Chapter Twenty-Five: Perfect Harmony

On and on the whirlwind surged, carrying the trio across the vast, empty desert. A distance that otherwise might have taken them days to walk was covered in minutes. Soon they arrived at their destination: Felix's domed city. The wind dispersed, placing them before the glass wall. From this close up, the glass appeared clouded, which meant making out any details inside impossible.

Marinette approached, knocking on the dome. It produced a hollow sound as her knuckles made contact. "So, should we come up with a plan of attack?" she asked. "Or do we just bust in and go from there?"

"We should do some reconnaissance first," said Kagami. She stepped forward as though the wall wasn't there, and simply passed through it just as easily. Adrien and Marinette were both surprised to see what they thought was solid glass give way as easily as some sort of film.

Adrien just shrugged, and they followed her lead. Though he passed through just fine, Marinette didn't have the same luck, conking her head as though she had tried to walk through a glass wall. "Ow! What gives!?" she muttered, rubbing her forehead. "Why does it work for you guys but not me?"

The pair stuck their heads back through the wall. "Huh. That's strange," noted Adrien. "You don't…Could this be a Sentimonster thing?"

Kagami stayed strangely silent. Retreating back inside, she used her sword to slice a rift through the barrier for Marinette to pass through. She did, noting how the material's consistency had once more changed from glass to…something else. Rubbery. In any case, once she was through, the cut closed, appearing as though it was never made.

"You said you've been in here before, right, Kagami?" said Adrien. "What should we be prepared for?"

"Given that he has eyes everywhere, Panoptes no doubt knows we're here," she said. "Keep your heads down, don't talk to anyone, don't act like you don't belong. And if he shows up in person to confront us…that is when you must confront him."

Adrien wasn't too keen on their prospects. "But I don't even know what to say. I haven't seen my Felix in years, a-and I have no idea what this Felix is even like!"

Placing a hand on his shoulder, Kagami looked into his eyes with a steely gaze. "Whatever you say, I know he will listen." She turned, carving through a bunch of vines with her sword.

At first, it had seemed like they were in a massive jungle. But now, it was like they passed through a portal into yet another alternate Paris–which this was, of course, in more ways than one, but the inside of this dome was completely different from the outside. This version of Paris was overgrown with vegetation, but it seemed to be in harmony with it, as though the buildings and plants had grown side by side. People roamed the streets, each one wearing a cheerful smile.

After the ruined metropolis they had just come from, this idyllic paradise was definitely a culture shock. "Wow…it's beautiful," said Marinette, gazing up at the skyscrapers with gigantic vines looping around them. "So this is Felix's paradise…what's the catch?"

"The catch is that none of it is real," replied Kagami. "Everything in here, the plants, the animals, the people, they're nothing more than lifeless puppets. Felix said he wanted a world where Sentimonsters can live free–but this is not that. They have no life, no will of their own. All they are is extensions of him."

"Alright, so, how do we find him?" Adrien asked. "Let me guess, he lives with me now, right? Or, fake-me?"

Kagami paused for just a moment before answering, her eyes darting away. "That is the most likely possibility. Longg, open skies!" Her costume vanished. "Even though Panoptes has likely already seen us, it would be in our benefit to not make a scene. Follow me, and act natural." She stepped out of the bushes, with the other two following close behind.

Making sure to wear their least forced-looking smiles, Marinette and Adrien took in their surroundings. The passers-by didn't give them much notice, only occasionally offering a friendly wave or nod. Despite what Kagami had said, none of this looked all that unnatural. Even if they were lifeless puppets, the people looked genuinely happy. Adrien had expected their smiles to start looking uncanny as they got close, but that didn't seem to be happening. If anything, it made him wonder if this place really was as horrible as she had described.

He felt Marinette nudge him. "Huh? What's up?"

"Shh!" She motioned for him to lean in. "So, your cousin clearly has the peacock Miraculous…do you think he has any of the others?"

"Yeah, it's possible," he replied, unsure why they were whispering. "I get what you're thinking: get the rabbit one and get out of here, right?"

She nodded. "That would be ideal, yes. And since he probably won't hand it over willingly, we'll need a plan to steal it. When you're talking to him, see if you can get him to tell you where he's hiding them."

"Hang on…why are you so sure he won't listen to me?" he said, leaning back. "The two of us are family. He'd do anything for me."

"Oh, like your dad would," Marinette said, looking away.

This remark silenced Adrien, who turned away as well. Because of his father's stubbornness, he had to watch him be cut down by Ladybug right in front of him. Would things be the same with this version of Felix? Would he, too, be so committed to his vision of a better world that it would lead to his downfall? He was in no hurry to witness the death of another family member, even if he wasn't technically related to this Felix.

His mind wandering, Adrien didn't notice that Kagami had started walking until he bumped into her. "Huh? What's happening?" he wondered.

She had gone completely still, her arm outstretched. "He is here," she said in a low voice. At first, they wondered how she knew…and then they saw the sky changing color. It was like a sunset, only instead of oranges and pinks, it slowly became a chilling shade of red. All of the people had stopped walking, slowly turning to face the intruders. Their expressions were all featureless, with eyes that had turned the same color.

Marinette gripped the handle of her bat, ready to strike if any of them made a move. But all they did was gather around them, staring, neither getting too close nor going away. "So, what's the plan now?" she asked. "Do we fight our way out?"

"We will if we have to," said Kagami. "Right now, stay cool. We don't know what he wants yet. We may still be able to negotiate." Given the slightest hint of anger in her tone, they figured she didn't think this was likely.

Before long, the Sentimonsters began to move. Rather than approach the trio, they were moving aside, allowing something else to come closer. And that's when Adrien saw him: a towering figure, drifting several feet off the ground. Most of the figure's body was shrouded in a peacock-feather cloak, the end of which was likely much longer than his body. Only his head was visible, the same blue color as the cloak, and it was completely featureless. Except, of course, for the lone crimson eye placed in the center of his forehead.

"So," said the figure, his voice twisted into something positively inhuman–and yet, Adrien recognized the faintest hint of familiarity within it. "After all this time, you've finally returned, Kagami. What was it that made you come to your senses? The crippling loneliness of an empty world? The hollow victory your murders of my children provided you? Or have you simply come to realize that I was right?"

This had to be him. This was Panoptes. This was… "...F-Felix?" said Adrien, slowly stepping closer. "Is that really you?"

The figure's single eye focused on him, and for a moment, he almost seemed confused. "How did…!? Ah, of course. How wonderful it is to see you, Adrien. And Marinette, always a pleasure."

"Look pal, cut the evil overlord schtick and give us the rabbit Miraculous," Marinette said, pointing her bat at Panoptes. "We've been through a lot lately, and we'd really like to keep moving, so the sooner you cooperate, the sooner we'll be outta your way!"

Panoptes laughed at her request. "My, Kagami, wherever did you find this duo? If this truly is an attempt to get back in my good graces, it's certainly working. After all, the one thing my perfect world was missing was a court jester."

Clenching her fist, Kagami managed to calm herself. "Even now, you cling to the idea that your world is better than the old one. That Sentimonsters are truly free under you. Look around!" She gestured to the red-eyed populace surrounding them. "They are not free! They merely serve a new, crueler master!"

"If you have not come to be a part of my new world, then you have come to threaten it," said Panoptes, his voice becoming colder. "I will be left with no choice but to–"

"Wait!" Adrien held his hands up. Panoptes gazed down at him, humoring him for the time being. "Felix…I don't know what happened in this reality, but I know you. You're not a tyrant. You're principled, and you hate to see injustice. Even though you don't like most people, I know you love me. So whatever happened, whatever you're dealing with…you can talk to us. We can handle this together."

Slowly, Panoptes lowered himself down to right in front of Adrien. He unfurled his cloak, revealing that his entire body was covered in eyes just like the one on his head. After considering his cousin for some time, he finally spoke. "You are not the Adrien I know. Whoever, whatever you are, I owe you nothing. Submit now–or you will suffer the fate of every other human who stood in my way."

Marinette growled. "So much for diplomacy. Onto plan B!" She lunged forward, preparing to strike Panoptes with her bat. But before she could reach him, something darted past, carrying her over to the side of a building. It moved so fast that Adrien barely had enough time to register it before Kagami was attacked as well.

Having become Ryuko, she was locked in battle against…Nino? Her blade clashed against Carapace's shield, both parties fighting with the ferocity of bitter enemies. "Wait! What's going…on?" Adrien then noticed who Marinette's attacker had been: herself. She had subsequently been disarmed, now bound by Ladybug's yo-yo.

"As I previously told your friend, I do not take kindly to upsetting the balance I have so intricately created," said Panoptes. Adrien turned around, finding that this world's creator wasn't alone. Beside him stood the spitting image of himself, already having become Cat Noir. "And as such, any disturbances to its order must be…neutralized."

Adrien's heart sank as he stepped back. "Felix, it's me, Adrien. I don't want to fight you!" But his double did, readying his staff for battle. "Tikki, Plagg, uni–"

Before he could utter the incantation, his copy struck him hard, and everything faded to black.

Pegasus perched on a roof near the construction site, using his glasses to scan for the newfound Miraculous. Before long, Scarabella and Kitty Noir joined him. "Any sign of Hawkmoth's henches?" asked the latter.

"Fortunately, no," answered Pegasus. "Unfortunately, I'm having trouble locating the Miraculous' signature. It isn't where Markov located it, which can only mean one thing."

"Somebody must have moved it," Scarabella said. "You came straight here, right? You didn't see anybody who could've taken it?"

"Not unless it was one of them." Pegasus pointed to the workers, who, despite being quite interested in the Miraculous previously, had seemingly all gone back to their usual work. "It's strange, though. Just before I left, they were all crowded around it, but now it's as if it was never there. What's going on?"

Kitty Noir prepared to pounce. "Whatever it is, it's easy to think who's involved. Let's go!" She leapt from the roof to the site below, to her teammates' chagrin.

"Zoe, wait!" hissed Scarabella. But the girl was already gone, climbing across the metal girders. "At least wait for everyone else!"

Figuring that they may as well get started, she and Max followed after her. Usually, the arrival of Paris' heroes garnered a reaction from the populace, usually a negative one as of late, but the workers seemed to completely ignore them. They just went about their work, oblivious to anything outside of their daily lives.

Max waved his hand in front of one of them's face, but got no reaction. Even prodding his arm didn't get him to acknowledge the heroes. "This must be the work of an Akuma," he surmised. "Its host is likely somewhere nearby. Be careful, otherwise we could end up like them."

The trio split up, searching for any sign of the Akumatized villain who could be responsible for this. However, aside from the workers, nobody else seemed to be there with them, hidden or otherwise. "Looks like it's just us, and these worker guys," said Kitty Noir. "Either they're ignoring us on purpose, or they're really dedicated to their jobs. Seriously, they're working like…" Her eyes widened as she came to a sudden realization. "...drones."

Following up on her hunch, Kitty approached one of the workers, moving his collar to get a look at the back of his neck. She gasped as she saw something that confirmed her suspicions: a bright yellow bee had attached itself there with its stinger, glowing lines of the same color spreading from the spot.

Following Kitty Noir's discovery, mocking laughter echoed through the construction site. Beside her, a section of the wall appeared to ripple like water, peeling away into a floating length of fabric, and revealing a figure hidden behind it. A woman in black and yellow, both her outfit and skin, strutted towards her, the animate cloak floating beside her. "Well, what do we have here? It looks like Hawkmoth was right after all! She had a feeling that Miraculous would lead you here."

"Queen Wasp!" Kitty Noir said, reaching for her staff. She readied herself for the woman to attack, but she simply began pacing around her. However, a sizable swarm of bees had begun to develop, buzzing around the combatants. "So that was a fake Miraculous!"

"Oh, not exactly." Chloe dangled the bangle before her (unknowing) sister. "Pretty, isn't it? I really hope Hawkmoth will let me keep it, it goes really well with my comb, don't you think? Plus, all that power it offers…" She chuckled as a sinister smile crossed her face.

Pegasus and Scarabella had heard the commotion, and soon arrived. "You!" said the latter, scowling. "You've got a lot of nerve showing your face again after you betrayed Ladybug!"

Chloe only laughed. "Hey, if anything, she's the one who betrayed me! But if you really don't want to see my face, I guess I can oblige." The floating cloak once again enveloped her, hiding her from view. "There, is that better?"

Her voice seemed to come from all around them. "Stay on your guard," said Max, him and Scarabella readying their weapons as well. "Whatever that thing is, it could let her attack from anywhere."

"What, this? Oh, it's just a little something Argos whipped up," came Chloe's voice. "It's a bit too gaudy for my taste, but it does let me do this!" Kitty Noir was suddenly kicked by an unseen Queen Wasp, sending her towards the wall of bees surrounding them. Before their stingers could reach her, she spun her staff to deflect them, before using her claws to slow her descent back to the ground.

The bees descended upon Scarabella and Pegasus, who used their weapons to neutralize them. "Don't let them sting you! Just one will allow her to control your mind!" said Max.

"Thanks for the tip, I had no idea!" Alya shot back.

Back on the ground, Zoe prepared to jump back up into the fray. "Don't worry, guys, I'm on my–Yah!" A scarlet object suddenly zipped past, narrowly avoiding colliding with her. The object looped back around, darting into the shadows where it ended up back in the hand of its thrower. "Another one? Don't tell me you're all here!"

The figure stepped out of the darkness: a woman dressed in black and dark orange, with a mask that resembled a vicious dog. "We are all required to do the will of Mistress Hawkmoth. If she requires our presence, then it shall be. And right now, she requires your destruction!" Hellhound hurled her ball again, but rather than sending it at Kitty Noir, it traveled in an arc, demolishing the support beams holding the building in place.

Up above, Scarabella and Pegasus stumbled as the floor gave way. "Quickly, through here! Voyage!" Max opened up a portal, which carried them out of harm's way, but the same couldn't be said for Zoe. She dashed to get out of the way as the debris came crashing down, but was too late.

"Shell-ter!" Carapace held up his shield, projecting an energy barrier around himself and Kitty Noir. The remains of the building crashed down over them, harmlessly rolling down the side of the forcefield. "Looks like I got here just in time!"

"You sure did–though maybe a little bit sooner would have been nice!" said Zoe, standing back up. The four of them joined back up, as their two enemies did the same.

Queen Wasp called forth her swarm of bees, swirling around her. Much like them, Hellhound hung by her side, ready to attack like a loyal guard dog. "Oh, good, you're all in one place! That'll make it all the easier to crush you!"

"Not likely, Chloe," hissed Alya. All four of them prepared to rush into battle. "Let's see how you handle a real fight! Team, go get 'em!" Each of the combatants charged at the other side, weapons at the ready.

Meanwhile, Alix finally managed to arrive, not without a stitch in her side. "Man…I used to be able to run that much no problem!" she said, panting. "Maybe I've been relying on my Miraculous too much… Nah." Peering around a corner, she watched as this battle went down, keeping an eye out for the Miraculous in question.

She soon spotted it, dangling from Queen Wasp's hip. Before she could make a move, however, a voice from behind caught her attention. "Going somewhere?" She turned around to see a familiar face.

"Kagami!" she gasped, glad to see yet another hero. "Nobody said you were in the Resistance too. C'mon, they need you! Go out there and show 'em what Ryuko can–"

Alix was silenced when Kagami suddenly raised her sword, positioning the tip right at her neck. "I am not Ryuko. I am Wyvern, a servant to Mistress Hawkmoth. And you will take me to their base, so that I may destroy them from within."

This had taken a turn. "Oh, boy," Alix gulped.

"Interrorgator, I am Madame Butterfly! So, your daughter was falsely accused of thievery? Children can be so cruel, can't they? I give you the power to horrify your targets into confessing their sins! In return, I want you to bring me Mister Bug and Lady Noir's Miraculous!"

Gabriel couldn't hear 'Interrorgator's' response, but given Madame Butterfly's smile, he knew he had accepted. Marinette and Adrien would no doubt be there before long to fight against him–and in doing so, they would reveal their identities.

He had to stop this. "Emilie, wait! This doesn't have to be the answer anymore! You don't need to heal Gabriel anymore–I'm already here! We're together again!"

While his words seemed to reach Emilie at first, she soon hardened herself against them. "No–it isn't that simple. Bringing you back was my goal, it still is, but there's more to it than that. I can't let Mister Bug and Lady Noir win."

With a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach, Gabriel realized how familiar she sounded. "What? But, they're only fighting you because of the Akumas you send out! If you were to stop, then they would have no reason to keep fighting!"

"I wish I could believe that," she said sadly. "Do you really think they would forget my transgressions so easily? That after everything Madame Butterfly has done to this city, that they would stop hunting for me? No, I can't let them destroy everything I have built for this family. For our happiness–for Adrien's–I have to keep going."

Silence followed as she went back to observing Interrorgator's rampage. Gabriel had never been much of a spiritual person, but in this moment, he was certain that karma existed. "For my entire existence as Hawkmoth, I believed the same thing. I was so sure that Ladybug and Cat Noir existed only to undermine my attempts at bringing you back. But you don't…there's more to it than that. This doesn't have to be a war, and you don't have to be on the losing side."

Madame Butterfly's stoic facade faltered. "What makes you so sure I will lose?" She stared at him curiously. "...Because you lost. You were unable to bring me back." She then went over to him, cupping his face in her hands. "Don't you understand? This is your second chance! You can finally have everything you ever wanted!"

"Adrien is here. Nathalie is here. You are here." Gabriel slowly moved his hands up Emilie's sides, pulling her closer. "You don't have to live this double life anymore. You can still be the woman our son knows you are."

Her eyes turned glassy. "I…am not that woman," she said quietly. "Having these powers has changed us, Gabriel, I know you've felt it too. Our true selves have bubbled up to the surface, and even if we stop hunting for the Miraculous, I fear they can never be forced back down."

"I was once certain of the same thing," he said. "I thought that Hawkmoth was who I really was, and all I would ever be. But in my quest across the multiverse, I've learned more about myself than I ever could have sealed up in our mansion, watching from afar as we forced others to do our bidding. This is not our destiny, Emilie! We aren't fated to be the villain!"

"I…but…you…" These two opposing viewpoints were irreconcilable, forcing Emilie to freeze up as they clashed inside her mind. "I am…Madame Butterfly. I cannot let those infernal heroes win!" A giant pair of cloth butterfly wings unfurled from behind her back, lifting their owner into the air. "Interrorgator, focus your powers on Lady Noir and Mister Bug! Get them to tell you their true identities!"

Gabriel's hand shot out, grabbing Madame Butterfly's wrist. "No!" He tried to pull her back down, but she was far stronger than him. "I know you, Emilie, and this isn't you! Please, you have to take off your mask!"

She shook off his grip, causing him to fall onto his back. "Enough! Can't you see I'm doing this for you!? All I want is for our family to be whole again! How can I be a villain when I am guided by love?"

He had once wondered the same thing. "And what about Adrien? What would he think of you if he saw this side of you? And that other me–would he still love the woman who terrorized Paris?"

"And how would you know? You failed!" she accused, thrusting her pointer finger in his direction. "Why should they be anything less than grateful for my sacrifices? Why would they hate the one who brought us together!?"

There was only one thing he could say to make her see the truth. He had tried to avoid it, because he knew how he felt when he found out, but he had no other choice. "Adrien would only see you as the villain you are. Because he knows the terror Madame Butterfly inflicts on the people of Paris; he has seen it firsthand. He fights against it every time." Shakily, he took a deep breath. "Your son is one of the heroes you seek to destroy!"

Silence followed. Slowly, agonizingly slowly, Madame Butterfly lowered herself to the floor. He could tell by her eyes that she was trying her hardest to deny the truth, but had no choice but to accept it. "No…" she said, barely audible. "That's not…"

She fell to her knees, her costume disappearing. Hit by the full weight of the truth all at once, she collapsed into sobs. Gabriel pulled her close, holding her tight. "I know," he said soothingly. "I know, I'm here." He felt himself falling apart as well, joining his wife in her sorrow. "I'm here."

Paris was no longer threatened by Interrorgator. The two stayed there for the rest of the night, eventually falling asleep in each other's arms.