Earlier in Collège Françoise Dupont...

Marinette sat at in her usual seat with Alya and noticed that Ember was late to school. She noticed that she was slightly dirty, which made her a little suspicious. She didn't understand why she was dirty, especially when going to school at a place like this. Classes were fairly slow since Marinette was worried about her. She wondered why she didn't come to her sleepover last night. Marinette really wanted her to come, but obviously she was shy or too embarrassed to even show her face looking like that.

She wouldn't have mind helping her.

Then she remembered what Sabrina told her.

Ember needed Ladybug's help for some reason.

Marinette wanted to help her, but needed to wait until after school. Things weren't so hectic like when HawkMoth was around, so she decided to wait until later. She took notes, but could barely concentrate with Ember barely doing anything in class. She had a notebook that Sabrina gave her, but she didn't even seem to want to be here.

After a while, Marinette was definitely suspicious of her. Something about her just seemed to be looking for something, or possibly someone like Ladybug. She hoped that she wasn't a villain or anything like that. Marinette knew that she had to face her as Ladybug sooner rather than later.

After classes were over, it was finally time for gym class. They were playing dodgeball, and Ember very hesitant to play. Marinette noticed this as she got ready with Alya.

"Marinette, what is going on with you today? You keep staring at Ember," Alya said to her, "You're acting like she's Lila or something."

"Alya. There's something going on with her," Marinette said back, "She's hiding something. I just know it."

"I'd deny you, but after what happened with Lila, I feel like I have to side with you on this one," Alya said to her, "I don't think she's evil or a villain though. She might just be looking for help."

Marinette knew that she might be right, but she couldn't back down.

Everyone in her class soon split up into teams, putting Marinette and Alya against each other. Ember was on Alya's team, which made things interesting for Marinette. Everyone got ready, but Ember looked like she wanted nothing to do with this game. Soon the game started and almost everyone ran in to grab a ball in the middle.

Alya instantly dodged a ball thrown by Kim and threw one right at Max. He dodged it, but it almost hit him. Before he could figure out where to throw it, he got hit in the stomach by Ivan who apologized right away. Max left the dodgeball area to wait for the next round. Kagami was able to dodge and weave so easily as everyone soon ganged up on her. She soon grabbed a ball that was thrown by Kim, which caught his attention. He left the dodgeball and sat with Max.

Marinette noticed Ember trying to avoid even playing at all. Something about bothered her a little that she wasn't even trying. At least Marc was somewhat playing. She dodged and was pretty flexible as she avoided dodgeballs, but tried not to stand out too much. Then she quickly saw one coming at her and quickly dodged it, but grabbed it before it left her arms reach. That caught almost everyone's attention, and Rose was out from her catching it. Rose didn't seem bothered by it left the dodgeball area.

Marinette held the ball and looked at Ember. She managed to dodge a ball, but still wasn't throwing any of them at her teammates. She didn't understand why she wasn't even playing. No one was even trying to go after her, just everyone else. She understood that she was a new girl, but it was still a game.

Before she could throw one at her, Kagami tried to throw a ball at her. That caught her attention. Some others got hit by balls, but Kagami didn't seem bothered by it. She stood her ground as she face Marinette with a smile. Marinette couldn't help but smile as well, knowing full well that they were friends.

"Come on Marinette. Do your worst," Kagami said to her.

"Oh, I plan to," Marinette said back in a teasing manner.

Marinette got ready to throw the ball, but Kagami was on her toes. She knew her moves pretty well considering they've trained together. Before she could throw the ball, Kagami noticed a ball get close to her as she held one already. She smiled and threw a ball subtly at her. Marinette dodged easily, but then noticed another one coming at her so fast. She almost got hit in the face with the ball, but somehow managed to dodge it. She skidded across the ground and launched the ball right at Kagami.

Kagami wasn't expecting her to dodge it and tried to catch the ball. But it hit her pretty hard and got her to drop it.

Soon Marinette realized that it was just Alya and Ember on her team. Marinette was the only one on the field for her team, which got her worried. Alya gave her a smirk, ready to face her friend. Ember still barely did anything, which was starting to annoy Marinette. She grabbed a ball, ready to face them.

"Come on girl. You think you can actually beat me?" Alya said back.

Marinette smiled back, ready to win.

She looked at Ember, reall annoyed that she wasn't even trying. Marinette gripped on the ball, feeling something in her Miraculous come over her. She didn't even notice it as she got ready to finish the round. Alya tried to maneuver around her as she threw it at her. Marinette felt dodged it with a spin and soon threw hers right at Alya. Something about felt stronger than she expected as the ball made Alya hit her so hard that she skidded across the field. Marinette's eyes widened in shock, not expecting her to go flying like that. Everyone stared at Marinette with their jaws dropped.

"Alya! Are you okay?!" Marinette cried out, tempted to run over and check on her.

"Y-Yeah. I-I'm okay," Alya said back through the pain.

Marinette didn't understand how she could've done something like that. She was strong, but not that strong. At least not without her Miraculous. Before she could figure out what had happened, she realized that it was only her and Ember. She stood there, looking worried to face Marinette. Ember looked a little suspicious of Marinette, but she tried to play it off as she didn't know her own strength.

Marinette grabbed a ball, and everyone was watching them. Ember reached for a ball, but hesitated to pick it up. Marinette didn't understand what was going on with her. She wasn't paying attention, and she wasn't even playing dodgeball. Ember didn't even seem like she wanted to be here. Something about her felt out of place, and Marinette didn't know why.

Marinette felt hot as she kept playing. She walked up to her Ember, ready to come at her.

She got ready to throw it at her, but Ember seemed hesitant to grab the one ball right in front of her. Marinette didn't understand what was going on with her as she felt sweat drip down her forehead.

"Ember. Come on," Marinette said to her through gritted teeth, "Pick up that ball and throw it at me."

Ember backed away from it, which just annoyed Marinette even more. She seemed to be interested in avoiding this game than actually playing. She even looked nervous as Marinette got closer to her. The more she got closer to her, the more Ember backed away from her. Marinette stopped in her tracks, knowing that she couldn't go any further.

"What the hell are you doing? Throw the ball," Marinette growled out.

Everyone was surprised to see Marinette acting this way. Even Alya was surprised to see her like this.

Marinette got annoyed that she didn't respond as she gripped onto her own ball. Something about it got Ember riled up and grabbed the ball right in front of her. Marinette felt a little hot, but she kept going at her. Ember hesitated to throw it, which got Marinette riled up as well.

"Throw the damn ball!" Marinette cried out.

She was ready to strike at any moment, but Ember seemed just as fire up as her. She looked furious for some reason. Something inside of her lit up, and Marinette felt something that she hadn't felt in a long time.

A strong power.

For a moment, she thought she saw a flame surrounding Ember or some weird glow around her. Before she knew it, Ember threw a ball at her so fast that she never saw it coming. It hit her so hard in the stomach, that she could swear that she felt heat coming off of the ball. She flew across the field, but hit the ground pretty hard. She dropped the ball before she even landed, letting out a groan as she laid there.

Everyone ran over to her, worried about her. Alya looked at her with concerned eyes.

"Marinette. Are you okay?" Alya asked her.

Marinette tried to get up, but her stomach hurt so much. She helped her up and noticed that Ember was looking horrified at what she had done. Ember refused to stay any longer and ran off and away from the school. Marinette held onto her knees, feeling pain through her stomach. It felt like she got burnt for some reason.

"Marinette. What do you think you're doing? This is not the time and place to be picking a fight with the new girl!" Alya cried out

"But you gotta admit, that was pretty cool," Kim said, earning him an elbow jab from Alya.

"I'm sorry. I just... Ember is acting suspicious... I just... I don't know what I was thinking exactly," Marinette said to her.

Alya kept going on and on about how stupid that was when Marinette spotted the ball that Ember threw. She noticed something weird about it and walked over to pick it up. Her eyes widened in shock, not expecting to find a burn mark on the ball. It had a hands print on it from where Ember held it.

Marinette then realized that she was still really hot as she wiped her forehead.

She looked up to look at where Ember left, realizing why she felt slightly familiar at times. Something about her bothered her and now she knew why.

Ember had a power, but not just any power.

Ember had a quirk.

In the streets of Paris...

Ladybug flew across the sky and city of Paris, looking for Ember. She had to make sure she was okay, but she also needed to talk to her. Ember has a quirk, but she still didn't understand how this was even possible. That meant that Ember wasn't from here. She was from their Japan and somehow ended up here in Paris. She knew that she would get answers soon, but right now she had to find Ember.

She looked around Paris, but couldn't find her anywhere. Ladybug knew that she had to be around here somewhere. Wherever she went, Ladybug knew that she would turn up eventually. Ember for some reason was looking for Ladybug. Whatever reason it was, she wondered if it had anything to do with Japan. She could be trying to find a way back home.

If that were the case, she felt bad for yelling at her like that. She knew that she might've taken things too far with her, but maybe Ladybug could help somehow. She kept swinging around, but soon stopped at a building to look around. Ladybug didn't see anywhere as she looked at the Eiffel Tower. The sun was starting to set, making the city look beautiful at night.

She sat down for a moment, giving her some time to relax for a bit. She had to look for Ember, but she needed some time away from Alya for a moment. Something about this view reminded her of sitting with Cat Noir during their night patrols. She felt like he was there with her right by her side for a moment. His green eyes sparkling in the sunlight as it was starting to set. It felt so relaxing just sitting here, remembering how good it felt to have him nearby.

Ladybug looked over at where he usually sat, and he wasn't there.

She frowned, missing her partner and boyfriend so much. She looked down at her yo-yo, wondering if he was wearing his hero costume in that moment. She didn't have her phone on her, just her yo-yo. Ladybug flipped it open and hesitated to call him. He never called her back from her earlier calls. He must've been busy with schoolwork. She didn't want to bother him and knew that she could handle things without for now.

She knew that they would talk soon, but right now she had to find Ember. Then in the corner of her eye, she noticed someone running in the distance.

It was Ember.

Ladybug quickly pulled out her yo-yo and swung down there to catch up with her. She had to make sure she was okay, especially after the way she treated her. Before Ember could run off any further, Ladybug swung down and stopped her in her tracks. Ember's eyes widened in shock, clearly not expecting Ladybug all of people to show up. She landed in front of her and smiled with confidence as her yo-yo came back to her.

"Hey. You're Ember Koshiba, right?" Ladybug said to her, "I heard that you need my help."

Her eyes wouldn't stop staring at her. Ladybug noticed how bright her eyes were when she finally saw her in person. She even started to tear up a little, which threw Ladybug off a bit.

"L-Ladybug?" Ember said under her breath.

"Whoa, are you okay? I didn't mean to make you cry," Ladybug said back.

Ember tried to stop herself from crying, but clearly she's been through a lot get to here. Ladybug wondered what happened to her and hoped that she could help somehow.

"I-I'm sorry... I-I just..." Ember said through tears, "I-I just really need your help... I-I've been trying to reach out to you for a while..."

Ladybug smiled at her and placed her hand onto her shoulder. She didn't expect her to feel so hot, which almost burned her. Her suit seemed to help from getting burned however. Ember stopped crying and looked up at Ladybug.

"You're gonna be okay," Ladybug said back, "I want to help you. Now, what's wrong? What can I do to help you?"

Ember tried to wipe her eyes and soon faced Ladybug. Something about this moment made Ladybug a little worried for some reason.

"Ladybug. I did something that I shouldn't have done," Ember told her, "I hurt... someone with my power. I didn't mean to, but she kept pushing. I felt so angry at what happened to me, that I let it all out on her."

Ladybug was surprised at how much she told her considering she was shy and quiet back in school. She could tell that Ladybug meant a lot to her for some reason. Whatever happened to her, she wanted to know so she could help her out. Something about this situation made her wonder if it had to do with their Japan. If she really had a quirk, then she wasn't from here.

"Ember. Don't worry about Marinette," Ladybug told her, "I already talked to her. She's not mad. All she wants to understand you better. She admits that she may have gone a bit too far, but she does want to be friends with you. She's just worried about you is all."

Ember let out chuckle as she crossed his arms.

"She has a funny way of showing it," Ember said to her, "I'm not here to make friends. I just... I just need help from you, Ladybug."

Ladybug understood, but wished that she would be more open to making friends. Right now however, she just wanted to do what she could for today.

"Alright Ember. What is it that you need help with?" Ladybug asked her.

Ember didn't hesitate since she was the one looking for her help specifically.

"I need help getting home."

Another amazing chapter!

I really enjoyed writing this chapter! I like where things are going so far! I like that Marinette is dealing with some things that have nothing to do with HawkMoth or akumas. I find it kind of refreshing to see where it would go without him around. It's kind of fun to see how things would go without him around. Don't worry, I'll get into what he's up to soon enough. Marinette seems to have found out somewhat going on with Ember. She has some kind of quirk?! What?! Ladybug we'll get to the bottom of this soon!

What's going to happen next??

More to come soon!