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It was Thursday and Françoise Dupont's students were already sitting in their seats waiting for Miss Bustier to start teaching. But for some reason, which no one knew, she was not yet in the classroom.
Marinette couldn't wait for it to be the end of the week. That week had been exhausting. With schoolwork, the sheer number of akumas there were, plus the new duties she now had for being the Miraculous guardian, Marinette needed a break. She still had in mind the false akuma alarm a few days ago.
It was Monday night, she was working on some new designs when her cell phone alarm went off, indicating that there was an akuma.
But when she went out in search of defeating it, neither she nor Chat Noir, who had done the same, saw it anywhere. For a second she worried, thinking it was a very powerful akuma that made them unable to see it. But the next day Shadow Moth sent a new akuma along with an amok, and this time the alarm went off again.
As far as she knew, there couldn't be more than one akuma active. So Monday's alarm was a false alarm.
Which still odded her. It had never failed. But she'd worry about that over the weekend.
“Hey, don't you think it's strange that Mrs. Bustier hasn't come yet? Even you came before she did," Alya asked.
“Maybe, I have no idea”
Alya squealed.
“What if there is a new student?!" she said excitedly.
“Mmm. I don't think so... in the middle of the school year? it would be very strange. I thought maybe she was just running late”
Suddenly Miss Bustier came in next to Principal Damocles. At this Alya looked at Marinette with a big smile. For some reason Alya loved it when there were new students. She loved doing interviews with them to get to know them better. Part of her vocation as a journalist.
“Good morning students, I'm so sorry for the delay. As you can see, next to me is Mr. Damocles who wants to tell you some news" she said.
“Thank you very much Caline. Yes, I wanted to tell you that today we will have a new student who will be joining us for a few days thanks to an exchange system with another school”
Suddenly the class erupted in murmurs wondering who she was and where she was from. Alya was super excited as she spoke whispering to Marinette sharing her thoughts.
“Guys! Guys! Quiet" the teacher shushed the class.
“You can come in, dear" the principal invited the girl standing in the doorway.
She walked very nervously to the front of the room. She was a teenage girl, clearly her age, and very beautiful.
Her hair was blonde and reached to her shoulders, or a little more. In it was a beautiful golden comb in the shape of a flower (?, she could't tell) that, thanks to the gold in her hair, would shine even brighter. Her bangs highlighted her light blue eyes and freckles. She was wearing a yellow sweater in which she could see the collar of a white shirt and a black skirt.
On her shoulders was a small purse, very similar to Marinette's, which had different embroidered designs, such as a ladybug and a cat, among others that she didn't get to see. Maybe she was a fan of Ladybug and Chat Noir. When Marinette first saw her, she thought she definitely had fashion sense. But she felt there was something off...
“Well. I hope they make you feel comfortable and that you have a good start to school at our beloved institution. I'll leave so you can present yourself well. You know where my office is, don't you?” he asked the girl. She just nodded.
And with that he left.
“Hey..." she began to speak, "Hello. My name is Ella. Ella Wang. I come from an exchange program in the United States, but I spent my whole childhood here, that's why I don't have an American accent. My parents also got a job here in France, so I had to come back here”
She said it very quickly, Marinette noticed. As if she wanted to avoid questions or having to explain herself. Which Marinette doesn't question at all, sometimes being asked a lot of questions or having a lot of things about your life questioned can be exhausting.
“What do your parents do for a living?" Alya asked out of the blue.
“They are salesmen. In a company" she said, smiling. She looked quite uncomfortable.
“What part of the United States did you say you were coming from?”
“Hey Alya, stop" Marinette said quietly.
“All right, questions for later. Nino, can you leave the place to Ella?”
“Yes, of course. It's okay," he said kindly while he put his things in his backpack to go to the free space at the back.
“It's better this way, you'll be in the front for the first few days. That place is closer to my desk and you have Adrien who is very good in the subjects, if you have any doubt, you can ask him.
She looked at Adrien who raised his hand with a smile for her to identify him. She swallowed hard and went to sit in Nino's former seat. Once she was seated, Bustier went to her desk to get the papers that held the notes from that day's class.
“Hello! My name is Adrien, although Miss Bustier already said so" he raised his hand to greet her.
She greeted him back.
“Emm-Elle, though I just said it” She smiled
Both blondes burst out laughing.
“I know the first few days of school can be scary. But don't worry, I'm sure we all want to be your friends”
“Can you tell I'm nervous a lot?
“Haha, a little. But it's okay. At recess I'll introduce you to everyone”
“Thank you”
──❀•❀──
When her aunt Alix had asked her if she wanted to go on a mission to defeat a villain, without her parents' authorization, she did not hesitate to say yes. Emma Agreste-Dupain was a very responsible girl who always did what her parents asked her to do. But sometimes she liked to be a little rebellious. Not that she was doing anything wrong anyway, she was part of Ladybug and Chat Noir's team and she was following an order from one of the most important heroines, as was Bunnix.
She would like to prove herself worthy of being part of the team just like her older brother, Hugo. She wanted to give value to the insignia on both sides of her suit. To the Chat Noir logo on the left side, and the Ladybug logo on the left.
Alix proposed the mission without much explanation. She was in her room doing some homework she had from school when Bunnix suddenly appeared, scaring her. She quickly told her that there was a time-traveling villain who had gotten out of hand. That she needed someone to take care of him.
At first it seemed weird to her, that a villain would get out of Ladybug and Chat Noir's hands, but the excitement got the better of her and she decided not to make a big deal out of it.
Alix opened a hole in the burrow and sent her straight in, saying only that it was in the past and that it might take a few days.
The nighttime streets of the city looked quite changed, but not unrecognizable. It was almost 20 ish years in the past, or something like that, but she couldn't see the villain anywhere. And transforming into Golden Wasp at that time and place was a very bad idea.
She knew that fighting a time traveler was going to be tricky, but not that tricky. She was going to have to create a false identity to go unnoticed. This was going to be very complicated.
With no idea what to do, she began to walk through the streets of Paris trying to think of a plan to get out of this situation and get back to her own time. If her parents knew she was walking the streets of Paris at night, alone, they would give her the lecture of her life. Sometimes they were VERY overprotective and exaggerated, but they always let her do whatever she wanted.
As she did so, in the distance, she saw a very young version of Ladybug and Chat Noir who seemed to be patrolling, or so Emma thought. She didn't think they were going to be that different, but there they were. Her parents.
Wow. Who would have thought? It looked like something out of a movie. Seeing your parents your own age live and direct, could make a good plot for a movie.
Trying to remember the stories and details they had told them about that year, she remembered her honorary auntie Chloe. She knew that this year's Chloe had nothing to do with her aunt in her time. She was a spoiled and childish girl, so getting close to her was best avoided. But she had, well her father had, a hotel. That meant a place to stay.
Thanks kwamis, she had her purse where she always carried her kwami and other things. Like her wallet. Not that she liked to brag about money or anything, but she had enough to pay for a night there.
When she opened her purse she met the worried gaze of her Kwami Pollen.
“My queen Emma, are you sure you can handle this?”
“I'm sure Pollen. I am the daughter of the greatest heroes of all time, obviously I can. I must be able to”
Deep in the back of her mind, she knew that comparing herself to her parents was a bad idea. The context in which they became heroes was different from hers. But seeing what her brother was like and what they were like, she wanted to prove that she could go with the flow and be worthy of the team.
“What will be your plan my queen?" she asked as she hid in her hair so she could talk while Emma was walking in the direction of the hotel.
“Well, first of all, to find a place to spend the night. Then, come up with a plan to get inside my parents' school. I have a feeling that if I stay close to them, I'll be able to defeat the villain. Can you imagine Pollen? fighting my parents in their younger version. Wow!”
“With all due respect my queen, but they were a mess when they didn't know their identities. You don't know how frustrating it was to see your mother in despair because she didn't know how to talk to your father”
“Hehehe, I can't imagine. Maman is always so confident with what she does, I can't imagine her being desperate”
“No, luckily over the years she's become more confident and determined about things. With or without the mask. But I can't take away your father's prestige. He's changed a lot too. Now he's a very confident and protective man. Nothing like his father. Both were able to help each other grow up”
“Right! My grandfather... I had forgotten about him”
"Please be careful my queen. I don't know how I or your family would be if something happened to you”
“Thank you Pollen”
“For what?”
“For being my partner. You are always so sweet and supportive with all my plans”
The kwami leaned on her cheek, giving her a mini hug.
Entering the hotel and making a reservation under a false name was very easy. Luckily the money was enough for the cheapest room for one night. She knew this hotel by heart, from the vast majority of times she'd had girls' night out with her aunt, and sometimes her mom. Being in a house surrounded by 3 men, it wasn't that easy sometimes.
The plan to get into school hadn't been that complicated either. She had been up all night forging documents and files so she could pretend to be an exchange student from the United States. What really cracked Emma was how the principal believed her. The papers were no big deal and anyone who had spent 2 minutes researching the supposed school she came from would have realized it was fake. But thanks to her luck inherited from her mother, she did not.
Thank goodness her parents didn't send her or her siblings to that institute.
──❀•❀──
It was at the moment when she found herself at lunch surrounded by a bunch of teenagers asking her a bunch of questions, who she recognized the vast majority as adults in their time, that the thought crossed her mind that this was not a good idea.
At first she just followed her father, Adrien, when he invited her to sit with Alya, Nino and Marinette at their table. But within seconds, all of her classmates surrounded the table to ask her questions. Everyone except Chloe and Sabrina, obviously.
In fact, she exchanged glances with Chloe only once. And that was the moment she sat next to Adrien in the classroom. It was very weird to tell you the truth. Because she didn't give her the dirty look she expected. Surely, knowing her aunt, she thought she had too good a clothing style to treat her badly. Not for nothing did she always take her shopping with her, even though her mother said it wasn't necessary because she could make clothes on her own.
It was so bizarre. Back in her time, she was not popular at all (considering that her parents were two of the most important people, more her mother than her father. She was very successful with her clothing brand, and her father didn't model anymore as he used to do in his teenage years, he preferred to be a teacher) and she wasn't used to so many people being so popular.
“So, where did you live back in America?" asked Nino, remembering the question his girlfriend had asked her.
“New York," she answered as she smiled and stuffed a bite of food into her mouth. Maybe if they saw her eating, they would leave.
“Oh," said a new voice, "New York! I was there for a few months. I was friends with a very rich family there. I'm sure you remember them... I helped them with a lot of things and they love me. Oh, I'm Lila by the way. Nice to meet you, I hope we'll be friends! I love your brooch!”
Emma knew very well who this girl was. She will bring a lot of trouble in the future. And she had not the slightest intention of being nice to her. But she had to keep an identity.
So she just smiled and said thank you. Seeing that the blonde didn't say anything else or throw any compliments at her, as she did, Lila got angry. She didn't show it publicly, but Emma noticed.
“Do you have siblings, Ella?" Rosita asked in her typical childish tone.
“Um... as a matter of fact, yes. 2. An older one and a younger one” she wasn't lying and she wasn't giving too much information that could damage her false identity.
“Wow, really? how old are they?" asked Alya now, "I have an older sister and two younger twin sisters, they can be very complicated at times.
She obviously knew about Alya's sisters.
“Well... my older brother Hu-Harry is 2 years older than me, he's 17. And my younger brother Lucas is 8, but they don't come to this school”
Emma, from what Alya had told her, knew that her mother had her name and her brothers' names planned years ago. So it would be a very bad idea to say those names in front of her.
“And what do you like to do?” Max asked now. These guys were really nosy!
“Well... I'm an ice skater. I really like to participate in ice skating competitions, my best friend Liam and I always participate together”
She didn't lie. She did love ice skating and her partner and best friend was Liam.
The adrenaline rush she got from doing flips in the air, the timing of the sets along with the music, or the times she would stay up hours later and the rink was hers alone, are things she wouldn't trade in the world. Normally the suits she wore for competitions or practice were made by her mother. Even though she wasn't a runway model or a magazine model, she liked being the model for her mother. And she knew that she loved to make clothes for her family, it was her love language.
Although she was a little doubtful if Liam still considered her as his best friend. Two days ago they had a big argument. In a week there is a very important competition that they were going to participate in together. So for the last month, they were working together on the dance and the passes they were going to do. But in the last training, they couldn't synchronize together and nothing was going right. They both fell down a lot or didn't manage to finish all the steps in a row. When she wanted to ask him what was wrong, he suddenly became very angry and started yelling at her. Emma, as her mother had taught her, was not going to let anyone (much less a boy) talk to her so badly or insult her, the way he was doing.
So she answered him too, in a tone a little calmer than his. He kept fighting with her, and in between yelling and screaming, he told her that maybe they shouldn't do this together. This or anything else. That they should stop talking. And that he didn't love her anymore. She told him that he didn't mean it, and thought that before it got worse, it was better to leave. She deduced that it was better to wait for him to come down and for him to call her. Which he still hasn't done yet....
“Wow, really? that's fantastic, Ella," said Adrien.
Hearing her father's voice back brought her back to the reality she was in.
“What about your tastes?" asked Alix.
“Yes! What artists do you usually listen to?" asked Nino.
“Do you know how to draw?” asked Nathaniel.
“Do you like unicorns?” asked Rose.
Emma would be lying if she said that so many questions weren't overwhelming her.
“Wow wow, guys. Stop it for a while. I think you're overwhelming her. Don't you think we'd better let Ella finish her meal and get to know her better later?" Marinette saved her.
Her mother knew better.
“Yes, Marinette was right. Let her eat in peace," said Adrien now.
The blush that adorned Marinette's cheeks did not escape Emma's notice. It was not unlike what they would be like in the future. Her parents really were made for each other, they loved each other very much. And neither of them was ashamed to show it.
It was these little things that made her believe in love....
Then, everybody left.
“I'm so sorry about that, Ella" said Marinette.
“Oh... don't worry about it” they continued to eat for a while.
“Hey, my parents and I are a bit alert because of the situation of the akumas and stuff... but we couldn't find out much more. Any of you know how I can be alert?”
Need to get information, and the best way was to behave as naive.
“You asked the right girl" Alya said cheerfully, "I have a blog called LadyBlog where I post updates about akumas all the time. As soon as there is an akuma, I update it. Not only that, but also when new heroes appear”
“Are there more than just Ladybug and Chat Noir?”
“Yes! There is Viperion, this super cool girl Rena Rouge, Carapace, Ryuko, before there was Queen Bee but she revealed her identity publicly it was Chloe. There are also many more, you should check out my blog!”
“Great! As soon as I get home I'll take a look at it and show it to my family. It must be very exhausting to live with so many villain attacks”
“Pff, you can't imagine..." said Marinette in a very tired tone. She had her head resting on her fist on the table while looking away. At this, everyone at the table, including Emma, looked at Marinette with a strange expression.
Emma knew that her parents didn't have it easy, and that Marinette's first years as a guardian were very complicated. But she had to pretend she didn't know what she was talking about. Besides, her mother had made a very stupid comment that could easily put her identity at risk.
At the look of the group Marinette quickly rejoined.
“Uh-h I mean. Yes. It's not easy at all. The bakery where I live is usually always affected and that slows down my parents' work a lot. Not to mention that the vast majority of the time the akumas are our classmates”
“Oh yes. It must be very tiring, I understand Marinette. Were there a lot of akumas this week?”
Now she could get a lot of information.
“Well... there were quite a few to tell the truth..." said Nino.
“There must have been four by now, not counting that false alarm on Monday" said Alya.
“False alarm?” bingo!
“Well, yes... On Monday night the akuma alarm went off, but when I wanted to check the street or the social medias, no one said anything. The next day, when there was another akuma, I wanted to ask Ladybug what happened. But she told me that when they wanted to fight with him, there was no one.”
“There was no one there?”
How strange, thought Emma.
“That's what she said…”
“No one saw anything?” they all shook their heads.
Mmm... if he's a time traveler, he must have been appearing between different points in time. He got to this one and the alarm went off, and he was gone. Or so Emma deduced.
“So Marinette... you said you live in a bakery”
She wanted to see what it felt like to strike up a conversation with the teenage version of her mother. It was weird enough talking to people she knew only as adults, but in her youthful version.
──❀•❀──
As boring as it was for Emma, she had to continue with her classes after lunch. Luckily, she still had one more break to try to get more information. And who knows? Know more about this version of her parents.
Before leaving, Bustier reminded the class that next week was "bring your dad to class" day or something like that. She really wasn't paying much attention. Sometimes Emma's mind wandered and she lost the vast majority of her time in class thinking about something else. Many of the times, she thought about the ice skating rink and how she would like to be there at that moment.
What she didn't miss, though, was the sad look on her bench mate's face. Who just happened to be her father.
Of course it was. Gabriel Agreste. Her grandfather. She knew he wasn't an easy guy at all. Very unloving. She didn't know much about him, other than he was Hawk Moth. Her mother could tell her a little of what she knew and wanted to tell her. Her father didn't really talk about him, he didn't like to. Now she sees why.
She can't imagine herself in his situation.
When they left for recess, she was quicker and went straight to talk to him alone.
“Hey, D-Adrien…” God, how complicated it was “Are you okay? I noticed you were a little sad in the classroom…”
“Oh, yeah, it's just that my dad's not coming next week" he said as he sat down on one of the benches nearby. She was quick to copy his action.
“I mean... I know he works a lot and never has time, but I thought he might be able to take some time to do this. For me." she continued.
“Oh... I'm so sorry. I... I don't know what to say. Have you tried talking to him?”
“It's pretty hard to talk to him. He never listens to me. It's always work work and more work. Your parents work a lot, don't they? Isn't it the same for you as it is for me?”
“Actually... “
It's true that her parents worked a lot. Her mother was the owner of a well-known fashion company, she always had something to do. And her father was actually a literature teacher at her high school. Who would have thought that a model like Adrien would end up as a professor? You could really tell he was passionate about literature and even more so about teaching. You could see how much he enjoyed it. But even so, they were always attentive to what she or her siblings needed. They always made time in the day to spend it just as a family. And they would cook together, play board games or whatever. They were always very present.
"My father, he's wonderful" She stopped looking at Adrien and her gaze wandered around the schoolyard "I couldn't ask for a better father. He was always there for me and always asked me what I needed. In fact, we have weekly activities just for us. For example, we spend Saturdays at 7 p.m. watching this TV show. It's a very absurd one, but we both love to joke about how bad it is together. Or also, he's the one who wakes me and my siblings up with breakfast made during the weekends. My mom usually "scolds" him because he sometimes burns his toast, but my brothers and I know he does it with a lot of love. He has never been afraid to show his love to us or even to my mom. My brother thinks it's disgusting when he kisses my mother... I don't know how to explain it, but he is truly wonderful...."
She suddenly realized that she might be talking too much. She turned her head quickly to see Adrien's face again. She thought maybe what she was saying might hurt him, not that she was rubbing his face in how wonderful his father was, it was that his father was a disaster.
“Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't realize and started talking too much! Sorry!" she said very quickly.
“N-no! No, actually your dad sounds great! You know, sometimes when I think about how bad my father makes me... I imagine how I will be with my children. I'll try to be the complete opposite. I would find time to be able to be with my kids and have a better bond with them. Thank you so much for telling me about your life.”
Emma couldn't wait to tell him that he is their father. And how great he is. But she stopped herself before she said anything.
“N-no. Thank you for trusting me with your problem… You know? I think you should stand up to your father a little bit and tell him what you really feel. So he knows the damage he causes you…”
“Hey guys! Do you mind if we stay with you for the rest of recess?” said Alya who came hugging Marinette by the shoulder.
She got a good look at her mother and she looked very uncomfortable. Like… embarrassed?
Who knows what happened? She wanted to help her but the protective hug Alya had on her made her understand that it was better if they talked later.
──❀•❀──
At the exit, several of her “new classmates” greeted Ella as she headed out with Nino, Adrien, Alya, and Marinette.
“Hey guys, we better get going fast. We don’t want to be late for our date” said Nino as he hugged his girlfriend by the shoulders.
“Oh? Do you have a date?” asked Marinette
“Yeah! We’re going to the movies to see this new movie. You know, it would be great to have another couple friends to go on a double date with…”
Emma watched as Marinette got nervous and scratched the back of her neck.
“Well, we better get going. It was great meeting you Ella, I hope we can be good friends” greeted the brunette.
“Bye guys!” she said as she waved at the couple.
“Oh look, my car has arrived. I have to go,” he said.
“Oh? Does a personal driver take you? Wow.”
“Hehe yeah… Well, today was a good day. I'm glad I met you, too, Ella. Bye girls.”
“Bye!”
“B-bye A-Adrien…” Marinette stammered.
Now they were the only ones left alone. It was time to talk to her.
“You like him, don't you?” the blonde said as she got a little closer to her.
“W-what? Adrien? Do I like him? N-no!!” she said, blushing.
“Are you sure?” she joked as she raised an eyebrow and put a hand on her waist.
“Y-yes! Of course!”
“Well… if you say so…Buuuut… If that were the case, I would say that you get closer to him. I don't know you very well Marinette, but I know that you seem like a good girl. You seem to have a very kind heart that has a lot to give. And Adrien just needs someone to give him that love. I think that you two would make a good couple”
“Do you really think so?” that “I don't love him” mask fell off
“Yes! You two seem to be made for each other”
Marinette lowered her head and stared at the ground for a few seconds.
“But we could never be together…” she said in a very sad tone.
“What? Why?” that did seem strange to Emma
But before Marinette could answer, screams and a couple of explosions were heard in the distance.
“I'm tired! This damn power goes off by itself!” the villain shouted
BINGO! She had found the akumatized one. She just had to hide to help Ladybug and Chat Noir.
“Oh no! An akuma!” Marinette shouted “Quick! You have to hide, Ella!”
And she ran away leaving her there. Ouch. She knew she had to find a place to transform, but she didn't think she was going to leave her there alone.
She didn't have much time to think about that, now she had to find a place to transform.
Looking for a place she found the locker room empty. Obviously, everyone had already gone home.
She opened her purse and her kwami came out.
"My queen, are you ready?" Pollen asked.
"Of course you are!" she said determinedly.
"Pollen! Buzz on!" Emma transformed into Golden Wasp.
Her outfit was all yellow with black stripes on her waist and legs. The tops of her boots, gloves and collar had a cute yellow decoration in the form of small balls. The soles of her boots and the tips of her fingers were black. On both sides of her arms, a little below the shoulder, there were two insignias, on the left side Chat Noir's and on the right Ladybug's. Her hair was now gathered into a cute bun and on it there was now a very noticeable black lock. Her mask was yellow on the bottom, and black on the top. Her eyes, which were once blue, are now the same as those of her kwami. Her irises are now yellow and her sclerotid yellow. And finally, she had two small translucent "wings" on her shoulders and part of her back, yellow in color.
She took her weapon, the spinning top which was around her hips, and went out the window.
Before meeting Ladybug and Chat Noir, Emma tried to mentally plan how she was going to introduce herself. Her mother was supposed to have the rest of the miraculous, and she knew that she would freak out if she saw a girl with one of them, without her having given it to her before.
She was standing in an alley, a little further away from where the screams were, when out of nowhere something tied her arms, immobilizing her and turning her around, leaving her hanging in the air. This was very low on her part. She is supposed to be trained, and to have already been caught without even being in the battle was a disgrace. She shouldn't have been so relaxed and off guard.
But when she saw what had tied her, she saw that it was Ladybug's yoyo and that calmed her down a lot more. She knew that her mother was going to be suspicious.
"Who the hell are you and how did you get that miraculous?" said a very angry (and agressive) Ladybug. Behind her was Chat Noir with his arms crossed and an angry expression too.
“Wow! No need to get so angry!”
Ladybug's sights only sharpened further on hers. She was scary.
"Uh- The name's Golden Wasp. I'm part of Ladybug and Chat Noir's team, I mean, you guys. But from the future."
Emma could see amazement on Chat Noir's face, but Ladybug was still wary.
"And how do I know you're not lying?" She said.
"Well... Bunnix brought me here through her burrow."
Ladybug said nothing. It seemed she still didn't trust her. Ouch, it kind of hurt her that her mother distrusted her so much. But she didn't blame her.
After she said that, Chat Noir approached Ladybug and whispered, something that Emma didn't hear, in her ear.
"Tell us something that only we could know. I need to know that we can trust you."
Uh. Trick question. He could just as easily tell her their identities. But clearly that couldn't be possible. And if she said anything about their personal lives, they might become much more suspicious of her. It must be something to do with the miraculous, but something that was not public knowledge.
"Well... Your kwamis! Your kwami is named Tikki and loves to eat cookies and sweet things. And yours, Chat Noir, is named Plagg and loves cheese."
This could put her identity at risk. But it was the only thing she could think of.
"How do you know that?!" Chat Noir asked.
"Ladybug! she told me! in the future, in our training! I swear!"
Ladybug, who didn't look angry anymore, stared at her for a few seconds before gently releasing her. Mentally, Emma was grateful that she didn't let go of her abruptly.
"Whew, I was starting to get dizzy already. Thank you very much" She said as she brushed imaginary dust off her body "How about we start over? Golden Wasp, a pleasure to be able to fight alongside you" she said as he extended a hand towards Ladybug.
"H-hello. Nice to meet you" she said as she returned her greeting. Then Golden Wasp directed her hand towards Chat. Which didn't take him long at all to accept it.
"Wow! So you're from the future? What's it like? What are we like? Do we know each other?" his handshake was much stronger and more agitated. He looked very excited. It seemed like he hadn't changed at all, in her time he was like that at times.
She let out a small chuckle "I can't tell you anything about the future, just that you guys are the best. I admire you guys a lot, I really do"
"Are you serious?" asked Ladybug. She was beginning to think she was gaining her trust.
"Of course I do!" she said, smiling.
"I love this conversation, but don't you think we should go after the akuma?" asked Chat.
"Yes! You're right. When Alix asked for my help she told me she was a time traveler. But from what I could hear, he has no control over his powers?"
"Do you have any idea where his akuma might be?" Her mother asked.
"Uh... No. Sorry."
"No, don't apologize" she replied.
"I think we have to analyze his movements. We have to see him in action, so we can know his abilities, weapons, everything. Maybe that way we can find out where he is " said Golden Wasp.
"Hey, that's a good idea" Chat Noir said.
"You are right. Alright, let's do that."
The three of them went to the roofs of the houses in Paris, so they could get much closer to the villain. Emma was trying very hard, not to show what she was really feeling at all. She would be lying if she said she wasn't at the point of collapse. She was so excited!
She couldn't wait to tell Hugo. Not in a bad way, not that she wanted to rub it in his face or anything. As much as it might not seem like it sometimes, she and he have a really good relationship. They always have each other's backs. There are plenty of anecdotes to prove it.
She just wanted to tell him in detail everything she had experienced in the past. She’s sure he wouldn't believe her if she told him what fools his parents were at that age.
When they could get the villain in sight, they could see that he was a bit... particular. It seemed that he didn't have much control over his powers, as Emma had commented. Apparently, he can't decide what time he wants to travel in. Or so it seemed.
The three of them could see how he tied people with a kind of lasso and made them disappear. Most likely he was making them time travel.
"Ugh!!!" he was very annoyed to tell the truth. "Ladybug! Chat Noir Where the hell are you two?! Show yourselves!"
Golden Wasp just looked at Ladybug and Chat Noir.
Now the truth was that she was afraid. She felt useless. She didn't know exactly what to do. She was supposed to be the one from the future, the one coming to help them and save them from this. But she had no idea what to do! Usually the one who comes up with the plans is her mother. She just follows orders.
"Well, from what I can get to see from here, the akuma has a lasso that when it binds people it makes them disappear. It sure makes them time travel" Ladybug said.
"Very clever bogaboo, as always." commented Chat Noir very smitten.
Golden Wasp smiled without either of them seeing her. Her father all the time threw sweet comments or naive compliments at her mother. All the time. That's one thing that didn't change.
"Now the problem is how can we approach him..." said Ladybug as she put her finger to her chin in thought.
The three of them were thinking for a while. Emma was very anxious. She didn't know if it was going to work.
"I have an idea!" She said. She hoped it would work.
Both heroes waited for her to explain.
"Eh... I hope it works" she said as she scratched her arm very nervously. "The akuma wants Ladybug and Chat Noir. So let's give him Ladybug and Chat Noir. Chat will go in there and distract him, while I stay here. You Ladybug will call your lucky charm and based on that we'll solve the issue. When he least expects it, I'll activate my poison on him, meanwhile we'll look for where the akuma is."
"We can handle that. Isn't that right my lady?"
"Yes. We can" Ladybug said very smiling.
"Very well."
Both heroes went to the akuma. Emma internally prayed that it would turn out well.
"Hey freaky!" Chat shouted "Yes! Here! Aren't you looking for us?" Chat called out. Emma in the distance could see Ladybug from another rooftop to the one she was on. She was closer to the akuma than she was.
"My name is Tidewalker! I won't let you guys get out of my hands this time!" she shouted as she lunged to fight Chat Noir.
"WOW! so you tried several times?" laughed Chat as he ran away from him.
"Ugh! it's this stupid power. I tried fighting other versions of Ladybug and Chat Noir, but then I thought... what was sweeter? Sure! fighting you guys in your weakest and most useless version!"
"EY! What do you mean, weak and useless?" Chat was offended.
"Please! You guys in the future are something else. Now with that fox and the bee!"
Well, Emma knew that now that she and her brother, who uses the fox miraculous, were part of the team, they were doing everything faster. But also not that big of a deal.
"UGH" Chat launched himself against him to keep fighting body to body trying not to be sent to another timeline with the lasso.
When she looked at Ladybug, she could see that she already had the Lucky Charm in her hands. It was... a sticky tape?
Seeing that her father was getting tired, and that her mother was still thinking about how to use her Lucky Charm, Emma thought it was time to do something.
She took the opportunity to appear, just as Tidewalker was about to corner Chat Noir to take his miraculous.
The villains in the future are completely different, much more violent. Tidewalker seemed to be an exception, he was much more peaceful. So she wasn't at all surprised by the surprised look on Chat Noir's face the moment he saw her start a fist fight with the Akuma. She had different training than them. Other strategies. More hand-to-hand fighting than using her powers.
“GOLDEN WASP?! What the hell are you doing here?" he shouted once they were separated.
“Aww" she said mockingly, putting her hands on her hips, "Did you miss me? Admit it, you know you missed me”
The fight with the Akuma didn't last much longer than 40 minutes more. Her mother, as always, with her brilliant mind managed to decipher the Lucky Charm and the two of them, Golden Wasp and Chat Noir, managed to find the Akuma. It was on one of the pins in his jacket. She couldn't see it in much detail because of the distance she was from him, but it didn't go unnoticed. Having a fashion designer mother has its advantages, in the long run you tend to pay a lot of attention to people's clothing.
“No more evil for you little Akuma!" shouted Ladybug.
Emma stopped paying attention to anything other than how her mother deakumatized the now white butterfly. It was a completely different experience than seeing it in her time.
“Uh..." she heard a very familiar voice. Too familiar for her taste “where am I?”
When she turned her body to see where it was coming from. She ran into the last thing she expected.
There was Liam, HER best friend, being helped up by Chat Noir. He was very disoriented.
“Chat-Chat Noir? But why do you look so young? Where am I? What happened?" he asked as he looked around.
Why didn't she think of that before! Her gaze returned to the akumatized object and, once she could see it more closely, she recognized it. It was a pin she had given him. The first time they had won a competition together. It was a nice memory.
“Liam? Liam Parker?" she approached the two young men.
“Golden Wasp! What happened? I don't understand anything!”
“Hey hey hey, calm down, buddy" Chat Noir tried to calm him down. From the corner of her eyes she could see that her mother was also approaching where they were with the Lucky Charm still in her hands.
“You were akumatized Liam. Your power was to be able to travel in time. Now we are almost 20 years in the past" she told him as she held his hands.
“Oh crap... I... I'm so sorry I don't know how I could let something like this happen. I had never been akumatized before, my mother had taught me techniques not to be”
“Don't worry Liam, it can happen to anyone really" said Ladybug.
“Yes, I know. But after that argument with Emma... I felt very bad, very guilty. I didn't mean to treat her that way. I didn't mean what I said, I don't want to stop talking to her. I love her too much to stop being her friend”
“E-emma?" she said, surprised. Now she understood why he never called her... he made her feel a little guilty, her friend (the boy she loves) was a villain who was traveling in time all this time, and she had no idea.
“Yes, Emma. Emma Agreste–Dup-”
“I KNOW WHO EMMA IS!" she interrupted him, almost screaming.
She couldn't believe it! He almost said her full name in front of her parents! Who still didn't know that she was their daughter. So much work for them not to know who she was, only to have her best friend come and ruin it. Luckily he only said one of her last names. She could work with that.
“Agreste?" said Chat Noir in a frightened and shocked tone.
Suddenly she saw the address of both superheroes and saw the look on both their faces. Mainly her father. They were talking about his daughter!
“Y-yes. She... She's my best friend, I dare say I have feelings for her. But please don't tell her! I wouldn't want to lose my friendship with her. If she's still my friend... I didn't mean to treat her this badly. I swear" he said nervously as he blushed.
Emma could have sworn her face was as red as the guy in front of her was. So Liam liked her? Well... she'd be lying if she said she never thought about liking him too. But he was just a friend. right? Agh! these teenage feelings!
Maybe she should wait until she could talk to her mother about this.
“Hey... Liam. I don't know you that well, obviously. But you should talk to her. If you're so sorry and you feel you were too gross to hurt her feelings, talk to her. If she really loves you, she'll forgive you”
“B-but w-what happened?" asked Ladybug stuttering.
“I think that's as far as it goes. I think if he keeps talking about more, something could happen. Something bad. Why don't you just throw the Lucky Charm and be done with it? Then Liam can go back to his own time”
“N-no wait! I have a couple of questions" said Chat Noir who was coming out of his shock.
“Ladybug?" said Golden Wasp in a desperate tone, hoping her mother would think rationally.
Ladybug was still quite surprised, but not as surprised as Chat Noir. Before she threw the Lucky Charm into the air, she stared at it for a few seconds.
“Ladybug miraculous!" she shouted as she did so.
The magical ladybugs soon restored the disorder to the streets of Paris. In a few moments, all the people who were taken to other times, returned to where they belonged. Including Liam.
“Well... -I... This was a lot of fun. But I think I should go back to my time. But…” she said as she put her fingers on her chin while thinking “Could I talk to you? Before nightfall, in the same place where we met?”
“I don't think there will be a problem with me" said Chat Noir. He looked a little strange.
“Yes! We can meet before the daily night patrol”
“Great! Thanks” said Golden Wasp as she walked away.
──❀•❀──
Golden Wasp was already waiting in the alley at approximately 7 pm waiting for Ladybug and Chat Noir. Before meeting them again, she spoke very seriously with her kwami about how she was going to approach their conversation at that moment.
She was so immersed in her mind that she did not hear the sound of her parents' yoyo and metal baton at any time.
“Hi" called Ladybug from behind her back.
“AH!" cried Emma in surprise, "Hey, you've got to stop scaring me like that!
“Oh, I'm so sorry, I thought you heard us" she apologized.
“N-no, it's okay. It's my fault for being so in my head”
“So... what did you want to talk about?" asked Chat Noir.
“Oh yeah. Well I... how do I say this?” Ladybug and Chat Noir began to look at her stuttering strangely “...I would like to ask for your help?”
“Help? In what?" Ladybug asked strangely.
“Yes, what do you mean? How can we help?”
“Well you see... Before I met you... I invented a false identity to be able to go to school these days... And I would need your help to not raise suspicions now that I'm going back”
Why the hell was she nervous about this?
“False identity?" questioned Ladybug.
“Well... Buzz Off!" called Emma to her de-transformation.
After the flash of light passed through her body and left her in the outfit she was wearing before, she looked at her kwami to feed it a honey-flavored cookie. It wasn't the same as the sweets she and her mother usually prepare for Pollen, but it was the only thing she managed to get in that year.
Once she gave the cookie to Pollen and it was hidden back in her purse, she looked at her parents' faces. Both with a very noticeable look of surprise on their faces. Neither of them said anything yet.
“Mmm... I entered Françoise Dupont under the name Ella Wang, but that's not really my name... My name is actually Emma. Emma Agreste”
“EH?!" asked Chat Noir in shock.
"Emma Agreste?! A-as THE Adrien Agreste? The model? You say you're his daughter? But-" Ladybug spoke very fast. She could hardly understand the words.
“Hehe, yes" she said while scratching the back of her head, "Adrien is my father. But you can't tell him, can you? I need one of you to tell one of my colleagues at Françoise Dupont that she had to go back to the States or something, to make up a story. I can't risk my identity or something. Could you?"
"Y-yes. I'll take care of it. I'll tell something to Adrien, I’ll make up something" Chat Noir replied very seriously. Great, that would be a lot easier.
"B-but. Are you part of our team?" asked Ladybug,
"Well, I can't tell much. But yes! I love working with you guys..." She said as she smiled sweetly. She wasn't lying. She deeply loved doing these kinds of things for her parents.
"Wow... I have so many things to ask you" continued the bluehead very excited "But... on second thought... you're right. You can't tell us anything."
Emma would be lying if she said it wasn't funny to see her mother like this. She looked so excited. Saying thighs so fast that she couldn't understand anything. But there was something weird... Her father's reaction to this.
She stopped looking at Ladybug’s stuttering and her attention shifted to Chat Noir's. He was looking at her. A lot. He was analyzing her. He didn't have a serious face nor did he look angry, on the contrary. He was intrigued.
When he saw that she was looking at him, he just gave her a big smile. Emma loved that her father had taken the situation well.
"Oh well, look at the time. Now more than ever I have to go. I must admit this was a great experience!"
"Oh yeah! I can't wait to get to know you better in the future Emma. Hey, talk to Liam, yes? He seemed to really feel bad about what happened" Ladybug said as she put a hand on her shoulder.
"Yeah, I will. Thank you" she replied as she hugged her.
The contact suddenly surprised Ladybug, it even took her a few seconds to accept it.
After separating from her embrace, the blonde looked at Chat Noir, who was closer to them. He seemed anxious to have a hug too. Before giving him a hug, Emma grabbed his shoulders to look at him face to face. He was a little taller than she was, but not that much taller. Emma was taller than her mother used to be at her age.
She looked him in the face for a few seconds with a huge toothy grin. At this, he smiled at her in the same way. They didn't say anything to each other, but it was a way of telling her everything. Adrien understood. When she was talking about how amazing her father was, she was talking about him. And he couldn't be more happy about it. He couldn't wait to have everything she described.
Her hug with him lasted longer than with Ladybug's, and it was tighter. She knew he needed it.
When they parted, Emma moved closer to the exit to the alley street, heading for her exit.
"See you guys soon."
"Bye!"
"Bye..."
Before leaving completely, she looked back at Chat and winked at him.
──❀•❀──
To get back to her time, she went to the same spot where Alix had left her. Just as she got there, a hole in the burrow opened up. She unhesitatingly climbed in to find herself with a smiling Bunnix.
"I must admit kid... You did a good job” she said as she hugged her by the shoulders leading her to the hole that would lead her to her time.
"You say? I felt I could have done more...That i could have been better" she did feel insecure.
"No Emma. You did very well. You proved yourself capable of handling a dangerous situation, and you handled it well."
Before heading back to her house, Emma looked at Alix and gave her a sweet smile.
“Thank you”