"I'm hungry," Plagg said, lying down on Marinette's desk as she finished embroidering a piece of silky blue ribbon. "Give me cheese."
"Get it yourself," she said absentmindedly, motioning to the cheese-cracker-filled drawer she kept on her desk. Finally done with her embroidery, she tied off the floss and cut it before pinning it to the dress form she'd dragged over to her desk.
"Marinette, Alya's here," she heard her maman calling from downstairs. A moment later, the downstairs trapdoor creaked open, and her best friend stepped into her room.
"Hey, Alya!" she said, turning and showing off the still-unfinished dress she was making. "What do you think?"
Alya squinted at the dress form. "Looks great, girl," she said encouragingly. "I really like that embroidery."
Marinette beamed. "Thanks, I just added that," she said. "So what's up?"
"It's the unveiling of the Crimson Beetle and Chaton Minuit sculptures today! Did you forget?"
"Of course not! You've only been talking about it for a week," Marinette reassured. "I still can't go, though. My parents told me I have to finish up some homework now," she added sadly. There was no way she could tell Alya that she had to attend as Chaton Minuit.
"Aw, come on," Alya groaned. "You couldn't convince them?"
Marinette shook her head. "It's fine, though, I can still see it through the window. It is right across from my house, after all."
"I figured. Well, it starts in a few minutes and I better get going so I can cover the event for the Heroic Herald. Maybe I can get a few behind-the-scenes photos from the artist! See you later, Marinette!"
"Bye!" As she watched her best friend leave the room, the trapdoor clicking shut behind her retreating form, Alya's words finally registered in her mind. "Wait, a few minutes? Plagg, claws out!" Moments later, Chaton Minuit was leaping off of Marinette's balcony, headed for the tarp-covered statue and the crowd loosely gathered in the Place des Vosges, hoping she wasn't too late. Why am I always late for everything? she wondered. First school, now this.
Crimson Beetle was already waiting, making small talk with a tall guy with his hair tied in a bun, chewing a straw while standing beside Mayor André Bourgeois. He spotted her, waving her over. "Hey, Minuit!" he said eagerly. "Meet Théo Barbot, the sculptor who created the masterpieces we are about to see. He's a big fan of yours," he added with a wide grin.
Théo blushed and nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah, I'm a huge fan, Chaton Minuit. Can you please sign this photo I have of you and Crimson Beetle?" He held out a newspaper clipping and a black ballpoint pen.
"Sure!" Minuit quickly sketched a paw print on the piece of paper, then gave the pen back to Théo. He took it carefully, still staring at her in awe.
"Now that both superheroes are here," Mayor Bourgeois began, startling Minuit, "let the ceremony commence! It's only proper for Paris to pay homage to those who keep our beloved city safe from evil." He motioned to Théo, who reached up and took ahold of the canvas tarp. "Presenting: Crimson Beetle and Chaton Minuit!" Théo yanked the tarp off the statue, revealing a sculpture of the two of them frozen in action. Minuit's statue stood mid-leap, her braid twisting around her body as she used her baton to vault ahead. Crimson's sculpture was crouched below her, his yo-yo coiling around him as he prepared to throw it forward.
The audience started to clap, and Théo blushed at the praise. "Wow," Minuit breathed. "You really captured our essence in those statues, Théo."
"Thank you, Chaton Minuit," he replied.
Before he could say anything more, Minuit heard Alya's voice over the crowd. "Crimson Beetle! Chaton Minuit!" she called. "Can I get a quick interview?"
"Sure," Crimson said easily, following her. Minuit started heading after them, but a hand on her wrist stopped her.
"Wait," Théo said. "I have something to ask you."
She turned to face him, giving him her full attention.
"Well," Théo started, waffling. "I… Will you go on a date with me?"
Minuit's mouth fell open. "What?" she asked incredulously. Some guy she didn't even know, who looked way older than she was– a lycée student at best– was asking her out on a date? "I– I'm sorry," she stuttered. "But, I, uh, I like someone else?" And you're way too old for me, she added in her head.
Théo's expression shuttered immediately. "Oh," he said. "Never mind."
Minuit turned and went after Crimson Beetle, feeling painfully awkward.
Théo watched Chaton Minuit push her way through the crowd toward Crimson Beetle and the girl with glasses who'd asked for an interview. He couldn't believe Chaton Minuit had rejected him. After he'd put so much effort into making such a magnificent sculpture of her!
And her partner, his subconscious reminded him.
Shut up, he told himself. Them being partners doesn't mean anything.
Either way, the least she could do was go on a single date with him. Then she'd be able to see what an awesome guy he was! He just knew that if she'd give him a chance, they could be amazing.
He pulled the straw he was chewing on out of his mouth, twisting it between his fingers as he watched. Chaton Minuit was talking with Crimson Beetle and Glasses Girl, who had her phone out to record them. As he watched, Crimson Beetle said something to Glasses Girl, who said something back to him. And then Crimson Beetle started to freak out, tossing his yo-yo toward a nearby building and swinging away.
Théo focused on Chaton Minuit's expression as she watched her partner leave. It looked disturbingly familiar. It only took him a moment to pinpoint the expression as the same one he had whenever he glimpsed himself in the mirror as he thought of Chaton Minuit.
Doesn't mean anything, hmm? the little voice in his head gloated. Looks like they're more than just partners.
Théo turned and set out for his studio. He couldn't take this anymore.
A short walk across the city later, Théo was standing amidst the brick walls and vaulted ceilings of his art studio, gazing at the concept sketches of the two heroes he'd pinned to the wall. Pulling out the newspaper clipping tucked into his pocket, he traced the looping signature Chaton Minuit had written on it. Then he crushed it, dropping his hand to his side.
He caught a fluttering motion in his peripheral vision, and then suddenly there was a voice in his head that wasn't his own. Hello, Mimic. I am Hawkmoth. Rejected by Chaton Minuit because of her love for Crimson Beetle? What does that superhero have that you don't have?
"Exactly!" he said. "Finally, someone who gets it."
Once you get rid of Crimson Beetle, Hawkmoth continued, take his Miraculous and bring it to me. And Chaton Minuit will be yours forever.
"Of course, Hawkmoth," he agreed.
And then everything faded into a haze of purple.
Adrien turned on his TV and navigated to the news, tossing the remote onto the couch and heading to his desk to start on his science homework. He'd gotten into the habit of leaving the news playing in the background after getting his Miraculous, figuring that he should be ready in case of an akuma– at least until someone created an alert system for akuma attacks, which would probably make his life a lot easier.
He pulled out the science homework Mme Mendeleiev had assigned earlier that day and began reading the instructions. Soon the sound of his pencil scratching the paper was the only thing he could hear aside from the drone of the news anchors on the TV.
"Adrien!" Tikki called suddenly, startling him and making him smudge the last two answers he'd written. "Look!"
"What?" he asked, turning to face the TV and dropping the pencil in shock as he watched footage of himself as Crimson Beetle marching into the Louvre and pulling the Mona Lisa out of its display case, knocking out a guard trying to stop him before making a break for it. "What?" he said again. "How?"
"It's most likely an akuma," Tikki said gravely. "Did Crimson Beetle make anyone angry recently?"
Adrien shook his head. "Not that I know of…" He trailed off, trying to think of why the akuma might be targeting him, then shrugged. "We can figure it out later. Tikki, spots on!"
Crimson Beetle made his way over to the Louvre, landing by a group of police officers before retracting his yo-yo. He jumped as suddenly the police officers surrounded him. "Woah! Wait! You've got the wrong bug! That guy's an impostor, I'm the real Crimson Beetle!"
Officer Raincomprix lifted his hand, and his fellow police shot him questioning looks as they lowered their weapons.
"Thanks, Officer," Crimson Beetle said, relieved. "Let me check out where the robbery took place. Maybe I can find something that belonged to the impostor."
"Of course, Crimson Beetle," Officer Raincomprix said, ignoring the whispers of his fellow police officers behind him. "Come with me. Thank you for your help."
Crimson followed Officer Raincomprix into the museum, and they climbed down the stairs as the officer led him to the hallway where the Mona Lisa was usually kept. He stepped into the hallway, scouring the area around the painting's display case for clues.
Then he heard the thud of metal slamming against the ground, turning to see Officer Raincomprix holding a remote and grinning on the other side of a set of metal bars.
"Hey!" Crimson called. "What gives?"
"Beetle's in the slammer, I repeat, beetle's in the slammer," Officer Raincomprix spoke into his walkie-talkie, ignoring Crimson. "Over."
"Let me out!" Crimson called, running over to the bars and wrapping his hands around them.
Officer Raincomprix flashed him a grin and turned to leave.
"Hey! Wait!" Ignoring him, the officer rounded the corner and was out of sight. Crimson sighed. He walked over to sit on the bench in front of the Mona Lisa's display case, putting his hands behind him as support as he leaned backward. His fingers brushed a piece of hard paper, and he turned to see a blue-and-white spiral-striped straw. "What is this?"
He picked it up, squinting at it. For some reason, it looked very familiar. His mind flashed to a memory of the sculptor from earlier, the one who'd made the Crimson Beetle and Chaton Minuit sculpture in the Place des Vosges. If it was from the same guy…
Crimson had his first suspect. And he really needed to get out of this cage.
"This is ridiculous," Minuit said, landing next to the gathering of police officers in front of the Louvre and retracting her baton. "Officer Raincomprix," she started, addressing the one clearly in charge, "I'm sure there is a simple explanation. Crimson Beetle is not a thief." And even if he was, he definitely wouldn't be stupid enough to march into the Louvre in broad daylight and just take the Mona Lisa.
"Beetle's in the slammer, Chaton Minuit," Officer Raincomprix said. "Nothing else to it."
Minuit fumed. "Don't think you're gonna keep him in there–" She was stopped by a hand from Officer Raincomprix. "Now, now, leave it to the experts, Chaton Minuit," he said patronizingly. "We've got this all under control."
As though he'd summoned it with his attempt at reassurance, Officer Raincomprix's walkie-talkie crackled to life. "Crimson Beetle is getting away! Over!" Barely a moment later, Crimson Beetle sprinted out of the entrance of the Louvre Pyramid, tossing his yo-yo and disappearing over the rooftops.
"What the–" Officer Raincomprix gasped.
Minuit flashed him a smug grin. "Got it all under control, eh? Well, I'll be off then. See you around!" She vaulted into the air, chasing after her partner.
She caught up to him as he bent double on a rooftop a good distance from the Louvre, breathing heavily and holding a tiny Lucky Charm, though she couldn't tell what it was. "Oh– hey," he said when he saw her. "That person on the news– that wasn't me. I swear."
"I know," she soothed. "Don't worry about it."
He finally stood up straight, letting out a long exhale. "I need to detransform and recharge," he finally said. "I'm gonna go behind that chimney. Be right back."
She nodded and settled cross-legged on the terracotta tiles, letting him hide. "Spots off," she heard him say, a flash of pinkish-red light illuminating the tiles for a moment.
"So, what was that?" she asked. "I know it wasn't you on the news, but who was it?"
Crimson sighed. "I have no idea," he said. "Probably an akuma. But I don't remember making anyone angry enough at Crimson Beetle to turn into an akuma just to try and make me look bad."
"Did you find any clues in there?" she asked, just as perplexed as he was.
"Only one." Minuit saw a pale hand reach out from around the chimney, holding something out for her. "Just this."
She took it, careful not to look too far around the chimney and find out who Crimson's civilian identity was. "Um, this looks kinda familiar," she said, rolling the chewed-up straw back and forth across her fingers as she inspected it.
"Yeah, I thought so too," Crimson said. "Spots on!" He walked around to Minuit's side of the chimney. "It's the same type of straw that the sculptor of our statue at the Place des Vosges was chewing on. Maybe even the same straw, if those bite marks are any indication."
Minuit's face paled. "Oh, no."
"What?" He cast her a concerned glance.
"Shoot. I think I know who's been akumatized," she said. "And it's my fault. That guy, the sculptor guy, he asked me out. I told him that I liked someone else." He must have figured out that I like Crimson Beetle, she thought to herself. Wow. Am I really that bad at hiding it?
"Yeah, but why would he target me then? Wouldn't he target you, or whoever you said you liked?" he asked.
Minuit blushed so hard she felt like her face was on fire. She pulled the end of her long braid into her lap, fiddling with the tuft of hair on the end and the green ribbon holding the plait together. "Well, um, I-I, well, I-I d-didn't actually like who said I, I mean, say who liked I, I mean, well– um. You know," she finished lamely.
Crimson nodded. "So he must have assumed it was me because we're partners," he said thoughtfully.
Or he noticed the probably very obvious heart-eyes I was giving you during that interview with Alya, she thought miserably. She kept giving me knowing looks the whole time. I know it was clear to anyone who saw it.
"It doesn't matter, though. He's probably trying to win you over by making me look bad," Crimson theorized. "Or something like that."
"That jerk!" Minuit said heatedly. "I'm not some prize to be won!" she added, twisting her braid around her hand and squeezing it. "He should have just taken no for an answer."
"Agreed," Crimson said. "Though it might just be the akuma's influence. He might not actually be so pushy without Hawkmoth's interference."
"Maybe," she admitted.
Crimson stood up and stretched. "Ready to go, Nuit?" he asked.
Minuit felt herself blushing violently again. "Nuit?" she asked.
"It's a nickname," he said. "I mean, I could just keep calling you Minuit if you want, but Nuit is shorter, so–"
"Yeah, yeah, it's fine," she said dazedly. Crimson Beetle had just given her a cutesy nickname! When she got home, she was gonna scream into her pillow for ten minutes straight.
"Are you just gonna keep sitting there?" Crimson asked, his green eyes twinkling.
Minuit jumped to her feet. "Sorry, distracted got– I mean got distracted by your eyes– I MEAN BY YOUR DISGUISE! I, uh, that costume looks great! Are those shoulder pads?"
"Yeah, I think they are," Crimson said distractedly, thankfully ignoring Minuit's rambling. "So where do you think his workshop is?"
"Is he even old enough to have a workshop?" Minuit asked. "He's, like, in lycée."
Crimson shrugged. "I dunno, he might have been lent the place by the city for our statues or something?"
"Maybe," she said. "It would probably have to be near the Place des Vosges so that they could haul the finished sculpture to where it's displayed now."
Searching the buildings around the Place des Vosges didn't take long. They finally landed on a rooftop across from a brick building with a heavily graffitied garage door and a glass roof. 'L'atelier' was written on a sign across the top.
Leaping over to the glass roof, Crimson chanced a peek inside. "This is definitely his workshop," Crimson said. "Looks like we've spotted Copy Beetle."
Minuit let out an obligatory groan and leaped off the roof, landing on the ground underneath the sign and hauling the garage door up enough for Crimson and herself to go inside. Perched inside on top of a wooden crate was a paw-waving lucky cat propping up an envelope. The message was marked with a simply drawn ladybug.
"What if it's a trap?" Minuit said, grabbing Crimson by the wrist when he reached for the letter.
Crimson shrugged. "How could this be a trap? The only things here are the cat and the letter."
Seeing his point, Minuit let go of him, and he reached for the letter, tearing the seal off and pulling out a note. "Looks like you're not so lucky after all, ladybug?" he read with confusion. "What?"
Minuit reflexively closed her eyes as the crate exploded, sending the lucky cat crashing on the floor and shattering into ceramic shards. When she opened her eyes, both of Crimson's wrists were encased in a pair of chained handcuffs.
"Cataclysm!" she called, lifting her hand up to disintegrate the chains, but someone slammed a wooden board on top of her hand and the power bubbling in her palm vanished. "What?"
Minuit turned around to find herself standing there. "Hello, Chaton Minuit," 'Minuit' said in a deep voice that wasn't her own. "Hello, Crimson Beetle. It's nice of you to fall into my trap."
Then the impostor's whole form shifted, and moments later a perfect replica of Crimson Beetle was standing in his place.
"What– who are you?" Minuit gasped out, stumbling back.
'Crimson' smiled eerily. "My name is Mimic," he said in the same voice from before. It took Minuit a moment to place it as Théo Barbot's voice. "And I am everything Crimson Beetle is and so much more. I can be anything or anyone you want me to be. Why would you ever prefer him over me now?"
"Nice to meet you, off-brand me," Crimson snarked, still tugging on his chains.
Mimic snarled, shifting back into Minuit's form. "Cataclysm!" he called, black energy pooling in his palm. "I should just Cataclysm your face off. Chaton Minuit doesn't need you anymore. She has me." He held the hand bubbling with magic above Crimson's face, which went pale and still.
Minuit thought quickly. She grabbed Mimic's hand at the elbow and yanked down, using her other hand to shove the chains and Mimic's Cataclysm together. The moment the two made contact, the metal links rusted and turned to dust in her hands, setting Crimson free.
"Lucky Charm!" Crimson called the moment the last of the chains had disintegrated, and a red mesh bag of black-tinted ball bearings fell into his hands.
Mimic scoffed. "A bag of marbles? Useless. Now look at this. Mimic Charm!" A giant, curved, excessively sharp sword fell into his hands. "Now this is more like it."
"And what do you plan to do with that?" Minuit asked, masking her nervousness with bravado.
Instead of responding, Mimic took a swipe at her with the weapon. Thankfully, he was still getting used to the weapon and it was child's play to dodge it.
Minuit kept Mimic busy as Crimson tried to figure out what his Lucky Charm was telling him. Her Miraculous let out another beep. "I'm on three pads, bugaboy," she grunted, using her staff to block another blow that would have taken out her partner if she hadn't gotten in the way.
Mimic shifted into Minuit's form and used his new agility to roll under her staff, lunging at Crimson and whirling around him, pressing his staff to Crimson's throat, attempting to choke him. Startled, Crimson dropped the bag of ball bearings, which bounced on the floor, rolling over to where Minuit was still standing with her baton ready to block.
"Give up your Miraculous and go out on a date with me," Mimic told Minuit, "and I'll let your partner go, nice and easy."
"Ew," Minuit said. "No way! Let him go!"
"Nuit, the marbles," Crimson told her, his whisper strained as he tried to get his fingers in between his neck and Mimic's baton.
Using her own baton to scoop up the bag of ball bearings, Minuit suddenly realized what Crimson wanted her to do. She quickly pulled the mesh bag open and scooped up a handful of ball bearings, her claws clicking against their slick surfaces. "Let. Him. Go," she said threateningly, walking forward with her hands raised. His expression betraying his nerves, Mimic started to back up, trying to keep some distance between him and Minuit. Then she grinned. He was right where she wanted him.
In a flash, Minuit dropped into a crouch, scattering the ball bearings at his feet. Mimic let out a yell of surprise as he slipped, sending his feet flying into the air and his head colliding with the wall with a sickening thud. Crimson fell on top of him with a surprised 'oof'.
"Whoops," Minuit said a little guiltily. The guy may have been a creep, but she hadn't intended to actually hurt him. She got to her feet and pulled Mimic's arms up, letting Crimson wriggle out of his unconscious grip.
"Where's the akuma?" Crimson asked, voice raspy. He tried to clear his throat, but when it didn't help, he made a face. "Ugh."
Minuit poked at Mimic's prone body with the end of her staff. The motion caused him to shift a little, and a piece of purple-tinted folded newspaper slid out of his pocket. "Could it be that?" she asked. "I remember signing that for him."
Crimson picked the paper up and tore it in two with a quick motion, and a sickly purple akuma fluttered out. He snapped it up in his yo-yo and released the purified white butterfly, whispering, "Bye-bye, little butterfly."
Minuit took in all the tiny ball bearings scattered all over the floor. "If we have to pick all these up for the Miraculous Cure, I swear I'm gonna lose my marbles," she groaned.
Crimson laughed, the sound joyful despite the leftover rasp in his voice. "I hope not. I'll try with just the bag first."
"Good idea," Minuit said. Crimson took the mesh bag, then flung it up into the air, calling, "Miraculous Crimson Beetle!" and a swarm of ladybugs flew over the scene, gathering up all the fallen ball bearings and causing the Mona Lisa in the corner of the room to disappear, probably headed back to the Louvre. The two superheroes fist-bumped. "Pound it!"
Against the wall, Théo Barbot slowly sat up, rubbing his head.
"What… happened?" he said. His eyes focused on the two superheroes in the room, and he gasped. "What did I do?"
Minuit frowned deeply. As a superhero of Paris, she had a duty to help comfort Hawkmoth's victims, but part of her just wanted to leave Théo to his own devices. On the one hand, he was a little creepy and refused to take no for an answer when he asked her out, to the point of being akumatized… but on the other hand, he was still a victim. Her Miraculous let out a shrill beep, and for a moment, she was glad that she didn't have to choose before a spike of guilt flooded her for feeling that way.
"It's okay, I'll take care of this," Crimson said, practically reading her mind. She nodded quickly, then ran out of the room.
"Marinette," Alya called, opening the trapdoor right after Marinette released her transformation, breathing a sigh of relief. "I finished editing the interview I got with Crimson Beetle and Chaton Minuit! Sorry, girl, but the beetle is taken. Chaton Minuit is so in love with him."
"That's so cool, Alya!" Marinette said.
Alya grinned. "I posted it to my blog already. Wanna watch it?"
She nodded eagerly.
As Alya busied herself with logging into Heroic Herald on Marinette's desktop, she grinned at the Crimson Beetle-themed wallpaper. "Girl, you need to find a new crush," she said. "Crimson Beetle is definitely gonna end up with Chaton Minuit."
Marinette smiled secretively. If only Alya knew. "Who would you suggest?" she asked instead, curious.
"Um, what about Nino?" Alya said.
She shook her head. "I've known him too long, so he's more like a brother to me."
"Ivan's taken," Alya muttered thoughtfully. "Nathaniel?"
"Nah," Marinette said. "It's the same thing with him."
"Max? Or Kim?"
Marinette shuddered. "Not Kim. Not again."
"Again?" Alya quirked an eyebrow at Marinette. "That's a story I need to hear."
She looked positively ill. "You really don't," she said. "It doesn't matter anyway. I've moved on."
"Okay, okay," Alya said, raising her hands in surrender. "What about Adrien?"
"He's just a friend, and I don't know him that well," Marinette said.
"Well, are you into girls?" Alya asked. "Because then you have Rose, Juleka, Alix, Sabrina– wait, no, not Sabrina. And definitely not Chloé."
"Not you?" Marinette joked.
Alya grinned. "Girl, you know I'd never give up my crush on Chaton Minuit," she teased.
Marinette laughed. "Okay, but seriously, I'm pretty sure Rose and Juleka are gonna end up together," she said. "And again, I've known Alix for too long. It's okay. I'm not looking for a new crush," she added when Alya opened her mouth. "It's good for my focus in class."
"Okay, then," Alya said, grinning. "Let's watch the video. Then you can admire your superhero crush while I admire mine."
The two of them settled in as Alya pressed play on the video.
Notes
Merry Christmas to all those who celebrate! I figured I may as well update this story as a Christmas gift to all those who are following it, and I hope you enjoy your holidays!
Anyway, I really need to try and write some original akumas :D
If you've got any nickname suggestions for them, please leave them in the comments! I don't speak French and I'm really struggling to come up with possible nicknames for the two of them :D
As usual, huge thanks to √i and absurdistkiwi for beta-ing! Leave a review if you liked this!