Now back to the show. Er...story.
How did Team Miraculous ended up in this situation again? Oh right... Someone, had to be a total JERK!
A small white butterfly just lands on their favourite classmate's hand, and then one of their own accuses her of being "Mariposa"!
Their most selfless classmate... Team Miraculous' biggest fan... The girl who goes through great lengths just to help her heroes... "MARIPOSA"?!
They tried to be reasonable. But noooo! Someone had to be stubborn, reckless, and overall, SELFISH!
Now here they are, being chased by a giant butterfly monster. If its riders were in a mood, they would command it to attack the heroes with powerful blasts of winds by flapping its wings.
The heroes managed to lose their pursuers by hiding in an alleyway. Chat almost gave away their hiding place by tripping and screaming, but luckily the villains and Sentimonster did not notice. Once they were gone, the heroes let out sighs of relief.
"Do you realize what you had just done?!" Chat snaps at Ladybug, making her almost jump.
"How is this my fault?!" Ladybug snaps back. Seriously. Everyone was labeling her, the hero, the villain-of-the-day.
"You could've been patient and get some actual proof, but NOOOO!" Chat glares at her, "Now the sweetest girl in school is best buds with Little Miss Butterfly Brains!"
As he said that, the butterfly Sentimonster roared at a trio of civilians, making them run away in fear. Amused, Mariposa and Masquerage high-five each other.
Ladybug narrows her eyes, "Maybe they were best buds before."
"Okay, now you're just being random." Azula points out, clearly annoyed, "You don't even have the right facts to-!"
She clutches her suddenly-aching head again. Dang it! Just when does she get migraines just by thinking?
"You never get migraines every few minutes." A surprised Queen Bee remarks, "You're the Thinker."
Azula groans, "Just hearing the word 'think'-! (Another migraine.) hurts!"
"We just need to get you a bag of ice, then-!" Chat trips and falls on the ground before he could finish.
"And you never trip!" Queen Bee remarks in disbelief, "Seriously. You two have been acting weird ever since Masquerage touched you."
Rena Rouge recalls. She took a closer look in her memories and remembers the agonizing look on Azula's and Chat's faces when her akumatized best friend drained them of their-!
Come to think of it, Masquerage did summon a Sentimonster... And her black costume turned into a blue peacock-themed...
"She didn't just touched them." Rena voices out her thoughts, "She drained them of their powers. And skills."
Azula gapes in disbelief, "Is that why I can't formulate a solution because I keep getting headaches?"
"And why Bro Noir is acting like he shouldn't be on a catwalk?" Carapace asks.
"Hey!" Chat protests. He then thinks it over, "Actually I'm okay with that. Still... if she could steal our powers, why not steal our powers to transform?"
As he said that, he could feel himself sweating. He wipes the sweat off his face. Chat notices the shocked looks on his teammates' faces, and all wide eyes were directed at him. He checks himself to see if there was anything else wrong with him. His eyes, widened in shock, landed on his left hand.
Where his mask was...!
"We really have got to de-akumatize her sooner." Chat tells them as he puts his mask back on.
"And I got to be super-careful." Rena Rouge looks cautious, "If she touches me, she'll get every superhero knowledge I've learned."
Ladybug scoffs, "From comic books and movies?"
"Comic books and movies which have taught me important superhero strategies, which I have applied and proven very effective during our previous missions." Rena points out, "Especially the strategy to keep your identity a secret to prevent your foes from threatening you with your love ones' lives."
This made her teammates think about the important people in their lives. If Masquerage gains Rena's knowledge of secret identities...!
"Can we go save the day now?" Carapace asks.
Masquerage was loving her new peacock-themed look. Gaining the power to steal the heroes' powers and special skills was the best thing that ever happened to her.
Wonder how good she will look in a cat-themed costume...
Maybe this was what she just needed a long time ago; Get akumatized to get superpowers like Team Miraculous.
Now she just needs all of Team Miraculous' superpowers and she could become the greatest hero the world has ever seen!
Being Mariposa was hard work. "She" has to stay Mariposa or people will start getting suspicious.
And "she" wasn't liking it one bit. Nor was "she" liking the way Masquerage was utilizing her powers. And that of Chat Noir's and Azula Paonne's.
"Okay!" Masquerage beams at her benefactor, "Time to collect the other 4!"
"Over here you so-called hero wannabe!"
Both villains turned to the source. When they did, the Team, minus Ladybug, were clutching their faces in disbelief.
"You know you're really being reckless today." Queen Bee complains to her spotted teammate.
"Let's see..." Masquerage playfully waves her finger around, "I, pick... you!"
Rena flinches. She wishes it was the fangirl side of her best friend and not because she planned earlier that she could use her favourite fox hero's powers and skills for evil, fun purposes.
"Hold it!" Ladybug holds her palm up in the air, "You choose her first, over me?!"
"All you do is spin your yo-yo in the air and make junk." Masquerage explains with an uninterested face, earning chuckles from the heroes, minus Ladybug.
"She's, mostly right." Carapace grins, earning a slightly silent laugh from Azula.
This only made Ladybug's face turn redder than her suit. She launches her yo-yo at Masquerage, only to retract once she recognizes the destructive energy surrounding "Mariposa's" lackey's hand.
Masquerage's costume shifted, now Chat Noir-themed. Complete with pointy "ears" and cat-like eyes. This made Chat meow in delight. Then got him whacked on the head by his fox teammate's flute.
"Do that again, after we de-akumatize her." The fox heroine narrowed her eyes at her leader.
With cat-like reflexes and stance, Masquerage leaps off the butterfly Sentimonster. She lands and pins Chat Noir to the ground, flashing him a very catty grin, "Care for a catfight?"
"Sure." Chat replies rather immediately, taking in her form now that she was closer to him.
Queen Bee, with a look on her face that could only be described as a mix of annoyance and disbelief, wraps her trompo around Masquerage, pulling her away from Chat. She strikes Masquerage multiple times with her weapon, but the power-stealing villain manages to block every strike with her own staff that is a near-replica of Chat's.
"Hey Queen Bee!" Masquerage grins, "Have I ever told you that you're as sweet as honey?"
Queen Bee groans and rolls her eyes. Great. She got his pun-cracking skills. If they were even skills to begin with.
Masquerage swiftly dodges the trompo, "With your superpower, you can easily beat anyone with literally one punch. That makes you, like, the strongest hero ever!"
The striped heroine grits her teeth in nervousness. This was a trap. The villain she was fighting with wants to lower her guard and steal her powers.
She must... resist...!
"And I love what you did to your hair." Masquerage added.
The akumatized villain's last comment made Queen Bee's eyes widen in "Oh dang-it..."
The striped heroine was too busy talking about her wonderful self and her wonderful hair that she made herself open to the akumatized villain for power stealing.
Luckily for her, someone came to her rescue. Unluckily for Carapace, Masquerage touched him.
The turtle hero clashes with the power-stealing villainess. As they clashed, Carapace wondered if in addition to his power of Protection, she also stole his dance and music skills.
That would be devastating. It's his life.
Masquerage uses Chat's powers to shatter the ground. Carapace manages to dodge it by leaping off the ground. He attempted to do a dance move in the air, but felt he was losing his balance, flailed his arms around and only managed to grab the edge of the roof with one hand to stop himself from crashing into the ground.
Once he manages to lift himself to the roof, the turtle hero hears a whistling sound. He turns around, only to find Masquerage standing in a flirtatious position, winking at him.
The turtle hero suddenly feels his face turning red and, never in his months of heroing has he ever sweated in his superhero suit.
He leans slightly to act cool, only to lose his balance and clumsily fall on his back.
Rena looks down at him in disappointment and annoyance, "Oh great. She stole your ability to act cool in the face of danger."
Carapace replies with a sheepish smile, " I know this is a bad time, but have I ever told you you rock in rocking the foxy look?"
Chat wondered if he can use his newly-acquired clumsiness to his advantage. Trusting his instincts, he runs towards Masquerage. He suddenly trips, but the sudden shift in momentum allows him to swiftly toss his staff at Masquerage. He smiles as his weapon was about to hit its target.
But it didn't; Masquerage changed her costume to turtle style and stopped the staff with her new shield. She flips her hair, making Chat forget his frustration, and faint.
"Chat! She's the villain!" Ladybug berated her teammate.
"And who turned her into that?" Queen Bee shoots back.
Masquerage decided to resume her pursuit on Queen Bee. The striped heroine attempts to immobilize her with her Venom, only to be stopped by Shell-ter. The heroine's shocked expression was the opening Masquerage needed to touch her.
Queen Bee looks more angry than weakened, "How dare you?!"
"Care to say that to my face again?" Masquerage's eyes darkened as she glared into Queen Bee's.
Queen Bee wanted to snap back, but for some reason... it felt like someone sealed her throat with a cork. She also found herself unable to form coherent words and, to her complete surprise, she was crying?!
The rest of the heroes gape in shock as they witness Queen Bee, the sassiest member of Team Miraculous who always snaps back at any villain, fall on her knees and cry her eyes out like a toddler.
"Oh no. She stole her..." Chat tries to come up with the right word, "diva-ness."
"She's never been the one to think twice before talking back to a bad guy." Rena remarks.
Masquerage's costume changes again, much to her delight, "Yay! Bee-style!"
"Uh-oh. Bee-style." Rena carries a still-bawling Queen Bee in her arms and leads her teammates away from the pursuing Bee-styled Masquerage.
Masquerage chases after them, unaware that she was actually chasing Rena Rouge's illusions.
Once she was out of sight, the real heroes reappeared in a puff of orange smoke. With Queen Bee still crying.
"Rena?" The striped heroine sobs, "You're sneaky and sometimes you think you're a great hero just because you watch a lot of them. Sometimes I wish I was just like you!"
Rena was caught by surprise. Queen Bee would never say something like that to her, "She can keep your sassiness."
"Actually, she can keep your skills." "Mariposa" brandishes "her" weapon, "We just want the Miraculouses."
Rena Rouge clashes weapons with "Mariposa". After a couple of blows, Ladybug joins in on the fight.
"How can you be in two places at the same time?!" The spotted heroine demanded.
"Seriously?" "Mariposa" asks in disbelief, yet looks amused, "I thought we already established that. (Ladybug continues to glare and growl at "her".) Are there a few screws missing in your brain, or..."
"A million, if you want numbers." Rena interrupted with exasperation. Seriously. What is it with her so-called "second-in-command" and her obsessive hatred towards her best friend?!
"This is all just a game to you isn't it?" Ladybug continues, "All that 'admiration' was just a ploy to let our guard down so that you can steal our Miraculouses!"
Blinded by rage, the spotted heroine never saw the stinger coming. Nor did she had time to dodge it.
"Remind me again why she became a hero in the first place?" "Mariposa" asks as "she" circles the immobilized heroine.
"That's what I've been wondering since the day they appeared." Masquerage cheerfully replied.
Rena and her fellow heroes knew what the "villainess" was really asking, "Fate can be full of surprises. And unbelievable. (She said the last part with bitterness. The rest of her teammates agree.)"
"Mariposa" shrugs. "She" reaches out to take Ladybug's earrings, only to be stopped by Rena Rouge's flute.
"As much as I don't like her, I don't like you taking over the world either." Rena Rouge once more clashes weapons with "Mariposa".
"Oh please. There are more dire reasons than world domination." "Mariposa" scoffs, hiding the sadness in "her" voice.
Chat rushes to aid his teammate, only to trip with just one step forward. He scolds himself for letting the girl of his dreams weaken him.
Rena raises her flute to strike a blow on "Mariposa", but was stopped by Masquerage who once again changed to Chat-style.
"Switch!" The akumatized fan gleefully declares, charging at Rena with multiple strikes from her own staff, "Once I get your powers, I'm gonna make an illusion of my dream wedding!"
"Rena! It's no use! Surrender already!" Chat called to his fox teammate. He sounded so desperate, Carapace had to knock some sense into his head with his shield.
"Marinette, I know it was stupid of one of our own to attack you for stupid reasons... but I know you're stronger than this!" Rena tried to reason as she keeps clashing with her akumatized best friend, "And, (whispers) hope no one else hears this... you're definitely our No. 1 fan!"
Masquerage stops. For a moment there, her eyes twinkled like those of her old self, "You... do?"
Rena feels guilty using this as a chance, but she has to save her best friend. She strikes with her flute, only to be stopped by Shell-ter.
"Rena Rouge just declared me her No. 1 fan..." Turtle-styled Masquerage mumbles to herself in a daze, while deflecting Rena's flute with her shield, "The heroes FINALLY MADE IT OFFICIAL...!"
"Even akumatized, she'll still my- our (!) Little Marinette." Chat remarks.
"Yeah." The others, minus Ladybug, agree. (In Queen Bee's case, cried in agreement.)
For a moment, Azula looked like she just thought of something... only to clutch her aching head again.
"Thinking too much?" Carapace asks. Then it hit him: Azula only gets sudden headaches when she has thoughts of ideas.
What did Chat just said again...? She's still our (his) Little Marinette... (Lightbulb!)
"You know-" Carapace misses his coolness. At least he could speak in straight sentences in that state, "Even in villain... You... well... fight really... well."
"Really?" Masquerage stops in surprise, her eyes in their signature hero-struck state. (She was still deflecting Rena's attacks. Just so you know.)
For a moment there, Chat thought his best friend was flirting(!) with his akumatized future girlfriend. Then he recalled the many time his turtle teammate would act too chummy with his Princess' best friend.
Carapace wasn't the only one who realized what Azula was thinking. (Or, attempted to think if it weren't for the effects of Masquerage stealing her abilities.) Queen Bee bawls again, "You were always the best!"
"I am?" Masquerage's smile widens, as she keeps defending herself.
"She's more than that." Unfortunately for Azula, thinking about comments was currently giving her headaches,"She's... She's...!"
It was then Chat finally realized what his teammates were really planning, "The bravest, and smartest girl we know. And the brightest light in Paris we could ever know. Even in the darkest of nights, you shine as bright as the-!"
Chat stops; Masquerage wasn't the only one staring at him. He'll be expecting a lot of teasing in the near future.
Masquerage's eyes were sparkling as bright as fireflies in the night. To think those were few of the things her heroes actually think of her...
Unfortunately, that wasn't distracting enough for her to not notice Rena attempting to conjure up an illusion to distract her. She manages to grab her by the arm and traps her in a headlock, which gave her the chance to easily grab her necklace...
"Masquerage!" Chat calls out to the villain, stopping her and catching her attention. He just couldn't let their No.1 fan hand over their Miraculous to the Butterflies and cause mayhem all over the town.
Without another word, the leader of Team Miraculous reaches for his mask.
Masquerage could hardly contain her excitement. Was this it? Was this finally it?! Was she finally going to see the boy behind the cat mask...?!
Unfortunately she didn't. While she was too distracted by the prospect that her greatest wish was about to come true, Rena Rouge knocks her down to the ground. The impact causes the akumatized villain to return to her default form. Borrowing a still-crying Queen Bee's trompo, the fox heroine uses her teammate's weapon to tie her akumatized friend up, giving her a chance to grab the akumatized object without any interference.
One problem: Masquerage didn't have the akumatized object!
"Looking for this?" "Mariposa", taunted Rena as "she" held the akumatized object in "her" hand.
Rena growls. Not taking any chances, she traps Masquerage inside a bus that was damaged during the attack, making sure to seal the entrance so that her akumatized best friend won't escape and make it even more difficult to de-akumatize her with her power-stealing ability.
The fox heroine leaps into the sky and attempts to kick "Mariposa" off of the giant butterfly Sentimonster, only for said villain to grab her leg and toss her to a nearby building.
"Why must you keep doing this, Rouge?" "Mariposa" taunted, "You know we're just gonna keep doing this until you hand over the Miraculouses. Which means more and more people will get akumatized."
The last part made Rena a little bit guilty. One of her foes was right; This all started because of the Miraculouses. She and her friends only became heroes because the Butterflies were turning innocent civilians into supervillains to aid them in their search for the magical jewels.
They could stop the further akumatizing of civilians by surrendering the Miraculouses... but all 7 Miraculouses in the hands of the villainous masterminds will lead to worse destruction.
She was brought back to reality by the sound of someone breaking through glass and metal. She leaps into the air. On instinct, she shifts her body weight to the left. Masquerage passes by her. She was in her Queen Bee-style, right arm thrusted forward, encased in a black and yellow gauntlet made of pure energy.
"Mariposa" never saw it coming. "She" didn't have enough time to jump out of the way to avoid getting stung. The "younger Butterfly" just stood there, paralyzed while Rena Rouge knocks Masquerage down before grabbing the akumatized object.
The fox heroine hesitated. The akumatized object was a group photo of Marinette smiling with the members of Team Miraculous.(Sans Ladybug.)
That day, an aspiring young clown was akumatized. Surprisingly, it turned into a rather very fun comedic day. It was one rare Akuma Attack where some people agreed it was a fun idea to take pictures of other people enjoying their lives put in danger without worrying too much about each other.
Marinette and the Team (sans Ladybug) were a few of those people. After everything that has happened in the past few days, Rena felt it would be heartless of her to tear up a precious fun memory.
She changes her mind once she heard falling Masquerage screaming. By the time Ladybug has broken free of the Bee Miraculous superpower, Rena had already torn the akumatized picture in half, releasing the black butterfly and returning Masquerage back into Marinette.
As Ladybug fixes all the damages, Marinette slowly regains consciousness, and finds herself in the arms of Carapace, much to Chat's jealousy. As Carapace gently settles her down, she becomes flustered and talks incoherently in nervousness due to being in the presence of her heroes. (Chat was complaining while Carapace reasons that he was the closest hero to catch her.)
"This time Mariposa...!" Ladybug stood menacingly in front of Marinette, yo-yo ready for attack.
"Ladybug!" Chat scolds his teammate as the others stood protectively in front of Marinette, "Mariposa is over there."
From where Chat was pointing at... Well he was actually pointing at the sky where the butterfly Sentimonster once hovered minutes ago. But since Marinette has been de-akumatized, the Sentimonster disappeared, which made Hawk Moth catch a falling "Mariposa". The older Butterfly didn't say a word. He and his "protégé" just disappeared in a swarm of white butterflies.
"This has got to be a trick...!" Ladybug keeps insisting, to the point that she was sounding like a broken maniac.
"Oh give it up already!" Queen Bee snaps at her. Deep inside, the bee heroine was glad it was all over; she did not want to spend the rest of her life making people think she was a cry-baby, "Marinette is not Mariposa and you don't have proof, so stop being a total witch about it!"
"But the butterfly...!" Ladybug kept insisting, completely ignorant of the crowd of civilians witnessing her argument with her teammates. Some were even recording the whole thing in their phones.
"Do you even realize you're making us look like bad guys?" Azula angrily asks.
"'Bad guys' ?" Ladybug scoffs, "You may got your brain back Azula, but you have to be pretty stupid if you think our dear loyal fans would be idiotic enough to think we're bad guys over one little mistake."
Everyone surrounding the spotted heroine gasps in complete shock. Some looked disgusted by her remark. One lady had to cover her baby's ears, while hers were covered by the hands of a tall, burly stranger.
Ladybug didn't seem aware of the scandal she just made, nor cares. The people love her, their heroine. The one who risks her life just to save theirs. They'll easily forgive her and forget all her little slip-ups.
"Marinette," Chat turns to the girl of his dreams, "what happened today... we-"
"I don't know what I did wrong..." Marinette stops him, "but if I was causing anyone trouble: I'm sorry."
"You didn't do anything wrong." Rena assures.
"Yes she did!" Ladybug still insists.
Rena just glares at her, "Sometimes us heroes get so caught up in our job protecting people, we forget how people truly feel."
"If they even have feelings to begin with!" Ladybug suddenly freezes on the spot. Behind her, Queen Bee shows an annoyed look on her face before she rejoins her other (sane) teammates.
"Quick, be-fore, it, wears, off." The striped heroine... suggests.
Her teammates agree. Chat was quick to carry Marinette into his arms (before any of his teammates could), which made his biggest fan blush like a tomato. Rena was the (unfortunate) teammate to be (unfairly) chosen to carry a still-frozen Ladybug.
From the shadows, Hawk Moth watches as Chat Noir carries Marinette away. With the effects of Venom worn off, the one posing as Mariposa took off "her" mask, revealing the face of a worried childhood friend.
Both of them were quite surprised and impressed by how she was able to accurately copy every detail of the original costume. Now all she was missing, was a mask...
Zen didn't want to world to find out who the villainous girl behind the mask was like that. Especially by that so-called Ladybug heroine. Whoever the Guardian was, he must not have been in his right mind when he chose the wielder of the earrings.
He pulls out the bracelet with the Butterfly Miraculous embedded on it. He wants nothing more than to give the cursed jewel to Team Miraculous, just to free his friend from the burden forced into her.
But he couldn't. All because of the cursed magic surrounding it.
And even if he succeeds in giving it to the heroes... Who knows how much more suffering he will unleash...
Hawk Moth puts a hand on his shoulder, only to receive a hug of dismay from his niece's childhood friend. He pats the poor lad on the back. So far that's the only little help he could give at the moment.
It would have been a big help if he had found a way to break the curse.
Chat wanted to hug Marinette before leaving. But after what happened, all he could do, was say "good-bye".
Marinette watches her heroes disappear into the roofs. Rena "accidentally" bumps a still-frozen Ladybug against the concrete roof.
Why did Ladybug accuse her of being "Mariposa"? Did she saw her play with a white butterfly? Like the white butterflies Mariposa uses to akumatize people?
She guess that would make her suspicious. But, still...
She senses a presence behind her. She turns around, only to jump at the sight of her childhood friend.
"Hey. You drop this." Zen holds up his hand, revealing her "family heirloom."
Zen had to hide his hesitation with a smile as he watches his long-time friend strap the bracelet back on her wrist.
He never could forget the day he found out; A fireman was akumatized. While everyone ran to safety, he was out looking for Marinette who ran away from the designated hiding areas for some strange reason. When he finally found her...
She was transforming into Mariposa...
He didn't want to believe it. His best friend whom he has known since preschool couldn't be one of Paris' most diabolical evil minds.
He kept a close eye on her throughout the ideal. When the fight ended and she lost once again, he witnessed her detransformation from Mariposa to Marinette, who had no recollection of what she has done as Mariposa.
He wanted to tell her, in hopes of stop her from akumatizing people. But her uncle begged him not too, emphasized by the curse that came with the Miraculous.
All he could do, is protect everyone, including his childhood friend, from herself.
The Team stood in silence in Gabriel's office. The only sound they could hear was the news playing in his computer.
Also known as "Breaking News: Ladybug attacks an innocent, helpless teenage girl?!".
Gabriel lowers down the volume and approaches his students, "Care to explain this?"
"I was trying to protect the city." Lila explains.
"'Protecting'?" Gabriel raises an eyebrow, "Does 'protecting' involves attacking a civilian under suspicion?"
"Mariposa always attacks us." Lila emphasized.
"Mariposa always attacks you." Gabriel points out, "But if she is not who you claimed she is... then what? And what would the other civilians think?"
"That their beloved heroes are doing good for their sake?" Lila replies, "Obviously."
The moment Nadja was interviewing Marinette, Gabriel turns up the volume.
"Marinette, it must be traumatizing after being viciously and unfairly attacked by Ladybug." Nadja spoke to Marinette as they were being filmed.
Lila gapes. "Unfairly?!" "Viciously...?!"
"What the hero did was anything but 'heroic'." Nadja continues, much to Lila's growing frustration.
"I'm sure she had her reasons Nadja." Marinette replied, "In the end, she and Team Miraculous saved me from akumatization."
"And yet, witnesses claim it was Rena Rouge who saved you." Nadja points out, "While the other..."
As she said that, the scene on the monitor changed to that of the immobilized form of Ladybug.
Why did they have to show that?! The humiliation did not stop for Lila; More and more civilians were coming forward to express their hate and/or disgust towards the spotted heroine's recent behaviors.
"How could you all say that about me?!" Lila snaps, "I'm your HERO!"
"Lila." Gabriel speaks coldly, "Your actions today were anything but heroic. You accused your classmate without sufficient proof and attacked her in public just to justify your unfair accusations."
"At least I was doing something!" Lila snaps, "All you're doing is sitting around and complaining! Maybe if you were wearing a Miraculous you would understand! But no. You ended up being a Guardian apprentice than a hero!"
Her teammates and the Kwamis just gape in complete shock. Gabriel was equally shocked, but then recomposes himself, "Lila... I understand the weight of preserving your reputation as a hero has been increased by your frustration of having to battle the Butterflies in an almost daily basis without discovering a single clue of their civilian identities... It has been a burden to all of us. But try to keep a clear conscious and an open mind starting with the next mission. Otherwise... one small mistake can lead to dire consequences."
"But-!" Lila tries to protest.
"I wish I could put this more gently..." Gabriel continues, "But compared to the others, you also have not made much progress in the previous months after accepting the duties of the Ladybug. And I have clearly specified that you may transform in very dire emergencies other than Akuma Attacks. I do wish you put more priority in improving yourself during Akuma Attacks than during those 'dire emergencies.'"
Lila didn't understand what her mentor was talking about. There were dire emergencies other than Akuma Attacks that required her to transform. She just couldn't ignore the requests of those reporters who wanted exclusive interviews with her or disappoint her fans on their birthdays.
"Lila Rossi..." Gabriel continues, "Among the members of the team, you have committed the most mistakes during your times as heroes. My master once told me that mistakes can help you grow. Something you yourself hasn't proven up until now. That is why, I'm considering your dismissal from the Team."
This came as a big shock to the heroes. "Dismissed from the Team"?
Without moving her head, Lila wordlessly turn to her teammates for support, to defend her. Sadly, they had to agree with Gabriel; Lila has made too many mistakes. While she apologized for most of them, she never showed any redemption. Some of her apologies were too sarcastic to be even called so. She even got a few people akumatized during interviews and parties, and insisted she did nothing wrong.
And in terms of teamwork... she's the worst! When one of them comes up with a plan, she ignores it and rushes to attack the enemy without thinking; She would start arguments and refuse to be the one most at fault; She would even hog the spotlight for herself, which would sometimes hurt her teammates physically and/or get someone akumatized.
Why shouldn't she be dismissed from the team?
"But... But...! You can't do that!" Lila protests, "How can there even be a Team Miraculous without Ladybug?"
"With the right, qualified replacement candidate, of course." Gabriel replies, while watching the scene on the news when Marinette was comforted by her friends and classmates.
"Why didn't you guys say anything?!" Lila shouted at her teammates, still upset at Gabriel's sudden ultimatum.
The group had just left Gabriel's office and Lila was complaining non-stop of how their mentor had behaved "unfairly" over one "small" mistake.
Having enough of her ignorant ranting, Alya was the first to speak, "Are you even a hero Lila?"
Lila was taken back by this question, "What?"
Alya continues, "When we first got our Miraculouses, you called Ivan a 'Monster' just because the Butterflies akumatized him against his will."
"Which led to him getting re-akumatized." Nino angrily adds.
"You could've stopped," Chloe pitches in.
"But you were too busy telling the reporters how you 'single-handedly' saved the day." Sabrina finishes.
Lila gasps internally. She was only making her superhero debut known to Paris that day. How was she suppose to know her big wall of a classmate was going to get akumatized again after she just purified him?
Just as she was about to protest, Nino continues, "Remember that fashionista villain who changed peoples' clothes and personalities? She was that big shot designer you shot down because her 'mediocre' ideas wouldn't come close to your natural style."
"And her scarves were haunting..." Lila mumbles to herself, but was still heard.
"I almost killed Alya because of you and you didn't even apologize after!"Sabrina angrily points out.
"But you didn't." Lila points out, "So why are you still making a big deal about it?"
"That's why!" Nino points a finger at her, "You think every problem can be solved with magic so that you don't have to worry if people get akumatized every day or your teammates get killed!"
"Isn't that exactly the point?" Lila asks in confusion.
"Lila..." Adrien speaks coldly, "What happens, if magic, won't be able to heal a wound in time...?"
"Is that even possible?" Lila asks without even batting an eye, "You guys are way over-thinking this."
Instead of responding, her teammates could only glare at her.
"How was it that someone so utterly shallow like you ended up being heroes with us in the first place?" Chloe angrily asks.
Lila wordlessly gasps. She expects the others to protest on her behalf, but they too were giving her looks of disgust.
"I don't have to repeat what my father told you." Adrien declares, "But either you make improvements, or our future new teammate will."
Lila just stands there, completely speechless as her teammates and their Kwamis left her without saying another word.
Why are they all blaming her for her mistakes? Why does she have to always take the blame?! Do they really see her as the most USELESS of the heroes?!
Tikki wanted to calm her holder down, but she could sense intense rage coming from the teenage girl. She have had many Ladybugs, but never one like her current holder, who, to her complete horror, was acting like...!
She prays history will not repeat itself...
Even when she was asleep, she never took it off.
Amshel lets out a heavy sigh. It was quite a heart-pounding day for him, his niece, her friend, and everyone else. Hopefully, this event will clear any suspicions of his niece being You-Know-Who.
Even though it was tough to fool that so-called heroine...
The Miraculous lays embedded on her bracelet, just as it has always been since... that day.
Stupid Felix... Why couldn't he just accept the love that was never his?
If everyone found out his niece's secret, who knows what they will do to her?
It was never her fault. He should've just kept the Miraculous, assuring her he was protecting a "precious family memory" or something.
But would that have stopped people from getting hurt...? And who's to say that he himself won't be corrupted by the Miraculous...?
The magical jewel glows. Amshel braces himself for the next akumatization... only for the glow to stop.
He lets out a deep sigh. Perhaps some other time. Probably tomorrow.
Once the man left, a creepy smile appears on Marinette's sleeping face.
If Gabriel doesn't grow a heart in Season 5... I'm gonna lose it!
Sigh... I hope part 2 of "Kwamis' Choice" is better than the first part.
I do want to see Marinette interacting more with Monarch in an open heart-to-heart way, which leads to Monarch realizing Marinette may be the perfect key in defeating Ladybug and Chat Noir, ignoring the fact (but fails obviously) that she reminds him of his comatose wife in many ways.