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Chapter Text

Master Wang Fu, the last of the Order of the Guardians for the Miraculous, starts in shock when both Wayzz and Longg appear to him suddenly. Wayzz says "Master!" Unfortunately, Wang Fu is in the middle of treating a middle-aged businessman.

So…not an ideal time, even if he can't see or hear the Kwamis.

After quickly getting the latest customer out of the room, Wang Fu turns to Wayzz and Longg expectantly - Wayzz wouldn't have come out of the phonograph if it wasn't important, and something clearly woke Longg up altogether. Wayzz excitedly says "Master, I've sensed the Butterfly aura!"

Fu hums, frowning briefly, and says "But I thought it had been lost forever…" Right along with the Peacock Miraculous and the Spellbook.

Wayzz nods, saying "But master! It is a negative aura! I fear it may have fallen into the hands of an evil-doer!"

Wang Fu decides to go find Nooroo, the Butterfly Kwami, at once…then, when his back quickly protests, he decides he needs some help. Getting to his feet and rubbing his aching back, he asks "And you, Longg?" He wouldn't be out here if it weren't important, the usually-stoic Kwami is looking around excitedly and almost vibrating with anticipation.

Longg says "I, to, felt an aura, Master Fu! Its not the Butterfly Aura, though. Its…something else, I'm not sure what, though! But it is strong!" Strong enough to wake him up as effectively as if he'd downed a triple-shot coffee with extra caffeine. Strong enough to wake up all the other Kwamis as well, with varying degrees of effectiveness - he's actually one of the calmest Kwamis. 

Deciding one more Miraculous in the world with the Cat and Ladybug ones would probably not be a disaster - and that Longg won't go dormant again now that he's been activated by this mysterious aura, he grabs the Ladybug, Cat, and Dragon Miraculous' and heads out. Longg can direct him to this mysterious aura, hopefully.

What Wang Fu finds, deciding to follow Longg first, is…a red-headed girl, with a wary look on her face as she makes her way through the streets and crowds and deeper into the city. She's wary, constantly glancing around at everyone, sizing up people coming towards her and moving along quickly if they stare at her longer than a few moments. And she instantly spots him, her gaze meets his and he gives her a smile and nod before looking away. Deciding there's no good way to set up a meeting between them that she won't immediately catch onto - call it a hunch, he's got a feeling about her, what with the way she's never not observing her surroundings or how she holds herself like she's waiting to strike at any time - he decides to walk straight into her and play it off as an accident.

Unfortunately…some thugs yank him into an alleyway before he can. The obvious leader of the group of four beefy men holds a knife to his face, making him distinctly nervous - he may have decades of fighting experience under his belt, but he's 186 and his back is giving out. Hence why he's even considering activating the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous' in the first place.

Before he can try anything, though, Longg gasps "Its her! She's here, Master Fu!" And then he hears a sharp whistle, and sees that same flaming red-head standing in the alleyway.

Bloom sneers inwardly, these guys are utterly pathetic - mugging a little old man in…what, his seventies? She quickly takes them out, using a little magic to make the one that steps towards her slip and grabbing his knife, tossing it aside, and beating the other three up through magic, reflexes, and the brick walls on either side of them, and helps the old man to his feet. He gives her a grateful smile, and says "Why, thank you, young lady. Might I know your name?"

After considering it for a moment, Bloom introduces herself. "Are you hurt? I counted four of them there."

He shakes his head, saying "No, thanks to you, Bloom."

As she watches, keeping her poker face up the whole time, the small red creature floating around his head says "It's definitely her, Master Fu! She's powerful, I can feel it without even bonding with her!" Keeping her face neutral, Bloom listens to both 'Master Fu' and the green being as they talk - Wang Fu is thanking her again for saving her, inviting her over to his shop for a cup of tea as thanks, while the green creature is talking about how she'd be a good Holder for Longg's Dragon Miraculous and his ghost-thing above his head is agreeing with the assessment.

As they start to walk out of the alley, Bloom conversationally says "You know, Mister Fu, I just heard a rather Miraculous thing. Would you like to hear it?"

Wang Fu stops dead in his tracks, and Wayzz flatly asks "Can she see us?"

Longg says "I think she can see us."

Wang Fu's ghost above his head, which Bloom can see for literally everyone bar herself, says "She shouldn't be able to see the Kwami's."

Smirking to herself, Bloom says "It was about dragons, turtles, and Kwami's, you see. I can see them, by the way. And hear them."

Wang Fu drops the benign old man act, and asks "How did you hear about them?" This should be IMPOSSIBLE! He's been the Guardian of the Miraculous' for decades now, there's no way he's let anything slip now!

Bloom snorts derisively, and says "I just found out." Honestly, having the two of them flying around his head is a little conspicuous.

Wang Fu sighs in relief, and says "You have a powerful aura about you, Bloom. That's what drew Longg here to you."

Bloom's look freezes instantly, and she carefully asks "How do you know about that?" She's managed to keep her secret - her dangerous, wild magic that likes to lash out with her temper and that she spent the last four years learning to control - all this time being stranded here in Paris, but somehow this guy and his…his Kwami found her.

Either she's slipping - which she's pretty sure she isn't, else the police would've already come after her by now - or these Kwami's are perceptive indeed.

She comes away from that particularly strange encounter a cell phone and one black necklace with an orange bead the color of her hair and her magic richer, and an overly-formal Kwami named Longg who spends the rest of the walk to her new school talking her ear off about what powers he can grant her, how to transform into a superhero outfit, how nobody should be able to recognize her since part of the Miraculous' magic is concealing their identities, and what's apparently going down.

What's going down being…a bad guy got his hands on a Miraculous that'll give him the ability to turn others into supervillains as well. Bloom internally groans, great…

Marinette whips her head around when a new voice asks "Who made you the seat police?" It's the new girl, with brilliant red hair the color of flames done up in a ponytail and piercing blue eyes. Eyes firmly locked onto Chloe with a glare that would make most people run away.

Chloe, on the other hand, casually says "Ooh, look Sabrina, we got a little do-gooder in our class this year. What're you gonna do, super-newbie, shoot lasers out of your eyes at me?"

Sabrina laughs that fake laugh, and Bloom instantly decides she downright hates these two bullies. Don't punch her in the face, don't throttle her, don't set her on fire…

Just like Mitzi, putting everyone down to make herself feel better. She's got to find a way to vent her temper before her rising magic does so instead, so she schools her face into a sharp smirk, and says "Actually, I'd set you on fire with just a thought, if it wouldn't be a waste of time, effort, and energy. You're hardly worth it. C'mon, lets go just to spare our ears."

Once they get to their seats, leaving Chloe sputtering in outrage - and Bloom catching the box of macaroons before they can hit the floor - Marinette says "I wish I could handle her like you can."

Bloom shrugs, and says "Stand up for yourself, that's all. You just need some more confidence in yourself."

Marinette opens the box, and says "Thanks. I'm Marinette."

Bloom takes a Macaroon, and says "Back at you. I'm Bloom." And these Macaroons are the bomb! She's got to find out where Marinette got them!

Adrien - rather, Cat Noir, as he's going by in his superhero guise - dodges the rock-monster's attacks, muttering "C'mon, partner, where are you? Either of you?!" Plagg, his Kwami, said he'd be getting two partners, and he did meet one of them…when she fell out of the sky and tied them both up by accident. And introduced herself as 'madly clumsy' right after.

And then he stumbles, accidentally losing his footing, and sees a giant fist coming down at him…only for it to never make an impact. When he opens his eyes, Cat Noir sees the fist has been wrapped up in ropes that look like they're made out of fire, restraining it from behind the rock-creature.

When he rolls out of the way, he sees a girl with flaming red hair in a ponytail, wearing a bright red suit styled like dragon scales, lined with flaming orange and black, with the flaming ropes looking like they're coming from her fists as she holds onto them, digging in her heels to keep that fist from coming down on him.

Woah…

He calls over "You must be my other partner! Name's Cat Noir!"

"Dragon Fyre, nice to meet you!" And that would be when Stoneheart yanks his arm forward, making her go flying forward. "Ahh!"

Cat Noir winces slightly as she gets dragged across the football field and makes a gouge in the ground, the fire-ropes apparently being turned against her due to this guy's sheer size. And then his ladybug-themed partner arrives, biting her lip and saying "That looked like it hurt…"

Yes, Cat Noir agrees, it really looked like it hurt. "So, we've got a ten-foot-tall guy made entirely out of rock, directly attacking him makes him bigger…and I'm out of ideas. Her name's Dragon Fyre, by the way."

"Great…" Marinette doesn't know what to do, she's not cut out for being a superhero! She's not even sure this 'Guardian' even made the right choice giving her the Ladybug Miraculous!

And then Dragon Fyre calls over "Hey! Little help, you two! Think of some way to get whatever it is he's holding out of his hand! That's got to be where the Akuma is!" When they look over, she's got an orange shield in the shape of a bubble surrounding her, as Stoneheart pounds away on it and sinks it a little deeper each blow.

Marinette thinks for a minute, then says "Alright, I've got an idea. Trust me?"

Cat Noir nods, and then she…throws him through the air by his ankles, getting him caught once more in this guy's grasp. This girl's crazy!

And then swings up as well, getting herself caught in the other hand and forcing him to let go of what he was holding in the process. And then Dragon Fyre says "Ok, I'm seeing your plan! Hey, big guy! You dropped something!" When the other two heroes look over, they see she's got what looks a bit like a purple rock floating above her hand.

Cat Noir conversationally asks "You think that's her special power? Or the fire?" Dragons, fire, makes as much sense as anything else that's happening. Still, both his partners are crazy...crazy-awesome! That was awesome!

And then Dragon Fyre turns her open hand into a fist, effectively crushing the object and freeing a black butterfly that must be the Akuma. Stoneheart crumbles immediately, revealing Ivan lying there amongst the rubble.

Dragon Fyre catches the Akuma in an orange bubble, and hangs back as her two partners help Ivan and celebrate their first supervillain being defeated. "Aren't you forgetting something, Ladybug?"

The dark-blue-haired girl blinks, asking "Uh…what?"

"Well, aside from the detail that we only get five minutes to disappear once we use our special powers…" She holds out the bubble the Akuma is still trapped in, and sardonically adds "Pests multiply, haven't you heard? We don't catch one of these at first, we gotta deal with an army of them. And, incidentally, you're the only one that can deal with them."

Ladybug, as she's apparently been dubbed, groans and says "Uh…what now?! You two can't…"

Dragon Fyre shrugs, and says "Maybe burning the butterfly would work, but you're the one that has the power to reverse what these things do to people. And keep the butterfly alive, anyway. Your special power also reverses any and all damages they've done." She's not sure if she could put an entire city back together with her magic, but it sounds utterly exhausting.

Ladybug uses her Yo-Yo on the Butterfly to purify it, then her Miraculous Cure to fix everything, then asks "Don't you have to get going soon, Dragon Fyre? Our identities must remain a secret."

Dragon Fyre rolls her eyes, and says "To the public, yeah, but I'm not seeing much problem in us knowing each other's identities." Besides, she already knows Ladybug is Marinette, neither her hair or eyes changed with her transformation. "But, whatever floats your boat, I guess. I think I'll let you two figure it out, if you don't want me to just tell you who the other is." She gets not putting a target on their families, but...that doesn't really apply to her, does it?

Ladybug and Cat Noir gape at her, and Ladybug asks "You know-"

"Who you are? Uh…yeah, I do. In all fairness, though, I'm more observant than most. And the Concealment magic that the Kwamis or the Miraculous' have doesn't seem to work on me. Cat's identity is safe for now, since it's the first time I've seen him before, but don't expect it to last very long. As for my own time limit…I'm set for a while." Not only does she generate the fire, and not Longg, but she can give him extra energy with her own magic. Something only adults are supposed to be able to do, one of the perks of being her. Also, she didn't use any of Longg's own special abilities.

They learn from Ivan that a guy calling himself 'Hawk Moth' gave him the superpowers, but he doesn't remember anything after knocking on the principle's door.

Dragon Fyre smirks, and says "Well, boys and girls, its been fun…but I'm off. See you later…maybe. Longg, Wind Dragon." And then she just vanishes, apparently turning into thin air.

Cat Noir says "Longg, huh? I'll just ask my own Kwami about him tonight, I guess."

Chapter Text

Plagg stares up at Adrien and asks "Longg? Are you sure she said Longg?" He shares a mental connection with his Chosen when transformed, but there's a possibility that he could've misheard. The chances of both himself and Adrien mishearing the name are slim, but its not impossible.

Adrien says "Specifically, she said 'Longg, Wind Dragon' and then vanished."

"Alright, definitely him. But…Longg doesn't have any power over fire. Storms, and all that come with them, actually. Ironic, for a dragon."

Adrien asks "Uh…come again?!" Because he's really certain she was using fire, not lightning, to restrain Stoneheart's fist.

Plagg nods, and says "Water, wind, and lightning. Not fire."

"So…how did she do that with the ropes?!"

Plagg just shrugs, eating another of those stinky Camembert cheese wedges, and says "Not a clue. I do know, though, that before Tikki and I were given to you and Ladybug, he sensed something. We all did, actually. A powerful aura, one that he was the most in tune with - again, ironic, since it was all hot and fiery. It could be that Dragon Fyre already had the fire powers, you know."

"That doesn't make any sense though, Plagg! How could someone already have fire powers?" He thought the Miraculous' gave them all their powers, not the other way around!

Plagg just shrugs once more, pops another piece of stinky cheese into his mouth, and says "Beats me. All I know is that my brother was all excited last I saw him." He was also one of the few Kwamis that wasn't on some kind of power-high from sensing that aura - Sass was trying to get Roarr, Orikko, Trixx, and Kaalki to stop chasing one another around at high speeds, Stompp and Ziggy were wrestling and throwing one another around, and Fluff was bouncing all over the place like a bouncy-ball on the commercial he just saw five minutes ago.

And he could sense the same aura while Adrien was Cat Noir, but muted and distant - seems it doesn't affect him as much when he's in the Miraculous. Which will be good, considering the origin of that owner is now one of his latest Cat's partners.

Marinette stares at Tikki in confusion, asking "So…who is she then?!"

Tikki shrugs, eating the Macaroon she's holding, and says "Don't know, sorry Marinette. She is powerful, though. And I'm sure she has a good heart, she wouldn't have been chosen if she didn't. Longg was with us for years, so she must've been."

"Ngh," Marinette groans, "she also said she knew my secret identity, right off the bat!"

"Well, maybe she's someone close to you? Aside from the detail that it shouldn't even be possible, since the Miraculous' makes it so the owners' identities are concealed."

Marinette just shrugs, and says "I'll keep an eye out, but I'm not sure. Orange hair and eyes does stand out, though…" She couldn't quite believe it when she saw it, orange irises that looked for a moment like they were on fire, and had vertical irises to boot - of course, Cat Noir's eyes weren't exactly human either so maybe its just part of her own outfit.

Bloom glances around her warehouse in relief, everything's exactly like she left it - which means nobody's figured out she's been living in an abandoned clothing warehouse filled with old clothes. She found this place by pure accident, sheer dumb luck, and she's fairly certain she wouldn't get so lucky a second time. Which is why she's always been so careful, she hasn't even gone to public school until now because she didn't want anyone asking any questions. Online courses were easy to get into, and easy to complete in a few weeks, so she was able to keep her education going...but she finally decided she'd had enough of being lonely and got herself enrolled in the closest public school.

Shaking her head to get rid of her rapidly-spiraling thoughts, Bloom floats herself about an inch off the ground as she walks, leaving no footprints in the thick layer of dust as she heads to the secret attic she created in the ceiling. Moving her fingers forward as she points towards the hidden opening in the boards of the ceiling, she slides it open and calls the rope down so she can climb up.

When she gets up there, its all thankfully the same as when she left for public school today; beanbag bed is just like she left it, her drawings of her dead parents are still pinned to the wall, her cooler full of various snacks and easy-to-make foods and water bottles is still as full as she left it, and her makeshift closet - a pole melted to the walls where she hangs the outfits she's found down there that she likes or modified until she likes - still has everything on it. Which means nobody's found her yet, thankfully.

Letting out a deep breath, she murmurs "Clear the Skies, Longg." Her clothes shift back to the outfit she wore for school today, and Longg looks around in apparent concern as he exits the necklace. "Bloom…this is where you live?"

Bloom nods, and says "Yeah. Home sweet home…" Except its not. She found this abandoned warehouse, one of Gabriel Argeste's old storage spots that was abandoned for whatever reason, four years ago after those four weirdos killed her parents and left her with magic she couldn't control. Its taken four hard years, but she's more or less got it under control…most of the time.

She can do just about anything she can imagine - mirages for instance, or what she based on mirages, illusions maybe? - and a few things she didn't even know she could. Its how she got into school here, she somehow…made them add her onto the list. She just wanted them to put her on, and then their eyes flashed orange and it happened. She's not proud of it, of being able to make someone do what she wants just by willing it to happen…but she's not stupid enough to think she won't need to do it again either. Also, she's not even sure just how it happened or why.

Longg asks "How did you end up here? Where are your parents?"

Bloom sighs, not particularly wanting to answer his questions but not wanting to lose him either, and says "I found it by accident. Its an old clothing warehouse. I can magically modify the clothes to fit me, and I can get anything else I need out in the city." She certainly didn't want to be a thief when she grew up - an artist, actually - but she didn't have much choice. She doesn't take much - granola bars, dried fruit bags, beef jerky, or microwave meals mostly - and never anything that would cause an uproar, but that doesn't mean she likes it, or doesn't feel guilty about it. How else is she supposed to get food when she legally can't work, has no money, and no way of improving her situation?

What's a ten-year-old supposed to do, go to the police and tell them she and her parents were visiting Paris for a family vacation, got ambushed by four weirdos that looked like they were the start of a goth gang or some biker thugs, and they had magic?

At best, they'd think she made it up - at worst, they'd think she was crazy. Especially since she had no idea where they went, or how they did the things they did - one was fast, one strong, one turned into animals, and one was creepy as all get out. And all of them were insane.

She wasn't what they wanted, whatever it is they wanted, so they disappeared…after her parents were killed and she was put into some kind of wormhole only to get spit back out of it and into the La Seine River. And then she caught fire when she got out of the water, magic of her own now very much active in her.

Adrien looks up in shock when a vaguely familiar voice asks "What do you think your doing?!"

Ladybug? When he turns around, though, it's a blue-haired girl glaring at him in total outrage.

She crosses her arms, glare increasing, and snaps "Oh, haha, very funny you three."

"No, no, I was trying to take this off…" She clearly doesn't believe him, even as Chloe and Sabrina start laughing mockingly.

And then a second girl pushes past him - a girl with flaming red hair in a ponytail, an orange satin scrunchie the same color as her hair holding it up, and piercing blue eyes - takes one look at the gum on the seat, and calls over "Chewed-up gum on the seat, really? Could the two of you be any less mature if you actively tried?" She then picks the gum up off the seat - as though it was dry, Adrien notices - and flicks it over towards the garbage can where it lands perfectly.

The blue-haired girl says "This guy was in on it to, Bloom. He was the one putting it on." The blue-haired girl sits down roughly, pulling Bloom with her, but the red-head looks over at him…and shock flits over her features for the briefest instant.

"No," she says a minute after, not missing a beat, "it was all Chloe and Sabrina. He's new, so he wouldn't have any reason to actively single you out before even seeing you or where you sit, Marinette. If I had to take a guess, I'd say this is the famous Adrien they were being such brats about yesterday." Bloom glances at Chloe and Sabrina, and sees Chloe's going a very amusing shade of red. "She's probably his best friend because she's his only friend. Because I seriously doubt he'd choose a shallow, self-centered spoiled rich brat if he had any other options available to him."

Chloe growls, pushing her seat back to teach Bloom a lesson…only to have her feet fly out from under her as soon as she gets in the aisle, landing on her behind with a solid thud. The entire classroom erupts into laughter at that.

Adrien sits down next to his desk-mate again, who says "Dude, you want to know why everyone keeps saying 'your friends with Chloe?' That's why, right there. Bloom Peters' description of her. Why didn't you say it was all Chloe's idea with the gum in the first place?"

Adrien sighs, and says "I've known Chloe since we were little kids. I know she's not perfect - far from it, really - but for so long she's been my only friend. Just like Bloom said." And how Bloom knew that is another mystery, but not one he wants to deal with right now. While he'd like to say there's more to Chloe than Bloom's description…he's got no actual proof of it. He's not even sure there is anything more to her than Bloom's description.

After a minute, the boy in the red cap says "Well, I'm Nino, and I think its time you made some new friends." Adrien smiles gratefully, shaking Nino's hand at once.

Bloom, meanwhile, is trying to decide if the universe has a sick sense of humor or not. Her two partners are also two of her classmates, and one is Adrien Agreste. He the son of Gabriel Agreste, the owner of the abandoned warehouse she lives in. And he's Chloe's friend.

Wonderful.

At least he's more than Chloe made him sound like - daddy's boy, superstar, and her best friend.

When Adrien gets back into his room, after being told he'd be allowed to go to school so long as his bodyguard drives him and picks him up, he keeps his grades impeccable, and makes no trouble whatsoever, he finds a note in his bag that definitely wasn't there when he got into school. And the words look like they're burned onto the paper.

'CN, destroy this note somehow after you're finished with it, leave no trace behind. There's a quarry 10 miles east of the city. 7:00 pm. DF.'

Dragon Fyre somehow planted this note in her things sometime during school. Which means…she knows his secret identity now to. Adrien breathes out "Looks like she wasn't joking…" He's not sure whether to be relieved or worried.

Plagg takes one look at the note, and says "Uh…no. Looks like she wasn't joking." He sensed Dragon Fyre's aura all through school, seeing as they're in the same class at school, somehow he can't bring himself to be very surprised she found them so quickly.

Adrien incredulously asks "How did she even know who I am, though?!"

"Aside from the detail that pictures of you are all over the city from what I saw on that run to school? She's got magic."

"Alright, fair enough…"

'L, destroy this note somehow after your finished with it, leave no trace behind. There's a quarry 10 miles east of the city. 7:00 pm. DF.'

Marinette stares at the note in utter shock, Dragon Fyre was in the school with her. That might be how she knew her secret identity, honestly. She can already feel a massive headache coming on…

Tikki says "Only one thing to do, I guess. Head to this meeting." There's no use freaking out about the detail that Dragon Fyre apparently knows her Chosen's identity - especially since Marinette didn't do anything at all that would've given her away and by all accounts the Concealment magic of the Miraculous' should've worked once more. Also, Dragon Fyre has magic of her own...and is in the same class as Marinette.

That would do it.

Ladybug lands in the quarry Dragon Fyre wrote about, and sees she's already there…levitating a gigantic boulder five feet in the air. "Uh…" Now that is one heck of a superpower!

Even though Tikki said Longg couldn't have granted it to her.

"Me-wow, now that is some crazy stuff." Ladybug looks around, and sees Cat Noir balancing on the end of his staff.

"Tell me about it," she mutters, "she's just one big mystery, huh?"

Cat Noir chuckles, and says "You don't know the half of it. Did you get a note in your things to?"

"So, looks like she wasn't joking when she said she knew my identity…and that she'd know yours soon."

The boulder suddenly drops with a loud bang, getting both their attentions - they see her swing a sword, releasing a wave of fire, but it only shaves the top of the stone. "Oh, dangit! Why can't I do both?!"

Ladybug walks over, asking "What're you trying to do?"

Dragon Fyre whirls around, one fist on fire, then relaxes and says "Multitask, basically. Hold up a giant boulder and cut it in half. Two different tasks, much harder than just one or the other. Especially given the size of the boulder."

Cat Noir glances at the flat top of the giant rock, and says "Well, it seems pretty impressive no matter what."

Dragon Fyre just shrugs, and says "I'm just glad it does what I want, some days."

Ladybug asks "So, why did you, er…call us out here?"

Dragon Fyre smirks, and says "One word. Training." At Cat Noir's look, she adds "What, you thought we were just going to magically be good at fighting overnight?"

Cat Noir shrugs, and says "Well, you sure seemed to be…" Plus, he was dodging all of Stoneheart's attacks fairly easily.

Dragon Fyre shakes her head, saying "No. The Miraculous' give us enhanced strength, speed, and endurance, but that doesn't mean you suddenly have the experience to fight. Or that you actually know how to fight. I suddenly gained magic over the course of an hour one night, yet I didn't just know how to use it."

"So…we're gonna fight?"

"We're gonna spar, big difference. No powers, so we don't time out, but everything else goes."

Ladybug immediately says "No magic on us, then!"

Dragon Fyre smirks, and says "Alright, then. Hope you two are fast learners!"

They quickly learn Dragon Fyre does have experience in fighting, and won't hold back. She beats them black and blue, in the guise of a training session, but sticks to the rules to the letter - no magic, no secret abilities.

Besides, they both know she's right - they do need to learn to fight if they're ever going to defeat Hawk Moth.

Cat Noir rolls his aching shoulders after his own one on one sparring session with Dragon Fyre - which hurt! - and sits down next to a sore Ladybug while saying "M'Lady, I think Dragon Fyre is a bit intense…"

Ladybug chuckles, and says "No kidding, Kitty. She's not wrong, though. Unfortunately…"

Cat Noir stretches, hearing a few pops in his back, and winces while saying "You got that right, Bugaboo." Ladybug groans at his attempt at flirting, pushing his arm off from around her shoulders and ignoring the rougish smile he sends her way.

The next day in school, Adrien walks into the classroom to find Marinette and Bloom sitting where Chloe and Sabrina usually sit - right behind him. And Chloe's yelling at Bloom, going off on her for…actually, he's not really sure what, precisely. "You think your so great? With your ten-years out of date clothes and your tough act?"

Bloom raises an eyebrow at her, and asks "You think I care what a shallow little girl like you thinks?"

Marinette says "I'm not putting up with your crud anymore, Chloe. And neither is anyone else! So take your attitude and go on, get!"

He gets the chance to apologize to Marinette after school that day, leaving her his umbrella to walk back home with since its pouring rain, and comes away with a happy smile on his face - he's got a friend, a real friend! Two of them, now!

And Ladybug and Dragon Fyre, to - though, they're friends with Cat Noir rather than Adrien Agreste.

Maybe Bloom Peters would like to be his friend to? Still, he's got friends!

Chapter Text

Bloom heads to the shop that 'Master Wang Fu' told her about, and semi-nervously walks in - its been about a week since she and her two classmates got their Miraculous'…and she really wants to know his reasoning for giving the things to three teenagers going through both school and puberty. They're super-powerful magical items that grant people superpowers, after all!

She might be a logical option - magic, can already see the Kwamis, has experience fighting thanks to living on the streets for four years, and whatever magic it is that's supposed to keep their identities safe doesn't work on her for some reason when it comes to keeping other identities secret - but…why Marinette and Adrien? Yeah, they might have the personalities for being superheroes…but not the circumstances! Adrien Agreste is lodged so firmly under his father's thumb that it would take an earthquake to get him out, and Marinette is…Marinette. She's the nicest girl in class, always willing to help out anyone who asks for it, but she's also a clumsy, klutzy, nervous wreck around Adrien. Her crush…who likes Ladybug.

Just thinking about this ridiculous love square that isn't a square makes her want to bash their heads together before ripping off the masks, just to put everyone out of their misery and end the ridiculousness of it. Adrien loves Ladybug's kindness, compassion, smarts, and resourcefulness. Marinette loves Adrien's kindness, honesty…and, to be perfectly honest, how the guy seems to be absolutely perfect.

Perfect manners, perfect grades, stunning looks…Bloom's not the least bit interested in the guy, and she thinks she's being perfectly objective in saying Adrien Agreste seems to have it all. Cat Noir, the hidden side of him, is a lot more relaxed, outgoing, and personable than Adrien, true, but she's putting it down to 'Cat Noir' being Adrien's escape from his father's rules, his outlet to really be himself...even if it's super-charged a little thanks to the Miraculous. And Marinette is much more confident as Ladybug, probably because she isn't worried about what other people will say about her. Bloom's also convinced her Kwami might have some kind of Luck-magic, because she hasn't seen Ladybug take a spill like Marinette does unless its because of an Akuma.

The detail that, as Longg explained it, a Miraculous enhances things about the Holder doesn't hurt either. Hence Cat Noir's over-the-top antics and Ladybug's balance and confidence.

And then she's pulled from her thoughts by a familiar voice asking "Yes? What is it that brings you here, Dragon Fyre?" She sees the elderly little man standing there, Wayzz on his shoulder, and Longg comes out from his own preferred spot in her hair. According to him, it's a bit like a nest right at the base of her ponytail.

Sighing, Bloom says "I've got some questions, actually, and I was hoping you could explain the answers to me." Better than tearing her hair out over it wondering, anyway.

"Ah," Mr. Fu nods, gesturing towards the nearby table where there's a steaming pot of tea already waiting, "take a seat, then. Have a cup of tea, I always find it calms my mind."

Bloom carefully sits down, letting Longg settle on her shoulder, and waits a minute for Mr. Fu to do the same on the other side of the table. After a moment spent staring into her cup of tea, Bloom asks "It's just…I don't understand. Why us?"

Wang Fu raises an eyebrow, and asks "Us?"

"Adrien, Marinette, and I. Before you ask, yes I can just tell its them, they didn't tell me. We're in the same class, after all. Me? I've been living on my own here for the past four years. I've got nobody to come home to, I barely have a home at all - if you can count an abandoned warehouse being used to store ten-year-old clothes a home in the first place - and the first thing my mind jumps to whenever my partners get hurt is making it so that the Akuma can't hurt them again. Adrien, he's nice I admit, but his father controls practically every free minute of his time. As soon as the bell rings, he's out the door for a photoshoot or getting ready for fencing practice. I'm surprised he has any time at all to be Cat Noir, or that he can sneak off to transform with Chloe hanging off his arm half the time! Marinette, again she's perfectly nice, but she's also got almost no self-confidence and is a stammering mess around the boy she's got a crush on. Who just so happens to be Adrien Agreste. I just…I don't get why you chose three people who only have the classes they all attend in common. Or why we can't know each other's identities."

Wang Fu listens to Bloom patiently, letting her run out of steam, and says "I understand it must be confusing, why I picked children to hold the Miraculous' and fight Hawk Moth."

Bloom nods, and says "The way Longg here talked about it, he made it sound like the world was at stake."

Wang Fu nods, and says "He carries the Butterfly Miraculous, one thought lost forever. You know that he uses it to Akumatize people into Supervillains, uses their negative emotions and offers them power in exchange for getting him the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous'."

Bloom nods, and asks "So…why entrust the literal fate of the world to…three teenagers? And more than that, three teenagers who are so different from one another? Two of whom don't even know who the others are?" She's really not getting it. Why can't they know who they're working with? They don't have to tell anyone else, just keep it between the three of them, and it would probably make a lot of things easier - they could cover for one another, set up a time to meet, etc.

So why can't they know?

Wang Fu sighs, seeing that this is the big question on her mind, and says "I did not make that rule, Bloom Peters. It is one that has been passed down from Guardian to Guardian, in the Order that guarded the Miraculous' for centuries. As you must know, by now, Hawk Moth can Akumatize people, and communicate with them telepathically. Were one of you successfully Akumatized, he could make you hand them over easily. Or your Miraculous, should he know who you are."

Bloom blinks in shock, her expression turning to horror, and she asks "If he wants the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous' so much…"

"Why activate them?"

Bloom nods silently - she doesn't want to sound rude or ungrateful, but still. Bringing out exactly what this Hawk Moth wants, making it nothing more than two needles in the haystack that is Paris for him to search for, that seems….kinda ridiculously stupid, actually. Why not hide the Miraculous', bring out two different ones?

Wang Fu sighs, and says "Unfortunately, the Ladybug Miraculous is the only one that can undo the damage that Hawkmoth causes. Only Ladybug can purify the Akumas, or reverse what damage they've caused. As to the identities of your partners…" Wang Fu sighs, shaking his head as he takes a mouthful of his tea, and says "It is an old rule, one I didn't understand the reasoning behind until recently as no situation like this has ever arisen before to my knowledge. If your identities were revealed to the public, your enemies could use your loved ones as leverage to obtain your Miraculous. And we've gone over how Hawk Moth could pry it out of your minds, should he get the chance."

Bloom sighs, figures Hawk Moth would be able to do something like that - she already knew that bit about their families being used, her partners' families anyway, but the bit about ripping it straight out of their minds is news to her. She groans, rubbing her temples to ease a building migraine, then asks "So…why do I know? Longg said there's some kind of magic that conceals the identity of a Miraculous Holder, along with the Miraculous itself. Keeps people from connecting the dots, so to speak. But…it just doesn't seem to work on me. I can see Kwamis, I could immediately tell that Ladybug is also the girl I sit next to in class, Cat Noir's voice is near-identical to Adrien Agreste's and his eyes are the same color. I…why am I different?"

Why has she been different ever since that night on the bridge? Those four creeps sucked her into that weird wormhole, only for her to get flooded with so much heat she was probably on fire in there…and then it spit her out into water she could barely feel, a current taking her downstream even as she heard yelling. She doesn't know, has never known what that wormhole did to her - if it gave her these fire powers or if she already had them and they just woke up - and something tells her she'll never find out.

Especially since she has no intention of ever trying to track them down, or doing anything other than unleashing a fiery demise on the four of them if she ever sees them again.

Two hours and four pots of tea later, along with a plate of small sandwiches, Bloom leaves Mr. Fu's shop with a racing head and a heavy heart - seems her magic and her personality makes her the ideal Holder for the Dragon Miraculous, as its more focused on attack and defense rather than strategy, but her magic lets her see right through the concealment magic of the Miraculous' as well as augments her own ability to fight.

Which is extremely annoying, then, when all Hawk Moth would need to do to get that information would be successfully Akumatizing her - apparently, it can be fought off…not easily, it takes a great strength of will, but there have been a few recorded cases where exceptionally strong-willed people rejected the Butterfly Miraculous' effects.

She's not sure if her own magic will help or not, and she's not eager to find out. She could lose control and destroy everything, for all she knows.

Also, some girl in the other 10th grade class - Alya, Bloom thinks is her name - has started a website called the 'Ladyblog' to document them, record Akuma attacks, and potentially…figure out their secret identities.

GREAT! As if we don't have enough to worry about, between the timers, Hawk Moth, and school…

What she needs, Bloom decides, is to head to the park and start sketching. Drawing always takes her mind off things.

Chapter Text

Bloom gets to Marinette's place, hoping to get her and Adrien to talk if nothing else - the girl has been stammering nonstop around him ever since the second day of school, which was weeks ago, its driving her up the wall considering she knows who they are.

Marinette/Ladybug likes Adrien, but Adrien/Cat Noir likes Ladybug. In short, it's the most ridiculous love 'square' she's ever heard of…and its not even really a square. Its incredibly frustrating, these past few weeks they've been training, going to school, and fighting Akumatized Supervillians, and it sincerely makes her want to out the two of them in private just to end the pain sometimes.

When the door gets opened, though, she sees Marinette looking like she's ready to scream, a five or six-year-old girl jumping around the place. Tilting her head to the side, Bloom says "So, uh, Adrien's doing a photoshoot in the park, and I thought you might want to go say hi…" Or whatever version of 'hi' she could get out, anyway.

Marinette winces, and says "I forgot about this little detail…"

Bloom rolls her eyes, and says "Let me guess, you just couldn't say no."

Marinette groans, and nods her head while explaining how she agreed to babysit the daughter of one of her mom's friends.

Bloom lets out a breath, and says "Alright, then. How about this? If Manon here behaves, we can go for ice cream and have a round or two on the merry-go-round near the park."

Manon agrees with a cheer, and they head off. Marinette takes one look at Adrien, though, and completely freezes. Because he's currently at his best, doing a photoshoot with the charming smile, perfect looks likely enhanced by some subtle makeup, and the fountain spraying water behind him.

Bloom facepalms silently, and says "Alright, Mari. I can see this is going to be harder than I thought." And she already thought it was going to be hard, what with her being reduced to stammering every time she looks at the guy all through the school year.

Marinette gets a lovestruck smile, saying "Well, I was thinking we could casually walk by, invite him for a smoothie-"

Bloom cuts off the ramble right there, saying "Alright, let's stop there. Short-term, Marinette." Focusing on one small goal is how she managed not to either literally implode with grief thanks to her magic or go too hard, too fast, too soon and try something she absolutely couldn't handle as she's been learning to control her magic. Baby-steps were the only steps she felt even remotely comfortable taking when she was a living fire-hazard and once gave herself a concussion and made a decent hold in the quarry wall when she got frustrated when she couldn't figure out how to work her magic.

Marinette blushes brightly, and says "Right, short-term…"

They end up watching Adrien as he continues with the Photoshoot, Marinette not responding to anything, so Bloom sighs and says "Alright, ladies, lets go sit in the shade. Manon, you want me to draw you something? I'm good with charcoal." Mainly because nobody notices if a piece of charcoal goes missing here and there. Plus, she can make some soot or a burn mark on the paper to make an alteration.

Manon lets out a disappointed 'Aw!' but follows anyway, with requests to draw unicorns, cute bunnies, and Ladybug, Dragon Fyre, and Cat Noir. Especially Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Dragon Fyre. She's flattered, really.

Bloom chuckles, and says "Alright then. Ladybug, Dragon Fyre, and Cat Noir it is."

Of course, then…some crazy-haired lady flies up and starts changing the weather insanely. Figures.

Cat Noir lands on top of the fence next to the weather-changing girl with the parasol, and says "Hey, Ice Queen. What's with all the terrorizing? Why don't you pick on someone your own temperature?"

She snarls "My name's not 'Ice Queen' its Stormy Weather!"

Cat Noir slides down the pole easily, saying "Listen, I'm feline more generous than usual today, so cool off and we'll call it quits, 'kay?" She gives him an unimpressed glower, points her parasol at him, and unleashes what he swears is a directed typhoon at him that sends him flying. Straight into several cars like a pinball ball.

Ouch…

Ladybug lands next to him right then, and gives him a hand up saying "I thought cats always landed on their feet."

Cat Nir smiles, saying "Thank you, M'Ladybug, but I had it covered."

He moves to kiss the back of her hand, but she pushes his face back by the tip of his nose while saying "No time for your childish charm, Cat Noir. But, your welcome."

And then Stormy Weather flies down and sneers, then says "Forecast calls for a lightning storm - right now!" She raises her parasol to the sky, which then gets suddenly covered in dark storm clouds…and a bolt of lightning suddenly heads straight for Cat Noir! Ladybug tackles him out of the way, making them both roll until they land with him straddling her somehow.

The first thought that goes through Cat Noir's mind is that Ladybug smells like Vanilla and Cinnamon - he would've thought that a Ladybug-themed hero would smell like grass or something, honestly, instead of a highly successful bakery - and the second is that he could lean down and kiss her. She must see the thoughts written all over…well, what part of his face she can see, because she gives him an unimpressed look. He responds with a sheepish smile, and she turns his head to make him look at Stormy Weather flying upwards once more.

And then she gets tackled back to the earth by an orange and red blur, a familiar voice furiously yelling "You like to play with lightning, do you?!"

Cat Noir chuckles, and says "Looks like Dragon Fyre got a little held up, M'Lady." Usually, he'd be spitting mad about someone trying to deep-fry his Ladybug, but Dragon Fyre's anger is much worse than his own. And much deadlier, to. They've decided the Hogwarts motto of 'never tickle a sleeping dragon' is much more serious than at first glance after working with Dragon Fyre

He pulls them both to their feet, steadying Ladybug with a hand at her waist pulling her closer - which gets pushed off with an annoyed, 'really, now?' look from her, he couldn't resist - and they turn...to see Stormy Weather surrounded by...a bolt of lightning?

A bolt of lightning that keeps swirling around her, zapping her and getting frustrated screams out of the angry girl. And then it turns back into Dragon Fyre, who delivers a roundhouse kick to Stormy Weather's side from behind and knocks her down.

Cat Noir finds himself without any of his usual quips and puns, and simply says "Me-wow. My Lady, please smack me upside the head if I'm ever about to get on her bad side like that." He means that perfectly seriously, he'd rather his Lady smacked him upside the head and dragged him away rather than face an orange-eyed Dragon Fyre about to go off on him.

Ladybug instantly says "Noted. Stop me from doing the same?" Were Dragon Fyre any less scary in her anger, Cat Noir would think up some very interesting ways to do as much - as it is, he's settling for clapping his hand over her mouth and dragging his Lady away from Dragon Fyre if such a situation arises.

And then Dragon Fyre manages to knock Stormy Weather into a car, kicking her parasol away from her while yelling "Break it and catch the bug!"

Ladybug breaks the parasol, and quickly catches the Akuma, de-evilizes it, and reverses the damage…bar an angry Dragon Fyre, that is. That's something not even the Ladybug Miraculous can reverse, as they've found out - the effects, yes, but not the detail that she's feeling like blowing something up. And it scales upwards with how bad a she thinks they've been hurt. They figure she goes to that quarry she knew about a lot.

She has a fast temper, but only uses it and her magic on the supervillains…and she's oddly possessive of what she deems 'hers' - like them, for example. Say…if a supervillain tries to fry them crispy with a gigantic bolt of lightning. Apparently, she named herself 'Dragon Fyre' for a number of reasons, having the Dragon Miraculous not even being the first of them.

They honestly don't know much about her - well, that's not quite true, they know plenty about her personality, the kinds of attacks she can do with her own magic that has nothing to do with Longg, and how she's a very independent person - but they know enough. They know she's got little patience for Cat Noir's flirting when there's a villain to fight, they know she's very smart…and they know they can trust her with their lives. She wouldn't deliberately hurt them, would probably kill for them if it came down to it, and she's patched them up after a fight with an Akuma enough times that they know she cares in her own unique way. She's rough around the edges, no question there, but she at least makes an effort for them.

Its more than anyone's done in a long time for Cat Noir, so he relishes it even with Dragon Fyre's independent nature. If Ladybug is the love of his life - she is, she absolutely is, as he's come to realize over the past few weeks - Dragon Fyre is like the sister he's always wanted and never had. Someone that'll stick up for him, someone who'll be there, no matter if it's easy or not.

Not like his flake of a father, who's more invested in his company than his own son's life - a hundred broken promises later, and Adrien's learned that much. The man became a completely different person after his mom disappeared, Adrien hardly recognizes him some days.

Marinette sighs in relief, nearly going weak-kneed when Bloom comes back with Manon. "Oh, thankyouthankyouthankyou..."

Bloom says "See? I took her back to your place and told her not to come out unless it was one of us calling for her. Meanwhile, I was going to keep watch and maybe lead weather-girl away if she came that way." It made her a bit late to find Stormy Weather, but it wasn't like she could just ditch Manon in the park with an Akuma flying around. She'd probably run off, get frozen solid, and Marinette would get in massive trouble.

Bloom, Marinette decides, is utterly brilliant.

They head back to the park, and see Adrien is back at his Photoshoot now that the danger has passed, and Bloom says "Go on, they still need an extra for the photos."

Unfortunately…the director picks Manon as the extra, making for some adorable photos…but leaving Marinette out entirely.

Bloom pats Marinette on the shoulder, and says "Someday, Mari, someday…" But even she's wondering when that day is - Marinette had the nerve, she wasn't about to back out…but Manon, the seven-year-old, got picked instead.

Chapter Text

Nino blows a few bubbles, asking "Seriously, dude, was your dad always such a downer? You'd think he'd at least remember what it was like to be young and want to party." It's his bro's birthday, and the old man won't even let him have a party?!

Adrien sighs, and dejectedly says "No, I'm pretty sure he was a downer back then, to. Well, at least I tried." Again, for the fourteenth year in a row - he'd thought, just for a minute, that things would be different this time. That, since he had friends, since his dad had let him go to school like he wanted…he might get to celebrate his birthday, really celebrate it. Its not like he wants to get blackout drunk or anything, he just wants a birthday party like everyone else!

But…no, his father doesn't think it would be a good idea. At least, that's what Nathalie said.

Maybe I can talk Ladybug into doing something on Patrol tonight…

Maybe they can…get some cookies or something? From Marinette Dupain-Cheng's father's bakery? Her father apparently makes the best stuff in the city, from cakes to pastries to cookies, but he's never actually had anything like that either. Its not on his cardboard-diet his father keeps him on to keep him photoshoot-ready.

And then Marinette Dupain-Cheng stumbles into sight, looking distinctly like someone - probably Bloom - pushed her forward. At least it takes his mind off the depressing spiral his thoughts have been going in all day, right? She quickly rights herself, clearly hiding something behind her back, and shyly says "Um, hey…"

Adrien smiles, and says "Hey…" And then she starts jumbling up her words again, blushing as she tries to get a coherent sentence out while trying not to drop whatever it is behind her back.

And then Chloe barges in, cutting Marinette off and pushing her out of the way - Adrien's pretty sure he heard the word 'gift' in there somewhere, but it's honestly a toss-up given everything she tried to say - and sending her flying to the ground. After assuring him that she sent him a gift, and that the delivery guys must've been slacking off in delivering it, she's off…and he's got a photoshoot to go to. On his birthday…again. His birthday isn't even about him, it's about work.

Oh joy...

Bloom watches as Marinette tries to get the very sealed mailbox open, wondering whether or not trying to yank it open with magic would be worth it or not, and says "Look, clearly the box itself isn't going to just pop open like that, Marinette. Try, I dunno…the doorbell?" The doorbell that Marinette brushed off at once, at that.

"What?! No, no, what if Adrien answers?"

Bloom immediately deadpans "He's at his photoshoot, Marinette." She pushes the doorbell, and…what looks like an electronic eye of sorts comes out of the wall.

"Hello? Who is this?" Bloom would be kind of creeped out at the female monotone coming from the speaker, but she's seen way creepier things at this point. An Akuma coughing up a hoard of black butterflies so Hawk Moth could send the three of them a message, for instance. And a giant black wolf with demonic red eyes, blood dripping from his muzzle.

Marinette jumps, then nervously tries to explain why they're here. Bloom sighs, steps over so she's in sight of the camera, and says "Let's try this again, alright? I'm Bloom Peters, this is Marinette Dupain-Cheng, we're friends of Adrien's from school, and Marinette made him a gift but didn't get the chance to give it to him during school."

After a moment, the female voice says "Put it in the box." The lid suddenly opens, and Marinette slides the box in.

Once the eye is gone, Marinette excitedly says "I hope he likes it."

Bloom murmurs "He should, you spent a solid week knitting that scarf. You signed the card, right?"

At Marinette's dumbfounded expression, Bloom just pinches the bridge of her nose - Marinette is an absolute mess sometimes, usually when it comes to Adrien. "C'mon, lets head back to your place. Didn't you say your parents were making cookies?" She's recently become almost literally addicted to Tom Dupain-Cheng's baking, and being Marinette's best friend happens to have the side-perk of spending a few hours a day with her in the bakery. It's not the only reason Bloom likes spending time at Marinette's - she genuinely enjoys Marinette's company, for one - but she won't lie and say it doesn't make the option more appealing. And, even if she tried to lie like that, her stomach would give her away.

Adrien heads back up to his room dejectedly after Nino leaves, a familiar combination of anger and despair welling up inside him - his father can't even let him have a friend over? Had he known Nino would try to change his father's mind about the party, he'd have told him not to bother, that he wasn't worth the trouble.

And now, Nino's been banned from the house forever - he knows well enough to know not to try and change his father's mind, it'll just end up with him being forbid from ever even speaking to Nino again to.

As soon as he gets up to his room, Plagg flies out of his jacket and says "I've seen a lot of people in my long life, but your father is something special, kid." And coming from a Kwami that's been around a since a few minutes after the universe was created, making him the second oldest Kwami right after Tikki, that's really saying something. The Black Cat Kwami starts trying to think of some way to liven up his Chosen's ultra-boring birthday - he can't exactly go Cataclysm his dad, thereby making it impossible to stop him from having a good time for once, so what else?

After a minute spent thinking, Plagg says "Let's play a game of foosball, Adrien." It's literally all he can think of when his Kitten is basically locked up in his room all the time when he's not doing lessons or photoshoots. And he really doesn't want his Kitten getting Akumatized because his father's a control-freak.

Marinette's in the dining room with Bloom, wondering if Adrien got his gift yet or not, when suddenly the two girls hear screaming and crying from outside. When they get out, every single adult in sight is floating into the air in giant bubbles. Bloom mutters "You gotta be kidding…"

"Another supervillain…who sent all the adults into the sky?" Marinette shrugs, deciding not to think about it and instead find the Akuma, and says "Bloom, go…she's already gone? Wow, that was fast."

Shrugging off the question of where Bloom went, Marinette quickly heads into an alleyway that nobody will see her from - easier said than done, with half of Paris floating in the sky - and transforms to go find this new supervillain.

Who calls himself the Bubbler, as he so helpfully broadcasted on some more of his bubbles.

Adrien heads outside, after a mind-numbingly dull birthday lunch-break - the same as all the others, what fun! - only to blink in shock when nearly all the kids in his class at school are there. Marinette and Bloom are missing, but everyone else is there…including Nino, who's been Akumatized. Its not particularly hard to figure out when and why he was Akumatized, since he's throwing a party for him after getting rid of all the adults - and calling him 'dude' is the big giveaway that it's Nino, since he's the only person Adrien knows that does that.

Adrien's torn in two right then, and heads back inside as the party starts up - on the one hand, he's never had a party before. On the other, his best friend's been Akumatized and has apparently gotten rid of all the adults.

Plagg asks "What's the big deal? Go enjoy the party for a bit."

Adrien immediately says "Plagg, Nino's been Akumatized!" Plus, almost everyone from his class is there! At ground zero!

Plagg shrugs, as much as a being who's only ten centimeters tall and who's head is bigger than the rest of his body can shrug anyway, and says "This is your chance to enjoy yourself, you may never get another one. Have some fun at the party for a bit, then transform, de-evilize Nino, and bring the adults back." This is his lonely Kitten's chance to have a bit of fun on his birthday - something which, according to most humans, is supposed to be celebrated - and he's not letting him pass it by.

Adrien actually stops to consider Plagg's words, seeing the cat-kwami's point - it is true, he'll probably never get a chance like this again. And, if he can keep Nino - or the Bubbler, whatever name he's going by right now - busy until Ladybug shows up…well, what's the harm? Its not like his father is here to stop him anyway.

Besides, it'll keep all his classmates safe to, if Bubbler is kept happy and the party keeps going.

About five minutes later, Adrien's dancing in the small crowd and bumps into Rose. "Hey, great party, huh? Not that I'd know, since I've never actually had a party before…"

She gives him a smile that's probably supposed to be convincing, along with two thumbs up, but the way her expression falls a moment later when she's looking away makes him pause and look around. And what he sees is…nobody's actually having fun. Yeah, they're all dancing…but nobody's really into it.

Before he can excuse himself, a familiar voice says "You've got to be kidding." When everyone looks up, Dragon Fyre is sitting on the edge of the nearby wall, an incredulous look on her face.

The Bubbler snarls "Going to crash the party, Dragon Fyre?" Everyone gets nervous as he grips the bubble wand tighter, getting into a hostile stance at once - given Dragon Fyre's usual tactic of 'beat them up, grab the Akuma, ask questions later' it's looking distinctly like the Agreste Mansion is about to be blown sky-high.

Shocking everyone speechless, she instead shrugs nonchalantly and says "Perhaps. I'm not much of a party-person these days, but I'm not out to actively shut down some fun either. So long as nobody gets hurt, and you return all the adults after the fun is over, I don't particularly see a reason why this has to come to blows." She's going against every instinct she has doing this, but…this is Nino. Adrien's best friend, who clearly cares about the blonde boy a great deal - he got Akumatized, and instead of tearing up the city, he…threw Adrien a birthday party. Call her crazy, or biased, but that doesn't seem particularly villainous to her. She's holding out a sliver of hope that maybe Nino can be reasoned with, considering the Bubbler seems to despise adults.

Also, she's trying to keep casualties to a minimum, and there's about twenty civilians between the two of them. Including her brother, who's currently staring at her in utter amazement.

The Bubbler scowls, and says "Not a chance! If you really love the adults so much, maybe you should join them!"

Dragon Fyre deadpans "You wouldn't make it five feet near me, Bubbler. Don't kid yourself, bath toy. As for the adults, kids do actually need them for things like food and money and such. Take the adults away, and the kids have to grow up too fast just to survive."

"Oh really? And how do you know that?" Bubbler grips his wand-sword tighter, fully prepared to send Dragon Fyre - easily the scariest, most serious of the trio - up into space.

Instead of a smart remark like Cat Noir, or an impassioned speech like Ladybug, Dragon Fyre deadpans "Take a guess." And then her gaze travels to Adrien and locks onto him, making him go cold with the certainty that she was telling the truth all over again when she said she knew Cat Noir's secret identity. "Mind if I talk with the birthday boy for a minute? I won't be long."

Adrien says "Uh, sure, c'mon this way." He makes his way out of the crowd, only to find his sister's halfway to the Mansion before he could even get off the dance floor.

As soon as the door closes, Adrien hears "What the hell are you doing?" When he turns around, Adrien sees she's got her arms crossed, one eyebrow raised almost impossibly high - she doesn't look angry, though, more confused than anything else.

Adrien gulps, and says "Well, I was sorta waiting for you and Ladybug to show up…"

"Bullshit." Alright, she's got him. Dragon Fyre sighs, and says "Ladybug's going to be here any minute, so get your head on straight, alright? I'll go try one last time to get through to Nino in the meantime."

"Wait!" Adrien grabs her wrist, making her look back at him with a raised eyebrow once more. "Why are you trying to reason with him? All the others, you've been all for knocking them out." Literally.

Dragon Fyre sighs, and says "Simple. It's Nino. Your best friend in school, the guy who cracks jokes with you, the guy you eat lunch with every day. He's not just some random person. It's…complicated." Its why she never got close to anyone for four years, it hurts much less when something happens that way. And then she let herself get close to Marinette and Adrien, despite all she tried to do to convince herself not to…and now this happens. She cares about them, cares whether they're hurt or not, and it makes her magic go wild whenever they get hurt.

The only way this could possibly get worse for her is if those four weirdos appeared once more.

Godsdammit, I'm such a fool…

Even so, she's made it this far. Might as well go all the way.

Bubbler takes one look at an Adrien-less Dragon Fyre when she walks out the door, and snarls "What did you do?" Well, seems even Akumatized Nino's still protective of his best friend. It just makes fighting an Akumatized Nino all the harder.

"Oh Nino," Dragon Fyre sighs, "Hawk Moth's in your head, kick him to the curb. As for Adrien, the birthday-boy had to use the bathroom." Bubbler relaxes marginally, slightly lowering the bubble wand as she walks past him towards the snack table. And then she calls over "Besides, he's an adult, remember? Why are you even listening to him anyway if you hate them all so much?"

Ladybug gets to Adrien's mansion, just in time to see Dragon Fyre get blasted through the wall by Bubbler and a familiar purple mask fade away from his face. Cat Noir shows up right then, and Bubbler promptly traps them in a large green bubble and says "Give me your Miraculous' before you run out of air."

Ladybug says "Dream on, Bubbler!" If I can get him monologuing, maybe it'll buy enough time for her to wake up.

Because, unfortunately, for being a bubble this thing is amazingly strong.

Cat Noir feels like hissing, and if he were any more cat-like he'd be doing as much. As it is, he snarls "When we get out of here, I'm gonna claw you to ribbons!" Oh, wait, there's the hissing. He can hiss, who knew? Dragon Fyre is kinda like a sister to him - a scary, fiery, mysterious sister, but a sister nonetheless. A lot better than his own father, to, who couldn't even be bothered to acknowledge his birthday.

"Boring, just like adults! Since you two love them so much, why don't you go spend some time with them?" And then, just as Dragon Fyre picks her head up and sees them, the Bubbler kicks their bubble-prison into the sky.

They just barely make out a faint shriek from down below as they soar up into the sky, but they've got bigger things to worry about than just how badly Dragon Fyre is going off on Bubbler. Namely, getting down before she kills Nino by accident.

After a minute spent uselessly kicking, scratching, and pounding at the bubble, Ladybug says "Use your Cataclysm!"

"You couldn't have said that five-hundred feet ago?"

"We can't stay stuck in here together forever!" Aside from the detail that Nino's been Akumatized and they have to save him…there's the very real issue of air.

Cat Noir gives her a Cheshire smile, which she responds to with "Such a one-track mind…" The bubble breaks easily with his Cataclysm, but that leaves the problem of them free-falling around five-hundred feet straight down.

Right up until a familiar heated weight crashes into them from the side, that is, knocking them into a different angle even as they end up a tangled mess of limbs and hair.

Ladybug gasps "Dragon Fyre?!" It's been maybe a minute, how did she get all the way up here?!

The red-head yells "Hang on, I'm gonna try to slow us down! If that doesn't work, though, its gonna be a bumpy ride!" It's simple physics, she would have to cancel out the near-terminal speed the three of them are currently falling at in order to stop them…and she's not sure she can. She's never tried stopping something moving as fast as they are, that's usually a one-way mistake!

She does manage to slow them down significantly, taking the speed from 'terminal velocity' to 'badly injured', but then makes an orange bubble around the three of them and yells "Brace yourselves!"

Cat Noir tightens his hold on the two most important ladies in his life, even as he feels himself get suspended in the middle of the bubble, and feels Ladybug and Dragon Fyre do the same. What follows is a sickening and bruising series of jolts, with his stomach getting left behind in the process, quickly followed by his liver and intestines if he had to guess, and then they get separated and roll across some grass.

Dragon Fyre groans, and says "Sound off if your alive…" Ladybug and Cat Noir both groan, feeling like a pair of solid bruises at the moment. And then Cat Noir painfully lifts his head up, only to see the Bubbler hanging suspended from a tree branch in the yard by the table cloth that was under the snacks, unconscious and his bubble wand lying five feet away from him.

Well, that's convenient.

One de-evilized Akuma later, and a Miraculous Cure that puts everything right again, and the three Superheroes leave with bruises, a Concussion and broken ribs on Dragon Fyre's part, and an excuse to make up for his absence on Cat Noir's part. he can just say getting through the mansion takes a while, it's not like the fight lasted very long.

At least Ladybug and Cat Noir were healed, even if Dragon Fyre has to heal several bruises and mend some ribs on the way back to the bakery.

And that's when he finds a piece of folded paper on his desk, one that definitely wasn't there before. on the back, the words 'happy birthday, kitty, hope you like your gifts' looks burned onto the paper - so, it could only have come from Dragon Fyre.

Dragon Fyre made me a gift?

When he gingerly opens it up fully, it shows himself and Ladybug sitting on the edge of the Eiffel Tower, her laughing at one something he said as he apparently talks, one arm out like he's gesturing for effect. It looks so lifelike, he'd think she took a picture of them that night in secret if he didn't know better. Looks like she's one heck of an artist.

He quickly puts the charcoal drawing in his desk, smoothing it out carefully and storing it in a sheet of plastic so it won't get ruined, the biggest smile he's had all day on his face as he takes it in - he can't believe Dragon Fyre remembered his birthday! Heck, he can't believe she knows when his birthday is, for that matter.

As Adrien's finishing dinner, Natalie walks in with a wrapped gift box and says "A present from your father, Adrien."

Adrien just about falls off his seat in shock, and gingerly takes the gift like it might disappear altogether. "Thank you! I mean, tell my father I said thank you, Natalie. Please?" She nods and walks away, and Adrien eagerly opens the gift - it doesn't look like the same pen he's gotten the past three years in a row, did his dad actually get him a gift?

The next day, Marinette and Bloom see Adrien get out of the car wearing the bright blue scarf they spent a week figuring out how to knit. Marinette jumps excitedly, practically squealing in delight, and Bloom casually calls over "Adrien, like the scarf."

Adrien beams at her, and says "Thank you! My father got it for me, can you believe it? He's gotten me the same lame pen for the last three years!"

Nino says "Wow, guess people can change. Adults can be cool when you least expect it."

Adrien's face falls, and he says "About adults, I know my father said you were a bad influence…"

Nino casually waves him off, saying "Don't sweat it, man! We're cool. Best buds, right?"

Adrien smiles again, feeling like a weight's just dropped off his shoulders, and says "Always and forever."

Bloom raises an eyebrow at Marinette as the two boys walk into the school, and asks "You gonna tell him that scarf is yours?"

Marinette shakes her head, saying "He looks so happy about it being from his dad, I can't take that away from him."

Bloom sighs in exasperation, then says "One day, he's going to see what's right in front of him and wonder how he ever missed it, you know that?" She'll make it happen if she has to bash their heads together.

Chapter Text

Bloom watches the clip from the Ladyblog Alya Cesaire took yesterday on her phone, sighing in relief when she sees the teenage thrill/scoop seeker didn't get much more than a two-second glance at the book Ladybug accidentally dropped on the ground before she came leaping down and snatched it up.

And, really, she has to wonder just why she had her history textbook in the first place when she was suited up. She's just glad she got to the book before Cesaire, else every single tenth-grade girl in the school would've been grilled by now - if she didn't remember they were all required to put their names on the back of the cover, that is.

Really, the Ladyblog is…on the one hand, it's a lot of hard work on Alya Cesaire's part, and she's going to be one hell of a reporter or detective when she's older. On the other hand…their identities are supposed to be secret for a reason. Not the least of which is keeping their loved ones safe. If the Ladyblog is ever successful, Marinette's entire family will likely be targeted or even kidnapped in order to force her to give up her Miraculous. And any decent person would fold like a cooked noddle at that pressure.

Meaning Alya Cesaire is one person to avoid like the plague while in the suits, no matter how nice or persistent she is. She may mean well, but she's got a bad habit of not thinking things through. Unmasking them would tell Hawk Moth exactly where to go, after all.

Seriously, Mari, you've gotta be more careful...

The entire class is on a field trip to the Louvre, to view an ancient Egyptian art exhibit before the big history test on that subject tomorrow. Most everyone is vaguely interested in the lecture they're getting, bar Chloe and Sabrina who're on their phones, right up until a young-ish man with brown hair bursts into the room.

The director of the exhibit, who's also the one giving them the lecture, pulls him to the side, and he starts animatedly talking about the scroll on the wall next to them and having deciphered the hieroglyphics - according to him, it's a ritual to try and bring back Queen Nefertiti. It consists of a hundred mummies, a ritual sacrifice of another beautiful woman to take Nerfertiti's place, and a spell being chanted with the wand in the glass case in hand…and he wants to try it. The director shuts it down at once, yelling "Get your head out of those papyrus scrolls, and start focusing on the real world!"

Bloom internally groans as the young man runs off, and mutters "You've gotta be kidding…"

Marinette glances over, asking "What is it?"

Bloom glances around, then quietly says "He's probably going to get turned into a Supervillain by Hawk Moth. I've noticed a pattern, by now. Someone gets upset by something, and then suddenly they're given super powers and go tearing up the city with a very literal vengeance." According to Longg, Nooroo can grant people superpowers, and identifies them based on their emotions - the Butterfly Miraculous can be used for good or evil, even down to which emotions are enhanced.

Marinette grimaces, and says "True…" Now she really wants to sneak off to transform into Ladybug just in case, but she can't. Unless she gets monumentally lucky and times a bathroom break maybe a minute before the Akuma attack happens, that is.

Of course, maybe two minutes later…she's proven right when a guy with a golden mask and Egyptian-style outfit walks in. He presses his hands together, and yells "Tet, give me time!" He then traps most of the adults in the room in glowing orange bubbles, sending them out of the area as the students scatter to hide wherever they can.

The scroll apparently depicting an ancient necromantic ritual of sorts rolls itself up, and the scepter on display floats over to him - Bloom internally curses, hoping nobody draws any attention to themselves. She glances over by Marinette, and sees she, Adrien, and Nino ended up hiding together behind the Sarcophagus, and motions for them to stay down.

Of all the times for Hawk Moth to Akumatize someone…it had to be when we couldn't sneak off to go find somewhere to transform. Wonderful. Because they're currently trapped in a room that's gone into lockdown, thick iron bars that are impossible for…most everyone to move. She could, but that'd be giving herself up as Dragon Fyre unless she made a mirage that took the credit. Alternatively, her two teenaged partners could transform right here and now, giving up their secret identities, and Cat Noir could use Cataclysm on the bars. She's suddenly broken from her thoughts by Marinette's gasp, and looks over to see…the Akuma standing right next to her.

Uh-oh…

He kneels down next to her, gripping her chin between his gigantic fingers, and says "An exquisite beauty, and a pure soul. Fate has put you on my path."

Bloom scoffs, twisting her head out of his grip, and says "Pure stubbornness, maybe. Paws off, big guy!" This cannot be happening!

And then he…picks her up, slinging her over his shoulder like a sack of grain. Yes, it is happening, much to Bloom's horror - one way to give away her secret identity would be to either back her into a situation where she has to transform, does Hawk Moth suspect her already? 

Chloe insultedly asks why she wasn't beautiful enough for him, but Adrien mutters "Chloe, please be quiet…"

Bloom's currently pounding away on Pharaoh's back, yelling for him to put her down, when she suddenly spies a dagger about the length of her forearm displayed on the wall she's about to pass by - King Tut's dagger, to be exact.

Well, seeing as this Akuma thinks he's the real guy…

She quickly swipes it off the wall, motioning for everyone who saw it to be quiet about it. He bends the bars apart, using Sekhmet's strength, and walks through…but, when he turns around to bend them all back, before he can there's a loud banging sound followed by him gripping his head. "Argh! You little-!"

Bloom vaults herself off Pharaoh's shoulder, and he turns around to reveal a large dent in the back of his helmet...the general size and shape of the dagger's pommel. "You want me, big guy?! Come and get me!" Bloom's so thankful, right now, that she's good at running - she needs it right now!

Good news, her plan to get 'King Tut's' attention off the others and trapping them in, potentially giving her partners time to sneak off and transform, works like Ladybug's Lucky Charm.

Bad news…he's really after her!

She takes a corner and quickly makes herself invisible, hoping to buy some time and maybe find a place to transform herself.

Adrien watches in no small amount of shock as Bloom distracts Pharaoh, and murmurs "She's one brave girl…"

Marinette scoffs beside him and Nino, and says "If by 'brave' you mean 'stubborn, independent and tough as nails' then…yeah, sounds about right."

Adrien blinks in shock, staring at Marinette this time - she's usually a stuttering, stammering mess around him! Not…cool, calm, and collected. Its like she's a completely different person, actually - if he didn't know any better, he'd say she got hit by a personality-switching Akuma at some point. She worries her bottom lip, just like his Lady when she's concerned, then slips over to the metal bars, slips out of the gap, and then slowly pokes her head around the corner. After a minute, she whisper-yells "He's gone, everyone! Get out of here, hide, wait for Ladybug, Dragon Fyre, and Cat Noir!"

Adrien all but gapes at the change in the nicest girl in class - she's not usually this…leader-like. This confident, calm…she actually reminds him a bit of Ladybug.

No, that's ridiculous. Sorry, My Lady, I'll blame it on the craziness of my classmate getting abducted.

His classmate that reminds him a bit of Dragon Fyre, actually. Same stubbornness, same sharp retorts, same flaming hair, all of it. But…its impossible, right? Most of the others run out quietly and hide, leaving Adrien free to change into Cat Noir and head out to rescue Bloom.

Ladybug lands on the upper balcony of the Louvre, just in time for Cat Noir to get there as well, and says "One of the students on a field trip was taken, Bloom Peters. She went and hid, buying everyone else time, but I don't know how long that'll last!"

Cat Noir nods, and says "I heard as much. Uh…isn't that Bloom Peters?" When Ladybug looks where Cat's pointing, she sees a familiar head of fiery hair running out of the building…with a horde of mummies on her tail. One grabs her, but she whips out the knife she took and swipes it at the mummy's arm in a move that says she has some experience with blades before. She then grabs the end of the bandage and starts pulling, unwrapping the mummy and using the bandages to make a makeshift barrier using two lampposts - unfortunately, Pharaoh appears, grabbing her from behind to trap her and repairing the mummy.

Cat Noir winces, and murmurs "Bad luck on her part…" She's still struggling even now, kicking and thrashing as much as physically possible to try and break free…or at least give Pharaoh a hard time. She even tries stabbing him in the arm that's holding onto her with the knife she took, but it just shatters this time around. About six mummies grab her, lifting her up in the air to keep her from struggling out of their grip, and then Pharaoh starts his ritual.

It…actually seems to work, making the outside of the Louvre light up and shoot a beam of light into the sky that makes a swirl of black energy appear above it like a portal to somewhere.

Bloom stares up at the Louvre, and the migraine-inducing portal above it, and mutters "You've gotta be kidding…it had to be a pyramid…"

And then Cat Noir appears, drawing most of the mummies attentions, and draws them away - Ladybug swings down, and Bloom grabs her arm instantly. Only for Pharaoh to roar in rage, and start flying after them.

Bloom pseudo-casually says "So…don't look back." She quickly grabs Pharaoh by the ankles, and smashes him to the ground with her magic hard enough to leave a gouge in the ground.

As soon as they're on the balcony, Bloom says "The pendant, I think the Akuma's in the pendant! Around his neck! GET DOWN!"

Ladybug hits the ground with Bloom, as the Pharaoh zooms past right over her head. "Good reflexes, Bloom. Roll!"

Bloom rolls out of the way of Pharaoh's grasp, but Ladybug wasn't so lucky and he throws her into the ground. When Ladybug looks up, she hears a familiar voice scream "YOU'VE GOTTA BE EFFING KIDDING ME!" When she looks up, Bloom's once again struggling in Pharaoh's grip. And…he tosses her onto the beam of light, which starts carrying her up towards the ominous black cloud high above.

He then whirls around, making the pendant swing around…and giving Bloom the perfect opportunity to snatch it with a little magic before pushing herself off the beam with a small burst of fire once he's far enough away that he won't notice. While she might not steal much from stores and people just trying to make a living...she can happily make an exception for Akumatized people and the objects those Akumas are trapped in. At least knowing how to steal stuff is coming in handy.

When Pharaoh lands in front of Cat Noir and Ladybug again, Ladybug says "Get the pendant, that's where the Akuma is!"

Cat Noir feels his eyes widen when he sees two things missing from the whole scenario, and he asks "What pendant? And where's Bloom?!" When Ladybug glances behind Pharaoh, her mouth drops open at once - Bloom is gone. As in...not on the beam of light any longer. And, given the detail that there's no Nefertiti coming out of the swirling vortex in the sky, they're going to guess she didn't get sucked in.

Even Pharaoh looks backwards, only to go off in a rage when he sees the distinct lack of one fire-haired girl. And then both Cat Noir and Ladybug's tools buzz, and Ladybug quietly reads out "'Got the akuma, don't ask how I got your numbers. Bloom.'"

And then suddenly, the beam shuts off and Pharaoh turns back into Jalil Kubdal. Ladybug quickly uses her Lucky Charm, which turns into a map of the museum with the Egyptian section circled, Ladybug De-evilizes the Akuma, which Bloom somehow trapped under a vase in the museum, and then they use the Lucky Charm to put everything right again.

Cat Noir glances at Bloom, asking "You alright? You were really brave out there." He can only imagine she was scared to bits through all that, he knows he would be if he were chosen to be a sacrificial offering to bring back a long-dead woman.

Bloom shrugs, and says "I've been in worse situations, thanks for asking. You two alright?"

Ladybug nods, and says "Yeah, Cat Noir?" She's not convinced in the slightest that Bloom's actually alright - in shock, perhaps, or coming down from an adrenaline high, but not actually alright. Still, she'll go along with it for now...and corner her, play the 'worried-sick best friend' act she's perfected to keep her secret identity safe and find out if she was hurt between running off in the Louvre and exiting the building with a hundred mummies chasing after her.

"Same. Bloom, you're really alright?" If she's been in worse situations than that...well, he can't quite imagine what would be worse than nearly killed as a sacrificial offering. 

Bloom waves her hand dismissively, and says "Bumps and bruises, mostly. I'm good. You think school's still on?"

Cat Noir shrugs, and says "Probably not, but I hope so. I don't particularly want to go home just yet, and tagging along with a school field trip sounds fun." Especially since this red-haired girl reminds him of his super-sister - to the point that he's starting to suspect they may actually be the same person. He's never seen Bloom Peters set anyone on fire, but she does give anyone a piece of her mind who she thinks deserves it.

Also, Dragon Fyre didn't make an appearance when Bloom Peters was being chased around the museum by the latest Akuma, and Bloom Peters managed to not only keep the mummies busy long enough for them to get there but also got the Akumatized object from Pharaoh.

Still, he can't just ask her if she's his super-sister, at least not with his Lady right there. Dragon Fyre might be cool about spilling the beans on her identity, at least some of them, but Ladybug most certainly won't be. She's super-serious about their secret identities not getting out - and, sure, he understands why, but he wouldn't tell anyone, ever. Dragon Fyre once theorized that it's some kind of secret test, you only find out once you both trust each other implicitly, but none of them are completely sure. She's told them both the reasons the Guardian of the Miraculous - whoever it is that gave them the Miraculous in the first place, who's identity she's not supposed to reveal right now - gave her, and their own Kwamis have given them similar ones, but if it's a test they can't know about they wouldn't be told.

Kwamis, he hopes its some kind of test he has to pass. He really does - his feelings might've started out as a crush, but they've only gotten stronger with each Akuma they battle together - she's resourceful, confident, compassionate, how could he not fall for her?

Chapter Text

Bloom pinches the bridge of her nose when she sees Marinette on her balcony with Tikki - looks like neither of them remembered the ceremony unveiling the statue of them, then. Hopefully Cat Noir shows up, she can make a cover for Ladybug and he'll back it.

Thankfully, when she gets to the park as Dragon Fyre, Cat Noir's already there - she gets a blank mask on, the group's signal that they need to cover for one another, before Cat Noir winks at her and says "Hey, super-sis. Glad to see you made it." He's started calling her that after the birthday-fiasco with Nino, saying she's like the sister he never had…and she's not particularly inclined to stop him. Unfortunately. She's missed having a family, missed them every day, and having one now…she just can't seem to stop herself. It'll be her demise, she just knows it, and yet she's the fool that willingly embraces it even knowing that.

The sculptor, Theo Barbot, a budding talent with a massive crush on Ladybug if the ghost-thing above his head talking nonstop about Ladybug is any indication, asks "Is Ladybug almost here? I can't wait to meet her…"

Dragon Fyre immediately says "She's out on patrol, sorry." At their blank looks, she drily says "We drew lots, she got the short one this time."

Cat Noir winks at her, wordlessly saying he'll back her up, then says "But, my sister and I are here. We can totally handle this. Plus, I'm the one in charge anyway."

Dragon Fyre shakes her head, saying "Kitty, you are most definitely not the one in charge." They're equals, even if Ladybug is the 'leader' of the group since she makes most of the plans and is the one that can fix everything. It took some getting used to, for all three of them, needing to take the hits for Ladybug and her having to let them take those hits. She hates it when they get hurt for her, or when they sacrifice themselves so she can keep going, and both of them had to accept that Dragon Fyre will go off on an Akuma that's stupid enough to seriously hurt them.

Theo despondently says "Its just, I wanted her to sign my photo of her. She's just amazing, so smart, courageous, she's incredible…"

Cat Noir gets a look of jealousy for a moment, making a pit of dread form in Dragon Fyre's stomach for a moment - as Cat Noir, he's perfectly free to not be the perfect, polite boy who never does anything that would reflect badly on his father and the brand. Meaning he's free to retaliate, make Theo Barbot as jealous as he currently feels. Luckily, he behaves through the entire ceremony, keeping his Cheshire grin up and waving to the crowd on cue and graciously thanking Theo for the statue in a speech filled to the brim with his 'family charm' as he calls it.

And then the crowd disperses once the ceremony is over, leaving the Mayor, Theo, and the two superheroes behind. And, unfortunately, leaving Cat Noir free to make Theo Barbot as jealous as he wants now that the public and press are gone.

Cat Noir walks over, and says "Amazing statues, Theo. One thing's slightly off though, I'm actually taller than Ladybug." He's just got a crush is all, just a fanboy crush, you've dealt with them how many times before becoming Cat Noir? Just keep your cool...

Theo sighs, and says "Ladybug didn't show up. I just wanted to express my adoration for her."

Cat Noir can feel his jealousy rearing its hissy not-so-little head deep in his chest as Theo Barbot goes on about how amazing his partner is, about how much they have in common deep down and how everything he has went into Ladybug's statue. And, just for a moment, all he can think of is showing this guy that he's Ladybug's match, not an artist that doesn't even really know her. He's the one that fights supervillains with her and Dragon Fyre, not Theo Barbot; he's the one that's cracked jokes and made puns with his Lady, not this sculptor that would go running if he ever saw an Akuma up close. Screw keeping his cool, he's got a sculptor to get rid of without Cataclysming him.

Cat Noir throws an arm around Theo's shoulder's almost companionably, saying "Hey, hate to burst your bubble, but Ladybug and I, we're a thing."

Theo leaves in a fury, barely even registering Dragon Fyre's voice saying "Let's not get two jumps ahead of ourselves, Cat. You've yet to get anywhere with Ladybug, after all."

Cat Noir pouts at Dragon Fyre, and whines "C'mon, sis…" Getting an idea, Cat Noir tries to make his cat-eyes dilate as he looks at his super-sister - he's seen Manon give Marinette the 'baby doll eyes' before and it worked on her!

Dragon Fyre rolls her eyes, and says "The big eyes might work on our partner, Cat Noir, but they don't work on me." That look would absolutely work on Ladybug, she'd melt into a puddle of 'aw!' and be eternally wrapped around his tail.

Cat Noir's shoulder's slump, and then his staff buzzes. "Shoot, gotta go, super-sis. See you tonight?"

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "Only if I don't see you first, Brother." She's already leaving as she says that, leaping away with her agility and strength that out-does even his own and Ladybug's, so she misses the beaming smile that breaks out over Cat Noir's face at the last word.

He's still got that smile all the way back to the school he was doing his fencing lesson at, she called him her brother! Dragon Fyre isn't really one for…well, from what he can tell, she isn't one for letting people close to her. So, for her to call him her brother…he counts it as a personal achievement. Now if he could figure out for sure just who his sister is with the mask off!

Of course, after he's back in his room, he sees a news report about a burglary at the Louvre…that Cat Noir performed. Uh…say what now?!

He's out the window as Cat Noir once more before the news report even finishes.

Twenty minutes later, he's locked inside the Louvre…with a lollipop stick he recognizes instantly. His staff buzzes, and he opens it to the communication device…and hears his sister's voice on the other end. His sister's worried voice, at that. "Cat Noir, what exactly is going on?! You're a lot of things, an outrageous flirt for Ladybug being one of them, but you're no thief!"

Cat Noir semi-sarcastically says "Thanks for the vote of confidence, super-sis… Meet me at Theo Barbot's workshop, he's the one that framed me!"

"The sculptor?! Oh, Cat…" The way her voice trails off, a mix of resignation and disappointment, makes him feel absolutely terrible - far, far worse than whenever his father is disappointed in him these days. Maybe because the man is only ever around when he's disappointed in him. But this makes his stomach shrink in on itself, and he can actually feel his fake ears flatten against his head for a moment.

"I'm heading out now, sis. Cataclysm!" He quickly destroys the bars keeping him in, escaping to the roof rather easily, and slides to hide for a moment behind a stone balcony that gives him some cover.

And then his staff buzzes again, and he opens it to see his Lady's worried expression. "Cat Noir, what's going on?"

Cat Noir smirks, and asks "You know I'm innocent, don't you Bugaboo?"

A flash of irritation crosses her face, and she says "Stop playing around and calling me Bugaboo, this is really serious!"

Cat Noir nods, and says "I'm gonna find the real culprit and save my tail-" He doesn't get any further, though, as a helicopter suddenly flies up right behind him. Okay, step one...ditch the police.

He heads down into a nearby subway tunnel, and comes out the other end as Adrien Agreste while the cops make their way past the ten-car pileup that happened in their pursuit of him.

Plagg tosses a piece of Camembert cheese into his mouth, saying "If you want my opinion…I'd say the culprit was Akumatized." He'd also say his kitten's little attempt to metaphorically bare his teeth at Theo Barbot is backfiring spectacularly.

Adrien says "Yeah, I figured that out. How did I not see that jealousy coming a mile away?" He holds up the lolipop stick, trying to remember where Barbot's workshop is - he's got to get there as fast as possible, the police might be looking for Cat Noir but Adrien Agreste's fans will mob him just as effectively.

Plagg deadpans "Yours, or his?"

"Ha-ha, very funny. C'mon, eat up while we head over."

Cat Noir groans to himself - first the museum, now this…he's really gotta learn to wait for backup, apparently. He told Ladybug it was between him and his Copycat…but now he's regretting it just a bit. And his sister didn't pick up, so he's no idea where she is.

Leaving him…flat on his back, with Copycat crouching over him and reaching for the hand with his Miraculous. Cat Noir tries to close his hand, to buy any time at all for either of his partners to arrive, but Copycat all but hisses and pries his hand open mercilessly. Just as he's getting close to the ring, though…Cat Noir sees a speck in the air. A speck that's getting closer by the moment.

Feeling relief course through him, the blonde boy says "Uh, so, you might want to get back. My sister has quite the temper on her, and she'll be less than pleased by this." And she is coming in fast.

Copycat smirks at him, and says "She won't know the difference. You may say she's your sister, but you don't take anything seriously whatsoever."

Oh, how very wrong he is. There's plenty of things he takes seriously, such as being Cat Noir. The real Cat confidently says "She'll know, Copycat. That's the thing about my sister, she always knows - and if she doesn't know right away, she'll know very soon."

There's no time for anything else, though, because Dragon Fyre crashes straight through the glass ceiling like a small meteor, sword drawn and entire body on fire. And she leaves a small crater in the floor, to, from the sheer force of the impact, not a foot from Cat Noir's head.

Copycat shifts uncomfortably, even as he plasters a grin on his face and says "Sister, glad you could make it! I found his Akuma, its in his ring."

Cat Noir just gives her a wink, though, saying "Hey, super-sis, glad to see you made it."

Dragon Fyre doesn't even need to listen to the ghost-things above their heads to know who her brother is. Unfortunately for Copycat. Her face goes blank of everything as she walks over, and Cat's just grateful she knows its him…because, as he's just realized, there's something about his sister that makes one feel like cornered prey if she's heading towards you.

The way she walks, perhaps, or…well, the sword in her hand certainly adds to the effect. She is a Dragon, though, so it really isn't that surprising that he's feeling distinctly like an afternoon snack right now when she's literally blazing mad.

She stops in front of Copycat, expression completely blank and giving nothing away, and then…quick as lightning, she punches him in the face hard enough to knock him out even when Akumatized. And he hits the boxes on the other end of the warehouse hard, breaking the ones he hit and landing in a crumpled heap that doesn't move afterwards. Cat Noir winces, just knowing there had to be a bit of her own abilities in play with that, then sits up and says "Great timing, Super-sis. Thanks for the assist." And then he gets smacked upside the head, not enough to really hurt him but enough to make his sister's displeasure known. "Hey! What was that for?!"

Cat finds his face sharply turned towards his sister's, and sees a mix of anger and worry in her orange and blue gaze. "What was that for? Lets see, how about going in here without backup and getting yourself trapped in these chains and your staff stolen? Or maybe how you went into the museum that had just been robbed by a Cat lookalike and expected them to believe you right off the bat? Or maybe it was for letting your jealousy get the best of you at the unveiling ceremony, getting Theo Barbot jealous in retaliation, and getting him Akumatized into a copy of you who's been trying to get you taken out of the picture altogether!"

Oh. Cat Noir thinks he knows what that smack over the head was for…she's been worried sick about him this whole time. Cat sits up even as his sister starts tying up Copycat, and quietly says "Sorry I worried you, sis. I didn't mean to." Dragon Fyre doesn't say anything as she ties his lookalike up, using the fake staff and some rope to tie his hands and feet together to it so the fake can't get away even if he does wake up. And then she sticks the pole on top of two boxes, ensuring he's very much immobile for the moment. And then, when she kneels down next to him…she pulls him into a hug unexpectedly.

It takes Cat a moment to process that particular detail, that his usually no-nonsense sister - during a fight, anyway - is hugging him, but he puts a hand on her back after it goes through and buries his face in her ponytail. After a minute, she quietly says "Don't scare me like that again, Brother. I thought I was going to lose you to." She probably scared a few people tearing through the city to find him, but that tends to happen when you think your brother in everything but blood is about to be killed.

And, dammit, there she admits it, he's her brother. It slipped out back at the park, but Cat Noir simply made it impossible for her to not give in to the idea of having a family, any kind of family again. He joked and punned and smiled his way into her heart no matter how much she tried to tell herself it was a bad idea, that it'd hurt too much to bear if she lost anyone else she loved, and now she can't imagine seeing him smile again or hearing those bad jokes in the middle of a fight.

Cat pulls away from her at that, asking "To? Sis, what do you mean by that?"

Dragon Fyre sighs, even as she starts inspecting the cuffs around his wrist to find a keyhole, and quietly says "I've lost people before, Brother. Years ago. They were killed when I was ten."

Cat Noir feels his breath catch in his throat, he knows what that's like all too well. His mother disappeared a year and a half ago, and his father is basically gone all the time. Even though his father is alive...he's basically lost both his parents. "Oh, sis…who was it? A friend? Family member?"

Dragon Fyre nods, starting to try and melt the chain just to free his arms, and quietly says "My parents. My family. I'm...all alone now, or I was before Longg and you guys came into my life."

"That's why you get so angry when something happens to us."

Dragon Fyre nods, and whispers "The two of you and Longg are all I have…" The unspoken 'I can't lose you guys to' hangs in the air, and it makes him want to wrap his sister up in a hug once more.

Cat meets her gaze, expression completely serious for a change, and murmurs "I'm sorry I let my jealousy get the best of me, sis. I just thought…he might win her over." It's a stupid thought, when said out loud, but it was all he could think of for a moment.

Dragon Fyre sighs, one hand running through his blond locks, and says "Oh, Brother…Ladybug doesn't belong to you, she doesn't belong to anyone. She doesn't have a boyfriend, isn't in a club, anything. Get to know her, get her to like you. Both sides of you. And do the same with her. Now let me see that other arm."

Cat nods, seeing her point, then feels the weight drop off his one arm. The cuff is still there, but the chain was melted off. He immediately puts that arm around his sister's shoulders, murmuring "You won't lose us, sis. Either one of us. We're a family now, your my sister…"

After a minute, she whispers "I can't lose you, I can't lose my new family…" Her reply was so quiet, he'd have missed it if it wasn't spoken directly in his ear - yet, somehow, Cat gets the feeling she wasn't speaking to him. She might not even know she spoke at all.

When Ladybug finally gets in the room, she sees one of the weirder sights she's seen before - Cat Noir with a chain on his arm, one cuffed hand free and Dragon Fyre working at the other cuff, and a copy of Cat Noir tied to a familiar-looking pole.

Cat Noir waves at her with a shaky-looking smile, and says "Hey, Bugaboo, good to see you. The Akuma's in his left suit pocket, it's a picture." And he's really hoping they're out of here before Ladybug undoubtedly talks with Barbot or his timer runs out. He really doesn't think he can take much more of the emotional rollercoaster he's been on the past few minutes.

Dragon Fyre calls over "Someone here accidentally used his Cataclysm on a piece of wood earlier thanks to Copycat, so I've gotta get him back home, Ladybug. He's one minute from changing back, and all." The cuff gets melted through, and Cat Noir quickly throws it to the ground and starts rubbing the spot - magical suit or no, that was hot!

The two pseudo-siblings help each other to their feet, and then Dragon Fyre puts a hand on Cat Noir's shoulder and they both…start to shimmer, like Ladybug's seen the air do over a fresh batch of Croissants just out of the oven. And then the two just vanish, almost…like a mirage. Figures Dragon Fyre would figure something out to hide herself when she needs to.

Chapter Text

Marinette internally groans when she hears the topic of her Design project - Derby Hats! Why, why did it have to be Derby Hats?! Why couldn't it be Berets, or Top Hats, caps, even two-horned hats?!

How she wishes Bloom were here now, she seriously wishes Bloom were in the Design class with her if only to give her some silent support. Unfortunately, Bloom wants to be an artist when she's older…not a fashion designer. Ergo, she's not in the Design class.

Wait, that's probably a good thing. I'd have to go up against her design if I was, and she's kind of brilliant, if not an actual genius… Now she's really glad Bloom isn't in her design class.

After school that day, Marinette's explaining the entire - terrible - situation to Bloom. "Why couldn't it be top hats, caps, even two-horned hats? Need a Beret, I'm your girl. Sombrero? No problem-o! But a DERBY?!"

Bloom sighs, grabs Marinette's free wrist that's not busy holding her design book, and pulls her onto the bench. "Alright, chill out. First off, take a few deep breaths. Now, let me see your book, and we'll figure something out."

Marinette takes those deep breaths, even as Bloom's opening her book, then says "But we can't work with anyone, Bloom! They have to be our own design!"

Bloom shrugs, and says "You can't work with anyone…in the class, right?"

Marinette bites her bottom lip, saying "Um, yeah…"

"Well, lucky you, I'm not in that class. And it will be your design, I'll just be helping put it together. Or I can work on our other homework while you get this particular project done."

Marinette curls up on the bench, and mutters "Forget it, Bloom, I'm a disaster area…"

And then a familiar voice says "Wow, Bloom, those are some awesome designs! I didn't realize you had such incredible talent." Marinette immediately jumps off the bench in fright at the sound of Adrien's voice - wait a minute, Adrien's looking at her designs. This is a disaster - he's gonna laugh and say she's got no chance, she might as well just throw in the towel right now!

Bloom pinches the bridge of her nose at the thumping sound of Marinette hitting the ground, tells herself not to simply reveal their alter-egos right then and there to just put herself out of all their misery, and then says "They're not mine, Adrien. They're Marinette's designs. I'm more into drawing than fashion, personally."

She flashes him a notepad with some charcoal drawings - wait a minute, he knows someone else that draws with charcoal - then draws his attention back to the notebook he originally noticed…and a blushing Marinette, her face going about as red as his Lady's suit. "You're really talented, Marinette! I think you stand a good chance of winning!" He looks back down at the sketchbook, just catching how Marinette's blush goes even brighter than before and she starts stammering out her thanks.

Bloom groans to herself, this is just painful! "I'm fluent in stammer, thankfully. All of that translated to 'I'm really into fashion, thank you for the compliment, and I hope you like my design tomorrow.' Speaking of which, let's go, Mari. You have a hat to design and make."

Marinette nods, blush fading as she focuses on her design project once more, and says "Let's go to the Trocadero, its where I go to get some inspiration!" Bloom nods, and they're off.

About twenty minutes later, they're sitting in front of the fountain leading to the tower with their sketching books out. Mm, Bloom thinks, I should come here more often, it's really peaceful. Maybe she would if she didn't have such terrible memories of the place.

Marinette goes through several different designs, from a music-themed Derby to one about cake, but then the two girls see a man walk over to a nearby bench like a Pigeon. Bloom groans internally, its Xavier Ramier…the pigeon lover. He's been banned from every park in Paris over the last year, because he keeps feeding the pigeons when its illegal in Paris to do so. The reasoning behind that being that if someone feeds them there, they'll crowd the entire park and leave their droppings everywhere. Which would be not only disgusting but a health hazard to people.

It's a shame he's such a nice guy - he's a bit of a weirdo, it's true, but considering she's a walking fire hazard when she's having a bad day she isn't judging.

Officer Roger, a guy Bloom's learned to avoid very well by now, yells at Ramier and confiscates the bird feed. Marinette watches as Ramier leaves, and says "Wow, I almost feel bad for him…"

Bloom shrugs, and says "Almost. It's a slippery slope, though. And a steep one, at that." And a gross one, to boot.

Marinette sighs, then mutters "He was a bit cozy with those pigeons, huh?"

Bloom snickers, and says "Any day now, he's gonna sprout feathers."

Marinette suddenly gasps, and says "That's it!" She starts animatedly sketching in her notebook, and soon a Derby Hat that appears to be made entirely out of feathers emerges on the page. Marinette finishes the final touches on the feather attached to the side, and excitedly shows Bloom the finished design complete with her signature hidden by the brim of the hat.

Bloom notices a flash of light out of the corner of her eye, but doesn't say anything to Marinette. Just quietly makes her way to the other side of the column and records Chloe and Sabrina's incriminating conversation where they admit to stealing Marinette's design. If push comes to shove, she can use it as evidence.

Another twenty minutes later, they're back at Marinette's house with Bloom doing most of their homework while Marinette works on her all-important hat. Marinette's parents even bring them a snack, which Bloom is grateful for - one of the perks of being Marinette's best friend, her parents love to stuff them both with sweets. She's not complaining, and neither is Longg. Or Tikki, for that matter - apparently, the Ladybug Kwami's got a sweet tooth as big as her body.

Once Marinette finishes the hat, Bloom quickly makes a synthetic feather with her magic - a lot cleaner than bird feathers, and not something anyone will be allergic to. Plus, it looks nicer than most bird feathers actually do - they look all nice on the bird, but they're usually ragged, dirty, messy little things when you get close enough to see them. Marinette just cheers at the sight of the feather, and starts to attach it to the hat.

Just as she's finished, though, the tv turns to the news and shows…a real weirdo saying Paris will belong to the pigeons. And calling himself 'Mr. Pigeon' to boot.

Aaand, one Xavier Ramier has been Akumatized…fantastic…

She and Marinette split up, Marinette saying she needs to head to the storage room for a box for the hat and Bloom slipping into a nearby alley invisibly to transform, and soon enough the two of them are leaping across rooftops…following Pigeons flying in the shape of warplanes.

Ladybug mutters "Now this is weirder than weird."

Cat Noir announces his presence with a chuckle, saying "Birds of a feather flock togeth-ah-ah-ACHOO!" He tumbles down the roof, catching himself just before he can roll off the steep slope, and groans. "I'm allergic to feathers…"

Ladybug winces in sympathy, and says "That's helpful right now…"

"Tell me about it, M'Lady…achoo!"

Dragon Fyre grimaces, and says "I hate being sick, my magic acts up like crazy when it happens." Which means they should probably burn all the feathers, just in case.

Ladybug gets the idea to pose as a Park Keeper, and Dragon Fyre says "I've got that covered, Ladybug. You two hide, I'll be the bait." Because her brother wouldn't be a very convincing Park Keeper for even two minutes. He likes to entertain himself when he's bored, which could range from flirting with Ladybug again to dancing or some such. She loves her brother, really, but he has a short attention span when he's bored.

Twenty minutes after they start, a disguised Dragon Fyre gets swept up by an actual swarm of pigeons. She's starting to get why people are afraid of Pigeons, honestly.

They drop her onto the abandoned roof of the mayor's hotel, and moments later her two partners follow. Cat Noir wrinkles his nose, trying to hold back another sneeze, and asks "Where do you think this birdbrain is?" He'd make a better joke, but his allergies are getting in the way - pigeons, it had to be pigeons. He really hates pigeons - he's just grateful he's not deadly-allergic to the things, considering Hawk Moth's latest Akuma.

Dragon Fyre looks around, then says "He's around here somewhere." And then suddenly there's a swarm of Pigeons surrounding them, and Dragon Fyre quickly puts up a shield to cover them…right up until a massive birdcage drops over them.

Where in the world did he get THAT?!

Cat Noir growls, muttering "I really hate being locked up…Cataclysm!" He quickly destroys the bars, so Mr. Pigeon has his birds make…it looks like a Christmas Sleigh. And a flock of birds comes flying towards them, prompting all three heroes to beat it to a nearby doorway to avoid getting literally pecked to death - as it is, the door gets a foot-deep indent from the hundred or so birds ramming into it full-speed.

Dragon Fyre mutters "If I never see another Pigeon as long as I live…" She's never questioning why someone's afraid of pigeons ever again, not after that dent being made.

Cat Noir nods, groaning as he sneezes again, and mutters "I hate feathers to…" If he sounds whiney or pessimistic, it's because it's getting harder and harder to breathe, his head is pounding, and it feels like there's a block of concrete in his sinuses.

Ladybug says "Lets get you a five-minute break, Kitty. We can figure out what to do then."

They get to the lobby of the building, which turns out to be the Mayor's hotel, and Cat Noir jumps as he Miraculous beeps warningly. Before he can go hide to get some Camembert for his Kwami, though, Dragon Fyre says "Let me see, I can help." She and Longg have been practicing this for just such an emergency, them stuck in a crowded place with nowhere to go hide.

"Uh, sis, unless you can…" Cat Noir trails off when his sister grabs his wrist, then makes a tiny ball of white fire between her index finger and thumb…and presses it into his Miraculous. The ring heats up at once, almost to the point of burning, but as he watches…the little toes on the paw symbol come back. He can even hear Plagg's voice in his head, saying WOW! It's not Camembert, but WOW! If this is what Longg's getting, no wonder he was so excited! And Longg usually isn't one to get all excited! I COULD CATACLYSM THE WORLD RIGHT NOW!

And Plagg's probably going to be on some kind of energy high for a while, what did you DO Sis?!

At his stunned look, Ladybug glances over…and then gets a matching look, asking "How in the world…?"

Dragon Fyre shrugs, saying "Surprise. One of the perks of being me. I can recharge my own Miraculous in a pinch. I wouldn't go using your Cataclysm again, Brother, but that should keep you going for the fight." Or a few days, if he didn't have to fight. She puts her hand on his back, pressing some magic into Cat Noir's own body to try and help with his allergies a bit, then goes to look out the window with Ladybug as he sighs in relief to check if Mr. Pigeon and his entourage are still hanging around.

Dragon Fyre frowns at the sight of several large flocks of birds in the shape of balls heading in the same direction, and says "You two stay here for a moment, I'll go scout ahead." She then shimmers and disappears, leaving a stunned crowd.

About two minutes later, Ladybug's yo-yo beeps. "Guys, I'm at the Grand Palace. He's got all the Park Keepers locked in another of those cages."

Ladybug nods, and says "We'll be right over, wait for us." Dragon Fyre sounded concerned enough when she said she'd go scout ahead that she's worried about things. Dragon Fyre doesn't usually get worried when it's the easier Akumas - then again, her worry could have something to do with Cat Noir's feather allergy.

"Will do, I'm not keen on taking this Pigeon-talking weirdo on by myself. He's actually talking like he's a Pigeon! Acting like it to." A video pops up on the Bugphone, showing Mr. Pigeon cooing and making pecking motions, flapping his arms like wings. 

Cat Noir chuckles, his head feeling better after a few minutes of no feathers, and says "I bet. C'mon, M'Lady, lets go!"

When they get there, though, she's nowhere to be found. Cat Noir does nearly sneeze though, headache coming back full force, and wipes at his face while saying "My Pigeon-radar's on high-alert."

Ladybug says "Either your radar's on the brink, or Mr. Pigeon has left the Park Keepers unattended." She's leaning towards the former, though - her poor kitty's been sneezing all the way here, after all.

Cat Noir grins, already imagining a suitable payback for this feathered nightmare he's currently in via plucking Mr. Pigeon's own feathers one by one - no, Plagg, he's probably not going to get that chance, but sneezing a hundred times in a day tends to put one in a bad mood when there's someone causing it - and says "Lets set the cat amongst the Pigeons." He may sneeze all the way through it, but it'll be worth every single sneeze.

But then Ladybug pulls him out of his slightly vindictive imaginings, saying "Hold on, Kitty. Its…too easy. And where's Dragon Fyre?"

Good point, his sister isn't exactly one for staying out of a fight.

They quickly find Dragon Fyre after they start fighting Mr. Pigeon, as she reveals herself behind him and punches him out with a single blow. And then yanks the Bird Call from around his neck, flatly saying "Always knew he was a bit too obsessed with those birds, but I didn't think it went this far."

Ladybug nods, saying "I second that opinion."

Cat Noir sneezes once more, and says "Let's break this thing and be done with it. If I don't see a single pigeon for the rest of the week..."

Hours later, Adrien's watching Plagg zoom around his room much like when he first met the Kwami - except this time he's not looking for food. This time it reminds him of that scene in the Scooby-Doo movie where he drinks a pot of coffee and ends up running circles on the ceiling. Plagg's basically a black blur around his room, and Adrien's just glad Nathalie didn't notice anything different. Like the over-energized Kwami that was two seconds from either Cataclysming something or running this nonstop marathon around the entire mansion.

Marinette runs into the school, barely making it in time for the contest, and sees Bloom giving Chloe and Sabrina a blank look that usually means trouble on Dragon Fyre's face - just what does she have planned this time?!

Setting her box down, she quickly realizes the reason for the look on Bloom's face - Chloe stole her design! Suddenly, she wishes Bloom were Dragon Fyre just so she'd go off on the blonde.

Taking a deep breath, Marinette waits for the judge to come around - Nathalie, holding a tablet with Gabriel Agreste's video chat - only for Chloe to start wailing dramatically over how Marinette stole her design. Bloom rolls her eyes, and says "Enough with the crocodile tears, Bourgeois. Anyone with half a brain isn't believing them for a minute."

She reaches into her pocket to take out her phone, but Marinette puts a hand on her shoulder and says "I got this, Bloom." She then points out how her hat is handmade down to the last stitch, and…she signed it. She signed it, like she signs all the clothes she makes.

Bloom stalks over at once, torn between laughing hysterically and verbally tearing the two design-thieves to shreds - honestly, Sabrina's father is a cop for crying out loud, does she have no qualms about committing an actual crime? - snatching up the Derby Hat 'Chloe' made, and says "Oh, look at that. A Maker's mark, right under the brim." Neither Marinette nor Adrien see the look Bloom gives Chloe and Sabrina, but it makes both girls go pale before running out the door as fast as their legs can carry them.

Bloom has to wonder, did the two girls think at all? If Marinette hadn't been able to prove the design was hers, she could've been banned or blacklisted from the fashion design industry for life.

Bloom rolls her eyes and heads back to Marinette, and says "Here, a spare if you want to make a jacket to match or something, Mari."

Gabriel declares Marinette the winner, and says Adrien will model the Derby hat in his next photoshoot.

And then Bloom's making sure Marinette doesn't collapse from lack of oxygen due to not breathing, or devolving into endless stammering once more.

Chapter Text

Bloom winces in sympathy as Mrs. Mendeleiev, the science teacher for their grade, zeros in on Nathan as he's drawing instead of taking notes - wonderful, really. Of all the classes for the artistically-inclined boy to go into the zone in...he had to pick the single strictest teacher in their year.

She can already hear Chloe's latest taunts even as the severe woman stalks over to her latest victim. Really, does she have to be such a brat all the time? She would've thought by the fifth or sixth Akuma that targeted her specifically, Chloe would've taken a hint. But, no, this is probably going to be the twentieth Akuma or so - that they know of - that Chloe's directly caused.

And then he gets sent to the principal's office, but trips on a bag halfway down the aisle and drops his notebook. True to form, Chloe snatches up the notebook and starts loudly mocking him. "Ooh, look, Sabrina! Its him, as a superhero. And look who he's saving, its Bloom Peters!"

Bloom snaps her head over at once, even as Nathan blushes as bright as his own orange hair and snatches the book back. Accidentally leaving one page behind, but he doesn't seem to notice as he heads out the door. Chloe does, though, snatching it up and putting it in her purse for later.

Bloom sighs inaudibly, pinching the bridge of her nose as she does - Chloe is the most immature, selfish, spoiled…actually, she can't even come up with an accurate description for the brat. She's got the worst attitude in all of Paris, has no concept of the consequences of her actions - on a daily basis, to! - and likes to grind everyone around her into the dust.

And then, Mrs. Mendeleiev announces the Particle Physics project groups, and that Bloom got paired with Nino and Adrien while Marinette with Chloe and Sabrina. Marinette groans, and Bloom reluctantly says "Alright, Mari. Just don't blow this with your usual stammer, got it?" You'd better be grateful, Mari. I'm not putting up with miss spoiled brat for hours on end for you to stammer, blush, and not get two coherent words out.

To Marinette's utter shock, Bloom asks the strict teacher to switch teams with her. Placing Marinette with Adrien and herself with Chloe, the girl she can't stand. "Bloom, you're the best!" Adrien and Nino glance backwards at the sudden thud that sounds behind them, and see Bloom pulling Marinette and herself to their feet. Apparently, Marinette just tackled Bloom.

In the locker room, Bloom walks in to hear Chloe say she can't do the project, and Sabrina just going along with it. "So, what's the problem, ladies?"

Chloe scoffs, and says "It's fine, Bloom."

Bloom crosses her arms and raises an eyebrow, asking "Then, you can help with the project if everything's fine."

Sabrina quickly says "It's fine, Bloom. You and I can do the research and writing, and Chloe will present it. That way, everything's equal."

Bloom pinches the bridge of her nose, praying for some patience to deal with these two for an extended amount of time, and says "That's not equal, Sabrina. That's called being Chloe's slave. Is this seriously how you two work all the time?" She'd had that idea, after the past few months, but hearing it confirmed wasn't something she desperately wanted.

Sabrina nods happily, saying "We've been doing this ever since grade school when I started doing Chloe's homework. We've been BFF's ever since!"

Bloom stares at Sabrina in silent shock, she really believes that. Even the ghost-thing above her head says as much. Gods, this girl needs some self-worth…

Chloe snidely asks "You got a problem with that? C'mon, Sabrina!"

Bloom flatly says "Actually, I do. You're just taking advantage of Sabrina, have been for years now. You treat her like she's your personal slave, never asking what she wants to do or if you can do anything for her."

Chloe scoffs, pulling Sabrina to the side and saying "Not only am I Sabrina's best friend, I'm her only friend. So she'd better do what I say."

Bloom shakes her head, entirely done with Chloe's attitude, and says "I'd rather have no friends than friends like you, Bourgeois. Real friends care about each other, you only give a damn about yourself."

Chloe leaves to get her hair done, and Bloom makes a sound of disgust before heading over to her own locker and getting the few things she keeps in there - mostly, her own sketchbook, charcoal sticks, and a bag of snacks for herself and Longg. She waves to Marinette, who's looking like she's got stars in her eyes already, only to get jumped from behind by a familiar person.

Marinette glances over when she sees Bloom out of the corner of her eye, and waves hello - she's so got to make this up to Bloom, she's the BEST! - when she sees Sabrina running towards her. "Bloom!" And then the shy girl hugs Bloom, saying "I can't believe you stood up to Chloe like that, it was so amazing!"

Bloom just shrugs, looking mildly uncomfortable with Sabrina's obvious hero-worship, and says "It was nothing, really."

Sabrina squeals, actually squeals, and says "I'm so super excited to have a new best friend, one who'll actually help with the project! We're going to have the absolute best time together! Then, we'll do the presentation, and tell Mrs. Mendeleiev the truth about Chloe. Sound good?"

Bloom nods, and says "One step at a time. First, lets just head to the library and start researching. We can do everything else when it comes." Another squeal out of Sabrina, and she's off to the library before anyone can even blink.

Adrien startles Marinette out of her shock, saying "Wow, looks like Bloom's got a worshipper."

"And they haven't even been in a group for five minutes." Three and a half, actually.

At the library, Adrien's looking for a Particle Physics book when he hears Chloe incredulously asking "What do you mean your not doing my assignment?!" When he glances over, Bloom's sitting between Sabrina and Chloe…and looking supremely irritated.

Sabrina glares at Chloe, saying "Bloom's right, Chloe, I'm not your slave!"

Chloe smirks, and says "But Bloom didn't buy a super-cute Beret at Gabriel's, and I did. Maybe I could lend it to you."

Bloom pinches the bridge of her nose, and Adrien figures she's about at the end of her patience right now. Because she snaps "Enough." Adrien can only wince at that, that's a lesser version of the same tone his sister uses on Akumas right before she goes off on them. It usually means the Akuma had better get running...in this case, he's positive CHloe should just be quiet and get to work if she doesn't want Bloom to rip her to shreds with nothing but words.

Both Chloe and Sabrina stare at her in alarm - and not without good reason, in Adrien's opinion - and Bloom says "Chloe, if you want to be part of the grade for this project, then your going to help with this project. End of story. So, either help get books to use as research material or get a zero for the project."

Sabrina cheerfully asks "What books do you need me to get, Bloom?" She's so glad she's got Bloom on her side! Seems her protection extends to anyone not on Chloe's side, instead of just Marinette.

Bloom rubs her temples, then says "Anything you can find on Particle Physics. I'll stake out a computer, you just bring any books you can find. I'll have the research part done soon enough if there are no interruptions." Sabrina nods and darts off, and Adrien can only shake his head - Bloom's apparently working some real magic…no, its not possible, right?

His super-sis' magic is always based on fire, explosions, jets of flames from her hands, and telekinesis mostly. Dragon Fyre doesn't have the ability to give people confidence…that he knows of, anyway.

Maybe…its just Bloom.

When he glances back, Bloom's already at a computer typing away and Sabrina's darting away for another book. And then she quickly flips through a book, and…are words just appearing on the word document she's using? Deciding his head is starting to hurt too much from the potential revelation of his super-sister, he heads back to Marinette and Nino, who're reading a Physics book and hunched over a computer respectively.

Marinette groans, muttering "I hate Physics…"

Adrien chuckles, and says "I think Chloe's hating it more. Bloom's actually making her help or risk getting a zero for the project."

Marinette glares at the book, then mutters "Good for Bloom, serves Chloe right." Make the blonde brat actually have to work for something instead of having it handed to her on a silver platter for once in her life.

Adrien frowns at Marinette, but Nino just shakes his head at him and motions over towards the computer. Then types out 'Chloe has Sabrina do everything for her. Always has. Expects everyone to bend over backwards for her, and she picks on Mari here the most.' He then quickly deletes the sentence from the research he's gathering.

Adrien just nods - he knows Chloe seems to take an almost sadistic pleasure in making Marinette's life miserable in school, though Bloom's presence beside her apparently mostly stopped that for the time being, but still…she was all he had for so long. He knows he can't keep using that excuse forever, that sooner or later things will come to a head and force him to decide whether or not he can be friends with her, but still…

When he glances back at Bloom, hoping his possible-sister's presence might help him even a little, her turned back doesn't give him much inspiration.

Deciding the best thing for now would be to focus on the project, he cracks one of the books and heads to a useful section. And then he hears Chloe screaming, and Bloom yelling "Get down, Sabrina!"

Chapter Text

Bloom crouches down with Sabrina under the desk they were at, watching in no small amount of shock as Chloe gets…pelted with person-sized Berets and chased by the biggest blow dryer she's ever seen. If the situation weren't very real, and potentially very deadly, she'd be laughing hysterically.

It's just so pathetic, Chloe's worried about her hair when someone's trying to maybe kill her - besides, she walks four miles to school each morning, and an indeterminate distance back depending entirely on whether or not there's an Akuma attack and if she's going to spend some time with Marinette at the Bakery. Whether its rain, shine, or even snow.

And Chloe's worried about her hair.

Sabrina clings to Bloom in utter terror, and Bloom glances around while pushing the other girl's head down to try and find the Akuma. What she sees is…a kid with messy dark red hair watching the chaos from the second floor. And then he glances at her, and his expression softens. He gives her a smile and a wave, only to look away when Ladybug and Cat Noir show up. He quickly moves his hand over his arm, and the word 'Trocadero' appears in front of her on the floor briefly before disappearing as he leaves…after Bloom magically pushes the nearest bookshelf onto the giant blow dryer to get rid of it. One good thing about all the chaos, nobody would notice a bookshelf tipping itself over in the whole mess.

Once everything's gone quiet, Bloom turns to Sabrina and says "Sabrina, listen to me. Go home, its too dangerous for you to be out right now." Sabrina opens her mouth, but Bloom cuts her off saying "Your life is more important than a Particle Physics Project. He was targeting Chloe specifically, and until a few hours ago you were attached at the hip. He could very well go after you to. I'll email you the completed research, and we'll bang out an outline tomorrow, alright?"

Sabrina nods, saying "I'll put it on a Google Document, we can work on it together like that."

Bloom nods, saying "Sounds perfect. Stay safe."

"Seems this Evillustrator is targeting you specifically, Chloe. Any idea why?" Cat Noir leans against a wall in the familiar room, glancing at his Lady every few moments - she's much less relaxed, loathing radiating off her as she sits cross-legged on the arm of a chair.

Chloe shakes her head, putting down the paper she was drawing on, and says "No, everyone adores me."

Cat Noir can testify that that's most certainly not the case - most of the school, in fact, despises her. Honestly, if she weren't his long-time friend he'd be supremely annoyed with her right now - an Akuma is targeting her specifically, and she can't even be bothered to be worried about it. Because she's currently doodling, not even paying attention as they try to figure out just who might be trying to end her life.

"Yeah," Ladybug says, the eyeroll clear in her voice, "because you're so adorable." Instead of seeing the sarcasm for what it is, Chloe squeals in excitement over the words themselves and takes a selfie with her.

Cat Noir chuckles at the two girls, as Ladybug tries to escape Chloe and her selfies, even as his fake ears twitch and pick up a familiar noise. And then there's a thud that's easily picked up by even his human ears, signaling his sister's arrival.

Dragon Fyre walks in, saying "Sorry I'm late, I got a little held up." Getting Sabrina to go home and stay there, instead of coming to visit me to work on the project together. She glances out towards the Eiffel Tower for a moment, then says "I heard about what happened at the library."

Ladybug nods, grateful beyond belief for the excuse to get away from Chloe, and says "We saw the Akuma for a minute, it looked like he could draw things into reality."

Dragon Fyre hums, picking up the piece of paper Chloe was drawing on, and her breath catches in her throat. "You've gotta be kidding me…"

Cat Noir walks over, asking "What is it, sis?" When he sees the drawing of Evillustrator and Bloom, he gets what it is. Ladybug lets out a quiet 'oh…' as well.

Big oh. They recognize that style of sketching, they got a glimpse of it when Nathan tripped and spilled his sketchpad all over the floor next to them.

The detail that Bloom's face has been drawn over by Chloe with glasses, a curly moustache, and a goatee doesn't help matters, though.

Dragon Fyre snaps her fingers, and the additions disappear. "I know how to find him, guys. I've gotta go. I'll call you later." Nathan, you've gotta be kidding… She leaps off Chloe's balcony, quickly disappearing into the city down below.

And then Ladybug says "I'll go check the city to, Cat Noir. Later."

Cat Noir follows his Lady out onto the balcony, asking "What do you mean 'later' Ladybug?"

"I mean, I'm going to lose my mind if I have to spend one more moment with Chloe Bourgeois and her delusions and fangirling! So, later!" And then she's off swinging as well, promising to contact him if she finds the Akuma.

Bloom gets to the Trocadero, directly across from the Eiffel Tower, and looks around. He couldn't have known, he couldn't possibly have known I don't usually come here… She doesn't usually come to the place her parents were brutally - and, incidentally, unbelievably - murdered.

She can feel herself getting tense as she sits down on a bench, her magic getting dangerously close to setting the bench on fire, so she starts to draw. Something, anything to take her mind off the lurking memories of a dark night and four scary and strange men appearing from shadows around them.

She starts sketching the view from on top of the Eiffel Tower, something she's only seen as Dragon Fyre, getting so lost in her work that she doesn't notice anyone else by her until a voice says "Your artwork is beautiful."

That makes her jump almost out of her skin, and she whirls around to find that same boy from the library and the picture she took from Chloe's room standing behind the bench. Once her heart stops trying to beat its way out of her chest, Bloom asks "Why did you ask me to come here?"

The boy - Nathan - chuckles, and says "I just wanted to see you…but I don't know where you live, unfortunately."

Well, that's a relief. Not only is she somewhat territorial about her abandoned warehouse…admitting that you live in an abandoned warehouse is embarrassing even to her.

Instead Bloom says "I'm not even going to ask why you attacked Chloe. She's a spoiled rotten brat who only cares about herself. Cruel, selfish, and callous."

Nathan nods, and says "Indeed she is, I couldn't have said it better myself." Even still, he sounds rather calm for an Akuma - a lot calmer than most of them, anyway.

And she's never seen an Akuma give someone a look like…this. This…soft, gentle, this…caring.

Oh no, no Nathan…

To get herself off her rapidly-panicking train of thought, she asks "Are you going to hurt me?"

Nathan recoils as if she'd actually slapped him, and says "No! No, I could never! Your Bloom! Your beautiful, and confident, courageous…your perfect. I could never hurt you!"

Bloom feels her face burn at his words, she couldn't possibly say why though, and says "That's very flattering…thank you." She's not perfect, she's very far from perfect and she knows it. She's got a massive temper of explosive proportions, regularly beats Akumas unconscious if something happens to her partners - family - and lies to everyone around her bar Longg at least a few hours a day just by attending school. She had to magic her way into school, after all, and to make sure nobody asked too many questions about her suspiciously-thin file on record. She's not proud of it, but still…she knows she'll need an education to get anywhere in life. She's not perfect, and not even her brother knows everything about her.

If he did...he'd probably not want to be her brother. Who'd want to be the brother of a street rat?

"So," Nathan says, pulling Bloom from her thoughts, "I wanted to know if…" He scratches the back of his head self-consciously, "you'd come to my birthday party?"

Bloom blinks, then asks "Come again?" Is he...seriously asking her out on a date?

Nathan nods earnestly, and says "It'll just be you and me." He quickly draws something on the tablet on his arm, and a card appears in front of her. With a sketch of her face, and his, with a birthday cake on it - its an invitation.

He drew me an invitation just like that? She knew he could draw stuff into reality, she was there at the library after all, but that was...really fast.

"Do you like it?" The hopeful expression on his face just about kills Bloom - she hates it when her classmates are Akumatized! Really, does Hawk Moth have to go after the kids she goes to class with?!

Bloom nods, her lips curving upwards as she stares at the detail he paid to her drawing, and says "I do. I'll have something I think your missing tonight, to. Just promise me one thing?"

Nathan quickly nods, saying "Anything at all, Bloom. For you."

"Don't attack Chloe anymore. She's not worth the effort or energy." He nods, pressing the card into her hand and the back of her hand to his lips before taking off on a rocket that wasn't on his back two seconds before.

Cat Noir is on the verge of tearing his hair out and screaming, probably not in that specific order - but Chloe just handed her Particle Physics project to do, now he's much less sympathetic towards her than when Bloom demanded she do some of the work! - when his staff suddenly buzzes. He takes it outside, and reads the text that says 'Can't make it in uniform tonight, but I know where Evillustrator will be. The La Seine bank near the Notre Dame, he's in love with Bloom Peters and invited her to his birthday party. Even said he wouldn't attack Chloe Bourgeois if she went. She'll try to talk him down, but if things get ugly go in. DF.'

Oh, thank the Kwamis. I don't know how much more I can take of Chloe's condescending.

And then his staff buzzes again, this time with Ladybug's number, and he puts it to his ear while jokingly saying "You can't fly out of here and then make Cat calls, Ladybug." He can already see her rolling her eyes at his joke.

"Haha, very funny, Kitty. Did you see Dragon Fyre's text?"

Getting serious now, he says "Yeah, you think Bloom will be alright?" First the Pharaoh, now Evillustrator, he has to wonder what it is about her that draws the Akumas to her.

"Well, she is pretty tough. And resourceful. She can take care of herself, for the most part. Remember Pharaoh?"

"How could I forget? Half that fiasco was spent trying to find her."

"So, what do you think, Kitty? We go in, weapons ready? Or we trust that Bloom can try to get through to Evillustrator?"

Cat Noir sighs, and says "Much as I'd like to fight the Akuma straight away…Bloom would be in danger, and I'm not sure what he'd do if she was in the crossfire."

Chapter Text

Evillustrator is just putting the finishing touches on the boat he drew - lights, a miniature Eiffel Tower, everything he can think of - when suddenly he feels Hawk Moth push his way into the younger's mind.

That is a lovely little scene you're setting, but I don't want you getting distracted, boy.

"But," he answers, "I just want Bloom to love me." And Bloom Peters, gorgeous, incredible, confident Bloom Peters who can and will distract an Akuma to give everyone else a chance to escape, wouldn't look twice at him otherwise.

A sharp, near-blinding pain suddenly throbs in his head, as Hawk Moth snarls And I want the Miraculous, so get it…or else. That pain suddenly moves into his hand, cramping it up and making it impossible for him to use his stylus to draw anything.

"Ok!" Evillustrator gasps in panic, "I will, I will!"

Thankfully, the pain leaves his hand when he hears a familiar - beautiful - voice ask "Nathan? Something wrong?"

Evillustrator turns around to see Bloom standing on the edge of the bank, staring up at him in concern. He gives her a smile, and says "I'm fine, Bloom."

Bloom glances at his hand after a moment, like she knows what was just happening, then says "Alright, then." She doesn't sound like she believes him, but at least she's dropping the subject for now.

He draws a plank for her to walk on board with, and says "Thank you for accepting my invitation."

Bloom nods, and says "Of course. It's beautiful, did you make all this?"

Evillustrator nods, and says "I'm almost finished, actually." He's about to draw again, but clouds suddenly cover the moon. "Oh, come on, you've gotta be kidding!"

"Something wrong?" Bloom sounds half-concerned, half-wary. Not that he can blame her, given how most Akumas usually behave. He's yet to go on a real rampage, for one.

Angry expression dropping at once, Evillustrator turns towards Bloom and says "It's not a big deal, I just can't draw properly in the dark is all." He quickly crouches down to one of the lanterns, and draws a circle - a large orb, resembling the moon, appears above the mini-Tower. "Perfect!"

Two minutes later, the boat is floating down the river while Evillustrator plays some music from his pad for them. When Bloom sees Ladybug and Cat Noir jumping from roof to roof following them, she quietly gets out the picture Chloe had and says "Since its your birthday, I didn't want to come with nothing for you…but I wasn't sure what to get the guy who can create anything he wants in the space of a minute. So…I got you something I thought you'd miss instead."

There's a soft gasp beside her as Evillustrator takes the sketch, and he says "My drawing…I didn't even realize it was missing." He gazes at her in awe, asking "How'd you get it?!"

"Chloe kept it after you left class, I got it back for you. But, by then, you'd been Akumatized."

"Thank you, that…that means the world to me, Bloom." Bloom glances away, her blush inexplicably darkening under his gaze. After a moment, Evillustrator asks "Are you alright, Bloom? You were so tense on the Trocadero earlier, I could tell. And you keep glancing that way every once in a while."

Bloom runs a hand through her ponytail, careful to avoid dislodging Longg as she says "It's not you, Nathan. I just…have some bad memories of there, is all."

Evillustrator inclines his head, asking "Do you want to talk about it? If you don't, I understand, but…it might help."

Bloom shrugs, saying "Guess I'd better tell someone eventually, right?" She can't believe she's doing this, but…too late to stop it now. She'll give the sanitized version, no magic involved. "My parents and I, we were on vacation. I'd always dreamed of being an artist, you see, so my parents surprised me with a trip to Paris. One night, we went to the Trocadero so I could draw the Eiffel Tower all lit up…"

Evillustrator takes her hand and squeezes it gently, asking "Was it an Akuma?"

Bloom shakes her head, and says "No, this was four years ago. Hawk Moth wasn't even around back then. These four men, they appeared out of nowhere. Dad told Mom and I to run, and we did…I didn't see what happened to him, but I remember his screams. And Mom, another of them snapped her neck like a twig right in front of me…" Gods, this hurts. It hurts every bit as bad as it did when it first happened right in front of her.

Why she's even telling him is another matter entirely, as is why she's acting so weird around him - not crushing his feelings cruelly like Chloe would is one thing, but…this, whatever this is, isn't an act. Spilling out the story of how she got stranded in Paris is no act.

Lithe arms pull her closer, one hand cupping her face to wipe at her cheeks, and Nathan says "I'm so sorry, that must've been terrible."

Its like she's just ripped a hole open in her chest all over again, actually. It hurt like nothing else she'd ever known when it first happened, and it hurts all over again now. And she can't even completely blame Hawk Moth for this, she's the one that told him what happened despite knowing it'd bring her to the point of breaking down again about it.

Seeing her expression, he asks "You want to talk about something else?"

Bloom nods, wipes at her face, then asks "Why'd you let Chloe get to you so much? You know she's a brat, I know she's a brat, and I'm vocal enough about my dislike of her that you know I'm not going to act anything like her. Or tease you, for that matter." This has got to be the single weirdest Akuma she's ever encountered...because he's so normal. So...non-hostile. Most Akumas go tearing up the city, or whatever equivalent their abilities give them - Nathan make a giant hair dryer and a few hats, then set up a date. How destructive.

Evillustrator blushes, and says "Bloom, your…amazing, incredible, you can distract an Akuma or hold your own against one. Me, without all this, I'm…"

Bloom shakes her head, saying "Nathan, look around. This, all this, is you. You made this, not Hawk Moth. Who cares what someone like Chloe Bourgeois says?"

Evillustrator's blush deepens, right up until a familiar purple Akuma symbol lights up his face and he gasps in pain. "They're not here!" He doubles over, clutching at his throbbing head even as the rest of his body lights up in agony, as he says "I can't defeat them when they haven't even shown up! I'll think of something, Hawk Moth, I swear!"

You'd better, or this will be just the beg-

A wonderful, amazing warmth suddenly floods him, cutting off Hawk Moth and making him feel like he's floating as the pain suddenly ends. He just keeps his eyes closed, trying to catch his breath from the sheer agony that was filling his body, and barely registers the bump of the boat hitting shore. Or the voices he can distantly hear, one of which he recognizes as Bloom's even as he goes in and out.

"-ppened, Bloom?" A male voice, Cat Noir maybe? Did the two superheroes follow them?

"-know, he just collapsed! He was talking to Hawk Moth!" Bloom's voice, filled with worry and anger.

"-Akuma, where is it?" Undoubtedly Ladybug's voice. Too bad for Hawk Moth he's not very inclined for - or physically capable of - fighting the superheroes after that wonderful torture session he was just given.

And then suddenly he feels the stylus slip from his fingers, and panic explodes in his head through the wonderful warmth - he needs that! If only to defend himself against Hawk Moth, should the cruel man decide to come after him in person!

And then he blacks out, hearing a snapping sound as he does.

When Nathan comes to, he can't remember much - how he ended up on the bank of the River Seine, for instance. Or why Ladybug and Cat Noir are there - beyond the obvious, that is. He got Akumatized, so here they are - the details, though, are just not there.

Bloom Peters, though, he vaguely remembers asking her to his birthday party… And he's really sure he remembers her basically ripping open an old wound for him. And he definitely remembers the pain Hawk Moth inflicted on him.

Ladybug helps him up, asking "You alright, Nathaniel? You were Akumatized by Hawk Moth."

Nathan nods, saying "I'm alright, I think. I don't remember much, though."

Ladybug says "I'll get you home, Nathan. Cat, you want to take-"

Bloom suddenly says "No! No thanks!" At the two superheroes' looks, she says "I've got to head back to the Library anyway, I've got a Particle Physics project to finish researching." She pushes herself to her feet, shrugging her shoulders to adjust her shirt, then says "See you in class, Nathan." And then she's off, heading towards the city even as she gets out her phone.

Cat Noir leaps over, saying "Its late, I'm sure a school project can-"

Bloom shakes her head, saying "I'm not getting to sleep tonight anyway, might as well be productive." She pushes a button on her phone, saying "Hey, Sabrina, its me. So, I'm heading back to the Library now to finish up the research for the project. I thought we could work on the outline together tomorrow after school. Sound good? What, seriously? Sabrina, it's a nice gesture, really, but you didn't have to do all my homework for me…"

Nathan bites the inside of his cheek nervously as he sits down, at least nobody's mentioning him getting Akumatized. And then he notices Bloom, paler than usual and looking like she really didn't sleep at all last night. She goes to stand in front of Sabrina, saying "Got all the research done, you should have access to the Doc, lets hit the library after school and bang out an outline."

Sabrina nods, then asks "Do we tell Mrs. Mendeleiev about Chloe now? Or after the presentation is finished?"

Bloom shrugs, and says "Depends. Do we want to deal with her incessant whining throughout the project or get her a zero and deal with her incessant whining to her father?"

Sabrina hums, then says "Good point. You alright?"

Bloom nods, then says "Didn't sleep well last night is all. Decided I'd finish the research. I'm good."

Nathan screws up every bit of confidence he has - significantly less, without that Akuma, since his memories of the boat ride with Bloom came back clearer last night after everything was all over - when they head to their lockers, and waits for her to close her locker door. "Um, Bloom? Can we…talk?"

Bloom's expression flickers for a moment, but she nods and says "Yeah. Want to talk along the way? I'm heading to the library to meet with Sabrina to work on the Physics project."

Nathan nods, and says "Done." He's not going to ask her to the Trocadero again, he remembers their talk on the boat. He doesn't remember much, but he remembers bits and pieces. The comfortable silence, the warmth she gave off…the story she told him, the secret she shared.

When he gets out of school, she's waiting for him there, a blank look on her face. Nathan scratches the back of his head, saying "Um, I'm not really sure how to start this…" What do you say when you can inexplicably remember some of what you did as an Akuma? Aren't they supposed to forget everything they did?

At least, he figures, he wasn't particularly violent and doesn't have to process all the guilt that would undoubtedly come with, say, Stormy Weather's rampage.

Bloom shrugs, and says "If you wanted to apologize for anything that might've happened to me, relax. You were a perfect gentleman."

Nathan blushes brightly, saying "Thanks, Bloom. Um, so…a few memories came back last night. Bits and pieces, mostly. I'm not sure why, though." Mostly the truth, just a little white lie about the timing, more or less. They did get clearer after a bit.

"Oh…" Bloom blushes, glancing away, asking "What do you remember?"

"We were…we were on the boat, you gave me back the drawing Chloe kept…"

He trails off, and Bloom cautiously asks "Anything else?"

Nathan nods silently, remembering how he looked up the cold case last night after getting home - he'd seen it on the news four years ago, but hadn't remembered how…horrific it was. And Bloom had to go through it herself…

"You can't tell anyone, Nathan. Please." Nathan glances at Bloom, who's looking at him with wide eyes. "I'm not even supposed to be in Paris, but I'm stuck. I couldn't exactly go to the nearest Police station, which I didn't know the location of anyway, and explain what all happened. I can't go back, the most I could do was go into hiding. I can't get citizenship until I'm eighteen, and I certainly couldn't make my way to an airport and try to sneak on board a flight. Assuming I could even pick out the right plane."

Nathan nods, for a foreigner to be granted citizenry in France, they have to live in the country five years. Its been four, now, and Bloom would have to be eighteen to apply. "I won't, I promise. You…er, you want to draw something together after the project is done?"

Bloom blushes, then nods and says "That would be nice, thanks."

They split up at the library, Bloom heading inside while Nathan heads to the park to sketch. And leaving Nathan with a warm glow in his chest that rivals the near-magical warmth he remembers last night.

Chapter Text

Nathan's sitting on the bench in the park, sketching out Ladybug, Cat Noir and Dragon Fyre, when suddenly he hears someone sit down next to him - he looks over to see Bloom Peters sitting there, an apple in one hand and her own sketchbook in the other. After a moment, she glances up and asks "Hey. This seat taken?"

Nathan shakes his head at once, blushing ferociously almost immediately, and says "N-No, not at all…" Bloom's been spending more time with him lately, now that the Particle Physics Project is done, and he's…not exactly sure what to do about it. Maybe she's just trying to be nice about his massive crush on her, or maybe she genuinely has some interest in him and is trying to show it - either way, he's every bit as bad around her as Marinette is around Adrien.

Oh, oh no…the entire class is betting on us, aren't they?

They are for Adrien and Marinette, including him. Bloom just says the two of them drive her up a very tall wall every day with their utter obliviousness - Adrien gives her this look with his bright green eyes, a look that just screams that he likes her despite him saying they're 'just friends' time and again, and Marinette's crush is as big as the school and obvious as the Eiffel Tower at night. Now he just has to wonder…is he the Adrien or the Marinette in this relationship?

"Nice sketch, Nathan. You want to take a look at mine? There's something…something's missing."

Nathan jumps, and nervously says "Um, yeah! Yeah, sure! Don't know what I could do, though, since your amazing- I mean, your artwork is amazing…" Dear Gods, may the ground swallow him up now, he's the Marinette.

Thankfully, Bloom doesn't comment on his slip, or his blush, as she moves over and shows him the sketch of the scenery - its from behind the bench they're sitting on, with a gorgeous view of the fountain and the surrounding area. He's never worked with charcoal before, but she seems to be an expert at it - it also seems really difficult, since it's always black and white.

After glancing over the lifelike drawing, he says "I'm not sure what to suggest." Mainly because its so lifelike he swears he could jump straight into it.

Bloom frowns at it, though, saying "Its missing…something. I'm not sure what, though. I was looking around while you were sketching, but nothing was popping out at me."

Bloom's asking him for advice. Bloom's asking him for advice. Now Nathan knows how Marinette feels whenever Adrien even says hello, his brain is liquefying in his head.

And then her face suddenly lights up, even as she says "I got it!" If Hawk Moth tried to re-Akumatize him, he'd find nothing but an empty husk because Nathan's brains just imploded at that look. He can only watch as Bloom starts drawing just above the bench on her own sketch, before rubbing her index finger on the spot to smudge it just right and then move to down to just under the bench. When she's finished, he sees there's now a figure facing the fountain, sitting on the bench…with a pencil behind his ear.

Nathan's throat feels like a dormant volcano, drier than a desert, when he glances up to see Bloom staring at her completed work in satisfaction. And then she gives him that smile that makes his heart all but actually stop, and says "Thanks for the help, Nathan."

Nathan quickly nods his head, then scrambles to find something - anything - to say to change the subject. His brain instantly latches onto Sabrina's relapse into Chloe's slave. "I, er, noticed Sabrina's back with Chloe despite you two outing her about the project…"

Bloom nods, getting an annoyed look on her face, and says "Chloe bribed her with stuff. Honestly, that girl needs some self-worth. And a friend who won't treat her like she's got none." She did what she could, but with Hawk Moth Akumatizing people every single day...well, her unexplained disappearances ended up being too much for the girl who Chloe would flake on at every single opportunity.

Nathan nods, then asks "You mind, um…" Gods, why did he even start to ask?! There's no way she'll say yes!

Bloom raises an eyebrow, asking "Do I mind what?"

Nathan goes about as red as Ladybug's outfit, and says "Its nothing, nevermind."

Bloom turns to face him, saying "What did you want to ask, Nathan? The worst I'll say is no."

Nathan swallows, trying to push even the smallest amount of moisture down his throat, and asks "Do you mind…sittingonthefountainformetodraw?" Bloom blinks, taking a minute to work through that, then gets up and heads over to the fountain to sit down. He ends up with a picture of her sitting sideways on the fountain, one leg angled and the other straight as she eats an apple in front of the fountain spray.

After Bloom heads off once more, Longg comes out of his spot on her ponytail and says "Something tells me you like him, Hatchling."

Bloom rolls her eyes at Longg, who seems to have pseudo-adopted her like she and her brother have each other if the nickname is anything to go by, and says "He's nice, Longg. And I'm not going to be like Chloe and break his heart."

Longg sits down on her shoulder, asking "So why all the blushing? And why'd you tell him your story?"

Bloom shrugs, saying "I don't know, Longg. I really don't know. But I did and there's no changing that." Maybe his crush on her will turn to friendship, maybe it won't…maybe he'll completely fall in love with her. She doesn't know, she can't predict the future after all!

And…she doesn't know what's up with her, either. While that's nothing new, thanks to her magic, it's new when it has to do with her emotions.

Dragon Fyre lands at the tip of the Eiffel Tower, her mood somber for once. And not even the amazing view of Paris, all lit up during the night, can cheer her up tonight.

What's wrong, Hatchling? You've been off all day.

Dragon Fyre just shrugs, saying "I know, Longg, but I'm not sure. Is it my two partners? Stuck in the most ridiculously painful love-square I've ever seen? Is it myself, with magic I still don't understand and am not sure if I really have a handle on despite all I can do with it?" Is it her own unknown feelings, ones centered around one red-haired boy from class? Or her own identity crisis, carefully hidden away from the entire world?

She's not sure, and its been bringing her down more and more as the day went on.

"Hey! Finally found you, it took me forever!" Dragon Fyre looks up in shock, and sees a small pair of bright green eyes staring at her out of a shadow. When she makes a small fireball in her hand, it reveals a small black cat there, the same size as Longg - another Kwami, then.

Longg's voice in her head says That's Plagg, the Kwami of Destruction. Cat Noir's Kwami.

Plagg says "I'm sure Longg's introducing me right now, so I'll skip the pleasantries. You know who my chosen one is?"

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "Adrien Agreste."

Plagg throws his tiny little arms up in the air, saying "Yes, thank you! I need some help, like bad. Kid's all alone up there, bar you two. You, and Ladybug. I care about all my cats, and I can definitively tell you that going to school and fighting an Akuma are the literal highlights of his day. And that's just depressing!"

Dragon Fyre sighs, and says "Great…so, why are you here?"

"Because Ladybug keeps rejecting him! Every Ladybug and Cat Noir pair - or whatever names they chose for themselves - has gotten together throughout history, but its never been like this! They've fallen for one another, and they don't even realize it! I've had to talk him out of tears, sneaking out for extra patrols, and a dozen other stupid ideas already, and its barely been a few months."

Dragon Fyre groans, then says "That's pretty much how we basically adopted each other, Plagg. We're both entirely alone, 'cept for school and Akuma battles. Longg's the only one I can talk to about things, since I can't exactly tell everyone at school I live in an abandoned warehouse filled with old clothes."

Plagg's quiet for a moment, then says "Oh…"

Dragon Fyre shrugs, saying "Not your fault, Plagg. You didn't know." I haven't told anyone that particular detail. And I don't plan on doing so either.

Plagg eventually says "If things don't progress on their own, we'll have a real problem on our hands. Broken-hearted Miraculous Holders don't make good heroes. And they're going to break each other sooner or later like this."

Dragon Fyre nods, then says "So…we come up with a backup plan. Plan B, lets call it."

Plagg nods, saying "Much as it goes against the rules…yeah. Something tells me we'll need it." He knows the identity reveal is supposed to happen on it's own - without interference on his or Tikki's parts - but this is just too much. Adrien's father can't even be bothered to have a meal with him even once a week, he's constantly looking for the man's pride when he knows he's never going to get it - since nothing's ever good enough for the cold-hearted man, and he only ever shows his face to tell Adrien how disappointed he is in the kid - and the blonde barely has any free time at all to do something he wants. He can't even be himself in public, since Gabriel Agreste's son is perfect. Perfect manners, perfect grades, perfect looks - he's naturally a very nice person, but he loves puns, anime...all things that aren't perfect in Gabriel Agreste's view. Which would be why he's always cracking jokes as Cat Noir, it's his outlet - his way to finally express the side of himself he has to bite back at all other times.

Dragon Fyre hums, then says "Marinette is in love with Adrien, but Adrien loves Ladybug…what if we introduced Cat Noir to Marinette? Let them get to know each other?"

Plagg asks "Is this Marinette Ladybug's secret identity? That…might work."

Dragon Fyre nods, saying "Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She's got a crush on Adrien the size of the school, I'm not sure how he hasn't noticed yet." Literally everyone else has, even Chloe - and why Chloe hasn't outed Mari to Adrien is a mystery to the red-head. Wait, right. Adrien would be nice to her, potentially give her a shot. Chloe doesn't know Adrien only has eyes for Ladybug, right...

Plagg says "He's got this…innocence about him. He really doesn't know she's got a crush on him. It doesn't help that he's only got eyes for Ladybug…you've got to be kidding…" They successfully made a love-square with only two people. That's a first in Miraculous history.

Dragon Fyre nods, saying "Now you see why they drive me up a wall." A very, very tall wall. Half the time she wants to scream, the other half she wants to shake some sense into them both.

Eventually, Plagg says "So, if things ever get to a breaking point, we tell my cat his partner's identity, get them to get to know one another like that, and try to keep the fallout to a minimum?" There's a time and place for secret identities, especially with Hawk Moth Akumatizing people left and right, but these two need to get themselves straightened out. Heartbroken heroes don't fight crime well, that's why the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous' have always been handed out very specifically! They've always ever been given to pairs that were compatible, that would end up together on their own!

Which is why this is looking like an absolute disaster - not to mention the detail that, if they really do break each other, than Hawk Moth would undoubtedly capitalize on the chance to Akumatize on or even both of them. The Butterfly Miraculous has been used to enhance another Holder before - and it boosts their powers even further than they already were. So, if the wielders of the powers of Creation and Destruction were enhanced...it could literally be the end of the world.

Dragon Fyre nods, saying "That's all we can do, at the moment, aside from keeping things from reaching that breaking point." And they are heading that way, with one being completely devoted to the hero persona and the other to the civilian. After a minute Dragon Fyre sighs and asks "Do you know what I am, Plagg?"

Plagg blinks, looking about as confused as a Kwami can, and asks "What you are?" He's not following the subject change, he's really not. One minute, they're talking about keeping the world from being destroyed, the next they're talking about an apparent identity crisis?

Dragon Fyre runs a hand across her face, and says "I can see Kwamis, Plagg, even without a Miraculous. I saw Wayzz and Longg when I first met Master Fu. I can burn things just by thinking about it, I don't get cold...Longg said you and Tikki were the oldest Kwamis, that you two appeared when the universe was created. If anyone would know..." How she got these powers, why they only appeared after she nearly died, why her parents didn't have any magic...all of it.

Um...oh. Yeah, now he's following. Plagg hums, then says " There was this one island of ladies, they could do similar things to you. One of them actually created the Miraculous' at our request, since we wanted to interact with the world more. But...they started disappearing centuries ago. By the time we were last activated, they'd long since faded into myths and legends."

Dragon Fyre just groans, and asks "Couldn't any of them have gotten away? Escaped whatever was happening?"

Plagg shrugs, as much as a Kwami - who's body is about ten times smaller than their heads - can shrug, and says "Don't know, sorry. But…none of them were as strong as you. I can sense what Longg sensed now, it's much easier when your right in front of me plus I already have a sense after you recharged me during the pigeon incident, and its almost impossibly powerful."

At that, Dragon Fyre groans again, asking "How powerful is that?"

"You rival Tikki and I. I'm honestly not sure how you haven't self-destructed yet. Or how you can control it as much as you can." It took him and Tikki centuries to learn to control their powers - hence the dinosaurs, and their demise - and she's only...what, fourteen?

No wonder she's got an identity crisis going on.

Chapter Text

About a month after the whole 'Evillustrator' incident, Marinette gets back into her room after an Akuma attack, grabs a cookie from her hidden stash for Tikki, and starts working on her 'magic' box - it's to hold her diary, and the idea is that it'll snap shut if someone tries to take it.

Tikki's much more worried about the detail that Marinette writes all her secrets in it - including being Ladybug, much to the Ladybug Kwami's horror. All someone - Hawk Moth, Chloe, anyone - would have to do to know her biggest secret is read her Diary!

Marinette's just finished with the box - which works! - when she remembers a rather specific detail. Class Representative elections are starting tomorrow at lunch! And, what's really bad…is Chloe wants to be the Class Rep! She only cares about herself, when the Class Representative is supposed to care about the class! It would be an actual nightmare, going to class every day with Chloe as Class Rep.

Tikki listens to Marinette's explanation, and says "Well, then maybe you should run!"

Marinette blinks, and says "Yeah, but, don't you think I've got enough responsibilities between homework, school, helping my parents in the bakery, and being Ladybug?"

"If you truly believe in something, you have to try and make it work. Its better to have failed trying than not having tried at all!" Marinette's got a point, but still. She seems to passionate about it all that Tikki can't help but encourage her.

"Maybe…" Marinette sighs.

Tikki flies up to sit on Marinette's head, saying "Don't underestimate yourself, Marinette!"

And then the news turns to the elections, and how Mayor Bourgeois' opponent, Armand D'Argencourt, was not only beaten but beaten to a metaphorical pulp in the elections when he acquired the least number of votes in Paris' history. And that's when Marinette notices the time, and says "I'm gonna be late for school! Again! See, this is what I'm talking about, Tikki!"

When she gets to school, she finds almost everyone's too nervous to run - mainly because Chloe's shooting everyone looks just daring them to go against her. Getting a flash of inspiration as she sits down, Marinette turns to Bloom and asks "Why don't you run for class rep?" Bloom's literally the only person Marinette can think of who doesn't have anything Chloe can use against her - Chloe doesn't know anything blackmail-worthy about her, at least.

Bloom chuckles, and asks "Me? No, I'm a little too heavy-handed for it, and we both know it. But," she gets a mischievous glint in her eye, "I would be your Deputy if you want." She's not much of a leader, too focused on a little picture she keeps close to her rather than a big one like everyone says leaders should focus on, but she knows Marinette already has the makings of one. She just needs more self-confidence…luckily, being Ladybug is letting her find it. Chloe's really done a number on Marinette after all the years of being such an insufferable brat to her, its a wonder she didn't just switch seats at once that first day of school when Chloe told her to move.

And then Chloe goes around during lunch and threatens everyone who might run against her, making Marinette grit her teeth and declare she's running as well in class. Bloom can only stare at her in shock - she didn't think the usually insecure girl was finding her confidence that quickly.

Just what has Tikki been telling her, and how does it work?

She needs to bottle it, whatever it is Tikki's doing, and spike Marinette's food with it regularly. Kwamis know she could use more confidence - she tends to spiral and catastrophize about the littlest things, imagining impossible situations where she usually ends up in jail for something insignificant.

Ten minutes after class, Marinette's totally freaking out over the detail that she volunteered to run - looks like it, whatever it is, wore off.

Bloom groans, and says "No backing out now, Mari. Let's go write a speech and think up a campaign." And then four people rush her at once, Rose, Nino, Juleka, and Ivan…they want to both congratulate her and ask her to get them things.

And this is why I didn't want to be class rep…I'd shoot them all down as ridiculous suggestions immediately.

Seriously, music in the library?!

Seeing a diplomatic opening to get the conversation over with and Marinette into high gear, in the form of one blonde boy, Bloom calls over "Adrien! Marinette can count on a good friend's vote, right?" Predictably, Marinette turns red as her Ladybug outfit and starts stammering.

Adrien just gives that smile of his - oh, Brother, you have it BAD and you can't even see it - and says "Sure, depending on her speech."

It takes a solid ten seconds for it to process in Marinette's head, but when it does she squeals and dashes out the door to start on her speech. Bloom, meanwhile, sees Chloe looming over Sabrina, sees the weird ghost-thing that appears above her talk about ruining Marinette's reputation like her father does, and decides to follow the blonde brat.

What she finds is Chloe setting up a campaign party with Jagged Stone signing copies of his latest album, and talking to Sabrina while everyone's distracted.

Lovely…

After calling Marinette and telling her Chloe's up to something beyond just the blatant bribery for votes, she listens in to warn her friend what's going on.

Everyone opens the door to reveal a lot of medieval knights in front of City Hall, with one carrying a sword instead of the gigantic axes, who calls out a speech from the dark ages.

Mayor Bourgeois asks "What was that?" He speaks French and English, not...whatever that was.

Bloom translates "He wants to beat you to a blood spatter on the pavement, basically. Or slice you to ribbons with that sword."

Mayor Bourgeois swallows nervously, then calls out "Ask for an appointment with my secretary!"

They quickly shut the doors, Bloom holding them in place when they get yanked on harshly, but then suddenly there's the sounds of metal hitting metal, and Cat Noir's voice asking "Guys, do you only know heavy metal?"

And then the voice from before yell "Deal with this pesky alley-cat, whilst I claim what is rightfully mine!" The doors suddenly get sliced in half, and everyone backs away nervously - and for good reason, considering how sharp that sword looks.

Marinette and Bloom keep everyone else behind them, and Bloom quietly says "I've got an idea to get everyone else out of here, but it needs something for it to work." And she needs her partners to not yell at her afterwards, but that's neither here nor there.

Marinette asks "What's that?" Oh no, please tell her Bloom's not thinking something crazy.

Bloom glances at the window as Darkblade is talking to the Mayor, pointing his sword at the shaking man, and sees Cat Noir fighting with his staff fencing-style.

That'll work for cover. Her eyes flash orange, and she rips one of the axes out of a knight's hands and through the window to embed itself in the floor a few feet behind Darkblade. "That'll work."

To Marinette's utter horror, Bloom walks forward and asks "Darkblade, you're a Knight, right? With the whole code of honor and such? Let's have a duel, you and me."

Darkblade laughs, and says "You have spirit, that much is obvious little girl!" He then charges her with a battle cry, even as Bloom sprints forward and slides beneath him towards the battle axe. She gets to the handle and starts tugging at it, even as Darkblade walks towards her. "A clever trick, I admit, but you cannot even-"

BANG!

The axe suddenly comes free, slamming into Darkblade's helmet hard enough to leave a dent where the axe head met the helmet.

Everyone watching, including Mayor Bourgeois, collectively winces at the blow, even as Bloom snatches up Darkblade's dropped sword immediately.

Darkblade clutches at his head, and snarls "Deceitful, thieving little wretch! Return my sword, or face the wrath of Darkblade!"

Bloom smirks, lifting the sword up as she does, and sarcastically says "Oh no, I've been found out by Hawk Moth's latest Akuma. What will I do? If you want this sword so badly, come and take it from me!"

Marinette sees Bloom flash her a look, and realizes just what her ridiculously reckless idea is - keep Darkblade busy with a duel while they all get away. And maybe its because she, Cat Noir, and Dragon Fyre have to be able to talk to each other without saying a word, going solely off facial expressions and sign language at times, but she can tell Bloom isn't going to make this a quick fight.

Deciding to get to hiding and save Bloom fast, she says "Everyone, up the stairs! Find somewhere to hide, and fast!" Most everyone snaps out of their stupor and runs up the stairs immediately.

Nathan, meanwhile, is wondering just how nobody else can see it. Swap out Darkblade's sword for a red one, slap a mask on Bloom's face and put her in a scale-themed spandex suit…and she'd look exactly like Dragon Fyre.

Because she IS Dragon Fyre! My maybe-girlfriend is Dragon Fyre!

Nathan feels distinctly like falling to the ground in shock. Instead, Ivan and Mylene drag him with them into a room, and he hides behind the thick curtain while they stuff themselves into an armoire. Nathan just rolls his eyes, wondering when the rest of the school is going to realize the two of them are in a relationship, and arranges the curtains so that he's completely hidden. Then he starts praying Bloom will be alright, in the suit or out of it - she must've yanked the axe out with magic, explaining the way it just flew into Darkblade's helmet, but he doesn't know how long she can last in a duel without the suit on. Does the suit give them enhanced abilities? Or is it just a suit and they're always like that?

Well, it certainly explains how and why Bloom regularly distracts Akumas to give everyone else a chance to get out of danger.

Bloom bends backwards to go underneath the axe head Darkblade just swung at her, and uses a little magic to keep it embedded in the marble column. And to melt Darkblade's gloved hand to the handle. "You wretch, Darkblade shall have your head!"

Bloom smirks, and says "Gonna be hard to do that with your weapon stuck like that, big guy."

"Return my blade to me at once! You shall face my wrath for your impertinence, you wretch!"

Bloom outright laughs at that, and says "Not a chance. You want it, come and get it!"

She runs up the stairs and heads for the back room, hearing a familiar voice say "Sorry, Cat Noir. Had to do some damage control downstairs."

"I was managing just fine you know, but its always nice to see you."

When she opens the door, she finds Cat Noir sitting cross-legged…upside-down. Like that's how he landed after Ladybug pulled him up. With a look that says he absolutely adores the woman in front of him - he's got it bad, really, really bad. Both when Mari's in the suit and out of it. It reminds her of Plagg's worries all over again, how her brother is all alone bar school and them. She's going to get these two together if it kills her.

Both superheroes look over at her in varying expressions of alarm, and Ladybug asks "Bloom Peters? I heard you were-"

"Dueling Darkblade? I was. He's a little busy trying to pull his axe out of a marble column right now." Gonna be hard, she melted the metal head inside the column.

Cat Noir stands up, shaking his head and asking "How is it you always manage to be right in the thick of things?" Really, he's got to know at this point.

Bloom gives him a smirk, and says "Someone has to give everyone a chance to hide. As for how its always me…" She gets a glint in her eye, and says "Magic, Cat-nip, I thought you'd figured that out by now."

Cat Noir and Ladybug trade confused looks, and Cat Noir mouths 'Cat-nip?' Ladybug just shrugs in response before breaking the sword and catching the Akuma. And then Bloom's out the door, yelling that she'll go find people and let them know its safe to come back out.

Ladybug groans, and says "Much as I want to yell at her for putting herself in danger, someone had to give the rest of the civilians a chance to escape..."

Cat Noir chuckles, and says "Somehow, I doubt any of them could've stopped her." Bloom's stubborn like that, he's seen Chloe go red in the face yelling at her, trying to put her down like she likes to do with Marinette. It never works, it just seems to amuse her more and more.

Marinette comes back down the stairs and finds most everyone talking about Bloom's impromptu duel with Darkblade. Asking if she's alright, how did she fight Darkblade, what was she thinking, etc. All but Nathan, actually, who's staring at her with eyes as wide as saucers.

Bloom smirks as Marinette reclaims her Diary from Chloe - rather, from Sabrina, who's hand is still stuck in her magic box after trying to steal it from Mari's room, does this girl have any qualms about breaking the law when her father is a cop?! - and then gives a passionate speech about her own strengths that ends up inspiring everyone including Sabrina. Knew you could do it, Spots.

She's going to have to pretend to steal 'Cat-Nip' from her civilian self, but why should the two of them be the only ones to have nicknames for one another? She's focused on the Akuma during a battle, but that doesn't mean she doesn't have a sense of humor - it just has a time and place, and during an Akuma attack is not usually it.

As she and Marinette are leaving the hotel, Bloom notices Adrien following them from a distance - probably to congratulate Marinette on the speech - and gets an idea. She swore she'd get these two together…she can start by dropping some hints. And its not like this isn't true.

Snickering to herself, Bloom says "Congrats, Mari. You've got a new nickname from the student body."

Marinette smiles, asking "What's the name?"

Bloom grins, and says "You're gonna love this. They say you're their everyday Ladybug." She isn't even making this up, they really were comparing her to Ladybug after that speech.

Marinette immediately shrieks at the top of her lungs "WHAT?!"

Bloom winces, rubbing at her ear and noticing how Adrien's sucked in a sharp breath and gone perfectly still, and says "Simple, really. You took charge during an emergency, your constantly helping people, kind, compassionate…of course they're comparing you to her." Hoping Adrien will finally get a hint, she adds "Congrats, you've been outed by a group of teenagers."

Marinette's frozen expression forcibly turns to humor, and she says "Ha, ha, very funny, Bloom. Me, being Ladybug. Hilarious." Bloom doesn't know, there's no way she could know, right? Tikki said only someone with a Miraculous could see the Kwamis, and I've never seen her so much as blink with how much Tikki flies around my room...

Bloom shrugs, and says "Well, that's what they're calling you. Maybe a certain someone will start taking an interest if he thinks you're a superhero?"

Marinette socks Bloom in the shoulder, saying "Oh, please. Adrien would never look twice at me…"

Bloom is pretty sure he's looking at her right now, but she can't exactly say as much. For a number of reasons, the first being that he's the same flirty kitty that's head over heels for her.

Chapter Text

Nathan pinches the bridge of his nose, trying to stave off an impending migraine at the revelation of his massive crush's alter-ego as Dragon Fyre. He's been crushing on Dragon Fyre all this time…it actually makes his head hurt.

Not to mention the detail that, if Bloom Peters is Dragon Fyre, then Ladybug and Cat Noir are more than likely…also teenagers.

Bloom isn't usually so intense…but, then again, there aren't usually Akuma attacks at school. Which would explain why she never sets anything on fire either…

He's pulled from his thoughts by the sound of someone sitting down next to him, and sees…the same girl he's been analyzing almost obsessively for the past few days. "What's on your mind, Nathan?"

Of course she knows something's bothering him, she always seems to know when something's up with someone. She just doesn't show it as obviously as she does in the mask.

After a few moments, Nathan asks "Why are you doing this?"

Bloom blinks, asking "Doing what? I literally just sat down."

He gestures with his arm at the general area, saying "This! The…the sketching with me, asking my opinion, the…all of it!" Why would she, a superhero, even glance at him once?! He got Akumatized, for mercy's sake!

Bloom's eyes narrow at him, hurt and anger evident on her face as she says "I was trying to not grind your feelings into the dust, that's what! I was trying to not break your heart without even giving you a chance!"

Oh…now Nathan feels really bad, especially since this isn't exactly going how he wanted it. He didn't even want it to go in the first place, though, to be fair. Nathan groans, and says "I just…why me? You could have literally anyone you want, why pick me?" There's literally nothing special about him, he might even get her hurt by being in the wrong place at the wrong time!

Bloom looks away at that, and says "Simple. You picked me first."

Nathan blinks in shock, asking "Uh…what now?"

Bloom waves a hand in the air dismissively, saying "Kim thinks he likes Chloe - why, I couldn't tell you, but whatever floats his boat - but can't figure out he's head-over-heels for Alix even though he keeps challenging her to stupid competitions and such. Honestly, he's basically pulling at her nonexistent pigtails. I'm waiting for the day someone dares him to kiss her just to put everyone else out of their misery. Marinette and Adrien will end up together if it takes my dying breath, Ivan and Mylene have been a thing ever since Marinette set them up after Ivan was Akumatized, can you see where I'm heading with this?"

Nathan shakes his head, he most definitely doesn't see where she's heading with this.

Bloom glances at him after a moment, and whatever it is she sees has her sighing and pinching the bridge of her nose. "Alright, then. Everyone else is getting matched up, and you? You picked me. I don't know why, or when, but you did. What were you expecting me to do, laugh and say 'not a chance' when it came to your feelings like Chloe would?"

Seeing Bloom's probably about to get up and leave, never look at him again and maybe even get Akumatized in the process, Nathan blurts out "IknowyourDragonFyre!"

That turns Bloom's anger and hurt into shock for a moment, before it turns to resignation. "How long?"

Nathan mumbles "Since Darkblade three days ago…"

Bloom sighs, then says "I suppose I wasn't being very conspicuous with that duel, but its not like I had much choice. Someone had to give everyone else the chance to escape." After a moment, she quietly says "So that's what set this off." How she missed that, though...actually, it's not that surprising. Nathan's shy by nature, preferring his sketchbook to people, and he's been avoiding her like the plague lately.

Nathan nods, and says "Yeah…why would you, an actual Superhero, even glance once at me?"

Bloom asks "Why not? What's changed about me? Considering the detail that I had gotten my Miraculous before getting to school that first day?"

Nathan blushes, conceding her point - nothing about her has actually changed, he just knows more about her now. Including that inexplicable warmth he still remembers from his birthday, driving Hawk Moth out of his head and keeping the cruel man from hurting him anymore. It was her magic, the same magic that he's seen knock Akumas off their feet on the news filled him with warmth and probably saved him.

The only other time she's actually gone easy on an Akuma was when Nino was Akumatized into the Bubbler- oh, geez, please no. Nathan groans, feeling his migraine coming back full force, and asks "Do you happen to know who your partners are, Bloom?"

Bloom glances at him, lips pursed, then nods her head and says "Since the second time I saw each of them. Be that Civilian or Superhero."

Nathan groans, and says "Please tell me they aren't classmates of ours…" When he glances over, he sees Bloom giving him a deadpan stare.

Finally, she says "The Miraculous' have some sort of concealment magic on them, it makes it so that most people don't recognize them on sight. Me, though…it doesn't seem to work on me. I can see straight past the mask, and the detail that three teens have to bear the weight of the world is less than reassuring."

Nathan's going to take that as a 'yes, they are classmates of ours.' "So…the Miraculous magic just…" Just...what, exactly? He'd really like to know.

Bloom shrugs, and says "Doesn't affect me, at least not all of it. I think its because of my own magic. I get the suit, and the powers, but the Miraculous Cure doesn't work on me. If I get hurt, its up to me to heal myself. Lucky me, I'm good at healing myself. Not even the Kwamis are sure why, but it works out well enough in the end."

Nathan decides not to go down that particular train of thought - of what if it isn't enough one day? - and instead asks "And, what about your partners?"

Bloom chuckles, and says "I'm not in love with Cat Noir, if that's what your thinking. He's like a brother to me, we sorta adopted one another out of sheer loneliness. Besides, his heart is Ladybug's, completely and utterly. And every Ladybug and Cat Noir, in the history of this world, has gotten together. They're picked especially carefully, apparently, for that exact reason."

"Um…oh." Because what do you say to that?!

Bloom nods, and says "Yeah, oh. These two, though, are driving me up a very tall wall. And you don't particularly want to know why." No need to make Nathan share her pain every time these two display their utter obliviousness.

Nathan groans, and says "I'll take your word for it, Bloom." He's heard about Dragon Fyre telling the both of them, multiple times, that they drive her up a wall. He quickly decides he doesn't want to guess at who her partners are, one superhero being in the school is almost too much for him to process. And he figures Bloom is relatively easy to process, all things considered - she, at least, acts more or less the same in and out of uniform.

Bloom quietly says "You can't tell anyone, Nathan. Ever. It's a secret for a reason, having a Miraculous puts a target on my back…well, my neck, actually. And if word ever got out about my identity, it would put everyone in class in danger as well." And that's with it being her identity, she has relatively few strings attached to her identity compared to her partners. No family, her only friends are at school, and nobody knows where she lives.

Nathan nods, and says "My lips are sealed, Bloom. Always."

Cat Noir leaps onto a nearby rooftop, enjoying the scenery for once - he's on patrol, yeah, but that doesn't mean he can't admire the view. Besides, he spends all day either cooped up in his house or at the classes his father says are 'for his own good' - he figures he's allowed to metaphorically stop and smell the roses for a minute as Cat Noir. Sometimes he wishes he could just stay Cat Noir forever, leave behind the mask of the perfect son Adrien Agreste has to wear - be - all the time.

"Hey."

Cat Noir just about jumps out of his skin, a hiss nearly escaping him at the sudden sound of Dragon Fyre's voice. When he manages to reassure himself his heart isn't trying to make an escape attempt straight of his chest, he turns around and sees his sister sitting on the neighboring rooftop.

"Hey, Super-sis," he breathes out "what're you doing out so late? I thought it was my turn to patrol?"

His fire-haired sister just shrugs, and says "I've got nothing better to do, honestly. And being alone with my thoughts is just kinda depressing on nights like tonight."

Cat Noir tilts his head, jumping over to her rooftop and landing like the cat he's themed after, and asks "Longg isn't interested in talking?"

Plagg almost certainly wouldn't be, though that could well be because he's a cat. They do whatever they want.

Dragon Fyre shrugs, and says "He's interested, yes, but he's not very helpful in this particular situation. The most he can say is that he's the Kwami that's the most compatible with my magic. And that there used to be an island of ladies similar to me, one of whom created the Miraculous' at the Kwamis' wishes to interact with mankind, but now they're gone."

Cat sits down next to his sister, asking "And...?"

Dragon Fyre slumps her shoulders suddenly, looking more defeated and down than he's seen her look...well, ever, and asks "And...who am I, Brother? According to Longg, magic like mine doesn't just appear out of nowhere, I had to have been born with it. Except...neither of my parents had magic." If they had, they might still be alive.

Cat Noir puts an arm around her shoulders, asking "What makes you so sure?"

A despairing chuckle that sounds close to a sob escapes her, and she says "Aside from the detail that they're dead? Mom ran a flower shop on the first floor, and Dad was a Firefighter. If they had magic, I doubt they would've had to work at all. And they would've been able to fight back, even if only a little."

Cat Noir studies his sister for a moment, then asks "So, what's bothering you, sis? Why's this coming up now?" Either she had some kind of epiphany, or something brought it all to the front of her mind. If it was the latter...well, he could get rid of the reason for his sister's current mood. Plagg seems to like her well enough that he wouldn't say anything, to.

Dragon Fyre sighs, then quietly asks "Who am I, then? If my parents weren't my parents, and my magic couldn't have just appeared out of nowhere..." She sighs again, a sound Cat's all-too familiar with these days, and runs a hand down her face.

Deciding his sister needs a distraction, he says "Let's have a race."

"What?!"

Cat Noir nods, saying "We do a round of patrol, then three laps around the city. First to the top of the Eiffel Tower wins. No Miraculous powers, no magic." It won't get her any answers, but at least it'll give her a distraction for a little while.

To his utter relief, Dragon Fyre grins and says "Its on, Cat-Nip!"

About an hour later, the two of them are through with Patrol for now and are standing at the base of the Eiffel Tower. Cat Noir grins, asking "You ready, sis?"

She smirks at him, and says "Hope you can keep up, Kitty." They count down from three, taking off as soon as they both yell 'GO!' and speed off towards the nearest rooftop. Cat Noir uses his staff to vault to the nearest rooftop, seeing a flash of red, orange, and black out of the corner of his eye, and jumps onto a veranda before leaping from balcony to balcony. He loses sight of his sister a few times, has to get real creative with his staff a few times to keep up - turns out the Dragon Miraculous gives her the greatest boost to speed, agility and strength, something to remember next time - but he makes it to the Tower maybe ten seconds after her and starts leaping from bar to bar.

By the time he gets up there, he's out of breath even in the suit, sweat's dripping off his face…and it was absolutely worth every moment of it, since it got his sister smiling again.

Kwamis, he loves his sister. Doesn't know what he'd do without her and Ladybug. Probably go insane, actually, if he couldn't crack jokes and make puns with his Lady while trying to win her over or have city-wide races with his sister.

Plagg coming into his life was the best thing that ever happened to him, and now that he's had a taste of freedom from the gilded cage his father keeps him in - otherwise known as his schedule, bedroom, and the car - he's willing to fight tooth and claw to keep it.

Chapter Text

Bloom's sitting in front of the gigantic Christmas tree in the city square, thinking about her parents - Kwamis, she misses her parents. This will be the fourth Christmas without them, and it never gets any easier. The tree's bigger, the decorations are much more extravagant than anything they had back in Gardenia…but its just not the same. They didn't decorate it together, the city council did; there won't be any presents under this Tree tomorrow morning, just a bunch of melted snow. What it eventually comes down to is…its not hers, as selfish as it sounds. Christmas is about giving, about being selfless…but it also works the other way around, to. To give someone a gift, they have to get it. Selflessness from one person demands selfishness from another in return…and its been four years. She figures she's allowed to wish she could bring her parents back. So long as she doesn't try to make that wish come true, anyway.

Longg explained the consequences of what Hawk Moth wants the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous' for…they can be combined to form an ultimate power, one that would be used as a wish…with devastating consequences. If she brought her parents back, for instance, she would either kill two other people or lose her magic…or, possibly, her memories of being Dragon Fyre, as her personal history would've been completely rewritten and she wouldn't have been in Paris when Hawk Moth activated the Butterfly Miraculous. And that's just what she'd use it for, to bring back the parents that were taken from her - who knows what Hawk Moth would use it for. Take over the world? Get all the Miraculous' in existence? It isn't something she wants to think about.

"Hatchling, why are you so quiet?" Longg's voice pulls her out of her thoughts, and she sees the Dragon Kwami floating there with a worried expression on his face.

Bloom sighs, then says "Just thinking about them, Longg. I don't even know if they were buried in Paris or not, you know that? Or where, for that matter." She's looked, to, searched all the graveyards she could find - and never found any stone or stones that said Vanessa and Mike Peters. She doesn't even know if anyone searched for her, for that matter.

"And you miss them." Bloom nods, staring at the tree in an attempt to not cry - bad idea tonight, seeing as its snowing and all. Longg hums, then asks "When's your birthday, Bloom?"

Bloom just shrugs, saying "Believe it or not, I don't remember. I've had other things on my mind the past few years, and there was nobody to get me anything anyway…but I remember it was in Winter." Kwamis, that sounds so depressing when she says it out loud. Or thinks it, for that matter.

Longg hums, then says "Well, since tomorrow is one of your holidays…I suppose it's close enough." As much as Plagg is worried about his Kitten's home life, he's equally as worried about his Hatchling's - it's no real wonder the two of them basically adopted one another when they haven't got anyone but their superhero partners and their Kwami in their lives.

To Bloom's utter confusion, Longg then starts humming, doing a strange dance of some kind…and then he spits out a glob of something bright and shiny into her hands. Seeing Bloom's expression, Longg says "Wait a moment, the resin will vanish. Happy Birthday, Hatchling!"

Sure enough, the brightly-glowing goo vanishes after a moment, leaving a small orange object that looks like half of the yin-and-yang symbol. Bloom picks it up to look at it better, asking "What is it, Longg? I've never seen anything like it."

Longg proudly says "It's called a Kwagatama, Hatchling. A great symbol of friendship to us Kwamis. We take a hair from our current Holders, join them with the hairs of all our former Miraculous Holders, and spend the next few months growing a resin that eventually becomes the Kwagatama."

Bloom smiles at Longg, feeling something inside her almost ripping apart at the first gift she's gotten in four years, and manages to croak out "Thank you, Longg." She'll keep it in her pocket for now, she's got the perfect idea for what to do with it. All she needs is a silk cord, and she can make that.

And then her phone rings, and she picks up to hear Nathalie's usually-emotionless voice filled with worry as she asks…if she's seen Adrien. Because he's disappeared from his room sometime after heading up, having gotten depressed when his father wouldn't come to help decorate the tree.

Bloom pinches the bridge of her nose, then says "Tell me everything, Nathalie. I can't help if I don't know all the details." Anything this woman can give her, even if it's just the last time she saw him or where he might go, is better than nothing.

Nathalie sighs, then…starts explaining everything. Bloom meant 'everything relevant to Adrien's disappearance tonight' but Nathalie gives her everything.

Bloom knew some of it from Adrien himself, other bits from unintentionally overhearing conversations between him and Nino, and some from Plagg…but she didn't know absolutely everything, some things just don't come up in a conversation naturally and she couldn't just ask out of the blue without outing herself as Dragon Fyre and him as Cat Noir. She knew Adrien's father changed after his mom disappeared, drastically at that, but she hadn't known he might as well have been a thousand miles away - Adrien didn't tell her, for instance, that the man makes him eat at a giant table all by himself because the man can't be bothered to come out of his office for a meal. She knew her brother was lonely, but she hadn't known he started hating Christmas after last year when his father never even showed his face for a single moment.

She hadn't known he would feel so alone he'd decide running away was a better option.

As it is, he went up to his room two hours ago, and that was the last time Nathalie saw him. Gabriel went into his son's room for the first time in the entire month, and discovered him missing. Window open, and no apparent signs of a struggle. Unless...he didn't run away. The realization makes dread run up and down her spine before pooling in her stomach.

Okay, okay, think. There's two...no, three possible options, one of which is much less likely than the other two. Option one, he ran away on his own, becoming Cat Noir to get out the window. Option two, Hawk Moth knows he's Cat Noir and sent out an Akuma to kidnap him. Option three, Hawk Moth or somebody else kidnapped him to use him as a ransom - unlikely, given how much security Gabriel Agreste undoubtedly has on the Manor. And with his Bodyguard standing watch outside his room most of the time, to...

Dammit, he was probably helping decorate even after Adrien went up to bed, making option three more viable. 

Bloom takes the nearest fire escape two steps at a time to get to the roof, looking around frantically to try and see her leather-clad brother - nowhere, he's nowhere to be seen. Quickly transforming, Dragon Fyre opens up her communicator and calls Ladybug. She picks up at the first ring, and Dragon Fyre's entirely unsurprised to hear her panicking like she's never done in the suit before. "Dragon Fyre, thank Kwamis, there's an emergency, have you-" 

Dragon Fyre quickly says "Yeah, I heard. Adrien Agreste is missing. You search one half of the city, I'll search the other. We'll meet in the middle, and if we find him..." What then? Take him back to the Mansion? Take him somewhere else? It depends, she decides, on how and why he vanished in the first place.

When she tries to call Cat Noir, though...he doesn't pick up.

Dammit, Hawk Moth has him, doesn't he? Looks like she's going to raze some place to the ground on Christmas night.

Cat Noir's leaping from rooftop to rooftop, completely numb from both the cold and his own emotions. Usually, he can deal with his father's distance ever since his mom disappeared…but not tonight. Not tonight, when they'd sit in the bedroom with hot chocolate and his Mom would tell stories late into the night, when his Father once dressed up as Santa Claus because Adrien was insistent on seeing the guy.

Now it all feels so…so dead. He'd rather be alone tonight, than hear all the memories reminding him how everything changed in what feels like the blink of an eye - his mom was there one minute, gone the next, and nothing was ever the same again. And its never more apparent than on Christmas Eve night.

He's violently ripped out of his thoughts when he's suddenly yanked backwards, hurtling straight into lithe arms. Also, he distantly notes, he's not cold anymore.

And then he's spun around suddenly, and sees Bloom Peters standing there. He doesn't particularly get a chance to ask the very literal burning question in his head, though, because she immediately starts asking "Are you hurt? I don't see any bruises, where were you? How'd you get away? Was it Hawk Moth? You've still got Plagg, does he know your identity? Are your arms alright? Anything feel broken?" 

Uh-oh… His sister is freaked out, if the way she's insistently poking and prodding at him trying to determine if he's hiding any injuries under the heather is anything to go by.

Cat Noir swallows, pulling away from the hand that's currently turning his face this way and that, and says "No, Sis, I'm fine, really..." His sister is Bloom Peters...he probably shouldn't be so surprised. Plagg told him how the Concealment magic works, and it just keeps people from making the connection between civilian and superhero - though, some Miraculous' do, admittedly, rely on it more than others. Ladybug's Miraculous, for instance, doesn't change her eyes in any way, while Plagg's gives him bright green sclera and vertical cat-eye pupils.

Erm, Adrien? Plagg says, sounding nervous as Bloom continues to worry over him, you might want to check the Cat-phone. If she's freaking out this much...dragons freaking out isn't good. When he takes out the phone, under the guise of turning a light on, he discretely checks his messages and finds fifty missed calls and almost as many texts from his sister alone. Uh-oh...Adrien, listen to me. She's going to be all over you like scales on an actual dragon. For the love of Camembert, don't protest. It'll only make it worse.

The light from the phone, more for Bloom's benefit anyway, seems to highlight little details he'd missed while she was trying to make sure he wasn't hurt. Her hair's a mess, soaked through with water - melted snow, probably - and her hoodie's all wet as well. If she weren't hot as a brand, she'd probably be freezing cold right now - just how long has she been out here?

He suddenly finds his face turned towards Bloom's, and sees suspicion making its way through the concern in her eyes. "Adrien," Bloom slowly asks "where were you? How'd you disappear? Did Hawk Moth have you?"

Adrien can't quite meet his sister's gaze, which is rapdily going from unending concern to getting upset, and slowly says "I just...sorta left." 

Bloom's silent for about five seconds, processing that little detail, until she suddenly explodes. "Adrien Agreste, you godsdamned idiot! What the hell were you thinking?! Do you have any idea how many thugs wouldn't think twice about mugging a defenseless kid? What would've happened if Plagg had run out of energy and couldn't keep the transformation any longer? What if you didn't know where you were, and couldn't find a way to contact anyone?!"

Yep, his sister is mad. He decides its in his best interest to let his sister rant, as she points out things he never even thought of - he doesn't have his phone, doesn't have any Camembert for Plagg, his jacket is the usual light jacket he always wears - if Plagg ran out, he'd have been screwed. Especially since most of the locals this side of town aren't exactly the kindest - meaning, apparently, they wouldn't hesitate to attack him or ransom him if they thought they could. Oh, and she's been frantically searching the city for hours, thinking Hawk Moth had him hostage, and was ready to raze someplace to the ground if that's what it took to get him back.

That would be the conclusion she came to when he didn't pick up after the tenth call. It hits Adrien, right then, that she thought she'd lost him - their moment after Copycat was knocked out comes back to him, and it makes him feel even guiltier than before, as if her looking like she's about to either cry or scream wasn't bad enough. If the positions were reversed, he'd probably be yelling to - scratch that, he'd absolutely be yelling, followed by dragging her back to his place.

Once Bloom finally stops to get a breath in - and he's really got to wonder just how big her lungs are - he lunges forward and traps her against his chest, saying "Oh, Sis, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…" He didn't mean to worry her - or the rest of their class. He didn't even think anyone would notice he was gone! He can count, on one hand, the number of times his father has been in his room in the past few months and have fingers left over! He never expected anyone to find him missing! And he certainly didn't expect anyone to be notified of his disappearance, he's pretty sure nobody but maybe his sister actually cares about him that much!

Bloom stares up at him, then…her eyes narrow and she quietly hisses out "How dare you…"

Cat Noir tilts his head in confusion, asking "Uh, what?"

Bloom screams at the top of her lungs "HOW EFFING DARE YOU THINK NOBODY CARES ABOUT YOU?!" A nearby dumpster explodes, the metal melting to slag and the trash simply turning to ashes.

It takes her a long moment to compose herself, the flames around her dying back down into her skin, and she deadpans "Chloe organized the entire class into a search team, Adrien. Just think on that for a minute, Chloe is being nice to people. For you. The entire class is scouring the safer streets looking for you. Ladybug's looking high and low on one side of the city, I've been scouring the other! Now, you tell me how in the world you came to the conclusion that nobody cares about you! Did I miss a call? Did you call everyone else and get told they were all busy?"

Adrien sighs, pulling Bloom to him, and says "It's...my father. It's like I don't even exist to him anymore unless I've screwed up." No, he didn't call anyone - and, looking back, he probably should have. He didn't want to screw up with own Christmas celebration with his problems, though.

Bloom narrows her eyes at him, and furiously asks "Your father set this off? Gabriel Goddamned Agreste started this somehow?" She's gonna kill him. She's gonna rip him limb from limb.

Seeing the murderous expression on his sister's face, the one that's usually reserved for Akumas, Adrien quickly says "No! He didn't say anything, at least..." He never said anything, not even a 'Merry Christmas!'

Bloom quite literally growls, and says "He didn't need to!" His silence was clearly more than enough! The day she gets her hand on Gabriel Agreste is the last day he's on planet Earth!

Seeing his sister is ready to go kill his father for hurting him, no matter how unintentional it most likely was, Adrien makes her swear not to go near the Mansion tonight. Bloom reluctantly agrees, after he swears not to leave her side for the rest of the night. 

Marinette lands in her room and changes back, quickly telling Tikki to stay hidden, and heads downstairs when she hears the Bakery door open. Only to see a raging Bloom dragging Adrien by the front of a hoodie that clearly doesn't fit him, as the red-head half-marches, half-drags the blonde further in and practically throws him onto the sofa. A mug of hot chocolate - which both Bloom's classmates think is just a bunch of melted chocolate without any milk whatsoever, she seems a little too angry to think straight at the moment - gets shoved into Adrien's hands and a blanket wrapped around him as Bloom piles some wood into the fireplace, and Marinette asks "What happened?!"

Ten minutes later, she's wishing she hadn't asked. Because Bloom's in a justified fury over Adrien just up and vanishing, he could've caught pneumonia or even frostbite if he stayed out long enough, Adrien seems to be taking it as comforting more than anything else, and she really wishes this were an Akuma attack she could 'Lucky Charm!' away.

Plagg and Tikki, on the other hand, are sitting curled up together on Marinette's pillow, catching up for a bit as they listen to Longg's chosen rant and rage about how one of her hoard - because that is exactly what their Chosen are to her, hers to guard like the creature she's named after, even if she isn't saying as much to preserve her partners' secret identities - decided it'd be a great idea to run off into a snowy night without any food, protective clothing, or any plans to go to any friends for the night thanks to his jackass of a father who can't be bothered to get his head out of the Arctic long enough to even with his son a Merry Christmas or heaven forbid spend some time with him.

Plagg snickers, then says "Somehow, I don't think my Cat will be feeling particularly lonely for a while…" No, actually, he'll probably be feeling a little smothered by the time the resident dragon relaxes. Even with his repeated promises to call if he's feeling that alone or that he'll head to someone's house. Nino, Marinette, Alya, Nathan, Chloe, someone instead of wandering the massive city alone and maybe getting caught by Hawk Moth.

Tikki asks "Because Bloom is going to be all over him like scales on a dragon?"

Plagg grins, and says "Spot on, Sugarcube!" Point of fact, she threatened to handcuff him to her if that's what it took. 

Tikki just rolls her eyes at her oldest companion, biting back another retort of 'I told you not to call me that!'

When Tom and Sabine get back to the Bakery, they find Marinette, Bloom, and Adrien out cold on the sofa together, a blanket on top of all three of them. Not having the heart to wake the teens at such a late hour, they call Nathalie, let her know they found Adrien and brought him back to the Bakery to get warm, and honestly think its for the best that he heads home in the morning given how cold it is outside and how the snow is getting worse.

The next day at school, Adrien immediately notices one specific change in his sister's appearance - its not big, and not very noticeable, but he picks it out in an instant. There's something hanging from underneath the scrunchie she always uses to keep her wild hair up. It looks a bit like the ying and yang symbol, but only half…and bright orange. It's hanging from the end of what he recognizes as a silk cord, which she's apparently using to keep her hair tied up along with the scrunchie.

He'll have to ask Plagg about it, because he's sure she didn't have it last time they were in class. And he's getting her an Ipod, for storing music to listen to, as an apology gift. Maybe it'll get her to stop giving him those intense looks at every possible opportunity - nobody else is being quite so obvious about it, but nobody else caught onto the detail that he felt like nobody cared enough to go looking for him either. And Bloom threatened to tell Chloe that little detail if he so much as thought about just up and vanishing and not even telling her or Ladybug he needed their help, which had Adrien agreeing in an instant and holding his hands up in surrender - his arm's already about to fall off from how much she's been hanging on it, he doesn't want to begin to imagine what'll happen if she learns about that little detail.

Chapter Text

About a month and a half after Adrien's Christmas stunt - which resulted in both his father keeping him under Nathalie and his bodyguard's gaze more than ever and his sister coming around even more, from popping up unannounced at photoshoots and hanging out in the background to arriving unexpectedly at his balcony whenever he's alone - its Valentine's Day and Adrien's trying to write a poem for Ladybug. And nothing's panning out. This is the eighth poem he's tried, and they all sound ridiculous to him.

Bloom said she'd get his note to Ladybug, but so far…nothing sounds right. Rather, nothing sounds good enough for his Bugaboo. He can faintly hear Bloom humming in the background - Smells like Teen Spirit, if he's not mistaken - and just puts the finishing touches on Failure #8 when Ms. Bustier says "Adrien, I hope what your writing has to do with today's lesson. Can you tell me what I just said?" He recites it word for word, having long since mastered the art of splitting his attention - he can be daydreaming for ten minutes and still say a paragraph of stuff that was just said to him, thanks to the mind-numbingly boring homeschooling he went through with Nathalie and all the photoshoots and such.

Adrien gives up on this poem to, deciding he's had enough of the writing attempts - Plagg's critique didn't help matters at all, given the detail that he was dismissive of all of it and even the idea that he loves Ladybug. Asking what it is he sees in her, since she's got arms, legs, and a face just like everyone else. Honestly, for a thousands-years-old Kwami that's been around since the beginning of the universe, he's terrible at giving love advice - apparently, that's Tikki's department. And then the bell rings, and he tosses the last draft into the can on his way out - and gets waylaid by Chloe and Sabrina, who claim they want him to sign a petition to give pet hamsters better living condition. Something about the sweaters they're forced to wear being horrible, he didn't listen or care.

Bloom internally sighs - she made a promise, and it looks like that's the winner. And then Chloe and Sabrina make some snide remarks about her looking for something to eat or better clothes in the trash because she can't afford any. It makes Bloom's blood boil for a moment - those circumstances are actually true, and its nothing to joke about, dammit! It's not the reason she's currently digging Adrien's poem out of the garbage, though!

Spoiled rich brat...

"Your hair is dark as night, your pretty bluebell eyes. I wonder who you are beneath that strong disguise. Every day we see each other, and I hope that you'll be mine. Together our love could be so true, please will you be my Valentine?!" Marinette looks up at Bloom, who's staring at her expectantly from the other side of the bed. "Adrien wrote this?!"

Bloom nods, steadfastly ignoring Tikki saying how that's a love poem, and Marinette murmurs "I wonder who he could be talking about…"

Bloom feels like smacking herself on the head, or possibly Marinette upside the head - she's literally the only girl with bluebell eyes in the school. Instead of trying to smack some sense into her friend, Bloom deadpans "You, Marinette."

"Me?!" Marinette starts laughing, and says "There's plenty of girls at school who have dark hair and blue eyes."

Tikki asks "Yeah, but bluebell eyes?"

Bloom keeps herself from reacting to Tikki's presence, since Mari doesn't know she's Dragon Fyre, and says "Alright, you or Ladybug then. I've heard she's got bluebell eyes. And it would certainly be a strong disguise." C'mon, Spots, please get a hint soon...you two are driving me crazy.

Marinette listens, pretending to think as Tikki says Adrien's writing about her, then squeals and jumps for joy. While saying to pinch her. Tikki and Bloom both comply, turning her squeals of joy into ones of pain. "ARGH! Not literally!"

Bloom snickers, and says "You asked. Anyway…I brought this for you." She holds out a heart-shaped card, and says "Run wild, Mari. My advice? Answer the poem."

Marinette squeals again, hugging Bloom after putting the card on the desk, and asks "What about you? Did you get anything?" She knows Nathan had a massive crush on her, after all.

Bloom sighs, and says "Nope. Nathan and I fizzled before we could even really get going. Great, huh?" Something about him not being able to compete with her being a superhero, and how he'd only drag her down. She didn't care that he didn't have a Miraculous, but he sure seemed to.

Marinette hums sympathetically, and says "You'll find someone someday, Bloom. I know it!" How could she not, she's amazing. Once she warms up to you, she's always willing to help so you have time for something - for instance, she'll do their homework while Marinette works on one of her projects, or they'll split up the homework by subject and get done in half the time. She's always willing to be a model for Marinette, always ready to help if she or her parents need it...oh, and her sarcasm is hysterical when it's not aimed at you.

Bloom just shrugs, and says "Maybe. You, though, need to start writing, Marinette."

Marinette starts writing at once, and soon she's got a Valentine to mail. Of course, she starts losing her nerve right in front of the mailbox. Bloom pinches the bridge of her nose, then her hands darts out and yanks Marinette's towards the mailbox. Making her drop the Valentine in. Marinette freaks out, trying to get the Valentine back, but its too late.

And then Bloom gasps and tackles Marinette to the side, knocking her out of the way of something speeding towards them both. When Marinette looks up, there's a red and black figure floating in the sky…wearing the same jewel Kim had when he was going to ask the girl he had a crush on - Chloe - to be his Valentine. And then Chloe texted everyone a humiliating picture of him, a chip bag on his face and his clothes wet from river water. Neither girl knows what she might've said to him, but it was obviously something bad considering he's now Akumatized.

Marinette mutters "Had I known it was Chloe he was going to propose to..." She wouldn't have encouraged him, it's like giving someone the thumbs-up before they hurt themselves on purpose - far as anyone knows, Chloe doesn't have anything good to say about anyone but Adrien. Why Kim thought she'd agree to be his Valentine, then, is an absolute mystery to her - though, to be fair, Chloe's been an absolute witch to her since they first started school together so she's a little biased.

Bloom mutters "Hindsight, Mari, it's always perfect." She would've tried to talk him out of it, seeing as he's constantly making bets and dares with Alix, but there was no plausible explanation for how she knew it was the class witch he was trying to impress.

Maybe she should've just dared him to as Alix out as his Valentine. Of course, that would probably end with Alix getting Akumatized. THANK YOU, HAWK MOTH, FOR BEING SUCH A DISGUSTING PERSON!

Dark Cupid smirks as Cat Noir agrees to help defeat Ladybug and get her Miraculous, this will be easy with the superhero team broken up since the Cat's under his control. And then Cat Noir says "We will need to watch out for Dragon Fyre. She's dangerous." Yes, Dark Cupid could tell - Hawk Moth warned him to try for Ladybug and Cat Noir rather than Dragon Fyre. Something about mind-controlling abilities not working on her.

"…and for this gift, I feel blessed…Cat Noir?" Both males whip around to stare in shock, the familiar voice doesn't usually sing. Dragon Fyre's standing there, a resigned expression on her face as she sees the two of them.

After a tense moment - on their end, anyway, she seems more resigned than anxious - spent with both sides observing one another, Dragon Fyre shakes her head and asks "Why in the world would you ask Chloe Bourgeois, of all people, to be your Valentine, Kim? Really? What do you see in her? Because she's the most stuck-up, selfish, shallow, cruel girl in the whole city." She then walks onto the edge of the roof, and Dark Cupid shoots her with an arrow.

Dragon Fyre's lips turn black for a moment, but then her eyes burn bright orange. And then she looks back, casually asking "Did you think that was gonna work on me? I'm known for not being affected right by Akuma powers." She then wipes her mouth with the back of her hand, and it comes away smeared with black lipstick. "Well, that's disgusting." She'd been planning on tying up Dark Cupid herself and taking out his bow and arrows, keep her partners from getting turned against one another. Looks like she's too late for that.

Cat Noir gets his staff out, turning it into Batons as he asks "What are you going to do now? Fight us, two on one? Give up?"

Dragon Fyre gives him an indecipherable look, then says "I hate it when he Akumatizes kids…let me guess, you took an arrow for your Lady, right?"

Cat Noir immediately snarls "I loathe Ladybug, she means nothing to me, nothing at all! She's just a little pest to be-"

"I'll take that as a yes…" Dragon Fyre pinches the bridge of her nose, and walks over to the edge of the roof to think for a moment - she doesn't really want to try and break Dark Cupid's power over her brother herself, as she has no idea if it'll work or hurt him. She can keep herself from being controlled, possibly someone else if she's already using magic on them when they get hit, but she doesn't want to try and rip the magic from their minds and potentially give them brain damage.

After a moment, she murmurs "Our little group has always been. And always will, until the end…hello, hello, hello, how low…" She heard the song on the radio, and now its stuck in her head. Not to mention the detail that she likes that particular line.

Dammit, she really doesn't like holidays - too many memories attached to them. Her parents always went all-out for the big ones - Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, Valentines Day...all of them. After a moment, deciding to try and get through to Cat Noir and see just how much of his love has really been turned to hate, she says "Mom loved Valentine's Day, you know. She'd fill the lower shop with all kinds of Roses in advance. Colors to. Red as my suit, bright pink, pure white…we'd have the flowers for days, even though they sold like wildfire…" Dammit, she misses her parents. She'd come home from school to find a bouquet of roses in her room, all kinds and colors, without fail. And then her Dad would surprise her by making a flower-themed dessert.

And then she feels about eight arrows hit her in quick succession. After getting rid of the magic trying to take her mind, she whirls around and snaps "If you don't stop that, I'm going to smack you silly!" She'd been hoping she could get through to her brother, but it looks like that's a bust with Dark Cupid right there.

Oh well, she tried.

There is one other thing she can think of, but she's not kissing her brother on the lips.

Deciding to test that particular theory out, just in case Dark Cupid ever makes a reappearance, she quickly ties Cat Noir up in ropes made of fire, yanks Dark Cupid's bow out of his grasp and breaks it, and then burns his arrows. When no Akuma comes out, she says "Guess its in the pin. Let's go, Cat-Nip. Time to go find your princess and get a kiss." And then she has to gag him at the sheer amount of protesting, oh her brother's got it bad.

Dark Cupid's power turns love into hate…so the more someone loves their target, the more they hate them…

And Cat Noir currently won't shut up about how much he hates Ladybug. Dear Kwamis, they need to get together.

Ladybug looks at her Bug-phone in no small amount of concern, asking "Uh, Dragon Fyre? Did you get hit with an arrow?"

"Did I forget to wipe off that gross lipstick it leaves on me again? Yeah, about nine times. Dark Cupid freaked on me when the first one didn't work. So, I've got the two of them here…and your Prince Charming needs saving, Princess Spots."

"Uh…come again?"

"We're in the park, Cat Noir's tied to a tree, he's got it BAD for you, and the only way I can think of to free him from Dark Cupid's control without potentially giving him permanent brain damage is for you to kiss him. Love conquers all, remember?"

Yes, yes she does remember. She heard that just a little while ago in Miss Bustier's class. "What do you mean he's got it bad for me?"

Dragon Fyre's tone of voice sounds distinctly annoyed when she says "Dark Cupid's power is to turn love into hate, Ladybug."

"Alright, and?"

"Ok, let me try this…Kitty, its Ladybug. She says hi." And then Cat Noir's voice explodes over the phone, saying how he hates her, they're not friends, he loathes the very air she breathes and she means nothing to him whatsoever. Honestly, if hate were water, Paris would be flooded from her partner's current hatred for her.

Wait a minute, she's not serious about…Cat Noir flirts with everyone…right?

Ladybug can feel her head starting to hurt already. Their partner is an obnoxious flirt with terrible timing for his puns, and she was always sure all the times he flirted with her were either to make a joke or try to get on her nerves. Her silly, flirty partner...he doesn't actually love her, does he?!

When Ladybug gets to the park, she finds Cat Noir tied to a thick tree and gagged, and Kim lying on his front, arms bound under his wings, legs crossed together and tied up that way, and looking particularly disgruntled. And Dragon Fyre sitting on the edge of the fountain, watching the two of them intently. "What did you do to him? Both of them?!" This would be why she'd be a horrible Akuma to fight, this right here!

Dragon Fyre shrugs, saying "Nothing much. Just tied them up. Please, for the love of Kwamis, go kiss your Kitty and break the spell."

Cat Noir's eyes widen in horror, and he starts struggling even as the gag suddenly vanishes. He sees Ladybug start walking forward, and yells "Get back, you savage!"

Ladybug stops walking, and glances over at Dragon Fyre in concern. "I told you, Spots, he's got it bad for you." And that's when she sees Dragon Fyre's holding her communicator.

"Uh, what are you doing?" This had better not be for blackmail purposes!

Dragon Fyre smirks, and says "Getting my brother a Valentine's Day gift." And testing out a theory, but she doesn't need to know that quite yet.

Ladybug sighs in exasperation - honestly, both her partners - and walks over to her other partner…who starts squirming and struggling extra hard when she approaches.

When he figures out he can't get away, Cat Noir moans "No…no…"

Ladybug sighs, and drily says "I can't believe I'm doing this…" She then puts a hand on either of Cat's cheeks to keep his head still, and lands her lips on his.

At first its awkward - mainly because Cat Noir's stiff as a plank and keeps trying to squirm - but then he seems to melt into the kiss. It's chaste, as far as kisses go, but it still seems to send lightning through Ladybug's head all the way down to her toes. When Ladybug finally pulls back, her lips feeling like they're tingling - is that what all kissing is like? Or are they special? Or the Miraculous' perhaps? - Cat Noir's eyes are closed…and the black lipstick is gone. His eyes flutter open, a thoroughly-dazed expression on his face as he looks around. "Ladybug? What's going on? Why am I tied up?"

Dragon Fyre sighs in relief, releasing the ropes holding her brother against the tree, and says "Good to have you back, brother. That hit you took for Ladybug messed with your head a bit."

Adrien collapses face-first onto his bed, a few hazy memories here and there are starting to drift back to him - Dark Cupid offering to help him crush Ladybug in return for her Miraculous, his sister showing up and trying to get through to him, spewing unending hatred about Ladybug - and it makes him feel terrible. He tried to tell her he loved her, and instead she probably hates him.

And then he gets a text from Bloom, saying 'He turned love into hate, she knows that. You saved her, she knows that to. Here's a pic to cheer you up.' What follows next is a picture of…Ladybug kissing him. Ladybug kissed him!

…and he can't even remember it.

Still, she did kiss him - something to hold onto, right? That, maybe, she really does like him and is trying to be professional?

And then Plagg pulls out a heart-shaped Valentine…which turns out to be an answer to his poem. Ad it's a positive answer! He's suddenly over the moon - he's got the best sister in the world!

Chapter Text

About a week after the Valentine's Day fiasco, Adrien's standing outside the classroom while Marinette's father talks about his typical day in the Bakery while Marinette holds a tray of Croissants. His phone goes to his father's voicemail, instead of even to Nathalie, and Adrien sighs dejectedly - it shouldn't be a surprise, his father's such a flake, but that doesn't mean he isn't disappointed beyond belief. It's career day, he'd hoped his father would show his face…even on that tablet he uses these days. But no, he's too busy to even pick up the phone to say he can't come.

Figures, I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up. They always get smashed back into the ground now.

He walks back to his seat dejectedly, not even Plagg, Bloom, Nino, or the Croissant Marinette sets down on his desk able to cheer him up. And then Marinette suddenly trips over Chloe's bag, Croissants going everywhere as she hits the floor.

Chloe irritatedly asks "Geez, is there a day where you're not constantly tripping over something?!"

Bloom rolls her eyes, and asks "Is there a day when you're not constantly such a witch, Bourgeois? Honestly, grow up already." She then helps Marinette gather up all the Croissant, while Chloe gets her stuff back in her bag as Officer Roger gets called up front.

They've just gotten back to their seats when Chloe shrieks "My bracelet, it's gone!" Bloom internally counts to ten, just waiting for the explosion that's going to happen - Chloe was bragging about her new, expensive bracelet to everyone in earshot, and now its missing after Marinette tripped over her bag. Sure enough, the explosion comes at once - Chloe accuses Marinette of purposefully tripping over her bag to steal her bracelet.

Bloom rolls her eyes, and says "You literally just said Marinette trips over everything if given half a chance, Chloe. Besides, why would she want your bracelet? More than that, why would she steal it in such an obvious way that it would be bound to be noticed?"

The Mayor demands Officer Roger search Marinette, but he refuses on the basis that he can't search her without solid proof. And tripping over Chloe's stuff isn't proof, just unlucky circumstances. Mayor Andre Bourgeois then fires Officer Roger, saying he's incompetent in the process, when intimidating the man doesn't work. Then Tom and the Mayor start yelling at one another, Tom refusing to let anyone near Marinette's bag while Andre demands to search all Marinette's belongings and even asking if they know who he is.

Finally, Bloom slams one palm down on the desk yelling "ENOUGH, BOTH OF YOU!" Now everyone's looking at her, expressions varying from being startled to shocked to outraged. Unsurprisingly, Andre and Chloe are the outraged ones.

Andre recovers first, unwilling to be intimidated by a schoolgirl, and brings himself to his full height while asking "Do you have any idea who I am, young lady?" Adrien mentally facepalms, bad idea. His sister knows, and if she doesn't know right away she will very soon. She always knows, and Mayor Bourgeois just invited her to tear him apart while letting everyone know she knows exactly who he is.

Bloom straightens up as well, crossing her arms over her chest and flatly saying "I do, actually. Andre Bourgeois, Chloe's father. Elected mayor of Paris five terms in a row now, despite being the most corrupt option, because all of Paris prefers a man with known flaws who outrageously spoils his daughter with pretty things and loads of money to keep her satisfied and relatively well-behaved in public to a dictator disguising himself as a conservative that would have all foreigners shipped out of the city, beheadings legalized for daring to question him, and the entire city ending up being heavily monitored for the slightest signs of insurrection. You're so busy with your job, you prefer to get your already-spoiled-rotten daughter more and more shiny, expensive things or just throw money at her or threaten people to get her to stop bothering you rather than take time out of being the Mayor to teach her about things like morals, integrity, and basic human decency. Yes, Andre Bourgeois, I know who you are. Can we get back to the matter at hand now?" She's met him as Dragon Fyre enough times to have gotten a read on him long before now, and the guy has absolutely no spine whatsoever when it comes to his daughter.

That last question seems to snap a few people out of their shocked states, and Marinette says "Right, the bracelet…wait, Nino's been recording everything! Let's just watch the video and see what really happened!"

Adrien privately wonders just how nobody else can tell Bloom Peters is also Dragon Fyre when she acts like that - because that would've given her away to him in an instant. He looks down at his feet to hide his smirk - Cat Noir is allowed to smirk, not Adrien Agreste, after all! - only to see something that wipes the smirk off his face in an instant. Plagg, rolling around on the floor…with Chloe's bracelet wedged around his head.

Oh, you've gotta be kidding!

Just as Nino's about to turn the video off, Bloom says "C'mon, Marinette, let's get out of the room for a few. Get water from the fountain down the hall or something. That way, nobody can say you're trying to interfere with the investigation or anything."

Just as the two girls have reached the doorway, Bloom practically dragging Marinette by the shoulder, Chloe screeches "How dare you?!"

Bloom rolls her eyes, asking "Should I be scared? Scared of what your big, bad, dad will do? News flash, I'm not. Considering the detail that we get to deal with Akuma attacks every single day, many of which are caused by you, I'm not feeling that scared. Besides, your dad's got bigger things to worry about than one schoolgirl who's not afraid to stand up to you. Like the cop he just insulted, humiliated, and fired for actually doing his job like he's supposed to. Given Hawk Moth's habit of preying on people who've just been greatly upset, frustrated, or angered, chances are we'll be seeing an Akumatized Roger Raincomprix storming the place." And then she's gone, dragging Marinette out and leaving the rest of the class a mix of dumbfounded and terrified.

Adrien slips out as well, Plagg stuffed in his jacket as he heads to the locker room to get his stuff in case this takes the rest of the class - and to get the bracelet off Plagg's head and plant it somewhere under a desk! Only to freeze halfway there when he sees…a bright blue robot-like figure walking through the courtyard. Looks like Bloom's prediction came true…unfortunately. Adrien quickly groans, why does his sister have to be right so much?

And then he sees Bloom notice him, Marinette getting pushed behind the red-head, and he quickly flashes Plagg and his current situation. Her expression clearly says 'You've gotta be effing kidding me.' for a moment, and then she turns to Marinette and hisses "Hide, Mari! That's Sabrina's dad, he might be after you because of the debacle with the bracelet!"

Marinette nods, sprinting down the hallway as Bloom heads towards Adrien. "How did this happen?!"

Plagg says "It's a long, boring story, I won't- Hey!"

A flick of Bloom's wrist rips the bracelet right off Plagg's head, taking a fuzz of black fur with it, and then Bloom mutters "Crud, c'mon! He's either after Mari or Andre Bourgeois, and guess who's the more likely target!" Adrien feels his stomach drop out of his body - he may be in love with Ladybug, but Marinette's the nicest girl in class. He's got a soft spot for her - maybe because Plagg tried to get him to stop pining about Ladybug by comparing her to different girls in his class to show him she wasn't that unique. It didn't work to get his mind off Ladybug, but it did make him start noticing Marinette more. He's noticed she stutters around him all the time, and his sister is getting more and more resigned and annoyed as time goes on.

Adrien groans, and asks "No time for us to transform, Sis?"

"Uh-uh. Hence why Dragon Fyre hasn't made an appearance for a few Akumas." Like Darkblade, someone has to do damage control if necessary and Ladybug is the most important member of the team...so she can't do damage control, unfortunately. Ladybug needs to show up, to purify the Akuma, but her two partners have a bit more leeway as they technically aren't 'necessary' - she's told them both time and again that she couldn't do this without them, but that's beside the point. Besides, she can heal herself and doesn't have any parents . Better that it's her rather than Adrien, taking hits like this outside of the suit and getting hurt.

Adrien nods, and says "Alright, damage control it is. Any ideas?"

Bloom sees the Akuma's head just appear at the stairs, and hisses "Yeah, get inside! We'll figure it out from there!"

The two of them burst into the room looking frantic - and for good reason, considering the situation, neither of them transformed, one of them completely powerless and the other unable to really use her powers without outing herself - and Adrien hisses "Mayor Bourgeois, you need to hide! There's an Akuma heading straight here!"

Chloe laughs, and says "Adrikins, I think-" The bright blue Akuma slams the door open, and the rest of Chloe's retort dies on her lips.

"Mayor Bourgeois, you are under arrest for abuse of power." He hits the Mayor with a beam of light, which makes a red and blue glow appear around his wrists, but Bloom tackles his arm as he's reaching for the whistle. He throws her to the side, making her crash into her and Marinette's desk painfully, and hits her with one of those beams. And says she's under arrest for obstruction of justice.

Adrien runs over to her, yelling "Bloom!"

She discretely passes him the whistle she just filched from the Akuma as he helps her up, groaning "What the heck did I land on…?" When she pulls her hand up, she comes up with…a very bent bracelet. "Chloe, I found your stupid bracelet. It rolled under my bag when Marinette tripped."

Chloe gasps, yelling "My bracelet! Look what you did to it! Daddy!"

Andre nervously says "Not right now, sweetheart!"

Adrien says "I'll go get you an icepack, Bloom." He then runs out of the room, whistle in Plagg's grasp in his jacket as he follows the Kwami's directions towards Ladybug. It's a valid excuse anyway, considering Bloom's now got a knot on the back of her head and a bruise is probably forming across half her body right this instant. He finds Ladybug running through the hall, yo-yo in hand as she heads towards Miss Bustier's class. "Bloom got this whistle off the Akuma, we think the butterfly's in it! You gotta hurry, there's no tell-"

And then Officer Roger's robotic voice says "You are under arrest for resisting arrest. Cease and desist at once."

To Adrien's dismay, Bloom yells "Why, because you say to? Good luck with that, gotta catch me first!" They see Bloom dash out the door, take the stairs three at a time and then just…vanish around the corner.

Oh, Sis, you've gotta be kidding...

The Akuma heads out the entrance to the school to search for her, claiming she's under arrest for thievery as well, and Ladybug and Adrien head down to the corner to try and pick up her trail. Only for Bloom to suddenly ask "Seriously? I'm trying to buy you time, Ladybug!" Adrien jumps straight out of his skin, Plagg making a small noise of surprise as well, and both he and Ladybug look around for the source of the voice. "Look up, you two." What they find is Bloom keeping herself suspended midair by the two walls of the stairwell, hands pressed against it in a feat of strength.

Adrien's jaw drops to the floor instantly, and he incredulously asks "How did you manage that?!" Her arms are out, yeah, but he's never seen anyone stay up there like that - and she's not using magic, either, her eyes are bright blue instead of orange.

Bloom smirks, and says "Just because I'm not wearing a super-suit doesn't mean I can't get around. Surprise."

Ladybug quickly breaks the whistle, releasing the Akuma inside it, and quickly de-evilizes it - Bloom quickly heals the knot on her head, and hopes nobody's going to be checking for a bruise where she landed on that desk and - unfortunately - Chloe's bracelet. She had Adrien give it to her so she could plant it somewhere plausible, but she really did land on it. Which really did hurt, unfortunately.

Marinette shows back up, claiming she went to go find Ladybug, and Andre reinstates Sabrina's dad as a cop, with a promotion no less. And, lucky for everyone, Chloe's all-important bracelet was found and fixed by the Miraculous Cure, so class can get back to normal. And, thankfully, everyone drops the mess about the bracelet since its been found and wasn't stolen - Chloe drops it in a huff, but she drops it.

Chapter Text

Bloom rolls her eyes in exasperation as she sees Marinette transform under the semi-cover of a poster, Marinette's such a klutz sometimes - she loves Marinette like the best friend she is, but the dark-haired girl would forget her head if it weren't attached at the neck, her yo-yo if it didn't magically appear with the suit and disappear when she changes back, and her Miraculous if she didn't wear the earrings at all times. This time…it was all her stuff from school. Good thing it wasn't a whole day, only a half-day, and there was no test or anything - the Akuma took a while this time.

She changes back in an alley, and heads over to the Bakery to drop off Marinette's stuff - maybe they can do their homework together and Sabine will bring up a snack, if Tikki's luck rubs off on her enough. It's not stealing if Sabine brings them up, after all - and, no joke, Tom and Sabine Dupain-Cheng make the best pastries, cakes, etc. in the whole city. She should know, she's had four years to filch a few things here and there from the dumpsters - gross, yes, but she doesn't steal if she doesn't absolutely have to.

They get to school the next day, Marinette sharing a bag of Croissants leftover from the day before, only to hear about a big scandal during first period - Alya Cesaire, the driving force behind the Ladyblog and reporter in the making, got suspended for a week because she took a picture of Chloe's locker before classes started.

Bloom groans, and says "Something tells me it got blown way out of proportion…"

Marinette mutters "Yeah, she picked Chloe's locker. Why would she take a picture of Chloe's locker?"

Nino leans back, and whispers "She thinks Chloe's Ladybug, and tried to get a pic of her locker to prove it. What that would prove, I don't know."

Bloom, Adrien, and Marinette all stare at Nino in utter shock - and horror, in Adrien's case - and the blonde whispers "Come again?" Oh, Sis, PLEASE tell me Chloe isn't Ladybug... The more he sees Chloe's attitude and personality to everyone who's not 'Adrien Agreste' - and that includes Cat Noir! - the less he wants to be around her anymore than he absolutely has to. Like Bloom said on his first day, as terrible as it sounds, she was his only friend. And he really doesn't like who she grew up to be.

Nino nods, and says "I told her she was cray-cray, dude, but she insisted there was some kinda proof."

Bloom rolls her eyes, and says "Chloe's not Ladybug." Aside from the detail that Marinette is Ladybug, Chloe's not superhero material - she's a spoiled, arrogant, shallow brat who only cares about herself. Her idea of a 'bad day' is her hair getting messed up or her clothes getting wrinkled - Kwamis forbid she gets a bruise on her face, or her precious hair gets sliced off by accident by an Akuma. The very idea is so ludicrous that she'd be laughing hysterically if it wasn't also so insulting - do people seriously think Ladybug is that bad? Or do they actually think Chloe has it in her to be better than…Chloe? She's yet to find any evidence for as much, and she's got a distinct advantage over literally everyone else in that she can hear what people are thinking...she thinks, anyway.

Of course, her musings get cut off when the projector suddenly turns on, showing a video of a girl in black and white, a black mask on her face and a purple wi-fi symbol on her chest.

"I'm Lady Wi-Fi, revealer of the truth. For our first expose, our principle would like to share a little tidbit with you! So, Mr. Damocles, is it true you wrongly suspended a student named Alya today?"

Damocles looks away from the camera, saying "Uh, yes it is…"

"So, you were biased, unfair, totally unjust?"

A look of shame crosses his face, and he mutters "Yes, I was…"

Bloom groans internally, looks like they know who the daily Akuma is this time…Alya Cesaire, now Lady Wi-fi. Wonderful.

"For my next scoop, I'll be taking you to meet the girl who's behind the Ladybug mask. Stay connected." The projection ends with Al- Lady Wi-Fi 'pausing' Principal Damocles, and then tapping her phone screen.

Ms. Bustier says "For your own safety, everyone head home immediately! And don't forget to read chapters four and five!"

Marinette heads into the girl's bathroom, Adrien to the boy's, and Bloom turns invisible in the hallway and transforms.

When Cat Noir gets to a rooftop with a view of the Mayor's hotel, he gets out his Cat Phone and uses it to view into Chloe's room. What he finds is…Chloe dressed as Ladybug, swinging a yo-yo around. Before he can even begin to start processing his incoming freak-out about Chloe being Ladybug, a familiar voice says "Oh my Kwamis, you've got to be kidding." Cat Noir looks over to see Dragon Fyre standing there, expression seemingly caught between amusement and horror. He knows the feeling perfectly well, that is not his Lady.

And then Ladybug - the real Ladybug, much to Cat Noir's undying relief, Chloe's like a cousin that's getting more and more distant as he continues to see her behavior towards everyone else in the school - lands on the roof, saying "Look who's being a sneaky pair now."

Dragon Fyre says "You've got a copycat, Ladybug. Or should I say 'copy-bug' considering the circumstances?"

Cat Noir chuckles, and says "Good point, super-sis."

And then Chloe accidentally ties herself up with the yo-yo, making Dragon Fyre pinch the bridge of her nose and say "Yeah, she's totally the real deal…"

Ladybug asks "Just how much amusement are you getting from this, Dragon Fyre?" Admittedly, the sight of Chloe tied up like that is hilarious...but still, Akuma on the loose. They can laugh about that later.

Dragon Fyre smirks, and says "More than I probably should be, honestly. But, really, Chloe dropping everything to save the city day after day? If an Akuma appeared halfway through one of her oh-so-important hair appointments, Paris would be doomed."

"Alright," Cat Noir says, "point taken." And then he has to fight down a wave of hysteria, because the idea of Chloe going around as Ladybug, her hair half-done and the bare minimum of makeup on because an Akuma happened early in the morning is hysterical.

Chloe gets paused by Lady Wi-Fi, and her mask ripped off as the Akumatized schoolgirl reveals 'Ladybug's' identity to the world…and then the real Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Dragon Fyre burst through the balcony doors. And then, in the single most anticlimactic reaction they've ever gotten from an Akuma before, Lady Wi-Fi stares at the three of them and then at Chloe…then asks "Who are you?"

All three Miraculous Holders share a disbelieving glance, and Dragon Fyre deadpans "Never gotten that reaction before." They've gotten a lot of reactions before, from screaming to immediately having to defend themselves...but not total non-recognition.

And then her lips start twitching upwards, and Ladybug says "Your taking way too much amusement out of this, you know that?"

Dragon Fyre just shrugs, and says "As if anyone would believe I could stand Chloe Bourgeois' presence for even five minutes."

Lady Wi-Fi finally realizes they're the real deal, and not Chloe, and glares at the blonde girl saying "But I thought you were Ladybug!"

And that seems to be Dragon Fyre's breaking point, as a very unlady-like snort of derisive laughter escapes her at that. Lady Wi-Fi incredulously asks "Are you…laughing at me?!" Even Cat Noir, known for his sense of humor, is staring at her like she's growing a second head.

And then Dragon Fyre actually starts laughing, laughing so hard tears run down her face and she hits the floor. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she gasps out after a minute, holding her aching sides, "but its just so ridiculous! Chloe over there complains if her hair gets messed up, or her clothes get wrinkled - we're fighting Akumas every single day getting thrown into walls and injured risking our necks at any and all hours of the day! And you seriously think she's not going to prioritize, say, her beauty sleep over fighting a late-night Akuma?" She throws her head back in another fit of laughter, fire suddenly igniting on her body as Cat Noir starts snickering as well - it's not funny, he knows its not, but the image of Ladybug running around in a sleep mask and slippers just popped into his head!

Ladybug just facepalms, attempting to hide the way her own lips are starting to twitch upwards as her own imagination betrays her…right up until Lady Wi-Fi snarls and 'plays' Chloe, saying they'll be sorry.

Dragon Fyre puts a hand on Ladybug and Cat Noir's shoulders just before they can enter the room Lady Wi-Fi left unlocked, and says "It's too easy, guys. What do you say we shake things up a bit?" This trap couldn't be more obvious if Lady Wi-Fi posted a neon sign saying 'trap!' on the door - as it is, it's the only door not locked with a neon-purple symbol, so...

Ladybug says "She wants to know who I am, Dragon Fyre. She's not going to come out if I'm not there."

Dragon Fyre smirks, her body shimmering for a moment before changing completely, and she says "Well, then, let's give her a Ladybug to unmask. I'll keep her busy, guys. You two just be ready to get that phone of hers."

Cat Noir nods, expression serious as he says "Be careful, Sis."

'Ladybug' manages to corner Lady Wi-Fi in the kitchen, and they fight for a moment until Lady Wi-Fi sticks her fists to the wall with two lock symbols. And then she starts recording, only to not be able to take the mask off. "Argh, why won't it come off?!" She tugs on the mask uselessly some more, trying to get it to come off like Chloe's did - what, did they use invisible duct-tape or something?!

'Ladybug' smirks, and says "Well, for one, it's magic. What, did you think we super-glued them to our faces or something? Second…" She lets the mirage of Ladybug melt away, revealing herself as Dragon Fyre to Lady Wi-fi's confusion.

Lady Wi-Fi rears back, incredulously asking "What?!"

"Didn't you know? I've got magic of my own, Lady Wi-Fi. Third…" Her eyes stop glowing orange, and she kicks the brown-haired girl in the stomach…sending her straight into Cat Noir's waiting arms, the mirage keeping him and the real Ladybug having ended.

She's immediately trapped against his chest, his staff held under her chin to keep her from going anywhere, and Ladybug grabs her phone saying "Nice work, Dragon Fyre!"

Lady Wi-Fi yells "You tricked me! So not cool!"

Dragon Fyre shrugs, and says "Let's just say it's a talent of mine, making people see what they want to see." And it's not even all magic, it's also everything she says, what she wears, how she walks, making sure nobody knows where she lives…magic might help, but she puts a lot of effort into tricking everyone every single day she goes to school. Tricking them into thinking she's just like them, has somewhere to go and three meals a day every day - Kwamis, it sounds so terrible when she thinks about it. It makes her sound like some kind of pathological liar, when she just wants to survive and get a decent job.

About an hour later, all three heroes spend a good ten minutes picking out what they thought was the funniest parts of the Akuma attack on a deserted rooftop - she didn't even go for the earrings, which would've revealed the real Ladybug's identity if they were taken off.

She also didn't recognize her actual targets, hilariously enough.

Dragon Fyre laughs, and says "Hawk-butt's slipping, guys. If he'd ever work up the guts to face us in person...well, I give him five minutes tops." Her partners want to argue, to say she might be getting cocky...but it's nigh-on impossible to do so when today's Akuma was such a hilarious bust. Couldn't recognize them, didn't go for the Miraculous, even if it would've been a fake...it's really hard to think he'd be very good in a fight himself if that's what they're going to be fighting.

Chapter Text

Bloom watches Alya Cesaire and Nino bicker over the script for the movie Nino's filming on his phone for his filming contest - technically they're co-authors, having both written it, but…Nino changed a scene. Without Alya's knowledge or consent. He added a kiss between Adrien and Mylene's characters, when Alya's of the opinion it's not only unnecessary but completely useless for the plot.

Honestly, Bloom might not know Alya that well - having kept a polite distance from the girl to keep the avid reporter from cluing in to the detail that the only two girls in the entire city with flaming red hair in a ponytail are actually the same girl - but she's siding with the script-writer here. The 'movie' isn't a romance movie anyway, it's supposed to be an action movie.

As if to add insult to injury, Chloe's comments about how timid Mylene is have sent her crying in the bathroom inconsolably - making her a perfect target for Hawk Moth, as per usual. Honestly, she has to wonder how anyone could end up so cruel so young - this is going on fifty Akumatizations she can directly blame Chloe for now, after all. And that's not counting all the times she's indirectly caused an Akumatization, either by complaining to her dad or by some other action of hers that rolled downhill. And now, because of that kiss scene, Chloe's driven off Mylene to take her place as Agent Smith so she can kiss Adrien.

Deciding enough is enough, Bloom lets out a shrill whistle and says "Alright, everyone! Here's what we're going to do. Marinette will play Agent Smith, alright? I'll be the producer, and everyone can get this show on the road, alright?" This isn't exactly another attempt to get the two of them together...more like saving her sanity, and the potential kiss between them being a side-bonus.

Chloe leaves in a huff, Sabrina following her, when everyone else agrees readily to the plan, declaring it utterly ridiculous and a waste of her time. Bloom rolls her eyes, saying "We're better off without you, spoiled brat…" Then she taps Marinette on the shoulder, who's gone frozen at the idea of working with Adrien that closely in the film.

Juleka just shakes her head at the familiar interaction, and her twin brother asks "What's up with that?" He volunteered to help with the soundtrack, since they decided the main bit would be guitar - he and Nino are going to get together after they're done filming to make the actual soundtrack afterwards. He didn't expect to be dealing with the queen of cruelty, Chloe Bourgeois, though...or to meet Bloom Peters. She's got a melody like nothing he's ever heard before, she's smart, resourceful...and, to be perfectly honest, she's hot.

As if none of that was enough, there's something about her, he can't put his finger on it. But he can safely say, without hesitation, that he's never met anyone like her before.

She turns to Luka, and quietly says "Marinette's got the world's biggest crush on Adrien, we're all waiting for them to finally get together. And Bloom's doing everything she can to get them together faster."

Luka hums, then quietly says "They'd be good together. Their melodies work well together."

Juleka chuckles, and says "We can all see it. Bloom's playing wingman, so to speak, but it's slow going. The entire class has a betting pool on when and how they'll finally get together, and whether or not it'll have Bloom's involvement in it." The smart money's on yes, for that last one.

Bloom heads to the bathroom to go check on Mylene, telling everyone to start filming, but finds…a lot of pink slime.

You've gotta be kidding…

And then the growling happens, and Bloom turns around to see someone that can only be Mylene Haprele…except she's been turned into what would easily be called a monster. Purple body, three eyes - it's reminiscent of the monster costume Ivan was wearing earlier, complete with a tail and gross purple slime.

Bloom takes a half-step back as she asks "Mylene? Is that you?" The hair kinda gives it away, even if the timing didn't.

Mylene snarls at her, and Bloom says "I'm not afraid of you, Mylene, I could never be afraid of you. You're one of the nicest people I know." The monster-body shrinks a little at her words, and Mylene - or whatever name she's currently going by, Bloom highly doubts she'll actually get an answer - promptly spits up more of that gross slime at her. "Let me rephrase that. I couldn't be afraid of you if I tried. Grossed out, however? Getting there." She doesn't scare easy, but that slime is seriously disgusting and reeks. And it doesn't get any better when it gets spit up on her.

Adrien feels his stomach drop out of his feet when he sees the pink slime - he and Marinette were about to kiss, but an ear-splitting shriek that can only belong to Chloe interrupted the scene. Marinette heads off to find Bloom at once, and they head to Principal Damocles' office to tell him what's going on…only to find him missing as well.

Adrien slips away, leaving a shoe and heading to the library to transform, and when he gets back Ladybug's already there. And saying the cover of purple-pink slime that's trapping them in the school is unbreakable. "Maybe if Dragon Fyre were here, she could melt the goo. But…"

Alya asks "Where is Dragon Fyre, anyway? Is she not going to show this time?"

Ladybug shakes her head, saying "She'll be here, one way or another."

Cat Noir adds "We can't always get in uniform so easily, so Dragon Fyre usually does damage control however she can. In her exact words, just because we're not in the suit doesn't mean we can't do something."

And then Luka says "Uh, guys? Where are Bloom, Adrien, and Marinette?"

Alya says "Marinette went to go look for Bloom…you don't think the monster got them, do you?"

Ladybug's eyes widen in panic for a moment, and then Cat Noir says "We'll find them, guys. Just stay calm, and we'll get through this."

Max looks up in shock when the top of his slime-pod suddenly comes off, and a red, orange, and black hand darts in and yanks him out. "Dr-"

The other hand quickly covers his mouth, and Dragon Fyre hisses "Keep quiet, and keep low, Max! I've already got Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Adrien Agreste, and Bloom Peters out of here, so just follow my lead and I'll get you, Chloe, Sabrina, and Kim out as well."

Max nods, then crouches down at once at her hissed command to do so - he's absolutely following her lead, given the detail that she's the superhero here.

When the remainder of the group that left Principal Damocles' office - and then shrank multiple people as they went to investigate things - finally get down to the basement, they find about a dozen different…they look like pods, maybe something from an alien movie. Ladybug calls out "Hello? Anyone in here?"

There's no answer, bar a crash that sounds deeper in the basement, so Cat Noir tries to pull the top off one of the pods. Only to land flat on his back, the top of the pod in hand as it came off cleanly.

Ladybug picks up the clean-cut hardened goo, muttering "What the…?"

Cat Noir rubs the back of his head, and says "This has my sister written all over it." Not only was she the first one to get taken by the Akuma, but he's willing to bet everyone else that was taken is either already out of the basement or with her.

Nino asks "How's the top off if…?" When they look where he's pointing, they see…the top looks like it's still on the pod.

Cat Noir grins, and says "Yep, definitely my super-sis. Among other things, she can make mirages. Illusions, if you will. She can turn herself invisible to surprise an Akuma, or make a widespread mirage like this." Luka raises an eyebrow, because that sounds...an awful lot like something he can do - except he doesn't deal with heat or mirages. He's all about music, and his own abilities reflect that. 

And then they hear another crash, followed by a shout of "Everybody out! Go, move it! That way!" They see almost everyone that was taken by the Akumatized Mylene come running forward, quickly followed by a very slimy Dragon Fyre - that goo is liberally splattered across her suit, her face, in her hair…she looks like she's been wrestling with Mylene this whole time. It's actually not a crazy theory, considering everything. And then Mylene bounds onto the top of a nearby container, sliming the exit and trapping them all inside.

Dragon Fyre groans almost inaudibly, and mutters "Gotta be kidding…" She's been trying to find Mylene's Akuma, as well as get everyone out of here, all this time, and she could really use something to eat right now. Her magic might not be physically draining - in the moment, anyway - but it's mentally exhausting to keep up with a prolonged battle or constantly use her magic full-blast. And then she has to quickly make a shield around everyone, blocking another slime attack and buying a few moments. "That stuff gets less disgusting and more annoying every time she does that…"

Ladybug says "Good to see you, Dragon Fyre. Is everyone accounted for?"

Cat Noir says "I don't see Marinette or Bloom."

Nino adds "Adrien's missing to!"

Dragon Fyre says "They were some of the early ones, I got them out already. Bloom said the Akuma is Mylene, one of her other classmates, and Marinette suggested…something about smelly wolves."

Ladybug says "That's Mylene's song! Ok, we…gotta sing Smelly Wolf?"

Dragon Fyre shrugs, then looks up…then yells "SCATTER!" She snaps her fingers, and the goo bubble explodes and everyone runs just before Mylene can crash through the top.

Cat Noir yells "Any ideas on where her Akuma is, Sis?!"

Dragon Fyre dodges another slime blast, and yells "Nope! I've been fighting with her for a while now, and I haven't seen anything!" Anything beyond miles of pink slime, anyway.

Ladybug blocks a slime blast, and yells "Could it be hidden in her hair?"

"That's one of the only places I've yet to look very close, Spots! If it's there, it's well hidden!" Getting an idea, Dragon Fyre pulls three pipes down in front of Mylene just as she spews more slime, and Cat Noir says "Good idea, sis. Be right back!" He uses his Cataclysm on more of the nearby bars, and soon enough there's a bar-and-slime cage surrounding Mylene.

Cat Noir leads Dragon Fyre over to a nearby container to lean against, asking "You alright, Sis?"

Dragon Fyre nods, saying "I'm alright, just…need to catch my breath is all." She just has to hope everyone will go back up once the emergency is over, because she's going to be cramming some jerky strips into her mouth as soon as she can.

Cat Noir nods, having some kind of idea about how using her magic too much at once affects his sister - she once compared it to a five-hour photoshoot, not very physically demanding minute to minute but mentally exhausting. And then, after everything's said and done...you find yourself completely worn out. Her magic doesn't wear her out until after the fight is over, but using it constantly pushes her to her limit. And once she reaches that limit, there's a very good chance she'll lose control of her magic - and, according to her, the last time that happened she would've started a forest fire had she not been in the quarry.

Once they get Mylene shrunken down, singing the words to Smelly Wolf like Mylene did back when Ivan scared her in the monster suit, Ivan finds a button he gave her that was hidden by her hair - in a matter of moments, the basement is cleaned up and they're free to leave. Bar Dragon Fyre, who's not only semi-crashing after fighting Mylene and freeing everyone but still has to get herself healed - the slime might've gotten removed, but it was covered some nasty-looking bruises she got from getting tossed everywhere. "Go on without me," she groans, starting to feel like one massive bruise as she stops using most of her magic, "give me ten minutes and I'll be out." She'll be hungry, but she'll be out. Maybe she can head to the kitchens and say she went and hid there.

Luka eyes the red-head in concern, and asks "Isn't that burst of ladybugs supposed to fix…everything? Including injuries?" There's something about her, though...he's heard that melody before, but given all the craziness he can't quite think of it.

Dragon Fyre gives him a sardonic twist of her lips, and says "I'm the exception to a lot of Miraculous things. Akumas can't control me, the Cure doesn't work on me…yeah, magic rules…"

Cat Noir pulls her to her feet, saying "Guess it's a good thing you can heal yourself then, huh sis?"

Dragon Fyre groans, her entire body protesting at the movement, and says "Yeah, great actually…" If it weren't one of the most draining things she can do - healing herself, unlike using magic on her surroundings, is entirely draining, physically and mentally. A bruise or scrape is nothing - a broken bone or torn muscle, though, takes it out of her. If she had to guess, it's because she's affecting herself - using up the energy to heal herself, and using more energy to keep it from hurting.

And she already feels like one solid bruise after getting tossed around by Mylene for close to an hour.

Unfortunately for Nino, who filmed the entire attack, the Mayor doesn't like the film - he says the monster was a horrible replica, and completely unrealistic.

Bloom would dearly like to drop him right in the middle of the next Akuma attack and see what he thinks of that monster - he wouldn't know a realistic monster if it slapped him square in the face! She did not get tossed around the school basement wrestling with a 'horrible replica' and have to heal what felt like a full-body-bruise from it! And that slime, the stink stayed with her for hours - it took two hours in the school shower after they left to get rid of the smell.

Chapter Text

Bloom gets down to the first floor of her warehouse, careful not to leave any footprints - she's so glad she can just move the dust how she wants, and taking a picture of the boxes of clothes before opening them helps a lot for if the police ever come looking in the warehouse - and grabs a few pieces of clothing that look easy enough to alter to something she likes before heading back up to her magically-inserted attic.

Longg stares at her in contemplation, watching as she lays out the out-of-style shirt that's a size too big for her on the floorboards, and finally asks "What are you doing, hatchling?" He's seen her do quite a few different things, but he's never seen her do this. For someone who's entirely self-taught when it comes to magic - reshaping reality, much like Tikki actually - she's very good. And she's only been doing magic for close to five years now, as opposed to Tikki's millennia of experience.

Bloom studies it for a moment, trying to think of some of Marinette's designs she's liked, and says "Making a new outfit or two. People tend to get suspicious if you wear the same few outfits for a few months at a time, and I don't like stealing if I don't have to." Stealing the food she does weighs on her enough, and she doesn't steal things from people...that they'll miss, anyway. A few bags of beef jerky from a superstore? Yes. Someone's cellphone or wallet? No.

Heck, the only reason she has a computer is because it was in a garbage pile Christmas morning.

Longg nods, not going to fault his latest Hatchling for her circumstances - when you've lived as long as the Kwamis have, you learn to judge people by their intentions and what choices they choose to make, rather than those they have to make out of desperation. His Hatchling has to steal bags of dried fruits, beef jerky, granola bars, and water bottles to have something to eat and drink, for instance, but she chooses to repurpose the out-of-date clothes down there instead of raiding clothing stores for shirts and pants.

That doesn't mean she likes any of it, that's one reason why she can usually be found at Marinette's place if there's no Akuma after school - she doesn't have to steal snacks, or glasses of water or juice, when she's hanging out with Marinette helping with a project or doing homework together. That thought gives Longg an idea, if there were a lightbulb above his head it'd be blinding. "What if you went and modeled a few of Marinette's designs? You could wear them around school for her, and you'd have a few new outfits."

Bloom thinks about it for a moment, then shakes her head and says "No, I couldn't. I don't have any way to pay for those, and I can't just take an entire outfit that she made like that."

Longg sighs, then nods - his Hatchling has a heart of gold, despite everything she's had to do just to survive day to day. He's helped her sneak into gyms and Chloe's father's hotel to get cleaned up, because she can't exactly use the River Seine on a regular basis - it's illegal, after all, as well as most likely filthy - and she's stocked up on a few cans of dry shampoo lately to keep her hair from looking like it's a massive greaseball. It's a combination of magic, dry shampoo, and a filched body spray and deodorant here and there that's kept her from giving herself away in that department.

Pulling herself out of her thoroughly depressing thoughts, Bloom imagines Marinette's sketch from two weeks ago, makes a few alterations to it such as color and length, along with collar style and decoration - she wouldn't usually care whether she's wearing something old or not, seeing as the outfits she currently has are still in good shape, but Chloe's favorite jab at her is how she doesn't have enough money to get new things. And it's becoming a legitimate problem, people are starting to take notice! Alix, Juleka, and Rose are all giving her odd looks, even though Chloe wouldn't know what's in a department store if she looked through the website since everything she wears is made by her father's personal tailor, and Miss Bustier has called her outside more than once to ask if everything's alright at home - ergo, she needs to find a way to throw Chloe off…or at least make her find something else to insult her with.

This keeps up, she'll probably just have to find a homeschooling program altogether - she took every online course she needed between getting stranded during that summer break and this year - and she was just lucky it was summer, honestly - but that was because she was a walking fire-hazard at first, and wasn't completely confident in her ability to keep her very literal cool and not give herself away. And then she was in the library for hours on end, so long that they had to throw her out a few times a week. Now that she's sure she can be around people safely…she doesn't want to go back to staking out a table with her five-years-old laptop someone threw out her first Christmas here - she's pretty sure it was Max Kante's old computer that year, actually. Which means it's still perfectly alright to use for schoolwork…just not in school, since she doesn't want him recognizing it.

Kwamis, her life is depressing.

Pulling her thoughts from that dark spiral again, Bloom quickly focuses and makes an altered version of the outfit she saw Marinette sketch - undecorated, and with different colors and styles, but close enough that she can keep the clothing she's using fairly intact. If not, she can usually repair it - hence why she's using clothes that are too big, rather than too small. Easy to sacrifice a bit of fabric and make it look like it was never damaged at all, hard to make it look like there was originally more fabric than there was. She's just got the finished product on - not too bad, hopefully it'll give Chloe some different ammunition if nothing else - when her phone from Master Fu beeps to let her know it's time to get going if she doesn't want to be late for school.

Luckily, her new outfit has Chloe remarking on how plain and 'utterly ridiculous' it is - and Miss Bustier looks relieved to see her in something different than the seven outfits she's been wearing ever since the one before them got a hole the size of her head in the shirt thanks to a popped seam in the side. Marinette sits down next to Bloom, saying "Like the outfit, Bloom. You coming over to hang out today?"

Bloom nods, and says "Yeah, thanks. We can finish up that latest project of yours after homework."

Adrien turns and glances at Bloom, worry evident in his gaze for a moment - one downside about her partner/brother/classmate knowing she's living on her own, he's eternally worried about her. It's in the little things, the way he'll occasionally glance at her or how he'll ask how her day's going - he can't be obvious about it, for a number of reasons such as she doesn't want anyone to know she's homeless, but he does what he can. He's also offered to take her back home a number of times, either to his or to where she stays, but she's turned that particular offer down every time - they can't explain her presence at his house away to his father and Nathalie if either ever noticed, or if Agreste Sr. ever went into his son's room more than once a month or two, and she definitely doesn't want to admit she's living in one of his own warehouses. Not only would that be supremely embarrassing - oh, yeah, I'm just squatting in your dad's old warehouse, don't mind me among all the dust and old clothes he's never going to do anything else with! - but Adrien would almost certainly use the detail that it's his father's warehouse to check on her regularly.

Or he'd come over every night he's not on Patrol as Cat Noir and fuss over her to no end.

Just have to wait until I can get a job somewhere…maybe Marinette's parents would like a helper in the Bakery? Or Marinette and I could start a brand, who knows…

Ladybug looks around at her, Cat Noir, and Dragon Fyre's meeting spot for the night - they decided they'd go on Patrol together tonight, after Cat Noir pulled her aside and said he was worried about his sister. Mainly…how hungry he said she sounded at the Akuma fight earlier - she played it off as the Akuma happening during dinner, but their feline-themed partner was less than convinced.

Given the detail that he told her Dragon Fyre doesn't have regular access to food when she asked why he didn't believe her, not nearly enough anyway, Ladybug can understand his skepticism. He didn't tell her everything, just that she's very much on her own, but she said she'd bring something to eat during Patrol.

Cat Noir looks around quietly, and says "This isn't gonna be easy, Ladybug, but I can't just sit back knowing she needs help…" His sister doesn't do charity, or pity, but she doesn't steal anymore than absolutely necessary either. Heart of gold, meet stubborn pride. Add in magic that lets her reshape the world around her if she focuses enough, and you have Bloom Peters/Dragon Fyre and her approach to her current circumstances.

Ladybug shakes her head, and says "Neither can I. And we're not going to, Cat Noir." She's been getting worried to no end about both of her best friends - half the time, Bloom shows up at school hungry, saying she had a light breakfast, and today's new outfit was the first she'd seen...well, ever, actually. She might not be able to do anything for Bloom beyond constantly inviting her over to hang out - since she keeps refusing to model clothes they make at school, saying she couldn't take the clothes Mari worked on so hard - but at least she can do something for Dragon Fyre.

Dragon Fyre lands on the rooftop, asking "Did I miss something, guys? I thought we were doing a rotation deal for Patrol…" She trails off upon noticing the bag of Croissants in Ladybug's hand, eyes snapping up towards Cat Noir in something very much like betrayal.

Ladybug clears her throat gently, and says "Before you say anything, Dragon Fyre, I'm the one who asked Cat Noir. You sounded really hungry during the Akuma attack-"

Dragon Fyre immediately goes on the defensive, saying "It was dinnertime, Spots. All three of us were hungry, remember?"

"Not to the point our stomachs were growling like there were actual dragons in them!" As if to prove her point, Dragon Fyre's stomach growls again - though, not nearly as loud as before. Dragon Fyre curses internally, she knew she should've drank another water bottle dry - but she's running low on her already-small stock of food. She'll have to go to the store and raid the place again after school, then.

A hand on her shoulder brings her out of her thoughts, and she sees Cat Noir standing there with an uncharacteristically serious expression on his face. "Let us help you, Sis, please?" He gives her a pleading look, coupled with his cat-irises widening and a pout.

"You know the big eyes don't work on me, Brother." Even still, she can't look him in the eye - Cat Noir takes it as a win, when she didn't explicitly say no. And then she shakes her head and takes a step backwards, not meeting either of their gazes as she says "I can't, I can't take this. I get enough for the two of us to get by. It's not an ideal situation, but I've got it handled-"

Cat Noir suddenly pulls her forward, wrapping his arms around her so she can't escape, saying "Please, Sis, do it for us if not for yourself. Please?" He's perfectly willing to hold her still while Ladybug stuffs Croissants down her throat if necessary, but they're both hoping it won't come to that.

Dammit. The big eyes might not work on her…but hugs do and he damn well knows it. Maybe because it works on him to.

Finally, after what feels like a small eternity to Cat Noir, he hears a small "Ok…" Cat Noir lets out a sigh of utter relief, hugging his sister close and burying his face in her hair. After a minute spent thanking whatever deity - probably Longg, honestly - contributed to her change of mind, he pulls back and says "I need to see you eat some of that, Sis."

She would, but the lump in her throat is making it pretty difficult to do much of anything. Also, she can't see because she's fighting off tears. Master Fu gives her tea until she'd float in the Seine when she visits his shop, and the Dupain-Chengs send so much food up to Mari's room she'd explode if Mari insisted she eat it all, but nobody's actively tried to help her like this before. She steadfastly ignores the little voice that says that's because she hasn't let anyone until now.

She hears the bag get opened, and a Croissant gets pressed into her hand - at this point, she figures she'll actually be held down and force-fed if she doesn't actually make some kind of effort. She manages to get a few small bites past the lump in her throat, and it's when the dry pastry hits her stomach that she remembers just how hungry she really is - the granola bars take the edge off, tend to last her about an hour on their own, but she's hungry. Then she manages to get more down her throat without feeling like she's choking on it. Another gets held up in front of her, and then a third, and her two partners finally stop guilt-force-feeding her after the fourth.

And then Ladybug says "Dragon Fyre, listen. There's a girl I know about, she's really nice, alright? Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I'll talk to her, and she can, I don't know, save the leftover pastries and stuff from the bakery." She's just realized exactly who her fiery partner is, the dozens of excuses of 'had a light breakfast' or 'woke up late, had to skip breakfast today' and all the times Bloom's come to hang with her and has literally never turned down a snack from her parents running through her mind, and the thought of Bloom being homeless is…almost too hard to believe, actually.

The detail that they're currently dressed in magic spandex and leather helps, though - between Kwamis, Miraculous', Akumas, and their own powers, the idea of Dragon Fyre - Bloom - surviving on the streets on nothing but her wits, imagination, magic, and stubbornness sounds a lot more believable. Especially with her magic.

It takes another minute of Cat Noir working his charm on Dragon Fyre, along with another hug he doesn't let up until she agrees, but they manage to coax a promise out of her to head to the Dupain-Cheng bakery if she ever needs something to eat. And Mari fully plans on dragging her to her house as much as possible - she'll make up excuses if it comes to it, from design-days to 'I didn't get Mendeleiev's lecture today, want to go over it over a plate of cookies?'

And then half the Patrol is spent with Dragon Fyre trying not to cry her eyes out - she's gone a little too long relying on only herself, it seems. The looks her partners keep giving her don't help that particular fight, though. Neither does Longg's commentary.

Chapter Text

About two blocks from Marinette's bakery - one yo-yo swing for Ladybug and a leap for Dragon Fyre - Dragon Fyre says "You know, if you keep encouraging her it's going to come to a head sooner rather than later." And it's getting to be more than an issue, they've had to take convoluted routes, Dragon Fyre's made herself bait multiple times now with illusionary appearances, and there've been a few close calls thanks to the girl's extreme determination.

Ladybug sighs, knowing exactly what her fiery partner's talking about - Alya Cesaire, and her Ladyblog. She wanted to do something nice for Alya, in the hopes that maybe she'd tone her determination down a little bit if she got something good, so she picked her out of a crowd of reporters and mentioned her being the one who runs the Ladyblog.

Instead…it just seemed to amp it up to about 20.

Ladybug sheepishly says "I know, but…something has to give, you know?" If she weren't so dead-set on exposing their identities, she'd think Alya Cesaire would be a good Miraculous Holder - as it is, the girl is dead-set on learning everything about them including their identities. Superhero-worship, meet dreams of being a journalist - throw in modern-day technology, and you have Alya Cesaire and her Ladyblog.

Dragon Fyre snorts, and says "She's going to get herself killed one day if she doesn't back off on the Akuma attacks, we've got to get that through her thick head. That's what's got to change, Spots."

After a minute, the red-and-black Superhero says "Your probably right, Scales." They get back to the right balcony, under the cover of one of the red-heads mirages to keep them from being seen, change back and head downstairs to grab a snack - something that's been much more regular now that Marinette's figured out Bloom's two biggest secrets, to the point that she threatened to have Cat Noir help wrestle her into the room if that's what it took.

After coming up with a plate of Macarons and Cookies - one of each for Tikki set aside, and Longg pulling out a strip of Beef Jerky to munch on with his sister - the two girls sit down and pull up the Ladyblog once more to check for anything they need to do damage control on. Honestly, if they knew how to hack...well, as much as it would be mean to change all her hard work, they have to keep their identities a secret somehow. Bloom absentmindedly says "As expected, she already posted the video…if she's not careful, she's going to get targeted."

Marinette nods her head grimly, not having even considered the option until her best friend said as much, and says "Your right…we'll have to find a way to get her to…I don't know, tone it down somehow?"

Bloom grimaces, and says "Not gonna be easy. She's determined to unmask us, remember Lady Wi-Fi?" Remember how close she could've come to unmasking you? All it would've taken, were Dragon Fyre not so good at her mirages, is to take off Ladybug's earrings...and Lady Wi-Fi's hand was mere inches away.

"Unfortunately." She hasn't been able to stop thinking about that close call sometimes, actually. The what-ifs like to plague her thoughts occasionally - what if Dragon Fyre wasn't in Paris, what if she didn't listen, what if Lady Wi-Fi figured it out. If any of those things had happened...well, she doesn't know what would've happened, and she doesn't want to know. Bloom says it's the curse of being the unofficial leader of the group, constantly worrying she'll fail them - for all that they tell each other they're equals, which is a lot, Ladybug is pretty much the leader of the group. She's the one that comes up with the plans, most of the time anyway, and she's the one that can fix everything - ergo, she's the leader of their little group no matter how much she denies being as much.

And then Tom's voice yells "MARINETTE! MYLENE AND FRED ARE DOWNSTAIRS!"

Both girls exchange relieved glances, after coming down from the ceiling since they jumped that high, and Marinette quietly says "You're getting better about that…" Not setting anything on fire when her dad yells at the top of his lungs is quite the feat, since she learned the hard way not to surprise Bloom like that. The one and only time she did, having gotten back to the bakery later than Bloom after an Akuma attack, the plate of cookies next to her burned to a crisp as Bloom jumped three feet in the air.

Bloom just shrugs, putting out the flames in her hand, and says "After the twelfth time or so, you start getting used to it." She accidentally burned the stuff in the oven the first time, for instance. The two girls get rid of any evidence of their superhero activities - hiding the plate of food and beef jerky strips in Marinette's big drawer, where nobody will notice Longg and Tikki eating - and Mylene and her father come in maybe a minute later to see Marinette sketching an outfit and Bloom adding some input.

Mylene brags about her father a bit, saying he's the best mime in the city, and Marinette smiles and says "Well, no Mime is complete without his hat. I added the pocket on the inside, just like you wanted." Fred mimes taking the hat out of the box, and puts his picture of Mylene inside the small pocket on the inside of the hat.

After the Hapreles leave, Bloom asks "Want to take a walk, Mari? Maybe get some new inspiration for an outfit?" It worked with the Pigeon-Derby, after all.

Marinette nods her head, saying "You could model it for me at school, you know."

Bloom gives Marinette the same stubborn look she's gotten for the past week - it was a battle just to get her to take the food, which Marinette played off as being the leftover stuff from the Bakery so she wouldn't protest stealing it, Bloom Peters does not do charity, and is not anyone's charity case or pity party - and Marinette just knows what her answer will be. "Again, Marinette, no. I can't just take the stuff you work on so much!"

"Well, I can't just sit back and-"

Bloom shakes her head, saying "I'm good on the clothing department, Mari. It's not that I don't appreciate the offer, really. It's that I can barely keep my conscience satisfied as it is, and I'm not going to take any more from you than I already do."

How Bloom is this selfless when she's got so little is beyond Marinette - they don't know where she lives, since she's made it a habit to use Longg's abilities to go 'back home' - wherever that is - but they do know that about once a week she goes to a supermarket and stocks up on whatever won't be missed. Small things, just enough to get by for the week, but still. How she gets clothes is beyond Marinette, but she doesn't have anything that looks worn-out or full of holes and dirty.

They get to the Louvre, only to find one very upset mime there...so upset he's been Akumatized. Bloom worriedly asks "Any idea who this joker is?" Because he just shredded that billboard with a few waves of his hand - is Hawk Moth trying to recreate her magic? Worse, did he succeed?

Marinette shakes her head as they get around a corner, saying "There's Mr. Haprele's acting troupe's advertizement he just destroyed, but I don't see why any of them would get upset enough to be Akumatized. Their show is gonna be a hit, after all."

Adrien sighs in disappointment when Nathalie gets off the phone, saying "Let me guess, he's flaking again." As per usual, he isn't even surprised anymore. Disappointed, but not surprised.

Nathalie says "Something came up, but he's reserved the best seats in the house, front row."

"Only the best money can buy, as usual..." Except money can't buy two things more important than 'the best' - time and memories. Something his father seems to have completely forgotten after his mother disappeared. Maybe he'll get lucky and his sister will have a seat thanks to Marinette.

And then suddenly his bodyguard slams on the brakes, jolting the two passengers roughly.

When Adrien looks over, he sees his Lady standing there making a shield with her yo-yo. "Get out of the car, get to safety!" And then she looks over, eyes locking with his...and Adrien swears everything else just disappears. Just the two of them in their little world...right up until his sister comes crashing in like a meteor with the sound of a gunshot.

Dragon Fyre gets to the battlefield, only to sees Ladybug and Adrien locked in a lovesick staring contest. And Mime, as she's calling this one, acting like he's got a gun.

She quickly leaps over, throwing up a shield in the process...but not fast enough. She feels that first bullet hit her square in the shoulder, a nonexistent round going straight through her bone from the side before disappearing, and barely manages to bite back a scream - because, suit or no suit, that HURT. Actually, it shouldn't have gone through the suit in the first place, they're bullet-proof. Seems Hawk Moth managed to make an Akuma who's weapons can go through the suits, wonderful.

Instead of screaming at the top of her lungs, she yells "Stop staring at your dream-boy and get your head in the game, Spots!"

It's all she can do to not snap something worse, honestly - for all the injuries she's taken, both on the streets and fighting Akumas, she's never been shot before. She's also never been injured like that, something going straight through her shoulder, the socket, and injuring who knows what else. She's just really glad her suit is red, else her brother would almost certainly have something to say about it. Something along the lines of 'I'm taking you to the hospital RIGHT NOW!'

Adrien feels Nathalie grab his shoulder, even as Dragon Fyre gasps and yells for everyone to RUN, and they've just gotten around the corner when the car blows up. He looks at Plagg, and says "Looks like Hawk Moth really went all-out with this one."

Plagg nods, then says "Looks like it. Guess we won't be spectators after all."

"Plagg, claws out!"

When Cat Noir gets to the fight, he sees Dragon Fyre sword fighting Mime while Ladybug tries to attack from the side. "Need some help, M'Lady?"

Ladybug sighs, and says "Yeah, getting those two apart! Also…how fast do you think Dragon Fyre can heal?" They've seen her heal bruises, cuts, and scrapes like it was nothing, but…most Akumas aren't as dangerous as Mime. He had an RPG, after all, that's probably the most dangerous Akuma they've fought yet.

Cat Noir frowns, asking "Why do you ask?" He didn't see his sister get hurt, but that doesn't mean she isn't. And his sister is really good at hiding her pain when she needs to.

Ladybug says "Mime had a gun, and Dragon Fyre's favoring her right arm."

Cat Noir instantly starts watching the fight, and sees, yes, his sister is mainly using her left arm to fight and her right arm is barely doing anything. And then one of Mime's hands darts down to Dragon Fyre's waist, and she kicks him away at once. And then he sees a bus with a mime advertisement on it pass by, scowls furiously, and mimes driving away.

Cat Noir groans quietly when he, Ladybug, and Dragon Fyre land in a heap after Mime starts miming riding a motorcycle, thereby dumping them all on the ground from stopping the invisible car, and Ladybug says "He can only mime one thing at a time, that's his weakness. Now, we just need to figure out where he's going."

Dragon Fyre winces as she sits up, hoping neither of her partners notices her holding her side as she pushes herself to her feet, then says "He's after the acting troupe, something about suddenly losing his lead role in tonight's performance."

Cat Noir sits up, just catching the sound of Mime's motorcycle, and asks "Is it just me, or is Hawk Moth trying harder than usual?"

Dragon Fyre deadpans "Given the detail that his usual is Mr. Pigeon, that isn't that hard." But, yes, she's fairly certain this is the most dangerous Akuma they've faced yet.

Ladybug sits up, saying "Fair."

Cat Noir hums, then says "I've got an idea to catch up. Hang on, ladies." Once he's got one of their arms around his shoulders, wincing at how Dragon Fyre's grip tightens on his shoulder so hard he thinks he'll bruise, he extends his Baton and they go about a mile into the sky. And then they start falling towards the bus, a landing Dragon Fyre braces herself for - her shoulder might be pretty much healed, she thinks, but it's still ultra-sore from getting shot, and her side has barely started healing. Call her crazy, but she prioritizes not getting her head taken off by invisible weapons over healing a stab wound in her side that's been reduced to just the stab itself and no organ damage.

Ladybug heads inside the bus while Cat Noir covers them from behind and Dragon Fyre tries not to pass out - as much as she knew that landing would hurt…it was worse. Her side is currently throbbing, an agonizing pulse that makes it damn near impossible to fight when combined with her aching shoulder. Her right arm is currently semi-useless, and her left side is protesting at every other step - she hates feeling this helpless, it reminds her far too much of when she couldn't do anything as her parents were killed.

Cat Noir glances back at his sister in concern as he keeps spinning his staff to block Mime's attacks, usually she'd be trying to take down Mime in some way. Not…sitting there, clutching at her side while trying to keep her breathing even.

That's it, Sis. You're going to the hospital or my place if I have to drag you there.

And then the bus suddenly lurches to the side, a blown tire sending it out of control straight towards the Trocadero. Cat Noir leaps ahead to stop the bus with his staff, which knocks everyone else down - and off the bus, in his sister's unfortunate case - and Mime starts fighting him again. And he casually tosses a grenade at Dragon Fyre when she starts getting up, but Cat's going to assume his sister's alright since there's no screaming from the civilians - he'd look, but that's a good way to get his head taken off right now, Mime is homicidal.

He chances a quick look behind Mime after leaping over the homicidal Akuma, and sees her sitting on the ground behind a flickering orange shield - and then he's slammed onto his back, Mime standing over him with a sneer on his face as he goes for the ring. Ladybug nearly gets impaled on the sword he starts miming, just barely stopping in time to avoid the tip of the weapon, but then a blur of orange and red tackles the Akuma into the Seine.

Ladybug pulls Cat Noir up, and they get to the edge of the river, only to be horrified by the detail that there's red staining the water and they can't see either person. And then suddenly, the water rises up in a wave, depositing Mime onto the bank in front of them before reforming as Dragon Fyre on her knees coughing up more river water. Mime rolls over, and Dragon Fyre quickly aims a small blast at his hat. Ladybug quickly catches the Akuma, purifying it and using the Miraculous Cure to fix everything.

Everything, Cat Noir notes with utter dismay, bar the injuries to his exhausted sister. Not for the first time, Cat Noir internally curses the fact that, because of her own magic, the magical ladybugs don't affect her when it comes to injuries. Now that the danger's over, he can make out blood leaking from her side and there's a small pinkie-sized hole in the shoulder of her suit.

People start gathering, even as Mime changes back into Fred Haprele, whispering amongst one another about the red-head.

Is she alright?

I think she's really hurt.

Who knew Dragon Fyre could actually get hurt like that?

I didn't, but the water turned red when she hit it.

You think that's just part of her powers?

No, her powers are orange, remember?

Dragon Fyre sees a clawed hand, and accepts it gratefully as Cat Noir helps her to her feet. "You alright?"

Dragon Fyre takes in the concerned green eyes - and listens to the ghost above his head saying 'get her to slip up, take her to the hospital' - and says "I'll live, Brother."

A look of irritation flashes across his face right then, but thankfully a distraction comes in the form of Fred Haprele getting apologized to by his boss.

Cat Noir walks over with her, and then she hears Fred's understudy's ghost say something that blows her fuse altogether. "Excuse me? You got him Akumatized?!" Chris, Fred's ex-replacement, nods guiltily, and she angrily asks "You damaged his stuff, you told him the rehearsal times were later than they were? You sabotaged him for months, all because you wanted his role?! Are you kidding me?!"

Chris gapes at her openly, Sarah looks between the two in growing anger, and Fred asks "What?!" She'd thought Fred had been flaking all this month, but if Chris was sabotaging him...

Cat Noir chuckles nervously, wrapping his arms around her so she doesn't hurt herself any further going off on Fred Haprele's soon-to-be-ex understudy, and says "Like I've said before, my sister knows. And if she doesn't know right away, she will very soon. She gets a bit cranky when she's really had to go all-out with her magic, though."

Ladybug sardonically says "Gee, I wonder why. She only blocked RPG's, bullets, arrows, a grenade…"

And then Dragon Fyre takes a step forward on her own, saying "I'm fine, you two." Unfortunately, then she stumbles and winces, a nearby full garbage can suddenly catching fire as she does. So much for being alright, she doesn't stumble and doesn't lose control of her magic like that.

Cat Noir says "Yeah, right, I'm buying that. Ladybug, I was going to ask if you wanted to watch the premiere with me…"

Ladybug says "Go on, I'll meet you later, Cat Noir."

Cat Noir picks up Dragon Fyre bridal style before she can protest, and leaps away on his staff - he's got a while before the performance anyway, he can just tell Nathalie and the Gorilla he couldn't find them in the chaos so he went to the Tower on his own.

Chapter Text

About halfway to the hospital, Dragon Fyre manages to struggle out of his arms and they land on a rooftop. "Sis-"

Dragon Fyre immediately says "Listen, Brother, I can't go to the hospital." If they didn't think she had a life-threatening fever thanks to how her body-temperature is high thinks to her magic, she'd likely become some kind of science experiment. Or her Miraculous would get taken, there's that possibility.

Cat Noir frowns at her, getting beyond irritated at his sister's stubbornness - honestly, it's like he's beating his head against a brick wall! "Why not? Give me one good reason why-"

Dragon Fyre jumps at the chance, saying "First off, I'm not actually a citizen of France. Second, I have no way of paying for a hospital visit. Third, who would they even bill, a city-saving superhero with a made-up name who they have no way of identifying out of the suit?"

"Er…" Dammit, he should've said four good reasons. Instead of replying to any of that, he pokes her in the side - it gets a pained hiss out of her, and his finger comes away red with her blood. He takes that as a win, as underhanded as it was.

Dragon Fyre straightens up, looking mad as heck, and bites out "Aside from all of the above I mentioned, if you take me to the hospital I'll heal myself before you can even get me in the lobby." She'll probably collapse directly afterwards, but they can't actually hold her for falling asleep. Hopefully.

Cat Noir groans, then says "Fine…alright, we'll compromise. I'll take you back to your place, and get you fixed up there."

Dragon Fyre actually whines at that, saying "C'mon, Kitty, I'm-"

"Not getting out of this one, Sis. It's your place or the hospital. Take your pick."

Dragon Fyre groans, pinching the bridge of her nose when her brother's ghost over his head says he'll spend the whole night tracking her down if he has to.

Cat Noir only relaxes when she mutters "Fine…" He then picks her up again, saying "You give me directions, Sis. Don't think for a moment I didn't notice that you were favoring your arm to." He hears her mutter a few words under her breath at that, but ignores it in favor of activating his staff.

Dragon Fyre's directions end at one of his father's abandoned warehouses, in the older part of the city.

"Um…Sis? This is…" Please don't tell him his sister has actually been living in an abandoned clothing warehouse all these years. Please.

Dragon Fyre motions for him to set her down, and she unsteadily makes her way into the building after magically unlocking it - it's exactly as Cat Noir expected it, with dust and cobwebs literally everywhere. His footsteps actually kick up little clouds of dust, for Kwamis' sakes.

Yes, ye's she's been living in this abandoned warehouse all this time.

Dragon Fyre won't look at him, gaze glued to the floor in either shame or embarrassment, even as they make their way around what he soon recognizes as a cleverly-placed maze of storage boxes and dust - if he didn't have her guiding him through it, he'd think it was impassible. And if he still tried to get through anyway, he'd bang his legs and kick several dozen boxes in the first two minutes. He still hasn't seen any place that she's obviously been staying, though, when she suddenly stops at a wall. And then she points one finger towards the ceiling before moving it forward, exactly like she's sliding something forward - Cat Noir's about to question what she's doing when a panel of wood slides away, and a thick rope drops down in front of her. Before she can start climbing up - so that's how she can get up the rope in gym so easily! - he puts her arm around his shoulders and says "I've got this, Sis. Hang on."

When he gets to the second 'floor' of the warehouse with her, just like he caught up to the bus earlier, he sees it looks a bit like an attic. A much-lived-in attic, with a beanbag that's obviously her bed, a metal pole with a few wire hangers that's obviously a makeshift 'closet' with the rest of the outfits he's seen her wear hanging from them, a cardboard box with some beat-up Harry Potter books, a beat-up cooler filled with water bottles, granola bars, beef jerky packs, and some pastries from Marinette's parents' bakery.

Well, at least she has been going there…

There's nothing, bar a few ace wrap bandages that've been used before for a first aid kit, though. At his semi-accusatory look, she says "People tend to notice when a whole host of medical items disappears. I won't steal from a hospital, and I don't take what I don't absolutely need."

Cat Noir groans, then says "Well, that explains why you said your good on clothes. You've got enough to last a lifetime." It's a nice sentiment, yes...but incredibly frustrating when situations like this come up.

Cat Noir gets his stubborn sister lying on the beanbag bed, easier said than done when she's insisting she's fine, and heads downstairs to get something she won't be using from one of the trunks. He finds one that's full of scarves, and decides that's as good a bandage as anything else he's going to find here. And a rag, he decides after a moment's thought, so he grabs a few of the dusty scarves.

Knew I should've just taken her to the hospital, whether she wanted it or not…

Then again, he's pretty sure they wouldn't be able to do anything about her being so exhausted from using her magic that she collapsed. He gets back up, after shaking as much of the dust off as he can, and finds her semi-conscious on her makeshift bed. "C'mon, Sis, I need you to change back. Please?"

Thankfully, she seems too out-of-it to argue and just says the right phrase - something that worries him, but he'll take whatever silver lining he can find right now. When he pulls her shirt up enough that he can see her side, relief crashes through him when he sees it doesn't look as bad as he thought it would - it's not very deep, long, or too wide, so it'll be easy to clean up.

Cat Noir's steadfastly ignoring the voice in his head saying that, if it's not healed by now, then it was much worse when it happened. He grabs a water bottle, pours a little of the water onto the first scarf he can grab, and starts wiping at the bloody cut on Bloom's side.

When he moves to experimentally touch her shoulder after he's done bandaging up her side with the least-dusty scarf, though, her good arm grabs his wrist. "I'll be fine, Brother. Go watch the show." Translation: Don't touch the shoulder, it's still throbbing in agony.

Longg stops his argument by saying "I'll watch over my hatchling, Chosen. Should she get worse, I'll find either you or Ladybug."

Cat Noir nods, seeing his sister is already out cold, and leaps away to go keep his father from completely freaking out and confining him to the mansion forever.

After the performance is over, Adrien says goodbye to Marinette and finds a good place to change back into Cat Noir.

Seriously? You know she's going to be alright, kid.

"I know, Plagg, but that doesn't stop me worrying. You saw her, after all."

After a minute, Plagg's voice sounds in his head again saying Yeah, I did, but she's a lot tougher than she lets on. Stronger, to.

"You don't think she got shot, do you? Mime had a gun, but I don't know for how long." And the knowledge doesn't bring up a pleasant train of thought, his sister is the toughest person he knows...if anyone could keep fighting after being shot, it'd be her. He quickly calls Ladybug on his staff, and they reluctantly agree to send someone to check on her because they can't go check in on her without risking the people around them finding out.

Adrien can't exactly sneak out at midnight and spend the night taking care of his sister, after all, and Dragon Fyre can't mysteriously show up in his bedroom either - his father would likely have a heart attack if he ever found out, which is why she can only visit for short periods of time at his place and only when they're sure she won't be discovered. Plagg has to go up to the roof and let her know when it's safe to land on the balcony, for mercy's sake.

Marinette transforms back into her civilian form in the alley next to the address Cat Noir texted her, only to stop dead when she sees Adrien Agreste walking towards the warehouse with a determined look on his face.

Ohmigosh its Adrien! I can't go out there with this, he'll think there's something going on and he'll never want to talk to me again, I'll never get to tell him how I feel and-

Thankfully, Tikki manages to bring her out of her spiraling thoughts by nudging her in the hip. Taking a deep breath and looking at the gallon bag of half-day-old croissants, cookies, macaroons, and everything else she could squirrel away without her parents noticing, she forcefully shoves her nerves aside and walks over. "Adrien? What are you doing here?"

The blonde jumps a mile in the air, before whirling around tense as a bowstring. Thankfully, he relaxes upon recognizing her. "Marinette? What…"

Thinking quickly, Marinette says "Ladybug visited me last night, said it was urgent that I got as much food together as possible and brought it here. You?"

Adrien says "Cat Noir visited, said someone important to him was living here. And, since it was my father's warehouse, I could get in easily enough." And then, before he can add on a half-thought explanation as to why that makes any sense whatsoever, the door suddenly opens.

Bloom asks "Mari? Adrien? What are you two doing here?"

Marinette practically shoves the gigantic bag of food into Adrien's arms, wrapping her arms around her best friend at once and immediately asking if she's alright, what is she doing in there, does she want to go back to her place.

Bloom struggles out of Marinette's arms, feeling her side starting to actually pulse - not even throb, pulse! Turns out her bones were less healed than she thought and her magic got taken up healing that all night - and says "I'm fine, Marinette. No, I don't want to go back to your place. I'll stop by after school, though. Now, really, what are you two doing here?!" The stubborn, oh-so-stubborn look on Adrien's face for a moment tells her he's not going to just let things be. He's apparently not going to let her slip into school about an hour early so she can swipe a stapler to keep her side together until her magic can heal it after healing her black-and-blue shoulder - she woke up and can barely move her arm, making it real difficult to get into her current bra, shirt, and jacket.

Adrien can't believe his absurdly stubborn sister, she is so stubborn - not like he isn't, though. All three of them, actually. He finds it irresistible in Ladybug, and utterly exasperating in his sister - mainly because it usually comes into play against him when he's trying to take care of her or when she's clearly injured but insists she isn't.

He gets the intensely unpleasant experience of hearing every single wince and quiet groan she makes throughout school, seeing her paler than normal face shift slightly every time she twists and turns, and he nearly goes into a mild panic attack when she up and disappears when they get let go for lunch. It actually takes Marinette to calm him down, placing her hands on his shoulders and saying "Adrien, we'll find her. She can't have gone far, right?"

Adrien nods, too worried for his sister to question why she isn't stammering and playing sentence-scrabble right now - somehow or other, she always manages to take control during a crisis and keep a level head. They head back to the classroom, and see…the girl's bathroom not two doors down.

Marinette deadpans "She's in there, I'll go see if she's alright." Honestly, her best friend is so stubborn - it's almost enough to make her scream. Followed by hair-tearing - potentially Bloom's, if given a moment to really consider it.

When she gets into the bathroom, what she finds is…actually, she shouldn't be that surprised. Still, the sight of a bloody stapler in Bloom's hand, her shirt pulled up to reveal a three-inch-long cut in her side that she's clearly been stapling closed, is more horrifying than anything else.

Trying very hard to not lose her cool, Marinette takes four deep breaths and asks "What do you think you're doing?"

Bloom deadpans "Keeping this closed until I'm strong enough to heal it. Why?" She's had Marinette and Adrien all over her today, and Nathan's white as a sheet every time he so much as glances at her - despite the detail that he won't date her, he will apparently keep up with every time she gets hurt on the job. And, while she appreciates all the concern, she's got this covered. She doesn't want to be ungrateful, but she's healed injuries worse than her side before. Her shoulder was a first, yeah, but getting stabbed isn't anything new to her.

Marinette so wishes Cat Noir were here right now - he's the only one she listens to, at least for things like this. They listen to each other in battle, the two of them trade ideas back and forth when they're hanging out…but her brother is the only one that can convince her to do something she doesn't want to do. She's sorely tempted to organize a 'Bloom watch' just to keep situations like this from happening. She's definitely locking up every needle and bit of thread she has while having her mom get Bloom something to eat today, though.

After a moment, Marinette worriedly asks "Why isn't it healed? I thought your powers including healing?"

Bloom sighs, giving the door a pointed look, and quietly says "They do, but I did a lot with my magic yesterday, Spots. At the moment, I'm still healing my shoulder." She slides part of her jacket and shirt down, revealing a yellow-green patch under her collarbone and going across her shoulder.

Marinette gasps, asking "What happened?!"

Bloom winces, moving away from Mari's concerned hands coming to get a better look at the ugly bruise, and asks "Remember when Mime had a gun? He got a lucky shot, no pun intended. And I hit the ground on my shoulder after Catnip stopped the bus, hence...most of the bruise, I think." And the grenade didn't help matters - she barely managed to throw up a shield in time, and the shockwave that made it to her hurt like hell thanks to the injuries she already had.

They've been shot at before, stopping muggings and robberies they come across on Patrols, but ordinary bullets don't get through the suit. Apparently Akuma-bullets do.

Marinette facepalms so hard she's sure she's left a bruise of her own, in lieu of screaming, shaking Bloom, and breaking down crying. She's not sure whether to be grateful or not when Bloom lifts her shirt up once the two girls are safely locked away Marinette's room to show a thin red line and some staples instead of the cut about an hour after school ends.

Bloom pulling the staples out with magic, only to heal the new injuries while eating macaroons isn't much better, honestly, but at least Marinette can keep those injuries clean with a clean washcloth and bowl of water! Because an old scarf isn't going to cut it, Bloom! Not as a washcloth and not as a bandage!

Chapter Text

Bloom winces as she reads Marinette's text, she's grounded. Her parents aren't particularly happy with her constant disappearances and flaking on things - she can see both sides of the issue…and there's no real right and wrong party.

Hawk Moth doesn't exactly wait around for it to be convenient for them when he sends out his Akumas, after all. She quickly types out 'tough luck, Mari. I'll tell Adrien you say hello.' She can practically hear Marinette squealing across the city about half a second later, and a flood of emojis quickly comes over her phone.

The Gorilla, Adrien's bodyguard, glances at her thanks to all the buzzing, but she just shows him Marinette's endless stream of emojis and he nods his head - the guy looks and acts all tough, but if you know what to do he's a big softie. A big softie who's one mission in life is to protect Adrien, who he sees as something like a son. Bloom nudges Adrien - who's gone on 'sister-watch' ever since the Mime incident a week ago, refusing to let her out of his sight now that he has as much of her story as he does - and quietly says "Your Lady says hello." That promptly sends Adrien on Cloud nine, much to Plagg's annoyed glare at the unrepentant red-head.

The tiny black cat Kwami hisses "You do realize just how mushy, sweet-talk-ey, and unbelievably gross he gets at the mere mention of her, right?!" You'd think he'd be used to it by now, given the hundreds of Holders he and Tikki have had by now...but he's pretty sure his current Kitten is the worst. He and Tikki need to be active at the same time, to keep from unintentionally creating a kind of vacuum or overflow depending on the Miraculous, and as such their Holders have always been pairs that ended up together. There's usually some level of pining from the pair, but...not to this level. It certainly doesn't help, though, that Adrien is usually locked up in his room and has plenty of free time to daydream about his Lady. That does not stop Plagg from practically losing his mind, though, when he really gets going.

Bloom smirks, and makes a small fire in the shielded palm of her hand that writes out 'they'll get together if it takes my last breath, Plagg. Besides, they're soulmates, remember? Of course they're exactly like one another.' Marinette is no better, honestly, the way she adores Adrien is two steps away from obsession and Bloom's the one that dragged her back from it. At least Marinette's actively making an effort to not be a rabid fangirl, actually get to know Adrien - she did burn the rough outline of Adrien's schedule, though, and have a long talk with her best friend about how no, mapping out Adrien's schedule to the last minute is not 'just a crush' and yes it is most definitely on the wrong side of the line between crushing on him and stalking him. And, no, she's not going to help enable stalking of Adrien, no matter that Mari's her best friend.

At least it was a wake-up call to Marinette, who went red as Tikki and admitted that it was going a little overboard and promised to try and tone down the crushing a little bit.

And then she and Plagg are broken from their secret communication by Alec's declaration of "VICTORY! Challenge conquered by Nino! You moved your head to the beat, Mayor Bourgeois, that counts as dancing."

The older man looks scandalized from the screen, and asks "What?! That's not true! My neck was…itching, that's all!" Bloom barely manages not to laugh at that, she's gotten very good at spotting cover-ups like that ever since Longg came into her life and that was a terrible cover-up.

Alec grins, and says "Relieving an itch to the beat counts as dancing to! Nino, congratulations. Return in one week for your next challenge!"

The next contestant, skilled hypnotist Simon Grimault, walks up on stage, and his challenge…is to get Gabriel Agreste to come to the show. Adrien groans from the audience, and mutters "This is going to be a disaster..." His father, participating in a gameshow? The world must be ending, Adrien decides.

Gabriel's face appears on-screen, and Bloom raises an eyebrow at the man. She really can't see the resemblance to Adrien. Apparently, he really takes after his mom. "What is this show? I was told this was an interview."

Nino grins, quietly saying "Dude, your dad!"

Alec says "Do your thing, Simon, and bring Mr. Agreste here with your hypnotic persuasion!"

Simon goes a few shades paler, and says "I told you, I don't make people do things…"

Alec grins even harder, and says "A shy hypnotist, how funny is that, Gabriel?"

Gabriel deadpans "Hilarious. Your show is pathetic, as is your contestant. Control me? Never." And then he's gone, having ended the call and ended Simon's challenge in the process.

Adrien sighs, and says "That's my dad alright." And, look at that, the world is right again.

Bloom squeezes his shoulder at that, long-past starting to seriously dislike Gabriel Agreste despite never having met the guy in person and getting close to downright hating him - she's heard how lonely her brother is at 'home' and how he's usually left alone when he's not at endless photoshoots or lessons, even moreso now that Nathalie's told her everything when all she really wanted was the details of when she last saw him before calling her that night.

How his father barely has a meal with him once a month, how their actual face-to-face time is maybe ten minutes in the past week. How Adrien never seems to be anything but a disappointment to his father, since he only ever acknowledges Adrien when something's gone wrong.

Bloom gets the feeling she and Gabriel Agreste are going to have a long conversation, whether the fashion king wants it or not, if they ever meet face-to-face and there's no life-or-death situation going on. Either as Bloom Peters or as Dragon Fyre. And she may or may not decide she's either taking Adrien with her or moving in with him, and screw what Gabriel Agreste says. 

And then Simon comes back, now Akumatized as Simon Says, and uses one of his cards to make Alec act like a duck. Adrien and Bloom get split up by the Gorilla, much to Adrien's horror, as he pushes Adrien to a side door and Bloom and Nino get huddled behind a trunk. Bloom waves towards Adrien for him to go, and he nods before motioning for her to stay down and runs out the door.

With Adrien out of immediate danger, the Gorilla charges Simon and tries to take him down. Simon smirks, and says "Simon says stop!" He then throws that card at the Gorilla, making him freeze mid-step - to the point that he doesn't even look like he's breathing.

Bloom groans, she hates the Akumas that can control others. She always manages to get their attention, somehow or other, and ends up with a splitting migraine because they tend to hit her about ten times with their powers trying to force their will over her. If she were on her own, she'd sneak away under a mirage and transform - as it is, she's got Nino to worry about. She can't just leave him, what if something happens to him because of that? And she can't exactly ask him to be a distraction, he won't last a minute! She can't even use her magic in any way that'll make a big enough distraction or get them away, it'll out her for sure. Ergo…her brother's going to kill her for this. That, or drag her with next time, potentially putting himself in more danger.

Even still, she doesn't have much choice.

Mentally apologizing to her brother, Bloom quickly hisses to Nino "Stay down until there's an opening, then get out of here while you can."

Nino asks "What are you thinking? Please tell me this isn't another Pharaoh thing…" That was crazy, and he couldn't imagine what it must've been like for her

"I'm not seeing any way to sneak out of here undetected, Nino! I'll make a distraction, you make a run for it!" Before he can object, Bloom stands up and says "Simon, you seriously think it's gonna count if you bring him here via Akuma powers? Hate to say it, but that's cheating!"

Simon scowls at her, and says "Simon Says be quiet!"

He hits her with the card, only to freeze when Bloom says "Screw that. I'm too stubborn to do as I'm told." She dodges more cards, seeing Nino run out the door, and internally sighs in relief. Maybe if I get him to use up all his cards…

Ten cards later as she's waiting for her brother to appear, she scraps that particular idea and decides she just needs to get them away from him altogether - it looks like he's got a never-ending supply of cards, seems Hawk Moth thought that one through for a change.

And then Cat Noir jumps on top of Simon Says, knocking him down and snarling "Cat Noir says shut up and give me those cards!" He tells his sister to stay down until he can get there, he finds her annoying the crap out of Simon Says. He's going to have a long talk with her about the definition of 'stay down' after this is over. Along with an acceptable definition of 'safe.' Honestly, he knows his sister can take care of herself thanks to her magic - he does, really - but sometimes it seems like she purposefully puts that to the test at every possible moment.

Simon scatters most of his cards even as the door slams open, and Cat Noir leaps over to gather them up...only to hear his bodyguard get ordered to knock him out. He's just been slammed into the wall, feeling very much like his ribs are going to give way under the pressure, when a familiar orange glow starts up in his peripheral vision. And then a familiar rope appears, the flames wrapping around the hypnotized man's wrists and rips them off Cat Noir with ease.

And then Dragon Fyre shocks even Cat Noir speechless when she says "Oh, screw it. Time to see if this will work or not. Snap out of it, wake up!" Her eyes glow orange, and Cat Noir swears his bodyguard's eyes do as well. And then he puts one hand to his head, shaking it like he's trying to clear a fog from it. Dragon Fyre tilts her head, a smirk slowly coming to her face as she says "Well, that's good to know. Seems that's good for more than just getting into places I shouldn't be and protecting my own mind."

Cat Noir frowns at his sister, but she says "Go back to the Agreste Mansion, Adrien's already on his way there." The Gorilla nods, then runs out the door.

Cat Noir conversationally asks "Care to explain that last comment?" He'd really like to know what that means, actually. And if it means she thinks it's perfectly alright to deliberately annoy mind-controlling Akumas like that without so much as a second's hesitation or any attempts to go transform - there's damage control, and then there's that. Chances are, she did it to let Nino get away...Kwamis, sis!

Dragon Fyre glances away, then almost guiltily says "A few years ago, I discovered I could make people do what I wanted if I focused hard enough on them agreeing to do as much. It…it's how I got into school without too many questions from Principle Damocles, it just happened when I was praying the man wouldn't start interrogating me. I don't do it much these days…mostly just to protect my own mind from being controlled by Akumas. But…I didn't see much choice. I didn't want to hurt him, but I didn't want him to hurt you…" And if the Gorrilla had hurt her brother when she could've done something to stop it, she'd never have forgiven herself. He would've forgiven her, and without hesitation no less, but she wouldn't have forgiven herself for just standing there and letting her brother get crushed to death.

Cat Noir pulls her into a hug, and says "At least we know you can free people from an Akuma's control with it." He's focusing on a silver lining right now, 

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "Yeah. That doesn't mean I like controlling a person's actions like that."

"Speaking of a person's actions…"

Dragon Fyre stiffens and groans inwardly, and says "Someone had to distract him long enough for Nino to get out. C'mon, let's go find-"

"There you two are!" They look and see Ladybug and Nino running up, and Ladybug asks "What happened?" Cat Noir's looking a familiar combination of exasperated and worried, which always means Dragon Fyre was running interference. Ladybug just sighs, and says "We've got a missing civilian, one Adrien Agreste, somewhere in the building. And Bloom Peters is in the thick of things again, using her miraculous stubbornness to distract Simon Says long enough for Nino here to escape. Anything else?"

Dragon Fyre says "Simon Says was going on about getting Gabriel Agreste here in twenty-four hours tops."

Nino says "That just means we gotta find my bro, Adrien! What if Simon Says uses him to get to his daddy-o? Do you think Bloom's alright? I know she's tough as nails, ever since the Pharaoh incident, but that was hardcore!"

Dragon Fyre immediately says "Alright, we'll split up. Simon Says went to go get an army, so he's not in the building. Cat Noir and I will go this way, you two go that way. If you two find Adrien, take him back to the mansion. If we find him, we'll get him to you two and go to hold off the army. And if anyone finds Bloom, tell her we've got things now and to go hide." Ladybug nods, and they take off.

Ladybug and Nino don't find Adrien or Bloom, but Dragon Fyre does, showing up with him in tow close to the exit. "You two take him back, I've got a deck of cards to get. We'll meet up at the Agreste Mansion."

They run out the door, and Dragon Fyre yells "Lightning Dragon!"

Cat Noir leaps through the open window of the ground floor, yelling "Close off all exits, they're coming from every direction! Do as I say, engage the defense system - we need total lockdown!"

Instead of actually listening for once - really, that's too much to expect of Gabriel Agreste - the stone-cold man asks "How do you know so much about the mansion's security system?"

Cat Noir deadpans "Your saying you don't have the best security system money can buy? Or didn't have it invented?" He's getting really sick and tired of the people close to him not listening - his sister, at least, usually has a reason. His father, though, is just being stubborn for the sake of his pride - does he ever think of anything else?! What if he weren't Cat Noir, and was forced to wait up in his room and hope nothing happened? Or if Simon Says had gotten to him, would Gabriel Agreste listen then?

Before Gabriel can say or do anything, though, one of the windows blows open and Dragon Fyre reforms sitting on the ground…looking severely beat up, a triumphant if pained expression on her face. Turns out thirty people all at once with pitchforks and baseball bats can get through the suits when they really try and Simon Says uses one of his cards to make her suit 'useless' - who knew? Still, she got what she wanted from Simon Says and got out of there as he went into a tantrum about it.

"Sis!" Cat Noir leaps over, asking "What happened?"

Dragon Fyre coughs, then groans "Cracked rib…and leg. Worth it, though." She's not going to mention the puncture wounds she already healed, or the small army of brainwashed Parisians she left behind getting here.

Gabriel says "Nobody tells me what to do, not even a superhero." Especially not under his own roof.

Cat Noir feels something just snap inside him, thanks to a combination of his sister being injured and his father being so ridiculously, utterly stubborn - his sister may be just as stubborn, but at least she has magic she knows how to use to take care of herself! - and yells "You're in danger, like everyone else. So stop pretending your above us all, and do what I tell you to!"

Both Gabriel and Cat Noir freeze at that, right up until Dragon Fyre chuckles and coughs. She wheezes out "Be glad that wasn't me yelling at you, Agreste. It'd be much worse." She'd be going off on him thoroughly about the way he treats his son if she were currently able to stand - as it is, it feels more like her leg is broken than cracked despite what she said so her partners wouldn't worry. Which puts a hold on her marching up to the cold man tearing him a new one about how he currently - supposedly - has his son just waiting up in his room as an Akuma is coming for the mansion to try and do who-knows-what to him or make him do Simon-knows-what under mind-control. "Thankfully, though…" She brings one hand up to the nearby table, scattering the cards over the table haphazardly.

Everyone stares in shock, and Gabriel asks "How did you manage to get those?" He'd thought those were infinite! How did she manage to get them all?!

Dragon Fyre shrugs, even as her brother helps her sit on the table, and says "You live on your own long enough, you learn to get what's really important. Like objects with an evil butterfly."

Cat Noir quickly gathers the cards up and Cataclysms them all, with Ladybug purifying the corrupted butterfly…and then everyone watches in a morbid fascination as Dragon Fyre heals herself, bruises on her face fading in under a minute and her breathing getting steadily deeper. And, yep, that leg was definitely broken and not cracked like she said.

After a minute, Cat Noir helps her to her feet saying "As far as things go…purr-ty anti-clawmatic. I'll take it in a heartbeat, though."

Dragon Fyre grins, hiding the way her leg is still sore and says "All's well that ends well, then. I've gotta get going, and you have somewhere to be, Brother." Namely, in his own room - she can't really imagine how he got away from Nino in his own room, while the place is practically on full lockdown, but he managed it somehow. Now he's got to get back up there and undo it.

Cat Noir gives her a very unimpressed look, and says "Don't think we won't be talking, Sis." The next time he sees her, they're having a long talk - just because she can heal herself does not mean it makes it any easier to see her looking like that, and just because she's effectively immune to an Akuma's mind-control thanks to her magic does not mean it's alright for her to put herself in danger like that!

Gabriel stares at Dragon Fyre in undisguised shock, and finally asks "How did you do that? With the healing?" Instead of answering, Dragon Fyre uses her Water Dragon and turns into steam that disappears. Cat Noir facepalms, then hears his ring start to beep so he runs out the door and shoots up in the air with his staff to go transform back.

In lieu of her fiery partner, Ladybug says "Magic. Her own magic. Why?"

After a moment, one in which Gabriel's expression goes back to perfectly blank, he says "Curiosity."

Ladybug seriously doubts that, but her two partners are already gone so Dragon Fyre can't exactly call his likely bluff. And it would be Dragon Fyre who calls him out on it, she just always knows the real reason behind people's questions. 

Chapter Text

Bloom grins to herself as Marinette finishes about how she can't 'do this' with her Chinese great-uncle - 'this' being interact with him when she can't speak Chinese - and says "Hang tight, I've got this. Don't freak out when you next open the door, though, Mari." And then she presses the 'end call' button before Marinette can get through frantically asking why she'd freak out. Then, she pulls up Adrien's contact number, and hits the call button.

"Hello? Bloom, what's up?" Adrien's voice sounds worried even over the phone - his sister doesn't usually just call him up out of the blue like this. She usually prefers to come in person, after all.

He must think I'm in trouble. Oops. At least he'll relax a bit after realizing I'm not.

Bloom smirks, and says "Adrien, you said you speak Chinese right?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Well, our Everyday Ladybug is in a bit of a tight spot with her Chinese-speaking uncle…"

Ten minutes later, Adrien's successfully on his way - she won't force their heads together for a kiss, but actively setting up situations where Marinette and Adrien will potentially be alone together and able to get to know one another? She never said she wouldn't - setting things up so they're spending time together is different from locking them in a broom closet together or handcuffing them together, after all.

Marinette opens the door once more, only to find Adrien standing there. "Adrien! Um- wha-what are you doing here?!"

Adrien smiles, making Marinette's heart start beating its way out of her chest, and says "Bloom called. She said you needed someone who speaks Chinese, so here I am. Translator at your service."

"No! Wait, I mean, yes! Uh, where's Bloom?" And then Marinette's phone buzzes, and she sees a text saying 'Your welcome, Mari. Meet you at the hotel. I'll be rooting for him.' Marinette chuckles, and gestures for Adrien to come in.

Twenty minutes later, they're heading to the Mayor's hotel with Adrien speaking fluent Chinese and Marinette curiously watching the whole interaction. And then Cheng Shifu surprises both teens when he says "Your Chinese very good, not like my English."

Marinette gapes in utter shock, and Adrien says "I didn't know you spoke English!"

Marinette dejectedly murmurs "Neither did I..." Why didn't he tell her? Did he not like the detail that she can't speak Mandarin?

Cheng Shifu shakes his head, saying "No, my English not good."

They get out of the car, with Adrien still translating between Alec and the Chinese chef, and head inside. After Cheng Shifu and Alec head off, Cheng Shifu saying cooking needs no words, Marinette heads over and says "Thanks for helping out, Adrien. Sorry to bother you for nothing, I really thought he couldn't speak English." This is somehow worse than the usual embarrassing incidents she finds herself in around Adrien - there's spazzing out around her crush, and then there's not knowing something as basic as whether or not her great-uncle speaks English. But as far as her mother knew, he didn't!

Adrien shakes his head, saying "It's no problem, Marinette. It was great to practice my Chinese, especially with a Shifu." At Marinette's confused look, he adds "That means 'Master' in Chinese. Your Mom's uncle is a great master."

And then a familiar and unwanted voice says "Look who it is. My favorite person, Marinette Dupain-Cheng! I mean, seriously, does your great-uncle really expect to win the contest with a soup? It's not even a main dish! Doesn't he know how to make sushi like everyone else?" Chloe stands there with a confident - arrogant - smirk on her face, one hand on her hip and the other holding her phone loosely.

Adrien pinches the bridge of his nose, and says "Sushi is Japanese, Chloe. Cheng Shifu is Chinese." Maybe if he can keep the focus on that, instead of Marinette's relation to the famous chef, Chloe will go upstairs without a fuss. She takes a perverse pleasure in making Marinette's life more difficult - why, he can only hazard a guess about at this point - but he wouldn't put it past her to sabotage Cheng Shifu simply because he's related to Marinette.

Marinette says "Besides, my great-uncle isn't like 'everyone else' - he's the greatest chef in the world, his soup is legendary."

Adrien smiles inwardly at the obvious pride Marinette has for her great-uncle - apparently, cooking is a bit of a theme in her family. As is being an artist. Her family is so amazing. She's incredible...

Marinette bristles at Chloe's declaration of how her great-uncle won't be getting Chloe's vote - she's on the jury, and despises soup - and stalks over to the blonde at once while saying "Oh yeah? He doesn't need your vote to win, there are other judges with much better taste. Oh, wait, you don't have any - I mean, look at what your wearing."

Chloe growls, and snaps "Don't talk about me like that!" She storms past them both in a huff, and adds "You've made a big mistake."

Adrien waits until Chloe's gone, not wanting to hear about how he sided with Mari over her later, and says "You really stood up for Cheng Shifu, I think he'd appreciate it."

Marinette crosses her arms over her chest, shoulder's hunching in slightly in a familiar insecure posture, and she says "I'm not sure…I don't think he likes me. He even ripped up the bouquet I got him."

Adrien shakes his head at once, explaining what Cheng Shifu told him during the car ride - he uses fateful things that cross his path in his dishes, and was planning on adding flowers to his soup. And then Bloom's voice says "He must've been talking about the flowers you got him, Mari." They look over, and see the flaming red-head leaning against a column.

Marinette sighs in utter relief, and says "So…he actually likes me?" Little hard to tell, with the way he ripped up her flowers...and the thoroughly embarrassing fiasco with the translator app she downloaded onto her phone.

Adrien says "Of course he does, how could he not?" Marinette's almost impossible not to like - Chloe's the extreme exception rather than the rule, everyone else has something nice to say about her. Her dedication to her work, her positive attitude, her compassion - Everyday Ladybug indeed. If his heart didn't belong to Ladybug, it would probably be Marinette's.

Bloom chuckles, arms crossed over her chest casually, and says "Marinette, anyone who gets to know you for even five minutes - and doesn't actively have it in for you - likes you. It's impossible not to."

Not unless you're Chloe Bourgois, who's life's goal seems to be making Marinette as miserable as possible, anyway.

When Cheng Shifu's soup is served, though…all the jurors minus Chloe immediately spit it out in disgust and say it's inedible. Chloe doesn't even taste it, claiming that since it's so unappetizing she'll skip it…but still give it a zero. Cheng Shifu's score comes out to 0.8 out of 10, the lowest in the competition. When he tastes the soup, he also spits it out…and then says he never put the ingredients he's tasting in, and someone sabotaged his soup.

Bloom all but actually growls, and says "And the grand prize goes to whoever can guess how that happened…"

Adrien and Marinette deadpan "Chloe."

Adrien says "I wish I could say it wasn't her…but I know her too well." He's become deeply familiar with Chloe's petty, spiteful side ever since attending school with her, more and more with each passing day - she's nice to the point of sickeningly sweet when its him, always clutching at his arm whenever possible and practically tackling him in her choke-holds she calls hugs, but she's a real witch to everyone else around her…especially Marinette.

Marinette tries to tell her uncle what happened, taking the blame since she provoked Chloe, but Cheng Shifu says "Shame is on Celestial Soup. Will never be world's greatest chef."

Adrien puts a hand on Marinette's shoulder gently when he sees her expression, saying "It's horrible to lose face in China," one of the worst things that can happen, actually, since it's entirely your fault, "let's wait for him downstairs."

Marinette nods, looking incredibly guilty as Adrien leads her away by the shoulders, right up until Bloom clears her throat. "Don't worry, guys. I'm going to fix this."

Marinette dejectedly asks "How?" If she had just bitten her tongue and let Chloe say whatever she wanted...she probably wouldn't have sabotaged her great-uncle. She'd have still refused to taste the soup, but at least it would've been edible, right?

Bloom smirks at her, looking all Dragon Fyre for a moment as she says "I've got a few tricks up my sleeve. Rather…in my front pocket." She slips her phone into the shirt pocket, camera facing outward, and winks at them.

Adrien says "No…"

"Yep. After I go talk to Cheng Shifu."

Cheng Shifu stares at the pot of soup, a torrent of shame and despair bubbling inside him like a second soup, and then his gaze focuses on the bottle next to the pot. The bottle of olive oil, something he never uses in his soup. He never puts oil in his soup period, it makes it greasy and drowns out the herbs. "Marinette was right! This is evil act of blonde brat! No respect for Cheng Shifu!"

The shame turns to rage, starting to boil over in him...right until he hears a shout of "GET DOWN, CHENG SHIFU!" The Cheft turns around, rage forgotten for a moment, and just sees something going flying past his head. When he turns to see, it's...a flaming wooden spoon absorbing a purple butterfly. He puts the 'what the heck?!' moment aside in favor of grabbing the fire extinguisher - the wooden spoon is on fire after all.

The purple-black butterfly that crawls out of the destroyed spoon is looking half-dead, wings tattered and haphazardly flying away...right up until Cheng Shifu sprays it with the fire extinguisher at Bloom's direction. Thirty minutes and a mind-blowing explanation of Hawk Moth later, Bloom says "Cheng Shifu, I know Chloe's a brat. Believe me, Marinette and I have the misfortune of sharing a class with her. But we're not going to let her get away with this."

Back in his lair, Hawk Moth's wondering what the hell just happened - his butterfly was heading for the chef that had been sabotaged, and it was looking as normal as seeing things from the perspective of a butterfly could look...when suddenly a flaming spoon came out of nowhere. He managed to keep the butterfly alive, barely, and was trying to get it away when it was killed by the freezing-cold spray of the fire extinguisher. He has to wonder if Dragon Fyre, the most dangerous of the superhero trio, was involved. He wouldn't be surprised if she was.

She manages to crop up just about everywhere, it seems - and she's the biggest thorn in his side of the three superheroes, with her impossible magic.

Mayor Bourgeois is talking with Alec, hoping to determine who could be picked as the winner of the contest, when Adrien, Marinette, and Bloom walk over and Adrien says "Mr. Mayor? You need to watch this video." It's a video of Marinette and Adrien confronting Chloe about sabotaging Marinette's great-uncle's soup from Bloom's perspective behind the two….and his daughter admitting to it. Saying she told Marinette she'd regret speaking to her like that, and maybe next time she'll think before opening her big mouth.

Mayor Bourgeois sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose - he'd put Chloe on the Jury with the expectation that she'd behave, not purposefully sabotage a contestant's dish just because she doesn't like it or a family member of the contestant. "Seems we'll have to give Cheng Shifu another shot, Alec. And my daughter will not be on the jury, nor will she be allowed to disturb the chef."

Predictably, Chloe throws a tantrum, screaming until she's red in the face and storms off in a furious huff shouting about how it's ridiculous, utterly ridiculous. From the look on the Mayor's face, he's less than pleased she made such a scene in front of everyone - Bloom raises an eyebrow at the things his ghost is saying...how he expected her to act more appropriately than that, how she's his daughter and should know perfectly well by now how to act to maintain his image as mayor. Bloom doesn't know what that's about, exactly, and she's not too keen on finding out right this minute.

Marinette asks her great-uncle to teach her to make Celestial Soup as he prepares a second pot, which he delightedly agrees to and Bloom and Adrien guard the door. Bloom sniffs the air as the Celestial Soup cooks, and says "I really hope he's willing to make another pot of that afterwards…"

Adrien nods, his mouth starting to water at just the divine smell alone, and all but whines "Me to…" Even the stuff his private chef makes doesn't smell that delicious! Even Plagg is starting to drool, and he's usually a Camembert-only Kwami. 

Bloom nods, then switches subjects in an effort to distract her wandering mind and says "So, someone seemed calmer around you…" Maybe it was the detail that Adrien was speaking in Mandarin half the time, maybe it was the way Marinette was half-focused on her Great-Uncle, but the dark-haired girl was much calmer around her crush this time.

Adrien nods, quietly asking "You think Marinette's starting to like me, Sis?"

Bloom whips her head around to stare at him in utter disbelief, quietly asking "What now?" There is no way her brother is that oblivious! Right?!

Adrien nods, glancing back at the pair in the kitchen, and murmurs "She always acted so…different around me than everyone else, even Nino. I thought she still thought I'd been putting the gum on her seat…"

Bloom promptly facepalms, so fast Adrien's legitimately worried she'll have a hand-shaped bruise on her face. Yes, yes he IS that oblivious... After a minute, Bloom mutters "Sheltered, isolated kid dives headfirst into the rest of the world with no idea of social interactions…Adrien, she never hated you or anything like that. I can't really say what she feels about you, girl code and all, but…let's just say it's good and leave it at that. It ties her tongue up in knots, makes scrabble out of her sentences…but she doesn't dislike you or anything. Promise."

Adrien sighs in relief, and says "That's awesome, I just…I was really worried about it, actually. She's super nice, and always ready to lend a hand, and…" He trails off at his sister's increasingly dumbfounded stare. "What? What is it?"

"Not much. Just wondering just how big a number your father's done on you, Adrien." She's absolutely going to have some choice words with one Gabriel Agreste the next time she sees him - Bloom Peters or Dragon Fyre, Akuma situation or not, to boot. She's just sorry, at the moment, that she was more focused on healing her injuries than tearing Agreste Sr. a new one the last time she was in his elusive presence. Then again, she did have a broken rib - she thinks, she's not exactly an expert in injuries - and was feeling like she'd been run over by a bus.

She missed her chance last time, but if she ever finds herself in his presence again she's going to tear a few strips off his hide no matter what condition she's in.

When the judges all taste Cheng Shifu's soup this time around, they all give him ten stars each and name him the winner, with Andre Bourgeois immediately asking for the recipe so the hotel can serve it as the mayor's special.

Chloe can be heard a few floors up, if you listen hard enough, throwing another temper tantrum. Screaming, shouting, throwing stuff...from the darkening look on Andre's face, it's going to come back and bite her squarely in the behind.

Chapter Text

Marinette's about to start writing in her diary when her phone suddenly buzzes, Bloom's ID showing up on the screen. "Hello?"

"Mari, trust me on this, get back to school. There's an Ultimate Mecha Strike 3 tournament happening, and Adrien's currently trying out to be Max's partner. I already mentioned your family's love of the game, but everyone's saying Max is unbeatable."

Marinette's answer is a high-pitched squeal, equal parts for the idea of playing a UMS3 tournament and at the prospect of being partnered with Adrien, and she's tearing out the door before Bloom even hangs up.

Bloom grins and shakes her head even as she rubs her ringing ear, and says "She's coming, Principal Damocles. She was at home when she picked up." Does it count as cheating if I know Mari's family regularly has UMS3 showdowns? Eh…probably not.

Maybe a minute later, Marinette's tearing up the school stairs. Bloom smirks when Marinette gets inside the room, then says "Adrien just beat Max, making them partners…unless you can do better, Mari?" Bloom knows she can, but the reminder of a challenge is in hopes that Mari's semi-calmer state around Adrien will continue. Plus, she hasn't got a clue as to whether or not Marinette will be paired with Max or Adrien.

Principal Damocles clears his throat, and says "The library is closing up in five minutes…but I suppose that leaves time for one more tryout."

Adrien hands Marinette his joypad, Max takes a seat once more…and Marinette pulverizes him. Everyone bar Bloom watches in shock as Marinette's fingers fly across the buttons of the joypad with practiced ease, and the only reason Bloom isn't staring in shock is because she was at Marinette's place the last time they had a UMS3 showdown. She was staring then, completely amazed that anyone could move their fingers that fast and not either hurt themselves or mess up. Out of all the Dupain-Chengs, Marinette is easily the best of them, regularly trouncing her dad in showdowns while Sabine and Bloom watch from the sidelines as they went round for round for a few hours.

Max willingly - reluctantly, dejectedly - relinquishes his position on the team to Marinette, then goes off on his own for some solitude - Kim said he'd been training for a straight year to get into the tournament, but he's had to have lost a few times by now…right? Bloom had pegged Max as a rational guy, surely he wouldn't be a sore loser, right? He said Marinette won fair and square, after all…

And then Marinette realizes something horrible as they're walking back - Adrien's going to be over…so Marinette has to clean her room. Specifically, hide her dozens of pictures of Adrien himself - some with hearts drawn on them, others from when he modeled for his father's brand, all of them highly embarrassing for Marinette if he sees them.

Marinette, Bloom, and Tikki zip around the room, gathering up armfuls of posters and hiding framed pictures of Adrien…until the doorbell rings, moments after Tikki said it's not like he's coming over right this minute to practice.

Bloom facepalms, and says "Tikki, do us a favor and never say stuff like that again. It always comes back to bite you and everyone around you."

Tikki nods, a horrified squeak coming from her as Marinette's mom opens the door, and Bloom quickly says "I'll distract them, Mari. Hide all this in your bench! And change your computer screen!"

Marinette squeaks and rushes over to her computer, temporarily setting it to a neutral Jagged Stone image instead of her picture of Adrien before yanking open her storage bench and hastily putting every photo of Adrien she can inside along with Tikki. And then she gets a text on her phone a moment later, saying 'I just did a Lilo and Stitch scene for you, Mari. Get down here fast b4 your mom outs your crush by accident.'

Bloom gives Sabine a panicked look when she says Marinette's talked a lot about Adrien, getting the message across that Adrien doesn't know about her crush on him. And then promptly pantomimes a few things for Sabine to say when Adrien asks what she's said - top of their class, model, and Nino's best friend, to name a few. Thankfully, Marinette comes scrambling down soon after Bloom sends a text to the dark-haired girl.

The three of them head upstairs, and Adrien says "Like your room, Marinette. It's really cozy." As compared to his massive, sterile, cold room that you wouldn't know he lives in if he didn't have his computer there. It's big, has plenty of things to do…and it's like his father tried to make it so he wouldn't need to leave. One-person arcade games, a climbing wall, the massive bed, foosball table, piano…lots to do, nobody to do it with until Plagg showed up. And his Kwami can't exactly flit from foosball handle to handle to play a few games with him. He'd stay at Marinette's every night if he could.

Hey…why can't I? A few hours a night when I'm not on patrol wouldn't kill me…right? An idea to run by Plagg another time, right now he's got to train for the tournament.

Bloom makes herself comfortable on Marinette's Chaise, saying "Don't mind me, I'll just be drawing over here. Enjoy."

Adrien and Marinette try to take a joypad twice, accidentally going for the same controller both times, and then they just take the one closest to them and get started. Adrien tries to make small talk - not so easy when his Kwami's been teasing him relentlessly about his growing feelings for Marinette lately - saying her parents seem really nice, and Marinette says "They are, but they can be-" Tom comes up right then, a plate of Croissants in hand and asking if they'd like a snack.

Bloom grins to herself, and says "Thanks, Mr. Dupain-Cheng! I'll put it over here so it doesn't get knocked off." She takes the plate from the larger man, leaving him no other option but to head back down for now.

Marinette exasperatedly says "They can be a little nosey. You want a Croissant? If we don't grab some now, there'll be none left when we next look over." The words get said with a discrete pointed look at Bloom - translation: eat all the croissants we don't take. It's made twice as hilarious by the fact that Adrien does the exact same thing - if it weren't for the Miraculous' concealing their identities, she'd seriously wonder just how neither of them has figured it out yet. As it is, she's been reliably informed that the concealment magic of the Miraculous' is very effective - ordinary humans would either need to be shown the transformation or they'd need to have irrefutable proof shoved down their throats. And, even then, they wouldn't be able to see through it - at least, not for the ones that really change your looks, like the Cat Miraculous - they'd just know the identity of whoever they were told about. Ergo, unless she tells these two each other's identities, or Tikki and Plagg decide to end everyone's misery, they're almost certainly going to remain clueless forever.

Adrien agrees to take one, along with Marinette, and Bloom shrugs and says "Suit yourselves." Still, she has to wonder how the two of them can't see they're acting identically - both of them making sure she gets as much food as possible while not making it possible for her to say it's because they feel bad for her. If they all have some, then it's shared...even if Bloom gets the overwhelming majority. Her brother knows how to play her like his own piano, and her best friend can manipulate her like sewing thread.

About two rounds later, Marinette's parents are back up again, a fresh batch of cookies in hand. Marinette shoots them an annoyed look, and they quickly head back down after Bloom takes the plate to Mari's Chaise.

Another round where Marinette basically decimates their opponent, and Adrien says "You're amazing, Marinette. I guess you wouldn't even need me, I'm so lame compared to you." He closes his eyes, only to start and open them back up when Marinette lays a hand on his shoulder gently.

When he looks over, she's got a serious look on her face as she says "You're incredible, Adrien. You helped me out with my great-uncle when I thought he couldn't speak English, that's amazing. I'm just lucky when it comes to the game, that's all." She gestures for him to come closer, digging around in her pocket, and pulls out…a beaded string, with a green square that looks a bit like jade at the center. "This is my secret to winning, my own lucky charm."

Adrien stares at the handmade charm, then at Marinette's face - she doesn't look like she's pranking him, but still…he lives with Plagg. A millennia-old prankster with a sarcastic sense of humor and a Camembert addiction. After a moment, he asks "Are you messing with me?"

Marinette shakes her head with a quiet chuckle, and presses it into his hands while saying "Try playing a game with it." Before he can answer…the trapdoor opens with Sabine and Tom there, Sabine holding a spinach and salmon pie in her hands.

Bloom could just about scream, the urge to bury her face in one of Marinette's pillows is almost overwhelming. Every time, EVERY SINGLE TIME these two start on some romantic moment that could bring the two of them together...SOMETHING HAPPENS!

Ten minutes later, they're finishing off the last of the pie - which, while a decidedly odd combination, didn't taste that bad at all - and Adrien comments on how he didn't know Marinette's parents made such good pies. Bloom disbelievingly says "Uh…Adrien? They're bakers. They'd be out of business if they didn't make good pies, pastries, etc." Adrien has to reluctantly concede her point there, but before he can say anything they hear a loud banging noise. And look over to see…a gigantic level 2 version of Max's preferred UMS3 avatar.

Marinette nervously says "Tell me this is some kind of publicity stunt for the tournament…"

Bloom says "Sorry, can't." You've gotta be kidding me...

Adrien says "Doesn't look like a publicity stunt to me."

And then the thing shoots a laser beam at the bench they're on, making Adrien tackle Marinette out of the way while Bloom leaps off the bench in the opposite direction. The two of them start running, but Adrien goes cold when he hears Bloom yell "Max Kante, you absolute brat! I never pegged you for a sore loser, yet you went and got yourself Akumatized over a video game tournament?! Are you EFFING KIDDING ME?!"

Once Bloom's sure Marinette and Adrien are out of danger for the moment, since she thoroughly distracted Max, she quickly makes the head of the gigantic robot-like structure turn away from her so she can disappear and go transform.

Marinette tries not to lose her lunch as she clings to Cat Noir, the blonde boy having decided fifty miles an hour and several high-speed leaps were a good idea to get her away from Max - who, despite Bloom's efforts, found her again - and tries not to dry heave when he sets her down on the roof of the Mayor's hotel. To be fair to Cat Noir, the suits do protect them from the nasty side-effects of running at such inhuman speeds, leaping twenty feet in the air, and landing solidly on the ground. And it was an emergency, what with Max apparently having a vendetta against her after losing that spot. And, between losing her lunch and getting hit by that laser, she'd pick the first option at any time.

Cat Noir gives her his usual Cheshire grin, and says "I heard Miss Video Game Champ really ticked off the final boss."

Marinette just rolls her eyes, and says "Doesn't give him bonus points for going around transforming people." And then she gasps, hands flying up to her mouth as she says "Adrien! Ohmigosh, we got separated at the park! Cat Noir, we've gotta go back and find him-"

Cat Noir puts his hands on Marinette's shoulders to calm her down, saying "I picked Adrien up already, Marinette, he's fine. Just stay here and let Ladybug and I take care of everything." Kwamis, if my heart didn't belong to Ladybug…

Marinette's willing to risk her own safety for him, to make sure he's alright. How did it take him this long to figure out she's so amazing? Right, his father's a control-freak who barely let him into public school - his sister's words…but she's not wrong either. He quickly heads off to find Gamer, hearing a few explosions that clue him in to both Gamer's location and the detail that his sister's already there…and if he shows off to Marinette, just a little bit, he's sure his sister won't mind overly much. Ladybug's always saying she's not into him like that anyway, so she won't mind.

When Cat Noir gets to the right intersection, he sees Dragon Fyre waving her hands around, yelling up insults at the large robot as she dodges beam after beam - if he had to guess, judging by the deserted bus nearby, she's making a distraction so people could get away. He quickly joins in on the distracting, hoping to make Gamer's system crash somehow or other, and then Ladybug shows up and makes the thing fall on its side by wrapping her yo-yo around its two legs. They hear a shout of alarm from inside the head, and Dragon Fyre yells "He's gotta be in there! I'll get him out and look for the Akuma inside, you two find wherever it might be on him!" She then snaps her fingers, blowing the glass circle out before it can fire another of those beams.

"Hey! That's vandalism!" Gamer's head comes out of the hole, only for him to get ripped out of it completely and Ladybug to tie him up. Cat Noir quickly Cataclysms the robot, but no butterfly comes out.

And then Gamer starts laughing, saying he saved his last level and tries to reach his glasses - Dragon Fyre deadpans "Thanks for the hint." And then she decks him square in the face, breaking the glasses and freeing the Akuma.

One Miraculous Cure later, and Dragon Fyre's taking Max back to his house while Ladybug and Cat Noir head to go hide and detransform.

That night, Adrien gives up his spot to Max to play in the tournament - it obviously means the world to him, if he got so upset over losing his spot that he got Akumatized. Of course, he has to stop Marinette from giving up her spot to - good thing he got there just in time, making sure the two best gamers in the school are on the team.

Neither Bloom nor Adrien is particularly surprised when the two of them absolutely obliterate the rest of the teams, between Max's APM and Marinette's simply insane skill with the game.

Chapter Text

About a week after the disastrous Animan incident - one Ladybug has been profusely swearing to never repeat a solution for, since Dragon Fyre started beating up a dinosaur and actually knocked some of its teeth out in her legitimately terrifying fury - everyone's in Miss Mendeleiev's class taking a test…and Bloom spots Chloe actually falling asleep in her seat.

What the heck?

Chloe's a spoiled brat, but even she's not stupid enough to fall asleep in the strict teacher's class. Miss Mendeleiev's the one teacher that doesn't take crap from anyone, and even Chloe doesn't push her luck with the purple-haired woman.

Marinette whispers "What's up with Chloe?"

Bloom glances towards Miss Mendeleiev's back, which is thankfully across the room at the moment, then murmurs "She looks…ragged, actually." Not a look she thought she'd see on daddy's spoiled princess.

Marinette quietly says "Maybe she's missing her bff." They quickly be quiet, though, at a stern look from the purple-haired teacher.

And then Chloe suddenly cries out, saying someone just pulled her hair - specifically…an invisible, mystical, divine being. Like a Leprechaun or Unicorn without its horn. Most of the class starts laughing, but Bloom and Marinette share a frown - one that only grows when Chloe apparently starts getting attacked once more, her purse suddenly lifting up and hitting her in the head.

Miss Mendeleiev tries ordering Chloe to sit back down, but she says she can't - and it seems the strict woman doesn't particularly care if there's an Akuma in the class, they will finish their test. When Chloe tries to hold onto her sunglasses, Bloom decides enough is enough and casually walks over. "Not you to, Bloom! Back in your seats, now!"

Bloom gives her a smile, and says "I will, Ma'am. Just as soon as I get Chloe's problem taken care of."

Miss Mendeleiev scoffs, planting her hands on her hips and asking "And how do you mean to do that, exactly? Attach a horn to this horn-less Unicorn? Offer the Leprechaun some gold?"

Bloom shakes her head, saying "Mystical divine being? Not likely. Invisible, though…" She reaches out and closes her hand around what looks like thin air just before Chloe's sunglasses, and brightly says "Found you, Sabrina!" And then her elbow snaps up, resulting in a cracking sound and the nearby desk getting pushed back.

And then a voice that's clearly Sabrina's snarls "You'll pay for that, Peters!"

Bloom deadpans "Bill me."

There's the sound of sprinting, and the door slams open. Bloom heads back to her seat, ignoring the stares everyone's giving her, and Nino says "You are kickbutt, you know that? If Marinette's our Everyday Ladybug, your our Everyday Dragon Fyre."

Bloom blinks, even as there's a small squeak from her ponytail that can only be Longg that Adrien and Marinette easily pick up on, then smirks and says "Oh no, I've been outed by a teen DJ, what am I going to do?" She snickers, letting everyone in on the detail that she's joking, and says "Guess all we need is an Everyday Cat Noir and the group will be complete. Any takers?"

Nino chuckles, and says "What about Adrien? Blonde, green eyes, secretly loves puns…"

Adrien promptly sucks in a breath, but Chloe ruins the moment by saying "My Adrikins is way better than that mangy alley cat!"

Marinette promptly objects, defending Cat Noir and saying Ladybug couldn't do her job without him and his silly jokes, and Bloom discretely rolls her eyes at Adrien. He shoots her a worried look, but she just smirks and shrugs at him before going back to her test - translation: what are you going to do, they won't actually figure it out.

Plagg's said it before, people are blind - and now his sister is rephrasing it silently. Maybe he should start listening when one of the smartest girls he knows and a millennia-old Kwami that's been around since about five minutes after the beginning of the universe agree on something.

Ladybug, Dragon Fyre, and Cat Noir head to the Mayor's hotel, and Dragon Fyre rolls her eyes so hard they might roll straight out of her head at the man's words. "An attack on Chloe is an attack on Paris!" Honestly, the man is slimier than a sewer pipe - the only reason he's been elected as much as he has is because his opponents are either terrible options or he ruins their reputations in some way. It certainly explains Chloe's behavior when she was trying to become Class Rep, threatening everyone and trying to blackmail Marinette via her diary.

Not sure she can stand being around Andre Bourgeois as well as Chloe - one a slimeball that likes to manipulate every situation for his own benefit, the other a spoiled brat who likes to put everyone else down whenever possible - Dragon Fyre asks "Guys, do we really have to go all detective on the scene? Can't we just wait for Vanisher to come find me?"

Cat Noir deadpans "Yes, and no. In that order, sis."

Ladybug just shakes her head, hoping her best friend can't tell she's pursing her lips to keep from smiling. One glance from Dragon Fyre kills those hopes - Dragon Fyre or Bloom, Ladybug or Marinette, they know how to read each other far too well to ever hide things from one another. Including - no, especially - hidden amusement. Rolling her eyes, Ladybug says "No, we're tracking Vanisher down here. She is, or was after Chloe, so we'll fight her here. She'll have Hawk Moth whispering in her head about our Miraculous', anyway."

Dragon Fyre grumbles "I hate it when you're right sometimes, Spots. Why do I get the feeling Chloe's the direct cause of this one, to, though?"

Cat Noir sighs, and says "Because she probably is." He's got no illusions about that, and it's only years of friendship with the blonde girl and the detail that Sabrina's been Akumatized that has him as willing to help Chloe out as he is.

As soon as Chloe hears they're going to help, her head pops up from behind a couch in one of her sitting rooms in the hotel and she practically tackles Ladybug in a hug. "Ladybug! I knew you'd come to save me! You know, considering what good friends we are!" Cat Noir grins to himself as Chloe starts taking pics of his Lady, along with Selfies, as the dark-haired woman tries to push her off.

Dragon Fyre jerks her head towards the wardrobe at Cat Noir, and he nods his head - their senses are enhanced by the Miraculous', so between the two of them they should be able to smell Sabrina out. Hopefully. And the emptied wardrobe seems as good a place to start as any. Also, Dragon Fyre's magic is fire-based - she can already manipulate heat and make mirages out of thin air…why can't she find an invisible person like that?

Cat Noir starts investigating all the damage, and the Mayor says "I had to put out an emergency call to all the biggest designers. Can you imagine, my daughter wearing department-store clothing? How humiliating!"

Dragon Fyre opens her mouth to make a sarcastic comment - if Cat Noir had to take a guess, something about slumming it like the rest of the peasants, considering she can't even wear department-store clothing - but the Cat-themed superhero quickly says "Yeah, terrible. Let's check the security cameras, I noticed a few of them in the lobby alone." Chloe's dad is even getting to him, and he's had years of practice dealing with adults who only want him for being his father's son or being the face of the Gabriel brand.

They turn on the tv, setting it to the cameras Chloe has access to, and Ladybug says "Mr. Mayor, Chloe, stay in here and keep the doors locked. Vanisher might be invisible, but she can't go through walls."

Dragon Fyre says "She's also not in the room. Just keep the doors locked until you see the ladybugs, and it'll be fine."

They head back down the elevator, since Chloe's not going to tell them anything about why Sabrina got Akumatized or why she's got it in for Chloe - and to get away from Chloe's fangirling and Andre's sleazballing, the man wants to turn the entire situation to his advantage somehow.

Butler Jean meets them down in the lobby, and tells them about the fight Chloe had with Sabrina this time - the last time he or anyone else saw her. "Miss Chloe and Sabrina like to impersonate Ladybug and Cat Noir. I was playing the part of Big Mustachio that day."

Dragon Fyre asks "You mean they…dress up as these two and chase you around, pretending to be the real deal?" Butler Jean nods, saying Chloe idolizes Ladybug, and Dragon Fyre deadpans "Chloe's just gone from annoying to stalkerish, LB." It also explains why and how Lady Wi-Fi happened - she must've had the outfit in her locker, and Alya got a glimpse of it.

Ladybug nods, and says "I get the feeling…" Chloe tackling her for constant pics is bad enough, what if she actually starts showing up during Akuma attacks to 'help' them?!

Cat Noir grimaces, reminded far too much of Copycat right then, and asks "Big Mustachio?"

Butler Jean says "One of Mademoiselle's ideas, he wants all of Paris to be defaced with heinous mustaches."

All three superheroes share a look, and Cat Noir jokes "Wow, what a hairy situation." Even while trying to lighten the mood, he can completely understand his Lady's growing look of 'I'm-so-creeped-out' - Copycat creeped him out to, between the gloating and his frankly disturbing obsession with Ladybug. And that was only after maybe two minutes of being around the guy alone.

Dragon Fyre rolls her eyes, and says "Keep going, Butler Jean." Cosplaying wouldn't have gotten Sabrina Akumatized, there must be more to the story.

He then tells them…there was an interview with Jagged Stone going on in the room he came out in. Ladybug groans, and says "No, tell me she didn't…"

"Crash the interview pretending to be Ladybug? …yes, Mademoiselle did. Sabrina 'caught' me, and went to get Chloe…and I'm sure you can imagine how it went next."

All three groan simultaneously, and say "Badly."

Butler Jean nods, and says "Mademoiselle does argue with her friend, Sabrina, at times…I'd even go so far as to say it's the norm…but it was different this time. Sabrina came back the next day…" He trails off, remembering Chloe's actions.

Dragon Fyre pinches the bridge of her nose, feeling a growl building in her chest, and grits out "That look on your face tells me everything I need to know, Butler Jean." And even if his expression didn't, the ghost above his head certainly did - 'I don't see her, she must be invisible.'

One of the nearby vases of flowers suddenly explodes, the flowers catching fire as they fall, even as Cat Noir puts a hand on her shoulder, and once she's done explaining what happened Ladybug says "Guess we know why she's invisible now."

Cat Noir says "Easy sis…" She's said before that it's easy for her control to slip if she gets worked up, so she tends to verbally tear someone to shreds out of the suit - and he's just gotten proof of that.

Dragon Fyre bites out "She's the most selfish, self-centered, spoiled…"

Yes, yes, and yes, he knows that all too well about his long-time friend these days. He also knows she manages to push every single one of his sister's buttons just by having stuff she's done described - and, honestly, he can't blame his sister. The more Chloe does, the more he wants to let her face the consequences of her own actions - unfortunately, these days, half the consequences are Akuma victims, and the other half her father can make go away with a few well-placed threats or bribes. Slimeball politician father, absentee fashion queen mother, and no real good examples in sight to follow…and the result is Chloe Bourgeois.

Ladybug thanks Butler Jean for his help, and Dragon Fyre extinguishes the flames burning the unfortunate flowers and puts the vase back together. Cat Noir picks a flower from a different vase and hands it to Ladybug, saying "It's not gonna be easy to find someone we can't see."

Ladybug immediately puts the flower in another vase, and says "We'll just have to wait for her to come to us." Dragon Fyre turns around, then says "I can tell you exactly where she is guys…"

Ladybug asks "Yeah? Where's that?" Dragon Fyre jerks her chin towards them, and they both turn around to see…the flower Ladybug just put in the vase of roses floating midair.

Cat Noir and Ladybug simultaneously say "Oh."

And then the flower gets tossed to the side, only for Sabrina's voice to say "What are you two looking at?"

In response, Dragon Fyre aims a blast of orange energy at her. They start fighting at once, with Vanisher throwing things at them and Dragon Fyre throwing them right back.

And then suddenly Chloe's in the lobby, dressed as Ladybug and saying she'll consider being friends with Sabrina again if she stops this ridiculousness. It sets Vanisher off, and it's only because Dragon Fyre pulls Chloe away that she doesn't get hit hard enough to put a hole through her - regular Sabrina's not strong enough to throw tables and chairs at them, after all.

Ladybug yells "This isn't a game, Chloe! This is serious, you're putting yourself and us in danger!" Gotta be kidding! Why, oh WHY does Chloe Bourgeois idolize ME of all people?! She'd really like to know, considering she loves to grind Marinette into the ground at any opportunity!

Dragon Fyre puts Chloe down behind the counter, saying "Stay there, Chloe. I mean it!" She rejoins the fight, making Sabrina's bag fly towards her and ripping it apart, but there's no Akuma in it.

Chloe yells "I know where the Akuma is, guys!" And then she loses the yo-yo she's spinning, and it smacks Sabrina in the head.

"Oh, so you want to fight after all, Chloe?"

Dragon Fyre growls, saying "You've gotta be kidding me…"

"It's in the designer pin I got her! Why aren't you- mmph!" Chloe can't get any other words out, since Dragon Fyre's just slung her over her shoulder and leapt towards the elevator.

She quite literally dumps Chloe inside, saying "For the last time, Chloe, this is not a game. You jumping into the middle of a battle isn't helping, it's going to get someone hurt or even killed! You or one of us! Now get out of here!" She then hits the button for the top floor, not even letting Chloe scramble up before the doors shut.

And then Cat Noir manages to pin Sabrina's arms above her head, Ladybug having used her Lucky Charm to make a bottle of glitter so they can see her, and Ladybug says "I can't think of anything besides her bag that would have the Akuma. Any ideas?"

"Chloe said she bought Sabrina a pin, it's as good a place as any to check." They've had to resort to searching an Akuma victim at times, because the Akumatized Object isn't always immediately apparent. At least this time they have a clue - especially since Vanisher is invisible. They find the pin easily enough, thanks to the glitter, and thankfully it's got the Akuma in it.

Once the butterfly's purified, and the Cure puts everything right, Dragon Fyre helps Sabrina up saying "Your dad's waiting outside, Raincomprix, he'll get you home."

Of course, just as Dragon Fyre's done making the reporters feel about an inch tall for swarming them the instant they're out of the hotel, along with explaining exactly how fed up with Chloe and her trouble she is - she must be tired, they've noticed she gets much less nice the more she uses her magic - there's a cruel laugh from above them.

When they all look up, Dragon Fyre swallows and says "Oh fuck." That'd be when Cat Noir and Ladybug know they're in deep trouble - the most Bloom says, in the suit or out of it, is along the lines of 'you've gotta be effing kidding me.'

To be fair, though…the sight isn't a good one.

Chapter Text

Chloe's standing on the glass dome over the entrance to the hotel, looking like a reversed Dragon Fyre - purple instead of orange, and the black and red reversed, and her black sword with purple flames dancing along it.

Ladybug says "Guys, we've got an emergency…" She's about to transform! Case in point, her earrings let out the one-minute warning beep right then.

Dragon Fyre says "Go, she wants me." She got them into this mess, she'll get them out of it. At least it's Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculous' Hawk Moth wants and not hers.

"I'll be back soon, promise!"

Cat Noir swallows, trying to push some moisture down a sandpaper-like throat, and nervously says "Sis, you might'a been a little too harsh with her…" Or with her description on live tv.

Dragon Fyre swallows, then murmurs "Get out of here, Brother. I'll handle her." She's not going to put her brother in danger like this.

Cat Noir keeps his gaze on Chloe - or Dark Dragon, as she's currently going by - and asks "Aren't you tired, though?"

Yes, she was on the lookout for Sabrina all day today. "I'm fine."

The two heroes dodge fiery blasts of energy that get tossed down, even as the reporters scatter, and Cat Noir incredulously asks "Why are they purple?!"

Dragon Fyre yells back "Maybe because Hawk Moth gave them to her? She sure wasn't born with them!" Heck if she knows why the replica of her magic is a different color! Maybe it's because it was generated y the Akuma?

They keep dodging, and Dragon Fyre yells "You want a fight, Chloe, why don't you come down here and face me?"

Dark Dragon sneers, then says "Alright, then, have it your way!" She suddenly leaps down, making a crater on impact and swinging her sword at the red-head. Dragon Fyre quickly leaps over the resulting wave of fire, throwing Dark Dragon back with her hand outstretched. The battle quickly turns rather terrifying, with Dark Dragon spewing fire left, right, center, and literally everywhere else in between while Dragon Fyre blocks it, snuffs it out with her own flames, or absorbs it. And the yelling, Dark Dragon's attacks only get more and more destructive the angrier she gets - and the angrier she gets, the more she yells.

She's gone from blowing potholes in the street to making craters, and the only reason the city's not a smoking ruin is because of Dragon Fyre's attempts to contain her own copy.

Ladybug makes her way up towards the roof of the hotel, where there's purple and orange flames being shot off the sides, only to find Cat Noir a few roofs away looking worried. "Cat Noir? What…what's going on?" She's got the general idea, but it'd be great to know why her Kitty's sitting this fight out when he so clearly wants to help. Especially since it's been maybe five minutes since she went to go recharge - and most of that was spent looking for them, rather than Tikki eating slowly.

Cat Noir says "Dragon Fyre sent me over here, since Dark Dragon will use literally anything as a weapon. She's torn down three buildings and used the rubble as ammo, she pulled a helicopter out of the sky and Dragon Fyre barely caught it, and the only reason the city isn't currently up in flames is because Dragon Fyre can control fire better. Check the Ladyblog if you want some examples."

Ladybug flips her Bugphone open, and sees Alya's latest livestream on her Blog - it's…bad. Really bad - Dark Dragon is worse than Mr. Mime by far. Tearing chunks of the ground up, even tearing up a busy main street filled with cars only for all of it to get caught and the cars and people set back down, Dragon Fyre and Dark Dragon fighting hand-to-hand with small bursts of flames erupting from their hands and feet…looks like the comments they've seen on the Blog about Dragon Fyre going too far won't be an issue anymore.

She's overpowered Akumas before, gone off and beat them into the ground just shy of beating them into a blood spatter, but she's never caused such wanton destruction before, never blatantly disregarded the safety of the people around her. She's also never tried to burn the city down either. The comments are already pouring in, ranging from 'I'll never badmouth her again, if she could do this with every Akuma!' to 'Isn't that the girl she went off about on the news?' to 'good vs bad Dragon Fyre, looks like we know just how much she actually actively destroys the city.'

And then there's an explosion on the roof of the hotel, blowing it to smithereens and leaving just an orange dome on the roof and a gigantic scorch mark replacing Chloe's private suite.

Dragon Fyre blocks another swing of Chloe's sword, yelling "You wanna know why I don't like you, Chloe? You're a spoiled brat who's had every single thing handed to you on a silver platter, and that's assuming your oh-so-important daddy didn't just go all the way and get you the gold one! You've never had to work for anything a day in your life, you just put down everyone around you! You might have a cheap knockoff of my magic, but you don't know how to use it!"

Dark Dragon snarls, throwing a violently explosive blast in Dragon Fyre's general direction - her aim is terrible, and her blasts are getting more and more uncontrolled. It's part of why she egged the blonde girl into fighting on top of the hotel, the highest building in the general area - less to destroy, and less chance of her hitting another building and potentially killing people. The Miraculous Cure had better work for this, to, since Chloe's currently an Akuma. She's probably killed two dozen people already.

Wait a minute...Chloe DOESN'T know how to use my magic. The uncontrolled burning of random things proves it. There's an idea...

All she has to do...is set Chloe off altogether. Easy, yet dangerous - Chloe could destroy the city if she pushes too hard, after all.

Dark Dragon yells "Don't think I don't know how to use these powers; I will destroy you!"

Dragon Fyre scoffs, side-stepping another blast and asking "How do you plan on doing that? You're a terrible aim, can't focus enough to actually do something dangerous or strong, and you've no idea how to do anything besides spit fire and explosions from your hands and hope it gets anywhere near me!" Dark Dragon snarls once more, sounding furious and looking half-feral as she throws both hands out for a massive blast of purple energy that blows up halfway between the two girls. Dragon Fyre drops the shield she made, having skidded to a halt a few feet back, and says "See? You've got no control, no discipline or focus…all you are is a spoiled brat with no concept of hard work! I spent four years learning to control my magic, and I did it on my own! What have you done? Accepted a vile little parasite, been handed powers you know nothing about, and somehow you think that's all there is to it!"

Dark Dragon screams in pure rage, throwing her hands out towards her…only for the explosion to send her flying backwards as it blows the top of the Hotel away. Dragon Fyre, meanwhile, makes a shield and pours as much energy into it as she can - it holds, barely, but she makes a note to not lose her temper like that and use magic at the same time. It's just a good thing they're at the highest point in the general area, else a lot of property damage would've just occured.

Dark Dragon groans and sits up, even as Dragon Fyre waves Ladybug and Cat Noir over, and tries to use her magic again…only to get the same result, but on a lesser scale. Instead of blowing up another floor, she just sends herself flying backwards as the small amount of magic blows up as soon as it hits open air. Cat Noir winces as Chloe crashes through a table and chair, asking "What's up with that, Super-Sis?"

Dragon Fyre rolls her arm, shoulder clicking in a semi-worrying way - it's probably fine, just popped a little, no big deal - and says "That's what happens if I don't keep a semi-level head and focus on something specific when I use my magic. Can't tell you the number of concussions I gave myself doing exactly that." Mainly because she was trying to get good enough to fight back against those four weirdos, she'd get overwhelmed by her anger towards them…and then, boom. Literally.

She was quick to learn some emotional control once she figured out her emotions were fueling her magical episodes. Or, at least, she was quick to make the effort to learn some emotional control once she figured it out.

Ladybug hums in sympathy, and asks "Any ideas for where her Akuma is?"

Dragon Fyre shrugs her good shoulder, and says "Two. Either the Earrings she's got in or the sword. I'm leaning towards the earrings, she didn't have a sword before." Though, it could've been the yo-yo - Akumatized Objects don't always stay the same, after all.

Ladybug steps on the earrings while Cat Noir Cataclysms the sword, just to be on the safe side, and within seconds the Akuma is purified. Thankfully, the destructive rampage Dark Dragon went on gets reversed, the streets she tore up, cars she totaled, and buildings she leveled getting restored to their previous state - along with all the people she undoubtedly injured or even killed on her rampage. Chloe's just lucky people can't be arrested for things they do when they're Akumatized, else she'd probably be facing a life sentence right now - lucky her, and every other Akuma victim, it was immediately decided that people who were mind-controlled by a guy with magical powers that turns people into raging supervillains aren't at fault for the things they do under said man's control.

Unlucky Hawk Moth, all those waived charges will eventually fall on his head when everything's said and done.

And, lucky them, the Mayor's passed a few laws to help them out - news reporters aren't allowed to follow them looking for an identity reveal, harass them, or otherwise make their lives more difficult than they already are. They also aren't allowed to run a bunch of reports on Akumatized victims or the circumstances leading up to the incident and potentially get the victim reakumatized - not after Darkblade got Akumatized because Nadja Chamack wouldn't stop pushing for a story. It doesn't stop them from swarming the victim if at-all possible at first, but at least they can't be followed around for weeks afterwards.

Chloe looks around in confusion, asking "What happened?"

Dragon Fyre deadpans "You got Akumatized, that's what." Chloe gets to her feet as Ladybug yo-yo's away, and Dragon Fyre groans before pinching the bridge of her nose and muttering "Me and my damn conscience…" Cat Noir feels his ears twitch at his sister's voice, and stays behind for what's undoubtedly going to be a truly miraculous feat. His sister tries to keep her conscience semi-clear usually, and he's pretty sure she's feeling guilty about how and why Dark Dragon happened. "Look, Bourgeois, just stay out of the way during an Akuma fight, alright? You put yourself in danger, you put us in danger, and, frankly, my patience tends to wear thin during times like that." And then she says things she shouldn't, things she'll regret later...especially when Hawk Moth swoops in and Akumatizes people because of it.

Chloe narrows her blue eyes at Dragon Fyre, and says "You said I'm a spoiled brat who has no concept of hard work or the consequences of my actions." And a lot more, but that bit really got to her.

Dragon Fyre snorts derisively, and says "You are, make no mistake. That's how you've been raised, as daddy's little princess. You've never wanted for anything, nothing physical anyway. And your father can threaten or bribe anybody who's not an Akuma into dropping whatever trouble you're in."

Alright, that's true enough... Chloe asks "So…why are you still here? Still talking to me?"

Dragon Fyre snaps "Because I got you Akumatized, and I'm trying to apologize for it, dammit!"

Chloe blinks at Dragon Fyre, staring at her in shock - she's not the type to apologize, she doesn't hold back from saying exactly what she thinks of people, and she certainly never struck the blonde girl as ever feeling guilty for anything.

Letting out a long breath through her nose - one that Chloe imagines should have smoke and embers accompanying it for how angry the red-head truly seems - she says "Just don't jump into an Akuma battle in a cosplay suit, Chloe. It puts everyone in danger, yourself most of all. Our suits are magical, they make us stronger, faster, able to take more hits than we normally would. Yours…is cloth, regular old cloth. It would be as effective as cling-wrap in protecting you. So do everyone a favor and stay out of a fight."

Chloe stubbornly says "It concerned me to, you know."

Dragon Fyre deadpans "You could've been killed. And if we lost, there wouldn't have been a Miraculous Cure to bring you back." And, as much as she really dislikes Chloe Bourgeois, she doesn't wish her dead. She's wished Chloe would shut up more times than she can count, some with growing up, but she's never actively wished her dead. 

Chloe sputters "B-But…but you guys always win!"

Dragon Fyre incredulously asks "You think it's that easy?! You think its as easy as showing up, going through the motions, and everything's back to normal?! No, it's not. We risk our lives, Chloe, you think Mr. Mime was a joke? He was miming guns, RPG's, hand grenades, you think that was just something to laugh off? You got a copy of my powers, went on a rampage, and would've burned Paris to the ground if we hadn't stopped you, is that a joke?"

Seeing the angry flames burning in the red-head's eyes, Chloe shakes her head and says "No." It wasn't a joke to her either, she wanted to help!

But, given the detail of the destruction that's been wreaked by a few Akumas…she's willing to sit the fights out. If only to keep Dragon Fyre from going off on her again.

Chapter Text

The entire class is at the Mayor's Hotel for the day, a 'work-experience project' instead of class for the day. Most everyone's already been assigned, but Bloom and Marinette are still waiting in the lobby for their assignments. The ghost above Mayor Bourgeois' head says their names aren't on the lists, despite Chloe having assured him they were all accounted for.

Bloom murmurs to Marinette "Just you wait, Chloe's behind this. We're going to be stuck in the worst jobs possible." The look on the blonde girl's face alone, even if they aren't close enough that Bloom can see her ghost, says it all.

Marinette fumes for a moment, and says "While she gets to hang out with Adrien all day and flirt with him." Bloom's pointed out how uncomfortable he always looks when she drapes herself all over him, which calmed her worry about him falling for her - point of fact, apparently Adrien sees Chloe as a cousin of sorts after so long, but not as girlfriend-material - but the way she constantly hangs all over him, rubs against him, or even kisses his cheek is downright disgusting. Not to mention a huge violation of his personal space - lucky Chloe, he doesn't seem to mind all that much despite how uncomfortable he clearly is.

Maybe he lets her because she's such a good friend, maybe it's something to do with his father - Bloom doesn't know, and she doesn't want to ask right now and end up storming the Agreste Manor and tearing Agreste Sr. a new one like he so dearly deserves.

At least Chloe knows some boundaries, and she actually CARES about Adrien in her own specific way.

She isn't using Adrien with no regard for his needs like she does Sabrina, anyway.

Chloe calls her father over, waving a sheet of paper around, and he says "Ah, right, here we are. Bloom, you're going to be…sorting trash at the main dumpster. And, Marinette, you'll be…" Before he can finish that sentence…Jagged Stone walks in, his crocodile Fang next to his leg and two trolleys filled to the brim with luggage.

Marinette whisper-asks "Is that…?"

Bloom murmurs back "Yep."

Jagged Stone, purple hair, crocodile, and all - Marinette introduced her to the rock-star's music, and her own love for it, and now Bloom's a fan as well. And he just walked into the lobby.

Mayor Bourgeois, on the other hand, somehow doesn't recognize the man even though he was at the event Chloe set up to try and buy her way into the Class Rep position. "Excuse me, but this is a hotel, not a zoo."

Before he can say anything else, though, Chloe calls him over near-frantically. After a moment spent talking into his ear - Bloom distinctly catches the words 'famous' and 'very, very rich' - the man gets the biggest - slimiest - smile on his face and says "Welcome to the Grand Paris Hotel, the most luxurious hotel in all of Paris. I am Mayor Bourgeois, owner of this fine establishment, how may I help you?"

Jagged Stone raises an eyebrow, and flatly asks "How do you think? I didn't just come here to admire your lobby."

Marinette bites down on the side of her cheek to keep from bursting out in laughter - that is exactly something Bloom would say. Adrien seems to be having a hard time keeping his composure to, because he just turned to organize the rack of brochures and Marinette can see him biting his bottom lip as he does so.

Thankfully, his assistant - the famous Penny Rolling - says "Jagged would like to check in to your most luxurious suite."

Jagged adds "And it better have a tub for Fang, not a tiny little watering hole like that hotel across the street."

Mayor Bourgeois says "We have everything you need, Mrs. Fang. Even a state-of-the-art fitness center." Bloom, Marinette, and Adrien all trade shocked glances - one of the things Jagged Stone is known for is his crocodile named Fang. Jagged immediately tells him as much, and he backtracks into…a bubble-bath. Which would dry out the croc's scales.

Bloom sends Marinette an exasperated glance, then says "Mayor Bourgeois, for the love of…who is that?" When they all turn to look where she's pointing, they see a guy with pale hair and a camera kneeling behind a counter, camera in hand and a look on his face like a deer in the headlights.

Jagged mutters "Oh no, not him again…"

The blonde guy, sporting a look on his face that has Adrien shuffling away from him instantly, grins and says "Hi, Mr. Stone, remember me? Vincent Aza! Just one photo to show everyone that we're best buds! C'mon, please? I'm your biggest fan!"

Jagged snaps "I know, you've been to my last thirty-six concerts!" He's also snuck into the backstage for ten of them, tried to take pictures of the rock-star at any time he can find him, and even nearly hurt Fang one time! "But we are not friends!"

Vincent tries to get over to Jagged for an unwanted photo, but Bloom steps in his path and hotly says "He said no, you stalking creep! Get a life already!"

Vincent scowls at her, and tries to push her out of the way…only for his wrist to get caught and twisted around in a deceptively strong grip, and he's forced to turn around just so his arm doesn't get broken or pulled out of the socket. And then he gets slammed face-first into the counter he was hiding behind, and everyone hears a sound that usually goes with a broken nose. "Kim, you mind getting the door?"

Kim watches in half-amazement, half-amusement as Bloom practically marches the stalker out the door, tossing him on his behind and all but shoving the camera into his chest in the process.

And then Penny Rolling says she'll be calling the police next time to get him a cell in jail until the restraining order paperwork goes through if she ever catches him around Jagged Stone again.

Adrien, meanwhile, can only think 'Sis, your Dragon Fyre is showing.' She's not exactly subtle about it sometimes - she's never broadcasted it, shouted it to the skies or anything…but she's also not one to stand back if she can help either. She once described her role in their group as the big, flashy distraction, taking everyone's attention so that Ladybug can come up with a plan and Cat Noir can get a sneak-attack in or they can get away to regroup. Or so they can get over there, if they aren't already transformed and on the scene.

Marinette, meanwhile, is wondering just when people will get a clue about Bloom - yes, she's incredible, with a no-nonsense attitude during serious situations like this…but sometimes she wonders if Bloom's just a little too good at this stuff. The Miraculous' are slowly giving them enhanced speed, strength, and agility outside of the suit - as she personally found out after dropping a book from off her bed only to find herself doing a Ladybug-esque stretch to get it back as Marinette before she thought about it, something that should've been physically impossible with her usual lack of coordination, and Bloom recently went to the top of the rope you have to climb in gym in about…five seconds flat - and she's not afraid to use it when need be.

And then Jagged Stone asks "Uh, Mr. Mayor? Who's she?" Because that was absolutely rock 'n roll! Not to mention she just threw Vincent Aza, his biggest and most problematic stalker ever, out on his backside...literally!

Mayor Bourgeois hastily says "She's one of the students that are here for a work-experience project, one Bloom Peters."

Jagged Stone grins, and says "Ah, in that case, I'd like her to be my bodyguard for the day. Aza's not exactly one to take no for an answer, but I'm thinking she might be able to drive it through his head."

Chloe makes a strangled sound from behind the desk, Marinette stares at her in utter shock, and even Adrien stares at her in surprise. Bloom just shrugs, sticks her hand out, and says "Nice to meet you, Mr. Stone."

Jagged grins, and says "Rock 'n roll! Good to meet you to!"

Bloom, to everyone's shock, just grabs onto one of the trolleys and starts pulling it towards the elevators after shaking his hand - Kim, the class athlete, was completely out of breath just getting them into the lobby, and Bloom's just casually pulling it along like it's nothing!

And then Marinette finally gets told what she's going to be doing - she's the Gopher, the employee who 'goes for' anything a guest needs. And Jagged Stone needs a set of sunglasses for his concert tonight, red, white, and blue with two large Eiffel Towers on them.

Once the Mayor and Ms. Bustier are gone, Bloom asks "How about the three of us sit down with a sketchpad and work out a design?"

Jagged nods his head at once, and says "Rock 'n Roll, these are going to be the coolest shades ever!" Marinette quickly sketches out a rough outline of how he wants the sunglasses to look, and Bloom adds on some details - like the nose bridge connecting the two towers, for instance - and Jagged whistles in admiration at the finished result. "Now that is a rock 'n roll set of shades, ladies! How much?"

Marinette blinks in shock, and Bloom asks "You want to pay us?"

Penny takes one look at the design, then says "Absolutely! You two have some real talent, and Jagged's always been one for encouraging talent he comes across."

Bloom shares a glance with Marinette, then asks "You want to start up a brand, Mari?"

Marinette blinks, even as Penny and Jagged both start giving support, then says "Alright, let's do it. What do we call it?"

They come up with the brand name 'B&M' - for Bloom and Marinette - and Marinette insists on splitting the profits 50-50 with Bloom. Bloom wanted Marinette to have it all, but Marinette subtly threatened to leave every penny of it in a bag at her place if that's what she had to do, so they came up with a compromise. And a promise of a business account at Marinette's parents' bank, with two cards connected to it.

Marinette dashes out the door once all the details are settled, and Bloom grins and says "She'll be back in around an hour or two, Mr. Stone." Penny smiles, and says "If it's alright, I'd like to get both your phone numbers in case we need to contact you two." Bloom grins, gives her number over at once, then texts Marinette. And then gets the go-ahead, along with a flood of emojis.

When Marinette gets back, she finds…Bloom being cuddled by Fang. The six-foot croc is wrapped around her as much as he can be, trying to lick her face.

Penny and Jagged are sharing amused looks, and Jagged says "He doesn't usually like strangers at first, but he's a wicked judge of character."

Marinette takes a picture of Bloom pseudo-wrestling Fang, and then helps her up so she can put her finishing touches on the sunglasses - Marinette only had sturdy cardboard, but Bloom can turn it into plastic. After getting Bloom in the bathroom - both for privacy to change the sunglasses and to clean the croc-spit off her, Marinette shows Bloom the sunglasses. Bloom grins, and her eyes burn orange for a moment as the glasses turn from cardboard into plastic.

And then, Bloom shows Marinette the various designs she came up with for their logo. Marinette giggles at the subtle scale design on the B, and the way the M has what looks a bit like Ladybug antennae on her last idea, and picks that for their logo - and then it appears on one of the arms of the glasses, Jagged Stone's own logo on the other.

When he sees the sunglasses, Jagged is over the moon, declaring them the most rock 'n roll pair of shades he's ever seen before. And then Penny pays them 1000 Euros for the sunglasses, even as Jagged promises them free tickets to his concert tonight. Bloom and Marinette trade glances, and Marinette accepts the check Penny wrote out with only slightly shaking hands - but she and Bloom just got 1000 Euros from Jagged Stone!

The detail that that's enough for Bloom to buy some food for a while is very, very clear on the disbelieving look on Bloom's face. The detail that Marinette absolutely expects her to use that money to buy food for herself is very clear in the pointed look she sends her redheaded best friend.

Marinette has to go back down, and Bloom goes back to guarding the door after using the bathroom, only for someone who can only be an Akuma to get rid of Penny and then Fang as well just as she's finished. Something about looking into the lens. And then he corners Jagged, backing him up to the wall, only for Bloom to tackle him from behind, putting a hand over the camera on his head.

"Argh! Little wretch, get off me!" He's so close, Jagged Stone is right there! And now this little girl gets the idea to jump him from behind and block his camera lens!

Bloom growls out "Not a chance! Run, Jagged! Get out of here!" Jagged hops off the bed and runs for the door, and then he hears a weird sound. When he glances back…they're gone.

No Bloom, no weirdo…just the pair of glasses with the camera-like object on them.

Well…A+ for effort, I suppose.

He'll definitely hire her for a bodyguard if she ever offers.

Adrien sighs in despair as Chloe jumps him while screaming, wrapping around him like an octopus and scratching him with her nails as she scrambles to hold onto him - of course, he quickly takes back that sigh when he sees why Chloe's screaming. A crocodile just appeared next to them.

And then Bloom and a guy that can only be an Akuma appears as well, the two of them either wrestling or trying to knock each other out. Bloom yells "It's that stalker from the lobby! He's been Akumatized! Somebody help me tie him up! Fang, sit on him!"

To Chloe's unending horror, the crocodile that appeared comes over and plants itself on top of the Akuma. And then Bloom uses her jacket to tie up his arms behind him, then scratches Fang under his jaw.

And then they get released maybe five minutes later, with the Akuma turning back into Vincent Aza. Bloom promptly throws him out, barely restraining herself from tossing him straight out the window of Jagged's suite.

That afternoon, Marinette, Bloom, Adrien, and Nino all get free tickets to Jagged's concert as they made the greatest effort - Chloe, meanwhile, throws another tantrum because she didn't get a free ticket. Even though all she did was flirt with Adrien the whole time - when she wasn't justifiably screaming in terror about Fang appearing next to her, that is.

Chapter Text

About two weeks after the stalker-incident - at least, that's what Bloom's calling it, since she never did find out the Akuma's name as she was too busy punching him in the face and tying him up - Bloom and Marinette are hanging out and playing UMS3 up in Marinette's room when her parents call them down.

Only for Bob Roth to be there, asking them to design the cover for Jagged's newest Album. What he hands them, though… Marinette stares at it for a minute, Bloom looking over her shoulder from behind her, then says "It looks like…a perfume ad."

Bloom bites back her own response - it does, but a bad perfume ad at that - and asks "What, exactly, prompted the sudden change in Jagged's style?"

Bob Roth gives them a spiel about how Jagged wanted to modernize his style to appeal to the target audience - people their age - and how he's counting on them to give them a cover that'll sell. And, according to Bob Roth, the perfume ad is what will sell.

Bloom and Marinette trade disgusted glances when Bob Roth isn't looking, they wouldn't buy that if it was the last CD ever made.

As soon as they get upstairs, Marinette asks "Alright, now what's the real story behind this?" There's got to be more than that, there's no way Jagged Stone, the King of Rock 'N Roll, would ever want to do something like that.

Bloom sighs in utter disgust, and says "Jagged needs a new producer. XY is Bob Roth's son, and he's trying to piggy-back the talent-less hack on Jagged's fame. And this," she waves at the perfume ad masquerading as an album cover, "is his attempt at peer-pressuring Jagged into caving and doing a duet with the kid."

Marinette grimaces in disgust, and says "Now it all makes sense…" She loathes XY's music, it's so dull, lifeless, repetitive…everything Jagged Stone isn't. That's why she was so confused about the whole 'Jagged's modernizing his image' speech Roth gave them - Jagged Stone has dignity, after all.

And now I'm starting to loathe XY himself, along with daddy-dearest…

Marinette sighs, and asks "So…what now? All we have to work with is XY's garbage."

Bloom smirks, and says "Easy, I've got Penny's number. We can just get Jagged's stuff and make one that fits his image."

Marinette gives a wicked grin that would make Cat Noir so proud he'd swoon, and says "Ooh, let's do one for each! We can spring the real one on him after the fake!"

Maybe a minute later, Penny picks up with a confused "Hello?"

Bloom casually says "Hey, Penny, it's Bloom. So, we just got done listening to Bob Roth give us his crock of bull spiel about how Jagged wants to change his image…and I've got a question."

"Thank goodness you didn't believe him…what's the question?"

Bloom grins to Marinette, and asks "Does Jagged have his own album coming out, and do you have any tracks made up for it?"

"Yes, why?"

"We need you to email them to Marinette. Let's just say we want to give Bob Roth a little surprise. Can't tell you what, though, because we want your reactions to be authentic." And she really wants to see the look on Bob Roth's face when he sees the real album.

Penny starts laughing, laughing so hard they actually hear a thump that can only be her hitting the floor. "'Ello? Bloom?"

"Hey, Jagged. Heads up, we heard about your little talentless problem…and we think we have a solution. And we think you'll like it."

Marinette smirks as the email from Penny comes in, a list of twelve different songs Jagged's already come up with attached, and says "Fantastic. Let's get to work."

Marinette, Bloom decides, might've spent a little too much time around her - she might be rubbing off on the usually-sweet girl, if she's getting this much satisfaction out of pulling one over on Bob Roth. Oh well, too late now. I'm already addicted to the bakery food, Marinette's my best friend, and she's already this determined to show Bob Roth just what we think of 'what will sell.'

The piece for the XY-style cover is done in maybe an hour, not that it took much what with how uninspired it is. A bit of glitter, some highlighting, and it's done. And it looks ridiculous, but at least it looks better than XY's cover - still, not Jagged Stone whatsoever. Marinette groans when she looks at it, and says "I'm so embarrassed. That is the single worst thing I've ever drawn."

Bloom smirks, and says "Same. Now, though, we get to reward ourselves for the monumental effort of willpower and self-control it took not to simply trash it by making the real Cover. And listening to Jagged's stuff to wash away the mess that was XY's digital trash he calls music." Her ears might actually be bleeding from that noise, in all honesty.

Marinette cheers "I'm down for that, Bloom. Let's get to work!"

Jagged's cover takes a lot longer, mainly because Marinette decided she wanted to do a scent sticker - Bloom does the drawing for the cover, since she's got no idea how to do a scent sticker, while Marinette comes up with a scent that literally smells like sweat and leather. It ends up being absolutely awesome, 'rock 'n roll' is what Jagged would undoubtedly call it - accompanied by guitar riffs and all. His figure playing guitar, in front of the moon with one hand raised in his iconic rock n' roll pose.

Marinette calls it their duet, with Tikki and Longg joining in on the fun as well.

Jagged Stone raises a disbelieving eyebrow at the album cover Marinette handed over - when Bloom, who's standing right next to her best friend - said they had a surprise, he didn't expect…this. Though, from the smirk Bloom flashes him for the briefest moment, this isn't the surprise. "Doesn't this look an awful lot like that YZ guy's perfume ad? What happened to the raw, impulsive artistry that created these?" He taps the sunglasses for emphasis, genuinely confused on what happened to the two artistic girls.

Bloom grins at him instantly, even as Bob Roth glares and puts a hand on each of their shoulders - bad move, Fang seems to adore Bloom and instantly growls at him for it - and says "Well, seeing as we were listening to XY's soulless tones he calls music for that, we decided, instead of using it all up trying to make something good out of that…we'd make a backup for you just in case, based on your music that's yet to be released. It all went there."

Bob Roth turns an interesting shade of red as Bloom hands over the very different album cover, one that looks nothing like XY's perfume ad. Jagged grins in delight as he takes it, and says "It's so authentic, so rock 'n roll! I've gotta have it!"

Bob immediately says "No, you can't, it's not what our target audience-"

Bloom clears her throat, both her and Marinette getting matching smirks that spell trouble for Bob Roth, and asks "Is that the angle you're going with? Your target audience? People…our age? As part of your target audience, let the two of us give you our perfectly honest opinion on both XY's music and style and Jagged's. XY…I'm going to be brutally honest here. He's got no talent or passion for music, and what he produces has no life or soul because of it. The beat is dull, repetitive, and frankly, more often than not it's off-key and annoying. The lyrics themselves are dull and uninspired, and most of the time they don't even go together well." Bob Roth just gets angrier and angrier as Marinette gives her own - politer, but no more a fan than Bloom - opinion on XY and his music.

And then Jagged Stone gets a review of his own style and music, how he's got dignity and standards, how he's always been true to himself, and how he's poured his heart and soul into every song he's ever released.

And then Bloom back-handedly calls Bob Roth out by 'casually' mentioning that piggy-backing his son on Jagged Stone's already-established fame doesn't make the kid's music any more appealing, and the scandal that would come out as soon as it was leaked would practically destroy both their careers. It doesn't need to be said that Bloom would be thrilled to leak that piece of information on live television within the hour, Bob Roth can apparently see it written all over her face. By the time the two girls are finished, Bob Roth is fuming - he snatches the cover he wanted out of Bloom's hand and storms out of the room while Jagged just laughs.

After Bob Roth leaves, Jagged says "You two are my two favorite nieces ever." That. Was. EPIC. Absolutely ROCK 'N ROLL! What he wouldn't have given to have that recorded for posterity!

Penny quickly says "Jagged, they're not your nieces." If word of that got to the media, he could have a lawsuit slapped at him faster than he can blink!

Jagged blinks at her, and says "'Course they are, Penny. My nieces in rock 'n roll!"

Bloom just grins at Marinette and does the usual fist-bump with Marinette. Of course, they run into Adrien as they leave the studio, and then Chloe pushes past both of them to tell the other blonde Jagged Stone is at the hotel.

Longg growls, even his patience getting thin with the daily stunts the blonde girl pulls, and Tikki mutters "Chloe talking in the third person, so annoying."

Adrien frowns at Chloe, even as Bloom discretely waves his concern off and helps Marinette to her feet, and calls over "He's on the 13th suite. Just got out of a meeting with Bob Roth, but he was in a good mood when we left. Also, Fang likes his belly and under his chin scratched." The last thing she sees before turning the corner is Chloe's utterly gobsmacked expression, something almost as hilarious as Bob Roth earlier.

Marinette lasts about a block from the Hotel before she bursts out laughing at the look on Chloe's face, hanging onto Bloom for balance as her face turns redder than the red-head's own hair. She laughs until tears run freely down her face, wishing she'd gotten a picture of the look on her long-time tormenter's face right then.

And then they see a dragon flying around, shooting green flames down at the city.

All humor gone, Marinette asks "Are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

Bloom deadpans "If you're seeing a dragon, then yes."

Tikki adds "If you're seeing a dragon that's not Dragon Fyre over here, then yes."

Bloom just snickers, and says "You know me so well. Let's go hide!"

Chapter Text

Cat Noir barely refrains from screaming - he managed to catch Ladybug's wrist as they were all falling, but his sister missed the baton he extended. Ladybug, though, doesn't have that same self-control and screams her superhero name after her yo-yo misses. He finds his Lady's arms wrapped around him as she holds on and sobs, and buries his face in her dark hair while struggling to not do the same - both of them can't have a breakdown, after all, and he's the one literally holding them up.

And then they see the dragon come swooping back at them, and they…get yanked onto the dragon's back. When the two of them open their eyes, they see…Dragon Fyre. Ladybug gasps "You're alive!"

Dragon Fyre suddenly finds herself all but strangled by Ladybug's arms, and then Cat Noir practically picks the both of them up in his hug. It's pretty hard to tell who's saying what when they're both talking at once, but between the 'don't you ever do that again!' and 'we thought we'd lost you for good!' she gets the message.

After a minute, Cat Noir pulls back slightly and asks "How did you manage this, Sis?!" They're on a dragon! They're ON A DRAGON!!

Dragon Fyre grins, using a bit of magic to wipe at both her partners' faces since they were very clearly crying, and says "Fang remembered me. And he still likes me, croc or dragon." As if in response, Fang roars and shoots a burst of green flames into the air.

Both Cat Noir and Ladybug hang onto Dragon Fyre as Fang heads back towards the Eiffel Tower, and Dragon Fyre calls over "I'll get the idiot out of danger, you guys handle Guitar Villain!" Honestly, she shouldn't be that surprised - the idiot's got Bob Roth as a father and role model, of course he'd be entirely unconcerned about the potential of getting killed in an Akuma attack and them getting beaten for once.

Ladybug and Cat Noir nod - XY is clearly not gifted in the brains department either, as he was entirely unconcerned about the possibility of needing to be evacuated by the three superheroes. Even rhetorically asked if Guitar Villain would blow him away with his guitar solo - the answer, as all three all but shouted, was yes. Guitar Villain's 'Awesome Solo' is his attack, and has pinned Cat Noir to things about five separate times now. He's planning on asking Dragon Fyre to heal his ears, just in case - they won't stop ringing, and he doesn't know whether Akuma-related hearing loss is permanent or not.

Dragon Fyre grins, then says "We'll drop you off below-stage, grab XY, and keep Guitar Villain distracted for you guys. Spots?"

Ladybug grins, and makes a Lucky Charm - she gets hairspray. Cat Noir asks "Your planning on doing his hair?"

Ladybug glances at the hairspray, and then at Guitar Villain, and then says "Actually…yes. Kitty, I'll need a distraction."

They jump to the Eiffel Tower while Dragon Fyre and Fang keep circling, an illusion of the two of them still on the dragon's back keeping Guitar Villain none the wiser for the time being as they keep his attention with fireballs thrown in his general direction. And then they hear XY scream suddenly as the dragon pair makes another pass, and Guitar Villain starts gloating…right up until Cat Noir jumps out. He gets pinned to the metal pillar behind him after putting up a brief struggle for appearances, but that was the plan - because Ladybug jumps down in front of Guitar Villain and uses the hairspray on his mop of hair he's flipping back and forth.

His hair freezes directly in front of his face, letting Cat Noir smash his baton on the guitar just as Dragon Fyre lands on the railing with a scared-to-shaking XY - if they notice she's dragging him along by the scruff of his neck, they don't say anything about it. He's an idiot who caused all this with his ridiculously rude remarks about Jagged Stone - they looked up XY's interview with Nadja Chamack, and the idiotic brat called 'Ragged' Stone an old has-been who's washed-up and is out of a career now that he's on the show. And implied he's going deaf.

Needless to say, they're not feeling particularly sympathetic towards him at the moment.

The fact that they all love Jagged Stone's music doesn't help either.

Cat Noir takes Jagged Stone back to the hotel, after getting an album autographed with undisguised glee, while Ladybug gets XY back to the tv station. Dragon Fyre, meanwhile, heads back to Mari's place to keep her parents from freaking out if they discover their daughter is just missing.

The next week, the news is filled with reports of Jagged Stone being back at the top in terms of sales - the king of rock 'n roll is back full-force, due in no small part to the album cover everyone loves. And Bloom and Marinette are featured as the designers on a music magazine that ran the story, which everyone is reading. They've gotten more compliments, congratulations, and questions about 'how did you end up designing Jagged Stone's album cover?!' than they can count together, after that - and even Chloe hasn't insulted them yet today, seems she figured out the detail that they really had just come from Jagged Stone's suite that day.

And then Marinette suddenly squeaks, drawing Bloom's attention to Adrien standing there with the new album in hand…and he asks them to sign it, since they're the designers. Bloom automatically catches Marinette by the shoulder before she can lose her balance - since she tried casually leaning on the railing and was sliding off - and says "Sure, Adrien, let me get a pen out." She's half-concerned Marinette might have heart failure at this rate, given the detail that Bloom doesn't think she's breathed since Adrien asked them to sign his new cd.

Giving Marinette a sharp poke in the back, coupled with a small bit of magic to remind the dark-haired girl she needs air, she gets a pen out and takes the CD to sign her half of their brand logo. Marinette then signs hers, and Adrien looks at the signature in confusion. "'B&M'?"

Bloom smirks, and says "It's a secret, Sunshine. Enjoy the album."

About a minute after Adrien walks away, Marinette sighs and says "I think I might be dreaming, Bloom…"

Bloom chuckles, then says "Nope. It's real, Mari." The resulting squeal should legitimately shatter glass, and Marinette's face should just split in two due to the ear-to-ear grin on her face. Bloom quickly thumps Marinette in the chest to get her to take a breath, still concerned her friend will just drop to the ground unconscious from a lack of air at this point, and says "Breathe, Mari, breathe! We'll probably get asked to sign twenty more albums today alone!"

"Yeah, but we just signed Adrien's!"

Marinette, Bloom quickly figures out, is never going to be able to concentrate on anything today - not even with Tikki quietly trying to get her to focus. Bloom just waves off Adrien's concerned look - which, truthfully, only makes Marinette's 'Adrien-overload' even worse, the girl's on cloud twenty at the moment - and says she'll be fine in a while.

Tikki quietly mutters "A long, long while…" She loves her latest Holder, Marinette might actually be the best Ladybug she's ever had…but she does have one or two flaws. This being one of them. She wouldn't be Marinette if she didn't have them, though.

Chapter Text

Marinette practically hyperventilates as she waits for their class to get called for the class photo - she's going to be in a picture with Adrien!

Bloom elbows her in the ribs, saying "Mari, it's a class photo. And we're both in the same class as Adrien."

"Yeah, amazing, isn't it?!"

Bloom mentally facepalms, and says "No, not really. Pretty standard, actually." Marinette's calm about Adrien has well and truly vanished after Marinette signing that album for him. Her crush on the boy actually went through the roof, something Bloom didn't think possible.

And then a quiet voice says "At least you know you'll be in the photo." When the two girls look back, they see Rose and Juleka standing there.

Rose says "It's not true, Juleka, you're not jinxed! This time it's gonna work out, I can feel it!"

Juleka refrains from telling Rose she knows she's jinxed, she's the one that Jinxed herself.

Bloom raises an eyebrow, and asks "What's this about being jinxed?" Because she'd be able to tell if Juleka was jinxed - at least, she thinks so given the detail that she's got magic herself! - and Juleka doesn't have anything on her that would indicate anything magical whatsoever. Even the camouflaged Miraculous' have a faint buzz she can detect if she really focuses - and the active ones are much more noticeable - but Juleka has nothing coming from her of any magical nature that she can feel.

Her ghost is saying she'll not be seen once again, even if she's in the picture, but that's not new - depressing, yes, but not new. And the series of incidents she describes - Max's hand covering her face last year, a pigeon flying in front of her face in a photo with Rose, and even her face getting cut off in a group picture - sounds more like bad luck rather than a jinx.

Marinette says "We'll do everything we can to make sure it goes perfect this year, Juleka!"

Bloom adds "You're not jinxed or cursed, Juleka. And we're going to break that run of bad luck today. Just smile for the camera, alright?"

Juleka smiles, her entire demeanor actually lightening as she starts hoping, and Bloom asks "How's your brother doing, anyway? Haven't seen him since that fiasco with Nino's movie project."

Juleka gives Bloom a smile, saying "He's good, thanks for asking." He's in the class after them, but hopefully they can meet up for lunch. He's been trying to help her break her Jinx - or curse, perhaps - for years now, but to no avail. They don't really know what it is they can do, but what they most emphatically know is that Juleka...sealed hers off somehow. They aren't sure how, but that'd be when Juleka got super quiet, stopped expressing herself, and started mumbling half the things she says. 

The photographer calls up Marinette, Max, Rose, and Alix for the front row, and Chloe catcalls them calling it the 'baby row' - Bloom just lets out a slow breath, even as Longg murmurs to her to breathe and not set something on fire. He's right, she knows he's right, but when even a millennia-old Kwami is getting fed up with someone's behavior it really says something about the situation.

And then he has Bloom, Nathaniel, Sabrina and Chloe go to the back row - Chloe, unfortunately, immediately makes a fuss because she's not beside Adrien. And then she nearly blows a gasket when Vincent, the photographer, tells her to go 'behind the rest.' She very nearly has a fit when her father gets subtly roasted, Vincent saying he could use an assistant, but shuts up with a growl.

It takes a solid ten tries after Juleka takes a spot in the middle - after Marinette pointed her out to Vincent, because he somehow missed her - but they finally get ready for the picture…but the camera battery died, no thanks to Chloe disrupting the entire thing whining endlessly about how she's not next to Adrien.

If Bloom didn't know for sure that there's no magic working on Juleka, she'd think for just a minute that there was something to this photo-jinx of hers - there's the usual faint buzz that she's gotten accustomed to, but she puts that down to Hawk Moth's daily influence since it's been there since her first day at school. Unfortunately, she knows there were three classes to get right before theirs, and Chloe's being an absolute brat as per usual - no magic involved here. She almost wishes there was - magic would certainly explain Chloe's terrible attitude.

Once Vincent leaves to get a new battery, Juleka heads to the bathroom - Sabrina heads after, and Bloom scowls after the other girl. She moves to head after her, but Principal Damocles practically orders her to stay put. Which means she can't sneak out and go free Juleka, given the detail that she'd lose any mirage she made maybe halfway to the bathroom tops.

As soon as Vincent gets back, Chloe jumps down to Juleka's spot. The photo's an absolute disaster, with Chloe turning Adrien's face so he's looking at the camera with her, Marinette caught mid-call to Vincent, and everybody else looking at Chloe. In Bloom's case, she's glaring at her.

Marinette tries to get them to re-take the photo - with Juleka, who Principle Damocles doesn't even remember - but Chloe reminds the spineless man that they need to head to lunch and they're paying Vincent by the hour.

Bloom barely manages to bite back a very real growl, and says "Rose, follow me. We're going to find Juleka." They find her trapped in a bathroom stall, a wooden chair wedged under the door.

Bloom furiously hisses "Sabrina, you sycophantic little…"

Rose quickly gets the chair out from under the door handle, and Bloom nearly rips the door from its hinges yanking the door open. Juleka looks up, her eyes red and cheeks wet with tears, and asks "I missed the photo, didn't I?"

Rose nods sadly, saying "Another one of Chloe's mean tricks."

Juleka walks out while wiping at her face, asking "Why should I expect it to be any different? Nobody ever hears me, or sees me. I'm invisible, even in photos." She was a fool, she'd thought maybe with everything that's been going on lately, her Jinx would have a chance at being affected. The Cure sweeps over the entire city every single day, and it always leaves her skin tingling like mad, Luka's even more affected than her. He' theorized that, with all the Akumas, with all the blatant magic in the city...if she couldn't get her powers re-awakened, she might at least have a chance at breaking her jinx somehow.

The stall door suddenly slams shut, and the two girls see Bloom standing there - honestly, with the drama, they'd forgotten she was there. Even though she's got their back to them, they can tell she's absolutely furious. So furious, in fact, that she's currently staring at a blank wall to keep from giving away the detail that her eyes are a fiery orange instead of bright blue. If she weren't so worried about accidentally blowing up a sink or stall, she'd be worried about getting Akumatized right then and there - as it is, she'd probably burn the damn butterfly without even realizing it was there, right now. After taking a long minute to calm down, Bloom says "Rose, stay with Juleka. Mari and I will figure something out. We will get you that photo, Juleka, I promise."

Juleka just shakes her head, and says "Forget it, as long as Chloe's in the picture, she'll find a way to keep me out of it." She then runs out of the bathroom before either Bloom or Rose can stop her - as long as she can't even use her own powers, her own...magic, she'll never be seen. She'll never be free of her own curse upon herself.

Marinette takes one look at the look on Bloom's face, and quickly pulls the red-head to the side to ask what's wrong - because, honestly, she's amazed Bloom isn't going full-Dragon-Fyre on Chloe right now. And then, once she's gotten the entire explanation, Marinette tries to think. "Alright…if the photo disappeared, then Vincent would have no choice but to retake the picture."

Bloom shakes her head, saying "Juleka's already left the school, Marinette. No point in that. Plus, Chloe would try to throw her weight around and push Juleka out of the way once more."

Marinette says "Well…then what about after school?"

Bloom relaxes some, and says "Now that sounds good. I'll go find Juleka, you go talk to Vincent."

Marinette's just gotten the man to agree to set up in the park after school is done when they hear a voice scream "WHERE IS CHLOE BOURGEOIS?!"

Marinette groans, and says "Uh-oh…"

Reflekta laughs as she lands on the other side of the crowd of her reflections, and says "You're no match for me, Ladybug! Soon, this will all be over for you!" She moves to leap away, only to come crashing back down hard. "What?!"

Another copy of Reflekta seems to shimmer into sight, a smirk on their face. "Surprise. Recognize me?"

Ladybug incredulously asks "Dragon Fyre?!" She'd thought Bloom was going to go find Juleka, not...what happened?!

Reflekta snarls and tries to scratch at the newly-revealed superhero, only for her wrist to be grabbed and twisted back and Dragon Fyre's foot to connect with her side in a strong kick.

One of the copies grins, and says "Yep, that's my sister alright."

Ladybug gasps "Cat Noir?!"

Cat Noir shrugs, saying "Yeah. She got me as I was going to Cataclysm the lockers blocking the door."

Reflekta goes crashing into the wall, and all of her copies dogpile her so she can't go anywhere. Dragon Fyre walks over, and says "Brother, your looking really uncomfortable in those shoes."

Ladybug asks "You can tell its him?! How?!"

Dragon Fyre grins, and says "I cheat, that's how. As for my little make-over story, I ran into Bloom Peters coming here, and she explained everything. So, to get brother dearest here off my case about waiting for backup, I disguised myself as Bloom to go scout things out. One moment I look like her, the next I look like a bad remake of the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland."

Yeah, neither Ladybug nor Cat Noir are believing most of that for even a minute. Bar the part where Reflekta surprised her, that is. The thing is, she probably needs that cover story - if they're right, she wasn't in uniform when she was zapped, ergo she's going to need a good reason why Bloom Peters was using Dragon Fyre's magic. Hence, the supposed switch.

'Dragon Fyre' smirks as the Ladybugs change everyone back, and says "Good to be back. But…later, you two. I'll let Bloom know it's safe to come back, and everything's been sorted."

Her 'disguise' shimmers away in the familiar haze of her mirages, revealing the usual outfit…with a few minor alterations to her features. It's hard to spot if you didn't know exactly what to look for, but Cat Noir and Ladybug have each other memorized down to the smallest detail - and, they've discovered, when you know their identity it makes all the difference in spotting the similarities. Her nose and jaw are a little sharper, her cheekbones more angled, hair a few shades darker, and her eyes are a little more slanted - the irises are also orange instead of blue, which helps quite a bit.

It helps even more when Bloom runs past, only skidding to a stop as she sees the pile of bodies picking themselves up off Juleka.

Dragon Fyre smirks, and says "I'm out. Longg, Wind Dragon." And, when Bloom comes back after going to get her stuff from where she left them, she's bombarded with questions of how in the world she found Dragon Fyre. Good thing she's got that worked out to - ran into her in the park, explained everything, she decided it'd be safer to come disguised as a school student.

In the park after school, Vincent gets everyone - bar Chloe and Sabrina, who aren't even in the picture this time - in place and Juleka whispers "Thank you, you two." She doesn't know how they managed it, maybe it was her being Akumatized that managed the miracle, but they broke her jinx.

Marinette says "No problem, Juleka."

Bloom shares a quiet fist-bump with Marinette and then they get into what can only be described as a photoshoot. Pictures of everyone, in all different scenarios. Single photos, group photos, scenes, the whole nine yards - even Vincent seems to be having fun, saying he hasn't enjoyed his job like this in ages. Apparently, most of his jobs are for boring, uncreative photoshoots strictly supervised by unreasonable bosses.

He even lets everyone have a copy of the photos they like the most, as a thank-you for the fun time - he can just delete the pictures off his camera's memory afterwards, after all, so putting them onto a flash drive of Max's is no trouble.

Chapter Text

Marinette and Bloom make it to school just in time for science class, after the red-head remembered that they had 'somewhere to be' after stopping the Magician of Misfortune. If they never have to fight that particular Akuma again, they'll all be so happy - his powers consisted of making everything around him go wrong, and it was only Dragon Fyre's own magic that could break through it even relatively effectively.

Miss Mendeleiev demands to know what excuse they have this time for being late, and before Marinette can come up with something Bloom quickly says "Sorry, Ma'am. The Magician of Misfortune happened, and we couldn't get away until he was beaten." Thankfully, it was close enough to the school that it's believable - as excuses go, they've had to use some rather embarrassing ones and this is definitely one of the better ones. At least this time she doesn't have to go with 'they locked themselves in the girl's bathroom by accident' like Marinette came up with in a panic.

Thankfully, Rose takes the strict teacher's attention by spraying her perfume. Miss Mendeleiev purses her lips, and says "Thank you, Rose, but I don't think the classroom needs extra refreshing." She confiscates both the perfume bottle and Rose's smartphone, then sends her off to the principal's office before giving a rather explosive demonstration of just why she doesn't allow perfume in the class. Because it immediately ignites when hit with a spark from the covered fire-starter she keeps on her desk for exactly this purpose - trying to get lab-safety through her students' heads.

Bloom's the only one who doesn't gasp at the sight of the perfume going up in a sudden flash, since there was a - not-so - tiny incident one time with a bottle of perfume that got tossed because the owner didn't like it. Probably Chloe, honestly. She picked it up, tried it out…and accidentally started coughing uncontrollably, making her magic flare up and the bottle abruptly explode. Whether that was because she just accidentally blew the bottle up or because she ignited the perfume, she'll never really know - but she's all-too-familiar with perfume exploding.

It doesn't escape Bloom's notice that Marinette's nervous all day - or that her purse, where Tikki usually hides, keeps sneezing. She privately shows Bloom Tikki upon the red-head's request, and Bloom's absolutely horrified to learn Kwamis can get sick. Tikki can't even fly, that's how bad she is. She quietly hisses "What happened?!"

Marinette anxiously says "I don't know, when I transformed back she was sneezing! What about Longg?"

Longg peeks out from his spot in Bloom's hair, and says "I'm alright, thank you for asking. My Hatchling's magic kept me from falling ill. What if you…?"

Bloom shrugs, feeling helpless as she stares at Tikki's shivering form - the first time she recharged Plagg for her brother, to keep him from timing out, he said the black Kwami was on something like a sugar-high for hours afterwards. Flying haphazard laps all around his room at superspeed, almost vibrating with energy he couldn't just Cataclysm away - a Kwami's powers can't be used without a Holder without much…larger consequences. The dinosaurs went extinct, along with Dragons, for instance, because Plagg Cataclysm'd them.

Who knows what would happen if she over-charged the Kwami of Creation - with a Holder, it seemed that power gets dialed down to the creation of the Lucky Charm and the same with Plagg's power of Destruction simply destroying a single object and possibly spreading to anything touching it instead of leveling a whole city. Who knows, maybe Dragons would be recreated if Tikki had to release a lot of energy all at once - which, while it would undoubtedly be cool, it would also be incredibly destructive.

Trying to call up only a small spark of her magic - an ember compared to even a small bonfire - Bloom makes a bit of fire on her index finger and pushes it into Tikki's body. "I'm not sure how well you'll react to my magic, Tikki, but this should at least warm you up…"

Tikki moans "Oh, it feels amazing…" She curls around Bloom's finger for a moment, and says "I'm feeling a bit better. Marinette, after school, I need you to take me to a Healer I know of."

Marinette nods, and Bloom says "Just take her to him, and she'll be fine, Mari. We'll go after school." For whatever reason, Master Fu had her swear not to take either of them there unless it was an emergency - she figures a Kwami being sick counts.

Unfortunately…they see Chloe tear up the letter Rose wrote in science class, and then drive off leaving Rose in tears over the torn-up letter. Bloom groans, and Mari quietly says "Go on, Bloom. I'll make it there fine."

Bloom makes her way into the hotel via Chloe's suite as Dragon Fyre - it probably doesn't count as 'breaking and entering' if she magically unlocks the door to use the stairs, right? - and invisibly makes her way down to the press conference.

She sees a boy that can only be Prince Ali practically light up at the news that the Mayor has organized an extravagant fireworks display, but then he deflates as soon as his chaperone says it might not fit in his busy schedule. The similarities between Prince Ali and Adrien right then, even the things his ghost is saying - how he never has any free time, how he doesn't have any friends his age, and how he never gets to have any fun - make her want to give the poor kid a hug.

And, clearly, her brother's rubbed off on her too much.

And his chaperone reminds her of Nathalie - maybe they're distantly related? Nobody else she knows - or even knows of - is that focused on a schedule. Though, at least this woman seems to have a reason - the Prince is to be escorted everywhere with highly-trained guards for his own safety, as he's the only heir to the throne. And, if something happens to him, it would be her head on the line.

And then, just like she knew would happen, Rose walks in as an Akuma. And she looks...weird, and that's saying something coming from the girl who shoots fire from her fingertips. Green skin, pink hair done in a high braid reminiscent of a perfume bottle's rubber tube, and a slightly crazy look on her face when she sees Prince Ali. She hits Chloe with a shot of something from her gun - is that her perfume bottle?! - and suddenly the room smells like stinky fish that's been out in the sun for too long.

Thinking fast, the invisible superhero activates the confetti machine and round-house kicks Rose - or, Princess Fragrance, if the singing people are anything to go by - into the nearby seats. She reveals herself, grabbing Prince Ali by the wrist and yelling "Let's go, everyone out!"

Mayor Bourgeois gasps out a rushed explanation of the masked girl as they make their way down a flight of stairs, quickly giving the barebones details about Akumas, Hawk Moth, and the three superheroes that fight them every single day.

The chaperone says "So much chaos, how is anyone supposed to stick to a schedule around here?"

Dragon Fyre flatly says "We plan for chaos at any given moment lately. You get used to it after a while." C'mon, Brother, hurry…

They get cornered in one of the large lobbies, intended for press conferences like Prince Ali's, and Dragon Fyre gets ready for a fight - she's already tired from the Magician of Misfortune, and Princess Fragrance is getting on her nerves quick. Chloe's fish smell isn't helping matters, though.

And then a familiar voice jokingly says "Pee-uh! Can we get some fresh air in here?"

Dragon Fyre instantly relaxes, and calls over "Don't breathe in the gas, brother. You'll end up singing, for one."

Cat Noir privately decides he's not going to try to figure out what that means right now - either his sister is serious, or she's so tired by now she's mixing up her words. He's not sure which would be preferable - an Akuma that brainwashes people into singing, among other things, or his magical sister pretty much out of the fight. He deflects a shot from the perfume gun, asking "Where's Ladybug, Sis? She's usually pretty on-top of things."

Dragon Fyre tosses a fireball at Princess Fragrance, making the Akuma shoot a bolt of perfume to block it, and the result is a cloud of smoke that makes enough cover to get everyone out of the room. They quickly slide down Cat Noir's staff to the sidewalk, Dragon Fyre using a mixing bowl as a makeshift helmet for Prince Ali, and she says "Spots is dealing with an emergency, she'll meet up with us when she can."

They get in the car, Dragon Fyre climbing on top of the car so she can fight off Princess Fragrance, and Cat Noir mutters "Get here fast, Ladybug…" He really doesn't want to know what'll happen if she doesn't show up soon.

Ladybug gets to the Ponte Des Artes bridge, Tikki feeling much better after visiting that odd vet, and is absolutely horrified to see Dragon Fyre and Cat Noir standing with an Akumatized person, someone she recognizes as Prince Ali from the recent news coverage of his arrival, someone that must be his guardian, and the Bourgeois' in the middle of the bridge. One of Dragon Fyre's arms is in Cat Noir's, even as he holds a pink box in his other hand - she'd think Dragon Fyre's magic was too drained after the earlier Akuma battle if her free hand didn't suddenly start moving.

'Mind control perfume. Don't breathe. Hanging on, tired. Your move.'

It tells her all she needs to know - her partners are still there, thankfully, just putting up an act to buy some time. Dragon Fyre is very drained, and is almost certainly going to have to sit this fight out. And she needs a clothespin.

Princess Fragrance screeches in outrage as her padlock hits the water and sinks to the riverbed, and sees Ladybug land on top of a nearby light. And then a familiar presence enters the back of her mind, the purple butterfly-mask appearing in the corner of her vision.

Use Dragon Fyre and Cat Noir to get her Miraculous!

To both Hawk Moth and Princess Fragrance's utter shock, though when she orders the four of them to attack the red-and-black spotted heroine, Dragon Fyre gives her a sharp smirk and says "Not a chance, your royal thorn in my side. Brother?" And then she realizes Dragon Fyre's eyes are a bright orange now, instead of their usual blue.

Princess Fragrance screeches and takes off with Prince Ali, right after sending one last perfume shot straight at Dragon Fyre's feet - she pushes her partner out of the way, despite his shout of protest, and the perfume shot explodes directly in front of her. She immediately starts coughing, going down to her knees even as Ladybug blows the gas away from her with the yo-yo and Cat Noir pulls her away from it.

And when they look up, they get identical expressions of horror. Because there's a cloud of pink perfume expanding over the entire city.

Dragon Fyre swallows, then says "Don't think I have it in me to burn that much perfume…" Plus, the resulting explosion may well blow the city to.

Ladybug looks around, then spots the barge with the fireworks on it. "Cat Noir, the fireworks! You set them off, I'll go after Princess Fragrance!" Dragon Fyre slides down to the floor of the bridge, saying "I think the Akuma's in her perfume-gun. Go to it, Spots."

At this point, she doesn't even need her brother insisting on her sitting the rest of this fight out - she's drained after all the fighting today. Much more, even trying to take out that sky-ful of perfume, and she'll be out like a light. Something about the way she's feeling light-headed, even in the suit, tells her as much.

Both Mayor Bourgeois and Prince Ali's chaperone look around in utter confusion - one minute, they're running from an Akuma, the next…they're out in the middle of nowhere. "The schedule's a complete disaster, we're going to be late for everything! Wait a minute, where's the Prince?! And where am I?!"

They both hear a groaning sound, and look over to see…Bloom Peters lying on a nearby bench. Andre Bourgeois asks "Bloom Peters?!" He might not like her, ever since the incident in Chloe's school, but that doesn't mean he isn't somewhat concerned about her considering she seems to be semi-conscious on the middle of a bridge. Besides, Prince Ali's chaperone is right there.

Bloom pushes herself to her feet, looks at the chaperone for a moment, then says "I'll get you to Prince Ali, so you can stop freaking out. Which hospital is it that he's supposed to be at?" She ends up getting the woman's email as thanks, since she's not only Prince Ali's chaperone but also the head of the royal PR department.

If Rose gets Prince Ali's personal phone number, and the over-stressed woman lets them say goodbye…well, that's icing on the cake. And Rose has gone from a hero-worship crush to full-blown feelings for Prince Ali, which…the sheltered, shy, sensitive boy is returning. In a way, at least - his ghost is saying he's never met someone so beautiful, heartfelt, or sincere in his entire life, and how she sees him instead of his money, title, or the family he was born into. How she admires his work helping children, and how he has to find a way to stay in contact with her. And convince his parents to give her a shot because she's so incredible.

Dear Kwamis, they're as bad as each other…

And, incidentally, her two partners.

Chapter Text

When Bloom and Marinette get to school, about two weeks after the Princess Fragrance incident - two weeks in which Rose has been on cloud twenty, forget Cloud nine, since she and Prince Ali have been trading calls and he's sent her a few letters - they find something weird going on. Not Akuma-weird, though - but, honestly, that would be more normal at this point.

Literally everyone is talking about some new girl - a Lila Rossi. According to everyone she's…flown in Prince Ali's private jet with him, saved Jagged Stone's cat from getting run over by an airplane on the runway and had a song written about her because of it, and knows every single Hollywood director.

Marinette murmurs the name they keep hearing in confusion, and Alya Cesaire grins ear-to-ear and says "Lila? She just started here today! She even gave me an exclusive interview on the Ladyblog! Ladybug saved her life, and they're best friends, watch!"

The brunette plays the video for them to see, and Lila lets out the fakest laugh either girl has ever heard before saying "Ladybug and I? We're like this." She holds up two crossed fingers for emphasis, reminiscent of how Cat Noir did with Theo Barbot so long ago, and the video ends.

And then Cesaire's off, saying her blog has gotten the most views ever thanks to Lila's interview - because she gave insider details, things only Ladybug's best friend would know! - and Bloom sardonically says "And, folks, if you listen closely, you can hear the sound of Alya Cesaire's credibility as a journalist getting flushed down the toilet…" Honestly, this is the same girl that's always going on about checking one's sources?

Marinette asks "Is everyone hypnotized by this girl or something?" She's heard the name 'Lila' at least twenty times already, and school hasn't even started yet.

Bloom shrugs, and says "I don't know, Mari. But…but what is she doing with Adrien?!" The last part comes out as a quiet hiss, but it might as well have been screamed to Marinette - sure enough, when she follows Bloom's line of sight, she sees the same girl from that video talking with Adrien…really closely. Running a finger down his chest, leaning in until her face is mere inches from his, all of it. And Adrien gulps, leaning back slightly and taking a small step backwards - his entire body screams 'stranger danger!' and 'Sis, come save me!'

Marinette immediately starts to spiral, her thoughts instantly turning to Adrien suddenly forgetting she even exists compared to Lila Rossi, and it takes all of Bloom's self-control not to smack her upside the head to snap her out of it. Instead she just grabs Marinette by the shoulder and says "Marinette, listen. Look at Adrien's expression, it's so far past 'uncomfortable' that it's actually physically painful to watch this."

And then Lila starts dragging Adrien into the library, and Bloom decides enough is enough. Lila needs to get her hands off her brother now.

Barely holding back an actual growl, Bloom says "You go on ahead to class, Mari. I'll handle them."

Marinette practically squeals, and says "You're the best!" She'd hug Bloom, but the red-head looks like she's about to catch fire.

Bloom sneaks into the library invisibly, only to see Lila coming to sit back down way too close to her brother. Seriously, she's practically sitting on his lap - this girl apparently has no concept of boundaries. As much as her brother is a cuddler when he's comfortable with you, he's stiff as a board and ever-polite about not wanting to be anywhere near you when he's uncomfortable. And right now he might as well be made of plywood.

Lila leans over, purposefully leaning further into Adrien, and asks "What's that?"

Adrien quickly plasters a grin onto his face, arms locking at his sides like he's holding himself back from pushing her off him - though his body language still screams 'save me!' - and says "Nothing, just stories about superheroes." And then Longg gasps upon seeing the book, and quickly talks into her ear about how they need to get the book Adrien has in front of him, as well as find out where he got it.

Adrien couldn't possibly be more relieved when he sees Lila's green eyes suddenly flash orange - and, considering just how close she is, close enough that he can feel her breath on his face and smell her eye-watering perfume, there's no way he could miss it - and she says something about going to find another history book before heading off. And then his - amazing, wonderful, life-saving - sister appears in front of him, looking more serious than he can remember seeing her as a civilian bar Christmas Eve night. He immediately grabs her hand in both of his, saying "Oh, thankyouthankyouthankyou! She's been giving me the creeps, Sis!"

Bloom growls lowly in the back of her throat, and says "That girl is so fake it gives me goosebumps. Has she tried anything, brother?" If Lila Rossi has done anything to her brother, she's going to find out exactly why she was chosen to be the Holder of the Dragon Miraculous - Dragons hoard what they covet, and Bloom hoards her little pieced-together family jealously.

Adrien shakes his head, saying "No, nothing." Nothing beyond making him more uncomfortable than he's ever been before. And that includes all the times Chloe's tried to kiss him.

Bloom pulls him from his thoughts, saying "Yet. That girl has no respect for personal space." Along with the detail that there's something wrong with her - every single thing her ghost said was about her, and not like Chloe either. Chloe's tends to go on about her appointments, or getting Sabrina to do her nails or homework. This Lila, though…she was thinking about everyone in a way where she exclusively benefited from them. She thinks it's perfectly acceptable to tell Rose she's been in a private jet with Prince Ali, or that she'd mention Nino to a bigshot Hollywood producer. She feels entitled to their admiration, their worship, and she doesn't care what she has to do or who she has to hurt to get it and keep it. And she's highly interested in Adrien - rich, handsome, well-connected, he could give her the life she feels she deserves. Honestly, it makes Bloom sick to her stomach - but she can't focus on that now, Longg is wigging about this book for some reason.

Longg zips out of his preferred spot in her hair, and says "This is the book, Hatchling! How did you come by this, Cat Noir?"

Plagg flies out of his own spot in Adrien's jacket, and says "Finally, she was giving me the creeps! Hey, Longg!"

Longg asks "Plagg, where did you and your Holder find the Spellbook?!"

Plagg gasps, and asks "THIS IS THE SPELLBOOK?!" If this is the spellbook he was never allowed to see so he couldn't be forced to give away it's location...oh, oh no.

Bloom asks "Spellbook? Longg, what is this?"

"Take it to the Guardian, Hatchling! We'd thought it lost forever until Nooroo's Aura was sensed!"

Bloom quickly digs out a spare sketchbook she made a few days ago, an experiment that happened to go right in making something from just her magic, and says "Brother, I apparently need to borrow this. If we're right…this is big. Where was this?"

Adrien says "In a safe behind a picture of my mom…I didn't even know it was there until I tried to ask my father about a school field trip…" He's getting a sinking feeling in his stomach as the two Kwamis keep talking, and he doesn't even want to think about what they're saying might add up to.

Bloom waves a hand over the spellbook and then the blank sketchbook, and the two books suddenly start flipping through the pages too fast to make anything out…bar the change the second book is going through. It's getting bigger, the cover changing, colors appearing…in under a minute, there's a perfect copy of the Spellbook.

Once the copy is complete, and the original book stored safely in her bag, Bloom asks "Adrien, was there anything else in that safe? Anything at all?" If she's right…Kwamis, she hopes she isn't right. Unfortunately…she has a bad habit of being right when she wishes she wasn't. And Plagg's horrified expression isn't helping matters either.

Adrien quickly says "Meet me in the park, she mentioned wanting to talk more about being Ladybug's best friend there." Right after she saw a picture about a Fox Miraculous Holder named Volpina, actually - half of him wants a convenient rescue option from this Lila girl, and half of him wants time to try and remember what else was in that safe.

Bloom nods, a stricken look on her face that seems glued there ever since he said where he found the book, and then she vanishes maybe a minute before Lila comes back - and, honestly, he should probably be mad about Bloom using her magic on Lila like that…but she was seriously creeping him out to no end. Seeing as it was harmless, clearly didn't cause any brain damage or anything…he figures he can forget about it, just this once. Especially given how guilty his sister looked just describing the ability.

Classes are a nightmare, between Adrien being acutely aware of the tension in his sister and Lila Rossi being in their class - and being extremely interested in getting as close as possible to him - and Adrien breathes out a large sigh of utter relief when the bell rings.

Bloom, for her part, is much more focused on the spellbook than Lila Rossi - normally, she'd be shooting the girl down after every lie that comes out of her mouth. Normally, she'd be calling her out for near-groping her brother. Normally, she doesn't have an ancient spellbook sitting in her backpack with the symbol of the Order of the Guardians on the cover. Normally, she doesn't have the potential bombshell of 'Gabriel Agreste is Hawk Moth' to deal with.

Bloom bolts out the door as soon as the last class is over, and Adrien can only hope whatever she needs to do with this 'Guardian' won't take very long. Because, as much as he tried to be friendly with Lila…something about her just rubs him the wrong way. Not even in the way where he finds someone annoying, he finds her downright creepy as hell! Even Plagg doesn't like her, and that says quite a bit since he's millennia old and has plenty of experience with all types of people.

Unfortunately, when he gets to the park, he sees Lila already sitting there, a fox tail pendant hanging around her neck.

Swallowing his nerves forcefully, Adrien sits down a few inches from Lila - since she deliberately took the middle of the bench,  and he's pressed into the armrest trying to get anymore space from her - and asks "So, you know Ladybug? For real?" Somehow…he's not buying that. Maybe the detail that they all got their Miraculous' on the same day, and he's never seen Lila before today. Or maybe the detail that his sister doesn't like her at all, and the detail that she's Ladybug's best friend, closely followed by himself. Oh, and her grandmother was that Fox superhero he was on when she came over, and the pendant she's wearing is a Miraculous.

Yeah, right.

And then she starts trash-talking his Lady - thankfully, Bloom dashes over right then and there. Else he doesn't know what he'd do. Or Plagg, by the sounds he's making inside Adrien's coat.

Bloom practically hits the ground when she gets over to their bench, doubled over and catching her breath - how far did she run then?! - and Adrien asks "Bloom? What's wrong?"

Bloom takes a few deep breaths, saying "We've got…a problem. A big…big problem…"

Lila pastes a smile on her face, and asks "Bloom Peters? Lila Rossi, I think you're in my class…"

Seeing that his sister is catching her breath, Adrien brightly says "Hey, Bloom, you'll never believe this! Lila here says she's a descendent of a Fox superhero! Volpina! And this is her Miraculous!" The look his sister sends him is 'you've gotta be effing kidding me. Is she serious?!' - a sentiment he completely agrees with at the moment. If he hadn't been Cat Noir, maybe he would've bought some of it - Volpina being more powerful than Ladybug? Really?! - but he is Cat Noir and he happens to know that the Ladybug and Black Cat Miraculous' are the two most powerful ones. He can poke so many holes in this particular story alone that he could make it look like Swiss Cheese!

After a moment, Bloom says "No, it isn't." She isn't even going to dignify that load of Kwami-crap with a rebuttal.

Bloom grabs Adrien by the wrist and pulls him up, the look on her face saying they need to go now, even as Lila yells "Yes, yes it is! It really is a Miraculous! Why don't you believe me?!" Her face immediately goes bright red with fury, her expression twisting into an ugly scowl, and she gives Bloom what's probably her worst glare possible.

Ok, yes she is going to give it a response. She's going to destroy that load of Kwami-crap.

Unfortunately for Lila Rossi, Bloom happens to be in a league of her own when it comes to bad looks. She gives Lila one of her own, and says "If that were really a Miraculous, you wouldn't be announcing it for the world to hear." She gets a dark look on her face, almost feral or rabid for a moment, one Adrien would be legitimately afraid of if he didn't know she'd never raise a hand against him outside of training and when a mind-controlling Akuma's got to him, and hotly says "And, if you knew anything about Ladybug, instead of just trying to make yourself look better, you'd know she's extremely important. She can bring people back to life, she can fix the entire city in a matter of moments. What can your 'Miraculous' do, exactly? No, really, I've got to know."

Adrien would say she's being a little harsh, except both he and Plagg were thinking along the same lines - Tikki, Ladybug's Kwami, apparently created everything. Including the planet itself. It doesn't get much stronger than that - and Trixx, the Fox Kwami, apparently does Illusions. Useful, yes, but not as powerful as Creation itself.

Lila Rossi is, apparently, on some kind of trip if she seriously thinks he'd buy her spiel - admittedly, though, she is good at talking. Even Plagg's saying as much.

And then Lila yells "How dare you?!" And then she runs off, grabbing her stuff and taking off with her head down.

After they start heading down the sidewalk, Adrien asks "You think maybe you went a little overboard there, Sis?"

Bloom growls, and says "Maybe, but she needs a reality check. She's lied to literally everyone she's met, Adrien, all the rumors floating around the school today were utter crap. And we've got a lot bigger problems than Lila Rossi and her hurt feelings to deal with."

Chapter Text

His father is Hawk Moth.

That's the only thing going around Adrien's head right now, the revelation that his father is apparently Hawk Moth. The very sickening revelation, at that. Speaking of which…

Adrien claps a hand over his mouth suddenly, and Bloom says "Two doors down on the right." He's up and moving before he can even nod his head, and makes it just in time to start retching into the toilet bowl.

Once his body has finally stopped trying to bring up his stomach - maybe this is his body trying to reject the info-dump he just got - he feels a hand rest on his back and a familiar warmth seep into his body. He doesn't know whether to be comforted or worried, though - it's obviously his sister, but why she's here is another matter entirely. Adrien finds himself getting pulled back gently, the toilet seeming to flush of its own accord as he leans back, and he looks over to see Bloom's worried expression. After a moment, he dejectedly asks "Does he want Plagg back?" It's the first thing that comes to mind after 'my father is Hawk Moth' - Master Fu almost certainly wants Plagg and his Miraculous back.

And he doesn't know if he can take that as well, being rejected so suddenly because of something his father did.

Bloom's expression turns to realization, and she pulls him into a hug again at once. "No, Brother, no he doesn't."

Adrien pulls back slightly in shock, asking "He doesn't?" How could he not want Plagg back? He's in constant danger at the Mansion, they've just been lucky all this time! Looks like Gabriel Agreste's habit of staying inside his office for days on end is a blessing in disguise, because there's no possible way Plagg wouldn't have been noticed at least once before if he went into Adrien's room on a regular basis.

Bloom shakes her head, and says "You had no idea, Adrien. None. Nothing he's doing reflects back on you, nothing." I'm gonna kill you, Gabriel Agreste, for doing this to my brother, I swear it.

Adrien hugs his sister again, hard as he can this time, and tries to stop shaking like a leaf - it feels like his entire world has just been shaken like a snow globe, forget simply turned upside down, and she's the one thing that's stable. Well, her and Plagg, who's currently sitting on his free shoulder and purring as loudly as possible to try and comfort him.

After a bit, Adrien suddenly panics and pulls back, saying "You can't tell her!"

Bloom blinks, and asks "Tell who?"

Adrien can feel fear start to run through him once more, and starts stammering "Ladybug! My father- She'll- I can't-" She'll hate him, there's no way she won't hate him.

Bloom's eyes glance to directly above his head for a moment, even as one of her hands moves to his shoulder, and she breathes out "Oh, Kitty…" When she glances back down to his face, she says "She could never hate you, Adrien. She can get angry at you, or disappointed, or even frustrated with your lack of timing when it comes to flirting, but Spots could never hate you. As Adrien or Cat Noir, I promise."

Adrien gets tense as a bowstring when she says they have to tell her who Hawk Moth is, but they can leave out his identity altogether. And stress that his son had nothing to do with any of it.

And then Bloom looks up, only to see a meteor heading straight for the city from the window high up in the wall. "OhmyKwamis!" She's transformed and out the building using 'Wind Dragon' before Adrien can even get his own transformation phrase out.

Ladybug lands on a roof, heart almost stopping when she realizes she won't get to the meteor in time, when she sees a blur of orange streak past her - that orange streak resolves into a figure that looks vaguely like a fox-themed superhero from this distance, who then leaps up and slows down the giant fiery rock. And then Dragon Fyre appears, leaping up from a nearby rooftop she appeared on, and punches the meteor…only for the meteor to disappear in a puff of orange mist. Thinking quickly, the red-head lets out two streams of flames from her hands to slow her fall and keep from taking out the top of the building she hits on impact - she'd called up as much magic as she could to destroy a meteor on impact, but it won't just not destroy something two seconds later simply because the meteor was a fake. Unfortunately.

Ladybug lands next to her, asking "You alright?"

Dragon Fyre nods, accepting the offered hand up, and says "It was more the shock than anything else, Spots. We've got to talk later, there's something big you need to hear. But…I think it needs to wait."

Ladybug realizes her best friend is looking past her, and follows the line of sight to the orange-clad figure she saw before. Now that she's closer, it's easier to make out more details about her - orange and white outfit, with black accents. Fox ears on her head, and an orange flute in her hand. "She looks familiar…"

Dragon Fyre nods her head, then quietly says "I think I know who she is. And I think she's a fake, Spots. Play along, get her talking." She'd just seen the Fox Miraculous at Master Fu's place before going to get Adrien, after all, but it's possible she might've been scouted out by the guy. Highly doubtful, but possible - it did take a bit to get to the park, so it might not be Lila Rossi. He could've sent Trixx to a new Holder while she was processing the detail that her brother quite literally lives with the Devil.

But, in all likelihood, it's an Akumatized Lila Rossi - the big question, though...is can the Butterfly recreate a Miraculous' powers?

Cat Noir lands next to the two ladies, asking "Is everything alright with the meteor? I couldn't make it in time."

Dragon Fyre frowns in the direction of the girl that disappeared behind a chimney, and says "It was never really there, Brother. Something's up."

And then Cat Noir's ears twitch - yes, the fake ears actually twitch - and he says "Someone's coming." He's got a really bad feeling about this, made no better by Plagg's commentary in his head, and he doesn't want to think about if Hawk Moth knows the book is missing.

The fox-girl from before lands in front of them, and Dragon Fyre immediately knows her suspicions are confirmed - this is Lila Rossi. The same girl she called out about an hour ago for faking having a Miraculous. Definitely Akumatized, then. The big questions, then, are how strong she is and if Hawk Moth gave her specific directions or not.

Cat Noir apparently sees the exact same thing she does, because he plasters a fake smile onto his face and starts talking animatedly. Even gesturing for added effect.

Ladybug would feel bad for this new girl, as she's clearly struggling to keep up with Cat's mile-a-minute over-the-top introduction, except she knows both her partners' behaviors by now. Cat Noir's doing all the talking, keeping her distracted and off-balance, while Dragon Fyre stands back to study her. She should know, she's been in Cat Noir's place plenty of times as Marinette. However it is she does it, or whatever it is she does exactly, it's never led them wrong before - and, from the way she's not relaxing in the slightest…she's not who she says, not at all. She introduces herself as Volpina, another dead giveaway to two of the heroes, and then says "I saw someone you might want to take a look at while I was up in the air, follow me."

She's off in a blur of orange, and Dragon Fyre says "Earpieces in, guys. I'm really certain she's been Akumatized, but we don't know what her powers are exactly." Two seconds later, they're all after 'Volpina' with their earpieces hidden in their ears - if she wants to split them up, they'll still be in contact with one another. She's going to have to try harder than just getting them apart if she wants to take them out.

When they all get to where Volpina's waiting, they see…Hawk Moth standing on a nearby chimney. Just standing there, not doing anything. Ladybug gasps, quickly slapping her hand over her mouth, and ducks down to ask "What's he doing here? Something big is going down!"

Dragon Fyre and Cat Noir trade looks, one confused and one extremely anxious - there's every possibility he knows the spellbook is gone, after all. After a moment, she quietly shakes her head and says "Maybe he's waiting for something."

Volpina asks "Maybe he's searching for us?"

Cat Noir immediately says "He wouldn't be just standing there if he were!" If he knows the book is missing, he'd either be hunting them down...or hunting him down, specifically. Adrien Agreste, not Cat Noir, at that.

Ladybug frowns, asking "You alright, Cat Noir?" He's not usually this on edge, if the way his tail keeps smacking her in the leg is anything to go by.

Dragon Fyre nods, saying "We'll talk later, LB." Hawk Moth, or whatever that is over there, suddenly vanishes in a cloud of black butterflies. And then they have to split up, to play along and keep Volpina from taking them by surprise - if they play along, they stand a better chance of figuring out just what her powers are rather than pushing her into some kind of tantrum, after all.

Dragon Fyre follows Volpina from behind, as she tracks Ladybug, and says "Spots, she's after you. I don't like this, guys."

Cat Noir's voice sounds in her ear, saying "I REALLY don't like this, ladies. Hawk Moth just vanished, I'm heading to you."

Ladybug stares at Volpina tensely, about fifty different missiles pointed straight at her. The insane fox-themed woman smirks, a glint in her eye she really doesn't like, and says "Give me your Miraculous, or the building goes down!" Just before Ladybug can reach for her earrings, though, to stop the destruction of an apartment, Dragon Fyre lands on it and…the destruction just vanishes in an orange mist.

Ladybug gasps, then says "That's your power, illusions! Lies! Just like the meteor, just like Hawk Moth!" Just like all the stuff you said at school today, Lila Rossi!

And then a fireball hits Volpina square in the side, only for her to turn into an orange mist as well. Dragon Fyre swears - yes, she actually swears, something that does not usually happen despite her temper - and says "She must be heading for Adrien Agreste's place, she's got a thing for him. Hawk Moth made her a pseudo-Miraculous Holder! Just without the usual limits!"

Now Ladybug feels like swearing - because that is certainly swear-worthy, she's just glad he doesn't usually go so far with his Akumas. Cat Noir's voice sounds in their ears, saying he'll meet them there.

The two girls head over to the Agreste Mansion, and Ladybug yells over "Alright, so she probably does have enhanced strength, agility, etc. Anything else?"

Dragon Fyre says "Well, she might actually be able to fly thanks to that Akuma! Pretty sure an actual Fox Miraculous Holder wouldn't be able to, though."

"What's her deal, anyway?!" Marinette didn't like Lila, not in the slightest, but she doesn't have any kind of idea what might've happened to get her Akumatized.

They land on top of the Agreste Mansion, Cat Noir nowhere in sight, and Dragon Fyre gets a serious look on her face. "Spots, Rossi is…different. In the head. I…I don't know what, exactly, it is I do, but…I think I can read minds."

Ladybug stares at her best friend for a solid minute, Volpina completely forgotten as she tries to determine whether her best friend is lying to her or not. Though, the evidence…is pointing towards not - she knew about Bob Roth trying to promote XY using Jagged Stone, she knew Adrien hadn't put the gum on her seat…hell, she knew her secret identity right off the bat. "Have you ever read my mind?"

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "Everyone's. I can't shut it off, Spots. The most I can do is narrow it down to one person, whoever I'm focusing on at the time. It…It's like there's a ghost right above your head, and it's talking to. They all say different things, Miss Mendeleiev constantly rants about how she can't seem to drive lab safety through our heads, for instance, which is why I think they're saying people's thoughts. But Lila…she was constantly sizing people up and wondering how she could use them. Even Chloe isn't that self-centered, and almost every thought of hers is about herself. The rest are about Adrien. Lila, though, she…I can't explain it, Spots, but she lies to get everyone's attention and for the fun of it. She doesn't care about anyone but herself, and loves manipulating everyone around her. She's…she's a real piece of work, and I truly think even Chloe's better than her."

That, more than anything else, gets Ladybug's attention - her best friend can't stand Chloe Bourgeois, and for her to say someone they've only met today is worse than her? It says quite a lot.

After a minute, she sighs and says "We need to make a list of everything you noticed, then. We'll see if anything seems to fit after this. Spots, I think...I think that Akuma drove her crazy, you didn't see the look in her eyes back there. Cmon, Kitty, where are you?"

Dragon Fyre shrugs, and says "Admittedly, a lot of her lies don't seem that outlandish at first glance - we live in an age of daily miracles, with us and Hawk Moth's supervillains making appearances at least once a day. Add to it the detail that we've met Jagged Stone, Rose has Prince Ali's number and talks regularly with him…it doesn't sound that far-fetched at first glance…" Until you get to the part where Jagged Stone wrote a song for a child after she saved his kitten on an airplane runway, and her eardrum burst and left her with Tinnitus. That'd be when it gets into the realm of 'are you kidding me?!'

And then Ladybug gets fed up with waiting for Cat Noir when they see Volpina get in through the window, and they head in after the fox-fake.

Only for Dragon Fyre to freeze in horror when she sees Volpina's hand wrapped around Adrien Agreste's wrist.

Chapter Text

Cat Noir lands in his shower and transforms, and Plagg gives him the most disbelieving look he's ever seen. "Wouldn't Cat Noir be more useful in this situation?"

Adrien says "If Volpina has a thing for me, maybe I can use it to get her to see reason." Nathan did when he asked his sister out on a date, after all!

Plagg deadpans "Nino got Akumatized because he wanted to throw you a birthday party, Adrien. And Nathan got Akumatized because he was so thoroughly embarrassed by Chloe, and his crush on Bloom got outed to the entire class. That's different." Plus, Nathan's a gentle soul, even when Akumatized, and only went after Chloe because she humiliated him.

And then Plagg has to hide in his jacket, just in case the Akuma lets Volpina see him. Sure enough, Volpina lands in Adrien's room in maybe ten seconds, coming in through the window he likes to use to get out as Cat Noir.

"Um, hey…who are you?" Even if he didn't know, the way she gets so close to him would tell him soon enough - maybe he should've listened to Plagg, she didn't get nearly this close when he was Cat Noir. And she didn't have that creepy, crazed look in her eye. She 'introduces' herself as Volpina, saying she didn't know how to tell him she wasn't lying in the park.

And then Ladybug and Dragon Fyre leap in through the window, prompting Volpina to move directly in front of him and latch an iron grip on his arm. "Nobody's going to ruin our date this time!"

Adrien tries to get his wrist free from Volpina's painfully tight grip, even as he nervously says "S'cuse me, but it wasn't really a date, per se…" That grip nearly snaps his wrist in two right then, even as Volpina glares at him furiously, and he quickly backtracks "I mean, it could've become one, right? No need to get bent out of shape…"

In response, Volpina makes another illusion with that flute of hers to hide in. Adrien can practically hear Plagg's voice screaming 'I TOLD YOU SO!' from his jacket, and he'll probably get yelled at by his sister after this is all over, but now is not the time to lament a bad idea - hindsight, and all that.

Within a minute, they're…at the top of the Eiffel Tower. Hanging from the top of the Eiffel Tower, to be precise. By one of Volpina's hands, the other still wrapped around Adrien's undoubtedly bruised wrist. The look of absolute horror on both Ladybug and Dragon Fyre's faces doesn't make him feel much better, especially not with Volpina swinging him around wildly. "Give me your Miraculous', or I drop him!"

Ladybug yells "I thought you loved him!"

Volpina laughs crazily, and yells back "Not as much as I'd love seeing you two defeated!" She pulls Adrien up so she's face to face with him, and asks "No hard feelings, right?"

Yes, VERY hard feelings! Like a boulder!

She then holds him out and releases three of her fingers, leaving only her thumb and pinkie finger to hold him up - his Lady shouts for her to stop, but Adrien sincerely doubts she hears it past whatever it is Hawk Moth is saying as a purple butterfly outline appears over her face. Her face twists into an ugly sneer, as she asks "What do you care? I'm getting their Miraculous' just like you wanted, so what if he drops?"

And then Adrien's ripped straight out of Volpina's grasp, like his entire body was just gripped by a very large hand as he goes crashing straight into a new person he immediately grabs onto. And then his sister's voice snarls "Get him out of here, Spots! I'll take care of the Fox!" She's going to tear that little witch to SHREDS! NOBODY THREATENS TO KILL HER BROTHER!

When Adrien looks over, the look of utter fury on Dragon Fyre's face…he'd feel bad for Volpina if he wasn't shaking in his shoes right at the moment. Literally.

One of Ladybug's arms goes around his body, and the other throws her Yo-Yo to get the two of them well away from the beatdown that's undoubtedly about to happen. Adrien knows his sister well enough to know she's about to go off on Volpina - that look, that is comforting. There's probably something seriously wrong with him if he thinks his sister about to burn someone to ashes after she rips them apart is comforting.

They get to his room, and Ladybug asks "Are you alright, Adrien? Did she hurt you?" From the way he either won't or can't let go of her, she doesn't need an answer for the first question.

Adrien would try to deny it, but he's currently shaking like he's in an earthquake. And he seriously doubts that would convince his Lady that he's alright, no matter how steady his voice might be when he says as much. "Jus-Just my wrist…"

When Ladybug eases his jacket sleeve up, she sees there's already a dark purple bruise around his wrist - almost like a shackle, it's so wide. Adrien winces when she touches the area - not even that hard, she was being gentle! - and quickly says "It's probably just a sprain, it'll be fine…"

Ladybug winces, then says "I've had my share of those…probably happened when she was swinging you around so much."

Yeah, probably - her grip didn't help matters, though. After a minute, he says "You should get back to Volpina, right? I'll be fine, don't worry about me."

Guilt flashes across his Lady's face right then, and she says "You're right. Go find your Bodyguard, hide somewhere that's not here. With a little luck, the Miraculous Cure will fix your wrist to." Where in the world is Gabriel Agreste? You'd think his own son getting kidnapped out of his room would be something he'd show his face for! 

After Ladybug Yo-Yo's away, Plagg flies out and says "Let me see that wrist, kid." There's no room for argument in Plagg's voice, so Adrien just shows him the purple band under his hand. Plagg actually hisses, and says "Of all the…that girl is bad news, Adrien." If it wouldn't destroy the city, he'd consider Cataclysming that psychotic girl - unfortunately, it'd probably destroy the city.

Adrien nods, and says "I think that Akuma made her crazy, Plagg!" She wasn't that bad at school or in the park! And he can't think of anything besides getting outed and then Akumatized!

Plagg sighs, and says "A Miraculous…enhances things. Not just physical abilities, at that. Emotions, desires, all of it. You, for instance, have a lot more confidence as Cat Noir - confident enough to be a silly jokester, something you can't be as Adrien. You yelled at your father, remember?"

Adrien nods, and asks "You think the Akuma replicated that effect?"

"Yeah, kid, I do. I really do. Akumas tend to amplify emotions, at least the emotions your feeling when the Akuma affects you. She went from creepy to full-blown crazy." She must've been thinking about Adrien - or obsessing over him, plotting about him, something - when the Akuma found her. The Akuma - Hawk Moth, his Kitten's own father - turned her from a potential stalker to full-blown insanity.

And then they see Volpina leaping from roof to roof frantically, one of her fake ears on fire and her outfit burned, covered in soot, and looking scared out of her mind. "YOU LIKE THROWING KIDS OFF THE EIFFEL TOWER, YOU COWARD?! WHY DON'T YOU PICK ON SOMEONE YOUR OWN SIZE?!" Given the detail that there's a raging, blazing Dragon Fyre quite literally hot on her heels, they can't particularly blame her. Especially with the jet of flames they see - it must be fifteen feet long easily.

Plagg doesn't feel particularly inclined to go save the little liar - maybe he can convince Adrien to ice that hand some and have a slice of Camembert.

Dragon Fyre leaps forward as soon as Adrien's safely in Ladybug's arms and they yo-yo away, and snarls "Fox, meet Dragon." The Cure will fix that dent in the Tower...probably. And the piece she just tore off and threw at Volpina.

Volpina leaps off the tower, flying away almost desperately as the dragon-themed hero goes off on her. "Get back here, you coward!" Predictably, she doesn't - instead heading towards the city.

Oh, not a chance, Liar Rossi.

Dragon Fyre lands in the Trocadero, actually making an impact from the sheer force of the landing, and leaps up after the fleeing fox. It only takes about two more leaps to catch up, landing in front of Volpina like the meteor she faked. In response, Volpina plays her flute and makes about a hundred copies of herself. Before any of them can run off, though, Dragon Fyre unleashes an enormous jet of fire at them while growling out "Liar, liar, fox on fire." All but one Volpina disappears, the real one going flying backwards looking like she just ran through a wildfire.

By the time Ladybug gets to the fight, which has moved to the edge of the city by now thanks to Volpina's escape attempts, Volpina looks half-dead of heat stroke and the beatdown she's getting - and, honestly...she doesn't have much sympathy after the fake fox tried to drop Adrien off the Eiffel Tower. And her crush doesn't even factor into that, she'd feel the same way if it was Chloe in that position. Cat Noir lands next to Ladybug, who seems content to watch Dragon Fyre beat Volpina to a pulp for the moment - or, at the very least, let her blow off some steam. Honestly, though, they couldn't really stop her given the stunt the fake fox pulled - one of the first things Plagg warned him about was how all of Longg's Holders go off when what's theirs is threatened. And this Holder has fire magic to match her fiery temper.

"Cat Noir!" Ladybug's voice pulls the blonde from his thoughts, and he sees her expression quickly turning from annoyance to concern. He must still look rattled, then - either because of Hawk Moth's identity or Volpina's very real attempt to kill him, it doesn't make much difference in the end.

Seeing her expression, he says "Had a little trouble finding the mansion, having got turned around looking for Hawk Moth, but by the time I got there you were already gone and-"

She cuts him off by putting a hand over his, luckily his good hand, which he just now notices is still shaking. "What happened, Kitty? You can tell me."

No, he can't. He really, really can't. He can stand between her and an Akuma, has given his life for her more than once so she can finish the job, but he can't tell her just what exactly happened to scare him so much. He figures, if he actually had fur, it'd all be standing on end.

Her other hand moves to rest against his cheek, and he leans into her touch at once - she's all-business during an Akuma attack usually, even if both her and his sister hate it whenever he has to take a hit for her and Dragon Fyre will all-too-readily go off on an Akuma for it - like right now - so he selfishly wants as much as his Lady will give. He reaches up to hold the hand on his cheek, and says "Later, LB. After the Akuma's been purified."

Ladybug frowns at him, he can practically swim in the amount of concern he can see painted all over her face, but then she nods and says "This conversation isn't over, Kitty."

No, he knows it isn't…but he'd really like his sister to be there for it. If only for support. They try to catch up to Dragon Fyre and Volpina, and by the time they do it's basically a mercy for Volpina - and, when the Akuma is purified, it's fairly clear that Lila remembers something of when she was Akumatized. Mainly because she starts clinging to Ladybug like her life - still - depends on it.

Ladybug bites her bottom lip, then says "I'll get her back home, guys. Meet you later?" Much as she wants to corner her kitty and find out what's scared him this much - his eyes are dilated as wide as possible, and his tail was moving restlessly. She's never seen him like this, so not finding them at Adrien's place must've really scared him - if the way he holds onto Dragon Fyre even after she stops trying to get back to Volpina is any indication, anyway.

Cat Noir glances at his sister, then asks "How about tomorrow afternoon? You look drained, Sis." He's being a coward, he knows he is, but he'd like to postpone the discussion of 'Gabriel Agreste is apparently Hawk Moth' as long as possible. Maybe give his father a chance to explain just why he has a long-lost spellbook in a hidden safe. And, just maybe, see if there was anything else in there - something that might point to his father's innocence or guilt. He doesn't see Ladybug later, even with Plagg telling him he's got to face things sooner or later.

The very next day, though, he's wishing he'd just found Ladybug and told her everything.

Chapter Text

Bloom and Marinette get into school the next day, and the first thing they hear is that Lila has gone on a trip with her mother - a high-ranking diplomat in the Italian embassy, according to Lila.

Marinette murmurs "Maybe you went a little too hard on her..." She's only saying it to see what Bloom will say, though. She doesn't know what she or Cat Noir would have done if it was Bloom that had been in that position, and she's not eager to find out.

Judging from Bloom's smirk, she can tell.

The next thing they hear is Chloe wailing brokenheartedly when they open the classroom door. Bloom goes stiff as a board about ten seconds into the room, even as Marinette asks what's wrong, and feels horror fill her up. Because Adrien was grounded for life because he took a majorly-important book from his father and was pulled from school. Her own phone buzzes suddenly, and she looks down to see a text that turns all that horror to ice.

SOH, he's on a rampage.

She quickly gets out of the room, ignoring Marinette's questioning glance, and immediately calls her brother.

Adrien jumps a mile in the air when his phone suddenly buzzes, and he almost frantically answers.

"Adrien, what's going on?" If he didn't think things were bad enough, the worry in his sister's tone would make it even worse - her worries usually turn out to be valid, and considering the detail that Hawk Moth is currently furious with him...he doesn't even want to imagine it.

Adrien quickly says "He has the safe watched by a camera, he knew I took the book. It didn't matter that I gave it back, or that I just wanted to know more about him. Sis, he's..." Adrien trails off when he hears a crashing sound.

Bloom's voice comes over the line, sharply asking "Adrien, what was that? Do I need to come over and get you?" She would, he knows she would in a heartbeat. Rather, two phrases.

Plagg flies down, saying he'll check things out discretely, only to come flying back up at once with a panicked expression. "He's smashing stuff in the foyer. Either it's a setup of some kind, or he really is that furious." Either he's setting the stage to try and convince them he's gotten Akumatized, or he's genuinely in a 'destroy-everything-in-reach' mood. Hard to tell, what with how emotionless Gabriel Agreste usually is, but neither is preferable to the Kwami. He's seen how the guy treats his own son, and it's borderline abusive - emotionally, at least. And that's when Adrien's done nothing wrong, or when his 'crime' is minor. This...this isn't minor - Adrien has potentially revealed his secret identity, and there's no telling just what Hawk Moth will do because of it.

He's already abusive to his Kwami, after all - forcing him to go against his purpose, desires, and instinct on a daily basis, misusing his powers to turn people into supervillains against the Kwami's wishes and probable pleading - so what would his son be to him? It makes Plagg want to Cataclysm him in his sleep, even more so than before anyway, and this may well be the last straw.

Once he repeats what Plagg just said, Bloom says "Get out of there, Adrien. Right now. Or I'll come and get you out." Point of fact, she's already looking for a place to hide and transform.

Plagg says "Transform, hide nearby, and I'll close the window with your remote to throw them off." If his kitten's father really is Hawk Moth, then there's no way in hell he's letting the man anywhere near Adrien again. Especially not like this.

Biting back the temptation to Cataclysm the house around Gabriel Agreste's ears once Adrien does as he was told, he phases into the room again and closes the window he just got his Cat out through. He heads back out to Adrien, they transform back into Cat Noir, and soon they're back at Master Fu's shop as it's the only place Plagg can think to take Adrien. Between the detail that Agreste Sr. almost certainly doesn't even know the place exists and Wayzz's protective influence, it's the best hiding spot in the city from the man.

Thirty minutes later, Dragon Fyre appears in the back room Adrien's hiding in - Master Fu, Wayzz, and Plagg assure him Hawk Moth can't find him here, thanks to Wayzz's power of protection and the detail that they're all the way across the city, but nothing seems to reassure him quite like his ultra-powerful sister. Maybe because she's more than capable of making various problems disappear with a literal snap of her fingers. Or because she'd be taking his father's head off if he so much as raised a finger against him.

Without even thinking about it, Adrien wraps his arms around his sister and says "He's so mad, Sis. He's so, so mad…if he weren't Hawk Moth, I'd worry about him getting Akumatized." And, since he is Hawk Moth, he's genuinely scared about what the man will do to keep his identity a secret.

Plagg off-handedly says "It's possible for Nooroo's Holder to Akumatize themselves, actually. Or have Nooroo Akumatize them. Not recommended, since boosting someone who already has superpowers is highly dangerous and unpredictable, but it is possible. Especially since he's an adult."

At their looks, Master Fu says "Adult Miraculous Holders aren't limited by a five-minute timer as you are. Among other things, an adult can feed a Kwami their energy during a fight to stay transformed with no risk to the Holder. much like you do, Bloom, with your magic." There's also the distinct possibility that he'll order Nooroo to Akumatize him.

Ladybug comes into the back room about an hour later, only to find her two partners having tea with the old man who healed Tikki. And, if possible, Cat Noir looks even worse than yesterday - eyes dilated so much she can hardly see anything but black, arms wrapped around Dragon Fyre, and his hair is actually puffed out like a scared cat. If she wasn't worried before, what with Bloom suddenly ditching school and then texting her to meet her at the 'Kwami-vet' as she put it...she'd be worried now. As it is, she's beyond worried now - something's up, something's scared her partner almost to shaking, and she'll gladly help Dragon Fyre make it disappear. As much as she complains about her kitty's timing with the flirting, she does care about him greatly - she couldn't do this without her partners, both her partners, and if she has to fight for them then she'll gladly pick up a more combat-focused Miraculous to help her do so.

After getting a jaw-dropping explanation about the 'vet's' actual identity - a 186-year-old man who was selected as a child to train with a mysterious and secretive Order of the Guardians for the sole task of guarding the Miraculous', up until a mistake he made accidentally destroyed the temple and resulted in both the Peacock and Butterfly Miraculous' loss along with the spellbook sitting on the table, leaving him the last remaining Guardian - Ladybug asks "Why now?"

Master Fu asks "Why now? Why now what?"

"Why are we meeting you now?" Why didn't he at least give them an address to go to if they had questions?!

Dragon Fyre grimaces, and says "I wanted to drag you two to meet him months ago, either together or separately. He insisted otherwise, though. Something about pasta and water that's not yet boiling - he likes his metaphors, by the way."

Wayzz says "It wasn't the right time for the two of you to meet Master Fu. Dragon Fyre knew who he was from the very beginning."

At their questioning looks, Dragon Fyre deadpans "I kept him from getting mugged by four thugs with a knife that morning before Ivan was Akumatized. He gave me the Dragon Miraculous and said I'd be getting two partners very soon."

Ladybug murmurs "Sounds like the kind of meeting you'd remember. When did I meet you, Sir?"

Master Fu hands her a cup of tea, saying "You saved me from getting hit by a car, Ladybug. And Cat Noir aided me when others simply passed by. That was when I knew you two would be perfect Miraculous Holders."

Ladybug asks "Alright…so, what are we doing here?"

Dragon Fyre puts a hand on Cat Noir's knee, even as his breathing hitches suddenly, then turns to Ladybug and says "We know who Hawk Moth is."

Ladybug accidentally inhales her drink, and starts coughing at once. Because, what?!

After she's recovered, she asks "Who?! And how?!"

Dragon Fyre takes a deep breath, and says "Gabriel Agreste." Ladybug promptly loses all color in her face, but Dragon Fyre continues before she can say anything. "His son brought the spellbook over there to his school yesterday, not knowing just what it was he had. I managed to replace it with a copy, but apparently he's got the hidden safe watched by cameras."

After a couple swallows, Ladybug asks "Your sure Adrien has nothing to do with…any of this?" She can't imagine it, she can't see Adrien - sweet, polite, thoughtful Adrien - working with Hawk Moth for some unknown reason. Chloe, maybe, but not Adrien.

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "Gabriel Agreste's actions are his own, he didn't involve Adrien in any of it." Master Fu did, but she's omitting that particular detail for the time being.

Cat Noir mutters "He'd have run off if he'd known…"

Ladybug asks "You alright, Cat Noir?" He's not, she knows he's not, but she needs to get him talking somehow. She's not Bloom, she's not a mindreader - though, right now, she wishes she were simply so she'd know how to help her kitty.

Cat Noir gives her the fakest smile she's ever seen from her feline-themed partner, and says "Yeah, LB, just personal stuff going on." From her reaction, he figures she was ready to hate him as Adrien because of his father's actions as Hawk Moth.

And then the news comes on, only for Nadja Chamack to disappear in a flash of a book. And then an Akuma appears, calling himself 'the Collector' and saying he'll fill his new book of inspiration with everyone else's lives after his old one was stolen.

Ladybug and Cat Noir gasp, and Dragon Fyre groans. "Aaaand he's trying to throw us off…" At their confused looks, she asks "What better way to throw us off his trail than to Akumatize himself, making him look like one of his own victims?"

Ladybug asks "What if we ambush him? Take his Miraculous when he least expects it?"

Master Fu immediately says "No. The Miraculous' are not meant to be used in such a way." At all three looks, he says "The Miraculous' are meant to be used for good, not for underhanded or devious purposes. I understand the appeal of striking when Hawk Moth least expects it, but I cannot condone such an action."

Dragon Fyre groans, then says "Alright, then. No sneak-attacks or ambushes, got it." Both her partners get what she's not saying - Hawk Moth's a coward, he hides behind his Akumatized victims instead of facing them himself.

They'll need a miracle to get the Butterfly Miraculous unless he tries something big, if they continue on like they have been. A sneak attack might not be the most honorable way, but it may well be the only way to get his Miraculous at this rate. They've yet to even see him in the suit, bar that one time with the butterflies - and that doesn't really count, since it was a message through a hundred butterflies over the Eiffel Tower.

Cat Noir glances at the TV, which has turned to static since the camera was presumably 'collected' as well, and says "Let's get to the bottom of this."

Ladybug frowns at her partner - she knew he was off yesterday, since he didn't crack a pun or flirt with her even once the entire time, and it seems like nothing's gotten better. She'll have to ask what's bothering her Kitty again after this is over. And, then, she won't take 'later' for an answer.

Chapter Text

Cat Noir, Ladybug, and Dragon Fyre get to the Agreste mansion, only to find the main hall is a complete mess - someone, likely Gabriel Agreste, absolutely trashed it. Busts knocked to the ground, pictures destroyed, glass shards everywhere, even the furniture didn't escape his wrath.

Ladybug gasps at the carnage, while Cat Noir stares at a picture he drew at seven-years-old for his father sadly - ripped to shreds, like the man wanted to rip him apart - Dragon Fyre, meanwhile, frowns at the entire room. It seems…perfect….too perfect, actually.

And then she makes a shield around them, making it too solid to see through in case the man can read lips, and asks "What if this is all staged?" There's no way Agreste Sr. hasn't got cameras all over the place, and she does not want him hearing or seeing this.

Both her partners blink and look at her, and Ladybug asks "What?"

"What if he faked all of it? The anger, the destruction…I think all of it is to put on a show for us…and this is his stage."

Cat Noir wishes he could say his sister is wrong, but…his father is wicked-smart. He seemed furious, and started demolishing everything in the room…but, since he's Hawk Moth…it was probably all just an act, possibly to convince him if there are any questions asked later on. Him taking the book and then the older man getting Akumatized is probably just a convenient excuse to cover himself and keep his identity from getting out.

The detail that he's never seen his father particularly emotional after his mother disappeared - hasn't seen his father much at all after his mother disappeared, really - makes it all the more plausible. Fake getting angry, Akumatize himself, pretend to be a disoriented victim if they manage to beat him. And, if they don't...well, he wouldn't need to pretend, he'd have their Miraculous' anyway.

Ladybug's eyes widen, and she says "If we pretend to believe he's not Hawk Moth…" They'll have an advantage over him, he'll eventually get cocky and slip up. Right?

Before any of them can complete the thought, though, there's a thumping sound and they look over to see the Collector standing there with his book in hand once the shield is lightened.

Dragon Fyre drops the shield as he says "Ah, Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Dragon Fyre. How nice of you to join my collection!" He throws his book at them, and they all leap out of the way and start fighting.

The fight is one of the most frustrating they've ever had, mainly because that book of his is ridiculously fast and moves much like a cross between a homing missile and a boomerang. Oh, and he can call it back to his hand if he loses it - Cat Noir manages to kick it out of his hand, but before they can react he'd already summoned it.

Collector backs Cat Noir into a wall, but when he gets the book a mere inch from the blonde boy ropes made out of fire suddenly wrap around his arm and torso. "You're a shit parent, Agreste, you know that right?"

Cat Noir rolls out of the way as his father gets thrown into the nearby staircase much like a ragdoll, and Ladybug joins him as Dragon Fyre starts going off. Cat Noir mutters "Something tells me she's wanted to do this for a while, M'Lady…"

Ladybug nods, saying "Oh, you've no idea. I've got an idea for how to beat him, though." Cat Noir stares at her expectantly - when his Lady or his sister comes up with a plan, it's almost guaranteed to be a success. "What if we complete his collection?"

"You have a son who thinks the world of you, who would move heaven, hell, and everything in between to make you proud of him, yet you blew up at him over a damned book?!"

Cat Noir and Ladybug cautiously peek their heads over the top of the banister, having leapt to the second floor to regroup, and they see Dragon Fyre advancing on Collector while flinging broken bits and pieces of stuff into his book with flicks of her wrists. She is mad, and even Gabriel Agreste isn't stupid enough to not go on defense when she's on fire like this. Literally on fire, at that.

Ladybug calls down "Keep him distracted, I've got an idea!" They don't stick around to see if she acknowledges that, just head to Adrien's room to find more ammunition to fill that damned book with. To Cat Noir's horror, his bed is gone, along with the piano - did Collector come in looking for him? To collect him?!

Dragon Fyre keeps flinging broken items up as Collector keeps throwing his book at her, fury running through her veins as hot as the fire she can make, and yells "My parents were always busy before they were murdered, my mom started up her flower shop from scratch when I was four and my father was a fireman! They both worked long hours, he was eternally on call at any given time, yet they always made time for me!" Her mom would pack her lunch and drive her to school every day, and her dad would tuck her in every night he was there to do so. They told her every damned day they loved her, and she misses them desperately.

So Gabriel Agreste, with his 'inability' to even have a breakfast with his son…he really pisses her off. And that was before she found out he's Hawk Moth. All those times he'd flake on Adrien, the times when he'd do something cruel such as destroying Simon Grimault's chance on that game show, he was making Akumas. He decided being a magical terrorist was more important than his son. He decided to put his son in danger instead of spending time with him when he could.

She's going to rip him to shreds, with words then her sword, and if the Miraculous Cure doesn't put him back together then too damn bad. She doesn't have it in her to care, right this instant.

"Yet you, the owner of a multi-million-dollar fashion company who sets his own damned hours, can't even be bothered to have breakfast with your son or see him out the door! You barely spend any time whatsoever with him, and then it's only ever to express your disappointment in him! You leave him alone day after day, not even bothering to ask him how his day went, and then you dare to get upset about some stupid book?!" It's why he ran on Christmas, why he spends so much time with her, why they latched onto each other so fast. Once they've hit eighteen, they plan on moving in somewhere together - become roommates in an apartment, perhaps. Anything to not be alone.

Collector gets out of the way of another fireball, internally wincing when it goes straight through the wall and leave a large scorch mark around the hole. He doesn't know what exactly his son means to her, or how much she actually knows of their relationship, but what she does know is far too worrying. Especially given the detail that it seems personal for her - dead parents who loved her, so she apparently takes great offence when someone else's doesn't outwardly show that they do. "It's none of your business, little girl!"

Call it a hunch, but he's betting the three thorns in his side are teenagers. They don't seem that tall, after all - and, knowing the effect the Miraculous has on a person's appearance and how it's concealed by magic when in the suit, he can rather safely guess that their heights are because they haven't finished growing. It's as disconcerting as it is frustrating, to have a decent guess that he's fighting teenagers, children, and still lose to them on a daily basis.

Even if one of them has magic unlike anything Nooroo can tell him about in any kind of detail - the most the Kwami can say is that she seems similar to a long-lost island of magical ladies that originally created the Miraculous' at the Kwamis' request so they could interact with the world.

Dragon Fyre continues to tear into him, somehow making the grown man feel about two inches tall by the time she's through, and then leaps up onto the second floor and lures him to Adrien's room. He's then bombarded by a veritable mountain of cd's, forcing him to 'collect' them so he doesn't get buried underneath them. Or have his eyes taken out by one heading straight for his head, which was likely Dragon Fyre's work. And then, the book gets ripped out of his hands as soon as it's filled and Cat Noir promptly shreds it with his claws.

Ladybug purifies the Akuma and it flies out - the three heroes promptly split, as soon as possible without seeming suspicious, two of them going to transform soon and the third having places to be. After listening to Gabriel Agreste 'panic' about his son's whereabouts and how he's not in the room after the Ladybugs put everything back to normal.

In actuality, they meet up a few rooftops away, Dragon Fyre having recharged their Miraculous' before he got into the bedroom. "It's definitely him. He kept going on and on about his plan and how it worked perfectly as he was talking about his son." About how precious Adrien is to him, about how nothing can happen to him. It made her want to deck him hard enough to eat some teeth and demand to know where that's been all this time, what with how many Akumas originate in his own classroom. She wanted to toss their idea of leading him into slipping up, and it was only the knowledge that Adrien is Cat Noir that kept her from doing so. Plagg might act like he doesn't care, after several previous Holders let the power go to their heads, but from what he's said he's grown extremely attached to Adrien - and the Millennia-old Kwami won't let anything happen to him if he can stop it.

Ladybug bites her bottom lip, then asks "At least we know, right?" It might be agony, but it's better than not knowing.

Cat Noir sighs, looking out over the city towards the Agreste mansion, and says "Yeah, at least we know."

Ladybug frowns, and opens her mouth intent on getting Cat Noir to spill about whatever's been bothering him all this time, but Dragon Fyre shakes her head and says "Not this time, Spots. This isn't something even the Cure could fix."

Ladybug frowns even more, then puts a hand on her kitty's shoulder and says "if there's anything I can do…" Cat Noir shakes his head, even as he puts his hand over hers.

Dragon Fyre waits until Ladybug's gone back home, then says "Brother, look at me. We can do this."

Cat Noir looks at her, and whispers "I don't think we can, Sis. I don't think I can."

And then he's turned so he's facing her, and Dragon Fyre says "Yes you can. Because the both of us are going to help you every step of the way."

He'll have to pretend every single day that he doesn't know his father is Hawk Moth. He'll have to force down his feelings about the man all the time - the betrayal, the disgust, the all of it all the time. It sounds impossible, it feels so much more than impossible. He thinks he might just break within a week.

Dragon Fyre seems to know exactly what he's thinking, though, because she says "Just think of it as another mask, Adrien. Just like the ones you have to wear all the time. Instead of 'model son with perfect grades' it's 'unsuspecting model son with perfect grades.'"

Cat Noir lets out a wet chuckle, sounding like even he doesn't believe that - she tried, at least - and says "If only it was that easy, sis."

"Hey, look at me, Brother." When Cat Noir looks over again, he sees one of her most serious expressions - the same one she had when she came running up to him in the park, the same one she had when they told Ladybug Hawk Moth's identity. "We're going to make this work. You're not alone for this. You've got me. You've got Ladybug. And Nino, your best friend. Even Chloe would side with you if this came out."

Cat Noir runs a shaking hand down his face, and says "I know…" His sister made it a point to drive it through his thick skull after the Christmas incident, how many people care about him. A point as sharp as her sword, at that. Still, that doesn't mean it's going to be easy.

Plagg's voice in his head, saying he'll gladly be on Akuma-watch if he ever needs some time to just feel, makes him feel a bit better though. As does the knowledge that his sister would undoubtedly be right there with him, burning any butterflies Plagg misses.

They…they'll find a way through this, somehow. Likely with his sister blasting and burning a path herself, if he's being entirely truthful.

When he gets back to his house as Adrien, after Dragon Fyre assures him that she'll hide him away with her if it gets to that point, what follows is probably the hardest thing he's ever had to do - and that includes hearing his father tell him his mother is missing.

He stands there, and he says what he did 'wrong' - maybe he shouldn't have taken it without permission, yes, but there was no possible way he could've known it was so important to the man he barely recognized as his father before learning he's Hawk Moth! - and dredges up his sadness over the reminder of his mother - how dare he say that book was a gift from his mom?! Even if it does make for a convincing reason as to why he went off like that, it's no excuse for trying to guilt-trip him like that!

Hugging the man when he says Adrien is allowed to go back to school once more makes him want to be physically sick - preferably all over Gabriel's expensive clothes - but he forces the urge back in favor of wondering if his sister managed to wring this out of the cold-hearted man with her rant to him about how he's such a terrible father.

Thankfully, he's back at school the next day - out of that house, somewhere filled with people where he can slip away if necessary - and gets literally swarmed by everyone that missed him yesterday. Chloe jumps him, wrapping around him like an octopus and burying her face in his neck like she's trying not to cry.

Nino hugs him as well, saying they heard about Collector and they were all worried after seeing Nathalie's picture on a page right before the screen went black.

Marinette greets him and says she's glad he's back. With her face bright red, even as she stammers and looks away.

Bloom, though, just grins as she says "Good to see you, Sunshine. You doing alright?" Translation: how is it going, and do you need me to hide you away?

Adrien gives her a smile, and says "I'm alright. Better than yesterday, anyway."

Relief flashes across her face for a moment, and then they're all heading to classes.

Chapter Text

"You think Akumatizing Nino was some sick, twisted, roundabout way of giving me permission to have that party? After all, far as he knows, Adrien Agreste couldn't defend himself whatsoever against an Akuma." Cat Noir stares up at his sister's head, even as she scans the area for an Akuma - it's been a week since they discovered who Hawk Moth is, and every single day since the blonde boy comes to a new realization about the situation - everything from how he's apparently using Chloe to create Akumatizations, to how several of the events he's funded only to have them spectacularly fail at the last minute in a way nobody could trace to him, to how he keeps flaking whenever there's an Akuma around to how he's killed Adrien several dozen times already.

Ergo, every day they've met up at night, either during a patrol or on the top of the Eiffel Tower where nobody without a Miraculous could get to, so he can vent and talk things out and try not to have a complete meltdown. At the moment, his head is resting in her lap as she runs her fingers through his hair while he talks.

After a minute, Dragon Fyre hums and says "Somehow, I don't think he thought the Bubbler through all the way. Heck, I don't think he thinks half his Akumas through. Mr. Pigeon, for instance."

A grimace flits across Cat's face, and he nods after a moment. Lady Wi-Fi didn't recognize them, Mr. Pigeon apparently has no point despite being Akumatized the most times out of anyone, Mime was practically homicidal, and Volpina tried to drop him off the Eiffel Tower.

Shit, Volpina tried to drop him off the Eiffel Tower. Did his father even know about that?! Did he even care about that?!

Cat Noir bolts upright into a sitting position, heart suddenly pounding even as he tries to calm down and listen to his sister's voice. At least they aren't on the Tower tonight, having picked an abandoned rooftop for the night. Then he finds himself spun around, facing his very worried sister as she promptly encases them in a shield that'll burn any Akuma Hawk Moth sends for him. Figuring she's probably on the edge of magically forcing air into his lungs, he tries to even out his ragged breathing and respond to what she's saying - because she's currently telling him he needs to breathe, and she's very willing to pump air in and out of his lungs if need be. "No…no need for that, Sis. Just…Volpina, is all."

The expression on his sister's face looks lethal for a moment, but then she nods and says "Yeah. Up on the tower. It's why I went on a rampage on her."

Cat Noir lets out a semi-hysterical laugh, and says "Unleash the dragon!" He then doubles over laughing, even as Dragon Fyre puts a hand on his shoulder to keep him from toppling over the side of the building. He spares a thought to acknowledge the detail that it's almost certainly a blessing in disguise that his sister is an emotional freight train - she'll go off like an actual dragon when necessary, but she won't judge when someone's on the edge of an emotional breakdown.

And, for all his acting skills…Adrien's usually exhausted after every single day spent repressing his emotions about Gabriel Agreste. If he didn't have this, he'd go insane, he knows it.

After he stops laughing, she just asks "Got it all out of your system?"

Cat Noir nods, accepting the pastry that gets placed into his hands after seeing the bag of them she's taking another one out of - he knows a Dupain-Cheng pastry, after Marinette's brought some to school for the class, and they. Are. Delicious. Deciding to get his thoughts off Hawk Moth for a moment, he asks "You still doing alright, Sis?"

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "I am. Mari's offered to have me model clothes more times than I can count, and if I didn't know her parents are the type to shove plates of snacks up in her room whenever she's got friends over I'd swear she told them a bit about where all the leftovers are going." Heck, she still might've.

Cat Noir chuckles, and says "Everyday Ladybug indeed…"

Dragon Fyre smirks, and says "The rest of the class came up with that all on their own." Doesn't make it any less true, though. Doesn't make it any less hilarious either, that they came to the correct conclusion and don't even know it.

Cat Noir hums, then says "She's a good friend. If I didn't know any better…I'd think she might be Ladybug." The detail that his sister doesn't say anything, to either confirm or deny that idea, speaks volumes - she was quick to deny that Chloe was Ladybug, along with how Lila Rossi wasn't a Fox Miraculous Holder, but her silence on Marinette being Ladybug is more confirmation than anything else. Still, he won't ask…he wants it to be Ladybug's decision to tell him.

If he gets to such a low point that she thinks it's necessary, though…well, they'll deal with that when they come to it. If he gets to that point, he'll probably just beg her to tell him - he'll regret it sometime later, he's sure, but that's beside the point.

At his pointed look, Dragon Fyre says "Really, Brother, I'm fine. I'm more worried about you right now."

Cat Noir just shrugs, and says "I hardly ever see him. I see my bodyguard more than either him or Nathalie, honestly."

Dragon Fyre scowls for a moment, then says "If you ever get the urge to run away again, go to either Mari or I, Brother." He quickly nods, not wanting to test her on the threat of skinning his hide. She might actually go through with it, if he gets her genuinely furious enough, before healing him. After a minute, she reluctantly says "We've got that test tomorrow for Mendeleiev's class, unfortunately. I'll finish up with patrol, kitty. If you don't want to go back to the mansion just yet…you could drop by Mari's." And this isn't even her trying to help her best friend and brother along, Marinette's the kindest person she knows here in Paris. Even without knowing Cat Noir's alter-ego as her school-crush, she'd still help him however she could.

Cat Noir tilts his head, considering the idea - Marinette has always been kind to the point of awe-inspiring in him, once he really got to know her after the whole misunderstanding with the gum. Plus, she does know Cat Noir - he saved her from Gamer, after all.

So…she most likely wouldn't turn him away.

Heck, she might even be willing to bring up some Macaroons.

Mind made-up, Cat Noir grins and says "Done. See you tomorrow, Super-Sis." Dragon Fyre gives him a small smile, which he returns with a kiss on the cheek, then leaps away and gets back to Patrol for the night.

Marinette's putting the finishing touches on a commission Penny Rolling sent her and Bloom - Bloom made the base piece, everything from the material itself to the cutting and stitching, she somehow even had a piece of fabric over it marked with every metal stud and design-work, helped immensely by a mannequin of Jagged Stone she made with magic, so all she has to do is follow the layout they came up with and Bloom magically created - a new jacket, vaguely reminiscent of Cat Noir. Apparently, Jagged Stone is a fan of their cat-themed partner - and wouldn't that make his day, hearing his favorite star is a fan of his? She's almost tempted to tell him, just to see the look on his face.

And then there's a tapping on the trapdoor, and she opens it up after Tikki hides to see…none other than Cat Noir.

Marinette plasters what's hopefully an awestruck look on her face, asking "Cat Noir?" He doesn't look like he knows she's Ladybug, he looks…as down in the dumps as he's looked ever since the Volpina incident, actually. He's tried to hide it, with fake grins and taking off almost as soon as the daily Akuma is dealt with, but she knows her kitty well enough to know that whatever it is he's been wrestling with isn't something trivial. He hasn't even called her 'Bugaboo' once since the Collector incident - and that alone is a big warning sign to her, if her silly kitty isn't even making an attempt at flirting with her something is up.

And now Dragon Fyre sent him over…either she's really worried, or she's trying to set us up together.

Marinette's betting on the former, though. Cat Noir doesn't look like he's in the mood for a romantic confession, hasn't been in the mood for one for days now.

Cat Noir nods, a lonely look on his face as he asks "You too busy for some company, Miss Video Game Champ? My sister's out on Patrol, and Ladybug isn't in uniform tonight. But…I really can't stay home right now." Marinette frowns, and just for a moment he thinks she's going to brush him off like his father and Nathalie do all the time.

Right up until she opens the door wider, saying "Come on in, I'll grab some of the leftover cookies. Just don't touch the jacket, it's not done yet." Dear Kwamis, secret identity or no, I NEED to find out where he lives and knock some sense into people with my yo-yo.

Cat Noir nods at once, heading to the Chaise lounge in the corner while Marinette heads downstairs for a plate of cookies. After a minute, she comes back up with a concerned look on her face and a heaping plate of cookies and pastries.

After putting the plate in his hand, she asks "Everything alright? Did something happen?" She knows something happened, but she knows as Ladybug and not Marinette - ergo, Marinette has to ask. At least he might be more willing to open up to Marinette, might see her as a safer confidant since he doesn't know she's Ladybug. Not for the first time does she curse the detail that they can't know each other's secret identities, 

Cat Noir sighs, and asks "You ever idolize someone, think the world of them…only to discover something terrible about them? Something that shatters your whole view of them?" He still can't even bring himself to think about Gabriel Agreste as his father without wanting to be sick - he's the son of a monster, then. He's better off with the man as a complete stranger, with no connection to him whatsoever. It's better for his sanity, at least.

Marinette does, as a matter of fact - she looked up to Gabriel Agreste as her idol, wanted to be as successful in the fashion industry as he is. So the news that he's Hawk Moth…it was devastating to her, and that's without factoring in the detail that his son is her crush. She nods, and slowly says "Yeah, I do, as a matter of fact. You know Gabriel Agreste, the famous fashion designer?"

Cat Noir's head snaps up so suddenly she seriously worries he might get whiplash, and he asks "Yeah, why?" Why is Marinette bringing up him?! Does she know?! She can't know, there's no way she could know... And his sister wouldn't tell Marinette, both to protect her from the man and to keep their identities safe.

Marinette quietly says "Well, I looked up to him for years. Idolized him, actually. I've been designing stuff since I was ten, and I'd hoped that, maybe someday, he'd notice me, maybe make me an intern or something. His designs were incredible, and his brand is wildly successful all over the globe, I…I wanted to do it to, to inspire people with clothing like his clothes inspired me. And then his son started going to school…"

Cat Noir listens as Marinette keeps talking, saying how she didn't even know who he actually was when she first heard of him - she was more interested in his father than him, only knew him as one of the company's models, shockingly enough. How he opened up to her when he gave her the umbrella - which she still has, it's hanging on a hook on the wall! - how he's so much more than what he acts like in public but can't show it often.

"I thought it'd be amazing at first, having my favorite fashion designer's son in my class. But…he always seems so lonely. Not when he's talking with Nino, yeah, but…when it's time to go home he just looks…dejected. Like that's the highlight of his day. If school is the best part of his day, what's the rest like? And his dad, he's a total flake when it comes to him. He couldn't even have his assistant show up with that tablet for career day, or let him have a birthday party. It was only when Nino got Akumatized and sent all the adults away that he got to have one. He's…not the kind of person I thought he was." All of which is true, leaving out the detail that she knows the cold man is Hawk Moth.

The two of them end up sitting together on the chaise lounge, the plate of sweets half-eaten as Marinette shows him her design sketchbook. "So, wait, you two have a brand?! Like, the entire deal? The outfits, the clients, all of it?" He's absolutely amazed, he knows the kind of work his father had to work to make his brand successful, and Bloom and Marinette are managing as teenagers!

Marinette nods, and says "So far, it's only Jagged Stone and Penny Rolling. But…according to Penny, Jagged's planning something." She's texted them the date and time of his next concert, which is soon, and said to watch. It's as good as if she'd said he's going to do something.

Cat Noir looks at her in absolute amazement, and says "You're incredible, you know that? Like my Lady once said, simply Miraculous."

Marinette blushes brightly, not able to meet his earnest green gaze - made even more intense by the detail that his eyes actually glow in the night, does he realize that? - and says "It's nothing much, really. Not yet, anyway…"

Cat Noir turns her face back to his, saying "Nope. This is amazing, Marinette. You're amazing, you and Bloom both. If these designs were sent to any high-end designer, they'd be out in a month and a hit." He would know, he's been doing the Catwalk since he could actually walk.

They keep talking and snacking on pastries until Marinette's eyes start to drift closed, and Cat Noir picks her up gently and sets her on her bed whispering "Thanks for the company, Princess. This Alley Cat's gotta get going, though." He hears her murmur a goodbye, and is out the trapdoor with a whispered goodbye.

Finally realizing there's more than one piece of cheese in the world?

Cat Noir blushes, then quietly says "Says the one who's addicted to Camembert cheese. And refuses to eat anything else unless its an emergency."

Hey, there's nothing wrong with having more than one pot on the stove!

Plagg makes sure to not even think about the detail that his kitten is successfully falling for the same person two times in a row. He'd wonder if Plan B was enacted tonight, but that would also be heard by Adrien. He can only hope it doesn't come down to Cataclysming the mansion and getting his Kitten out from the resulting rubble.

Chapter Text

About two weeks after the Collector incident, Bloom's mentally relaxing for a minute as Tom Dupain-Cheng shows everyone how he puts cream in the chocolate ganache to make it extra velvety - if there was only ever one class there's no risk of someone being akumatized in, it's a Dupain-Cheng baking lesson. Mainly because everyone gets to eat what they made afterwards. She leans over to Marinette's ear, and whispers "I love it when your father comes to the school and gives baking lessons." She loves the pastries, she loves the detail that she doesn't have to worry about any of her classmates getting upset and running out only to come back as the next Akuma, and as of recently she loves that it takes Adrien's mind off his father's terrorist alter-ego. It's an all-around win in her book, and the detail that they all get to keep what they make is a bonus.

Even if Marinette's planning on giving hers to her best friend to - and Adrien's planning on splitting his with her! As much as she loves that they're concerned, and appreciates the effort...even she can only eat so many Macaroons at once!

Marinette giggles, and says "So does he." Not only is it great advertising for the business, he genuinely loves it. And she fully plans on stuffing her Macaroons into Bloom's bag the instant they're alone for more than a minute. Which, from Bloom's sideways glance at her, she knows.

The only person that isn't thrilled about the class is Chloe, who's complaining about how she won't be getting her hands dirty baking and risk splashing herself and ruin her Chanel pants. What a surprise, as per usual.

Whatever, not even Chloe Bourgeois at her very finest can bring down their moods right now.

Bloom and Marinette trade eye-rolls, more for them after everything's said and done - including the extra batter, since Bloom can absolutely sneak the bowls away, save the extra batter, and share it with Mari and Tikki up in her room above the bakery.

And then the two girls notice Chloe dialing on her phone, and she talks on it for a moment before hanging up. Bloom internally groans, because you've gotta be kidding - Chloe is such a brat. Why she feels she has to go and ruin a perfectly enjoyable activity she doesn't even need to participate in, though, is beyond Bloom. If she doesn't want to make anything, she can just go sit at a desk! She'd think it would take more effort to ruin everyone else's day than to just not participate!

Tom finishes the Emulsion, and sends Marinette to the cafeteria to put it in the fridge for half an hour. As soon as Marinette's out of the room, Tikki comes flying out - she's been all but drooling about the macaroons, having an enormous sweet tooth, and wants to get a taste. The only thing that's been stopping her is the detail that Cat Noir is in the room as well, and would definitely see her...and the detail that everyone else would notice the batter suddenly splashing out of nowhere.

Rather, she wants to dive headfirst into that bowl and go from there. Probably swim a bit, mouth open - Kwamis don't need to breathe, after all.

Before she can attempt to do so, though, the fire alarm goes off - meaning she needs to get back in Marinette's jacket or purse before they accidentally get separated. Tom says he hopes its just a drill as the students all file past, but Bloom sees the self-satisfied smirk on Chloe's face and just knows otherwise.

All because she didn't want to bake?! Are you EFFING KIDDING ME?!

It's a good thing the building is open, along with big, because if it weren't the place would be boiling hot right now. As it is, it takes Marinette bumping shoulders with her to snap her out of her angry thoughts.

Once the entire student population is gathered in the courtyard, Mr. Damocles demands that the guilty party apologize for wasting the fire captain's time - and Chloe pipes up saying Marinette left the classroom just before the alarm went off.

Before Bloom can promptly explode at Principle Damocles' immediate belief that Marinette is guilty, Adrien says "Excuse me, Mr. Damocles? It couldn't possibly be Marinette, why would she disrupt her own father's cooking class?"

Bloom semi-sarcastically adds "Add to it, her hands were full with the bowl of chocolate emulsion he'd asked her to take to the cafeteria fridge, and her phone was in the bag she'd left behind…"

Damocles relents with a huff, and the Fire Captain tries to leave. Damocles, however, insists on keeping him here so whoever did it can apologize...for wasting the Fire Captain's time, at that.

Chloe immediately pipes up with "Well, we all know it can't be me."

Bloom whirls around at once, angrily asking "Why, exactly, do we know it can't be you, Bourgeois? You had your phone on you in the class, you were constantly complaining about how you weren't going to be baking, and you made a phone call just before Marinette left the classroom. So, really, why couldn't it be you?" Marinette subtly puts a hand on Bloom's arm, fully prepared to hold the red-head back should she go off and try to attack Chloe - she really wishes Cat Noir were here right now, though, he's the one that pries her off the Akumas that've managed to blow her fuse!

Adrien, meanwhile, is gearing up to tackle Bloom to the ground if necessary - she'd probably throw him off in under a minute or wriggle out of his grip, but Chloe would have that much of a head-start if she has any survival sense left in her. And he really doesn't want his sister to get in trouble because Chloe's acting like this - as she likes to say, usually to blow Chloe's fuse, it isn't worth it.

Damocles says "Since nobody is owning up to this crime, the entire school will be punished!" Chloe immediately threatens to call her father, and that gets revised to 'the entire school bar Ms. Bourgeois will be punished.'

Meaning, Chloe sits on a bench on her phone while everyone else has to clean the courtyard. 'Everyone else' being…the entire student population. Including Sabrina, though that doesn't seem to bother Chloe one bit as she sits on a bench and scrolls through social media.

Luka is scrubbing at a patch of mold over one flagstone when he hears a semi-familiar melody get louder. It's a fast-paced melody, full of excitement and action, but with an undercurrent of warmth that would seem at odds with the rest of it if you didn't know how it fit - and there's the red-haired beauty it's coming from.

Though, right now, the melody of her heart sounds distinctly…angry. Not that he blames Bloom, given the circumstances - Marinette, her best friend, is also about to bow a fuse over the mess that Chloe Bourgeois made.

Because he can lip read, among other things, and he just saw Chloe say 'of course it was me who called the Fire Department' to Adrien Agreste.

Adrien fights down a wave of disbelief at Chloe's question of 'so what?' "And it doesn't bother you that everyone else is being punished because of you?" Including him and Sabrina, the two people in the school she actually calls her friends? Along with literally everyone else in the school? Does she really care so little about everyone else?

Chloe gives him a confused look, asking "No, why would it?" She gestures around, saying "They all seemed to enjoy getting dirty making cookies, how is it any different than getting dirty cleaning floors? They should be thanking me, if anything."

Adrien internally sighs, finally having had enough of Chloe's ridiculousness - making mean comments or laughing about someone's misfortune is one thing, bad as it is. But actively sabotaging something everyone else was enjoying, and them trying to frame it on the person she apparently hates the most? That is just, in Adrien's opinion, way too far.

Where did the little girl who shared her stuffed teddy bear with me when I was lonely go? When and why did she suddenly turn into an exact replica of her absentee mother?

With that in mind, Adrien asks "Chloe, how long have you and I been friends?" Sorry Chloe, wait no I'm not, but this is for your own good.

Chloe immediately says "Since we were adorable little tots, Adrikins!" She even makes a pout for good measure.

Adrien finds himself not the least effected by that pout of Chloe's, and says "I'm sorry, Chloe, but I can't be friends with someone who treats other people like this. You've gotta be nice to people!"

It wipes the pout off her face at once, making all the blood drain from her face in the process as she looks around at the angry glares directed at her. "N-nice?"

Adrien turns away, saying "Honestly, Chloe, it's not that hard." He knows she keeps a mask up in public…or used to, at any rate, but it looks like he's through with his friendship with Chloe if her behavior is just who she is now instead of the mask she developed to keep her mother happy.

Audrey Bourgeois is all the way in America, there's no reason for Chloe to keep treating people like this. Especially as bad as she treats Marinette.

Thinking of how she tried to frame Marinette - their Everyday Ladybug, so much like his Bugaboo that it makes his protective side reserved for her and his sister rear its head - makes any guilt wither and die inside him, Chloe's going to remember that her behavior mimicking her mother is a mask she perfected years ago or they're done.

Chloe, meanwhile, stares at Adrien's back as he goes back to the window he was cleaning in a stunned silence. Nice? She has to be nice to people? Chloe sits down on the bench, phone entirely forgotten as she tries to process that.

It only really hits her, though, after five of her favorite chocolates from Butler Jean - her friendship with Adrien is in serious jeopardy, and the only way for her to save it is to be nice to everyone.

And then Butler Jean offers to help her keep her friendship with Adrien, because it's the nice thing to do.

Chapter Text

Rose, Mylene, Juleka, and Bloom are modeling some hats for the B&M brand - because, Bloom, you are absolutely gorgeous, and could easily make it as a model! - and everyone's having a good time as Alya Cesaire takes pictures of the lot of them. As Alya uploads the pictures onto Marinette's computer, she asks "What do you two need the photos for, anyway?"

Bloom and Marinette give matching smirks, and Bloom says "A project of ours. Why?" Same reason there's a bunch of magically-made mannequins in Marinette's closet, which Bloom expanded to have extra space behind the clothes in the back - inspiration taken from Harry Potter and the Chronicles of Narnia in equal measure - they started up a brand and are in the process of setting up a website complete with pictures of their stuff.

Not that they want that to get around just yet, B&M is going to be anonymous for a while until they can really gain some traction - it's all too easy for big companies to take out the competition when the competition is a pair of teenage girls making stuff on the side of homework and fighting Akumas.

And then suddenly Mylene, Rose, Alya, and Juleka all get invites to a party at the Grand Paris Hotel. From Chloe. Bloom and Marinette trade glances, and Bloom says "Bets are somebody hacked her phone." After the fiasco at school, she figured Chloe 'I'm-a-witch' Bourgeois would be gloating to Sabrina and taking stupid selfies up in her hotel.

Marinette nods, saying "There's no way this is real. 'Chloe' and 'nice' don't go together in the same sentence unless it's along the lines of 'Chloe is not nice.'" And then Bloom and Marinette each get invites as well. Marinette promptly drops her phone in disgust, saying "Ew, she invited me!" She gets the urge to disinfect her hands and phone right then, honestly.

Bloom sighs, then says "Guess we'd better go just to humor her. And maybe see what the party is actually about."

Marinette whirls around, horror written all over her face, and asks "You're not actually going to attend?!" Who is this girl, and what has she done with the Bloom she knows, loves, and fights Akumas with on a daily basis?!

Bloom shrugs, and says "Unless something comes up, my evening's free." Translation: if there's no Akuma, I'll just be hanging around my lonely warehouse for the night. "'Sides, I can't deny being curious about her sudden change of heart from this morning."

She saw Adrien talking with Chloe after they were all punished, but she was too far away to hear what they said - but, whatever it is, it resulted in everyone getting an invite to a party Chloe's throwing.

At Marinette's stubborn expression, Bloom shrugs and says "I'll tell Adrien you say hi, then."

Marinette's expression turns to shock, and she asks "Adrien?"

Everyone else trades smirks, and Alya says "Nino texted me. Adrien's going with him." It's like a spell was cast, as Marinette's instantly agreeing that going to the party is a good idea.

Marinette whispers to Bloom "This whole party thing is way weird."

Adrien turns around, saying "I've known Chloe a while, Mari. She can actually be really cool when she's not-"

Bloom clears her throat and says "Um, you might want to brace yourself."

Adrien immediately does so, even as he wonder wh- oh, that's why. Chloe just tackled him from behind in a full-body hug, wrapping around him a bit like an octopus does with all limbs. And then he's spun around and a kiss planted on each cheek so fast he didn't even have time to blink, Chloe standing there with a beaming smile on her face as she gestures around emphasizing how nice the whole party is.

And then Rose, Kim, and Max all greet her, pressing a kiss to each of her cheeks - a French way of greeting, one Bloom doesn't quite get even now. When Chloe walks over - rather, moves away from the barrage of greetings - Bloom steps between Marinette and her, plasters on a smile, and quickly says "Hi, Chloe, thanks for the invite. Not to be rude, but do you know where some drinks are? We're kinda thirsty, you see."

Chloe just points them in the right direction, accompanied by a faint sigh of relief from both Chloe and Marinette. As they're holding cups, Marinette whispers "Thank you, Bloom! You've just saved my dignity!"

Bloom smirks, and says "I also spared everyone in eyesight an immense amount of pain, watching that would've been agonizing." Or hysterical, but they'll never know.

Marinette shrugs, and asks "You figure out why Chloe's throwing the party?"

"To please Adrien. She was hoping Adrien would like it all as she was showing off." Marinette's just about to scoff, saying she knew it, but Bloom adds "There's something more going on, though, Mari. Adrien's convinced that there's something underneath her usual behavior, and he's making her show it tonight somehow. How, I don't know yet, but I'll find out." Bloom gets a grin that would send an actual dragon running, then adds "At the very least, it's set to be an entertaining night."

Marinette groans, then says "Just eat enough for the night, Bloom. I'll grab some cookies for Tikki, she's probably drooling already."

Bloom snickers, then says "Longg will probably go swipe some food and eat it behind a plant or under the table. Have fun."

Chloe rubs at her cheeks with a napkin beside Butler Jean, and irritably asks "There, Adrien seems happy, are we done yet?"

Butler Jean says "If I may be so bold, to reaffirm Adrien of her kindness, Mademoiselle might make sure her guests are having a good time?"

Chloe asks why she would do that, then quickly shoves Mr. Cuddly out of sight while hastily agreeing to do as much. She slams her hands down on the bar counter Nathan's leaning against, and borderline-yells "Having a good time?"

Before the nervous boy - she just yelled at him after loudly announcing her presence out of nowhere, his heart's about to beat straight out of his chest after that! - can respond, Mylene dances over and says "All this dancing's made me thirsty, do you know where the ice cubes are?"

Chloe snaps "How should I know, I'm not your servant! Go find them yourself! And if you're so hot, why don't you take off that fake sheepskin sweater? Throw it in the trash where it belongs!" There's a cough from under the counter, and then Chloe sees Butler Jean with Mr. Cuddly. And then she sees Adrien standing there next to Bloom, a shocked expression on his face while Bloom's got one eyebrow raised.

Gotta be kidding, Adrikins, this is like torture…

Quickly backtracking, Chloe laughs, says she's joking, and goes to get the ice cubes. Dammit, being nice is hard - she hasn't put this much effort into anything other than making her hair behave and trying to impress her mother in years!

Juleka, Luka, and Rose are sitting at one of the tables, Rose facetiming Prince Ali and saying she wishes he could be at the party since he'd probably have a lot of fun - and using her phone to show him the party itself, much to the sheltered prince's delight - and Juleka sees her brother's gaze is fixed on one point in the crowd. On a specific red-head he's been getting more and more interested in ever since the Horrificator incident.

He's even tried to write down what he describes as her 'Heart Song' - he can hear a different song coming from each person, and his descriptions of people based on their songs have never been wrong yet. But he's never tried to recreate and play the songs he hears before.

He's got better control than she does, hasn't jinxed himself or suppressed that side of himself like she did, but still...trying to recreate what he hears from someone is something new from him.

Raising one eyebrow curiously, Juleka quietly asks "Are you…interested in Bloom?" She can see why if he is, she's something else altogether. And, as if that wasn't enough, her own abilities have finally done something again after years of nothing - her self-cast jinx was broken somehow, even if she still hasn't managed to reawaken her own abilities, but she doesn't know whether or not it's got to do with Bloom, being Akumatized, or possibly the whole ongoing situation with Hawk Moth, the Miraculous', etc.

Luka promptly blushes brightly, which Juleka takes as a yes - Luka's always cool, calm, and collected, he just doesn't blush uncontrollably. She's asked before if he was interested in girls, and he's always said no - no blush, no stammering, no hesitation. So for him to suddenly start doing all those things…it says a lot. About as much as him humming a tune and trying to write it down to play it on his guitar, actually.

Oh, Luka, you've got it bad, don't you?

Bloom watches Chloe in utter confusion - one minute she's snapping and snarking at people more than ever, the next she's gone suspiciously nice even as it seems to physically pain her to do so - if she didn't know any better, and she does, she'd swear she's under some kind of spell that's slipping. As it is, she knows Adrien's basically strong-arming her into being nice for the night…but she's yet to figure out the split personality that seems to be going on…or what her mother, someone Bloom didn't even know was still around given the detail that there was no blonde woman striding around the hotel or the office at any point she's been there, has to do with any of this.

And her ghost isn't helping matters, constantly saying what her mother would do and how that's not what Adrien wants, and how her friendship with Adrien is in danger if she can't do this…whatever 'this' is.

And then she starts slow-dancing with Kim, making Bloom all the more confused. She rejected Kim on Valentine's Day, has mocked him more times than she can count, and her ghost is grumbling every step of the way.

Deciding to go tread some more familiar ground, Bloom heads over to Marinette and says "Go ask the resident ball of sunshine for a dance, Mari. He won't say no."

Marinette immediately quietly freaks out - she's been getting better about Adrien, yes, but her crush is still the size of the school and has no plans on going anywhere - and asks "Are you crazy?!" She'll probably slip on the floor or trip over her feet, take Adrien down with her, give him a black eye and broken nose, and he'll never want to see her again!

And then Bloom hip-chucks her, sending her stumbling straight into Adrien…who asks if she wants to dance. And then she's dancing with Adrien, moving around the dance floor…or Cloud nine, maybe, she can't really tell. She's dancing with Adrien! And then Alya Cesaire and Nino dance over, with Nino grinning and moving Marinette and Adrien's arms so that Marinette's are resting at the back of Adrien's neck and Adrien's holding her by the waist. And then the happy couple keeps dancing, leaving Marinette and Adrien staring after them in shock.

Shrugging it off, Adrien and Marinette keep dancing, Marinette resting her head on Adrien's chest and Adrien letting his chin rest on top of Marinette's head gently.

And that would be when Chloe goes off, marching over to separate the two of them…until Butler Jean gets between them, inadvertently revealing her teddy bear to everyone on the dance floor.

Chapter Text

Chloe sits behind the bar, a glass of Sparkling Juice in her hand that she dearly wishes was actually wine - maybe it would help with the embarrassment flooding her entire body, more than pulling a 'mother' and telling Butler Jean he was fired did anyway. The detail that he isn't actually fired, since he's on her father's payroll and all, doesn't help matters.

Sabrina puts another glass of juice in front of her, not saying anything at the moment - Chloe's just been heavily embarrassed in front of the entire school, she's more likely to go off on Sabrina as well rather than appreciate the attempt at comforting her. And then Bloom Peters sits down, not a hint of amusement on her face as she silently stares at Chloe for a moment.

Feeling irritated by the girl's unnerving gaze - seriously, it's like she can read her down to her very soul! - Chloe snaps "What do you want, Peters? Come to laugh at me to? Make fun of me for not having thrown that old thing out years ago?" Her father gave it to her when her mother left, and that teddy bear's been more of a comfort to her in the past decade or so than anyone else around her - despite being a 'grown-up young lady' as her father says, she simply can't toss Mr. Cuddly like he thinks she did years ago.

To her utter surprise, Bloom shakes her head and says "No. I'm not. I'm here to ask a question or two." She thinks she's figured out Chloe's split-personality, and...it explains a few things about the spoiled girl. Not an excuse, much less a valid reason for her behavior...but an explanation.

Well, Chloe admits, it's a lot better than laughing at her, making fun of her, or ridiculing her for having a stuffed teddy bear in the first place. "Well? What is it?"

Bloom takes a swallow from her own glass, then looks her dead in the eye and asks "Have you seriously been pretending to be just like your mother for so long that you can't remember how to be anything else?"

Chloe stares at Bloom in total shock, there's no way she could possibly know that. Even Adrien didn't know that, and he knew about the mask she wore - wears - in public.

So how did she know?!

That's been her problem the entire night, she's spent so long trying to be just like her mother, trying to measure up to the woman's standards of 'exceptional' that…she doesn't know how to be anything else. Even Sabrina's looking shocked, and she's the only other person that knows about her mask - Chloe lets it slip a bit in private, during tickle fights with Sabrina and cosplaying as Ladybug and Cat Noir, which ended up necessitating the explanation of the mask in the first place.

After a few difficult swallows, Chloe manages to say "Something like that…" At Bloom's look that clearly states 'Go on…' Chloe says "It's a mask, of sorts. My mother is a very…exceptional person. And I want to be as exceptional as her, so…" She fiddles with the end of her ponytail, staring down at her juice as she does - the last thing she wants is to see anything like pity from Bloom Peters of all people.

"So…you forgot who you were, then. Or, at least, how to be anyone other than a copy of your mother."

Chloe nods, then says "And Adrien's forcing me to take off my public mask tonight…" And it is a kind of agony, needing to ignore the habits she worked so hard to make come naturally. She spent months observing and copying her mother's habits, how she acted around everyone, and she made herself be the same. And now, she has to make herself be different.

Bloom, Chloe just now notices, is staring at her in undisguised shock, one eyebrow so high on her forehead that it's legitimately in danger of disappearing into her hair altogether.

And then, before anyone can say anything about the bombshell Chloe just dropped, Sabrina gasps and points down to the floor, asking "What the heck is that?!" The entire room stops dancing, even as Chloe leans forward to get a look over the counter at what Sabrina's backing away from before promptly yanking her behind the counter with her at the sight. Bloom picks up the cause of Sabrina's alarm for everyone to see, and it's…a stuffed teddy bear that's moving on its own. Which was repeatedly hugging her ankle, attempting to apparently take control of her mind that way.

Mr. Cuddly, but black instead of yellow and with neon-green lights for eyes. And they can hear a little voice coming from inside it, saying "Why isn't this working?! Unhand me, you cretin! I am Despair Bear, and Chloe Bourgeois shall feel my despair! Hawk Moth, why didn't it work on her?!" All the while, struggling and waving its tiny little limbs around helplessly.

The only sound is the music that was already playing for a moment, everyone frozen in shock at the foot-tall Akuma Bloom's casually holding…until Bloom snickers, then starts full-blown laughing. Hugging her stomach with one arm, the other hand not letting go of Despair Bear as he thrashes around trying to hit her.

After her laughter dies down some, Bloom holds the moving bear up for everyone to see, asking "Would someone like to explain the reasoning behind this? Because, considering some of the Akumas we've seen…" This is simply hysterical.

Hawk Moth, meanwhile, feels nothing but an inordinate amount of shock at the detail that, not only is Bloom Peters apparently simply immune to Akumas…there's an entire ballroom of teenagers laughing at him. At HIM!

Why, oh why, did Despair Bear have to target the girl that's too stubborn to be affected by an Akuma's controlling abilities?!

Despair Bear's eyes turn Akuma-purple, and Hawk Moth's voice snarls out "When I get my hands on you, you insolent little girl, you're going to wish you'd never been born!"

Bloom just snorts, lifting the now-still stuffed animal up so she's staring it in the face, and says "News flash, Hawk-butt, next time you want to make threats to someone while hiding behind one of your victims…don't do it through a teddy bear, you coward. It's laughably pathetic."

"What did you just call me?!" Correct him if he's wrong, by all means, but he's rather certain it's not smart to threaten someone who can create and control supervillains through one of their supervillains. Maybe she has a death wish? Or a cocky, overconfident, thrill-seeker complex of some sort?

Bloom glares, all good humor gone, and says "A coward, that's what. You hide behind your victims, having them fight for you when you're the adult. You're hiding from three teenagers, all because you're scared they'll kick your butt just like all the other Akumas. What's wrong, scared Dragon Fyre will go off on you? Or that she'll give you the same kind of beatdown she gave Animan when he swallowed Ladybug?" Because she punched a dino's teeth in, repeatedly, after watching it swallow her best friend.

Adrien can only watch in something like a mix of amazement and amusement as his sister - Bloom, Dragon Fyre, all sass, fight, and spirit - goes off on his father and tears a few strips off his hide through the medium…of a teddy bear. He's never been embarrassed of his father before - angry, upset, disgusted, shocked, and literally every emotion in between…but never embarrassed until now.

Well, first time for everything.

And he fully applauds his sister saying the man needs a kick in the head, and a second to the teeth. Now that is something to be proud of.

Bloom smirks at Despair Bear viciously, not even paying attention to the detail that she's drawn a massive crowd - or that Alya's videotaping the whole thing for the Ladyblog, and says "Are you a grown man or a five-year-old throwing a tantrum because he didn't get what he wants? Honestly, it's getting ridiculous at this point. The only reason you've yet to be declared a national terrorist is because that would end with every crime-fighting group flooding Paris, putting the place on total lockdown, and hunting you down, you know that?" And potentially getting Akumatized at some point, one of the reasons Mayor Bourgeois imposed an information-block on the entire situation. Aside from the detail that it would look ridiculous and would potentially destroy the tourism part of Paris.

"At what point do you think you went wrong? Was it turning people into supervillains against their will? Maybe the rampant destruction said supervillains cause? Oh, wait, maybe it was when you first got your butt handed to you by a trio of teenagers? Honestly, you're pathetic. A pathetic little coward who prefers to hide behind the anonymity of a purple mask and butterflies that come out of nowhere. You won't even try to take the Miraculous' yourself, instead doing the same old thing again and again hoping you get lucky enough that an Akuma will maybe get a Miraculous and get away before Dragon Fyre goes off. I'd say 'better luck tomorrow' except…we'd both know that'd be a lie." She then drains the last of her glass, dumps the ice on the counter, rips the teddy bear apart, and traps the Akuma under the glass. And then she looks around, seeing everyone frozen in utter shock, and asks "What? Relax, I'm not getting Akumatized tonight. Keep dancing, enjoy the party and all."

Juleka snickers, shutting her brother's mouth as he stares at Bloom in shock - pencil and notepad forgotten entirely at her casual display of 'come try me, Hawk Moth, I dare you!'

Ladybug and Cat Noir show up maybe twenty seconds later, with Cat Noir casually explaining their appearance away as 'we heard there was a party here, wanted to keep an eye out for any Akumas.'

Ladybug sighs at Bloom, having to keep an act up to protect their identities, and asks "Why is it always you? Pharaoh, Officer Roger, Mylene Haprele, Simon Says…"

Bloom just shrugs, and says "Don't ask me, it's not my fault I'm at ground zero for some of these."

Cat Noir snickers, and says "And here I thought I was supposed to be the unlucky one." One purified Akuma later, and Cat Noir gets a fantastic idea. "You know, seeing as neither of us are going to timeout…may I have this dance, M'Lady?"

Ladybug just can't say no, not with how earnest her partner looks - ever since Valentine's Day, what happened has been sitting in the back of her mind - the backhanded revelation of Cat Noir's feelings for her, just waiting for a good moment to make itself known. Like right now, Dragon Fyre's words of 'he's got it BAD' ringing in her ears again. Plus, it's the most like himself Cat Noir's been since the Volpina incident.

And then Bloom cuts through her thoughts, pseudo-casually saying "Oh, throw the boy a bone, so to speak, and have a dance with him. He adores you and all of Paris knows it."

You're not helping, Bloom. After a moment, Ladybug shrugs and says "You know what? Sure, why not? It's a party, after all."

The smile that instantly blooms on Cat Noir's face is so big Bloom's worried his face might split open, and then he's dragging Ladybug to the dance floor. When Cat Noir looks across at Bloom - his absolutely wonderful, miracle-working sister who he wouldn't trade for anything in the world - she's got a delighted smile on her face and raises her new half-full glass of juice in a silent salute.

Ladybug pulls him out of his musings when she asks "Since when do you know how to dance, Kitty?"

Cat Noir grins, giving her a Cheshire smile as he spins her around by the hand and saying "I know how to do more than fight Akumas and run across roofs, Bugaboo." Truth be told, he was in dancing lessons for five years straight, in preparation for the day his father finally let him attend a formal event.

He quickly focuses on Ladybug's blush, not wanting to spoil a dance with his Lady with thoughts on Gabriel Agreste. The two heroes finish the slow dance - which Nino actually scrambled to play upon Cat Noir's question to Ladybug, much to the blonde's gratitude - have a glass of Sparkling Juice each with Bloom - under the cover of making sure she's alright, as well as asking how she ended up with that Akuma as well - and then leave to change back to civilian forms.

And, if anyone notices Adrien's got the biggest smile on his face ever…well, he can say he's had a good time at the party. Both Marinette and Adrien are on cloud TWENTY after the party ends, And Bloom just counts herself lucky the hotel is in walking distance of the Agreste Mansion, because Adrien clearly has no idea what's going on anymore.

Bloom, meanwhile, is steering Marinette in the right direction, since she's equally out-of-it after slow-dancing with Adrien.

And then, the next morning, Marinette and Bloom check the Ladyblog on the way to school only to find out Bloom's got a massive fanbase overnight for calling out Hawk Moth so thoroughly. And she's been dubbed the 'Everyday Dragon Fyre' by...literally half of Paris. Which is heavily apparent on the way to school, as she keeps getting stares from everyone they pass. And one guy wants an autograph.

Chapter Text

Dragon Fyre's just heading to her warehouse, Ladybug and Cat Noir on Patrol for tonight - because Cat Noir decided it was time he stopped trying to hide from Ladybug…and because she all but demanded as much during today's Akuma attack, the red-and-black clad girl ready to risk him finding out her identity afterwards if that's what it took to get him to just tell her what's bothering him.

She's just landed in front of the building when a white portal opens up…and an older woman steps out of it. The only reason she doesn't get a fireball to the stomach is because she's in a white and blue bunny suit, a watch that's clearly a Miraculous in one hand and an umbrella in the other.

An umbrella that's open in front of her, at that, being used as a makeshift shield to block any potential attacks.

Even still, Dragon Fyre's got her sword out and on fire in one hand, a ball of fire in the other as she hotly asks "Who are you, and how did you get here?" There's no way anyone but her partners should know where she lives, neither of them would tell a soul and she certainly hasn't been announcing it to the world!

A head of red hair peeks out from behind the umbrella cautiously, and Dragon Fyre nearly drops her sword in shock - that's Alix Kubdel! An older version of her, but unmistakably her. "Kubdel?! What in the world?"

Bunny-girl Kubdel sighs in relief and closes the umbrella, and says "Thank Kwamis you recognize me, Miniflame. At the moment, call me Bunnyx. I'm the Bunny Miraculous Holder in the future, which gives me the power to go back in time to any point in time. And…we've got a big problem."

A 'big problem' turns out to be, according to Bunnyx, an…Akumatized Cat Noir.

It takes a monumental effort on Bloom's part not to shriek as she asks "Come again?!"

Bunnyx nods, and says "Yeah. He's Cat Blanc in this timeline. I don't know what happened, but I decided to come before anything that could be remotely related to it happened."

"Explain. Now."

Bunnyx just gestures for her to head into the white light she came out of - she knows that look on Dragon Fyre's face, even if this version is ten years younger than she's used to, and knows she's not going to accept a 'go here, go get this Akuma' kind of explanation. This is her brother they're talking about, and she's seen Dragon Fyre beat Ignoblia to a pulp after the woman knocked out Cat Noir.

And that's damn near impossible to do, considering Majestia is nigh-on invincible on her own and Ignoblia is even worse since Akumas enhance super-powered people even further. Majestia is basically a living god, all on her own, Ignoblia even moreso.

Of course…so's she. She's on the level of any Kwami, or even Tikki and Plagg together, especially when she gets a few upgrades.

And that would be when she feels a familiar gaze burning holes into the back of her head - right, she can read auras…forgot about that.

Dragon Fyre's voice has gone an interesting - and terrifying - tone of voice as she half-deadpans, half-demands "What do you know, and how do you know it?"

Bunnyx swallows, then says "Time is kinda…fragile, Miniflame. And I'm currently tied to its continued flow. Telling you know could simply break the timeline altogether. My advice? Take things…slow. And wait for an old woman with white hair and her apprentice to find you." Little things, little variations from one timeline to the next, those don't threaten her existence.

Cat Noir being Akumatized, losing control of his boosted abilities and killing the world does.

Bloom Peters learning too much about her magic at once, deciding to experiment, and drawing the Shadow Phoenix - whatever the hell that thing is! - to Paris, resulting in her getting an Akuma enhanced with a spell from that creepy as all heck creature after he teams up with Shadowmoth does. And she'd really rather avoid that second scenario, it took until the trip to New York to free her from that one, even if she did find some wiggle room in the magic after the Phoenix was killed via an overpowered Cataclysm, from what she saw when her older self warned her younger self of a few world-ending ways things could go wrong to watch out for. 'Lord Darkar' and Shadowmoth - currently Hawk Moth - teaming up, and Ladybug or Cat Noir getting Akumatized made the top of that list. She still gets nightmares about those scenarios, actually.

And then Bunnyx finds herself magically turned around, made to look Dragon Fyre - Bloom Peters, her former classmate, Deputy Rep, the go-to girl for Healing any injuries during or after a battle, and the girl who always seems to have some idea of what to do or where to go, the girl who sword-fought Darkblade out of the suit so everyone else could get away - in her orange eyes, and sees a look she's not particularly familiar with when it comes to this particular red-head.

Desperation.

The Dragon Fyre she knows is a lot of things - highly emotional, with an explosive temper and magic to match, endlessly passionate about the things she loves to do and a fierce Guardian to the point that she regularly clashes with Su Han over her duties and how well she's performing them - but desperate isn't one of them.

And then it hits her, the full reality of Bloom's current situation, her situation for the past five years or so - she can't imagine what it would be like, to suddenly just get magical powers and have no way of knowing how to use them. At least the Miraculous' all come with user's manuals if you know where to look! And they were really good about showing their new teammates the ropes, making sure they knew how to contact them or that they'd show up to help if they needed it.

Bloom, though, she got her magic awakened prematurely and had nobody around to help her learn to control it. Of course she's desperate - desperate for information, for answers…for even a name to put to her magic.

…shit.

This is why she tries to stay neutral in this stuff. Most of the time, anyway.

Bunnyx goes to put a hand on Bloom's shoulder…only for it to disappear. Bunnyx yelps, even as Dragon Fyre's jaw drops to the ground - look at that, she just shocked the unflappable Dragon Fyre speechless! - and says "Alright, this talk can wait for after we fix the timeline so I don't disappear!"

Dragon Fyre nods, then says "Yeah! Your right, emergency now, long-overdue discussion later!"

About ten minutes and a mini-movie of sorts later - that has Bloom swearing to tear Gabriel Agreste limb from limb! - Bunnyx sends the red-head through. Cat Noir is the only one Dragon Fyre listens to when it comes to convincing her of something, and Dragon Fyre's the one that Cat Noir will automatically seek out if he's upset or hurt. She's just hoping Dragon Fyre will be able to get through to him - because it was that or bringing in Minibug and hoping she could defeat an overpowered and semi-insane Cat Blanc.

Plus, if she didn't tell whoever she brought everything, Dragon Fyre would've had her head after being told. Stuffed and mounted on a wall somewhere, no doubt - that, or she'd never get the Bunny Miraculous in the first place. Dragon Fyre ends up the next Guardian, she knows it for a fact - even when Darkar's spell had a hold of her, she did what she could without losing what little control she strong-armed her way into - so she could absolutely decide the Bunny Miraculous is just too dangerous...or that she's not a good Miraculous Holder.

Cat Blanc is sitting on the edge of a building, mumbling "Little kitty on the roof, all alone without his lady…" Now he gets why his sister sang sometimes, it's all he can do now. His beloved sister, who tried to save them all by taking the first Cataclysm he couldn't stop - they thought she'd come back, or she'd be protected from the worst of the effects by her own magic…she didn't, wasn't. The resulting backlash of her own magic is what knocked the Eiffel Tower onto its side and flooded Paris. He killed the world, though, finished the job Hawk Moth forced him to do.

"…ther."

He couldn't Cataclysm his Lady, but with that Akuma in him he couldn't disobey Hawk Moth either…and he couldn't control the raging destruction magic in him either, despite his best efforts to keep it contained in his body.

"…are you…other?" One of Cat Blanc's ears flick, catching a voice on the wind he'd known to be long-gone.

No, it can't be. Just a trick of my imagination. Again.

His sister - everyone - has been dead for months, after all. All because of him.

And then, his imaginary sister apparently gets fed up with calling out for him…because he sees a bright orange explosion much like a firework appear in the sky.

Imagination or not, he can't not investigate - his sister is the only person besides Ladybug that could possibly put things back the way they were, and the only one of the two he could keep his control around. If he sees Ladybug with her Miraculous…well, as much as he knows the Wish is a bad idea…it's his only option unless his sister can snap her fingers and put everything right.

But first…he's got to find her.

A second firework appears over the Eiffel Tower's foot, and Cat Blanc is off like Lightning.

Dragon Fyre's sitting on top of the Eiffel Tower's foot, waiting for Cat Blanc to arrive - she's really going to kill Hawk Moth for this, she thinks. He tried to tear her best friend and brother apart, Akumatized her brother knowing he was Akumatizing his own son, tried to Akumatize Marinette after forcing her to break up with Adrien…looks like she knows what the backlash Gabriel Agreste is building up is, and she's not talking about the consequences of the Wish.

Using a Miraculous has consequences, good and bad. If you use a Miraculous for good, karma tends to smile on you. If you use it for evil, though, there's a price to pay for it. And she thinks she's figured out what the price for Gabriel Agreste is.

Even if he manages to bring his wife back, Gabriel Agreste will lose his family.

Adrien is already disgusted with his father, can't stand to be in the same building as him most of the time anymore. He's lost all respect and positive feelings for the man. Not taking into account the consequences of the Wish, Adrien and quite possibly Emilie will almost certainly leave him if he doesn't do something overly-complicated like sending his mind back in time to when they first found the Miraculous' and tossing them back wherever they were. And, the consequences of the Wish are something she doesn't want to think about, right now.

Of course, this is the same guy that, instead of simply explaining what's going on, terrorized a city day after day and has KILLED his own son multiple times…

A muted thump brings her out of her thoughts, and she sees a blur of white jumping into the tower. Maybe a minute later, Cat Blanc is crouching on one of the metal beams of the tower, head cocked as he studies her a few feet away. After a moment, he asks "Are you a ghost?"

Dragon Fyre shakes her head, and says "I was brought here from the past, Brother. I'm gonna put things right, here. And then I'm gonna make sure they never happen in the first place."

Cat Blanc blinks, surprise flickering across his face for a moment, and he cautiously asks "How?"

"The Bunny Miraculous. It lets the Holder travel to any point in time…even to the Stone Age if one were so-inclined. Bunnyx brought me here hoping I'd be able to help you."

The bleached Cat nods, saying "Smart, then. I don't think I'd be able to control myself if I saw M'Lady. Did she tell you what happened?"

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "Showed me, actually. We pieced everything together, Brother."

Cat Blanc's expression turns to a mix of guilt, sadness, and a near-feral snarl as he says "My mother, she…" Dragon Fyre gestures for Cat Blanc to come over, and almost instantly finds herself half-buried under his weight as he all but collapses onto her. "I thought she was dead for nearly three years, and then it comes out she's in a coma…under the Mansion!"

Dragon Fyre lets him rant and rave, a familiar routine ever since they realized Hawk Moth's identity. Albeit, much more violently than she's used to. Of course, much more's happened to this version of her brother.

"I couldn't resist, Sis, I just…couldn't. I couldn't even stop my own Cataclysm from…" He suddenly slams his fist into the metal beam they're on, leaving a dent in it the size and shape of his fist or a baseball.

Dragon Fyre nods, taking his face in her hands so he'll look at her, and says "It's not your fault, Brother. It's his. He was almost certainly warned about what would happen if he Akumatized a Miraculous Holder, and he did it anyway. He made sure you were in the middle of an emotional breakdown, revealing your mother like that. That's on him. Using his own powers to force you to use yours, that's on him."

Cat Blanc simply breaks down crying at that, sobs echoing around the dead city as he finally has the breakdown he couldn't have in her time. Hawk Moth's dead underneath them, at the base of the Eiffel Tower along with the ashen remains of his Lady, so there's no risk to him finally having a meltdown over everything.

Ladybug and Cat Noir both nearly jump out of their skins - and suits, for that matter - when Dragon Fyre suddenly leaps up to the roof they're on looking…rattled, for once. She actually looks scared out of her mind, a first in the entire time they've known her.

Skin pale, eyes slightly widened and shot through with orange, and her magic sparking and arcing on her skin wildly. And she's got an Akuma trapped in an orange bubble, held between her hands in a familiar scene.

"Spots, I can't explain right now, but I need you to purify this Akuma and use the Miraculous Cure!" She looks so very frantic that Ladybug doesn't even question where she got it, instead whipping her yo-yo out and doing as requested.

Dragon Fyre leaps a few buildings away, following the magical ladybugs as they head down an alley and just vanish, and then lets out a sigh of relief and slides down the nearby chimney into a sitting position. Cat Noir gets to her first, but before he can ask what happened he's yanked down into a hug strong enough to nearly break him in half - now he's really starting to freak out, something's definitely rattled his sister to the bone.

When Ladybug asks what happened, though, Dragon Fyre just says they don't want to know and then disappears using her Wind Dragon.

About three days later, after she's processed everything she saw, she takes Cat Noir down to the quarry and tells him what happened - she burns five Akumas that night, while her brother grapples with the revelation of not only his mother's current location and state, but the knowledge that his father is so far gone he'd knowingly Akumatize his own son despite all the reasons why he shouldn't.

Bloom had held out a tiny shred of hope that Gabriel Agreste was redeemable deep down, given the detail that he wanted to bring his wife back, that he could be convinced to give up the Butterfly Miraculous…until she saw Cat Blanc and listened to what he told her.

Was told he tried to break both Adrien and Marinette's hearts and Akumatize Marinette. Was told he knew perfectly well who he was Akumatizing when he went for Cat Noir, and didn't even hesitate for a moment despite Nooroo's certain warnings. The man is completely insane! 

He's going to die at her sword, painfully, after she makes sure everything he ever cherished - and, at this point, she's not even sure what that is - is safe from him.

Chapter Text

"Can't believe I had to remind you about the date for this all-important interview, Mari." Honestly, Bloom really can't. Not for this, anyway.

Marinette rolls her eyes, and says "Yeah, yeah, Bloom. Like you've never gotten the dates mixed up…"

"Not for something I had to talk someone else into!" Bloom shakes her head - she was the most against this idea of Cat Noir's, since they're supposed to be heroes. Cat Noir talked Ladybug into giving an interview with Nadja Chamack, saying how they could reassure Paris that they'd always be there to protect them, and then proceeded to turn the big eyes on her…along with a backrub. Him learning she's weak to things like hugs was exactly what the blonde needed to make her putty in his hands when he really wants something.

But then, Bloom had to remind Marinette that she couldn't babysit Manon - Nadja Chamack's daughter - because she had to be at the interview! Bloom claimed a group project they had to work on - which wasn't exactly a lie, the three of them are most certainly a group - and luckily Marinette's parents and Nadja bought it. But still, the detail that Marinette forgot that she'd be on the set tonight - hence why Nadja wanted her to babysit tonight - is equal parts hilarious and unbelievable.

The two transform on the roof, after Bloom 'leaves' and Marinette 'heads to bed for the night' and head over to the TV station.

Cat Noir lands on the sofa, Plagg being the trickster he is wanted to scare the newswoman just a bit, and watches as Nadja nearly drops her tablet as she all but jumps out of her skin. "Huh? Wha- which way did you come in?!"

Cat Noir grins, and says "Secret celebrity entrance."

Nadja nods, telling herself this was the risk she took when she approached Cat Noir with the offer after that Akuma battle, and asks "I thought Ladybug and Dragon Fyre were coming with you?"

Cat Noir shakes his head, saying "My sister went to pick up Ladybug. Said they'd meet us here." And then Cat Noir's cat-phone buzzes, and he reads out "'Just landed on the roof, Brother. We'll be down in a minute. Save us some space on that sofa.' Looks like they're here, then."

And then his phone buzzes again, a text from Ladybug this time, and he reads 'Make up a plate for DF, please. Nadja undoubtedly has some snacks already made.' As a matter of fact, there's Choquettes and sodas out - that'll work.

Not a minute later, Dragon Fyre and Ladybug walk in and sit down on the sofa. Cat Noir immediately puts - borderline shoves - a bottle of soda into Ladybug and Dragon Fyre's hands and places the bowl of Choquettes on Dragon Fyre's lap, even as Nadja subtly relaxes.

It isn't charity if they take some, after all, so they each take two and leave the rest to the red-head. She just rolls her eyes at them, pops a few into her mouth, and makes a bit of fire over her hand that spells out 'happy now?'

They go live, the food disappearing about a minute before, and Nadja starts the introduction of the show. "Hello, I'm Nadja Chamack and this is Face-to-Face. For our first edition, we have Paris' beloved saviors Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Dragon Fyre."

Cat Noir grins, and says "And hello to all my fans!"

He winks and blows a kiss to the camera, and Dragon Fyre rolls her eyes and says "Show off."

Cat Noir grins unabashedly, and says "You love it, Sis."

Nadja says "I'm sure thousands have tuned in to watch you tonight."

Ladybug good-naturedly says "Don't encourage him, Nadja, else the cat won't stop purring all night."

Cat Noir grins, and says "Don't listen to her, Bugaboo's just a spot jealous."

Dragon Fyre shakes her head, saying "Correction, he won't stop punning all night."

Ladybug smiles, and says "Hey, I thought we agreed no more 'Bugaboo' calling, Pussycat."

She reaches over and flicks the bell at his neck for emphasis, even as Cat Noir says "Aw, but it's so cute!"

Dragon Fyre shakes her head, even as a fond smile makes its way onto her face, and says "Sometimes, you two act like an old married couple. Other times, though, you act like a pair of hormonal teens who can't quite figure things out. Please for the love of Kwamis, find a happy place."

Nadja laughs, then says "It's obvious you three are very close."

Dragon Fyre shrugs, and says "Of course we are, Nadja. Not to bring down the mood, but we put our lives in each other's hands every day. After enough time, they start to seem like family." She flicks Cat Noir's bell with magic for emphasis, miming the motion a foot away from his bell as it rings.

Nadja clears her throat, and says "The people of Paris know you, but they don't really know you. We see you saving the city every day, but we don't know anything else about you."

Dragon Fyre deadpans "Unfortunately, I'm not that interesting outside the suit. I don't exactly go around juggling fireballs in front of the Eiffel Tower or anything."

Cat Noir grins, and says "We won't hold anything back, Nadja."

Ladybug quickly says "Well, there are a few things we can't talk about. To protect our identities, you understand."

Nadja nods, then asks "How about a few questions from our viewers?"

Chloe's the first one to call, but starts going on about herself and how everyone must notice her. Dragon Fyre says "Bourgeois, get to the point. Do you have a question or not, and if so…what is it already?"

Chloe blinks, then says "Oh, I don't have a question, I just wanted to say hi! 'Cause, you know, Ladybug and I are such good friends!"

Dragon Fyre deadpans "Hi, and goodbye." At Nadja's look, even after the woman ended Chloe's call, she deadpans "Chloe Bourgeois might claim to be a good friend of Ladybug's, but at least she's got enough survival instinct to not do the same about me. I don't like her, even after learning a few things about her that make it more understandable why she is the way she is, and have never been vague about the detail that we're not friends."

Ladybug mutters "You save her life once and she's convinced you two are attached at the hip…"

Dragon Fyre smirks, and says "That's the price of needing to be perfect, Spots. Everyone else is a die-hard fan."

Ladybug deadpans "You want some of mine? How 'bout you, Kitty? I've got more than enough to share."

Cat Noir quickly shakes his head, hoping none of his horror is showing on his face, and says "Much as I like to crack jokes, LB, I'm good on the fans." He's had more than enough experience running from rabid fans as Adrien Agreste, there is no way he wants to do the same as Cat Noir.

Dragon Fyre quickly covers for him, saying "What the people see is what they get with me, Spots. I decided I wasn't going to pretend to be nicer, more even-tempered, or anything other than who and what I am on day one. The critics on the Ladyblog can say what they want, it doesn't really make a difference to me."

Nadja raises an eyebrow, asking "You follow the Ladyblog?" You can practically hear Alya Cesaire's squeal ringing out across the entire city as that question ends.

And then Nadja's getting another call, which she brings up on her tablet - unsurprisingly, it's Alya Cesaire herself.

An absolutely manic Alya Cesaire, at that - she's practically vibrating in place, eyes sparkling in excitement even as she starts rapid-fire talking. "Ohmigosh,Ladybug,DragonFyre,andCatNoirfollowmyblog! Thisisthebestnightofmylifesofar!"

Ladybug says "Take a breath, Alya. What's your question?" She…asks if Ladybug can give an interview for her blog. Since she has way more viewers than Nadja.

Nadja quickly takes the call down, and Dragon Fyre says "Can't believe she just said that on live television. Think before you speak, Cesaire!"

Ladybug nudges her in the side, and says "She's probably still watching, Scales."

"I hope she is, Spots! The girl wants to be a reporter or journalist, from what we've seen. Alienating an already established - and famous - reporter who got herself a competitive prime-time spot is not a very smart thing to do."

Cat Noir says "She's got a point, LB."

Nadja clears her throat, then says "Ladybug, Cat Noir, everyone knows you're a couple of superheroes, but some think of you as, quote unquote, a couple." Cat Noir grins at once, while Ladybug completely spazzes about the revelation - not much of one, if you read the comments from the Valentines' Day post, though.

Dragon Fyre, though, completely derails the impending outraged denial…by laughing. Laughing so hard she ends up doubled over, tears running down her face as she holds her sides.

Ladybug plants her hands on her hips, and says "It's not funny, Dragon Fyre."

The red-head manages to gasp out "Oh Kwamis…"

Cat Noir tilts his head, then asks "Uh, Sis? Care to share the joke?" Dragon Fyre just snaps her fingers, and a sheet of paper appears over her hand that gets handed to the blonde.

Cat Noir raises one eyebrow, glances at his still-laughing sister, then reads "'I've been working on getting you two together for months now.' Wait, what?!" He's never noticed that outside of uniform! And sometimes even when he is in uniform! Though, lately, he's been avoiding LB in uniform as much as possible until just recently - she's sent him over to Marinette's, but he doesn't think that particularly counts as 'getting him and Ladybug together.' Yeah, sure, Marinette's amazing, but…when has she been trying to set him up with Ladybug?!

Ladybug, though, looks like she's just shut down altogether. When Dragon Fyre glances up at her ghost, though...she doesn't know Cat Noir's identity, she's just trying to figure out when her best friend would be trying to set her up with Cat Noir when she's been trying to get her more comfortable around Adrien.

Dragon Fyre facepalms, then mutters "You two drive me up the Eiffel Tower, forget a wall. Nadja, let me clear this up. These two aren't a couple, they don't even know who the other is. What 'evidence' do you have, exactly, that they're an item?"

Nadja brings up several pictures that look very much like her two partners are together - the kiss on Valentines Day being the big one, closely followed by a moment during Stormy Weather's rampage and the dance they shared at Chloe's party - and Dragon Fyre raises an eyebrow at them all. This would be a lot more fun if she wanted to rip Nadja to shreds - as it is...it's a hilarious misunderstanding due to lack of context.

"Well, as for that one, that was to free Cat Noir from Dark Cupid's influence. Call me curious, but I wanted to know if his power could be broken some way other than using a Lucky Charm. As for that one over there, LB tackled my brother out of the way of one of Stormy Weather's lightning bolts before he was fried to a crisp and that's how they landed. The one about them hugging was my brother taking Dark Cupid's arrow for Ladybug since she's the only one that can fix everything, that one is because my brother can't fly and I was already fighting the Akuma so LB had to pick him up, it was a party and I heard that Akuma was a hilarious bust…"

Dragon Fyre raises an eyebrow at the last picture, one of Ladybug scratching Cat Noir under the chin, and asks "Something you two would like to share?"

Ladybug groans, and Cat Noir stammers out "S-side effect from my Miraculous…" He's also started purring if she scratches him behind the ears, something Ladybug has previously taken immense amusement from on the nights when he finds her while she's on Patrol. His fake ears and tail also move like they're real, and the tail actually helps with balance a great deal.

Dragon Fyre just asks "Oh, like my hoard then, huh? Makes sense." If she had any decent amount of stuff, she'd have it all in the top of the warehouse arranged in a corner - as it is, she doesn't have enough stuff for that. Unfortunately. It's why her protective, possessive instincts as Dragon Fyre that have been rubbing off on her as Bloom have apparently decided her partners are her hoard, according to Longg.

Nadja raises an eyebrow, then asks "Side effects?"

Cat Noir nods, trying to will the blush out of his face, and says "Long-term exposure to a Miraculous apparently changes someone in minor ways, we've found. Enhanced speed, strength, and agility out of the costume, for one. And senses, to."

Dragon Fyre adds "I picked up a car two days ago, outside of uniform. Just lucky nobody was around when I did it." She'd dropped four water bottles in the parking lot of the store she frequents, and they decided to roll underneath a car where she couldn't see them - and just moving the car up with her magic would've been a bit noticeable, unfortunately. So…she lifted the car a bit with one hand and grabbed the water bottles with the other - she was trying to just keep her balance so she didn't end up face-first under the front of the car, not trying to pick up the car. It only occurred to her much later that it should've been physically impossible since she wasn't in the suit. But, by then, she was back in her warehouse.

And then Cat Noir asks "What about you, M'Lady? Any changes with you?"

Ladybug promptly blushes about as red as her suit, and says "Like Cat Noir said, speed, strength, agility…"

Dragon Fyre's gaze moves to just above her head, and the red-head says "Oh my kwamis…" And then she starts giggling like mad, even with trying to hide it behind her hands. Because, aphids?! That certainly explains the sudden increase in plants on Marinette's rooftop garden.

Nadja gets a highly confused glance, even as she peeks at her bracelet and sees the lights are almost green now, and asks "What's going on?"

Ladybug groans, shooting a glare at her still-giggling best friend, and says "Magic, Nadja. Kitty, don't you dare." Cat Noir promptly shuts his mouth, having fully intended to ask Dragon Fyre what she heard - he got the explanation on how she can read minds, auras according to Bunnyx, and it still blows his mind. That doesn't mean he doesn't believe it - the evidence is pretty overwhelming, including just now - but it's still pretty incredible. And, considering the detail that he has a tiny, cheese-loving god as a companion that gets sucked into his ring at a three-word phrase, that's saying a lot.

Therein ensues a change of topic, which ends on the illusions Dragon Fyre's known to make. And what she thought of the only other illusion-maker, Volpina.

Dragon Fyre scoffs derisively, and says "I've been making illusions for years now. My magic's based on fire, and heat comes with the territory. Ergo, mirages are well within my capabilities as well as something I practiced extensively. Volpina was an amateur who never thought her illusions through at first, and then what illusions she did make after attempting to drop the kid she claimed to like off the Eiffel Tower were simply pathetic."

Nadja asks "She didn't think them through?"

Dragon Fyre shakes her head, and matter-of-factly says "No. The meteor, for instance. She didn't think anyone would be able to get there in time. I ended up punching right through that illusion, and nearly taking out a part of a building since I'd been attempting to break a giant meteor. And then the Hawk Moth illusion she tried on us. I've been reliably informed that he could not turn into a pack of butterflies to move somewhere, and the transformation between man and butterfly was rough to the point of being bits of broken glass. And after that? I was doing better on my first few mirages, and those didn't come with someone probably whispering exactly how to make it look realistic in my head. And that was on my own, when I was eleven. No instructions, no idea what I was doing beyond my own imagination and a few Harry Potter books for inspiration." If she sounds proud of that, of learning control over her magic on her own...well, she is. She really, really is.

About five minutes later, all three get an alert about another Akuma - Volpina, again. All three heroes trade unreadable looks, and then Dragon Fyre says "I'll be back in a few minutes. Wind Dragon."

About ten minutes later, she's back with the Akuma trapped in an orange bubble and a few words in her partners' ears. Ladybug's expression turns all-serious as the Akuma gets Purified, and she says "Sorry to cut things short, Nadja, but something's come up."

Luckily, the show was almost ever anyway.

Chapter Text

"Wait, she what?!"

"Sis, that's serious! Are you sure?!"

Dragon Fyre nods at Ladybug and Cat Noir's horrified expressions, and says "I don't particularly care that Liar Rossi hates me, either side of me. She's…I think she's a Narcissistic Sociopath, actually. I looked up different mental disorders one day at lunch, and that's the one that fit the best."

Ladybug says "Get to the part where she wasn't at all remorseful or regretful about getting Akumatized, Dragon Fyre."

Dragon Fyre sighs, then says "I'm not even sure why she'd get so upset about me making commentary on her Akuma form. Unless she's proud to have been Akumatized, that is…"

Cat Noir frowns, and asks "Isn't a Sociopath someone with…I think it was no remorse?"

Dragon Fyre nods, saying "No remorse, empathy…there was a whole list about the traits a Narcissistic Sociopath has, and she checked over a dozen of them. Manipulating others, expecting entitlement, taking steps to gain and retain everyone's attention, arrogant behavior, lying, doesn't care whatsoever that her actions could hurt someone, irresponsibility…" And she wanted her to get beaten, or even worse, wished she'd managed it while Akumatized. Her ghost said she hoped the next Akuma took her out for good. Lila holds a grudge big-time, it seems.

Cat Noir asks "Irresponsibility?" How so? He hasn't got a clue, having been out of the loop the day after Lila's entrance into Dupont and Volpina's debut.

"She's supposed to be out of the country, on a trip with her mother. As of the day after the first Volpina incident. Apparently, her mother is a high-ranking ambassador at the Italian Embassy."

Ladybug groans, then asks "So…we've got someone who's…not against being Akumatized, then?" She doesn't want to even begin contemplating the implications behind that - just how big a threat is Lila Rossi actually going to turn out to be? Volpina was very powerful, even if she got herself the beatdown of a lifetime trying to drop Adrien from the Tower. And considering the detail that she got Akumatized over Bloom - not Dragon Fyre, but Bloom Peters - calling her out on a big, dangerous lie she was telling, she could very easily get Akumatized again if she has that little control over her emotions. 

Dragon Fyre grimaces, and says "I think she likes the power it gives her. She seemed to remember more than most do, anyway. Mr. Ramier's been Akumatized twenty times by now, and he always starts out confused. Rossi, though? Not a hint of confusion." Point of fact, she actually tried to attack the fire-haired girl, saying she hopes the next homicidal Akuma takes her out for good. "I don't know just what it means, but Lila Rossi is someone to watch out for."

Cat Noir crosses his arms and frowns, asking "Well, what do we do about her? Tell the school she goes to she's still in town?"

Dragon Fyre sighs, and Ladybug says "For now…the best thing might be to just leave her in her self-imposed isolation. If she doesn't make any other problems for now…" She's still thrown by the info that Lila's a willing Akuma - she's certainly not a victim, at least. Not if she's so self-absorbed she'd readily accept being Akumatized to get back at Dragon Fyre. She didn't think anyone would be willingly Akumatized, though - Mr. Ramier currently holds the highest number of Akumatizations, and he's got to be one that hates it the most. And Chloe causes a lot of Akumas...but she's just that awful of a person, and Hawk Moth uses that to his advantage readily.

Both are different than actively helping Hawk Moth.

Unfortunately, there's no way to prove Lila's not a victim - not only is she a very convincing liar, as they all know, but most people won't be as receptive to the idea of Dragon Fyre being a mind reader as they are. And it won't exactly hold up in court or anything, reading a person's mind - oh, I found out she's working with a magical terrorist who prey's on people when they're emotionally vulnerable because I read her mind!

Dragon Fyre groans, then says "I'm gonna set up her downfall for when she finally goes back to Dupont and starts her shit up again." She's already got the list made up, and adds to it whenever Lila tells another of her tales when Ms. Bustier video-calls her during homeroom. 

Cat Noir asks "What if the lies she tells are harmless? If she just wants her five minutes of fame?" Much as he really doesn't like her...he doesn't want to have another Volpina situation for them to deal with either. Volpina was as powerful as an actual Miraculous Holder, and didn't have a time limit like them - it makes her more dangerous than most, and if she targeted, say, Bloom for calling her out on something...she nearly dropped him, the boy she claimed to like, off the Eiffel Tower. He doesn't want to think what she'd do to someone she doesn't like. And if she's seriously that emotionally fragile or just simply unstable that being called out on a lie would get her Akumatized, he'd rather not offer up Hawk Moth a powerful Akuma to make so easily if they can at-all avoid it. Yes, it's wrong what she's doing, but getting her Akumatized regularly won't do anything but get them hurt one day either.

Though, if she's actively working with Hawk Moth, it wouldn't really matter if she was Akumatized or not, would it? Only time will tell, and they all hope she's wrong about Lila working with him.

Ladybug frowns, then says "If that's the case, if she just wants people to like her…then that's one thing. If she actively wants to manipulate everyone though…"

Dragon Fyre says "If she wants to use everyone, ruin their lives for her own, then we destroy her. We won't have to make a noose, she'll make it for us. We'll just have to give her a nudge to hang herself with it."

Cat Noir sighs, figuring this is the worst-case scenario they're talking about - if Lila's really that dangerous, though, it'd be better to have some kind of plan for dealing with her.

Kwamis, as uncomfortable as she made him, he hopes she isn't that dangerous - heck, that's probably why he's hoping she isn't that dangerous usually. She was bad enough before getting Akumatized, and both he and Plagg hope the level of creepy-crazy she was at as Volpina was only because of the Akuma and how much energy Hawk Moth seemed to put into that one.

When Dragon Fyre gets back to her warehouse, she opens up her laptop and gets onto the Italian Embassy's website. She finds a Lucia Rossi, listed as a senior Ambassador from Italy that recently moved to Paris when she got a promotion…but there's no record of the extensive travelling Lila claims she's done - that she's currently claiming to be on right now.

No visits to Achu, or America, Brazil, or the dozen other countries Lila claimed to have been in.

At least, not in the past decade and a half. She did travel frequently before that, a week-long trip here or a three-day trip there…but all of it was registered and approved by the Embassy she worked at, all business and full reports and itineraries are readily available to view. Not a hint of splurging or sight-seeing to be found.

Lucia Rossi's a decorated Ambassador, with a gift for negotiation and an eternally level head that helps to defuse a situation. Her daughter's a manipulative, lying little snake - no, wait, that gives snakes a bad name, especially since there's a Snake Miraculous the Dragon tends to be paired with! A dung beetle then! - with delusions of grandeur and all the care and empathy of a rock.

Bloom can't particularly find any similarities between Lucia Rossi and her daughter, honestly - aside from a few physical similarities, mostly around the eyes and Lila's chin. But Lucia Rossi, from her photos alone, is a dedicated, hardworking woman who juggles being a single mother and full-time senior ambassador between Italy and France - and for a position like that, she couldn't have pulled a stunt like Lila's currently pulling, skipping school for a few months at a time because she wants to.

Gritting her teeth, trying to hold back a surge of rage, Bloom takes a deep breath like Ms. Bustier has them all do every morning to try and avoid being Akumatized. Despite what she said to her two partners earlier, she just knows Lila isn't going to simply stop. The girl is one of the most self-centered, selfish creatures she's ever had the displeasure of meeting, topping Chloe by a large amount.

Chloe, at least, can take criticism with a grain of humility when it comes from a superhero that has to clean up her messes on a near-daily basis at times.

Lila, on the other hand, got so upset over some criticism about what she did when Akumatized that she got into that state a second time - why she got so upset, when nobody's particularly proud of what they did as an Akuma, is another matter.

Bloom mutters "Time to get researching, Longg. We've already got Jagged Stone's number, along with the email for Prince Ali's HR department.

Master Fu sets out two cups of tea alongside the pot he made - Bloom Peters, AKA Dragon Fyre, is visiting again. She usually visits at least once a week, but ever since they found the spellbook those visits have been much more serious. She's been helping him translate the Spellbook - in-between Ladybug attempting to stuff her with food and stuff her into clothes they make, anyway, along with school, homework, and Akuma battles - and he's starting to add in some of his own Training as a Guardian, incomplete as it is.

Today, though, she looks…much more serious than usual.

As the two are sitting over the Spellbook, making a key to translate the thing - which would make doing as much only a thousand times easier, since Master Fu's currently going by context and guesswork half the time - the older man says "Tell me what troubles you, Dragon Fyre. It's obviously something."

Bloom sighs, handing Longg a strip of jerky as she does, and says "A number of things, Master Fu. This…we're in a war, Master Fu. It might not seem like it day to day, but…"

Wang Fu nods, and says "I won't deny that, Dragon Fyre. I've been in World War 2, went through some of the London Blitz with…a very trusted friend of mine. There may not be any bombs falling from the skies, or the constant terror pervading the air, but…yes, this is a war."

Bloom mutters "It's a war of attrition. He doesn't need some big, grand city-destroying Akuma. He just needs to keep going until one of us breaks down. Cat Noir is ten steps from an emotional breakdown, having to suppress all his emotions all day every day. And he's that far away because I keep pulling him back night after night. Marinette is overworked and underappreciated, between being class rep, the class' Everyday Ladybug they can always go to for help, and an up-and-coming designer as well as a student and the real Ladybug. I help carry all of that where I can, but…" She sighs putting the empty cup down, and says "We need help, Master Fu. We're not always going to be enough, won't always be able to win the battles with our skills. We can't always slip away, and the bathroom excuse only works so many times before people either see right through it or start thinking we've got some kind of medical problem." They're stuck between a rock and a hard place, and it's getting worse and worse each day.

Master Fu mods, and says "I have other Miraculous' hidden here, as you know. However..."

Bloom nods, and says "But we can't bring them out, any of them, without letting Hawk-butt know about them. We all appeared at the same time, making it plausible that we all arrived at the same time..." But, if a new Miraculous is introduced, that goes straight out the window. He'll know there are more Miraculous' in the city, he'll know there's a Guardian in Paris.

And, loathe as Bloom is to admit it, she's grown rather attached to Wang Fu. And not just because he's the one that gave her Longg's Miraculous, he's the first person in literal years to take an interest in her wellbeing. He offered her food, tea, and an ear for her worries with no strings attached...and it has the effect of drawing her in like a moth to fire. He offered her the chance to be more than the unknown street girl with magical abilities she doesn't really understand - he gave her the chance to have a family again, when he gave her the Dragon Miraculous.

She can't repay that, but she can at least protect him as much as she can - for all that Wayzz is the Kwami of Protection, Absolute Protection at that, she will bring a perfect storm down on anyone who thinks they can mess with Master Fu.

Kwami of Perfection…good thing in China, 'perfection' is doing things to the best of your ability rather than some standard society imposes on you… At least, that was what it meant back when Longg first came into being.

She was so thrilled with that explanation, because she's far from 'perfect' in a lot of different ways when you go by, say, Gabriel Agreste's definition.

If she had an idea of who would make a good Miraculous Holder to join them, that would be perfection right there. As it is…she figures it'll probably be chosen in some kind of emergency and they'll go from there.

Chapter Text

Bloom glances around the park, grateful that its faced away from the Dupain-Chengs' bakery and the balcony above Marinette's room - the surprise party is in full view, but by some miracle the whip-smart girl hasn't noticed them. They got Andre the Ice-Cream man, famous for melting people's hearts with his 'magic' ice cream that's supposed to show a person's true love, to agree to be there, and the party-prep's well under way.

It helps when the better part of two classes is pitching in - between being class rep and one of the nicest people in school, Marinette's got a lot of friends in both classes who were more than willing to help set up a surprise party for her. Or maybe they just wanted a slice of a cake from the best bakery in Paris - either way, the result is the same.

Adrien glances around, then asks "You think she'll like it, Bloom?"

Bloom smirks - Marinette will definitely love it, she's certain. She's fairly certain Marinette suspects the party itself is happening, but Bloom made sure to keep Adrien's involvement a secret from her. Plus, he even made her a 'lucky charm' of his own. There's no possible way Marinette won't be jumping for joy. "I think she'll be ecstatic, Adrien." Not only is it a present from Adrien - and, that alone will make it spectacular to Marinette - but it's something that means a lot to the both of them. Actually, forget ecstatic - Marinette will be over the moon. "Now, go hide! You're gonna surprise her, Adrien!"

Adrien nods, reaching into his pocket for the Lucky Charm he made and boxed up, and Nino and Alya lead him to a large oak tree he's going to hide in - good thing he's secretly Cat Noir and has plenty of experience climbing trees these days.

Once he's safely hidden in the tree branches, Bloom calls Marinette and says "Hey, Mari, where are you? I've got something to show you. Alright, I'll pick you up there. Yeah, she can come! See you in five!"

Marinette quietly spits out the Befana hard candy she popped when her Grandma was watching, and glances at her phone - it's four, but nobody's called. Maybe…maybe she was wrong about the surpr-

Her phone suddenly rings, showing Bloom's caller ID on the screen. "Hey, Mari, where are you? I've got something to show you."

Marinette beams, but tries to play it casual saying "On the Ponte Des Artes Bridge, with all the locks on the railing."

"Alright, I'll pick you up there."

Thinking fast, Marinette asks "Hey, can my Nonna come? She's visiting, and we don't get to see each other often." All these things are something they'd do when Marinette was much younger, but she wants to make some new memories with her Grandma. And, incidentally, let her know she's lost her taste for the Befana candies.

Bloom's voice immediately says "Yeah, she can come! See you in five!"

Marinette hangs up, only to turn around and see her Grandma giving her the most heartbroken expression she's seen on the woman's face…ever. She tells Marinette to go on and meet her friend, she'll be at the apartment - all before Marinette can get a word in edgewise to explain that it's a surprise party she's pretending not to know about, and that she'd love it if Gina went with.

Nino picks up his phone instantly once it rings, and sees it's Bloom calling - good, that's the signal for everyone to get into place. He accepts the call, and hears "Just keep walking forward until I tell you to stop, Mari. Actually, just to keep you from peeking…"

"Hey, your getting really good at that! But do I really need to be blindfolded?"

"Just head forward, Mari!"

Unbeknownst to everyone else, Bloom put her hands over Mari's eyes and created a blindfold from magic.

Nino ends the call, and motions for everyone to get into their hiding places. A blindfolded Marinette comes into the park, arms out to keep from hitting anything by accident, with Bloom right behind her. "Alright, stop!"

Bloom undoes the blindfold with one hand, doing a silent count for everyone else with the other, and just as the blindfold comes down everyone leaps out and yells "SURPRISE! Happy birthday, Marinette!"

Marinette jumps a mile in the air, a huge grin on her face as she sees almost all her class plus at least half the other class in their year.

About ten minutes later, she and Bloom are standing by the bowl of punch on the snack table, a plastic cup in each hand, and Bloom says "So, I couldn't get you anything you wouldn't already know about…so I got you someone instead. Happy Birthday, Mari."

Marinette raises an eyebrow, asking "Someone?" If she didn't know any better, she'd think Bloom was responsible for her Grandma's sudden appearance after four years.

And then suddenly there's a rustling sound behind Marinette, and Adrien's voice suddenly says "Surprise, Marinette! Happy birthday!"

Marinette spins around at once, face going beet red from her blush as she sees, yes, Adrien is really standing behind her. Leaves in his hair and jacket, hair messed up, and the biggest smile she's seen on his face in a while…ever since the Collector incident, actually. Has he really been that worried about displeasing his father all this time?

Makes sense, really. The guy IS Hawk Moth, not that Adrien knows that…

Adrien hands her a small blue box, about the size of her palm, and Marinette feels like her heart's simply stopped beating altogether. A small jolt of magic from Bloom, disguised as just poking Marinette in the side, reminds her that it is still beating and she needs to breathe to keep it that way.

And then…a green-skinned woman with red hair rides in on a flying motorcycle with…is that her mother?! With wings?!

Everyone scatters, with 'Befana' - Nonna Gina?! - quite literally gunning after Marinette with her weapon that turns anything it shoots into coal…and, apparently, it can turn people into Fairies. Rose gets hit as well, saying that Marinette's the nicest person they know and to leave her alone - Befana decides that, while it's disrespectful to speak without permission it's also very noble of her to defend a friend. Ergo, Rose gets turned into a Fairy.

Most everyone else has managed to take cover behind bushes and trees in the park by the time Cat Noir and Dragon Fyre arrive, but Cat Noir has to deal with Befana's Fairies while Dragon Fyre dodges shots from the candy-gun as the woman tries to turn her into Coal.

Befana gets a wicked grin, looking a lot like Bloom always imagined the Wicked Witch of the West would, and says "Defending someone who cannot defend themselves, how very noble of you!" She promptly switches from black orbs of light to white, and…aims at Marinette. Dragon Fyre doesn't even think about it, she leaps between Marinette and the shot and gets hit square in the chest.

And then suddenly, everything's burning - the air in her lungs, the skin on her body, the blood in her veins…the ball of liquid fire and agony that just entered her chest and lodged between her lungs. Her own magic rising up and reacting to it. For the first time in nearly five years, Dragon Fyre is burning and it hurts.

And then another ball of agony hits her…and she loses her fight to both stay in control of her magic and not get mind-controlled by Befana.

Most everyone stares in horror as Dragon Fyre takes that hit for Marinette, and promptly bursts into flames lying on the ground. One hand over her sternum like she's having a heart attack, no less. 

Cat Noir's voice rings out from the closest rooftop, horror filling his voice even as he wrestles with Sabine, calling "Sis! No!" She's been hit by mind-controlling Akumas before, and they've never knocked her to the ground and left her looking like she's about to go out altogether!

Nino glances at Alya, then at everyone else, and says "We gotta help, guys!"

Kim and Ivan nod, running over to Cat Noir just as he gets flung down to the street…and they pin Sabine to the ground between the two of them. Alya, Nino, Juleka, and Luka, meanwhile, dogpile Rose. And Luka subtly hums a tune into her ear, though nobody notices as Rose's struggles suddenly stop.

Marinette, who's currently torn between horror at the sight of her best friend currently lying on the stage desperately trying not to lose control of her magic and fear for her Nonna, can only shake her head in admiration as she watches her friends - who don't have Miraculous' and have no experience fighting Akumas - do their best to help when Dragon Fyre's down, Cat Noir's busy fighting off another minion, and Ladybug's nowhere in sight.

And then, Befana shoots Dragon Fyre a second time after a butterfly mask appears over her face, and whatever control the red-head had is suddenly not enough.

As she.

Simply.

Explodes.

A wave of heat, fire, and energy bursts out of Dragon Fyre's body, knocking everyone down and Marinette off the stage and into a nearby bush. When the dark-haired girl blinks the spots out of her eyes, with Tikki worriedly asking if she's alright, she hears Rose's voice ask "Guys? Why are you on top of me?"

And then Sabine asks "Ivan? Kim? What are you two doing?"

When Marinette peeks out from behind the stage she was on, having gotten knocked off by the minor shockwave caused by the explosion, she sees what's easily the strangest thing that's happened all week…if not her entire life, and that includes meeting Tikki and learning she'd been chosen to be a Miraculous Holder.

Because she's looking at wings, reminiscent of an insect or butterfly's wings, sprouting from Dragon Fyre's back and flick and twitch at the slightest breeze. That's the biggest shock factor, but the outfit change is a pretty close second - haler top and miniskirt that show off her arms, legs, and flat stomach, her hair still in a ponytail but with a golden tiara resting in it, and ankle boots that look way too cute to be any good for running, all still in the same material and design as the super-suit she was in not a minute before. So, instead of a full-body suit...magic-spandex skirt and sleeveless top.

At least she's still got her mask on, from what she can see.

Cat Noir lands next to the two girls, asking "Sis?! What happened?!" Plagg's currently no help, having said 'uh-oh...' and then trailed off.

Dragon Fyre groans, putting a hand over her heart and muttering "Ow…" She's never ever going to wonder why people complain about burns - she knew, in an abstract concept, that they hurt…but she's never been burned before. Now she has first-hand experience…well, the Miraculous Cure will repair any damage to the surrounding area, and she can heal people after the fight is over if they get missed.

Looking around, though, it doesn't look like much needs to be healed - the grass has grown three feet in an instant, there's flowers and weeds everywhere, and nobody looks particularly hurt.

Point of fact, Befana's staring at her with a flabbergasted expression on her face - though, she is a few feet away from where she was last time she saw the Akumatized woman.

Hawk Moth, meanwhile, can only stare through Befana's eyes and think What the actual fuck?! He distantly hears Befana say something about his language, but that's the least of his concerns right now - Dragon Fyre just sprouted wings and has an outfit change.

And then he sees her hit Befana with a fireball, and the woman goes flying backwards - he could feel that all the way down the magical connection, dammit! How hard was that?!

Dragon Fyre, Cat Noir, Marinette, and everyone else look in various stages of shock - and guilt, in Dragon Fyre's case - as Befana goes flying backwards out of sight after the fireball to the chest she took. After a moment of stunned silence, Dragon Fyre says "Well, that happened. I was just trying to knock her down, not hit a home run with her body." She moves to stand up, only to freeze when her new wings make their presence known by twitching.

Therein ensues a freak-out of epic proportions, all the balloons spontaneously popping and the tables of food exploding with the food burning as she shrieks "WHAT THE HELL DID THAT GUN DO TO ME?!"

To be fair…suddenly sprouting wings and getting an outfit change and power boost…not exactly something that happens every single day. And she hasn't even noticed the outfit change.

Dragon Fyre smashes Befana's Object, snatches up the Akuma, and takes off to 'go find Ladybug' before Cat Noir can even think about what to do.

Luka and Juleka, meanwhile, trade awestruck glances - they knew Dragon Fyre had magic of her own, but...that was something else altogether. While they dearly want to go after her and ask about a million questions - most of which they know she probably doesn't have any answers to either, given the detail that she said straight-up on the interview with Nadja Chamack she took inspiration from Harry Potter as she taught herself how to control her magic - they can't, they've got to stay and help with the cleanup until the Cure gets used. 

Chapter Text

Tikki quickly follows Dragon Fyre, hoping to hell and back that she isn't going far - going to find Ladybug means, in this specific case, going to find a spot for them to meet up so Tikki can purify the Akuma and use the Cure to put everything right again. Perks of knowing Marinette is Ladybug, and Tikki knowing she knows.

When she gets to the rooftop, though, Dragon Fyre is absolutely freaking out - not without a reason, given the detail that she just transformed in a way that's not the Miraculous' doing. "Dragon Fyre! You need to calm down, panicking is just going to make your magic react more!" Because it's currently feeling like there's a heatwave going through this specific area, thanks to the magic that Dragon Fyre can now access even more of.

As soon as Dragon Fyre hears her voice, she whirls on the Kwami of Creation desperately and says "Tikki, please tell me the Cure will fix this! Please tell me this'll go away after we purify the Akuma!" They said 'Earth Fairy' - they wanted an Earth Fairy, I'm not a Fairy, they have wings- I've got wings now, what if I AM this Earth Fairy they wanted or just became it, Kwamis how do I-

HATCHLING! You NEED to calm down! Take a deep breath and CALM DOWN. Working yourself into a panic attack is only going to level the city.

Dragon Fyre forces her lungs to expand, making herself take in oxygen before she actually passes out like Marinette's gotten close to doing at times when she's spiraling.

Tikki winces, and says "It's not…Dragon Fyre, this was always going to happen to you. Befana's power to turn people into Fairies just…forced it."

Dragon Fyre's silent for a solid minute processing that, then bursts into a series of denials that sound remarkably like Marinette's spiraling. "No, nononono, you've gotta be joking, Tikki! There's no way I'm a fairy, fairies are only in fantasy books, bedtime stories, and Hawk Moth's twisted imagination! I can't be a fairy, I can't be what they were looking for!"

Tikki blinks, having heard about 'them' - the four men that attacked her and killed her parents, awakened her magic earlier than it was supposed to be awakened, and then left her for dead after their wormhole spit her out into the La Seine.

Right, this WOULD trigger a freakout… "You think they'll come back for you."

Dragon Fyre nods, the flames around her slowly dying down as the worst of her panic passes.

"They won't. You weren't what they were looking for, they have no reason to come back here now."

"They…they called me a Fairy, Tikki. I thought they were crazy, at first, but then they started doing magic and the giant wolf turned back into the guy with the mohawk…" And they ripped her life apart in the space of less than an hour. Ten minutes tops, if she had to take a guess. And she has wings, isn't that the benchmark for Fairies or something? Wings and magic?

Tikki purifies the Akuma and releases the Miraculous Cure, leaving Dragon Fyre…still in the different outfit that's her Fairy form. "Shitshitshitshit, how do I make it go away? How do I shut my magic down? It took me four years to learn to control the magic I could use, and I'm currently using a lot more than usual, I can feel it! It's like I've just been supercharged, somebody just dumped gasoline onto the little campfire in my chest!" She doesn't have the time to relearn her control, not with Hawk Moth Akumatizing people at least once a day! She can already tell she's going to be spending a lot of time in the quarry…

Marinette finds Bloom hanging out at the edge of her birthday party after everything is set back up - luckily, the Cure fixed everything that got blown up or destroyed in Dragon Fyre's freak out.

Unluckily, Bloom's in a completely different outfit, oversized sweatpants and a hoodie that hide her figure all the way down to the ground. In neon-orange, no less. Even her ponytail looks messed-up, for some reason. The biggest clue that something's up, though, is that she's wearing an old pair of reflective sunglasses - Bloom never wears sunglasses.

Marinette jogs over at once, asking "Bloom? What happened?"

Bloom freezes for an instant, then says "It's fine, Mari. I've, uh, gotta split for tonight after the party though."

Marinette gets a concerned look on her face, asking "Is something wrong?" The cup of punch in Bloom's hand suddenly explodes, spraying the both of them with punch - translation: yes.

"Bloom, Marinette, you two alright?" Luka, Juleka, and Adrien all come over, making both Marinette and Bloom freeze in place.

Adrien feels ice form in his veins at his sister's outfit - something colored exactly like her magic that just so happens to hide her body from the chin down, something to hide her eyes that are almost certainly blazing a bright orange…it doesn't tell him anything good, it tells him a few catastrophic things actually. No pun intended.

It tells him her magic's still really active, it tells him whatever happened before didn't get reversed with the Miraculous Cure...and it tells him his sister is freaking out completely.

Luka, though, gets a concerned look on his face and asks "Did something happen, Bloom? You weren't wearing those earlier."

Marinette quickly says "The punch drenched her when Dragon Fyre had her freak-out. I offered her something I was going to upcycle to wear for the night."

Adrien's calling total bull on that, but he won't say as much where anyone can hear him. He doesn't know why Marinette's covering for his sister when she's acting so cagey, but he could kiss her for it right then and there.

Luka then suggests they go get ice cream from Andre, which Juleka grins and practically drags Adrien and Marinette to. Marinette gets 'peach-pink for his lips, and mint for his eyes,' while Adrien gets 'strawberry with chocolate chips, blackberry for her hair, and blueberry for her sky-blue stare' - Bloom practically chokes on the mouthful of punch she inhaled , even as Juleka facepalms when Adrien just asks if Andre's ice cream can really lock true love. How he doesn't notice that the cone of ice cream he has perfectly describes Marinette's face right then - red as the ice cream scoop on bottom, her freckles highlighted just like the chocolate chips in the ice cream, and the blackberry and blueberry were already explained - is beyond them. How Marinette doesn't notice that his ice cream combo perfectly describes Ladybug is beyond Bloom.

Bloom says "Yeah, I've gotta get going, guys. See you in school." She's so glad today is a Saturday, she can spend tomorrow trying to wrestle her magic under some semblance of control in the quarry.

Luka stares after Bloom's fleeing back, wondering at the frantic energy he could all but actually feel pouring off her as well as why her melody changed so drastically from before Befana's arrival, then Adrien asks "You want to get some ice cream, Luka?"

Andre delightedly says "It's on the house for tonight! A birthday party is the perfect time to have ice cream!"

Luka shrugs, trying not to think about Bloom and why she'd be running away so suddenly - or why her song was so off, so frantic - and decides a cone of Andre's magical ice cream is a wonderful way to take his mind off an erratic melody and panic-filled gaze.

Dragon Fyre's melody changed to, actually…no, Luka, don't think about either of them… "Sure, that sounds wonderful."

Luka, much to everyone else's jaw-dropping surprise, gets 'Vanilla for her skin, Orange for her flaming hair, and Blueberry for her gem-like stare.' Rose squeaks and stares at Juleka in shock from her seat a few feet away - they know two people that fit that description, and one of them is most definitely not a 'her.' Point of fact, he's staring at them in absolute shock, sketchpad forgotten for a moment as he takes in the ice cream combination.

And then the blonde girl gets a delighted look on her face while Juleka stares at Luka in shock, even as Marinette is quietly stepping between Luka and Adrien as the blonde boy seems about to go off on a tirade for some reason.

Adrien, meanwhile, is biting back every protective instinct he has at the revelation - via ice cream, of all things - that Luka has a thing for Bloom. It'd probably be getting to him less if Luka's face weren't bright as his Lady's suit…or if Andre weren't famous for getting couples right with his ice cream. Because the last guy that had a thing for her backed away slowly before he could even get his nerve up to do anything - and, despite how cool she played the whole thing, he knows it hurt her. Call him overprotective, but he'd rather she didn't get her hopes up again only for them to come crashing down once more.

Adrien's worry doesn't get any better, though, when his sister doesn't show up for the Akuma attack the next day - the Object explodes, violently, but his sister is nowhere in sight. Master Fu doesn't know where she is - or what happened to her, for that matter - and she's not responding to any of the messages he or Ladybug have left her.

He's bounding over the city rooftops, searching for his sister - schedule be damned, Gabriel will just have to be disappointed yet again - since he's not about to time-out anytime soon.

Ok, kid, we gotta talk. And you need to avoid the quarry.

Cat Noir stops in his tracks on the rooftop he was about to leap from, having been searching the city for his sister - the quarry, why didn't he think of the quarry?!

No, Adrien, listen to me! You CANNOT go find her right now! Tikki told me what was going on when she found Dragon Fyre, and it's only because of Longg that the city hasn't been leveled yet!

That keeps Cat Noir in place, and the blonde boy swallows before saying "Tell me everything, Plagg." If he's going to help his sister, he needs to know what's going on.

Alright so…Bloom's as powerful as Tikki and I combined, we think, but couldn't access most of that strength because her human form couldn't handle it without burning out. Now…she can access more. Like that, with the wings, she can put a lot more power into her magic without so much as breaking a sweat. Or even really trying. But…she's freaking out about it. You've heard how her parents died, right?

Cat Noir nods, and says "Yeah, why?"

Well…the four weirdos were looking for an Earth Fairy, and thought she was who they wanted.

"An…Earth Fairy?" He's never heard of anyone like that before.

Um, yeah…that'd be the group of ladies that helped us, since they were the only ones that could see us at the time. One of them made the Miraculous' all that time ago. Her name was...Eldora, I think.

Cat Noir promptly finds himself flat on his behind, the revelation having taken away his ability to be on his feet for the moment. "So…wait. Your saying Bloom's…"

A Fairy? Uh…yeah. And now, she thinks they'll come back for her if she can't get her wings to go away. According to Longg, she's currently trying to drain herself dry in hopes that a lack of magic will make her revert back to normal.

"And…will that work?"

Eh…maybe. Depends on if she can successfully push herself to her limits. She's figured out by now that, like that, her limits are a lot harder to reach. It's like the difference between a bath tub and the pool outside Chloe's room at that hotel of hers, Adrien. And, if we're right…she's got a lot more potential than Chloe's swimming pool that she can't access yet.

Cat Noir swallows, nervously asking "How…how big a body of water are we talking, Plagg? An ocean? All the oceans combined?"

Think…space, Adrien. She can't get that deep safely, yet at least, but it's there in her. If she had to dig that deep now, though…she'd probably level Paris, if not the entire continent.

Adrien gulps, then asks "That's what would happen if she lost control?"

Maybe, yeah. A Kwami…kid, we're GODS. Concepts given life. Tikki and I are opposites, I came to be shortly after her. Creation and Destruction literally can't exist without one another. And Bloom? She's as strong as any of us with ease, from what we've felt. As strong as Tikki and I together, I'd say.

That…if this were a cartoon, Adrien figures he'd be in a dead faint right now. His sister, who sits diagonal from him in class and gets frustrated with Chloe and her crap, who races around the city with him and made sure he knew for a fact that there are people in the city who actually care about him…she's as powerful as a God. He's not sure whether to laugh or cry - his sister is basically a mortal goddess…who can sprout wings from her back.

His sister is a Fairy.

Maybe screaming would be a viable option?

Or hysterical laughter?

Gabriel Agreste is just thankful, right then, that he's sitting down…and that Adrien is up in his room.

Because it wouldn't do whatsoever for his son to hear him swearing up a blue streak to thin air. No, forget blue - he's swearing up a rainbow.

Nathalie comes in at once, asking "Is something the matter?" Gabriel Agreste doesn't swear. He just doesn't. In all the time she's worked for him, the only time she's ever heard him swear is when Emilie collapsed that final time and he had to put her on life support to keep her alive.

Gabriel runs a shaking hand through his hair, messing it up from the usually-immaculate style he worked years on, and says "We may…just be completely fucked, Nathalie. Dragon Fyre is a Fairy." If he hadn't seen it through Befana's eyes, he'd think it was some kind of mistake. As it is...he's thinking he might be going insane. That, or he's just a goner.

Nathalie raises an eyebrow, wondering whether it'd be a good time to get some alcohol or check if what she saw on the Ladyblog affected him through some magic she can't possibly explain, and asks "A…Fairy? Like the ones you thought up for yesterday's Akuma?"

Gabriel shakes his head, saying "No…like the one that, according to Nooroo, created the Miraculous' over five thousand years prior before they were entrusted to her Chinese apprentice."

Nathalie blinks, then pulls up the image she paused the video on - Dragon Fyre in her new outfit, perfectly captured down to the last detail. Right before her freak-out over that particular change, which destroyed all the party decorations and food.

If the Miraculous' were hard to believe, the idea that Gabriel can gain superpowers from a tiny god smaller than the palm of her hand by wearing a piece of jewelry and saying a phrase…this is unbelievable.

Dragon Fyre, someone the two of them are relatively sure is a teenager…is something straight out of myths and legends, a fairytale come to life, no pun intended.

Like Gabriel said...they may just be screwed.

It's Monday night when Dragon Fyre finally breaks her self-imposed exile, having practically sprinted out the door of the classroom earlier in the day and vanished before either Marinette or Adrien could stop her - honestly, both are amazed she even came to school in the first place, less so that she got into classes at literally the last minute and left and just up and disappeared as soon as the bell started ringing.

Ladybug and Cat Noir practically race to the quarry, and Cat Noir gets there first and looks around worriedly. "Sis! Where are you?"

The place looks worse than ever, blast-holes and scorch marks everywhere, so she had to have been here recently. And yet...she's nowhere to be seen. Ladybug lands next to him, and looks around…only for their red-haired partner to turn visible sitting on a rock.

She looks awful, every bit as bad as she did earlier in the day - like she could sleep for a solid week and still wake up exhausted.

About half a second after he sees her, Cat Noir's sweeping his sister up in a hug while near-hysterically letting her know in no uncertain terms just how worried he's been about her. As soon as Cat Noir stops attempting to crush his sister - rather, hug her to death - Ladybug promptly tackles Dragon Fyre in a hug of her own and socks her in the shoulder as well before demanding she never ever worry them like that again.

They then spend the next four hours helping Dragon Fyre learn to take off and land - because her wings are there to stay, even if she can hide them now, so she'd better figure out how to use them before they become a problem in a battle.

Four hours spent with Cat Noir going up and down his baton, either getting his sister to a height she'll jump from or pulling her back down to the ground when her wings decide they want to work and suspend her midair.

Chapter Text

Marinette groans internally, why didn't she decide to practice Parkour with Bloom instead?! Being Ladybug doesn't need fencing, she uses a yo-yo for Kwami's sake!

She didn't listen, though, and now she's stuck trying to decide who managed to land a hit before the other between Adrien and the mystery-fencer. She really needs to start listening to Bloom - but, noo, she got it in her head that fencing would help her as Ladybug...and Adrien would be there. Bloom absolutely knew she was trying to get closer to Adrien as well, but didn't call her out for it...and Mari's wishing she had, wishing the red-head had talked her out of fencing like she has twenty other hare-brained ideas.

She's absolutely going to get an 'I told you so' from Bloom later. Likely coupled with laughter, if Marinette's being honest. Since her magic is emotion-based...Bloom feels everything like a freight train. Including amusement. It's why she has such an explosive temper, for instance,

If anyone should've tried for the spot, it should'a been Bloom. She's the one with the sword!

And she'd have a better chance of seeing who landed a hit first! A part of her, likely Bloom's influence, is tempted to tell the two Fencers and D'Argencourt that she has no idea who got the hit in. Unfortunately, the part of her brain that insists on helping everyone demands she pick someone.

After playing 'eenie, meenie, minie, mo' in her head, Marinette nervously says "Um, I think it was…Adrien?" She hasn't got the slightest clue, honestly, it's a 50-50 chance she's right.

D'Argencourt straightens up at once, declaring it an honor to have such a victory for the Academy. The mystery-fencer just shakes Adrien's hand and walks out without a word, though both Adrien and Marinette are skeptical he actually won.

Adrien goes to offer a decisive match, but the fencer - who turns out to be a girl, when literally everyone thought she was a guy - says "What's the point? There are no second chances in my family."

Adrien notices a ring on her finger with a symbol, and just knows he's seen it somewhere before - he races to the limo, and has his Bodyguard follow the girl's while looking up the symbol on the ring. Her name turns out to be Kagami Tsurugi, the only daughter of a line of prestigious and famous fencers.

He's just looked up when the front of the limo gets separated from the back - cut in half, to be specific. When he looks up from where he landed on the pavement, he sees…it must be Kagami, an Akumatized Kagami. She's all-silver, and it looks like she's holding a sword…or her hand is the sword, it's a little hard to tell with the glare coming off her.

Ladybug comes in and distracts Kagami - Riposte, now - and then Dragon Fyre lands right behind him hard enough to make a crater in the pavement. She scoops Adrien up at once, signing that she'll be right back with one hand, and leaps up to the rooftop and whispers "I don't know what happened, and something tells me I don't want to know."

Adrien winces, and says "Marinette was the only person to see the end of the fencing match between myself and Kagami down there. And she had no idea who actually won, so she guessed."

Dragon Fyre deadpans "And picked you."

Adrien nods, and says "Personally, I think she won…but I don't think she wants to hear that right now…"

When Cat Noir lands next to Ladybug, he sees…his sister swordfighting Riposte. And, if he didn't know any better…he'd say the two of them are enjoying the fight. Both leaping forwards, swords meeting, taking a few swings at each other that get blocked only to separate a few feet and repeat the process.

Wait a minute…dear Kwamis, how alike are they?

After a few attacks, Riposte says "You're a worthy adversary, Dragon Fyre, but I will have the Miraculous'!"

Dragon Fyre smirks, and asks "You just saying that to keep Butterfly-Boy happy and keep him from torturing you like he has other victims of his? Or do you really want to help a terrorist?"

A butterfly mask appears over Riposte's face, and she snarls "Lies! You can't distract me so easily!" Whether she's talking to Dragon Fyre or Hawk Moth is up for debate, but either way she rushes forward towards the red-head she's battling.

Dragon Fyre blocks the strike, saying "I don't lie if I don't have to, Riposte. You think he can't make sure his victims do what he wants? I've seen it firsthand. If they don't do what he wants, he starts making them." Doubt flickers across her face, and Dragon Fyre presses "There's no shame in losing to an opponent, you know. Especially one as good as I heard you faced. The Academy's best fencer, right?"

Riposte nods, and says "His friend saw me lose."

Dragon Fyre deflects an attack, and asks "Was this friend particularly confident in her choice? Or was everyone pressuring her to give an answer, even if she said she didn't know?"

Riposte stares at her in shock, only for the transformation to suddenly fail and a purple butterfly comes out of the ring she's wearing. Kagami looks around, asking "What? What happened?"

Ladybug quickly catches the Akuma, and Dragon Fyre offers Kagami a hand up while saying "You got Akumatized. Luckily, it seemed all you wanted was a rematch. My advice? Take it. As I heard, a newbie was forced to make a near-impossible call."

Kagami blinks, then says "I see. Well, it seems I'll have to accept that decisive match then."

Once Ladybug and Dragon Fyre are alone, Ladybug deadpans "I quit fencing, Scales. No matter if Adrien's there or not. I'll leave that to you and Cat Noir."

Dragon Fyre bursts out laughing, ending up doubled over and clutching at her stomach as she slides to the roof they're standing on. "Oh man, oh man, Spots, I told you it wasn't your thing! Good reflexes or no, unless you and Kitty suddenly switch Miraculous' it won't do you much good!" She spent three hours trying to talk Marinette into a different hobby, then gave up figuring Marinette would come to the conclusion on her own - she isn't going to use it as Ladybug, and Marinette and Tikki are way too attached for Marinette to suddenly switch to a more offensive Miraculous. Ergo, she figured Marinette would drop it eventually - and, between being Ladybug, half of B&M, and student rep, there's not much room for anything else in the day.

Bloom would know, she helps with all of that!

Later that night, Kagami Tsurugi is staring out the window of her room…she remembers everything. Leaping out of the top of the limo, slicing Adrien's car in half…fighting Dragon Fyre.

The only person she's ever come across as skilled as her mother with a sword, even if the style of swordsmanship differs. She blocked or countered every strike, never stumbled or faltered…she was truly a worthy opponent.

But…why does she remember as much? She researched what happened to her, and found it's a daily problem…but, at the end of it all, nobody remembers what happened! Bits and pieces can come back, yeah…but nobody remembers the whole thing.

Was it because the emotion disappeared naturally? They didn't have to fight tooth and nail for the Akuma?

She doesn't know, but it's extremely disturbing - Hawk Moth's voice in her head, even more so. Egging her on to get the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous' - and to get Dragon Fyre out of the way by any means necessary, keep her from using her magic somehow.

Magic?! She's going to have to look into that, honestly - it was obviously magic, what happened to her, but Hawk Moth seemed to be under the impression that Dragon Fyre had some kind of magic of her own. A dangerous magic, at that.

Chapter Text

When Bloom and Adrien walk into class, they see Miss Mendeleiev's computer going haywire - there's a lot of scrambled code, and Damocles and Mendeleiev are stumped. Max and Marinette walk in shortly after, and Damocles tries pressing a series of buttons on the laptop. It seems to work…until a picture of a dinosaur appears on the screen.

Max quickly identifies it as 'Dino-33' - a malicious computer virus. He offers to try something, but Mendeleiev sends him to his seat…and then Max's bag starts talking to him in a robotic-sounding voice.

Bloom leans over to Marinette, and asks "Have we had a few too many late nights, Mari, or did Max's bag just talk?"

Longg says "Nope, Hatchling, it did." There's having a Kwami hiding in your bag, and then there's that - Kwamis don't talk robotically, some of them haven't been active since before robots were invented!

The talking bag informs everyone that they only have 75 seconds before the hard drive is irreversibly damaged, prompting Damocles to let Max try to save the computer and the school's data. Max plugs a hard drive he invented in, handed to him by a robotic arm, which not only sucks up all the virus but cleans the laptop's hard drive in the process, and then Damocles and Mendeleiev congratulate him as everyone else gathers around to see the little robot introduced as Markov.

And then Mendeleiev tells Max that 'his toy he manufactured is very impressive, but to put it away now and go back to his seat.' That instantly sparks outrage on Max's face, even as Markov insists he's not a toy but Max's best friend. Mendeleiev insists that Max just programmed Markov to say that, even though Max swears he didn't, and Markov 'yells' that she's being unreasonable. Damocles confiscates Markov, saying Max can get him back at the end of the day, and refuses to listen to Max's pleading or Markov's cries.

Most of the class moves on from Markov's confiscation, but Max stops at Bloom and Marinette's desk and says "Markov's never been away from my side before, I'm worried about how he'll handle this emotionally."

Marinette promises to see what she can do…then, when Miss Mendeleiev refuses to let her see the principal as Class Representative, she gets herself sent to the Principal's office.

Of course, about a minute later…a wave of green energy goes through the room.

Everyone goes dead quiet, even as all the electronics in the room start rattling, and Bloom swallows before saying "Miss Mendeleiev, I think we're about to get proof that Markov does have emotions…"

The laptop suddenly floats in the air, along with all the tablets in the classroom, and Adrien yells "Everybody out, now!"

Nobody, not even Miss Mendeleiev, argues with him about that - they've all been at ground zero for Akuma attacks, they know what one generally looks like! What it looks like being…everything going absolutely insane in the space of a few moments to a few minutes.

When they all get to the courtyard, though…they find an Akumatized Markov getting into a giant amalgamation of machines - 4 excavators, along with a car at the top and what looks like a generator on the back of the giant robot. He scoops Max up, declaring they'll never be separated again, and hangs Miss Mendeleiev from the school roof to keep her from separating them…and then Ladybug catches her right before she can hit the ground, the yo-yo wrapping around her shoulders mere inches away from the pavement.

Ladybug yells over "If you truly love your friend, you should listen to him!"

Max tries to convince Markov - Robostus, now - to give up, but the small robot says "I'm doing this for our friendship, Max, they want to keep us apart!" And he won't let that happen, he won't! Luckily, Robostus has the perfect way to make sure they can be together forever.

Ladybug struggles in the excavator's grip, trying to squirm free even a little - Cat Noir's stuck upside down, and Dragon Fyre went to save some civilians from four raging cars while they went on ahead, so…they're pretty screwed. She hears something about a wish, though, and it making Markov human…before she can even begin to wonder about that, though, she hears something even more amazing. Robostus turning against Hawk Moth, saying 'his friends will look after him' while he takes the Miraculous for himself.

And then two incredible, fantastic things happen.

Max frees them, knocking the small robots away from them with his bag and using the excavator's controls to dump them onto the ground.

And Dragon Fyre shows up as Robostus's asking Max why he did as much, getting Max to safety and leaping up to Robostus' windshield - landing so hard she puts a large dent in the hood of the car in the process. "YOU MECHANICAL NITWIT!"

Cat Noir gets Max to his feet, and murmurs "She's going off this time…"

Ladybug asks "You think she's angry because she nearly lost us?"

Cat Noir would say that's a contributing factor…but there's something else to it, to.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOUR DOING, TRYING TO WISH YOURSELF INTO HUMANITY?! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT THE CONSEQUENCES WOULD BE?!"

Robostus says "I'd be a human boy like Max, and we'd never be separated again!" He reaches up with his remaining Excavator, only for it to suddenly explode.

Dragon Fyre slams her fist on the windshield, making a dent in the glass, and yells "That's only half the consequences, you digitized nearsighted twit! The Miraculous Wish isn't about right and wrong, good and bad! It's about balance! If you were to wish you were a human, someone else would lose their humanity!"

Ladybug and Cat Noir make strangled sounds of shock and horror, even as Max starts muttering about how nothing can be created or destroyed, only changed. And then Ladybug squints at Dragon Fyre, who's currently berating Robostus, saying how the universe demands balance in all things, and asks "Is it just me, Kitty, or is Dragon Fyre's suit…glowing?"

Cat Noir nods, then makes a strangled sound in the back of his throat once more as his pupils dilate to their full extent. "Um, M'Lady? Look up."

Ladybug goes slack-jawed in disbelief at the sight of a thunderstorm rapidly forming above the stadium. Max swallows nervously as the wind starts to pick up, and asks "That's not Robostus, is it?"

Cat Noir shakes his head, and says "I think…that's my sister's doing."

Ladybug mutters "Wind, water and Lightning. We got the wind here, the water's up there for sure…oh no!"

"You want to know the worst part, though, Robostus? There's a reason the expression 'Karma's a bitch' exists - for you to become human, the person that would lose their humanity would almost certainly be the one you value as much as yourself! It would most likely be Max who would lose his humanity!"

Robostus gasps, as much as a robot can gasp, and asks "What?!"

Dragon Fyre snarls "Balance, Robostus! That's what'll happen if you make that wish! Do you really want to just reverse your role with Max's? Is that what you want for him?!"

"No, of course not!"

"Well that's what'll happen if you go through with this! He'll be the one called a toy instead of you, he'll be the one locked in a cupboard, he'll be the one wishing he was a human instead of you! Looked down on, considered nothing but a bit of excellent programming! Is that what you want?!" And that's when her partners' cries reach her ears, drawing her attention from her furious rant to the surrounding area.

"Sis, you gotta calm down!"

"Dragon Fyre, get down from there!"

"Look up, you're generating a thunderstorm storm of sizable quantity above the stadium! And lightning off your own body as well!"

And that's when she glances over, seeing her two partners waving their arms in the air and jumping to get her attention and Max Kante staring up at the sky. Her brother points upwards frantically, and she finally notices the lightning that's arcing off herself, the glow that's coming from her suit…and the wind that's blowing fiercely. When she glances up, there's a jet-black thundercloud formed overhead, lightning crackling and arcing in it.

What the actual hell?!

Hatchling, we need to MOVE!

Thinking quickly, Dragon Fyre smashes through the windshield, grabs Robostus, and leaps off the giant robot just as she feels something snap inside that cloud - how, she couldn't tell you…but magic is generally just something you have to feel to understand. And, somehow or other, she was connected to that storm cloud for a moment…and felt the exact instant it decided to let loose, or perhaps the instant Longg's power called that lightning strike down to earth.

Down to the robot.

Dragon Fyre's just cleared the giant robot when the lightning hits, resulting in herself and Robostus hitting the ground hard and rolling from the shockwave of the giant pile of machines exploding. When everyone else blinks the spots from their eyes, and Cat Noir stops using his Baton as a shield to deflect debris and shrapnel, Ladybug stares at the smoking husk of the robot they were struggling with and says "Well…that takes care of that."

Cat Noir glances around, then gasps and yells "Sis!"

Ladybug gasps as well, upon seeing her best friend, and shouts "Dragon Fyre!"

Max yells "Markov!"

All three go running towards the red-head and robot lying on the ground. Dragon Fyre groans, turning over slowly as she does - until Ladybug forcibly rolls her over and pulls her into a sitting position anyway - her whole body is tingling like she got hit, but it doesn't just hurt. Yeah, she's sore from the shockwave, and hitting the ground, but her skin is tingling like there's an electric current just under the surface. She's not a fan, even if she does recognize it as Longg's magic. Cat Noir slides to the ground on his knees, wrapping his arms around her and saying she had them worried sick.

It'll get better as you get used to it, Hatchling. I must admit, I hadn't expected that big of a lightning strike. Erm...oops.

Robostus bring the two of them from their mental conversation, floating up about three inches and asking "You saved me? Why?"

Dragon Fyre holds herself up by one hand, saying "Part of being human, Markov. We're stubborn, unreasonable, occasionally selfish and stupid creatures...but we can also put ourselves aside for other people."

Robostus says "Being human sounds complicated. And difficult."

Ladybug huffs, crossing her arms and giving Dragon Fyre a stink-eye, and says " And that's without magic." With magic, it gets about a hundred times as complicated - like when her best friend nearly fries herself and the Cure can't fix it!

Robostus hovers for a moment, then says "What you said about the wish..." Everyone goes dead-silent at Robostus' words, and he continues "I don't want it anymore. Not if the cost would be Max's humanity."

And then, suddenly, purple energy washes over Robustus, turning him back into Markov as the Akuma suddenly emerges from his body.

Once the Akuma is purified, Cat Noir asks "Um, quick question. Where was Hawk Moth during all of that?" If he ever knew his ex-father, he'd never stand for such a betrayal.

Ladybug nods, even as they pull Dragon Fyre to her feet, and asks "Surely he would've done something about you rebelling against him?"

Markov says "Oh, simple. I kept him busy with his security system, had it fire a lot of his missiles at him. He didn't have a chance to do anything to stop me."

Ladybug near-shrieks "He's got missiles?!"

Cat Noir asks "You remember what happened?" Focus on that, not on the detail that he's willing to blow people up.

Ok, kitten, I've got nothing. He's off his rocker, as the expression goes. I'm sorry.

Markov nods, as much as the tiny robot can nod, and says "I remember everything I did. I'm sorry, by the way. But Hawk Moth has several dozen missiles in his lair, or he did anyway."

Cat Noir looks absolutely horrified, but Dragon Fyre says "Maybe he remembers because he's a robot? Or because the emotion the Akuma was attracted to dissipated?" Cat Noir's just grateful, right then, that his sister is giving him something to focus on other than the detail that his father is apparently homicidal.

"There was also a heart-monitor and life-support system running in there, along with something measuring some kind of energy in whoever it was in there, but I didn't interfere with them."

Dragon Fyre sees her brother go pale as a ghost, but before she can say anything the world starts spinning. "SIS!"

Ok, Hatchling, I may have used more of your magic to fuel that storm than I thought…

Cat Noir feels relief flood him when his sister groans - she just collapsed to the ground, would've hit her head had he not caught her! - and pulls her up asking "What happened, Sis? C'mon, open your eyes…"

She groans again, eyes blinking open and closed a few times, and she finally says "Longg used my excess magic to fuel the storm you guys saw, but more energy went into it than he intended." New avenue for her magic to go, it flooded Longg once he started it. Normally, something like that would only start to happen when she was old enough, but…perks of magic. And perks of being close with your Kwami.

Ladybug wrings her hands together, and worriedly asks "Why'd that happen now? I get that magic is unpredictable at the best of times, but…"

After a moment, Dragon Fyre says "According to Longg, it's not supposed to happen for a few years. Until we're older, better able to handle the drain. But, with my magic…" With her Fairy form having been forced by Befana, unlocking a power level with it...well, she has energy to spare and then some.

Max throws his hands up, saying "I give up. This is so far out of the realm of science and logic that I just can't follow."

Dragon Fyre grins, and says "Saw what you did back there, Max. Thanks for saving my partners." He'd make a decent Miraculous Holder…if he can be convinced to stop relying so heavily on logic all the time.

Some things, as she well knows, simply defy all logic. She's one of them.

Chapter Text

Max and Markov are up in Max's room, trying to analyze the data that Markov got about Hawk Moth's lair - it's underground, but Markov can't pinpoint an exact location yet. And then there's a tapping sound on Max's window, and the two of them look over to see Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Dragon Fyre sitting there.

Max opens the window at once, asking "Ladybug, Cat Noir, Dragon Fyre, what are you doing here? Checking in on Markov?"

Dragon Fyre says "Partly. My brother here also had an idea."

Cat Noir says "I thought of a way to keep an eye on Hawk Moth, and what he's planning, but we'd need your help." Rather, Plagg was doing a bit of recon one night while Ladybug was on Patrol, discovered Nooroo, and the Butterfly Kwami told them Agreste Sr. is doing something related to being Hawk Moth on his computer.

Max nods, asking "What do you need?"

Ladybug says "This has to stay a secret, but...we know who Hawk Moth is, but we can't get to him at the moment."

Max stares at the two of them in shock, asking "You know who he is? Why haven't you told anyone?! The police, the American Superheroes, somebody?!"

Dragon Fyre holds up a hand, and says "At the moment, we have no proof. He covered his tracks by Akumatizing himself. And we can't ambush him either, that's been expressly forbidden. But…that doesn't mean we can't keep an eye on what he's planning. Also, he's got people around him that would be put in danger if we backed him into a corner. Right now, we're playing a waiting game...and he's got almost all the advantages there."

After a moment, Max asks "What do you need me to do?" He can see the logic in what they're saying - ambushing Hawk Moth, whoever he is, as a civilian could end up going so very wrong so easily. And if he's got civilians around him, he could use them as hostages. A cornered animal is the most dangerous kind, after all.

Ladybug says "We were hoping you could write a program that would send everything he does to our own phones. They don't exist when we're not in uniform, so there shouldn't be any concerns about security."

Max frowns, and then Markov says "We could put the program onto the same kind of flash drive we used for the anti-virus program, which would install it as soon as it's plugged into a computer. I recommend the computer be powered off entirely, to prevent any issues with any security programs."

Max frowns again, this is serious - writing a program like they're describing could land him in jail, usually for years. But, on the other hand, Hawk Moth is a magical terrorist - he's pretty sure that kicks 'usual' right off the table.

Dragon Fyre sees Max's frown, and says "If you're worried about getting in trouble, we'll vouch for you, Max. But we need some way of keeping an eye on what he's doing, some kind of warning in advance if he's planning something."

Max nods, then says "Alright, we'll help. It'll be ready in a week." He just hopes they know what they're doing. And that they're right about Hawk Moth's identity, to.

Sure enough, exactly a week later, Max and Markov have the flash drive ready for Cat Noir when he arrives. Adrien's waiting in his room, the only light being the moonlight streaming through the window - more specifically, he's waiting for Plagg to get back from taking out the generator he found.

Bloom's assured him the plan will work, and Gabriel Agreste won't have a clue until morning that anything's happened…but, still, he worries. He lives with Hawk Moth, of course he worries - he worries every time Plagg goes to scout the house out, he worries every time he hears a knock on his door or footsteps on the stairs, he worries every time he wants to get angry at the man.

If he got Akumatized…he doesn't know what his Lady or his sister would do. He sure doesn't know what he'd do if either of them were, after all. And then Plagg's voice says "I'm back, Kitten. The generator is set to go down in three, two, one..." And then the nightlight Bloom borrowed from Marinette, which he plugged in after Plagg left, suddenly goes out. Adrien slips the flash drive under the door for Plagg to take to the office - they had to cut the power to the building, as Gabriel Agreste is ultra-paranoid and has cameras watching his office as well as the hidden safe. If he watched the security feed the next morning and saw a flash drive floating in mid air - forget uploading a program onto his computer - he'd figure Adrien out in an instant.

They both just consider themselves lucky that Plagg's got night vision, as it's the only reason this plan is even happening.

Plagg slides the flash drive under the door, phases through the door, and snatches it up before heading to the computer. Quickly dropping the flash drive onto the desk, Plagg searches for the right port. He plugs the flash drive in, presses the button, and watches as the lights that suddenly appear drain down. Snatching it up as soon as the last light is gone, Plagg quickly makes his way back to Adrien's room - he'd dearly love to Cataclysm the flash drive to get rid of evidence, but he figures they'll probably need it again at some point. And then he's off to get rid of the evidence, delivering the drive to Kante's house.

Ladybug frowns as she scrolls through the data Max's program sent to her Bugphone - that's...worrying. Dragon Fyre raises an eyebrow at her expression, and asks "What is it?"

After a moment, Ladybug says "He's looking for something. Searching through ancient Chinese mythology for...shapeshifting superheroes."

Dragon Fyre frowns, then says "The Miraculous' are supposed to be of Chinese origin, since Longg told me the...Fairy that created them entrusted them to her Chinese apprentice...wait, you don't think...?"

Ladybug grimaces, and asks "That he's looking for another Miraculous? Probably."

Dragon Fyre frowns, and says "He just bought something from Shanghai...an antique Jade Bracelet..." Several warning bells sound in Dragon Fyre's head, almost literally, as soon as the image of the bracelet appears. Because Longg instantly swears, starting to panic at the sight of the face carved into the jade.

Ladybug says "Tikki, slow down, what do you mean? What's this about a key?" I mean, Marinette, it's the Key to the Cave where the Prodigious is kept! We need to get it away from him and back to the Guardian!!

Longg says Hatchling, we've got a massive problem. He's looking for the Prodigious, a kind of prototype created for our cousins, the Renlings. It's stronger than any single Miraculous, and if he gets it he'll be practically unstoppable.

Dragon Fyre and Ladybug stare at each other in horror, and then they start looking through the rest of Hawk Moth's latest business. Some - very little, actually - is related to his brand, which they ignore.

The round-trip to Shanghai, though, is most definitely important.

Ladybug mutters "Just in time for my Great-Uncle's birthday...Dragon Fyre, we're heading to Shanghai."

Chapter Text

Adrien's sitting in his seat on his father's private jet, hoping to hell and back that his father doesn't notice him staring at Nooroo's dejected little form on the table - what did he do to him, he's got no mouth! - in the reflection on the window. Plagg nearly went feral at the knowledge, said Gabriel had ordered Nooroo to be silent in some way - something none of them would ever consider doing, their Kwamis are their friends not their slaves! The very sight of it makes Adrien want to be sick, but he shoves it down just like all the other emotions he represses until he's out in the city with his sister.

Gabriel glances over, and says "The opening of this store is essential for the future of the Agreste Family, Adrien." Repressed irritation tries to make an appearance, but Adrien quickly quashes it before he can even feel it - the Agreste Family is so important to him…more like his reputation. Not the actual members of the family. If he was so important to Gabriel, the man would stop making Akumas that attack the school while he's in it - or worse, have some fixation with himself. Hell, if Adrien was so important to Gabriel, Hawk Moth would give up and return the Butterfly Miraculous!

And then Gabriel puts a hand on his shoulder, saying there'll be other fun times with his friends. Forcefully controlling his urge to shrug off the man's hand, Adrien plasters a smile to his face and reminds himself that every moment spent in this company is one he knows there's no Akuma victim on a rampage. And then he says he's looking forward to spending some time with him, even calling the man 'father.'

As soon as he leaves, though - there's some organizational details to sort out, apparently - Plagg flies out and says "I got a message from Sugarcube, they're on the plane now. We're to meet up at a restaurant, the Thousand Delights." The Cat Kwami would like to give Nooroo some kind of reassurance, some kind of promise that they're working to get him back...but, apparently good ol' Gabe ordered him to remain within a few feet of the man at all times in case he needs to be Hawk Moth.

Adrien raises an eyebrow, that's the restaurant Marinette's great-uncle owns. Thinking back on Cheng Shifu's Celestial Soup, though, he's not surprised she picked that meeting spot. It's delicious, and his sister is a foodie.

Longg picks his head up from where he's currently resting on his Hatchling's head, instead of his usual spot in her ponytail, and says "Got a message from Plagg. He said they'll meet us there." Being able to send messages to one another - like telepathy, almost - is something that started with the invention of cellphones. Goodbye messenger doves, hello phones and instant messages via Kwami-thoughts! It certainly makes things like covert plan-thwarting and potential rescue operations much easier.

Marinette hums in response, all the acknowledgement she can give surrounded by civilians who don't know about Kwamis or any of the Miraculous, and Bloom conversationally says "Can't believe your parents actually agreed to this, Mari." Point of fact, they both thought she'd have to…convince them, via magic.

Marinette wouldn't have blamed Bloom, would've understood that it's literally the world at stake - and that she wouldn't have hurt them, and that the guilt of doing as much would've eaten her alive enough even without that - but…it never came to it. Marinette's parents weren't against Marinette going to Shanghai…they were ecstatic. They were planning on a family vacation there, when Marinette was ready to connect with her mother's family's roots, and were just waiting for her to ask ever since they had enough money for three round-trip tickets stored in a tin hidden behind a massive sack of flour.

The fact that she sprung it on them so suddenly, though, using her great-uncle's upcoming birthday as a reason why she picked now of all times, meant she'd have to go alone since they couldn't close the Bakery so suddenly. Luckily, that's where Bloom stepped in, offering to keep Marinette company and watch her back for trouble.

Sabine and Tom Dupain-Cheng were even more ecstatic at that. If they can't go with Marinette themselves, her best friend they've seen handle Akumas without so much as breaking a sweat is the next best thing.

Ergo, here they are on a plane, side-by-side seats instead of sneaking on board with the cargo like Bloom had suggested - she sincerely thought she'd have to sneak onto the plane to get to Shanghai, but Marinette gets her kindness naturally it seems.

Marinette shrugs with one shoulder, careful not to dislodge Tikki on the other, and says "Neither can I. I thought they'd at least insist on going with, to…" No, instead, they're far away from the shitshow that's about to go down in Shanghai, safe in Paris and in their ignorance of Marinette's double-life. She dreads the day they find out about her being Ladybug - it's bound to happen eventually, all it would take is one of them getting Akumatized for the other to figure her out. Nobody else knows her like her parents, after all. And, once it happens, they'd be in constant danger. If the realization happened while they were Akumatized, he'd never stop until he had them as hostages. And, even if he's not in their heads when they realize, the constant worry would clue him in within a week.

Bloom nudges Marinette in the side gently, guessing her thoughts easily, and says "They're fine. They're safe, Mari. We won't let him get any ground. You'll get that birthday with your great-uncle, we'll stop him…and maybe get the butterfly back, to." Unless something goes horribly wrong, if there's an opportunity to get the Butterfly Miraculous back, they will eagerly grab onto it with both hands.

Marinette nods, a determined look crossing her face, and then the flight attendant passes by asking if they want any of the complimentary snacks. They both take a bag of pretzels each, and a glass of apple juice. Bloom raises hers in a mock salute, and asks "To Shanghai?"

Marinette grins, and says "To Shanghai."

Adrien's walking through Shanghai, having gotten Gabriel to give him permission by forcing up feelings of loneliness at the suggestion of staying at the hotel, with his bodyguard when three boys recognize him as Adrien Agreste. He humors them with some photos, right up until a familiar hand on his arm takes his attention. Even as his sister's voice says "Alright, boys, you've had your pictures."

Adrien grins, relief going through him at once, and pretends to be amazed as he whirls around asking "Bloom?! You're in Shanghai?!" He knew she would be, but his Bodyguard is in the dark about his double-life. It wouldn't do for Hawk Moth to be clued in by confusion from the Gorilla.

Bloom gives him that teasing grin, and says "Yep, we both are. Seeing as how you're so recognizable even in another country, though…" She hands him a black roll of fabric, which he opens up to reveal a black hoodie with a green pawprint on the front. A Cat Noir piece of merchandise, something Bloom is quite obviously enjoying the obviousness of. And then she hands him a pair of black sunglasses, and he sees the lenses themselves are…Cat-eyes. Plagg's cat-eyes, to be specific. The same eyes he has when he's transformed.

As if his Lady wouldn't know him now, with this sign basically screaming his identity to the whole of Shanghai painted on his chest.

Bloom grins at his expression, and says "Guess we'd better change up your look a bit, sunshine." And then she ruffles his hair pseudo-teasingly, purposefully messing it up into a Cat Noir-like style once he's got the hoodie on.

The Gorilla, meanwhile, just grins and nods his head in approval - he genuinely likes Bloom for the simple fact that she makes Adrien happy. She actually cares about Adrien, not Gabriel Agreste's son or the famous model, and that alone is all he needs to know about her. And, if she wants to head to the Thousand Delights restaurant…well, he's never turned down some excellent food.

Adrien grins internally as Cheng Shifu agrees to surprise Marinette - who's also in Shanghai at the moment! - and let him wait out of sight to surprise his friend. He also can't wait to surprise his Lady, who'll also be in disguise to preserve their identities.

About thirty minutes later, Bloom's voice comes through the walls saying "We're back, Cheng Shifu! And we brought not only a Magical Ingredient but a new friend! Meet Fei Wu!"

Fei Wu stares warily at the intimidating, potentially crazy red-head that stopped her from taking her friend's stuff - she doesn't know why she was brought to the Thousand Delights restaurant, but from the glint in her eye it isn't good. And then, her dark-haired friend with the big aviator glasses smiles and says "I'll show you around, c'mon."

Fei swallows nervously, trying to determine if this is some kind of revenge for trying to steal her things - the over-sized Aviator glasses that cover half her face make it near-impossible to tell, though.

And then the red-head calls over "There's a surprise waiting for you in back, red. I'll be back in a few minutes."

When the two girls head to the back room, they find a figure in a dark hoodie, a pair of shades with glowing green cat eyes to give the illusion of watching them. And then the figure steps out into the light, revealing a messy blonde fringe mostly hidden by the hood and a Cheshire grin on his lips. He takes the other girl's hand, pressing the back of it to his lips briefly, and says "Good afternoon, M'Lady. How are you enjoying Shanghai?"

Marinette wills the blush to leave her cheeks, and says "It's lovely. I'm just glad I've been learning Chinese for a while now." She learned it to be able to communicate with her Great-Uncle better, only to learn he'd been practicing English so he could do the same. It nearly made Bloom burst into hysterical laughter, honestly.

Fei can only stare in shock as the two figures start bantering - they clearly know each other, so why the disguises? The girl she tried to pickpocket is in a black jacket and red shirt, black jeans with red spots artfully ripped in them, a red cap with oversized aviator sunglasses with red frames covering most of her face.

"Who are you two?" Fei knows she doesn't have a prayer of getting out the door, if these two didn't stop her the red-head with the grip of steel would.

The two stop their banter, and Cat-eyes stares at her for a moment, then says "The better question is, who are you. My sister wouldn't have brought you here for no reason."

Fei glances between the two of them, then asks "You two are related? I don't see the resemblance."

The dark-haired girl - he called her 'Bugaboo' - snickers and says "Wrong girl."

Now Fei's even more confused. "The red-head?! My point still stands."

And then said red-head walks in, and asks "Are we up to speed on disguise identities?" It was the only way she could think of to preserve her partners' identities while still making this work. They both agreed that she'd disguise them perfectly...and then they both privately agreed to use that and come as their own civilian selves. Willful ignorance coupled with the real need for secrecy due to mind-reading powers, add in Bloom's own magic. The result is this. 

They both shake their heads, and the girl Fei tried to pickpocket says "I'm currently disguised as Marinette from Paris. She agreed to switch places for the meetup while she looks for her Magical Ingredient. You?"

The blonde gives another Cheshire grin, and says "Currently, I'm going by the monster's own son, Agreste Jr. We dropped him off at the hotel early, since he's out on some 'organizational details' according to the kid."

The woman stiffens in shock, then her shoulders slump slightly as she says "Kitty, you need to pick a different civilian cover story next time. Any other cover story. Posing as his own son is downright dangerous."

He sighs, and says "I know, Bugaboo, I'm playing with fire. But-"

"No, Dragon Fyre plays with fire. Every single day. This…you're dancing with the devil! Almost literally!"

Dragon Fyre clears her throat, and says "He'll never know, Spots. Ever. Back to the matter at hand…" They all turn to face Fei, and the orphaned girl swallows nervously.

"Who are you three?! What in the world is going on?!"

One final test, she was already sizing everyone up to try and earn enough for answers to a bracelet's whereabouts and the person that killed her father. The red-head - Dragon Fyre, she presumes - says "I'm going to cut to the chase. We're here to protect the Prodigious."

Fei instantly drops into a fighting stance, uncaring anymore if she makes it out unscathed or not - she might not have the bracelet, but she is the Guardian. And she'll fulfill this part of her duty, at least.

'Bugaboo' sighs, and says "Relax. I'm guessing you're the Guardian, then. We don't want to use it. We want to keep it from a man who will."

Fei listens to the most unbelievable story of her entire life - a magical terrorist named Hawk Moth wants to steal the Prodigious, use it to take their Miraculous' and then make a wish that would change the entire world. They even have pictures - including one of the Bracelet. Apparently, he bought it from a pawn shop owner named Cash, and- wait. Wait just a damn minute. "You said he bought it from Cash?!"

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "He did. About a month ago."

Fei gasps in horror, she's been trying to get enough money to pay Cash off, for the answers to what happened to her father. But…if he had the Bracelet all this time… And then she finds herself all but shoved into a chair, even as she feels the world come crashing down around her. Cash killed her father, didn't he? He took everything from her.

And then there's the most wonderful warmth spreading through her, distracting her from the rage consuming her, and she looks up to see a pair of orange eyes. Dragon Fyre says "I know the feeling, Fei. My own parents were killed right in front of me when I was ten, and they left me for dead with magic I couldn't control in a city I had no real place in. You want revenge, but you need to calm down for the moment." Because there's a magical emotional predator currently in Shanghai, and he has no issues in transforming and Akumatizing someone.

After dinner, a delicious dinner that even their Kwamis get to sneak a part of - which Fei instantly notices, despite not being able to see the Kwamis themselves - the four kids 'head in back' to talk for a while…and promptly sneak out the back window, with some help from Dragon Fyre.

Chapter Text

Fei's taking the three undercover superheroes to the cave where the Prodigious is kept, that picture of the bracelet currently folded in her pants pocket - and convincing her they're serious. But first…they have to go through the old Kung Fu school, her father's pride and joy. And her home, such as it is.

Ladybug gasps at the sight of the burned school - nearly destroyed by a fire that started one night - and Cat Noir puts an arm around her as Dragon Fyre looks around with an unreadable expression.

Fei quietly says "This was my father's Kung Fu school. He'd lost all his students, and even tourists wouldn't take any classes…and then it went up in smoke. I don't even know who set the fire...or, I didn't, anyway." Cash must've done it, to try and drive them out - even if he didn't mean to kill her father...he sure hasn't lost any sleep over it.

Dragon Fyre looks around, at the makeshift sleeping area and shrine with burned-out incense and a man's photograph, and says "Two peas in a pod, aren't we? I live in an abandoned warehouse in Paris, have ever since my parents were killed."

Fei looks down at the ground, and says "We're not as alike as you think, Dragon Fyre. My search for answers as to who tried to drive us away has made me do…things my father would never have stooped to. I lie and steal things from people every day, pawning them off to the one man who can give me answers…and, now, it appears he was the one that was trying to drive us away in the first place."

Dragon Fyre shrugs, and says "I would steal food and water from a grocery store around once a week for nearly five years, Fei. Sometimes…we do the wrong things for the right reasons. And we have to live with our guilt afterwards."

Fei holds up the picture of the bracelet, and says "No matter what, I have to get this back. This bracelet, it…it has a power. Much like your jewels. It unlocks the entrance to the Prodigious." Only on nights like tonight, though, on the magical eclipse. She'd always questioned her father's teachings - belief, faith - in the back of her mind, about the Prodigious he was guarding and the power he said it contains. And then he was killed, the magic bracelet he passed to her was stolen, and now three superheroes - as they claim, anyway, with the red-head providing some convincing proof with a fireball in her hand - have shown up and said they need to protect it from an abusive magical terrorist and emotional predator.

Gods, when did my life get THIS weird?

Dragon Fyre transforms, cocks her head to the side, then nods at her partners and says "We've got company, the stone wall just opened. Lets go."

They all head towards the hidden cave, Ladybug and Cat Noir transforming as well, and somehow or other Dragon Fyre makes them invisible as they follow a man in a purple suit with a cane…and a gold version of Cash, she'd recognize that damn fan anywhere. Sure enough, Hawk Moth was the buyer of the bracelet - Cash has, apparently, never made so much money for an old antique in his entire life.

They cut through the door, and Dragon Fyre makes a few hand motions that obviously mean something to her partners. Ladybug and Cat Noir nod, and then they all move towards the wall. Dragon Fyre makes a yanking motion, and the two intruders suddenly go flying backwards…straight through the waterfall, no less.

Ladybug says "We gotta make the most of our head start, c'mon!" They leap down the hole in the center of the walkway, Dragon Fyre slowing their rapid descent with her magic, and Fei catches the bracelet that was ripped from Hawk Moth as they passed.

Fei stares at the red-head in shock, and Ladybug says "You get used to it. After a while."

The eclipse happens, the beam of moonlight turning red and disappearing, and Fei puts the bracelet into the alcove revealed while muttering "Time to see what was so important to my father all those years." She has to know, she really does.

A magical Guardian appears, saying whoever wishes to use the Prodigious shall be judged by him - Mei Shi, the Lion Guard of the Prodigious. If they pass, they'll be the new RenRen of the Prodigious; if they fail, he'll end them to protect the secret of the Prodigious.

Dragon Fyre tilts her head, then says "We've got an emergency, actually. A magical terrorist that's abusing the power of the Butterfly Miraculous is here to steal the Prodigious and use it for evil. We're trying to protect it, but that more than likely means we'll end up using it."

Mei Shi nods his head, and says "I shall judge you during your battle, potential RenRen of the Prodigious."

Hawk Moth takes a slight step back as his four opponents close in - King Cash, the pawn shop dealer with an endless amount of greed he used to Akumatize the man, was defeated, but the Akuma itself is resting on his finger. He'd better think of something fast, though, because Dragon Fyre's eyes are locked on his Miraculous and Lady Dragon's flexing her current bear paws in anticipation. He's just lucky the Guardian of the Prodigious…wait a minute, there's an idea.

Dragon Fyre gasps, and yells "No, don't you even think about it!" He sends the Akuma hurtling towards the Guardian's sphere, and then moves to physically redirect a burst of fire from Dragon Fyre's hand and catch Ladybug's Yo-Yo with his cane to keep the Akuma from being intercepted. And then he tosses the two girls into Cat Noir before he can even finish his 'Cataclysm!'

As soon as the mental connection forms, Hawk Moth immediately says "Yan Luo Shi, surely you aren't going to let a girl who confuses Justice and Revenge become the new owner of your Prodigious?"

Yan Luo Shi, formerly Mei Shi, grows to a size taller than the Eiffel Tower, and swallows the orb as he pulls himself up from the underground cavern. And then he roars about 'fear me, humans!' and Hawk Moth realizes exactly where his newest Akuma-victim is headed.

Straight towards Shanghai - towards Adrien.

Emilie will have his head if she ever learns he nearly got Adrien killed!

Hawk Moth orders Yan Luo Shi to stop, threatening to remove his powers, but the twenty-story tall giant suddenly turns and shoots a purple beam from his eyes.

And Hawk Moth watches as…he fades away to purple dust, a searing-hot hand covering his mouth and his body feeling like it's been ripped in half and his spine detached from where it's supposed to be.

That would be when he realizes what just happened - Yan Luo Shi turned on him, tried to kill him, and there's nothing he can do to remove the being's powers without first getting his hands on the orb he swallowed. And then a second, even more startling realization makes its way through his head - she saved him. Dragon Fyre saved him from certain death - she didn't have to, certainly had no reason to, yet she did anyway.

He'd say she didn't even think about it, what with how fast his body must've moved. He's extremely sore...but he's not complaining. It's not a very difficult choice between sore and dead.

There's a stunned silence for a moment, broken repeatedly by Yan Luo Shi destroying things with his powers, and then the iron grip over his mouth relaxes slightly. "Well," Ladybug's voice says in shock and no small amount of fear, "that happened."

Cat Noir asks "D'you think this counts as good news or bad news?"

Dragon Fyre breathes out "Bad news. Some of the worst." The end of the world, actually. Nooroo must be rolling in his Miraculous right now, in lieu of a grave.

And things don't get any easier when they hear two sets of beeps from Ladybug and Cat Noir.

Dragon Fyre swears, then says "Go recharge, guys. I think I need to have a long chat with Hawk Moth here."

Cat Noir levels him with a look of utter disgust and contempt, and asks "Why did you even save him, Sis? Really, I've gotta know." She hates him, they all hate him...he's half-tempted to rip the Butterfly Miraculous off the man's chest right here and now and kick him back out in front of that thing he created.

Dragon Fyre deadpans "Because he's probably our only hope of stopping Yan Luo Shi. And we don't get to pick and choose who we save." That, and the fact that the Butterfly Miraculous wouldn't have survived the blast. And he'd be long-gone by the time they got back if they left his ashes there and then he was brought back by the Cure.

Ladybug puts a hand on her partner's shoulder, and says "C'mon, Kitty. Let's go recharge." Much as she'd like to tie him up in her yo-yo, they've got a much bigger fish to fry right now. And its name is currently Yan Luo Shi.

Before Hawk Moth can even think about following them, Dragon Fyre is whirling on him at once with unrestrained fury - he could Akumatize her, with ridiculous ease at that, but he sincerely doubts he could control her. Yan Luo Shi has taught him he can't control beings that already have magic…as Dragon Fyre is currently yelling at him about. Ripping him a new one - several, actually - for being so ridiculously stupid as to Akumatize a being that already has magic without knowing about the consequences of it.

And about abusing his Kwami.

And about terrorizing Paris on a daily basis.

She's just gotten to the part where he never thinks anything through and only cares about getting what he wants, Lady Dragon staring at the two of them with eyes wide as saucers, when her two partners arrive once more.

Hawk Moth glances at the two teens, and says "You've got one mouthy, ill-tempered sister, you know that? Call her off, please." Despite his calm tone, he's dearly hoping the blonde boy will call her off - he figures if he hadn't kept quiet throughout her entire tirade at him, he'd be down a Miraculous and up a sword in his chest or down his throat.

Cat Noir fixes him with cold green eyes, pupils narrowed into slits, and crosses his arms while saying "I'm not particularly inclined. What about you, M'Lady?"

Ladybug says "Nope. Besides, she's only in a bad mood like this when someone does something ridiculously stupid that could destroy the world. Or when she's got a bone to pick with someone." Hawk Moth doesn't need to be told she's got several of those to pick with him, potentially including how he's killed her brother a few times by now.

Even still, Cat Noir walks over and pulls his sister back to him, resting his head against hers while staring at him with a blank expression.

Ladybug snaps "Give us one good reason why we shouldn't rip the Butterfly Miraculous off your chest, Hawk Moth." Seeing as Dragon Fyre hasn't done as much yet, she figures there's a really good one.

Thinking quickly, and deciding on sticking with what Dragon Fyre said earlier, Hawk Moth says "You need me to stop Yan Luo Shi, as I'm the one that knows Nooroo's powers the best. If you want to have even a prayer at stopping this Akuma, you need me."

The way that Dragon Fyre starts swearing, combined with the looks of loathing and contempt from Cat Noir and thinly-veiled conflict from Ladybug says they know as much, and they're far from happy about it.

Well, he's not particularly happy either, he's lost control of yet another Akuma and Adrien is in direct danger of being obliterated like he almost was.

Dragon Fyre scoffs wordlessly, seeming to bite back something she was about to say, and Ladybug says "As much as none of us are happy about it, you're right. So, we'll split up into two groups for this one."

Dragon Fyre immediately says "Lady Dragon, you go with my partners. They'll show you the ropes, so to speak."

Hawk Moth doesn't need to be told that he's getting paired up with the hot-tempered red-head, that none of them trust him not to pull a fast one and make off with either of their Miraculous' or the Prodigious, or that she's going to be verbally tearing him to absolute tatters by the time this Akuma battle is over. He might just end up with heatstroke by the time this is all over, because she's burning hot even from a distance.

Chapter Text

Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Lady Dragon quickly leap over to where Yan Luo Shi just threw Dragon Fyre, Hawk Moth joining them as well - straight through a tree, rolling to a stop only when the fire-haired girl traveled a good ten feet. The older man sneers, and says "And here I was thinking you three were capable of stopping an akuma."

Cat Noir glares at the man, pure hatred and disgust rolling off him in waves, and says "Don't even think about pinning this on us. You're the one that Akumatized an already-magical being, you're the one that unleashed what could well be the end of the world! How many times has Nooroo tried to give you advice? Asked you to stop this reign of terror of yours? How many times have you brushed him off like you do everything else you don't want or like to hear?"

Before Hawk Moth can ask what he means by that, Ladybug says "Kitty, not the time. C'mon, Scales, up you get..."

Dragon Fyre groans, free hand going to her head as Ladybug pulls her to her feet by the other, and groans "We need to finish this soon, guys..."

Cat Noir and Ladybug exchange looks, and Cat Noir asks "How close?"

"Too close." Too close by far. Last time she felt like this, she'd have started a forest fire if she wasn't in the quarry.

Hawk Moth's just about to demand some answers when he remembers how Dark Dragon lost control of her powers - Nooroo explained what he knew of magic like that afterwards, said it was easy to lose control and hard to regain it, and it seems Dragon Fyre has been pushed to her limit by this. The slew of cursing he's doing in his head makes him glad none of his current allies of circumstance can read minds, because he's certain they'd never take him seriously again if they heard him swearing like a sailor and begging Nooroo for some way out of this rock-and-hot place he's found himself in.

And then Yan Luo Shi's fist comes swinging towards them, shattering the barrier Dragon Fyre quickly throws up and sending them all flying and landing them in a heap of limbs and soreness.

Cat Noir picks his head up, and asks "Sis?!"

Ladybug asks "Dragon Fyre, you alright?!"

Lady Dragon asks "What just happened?!"

Hawk Moth figures he would be much more irritated with their single-minded concern if the impossible hadn't just happened - he's been trying all this time to find a way past the obstacle that is Dragon Fyre and her magic. Even replicating it didn't work - and, apparently, the Butterly Miraculous cannot perfectly recreate another Miraculous' magic or Dragon Fyre's without breaking - yet Yan Luo Shi has successfully pushed the fiery red-head to her limit. What a waste that the one Akuma that could overwhelm Dragon Fyre is one that turned on him.

And then he's ripped out of his musings when the area around them lights up purple. Before he can even think that they're dead, though, a heatwave suddenly starts up even as an orange done encases all of them. Cat Noir's yelp, and muttering of 'hot, hot, hot…' barely registers with Hawk Moth, or Lady Dragon's 'OHMIGOSH!' - he's actively getting heatstroke as the seconds go by, that's how boiling hot it is under the orange shield that shows no signs of breaking under Yan Luo Shi's magical assault. When he looks over, he quickly sees just what changed - not why or how, but definitely what.

Dragon Fyre's undergone that transformation once more, usual outfit replaced by a skirt and shoulderless top, and her eyes aren't even orange, they're flames. Bright orange flames. Just like the near-golden flames surrounding her entire body, making her look like an inferno. And she looks pissed off, the lines in her suit glowing brightly and a thunderstorm rapidly forming over them.

What did he ever do to deserve this for an enemy?! Whatever it is, he's so very sorry and he won't do it ever again.

The shield drops after the beam ends, and Yan Luo Shi says "Impossible!"

Dragon Fyre rises, and snarls "No more holding back! I go down, I'm taking you with me!" She walks forward in front of them, all the injuries from before just vanishing, and the flames around her burning even higher around her...almost burning white, they're so hot. 

Yan Luo Shi shoots another beam at them, but it gets…blocked with one from Dragon Fyre. Hawk Moth swallows, trying to push some moisture down his dry-as-sandpaper throat, even as Cat Noir mutters "Uh-oh…"

Ladybug hisses "Tikki, calm down! I don't understand!" What does she mean Bloom's at risk of leveling Shanghai?!

Lady Dragon says "The Renlings are all going nuts, what's going on?! She's a Fairy?! I thought those were myths!" And what the hell is the Dragon Flame?!

And then Dragon Fyre lowers one hand to her side, a fireball so hot it's white forming in it as she does, and asks "You want the power of the Dragon? Well, here it is!" She throws the ball of fire towards Yan Luo Shi, and it's so strong it knocks him a step back…making him falter, and Dragon Fyre's beam of energy slam into his face and knock him down altogether. And then there's several lightning strikes in a row, hitting Yan Luo Shi in various parts of his body, which make him roar in pain.

Hawk Moth resolves, right then and there, to not set Dragon Fyre off like this if at all possible…ever again. He gets the uncomfortable idea she'll track him down and rip the Miraculous straight off his chest if he does. After a minute spent watching Dragon Fyre fly around purple beams and throw fireballs the size of her body at Yan Luo Shi as lightning continues to come down and freezing-cold rain pelts everyone while the wind makes it even worse, Hawk Moth asks "She's not going to stop, is she?"

Cat Noir deadpans "Spoken like someone who's never met my sister when she's on a mission. She doesn't stop until she gets what she wants." What she wants right now being…a little obvious. She wants to turn Yan Luo Shi to ashes for trying to kill her partners.

With the gigantic Akuma thoroughly distracted - by getting thoroughly thrashed by Dragon Fyre, amazingly enough - Lady Dragon seems to crumple in on herself as she says "This is all my fault…"

Cat Noir puts a hand on her shoulder at once, giving Hawk Moth a glare that says he'll Cataclysm him if he interrupts - his voice is warm, though, as he says "It's not your fault, Lady Dragon. You didn't do any of this."

"If I hadn't focused on revenge, if I'd kept on doing good…" She chokes back a sob at the thought of what her father would say if he could see her now, see what she's done. 

Ladybug says "Mei Shi would've still been Akumatized. Justice and Revenge, they can seem a lot alike, especially when someone you love is involved. That's why there's a test, that's why it's so easy to confuse them sometimes. But right now, you need to focus on the present. We need the Dragon."

Hawk Moth opens his mouth, fully intent on pointing out the detail that they already have one of those, but thinks better of it when that very woman makes a giant orange dragon appear and slam into Yan Luo Shi. He then decides to disappear as quietly as possible, after all this is done, and hope she can't track him by smell or something.

Ladybug mutters "Let's get this over with. Lucky Charm!" What appears is…a giant red and black vase, big enough for a person to hide in.

Lady Dragon asks "Uh…what is that? An ancient Chinese Vase?"

Ladybug glances around, and says "It's not a vase. It's the solution to our problems." Her grin turns borderline malicious, as she adds "To be taken with a lot of water, if you get my drift."

And that would be when Hawk Moth realizes she and Cat Noir are both staring at him with identical grins on their faces. "What?"

Hawk Moth can't believe he's doing this - he can see Dragon Fyre, currently resembling a fireball, flying around and dodging Yan Luo Shi's attacks while throwing gigantic fireballs of her own, when he looks out the top of the Lucky Charm - but Cat Noir and Ladybug would've shoved him in if he didn't climb in himself. And now they want to launch him squarely in the middle of that battle of epic proportions, relying on a newbie's aim with powers she's never used before and has only just activated. He's so dead.

Suddenly, he has a lot more respect for how Cat Noir willingly, unflinchingly sacrifices himself to let Ladybug keep going - not to mention willingly embracing that living fire hazard with a temper worse than anything he's ever known before as a sister.

The Vase suddenly rocks, and he sees Yan Luo Shi's face come closer far too fast, a beam of orange energy miss his vase by what feels like a mere inch if the heatwave is anything to go by, an ear-splitting roar, and then…darkness. A very bumpy darkness, at that. Then a lot of red light, quickly followed by a familiar dark purple.

Thinking fast, Hawk Moth throws his cane sharp-end-first and hits the orb - he can't take the Akuma back, he needs Ladybug to reverse all the damage that's been caused and most probably bring his son back to life. Emilie would most certainly have his head if something happened to Adrien because of him. He nearly gets a concussion when the vase hits the ground once more, Yan Luo Shi turning back into Mei Shi and vomiting up all the water Lady Dragon forced down his throat, and crawls out of it feeling like he might be sick - if he never has to do anything like that ever again, he will be very happy.

He hears Mei Shi congratulate Lady Dragon, and name her the new RenRen of the Prodigious…and then Cat Noir yells "SIS!"

When he looks around for the annoying source of fire, having assumed she'd have landed near them, he sees…nothing. No flames, no fire-haired girl, nothing. And then Cat Noir launches himself up over the water with his staff, even as Lady Dragon helps toss the Lucky Charm into the air and fix everything before turning into her dragon-form and flying out after the blonde.

Now seems like a really good time to disappear.

Cat Noir flies through the air, and crashes into his unconscious sister's body as she freefalls towards the water below - he saw her suddenly go out, the fire around her suddenly just dying like a blown-out candle, and Plagg didn't even have time to say to catch her before he was hurtling through the air. Before they can hit the water, though, the air around them seems to cocoon the two and takes them up to a rooftop. Ladybug and Lady Dragon land next to them, even as Cat Noir frantically puts his head to her chest to listen for her heartbeat - she's not moving, barely breathing, and she's ice cold. If he couldn't hear her heart beating with his super-hearing, he'd think his sister was dead.

Lady Dragon murmurs "The Renlings say she's exhausted. That she won't wake until her magic has recovered." Ladybug and Cat Noir are too preoccupied with their unconscious partner to do much more than nod, with Cat Noir distractedly saying it's happened before once or twice.

Long Long nods, and adds "I recognize this power, RenRen. The power that gave birth to us all. It's in a different body, yes, but unmistakable all the same."

Lady Dragon glances up at once, even as the other Renlings start chiming in, and asks "Wait, slow down, what do you mean?"

Long Long says "The power that created us, RenRen, that created all of us, is ancient. Inextinguishable. A flame that burned hot and bright, lit up the darkness around it. We were created one by one from it, and we traveled far in search of somewhere to stay. Our cousins, the Kwamis, were created by the same power source. And she just used it extensively. I wouldn't be surprised if she slept for a week after that display of power."

Ying Ying says "We told you the name of it before, when we were talking to each other, RenRen. The Dragon Flame, the Fire of Life." 

She She adds "There are only two things comparable, RenRen. The Waters of Creation, and the Shadow of Death. The last is similar to Cat Noir's Kwami's power...but more concentrated. Ever hungry for the Dragon Flame and Water Stars, consuming everything in reach."

After a moment spent processing that, Lady Dragon swallows and says "The Renlings say she won't be up for a while. Her magic needs to recover." That's honestly the easiest thing to process, that this girl will wake up after enough time spent asleep. She needs a lot of time to sort through the rest of what they said.

Chapter Text

Fei's staring at the three undercover heroes in utter shock as the celebrate Cheng Shifu's birthday - Bloom Peters was easy enough to figure out, between her inexplicable exhaustion and apparently boundless appetite, but Marinette and Adrien? Whole other story.

It took a while for her to piece together Ladybug's identity, and it was actually Bloom's friendship with her that gave it away. Similarly, it was Adrien's concern for the red-head that gave away his identity as Cat Noir - well, that and the stink of Camembert Cheese.

Still, the two 'normal' teenagers keep subtly shoving food at the red-head, in the form of passing it along and it miraculously ending up right in front of Bloom. And Adrien 'joked' that Bloom was kinda like the sister he never had…while looking at her with so much care that she's honestly amazed nobody else can see it. And Marinette says she's the best friend a person could have, shoving a plate of food under her nose.

Bloom grins, and says "I'd take a bullet for you two, and we all know it…s'cuse me…" She's only awake because Longg kept some of her magic for later and returned it to her when they got back to the restaurant. Ergo, she needs to eat an entire feast tonight to wake up tomorrow - because that magic will wear off soon enough, and then she'll be out like a light once more. Still, keeping her cover means needs must - and if she needs something like a magical adrenaline shot to keep it up, then so be it.

Fei honestly can't believe her two partners can't see the absolutely frozen expression on each other's faces right then, even if they're there for barely a moment - something happened involving a bullet, and Bloom's dropping hints trying to get them to get a clue.

That or she's just too exhausted to filter what she says. There's always that possibility.

"Come with us, to Paris."

Fei stares at Bloom in confusion, asking "What?" It's been two days, she's obviously still recovering if her pale complexion and the sweat on her forehead is anything to go by. Yet here she is in the Kung Fu School, offering a chance to start over.

"You heard me. There isn't much here in Shanghai for you, Fei, no matter how much you want to say there is. Your father's school is burned to the ground, Mei Shi is now a Kwami-like creature advising you, and the Sacred Cave is empty and you have the Bracelet back. What's keeping you here?"

Fei opens her mouth, then shuts it after a minute, completely at a loss. What is keeping her in Shanghai? Why should she stay?

Add to it the detail that Hawk Moth knows about the Prodigious, knows its in Shanghai, and he'll absolutely come back one day. Potentially with an army, if he can make one.

After a moment, Fei sighs then says "Alright, then. I'll come with you." Better to train with her allies than to isolate herself an ocean away and get blindsided. "So," she leans forward, "tell me about this Hawk Moth guy." Bad idea, she learns - Dragon Fyre, or Bloom Peters, absolutely despises Hawk Moth.

Fei gets into the Massage shop Dragon Fyre directed her to, with a letter to give to the old man that runs it. When he sees her, eyes landing on the Prodigious around her neck, she tenses but hands him the letter saying "A good friend of mine said I should come here. And to give you this…Master Fu." Dragon Fyre and company didn't steer me wrong in Shanghai, they wouldn't do so now...right?

He takes her in back, makes a pot of tea, and starts reading the letter after offering her some sandwiches.

'Master Fu, it's Dragon Fyre. By the time you read this, you'll probably know we've been exposed to the world. In the biggest, most dramatic way possible, to boot. Hawk Moth tried to steal the Prodigious, and Akumatized the Magical Guardian of the Prodigious. And then he lost control of that Akuma, resulting in the mess that's probably all over YouTube by now.'

Yes, he's seen the video featuring a floating fireball fighting the being that called itself Yan Luo Shi. Ladybug is a favorite around the world, Cat Noir close behind, people were thinking Dragon Fyre was edited in until several dozen witnesses said otherwise, and the Mayor just about had a heart attack.

'In light of all that, I asked Lady Dragon, the new RenRen of the Prodigious, to come to Paris and help us fight Hawk Moth. I figured gathering allies can only help us, and Lady Dragon would be a target here or in Shanghai. At least here, we'd be able to help her the next time Hawk Moth turns his focus on the Prodigious.'

Once Master Fu's finished with the letter, he looks up to see Fei Wu sitting there, a blue creature much like a Kwami sitting on her shoulder. After a moment, he says "I cannot claim to understand everything you've been through, Lady Dragon, but I can say you're among friends here. Welcome to Paris."

Fei looks down, and says "I don't have anywhere to go…and I don't want to impose." She's nobody's charity case, even if she has to start over in a new city from scratch.

Master Fu nods his head patiently, and says "I see much of Dragon Fyre in you, Lady Dragon. She, to, is in difficult circumstances. And, just like you, she refuses to simply take something without giving back in return somehow." That would be when he offers the sixteen-year-old a job as his assistant, in exchange for a place to stay and three meals a day. She'll keep the place clean, and keep out any troublemakers, and he'll move her into the guest room upstairs…and get her a phone, in case he needs to contact her for some specific reason. Or if the three Miraculous Holders need to do so, or vice versa.

Fei could just about cry - Dragon Fyre knew this would happen, she knew he'd do this. He probably tried to do the same to her, honestly.

Ladybug asks "You think she'll show? Or maybe she's still with Master Fu?"

Cat Noir asks "Maybe she got lost? The quarry is a little ways away from the city, after all."

And then a red and gold eagle lands, turning back into Lady Dragon.

Dragon Fyre grins, and says "Welcome to Paris, Lady Dragon. And our quarry. This is where we spar, train, etc. We meet up here whenever we can."

Lady Dragon hums, then asks "Are we gonna spar tonight, then?" If so, she's well-prepared - she might not get a fancy weapon like the Kwamis give out, but she's trained in Kung Fu for years, and she can turn into a bear. Bears, as she's learned, are well-armed.

Dragon Fyre grins, and says "Lucky you, your first night here is one where it's my night for Patrol. You get these two for dance partners. See you two tomorrow?"

Ladybug says "See you soon, Scales."

"Meet up with you tomorrow, Super-Sis!"

Lady Dragon looks between Ladybug and Cat Noir, and asks "You two don't know who the other is?"

Ladybug says "Nope."

"And you don't question things like why both of you are so sure you'll see Dragon Fyre tomorrow?"

Cat Noir says "We know who she is, she knows who we are. If she wants to meet up, she'll track us down one way or another."

Ladybug says "Besides, it's safer if we don't know who each other is right now. Hawk Moth can read minds, if he gets an Akuma on someone. Dragon Fyre has her magic to protect herself, but she also has a Miraculous Hawk Moth doesn't need."

"And the same doesn't apply to you two?"

"Yeah, on both counts. He wants our Miraculous' at any cost, and we can't burn an Akuma to ashes just by looking at it. It's safer if we don't know who the other is, just in case." They don't like it - they hate it - but they can live with it until something changes. As much as Ladybug wants to tell her Kitty why she keeps rejecting him - beyond 'there's this guy I like, but I can't tell you who so Hawk Moth doesn't clue into who I am' - she can't, and she hates feeling like she's leading him on. And Cat Noir wants to tell her he's actually Adrien Agreste, that he's crazy about her, that his own father is the very monster they're fighting day after day, but he can't.

"And yet…you two trust each other? Despite not knowing who the other is?"

Ladybug scowls at her, and says "We put our lives in each other's hands on a daily basis, sometimes literally. I've watched both Cat Noir and Dragon Fyre take hits meant for me without hesitation, let themselves get hit by mind-controlling Akumas, and even give their lives a few times so that I could fix everything. I couldn't ask for two better partners, and I don't need to know their civilian names to know I can count on them whenever I need them. Understand?"

Lady Dragon nods, and Cat Noir walks up behind Ladybug and wraps his arms around her while purring contentedly. After a minute spent nuzzling his face into the crook of her neck - even as she squirms because it tickles! - the blonde looks up and says "I adore you, M'Lady, you know that right?" Kwamis, he loves this woman - and, maybe she doesn't love him yet, but she needs him and it's good enough for him for now. She's always said she couldn't do this without both her partners, and it warms him to his very toes whenever she does.

Lady Dragon, meanwhile, can only stare in absolute shock - Marinette clearly had a crush on Adrien, and Cat Noir clearly adores Ladybug. The detail that they don't know who the other is yet they still managed to fall for each other…it not only blows her mind but instantly clarifies an off-handed comment Bloom made about her two partners driving her up a wall.

They quickly come to an agreement that Lady Dragon will lay low for now, unless she's needed - she'll still come to training, she'll help out if necessary…but Hawk Moth won't know the Prodigious is in Paris unless there's no choice but to call on all their allies. While she despises taking a back-row seat, she and Mei Shi both acknowledge the wisdom in having an ace in the hole.

Besides, she can still help - getting civilians out of the way of Akuma attacks definitely counts.

Two sets of brown eyes watch an impossible video that's already gone viral, one curious beyond belief and the other shocked speechless.

That's impossible, the Dragon Flame was said to be lost…

"Can we go? She must be like us, right?"

"No, whoever they are, they're probably long-gone by now. This video was posted days ago."

"What if those four creeps get there first? What if they take her like they tried to take me? I'm only here because you saved me, what if they can't fight back?" Just like when 'Ogron' and his goons took her parents.

"If they manage to find this…Dragon Fyre," and isn't that just the biggest punch to the gut, "then I get the feeling they will be sorely disappointed. We'll check this Ladyblog, find out more about them, and then we'll go investigate."

"And if something like that happens again? Or they show up here?"

"If they show up on this continent, then we'll take a look and see what we can find. I'm not risking your safety, though, not so far away on something that's already done and over with. They may not even be in Shanghai anymore."

It was undeniably powerful, though, they could feel it all the way over in the States.

Chapter Text

About three days after they all got back from Shanghai, Bloom walks into the school to find…everyone has a wrapped present. It's Nathan's gift, though - Miss Bustier painted as a superhero - that tips her off as to what exactly she's missing. Today's their favorite teacher's birthday. And she didn't know, so she doesn't have a gift. Even Marinette has one, something the dark-haired girl sends her a sheepish and apologetic smile for - the only other person that doesn't have one in-hand, in fact, is Chloe.

Mylene got her a braided hair, inspired by her breathing class; Rose made her a scrapbook, inspiration taken from the exercise she has everyone do before they start class where they all give each other a compliment. And Marinette made her a cosmetics bag, with one of her favorite quotes stitched onto the front.

At everyone's questioning looks, Bloom makes a strangled sound in the back of her throat, and says she didn't know it was Miss Bustier's birthday but she'll have something ready by her class.

Nathan says "I'll help, Bloom. We can work on it in the art room. Marinette, you want to help?"

Before Marinette can respond, Bloom says "We'll need her help to distract Miss Bustier for…maybe ten minutes while I get things set up once it's time for her class."

And then Adrien asks Chloe what she got, and everyone realizes she didn't get her something. Marinette deadpans "Nothing, same as every year since kindergarten."

Sabrina promptly defends Chloe, saying it's not her fault that she forgets everyone's birthdays just like her mother - Chloe promptly says "Yeah, well, you don't need to tell them my entire life's story either, Sabrina." Even still, her cheeks are turning red and she refuses to look out of her locker as she digs around in it.

Bloom just raises an eyebrow - again, with Chloe's elusive, 'exceptional' mother who isn't even around - and asks "Is that right, Sabrina? Seeing as the elusive Audrey Bourgeois isn't even here…" She trails off, but the implication is clear - Audrey Bourgeois isn't a valid excuse, she isn't here to influence Chloe's behavior. She isn't even here to forget Chloe's birthday.

Marinette and Bloom hole up in the art room during lunch, with Nathan offering to keep watch at the door since it's supposed to be a surprise - and sneaking peeks at the way paper, paint, brushes, and scissors are literally flying through the air when Marinette isn't looking at the door. Nathan glances in again, seeing construction paper folding itself midair, and shakes his head as he turns around back to the hallway - Bloom's incredible, and so far past his league it's not even funny.

And the revelation that Marinette is Ladybug isn't helping matters either - because who else would Bloom so casually, or frantically in this case, do magic in front of?

Next thing you know, Cat Noir will turn out to be someone in our class.

Their Everyday Ladybug actually being Ladybug making him want to burst out laughing and cry at the same time - at least it explains why Marinette is so late sometimes. He doesn't even want to guess at Cat Noir's identity, he doesn't - because, chances are it'll be someone from their class.

And then Juleka and Luka walk up the steps, with Juleka asking "Erm…can you…move please? I need to get inside…"

Nathan blinks, shifting a bit to cover the window better, and says "It's…kind of a mess in there? Bloom and Marinette are making a surprise for Miss Bustier, you see." And boy will it be a surprise if they walk in and see things floating midair and Bloom with glowing orange hands.

Bloom's just flattening out a banner to paint the words 'Happy birthday, Miss Bustier!' on the floor when Marinette squeaks in utter shock. Bloom looks over at once, asking "Mari? What is it?"

Marinette whisper-yells "Take a look at the flowers!" Bloom was magically folding roses out of red, pink, white, and green construction paper, inside a glass jar…except the flowers smell like flowers. And, when Marinette took a closer look - thinking maybe Rose had been in the room earlier and what she's smelling was just her perfume - the paper flowers weren't paper flowers.

They were real flowers. Paper turned to petals and stems.

Bloom makes a sound of distress in the back of her throat, and mutters "That never happened before…"

Marinette asks "What were you thinking of? Or trying to do?"

"I was trying to…make them as lifelike as possible…" Bloom promptly facepalms, smearing paint all over her face in the process as her palm is full of it. And then she says "I'll finish up the banner, you get some water for those!"

Nathan knocks on the door, calling in "Hey, Marinette? Bloom? Juleka and Luka need to grab something in there."

Bloom hastily waves her hand, and all the paint cans drop to the floor with the brushes hitting the banner where they were painting. Nathan, Juleka, and Luka stare at the scene in varying degrees of shock when Marinette opens the door, and Luka asks "What happened?!"

Bloom shrugs, hoping to hell and back neither twin saw anything floating midair, and nervously says "Oh, you know, the usual. Didn't know it was our teacher's birthday, so I didn't show up with a gift, so now I'm scrambling to finish a banner for her before lunch ends! What about you?"

Juleka mumbles something under her breath, holding a notebook to her chest, and Luka says "Came to pick up a book Juleka left by accident." He's not going to tell them, not even Bloom and Marinette, about Juleka's secret hobby of writing poetry. She's shy enough on a regular basis, it's why she writes it in secret at home. And it's her secret to tell.

Marinette chuckles nervously, and says "Well, you found it, so…" Bloom's still quite literally running hot with her magic, and all it'll take or someone to notice something's off is bumping into her. Or startling her, something could all-too-easily catch fire if she gets startled for some reason.

Luka nods, then says "Well, it looks like it's coming along well. Need any help?"

Marinette shakes her head at once, frantically saying "Nononono, we're good, Luka! Really, thanks for the offer!"

Bloom nods, saying "We can handle it, Luka. But it's nice of you to ask."

Luka and Juleka shrug, Luka trying to make sense of Bloom's absolutely frantic melody - with a note he knows he's heard from somewhere before but he can't figure out where, especially so prominently, Marinette's birthday party, perhaps? - and Luka tries to placate Bloom saying "Alright, well, good luck on the banner. Hope to see it before we leave for the day." And then he turns to leave, accidentally brushing his elbow with Bloom's arm, and promptly freezes in place - because he's suddenly filled with the most amazing warmth he's ever felt before after feeling like he was shocked, spreading out through his body even as everyone's melodies seem to get about three times as loud. The detail that Bloom's burning hot makes its way into his head, but it takes a far-back seat to the detail that suddenly he can hear everything. People's melodies, down to the smallest note...their feelings, even Bloom's thoughts at first until he loses physical contact with her.

Too fast to make sense of, too strong to think he's imagining it...but the sheer unadulterated panic is pretty hard to mistake.

Bloom jumps away at once, rubbing at her elbow and saying "I think I might have some static electricity built up, you probably don't want to touch me right now." What the heck was that?! 

And then he's promptly dragged to the door by a thoroughly-panicking Marinette, an equally-panicked, forced smile on Bloom's face as she says "See you in class, Juleka, bye!" The door suddenly swings shut, leaving the twins staring at it blankly for a moment.

Luka rubs his temples for a moment, trying to focus through the brand-new intensity of everyone's melodies hitting him, and grabs onto Juleka's shoulder for support - it's more than disorienting, it's almost enough to make him lose his balance altogether. Juleka tries to steady her brother, asking "You alright, Luka?" 

Luka nods, trying to organize his thoughts after they've been so thoroughly scattered, and says "I...I think so, Juleka. This is going to sound weird, but, have you ever...touched Bloom before?" At Juleka's expression, he quickly adds "In any way! Bumping elbows with her, or accidentally running into her, anything at all?" 

Juleka thinks for a moment, then shakes her head - no, she can't say she's ever had anything like that happen before with Bloom. 

Nathan, meanwhile, quickly asks "Did something happen?" 

Luka hastily says "She was just a little warm when I bumped her elbow is all. I was wondering if she's just naturally that warm." 

Nathan hurriedly nods his head, saying "Yeah, she is. She helped me with an art project once, and joked that she's a human space heater."

Nathan, the Couffaine twins just learned, is a terrible liar. They also learned he's covering for Bloom for whatever reason. known only to him. Luka can't just hear his nervous, anxious melody, he can feel...it's almost like an echo of the emotions now. If he needed any more proof that there's something up with Bloom, he just got it. 

Juleka promises to try and find out more, out of Nathan's hearing...and Luka has to head back to their House-boat early, as he's getting the worst migraine he's ever had. 

When everyone gets into Miss Bustier's class once Marinette lets them in, they see a banner that Juleka definitely remembers hanging from the white-board and a jar of vibrant flowers on the desk. And Bloom sitting at her desk already, having sped out of their last class for the art room. Alix whistles in appreciation, asking "Wow, you put this together during lunch? Where'd you get the flowers anyway?"

Rose practically squeals "They're gorgeous, Bloom!"

Everyone else, bar Chloe, agrees, and Miss Bustier smiles hugely upon seeing the banner and flowers. And then even more as everyone else places their gifts on the desk next to Bloom's flowers. When she opens up Marinette's gift, though…the quote Marinette stitched onto the bag is blocked out with black sharpie. Marinette gasps, but before she can get so supremely outraged…Bloom does it for her. "Chloe, you absolute brat! You just couldn't handle the detail that Marinette called you out for not having a gift, you decided to deface hers?!"

Miss Bustier calms the class down, even as they all start getting angry, and takes Bloom outside to talk. Thankfully, Bloom's not in trouble - Miss Bustier asks her to set a good example for the class as Vice Representative, saying that maybe Chloe just needs a good example to learn from.

Bloom internally snorts, because Chloe Bourgeois needs a lot of things, the first being a wake-up call. That would be when Miss Bustier notices the Akuma, and starts waving it off with her cosmetics bag. She throws the bag at it, and the evil little butterfly gets absorbed by the lip balm that was in it.

Bloom gasps in horror as Miss Bustier gets a butterfly symbol over her face, and yells "No, get out of her head, Hawk-Butt!"

Several heads poke out the doorway at that, followed by other doors opening as well, to see what the commotion is about…and Alya gets her phone out as quickly as possible.

Bloom yells "No, you can't have her, you damn coward!" She then runs towards the lip balm, and smashes her foot down on it. Thinking quickly, as the Akuma seems to be heavily disoriented, Bloom runs into the classroom, dumps her flowers onto the desk with the water, and runs back out.

By that point, Hawk Moth has recovered from the shock of the mental connection being suddenly broken and sees Bloom coming with the jar. "Fly," he says, all thoughts of Akumatizing someone going out the window, "fly away, little Akuma." He's mentally chanting 'fly away, fly away, fly away…' because it couldn't possibly hurt. He's really starting to hate that girl.

Bloom sees the Akuma take off, and yells "No you don't!" She takes a running start, leaps up onto the railing, slides down it, and catches the Akuma in the glass jar before it can vanish - making a lid in the palm of her hand, hidden by her body during the landing, and twisting it on before the Akuma can fly away.

And then she looks up, and sees she's drawn a crowd yet again. And Alya's filming, yet again.

Deciding to give the crowd what they want, Bloom holds up the jar and yells up "GOT IT!" The resulting cheer could probably be heard all the way to the Eiffel Tower, even as people rush down the stairs and pick her up to hoist her on their shoulders.

Adrien, meanwhile, gives her a glare - he'd thought she'd maybe stabbed herself on that jar when she didn't immediately roll over! They are so going to be talking about why, exactly she felt she had to catch the Akuma. He gets it, really…but a stunt like that, while not in uniform, is pushing it just a little.

Alya mutters "Awesome! That girl is awesome!" Honestly, her blog is getting more hits now than even when Lila gave her that interview! Bloom rules!

When Juleka gets back to the Couffaine boat, Liberty, her mom immediately finds her and starts asking questions. "Are ye alright, dearie? Feeling ill like yer brother? Any headaches, dizziness?"

Juleka shakes her head, dodging her mother's hand heading towards her forehead as she does - their mother doesn't have magic like them, doesn't understand it or what they can do in the slightest, but she tries nonetheless. She's always ready with an icepack for a headache or a song if they're upset...or her first aid kit if they're hurt. She might not have been able to fix her photo curse, but she's always helped as much as she could - it's like trying to ask someone who hates math for help with college-level calculus, true, but what she lacks in knowledge Anarka Couffaine more than makes up for in effort and motherly love.

When Juleka gets into Luka's cabin, decorated with every bit of Jagged Stone merchandise their mom came up with whenever they found it, cd's lining the shelves alongside guitar music and how-to-play books, and a collection of guitar picks proudly displayed across one wall, she finds her slightly-older brother lying face-up on his bed with a massive icepack covering his entire face, head sitting on another and a third under his neck. Wincing in sympathy - those migraines whenever she tried to explore her abilities are something she definitely doesn't miss! - she sits down next to his arm and quietly asks "Feeling any better?"

One hand comes up and rocks back and forth, before taking the ice pack off his face. "A little," Luka whispers. His head's throbbing, but it got a bit better once he got out of the city itself and away from all the people in it. He gingerly sits up, keeping the other two packs pressed to the back of his head, and asks "Did you find anything out?" 

"About Bloom?" At Luka's nod, she says "She avoided me like I had the plague after she and then Miss Bustier nearly got Akumatized." 

Luka hums, rubbing at his elbow where he accidentally bumped Bloom and apparently got his abilities permanently boosted - they've never just suddenly increased like this, much less stayed like this - and says "Not surprising, if she's got something to hide like we do." The question is, though, how do they corner her and ask about it? Luka would gladly share what he can if they were sure she was...if not like them, then at least similar, but that's the problem. They don't know for sure. Hence the rock-and-hard place they're currently at.

And Bloom almost certainly won't tell them herself, if her avoidance of Juleka is anything to go by.  

Chapter Text

Bloom and Marinette are walking through the Trocadero, heading for Adrien's current photoshoot - they planned on 'bumping into him by accident' and inviting him to a smoothie. And, maybe getting a ride back to Mari's place depending on how it goes - because, Adrien or Cat Noir, her brother is a gentleman and wouldn't not offer if they needed a ride somewhere. He's offered her a ride back to her place often enough...even if that was trying to make her slip up.

Bloom helps a woman with her baby stroller, while her son is throwing a tantrum about not getting a lollipop, and Marinette goes to ask Adrien about that smoothie. Right up until that baby gets Akumatized over wanting a lollipop.

Bloom pulls his mother out of the way, muttering "That man has got some issues…" She never thought he'd sink this low - she knew he was perfectly capable of some truly despicable things, including destroying the world by Akumatizing the wielder of the power of destruction and Akumatizing his own son, but it takes a truly sick, twisted psycho to mind-control a baby of all things.

The woman nods, saying "Akumatizing a baby…it's just sick!" And that's not even mentioning the outrage she feels coming on about the detail that it's her baby!

Bloom says "Go hide, Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Dragon Fyre will bring your real child back soon!" When she gets to Cat Noir after transforming, she finds him leading August towards the river - nothing to destroy there, smart.

That particular Akuma is definitely the most innocent Akuma they've ever encountered - topping even Nino and Nathan, who sent all the adults up into the sky in bubbles but didn't hurt them and attacked Chloe with a giant hairdryer and some berets. August, however, simply sits on the ground and plays with his 'toy cars' - real cars, but all three heroes seriously doubt anyone will be suing them. Hawk Moth, maybe, but not them. 

Ladybug grins at a thought, and asks "You think Hawk Moth's throwing a tantrum because August won't listen to him?" Because the usual mask keeps appearing and disappearing, and August pauses when it happens only to go back to playing.

Cat Noir full-out laughs, and says "Oh, definitely." And that mental image, Hawk Moth stomping his feet and shouting himself hoarse like a three-year-old, is going to be one he's going to treasure for a long while. And, he can already hear Plagg laughing hysterically in his head.

Ladybug and Cat Noir watch as Dragon Fyre makes fireworks for August - who knew she was so good with kids?! - and Ladybug says "The Akuma's got to be in his bracelet."

Cat Noir nods, and says "The real challenge is gonna be getting to it - we don't know if it can do anything, after all."

And then they see a large spout of flames appear in the air, and they…converge into a shape in the air. A dog, to be precise. An August-sized dog. It runs around him, and August claps his hands and says "Puppy!" It then turns into a cat, which curls its tail around the bracelet for a moment - turning it black, but not releasing the Akuma just yet.

Ladybug mutters "Jeez, must've beefed up the strength on it."

Cat Noir grins, and says "I got this, Bugaboo. Cataclysm!" He leaps up, using his staff for a boost, and lands on August's wrist just in time to catch the bracelet. Ladybug catches the Akuma while Dragon Fyre catches August and Cat Noir uses his baton to keep from landing face-first on the ground. August's mother comes running over at once, thanking them profusely and cuddling her son.

Dragon Fyre watches as the pair leaves, then asks "Can we all agree he's losing his touch? Because that was..." 'Pathetic' would be one word she'd use. A combination of hilarious and disgusting would be another - because, seriously a BABY!

Cat Noir nods, and says "Yeah...unfortunately, ladies, this Alley Cat's gotta get going. See you later?"

Sooner than you think, Brother. Dragon Fyre and Ladybug go hide and transform, before running out to the area as their civilian selves. 

Adrien breathes a sigh of relief when he sees Bloom and Marinette in the Trocadero - Bloom must've had Marinette go hide somewhere safe. Smart as always, Super-sis.

Marinette lets out a relieved breath, and says "Glad you're okay, Adrien. We saw that woman's baby get Akumatized and had to go hide. What about you, did he think you were a lollipop to?"

Adrien shakes his head, slightly confused because he knows his sister wasn't hiding, she was making fireworks for August, and says "Not me, but he thought my bodyguard was. Where'd you two hide?"

Marinette says "We split up to hide, actually. Bloom went one way, I went another."

Adrien relaxes slightly, then sees his Bodyguard pull the car up and asks "You two want a ride back home? It's kinda far, after all."

Before Marinette can completely spaz about the offer, Bloom says "Actually, Adrien, that would be fantastic. C'mon, Mari."

They end up sitting exactly like at the interview, Bloom between her two partners - unlike at the interview, though…Mari's hardly breathing she's so excited and nervous at the same time. Bloom rolls her eyes, then decides to snap her best friend out of her spiraling thoughts - because, currently, she's going on about how a tire will blow out, she'll fall right into Adrien and he'll never want to even see her again because she accidentally kissed him. "So," Bloom pseudo-casually asks, "anybody up for a lollipop?"

Marinette and Adrien both give her disbelieving looks, and she pulls three of them out of her pocket.

"I might've snagged a few as I was going past the cart. It was supposed to be a last-resort bribe for the kid…August was his name, right Mari? In case he thought I was one." She also left some coins she found while on Patrol for the lolipops - she does keep an eye out for any loose change, and scoops it up via magic.

Marinette nods her head, then says "You've gotta be kidding, Bloom."

Adrien adds "That is so wrong on so many levels."

Bloom smirks, asking "You want one or not?"

Both Adrien and Marinette reach over after a moment, and Marinette mutters "You're absolutely helping with Manon next time."

Bloom grins, and says "While I can't promise any fireworks, I can keep her entertained some."

Marinette just groans and shakes her head, popping the lollipop into her mouth to try and disguise the grin forming on her face.

Adrien just shakes his head, staring out the window as he sucks on his own lollipop - the only other person his sister jokes around with like that is Ladybug. He puts it down to Marinette feeding her as Dragon Fyre at Ladybug's request - and he just heard Bloom facepalm, but he's going to guess it's at some of Marinette's antics.

Plagg, meanwhile, shares a glance with Bloom, who gives a slight shake of her head - translation, no he doesn't want to know what obliviousness his kitten is up to this time.

Chapter Text

Ladybug's so very shocked at Cat Noir's question - having dinner tonight, together, as superheroes - that she very nearly forgets to help the next civilian down the stairs. It's Cat Noir's earnest expression that snaps her out of her shock, eyes dilated slightly more than usual as he gives her a smile that probably makes most girls swoon. "Dinner? As superheroes?"

Cat Noir nods, helping another person down to the ground, and says "Yeah! We're only together when we're saving Paris, so what do you say? Wouldn't you actually like to get to know one another?" He adores his sister, he really does. But he wants to get to know his Lady himself, not through the - admittedly, reliable - medium of his sister.

Ladybug stutters "That's so thoughtful of you, Kitty. But I can't, I've got to- erm- we- I've already got plans, with some friends." Ice cream with some of her classmates, actually - the best in Paris, as it happens, Andre's Sweethearts Ice Cream. 

Cat Noir nods, glancing at his still-winded sister - she moved everyone else out of the way, lifting over two dozen cars and getting all the civilians out of the way, while they stopped the bus itself, so she's understandably a little tired - and says "Well, if they end early, come and join me, M'Lady." He should be done with his own Ice cream with Marinette and the others to get everything set up in time.

Adrien gets to his room, his blood simply boiling after Nathalie's pronouncement of Gabriel's intention to eat his meal in his office yet again. Honestly, what's the point of making me eat at that gigantic table if he's not even going to join me?

On the other hand, having to choke down food while next to Hawk Moth would be next to impossible.

Plagg flies out from Adrien's jacket, holding the extra-large slice of Camembert Adrien swiped for him when Nathalie wasn't in the room, and says "Think of it this way, Kitten. You'll head out early tonight and meet up with one of our partners." Even if Ladybug doesn't show, Dragon Fyre will.

Adrien takes a deep breath, trying to calm down and push the rage down as usual, and forces himself to think on his plans for dinner - real dinner - with Ladybug tonight. Maybe she won't show, but she said maybe - and maybe is good enough for him, at least when it comes to his Bugaboo. They've had each others' backs for too long for it not to be - especially when it's down to the wire, no pun intended that time, and just Ladybug to finish everything.

Maybe she won't show, but maybe she will - and, even if Ladybug doesn't show for whatever reason, his sister is on patrol that night despite their protests. She'll undoubtedly find him, she always manages to somehow.

Dragon Fyre's leaping from rooftop to rooftop, mentally cursing Gabriel Agreste - he wouldn't let Adrien go out, so now Marinette's been bluer than her hair all day.

And I was so caught up trying to keep her from getting Akumatized that I forgot about Adrien!

Honestly, if the guy would just lighten up on Adrien when he's got no plans to do anything with him, things would be much simpler for everyone.

Of course, this is Hawk Moth I'm talking about. The same Hawk Moth that would Akumatize his own son and kill the world without a second's hesitation.

When she gets to the right rooftop, having followed Cat Noir's tracking signal - thank you, Plagg, for activating it! - she finds him playing 'She loves me, she loves me not' with the candles he set up on the railing of the rooftop. It's a fairly secluded spot, with a magnificent view of the Seine River and the Eiffel Tower in the distance…were all the candles lit up, with all the flower petals strewn around the roof, it'd be extremely romantic.

As it is, with her brother curling into himself and all the candles blown out, it just looks oh-so depressing.

"Oh, Brother," she breathes out, landing on the roof gently, "c'mere." She promptly finds herself tackled by one highly upset Cat, arms wrapping around her even as his shoulders start to shake.

About five minutes later, the two of them are sitting against the chimney as Cat Noir winds down at last while Dragon Fyre runs her fingers through his hair. Cat Noir hiccups, then dejectedly mutters "I know she said she might not come…but I'd really gotten my hopes up…"

Dragon Fyre says "I know, Kitty." Damn Gabriel Agreste to hell and back, damn him! This is all his damned fault, as per usual!

After a moment, Cat Noir pushes back slightly to stare up at his sister, and says "Plagg just told me to tell you something. He said it's time for Plan B."

Dragon Fyre sighs, then says "I see." And, incidentally, she agrees. She just spent the last five minutes holding her brother as he fell apart in her arms, and the past few hours trying to keep Marinette from getting Akumatized after her mini-meltdown at Andre's.

Cat Noir pulls her out of her thoughts, asking "Sis? What's Plan B?"

Dragon Fyre says "Broken-hearted Miraculous Holders don't make good Superheroes, Brother. Plan B is…you find out Ladybug's identity, and damn the consequences."

Cat Noir's jaw drops, and Plagg's voice rings in his head. Every Ladybug and Black Cat pair has gotten together since the first time our Miraculous' were used, Adrien. Even when they were on opposite sides, for one reason or another. It's like the Wish, the universe needs balance. That's why each pair is specially chosen, a pair that would not only be good superheroes but would come together on their own. But in all the Holders we've had, neither Tikki or I have ever seen anything quite like this. That's why Bloom and I came up with Plan B.

Cat Noir sniffles, and asks "In case this scenario ever happened?"

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "Yeah, in case one or both of you reaches your breaking point…and it happened tonight."

Cat Noir sits up in alarm, asking "Ladybug? Did something happen to her? Is she alright?"

Dragon Fyre pulls him back down, saying "She's alive, Kitty. And, physically, she's fine. She's just been down in the dumps for half a day is all."

Cat Noir sighs in relief, then asks "What happened?" If someone hurt his Lady...well, he's a fencer in and out of the suit. And he doesn't need Plagg's strength to fence. Besides, it wouldn't be very good if Cat Noir thrashed a random nobody out of the blue. Adrien Agreste would be out of trouble within an hour thanks to Gabriel and Nathalie, but not Cat Noir.

After a minute, Dragon Fyre says "Gabriel happened, Brother."

The blonde boy growls, the way a cat will growl wiling its throat, and asks "What'd he do this time?"

After a moment, Dragon Fyre says "Kept you from hanging out with friends and having some of Andre's ice cream." It takes exactly sixty seconds for Cat Noir to connect the dots - he was supposed to be with Bloom, Marinette, Nino and his girlfriend Alya, and Ivan and Mylene. All of whom have been Akumatized except for Bloom and Marinette. And Bloom is right in front of him, the most incredible sister he could ask for.

Which only leaves...Marinette.

Dragon Fyre watches as her brother blinks for a moment, the shock written all over his face at the revelation. After a bit, he slowly says "So...two of the most amazing, incredible, resourceful ladies I know...are actually the same incredible, endlessly kind, super-special woman? Marinette, our Everyday Ladybug, who got Ivan and Mylene together, who put together all those events, set up birthday parties and goes overtime on her role as Class Rep...she's really Ladybug?" At the red-head's nod, he gets the most love-struck expression on his face she's ever seen. On anyone, for that matter.

And then he gets a confused look on his face, asking "I know Marinette's single...so why's she keep turning me down?"

Dragon Fyre grins, even as she mentally apologizes to her best friend and promises it's for a good cause, and says "You're about to understand why you two drive me up the Eiffel Tower, Brother. You're in love with Ladybug, who's also Marinette, who's got a crush the size of the Eiffel Tower on one Adrien Agreste. Who just so happens to be Cat Noir, and has Ladybug-colored blinders on." Dragon Fyre watches for a moment, waiting to see what her brother's reaction will be - but, there's nothing. Even his Aura is silent.

Until suddenly he's sweeping her off her feet, spinning her around by the waist shouting for joy at the top of his lungs "SHE LIKE ME, SHE LIKES ME, SHE LIKES ME!" Dragon Fyre holds onto her brother's shoulders as he quite literally jumps for joy and swings her around wildly. And then he drops her to her feet, takes her face, and starts kissing her literally everywhere that isn't her mouth - cheeks, forehead, nose, eyelids, every square inch of her face that isn't her lips.

And then he's whirling around to head over to Marinette's place, fully intending to change back, reveal himself, and kiss her senseless in that exact order. And confess that he's head over heels for her, as Cat Noir and Adrien Agreste, and would she do him the incredible honor of being his girlfriend and his Lady.

Dragon Fyre just manages to catch him by his tail, saying "Hold up there, big guy!" She made a promise, and she's not going to break it!

Marinette jumps when there's a thumping sound, followed by a familiar voice saying "Hello." When she turns around, she sees Cat Noir balancing on the top of the chimney.

"Cat Noir? What are you doing here? Don't you have superhero-y things to do?"

Cat Noir shakes his head, saying "No. My sister said she'd handle it for the night, though I know she'd drop it all if I asked her to come keep me company."

Part of Marinette wants to be upset about that - they're superheroes, they have a responsibility to protect the city! - but a larger part acknowledges the detail that the police do exist and the city won't burn down if they don't do Patrol one night. And that they're a family in all but blood, at this point - and, for Dragon Fyre, family will always come first.

Cat Noir pulls her out of her thoughts, leaping down to the railing and saying "But…I don't want to be alone tonight. Do you mind if I hang out here for a bit?" Marinette nods, resisting the urge to run her hands through his messy blonde hair to make him purr, and he sits down on the railing. "Marinette, right? We've run into each other a few times."

Marinette nods, not daring to open her mouth and potentially give away her identity right then and there - she would, to, it would be so easy to just say the phrase and ask what's wrong. But she can't - not only because they can't tell each other, but who knows who might be close enough to overhear. Or who could get Akumatized in the future and give it all away.

Cat Noir, meanwhile, is using every bit of self-control he has to not spin around and kiss his Lady - his sister pointed out the very real, mood-killing detail that they have to be smarter than they were in Cat Blanc's timeline. That they can't go public with everything, or else the world will end. And Hawk Moth will tear the two of them apart to make it happen, even if he wants to bring his wife back.

As much as he wants to just jump in head-first like he always does, wants to declare his love for his lady like he does during - most - Akuma fights…he knows she's right. And that she's looking out for both of them.

So, he'll go along with this plan. Make Marinette fall for Cat Noir - she already loves his more reserved self, but he needs her to accept his bad puns, his silly jokes, and his terrible timing when it comes to flirting with her. He needs her to love all of him, not just Gabriel Agreste's perfect son - luckily for him, his sister has already let him in on the little secret that she's not nearly so averse to his puns as she'd like him to think; his timing is atrocious, apparently, but when they aren't saving the city she cracks up over them.

After a moment, the cat-themed superhero asks "So, what's got the Akuma class's Everyday Ladybug so down tonight?"

Marinette wipes at her tear-stained cheeks with the back of her hand, saying "Just me ruining an evening out with some of my friends because my crush couldn't come and I overreacted. Puberty sucks." Especially one week a month...like this one.

Cat Noir asks "Who's your crush? Maybe I could help?"

Marinette shakes her head, saying "Adrien's locked up in his prison of a mansion whenever he's not out at photoshoots or at school. I've seen it once, when Bloom and I went to drop off a scarf I made for him as a birthday present since I couldn't get the nerve up to give it to him at school…even the drop-box was locked up tight."

Marinette goes on about how she knows he couldn't come, that his father has him on a leash so tight it's practically strangling him…but all the blonde boy can think about right now is the scarf. The scarf his father got for him…except he didn't. Marinette did. No, she made it for him - Kwamis, how did it take him this long to figure out his Bugaboo has been right there all this time?!

Suddenly, every single time his sister has said they drive her up a wall makes all the sense in the world.

Making a snap decision, Cat Noir gets down from the railing and says "I've got something to show you." The detail that she doesn't even ask, just takes his hand and hangs onto him with her eyes closed - snuggling into his chest, no less! - warms him to the very bone. He's so down with Plan B.

Chapter Text

Dragon Fyre sees Cat Noir land on the roof where he'd set everything up, Marinette in his arms, and quietly clicks her fingers to relight all the candles. At her brother's glance, she gives him a smile before leaping away - and steadfastly ignoring the pang of loneliness in her own heart at the sight. If her brother's happy, then she's happy - besides, the one guy that showed any interest in her practically ran off screaming when he learned she's the fire-throwing superhero that helps save Paris on a daily basis.

You have your little family, dammit. That's all you wanted for four years, after all. She's a greedy little creature at heart, isn't she? Her brother and best friend start getting together, and she wants that for herself to - dammit all to hell, why can't she ever be satisfied with what she has?

Longg's voice sounds in her head, saying There's nothing wrong with wanting someone by your side, Hatchling. You'll find someone eventually.

Dragon Fyre scoffs - she's not going to cry, she's not - and asks "Who in the world would stay when they could get set on fire at best or even killed by those four weirdos if they ever decide to take everything from me again? Kwamis, I'm such a drama queen…"

No, that's Chloe. Your magic is fueled by your emotions, of course you feel everything so strongly. There WILL be someone, Hatchling. Karma may be cruel at times, but just as there's a price to pay for misusing a Miraculous there's a boon granted to those you use them for good. Always.

"And…do you know what that boon will be?"

It's taken many forms, Hatchling. Good health, prosperity, true love…whatever the Holder's greatest wish or need is, it comes to them in one form or another.

One of his Holders wanted a family of her own, for instance, but was barren and had nothing to her name - she ended up taking in an orphaned trio, married a successful, prosperous man who loved her and cared nothing for the detail that she had so little, and lived a long life surrounded by children and then grandchildren before she passed peacefully in her sleep.

When Marinette opens her eyes…it's like a scene straight out of a romance book - flower petals strewn all along the floor of the roof, candles lined up along the railings, a basket of food and some pillows on a red blanket, and the Eiffel Tower all lit up in the distance. This must've taken…a while for her Kitty to set up.

Oh, Kitty…I'm so sorry… She's so blown away by it all - every little detail just screams that he's been planning this out for weeks, she's never seen this side of him before - it takes her a full minute to find Cat Noir leaning against a rail.

He glances around, asking "What do you think? Would she have liked it?"

Marinette nods, swallowing a few times to get rid of the lump in her throat, and says "Yeah, I think it would've shocked her speechless." What else can she say? 'Oh, Cat Noir, I'm Ladybug and I'm absolutely floored by all this, I'm so very sorry I forgot about your offer, please forgive me?'

She hurt her Kitty tonight, and badly, but she's no idea how to make it up to him. Unsure about what else to do, Marinette…hugs him. Wraps her arms around his neck because she can't think of anything else to do that won't give herself away.

After a moment, one where he goes stiff as a board before slowly relaxing, she feels his arms move around her, one hand resting on her back the other burying itself in her hair and running through it.

"I'm sorry she never showed up, Cat Noir. Maybe she had…I don't know, a problem of some kind?" Like having a hormone-fueled meltdown over something that's happened twenty times before, making her best friend forgo her own ice cream to keep her from getting Akumatized.

Cat Noir shrugs, resting his chin on the top of her head - and, incidentally, fighting to keep from purring louder than a car engine - and says "I know she said she might not make it, but I had my fingers crossed." Kwamis, he wants to simply curl up around her and never let go - he just can't stay upset with this woman when she's so clearly upset at hurting him. Kwamis, he loves his Lady - and the revelation of who she is only made those feeling stronger somehow.

Of course, true to form, his father has to ruin literally everything. Because a gigantic snowman walks past, rhyming and searching for Marinette.

You gotta be kidding…

Marinette whispers "Andre the Ice Cream man?!"

Ladybug and Cat Noir are walking towards Glaciator, arm in arm and hoping they look like they're in love. And it seems to be working, to, because the gigantic snowman says "I can't, Hawkmoth, they look so in love!"

And then both heroes stop in their tracks, staring up at an orange glow on top of a roof behind Glaciator.

Ladybug murmurs into Cat Noir's ear "Is that…Dragon Fyre?" From the light of that glow, something really set her off this time…

Cat Noir has to shield his eyes thanks to the enhanced senses his Miraculous gives him, disguising his discomfort as pressing a kiss into Ladybug's hair, and says "Yep…"

And then the living inferno leaps and lands squarely on Glaciator's head…which starts melting. The two superheroes can only watch as Dragon Fyre starts melting through the ice cream…and then suddenly Andre gets quite literally tossed out, landing squarely on his behind and an Akuma-colored ice cream scoop flies out of his hand and hits the ground hard. Hard enough to break it.

Ladybug catches the Akuma, purifies it…and the Ladybugs reveal Dragon Fyre under all the ice cream - and she looks upset, almost like she's been crying. Except, with her healing abilities and the Cure…there's no evidence whatsoever. No puffy red eyes and the ice cream would've taken any tears away with it when the Ladybugs cleared it away.

And then Andre comes to, so to speak, and starts geeking out over Ladybug and Cat Noir - and the love he claims he can sense between them. To be fair, he's not wrong - they do love each other, and now the Love Square is just a Triangle.

But still, how this man can accurately tell who loves who is a mystery to the red-head - he hasn't got any magic that she can sense, and yet he's famous for getting it right all the time with his ice cream.

Kwamis, she needs to be away from him right now - nothing against the friendly man, but she just does. Neither of her partners get a word in before she says she'll finish up Patrol and leaps away, but they both noticed something…brittle about her expression as she did.

Cat Noir stares at his Lady, up at the rooftop he set up for her - he didn't think he could love her anymore, but the knowledge that she doesn't want to play with his feelings, lead him on…look at that, he could, and he does.

It takes every ounce of willpower not to simply melt into a puddle of lovesick goo at that, keep his expression somber, but he manages as he walks up and tucks the rose behind her ear. "I understand, M'Lady. Your friendship means everything to me." He kisses her on the cheek, internally sighing at the way her cheeks burn red as the suit, and adds "You can keep the rose, by the way. It goes with your outfit…purrfectly."

He sees Ladybug's hand move to her cheek as he vaults away, and Plagg groans in his head Cue the mushy, gushy stuff from before…times ten.

It's the next day at school when Adrien realizes knowing Ladybug's identity and needing to keep it a secret has some major drawbacks. The first being…his Lady sits right behind him every single day. Gets peeved at Chloe, laughs at Bloom's dry jokes…all of it. His Bugaboo is right there, apparently with a massive crush on him, and he can't say anything or act out of the ordinary. He feels a warm squeeze on his shoulder, silent support from his sister, and just knows she heard his thoughts.

Mari corners Bloom during lunch, asking if she's alright - she seemed a little upset last night. Bloom shakes her head, saying "I'm alright, Mari. Just something I'm coming to terms with." Namely, the detail that she's probably going to be alone as everyone else pairs up. Forever. At Marinette's concerned look, she says "I gotta deal with this one on my own, Mari."

Adrien sits down next to Marinette right then, making the dark-haired girl freeze in her seat, and asks "Deal with what, Bloom?"

Bloom gives the two of them a deadpan 'you gotta be effing kidding me, drop this now' stare, and says "Like I said, nothing. Nothing anyone else can help me with, anyway."

Longg growls from Bloom's hair, and says "I told you, Hatchling-"

Bloom stands up, tossing the bag she had some food in for lunch, and says "See you two in class." Once she's in the - mercifully empty - art room, Bloom scoffs and asks "Longg, who's going to be brave enough to be around a living fire hazard? I kiss someone, I'm likely to set their hair on fire!"

Longg sighs, mentally conceding that she has a point there, and says "Perhaps a new Miraculous Holder."

Bloom mutters "That's a massive risk though, Longg. The instant we put another Miraculous into play, Hawk Moth will know we didn't just come from somewhere else. He'll know there are more Miraculous' in Paris."

Longg nods, and says "It'll come to that point though, Hatchling."

"I know. Magic can do a lot of things…but even magic can't do everything." They're getting tired, to quote the Lord of the Rings movie…thin, like butter scraped over too much bread. Between the daily Akuma attacks that can happen at any time, training, and Patrol, they've got full-time jobs with no pay and the worst hours ever. And that's without taking into account school, homework, and anything and everything her partners' families expect of them.

And after Plagg's performance that first time she recharged her brother's Miraculous, she's more than a little wary of giving the Holders a boost and making them OD on her magic in some way.

They need help, more allies…but that would put all of them in even more danger as soon as they were chosen. And who would they even choose anyway? She's wary of picking some random adult, both because they might not listen to a trio of teenagers and because they'd have a job they'd likely get fired from after a while.

Luka glances around curiously, trying to find the source of the currently depressed, mournful, melancholy melody he's been hearing all through lunchtime. He ends up sitting down next to Marinette and Adrien, Juleka following, and asks "Is something wrong? Bloom's usually with you." 

Marinette nods, saying "Yeah, Luka, she's alright. Just...girl stuff, is all." Luka experimentally leans his leg against hers, and immediately gets swamped with her feelings and thoughts - she's more worried than she lets on, Bloom's been down since last night, and she won't give any kind of reason as to why. Adrien's much the same, worried about Bloom but not having a clue as to what could've upset her so much. They don't get a chance to speak to Bloom, though, as lunch ends before they can find her. At least Luka's pretty certain where that melancholy melody is coming from, though. 

Chapter Text

Bloom watches as Marinette fidgets and fiddles with her hat for a bit, then says "Mari, this is the hat that was chosen in that contest all that time ago. This is the hat that Adrien's going to model tonight." For better or worse, it's far too late to back out now, or change anything.

Marinette mutters "I just feel like it's the ugliest hat in the world..."

Bloom waves a hand, like she's literally waving Marinette's worries away, and says "That's just nerves talking. You were the same way back when we first started working together, remember?" And two weeks later, she was swinging from rooftop to rooftop with her yo-yo, and coming up with plans to beat the Akumas.

Seeing Marinette's still doubting herself, Bloom says "Alright, I didn't want to do this...but you do remember who picked your hat, right?"

"Yeah, of course I do! Gab... oh." It's a little too easy to forget, sometimes, that Gabriel Agreste was Hawk Moth even back then - that she wanted his fricking approval back then, Hawk Moth's approval. It makes her want to be sick for a moment. She has to forcefully remind herself that she didn't know he's Hawk Moth back then, that he's still a fashion mogul, that there was absolutely no indication of the detail that the guy abuses a tiny god every single day to terrorize a city.

And then she spares a moment to acknowledge the detail that her life has gotten very strange since the day Bloom entered her life, she was chosen as the next Ladybug, and Hawk Moth started his reign of utter terror.

Bloom nods, and says "If you can impress Hawk Moth with your work, which you did, then this should be a piece of cake."

Marinette nods, saying "Right. You're right! C'mon, before we're late!"

Chloe tries to keep her expression under control, tries not to show any of her shock in front of her mother - but that's not particularly easy when you suddenly have a twin sister you never knew about!

A near-perfect replica of her face is staring back at her, a mildly-curious expression in place. Far better than her own undoubtedly frozen one, at any rate.

They get out of Adrien's limo, driven by his bodyguard, and Audrey says "Antony- I mean, Andre, do fire him, I can't believe Gabriel allows his staff to drive that way." The limo promptly speeds off, taking a very angry bodyguard with it - before he can throttle her, most likely.

And then she 'fires' Officer Roger because the carpet is fabric and not marble.

And then blatantly insults Nadja on live tv before deigning to answer her question. ...and then 'fires' Chloe, because she considers the wrapping paper on the gift she got the woman ridiculous.

Chloe quickly pastes a 'she's joking, everyone!' smile on her face, even as Zoe quickly takes the gift from sight, and Andre says "Audrey, you can't fire Chloe, she's your daughter!"

Bloom watches the news feed with Marinette on the dark-haired girl's phone, then deadpans "This explains everything about Chloe. She's been mimicking her all this time." Now, everything makes absolute sense, every little detail she's noticed ever since Chloe's party at the hotel.

Marinette says "No kidding…she's Chloe on steroids!"

Bloom runs after a furious Audrey Bourgeois, yelling "Mrs. Bourgeois, hold up! There's something you gotta know!" And that's when she sees the purple butterfly disappear around the woman's hat.

Shiiit…

Thinking quickly, Bloom grabs Chloe and Zoe and hides the three of them away in a semi-covered alcove - one hand over each of their mouths so they can't scream, at that. "Shshsh," she half-whispers, half hisses, "Akumas usually go straight for their target at first, so let's stay out of sight for a moment. Chloe, send a text to the class chat telling them to run."

Chloe nods - even she isn't about to argue about this. Her mother's just been Akumatized, after all.

At Zoe's confused look, Chloe quickly types onto her phone 'Paris has a supervillain that makes supervillains. And superheroes that fight them.'

Zoe's eyes widen, and Bloom has to tighten her grip over her mouth to keep the American-raised blonde from snapping her head over towards the gold-glitter woman that just disappeared.

And then Bloom gasps when they cautiously peek out, hearing the sounds of screaming…and they see Adrien having been turned to a golden statue, about to leap off the stage. Luckily, Chloe gasps as well, murmuring "Oh no, Adrikins…"

Zoe's pacing the Eiffel Tower, trying not to have a complete mental breakdown after the things Chloe's told her - their Mother's been…Akumatized, turned into a Supervillain, Chloe's childhood friend is currently a golden statue by her hand…er, scepter, and they're at a very real risk of getting 'fired' as well.

All because Audrey Bourgeois is proud to the point of narcissism, and refuses to sit at a fashion show in the second row.

Chloe, meanwhile, is pounding on the glowing yellow barrier around him, begging Adrien to wake up. And to please stop crumbling, he's already lost his ankles. And then something yanks on Chloe's arm, getting her attention and making her turn to look at what's pulling her, she sees Ladybug and Dragon Fyre perched on a beam.

Ladybug immediately puts a finger to her lips, signaling for them to be quiet, and Chloe nods and motions for Zoe to do the same. And Ladybug looks frantic, while Dragon Fyre looks a cross between murderous and despairing - like she wants to get mad like usual, but just can't.

Dragon Fyre motions for the blonde twins to come over by them, and Ladybug pulls them up by her yo-yo. As soon as they're safely on the beam, Chloe frantically whispers "The Akuma's in the rose, she put it in Adrien's mouth, please you gotta break that barrier he's crumbling away!"

Ladybug nods, saying "We know. It's just the two of us right now, though, so we gotta play this smart."

Zoe asks "Cat Noir? Another of…you guys? He's...not coming?"

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "My brother. He…got fired." While she was saving these two, her brother was targeted by Style Queen and turned into a golden statue. If she hadn't saved the Bourgeois twins immediately, maybe she could've kept her brother from getting 'fired' by the woman.

Zoe sucks in a sharp breath, staring down at Adrien's body for confirmation, and Ladybug whispers "Yeah, like that. She made it personal…but she's too dangerous to charge in headfirst." Luckily, they do have a plan - one that isn't 'rip Style Queen limb from limb until the Akuma comes out' to. Besides, they don't think that would actually work, given that she's made of glitter.

Chloe asks "So…what are you going to do?"

Dragon Fyre asks "Remember the interview, Chloe? I'm going to make a mirage." Her eyes suddenly burn bright orange, and then a second copy of her appears down on the floor.

Mirage-Dragon Fyre puts a hand to her ear and says "I've found Hawk-butt's latest Akuma, she's up at the Eiffel Tower. Meet you back at the show."

Style Queen lands in an explosion of glitter, and immediately starts attacking - and gets angrier and angrier as, in a familiar tactic, 'Dragon Fyre' starts egging Style Queen on while dodging her attacks. Saying she hasn't got any style whatsoever, that a bunch of golden glittery powder doesn't count, and she's honestly pathetic. And then Dragon Fyre gives Style Queen a near-feral smile - more of a snarl, really - and yells "You want me? Come and get me! Lightning Dragon!" The mirage disappears in a bolt of lightning, leaping to a nearby powerline, and Style Queen screeches in rage before following as a cloud of yellow glitter and dust.

Everyone gets down from the beam, and Ladybug says "That isn't going to keep her busy forever. We gotta get that barrier down!"

Dragon Fyre nods, then says "Stand back, ladies. Spots, once I get a hole open, grab the rose. I don't know how long I'm going to be able to keep it open."

Ladybug nods, and both Chloe and Zoe back away nervously - Zoe jumping in fright and pulling Chloe away even more when the red-head catches fire. And then they see her…put her hands on the barrier, and pry it open. Digging her magic in and miming the gesture with her fingers, Dragon Fyre pulls the energy barrier apart - arms straining, sweat dripping down her face, it's clearly no easy feat. And yet, she's doing it.

Within a minute, there's a hole big enough for Ladybug to put her arm through and snatch the flower from. Dragon Fyre hits the floor as soon as the flower is out, the barrier snapping back shut instantly, and she breathes out "He really went all-out for this one…"

Ladybug nods, even as she breaks the flower and catches the Akuma, and says "If he put this much effort into every Akuma, we'd be in much hotter water."

One Cure later, and everything's back to normal…bar Dragon Fyre's obvious exhaustion.

Zoe looks around, wide-eyed with shock from the past hour, and asks "What happened? With the Ladybugs? They turned Adrien back to normal, why didn't they…?"

Dragon Fyre smirks tiredly, and asks "Fix me up to?" Zoe nods, and Dragon Fyre says "One of the little quirks about having magic of your own…the Ladybugs don't affect me. I get hurt, or drain myself dry stopping Hawk-Butt…it's up to me to patch myself up, cause the magic bugs won't go near me."

After a moment, Zoe says "I don't get it."

Ladybug deadpans "Neither do we, really. Magic does what it wants." And this is after around a year of fighting Akumas, to. Her best friend can bring paper flowers to life, turning them into real flowers, she can resist an Akuma's mind-controlling effects, but the Miraculous Cure won't affect her whatsoever. They can only hope she doesn't get impaled of some such.

Dragon Fyre waves off both Ladybug and Adrien as they help her to her feet, saying "Head on back, everyone, I'll be fine." Translation: head back to the fashion show, I'll meet you there.

Seeing as she still hasn't used her Wind Dragon, it's perfectly accurate.

That doesn't mean either of her partners likes it.

Still, Ladybug takes Adrien, Chloe, and Zoe back to the Fashion Show - and they get hit by a strong breeze along the way, a sure sign that a certain red-head just passed them by.

Chapter Text

Adrien's doing the catwalk once more, discretely using the turn to glance at his Lady and his sister once again - Bloom's drained, no surprise there, and Marinette simply looks exasperated with her.

And then everyone in the crowd suddenly gasps, Alya Cesaire whispering something that makes ice freeze in his veins. "This is a huge update, everyone! That's Gabriel Agreste himself, the man hasn't been in public in ages!"

Sure enough, when Adrien looks at the entrance…Gabriel Agreste is standing there. Expression cold as ever, no emotions on his face whatsoever…but he's there. And then, as if he's actively trying to freak Adrien out even more…he hugs him. In full view of everyone, no less.

His enhanced hearing quickly picks out the sound of rustling, and he can see Marinette quickly talking to Bloom while all but holding her down in the seat…who has bright orange eyes all of a sudden, and a furious glare for Gabriel. It's a really good thing everyone's so focused on them, right then, because Bloom would give herself away in an instant if anyone saw that.

To keep everyone focused on them, Adrien puts his arms around his father's waist - it makes him want to absolutely throw up all over Gabriel's expensive clothes, followed by the intense urge to scrub himself until he bleeds, but he does it anyway.

Bloom, meanwhile, is only still in her seat because Marinette's hand is on her arm - but Gabriel 'I'm-Hawk-Moth' Agreste shouldn't be anywhere near her brother! No matter that Adrien's his son by blood, he has no fucking right to so much as look at Adrien, much less hug him! ESPECIALLY not after tonight, when Adrien was attacked by Style Queen and could've been killed! She's going to rip his hands from Adrien's body, and then rip him to shreds!

Gabriel, meanwhile, internally frowns at three particular emotions he's feeling - there's plenty of shock and awe in the room, making it impossible to identify who's emotions he's sensing so spectacularly…but one's an overwhelming protectiveness, to the point of going feral, one's panic, and one is…disgust, loathing.

Whoever the first is, they're practically frothing at the mouth in utter fury. As in 'Cat Noir's just been severely injured in front of Dragon Fyre' kind of fury.

The second is, best he can tell, keeping them from making a scene…and the third is what's most concerning. Who, exactly, would be so disgusted with him right now? If it's even about him - wearing the Butterfly Miraculous has made him an empath, but unless he's transformed he can't read people's minds.

Bloom, Marinette, and her parents walk over to Adrien, Chloe, Zoe, and their respective parents, just as Gabriel finishes unruffling Audrey Bourgeois' highly ruffled feathers. Audrey then takes a look at the hat Adrien's wearing, saying "This is not a Gabriel Agreste. Are you the one responsible for this?"

Marinette freezes, and Adrien whispers "Stand proud."

Bloom takes Audrey's attention off her best friend, though, by saying "She is. Hand-made and signed, to boot."

Adrien happily chimes in "Marinette won a fashion contest with it, judged by my father!"

"Hmm, I see…" Audrey checks under the brim of the hat, and sees Marinette's signature, then says "It's…exceptional! You're a visionary, Marinette! Glitter has had its day, feathers are the trend of tomorrow!"

Gabriel says "She does have talent, young though she is." Tonight was an unmitigated disaster, so he has to save face - Style Queen was an absolute failure, Adrien nearly died, and his fashion show was almost ruined. If he didn't make an appearance after all of that, people would seriously start wondering just what he does...and, potentially, if he's Hawk Moth, considering everything.

Audrey smiles, one hand on her hips, and asks "You wanna be a fashion designer, right?"

Marinette shyly nods, saying "Yes, Ma'am."

"Then come to New York with me! I'll make you the biggest name in fashion - I'm sure you'll even upstage Gabriel!"

Most everyone voices their support, but Chloe practically explodes. "RIDICULOUS, UTTERLY RIDICULOUS! I've never been to New York in my entire life, and now you want to just sweep a nobody like Marinette Dupain-Cheng off with you?!"

Audrey coldly says "I'm taking her because she's exceptional, Claudette- er, Chloe."

Chloe practically stamps her feet, face red as a tomato as she exclaims "I'm exceptional to! Yet you never even take a moment to notice!"

Audrey scoffs, not even looking at Chloe as she checks her nails, and dismissively says "The only exceptional thing about you is your mother."

Before Chloe can simply go off, Bloom crosses her arms and says "Well, looks like we've found the winner for worst mother of the year award. Chloe, you've seriously been copying this witch of a woman all this time?"

Audrey goes red-faced, angrily asking "How dare you? Do you know who I am?"

Marinette murmurs "Oh no…"

Adrien mumbles "Please go easy on her…"

Chloe takes a few steps backwards, pushing Zoe back as well, to avoid any crossfire that's about to start, remembering all too well how thoroughly Bloom tore her father to shreds when he asked that question, and Andre winces and says "Audrey, darling, that might've been the wrong question to ask her…"

Bloom turns to Audrey fully, and says "I happen to know who you are, yes. Audrey Bourgeois, mother of Chloe and Zoe Bourgeois, though you wouldn't know it from the way you talk about them. You ran off to New York shortly after the Bourgeois twins were born, leaving your husband of convenience who's twenty years older than you to raise one daughter while you took the other. You care nothing or anyone other than yourself, not even the husband you married for his established political career, as evidenced by the ring-shaped tan-line on your finger there." Everyone can only watch in something like horror as Bloom verbally dissects Audrey Bourgeois, from the way she thinks only her opinion matters to how she married a man at least ten years older than her for nothing more than his money to how she's apparently cheating on her husband with the CEO of Style Queen. Though, she doesn't say as much outright on that last one - it's all there between the lines though, and its apparently perfectly accurate if Audrey's increasingly horror-struck expression is anything to go by.

Anyone else - bar Gabriel next to her, perhaps - would be reduced to tears by the time she's through, and then Bloom stalks over to the two shell-shocked twins and says "C'mon, let's get out of here before that damn coward decides to strike again." She grabs Chloe by the wrist, motioning for Zoe to follow, and then practically drags Chloe out before she can get over her shock.

About an hour later, Chloe's long since snapped out of her shock and is now wailing brokenheartedly in Zoe's arms, the two of them sitting on Chloe's bed in the Grand Paris. And Zoe's not much better, on the verge of tears herself after their mother's cruel words - the only exceptional thing about Chloe is Audrey Bourgeois? Zoe is her sister, so…she's worthless to, in Audrey's eyes.

She'd always known her mother was cold and distant, the woman was hardly ever there and certainly didn't raise her…she didn't know she had a whole other family here in Paris, including a second daughter - Zoe's twin sister.

Gods, this is all so messed-up.

And then Zoe's thoughts are pulled away from the mess that is her and Chloe's family drama by a crunching sound, and Bloom Peters murmuring "Sorry butterfly, but I'm not Ladybug." The astounding red-head glances over, then flashes an open palm at her - five Akumas so far, and neither twin is winding down.

After another minute, Chloe sniffles and pulls back, wiping at her wet face and runny makeup with the back of one hand. "I c-can't believe I- all this time I've been…"

Bloom hands Chloe a box of tissues, saying "We all have our idols, Chloe. And, when we find out they aren't as great as we'd thought…well, we gotta find a way forward without them." She used to want to be a Fairy, for instance. She can now definitively say it's not all it's cracked up to be.

Zoe says "It's alright, Chloe. I didn't even know about you or…father. Until today. One day, Mother tells me to pack some stuff for a day-long trip, and then we're off to the airport…" And then she was unceremoniously introduced to her twin sister who had no idea about her, and got told she's got a family here in Paris.

Chloe sniffles again, dragging a handful of the tissues across her face, and mutters "Can't believe you were Dragon Fyre all this time, Peters…"

Bloom stiffens up at once, asking "What now?" Now where did that come from?!

Chloe rolls her eyes, and says "You stood up to Mother, Bloom. Add that to the detail that you look utterly exhausted, and it finally makes sense. And, for whatever reason…I can finally see the resemblance. The hair, the eye color, the…everything." It just clicked somehow, while Bloom was tearing Audrey to verbal shreds, specifically when she gave Audrey that sharp smile that's more of a sneer - she thought that only Dragon Fyre would be brave enough to give Audrey Bourgeois such a look, call her to task so thoroughly...and then it just hit her. The hairstyle, the hair color, the eye color, the temper, the...everything.

And now she feels like a blind idiot for not seeing it months ago - such as when Bloom elbowed Vanisher in the face during class.

Bloom sighs, then says "Alright, you caught me. I'm Dragon Fyre." She makes a small flame at the tip of her finger for proof.

Zoe does a goldfish impression, opening and closing her mouth speechlessly, but Chloe groans and holds her head in her hands. "Oh no, no please no…"

Bloom raises an eyebrow, and asks "What about?"

"Please tell me Dupain-Cheng isn't Ladybug. I've been idolizing Ladybug all this time…" That would make Adrien Cat Noir, wouldn't it? She knows he's pretty much obsessed with Ladybug, has every piece of merchandise made of her…dear gods, Adrien is Cat Noir. She's been ragging on Cat Noir almost since they first appeared!

Bloom smirks after a moment, deciding there's no possible way Chloe will believe a lie, and says "I promise not to use it as blackmail material, Bourgeois."

Chloe lets out an even bigger groan, and says "Gotta be kidding…" And then Chloe gasps, saying "If Dupain-Cheng leaves for New York-"

Bloom's phone buzzes right then with a text, and she reads it before saying "No need to worry about that, Mari's not a big fan of your mother. And she takes being Ladybug really seriously."

Chloe sighs in relief, saying "Thank gods…"

At Zoe's look, Bloom says "She's the one that can fix everything…even bring people back to life. Without Ladybug, Paris would be a ruin in less than a week."

Thinking for a moment, staring at the emotionally broken form of Chloe Bourgeois, Bloom makes a decision. Getting up suddenly, Bloom says "I gotta go, be back in an hour or so. You good now, Chloe? What about you, Zoe?"

Chloe and Zoe both nod, and Chloe asks "Why? What's going on now?"

Bloom sighs, and says "I'm gonna stick my neck out and do the one thing nobody but Adrien's ever done for you, Chloe Bourgeois. I'm gonna give you a chance." And then Bloom transforms, and disappears with a 'Wind Dragon.'

Master Fu looks at Bloom in shock, that is…not what he expected when she arrived in the backroom, transformed and having just come from the Grand Paris and an emotionally-broken set of Bourgeois twins. "Are you certain? That is not something I would've expected from you, Bloom."

Fei, meanwhile, leans against a wall - Bloom's one for second chances if she thinks you deserve it and are capable of taking it, deep down, but she didn't think Chloe Bourgeois, of all people, would make that list.

She's met the girl in-person, seen her on tv, and heard more than enough about her from various sources. All total, the impression she got was a spoiled, rich brat who's never wanted for anything in her entire life, daddy's little princess who more than likely has a jewel-encrusted room just because she wanted it.

So, not a good Miraculous Holder - and, not somebody she ever thought Bloom would give a second chance to.

Bloom sighs, glancing at Longg on the table next to her, then says "Yes, Master Fu. I'm certain. Chloe can be better, I've seen it sometimes…but she needs a way to do it." And, having just seen Chloe get absolutely shattered by her own mother…well, she apparently has a bleeding heart.

And Chloe doesn't want to be anything like her mother now. Better to strike while the iron's hot, to use a blacksmithing expression - better to swoop in and give Chloe some direction rather than have her be just lost…and easy prey for Hawk Moth. The damned coward saw her meltdown and wasted no time whatsoever in releasing Akuma after Akuma to try and get to her - probably sent Adrien to bed and got straight to work.

Chapter Text

Ladybug and Cat Noir are waiting on top of the warehouse Bloom lives in, having gotten a text to meet her there…and that there's someone they need to meet.

Ladybug asks "Who do you think she's bringing?"

Cat Noir shrugs, then says "Well, I heard something went down at the Fashion show. Even after Style Queen."

Ladybug nods, glancing around, and says "Wasn't it Chloe's mom? She said something to her daughter, and…" And suddenly, she finds herself pitying Chloe, of all things - she was so desperate for her mom's approval that she made herself into a carbon-copy of the woman, only for her to just disregard her like that.

Cat Noir nods, and says "Yeah. It didn't go down too well."

"How could any mother be so cruel to her own child? Any at all?"

Cat Noir shrugs, saying "I don't know, we got Hawk Moth putting his own son in danger day after day. Wasn't he the first to get hit by Style Queen after she went off?" He's still wondering what the hug was about, to. Saving face, most likely - or, perhaps, the sight of him having been turned into a statue wrung something out of the normally-distant man. Either way, the end result was something he dreamed of months ago and wanted to shred when it actually happened.

Ladybug mutters "Yep. Match made in hell, then." Hawk Moth and Audrey Bourgeois? She can only imagine how dysfunctional that relationship would be.

It actually makes the both of them shudder, particularly at the thought of any kid of that match - neither can imagine any good coming of it, anyway. Adrien's just glad he takes so much after his mother, honestly.

And then there's a thumping sound, and they hear Dragon Fyre's voice say "Spots wasn't very good at it the first few days either. Don't beat yourself up."

And then Dragon Fyre leaps up, and they see she brought a newcomer with her…wearing what's unmistakably the Bee Miraculous. Yellow outfit with black striped markings all over it, and blonde hair in a curled ponytail that's got white streaks in it. Blue eyes that stand out more against the black edging of the mask, uncertain and hesitant.

Chloe tries to steel her nerves, like she's done a thousand times before - she's about to meet Ladybug, as a partner in battle and…well, near-equal, but then Bloom's words drift through her mind.

Don't focus on your father, don't focus on your mother. Forget what they'd do, or what they would want. What do YOU want?

I want…to be more than the Mayor's spoiled daughter, and the Fashion Queen's rejected daughter. I want to be better.

Cat Noir stares at her for a moment, then cautiously asks "Sis? Who's she?" He has a very good idea who, but after Lila Rossi he's a little paranoid.

Ladybug fingers her yo-yo, and asks "Is this another Volpina situation?"

Dragon Fyre shakes her head, saying "No. I handed her the Miraculous myself."

Both heroes relax, and Chloe gives a nervous smile and says "Um, hi Ladybug. Cat Noir. I'm…Honeybee." She doesn't want to be a Queen anymore...plus, Dragon Fyre pointed out the detail that all the Queens in a beehive do is get laid and lay eggs. Yeah…not what she particularly wanted to be thought of as. Even if Pollen does call her 'my Queen' whenever she talks to her.

Dragon Fyre pulls her from her thoughts, saying "We need help, guys. We're in a war of attrition here, and he's got every other advantage. The only one we have is the ability to get more allies."

Ladybug looks resigned, and Cat Noir looks dejected at that, but they both nod their heads. "Yeah," the blonde boy mutters, "so long as he doesn't show his face we're stuck fighting Akumas…"

Ladybug sighs, pinching the bridge of her nose, and says "We're probably going to regret this… Look, Honeybee, right?" After the blonde girl nods, Ladybug asks "Are you sure about this? Really sure? I'm not trying to drive you off, or doubting you, but this is something you need to understand. This, the fighting Akumas, the suit, the Miraculous, your Kwami…it's a big responsibility, alright? We didn't get a choice about whether or not we were up for this. I'm trying to give it to you. If you commit to this, there's no backing out until either you have to give up your Miraculous for some reason or we've beaten Hawk Moth."

Cat Noir says "It's basically a full-time job, to put it one way. With crazy hours. No vacation, no real downtime, and you've gotta be willing to ditch your plans at a moments' notice. And take a hit or two for Ladybug if it comes to it."

Honeybee keeps nodding along, not getting upset or scared as the heroes keep talking - she knew all this when Dragon Fyre came and offered her the Bee Miraculous, the chance to be a better person. She's been in Paris since before it even started, and Adrien, Marinette, and Bloom's unexplained flaking, disappearances, and absences suddenly make all the sense in the world.

And Zoe, her sister she never knew about who she's already closer to than their own parents, she said she'd support her no matter what and urged her to take the chance offered to her. Chloe then promised she'd get Zoe into Dupont just like she did Adrien, since Zoe promptly decided she'd rather stay with her sister than head back to New York. She didn't care if it was safer in New York, she's been happier in the past hour in Paris than she's been in the past few years in New York.

After Patrol is over - well, Patrol-and-teaching-Honeybee-the-ropes - Ladybug and Cat Noir head off in their respective directions and Dragon Fyre stays behind for a moment. "You did fine, it's sort of our first time with a new member…for real, anyway." At Honeybee's look, she adds "Volpina tried to pass herself off as a Fox Miraculous Holder. Unfortunately for her, both Cat Noir and I recognized her easily."

Chloe mutters "Turns out the Ladybug yo-yo was a waste of money…thank you, Dragon Fyre. I should get home."

Dragon Fyre nods, then says "See you tomorrow. Remember, don't be as 'exceptional' as that witch you have to call a mother. Be better than her."

Chloe nods, resignedly muttering "That probably means being nice to everyone then." One stupid night was agony, this is going to be prolonged self-torture.

Dragon Fyre shrugs, saying "Baby steps, Chloe. Don't laugh at people, don't point out stuff they'd rather be forgotten. You don't have to throw the entire class a party or anything."

"Why is it easier in the suit though? It was easier to stop thinking about what mother would do when I was focusing more on Ladybug…"

Dragon Fyre says "A Miraculous…enhances things. Emotions, personality traits…balance. Your desire to not be your usual self, to be better than your usual self, was apparently included."

"So…what do I do? After Honeybee's been established? When there's Chloe Bourgeois and Honeybee?" Will she just end up preferring to be Honeybee? Where everything is just easier, when being nice is easier?

Bloom says "You don't have to lose your sharp tongue completely, Chloe. By all means, turn it on people who do something ridiculously stupid. But keep the venom - no pun intended - in check, alright? You've seen me go off on people for purposefully causing the circumstances that got someone Akumatized, but I don't actively try to get them Akumatized." She never thinks she's gone over the line that separates matter-of-fact from cruel…but when she does, she tries to make up for it somehow. She apologized to Chloe after Dark Dragon, for instance - she wasn't particularly good at it, not having apologized to anyone in-person for over four years by that point, and not when she still felt that Chloe needed a wake-up call, but she did it.

When Honeybee lands on the roof of the Grand Paris, she finds an unexpected visitor waiting for her on a deck chair…Cat Noir. Honeybee freezes at once, asking "Cat Noir? What are you doing here?"

The Cat-themed Superhero pins her with a somber stare, and says "I could ask you the same thing…Chloe."

Honeybee freezes, starts frantically denying the accusation(?) - it hasn't even been half a day, only a few hours, she didn't tell anyone and yet somehow he figured her out! - but, to her surprise, the blonde boy wraps his arms around her in a hug. And starts purring.

After a moment, he quietly says "It's alright, Chloe, I promise…"

After a solid minute spent listening to him purr, Chloe asks "How'd you know?"

Cat chuckles, and says "Oh Chloe, as if I couldn't recognize you. Even with the Miraculous concealment magic. Also, my sister is a lot of things…but subtlety isn't her strong suit some of the time." It wasn't hard to piece together once he realized Honeybee seemed to be fighting to be nice - just like Chloe was at the party, though Honeybee's struggle seemed easier.

Bloom disappears with Chloe after Audrey Bourgeois shatters her to the point of being Akumatized, and then they suddenly have a new partner. No, subtle his sister is not. Fiery, protective, super-smart, super-strong...but not subtle.

Chloe sighs, then asks "Promise you won't say anything, Adrikins?"

"Yeah, of course I- wait, what?"

Chloe glances up, and says "I put it together tonight. Adrien got hit by Style Queen, and Cat Noir didn't show up. Bloom's Dragon Fyre, and you've got the first piece of each bit of Ladybug merchandise ever made."

Cat Noir stares at her, then says "I figured, if anyone was going to figure me out on their own…it would be you, Chloe. You got me."

Therein ensues an absolute flood of apologies from Chloe for…actually, he can't even keep up. From every time she made fun of his alter-ego to how horrible she's been to…honestly, it sounds like she's trying to apologize for a few years. When he asks why she's apologizing to him, and why now, she mutters "It's easier in the suit…"

"Yeah," he says after a moment, "a lot of things are." Getting out of the house, for one. After a moment, he asks "You gonna be alright, Chloe? Your mom was…"

Chloe snorts, and says "Can't believe I looked up to her all this time…far as Zoe and I are concerned, she's our mother in blood only."

Adrien blinks, then says "Ironic…that's exactly how I feel about my father." Upon glancing at her hair, though…there's no Bee Miraculous. He knows what it looks like, Plagg gave him a run-down of all the other Kwamis and what their Miraculous' look like, and the Bee is a hair comb.

At his confused look, Chloe smirks and says "They can change. It takes a lot out of the Kwami, though, so you gotta know what you want it to be before you change it." She changed the hair comb to a metal ponytail holder, easily hidden under her own scrunchie.

According to Bloom - and Pollen, Longg, and even her own logic of the situation - they can't have anything about her changing. Not even a new accessory or different hairstyle. Hawk Moth had a spellbook with images of each Miraculous, and if something just so happened to show up that was shaped exactly like a Miraculous he'd catch on fairly quickly.

Ergo, the Bee comb got changed to a Bee Ponytail holder. Chloe's pretty sure Bloom's making up scenarios for if other Miraculous Holders need to be brought into play.

Chapter Text

Marinette sighs dejectedly as Nino hangs up with Adrien - his dad won't let him come, all because he misplayed one note on some ridiculously advanced piano piece. Because he was nervous since the guy was there for a change, and hit the key next to the one he meant to play.

Marinette sighs, and mutters "I know there'll be other times…other times for daddy-dearest to forbid him from going to…" Even Chloe is here, saying Zoe dragged her and Sabrina out and since Adrien was going to come she might as well stay for the show as well. She gets the distinct feeling that Chloe is Honeybee - it could be a coincidence, Honeybee getting introduced to them after Chloe's reason for practically everything she does having been destroyed...but she seriously doubts it. While she wouldn't have agreed right off the bat - Chloe by herself has been a nightmare to her for years, call her paranoid but she's actually had nightmares about a Chloe enhanced by a Miraculous - but the blonde has actually made an effort to change.

Well, to not be like her witch of a mother, anyway.

She's even heard Zoe giving Chloe some advice by accident - she forgot a school book in her locker, had to go back, and overheard Zoe saying to pretend she's acting a role in a film or play. To her utter surprise, Chloe's practically ignored her ever since the fashion show. Hasn't pointed out anything, hasn't made any mean comments - at first, she thought the blonde was trying some petty form of revenge by acting as if she didn't exist. But when she was like that with everyone bar Sabrina, Zoe, and Adrien...well, she figured something else was up.

Attempting to change her entire personality? Yeah, that would fit. She'll take it in a heartbeat - she'd rather be ignored than bullied.

Bloom grips the wooden railing so hard she hears it crack, and grinds out "Mari, remind me exactly why I can't go over there and rip him apart?"

Marinette puts a hand on Bloom's shoulder, saying "It was expressly forbidden, Bloom."

Bloom snorts derisively, feeling her palms start to heat up despite her better judgement, and says "I never said I'd be going in uniform, Marinette."

Marinette's silent for a moment, then says "As appealing as the idea is, Bloom, murder's illegal. Even if he is Hawk Moth."

Longg says "Easy, Hatchling. I know it's difficult, but we will rescue him. Both of them."

When, though? When will we FINALLY drive Gabriel Agreste off and rescue my brother and Nooroo?

As much as she's learned the value of patience - she forced herself to learn, along with calmness, emotional control, and the willpower of a saint after coming into her magic - it burns her to have to wait knowing her brother is in constant danger, just as much as her Fairy form being forced out of her burned her from the inside out.

If Gabriel ever notices the ring sitting on her brother's finger…well, he's a smart guy. Evil, beyond redemption, yes, but intelligent. And the ring, despite being in camouflage mode, is still shaped exactly the same…and Gabriel has several high-resolution photos of Cat Noir's ring on his computer to study, Max's miracle-virus sent copies of them to their phones.

And then 'Captain' Anarka comes in, thoroughly disrupting her thoughts, and Rose announces that they're ready to rehearse…except Luka's missing.

Deciding she needs to get her mind off Agreste Manor - more specifically, storming Agreste Manor and giving good old Gabe a fiery boot to the head and another out the door - Bloom says "I'll go find him. Where is he?" It should be long enough since her accidental slip-up in the art room that he'd have forgotten about it, right?

Anarka smiles, and says "He's in his cabin. Can't miss him."

Luka freezes as soon as a familiar - beautiful - voice calls his name. Bloom's voice.

He'd been trying to meditate, center himself so he can actually enjoy the performance tonight...which ended up with him trying to write down Bloom's melody before rehearsals start, trying to figure out what he could be missing about her. Except she's here now, she's thoroughly distracting even up top while he's down below, and he's only gotten about a third of the way through.

He quickly shoves the music pages into his desk drawer, having to try three times so nothing sticks out before just deciding to screw it and use his powers, and grabs his guitar to sit on his bed. He quickly shifts slightly, adjusting the guitar so it looks more natural than thrown-together at the last minute, and tries to focus through the song that's coming from the other side of the door.

And that's when Bloom gets into his room, asking "Luka, you in here?" And then the red-haired beauty walks in, and Luka's breath leaves him. Up close, with nobody else around - with her entire attention focused on him - she's not a melody. She's a symphony - an entire orchestra. It's beautiful, to. Absolutely enchanting.

After a minute, Bloom asks "Luka, you alright?" Nobody's ever called her enchanting, not even Nathan. And Nathan had a crush on her for a little while.

Clearing her throat and trying not to blush, Bloom asks "You play guitar? Right, you and Nino were going to do the soundtrack for that movie competition." If she can get him talking, she might be able to figure out what she just felt. She can safely say it's nothing she's ever felt in Paris before, which means it probably wasn't Luka himself...Marinette said Juleka and her brother have been in Paris for years, after all. 

Luka nods, and says "Music's often simpler than words. Want to hear something?" At Bloom's nod, he sits down and motions for Bloom to do the same. One she's comfortable, he closes his eyes and concentrates on the song he can hear from her. Lets himself relax into the song, his fingers and his powers do what they do best.

After playing the song for a bit, he opens his eyes to see her looking completely awestruck. After a moment, she asks "How…did you do that?" It was absolutely beautiful, she's never heard anything like it.

Luka says "Music is emotion that you can hear. I just have…I guess you could call it a knack for letting everyone else hear it."

Bloom hums, and says "I sing, sometimes. Usually when I'm lonely, or when there's a song stuck in my head I can't get out. I'm not good at it, mind you, but there you have it." She glances at his wall, asking "You like Jagged Stone to?" Kwamis, she needs to get her mind off him. Suddenly, Alya's metaphor of the compass and statue from earlier is hitting a little too close to home. Maybe it's the vibrating sensation she can feel in the air, maybe it's Luka himself, or the music that seemed to speak to her down to her very soul, she doesn't know and isn't sure what to make of it.

Luka nods, breathing out a sigh of relief as the conversation moves to safer grounds, and says "He's my favorite singer…my idol, really. Juleka's, to. We both dyed our hair like he does…though, purple really didn't agree with me like it does Juleka."

Bloom hums, then says "He's got dignity, to. Unlike his manager, who tried to piggy-back that talentless XY on Jagged's back." At Luka's look, Bloom shrugs and says "Marinette introduced me to his music…and Chloe up there unwittingly introduced us to him."

Luka nearly drops the guitar in shock, asking "Come again?! You know Jagged Stone?!"

At Luka's incredulous stare, she grins and says "I'll get him to autograph something for you."

When Luka heads upstairs to rehearse - after offering Bloom one of his guitar picks since he's got dozens of them, in a hasty attempt to not leave her thinking he's about to become a crazy stalker over that particular revelation - he heads over to Juleka and murmurs into her ear "Did you know Bloom knows Jagged Stone?"

Juleka thinks for a moment, then says "Right, she and Marinette designed his last album cover. The one you were so amazed by."

Luka's eyes widen as big as they can possibly get, and he whisper-asks "Seriously?!" She's joking, right? Right?!

Juleka nods, finishing tuning up her guitar. She was gonna wait until he finally made some kind of move in regards to his feelings about Bloom before telling him, but now works to.

Luka glances over at Bloom, who's getting elbowed in the side by Marinette teasingly, and asked something that makes her blush brightly and look away. Marinette gets the world's biggest grin on her face before glancing towards him.

And then his mother - mercifully - announces it's time to rehearse, and pulls down the sheet…covering a massive speaker right behind him.

Mylene quickly hands out earplugs, which everyone readily puts in…and then Luka plays a few notes on his guitar. The resulting soundwave blows Nino's hat off his head, has everyone staring in wide-eyed shock…and draws the police immediately.

Boats, helicopters, cars…and Officer Roger speaks into a megaphone saying "Mrs. Anarka, are you completely out of your mind?! I'm reading 160 decibels, that's ten times the sound of a jet engine! You just can't do this, you'll have to play something else."

Anarka grabs the microphone from Rose, and says "It's the National Music Festival, Officer Roger! My crew's allowed to play whatever they want!"

"It's a Music Festival, not a Noise Festival! If you don't turn it down, I'll ban your concert altogether!"

Bloom walks over and motions for Anarka to hand her the microphone. "First off, Officer Roger, the sound of a jet engine is actually 140 decibels. Second, if we turned it down a little, would that be alright?"

Anarka immediately snatches the microphone up, saying "Out of the question! I didn't name my Galleon 'Liberty' for nothing! It's a matter of principle! Haven't you ever heard of freedom of speech, Roger? This is me home, I'll do as I want!"

Roger marches up to the gangplank, and therein ensues an argument that ends with about eight tickets and a furious Anarka Couffaine.

Maybe a minute later, the ship starts getting consumed by Akuma-purple smoke.

Everyone gasps, and Bloom yells "Everyone, off the ship!" Marinette just makes it off, landing on the ground, but Alya's unable to jump over the railing that appears just afterwards.

Marinette yells over "I'll go find Ladybug! Just hang on until she gets there!" Translation: Don't do anything dangerous, Bloom. Bloom nods, even as Nino yells for her to get out of there, and Marinette starts running towards the city.

And then Anarka appears at the wheel, hair red and spikey instead of her former gray braid, and she orders everyone to get to their instruments. And then, when everyone refuses, she orders the Liberty to chain them up - which actually happens, chains appearing out of nowhere and wrapping around groups of people.

Bloom gets tied to Luka, Chloe, Zoe, and Sabrina get tied up as well, and everyone looks around once they stop rolling into the ship's hold to see the others are in chains on the floor as well. And Luka can barely keep silent at the full-body tingling that floods his senses - Bloom's most definitely got powers of her own, then. He and Juleka used to be able to make something similar happen, back before Juleka blocked off her powers...but it was never this strong. 

Bloom shakes her head, saying "We're gonna have to save ourselves right now, guys. Alya, can you put an alert on the Ladyblog?"

Alya shakes her head, saying "I can't even reach my phone!" It's in her back pocket, currently trapped between herself and Nino.

Bloom looks around, trying to get the guitar pick from her back pocket without too-obviously using her magic, then says "Almost…got it! I can pick the locks, but I need a hairpin. Anyone got one?" Luka shakes his head, wondering at Bloom's own control of her powers when it took him and Juleka constant practice and trial and error - did she do the same? Or did someone teach her? Could she teach them or vice versa?

Zoe nods, and says "I do, it's on the side of my head!" They're just lucky Chloe isn't wearing one, considering the Miraculous currently hidden under her scrunchie.

Bloom glances around, then says "Luka, we need to stand, alright? On three. One…two…three!" They stand up, nearly stumbling but they manage it, and awkwardly shuffle over towards the tied-up trio. Zoe angles her head so that Bloom can get the hairpin, and she whispers "Got it! Anybody got a light? A phone, anything?"

Sabrina holds her phone up so the flashlight is shining on it, and Bloom quickly gets to work. "Guitar pick goes here…hairpin goes in…work it a minute…" She's just glad she actually knows how to pick a lock, both by hand and with her magic. She can't exactly just have the chains fall off without an explanation, after all.

Within fifteen seconds, there's a clicking sound, and everyone quietly cheers…until they hear booted footsteps coming down. Bloom hisses "Get down, Luka!" They hastily sit down, Luka facing the door, and Bloom immediately yells "Let us go, Anarka! Just because Sabrina's dad got you mad doesn't mean you get to ruin the entire Festival out of spite!"

Captain Hardrock snarls "I outta make you walk the plank for ye big mouth, lass!"

Luka hastily says "Mom, please, this isn't you! That's Hawk Moth talking, snap out of it!" He doesn't dare put any of his powers - his magic, maybe? They've never called it that, but it would fit - into his voice right then, his mom would know and then Hawk Moth would know, and then they'd probably be targets.

Captain Hardrock simply growls, a butterfly mask lighting up her face, then snarls "Fine, ye scurvy landlubber, I'll go wait for the treasure to show up!"

Everyone shares a look in the room, determined to get out of the chains and help. If that has slightly more meaning for Chloe and Bloom…well, only Zoe has a clue about that.

Captain Hardrock makes a very un-captain-like yelp as she's suddenly tackled to the deck by several teenagers, and yells "It's a full-blown escape attempt! Liberty, seize them!"

And then suddenly, her bandana suddenly gets yanked down to her mouth, with a familiar voice saying "Put a sock in it, pirate-lady!"

Dragon Fyre's there, with Honeybee staying hidden up by the wheel as she primes her Venom. Dragon Fyre lets herself be chained to the mast, and just smirks at Captain Hardrock as the pirate asks "Not so tough after all, are ye?"

"Oh, I am, actually. But, today…I was the bait." And then Honeybee's Venom hits Captain Hardrock from behind, freezing her in place without the Akuma ever having seen her. They're trying to put some time between Chloe's near-Akumatization and Honeybee's arrival on Hawk Moth's radar, so having the Akuma not see her would be helpful.

At least Alya's smart enough to wait until after Captain Hardrock's been Akumatized for the interview. And to not put it on her blog until Honeybee is seen.

Adrien gets onto the ship mere moments after Officer Roger leaves, and…promptly trips over something. Luckily, Bloom's hand grabbing his shoulder keeps him from hitting the messy deck. And her leg keeps the instrument from hitting both the deck and the floor. And then he notices she's currently balanced on one foot, keeping both himself and the large instrument from hitting the floor along with herself.

Nino snaps out of his shock first, asking "Adrien, dude, you alright?" He doesn't even want to ask just how Bloom did that, he could swear she was nowhere near Adrien a moment ago!

Adrien nods, saying "Yeah, thanks to Bloom." And then he notices the case she kept from hitting the floor, beyond the fact that she caught it with her foot. "Woah. An original ZX-20.4?! I love the sound of this instrument!"

Anarka asks "That old thing? No-one knows how to play it."

Adrien immediately says "I know how to play it." According to Gabriel, Agrestes are soloists - well, truth be told…Adrien doesn't want to be an Agreste. Rather, doesn't want to be everything dear old Gabe wants him to be.

And, yes, that can include having the last name of Agreste. In all actuality, he dreams of the day he proposes to Marinette, gets married, and takes her name on as his own.

As such, Adrien promptly jumps on the offer of joining Kitty Section - both because it's something he wants to do…and, much to Plagg's cackling delight, to spite Gabriel 'Agrestes are Soloists' Agreste.

Chapter Text

Adrien's running for his near-literal life through Paris, having snuck out to see Solitude…and his 'biggest fan' happened to spot him, and posted a picture of them on the internet. That picture got around like wildfire, because within moments people started pointing and shouting his name.

He'd be a lot more worried about the sudden thumping sound he hears if he didn't recognize the burning-hot hand that closes around the back of his jacket. And then suddenly, he and his sister are flying high up into the air before landing on a rooftop.

About three rooftops later, Adrien quietly says "Oh, thank you, Sis! They're crazy!" He was getting chased around by a helicopter, dammit! They're absolutely out of their minds, as she had no qualms making a mirage to yell at them for while they hid out of sight. He'd love to see the news footage of Dragon Fyre telling a mob of people to scram, bets are it'll go viral within the hour.

Dragon Fyre nods, pulling Adrien down and out of sight, and says "No problem, Cat-nip. Where are you headed?"

Adrien glances down towards the street, then says "The theatre. Solitude is on…my mom was the lead actress." And Gabriel Agreste is undoubtedly far too busy to watch a movie with his flesh and blood, what with being Hawk Moth and all.

Plagg zips out from Adrien's jacket, and says "Uh, we got a problem, guys. Nooroo warned me last night…he's looking really closely at that picture of the ring, Kitten."

Adrien gulps, then asks "The ring? As…"

Plagg says "Both. Cat Noir and Adrien." Both Adrien and Dragon Fyre swear. Adrien much more than Dragon Fyre.

Looking around quickly, Dragon Fyre takes some dirt from a potted plant and shapes an exact replica of Plagg's Miraculous…except all-silver, Adrien's camouflage mode. Adrien quickly slips the real Miraculous off his finger, and Plagg says "This isn't permanent, Kitten. Just until we can get the heat off us."

Adrien nods, and says "Yeah. See you soon, buddy." Damn his father to hell and back for this.

Dragon Fyre takes them down to a deserted alleyway for Adrien to hide in, saying "Mari's heading over with an outfit change for you, Brother. Just hide until she finds you."

Adrien pulls the hoodie over his head, careful to keep the hood up, and says "Thank you, Marinette. You're a literal life-saver." M'Lady, I cannot POSSIBLY express just how much I owe you.

"I saw on the news…Dragon Fyre saved you, on live television." And her fifteen-minute-long rant to everyone on live television, berating them for mobbing a fifteen-year-old out of the blue. She recorded that particular bit of footage for later, because her best friend will undoubtedly want to see it later.

Adrien snickers, and says "She wasn't much impressed by a mob of people, a fire truck, and even a news helicopter chasing one teenage boy."

Marinette fights back a snicker, and asks "Where were you headed, anyway?"

"The movies. There's one playing today that…I've just gotta see it." He saw the ad on TV, and was hit with the overwhelming need to see Solitude…see his mother. Not just in a picture, especially not that gaudy, tacky one Gabriel uses to hide the secret Safe - that was never the real her, just his ideal version that never existed outside his sick head - but something with movement. The sound of her voice, the way she'd tilt her head just slightly when she was listening to something.

Kwamis, he misses his mother desperately. And even the knowledge that she's alive, though trapped in a coma and on life-support in a secret basement-garden under the mansion, doesn't make that ache go away - if anything, it makes it worse. It was bad enough when he thought she was just gone, dead and never coming back - this, though, is an uncertain limbo they don't know if even his sister can fix.

Because something gave her dizzy spells, had her bedridden for days sometimes, and they aren't sure what.

Adrien groans when a massive hand suddenly crashes through the theatre roof - blocking the start of the movie, no less! - and picks him up. It's the eyes that give his identity away, though...his bodyguard.

Hawk Moth turned the Gorilla into a gorilla-Akuma. Wonderful. Thank you, oh-so-much, you horrible excuse of a man!

Ladybug shows up, but King Kong - as Adrien is calling his bodyguard's Akumatized form, particularly since he climbed to the top of a building - snatches her up to with his other hand. Luckily, that means he can't get her Miraculous - Hawk Moth didn't think to give him any extra limbs, and even if he did the fingers would be too big to actually get the earrings.

And then...Dragon Fyre and Cat Noir appear, leaping up to a nearby rooftop.

The giant gorilla stares in shock, a purple butterfly mask lighting up its face...and giving Honeybee the opening she needs to sting him with her Venom from the side, hitting him squarely in the shin.

Ladybug breathes out a sigh of relief, and calls down "Thank Kwamis for your timing, you know that?"

Honeybee practically squeals, clapping her hands over her mouth at the last minute to keep silent - but Ladybug just praised her!

Hawk Moth, meanwhile, is stuck in a state of shock and confusion - he'd been so sure Adrien was Cat Noir, but there he is. Cracking jokes and making fun of his immobile Akuma - and that's another thing, his immobile Akuma.

The past two weeks, almost all his Akumas have mysteriously frozen in place. Out of nowhere. Yet he can never get any clues as to who, what, or how.

At the moment, he's putting it down to Dragon Fyre and her ridiculously unbeatable magic.

Adrien twists the ring on his finger - the fake Miraculous, still, until they're sure he's off that track - and walks into his room.

And sees Gabriel Agreste sitting on the couch. Shit!

"Sit down, son."

Adrien has to sit there and nod along as the older man talks about how they have to trust each other. And pretend he doesn't notice how the fake ring 'accidentally' slides off his finger after the man puts his hand over it as he starts the movie. Or the flash of shock, followed by confusion, then...disappointment, of all things.

Just focus on the movie, Adrien… He needs to focus on his Mom right now, else he's going to explode - it's probably not healthy to repress this much, but it's the only option he has.

His father can read emotions whenever he has the Butterfly Miraculous on - all the time, under the tie if he has to guess - and showing anything other than what he expects would tip him off at once.

If he doesn't look at the older man next to him even once after putting the ring back on, he'll just say it's because he wanted to see his mother again as much as possible. He does, he really does…but, preferably not with Gabriel Agreste tainting the experience.

The movie, focus on the movie, she's in this one...

Dragon Fyre leaps down to Adrien's balcony, having gotten a text from Adrien about an hour ago, and says "Plagg's been inconsolable, Brother. As much as I want to reunite you two…you're sure he's off your scent?"

Adrien nods, and says "He watched Solitude with me, Sis. And accidentally slid my ring off my finger - he was disappointed when nothing happened." Now that there's nothing distracting him, he might just scream - he needs to get out of this damn prison of a mansion, or he might just explode.

Dragon Fyre holds a hand out, and asks "Where to?"

"Anywhere that isn't here."

Thinking quickly, Bloom takes him to Master Fu - both to reunite him with Plagg, who she took to his fellow Kwamis so they could maybe help the Cat Kwami, and to give him another ear or two to rant to.

It's her night for Patrol, and as much as she wants to help she can't just keep dropping it all the time.

Plagg flies out of the gramophone hiding the Miracle Box at once upon hearing his kitten's voice, and curls up in his hair and starts purring at once. And steadfastly ignores the cooing from the other Kwamis - Plagg doesn't get attached to his Holders very easily, and for a damn good reason. Several Holders of his in the past have gone bad, turned into the Black Cat version of Hawk Moth. It's why he and Adrien get along so well, though - Adrien, just like him in the past, has very little freedom to make his own choices. They understand each other, as much as anyone that isn't a Kwami can understand him anyway...and he can't see that ball of sunshine going bad, not with his sister and Lady at his side whenever he needs them.

Master Fu holds out a cup of tea, asking "Are you well, Cat Noir?"

Fei walks up from the hidden basement she was practicing in, and asks "Everything alright, Master Fu? Ca- Adrien Agreste? What are you doing here?"

Adrien smirks, and says "Good to see you to, Lady Dragon. My sister says hi, by the way."

Fei blinks for a moment, then mutters "There goes any semblance of subtlety. What's going on, and do you need a place to hide?"

Adrien sighs, saying "Not yet, to the second one. It might just come to that, though. As to the first…I just need to rant and rave about my monster of a father for a bit. It's how I haven't had a meltdown yet."

"Oh dear," Master Fu says, pressing the cup of tea into Adrien's hands, "what happened this time?" He knows of Adrien's circumstances, of course, and is always waiting for Dragon Fyre to burst in with Adrien and Plagg saying they can't go back to the Agreste Manor. Point of fact, he's got the hidden basement set up already with a cot, a few sets of clothes, and the option to stay as long as he needs. Fei's already living in the guest quarters, but if anyone comes looking for Adrien then he cannot be in any room listed on the building schematics. Hence, why the older man created the hidden basement himself - with a little help from Wayzz and Kalki, who's powers conveniently doubled as a way to remove and dispose of all the dirt.

It looks a bit like a dingy little cell, unfortunately, but there's electricity and water in there. He did the best he could, considering the detail that he was doing it all on his own with zero professional help. It was as much a secret as the Miracle Box and the Kwamis, somewhere he could hide the box just in case he ever got raided. Or, as in this case, hide a Miraculous Holder that needed protection for one reason or another. They even disguised the door as the back of a closet of old blankets and such. And there's a tunnel that connects to the sewer system in the floor as an emergency escape.

Adrien swallows all the tea down in one gulp, and says "He examined pictures of the Miraculous, both transformed and not. And he got the idea that I'm Cat Noir." Master Fu stiffens in horror, until Adrien says "So, Bloom swapped the Miraculous with a fake," he waves his hand with the ring for them to see, "and brought Plagg here. And then, you're gonna love this, he finally deigns to spend any time with me whatsoever by watching 'Solitude' - I didn't even know he had that movie! - with me, and not-so-discretely slides the fake off my finger."

Fei sucks in a sharp breath, then lets it out slowly and says "So…you're in the clear then."

Adrien snorts inelegantly, and says "He was disappointed the ring didn't do anything. Yeah, we're in the clear."

Master Fu is silent for a moment, then says "I'm so sorry, Adrien. All my years haven't prepared me for a situation such as this. What I can say, though, is that you are the best Cat Miraculous Holder I've ever known or known of. If you ever need a place to hide from Hawk Moth, you are most welcome here."

Adrien nods, having to hold back tears for a moment. Plagg cheers, a rare moment of pure, unguarded affection for his latest Cat, and asks for some Camembert before heading out on a run. Adrien grins, holding up a plastic bag with three wedges of the stinky cheese much to Plagg's delight.

Chapter Text

Bloom and Marinette are watching Alya and Nino play a dance game with Adrien skyping in over the phone, with everyone waiting for the Fireworks Festival to get closer - Marinette insisted on bringing Bloom to watch from the Ferris Wheel, and Nino wanted to bring Alya while Adrien can only watch via his phone thanks to Gabriel Agreste - hence, here they are, waiting for it to get dark. At least Nino and Alya are in sync with one another, making for a good game to watch.

Adrien keeps his expression perfectly innocent as he says "I hope someday I'll be that in sync with somebody. Long as I'm locked up here, though, it probably won't happen."When Marinette starts blushing and saying 'of course you'll find someone like that someday soon' Plagg cackles - Plan B is turning out to be fun. Adrien's subtly going Cat Noir on Marinette as Adrien. And he loves to make his Lady blush.

And then Alya's big sister arrives from her Kickboxing match, takes one look at the scene in front of her, and asks "What, did I miss the ballet?"

Alya asks "Nora, done with your match already?"

"Heck, yeah! First place, as usual!" Nora leans in and quietly hisses "How many times do I have to tell you not to call me Nora in front of people? The name is Anansi, like a spider."

Alya shakes her head, saying "Sure. I'll start calling you Anansi when you stop calling me 'little sis.'" She's a full-fledged teenager now, not a little kid!

Nora walks over to the fridge to get a glass of juice, asking "Anyway, what are you all still doing here this late? Don't you have school tomorrow?"

Bloom says "Two things, A, no. It's Saturday, tomorrow's Sunday. B, we're waiting for it to get dark so we can watch the fireworks." Something she could only do from the roof of her warehouse until this year, at a serious distance. When Marinette heard she'd never been in person, that was all it took for her to decide to change that. Bloom smirks, and adds "And getting some very entertaining dance moves out of it in the meantime."

Nino crosses his arms, saying "Oh, haha, very funny, Bloom."

Nora immediately veto's the idea - rather, she veto's Alya's participation. According to her, there've been way too many Akumas lately for her little sister to go waltzing around Paris unprotected.

Alya tries to protest, saying she's not a kid anymore…but Nora takes a lot of exception to the detail that Alya's in constant danger due to Akumas. That's mainly because she constantly chases after them, getting footage for her Blog.

Alya protests, pointing out the detail that Nora mistook a guy in a banana-suit for an Akuma and suplexed him.

Nora crosses her arms as she leans on the wall, saying "Look, once you flyweights can protect yourselves, then we'll talk. Baugette, Cappie, and Firetop can go with Cellphone boy over there, but your staying put for the night."

Marinette barely withholds a groan - Nora just challenged Bloom, and Bloom never backs down from a challenge. Thinking quickly, she says "It doesn't matter, though, because Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Dragon Fyre will save the day! Along with the new hero, Honeybee!" Yes, about a month after the disaster with Style Queen, Honeybee's been revealed to Paris at large. Hopefully, Hawk Moth doesn't make the connection.

Nora plants her hands on her hips, asking "Uh-huh, and what if Mr. Whiskers is catching a cat-nap, the scaly lady is sleeping on a hoard of gold like Smaug, and the Beetle's been sprayed with bug-spray? Or the newbie is making honey?"

Nino opens his mouth to say he'll protect Alya, but Bloom beats him to the punch by saying "That's it!" She promptly moves all the furniture out of the way - effortlessly, no less - and makes a clear space in the room while saying "If I beat you, Anansi, then you drop this shtick of yours. You win, fine, we'll leave, and Alya will stay here. Agreed?"

Everyone but Marinette looks floored, and Anansi asks "Uh, what now?"

"You heard me. You say we can't protect ourselves like you can, but you don't know if we can or not? So, fight me, see how I can protect myself and the people around me."

Marinette quickly steps in - because Bloom is going to wipe the floor with her - and says "I'm sure we don't need to get into an actual fight to settle this! How about an arm-wrestling match?"

Nora grimaces, then says "Alright, then. If you can beat me, Alya can go." Bloom pulls a table over, and puts an arm forward - even crosses the other one behind her back.

Nora raises an eyebrow at the pissed-off girl, but takes the hand and gets ready anyway. As soon as Marinette says the word, she slams Bloom's hand down on the table - at least, that's how she thought it'd go. As it happens…Bloom's hand doesn't move an inch. Doesn't even tremble.

Alya asks "Uh, what now? Nora, are you even trying?"

Nino breathes out "Duude…"

Nora stares at Bloom's un-moving hand, and says "Yes, I'm trying! What the heck?!"

Bloom raises an eyebrow, and says "Alright, my turn." Nora's hand promptly crashes into the table. Hard.

Alya says "I guess that's why you sword-fought Darkblade back at the Grand Paris."

"Yep, now, c'mon. I won you the right to go to the fireworks festival."

Bloom glares up at Anansi from underneath Alya and Nino - are you kidding?! She won, fair and square, there is no reason for Nora Cesaire to be such a sore loser! She gets wanting to protect her family - she is the queen of that, to the point that Nora could genuinely learn a thing or two - but she'd just go with them instead of throwing a fit! And she's yet to be Akumatized, no matter how overprotective she gets about her brother when he's literally living with their personal devil.

Thankfully, Cat Noir shows up and distracts Anansi - giving Bloom the opportunity to kick the glass out and make an exit for them.

Alya asks "Isn't that glass…I dunno, bulletproof?" She's pretty sure it's supposed to be tougher than that.

Bloom says "The impact Anansi made when she tossed it to the ground must've weakened it. Now, c'mon!"

She drags Alya and Nino up and out, and Nino asks "What's the rush?!"

"That's Alya's sister, who got Akumatized over Alya not wanting to be protected at all times! Who, exactly, do you think she'll be after?!" Either her, Alya, or the boyfriend she still wasn't particularly approving of.

Both teens get significantly more pale, and then Bloom grabs each by the wrist and starts pulling them away. They quickly duck into a dark alleyway, and Bloom hisses "Hide here, you two! Don't come out unless it's Ladybug, Cat Noir, or Dragon Fyre!"

Nino and Alya nod, and Bloom runs out  even as they hear the Ferris Wheel fail and Anansi's voice call out "Where are you, flyweights?! Come out, come out, wherever you are!"

And then Bloom yells "Hey, NORA! You want me, come and get me! Unless your too chicken, Nora!"

"It's Anansi, brat!" "HEY! Put me down! I'll wipe the floor with you again, one time for each arm!!" When they cautiously peek out, they see Anansi carrying Bloom over one shoulder. The middle shoulder, as two arms struggle to hold the red-head still. 

Ladybug and Cat Noir get to the general area Bloom took Nino and Alya, and find the two civilian teens scared to shaking but still trying to think of some way to help fight Anansi.

"We gotta help, Nino!"

"Yeah, I know, but how? I'd do anything to protect you, Alya, but I've gotta be honest and say we're not cut out for being superheroes."

"Well, we can't just sit here! That's my sister, and Bloom took her attention to protect us!"

Cat Noir and Ladybug share despairing looks, and Cat Noir says "I got an idea, M'Lady, for how to both protect these two and let them help…" Because he can tell they aren't going to just sit back and watch, not when it's something like this.

Alya looks frantic, and Nino looks a combination of terrified and determined…yeah, no, they aren't going to just stay put and let them handle this. He knows his friends too well - Nino especially - to ever hope for that.

Ladybug groans, then nods and says "Agreed, Kitty. Which ones?"

"Well, I've heard of Nino Lahiffe from Adrien Agreste. From what Adrien's said, Nino would be a good match for the Turtle. I don't really know about Alya, though - not past Lady Wi-Fi, anyway." He's so glad Plagg can be used as a potential source of info on the other Kwamis.

Ladybug hums, then says "I've got an idea. Try to keep them from pulling a Bloom while I'm seeing him?" Cat Noir nods, and says "Will do, M'Lady." Upon turning around, he's promptly bombarded with questions from Alya and pleas to save her sister and Bloom.

Thankfully, it's only a few minutes later that Ladybug lands once more, two familiar boxes in her hands and a serious expression on her face. "Alya Cesaire and Nino Lahiffe, these are the Miraculouses of the Fox and Turtle. You will use them for the greater good, and return them to us after Anansi's defeated."

Alya's eyes go huge in her head, and she asks "For real?! We're gonna be superheroes?!"

Nino breathes out "Duuude, that is epic!"

Alya looks up at once, asking "Is this permanent, Ladybug, Cat Noir? Are we gonna be helping you guys from now on?"

Cat Noir says "Potentially, we'll see how it goes. This could be a one-time thing, or it could be something of a trial run tonight. We'll give you guys the same speech we gave Honeybee after this is all over."

Chapter Text

When Cat Noir, Ladybug, and the newly-dubbed Rena Rouge and Carapace get to where Anansi's taken Bloom, they find Honeybee already there fighting Anansi while a wrapped bundle of webbing shifts - Bloom, obviously thrashing. When Cat Noir uses his Catphone to zoom in, they see she's got a piece of web across her mouth as a gag. And then, to half the group's shock, she looks right at them and motions towards the fight with her chin.

Rena Rouge gasps, asking "Oh, Anansi, what did you do?"

Carapace says "Ren, your sister is crazy like this. You know that, right?"

Ladybug says "Dragon Fyre will get here when she can, but we need to get down there, c'mon!"

They quite literally leap into the fight, and Anansi says "Oh, look at this! Mr. Whiskers and the Beetle showed up with some new friends!"

Honeybee dodges another punch, having been hoping to wear Anansi down - because, with six arms, she can't get a Venom in - and says "Glad you made it! Any ideas, Ladybug?!" Because Bloom is currently rather stuck, having only her smart mouth to distract Anansi with - to be fair, though, she's been one hell of a distraction. A little too effective, to be perfectly honest - she's not in the suit, and she can't use her magic without outing herself. Ergo, until now, she's been stuck with calling down taunts and keeping Anansi thoroughly annoyed with her.

After it's clear that even all together they can't beat Anansi the usual way, Ladybug summons her Lucky Charm - and gets a pair of boxing gloves. Anansi laughs, and asks "What, you planning on challenging me to a match?"

Before Ladybug can answer, though, a fierce wind suddenly starts up that lifts all the other Miraculous Holders off the ground and carries them a few feet away from the Akuma. And takes the Lucky Charm in the process. When Dragon Fyre reforms, gloves on her hands, she says "Not her, me. One round. You win, I'll give you my Miraculous. I win, you give me your Akumatized Object."

Anansi smirks, and says "Alright then. Let the match begin."

A boxing ring appears around them in the form of flames burning waist-high, and Ladybug mutters "Aw jeez…"

Cat Noir says "Yep, she's ticked off." Rena Rouge asks "Uh, what now?"

Ladybug rubs at the bac of her head, saying "There's been times Dragon Fyre takes the Akumas down herself, as it's safer and more helpful to her to get out of the way. This is apparently one of them."

Cat Noir says "I usually end up cheering her up one way or another afterwards. Anyone else here good at running?"

Honeybee shakes her head in exasperation, saying "Some Akumas, I wonder if she's lost her mind or something."

"What's the matter, Nora? Feels like your pulling your punches, Nora."

"For the last time, it's Anansi! Stay still, you brat!"

"Really, pretty sure that's not what your birth certificate says, Nora!"

Honeybee adds "And others I'm sure of it."

Ladybug winces as her earrings beep once more, only for Dragon Fyre to hit her head with a weak sparkle of orange that recharges the Miraculous - that's taken a lot of trial and error, but the results were absolutely worth it. Now, they can recharge their Miraculous' in the middle of a fight without needing to leave. It's not a permanent substitute for food, but it works perfectly well in a pinch. Plus, it probably drives Hawk-Butt up the wall whenever he sees them do that, which everyone including the Kwamis agrees is a definite bonus.

Dragon Fyre round-house kicks Anansi in the side, sending the now beat-up Akuma through the flames - landing her directly in front of the team of superheroes. She groans and rolls over, muttering "That's not kickboxing, cheater…"

Dragon Fyre says "Never said I was gonna kickbox you, I said I'd fight you. I think the Akuma's in her helmet, Bloom said that's where the webbing was coming from when I rescued her."

When Carapace, Rena Rouge, and Anansi all look up at that comment, they see some burning webbing and no cocooned red-head. Cat Noir quickly Cataclysms the headgear after removing it from Anansi's head before his sister can decide punching it apart is the ideal way to free the Akuma, and Ladybug captures the Akuma and fixes everything.

Rena Rouge and Carapace exchange glances, and Rena says "Gotta say, not how I imagined helping them fight would be."

Honeybee snorts, and says "Dragon Fyre's temperament matches her magic, and there's a very good reason she was given the Dragon Miraculous. Trust me, she's worse when you threaten her brother." The bee-themed heroine eyes the two of them, then sighs and says "Well, I guess this can't be a Volpina situation."

Carapace asks "Volpina?"

Honeybee says "Lila Rossi's Akumatized form. Apparently, she was caught in a lie about having your Miraculous…"

The Fox-themed heroine swallows nervously, and says "Rena Rouge."

"Right. Anyway, she got caught out by a classmate, got Akumatized, and nearly let Adrien Agreste fall to his death from the Eiffel Tower. Hence the fiery rampage from Dragon Fyre that day. They've been wary about her ever since, and even more wary of new Miraculous Holders."

Rena Rouge looks horrified, and Carapace looks like he's been punched in the gut. After a moment, Rena asks "Why would she...she just wanted her five minutes of fame, right? Or to make some friends easily?" 

Honeybee shrugs, saying "Not a clue. I haven't been following their investigation. I just know they're especially wary of her since she was such a powerful Akuma...and, according to them, a little insane." 

Up on the Eiffel Tower, close to midnight that night, six Miraculous Holders meet up. Dragon Fyre crosses her arms after a minute, and asks "Alright, we need to work something out, guys. How are we going to do this?"

Rena Rouge shifts from foot to foot, asking "Do what?"

Dragon Fyre gestures at everyone, saying "This! We started out as three people - a small group, yes, but we always knew our roles. Then we added Honeybee in. Spots showed her the near-literal ropes, one-on-one. Now we have you two, and I'm getting the feeling we need to implement some kind of…I don't know, buddy system perhaps?"

Cat Noir nods his head slowly, saying "That would probably be for the best. One offensive Miraculous paired with a more strategic-focused one?" Rena Rouge immediately gets interested, asking "Like you and Ladybug, right? You keep the Akuma busy while Ladybug comes up with a plan."

Ladybug nods, saying "Yeah, like that. And the two of us can't split up, the Cat and Ladybug Miraculous' need to work together."

At their questioning looks, Dragon Fyre says "Either one of them on their own spells catastrophe, it's why the Holders of those two Miraculous' are carefully chosen. The Cat and the Ladybug can only be active together."

Rena hums, then asks "What if Carapace and I got paired up?"

Cat Noir says "That's what I was thinking, once you two get the hang of things. As for right now…"

Dragon Fyre says "I'll show them how it's done, I'm the one that's got the closest mode of transportation anyway."

Carapace asks "Can't you…just turn into wind? Or fly?"

Dragon Fyre shrugs, and says "When I want to. But using that first ability is a one-time use, and may or may not be used during the Akuma attack. And my second form packs quite the punch, so I don't use it that much. I don't actually want to tear up half the city or burn it down to the studs." Besides, she's still not amazing at flying - she's gotten to the point where she can hover at will, and direct herself via streams of fire…but that's about it for the time being.

Focusing on the present, Dragon Fyre joins in as Ladybug and Cat Noir give their two newest additions to the team the same kind of speech they gave Honeybee - they can back out now, and forget they ever had a Miraculous in the first place, or they can fully commit and start training. And put their lives on hold to help defeat Hawk Moth.

Though, Dragon Fyre does have an idea for how to help with that.

Chloe closes the door to the locker room during lunch, it's only been a day since the Anansi incident and she's already feeling the doubts start piling up. They're not replacing me so soon, they can't be, she would've told me if they were…

Pollen zips out of her hiding spot in Chloe's bag, and says "Take a breath, my Queen. Carapace and Rena Rogue were chosen out of necessity. Both to offer their Holders some protection from Anansi and because they refused to just stay out of the way when it concerned them as it did. You were chosen because Dragon Fyre saw the potential in you to be better than you were."

"And? How's that been going?" She thinks she's been better, but she doesn't know - she's bitten back every sarcastic comment that sprang to mind, basically ignored Dupain-Cheng whenever she took a spill or was late to class, but…nobody's said anything. Bloom hasn't said she's doing anything wrong, at least. She hasn't ordered Sabrina around, and helps with the homework pile they share…Kwamis, isn't there some point where people say 'oh, hey, you're a good person now, good job!' or something?!

"Chloe?" Chloe looks up to see Adrien standing there, a concerned look on his face as he sees her sitting on a bench. He sits down and puts an arm around her shoulders at once as Chloe lets out a little whine.

"It's hard, Adrikins, it's so hard…why is being a nicer person so much easier when I'm not Chloe?"

Adrien says "A lot of things are, Chloe. It'll get easier, though. You're doing great."

Chloe lets out a shaky breath, then says "Thank you, Adrikins. I…needed that. A lot."

Pollen says "My Queen is worried that she's going to be replaced soon, Cat Noir. Please explain why that's not going to happen."

Adrien gives Chloe a shocked look, quickly looks around to make sure they're alone, then quietly says "Listen, Chloe, you've done nothing to warrant anything like that. Alright? Carapace and Rena Rouge were an emergency, alright? We were already discussing adding more people before you were picked, they just brought our kinks in the plan to light."

Chloe nods, and murmurs "So it was a 'when' then, not an 'if'…" That's reassuring, that they didn't just decide to take Pollen away because she didn't measure up to some invisible standard.

Adrien nods, and says "We aren't replacing you, Chloe. We're just trying to win this war, and we've only got the one advantage. Remember?"

Chloe nods, her unease fading into determination as she says "I do. The ability to get more allies." Adrien's so glad he'd already been considering proposing Nino as a Miraculous Holder, he can't think of anyone better for it. And they made it clear to Alya Cesaire that she had to stop trying to unmask them with her Ladyblog - it's a dedicated blog, yes, but they need their identities to remain a secret and she seemed to get the message. She can keep the blog up, it's a fantastic alert system for them that they actually set up notifications for on their phones, but 

Chloe glances at the door, and says "Time to go face the music some more. Maybe I can find Zoe before lunch ends."

Nino sees Alya furiously typing away at her computer, and asks "Als? You alright? 

Alya shakes her head, saying "No, not really. I'm trying to fact-check Lila's story about being Ladybug's best friend, but I don't even know how to get in touch with her!" So, she's trying to fact-check everything else Lila's said...and it's not going well. 

And then Bloom walks over, and semi-curiously asks "What's this about? American Broadway?" 

Alya says "Just trying to do some research...hey, Bloom, you remember Lila?" 

There's a rapid change in Bloom's expression, there and gone so fast Alya almost misses it - she didn't though. It's pure, unadulterated loathing - yes, Bloom remembers Lila Rossi. "Yeah, that girl who was here for a single day. Found her practically crawling all over Adrien in the library, and then giving him this most ridiculous story about a Gabriel fox pendant she bought ten minutes before heading to the park." Yes, she knows that particular bit of information is true. Bunnyx showed her, even let her snatch up the receipt and box from the garbage via a small portal.

Alya goes pale, asking "And, erm, do you remember what that story was?" 

Bloom snorts derisively, loathing written all over her face now, and says "Couldn't possibly forget, given everything that goes on in this city at the moment. She said it was a Miraculous, a family Heirloom. Except a girl like that wouldn't be able to resist using it for her own gain, and we've yet to hear about any fox-themed super-people in the world as of yet." She'd feel bad about Lila getting Akumatized if it were ANY other circumstances - as it is, getting Akumatized because you were caught out in a lie doesn't inspire much guilt in her.

Alya scowls, then asks "Hey, Bloom? I'm trying to fact-check Lila's claims...you want to help?" 

"Oh, Alya," Bloom practically purrs, a gleam in her eye that spells trouble, "I thought you'd never ask. I've been putting together a list of everything she says - Ms. Bustier does a video call with her every single day, and I've been making notes of every even semi-significant thing she says...and recording the video calls. I'm just waiting for her to try something big enough that she won't be able to talk her way out of the consequences with her Diplomatic Immunity before I dump all of it onto her." 

Chapter Text

Rena Rogue looks around the quarry in confusion - they're not sparring tonight, so…what are the three of them doing here? Dragon Fyre brought just her and Carapace here tonight, along with a Miraculous in her pocket they've never seen before. And then a light green Kwami that looks a bit like a small King Cobra appears from it, saying "Greetings, new Holders. My name is Sass, Kwami of Intuition. Dragon Fyre, I take it these are the two Holders you're hoping to train?"

Dragon Fyre nods, saying "Yeah. We don't have time to go slow learning the ropes anymore…not like before, anyway." Back when Hawk Moth was figuring out the limits of his own powers, getting used to how they worked, they had a bit of room for trial and error...which was good, because they needed it. Being able to literally leap tall buildings in a single bound is something to get used to, for instance, and she needed to learn how to gauge the distance and how much strength she needed to put into her jumps. Her brother needed to get used to angling his staff correctly so he didn't go face-first into a chimney or wall. Ladybug needed to learn to aim her yo-yo so she didn't do the same...or have it come undone mid-swing. 

Rena Rogue and Carapace don't have that same luxury, unfortunately. The learning curve is steep, and they don't have much time to figure it all out - which means they need to get the hardest part, figuring out their specific powers, out of the way now. They can figure out the rest, such as judging distances and learning their own strength, on patrols, but if they need something specific they need it done right.

Sass nods, and says "Which is why I agreed to help train young Rena Rogue and Carapace."

Rena asks "How's that work?"

Dragon Fyre says "Sass is the Kwami connected to the Snake Miraculous. The Holder has the ability to go back in time up to five minutes. A very literal Second Chance, as it were. Which we - you - are going to be using quite a lot tonight to teach you how to make a Mirage before we really need one. And a strong shield."

Rena Rogue and Carapace exchange looks, and Rena Rogue asks "Are you sure? That seems…extreme."

Dragon Fyre shrugs, saying "So's becoming a Magical Terrorist and destroying Paris day after day, preying on people's negative emotions." And all to bring his wife back, when he's seen first-hand she's capable of healing injuries. She'd bring Emilie back or collapse from the effort...and then, afterwards, she'd kick his ass for waiting so long to ask her and continuing to terrorize the city.

"Alright," Carapace nervously concedes, "point. So…how are we gonna use both Miraculous' at the same time?"

Sass gives them a run-down of how to Unify the Kwamis, and explains how two at once is the maximum limit a person can use - any more, and there's a very real risk of the person's sanity being destroyed.

Rena's first, putting the Snake Miraculous on and saying "Trixx, Sass, unify!"

What follows is absolutely grueling, practically nonstop illusion training, and it takes fifty turnbacks before Dragon Fyre seems satisfied that the illusionary copy of Ladybug and Cat Noir is perfect - the hair was the wrong color, they were flickering and unstable, the spots weren't in the right places, the red-head is an absolute perfectionist. Better now, according to her, than in the middle of a battle where there's no room for error whatsoever.

When Rena Rogue turns back to Alya, the brunette all but collapses from the strain of using two Miraculous' at once. Dragon Fyre grimaces as she catches the would-be reporter, muttering "Right. Double the Miraculous', double the drain."

Carapace asks "You knew this would happen?!"

"Actually, no. None of us have ever used two Miraculous' at once before." And, even if they had, she would most likely have been the one to do it…and she wouldn't have noticed a thing. As many things as they have to work around thanks to her magic, it does come with some very real perks. She's not complaining, doesn't want to be ungrateful, her magic lets her fight Hawk Moth. 

Once Alya's not shaking from a complete lack of energy - thanks to a ball of magic being pressed into her back, along with a handful of beef jerky from Dragon Fyre's snack bag - it's Carapace's turn. His training is spent with Dragon Fyre trying to make his shields fail, one way or another. Taunting him, ripping them apart, blowing them up - any weakness she can find in them, from a weak spot in the shield to a way to crack it open, she ruthlessly sniffs out and capitalizes on.

It's like boot camp, full-on military style, and the two of them are sure that it would be boot camp if she added in some sparring. She's still not wrong, as absolutely exhausting as it is to train like this - they need to get good at this fast, they don't have the luxury of Hawk Moth figuring out his own powers as well. And if they need a shield, they need it strong; if they need an illusion, they need it to be realistic. They only get the one shot, so they need it to count. And even yesterday - and, Kwamis, it feels like they've been going all night long! - it would've been a lot worse.

But, without question, they're going to sleep like the dead tonight. And no amount of caffeine is going to wake them up for at least an hour. Now they know what the three of them feel like when there's a late-night Akuma - because Alya and Nino both gave the excuse of studying together at the library, working on a project for school together.

At least they won't have to explain just why they're getting in so late. Especially to Nora.

Alya blinks in exhausted confusion when she opens the door to see none other than Bloom Peters standing in the doorway with a cup of coffee in hand. "Um…Bloom?"

Bloom nods, a smile on her lips even as one eyebrow rises higher and higher towards her hairline. After Alya spends a solid minute trying to figure out just why the red-head is there, she asks "Been burning the candle at both ends last night, Cesaire? Or did you sneak out to spend time with your boyfriend?"

That wakes Alya's brain up some, and she hastily says "What?! Nonono, it's a pr-"

Bloom grins, saying "Relax, I'm just joking. I saw you two last night," Alya promptly freezes, ice running down her spine, "back of the library with all that stuff spread out around you with Nino."

Alya blinks, mind trying to process why exactly Bloom Peters would lie about something that she would know is a lie. She blames her sleep-deprived brain for the lack of any viable - or even totally-absurd - answers.

"Speaking of Nino, he sent me over. Said he thought you could use a coffee after last night ran so long. Enjoy."

Alya watches Bloom leave, no explanation forthcoming for the obvious lie. And then Trixx sniffs at the hot cup of coffee in her hand, and says "Drink up, Kit. That's not just coffee."

Alya blinks again, then takes a tentative sip of the coffee - and it's like someone just gave her a shot of caffeine and adrenaline, because suddenly she's wide awake. She takes a mouthful of the coffee, and feels like she could sprint all the way to the Trocadero, run ten laps around the Eiffel Tower, and sprint back home, all without stopping. And that would be when she finds the note wrapped around the coffee cup.

'Easy there, Vixen. The feeling will fade after a few minutes. Thought you could use a pick-me-up after last night. Just don't down it all at once. The coffee will stay warm even in the freezer, so you don't have to worry about it going cold or anything. Enjoy.'

Adrien glances at Nino in confusion - he's got a cup of coffee sitting on his side of the desk, and seems fit to burst. As in, he's currently incapable of sitting still, leg eternally bouncing, twitchy, and humming a song to himself.

Once the bell rings, Adrien asks "Nino, you alright? You've been, uh…bouncy today."

Nino nods at once, grinning like a maniac as he says "What? Oh, yeah, I'm good! Great, actually! Feel fantastic!" He takes another sip of the coffee, and the bounciness increases at once.

And then Bloom's voice says "Aw, jeez, I think you've had enough of that, Nino." She reaches for the mostly-empty cup, and Nino shakes his head, promptly gulps the rest of it down, and tosses the cup into the trash can before speeding off towards their next class with a loud cry of...something. Excitement...or, possibly, he's high as a kite on caffeine. 

Adrien raises an eyebrow, and asks "Uh, what happened?"

Bloom winces, glances around to make sure they're alone, and says "You know how we said it would be good to train them in their abilities? Illusions and shields and such?"

Adrien nods, asking "Yeah? Why?"

"Well…I may have taken pity on the two of them afterwards and gotten them some coffee this morning…" And put a little of her own magic into the coffees. Not a lot! Just enough to keep them warm and give the two a little boost!

And yet…Nino's about to tear through the school, and she saw Alya typing on her laptop at hyperspeed in the school library earlier. It may not have been her best idea ever.

Chapter Text

Bloom facepalms when Mr. Damocles hurries herself and Marinette along, and mutters "Alright, that's it…"

Marinette grimaces, murmuring "He's gonna get hurt one of these days…" What if he pulls a Chloe and jumps into the middle of an Akuma battle like right before Dark Dragon?

Bloom hangs back, saying she wants to talk to Adrien for a moment, then sees the blonde boy and Nino both facepalm when Damocles orders them along as well. Adrien says he forgot he had Chinese class, and Nino gives the excuse of his game getting maintenance that he forgot about today. And she sees Alya pinch the bridge of her nose when she realizes what's absolutely going to happen later.

Honeybee groans to herself in annoyance as she walks over to where Dragon Fyre currently has Mr. Damocles suspended mid-air - now she absolutely gets why the red-head went off on her during the Vanisher fight. Damocles may not be cosplaying, as such, but repeatedly saving him is exhausting. She's got much more appreciation for their pigtailed leader and her patience with that particular phase now.

Reporters show up - because of course they do, they're a pack of vultures - and within a minute they're on the news.

The Owl says "Thanks to my good friends, Ladybug, Cat Noir, Dragon Fyre, Honeybee, Carapace, and Rena Rogue, I'm certain I will do better next time." All six superheroes promptly facepalm, but it goes completely unnoticed as he continues "I will be reviewing my weaponry and engaging in training, because wherever there is injustice, there is the Owl!" He then takes off, after shaking a bag of flour to mimic a smokescreen.

They watch as he runs off, moving behind some bushes before out into the busy street. Dragon Fyre groans, saying "I'll keep him from getting hit or something…" She's off at that, leaving the rest of the group that's been dubbed 'Team Miraculous' by Paris at large to deal with the reporter.

Ladybug says the Owl's got a good heart in the right place, but not to copy him as it's very dangerous, and Cat Noir's just finished doing a PSA impression when they hear a loud horn blaring followed by a crashing sound.

"Oh no."

"You've gotta be kidding."

"Don't tell me…"

Ladybug and Cat Noir take off running, closely followed by the three newer heroes and the reporters. What they find is exactly what everyone was hoping not to see - the Owl on the ground, looking like he was pushed, a truck stopped in the street with a person-sized dent in the front, and Dragon Fyre lying a few feet away on the pavement. The truck driver gets out of the truck, almost forgetting to turn the engine off in his haste, and scrambles over asking "Is she alright?! He came outta nowhere and then she pushed him, and then…" He doesn't need to say anymore, they can all see just what happened well enough.

Cat Noir's already at his sister's side, Ladybug right next to them, trying to help while having absolutely no idea what to do. She just got hit by a truck, a big one at that - most people would just be dead.

Dragon Fyre groans, and slurs out "S'meb'dy get the n'mb'r off th Bludger…" From the pain of moving her arm up, she's got at least a fractured collarbone - possibly broken, at that - she's pretty sure she's got a concussion, her hip hurts where she first landed, and her whole body feels like one massive bruise. Though, considering anyone not in a suit given to them by a Miraculous would be dead, she's not complaining.

Much.

The red-head suddenly catches fire, the flames staying low as she very obviously heals herself from what would've killed just about anyone else - and keeping her magic from doing anything like setting something or someone on fire, blowing something up, etc. - and Owl asks "Is she alright, it all happened so fast-"

Cat Noir snaps "Of course she's not alright! She just got hit by a truck for you!" Cat Noir's the one that calms Dragon Fyre down, talks her out of her incoming explosions on people - so for him to be the one that's going off is…honestly, it's kinda terrifying. Especially considering the detail that he can destroy anything he touches.

Owl takes a step back at the furious expression on Cat Noir's face, but Ladybug suddenly says "Kitty, duck!" Her yo-yo zips out as he curls up into a ball around the red-head in his arms, snapping up the purple butterfly that was a mere foot from her partner, and there's a dead silence as even Dragon Fyre stares up at the white butterfly that emerges.

"He didn't…" she breathes out, expression morphing to a furious one of her own. "I'm gonna kill him! I'll rip the Miraculous off his chest, and damn the consequences if I take some organs with it!"

Now it's Cat Noir and Ladybug holding down a struggling Dragon Fyre, with Ladybug saying "You're still hurt, Scales! Stop struggling before you hurt yourself worse!"

"I'll heal that to! Let me go so I can rip him to shreds!" Nobody doubts for a single instant that she means that wholeheartedly.

Honeybee sidles over to the Owl, who's wisely kept silent after Cat Noir looked like he was going to claw him to shreds, and says "Here's a piece of advice, Mr. Owl. You want to be a hero, become a first responder. Before you get yourself killed when one of us isn't around to save you." She doesn't usually get this snappish and mean as Honeybee, but Dragon Fyre is the reason she's Honeybee in the first place, Dragon Fyre is the one that brought her in. She thinks she's allowed to be a bit of a bitch considering her…what, mentor? Role model? Considering Dragon Fyre, the person that gave her a chance and a means to better herself, is currently healing a semi-broken body and has yet to sit up.

If Cat Noir - Adrien, the nicest, most patient person she knows - is ready to claw someone to ribbons, she figures she's allowed to bring out just a little of her old venom, no pun intended.

Team Miraculous, bar Dragon Fyre - who's been ordered to bed rest by Ladybug and Cat Noir tonight on threat of going to the hospital tied up with their tools and gagged with Cat Noir's belt so she can't get away - stares at 'Dark Owl' in resignation, because…you just gotta be kidding. Cat Noir yelled at him, and then everyone was a little distracted keeping Dragon Fyre from seriously hurting herself trying to hunt down Hawk Moth...and he got Akumatized. 

Or, potentially, he got Akumatized because he felt guilty as hell about Dragon Fyre getting hit by that truck for him - if that were the case, though, he wouldn't be attacking them!

Rena Rogue mutters "He got so upset that Cat Noir yelled at him that he got Akumatized?" 

Cat Noir says "Guys, I've got an idea. Rena Rogue, Carapace, can you two get to the Eiffel Tower and get the animals to safety?"

Carapace nods, saying "Yeah, dude, but…what about him?"

"I'll handle him, don't worry."

Hawk Moth stares through Dark Owl's eyes as Cat Noir stalks towards him, staff lengthened to the blonde's height…and a furious expression on his face that undoubtedly has something to do with the detail that his beloved sister is MIA. Hawk Moth swallows nervously, he's seen Cat Noir go off exactly once before today, and Dragon Fyre was injured then as well. Seems the way to make the usually cheerful one of the former trio go off is to severely injure Dragon Fyre - were Cat Noir's Kwami any other than the Kwami of Destruction, he'd think it was a win-win. Get rid of the single most dangerous one of the lot of them, and throw off another - except the other one does have the power of Destruction at his very fingertips, and he honestly seems angry enough to use it on the man that got his sister hit by a truck.

He just can't win!

Dark Owl throws his boomerangs, but they just get deflected by the furious boy's spinning staff. His grappling gun gets made utterly useless with he catches it by the wire and snaps it in two, his utility belt gets shredded, and Dark Owl himself gets his unfeathered behind handed to him singlehandedly - and Hawk Moth learns the superheroes train, regularly, because they were not this good when they all first started out. The same boy that was blown away and smashed into cars like a ping-pong ball by Stormy Weather is now gracefully sidestepping every move Dark Owl makes and landing every hit and scratch he throws.

Finally, though, Dark Owl gets pinned to the very box he'd set up to trap the superheroes by a staff to the stomach.

Cat Noir walks up to just out of Dark Owl's reach, and says "Well, let's see. I've broken every one of your toys, yet no butterfly came out. I wonder, Dark Owl, where else might you be hiding it?"

Dark Owl squirms, asking "Why are you doing this?" The butterfly mask over his face doesn't help matters, seems both Dark Owl and Hawk Moth want to know.

Cat Noir scowls, and says "See, my sister got hurt saving you, Mr. Damocles, from certain death, so I'm filling in for her. And…" Suddenly, Cat Noir's ears twitch, and he deadpans "And if she doesn't get back in bed in the next minute, I'm throwing her over my shoulder and taking her to the hospital."

Suddenly, a sigh sounds from somewhere to the left, and Dragon Fyre shimmers into sight. When Dark Owl looks over…she looks exhausted. Hawk Moth remembers his glimpse of her right before she started single-handedly battling Yan Luo Shi to a standstill, and she gave the impression of a damned goddess right then. Now, though, she looks…to go with the analogy, mortal. Drained, weak…human.

And, given the way she's got her arms not-exactly-crossed over her chest - holding one arm with the other at the elbow - she looks injured, still.

Cat Noir immediately glances at her, and says "Knew it. Back to bed, or it's the hospital."

Dragon Fyre sighs again, saying "I'm fine now, Brother."

"No, you've had worse. There's a difference." And just because his sister's been injured worse in the past doesn't make it any easier to see her hurt now - it's like a red haze went over his eyes, he sincerely wanted to claw Owl to ribbons when he saw him lying on the sidewalk completely uninjured while his sister was semi-broken on the ground. It's only the fact that he could hear her heart beating that he didn't attempt as much.

Dragon Fyre smiles at him, even if there is something melancholy in it, and says "If we looked even remotely similar, people would believe we really were related by blood, Kitty." She walks over and puts her arms around his shoulders from the side, saying that she's fine now, just a little sore is all.

Cat Noir's fury finally seems to cool, and he lets out a little rumble as he buries his nose in her hair. And then Dragon Fyre gets a text from Ladybug, which says 'Found the Akuma, it was his computer, if your not back in bed by the time I get back it's the hospital.'

Dragon Fyre groans, and mutters "I'm just sore is all now…" With one or two bruises, but still!

Cat Noir asks "She threatened you with the hospital?"

"She threatened me with the hospital."

"I'll help. Go back to bed, Sis."

Dark Owl turns back into Damocles, and Cat Noir gets the man back to his office before heading back to Marinette's - luckily for his sister, she's currently on the chaise lounge that's doubling as a second bed. Even better, Marinette's in there with a highly-ticked off look on her face. "-it were one of us, you'd tie us to the bed if that's what it took!"

Bloom raises an eyebrow, saying "No, I'd just heal you. Then start yelling at whoever it was that was stupid enough to not look both ways before crossing the street."

Cat Noir taps on the window, and Marinette looks up before relaxing. "It's me, Kitty, I'm in disguise again."

Cat Noir nods, and says "Thanks, M'Lady. Sis, what exactly were you thinking, getting up and heading over to the fight? Longg said it felt like your ribs were cracked, if not broken!"

"I was thinking I'd come over and help if you needed it. If not, I was perfectly content to be a bystander this time around."

Marinette says "Except you're exhausted, you probably hurt yourself getting over there, and I saw you wince when you sat back down!"

Cat Noir frowns, then asks "Just sore, huh? M'Lady, you wouldn't happen to know if Marinette has a first aid kit in here somewhere?"

Marinette gets the kit, and Cat Noir practically wrestles Bloom's shirt off her - revealing a rather large purple and yellow-green bruise on her abdomen that's still only partially healed. Cat Noir promptly clamps one hand over her mouth so she can't say the activation phrase to get her suit back on, going so far as to stick his fingers in her mouth so she can't speak at all. And his other arm keeps hers trapped against her torso while Marinette cleans up the bruise and makes sure it isn't bleeding anywhere. It's only when Marinette finishes wrapping her entire abdomen with a bandage that Cat Noir releases Bloom's arms and takes his fingers from her mouth to slip her shirt back over her.

Bloom just groans, closing her eyes when Marinette comes back with four Advil and a glass of water - even with the manhandling, they're treating her like she's made of glass. And, until that bruise disappears, they're clearly going to keep doing as much.

Chapter Text

Bloom sits on top of the roof of her warehouse, waiting for Longg to get back - it's Nooroo's birthday, something that only happens once every three millennia or so, and the Kwamis can contact each other on their birthday. Ergo, all the Kwamis have gathered in the Miracle Box, with Wayzz keeping guard for an Akuma, to try and contact Nooroo.

Which would be why nobody's out on Patrol right now, all the Kwamis are in the Miracle Box desperately trying to get in contact with Nooroo now that they know where he is.

And then a voice brings her out of her thoughts, saying "The Sandboy just checked in, now nightmares can begin…" She looks up just in time to get hit with some purple-ish dust as the obvious Akuma floats by.

Uh…what now?

She doesn't quite get the phrase…right up until she hears a familiar laughter - laughter that haunts her nightmares, that is. A shudder of horror and fear runs through her as the voice of that red-haired man from five years ago yells out "Anagan, grab her! We'll finally have the last Earth Fairy in our grasp!"

Marinette wakes up to footsteps coming up the ladder to her bed, and then…a creepy-as-hell version of Adrien, moving like a zombie and saying he's in love with Chloe. A voice from outside quickly clues her in to the detail that this is an Akuma's doing, saying "The Sandboy just checked in, now nightmares can begin…"

Thinking quickly, Marinette ties up the fake Adrien in her bedsheets, going so far as to gag him with a throw pillow to keep her parents from finding out and freaking out.

Adrien looks around in panic at the voice that floats into his window, saying "The Sandboy just checked in, now nightmares can begin…" When he tries to head to his window, bars suddenly slam down over them. The same happens with the door, and then the walls - he's trapped.

Even worse, though, when he goes to wake Plagg up…there's a sock in his place. A black sock, with two green buttons for eyes. Adrien gasps, trying to think of a plausible explanation as to why Plagg's been turned into a sock when he went to bed early because he was tired.

Plagg knows he's not a prisoner with me, he never replaced himself with a sock before…oh, Kwamis, no…I'M COMING PLAGG!

There's exactly one reason Adrien can think of as to why Plagg would be replaced by a sock puppet, and it involves staging a rescue mission. Preferably with Bloom there, but he's willing to go it alone if necessary. And then more and more bars slam down around him, which starts turning Adrien's fear to fury - Hawk Moth will not keep him from Plagg!

Flexing his fingers in determination, Adrien starts bending the bars one by one to slip out of - it's hard, these things are strong, but he manages it. Lucky for him, these bars were dreamt up before he met Plagg. So, they were made to contain Adrien Agreste…not Cat Noir.

And while he might not be able to transform, he's still far stronger than he was before.

Chloe roundhouse kicks the version of herself away - face layered with so much makeup it must take three hours straight, hair in an elaborate style, and an expression so cruel on her face it would scare even Hawk Moth as she goes on about how exceptional she is and how mother finally acknowledges her - just in time to hear Zoe scream from the room across from hers. Chloe bursts in at once, and finds Zoe surrounded by about ten different people…including herself. All saying how much of a disappointment she is, how pathetic she is, how worthless she is.

Zoe looks up at Chloe's furious shout of "Leave my sister alone!" And now Zoe's all-too appreciative of when Chloe drops into the hotel at two in the morning, sore as heck even after Dragon Fyre healed her bruises and exhausted from a night of sparring, because Chloe literally throws all those people away from her before snatching her twin up and running out to the rooftop patio.

All the Kwamis drop to the floor of the Miracle Box, having contacted none other than Hawk Moth instead of Nooroo, and Lonng gasps suddenly. "Wait, if Nooroo's powering Hawk Moth, that means someone's been Akumatized!"

Plagg says "Uh-oh, we gotta get going! Sugarcube, Pollen, Longg, c'mon!" Now he's suddenly really worried about his Kitten - he didn't tell Adrien he was gonna be gone for a bit, having a few trust issues after several previous Holders went bad and used his power to wreak wanton destruction, not to mention the Order of the Guardians was never that fond of him, especially Su Han - and that worry only gets worse when they hear the rampant screaming after they exit the box and see Marinette, Master Fu, and Fei Wu fending off nightmares of their own.

And then a ring of white appears, and a red head of hair pokes out of it in a Bunny-themed mask and ears. "Longg, Plagg, Pollen, get in! Ladybug, you want Rena Rogue and Carapace for this?"

Marinette nods, and says "Yes, the city's in utter chaos, we need everyone we can get!"

Trixx and Wayzz get their Miraculous' and head into the white portal to the Burrow.

The first Holder they see is Adrien, who's currently bending iron bars and muttering about 'I'm coming, Plagg' and 'hang on just a little longer…'

Plagg stops and stares, then swallows a couple times and asks "He's…"

Bunnyx says "At the moment, he thinks you're in Hawk Moth's clutches. He's currently making his way through all those bars to stage a rescue attempt."

Ok, now Plagg feels really, really, really bad about not telling Adrien where he was and replacing himself with that sock puppet. He's never had any of his previous holders try to rescue him before, they were usually the ones he needed rescuing from.

Longg says "Go, Plagg, go let him know you're safe."

Plagg nods and is just about to fly through when he sees another screen. "Uh, Longg? You might wanna do the same with yours. Look at that one!"

They see Bloom running down the chaotic streets, and she ducks into an alleyway and runs up a fire escape. And there's a giant black wolf on her heels, muzzle dripping red and eyes the same color. "Oh no, Hatchling! I'm coming for you!" Before anyone else can say or do anything, they see a blur coming straight for Bloom - she quickly rips a piece of metal railing up and swings it as hard as possible, catching the guy square in the head.

Bunnyx brings up two Portals back-to-back, one for Adrien and one for Bloom, and then goes to look for Chloe, Alya, and Nino on her screens. Luckily, Chloe and Zoe are all alone so Chloe can transform right then and there - Nino's protecting his little brother, though, and Alya is keeping her little sisters at her side while Nora kickboxes everyone's fears. They take a little more finesse, so Bunnyx drops them off to just before their houses were hit by Sandboy.

"Adrien!"

Adrien gasps at Plagg's voice, and yells "Plagg, you're alright!"

Plagg nods, and says "I can explain everything, I swear, but right now we've got bigger problems! Nightmare-causing Akuma on a rampage!"

"Plagg, Claws Out!"

Zoe hangs on tight as Honeybee swings the two of them through the city, and only opens her eyes once more when her feet touch solid ground. Or, when she opens her eyes, solid roof.

Honeybee says "You should be safe here, Zoe. Who were they?"

Zoe just shrugs, wrapping her arms around herself and saying "Some of them were my ex-friends. In my old boarding school, they…I ended up acting all the time, pretending to be someone I'm not. And, when I showed them who I really am…"

"They turned on you?"

Zoe nods, and says "In a heartbeat. They suddenly hated me, even filled my locker with roaches for kicks! That was shortly before Audrey brought me out here, I hadn't gotten around to telling her why I'd requested to leave the school…" And then she ended up staying here in Paris - Audrey never even noticed she wasn't on the jet, and hasn't come back to get her - and it's all a moot point now.

And then Honeybee pulls her in for a hug, murmuring "You're worth everything to me, sis. I know I'm bad at showing it usually, but...I'm trying." 

Zoe nods, and says "I know. Now, go save the city. I'll wait here, alright?"

Ladybug, Cat Noir, and Honeybee get to a rooftop, with Carapace and Rena Rogue following shortly after. Carapace says "Alright, we gotta make this quick! I left my little brother hiding in our bathroom, said I'd lead the nightmares away!"

Rena Rogue says "Same kinda deal, overprotective big sister and two younger ones. Someone's gonna start to wonder soon where I am."

Ladybug grimaces, and says "Most of us have a similar situation to work around. Cat Noir, have you seen Dragon Fyre?" He's about to respond when they see an orange explosion a few streets down.

When they get there, they're just in time to see her get pinned by a wolf half as tall as she is when she's standing and a good five inches longer when laying on top of her - ergo, the biggest damn wolf any of them have ever seen, and definitely not a natural wolf at all.

Cat Noir yells "SIS!! GET THE HELL OFF HER!"

The giant wolf looks up at once, and they see demonic-looking red eyes and a muzzle dripping with blood. And then the demon-wolf goes flying with a yelp, orange magic quickly following up with a large gush of fire that consumes the creature.

Cat Noir runs down at once, helping the red-head up while unsubtly checking her for injuries and asking "What was that thing, Sis? Are you alright, I saw blood on its muzzle-"

Dragon Fyre cuts him off, saying "I'm fine, really. That blood wasn't mine. As for what that was, a shapeshifter I had the misfortune of meeting five years ago."

Ladybug and Cat Noir go stiff, with Cat Noir growling audibly and flexing his claws a little too much like an actual cat, and all three newcomers to the group trade nervous glances. Finally, Rena Rogue asks "What's wrong? Shapeshifters are real? What happened?"

Dragon Fyre sighs, figuring there's no way to get out of this explanation, saying "What happened is that these four," she makes an illusion of the four men, "killed my parents when I was ten. And then they disappeared after I wasn't what they wanted. Sandboy manifested them from my nightmares, unfortunately. If you see them, in an Akuma attack or real life, I don't care what you have to do to get away. Do it. Powers, running, even if you have to kill them - they won't hesitate for an instant. I already dealt with the lot of them that Sandboy up there created though, the shapeshifter was the last one left."

And then Sandboy hits her with another blast of his sand, which makes...three old hags chasing a transparent orange woman appear. At everyone's confused looks, she shrugs and says "I get some weird dreams." She isn't even sure what this one is about, really - but she somehow knows those three hags are cruel and evil, that they'd kill her if they ever got their hands on her.

Hawk Moth can only stare out of his Akuma's eyes as Dragon Fyre's nightmares cause utter chaos - worse, magical chaos. More specifically, her kind of magic…somewhat. Four men with various powers - including a shapeshifter - three old ladies that spit out ice, lightning, and darkness from their hands, and a glowing orange woman in a mask that's shouting about how they'll never get her baby sister or the Dragon Flame.

The revelation of a pack of Kwamis, however, takes most of his interest - even after Sandboy is defeated, though the revelation of a third nightmare for Dragon Fyre in the form of dead, burned bodies everywhere is somewhat expected. He'd sneer at the revelation that she's apparently afraid of her own power if Shanghai didn't come to mind.

Nooroo, meanwhile, tries to contain himself at the revelation of the Dragon Flame and thanks his lucky stars that his current master doesn't ask about it. It comes at the revelation of the rest of the Kwamis, but still - silver linings, and all. 

Team Miraculous is sitting on an abandoned rooftop together, just taking a minute to breathe after the chaos Sandboy caused - several hours later, yes, but still. Honeybee, Rena Rogue, and Carapace had to run back to their homes to reassure people that they're alright, and Ladybug went to go take the little kid who'd had a nightmare - and Hawk Moth's Akumatizing people over nightmares now, wonderful - back home…but Dragon Fyre pretty much refused to let her brother go. Given the last fear of hers they saw, burned, charred corpses everywhere - some of whom looked way too familiar - they don't particularly blame her.

And now, at three in the morning - because exactly nobody's tired in the slightest after earlier - all of them are gathered on the roof of an old building.

Because, aside from needing to unwind after that absolute shitshow…they need to talk.

Ladybug looks around, and says "Guys, my Kwami said…something happened during the Akuma attack."

Honeybee says "Pollen said the same thing. They tried to get in contact with Nooroo, Hawk Moth's Kwami…"

Carapace grimaces, and says "But they got Hawk Moth instead."

Before anything else can be said, though, everyone's communicators suddenly buzz. Cat Noir shifts so only one arm is wrapped around Dragon Fyre, opening up his Catphone with the other, and reads out "'This is Nooroo, he knows about the others. Get as many allies as you can. Stop him, no matter the cost to myself.'"

Everyone shares horrified glances, then simultaneously says "Shit."

Chapter Text

Cat Noir and Ladybug sit together on top of the Eiffel Tower, everyone else at home for the night - including Dragon Fyre, which is excellent because they're both trying to process what they learned about her thanks to Sandboy. Cat Noir took a good long look at the four men that killed her parents, but what really had them reeling was the orange woman with the ribbons…and a baby in her arms. She was fighting off the 'Ancestral Witches' and managed to drive them off….and then nearly killed Cat Noir, making a sword as long as her arm out of the earth and unhesitatingly threatening to have the earth swallow him up if he even thought about going near her baby sister.

And then the treasure-trove of information she gave them after reassuring her that, no, they didn't want to hurt her or her sister - she was Princess Daphne of Domino, being hunted down by the Ancestral Witches for the power her baby sister now holds.

The Dragon Flame, the Fire of Life, source of all magic in the Magical Dimension…and, according to their Kwamis, the power that gave birth to them.

Which makes the baby she's so willing to kill for…Bloom.

Their best friend/sister, their fiery dragon of a partner, their everyday Dragon Fyre and their actual Dragon Fyre.

And the more Daphne spoke, the more she reminded them of the red-head - there's a certain vindictiveness in Bloom, more apparent whenever she's done something to screw over Hawk Moth in some way, and it seems it runs in the family because Daphne was more than a little self-satisfied at the knowledge that her baby sister is alive and well. Even said that every breath she takes, every spell she casts, is proof that even under their curse she managed to spite them and prevent them from taking over the Dimension.

Whatever happened when Bloom was a baby, they can guess, was bad. They can tell Daphne loves her sister, but hates the Witches - and, apparently, she takes quite a lot of semi-vindictive joy, wherever she is, in the knowledge that her sister is alive and well.

Ladybug groans, massaging her temples gently, and says "Hearing Tikki confirming just what the Dragon Flame is…"

Cat Noir nods, and says "Plagg to."

"I mean, we kinda already knew she was basically unstoppable, but.." But hearing it confirmed seemed to really bring it home.

After a long moment, Cat Noir says "If Hawk Moth ever goes after her, I'm Cataclysming him, M'Lady. We can dig the Butterfly Miraculous out of the remains afterwards."

"I'll help. Tie him up so he can't struggle." Normally, she'd be against murder…but they've already been warned about getting Akumatized. And that's them, no magic other than the Miraculous' - Dragon Fyre, she's got one of those and an all-powerful source of magic sitting in her body. It would probably simply blow up the entire planet, honestly.

Ladybug groans, unable to completely fight off a yawn, and says "It's gonna be a long day…" For one, they've got a test in Mendeleiv's class.

Zoe pulls Chloe aside at lunch, asking "Is everything alright? Bloom's been a little…"

"Clingy?" At Zoe's nod, Chloe says "Sandboy conjured up the four guys that landed her here, they were hunting her down." And, all day today, she's kept Marinette and Adrien in sight at all times. As in, they've yet to even take a bathroom break - used to dealing with her over-protective moods, apparently. Something she's grateful for, as she could see the red-head twitching in agitation until Adrien arrived and she wasn't sure what to do about it.

As it is, she heard Longg muttering to her about 'they're right here, Hatchling, your Hoard is intact' multiple times, always after a teacher had called on them.

Nino's yet to leave Adrien's side, casting nervous glances at Bloom throughout the school day, and Chloe felt distinctly like prey when she came back from a bathroom break and Bloom pinned her with the most intense look she's ever seen on the red-head's face before.

Adrien glances at Plagg once he's in the limo, and types out on his phone 'what's up with Bloom?!' Plagg grimaces, and says "It's a Dragon thing, Kitten. Longg's holders, especially after a while, can get a little…possessive. And over-protective. Of their Hoard. If, say…somebody threatens it."

'Like with those four that Sandboy created?'

"Uh…yeah. Pretty much. I'd bet she was trying to lead them away from the city, away from you guys, when Longg showed back up. The keeping-everyone-in-sight thing, as it's going this time around, wears off eventually, though."

'And how long do you think it'll last?'

Plagg shrugs, saying "Given how she was already naturally protective of what's hers? Eh…few days, maybe? A week is the longest I've seen before."

Adrien bites back a groan, burying his face in his hands - someone is bound to notice that after a few days. His sister's growled once or twice in the suit, he purrs quite a bit in it now…and he does not want to see just what his sister will do if she feels backed into a corner. Like breaking into Agreste Manor in the middle of the night, ripping Nooroo off Gabriel's chest, and dragging him out.

And then his phone buzzes, a text from Bloom asking 'You alright?'

At Plagg's hasty urging, he quickly types out 'Yeah, just heading to Chinese lesson now. Why?'

'Gabe there?'

'No.'

It takes a solid five minutes for Bloom to text back, he doesn't want to know why and Plagg cautions him against asking, but she finally says 'Call if something happens. I'll be over in a flash.'

Plagg winces, then says "My advice? Call her tonight. And have Ladybug do the same. This is gonna be a long week, Kitten."

Marinette internally groans when Bloom finally leaves as dinner's starting up - she loves her best friend, she really does, but she's been a little twitchy ever since Sandboy decided to dredge up her nightmares. As in...sword first, questions never kind of twitchy.

According to Tikki…Dragons don't like being scared. When they get scared…this happens. They get somewhat possessive, keeping their hoard close to them and being all-too-willing to kill anything or anyone that comes near.

Marinette pities the next few Akumas, she really does - potentially Hawk Moth, if one of them manages to hurt any of them right now.

Tikki saw something similar happen once, with Mulan actually - Longg's Holder at the time, who teamed up with hers to defeat Atilla the Hun and rescue Plagg. The man she loved was near-fatally injured in the final battle, and she refused to leave his side for four days afterwards. And she saw the same look in Bloom's eyes that she remembers from Hua Mulan's - a slight feralness creeping in if Marinette or Adrien were so much as blocked from her sight for even a few moments. Like in the lunchroom, and Ivan was blocking her view of Adrien by accident while getting his own lunch.

Tikki settles on Marinette's shoulder and says "Just take it one day at a time, Marinette. It'll pass…eventually."

Contrary to Tikki and Plagg's estimates, it takes ten days for Bloom to not be practically twitching in agitation whenever they're out of sight for more than a minute and practically jumping on them as soon as they arrive in the classroom.

Chapter Text

All of Team Miraculous is over this particular Akuma, a burned-out doctor who's practice just went out of business to his competitor - Hawk Moth got a bit creative with him, giving him the power to make anyone sick by shooting hypodermic needles at them. Anyone who gets hit instantly comes down with something nasty - either the flu, pneumonia, or a nasty case of bronchitis, from what they can tell so far.

As Honeybee muttered, at least it's nothing lethal.

Dragon Fyre disgustedly added on a 'yet' to that.

Everyone agrees with both sentiments wholeheartedly.

Once they get the Akuma - which was hiding in his coat, as cliché as it is - thankfully everyone that got sick goes back to being healthy once more. Everyone heads back to what they were doing before, all but one none the wiser about the needle Dragon Fyre took for Honeybee when her back was turned.

And Dragon Fyre isn't about to mention it to anyone, considering the detail that she doesn't get sick anyway - not since the case of what she thinks was pneumonia she got straight after dragging herself out of the Seine when she was stranded, anyway, and that only lasted a day as her magic apparently needed that long to get to every part of her body.

Marinette stares at Bloom in absolute horror when she gets into class, not liking what she's seeing at all. The red-head's told her more times than she can count that, ever since her magic really kicked in and she started learning to control it, she hasn't gotten sick - Dragon Fyre doesn't get sick, apparently.

Until now, at which point 'Dragon Fyre doesn't get sick' has turned into 'Dragon Fyre gets extremely sick and won't admit it.'

She looks like death warmed over, is sitting slumped in her seat, and as soon as Mari sits down she can feel the heat coming off the red-head. And then her shoulders twitch suddenly, accompanied by a sound like she pinched her nose shut when she sneezed.

Chloe stares at her in horror, Nino in shock...and Adrien looks murderous for a moment. It clears before most of the room can even notice it, but Marinette files it away for later - right now, they've got a likely disaster to deal with.

Chloe beats them all to it, saying "Peters, you look like you crawled out of a grave. What happened?" At the moment, she can't bring herself to care that she sounded like her old witchy self right then - they've got bigger things to worry about right now, like the detail that Bloom Peters, Dragon Fyre, the girl who can blow stuff up just by looking at it, is apparently sick. She's getting horror-film-worthy scenarios in her head about her coughing and the room lighting on fire, or sneezing and a wall blows out. The look Bloom levels at her would usually make her back down…except it isn't that effective when her head thunks back down onto her arm moments later.

Adrien reaches out, moving to put a hand to her forehead…he can feel the heat coming off her before he even touches her skin. Which is all he gets, considering she moves backwards like lightning.

And her half-baked excuse for why she doesn't want Adrien touching her? She had a bad night's sleep, and is twitchy.

Before anyone can call her out on the fakest lie they've ever heard, Miss Mendeleiev walks in and orders everyone to their seats. And silently accepts Bloom's 'I'm Vice rep, gotta set a good example even if I'm not at 100%' as to why she's in class today. Though, she does keep a very obvious eye on the red-head all throughout her classes.

Bloom disappears during lunch, and refuses to so much as acknowledge that she's not feeling well, much less that she's sick…until it all comes to a head in the final class. Because Ms. Bustier has Marinette walk her to the nurse, upon her sneezing three times in a row loud enough for everyone to hear.

Marinette's keeping Bloom in her peripheral vision, not willing to chance getting ahead of her for one reason or another. She wouldn't put it past her best friend to let her go on ahead…but she's also sick enough that she may well pass out. As if to prove that second guess correct, Bloom starts coughing and has to lean against some nearby lockers nobody uses any longer until she can catch her breath. Marinette puts a hand on Bloom's shoulder to steady her, only to have to jerk away at once - and now she gets why she didn't let anyone touch her all day, she's literally burning hot. She's got the mother of all fevers, thanks to her fire magic!

Ok, nurse is out…

Marinette doesn't get a chance to think of where she could take Bloom, if only to try to cool off some, because suddenly the fire alarm goes off and the sprinklers suddenly activate. Soaking them both, unfortunately.

The student population of Frances Dupont watches as the Fire Chief exits the building, and whispers start up when the man says "Mr. Damocles, none of the Fire alarms were pulled, it seems as if the system is simply malfunctioning. We'll have to check the pipes to make sure nothing's leaking."

Damocles says "I see. Well, in the meantime-" Nobody actually gets to hear what Damocles plans in the meantime, because Bloom sneezes right then…and the windows suddenly explode outward.

All the windows.

Most people scream at the glass suddenly raining down on them, some people covering others, and Adrien has to forcefully bite back a hiss of pain as he feels just how scorching hot his sister is after automatically pulling her down to shield her along with Marinette.

Alya and Nino, meanwhile, trade shocked looks before glancing at Bloom. Nino whisper-asks "You don't think..." 

"Yep..." Honestly, she should've seen it when Bloom came by with that coffee!

Longg says "Alright, Hatchling, Master Fu's. Now."

Tikki whispers "Marinette, since it's a magical occurrence, I can reverse it. But Dragon Fyre's really sick, she needs to see Master Fu!"

Damocles clears his throat, saying "Alright, it appears we have an Akuma in the area. You all know the drill, go home, be safe-" Bloom sneezes again, and a nearby tree bursts into flames.

Everyone promptly starts leaving as quickly as possible, and within five minutes the courtyard is completely clear. Two minutes later, Marinette and Tikki sneak back onto Campus and Tikki uses her version of the Cure to fix everything - much stronger, and they don't need an Akuma to activate it.

Which is good, because that tree and all those windows would be hard to replace otherwise. And Bloom would be feeling guilty as heck about it for weeks afterwards, nevermind the detail that she couldn't help it.

Adrien gets into Master Fu's shop and transforms into Cat Noir once he's in back, Plagg having gotten a message from Longg that he was making her come over after she finally ran out of sheer stubborn willpower to keep her magic from acting up - apparently, the only reason the school hadn't had anything happen before then was because she was suppressing her magic.

All.

Day.

Long.

Up until she lost that losing battle and set off the fire alarm, anyway.

Bloom's voice drifts over, tiredly saying "Guys, m'fine, really…"

Fei's voice says "You look like you're about to collapse. What are you trying to prove, anyway?!" Actually, Fei was being generous with her description - Bloom looks like she's at Death's doorstep, and actually argued about transforming because she didn't want to get Longg sick to.

Cat Noir walks in right that moment, and says "I take my eye off you for one minute, Sis, one minute, and you vanish on me!"

Dragon Fyre deadpans "I didn't want to accidentally blow you up, Brother. Apologies for wanting you alive and whole."

Plagg nervously says "You know, Kitten, she's got a good point. She'd never be able to live with herself if something happened to you right now."

As much as they do have a good point, Adrien's not willing to admit it out loud right now - he about had a heart attack upon realizing his street-wise sister managed to disappear in under a minute. All he did was look around to make sure nobody was tailing them - him, specifically - and when he looked back she was just gone. After a minute, he goes over and puts his arms around her despite the heat and his chin on her head.

Honeybee gets in right then, a furious expression on her face as she shrieks "What were you thinking?!"

Dragon Fyre groans audibly as Honeybee yells at her as well...and then Alya and Nino walk in with wide eyes as they take in the transformed red-head's state. Finally, Alya facepalm hard enough to leave a red mark on her face, and says "I can't believe I didn't see it!"

Nino runs a hand through his hair, dislodging his cap in the process, and says "Our Everyday Dragon Fyre...is actually Dragon Fyre." Honestly, it makes way too much sense.

Alya's eyes narrow, and she says "You, Marinette, and Adrien all disappeared first..."

Nino glances at Alya, asking "What are you...right, Horrificator. Wait..."

Before Nino can actually trip out and scream her partners' identities for the world to hear, Dragon Fyre says "I broke out of my slime-pod, got them out, and had them go try to find these two and a way out. Luckily, my partners were already in, because the school was sealed shut by that time."

"Right..." Alya says, looking completely unconvinced.

Dragon Fyre sneezes, and a vase explodes. Cat Noir promptly scoops her up, saying "Alright, Sis, you're going to bed now."

None of the others ever thought Dragon Fyre would do something so...so normal as complain that she doesn't want to go to bed, yet that's exactly what they see. She squirms and whines that she's fine...up until she starts coughing and a bonsai catches fire. That would be when she starts struggling in earnest, even as he tightens his hold on her. "Let me go, Brother, I need-"

Cat Noir deadpans "Sis, I swear to Kwamis, if you say you need to go to the quarry, I'm tying you to my staff with Honeybee's yo-yo and you'll be lying in bed like that. I bet you made yourself sicker, suppressing your magic all day."

And then suddenly, Marinette comes running in with a covered purple plastic bowl. If Chloe didn't know Marinette was Ladybug, she'd know - that's her great-uncle's soup. If she didn't know Cat Noir knew her identity, she'd know from one look at his expression. Kwamis, when did everything get so...weird?

Right, when Hawk Moth made his first appearance. That's when.

Marinette quickly says "I'm in disguise as Marinette, and she made this for you, Dragon Fyre."

Nino rubs the back of his head, asking "How's that even possible? You look just like her."

Marinette holds up her Kwagatama, saying "Tikki made this for me, and Dragon Fyre worked her magic on it. Whenever I wear it, I look like Marinette Dupain-Cheng."

And then an Akuma alert goes off on all their communicators. Everyone groans at the terrible timing, and Marinette says "Alright then. Honeybee, Rena, Carapace, you three come with me. Kitty, think you can keep someone out of this fight?" Tikki's assured her that the universe will survive one fight without Plagg to balance her, it's dozens of fights without Plagg to balance her energy that would upset the balance they need to keep.

Cat Noir nods, saying "I'll stay with her this time, M'Lady."

"I'll call if we need you, Kitty. Scales, feel better soon."

Five minutes later, Fei pokes her head in the secret guest room to see Cat Noir curled up like an actual cat around Dragon Fyre, purring away as she apparently sleeps - she'd snap a picture, but they're currently transformed right now so that's off the table. She'll just have to commit it to memory, then, because it's absolutely adorable.

Of course, when she wakes up, he turns the tv to Jagged Stone's concert that's just starting up…and he announces on stage that his new outfit - a Cat Noir themed jacket, which makes the blonde boy all but squeal - was made by his new favorite designer B&M.

And their website.

Within ten minutes, they get twenty orders of various different things. Hats, jackets, ten of the Cat Noir jackets specifically, outfits, the works.

Ladybug glances at Cat Noir as they're out on Patrol, about two nights after Dragon Fyre got herself sick, and asks "How are you feeling, Kitty? You did fall asleep next to a sick dragon, after all."

Cat Noir stretches his arms over his head, saying "It's gonna sound crazy, Bugaboo, but I feel amazing. Seriously, ever since I woke up…it's like I've been living in this fog and now it's cleared up. Talk about a power nap, huh?"

Ladybug asks "Seriously?"

Cat Noir nods, saying "In the suit, out of it…you know how, when you first wake up, everything's kinda fuzzy for a moment?" At Ladybug's nod, he says "It's like I'm really awake for the first time in…as long as I can remember. I never noticed it before, but now I can't stop wondering how I missed it. It's like all my senses are working right - even food tastes different, LB, I'm serious!"

Ladybug shrugs a bit uneasily, and says "You can't miss what you never knew, right?" She can take a guess as to how this mystery-change happened, she really can - when he fell asleep with their partner who happens to hold the magic source that gave life to the Kwamis! - but what Bloom's magic did to him in that time is another matter.

And Bloom certainly won't know, she was sleeping for the whole time.

Chapter Text

Marinette's listening to Clara Nightingale's latest hit-single as she finishes up the last bit of detailing on their fifth order of the day, with the sound turned up loud so that her parents don't hear anything Bloom might be doing - like creating more of their orders!

Ever since Jagged Stone's massive concert - which they'd honestly forgotten about with all the Akumas they have to fight - they've been getting swamped with order after order. It's great for the business account, but not so great when it comes to homework, Akumas, school, and helping in the bakery. Luckily, Bloom can create the bases with her magic, which saves a lot of time with measuring, cutting, and stitching. And she and Marinette are splitting up the detail-work, which she'll get right on as soon as all the bases are finished.

And then, Clara Nightingale announces she's putting on a performance as a tribute to Team Miraculous, and is casting all the Miraculous Holders for her new song. And then, not five seconds later, Longg gets a message from Plagg. "Um, Hatchling? I just got a message from Plagg, there's a bit of trouble."

Marinette says "Go on ahead, Bloom, I'll meet you there!"

Adrien's trying desperately not to hyperventilate as Gabriel informs him he doesn't have a choice in whether or not he's going to perform as Cat Noir in Clara Nightingale's new song. Except he really doesn't want to - stage fright isn't the issue, he's been a model for years now, it's the detail that he is Cat Noir! He'd really rather not expose his secret identity just to aid the brand!

Because, as Gabriel just said, the video will be a big help in the stores' openings in China and Japan.

And they can't Cataclysm the suit either, the man would either go off the rails again or recognize a Cataclysm when he sees it.

It's as he's getting into the car that he gets a sickening realization - what if he's trying to find them like this? Plagg quickly sends a message to Longg, hoping Bloom and Marinette will be able to think of something to stop this potential disaster.

Adrien glances over at the sound of voices saying "The make-up studio's in here, just wait inside with our Cat Noir! A professional artist will be in shortly!"

And then the door opens up, and Bloom stumbles in like she's been pushed…in a Dragon Fyre suit. Plagg nervously says "Oohh, you've gotta be kidding!"

Bloom shakes her head, saying "As soon as I said I was here looking for a good friend of mine, almost like a brother to me, Clara Nightingale squealed, shoved this into my arms, and threw me into a dressing room!"

Longg nods, saying "We didn't have much choice in the matter, Clara's dead-set on Bloom playing…well, herself."

Plagg nervously says "Well, we think he might be using the opportunity to look for us! It's a disaster, we've gotta find some way to throw him off!"

Bloom hums, for a moment, then says "Alright, got an idea. Adrien, you've got Chloe's number, right?"

Adrien nods, then says "Bloom, you're a lifesaver!"

Chloe and Zoe glance at Chloe's phone in surprise when it suddenly starts ringing with Bloom's phone number, and picks up after a moment. "Hello?"

"Chloe, have you still got that Ladybug Cosplay suit?"

"Is this for Clara Nightingale's performance, Bloom? Yeah, why?"

"We need you or Zoe to come in it and play Ladybug. We think a certain someone is scoping out the possibilities using Clara's new song."

Chloe freezes, and says "He wouldn't be so…nevermind, yes he would go that low, you told me about Cat Blanc. We'll be there soon! Zoe, how much do you like dancing?"

"I'll make you a Ladybug wig, Chloe, don't worry about that."

Zoe says "You be Ladybug, Sis, I'll be Honeybee. Throw him off. Gods, when and how did the world get this weird?!"

Chloe nods, saying "Thank you, Sis! Trust me, I ask myself that same question on a daily basis now. DADDY! We need to head to Clara Nightingale's auditions!"

Marinette's sitting with the other girls in her and Bloom's class, having gotten an update from Tikki on what the situation is - Bloom's been strong-armed into the role of Dragon Fyre, and they're calling in Chloe and Zoe to strong-arm their ways into the Ladybug and Honeybee roles.

It's just a good thing the Rena Rouge and Carapace roles were filled by people that aren't Alya and Nino, else this plan would be a lot more complicated than it already is.

So all Marinette needs to do is not be Ladybug. She can do that, she can totally do that - especially since Chloe's been making a real effort to be better ever since Audrey Bourgeois shattered her to pieces.

Thankfully, the plan goes off without a hitch - Zoe becomes Honeybee, Chloe is Ladybug, and Marinette says she wanted to be one of the extras and stay with her friends.

Of course, right as the filming is about to start…the Mayor walks in spewing jargon about permits and regulations, having gotten an anonymous tip-off that Clara's missing some vital paperwork to be able to shoot her film.

So, the performance is canceled.

Bloom goes to Adrien's side, and whispers "Ten bucks to the one who guesses how that happened…"

Adrien scowls and nods, there's no real question that his father arranged the sabotage.

Twenty minutes, a lot of rhymes, and endless frustration on Team Miraculous' part - it's pretty hard to fight when you have to dance, rhyme, or sing all the time - and Juleka and Luka glance out at the fight and Juleka gets an idea. Team Miraculous is basically at a standstill, having to constantly dodge attacks from the near-manic Frightingale and dance, sing, or rhyme to avoid being frozen as statues, which means…they need to distract Frightingale.

And, as luck would have it, she's still got the headset on that she had when she was on the set.

The Couffaine twins get to the control room, where all the special effects and such were supposed to be set off…and they see a microphone sitting there, spitting out Frightingale's voice as she taunts the superheroes.

Luka quietly asks "You sure about this, Sis?"

Juleka shakes her head, saying "No, not really."

If this backfires on them…then they're outed to Paris and Hawk Moth. But if it does work…it might be why they have these powers - had, in Juleka's case - in the first place.

After a moment, Luka thumps the microphone head hard, and Frightingale's voice asks "Who's there? Who's tapping in my ear?!"

Luka grins at his sister for a moment, then starts humming, eyes lighting up a familiar teal color.

All of Team Miraculous trade confused glances when Frightingale suddenly looks around, tapping at the headset she's still wearing, and asks "Who's there? Who's tapping in my ear?!" And then, she just…goes still, starting to sway to something only she can hear.

Everyone waits for a moment, waiting for the other shoe to drop even as they're stuck dancing in place, but…nothing happens. Nothing bar Dragon Fyre looking around suddenly, getting the most confused expression anyone's ever seen on her face before. She starts murmuring "You feel that to, right Longg?"

Cat Noir quickly nabs Frightingale's headset, while Carapace breaks her microphone - because they haven't got a clue which one the Akuma is in - and one Cure later everything's back to normal…except Dragon Fyre forgoes the usual fist bump to go looking for whatever it is she felt. She's still looking about an hour later in her civilian self, glancing at everyone as if to find something new.

When Adrien asks what's wrong, she shakes her head and says "I can't explain it, Adrien, but when Frightingale stopped…I felt something."

Adrien raises an eyebrow, asking "Like what?"

Bloom just shrugs, looking around some more, and says "I don't know, and it's gone now. I've been looking all over the place, and I can't find anything. But…I know what I felt, Adrien." Well, that's not strictly true - she knows she felt something, but she doesn't know what it was. Just that she's felt it before, shortly before the Captain Hardrock incident - it just vanished then, like it did now, and she's felt it pop up and disappear time and again.

Luka has to head back home, getting a migraine once more from using his powers around so many people, but it doesn't stop Juleka from being part of the performance. It also doesn't stop her from being curious about Bloom's searching the entire studio.

Chapter Text

Bloom watches from Marinette's room, Tikki and Longg on each shoulder and Fang in her lap, as Jagged Stone karate chops the pastry dough downstairs. After a moment, Bloom incredulously asks "Has he ever done anything with dough before?"

Longg says "Apparently not, Hatchling."

Tikki can't take it anymore when he pulls out the bread-guitar, and starts laughing hysterically midair, turning upside down as she laughs so hard she runs out of breath and holds her aching sides.

And then Adrien texts her, asking 'You watching tv?'

'Yeah. Don't need to, tho, I'm upstairs!'

'In the bakery?!'

Bloom texts her a selfie of Fang and herself, followed by several laughing emojis at the 'baker's rock 'n roll' Tom and Jagged are singing a few feet below her. And then Marinette gets called into camera-view, Jagged mentioning her and Bloom's help with the latest album cover, and Alec remarks that the whole family's a pack of talented artists.

Tom decides to bake some chocolate croissants…and Marinette accidentally spills flour all over Jagged. Luckily, he takes it in stride, pretending to be a ghost since he's covered head-to-toe in bright white flour. Even more luckily, Tom says "These things happen all the time, Jagged. go get cleaned up in the bathroom and we'll keep going. 

Bloom quickly comes downstairs with Fang in tow, shutting the trapdoor to Marinette's room on the way - there's such a thing as privacy, after all, and having Mari's room filmed on live television is a no-go. Especially when half of Paris is watching Jagged Stone as the show films.

Of course, between Bob Roth and his constant demands, the camera guy and Alec saying they need to get the show back on the road, and Fang deciding to tackle Jagged to the floor and lick the flour off him, Penny gets pushed to her absolute limit and screams at everyone to just be quiet - no wonder why, considering Bloom and Marinette have had a run-through of her usual day and it is stressful beyond belief, she's constantly getting pulled in about fifty different directions at any given moment.

Bloom promptly takes charge, saying "Everyone but Jagged go downstairs now. Yes, that includes you, Bob Roth. Jagged, go into this room here," she spins him around by the shoulders and pushes him into the bathroom, "and get cleaned up. Penny, meet us when you're ready, alright?"

Marinette has to fight back a laugh when Bloom actually grabs Bob Roth by the ear to make him go downstairs and make him shut up with his blustering about how he doesn't work for her.

Not two minutes later, downstairs goes absolutely bananas, everything going absolutely insane - Bloom shoots Marinette a panicked look, silently saying that all this isn't her, and then the real cause of all the trouble makes herself known.

Penny Rolling, now Troublemaker, phases through the ceiling with a gothic biker look and purple mohawk, pen in hand and a daredevil grin on her face. The detail that she turns tangible and intangible whenever she clicks the pen makes Marinette and Bloom grimace - not only are they trapped with this lady, as she activated the emergency weather panels, six-inch-thick metal paneling over the door and all the windows, it means they can't draw any attention to their Miraculous' in any way. Which means Ladybug won't be making a direct appearance, Tikki will have to eat the butterfly this time.

At least they know where the Akuma is!

Quickly thinking up a plan, Marinette crouches down near her mother - and the wooden paddle they use to take hot pans out of the oven - while Bloom draws attention to herself by laughing and saying "You've gotta be kidding me."

Everyone bar Marinette looks at her incredulously, and Troublemaker asks "What?!"

Bloom sarcastically says "You can turn intangible, whoop-de-do. Compared to, say, Mime, you're not much trouble at all, are you?"

Troublemaker screeches in fury, immediately moving to attack Bloom - exactly as planned, at which point Marinette swings the breadboard hard.

Much to the adults' shock, the two teenagers not only manage to fight Troublemaker, they make several near-misses for her pen - she keeps clicking it at the last minute, going intangible and getting out of the way of Bloom or Marinette once more…so Bloom goes on the verbal offensive once more, taunting Troublemaker into attacking once more. An effective strategy, were Hawk Moth not undoubtedly watching the tv - assuming the camera is actually rolling, that is.

Deciding to give Hawk Moth a little extra shove, add insult to injury - and give Marinette a bigger opening to get the pen while Troublemaker is distracted - Bloom ducks a swing and calls over "Hey, Mari, how humiliating do you think this is for Hawk-butt? His latest failure is getting her butt kicked by two teens not even in a super-suit! On live tv!"

Sure enough, the familiar butterfly mask appears over Troublemaker's face, and Hawk moth's voice comes out of her mouth saying "You insolent little brat! If I ever get my hands on you, you're going to wish-"

Marinette grabs the pen right then, just as Bloom grins and says "Hope you feel this one, coward!" Bloom smashes her fist into Troublemaker's face, and she goes flying into the wall just before Marinette smashes the pen.

And then Cat Noir manages to break down the metal panel blocking the door, digging his claws in and literally ripping it off, looking completely out of breath and even more panicked, shoulders heaving as he breathes like he just ran a marathon, sweat dripping down his face and from his soaking-wet hair stuck to his face, and eyes gone completely dilated as he searches for the Akuma. When he spots Penny getting up from the floor, he starts rapid-fire apologizing for not being there fast enough.

Bloom crosses her arms and says "Look, each of you is one person, right? Nobody can split themselves into copies?" She shoots Bob Roth a look that says he'd better keep his mouth shut or he'll be eating her shoe in one big swallow.

Cat Noir shakes his head, leaning his weight on his staff as he does so, and Marinette says "Then don't beat yourself up, alright? You can't be all across Paris at any given moment, and you look like you just came from the other end of it."

Cat Noir nods, that sounds about accurate actually - he leaped out the window mid-transformation moments after seeing Troublemaker on-screen, and tore his way through the city to get to Marinette's place. Unfortunately, Agreste Manor isn't exactly close - and, even with the suit, sprinting all the way here with a little help from the staff is exhausting.

Marinette puts a hand on his shoulder, saying "You look like you're about to collapse, Cat Noir. Sit down."

And then a burst of Ladybugs comes flying in and fixes everything, making everyone else cheer…and Jagged actually hugs Penny, apologizing profusely about, well, everything.

Bloom and Marinette drag a still-winded Cat Noir into the living room while everyone else starts filming once more after getting the room picked up.

Of course, the next morning, half the school quite literally dogpiles the two girls, asking everything from if they're alright to how they did that to - Alya - can they do an interview for the Ladyblog. Turns out, the camera was still rolling for the whole fight...and now Bloom and Marinette are overnight celebrities at school.

Again.

Chloe, meanwhile, is borderline-interrogating Bloom about how she missed an Akuma in the two-hour time span she and her sister were having a spa day together. Getting their hair done, a mani-pedi, the works - and the salon they went to just so happened to be on a different channel than the one they were on. 

Bloom says "Chloe! Relax, alright? You're human, it happens. None of us are omniscient, we don't know everything. There is no possible way you could've known about an Akuma happening when we didn't even know the camera was still rolling. The Dupain-Cheng Bakery can apparently turn into a fortress if need be, and we wouldn't have been able to get a text out anyway." 

"I should've-" 

Bloom shakes her head, saying "You had no way of knowing, alright? None. So, stop beating yourself up for accidentally missing an Akuma. It happens. We're not going to hold it against you, alright?" 

Chloe nods, then says "Alright, then. 

Chapter Text

Marinette beams in delight as Marc Anciel shyly pokes his head into the art room - while she'd said he should come, she wasn't sure he'd take her up on that idea. He's extremely shy, she first met him when he was hiding under the staircase and writing via the light of his phone a few years ago.

Nathan's currently explaining his latest drawing, where Mightylustrator helps Ladybug fight Mime - Evillustrator, after he was de-Akumatized and kept his powers and decided to help Ladybug to make up for what Hawk Moth made him do. With a thing for Dragon Fyre, though Cat Noir being overprotective made for an awkward first-start.

The Art teacher says "Excellent idea, Nathan - you should make a comic book out of it."

Nathan shrugs, saying "Maybe…but I'm no good at writing stuff. Only drawing it."

"Then you should team up with someone who's good at creative writing."

Nathan's about to say he doesn't know anyone like that, but Alix pulls down her paint mask and says "Cheer up, Nath - I'm sure there's just someone out there waiting to meet you! Pass the red, please. Who's the kid at the door?"

Marc instantly decides this was a terrible idea and turns to head back where he came from as soon as all but two set of eyes is on him - Bloom Peters is currently engrossed in whatever she's sketching, and the blonde girl with the pixie cut didn't hear due to the headphones she's got on - but Marinette darts forward and drags him in, saying "You made it! Everyone, this is Marc!" She pulls him up to the teacher, saying "This is the boy I was telling you about, the one who's always writing!"

Marc blushes fiercely under everyone's gazes, and quietly says "I didn't want to disturb anyone…"

The teacher says "Nonsense! Welcome to Room thirty-three, you're never disturbing anyone here! You can come anytime you want, outside of class time or after school! Anyone can create anything they want, any way they want. Rose, for instance, is writing lyrics for a rock band." He lifts one headphone and adds "Rose, say hi to Marc."

Rose glances up, then gets a beaming smile and enthusiastically waves while saying "HI! NICE TO MEET YOU, MARC!" Marc jumps a bit at the way she just shouted at the top of her lungs at him, and hesitantly waves hello back.

"Alix over there is our expert in street art."

Alix, the girl that first noticed him, waves hello and calls over a muffled "Good to meet ya!"

"Bloom and Marinette are usually working on their own projects together, usually making stuff like Marinette's hat she's got."

Marinette grins, walks over to nudge Bloom in the side, and says "Back to the physical world, B, we've got a new member!"

Bloom glances up for a moment - are she and Nathan twins or something?! - and says "Hey there. Finally got him in, huh Mari?"

Marinette rolls her eyes, saying "It's not like that, Bloom!"

"Sure it isn't. Anyway, what do you think about this to go with your hat?"

"And this is Nathaniel, he-" Alix jokingly calls over "He likes to draw people in skinny suits!" Nathan grins and tosses one of his crumpled-up failures at her.

Nathan chuckles, shaking his head, and says "Lucky for everyone, this is a judgement-free zone. You can say or make whatever you want, and nobody will tease you for it - or, only in good fun if they do."

Marc nods, Nathan's drawings catching his eye…and he quickly jerks himself away from the table after almost spilling his artistic guts out to a guy he's just now met who's drawings he's been secretly writing for months now.

Zoe and Chloe come in with Mylene, two of the three carrying props and Chloe tagging along - Zoe and Mylene share an interest in performing, bonded over that, and Chloe's been trying to be supportive by sitting in on their rehearsals.

Juleka and Luka come in and sit by Rose, Luka giving Marc a smile and wave while Juleka looks at what Rose has written down. And then Luka's gaze drifts over to Marinette and Bloom, who are too engrossed in whatever's on the page of Bloom's sketchbook to pay much attention to the real world - making edits and writing down notes, completely dead to the world.

And then the Art teacher says "At any rate, Marc, you've actually come at the perfect time. Marinette tells us you're always writing, and Nathaniel is looking for a scriptwriter."

Marc instantly blushes, and spews out a mess of a denial that got all jumbled up between his brain and his mouth, and there's a dead silence bar Rose's writing before Alix says "Oh my god, he's just like Marinette. Bloom! Little help?"

Bloom walks over to a still-blushing Marc, who's got his notebook hidden so deep inside his jacket that she can't even see his hand, and says "How about this, Marc? Nathan will read one page, alright? One. And, if he doesn't like it, he'll just give it back no questions asked and no comments given. Meanwhile, you come take a look at this - maybe a writer will be able to make heads or tails of the mess in my head."

Marc glances at Nathan for a moment before looking at the floor, and quietly asks "Promise?"

Nathan holds up a hand, the other over his heart, saying "Artist's honor. Like I said, judgement-free zone here. 'Sides, it's gotta be a thousand times better than anything I can come up with."

Marc nervously hands the book over, and Bloom pulls him over to sit down next to her as she gets out a second notebook - this one filled with all-charcoal sketches. She flips to the right page, and Marc sees…a woman with a mask and ribbons trailing from her hands holding a baby, getting chased by three hag-like ladies. A few more pages depicts them in some kind of fight, the baby in a circle while the woman holds the old trio off. And then there's a portrait of the woman, with the butterfly-shaped mask and her hair in those two ponytails - Marc thinks, anyway.

After a moment spent looking through them, Bloom says "I haven't got the faintest idea what the hell's going on here, Marc. When I wake up, it's always half-gone back to wherever it all comes from. What do you think?"

Marc takes a closer look at the portrait of the woman with the mask, and says "Well, she…is the detail that she kinda looks like you intentional? Or is that just a coincidence?"

Bloom shrugs, saying "I'd noticed that, but I swear to everything there is to swear on, that's what she looks like in the dreams."

Marinette bites her bottom lip semi-nervously - Bloom was busy fighting off the 'Ancestral Witches' along with Rena Rouge and Carapace's nightmares while Daphne was giving them a run-down of just what was going on, so she didn't hear what was being told to her two long-time partners.

And the both of them get the distinctly horrible feeling telling her could get her Akumatized, no matter how gently they try to break it to her.

That's the reason why Bloom took Cat Noir out to the quarry to tell him about Cat Blanc, so he could have his breakdown about it in relative safety while she took care of the Akumas getting sent after him. Telling her she's a long-lost orphaned princess from another universe, who's planet and people were killed for the power she holds inside of her…yeah, that'll go down fantastically with Hawk Moth on the lookout, she's already got an identity crisis and a half that rears its ugly head every now and again as it is.

Marc starts talking, saying "Well, the three…witches, do you think? The three witches are hunting down the woman and her…child? For something they have, a treasure perhaps? Or magic? Maybe they want to ransom the baby back to her family, or use her for something. They're chasing the two of them down, and the woman with the ribbons puts the baby in a…protective circle of some kind, I think, while she fights them off."

They keep talking, trying to find some kind of narrative that fits the drawings of Bloom's half-remembered dreams - and, soon enough, two hours have gone by and Marc goes pale as a ghost when he suddenly remembers one tiny little detail…in Nathaniel's hands. When he glances over at Nathan, the boy's sitting hunched over the notebook…completely motionless, bar one arm as he turns a page.

Marinette winces at Bloom's guilty look, and says "I…think he likes it?"

Marc starts hyperventilating slightly, saying "Ohmygodohmygodohmygod…"

When Marinette walks over to Nathan, she sees he's completely dead to the world, reading like a man possessed…and a look of absolute wonder on his face as he keeps going. As soon as she puts a hand on his shoulder, Nathan whirls around at once saying "Marc, this is ama- Marinette? Where's- Marc!" He slides his chair over at once, making Marc lean back slightly at the near-manic look as Nathan says "This is amazing! Absolutely amazing! You seriously wrote all this?!" Nathan runs out of praise about ten solid minutes later, leaving Marc with eyes wide as one of Alix's pain cans and looking like he might actually faint from shock.

Bloom pushes him into a seat, and says "Well, on the bright side, you know he likes it. Nathan, how about we give Marc a minute to process all of that before popping the question about maybe making a comic book together?"

Nathan glances at Marc's semi-terrified expression, which seems frozen on his face as he stares at the red-headed boy, and nods sheepishly while saying "Um, yeah, good idea, Bloom. Sorry 'bout that, Marc."

Bloom shrugs, saying "C'mon, let's get you some water from the fountain for a minute. Let Marc reboot himself."

Luka takes the chance while Bloom's not in the room to hum for a moment, just enough to get Marc a little less tense - he doesn't want to completely out himself and his sister to everyone in the art room, after all. And, if he'd calmed Marc and Nathan down right then and there, she'd have caught on instantly from what Juleka was saying about the aftermath of their help with Frightingale. He wants to tell her about his own powers…but he wants to tell her about his powers.

Not half the school, with her in it.

Of course, true to his prediction, the instant Bloom gets back into the room she instantly notices something's changed. Glancing around, frowning while trying not to show it, even her own magic spiking suddenly before she tamps it back down - and, gods, Luka can feel her own magic from all the way across the room and she is strong. At least, she feels strong to him - but what would he know, she's the first person he's met other than his sister with magic! Still, he can feel her emotions all too easily - near-rabid curiosity, frustration, and a need from what he can tell. He can't quite decipher that last one from so far away, so that's the best description he's got unless Bloom suddenly sits down next to him.

After about five minutes of trying to focus on the drawing she was working on before, and being heavily distracted, she shakes her head saying "I'm gonna go work on that proposal for the class. Meet you back at the bakery?" That feeling is back, like a vibration in the very air in the room, and it's gotten into her head and won't get out. It's like it's generating a bunch of cottonballs in her mind or something, making her own magic flare up - but, whether it's aggressive or that's simply how it is, she doesn't know. She'd know all about the second, she didn't decide her magic was going to be fire after all - but, whatever this is, if it's actively trying to get into her head and mess with it...that's not gonna fly. Especially when she can't even identify the source!

Marinette grins, saying "Sure! See you there once I finish this hat up."

Chapter Text

Adrien quite literally collapses onto his bed, not even bothering to get to the pillow - that Akuma was disastrous, it took literally half the night, and all he wants to do is sleep.

Plagg is in exactly the same state of mind as he sets down on the pillow, muttering "A bed has never felt this comfortable…"

And then both of them groan in utter despair when the alarm on Adrien's phone goes off.

Plagg mutters "Coffee…" Adrien groans and nods, they definitely need coffee.

Marinette springs up out of bed with a near-shriek of horror - it's Heroes Day, and she completely forgot to plan her good deed!

Tikki asks "And being up all night saving Paris and that poor person Hawk Moth Akumatized isn't enough…why?"

Marinette says "It was a secret, Tikki, and it was Ladybug's good deed! I can't take credit for it as Marinette, it'll blow my secret identity to smithereens! And I've gotta have something to take credit for, else everyone will start wondering and put two and two together!"

Tikki has to admit, that's a very good point. Far too good a point, actually.

When Marinette gets to class, she's overjoyed to find a cup of coffee waiting for her at her desk thanks to Bloom. She takes a big swallow at once, and makes herself be only slightly disappointed that there's no magic in it like she tried with Alya and Nino - lesson learned on that one, though.

Adrien gulps down more of his own coffee, and gives her a tired grin as he says "Happy Heroes Day, Marinette!"

Marinette gives him a smile, apparently too tired to blush and stutter around him - he wants to say he'd have figured out she's Ladybug right then and there, but he probably wouldn't have - and says "Happy Heroes Day, Adrien. Got anything planned?"

Adrien nods, saying "I'm giving a Fencing lesson and a Chinese Lesson after school, and attending the Agreste Foundation's Heroes Day Gala tonight." One day, he's just got to make it through one hellishly busy day.

Surely even Hawk Moth will be too busy to Akumatize anyone today of all days?

Or, at the very least, there won't be anyone to Akumatize?

And then Bloom taps a few times on her phone before settling it squarely in her pocket right before Ms. Bustier starts the weekly video call for Lila - Marinette and Adrien have long-since figured out she's recording the video calls, and Nino and Adrien have been asking stuff like what she's been doing or which places she's seen specifically while Chloe gets her bragging about things.

Bloom plans to bury Lila under the sheer mountain of lies she's rapidly building up, maybe get the Kingdom of Achu in on it all. All she needs is something big to start the process rolling. Except Lila usually sticks to small-ish stuff, or things they can't prove - she's a deceitful, manipulative little witch, but she isn't that stupid as of yet.

As of yet, the worst they can call her out on is the past few months of truancy, along with making up several hundred false claims related to famous people and the Kingdom of Achu - and that, at least the second part, she can explain away with fake tears and wanting to be popular. And while a case of truancy this long might get her put away for a little while, it won't be enough to make her a complete non-threat - and that's assuming it wouldn't be her mother that was punished.

So, unless she commits treason or terrorism sometime today, they're stuck waiting for things to come to a head.

Lila's face appears on the projector screen, and she smiles and says "Hello, everyone!"

Everyone says hello back, and Ms. Bustier says "We can't wait to hear what you've been doing since our last video chat. Tell us about your week in the Kingdom of Achu!"

"It's been absolutely amazing, Prince Ali invited me and my parents to his gorgeous palace!"

It takes every ounce of Marinette's rapidly-waning willpower to not call her out on that, Rose was just gushing about the pictures Prince Ali sent her from the states three days ago, but she manages thanks to the knowledge that Bloom's recording everything.

"I miss you guys SO MUCH, it's so hard being away on this magical trip so far from my friends - and ESPCECIALLY on Heroes Day!"

Bloom and Marinette share a glance, yeah that sounds so hard - being away on a 'magical' trip away from people she only knew for one day and having no fear of getting Akumatized. So hard…if it were actually true.

Unfortunately, the rest of the class that's not in the know about her current status as a truant eats it all up at once.

Ms. Bustier asks "Lila, what good deed are you planning on doing today?"

"Today, I'll be meeting up with Prince Ali to show him an idea I came up with. During our world travels, my diplomat parents have helped me convince the leaders of several nations to agree to reduce world pollution. And I'm very optimistic that Prince Ali will jump on board!"

Adrien pseudo-excitedly asks "Oh, yeah? Which nations, Lila? It sounds so exciting to have traveled to so many different places!"

Lila grins delightedly, and Adrien internally squirms while trying very hard not to cringe at the familiar glint in her eye that's gone almost too fast for him to notice…almost. Thankfully, it works, and Lila lists off the US, Brazil, Australia, Africa, Italy, Morocco, and China.

None of which her mother has ever been to, according to the biography on the Embassy's website.

Ms. Bustier says "That's amazing, Lila! Thank you, on behalf of planet Earth!"

Lila shrugs, false modesty dripping from her voice - like poison, to five people in the room - and says "Well, sure. Superheroes like Team Miraculous might save lives, but they sure don't care about the environment. Someone has to come to the rescue when they obviously won't."

Marinette feels the air around her get suddenly warmer, and figures this is the point where Bloom hits her limit on the level of bullshit Lila spews, because she asks "I'm curious how you can say Team Miraculous doesn't care about the environment, Lila, when I've personally seen Ladybug's Cure fix up dozens of broken buildings, destroyed cars, put out raging fires, stop flash floods, correct altered weather, all of which can seriously affect the local environment as well as the global one? Given all of the stuff Ladybug fixes on a daily basis, I'd have to say it's Hawk Moth that doesn't care about the environment, wouldn't you agree?" Nobody gets away with talking trash about her friends.

Instead of saying anything positive about the heroes she's come to hate, Lila very obviously fakes a yawn and says "I'm sorry, but it's late here with the time difference. The sun's already starting to set, so I've got to go now. See you soon!" And then she's gone, and Adrien rubs at his arms in lieu of giving in to the urge to scrub himself raw to try and get rid of the slimy feeling of her attention on him.

Bloom quietly asks "She does know the time difference between Achu and Paris, right?" Because it's only a few hours ahead, about four hours ahead, and the sun is nowhere near setting in Achu.

Marinette puts a hand on her knee, and equally-quietly says "Soon, Bloom. Soon. We just need her to make a big move."

Ms. Bustier asks what everyone else is planning, and they all share their plans. Nino's going to a retirement home and playing everyone their favorite songs, Alya's gotten the Mayor's approval to make it so disabled kids can attend school at Dupont, Adrien's given Chinese and Fencing lessons…and Marinette spontaneously invites the entire class to a mass-tasting event at the park after school, having let everyone's fawning over Lila's fake deed get to her. She's got her own limit to, after all. Bloom quickly says "I'm helping Marinette with the event, we're gonna be co-bakers for it."

Marinette internally sighs in relief, with Bloom's help they just might be able to pull it off!

And, luckily for Marinette, her parents are busy working on the Ladybug head cake - while, in ordinary circumstances, that would spell utter doom for her…it just leaves her and Bloom free to make this possible via a little magic during their lunch break.

After assuring Tom and Sabine that, yes, they can handle it all by themselves, the two girls close all the shutters and get to work. Marinette glances over at Bloom, who's prepping the baking pans and cooking sheets, over a bowl of Macaroon batter, and asks "You sure about this, Bloom?" They've been told time and again not to use their Miraculous' for selfish reasons, how much of a difference could Bloom's magic be?

Bloom nods, eyes already turning orange, and says "Absolutely. What good is power if I can't use it to help a friend out? You get the batter and dough ready, I'll cook them all through. We'll have this done in no time." It's hardly selfish if it's for everyone, right? Besides, nothing's happened so far after the hundreds of times she's used her magic to steal food and water, or re-worked dusty old clothes into new outfits - so, something like helping a friend out should be fine.

Hopefully.

Sure enough, as soon as Marinette finishes setting out the Macaroon batter into the right shapes, Bloom's ready with glowing orange hands and eyes to cook them through while Marinette starts on the cookies.

By the time lunch break is over, they've got all the Macaroons cooked and ready to be eaten, along with the cookies - they can start on the pies after school, say it's coming out one dessert at a time.

When they get back to school, though, everyone's staring at their phones in absolute worry. Marinette glances around, asking "Um, guys? What's wrong?"

Rose shows them her phone, which has a live feed of Jagged Stone, Nadja Chamack, and Clara Nightingale out by the Eiffel Tower. Nadja Chamack's just saying how Cat Noir's dead, Ladybug's an Akuma victim, and Paris is doomed.

And then a swarm of dark red butterflies appears, one of them hitting Nadja's microphone - she falls down, swinging it wildly as if there's a massive bug on it while red bubbles consume her, and…stands up Akumatized.

Everyone gasps in horror, and Marinette breathes out "She was Akumatized instantly…"

Mylene says "He usually talks to them first, not…" She remembers his voice in her ear, remembers him convincing her to accept his power - everything else is blank, bar a few snippets here and there, but the last thing she clearly remembers before waking up in Ivan's arms is hearing Hawk Moth's voice.

What just happened to Nadja, though…instant Akumatization, along with Jagged Stone and Clara Nightingale!

Bloom curses, viciously, and yells "I'm gonna go find Kim! Everyone get to safety, and whatever you do don't panic!"

As if to prove her point, she starts…crushing Akumas as she goes.

Chapter Text

Rena Rouge, Carapace, Honeybee, Cat Noir, and Ladybug all land on top of a rooftop, and Rena Rouge asks "What now? There's gotta be a hundred Akumas down there!" Actually, there's gotta be half of Paris down there.

Cat Noir uses his Catphone to zoom in, and his upper lip lifts in a snarl as he says "That's not all. The puppet-master himself is down there at center stage."

Honeybee frowns, and asks "What I really want to know is what's up with all the red. And…wait, who or what is that?"

Rena Rouge uses her flute to zoom in, and sees…Volpina. An orange, white, and black Volpina. As in, Akumatized before all this. Rena feels her ears go back and her tail starts swishing angrily, and she snarls out "She did this! That faker-fox tricked everyone with an illusion!"

Ladybug nods, saying "She did. But, that also means just showing the two of us are alright will show everyone it was nothing but a lie."

Carapace asks "So, why's she not red like the others?"

Rena starts cursing before anyone else can react, and quickly takes a snapshot of Volpina while swearing to destroy the fake for abusing the powers they share. She's just thought of a new article for the Ladyblog, which 'Rena Rouge' can contribute to via an illusion - either actually via an illusion or with Dragon Fyre - and the title?

'Where's the Red Fox?'

And then Dragon Fyre lands on the rooftop opposite them, Lady Dragon landing next to her, a scarlet Akuma trapped in a bubble in her hands. She quickly signs a broken heart followed by a thumbs-up, and Ladybug and Cat Noir sigh in relief.

Everyone else just looks confused, and Carapace asks "What'd she say? I'm confused."

Ladybug says "You'll get the hang of our form of sign language after a bit. We base it on the Akumas we've faced, mostly. As for what she just said, Scales took out Dark Cupid and that's his Akuma."

Honeybee says "Ooohh, right, with the broken heart for him…makes sense." Dragon Fyre then points to herself, then pounds her chest and mimes opening an umbrella before doing a mime in a box impression. At Rena Rouge and Carapace's expressions, Honeybee says "Pretty sure she just said she'd go after the heavy hitters."

Ladybug nods, saying "King Kong, as we're calling the giant gorilla, Stormy Weather, and Mime."

Cat Noir nods, saying "Stay away from Stoneheart if at all possible unless you can get him to open his fist, direct attacks only make him bigger. Gigantitan is too young to want to fight, so that takes care of the rest of the big ones. All the others should be short work until we get to Hawk Moth."

Scarlet Moth scowls as the group of Superheroes starts fighting their way through his army of Akumas - he lost contact with Dark Cupid, which means his plan of getting more reinforcements is out the window. And, despite half the team being so new, they're tearing their way through his Akumatized army with alarming speed - Dragon Fyre, he decides, is a harsh taskmaster if they're being trained this fast.

Speaking of which, where is that annoying fireball?

Oh, there she is…up in the sky, throwing fireballs at Stormy Weather, having taken off after punching Mime out and ripping up his hat. Quickly connecting to Stormy Weather, he says "Take her down, my Weather Girl! Eliminate her threat to us!"

Surveying the full-out battlefield, he realizes Riposte's already been defeated somehow, Pharaoh is fighting something up in the air with Princess Fragrance, Horrificator is trapped in her own slime, and half his forces are already defeated.

Gigantitan is useless, Gorizilla is currently searching the battlefield for Adrien for some reason, and…and, you must be joking, there comes Dragon Fyre, holding Aurore as she flies down. As she flies down…in her ridiculously-powerful winged form.

He's beginning to think this was a really bad idea…

In a last-ditch effort, he sends about a thousand scarlet Akumas after them - they can't dodge all of them, can they? It's a little gratifying to see all the heroes, Dragon Fyre included, stop and stare at the literal tidal wave of red butterflies that comes towards them, if he's being honest with himself.

Honeybee asks "Any ideas, guys?"

Lady Dragon lands next to them and transforms back, having taken out all the rest of the flying Akumas, and says "I've got one. Ladybug, open up that yo-yo of yours, I'm making a special delivery!"

Dragon Fyre nods, saying "I'll keep him busy while you guys take out the rest of his victims!"

Scarlet Moth feels his jaw drop to the ground in shock when he sees Lady Dragon appear in her dragon form - he didn't even know she was in Paris, much less here at this battle! And, to his utter horror, she makes a gigantic cyclone that sucks up all the Akumas…and pours them directly into Ladybug's yo-yo.

When the thousands of butterflies come out sparkling white, almost literally exploding out of her yo-yo, Scarlet Moth swears he can hear a cheer start up from the city.

Feeling like he's getting backed into a corner with no way out, just like back in Shanghai - except, this time, there's no convenient Guardian to Akumatize! - he sends the rest of his forces after the heroes. He's almost expecting it when Dragon Fyre leaps from one giant Akuma to the next, running up to him with her sword drawn and a fire in her eyes as he quickly blocks a swing straight for his head.

A few more strikes and a miss for her Miraculous, and Dragon Fyre smirks at him viciously as she says "It's over, Red Robin, and guess what? You lost, asshole."

He notices the small object dangling from her ponytail tie, but quickly blocks a kick to his midsection that still knocks him back a few feet. Still, it gives him an idea - a terrible, desperate idea...but he's desperate right now, and he hasn't got much other choice. He's come too far to give up now, after all.

"The army you gathered, via a lie? It's gone. Your ace in the hole? I took it out before I even showed up here. Kim never got the chance to fire even a single arrow before I ripped the Akuma straight out of him." She aims a round-house kick towards his head, which sadly gets dodged, and adds "Your butterfly army is purified, your last few Akumas are getting beaten as we fight. I'd say you should give up, but you've already proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that you won't give in even at the very end."

Scarlet Moth tries to attack, but his strike gets blocked, and he says "Don't start celebrating just yet, Dragon Fyre! I still have one last ace up my sleeve!" He quickly releases his emergency Akuma, usually stored in the head of his cane, and locks Dragon Fyre in place via their weapons.

There's a horrified series of cries from yards away, and Scarlet Moth looks up to see the last of his Akumas have been taken care of…and everyone is staring in horror as the last Scarlet Akuma enters Dragon Fyre's Kwagatama. It's a gamble, a massive risk, he knows…but he's out of options here.

Which would be why, before focusing every last ounce of his willpower on the ridiculously annoying girl in front of him, he calls out "Volpina, cover me!"

Taking Dragon Fyre's arm in his grasp, he leaps up to the support beams of the Tower and releases her while Volpina keeps the heroes busy. Her willpower, he finds, is ridiculously strong for a mere child - but he has one distinct advantage over her, she's fighting a two-way battle. She's trying to not give in to his Akuma and not lose control over her magic - just like with Befana. And, just like with Befana, she'll have to lose one battle at some point.

"Dragon Fyre," he says.

The red-head shakes her head, gripping at her hair, and grits out "No! No, you can't make me!"

"I can feel the boundless depths of your emotions. Your rage, your temper, your limitless fury when what's yours is harmed."

"Get out of my head, Hawk-Ass!"

"SIS! You've gotta fight him! Hang on, we're coming!"

"We won't let you have her! Scales, dig into that ridiculous stubbornness of yours!"

Rena Rouge snarls "C'mere, faker fox! I got a whole skeleton to pick with you!"

Time seems to freeze for Bloom, even the internal battle between her magic and Hawk Moth's enhanced Akuma suddenly stopping for a moment, and a new voice - distinctly female, she distantly notes - suddenly invades her head.

Dragon Fyre, I've seen you give everything you have to protect the ones you love, sacrifice everything again and again for your hoard. For your unwavering determination, no matter the odds, and your repeated self-sacrifice, I grant you your full Enchantix and all that comes with it.

Heat explodes in her chest three times over, burning away the Akuma's influence - it was still there, just frozen in time along with seemingly everything else right now.

Among those new benefits is the ability to gain additional transformations, enabling you to use a Kwami's power-ups. Use your new Bloomix well, Dragon, and punish the one who dares to abuse the Kwami of Transmission's powers.

Hawk Moth leaps backwards to avoid getting blown away when he feels Dragon Fyre's magic suddenly surge and his own break under the sudden influx of power, and incredulously asks "What?! Impossible!" Dragon Fyre just got another new transformation…this one even worse than the last.

Her wings now look like they're made of fire, her outfit now closely resembles her original super-suit…just more armor-like, or more along the lines of actual dragon scales, along with tunic-like. Her hair's being held back by some kind of tiara with a oval stone that looks like a drop of condensed fire, and the detail that there's fire dancing along her body does nothing to reassure him that this isn't very bad for him.

And then she opens eyes with irises made of swirling golden fire, and grins, saying "You ever hear the saying 'Karma's a bitch?' Well, I'm pretty sure she just stopped by to say hello."

Ladybug lands on one metal beam, and Cat Noir the other, and Cat Noir says "This ends now!"

Gabriel curses in his head, especially as his back quite literally hits the metal beam behind him, and Catalyst contacts him via their link saying "Hang on, Gabriel! I've got an idea!" He's just glad Catalyst is down in the underground repository beneath the mansion, because whatever idea she has can't be much worse than how this fight is going.

Dragon Fyre smirks at him victoriously all of a sudden, and says "So, that's how you did it. Guys, can you handle him? I'm gonna go take out the Catalyst of this situation. Wind Dragon!" She's gone in a burst of wind before Scarlet Moth can even think about trying to stop her - but how did she know?! 

Cat Noir swings at him, says "So, she's in on it as well. Honestly, I should be more surprised than I am." While it's a betrayal from her, it certainly explains why his father has been spending so much time with Nathalie lately.

Ladybug gets a furious look of her own, even as Scarlet Moth barely blocks a yo-yo strike, and says "And here I was thinking you were a solo act. Guess we shouldn't believe even a word that comes out of your mouth. No matter if you're in the suit or out of it."

Scarlet Moth makes a desperate gamble and jumps back down to the ground, wondering just where the hell everything went so wrong - right, when he lost contact with Dark Cupid. He suddenly turns back to normal, and curses as everyone bar Rena Rouge as she pins a struggling Volpina to the ground surrounds him.

Cat Noir gives him a loathing-filled glance - and for the first time Hawk Moth can feel just how much the blonde boy truly despises him, is disgusted by him, he was apparently holding back in Shanghai - and says "In case we weren't clear up there, we've known who you are since the day you Akumatized Volpina…Gabriel. Every day since, we've been waiting for you to slip up, to make a mistake, and now you finally have." And, Kwamis, does it feel good to shove it in his face. To make the man realize they've been playing him all this time.

There's three gasps, and Honeybee asks "What? But that's…"

Ladybug says "We didn't want anyone getting Akumatized. And the less people that knew we know, the less chance it could get out." They debated the pros and cons of telling them straight off the bat who Hawk Moth is...but, ultimately, they decided against it. Nino, at the very least, wouldn't be able to act the same around Adrien, Chloe would undoubtedly 'kidnap' him to her hotel, and Alya would probably write an article exposing him to the whole world.

And, while it'd be great if they could drive him out...they needed him where they knew what he was doing. And, more than that, they don't want any adult superheroes like Majestia getting Akumatized.

As if the universe itself is actively trying to make him fail, Hawk Moth feels his transformation suddenly…faltering, something that's never happened before. Almost as if Nooroo's trying to get out from inside the Miraculous. His suit flickers, revealing the pale hair underneath, and Carapace gasps as well before breathing out "Duude…that is messed up…"

Lady Dragon couldn't agree more - that is entirely messed-up on every level. How many times has Hawk Moth put his own son in danger? How many times has he killed his own son already?!

Lady Dragon glances up at a warning from the Renlings, then says "Guys, we've got someone incoming. Get back!"

Everyone leaps backwards all at once, leaving Hawk Moth wide open...for the massive fireball to land. As it is, he just manages to avoid being in ground zero for the massive crater that gets made - because Dragon Fyre was absolutely aiming for him.

The purple-haired woman that gets thrown out of the dust cloud, though, shocks everyone else speechless and horrifies him. Hawk Moth kneels down next to the woman, saying "I told you never to use it! You know it's too dangerous!"

"YOU BROKE IT?!" Dragon Fyre leaps out of the crater, still on fire and with a half-furious half-disbelieving expression on her face. "How in the world did you manage to break a Miraculous?! They're supposed to be nigh-on indestructible!"

Cat Noir breathes out "That's why...?" His expression twists, and he yells "That's why you did all of this? Why not just explain what's been going on? Why not just ask if she could be healed - you watched my sister heal herself right in front of you!" His mother is currently in a coma in a secret room hidden under the mansion because she used a broken Miraculous?! ARE YOU SERIOUS?! Hawk Moth has to duck a furious swing of the blonde's baton - aimed straight for his head - and then block a yo-yo from wrapping around him with his cane.

And then Nathalie coughs, and plucks a feather from her fan to send over to his staff. As soon as it connects, she says "Hawk Moth, I am Mayura."

Carapace nervously asks "Uh, guys? What exactly does hers do?!"

"You're up against the world, plagued by your deepest darkest despair. Let your despair be embodied in a powerful protection." Hawk Moth does the only thing he can...he accepts the power, the Amokization, even knowing what it'll immediately do to Mayura.

A gigantic, monstrous moth appears, and Dragon Fyre swallows and says "Monsters, Carapace. The Peacock Miraculous makes monsters."

The thing quickly kicks up a dust storm around them just by flapping its wings a few times - everyone gets literally blown away, even Dragon Fyre and her literal wings unable to withstand the sudden hurricane-strength winds.

When they get back, though…Hawk Moth and Mayura are gone. Not a single trace as to where they might've gone left behind - not even the monster-moth in the distance.

Rena Rouge punches Volpina out as she sits up, and they see a purple Akuma emerge from her Fox pendant. Purple, not red - Carapace has to pry Rena off of Lila before she goes 'full furious Kitsune' on her.

Chapter Text

Team Miraculous gets to Agreste Manor, newly-restored from getting literally blown to smithereens when Dragon Fyre saw Mayura, and they all look around. Carapace says "It doesn't look like he's been back…"

Cat Noir says "Even if the cameras didn't reveal him…the massive explosion sure did." He can't feel bad about that, he really can't. The only room in this place he has any good memories of anymore, anyway, is his own room. He'd gladly Cataclysm the rest of the place down to the ground if it came down to it.

Dragon Fyre winces, and says "Um, yeah…I sorta turned the house to matches…" She hadn't meant to, but when she saw Nathalie there, freshly transformed into Mayura…the rage just hit her like a bag of bricks - she'd thought maybe Nathalie was on Adrien's side, was trying to protect him if she could. She called her and everyone else up when he disappeared for Christmas, after all!

That hope had died when she saw the red symbol appear over Hawk Moth's face, and got buried about twenty feet down when she saw Mayura standing there.

She was expecting to catch fire upon seeing Nathalie…not blow up the mansion. Just like she hadn't tried to blow up the party stuff when she freaked about suddenly sprouting wings from her back, though...it just happened.

Five years of learning to control her magic, down the drain - because Karma decided to unlock a new transformation for her and she took a few leaps forward all at once.

After a moment, the red-head walks forward and says "It's down here. Under the painting." Cat Blanc showed her exactly where to go, before she went back with his Akuma. She memorized the route, goes over it in her head every night just to be on the safe side.

Cat Noir walks forward and puts a hand on her shoulder, saying "Sis, you…you don't need to do this right now."

Dragon Fyre just shakes her head, saying "Yes, I do. If I don't do it now, it'll be days before we get the chance again, at least." She flicks her fingers to the side, and…the floor tears up in a long strip. Dragon Fyre winces again, and mutters "Back to square one…" She meant to tear up the one part of the floor that was also the elevator, not two feet of flooring!

This is gonna be hard.

Again.

They all leap down, and Ladybug asks "What is this place?"

"Cat Blanc brought me down here before giving me his Akuma, Spots. Hawk Moth, he…it's his secret lair, among other things."

Cat Noir and Honeybee suddenly gasp and run forward, sliding to a stop in front of a glass coffin. When the rest of Team Miraculous gets to them, they see…a blonde woman lying in the coffin, hooked up to IV's and a life support machine.

Rena Rouge gasps, saying "Oh, Kwamis…"

Carapace asks "Wait, is that…oh gods…Kwamis..." This isn't who he thinks she is...is she?!

Honeybee shakily asks "She's alive…right? A- This is Emilie Agreste, right? She's still alive?" Her 'Aunt' Emilie disappeared without a trace two - no, closer to three now - years ago, Adrien was devastated and she was close behind. Emilie Agreste was more of a mother to her than her actual mom ever was, and losing her was like she'd just been stabbed.

And now…it turns out she wasn't missing at all…she was down here all this time, hooked up to life support and a heart monitor. Looks like they know why Gabriel Agreste has gone to such lengths now...though, again, why he didn't just explain what's going on and ask if Dragon Fyre can heal her is another excellent question.

Lady Dragon hesitantly asks "A Miraculous can…can do this to people?"

Dragon Fyre nods, and says "A damaged one can, yes. A whole one only drains a certain amount of energy from someone, according to Longg. But a broken one…he says it takes as much as it can in an attempt to repair itself. The Kwamis are…connected to their Miraculous. If the Miraculous gets damaged, it affects the Kwami. It makes them…he just said 'unstable' guys."

Cat Noir quickly asks "Can we reverse it, though? If we fixed the Peacock Miraculous, would Mo- would she wake up?"

Ladybug shrugs helplessly, an expression on her face that says she might be close to tears herself, and says "I don't know. Tikki isn't sure, but even if we fix the Peacock there's no guarantee that would heal Mrs. Agreste."

Dragon Fyre says "I can heal her, I think. I have to at least try."

Honeybee nods, and starts trying to pry off the lid of the glass coffin with Cat Noir as he asks "Why didn't he just ask? Say what was going on? He's had all this time to just say something, yet he's just kept on terrorizing the city…" Exactly nobody has an answer for that one, unfortunately.

They finally get the coffin open, Cat Noir looking like he's about to have a meltdown even as Honeybee talks with him - and everyone but Dragon Fyre gets a sick, sinking feeling in their gut about Cat Noir's secret identity - and Dragon Fyre suddenly bursts into flames as she takes Emilie's hands in her own.

Fire spreads down Emilie's body, color quickly filling her complexion, the heart monitor picking up speed - Dragon Fyre doesn't stop for a solid minute as she quite literally pours her magic into Emilie Agreste's body, but by the time she does…Emilie's eyes have opened. She's blinking, she's awake!

Most everyone's breath catches in their throats as she blinks a few times, expression turning confused as if she has no idea what's going on - not that surprising, she's been asleep for three years! - and then Emilie gently slips her hands from Dragon Fyre's. After a moment, she says "Thank you, young lady. What's going on?" Also, who is she, who are they, why's the blonde boy look like he's about to burst into tears, why are they all dressed in spandex suits, and where is she?!

Emilie finds herself unceremoniously pulled out of the coffin - coffin?! - she was in, and the red-head tiredly says "You've been in a magic-induced Coma for the better part of three years. Here, Brother, hug your mom. I'm gonna crash…like, right now." True to her word, she collapses as soon as the glow shuts off around her, like her magic was the only thing keeping her going.

Ladybug catches her, and Emilie says "I see…" She doesn't need to ask if the young red-head has magic or not, even as exhausted as she is it's coming off her in waves.

That seems to be Cat Noir's breaking point, as he flings himself towards Emilie with a cry and wraps his arms around her waist as if she might disappear. And that's when he starts sobbing, even muffled as it is everyone can hear perfectly clearly when he drags a shuddering breath in before near-wailing into Emilie Agreste's shoulder.

Ladybug asks "Cat Noir? Wait…hug your mom…" She goes about as pale as a sheet, even as Emilie starts running her fingers through his hair, and quietly asks "Adrien?"

Carapace immediately gasps, saying "Ohmigosh!" He knew things were complicated with this magical war they're in...he didn't know things were that complicated. His best friend's father is a magical terrorist, his best friend has been fighting his father all this time and didn't know it for part of it...and then found out at some point. Probably when he got Akuma- no, when he Akumatized himself. All because Adrien took a book...that must've been it, then, what gave him away. A book. 

Emilie hums, then says "We should get out of here…wherever here is, anyway."

Rena manages to stay coherent enough to get out that they're underneath Agreste Manor, but only just. She and Lady Dragon are probably the least affected by the past two minutes, and she thinks she's going into shock.

Emilie nods, glancing around at everyone, then seems to come to a decision because she says "Everybody come close. I'll get us out of here, just…well, I'd say 'don't freak out' but I get the feeling you're familiar with things like this."

Everybody steps closer, matching looks of confusion on all their faces…which quickly turn to utter shock as Emilie waves a hand and they all get encased in a light blue bubble that floats up through the hole in the ceiling.

Twenty minutes, a few cases of shock, and Lady Dragon being the one that takes charge and gets everyone sitting down, the magenta-haired girl says "Maybe we should start from the beginning…like how you suddenly have magic? When, the only person I know of who can do things like that was born with it?"

Emilie nods her head, flexing her fingers as light blue sparks float around them, and says "I was to. As was my twin sister, Amelie. It's something passed down in our family, our secret gift. There's an old family legend that we're descended from a Fairy, many, many generations ago."

Adrien - as he transformed back about two minutes ago and now has Plagg sitting in his hair - asks "So…Mom, why can’t I do…anything like that?"

Emilie gives Adrien a sorrowful look, and says "I…your father couldn't have children, Adrien. It devastated the both of us. And, when Amelie was blessed with a son…I had an idea. A crazy, desperate, irrational idea…but it worked nonetheless." She knew there would be a price to pay, she really did...but she didn't know it would be so terrible. Still, she wouldn't have done anything differently if she had the chance.

Marinette quietly asks "You used the Peacock Miraculous, didn't you?"

Emilie nods, saying "I did. It was already broken when Gabriel gave it to me as a proposal gift, as nothing could top the Graham De Vanily Twin Rings, but that gave me a chance to create life, true life. I used the Twin Rings to hold the Amok, and I poured my everything into the attempt alongside Amelie - my desire to have a child, her love for her own baby boy, our wish for her son to not grow up alone. In the end, it almost worked - we were trying to give the child free will, to free them from the control of the Peacock Miraculous so they couldn't be destroyed by it. But, no matter what we tried, even together, the two of us weren't strong enough to free him - you, Adrien - from your Amok, much less pass on my magic to you as we'd hoped. And, eventually, my magic wasn't enough to sustain me. I started getting dizzy spells, being bedridden for days, I…" She closes her eyes as if in defeat, and murmurs "I'm sorry, Adrien, that I wasn't strong enough to be there for you longer. That I let this happen - made this happen."

Adrien shakes his head, Plagg flying up for a moment before settling back down, and he says "It's not your fault, Mom! You couldn't have known what would happen!" That's not even touching on the detail that he wasn't born, but...created, apparently. 

Emilie shakes her head, saying "Duusuu tried to warn me, even though she was erratic about it. She said a broken Miraculous takes a toll most cannot bear. I had foolishly thought that, with my magic, I could bear it. I was wrong."

Marinette says "That doesn't mean you made anything that's been going on happen, Mrs. Agreste! You didn't make Gabriel-" Her jaw suddenly snaps shut with an audible click, even as she goes pale.

And that'd be when it suddenly hits everyone that Emilie Agreste has no idea what's been going on all this time. Why a group of literal children are wearing more Miraculous', why Adrien broke down at long last in a full-blown meltdown that would've gotten him Akumatized were Hawk Moth not thoroughly busy right now, and why her husband is nowhere to be found.

Emilie leans forward slightly, asking "I didn't make Gabriel…what?" Everyone trades nervous glances, cluing her in to the detail that this is not something small, and she asks "What did my husband do? Adrien? Chloe?"

Chloe bites her bottom lip, feeling even more nervous than when she changed back in front of Carapace and Rena Rouge - Nino eventually managed to say it was definitely not the craziest thing he's learned today, and that was apparently that - and says "Erm, Aunt Emilie? You know he's got a Miraculous to, right?"

Emilie nods, saying "The Butterfly. We had fun leaping from rooftop to rooftop or having dates on top of the Eiffel Tower, but that was harmless. Why do I get the feeling this isn't, Chloe?" What, exactly, has her husband done?! And why does nobody seem to want to tell her?!

Alya, apparently deciding to take the bull by the horns, nervously says "Because…it isn't. Mrs. Agreste, you've been sleeping for about three years now. And, for the past year or so…"

Far, far away, Gabriel Agreste stumbles as he gets hit with absolute fury. Beyond anything he's felt from even Dragon Fyre at her angriest, something he honestly didn't even think was possible.

Nathalie coughs a few times, trying to get to her feet, and Gabriel puts a hand on her shoulder saying "No, Nathalie, stay down. Exerting yourself anymore than you already have will only make you worse."

Nathalie coughs again, and says "I had no choice, Gabriel."

Gabriel nods his head reluctantly, and says "I took a risk, I admit, with that last Akuma. And it ended badly." It ended…with him currently hiding in one of his own warehouses, after ramming his shins about a hundred times on ridiculously-stacked boxes that is.

Right now, the two of them are in a small clearing in the boxes, after Gabriel blew away as much of the dust as possible and took out some of the clothes stored here for something soft to sit on.

Even further away, Amelie Graham De Vanily drops her cup of tea in absolute shock as something she'd given up on sensing ever again hits her like a bag of bricks.

Ten seconds later, Felix is holding his very unconscious mother so she doesn't hit the ground and wondering what it is he's sensing and just why it would make his mother faint in shock.

Even further away still, two ladies start making plans to track down the massive explosion of energy they sensed - they'd agreed that, if it happened again or 'Team Miraculous' came to this continent, they'd investigate before the Wizards of the Black Circle could.

Well, it happened again.

They're investigating.

Marinette, meanwhile, tries not to have a mental breakdown over the detail that Adrien is Cat Noir, she's been rejecting Cat Noir for Adrien, she told Cat Noir she likes Adrien, all of it. And Adrien tries to keep it together himself before just giving in and kissing her like he's wanted to do ever since the night he learned her secret identity and realized she is, in the suit and out of it, absolutely miraculous.

Pun most definitely intended.

Chapter Text

Consciousness crashes into Bloom like…well, like a bag of feathers and bricks mixed together. Her body feels heavy as if she's been petrified…but her magic feels like a literal inferno in every single cell of her body.

At least it doesn't hurt.

"Bloom? You awake?" That would be Adrien's voice, sounding very, very shaky, and a hand that isn't his runs through her hair.

Mustering up every ounce of her limited strength, Bloom makes a noise in the back of her throat. And then Adrien full-body tackles her in a hug, saying so many things all at once her barely-awake brain can't quite keep up.

Longg's voice says "Cat Noir, calm down. She's awake, just needed time for her magic to recover."

Plagg's voice adds "Told you so, Kitten. Now, take a deep breath, and let her breathe, alright?"

Bloom tries to crack an eye open, but even the sliver of light that makes its way through hurts her brain so she vetoes that idea for now. After a moment, she whispers in a raspy voice "Where's…"

Adrien takes both of Bloom's hands in his own, and says "Everyone had to head home to reassure people they're alright. School was canceled for the rest of the day, thankfully, and it's Saturday now. You've been sleeping for almost a full day, Sis, it's about…ten in the morning."

Bloom frowns, trying to think of something important - it just won't come to her, though, even though she's sure it was extremely important. Adrien pulls her from her thoughts, though, asking "You still with us, Bloom?" Bloom tries to nod, and murmurs "Mm-hm. Just…hard to wake up."

A new voice says "That would be because you exhausted yourself so much so soon after earning a new transformation, Bloom. Your magic feels like it's on a sugar-high, I'd imagine, while your body feels like it's made of stone."

Bloom nods her head again, frowning when she can't place the voice - she's heard it from somewhere, but for the life of her she can't remember where. And then she feels a hand rest on her shoulder, and a cool tingling sensation run through her - weaker than her own magic, but- Bloom's eyes fly open in shock as that particular realization hits her like a heavy bag of concrete-coated bricks - thrown by a Dragon, no less - and she gasps, and glowing light blue eyes stare at her for a moment, before fading to a familiar green and Bloom full-on gapes at her in utter shock.

It takes a solid two minutes for her to form a coherent thought, and what spills out of her mouth is "You're magic..." Not the most eloquent of responses, no...but she's just learned she's not alone in this world bar the four weirdos that stranded her in Paris. She's not the only one with magic. 

Emilie nods, saying "I am, sweetheart. Not nearly as strong as you, however. Even with my twin sister, the two of us together couldn't hope to match you in terms of raw power."

Bloom groans, putting a hand to her head, and asks "You wouldn't happen to know why that is…would you?"

Emilie hums, and says "Unfortunately, no. However, your Kwamis may be able to shed more light on the subject than me. I do, however, want to thank you once more for healing me."

Bloom shrugs, adrenaline starting to wear off, and says "Don't mention it…"

Adrien quickly says "Let's get you some food, sis. I'll call the others up, let them know you're awake."

Twenty minutes later, all of Team Miraculous is watching in a sort of horrified fascination as Bloom devours a small feast - if they didn't know Bloom had been unconscious for a day, they'd be seriously wondering when she last had something to eat was.

And then she tilts her head to the side suddenly before shaking it and continuing to eat, almost as if she was trying to hear something.

Gabriel curses in his head and ducks down behind several crates when he hears the door suddenly open…and an all-too-familiar voice says "It shouldn't be long. The biggest thing she's got in here is a cooler and a bean bag chair."

Honeybee's voice incredulously asks "What do you mean she's got stuff in an old warehouse?"

Cat Noir says "She lived here for five years."

There's an oddly-strangled sound from three people, and Rena Rouge asks "Dragon Fyre…lives in a dusty old warehouse?!"

Now Gabriel feels the urge to let out a noise of his own - that's news to him, after all.

Cat Noir says "Not anymore. She's staying with me from now on. C'mon, let's get her stuff and get back." They head to the back, Cat Noir calling out various warnings in the process, and he uses his staff to…reveal an opening in the ceiling. A sort of trap door that's not really a door, sliding a piece of ceiling back and dropping a rope down.

Rena Rouge manages to say "That…shouldn't be possible. Warehouses don't have attics…"

Cat Noir shrugs, testing the rope a few times, and says "My sister made it. I'm not gonna pretend to understand how when even she isn't entirely sure how it just came to be. How good are you guys with rope climbing?"

Honeybee mutters "Now it makes more sense…" Now it makes a lot more sense why Bloom Peters is so fast when it comes to that particular challenge in gym.

Cat Noir just uses his staff to get up there, and Gabriel can only watch in something akin to trepidation as the seconds tick by without them coming out - they can only be talking about Dragon Fyre, but Dragon Fyre was living in one of his old warehouses?! The detail that he not only got his backside handed to him so thoroughly be a magical teenager, but a magic street kid at that, is nothing short of absolutely humiliating.

Rena Rouge's voice asks "Do I even dare ask where she got this stuff from?"

"Dude, are these her parents? Wait…I think I've seen them from somewhere before."

Honeybee incredulously asks "Why in the world does she only have seven outfits?!"

A cooler gets lowered down via Honeybee's yo-yo, and the four heroes drop back down with arms full of belongings. Carapace glances around at everyone, currently carrying a cardboard box of books, and asks "Is this everything?" Honeybee's got the seven outfits, an incredibly guilty look on her face when she realized that, yes, that really was all she had to wear besides the outfit she already has on, Rena Rouge is picking up the cooler, and Cat Noir's got a stack of drawings and a few other belongings. After a moment, he says "That looks like everything but the bean bag."

Rena Rouge deadpan-asks "How in the world did she even manage to get a bean-bag up there in the first place?!"

Cat Noir shrugs, saying "Pretty sure she made that one, honestly. C'mon, M'Lady can only keep her distracted for so long, and I really want to surprise her."

Honeybee asks "What about the bean bag chair? She'll probably notice it's missing." "I'll be back for it. Hold these for a moment?" Cat Noir hands Carapace the drawings for a moment, heads up to the 'attic' once more, and comes back down a moment later with a dark blue bean bag slung over his shoulder. "Honestly, not as heavy as I was expecting. I think we can make it in one trip."

Marinette glances at Bloom once more, the tenth time in the past five minutes, and finally asks "You alright, B? You've been…" Spacing out, something she never does.

Bloom scrubs at her eyes, shakes her head immediately afterwards, and says "It's gonna sound crazy. Crazier than Paris' usual crazy." Wearing magic jewelry is one thing, leading a double-life and turning into a superhero is another, turning into a superhero via a tiny god entering that magic jewelry you're wearing is edging on insane…and then there's hearing a woman's voice calling her name, vaguely familiar as if she heard it before she could really remember it, and distantly as if from a very long tunnel.

That, Bloom figures, is called being a head-case worse than even Hawk Moth can claim to be. She'll ignore it, block it out like she blocks out peoples' ghosts when she's talking to someone. And hope to hell and back it doesn't get any worse.

Like Marinette's freak-out that Cat Noir is Adrien - that took about two hours, Adrien hugging her to get her to stop pacing, and Tikki trying to talk her down while Plagg about died of laughter until she finally stopped completely spiraling long enough for Adrien to get a word in.

Or, in that case, tell her he adores her in and out of the suit and kiss her.

Chapter Text

Adrien opens the front door when there's a rapid series of pounding on it, almost expecting to see Marinette or Alya standing there with some news on Hawk Moth…instead, it's Felix and Aunt Amelie. Felix looks supremely confused while Amelie looks about ready to start breaking down doors. And then Adrien's verbally assaulted with a barrage of questions too fast to understand - what he does understand, though, is that his Aunt is freaking out.

Amelie Graham De Vanily has never looked anything less than impeccable in the entire time he's known her, always calm and put together…until now, when she's shown up out of the blue about two days after Heroes Day and looking like she's one wrong move away from either bursting into tears or going off altogether.

Felix quickly leans in, saying "I don't know what happened two days ago, Adrien, but Mom has been a complete wreck ever since. She just collapsed out of the blue, then insisted on coming down here as soon as possible as soon as she woke back up. Has anything weird happened in the past few days?" He doesn't understand his mom's insistence that the feeling they both got right before she collapsed was Aunt Emilie, but he isn't going to try and argue either - he hasn't had all his life to know the feeling of another person's magic like she did with her sister.

They'd hoped Adrien would show magic of his own, that the two of them would grow up learning it together like Amelie and Emilie did, but…it wasn't meant to be, apparently. Except…it feels like there's a beacon of it somewhere in the manor - and it is highly distracting.

Adrien raises an eyebrow at Felix, even as he and his Aunt Amelie get inside, and asks "Weird how?" Felix opens his mouth to respond, but Adrien adds on "Weird as in, supervillians being created out of angry or upset people on a daily basis? Or weird as in, my entire family on mom's side has magic and never told me because they didn't want me to feel left out or not a part of the family?"

Felix's jaw drops open, and he quickly says "Adrien, I swear-"

"Or, how about weird as in, finding out all my life I was a Sentimonster until my adoptive sister somehow or other brought me to life?"

Felix makes a strangled sound in the back of his throat, and Amelie drops to her knees and cups Adrien's face with her hands glowing a light green.

After a moment, she asks "How is this possible?!" Adrien was a Sentimonster, she could always feel a pull in him towards his Amok - but now...there's nothing. He can absorb magic, yes...but there's no feeling of it going anywhere like when he was tethered to his Amok.

Adrien shrugs, saying "You wouldn't believe me if I told you, Aunt Amelie. About…anything, really."

Felix groans, then says "Try us, Adrien. I never told you about my magic so you wouldn't feel different. Because you couldn't do the same kinds of things I could, and I didn't want you feeling left out." That's why he had to walk back his magic to 'magic tricks' when they were younger. Switching cards on Adrien or them dressing up the same to trick their fathers. 

Adrien pinches the bridge of his nose, then says "Trust me, I've been feeling anything but left out, lately. You've heard what's been happening here in Paris…right?"

Amelie nods, asking "You've been safe, right? Finding somewhere to hide whenever these…Akumas show up?" England is close enough to Paris that the Mayor had to tell them what's going on with Hawk Moth, after the debacle that was Shanghai.

Adrien grimaces, then says "It's…complicated, Aunt Amelie."

Felix mutters "Oh, gods…" That's never a good sign, never.

Before Amelie can demand an explanation of just what that means, Bloom comes down the stairs asking "Adrien? Everything all…oh."

Adrien grins, even as Felix and his Aunt's jaws crash through the floor, and says "Bloom, this is Felix and Aunt Amelie. Felix, Aunt Amelie, this is my new sister, Bloom. Or, she will be after Mom finalizes the divorce papers and then the adoption papers."

Felix faintly asks "Where did you find her?" He's never felt anyone with such powerful magic in his entire life - not that he's got any frame of reference other than his Mom and Aunt Emilie, of course.

Adrien grins, and says "School, believe it or not."

Bloom raises an eyebrow, then says "A, someone's got some really strong genes in your family, you know that? B, nice to meet someone else with magic. What all can you do?"

Adrien shrugs, saying "Felix liked to do magic tricks when we were younger, but…never told me it was actually magic like you can do. One time, he and I dressed up the same - nobody could tell us apart for hours!"

Felix smirks, then says "Well, Father and Uncle Gabriel certainly couldn't. Mom and Aunt Emilie played along, I was eventually told."

Bloom asks "Do I dare ask why you're here now? I've been doing magic all over the place for the past year, so…"

And then Emilie comes running down the stairs, and Amelie gasps at once - the two throw themselves at each other, both ladies going into a shared meltdown almost immediately, and Felix mutters "Unbelievable…" He hadn't completely believed his Aunt Emilie, who Gabriel had said was missing, was really back. But…here she is, clinging to Amelie Graham De Vanily like her life depends on it.

After a solid five minutes, Amelie pulls back and asks "How is this even possible? I couldn't sense you for three years, Em. And now…"

Emilie chuckles wetly, and says "It's a long story, Am. You remember when we created Adrien together?"

Amelie nods, and asks "What about it?"

"Well…as it turns out, the price to pay was steeper than anticipated…"

Amelie's face drains of color instantly, and she asks "What? You mean to tell me…"

Emilie nods, then says "If I had to choose, though…I'd do it all over again to have Adrien alive." Amelie puts her head in her hands, looking like she's regretting many of her life choices.

Adrien swallows, then semi-awkwardly says "It's…it's not okay, but…Mom's awake again, I'm alive - really alive - and…well, I've got a sister now to. I won't say everything was a pile of roses or anything, but…it's alright enough." What, exactly, is he supposed to say? Because that's the only thing he could think of. He's never heard of any kind of situation like this before, after all.

Emilie sighs, running a hand through her hair, and says "I suppose so. We can't change the past, anyway, so there's no point in getting hung-up over it."

Amelie runs a glowing green hand over Adrien's body again, then frowns and says "He's been freed from his Amok, but…it makes him a magical vacuum. And, Emilie, I absolutely forbid you from trying to fill it. I'm not losing you again!"

Felix asks "What if we put something else in the Vacuum, then?"

Bloom crosses her arms, asking "Like what, exactly? I've known about my magic for all of five years now, and the only remotely magical things I've ever heard of are the Miraculous' Hawk Moth wants so badly!"

"Well, there's got to be something we can use! Or we could try-"

Amelie scowls, saying "Felix, you know why we can't just try to 'nuke our magic' as you put it - Fairy Hunters would be drawn to it like flies to honey!"

"Mom, you've been telling me horror-stories about them for as long as I can remember, but you've never even seen one!"

Bloom sucks in a sharp breath, blood draining from her face, and asks "What now?" Fairy Hunters? Like...the guys that stranded her in Paris?

Emilie nods, saying "One of a few old stories passed down in our family - one's that we're descended from a powerful Fairy…another's that most of them have been hunted down by Fairy Hunters. Hence why we've kept our magic hidden, for the most part. We trained and practiced together in a Warded training area, learning what our magic can and can't do…but we've never flown through the night on our own wings, or tried to use our magic openly. It's the reason I didn't want you going out, Adrien. I feared they would sense the magic that created you and kill you or lock you away like they have so many others."

Bloom runs shaking hands through her hair, and says "I think I met them. Five years ago, four weirdoes showed up out of nowhere. They killed my original adoptive parents, tried to suck me into some kind of wormhole…and then it spit me out into the La Seine River the next instant. That's how and when my magic awoke, at ten years old when I'd just been stranded and orphaned in Paris. They called me an Earth Fairy, and I'd thought they were crazy at first. And then, after I spontaneously sprouted wings from my back, I'd thought maybe they just hadn't waited long enough."

Adrien scowls, then says "If they show their faces, I'm gonna end them. Even if I have to do it one by one."

Bloom asks "How?! Adrien, they killed mom and dad in literal seconds!"

"If I have magic of my own, it'll be a lot harder for them to get near me." Plagg said something about the 'Waters of Creation' once, said it was one of only two things equal to the power Bloom holds - he doesn't want to try and steal Tikki's role, but it certainly sounds like something that would grant him some magic. Right?

And then everyone but Adrien turns towards the front door sharply, and Felix asks "What now?!" He's gone his entire life to date without meeting a single other magical person aside from his mother and his aunt…and now they're coming out of the woodworks?!

Chapter Text

Amelie opens the door sharply, only to find a girl with green hair and brown eyes standing at the front door, an elderly woman in a pink dress a few steps behind her…and magic coming off the both of them. Two people that weren't there when they arrived, she couldn't sense either of them. Narrowing her eyes slightly, Amelie asks "Can I help you?" She discretely waves Felix further back into the house, making Bloom narrow her eyes in worry - whoever's at the door doesn't feel anything like the four men that killed her parents…but they do have magic.

So why now?

Why they're at the manor is obvious…but why now? Because all of them are here now? Or because she lost control on Heroes Day?

The green-haired girl says "Maybe. We were in America when we sensed something a few days ago - powerful, very powerful. And, if my Godmother and I sensed it from the other side of the world…anyone with any magical aptitude in the whole world probably did to."

The elderly woman says "I believe we should introduce ourselves first. My name is Eldora, and this is Selina. A pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Amelie says "Likewise. You are here for…magic, then?"

"As it happens, we're looking for a rather extraordinary young woman who goes by the name of 'Dragon Fyre' - she may be in grave danger, even if that danger hasn't shown itself here in Paris yet."

Selina bursts out "They already took my parents and tried to kidnap me, alright? You might not believe us, but those four creeps are out there! And with how strong this Dragon Fyre seems, it's only a matter of time before they hunt her down to!"

Amelie starts in surprise when Bloom's voice comes from directly behind her, saying "Hold up a minute, what now?! Did you just say 'four creeps'-" Bloom stops and stares, frozen in utter shock at the sight of a girl she hasn't seen in over five years now.

After a moment, Felix asks "I take it you know her?"

"S-Selina?"

"Bloom?! You're alive?!" Two seconds later, Selina's past Amelie and wrapping Bloom in as tight a hug as she can manage.

"You said four weirdos attacked-"

"Three years ago, you recognize-"

"They did the same to me five-"

"A shapeshifter, a guy with a trench coat, one with hair like a stop sign-"

"They attacked us at the Trocadero-"

"They killed Aunt Vanessa and Uncle Mike-"

Everyone glances back and forth like watching a tennis match as the two Fairies keep interrupting one another, ending up nearly in tears by the time Selina tries to explain how she ended up living with Eldora, and Felix leans over to Adrien and asks "You think this is a Fairy thing? Getting all emotional like this?" His mom and Aunt did earlier, and now these two are in tears to...his mom said her emotions fuel her magic, maybe it connects them to their emotions more than normal to.

Adrien shrugs, saying "Possibly…probably. Bloom usually tends towards anger, but…" But, right now, his sister looks like she's about to burst into tears in Selina's arms and vice versa.

Eldora says "Selina was attacked by a group of Fairy Hunters three years ago that called themselves the Wizards of the Black Circle. She was lucky enough to have enough training to make a portal to my home, though. By the time they caught up with her, I was able to intervene and save her. We haven't heard from them again…and I defeated them soundly enough that they'll think twice before crossing into the Forest of Flowers once more. It would appear, though, that young Bloom here survived a similar encounter with them. How, I can't say for sure."

Ten minutes, an entire box of tissues and some more sandwiches for everyone later, Selina asks "What the heck's been going on lately, B? We've been trying to do some research, but all we can find is a guy who deals with either hawks or moths, a gigantic statue-thing in Shanghai you went off on - you going off on that statue-thing with the laser beam from its eyes - and a website called the Ladyblog." And a shitshow documented on the Ladyblog.

Adrien runs a hand through his hair, saying "It's a really long story. It started when-"

The sound of glass breaking catches everyone's attentions, and they all turn to see Bubbler crouching in front of the broken window. Everyone gets trapped in bubbles before anyone can even react, Emilie and Amelie with Eldora, Selina with Felix, and Bloom with Adrien.

Adrien deadpans "This. This has been happening. For over a year." And, to be honest, he's sick of it.

Bubbler gets a purple mask over his face, saying "I don't want to fight, Emilie, this is the only way I could get close enough to talk!" He can't even show his face in public now!

Bloom bangs both fists on the wall of her and Adrien's bubble, snarling "You don't wanna fight? Then let us out of these! Unless you're too much of a coward! Or are you gonna go find another teddy-bear to threaten people through?"

Emilie hisses "I have got nothing to say to you, Gabriel! I cannot believe you would go so low! You've been terrorizing the entire city, and for what?! When you could've just explained my condition and asked Dragon Fyre to heal me months ago?! And is this some poor soul you've gotten to as well?!"

Bubbler shakes his head, saying "It's a Sentimonster, Emilie, I swear! I didn't see any other way, you have to believe me!" Senti-Bubbler, as they're going to call him, rests a hand on the side of the bubble in an imitation of cupping Emilie's cheek, and says "I was desperate, Emilie. I couldn't bear living without you! I was going to use the wish to wake you back up, that's all! I never wanted world-domination or anything, I just wanted you back!"

Bloom laughs humorlessly, saying "Funny, since you've had months to just come out and say that, like she just said." Add to it, the Kwamis said they accidentally contacted him during the Sandboy incident trying to get in touch with Nooroo...and they said what he told them. That he'd enslave them all.

Adrien adds "You watched Dragon Fyre heal herself right in front of you, I saw it on the surveillance footage afterwards! You could've just said something the very next Akuma and been done with all of this!" He may be beating a dead horse at this point, but he'd really like an explanation as to why he didn't just stop everything. They'd have understood if he'd come out and said 'my wife is in a coma due to a Miraculous, and the only way I know of to fix that is to use the Cat and Ladybug Miraculous' but can you please just try?'

Senti-Bubbler shakes his head, saying "I was in too deep even then! I'd already done too much for it to be so simple! Emilie, please believe me - everything I did, I did for you!"

Bloom saves her from having to come up with an answer to that, a pocket knife ripping its way from inside her sock and into her hand before getting jammed into the bubble and popping it. Before Senti-Bubbler can react, Bloom's already leaping onto his back and yelling "Stay away from them!" And then she jams the knife into Senti-Bubbler's jet back on his back, immediately making them both go flying.

Adrien throws himself to the floor as Senti-Bubbler and Bloom zoom past him, hitting a wall, the ceiling, the floor, another wall, and then going out the window at last.

Selina stammers "That…happened." Her childhood best friend got awesome since they last saw each other, and she means that in the most objective way possible.

Adrien pushes himself up at once, saying "That's what's been going on for the past year! Can you guys get out of those?"

Selina nods, concentrating a ball of magic in her hands before forcing it into the bubble and making it burst.

Amelie and Emilie do the same, and Amelie incredulously asks "What do we do now?!"

Adrien says "This. Plagg, Claws Out!" He takes a running leap mid-transformation, goes through the broken window, and they see him leap over the wall a moment later - quickly followed by a figure in yellow and black. Selina and Felix stare out the broken window, then at one another, and Selina mutters "Better turn on the news…" Something tells her this is going to be live.

Sure enough, five minutes later, they see a life feed of Bloom on the Eiffel Tower…beating the daylights out of Senti-Bubbler as Nadja Chamack and her cameraman film.

"Is that…Bloom Peters?"

"I think so! What in the world happened?!"

Ladybug, Cat Noir, Honeybee, Carapace, and Rena Rogue show up, and Honeybee deadpans "I think we're actually saving the Akuma-victim from her."

They all start leaping up the sides of the tower, and Senti-Bubbler vanishes as soon as they get close, a purple Akuma getting caught immediately. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

A burst of ladybugs explodes from the yo-yo, fixing the Agreste Manor window and several cars and buildings the pair crashed into before vanishing.

Three minutes afterwards, Adrien and Bloom come downstairs, having gotten back in through Adrien's window, with everyone else following moments later.

Felix deadpans "You're Cat Noir…which makes you, Bloom, Dragon Fyre." And the rest of the teens with them all of 'Team Miraculous' then.

Bloom shrugs, saying "Yep."

Adrien adds "I said it was complicated."

Felix buries his face in his hands, muttering "Ohmygod…"

Amelie snaps "Does Gabriel know?!"

Adrien and Bloom both shake their heads, and Bloom says "No, we've been extremely careful to avoid that. If he knew Adrien was Cat Noir…" If Gabriel Agreste knew Cat Noir was his own son, he'd destroy the world.

Selina semi-sarcastically asks "I take it he wouldn't just sit him down and explain everything?"

Adrien lets out a bitter laugh, and says "No, he'd use me to destroy the world. We know he would."

"Ohmygodohmygodohmygod…"

Adrien shrugs, saying "You don't know the half of it, Felix. Trust me on that."

Nino adds "This is just the tip of the messed-up iceberg, dude. Adrien, is this the cousin you told me about?"

"Nino, Felix. Felix, Nino."

Amelie half-curiously, half-furiously says "You seem rather calm about all this…"

Adrien shrugs, saying "I've had time to process it all, Aunt Amelie. Trust me, I was a wreck when we first found out Gabriel is Hawk Moth." Marinette puts her hand over his and squeezes it for support - yes, her kitty's behavior that whole week makes all the sense in the world now. She just wishes she'd figured it out then...and she's kicking herself for not doing so.

Eldora hums, saying "You don't call him your father."

Adrien deadpans "He stopped being my father the minute he put on the Butterfly Miraculous and started terrorizing the city. I just hadn't known until later."

Eldora groans, putting a hand to her head, and Selina asks "Wait…isn't that the name of those things from the story you told me?"

Plagg zips out of Adrien's pocket, asking "Wait a minute…Eldora?! Is that really you?!"

Longg comes out next, and says "It really is you! Greetings, it's wonderful to see you again. And to meet your new apprentice."

"Ohmygod…"

Everyone glances at Felix, who seems to be in some kind of breakdown at the moment, and Selina asks "How about we get you some air?"

Felix nods his head…then squeaks when Bloom picks him up by the back of his shirt and says "Let's go, then…"

Felix glances over towards Adrien, looking not entirely unlike a kitten being held by the scruff of its neck for a moment until she sets him on his feet, and incredulously asks "Is she always like this?!"

Adrien grins, saying "You get used to it, Felix."

"When?!"

"Took me about…eh, a week? If that."

Alya says "Took me a few days."

Nino says "Took me no time at all when I realized her two identities."

Once Bloom's finished dragging Felix out of the building - and saying she's not going to let him crack his head open if he faints - Adrien turns to Eldora and asks "Any ideas on how to find…what'd you call it, Plagg? The…Waters of Creation?"

Selina blinks, asking "The Water Stars? Is that what you mean?"

Eldora hums, saying "They're stored in the Golden Kingdom, a way to keep their power from interacting with the Dragon Flame unchecked. Unless they had a Holder of their own, doing such a thing would spell disaster."

Selina says "From what I've read in Eldora's library, the Dragon Flame and the Water Stars were separated because their raw energy kept clashing - think…if your Kwami over there and his counterpart got into an argument and had a magic-fight with one another."

"And, if both power sources did have Holders? What then? Marinette and I can use our powers just fine when transformed..."

Amelie asks "Adrien, you aren't seriously considering what I think you're considering?" Her nephew isn't actually going to try sticking these Water Stars inside himself…is he?!