#Kwami swap | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

rosie-b · 3 days

Text

True Blue

Chapter 14: The Balcony Scene, Reprise

Surprise!!! New chapter is out!

When he saw her, Adrien dropped the cookie he’d been about to eat.

“Bluewing!” he exclaimed. Then his expression hardened. “What are you doing here? Are you stalking me? Trying to make me susceptible to an akuma? What’s your goal?”

Bluewing spread out her hands in a hopefully non-threatening gesture and lightly tossed her fan to the side of the room. It landed far away from Adrien, but he tracked its motion with an attentive glare.

“Hawk Moth doesn’t know I’m here,” Bluewing said.

You can read the rest on AO3 or below!

Throughout the rest of the school day, Marinette texted Adrien as often as she could. They never talked about anything serious; they traded jokes and memes and talked about safe topics, but there was an unspoken agreement between them to avoid mentioning the kiss or the nightmares they’d had. Last night had been awful enough, and they both needed time to recover before they could talk about it, even in daylight.

Marinette was grateful she had Adrien to distract her from the horrible new reality she’d wandered into. She’d told him about Nathalie leaving her job, and he’d expressed a similar confusion to hers. They’d spun out a few theories about what had happened before giving up and moving on when they realized all it was doing was making them feel helpless and a little angry, the perfect mix of emotions for an akuma to prey on.

Marinette didn’t want to think M. Agreste would akumatize his own son. He’d shown a lack of control over his akumas recently, though, and especially after her dream and finding out that Nathalie had left, she found herself less and less willing to trust M. Agreste as completely as she once had.

She didn’t want to think about what it meant if he was really the reason Nathalie had left. She didn’t want to consider the possibility that her nightmare’s warning was right, and Hawk Moth was not really the hero he tried to be.

So, she distracted herself while she half-heartedly filled out a few worksheets and pretended to understand the material she was supposed to teach herself. (Really, what kind of school day was this?)

When Adrien couldn’t respond to her during his classes, she found her mind wandering to Duusu’s strange behavior yesterday. She knew M. Agreste didn’t want her to talk to them, but Marinette was determined to heal the kwami so that it would be easier to communicate with them. It was only because of the broken Miraculous that Duusu was acting like they were, well, crazy, so if they could be healed? That should take care of the problem. Finally, Marinette would be able to interact with her kwami, if she could figure out a way to make this work.

Yes, it wasn’t just Marinette and Emilie that needed the potion’s magic, Duusu had to need it, too. However, as a semi-incorporeal being (from what she’d gathered), Duusu probably wouldn’t be able to heal just from exposure to the vial of potion. Marinette needed a better way to get the healing magic to affect the kwami. Well, since Duusu was linked to the Miraculous, which always existed in a physical form, then maybe healing the Miraculous would heal Duusu! In fact, if the potion could heal the Miraculous, maybe doing so would provide a once-and-for-all solution.

Maybe there was a way to make sure the broken Miraculous would never hurt another holder again.

With this goal in mind, Marinette waited until her scheduled study hours were almost over and then slipped into the atelier. She knew the safe’s password from watching M. Agreste punch it in so many times when he was retrieving the brooch to give her for a mission, so getting in was a breeze. The only problem was the fact that her actions would show up on the security cameras, but she wasn’t doing anything wrong exactly, and if Gabriel was busy finding a replacement for Nathalie, then he was probably too busy to check the camera feed until after Marinette had finished what she’d come here to do.

Marinette reached into the safe and took out the brooch. Her heart was racing, with memories of her first horrible time putting on the brooch plaguing her mind, but she had to do this. If she could just repair the brooch, Gabriel would probably let her keep it with her, right? She could hide it under her clothes, just like he did with his Miraculous! They’d never have to worry about a third incident like Dark Cupid’s or Sandboy’s ever again. She would always be able to help with akuma attacks, whether she was at home or in the mansion.

After all, what reason could be good enough for him to keep her from having the Miraculous once it was repaired and Duusu was safe to talk to?

Marinette took out the vial of potion she’d brought with her. Without Nathalie’s help, she only had a limited amount of supplies left. She’d be out soon, so she hoped her idea would work!

As she held the broken brooch steadily in front of her, Marinette uncapped the vial of potion and tipped it over. As a large, golden drop hit the cracks in the Miraculous, she firmed her belief that this healing attempt would work. It had to, or else she would be disobeying M. Agreste for no reason and harming herself in the process.

“This potion will work just as well as it worked for me,” she whispered, squeezing the brooch tightly and rubbing the potion into its cracks. “Miraculous, repair yourself!”

At first, nothing happened. However, after a short moment, a bright light surrounded the brooch. When it faded, no cracks could be seen in the brooch. It was just as good as new.

“It worked,” Marinette breathed, and a smile spread across her face. “It really worked!”

Now, she could only hope that this repair would be a permanent one. Otherwise, the Miraculous would not need to be healed after each time she used it.

Still, Marinette had a good feeling about the brooch’s healing. This time, she was sure she’d found a permanent solution. And she wasn’t about to let it go to waste.

Marinette wanted to pin the brooch on and talk to Duusu, to see if they were okay. Before doing that, though, she needed to talk to M. Agreste. It was nearly time for her training hour to start (for fashion, though recently, this time was more often used for an akuma attack), so all she had to do was wait for Gabriel to come down to the atelier.

While she waited, she locked the safe again, but kept the Miraculous with her. She’d need to show it to M. Agreste, otherwise, he’d never believe her.

Gabriel strolled into the room, frowning lightly, a few minutes later.

“Ms. Dupain-Cheng,” he greeted her. “I apologize for being late. It is harder to find a competent secretary than it seems, these days. I plan to hire one young enough that I can train, anyway; interviews will begin before the hour is over. In the meantime, I...”

His voice trailed off as he caught sight of the brooch sitting in the palm of Marinette’s hand. His eyes sharpened, and Marinette resisted the urge to flinch. It might not look like it now, but surely he’d realize what a helpful thing she’d accomplished for him.

“Marinette. What is that,” he snarled rather than asked.

She raised her chin and lifted the brooch higher for him to see.

“It’s Duusu’s Miraculous. I repaired it with a drop of my potion, and now the cracks are gone. The negative side effects of using it should be gone entirely now.”

Gabriel fell back a step. “What? But how?”

Marinette smirked. “I told you, sometimes a solution really can’t be found, and sometimes you just have to create it. With any luck, even Duusu’s madness should be gone now. I’m sorry for opening the safe without your permission, but it was for a good cause, just like your akuma attacks. The Miraculous is completely safe now, which means that with your permission, I’d like to take it home with me. I can hide it with a scarf, the way you hide your own brooch, and no one will question my fashion choices, so no one will find out that I’m Bluewing. What do you think?”

Gabriel’s jaw clenched, and he stepped forward, taking the brooch from Marinette’s hands and examining it closely. After a moment, he cautiously pinned the Miraculous on, and Duusu spiraled out of it.

“Whee! Oh, Master Gabriel, it’s good to see you again! It’s been so long; your hair is gray now! Oh, the years passed by like a long nightmare. How are you— oh! There’s another person here, too!” Duusu flew over to Marinette, squinting. “Do I remember you? You look familiar.”

“She is your current holder, Duusu; I am only borrowing your Miraculous. Only speak to her if you need to, and do not lead her astray.”

With those words, Gabriel unpinned the brooch, and Duusu vanished. He turned the Miraculous over, frowning at it. Then he slowly handed the brooch back to Marinette, who looked up at him questioningly.

“Well?”

“It appears to be fixed,” Gabriel admitted. “Still, I have reason to be concerned. Not the least of which because you know the password to my safe; I will need to change it before the interviews begin. You think you can take the Miraculous with you and keep it hidden?”

“Yes,” Marinette responded immediately. “In fact, I think it’s the wisest thing for us to do right now. Now you can create an akuma at any time and I’ll be able to help you. Just let me know before you do, and make sure to keep the akumas away from Adrien and me.”

Gabriel didn’t speak, instead staring at the picture of Emilie behind Marinette.

She wet her lips and tried again. “This gives us an advantage, M. Agreste. I want to help you save Emilie before it’s too late, and with the brooch, I can do that more reliably and faster than I could if it stayed in the mansion. Won’t you please consider it?”

Gabriel’s expression was muted, as if he was far away from the room and Marinette and the brooch that had killed his wife.

“She deserved better than this,” he whispered. “It’s all the fault of that kwami, you know. She led Emilie astray, made her think creating a sentimonster with two amoks was safe to do. I lost my wife before Adrien was even born.”

He snapped to attention, staring directly into Marinette’s eyes with a cold gaze.

“You may keep the brooch for now. But don’t talk to the kwami,” he ordered. “And don’t tell Adrien a word about this. I’m taking a big chance in trusting you, Marinette. Do not compromise our mission by giving secrets away to the boy; he is too emotional, like his mother. He cannot be trusted with knowledge of the Miraculous. Do not let him get near the brooch; do not give him his amok. I will not permit his presence to interfere with my mission again. Understood?”

Marinette frowned. “Understood, sir. I wasn’t going to tell him, anyway.”

Gabriel nodded, satisfied, and dismissed her. As the Gorilla escorted her back to the bakery, Marinette wondered what Gabriel meant by not letting Adrien interfere again. He hadn’t done so before, right?

On top of that, though she was pleased she was trusted with the brooch now, Marinette was offended on Adrien’s behalf. He was not too emotional; he was kind and caring and sweet, not weak or given to whims. She trusted him. Marinette wanted to tell him everything about the brooch, about his mother and the reason Hawk Moth wanted the Miraculous, about the reason she was so possessive of the ring she wore on her finger.

Unless there was something Gabriel wasn’t telling her, Marinette saw absolutely no reason not to trust Adrien or Duusu.

Furthermore, she was sure Duusu hadn’t planned on killing Emilie. Duusu was already protective of Marinette and seemed completely loyal to their holders even while they were driven crazy by their Miraculous; why would they be worse now that they’d been healed? No, Marinette was sure that she could trust them.

She hated to think it, but Marinette trusted Gabriel even less now. She needed to know that he wasn’t lying, that he wasn’t just keeping her in the dark about Adrien and Emilie’s fate and the other people who’d been affected by Duusu’s poisoned brooch.

She needed to know that this was really the right thing for Adrien. After all, if Emilie was too far gone for the potion to heal her, as Gabriel thought (and as might be true, if it hadn’t helped her yet) then what good would stealing the Miraculous do? Was a Wish really powerful enough to bring back the dead?

It must be. The mission had to be the right thing to do; Gabriel had planned it for years, it couldn’t be as ill-thought-through as his akuma last night had been. He knew what he was doing.

Marinette still wanted some kind of reassurance, though. And while she had the brooch, she had an idea of where she could get it.

She transformed as soon as she got up to her room.

Bluewing didn’t want to cause a disruption like she had last time she went out without an akuma, so she stuck to the alleyways and rooftops high enough that no one would spot her as she made her way back to the Agreste mansion.

Then, knowing that Adrien would have just gotten back from fencing practice, she leapt down to his windowsill and slid in through the window she found left ajar.

When he saw her, Adrien dropped the cookie he’d been about to eat.

“Bluewing!” he exclaimed. Then his expression hardened. “What are you doing here? Are you stalking me? Trying to make me susceptible to an akuma? What’s your goal?”

“Hawk Moth doesn’t know I’m here,” Bluewing said. “I’m not stalking you, I’m not trying to get you akumatized, and my goal is... mostly unrelated to my normal one. Kind of.”

Adrien kept glaring and crossed his arms.

“Just hear me out, okay? I know the public thinks I’m a villain; I would have, too, before I knew what I know now about Hawk Moth and his mission. But I promise, there is a good reason for what we’re doing. We’re doing the best we can—”

“The best you can at being evil,” Adrien muttered.

Bluewing’s heart broke a little at his words.

“No! I’m not evil, and I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t think it would help people more than it hurts them! Please, I just, I need to explain myself to someone and know that at least one person thinks I’m doing the right thing. Please listen to me!”

Adrien raised an eyebrow. “You’ll tell me all about why you and Hawk Moth are terrorizing Paris? Even give me your secret identity?”

Bluewing huffed. “Not that. But I... think you might be more likely to understand than most. You see, Hawk Moth lost someone important to him. He needs a Wish to heal h— them.”

“I see why that would hurt,” Adrien said. “And I think I know why you came to me now. But lots of people lose someone. There’s nothing you can really do about it except hold onto their memory and move on with your life. It sounds like Hawk Moth is just trying to escape reality, but he can’t. And neither can you.”

Bluewing swallowed. “I understand. But it wasn’t a normal loss. You see, there was more than one person affected. And the problem wasn’t natural, or even a plane crash or war or something. It was my brooch,” she said, tapping the Miraculous on her chest.

Adrien’s eyes widened. “What? Wait, you’re telling me there are other Peacock holders out there?”

Marinette pursed her lips. “Well, only a couple are alive. They used its full power after it was broken, which slowly poisoned them, and... it’s not good. Even I was affected, before I figured out how to repair the brooch. You might notice my unsteadiness in some older Goldenblog videos—”

“You’re telling me that Hawk Moth forced you to wield a broken Miraculous, slowly poison yourself, and possibly die while knowing exactly what was going to happen?” Adrien interrupted, practically yelling. He sounded furious, angrier than Marinette had ever heard him before. His fists were tightly clenched, and his face was twisted with rage.

Bluewing flinched. “Yes, no, I volunteered,” she babbled. “I found out about the brooch by accident and put it on. He had no choice but to tell me about the Miraculous, especially after I figured out that he was Hawk Moth. He explained his mission to me and gave me medicine to hold off the poison for a while. Since I was already affected and he clearly needed help fighting both Golden Bug and Chat Grise, I offered to become Bluewing. He didn’t force me. I hope that shows that his cause is good,” she added meekly.

Adrien’s expression softened, but not by much. “Prove it,” he demanded. “I still don’t believe you.”

“Okay, the medicine doesn’t work entirely. Without a Wish, everyone who used the brooch is doomed to die, slowly and painfully. Some already have died, and their spouses were left all alone to raise the children that they...”

Marinette hesitated. She wasn’t sure how much to say. This visit hadn’t been planned, after all. She had to stop acting so impulsively!

“The people that they... what?” Adrien prompted, sitting down on his couch. He looked up at her with an open expression, but his eyes tracked every movement she made, as if she’d strike at any moment.

Bluewing rubbed her arm. She knew she technically shouldn’t tell Adrien about the senti-children, but she wouldn’t be disobeying Gabriel’s orders if she only told him the basics without revealing that Adrien himself was a senti, right? Besides, Marinette had wanted to tell Adrien about this from the beginning. If she could at least lay the groundwork for him to understand his origins later, when she was allowed to tell him about them, that would accomplish something good.

She looked at Adrien, determined to tell him some of the truth she knew he was entitled to.

“Okay, I’ll tell you, but this is going to sound weird. Um, and it takes some getting used to, but that’s okay! So,” she said, nervously twisting her pointer finger back and forth, “As you probably noticed, I’ve never used my Miraculous’ real power. There’s a good reason for that, or else I would have been more help against Golden and Grise!”

Adrien watched, his face dubious, as she tapped the brooch pinned to her chest.

“See, this is the Miraculous of emotion, and with it, you can create life. Whatever kind of being you want, with whatever power you want. The magic goes into an amok, which holds the sentibeing’s life force, and it can be used to control them, though that shouldn’t happen. The Peacock has a very dangerous power, and it needs to be used extremely carefully. Well, the past few holders used it to create their own children. So, senti-humans, which are mostly just like normal people. Instead of IVF, they were created with magic. Kinda cool, right?”

Adrien gaped at her. “Senti-humans? You mean, like, they’re real humans, or do they have powers? Are they immortal, or do they die easily? How easy it is to break their amoks? Are they a threat to Golden Bug and Chat Grise? You— you said their amoks control them? How is that possible?”

Bluewing tried her best to respond. “They’re just like real humans, as far as I know. I’ve met one, and he’s just the same as every other boy. I think they have normal, human life spans, since they were created to be humans. I don’t know how easy it is to break their amoks, but I protect the one I have with my life. They’re not threats to Golden Bug or Chat Grise, any more than you are. And no one should ever control them. Senti-humans deserve the same rights and respect as normal-origin humans. That’s why I don’t use my power. I’m terrified of abusing it; that would make me the monster.”

“I see,” Adrien said thoughtfully. “I’m glad you aren’t abusing your Miraculous, at least. But I’m not convinced about this Wish; are you sure it’s the only way? Wouldn’t it have repercussions of its own?”

Bluewing crossed her arms defensively. “As far as I know, there are no side effects.”

Adrien brought a hand up to his chin, considering. “How about the akuma attacks? How can you justify the chaos, the damage? What happens when you win and Golden Bug can’t repair everything Hawk Moth’s akuma did? And the victims who get akumatized, how can you be okay with manipulating them if you’re hesitant to do the same thing with your brooch’s powers?”

“Oh, Hawk Moth asks them for permission before he akumatizes them,” Bluewing said, happy that she had an answer ready for this.

Adrien did not look convinced. “Even the baby? The toddlers? Are you sure that he asks them all, every time? Do you see him do it?”

“W-well,” Marinette faltered. “I don’t see it every time. I did witness it once or twice, but usually I’m already busy getting transformed and heading out to help. Um, but he did ask the baby! That’s what he said, at least.” Her voice grew quieter as she spoke, and she fought the urge to fidget nervously.

“You don’t sound very sure about that,” Adrien noted. “Are you sure Hawk Moth isn’t lying to you? Because there’s no way the trauma he’s given this city can just be erased. We won’t forget what he’s done to us. And I really doubt that a baby can give consent to becoming a villain’s accomplice. Would it even know what the words Hawk Moth spoke to it mean?”

Bluewing steadied herself. “Hawk Moth wouldn’t lie to me,” she said defensively.

But as Adrien glared accusingly at her, she found herself reminded of Emilie’s warning last night. Don’t trust Gabriel.

It wasn’t real. It was just a dream, she told herself.

“Look, I can’t vouch for everything he’s ever done. But I’ve seen the damage a broken Miraculous can do, and I’ve seen the pain of losing someone to things you can’t understand or explain. I know the only way to set things right is to use the Wish, and since Golden and Grise won’t give us their Miraculous even after Hawk Moth explained the situation to them and asked nicely, we have no choice but to use the akumas to get the Wish.”

Adrien stood up. “Really? There’s no other way? And yet Golden Bug and Chat Grise, who know more about their Miraculous and what they can do than you or Hawk Moth, still think a Wish isn’t worth it. They’re not giving you their Miraculous, ever, and all you can do by continuing to fight is cause more harm to Paris. So, maybe you should just give up.”

Bluewing frowned at Adrien. Hadn’t she just explained why she needed to keep fighting for the Miraculous? A Wish couldn’t possibly be as bad as Golden Bug and Chat Grise thought it would be. They were just selfish! Jealous of other people who could use their power to do more good than they ever could!

Meanwhile, Adrien kept talking, gesturing earnestly as he did.

“Take my friend Marinette, for example; she’s the most creative person I know. She’s always doing things I think are impossible, but even she has her limits. Look, it sucks that people got hurt because they used a broken Miraculous. But if they’re dead, they’re dead. You can’t just go around making exceptions to the laws of nature for people you like. If I was going after this Wish, for example, what makes my mother so different from the girl whose father died of cancer, or from the person who got infected while swimming and died from a parasite infection? What makes anyone more worth saving than anyone else? Nothing. But if we just bring back everyone we love who dies, the order of the world is broken. Life is beautiful, but it isn’t complete without death, as much as that sucks.”

Fear squeezed Bluewing in a tight vise. This was not the way she’d wanted this visit to go. Adrien had to be wrong; they were doing this for the right reasons! The Miraculous shouldn’t have killed its wielders! Adrien deserved his mother!

...More than anyone else who’d lost a parent?

“Another thing,” Adrien continued, “I wouldn’t trust anything Hawk Moth tells you about Golden Bug and Chat Grise. He hates them. I doubt he ever tried reasoning with them. I think he attacked before bothering to ask for the Miraculous; otherwise, why did he make his demand during Stormy Weather’s akumatization? He wouldn’t have needed to if he’d explained his situation to the heroes first.”

“You must be wrong,” Bluewing fought back weakly. “I know him. He’s a good man. He’s doing this for his son, for his family. And for others, too. This is the only way.”

Adrien frowned. “Sure. But I have just one more question before you leave, then. When you first put on the brooch, did you actually transform with it? Or did you not know how to? You’d only just discovered it, right?”

Bluewing nodded slowly. “Right, I only pinned it on. I wasn’t sure how to transform yet,” she confirmed, feeling her stomach churn uneasily. “Why do you ask?”

Adrien stared at her for a second, looking sympathetic for once. “Just wondering,” he said. “You’ve been through a lot. I don’t blame you for it, but if you ask me, Hawk Moth has been pulling your strings. My advice is to leave him while you still can. I think you knew the truth once. It’s time to rediscover it.”

Bluewing had no idea what to say, but it seemed that Adrien was done with the conversation. He guided her over to the window by her elbow, making it clear that it was time for her to leave.

Well, it’s probably for the best, Bluewing thought as she waved nervously, said goodbye, and ducked through the window. This meeting was a hot mess, anyway.

__*__*__*__*__

That evening, she sat alone on her balcony, fuming as she tried to work through Adrien’s words and how her visit had gone so wrong. Hawk Moth wasn’t lying to her! He might hide some things, but that was fine. Everyone had a right to privacy! And the baby might not understand words, but it could understand tones! Plus, the show during Stormy Weather was mostly for the public’s benefit, so they would understand what Hawk Moth was doing and what he was after, so they’d be less afraid of his akumas once they knew the akumas were only after Golden Bug and Chat Grise.

Marinette forced herself to stop thinking about it. Any more hard thinking, and she’d get a headache from all the stress.

Well, a headache was coming her way, regardless, in the form of one yellow-suited hero.

Marinette didn’t even have the energy left to react when Golden Bug landed on her balcony.

He raised his brows at her lack of reaction and hummed.

“You know, normally the only people to give me such a cold welcome are akumas,” he commented. “What’s bothering you, Marinette?”

She groaned and dropped her head into her hands.

I need to respond normally, or he’ll know something’s up, she fretted.

But he already suspected something was up, so she shrugged as she looked at him and said, “Everything. Nothing. It’s been a bad day, but I’ll be fine, I swear. So, you don’t need to watch over me for akumas. Go on with patrol, or whatever.”

Golden Bug frowned, apparently not convinced by her display (and honestly, who would be?). “You don’t seem okay. And what kind of hero would I be if I left innocent civilians alone when they’re vulnerable to being akumatized?”

Marinette sharply looked away. “Not much of one, I guess.”

Golden Bug sounded cheerful as he responded, “Great! Then it looks like I’m staying until you feel better. Glad we agree.”

Marinette’s eyes widened. Slowly, she slid her gaze to the left, where Golden Bug stood. She’d walked right into that one!

Leaning against the balcony railing, Golden Bug shot Marinette a grin. “So, what can this hero do to help? Antenna me what’s wrong.”

All Marinette could do was stare at him. Golden Bug seemed a little too invested in her mental health right now. Or was he?

He’d rescued her from her nightmare last night. He cared deeply about all the citizens of Paris, she had to admit that. Even back when she was targeted by Evillustrator, Golden Bug had gone above and beyond to make sure she was okay! This visit was probably just a normal check-up for him, another way for him to take care of the people he sincerely thought he was protecting from Hawk Moth.

Marinette found herself fighting a blush as she realized that Golden Bug was taking time out of his day to check on her, not because he suspected her of villainy, the way she’d thought he was the first time he did it, but because he genuinely wanted to! He cared about her.

Not like that. But still!

So, she offered him a smile and sat down on her chair to talk to him. The least she could do right now was be as kind to him as he was to her.

“Well, I still don’t need therapy,” she said, watching as Golden Bug seemed to relax at her willingness to talk. “So don’t bother putting on that silly mustache again.”

Golden Bug smirked. “Really? But I need it; it’s part of my charm!”

Marinette rolled her eyes affectionately. “As if.”

She paused, remembering that none of her current problems were really safe to share with the person in front of her. Doing that would be more likely to land her in a prison cell than make him leave.

“I guess I just still feel like a failure,” she admitted in a low voice. “Every time I think I’m making progress, it’s one step forward and two steps back. I just want to help people, like you do! But I end up feeling powerless and confused. I just need a win, you know?”

Golden Bug hummed. “I know. Believe me, the public might thank me for my help against Hawk Moth, but I still feel like I’ve never won against him. Every battle is a lost opportunity to take his Miraculous back and end his reign of terror. Each time he gets away and I don’t even get a lead, I...” He clenched his fist and looked away. “I also feel like a failure. Like I’m buckling under all the pressure on me. And, I don’t know, maybe we are a pair of failures. But I try to remember that every step forward really is progress, even if it feels like you slide back two steps afterwards. We can learn from our failures. Me, I’m always learning how to protect my Miraculous from Hawk Moth better. I can’t let him make that Wish, or else the entire world will be rewritten, and who knows what will be lost!”

Marinette stiffened. “What?”

Golden Bug looked over at her, his expression cooler than butter as he raised an eyebrow.

“What are you confused by? That’s pretty much my job description.”

“The Wish, you said it would rewrite the world? I thought it would be more like a wish from a genie,” she said, trying to laugh her comment off.

“Well,” Golden Bug said in an ironic tone, “You still have to be careful with those. You never get exactly what you wish for. And yes, a Wish made with Grise’s and my Miraculous would lead to this world being restarted, remade from scratch. Forget one little detail, and people, or entire civilizations, could be wiped from existence. A Wish needs to be worded perfectly, which is an impossible goal. There’s a price to pay for it, too. For example, if you use a Wish to bring someone back to life, someone else will be killed. The world’s balance is delicate; even a Wish can’t tilt it too far.”

Marinette gasped, feeling tears sting her eyes. Emilie. The other parents. Healing the survivors would injure others? Bringing back the ones who died... would doom others to take their place in death?

The shock was nearly too much to bear.

Did Gabriel know about this? He couldn’t have, or he would have told her.

Maybe Golden Bug is wrong, Marinette thought desperately.

“How do you know that?” she asked quickly, nearly tripping over her words. “Are you sure that’s what would happen?”

Golden Bug’s face was solemn as he nodded. “It’s the truth. That’s what the Guar— that’s what the man who entrusted me with my Miraculous told me.”

The man who gave him his Miraculous? The Guardian. The one who refused Gabriel’s first pleas, who lied to Golden Bug and Chat Grise and sent them out to fight a grown man!

Marinette clenched her jaw. There was no way the Guardian had told Golden Bug the truth about this. It had to be one of his lies!

Relief shot through Marinette, and she relaxed back in the chair, not having realized until then that she’d sat up in her panic.

“That’s horrible,” she commented. “I’m glad you and Chat Grise are doing your best to make sure that won’t happen.” I’m sorry the Guardian lied to you. I’m sorry you’re trapped in his service.

For some reason, Golden Bug blinked at her. “I’m, uh, happy to serve.”

Marinette smiled at him. “Well, thanks for stopping by! I feel a lot better now. Do you want a cookie or something before you leave?”

Golden Bug tilted his head. “Uh, sure? Thank you. Hey, are you sure you’re okay now? Last night had to have been difficult for you. It’s okay if you’re still affected by it.”

“I’m okay, really. I just have to keep pushing forward. I’ll get there eventually!”

Marinette considered her words for a moment. Something was missing.

“Oh, and I’m sure you’ll catch Hawk Moth soon! Try throwing him off again. Do something unpredictable, like, maybe trade Miraculous with Chat Grise for a few days again? Practice so he can’t throw you off if you’re attacked while you have the wrong Miraculous, I don’t know.”

It wasn’t the best advice, but it wasn’t horrible, either. And if he wound up taking it? It would provide the perfect opportunity for her and Hawk Moth. They just had to strike soon, before Golden Bug and Chat Grise could get used to using their partner’s Miraculous.

A hum startled Marinette from her thoughts.

“I’ll think about it,” Golden Bug responded. “Grise and I will have to discuss it together before we do anything. We’re partners, you know? It’s not fair if one of us makes the decisions for both of us. I value what she has to say.”

“Oh, of course,” Marinette responded immediately. “I wouldn’t expect anything else from the two of you. You work really well together.”

“Thanks!” Golden Bug said with a smile. He looked surprised and pleased by the compliment.

Marinette smiled back at him. Even if he was her enemy, and she was trying to get over him still, she had to admit that he looked cute when he was flustered.

“So,” she started to say, “If you still want something from the bakery, you can just—”

She was cut off by her phone vibrating in her pocket, which startled her into jumping from the chair. When she pulled the phone out of her pocket, she saw that she was getting a call, and when she saw the caller ID, her eyes widened.

“It’s M. Agreste,” she told Golden Bug. “He might have news about school or my internship; I have to take this!”

Golden Bug nodded, quickly said goodbye, and swung away from her balcony.

Marinette accepted the call. “Hello?”

“Marinette.” Gabriel’s voice came through crisply. “I have finished selecting a new secretary. She won’t start until Monday, so I have decided to akumatize my next champion today, while we have time to kill. I have my eyes on someone in the 15th arrondissement. Transform quickly and begin making your way over. Does that sound acceptable to you?”

Marinette nodded and then stuttered out a confirmation when she realized M. Agreste couldn’t see her. “Y-yeah, yesh, yes it does!”

“Good,” M. Agreste said. “You don’t have to report back to the mansion unless you think it’s necessary. I’ll be in contact.”

He hung up, and Marinette gulped. This would be the first real test of the potion’s power!

Reaching under her overshirt, she unpinned the brooch and held it up to check for cracks.

There was nothing, not even a scratch!

Marinette smiled as she pinned the brooch back on, checked for Golden Bug or any leftover paparazzi still hoping for a scoop on Adrien’s ‘girlfriend,’ and transformed.

Things were finally looking up.

#bluewing au #true blue #ml fanfic #rosie-b writing #miraculous ladybug #kwami swap

38 notes · View notes