Not everyone is excited for Christmas - and one person in particular gives Hawkmoth a wonderful, awful idea.
"It's December!" A girl sing-songed as she got into her seat, all sunshine and smiles even as her deskmate grumbled tiredly.
"It's too early for that level of cheer," the redhead muttered, tucking his head back into his arms.
"Aw, Peter, it's never too early for winter cheer." Noelle giggled, getting out her binder. "Besides," she added, "it's almost my birthday! Why wouldn't I be cheerful?"
"Yeah, in a month."
"Oh, details." Playfully rolling her eyes, she nudged his shoulder. "C'mon, why are you such a grouch this morning? Wake up too tight in your blankets?"
"More like my little sister kept me up all night." With a yawn, he closed his eyes. "I'll be so glad when she's older and quieter."
The girl hummed in thought. Then, as an afterthought, she reached into her bag and pulled out a caramel. Placing it in front of him, she gave him another smile and opened her book.
"Good morning, students," Mendeleiev began as she strode into the room, making Peter and a few others raise their heads. When he saw the caramel, he glanced at his seatmate, but tucked it into his pocket for later.
"Hey, Noelle!" Aurore called, waving over the girl as she entered the cafeteria.
She was all smiles as she made her way over, saving a seat by putting her new sweater on the back. "Hey! Let me get through line real quick."
The girls at the table murmured their greetings, their newcomer giving her a shy smile even before she skipped over to the line.
"That's Noelle," Ange whispered to her. "She's pretty nice."
"And nicely pretty," Aurore agreed with a little sigh as she looked at the sweater. "Wow, that looks expensive."
"She said earlier that it was a gift from her cousin, I think." Mireille hummed in thought. "I like the red."
Colette nodded slowly. "I see..."
"So, anyway, do you have your presents yet?" The blonde changed the topic excitedly, tapping her nails on the table. "I've already gotten everything! New record for me!"
Mireille groaned. "Don't remind me. I'm still looking for something to give to my father."
"And I still don't have your gift yet!" Aurore pointed an accusatory finger at Colette, who squeaked in surprise. "C'mon, spill! What do you want? Clothes? Food? Electronics? I need to know!"
"I- I- don't know," she admitted, twisting a lock of silvery hair around her finger. "I mean, I need new glasses since I broke mine last week, but... my papa can take care of that."
"We aren't looking for needs, we want wants." Aurore pinched the bridge of her nose.
"S- sorry, there's just not a lot I want right now..." Ducking her head, the girl shrugged her shoulders.
"It's okay! You'll think of something." Mireille reassured her, patting her shoulder and giving the platinum-blonde girl a smile. "We have plenty of time until Christmas."
"I guess so..." Ducking her head, the girl took another bite of pasta.
After a moment, Noelle swept back in with a tray of food, humming to herself as she sat it down.
"Whew! Sorry about that," she said, sitting down and grabbing her fork. "Now! What are we talking about?"
"Colette's Christmas present," a few girls said in unison, making her face flush red.
"You don't know what you want yet?" She asked kindly.
Colette shook her head. "There's nothing I really want right now. It's overwhelming trying to come up with something."
"Surely there must be something. Clothes, makeup, phone case...?" She pressed, leaning in.
"I don't have a smartphone. I don't need new clothes. And... I don't really wear makeup."
A couple of the girls present groaned. She ducked her head with a meek "Sorry."
"Don't blame yourself. There must be something!" Noelle smiled brightly, taking a heaping bite of pasta and swallowing.
Then she paused. Looked down at her fork. Frowned. "Uh... what was this made with, again...?"
Aurore and Mireille exchanged puzzled looks. Ange dragged out an "Um..."
"Shoot, does this have thyme in it?" She gasped, dropping the fork. "I can't- oh man, I need to see the nurse!"
"What's wrong?" Ange inquired as she got up with sweater in hand.
"I'm allergic - like, really allergic to thyme," she hurriedly explained. "I'm so sorry, I've gotta go."
In a whirlwind, she was gone. Her tray sat innocently behind.
"Wow, poor Noelle," Colette quietly commented. "Food allergies suck."
"I thought the lunch staff knew about her allergy." Mireille cast a suspicious look towards the lunch counter.
"Maybe one of them is new?" Ange suggested uneasily. "Or maybe someone forgot to make sure...?"
Aurore leveled a look over there too, eyes narrowed. "Let's hope..."
"Hey, where's Noelle?" Peter asked in hushed tones, walking through the library.
"Accidentally got sick during lunch," Aurore murmured back, picking out a book to look over. "She might still be in the nurse's office."
"Oh man." The redhead heaved a sigh, looking towards the door. "I wanted to say sorry for being rude this morning. And thank her for the candy."
"Don't worry, she probably knows. That girl wouldn't know how to be mean even if you taught her." Stifling a laugh, she put the book back. "Anyway, which of these do you think would be better for our research topic?"
Peter looked over the book spines, humming in thought. As he opened his mouth to answer, there was a muffled shout from outside: "FIRED?!"
The class in the library exchanged bewildered looks. Madame Mendeleiev narrowed her eyes at the window, shaking her head. "Keep working, students."
Aurore crept closer to the window. It took the boy a moment to look away from the shelves to notice she'd left his side.
"Hey, what are you doing?" Peter whispered harshly.
"Shut up! I'm trying to listen." She hissed at the same volume, scanning the courtyard below.
There were only one or two students milling about, but they were looking towards someone below, mouths agape as they talked quietly together. As Aurore kept watching, the person came into view - and she gasped. "That's one of the lunch staff!"
"Wonder what got him fired..." Peter mused.
"Excuse me." A voice from behind startled both of them away from the window, and they looked up to see their teacher standing over them with her hands on her hips. "I asked you to keep working. Get away from the window and find some books for your project."
"Yes, ah, sorry, Madame," Peter sheepishly answered, tugging Aurore away and back into the shelves.
Clearing his throat a little, he reached back in for a book. "A- anyway, what about this one?"
"It's a good starting point," Aurore admitted, sparing a glance at the window. "I hope Noelle's okay. That guy sounded pretty mad..."
"If we have an akuma today, I'm gonna cry," Peter flatly admitted, rubbing his tired eyes. "The last thing I need is another thing to worry about."
As if mocking him, in the next moment, his - and simultaneously, everyone else's - phones began vibrating urgently. "AKUMA ALERT," came a monotonous voice from the devices. "SHELTER IN PLACE. AKUMA ALERT. SHELTER IN PLACE."
Aurore huffed a sigh, pocketing her phone as Mendeleiev began issuing orders. "Well. Guess that's happening." She turned to Peter, only to take a surprised step back when she saw angry tears dribbling down his face. "P- Peter?! You're actually crying?!"
"This is the worst day of my life so far," he sniffled, allowing her to lead him away.
"Monsieur Déjeuner, serve our little heroes a heaping helping of defeat - and bring me their Miraculous!"
Meanwhile, on the other side of the building, Ladybug sprinted towards the akuma with Cat in tow. "What's this guy's deal?" He asked.
"I dunno," she admitted. "But considering one of the students had an allergic reaction because he carelessly gave her something she was supposed to avoid eating..."
"That's not enough to get someone fired, though, right?" He sent her a disbelieving look.
"Who knows, maybe Principal Damocles didn't want to take any chances." Rolling her eyes, she swung towards a brightly-clad akuma wearing a chef's hat and jacket, who was throwing pasta at some screaming kids. Both heroes swallowed when the pasta stuck to the wall, steam visibly coming off of it.
"Ah, Ladybug, Cat Noir," the villain sneered, turning to face them. Aside from the bright ketchup-red and mustard-yellow splotches over his eyes, it was the same guy from before. "Nice of you heroes to drop in! I, Mr. Lunch, will be the one to serve up your Miraculous to Hawkmoth on a silver platter!"
Ladybug groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose, while Cat gave him an incredulous, flat stare. "Mr. Lunch? Really?"
"Like you're one to talk!" The akuma retorted. "Black Cat? Really?"
"Oh come on, I'm a black cat. That one was easy." The boy scoffed, twirling his baton. "Why are you so angry, anyway? Burnt your tongue on hot soup or something?"
"That principal... he fired me! All because some kid decided to fake an allergy for attention!" He shouted. "I can't afford to lose my job so close to the holidays! I have a family to feed! I have kids that deserve Christmas presents!"
"What do you mean... 'fake an allergy'?" Ladybug's eyes narrowed and her voice went lower, causing Cat to give her a confused glance.
"Some kid tried to say she has this awful allergic reaction to thyme or whatever," Mr. Lunch scoffed. "That's not a thing! The brat just wanted to get out of school for the day! And since she wanted to waste everyone's time, Damocles fired me! He fired me! For speaking up!"
"But no more! I'm done! Once I've got your Miraculous, I'm thinking I'll pay a little visit to little miss faker for costing me my job," he sneered, chuckling darkly to himself as he turned to the little pot simmering away at his side, full of hot broth. "I'll give her a real allergic reaction!"
Cat whistled lowly. "This guy is nuts. What's the plan, Ladybug?"
When he didn't get an answer, he turned. "Uh... my lady? ...Bug? ...Ladybug?"
Ladybug's head was lowered, fists clenched and shaking at her sides. When she looked up, it was a glare, so pointed and cold that it made the boy flinch.
"So let me get this straight," she started, voice cutting and curt, "Since you thought this girl was faking her allergic reaction for attention... you complained to the principal about it? Despite it being in her medical file?"
"Anyone can just claim they have allergies," he retorted, rolling his eyes. "Allergies to gluten and dairy I get, but thyme? Seriously? She couldn't pick something more believable?"
"Just because you've never heard of it doesn't mean it doesn't exist," she snapped back, taking a stomping step forward. The akuma's eyes narrowed, raising his ladle as she advanced. "I know this girl who has a horrible allergy to certain ingredients in perfumes - do you know how many times I've heard people call her out for 'faking' her allergies just so she can promote her own perfume?"
"And there's a boy in her class! A boy allergic to feathers!" Her voice raised, and Cat flinched, fixing her with a wide-eyed stare as she began twirling her yo-yo. "Why would you want to fake something like that? The girl you're accusing - her lips and tongue swell up and she needs antihistamines so she doesn't choke!"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever," he rolled his eyes. "I'll believe it when I see it!"
With a growl of frustration, Ladybug leapt at the akuma.
"Uh... Ladybug?" Cat hesitantly called.
"Get ready to break his item, Chaton," she yelled back.
"Wait- no, no no no no no!" Hawkmoth yelled, stomping his staff on the ground and causing his butterflies to scatter. "Curses! You've defeated me again, cursed Ladybug!"
Huffing and puffing, he swore, "You may have gotten through the entree... but mark my words, you won't make it through the main course! I will have your Miraculous!"
"Pound it," Ladybug huffed, holding out her fist for the uneasy Cat holder to bump.
As the transformation reversed, the man before her groaned, holding his head. "What... happened...?"
"You were akumatized," Cat explained, hand on his partner's shoulder as she tried to get her emotions under control. "Something about getting fired...?"
"Fired..." His eyes widened, then they hardened. "Yeah. That's right. I guess I was."
"What you did," Ladybug's voice was still harsh, catching both of their attention, "was hardly something I'd expect from an adult."
"Ladybug, he doesn't-"
"I know he doesn't remember! I'm not talking about his akumatization!" She exclaimed, making the adult on the floor flinch when she pointed a finger at him. "You weren't fired because of a mistake, you were fired because you accused a fourteen-year-old girl of faking a potentially-fatal allergy!"
"Nurse Sissi can confirm it; Noelle Abadie has a serious allergy to herbs such as thyme. If she ingests it, her lips and tongue will swell and she stands a good chance of choking to death on her own spit." Her eyes burned as she stared him down. "You decided, instead of owning up to a mistake, to double down and dig yourself deeper. That kind of behavior will kill someone someday."
"What do you know?" He spat. "I've worked with many kids before! Nobody has ever had this type of allergy. Who's to say it actually exists?"
"If that's the kind of attitude you have, I don't think you should be working with children," Cat firmly stated, folding his arms. "You said you have kids, right?"
"Yes. Three of them." At the confused look on his face, the Cat's expression grew more severe.
"If your child were allergic to something, so allergic that even eating a little bit of it would kill them... what would you do?"
"Isn't that obvious? I'd do everything I could to keep them away from it."
"So why would you subject someone else's child to that kind of danger?" Ladybug finally stressed. "If you love your kids so much you wouldn't dare even test it, why would you make that decision for someone else's?"
"Okay. Let's say you were right." Cat heaved a frustrated sigh. "You were right all along, and she was faking it. Instead of purposefully giving her what she claims to be allergic to and seeing if she'll react to it, why would you not just play it safe? It's not your coin to flip."
"You're just kids yourselves, you don't get it." His dismissive tone made her blood boil even more.
"Easy, my lady, we don't want another akuma," Cat was quick to soothe, gripping her shoulder.
"I'm just- so sick of adults thinking they know so much better than us!" She hissed through her teeth as her fists clenched tighter. "I know that girl! I know her so well that I know she wouldn't just fake it! Do you even have a clue as to how many times I've had to switch lunches with her because she touched her food and got a rash on her hands? Do you have a clue as to how many times her parents have demanded we make her a special batch of food so there wouldn't be any cross-contamination?"
Turning away from the adult, she heaved a sigh. "I'm done. I can't argue with you. You're too bull-headed to listen. I'd say go work in a soup kitchen, but I wouldn't trust my grandpa with your food, much less starving people."
"My lady," Cat began, but she raised a hand. His ring beeped, and she gave him a tight-lipped smile.
"Good work, Chaton," she said, before she rushed off.
Cat was left standing there, and so was the ex-employee as he stood, dusting off the back of his pants.
"Guess I've gotta go apply somewhere so we don't starve for the winter holidays," he groused, stalking off.
A/N:I shamelessly called this guy Mr. Lunch (Monsieur Déjeuner). Yeah, I could've called him the LunchMaster or something, but I thought this was funnier. Also because I didn't want to go with a lunch lady since that pick would've been too obvious.
Anyway, no happy endings this chapter. Instead, you get an uncomfortably-realistic reaction (excuse the pun) to an allergy. Hope you still enjoyed, though; this won't be the last we see of Mendeleiev's class!