Time Breaker

Marinette stood in the bakery with her dad, helping put the finishing touches on the cake. "Shouldn't you be getting ready?" she asked him. Her dad pulled his apron off to reveal he was wearing a fancy shirt and trousers. "Hands," she warned as he was about to adjust his tie. Her mum walked in, a flower in her hair and a smile on her face. "We need to go now, sweetie," she said. Marinette carefully lifted the cake and placed it on the counter. "Remember, Marinette, Nadja will be here to pick up the cake in half an hour," he reminded her. She nodded. "Keep an eye on the bakery," he told her as he was pushed out by Marinette and dragged away by his wife. "I will. I will," Marinette replied. Finally, she was alone in the bakery. She switched the sign to closed and went upstairs to do her homework. Whilst she was hunched over into her book, her phone rang. "Hey, Alya," she said. "Where are you? Everyone is here already and there is no banner!" Alya scolded. Marinette jumped up, knocking her chair back. She completely forgot! Alya would never let her live this down. Not after she promised she wouldn't be late this time. "I'm nearly there," she lied. Before Alya could ask for more detail, Marinette hung up. In a hurry, she grabbed the completed banner and checked her phone. She wouldn't make it on time if she ran. Ladybug would, though. Without a second thought, she said, "Spots on," and swung away.

It was another warm, sunny day. Perfect for a photoshoot. Adrian stood with all eyes on him. A fake smile existed for the camera. This was not how he wanted to spend the day. He hated the schedule. School, homework, fencing lessons, modelling, music lessons, Chinese lessons...How was he meant to have a social life? "Break!" the photographer yelled. The boy looked to his bodyguard who was distracted on his phone. Adrian smirked. He wouldn't be going too far...He slipped away from everyone and ran out of the park. Weekends were for hanging out with friends, or so Nino tells him, so that was what Adrian was gonna do. He did say, after all, he would be there for the race. Kim against Alix. It would be close. He couldn't miss it. Everyone from class would be there to witness it - Kim getting put in his place or Alix suffering an awful defeat. They even put bets on the challenge. Adrian doubted Alix would give up her skates if she lost but Kim, he only had to buy her a cake and wear a sign all week saying he lost. He seemed confident enough to go through with it. Everyone was waiting when Adrian arrived. Marinette had still to come with the banner and Alix, according to Kim, was about five minutes away. Kim was at the start, stretching and being as cocky as ever. Adrian laughed at him, drawing Chloe's attention. She ran over to him and wrapped herself around his arm. "Adrikins, you made it!" she cheered. He smiled nervously at her. He hated it when she clung to him, but, of course, he couldn't really tell her. Instead, when he spotted Marinette walking towards them, he wriggled free with the excuse, "I should help her hold the banner." With a bright smile, Marinette showed off the banner routing for Alix. Before Adrian could take one of the sides, Nino grabbed it and said, "I'll help." Marinette handed it to him and walked backwards until it was fully stretched out. He thought it was best to offer a compliment, then. She'd appreciate that, surely. "Impressive, Marinette!" he said. Without him meaning to, Adrian winked at the end. Why did he do that? She will think he was teasing her or making fun of her! Again! Stupid! Marinette giggled, easing Adrian's worry.

"You all picked the wrong side to cheer on," Kim said. He stopped his stretching and walked over to the group. Marinette took out her phone. Twenty-five minutes then she had to go. To ensure she wouldn't be late, she set an alarm. "Looks like Alix isn't even showing up! Probably too chicken to race an extreme athlete like me," Kim gloated. The athletic boy gave Marinette a thumbs up for the banner. Even if she wasn't cheering for him, he was still kind enough to compliment it, in a way. With her free hand, she pointed to the start line. "Spoke too soon, Kim," Alix said. She stopped at the start and raised her hands, basking in the classes cheers. She went into position but pulled herself upright again and skated to the crowd. "I'm gonna leave you in the dust, meathead," she told Kim as her hand went into her pocket. With a more serious look on her face, she turned to Alya. "My dad gave me this watch," she said, handing the girl the gift. It was beautiful. Marinette couldn't take her eyes off it. Silver and shiny. Clearly well taken care of and polished to perfection. "It is a family heirloom. Very important. Guard it with your life," Alix warned Alya. There was something odd about the watch. A strange feeling. Alix made her way to the start line and said to Kim, "Hurry up you snail. Or do you wanna forfeit?" Kim ran to the line. "You wish. You're no match for me!" he said. Whilst the referee, Max, explained the rule to them, Alya tried to get ready to film with the watch in hand. She groaned. "Hey, Marinette, hold this for me," she requested, handing the heirloom to her friend. A rush of energy ran through her from the watch. She'd need to ask Alix about it after the race. The countdown began. As soon as the two began, Kin running and Alix skating, Nino's cheering became more aggressive. He jumped and shouted and shook the banner. "Nino, calm down! Alya!" she worriedly said. She couldn't hold the banner and the watch. Soon, the shaking forced the watch out her hand. "No!" she called out. Before the heirloom could hit the ground, where it would surely break, Adrian caught it. His cute smile sent relief through her body. "Need a hand?" he asked her. She found herself blushing slightly. Marinette replied, somewhat distracted, "Uh, yeah! Thanks! Can you hold it for m-whoa! Nino!" Once more, Nino's aggressive cheering pulled her to the side. "Sure, I'll watch it," he joked. Marinette didn't catch it. She had finally gotten Nino to calm down a bit.

Chloe marched over to Adrian and Marinette. Adrian knew first hand that she always brought trouble when she marched. "Adrikins," she sang. What was she doing? Worried she was going to cling to him again, he stepped to the side and closer to Marinette. "Whatcha got there? Did Marinette give that to you?" she asked. Before Adrian could answer, Chloe snatched the watch from him. "What a pretty watch. Can I keep it?" she asked. Marinette spoke up. "It's Alix's. Give it back," she told her. "Careful!" Adrian ordered, weakly adding, "please." Adrian held his hand out so Chloe could give the watch to him. She placed it in his hand but before she let it go, she pulled her hand away, causing the watch to fall. Adrian dropped with the watch in an attempt to catch it. He was too slow. Cogs and silver pieces scattered on the ground. Alix stopped in the middle of the race and cut across their make-shift track to the group. Adrian tried to gather all the pieces. Great! He was so worried about Marinette hating him that he didn't consider messing up and having Alix hate him. Her shadow enveloped him and her skates were planted just in his view, right where the broken pieces of the watch were. "Alya!" she yelled. Adrian stood up with the watch pieces in hand. Alya lowered her phone and said, quickly, "I couldn't film and hold it so I gave it to Marinette," she explained. Alix's furious gaze fell upon Marinette. "I gave it to Adrian and Chloe took it," she hurriedly said. Finally, Alix turned her eyes on Chloe. It was not enough to break through the blonde's cold heart. "I gave it back to Adrian. He dropped it," she lied. What? Chloe...How could she do that? Alix yelled, "You are all to blame! My old man trusted me with this!" Not giving anyone a chance to explain, Alix skated away.

Marinette looked at the broken pieces. They could fix it. Maybe. They could all chip in to get it fixed. She quickly glanced at Chloe. She wouldn't pay even though she dropped it. Doesn't matter. What matters is making it up to Alix. She chased after the skater. "Wait!" she called out. Alix was moving much slower than she did during the race. Marinette easily caught up. Tears tumbled from Alix's eyes. She did her best to stop but couldn't. Marinette's voice was gentle when she suggested, "Maybe we could fix it?" Despite the tears, Alix was still angry. Her first balled up and she threw her hands at her side. "This watch was sick! One of a kind! It can't be fixed!" she yelled. Marinette was quite. She continued to follow, trying to come up with a plan B. "Well, there has to be a way to get it back to the way it was," she assured her. Alix wasn't buying it. "Like how, huh? Go back in time and change the future? Not even you are smart enough to figure that out!" The burst of anger gave her more speed than before and the girl skated away.

Adrian watched Marinette chase after Alix. Whilst she dealt with her, he was going to deal with Chloe. She threw him under the bus. His friend. "Why did you do that?" he asked. Chloe feigned a sweet smile. "Do what?" she asked. "You know what!" he barked. He shouldn't have spoken to her that way. Adrian took a deep breath and answered, more calmly, "You dropped the watch." She shook her head, thin eyebrows diving in anger, "How could you! I did not!" He put the watch pieces in his pockets. "You did and then you blamed me!" Friends don't get other friends in trouble. Even Adrian knew that. Her hand placed itself on his shoulder and in a sweeter voice, she said, "I'm sorry, Adrikins. I didn't mean to drop the watch. It was an accident." She...That threw him off. Chloe never admits to being in the wrong. He didn't know what to say. "Well, um...I guess I forgive you but you need to apologise to Ali," he told her. She removed her hand and took out her phone. "Yeah, yeah," she said, dismissively.

Marinette kept trying to follow Alix. "We can come up with a solution," she called out. Suddenly, her phone rang. Her alarm. Nadja! If she didn't leave now, she'd be late. Marinette turned the alarm off. When she looked back up, a black butterfly drifted to Alix's skate. Before her very eyes, her classmate transformed into a villain, spandex covering her body with a neon green hourglass on her chest and a helmet on her head from which a visor hung and covered her eyes. The faint outline of the purple butterfly appeared around her eyes. "Yes, Hawkmoth," she said. Before Marinette could react, Alix skated towards her. The vilified girl reached out to Marinette. "Look out!" Nino shouted. He ran towards her but there was no need. Marinette dodged out the way, falling onto the ground. She looked to Nino who was hit in her place. On Alix's skates, one of the bars began to change from red to green. Marinette scrambled to her feet and ran away.

Adrian couldn't believe it. She was vilified right in front of him! He shouldn't have let Chloe get the watch. This was his fault. Alix began to skate towards the group. "Run!" he shouted. Everyone listened, not that he needed to tell them to get away. He ducked behind the nearby building and peeked out. Well, at least they found out what the race's outcome would have been. Kim was Alix's next target. He tried and tried but he couldn't outrun her. He froze and quickly faded away. Alix looked down at her skates. "Not enough," she muttered, "Only a minute." Why was Marinette not hiding? She stood quite some distance from Alix but the now villain was fast. Adrian was sure Marinette couldn't outrun her. "Alix, stop! What are you doing?" she called out. Hide, Marinette! Alix turned to her. "The name's Timebreaker now," she corrected. Suddenly, she launched at Marinette at full speed. "And I'm gonna go back in time and save my watch, using all you punks to do it!" she finished. Adrian knew he should go help her. She would do the same for him. All that would happen is both of them would be in danger. He watched as she ran up the stairs. Desperately, Marinette looked around for a place to hide. Despite his reasoning, Adrian jumped out and grabbed her. He pulled her to his hiding place and peeked out again. Timebreaker fell on the stairs. She couldn't get up them. "T-thanks," Marinette said breathlessly. He smiled at her. Finally! He made the right call with her for a change. She was blushing. Together, they peaked out to watch Timebreaker. Adrian sighed. "If only Ladybug was here," he said. "If only Cat Noir was here," Marinette sighed.

Timebreaker, with delight, chased after Chloe. Marinette knew Chloe needed to be punished but this was wrong. Adrian jumped out again but Marinette grabbed him and dragged him back. "What are you doing?" she asked. "Helping Chloe," he answered. She shook her head. "You can't just go running out there! What about when she comes after you? What do you do? You can't outrun her. Kim couldn't outrun her!" she pointed out. She's right. He wasn't thinking. "I can't let her get caught!" he told her. Marinette poked her head out. Chloe was really giving Ali-Timebreaker a hard time. "We both go out together, draw her attention and run away. She can only follow one of us and she can't get up the stairs," she told him. Adrian grabbed her arm and pulled her out with him. She wasn't ready! "Hey, over here, Al-Timebreaker!" he shouted. The girl turned to them. She skated at them with great speed. Adrian nodded at her and started to run away. Marinette took a moment to force her legs to work then ran away in the opposite direction. She peered over her shoulder. Timebreaker was following Adrian. Now was her chance! She pulled herself behind a tree and hid. Looking around revealed the coast was clear. "Spots on!"

Ladybug swung into action. As soon as she came out of her hiding place, she threw her yoyo at Timebreaker. It wrapped around her legs, tripping her up and stopping her from catching Adrian. He managed to hide behind a tree. Once Adrian was safe, Ladybug pulled her yoyo back to herself, letting it slip out of its knot that tied Timebreaker's feet together. She was too soon to let her go. Out of nowhere, Chloe stood in the open, cheering Ladybug on. Stupid Chloe! "Run! Hide!" she warned the blonde. Unfortunately, she was too late. Ladybug threw her yoyo to try to catch Timebreaker again, but she easily dodged it and caught Chloe. Just one touch and the girl was frozen in place. In the blink of an eye, she was gone.

Thank goodness Ladybug was here! Adrian would have been a goner. Marinette was right. He needed to think his plan through better. Safely hidden behind the tree, Adrian quickly checked no one could see him. Time to shine. "Claws out," he said. Once the transformation was complete, Cat Noir jumped out of his hiding place. No one knew where he came from. It was like he just fell out of the sky! Having superpowers is so cool! "Nice of you to drop by," Ladybug said, trying to stop Timebreaker catching another student, this time by pulling the student. She was still too slow. "Hey, that's my thing," he told her playfully. "Two minutes! Good luck stopping me where I'm going!" Timebreaker called to them. She darted towards Cat Noir. "Don't let her touch you!" Ladybug warned. He already knew that. With a smile and ease, he jumped over the skater. "One touch and you fade, right?" he asked, more to make sure she knew. After so many failed attempts, her yoyo finally wrapped around Timebreaker's arm. "Yeah and you fuel her time gage, I think," she added. He didn't notice that. Ladybug was so amazing! No time to be googly-eyed! Focus! He ran towards Timebreaker and yelled, "Cataclysm!" She didn't pay him any attention. Instead, she pulled her arm towards her, dragging the yoyo and Ladybug. No! Around Timebreaker's eyes, a butterfly outline appeared. He ran faster. Timebreaker reached for Ladybug's earrings - her miraculous. He jumped out in front of her. He did it. He saved her...

Ladybug froze. In front of her very eyes, her partner, the boy she was only just getting to know, was fading away. He took longer than the others but was still gone faster than she could say, "Thank you, Cat Noir..." She wasn't the only one unhappy with the outcome. "The ring!" Timebreaker yelled. Ladybug looked at the skates. Fully charged. She took a couple steps back. He saved her. He sacrificed himself to save her. He was gone and all because she wanted her earrings and his ring! She gasped. Their miraculouses... Timebreaker growled. "Chill out, Hawkmoth. I have a plan," she said. She turned from Ladybug and began to skate away. Ladybug planted her feet firmly in the ground and held her yoyo tight. "Oh, no you don't!" she said. She knew what the plan was. Go back and steal their miraculouses. It would be easier with two Timebreakers. She wouldn't let it happen.

It didn't matter what Ladybug would allow. She wasn't able to stop Timebreaker from skating, instead being dragged along with her. A flash of light blinded the superhero.

"Careful!" Adrian ordered, weakly adding, "please." That's what Ladybug heard before her vision returned. The first thing she saw, however, was Timebreaker making her way to the students. "Chloe, put the watch down!" she ordered. She shouldn't have shouted so suddenly. Hearing her favourite hero without realising she was there caused Chloe to jump with fright and drop the watch. Well, at least this time it really was an accident. Past Alix stopped the race as Adrian went to pick up the pieces. Ladybug was distracted through, trying to non-verbally explain to her past self the situation without anyone else seeing. It went about as well as lighting a fire on a wooden boat. She was still confused. "This was your fault, Ladybug!" past Alix yelled. "I need more energy. I need to go back further," Timebreaker muttered. The black butterfly wasted no time. Once again, past Alix was vilified and transformed inti Timebreaker. Just great! Two of them.

Like before, Adrian ordered the group to run. Two vilified Alixes? How was that possible. Ladybug would know. Hidden behind the nearby building and out of everyone's view, he transformed. He jumped into action, throwing his staff at one of the Alix and tripping her up. The other raced towards him but he jumped out the way. "Too slow," he taunted. Both of them stared at him. Well, that got their attention. Together, the two began to chase after Cat Noir. He ran past his staff and grabbed it. He needed to keep them away from everyone. Easier said than done. Where was Ladybug? The two caught up to him. The hero extended his staff and very narrowly avoided them.

Ladybug and past Marinette were hidden behind a tree. "Look, not much time. Villain time travels and I hitched a ride," Ladybug summarised. Her past self was sceptical. "Okay just- believe me, don't, the bottom line is you need to get the cake and we need to stop Timebreaker," Ladybug tried. Her past self folded her arms. "Who are you really? How do you know my identity?" she demanded. Ladybug facepalmed "You have a letter under your bed from Santa that you keep because you want to one day make the clothes you asked for," she said. That convinced her. Her past self gave her a thumbs up and ran to the bakery. She ran out of her hiding place and threw her yoyo at Cat Noir. It wrapped around his waist and he was pulled to her side. "Explain in full later but don't let them touch you. Your life depends on it," she warned. "Which one? I have nine," he joked. He was easier to deal with than her past self. She didn't know how to feel about it. "The Akuma is in her skates," she told him.

Cat Noir wasn't sure how to stop them. He knew where the Akuma was but how was he supposed to get their skates? Every time he knocked one down, another came to her rescue and poor Ladybug was having a hard time hitting any of them with her yoyo. The Timebreakers easily went around and froze people as the heroes fought them. They were just no match! "Hey, Ladybug, now would be a good time for a plan!" he called to her. She ducked under an attack from one of the Timebreakers. "I know! I'm all ears if you have anything!" she told him. Cat Noir pushed back his Timebreaker and ran to help Ladybug. He grabbed her arm and the two ran away together, chased by both Timebreakers. "Step one, run and buy time to form step two," he said.

They weren't fast enough. Just as both Timebreakers were catching up, and Cat Noir was sure he was finished, the villains were pulled backwards. Both he and Ladybug stopped and turned. Another Ladybug? What? "Wow, they are fast on those skates," the new Ladybug said. "Yeah. It's impossible to beat them when they have those things," the other Ladybug agreed. "Two Ladybugs...I'm in heaven" Cat Noir happily thought aloud. He better pinch himself. Who knows, he might've fallen asleep during his break. "Sorry, Kitty. This is reality," one of the Ladybugs told him. The Timebreakers pulled each other up again. "Always keeping me grounded in reality, M'Lady," he said. Why did he say that? That was awful! He needed to practise his flirting. "That's it! Cat, I got a plan. Keep them distracted," future Ladybug told him.

The two Timebreakers had a plan of their own. "We need to go back to before these two came," one told the other. "I'm down," the other replied. Cat Noir knew what he had to do. As the two Timebreakers skated away, he used his staff to catapult ahead of them. He shouted, "Cataclysm," and slammed his hand, now emanating black smoke, onto a pillar. It crumbled before the two Timebreakers, blocking their path. He looked up at the Ladybugs. Each was finishing using their lucky charms. A traffic cone and a bike lock? What good will that do? The Timebreakers swiftly turned and began to skate towards the Ladybugs - the only direction they could travel. The Ladybug with the bike lock nodded and ran towards the two villains. "Ladybug, no!" Cat Noir called out. He began to run towards her. What was she doing? The two Timebreakwrs reached put for her. Before they touched her, though, she ducked down and slid past them, attaching the bike lock tp their inner legs. The Timebreakwrs were stuck together and moving too fast to stop in time. Using the cone and a stop sign she borrowed, the other Ladybug made a ramp. The villains, unable to stop themselves, went up it, sending them into the sky. Both Ladybugs threw their yoyos at the Timebreakers' skates where the butterfly was. They pulled the skates to them and broke them, releasing two butterflies.

Both Ladybugs spun their yoyo until it became a net then swung it at the butterflies. "No more evil-doing for you," one of them told the butterfly. When it emerged from the yoyo, it was white and free of the powers it possessed. "Bye-bye, little butterfly," the same Ladybug said. Without giving the other Ladybug time to say goodbye, the present one threw her lucky charm into the air and shouted, "Miraculous Ladybug!"

Where there were two Ladybugs stood one. Both Timebreakers became one Alix and all the people who were frozen and faded away, returned. It was like nothing happened. Ladybug walked over to Cat Noir and held her fist out. He looked at it then, with a huge grin, fist-bumped her. A loud beep sounded from his ring. "We should go. See ya!" Ladybug said. She knew it wouldn't be long until her earrings began to beep too. She Threw her yoyo to the roof of a nearby building and tugged the string, pulling her all the way up. This time, however, Cat Noir followed. On the roof away from the eyes of her friends, Ladybug turned and asked, "What's wrong?" Her earring beeped. Four minutes left. Cat Noir looked down nervously. "S-Sorry. I just thought, well...I thought we were going to reveal our identities to each other. You know...being partners, of course, I thought it made sense. Sorry," he said. How did she not think of this? She thought of everything, probable and unlikely! She overthought everything! She made a plan for what would happen if she found out who the one vilifying everyone was, what questions she would ask the person who gave them their miraculouses and even what to do in case she accidentally transformed in her sleep, despite not being a sleep-talker, let alone the chances of her saying "spots on" out of everything else being unlikely. Yet she neglected to consider her superhero partner wanting to know who she was. Cat Noir's ring beeped again, shortly followed by her earrings. Three minutes. Ladybug's hand gently placed itself on his shoulder and she gave him a compassionate smile. "You don't need to be sorry. I'm sorry. I didn't think you'd want to know," she explained. He sharply looked up at her. "Why not?" he asked, confused. "Not that I don't want you to know, I just don't want anyone to know. I guess I assumed you felt the same" she said. He gave an assuring smile. "Well, I know you're not vilifying everyone and you know I'm not either. So why can't we tell each other who we are?" he questioned. "We don't know if we can be vilified. What if I become a villain? Then I'd know exactly who to go after and I wouldn't be myself. I could attack your friends or family. Or what if I get careless and accidentally call your name and not Cat Noir? Or we know each other already and don't get along..." she asked. Overthinking for the win. She waited to see what Cat Noir would say. Their miraculouses beeps loudly, breaking the silence between them. Cat Noir lifted his hand and looked at his ring. Then he walked away from Ladybug and sat on one side of a chimney. He pointed to behind him, encouraging Ladybug to hide behind the other side. She sighed with relief. "Thank you," she said, sitting at the chimney behind him. Her legs pulled into her chest and she thanked him once more, explaining, "You won't remember this but before I went back in time, you jumped in front of Timebreaker to save me." His hand slipped out and crawled towards her. She didn't take it. She just placed hers next to it. "Oh. Don't worry about it. I'd do anything for you. Um, just like you'd have done the same for me," he said. She didn't know if she would or not. There was one final beep. One more minute until the transformed. One more minute until they had to leave. "Hey, Ladybug, I've been thinking," Cat Noir said. "Yes?" Cat Noir's voice was more serious than usual. "Whoever is making these villains has the butterfly miraculous, right? What if he made the stone monster to lure us out. I mean, the monster appeared before we did," he suggested. Ladybug put her head back, resting it on the chimney. She hadn't considered that. It would make sense, giving what she realised earlier. "I think you're right, kitty. During the fight with Timebreaker, she tried to steal my earrings and when you disappeared, she was annoyed at losing your ring. The butterfly thing appeared around her eyes then, too. I think the person vilifying people wants our Miraculouses," she concluded. She looked down at her hand as she suddenly transformed back to Marinette. Next to her hand, Cat Noir's untransformed hand was tapping rhythmically. "If he wants our miraculouses, would that mean he didn't give them to us in the first place, right?" he asked. Marinette nodded, not that he saw. "So the one who gave us our powers and the one who has the butterfly miraculous are two different people. So who gave us our miraculouses?" she asked him. "I don't know," he said his ringing phone interrupting him, "but we'll figure it out. Until next time, M'lady." She heard him walking away. Marinette began to count to herself to give him plenty of time to getaway. They made a great team. Two villains down and they already figured out so much. There was still so much they needed to know though.