S2EP18:  Anansi 

every day is like a sticky situation
when evil's lookin' for a chance  

and I know we are the newest generation
we got the power in our hands

start a riot
duckwrth & shaboozey

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"Y/n."

You awaken with a startle, blinking away the heavy remnants of a deep slumber; your body feels just as heavy. A shiver rakes your body, the cool air nipping at your face, the welcoming sight of the tonight's stars greeting you hello once you've realized they were there. "Did you really fall asleep on me?"

Everything that weighed on your shoulders melted away at the sound of his voice, your heart aching for him as you turned your head to look to him. "You could have told me just how boring I was instead of falling asleep on me." He laughed, no sign of resentment detected. All that changed at the lack of response from you, his brows cinching with worry. "Are you okay, bug?"

"Pete." You say on the verge of tears, the dam ready to break as you took him in, wondering just how you did it without seeing him. How odd would it be to throw yourself at him and hug him without the intentions of letting him go?

"Are-Are you crying?" He sits up with purpose, getting a better look at you to confirm his suspicions. "What's wrong? Did you have a bad dream?" Peter questions, none of them really registering on your behalf as you just stared. "Are you going to tell me or just stare at me like I grew a head or two? Which, if that ever happens, please put me out of my misery. I don't know how much more of a loser I can become without being scrutinized by-"

You decided to hug him anyways, your hold around him tight and secure. "Hey. Hi." Peter mutters softly, rubbing comforting circles into your back. "Do you want to go back inside?" You shake your head. "Do you want to talk about it?" He questions once more, a shake of your head following as so. As sweet as can be, he doesn't push any further. "Can you at least say something so I know you're okay?"

"I love you."

It slips out before you could register what you had said, the dread of the weight of your words settles deep into your stomach, making you want to hurl the night's snacks you had right then and there. "I'm sorry. . . I didn't mean-"

And as you began to pull away from the warmth within his arms, he stops you; allowing you to think maybe he wasn't totally disgusted by the words that reveal deep within your soul. "Please don't say you didn't mean it." He interrupts, holding onto you dearly, his green eyes pleading with yours.

The tears come to a stop, almost as if they were too shocked to carry on. The guilt built up in your throat, rising and rising as you come to terms with what was going on, but as the words spilt out, there wasn't enough time to stop them as you were dying to get them out. "I'm in love with you, even when I shouldn't be. Even with the intention of keeping my promise. And I don't know how much longer I could put up with it."

You allow him to wipe away the tears. You allowed him to rest his hand upon your cheek. And you allowed him into your heart with no secrets to hide no longer as you say, "I love you, Adrien."

It's the sound of your phone that awakens you from your mind-boggling dream. And as you wiggled yourself free from your cozy prison and into the bathroom, that very dream you just had dissipates into nothing. What exactly about it was so mind-boggling again?

It rings again.

You sighed in slight annoyance, its origins for sure coming from being awaken abruptly from your midday nap, as you pressed the phone to your ear. "Hello?"

"Are you on your way to Alya's, yet?" It's Marinette. Judging by the commotion going on in the background of the call, she was already there with the others. "Uh. ." You look to your closet, scanning the articles of clothing as you begin to pull them out randomly. "Sure am! I'm getting ready to leave right now." You lied through your teeth, tumbling about as you scrambled to switch out your jammies.

A request to transfer the call into FaceTime pops up. Marinette didn't believe in your lie for a second and was just about to be prove you right either way you choose to go at this: You accept the request and show her you weren't even close to ready OR refuse the request; that will tell her everything she needed to know.

"You forgot, didn't you." Marinette monotonously says. You drop your head in shame. You hear a slight ruffling noise on her end of the call, suggesting someone else took over. "Girl, you better get your butt over here before I drag you over." Alya warns, her words empty of threat.

"I just woke up from a nap, spare the criticizing!" You pleaded, finally accepting the request to transfer the call to FaceTime, making you all the more aware on how obvious it was you woke up from a nap a few minutes ago.

"It's the World Cup today! We planned on watching the fireworks from Place de la Concorde's Ferris Wheel!" Marinette says, kind enough to remind you what you had all planned today. "With Adrien." Alya adds, raising her brows in an teasing manner that made you scoff.

"The dude should be on his way any minute now, and so should you, too!" Nino says, briefly coming into view of the camera to put his two cents in. You mocked him silently within good nature.

"I'm sorry guys. Lately my mind has been all over the place, but if you let me go now, I can be there in 15 minutes tops!" You pleaded your case, scanning through the tops you pulled from your closet.

"You better, or we are coming to you!" Alya warns you, starting you down sternly, making you pause as you pondered out loud, "Would that be the worst idea?" The three of them collectively groaned at you and your promise. "Alright, alright, I'm going." You laughed, giving them their individual goodbyes before you hung up.

⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

"You made it!" Alya exclaims, pulling you into a hug as she lead you further into her apartment. "We were just about to play  Dance, Dance to kill some time. You in?" She asks you, knowing you were one of the very few people she knew who enjoyed the competition.

But you new better than anyone to accept such a challenge when it's Alya and Nino on a team. "No, thanks. I'd much rather watch you and Nino play. You two are way too good at that game." You chuckled, finding the remaining two in the living room. "Hey, guys!"

Marinette perks up at your arrival, getting up from her spot on the couch to greet you. "You're here!" She gleams, followed with another hug to add for today. "Sup." Nino greets as well, throwing you his classic finger guns from his spot on the ground.

"Where's Adrien? I thought you said he was on his way?" You asked at the absence of the blonde's presence, sensing a bit of disappointment from everybody in the room. "We were giving him until you showed up to call and find out." Alya answers, making you sigh.

It was no secret, everyone already knew what the answer was going to be soon before they decided to call. No one wanted to be right, though. "Well, whose going to call?" You ask, looking to everyone in question.

"I don't know about you, but I'm going to be playing Dance, Dance." Alya turns to Nino, winking to him with hidden intentions.  "What about you, Nino?"

The boy looks to you and Alya confusingly, albeit a little slow, but he caught on soon enough. "Can't play Dance, Dance without my dance partner!" Alya prompts him. "R-right, exactly. Definitely playing Dance, Dance."

She smiles, turning to you with a not-so-innocent look. "Guess it's down to you and Marinette." She shrugs, taking Nino's hand in hers as she drags him to the middle of the living room to choose a song.

Your phone rings.

"Or maybe not!" Alya snickers, already betting that was Adrien calling, which was unreasonable to think! That could be anyone calling you right now, as you told Alya while you checked for the contact's name.

Marinette notes the annoyed glance you shot Alya as you read the contact name to yourself. "It's Adrien, isn't it?" She asks, coming to your side to see for herself. She gasps. "It is!"

"Called it!" Alya calls out.

You guess it made sense that he would call you first? Out of everyone's relationships, besides Nino's of course, you were closet with Adrien. Well, as close as you could be these last couple of weeks since you came to terms with yourself, even when it felt like you were avoiding him for yours and Marinette's sake. But it seemed almost impossible to avoid such a connection.

You shake the thoughts away, feeling a small heat crawling up your neck as you answered the call, being greeted by Adrien's smile. "Hey! We were all wondering where were you." You smiled, careful not to read too much into it as he was still seen in his room, taking a spot on the couch.

"Yeah. . that's half the reason why I called." He says, an apologetic look presenting itself in the moment. "I'm not going to be able to make it. Sorry, guys." He sighs. He didn't have to say as to why he's being held back at home. Just like all the other times you all tried to hang out with each other, his Farther was always demanding he stayed home to resume his studies or to attend photoshoots. For someone at such a young age, he was the busiest boy in Paris.

It was upsetting. There weren't many days he had to himself to enjoy his youth, there was always something stopping him. That's why you were so excited for him tonight! He was finally going to have tonight with everyone, but of course his Farther always had something to say. You can tell how disappointed Adrien was and that there upset you more than anything.

"No worries! Why don't you stay on call with Y/n? That way you don't miss a thing tonight!" Marinette pops in, coming in to save the day with an answer to both of your worries.

"That's a great idea, Marinette! You don't mind, do you, Y/n?" Adrien looks to in question, worried it would be a burdening task for you to carry him around for the day, but of course he was hoping you'd agree. It wasn't what he had in mind, but it was an excuse to be around you for most of the time! How could he let that pass him up?

Your lips part, half-shocked at Marinette's suggestion. You were sure she'd be a little irked that you'd be the one interacting with Adrien the most, but as you looked at her she was all smiles and giggles. What was going on here? "You think I would say no?" You smiled, propping him up on the coffee table in front of you and Marinette.

"Welcome to the party." He smile is big as you turned him around, allowing him to watch as Alya and Nino danced together, their score high as per usual.

"They're so in sync with each other." Marinette comments, sitting off to the side of your phone to stay out of Adrien's view, just as you are on the other side, humming mindlessly in agreement as you watched them with a lazy smile.

"You're right. Someday I hope I'll find someone I can share everything with," you look to your screen at his statement, eyes widening to see him looking to your direction already, "but until my father starts letting me go out more often, that probably won't be happening." Adrien sighs, continuing to watch his friends dance.

"No offense, Adrien, but your Dad is a real bummer. I wish—we wish you could be here." You cleared your throat, turning the phone back to face you and Marinette, but all you could see was amusement on Adrien's face at your claim.

"None taken. He's just really overprotective." He shrugs. "One day he'll realize I'm not a child anymore, but we're not quite there, yet." He chuckles, both you and Marinette joining him.

"Big finish. Here we go!"

"Here they go." You repeated as you giggled, turning the phone back around so Adrien could catch their big finale: Nino poses with one leg raised, his arms above his head with a dead serious look on his face. It didn't take a genius to know he felt ridiculous doing so, but as he peeked at Alya as she laughed, you knew it was all for her. It was sweet.

"Aw. Shoot. Did I miss the ballet?" In comes Nora with her teasing comment, dressed in her yellow fighting gear. You stare at the Spider symbol in the middle of her protective headgear with intensity.

"Nora. Is your match over already?"

Alya's sister grins, dropping her gym bag carelessly as she gloats. "First round. Total knockout." She huffs in between each jab at the air she makes. "As usual."

You raise a brow as she nears her little sister, leaning in as she says, "I told you a hundred of times not to call me Nora in front of people, little sis." She whispers under her breath, glancing to you. "Especially in front of spider girl."

She turns to the rest of the Cesaire guests to get the point across. "The name is Anansi. Like the spider." More specifically, like the spider god, a trickster originating from west african mythology. She only knew of the story because of you, who she deemed as spider girl for your fact dumping about spider's and everything related.

If you thought spiders were cool, then of course you thought she was cool too—taking name after a famous spider god, of course. That's what Nora thought, at least.

"Sure." Alya crosses her arms at her sisters antics, already feeling it was too much. "I'll call you Anansi when you stop calling me little sis." She offers, only for it to go in one ear, and out the other.

"Anyway, what are you still doing here this late? Don't you have school tomorrow?"  She turns to your little group, Marinette and Nino adverting their eyes bashfully.

"Today's the World Cup's fireworks. We wanted to watch them at night for the best experience." You shrugged, knowing not to take her straightforwardness to heart. Besides, you knew she was just looking out for all of you, even if it wasn't the best.

"I thought I told you that? We're gonna watch them from the Ferris Wheel." Alya cuts in, flinching as Nora spits out the milk she was drinking straight from the carton. 

"Oh, no. Baguette, cappie and spider girl can go with cellphone boy if they want, but you're staying here." She points, crushing the milk carton under her palm to show just how serious she was being. "It's way too dangerous." You roll your eyes.

"But, Nora—I mean, Anansi. You can't do that!" Marinette exclaims, not about to leave without Alya when they were all looking forward to go for a week straight. "Yeah. No way, dude. We're not going without Alya!" Nino agrees with her, crossing his arms in determination.

The girl sighs, frustration beginning to brew, but she knew Nora was coming from a good place. "Listen. I appreciate you worrying about me and all, but i'm not a little girl anymore! Besides, Mom and Dad are totally cool with it."

"Tsk. Tsk. Tsk." Nora clicks her tongue. "There have been way too many akumatized peeps in Paris these last few weeks. Look how many times you've been in direct danger?" The Pharoah. Prime Queen. Befana. You remembered all of those. It was too many instances for someone to be in. "So you're staying home, safe and sound. Period!"

Even so, everyone has been in danger considering how many akumatizations has happened in the middle of school. There's no avoiding them, so why live in fear of them?

"That's so unfair! The twins were akumatized right here at home!" Alya argues, brows furrowed in irritation. You tilt your head in confusion, not able to recall when that had happened. You were sure you would have heard it from Alya.

Nora slams her fist down onto the countertop, frustrated just as much at the mention of her family in danger. "Well, that wouldn't have happened on my watch!" She argued. "I won't let anybody mess with my family."

Alya raises a brow, face unimpressed as she recalled a moment that happened a few days ago. "You mean like the other day at the square?" She was so over it.

"What happened?" Adrien looked up to you expectingly, assuming you were there when it happened. You snorted. "A man was handing out flyers while we were at the square, and Anansi over there thought he wanted to turn Alya into a banana-zombie." Adrien purses his lips, inconspicuously leaning out of screen to silently laugh.

"How was I suppose to know it was some stupid costume?" She turns away, obviously embarrassed at your tell of events. "And besides, what would happen if the Ferris wheel stopped working cause some akumatized dude refused to pay his fare?

Once you fly-weights can actually defend yourselves like me," she begins punching, kicking and kneeing the air, "we'll talk about it."

"None of that should matter when Ladybug and Chat Noir exists! If any of that decides to happen, they'll be there to save the day and keep us out of danger." You argue, the two secret hero's looking to you with pride and admiration at their mention.

"Uh, huh. And what if Mister Whiskers is catching a mouse and that Beetle's been sprayed with bug spray? What do you do then?" Marinette's face twists with annoyance. When have they ever lost a fight to give her the doubt in Ladybug and Chat Noir?

"I can protect Alya if I have to." Nino steps up, his confidence running short as Nora begins to nitpick at it. "Oh yeah? And how exactly are you planning to defeat the villain? A dance off?" She laughs, mimicking the dance pose she had seen when she walked in.

Nino averts his gaze, embarrassment eating away at him. "I'd. . do anything to protect Alya." Alya's face softens at his claim, the very same claim that made Nora hum with interest.

"Okay. Alya can go with you guys." The hope rises. "IF you beat me at an arm wrestle." Then it crashes, all hopes lost as Nora props her elbow onto the dinner table, her hand awaiting for Nino's in a duel.

"Please, don't arm wrestle on my account. I don't need to be protected." Alya exasperates, turning to Nino, ready to ridicule him if he was thinking about it.

"Nino. Dude. You don't stand a chance." You pointedly say, preferring to be straightforward than to watch one of her friends lose an arm. "She's way too strong." Adrien says, agreeing with his words.

"Dudes?!" Adrien winces, quick to make amends with his best friend. "Sorry, Nino. I'm sure we'll work something out."

"We gotta go or we'll miss the fireworks!" Marinette worries, seeing there wasn't much time to conjure something up to get them out of this mess.

Alya saw that, too. "Forget it. You guys go without me." She surrenders, everyone looking to her in disbelief.

"There's no way we're going without you!" You exclaimed, brows furrowed as you looked to Marinette as if you were saying 'we have to think of something quick'. Marinette nods her head, lighting up when an idea popped in her head, whispering it into your ear.

It's risky, but it'll have to do. "Okay. Nino will arm wrestle you." Marinette declares by his side, causing him to look to her in surprise. "What?"

"Nino will prove his worth to us that he can defend Alya and every one of us, because-"

"Marinette, what are you doing?" Alya sternly mutters through her teeth. "Don't worry, I got this." Marinette winks.

"Because! Uhh. Love! And uh. Friendship! Makes your muscles. . . bulge." Marinette grins sheepishly, putting Nino's muscles on display.

"Yeah, thanks Marinette!" Nino boasts, flexing those said muscles as his confidence was found yet again.

Adrien looks up to you with uncertainty as you placed the phone prop in front of Nino and Nora, the two getting ready to arm wrestle. "Are you sure about this?"

"Don't worry. Marinette has a plan." You say quietly, glancing to Marinette to see if she were ready. You nod as she gave you a thumbs up, placing your phone onto the table as Adrien's the judge.

"Alright. In position." Adrien says, watching as they readjusted their grip. As all eyes were on them, you silently moved to the window, opening it up slightly to let in a breeze. "Ready. Set."

"Go!"

Everyone watched in anticipation as Nino grunted with exertion, trying with all his might to weigh down Nora's arm. She wasn't budging. "Really? That's all you got?" She asks, a bored look upon her face as she watched him use his body weight to aid him. Even then, it wasn't enough.

You nudged Marinette, motioning to the window that you had opened, the breeze tussling the curtains about.  If there's a time to get involved, it's now.

She suddenly gasps in horror, pointing off to the window as she shouts, "Over there! An akuma!"

"What?!" Nora exclaims, turning her head into the direction Marinette pointed off to, letting her guard down. And swiftly, you moved in, carefully placing your hands on Nino, and weighing them down.

"And the winner is. . . Nino!" Adrien announces. Nora gasps, looking to you all in distraught as Marinette looks away, embarrassingly saying, "Oops. My bad. It was just a fly." She innocently chuckles.

"You rock, Nino!" You say, pulling him out his stupor and seat. "Come on, let's go. If we leave now we'll get there just in time." You quickly say, hoping to get out of the apartment before Nora realizes the foul play that happened right underneath her nose.

Nora slams her hands onto the table, startling everyone still. "You're a bunch of cheaters! There's no way I could've been beaten by that fly weight." Nora points accusingly at him, Alya getting fed up with her notorious behavior. "If I hadn't been distracted-"

"That's it, Nora! You lost the challenge, so deal with it. I've had it with your overprotective big sis smothering. I'm going out with my BFFs and I don't care what you think. Alya. Out." She finishes the argument, sashaying out of view.

Marinette blinks owlishly, looking to you and Nino in shock, before Alya motions for everyone to move it. "Uh. See you, Nora—I mean, Anansi!" She sheepishly laughs, giving a little wave before she dragged you both out of the apartment.

⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

"We made it on time. Look, Adrien!" You exclaim with excitement, holding your phone up to the ride's glass, granting him a clearer view of the fireworks-the colors bursting to life, sparkling in the dull sky with gusto.

"Woah." You turn the phone to face you once more, allowing him to speak with everyone else. "It's beautiful. Thank you, guys." Adrien beams, sharing his smile with yours. He'd do anything to be there physically to witness it, but for now, this was more than enough.

You huff in annoyance, feeling the beginning of a banging headache start up as you rubbed at your temples. "Are you okay?" Adrien leans in with worry, even when there was a screen separating you both. "A headache. I've been getting them a lot lately." You mumbled quietly, closing your eyes to concentrate, when you feel an eerie shiver climb up your spine.

"Y/n, behind you!"

Adrien's decree startles everyone into to silence; you turn without second guessing Adrien's words. There was nothing to be seen, but you knew better than anyone that there was something lurking about. "I saw something go by. What was it?" You hold out your phone, allowing him to look around as much as he could from his standpoint.

Marinette takes a peek as well. "I don't see anything. Maybe it was a bird?" She looks to Alya, wondering if she had seen anything, when the ground begins to shake; the Ferris wheel coming to an abrupt stop.

Alya's eyes widen at the sudden weight latched to her, looking to Nino who held on tight. "Dude. Please don't tell me we're gonna be stuck up here." She smirks, face smug as she says, "I thought you said you were going to protect us."

"There!" You call out, looking below to see a spider-like villain spewing webs into the center of the Ferris wheel, the culprit to the sudden stop in the ride. And of course, in the face of danger, Alya pulls out her phone to record the chaos. "Maybe you shouldn't film her, Alya. You don't want to attract her over here." Nino suggests, his voice slightly trembling in fear.

"It's a new scoop for the Ladyblog! Ladybug should be showing up any minute. And who knows? Maybe Spider-Woman will, too!" Alya exclaims with excitement. It only makes sense to her for the spider-themed hero to show up for a spider-themed villain. Oh, she could only hope for her appearance! With her last-run in with the hero, she wasn't able to get her proof of existence on camera. This could be her chance!

You tense, realizing you don't have your suit on you. Sorry, Alya. You're scoop is going to have to wait, you thought to yourself, reaching up to your ear. You forgot Dawn as well. What is going on with you lately?

"Uh. . . Uh. I think my wifi is losing signal-" Your call with Adrien abruptly ends, allowing you to pocket your phone. There's one problem solved.

You looked down below at the terrified screams, watching as the villain grew closer and closer. "And here comes another one." You mumbled to yourself, backing away as she stopped just outside your cabin. "Well, well. There you are, fly weights."

"Nora?!"

"Nora's not here to protect you anymore. I am Anansi, super-spider." Your eyes widen as she tears the cabin off its hinges, your heart dropping into your stomach as she jumped down below.

A groan tumbles out as you were knocked into Marinette forcefully, connecting heads with an agonizing thump. You rub at the sore spot, the pain already dulling as you mutated genetics take over.

"All those arms, that's convenient, but you destroyed my scratching post." Chat Noir makes his presence known, weapon out and ready.

"Need a hand, kitty cat?" Anansi grins, leaping high above to slam a powerful punch onto Chat Noir, perusing a fight.

You watched them busy themselves, giving you the chance to check on everyone and get out of this death trap. "Look up there." You pointed at an emergency escape hatch at the top of the cabin. Marinette offers her hands as a stepping stool, giving you the height needed to push open the hatch.

Having enough upper body strength, you pulled yourself through, cautiously watching out for Anansi as you stuck your hand back in for the others. One by one, you got Marinette and Nino out, just about to pull Alya through when you were shoved off the cabin by Anansi.

"Alya!" You shout in panic, the girl now in Anansi's clutches.

"Now that you can't cheat anymore, cappie, show us just how you plan to protect your friends." Anansi cackles, jumping to the highest point of Obelisque de Louxor. "Come and get her if you're not a fly weight!"

You take Marinette's hand, wincing as she pulls you onto your feet. You're going to be sore for the whole day. "Nino!" You yell out, exasperated as he ran after Anansi and Alya. "Nino, wait!" Marinette calls after him, taking your hand as she ran after him.

The boy abruptly stops, obvious frustration creasing his face. "I'm not a fly weight, and I don't need your help to prove it!" He shouts, stunning Marinette in place as he continued forth to save his girl. Biting the inside of your cheek, you slightly shook your intertwined hands, gaining her attention.

"Don't blame yourself, you were only trying to help. Nino's only upset because he thinks he needs to prove himself, not at you." You comforted, stepping back to give her the opportunity. "We need Ladybug and someone needs to look after Nino. You go find her, and I'll chase down cappie."

Marinette nods, a small smile tuning her lips at the silly nickname Nora gave him. "You got it, spider girl!" She says with a true smile, running in the opposite direction to find a proper place to transform.

Sighing in relief, you arch your back in desperate need for it to pop. "I'm never going to get on a Ferris wheel again." You muttered to yourself before bolting after Nino.

⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

Arc de Triomphe. One of the many, elegant monuments of Paris. Not so much now while a nasty, big spiderweb defaces its value with poor Alya stuck as its prisoner.

"Alya!" Nino gasps out, running straight to her with no worry about Anansi being around and about. "Nino!" Alya smiles, flattered he came for her even if it were fruitless in the end. "Don't stick around."

Too late.

"Well, well. Look who it is!" Anansi crawls out of hiding, staring down at him in amusement as he runs out of breath.

"Anansi! You let Alya go right now!" He pants, hands on his knees as he bends over to catch his breath. She scoffs at his audacity. "Oh yeah?" Nino grows nervous as she jumps down, creeping closer to him. "And how exactly is a weak little fly weight gonna force me to release my prisoner?" She taunts.

You make it to the center of the Gaulle just in time to witness Nino running to Anansi, fists raised with every intention on fighting her. "Nino! You idiot!" You hissed the last bit to yourself, when suddenly she lifted him off the ground by his head.

Your mouth drops as she swings him around, flinging him up into the air without a care of his survival as she dusted her hands free. "And look at that! It's spider girl!" Anansi grins, showing her additional arms. "What do you think? Pretty cool, right?"

A breath of relief escapes past your lips as Ladybug wraps her yo-yo around Nino in time, turning your glare onto Anansi. "There are many words to describe you and it isn't exactly nice."

Anansi's many eyes slant at your comment, ticked-off. "Out of everyone, I thought you would be appreciative of me." She raises her arms threateningly. "Maybe some time on the spiderweb will do you some good." You cringe in disgust as you realize her spinneret is in her mouth, readying to spew her webs.

Chat Noir extends his staff, the butt of his weapon connecting with her jaw to deter her. "Keep your nasty paws off her." Ladybug lands next to him, holding a protective arm in front of you.

Anansi hisses, moving her jaw around as she cracked her neck. "So. It's two against one now? Fine with me!" She pulls her fists up in front of her, bouncing between the balls of her feet. "Round two. . ."

"Find cover!" Ladybug turns to you, keeping her eyes on the villain. You nod, finding it best to keep out of the way when there wasn't much you can do.

"Fight!" Anansi announces, catching the hero's off guard as she takes a jab at Chat Noir. The addition of arms made it all the more powerful, sending him back into a vehicle. "Chat Noir!"

"On the floor already?" Anansi taunts, punching at the air as she pumps herself up. "Now, where'd that little spider go?" She smugly says, looking around for the young girl.

"Are you okay?" Ladybug offers her hand, pulling her partner up as he groans. "Everything except for my pride."

"The akuma must be in her headgear." Ladybug notes, watching as she distracts herself, face contorted with a scorn. "I agree, but she's so strong we can't even get near her." Chat Noir detests, watching with the same resentment.

"Change of plan." Ladybug turns to her partner. "I'll take care of Anansi, you release the prisoner. It'll distract her enough to drop her guard." Chat Noir nods, ear twitching at the oncoming car.

"Look out!"

The hero's huff at the harsh ground's embrace, looking up to Anansi with a nasty glare. "Ding, ding, ding! Bell's ringing. Round three," she chucks another car at them, "FIGHT!"

You peek your head over the car you hidden behind, a few ways away from the fight itself, as you watched the hero's split off into their individual tasks. Turning away, you look at a defeated Nino who's soaking in his failure.

"Nino. . ." You sigh out, shaking him up to get him out of his funk. "There wasn't much you could have done. Some things are just out of our hands." You try to reason.

"I promised I would protect her, but here I am. An utter, complete failure." He groans out in embarrassment, arms crossed as he thought back to what Ladybug said to him. "You need to leave this to the professionals."

"Well. . . Anansi didn't lay a finger on you while you advanced on her. That's something." You smiled, bumping your shoulder with his, trying to get a reaction out of him. "In my books, I'd call that a win."

Nino gloomy cloud cracks, a smile quirking his frown. "Thanks, dude." You both tense as something hit the other side of the car, cutting the comforting moment short as a familiar groan omits. Ladybug!

She struggles to stand, her foot being held captive by one of Anansi's webs. Quickly coming to her aid, you grabbed her free hand and pulled as much as you could, before it snapped. "Are you okay dude-uh, Ladybug?" Nino corrects himself. She smiles gratefully at you before she answers, "Yeah, but we're gonna need some help!"

"Lucky Charm!"

A cubed candle resonates, falling into Ladybug's awaiting hands. "A candle?" She almost says disappointingly, before she remembers where she's seen it. "Of course! But I don't have enough time to do a round trip." She frowns.

"What can we do to help?" You offer, Nino stepping up in agreement. "Yeah! Maybe we can help you." Nino adds, his offer running thin when Ladybug gasps—mistakenly taking that as rejection. "Uh, I get it. It's cool. I'm no superhero. I'd tried to save Alya, but. . . guess I'm not strong enough."

Ladybug smiles, spotting Chat Noir's discarded staff. "Let me tell you a secret, uh—"

"Nino. The name's Nino!"

"Nino. When you're facing a super villain, strength doesn't make a difference. Courage and determination do." You raise a brow as she hands Chat Noir's staff to the boy. "We can't let Anansi get Chat Noir's miraculous. Use this to defend yourself and distract her." She looks to you determinedly. "I won't be long."

Nino stares down at the staff in awe, unsure what to do now without Ladybug's inspiring speech. "Well?" He looks up to you in question. "What are we waiting for? You heard the bug!" Nino grins, gripping the staff close as he nods.

Marinette's POV

Now de-transformed, Marinette enters Master Fu's massage shop safely, opening the door to find him meditating. "Master! Nino and Y/n won't hold off Anansi for long. She's about to get ahold of Chat Noir's miraculous!" The girl anxiously announces.

"We can't let that happen."

Marinette approaches as Master Fu opens the gramophone's secret compartment where the miraculous' rest safely. "Marinette Dupain-Cheng, pick an ally you can trust to fight alongside you on this mission." She looks over the jewels carefully, her eye immediately catching onto one specifically. "Choose wisely; such power's on hand to serve a greater good. Once the mission is over, you must retrieve the Miraculous from them."

It was unique, something she hadn't seen until now. The only way she could describe it was an intricate piece; worn to cover your whole finger. It bends with the movement and ends with a dull point. And on it, was a black, jeweled spider. "This is perfect!" Marinette grins, placing it in the traditional box.

"I'll also need a protective miraculous." Marinette thinks to herself, finding herself staring at the bracelet around Master Fu's wrist. "That's the one I need, Master!" She points to it, realizing how rude that was. "Uh. If it's okay with you." She looks to both Fu and Wayzz.

He looks to his old friend for confirmation, the little kwamii nodding with agreement. "Do you have someone in mind, Marinette?" Master Fu asks his pupil, taking the bracelet off to hand it to her.

"I have just the right people in mind!" Marinette grins, offering a macaroon to Tikki to power up.

⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

Anansi watches amusingly as Nino swings at her cluelessly, the spider not putting much effort to dodge his weak attempts. "Wow, be careful. What are you trying to do with that stick?" She snickers.

She grabs the ahold of the staff, one of his attempts getting way too close on landing a hit. "You're gonna hurt yourself."

Nino stares up at her, his determination unfaltering when the infamous butterfly frames Anansi's face, alarming him. The poor boy didn't prepare on being thrown away, yet again, losing his grip on the weapon as he hit the floor once more.

"Nino!" Alya cries out, watching as he struggled to get up. Chat Noir begins to struggle against the webs confinements, fist clutched to keep his ring trapped in his hold as she grows closer. Until-

The staff extends, the wielder allowing it to fall and smack down onto Anansi's head. "Keep your nasty paws off him." You glare, the corner of your mouth twitching with a ghost of amusement as Chat Noir grins at your choice of words, watching in awe at your bravery.

"Since you're such a big girl now," she leaps into the air with her fist ready, "let's play!" You threw yourself aside to avoid her groundbreaking punch, rolling over to find your footing. Punch after punch, kick after kick, Anansi grew annoyed as you evaded her advances—stumbling about a little to avoid suspicions from your audience, of course.

Anansi's advancements halt, hearing the pathetic commotion on her right. Despite the detest in his limbs and the sore muscles, Nino rises from the ground, ready to stand against her once more. "You should have stayed down, cappie." She teases, ready to make him wish he did stay down with a raise of her foot.

"Nino!" You shout, throwing the staff back into his hands, watching keenly as he was quick to extend it up into her chin, successfully intercepting her attack. "You're going to regret this, big time." She seethes.

Chat Noir follows their movement eagerly, almost forgetting he was the one who should be fighting when the duo were doing an amazing job working together! He wiggled in place, nothing but excitement and admiration, as he watched Y/n trip up Anansi with his staff before passing it onto Nino. That's his best friends! "Your friends are really good at this!" He gloats, looking up to her from his confinements.

"Yeah, but I sure hope Ladybug comes back before they run out of energy." Alya frowns, watching the duo anxiously. Poor, Chat Noir. He shouldn't have said anything.

Anansi catches Nino's arm, a satisfied smirk upon her face as she squeezed him victoriously. "Game over." And for the third time today, he was spun around and launched into the air. "Time to fly!" Chat Noir shrinks in on himself.

"Not again!" You thought to yourself, heart ringing in your ears as you bolted after him, praying that Ladybug will show out of nowhere to save him once more. And what do you know? She went in for the save, just in time! "Oh, thank god!" You heaved, hand resting over your heartbeat.

It felt like you were having a heart attack, the organ ready to burst. You watched as they safely landed on a building not far from where you stood, the two exchanging words before they nodded their heads. "Is everything okay?" You shout into your cupped hands, earning their attention.

Ladybug's eyes light up at your presence, unable to fight her smile as she calls back to you, "Yes! I'll be down in a minute, stay there!" She exclaims, helping Nino down, taking cover behind the building they rested on. "Weird." You hummed, never expecting Ladybug to look psyched to see you.

Minutes go by and there was still no sign of Ladybug or Nino, until finally, the spotted hero emerges alone. "Ladybug? Where's Nino?" You begin to question, looking around for him. "Is he—"

You worries came to a startled halt at the weight of Ladybug's hand on your shoulder. "Everything's okay, I took him somewhere safe so he could rest." She smiles before she continues, "Nino told me how well you did fending off Anansi while I was gone, but Chat Noir's still trapped, and I'm going to be needing all the help I can get. Are you up for it?"

Your mouth runs dry, skin prickling as you numbly nod your head in agreement, not sure where this was leading. But as she pulled out a hexagonal black box from behind her, your confusions were answered as she says, "Y/n L/n. This is the Miraculous of the Spider, which grants the power of wisdom. You will use it for the greater good."

Your eyes widened, allowing her to place the box in your outstretched hand as you stared wondrously at the red, shiny designs engraved on its top. Out of everything Ladybug could have said to you—traitor, a villain, Hawk Moth's lackey, anything—this was definitely NOT on your list. But she was entrusting you with a miraculous. Ladybug!

You attempt to swallow the dryness in your throat away, unable to keep the giddy smile off your face as you opened the box, revealing a piece of silver jewelry you could only describe as gothic. Before you could speak your amazement, a dark purple light shines with what you swear was an attempt to blind you, your eyes squinting as it circles around you.

"Oh, it feels amazing to be out and about again! And look how beautiful everything looks this time around!" The little talking creature says, getting a little too close to your face as she compliments, "Your kind has really outdone themselves!"

"Uh." Uh? A magical creature comes shooting out of the piece of jewelry entrusted to you and all you can say is UH? "What are you?" You manage to get out, the shock wearing off as you got used to the little spider.

"I'm a Bittzy!" She giggles. "A Kwamii, if you wanna get technical. With my help, you can transform and use your magical abilities for the greater good! But don't be mistaken, I'm no genie, we do NOT grant wishes." She says, pointing to you just as sternly with her short limb.

"I think I understand." You teased, looking down to the jewelry with a full chest of excitement before slipping it around your finger, wiggling the appendage as you admired its flexibility. It was like cute armor for your finger!

Ladybug smiles at your interaction with Bittzy, taking the empty box for now. "Once the job is done, you must return the miraculous to me. Can I trust you?" She asks, the question useless to her when she knew you well.

You nodded determinedly, looking to you new friend with excitement. "Then all that's left to do is to transform by saying: Bittzy, Let's Spin!"

"This is a little embarrassing," you mumbled to yourself as you closed your eyes, "Bittzy, Let's Spin!" You pronounce the transformation phrase, feeling only a slight tingling sensation-then nothing. Unsure if anything happened, you looked down at your appearance, and lo' and behold, you were magically wearing a surprisingly comfortable suit; themed after a spider, probably. "This is nuts."

"We have to hurry before Chat Noir transforms back." Ladybug says, turning around to signal someone with a whistle. Not a second later did a figure submerge, jumping down to join your little group. She could sense your obvious confusion, turning to you with a wink as she says, "You could never have too much help." Right.

"Sup, duuuuh-" You raise a brow in suspicion. "Sup." He clears his throat, crossing his arms to act as if he didn't immediately slip up. "Our friend here has the power of protection. He'll make sure we'll stay safe throughout our mission." Ladybug debriefs.

"Uhh. Carapace. The name's Carapace." He grins, stance straightening as he finds confident in his hero name.

"Nice to meet you. You can call my Widowyn." You smile to him, his demeanor awfully familiar to you. Not wanting to spoil his fun, you turn to Ladybug as you question, "What's the plan?" You were eager for a test run with the Miraculous, something so new and unfamiliar so exciting to you. And a spider miraculous, nonetheless. It was like fate!

"Well, we can always start with my Lucky Charm!" She calls upon her magical ladybugs, a pair of boxing gloves falling into her hands. Hm. Straightforward.

"You're not gonna fight Anansi directly, are you?" Carapace speaks his worries out loud, unsure if any of them had what it takes to take down the big bad spider. Ladybug hums in thought, her Lucky Vision highlighting Widowyn, Carapace, Arc de Triomphe, and Chat Noir.

"Why not? It's a simple plan, but you have to protect us—me, Widowyn, Chat Noir and Alya." She turns to Carapace with a knowing smile, placing a comforting hand upon his shoulder as she softly speaks, "You've already proved you're capable of doing it." She slings the boxing gloves over her shoulder, turning to her team. "Are we ready?"

The hero's nod in agreement, running off into the direction of Arc de Triomphe, Ladybug taking this moment to speak her plan alive. "You think you can handle this, Widowyn?" Ladybug smirks.

Turning your palms over, you find hidden buttons much to your delight. "There's only one way to find out!" You chime, pressing the buttons once as you aimed your wrist as a lamppost, shooting out a thin string of silk.

Ladybug watches with nothing but pride as you swing away, separating from the duo as the beginning of her plan ensues as they approached Arc de Triomphe fast, spotting Anansi lazing about in her webs, awaiting for the hero's return.

"Hey, six legs!" Anansi peeks one eye open, tensing when she sees Ladybug with a new hero. "Catch this!" The spider releases her grip on her web, dropping down below to narrowly dodge his shield.

"Change of pet? You replaced kitty with a turtle?" Anansi snorts, holding up her fists in a fighting stance as they closed distance between them.

"I love animals, but I'm not into spiders! There's only one i'm into, and it's not you!" Ladybug shouts, throwing her yo-yo as a distracting element, her real target the Arc de Triomphe's pillars.

You watched silently as Ladybug and Carapace begin playing offense with Anansi, the intention right then and there only to distract her as Ladybug uses her yo-yo to encase her in a makeshift ring. Seeing this was the moment to close in, you silently crawled up the Triomphe, opting to stay out of Anansi's view.

"Spider-Woman?"

You tense at the name, looking up to Chat Noir as you silently signaled for him to stay quiet. "Not quite. The names Widowyn." You winked, hearing Alya gasp. "Another spider-themed hero? No way!" Alya whisper shouts.

Shushing them one final time, you took out the small, round communicative device Ladybug had taken from her yo-yo, speaking to her silently. "I'm in position. Ready when you are."

Ladybug nods, stepping into her ring as she called out, "Anansi! I challenge you." She smirks, pointing to her with her gloved hands. "One round. You win, you get my Miraculous. I win, you release your prisoners. What do you have to lose? In a few minutes, Chat Noir will transform back, anyway." Ladybug baited, giving her a careless shrug.

You squint as a butterfly outlines Anansi's eyes, assuming that's how Hawk Moth communicates with his victims.

"She's right, you know. Any minute now I'm gonna transform back. Whatever you have planned, do it now!" Chat Noir anxiously pleads, his ring beginning to beep in warning.

His plea falls onto deaf ears as you produce another string of silk, lowering yourself down a little as you awaited for the moment of truth. "I'll devour you, lil nasty bug." Anansi sneers, meeting gloves with Ladybug in agreement.

Carapace strikes Chat Noir's staff on his shell, omitting the same boxing-ring you'd hear in any match you'd watch. You hold your breath anxiously. "Insight." You whisper, wonderstruck as dark purple wisps—perfect replicas of Ladybug and Anansi—resonates out of thin air, only visible to you.

You watched the real Anansi mirrored by purple Anansi, muttering every move she makes under your breath to Ladybug. "You can't punch the wind." Ladybug taunts, following your words carefully as she dodged one specific punch, landing to crack the pillar behind her instead of her target.

"Shut up!" Anansi shouts, beginning to grow more annoyed as her attacks seem to never land.

"Why? Do you have trouble doing two things at the same time?" Ladybug teases, purposefully getting her angrier and angrier. "Stay still!" Repeatedly she misses, cracking the pillars around them.

"This is the last hit! Be careful." You warned Ladybug, your insight running out of juice as their replicas disappear. Crawling back up to Chat Noir, you press down onto your chest's insignia, out pops out a metallic spider, its legs straightening into a sharp point. "Let's get you out of here before it collapse's." You say quickly cutting him free from the webs. 

"How'd you know Anansi's every move?" Chat Noir asks in awe, awaiting for you to free his arms. You snort. "Even I don't know myself, but it sure doesn't involve luck." You answer, your handy-spider cutting his legs free.

Meanwhile, Ladybug leans into the wires of her yo-yo, walking backwards to cause them to seep further and further into the cracks of the pillars, until eventually—it caves.

"Shoot." You panicked as the Triomphe begins to shake and rumble, stray pieces beginning to fall as you crawled up to Alya. "Hang on!" You shout over the chaos to her, quickly cutting through the webs with one slice. Grabbing ahold of her, you turn over to see Ladybug hauling Carapace to them. "It's all up to you, Carapace. Use your power now!"

"At your service, dude—Uh, Ladybug." He holds out his shield in front of him as he yells, "Shell-ter!" A large, green dome cuts through the rest of the webs, sheltering all of you as the building crumbles into nothing but ruins.

"You're not really replacing me, are you?" Chat Noir pouts, making you laugh at how that was his first choice of words to her. "Not now, kitty." Ladybug sighs, watching as Anansi emerges from underneath the debris. "Throw like a Ladybug, scratch like a kitty cat!"

Your mouth drops as she threw him at Anansi, his activated cataclysm grazing her headgear—successfully releasing the akuma. "No more evil-doing for you, little akuma. Time to devilize!"

"Miraculous Ladybug!"

Once more, you had the pleasure to watch the thousands of little ladybugs spread across the city, repairing every minor, and major, damage done throughout the fight, and before your eyes, the Arc de Triomphe rebuilds itself. "That's never going to grow old." You smiled to Ladybug, it widening at her offered fist.

Looking to Carapace and Chat Noir, you connect your fist with theirs as they said, "Pound it!"

Chat Noir's miraculous beeps for the final time for that day. "Sorry, guys, but I've gotta split!" He announces, turning to run and detransform when Ladybug calls out to him. "You know you're irreplaceable." She offers comfort, making the cat smile as he hums.

"Whoa, this is a first for the Ladyblog. Two brand new superhero's! What's your names?" Alya chimes in, shoving her phone's camera into your faces.

"The name's Carapace." He grins, power posing with his fists pressed to his sides. The camera pans to you. "Widowyn."

Alya squeals at your names. "Awesome! Do you have any relations to the other spider hero who was briefly spotted at the Couffaine's residence?" She eagerly awaits your answer, searching for her major scoop she desperately needed.

"Um—" Your miraculous beeps, signaling you needed to transform back. Ladybug steps in. "Sorry, bugheads, but your big scoop has to wait until next time." The spotted hero winks before turning to you and Carapace, signaling for you to follow after her.  Alya turns her camera to her with a huge smile. "And stay connected!"

⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

Landing in a random alleyway with Ladybug, you allowed yourself to transform back. "Let's rest." You sigh out in relief, allowing Bittzy her moment to rest as well. "You did great out there!" She compliments you, letting out a small yawn.

"All thanks to you." You smile, opening your palm for her to give flying around a break. "I hope to work with you again soon, Arachne!" You gleamed at her nickname for you, affectionately petting her with your finger before saying your final goodbye and removing the jewelry from your finger.

"Bittzy's right, you were outstanding!" Ladybug compliments, putting the Miraculous away in its rightful box. "You'd make a great edition to the team in the near future, Y/n." She smiles.

"Thank you, Ladybug. I'm here when you need me." Your smile twitches, realizing the weight of your words. She nods in agreement before whirring her yo-yo and swinging away.

"If this little victory of yours gives you the slightest bit of hope in the end of my reign, you'd be foolishly mistaken. You're gaining more allies, but don't rush to rejoice. Soon you might just be outnumbered."

━━━━━━━━  𝑻𝑶 𝑩𝑬 𝑪𝑶𝑵𝑻𝑰𝑵𝑼𝑬𝑫

WE'RE SO CLOSE WE'RE SO CLOSE IM SO EXCITED AND SCARED AT THE SAME TIME BC I DONT KNOW IF I HAVE THE WORDS TO ACTUALLY WRITE IT TO LIFE AND MAKE IT ENJOYABLE AT THE SAME TIME

ALSO HERE'S THE SPIDER MIRACULOUS FEATURING ME AS THE HAND MODEL 😎 (IF SOMEONE RECOGNIZES MY HANDS IM GONNA SCREAM) THANK YOU TO MY PRECIOUS POOKIE WOOKIE BEAR KimmiePines   FOR HELPING ME THROUGHOUT THIS CHAPTER. SHE HELPED ME PICK OUT THE NAME WIDOWYN AND HELPED ME TO FINALIZE THE MIRACULOUS EVERYBODY SAY THANK YOU KIMMIEEE

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THIS VERY LONG CHAPTER ILL SEE YOU GUYS SOON BYE MWAH X

published on 01/14/24
edited on x/x/x

9187 words