. "You're right, Ladybug. They are so made for each other"

"Kind of like us two. You know we really work well together Ladyb…" I turned to see Chat Noir place a hand on Ladybug's shoulder, but her earrings started beeping, cutting off chat Noir's sentence.

"Uh oh, you hear that? Time to split. See you soon, Chat Noir" Ladybug lassoed a support beam of the Tower with her Yo-yo. "Bye, Ermine!" She waved at me before swinging away.

"Can't wait Milady" I saw Chat Noir playfully bow in Ladybug's direction before turning to leave.

I grabbed his 'tail' suddenly, causing him to stop and look at me. "Hey! Don't I get a compliment?" I asked, batting my eyelashes at Chat Noir and giving him a little pout.

Chat Noir chuckled and bowed to me. "Oh but of course! It was a pleasure to work with you as well, Miss Ermine".

Now I chuckled. "The pleasure was all mine, Mr. Chat Noir. We simply must do this again some time". I said in a snooty voice, pretending to curtsey in response.

As we both laughed, Chat Noir's ring started beeping. "Okay, it sounds like you need to get out of he-oh…!" A chirping sound made me look down to see part of my belt buckle was flashing. "Looks like I need to as well! See you around Chat Noir!"

"See you around Ermine!" Chat Noir waved at me before leaping away. I watched him go, and sighed happily before using my whip to swing away in the direction Ladybug had gone.

After going about several blocks from the Eiffel Tower, I ducked into an alleyway near the hotel and transform back into Alice. I approach the hotel, waving at the doorman.

"Alice, your father is waiting upstairs for you" The doorman said as I moved past him.

I gave a small wince as I remembered how I had promised my father to remain in school. No doubt he was wondering where I had been.

Sure enough, when I arrived on the floor where our family rooms were, I found my father standing in the hallway, his hands on his hips, his face set in a stern expression. Chloe stood beside him, looking smug.

"Alice! Where have you been?" My father demanded as I stepped out of the elevator.

"Busted!" Chloe crowed, causing me to frown at her.

"I told you to stay at school!" My father ignored Chloe, "And yet when I called there to check on you, I was told you had left. Explain yourself!"

"Well I…I was just…" I paused, trying to recall the story I had quickly come up with on the elevator ride up, which was a modified version of the truth. "Yes, I know I shouldn't have left school, daddy. But I…I…I wanted to see if I could find a way to help Chloe"

I saw surprise appear on the faces of both my father and sister as I continued. "And I know what you're going to say dad. 'Leave that to the police, or the superheroes', but you weren't there dad! You didn't see the way Stoneheart was looking at Chloe and me. I seriously felt like I was dead meat! If Chloe hadn't been in the way, he would have…!" I bit my lip and looked at my feet, sniffling a little. "I just…I just had to do something!" I said, making my voice choke up, giving the appearance I was on the verge of crying. It was a trick I had seen my mother use to garner sympathy from other people. How ironic that something I had watched her do was saving my bacon now!

I suddenly felt my father's hand gently land up on my shoulder. I looked up to see him smiling at me. "I understand Alice" He said softly.

"You...you do?" I gave a loud sniff. I saw Chloe scoff quietly behind me.

"Yes, and it was very noble of you to try to help your sister. But in the future, you need to leave such dangerous matters to the police, or to our new super heroes, understood?"

"Don't worry dad, I won't be making that mistake again" I threw my arms around my father and hugged him, smirking at the outraged look on Chloe's face.

"Very good. Now, I need to make an addressment to the city. Stay out of trouble you two, alright?"

"Okay daddy" I moved to stand next to Chloe and smiled and waved as our father strode to the elevator.

When the door closed, Chloe whirled to frame me with a glare. "I cannot believe daddy actually bought that ridiculous story!" She exclaimed.

"Why Chloe! Whatever are you talking about?" I asked in pretend shock.

"Don't give me that!" Chloe snarled. "You may have weaseled your way out of trouble this time, but you're the reason that Stone-thingy grabbed me. We both know he was reaching for you instead!"

Though I kept my innocent expression, my heart seemed to sink as I realized that, in a way, Chloe was right. There was a very good chance that Stoneheart would have grabbed me instead if Chloe hadn't caught his attention. "What are you implying, Chloe?" I asked.

"Just watch your step, Alice. You were bad enough when I only saw you during the holidays, but you're in my city now!" Chloe snarled before stalking to her room. I waited till her door was closed before proceeding to mine.

"Wow, that was impressive! Pretty quick thinking on that excuse!" Minkk exclaimed as I closed the door to my bedroom and wandered over to my bed.

"Well, it was mostly the truth" I admitted as I plopped down on my bed.

"Sometimes adding a little truth can make a lie more believable" Minkk said, floating over. She paused when she noticed a sad look on my face. "What's wrong? Did Chloe's warning upset you?"

"No, it's…it's nothing" I say, rolling over on my side, facing the window.

"Is it about Chat Noir?" Minkk asked teasingly. I felt my breath catch in my throat as I rolled over to face her.

"What's he got to do with anything?" I ask, a little too forcefully.

"Well, I'm just saying that, based on the banter that occurred between you two earlier, I thought you might have…feelings for him." Minkk giggled.

"Oh, please!" I scoffed as I sit up, though I felt my cheeks heat up. "That is completely ridiculous!"

Minkk suddenly gasped, her eyes wide. "You do have feelings for him! I can see it in your eyes!"

"No, I don't!" I say, a little too quickly as I feel my entire face heat up.

"Then why are you blushing?" Minkk asked triumphantly, causing me to clap my hands over my warm cheeks.

It couldn't be true! I don't have feelings for Chat Noir! I can't! He's…just a teammate! And also, he's in love with Ladybug! He practically told me so! I put my hands down and shook my head firmly. "I. Am. Not. In. Love. With. Chat. Noir!" I said firmly with each shake.

"Are you sure?" Minkk asked teasingly.

I frowned at my kwamia nd firmly nodded my head. Inter-team romances always lead to trouble! I'd read enough novels and comic books to know that! No! I did not have a crush on Chat Noir! He's just a…valued partner! Who's brave, funny,… and he looks really cute in his costume…

"AHA!" Minkk suddenly cried out.

"EEP!" I yelped as I suddenly realized I had said that last part out loud!

"I knew it!" Minkk crowed triumphantly. "I thought maybe you were just playing with him earlier, but you really do have a crush on him! Oh, that is so romantic! The heroine, secretly pining for her partner's attention, driven by a secret, overpowering love that her partner doesn't even know exists!" The kwami looked so overjoyed that, despite having been caught, I couldn't stay angry with her and giggled, despite myself.

"What am I going to do, Minkk?" I groaned as I flopped back down on my bed. "I've only met him twice and yet I…."

"…And yet you simply can't stop thinking about him!" Minkk teased before zipping away giggling as I tried to catch her. Despite everything, I was grinning broadly.

Sure, I had only just met Chat Noir, but there was something about him that just seemed to draw me in. Was it his bravery? His lame jokes? Or…how handsome he was? I wasn't entirely sure, but I couldn't wait to find out!

The next morning, I woke up feeling refreshed, even excited. During the night, I had had a serious talk with Minkk about my 'crush' on Chat Noir. I was really worried that the feelings I had for him, and the feelings he had for Ladybug, could lead to trouble down the road.

Minkk proves to be a very good listener when she wanted to be. She didn't interrupt me as I voice my theories and fears, and then she told me that if Chat Noir and I are truly meant to be, things would work themselves out.

Everyone seemed more relaxed this morning, compared to yesterday. The staff were all smiling, and Chloe was chatting happily with Sabrina at the breakfast table, rather than looking at her phone. My father was actually humming a little as he ate, which struck me as amusing.

When we arrived at school, I followed Chloe and Sabrina to class, and was surprised to see Marinette and Alya sitting where Chloe and Sabrina had sat the other day.

"Uhh, you two are in the wrong seat! Go on, get lost!" Chloe pointed to the empty seats closest to the front.

Marinette didn't move, she simply smiled and said "All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good people do nothing"

I felt a grin cross my face as I recognized the quote from Majestra, having heard her say that personally a few years ago.

"Um, what is that supposed to mean?" Chloe asked snootily.

Now Marinette stood up. "It means that I'm not going to put up with your crud anymore Chloe, and neither is anyone else around here, so take your bad attitude and go on, get lost!" Marinette pointed to the empty seats.

The classroom erupted with laughter and I chuckled to myself. It looked like Ladybug wasn't the only person who had done a complete persona 180.

Chloe scowled, but apparently recognized there was nothing she could do, so she eventually moved to sit where Marinette had sat yesterday, with Sabrina right behind her.

"Good job!" As I started to climb the steps to my seat, I heard Alya congratulate Marinette.

"I'll say" I added, smiling at Marinette. "I can count on one hand the number of people I've seen stand up to Chloe like that"

Marinette just scowled at me and turned away. Seriously? I helped save Paris but I can't save my friendship with Marinette? I fought the urge to groan as I moved to the back of the room to sit next to Nathaniel, but paused when Ivan waved to get my attention.

"Hey uh, Alice?"

"Yes, Ivan?"

"I uh…I wanted to thank you. For…um…the idea you gave me yesterday, to write a song for Mylene to show her how I feel. She really liked it"

I gave Ivan a warm smile and patted him on his shoulder. "Ivan it was you who came up with the idea to write Mylene a song, remember? I just supported it"

"I did?" Ivan looked surprised, which made me chuckle.

"Yes, you did. I only gave you a nudge, but the rest was all you." I smiled and continued back to sit next to Nathaniel, who nodded and smiled at me. I wondered if he had overheard my conversation with Ivan.

As I sat down, I saw Marinette and Alya whispering to each other. Both broke off and looked up at me. I looked away, feeling my smile slide off my face. What had they been talking about?

That afternoon, when classes ended, I had lagged behind to speak to Miss Bustier, and when I finally got to the front gates, I didn't see our limo anywhere. I groaned. It looked like Chloe and Sabrina had taken off without me.

As I stood there, I heard a sudden rumbling above me and looked up to see that it had started to rain.

"Oh great" I grumbled, turning away from the street, only to come face-to-face with Marinette. "Oh… um… hi" I gave a small wave.

Marinette didn't even look at me, she just walked past me, and put her hand out to see how hard it was raining.

I sighed, shook my head, and started to walk away.

"Wait!" I jumped a little when I felt a hand suddenly wrap around my wrist. I turned to see Adrien standing there, and he had his other hand wrapped around Marinette's wrist.

Marinette looked equally surprised as I felt, but she didn't try to pull away.

"Look, I've never been to school before." Adrian said as he let the both of us go. "It's all so… new to me. But one thing I already know about school is that it's a lot more fun with friends."

"What are you saying?" I asked, raising my eyebrow.

"What I'm saying is that…I've already made friends here, Alice, and I want you to do the same." Adrien looked from me to Marinette. "Look, Alice really was trying to get the chewing gum off your seat, Marinette. If you don't trust her word, trust mine. I may be 'friends with Chloe', as you put it, but I've known Alice for just as long, even though we grew up in different cities. So trust me when I tell you, Alice is not like Chloe. Not even close"

Marinette frowned thoughtfully, then slowly turned to look at me.

"I…I overheard what you and Ivan were saying. Did you really encourage him to write a song for Mylene?" She said hesitantly, as if expecting me to start laughing at her any second.

I nodded. "It seemed clear that the two of them had feelings for each other, one of them just needed to work up the courage to approach the other." I said simply. "And like I said in class, I only gave Ivan a brief nudge, he did the rest of the work himself"

Marinette nodded, and to my relief, a smile appeared on her face. "I guess I…might have…jumped to conclusions…about you" She admitted sheepishly.

I felt my own smile widen. "It's fine. I'm actually used to it. Back home, I was just known as Audrey's daughter. Here I'm just…Chloe's sister" I said, making all three of us chuckle.

"Oh, come on. Chloe's not that bad" Adrien gently argued.

"Easy for you to say!" I snapped back playfully. "You don't have to live with her!"

My outburst made Adrien chuckle. "Point taken" He admitted, the he looked up at the sky as thunder boomed overhead. He looked at me, then down at his umbrella. "Here, I think you'll need this more than we will" He held it out to Marinette, who blinked in surprise for a moment, then slowly reached out and took the umbrella, her fingers brushing against his as she did so. For a moment, the two of them just stood there, looking at each other. Then, for some reason, the umbrella suddenly closed on top of Marinette's head.

Adrien and I both stared, then we burst out laughing. Marinette peaked out from under the umbrella, and she started laughing too.

Our giggle spree ended when we heard a car horn and looked to see Adrien's car on the street, waiting for him.

"See you both tomorrow" Adrien waved as he headed to his car.

"See you tomorrow!" I called after him.

"Uh...see you…to…mo…tomo…" Marinette stammered, causing me to laugh. "Wow, why am I stammering like this?"

"Hmmm, I think I may have an idea" I teased, making a heart-shape with my hands. Marinette blushed when she saw it.

"Hey relax girl, I was just teasing!" I chuckled, placing a hand on Marinette's shoulder.

Marinette seemed to sigh with relief. "Hey um…I really am sorry for what I said, about you being like Chloe. You may be Chloe's sister, but you're nothing like her"

"Why, Marinette!" I gasped theatrically. "I think that is…probably the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me!" I sniffled dramatically, causing her to laugh.

"Well anyway. I'll see you tomorrow" I nodded at Marinette before stepping out into the rain.

"Hey wait!" I turned to see Marinette gazing at me with wide eyes. "You're walking home, in this weather, with no umbrella?"

I shrugged "Well, I don't really mind, and I also don't really have a choice, seeing as how Chloe must have told our driver to go off without me"

Marinette frowned, then suddenly brightened. "Hey, I don't live too far from here. You want to come to my place and wait out the rain?"

I blinked for a moment, then smiled. "Sure, I'd love to!"

"Great" Marinette dashed down the steps and held the umbrella up over the both of us.

"Why bother? I'm already wet" I chuckled.

Marinette smiled back. "I know, but that's what friends are supposed to do, right?" She said as she began leading me towards a building on the next block.

"Yeah, I guess you're right" I said to her, and as I walked, I glanced down and saw Minkk peaking out from the pouch on my bag strap. She winked at me and I felt my smile grow wider still.

---

And Cut!

I'm starting a big class tomorrow so I figured I should get this updated now while I still have some free time. I don't know if or when I'll be able to update again, so like I said before, if you want this story continued and not put on hiatus, keep those comments coming! My thanks to katmar1994, Jane the fan, and rebekahpsweatman81 for their comments, they're what got this chapter done!

Oh, and just FYI, I may be switching around the order of certain episodes if I decide to continue with this story. I think that this would help the story, as a whole, flow better. Just giving you fair warning.

Until Next Time!