Marin ran into the locker rooms, not late for once as he walked past many of his classmates smiling among themselves, sharing what presents they had made for their teacher.
"Hiya cutie." Alya greeted as she greeted her best friend. "Everyone's got their gift just like you planned." She said as Marin smiled.
"Yeah it looks like everything is going to go smoothly." He said, opening up his locker. Alya then suddenly took his hand, noticed various bandages on his fingers. She shot him a concerned expression as he chuckled nervously.
"I'm still a little new to embroidery." He chuckled as Alya sighed.
"You work too hard." Alya sighed giving him a half hug as Adrien walked up to them.
"What did you get Miss Bustier, Marin? I'm sure you've come up with something awesome, as usual." He said with a sink as Marin chuckled nervously.
Marin took out a pretty looking handmade paper box. He removed the lid revealing a pink make up bag. He pointed down to the embroidered quote. "If we wish to change the world, we must all learn to love each other." That's one of the first things Miss Bustier taught us when we first started her class. I think it was one of her most important lessons." He said as then opened up the bag taking out a black tube. "I also made this lib balm for her, it's Miss Bustier's favorite color." He said, smiling shyly as everyone complimented his hard work.
"Come to think of it, Miss Bustier is probably the reason we all get along so awesomely." Alya commented as she placed her arm around his shoulder.
"How about you, Chloé? What's your present?" Adrien asked turning back towards his childhood friend who slammed her locker closed, glaring at everyone who turned towards her.
"Nothing. Just like every year since kindergarten." Alix called out as everyone chuckled.
"It's not her fault, okay? Chloé just doesn't like birthdays! She never remembers them, just like her mom." Sabrina said trying to defend her friend.
"Yeah, well, you don't have to tell 'em my life story, either. Anyway, all that stuff about compliments and love? Ridiculous! Utterly ridiculous!"
"It's alright if you forgot to bring your gift." Marin said, trying to quell the growing tension. "I'm sure Miss Bustier won't mind if you give it a few days late." He tried to reassure as Chloé glared at him.
"What are you trying to say Dupain-Cheung? That I'm some kind of idiot for forgetting a stupid present?!"
"What? No, of course not-" Marin said stammering over his words, uneasy at Chloé's bubbling rage, but faltered as he couldn't find the right words.
Marin sighed as Alya turned towards him, "This girl's got no heart."
"Of course I have a heart! Daddy will even buy me a second one, if I want." Chloé snapped back as the bell then rang. Everyone dispersed back their classes as Marin placed his gift back into his locker, walking with Alya to their next class.
Adrien had already placed his gift on Miss Bustier's desk as he watched Marin and Alya walk-in at the end of the day. They both placed their gifts on her desk as their teacher looked so touched by the gesture.
"Oh! Thank you all, so sweet!" Miss Bustier said as her eyes welled up with tears, touched by her student's gesture. Every smiled in anticipation as she picked up the first gift, a familiar homemade box.
"Marin made that one." Alya said.
Adrien looked back at his friend who was smiling hopefully, giving him a thumbs-up as both of them heard Miss Bustier gasp. Everyone looked on in surprise as Miss Bustier forced a nervous smile. But Marin suddenly walked over to their teacher, looking down at his present in shock as then glared at Chloé angrily.
"I know you did this, Chloé!" He exclaimed as Adrien noticed the black marker on the make up bag, effectively destroying all his work.
"A 99.56% certainty," Max remarked as everyone nodded in agreement as all of them were witnesses to Chloé's previous blow up.
"How childish can you get?!" Marin snapped as Chloé retaliated with a smirk. Right next to her Sabrina held her head down, guiltily.
"Calm down. We don't want to get upset on my birthday, now, do we?" Miss Bustier said trying to calm down the class as Marin looked back at her in disbelief.
"What? You're going to let her get away with this?! Miss Bustier she's-" He was about to explain as their teacher clapped her hands.
"Marinus, you know my classroom is not a place for insults and defamation. Please come with me." Miss Bustier said as Marin hung his head in defeat.
Everyone whispered among themselves as Marin shut his eyes tightly for a moment walking out of the classroom rubbing his injuries as Miss Bustier followed close behind. "Alya. I'm relying on you to make sure things don't get out of hand while we're gone."
Alya nodded, "Okay, Miss." But as soon as the teacher left the room, she Adrien and Nino exchanged a concerned glance.
As soon as Miss Bustier closed the door behind her, Marin took a deep breath, trying to quell his anger. But couldn't as he saw the makeup bag still scribbled on with black marker, covering up almost all of the fabric and the embroidery.
"Don't worry Marin, you're not in trouble. I think this present is wonderful. It'll be my new cosmetics bag, then I'll be able to think of both of my wonderful students, every time I use it. Miss Bustier tried to reassure but only served to make Marin tensed up.
"Miss Bustier, it's so not fair! It was Chloé, pulling another...Chloé! I worked days on that gift and she ruined it just because she's insecure!" Marin retorted, slightly flinching as his teacher placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Marinus, as the class representative, I want you to set a good example for your classmates. Don't give into feelings of anger. Try to forgive Chloé instead." She said with a gentle smile, but Marin's anger only grew.
"Forgive her?" Miss Bustier, Chloé's bullied me for years, she's gone out of her way to make me miserable. I'm not going to just forgive her so easily, she's the one who should be apologizing to me." Marin said.
"Come on... There are much worse people in Paris right now than Chloé Bourgeois. I'm sure people like Chloé are capable of great things. The problem is, they only think of themselves. They don't understand the meaning of love, and we can't force them to change. But perhaps we can show them by setting a good example. That's why people like you are so important in today's world; because they have a lot of love to give. I'm counting on you." Miss Bustier said with a smile.
Marin sighed heavily. His anger subsiding slightly, but still lingering as his work had been all a waste, just because Chloé had to be the center of attention at all times. But he nodded his head, feeling a little better as Miss Bustier pulled him into a hug.
All of a sudden Marin's eyes widened as he could sense negative energy, looking behind him as an Akuma fluttered by. Miss Bustier gasped fearfull as she pulled him into his embrace trying to swat away the Akuma. "Go away! I won't let you possess one of my students!" But as she tried to protect him, the Akuma flew towards her growing fear. As she threw the bag at him the lip balm fell out as the Akuma possess it. Miss Bustier's grip on him went limp as she backed up into the wall, holding her head in pain trying to fight back against Hawkmoth. "No! No! I am not going to listen to you! You can't force me to do evil!"
Marin looked at his teacher anxiously, guilt-ridden as his anger was the catalyst that triggered the Akuma to begin with. "Don't give up! Think only positive thoughts!" He said, but his anxiety grew as his teacher stopped struggling. "Miss Bustier, please-" Marin pleaded as he reached out towards his teacher but recoiled back as he saw her transform before his eyes. "I won't stop until everyone on Earth feels love." Quickly he grabbed the lip balm before jumping down the stairs and sprinting into the locker room, locking the door behind him as his heart raced.
He heard a buzzing in his ears as it became hard to breathe, tears welling up in eyes as his chest tightened. He only really calmed down as Tikki flew out of his bag, hugging his face. He focused instead on her sensation, focusing on his breathing.
"Thank you Tikki." He said gratefully dropping the lip balm on the ground as he stomped on it, releasing the Akuma. Tikki quickly ate the Akuma, releasing a purified butterfly as the only thing that remained was the lip balm with a cracked shell. Marin sighed heavily, sitting down for a moment as he held his head in his hands. Tikki sat down on his leg for a moment, looking up at him in concern.
Marin took a moment to gather his thoughts, taking another deep breath as he mumbled under his breath. "Tikki, spots on." After he transformed, he used his yo-yo to jump out of the window and onto the roof. He spotted that his teacher had turned back to normal, being surrounded by his classmates. Ladybug looked at the lip balm in his hand, dropping it back into the school as he then jumped into the inner city.
"You did well today." Master Fu praised while Marinus held his head. Tikki and Wayzz had flown into the Miracle box under Master Fu's order as the two talked.
"I doubt it master, the only reason that Akuma was released was because I overreacted." He said as Master Fu poured tea for him.
"You're too hard on yourself," The Master said as he sat down. "Hawkmoth is vicious in his attacks, he'll take advantage of anyone he can. The important thing is that you reacted well, and nipped the problem in the bud before it had a chance to grow. Your training is paying off." He compliments as a small smile drew on Marin's face, holding the warm cup of tea in his hands.
"Master, have you ever tried to use the Ladybug Miraculous yourself to track down Hawkmoth?" Marin asked curiously. "If I can sense the Akuma within a limited range, then maybe a master like you could track down the source." he reasoned, but Master Fu shook his head.
"If I were to use the Ladybug Miraculous it would take years to even sense to even reach the point you have Marinus." He said as Marin's eyes widened with surprise. "When Miraculous are distributed, they are given to those who can bond easier to their specific Kwami. I was assigned Wayzz decades ago because as a Guardian it is my duty to protect the Miraculous above all else, no matter the cost. You were assigned Tikki, the Kwami of creation, not only because of your kind nature, but because of your creativity, and willingness to face even the most trying situations. Chat Noir received Plagg for similar reasons, but also because Plagg's partners were always people who could balance out his mischevious nature without trying to constrain him." He explained as he took a sip of his tea.
"Master, Hawkmoth is growing stronger by the day." Marin remarked, deep in thought for a moment until he lifted his head. "Maybe Chat Noir should know about this as well, about the grimoire, about the miracle box, about you?" He suggested carefully as Master Fu glanced at his student knowingly. "He's the most trustworthy person I know, loyal to a fault, and cares about protecting people. I think he deserves to know." Marin said sincerely.
Master Fu hummed for a moment, walking towards the window, recalling past years, past failures..."There is a reason I never introduced myself to either of you when we first met. Knowing about my existence is one thing, but making a direct connection, learning of my identity...there could be grave consequences to what you're proposing."
"But maybe it's all the more reason to bring Chat Noir into this, he can help us as well." Marin reasoned, "You're the one who chose him after all, Master. That has to count for something."
Fu closed his eyes for a moment, thinking about his chosen's words, stroking his beard. "Marinus, I trust your judgment," He said opening up his eyes. "if you decide to inform Chat Noir about everything, then I will support your decision.
Marin's eyes widened in surprise, a smile crossing his face before he coughed, trying to remain humble. "Thank you Master. I know that we won't regret this."
Notes:
-The bag was right there, it was right there and she didn't grab it, in the episode, so Marin did, and now we have a set up for an angst arc. :3