Chapter 12: Chapter 11: Growing and Learning!
(A/N: Behold! More fangirl Marinette and fluff! Also, the plot thickens!)
(Marintte's pov)
After we took care of Natsuhiko Nakanohara's shadow and explored mementos a bit, we made our way back up. On the way, I went over what he said in my head. What does Madarame have to do with anything? But I decided to push that to the back of my head and focus on other stuff. But something happened when we arrived at the entrance of mementos. There was a small boy in white standing next to a big, floating, glowing, yellow orb full of flowers. The glowing sphere then disintegrated, and a yellow drink appeared in the boy's hand.
"Maybe it's this one..." He muttered. He took a sip from the glass in his hand.
"Tasty!" the boy said joyfully.
I looked at the small boy in shock. How did a little kid end up in mementos? My friends and I approached the small boy.
"Hey, what's he drinking?" Ryuji asked. The small boy took notice of us, and he put his drink in his pocket (somehow).
"Oh! Hello! I thought I felt something strange." The boy said, looking up at us. I knelt to meet the boy at eye level.
"Hello there, we are the Phantom Thieves. What's a small boy like you doing in a dangerous place like this?" I asked.
"Hello, nice lady! I am Jose, and I'm here doing some research!" The boy said.
"Research?" I asked. This boy is so adorable! Jose explained his research on humans and how he uses flower juice to do his research.
After some discussion, we agreed to assist the boy in his research. In exchange, he'll trade the flowers for some useful items. Morgana voiced his concerns, and Jose responded adorably.
"Are you tired, Kitty? You seem grumpy." Jose said.
"Ignore him. He's just jealous of your cuteness!" I said to Jose.
"Cuteness?" Jose repeated.
"Of course! You are just the cutest white-haired boy ever!" I responded. I opened up my arms to him and scooped the small boy up into a hug.
"What's going on?" Jose asked.
"Princess! What are you doing?" Morgana scolded. I ignored him.
"I'm giving you a hug! It's a form of human affection." I told Jose. Jose looked like he was thinking about what I said and smiled.
"Thank you for sharing that information with me, nice lady!" He said.
I put the smol boy down and smiled.
"No problem!" I responded. The boy then reached into his pocket and pulled out something.
"Humans also give gifts to people they like, correct?" Jose asked, holding out a light blue, sparkling, star-shaped object.
"Here is my token of thanks, miss Princess!" The small boy said a big smile on his face. I almost had a heart attack from the cuteness, but I accepted the gift.
"Thank you!" I said with a smile. Jose explained how he thought the star could make wishes come true. After that, we bid our farewells, and Jose drove off in his small blue car.
I gave the star to Joker, and he looked it over.
"Can the thing really grant wishes?" Skull asked.
"Maybe..." Morgana said. Both Panther and Skull wished for food, but nothing happened.
"I highly doubt this star can make food appear out of nowhere," Joker said, putting the thing into his pocket.
"Then, it can't make wishes come true?" Skull moaned.
"Not those types of wishes anyway," I said, thinking it over.
"You know, this star was found in the Metaverse... So, it can probably help is with Phantom Thievery." I thought aloud.
"That would make sense..." Morgana said.
"In any case, let's head home!" I said. Everyone else agreed, and we exited Mementos.
(Time skip! Brought to you by Author-chan's Writer's block striking again! Pls help...)
The next day, I decided to teach Akira how to use his Miraculous. So, I invited him over to my apartment. When he arrived, I told him what we were going to do.
"So... You're gonna teach me how to be a superhero outside of the Metaverse?" Akira said.
"More or less," I said, adjusting my earrings.
"Okay... How are we gonna do this? Also, where are we gonna train?" He asked, fiddling with his ring. I smiled and picked up the Miricle box. I reached inside and pulled out a pair of glasses.
"With the Horse Miraculous!" I said triumphantly, holding them up.
"This Miraculous can teleport us to any location!" I explained when Akira looked confused.
"Cool! So, where to?" He asked.
"How about... a deserted island somewhere!" I said.
"Sounds good, let's go!" Akira said as I put on the Horse Miraculous.
(On teleportation later...)
When we arrived at the island, Akira took in his surroundings.
"What a beautiful place! Where are we?" He asked as I de-transformed.
"We're on an unexplored island somewhere in the pacific ocean," I told him.
"Cool... So, when do we start?" Akira asked.
"Right now! Tikki spots on!" I cheered as Tikki (who followed us with Plagg) got sucked into my earrings. The transformation was different, however. Instead of pink, glittery, light, I was engulfed in a swarm of glowing pink ladybugs. When the ladybugs disappeared, my Ladybug outfit was also different (A/N: Heres a link: https://www.wattpad.com/949798761-the-fighters-concept-and-design-ladybug%27s-new). We both stood there in silence for a few seconds before Akira spoke up.
"Did your Ladybug costume always look like that?" He asked.
"No... It was just a red jumpsuit with black spots! Why does it look like this?" I said, turning to Plagg.
"Don't look at me! Tikki is the one who knows about this stuff, not me!" He said defensively.
"Whatever! Akira, you know what to do!" I cheered. He nodded and looked into Plagg's eyes.
"Plagg claws out!" Akira said. Plagg got sucked into the ring, and similar to my own transformation, Akira's was different. Instead of lime green lightning, a large cloud of black smoke shaped like a cat with bright green eyes enveloped Akira. When the smoke cleared, I stared in awe at Akira's outfit (A/N: here's another link: https://www.wattpad.com/949799530-the-fighters-concept-and-design-the-new-black-cat).
"Are... are your ears made out of your own hair?" I asked. Akira felt the top of his head where his new cat ears were.
"Apparently so..." He said.
"Also, before we begin... We need to decide your hero's name." I said.
"How about Kuro?" Akira suggested.
"Isn't that just black in Japanese?" I asked.
"Yes. It's cool and straight to the point." He responded. I smiled at my friend and giggled.
"Alright, Kuro. Let's get started!" I said, grabbing my yo-yo. We trained for an hour. Akira, or should I say Kuro, was a real natural! He truly moved like a cat and the way he handled his staff was incredible. His Cataclysm was spectacular! After we were done training, I used my Miraculous Ladybug power to clean up.
"I think we made some good progress!" I said, de-transforming.
"We did," Kuro said, also de-transforming.
"Hey, why do you have multiple powers, and I only have one?" Akira asked while feeding some cheese-flavored chips to Plagg.
"I don't know... But my best guess is that creation is used to both create and fix. While destruction only, well, destroys." I said, pulling out the Horse Miraculous.
"I also have another question..." Akira said.
"What is it?" I asked, putting on the Horse Miraculous.
"Do you think we could give Ann and Ryuji a Miraculous?" He asked. I paused. Sure, I had been thinking about it. I had even started to unconsciously plan which Miraculous I should give them.
"I have been thinking about it... But I don't know." I said.
"I won't force you, but I think it'll be useful." He said.
"Useful, how?" I asked.
"Why don't we test our powers in the Metaverse?" Akira suggested. I thought about it for a few seconds.
"Okay! Let's see what will happen!" I said. If I'm being honest, I was curious to see what would happen.
(Time skip! Brought to you by Author-chan's sheer will to continue writing!)
So... Turns out the power of the Miraculous can drastically change in the Metaverse! In the Metaverse, Cataclysm can be used endlessly! Luck Charm also changed. It can also be used endlessly, and I can also create anything I want. When we exited Mementos, Akira and I went back to my apartment to talk to the Kwamis about that.
"I wish I had an explanation myself... But all I can do is guess from what happened!" Tikki said.
"From what I could tell when a Miraculous enters the Metaverse, it's Kwami is automatically sucked into the Miraculous. But, the Miraculous can use it's power endlessly with no effect on the Kwami. I suspect that the immense cognitive energy of the Metaverse is responsible for this." Tiki explained.
"That makes sense... But why did my costume change?" I asked my Kwami.
"Oh! That's easy!" Tikki said happily.
"How?" I asked.
"You've changed, Marinette!" Tikki said, sincerely.
"Changed?" I asked.
"You have! You matured since I first met you over two years ago! You've grown, from a clumsy, insecure girl, to the confidant young woman I see now!" Tikki said, her big, blue eyes full of emotion. I smiled and held the small creature close.
"Thanks, Tikki," I whispered. Akira looked at me, and we made eye contact. I let go of Tikki and started to talk to him.
"I hope today was a good one for you," I told him.
"It was exciting, to say the least," He said. I giggled at that comment.
"Well, I guess Plagg was right. You are a good black cat!" I said.
"Thanks," He responded with a smile. I bid him goodbye as he left my apartment, leaving me alone. I snuggled into my Kotatsu table and started to think. What will the future have in store for my friends and me?
(A/N: Well, this took too long! I am so sorry! Writer's block is the worst!)
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone