Do You See Me Now?

Chapter 11

Marinette

She stood in the middle of her room, still staring at the trapdoor. A red blur obstructed her vision, and she focused her gaze on Tiki.

"Are you okay?"

"Tiki? Did you see that?"

The kwami nodded, glancing from Marinette to the trapdoor. She shook her head, grabbing the blanket to drag it back onto her bed.

"For a second I thought... I thought he saw me Tiki. He looked at me the way he looked at Ladybug."

"Marinette he saw you. Now you need to tell him." Tiki stated, crossing her little arms.

Marinette leaned against the stairs leading up to her loft, a small sigh escaping her. No, she couldn't.

"He said it was a mistake."

"He clearly didn't mean it. You should-"

"No. He wouldn't have taken it back. If he saw me, he wouldn't have left."

A notification bell rang through the air, and she turned her head towards her phone. It was an acuma alert. Great. She took off her earrings and grabbed the dragon Miraculous, quickly transforming.

"Come on Tiki. We have to go find Alya."

* * * * *

It was rather easy to hunt down the reporter. She was of course, as close as she could get to the acuma. Marinette landed next to her, quickly taking her phone and shutting off the video.

"Hey!"

"Alya it's me, Ladybug. We need to talk."

Alya stared at her in shock, and Marinette wasted no time dragging her to the privacy of the nearest alley.

"What I am about to tell you, you can't tell anyone. Not even your closest friends."

Alya nodded, slipping her phone back into her pocket.

"I'm pregnant. And I can't risk the life of my baby to fight an acuma. In the meantime, i need you to help Chat Noir. I'm giving you, Alya Cesare, the Ladybug Miraculous. For the next several months you will act as Ladybug, and you will keep this a secret."

"Oh my God, I knew it! I totally called-"

"Alya. Can I trust you to handle this?"

She quickly stopped talking as Marinette held out the box with Ladybug's earrings. She nodded, taking them and putting them on. Tiki appeared beside her, and Marinette felt her heart break. This was for the best.

"You can trust me."

"I'll miss you." Tiki whined, and Marinette smiled, hugging her kwami to her cheek.

"It's not forever Tiki. You'll see me again soon enough."

Tiki nodded, turning to Alya.

"To transform, say 'spots on.' "

She glanced at Marinette, who forced an encouraging smile.

"Tiki, spots on!"

With a flash of red Alya became the new Ladybug, and it felt final.

"Go help Chat Noir."

"Thank you Ladybug. You won't regret this!" She called as she headed out of the alley.

Marinette was tempted to stay and watch, but she needed to get home. She didn't want to get caught in the crossfire. So she turned around and headed back, feeling alone all over again. Tiki was gone. Her constant voice of reason was with someone else. At least she knew Alya would take care of her, but still. It hurt. It hurt more than words could ever express.