A Sudden Villain

Three days remained before Cour d'Assisses was to convene to determine whether Ladybug can be convicted or not with the record as it is or not. Paris was in anticipation of what was hidden within the record. All sources of news, including tabloid manufacturers, were salivating over wanting the all important information. Some of the journalists tried to sneak in to obtain the all important record, or even a small amount of it, as even a single sentence that leaked through would be more valuable than a diamond to a jeweler. However, all attempts from the day all news outlets with the ability to present videos on TV screens showed the footage of Ladybug murdering Lila Rossi until now have failed. Pierre Lefevre was safeguarding the record and trying to get even a single word from within it was harder than it was to steal a bar of gold from Fort Knox.

It was after school hours, and Scarabella and Cat Noir had met up on the roof of the pools. They agreed to start a patrol, Scarabella would go one way and Cat would check the other areas.

During her patrol, Scarabella was distracted by the ads for the Alliance rings. Every screen in Paris seemed to be playing the same ad at that time, and Scarabella couldn't help but be intrigued that Gabriel had enough funds to boot out other advertisers from that slot. She wondered if he was concerned about causing dark emotions, such as jealousy, into other advertisers or not.

Her attention soon shifted from the screens as she heard some familiar voice speaking and grunting. Scarabella turned her head and spotted Denis Damocles, the principal of the school her civilian form attends, was dressed in his 'The Owl' costume and he appeared to be having difficulty assisting a cat in trouble.

Scarabella sighed and face palmed inwardly, but before she could put in any effort to provide assistance, a young lady wearing a Ladybug costume stepped in to help.

Denis had ended up in a terrifying state, the cape of his costume was tangled in a ladder, and his mask had fallen down and was crushed by a passing vehicle. But the fake Ladybug rescued Denis before Scarabella could step in.

After Denis was rescued, he thanked Ladybug, and Scarabella watched as she ran off. Scarabella remained above the fake and remained hidden, she knew that whoever was beneath the mask, it wasn't Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Scarabella knew that Marinette would have known better.

Soon, the fake had to remove her costume, the fake entered an apartment, out of Scarabella's sight. Soon Socqueline Wang departed from the building, and Scarabella noted that her eyes, hair and height were the same as the fake, she connected the dots and deduced that Socqueline Wang was indeed saving citizens in a ladybug costume.

Scarabella thought one thing, it was too dangerous for a non-miraculous wielder to assist in these types of matters. She decided then and there that she would confront Socqueline.

She followed, from a distance, Socqueline and she ended up at a craft store.

Scarabella didn't know it then, but Denis would also be making an appearance at the same store.

Scarabella entered while Socqueline was carrying some rolls of fabric. Scarabella cleared her throat.

"I'll be with you in a second." Socqueline relayed. But at that moment, she was able to catch a small glimpse of Scarabella, so she turned her head and she dropped the rolls in shock. She gasped. "You're… you're… you're the holder of the ladybug miraculous… right?"

"That's right!" Scarabella gave a bit of a bow. "In the flesh."

"But…" Socquline added. "You're not Ladybug, so what is your alias?"

"Scarabella, nice to meet you." Scarabella relayed, holding out her hand. Socquline shook Scarabella's hand.

"Wow, I can't believe I'm shaking hands with a wielder of the ladybug miraculous! I mean you aren't Ladybug, but this is still an honour nonetheless!"

"Talking about Ladybug, I couldn't help but notice someone around your age who looked similar to you dressed up like her saving the life of The Owl." Scarabella added, taking her hand back politely.

"Are you inferring that the person you saw was me?" Socqueline asked, there was a slight nervousness about her.

"I saw her go into an apartment and you left that apartment shortly after. You must have seen her, right?" Scarabella added.

"No, I was heading out to come here to do my work." Socqueline relayed. "After all, my mother likes it when I help out in her shop."

The bell chimed as Denis entered.

"Ladybug?" Denis asked as he saw Scarabella. "Wait, that's not right… is it?"

"I'm Ladybug's stand-in. My name is Scarabella." Scarabella added.

"Then who is the Ladybug that saved me?" Denis asked.

"I witnessed that myself, sorry you lost your owl mask Mr Damocles, but I thought Ladybug imparted you with a lesson to be more careful when being a hero. You should have called the firemen to save that kitten like the last time. As for the hero you saw, whoever it was, they weren't wearing the ladybug miraculous, and she certainly wasn't the original." Scarabella explained.

"I'm sorry, Scarabella, you're right, I have no idea what was going through my mind, I'll do better next time, I promise. Also, how are you so sure it wasn't the original with a copy of her costume that saved me?" Denis asked.

"I know what the real unmasked Ladybug looks like, and she and the fake Ladybug you saw have some stark differences. Also, now that she is a civilian for the time being, she wouldn't have put her own life at risk." She turned her head toward Socqueline. "Unlike some people."

"Me? What are you talking about?" Socqueline asked nervously.

"You are the fake Ladybug, please don't deny it." Scarabella relayed.

"I… I am not…" Socqueline was trying to find the right words. "I am not the fake Ladybug, and you have no proof of it!"

Scarabella scanned Socqueline and then Scarabella smirked. "Please Alliance, show me my recent movement activity." Scarabella relayed to the ring Socqueline was wearing.

Socqueline was shocked when Adrien's avatar appeared in the holographic display and relayed the info that Scarabella asked for. "Well, would you look at that, this shows you were at the spot Mr Damocles got into trouble around the time I saw you."

"I had no idea Alliance could respond to other voices! I should bring this up with the manufacturers." Socqueline added with a finger to her chin.

"Well, I've shown evidence, now what do you have to say?" Scarabella asked.

Socqueline sighed. "Alright, you caught me, I am the fake… I just thought that by taking action whenever I saw the chance."

"Ha! I knew it, my instincts are never wrong!" Scarabella added.

"But, she helped me… I mean The Owl out, how is that a bad thing?" Denis asked.

"Hey, Mr Damocles, no need to hide that you're The Owl, everyone in Paris knows who you are and we treat you the same under the mask as we did before we knew." Scarabella added. "As for how it is a bad thing, well, I don't know her or her capabilities, I don't want to see you hurting yourself just because you want to be a hero!"

Socqueline was flabbergasted. "You think me being a hero is bad? What about Mr Damocles? He's a hero everyday and nobody stops him! He is putting his life at risk as much as I do."

"No, he doesn't. That one moment was a one-off. Mr Damocles is an adult and a principal, he is smart, he knows what he is doing for the most part. He knows right from wrong because Ladybug teached him." Scarabella spoke with praise. "You, however, are young, with potential within you. Unless you can present me with your strength, then I must ask you to stop pretending to be Ladybug!"

Socqueline was speechless. "I… I am so sorry, I just wanted to help."

"You can still help, but I think Ladybug and I would prefer it if you did it without a mask from now on." Scarabella answered.

Before Socqueline could come up with a response, a news alert showed up on the Alliance of an experiment gone wrong. "We'll," Scarabella added. "Looks like that is my cue to go, Mr Damocles, keep at the good work, and if you can't get your mask replaced here, go see Marinette Dupain-Cheng. If you've seen Kitty Section, you've seen her work, she'll have a new mask for you fixed up in a jiffy."

Scarabella left, and Socqueline was quiet.

"Are you okay, Socqueline?" Denis inquired.

"Oh? Right, let me show you the masks we have, and while you browse that, I'll check our stock to see if we have to replace what you lost." Socqueline replied.

After Scarabella and Cat dealt with flying dinosaurs created by professor Du Boqualle, they transformed back into their civilian forms and went on about their day to day.

However, it wasn't long until an akumatized villain appeared over the horizon, metaphorically speaking. Mr Pigeon was back in action… again.

This time, he had made his pigeons form into a giant pigeon that was stomping all over town, causing destruction and fear.

Adrien face-palmed.

"Can't that bird brain just take a holiday in a while?" Plagg asked as he watched the giant pigeon stomp about.

"I wish he could too, but unfortunately, Xavier is such an easy mark for Monarch. Come on Plagg, finish your cheese, Paris will be needing Cat Noir!" Adrien added.

"Oh, come on Adrien." Plagg added sadly as he gulped down a chunk of camembert. "You know I prefer to savour my cheese."

"Says the kwami who always gulps it down in one go." Adrien joked.

"That's a low blow, Adrien! Too bad for you, I have nothing down there to be injured."

"Plagg, Claws out!"

"Wait! I haven't finished joking about!" Plagg yelled, his voice distorting as he was absorbed into Cat Noir's ring.

Cue Cat Noir's transformation sequence.

Cat Joined with Scarabella. "Looks like Mr Ramier's sanity has flown the coop again." Scarabella joked.

"Hey! I'm the puns, you're the brains!" Cat interjected.

"What's the matter, kitten? You don't like joking around?" Scarabella added as she pulled out her yo-yo and held it by the string.

"I do… I just didn't know you could joke with the best of them." Cat added.

"Oh?" Scarabella added as she swung around the yo-yo. "I think you are the best of them too. Let's defeather this bird-brain before his talons cause too much damage." She launched off toward the giant sentinel made of pigeons.

"Alright… I'll be with you!" Cat shouted as she disappeared. Cat turns away. "Is it me, or is she acting differently?" He thought loudly.

The duo tried to get through the sentinel, but they bounced off the pigeons. They beat a few pigeons down and tried to trap them, but they just came back healthier than before.

"How are the pigeons getting better? They should stay down!" Scarabella added.

"Right, this is your first time battling Mr Pigeon. I've fought him, like, 1000 times, and at this point, I'm not even sure if that is hyperbole or not." Cat added.

"Wow!" Scarabella noted with shining eyes. "I didn't know you had such sophisti-cat-ed vocabulary."

Cat blushed slightly. "Thanks… My English is pretty good. I can speak other languages too, but not now."

"Right, we need to get through these pigeons first! Lucky—" Scarabella announced, but Cat stopped her.

"Are you sure it's the right time?" Cat asked.

"What, have you found a way through the bird shield?" Scarabella asked.

"No, but there is something I can try. Keep the pigeon mech distracted while I check something out." Cat relayed.

"Can it even be called a mech seeing as it is made from pure pigeon?" Scarabella joked.

"Just keep the giant pigeon following you, and stay away from it, we don't know how these guys plan to get a hold of our miraculous."

Scarabella followed the instructions. After three minutes, Cat joined back up with Scarabella. "No good, the mech doesn't have a cloaca."

"You really thought that Mr Pigeon would make the giant pigeon 1 to 1 with the smaller versions making it up?" Scarabella added.

"It was worth a shot, I thought there could have been a way through, I was wrong." Cat relayed.

Scarabella shook her head. "It's okay kitty, your deduction was good and it did warrant looking through, you followed your brain and it turned out your hunch was wrong, but that doesn't lessen the potential that you could have been right."

Cat nodded with a smile. "You are right, just like the old Ladybug. She too would have said the same thing. You are pretty good at this."

"Thanks, I've dreamed of being a great hero for a while."

Cat felt something off. "You… you dreamt of that?"

"Yes!"

Cat nodded. "Good to know, well, we still have your lucky charm. I certainly won't be able to create a big enough hole through that giant pigeon with my special ability."

"Lucky Charm!" Scarabella shouted and a blindfold was dropped from the yo-yo. "Seriously, how does Ladybug even deal with this?"

"Hey, you beat robustus with a frying pan after being absorbed into the digital ether." Cat added.

"R-right." Scarabella added and she looked around. She saw a camera, and a pet store. "I have it!"

"What's the plan?" Cat asked.

"Get some bird seed. I'll confuse those birds with a camera flash and when I do that, you toss the seed everywhere and the birds should follow them. After a gap is formed, I'll put this blindfold on Mr Ramier, he won't be able to control this giant if he can't see where it is going." Scarabella explained.

"Alright! Let's hope it works." Cat added. He went down to the pet store.

The gruff man handling the shop saw Cat. "What be it?"

"This is an emergency, I need bird seed!" Cat relayed.

The gruff man pointed at the biggest bag. Cat took it with him.

"Aren't you going to ask him to pay for that?" Asked the gruff man's junior assistant.

"No need, the miraculous ladybugs will restore them to their former glory." Replied the man.

Scarabella borrowed the camera and flashed the birds with the camera flash and Cat spread about the bird seed. The birds scattered and a hole was formed in the giant pigeon. Mr Pigeon was inside and he was flabbergasted that people were able to see him.

"W-where are you going?" Mr Pigeon added. "Come back my lovelies!"

Scarabella took advantage of the gap and got the blindfold on Mr Pigeon. The giant pigeon dispersed, and Mr Pigeon was in freefall, trying to remove the blindfold.

Cat came in with the save and after Mr Pigeon was on the ground, Cat got the bird call and crushed it. A black butterfly was released from it and Scarabella caught it.

Mr Pigeon slowly became Xavier Ramier again. "Hello?" Xavier asked, still blindfolded. "Who's there, where am I?"

Scarabella took the blindfold off Mr Ramier and threw it into the air. "Miraculous Scarabella!" She yelled and a bunch of small ladybugs came around and fixed everything. The junior clerk was surprised to see the ladybugs replace the seed bag, full and unopen.

"See," said the gruff cashier. "What did I tell you?"

"I'll never doubt you again." The junior added.

Now, let us return to our heroes.

Scarabella held out her hand for a handshake. Her left hand, so Cat would have to shake it with his right hand. Cat smelled a trap and whispered "Cataclysm" activating his power.

"Good job, Cat Noir." Scarabella added.

Cat twisted around his left hand so he could shake her hand. Scarabella seemed stunned at this. Cat used his right hand and touched the mask on Scarabella's face. The mask disintegrated, and something shocking happened. Another black butterfly showed up and slowly flapped away. Cat captured it in his hands and looked around. There was nothing in the immediate area.

Socqueline was now standing where Scarabella used to be. "What happened? Where am I? How did I get here?"

Cat had a firm grasp on the akuma. "We can answer those questions later. First, I need to contain this." Cat showed the akuma quickly and then hid it again and Socqueline was filled with fear.

"That's one of those black butterflies that turn normal people into villains!" Socqueline relayed.

"Exactly!" Cat added. "You won't believe who was holding this one."

"Who?" Socqueline asked.

"You, and you turned into an exact copy of Scarabella. Care to explain why." Cat added.

"Oh! I remember! I was pretending to be Ladybug, I dressed up as her and saved Mr Damocles when he found himself in a spot of trouble. Scarabella berated me for not doing things right! That must have made me upset enough for Monarch to akumatize me! How did you even know I was akumatized?" Socqueline responded.

"Sounds like something Ladybug would do. I'm so sorry that this upset you." Cat added. "I do think people should stay safe, but people should also be judged by capability as well. Maybe, when I have time, I can come to your place and see what you have there in regards to your abilities to act safely."

"For example?" Socqueline asked.

"Like a black belt in karate or some other form of martial art. If Scarabella or Ladybug saw that, then they could safely presume that you are capable and thoughtful about saving lives. Still, it is best to take action if it is your job to do so." Cat added.

Socqueline smiled. "You're right. Being a hero isn't official. I should first get documentation to show my prowess before I do something silly like that again. There should be things I can do without the mask that would do just as much good as the things I can do with it."

Cat smiled. "Wow, my first lesson, and you have taken it well. I also know you weren't the real Scarabella because you spoke differently than her, making jokes, and being inexperienced. What really confirmed my suspicions was at the end. I always fist bump, and you wanted to shake hands. I bet that was to take my miraculous. Well, I better get going before I transform back and you see who the real Cat Noir is."

"Yes." Socqueline added. "That would certainly be embarrassing."

Cat Noir departed. He was still wondering how two akumas were in play at the same time. Did Monarch hand over the butterfly miraculous over to someone else temporarily so that both the fake Scarabella and Mr Pigeon could co-exist at the same time?

Meanwhile, Alya reached Marinette's room and she sealed off the trapdoor.

"What's the matter Alya?" Marinette inquired.

"It's Tikki, I can't find her!" Alya exclaimed.

"What? That's impossible, she should be with you!" Marinette added.

"I know, I know, but she isn't! I tried to transform, but Tikki was nowhere to be found! I still have the miraculous, but not the kwami!" Alya replied.

"What? Did she wander off? That's not like her." Marinette added as she looked at the circle window of her room.

"Hold on… let's get on the same page, because what you say isn't making sense." Alya added.

"What do you mean? Did something hit you on the head on your way here? I saw you helping Cat Noir defeat Mr Pigeon." Marinette added.

"So did I, but the thing is, that wasn't me! It couldn't have been because I lost Tikki!" Alya relayed.

Marinette looked shocked beyond belief. "N-no! T-this… this can't be!"

"It shouldn't be, but there was another, and I bet it was the Wang's art shop owner's daughter who was wearing my costume." Alya added.

"Socqueline Wang?" Marinette asked.

"You know her?" Alya asked.

"She was my guardian before you." Marinette relayed.

Alya pushed her glasses up on the bridge of her nose. "Quite ironic how she ended up emulating you as a fake Ladybug."

"She… What?!" Marinett asked.

"She saved Mr Damocles when his cape got tangled in a ladder rung when he fell trying to rescue a cat. They both got a lesson from me. Mr Damocles was happy with what I said, but I don't think she took it the same way." Alya added.

"Oh, Alya." Marinette face-palmed. "You should have let me deal with it."

"I wish I could've, but that's not your job right now, have you found anything new to clear your name for Lila's murder?" Alya asked.

"No, I didn't. Let's not focus on that right now. You lost tikki, Mr Pigeon was akumatised and so was Socqueline." Marinette added. "But, this isn't necessarily a bad thing, this may help us figure out Monarch's scheme."

"You're right, this whole ordeal has his fingerprints all over it." Alya added.

Suddenly Tikki entered. "Oh, Alya, there you are! I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Tikki!" Marinette yelled and she gave it a big hug. "I'm so glad you're safe!"

"I'm sorry, Marinette, I didn't mean to make you and Alya worry." Tikki added.

"It's fine now, but where were you?" Alya asked.

"I… can't say. I have no memory of what happened." Tikki added.

"Monarch must have something to do with this." Marinette added, slamming a fist into her hand for emphasis.

"But, that's impossible. For him to steal Tikki, he needs to know that I'm Scarabella." Alya added.

"But, if he did steal Tikki, and then forced her to forget about it, it means Monarch does know your identity." Marinette added.

"So, Monarch has access to my miraculous, so why not take them?" Alya relayed.

"I don't know, there must be a reason. For now, you should keep a hold of them until we figure out how he could have figured out you hold the miraculous of the ladybug." Marinette added.

"We can also deduce that Monarch isn't the only threat we should be worrying about." Alya added.

"What makes you say that?" Marinette asked.

"In your free time and when we are together, you gave me the cliff notes of all the battles you've had until now. Including when you fought me when I was hypnotised by Miracle Queen. Yet, he's never had a planthat was as complex as what is happening now before, he isn't that smart, so someone else must be assisting him." Alya added.

Marinette nodded. "Yes. I think you are right. There is definitely something very wrong about all of this."

Our characters were gaining more questions than answers. There was more to be afraid of now that Monarch may know Alya is Scarabella, and the fact that two akuma's appeared simultaneosly was also disturbing. There must be explanations for everything. Wheter or not those explanations showed up or not was all up to those involved.

With the latest Villian, people were aware that Monarch was still present and that kept the anxiety up. Fear was now higher than before, and so was anticipation with the court day drawing ever closer. Paris could only hope that the record could be dismissed and Ladybug would be free to be a hero again. But with so much evidence against her, and the pile growing day by day, hope in the hearts of Parisians was decreasing.