Every eldest female member of the Cheng family took up the name Ladybug once they turned 16. Exactly a week after their 16th birthday they had to be betrothed and ready to be the Captain of the Miraculous, a trade ship. So far, there had been 47 Captain Ladybugs. Their nemesis, Captain Hawkmoth of the Akuma, most definitely a pirate ship, was also a name passed down. He enjoyed attacking the Miraculous and stealing their supplies. Marinette Dupain Cheng's 16th birthday is coming up. Currently, however, she is stuck in the cargo hold waiting for an attack to be over.

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Marinette was definitely bored. She wished she could go out to the deck, but her mother had forbidden her. How long could the other crew fight before the captain defeated them? Her mother, Sabine, was the captain of the mighty Miraculous. Sabine was also the current Ladybug, the 47th to bear the title. Marinette couldn't wait to be the next. She listened for the telltale noises of battle, but surprisingly heard nothing.

A knock on the trapdoor startled Marinette. She didn't dare open it until the whisper "Girl! It's Alya, Mari…" It's safe. Ladybug saved us." Alya was Marinette's companion in life. When they were 5, Ladybug the 46th sailed to the city of Paris. Marinette had run of to play when she came across Alya with her three sisters. Nora had trained them to steal since their parents died of fever, and when Marinette showed up back at the Miraculous with four new crew members, they were taken in happily and fit right in.

Marinette flew right into Alya's arms once their were in their quarters. "I'm so glad your safe, Alya. What even happened? Ladybug showed up and threw me into the hidden compartment."

Alya immediately went into extreme detail. "Well, our rivals, the Akumas? They turn up right behind us, jump on board, and start swinging swords everywhere. Nora, well, did the Noraist thing a Nora can do. She sat on at least three of them. Ella and Etta played up the twin act. Chloe yodeled. A lot. My ears are ringing. Alix and Kim fought well, Max distracted them, Ms Bustier and Mr Damocles probably bored some to death. The rest were hiding, but Nino, Oh Mari, he jumped right in! Didn't even think! He's going to die from that stupidity one day!"

Marinette knew Alya and Nino were just jumping around over having a relationship, so she comforted Alya to the best of her ability. "Alya! Nino is an excellent swordsman!He can defend himself. He has handled a lot worse in his life than a few pirates, of course."

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Marinette had actually recruited Nino too. Her grandmother had brought them to Paris again to get more supplies. Marinette and Etta ran away to explore. When they got to the woods, they found a boy, malnourished and suffering from thirst. The girls quickly brought him to the ship where he ate and drank and told them his story.

His mother had died, and she had been the one who provided for the family of 7 kids. She had a job and Nino's father parented and cooked. When the hunger got to be too much, Nino got his father a job mining and ran away, hoping they would have more food with him out of the way.

Once on the ship he discovered music, swords, and Alya, which basically took up his life. Alya knew about his sacrifice because Etta had been there and she told her sisters everything. Alya basically adopted Nino after she found out.

Ayla finally finished describing the fight, ending with "Your mom swung in on a new yoyo I made, beat them up, threw them back, and swung out again!" Marinette giggled. Alya was a mechanic, and was immensely proud when an invention worked. Sabine loved the trademark Ladybug weapons, including a razor sharp fan that shot poison darts to reinforced yoyos with incredible flexibility and length. All had the tell-tale Ladybug design: red with black spots.

Marinette, now fully caught up on the events of the fight, decided to go up to the deck. Nino and Chloe were telling a very interesting story to the twins. Marinette and Alya smiled at the sight. Nino looked up and saw them. "And that was when two lovely ladies walked in!" Chloe followed his line of vision and snorted. "TELL US MORE! TELL US MORE!" the twelve year old twins shouted. Etta saw Marinette and yelled "ELLA! MARI AND ALYA ARE HERE!" The identical sisters threw themselves at Marinette.

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Chloe's mother had come to the Miraculous during a storm. She had just been through a shipwreck, and was definitely pregnant. When Sabine found her, she was about to give birth. Sabine brought Audrey back to the Miraculous, where she gave birth to Chloe and died. Marinette had been born a few months earlier, and they grew up like sisters. To them, they were sisters anyway.

"Mari's here!" Chloe sounded bored. "We just went through a battle, but who cares as long as MARI's here?'' Nino gasped. She snorted again and burst out laughing. "Ugh, you guuuys, I don't mean it. C'mon, you know me better than anyone."

Marinette giggled. Nino was so gullible sometimes. "Chloe, what story was that?" Chloe rolled her eyes. "Mari, you know perfectly well what story that was."

Chloe was right. Marinette did know. "The Legend of Ladybug?" she asked. "The Legend of Ladybug." Chloe confirmed. Ella and Etta shouted "IT"S THE BEST STORY EVER! DON'T MAKE FUN OF IT!"

This opinion wasn't new. The twins wanted that story at breakfast, during breaks, at lunch, a dinner, and as a bedtime story. Ella loved the romance, like Alya, while Etta loved the fighting scenes and bloody betrayals, like Nora.

To be honest, Marinette couldn't blame them. It was her favorite story to tell. "Well, we were up to the part when the first Hawkmoth stabbed the second baby Ladybug while Captain Ladybug the First was sleeping."

Alya shuddered. "Well, they won't kill our Ladybug! Or our next Ladybug, for that matter.'' They all glanced at Marinette. "I love that attitude!'' said Sabine, materializing behind them. Nino jumped. Chloe squealed, but the twins, Alya, and Marinette were fine.

"In fact, we can tell the story tonight! We will be arriving at Paris tonight. After we finish trading, we can tell stories around a fire!" the Captain said. "Marinette, can you make dinner?" "Of course Maman!" Dinner was probably going to be Ladybug themed.