Ch. 1. This is right where it begins

"I might have discovered where Nino has been these two months."

Marinette choked, as the tea she was drinking went to the wrong side and coughed painfully, trying to get the hot liquid out of her lungs. Once she recovered, she stared at Alya disbelieving.

"You had to tell me this while I was drinking, right? It's not like we've been sitting here for at least twenty minutes."

Alya added sugar and stirred her coffee with a metal spoon; then, she brought the porcelain cup to her lips and took a small sip of the dark breakage. It still tasted too bitter for her liking. She added another spoonful of sugar.

"... I guess I was mustering up my courage. Now that I said it it's become real, I can't take it back."

Marinette wasn't used to see this Alya. Alya was a really chipper and energetic woman at her last year of Journalism, and, quite frankly, she was the best of her promotion. She was strong-willed and had good nose for a scoop, perfect for her speciality, investigative journalism.

That was not the woman sitting in front of her.

Alya and she had met in middle school, and since then they had been inseparable. She had been an overflowing fountain of moral support in all those awkward teenage years, so it pained Marinette to see the brunette so... broken.

It all was because of those blasted disappearances. It was among public knowledge that since last year something was going on in the city of Paris. People seemed to vanish into thin air, and neither the police nor the families could explain why. There was no reason, no clues, no ransom; there was nothing that connected the victims, they were of a disparity of ages and social classes... It was almost as if they just stopped existing.

Nino had been one of them. He and Alya had begun dating after finishing their Lycée. They had met one evening at her home, and after dinner Nino decided to return to his home instead of staying for the night. Alya insisted him to stay at her place, but he patiently convinced her otherwise - she had a big presentation the day after, and he didn't want to be a nuisance and get her too tired for the day after, so he pecked her cheek and bid her goodbye, throwing her a lopsided grin as he closed the door behind him.

That had been the last time he had been seen.

Marinette knew Alya blamed herself. When the news about his disappearance spread, they had spent three days in her room, Marinette trying to make her eat while she wailed and shouted until her throat was sore things like 'I should have made him stay.' or 'If only he wasn't so fucking chivalrous he wouldn't be gone.', tears never stopping flowing from her eyes

The night of the third day, Alya stepped out of her room with her face clean and her puffy eyes gleaming with determination. She wordlessly cleared what she playfully called her 'thinking board' – Of course I have a thinking board, Mari. She would sometimes tease, It will be like all those cop series, with all their clues connected with a red string and all – and switched on her laptop, running through every news webpage she could think of, and writing down her findings on her worn-out leather notebook.

Since then, Marinette had made sure to visit her at least once a day, making sure she didn't forget to eat or shower, but Alya barely acknowledged her – more like didn't notice, as engrossed as she was in her investigation. As time went by, she could see the number of annotations made in the white board increased in number, along with the question marks beside each one.

But Marinette couldn't shunt off from her life, and she hadn't visited her for a week. She'd had to complete a project for the designing school. She had felt a little bit guilty about it, but she instead was surprised to receive a call from her best friend, the girl who had barely spoken to anyone in all this time, asking to meet her in her parent's bakery.

And that was where they were at the moment. Marinette took a deep breath and took another sip from her Earl Grey.

"What did you find?"

Alya took out her notebook and absentmindedly turned the scribbled pages. "A possible connection. You see, I have been looking through all the declarations of familiars and witnesses to the Police and-"

"Wait a second. You have looked into the Police records? How did you even manage to do that? Is that even legal?"

She hesitated. "... maybe not. It's not important-"

"The hell it's not important! Alya, if you're going into illegal shit and catch you I swear-"

She raised her hands at her. "Just let me finish! Let's ignore for a bit how I managed to bump into the Police archives and focus on the main issue, okay? As I was saying, in some witness' declarations there were weird things that picked up my interest."

Marinette forced herself to calm down. "And what was it?"

"There were strange sightings of weird-looking people around the places where it happened, and one homeless guy affirmed to have seen a man with dark wings directly taking the victim with him."

"Dark wings?" Marinette asked, frowning.

Alya nodded and her fingers wandered through her notebook's pages. She opened it wider at a specific one and showed her. It was a draft of a man with what looked an Elvis updo and weird-shaped wings.

She handed the notebook to her. "That was how it looked like, at least from what I can extract from the declaration."

She eyed the drawing and raised an eyebrow. "I'll admit it's a bit weird. How did the Police react to that?"

"They didn't believe him, of course." She scoffed. "They pegged him as an alcoholic and archived it directly, without taking it into consideration. I swear to god, even if it's hard to believe, they should have at least contrasted the story before discarding it. What do they teach them in the Police Academy nowadays?"

Marinette fiddled nervously with a tissue paper as all the information downed on her. She looked at the journalist to be and caught a glimpse of something she hadn't seen in a while: her eyes, despite tired, had regained some of that intelligent spark that she got when she discovered something juicy, and Marinette hadn't realised until now how much she had missed her.

"While all this seems like a good start, I don't see how that can bring you to Nino's whereabouts."

Her eyes glinted. "Oh, Marinette, but this isn't the only thing I've got. I've managed to narrow my search down to three addresses."

"What!? How!?"

"The details are both on my notebook and on my thinking board, but after reading all those declarations, starting with the people who saw those strange guys, I've noticed there was a pattern. All those happenstances, they seemed to take place all around Paris, right? That's where we got it wrong. More than half of the disappearances are connected to the west area of the city."

It made sense. No crime organisation centred in kidnapping could target a whole city, they had to favour some places, possibly near their safe place. Still, there were some loose threads.

"But what about the other ones? I mean, Nino wasn't even near to the west part that night."

"That's what makes it interesting, Marinette, because there is a quick way to get around Paris without being seen. Something no one thinks about, but once you know your way around, it's the perfect hiding place." Alya paused, and looked at Marinette in the eye. "The catacombs."

"T-the catacombs? The ones under the city?"

"The same ones. Based on the witnesses' declarations, I can place every one of the disappearances near one entrance. Think about it! It makes so much sense!"

"Aren't they supposed to be heavily guarded or something?"

Alya shut off the notebook and drowned her coffee in one gulp. "That's what I plan to find out. My theory is that whoever is behind this mess has their haven somewhere around the West side of Paris, but they use the catacombs to move around freely."

Marinette grabbed her friend's arm and made a face. "Alya please don't rush into this on your own. I know you want to find Nino, but this is dangerous." She hissed. "Not only you will venture into the catacombs alone, risking getting yourself dead but if you're indeed correct, you will face a criminal organisation on your own. Please tell the police about it."

"There is no use. As if they would believe my story. They have access to every attestation, and if they haven't reached to the same conclusion as me there must be a reason why. Moreover, if I did tell them, I would have to explain why I had access to the Police archives in the first place, something I'm not willing to do."

Marinette still looked hesitant and didn't let go of her arm. Alya's gaze softened and placed one of her hands on top of hers, making her look at her.

"Marinette, honey, I know it's dangerous, but I have to do this. I need to know if my crazy theories make sense or if I'm just wasting my time like an idiot. I-I need Nino to come back to me, and I can't stay still and let the authorities deal with it, because they're too worried about the Bourgeois bitch to deal with a random guy that has managed to get kidnapped too. I-"

Her voice broke, and petite tears began falling from her eyes. She bit her quivering lip to try to regain her composure, but Marinette knew better than that.

"... I know. You have been there for me all this years, full of crazy ideas and stupid overthinking, so I guess it's my turn now. I know I won't be able to stop you anyway, and I am a bit curious about those weird-looking men... So yeah, go for it." Before Alya could cheer, she raised her hand to stop her. "I just have one request."

"Anything you want, Mari."

"I need to make sure you are alright, so I want you to call me every 20 minutes and update your status to me. And whenever it becomes dangerous, whether it's those men or a drunkard, you come back home. No exceptions. Do we have a deal?"

"Of course! Good thing I happened to buy this signal enhancer the other day, right?" She winked at the startled look on her face.

Marinette narrowed her eyes. "You had all this planned, didn't you?"

"Of course. I'm a journalist; I need to have every possible outcome planned." Her tone became more serious. "Either way, I am glad to have your support, Mari. I was secretly thrown off by spending my night snooping around there alone."

"What are best friends for? Just… take care of yourself, okay?"

She nodded. "I'll be careful, I promise. Nino would get so mad at me if I got myself killed for nothing. I'll call you as soon as I get there, okay?"

Marinette nodded mutely and released Alya's arm. Said girl kissed her cheek and grabbed her notebook before leaving the boulangerie. She sighed and rested her head on her hands, massaging an incoming headache.

A plate of cookies was placed in front of her, and Marinette casted her eyes down, then up to see her mother looking at the door worriedly.

"Is everything alright, mon petite chou? How's Alya doing?"

"She... she's getting there, maman. You know how she is; she's venting her frustration through investigating endlessly while getting around the fact that Nino isn't currently here. She's trying to find him."

"But it's dangerous to go alone out there! What if she gets kidnapped too?"

She sighed and took a bite of the chocolate cookie. "That's what worries me the most. She has promised me to stay out of trouble and call me repeatedly, but still…"

"You still worry. I will pray to the spirits of our family for her protection. The Cheng family has had some really powerful ancestors, I'm sure they will lend their prowess to aid a family's friend."

I really hope so, maman; Marinette thought as she took the last sip of her already cold tea.

It was exactly 10:24 PM, and Marinette couldn't be more nervous about it. Alya had called telling her she had just arrived to the first of her addresses, and she was going to snoop around a bit, something the dark-haired girl didn't like at all, if she was being honest. Her thumbnail had already suffered from it, and her index finger was near to fall into the same doom.

Why hadn't she asked for the address in the first hand? Why hadn't she accompanied her? Oh, right, because she was a coward. But Alya was her friend, she would put her life in line for her, so why hadn't she thought of that before?

Screw her index finger.

She tried to finish her commissions to take her mind out of it, but every seam she made was lopsided and awkward, and she had to redo the whole piece. After four failed attempts, she dropped the cloth huffing. Tonight was no night for sewing.

At 10:32, she switched on her laptop, choosing a random film from her To-watch list and playing it, but she lost her focus only three minutes after starting it. She kept throwing side-glances at her phone, praying for time to go faster, and when the clock finally turned into 10:40 PM and the screen flashed, she bolted and grabbed the device, answering the call immediately.

"Alya! How are you?"

The journalist's voice came in hushed tones. "A bit creeped out, but okay. Haven't found any clue so far, just two drunkards fighting for a bench."

Marinette gave her other thumbnail a go. "Alya, please, this is crazy. Come back home and we'll go together tomorrow night. I don't want you there alone."

"… I will have another look around, and if I don't find anything I'll go back, okay? I still haven't found the blasted entrance to the tunnels. How do you hide a hole so- wait. What is that?"

"What? What is it?"

"I think I found the entrance? I'm not sure, but I'm going to check out. I'll call you if something happens, alright?"

"Wait- Alya!"

It was no use, as the other girl had hung up. Marinette let out a wavering breath and placed the phone in the table, in front of her. She didn't even try to distract herself from it, and stayed still looking at it, waiting for her call. She knew it was better if she didn't call until 11 o'clock, but that didn't stop her from watching the mobile phone closely.

The moon was beautiful that night, Marinette dully noted. It was good; that meant Alya had more natural illumination and she wouldn't need to depend so much of her camera flash to see where she was going, that was until she went inside a building. That meant she would have enough batteries to call her if something went wrong. Something that she hoped it wouldn't happen.

When her phone rang again at 11:58, she shrieked. She answered the call as quickly as she could, and was only met with quickening panting.

"Alya! What is it!?" She asked, her grip tight on the device.

"I found the entrance." She explained in a hurried voice. "… and one person came out of it. It was the one with the wings, Marinette. I-I was right."

"Never mind that! Alya, this is crucial. Did he see you!?"

"… I don't think so, but I'm not su- crap, he's coming." She fell silent, and Marinette could pick up heavy steps from the other line. Suddenly Alya whispered again, fear tinting her voice. "He's looking for me, Mari. H-how did he see me?"

"Alya, please, don't speak." She pleaded and stood up, grabbing her keys and rushing outside her apartment. "Try to be as silent as possible, and whatever you do, don't end the call. Now, I just want you to say something, nothing else. Where are you?"

"Chemin de fer de Petite Ceinture, Rive Gauche, near the Maison Blanche metro entrance, at the dead end between a butcher shop and a clothes shop."

"Okay, I'm going. Remember, don't speak and keep the call running. I'll be there as soon as I can."

Marinette connected her headphones to her phone and placed it inside her purse. She then began running to where Alya had told her, as she luckily knew how to get there. Years of working delivering pastries for her parents made her learn more or less the distribution of the city, and fortunately, she had made some trips around Maison Blanche in the past.

She crossed the Seine in record time, people looking weirdly at her, but she didn't care at the moment, her sole mind focused on finding Alya. She couldn't hear anything from the other end of the call, only heavy breathing and some footsteps once or twice. That calmed her nerves to some extent.

She was less than 300 metres away when Alya cursed.

"Crap, Marinette, he's seen me. I'll go for it and try to escape."

"Shit, Alya, no! Don't do it! I'm almost there!"

She heard a scream from the other side of the line and a loud crashing sound before the call ended. Marinette raised her head to the headphone, trying to hear something to no avail, and reached for her phone to call her again. There was no answer.

"Crap!"

She ran with all her might to the metro entrance and looked wildly to that dead-end Alya had described. She spotted it quickly, and rushed to the entrance.

What she saw there froze her blood. Standing at the moonlight and slightly shadowed was a man with broad shoulders wearing a red and black spandex suit. From his back, two big wings sprout, and a white bow rested between his shoulder blades. But what frightened her the most was the unconscious girl in his arms.

Fear paralyzed her, and the only thing she could do was let her knees buckle and fall to the floor, her body conveniently hid behind some wooden crates.

"You should return to the headquarters, Dark Cupid. Hawkmoth is waiting for you." A cold masculine voice said.

"Chat Noir." The other one, Dark Cupid, she supposed, hissed. "What is Agent Zero doing in the mortal realm? I thought you didn't do field work. Actually, I didn't think you did anything at all."

Marinette, meanwhile, clutched her ears with her hands, not being able to do anything else.

"I often do as I please, but when Hawkmoth gives a direct order, I tend to follow them. I would too if I were you, you don't want to break his elder heart."

"Ha, ha. Very funny." He scoffed. "Do you know why is he in such a rush?"

Marinette could imagine the mysterious person shrugging. "He's not very happy with your performance these days. Someone saw you taking the last one, and that's something he won't tolerate, not now that the Operation Akuma is about to start. He wants to make sure you deliver this one correctly."

Dark Cupid cursed. "A guy messes up once and you will be reminded all your fucking life. I'm going, for fuck's sake. Seeing you is always a bad omen, Chat Noir."

"I loathe you too, Agent Twenty-four." Chat Noir quipped.

"Shut up if you don't want an arrow up your ass." Suddenly, she heard something sounding like an automatic door opening, and the heavy footsteps of the man carrying Alya changed into something more echo-y. "See you around, crappy cat."

"I doubt it. I'm not the one responsible of changing diapers."

NONONONONO they're taking Alya away! Marinette screamed inside her head, but her legs remained as stiff as before. She lowered her trembling hands and hit them repeatedly, but she couldn't feel a thing. She proceeded to scratch them, but even if she could see pink marks standing up she couldn't feel them.

She buried her clouded eyes in her knees and gripped her trembling body tightly. They were taking her best friend away from her and she wasn't doing anything. Why was she so weak? Why was Alya and not her the one taken? She knew Alya would fight with claws and teeth to free her, so why was she being useless?

She wanted to fight. She wanted to stand up and free her. She wanted to have the strength to get Nino back and heal Alya's heart. She wanted to be able to return every son, father, friend, to their respective relatives and let Paris breathe in relief once again.

She wanted to have the courage she didn't have but longed for.

Is that what you want? A soft voice whispered in her head.

"Yes." She muttered aloud.

What would you do to have this power?

"Everything."

Would you face the worst enemy the humanity has confronted on your own?

"Yes."

Then, open your eyes, Marinette.

She did. When she raised her head, a red floating creature greeted her, a serious expression on her face.

"Don't worry, they are gone. We can speak, Marinette."

"What are you?" She whispered, torn between being afraid or shocked.

"My name is Tikki and I'm a Kwami, otherwise known as the God of Creation and Fortune. The pleading of your family spirits and the crying of your soul summoned me."

Her eyes overflowed with tears again and she bit her lower lip to stop it from quivering so much. "Please, Tikki, help me. Th-they've taking my best friend a-and I couldn't d-do anything and I'm such a bad friend for not stepping up and if she knew I just stood there she would hate me-"

The red Kwami placed her hand on her cheek, "Marinette, stop. There was nothing you could do. Those are powerful people, and no civilian has the strength to face an Akumatised person."

"Akumatised?"

"Dark Cupid was one of them. He's been possessed by a man named Hawkmoth in exchange of inhuman powers. He's most possibly one of the missing victims."

Marinette's eyes widened at her words. Possessed people? Inhuman powers? This was crazy. She shouldn't believe any of this, but she had seen how those wings moved by themselves, so there was no denying in there. Suddenly a thought popped up.

"Wait, so you're saying that someone named Hawkmoth is taking people from the streets and controlling them? Does it mean he's going to control Alya too?" Tikki nodded in affirmation. "Then she's in danger! We need to get her before she is possessed!"

"Marinette, stop for a second and listen to me. There is a way to break Hawkmoth's control."

"How?"

Tikki rested on her knees. "His power centres in the control through possession of inanimate objects dear to the victim, and he does it by the insertion of a black butterfly infused with his power called Akuma. So if you break the object containing the Akuma, it will be freed and could be purified. That's where you come in."

"Me? H-how?"

"By becoming Ladybug. As a god, I have a lot of power, but I can't face this enemy alone. I will lend you my powers to fight those Akuma and purifying them before this matter takes out of hand."

"Y-you want me to become some kind of superhero?"

"Yes."

She shook her head violently. "I can't. I am no superhero material. I'm just twenty! I can barely manage with my daily responsibilities, now you want me to become some kind of Paris vigilante?"

"I have been searching for a kindred soul to lend my powers to, and you're perfect. You're loyal, caring, you put the security of others in front of yourself and have a brave soul. I have been waiting for you, Marinette."

"B-but I'm not any of that! I am a coward! I couldn't move a muscle when they were taking Alya, I was quivering in fear! I can't be that person you see me as."

"Marinette, there is a lesson that I want to share with you. Bravery isn't being fearless, as fearless people don't have anything to lose. Bravery is to acknowledge your fears and surpass them. You now know you fret; let me help you to overcome them. Become Ladybug and fulfil your deepest wishes."

Marinette clutched her hair tightly, a million of thoughts swirling inside her head, and Tikki let her. She was terrified. She felt as if suddenly the weight of the world had been put on her shoulders, and she didn't see herself capable of overcoming it.

But who would save Alya otherwise? Who would save everyone that was being controlled by Hawkmoth then? Tikki was literally giving her the opportunity to be what she had been too afraid to be, would she be capable of turning her down, when every inhabitant of Paris was at stake?

She realized she had already known the answer for a while, but didn't want to admit it until then.

She let go of the tight clutch on her bangs and cradled the red spirit in her hands before standing up. Her face shone with resolution, and she stared down at the Kwami with deep conviction.

"I-I'll do it. I'll become Ladybug. How do I do it?"

Tikki smiled sweetly and put her palms together in glee. "You just have to open the box inside your purse."

She frowned at her words, but nonetheless opened her purse in confusion. Inside rested a wooden box that she was certain it hadn't been there before, red Chinese carvings on it.

"How- you know what? Never mind." Tikki giggled and Marinette opened the box, only to find a pair of black earrings inside it. She looked back at the red god dubious. "How is this going to help me?"

"Those are a Miraculous. They are the link between a human and a Kwami, and they will allow me to lend you my powers. Why don't you try them on?"

She did just that and looked at her expectantly. "Now, to summon our power you have to say 'Spots on', and you will become Ladybug. You will have the power of creation, and with your Lucky Charm you will be able to summon objects that will aid you in your fight. You will be able to cleanse Akumas, and with the Miraculous cure you will restore any damage an Akuma has produced. Are you getting it so far?"

"I-I think so. It's going a bit too fast for my tastes, though."

"Try to transform now, you'll understand it better inside the suit."

"Okay. So I just say Spots on and-"

Suddenly, a pink light engulfed her, and her body covered with a red polka-dotted suit. When the light faded out, she looked at herself in surprise.

"I… wasn't expecting that. Tikki? Where are you?"

Inside your Miraculous, silly. Marinette could hear giggling coming from her earrings, did you forget already what I told you?

"I guess not." She looked down at her hips, where a round-shaped object was resting. She untied it and examined it with confusion "And what's this yoyo thingy?"

It's your weapon, with it you can- Marinette, get cover. Someone is coming out of the tunnels.

She instinctively threw her yoyo to the nearest lamppost and pulled herself out of the way. Hidden in the rooftop of the building, she saw as a woman wearing an excessive amount of pink and a man wearing a black leather suit came out to the light.

"And why should I be guarding this hellhole in the first place?" The woman whined.

The man spoke up, and she recognized that cold voice instantly. It was Chat Noir. "Dark Cupid is delivering to the Master, and you were the nearest to the exit."

"Humph, whatever. Now shoo kitty cat, before I turn you into something of better tastes."

He took out a metal cylinder from his back and extended it, vaulting to the other building and disappearing from view. She then observed the walking fashion disaster that was the Akuma guarding the entrance. She was looking herself in the mirror on the back of her hand.

"Now what, Tikki?" She whispered, fidgeting from one toe to another.

You have to guess where the Akuma resides. It's often the object which holds more power, but it's not always like that.

"And how do I do that?"

By fighting, Marinette. She giggled. Now, focus. It's time for Ladybug to appear.

She nodded and stepped out of her hiding, observing the fuchsia guard who had yet to notice her. She leaped forward and let herself fall at the dark alley, landing softly on her toes. She was quite impressed by that, to be honest. It seemed that innate agility came with the whole Superhero package.

Despite her silent entrance, the other noticed her entrance and frowned, getting on guard. "Who the hell are you!?"

"You can call me Ladybug. Now, would you be so kind to step aside, please? I have some errands to run in there."

"Quit dreaming." She raised her right hand dramatically, pointing at her. "I am Reflekta, and I was charged by the task of protecting this door. It's a pity you've seen me, that means I've got to take care of you now. Ugh, what a drag." She shrugged her shoulders. "Well, it can't be helped."

Then, many things happened in the lapse of just two seconds. The pendant on Reflekta's hand began glowing with a bright pink light before shooting a ray to her. Marinette's hand instinctively reached for her yoyo, unbridled it from around her hips and began twirling it in front of her, creating a shield that reflected the ray to the side.

Reflekta looked at her, mouth agape. "How did you do that!? What's with this yoyo!?"

"Good, her Akuma must be in the pendant of her hand." She muttered.

"Quit ignoring me! Oh, you're pissing me off. Prepare to be squished, bug!"

Reflekta dived forward, with a surprising agility despite her high heels. Ladybug stepped aside, avoiding another blast shot at her and jumped beside her, trying to snatch the pendant. Reflekta took notice of her intentions, and she had to bend her body back to avoid yet another shot. Using the inertia of her movement, she stood on her palms and propelled herself backwards, putting space between her and the fashion disaster.

"Okay." She muttered. "I need to think of something. I don't know what that ray does, but I don't want to find out." She jumped to avoid yet another shoot. "Immobilizing her won't help, because she will keep shooting, so I need to distract her somehow."

"What happens, buggy-bug? Are you afraid of little ol' me?" she crackled. "Don't worry, I promise to make you super fabulous, you just have to let me hit you with one of my little rays and you'll look as beautiful as me!"

No, thank you very much. My inner designer is crying just because of the possibility. She huffed as she threw her the lid of a trashcan, which she evaded easily, then shot twice, something Ladybug evaded instinctively.

Marinette, remember your Lucky Charm. It will aid you in battle. Tikki whispered inside her head. Lucky Charm, huh? Let's see how it works out.

She threw her yoyo to the air, and with the cry of Lucky Charm her powers of creation activated. With a light pink light, a new object appeared and fell on her waiting hands. She looked at it with confusion.

"A… torch? What am I supposed to do with a torch?"

In her hands rested a red metallic torch, a pattern of black polka-dots decorating its surface. She looked at the bottom of it, where she found the switch.

A really irritating laugh echoed the dark street. "I was kinda scared, with all these lights and stuff, but I didn't expect a torch to come out of it." She kept laughing, grabbing her stomach. "What are you going to do, flash me?"

She ignored her annoying crackling and thought about it. She looked at the torch, then the distracted Akuma and her hand, and a plan began forming on her head. That was exactly what I needed.

She began running forward, startling Reflekta. The pink-wearing woman raised her hand immediately, preparing herself to shoot, but Ladybug had already predicted that and wielded her yoyo, throwing it at her and encircling her wrist. With a strong tug to the side, she made her miss her target, and she took her chance to jump and land behind her.

Reflekta began twirling around to face her, but she hadn't expected Ladybug to stand that near, the torch in her hand. She switched it on, and a blinding white light filled the really dark street, the force of it making her take a step back and bringing her hands to cover her hurting eyes.

And that was her biggest mistake, because when Reflekta was blinded and covering her face, Ladybug reached for the pendant and took it out of her hand, making her unable to shoot. Her face contorted in horror when her eyes cleared and saw the red-clad hero throwing the charm to the floor and stepping on it, breaking it.

A dark butterfly came from the broken object, and Ladybug grabbed her yoyo and traced a finger on its surface, opening it. She captured the butterfly mid-air and cleansed it, freeing a white bug instead. She smiled at its retreating form, and even waved goodbye at it. Then, she crouched down and grabbed the repaired object.

A groan startled her and she looked down to the woman lying on the floor. She was wearing dark clothes and had dark hair, but her bangs were dyed with a vibrant purple.

"Are you okay?" Ladybug crouched to help her sit up. The other girl nodded, blinking her eyes.

"I-I think so. Where am I?"

"We're near Maison Blanche metro station. What's your name?"

"J-Juleka." The other girl supplied.

"Nice to meet you, Juleka. Here, I think this is yours." She handed her the pendant and she grabbed it gratefully. "Can you tell me what's the last thing you remember?"

She frowned. "I-I was going to Rose's and took a detour. She told me not to come, she was worried about all those disappearances, but it had been so long since I'd seen her… Then I… I don't know… I-I..."

"Hey, don't worry about it. It's going to be okay." She placed a hand on her shoulder to calm the panicking girl down. She then eyed the hidden entrance and worried her lip. "Do you think you can get to the police by yourself? I still have some matters to attend to."

Juleka nodded. Ladybug helped her on her feet, and when she was sure she didn't feel wobbly anymore, she walked her to the entrance of the metro station. She was about to return to the dead end, but the goth girl called for her.

"Hey, wait! If you don't mind me asking, who are you?"

And anyone who had been standing near the Maison Blanche metro station would have seen the woman wearing a red polka-dotted suit straightening her shoulders and facing the other girl with a determined smile. She opened her mouth, and the last thing she said resonated with conviction.

"I'm Ladybug, and I'm the one who is going to find all those kidnapped people."

She then turned around and ran to the dark alley, leaving a gobsmacked girl behind.

Ladybug looked around, trying to find the opening mechanism for the hidden entrance, without exit. Then, a loud beeping startled her.

"What was that?"

Marinette, it's your Miraculous. You've used Lucky Charm, and unfortunately, I can't hold the transformation any longer. I'm sorry, but you have to go.

"But Alya?"

We'll come here tomorrow, I promise. But now we're in enemy territory and I don't trust you dropping your transformation here.

"I-I understand." The beeping sounded again, making her flinch. "We're going. Now that we know what happens to the kidnapped people, we can have a fresh start tomorrow.

She grabbed the yoyo clasped to her waist and twirled it, giving it enough force to latch on a lamppost and propel her body out of the empty alley and into the Parisian night.

Some seconds later, a dark figure stepped out of the shadows, jumping down on the street and looking at the direction where Ladybug had left. His wild blond locks swayed with the fresh wind, and his green eyes glowed in the dark.

"Well, that was interesting." Chat Noir grinned. "I can't wait to see what else you've got to offer, Ladybug."

The light of the moon was the only one that illuminated the dark room. A man was standing in front of a circular windowpane that took up the whole wall, looking at the blinking lights of the city of Paris. A soft knock took him out of his thoughts, but he didn't turn around to answer.

"Come in."

The white doors opened, and the white butterflies in the floor fluttered by, disturbed by the movement. Dark Cupid made his way inside, carrying an unconscious girl with him.

"I have brought another one, sir." He placed her on the floor and crouched, bowing his head.

"Perfect. Now that we've managed to infiltrate the city hall, the operation Akuma is about to start. We need as many assets as possible. You may go, Dark Cupid."

"Yes, sir."

The boy stood up and left, leaving the girl there with the other man. An evil grin broke in his face as he observed her.

"Now for the lady, let's see what we can do for you." He noticed the phone clutched tightly in her hand, despite being unconscious. "I see."

He raised his hand, and one of the butterflies flew to his extended palm. Once it landed on him, he covered it with his other hand and infused his powers on it, the bug acquiring a deep black colour. Once he finished, he freed it from his hands, and the insect flew towards her phone, infecting it.

Dark bubbles covered her body, giving in to a black and white suit, a butterfly-shaped mask covering part of her face.

"Lady Wi-Fi, I am Hawkmoth. I have lent you my powers, but in return, I need you to be under my orders. Help me to rule Paris and overcome anyone that opposes our cause. Now rise!"

The woman opened her eyes at his command, scarlet irises glinting in the dark.

Hey! Thanks for giving this fic a go! This is going to be a long ride (hopefully), so get ready!

This is an AU, they've grown up and Marinette won't know most of her canon classmates (like Juleka). There's going to be an awful lot of battles, how do you feel about that? Please, leave your thoughts in your reviews, and see you soon!