Chapter Text
"No, this won't do. The neckline needs some adjustments or the judges are going to think we're entering a competition for nuns," Chloé critiqued, tapping her pencil against the sketchpad.
"How much adjustments, Chloé? We're not trying to be scandalous, you know." Marinette said, not looking up from the fabric swatches spread across her desk.
"I'm not saying we should go full on lingerie on them."
"Pretty sure we'd be disqualified instantly if that were the case," Marinette muttered.
"But we need something that's not for grandmas."
In the corner of the room, away from the bickering teens who were very close to becoming adults, was Clover, their five-year-old daughter. She was curled up on a cushion with a crayon in her hand. The young girl hummed a little tune from a cartoon she watched. She wasn't paying any attention to the dress argument happening across the room. She had far more important business, getting the shape of Grandpa Tom's mustache just right.
"There," she whispered to herself, holding her paper out at arm's length to admire it. Five rough figures stared back at her. There were two teenagers holding hands, two figures in aprons, and one small one in the middle with bright yellow pigtails, just like her own.
She scrambled up off the cushion, picture clutched in both hands, and ran over to the desk.
"Mom! Mama! Look, look! I made a picture!"
"Mm-hmm, that's great, sweetheart," Marinette said, eyes focused on the incomplete form of the dress she and Chloé were working on.
"It's got you, and Mama, and Grandpa Tom, and Grandma Sabine, and me! I spent so long on the hair. It was really ha—"
"Clover, honey, not right now, okay?" Chloé dismissed, still glaring at the sketch she was unsatisfied with. "Mom and I are trying to finish this before the deadline. We'll play later, I promise."
"But—"
"Later, Clover," Marinette promised too. Like Chloé, her eyes never left what she was doing.
Clover's shoulders drooped. She looked down at her picture, at the five figures she had worked so hard on, and folded it carefully in half.
"Okay," she mumbled.
Neither of her mothers noticed her slip out of the room, but someone else did. Hiding behind a mug of cold tea on the desk, was Tikki who had watched Clover go down the trapdoor.
Hmm, maybe I'll just keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn't accidentally hurt herself.
She zipped out after the little girl, staying as hidden as she could. She followed Clover all the way down the steps toward the bakery.
Down there, Sabine was boxing up assortments of pastries for a long line of customers, and Tom was working with dough, flour dusted all up his forearms.
"Grandma! Grandpa!" Clover called, holding up her folded picture. "I drew a picture, want to see?"
"One moment, sweet pea," Sabine said, counting out change for a customer before she handed over the box. "Grandma's a little busy."
"I made everybody in it, all five of us!"
"That's wonderful, Clover. Can you wait right there a second?" Tom said, putting a tray of croissants into the oven.
Clover stood by the counter, picture nearly falling out of her hand. She watched the line of customers move forward, but it didn't get any shorter, with new people coming in each time someone left. Nobody looked at her. Nobody cared to see the picture that she was so proud of.
From where she was hiding, Tikki watched Clover's expression crumple. She felt bad for the little girl, even though she completely understood that everyone was just unluckily all busy at the same time. It was times like this that she wished she could talk to Clover herself, but for the girl's safety, it was better that she be kept in the dark about the Miraculous.
Clover shuffled over to a stool in the corner, climbed up, and sat there swinging her legs. She unfolded the picture and looked at it with a sad expression.
Tikki was prepared to fly back up now that she knew Clover would be safe down here with Tom and Sabine, but then her stomach started growling. She turned towards the cooling rack where a tray of macarons in all sorts of flavours lay unguarded, taunting her.
"Just one," she whispered to herself, giving into temptation. She darted to the tray quickly, swiping the smallest one off the edge that was the least likely to be noticed missing. Tikki slid back into her hiding spot and giddily squeed at her successful stolen treat.
She was three blissful bites in, her cheeks stuffed and eyes closed in pure joy, when she heard those two cursed words.
"Yes, Hawkmoth," A young voice said in a monotone voice.
Tikki's eyes immediately opened, crumbs tumbling from her mouth. She looked at the stool where Clover had just been sitting… except she wasn't Clover anymore.
A dark mask had spread across her face, and her pigtails had doubled in length, tipped with small jingling bells. She was wearing a dress covered in purple and black diamonds, and her hands now ended in long, black fingers that curled. She hopped down off the stool. When her feet hit the floor, they made no sound at all.
"Nobody even wants to LOOK at me," the akuma complained, her voice giggly, even though it was obvious she was not pleased.
"Clover?" Sabine turned to the voice, eyes becoming wide as she took in Clover's changed form. "Oh, no. Clover!"
"That's not my name anymore, Grandma." The little girl's grin stretched too wide for her face. "I'm Jolly now. Hawkmoth says I can make everybody pay attention to me forever."
"Clover, don't listen to him! Hawkmoth doesn't tell the truth!" Tom slowly walked towards her, holding his hands out peacefully.
"You didn't want to look at my picture!" Jolly snapped, her giggling stopping for a second before returning. "So now you'll NEVER stop paying attention to me!"
She flung both lanky hands forward. Silk streamers shot out from each hand, wrapping around Tom and Sabine.
They both struggled to break free then their bodies went completely still. The next instant, they had wide, painted grins across their faces. They burst into loud, wheezing, laughter, tumbling around the place like it was difficult for them to walk. Unlike Jolly's more jester-like appearance, the two of them resembled clowns.
"There we go!" Jolly clapped her hands with delight. "Was that so hard? Now we'll have fun together forever! Nobody ever has to be too busy again!" She turned her attention to the customers in the bakery who were trying to get away.
Tikki had observed everything from her hiding spot. This had escalated unbelievably fast. She didn't wait another second. She shot straight up through the ceiling, phasing through it thanks to being a Kwami.
I have to warn Marinette and Chloé fast! As soon as she's done down here, Jolly is going to be after them!