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graaythekwami · 4 years

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Crimson and Noire - Ch 1

Kwami swap & reverse crush AU

Summary: When Marinette found a magical ring and a cat god of chaos in her room, she knew her life was going to be turned upside down. Protecting Paris seems like something she should love, especially with her handsome partner Crimson by her side, but with the city fearful and untrusting of Lady Noire’s destructive powers the stress slowly begins tearing her up from the inside out.

Adrien thought going to school would be the big change of his life, but a kwami called Tikki and the villain Monarch swiftly proves to be the adventure he never even dreamed of having. Being Crimson Beetle gives him the freedom he’s always wanted, and while he’s used to being in the spotlight being hailed the leader and savior is something entirely new. It’s nearly as overwhelming as his crush on Marinette– but at least that’s a normal teenage thing.

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Also read on ao3 (x) and FFN (x)!

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"Woah, are you like the genie in the lamp?"

Tikki loved getting new holders. It was always a thrilling experience, getting to meet the one she'd be with for the next who-knows-how long. A decade seemed to be the average, but she would be happy to spend a lifetime with each one. She stretched as she was fully released from the earrings, giggling as a finger came towards her curiously.

"I'm a kwami," she said with a smile, grabbing the finger with both of her paws, giving it a small shake. "My name is Tikki, and it's really nice to meet you, Adrien."

Adrien stared at her, looking almost starstruck. His eyes were a brilliant green, reminding her of a certain fellow kwami. He slowly withdrew his finger, looking between her and the small box that contained her earrings, before moving a step closer.

"What's a kwami?" he asked. "And how do you know my name?"

"Hmm, I guess I'm what you might call a sprite," Tikki replied after a moment of thought. "Kwamis are magical creatures that embody a certain concept. For example, I represent Creation. As for how I know your name, you can say you were chosen."

"Chosen?" Adrien echoed. "Me? For what?"

Tikki zipped over towards the large television screen, where a live report of Stoneheart was playing. She stared at it for a few moments, still awed even after so many centuries of what humans could do with technology, before waving a paw at the moving image.

"Stoneheart is an innocent person that's been infected with negative energy by a Miraculous," Tikki explained. "Under that magic is a human that needs our help. What you're holding in your hands is my Miraculous, and together we can transform to save both Stoneheart and Paris."

His eyes widened. "You mean like a superhero?"

"Exactly!" Tikki beamed. "One of my powers would grant you the ability to rid him of the energy corrupting him–"

"How do we transform?" Adrien asked, cutting her off as he seized the earrings in his hands, which turned silver to his touch. He was already slipping them on, eyes locked on her in excitement. "Let's–"

"Adrien!" Tikki said firmly, flying towards him. "We can't rush into this!"

"But he's attacking the city!" He protested. "And I can get out of here, and help him, and–"

"Sit down," Tikki said, pointing to the couch. "Or else I won't tell you how to transform." Never mind that he could just order her to tell him, but he didn't seem like the type. "If we don't do this right we can end up making this worse. As soon as we transform I won't be able to speak to you, so you need to pay attention now!"

He sat down instantly, and Tikki was startled to find his happy expression was gone. She hadn't been too harsh– had she? Just a bit firm to counter his excitement, which was of course a natural reaction to receiving one's Miraculous.

"Sorry," he whispered as he sank onto the couch. "I just– I just want to help. And get out of here. And– and I'll just be quiet now."

He was determined and had a good heart– he was going to be a wonderful Ladybug, Tikki could already see it now. She zipped up to him, rubbing up against his cheek, and she was grateful to hear him let out a small laugh.

"Nothing to apologize for, Adrien, that attitude will make you a good hero," she said, pulling back. "Okay, so listen closely. You're going to be using three of my abilities in battle, and you'll want to use them right."

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"AAAAGGGGHHHH!"

Plagg hated getting new holders. It was always a strenuous experience, getting to meet the one he'd be stuck with for the next who-knows-how long. A decade if he was lucky, but considering he was misfortune incarnate he would probably be with this one for a lifetime. He let out a loud yawn as he was released from his ring, ignoring the screams of his next chosen.

"Why is everything pink?" He asked with a groan as he looked about the room, everything splattered with the offending color. He crinkled his nose, already not liking his new surroundings. "And do you have anything to eat? I'm starving."

It had been a whole three hours since he had last eaten– what a crime.

"Eep!" The girl yelped, jumping back, dropping the box that contained his Miraculous. "The cat-mouse thing talks!"

"Yep," he said, and a gleam of light caught his eyes. "Ooo, shiny," he muttered, diving towards the object, which was cool to the touch. "Can I eat this?"

A bite into the metal scissors revealed that he in fact could not, and with a sneer he pushed it away. He then zipped off to another part of the room, the girl letting out a nervous whimper, but there were few objects he recognized compared to the last era he had a holder in. The girl was saying something, which he ignored, at least until something came flying in his direction.

"Hey!" He snapped, dodging the textbook, only for a pin cushion to be thrown at his face. He skillfully avoided that flying object as well, but his new holder (Marinette or something? He didn't remember what Master had said) seemed to have an endless supply of things. She seemed to be getting more panicked by the moment, and with a grin he zipped towards her, easily avoiding each airborne item.

"Gah!" She cried, grabbing a glass from her vanity, bringing it down over him. She was panting, craning her head closer to get a better look at him. "What... what are you? You're talking, and flying, and... appeared from nowhere!"

"Oh no," Plagg cried dramatically, paw draped over his forehead. "I'm trapped, whatever shall I do?" A smirk spread across his face. "No wait– I'm not!"

He phased right through the cup, charging right at her face. The shriek she let out was hilarious, and he let out a cackle as she scrambled back. He hovered there in the air for a moment, wondering just what kind of Black Cat she would be. She seemed to be on the nervous side, but of course most humans were when first exposed to magic, and the shock tended to wear off quickly. He wondered if he could scare her again, when he heard footsteps coming from below them.

"Marinette, are you okay?" A worried voice called.

Plagg's gaze hardened, and he turned towards her. "Tell her you're okay," he demanded– he was not dealing with the secret being leaked this early. "And don't let her come in here, got it?"

Fortunately, Marinette listened. "I'm– I'm fine, Mom. I just saw a spider? But I got it? So I'm okay now?"

Her mother let out a chuckle. "Well maybe this wouldn't happen if you'd keep your room clean."

Plagg glanced around her room, which was currently littered with even more objects from her throwing-frenzy, and he snickered. He zipped over to his fallen Miraculous as he heard her mother's footsteps retreating, scooping up the ring before flying back over towards her. She was watching him with wide eyes, though she seemed much more calm than when she had first seen him.

"What are you?" She asked again, slowly pushing herself to her feet.

"I'm a kwami," he said dryly. "We grant powers. Yours is Destruction. We need to go fight. Got it?"

"Huh?" She said, blinking.

"Meh, please, don't make this harder than it has to be," he waved a paw towards her computer screen, which was showing a live report of Stoneheart. "See that guy? It's our job to stop him. Now do you have anything to eat?"

"Woah, woah, slow down–" she said, and her eyes once again went wide. "You have the wrong person, I can tell you that– you'd have to be crazy to want to go after that thing."

Plagg grinned, nodding in agreement. "Yeah, you'd pretty much have to be. But when it comes to Miraculouses, crazy is what you're going to get," he tossed the ring up into the air, catching it with his tail. "But hey, you get powers out of it, and that seems to be a good enough deal for most people."

"Powers?" She said, before shaking her head. "No, I can't have powers, the only power I'd have is super-clumsiness or something."

"The transformation will take care of that and stuff," he flipped upside down. "Oh yeah, 'claws out', that's how you transform. That and the ring."

She stared at him, and he chucked the Miraculous at her. She fumbled to catch it, black turning to a rosegold in her hand. Marinette clearly didn't seem to know what to make of this, and it seemed logical that he should use this time to explain everything. He'd rather go find some cheese... but a Miraculous in the hands of someone without knowledge was never a good idea.

"But..."

"Look kid, the name's Plagg. Let's just start at the beginning, okay?"

-----------------

Marinette had never exactly had high hopes for the first day of school– but she hadn't expected it to be this bad.

She could make a list of what had gone wrong, and it wasn't even lunch time yet. Everything from spilling her breakfast to nearly being hit by a speeding car to having to deal with Chloe for another year. Oh yeah– and there was the fact that her classmate had somehow been turned into a giant stone monster and was attacking the city.

And she was the one in the cat costume going to fight him.

"You got this," she told herself as she stood on the edge of her balcony, a silver baton in hand. "You're magic now, you saw it for yourself, magic is real."

That still wasn't enough to convince herself to jump off of the side of her balcony though. This was all happening too quickly– and there was nothing she could do to slow it down. She swallowed, hands tightening around her baton as she looked at the distance between here and the ground. Her fingers were tipped with what appeared to be metal claws, but they didn't hurt as they dug into her palms, which was covered with the same black material of her suit. It looked a bit like leather, but was too thin and too flexible to be that. Her costume went from her neck down to the tips of her feet, highlighted with green tubing that gave an illusion of gloves, boots, and a belt.

She didn't even know what to make of the cat ears and mask on her head– which had no way of staying on, yet weren't falling off either. Her pigtails had been replaced with a single dark braid, which fell down to past her ankles, swaying behind her despite the lack of a breeze, but she wasn't even going to think about that right now.

She looked over her baton again, which was silver just like her claws, and featured a neon green paw print on the front. It was the same symbol on the so-called 'Miraculous' she had found, which Plagg had been sucked into as soon as she called on a transformation. The cat-kwami-creature hadn't been all that convincing with his words and what he wanted her to do, in the end it had been the image of Alya biking after Stoneheart that had pressed her into at least attempting to do something.

With that thought in mind she took in a deep breath, and tapped one of the pads of the paw print. The button soundlessly clicked under her finger, and she yelped as the baton expanded in her grasp. She blinked, before pressing it again, watching as the weapon continued expanding in length as her finger held down the button. She had pressed it without thought, and yet it had felt so natural.

Even though her mind was screaming 'no', she decided to follow these instincts, and carefully climbed up onto her railing. She let out a small giggle at how easy it felt, balancing on the metal bar with ease when she should have been stumbling and flailing, and she aimed the baton towards the ground, expanding it once more. She watched as it grew, a faint clink that she shouldn't have heard reaching her ears as it hit the ground. She then closed her eyes, bracing herself– and jumped.

The wind tore at her as she vaulted from her balcony, eyes remaining firmly closed. Panic was building up in her, yet it all felt so liberating at the same time. Her feet landed on a rooftop, and she opened her eyes to find that she had survived. A spark of confidence settled into her heart, finger sliding over to the second paw pad to shrink the baton back into a more manageable size as she made her way across the roofs.

And so she repeated these actions, carefully vaulting between buildings and streets while carefully making her way on top of roofs, not quite sure of where she was heading, but at least she was making progress. Her hesitation didn't surface again until she found herself approaching a more busy road, a much larger gap now standing in her way. She hesitated on the ledge for a moment, ignoring the few people pointing up at her, wondering if this was something she could clear with her baton.

"You just have to go for it, Marinette," she told herself as she backed up, deciding that a running start would be her best bet. She had made it this far, after all, so why should a larger jump be the thing to stop her? Her finger hovered over the expand button, charging towards the edge and closing her eyes as she tapped it, hoping the momentum would be all she needed to clear the street.

She failed to see the blur of red swinging right towards her as she vaulted, slamming right into him as their paths crossed.

"Gah!" She cried, eyes flying open as she slammed into the red figure, her baton becoming entangled in the wire he had been swinging from. Her stomach twisted as they fell together, and her finger slammed down onto the expand button once more in hopes that would somehow save them from crashing into the cement below.

And it did, sort of. The pole sprung out, catching between two buildings, but it slipped out of her hand. Luckily the string was what caught them, though it had wrapped around both hers and the stranger's entire bodies, pulling them into a tangled mess as it snagged on her baton, leaving them dangling just feet from the ground. She found her face mere inches from another, bright green eyes regarding her in surprise.

"I guess that's one way to come crashing in," the boy said, wincing slightly in pain, but still managing to smile. "Um, here, Tikki said this can retract at will–? Ah, here we go–!"

She heard a zip, and felt the wire untangling from around her– and she and the boy went tumbling to the ground. She let out a groan, shakily pushing herself to her knees, looking up to find a yoyo retracting to his hand. She stared at it for a moment, before realizing he had been using it as a grappling hook. He gave her an apologetic smile, swiftly holding out a hand to her.

"I'm so sorry," he said hastily, pulling her to her feet. "I didn't mean to do that! Here, let me get your stick-thing–"

"It's okay," she muttered, slightly dazed. "I'm pretty sure I'm the one that crashed into you."

He swung his yoyo up at her baton, giving it a sharp tug, and it came crashing down. She jumped as it hit the road, before hurrying over and trying to find the button to shrink it down. She let out a shaky sigh of relief as it was once again a normal size, and hooked it on her hip. It seemed to be magnetic, just sticking to her side– or maybe it was just more magic. She then turned towards the boy, finally getting a proper look at him.

Plagg had told her there would be one other hero to help her out, which was a good thing because there was no way she could do this by herself. He was in a bright red suit, which was covered in scattered black dots. More patches of black highlighted his costume– on his hands, going down his sides to his legs, and on his collar. His shoulders were padded, and a mask similar to hers sat across his face. His eyes were a brilliant green, watching her curiously, and his hair a light blond– wild and unkept. Two strands of hair stuck up from the top of his head, dyed red.

"A ladybug?" She said, easily recognizing what animal he was supposed to be.

"Huh?" He asked, blinking.

"Your costume," she said. "You're a ladybug. I guess I didn't expect that for an animal themed hero?"

Maybe a wolf or a hawk or something, but a bug just hadn't been what she expected.

"I'm no ladybug," he said, a smile flickering on his face, and to her surprise he gave her a bow. "You're the lady," he glanced up. "Can I call you that? Lady? Or does that sound rude?"

"Lady works," she said. "And if you're not ladybug then what should I call you?"

"Hmm," he sat up, considering this. "Lordbug, maybe? Misterbug? Nah, 'bug' doesn't work for me. How about beetle? Red Beetle, or maybe–"

He was interrupted but the sound of a large crash, and they both looked up to see a building collapsing in the distance. The friendly atmosphere melted away instantly, reminding them why they had been sent out here. Beetle-boy spun his yoyo a few times, before sending it flying up towards the rooftops. It wrapped around a chimney, and with a tug it pulled him up into the air.

"Wait–!" She called, taking a step towards him, and he glanced back at her.

"We don't have time to wait!" He said. "We're supposed to go save Paris, right?"

And with that he let his yoyo fly again, swinging off towards the threat. She wasn't anywhere near ready for the responsibility that had been shoved onto her shoulders, but still she backed up with baton in hand– taking a running start before leaping after him. It was easy to follow Beetle, the red of his suit standing out against the cityscape, but even then she could just follow the trail of destruction if she lost track of him.

Stoneheart had made his way to a football stadium, and it seemed he had been seeking out Kim– who had taken shelter near the bleachers. Everyone else seemed to have evacuated the stands and the field, though she could make out Alya's figure near Kim's, having faithfully followed after Stoneheart, her phone recording the whole thing. She was bouncing on her heels, eagerly filming as Beetle leapt after the stone monster, yoyo flying.

Marinette found herself parazyled on top of the stands, watching as her apparent partner fearlessly took on Stoneheart, but she couldn't move. Magic was one thing. Jumping from buildings was another. But purposely going after something so large with the intentions to hurt her... that was another thing entirely. Her braid lashed out behind her as if responding to the terror pouring through her, and in her mind a little voice chanted to wake up– because this had to be a dream.

Yet she didn't wake up, the whole arena shaking as Beetle danced out of the way of Stoneheart's fists as they came crashing down. She flinched as one came dangerously close, the edge of his knuckles grazing Beetle's chest, knocking him to the ground. Stoneheart sneered, picking up a football net and chucking it at him. Beetle rolled out of the way, and the net continued on, right towards Alya and a fleeing Kim.

"No!" Beetle shouted, flinging his yoyo, wrapping it around the edge of the net, pulling it away moments before it crashed into Alya, but those few moments were all Stoneheart needed to grab Beetle. He struggled in the giant's grasp, but it proved to be secure. A glowing purple mask surrounded Stoneheart's face, who brought Beetle closer.

She couldn't just stand here. She had to do something. She looked down at her ring, reminding herself she had powers that Plagg had given to her. He had promised her a partner– and she assumed the same had been true for Beetle. She couldn't let him do this alone, not when the same would be too much for her.

So with her baton in hand she charged, vaulting down into the stadium, ringed hand raised. Plagg had said the words had to be activated with meaning behind them, so she mustered every ounce of will she could gather, focusing on the Miraculous on her hand as she slammed it down into the ground, crying:

"Cataclysm!"

Black energy bubbled out from her claw-tips, sinking into the earth with ease. She watched as the grass turned black at her touch, the energy webbing out from where she had struck. Cracks formed in the ground as Destruction surged out from her Miraculous, the ground beginning to crumble under Stoneheart's feet. He let out a grunt as he found he was no longer on stable turf, falling into the sinkhole, dropping Beetle as he fell.

That had been her intention, yet it seemed the Cataclysm had its own goal in mind. The darkness rushed out, instantly killing the grass as it surged out towards the stands. Marinette watched in awe and horror as the Cataclysm engulfed the seats and stadium, it all turning to ash as it crumbled. Hunks of metal fell, leaving her ears ringing, the area looking like a wasteland.

"I..." Marinette whispered, shocked. "I didn't mean..."

Beetle pushed himself to his feet, grinning. "That was awesome."

"Awesome?!" She cried. "I– I just leveled the whole place! I just meant for him to drop you, I didn't mean–"

"Don't worry, Lady," he said, drawing his yoyo once more as Stoneheart began to climb out of the hole she created. "One of my powers apparently fixes everything up. Let's just worry about catching that butterfly, okay?"

Right. The corrupted object they needed to find and break. Stoneheart would remain empowered as long as it remained intact. She gave a small nod, trying to make herself focus, though her head spun at what her power had just done. A small chirping reached her ears, and she looked down to see one of the paw pads on her ring had vanished.

"Taking your sweet time, huh?" Beetle called to Stoneheart as he dragged himself out of the sinkhole. "Can't handle the earth– I thought that's what you're made of!"

Beetle did have a point, while catching him off guard, the fissure she had created wasn't unreasonably deep compared to Stoneheart. She watched as he finally pulled himself out of the hole, pushing himself to his knees, and her eyes narrowed.

"His hand," she said, pointing. "It's been closed the entire time, he didn't even use it to climb out."

Beetle blinked. "Huh?"

"The object," Marinette said, both of them darting across the field as Stoneheart came charging at them. "That must be where it's hiding, where else on his body could it be? We need to get him to open his hands!"

"Do you have a plan?"

"Er–" She glanced around, trying to see if there was anything they could use. Just dust and debris littered the land around them, and Alya recorded the fight with wide eyes. A fountain of water sprouted up, the waterline broken from when she had brought the stadium down.

He grinned. "Guess it's my turn then– Lucky Charm!"

He tossed his yoyo up, pink light surrounding the weapon. Marinette watched as it solidified into a bright red sphere, covered with black spots. It came crashing down, Beetle grunting as he caught the bowling ball. It was a decent size, larger than what you'd find at an alley. He stared at it for a moment, blinking.

"Miraculouses!" Stoneheart bellowed as he came charging at them.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" Beetle cried as they took off running once more, and thankfully their enhanced strength allowed him to keep pace despite the bowling ball in his arms.

Marinette glanced back at Stoneheart, mind racing. They couldn't throw it at his legs to trip him, she had basically done the same thing with her Cataclysm and it had only slowed him down for a moment. It was fairly large, but according to the news report hitting him with something had only made him bigger. It couldn't be used to defeat Stoneheart himself, they needed to use it to get the object...

"Throw it at him!" Lady cried.

"What good will that do?" Beetle asked as they jumped over the hole she had created earlier.

"Just trust me!" She called back, as she didn't have time to fully explain her plan– especially not without Stoneheart overhearing it. Beetle hesitated for one second, before chucking the bowling ball up and at him as hard as he could. Stoneheart grunted, opening up his free hand and catching it like a baseball. Beetle threw her a look as if to say 'now what?', and she smiled at him apologetically. "Sorry!"

She then placed the tip of her baton against his chest, hitting the expand button– launching him straight towards an incoming Stoneheart. Green eyes widened in confusion as he found himself flying at their enemy, its other rocky hand opening up to catch the hero. Beetle let out a grunt as he found himself trapped once more, and Marinette smirked as she saw something purple fall out of Stoneheart's hand.

She charged over towards it, finding it to be what looked like a crumpled up piece of paper, though it was as hard as rock in her hands. She turned it over once, before Stoneheart looked over at her with wide eyes, that glowing mask appearing over his face once more as he charged towards her.

"I got it!" She cried to Beetle, hoping he wasn't too upset for using him as bait, before dropping the object to the ground. She brought her baton down on it, shattering it into pieces, and a small black butterfly came fluttering out from the remains.

Black energy bubbled around Stoneheart, and with a flash of light the rocky creature began to crumble. Beetle and the bowling ball were freed from his grasp, and a very confused Ivan was left in the wake of things. The large teenager rubbed his head, looking about at his surroundings, eyes wide. Beetle had landed on his feet, staring at Lady with an unreadable expression.

"What... what's happening?" Ivan asked weakly, and Beetle pulled out his yoyo. "Who are you...? How did I get here?"

"Where do you think you're going?" Beetle asked in a playful tone, eyes looking up as he flicked his finger across his yoyo, which opened up like a pair of elytra. Glowing white light poured out from inside the magical weapon, which he lashed out at the fleeing butterfly, trapping it inside. He brought the yoyo back towards him, and Marinette could feel something shift deep inside her– and she somehow knew it was the energy that had been in the butterfly– dark energy turning to light.

Beetle tapped the yoyo, and sure enough a little white butterfly came fluttering out instead. There was a huge grin on his face as he watched it fly up into the sky, unaware of the chaos it had caused. Beetle then turned towards Ivan, offering a hand out to him.

"Long story short, you were basically mind controlled," Beetle said, helping him to his feet as Marinette made her way over towards him. "But you don't need to worry, we freed you from it– do you know what happened?"

"I..." He rubbed his head. "I... I was sent to the principal's office for something I didn't do. Then... then suddenly I was angry, really angry, and I think I heard a voice in my head...? I don't remember what she said though."

"It's over now," Marinette said as she joined them, and Beetle threw her a grin.

"Awesome plan, Lady," he said. "I had no idea what you were doing in the moment... but it turned out awesomely!" He scratched the back of his neck, before offering her an extended fist. "Pound it?"

"Pound it," she said with a smile, bumping her own fist up against his. She felt... so alive– barely able to believe what she had just done. She had fought a giant, and had won! "Sorry for throwing you like that, I didn't really have time to explain."

"No sweat, Lady," Beetle said, and his eyes turned towards the bowling ball. "What do you say we clean up the mess we made, huh?" He picked up the sphere, shifting to get a good grip on it, before throwing it up into the air. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

The Lucky Charm turned into a burst of pink light, which rushed out in a wave of energy. Marinette held out her hands as the light danced about her, and she found the soreness from the battle vanish as it touched her. It was a stunning sight, the lights flowing about them and the stadium. Withered grass surged to a bright green, and the fissure she had created sealed itself as if it had never been there.

She turned, watching as the ashes and rubble from the stadium began to rebuild itself as the light of the Miraculous Ladybug touched it, not even leaving a crack behind as it was restored.

"Beautiful," Marinette breathed out, watching as the rest of the energy swirled above the stadium, before flowing out across the city, hopefully to repair the rest of the damage Stoneheart had inflicted.

Ivan seemed to have no recollection of his time as Stoneheart, which probably explained the raw awe on his face, this probably being the first of the magic he had seen today. He rubbed at his eyes, slowly turning to look at the area he had watched reform in front of his very own eyes.

Marinette's gaze was drawn to the object she had broken, the paper once again whole. She picked it up, unfolding it as she read over it. It seemed to be a message from Kim, and she felt her heart twisting. No wonder Ivan had been upset after class, Kim had probably meant no harm, he exchanged friendly insults with Alix all the time, but for sensitive Ivan it was just not the same. She carefully folded it up, offering it to Ivan as she approached him.

"Don't let him get to you, Ivan," she said, opening her mouth to say more– before remembering she probably shouldn't reveal that she knew him or who had written the note.

"How do you know my name...?" He asked, and panic surged through her.

"I– um– it was in the note," she nodded towards the paper. "I'm sorry, I probably shouldn't have read it without your permission–"

"It's fine," Ivan muttered, turning away glumly as he took it. "It's no secret, I'm just a wuss like Kim said. I can barely say a word to Mylene, let alone tell her that I..."

"There are other ways to tell her besides words," she said, bumping up against him. "Songs, flowers, a gift– just show her how much she means to you."

Ivan smiled, though it looked forced. "Thank you."

"That. Was. Amazing!" An excited voice squealed, and they turned to see Alya charging up to Beetle, her phone basically being shoved into his face. "A real life superhero! Are you going to be defending Paris from now on? How did you get your powers? Gah– I have so many questions, um, er–"

Beetle grinned. "Don't worry, me and my partner plan on keeping Paris safe," he reached out, throwing an arm around Lady's shoulder as he pulled her close. She let out a small yelp as the sudden action, and Alya pulled back. "As for who I am... how about Crimson Beetle? Yeah– I like that. And the little Lady here is...?"

He turned towards her, and her mind blanked on what she should be called. Lady... Lady Black Cat? Lady Feline? Well, if he was crimson, then...

"Lady Noire," she decided after a moment. "You can call me Lady Noire."

A chirping filled the air– she was down to only two paw pads on her ring, while Crimson Beetle had three spots on his earrings. They shared a glance, knowing they needed to go now if they didn't want to detransform in front of everyone. Crimson pulled away from her, drawing his yoyo, while she extended her baton.

"Let's do this again soon, okay?" Crimson said to her, still grinning that grin, and he gave her a bow– before throwing his yoyo and swinging away.

She watched him go, before glancing at Ivan and Alya. He still seemed to be in shock, while Alya looked uneasy– which was quite different from her eagerness moments ago, but it made sense that all of this would be overwhelming. She gave both of them a nod, before vaulting away.

Maybe she actually could do this hero-thing.

-----------------------

"Mmmm!" Tikki chirped happily, taking a bite of the pudding Adrien had offered her. "This is amazing!"

"I'm glad you like it," he said with a smile, watching the news report about Crimson Beetle and Lady Noire. "My personal chef made it."

"And there you have it," the reporter said. "The amateur footage shows that the monster Stoneheart was stopped by what appears to be two superheroes– Crimson Beetle and Lady Noire."

He paused the TV, looking at the image of him and Lady Noire, his arm around her. He usually didn't think much of his public appearances, he just did them to make his father happy, but this was different. He looked much more relaxed than Lady did, her bright blue eyes edged with uneasiness, as if not knowing what to do with the spotlight. He hoped she was doing alright, she had seemed hesitant, but had really stepped up to the plate when it mattered. She had come up with a plan in just seconds too, and even though they had only known each other for a short time he was sure they were going to be good friends.

Friends. The thought sent chills through him, and he sat up. A friend– he may have not been able to make it to school today, but he had still made a friend! A smile flickered over his face, and his determination to make it to school returned at once. Chloe had helped him register, and he wasn't going to let their hard work go to waste. Tomorrow he would go to school, and he would make even more friends.

"Well," Tikki said, hovering next to him. "What do you think? You like being a Miraculous holder?"

"It's amazing," he said, smiling at the little kwami. "Thank you so much."

"No, thank you, Adrien," she said. "You're the one that went out there and fought, and that was really brave of you."

He leaned back against the couch, watching as Tikki selected another piece of food from the tray his chef had prepared for him, humming happily. He touched the earrings in his ears, wondering how he would explain where they came from. He had them pierced for photoshoots in the past, but he rarely wore any earrings on his own. He could worry about that later though.

Because for the first time in a long time he wasn't alone.

-----------------

"What do you mean 'no'?"

"It's gross!" Plagg said, crossing his arms.

"It's macarons!" Marinette cried. "How could you not like macarons? My dad made these, and he makes the best pastries in Paris!"

"Bleh!" Plagg said, the kwami sticking his tongue out in disgust. "No way, I don't want to eat any of that!"

Marinette closed her eyes. "Okay then, what do you want to eat?"

Plagg grinned. "Cheese."

"Cheese?"

"Yes, the finest quality of camembert– I'll accept no less!"

"You just want a hunk of plain cheese?" Marinette said, crinkling her nose. "You'd think you'd want a meal or something after that fight."

"Cheese is a perfectly balanced meal," Plagg said, crossing his paws.

"Who hurt you?" Marinette said in a whisper.

"Huh?"

"Surely you want more than just cheese!"

"Cheese is the only thing I want."

Marinette sighed, but hopefully her parents wouldn't question why a chunk of their cheddar was about to go missing.

--------------------------

"Nooroo, wings fall."

Nooroo was trembling as he came flying out of the brooch, the kwami struggling to find his balance in the dark room. This had been the first time he had sent out a champion in so long, and he looked at his holder fearfully. She stared out the window, her face as stern as always, the silence in the air palpable.

"Master?" Nooroo said uncertainly. "How do you feel?"

A smirk tugged at her lips, and Nooroo found himself letting out a small sigh of relief. Still his eyes darted to the brooch carefully pinned to her chest, before letting them flick back up to her face. He had firm orders not to touch his own Miraculous, so he remained there hovering in the air, white butterflies dancing around them.

"Citrine is a fool," she said, her smile growing. "He sends out the Ladybug and the Black Cat? The very jewels we desire? Tell me Nooroo, why would that old fool do that?"

Nooroo tapped his paws together, wondering how he should answer. He regarded his newest holder closely, who took on the name of 'Monarch' when transformed. He thought it was a fitting name, as she carried herself like a queen. She was smart, calculating, and her calm demeanor made for a good Butterfly. Still his worry was there, especially since she tended to keep herself removed– and as part of the Empathy duo that wasn't the best trait for her to possess.

"You are sending champions out under a negative influence," he finally said. "The Ladybug represents purity, and can easily cleanse the energy you've infused into your champions. I am sure its restoration powers also played a role in that decision."

"And the Black Cat?"

"The Ladybug and Black Cat are an Alpha Pair. You cannot activate one without activating the other," Nooroo replied.

Monarch let out a small chuckle. "This is even more simple than I expected. The very Miraculouses we need are the ones we'll be fighting. Granted this champion wasn't able to lay claim to them, but I'm just learning the ropes after all."

Nooroo hesitated. "You're going to send out another champion?"

"Of course," Monarch said, her cool gaze shifting over to the kwami. "Though I think we should talk to the city's new heroes first, don't you think? Give them a chance to make the right choice before we continue on fighting."

"I don't think that's safe, Master."

"Of course it isn't, which is why we'll send a champion to deliver our message," she turned, her heels echoing through the room, before she paused. "'Champion' doesn't really sound fitting for our purpose though, does it?"

"No, Master," Nooroo replied, drifting after her. "What you created was no champion– it was a devil if anything."

This wasn't what his powers were meant for, but at this point he was used to his Miraculous being used for selfish means. For nearly the last two centuries he had been passed from hand to hand, and never was he found in the presence of an honest and true holder. Just those who wanted to twist magic for their own gain.

"A devil, huh?" Monarch said. "Perhaps so. A devil, a little demon of our own creation– an akuma."

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