Chapter Text
Fu rubbed his temples, pacing back and forth in the living space of his home as Wayzz watched worriedly from the windowsill. Rain pattered violently on the windows, conflicting with the swarm of thoughts swimming through Fu’s mind.
“Master, you know as well as I that if I release these next Miraculi, it is almost a definite chance that it will backfire on us,” Wayzz reasoned in between his master’s mumbling.
Master Fu huffed, sending his kwami a knowing smile as he stopped walking.
“You said the same thing when I gave the Ladybug miraculous to Marinette.”
Wayzz crossed his arms in irritation. “That was pure luck that she turned out to be a quick learner. No pun intended. And I, of course, applaud you on your hindsight; it truly was a good decision on your part. But our heroes are in need of capable hands now that the girl that impersonated Volpina is so full of hatred, and Hawkmoth is too, too close to discovering their identities. We cannot give the enemy our most formidable weapon. We must-”
“I know, Wayzz. But what better way to get rid of the enemy by befriending them? And with the help of Adrien, we’ve retrieved the missing Paon Miraculous, so along with with the fox miraculous and the Abeille Miraculous, we’ll have three heroes to help keep Hawkmoth in check,” Fu explained. He turned to his kwami with a small smile, and Wayzz signed in resignation, knowing that in the end, his effort was fruitless.
“All right, master. I will trust your wisdom. You have proven more than once to make the right decision in my indecision, after. Agree to disagree, as the humans say.”
Fu chuckled and held his hand out, beckoning his kwami to come near. Wayzz floated towards him and place his small hand in Fu’s, reassuring the old man. Fu sighed, and Wayzz worried that the strain of this new villain would be too much on his master. After all, he and Fu had been through so much for so long; time would soon come to claim him. Wayzz pushed the thought away, completely determined to focus on the problem at hand, instead of the inevitable. “Even death is not to be feared by one who has lived wisely,” so said the Enlightened one after all.
Fu stroked the kwami’s head, pulling them out of their train of thought. He removed his hand from underneath Wayzz and headed for the door, grabbing the black umbrella he conveniently placed at the entrance of his home.
“Alright, Wayzz. Let’s see if I haven’t lost my touch in choosing yet,” he said with finality. Wayzz smiled and nodded.
“Alright, master. And I’m confident that we will have at least some form of success with this mission.
Fu winked at his kwami and smiled warmly, opening his umbrella with a flourish.
“Expect nothing but success, my good friend. Especially today. After all, rainy days have always been a good omen for choosing, yes? Now let’s get the first Miraculous holder chosen before the heavens find another reason to weep.”
✶
Lila sat in her room, tears rolling down her cheeks once again. She hated it. She hated herself. An attention-seeking, worthless, garbage pathological liar who no one ever really loved. At least, that’s what she told herself over and over in the small corner of her room, where she had secluded herself after the events of the previous day. Memories flashed through her mind in a dizzying blur, all painfully colored red and black.
Ladybug.
The name made her stomach swirl with nausea, and she dared not to say the name out loud. The last time she did, she spat it out, and immediately felt the cloud that normally haunted her in the wee hours of the night clasp onto her, digging its nails of fear and loathing deep into her skin.
“You ruined everything.” She whispered under her breath, unsure of who exactly she was talking to anymore. Her hatred for Ladybug had not dissipated, but as usual after every single misfortune in her life, she blamed the course of events on herself. She really made a fool of herself in front of Adrien. Why did she pine after him so quickly? Why was she so concerned with what other people told her. She desperately wanted to stop caring, to stop feeling, and yet the numbness did not come. It was just one of those days where she was forced to feel the entirety of her pain, with no relief. She wiped away her tears, sighing. Soon, the ache in her chest was all that remained of her breakdown.
“Ugh, my head.” She groaned as she stood up. Something caught in her hair as she tried to fix the mess she’d made of it, and with an irritated huff, she yanked it out of her hair to discover it was her necklace. She thumbed the fox tail in her palm, the sleek metal cool to the touch. Staring at the piece of jewelry spurred something in her that she hadn’t felt in a while: regret. She really felt no remorse for the lies she told when her parents put her into yet another school. She honestly didn’t care at this point in her life; she never stayed long enough for anyone to truly get to know her anyways. And yet… Lila wished she had done things differently this time around. Maybe she should have just told everyone the truth, living with the fact that not everyone was going to have a good opinion of her, or even know that she existed. But who was Lila? What was the truth? She had twisted it too many times to pick apart fact from fiction. Lila just couldn’t fight the urge to make sure that everyone saw her as an amazing person without flaw. But she was far from perfect, that was one thing she knew without a doubt.
Clutching the necklace in hand, she walked across her room, ignoring the dull white walls she had no plan of decorating as she walked out. Her parents had moved to a decent apartment complex near the school she went to now, managing to snag one in the upper levels of the building. Twelve floors of what people called home, and Lila had never felt so out of place. Making her way through the hallway and into the living, she saw her parents asleep next to each other on the small couch that they had always kept as long as Lila remembered, probably exhausted after a full day’s work. She saw her father twitch, and snuggle ever so slightly closer to her other father, as if holding him closer would banish any nightmare he was having. Her heart ached, and the fear of ending up alone without someone to love her as deeply as that hit her again. She gulped, tightening her grasp on the necklace and strode out the front door.
Two minutes later, Lila found herself shivering near the edge of the roof of her building, arms crossed and teeth clenched as the rain continued to pour. She cursed herself for not preparing for this, not even checking out her window to see if it was raining. But she didn’t want to leave. Lila opened her mouth as her teeth involuntarily chattered, watching as the raindrops hit the fox tail charm with minuscule splashes. She leaned over the edge, watching the surreal sight of the sheets of rain falling to the street. She stuck her hand out, opened her clenched fingers, and watched the necklace make its descent to the pavement. Her foot suddenly was on the edge of the building, and thoughts of joining the necklace on its journey taunted her.
“My, my, young lady, are you trying to catch a cold?”
Lila whipped around, eyes wide in fear to find a short old man giving her a tender smile, a large black umbrella hanging over him. Strangely, however, he didn’t seem to have any other protection from the elements. He simply wore a red Hawaiian shirt and khakis. He held a coffee mug in his other hand, steam visible from underneath the umbrella’s protection from the rain.
“Uh, no, I was-I just-I didn’t expect it t-to rain.” She stuttered, the cold adding to the tension and stiffness of her mouth. Moving her mouth after clenching it so tightly made her feel sore, and she sighed shakily.
“Well, we all find ourselves in situations we had not expected. Here,” The old man said, handing her the the mug. “Come under my umbrella, take this, and tell me what is wrong.”
Lila hesitated, realizing her hand was already reaching out to grab the mug and her feet had already carried her closer to the man. She knew she should have been suspicious or at least cautious about this man’s intentions. But his presence was a comforting one, and the temptation of the large umbrella’s covering and a warming drink got the best of her. She quickly walked over to him, hunching under the umbrella to avoid hitting her head, and took the mug with both hands, giving the man a gracious smile before she took a sip. Lila closed her eyes, waiting for the liquid to meet her lips, and opened them in surprise as the taste of rich chocolate shrouded her tongue. It was really good, too.
“Oh, wow.” She said, lowering the mug and wiping her mouth with her arm. “This is really good.”
“It is a special mixture specifically made at the Dupain-Cheng bakery, just half a block from here, in case you wanted to get some more another time.” He informed her with a pleasant smile. “But first things first; what’s troubling you, young one?”
Lila sighed, her body relaxing as the warmth of the hot chocolate finally started to spread throughout her body. She pursed her lips together as she tried to string together an explanation of some kind to give to this man without making herself burst into tears.
“Uh, I messed up. Really bad.” She said bluntly. Good way to start.
“I lied about a lot of stuff I did at this new school my parents transferred me to. It’s something I do often, because I’m a horrible person with no limits or self-control. I just can’t help but try and convince everyone that I’m something completely different than what I am. I’m too scared to show them who I really am, because quite frankly, I’m not even sure who I really am. And then,” Lila continued, her voice raising slightly as she was sucked into the heat of her confession. “I tried to date someone. I really wanted them to like me, so I convinced them that I knew… one of Paris’ superheros.” She said hastily, avoiding having to say the name that caused her too much of a headache. The man nodded, urging her to continue.
“Well, that backfired on me. That hero flatly outed me to him, and now he probably believes that I’m the worst person in the world. And then I got akumatized, and it’s just too big of a mess to clean up.” She finished. Her shoulders slumped as she held the mug to her chest, cradling the only source of warmth she had for comfort.
“I just wish I could fix it. All of it. I really do wish I had just told the truth in the first place, but I didn’t. So now I’m stuck with a problem that I’ll probably never resolve. And a wound that hurts too much to heal.” She said quietly, staring at her fingers as she traced the logo on the side of the cup.
“You will find a way, young one. The universe is fickle in who it chooses to live an unburdened life. But it does take pity on those that have too many burdens to bear.” The old man said softly, and lightly placed his hand on her shoulder. She lifted his gaze to meet his, and expected to see pity in his eyes. But she saw something else, something unfamiliar, and yet something that she yearned to have herself. Was it joy? No, maybe sympathy. No, that word just didn’t seem to match what he held in those smiling eyes of his. The only word that Lila knew would perfectly describe what he seemed to be trying to give her through his comforting gaze; hope.
“You are worth giving a second chance, child.” He said finally. “Do not forget that.”
He removed his hand and held out the umbrella with a smile, and she took it with a surprise, unknowing of what else to do. He walked past her, towards the edge of the building without another word.
Lila sputtered in confusion, whipping around with umbrella and mug in hand.
“Wait, it’s still raining and where are you go-?” She said frantically, but stopped short to find that the old man was gone.
Lila was back in her room, sitting on her bed with a blank expression on her face. She was numb again, unsure of what to think of what she had just experienced. She would have considered the meeting with the old man an illusion, a result of dissociation if it weren’t for the now empty mug in her hand and the wet umbrella she had left at her front door. What exactly was it all supposed to even mean?
And then she suddenly noticed, in the corner of her eye, a small object sitting at the edge of her desk. She snapped out of her trance, reality piercing in its return as her gaze focused on the object. She stood up abruptly, suddenly feeling as if adrenaline was flooding her veins a million miles per second. She sprinted to the desk and swiped the object off of the desk, feeling its smooth exterior in curiosity. It had black and red designs, and yet it did not disturb her. No, its presence invigorated her in a way that could only be compared to be given a purpose, even if she wasn’t quite aware of it yet.
Her forefinger traced along the face of what she believed to be a box, and she felt a groove. She drew in a sharp breath, and slowly opened the case.
A burst of light blinded her, the only thing she could catch before squeezing her eyes shut and dropping the box in alarm was her room glowing as if a sunset had leaked into her room. The light faded in an instant, and she opened her eyes in a panic, trying to blink out the blotches in her vision. Lila gasped as she found herself inches away from a little floating being, colored orange and adorned with animal-like characteristics. It opened its eyes and blinked rapidly, as if trying to adjust to the change in brightness itself. It locked eyes with Lila, and cocked its head to the side. It smiled in awe at her as she remained completely paralyzed.
“Oh my. You’re a lovely one, aren’t you?” It cooed. It’s voice was soft and feminine, smooth in its diction and pleasant to the ear. It giggled as it realized Lila wasn’t going to react.
“Ah, yes. This must all be strange to you, yes? Well, my name is Pygmy. I am what you would call a Kwami, and if you need a comparison;” It said with a smirk, “Think of me as a unique kind of fairy. I power the fox Miraculous which has been bestowed upon you,” Pygmy trailed off, searching around for a second before stopping to look at the case on the floor. Pygmy laughed lightly.
“And which you have dropped on the ground.”
Lila watched as it gracefully floated down, to pick a certain object from the discarded box. It glinted in the slight light shining in her room, and Lila realized it was a necklace with a fox tail on it, only much more detailed and extravagant than her old necklace. Her breath hitched as the kwami floated above her, and Lila felt the cool metal drape over her skin.
“This is a gift, my chosen. You have been presented with powers beyond belief, and I expect you to be a quick learner about it; us foxes have to be clever to survive, after all.”
“Foxes. I’m a fox superhero?” Lila asked, her voice strange and foreign in the atmosphere of her room. Pygmy giggled.
“Ah, she speaks! Yes, you will be a fox. I grant you the power of cunning, and with that power you are able to summon an illusion that will perfectly aleve or distract the problem at hand. You will be granted the power of speed, achieve heightened sense, and your weapon is-”
“A flute?” Lila asked flatly. Pygmy cocked her head and laughed.
“What? No, no, no, it’s nothing like that. No, your weapon will be a fan. This will allow you temporary floatation as you jump, and you can give yourself a boost in speed with it. Plus, it can double as a boomerang and a ninja star, with its wooden frame spiked and sturdy. Practical and sensible.” The kwami finished. Lila touched the necklace in awe, surprised to find that the fox tail felt of real fur.
“Amazing. And I was really chosen for this? All of this?” She asked in wonder. Pygmy nodded.
“Yes. All of it. Now, may I learn your name, my lovely chosen?”
Lila scoffed, picking up that she would have to watch this kwami’s sweet words and what she used them for. Though a little adulation here and there certainly did make her feel good. She sighed wearily, and gave the kwami a resigned smile.
“Lila. My name is Lila.”
Pygmy smiled widely. “Lila. Lovely Lila. Well, my lovely Lila, to activate the transformation, all you have to do is wear the necklace-oh, and I should mention now that you must wear it at all times to have complete access to your power-and shout, ‘Pygmy, transforme moi!’ Got it?”
Lila nodded slowly, but realized that Pygmy’s expectant stare meant that she wanted her to try it then.
“Uh, can I wait until tomorrow to try? I have had a little bit of what you would call a ‘rough’ day, and I think it’d be wise to learn more about this new power of mine before I jump into the job.”
Pygmy smiled kindly at her chosen and floated towards her. Lila held her hand out, and Pygmy gladly sat in her palm.
“Alright, my Lila. And what would you like to be named as a hero?”
That one was simple enough. French was not her first language, but since Italian’s word for fox could be misinterpreted very easily, she would use what was convenient.
“Renardyne.” She finally said.
“Ooh, nice twist on the word, Lila. Well, lay to rest, and I will tell you all about the things to come, and what you should expect of this new development.”
Lila nodded her head and complied, undressing out of her soaked clothing and putting on a loose t-shirt and the warmest pair of flannel pants she had before snuggling under the cover and soaking in every word her new best friend had to say about this new course her life had taken. She had been given a second chance, she knew this. And there was no way Lila was going to ruin it for herself this time.