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The Eternal

Summary:

After her latest blunder, Chloé Bourgeois walks around Paris seeking an outlet for her anger. She finds one, in the shape of a bracelet with a charm, and it unravels a rabbit hole about everything she knew about miracles, and as well as her own identity.

Notes:

(See the end of the work for notes.)

Chapter 1: Prologue

Chapter Text


Prologue


Chloé Bourgeois hated how things have turned out. How things have gone from wrong to worst in a mere day, how everything seemed to be stacked against her no matter how much she tried. Even the night light from the moon couldn’t calm her down, and the walk she had done around the city was not doing much either to calm her fury down.

It has been a couple of hours after her latest blunder, from the moment she had been crowned and later been dethroned by someone whom she had looked up to, but had shown nothing more than the very thing she had been taught to avoid. Her body burned with anger as she recalled back how Ladybug had simply ignored her and went for Tsurugi for help, showing how much of a liar she was when the hero told Chloé about not being able to be a hero anymore because of the security risk toward her family.

So much for being a hero, Chloé thought bitterly as she walked down the sidewalk, looking around to avoid people from seeing her in this pitiful state. She was just like my mom at that moment, and she blames me for wanting her gone.

That was something that Chloé found herself realizing. Ladybug had just acted like her mother back in that day, the first day where she had called Chloé extremely unexceptional and left for New York. It ached Chloé when she had seen the similarities and the cruel irony behind everything bad that has happened in her life.

Everyone she had looked up to doesn’t want anything to do with her.

A tear began to appear on her eye, but Chloé shook her head to avoid emotion from bursting forth.

Mom doesn’t want anything to do with me, completely ignores my existence, Chloé looked up at the sky. Ladybug used me for her gain, and when I retaliate I am the bad guy. Hawkmoth also used me, he needs to pay for that as well.

The blonde heiress turned around the corner and fixed her hood, walking straight into an alleyway. Her footsteps echoed in the empty alley, and the birds flew above her head. Amongst those birds, she heard a crow. Confusion settled in as she turned around to look.

A crow in Paris was something that shouldn’t be possible unless someone managed to smuggle in one and the bird wanted to return home.

Regardless of it, the fact that a crow was nearby didn’t sit well with her for some reason. Her gut turned around slightly, a sense of dread washing over her body as she tensed.

“Great,” The blonde mumbled under her breath, her brow furrowing. “Something is going to happen now. Better get home and ask dad about not going to school for a while, until the water calms down.” Chloé didn’t want to deal with the fallout of Miracle Queen, something she had been proud of—to an extent.

She hurried her steps and her senses began to go haywire. Her eyes looked around as she felt static filling her ears, slowly increasing volume the more she walked in. Cold washed over her body, which began shuddering madly as panic quickly overtook her body. Adrenaline kicked in, and she began to run toward her home. Her eyes widened when she noticed something weird about the alleyway.

No matter how long she ran, she couldn’t get to the end.

Chloé stopped, to catch her breath, as her shuddering continued and the static on her ears was practically blasting at this point. A headache was rising, and she looked around trying to find a solution. She looked up and saw it.

The crow.

There was a crow—the one she had heard before, or maybe this was a new one—perched on the building next to her, looking at her with curious eyes as it flew rapidly toward a spot near the dumpster. It looked back to her again, this time, a certain allure made her walk toward the crow.

“What. . .?” Chloé voiced out, though she didn’t understand what she said.

There was a piece of jewelry on the beak of the crow, a bracelet with a charm. The crow leaned forward, and Chloé extended her open hand toward the bird, which dropped the bracelet onto her hand.

Familiar magic began to be expelled from the bracelet, and Chloé understood what she was currently holding in her hand. A smile appeared on her face, and even with the pain she was experiencing, she found herself being able to smile and chuckle as thoughts raced in her head, thoughts she couldn’t comprehend at all thanks to the static. 

She swiftly slid the bracelet into her arm, but nothing happened. A frown appeared on her face as she looked back at where the crow is, to find something. Or rather, nothing.

The crow is not there anymore.

Suddenly, a head-splitting headache appeared and blood became to leak from her body. Chloé began to cough blood as her vision turned black, her body became extremely cold and her breaths heaved greatly as she struggled for oxygen.

And like that, in a dirty alleyway, Chloé Bourgeois knew black.

Chapter 2: Chained by Death

Summary:

Chloé wakes up somewhere of no certain origin and meets with a Kwami.

After, her life begins to change, and not exactly for the better.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


Chained by Death


Consciousness slowly returning to her, Chloé’s blue eyes fluttered awake with a dim light gleaming from them. Her head was pounding, hurting, but she managed to get up from her sprawled position on the ground. The first thing she did after getting up, was looking at the moon to have an idea of how long she has been passed out.

However, the sight made her widen her eyes. The sky was absolutely black, unlikely anything she has seen before. The moon was completely white; without any gray hue, it should have as per her vision.

The buildings around her were also white—some of them a shade of white close to grey—with black thick outlines that let out a black mist to disperse around.

Looking around, Chloé’s mind finally kicked in completely, and panic began to settle on her body as she ran out of the alleyway toward the street. Her body was still cold, but nothing she couldn’t handle.

The static was still there, and her thoughts were drowned out by it.

A hissing sound came, and a crow flew above her. Chloé took a step but felt a sharp pain traveling from her feet toward her head. She looked at the ground and saw markings coming to existence, like footsteps leaving a dark trail behind.

The blonde looked at the crow, who landed on a nearby roof and looked at her, and nodded as though saying her to follow him.

The allure from before came, and Chloé began to follow the marks on the ground as she went behind the crow. Each one of the steps sending mild pain to her, but gritting her teeth the blonde resisted the urge to scream and complain. She had to find out what that Crow was, why did it bring her. . . wherever this place was.

After running around for a couple of minutes, passing puddles of dark water and the light of the moon falling on her, she arrived at a clearing where a giant tree looked over. It was as tall as the Le Grand, its trunk black as the sky above but the leaves were white, leaving behind a faint amount of black miasma as they fell to the ground.

The crow quickly went inside, and from a small but quick flash of light, a being appeared from the leaves.

A Kwami came to hover in front of her.

The Kwami was black, a small beak on its face and wings. It opened its eyes to show white sclera with black dots. The Kwami looked at her from toe to head, as though looking for something or mere curiosity, before it began to speak. It looked like a crow.

“Why did you take so long?”

Chloé frowned, what does that mean? She thought, startled that she could finally hear her own voice inside of her mind. The static had receded, finally allowing her to think clearly.

The Kwami blinked, confused. “Did you not hear me? I asked why did you take so long in calling me.”

Chloé furrowed her brows deeper. I don’t know what you are talking about! Stop trying to confuse me!

The Kwami blinked once again and nodded to himself. “So that’s how it is. . .” It mumbled under its breath before looking at Chloé directly into the eyes. “What is your name, young one?”

Chloé Bourgeois.

The crow Kwami perked up at hearing her name, its eyes are filled with joy of some kind, and yet she could identify lingering sadness beneath them. “I should introduce myself then, I am Crown, The Kwami of Death.”

The what now? Chloé blinked, but shook her head and talked. I didn’t think there could be a Kwami of Death. . . why aren’t you in the miraculous box? I thought every single miraculous was there.

“Not quite,” Crown shook his head. “There is the Miracle box, another box that is in America and the container for myself and . . . my siblings. Unlike the others, my siblings and I are to be called when a miraculous has been used for evil deeds for far too long and eliminate the threats that will come.”

Threats? What kind of threats? Worry began to come, Chloé noticed Crown pointing at her hand, which she extended and the Kwami let itself land on the palm.

“Do you really think that the Kwamis wouldn’t have a way to try and pry themselves off someone they don’t like?” Crown asked. It made sense, once Chloé pondered about it, having a way to get back at the one using you for their own gain and evil deeds seemed like a good thing. “If I am correct, then I was sent to you not because you called me, but because of the threat that is already on the move.”

So, I’ll be able to deal with the threat with your help? Chloé wondered.

“Correct.”

The blonde smiled widely.

This was it, an opportunity to be more exceptional than Ladybug, with a Kwami outside of the Miracle Box. She already imagined everything that was going to happen, and she can already savor the tears of Hawkmoth and bask in the glory of being the one who defeated him, and a threat that not even Ladybug is aware of.

“Are you sure this is what you want?” Crown asked. “Once you use me for the first time, there is no going back as you were before.”

I can be exceptional and better than both ladybug and mom, what more can I ask? Chloé said, grinning, a dangerous gleam on her eyes.

“Very well. Let me tell you about the threat—”

I don’t care what is the threat, I will take it head-on!                            

Crown went silent but shook his head and murmured. “Just like always,"  and then he spoke out loud. “Ok then, the words are. . .”


In a dark and desolate void, a being hovered in the vast darkness. Its body was broken into five pieces, each one of them are dimly lit as miasma covered them. Silence reign above anything else, and the feeling of despair, anger, and sadness were the only thing the being could feel, for even its mouth had been shut a long time ago. 

Its eyes were closed, waiting to wake up from the never-ending nightmare, and its feelings were drained until nothing but darkness was left in its wake.

The void had never been a merciful place. No matter who went inside of it, once you went inside, there was no way to wake up. The only way to do so is very difficult to do in the first place. 

But, out of the blue, one of the pieces lit up. 

The piece—the head—moved toward the center of all the darkness as it slowly began to open its eyes. 

Golden eyes looked around and narrowed once it spotted the rest of the pieces.

Finally. . .


Waking up in the real world had been tough, as her body screamed of pain and the puddle of blood beneath her had practically soaked her clothes. Luckily, she had been wearing dark clothes to blend with the darkness, but that didn’t help her anger at the dirt and filth on her expensive clothes.

Looking at the miraculous on her arm, she smiled.

“Are you there, Crown?” Chloé called out, patiently waiting.

Yes, a soft voice spoke inside of her mind. Her heart began to beat, happy that what she experienced had not been a hallucination. Are you going to transform now? Because the threat you need to take care of is somewhere nearby.

The blonde nodded and whispered. “Crown, dead walking.”

A black miasma covered her body before dispersing as quickly as it came. Black clothes clad her body, ragged in certain places that would leave her body exposed to fatal attacks. A coat above her costume, the tail flapping at the wind that blew against her. A white boney mask over her eyes.

There was a sword strapped to her thigh, wooden hilt, and rusty metal in a single edge sword that barely resembled a katana. The length of the blade was slightly bigger than Chloé’s forearm, but it looked sharper than anything the blonde had seen before.

Smiling, the blue-eyed girl jumped into the night, moving through the rooftops being careful to not be spotted by anyone. Being chased down by the heroes would be bad, and she didn’t want Hawkmoth to try and recruit her again, though she might as well try to lure him to take him out and take the credit quickly. Still, she wanted Ladybug to have problems—to suffer, for some time.

As Chloé traveled through the roofs, a small spike of dread came to her mind. Her eyes narrowed, and she looked around, a bloody scent filling her lungs as she moved toward the place where it was coming from.

What is that scent? The blonde thought, worried.

Is how you can look for the threat. Said Crown nonchalantly. The mess they leave behind is quite clear for you to find once you use me.

Furrowing her gaze, Chloé began to worry about that implication but she quickly shook her head, because it wouldn’t matter as much when she is done with that threat. She can already begin to imagine her life as an exceptional person, someone people will remember for protecting them and ending Hawkmoth’s reign.

That’s. . . not how. . . it works.

Chloé halted as she arrived at the nearest rooftop, face confused as she looked around for the source of the voice. Then, she asked Crown. “Were you talking to me?”

There was silence, and then the voice of Crown came. No. you should focus on the matter at hand first, you can think about the voice later.

Confused, Chloé heeded the words nonetheless. The scent was getting closer and closer, and once the blonde arrived in front of an abandoned warehouse near the outskirts of the city, she knew something was wrong. Chloé didn’t know what exactly this threat was, but she could guess that she had to only defeat something and all with be done with. She takes the credit and lives a happy life being exceptional as she wants.

Chloé never thought, that once she went inside of the warehouse, she would be horribly wrong.

Blood frozen in her veins as her eyes widened. Bile rose from her stomach as she had to refrain from vomiting at the sight. Her body paralyzed and her breath was heaving in panic, but she forced herself to calm down as she looked around, eyes trembling with fear.

There were bodies everywhere she could see. Bodies, limbs, and even organs around while the blood painted the warehouse in red. The stench of blood filling her lungs as the copper could be already tasted on her taste buds. The sound of flesh ripping apart, being chewed and swallowed, came to her ears.

Chloé looked at the corner and saw something moving. Someone—or something—was eating a body like if it was yesterday’s meal. The being perked up, and whirled its head around to face her. The face of a man—was it a man? She didn’t know—looking at her with so much hatred that the blood lust almost made her faint on the spot.

Her legs felt like spaghetti, and once the being stood up, Chloé managed to steel herself.

What. . . is that? Chloé managed to ask with wide eyes.

That, my dear friend, is the threat. Crown informed, nonchalantly. A Debacle born out of wrath.

Notes:

:)

Chapter 3: Bound to Death

Chapter Text


Bound to Death


What—?

Chloé’s conversation with Crown was cut off when the being—the Debacle—roared all of a sudden, shaking her very core. The Debacle lunged, its hands went back and quickly shot forward like a whip, which Chloé barely avoided by ducking to the side as she unsheathed the sword and readied herself for battle.

The blonde steeled herself as the Debacle quickly looked at her and attacked once again, making Chloé move around the warehouse, avoiding the pillars that support it as she tried to comprehend what was happening.

The blonde lurched forward and sidestepped when the Debacle whipped again, using the sword and swinging it down to cut off the hand. It growled in pain, but Chloé, whose body was moving on its own, quickly used this advantage and swung the sword once again toward the chest.

However, it quickly jumped backward, grabbing its hand and staring at her with more rage in its eyes. Bloodlust increased, and sweat began to pour from Chloé's forehead.

The eyes of the blonde widened and blinked as she looked at the sword in her hands. What happened? Crossed her mind, but as soon as she tried to ask Crown, the Debacle once again lunged for her head. Sidestepping, Chloé rolled and lunged forward as she slashed its arm before kicking it away from her. 

The blonde quickly looked around, her mind focusing on things other than the fact that her body is moving on its own.

Eyes wandered around, looking at all the death and bodies around. One stood the most, a breathing person was still there, just behind the Debacle. If Chloé managed to save him, she would be exceptional for saving someone against the monstrosity that is the Debacle, who still managed to get her to almost puke at the sight of it.

Unluckily for her, the Debacle quickly moved beside the person and with tendrils of its own body, move it in front of it as a shield. Chloé narrowed her eyes, steeling herself. She had to move and get the man away from the beats as soon as possible.

Ok, go for the legs, and once it is distracted, grab the man. Simple! Chloé thought with determination, but something happened.

Her body moved once again, and against Chloé’s wishes, beheaded the man before whirling around and swung toward the torso, managing to make a big injury to the Debacle, which writhed in pain on the ground as it moved away from her.

Chloé stared in abject horror at the body of the man who she was supposed to save, bile rising and puked from her body as she fell on her knees.

What? What? What? What? Repeated itself in Chloé’s mind as she stared at the man she’d just killed. A soft growl from the side and Chloé whirling her head saw as the Debacle grabbed another body—another living body she had missed—and used it as a shield once again. Her body moved again, No! No! No! Stop it! We have to save them, not kill them! Chloé screamed at her body.

But it didn’t matter.

It moved on its own, and as her mouth opened, her voice spoke.

“Reckoning,”

Black miasma rose from the blade, pure darkness being expelled from the sword as Chloé’s body raised it for a single, last strike. Chloé tried to move her body, but she was seeing everything as if she was not in control, like if she was seeing everything through a VR. 

It was a scary and horrific feeling, and she tried her best to command her body.

It was too late, though.

Her body thrust the blade forward, piercing both the man and the Debacle as it cried in pain. The man ceased to breathe as blood poured from his mouth, and the Debacle tried to get away but Chloé’s body was having none of it.

It moved and quickly readied the sword to stab the Debacle, but the beast moved around to stare at her, suddenly its visage turned more human than before.

Please. . .” The beast moaned, eyes tearing blood as it stared at her with pleading eyes. “I want. . . to be free.” Green eyes gleamed, yearning for release.

She plunged the sword into the ground, the blade passing through between the eyes of the Debacle as it finally died.

Chloé stood there, watching as the body of the Debacle turned into ashes, its finals words repeating inside of her brain over and over. Then, she looked back, at all the bodies that are littered around and cold washed over her. She saved none. All of them are dead, and she killed two of them. She hadn’t done an exceptional job.

The blue-eyed girl quickly said. “Crown, dead resting.”

The transformation dropped, and she was back in her bloody clothes. The moonlight shone through the windows as Chloé quickly glared at the miraculous with some weakness, some sense of loathing and guilt appearing.

“What was that?” She asked, her voice quivering. “Why did my body not react to my thoughts? Why couldn’t I control my own body!?”

“What do you mean?” Inquired the Kwami, curiosity in his voice. Crown didn’t understand what Chloé was saying, and it made her angrier.

“I didn’t want to do anything of that!” She waved at their surroundings, at all the bodies. “An exceptional person wouldn’t just kill people—!”

“Who said anything about saving people?”  Crown asked seriously with a cold tone, so different from his nonchalant words, making her stop.

Chloé swallowed, nervous at the sudden change in the voice of the Kwami. Her body trembled as she continued to look around at the corpses of the people. Nervous laughter bubbled from her throat as she shook her head, trying to think of it all as a bad dream.

“Good joke, good joke.” Chloé gulped, trying to keep her smile, her face as serious as she could possibly muster. “Now, really, how am I supposed to be exceptional if I kill people? People would assume I am a monster and would hate me, I want to be exceptional in their eyes. Be more than Ladybug and my mom, better than them. This is not better.”

Crown was silent, before sighing. He spoke once again, as though he was not surprised by this outcome. “It seems that you have mistreated my words. Young one, I am the Kwami of Death. I don’t save people. I kill them, no matter who they are. Everyone is the same, I’ll always arrive.”

“What?” Chloé didn’t understand what Crown was saying, which the Kwami picked on and continued his explanation.

“These Debacles are born out of the misery of the Kwami,” Crown said, ignoring Chloé’s confusion. “Due to human selfishness, the Debacles are born and try to kill anything and anyone who comes across them, blindly and without care. They are the representation of the Kwami’s anger at humanity, and this time Emotions and Transmission are angry, emotion worst of the two. Now, the people are at risk because of it, everyone, even children. They can be turned, not saved, and death is the only escape. The sins of Mankind are going to catch up someday, and it is already happening.”

Chloé looked at the spot where the Debacle once was. her eyes widening in fear, hysteric tears already spilling as she tried to keep up the nervous smile to hide her fear and horror. She deflected, her brain trying to digest the information. “Then what about my body, why didn’t it heed my commands?”

“Who says it didn’t?”

Her smile froze as she felt a light trickling from her arm. What?

“Who says it wasn’t your thoughts about killing them? I am the sword, but you are the knight who wields me. The only reason they died is that you wanted them dead.”

Chloé snapped, anger pouring out like a volcano. “What do you mean by that!? Do you think I am stupid or what!? How could I wish to do something so heinous, so unexceptional by my own volition? Don’t lie! I should have known better than to trust a being of Death. I will be exceptional without you, then.”

She tried to pry off the miraculous from her arm, to find out that the miraculous wasn’t there anymore. It had disappeared, but she could still feel Crown’s presence within her body, mind, and soul.

Then, she remembered something. Words that appeared once again inside of her mind.

“Crown.” She called out, anger disappearing as she blankly stared at the arm. There was a tattoo there, though, where the miraculous should’ve been.

“Yes?”

“Where is your miraculous?”

“I told you, didn’t I?” Chloé could feel Crown smiling, the moonshine falling onto her pale face. “Once you’ve accepted me, there is no going back.”


Roger Raincomprix felt dread at seeing the warehouse from afar, grimacing as he was told by his companion about the circumstances surrounding the call they’d received when the morning came.

He had presumed this day would’ve been like any other, but as soon as everyone in the police station was called, or at least those who were free, he knew something was wrong.

He got out of the car, the sun kissing his skin as he fixed his cap. His gaze looked around, watching multiple police officers, many of whom he had worked with before, being disturbed and sick from something. Dread filled his gut as he walked up to them.

“What happened?” He asked, not really wanting an answer.

An office walked to his side. “It is better if you saw it with your eyes. Come.” He signaled to follow him, but before Roger could begin to walk, someone grabbed his arm.

He looked back and saw a policewoman, who he recognized as the one who is in a position for a promotion, who looked at him with worry in her eyes.

“Have you watch horror movies?” She asked, narrowing her eyes.

“Yeah. . .?” He really didn’t know what to answer. He had watched many movies over the years, some of them were of horror but many of those weren’t really good, to begin with.

“Ok.” She nodded, sighing. “Just. . . look away if you can’t handle it.”

“Bring some water here!” Someone shouted.

Roger looked at the source of the voice and saw one of the newbies being comforted by the veterans, who looked sick too and almost throwing up. The policewoman quickly moved out of the way and walked over there as Roger began to walk toward the warehouse.

The smell of copper already brought him a bad feeling, but he steeled himself and walked inside, only to find a nightmarish sight.

A sole thought came to find, which he voiced out without knowing it.

“What kind of monster would do this?”


There is nothing interesting. . . Chloé thought as she flickered the channels on her T.V, trying to distract herself from the events that happened before. it didn’t help much that Crown was nonchalantly about taking a human life, but Chloé should’ve guessed that it was obvious, he was the Kwami of Death after all.

A ray of sunlight came from her balcony, and the blonde blinked for a few seconds. It was already morning, which meant she hadn’t slept in all day. She got up from her bed and moved toward the mirror on the make-up desk, and saw her horrible state in the mirror.

Dark bags under her eyes, her skin pale and her hair was messy, pointy at the edges. It was a way no one would’ve thought Chloé Bourgeois being like, but there is a first time for everything, and she truly hoped that nothing more fucked with her this day. She lifted her arm, the tattoo moving like a snake, tendrils of black miasma floating into the air before dispersing and disappearing.

“Mademoiselle, are you awake?” Jean’s voice came from the other side of the door.

The blonde turned her head toward the door, before speaking. “Yeah.” Her voice was colored with tiredness.

“Can I come inside?” The butler asked.

“You can.”

A soft click came from the door, and it opened revealing the figure of Jean, Chloé’s trusty butler. He walked over to her, concern all over his face as he saw her state, which Chloé blankly stared at him, as though trying to communicate her misery.

“What happened, mademoiselle?” Jean inquired, furrowing his gaze. “Why do you look like you haven’t slept at all?”

Chloé sighed, rubbing her eyes. “Because I didn’t. The events of yesterday kept me awake.” She admitted, there was no point in keeping things from Jean. Though, he seemed to not be able to see the tattoo. She will ask about it later.

“Ah,” Jean softly gasped. His face turned sour but quickly regain his usual expression. He patted Chloé’s head. “Don’t worry, mademoiselle. I assume that you will request not attending school today, am I right?” he received a nod. “Very well. I will wait for you and we can request for you to take the day off.” He walked out.

A moment of silence, then. “He seems like a good man.”

Chloé did her best to not scowl at Crown’s words, she had spent the last five hours doing so, with an hour after to simply come into terms with the mess she had gone into.

Instead, she simply said. “Yeah, he is.”

“I do wonder why you feel more attached to him than your parents, was he the only one there for you?”

Her words halted before she could speak them, Chloé pondered about the words of the Kwami, and bitterness appeared from her very soul. 

Adrien had pretty much replaced her with the rest of the classmates, her mother had pretty much ignored her existence after staying in Paris and her dad was giving all of his attention to her mother, which was probably fair considering that Chloé’s mother never spent too much in Paris—always looking for an excuse to get away from her daughter.

“Yes. . . and I want this day to be over.” And with those words, Chloé quickly moved, bathed herself, and change clothes. She didn’t bother to put something expensive on, only whatever made her look good and still look that is expensive. Make-up was also forgotten, as she was sure she wouldn’t have to go.

Going out of the room, Chloé asked with a curious voice as she noticed that Jean was not there. “Why didn’t he comment on the tattoo?”

“Because he is not bonded with me. Only you can see it, and others who match the magical powers of the Kwamis. Besides, why would I make it so that anyone could know that there is something wrong with the person I am bonded with? It would lead to their lives being more complicated.”

The girl titled her head at the words of the crow Kwami. It made sense, in a way. Not showing that something is wrong is a way to make everything go smoothly, though in the end everything will become known. In the case of Kwamis, Chloé knew exactly that showing magic to people would lead them to do reckless things in the end with the mind of gaining the power to practically rule over people. Like she had done with the Bee miraculous.

Sighing and shaking her head, Chloé moved toward her father’s room, knowing well that Jean was already trying to bargain her stay on the house for this day. She heard some voices — somehow as she didn’t know exactly how — as she walked closer and she picked up Jean’s voice.

“Monsieur, Mademoiselle, please reconsider—!”

“Ugh! Who is this again? Why is he trying to give me orders? Andre!” Audrey’s voice shouted.

“Jean, why exactly are you asking us this? You know we have to get the public’s approval, and that means punishing Chloé for what she had done, as much as it pains me.” Chloé’s father said, his voice nervous layered with authority.

Chloé leaned against the wall beside the door, hearing everything unfolding from inside the room. She felt something stirring from within her and wondered if Crown was somehow angered or bothered by such things they are hearing at the moment. She would think about it later, as the conversation continued.

“Monsieur, I can understand that, but please allow Mademoiselle to have this day of rest, you can punish her later.” Jean’s voice pleaded.

“No can do, Jean whatever! You know that good PR is the best thing we need at the moment!” Audrey’s voice retorted, annoyed.

“But—”

“It doesn’t matter Jean, as much as I love Chloé, she crossed a line this time. I will think about giving her a bodyguard later, but she needs to understand that she crossed a very serious line, a line not even I know how to fix once again.”

A grumbled “Very well” before the door opened and Jean walked up. The frustration on his face very visible that Chloé didn’t need to think much to see it. The butler coughed before turning around, startled once he saw Chloé looking at him leaning against the wall. A sad smile across his face as he sighed in defeat.

“I assume that you heard everything.”

“Only the last part. What is the result?”

That made Jean raised an eyebrow, wondering if Chloé hadn’t heard everything, but the look on the girl showed more words to answer his unspoken question. Clearing his throat, he began to speak. “Your father wants you to attend school today, no matter what. He also wishes for you to not use your status anymore, as he will make it as no matter what happens your words will hold no weight but is considering hiring a bodyguard for you.”

Chloé nodded and swallowed her saliva. Her nails digging into her flesh as it drew blood, her anger at her family rising by the second before Jean patted her head, and as though she had been thrown into cold water, her anger went away. She looked up at Jean, who smiled sadly at her.

“Don’t worry, I’ll try to be there for you.” He said. “Besides, I think I’ll be able to argue who gets hired as your bodyguard. Leave it to me to get someone that won’t try to harm you.”

The blonde looked at the butler and gave a tired smile. “Sure.”

Both of them walked toward the elevator, and Chloé didn’t notice that the injury she made herself on the palm of her hand had already been healed.

The only worry in her mind was surviving the day.

Chapter 4: Memento Mori

Chapter Text


Memento Mori


He was dead. C was pretty sure of that, it was the truth, after all. She had never actually seen someone die before, but there was no denying the reality before her eyes.

She had never seen someone burning at a stake before.

The night sky was perfect to show the burning visage of her father, being acclaimed by they, who were around him, as some kind of evil lord. The Order of the miraculous, as they’d called themselves when they arrived and confronted her father, had defeated him and humiliating him for something he had done a long time ago.

Though, she didn’t know what truly had happened, as she was hiding during the whole fight. Not like she wanted to know, for the sight already brought tears of anguish flowing out of her eyes.

Gritting her teeth as to not let out a single sound, C watched as her father moved his head aimlessly, clinging to dear life, and he glanced at her general direction, but he couldn’t see her, as his eyes were gouged out.

Anger bubbled up, but she kept it down, not wanting to be discovered.

The Order of the Miraculous had done this.

Her father, who had done nothing bad in her lifetime and even gave up his dastardly ways when she was born, was burning at the stake when they could just have talked it out. He’d been right, humanity’s emotions didn’t settle well with the miraculous, they should have never meddled with things beyond their comprehension.

“Let’s end this!” The Black Cat announced, raising his palm toward the clear sky. “Cataclysm!” He let out, like a victory cry that his companions echoed alongside him.

The voice of the Cat carried over in echoes into the night, as C felt her eyes widen in shock and abject horror. Black particles gathered around the hand, and he grabbed the rope vaguely attached to an unscathed piece of wood touching the stake. The black matter traveled as swiftly as water, devouring and vaporizing everything it touched. Soon enough, it reached the fire and consumed it, too.

Not long after, her father was no more.

“The Rogue is gone!” The Ladybug declared, the rest let an outcry of happiness. “His presence will no longer haunt us!”

“Let us go back and celebrate this event!” The Black Cat smiled. A genuine smile of happiness and relief on his face was shared by his friends.

The Horse said words that could not be heard by C, and a portal appeared beside him. The Miraculous holders quickly went through the portal, and the Black Cat gave a glance behind at the remnants of the battle. He walked through, and right after him, the Horse went inside.

The portal closed, and silence befell the scenario. The black-haired girl moved slowly, grief clinging to her, weighing her down as she felt the death of her father lingering in the area. The tattoo in her hand writhing with wrath, seething with anger at the thought of an unnatural death happening so close to her.

“Dad. . .” Her voice broke, as sobs began to come through without a filter. “Why. . .?”

It was something unfathomable for her. An Order meant to preserve peace had just broken hers, just because of something her father did many decades ago. He didn’t even have that much time left yet, less than five years, and he had died in such a horrible way.

The girl looked down, at the scorched grass.

All the death that happened because of some Order that couldn’t let go of the past, that couldn’t let an old man have his final years of peace with his daughter. C gritted her teeth, eyes shining as fierce as the moonlight as blazing fury could be seen in her eyes. Anger finally bubbled out, as tears ran down her cheeks.

A wail of rightful anger escaped her lips, as the tattoo writhed in sadness in her arm. A flash appeared on her hand, and a small sword, rusty but long enough to pierce the heart of an adult, rested on her palm. Her grip caused her knuckles to go white as she looked at the remnants of her house.

Her lovely house, which had been once so full of Life had been destroyed, until only Death remained at the hands of the miraculous holders, the ones from the Box of Miracles.

All because of the miraculous.

Because of them being used by humans.

Because of them, her father was gone forever, to never smile and play with her, to eat with her, to train her, and teach her about life.

They need to pay.

“They’ll pay.” C gritted out, having made up her mind already. “I’ll hunt them, until the end of times.”

The sword lit up in agreement for a second.

“I’ll destroy the Order of the Miraculous. Until there is no one left alive to tell the tale.”


“…Chloé!” Sabrina whispered into Chloé’s ear, snapping the blonde from the trance she had been.

Shaking her head, the blue-eyed girl looked around, confused and dazed, as she watched the rest of the classroom leaving the room, some of them throwing glances at her, most prominent Dupain-Cheng and Adrien, and Chloé wondered if Rossi, too, threw her a glance.

Quickly taking out her phone, Chloé watched the time. Time to go home. “What? It is already the end of classes?” She asked Sabrina, dumbfounded.

“You have been staring at the board this whole time Chloé,” Sabrina said, nudging her friend with her elbow. Sabrina was worried about Chloé, as her expression bled into great concern. “You haven’t been ok since this morning? You haven’t been paying attention to anything, not even what everyone had said to you during lunch.”

“Really?” Now Chloé thought about it, she truly didn’t remember anything of what had happened in the day. it bothered her, not remembering an entire day for some reason. She had known that ever since yesterday, nothing would be the same for her since the conversation with Crown expressed as much, but this was truly worrying.

Besides, what was that dream about?

As though he was reading her thought, and he was, Crown spoke. “What you saw was the memories of my first user and last user.”

Your first and last user? Seen her memories?

Chloé felt the Kwami nod within her. “Correct, her name is not important at the moment, but she was the first to wield me as well as the one who had the container where my siblings and I resided.”

What happened to her? Why am I seeing her memories? Chloé asked, and noticed Sabrina poking her on the ribs. The blonde moved and got out of her desk, allowing Sabrina to get out, too.

“Not important, and I suspect that the reason you are seeing it is because of something beyond your own control. I have my theories, but. . . I won’t say them until I have confirmation.” Crown said, quickly cutting the connection between the two, and Chloé no longer felt the Kwami dwelling within her.

Come back! Chloé demanded, but when he didn’t answer, the blonde simply sighed before grabbing her purse.

“Chloé!” Sabrina called out, waving a hand in front of Chloé.

The heiress blinked, looking at her friend. “What happened?”

“Are you sure you are ok?” Sabrina raised an eyebrow.

“Yes, now, let’s get out of school.”

Chloé walked to the door, Sabrina walking right behind her. Both of them stepped outside of the classroom and found the school mostly empty. Relief overwhelmed Sabrina, not willing to bear down the many stares she did in the morning once again. Though there were still some people left glaring at them, but Chloé ignored them, having been trained in the art of ‘Ignoring everyone who you don’t consider important enough’.

Unfortunately, however, Sabrina wasn’t taught how to deal with that. Swallowing down her saliva, the ginger-haired girl grabbed Chloé’s hand as she tried to ignore the growing stares of hatred thrown in their direction, and while Sabrina knew they were sent to Chloé and not her, it didn’t help her concerns.

“Move, ignore them,” Chloé whispered to Sabrina, who quickly nodded as both of them left the school.

They walked toward the Eiffel Tower, people walking around going about their day. Both girls walked up to a bench and Chloé sat, as she felt a growing pain inside of her head. The blonde massaged her temple, looking as Sabrina received a message on her phone.

Sabrina’s eyes widened for a second before she typed out something on her phone. “Dad wants me home as soon as possible, apparently there has been something that happened to put him like this, and I am worried about that. But I am also worried about. . . you know. . .” She motioned both her and Chloé.

“Oh, you are talking about Miracle Queen,” Chloé said, nonchalantly, not bothered by the implications.

Sabrina winced slightly the tone of her friend—because they are, no matter what anyone says—and coughed into her fist. “Well, yeah. No doubt word has already reached him about Miracle Queen, and I know he will try to use this to make me no longer hang out with you.”

Chloé said nothing at this news, already having prepared herself mentally for the occasion. She asked. “What are you going to do?”

“Eh?”

“It is obvious that your father will ask you that, it is ridiculous to not consider it. So what are you going to do? Heed his words or ignore them?”

Sabrina was silent for a moment, before fixing her glasses. “I’ll do my best.” That was all she said, and Chloé nodded in understanding.

Chloé got up, watching the sun already past noon. She walked up to Sabrina and the both of them started walking toward Sabrina’s house, the ginger-haired girl giving Chloé a rundown of everything that had happened on the day.

The blonde had flashes of images through her mind as Sabrina spoke. The glances of people, the look of victory on Lila’s face, and the dismay of Adrien before going to sleep in the classroom. The latter already gave her a bad feeling about the future, but she didn’t know exactly why. But it wouldn’t matter that much, as long as she managed to salvage one friendship, Chloé is sure her mentality wouldn’t be damaged.

Then, from her pocket, a sudden vibration was felt by her. Sabrina took out her phone, and her eyes widened before an explosion was heard going off in the distance. Debris flew across the sky and part of the wreckage fell straight beside both of the girls.

“A debacle has been born.” Crown’s voice whispered, and Chloé was suddenly reminded of the events with the last one. Her skin paled, but she shook her head and looked up to see Ladybug and Chat Noir fighting against an akuma.

“Go to your house,” Chloé said to Sabrina, who looked at her confused. “Don’t worry about me, go to your home, now!”

Sabrina nodded hesitantly before taking off toward her house, a piece of debris falling near her. The blonde looked around, destruction slowly brewing and quickly took off in the opposite direction. The stench of death quickly reached her lungs, and she stopped dead in her tracks. A chill ran down her spine as she looked at the Seine, a growing sense of dread festering deep within her. A quick movement from the corner of her vision, and it disappeared in toward the Seine.

Chloé looked around and found no one nearby. Sighing to steel herself, she whispered under her breath. “Crown, Dead Walking.”

She jumped over the railing, falling on the concrete ground, and quickly ran in a flash of black light. Chloé ran toward the sewers, as the scent grew stronger and stronger, vile rising from her throat once again. The scent was too much for her, and she threw up at the side, clutching her stomach. Her intestines were hurting, ever so slightly, but the feeling of pain was uncomfortable.

“So, that’s how it is,” Crown muttered. “Gluttony, now. Be careful, for the coming sight may shock you.”

Chloé didn’t like those words but moved either way.

Going further into the sewer, Chloé watched the blood painted walls and hands parks that moved toward somewhere, and the implications didn’t sit well with Chloé. Bones littered the ground, and a puddle of blood soon came to her vision. Unsheathing her blade, Chloé took one last breath prepared herself, taking one step, she came to see—

Nothing?

Chloé furrowed her eyes in confusion and walked a bit deeper. Her foot breaking a bone, but only a small sound came. Once she reached an intersection, she came to a stop, as she felt something on her.

Something on her leg.

Something had grabbed her leg.

Shit!

Chloé was suddenly pulled and slammed against the wall, the sheer force sending blinding pain throughout her whole body. When she glanced at it, a long withering bone-looking hand was tightening its grip around her leg, nails digging deep into her flesh. Blood leaked, and panic settles inside of her body. The thought of bleeding while using a miraculous had never occurred to her.

Whirling on her own mass, Chloé hacked off the hand as a massive shriek of pain echoed within the sewer. The not-hacked-off part quickly retreated, but Chloé gave quick chase, ignoring the jolts of pain surging from her leg. Her brain, while she was chasing the rest of the arm, went to a single thought.

Why am I bleeding? The miraculous magic should be able to protect her from any wound that she may sustain.

She felt Crown’s presence within her mind as she kept running. “I don’t exactly have the details, but it could be that we are not at the peak of our power yet.”

What do you mean? Chloé asked.

Crown once again, chose silence.

Hey! The blonde screamed but looked at her surroundings.

Fuck.” A single whispered word left her mouth.

Bodies were embedded into the wall, their flesh and blood painting everywhere she saw. The bones ripped from their bodies, head rolling around as though they were mere balls. The stench of death had never felt so clear, and the sound of something chewing reached her ears. The blonde looked at the side and saw it.

An octopi-like being devouring some human bodies. One of them was still alive, but Chloé saw, frozen, how she quietly pleaded for help as it chopped her head, swallowing everything in one go. In the center of the being, was a body with a glowing purple outline surrounding it, the center of the debacle, whoever had been taken by it.

Chloé quickly took action, lunging toward the debacle as she readied her sword for a single strike. One of the arm-like tentacles reacted at the second, reaching out and swept the floor. The blonde jumped, and another hand caught her in the air before throwing her toward a bundle of dismembered bodies.

She felt some of her bones cracking, but that might have just been her imagination.

Resisting the urge to vomit on the spot, Chloé moved out of the way as the tentacle lashed out once more, whipping its tentacles toward her, making the bodies where she once was exploded in a red mist, the ground cracking at the mere impact. The blonde’s eyes widened, and uncertainty overtook her for a moment.

Then, she heard the same voice as yesterday.

“Don’t fear, do it.”

Chloé exhaled, her once blue eyes shining a white-hue. Her body steeled and moved on its own. Gluttony attacked once more, roaring once it noticed her moving once again. More tentacles attacked, cracking, whipping, and swinging around, trying anything to get to her. One of the tentacles managed to grab her leg, this time, however, Chloé reacted faster and hacked off the tentacle before it could do anything.

In its momentary recoil of pain, Chloé took the advantage and swung her sword two more times, slicing off more tentacles. Gluttony once more recoiled back, the tentacles that are left growing impatient and uncontrollable. They shot toward everywhere, cracks appearing where they hit, bodies exploding when they are struck, bones pulverizing at the mere touch.

Chloé rushed forward, cutting the Gluttony’s body in half. The tentacles soon died, and everything that was left was rubble, death, and destruction.

The blonde quickly began to leave, not wanting to see whom she had killed. The sudden moan of pain and crying made her do otherwise, as she looked over her shoulder to see what happened.

A child.

The debacle had been a child. A girl. Who Chloé assume had been starving for her to get Gluttony.

Chloé’s breath began to heave in panic as she ran away, the tears of the girl searing into her mind as she left the sewer and went to the Eiffel Tower, but not before detransforming.

She didn’t want to do this anymore. A child had been turned into a monster because of the miraculous, all because of its defense system that had been triggered by a human.

“You know how that can happen,” Crown whispered, and Chloé felt him nudging her. “You know perfectly how to stop all of this.”

Chloé nodded, as she walked toward Le Grand, eyes vacant from emotion.

For this to stop. . . Hawkmoth needs to die.

 

Chapter 5: Worth of Self pt. 1

Chapter Text


Worth of Self


Hawkmoth must die. . .

“Yes, he needs to die. For the sake of getting one up Ladybug and the other heroes.”

Not for the sake of anyone else, only for herself. The mindset was anything but a hero’s, but for the one who bears the Kwami of Death, heroism is a lie to create role models, nothing more, nothing less. The mere concept of altruistic humans is laughable, everyone is selfish on some level, is just that Ladybug’s selfishness is well hidden beneath that mask of hers.

“He is wealthy, that’s for sure,” Chloé muttered absentminded, chewing the eraser of the pencil she was holding with mild force, as she stared at the things she had been writing on a notebook she bought coming from the last debacle fight she so desired to forget about.

“Then, he should not appear often and nobody would question it.”

Chloé unconsciously nodded at Crown’s words, her blonde hair waving at the gentle breeze coming from the balcony’s small opening. Shifting her weight, she rested her head on her left palm, as she continued to search through her mind for the interactions between all the miraculous holders currently in Paris since there was no reason in looking for the ones in America.

She’d found through Crown that the Box of Miracle once belonged to the Order of the Miraculous, a sect—cult—in China that trained children to protect the miraculous and to loan them to “worthy” souls across the globe to fight magical threats, but they had been killed from the world, disappeared without a trace, and after Miracle Queen, according to the Kwami of Death, the last remnant of it was no longer in this world.

That thought alone was comforting for the blonde. No experienced player in this game, only a madman and wannabe heroes playing on a board of chess.

Leaning back on the chair, and staring at the ceiling, Chloé did a quick recap of what she had written down on the book inside of her mind as the words appeared in white in front of a black void.

[ Hawkmoth,

Appeared on the first day of class, the same day Adrien was given the chance of going to a school and be a normal kid. He wants the miraculous, the Cat and Ladybug, to make a wish of some kind. He seems to be wealthy and has a habit of not appearing in person, which suggest that he normally isn’t seen in public or his job allows him to remain hidden. Mayura should be someone close to him, or someone who works for him, but apparently, the recent fight had left her with what it seems dizzy spells, not allowing her to fight property.

She hasn’t appeared yet, which means that Hawkmoth once again has the Peacock.]

A thought popped up inside of Chloé’s mind.

Didn’t Adrien say that her mother had dizzy spells before she disappeared? It crossed her mind. Chloé knew that there was no way that Emilie would simply leave Adrien out of the blue and so out-of-character. It has always been on her mind ever since the woman disappeared from Adrien’s life—and hers, too. Why would she disappear so suddenly? Magic seemed the most likely answer by the second, and Chloé didn’t like that one bit. 

But. . .

Chloé wanted to find out, badly.

“Hey, Crown.” The blonde called out softly, her voice barely above a whisper, not wanting anyone from outside hearing her words, not even if a Kwami suddenly decided to approach the building to spy on her.

“Yeah?” 

“The Peacock is broken, right?” The blonde asked, her eyes looking around for something. Crown nodded, and Chloé felt that nod within herself. “Are there any ill-effects of using a broken miraculous?” She knew about the dizzy-spells, but she wanted to know more. Information is power.

“Well,” Crown began, searching through his mind, and after a few moments, he found an answer. “For everything I know, the effects can change depending on how broken the miraculous is, but the normal effects are not being in peak power. . . and dizzy spells.”

Chloé’s face scrunched at the answer but pressed further. “Why do the dizzy spells exactly happen?”

“Because the Kwamis are practically pure magic, in a sense.” The Kwami explained, already knowing everything Chloé wanted to be answered. “The human body wasn’t created to withstand such power, and their body develops illness because of it as a warning method. It is like a disease, once it grows too much on you, it can kill you unless you use it through a catalyst, a miraculous jewel, so a fraction of the power—refined and changed for humans—is merely passed onto them and doesn’t affect them at all.”

Chloé grimaced at the implications. If Emilie had the Peacock once upon a time for some reason that she didn’t have the time for seeking, it would explain the dizzy spells that the woman had before she disappeared, but it wouldn’t explain how she disappeared without anyone noticing once it was too late to know where she had gone.

The woman loved Adrien too much to go be gone without a goodbye, and from what little Chloé could remember of the good old times, she was a very loving mother and the very one she wanted to always be with her.

The heiress was about to ask another question when the sound of something knocking on the balcony reached her ears. Her muscle tensed, and breathing heaved slightly, as she felt her vision blurry for a slight second. A heartbeat thundering her chest filled her eardrums, and her vision went blank for a second before it came back, and Chloé felt better.

Once Chloé whirled around to confirm who it was, she took a sharp breath as her blood boiled beneath her skin.

Ladybug was there. She was there.

There mere thought of being near the Ladybug hero made her blood continue to boil, anger bursting from the depths of her very soul, so much that it almost felt foreign to her. Chloé dulled her increasing wrath and exhaled some of it through her mouth.

The spotted hero, the one whom she had grown to hate for the last days, was standing outside the balcony, watching her with eyes that no normal person could see what emotion those eyes had beneath the mask. But Chloé was no normal person, per se, she was the daughter of the mayor and heiress to Le Grand as well the daughter of the Style Queen—as well as the one who crippled the heroes’ number back to two.

She had learned to read people, how to look for their behavior to know how they act and their weakness.

The eyes Ladybug was glaring daggers at her with were filled with hidden hatred, contempt in those blue eyes that were so different from her own.

But Chloé felt her hatred was bigger than that of the heroine.

Steeling herself for the ensuing confrontation, Chloé glared back at the hero and said nothing—did nothing. After a few seconds of glaring with Ladybug, the blonde sighed, walked up and fully opened the balcony door, and retreated to the desk she had been sitting to put the notebook inside of a drawer. She whirled on her heel, putting her weight to block anyone from reaching the contents of the drawer.

Ladybug walked inside, crossing her arms over her chest. Chloé glanced over her room, and her eyes landed on the door to her room, she narrowed her eyes back at the hero and continued to be in silence. 

Crown, if I fought Ladybug at the moment, could I win? Chloé inquired.

“No, don’t tempt your limits. Right now we can’t fight a Kwami of Balance, much less two of them. Your mission will be delayed if you get caught.”

Another beat of silence, until Ladybug spoke.

“Why?” Ladybug asked, voice low and almost wanting to simply rage at the blonde.

“‘Why?’ What?” Chloé questioned, knowing exactly what the heroine wanted to be answered. It was obvious, after all.

“Why would you help Hawkmoth?” Ladybug asked, voice increasing in volume. “Why would you do something that puts Paris in danger? All because of what? Because I didn’t give you the Bee Miraculous when I told you your identity was known, and your family and. . . friends could be in danger if you continued to use it?”

Chloé blinked and snorted at the words of the heroine, so unladylike. “Oh, and I thought you were smarter than that.”

Now it was time for Ladybug to blink, mumbling. “What?” Low and quiet as anger rose in those blue eyes, threatening to spill outside.

“You thought I did all of that because of the miraculous?” Chloé raised an eyebrow, feeling cold washing over her body, extinguishing the fiery flame inside of her soul. Her mind had been cleared from any doubt, there was no point anymore. “Why did I ever looked up to you?”

“This isn’t the time to shift the conversation? What do you mean you didn’t do it because of the miraculous?” Ladybug demanded, stomping over and grip Chloé’s arms into a hold, not allowing her to move. The hero was actually harming Chloé, as bruises quickly appeared on the blonde’s arms, and in any normal situation, the heiress would be panicking at the thought of being harmed.

Chloé, however, was very calm. Eerily calm as she spoke once again. Her blue eyes shining a shade of white dude to the moonlight. “I was ok with you not giving me the miraculous, but when I saw Tsurugi, of all people, having hers. Then, I knew you were full of shit.”

Ladybug said nothing, eyes widening slightly. “What—!?”

The blonde continued, a creepy smile on her face, as she interrupted the hero. “Another person who had her identity known by Hawkmoth, no less, but she was ok to have her miraculous back, but no me? You know, I never hated you, but after that, I knew you were a liar. I. don’t. Like. People. Lying. To. Me, Ladybug.” The words spoken by Chloé had a different tone, as a ghastly echo followed them.

The hero said nothing, again, but her grip on Chloé had lessened. Ladybug snapped out of it, and her grip came back. It should be hurting her, but Chloé smiled all the same.

“Even if I did lie to you, why would you work with Hawkmoth!? Because of that everyone else was exposed!” Ladybug exclaimed, and something in her eyes changed as she stared at something over Chloé. “Hawkmoth now has the advantage because of you. Are you so petty in your little world that if you don’t have something, no one else can!? Why did I ever think of you worthy of the miraculous in the first place is beyond me.”

Ladybug stopped grabbing Chloé and took a few steps back, staring at the non-hero with hatred almost there to burst forth.

Chloé grinned, teeth gleaming in the light of the moon. “I hate you, Ladybug.”

The words took the hero aback. Chloé stared at her with wild swirling eyes, a deep-rooted tempest of hatred at everything finally being free.

“I want you gone, I want the miraculous gone from your hands. Yours, Chat’s and Hawkmoth’s. None of you should have it. So I decided, I’ll strive for killing you all, no matter what it cost me. You, the root of all problems in this city, are all going to die by my hands. I don’t need your help, I am better than you because at least I am human above anything else. I am not allowed to be selfish? Well, guess what, I don’t care about anyone’s opinion, I’ll live my life however I want, and no one will stop me. Not you, not Chat, not Hawkmoth, no one.”

Chloé’s rant seemed to affect Ladybug, as the hero quickly ran outside and jumped over the railing of the balcony, leaving Chloé staring at her with a crazed face as silence overtook the room. The blonde giggled, and laughed, tears running down her face as she did so, feeling freed from chains she didn’t know she was holding off her own emotions, blood quickly sprouted from her tears, as the blood droplets fell to the floor.

Chloé didn’t seem to mind them, as she slowly moved toward her bed, and threw herself at it, the cold night greeting her skin as her consciousness faded away.

And for a glimpse a second, she saw the museum inside of her head.

She was no longer going to play with their rules.

She wanted them all gone.

(For some reason, that felt like the right thing to do.)

Chapter 6: Worth of Self pt. 2

Summary:

Chloé meets her bodyguard, and a new Debacle appears.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


Worth of Self pt.2


Flinching as soon as her mind came to be, Chloé took a sharp breath as she tried opening her eyes. The pain traveled from her brain to her body, and then her heart spiked up as her eyes fluttered open. Her vision was black and white for a moment, then it turned as it should. Her blue eyes turned silver for a second and returned to their usual blue hue.

When did I fall asleep? Crossed the heiress’s mind.

Scratching her head, Chloé tried to recall the events of the night before. The last thing the blonde remember was talking to Crown about the Peacock miraculous before she heard something, and then her memories were no more, pure blackness awaited her and so she didn’t try to look more deeply into it.

Chloé quickly got up from the bed and stretched her body, feeling the pain slowly fading away. She was still wearing the clothes from yesterday, much to her wonder. It meant that she truly fell asleep not long after her memories stopped.

She moved toward her desk, and confusion painted her face. The notebook was not on the desk, her eyes moved toward the drawer, and her hands moved before she could think of anything. The drawer opened, and the notebook was there, clean and well for anyone who could want to look at it. Searching through the pages, and seeing that nothing had changed, Chloé let a sigh of relief, knowing that no change has been done to the notes she had done.

A knock came from the door, and Chloé moved to open it.

“Who is it?” She asked, mildly annoyed but her brain quickly added up who it could be, as there was only one person bold about to come earlier.

“It’s me, Mademoiselle.” Jean’s voice passed through the door.

Chloé opened the door without much of a thought, and the sight of Jean looking at her greeted her immediately.

He bowed with a smile on his face. “Good morning, Mademoiselle. I hope you had a great night.”

“. . .Yeah,” Chloé mumbled under her breath, but shook her head as quick as she could. “Is there any reason for coming too early in the morning?”

“Your bodyguard is going to arrive in thirty minutes,” Jean said.

She blinked, surprised. How could that be? “What? I thought dad was simply going to think about it, I never thought he would go as far as to have one come right away. It has only been one day since you suggest it.” Chloé pointed out but was simply answered with a smile from Jean as he played with his mustache.

“Don’t worry about it, Mademoiselle. I made sure to get someone that you will be able to fully trust. In the meantime, I advise taking a shower.”

Chloé nodded.

Jean went to the elevator as she watched his back, and an unwitting smile crossed her face. She closed the door behind her, moved to her bathroom, and removed her clothes as quickly as she possibly could. The bath took about 20 minutes, as she didn’t want to get too relaxed and not dare to move in another 20 minutes, and while drying herself, she moved toward the wardrobe to get a glimpse of what she wanted to wear that day.

Something fashionable, but nothing that would attract too much attention to herself.

She decided. 

A yellow blouse underneath a black open hoodie with yellow outlines and honeycombs pattern, black pants with a white spiral design on the outer left thigh. Chloé turned around to grab her make-up supplies, ready to apply them but stopped mid-way. After a few seconds of looking at her make-up supplies, Chloé left them there, and pulled the hood over her head, and walked toward the door, grabbing along the way her purse.

Going down the elevator, the door opened to reveal the staff moving, doing their job, and Jean was in the middle of the lobby, talking to a black-haired woman wearing a black suit who looked ready to drop kick someone with her bore face and done-with-life eyes.

“Jean, who is this woman?” Chloé approached them, glancing at the woman.

Jean turned around, and the woman glared at Chloé, but the blonde ignored it.

“This is your bodyguard, Mademoiselle.” Jean waved at the woman, who nodded her head to the side while crossing her arms over her chest. “Her name is Athena Abbacchio, I hope you two can get along.”

The woman—Athena—stepped in front of her. “Nice to meet you, Miss Bourgeois.”

“Likewise,” Chloé muttered, feeling slightly off. Her eyes wandered toward Athena’s hair, where a spider-like honeycomb laid. “Hope we can get along.”

Athena nodded her head, and before the silence could befall the conversation, Jean spoke up.

“Are you going anywhere, Mademoiselle?” Jean asked, intrigued by the appearance of the young lady.

“Well. . .” Chloé didn’t know what to say at first, but a single word crossed her mind. “Museum.” She mumbled.

“Hmn?” Jean hummed in question as everyone else left the lobby to do their tasks.

“I’m going to the museum.” She spoke a little bit louder.

“Very well. Athena,” He turned to face the black-haired woman, who looked at him. “Take care of Chloé while both of you are out there.”

“Very well,” Athena said, no emotion in her voice.

Chloé watched her with narrowed her eyes, looking at the comb on the woman’s hair, and moved to exit the hotel, Athena right behind her.

Was it just her. . . or that comb felt familiar?

The feeling was pretty much bothering her to no extent. Chloé felt the need to get her hands on that comb by any means necessary, but she knew that her bodyguard would be her first and last line of defense if something were to happen. She couldn’t just make Athena mad at her, it would be stupid.

People might consider her some kind of monster, but one cannot survive high society being stupid.

“One cannot survive life while being stupid, either.” Crown suddenly spoke, making Chloé jump on the spot.

“Is there any problem, Miss Bourgeois?” Athena inquired, asking from behind the blonde.

“There is no problem, let us continue our journey to the museum,” Chloé said, though she had no idea why she was compelled to go to the museum in the first place. It was a nagging feeling on her mind.

She felt the invisible tattoo on her arm bristled and burn her slightly before calming down. Chloé glared at it.

“May I ask why do you wish to go to the museum, Miss Bourgeois?” Athena asked another question, suspicious of Chloé’s actions.

“What?” Chloé snapped her head toward the bodyguard. “Is there any reason you are complaining right now? You took the job, zip it, and accept me going to the museum.”

Why was she protective of her choice?

“I always wanted to see the museum,” Crown whispered. “I know we will find something interesting.”

Chloé tilted her head with curiosity but kept on walking toward the museum. Though, she simply prayed that she found no people inside of it, as she didn’t want to glare back at some people that might exaggerate her actions to make her look worse than before.

It simply would not be pleasant for her.

And if they do. . . I can always simply dispose of them. Chloé whispered in her mind but then shook her head.

Wondering whose voice had just talked in her mind.


Everything was going according to the plan, much to Duusu’s delight. Gabriel Agreste was doing his thing once more, taking Nooroo to use him to progress his plan for something that he will never have. To use his power for evil, as humans would say it is.

The Kwami of Emotion smirked faintly, knowing what was to come in the next days. Feast was simply the beacon to call for Death and know everything was almost in place, only one thing was left. The time for retribution was going to come, and with the order back, she might want to have a few words with them. Not that Duusu would mind that, after all, he brought Feast on them, as per asked by her.

Even so, he had to be careful. As long as an Amok touched her everything will be perfect—or if his miraculous did, that will work, too—and his mission would be completed. There was time to waste, though, but he knew for a fact that the sooner this happened the better it would be for mankind.

Duusu knew about the decline in Mankind’s progress for a better future. It all started when she was destroyed.

When a Wish was used to make her disappear because the order wanted her gone.

But he will make sure she comes back.

The pieces were already gathered in one place.

The domino has already started.

It was only a matter of time before Eternal came back into this world.


As soon as they entered the museum, there was a sudden shift in Chloé’s behavior. Athena noticed it immediately, but only because she was close in distance to the girl. Chloé’s body soon became slightly dizzy, but her footsteps still carried the weight of someone who knew what they were doing.

Though, she seemed in trance, as she kept on walking ignoring everything and everyone around her.

She moved and suddenly came to stop, whirled on her heel, and stared at the exhibition in front of her. There was nothing but a notice on the glass at the side of it, saying that it was a new one that had just recently gotten in the museum.

Chloé leaned forward and saw it.

A single pendant with a white wing, pure white as the snow, that seemed more alive than any human. Athena walked closer to Chloé, wondering inside of her mind what exactly was the girl looking at, and felt a slight warmth coming from her comb, but she paid no mind to it.

The heiress was soon lost in thought.

Three minutes passed, and Athena grew if only slightly worried, but her face showed no emotion other than boredom.

Athena touched Chloé’s shoulder, and leaned closer, only to hear what Chloé mumbled under her breath.

“Hope, do you know where he is?”

It was subtle but audible enough for Athena to understand, which confused her even more. Hope, it was said as a name, but for everything, she knew Chloé Bourgeois had no one called Hope as an acquaintance.

She didn’t notice the pendant softly glowing brighter.

She also didn’t notice her comb shining slightly brighter, too.

An Akuma alert blasted across the city, distracting Athena for the moment. The staff from the museum quickly began to get out and go toward a shelter. The bodyguard quickly turned around and shook the girl awake.

“Miss Bourgeois, we have to go the shelter, now.” She said as a finality, not wanting to get a temper tantrum from the girl at this moment. Athena knew about how Chloé never liked people ordering her, but her safety at the moment was her sole priority, not because Athena was worried about her, but the pay she will receive if she ensured not a single speck of harm would be great.

Instead of anything she was prepared for, she received this reply.

“Why should I?” Chloé asked, eyes dimly lit and seemingly unaware of everything around her. “Let the Akuma come for me. If it kills me, it would only make me stronger.”

Athena furrowed her brows, but before she could speak her mind, Chloé continued.

“Death will never be an escape, though.” Chloé titled her eyes. A creepy smile crossing the blonde’s face. “Though, if Ladybug and Chat Noir died on this Akuma attack it would please me greatly but I don’t want the miraculous falling in the hands of Hawkmoth.”

Athena felt a chill ran down her spine. What? Repeated in the woman’s mind. What is this girl on about? But there was nothing that could answer her questions as something happened, something beyond what she thought possible.

The scent of blood quickly filled up her lungs, and she looked around.

There were bodies dropping into the ground, their blood seeping into the floor. Any object within their location had been ransacked, windows were broken, but Athena didn’t remember sounds of the act reaching her ears. It was a surreal experience. She quickly looked at Chloé, about to dragged her about from danger, when she caught the sight of the face of the girl.

It looked bore, as though she knew this would happen. Athena followed her eyesight and saw something that looked like an eldritch abomination standing at the end of the hallway.

“Ah,” Chloé muttered, absentminded before whispering. “Greed, now.”

Notes:

I've been very busy, but I think I reduced my words per chapter I can post more often.

Anyway, let's make the plot rumble faster, shall we?

Chapter 7: Worth of Self pt. 3

Chapter Text


Worth of Self pt.3


Athena stared at the being in front of her with horror within her features.

Even so, she moved as soon as it moved. Athena grabbed Chloé by her wrist and bolted out of the museum as quickly as she could. It noticed her movement as quick though and moved faster than the eye could see to put itself in front of the hallway’s connection to the entrance of the museum.

Athena stopped in her tracks and quickly moved through another hallway. Alarm bells rang inside of her head as she ran faster than she ever could. Adrenaline had kicked in, but Chloé was doing nothing but getting dragged, making Athena go ever so slightly slower than what she would’ve liked.

Athena quickly stopped after confirming that it was no longer behind them, and she rounded up on the blonde girl in her care.

“What are you doing?” She demanded to know, staring at the girl with narrowed eyes.

Chloé simply looked at her, eyes dead inside. “Is there any problem?”

Athena felt anger rising within her at the nonchalant question of Chloé. The woman once again shook the girl, trying very hard to simply not let her anger get the best of her anger strike the girl down. After shaking the girl, the blonde shook her head and clutch her temple.

“What are you doing?” Chloé asked this time. Now, her voice had more emotion inside of it.

“We are currently trapped inside of the museum by an unknown being that I assume is that Akuma, Miss Bourgeois. We have to get out of here.” Athena quickly gave a rundown, blinking once she noticed the light coming back into the girl’s eyes.

She would have to keep an eye on that, Athena decided.

Chloé looked back at where they came from and frowned. She felt Crown blistering inside of her arm. She knew what it was, though she couldn’t remember much after entering the museum. Even so, Crown was giving a quick rundown on the exact events that had transpired.

“That’s not an Akuma,” Chloé told Athena, who frowned in return.

“Miss Bourgeois, that’s the Akuma, it can’t be anything.” Athena kept her emotions in check, but she felt skeptical about the girl’s claim. She truly wondered what had caused her to accept being a bodyguard to the Pariah of Paris.

Chloé shook her head and took out her phone. She went inside of the Ladyblog using a proxy—because she had been banned from it—and gave it to Athena.

The woman took the phone and watched the video that was currently playing live. Ladybug and Chat Noir were fighting what truly seemed to be the Akuma. Athena’s stomach turned around, and worry truly began to settle inside of her core.

A sound echoed within the hallway, and both of them turned around toward the source of the sound. The smell of metal and gold suddenly came, and Athena covered her nose with her hand once it reached her. Chloé simply continued to obverse it, though she had readied her own body for something. To fight or flight, Athena didn’t know the answer.

“Miss Bourgeois, we have to get out of here and let Ladybug and Chat Noir handle this,” Athena said, then Chloé turned around to meet her face once more.

Athena froze on the spot.

Chloé’s eyes were dead once more, and a chill went down the woman’s spine making her reconsider if she had said something wrong.

Then, the girl spoke. “Don’t you ever think I need their help for this.”

Cold and unforgiving as the winter, as death itself whose very existence was the end of everything and didn’t need help. Athena noticed the obvious change in tone, so sudden and without warning, as though she had simply flicked a switch.

A switch that Jean had never warned her, something that he didn’t know himself.

Does she have a mental illness or something similar? Athena wondered through her increasing fear.

It made sense in Athena’s mind. After having heard how many times that girl has something going after her, how after everything it seems she simply had a reset after each day, it was the most logical thing to assume. Something inside the girl’s mind was resetting to the spoiled brat personality, as though from avoiding something else from erupting.

But now, it was apparently coming through at the moment.

“Ok, Miss Bourgeois,” She lifted her hands, watching it from a distance. “We don’t need their help, we simply should walk away from here, for your safety.” For Athena, it was a matter that she would get severely reprimanded by the Mayor of Paris if she ever dared let his daughter get harmed. On the other hand, she was already seeing that Chloé wasn’t in the right state of mind.

That thought was more prominent in Athena’s mind as she watched Chloé tilt her head, as though the concept of getting her to safety was foreign to the girl.

Okay, I need to do some investigation into the Bourgeois family. Athena decided within her mind.

Light faintly returned to Chloé’s eyes, and she walked carefully toward Athena. It was still looking at them, though, and Athena truly wanted to know what it was.

It suddenly moved toward them, slowly.

Athena felt her heartbeat spike at that moment, but Chloé was unimpressed with its movement.

The blonde girl then whispered.

“Duck.”

Chloé’s duck at that moment and Athena soon followed her. The woman blinked, not knowing why she followed the girl’s lead, but when she looked at the place where it was, she found that it was no longer there. Athena looked back, and saw it embedded into the wall behind them, and widened her eyes.

Athena gave a quick glance at Chloé, who whirled around to face her.

“Please, no matter what. Don’t tell anyone about this.” Chloé ordered, and if Athena didn’t have a good hearing, she would’ve missed the slight begging tone beneath the girl’s voice.

What is she talking about? Athena asked in her mind.

I can kill her if she does talk. A voice within Chloé said, but she shook her head to make it disappear.

“Crown, dead walking.”

Black miasma was expelled from Chloé’s arm and it covered the girl’s body in second. Athena jumped back slightly, only for the miasma to go away and reveal the new clothing that Chloé was wearing. The bodyguard felt a chill ran down her spine, and she felt as though Death was looking at her once Chloé turned to face her.

“No matter what happens, don’t come for me,” Chloé said, with finality. “You won’t survive this battle.”

“. . .Miss Bourgeois,” Athena said, hesitantly. “What is this? I thought you didn’t have any jewelry with you to become a hero.”

Chloé quickly glanced at it, then back at Athena with a brow raised. “I’m no hero. Everyone keeps saying it, and they are right. But that doesn’t mean I want anyone dead on sight. Well, except for them that are currently using the miraculous.”

What is your obsession with them? Athena wanted to ask, but the words wouldn’t leave her mouth. What is so bad about them you wish to see them dead.

That was when Athena knew that there was truly something wrong with Chloé Bourgeois.

“Go!” Chloé ordered as it moved out of the wall.

Athena ran down the hallway that had been unblocked, she looked back and saw Chloé jumping out of the way of another attack with a sword now in her hand.

And as she went out of the museum, ignoring the dead bodies of some staff that had the misfortune of being attacked by it, she thought.

I will have to make up a lie just in case.


Nobody knew where it came from, not why it was formed. The only thing anyone knew about it is that it appeared as soon as Ladybug and Chat Noir had defeated the most recent Akuma, that had been a mere man that had gone bankrupt due to some miscalculations on his company’s part.

While the heroes were comforting the man, it appeared.

In less than the blink of an eye, the sound of something bursting open exploded throughout the city. Chat Noir and Ladybug turned to face in the direction of the museum, where the sound came from, and it quickly reached their position.

It snapped its mouth open, and then shut, swallowing the man that had once been the Akuma.

Ladybug had been frozen on the spot, not knowing how to react. A lot has been on her mind since yesterday, and now this happened.

Chat Noir had a better time. “M’Lady!” He called out.

Ladybug shook her head and quickly swung her yo-yo to reach out the rooftop faster. Chat Noir followed her, using his baton to impulse his jump. Both of them reached a nearby rooftop and watched it from it. It was a massive black eldritch being that had no real way of being described, only that it had glistening black and purple lines moving as though they were sentient.

“What is that?” Ladybug asked, looking at it horrified.

“I don’t know, but I’m feline a bad feeling about it—”

Something crashed beside it.

From the asphalt smoke, she came. A figure wearing black clothes that were ragged in certain parts of the body. A coat above her costume, the tail flapping. A white boney mask over her eyes, leaving silver dots to be seen from the shadows over her eyes. She looked at it from her position, and readier her sword before lunging toward it.

It quickly reached, shooting toward the nearest jewelry store. The masked girl reacted just as quickly, stomping the ground and launching her sword toward it. The sword pierced into it, but the shriek it left quickly broke many windows around.

Once again, the Akuma alert blasted.

“Who is that?” Chat Noir asked, confused. for some reason, the masked girl looked familiar to him.

“I don’t know, but whoever it is, she is already fighting that thing. Maybe we can help her and rescue that man.” Ladybug suggested.

Chat Noir nodded and bolted into action.

He landed on the ground beside the masked girl. “Want help from this cat?” He asked.

What happened next was shocking to him. The sword that was on its body quickly flew back to the masked girl, who whirled around her body to slice Chat Noir’s head. Chat Noir barely managed to bend his body in a cat-like way to avoid the attack, and soon after he jumped away.

“Whoa, girl! Chill out, I still want to have my head on my body.” Chat quickly raised his baton in defense.

“What are you doing!?” Ladybug quickly fell beside Chat Noir, displeasure on her face. She was frowning, feeling angry at the woman who attacked her partner.

The masked girl simply said.

“You.”

She pointed at the with her sword. Her eyes staring at their souls.

“I’ll come for you next.”

And then she ducked once it jumped to attack her. Both the masked girl and it continued their battle.

“Wait!” Ladybug demanded, anger welling up in her chest.

“Ladybug.” Chat Noir called out, his serious voice catching her attention. “Something is wrong.”

Ladybug looked at what Chat Noir was looking at and saw him looking at the screen inside of his baton. She quickly snapped her yo-yo open, watching the news media about the dead people around the museum. A chill ran down her spine, and she felt her breath hitch for a second.

But I purified the Akuma around that time!  Ladybug thought. There shouldn’t be any more of this damage! Is it an Amok? No, Mayura isn’t around here, I would’ve noticed. What is happening?

While they were distracted in those seconds, a voice rang through the city.

“Reckoning.”

Ladybug looked at the masked girl, whose blade was covered in black miasma as she slashed the body of it. It hallowed in pain, and sobs soon followed. The masked girl fell into the ground, crouching and looking deep in thought as it began to dissolve, only for a crying—and dying—man to be left in its place.

His body was cut in the middle, his intestines spilled for the world to see. He was begging for salvation, but the masked woman simply walked up to him and stared at him with pity. For a second, only for a second, Ladybug thought she was going to help him, but then she stabbed his head with her sword, with the small features that were seen showing boredom.

The masked girl looked at Ladybug.

“Cast Miraculous Cure,”

Ladybug didn’t need to be told twice.

“Miraculous Ladybug!”

The ladybugs quickly ran down the city once more. Once it happened, relief filled her body and she looked at Chat Noir to stop the masked girl from going further but the horrified face he had was enough to stop her from doing so. She looked at where it was, and the man was still dead.

 “And mourn the dead in peace.”

No one killed by it came back from the dead.

The masked girl jumped away, leaving a distressed city behind.

Chapter 8: Aftermath pt.1

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


Aftermath pt.1


Chloé jumped from another building before falling onto the desolated alleyway, feeling coldness creeping on her skin as she felt the weight of the ground beneath her feet. She took a deep breath, feeling tired as though life had been drained from her very being, and made the transformation come undone.

She leaned against the wall behind her, not caring about getting dirty, and let herself fall bottom first on the ground, shivering uncontrollably. A cough escaped her lips, and she felt some squirming within her soul. The pain soon followed, and Chloé clutched her chest in pain as she tried to suppress it.

The blonde closed her eyes, seeing images flashing inside of her mind, of people she had never met, of times she had never lived in. the one that she could see the clearest was the memory where she was talking to a man—someone very old, soon to die—and him teaching her about magic.

Who. . .?

The sound of footsteps was not lost to the girl.

"Here you are, Miss Bourgeois." Athena's voice rang through the alleyway.

Chloé opened her eyes and looked at the entrance of the alleyway, seeing her bodyguard walking toward her with a slight expression of concern on her face.

"Athena? What are you. . .?" Chloé asked, half-gasping for air.

Athena rolled her eyes. "I am your bodyguard. I have to get you back to your home if I am to not have my head rolling in a silver platter."

The black-haired woman walked up to Chloé and kneeled in front of her, allowing the blonde to move thanks to the support. Athena quickly did piggyback with Chloé at her back, feeling the cold skin of the girl, but said nothing about it. Taking a deep breath, Chloé nuzzled closer to Athena, trying to find warmth to control her shivering.

"I—" Chloé coughed. "Don't think my dad would do something like that. . . and mom. . . I don't know."

Athena tilted her head as she started walking.

"You still have to explain to me what has happened," Athena said, nonchalantly.

Panic spread through Chloé's body at that. "Why should I? You are alive and well, there is no more reason to explain."

Athena stopped for a second, turning her head around as much as possible to look at Chloé in the eyes, her face was serious, but it wasn't anger or being mad at her.

Chloé didn't know how to feel about that.

"Miss Bourgeois, in my way here, the city has gone in disarray and disorder. Miraculous Cure hasn't cured—nor revived—anyone who was caught in the attack of that thing. I want—no, need to know if I'm not to tell your father about what you have just done."

The blonde said nothing for a solid minute, but Athena had started walking regardless. Chloé watched, as from afar, people scrambled to do something, their panicked expressions—she smelled death in the air, so devoid of life—and she pressed her face against Athena's neck.

". . .Fine," She breathed out. "just get me home, Athena. I'm tired and cold."

"Very well, Miss Bourgeois."

***

The walk toward Le Grand had been uncomfortable, but not because of either Athena or Chloé, but because of the panic that was happening around them. Everyone was distressed, even more so those who lost someone to the attack of Greed. Chloé watched with cold eyes, but not without feeling guilt and compassion for those who lost someone. Inside of her heart, she felt that once they'd mourned the dead, they should be able to move on and look toward the future.

Even so, so much dead felt wrong with her. As though a part of her was screaming at her to fix it, though Chloé didn't know how exactly would she fix this situation. She didn't have anything resembling a miraculous cure with her, and the Ladybug Miraculous was supposed to be the strongest alongside the black cat, so she was at lost what she could do that the Miraculous couldn't.

Athena entered Le Grand, and Chloé saw the many of the staff was no longer working, and she knew that they went to check up on their loved ones. The bodyguard carried Chloé toward her room and soon they went inside. Athena closed the door behind them and laid Chloé on the bed before pulling the blanket over the blonde.

The black-haired woman sat in a chair that she brought from the balcony, and stared at Chloé.

"Now, explain," Athena said.

Chloé took a deep breath and swallowed some of the saliva inside of her mouth. She still felt cold, much colder than when she was close to Athena. She reached out subconsciously toward the woman, and Athena took her hand hesitantly.

"I-I-I don't know how to explain."

"Just start from the beginning." The woman told the girl.

And then, Chloé split out everything that has happened in the last few days of her life. From Miracle Queen—though she left out some details—to this day. Athena didn't say anything as Chloé continued her talk, simply sat there, calming Chloé down when the girl started to get cold.

When Chloé finished, Athena leaned back and took a deep breath as she opened her mouth.

"So you are telling me that you have one of these gods inside of you and won't leave you, and now you have to deal with eldritch horrors that have come to punish humanity for whatever reason."

The blue-eyed girl nodded her head as she raised her voice to speak. "Y-yeah, That's about it. Please promise me that you won't tell my dad—"

Chloé suddenly stopped talking and dropped limply on the bed.

"Miss Bourgeois!?"

Athena quickly got up to her feet and quickly moved closer to the girl. Pressing a hand to the girl's chest, she noticed the faint heartbeat and the cold touch of the skin. Something truly was wrong with Chloé Bourgeois, Athena had cemented that idea inside of her mind. And it made her wonder. . . how much had people not noticed this?

How much had everyone forsaken a girl that was broken?

"I need to get Jean—"

Suddenly, a flash of light drowned the room. Athena squinted her eyes to block the light, and after a few moments, she opened them up. In front of her, but above of Chloé was something floating. A dark crow-like being, staring at her comb for some reason. It looked around and then looked down at Chloé, before looking back at Athena with bored eyes.

"Don't worry about it, the stress of me leaving her body has made her pass out." It said in a monotone voice.

Athena narrowed her eyes. "So you are this god that's inside of her."

The being nodded. "That would be correct. My name is Crown, Kwami representing the concept of Death."

Death. . .? Athena's mind whispered.

"Why have you chosen Miss Bourgeois to wield you?" She asked—questioned, more so—Crown.

Crown looked at her, deadpanned. "I don't have to tell you anything, Athena Abbacchio. For everything will unveil itself in the near future." Turning around to look at Chloé, words continued to come out. "I simply must ask you to watch over her, I do not for this girl to lose herself."

The black-haired woman frowned. "I would do that regardless if you asked me or not. But I want to ask, what have we done to have those beings attacking us?"

Crown looked at her, with eyes more dead than she could ever hope to ever see again.

"Fragment humanity."

***

Jean walked down the hallway, worried about Chloé and Athena when he crossed Andre Bourgeois' room.

"When do you think you can do it? Tomorrow? Ridiculous, utterly ridiculous. I except the most exceptional of results!" He heard Chloé's mother declared from the other side of the door and sighed. He didn't want to be with such a woman for a long time, but he was paid to be within Le Grand.

At least his only solace would be watching over Chloé.

He reached out here room before knocking on the door. He'd been told that Athena had carried Chloé back into the hotel, and he was worried about Chloé's condition, and he wanted to see if she had an injury.

"Athena, are you there?" He called out.

After a few seconds.

"Yes, Jean, I'm here."

The door was unlocked and Jean walked inside of the room. Athena was there, face blank, but Jean noticed the concern inside of her eyes. it was something that made his stomach turned around in on itself, but he walked over to Chloé's bed, to see her on the bed, laid there and unmoving, her skin pale and breathing shallow.

What happened to her!?" He asked at Athena.

Athena waved her hand, sitting on the chair nearby. "Don't worry, she simply had run too much apparently. We were in the museum when that thing attacked, and we had to run away as fast as we could. Though, she has been feeling cold from what she has told me."

Without missing a beat. "I think it's best if we tell Sir. Bourgeois."

Athena chimed in immediately. "No, let's wait for a few minutes."

Jean looked at her, confused. "What do you mean?"

And so, she told him with seriousness in her voice. Something he knew about her that she was telling the absolute truth of something. "I think it is just a fever, we should wait to see if it becomes worse than it already is. If it gets better, then we simply wait, if not we tell her parents."

"I think it is best if we tell her parent now."

"Jean, believe me, we will tell if it gets worse."

"Very well."

Jean was called shortly after through his phone and had to leave the room. Once he closed the door behind him, Crown appeared from the ceiling and floated in front of Athena. The woman leaned closer toward the girl, leaning on her arms, looking at the peaceful yet sick look of the young girl.

"Don't worry, Miss Bourgeois. I will guide you from now on." She whispered.

Crown looked at her and whispered.

"I truly hope that you do, Athena Abbacchio."

And he retreated into Chloé.


Ladybug quickly reached the small balcony of her room and dropped the transformation. Tikki quickly flew out of the miraculous, startled by Marinette's expression of anger, hurt, and confusion. Even more so, the emotion that outshined everything else was confusion. The loss of not knowing what was happening around one, and not having the power of doing something about it.

Marinette demanded in a hushed tone. "Tikki, what was that!?"

Tikki said nothing. It wasn't as though she didn't want to talk, but she found no way to explain what had just happened. The Kwami knew what was happening, she'd been told about it before, but she would've never guessed that it was going to happen so soon.

"Why aren't you talking!? I need some help here!"

Sass flew out of her closet, out of the box. "Calm down, Ladybug."

Marinette looked at him confused when Roarr appeared, too.

"I'm curious, why did it take her so long to appear?" It was obvious who she was from the sound of it.

Marinette turned to look at Roarr. "What are you talking about, Roarr!? Who is she?"

Roarr said nothing, making her angrier.

Tikki quickly piped in. "Marinette, calm down!"

The Ladybug turned to face her Kwami, trying to speak as low as possible. "No! I'm tired of people trying to calm me down, I can have this one moment to freak out. The miraculous cure failed, failed! I need to know what I'm dealing with if I'm to do anything!"

"You can't." A voice stopped her from speaking further.

Marinette stopped frozen on the spot, unable to say anything else as she allowed those words to echo within her mind. Those were words she never wanted to hear, the impossibility of action, that was the thing that scared her the most. It reminded her of the time when she didn't have much confidence, of the time Chloé simply did as she pleased and if it weren't for the miraculous, Marinette would have never stood up to the blonde.

She turned around to face the rest of the Kwamis, each one of them looking at her with different levels of pity. Longg had been the one to speak, and so he hovered in front of them all. his face was blank, without emotion, but he, too, held some remorse about something that Marinette didn't know about.

"What? What do you mean by 'You can't'?" Marinette whispered in disbelief.

Longg shook his head. "She is waking up, you can't do anything, Ladybug. The only thing you can do is wish that her ire is not directed at you when she comes, that she gives you mercy."

"Who are you talking about?"

Unfortunately, nobody answered her question. All of the Kwamis except Tikki retreated into the miraculous box, leaving Marinette with no answer. Marinette looked in disbelief at their action, and once she looked at Tikki, only to see her guilty face, she decided that it was enough.

"I don't have time to deal with this." Marinette began to walk away, before she could transform, Tikki stopped her by swooping in front of her.

"Marinette, understand that this is something you won't be able to beat, no matter how much you try."

Marinette raised her voice. "Then answer me! Who was that person fighting that thing? Why is everyone going so wrong just a few days after I was made the guardian?" She began to look guilty once she saw Tikki recoiling at her voice, and then whispered. "And what is wrong with Chloé?"

Tikki blinked, confused, and then asked, nuzzling against Marinette. "Chloé? What has she to do with anything?"

The Chinese girl mumbled out. "She threatened to kill me if I ever crossed her path as Ladybug again, I felt a chill down my spine and ran away. My mind was busy with a lot of things, so I forgot to tell you."

When silence was the only thing that met her words, Marinette turned around to look at Tikki, who had wide eyes.

"Tikki?"

Marinette could only hear Tikki mumbling under her breath. "Of course, how could I be so blind? It makes sense. . ."

The girl called out. "Tikki!"

The Kwami looked at her. "Yes?"

"What are you mumbling under your breath?"

Tikki side glanced, before giving a gentle smile. "Sorry, was thinking out loud. I'll try my best in teaching you how to be a good guardian. Don't worry too much about those beings, that person that helped you knows how to deal with them effectively."

"Who is she?" Marinette asked, calmer than before after she took a deep breath. "Why does she hate me and Chat Noir?"

"She is—"

A deep, scream echoed throughout the city.


"Why is this happening!?"

"Sir. . . I think you need to calm down."

Nathalie's voice rang through the lair, and Gabriel turned around to face her. The woman's complexion was worse than he'd thought, but he found himself not worrying that much, knowing that as long as she doesn't transform, she will be fine.

However, it didn't quell his anger at the situation at hand. "Nathalie, don't tell me that! I need to know what was that thing, that has caused so much damage that can't be repaired. Nooroo! Explain this instant." Gabriel faced the butterfly Kwami, demanding an explanation.

"I-I don't know, master." Nooroo stuttered. Gabriel noticed how truthful those words felt, no lies or even the attempt to lie were made. He narrowed his eyes at the other Kwami in the room, who was watching from afar the freak out he had.

"Duusu, you have three to speak."

Duusu swirled around in the air, looking at Gabriel in defiance. It was more emotion than he had seen the Kwami showing to him, and anger was something he no doubt was going to experience at one point or another. But he held the Peacock Miraculous, and he needed the information at this very moment if he wanted to fix everything, for even himself didn't want people dying like this.

After all, he will truly become a monster if he were to be glad this happened, so Ladybug and Chat Noir have more problems.

"Why should I? This is simply karma coming back at you."

Gabriel glared at the Kwami. "Do not test my patience, Duusu. I have your miraculous, I can command you to tell me. I'm being nice at this moment, tell me."

"No." Duusu shook his head.

"I order you to tell me!" Yelled the man, commanding through the Miraculous for the Kwami to tell him, his patience worn off.

Duusu smugly smiled and said. "These are the sins of humanity catching up to them. You are in their sight, anyone who holds a miraculous will be hunted down. There is no way you will escape her wrath."

"Who are you talking about?" Gabriel demanded once more, this time more softly. Nathalie walked up to Duusu, to try and see if she could find out more about the situation.

Duusu screamed out of nowhere. His voice piercing what seemed to be the heavens above. A small mist emerged from his body and quickly flew out of the lair toward a certain direction, but no one noticed it except Nooroo, who widened his eyes once he felt it happen.

"What are you doing?!" Gabriel covered his ears with his hands.

"Duusu, what's happening to you?!" Nathalie yelled, and did the same as Gabriel, before coughing. Soon after, she fell to her knees. Gabriel quickly moved after Duusu stopped screaming and fell to the ground, unconscious. He helped Nathalie stand up from her kneeling position, and spoke with resolution.

"I need the black cat and Ladybug miraculous, now. When Duusu wakes up, I'm going to make him tell me."

For I don't want to leave children orphaned by my actions.


The scream that pierced the heavens reached the hotel, and Athena quickly brought her hands up to cover her ears. After a few seconds, right after the scream had subsided, the black-haired woman stopped covering her ears and looked through the balcony to try and locate the source of the scream.

At first, she thought it was an Akuma, but no alarm blasted through the city, making it very obvious that it wasn't. Even so, Athena didn't let guard down.

"What was that?" Asked Athena.

Then, she felt her hair flared in warmth. Quickly looking up, a small ball of light floated in front of her as she touched her comb, which was expelling heat, warmth that looked peaceful and very relaxing.

Athena watched as Chloé's complexion began to get better, her skin returning to its natural color and her breath began to even out. It calmed the woman, slightly, but the small ball of light in front of her didn't bring her any comfort. It wasn't doing much, only hovering above Chloé, but Athena didn't like any variables that could hard the people she was employed to protect.

Even less when it seemed those people were pretty much broken by their environment.

The ball of light dispersed into tiny stars that fell to the floor, leaving a being like Crown, only that it looked like a spider. It opened two of the eight eyes Athena could see and looked down at Chloé before floating down at her. Athena made her way to move, thrusting her hand forward, blocking the Kwami, from what she could guess, from reaching Chloé.

Her gaze hardened and asked. "Who are you?"

The Kwami looked at her with a relaxed gaze, before touching her hand. From that, Athena could feel no malicious intent coming from the Kwami, only warmth that inexplicably was making her consider letting it touch Chloé.

It could become a problem, but she allowed the Kwami to touch Chloé.

It did.

And light engulfed the blonde girl sleeping.

Notes:

Penny for your thoughts on this chapter?

Chapter 9: Aftermath pt.2

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


Aftermath pt.2


The sky had begun to cry, but C found herself no longer caring about it.

She walked through the woods that were nearby her once the house, which had been ransacked for anything useful, and promptly burned to the ground. Adjusting the bag on her bag, the girl continued walking forward to the town nearby, since she didn't have anywhere else to go to. There was someone in town that will most likely agree to take her in, but she didn't know if that person would understand the circumstances.

Once she reached the town, C moved directly to the house. The rain started to pour harder, but she made no reaction to that, she simply kept on walking until she reached the house. Once she did, she stood in front of the best-looking house on the town, though it was already decaying due to time.

C knocked on the wooden door gently and waited. After a few minutes, she assumed that the owner of the house was gone, and so she decided to sit on the stair to the door, using her hands to recline her head-on. C continued to look at the distance, at where the house once laid. Everything was gone, books, portraits, memories of the time she would no longer have to remember.

C looked down and muttered. "Dammit. . ."

Tears began to well up in her eyes, but she shook her head. Reaching out, she clenched the pendant around her neck, felt the earring hung by a string in her ear, the moving tattoo in her arm, the comb keeping her hair together, and her soul burning with sorrow. The only thing that was left from her father, that would stay with her forever, would be his teaching and his will to enjoy life as much as possible.

The sound of approaching footsteps soon reached her ears, and she got up from the stair effortlessly and whirled on her heel to face the door. Soon, it opened, revealing an old man with grey hair, hunched over wearing enough clothes to not get a cold due to the rain.

"C****? What are you doing here at this hour?" The old man asked, stroking his mustache. His concerned eyes made C's heart skip a beat, and she looked down. "Shouldn't you be at your home?"

"Dear?" An elderly woman's voice asked.

C watched as the source of that voice appeared from behind the old man, she pressed a hand against her cheek and tilted her head as she looked around.

"Little flower, what are you doing here in the rain?" She asked, and before C could answer, she simply waved her palm to motion her to get closer. "Tell us inside, we wouldn't want you to catch a cold.

"Ok,"

The old man and old lady allowed her to enter the house, and C walked inside. Using the magic inside of her, she made her body rise in heat, drying up the soaked clothes she had. C made her way toward the living room of the house, and sat in dogeza on the floor, watching as the old man sat in front of her with a pillow below him, the elderly woman nowhere to be seen.

A few seconds after, the old lady appeared from the kitchen of the house with a tray with cups atop it. She sat down beside her husband and set the tray in between C and them. C quickly moved her hands and hovered a hand above the cups that had tea inside of them from what the girl could see.

Then, she believed that the tea will get warmer than it was at the moment, took a deep breath, and felt her magic flaring up. The comb in her head shining if only a little bit.

"Ah," The old lady exhaled from her mouth. "I'll never cease to be amazed by that."

"Me neither," the old man agreed with her, then he focused his eyes on C. "Now, C****, will you tell us why are you here at this hour?"

C shuddered and swallowed her saliva. "Dad is dead." She said, looking down.

Both of them froze on the spot, not knowing how to react.

"What—? How?" The old man asked, shocked at the news.

"He was. . . murdered by a group of people when I was away from the house," C told the truth, not wanting to lie at this point and also seeing no point in doing so.

"But why?" The old lady looked down, a hand over her mouth, shocked and tears gathering in her eyes.

C had almost forgotten that the old couple had been great friends with her dad, so much that they had babysat her when she didn't know much of the world and her dad had to go somewhere and couldn't bring her with him. It was sad, truly sad, seeing someone so old having to see one of their oldest friends just vanish overnight—by the hands of someone else, no less.

"They. . ." C truly had no way to explain it. So she tried to do it as much as she could without shedding a tear herself. "They said it was justice for something dad did when he was younger, though I don't know the specifics of what he had done, I know what he did." She waved at herself.

"You old fool, you weren't supposed to die first. . ." The old lady choked on a sob, and the old man circled a hand over her back, whispering soothing words. He looked at C, downcast eyes gazing over her.

"If you need a place to stay you can stay here until you sit fit to do what you will." He said, and C blinked in surprise. His voice carried sadness, but there was something more lingering within his voice. She recognized it as understanding, but for what? She'd wondered, but then remembered what she had felt when she knew of her dad's demise.

"Thank you very much." C bowed her head.

The old man waved his hand with a sad smile. "It's the least I can do for you, C****. You can take the room next to ours."

C nodded. She got up from the floor and walked over to her room, sliding the door open, she went inside of it and threw her bag into the corner of the room, hearing the rain subsided a little bit.

The black-haired girl looked down at the pendant around her neck and smiled sadly with tears in her eyes. "It's a pity, truly a pity. That they won't live after two more years."

Losing so much in so little time wasn't something funny, but she won't curse it, as that's the beauty of life.

***

"Wake up."

And so she did.

Chloé's eyes fluttered awake, the sunlight reaching her eyes making her squint them in reflex. Taking a breath of fresh air, she felt warmth spreading across her body like warm water being slowly poured into her. She gently rose from her bed, but winced at the sudden sharp pain traveling from her body, but found herself being caught by a hand.

Sliding her eyes, Chloé saw Athena sitting near her bed, looking as blank as when they'd met, but with her hands stopping Chloé's fall.

"Athena?" The blonde choked out.

"Good afternoon, Miss Bourgeois," Athena nodded her head as she helped Chloé sit on the bed. "Are you feeling well at this moment?"

Chloé blinked and looked at her body. It didn't feel cold anymore, not as much though, and her body didn't seem to be suffering any kind of effects. Then, it rushed back on the events that had transpired before. Greed attacking, and all the dead people that were left behind because there is no way to bring them back.

The one who became Greed had no redemption for his actions and left death lingering in the air.

"Yeah, I—" She swallowed. "I think I am. What happened? I remember talking to you and then nothing—"

Chloé stopped speaking once she noticed something besides Athena, a Kwami, one she'd never seen before. A purple spider with eight eyes, two of them opened, yellow sclera and black slits as pupils. Athena showed no reaction to its presence, and Chloé for a moment thought that she was simply hallucinating, but the fact that Athena threw a glance at the Kwami made her confirm otherwise.

"Are you going to explain or what?" The woman asked.

"Very well,"

A voice spoke. Chloé looked around, trying to find the source of the voice, but found no one who could have made the sound she'd just heard without Athena noticing. She looked at the woman, who simply nodded toward the Kwami, and Chloé remembered that she hadn't heard the Kwami speaking just yet.

"Young one, I'm currently speaking to you through your mind. No need to look for something."

The Kwami tilted its head to one side.

"Who are you?" Chloé asked immediately.

The Kwami raised an eyebrow, and Chloé tried to think about how that made sense with eight eyes but found herself fighting against thinking of it. It flew closer to her, and Chloé scrambled away a few inches before stopping, as the Kwami appraised her with intimacy, as though it was looking at every single detail of her body, and perhaps something more, and it bothered Chloé, but not in a way she was expecting.

She simply found it bothering, but not disturbing, as though she felt like it has happened before to the point where she wouldn't put much thought into it.

"My name is Luminous, but you can call me Lumi."

Chloé nodded, trying to find a way to address the current situation.

"Don't worry about it, the lady here has explained enough to me."

"More like you looked through my mind," Athena grumbled under her breath, glaring at the Kwami, who simply title its head.

That's alarming, Chloé decided. This one really shouldn't fall on Hawkmoth's hand.

"Even if he tried to use me he wouldn't be able to," Lumi said, rising his altitude a slightly bit more. "There are conditions to using my miraculous, one of them being of sound state of mind to the fullest extent. Someone like him, drown in his desire, wouldn't be able to use me. After all, only one other person has wielded me in the past."

Only one? Wait.

"Are perhaps from Crown's box?" Chloé asked, curious.

"That would be correct," Lumi nodded. "I can feel his presence with you, that's good."

"What does that mean?" Athena inquired, furrowing her gaze.

Lumi said nothing, allowing silence to drown the room. After a few seconds, it turned around to face Athena but speaking so that Chloé can hear it, too.

"It means that finally, someone who can go one on one with the heroes is back in action, all she needs is a need she can rely on if she were to be more exceptional than them," Lumi informed, making Chloé's heart skip a beat. Exceptional, a magic word that seemed to have a good grasp on Chloé. It turned to face Chloé. "Now, do you trust this lady here to be your partner?" It pointed at Athena.

Chloé said nothing, thinking about it. It seemed that Athena's comb was a Miraculous, a comb-like Pollen's she might add, and she had someone who knew about what she was currently going through. Crown had been helpful to certain extents, but he didn't talk about all of the things he knew about, which Chloé needed to know if she was to make something out of her situation of being bound to him.

Even so, more people it means it would be easier for her Miraculous to get exposed to the people, and Chloé knew for a fact that no one would like that idea, not even Hawkmoth himself. Biting her lip, she felt Crown stirring awake inside of her, and she was trying to understand what he was saying to her through the feelings, since he looked not ready to talk as of yet, for some reason now that Lumi was in front of her.

"Little flower, trust her. . ." A whisper reached Chloé, snapping her out of her thoughts. She looked around, trying to find the source of the voice. She found an old lady standing near the balcony, smiling at her.

It soon faded, but Chloé was weirded out by it.

It was the same old lady that was in her dream, who she was is a mystery to her, but for some reason, Chloé felt a longing, which didn't help her worry about what Crown was left out from the things that have been happening to her in recent days.

"I trust her, if she wanted to do something bad to me she would've tried to get in my good graces," Chloé said, looking at Athena.

"Good," Lumi said, disappearing into the Comb miraculous on Athena's hair. The black-haired woman furrowed her gaze and muttered something under her breath before standing up from the chair. She walked closer to the bed, presenting a hand, Chloé grabbed it, and with the help of Athena, she got out of the bed.

"Luminous says that if you wish to solve the problem that has arisen within the city, you have to find the meaning of life," Athena commented.

Chloé frowned in confusion. "How am I supposed to do that? I don't even know what I want to do with my life after everything that has happened! I barely have friends, many people hate my guts, partially for the money I have, the other one for what I've done with the power that has been given to me, and there is no way I'm not having a freak out at the moment because I now have to solve a serious problem with a deficit of information."

"Miss Bourgeois," Athena cut in, stopping Chloé's rant. "We have time to think, don't worry about anything else. While we are thinking about what Luminous meant, do you have anything you want to do at this moment?"

Chloé thought about her mission to catch Hawkmoth but decided to use this time to try and gain further insight into Athena's behavior. If it was proven completely that Athena would not betray her then she would share with the woman her findings of the person who has terrorized Paris for far too long.

She shook her head. "I have nothing, and I think going out right now is out of the question."

***

Athena turned her head around slightly to face the balcony, she could hear the screams of the people calling out for their loved ones. "May I turn on the T.V, Miss Bourgeois?"

"Sure, the remote is over there." Chloé pointed at the make-up desk beside the T.V.

Athena walked over to the remote and picked it up, she turned on the T.V and quickly flickered through the channels until she arrived at one of the news. Nadja had a frantic look on her face and looked white as a sheet and ready to pass out at any moment. Athena knew that the woman had grown comfortable with the deaths caused by an Akuma, and now there was no bringing back those who died.

". . . And Ladybug has stated that she is working in bringing everyone back," Nadja commented, gripping her microphone tightly. There were tears, visible on her face, and she swallowed once more. "As of now, we have no idea of how many people have died and how many were injured in the attack of that magical thing, that we have confirmation from Ladybug that is not an Akuma nor Sentimonster. . . And now we. . ."

Athena sat back into the chair beside Chloé, and both of them watched the news.


Luka Couffaine was tranquil at the moment, the calm after the storm some would say, but he needed to get his act together if he was to do anything about the situation at hand. As of this moment, the city was in a panic, which he would never blame them for, since something attacked, and made it so the miraculous cure could not work on the damage it has caused, leaving death and rubble in its wake after the mysterious woman killed it.

He moved toward his house, jumping over toward the wooden floor and stepping inside of the boat. His house wasn't attacked, Luka thanked whoever made this possible, but he needed to check on his sister and mother to ensure their safety.

"Mom! Juleka! Are you okay?" Luka called out.

"Yeah!" His sister's voice reached him, and relief overwhelmed his body. "We are here!"

Luka moved toward the source of the voice and walked into their room. The sight made him stare in well-disguised horror. There was blood everywhere on the floor, and his mother was over his sister's bed, a side of her clothing red with blood. He quickly moved over and kneeled.

"What happened?" He quickly asked.

"Some rubble from the attack reached mom before she could react," Juleka gritted her teeth. "Rose is fine, but I don't know about the rest. What's the news outside?" She asked quietly, not wanting to disturb their mother.

"Miraculous Cure didn't work," Luka informed, humming a tune to maintain stability within his sister's heart.

"You are kidding me. . ." Muttered Juleka in disbelief, looking downwards. Horror was creeping on her face, and Luka knew he had to make her sister focus on something else.

"Jules, do you know about any of your classmates?" Luka asked, worried about Marinette.

"They are fine; Rose is looking through all the people in school to see if they are okay," Juleka commented. "Though, Aurore and Mireille haven't responded. We also don't know where Chloé is. . ."

"Her?" Luka raised an eyebrow.

Luka didn't know what to think of Chloé Bourgeois, the girl had done nothing to him in particular, but she had bullied his sister, so he felt a minor dislike for the girl. After what had happened with Miracle Queen, he had tried to search for the reason she had done so and found her soul to be conflicted with itself, as though not knowing what to do with her life.

Something was going on with Chloé Bourgeois, but at this moment, Luka didn't have the time to worry about her.

A soft buzz came, and Juleka grabbed her phone, she looked at the screen, and her face turned white as a sheet.

"What happened?" He asked.

"Aurore is dead, Mireille is missing and Kagami is in the hospital. Marc is safe, though."

Luka only wondered what would happen from that point onwards.


“Everything is so wrong right now,” Chloé muttered.

“They were shown their mortality once more, Miss Bourgeois,” Athena looked at the girl, “They have a right to panic at this very moment.”

“I know, I know.”

Time passed and the sun was beginning to set on the horizon. Athena looked at the balcony, tilting her head and nodding to herself. She got up from the chair and looked at Chloé, who simply raised an eyebrow at the action.

“I think is almost time for dinner, Miss Bourgeois,” Athena said.

Chloé blinked and sighed. “Don’t worry about that, dad I’ll be buried in work, and mom won’t care, tell them to bring my dinner here. I don’t want to go outside right now.”

“Very well,” As Athena turned to leave the room, Chloé spoke once more.

“If you see Jean, tell him to come and eat with me here. You can come, too.”

Athena looked at Chloé, surprised by the words coming from the girl’s mouth. A small smile crossed her face.

“Very well, Miss Bourgeois.”

Notes:

The next chapter everything will go downhill. Prepare yourselves.

Chapter 10: Rude Awakening

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


Rude Awakening


It felt nice, having dinner with people.

Chloé munched down on her food as she looked at the ongoing conversation of Jean and Athena, who were talking about their younger days with Chloé, something that the blonde never thought was going to happen. It made her heart skip a beat, almost like it was a family dinner, and it shoved down the true feelings that her mother felt for her in the first place.

It felt like a real family, it was the first time she felt something like that.

Athena grabbed her plate and put it on the metal tray on the wheel table behind her as she looked at Chloé, who had just finished her dinner, and grabbed her dinner plate before placing it on the tray. The moon was going up in the sky, and it was almost time for her to go to bed.

Jean stood up from the chair and reached out for something below the trail of food on the table, and grabbed a square wooden box before placing it on the round table where they had just eaten dinner. He opened it up to reveal a chessboard and several chess pieces, some of them even of different designs.

Chloé looked at Jean, who simply looked back at her with a smile.

"For you and Athena to play for a little bit, I have certain things to attend to before resting in my room."

"Good night, Jean." Athena nodded her head.

"Bye, Jean," Chloé mumbled, looking at the moon rising on the sky.

"Good night, mademoiselle, Athena," Said Jean before he turned around to push the wheeled table to take the dishes out of the room. He closed the door behind him with a soft click, leaving both Athena and Chloé alone on the balcony. The air around them was still slightly awkward, less so thanks to Jean, but it wasn't as though Chloé would begin the conversation with the woman every time.

Luckily, Luminous came out of the comb on Athena's head and started at the chessboard with intrigued eyes. Athena silently began to put the game, preparing it to be used by her and Chloé, while the blonde simply looked at her confused. as soon as Athena finished, she made the first move.

Chloé soon followed after and made hers. They kept playing with the chessboard until Chloé had a frown on her face, her chin leaning against one of her palms with Luminous looking over the chess game bored, yet weirdly attentive, as though trying to find every single play possible in so little amount of time.

When they finished their current game, it was the middle of the night. The light from the moon was shining down on both of them as Athena made the last move.

". . .and checkmate, Miss Bourgeois." Athena looked down at the paper they'd made to keep track of victories and loses. "That's nine to one."

"This is ridiculous," Chloé muttered, frowning. "Utterly ridiculous, how are you so good at his? You are a bodyguard!"

Athena raised an eyebrow, cocking her head to the side as she fixed the pieces back to their original spots to begin once more. "What seems to be the problem, miss Bourgeois? Just because I am a bodyguard doesn't mean I don't have something I am exceptional in."

"Then why not be a chess player?" Chloé demanded to know but yawned halfway, tired eyes looking at Athena's. "You would be recognized as exceptional by the chess player if you work hard to become a professional."

"Not everything is about being exceptional, Miss Bourgeois," Athena told her, looking at her directly into the eyes, into Chloé's blue eyes. "Sometimes, being human is enough to lead a happy life. Besides, if I had friends just because I am exceptional, are they really there because it's me, or because they want to have someone exceptional on their side and not me?"

Chloé opened her mouth, but no sounds came from her throat. Her mind turned blank as she tried to look for something to respond with and soon gave up, closing her mouth and looking down before mumbling out.

"If you aren't exceptional, then what's the point of people being around you? If you are, then they will never leave you."

Athena raised an eyebrow.

"Because if you lose what makes you exceptional then, they'll leave you regardless of what you have achieved."

Athena looked up at the sky and noticed the moon, bringing up her phone from her pocket she looked at the hour and sighed. Standing up from the chair, she began to collect the chess piece from the board and putting them inside the box.

"I have to go home, Miss Bourgeois." The bodyguard said. "I wish you a good night, tomorrow we can have a discussion about Luminous." Luminous nodded and went back into the miraculous. Athena moved toward the make-up desk and placed the box atop it before turning back and giving Chloé a small glance, the blonde was staring at the round table with vacant eyes.

Closing the door as she left, Athena left Chloé alone with her thoughts.

Chloé kept repeating Athena's words inside of her mind over and over again as she looked up, feeling a deep emptiness inside of her all of a sudden. She knew it was because of Crown, who would be the most likely to be doing something inside of her, but she was too troubled to really care too much about.

The blonde got up from the chair and walked over to her bed, sitting, staring at the carpeted floor of her room with an absent mind.

Soon, she felt something shift inside of her.

"How are you doing?" Crown's voice rang within her mind.

Chloé said nothing for a couple of seconds, then asked. "How much do I have to keep fighting those Debacles?"

"For as long as Hawkmoth has the Miraculous of the Peacock. When you take it from him, no more Debacles will come." Crown answered truthfully and without deceit. Maybe it was her being hopeful in believing it, but Chloé also felt that it was because Crown had fused with her somehow.

"Also, what's happening to me? Why do I feel like I'm not myself when I transform with you?" Chloé asked another question.

"As I've told you, you don't do anything you don't want to do. . ." Crown said, softly and gently, and Chloé didn't know how to feel about that, but she said nothing.

Throwing herself on the bed, she moved and wrapped herself around with the blanket as she looked at the balcony, the moon shining up in the sky.

"But why would I want to do that? Killing people is not exceptional. It's ridiculous, utterly ridiculous." Chloé mumbled, and Crown replied right after, voice calm and clear.

"Sometimes, the most exceptional people are those who make the hardest decisions, those who have their mindset on something and they wish to see it happen. It doesn't matter how, there are many ways to be exceptional, the act of killing will not make you any less exceptional than your own mother."

Chloé felt Crown's words sinking inside of her mind, clawing their way and tearing something apart. She felt a small flutter in her chest, and warmth spread through her body. A small silence soon befell the room before the blonde opened her mouth once more.

"Crown?"

"Yes?"

"Do you eat anything? Because I know that the Kwamis need something to recharge their powers."

Crown was silent for a couple of seconds, before whispering loudly, softly as to not freak Chloé out with the next words he was to say.

"I am the Kwami of Death, that's enough for you to know."

"Oh. . . I see," Chloé voiced out as she felt her connection to Crown ceased so he can go to sleep. The blonde simply said nothing and closed her eyes soon after. Wondering what tomorrow would bring down on her.

That night, she dreamed about C training with a white pendant.


The next day, Chloé woke up without much hassle, took a quick bath, and quickly changed into some comfortable clothing. Athena and Jean were right outside of her room waiting for her to appear, and as soon as she walked outside, both of them greeted her.

"Hello, Mademoiselle."

"Good morning, Miss Bourgeois."

"Hello, you two." Chloé yawned and quickly rubbed her face to make her sleepiness disappear. She looked at Jean in the eyes. "Where is dad?"

"He is with your father discussing something of importance, although I must remark that he looked quite shocked from what was being told even though I don't know the specifics."

Chloé frowned, having a bad feeling about that. Her father was not someone who could easily be shocked by some news, since being the mayor he had grown accustomed to many things happening, even the crazier ones, and the miraculous had simply helped in making him more difficult to surprise.

"That's not good. . ." The blonde muttered. "Do you know more or less what's being told?"

Jean nodded. "Something regarding your family, Mademoiselle."

Chloé didn't know what to think of that, since she had never actually met much of her family. All of her grandparents were dead by the time she turned five, her uncles died way before that, and her mother never actually talked about her family, always saying they were unexceptional, which promptly made Chloé always forget to ask about them.

Athena was looking at Jean with analytical eyes, having a clue of what he was referring too thanks to Jean's eyes, though she didn't have confirmation if her suspicions were correct, and so she stayed silent.

Chloé shook her head. "Then, what am I supposed to do while everything is getting fixed outside?"

"You should go fetch something for me, Chlorine,"

Chloé froze as soon as those words were spoken, and she turned her head around to see her mother and dad walking toward her. Athena behind her slightly narrowed her eyes at Audrey while Jean simply showed nothing, knowing perfectly how to deal with the woman for as long as he had worked there. The blonde girl quickly fixed her hair as soon as she could, and stood straight.

"What do you mean, mom?" Chloé asked.

Audrey scoffed. "Make yourself useful and go fetch something for me, there is a limousine waiting for you." She said, almost too eagerly.

It rang a bell on Athena's head, who simply approached Chloé ever so slightly so her movement wasn't noticed by anyone who wasn't Jean.

Andre looked at his wife with curiosity, knowing it was not common for the woman to ask Chloé something, though it was more of an order than anything else, still, the fact that she initiated the conversation was strange.

"And what is this that I have to go and get?" Chloé inquired.

"A small little gift for you, Clarence," Audrey said, nonchalantly.

Athena walked closer to Chloé now and stood behind her. "I will go with her." She said, narrowing her eyes.

"No, she will go alone, whoever you are." Audrey sneered at Athena, increasing the displeasure the black-haired woman has for her.

"I'm her bodyguard, Madam," Athena told the Style Queen, eyes hard and angry. "I will be with her at all times in the day, no matter what."

"I request to be the one to look for the gift, madam." Jean piped in, making his voice catch everyone's attention.

"Oh, yes, the butler." Audrey tapped her chin with the fingers of one of her hands while the other was placed on her hip. "Unfortunately, I want Colette to go for the gift. I won't take a no for an answer, and if you continue, I will have you fired!" She snapped her fingers.

Andre sighed and look tiredly at Jean and Athena. "Please, just this once."

Athena, however, kept pushing. "Sir—!"

Jean reached out and placed a hand on Athena's shoulder, making her look at him. He shook his head, telling her with his eyes that it was not worth the risk. Athena grumbled her acceptance of the order.

"Fine, I'll do this and come back," Chloé said as she walked toward the elevator, not noticing Audrey's smile.

The blonde girl reached out and stepped into the elevator, with Athena who also went inside with her.

She looked at the woman with her. "Why were you so adamant about going with me?"

Athena looked at her. "I have a very bad feeling about this. Something is not right."

Chloé thought about it and noticed that Athena was probably right. Her mother had never gone out of her way to start a conversation with her. Still, the anger she felt because of her was disappearing as time passed. She couldn't stay mad at her mother forever, and she suspected her mother knew about that. "You are probably right. But I simply need to go get that gift, and stashed it somewhere in my room if I don't like it."

They reached the lobby and walked outside of the elevator, Chloé went down the stairs and saw a black limousine waiting outside.

Chloé glanced at Athena, who was staring very intently at the limousine as though trying to appraise from her position. The woman simply, hesitantly, nodded her head and Chloé went to do what she was told. While she walked, she wondered what her mother might have wanted to give to her.

Though, Chloé truly felt the need to simply stashed it away.

She opened the door for the limousine and went inside, the driver simply staring at the mirror on the front looking at her. He nodded and started the engine, and Chloé wondered what had happened to the driver that used to take her everywhere.

Something is not right. . . Chloé knew that, but she didn't know what exactly was not right.

"What happened to my last driver?" The blonde asked, curiously, as she felt Crown moving within her.

The driver glanced at her through the corner of his eyes and sighed defeated. "He had to resign due to an injury that he had received yesterday, I was called in to replace him until they found a more suitable replacement, per your mother's desires."

Oh. Chloé narrowed her eyes. Her mother had never bothered to insert herself into her life until now, which obviously raised some flags within Chloé, even though the hope that her mother was finally accepting was somewhere inside of her heart, her brain had taken over her thoughts and didn't allow it to fester any further.

She looked around, and through the window, and saw how they were slowly moving away from any heavily populated areas within the city. A nagging feeling crept on her nape, and small jolts of electricity were being pulsed through her body.

 Something was definitely not right.

"Where are we going?" The blond demanded to know.

And she was told. "To the place where you will open your gift."

"What do you mean by that?"

The driver reached out to something and grabbed a small gift near him. He quickly threw it to Chloé as though it was a hot potato, and Chloé grabbed it as gently as she could. She felt steel within the small box and even the scent of smoke.

What?

They passed the last part of the city with heavy population, and the driver looked at Chloé with a guilty smile, ignoring the traffic coming in front of them.

A pit grew inside of Chloé's stomach.

"I'm so sorry, Chloé Bourgeois," He said, guilt and regret building up in his eyes. "But I want my family to be set for life even if I am gone."

Chloé quickly tore the gift apart and took a sharp breath once she saw what was inside.

A bomb.

3 . . .

There was a bomb inside of the gift, small but Chloé knew that it was enough to kill her at that distance. Her eyes quickly looked at the driver, who had just accepted his death, with disbelief as her mind raced to pierce the pieces together.

2 . . .

Chloé's eyes widened in shock as she felt her adrenaline move as fast as it could, her sense sharpened, but even she knew she wouldn't get out of this unscathed no matter if she had Crown with her. It had been a step up, sadness filled up her being as she finally understood what she was to her own mother.

 Nothing more than something to use for clout, for positive points with the media and everyone else.

1 . . .

It was perfect after her blunder as Miracle Queen.

Chloé threw the bomb away toward the driver and tried to get out. In that instant, the driver locked the doors of the limousine so she couldn't get out. In the short time that was left, Chloé knew she only had one choice if she wanted to live, it may not work.

"Crown, dead walkin—!!"

It maybe was a fitting dead for Chloé Bourgeois.

0 . . .

The bomb went off, and her whole world turned dark.

Notes:

Well, now everything will go downhill.

 

Also, I'm thinking about making a story inspired by my fic "The Grateful Death", mind giving me some of your thoughts about if I should do it or not?

Chapter 11: Pride of Life

Summary:

Athena has to deal with the aftermath of Audrey's actions, and everything continues to derail.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


Pride of Life


It should have come as a surprise, yet somehow it wasn't.

The news of the explosion had reached Athena faster than anyone else, as she felt that her heartbeat spike all of a sudden. A sudden sense of protectiveness spread through her body like water and thought showered her mind without stopping.

One of the first thoughts she had was about Jean, and the second was Chloé. Athena knew for a fact that Chloé was not dead, she felt it within herself, and so she soon raced her way toward her friend of many years, who should be panicking at this very moment after the explosion was heard.

As soon as the doors for the elevator had opened up, Athena lunged forward running toward Chloé's room. She found Jean standing there, concerned and disconcerted, not knowing what to do.

Jean looked pale, his face was drained from all of his blood. His hands lifted to touch his forehead, and he soon ran inside of Chloé's room.

Athena followed after him, and she glanced at both Andre and Audrey, who were following after.

As soon as everyone was inside of the room, Jean turned on the news to watch alongside everyone else about the situation. The helicopter was flying above the scene, a black limousine engulfed in flames as nothing seemed to be remaining of the wreckage of what had happened.

There was some burnt corpse inside of the limousine as firefighters were soon dispatched to deal with the scene, and ambulances were also sent due to the shrapnel of metal exploding into all directions. However, there was something anyone with a smart enough brain could figure out what had happened.

There were the remnants of an arm near the limousine, a girl's arm from the looks of it. Athena narrowed her eyes, and Jean stiffened as soon as they saw that. Jean's face was completely white this time, and he was seconds away from having a meltdown. Andre was similar to Jean, placing a hand over his chest and Audrey. . . she had a hand over her mouth, and looked shocked.

And even though the blonde woman looked shocked, Athena knew for a fact that she was faking it.

Jean looked close to tears already, as did Andre, but Audrey was simply with a hand over her mouth, the glasses making it impossible for Athena to know if she was crying at the implication, which cemented within her mind that Audrey was responsible for this.

Anger soon seeped through, but she did not let it show. It would be weird, and she couldn't afford to get fired when Chloé needed her the most.

Jean also noticed Audrey's expression, and he simply stepped back to allow his face to be unseen by everyone else. He approached the balcony, feeling the weight over his shoulders becoming more and more unbearable. The anger within him grew and grew until he felt blinded by it, only allowed to hear what was happening.

"Don't tell me that's. . ." Andre voiced out in disbelief.

Regretfully, Athena nodded her head. "That seems to be Miss Bourgeois' limousine, sir."

"No. . ." Andre's face broke. It didn't seem as though it was an Akuma attack, which meant that there was no possible way to bring back anyone who died because of it. Which meant. . . there was no way to bring his daughter back.

Soon after, Andre's phone blasted with notifications. People were messaging him non-stop. It was quick enough to snap him out of his thoughts, and he walked out of the room to responded to the phone called that had arrived.

Athena looked at Jean, looking in the general direction of the explosion. She knew what he was feeling inside, due to Luminous's presence she could more or less tell what was going inside of his mind. It wasn't pleasant, but she had to focus on the matter at hand.

"She isn't dead," Luminous whispered once more inside of her. It quelled her anger if only a little bit, but she couldn't help but think what kind of monster could do this to an already unfortunate child. "Be honest."

It had been a lie, as she knew who would do such a thing. Who other than the very person who birthed that very same unfortunate child, whose light had only been fake and was never guided to a good path.

Athena now thought that the name "Chloé" seemed contradictory, as it seemed that the universe itself didn't want the girl to have growth of any kind.

Jean turned around while Athena continued to stare at the T.V, trying to find out any clues about Chloé's whereabouts. The butler soon saw something that simply enraged him further. A tiny little smile on Audrey's face; it was faint, but the anger seemed to have made his perception better. His blood boiled in response, and he felt like he had to do something.

It was bad enough that everyone seemed to have something against the very person he had watched grow from very young. Even so, he was angrier at himself. For allowing Audrey's poisoning behavior to seep into Chloé, for not guiding the little flower into a better path, for not being something akin to a father figure, who could shower her with affection and show her the beauty of life without worrying about pleasing everyone.

Without worrying about being exceptional.

He choked on his anger as he felt something grabbed him from below, seeping into his flesh and bones. His vision soon blacked out, and he felt nothing but rage at the world. Then, his mind held regret, as he didn't know what was happening, as it was too unfamiliar—too unlike Hawkmoth's akumatization.

Athena suddenly felt alarms blasting inside of her mind, and she turned around to look at Audrey, who was simply pocketing a small napkin that she had drawn to dry some "tears" she had on her face.

"I have to prepare," Audrey choked. Athena narrowed her eyes. "A press conference with my husband. Whoever did this will not get away, their families will not get away with this."

Then she turned to leave.

Athena was about to get an explanation from the woman, trying to manipulate her into answering with the truth. She wanted an excuse to throw the woman from a balcony and blame it into an Akuma.

Something beat her to it.

It was as fast as she could blink, a black mass passed beside her and punched Audrey in the head, blasting the head into smothering. The blood-spray that had ensued was morbidly beautiful. A fountain of red color coming out the—arguably—richest woman in Paris at the moment.

Athena would have been overjoyed at the sight if it weren't for what she noticed.

She looked around for Jean and noticed him gone, then looked back at the thing that had attacked Audrey and noticed the familiar feeling it was giving off. It soon attacked Athena, who ducked out of the way, but felt her cheek being graced by something. Rolling forward, Athena busted out of the room to look at a panicked Andre.

"What happened!?" He asked, panicked.

"You have to get out of here, sir!" Athena looked back, the door opened and Audrey's body on the ground.

"What—!?" Andre was about to scream, but Athena slapped a hand on his mouth, waited a few seconds, and then pushed him toward the elevator.

It was fast enough that it slammed into the wall, shaking the building. Andre looked terrified, and Athena simply tried to convey with her eyes what she wanted him to do.

Run.

Andre nodded and quickly moved toward the elevator, running as fast as his body could carry him.

Athena dodged another attack from it as she rolled to the side. Once she got up and stood, having the possibility to assess the threat, she saw what it was.

The entire body was covered in miasma into something resembling a knight. distorted in the legs that appeared to be non-existent as the upper body floated in the sky. Ragged swords sticking out from many parts of his body, one on his hand. It was otherworldly, and it gave off a vibe she had only felt when she was near the Debacle of Greed.

Dammit! Athena thought, right on the time when Chloé was nowhere to be seen. What's happening here? Who is this? Where is Jean!?

"You are looking at him." Luminous pointed out. Which may have been the worst thing to say at the moment. Athena froze on the spot, unable to concentrate as she asked internally her question. "He has turned into a Debacle the moment it felt Chloé's distress. There is no way for him to be saved."

Gritting her teeth, Athena once more moved out of the way of another attack.

What do I do!? The black-haired woman thought, calling out to Luminous. Where is Miss Bourgeois? Tell me! I have to go and get her for this!

"You'll have to wait for her," Luminous commented. "She is currently waking up, and it will be better if you don't disturb her."

What do you mean by 'waiting for her'? A vein popped in Athena's forehead as she started and what it was once her friend.

"You'll have to fight, think about transforming, and let the power guide you by saying Hyper-drive."

Athena looked once more at Jean and sighed in sadness. Is there truly no way to save him?

"No," Luminous said.

The black-haired woman looked at Jean, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. It seemed to her that there truly was no other choice, and she hated that. Everything seemed to be cursed for the Bourgeois family one way or another. Chloé was almost killed by her mother while her father was unaware of that, the mayor had just seen his wife's corpse, and the one who did it was the trustiest employee he had.

Athena opened her eyes once more and thought about transforming. The light soon covered her body, and she felt the magic coursing through her body.

Jean(?) jumped toward her, sword in hand as he swung it horizontally at neck level. Athena ducked and quickly kicked the floor and was sent toward the balcony of Chloé's room, where she grabbed the railing and crouched atop it. Jean(?) growled and lunged at her once more, swinging the sword down with both of his hands.

Athena jumped away, preparing to make time to wait for Chloé, whom she knew would no doubt break down at everything that was happening around.

She only hoped that she could prove herself useful to help Chloé after the dust settles, it was the last thing she could do to honor Jean's memory.


Chloé felt the cold once more.

It was falling on her body like a waterfall hitting her from above, spreading without stopping with the scent of grass reaching her nose. Her eye peeled open, slowly but surely, as she noticed how numb her left side of the body felt. There was cold from that place, her eye and left arm didn't feel cold. Though, she didn't feel anything from them.

Chloé move her left arm, and felt nothing, then she moved her right one and felt her hand touch the grass below her. The sound of chirping from the birds focused her brain once more, and the cries of help, ambulance sirens, and the like were enough to snap her out of the daze she had been put on.

Blue eye looked at the left side, and she found herself widening her eye.

Her left arm was gone, a river of blood flowing out of her body through where her left arm should be. Chloé opened her left eye and tried to see, only to find herself being hurt at the mere notion of it. She could only see darkness, and she felt her skin dried up in that place.

"What happened?" Chloé managed to choke out while looking around. "Where am I?"

She also noticed that she hadn't managed to transform. Though it simply seemed that her energy was drained simply trying to stay alive.

Crown then piped in. "You were blasted away by the explosion and landed on this place." He explained, anger deep beneath his tone.

"How can something. . . so small be so powerful?" Chloé asked. Suddenly, she clutched her wound in pain. It was finally catching up to her, the severed nerves and burns were finally making the pain known to her brain.

It was painful, and Chloé wanted to cry. Some tears were already gathering in her eyes.

"Don't cry, it would make you simply unexceptional," Chloé heard her mother's words echoing within her mind.

Panting after the pain subsided a little bit, Chloé stood up from the ground, pressing her clothes against the stump that was her arm. The moist from the lack of an eye was not bothering her enough to pay attention, she had to go back to the hotel.

Back to Jean and Athena, to her dad.

A chill ran down her spine.

"It seems that another Debacle has appeared," Crown informed.

A helpless look crossed Chloé's features. She was getting overwhelmed by everything around her. She had just received the clear message that she was just a sacrificial pawn to her mother, had been gravely injured, and now had to fight a Debacle without being in top condition.

Chloé looked up at the sky, watching a white bird flying above them. She followed the bird's movement, and it soon fell on a purple-clad woman fighting the Debacle.

What!? Chloé's eye widened in recognition. "Is that. . . Athena?"

"That seems to be the case," Crown said, moving within Chloé. He tried to link the connection he had with Luminous, and once it went through, he learned of everything that has happened in so little.

"Crown?" Chloé called out, worried. She felt Crown's hesitation, and doubt, something she had never known the Kwami for. "What happened?"

Crown said nothing for a couple of seconds, then. "Go to the Museum, now."

"Why—?"

"Chloé," Crown said, voice serious as anything could be. "You said you wanted a way for everyone to be saved when a Debacle attacks, to not allow any more deaths. Go to the museum, and grab the pendant."

Chloé was confused and soon began moving. It hurt to do so, but the possibility of not simply being a killer appealed to her much more and numb her to the growing pain. "Which pendant?"

"You'll know which one! Just go!"

"Crown, dead walking."

The dead light covered her and soon dispersed, she did not see her left arm nor did she wanted to. Chloé jumped toward the nearest building and soon jumped toward the museum. Her whole body hurt, but she managed to reach the museum in about a minute. Quickly running through its halls, she panicked each second that passed as she did not know which pendant she had to get from the antique ones.

Chloé felt a plethora of pain spreading through her body, and she fell to her knees. Panting, Chloé took a deep breath and closed her eye. She stood, and ran blindly, letting her instinct guide her toward the pendant.

After a few seconds, she stopped and opened her eye.

It was the white pendant of yesterday. It was letting a gentle, white glow from its metal. Chloé punched the crystal and grabbed the pendant before putting it around her neck. She felt the pain subside, and her mind let go of the pain.

The world around her stopped moving, as a white ball of light appeared in front of her.

From it, a Dove-like Kwami appeared.

"Oh, dear!" The Kwami gasped at seeing her state. "What happened to you!? Didn't Crown keep you safe until you could find me?"

"What does that mean?" Chloé mumbled out. She winced as she felt more movement inside of her, as though two beings were battling inside.

"Crown! You did not tell her what was going to happen to her!? She deserved to know!" The dove Kwami exclaimed, then calmed down faster than Chloé could blink, startling the blonde girl. "My name is Hope, Kwami of Life. Nice to see you again."

Again? For some reason, that felt nostalgic to Chloé.

An explosion rang out in the distance.

"We don't have much time," Hope told Chloé, face serious as she faced the girl. "De transform and transform again. Kill the Debacle using my power, Redemption. I'll have to explain everything Crown has failed to do so, though I have an idea why he has said nothing about it."

Chloé nodded.


Adrien didn't know what was happening, didn't even know how it happened. The only thing he knew was that here was another one of those things running around near Le Grand, and a woman was fighting it without actually trying to harm it, but going to apprehend it.

The woman was someone who he had never seen before, and she looked nothing like Mayura. The purple suit has very small hair, spider-like eyes on the mask over her face with only two of them open. Irises were slits, and the air she gave off was of someone experienced in combat, but nothing quite this level yet.

Even so, she was giving that thing quite the fight.

He reached a nearby building, and Ladybug arrived soon after. She looked distressed, and he knew how that felt because he was feeling the very same thing. The fight that was happening right in front of them was between two things they didn't understand.

Another miraculous user they had never seen before, and something similar to the thing from yesterday that had bypassed the miraculous cure and left dead people in its wake.

"What do we do?" Chat Noir asked Ladybug, knowing that this was not really in the mood to be funny.

Ladybug didn't know how to answer, as she felt her mind racing with thoughts.

Meanwhile, Athena was trying to make sure that no civilians were caught in Jean's rampage. She had confirmed that the mayor was safe alongside the rest of the staff, and had issued a warning to the police to clear the area.

Jean swung his sword once more, making her jump from the ground. He quickly grabbed a nearby car and threw it at her, but before the car could impact her, Jean jumped and cut the car in half, surprising her. Quickly, he swung with the back of the sword, sending her toward a near building.

Once she managed to cough out the dust that filled her throat, she looked up and saw both Ladybug and Chat Noir standing near her. Scowling, Athena got up from the ground, knowing that she would need their help if she wanted to contain Jean long enough for Chloé to appear.

From the corner of her eye, she saw another black figure jumping toward the museum.

Good. Athena thought, looking at Jean, who was preparing to strike once more.

"Who are you?" Ladybug asked, looking down at the enemy below, too.

Athena didn't answer immediately but simply said. "You should get away from here. You know nothing about this, and you would only get yourselves killed." If there was something she didn't like, was children fighting her fights when she had the fighting chance.

"No can do, spidy." Chat Noir piped in, gripping his baton. "This is our city, too. We will defend it."

An exasperated look appeared on Athena's face, clearly visible to both heroes, and she simply sighed. "Fine, help me contained it in a single place until. . ." She pondered for a second. "My boss gets here."

"Some pointers?" Ladybug quickly asked.

Athena noted the slight nervousness in her tone. She simply looked at her with the most serious face she could muster at the moment.

"Don't get killed."

Jean lunged once more, and the battle resumed.

Notes:

Next Chapter: A Death in the Family

Chapter 12: A Death in the Family

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


A Death in the Family


Taking a quick side-step, Athena dodged the incoming attack.

It passed beside her faster than any normal human could blink, the dust lifting from the wreckage due to Jean slamming on the building. Athena jumped, rolling forward, and made sure that she had a good view of the situation as the seconds passed.

She’d also made sure to not give Jean her back, as she had seen what kind of damage the sword could do.

Grey eyes looked around, gazing over every little detail that could help. Athena saw that Ladybug and Chat Noir had managed to avoid Jean’s attack by each one taking their own route. Chat Noir had vaulted away, and Ladybug swung using a nearby light post.

The black hero’s expression was shocked by what had happened, something Athena couldn’t fault him for.

The sound of rocks clashing against each other soon reached Athena, which heightened her senses as she prepared for another attack. Jean looked at her, the dust falling from his body, looking madder than ever, eyes red and sword growing bigger by a few feet.

Quickly glancing over the heroes, she’d noticed their expressions of doubt.

Athena knew she didn’t want them to be dragged into this mess.

Though, the more help, the better.

Taking a deep breath through her mouth by gritted teeth, Athena’s lungs expanded. Her blood pressure rising, and a single thought crossing her mind as she watched Jean reaching back his sword, prepared to attack.

Hyper-drive!

Jean quickly moved and was just before Athena, his sword almost reaching her body. Widening her gaze, Athena quickly grabbed the side of the sword and use it to turn around midair. Kicking the hand, the grey-eyed woman quickly used Jean’s body mass and jumped from his body up into the air.

Then, she fell, striking him into the ground.

Athena felt Hyper-drive wearing off, and she felt Jean’s body cracked into the pavement beneath them. The woman soon jumped away until a nearby building, and crouched just on the edge, looking down at the hole that was made. With her eyes narrowing, she quickly began to fill memories of someone filling her mind, telling her how Hyper-drive works.

The sound of metal beside her made her turn her head around for a second but saw Chat Noir vaulting toward her, Ladybug also moving over to her position. Both of them had grim expressions, but Chat Noir was more prepared for what was happening.

Looking over to Ladybug, Athena thought. Miraculous Cure is futile in this situation, so there is no point in trying to not bother with the damages. It needs to be put to a minimum, Athena thought, looking back for a second, her grey eyes shining thanks to the magic inside of her body. Ladybug can tie him with her yoyo, the only thing I see her being useful for as of this moment. Chat Noir will have to help me restraining Jean.

“Can. . .” Ladybug spoke out, unsure. “Can you explain what’s happening?”

Athena pondered about it for a second, but said nothing, as she continued to look over Jean’s crater on the ground. Not my place to explain.

“Spider lady, this is our city, too.” Chat Noir piped in, resting his baton on his shoulder, face serious. Something rare on him. “Please explain so we can help with these, to at least reduce the damage it causes.”

Athena sighed and stood up from her position, putting herself in a place where she can see both Jean’s crater and the heroes.

“That is a Debacle,” The woman said to them, pointing at the crater on the ground. Ladybug and Chat Noir looked over it, with the former being more somber, clutching her yoyo. “a manifestation of one of the seven deadly sins of humanity, using someone as a vessel to attack without mercy at anyone on its path. The first one you’ve met is the Debacle of Greed, this one is currently unknown.”

“A Debacle?” Ladybug asked for clarification, raising an eyebrow. Athena nodded. “Why have they decided to come out? Why here in Paris?”

There was no point in lying at the moment, it was what Athena decided inside of her mind.

“Because you failed to stop Hawkmoth much sooner,” She said, coldly. Ladybug took a step back, with Chat Noir right behind her. “They decided that since someone had been abusing a miraculous for far too long for selfish gains, they will intervene until they killed that person. They’ll destroy anyone who comes by them.”

Ladybug swallowed, looking very guilty, looking far too old for her actual age.

Honestly, Athena sighed inwardly. Giving something like this to teenagers—

Blinking, Athena shook her head as Chat Noir began to speak.

“Who has been chosen as a vessel? Do you have that information?” He asked.

The woman nodded. “Jean Page, if I’m not wrong.” She’d have to imply that she doesn’t know Jean, for secret identity's sake.

Chat Noir looked terrified at that but quickly shook his head as Ladybug looked at the older woman once more.

“Is there a way to heal him and stop his rampage?” The Ladybug asked, almost pleading. “I don’t want more death around, and Miraculous Cure doesn’t—”

“The only solution is death, as of this moment,” Athena cut off the hero, making her go wide-eyed. “There is no salvation for the man, death will be the only way to free his soul.”

“What caused him to be possessed in the first place?” Chat Noir quickly demanded, his voice was trembling at the answer, but Athena told him without giving much of a thought.

“The terrorist attempt on Chloé Bourgeois’ life.”

And, in a whisper, Chat Noir asked. “What?”

“The explosion from earlier, the very first one, someone had bombed a limousine where Chloé Bourgeois was inside of, no one had seen her since. Most likely dead, since no Akuma had caused the explosion.” Athena informed, speaking the truth in some way, knowing very well that the girl was alive.

But it would look strange and suspicious if she was the only one to know that information.

Something perked up Chat Noir’s ears, and he looked up.

“Move out!” He shouted, loud and clear, as he moved out.

Hyper-drive!

Athena looked up, seeing Jean falling on them. Almost looking as though he was in slow motion. The woman cursed, finally noticing what was happening.

The longer he is like that, the faster and stronger he gets.

 Glancing over at the heroes, Athena moved faster than any brain could comprehend. She grabbed Ladybug’s forearm and launched her toward a safe place. Her eyes slid toward Chat Noir’s figure, watching him vault away.

Jean had his blade thrusting downwards into the building, but Athena quickly punched the blade to make it go another place. Hyper-drive wore off, and Jean was launched to the already destroyed building, crashing onto it and make the last of it fall apart into the ground.

Looking over to the museum, she saw a faint white light coming from that direction.

"Chat Noir!" Athena called out. "Help me out here to make time! My boss is coming!” She looked in Ladybug’s direction. “Ladybug, you are to try and tie him up for as long as you can!”

She hoped the spotted heroine heard that.

Taking a deep breath, Athena started once more.

Hyper-drive!

Time slowed down as Athena watched Jean getting up, his whole body finally no longer looking as of that of a human being. It truly saddened the woman, and she did not want to know what would happen to Chloé if she knew who she was going to have to kill.

She lunged from her position toward him, using gravity to her advantage. He reacted far quicker than she expected, but even so, she managed to punch the side of the sword with the back of her hand to make the sword diagonal.

She turned Hyper-drive off, and quickly kicked Jean on the back, sending him to Chat Noir.

Chat Noir, on his part, was startled by the speed of thinking of the woman before him. He whirled around, using his baton, and quickly slammed it against the back of Jean, sending him upwards into the sky, this time the sword had fallen from his hand.

Ladybug quickly swung by and threw her yoyo toward Jean, wrapping it around him, tying his hands and legs together as he struggled to break free. Athena took a quick breath and jumped up, whirling onward, and kicking Jean with her heel toward the ground once more.

He fell limp to the ground, not moving.

Somehow, it didn’t bring any satisfaction to Athena.

"That was. . . easy, too easy" Chat Noir commented—whispering—while looking at Athena. "When will your boss arrive?"

"Almost here," Athena commented, eyes moving to see in the direction of the museum. The light had died out, and it seemed that Chloé was finally moving over to their position. Her vision completely focused on anything other than Jean on the ground.

Ladybug looked in the museum's direction, raising an eyebrow, before speaking in whispers.

“If only I had a way to—”

“M’Lady! Move!”

Athena looked to Ladybug, the girl was paralyzed as a sword stabbed her through the stomach, it twirled inside of her body, quickly cutting her from the inside out as the blade moved to be freed through her shoulder.

The girl’s grip on the yoyo lessened, freeing Jean, who had materialized another sword on his hand and jumped a few meters away from her.

Chat Noir moved faster than Athena ever thought he could, carrying Ladybug in bridal style and leaving Athena alone with the Debacle, not that she could blame him. The woman whirled around, knowing that Jean was going to be fast enough to even avoid her Hyper-drive.

I should be proud of you for being strong, but I can’t afford it at the moment. Athena thought. You need to die, Jean.


Meanwhile, Chat Noir reached a building far enough away to look over Ladybug's wounds. It was bad, he knew that, and Ladybug tried her very best to even draw oxygen into her lungs. On the inside, he panicked, because he didn't know what to do.

"Ladybug, please calm down. Take in and out, in and out." Chat Noir whispered to her.

"I feel cold!" Declared weakly the red heroine, blood quickly seeped out of her body.

Dammit! Chat Noir cursed in his mind. He didn't want to lose someone he was close to; he didn't want to lose Ladybug. It was bad enough when he had lost his mother.


Chloé finally reached as to where the battle was happening, seeing the damages first hand.

“I’m here!” She called out.

Athena turned around to face her and quickly ducked as a sword swung by her neck level. Chloé jumped from her position toward Jean, swinging down her sword on the Debacle, sending it a few feet back. The girl fell to the ground, and stood, feeling the phantom pain of the explosion coming back to her, even with Hope’s help.

The blonde looked at Athena and said. 

“Help me out here, I need to strike.”

Athena narrowed her eyes, noticing Chloé’s left eye being closed. However, instead of immediately agreeing to help her, Athena spoke the next words.

"Miss Bourgeois, I should tell you that prepare yourself for what's about to happen," The woman said, softly, almost begging, but Chloé didn’t pick up on that.

Chloé looked at her confused, side glancing at the Debacle, who was preparing to attack. "What do you mean by that? Let's just finish this so we can go and have a chat with Jean."

Athena closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then, the next second, the woman lunged toward the Debacle, her body close to the ground, and quickly wrapped her arms around the Debacle’s body.

The Debacle tried to pry himself away, but the struggle proved futile as Athena managed to maintain at least his arms tied up. Chloé quickly took in a deep breath and exclaimed to the high heavens.

“Redemption!”

The sword Chloé has glowed a white, gentle color, warmth spreading through the blonde’s body. The sword began to expel light, the holiest of which Chloé has ever seen before. She jumped onward, reaching out the blade to strike the Debacle down.

The Debacle soon managed to throw Athena out of its body, making her crash into the ground, but the woman quickly recovered before thrown a small rock at the Debacle’s face. It enraged the being, but it was enough distraction to allow Chloé to do the final strike, cutting the Debacle in half from the waist.

A white light engulfed everything around, and all damage caused by the Debacle was cured away by the light. Chloé fell to the ground, a smile on her face as she made the transformation disappear. Athena did the same but blocked Chloé’s view of the corpse that will disappear shortly after.

Athena kneeled in front of Chloé, touching the girl’s cheek as she looked at the damage done to Chloé by the explosion from before. The woman frowned, concern in her face, and Chloé felt something bubbling within her at that.

"So this is what happened to you. . ." Athena said, anger gleaming in her eyes.

"Yeah," Chloé winced as the pain started to come back. "We have so much to talk about. Let's go to the hospital, Jean can meet us there."

Hope was currently talking with Crown inside of Chloé, but the girl had no idea what they were talking about. All the girl knew was that they were discussing what Crown has neglected to tell her, but Hope had said it wasn’t anything that would harm her body in any way, shape, or form.

However, Athena froze once Chloé spoke her words.

The blonde noticed this and quickly frowned. "What happened? Why are you looking like that?" Chloé gently demanded.

Athena said nothing for a couple of seconds, and she looked around for a second. There weren’t people around, and so she spoke, carefully choosing her words. “You want to see Jean, is that correct, Miss Bourgeois?”

Chloé tilted her head but nodded. “Yeah,”

Athena breathed out and softly said. “Ok,”

The woman moved out of the way, enough to allow Chloé the possibility to see the Debacle. The blonde girl looked at Athena, confused, but the grey-eyed woman simply glanced at her with sad eyes. Chloé looked back at the Debacle, directly at where the face should be, and felt her blood turned icy shards.

Her heart drummed loudly in her ears, and tears started to well up in her eyes. Jean’s face was soon revealed, fully, to her, and Chloé felt something shatter within herself. The blonde girl stood up, hastily, and ran toward Jean but fell to the ground nearby.

Athena was soon to be right behind her.

“Miss Bourgeois!”

Athena’s arms were wrapped around her, but Chloé was ignoring mostly everything happening around her. The pain of losing her arm, most of it anyway, and her left eye were nothing compared to the pain she was feeling at this moment. Though, she found that she no longer cared about the pain.

Chloé whispered, thick emotion in her voice. “Please, tell me this isn't real. Tell me this isn't him.” Chloé did something she had barely done in her life: She begged, with tears already spilling out.

Athena pressed Chloé’s head against her chest in a protective way, knowing that the girl was in a no longer sane state.

So, she told the truth to the girl, knowing that there was no reason to lie about it.

"That's Jean, Miss Bourgeois. There is no denying it."

“No, no,” Chloé quickly tried to deny, but she felt Crown within her, telling her that it was the truth. Hope was silent, as she hadn’t met Jean, but Crown felt sadness a little similar to Chloé’s. “It can’t be—you can’t be dead. Not when I finally wanted to have a good relationship with you, I wanted to apologize for everything. Please, tell me this isn’t true!”

Out of nowhere, a cough came from Jean’s mouth.

Athena quickly engaged at whirled around, protecting Chloé with her body as the girl was still not prepared for anything coming her way.

“You. . . made. . . me proud.” Jean’s weak voice caught their attention.

Chloé looked at Jean’s face, which had a smile on his face. The girl felt something being ripped apart from her being as she watched Jean’s eyes becoming dimmer by the second.

Jean spoke, weakly. “Athena. . . take care of her for me. And. . . phone. . .”

Athena nodded, a single tear running down her cheek. “Yes,”

“Goodbye, Mademoiselle Chloé.” Those were Jean’s last words as he closed his eyes.

Then, it spilled out. Everything that has happened in the last few days was finally coming out from her. Being rejected by her hero the same way her mother did, the fact that her mother tried to kill her using someone else, and now the death of the only other person who had been there for her during her entire life aside from her father.

Chloé Bourgeois, the most spoiled brat of Paris, broke down in tears, in the protective arms of Athena.

Notes:

Next Chapter: Cruelty of Life

Chapter 13: Cruelty of Life

Summary:

After the light, the world beings to turn around.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


Cruelty of Life


Once the blinding light had vanished, Chat Noir gave out a sigh of relief once he saw all the damage done by the Debacle being fixed. A weak cough perked his ears, and he turned around to look at Ladybug, who no longer had any type of wound in her body. It had filled his body with relief, and he crouched nearby his partner.

"M'Lady, how are you feeling?" That was the first thing he asked, helping Ladybug to her feet.

The heroine shivered, swallowing the saliva that had gathered in her mouth. "I'll be fine, what happened?"

Chat Noir raised an eyebrow at her words but answered her question nonetheless. "Well, Ladybug, it seems that we've won. Everything done by the Debacle has been fixed." He waved around.

Ladybug smiled but shook her head. "Where is. . .?"

"If you are talking about the Spider-woman, I. . ." Chat Noir remembered leaving her alone with the Debacle after Ladybug had been injured, something he didn't like, but he had panicked at that moment. "I think we will need to look for her."

"Ok," Ladybug said, nodding. She grabbed her yoyo and threw it to the nearest light post, swinging herself toward where she had been injured.

Chat Noir vaulted right behind her, taking the lead once he saw Ladybug looking around, as though she was lost, it finally dawned on him that she may not remember what happened the last few minutes aside from meeting the Spider-woman.

Ladybug noticed Chat Noir and followed him, they reached where Chat Noir had left the Spider-woman, and saw no damage but also no clue as to where she could have gone. Both heroes looked around, confused when Chat Noir's ears picked up something.

Sobbing, or at least, the end of someone doing it.

"Ladybug, someone is hurt." Chat Noir told her, and she nodded.

Both of them quickly went to the source of the sobbing Chat Noir heard, but what they found left them frozen on the spot.

They found someone there, right beside the corpse of who Cha Noir recognized as Jean. It was a black-haired woman with grey eyes holding someone close to her chest, that someone being Chloé. There was something amiss, and as Chat Noir looked more closely, he finally caught on to what that was.

Her left arm and eye were missing. Her skin was burned, and the eye that was so filled with fire was no longer giving off the light it once was. Chat Noir landed near the woman holding Chloé, with Ladybug beside him, and they were both silent, not knowing how to approach the situation.

One thing was clear, Chat Noir—Adrien felt sick to his stomach.

He remembered what the Spider-woman had said, about someone bombing Chloé. He'd heard the explosion and assumed it was an Akuma, saw the Debacle, and assumed it was it what caused it, but now he knew that none of those things did this.

Which meant only one thing.

Someone—A human being—had bombed his childhood friend.

The very thought came across faster than Adrien could process it. Almost the same as his mother.

One second she was there, the next she wasn't.

"This is. . ." Ladybug breathed out, horrified at the sight.

The woman looked at them, face hardening as her icy eyes looked at them with distrust. She pressed Chloé closer to her and whispered something, the girl nodding against her. The woman looked at them once more and asked.

"What do you wish with me, Ladybug, Chat Noir?"

"Who are you?" Chat Noir demanded, not noticing his tone. Ladybug looked at him confused, and even the woman before them raised one of her eyebrows.

"And why do you wish to know that, Chat Noir?" The woman simply asked.

Chat Noir, then, searched through his mind to find a way to speak his request more calmly. "Someone told us that Chloé had been attacked, and so I wished to know if you knew who did it, or if you saw a woman with a spider costume around?"

The woman nodded. "My name is Athena Abbacchio, and I'm the bodyguard of Miss Bourgeois,"

"I didn't know she had a bodyguard." Ladybug commented, stepping closer to Chat Noir, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"Of course, I'm a recent addition in Miss Bourgeois' life," Athena said, and Chat Noir swore she'd rolled her eyes at them. Then, taking a deep breath, as though she was pondering about something, she continued looking at the Black Cat. "And about the woman you asked about, I saw her going away with someone in a black costume, it was the same one who dealt with the being from this one."

"So she is the leader," Ladybug muttered under her breath, looking around.

"What will happen with her?" Chat Noir asked, pointing at Chloé. He wanted to hug his friend, but he knew that he would've to do it as Adrien Agreste and not Chat Noir.

"She is to be taken to the hospital until she recovers enough to walk around," Athena got up, placing Chloé on her back, making sure that the girl wouldn't fall from her. The woman looked in the direction of the hospital. Then, she glared at them. "In case, you are not allowed to be near her without me being in the room. Goodbye."

And Athena walked away, leaving the two heroes baffled at her words.

After a few seconds, the woman was nowhere to be seen.

"Chat," Ladybug called out, making him turn around. "I'm going to go home and ask Tikki and the rest about the situation, they have a lot of explanation to do."

Chat Noir nodded. "I'm thinking about doing the same myself with Plagg, meet me up in the night to share what we found?"

"Yeah!"

With that, Ladybug swung toward somewhere in Paris—to her home—and Chat Noir quickly used his baton to vault toward his house. He soon reached it and landed beside the window of his room. Chat Noir opened the window and went through it as he de-transformed.

Plagg appeared before him, hovering. "Hello, kit."

Adrien glared at him. "Plagg, you have an explanation to do."

Plagg looked around, confused. "I swear I didn't eat anything of your fridge!"

The blonde boy looked at the Kwami confused. "What—? Wait, no, I want to talk about the Debacles, that girl, and the Spider-woman."

"Spider-woman?" Plagg asked, then gasped. "Oh shit, they are coming together? Why haven't you explained this before!?"

Adrien was startled by Plagg's tone, which confused him even more. The boy was about to ask what he meant by that, Adrien's phone went off. He quickly moved and grabbed it, before checking that his father was calling him.

He accepted the call, placing the phone against his ear.

"Adrien! Where are you?! Why haven't you answered the phone!?" His father demanded to know, and for the first time since what it seemed forever, Adrien could hear the desperation on his voice, the protectiveness of a parent toward their child.

Though, he had experienced that before when Style Queen happened.

"I'm home, I managed to get away from the fight and hide here," Adrien said, not lying.

"That's good, I'm currently on my way to the house with Natalie, see you soon." The line cut off, and Adrien looked at his phone for moments before looking back at Plagg, who was looking at a spot on the wall.

"Plagg! Explain." He said, with finality.

Plagg looked at him and sighed before hovering right before the boy. The Kwami of Destruction looked at him dead in the eye and said. "What do you wish to know, kit? Also, can you bring some camembert? I'm hungry."

Adrien rolled his eyes as he walked to the kitchen of the house.

"Who is that girl? Why couldn't Ladybug heal everything with the miraculous cure? What Kwamis do they have?" He asked.

Plagg quickly made a question of his own. "We are still talking about the Spider-woman and a girl that look clothed in something death-themed?"

"Yeah?" Adrien tilted his head and blinked. "Hey, how do you know how that Miraculous user looks like? Explain that!"

"Fine, fine. . ." Plagg groaned as they reached the kitchen and Adrien began to look for camembert. "Long story short, we have met in the past and worked together, though it would normally sour somewhere between the 40s of my wielders."

Adrien stopped moving and looked at Plagg, confused. "Wielders? As in. . . many of them? How old is she?"

"The woman? I don't know. The girl? Well, for a very long time, though she had been "asleep" for around two centuries. . ."


". . . So you are telling me that this girl is very important to you guys, and don't want me to interfere with her until a certain day?" Marinette asked, incredulous at the situation.

"That's correct, Guardian," Longg said, looking around at the rest of the Kwamis, who nodded in unison.

Tikki was right beside Marinette, looking at her concerned.

Marinette exhaled through her nostrils as she rubbed her eyes with both of her hands. Sighing, she looked at Tikki once more. "You guys, why aren't you guys explaining everything to me? Tikki, you said you would help me be a good Guardian, but you aren't helping by staying silent. If this girl is connected to you guys, then I need to have more information."

Tikki sighed, and looked at the rest, who simply went back to the Miracle Box, leaving her alone with Marinette. Silence drowned the noise of the room, and even though people were already starting to come out and talk about what had happened, there was no sound in the bakery.

Marinette had called her parents to reach out to them and ask where they were, but they said that they were already coming back to the house to meet with her. It brought joy to the girl that her parents were safe and weren't harmed during the attack, though. . .

She shivered, touching her torso gently as she kept on looking at the Kwami of Creation.

"What do you wish to know?" Tikki asked.

"What are the Kwamis she has? What kind of miraculous can do that kind of thing? And that light that Chat Noir mentioned, is it similar to Miraculous Cure?"

Tikki nodded, pondering on how to answer the best way possible. "From what you have told me, she as of now as Death and Life with her, and it seems that she found someone to give Mind to."

"Death? Life? Mind?" Marinette inquired, it was the first time she had heard about this. "Why didn't Master Fu mentioned any of this?"

Tikki turned grim, her face falling. "He was nothing but a child when the Temple was destroyed, and I assume that he was never told about this. Death and Life are minor aspects of me and Plagg, Death with Destruction and Life with Creation, you can guess what that light was."

"The connection to Creation," Marinette mumbled under her breath, creasing her brow. Then, she asked. "Why didn't you talk about this with Fu when he was older? Also, where has she been all this? We could have used her help against Hawkmoth!"

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng," Tikki raised her voice, surprising the girl. "You don't get to be mad at her for things that were beyond her control, if you want to blame anyone, blame the temple for that. They are the reason she has been gone and it seems that she found a Vessel to take over to return."

"Found a new Vessel?" Marinette stood up at that. "You mean that she will overtake someone and come back completely or what?"

Tikki titled her head. "Something like that."

"Then—"

"Marinette! Are you here?"

The voice of her parents cut off Marinette, and the girl quickly forgot what she was talking about and went to meet them, leaving Tikki alone with her thoughts.

Crown, Hope, Luminous are here. . . Where is Omni since she is inside of Chloé? Tikki wondered as she went inside of the Miracle Box.


An hour has passed since Athena took Chloé to the hospital, and she had stayed there until the news had reached the mayor. The bodyguard had been waiting for news about Chloé's condition when Andre appeared running down the hallway to her.

Athena noticed his presence and stood up to greet him. "Hello, Sir Bourgeois. It's good to see that you are in good health and without harm."

Andre had a calm face on the outside, but it was obvious by his trembling hands that he was shaken by the events that had happened in the day. "Hello, Athena. I need to know about Chloé's condition."

"What about Madam Bourgeois?" Athena inquired first, eagerly wanting to know that piece of information. "Where is she?"

"Audrey has already been taken in by the hospital," He answered, looking around to see if there was someone nearby. "The doctors will make sure that nothing is wrong with her after being dead, though the sudden influx of people wanting to make sure there are no problems are sure to increase in the next day." He looked at Athena once more. "Now, inform me about Chloé's condition."

Athena nodded and soon began to speak. "As of this moment, she is currently being checked by the doctors, too. Though, since her damages hadn't been done by an Akuma, it wasn't healed. Her left arm and eye are gone, to never be recovered again."

Andre stood there, in shock, as he silently muttered beneath his breath. "But everyone who has been harmed by that thing has recovered. . ."

"That seems to be the case," She conceded but shook her head with dejection. "But her injuries were not caused by that being as I said, and also, Sir. . . I bring more terrible news to you."

"This day is a constant of bad news," Andre whispered as he pinched the bridge of his nose.

However, the next words shook him to his very core.

"Jean Page, as of today, has perished in front of Miss Bourgeois."

There was no one around, and Andre was glad of it. The look on his face was something that no one had seen him making ever since he started his career as the mayor of Paris. His eyes were fully opened, his face frozen like that, as he felt his veins cooling into dangerous temperature, heart beating against his ribcage.

Placing a hand over his chest, Andre took a deep breath and looked down on the clean floor.

"I. . . see. . ."

Silence drowned the hallway.         

"Sir," Athena spoke out, getting his attention. "Let's just take into consideration that things will likely get worse from now on. But let's do our best for Chloé, she'll need our support."

Andre took another breath and nodded. "Yeah, yeah. You are right. I need to keep my head in a good place for Chloé."

As soon as that was said, a doctor appeared, looking grim at the ground. He walked up to them, and looked at Athena but noticed that the mayor was near him as well.

The doctor was a brunette with dark eyes wearing glasses. He was wearing the doctor coat assigned to the hospital over a dark T-shirt and brown pants.

"Hello, Andre." He said a sad smile on his face.

"Hello, Emil, how have you been?" Andre asked.

"Better than some people today," Emil commented. "Things will get hectic from this day onwards, something I don't look forward to." He looked at Athena. "May I know who this is? She brought your daughter earlier."

Andre replied quickly. "She is Chloé's bodyguard, she gets full permission to be around Chloé at all times, and no one talks to Chloé without her being present in the room."

Emil tilted his head, pursed his lips, and nodded. "Very well, I assume that you've already been informed on Miss Bourgeois' condition."

"Yes,"

"Then I must say that everything is under control right now," The doctor said, taking a deep breath through his nostrils and placing a firm on Andre's shoulders. "I'm very sorry something like this happened, but your daughter is fine beyond. . . her missing features."

Andre said nothing but nodded. After a few seconds, Emil was called back to check with another patient that had just been admitted into the hospital, and Andre told Athena to stay with Chloé until further notice since he will have to do some damage control. The black-haired woman agreed to it, and her mind wandered toward what Jean had last said to her.

A Phone. The last words of Jean mentioned a phone.

Athena sat back on the chair and soon began to think about what that could mean. From what little Jean had told her, Audrey Bourgeois always erased every single one of the most unexceptional contacts from her phone—basically everyone—and everyone fears recording the call since the woman could sue them to hell and back.

Taking a deep breath, a light switched on Athena's mind, the dots connecting.

Thank you for this, Jean.

Athena left the hospital to look for something.

Notes:

Next Chapter: Calm Tide

Well, slowly and surely we are reaching the middle of the story. I have to say that I have the ending already planned, and I have to write everything down. I'll even have to change some tags.

Chapter 14: Calming Tide

Summary:

The cogs keep turning.

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


Calming Tide


"… And that's the extend of her injuries."

"Thank you, Emil, you can go now."

The sound of the door closing rang through the silent room, leaving the gentle breeze entering through the window to drown every almost silent noise nearby. A machine beeped, giving off the sound of life from it, and the people inside of the room were nothing but silent.

Athena and Andre were sitting on a small couch beside the hospital bed where Chloé was currently sitting, staring at a single spot on the white wall of the room. The blonde girl wasn't moving, and if it weren't because of her eyelid moving, one could think of her as effectively dead.

It was the next day after the Debacle attack, and the world had begun to turn around at its own pace. People were already asking questions about what had happened, but there weren't many answers, as Ladybug could only provide what she knew herself.

Athena leaned back into the couch, turning her head to the side to see through the window, and sighed in annoyance.

There were reporters outside of the hospital wanting to get news in regards to the mayor's family. Someone inside of the hospital had leaked information about what had happened, and now media crews were blocking the entrance of the hospital like sharks waiting for a drop of fish blood to have a delightful feast.

The black-haired woman looked at Chloé, her eye having lost the light that was shone inside of them. She looked nothing like the girl people said she was before, and though Athena never truly liked spoiled people and liked when they get what they deserve, something like this was excessive to the point of simple torture.

As though the universe itself was looking for a reason to make Chloé suffer.

Andre gave a weak cough, catching Athena's attention.

"I'll be leaving to deal with the press," he said, standing up.

"Very well, Sir Bourgeois," Athena nodded.

Andrew walked toward the door but stopped just as he was about to open it. He turned around and looked at Athena in the eyes as he raised an eyebrow.

"I've been told that you went yesterday night and talked with my wife. Why?"

Athena tilted her head, moving closer to Chloé. "I simply wished to know about her condition further and check up on her. She is someone dear to Miss Bourgeois, after all."

Andre seemed to be fine with that answer, as he nodded and walked out of the door after looking at his daughter one last time. As soon as he closed the door, a light lit up from Athena's comb and Luminous came out of it. The Spider Kwami looked around for a few seconds, before landing his gaze on Chloé, who ignored him.

"Oh dear, I sense Hope inside of her," Luminous spoke inside of everyone's mind, he turned around to look at Athena's face and looked back at Chloé. "Come out both of you, it seems we are due to a talk."

Chloé groaned in pain and black ink went up to through her skin to just below her left eye. Two balls of light came from the girl's chest, one white and the other black. Crown and Hope came out of them, and while Athena recognized Crown, she didn't know Hope.

"Who are you?" Athena curiously asked the White-Dove Kwami.

Hope answered with energy. "My name is Hope! The one inside of the Miraculous of Life!"

Crown sighed beside her. "Tune it down, Hope. We don't want anyone hearing you and asking questions."

"Sorry,"

Athena looked at the interaction, and then glanced at Luminous, who was looking already tired of everything. The face of the Spider Kwami was practically a copy of hers in a sense, as both of them looked ready to disappear into the night and let the wind guide them through life.

Though, Athena had her anchor in Chloé Bourgeois as of this very moment, so she couldn't go along the wind.

"So, Life and Death." The black-haired woman muttered under her breath, catching the attention of the Kwamis around her. She looked at Hope and Crown. "Can I ask what's this all about? Have you gotten inside of Miss Bourgeois the same way Crown did?"

Hope mused, pondering on a good answer. "Something like that," She glanced at Crown, then Luminous, then back at Athena. "Those of our box normally always stay together. Our first wielder was someone who didn't like Miraculous being used selfishly, so she never handed us over to anyone else."

"What happened to your first wielder?" Athena inquired.

Silence drowned the room after that. Hope was looking down, gloomy, and Luminous found the sky rather interesting, more than the conversation at hand. Looking at his fellow Kwamis, Crown knew he had to be the one to speak about it.

"The Order of the Miraculous happened, the ones who had the Box of Creation—or Miracle Box—with them. They, in every meaning but one, killed her without a trace of her existence left in the world, us being the only proof that she had ever existed."

Athena frowned at that. "Why would they do that?"

"A long feud between the two, at the end of the day, the Order feared her because she couldn't be killed nor controlled, and she didn't have the best impressions of them. So… it was kind of a mutual thing. They actively avoided each other, until the day she was killed."

Athena closed her eyes. She felt like there was to the story, but she was not going to be told what it is. The eyes of the Kwami showed that it was not a pretty thing, and she didn't want to bring it up without their consent.

Instead, she started to deflect to something else.

"So, can Chloé give someone one of your miraculous?"

Luminous piped in, having recovered his usual vibe. "That's correct, but I don't see a future where she gives a miraculous to someone else. Her trust. . . it is a miracle that she has allowed you to use me."

Athena looked at the clock in the wall of the room and looked through the window. There were very few reporters left. She quickly grabbed her phone and checked the news outlet from it, clicking on the newest video.

Nadja appeared on the screen. "And now, we are to hear from the mayor regarding the news about his family."

The camera turned around, facing the mayor, who looked ready to be done with everything and get a good sleep for a week, at least.

"I know many of you have heard some rumors about my family, and I'm going to address them right now," Andre started, his voice serious. The crowd was silent, waiting for his words, and Athena knew that some of them were waiting for some juicy story they could make. "Yes, that being has caused some harm to my family. He gravely injured my wife, and both her and my daughter are in the hospital as of this moment. They are healing, and I ask every single one of you to not disturb them."

He turned around, ready to get away from there when someone shouted.

"What about your daughter? Why is she in the hospital!?"

Andre didn't answer and simply walked away.

The video stopped playing, and Athena sighed, already looking at the articles that were to be made because of that. Hardening her inner resolve, she knew that no one would get to get enter Chloé's room easily, and if she caught someone sneaking in, she would have to break both of their legs.

Athena looked back at Chloé and reached out to grab the girl's hand. Chloé lifted her chin slightly and slid her vacant eye to look at Athena.

"Don't worry, Miss Bourgeois. I'll take care of anything you need from now on." Athena said, voice monotone. Though, the woman moved her hand to touch Chloé's head but hesitated at the end. The woman was startled, however, when Chloé moved her head so Athena's palm touched her, a single trail of a tear falling from Chloé's remaining eye.

While Athena began establishing a very small conversation with Chloé, Luminous looked at Hope and Crown, who looked at the exchange with intrigued eyes, though Crown's eyes looked dead as usual.

"It seems that she is ready to sleep," Luminous said looking at the blonde girl, making sure that Athena and Chloé didn't hear him.

Beside him, Life and Death nodded, agreeing with his words.


". . .Here we are," Gabriel said as the driver pulled up on the sidewalk of the entrance of the hospital.

Adrien was anxious about this. It has been a couple of good days since he had last seen Chloé, and he didn't know how to enter the conversation. Seeing her condition had done nothing in the slightest to calm his nerves, and he truly was wondering if the woman named Athena would keep her word to some extent.

Gabriel and Adrien got out of the car and stared at the hospital for a couple of seconds. Gabriel walked first, Adrien just behind him. The boy noticed as some reporters walked away from the entrance of the hospital, looking dejected and frustrated, to some extent.

They walked inside and moved toward the reception first. Adrien looked around. The white walls and freezing temperatures inside of the building was the first thing he noticed, and for some reason, it looked more ominous than what he ever saw of it. There were some people inside, some silently crying, and some looking as though they did not know what to do with their lives.

Adrien really felt like he didn't want to be in that place, but he wanted to check up on Chloé above anything else at that moment.

"Hello, we are looking for the room of Chloé Bourgeois," Gabriel said, standing tall.

The receptionist, as though she was reading from a script, didn't look up from her computer. "If you wish to speak with her, you'll have to be allowed inside by her bodyguard." And gave them the number of Chloé's room.

Adrien quickly looked over to see the number, and practically burned it inside of his mind.

On the other hand, Gabriel was confused by what had been told to him.

"I wasn't aware that she had a bodyguard,"

The receptionist looked at him. "You aren't the first, and won't be the last to speak those words." And she went into her work.

Gabriel shook his head and looked at Adrien before walking toward Chloé's room, his son walking right behind him. The man felt something within his chest as he made each step. He had known Chloé ever since she had been a child, and he was there every now and then when she played with Adrien when they were kids.

From what little he had been told about her situation, she was badly hurt, to the point that it was a miracle that she was still alive. Glancing at his son, Gabriel saw how nervous he was at the moment, and frowned. Then, it suddenly hit him, that this event could have been a reminder of what happened to his mother in his eyes.

Sighing inwardly, Gabriel started to think about everything that has happened. It made his resolve stronger, however, knowing that using the Miraculous of the Black Cat and Ladybug everything could be fixed. Adrien would have his mother, and Chloé wouldn't go a path that leads her to this place. Hardening his gaze, they arrived at the floor and door of Chloé's room.

He knocked on the door, and waited a few seconds, a click came from the door and it opened slightly.

A woman was behind the door, black hair and grey eyes staring at him. Adrien beside him was confused.

"Is this the room of Chloé Bourgeois?" He asked for confirmation.

The woman raised an eyebrow. A sound came from behind her, and she turned around, before looking back at Gabriel. "That's correct. May I know what do you wish?"

Gabriel took a step back and allowed Adrien a step forward.

"I want to talk with Chloé," Adrien said, trying to look for Chloé from the small opening made between the doorframe and the door.

The woman titled her head. "Why?" Gabriel frowned at the woman's voice, and Adrien looked down at the tiles as he swallowed the saliva that had gathered in his mouth.

"I-I. . ." He stopped for a brief moment. "I want to talk with her, check up on her. I want to know the condition my friend is in."

The woman waited for a second and then said. "Wait a few moments."

She half-slammed the door in front of Adrien, making him flinch in recoil from the sound.  A small ringing on his ears was everything he heard for a couple of seconds before he turned around to see his father's face. Gabriel looked outraged at what had transpired and was about to demand a certain talk with the woman who had just slammed a door in his son's face when the door opened once more.

The woman walked away from the door and sat in a chair beside the bed, allowing the guests to see Chloé in the bed, staring at them with a very dead-looking eye.

Gabriel fidgeted for a second, perceiving the emotions from everyone in the room—a side-effect from the butterfly—and he felt deeply disturbed at the implications of what he was feeling.

The woman was indifferent, slightly protective. Adrien was confused and shocked. But Chloé's. . .

There was nothing.

Dead silent, as though it the mood for mourning, for a resting place. Almost as though it was the same that Emilie had before the Magic had damaged her. Gabriel walked closer to the bed, taking a better look at Chloé's injuries.

The fact that it hadn't healed meant that it was done just before that being—As he still didn't have a name for it, since Duusu kept sleeping and Nooroo was always gazing on the horizon, for some reason—had attacked everyone.

And so, Gabriel wondered who could have done something like this.

He had his theories in mind, but none of them painted a good picture for the Bourgeois family, no matter which theory it is.

"My name is Athena Abbacchio, Miss Bourgeois' bodyguard." The woman spoke, catching Gabriel and Adrien's attention. "If you wish to speak with her, then do so as of this moment, if not, then go away. She needs rest."

Athena looked at both of them, indifferent as usual, but she was suspicious of their true reason for being there. She assumed that the son would be the only one visiting Chloé, but seeing Gabriel there made her doubt their visiting reason even more. And, even in the case that Adrien was telling the truth, she felt that something was amiss with his reason.

"Also, how did you know Miss Bourgeois was admitted to this hospital?" She asked, observing their body language.

"Well—" Adrien hesitated, but his father did not.

"This hospital is the same used for the Agreste family, so of course I knew she would be admitted in this place." The man told Athena.

The bodyguard accepted that as an answer. "Where is your bodyguard, Agreste?" She said, looking at Adrien.

"He is checking on his family," He quickly said.

At that exact moment, Gabriel felt something pressing against his leg. He snapped his head downwards but saw nothing, but his clothes were bent slightly inwards. He frowned and quickly looked around, his gaze slowly turned back to Athena, who was looking directly at him in the eyes.

"Is there something wrong, Mister Agreste?"

He shook his head. "Nothing, I'll be waiting outside, Adrien. Speak what you must." He walked out of the room, leaving his son behind.

Adrien gulped and turned to Chloé, who was still looking at him with her dead-looking eye.

"Hey, Chloé. . . I came to see you. It's been a few days since we last talked to each other, isn't it?" He started, not knowing how to continue.

Chloé said nothing, simply continued to stare.

"Are you ok—?" Adrien winced at his words, then, he noticed Athena's staring at him, intently. He was slightly panicking inside, he didn't know what to say outside of wanting to check up on her, and the pressure of being stared down by his friend's bodyguard was big, to his surprise. "I—I came to see how you are doing. . . I was told that you were here, but I didn't know why and so I came here as fast as I could, and I simply wanted to say. . . I'm here if you need me."

He didn't notice Chloé moving her fingers slightly.

Athena stood up abruptly. "Enough, for now, you can come back on another day."

Adrien was startled by her words. "What do you mean? I still have—"

With no words coming out of her mouth, Athena grabbed Adrien by the shoulders and led him outside of the room. After doing so, with Gabriel standing right in front of the door, she slightly pushed him against his father.

Silence came once Athena closed the door, leaving father and son alone in the hallway. Gabriel frowned and scoffed under his breath as he led his son outside of the hospital. He'd brought his son here, and now he had things to do, he needed the information from Duusu, no matter what the Kwami felt like doing.

Once they arrived at the Agreste Mansion, both of them quickly went their separate ways. Adrien went to his room as silently as he arrived at the hospital while Gabriel went down to his lair.

There he put on the Butterfly and Peacock Miraculous. To his surprise, Duusu was awake to see him.

"You are going to tell me what's happening, now."

Duusu shook his head. "I'm not going to do it. There is no point, either way, everything will be over soon enough."

"That does not answer my question."

"Let it be that way, then."

Then, Duusu disappeared into his miraculous.

"Duusu! Come back here!" Gabriel ordered but grew frustrated once he knew that Duusu was not coming out for some reason. He thought that as soon as once had the miraculous, the Kwami had to obey that person no matter what. It seems that there were some misconceptions about that. He turned around and left Duusu's brooch on a small table.

He will find any information, no matter what.

"I'll need to see what Natalie has discovered so far,"


"Thanks for the help, I didn't want to answer that question no matter what."

Duusu said a soon as he entered his miraculous, looking at the other Kwami sleeping inside. It was a snake-like Kwami, though it was coiling in on itself, and it looked as though it was eating its tail. The Peacock Kwami soon hovered atop it and smiled down at it.

"It seems that it almost time for you to do your part. She is ready to wake up."

It opened its eyes, the everlasting infinite staring at him.


In the vast void, golden eyes looked around. Fragments of her body soon reached out and were connecting once more, her black hair waving in the zero-gravity of the darkness. The plan had worked out in the end, not in the way she would have liked, but she felt something fluttering within herself nevertheless.

It was almost time.

Her Vessel was almost complete, and it was a matter of time before the pathway for her to come back opened up.

And so, she waited, watching the single spot of light above her.

For the time was near.

Notes:

Next Chapter: Truth within Life, Life within Lies

In other words, Lila finally makes an appearance.

Chapter 15: Truth within Life, Life within Lies

Chapter Text


Truth within Life, Life within Lies


"It's fine,"

It'll never be fine, Chloé thought as she stared at the blank wall in front of her. She heard the door closing beside her after she had snapped out from reality for a second. Athena walked in front of her and sat once again beside her, and Chloé could only provide a nod as she soon returned to her thoughts.

The voice she had just heard was unlike anything she had heard before. It was of no one she had met before, but there was some familiarity to those words, affection, and warmth she had never felt before with her parents. That thought made her looked downward in slight shame, as Chloé knew her father had done his best to be there for her, while her mother. . .

It still stung, Chloé felt small drops of water in her eye. Squeezing them inward closing her eye, she opened it once more. Mom was never actually there, Chloé thought as she bit a part of her inner cheek. It was something that was bouncing off her skull ever since she had woken up in the hospital, her mind finally having a chance to calm down and think.

Think about everything that was happening.

Swallowing, Chloé felt a hand touching hers. Looking at the side, Athena was looking at her and Chloé saw concern in the woman's eyes.

"Do you want to talk?" Athena asked.

Chloé hesitated for a second. She had been about to decline but saw a shadow moving through the corner of her eye. Sighing, Chloé knew that this was the only way she stopped seeing and hearing things, by being grounded.

"F-Fine,"

She winced at how dry her voice sounded. Athena raised an eyebrow and walked over to grab the glass of water at the other side of Chloé's bed, using her hand to grab Chloé's chin and drop the water in the blonde's mouth.

Chloé drank the water and once Athena stopped, she hesitated for a second. "Thanks,"

It was so weird to her to say those words, but it felt weirdly good.

"Your welcome, Miss Bourgeois."

The moment Athena took her seat again; a silence befell between the two. After a couple of seconds, Chloé looked at the door, her blue eyes recovering some light.

"Who was here?"

She had vague memories. A blonde boy in front of her, but nothing else seemed to be appearing in her mind.

Athena looked at her, pondering on how to answer the question. She had seen Chloé looking at Adrien with such intensity that the boy seemed to be melting under her gaze and not know what to say. The mere fact that she had spoken those words was the bell that had alarmed her that something was happening with Chloé, something within her.

"Adrien Agreste and his father had come for a visit, Miss Bourgeois."

"Adrikins—?! Adrien?" Chloé had corrected herself. In her heart, she was conflicted about her standing with her childhood friend. He was much happier with the others than with her, and if there was something she knew, is that Adrien deserved to be happy after all that has happened to him. And what has she done, become more like her mother with each passing day. . .

"You'll never be exceptional enough,"

Those words repeated in her mind all over again, echoing in her mind as though it was a broken record. Those words always struck a chord within her, something that made her want to seek the approval of her mother. Chloé wanted nothing more than simply to forget about the concept of being exceptional, it had taken her ability to rationally think away. Because of it, she had done things that her father would consider wrong. She had become someone that people wouldn't want to be around, and the mere idea was laughable, her not being liked by the people, by humans.

Then, she was no longer on the hospital bed, looking at Athena. She was in a grass mountain, sitting in front of the remains of a home, a house—a household that held a happy family, broken by the Miraculous. Chloé looked around, confused for a second, before she got up from the ground and walked over to the remains of the house, inspecting what was left carefully.

The wind brushed against her, the rustling of the leaves echoed within the nearby forest.

Chloé felt her mouth move. "It's been some time, dad, and its finally time for me to move on."

There was no response, as usual.

"I'll live a happy life as you wanted me to, but I'll do something that will disappoint you." There was shame and regret in Chloé's voice, but there was also resolve. "I'll deal with the Black Cat, and after. . . I'll watch over humanity. I hope I make you proud of me,"

With that said, Chloé looked at a nearby piece of a window in the remains and walked to it. In the reflection, she saw a black-haired girl with her hair down that reached her nape and two, beautiful and marvelous looking, golden eyes. a sad smile plastered on her face as she knelt and touched the mirror gently with her left hand. Another gust of wind came, and from the hair, four Kwamis could be seen.

A Crow.

A Dove.

A Spider.

A Snake.

And the other one that was currently inside of her.

Chloé sighed with a grin as she whirled on her heel. "I was made to her image, so I hope I also make mom proud, too."

A snap of fingers caught her attention.

Chloé blinked, and she was back in the hospital room.

"Miss Bourgeois, are you feeling well?" Athena asked beside her.

Chloé blinked.

"Yes,"

That was the only thing that left Chloé's mouth. She felt something stirring up within her, and looked around once more. Blinking rapidly, she wondered about what she had just seen and experienced. Why did she look different? Chloé asked inside of her mind, why was she there in the first place? Such questions will probably be left unanswered. Then, something pulled a phantom string inside of her mind, nagging her to remember something. Something precious, she guessed, from the fluttering inside of her chest and the slight warmth spreading across her body.

"The only way to be truly exceptional is to be only human. Never forget that."

"If you are truly sure about it. . ." Athena muttered under her breath, standing up at that moment. She looked at the clock on the wall. "It's time for you to eat something, do you wish anything in particular within the limits of what you are allowed to?"

Chloé pondered at that for a second and nodded. "Anything that is not soup. I don't like it."

"Very well,"

With that, Athena left the room, leaving Chloé alone with her thoughts once more.

Crown decided to get out of her body at that moment and looked at Chloé directly in the eye. "How are you feeling about what's happening?"

The blonde furrowed her gaze. "I don't even know anymore. I am currently just moving along with the river of life."

Soon, Hope was beside Crown. "No can do missy!" She exclaimed, catching Chloé's attention. "You have to put your feelings into words since you have no control over such things yet in a more. . . what was the word. . . healthy way! Look, simply tell us how you feel at this moment. Nothing more, nothing less. Only that."

Chloé swallowed but began talking regardless.

"I—I know that everything that has been happening is messed up in a lot of ways, and I know my mom has something to do with it. Very probably—no, she is the one who caused it to happen in the first place, I know her that well—but I, simply, am numb to the point that is not even surprising. At this point, it's a simple strategy to stay at the top. You know, how weird that is. I have given up everything for my mom. Friends, and more, simply because I wanted to be accepted in her eyes, and look where that lead me to. My mom prepared for my death, which I only survived because of you guys, and I can't even be mad at her after everything that has happened. And I don't even know why. . ."

The blonde began gasping for air as soon as she finished her rant, with both Kwamis staying silent during the whole thing. While Hope hadn't experienced a single thing with Chloé's mother, she already guessed who it was and how her personality was, as she could sense her through the blood of Chloé, knowing that she was in the hospital.

On the other hand, Crown only felt apathy toward everything. Though, he was slightly angry on Chloé's behalf. There was only one thing in his mind when it came to all of this, that death was simply an escape and Chloé's mother will never reach that escape until it was her natural time to go away. Will she go to the void? Crown wondered, but honestly, he didn't care that much.

Chloé regained her breath. "I feel, slightly better now." She looked at the Kwamis. "So, anything to say to me?"

Crown shook his head and went back inside of her without a single worth being spoken.

Hope hovered in front of her.

"Let me tell you this. Your life is yours at the end of the day, if you wish to not hate your mother then that's your decision, and you've mildly recognized that her actions are not good, nobody can tell you what you can or can't do. You don't have to be exceptional. As the father of my first wielder said 'The only way to be truly exceptional, is to be only human.'."

A tear gathered in Chloé's eye as Hope hugged her cheek. "Always remember that. Also, I feel Lumi approaching the room once more. Talk to his wielder about this, you need someone you can rely on upon repeatedly."

Hope went inside of her.

Chloé chuckled as she looked at her reflection on the window beside the bed. "Dad's words. How could I have forgotten about them?"

Her hair flashed black for a second, as did her eye with the color of gold. Chloé blinked, and her hair, as well as her eye, went back to blonde and blue. A click from the door came, and she turned around to face Athena walking in with the tray of food.

"Hope you didn't wait too long, Miss Bourgeois,"

Chloé smiled. "Don't worry about it, we have all day long to talk about what we should."

Athena began to feed Chloé the food.


Lila Rossi stood in a field of flowers, looking around, uncertain as to where she was.

The grey clouds covered the sky above, and the wind fluttered, petals of the flowers scattering across the heavens. Taking a deep breath, she looked down and felt the soft grass on her naked feet and unknowingly smiled.

She looked around and walked forward. Finding a path after walking for a minute, she followed it to a giant tree atop a mountain. At the end of the road, she found a woman sitting in front of the tree, legs crossed while simply staring ahead, not taking into consideration her surroundings.

The woman had black hair, and when Lila walked up and sat beside her, she saw her golden eyes. nothing was said for a while, just the rustling of the leaves and the sound of the wind until the woman spoke out her mind.

"What are you doing here?" The woman asked, turning to face her.

Lila raised an eyebrow confused, but her mouth moved without her trying to say anything. "I came to see you," She said and turned to look at the tree. "How long has this tree been here?"

The woman shrugged. "Honestly, I lost count after the century. I keep coming back to check up on it. My house used to be here, you know."

"Really?" Lila was surprised about that. By multiple things. The fact that the woman confessed as to watching the tree grow for over a century, and that it was in the place of her former house. "What are you?"

The woman simply grinned. "I'm only human."

Lila frowned. "That doesn't make sense, no human can live that long."

"Even if that were to be true, that does not apply to me the same way it does to everyone else. For humanity, I am the Beginning and the End, in a way."

Lila got up from the ground, the woman doing the same shortly after. The black-haired woman walked forward before stopping after two seconds, and touched the ground with her hand, a slight sprouted from her palm, and the grass around bloomed delicate and beautiful flowers.

Lila was in awe and dumbfounded. It cemented the idea that the one in front of her was not human. Also, it nagged in her mind a certain idea. She knew she was not in Paris, nor in her time, which meant that this was a dream of some kind.

But why is she experiencing this?

The woman appeared to have read her thoughts, as she turned around and patted her head. "I simply wanted to talk to you, Lila Rossi."

Lila blinked.

The woman continued. "Before all, you will not know my name until the time is due, but I need you to do something for me when you wake up from this dream."

"What would that be?"

"Please, talk to Chloé Bourgeois, be her friend."

Lila almost laughed at the suggestion. She had no idea why a dream would tell her to talk to Chloé, who is in her opinion someone who has done used her gift of wealth and power well enough to get a grip on everyone around her.

Instead, she scoffed, loudly. "Why would I? There is no reason for me to do that."

Lila expected the woman to beg or try to get her to talk to Chloé, however, she simply grinned mischievously.

"Wouldn't you like to have someone as powerful as her as your friend?"

It was a simple question, yet it sparked many things inside of Lila's mind. A faint smile crossed her lips as she inwardly felt emotion rushing through her veins, pumping her heart.

The woman continued, still smiling. "See, it's very simple. If you are her only friend, one that doesn't lie to her and is always there for her, she will do things for you. One can guess to how far she will go for one loyal friend."

Lila could only imagine what she could get away with. The prospect of having Chloé under her thumb, being her "friend", was appealing. It gave her the power to lie and get away with it and to finally make Marinette be away to try and disrupt her plans. She could even try to use Chloé and turn her against Ladybug, which would make the mayor hesitant to cooperate with the hero to some extent.

"Fine," Lila smiled.

The woman kept smiling, but this time in delight. She clapped her hands and petals rose from the ground, whirling around as though they were in a storm. She walked up to Lila, and put her mouse close to the girl's ear, and said something.

Then, she leaned back and looked at Lila before patting her head once more. "Now that I've told you where Chloé is located, do as you see fir to gain her friendship. It is time to wake up for now. We will meet again."

Lila Rossi woke up in her bed after that and quickly went to change to visit Chloé.


Back in the hospital, Athena had gone out of the room to think about certain things alone. She stopped before a window and watched the clouds drifting due to the wind. The wind slightly brushed her face, making her hair wave.

Luminous decided to get out of the miraculous and hover in front of her, looking at the sky alongside her. Once Athena noticed him, she looked around and relaxed ever so slightly once she noticed that there were no people around nor approaching their location.

"What happened Luminous?" Athena questioned, crossing her arms over her chest and leaning back against the wall in front of the window.

Luminous moved beside her and said nothing for a couple of seconds. Then, he asked. "What are you planning to do with that?"

Athena narrowed her eyes before briefly glancing at her sides. She reached out to her pocket and took out the phone that had been left behind previously, and carefully inspect it before pocketing it back inside. Taking a deep breath, she looked up at the ceiling of the floor.

"It depends on what Madam Bourgeois does with her actions," She simply said, nonchalantly. Turning to face Luminous, "Now, can I ask in better detail what exactly are the Debacles? All you guys said that they were the sins of mankind coming back to haunt us. How were they created? I assume they simply didn't pop into existence, besides, how come that Ladybug didn't seem to know about those them?"

After Athena closed her mouth, Luminous simply hummed. "Very well, but you can't tell Chloé what I'm about to tell you until she is more stable."

The black-haired woman narrowed her eyes in suspicion. She understood the part on waiting for Chloé to be better, but there was something in Luminous's tone that didn't sit well with her for some reason. Though, she needed more information if she wanted to have a chance to protect Chloé from everyone around her.

"I accept," Athena replied.

Luminous nodded and flew in front of Athena, and then pressed their forehead together. The last thing she heard from Luminous before the tale was told inside of her mind was his voice saying something.

"I'll tell you the story of our first wielder."

Chapter 16: Truth within Lies

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text


Truth within Lies


Standing in front of the hospital, Lila Rossi titled her head to the side as she sighed, not knowing what truly compelled her to come to this place. The dream was nothing but a blur as of that moment, and she could barely recall what had happened. The only thing—the only one—she remembered was being told to come over to the hospital to visit Chloe for some reason.

No, Lila thought as she shook her head, clearing her thoughts. Memories were slowly seeping back into her mind. She had been told to make friends with Chloe, something that she had agreed to for the reward that it would lead for her in the future.

“Let’s do this,” The Italian muttered beneath her breath as she walked up to the doors of the hospital.

The doors slid open, and she walked inside, the fresh air conditioner brushing against her skin as soon as the inside was exposed to the outside. Lila looked around and saw that many people were around, sitting in ways that she could feel that they were here to get a checkup after the events that happened.

After spotting the receptionist, Lila walked up to the woman massaging her forehead as though she was feeling a headache.

“Hello,” Lila softly called out, trying to get in the woman’s good graces from the first word.

“Hello, miss,” The receptionist said, straightening her back. She looked around, and behind Lila, looking for something. “Are you alone?”

“Yes, I came here to visit someone after I received the news that they were admitted into this hospital.” Lila mustered a worried expression on her face, as best as she could.

The heart of the receptionist faltered at seeing the sight and sighed. She looked around and gently waved as she spoke. “You aren’t the only one, dear. Everyone here is the same as you. Who are you looking for?”

“Chloe Bourgeois,” Lila replied, and the name was an immediate effect.

The receptionist’s shoulders tensed at the name and looked down at a paper on her desk. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion as subtle as possible, but Lila caught onto her expression quickly and discreetly.

And so, the Italian put up a confused expression.

“Is there a problem?”

The woman gave out a forced laugh as she furrowed her brows. “None at all, may I ask who gave you this information?” She had a smile on her face that did not quite reach her eyes.

Dammit, didn’t think about that. Being quick with her mind, Lila thought about the only possible clue as to from who she would know this information. “Adrien Agreste said it to me, I am classmates with him and Chloe.”

The woman relaxed, and Lila grinned inwardly as the woman simply passed her a piece of paper.

“This is the room, please memorized it before I destroy it.”

Lila frowned at the receptionist's words but didn’t say anything. She had managed her mission on getting the room, she would not complain. Looking over the number of the room, Lila knew for a fact that it may slip from her mind soon after she had it in her mind, and so she made the number of the room with her fingers.

“Thank you,”

Saying goodbye to the receptionist, Lila made her way toward the elevator of the hospital and quickly pressed the button on the floor. It quickly moved up and reached its destination.

Lila got out of the elevator and noticed a black-haired woman moving in the direction of Chloe’s room. The Italian followed the woman and saw her enter the room that the receptionist told Lila was Chloe’s room.

With curiosity filling her body, Lila moved toward the room and saw the door closed. Breathing in and out, she knocked on the door a couple of times and waited. Nothing happened for a couple of seconds, but then Lila heard the click of the door and noticed the door giving a slight opening.

From the opening, the woman Lila saw before was standing there, looking at Lila with her grey and cold eye. The Italian shivered for a second and noticed how her heartbeat seemed to fasten as soon as the woman’s eyes were laid on her. Swallowing her saliva, Lila prepared herself.

She was close to her objective, if she could plant seeds, it could all work out in the end.

“Is Chloe Bourgeois in this room?” Lila asked, standing straight.

The woman narrowed her eyes. “Who is asking?”

“Lila Rossi, a classmate of hers,” Lila responded, as innocently as possible.

The woman said nothing for a few seconds before she said. “Wait here a minute.”

And she closed the door.

After a minute, the woman opened the door completely and allowed Lila to step inside the room. She didn’t know what she had been expecting, part of her believed this to be a simple PR thing to gain a better reputation after Miracle Queen, but when Lila saw Chloe’s state, she knew it was no longer something bad.

It was horrible, Lila knew in her heart.

Chloe had lost an arm—the left one, from what she could see. The light she once saw burning within the girl was no longer there. Lila thought for a second she was not looking at Chloe, but someone who happened to be blonde, and share the name with the girl.

“Hello, Rossi,” Chloe said, without a tone in her voice. “What brings you here?”

“I. . .” Lila didn’t know what to say at first, but she quickly put on a concerned expression on her face. “I wanted to see how you were doing, after I heard what happened to you I came after asking Adrien if he knew where you were.”

After her answer, Chloe didn’t say anything for a second. The blonde turned around to face the woman. “Athena, leave us alone for a couple of minutes, I’ll call you if I need anything.”

So, her name is Athena, Lila thought, filing the information just in case it's necessary.

“Miss—”

“Athena,” Chloe said, lifting her right hand to calm Athena, her voice was relaxed and calm, almost as though she wasn't there. “Don’t worry, this is a very good friend. Almost family if you will.”

Lila frowned in confusion as Athena remained unchanged in her opinion. After much reassurance, Athena left the room, looking at Lila with clearly threatening eyes that told the Italian that if she were to do something to Chloe, someone will end up dead. Probably her.

As soon as the door was closed, Lila quickly spoke. “Who is that?”

She had questions, but if she managed to get on Chloe’s good graces, that alone will be enough.

“My bodyguard,”

“Since when do you have one?” Lila asked, raising an eyebrow.

Chloe waved dismissively. “Don’t worry about it.”

An awkward silence drowned the room. Lila looked around, tapping her thigh. She looked down and Chloe looking at her as she pointed at the seat right beside her. Lila frowned, but with the blonde’s nod toward the seat, the Italian moved and sat closed to the injured heiress.

“Now, why are you here, Rossi? I don’t think you and I were close enough for you to worry about my health.” Chloe asked.

True, Lila conceded in her mind but kept that to herself. “I think we simply started on a very deaf note, and I notice that you were being isolated from everyone else. I didn’t think that was right, so I came to see you, but I don’t think anyone else will come to visit.”

Chloe knew that Lila was right, she has seen that she had been blocked but didn’t care much when she saw that. Even so, she could see what kinds of conversations they were having now that she wasn’t there inside of her mind, and it didn’t help her mood any better. Though she hid well beneath a relaxed face, Chloe was troubled from the inside as she was reminded clearly of all that she lost seeking her mother’s love.

The blonde briefly glanced at her left side and sighed.

“That may be true, I was an ass to everyone for no goddam reason,” Chloe admitted under her breath.

Lila was confused for a second, never thinking she might have ever heard Chloe saying that. “What do you mean?”

“Now, Rossi,” Chloe said, quickly changing the topic. “But what exactly made you come here today?” She coughed, her throat drying up.

Lila noticed this and saw the glass with water on the table beside. Still thinking about getting good points with the girl, she stood up and retrieve the water for Chloe, handing it to the blonde.

“Thanks,” Chloe said, exhaling as a gentle breeze brushed through the open window. The curtains waved as she turned to face Lila as she handed the empty glass of water to her.

Lila walked and left the glass on the table, and then she felt something briefly touch her hand. Her mind turned foggy, but then it snapped back to reality.

Chloe’s eye now was the one in concern, though it didn’t show much of it. “What happened?”

“Sorry!” Lila giggled as she glanced around, nervously. “I simply can’t believe this happened to you. I thought that all the damage caused by. . . that was undone.”

Chloe shook her head. “This wasn’t caused by that, this happened shortly before that thing appeared.” The inflection on Chloe’s voice was not lost to Lila. She sounded very sad, as though she was about to break down from trying to remember something.

Nevertheless, Lila needed more information more her moves, so she went to sit back on her seat and pressed, as softly and gently as she could to get the information.

“Are you ok with telling me what happened?”

Chloe shook her head, and Lila sagged her shoulders from disappointment. It seemed she would need more work to do.

“We aren’t truly friends, Rossi,” Chloe said, not looking at her. “But even with that, you came to see me. There may be a reason for that, but at least I appreciate your presence. These dull walls will kill me if I don’t have something to do.” She chuckled at the end, sadness leaving her voice.

Lila blinked as Chloe continued.

“Thank you for that, Lila Rossi. For showing me that there is still hope for me.”

Lila was growing more and more confused, as she didn’t know what Chloe was talking about. In the end, she cared very little for the context, as it seemed that she was better in Chloe’s eyes, and that was enough for her.

“Athena! You can come.”

As soon as those words left Chloe’s mouth, the door snapped open, and Athena walked inside. Lila shrunk down as soon as the woman’s eyes fell on her, but Athena turned around to face Chloe.

“Is time for her to be on her way?” Athena inquired as she pointed at the clock on the wall with her thumb.

Lila noticed the slight annoyance in Athena’s voice, obviously not wanting the girl there.

Chloe frowned but decided that it was best for Lila to be on her way, though she liked the small talk, very small talk. She turned around to face Lila. “You can come to visit me sometime later, but it seems that it’s time for me to rest for a while.”

“Ok. . .” Lila said as she got up from the seat and began walking toward the door to leave.


Once Lila got out of the room, Chloe looked at Athena, who looked back, and then they both looked at Hope when she came out of her hiding spot. The dove Kwami was looking at the door, thoughtful, more than anything Chloe had seen her before.

Though Chloe thought as she looked at the Kwami, I haven’t been with her for a long time, so I can see the lack of information. The blonde cocked her head to the side and pondered why that felt incorrect.

“What did you do?” Athena demanded to know, while she kept briefly glancing at the door. Chloe looked at her and noticed something had changed in Athena’s eyes, as though she had gained some insight into something and knew what was happening.

“I simply wanted to check up on something, and it seemed that I was right,” Hope said as she twirled around in the air to face Chloe. “Does she have anything weird going on with her?”

“What do you mean?” Chloe blinked, confused.

Hope pursed her lips as she flew around the room, trying to find the words she is looking for. “Like everyone being different when she is around!”

When Chloe thought about it, there were times when everyone changed as soon as Lila said anything.

Everyone would just believe her as though it was truth, reality, even though it made no sense. For a second, a brief image crossed her mind, without shape nor meaning, but it left a feeling.

Family.

It confused her, even more than she already was, and she shifted on the bed to look at the door. A breeze gently came from behind through the window as Athena stood beside the young heiress of Le Grand, who finally replied to Hope’s words.

“Well, if you can consider everyone believing her words without question, then that.”

Hope narrowed her eyes. “To what extent?”

“They believe it without question, don’t even bother to check afterward.”

After closing her eyes for a moment, and nodded to herself, Hope addressed Chloe once more. “Then I think I know how she got this ability. Though. . .” Her eyes slid toward Athena, and at that moment, Luminous came out. “I have a slight suspicion that you already gave the bodyguard the story.”

“What?” Voiced out Chloe as she turned to Athena.

The woman sighed as she walked closer to Chloe. “While true, you are going to hear the story soon enough. But some things must be done. Is there anything I should know?”

Chloe frowned but softened her features. If she wanted to have Athena with her, trust should be placed first. “Well, there is this notebook in one of my drawers. . .”


Later that day, Athena stood in front of her Miss’s drawers in silence after being given enough information about the location of the notebook. Kneeling in front of them, she quickly moved toward the one she was told had it and opened it up.

There were many things inside of the drawer, many of them senseless and expensive for someone her age to have, but it gave the illusion that nothing not expensive could be there. Athena nodded to herself once she spotted a fragment of the notebook.

Once she took it out of the drawer and she closed it, she opened the notebook and began reading its content to the fullest, every detail without missing anything, no matter how silly and anger-written it may be.

A knock on the door promptly made Athena close the notebook shut, and from the door appeared her employer.

“Hello, Athena,” Andre Bourgeois said as he walked inside. “Did you find what you needed to?”

Athena nodded. “Yes, I’ll be now returning to Miss Bourgeois’ side.”

The mayor of the city was dejected at everything that was happening, and Athena could see that. There were bags under his eyes, and he looked as though he wouldn’t be sleeping in a few days. She was worried, although she didn’t show it, because she knew that if something were to happen to him Miss Bourgeois would be more devastated than she already is.

“You should get some rest, Mister Bourgeois.” Athena walked to him. “Make it so Miss Bourgeois will see that you are well in health.”

Andre hesitated, before nodding with resolve. “Yeah, sure, I guess some sleep wouldn’t do any harm. Though, I need to make sure nothing will come up that might wake me up.”

“Then go and make sure,” Athena said, but stopped for a second before voicing out something in her mind. “Are there any leads on who caused the explosion?”

Andre looked at her in the eyes, troubled. “A body has been recovered from the driver’s seat on the remnants of the limousine. They are already trying to identify the man, as Chloe’s driver came to check up on me once he heard the news.”

So, the one driving was someone who filled in his shoes. Athena thought about it and a plan began to form in her mind as she gently gripped the notebook. “When the man is identified, please inform me of his identity and also don’t tell Madam Bourgeois about it or the news for that matter.”

“Why?”

“You wouldn’t want Madam Bourgeois to know more about the man who almost killed her daughter, would you?” Inquired Athena.

Andre nodded in understanding; he truly didn’t want his wife to feel any more pain on what was happening. She already committed to staying in Paris for a time, more than she did in the past—something he was surprised by—and didn’t want to give her a reason to go back to the States so soon.

Not when things were—in a way—beginning to look for his family. 

He simply didn’t want more family drama.

“Very well, as long as you too don’t tell Chloe the identity of the man who caused this to her.” He could come to a compromise for his family’s well-being.

“Then be it as you say, Mister Bourgeois.” Athena nodded.

Bidding farewell to Andre, she went to walk out of the Le Grand, feeling the sun kissing her skin as soon as she stepped outside. Athena opened the notebook once more, after making sure there were no people on her sidewalk. The grey-eyed woman continued to read all inside of it as she moved toward the hospital.

A sudden chill ran down her spine.

Luminous suddenly came out of the miraculous, and hovered in front of her looking around, wary. “There is one nearby.”

Athena’s eyes widened and she was momentarily stunned when she saw Luminous move without saying another word. She quickly followed him toward a small alleyway, and the stench of blood soon filled up her lungs.

She glanced at Luminous, who had ceased moving and was gazing at a wall. Athena stopped before him and shifted to face the wall the Kwami was looking at. There was something scrawled on it, on fresh blood, a name:

“Gabriel”

Athena murmured what had been written on the wall, confused before she heard some metal bouncing off the ground. Snapping her head toward the containers of trash, tendrils of darkness arose from behind one of them. A danger bell rang inside of her mind as transformed with her thoughts and movement soon came to be known.

A snake slithered from the shadow, black in color and eyes red as blood, fangs were leaking a green substance as Athena identify as a small piece of flesh disappearing into the snake’s mouth—human flesh.

As she readied herself for battle, Athena remembered something from the story Luminous had told her.

“Until she is back, they won’t stop coming.”

Another sin came to be.

Notes:

Sorry for being gone for some time, I was preparing some things since I will be entering college in a few days.

Chapter 17: A note from the Author

Chapter Text

Well, College has been rough with me a little bit and I honestly don't see myself finishing this work anytime soon, so it's better to simply leave it here so that anyone can adopt the idea I've laid out with my words. I am simply going to leave here the name of the Kwamis that are to be used, and are a bit of a clue as to what's happening. Remember this Kwamis belong in a specific box, in other words, a human vessel--Which their names are the clue for it:

Crown

Hope

Luminous

Eternal

Ouro

And I hope that someone finds it in his heart to do something with this while I bury myself in studies due to College. I may do certain things, but it definitely won't be a story per se.

Notes:

yeah, had these idea reading The Menagerie and I just had to write something similar but with my own take on things.