One morning, Syrius was waiting with Marinette at home, today was career day so Tom would be coming too. When he heard about this day, Syrius wasn't particularly enthusiastic.
"Ready, Dad?" Marinette asked her father as her mother helped her get ready.
"More than ever." Said Tom.
Then Marinette, Syrius and Tom left the house with Sabine wishing them a happy career day.
They then arrived at the school, Syrius taking his seat while Marinette was with Tom making the presentation while holding a tray of croissants.
"My day starts at 4am every morning because the bakery opens at 7am, you think the life of a baker is pretty routine, making the same pastries, rolls, cakes, but actually it's different every day, one day someone might order a cake in the shape of the Eiffel Tower and another day you might have to make thousands of croissants in one day, so it's a very hard job and those who want to follow it don't give up." Tom declared, then everyone applauded.
Syrius noticed that Adrien seemed disappointed, and given Gabriel's absence it was easy to guess why. Nino put a hand on his friend's shoulder, while Syrius gave him a sympathetic look.
"Marinette will now come and hand out freshly baked croissants this morning." Said Tom and Marinette passed croissants to everyone.
"Thank you, Monsieur Dupain. Said Miss Bustier and then headed for Marinette's seat. "Now, let's meet Alya's mother, who's a chef at the Grand Hôtel de Paris owned by our mayor, Monsieur Bourgeois."
And Alya's mother steps forward.
Marinette stopped next to Adrien and got nervous so she was going to give to Chloe's table, Syrius saw Chloe showing a bracelet, Marinette gave Sabrina a croissant but then Chloe laughed at Marinette saying how many croissants Tom would have to make to give her a bracelet like that so Marinette didn't give her one, making Syrius smile.
"Unfortunately, I don't have any dishes to share, but perhaps Monsieur Bourgeois will invite you all to the hotel and treat you to lunch." Said Alya's mother and everyone applauds.
Then Marinette falls to the ground next to Syrius and Chloé, Syrius looks down to see Chloé's bag on the floor, so he goes to help her up.
"My God, is there ever a day when you don't trip over something?" Said Chloe.
"Well, why don't you pick up your things before someone steps on them instead of talking?" Syrius said, letting them see that it was Chloé's stuff. " Let me help you, Marinette."
"Thank you, Syrius." Said Marinette before they went to get the croissants.
"Next on the list is Sabrina's father, a policeman, Roger." Said Mlle Bustier and Rogers walked to the front of the class with Sabrina.
"I've been a policeman for fifteen years and I firmly believe that every citizen is innocent until proven guilty." Roger declared.
"My bracelet's gone, I had it on a second ago." Chloé said, then gasped and looked at Marinette. "You stole it."
"What?!" Said Marinette, shocked. "What are you talking about?"
"You deliberately tripped over my bag so you could steal my bracelet." Said Chloé.
"That's ridiculous. I saw Marinette fall and she didn't touch your stuff." Said Syrius.
"How dare you?" Said Chloé before looking at Roger. "Stop her."
"My daughter is not a thief and Syrius is a witness." Tom protested.
"Wait a minute Miss Bourgeois, we don't accuse without proof and we have an eyewitness who Said she's innocent, calm down, maybe the bracelet was simply misplaced because of the fall of your belongings." Said Roger to calm the situation.
"You're calling me a liar." Chloe said, then looked at her father. "Dad."
"Roger, I demand you search her." Said the mayor, making Chloe smile.
"Please calm down." Said Miss Bustier.
"Need I remind you that, as mayor of this town, I am your superior." Declared the mayor.
"But sir, it's against the law, I can't search her and there's a witness." Declared Roger.
"Very well, then you're no longer a policeman." Declared the mayor.
"Monsieur le maire, you can't be serious about a lost bracelet." Said Roger, shocked.
"This is my daughter's bracelet we're talking about, you're incompetent and you're fired, get out" Declared the mayor.
Roger was shocked, bowed his head and left.
"Well, let's call Ladybug, I'm sure she'll do something." said Chloe. Said Chloe.
"Look at the girls' bags." Declared the mayor.
Tom then approached the mayor.
"Don't even think about coming near my daughter or her bag." He said.
"Do you know who I am?" The mayor asked, trying to assert his authority.
"Please gentlemen, this is a school, think of the children, the bracelet is probably around here somewhere." Said Miss Bustier.
"As Monsieur Roger suggested, it probably fell out of her bag when I tripped over it." Declared Marinette.
"Yes, I saw it fall to the ground." Said Syrius.
"You're just defending her, maybe you took it too." said Chloé. Said Chloe.
"Oh, now I'm the thief because I'm a real witness." Said Syrius. "Let's be honest for a second, you idiot. If you'd worn it on your wrist it wouldn't be lost now."
Chloe then moved towards him.
"That's the only reason you want to defend Marinette so badly, I bet your parents didn't even want to come today because they know their son is a thief."
Tom, and Marinette gasped at what she said, they then looked at Syrius who was beyond furious.
"My parents..." Syrius growled, rage filling his whole body. "MY PARENTS!"
He then slammed his fist so hard against the table that it broke the wood where he struck, startling everyone.
"Oh no." Said Marinette.
"Okay, I've been more than nice so far. Insult me, okay I can let that slide. But I forbid you, you spoiled brat, to insult my parents." He said, nudging Chloe with a single finger, causing her to back away. "You want to know where my parents are? They and my uncle, my only family, were all killed 10 years ago!"
Everyone gasped when he said this, Rose had her hands over her mouth with the rest of her friends in shock.
"You're happy, you've got your answer. You asked Monsieur Roger, an honest policeman, if you're a liar, so here's my answer, you are. You hate Marinette and you just used that to blame her." He said before picking up his bag. "As for you Monsieur le maire, congratulations. Your daughter is as bad as your wife, you've failed her education perfectly."
Then he left the classroom.
I'm here, I can't stand to be near her." He then left the classroom.
Everyone was silent in the face of this explosion and Syrius' show of physical strength.
"Dad, what are you going to do with him? He insulted me and Mom!" Chloe asked indignantly, having been insulted like that.
"Me, I'm not going to take it out on a child without a family, imagine the scandal that would be." Said the mayor, glancing at where Syrius' fist had hit the table, swallowing at the thought of him or Chloe being the target of the blow. "I'll talk to the manager about the real thief."
Then it was his turn to leave the classroom.
"That wasn't cool, Chloe." Kim declared.
"How was I supposed to know?" declared Chloe. Declared Chloé.
"You could have kept your mouth shut for once." Adrien said, squinting at Chloé.
This was what hurt him the most, because being angry with me, even just a little, Adrien was a feat in itself.
And he had good reason to feel a little resentful towards Chloé. If someone had made such a remark about his mother, he'd be furious.
"Look, Syrius needs his space now, so let's give him some time." Tom said, and Miss Bustier nodded.
Syrius was now outside the school, really angry. He was tired of Choé and her cheeky nature and now she'd really gone too far, so he bumped into someone.
"Oops, sorry." said Syrius then he looked up to see a guy in giant blue armor that was a bit reminiscent of Robocop, then he saw his face. "Mr. Roger."
"My name is Rogercop now, why are you here outside of school?" asked Rogercop.
"Chloe accused me of the theft after I defended Marinette, then she mocked my dead parents, I preferred to leave before being accused of murder." Syrius replied.
"I see, very well, I'll let you go this time. You should go home, my boy." He said before stepping around him and resuming his journey.
"Hawkmoth didn't waste any time making him super-villain." He said, looking at Rogercop, who continued on his way. "He must be after the mayor for firing him. Let him fend for himself, and we'll see if his position saves him."
Then he strolled off to the Place des Voges, where all the rings that hadn't reacted before all headed for one building in particular.
Curious, he entered the building and followed the direction of the rings until he arrived at the door of a massage parlour. He stepped inside to find a room decorated in a traditional Asian style, with an old man with grey hair slicked back, wearing a red shirt with white flowers, attending to someone.
"Please excuse me, I'm in the middle of an appointment. I'll be with you in a moment." Said the old man with a slight Chinese accent.
"Uh... yes, of course, no problem." Said Syrius as all his rings except those of the ladybug, the cat, the butterfly, the peacock and the turtle pointed to an old record player while the turtle's pointed to the old man.
He now realized that he might have the answer to his questions about those rings he'd kept around his neck all these years.
A few minutes later the old man let the customer go after he had paid him, and sighed as he put the money away.
"So the Miracle Rings hadn't disappeared? He said as he turned to Syrius, revealing slanting brown eyes with a mustache and goatee on his face.
"The Miracle Rings?" Asked the hybrid, pulling the necklace out from under his shirt. "So that's what they're called?"
"Indeed, young man." Said the old man trying not to kneel in front of the table in the middle of the room. "I thought they'd disappeared with the temple of the guardian order. But it seems I wasn't the only survivor."
"I... I didn't know. My mother gave me her rings on my fifth birthday. Just as my grandmother had entrusted them to her, apparently." Syrius explained as he sat down opposite the old man.
"Oichi... So she really did survive and have a family..." Smiled the old man. "I'm glad she had that chance while pursuing her duty."
"You knew my grandmother?"
"Yes, but that was a long time ago. I've kept the last Miracle Box ever since." Said the old man, looking at the record player before bowing slightly. "My name is Fu. May I know your name?"
"Uh, yes. My name is Syrius Amarga." Syrius replied, bowing slightly as he saw that the turtle's ring continued to point at Fu. "Why do some rings point in one direction?"
"Didn't your mother or grandmother explain it to you?" Fu asked.
"They weren't so lucky... my mother died 10 years ago. As for my grandmother, I never knew her. I don't even know if she's alive today." Syrius replied, looking away.
"I'm sorry for your loss. I'm sorry for your loss." Fu apologized before actually answering the question. "Miracle Rings are quite special. They were created with two functions in mind, locating the Chinese Miraculous and when they're close enough to one of their Kwamis, the corresponding ring sucks out part of its strength so that it can use its power in a reduced form at the desired moment." Fu explained.
"A... Kwami?" Syrius asked.
"Wayzz, you can introduce yourself to our new friend." Fu said, looking under the table.
Then a small, light-green creature levitated from under the table and landed on it, facing Syrius.
It appeared to be 4 inches tall. It had yellow eyes, green pupils and an antenna on its head. It also had a slightly darker green turtle shell on its back and a short, pointed tail.
"My name is Wayzz. Pleased to meet you." Said the little creature in a shy, slightly weak voice.
"Uh... likewise... are you all right?" Syrius asked, concerned for the condition of what appeared to be Kwami.
"Yes, thank you for asking. It's just that it's not really pleasant to feel even a small part of your strength being sucked into a Miracle Ring. It's a little more exhausting and uncomfortable than I remember." Kwami admits.
"So, whenever I'm close to one of your kind, his ring tells me which direction he's facing and once close enough, sucks in some of his strength to power the ring enough to use the power of his miraculous." Syrius summarized.
"Indeed. That must be why you managed to find us." Wayzz nodded before turning to Fu. "Master, this means that with him by our side, we'll have a chance of stopping Hawkmoth and saving Nooroo!
"Nooroo?" Syrius asked, intrigued.
"He's the Kwami of the Miraculous of the Butterfly." Fu explained. "His Miraculous and Peacock's disappeared a long time ago. And Hawkmoth's is used to create all the super-villains that Ladybug, Cat Noir and the Kamen Rider fight. And for the Kamen Rider, there are these other monsters."
"Granute." Syrius corrected. "They're called Granutes."
"How do you know that?" Fu asked, astonished by this information.
"Well... I guess there's no point in telling you." Syrius sighed, placing the Vrastumgear and the two Gochizo on the table.
The Gochizo approached Wayzz, who looked at them with some curiosity.
"I am Kamen Rider Vram." Said the teenager before explaining the basics about Granutes and Gochizo to Fu and Wayzz.
Fu smiled and laughed.
"I thought I'd have to entrust you with a Miraculous so that you could protect yourself if Hawkmoth ever found out about the Miracle Rings." He said, looking the teenager in the eye. "I'm reassured, and rather proud, that you're assisting the heroes of Paris."
They chatted a little longer, and Syrius returned to the Dupin-Chang home to find Marinette and her parents waiting for him.
He was greeted by a group hug from the family who had taken him in, also feeling something small cuddle him discreetly on his hand. The feeling of warmth and affection that this provoked made him break down, and he ended up crying in the arms of this family who had welcomed him with open arms.
He didn't know it, but Tikki was discreetly taking part in the group hug. His gaze met that of the two Gochizo under Syrius's jacket. They gave her a knowing wink that made her smile, realizing that they would say nothing to their user.
Elsewhere, in a privatized mansion in Paris, two twins with white hair on one side and black on the other were looking at the few things on a tablet with a company logo on the back labeled "Stomach Inc.".
"This is disastrous." Said one of the two in a seemingly masculine voice.
"The Kamen Rider has killed over a quarter of our mobilized employees in this city." Said the other twin in a feminine voice.
"That's unfortunate for you." Said a young man with a pair of glasses.
"For you too, big brother Nyelv." Retorted the duo's daughter. "When big brother Lango sees this month's report, he'll see that you've missed out on a little experience and will slaughter our employees."
"I knew we should have killed that damn red Gavv. And our brother too. But no, you decided to play with them a little!" Said the boy in the duo.
"Calm down, you two." Nyelv sighed. "I'll take full responsibility for any losses."
This relieved the twins, worried that they would be blamed.
"In exchange, I want you to do me a favor."
"What?" The twins asked in unison.
"From what I've seen on this 'internet', little Red Gavv only seems to have used the basic form of the Vram System in combat, even against these other opponents." Nyelv said, pushing up his glasses. "I want you to use an employee capable of pushing him to use his other form to gather combat data on it. Do so, and I'll assume all your failures since his escape."
The twins nodded quickly at the request, as if they were children being asked for something easy in return to make it look like they had to make an effort to get what they wanted.
"Good. In that case, Jiip, Siita." He said, greeting the boy and girl respectively. "Let me know when you get the data. I hope you'll get there before you have to return the counter-report of the me to Lango."
Then he picked up a large bag lying on the desk behind the twins and disappeared behind one of the doors at the back of the room. The twins then began to frantically search their tablets.
"Which one could be strong enough to push him into using this other form?" Siita asked as her scrolled through the list of their employees.
"Oh, look!" Said Jiip, placing his finger on the box corresponding to one of them. "If the description Nyelv gave us when he presented the project is accurate..."
"It has to be, knowing him..." Shiita commented.
"Then this one's very promising." Jiip concluded as the twins smiled as if they'd found a 100-euro bill on the floor.
The next day, Syrius discovered that, after the fight with Rogercop had ended in victory for Ladybug and Chat Noir, Roger had been reinstated to the police force and received an apology from the mayor. And Chloé found her bracelet in her bag.
This amused him, as it confirmed that Chloé could well have invented the disappearance of her bracelet.
When he returned to his classroom, he could see his classmates and friends outside at the entrance.
"Hey guys, what's going on?" he asked.
"We were just talking about something." Said Marinette.
"What is it?" asked Syrius again.
"Well, we got together. And we thought if you wanted to talk about... you know." Nino said, not really wanting to mention the death of his friend's family. "We'd all be there for you."
"Really?" Syrius asked.
"Yes, you can count on us." Said Alix.
"No one deserves to be alone." Said Adrien. "Marinette told us after you left that you were afraid everyone would find out. But that's okay. We're here for you."
"T-thank you, guys." Syrius said shyly, one hand on the bottom of his shirt.
He had to resist this growing urge to share with his friends what he really is. But he had to face facts. If he revealed his hybrid nature to anyone other than Fu or Marinette and her family, he could be mistaken for the Granutes who worked for... these people.
And he couldn't afford to be. He'd lost too much to afford to give up all those friendships. He had to lie to them about who he really was. He had no choice. This kind of lie was necessary.