Chapter 20: Emotions Running Wild

Things were bad. Not only she had been captured, but her partner had also suffered the same fate. If asked how she imagined her day would be, Queen Bee would respond that getting tricked and captured by Reptile, while he pretended to be Hawk Moth, only to stand in front of the real deal, shackled and locked inside an energy sphere, with the foulest headache she had ever had, was not how she would have imagined it.

It did not take her long to see what had happened. That Hawk Moth had never been in city hall, waiting for the heroes to who up. The truth was Hawk Moth never left the tower, since the moment he released Ammit and her army. He only projected his message for the whole of Paris to see, and sent Reptile in his place to capture the heroes. He was expecting for the whole team to show up, but in the end, only Queen Bee, Chat Noir and Louve Grise did. And form the three of them, only Bee and Louve stayed long enough to get captured.

"Can't believe we ended up captured by Reptile. That's so humiliating." -Queen Bee thought to herself, when she noticed the lizard man looking at her.

"Master! She's awake!" -Reptile exclaimed, as his master passed by him, and approached the heroine.

"I see that you're finally awake, little bee." -Hawk Moth said, with the evillest grin one could imagine, across his face.

"H-Hawk Moth…"

"If I were you, I wouldn't try to talk. It'll only speed up the inevitable." -Hawk Moth told her.

"G-Go to Hell, you… creep!" -Queen Bee shouted at him. –"A-And what does he mean by speeding up the i-inevitable?" -she thought to herself.

"Bite your tongue, girl!" -Reptile shouted at her, before turning to Hawk Moth. –"Master, she has disrespected you! Please, let me kill her, or at the very least, cut one of her arms or legs!" -he begged, before taking out his switchblade form his pocket.

"No." -Hawk Moth said, with a cold, insensitive voice. –"You'll have plenty of time to kill whoever you want." -he added. –"Besides, she and the other heroes are mine."

The way the villain said that last word, made Reptile understand that he was not to contradict him. And as much as Reptile wished to kill Queen Bee and Louve Grise, he knew better than to contradict or challenge his master's orders.

"As you wish, master." -Reptile said,

"Now, go. You may have brought me these two, but you failed to bring me the whole Miraculous Team." -Hawk Moth declared. –"So, now, not only you'll have to go and find a way to get the other heroes, I'll have to instruct Brutus, Rapier and Madame Romani to lend you a hand, as well." -he said, clearly disappointed.

"Yes, master." -Reptile said, bowing before Hawk Moth, before this one used his cane to send him away, via teleport.

As the lizard man disappeared in a cloud of smoke, Queen Bee wondered what was going to happen next, now that they were alone with Hawk Moth. The way he had talked to Reptile, made it clear that no one was to kill the Miraculous heroes but him. In her mind, the bee heroine wondered if the villain was going to kill her and Louve Grise now, or save that for later. Not wishing to stick around to know the answer to that question, she tried to free herself from the glowing chains that held her. But the more strength she put in it, the more tired she became.

"Impressive. You're still resisting." -Hawk Moth declared. –"By now, I thought you would be depleted of your powers and every bit of strength in you. But I shouldn't be surprised. After all, you and your friends have already proven that you're on a different power level than previous miraculous holders." -he smirked evilly. –"Still, like I said before, it'll only a matter of time."

"W-What are you talking about?" -Queen Bee asked, as she felt weaker by the minute.

"You're probably asking yourself what is this sphere you're in, am I right?" -Hawk Moth asked the bee heroine. –"Let's just say it is the prison where you will die. You and all of your friends." -he said, with an almost dramatic voice. –"I created these with a little gift that my faithful lieutenant, Brutus, brought me, the Breath of Arawn. By combining its essence with my beautiful Akuma Butterflies, I created some special specimens, which when thrown at a target, capture them and teleport them here, to be caged in these beautiful energy spheres. Who would've thought that he would find me something so precious, when he went to get me the Urn of Ammit."

"T-The Urn of Ammit?"

"Yes, my little bee; the Urn of Ammit. A relic where Ammit, devourer of hearts was trapped, along with all the souls whose heart she devoured. An unstoppable army, who knows nothing but hunger." -Hawk Moth told her.

"S-So… there's no A-Akuma?" -a voice was heard. It was Louve Grise, who had awakened.

"Sabrina!" -Queen Bee thought to herself, relieved to hear her voice.

"Oh, I see that you've also awakened." -Hawk Moth said. –"Yes, there is no Akuma. Not this time." -he stated. –"Instead, you have an army that will turn everyone in this puny little town into stone, by eating their hearts, before going on and doing the same for this country, and eventually, the rest of the world."

With that knowledge, the two heroines realized that the whole situation had changed. The two of them, as well as their companions were expecting an Akuma to be behind all the chaos that was sweeping Paris. But now knowing that an Akuma had nothing to do with it, and that it was in fact the result of the use of a magical object, they wondered what the outcome would be. Even so, neither one, nor the other was willing to give Hawk Moth the slightest show of weakness.

"S-Sounds like you've… got it a-all planned." -Queen Bee said, as she kept feeling more fatigued by the minute. –"B-But you're… still going to lose."

"The others will f-find a way to defeat those creatures… and k-kick your butt… y-you psychopath!" -Louve Grise yelled, making use of most of her strength to hammer each syllable that came out of her mouth.

"No one can stop them. And if you think your friends will be able to, then I'm afraid you're wrong." -Hawk Moth declared. –"They'll have the same fate as you. They will die inside those energy spheres." -he said. –"For you see, these are no simple energy spheres, no. They're slowly sucking your energy. Little by little, they will suck it, until there's nothing left of you; while making you see your worst nightmares. And before you ask why this hasn't happened yet, be patient, it will start soon… oh, my mistake, it has already started. Just look at your fingers."

When they heard that, the heroines noticed there was something wrong. Their outfits were beginning to magically regress, showing the tips of their fingers. It took them both a split second to understand what was happening, and what would happen, once most of their energy had been sucked. Hawk Moth would see who they really were under their masks. Their true identities would be known.

"Struggle all you want, it doesn't matter. You'll be dead soon, and I'll use the energy sucked out of your corpses and your miraculouses, before destroying them, of course, to become even more powerful than I already am." -Hawk Moth boasted, before letting out a maniacal laugh.

"We're screwed." -Queen Bee thought to herself.

"Only the others can save us now… please, everyone. Hurry!" -Louve Grise thought to herself.

Finding a place where he knew Marc would be safe ended up being a little harder than Panda Roux thought it would. But eventually, he found the perfect spot. The rooftop of a hotel building, which looked deserted. Part of him was relieved, but the other hoped that it would have taken him a little longer to find a safe place for Marc. This was the first time he was this close to him, and he was enjoying it. He could feel his heart beating faster, and he was sure that his face was as red as a tomato.

"Here we are." -Panda Roux said, as he allowed Marc to get on the ground. –"You should be safe in here, until we deal with the Akuma that's doing this." -he told him.

"Uh, yeah." -Marc said. He was feeling a little nervous, with being in the presence of Panda Roux. –"Thanks again for saving me."

"Hey, it's just part of the job." -Panda Roux smirked. –"I know I already said this, but he looks so handsome when he's scared." -he thought to himself. –"But it's always nice to rescue one of my fans. I know that I don't say it as much as I should, but I love my fans. They're the best, and I can tell you are one of my biggest fans, just from looking at you."

The way Panda Roux spoke that last sentence, made Marc blush a little. The boy was over the Moon with everything that was happening. He had been saved by his favourite hero, and he had just praised him. As for Panda, he immediately cursed himself for saying that last sentence, thinking he should have been more subtle, when flirting with Marc.

"He's flirting with me! He's actually flirting with me!" -Marc thought to himself. –" I can't believe he's doing it! If this is a dream, please, don't wake me up." -he thought.

"What were you thinking?! You don't want to him to think that you're flirting with him!" -Panda Roux told himself. –"Well… I think I better get going. Ladybug and the others are probably wondering where I am."

"Uh… before you go… you've got to let me thank you properly." -Marc said.

"Thank me properly? Well, if a high-five or a hug you want, we can arrange for that, free of charge." -Panda Roux joked, only to repent on it. –"Really?! You couldn't come up with something less cringe?! He's going to think you're an imbecile!" -he thought to himself, continuing to regret his last words.

"Uh… a-actually, I was thinking of something else." -Marc declared, with a shy voice.

"Something else?" -Panda Roux asked him.

And before he could say anything else, Marc wrapped his arms around his neck and kissed him, right on the lips. This caught Panda by surprise, who was not expecting it. He could feel Marc's lips pressing against his own, and quickly allowed his tongue to touch Marc's, while each explored the mouths of one another. This was both Panda's and Marc's first kiss, and right then, Panda Roux wished he could freeze time forever, so that the kiss could last for as long as possible. Secretly, Marc also wished the same thing. This kiss was followed by another, and then another, with both boys enjoying each of those kisses. The first one was a tremulous kiss, while the second one was bolder. And the ones that followed were even more so. They were both enjoying that special moment, which would have lasted a little bit longer, had Panda not broke the kiss, believing they were going too fast with that. Staring into Marc's eyes, he wondered what to say and what to do next. But the only thing that came to his mind, was that he had to go back into battle, and help the others put a stop to all that.

"Uh… I… I… I've got to go!" -Panda Roux said, as he dashed out of there, leaving Marc by himself.

"W-Wait!" -Marc begged him, but the red panda hero had already dropped from the building's ledge.

Watching Panda Roux leave, Marc's heart kept racing like crazy, as he ran his fingers over his lips. He was still ecstatic about the kiss, but as the seconds passed, he began to feel sad and question himself if he had done the right thing by kissing Panda Roux.

"Should have I kissed him? Should have I asked him if it was alright to kiss him?" -Marc asked himself. –"He liked it, I could tell…" -he thought, being certain of that fact. –"Still, I should've asked him if it was okay for me to kiss him. I hope he didn't get the wrong impression about me."

And while Marc struggled with those questions, Panda Roux was feeling like he was on top of the world. He had just kissed the boy of his dreams and just like in Katy Perry's song, he liked it. No, he did not like it. He loved it. He had always imagined how a kiss between him and Marc would be, coming up with the most amazing scenarios. But none of them involved his superhero persona.

"I can't believe he kissed me!" -Panda Roux thought to himself. –"He kissed me! That means that he's into guys! And more importantly, that I have a shot!" -he thought, before letting a howl, as he jumped from the building's ledge, landing on the rooftop below.

And then a thought crept into his head. The kind of thought one only has, after things happen.

"Wait a minute... I kissed Marc as Panda... so if the one he likes is Panda, and Marc thinks he kissed him back so Panda likes him back... does that mean I can't ask him out as myself!?" -Panda Roux asked himself.

The thought distracted him so much, he almost crashed into the side of a building. That whole thing was affecting him more than he realized.

"Wait… if I go as Nathaniel to Marc without him knowing I'm Panda and ask him out on a date he'll probably say no, or say that he has a guy he kissed, who kissed him back and "wants to figure out where they stand first, before anything else and won't want to go out with me on a date without knowing!" -Panda Roux groaned at himself for not having thought this through.

But who could blame him? Marc was right there, in his arms and looking like that was where he belonged. Panda did not even think about this in the moment! He was going to need advice from someone, on how to deal with all that. But right then, he needed to put it all behind his back, and focus on what needed to be done, and that was to save the day, by defeating the Akuma.

Located in Petit-Rouge quarter of the 14th arrondissement, Saint-Pierre de Montrouge is one of the most beautiful examples of Neo-classical style in the city of Paris. Designed by Emile Vaudremer, under the orders of Napoleon III, the church served as a hospital and survived bombardments during the Siege of Paris by the Prussians in 1870, and during the Paris Commune, the church was closed and turned into a workers' club. And right then, it was being used as a makeshift hideout for two members of the Miraculous Team, Grizzly Bear and Dragonfly, as well as other people, who sought refuge inside its walls. Outside of the church, Corbeau Noire was doing her best to keep the Jackal-like creatures at bay. So as to not be disturbed, Grizzly took Dragonfly to the church's bell tower, where he contacted Ladybug. The dragonfly heroine was not well.

"What's going on?! What's wrong with her?!" -Ladybug asked Grizzly, over the phone, fearing the worst.

"She's… She's having some sort of… nervous breakdown." -Grizzly Bear answered, as he looked at Dragonfly, who was on the floor.

"A nervous breakdown?" –Ladybug asked, puzzled.

"Yeah. She started to feel unwell, and then, she started acting crazy, yelling things that don't make much sense…. That's the only way I can explain what's happening with her." -Grizzly Bear said.

It was hard for him to explain what was happening, without sounding crazy himself. Dragonfly was on the floor, and she was incredibly agitated.

"My legs!" -Dragonfly shouted. –"My legs are broken!" -she shouted once more, as she looked down and saw her legs, broken, bruised and maimed. –"I'll never walk again!"

She burst into tears, feeling completely hapless and terrified due to what her eyes saw. But these were playing tricks on her. Her legs were fine. She was hallucinating. And unknown to them, the cause of it was the green energy barrier that was isolating the centre of Paris from the rest of the world. The heroes had not seen it yet, but those, unfortunate enough to touch the barrier, while trying to see if they could go through it in search of safe haven, instantly began to suffer hallucinations. When Dragonfly went to investigate the barrier, she hit her head against it. But because of her magical powers, it took her longer to feel the effects.

"I don't know what to do. I've already tried to calm her down. I tried to be gentle with her, I tried to be brash, I tried to call her to reason, and nothing worked." -Grizzly said. –"And the worst part, is that she's getting worst. I don't know how long I'll be able to keep her in check. I'm scared that she might try to attack me, and I'll be forced to hurt her!"

Grizzly was trying his best to remain calm, as he watched Dragonfly, without knowing what to do to help her. And Ladybug could see it in his eyes. She herself already had her own problems, but her sense of responsibility, alongside the bond she shared with them, prevented her from ignoring her teammates pleas for help, even if they themselves were not directly asking for it.

"Where are you now?" -Ladybug asked him, while trying to come up with a plan.

"We took refuge at Saint-Pierre de Montrouge, in the 14th arrondissement." -Grizzly Bear said. –"Corbeau is keeping those Jackal-like creatures from entering the church, while I'm here with Dragonfly." -he said, as Dragonfly crying became louder than before.

He was about to say something else, when his eyes caught Corbeau Noire using her powers to repel a group of Jackal-like creatures, turning them back to sand, just before being seemingly struck in the back, and falling to the ground. He did not see what had hit her, but he saw where it had come from. Fearing for well-being, he made a decision.

"I got to go." -Grizzly Bear told Ladybug.

"Wait! Why?" -Ladybug asked him, not understanding why he was telling her that.

"Corbeau is down, and I've got to go and get her, before those creatures get to her." -Grizzly Bear said, while wondering what could have caused her to fall from the sky. –"I'll call you back in a minute."

"Ivan, wait!" -Ladybug exclaimed, as he ended the call.

He had to hurry down. Corbeau's life could depend on his swiftness. But he also knew he could not leave Dragonfly like that. In his mind, he began to think of ways to deal with the problems he had, and after a couple of seconds, he saw there was only one way he would be able to help Corbeau.

"Alix, I hate to do this, but I've got no other choice." -Grizzly sighed, as he closed his fist. –"Forgive me."

Gritting his teeth, he pulled his arm back and then punched Dragonfly on the head, knocking her lights out. It pained him to do that, but he could not risk his friend getting herself in trouble or danger, while he went down to save Corbeau Noire. After making sure that Dragonfly was going nowhere, he jumped off the belltower's porch. Landing on the ground, this one shook violently, which got the attention of the Jackal-like creatures that were trying to enter the church.

"Hang on, Juleka." -Grizzly bear thought to himself, as he ignored the Jackal-like creatures behind him, and ran towards Corbeau.

The raven heroine was on ground, surrounded by some of the Jackal-like creatures she had defeated, who had reassembled themselves. Growling and standing there, it was like they were waiting to see which one of them was going to attack her first. As for Corbeau, she was laying on the ground, half-conscious, and feeling like her back had been used for target practice. Whatever had hit her, it missed her spine for only a couple of centimetres. Trying to get up, a searing pain on her back made it impossible for her to do so. She was at the mercy of those creatures.

"Out of the way, you wolf rejects!" -Grizzly Bear shouted, as he threw himself at the creatures, using his enormous strength to punch them.

He had just one priority. To get them away from Corbeau Noire. Slamming his fists against the ground, he made to hit it as hard as he could, so to not give the Jackal-like creatures the chance to remain on their feet. With them on the ground, he was going to grab Corbeau and take her to where he and Dragonfly had found refuge, hoping her injury was not as bad as he thought. But just as he was about to do it, he noticed someone approaching them. Turning his head to the left, he saw who was approaching; his rival in combat and one of Hawk Moth's lieutenants, Brutus.

"So, you too are here." -Brutus said, while looking at both heroes.

"Yeah, I am." –Grizzly Bear declared. –"It was you who hit Corbeau, wasn't it" -he asked, furious at him.

"Guilty as charged. It was one of my spears that hit your friend, while she was in the air." -Brutus said. –"I'm not one to attack an adversary from the back, but I have my orders." -he told him.

"If you think I'm going to let you or these things hurt my friend, you got another thing coming, Brutus." –Grizzly Bear shot at him.

He had just finished that sentence, when all the Jackal-like creatures jumped on him, trying to bite his head off. Gritting his teeth, Grizzly fought them back, determined to not let them have their way with him. And as he fought to remain in one piece, Brutus saw this as an opportunity to do his master's bidding. Being informed that the plan had changed, he was now to capture and send as many of the heroes as he could to Hawk Moth. Touching his chest, a golden Akuma Butterfly appeared inside an energy sphere of the same colour. Grabbing it with his right hand, Brutus aimed it at Corbeau Noire, before throwing it. This one flew as fast as a fastball, and just as it closed in on the raven heroine, the sphere broke and the golden insect, landing on her waist. Once it touched her body, it exploded into a bright golden glow, which enveloped everything surrounding her. The glow was so strong that it vaporized the Jackal-like creatures that Grizzly was fighting, while also blinding him.

Once the glow subsided, Grizzly's eyesight slowly came back. He saw that all the Jackal-like creatures that were around disappeared. And that was not all. Corbeau had vanished as well. The place she was lying on was now empty. If he had not seen her lying on the ground a few moments before, he would have never guessed she had been there in the first place. Seeing her gone, he turned to the person who was responsible for her disappearance; Brutus.

"What did you do to her?!" -Grizzly Bear shouted at Brutus, enraged. –"Tell me where Corbeau Noire is, or you're a dead man!" -he threatened him, as the rage inside him continued to grow.

"She is with my master now." -Brutus told him. –"And soon, you will too." -he said, as he pulled his war hammer from his chest.

"Thanks, but no thanks, Brutus!" -Grizzly Bear yelled at him. –"I don't intend to share Corbeau's fate. But one thing I can tell you. I'm going to beat Hawk Moth's location out of you, so I can go and save her!" -he warned Brutus.

"If it is a fight you want, then you shall have it!" -Brutus yelled, as he charged against Grizzly.

"Bring it on, muscle for brains!" -Grizzly Bear shot back at him, as he too charged against Brutus. –"Got to get this guy away from Alix. I don't know if he knows she's up there, but I'm not taking any chances Got to keep her away from danger." -he thought to himself, just as he was about to land a blow on Brutus' chest.

As Grizzly ended the call, Ladybug could not help but to feel mad. She hated when people did that to her, especially before getting the chance of finishing a conversation. But given what was happening around her and the fact she remembered she had put Chat Noir on hold, she decided to ignore it.

"I'm back." -Ladybug said, as she resumed the call with Chat.

"What happened?" -Chat Noir asked her.

"There's something wrong with Dragonfly." -Ladybug answered. –"I wasn't given many details, but she seems to be having some sort of nervous breakdown." -she said.

"Do you want me, or maybe Doe, to go and check on her?" -Chat Noir suggested.

"No. You two and the master try to see if you can find any clues about what happened to Bee and Louve." -Ladybug ordered him. –"I'm going to call Antelope and see if he can go." -she said. –"If you find anything regarding those two, or the Akuma…"

"I know. You'll be the first one to know." -Chat Noir ended her sentence. –"Be careful, milady." -he told her, with a smile, as they both hung off.

After checking that both Rena and Carapace were both handling the swarm of creatures around them, Ladybug did not waste another moment and called Antelope. Even knowing he was somewhere on the opposite side of town, she knew that with his speed, he could get to where Dragonfly was, faster than anyone else.

"Come on, Kim, pick it up!" -Ladybug thought to herself.

Seconds went by, and he did not answer. Antelope was known for always picking up faster than chain lightning. But this time, that was not happening. Since he did not answer, she quickly decided t try one of the other two heroes that were with him. First, she tried Arachnid, but he too did not answer. Then, she tried Flamingo. But she did not answer either. None of them answering her, made Ladybug anxious, fearing that something bad could have happened to them. On top of it, the thought of Grizzly being in a jam, was making her nervous. Her first thought was to run to him, to lend him a hand. But seeing Rena Rouge and Carapace, just a few meters from her, fighting with all their might, made her hesitate. They needed her help as well.

"What do I do?! Do I leave Alya and Nino to fend for themselves, while I go to help Ivan and Alix? Or do I stay here?!" -Ladybug thought to herself.

Shakespeare once wrote: "Heavy is the head that wears the crown.", and right then that applied to Ladybug. It was times like those that she did not enjoy being the leader of the Miraculous Team. The pressure was sometimes too much for her, and that made it hard for her to handle everything. Having Chat Noir as her co-leader helped, but right then, she did not have him around, and had to make a choice.

"Guys! Do you think you can handle yourselves for a bit?"

"Sure, girl. But why?!" -Rena Rouge asked her.

"Something happened and Grizzly needs my help with Dragonfly!" -Ladybug told her

"Do you want one of us to go with you?" -Rena Rouge asked her, before using her flute-staff to create another illusion to fight off the Jackal-like creatures.

"No. You two stick together. Panda should be coming back to give you a hand, anytime soon." -Ladybug declared.

"Alright. But be careful!" -Carapace said, as he swung both his tonfas, only for one of the creatures to bite one of them. –"Hey! That's not a stick! Let go of it!" -he yelled at the Jackal-like creature.

Leaving Carapace and Rena Rouge, Ladybug used her yo-yo to propel herself towards south. Time was of the essence, and she could not waste a single second. The lives of Grizzly, Corbeau and Dragonfly might depend on her speed. And as she swung away, a pair of eyes directed their attention to the battle fought by Rena Rouge and Carapace. And these eyes belonged not to one of the members of Ammit's army. It belonged to one of Hawk Moth's lieutenants, the gypsy witch, Madame Romani. After being given new orders by her master, she knew just who she was going to target first.

"It's time for us to settle a score, little fox." -Madame Romani mused to herself, as she watched Rena Rouge and Carapace.

Hey, there! So, another chapter finished. This one took a little bit more time to finish than I was expecting. But I blame it on my lack of free time. I've been working myself to the bone these last two weeks. Still, I enjoyed writing this chapter, because it gave me the chance to write one scene that I've been dying to write, ever since I planned this fic. I'm talking about the scene where Hawk Moth explains to the trapped heroes what's truly happening. In the original plans, the two heroes that were going to be the first ones to be trapped were Rena Rouge and Antelope, but I changed it to Queen Bee and Louve Grise, because I felt it would be more interesting to have the two of them out of the game early on.

And given that I had some people asking me for a little bit more of NathanielxMarc, I decided to expand the scene with the two of them. It was nice writing it, especially because it was the boys' first kiss and that it will have repercussions in the near future, when it comes to their relationship. It's going to be fun to explore it, I can tell you that.

(If you haven't watched the new episode, Revelator, stop here. There are mild spoilers ahead. You've been warned).

Also, first thing I saw this morning, when I was checking my email was someone who had watched the new episode, asking me if I intend to have Chat Noir using this new power of his, to erase memories in these fics. And before I have other people sending me private messages asking about it, I'm going to answer it here: No. I'm not going to make use of it, mostly because I feel that it's a power that is too OP, as well as being a Deux Ex Machina move, and I don't like to use those in my writing. Oh, and about the new episode, I'm not going to spoil anyone regarding it, but let's just say that once more, I was right about where the story is heading, and that another part of the lore is all over the place (they keep making up things as they go. Third-rate writers... (sigh). I mean, is it so hard to keep track of things, while writing?), and that once more, even though Revelatior is episode 11, we now know that Daddycop takes place after it... t's like being back in season 1-3, trying to guess where the episode is supposed to take place... Chronological order, thy name is not Astruc. (sigh)

Sorry about the rant, but I needed to take this off my chest. Anyways, as always, feel free to comment, fav and leave your suggestions to improve this and/or future fics in this alternate universe. Got a few more surprises planned for the following chapters, so be on the lookout for them.