Chapter Text
Nino spun his office chair in circles, watching his room twirl around him in a blur. Adrien’s dad is Hawkmoth. Adrien is Chat Noir.
“Nino?” Wayzz floated up to the boy. “Are you alright?”
Nino slowed the chair’s spinning, dragging his feet on the floor. “My best friend’s dad is Hawkmoth, Wayzz. I don’t know who I can tell, but I have to tell someone. If I don’t tell anyone, and Hawkmoth launches a huge attack, I’ll hate myself forever. If I tell someone, they could leak the info to the media or tell Adrien or--”
“Nino.” Wayzz floated to Nino’s open palms and sat. “I completely understand your situation. I know that the previous guardian has been through many situations similar to this one, and most turned out fine. If you want a suggestion, I would recommend telling Ladybug. You already know her in her civilian form, and she knows you. She would also be the best option out of all of the heroes to tell.”
Nino looked down at the small turtle and smiled. “Wayzz, you’re a genius.” Nino lifted one of his hands and gave Wayzz a small pat on the head, to which Wayzz replied with a soft grin. “I’m going to text Marinette.” Wayzz nodded and floated over to Nino’s desk as the boy pulled out his phone. He opened his messages and tapped on Marinette’s username.
ninolxhiffe: marinette
breadgirl: ???
ninolxhiffe: i have something insanely important i need to tell you
breadgirl: im all ears!! what’s up?
ninolxhiffe: it probably shouldnt be on the phone in case it can be tracked
ninolxhiffe: can i come over??
breadgirl: of course nino!
breadgirl: is everything ok?
ninolxhiffe: im having an existential crisis :)))))))
breadgirl: o o f
ninolxhiffe: ok im on my way over
Nino chuckled to himself. More like I’m on my Wayzz over. “Hey, Wayzz, you ready to go?”
Wayzz stretched his arms and nodded. “Whenever you’re ready, Nino.”
Nino quickly typed on his phone to tell his parents that he had a “group project” with Marinette that he needed to go to her house for before nodding and adjusting his cap. “Is there any way I’m able to add those, uh, fancy moves to the transformation?”
“Of course!” Wayzz floated up by Nino’s face and gave him a reassuring look. “Just think of the movements you want incorporated, and they will be.”
“Nice!” Nino cleared his throat and shook away his fear. “Alright… Wayzz, shell on!”
This transformation was different than all the transformations prior. While the magic had previously been soothing, this energy was more electric and filled Nino with a newfound energy. Nino pushed his right arm away from him and the magic followed, coating it in his magical attire. He kept his arm in that position, willing the magic to flow back down his arm and it did, spinning him around and flowing down his torso, legs, and ending at his feet. Nino spun once more and came down to his back, where he spun until he knew the magic had formed his shield. He pushed down, caught himself, and sprung back to his feet. He pulled what was seemingly empty space from the nape of his neck up, forming the hood of his outfit, and the goggles formed themselves with a flick. After contemplating how to end the transformation, Nino decided to simply cross his arms and strike a pose. The magic dissipated and Nino, now Carapace, was satisfied with the sequence.
“Nice,” he commented.
I’ve never seen anything so uniquely capture your essence! Great work.
Carapace blushed. Aww, Wayzz, you sweetheart. The hero opened up his bedroom window and climbed out onto the roof of the outside patio. He threw his shield into the air and jumped onto it, floating in the air, before turning around to close the window. His parents would be suspicious if they came home from their date to see an open window.
Carapace dusted his hands off (even though there was no dust) and began to glide towards Marinette’s balcony. His heart felt heavy with the knowledge that he carried, and he wondered just how much he would be able to say without bursting into tears. I’m betting three minutes. What do you think, Wayzz?
You can handle the situation well, regardless of your emotions. That being said, two minutes.
Carapace chuckled in the darkness, soaring over the rooftops and dancing in the starlight. As he came to Marinette’s balcony, he came to an abrupt stop. Should I go in transformed?
I think that would be the most direct way to confirm her suspicions of you being Carapace to detransform in the room with her. That way, there would be no need for me to recharge while you were there.
Wayzz, I know I just said this, but you’re a genius. The hero slowly floated over to the balcony and jumped off of his shield, catching it in his arms as he landed. The trapdoor next to the lawn chair began to glow and it opened, revealing Marinette in her pajamas using her phone as a flashlight.
Carapace grinned awkwardly. “Uh, hey, Marinette, I’m here now. I, uh… have some news.”
Marinette gave a comforting smile. “Come on in!” She ducked down and held the trapdoor open with her hand. Carapace took a deep breath and slid down from the floor of the balcony onto Marinette’s bed.
“So…” Carapace gulped. Here goes nothing. “I’m guessing you already know why I’m here. And if not, then you should be acting more surprised right now.”
Marinette nodded. “Well, I know who you are, but what you have to tell me, I have no clue.”
Carapace sighed in relief. “Okay. Wayzz, shell off.” The wave of green energy again, but faster. It started at his feet and zipped up over him, undoing the transformation and revealing Wayzz, who flew about in a circle before stopping, a little dizzy.
Wayzz smiled at the young girl in front of him “Greetings, Marinette! It’s been quite a while since our last meeting.”
“Yeah, it has!” Marinette exclaimed. “So, why are you two here?”
Nino took a deep breath and could already feel the tears pricking at his eyes. “Okay, so I learned something… interesting earlier. And… I think you’re the best person to tell, you and…” Nino paused. “What’s your kwami’s name?”
Marinette’s eyes widened slightly before she looked over to her desk where a red blur dashed out from the drawer. “I think I’ll have her tell you herself.”
The red creature soared up to the bed, doing a few loops, and stopped just before Nino’s face. When his eyes focused, he realized that this was the kwami that Marinette was talking about -- small, red, and with a large black spot on her forehead. Lighter red freckles were dusted underneath her big blue eyes, and motherly grin was spread across her face. “Nino! It’s so great to finally meet you! I’m Tikki.” Tikki turned to the other kwami there and smirked. “And how could I forget my favorite turtle?”
“Oh, Tikki! How lovely to see you again!” Wayzz cried out, pulling Tikki into a warm embrace.
Nino laughed a little before remembering his original task. He cleared his throat and began. “So, Marinette, just… how much do you know about the Miraculouses and their powers? Specifically, the turtle.”
Marinette shrugged. “Basically nothing. All I know is that you have a shield that you can fly on. Why?”
Nino rubbed his eyes, trying to think of a logical way to explain his powers. “Okay, umm… well, imagine a video game interface. You can see character profiles, and there are quests, and health bars, and certain things on the map just… light up, yeah?”
“Yeah. Where are you going with this?” Marinette cocked her head to the side.
“Um, well, that’s one of my powers. That’s something that the goggles give me. I get experience, I have a quest menu, and I can see everyone’s… profiles. Bios. Whatever you want to call it.” Nino gulped and prepared for what he had to say next. “And… today… I saw… someone’s profile. And…”
“Yeah?”
“Let me preface this by asking, uh, do you have any theories on who Hawkmoth is? Because I… kinda know. Who he is. And it’s kinda bad.”
Marinette stared. “You… know who Hawkmoth is.”
Nino nodded, choked up.
“And… it’s bad… oh, Nino, oh no…” Marinette pulled Nino into a warm embrace, and he couldn’t hold back his tears any longer.
“I-I’m really sorry,” Nino choked out.
Marinette shushed him. “You don’t need to apologize for your emotions, Nino. Based on what you’ve told me, this is some rough stuff.”
Nino pulled back and wiped his tears. “O-okay. I think… I think I’m ready to tell you who it is.”
“Whenever you’re ready. I’m not super good at… comforting words, but I’m going to listen to you no matter what.”
Nino sniffled. “Um, have you had any theories on who Hawkmoth might be?”
Marinette pondered. “Yeah, right after the Volpina incident, I thought that he could be Gabriel Agreste, but since he was akumatized, that can’t be--”
“Queen Wasp,” Nino interrupted.
“What?”
Nino gulped. “Before the Queen Wasp incident, when it was just you, Chat, and Rena, none of you had been akumatized or even come close. It made people--including you--think that miraculous holders couldn’t be akumatized. So… who’s to say that he’s--” Nino paused, tears welling up again. “--who’s to say that he’s not…”
Marinette stared. “But based on what I know about the Miraculous, each is resistant to their own magical damage types. Chat can’t Cataclysm himself, Queen Bee doesn’t get hurt by Venom, Rena can see through her Mirage… how would he be able to akumatize himself?”
Nino paused. “Where did you learn about the Miraculous?”
“Adrien, he had a book that Lila stole and threw in the trash, so Tikki got it out and we took it to the Guardian.”
“But Marinette, the next day, he wasn’t at school because the book belonged to his father. Wouldn’t Gabriel know this, create the akuma, and then take the Miraculous off?” Nino stopped. “I’m sorry, Marinette, I--”
“Nino. Don’t apologize. I trust you. I was just asking because I hadn’t figured out the process of how The Collector was able to happen.”
He sighed, his anxiety easing up. “Okay, yeah. So, what do we do now?”
Tikki sat down on the blanket beside the two. “Well, I think the best course of action would be to gather as many heroes as possible and begin planning our ambush.”
Wayzz shook his head. “While that is a good plan, we need to unify the five heroes that we have now. We need to make sure that they learn each other's identities to become a closer-knit team, and so that they fully trust each other. Once the five are unified, then we recruit more heroes from the Zodiacs based on which powers will be the most useful in the attack.”
Marinette considered both possibilities before speaking. “Alright. I think Wayzz’s idea of connecting the team as one unit sounds like our best long-term option, but I believe we should add a few of the Zodiacs to our team first and incorporate them into the whole ‘team bonding’ stuff in case we don’t have as much time as we think.”
Nino nodded. “Do you have any ideas of who we would recruit?”
Marinette smiled. “I was thinking of recruiting the students in our class, since we all already know each other so well, but I’m not sure if Chat already knows them--”
“It’s alright, he does,” Nino interrupted. “I’m sure of it.”
“Right. I was also thinking of recruiting three students outside of our class. Luka Couffaine, Kagami Tsurugi, and Marc Anciel.”
“That sounds… really good, actually. I think we have a plan.”
“Alright! Let’s spread the message to the other three. Both of us can talk to Chat, then we can work out who talks to Rena and who talks to Bee.”
“Oh, Marinette, by the way…”
“Yeah?”
“When you tell Chat about Hawkmoth’s identity, um, be… gentle about it. Please.”
Marinette’s brow furrowed. “I will, but is there a reason?”
“Do you think we should do the ‘team bonding’ tonight? Because that would explain everything.”
Marinette paused before taking Nino’s hand in her own. “You seem to know the most about our current… situation. I trust you to take the lead on this one, alright? I’ll gather the group.”
Nino nodded. This was about to be one hell of a night.
* * *
“So, I bet you’re all wondering why you’re here,” Carapace began, the other four heroes circled around him.
“Actually, yeah,” Queen Bee interjected. “Carapace, right?”
“Yeah.” Carapace gave a friendly wave and grin before returning to the matter at hand. “Okay, so I don’t actually know how to explain this, so I borrowed a projector and a screen to give you guys a powerpoint.”
Chat burst out laughing. “That is so you! ”
Carapace chuckled, feeling more at ease than before as Rena Rouge struggled to keep her laughter in and Ladybug chuckled softly.
“Okay, but I actually made a powerpoint, and I think it can help to explain what’s happening.” Carapace pulled a clicker out of his pocket and pressed a button that projected the words Why We’re All Fucked onto the white screen behind him.
Rena Rouge raised her hand. “Excuse me, Mr. Carapace, but could you elaborate?”
“Gladly!” The turtle hero grinned and advanced to the next slide. Projected on the screen was a stock photo of a very generic-looking person waving. “Now, this is what people normally see when they see someone, right? Right. However, I happen to have some powers that come with these goggles that allow for me to see more.” Carapace clicked a button on his remote and a rectangle appeared next to the man showing a mock profile, health bar, and quest menu. “This,” Carapace began again, “is what I see when I look at a person.”
“Hold on,” Queen Bee interjected. “You mean you see video game stuff wherever you look?”
“Yep.”
“Okay, what does that mean?”
“Well,” Carapace started, “it means that I can see basic info about any person I see. Their emotions, their name, and their stats. Which means when I look at you guys, in or out of suit, I see what miraculous you have and your superhero identity.”
Queen Bee shifted on her feet and bit her lower lip.
Ladybug looked puzzled. “What’s the circle with the exclamation point?”
“That’s my quest menu, or my achievements, I guess. Things I have to do, things I have done.”
“I hate to interrupt, but how do your powers result in us being fucked?” Chat Noir interjected.
“Well…” Carapace advanced to the next slide, which was a flowchart. The first circle read my powers show me profiles, including miraculouses (miraculi? miraculous? moose/meese situation?) with an arrow that led to a circle reading i can tell when a person has a certain miraculous. This bubble led to another that read i see someone’s profile and they have the butterfly miraculous , and the final bubble -- covered in spikes like a comic book exclamation -- i know hawkmoth’s identity. “...ta-da.”
The heroes stared blankly at the presentation, not knowing what to make of this information.
“Hey, Carapace, is this a theoretical situation, or…?” Rena trailed off.
“Um…” Carapace felt his heart tighten in his chest. “...no. Real situation. That we have. Now.”
“Do any of us have personal ties to him?” Queen Bee murmured.
Carapace fought his instinct to look over to Chat. “Yes. I think all of us know him and have met him face to face. Some of us more than others.”
“So what do we do?” Chat asked.
“My kwami and I have come up with a plan. It was mostly his idea, and Ladybug’s kwami helped, too.” Carapace advanced to the next slide, which read Recreating the Order . “Hundreds of years ago, there used to be an Order of Guardians. These were people that took care of the miraculous and distributed them to those that they saw fit. I think that if we rebuild this order, recreate it, we can become a stronger team and learn more about all the fun magic stuff that goes along with the miraculous. There’s so much information, so much knowledge that was lost, but I think with the current Guardian’s help, we can find it again.”
Everyone stared up at Carapace in silent awe. Chat Noir started clapping, slowly at first, then accelerating into applause. Rena Rouge joined in, cheering.
“That’s my boyfriend! That’s my boyfriend, guys!” Rena exclaimed to the heroes around her, pointing to Carapace. “I’m so proud of him!”
Carapace blushed profusely. “Thanks, Rena.”
“Damn,” Queen Bee murmured. “Where can I get a girlfriend that supportive and loving? Like?” She gestured with her hands to indicate everything she could have said next, and made a type of noise that could be represented in writing as “askjdfadsflkaj???”.
Ladybug nodded. “I know exactly what you mean.”
Carapace nodded and cleared his throat. “Um, thanks, and uh, mood, but I should probably explain the plan more.”
Chat nodded and crossed his legs on the floor. “Continue.”
Carapace stared. “Uh… yeah. So, the plan is to assemble a mini-army of superheroes. We would recruit between two and four new heroes at a time to get them acclimated to their powers and the team and everything, and we all train together. We can rebuild the Guardians with them, and we launch a full-scale attack on Hawkmoth. But just before we attack, we all reveal our identities to each other, in case we don’t… make it, someone can tell our families and friends.” Carapace advanced to the next slide which displayed the Chinese zodiac.
“These are the animals that the Zodiacs are based on and the traits that they’re associated with. The best theory here would be to give these based on traits that the people we give them to exhibit or have the potential to exhibit. We can all vote on who gets which and draw their names out of a hat to decide which order they get recruited in.” Carapace turned to the rest of the team. “What do you guys think?”
Queen Bee grinned. “I think that’s a really great idea! How would we go through deciding who gets which miraculous as a group? And once a few of the Zodiacs are recruited, would they join in the recruiting process?”
Carapace nodded. “That’s a good question! I think we could each research a few of these animals and their symbolism, maybe meet the kwamis, and we each nominate a person for that miraculous and we all discuss why we think that they’re fit for it. I’m not sure on that second part, but that’s something that we can decide soon. How about we start tomorrow?”
Each hero nodded, responding with their variant of “yes.” Together, they would build a team, and take down Hawkmoth once and for all.