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In a new skin ch9

Chloe sighed as she let her head fall back against the door to her room. She had returned home later than she had planned, it had been surprisingly fun with Marinette and her friends. She was pretty sure they still didn't trust her, which she couldn't complain about. A few days of being nice with a touch of unhinged bravery does not undo years of being, well, Chloe, but it was nice. Especially the compliments about her art and when she looked at the canvas her smile widened.

She had drawn some more while hanging with them and as she did her rustiness faded. She drew Marinette geeking out about Adrian, Nino and Ayla laughing, Alix smirking that damn smirk of hers. One piece in particular had emerged while concentrating deeply again, though it baffled most of the people around her. She had started imagining how the dog-headed messenger might have looked fighting the sand wraith. She had even added color to it.

She finally pushed off the door and walked to her bed, setting the canvas on the table as she did. Naje and Haje exited her ring, slithering up her arm as she reclined on her bed.

“Well that was an eventful day," Haje said with a hint of annoyance about having to be near a kwami.

"That it was. I was worried you and Tiki were going to start a fight," Chloe responded, teasing them only for them to hiss at her.

"Unlike a kwami, we are divine and ancient. Childish behavior is beneath us," Naje said, which made Chloe snort, recalling how they had barely been able to keep from lunging at Tiki. "But now that you've enjoyed your day of relaxing and dealing with that miraculous wearer, I think we should get you back to training so that the next task isn't such a mess."

"How do you expect me to train this late at night? If I go on patrol I could run into Cat Noir and Ladybug," Chloe said as she placed Naje and Haje on her bed so she could change.

"You needn’t go on patrol to train. You can just train with the previous users."

At that, Chloe paused and looked at them

"How do I do that? Can you contact them or do they have a phone number or something?" she asked.

“Every wearer of the ring has the culmination of their knowledge during their time as the wearer stored within. We can access that knowledge while you sleep and create a dreamscape for you to interact with. Thus you may train with them and benefit from their experience,” Haje explained.

“It won’t leave you as refreshed as normal sleep and any injuries suffered in the dreamscape, while not real, will leave you with the memory of the pain,” Naje cautioned.

“After two days of sleeping, I’m sure I won’t mind being a little tired,” Chloe said as she went back to changing. In short order, she was ready for bed and settled in with Haje and Naje curled up beside her.

Sleep didn’t come as easily as Chloe would have liked. Perhaps the thought of this strange training gave her a bad case of the nerves, but she found herself fidgeting and tossing and turning for some time before she finally closed her eyes.

When she opened them again, she was standing in the desert. The sudden change left her in a state of shock before she was overwhelmed with awe at how vast the desert was. As she tried to truly take in her surroundings, the desert changed from rolling mounds of sand to a lush forest with what looked like a ruined castle in the distance. Before she could grow accustomed to the forest, it switched to a snowy mountain top with a temple before her. She spun and found that she could look between the different environments, each seamlessly bleeding into the other in a way that didn’t seem jarring.

"Glad to see you here, Chloe." At the sound of Naje’s voice, Chloe turned to look at him only to jump back startled. No longer the size of a normal snake, Naje and Haje were instead a massive beast with scales darker than the blackest night with streaks of golden scales so brilliant it hurt to look at. Their eyes gleamed like brilliant rubies that left Chloe fighting an instinctive urge to run. “I can't tell you how good it feels to be relatively back to normal," he said, slightering past her and coiling while Haje looked on quietly in amusement. "So Chloe, are you ready?"

"Ready to never question people's fear of snakes? Yes, yes I am," Chloe joked. From behind her, there was a laugh and she quickly turned to find a woman dressed in what looked like rags. Her skin was tanned from long years of sun exposure and Chloe would have bet good money she was from Egypt. The woman sat on a mound of sand as she cast a weighing look at Chloe.

"Who-?" Before Chloe could continue, the woman spoke.

"What a shame. From the lowest in the slums who understood the dark truth of life, now the snake resides with a golden spoon that knows little of truth and even less of sacrifice," the woman said sternly, causing Chloe to swallow nervously. "So tell me pale skin, what is your name?"

"It’s Chloe Bourgeois and yo-"

"I'll tell you my name when you've earned it, pale skin. Until then, you're here because you're worthless in a fight and need to learn what it truly means to be a Numinous wielder," the woman continued as she stood up and dusted off the sand from her raggedy clothes.

Chloe’s face flushed with heat that had nothing to do with the desert sun.

"Hey, I know how to fight! I used to use a Miraculous and fight villains all the time before I had Naje and Haje!"

At that, the woman snorted, "That's a shame for Naje and Haje, but I guess if they chose you then there's something worth seeing. Very well pale skin, I'm the first user and I'll only say this once, attack me."

Chloe was at a loss for words, the woman was just saying to attack her? Letting herself become distracted by her thoughts proved to be a grave mistake. The woman leapt at her, causing Chloe's eyes to bulge before a hard roundhouse kick connected with her face. She was sent sliding across the sand and as she picked herself up she saw what looked like blood in the sand as well some teeth, but when Chloe reached up and checked her face it was completely fine.

When she got up and looked at the woman, she was waiting with her arms crossed and frowning.

“I can’t kill you here, only make you wish you were dead,” the woman said as she took up another fighting stance. “Try again.”

Chloe didn’t hesitate this time as she rushed at the woman. She threw a punch only to hit air before the world spun as she was flipped. Chloe blinked as a shadow fell over her before her eyes went wide and she rolled away from a foot slamming down where her head had been.

“What the hell?!” Chloe demanded as she struggled to her feet only to have the woman’s knee slam into her gut. Chloe retched as the air was driven from her and she collapsed to her hands and knees.

“Truly pathetic, but what should I expect from someone who was handed all their skill by a Miraculous?” she said as she paced around Chloe.

“Wh-what?” Chloe struggled to get out as she slowly made it to her feet.

“The Miraculous are a crutch, child. A Numinous grants you strength and powers, but without honing your body, those will only take you so far,” the woman said as she lashed out with a quick punch that Chloe just barely managed to avoid. “Your powers rely on your body’s stamina and as you are, I’m surprised you can last more than ten minutes wearing the holy armor.”

“I did just fine against a Sand Wraith, thank you very much!” Chloe snapped before she felt a wave of nausea sweep over her and her knees wobbled.

“Lie.” The woman spat the word as she watched Chloe falter. “Do not try to deceive me while you wear the ring, girl, especially not here.”

Chloe straightened up and raised her hands hesitantly. In truth, she really didn’t know how to fight but she didn’t want to give the woman the satisfaction of admitting it.

“If you try to use your powers too much, push yourself too far, you’ll burn yourself out,” the woman continued to lecture as she threw a series of punches and kicks at Chloe. Chloe managed to avoid some but most landed with brutal power and the woman continued to talk without a sign of being winded, “It won’t kill you, but you’ll slip into a sleep so deep that you won’t awaken for months, and that’s if no one slits your throat in the meantime.”

"So what? You kick my ass until I can fight?" Chloe shouted back as she blocked a punch that sent her to the ground. She hugged her wrists to her chest, they felt like they had been broken from the impact. She saw more blood in the sand and realized that this woman had indeed been beating the lesson into her.

“We will spare until I deem your skills sufficient, and only then will we move on to weapons and powers,” the woman said as she took a more relaxed stance.

Chloe managed to work up the nerve to look at her wrists, but they were fine, though the memory of pain persisted.

“But what if I get another mission and have to use my powers?” Chloe asked, trying to take her mind off the odd sensation.

“Experience is the greatest teacher, pale skin,” the woman said. “Besides you will have Haje and Naje to continue to instruct you while you are awake. For now though we shall take advantage of another benefit of this place. Here you do not experience time as you do when awake. So," the woman cracked her knuckles loudly, "I can take my time breaking you in."

Chloe groaned as the woman closed the distance between them once again.

***

When Chloe awoke, it was accompanied by the slightest moment of relief until she tried to sit up. Every part of her hurt and she felt like she hadn’t slept in days.

“Haje, Naje,” Chloe called out with a groan.

“Yes?” the snake called out in unison.

“What the fuck?!” Chloe asked weakly as she closed her eyes and tried to push the memory of the ‘training’ from her mind. “That lady was trying to murder me!”

“The First was merely setting her expectations of you,” Haje said.

“She is harsh but fair,” Naje followed up.

“Fucking monster is what she is,” Chloe groaned as she managed to roll onto her stomach and burried her face in her pillow.

Unfortunately, Chloe didn’t have the luxury of staying in bed and licking her figurative wounds. It was time to get ready for school.

Chloe did manage to pull herself together but it was a near thing, and there was something about being achy all over that felt weirdly familiar but she couldn’t place it. She pushed the thought from her mind as she trudged up the steps to school, barely mustering the strength to acknowledge the calls from other students.

“Gee, Chloe, are you sure you’re feeling better?” Sabrina asked as she appeared beside Chloe.

“I’m fine, Sabrina. Just maybe pushed myself too hard yesterday after being in bed for two days,” Chloe half-mumbled.

“Sorry I was busy,” Sabrina said with a quick duck of her head. “I could have made sure you got your rest.”

“It’s fine,” Chloe said, hoping to head off Sabrina’s self-flagellation. “I ran into Marinette and some of the others.”

“That’s…surprising,” Sabrina said after a moment.

“You and Adrien weren’t the only ones I owed an apology to,” Chloe said as she put an arm around Sabrina in a partial hug. Chloe had to bite back a groan as the motion reminded her of all the aches across her body, but the look on Sabrina’s face made it all worth it. They made their way to class and as Chloe was about to take her seat, an arm wrapped around her waist, making her twinge in surprise.

“How heavy were those art supplies? You look like you ran a mile with weights on,” Alix teased as she went from one side of Chloe to the other.

“More like I got my teeth kicked in by someone who takes way too much joy in physical fitness,” Chloe groaned, which garnered an odd look from Sabrina.

“Sounds fun. Why don’t you invite me to your next work out session?” Alix said with a smile.

Chloe felt her cheeks grow warm, especially as Alix’s hand lingered on her waist. A cough from Sabrina broke her from her mental freeze.

“Miss Bustier is coming,” Sabrina said, and Alix’s hand slipped from Chloe’s waist as she hurried to her seat.

Chloe took her seat stiffly, her posture nothing to do with how sore she was all over.

Edited and Co-written by GrayNeko

#chloe bourgeois #miraculous ladybug #miraculous fandom #miraculous fanworks #writing #fanfic #story

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In a new skin chapter 8

When Chloe woke to the sounds of her alarm and got out of bed she worried she'd be sore and exhausted beyond measure. Yet when she looked in the mirror for any bruising and examined her broken arm, she saw that she was totally healed. Her original scars were still there and rather than sore, she felt…refreshed. 

Chloe went over to check the time, not surprised when it said 8 AM. But the date caught her off guard, she had been asleep for two days! 

"Naje, Haje!" Chloe called as the snake slithered out of the ring, one head barely awake and the other yawning, which would now go on the list of things that will haunt her dreams.

"Yes, Chloe?" Naje said, looking at her through the snake-version of bleary eyes. 

"Yeah, somethings wrong," Chloe responded by grabbing the clock and showing it to him, he looked at it and then back at her.

"I see it is quite early," he replied dryly.

"No, not that! The date!” Chloe responded in surprise and confusion. “I slept for two days Naje, two days!" 

But soon Haje yawned and looked at her, waking up himself with a shake of his head.

"That is to be expected,” Haje calmly replied. 

“You pushed yourself and you're still new to this, not to mention the wraith broke your bones. Healing was necessary and since we didn't eat before sleeping and your acclimation to the powers is still ongoing, it makes sense we would go dormant to recover,” Haje further elaborated, lecturing her with the air of a professor before a class.

“In fact, I think two days is quick for a new user,” Haje said with a modicum of respect, looking to Naje to confirm before both nodded in agreement. Meanwhile Chloe was beginning to pace around her room, worried about getting in trouble. 

"What if my father hears about this and gets angry? What if Jean is worried?" Chloe asked as her pacing got faster and faster.

"There is no need to worry, when going dormant your body temperature rises,” Haje replied matter-of-factly. “Obviously, this Jean checked on you and thought you had a fever.”

"How do you know?!" Chloe replied, trying and failing to suppress her panic.

"Because we watched him check up on you. He even had a doctor brought in and it was decided you were sick due to a fever of one hundred and one,” Haje replied, flexing his hood a bit in a cocky manner. Chloe relaxed a bit, if they thought she was just sick then she didn’t have to worry about explaining anything.

 

Chloe let out a sigh of relief as she decided it would be best to get ready for the day. She grabbed a quick shower and was on her way to find something to wear when she noticed a peculiar sight on the table in the middle of the room.

"Uhmmmmm Naje, Haje, what are those?" Chloe asked, tightening the towel she wore before walking over to get a better look, a bit confused. It was a canvas, a brush, some paint boxes, and a big wooden box topped with two scrolls like that dog man had.

"Those are your rewards for completing the task you were assigned,” Haje said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

“As I’ve said, sometimes the gods reward those who perform their assigned tasks exemplary. By the looks of it, Anubis was greatly pleased with your work," Naje said with a bit of pride as if he were the one who had performed the task. 

Haje slid past his cocky brother and began to speak as he examined the items. 

"He even went so far as to send a message with it. But it appears Set did as well, so I'd be prepared to see how Set felt about being tricked," Haje said. 

Chloe reached down and picked up the scroll, her breathing a bit quick from nervousness as she began to read it.

"‘Dear Serpent of Truth, well done with completing your task. I had worried that it may have been too much for you at first, but it seems that worry was for nought. You accomplished the task with creativity and mindfulness’,” the letter started, easing Chloe’s nerves.

“‘For that, I reward you with paints of the Underworld and the Skies. As well a brush that shall never fail. I know you loved art so these gifts shall bring your love to such heights that most mortals could never reach! Finally, the last gift is in the box on the table. Consider it compensation for your efforts.’"

Chloe blinked for a moment before rereading the scroll. Her mind was barely able to process that a God had praised her, but more so that he knew more about herself than she did. She proceeded to close and set the scroll down gently before looking at the other one from Set and opening it, preparing for the worst.

"‘Well done Serpent, you have out done yourself in a way I could never have foreseen. When I received the urn and saw it was empty, I had prepared to release plagues upon your lands for this trick!’” A far less friendly start compared to the previous scroll.

“‘However, I then saw what you did to the Wraith and I was truly impressed! To trap that wretched lowlife in his own body, far beyond what I had planned to do with him for his arrogant existence!’” A sudden turn in tone that Chloe genuinely didn’t expect. 

“‘I can now smile every day hearing the melody of his screams. If ever I'm bored I can alway see his trapped agony, immortalized by you…so well done.’” Chloe wasn’t sure how she felt about being praised in such a way.

“‘As a reward, I prepared a gift to compliment Anubis’ gift. A canvas that will store everything ever painted on it, and a set of stencils made by Hephaestus himself! Lastly, one final item in the box alongside Anubis' gift. No one can ever accuse Set of being stingy. I look forward to seeing how cruel and how elegantly you complete your future tasks, Serpent.’” The letter finished with only four words.

“‘Do Not Disappoint Me.’" 

Chloe was left shocked and more than a little nauseous at being complimented for being elegantly cruel, it reminded her too much of how she used to be. But the feeling of dread she felt when seeing he was willing to release plagues for being outsmarted by Chloe outpaced every other emotion. She closed the scroll setting it next to the other, but deep under those feelings she felt an iota of pride for being praised for eliminating such a dangerous threat, even if it hadn’t been entirely on her own. Chloe looked at the box and reached down to slowly open it, her eyes going wide as plates at the contents within.

Inside were two bracelets made entirely of gold and decorated with gems and hieroglyphs engraved into them. Chloe reached down brushing her fingers along one of the bracelets, feeling its smooth metal and gems, almost unreal to her. 

"What are these exactly?" Chloe asked quietly, still awestruck by the pure opulence of the pieces of jewelry.

"They're treasure," Naje said quietly. "It took some time before the Gods realized Numinous wielders often don’t have time to support themselves as other mortals do. Can’t have your Chosen Ones starving in the streets like stray dogs," he said as slithered around to Chloe's arm.

"It’s a more subtle way of courting wielders for future tasks,” Chloe raised her brow at that in confusion and both Naje and Haje sighed.

"Gods can be as territorial as they are arrogant. Even though I am a blessing that tells gods of other pantheons you're claimed and which Court has first rights when it comes to submitting tasks to you, sometimes rival gods will try to lure you with promises of greater rewards, or even offer blessings of protection. It has been known to cause some Gods to almost come to blows," Haje explained.

"How oft-" Chloe started to ask before Naje cut her off.

"Often enough to have Zeus and Odin fighting each other. Or Wukong and Hercules about to tear up the heavens over a wager," Naje said with a bit of humor. 

"But we can worry about that later. It's better for you to do something and enjoy the day since you've rested for so long," Haje said, slithering away casually, leaving Chloe in thought.

Chloe didn't like the idea that gods were so petty. After all, Gods are meant to be all powerful, right? Chloe huffed, rubbing her forehead with a touch of annoyance before walking to get changed into something for the day. 

She settled on an outfit similar to what she used to wear all the time, simply because of a lack of options. Maybe she could sell one of the bracelets and get a more practical wardrobe. She didn’t bother doing more than brushing her hair and leaving it down, and completely skipped makeup altogether. She looked far plainer than she used to but could finally stand looking at herself in the mirror as she nodded with appreciation.

"Ok let's get this day started!" Chloe said, getting her phone out and shooting a text to Sabrina to see if she was free to hang out. She grabbed the bracelets and stashed them in the back of her closet. They were far too valuable to wear around, unless maybe she had to attend a gala of some kind. 

She made sure to grab the paints, canvas, and stencils before making her way out the door and making her way towards the elevator shooting a smile at Jean as she did, who visibly sagged with relief at the sight of her up and about. 

"I'll be going to the park! Be back later, ok?" Chloe called out to him. 

"Be safe, Mademoiselle," Jean responded politely as he recovered.

Chloe entered the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor, hoping to avoid her father and get out quickly. Which thankfully wasn't hard when your father was the mayor. She was able to leave with no interference or distractions but sadly the response from Sabrina made her pause almost in disbelief.

"She's busy…" Chloe pouted as she slowly resumed walking to the park with her items in hand.

"What were you planning to do at the park with her?" Naje communicated through the bond.

"I don't know. Maybe chat, actually learn stuff about her, and be a better friend while knocking off the rust from my past life. See if I can still paint as well as I can somewhat recall?" Chloe responded looking around at the beautiful buildings and the people making her way through one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

It might seem odd coming from a girl who had been chauffeured most of her life but she loved walking more than driving. She couldn't figure out why but she knew it came from the life she had lived before shedding and she was determined to fill in all the missing pieces of that life.

After a while she finally reached the park, feeling enlived by the sounds of laughter and seeing people playing and running around having fun. Chloe looked around before heading over to a nice spot that gave her a good view of everything.

"Okay Chloe, time to see if you can still do this,” She breathed softly after setting up the canvas, her paints and stencils. She looked nervously at the canvas, taking a deep breath and beginning to sketch out random things around her. The weather, a child running around, a bird in a tree, or a roller skater going past the fountain. Soon, Chloe lost herself in drawing, starting to just draw things she could think of, focusing on small things she could remember, vague impressions of people she met as she was sketching faces that she knew but couldn't name well. The exception was Roman and his smile. As she began the next sketch she dug deep, getting the impression of something more.

—--

"So what's this book series about?" Chloe was asking, looking up from the strange books to the blurry impressions that could maybe her students. 

"Well, we don't wanna spoil anything, just read these two sets and tell us which you prefer. We can go from there." The voice that came from a figure that had a southern tone thicker than Roman’s and spoke far more excited than she could ever remember Roman being.

"She's gonna pick our set, you redneck." That voice sounded female with an Asian accent, Japanese if Chloe were to guess.

"Stuff it you rice-" 

"Hey, be polite or I'm not reading either sets! I agreed to try this hobby if you all were at your best, remember?" Chloe responded with a stern tone.

"Yes ma'am," the class responded as one.

"Good. Now, I'll give them a read but there's no promise I'll enjoy either of them, ok? Especially with titles like Galaxy in Flames and Sons of the Forest." 

Chloe’s confusion was palpable even hearing those names.

"But I'll try. For now class is dismissed. I'll see you all at the event tomorrow, ok?" 

The class all agreed and began to file out. Leaving Chloe to turn her attention to the blurry books, their covers finally coming into focus. 

—--

"Hey, earth to Chloe!!!" And with that, Chloe was brought out of the memory, jumping and looking around in confusion. She raised her stencil like a dagger momentarily before quickly shoving her hands into her lap and tried not to blush with embarrassment.

"Man, you must really get into the zone when you're drawing." 

Chloe looked towards the voice and found Alix waving at her with a grin. The short red head was sitting beside Chloe with her legs crossed and very close for that matter. She closed what little distance there was between them as she shifted her attention to Chloe’s canvas, "And I gotta say those drawings ain't half bad."

Chloe turned from Alix back to her canvas and saw that she had drawn a myriad of images. Most of them were Roman with different expressions but there were some teens she didn't recognize down in one corner, and finally a man with a stern gaze but a soft smile up in the top right corner. Both Roman and this man brought a strange warmth to her chest and a smile to her face. 

"So is that guy an actor or someone you know? Cause you drew him a lot," Alix asked, pointing to Roman before she smirked slyly. “Does Ms Bougie Bourgeois have a crush?”

“What?!” Chloe nearly shrieked as she leapt to her feet. As fond as she felt about Roman in the memories she could recall, the idea of it being anything more felt…wrong.

“No! He’s…” Chloe struggled to come up with an answer that wasn’t an outright lie.

“Relax, Chloe, I was just messing with you,” Alix said as she sat back with a sigh. “Who’d have thought I’d find Chloe Bourgeois behaving like a normal girl?”

“Who says I’m not acting normal?” Chloe demanded with a stamp of her foot.

“Uh, everyone? You know you haven’t threatened to call your daddy on anyone in days?” Alix said as she stood up. Somehow, even though Chloe was much taller, the spunky girl seemed far more imposing as she invaded Chloe’s personal space.

“And you’re bothering me why?” Chloe asked as she tried to draw herself up even as she cringed internally for sounding like how she used to. Why was Alix making her feel so defensive?

“Because I want to know what’s with the sudden change. You tried to take on a freakin’ Akuma and not because it messed up your outfit,” Alix said, her lip curling in nearly a sneer.

“Well, I couldn’t just stand there and do nothing,” Chloe sniffed dismissively.

“You mean like you normally do? You show up acting weird one day, nearly get killed trying to help, start acting like you’re a different, better person, and then you disappear for two days. Most of us didn’t even know you were sick until Marinette spoke up saying she saw you looking horrible. So yeah Chloe, I’m asking what’s happened to you,” Alix as she crossed her arms as if she were daring Chloe to try to get her to budge from her mission.

“It’s complicated and really none of your business,” Chloe said through grit teeth, starting to regret trying to enjoy herself in public. She could have painted just fine on her patio back at the hotel.

“In case you haven’t noticed, Chloe, I’m making it my business. So do tell, what’s so complicated that it made you wanna change so bad?” Alix asked as she leaned in once more

Chloe bit her lip before sighing. Maybe the truth wouldn’t hurt, at least too much. “I just looked in the mirror and realized I kind of hate myself and who I was becoming.” Chloe said it as a joke but the truth behind the words was there and it took all her willpower to meet Alix’s eyes.

The last thing Chloe expected was Alix’s expression to soften as her challenging smirk fell into a frown.

“Sheesh, Chloe, are you ok? Like really?” Alix asked far more gently as she shifted closer incrementally. “Have you talked to anyone about this?”

Chloe blinked at the shift in Alix’s behavior, “Now who’s acting weird?”

“I’m worried about you, you dummy!” Alix snapped, her face flushing nearly to match her hair.

Chloe blinked in confusion, especially as something about the expression on Alix’s face filled her with a dizzying sense of deja vu.

“Whoa, Chloe!” Alix cried out as she lunged forward and caught Chloe as she began to sway on her feet. “Seriously, are you ok?”

Chloe gave her head a shake before looking at the way Alix was holding her, making the pair of them look like the oddest romance novel cover. It made her cheeks burn crimson and she quickly pulled away from the skater girl.

“I’m fine. I think I just need to eat something,” Chloe said as she brushed her hair from her face. 

“Well in that case, I think the cavalry has arrived,” Alix said with a nod.

Chloe turned to face the direction Alix was looking and found Marinette approaching with a picnic basket in hand.

Marinette slowed as she neared the two of them and stood some ways off awkwardly.

“Hi Alix, Chloe. Nice to see you two. I’m happy to see you’re feeling better, Chloe. Care to join me for lunch?” Marinette said somewhat stiffly, forcing a smile.

Alix seemed to pick up the fact that Marinette’s attention was focused solely on Chloe and shrugged. “I’ll pass, but thanks for the offer, Marinette. I’ve been sitting around long enough.”

Before Alix left, she dropped her voice so only Chloe could hear her, “It seems like someone is Miss Popular for real, for once.”

Chloe started and looked after Alix, both mystified by the girl’s behavior and wanting her to stay so she wouldn’t have to talk to Marinette. She stopped herself from calling out to Alix at the last moment, it would be cowardly to use someone as a shield for a conversation that was going to happen sooner or later.

“Is there actually food in there?” Chloe asked as she turned back to Marinette.

“Of course, and lots of it. Tiki told me about how taxing Numinous healing can be. You need your strength after two days of sleeping,” Marinette said as she laid out a blanket and began setting out food. Despite how calmly she spoke, Chloe could sense Marinette was coiled tight like a spring.

“So Tiki knows about Naje and Haje?” Chloe asked softly as she watched Marinette set the food down. Honestly, for once she could empathize with Marinette, it felt like Naje and Haje were preparing to strike and it made every muscle in her body ache with tension. She had to force herself to settle into a cross-legged position.

“She does, and about how someone can become a Numinous wielder, especially the snakes of truth,” Marinette said as she poured a glass of tea and held it out to Chloe.

“Judges of Truth!” came a tiny duo of hisses from Chloe’s lap as Haje and Naje glared at Marinette.

“Oh put a sock in it, you two!” came a small voice from the picnic basket as the lid lifted to reveal a creature Chloe had once mistaken for a keychain decoration.

“Tiki!” Marinette whispered fiercely, glancing at the kwami out of the corner of her eye.

“Sorry, Marinette,” Tiki mumbled before sinking out of sight.

“Glad to see I’m not the only one who has trouble keeping theirs in line,” Chloe muttered, sharing a look of genuine amusement with Marinette before glancing down at Haje and Naje. “You two keep quiet. This is a conversation between humans.”

“Fine, but if she attempts anything, our poisons work just as well in any form,” Haje replied before he and Naje coiled into a tight bundle in Chloe’s lap, staying on guard.

“I’m sorry about that, Marinette,” Chloe said as she finally reached out to take the tea. “I’m guessing you have a whole speech planned out?”

“I’ve got several, each based on how hostile you might be, but I wasn’t expecting this so I’ll just try to speak plainly,” Marinette said as she continued acting as hostess and served Chloe several specialty macarons. “I think you should give up this Numinous artifact.”

Chloe paused with a macaron raised halfway to her mouth, fixing Marinette with a flat stare.

“Tiki has told me all about her encounters with the previous wielders. One of these people killed a user of the Ladybug Miraculous because she dared to save a woman’s life! I don’t know how long you’ve had this Numinous but it can’t be a coincidence that you’ve made such amazing changes recently. What if you’re told to come after me, to…kill me? Would you really undo all of this wonderful progress just to keep these powers?”

Chloe sat quietly until the end, at which point she nearly exploded. Fortunately, she had the presence of mind to keep her rage to a harsh whisper, “It is because of these powers that I’ve been able to change, Marinette. You have no idea what I’ve been through and I won’t have you talk down to me because you’re afraid we might end up on opposite sides. In case you’ve forgotten, Miraculous wearers aren’t perfect or does Hawkmoth not count for some reason?”

Marinette drew in on herself at Chloe’s word, her hands clenching her knees. Rather than continue the argument, Marinette took a deep breath and let it out slowly before looking up at Chloe.

“How did you know I was Ladybug? I’ve worked very hard to keep that secret,” Marinette said, unable to keep a hint of fear from her voice that clearly said, ‘If Chloe could find out my secret identity, then anyone could.’

Chloe nibbled her lip hesitantly. She certainly wasn’t going to tell Marinette the whole story.

“Let’s just say that after what I’ve been through, I’m not the same Chloe that you used to know,” Chloe said softly as she stared into her cup of tea. Her gaze shifted to the uneaten macaron in her hand. “And to that end, there’s one other thing I have to say to you.”

Chloe drew herself up and couldn’t help noticing that Marinette tensed in anticipation.

“I’ve apologized to Sabrina and Adrien for being a bad friend, but the person I have to apologize to most of all is you, Marinette,” Chloe said, not feeling the same heartache she had when talking to Adrien and Sabrina, but still feeling her stomach jump nervously as she spoke. “You never deserved any of the cruel or spiteful things I put you through and I’m sorry for every mean, rude, or hurtful thing I’ve ever said or done. I’m not saying this to try to convince you to trust me as a wielder of a Numinous. As I said the other night, I’d rather we stay out of each other’s way in that regard.”

Marinette stared in shock, nearly dropping her own plate of macarons before catching them from slipping off. As she recovered and straightened up again, she couldn’t help whispering almost to herself, “Are you really Chloe?”

Chloe couldn’t help smiling at the shocked expression on Marinette’s face, “Don’t ruin the moment, baker girl.”

That seemed to convince Marinette and she smiled softly before nodding and turning her focus to the meal again. They ate in relative silence for a while before Tiki whispered something to Marinette as she bent towards the basket that made the girl start.

“Uhm, Chloe, this might be a bit personal, but those scars, on your stomach, where did they come from?” Marinette asked, either nervous or feeling second hand embarrassment at remembering how little Chloe’s hero outfit covered.

‘Like she has room to talk,” Chloe thought, ‘Her Ladybug outfit is practically skintight! I should know, I used to run around in one playing pretend.’ 

“I’d rather not talk about it, but I’ll say it has everything to do with how I came to be Haje and Naje’s wielder,” Chloe said, reaching down to run her knuckle along the snake’s body.

Marinette nodded though she looked as if she wanted to ask more questions. Perhaps she would have but at that moment several voices called out in greeting. Alya, Nino and several other classmates were making their way over.

“This talk was…nice,” Chloe said before she downed the last of her tea, “but I should get going.”

“Chloe, wait, you don’t have to go,” Marinette said as she turned back from waving to the others.

“We might still end up enemies,” Chloe said somberly. “I’d rather not make things more awkward if necessary.”

“WHOOPS!” Another voice shouted, causing Chloe and Marinette to turn towards it. Chloe grunted as Alix bowled into her, sending them both sprawling with Alix laying atop Chloe.

“What’s the big idea?” Chloe demanded with a groan.

“Sorry, Chloe, had to avoid a stick someone left on the path,” Alix said as she pushed herself up, looming over Chloe in a way that made Chloe’s cheeks warm. “I didn’t hurt you, did I?”

“No-” Chloe started to say before Alix cut her off.

“No sense in taking any chances? I couldn’t agree more. Why don’t we both rest here for a bit and enjoy some of Marinette’s delicious snacks,” Alix said in a rush before easing herself down beside Chloe.

Chloe would have snapped at Alix but the others finally reached them and then it was a flurry of conversation, including several people commenting on Chloe’s canvas. Before Chloe knew it, she was thoroughly ensconced by the others, with Alix practically sidled up right against her.

“We both know you’re too good a skater to have crashed from a stupid stick,” Chloe whispered so only Alix could hear.

“Does that mean you watch me skate that often?” Alix shot back without hesitation, glancing at Chloe with a smirk that left Chloe speechless for the rest of the picnic.

Edited and co-written by GrayNeko

#chloe bourgeois #miraculous ladybug #miraculous fanworks #miraculous fandom #story #writing

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Another great golden tiger piece thanks again to sinizade for her hard work as always love this ship

#chloe bourgeois #miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #juleka couffaine #miraculous fandom #chloleka

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In a new skin chapter 7

Chloe blinked at the snake, confused by what it could mean before the scrolls magically unfurled in the jackal-headed man’s hands and he began to speak.

“Lords Anubis and Set have both requested your service in retrieving an urn of great value that has recently been unveiled in the Louvre. Each makes a claim upon it and it shall be your choice to whom I deliver it. Both have made the request that this task be completed with all due haste but also advise caution when handling the urn.”

The jackal-headed mans’ voice was deep and booming, commanding the attention of all who heard it. As the jackal handed her the scrolls, she got the feeling something was bothering him but she couldn’t figure out what before he bowed respectfully, dropping to one knee with a fist pressed to the floor. “You have my condolences for this first task, Serpent of Truth.”

"It's alright, Great Messenger, I know you had nothing to do with this, though I wish we had more time to acclimate with our new user before performing a task," Naje said with a sigh while Haje hissed in annoyance. Chloe herself was a bit lost.

"I get that I have to retrieve this urn, but what's so bad about picking who I have to give it to?" Chloe asked as she looked at the scrolls and found the same depiction of the urn on each one. She wasn’t thrilled about the idea of breaking into the Louvre but stealing a pot made her a lot less nervous than some of the things Naje and Haje had implied she’d have to.

"Well Chloe, think of it like this: only one can get the urn so whichever God you choose will be happy and the other will be royally upset, and the two gods are lords of the underworld, and chaos and war, respectively," Haje replied.

"Plus one works with our Father so it won't be good either way," Naje hissed softly, almost to himself before they both looked up to the messenger.

"Thank you for delivering these, Great Messenger. We will bring you the urn as fast as the fates allow us," Haje said, bowing his head to which the messenger nodded before rising. He turned and left with a mighty leap from the roof and quickly faded into the shadows of the night. Chloe tried to track where he went but it was almost as if he hadn't existed in the first place, making Chloe huff and look to the snakes.

"So I guess it's time I transform into my hero look, right?" Chloe asked, unable to help feeling an icy lump of dread at the idea of becoming a hero again. She had already messed that up once and here she was, about to walk down that path all over again. Terror gripped at her and it wasn't until Haje spoke that she felt anything but fear.

"It is not a hero look, you are a Champion and these are your divine vestments, but yes, it is time to transform. To do so you say, ‘Truth be Judged’ with intent, otherwise you will not activate the magic,” Haje explained. Chloe blinked at the odd phrase but nodded before looking at the ring.

"Truth be Judged!"

In an instant there was a flash of golden light and Chloe could feel her clothes change as strength coursed throughout her body. Her senses heightened until she was on the brink of a sensory overload but then it was done, and as her eyes adjusted she felt oddly relaxed. Nothing had gone wrong and she wasn't hurt. It wasn't until she saw her reflection in the glass that she had a small freak out.

“What am I wearing?!" Her outfit was insane. It looked nothing like a hero and more like something an exotic belly dancer or stripper would wear. Her stomach was exposed along with a wildly inappropriate amount of skin, though she found herself wincing at the sight of the scars across her abdomen. Once she was finally able to tear her eyes away from them and take in the rest of her outfit, she gawked even more. Her chest was wrapped in a magenta crop top that separated her breasts. She wore a half skirt of a deep purple with several other sashes and leather straps tied around her waist. What armor she did wear didn’t seem all that protective, leather bracers and pauldrons, with knee high sandals that could barely be called greaves. A hood and serpentine half-mask covered her face, for which she was grateful, she would not want to be recognized wearing this.

“I can't go out like this, even if it is night!" Chloe protested.

"But this is the traditional garb of the Serpent Numinous and besides, it's a symbol of strength and truth," Naje said as Chloe checked the rest of her costume and found a sword at her hip. "That is your khopesh, you can lace it with your poisons when fighting so even non lethal blows can kill your opponent or disable them.”

Chloe's eyes widened at the idea of cutting someone down with a sword and it made her stomach lurch so she pushed the thought from her head.

"What do you mean poisons?" she asked to help distract herself.

"Amongst our abilities that you have access to, besides the ability of Allocation, which you used to save Rose, there is also the ability to use poisons,” Haje began to explain. “One for each of our fangs, to be precise. There are two for each hand. The non-lethal on the right hand and the lethal on the left hand. To use them you just need to think of them with intent and press the corresponding fingers together.”

“Ok, uhm, tell me more about the non-lethal poisons, because no offense, I don't feel like getting myself a body count today, or well, ever,” Chloe said as she did her best to remain calm as she examined her hands as if they had just turned into snakes.

“Oh that's simple, press your index and middle fingers together to create a paralyzing poison. It makes anyone struck with it unable to move or do anything until you either dismiss it or they answer three questions honestly. Otherwise it will last until the next sunrise or sunset,” Naje said as he seemed to puff out his chest. “It is my poison after all.”

“The other one in the ring and pinky fingers causes intense pain throughout the body unless the afflicted chooses to be honest. The more truths they speak the more the pain fades,” Haje said. “However, the more they lie the worse the pain grows until they will wish for death.”

“Ok, I know I’ll regret this but what about the lethal options,” Chloe asked as she examined her fingers closely.

“Well the first and most famous one is one that ignites like our great Father. It is the poison of Burning Flames that devours entirely,” both said with pride. “While the other is the more merciful Final Judgment. When used they see their heart weighed against the feather and if they are beyond saving then they will be devoured by Ammit immediately, disappearing from the Mortal world.”

Those words were spoken so calmly and joyfully that she almost thought it was a joke, but knew that wasn't the case.

“Ok, note to self, not using those on anyone,” Chloe said as she began walking out to the patio, gazing at the roof across from Le Grand Paris.

“Let’s get this started,” she said before taking a deep breath and breaking into a run. Chloe almost shocked herself with how fast she moved and nearly slammed into the railing before managing to leap with a yelp. She soared through the air, momentarily experiencing that thrill of power that she had become addicted to as Queen Bee before crashing into the other roof like a thrown rock.

“Ow,” she moaned as she got up. Despite how much it hurt, she was glad for the pain, it was a reminder of why she didn’t want any of this in the first place and curbed the rush she had felt as she flew through the air. She adjusted her outfit and looked to the next roof, taking a moment to think before she started running again. This time she managed to jump and land without trying to turn herself into a smear. She continued on like this for a bit, each time growing a little more accustomed to this new strength, until finally her destination came into sight. She stopped, looking down onto the plaza of the Louvre.

“Now for the tough part, how to get in without setting off any alarms?” Chloe asked herself. It shouldn’t be that hard, she recalled there being dozens of incidents at the Louvre throughout her time in school, though most of those had taken place during the day, if she recalled correctly. Racking her brain for ideas turned up nothing so Chloe decided that maybe subtlety wasn’t that important.

She leapt onto the roof of the Louvre and began inspecting roof access doors and vents before finding an air duct that looked big enough. She was still amazed by her newfound strength as she pried the cover off the duct and slipped inside. It was a little tricky with the sword at her side but she managed to slide down the shaft without making too much noise and began traversing the ventilation system until she found herself close to the Egyptian section.

She pried another grate open, more carefully this time, and slipped through the opening before dropping to the ground with hardly a sound. She padded cautiously the rest of the way, praying she didn’t trip any alarms as she went, the fewer people she had to deal with, the better.

As she reached the Egyptian wing of the museum, she began scanning the exhibits for one that matched the depiction from the scrolls and finally spotted her target. Unfortunately, it was in a glass case and she knew there was no way she’d be able to get it out without setting off an alarm.

“Use the power of Allocation,” Haje said suddenly, making Chloe nearly jump out of her skin as the snake suddenly manifested beside her.

“Don’t do that!” Chloe hissed as her heart hammered in her chest. After a couple of deep breaths she managed to ask, “What is this Allocation power? You mentioned it before.”

“You have the ability to move people or objects if you focus hard enough. You saved that Rose girl without even knowing you could. Focus on the urn and will it to you and it will pass through the glass as if it wasn’t there,” Naje said.

“Ok, here goes nothing,” Chloe said as she braced her feet and held out her hands. She was grateful for the mask because it hid the ridiculous face she was making as she furrowed her brow and wrinkled her nose with concentration. She tried to push every distracting thought from her head, as difficult as that was at the moment, until she began to feel a throbbing in the back of her head that started to spread down her neck. Chloe could feel sweat trickling down all over her exposed body as she strained with the desire to make the urn move.

Chloe was starting to feel ridiculous and the throbbing was starting to hurt when she blinked and in that instant, the urn was gone from the case. Chloe started and just barely noticed motion above her before she reflexively dove forward to catch the suddenly falling urn. She managed to just catch it in time but her momentum carried her forward until she collided with the now empty case and sent it toppling over.

The smashing of glass made her wince and the blaring ring of an alarm nearly made her drop the urn. Panic filled her as she looked up at the vent and realized there was no way she’d be able to get the urn out that way, even if she hadn’t triggered the alarm. Just as she was about to break into a frenzied run in a random direction, it dawned on her that all she needed to do was get outside, only two people in all of Paris could keep up with her and her roof-hopping strength.

Chloe bolted for the nearest exit, catching glimpses of security guards running towards the source of the alarm only for them to jump back startledly as she zipped past them. She kicked open the doors of the museum, nearly taking them off their hinges before she was out in the cool night air.

Chloe was smiling to herself as she ran from the Louvre, holding the urn under her arm. She had done pretty well for her first mission, all things considered. She felt good about this task, mistakes and all, and once she handed the urn over to that jackal guy, she might just ask Jean for a late night snack to celebrate.

“Hey, Naje, Haje, not too bad for my first time, right?” she called out with a laugh as she took to the rooftops. She had just started to let herself feel excited about this strange new direction her life was taking when a figure landed in front of her, stopping her dead in her tracks and killing any hope that may have been flourishing in her.

“That’s far enough, umm…” Ladybug trailed off as she looked at Chloe with a mix of confusion and something Chloe couldn’t quite pick out. “Snake lady. I don’t know why that urn is important or why you were akumatized-” Before Ladybug could finish, Chloe rushed her, causing her to jump out of the way.

“Sorry,” Chloe called back as she darted past and jumped to another roof. “I’m not akumatized, and I don’t want to fight you. I’ve got something important to do,” Chloe shouted as she ran, hoping that would be enough but knew better as a yoyo flew past her and wrapped around a chimney. A swift kick in the back took her by surprise and sent her sprawling on the ground and the urn sliding across the roof.

“Yeah, theft is real important. What does Hawkmoth want with the urn, snake lady?” Ladybug asked as she interposed herself between Chloe and the urn.

Chloe huffed as she leapt to her feet and raised her hands in a fighting stance. She didn’t want to fight Ladybug but it was looking like she’d have no choice.

“Hawkmoth has nothing to do with this! I’m just taking the urn back to its rightful owner,” Chloe said earnestly, almost pleadingly. A sour lump was forming in her gut as she tensed in preparation for a fight.

“If you’re not with Hawkmoth, who are you? A Miraculous user?” Ladybug asked as she raised hands in a fighting posture, ready to strike. Chloe could hear Naje and Haje hiss in anger at that.

“No, I’m the Judge of Truth and wielder of the Serpent Numinous,” Chloe declared with as much confidence as she could muster while dropping her hands to her side. It was a risk, but despite everything that had happened to Chloe, she still had faith in Ladybug.

Which was why Ladybug lunging caught her completely off guard. Ladybug leapt over Chloe and Chloe’s feet were swept out from under her. By the time Chloe hit the rooftop, Ladybug had grabbed her arm and twisted it behind her back.

“I don’t know what any of that means, but I do know that you can’t just steal artifacts from the Louvre, no matter who they might belong to,” Ladybug said as she began to reach for her yoyo to tie Chloe up.

“Use one of the poisons,” Haje whispered in her ear.

“Punish this interloper,” Naje whispered in the other.

“No!” Chloe shouted at the snakes, startling Ladybug. "Stop! I don't want to fight you!” Chloe yelled as she turned her attention to Ladybug. “I just want to get the urn back!”

Chloe grunted as she began struggling against Ladybug and surprised them both as she began to push herself up with her other arm. She managed to get enough leverage to roll onto her back, forcing Ladybug to let go. Chloe scrambled to her feet and looked over her shoulder to see she had the urn to her back.

“Who wants the urn then? If you don’t work for Hawkmoth then you should be able to tell me that,” Ladybug demanded.

“Two Egyptian gods,” Chloe said and immediately regretted it. Even with the existence of the Miraculous, she knew that sounded like a ridiculous claim and judging from the frown on Ladybug’s face, the bug-themed hero agreed.

“If you don’t believe me then come with me to meet the jackal-headed messenger they sent,” Chloe offered even as she knew it wouldn’t help make her case.

“If you’re not akumatized then I bet that jackal-headed man is. Hawkmoth must have made a really powerful one this time,” Ladybug said as she twirled her yoyo.

“Why won’t you listen to me?” Chloe snapped angrily. She felt a stabbing hunger pain and realized she must be nearing the limit of her transformation time. She needed to end this quickly.

Chloe began to back up, hiding her right hand behind her back as she held her index and middle fingers together. She focused her desire and felt energy coursing through her digits as it felt like every muscle in her body coiled with the urge to strike.

Ladybug didn’t disappoint this time as she hurled the yoyo and charged an instant later. Chloe spun with an artful ballet twirl, dodging the yoyo as she brought her right hand around and jabbed Ladybug in the ribs. Ladybug jerked and collapsed stiffly, her arm extended in a punch.

“Please be ok, please be ok,” Chloe whispered as she knelt beside Ladybug and checked for a pulse. She nearly collapsed fully with relief as she heard Ladybug breathing. Chloe slowly turned to face the urn and felt her breath hitch.

Ladybug’s yoyo had smashed the urn when it missed Chloe and Chloe had been too focused on Ladybug to notice. Now, the sand that had been contained within the urn began to shift and swirl, spiraling upwards even though there was no wind carrying it. As it grew into a small sandstorm, laughter filled the air, laughter that just seemed…wrong.

A twisted skeleton began to emerge from the twister of sand and at that, Chloe lost her focus and Ladybug collapsed beside her, groaning softly. Chloe paid her no mind as flesh began to coalesce along the skeleton.

“What is that?” Chloe asked, horrified by the sight of skin restitching its way across the body.

“A sand wraith,” Haje hissed.

“A demon and a vicious murderer, whose crimes also include attacks on both Set and Anubis,” Naje growled. “You must act quickly and destroy him before he can get his bearings!”

Chloe tensed and just as she was about to leap forward, the sand wraith turned his eyes on her. His face was that of a ruggedly handsome Middle Eastern man with a strong nose profile, but those eyes were pits of hatred and malice that shot ice down her spine.

The sandstorm subsided and he stepped forward, dressed in a knee length skirt, half shirt and sandals. He regarded Chloe and Ladybug curiously, tilting his head like they were strange insects.

“A Miraculous and a Numinous? What a fantastic warm up before I take Anubis and Set’s heads,” he said as he smiled, baring teeth that were all fangs.

Chloe was frozen with fear no matter what Haje and Naje shouted in her head and then she was being yanked into the air and the sand wraith snarled in dismay. It took Chloe a moment to realize that Ladybug had grabbed her and swung them both away. They landed in an alley several streets away, hiding behind a dumpster.

They sat there in silence for a moment, both panting heavily.

“Wha-?” Ladybug started to ask before Chloe rounded on her, tears streaming down her face beneath her mask.

“Do you feel like a hero now, Marinette?!” Chloe shouted. She knew she shouldn’t be saying something like that so loud but she couldn’t help it anymore.

“How do you know my na-?” Ladybug tried to ask as her mouth fell open but Chloe shouted over her.

“I was trying to do something good and you just couldn’t let me! Well, do you feel good now? All of Paris is in danger from that thing now and it’s your fault!” Chloe said as she jabbed Ladybug in the chest.

Ladybug stared in shock before giving herself a shake.

“I don’t know who you are or how you know what you know, but…you’re right. It is my fault, so how can I help fix this?”

Chloe hated that Ladybug was able to compartmentalize so well, but that’s probably part of what made Marinette such a great hero in the first place. She took a calming breath and thought to Haje and Naje, ‘How do we stop the sand wraith?’

Chloe and Marinette jumped as the snake manifested between.

“What is that?!” Marinette shouted as she leapt back.

“My Numinous, Haje and Naje,” Chloe said quickly.

“Hello, Ladybug wielder,” Naje said.

“Is Tiki well?” Haje asked.

“You know-?” Marinette started to ask before giving herself a shake. “You know what? Nevermind. Do you know how to defeat that monster?”

“The gods sealed him away after his attacks on Anubis and Set, but I doubt we’ll be able to find the ingredients to create a sealing spell or another vase inscribed with the proper runes,” Haje said.

“You will have to destroy him,” Naje said.

“Destroy?” Marinette said, aghast. “I don’t care how much of a monster this thing is, I don’t kill.”

“Then prepare to watch Paris turn to ashes,” the snakes said in unison.

“How do we kill it?” Chloe asked, ignoring the look Marinette shot her.

“The poison of Burning Flame, it will consume him entirely. None of the others will have any effect on him,” Haje said.

“And I’m sure he’ll just let me hit him,” Chloe said sarcastically. “If he’s strong enough to fight gods, how are we supposed to get close enough to take him out without getting murdered?”

“Wait, before we resort to that, there might be another way,” Marinette said as she took her yoyo and threw it over her head. “Lucky charm!” she shouted as a swarm of ladybugs appeared and dropped something out of the air.

They all stared at the red and black polka-dotted bucket in Marinette’s hands.

“Please don’t tell me we’re just going to put that on his head,” Chloe said as she crossed her arms.

“Actually…” Marinette said as she looked between the bucket and Chloe, “tell me more about this Burning Flame stuff.”

***

The sand wraith’s laughter filled the night air as he floated over the streets of Paris. Police cars formed barricades as officers aimed weapons at him.

“How can such pathetic little creatures hope to hurt the likes of me?” he called out contemptuously. “Honestly, I’m doing the gods a favor by wiping out their playthings before I come for them.”

He raised his right hand and sand began to swirl around his open palm. The swirling intensified until he was pointing a cone of grinding granules that he shot at a police car. The officer behind it threw himself out of the way barely in time as the vehicle was torn to shreds.

Gunfire rang out after that but every shot that pierced him was ground to dust before they could exit his body.

“Is that the best you can do?” he shouted, angry at the lack of a challenge.

“How about this?” a voice called out, causing the sand wraith to turn as Chloe leapt from a nearby rooftop. Her khopesh sang as she swung it with all her might but it found no purchase as the sand wraith twisted away. Chloe skidded as she hit the street and spun quickly to face him.

“Ah, little snake, I was hoping you would show yourself again. I will enjoy breaking you and consuming your Numinous’s essence,” the sand wraith said as he floated down to street level.

Chloe leveled her blade at him, gripping it hard to keep her hands from trembling. Even with her enhanced abilities, she knew she was no match for him and hoped she could just keep him at arm’s length. It wasn’t just fear that had her trembling though, hunger had her feeling practically hollow. Being transformed for this long was incredibly taxing.

The sand wraith lunged forward, clearing the distance between them in the blink of an eye and Chloe felt sand scratch along the part of her cheek that was exposed as his hand came terrifyingly close to taking her head. She swung wildly, forcing him to jump away and used the momentum of her swing to plant the tip of her blade into the ground so she could vault away, putting more distance between them.

“You fight like a novice,” the sand wraith called out as he began to gather sand in both hands. “Is this your first time wearing that armor? If so, then it shall also be your last!”

Chloe’s eyes widened as he raised both hands towards her and she dashed for a car parked on the street. The force of the attack knocked her off her feet but also carried her behind the car, saving her from the worst of it. Despite that, several spots on her arms and legs were red and raw from where sand had stripped several layers of skin.

The car was gone and the sand wraith casually strolled up to her through where it had once stood. He placed a sandaled foot on Chloe’s left wrist with enough pressure that she was sure her bones would snap any second now. It also thoroughly kept her from reaching for her khopesh.

“Your fatal poisons are in your left hand if I remember correctly,” the sand wraith mused more to himself. “If I’m careful, I’ll be able to keep your skeleton as a trophy.” He held his hand over Chloe’s face as sand began to gather in his palm.

“Now!” another voice shouted and Chloe grimaced as she kicked off the pavement to strike the sand wraith in the back, knocking him forward. She screamed as he still managed to drive his foot down on her wrist, snapping it with ease. She clutched her hand to her chest as she rolled away.

The sand wraith was picking himself up with a snarl on his face as Marinette landed in front of him with a steaming bucket. Realization dawned on his face as Marinette swung the bucket, sending its content spraying in an arc. Water splashed across the sand wraith and he screamed as everywhere it made contact suddenly burst into flame.

Sand exploded from his body in every direction as he tried to smother the flames but they burned even brighter and he slowly began to crystallize as the heat melted the sand into glass. He turned a baleful eye on Chloe and Marinette and tried to direct one last scouring strike of sand at them but it petered out, leaving him to glare as molten glass dripped from his burning form.

“I won’t let it end here!” he roared as he forced himself to take one step and then another, the heat from his body making Marinette shield her face with a hand she stood protectively over Chloe. He reached out a burning hand for them but it stopped inches from Marinette as the poison finished its work. Where there had been a sand wraith now stood a terrifying piece of glass work that looked like a man trapped within a whirlwind.

Marinette and Chloe were both panting and then Marinette turned to help Chloe up. Chloe still held her broken wrist tenderly and winced as she made it to her feet.

“So what now?” Marinette asked as they looked at the remains of the sand wraith.

“Is this the part where you fix everything?” Chloe asked as she tried not to groan in pain.

“Oh, right,” Marinette said with a nervous chuckle. “It’s odd doing this without having stopped an akuma,” she said before tossing the bucket into the air.

“Miraculous Ladybug!” she shouted as the bucket transformed into a swarm of ladybugs that scattered across the city, repairing all the damage that had been caused.

Marinette smiled as she turned to face Chloe, only to frown as Chloe still clutched her wrist.

“Wait, why didn’t that fix your arm? We need to get you to a hospital,” Marinette said as she stepped closer only to have Haje and Naje interject themselves between the two girls.

“Numinous magic and Miraculous magic do not mix,” Haje said.

“Do not worry though, the damage will be repaired quickly enough,” Naje added. “Ladybug wielder, we request a favor. Take us back to the rooftop where the urn was broken.”

Marinette was aware of her earrings beeping but since this person before her already knew her secret identity that seemed less of an issue at the moment. With a nod from Chloe, Marinette picked her up and swung them away with her yoyo.

It didn’t take long for them to land back on the rooftop of their fight and they found the urn, unsmashed.

“Excellent, this mission is salvageable,” Haje whispered in Chloe’s ear as Marinette set her down.

Chloe stepped towards the urn and then stopped. Her good hand rose to the mask covering her face and she turned back to Marinette.

“What are you doing?!” Naje asked angrily as Chloe pushed the mask up.

“Chloe?!” Marinette gasped, stepping back as if she’d been struck. “What?! Why?! How?!”

“I still don’t have all the answers myself,” Chloe said as she turned back to the urn and picked it up with her good hand. “But I didn’t think it was fair that I knew who you were and I want you to be able to trust me when I tell you to stay out of my way in the future.”

“But…but…” Marinette stammered, at a loss for words.

“I’m sure Tiki will have plenty to say about this when you get back home,” Chloe said as she walked to the edge of the roof. “Goodnight, Ladybug. Thanks for your help.”

“Wait!” Marinette called out, stopping Chloe from jumping away. “What do I call you…in case we do meet again?”

Chloe paused, unsure herself until Haje whispered in her ear, making her tilt her head.

“You can call me Matasp, but I think it would be better if we don’t,” Chloe said before jumping away, being careful not to jostle her broken wrist too much.

***

As Chloe landed on her patio at the Le Grand Paris, she found herself bone tired and barely able to hold on to the urn. Fortunately, the jackal-headed messenger was waiting for her and stepped forward to take the urn from her hand.

“Excellent work, Serpent of Truth. Now who shall I bring this to?”

Chloe groaned at the fact that the job still wasn’t over and that she had no idea which of the two should get the urn, especially now that it was empty of its demonic content.

“Actually, we have a thought about that,” Haje said, though Naje seemed to be in a mood since he refused to look at her.

“Ok, but first, what’s his problem?” Chloe asked, nodding towards Naje.

“You revealed yourself to a Miraculous wielder!” Naje hissed. “What if you must one day bring her down? You have given away a critical advantage!”

Chloe’s eyebrow twitched as the urge to go off on Naje nearly overwhelmed her exhaustion, but a twinge of pain in her broken wrist smothered her anger and made her grimace. She let out a long breath and turned to Haje.

“What did you have in mind?” she asked.

“Lord Anubis likely wanted the urn so he could deal with the sand wraith once and for all. With that accomplished, I think he will be pleased regardless of its return. Set is…capricious by nature, and offending him risks a multitude of problems. Since the urn’s return was the only thing specified in the requests, we,” Haje paused to shoot Naje a look as the other head continued to sulk, “recommend giving the urn to Set.”

“Sounds good to me,” Chloe said as she fought back a yawn. She turned to the messenger and tried to sound more assertive, “Deliver the urn to Se-, I mean Lord Set.”

The messenger bowed his head, “It will be done. Farewell, Serpent, and may the gods grant you fair favors.”

With that the tall figure once more ran off into the night, the urn clutched tightly to his broad chest. If Chloe had been in better shape, she might have been a little sad to see him go, but as it was, her bed was calling to her and she dragged her feet towards it. She pushed her mask off before collapsing face first into her pillow and was asleep almost instantly.

Edited and co-written by GrayNeko

#chloe bourgeois #story #fanfic #miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #juleka couffaine #writing #miraculous fandom #miraculous marinette #marinette dupain cheng

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In a new skin chapter 6

Chloe was sitting in the family limo, quiet but not because she was on her phone, which was held unnoticed in her hand. Her mind was focused on the dream she had had and what it could have meant. She remembered Roman and how despite having heard everything about what she had done, he had still offered her kindness. She sighed, annoyed by the constant reminders of her past but despite that couldn’t deny a tiny sense of happiness at the memory of someone she had considered a real friend.

"Naje?" Chloe asked as she watched the building pass by.

"Yes Chloe?" The snake’s voice was groggy as it raised its head from where it was resting at her feet. It turned out only one head was a morning person, or snake, which made her giggle. "What do you need?"

"That dream, it was real right? It was my memory of my past life?" Chloe asked cautiously, daring not to hope. She was still secretly terrified this was all a hallucination of her dying mind.

"Yes, it was. You will receive more like it over time. Some may not be in order and there is no telling when the next one will happen. Your next dream might be a week, a month, or even a year from now," Naje said before yawning. "Eventually, you will be made whole again.

Chloe smiled and nodded before reaching down, pretending to adjust her shoes while stroking the sleepy head before letting the ring touch them. They faded from sight, their essence returning to the ring as the limo pulled up to the school. She exited the limo with a nod to Jean and found Sabrina hurrying to greet her.

Sabrina fell in beside her wordlessly and they began to make their way up the steps. Chloe felt a moment of awkwardness because she really wasn’t sure what to say to Sabrina. Most of their friendship had been dictated by Chloe and it made her realize that if she wasn’t bossing Sabrina around, they rarely had real conversations. It was definitely an issue that she would need to address but with so much already on her plate, Chloe decided to let things carry on as usual for now. In fact, everything seemed rather normal until Alix waved as she passed them.

“Morning Chloe. Morning Sabrina,” the diminutive redhead called as she sped up the steps.

Sabrina’s hand was half raised before she glanced up at Chloe to see if a scathing response was imminent and blinked as Chloe returned the wave. Chloe didn’t pay the greeting much attention but then Kim raced past them.

“Good morning ladies! Chloe, digging the new look! Didn’t get a chance to say anything yesterday,” Kim said as he jogged up the steps backwards, always trying to impress everyone with his athleticism.

Chloe could feel Sabrina’s eyes on her, expecting an explosive diatribe about how Kim wasn’t worthy enough to even look in her direction but Chloe was more confused than irritated. Were people being uncharacteristically nice to her? She glanced around, seeing people glance at her before or after glancing at their phones. What was that about?

Chloe considered marching over and demanding to know what was going on, but before she could even dismiss the idea as something only the old her would do, Rose came bounding up the steps with Juleka trailing after her.

“Good morning, Chloe!” Rose said as she threw her arms around Chloe.

Chloe had managed to get her arms up in time to keep from being pinned and she gently gripped Rose’s shoulders to ease the jubilant girl off her.

“Morning, Rose, Juleka,” Chloe said, keenly aware that Sabrina was gawking beside her. “How are you both?”

“Great!” Rose said.

“Good,” Juleka managed to say barely above a whisper.

“People have been commenting on that picture you took of us yesterday!” Rose went on. “They really like it!”

“Picture?” Sabrina asked.

Rose let go of Chloe to produce her phone and show Sabrina the photos. Chloe couldn’t read the emotions playing across Sabrina’s face as she examined the pictures but from the way Sabrina’s face scrunched up, she wasn’t exactly thrilled.

“Thanks again, Chloe!” Rose said as she and Juleka continued up the stairs, leaving Chloe and Sabrina in a growing silence.

“You went to hang out with them yesterday?” Sabrina finally asked and Chloe couldn’t miss the hurt in her voice.

“I made a promise,” Chloe said, “and I always keep my promises.”

Hoping that would be enough to pacify Sabrina for the moment, Chloe pushed on and deposited her things in her locker before heading to homeroom. The moment she got in the door, Chloe found herself confronted with another problem.

Marinette was glaring at her the second she crossed the threshold and it nearly froze Chloe in her tracks. It had been shocking enough to learn her greatest nuisance and her greatest hero were one in the same the first time, and it still shook her to her core every time she saw either of them. She made her way to her seat and tried to ignore Marinette’s staring, but it eventually began to feel like there was a hole being bored into the back of her head.

“What is it?” Chloe finally said as she spun to face Marinette.

Marinette rose from her seat and came down to Chloe’s worktable, leaning on it so their faces were only inches apart.

“I don’t know what you’re planning, but whatever your scheme is with Rose and Juleka, call it off now,” Marinette said softly and sternly.

“What?” Chloe asked, genuinely baffled.

“If this is some drawn out plan to humiliate or embarrass them, stop it now,” Marinette said as she held up her phone displaying the picture of Rose and Juleka. Marinette had her jaw set firmly as she tried to look imposing.

The old Chloe would have screamed and shouted, she would have made threats and come up with a hundred different ways to get revenge, but that Chloe was gone. Instead, Chloe looked calmly up at Marinette, which caught Marinette so off guard she flinched even though Chloe hadn’t done anything yet.

“You know, Ladybug would be really disappointed in how you’re behaving,” Chloe said before turning to face the front of the class.

Chloe felt Marinette’s presence vanish and couldn’t resist a small smile as class began.

***

Chloe took a deep breath as the bell rang, signaling the end of school. She had asked both Sabrina and Adrien if she could speak with them after the bell and now that the moment had come, she was terrified. Part of it was the fact that Haje and Naje had informed her she couldn’t lie, which could make things very awkward if the wrong question was asked. The other part was that honest conversations were just plain terrifying.

As the rest of class left, Marinette was still watching Chloe as she made her exit. Chloe hoped she would stay, even Marinette’s presence would have been encouraging.

A soft voice spoke in her ear, “Do not worry, we are here for you.”

Even though she had only just met them and still had no real idea what their presence in her life would entail, Naje and Haje’s voices speaking in unison made Chloe smile as she nodded. She stood and looked to both Adrien and Sabrina who were still in the class. They joined her by the window overlooking the street, both looking at her curiously as she stared at people walking along the sidewalk.

“So what did you want to talk about Chloe?” Adrien asked with his usual kind smile. Somehow it both hurt and calmed her.

“Well first, I’d like to thank both of you,” Chloe said with a soft smile as she turned to face both of them. Expectedly, they were both confused by her words so she took a deep breath and pressed on. “I know I'm not the easiest person to be around. I know I’m definitely not the nicest or calmest or really anything besides spoiled, aggressive, and irritating. I’m easily upset, and oh, can’t forget my need to show how I’m better than everyone. That’s definitely not easy to suffer through,” Chloe went on before stopping to take a shuddering breath. Her hands were balled into tight fists behind her back as she recalled how she used to be and how much regret and hate she had for her past.

‘Damn it, I wish Roman was here.’ Chloe blinked, confused by why she was suddenly thinking about him.

“Chloe, are you ok?” Adrien asked, his brow furrowing worriedly.

Chloe hated making him worry, especially as she thought about what Adrien was going through at this point in his life, something she had never been considerate of throughout their friendship. Chloe nodded and sighed.

“Yeah, I’m just trying to do better and that means first I need to do right by the two people who have been my friends for as long as I can remember,” she said, looking from one to the other, holding up her hands as they tried to speak.

“Don’t try to say I have been a good friend, because we all know I haven’t been, not by a long shot. Starting now, I’m going to correct that.” She managed a smile for both of them and bowed her head to them. “I’m sorry from the bottom of my heart. Sabrina, you’ve been a great friend who put up with so much when you should have just left me to rot for how I treated you. I don’t deserve you as a friend.

“Adrien, you were my first friend when I was little. You’ve never judged me for how I behaved and have always given me the benefit of the doubt. Thank you for that.”

Chloe felt a lump form in her throat and had to swallow before she could continue, “If you both want to stop being my friend, I understand. I can’t lie and say that it wouldn’t hurt, but I would understand.”

Chloe kept her head bowed as her eyes grew blurry from holding back tears. It became harder to not look up as the silence went on but at the same time she feared looking them in the eyes. She didn’t realize she was shaking until a hand landed on her shoulder, trying to get her to stand up straight. She found Adrien smiling with his usual confidence, reassurance radiating off of him while Sabrina looked like she was on the verge of tears herself.

“I’m sorry-” Chloe tried to go on before Sabrina leapt on her, hugging her and crying. Chloe froze for a moment and then melted into the embrace, hugging her back. They wept into each other’s shoulders before Adrien’s arms enveloped them both as he joined the hug. For a long moment there was just crying and reassuring pats before Chloe finally broke from the hug.

“Oh Chloe, apology accepted! You don’t have to worry, we’ll always be best friends!” Sabrina said as her smile nearly split her face.

Adrien nodded in agreement but before Chloe could say anything Adrien said, “But I do think it’s unfair you got a picture with Juleka and Rose before taking one with us.” He held up his phone with a teasing smirk, “So why don’t we make it even?”

***

Chloe entered her room, falling back against the door until it shut and then slumping down to the floor feeling more physically and emotionally exhausted than she would have ever thought possible. Despite that, she smiled widely as she thought about the day.

“The first step is always the toughest,” Chloe said with a huff, quoting what she had always told her students before she heard the hiss of Naje and Haje as they slithered up her arm.

“Every step is hard, Chloe, but also rewarding, and today you had the reward of acceptance,” Haje said, resting his head on her shoulder.

“Now for our reward, I say we eat and this time something with meat. Fruit is nice but doesn't compare,” Naje said with a hiss.

Chloe giggled and nodded before asking Jean for dinner, a big one that she enjoyed. There was something about her increased appetite that wiggled something in the back of her mind, a memory that she couldn’t fully recall. Before she could focus too much on it she became distracted by the movie she had let Naje and Haje choose.

They had picked a movie called “The Predator”, which sounded like a documentary about animals and boy, Chloe could not have been more wrong. The last thing she expected to see was a bunch of men built like they could snap someone in two, and she most definitely didn't expect to see an alien just as built hunt them down gruesomely, and worst of all, she didn't expect to enjoy it so much. There was something particularly thrilling about it all, especially watching Dutch fight the alien shirtless at the end.

“Is it wrong I hope there are more movies with him?” Chloe said to herself as she ate a bite of her dinner, which was two dishes she picked personally based on a craving from a memory, a potpie and the other dish called meatloaf. Jean had gasped in horror when she insisted on both dishes but she didn’t mind as she savored both dishes during the movie.

“Which one, the man or the alien trying to kill him?” Naje asked, eating the a piece of meatloaf.

Chloe hummed to herself as she smiled softly, “Why not both?” Chloe had said it as a joke but also thought more movies about the alien might be nice. They finished the movie and started another, which was a documentary on animals. Chloe laid on the couch to enjoy the documentary with the snake curled against while she digested her meal.

Chloe lost track of time until she heard something tapping on glass, which instantly filled her with a sense of unease. When she checked the time it was nearly midnight and she gulped as the tapping continued. She sat up slowly, looking towards where the sound was coming from and it wasn’t until the moon came out from behind a cloud that she saw a tall figure at the window.

“Oh shit,” Chloe hissed as she ducked back down. Naje, Haje, there’s an intruder,” Chloe whispered. Both heads tilted in opposite directions curiously before slithering up the back of the couch to look at what it was.

“It’s not an intruder, it’s a messenger. It seems it is time for your first task,” Naje said.

“Sooner than we would have liked,” Haje grumbled before shaking his head. “We should go greet them,” he added.

Chloe looked at them worriedly before getting up, picking them up as she did and heading to go greet the messenger. As she got closer she realized just how tall the messenger was and that he wasn't exactly human. Sure, being seven feet tall was impressive but having the head of a jackal was definitely something new. At the same time, Chloe got a good look at the creature’s impressive physique and couldn’t help thinking back to the alien in the movie.

“No need to worry, the first task is normally simple.”

Chloe took their word for it as she opened the door to the rooftop patio. The jackal headed man stared down at her, its gaze sharp and its canines showing. It held out both of its hands and opened them, revealing two scrolls, each carrying a different symbol on them. She heard a sharp intake from the snakes before they sighed.

“Scratch that, it seems your first task will not be easy. Not by a long shot."

Edited and co-written by GrayNeko

#story #fanfic #miraculous fandom #miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #chloe bourgeois #juleka couffaine

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In a new skin chapter 5

It felt like every inch of Chloe’s body was sore from sitting in a plane all day but she would have preferred going through another all day flight than finally facing the end of her journey as the sign for it being safe to leave the plane turned on. She sighed as she undid her belt and stood up to grab her bag before making her way off the plane towards her new start.

When Chloe disembarked from the plane she saw all the signs welcoming people, but Chloe couldn't bring herself to care as she made her way towards the exit where she had been told someone was waiting to pick her up. As she made her way through the airport she couldn't help but feel a small sense of relief from being here and not in Paris anymore. She no longer felt the stares or the judgment for what she did as she stepped onto an escalator that took her down to the ground floor. She wondered if anyone would miss her or be happy she was gone but she just decided to push that thought from her head. She had messed up too much to be forgiven.

Once she reached the bottom she saw multiple people holding signs up with names, though none of them had her name. She continued towards the exit and it was there she saw a new sign.

“What the-?" Chloe said to herself as her brows furrowed and her hands tightened into fists.

The sign was being held by a man in a cowboy hat that clashed with his high end business suit and read: Welcome to America, Parisian Exile

Chloe felt her eye twitch at the mocking sign, her ire growing as she walked over and he smiled like a fool at her.

"I take it you're my new problem?" he spoke with a carefree and humorous tone and a thick Southern accent as he tipped his cowboy hat to her. "Don't worry, the jokes will get better from here on out, Miss Bourgeois, but for now-"

"How do you know I'm Miss Bourgeois?" Chloe asked, mainly to spite him or hopefully throw him off his game since he started it.

"Well you’re blonde, you're dressed like someone fleeing from her home, and most importantly you look just like the several pictures from the news that I was given just in case. I didn't care enough to listen to the debrief on you." His grin widened as he continued to tease her, "Plus if it weren't you, this sign wouldn't have hurt your fragile pride so much."

He winked as he tossed the sign in the trash and began walking towards the exit. Chloe grumbled before grabbing her bag and stalking after him. He walked without a care in the world towards the most hideous looking car she'd ever seen in the parking lot.

"What is that abomination?" she demanded, watching him walk to the driver side and unlocking it before looking to her as he opened the door.

"It's a 1972 Gran Torino and it is a beautiful work of art. Come on in, we have to get you to your new home and settled, so I'll give you the rundown on the way,” the man said as he got into the car.

Chloe frowned but followed suit, clutching her bag close as she got into the passenger seat and buckled up. She watched him start the car and as it roared to life, the engine was quickly drowned out as the ugliest and angerists music started playing. Chloe’s hands leapt to her ears before he turned it down.

“Sorry bout that, Miss. Don't normally have passengers in my car," he said as they began the drive to the city. "Ok, so I'll start this off. I'm Roman, your New Life Program officer, which is a fancy way of saying parole officer honestly. But moving on, you are here because you signed up for the New Life Program. You did this because you or a member of your family was affiliated with a villain. Whether you were the villain or not does not matter, you chose this program so that you can start a new life without anyone knowing where you went or who you are. As such you will have no contact with anyone from your previous life, except for the select few that do know you are here, and outside of that there will be no ifs, ands, or buts about what has been chosen for you.

“We have already picked out an apartment for you where I or one of my fellow heroes will be making regular check-ins at. We have also looked into your career choices, it’s a shame you never got that degree for art, you look like you had a real knack for it,” Roman said as he glanced at Chloe and flashed her an earnest smile. Chloe was stunned by the sudden compliment and could only stare at the dash of his car.

Roman returned his focus to the road as he continued, “Since you did graduate from a teaching program, we have already found you a job at a nearby school. Starting next week you'll be teaching there. We'll have the paperwork and every thing at the apartment. Also, I didn't know what you liked so I just ordered pizza. It should be there hopefully by the time we arrive. Any questions. Miss Exile?" Roman asked, slipping back into his flippant tone. Chloe hugged her bag close to herself and glared at Roman as he smiled and drove.

"Are you just going to treat this like a game?! And don't call me that! It's Chloe Bourgeois, ok Roman?" Chloe snapped as they stopped at a red light.

Roman adjusted his posture and his smile faded as his gaze suddenly sent chills down her spine.

"Would you prefer I be like how you expect me to be treating you? Like a criminal who sided with a villain and so on? I mean is it Chloe Bourgois or Soul Destroyer or Queen Banana? How about Queen Wasp? Or was it Miracle Queen?” Roman said, causing Chloe to shrink with each name he listed off. “I'd prefer we joke around and not point fingers. I’m sure you’ve had enough of people accusing you after what you've been through.” Roman’s tone was solemn and annoyed as the light turned green and he began driving.

"This is America, land of the free, home of the brave, and also lots of heroes and villains. Plenty of which don't care about who you are. Like me, I sure as shiii-” Roman’s words suddenly trailed on as he glanced at Chloe and his cheeks flushed, “Saint Patrick don't care, but I do know it's my job to help ya adjust to your new life and that's what I'm gonna do."

Roman huffed before passing another car, a smile creasing his face again, “So instead, let's have some fun and only be serious when we absolutely need to. Chloe, let’s try this from the beginning."

He held out his hand to her as they came to a stop at a building. His smile still made him look like a goofy fool but she found that this time she couldn't help but smile back as she reached out and shook his hand. In that moment, she suddenly felt more sure about all this than she had before boarding that plane when the sound of an alarm snapped her awake.

Chloe shot up from her bed, blearily looking around her grande suite disorientedly as the sun began to crest over the tops of buildings.

Edited and co-written by GrayNeko

#miraculous fanworks #story #fanfic #miraculous ladybug #chloe bourgeois #juleka couffaine

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In a new skin ch4

The two snakes tilted their heads in confusion at her declaration, their unblinking eyes focused solely on her.

“No?” One said before the other started to say, “I believe you are confu-”

“NO!” Chloe shouted as she turned to fully face the strange snake (or was it snakes?), her hands balling into fists.

The snakes’ heads flinched at her raised voice.

“Miss Bourgeois,” they continued to alternate speaking, “if you would just let us expla-”

“NO!” Chloe screamed, her voice on the edge of cracking as she stalked towards the snakes, who slithered backwards in retreat. “No more magic! No more heroics! I just want to fix this fucking mess of a life I lived and I do not want some Miraculous bullshit in my life fucking it up!”

At that the snakes stopped retreating and drew themselves up as they hissed angrily.

“Do not compare us to the Miraculous!” they said in unison, their eyes gleaming dangerously as the cobra flared its hood. “We are instruments of the divine, unlike those wretched wizard-crafted objects. And like it or not, Chloe Bourgeois, you have been chosen by the gods to serve a higher purpose.”

Before Chloe could respond, there was a knock at her door and Chloe started before rushing past the snakes to head off whoever it was. She caught the door just as it began to swing open and startled Jean, who had a tray of food with him.

“The snack you requested, Mademoiselle,” Jean said once he overcame his surprise and tried to open the door further only to be halted by Chloe.

“Thank you, Jean,” she said as she reached for the tray. “I’ll take it from here.”

Jean nearly dropped the tray in shock and Chloe could have kicked herself for behaving so out of character around him.

“Mademoiselle, is everything alright?” Jean asked quietly as he tried to look over her head to scan the room. “Is there someone else in there? Are you safe?”

“I’m fine, Jean,” Chloe said as she tried to wrestle the tray from him. “I’ve just been shouting to get some stress out and I’d rather be alone, thank you.”

Jean reluctantly released the tray and stepped back, “Very well. Please don’t hesitate if you need anything else.”

“Sure thing,” Chloe said before pushing the door shut with her hip. She carried the tray back into her room and pivoted towards the entertaining room rather than her bedroom where the snake was.

She sat down on one of her two couches, setting the tray on the coffee table before her. She lifted the lid and found an assortment of fruits, which she immediately began to dig into. She ate partly to assuage the hunger gnawing at her middle but mostly because it gave her something to focus on other than the strange creature in her bedroom.

Eventually, the two headed snake slithered into the entertaining room and took up on the couch opposite of her. Chloe continued to pointedly ignore it as she bit into an apple wedge.

“Ignoring us will not make us go away,” the cobra head said as the other head extended forward to bite a grape and pull it off the vine. Chloe couldn’t help watch as it raised its head and with a flick, tossed the grape into the air so it could fall into the snake’s open mouth.

“So if you’re not a Miraculous, what exactly are you?” Chloe finally asked. Ignorance would not help her in this situation.

“As we tried to explain a moment ago, we are a Numinous. I am Haje,” the cobra head said before nodding towards the viper head, “And I am Naje. We are the Judge of Truth, a divine being sent by the gods to find a worthy champion to carry out the gods’ decrees for the betterment of the world.”

“And you think I’m worthy?” Chloe asked with a derisive snort. “Some Judge of Truth you are. I failed, utterly failed as a hero, not to mention willingly chose to be used as a villain more than once. Why in the world would you choose me?”

It was the second head, Naje, who spoke up as Haje reached for a grape, “Worth and worthiness aren’t something you just have, Miss. They are earned, and while all you say is true, it is how you were after that that proves your worth to us. Both in how you lived and who you became, the people you helped and what you lost, but most importantly, the truths you spoke that even you were scared of."

Naje seemed to smile, if a snake could smile, as they moved from the opposite couch to sit beside her. Chloe had to resist the urge to get up as they rose up and leaned in close to whisper, “The truth is what we saw as you shed the lies that you had used and embraced who you became even in the end. Even if you may not remember those truths, we do and we deemed that the final thing to see you as worthy, which is why we used one of our most draining techniques in that final moment.”

Naje sighed almost wistfully and rested his head on her shoulder. Chloe wasn’t exactly a fan of snakes, magical or otherwise, but there was a warmth in his words and his touch almost felt like a comforting hand, kindly reassuring her even as everything she learned only confused her more.

“Why can’t I remember these truths I spoke?” Chloe asked quietly, her brow furrowing worriedly as she looked at the snakes. Haje looked at her with a mixture of pity and encouragement, which was odd on a snake’s face.

“What do you remember Chloe? Tell me that and I’ll try to fill in the rest” Haje said, resting his head on her other shoulder and Chloe began to think. She felt the haze in her mind, some memories fully materializing while others coming in glimpses that she could only partly feel or see.

“I remember school, the akumas, that I have a half-sister that I was a complete and utter ass to. I remember being akumatized a lot, and being Queen Bee and completely ruining it.” Chloe gripped her thighs as she felt nauseous remembering those times. “I remember ruining things for everyone constantly. Becoming irredeemable and helping Lila. I remember…” She paused, swallowing heavily before going on, “I remember the identities of some of the Miraculous holders, including Ladybug and Cat Noir and I remember my greatest fuck up, the one that basically got me kicked out of France. Or at least, that’s how I felt about it when I went to America. I taught at a school, I painted, I hung out with the craziest students I-” Chloe’s breath hitched as the memories began getting blurrier. The more she tried to focus on them the more it started to scare and hurt until she had to close her eyes and rub her temple as her head throbbed. “I can't see past that expect for the final day. The day I…” Chloe’s throat tightened up and tears welled up in the corners of her eyes as she remembered the sensation of falling.

“The day you died in the rain,” Naje spoke in his raspy voice. “There are things that you can feel but can't remember, certain sounds, smells, or tastes, that will either bring joy or pain.” He sighed, “We used one of our greatest techniques, the Shedding, and you shedded 17 years of your life, returning to this day to begin again. Granted, I wish there'd been some warning but time was short and we were starved. We planned to wait until the end of the day to talk and eat, but then the attack happened and you used our powers to save that girl and made our hunger worse.” He huffed and his scales flared akin to a bird ruffling their feathers, “Thankfully, you felt our hunger and decided to eat something.”

“Felt? You mean the reason I dropped to my knees in the park was because I felt your hunger?” Chloe asked as she ate an orange slice. She nearly spat it out laughing as Haje ate a banana whole, and instead devolved into a coughing fit.

“That is correct. You see, the ring you now wear is what links us and what we can reside in. If you use our powers, we grow hungry and so will you. It helps when in your Numinous form to prevent you from transforming back to your mortal form. It is quite handy when fighting or doing the tasks of the gods," Naje said as it watched it's other head eat.

"What exactly are they going to have me do? Tasks and decrees are rather vague and I don't like that it sounds like I am going to become some sort of hero. I've already failed at that, badly," Chloe said, the memories of her time as Queen Bee dragging her into a pit of misery as Haje finished swallowing the banana and spoke.

"No. You are a Champion of the Gods, not a hero for the people. Your duty will be to complete the tasks they give you, which are usually for the betterment of the people of the world as a whole. Most importantly, though, is ensuring any and all Miraculous users know their place and fear what comes if they step out of line," Haje said matter of factly that ended with a hiss of satisfaction. “And if they do take that step then dealing with them is our duty, and our most important one. Whether we take the item and find a better user or we leave a reminder to others, that is your choice."

Chloe’s eyebrow climbed her forehead in shock as she looked at the snake. Doing tasks she could potentially understand, but there had been an unspoken implication in the way Haje talked about a reminder that worried her.

"And if I refuse?" Chloe asked watching both heads closely as she waited for its answer.

“Well last time someone refused the task of a god that god released the Black Plague upon humanity,” Haje said, reaching for an apple slice.

“What are you talking about? Don’t you remember that ship? What was it called? The Titan? Titania?” Naje argued before rubbing the tip of their tail under his chin.

“The Titanic?” Chloe offered as she felt sick to her stomach.

“That’s it!” Naje said with an appreciative nod before continuing, “Don’t forget about the volcanoes and storms. The gods are temperamental at times, especially when denied or ignored, but thankfully the tasks aren't too difficult or problematic. Normally, all that’s required is retrieving a lost relic or object of power.”

“There is the chance that you might have to deal with a creature of myth and perhaps a god’s item that has fallen into the wrong hands, but those are incredibly rare occurrences,” Haje went on. “Your most important duty, as I said, is dealing with the Miraculous users that dare to abuse their power and keeping the others in line."

"How exactly do I do that? And what constitutes abuse? Am I supposed to hunt down Monarch, no wait, he’s still going by Hawk Moth at this point," Chloe said as she felt another headache beginning as trying to keep her jumble of memories sorted strained her mind.

"Their broken body or a corpse is normally warning enough to the others,” Naje said, paying the horrified look on Chloe’s face no mind. “But that was how the First and Second did it. Though that was mostly the Second’s signature, the First normally stole their Miraculous from them since that was easier. The Second would give them one chance to surrender their Miraculous to him, and if they said no he'd make sure the others knew why it was best to say yes."

Chloe clutched at her stomach as she fought the urge to be sick. It didn’t help that the snakes were so calm about discussing casual murder.

"But I can just take their Miraculous, right? I don't have to kill them?" Chloe asked, between slow, deep breaths as she tried to settle her stomach.

"Of course, but normally if you do that they still might search out for a new one. That is why the Second resorted to his methods,” Naje said.

“Wait, First and Second? Who are they?” Chloe asked. She’d been so caught off guard by the topic of murder, she’d almost missed those terms.

“Our first two wielders,” Haje said.

“There have only been three people to wear this ring?” Chloe asked as something about the math didn’t seem right. “I thought you said you were some kind of ancient divine thing?”

“You are the fifth to serve the gods as our Champion,” Naje said, taking on a lecturing tone. “And we are ancient. Being a Champion grants those who are worthy greatly extended life spans.”

“What happened to the Third and Fourth?” Chloe asked, thinking it odd that the two of them focused on the first two so much.

“The Third carried out his duties admirably but with none of the fervency of the First or Second and the Fourth ended their career in disgrace and we do not talk of it beyond that,” Haje said, sniffing dismissively as he looked away.

"So I'm just the god's errand girl when I’m not killing or maiming people?" Chloe huffed.

“It is not a thankless job,” Naje said as he ducked his head down to brush against her hand comfortingly. “The gods often reward Champions for their services and unlike the issues you faced during your time as a Miraculous wielder, you will have us to help guide you.”

“What if I can’t do this? What if I mess up and piss the gods off so much they decide to level Paris?” Chloe asked as she drew in on herself, pulling her knees up to her chest and wrapping her arms around her legs.

“You must have faith, Chloe Bourgeois, as we have faith in you, else we would not have given you this second chance,” Haje said as Naje continued to stroke his head against her.

“Any idea when I’ll need to start?” Chloe asked, slowly resigning herself to this strange new fate.

“That is something not even we can tell you,” Naje said.

“The gods will send a messenger when they have need of you,” Haje continued. “Until then, it is best you rest. This has been a lot to take in.”

“No kidding,” Chloe said as she fought a yawn at the mere mention of rest. The snake wasn’t wrong though, she felt like she could sleep for a week even as her mind still raced with questions. She sent word down to Jean that she’d be turning in early and could barely summon the energy to finish getting ready for bed.

As she washed her face in the sink and looked up into the mirror hanging over it, there was still a disconnect at seeing her fourteen year old face. She poked and prodded at herself while making a variety of faces, wondering how long it would take to feel comfortable in her own skin. Perhaps the key was to fix the path of devastation she had left in the lives of others. That thought prompted her to pull out her phone and look at the picture of Rose and Juleka. Something about the adoration they had for each other and the fact that she had helped capture that moment gave her hope that anything was possible.

Edited and co-written by GrayNeko

#story #fanfic #writing #miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #chloe bourgeois #juleka couffaine

[gibmb]

In a new skin chapter 3

The school let the students out early after the incident with Picture Perfect, deciding that it would be best to try another day for class pictures. Chloe could have called Jean and been picked up but the idea of sitting alone in that massive empty hotel suite filled her with existential dread. She glanced at Sabrina by her side and knew she could count on her bookish companion to join her but all the memories of how one-sided their relationship used to be left her feeling nauseous.

Chloe wasn’t ready to confront that hurdle just yet and told Sabrina that she could head home to her father. Chloe intended to find someplace quiet to try and figure out what was happening to her but the universe seemed to have different intentions.

“Hey, Chloe, where are you heading?” Rose called out to Chloe as she and Juleka approached her.

“Oh, just wanted to clear my head,” Chloe said as she unconsciously rubbed at the scratch on her arm.

“Well I hope you don’t mind a little company,” Juleka chimed in quietly before leaning in and whispering, “Plus I want to take you up on that offer for a picture. It’s not very often that Chloe Bourgeois offers to do something like that and I figure I shouldn’t waste it.”

“Well I said a picture or a portrait,” Chloe teased, smiling slightly at Juleka and Rose. “Sadly, I’m out of paint at the moment so I hope a picture will do. If I'm going to take your picture, we need a nice place to take it, and no offense, but the school just doesn't cut it.” Chloe managed to sniff disdainfully like her old self would have before giggling playfully, and Rose and Juleka’s laughter quickly joined hers.

“Sure, did you have somewhere in mind?” Rose asked, excitedly bouncing in place as she leaned in conspiratorially, curious about what Chloe had in mind.

“Well I’d say let's walk around first. Maybe a park or something will stand out and we can use that for the background. And if we’re lucky it’ll also be a nice place to clear our heads of today, ‘cause I need it,” Chloe said as she picked a random direction and began walking.

It had been so long since she had walked the streets of Paris, in either version of her life, that she purposefully kept to a slow stroll to allow her to take in the sights and smells. The beautiful white and cream stone buildings, the occasional brick paved side street, and people carrying on with their days. It was so different from New York and the hustle of that city and she couldn’t believe she had wasted her youth being too good to walk amongst the everyday people of this beautiful city.

“I was such an idiot,” Chloe said to herself as she walked down the street until a nice park came into view. She smiled as she turned to Rose and Juleka.

“I wouldn't say idiot, I thought what you did was very brave,” Rose said as she tapped her cheek thoughtfully while walking past Chloe. Chloe couldn’t help smiling at the misunderstanding and didn’t worry about correcting Rose. “Almost everyone else was too scared or got captured, but you just ran out there to distract him. It was incredible.”

“And you helped me get out to go get help. I don’t think that was dumb,” Juleka replied with a smile. “Though I want to know what you meant by what you said in the bathroom?”

That caused Chloe to perk up and Rose to look at them curiously. Chloe did her best to silently beg them not to press the matter with hurt puppy dog eyes but their gazes drilled into her like the whole class used to when she lost a bet to them.

“It’s hard to explain so…” Chloe trailed off as she tried to think of a way to avoid talking about what she believed was happening to her. Her eyes flicked to the ring on her hand and as she studied the jade snake and the burn scar on her palm that accompanied it, she found herself smiling at the memory, even though it was a painful one. “It was a really bad dream, or that's how it felt. It felt so real and was so painful and dark. I lived a pitiful life and was only just getting back on track."

Chloe tried to recall more but there were holes in her memories. It felt like there was fog in her head and only memories with strong emotions tied to them were able to shine through. It made everything jumbled and left her almost dizzy with confusion.

“I wasn't-” Chloe paused as the sound of a nearby toddler crying as their mother tried to soothe them rang in her ears. It stirred something in the darkest corners of her mind and she heard another child crying, this one in her head. The sound made her heart begin to ache but she couldn’t draw any further details forth no matter how she clawed at the memory. The crying cut short suddenly but the silence was even worse and Chloe found that she desperately wanted it to come back.

‘Please come back! I'm sorry! Please!’ Chloe had no idea why she should be sorry, but she felt that hurt deep in her bones. She didn’t know how long she'd been lost in that thought until she was shaken from her waking nightmare by a hand on her shoulder. She jumped and looked up to see both Juleka and Rose watching her with concern.

"Oh sorry, I just got lost in thought for a moment. That dream was really something else." She didn't wait for them to respond before turning. She tried to discreetly brush at the tears that had started to form in the corners of her eyes as she walked into the Place des Vosges. "Let's get you that picture and maybe afterwards we can talk more about it."

Chloe smiled seeing the park again. It had been so long since she had been in Paris that the sight of the park really did make her want to just sit and enjoy the view. One view that truly spoke to her was the fountain itself. She turned, taking both Juleka and Rose’s hands and dragged them over to the fountain.

“This will be the perfect spot for your perfect picture, you two,” Chloe said with a tone of satisfaction and pride as she stopped at the fountain and walked a little away from them, turning to fix them in the frame of her phone’s camera.

“Ok you two, get ready and give me a fun pose. Or scary. Or heck, maybe romantic,” Chloe teased, chuckling at the last one as it got them both blushing. She went down on one knee to get a good angle all while watching Rose smile widely and Juleka awkwardly position herself.

Chloe winced internally but thought, ‘Hey, photos are tough. Especially if you haven’t had a chance to get good at them, and a little encouragement never hurts.’

“You two look so good. Just keep that pose and everything will be perfect.” She readied to take the picture, “Say jinxed!”

Just as the photo was about to snap, a red frisbee soared in front of the shot, blocking the photo entirely. Chloe looked down at the frisbee, blinking her eyes in confusion for a moment before turning her head to watch the guy who threw it run over and apologize profusely before picking it up and running off with it. Chloe huffed before looking at Juleka, who looked worried and dejected.

“Don’t mind that, it was a fluke. Now get together, my two supermodels, and let’s get the pic-”

Chloe cut off with a gasp, dropping her phone and would have fallen over completely but for her hand and knees propping her up. A hunger the likes she had never felt before was gnawing at her insides, making everything hurt as her body wanted to curl up in a ball. It was so intense and overwhelming she hadn't noticed Juleka and Rose run over until Rose was looking her in the face.

“Chloe? Chloe, what's wrong?” Rose asked as she helped Chloe up, looking her over until Chloe raised her trembling hand to stop her.

Chloe had to take several breaths as it felt like she had no energy to do anything, even speak.

“Uhm, Chloe, is it…?” Juleka trailed off before leaning and whispering quietly into Chloe’s ear.

Chloe’s eyes went wide and panic gave her enough energy to pull out of Rose’s hand. “No! Not at all! Ew!” Chloe looked between the two of them and the shocked looks on their faces before ducking her head apologetically.

“Sorry, I’m just really hungry all of a sudden. Can we take a quick break to find something to eat?” Chloe asked, figuring it wouldn’t be that hard since this was Paris after all.

“Sure,” Rose said quickly. “In fact, there’s a bakery right across the street. Come on!”

Rose grabbed Chloe’s wrist and began to pull her along. Juleka hung back for a moment, brushing at her bangs that hung over her face.

“Is that really a good idea considering…?” Juleka started to ask but realized Rose and Chloe were already too far away to hear her mumbling concern. She sighed and hurried to catch up, grabbing Chloe’s other wrist as she continued to weakly struggle.

Juleka and Rose pulled Chloe along and into the bakery. Chloe let them, lacking the energy to fight back but also finding it rather fun. In fact she was having such a good time that she felt the echo of distant memory and someone's words, “Hey, you lost fair and square so now welcome to the club!” Laughter accompanied it and from the sounds of it, there were a lot of people having a good time. That thought made her smile even more.

“Welcome to the Tom & Sabine Boulangerie Patisserie,” a middle aged Chinese woman greeted them all. It took Chloe a moment to realize that she recognized her and the stabbing pains of hunger were smothered by icy dread. This was Marinette’s parents’ bakery!

The urge to find an excuse to leave had her turning towards the door but then the smell of fresh baked bread and sweets caused her gut to roar with a righteous fury. She clutched her stomach and looked at Rose and Juleka as she struggled not to blush.

Juleka did her best not to giggle as she raised her hand to cover a small smile on her face while Rose’s wide smile never faltered. It was the gaze of Marinette’s mother that really caught her attention, Mrs. Dupain-Cheng, who smiled without letting it touch her eyes as she looked at Chloe. Chloe understood, and she would have left but that Rose and Juleka wouldn’t let her go easily, especially after the noise her stomach had just made. She approached the counter with her head down, focusing on the pastries on as much to make a decision as to avoid Mrs. Dupain-Cheng’s gaze.

"Hello Mrs. Dupain-cheng, how are you today? We'd like to order some pastries, if that's ok?" Rose cheerfully asked.

"I'm well today. We’re happy to know Marinette is safe after that akuma attack. You're just in time, we have some freshly made pastries. What would you like?" Mrs. Dupain-cheng said kindly. Chloe did her best to stay quiet as Rose and Juleka ordered some macaroons and flan. It wasn't until Chloe was nudged forward that she looked up to meet Mrs. Dupain-Cheng’s eyes and managed an awkward smile.

"Hello ma'am, I'm hoping your day has been well," Chloe said stiffly, at a loss for what she could possibly say to a woman whose daughter she had frequently tried to ruin.

"It has been. I hope yours has been as well." Even though Marinette’s mother’s tone was even and her words pleasant, Chloe flinched slightly, wondering if she’d feel better if the woman yelled and cursed her out. "What can I get for you, Miss Bourgeois?"

As Chloe looked at the menu, her stomach gave a demanding growl for food that made her shiver.

"I'll have eight cannolis, four meringue, and six beignets," Chloe said as she pointed to each in turn with hunger in her eyes. Once she had made her selection she smiled In anticipation of enjoying the sweets until she noticed the others’ looks of shock and just a bit of horror. "Sorry, just really hungry. I'll pay for it all," she said before reaching into her pocket and pulling out her credit card. Mrs. Dupain-Cheng took the card while giving her a reappraising look before running the card for the sweets.

"It will be a moment before we have them all boxed up for you. You don't mind waiting, do you?" Mrs Dupain-Cheng asked with more genuine kindness in her eyes as she looked at each of them. Chloe and the others shook their heads before moving to the side in case other customers entered the shop.

As they waited, Chloe stood silently while Rose and Juleka chatted quietly. She couldn’t help glancing at them and noticing how the afternoon sun played through the windows over the two of them. Without thinking she brought out her phone and raised it discreetly. Juleka had just raised her hand to her mouth as she giggled at something Rose had said as Rose leaned her head on Juleka’s shoulder. The two of them blinked as a flash went off and turned to see Chloe smiling victoriously, holding up her phone.

“Take that jinx!” Chloe shouted as she pumped her fist into the air. She giddily rushed to Rose and Juleka’s side, showing them her phone’s screen and the adorable picture of the two of them looking into each others’ eyes as rays of sunlight filtered in around them.

“Wow!” Juleka said so loudly that both Chloe and Rose turned to her in surprise before all three of them burst into laughter.

“Thanks so much, Chloe!” Rose said before throwing her arms around Chloe again, and this time Chloe eased into the embrace, feeling far less awkward about.

“Your orders are ready, girls,” Mrs. Dupain-Cheng called out as she came to the counter with two small bags and one larger bag.

“Mrs. Dupain-Cheng, can we ask a favor?” Rose said suddenly, rushing from Chloe and Juleka to the older woman’s side and pulling her from around the counter. “Can you take a picture of the three of us? Chloe broke Juleka’s picture jinx!”

Marinette’s mom looked around in confusion but seemed to be swept up in the air of merriment around the girls. Chloe tried to object but Juleka grabbed Chloe’s hand in both of hers and gave it a squeeze.

“Please, Chloe, I’d really like a picture of all three of us,” Juleka said softly.

Chloe felt heat in her face and quickly nodded, if only to get Juleka to let go of her hand. All this physical contact was still very new to her.

The three of them grouped together, flashing peace signs as Mrs. Dupain-Cheng raised Rose’s phone up.

“Say patisserie!”

“Patisserie!” The girls said with big grins before devolving into more laughter.

Mrs. Dupain-Cheng returned Rose’s phones and the girls swapped photos with each other before taking their orders and thanking Marinette’s mom. She even nodded kindly to Chloe as Chloe hefted the bag full of sweets.

“Have a pleasant evening, Miss Bourgeois, and enjoy your treats,” she said and Chloe felt relieved that there was no sense of unpleasantness in the woman’s words.

“Thank you, and you have a good evening as well, Ma’am,” Chloe said as she followed the others outside.

The moment she stepped outside she found herself engulfed in hugs from Rose and Juleka, though they were blessedly brief.

“Thanks so much for all this, Chloe,” Rose said with Juleka murmuring her agreement. “We can’t wait to show everyone else what you did for us!”

“Oh,” Chloe said. The idea of word getting around to everyone else in class about this hadn’t even occurred to her. “It was no big deal, really,” she tried to say, not sure if she could find a polite way to say she didn’t think that was a good idea. There was still a lot of bad blood between her and most of the student body and she knew this would be seen with suspicion no matter what.

“Well, we should probably be getting home, do you want us to walk with you back to the hotel?” Rose asked, considerate as ever.

“No, I’ll be fine. Plus I’d rather not have an audience to me absolutely destroying these delicious looking treats,” Chloe said with a giggle that the other two echoed. They finally said their farewells and went their separate ways.

Chloe had not been lying about the pastries. Over the course of her walk home, she decimated the entire bag and was disappointed when she reached into the bag to find it empty while she was still at least a block from home. As she entered the lobby, she was greeted by Jean and asked him to have a snack sent up to her room. Her appetite was actually starting to worry her and if it went on, she would send for her father to take her to the hospital.

Chloe entered her room smiling to herself. With her hunger being seen to, she could reflect on her day and the fact that she had done something good. Maybe she hadn’t prevented the akuma like she had wanted to, but she helped someone that needed it. She may have made a new friend or two as well.

Chloe let out a happy sigh thinking about that as she walked toward her jewelry stand. Now it was time to focus on her final goal of the day as she raised her hand to look at the ring.

“Ok tough guy, I know you’re important to me for some reason, but sometimes a girl needs her space, especially from a clingy ring,” she said as she took the ring and tried to pull it off again. It felt like she was making less progress than before as she grunted, “Damn you! Come on!”

She felt a sharp pinch, causing her to yelp, “Why you evil-!”

She leapt from the stool at her stand and headed to her bathroom, grabbing a bottle of lotion and putting some onto her hand. This time she carefully slicked the area around the ring thoroughly and when she tried pulling again it seemed almost as if the ring was tighter than ever.

“I swear you're super glued, aren't you? Some joke! Ha ha, very funny, now come off damn it!”

She yelped louder as a sharper pinch, almost a stabbing pain, shot up her hand. Now she glared at the ring with real hate before pulling out her phone and starting to dial.s

“That’s it! I’m going to call a jeweler! I’m getting you off even if they have to split you in two!” Chloe didn’t know why she was shouting at an inanimate object but the way the snake’ eyes gleamed made it feel like it was glaring at her. As she was dialing she paused as she heard a hiss and then stiffened as something began to coil around her arm.

“I wouldn't recommend that,” a low but smooth voice spoke, almost as if it was right next to her.

“It wouldn't work even if they removed the finger itself. It will just go to the next finger or even the arm.” This voice was raspy and sharp and Chloe took a moment before turning her head to find the source of the voices. She was met with a two headed snake gazing into her eyes, each head that of a different snake, one that of a cobra and the other an triangular shaped head.

“Hello Miss Bourgeois, we are Naje and Haje. A Numinous and the judge of truth. We congratulate you on becoming our new wielder and the new champion of the go-”

Before they could finish, Chloe cut them off, holding up one finger as she looked at them with a face so calm it might as well have been a mask.

“NO!”

Edited and Co-written by GrayNeko

#story #fanfic #writing #miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #chloe bourgeois #juleka couffaine #sabine cheng

[gibmb]

In a new skin chapter 2

Chloe was certain that this was Hell and that the Devil had a sense of humor. She went out of her way to prevent an akuma and wouldn't you know it, someone else got akumatized! And guess what? It was probably her fault this time too, if she knew her luck. Chloe sighed as she kept her back pressed against the door to keep it shut.

“This is just great,” she muttered to herself before daring to open the door slightly to peek out and see a student get captured in a picture by the akuma. She frowned, “Is it the photographer? What the hell happened while we were gone?”

“I don't know but I don't think I want my picture taken by him if that makes you feel better,” Juleka said, peeking out with Chloe before they eased the door closed. “I guess I am a jinx aft-” before she could finish Chloe put her hand on her shoulder

“Listen, after this is over I'll take your picture, or hell, I'll paint a portrait of you. And if something tries to stop me, bad luck or no, we'll see how it fares against me. Right now though, we've got an akuma out there and we’re trapped in a bathroom with one exit and Ladybug is not here yet,” Chloe said, looking around the restroom.

The restroom was simple with a few stalls and sinks. It wasn't until she spotted the high windows in the back.

"There, we’ll use a window to esca-" Chloe was about to say but heard a student call for help from the courtyard and froze. Was she really going to run away? She didn't have powers but would she be any different from her old self if she just abandoned those kids out there? She looked to Juleka, who was waiting for her to finish speaking, then she straightened her posture. “I'll help you up to a window and you'll go find help, ok?”

Juleka looked to the windows and back to her.

“What about the others?” Juleka asked, worried slightly and shaking after they heard another scream outside.

“I'll try and find that out while you get help. After all, I'm the loudest. I should be able to make his ears bleed and while he's busy chasing after me, the others can get to safety until Ladybug arrives,” Chloe said with a confident smile but Juleka looked at her like she was truly crazy. Before she could speak, Chloe started moving her towards the window. “No time to argue so up and out the window for you.”

“But what if something worse happens?” Juleka asked in a shaky tone once they were at the window. Chloe stood in front of it and crouched to give her something to stand on.

“Then something bad happens, but right now isn't the time to discuss this. Now up you go,” Chloe said in a stern tone, looking at Juleka with a gaze she often used on her most defiant students, which had been mainly all of them. It worked as Juleka took a moment before nodding and climbing up, placing her foot on Chloe's hands and Chloe helped push her up. Once Juleka was up and out the window Chloe dusted off her hands.

“I promise I'll be back quickly, ok? Don't do anything stupid!" Juleka said from the other side before going quiet. “Well stupider than what you're about to do.” With that Chloe could hear Juleka running off. Chloe let out a sigh of relief before making her way to the door and opening it to the madness on the other side as students ran around in terror while others disappeared in a flash by Picture Perfect.

“Well Chloe, you said you'd distract him, time to do your best.” She ran towards the area where the akuma was and once she was close enough, “Are you that pathetic? I mean really? Just cause two kids weren’t in your shoot that you couldn't even get right, you go full akuma? That's just sad."

At that, the akuma turned to look in her direction, giving her a good look at him. It was definitely the photographer and he had been transformed into a black suited figure with a camera lens in the center of his right palm and the flash from his camera in his left. He frowned deeply at Chloe as he hovered in the air.

"Kids? There were no kids missing! It was a bird! It ruined my perfect shot! So now I, Picture Perfect, will give everyone," he held up his hand with the camera lens, "a perfect shot!" He laughed before pointing his palm at Chloe, making her yelp and dive to the side as he took a photo capturing the door and some of the wall behind her. “Hey, stay still! You look like you'd take great photos!” He laughed as he tried to take another photo of her. She fled from his shots, watching items or chunks of the building disappear into photographs, all the while she was cursing in her head.

"Well it's gonna suck for you, cause I'd rather let a homeless blind man take my picture before I let you!” She heard him yell in anger before she dove for cover in the science classroom on the ground floor. She quickly crawled for the teacher’s desk on the raised dais in the room, spurred on by the akuma’s approaching footsteps. She tried to still her heaving chest as he checked inside, his steps around the class getting closer.

"Come on out miss, I swear I'll give you a picture you'll never forget. You'll never ask for another ever again,” he said with smug malice. As his feet drew closer to the desk, she held her breath, readying herself to bolt for the door.

“Hey discount photobooth! You missed someone! I guess that's two shots you've ruined!" someone yelled from the entrance and Chloe recognized the voice of Alix, a punky tomboy in her class. Alix started running the moment Picture Perfect turned to chase after her, his feet stomping loudly as he left. Chloe waited for a moment before poking her head out.

"What is wrong with that girl?" Chloe breathed out

"I could ask you the same thing?" Chloe jumped, looking to her side to find the poppy red haired girl beside her.

"Wait, but how did you-?" Chloe looked at Alix in confusion.

"Yeah, he's not that smart. The moment he shot out of the class I got Kim to nail him with one of his shoes, so now he's after him while I get you out of here. But first, what is wrong with you?" Alix said, waving her arms about. "I get you like the attention but you are trying to get yourself killed? Or is this some crazy cry for attention? Everyone else got out but here you are pissing him off!" she sighed and looked out the door.

They could hear Picture Perfect ranting as he tried to catch Kim. Chloe was worried that despite Kim’s athleticism, he would get caught. She was about to get up and go outside but Alix grabbed her wrist and Chloe turned to look at her with a stern glare that made Alix pause before giving herself a shake and gathering her resolve.

"Just stay here! Ladybug will be here soon and she will fix everything. No offense, but I don't think someone as pampered as you can stop him or do much more than annoy him," Alix chided but Chloe pulled her hand free and quietly made her way to the door. She ignored the angry looks Alix shot her and witnessed Picture Perfect catch Kim in a photo, trapping him before he went looking for more students. Chloe motioned for Alix to hide as she took a deep breath.

"HEY LOSER! YOU MISSED ME! " she shouted, getting him to turn towards her. She bolted the moment the words left her lips, hoping to lead him deeper into the school but a voice surprised her and stopped her dead in her tracks.

"Juleka? Chloe? Are you here?"

Chloe turned to see that Rose hadn't left with the others but instead had gone looking for her and Juleka and was just exiting the bathroom. Chloe's heart sank at the sight of the petite blonde looking around desperately but when Picture Perfect turned to look at Rose, readying his camera hand to catch her in a photo.

"Rose, run now!" Chloe shouted. Her body lurched as she started to run for the other girl, reaching her hand out in a futile attempt to warn her as Picture Perfect was about to snap his shot. A textbook soared through the air past Chloe and she glanced back to see Alix standing in the doorway of the science classroom, her focus on the book she had thrown.

The book hit Picture Perfect’s arm with enough force to make him spin and his hand went up as his power went off. Chloe’s eyes widened in horror as one of the two tethers holding the basketball hoop in the courtyard disappeared into a photo, causing the hoop and backboard to swing down like an athletically themed blade, right towards Rose.

“No!” Chloe screamed, her voice cracking as panic and terror welled up inside her until it felt like time slowed around her. It didn’t change anything as Rose turned from Picture Perfect to the basketball hoop, her brilliant blue eyes widening in fear.

The thunderous crash of the hoop made Chloe wince but she still ran towards Rose, heedless of Picture Perfect’s threatening presence. There was a small cloud of dust that had been kicked up from the crash and Chloe tripped over debris as she ran into it while she searched for Rose, ready to drag her out from under the fallen object. She hissed as she felt a stinging pain down her arm and saw a splintered piece of wood as scored a long red line along her forearm. She pushed the pain aside as she looked for Rose. Amazingly, Rose was nowhere to be found and Chloe found herself dizzy with relief and confusion.

“Chloe,” a voice called out to her in a loud whisper and she looked to see Rose standing by the lockers, nearly two whole meters away from the debris.

“How-?” Chloe began to ask before maniacal laughter reminded her of the looming danger of Picture Perfect. She rose and spun back to face him and found he had her dead-to-rights. There’d be no dodging at this distance.

“Smile for the camera,” Picture Perfect said wickedly before a red yoyo with black dots wrapped around his arm and yanked him off his feet.

Ladybug swung down from above, using Picture Perfect as a counterbalance to come down and scoop Chloe up to carry her away to the far side of the courtyard. Chloe couldn’t help being stunned, even after everything she’d been through, the sight of Ladybug still filled her awe but now there was an undercurrent of guilt at seeing her old hero again. She quickly righted herself and pushed herself out of Ladybug’s arms, surprising Ladybug and causing her to frown, which made Chloe flinch in shame.

“T-thank you Ladybug. I think I’d be a picture in a scrapbook if you hadn't shown up,” she tried to say appreciatively but Ladybug continued to frown before sighing.

“What do you think you were doing?” Ladybug asked as she crossed her arms.

“I was distracting him so the others could get away. You weren’t here yet and he was capturing people, so I took it upon myself to help them,” Chloe said. She tried not to sound so timid but there was a nagging thought in the back of her head that this situation was still somehow her fault. “I mean what else was I supposed to-” She was cut off as Ladybug raised her hand.

“Chloe, you're not a hero,” Ladybug said in a stern, lecturing tone that made Chloe straighten up. “You don't have any powers and you could have been seriously hurt-”

“I hate to interrupt your little talk, m’Lady, but we should probably see to our friend here,” Cat Noir called out, making them both turn to see that he was fighting Picture Perfect with his staff, knocking the akuma’s hands aside to keep him from using his powers.

“Chloe, get somewhere safe,” Ladybug commanded before she threw her yoyo and swung up to the roof of the school. “Hey Picture Perfect! Let’s go someplace more scenic for a real photo op!”

“Come back here!” Picture Perfect shouted as Cat Noir followed Ladybug with his extending staff and the two of them led the villain away.

Chloe’s knees gave out as quiet descended over the courtyard and the rush of adrenaline that had fueled her passed.

“Chloe!”

Chloe looked up to see Rose rushing towards her. The smaller girl knelt beside Chloe and began looking her over frantically.

“Are you ok? I thought I heard you cry out after the basketball hoop came crashing down,” Rose said, though clearly she was still too rattled to notice the ugly scratch running down Chloe’s arm.

Chloe quickly pulled her sleeve down to hide the injury. There was no need to panic the other girl more than she already was.

“I’m fine. How are you ok? I was certain that backboard was going to take you out,” Chloe said as the memory replayed in her head. She was even more certain as she thought about it.

“Me too!” Rose said, her voice climbing so high it was almost a squeak. “One second it was coming right for me and the next I was nearly halfway back to the bathroom. Maybe I jumped back without realizing it?”

Chloe felt that reasoning was dubious but she didn’t have a better answer at the moment. Before she could puzzle over it more, another voice called out to them.

“Rose! Chloe!”

They both looked to see Juleka running down the entranceway stairs towards them. She enveloped Rose in a hug before surprising Chloe by reaching an arm out to bring her into the hug as well.

“I’m so glad you’re both ok!” Juleka said softly.

“Juleka!” Rose cried out happily. “I was so worried about you. You wouldn’t believe how brave Chloe was facing off against that akuma.”

“I bet I have an idea,” Juleka murmured as she pulled back and gave Chloe an appreciative look.

Before anymore could be said a swirling storm of ladybugs swept through the area, restoring those who had been trapped in photos as well as repairing the damage caused by Picture Perfect. A cheer went up at the sign that Ladybug and Cat Noir had won the day again.

Juleka and Rose both stood and offered their hands to Chloe to help her up. She took them and winced as pain shot down her arm.

‘The scratch is still there?!’ Chloe thought to herself. ‘How? Ladybug’s magic always fixes everything that results from the akuma’s attack.’

“Is everything ok, Chloe?” Rose asked, bringing Chloe back into the moment.

She managed a small smile and nodded, “Yeah, I just hope we’re finally done with that photographer. I don’t think I could stand to look into a camera lens at the moment.”

#fanfic #story #miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #chloe bourgeois #juleka couffaine

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I just love goth and fancy girl

Calling this golden tiger

Art by my two buddy's I commissioned

https://twitter.com/Samandriade?t=4cRMikCQ_BA1mQGo_fdsPQ&s=09

https://twitter.com/AlexComiz_Inc?t=U3-oSaXMyuQp8kEkFSZVHg&s=09

#miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #chloe bourgeois #juleka couffaine #yuri ship

[gibmb]

Ch 1 in a new skin

It was poetic that it was raining, the full moon peeking through the clouds to illuminate the night sky. Chloe was calm, perhaps she should have felt angry or scared; but if she was being honest, she felt sad that this was how it would end and relieved that it was all going to be over. It almost didn't seem real, but as her body went numb and she could faintly hear the sirens in the distance, she knew it was. 

If this was how it ended she couldn't complain to be honest. After all, with how her life had been up to this point, it seemed like this was one last laugh at her expense. To close her eyes this time and finally let the darkness engulf her. Even as the sounds of footsteps got closer, she smiled one last time.

Chloe didn't expect to hear anything again, much less the oddly familiar sound of an alarm clock blaring right next to her. Her eyes shot open as she felt her heart racing as if it was running for its life. Chloe looked around and was confused, even scared, it was her room but not like she knew it. 

It wasn't the room she'd lived in for so long in New York. It was her old room, the room she had back before it all fell apart, before she fell apart. The first thing Chloe did was turn off the damn alarm clock. She could only take so many beeps before she wanted to smash her own head into a wall.

Chloe got out of bed on wobbly legs, placing her hand on the bed stand next to her bed as she took a deep breath. She started to walk around her room examining each part of it as closely as she could, curious as to what could be going on. Had everything she experienced been a terrible dream or was this the real nightmare created by her fading consciousness?

But then she placed her hand on one of the posters she had on her wall. The one of the Ladybug that she owed her life to, who everyone loved to look at and admire. It felt too real for this to be a dream. The door behind her leading into her room opened and when she turned to look, she was stricken by momentary shock before almost bursting into tears seeing who it was.

Jean, the faithful Butler, with his pencil mustache and perfect hair part, who was always there for her even when she was at her worst. Though, if she was being honest, she had always been at her worst. Jean looked almost stunned to see Chloe on the brink of tears but continued being professional; adopting their usual demeanor. Rubbing her eyes and adjusting her posture, Chloe did her best to look as casual as she could.

"Good morning Jean, what do you need?" Chloe tried to say in her most confident and commanding voice but fell short on the mark. It has been a long time and she didn't feel too comfortable speaking to someone like that anymore. Jean seemed to think for a moment before he spoke.

"Madam, it's almost time for school. Do you need some more time to be ready?" Chloe blinked in momentary confusion, then glanced at the clock to see the time before giving a curt nod.

"Yes please, just give me a second then I'll be right out. You can wait for me in the limo," Chloe responded kindly.

Chloe knew she should have tried to sound a little meaner, but failed. Jean didn't seem to mind as he nodded and simply closed the door and left.

Chloe sighed before walking to her closet to change. When she opened it, she cringed a little at the sight of her own old clothes, before rifling through them to find one that didn't hurt her eyes. 

When she found an outfit she could finally stomach, she changed into a far less extravagant ensemble of a yellow blouse and a pair of jeans that she couldn’t even remember where she had gotten them from. It was definitely a switch up from what she would have normally worn but at the moment that was a welcome change. As Chloe was changing she noticed something in the mirror that caused her to stop dead in her tracks.

 Her eyes lingered on it for a long time, finally realizing that this all wasn't a dream, whatever had happened, it was real. She was tempted to test whether or not she could feel the pain if she touched it but refrained from doing so. The thoughts still haunted her and honestly she'd rather forget it.

Chloe left her room, grabbing her bag and cellphone, and making her way to the elevator down to the lobby. She could remember from distant memories that her dad wasn't here today, more than likely he was working. 

After all, being the mayor of Paris was a busy job and she really didn't feel like seeing him at the moment. If this wasn't a dream, it still felt like some sort of twisted play or personal Hell. She really didn't want to experience what could happen if she saw her father so she quickly entered the elevator and made her way down.

Once Chloe reached the lobby she did her best to avoid everyone and quickly stride to the limo. After getting in she gave Jean a nod and began looking out the window as they started to drive and could only think on what all of this meant.

She remembered it too well. A lifetime of horrible things she had done and most importantly those last moments. There was no way it could have been a dream or a nightmare. Especially if what had happened was still there. She looked at her hand for a moment and blinked in surprise. The scarred wound was still there, but so was something she hadn't expected. A simple ring in the shape of a snake she had been given a long time ago.

She rubbed her thumb on it wondering what it could mean before feeling the limo stop and Jean turned his head to speak. "Madam, we have arrived."

Before Jean could even get out of the limo, she exited, thanking him on the way out as she looked up at the entrance of Collège Françoise Dupont, the public school she had once gone to. She had never realized how much she missed French architecture until this moment. She steeled herself for what she knew was not going to be an easy day as another familiar voice rang out in her ears.

"Chloe. Hey Chloe!" Chloe turned to see Sabrina running towards her with that goofy, concerned, yet excited, expression. When she finally caught up to Chloe she almost slammed into Chloe, but Chloe caught her, stopping the nerdy redhead dead in her tracks.

"You need to be more careful, you almost knocked us both over," Chloe said a little harsher than she would have liked. It was more out of concern than actual anger and when she saw Sabrina flinch a little bit at her words, Chloe sighed.

"I'm sorry Chloe, I'm just excited for Picture Day is all," Sabrina said with an even wider smile as she adjusted her glasses. "I even put on a good shirt today for it and did my hair a little bit."

 

Chloe chuckled at that. Granted she couldn't really tell the difference with Sabrina’s argyle sweater vests and plain hair style, but she was happy to hear that Sabrina was happy.

"Well I'm glad you decided to have some work done. After all, they say you should always look best for your pictures, because a picture is worth a thousand words," she teased as she started walking towards the school entrance.

“Are you trying a new look too?” Sabrina asked.

Chloe glanced down at her outfit and shrugged, “Sometimes simple is better.”

“I guess,” Sabrina said, flinching at the questioning glance Chloe shot her. “It’s just I don’t think I’ve ever seen you without any makeup on either. Au naturale looks good on you though,” Sabrina quickly added.

Chloe started and had to stop herself from reaching up to touch her face. She had been so out of sorts finding herself as a teenager again, she had completely forgotten her normal routine. She gave Sabrina an appreciative smile.

As Chloe ascended the stairs something was nagging her, but she couldn't put her finger on it. She merely shrugged and continued with Sabrina by her side into the school’s inner courtyard. It didn't take long for them to reach the class but Chloe stopped when she entered, looking around and seeing the old class that she had once presumed she was in charge of. Not many people had arrived yet, but from those that were there she could see Nino the goofball in his seat talking with Adrian in all his gorgeousness. Seeing Adrian brought a deep sadness to her but she took a deep breath and went to her old seat. While she did she saw gloomy Juleka talking with bright and cheery Rose and the nagging feeling suddenly returned, though she still couldn’t place it even as she sat in her seat and got out her papers and textbook. 

“Are you excited, Chloe? I mean, of course you are, it’s Picture Day and you always look your best,” Sabrina said as she set down her own books and material for class. 

Chloe relaxed a bit. Whatever was bugging her was probably nothing. ‘I mean it’s Picture Day, what’s the worst that could happen?’ she thought. Soon enough the bell rang, followed by the rest of the class. Well, everyone except a certain girl, but Chloe knew all too well why she was late so when she saw Miss Bustier about to close the door as she was about to start attendance Chloe called out, “Wait Miss Bustier, Marinette isnt here yet.” 

And just as Chloe spoke there was a light ‘thud’ against the door and Miss Bustier opened it to show Marinette on the other side smiling innocently and rubbing her nose a little. 

“Oh well, thank you Chloe. Marinette, head to your seat please,” Miss Bustier said.

Chloe nodded to herself and felt a little good considering normally she could recall Marinette just bursting into the room like a police raid, though she could hear some whispers behind her.

“Hey girl, did you do something to Chloe?” she could recognize the voice as Alya’s, probably thinking she's up to something. To be fair she was not the same Chloe they had known.  

“No, why is she mad? Did she start yelling again?” And there was Marinette, that voice would never fade from her memory or stop haunting her

“She stopped Bustier from closing the door like she normally would. Heck, she beat me to the punch warning her you were late. She's gotta be up to something.” 

Chloe rolled her eyes at that and decided to look through the text book while listening to Miss Bustier.

“Well I hope you're all excited for our class photo today, class. After all, we’ll have some new faces in this one.” Miss Bustier's tone was cheerful as she clapped her hands. “Now in a short while, we’re going to head out to the courtyard for our photo. We’re going to have a professional photographer taking our photo, so let's look our best with our brightest smile, ok?” 

After that, class went as it normally did, or almost normally, since Chloe chose to actually listen rather than spend all her time on her phone like she would have before. It was odd listening to something she had become intimately familiar with during her career as a teacher. 

Reconciling the life she had lived with being young again was starting to give her a migraine, though it still paled in comparison to some of the days she’d had to struggle through with her students. Miss Bustier didn’t know how easy she had it compared to the students Chloe had worked with, granted the frequent villain attacks weren’t exactly a walk in the park for Miss Bustier. Chloe was brought back to reality when Miss Bustier called for the class to get up and head to the courtyard and as they were lined up, she was next to Rose and Juleka.

“Come on, Juleka, you can do this. No jinx will beat you this time.” When Chloe heard Rose say that, she stopped dead in her tracks, the realization hitting her like a haymaker.

“Fuck.” That caused Rose and Juleka to stop and look at her in surprise and she could only give them an awkward smile in turn as they walked on. She heard Nino chuckle from behind her and even a giggle from Ayla and some of the others. 

She turned her head to look at them with a raised brow and they all looked in different directions like dogs that knew they were about to get scolded. She sighed and looked forward, now fully recalling this day and what would happen once they reached the courtyard. She made her way over to a step and sat down, Sabrina following after her.

“Is something wrong?” Sabrina asked, looking a bit confused. 

Considering she had just heard Chloe curse probably for the first time, Chloe didn’t blame her. Chloe looked at her hand again, considering what to say but she just shrugged and she moved her thumb over the ring on her finger.

“Trying to figure out if this is a dream or a very cruel joke.” She could see the confusion on Sabrina’s face deepen. “Have you ever had the feeling you just know something is going to go wrong but you don't know if you can fix it? Does that make sense?” 

At that, she heard someone gasp and squeal, causing her head to snap to the side to see Rose looking excited as she spoke with Juleka. “But maybe I can make it better, or at least try and not screw it up,” Chloe said as she got up and walked over to Rose and Juleka. Both stopped their conversation and looked at her as she approached.

“Oh hey Chloe, do you need something?” Rose asked, forcing a smile that was too sweet to be real, even on the blonde girl’s perpetually innocent looking face.

“I heard something about a jinx and I-” Chloe paused, she wanted to say she wanted to know more but couldn't. “I-” she paused again, trying but struggling to get any words out, which caused Rose to look confused. 

“Is something wrong?” Juleka asked, concerned enough that she brushed her purple bangs away to look at Chloe with both eyes.. 

Chloe tried to think of a lie, but every time she tried to utter it, she shivered and couldn't form the words. 

“I’m worried something bad might happen to you,” she blurted before covering her mouth, her face red like a beat. ‘Fucking really? That came out? That?! Fuck!’ Chloe thought as she continued to blush furiously.

“You're worried?” Juleka said, looking a bit confused and suspicious, though Rose looked at her with a wide smile.

Chloe nodded. She was worried. She was worried that there'd be a villain attack and that Juleka would be said villain and Chloe would cause said attack.

“Yes, I am. After all, when you know something bad is going to happen, something bad probably will,” Chloe replied, scrambling to sound confident only for a snort from behind her to catch her attention.

“And I'm certain you know what that bad thing is right, Chloe?” And like that, Chloe knew the others thought this was probably a joke considering Marinette was coming into view of the three of them. “What bad thing do you think is gonna happen?”

“Honestly?” Chloe asked, trying not to seem aggressive even if a small part of her wanted to. This was a teen she was dealing with and she was bigger in height than Marinette anyway. “I’m worried we might have an Akuma so I want to do what I can to help and keep us all in good spirits.” That caused Marinette to look at her in confusion and a mixture of suspicion and surprise.

“So how do you want to help?” Thankfully Rose spoke looking at her brightly and a bit like she wanted to hug her. “I mean, have you ever dealt with a bad picture or jinxes?” 

Chloe went silent at that. To say she had bad pictures might be an understatement considering her track record as an akumatized person. 

“I do have experience with bad photos, more than I’d rather say. But for you, Juleka, is it that you just don't like the idea of getting a photo taken or is that you're too nerv-?” She saw their faces looking at her in surprise and she realized she might have gone into teacher mode, so she took a moment to try to talk more like her old, young self. “Is it that that stupid camera can't get a photo or do some crazy absurd things happen, like a bird or a cat, heck maybe a bolt of lightning?” At that suggestion, Marinette looked like she wanted to chuckle but Juleka nodded.

“Bad things just happen and the photo gets ruined no matter how hard I try. Something always happens,” Juleka said with a dour pout as she looked down and rubbed her arms. Depression seemed to come off her in waves. Chloe looked at her with a bit of sadness. She could understand bad luck but the only way to beat it was to break it. 

“Well today is your lucky day cause I'm here and so is Marinette. I won't let anything bad happen, got it?” she said with a confident expression and noticed Marinette looking at her with suspicion before speaking

“Yeah, we’ll help you, and besides, we've got a pro taking the picture like Miss Bustier said, so there's n-” Chloe pinched Marinette, causing the raven haired girl to jump “Ow! Hey!”

“Saying it won't happen, tends to make it happen,” Chloe responded. “But she's right, we’ll do our best and Sabrina can help too.” At that Rose actually did hug her. Chloe jumped a bit in surprise, looking down at Rose with her bubbly bright smile on her face. Chloe didn't know what to do so she just stood still, looking to the others for help but Marinette just looked like she wanted to laugh and Juleka had a soft smile.

“Thank you, thank you so much Chloe! I knew you were a good person!” Rose said.

“I deserved that,” Chloe said with a blank face.

“Deserved what?” Rose asked but before Chloe could respond the photographer clapped his hands signaling the class it was their turn and soon began a very tedious situation. 

“Ok so you here, you there, you go there, and you over there,” the photographer said as he moved the class into position for the photo. Chloe smiled for the photo but the photographer wasn’t finished, “No no no, it just doesn't work. You move there, you go there. Blondie, you move to the middle row. Big fellow, to the back!” 

And thus a test of their patience began as they were moved around and around for a good hour or so.  By what Chloe would guess was maybe the 22nd time, she could say she might go to prison today. If this was a dream or a joke or hell, she was going to at least enjoy strangling this massive pain in her ass first.  “There, just move a few more inches to the right and there! Perfect! Now I've got it!” 

The photographer leaned in ready to take his picture before there was a beep and he paused, “Oh I don't believe this! The battery died. I have to go fetch another one. Nobody move.” The photographer walked off without another word, leaving them all groaning with frustration.

“I am definitely going to jail today,” Chloe said, considering how to end this problem before she saw Juleka walking off. She jumped from her spot, “Hey wait Juleka! Where are you going?”

“To the bathroom,” she said with a tired tone as she continued walking, Chloe following after her.

“I'll go with you, that way if he does come back they can't take the picture without both of us,” Chloe responded.

“You really want me to have a good photo that badly?” Juleka said as they entered the bathroom. Chloe walked over to the sink to check herself in the mirror while Juleka went to the stall.

“I will take the photo myself if I have to, and trust me, if I have to fight him for it I will! If I have to move spots one more time, I might actually go to jail for what I’ll do to him!” At that she heard a giggle from the stall and smiled. 

As she turned on the faucet to wash her hands, she reached down to try and take off the ring on her finger. However, when she pulled, it refused to budge. 

“What the-?” She pulled more and nothing changed. In fact, it seemed to get tighter on her finger.  “Come on dang it, get off!” she growled, pulling before she felt a pinch and yelped, ”Oww! Why you-”

“Something wrong, Chloe?” Juleka asked from the stall.

“Yeah, my ring is giving me a fight for finger space. I guess I'll have to deal with it when I get home,” Chloe sighed as she just started washing her hands with the ring on. She heard Juleka leave the stall and was joined at the sinks. As she started washing her hands, Juleka’s expression was concerned.

“Why are you helping me? I know it’s rude but normally you…” Juleka looked like she was trying to find the right word but Chloe decided to say it first.

“Normally I'm a selfish, self-centered, pain that yells too much,” Chloe said with a smile as she turned off the water and started drying her hands. 

“I don't know how to say it, so I'll just say I woke up today and I don't know what's going on,” Chloe smiled at the confused Juleka as she dried her hands, both walking to the door.

“But whatever it is, I'm gonna try and make it better and hey, today is already better. Because you're going to get your photo and I get to say I didn't ruin your day-” Chloe's words were cut off when she opened the door to see the kids running in terror as an Akumatized person was taking pictures of them, trapping them in photos. Chloe closed the door just as fast as she opened it before they were noticed.

“I think you jinxed it,” Juleka said.

Written by gibmb

Co-Written and Edited by GrayNeko

#fanfic #story #miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #chloe bourgeois #juleka couffaine

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Just post the link to the miraculous story I'm working on in a new skin as well Chloe new look

#miraculous fanworks #miraculous ladybug #chloe bourgeois #story #fanfic

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"The Light lives in all places.... In all things...you can block it...even try to trap it...but the Light always finds it's way"

" even if that light is corrupted?"

Thanks again to @RLazyguy youre awesome I look forward to getting this signed

#she ra netflix #catra fanart #catra #she ra catra #she ra and the princess of power fanart #destiny #warlock #destiny warlock #destiny the game #destiny fanart #destiny fic

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Hey guys my friends and myself are working on a big project and wed love yalls feed back on our story Eternal Sin we hope on day to publish it as well we intend to update every two to 3 weeks

https://m.webnovel.com/book/eternal-sin-heritage_22516778706997205

#Eternal sin #victor the ripper #paz ortiz #writing #original story

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some old gifts my gf made for me the websites they were posted on are gone so im posting them here for everyone to love like i do i love my gf even if shes a pain in my ass

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The alternative version of the vaggastor ship picture this time with a French twist

Art by

#hazbin alastor #hazbin art #hazbin vaggie #hazbin hotel #vagastor #radiomoth #pro shipping

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Thanks again to @borossir. XD I love this ship so much and I hope yall enjoy it too long live these two dummies opposites attract after all

#hazbin vaggie #hazbin alastor #vagastor #pro shipping #hazbin art #hazbin hotel #vaggie #alastor