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Chapter Text

Chat Noir didn't know what he had done wrong. Yes, he was a bit annoying at times, but he never thought he took it out of hand. It all boiled over when they had fought Reflekta. They had swapped Miraculouses. Chat Noir, now Mister Bug, and his partner, Lady Noir. He didn't know if it was the cat miraculous that made Lady Noir overly annoyed with Mister Bug at all. Lady Noir had insulted him and/or put him down more times in one day since they had first become partners. After dodging a beam from Reflektdoll he was prepared to yell,
"Lucky Cha-"
"No!" Lady Noir stopped him.
Mister Bug looked at the hero next to him, confused, "What?"
"The Lucky Charm doesn't just give you something to defeat the akuma! You actually have to think! WITH YOUR HEAD!"
With that last sentence, Lady Noir hit Mister Bug on the head with her staff.
Mister Bug winced in pain. After he recovered, still hiding from Reflektdoll, he spat," If you can't rely on me to think, why not just do this by yourself?!"
Lady Noir stopped, her once cocky attitude replaced by rage, " What? What did you just tell me? I'm your partner, the leader, the perfect hero! You can't just say stuff like that to me! I'm the brains and the brawn, you're just a- a- SIDEKICK! YOU NEED TO LISTEN TO ME BECAUSE YOU'RE TOO IDIOTIC TO DO ANYTHING FOR YOURSELF!"
That yelling caught the attention of Reflektdoll who turned her head and charged up a beam to attack them.
As the duo jumped away Mister Bug dryly said, "What was that about being too idiotic?"
Lady Noir gasped, practically fuming, "Let's deal with this later, first, the akuma and amok."
Mister Bug rolled his eyes but stopped to continue defeating Reflektdoll and Reflekta, "What was I about to do? Ah- Yes. Lucky Charm!"
A mirror appeared in Mister Bug's hands, the same mirror that he would use to reflect an oncoming beam.
Lady Noir appeared frustrated, "Beginner's luck."

They eventually defeated the akuma and Lady Noir watched as Mister bug Yelled, "Miraculous Ladybug!"

Mister Bug and Lady Noir ducked behind a wall to detransform. Once they got their miraculouses back, Ladybug angrily spoke, "Transform, Chat. We need to talk, now."

"Plagg, Claws Out!"
"Tikki, Spots On!"

Now Ladybug and Chat Noir faced each other, alone on the roof of a building.
Ladybug yelled, "What's wrong with you?! We could have had our miraculouses taken by Reflekta!"
Chat Noir's brow furrowed, "You yelled first though..? I didn't do anything!"
Ladybug bitterly laughed, "You were always 'innocent', weren't you? The only pUrRfEcT hErO."
Chat Noir yelled, getting frustrated by Ladybug's antics, "Listen Ladybug, I'm not a 'purrfect hero', everyone has room to grow, even you! You're just too... too... self-centered to realize that you AREN'T PERFECT! Stop acting like you're above us all! You're no better than me or Chloé for that matter! You're just a hypocrite who has nothing better to do than to make me feel bad! Haven't you ever-"
"ENOUGH!" Ladybug hollered," EVERYTHING I'VE DONE HAS BEEN FOR PARIS!! I'M DONE WITH YOU BEING- YOU! WHY CAN'T YOU BE-"
Chat Noir interrupted, fed up, "SINCE YOU'RE SO PERFECT, WHY CAN'T YOU BE PARIS'S HERO THEN, HUH? IF I'M SUCH A BAD HERO, WHY DO I BOTHER BEING HERE FOR YOU EVERY TIME THERE IS AN AKUMA ATTACK? I GIVE UP, LADYBUG, I'M DONE. FROM NOW ON, WE ARE NOT PARTNERS!"
Chat Noir took a deep breath, "I'll be an independent hero and I'll stay out of you hai-wig. Quite a bad wig you've got there. I wish you.. well Ladybug, remember, we aren't on friendly terms anymore." It felt good for Chat, even if it was petty, to insult Ladybug one last time as he used his staff to quickly go away towards his house.
Ladybug went wide-eyed, like she were actually a bug, "No! YOU GET BACK HERE! IF YOU QUIT, AT LEAST GIVE ME YOUR MIRACULOUS SO I CAN FIND A HOLDER BETTER THAN YOU!" It was already too late, Chat Noir was gone.
Ladybug continued staring in the direction of Chat Noir's travel and yelled in anguish, "IMAGINE NEEDING TO SINK AS LOW AS A WIG INSULT! I DO NOT HAVE A WIG AND MY HAIR IS IN FACT BEAUTIFUL." Ladybug whined in anger and eventually whispered, "Tikki, spots off." She slowly detransformed back into Marinette, with Tikki staring at her,
"Marinette-"
"Stop."
"You shouldn't have been so me-"
"I said stop!"

To be continued...

Chapter Text

Tikki's POV

Tikki worriedly watched as Marinette fawned over her pictures of Adrien. She didn't get why Marinette had to stalk the poor boy. Tikki just supposed that she didn't get teenage love in the modern era, but after her argument with Chat Noir, Marinette's behavior was getting more and more concerning. Tikki watched Marinette when Marinette suddenly jumped up, " Tikki! I remember I told Alya that I would meet her at the park, let's go!"
Tikki frowned, "Are you sure you're up for it?"
Marinette nodded enthusiastically, "Yeah! Plus Adri-I mean Alya will be there and Alya's my friend, so I have to go!"
Tikki's frown furrowed even deeper, "Marinette, you're only going your Adrien, aren't you?"
Marinette shook her head," No! Why would I know where the love of my life- I mean Adrien- is right now?"
Tikki crossed her arms, "You have his schedule, Marinette, just confess to him, stalking is a crime."
Marinette's jaw dropped, " I'm not stalking him! I'm just protecting him! I'm doing a good thing by protecting a citizen of Paris, which I should do because I'm Ladybug!"
Tikki tried to lecture Marinette, "Adrien has a bodyguard! He doesn't need you to watch over him. Just confess to him like a normal person and it should be al-"
Marinette shoved Tikki into her bag, "Sorry Tikki, I'm going now. Plus, what if Kagami tries to brainwash him or something? His bodyguard can't protect him from that! Adrien's too pure... too nice to see through Kagami and Lila and Chloe! I need to be there for him. I'm doing a good thing. Now be quiet or my parents could hear you."
Tikki mumbled, " Adrien knows that Chloe and Lila aren't nice. Just let the poor guy live his life."

While they were at the park, Tikki listened as Marinette met up with Alya. Their conversation was concerning. Is everyone in Paris a stalker? How could Alya enable Marinette's toxic behavior? Tikki of course couldn't see anything, but she could very well hear what was going on.
"Hey girl! What's your game plan?"
"Game plan? For what?"
" To confess to Adrien of course! He's right there, modeling right now! You know that! Come on! I can script something for you!"
" Alright, Alya..."
" What's wrong? I'm your BFF, I can tell when something's off."
Marinette hesitated, "I'm not sure if I can tell you yet... Maybe later."
Tikki gasped. Was Marinette going to reveal her identity? TO ALYA OF ALL PEOPLE? Alya acted nice, but in the end, she was an enabler and didn't deserve to be Ladybug's ally. Then again, maybe Ladybug didn't deserve to be Ladybug.
Alya replied, "That's alright! You can tell me once we go to your house or something."
Wow. Did Alya really not care about people's privacy? People keep secrets sometimes!

The rest of the time at the park went like pretty much every other time that Marinette stalked Adrien. Marinette started stammering around Adrien and ended up leaving because she couldn't. Tikki waited with bated breath as Marinette went back to her room with Alya.
Marinette inhaled sharply, "Alya... I'm Ladybug..."
Alya gasped, " THAT'S AWESOME! YOU'RE PARIS' HERO!"
Marinette started sobbing, "No! I got in a fight with Chat Noir and I didn't do anything! He got mad at me and left. He got mad at me for no reason! I don't get why he had to leave me! He doesn't want to be partners anymore"
Alya started trying to soothe her sniffling friend, "Well, it's all for the better, isn't it? I mean Chat was always incompetent, so you might as well rid yourself of someone as useless as him."
Marinette sniffled even more, " H-he took the miraculous! I can't even pick anyone else better than him!"
"How do you feel about letting me be Rena Rouge again? I can be a better partner than him!"
"I.. don't know, Shadowmoth knows your identity..."
"Yeah, but if you take the Miraculous back later, it should be fine, right? No matter who I am, if you have the miraculous, Shadowmoth will never know!"
Marinette wiped her tears, "That's a great idea! I mean, the fox isn't as powerful as the cat, but it should be fine!"

Tikki had had enough. How could Marinette be such a hypocrite?! How was Alya allowed a miraculous, but people like Kagami couldn't?!

Then Tikki realized. She could take the Miracle box and give it to Chat Noir. Chat Noir wasn't perfect either, but he probably could choose heroes better than Marinette. By then, Tikki had realized. Marinette was already being a stalker after Chat Noir argued with her, but if Tikki left, Marinette would start committing a whole new level of stalking. Tikki couldn't leave. However, if the Miracle box were to be stolen... Tikki would still be around to stop Marinette. It was a sacrifice that would be worth it.

A few hours later, Alya left and Marinette changed into her pajamas. They had eaten dinner earlier.
"Tikki, you can come out!"
Tikki flew out of Marinette's bag, "What were you thinking?!"
Marinette gaped at Tikki, "What?"
Tikki realized she couldn't afford to have Marinette mad at her, " I mean- um- it was a brave thing. Telling Alya your identity."
Marinette seemed to be satisfied by this explanation, "Alright. Well, goodnight Tikki!"

After a few minutes, Marinette was sound asleep. Tikki picked up the Miracle box from its hiding spot and looked at Marinette regretfully.
She whispered, " I'm sorry it has to be this way..."
She wrote a note for Adrien, explaining how Ladybug wasn't a good hero and Tikki needed him to watch over the Miracle box for the time being. She hoped his father wouldn't find it. Adrien's father was pretty strict. The note read,
"Dear Adrien,

I'm sorry that this needs to happen, but Ladybug isn't a good guardian. For a while, can you please watch the Miracle Box? I can help you hide it, but Ladybug will be furious. I'm so sorry. I wish it didn't have to be like this, but she's gone too far. Please do not tell Ladybug that I gave the box to you. I'm sorry you have to take the blame, but she's on the verge of committing a crime and probably can't take me betraying her. Send Plagg if you have anything you need to tell me.

Thank you so much,
Tikki, the kwami of the Ladybug."

Satisfied with her work, Tikki shed a tear as she held the Miracle box with all the sleeping kwamis and flew far away, towards the Agreste mansion.

Marinette's POV

Marinette screamed with rage and sadness. THE MIRACLE BOX WAS MISSING!
"TIKKI!"
"What is it, Marinette?" The kwami inquired, sleepy-eyed.
"THE MIRACLE BOX! IT'S-IT'S GONE!"
Tikki's eyes widened, "Calm down Marinette. It should be alright. Maybe Chat Noir took it?"
Marinette started to cry, "No... he would need to know my identity! Who could have taken it? NO ONE KNOWS MY IDENTITY!"
Tikki tried to comfort the girl, " Plagg does, Marinette. I'm telling you... it was probably him."
Marinette nodded, "Next time I see Chat, I swear that cat is dead!"
Tikki yelped, "No! You can't do that! Chat has a family. Plus if you destroy one of Paris' heroes, public opinion about you will go down.
Marinette calmed down. Tikki was right. It would all be okay... She just had to argue with Chat Noir once more.

Tikki's POV

Maybe this wasn't a good idea after all...

To be continued.

Chapter Text

In Marinette's Room...

Marinette yelled, "Come on Tikki, let's go! We need to find Chat!"
Tikki looked at the floor, "Marinette... I have an important question for you..."
Marinette turned around, and spoke in an annoyed tone, "What?"
Tikki gathered the courage to look Marinette in the eye and asked, "Why are you so obsessed with stalking Adrien?"
Marinette gasped, "Tikki! We already talked about this- I'm not a... stalker... per se! I'm just a concerned citizen!"
Tikki glared, "Marinette, sit down. We are not going ANYWHERE until you tell me. I understand it may be traumatic for you, but you are going to far! You've broken into the poor boy's house and you have his P E R S O N A L P R I V A T E schedule. I know Adrien isn't perfe-"
"YOU'RE WRONG! ADRIEN IS PERFECT. HIS SCENT IS PERFECT, HIS CHARACTER IS PERFECT, HE IS THE PERFECT MAN FOR ME!"
Marinette took a deep breath, "Listen Tikki, I could just transform now and leave, but since I'm nice, I'll hear you out and tell you."
Tikki and Marinette both sat down, the kwami listening quietly,
" Chloe used to make fun of me... every day. But I found solace in that time... Kim. I loved him so much and h-he betrayed me! He was in cahoots with Chloe! He pranked me with spiders and made me fall into the swimming pool!" Marinette started to cry, but eventually continued, breath shaky, "I swore that I-I would- never fall in love until I knew everything about a boy. I would make sure they weren't friends with C-Chloe ever again! I wou-wouldn't do this if it weren't for Chloe! Rose said that Chloe was only doing what she was doing because her 'mommy dearest' left her, but I didn't know Chloe would- Mylene said that her mom doesn't excuse her behavior because her mom left her too, and I agree. How does her mother leaving her excuse her terrible actions? To me? To everyone? She's even been mean to Kim but he still loves her!"
Tikki tried to comfort Marinette, wiping her tears, "Listen Marinette. I can tell this is a difficult time for you, and I don't want to say something to startle you. Do you want to hear what I have to say now or would you rather wait? It isn't the most pleasant thing..."
Marinette started to breathe heavily, "Give me a moment, I'll be alright... hold on."
After about 20 minutes of sitting in silence, Marinette finally spoke, "Okay, I'm good..."
Tikki hesitated, "What I'm going to tell you may seem brutal, but it needs to be said..."
Marinette nodded her head, "If I'm Guardian, I need to be able to take this. I mean I will be the guardian again once Chat gives me that box."
Tikki took a deep breath in, "Mylene was being a hypocrite, and by believing what she said about Chloe, so are you..."
Marinette's jaw dropped, "W-what?! But her mother leaving her doesn-"
Tikki interrupted, "It doesn't, I agree, but you act like Kim can justify your behavior towards Adrien. If trauma is why you are doing bad things, shouldn't the same apply to Chloe?"
Marinette gaped at Tikki, "No-no! It's different I was- you see- I- Chlo- AGH!" Marinette put her head in her hands.
"Marinette? Are you okay?" Tikki asked.
"Tikki... you never understood! Chloe is mean and racist for no reason! I mean her mother did leave her, but she's still mean. I'm protecting Adrien from manipulators like Lila and Kagami! Even if I did do it because of trauma, a good deed is a good deed!"
Tikki sighed, "Marinette... what you're doing isn't healthy! You need to stop! Let me explain things to you..."

In Adrien's Room...

Plagg eyed the Miracle Box, "Sugarcube must have gotten desperate, giving this to you..."
Adrien was with Plagg, staring at the box, "Whatever happened with Ladybug, I can't keep this. My father is making my schedule more busy and I still have school, I can't be the Guardian! My dad might snoop in my room at any time... I have to give this back!"
Plagg held up the letter, "I would go tell Sugarcube, but Ladybug will probably come find us sometime soon... She's probably furious right now."

To Be Continued

Chapter Text

Marinette's room

Marinette sighed, "You know what Tikki, maybe you have a point. Maybe I shouldn't have done all those things, but I can't undo anything! I can't! I don't know what's wrong with me! I'm too far gone to stop now! I need- protect." Marinette choked on her words. Tikki grabbed a tissue and handed it to her,
"Marinette, I'm trying to help you, but you need serious, professional help and to face the music and accept punishment for your crimes. I hate for this to happen this way."
"But! Tikki! I- my future- fashion! I can't give it up now! Can't I just forget this happened? Can't I?"
"No Marinette, you need consequences! If you don't get any you will go right back to fawning over Adrien with your friends validating your behavior!"
"Listen Tikki, I disagree. I don't deserve consequences. I've grown, I'm a better person. I swear I won't go back to stalking! Ever!"
Tikki frowned and shook her head, "Marinette-"
Marinette pulled out her notebook, "Ah! Adrien's almost done with his photoshoot! It's at the Eiffel Tower! I should go confess to him, and get him flowers, no- I'd get flustered. All this after the photoshoot of course, I can't disturb Adrien's work-" Marinette continued rambling, though the way she said Adrien's name was oddly emphasized.
"Marinette, what did you just say?!"
"Shoot, I'm so sorry Tikki! I can't stop now, Adrien's just so... you know!"
Marinette sighed dotingly, looking at her pictures of Adrien.
"Well," Marinette put on her purse, "I gotta go, come on Tikki!"
"Marinette!"

Adrien's photoshoot.

"These pictures are amazing, Mr. Agreste. You have a true talent!" The cameraman smiled.
Adrien smiled politely, "Thank you, sir."
Adrien always appreciated compliments. But compliments from modeling were something else. They were all about his looks, and not about him. No one new the true Adrien except for... her. Maybe he shouldn't have been so cruel to Ladybug. He cringed looking back at that interaction. How had things gone so wrong?
The cameraman started packing up his equipment and said, "Your father approved the pictures, so I will be on my way soon, you may change back into your regular clothing."
Adrien snapped away from his thoughts, "Thank you sir! I'll go do that!"

After Adrien changed back into his normal clothes, his thoughts wandered again. Finally that photoshoot was over. It had felt like an eternity. Adrien sat on a bench as he waited for Gorilla to come pick him up. Then he suddenly heard a voice,
"A-adri-en!"
Adrien whipped his head around. It was Marinette, his good friend.
"Hi Marinette!"
"H-he-ien" Marinette stammered. Adrien wasn't sure why Marinette acted so weird around him. Whenever he tried to ask Nino, all he did was chuckle and say, "Marinette's really nervous, right dude? She stutters all the time!" But Adrien knew Nino was lying. She was the most confident girl in the class, aside from Chloe and Lila of course. But they are Chloe and Lila. As much as Adrien tries to defend his childhood best friend, Chloe was something. And Lila, she was an annoying liar.
"Do you need anything, Marinette?"
"I-ah-got... I-I- no-thi-ng."
Gorilla drove up to the bench, gesturing for Adrien to get in the car.
"I have to go, but it was good seeing you, Marinette!"
"B-bye!" Marinette flushed bright red.

Marinette's POV
I chickened out again! BUT... at least Adrien said it was good to see me. That has to mean something?

Chapter Text

Marinette groaned as she sat down on the bench Adrien was sitting on and pulled her phone out of her purse. She put in her password and called Alya, 

“What’s up Marinette? Did you finally-? 

“No!” Marinette complained, “I chickened out! Again! I don’t know why! I just get so… nervous! He’s just so… him, you know? 

Alya tried to comfort her friend, “Marinette… it’s alright! You can try again some other time! You’ll be alright!” 

Marinette sighed, “It’s just… I’m tired Alya… I’m so tired… I just want him to love me. Is that really too much to ask for?” 

Marinette and Alya continued talking, with Alya trying to help out her friend until Marinette decided to head home. 

Adrien was at his house. That’s when there was an Akuma attack. It’s the first Akuma attack since… that day. 

Plagg looked at the television with the emergency announcement, “You alright to go kid? It’s gonna be strange without Ladybug, right?” 

Adrien, also looking at the television, “Yeah… but there’s a problem… this Akuma is more dangerous, right? The announcement said…” 

There was a scream from the TV, and the camera turned to show the Akumatized villain. 

“Hello Paris! I am The Witch! Now… Ladybug and Cat Noir! Give me your Miraculous, pretty please!” The young girl spoke overly sweetly like she was an actor in a melodrama. “Or else….” She pulled the cameraman from the side using her magical staff. Her purple eyes lit up psychotically. “Let me give you a preview!” The cameraman started sweating, 

“Please! No!!! Please-please, don’t hurt me!!!” 

The Witch smiled, “Bye bye! Poof!” The man disappeared in a cloud of dark pink dust. 

“Anyway,” she continued, “That’s what will happen to Paris if you don’t comply! Meet me at the movie theater!” She disappeared. 

Adrien and Plagg both gaped at the television. 

“Kid… this is really, really bad.” 

“I know. Plagg! Claws out!” 

(epic transformation) 

Cat Noir waited outside the movie theater. He needed a plan. First, he needed to get the villain to monologue. There is no way to brute force this one. 

“Cat Noir!” Ladybug landed right next to him and angrily spoke, “I need to talk to you later! But just, stay out of my way and we’ll be on our merry way, understand?”

Cat Noir nodded, “Understood… Ladybug…” 

“Listen. Just stay out of this one. I have a plan. I will manage myself. Just go home!”

Cat Noir responded, “Wait, Ladybug! I think I can help with this one. Please, she’s very dangerous!”

Ladybug sighed, “That’s exactly why I don’t want you here.” Ladybug dramatically kicked down the movie theater door, bracing for a fight and slowly disappeared into the movie theater. Everyone had vacated the premises due to the evacuation protocol during Akuma attacks. The theater was dead silent. Chat Noir had a choice. Either go in and disobey Ladybug or stay here and actively ignore duty. He was about to go in the theater when he heard quiet sobs from the rooftop. He used his pole and got up there, only to be greeted by The Witch herself, silently crying as Hawkmoth communicated with her, “I can’t do this anymore, Hawkmoth. I’m sorry! I’ll fail you like everyone else.” 

She grew silent as Hawkmoth responded, nobody but her being able to hear him,

“You really think I can? You’re right. I should at least try… You’ll be able to help me, right? I can get-” She wiped her tears but her eyes widened, suddenly aware of Cat Noir’s presence. 

“GET AWAY FROM ME!” She jumped up pointed her staff at him. 

Cat Noir held up his hands, “Listen, I just want to talk. I will not hurt you.”

The Witch pretended to hesitate, “Blah blah! You’ll probably just try and find the-” her shoulders fell, “You know what. I’ll entertain this idea of yours.” Cat Noir could practically hear Hawkmoth being annoyed, but he didn’t interrupt. Maybe they both have the same idea. Cat Noir’s hand fiddled with his ring as he sat down, The Witch slowly putting her staff down next to her and joining him. 

“So,” Cat Noir started, “Troubles huh?”

The Witch gazed at the sky, “I have no obligation to tell you anything.” 

Cat Noir shrugged, “But you agreed to talk to me, right? So part of you wants to tell me something.” 

The Witch started anxiously fiddling around with her fingers, “Ah, just parental issues.” 

Cat Noir nodded understandingly, “I see. I won’t force you to tell me any more than you want to… but maybe I can relate to what you’re going through.”

The Witch laughed, “The Great Cat Noir, having parent issues?”

Cat Noir looked down, “Yeah… maybe I could help you, he offered his non-ringed hand to The Witch, “The Witch is a bit on the nose, is it not? Why don’t I call you something else?” 

The girl paused, “Odette. Call me Odette.”

“Odette… alright then.” Cat Noir recognized the name as one of the minor antagonists in a new movie, a witch actually, he had met the actress for the role before… 

“Crystelle? Crystelle Martin?” 

The girl looked panicked, “Please, don’t call me that! That… is who I am though…” 

Cat Noir mentally slapped his forehead, this was delicate ground, he had to tread lightly, 

“I’m sorry Odette.” 

Odette sighed, “I thought I was ready to face this place… I guess I’m not.”

Cat Noir gently asked, “May I ask what happened?” 

Odette closed her eyes, “My greatest disgrace. I got cast as a minor role in that…movie. My parents, they would not shut up about how I was a disgrace to them. How I wouldn’t be anything to anyone and how I was going to be nothing. Ha. I’m more than they’ll ever be. I’m their one chance at being famous. The parents of an up-and-coming actress. I was supposed to score one of the major roles. The protagonist, Isabelle Rose, or the antagonist Lucie Amelia. But I got a minor role. What a disappointment I was. Eventually, they stopped, but once the movie came out, they put more salt in the wound, talking about how those characters could have been me and how no one cared about the minor character Odette. I just- I don’t know! I thought I would be able to come back, show myself I was the bigger person. But as soon as I saw that movie poster, I broke down. And… that’s why I’m here. I got promised that I could get approval. Because deep down, that’s all I ever wanted, approval from others, I wanted so desperately to be remembered.” A tear silently slid out of Odette’s eyes. 

Chat Noir delicately responded, “For what it’s worth, my father had me watch the film… Odette was one of my favorite characters. And you, Odette, I admire your work. Why else would I have remembered you? You’re a person worth remembering.” Odette wiped her eyes, her hat now laying on the ground and purple dress crumpled in heaps on the floor. Her sapphire necklace glinted with tears, 

“Thank you, Cat. I really needed this. But I hope you understand…” Odette made a lunge for Cat’s ring, with Cat jumping back because of it, 

“Odette… I understand what it’s like, to want to get revenge on people who have hurt you!” They got in to a small scruffle, Odette crying as she made several jumps for Cat’s ring, “Then you know why I need this! I need to!” 

Cat grabbed Odette’s necklace and crushed it in his palm, hoping to find the akuma. It wasn’t there. Odette leapt backwards and grabbed her staff, about to cast a spell. 

“Odette, wait! Please stop! You’re better than this! You don’t have to destroy Paris!” Odette hesitated, ball of energy surging in front of her golden staff, “I never wanted to destroy Paris! It was an empty threat. Cat Noir, you understand where I’m coming from, right? If you give me your miraculous, I can make you happy too! I won’t hurt you after this!” 

Cat Noir approached Odette, tears streaming out of her eyes, “Odette put the staff down!” 

Hawkmoth’s insignia appeared over Odette’s face, most likely convincing her to get done with the deed. Odette dropped the staff and slowly slid to the floor,  

“Hawkmoth, I need to think. Cat Noir has been nice to me. I can’t harm him or anyone else. I already hurt that poor cameraman. Please, I will stay for a bit.” 

All of a sudden, a familiar yoyo flew out of nowhere, capturing Odette. 

“Cat… I- Why?” Odette started crying, “ I thought you actually cared! I-god how stupid of me!” 

Ladybug however, was far more angry, “WHAT WERE YOU DOING?” She hollered, “I START LOOKING AND I FIND YOU BEING ALL BUDDY-BUDDY WITH A VILLAIN? I DECIDED TO WAIT FOR THE RIGHT TIME TO INTERFERE, WHEN THIS HERE WITCH STARTED GOING CRAZY!” Having realized she had revealed the truth about her and Cat Noir's falling out to Odette, Ladybug gasped and cupped her hands over her mouth. Odette started calming down, “I see. Well, as you can see, my time in this form is numbered. The Akuma is in the bow on my dress.” Ladybug broke the bow, captured the akuma and Odette returned to her normal form, her pinkish hair returning to its normal light brown, purple eyes returning to their normal honey brown. Her mask disappeared revealing a tan face. Crystelle Martin has returned. 

“MIRACULOUS LADYBUG!” Ladybug yelled, bringing back the camera man. The news arrived quickly, Ladybug giving a semi-fake story still trying to hide the falling out between her and Cat. Meanwhile, Cat Noir was talking to Crystelle. 

“In all honesty, you did absolutely meowverlous in that movie.”

Crystelle smiled, “First cat pun of the day I see.”

“Yeah I needed to be a bit more serious earlier.” 

“Cat Noir!” Ladybug called, “We need to talk!” 

Cat Noir flashed a friendly smile at Crystelle, “Gotta go, see you around?” 

Crystelle nodded. 

Cat Noir was not prepared for what was about to happen. It's time the whole Miracle Box situation was over, but still. He and Ladybug headed to the sewers for a more private place. He wasn't sure why they couldn't find another spot besides the sewers, but it is what it is. 

To be Continued.

Chapter Text

Cat Noir and Ladybug both jumped into the sewers, landing on the brown ground. Cat Noir was used to the rancid smell after so many encounters with it. He turned to face Ladybug who was already looking at him angrily,
“What the hell, Cat? Why would you steal the Miracle Box? I needed the holders today for The Witch!”
Cat bit his tongue, unsure if whether the truth should come out or not, “I… umm… I…”
Ladybug impatiently put her hands on her hips, “What?”
“I… don’t have it!”
Ladybug looked shocked, “Then who does, Cat?”
“Bunnix!”
Ladybug looked even more confused, “Why would Bunnix have it?”
“I don’t know! I don’t know! Tikki should’ve told you this! Maybe the Miraculous are in danger in the future?”
Plagg cringed in the ring. Hopefully the lie wasn’t too obvious.
Ladybug calmed down a bit, “Well, Tikki and I haven’t had time to talk about it. We were doing other guardian things. Fine! I’ll check in with her. I swear if you’re lying..!”
Chat Noir looked at the time on his pole-phone thing it was getting late. His father would really not appreciate this,
“I gotta go, I’ll see you soon with more on the Bunnix thing?”
Cat Noir climbed out of the sewers, zipping to his house and flying through the open window.
“Plagg, claws in!”
Plagg flew out of the ring and was immediately concerned, “Kid, what was that?! ‘Bunnix has the box’?! Really?! I need some cheese!”
Plagg made a beeline for the cabinet Adrien had filled with cheese, Adrien, however, was deep in thought, “I would have thought my father would send Natalie or someone to check on me during the Akuma attack… I wonder what’s up with that? And Plagg, I had to come up with something! The box… I need to get rid of that thing as soon as I can!”

The lie had been told already…
Now there was no turning back.

Chapter Text

IT'S ME... EPIC COMEBACK TIME.
Anyway, im working on the next chapter should be up by Monday. Sorry for saying I was gonna update over the summer and then just .. not. still have no clue where to go next with this fic I reread the old chapters and erm... What was I doing. As you can probably tell by my typing style ive gotten character development over the last 6(?) months, but I'll try and stay consistent with what I wrote before. If any of you guys are still here, thanks for sticking with this fic after all this time.

Chapter Text

Marinette’s Room.
Marinette frantically paced around her room. What did Cat mean when he said that Bunnix has the miracle box? Was she supposed to know about this? Tikki watched as she paced around the room, gripping at her hair,
“Marinette, I’m sorry I forgot to tell you, but what Cat Noir said is true… I just… was busy?”
“BUSY WITH WHAT? Listen Tikki, the Miracle Box is very important, how did you just forget that?”
“I’m sorry Marinette…” If Tikki could sweat, she’d be sweating bullets right now. While Cat Noir had been able to play off the lie well, there was no way Tikki could. Couldn’t he have come up with a better lie? A white portal appeared in Marinette’s room, and out walked the Bunnix,
“Hey, Marinette. Can I talk to you?”
Marinette’s head whipped around to face Bunnix, “Bunnix?! What happened to the Miracle Box?! Why didn’t you tell me earlier?!”
Bunnix smiled nervously, “Well… something does happen to the box in the future, that’s no lie… but I can’t tell you what because… it’s quite a big thing. Classified time business, you know?”
Marinette frowned, “Couldn’t I just stop it now, like what happened with Chat Blanc?”
Bunnix shook her head, “I’m afraid not. I tried that already. Chat Blanc already scarred you. This is way worse. You can’t touch the situation right now. I’m working on it. Trust me with the Box, please.”
Marinette’s eyes widened. Worse than Chat Blanc? Worse than everyone in Paris dying and the moon being split in half? What the hell happened?
“Okay,” Marinette said as her pacing around the room slowed, “The Box is safe. That’s all that matters. Thank you for telling me, Bunnix.”
Bunnix gave her a slight wave, “Well, I gotta go now. Sorry for scaring you like that. Before you ask Tikki about why she didn’t say anything, I told her not to. It leads to quite the series of events, if you know what I mean.”
Marinette nodded, “Okay. Keep me updated on the Box. Thank you so much Bunnix!”
Bunnix left through the portal, and the portal slowly shrank into nothingness. Marinette sighed, now that that was settled, she had to do something about the rogue Cat miraculous. She couldn’t let him keep it. What to do…?

Adrien’s Room

“Okay,” Adrien spoke, plopping down onto the couch in his room, “We need to come up with something, Plagg. This is not going to go well once Ladybug realizes we’re lying.”
Plagg spoke through a mouthful of cheese, “Well, I’m sure Sugarcube can keep things in check for a while. But Adrien, I’ve been thinking…”
“Yeah?”
“You should find a new partner, or someone. With what happened with Ladybug, I’m sure that you need someone else to rely on. I mean… you kinda need friends, kid.”
“I have Nino,” Adrien said, “And Alya…and Marinette? She’s a bit interesting…”
Plagg sighed, “I meant a SUPERHERO friend.”
“It’s not like Ladybug and I told each other anything anyway.”
“Well… shouldn’t that change? I mean, every hero needs their super awesome trustworthy sidekick.”
A portal appeared behind Adrien’s couch, and Bunnix jumped out at sat next to Adrien,
“You owe me one, kid.”
“BUNNIX?!” Adrien yelped, “What are you doing here?”
“I went over to Ladybug’s and covered your super nice in the moment but reckless in the long run lie! Listen… You two need to sort out whatever happened between you. I can’t say much, but this situation can’t stay for much longer. You both need to work out some issues.”
Adrien put a hand on the back of his head, embarrassed, “Thanks Bunnix. I’m sorry about lying. I’m trying to fix things, and I think Tikki is too. I don’t really know what I can do though.”
Plagg’s eyes lit up, “Hey! What if we start handing out Miraculous again? I mean, Bunnix! I’m sure there’s someone you can trust one to. Like Rena Rouge or Viperion or someone! Tell Ladybug first so she doesn’t freak out, and we’re good to go.”
Bunnix placed a hand on her chin thoughtfully, “Well… it’s not like that isn’t a bad idea. But the whole point of only having two permanent miraculous out was to decrease the risk of Hawkmoth discovering identities. I’ll have to see about that one. Well… I’ll go now. Good luck with the mess you’ve gotten yourself into, Adrien.”
Adrien waved a small goodbye as Bunnix disappeared into the portal behind her. He should probably think very carefully about what he’s going to do next.