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“Alya,” Marinette whined. Unfortunately, her protest was very much undercut as her shoulders shook with a sudden, wheezy cough.
“Nope!” Alya chided, as she pushed Marinette up the ladder into her bed. “Your mom is right. You’re in no condition to go out right now. Not like this.”
Marinette exhaled slowly, holding as tightly to the ladder as her achy muscles would allow. It was taking all that she had not to sway backwards. “Chat Noir will be waiting for me.”
Alya’s arms crossed over her chest, standing two steps back just in case. “Sure he will. But isn’t this exactly why you’ve been showing me how to step in when you need it?”
Marinette pouted. “We both know he wasn’t happy last time.”
“He’ll survive, Marinette.” Alya sighed. “We both know you’re barely standing upright right now. He needs his partner to be functional. So you get right back up in that bed and make sure he’ll have that tomorrow. After you rest.”
“Alya’s right.” Tikki prodded, as she hovered over Marinette’s shoulder.
“Yes, Mom.” Marinette grumbled, although she dutifully finished the arduously slow process of crawling the rest of the way up onto her bed and half-burrowing herself beneath the covers.
Shaking her head, Alya reached her hand up. “It’s amazing neither you or Chat Noir have been that sick in all this time.”
Frowning, Marinette removed her earrings, watching as they turned to plain black studs in the palm of her hand. “I really should think about getting him to have someone to back him up, too.”
“That sounds like a good idea.” Alya smiled, slipping her necklace up over her head. “Here. I’m leaving Trixx with you to watch over you. You can always call me through him if you get worried.”
“Thank you, Alya,” Marinette smiled as put the foxtail necklace on and sunk back into the sheets.
Scarabella was only just starting to get into the swing of grappling her yoyo from rooftop to rooftop when she’d reached Chat Noir with an Akuma battle in full swing.
He frowned at her, causing him to dodge only a split-second before the Akuma’s giant fist rammed into the pavement where he had just been.
Chat vaulted upwards,
“Sorry, Chat Noir. She can’t come today.”
He gulped slightly, clearly far more worried than she’d expected. “Is she…is she okay?”
“She’s not feeling well. I had to talk her into resting so she could get better quickly.” Scarabella smiled, gently patting hand on his shoulder. “She’s safe in bed, but is probably even watching the news now.”
Frowning, Chat Noir glanced at her in concern. “One of my friends is sick, too.”
Studiously staring ahead to where the massive Akuma was causing damage as he broke buildings to clear enough of a path through the narrow streets to reach them, Scarabella nodded. “There must be something going around.”
“You really should rest, Guardian.”
Marinette glared up at Trixx over her phone screen. “I will rest once I know they’re both safe.”
Trixx came and burrowed up beside her. “How is my kit doing?”
Marinette’s brows furrowed as she pored over the angry image of Gorizilla that took up most of the screen. “It’s hard to tell. Nadja’s news crew was filming from the helicopter, but the Akuma was so massive they didn’t come in too close.” She shook her head. “This particular Akuma is a monster. It took a ton of coordination to bring him down the first time. ”
Trixx nodded. “But they can still take him down, right?”
She was quiet and pensive for a moment, A soft smile curved her lips as Chat Noir pulled the focus off of Scarabella so she could make a clean get away from a new vantage point. “I really wish I would have convinced her to get more support before racing off to help Chat Noir.”
As the camera swooped in, getting an up-close-and personal view of Chat Noir and a very close brush with a long arm of Gorizilla.
Too close.
Besides, there was a concerning purplish shimmer that couldn’t have come from Gorizilla that only just appeared on the screen. She gasped softly, eyes narrowing as she squinted closer at the tiny screen.
Was that a Sentimonster?
Alya and Chat Noir really didn’t know what they were truly up against…
Stubbornly, Marinette clawed herself out of bed, covering another noisy cough as she did. “I need your help Trixx!”
“Oh, no!’ Trixx hissed softly. “My kit wouldn’t like that one bit.”
Marinette kneeled on still shaky legs. “Alya’s in danger, Trixx.
Frowning, Trixx’s protests got far more quiet.
“I’ll rest once the Akuma is down.” She assured him. “But until then, I need you to help give me all the power we can both muster to keep them both safe?”
Once transformed, Marinette stared in wonder at the soft shimmer of power still a little dazed by the medication she took to quiet her cough. She could scramble towards the action, but when she got close, she would need to stick to the shadows.
“How does Alya do it?” It had been months since she’d borrowed Trixx’s powers, and that never happened alone. But it was Alya’s creative thoughts and fears from what she’d just endured with Hawkmoth holding her family and Nino hostage that had ultimately brought about Rena Furtive’s improved capability for subterfuge.
She cleared her throat, staying as far away from the action as she could to spot her friends.
“I wish this would work.” She murmured. As if prompted, her hand had faded a bit from view.
If she stuck to the shadows she should be safe to get closer and find some way to help.
It took longer for her to move while remaining in the shadows—fearful her shadow mode might drop without much notice—and to avoid the wild swing of Gorizilla’s massive hulking arms.
It would have been hard enough with just as achy and tired as her body already felt. Being transformed only did so much to bolster her energy, leaving her half out of it.
From the relative safety of the corner of a building, she spotted Chat Noir lingering at the top of the building. Gritting her teeth, she summoned the Mirage and moved it closer.
She’d seen that move from him before, many times over.
Right before he usually tossed himself off a building to ensure that Ladybug was still standing.
Unfortunately, it was all too clear that Alya didn’t seem to be ready yet to enact a play.
Mustering all the strength she could, she pulled him into her arms, firing an image of him out and masking them both so the Akuma chased the illusion instead.
As her arms wrapped around him, her white and golden form manifested from the shadows.
“Rena?” His eyes widened.
Beneath the safety of the mask, Marinette just smiled in reply. “You shouldn’t just give up. You’re smarter than that, Chat Noir.”
His jaw dropped as he pulled back to look at her up close.
Weary as she was, the sudden movement clearly slowed and laborious. That took way more out of her than she’d realized.
Scowling, he immediately jumped in front of her, snagging his baton from the holster and extending it to spin around, fending off a possible attack from the big guy. “Stay safe, okay?”
The new fox holder smiled and nodded before shimmering out of view. Her blue eyes were the last thing to fade away. “You, too.”
Chat Noir smiled, extending her fist for the usual post-battle fist bump. “Glad you called someone else out. It really seemed like we were going to lose for a moment there.”
Grinning, Scarabella returned the gesture. She hadn’t realized anyone else had been out but wisely stayed quiet. After all, there was only one person it could have been. “Glad she was able to help. I wasn’t sure if she was feeling up to it. After I’d given her the Miraculous, I didn’t stay to see her form.”
“She was amazing. Although I didn’t see her for long… Not after she’d tackled me. ” Chat Noir chuckled fondly. “I mean, it was obvious it wasn’t Rena but another fox holder. The blue eyes were a dead give away. The nine-tails, too.”
“Nine tails?”
He nodded. “It’s more common in fox spirits—or really deities sometimes—in some of the East Asian countries' lore and mythology.”
Her eyes widened. Not for the first time, she found herself wondering little details about who was hiding behind Chat Noir’s mask. It was easy enough to usually dismiss him as a flirty clown. But this little nugget of history wasn’t exactly common knowledge…
He grew more quiet and introspective for a full minute before he glanced over at Scarabella. “Although I was surprised to see her.”
Scarabella’s grin widened. “You and me both.”
Chat blinked. “What?”
Scarabella recovered quickly. “She was supposed to stay hidden.”
“Ah,” he sighed. “I’m glad she didn’t.”
“Me too…” Scarabella’s arms crossed over her chest. “Turns out, we really did need her help.”
Chat Noir gazed off in the distance. “I’m pretty sure I must have worked with her before. I must have anyways. She knew all my moves well.”
“Huh?” Scarabella smiled a little too widely, tilting her head. “Really?”
Chat smiled softly. “Unfortunately, when she helped before, she’d revealed who she was. Ladybug would never have called her back.”
Scarabella was stunned. Marinette never said a word about that. “Huh…”
“Only, it must have been her today.”
Scarabella watched him carefully. There wasn’t a thing she could say that wouldn’t make him super suspicious.
Chat fidgeting as both their Miraculous started to beep. “When you get the Miraculous back. Do you think you could say thank you? From me?”
Scarabella smirked. Ever the more pragmatic romantic, she couldn’t be happier for Marinette. Adrien still hadn’t appreciated her as much as she deserved, but Chat Noir somehow found his way to her twice over. “If you give me a day or two, I’ll see if I can arrange for you to tell her yourself.”
By the next day, Marinette was already feeling much better. Alya called just as soon as she was sure that Marinette was awake.
“You know, Marinette. I was thinking.”
A wide smile broke out across Marinette’s face as she held her phone up while she lay back onto the pillows. “Yeah?”
“Maybe we should swap out holders a little bit and see if we can expand the power sets. Your creativity is perfect to try each one at a time and push the limits. Then we have something new to try in battle when called.” Alya peered up, watching her best friend’s reaction carefully.
Marinette inhaled slowly, mulling it over. “That’s not a bad idea, actually.”
Alya beamed. “I thought you’d agree. We could try first with Trixx. You can just bring the Fox Spirit back out for a sprint.”
Marinette shorted. “Why are you calling it that?”
Shrugging, Alya parried. “I can’t exactly call you Rena, now can I?”
“I guess not…”
“Besides, that’s what Chat Noir called you.” She smirked. “When you totally impressed him… Again.”
The loud sigh lingered over the line. “Okay, okay…” Marinette set the phone down in her lap as she rubbed a hand over her face.
Marinette is happy enough to try. “How about we try for tomorrow evening? I am feeling a lot better today, but I’m going to need more energy to do this right.”
Alya grin widened. “Sounds perfect.”
A quick message from the Fox Miraculous sent Adrien scrambling. Scarabella had more than followed through on her promise.
As soon as dinner had ended, he was back up to his room and swinging out his window almost as fast as he could call on Plagg’s transformation.
He was a man on a mission.
Adrien grinned as he walked out of the tiny shop, the chimes of tiny bells on the door heralding his exit.
He walked a few more blocks, a tiny package in hand before he thought it was safe to duck into a quiet alley.
“You’re bringing her flowers?” Plagg gaped at him.
Adrien shrugged. “It’s just to say thank you.”
Plagg’s eyes narrowed. “Uh huh.”
Adrien chuckled. “This new holder actually did save me. She saved us both, really. I was ready to take a dive if I had to, but a knock back from Gorizilla was no joke.”
Plagg sighed heavily. “So, you’re finally moving on from Ladybug?”
“Not quite.” Adrien shook his head. “These aren’t just to be nice to the new holder. They’re buttercups.”
Plagg tilted his head. “Not sure I follow.”
“I think this Fox-holder is Marinette.”
“Wait. I thought Ladybug said she’d never have her back.”
“Maybe. But Scarabella didn’t know that before she handed another Miraculous.”
Blinking, Plagg quickly took a massive bite of his Camembert.
“Marinette might be amazing, but she is really bad at hiding her reactions. If it was her, I’ll know for sure the moment I mention what kind of flowers these are.” He chuckled. “Anyone else would just brush it off and say thank you.”
Plagg finally gulped back the rest of his bite. “Why is it so important for you to know if it is her?”
“I already owe her so much…” Adrien murmured, fingers tracing over the lucky charm in his jeans pocket. “It would help me to know if she might be in battle again. I’m not sure I could stand to see her get hurt.”
Chat Noir beamed. There she is.
Her pale gold figure kept bounding in and out of sight as she raced along the rooftops.
“I was worried about you, you know. Sometimes it seems like you don’t care about yourself enough. Ladybug would hate that.” She frowned, eyeing him with uncertainty. “I would, too.”
He gaped at her. It was shocking —not only to hear these words—to hear it coming from her. Clearly, she really did know him well. Which just meant it was more likely his theory was right. Slowly, his lips curved up into a soft smile. “Really?”
“My gosh…” She frowned, arms crossing over her chest in no small amount of irritation. “Do you not understand just how important you are?”
His eyes softened. “I didn’t think I would matter all that much to you, Marinette.”
Her eyes widened. “What? I mean… I didn’t say…”
“Well, you do shine pretty brightly.”
She punched his shoulder affectionately. But definitely not softly
“I really thought it might be you.” He grinned, rubbing his shoulder for good measure. Not that Plagg couldn't take the hit, but it might garner a little extra sympathy. “There aren’t many people who really know me all that well.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Did you ask Scarabella to set this up?”
His Cheshire grin only widened. “So what if I did. You and I both know you stopped me from jumping before she was ready. ”
“Oh,” she murmured, quietly.
Chat Noir exhaled slowly. “You were kind of the Lucky charm I didn’t realize I needed.” He smiled softly. “I know that I lean on Ladybug a lot. I’m used to trusting in her instincts. She’s faster with the plans that consistently confound Hawkmoth, while I’m always trying to keep up. That day, I was worried that Hawkmoth might see through what Scarabella and I could put together in a pinch. He definitely learns and adjusts his plans.”
“That’s why you want to do more training like this?”
He nodded. “We’ve really been lucky to have been this healthy so far. I will always want to work with Ladybug first and foremost, but it’s even hard for me to get to the scene fast enough some days. Leaning down slightly, he placed the small bouquet into her hands with a crooked smile. “Besides, it was really nice to work with you again, Marinette.”
Gazing up at him in wonder, her hand wrapped around the green tissue paper. His face was the happiest she’s seen him outside of battle in months. He’s punning and smirking. At her.
Nibbling at her lip, she was already struggling to take it all in.
Chat Noir really did manage to keep circling back to her. No matter what she did. He valued her as a friend. He loved her as a partner. But no matter her own feelings for him might be, he knew her well enough to find her as either.
She sniffed the buttercups. But it was also incredibly endearing…
Her heart wasn’t nearly as immune as she wished it were. “You too, Chat Noir.”
“If we could ever persuade Ladybug to let you come back on, I think a little bit of this sort of training would be fun.” He chuckled. His gaze dipped down to the rooftop as his hand snuck up to rub the nape of his neck. “After all, the previous Fox holder did have to give her Miraculous up.”
She flinched, as those words hit like a punch to the gut. How on earth did he piece together that? She’d been very careful and never directly talked to Chat Noir about Rena’s sudden departure as Ladybug…
Besides, the very idea was dangerous. She couldn’t very well separate Alya from Trixx for long in order to keep her safely entrenched as a hidden spy. Nor did she feel comfortable whenever Tikki and her earrings were far away.
Not to mention the fact that more time around him meant it was all the more likely that one or both of them would say something a little too revealing…
She shut her eyes, fighting to keep calm in front of him. There was just too much to hide to keep him safe.
Her eyes opened suddenly, shifting to watch him out of the corner of her eye.
She was Chat Noir’s guardian, too. It fell on her to protect him every bit as much as he did for her.
Especially when he’d just confirmed he wasn’t as good as he should be about protecting himself.
“No promises, Chat Noir.” Inhaling slowly, her fingertips skated over the necklace “But I will ask when I bring this back.”
He smiled softly as he pulled her into a tight but quick hug. “I’m just happy you’re willing to ask. Besides, even if the Miraculous doesn’t work out, I could always use a movie buddy.” He winked. “I’ve heard there is already a Sharktank vs. Mechatiger sequel in the works.”
“You know what?" Her smile widened as she peered up at him. “That sounds really nice.”