Chapter Text
"Well, we're halfway through the day and there hasn't been much in the way of catastrophe," Marinette commented as she and Alya made their way back from lunch. Alya snorted. "Which kind? Adrien-related or akuma-related?"
Marinette shrugged. "Both's good enough for me," she answered. The other girl chuckled. "I would be careful if I were you, girl. You might've just jinxed it,"Alya said playfully. Marinette rolled her eyes. "Come on, Alya, we both know jinxes aren'-" just then, she bumped into Andrew Hendrol, startling the American boy and cutting off her sentence.
"Sorry about that," Marinette apologized as she backed away and smoothed her clothes. Andrew chuckled softly. "No need. I probably shouldn't have been standing in the middle of a high-traffic area to begin with. Actually, now that you're both here, I've got a couple questions about the heroes."
Alya grinned, pulling out her phone. "What do you want to know?"
"What's up with this Hawk Moth guy? What's his big plan?"
"Hawk Moth's after Ladybug and Cat Noir's magic jewels, their Miraculouses," Alya explained. "As far as I can tell, nobody knows what he wants to do with them, but it can't be good. I explained it all on the Ladyblog… did you check it out yet?"
Andrew shrugged. "Well, seeing as we've been in class for most of the day and I usually don't check my phone during lunch, you do the math," he replied, a slight note of sarcasm that Marinette just barely noticed. "And Ladybug and Cat Noir have just… let him keep doing what he's doing? They haven't tried to capture him?"
"It's a bit hard when he doesn't show up out in the open," Marinette replied, a little more bite in her voice than she intended. Both Alya and Andrew gave her weird looks before Alya took over the conversation. "He sends out these akumas - basically evil butterflies - that turn people into supervillains when they feel negative emotions. Again, it's better explained on the Ladyblog."
"I'll check it out, I promise," Andrew replied, holding up his hands in surrender. "One last thing. Doesn't Ladybug kind of look like Marinette?"
Marinette squeaked and froze up before she found her tongue. "Uh, what? No! I mean, sure, she does kind of look like me, but she's so much more confident and… not awkward, and… stuff," she stammered, waving her hands around as she tried to direct his attention away from the conversation. Andrew blinked at her wild gestures, then turned to Alya. "She does this often?"
"Enough that I've grown desensitized to it," Alya replied. "It's part of her charm."
"I'll take your word for it," Andrew said as his fingers found his ring and he started twisting it. "Well, I'm gonna check out the library before class starts up again. See you girls later!"
"You too!" Marinette called back as he stepped into the library. Alya was studying her critically. "Maybe he's… no, he's not," she eventually decided. "That'd be like calling Adrien Cat Noir."
Marinette snorted. "Yeah, right. As if that could happen." Alya shrugged. "I'm just saying, it's not outside the realm of possibility." Then her eyes caught Nino's waving hand on the other side of the school. "You don't mind if I go talk to Nino, do you?"
Marinette smiled. "Go ahead. I want to see if I can talk to Adrien later, anyways," she replied. Alya smirked. "Ah. New school year, new approaches by Marinette. Good luck!" she called as she raced to the other side of the building.
Just then, Marinette's phone buzzed. She groaned when she saw the akuma alert before rushing to the locker room. "If only putting Mr. Ramier in a giant hamster ball could protect him from being akumatized," she muttered. Tikki floated up to Marinette's face. "We'll figure out a way to prevent Hawk Moth from getting him, Marinette," she reassured. "After all, you're the Guardian now. There's bound to be something in the spellbook."
A ghost of a smile crossed Marinette's face as she nodded. "Tikki, Spots On!"
Ladybug swung out of the locker room window and onto the roof of the school, spotting Mr. Pigeon flying his birds a couple blocks away. "A bomber? Really?" she groaned before swinging after him.
She didn't notice Andrew Hendrol's dark brown gaze watching her from the library doors.
"How many times is this now, m'lady?" Cat Noir asked as he leapt to her side. "Sixty-five? Sixty-six?"
"More than what's probably safe for his mind," Ladybug replied, twirling her yoyo. "Let's get this over with quickly. I'm kind of busy today."
Cat Noir sighed. "Same. Which is a shame, since I don't get to spend as much time with you. Cataclysm!"
"Lucky Charm!" Ladybug cried, a magnet falling into her hands. Cat Noir chuckled. "Are we going to stick him to the fridge, bugaboo?" he asked playfully. Ladybug smirked back. "Maybe, kitty. Just maybe. C'mon, let's go."
Neither hero was aware of a third figure watching them from the shadows of a nearby highrise. The dark of the surrounding area didn't do much to dull the shine of his vibrant golden, scaly leatherlike bodysuit. Slightly darker gold shoulder and chest armor bulked up his frame. His golden gloves and boots ended in short, sharp, silvery claws. A pair of golden batlike wings were folded along his back, and a golden dragon-like tail curled behind him, a small spiky ridge running down his back to the tip. A golden helmet with a black visor and silver mouthplate covered his head and face, with five spikes sticking off the back of his helmet. A golden ring rested on his right hand, stamped with the mark of a dragon's head divided into fifteen parts. A golden double ended sword was slung across his back, the two blades connected by a shiny black handle.
"So… my dreams didn't lie to me," the newcomer growled. "But to see them actually at work, in the flesh… I'm almost disappointed. I thought they'd be better."
"Yes, boss," a second, slightly raspy voice muttered inside the draconian's head. "I told you about them… what they did to me. Us. And to see them walk free after so many generations, after other kwamis fell… it sickens me."
"But they somehow fixed it," the draconian replied as he watched Ladybug and Cat Noir defeat Mr. Pigeon and cast the Miraculous cure. "Ah. So that's how they did it." He took a breath of the air. "All these scents, all this power… it's intoxicating."
"Control yourself, boss," the second voice warned. "We can't be so hasty. First we need to find someone to absorb first… so you don't repeat that mistake."
"Fine," the draconian growled as Ladybug and Cat Noir leapt away. He slunk into the shadows, then spread his wings and flew away.