Chapter Text
Ren stepped off the plane and felt the crisp air on his face. Time to start his life in a new country.
Heart beating in his chest he walked onwards, paying attention to the exotic languages around him. Most of which he recognised but only one that he could read. He collected his bags and left through large doors welcoming him to Paris. And just like that he was through.
Stuck in the crowd he glanced around nervously until he saw. There at the back of the crowd was a Japanese man, the one he’d been told to meet. The man clearly saw him and was eyeing him warily, a look of both pity and disapproval on his face. Ren walked forward until just before that man. “S-Sojiro?” He asked, his voice hesitant.
The man nodded. “You must be the delinquent then.” Ren flinched yet Sojiro paid him no mind. “Look, I get that it’s hard on you moving to a new country and all but just watch yourself you hear? I’m only doing this as a favour. I’m not your friend. The moment you step out of line you’re on the first flight back to Japan.” Sojiro turned and began walking towards the exit without checking whether Ren was following.
“Your mother said you speak good French. I don’t know how accurate that is but you’ll want to get fluent as soon as possible if you don't want to fall behind.”
Sojiro still hadn’t looked back. Ren allowed himself to give in slightly to the spark of rebelliousness that sometimes lit in his chest and more often than not got him into trouble. Opening his mouth he responded in perfect French. “Thank you for the suggestion. I’ll do my best to learn the language as soon as possible.” His mouth broke into the slightest smirk as Sojiro turned around, a single eyebrow raised.
“Don’t take that tone with me young man.” His tone was sharp, though thankfully he responded in French and Ren was able to follow. He wasn’t certain he would. “Your pronunciation needs a lot of work and some of your words were in the wrong order. It’ll be obvious you’re not used to the language.” Then surprisingly Sojiro sighed and began to rub the back of his neck. His voice softened as he continued. “Though I’ll admit it, you’re better at it than I thought you’d be. Sorry for underestimating you.”
Ren smiled in satisfaction. The praise was more than he had honestly expected to get out of the man who seemed determined to keep him at arms length. Though Sojiro had a point. The only experience Ren had using the language was in speaking with his mother and reading French novels. He desperately needed more practice if he wanted to keep up with his schoolwork.
And so during the car ride he tried asking Sojiro questions in hopes of engaging the older man in conversation. It went better than could have been expected. Eventually Sojiro turned on the radio, the hosts were talking about the local superheroes. Ladybugs and Cat something?
Not long after they were pulling into side street, Ren who had been glancing out the window at the gorgeous Parisian architecture, noticed that they parked outside some sort of café. It looked like a cosy little a blend of French and Japanese influences. Outside it were European and Japenese potted plants along with signs in both languages. Above the door was a standard red and white striped covering as one would expect in picturesque Parisian cafés. And printed in bold lettering was what Ren assumed was the name of the place.
“Leblanc?”
Sojiro glanced at him. “Correct, this is my place. And where you’ll be staying for the next year.” He fumbled with the keys as he unlocked the door.
‘I’ll be living here?’ Ren thought to himself as he stepped inside and took in the cozy aesthetic of the place. He felt his heart beat with excitement. He had always dreamed of visiting an actual French café in Paris, and now he was going to be living in one. This is exactly what he needed for his fresh start. Now he only had to find a traditional French bakery nearby and this would be perfect.
He glanced around at the comfortable looking booths and the kitchen with what seemed to be an expensive looking coffee machine and a lot of tins of assorted coffee beans of varying types, strengths, and origins. Breathing deeply Ren could smell the coffee and curry smells, the memories of the many meals that had been enjoyed here and seeped deeply into the place.
Sojiro continued leading him through the café and up some stairs where he stopped in a loft. It was... not the greatest.
Okay fine, it was a mess.
The place clearly hadn’t been used for anything other than storage for years. There were boxes and pieces of junk everywhere. The place was cluttered, messy. Still, at least the place was mostly free of dust and there were no cobwebs that Ren could see. And in the corner was a modest bed and a sturdy looking bed. And more importantly it was a place of Ren’s own. Clean the junk up, fill the shelves, decorate the place, maybe even put a plant in that empty pot and this place would feel like more like a home.
“I’ll leave you to get acquainted with the place. You have my number in case you have any questions. I’ll be by in the morning to open up, make sure you make it to school on time. I won’t have you getting expelled from another school.” Ren meekly nodded.
After that Sojiro left Ren alone to do his best with the room and get ready for tomorrow. First day at a new school, he had to make a good first impression. And since the school had likely been informed he was a ‘troublemaker’ that was going to be an uphill battle.
He dropped his bag on his bed and began to clean the worst offences and make some space for himself. Shouldn’t take too long after all. After an hours work he started to unpack. He unzipped the messenger bag only to be greeted by something that had most certainly not been in there when he packed it back in Japan.
“What on earth is this?” He said aloud, holding it up to inspect.
It was a hexagonal box, black all over except for an intricate pattern of red lines and circles. The box came in two halves with clasps on one of the six sides allowing it to flip open like one of those old flip phones. Opening it revealed that the inside was lined with some sort of red velvet-like fabric.
Strangest of all was the contents of the contents of the box. A glove made of red leather. Hesitantly he reached forward. The moment his fingers made contact a black and white blur shot out and spun around the room causing Ren to drop the box in surprise and scurry backwards.
After a second or two the blur stopped in front of him and coalesced into... was that a cat???
It would look like a regular tuxedo cat, if it weren’t for the fact that its head was the same size as the rest of its body. Black with white paws and his wavy tail ending in white. The only part of its fur that wasn’t black or white was a patch of yellow fur under its chin. The bottom half of his face was white while the top half was black, the separation was a straight line giving the impression that the cat was wearing some sort of thief’s mask. Its eyes were sapphire blue which stood start against the black of its upper face.
It looked around the room for a few moments before fixing its gaze on Ren who was standing as still as a statue. “About time you opened my box. And no offence kid but your room is kind of a mess. A room needs to have a certain level of comfort if you want to be able to get enough sleep in it.”
Ren backed up further. “Of course it can talk. It’s a flying cat, why not a talking cat too.”
The cat shot him an annoyed glare. “I’m not the Cat! Plagg’s the Cat. I am clearly the Human Kwami, disregard this current form I’m stuck in because my true self is much more majestic.” The... thing? Kwami? Puffed up its chin.
Ren swallowed nervously. “Ok then, ah... Human Kwami? Is that like a Kami? And what are you doing here?”
“Call meow Morgana. And the reason I’m here is simple.” It flew closer until it was inches from his face. “How would you like to be a Superhero?”
Ren simply blinked and was rendered speechless in what was becoming an unpleasant pattern. “A superhero?”
“Sure! You been keeping up with those mental shutdowns that have been happening recently?”
“The ones back in Japan?”
“Yeah those ones-“ It went silent as his words sunk in. “what do you mean ‘back in Japan’? You live in Tokyo don’t you?”
Ren swallowed nervously. “Morgana, this is Paris. I moved to France,” he admitted.
The Kwami zipped over to the window and looked out at the Parisian buildings. His ears drooped. “Oh. This is might be bad.”
oOo
“So let me get this straight: You’re a Kwami. A Godlike being that grants actual superpowers to whoever is wearing this glove.” Morgana nodded. “And I was chosen to use this glove. Which is called a Miraculous, one of many such magic items around the world.” Morgana kept nodding. “And I was given this Miraculous so that I could use it to fight a supervillain, who also has a Miraculous and is using it murder people through mental shutdowns.” Nod. “But they’re all the way back in Tokyo, and I’m stuck in Paris where an entirely different supervillain is terrorising this city with a completely different Miraculous?”
“All correct so far.”
Ren ran his hands through his hair for the twentieth time that night then nervously adjusted his glasses. He vaguely recalled the mention of ‘Akuma’ in an informational pamphlet he’d tossed in the bin, an promptly wished he’d paid more attention.
“So what happens now then? Can I return you somehow without leaving Paris?”
“I doubt it, if you want to give meow up you’ll have to return to Japan to do so. Until then we’re stuck together” The Kwami had an irritatingly laid back attitude about the whole situation.
“Well it’s not like I can just get on a plane and fly back. I can’t exactly afford plane tickets. And since I’m on probation over there no one will be willing to buy them for me.”
“Well then we’re stuck here.”
“But… but what about this supervillain terrorising Tokyo?”
“The others will have to handle it without you. I’m sure they’ll be fine. In the meantime you might as well enjoy my favourite city.”
“Others?”
“Yeah. Your fellow thieves. Or… I guess would have been your fellows had you stayed where you were supposed to.”
Ren was silent so the Kwami floated over and patted him on the head. “Chin up kid. If we had to be stuck anywhere in the world at least it got to be Paris. I haven’t been back here since Arsene wore me. I’m looking forward to trying my skills again in the City of Light.”
“Hold up. Did you just say Arsene? As in Arsene Lupin? He was a Miraculous user?”
Morgana nodded and gave a wide, proud grin. “One of the best that’s even worn me. All of the best Thieves throughout history have had the honour of wearing that glove.”
“And you want me to wear something like that?” Ren asked in a panic.
“Sure do kid. Don’t worry if the gloves feel a bit too big at first, you’ll grow into them. Now I believe you have school tomorrow?”
Ren nodded.
“Great! You should head to bed now then if you want to get enough sleep for your big day.”
oOo
Ren walked to his first day at his new school, carefully trying to ignore the Kwami sitting in his bag. Focusing on his surroundings he admired the beautifully green park on the way and smelt a delightful bakery that made his mouth water. He made note of where it was for future reference, fortunately right next to the school which was some good fortune.
He arrived early because he had to be at the Principal’s Office before class started. Principal Damocles was a large man in a brown suit. He had a long grey beard and massive bushy eyebrows. The top of his head was bald and rounded by grey sideburns. He stared at Ren disapprovingly with his amber eyes, possibly trying to decide if he was worth the trouble of letting him into the school.
Caroline Bustier was a lot more welcoming. Her neat red hair was tied back into a high bun. Her eyes were green and seemed to sparkle with kindness when she smiled, which she had been doing since walking in. She wore a light blue jacket that matched her pants and under it a green shirt that matched her eyes.
Damocles arched his hands and glared at Ren. “Now listen here young man. I’ve read your file and I don’t want you bringing any of your mischief into my school, you hear me? We have superheroes here in Paris. If you attack any of our students then the magnificence, mysterious, competent Owl will sort you out.” Ren merely nodded along as he spoke, eager to get the expected speech over with. ‘Did he say Owl? The only heroes I read about were Ladybug and Chat Noir. Is this another Miraculous Morgana forgot to mention?’
Before he got the chance to voice the question Mademoiselle Bustier interrupted with a long suffering sigh to her voice. “I’m sure the Owl has more important things to worry about than watching a single teenager, right Principal?” Damocles had the grace to look at least slightly embarrassed. She turned to Ren and gave him a comforting smile. “Don’t you worry about him. I’m certain you’ll have a great time here! Your new class is so friendly and they’re all such great kids.”
Ren nodded and was lead to a classroom. Inside the class went silent as he was lead inside. Ms Bustier cleared her throat. “Now class I’m sure you’ve all heard the rumors of a new exchange student. This is Ren Amamiya from Japan. Let’s make sure to give him our friendly Parisian hospitality!” There were a few awkward greetings. “Now Ren, would you like to introduce yourself to the class?”
He looked back at the curious faces and wondered what they were thinking about him. He bowed deeply.
“My name is Amamiya Ren. Please take care of me.”
Ms Bustier beamed at him. “I believe there’s a free spot next to Ivan. Why don’t you go sit over there.”
Ren made his way up. Along the way he past a wealthy looking blond girl and heard her scoff and turn to her deskmate. “Isn’t he some sort of lowlife criminal? What is he doing here??? I say he should just be locked up and the key thrown away.” Ren ignored the comment. ‘So much for friendly Parisian hospitality’ he thought.
He got to his desk and saw his new deskmate. This Ivan. Immediately his heart sank. The other boy was built like a tank, taller than Ren by at least 20cm and with arms thicker than Ren’s head. The boy wore a black shirt with crossed bones on it. His hair was black except for a patch at the front that was clearly dyed blond. He looked exactly how a delinquent back in Japan would appear if they ate nothing but protein powder and bench pressed trucks.
Was Ren being placed here because they thought he was a delinquent? Was this some plan to sit the two troublemakers next to each other so they’re easier to keep an eye on?
Ivan looked down at Ren, something intimidating in his gaze that made Ren shiver and want to step backwards. Ivan opened his mouth…
…And shyly smiled at Ren as he held out his hand. “Uh h-hi, I’m Ivan. Welcome to Paris. It’s, uh, nice to meet you.” His voice meek and friendly.
Ren blinked in surprise then mentally kicked himself. He was doing the same thing everyone else back in Japan had down. Writing Ivan off as a dangerous delinquent immediately without trying to figure out the truth. Looks were deceiving after all, clearly this Ivan wasn’t that bad.
Smiling he took the hand and shook it. “Ren. But you already knew that.” He said with a grin. “Nice to meet you deskmate.”
Class was far from uneventful.
They had settled well into their coursework when a girl dashed into the class, a good 15 minutes late. She had dark black hair that almost looked blue in the light that was tied up in two twin buns. She had on a dark grey blazer with the sleeves rolled up. Under it was a white t-shirt with a flower design. Her jeans were a bright pink.
She gave an absolutely insane sounding excuse for her tardiness and sat down at the desk in front of Ren, next to the reddish-brown haired girl with the plaid shirt.
Ren glanced out of the corner of his eye and everyone in the class just smiled and shook their heads. A few even let out good natured laughs. Was this girl’s antics usual here?
After that things had settled down for a mere few minutes before everyone’s phones started blaring some sort of alarm. He looked around in confusion and leaned toward Ivan to ask him when the late-girl screamed “Akuma! Everyone hide!” and sprinted out the room at full speed.
Akuma. Morgana mentioned those. Now Ren could have crouched behind my desks like everyone else. It would have been the smart thing to do in fact. Instead he had the sudden urge to run out the room and try his new powers.
Completely crazy. Something he should absolutely never do if he wanted to not stand out. Which is why it surprised him when he ran out the room shouting “I have to make sure my cat is okay!” so he could find a place to transform in peace.
After leaving the classroom he immediately headed to the locker room. Only to stop when he saw the girl who was late ran into them to hide before he could. Okay that spot wouldn’t work.
Instead he headed to where he had seen the toilets. Only to have to turn back once again when when he saw a blond boy from his class enter them first. Seriously, what was with these two? Why couldn’t they have just hid back in the classroom like everyone else in the class?
Luckily he spotted an empty closet and ducked inside. After closing the door behind him he looked at his gloved hand.
“Okay Morgana, how does this transformation thing work?”
The Kwami drifted out from his bag. “Less than 24 hours in the city and you’re already trying to steal an Akuma out from right underneath the local heroes noses. Nice, just like a real phantom thief!”
“Morgana!”
“Right, right. Just wear the glove and say ‘Morgana, show me our true form!’”
Ren clenched the gloved fist. “Morgana, show me our true form!”
There was a flash of light which made Ren cover his eyes. When it was gone Morgana was nowhere to be seen.
“Morgana? Morgana!”
‘Quiet. You’ve transformed so I’m in your suit now.’
Ren patted his clothes and looked down in shock. He truly was wearing a costume. It was almost all black, with a black ankle length tailcoat over a black waistcoat. His shoes had changed into a pair of dark brown leather boots. The only break in the dark colour scheme where his gloves, which were a bright crimson red. He also had a domino mask on, though he couldn’t see what it looked like without a mirror.
“You can talk in my head?”
‘Yes. But it’s tiring and you don’t have a lot of energy. So I won’t be doing it much.’
Strangely enough Ren felt more confident in this outfit.
He checked his pockets and pulled out a… a knife? It looked sharp. Not the right impression for to make for his first debut, that was for sure. There was a button on the side of it. So he clicked it and it transformed into…
Holy shit is that a gun?!?
The knife had folded into itself and now Ren was left holding a handgun. If he thought a knife would give people a bad impression of him then he didn’t know what they would think if he showed up waving a gun around.
There was an instruction manual, but he didn’t have time to read it if he didn’t want to miss the Akuma. He’d have to figure out how this weapon worked on the way.
oOo
Luckily the gun doubled as a grappling hook, a nice discovery that let to Ren swinging around the Parisian skyline in the direction in which he could see blurs of red and black fighting what looked like a flock of birds.
Sure enough when he landed on a rooftop a few blocks away he saw the two resident superheroes fighting a disturbing looking individual in a black, grey, and pink costume directing a swarm of pigeons with frightening co-ordination. Ren hadn’t known what to expect when he had heard Akuma mentioned. A fire spirit mostly. But certainly nothing like this.
The two superheroes spotted him and headed over.
The woman, Ladybug was it? Landed before him. “Citizen, this is an Akuma attack. You need to get to safety.”
“I’m here to help. My Kwami says that’s what I was given my Miraculous for.”
Her eyes widened at that. “You have a Miraculous?” She asked. “Which one?”
“He said it was from a different set to yours. The Glove.” It was probably safe to reveal that information. Hers was obviously those earrings. And Chat Noir’s must be his ring. So they’d figure out it was his glove soon anyway.
“The Glove… I think I read about that one. Morgana. But I can’t remember what he was the Kwami of.”
The cat themed hero landed next to them. “Well nice to meetcha newbie.” He held out his hand.
“Chat!” Ladybug protested. “We don’t even know if we can trust him yet.”
“It’s fine, he’s here to help right? So what’s your name newbie, and what can you do?”
“Call me Joker,” he said trying to give them a friendly smile. “And the only thing I know I can use is this.” He pulled out the gun causing their eyes to go wide.
“What the hell? You can’t use that! You’ll hurt Monsieur Ramier!”
“Who?” He glanced over their shoulders where the Akuma was looking more and more irritated at being ignored. “You mean the Akuma?”
“Yes the Akuma! He’s a nice man!”
“I thought he was attacking the city with pigeons?”
“Well he is right now,” Ladybug responded. “But he’s just a bit upset that the city won’t let him keep his pigeons with him in his home.”
“No, that was on Tuesday,” Chat Noir cut in. “This one is because he saw someone feeding popcorn to pigeons.”
“That was last week wasn’t it? Did he say today was because the Louvre is putting in new anti-pigeon netting?”
Chat Noir opened his mouth to respond but Joker cut them off. “Not important. Okay so he keeps terrorising the city. Let’s just stop him.”
"You're right," Ladybug responded. "Joker, a quick crash course on fighting Akuma's: That's a real person that has been forcefully transformed, been Akumatised. The actual Akuma that's causing this transformation is hiding in an object somewhere on him. If we can destroy that, then he'll return back to normal."
oOo
After a gruelling battle they finally managed to destroy the object housing the Akuma, and Monsieur Pigeon returned back to the form of a thin man in a suit. A black butterfly flew out of the destroyed object, which Ladybug caught in her yo-yo. She purified it and returned the city to it’s previous state with her power.
Ren was watching the now white butterfly fly off when he heard Morgana’s voice in his head once more.
‘Joker, catch that butterfly!’
Joker leapt up and caught the butterfly by the wing, landing a few feet away from the other two superheroes who now watched him with alarm. Their hands had half moved to their weapons.
“Joker, let the purified Akuma go,” Ladybug said, her tone gentle and her hands slightly raised as if she were trying to talk a child into putting a dangerous object down.
“My Kwami told me to grab it.”
“Well ignore your Kwami then!”
‘Okay now put it in your mask. Trust me.’
Joker looked at the butterfly in his hands then back to the pair of superheroes.
She pinched her nose. “Bon sang! I just remembered what Morgana is the Kwami of.”
“What?” Her partner asked.
“He’s the Kwami of Thievery,” she said as Joker placed the Akuma inside his mask.