Alya had always known that superheroes were tough. They had to be in order to save the innocent and bring down evil. She had always admired that quality about heroes.

But when it was her turn to be brave and strong, Alya had never realized how much strength she would need to have.

Transformed into Volpina, Alya brought her staff to her lips and played a quick, soft tune. Directly over the Baker's head, a water pail appeared and doused him with water.

Her fingers again flew over the holes of her staff, her hands already knowing the tune she wished to play.

The Baker wiped his eyes and scowled at Volpina, but before he could charge, a slap of rock jutted out from the ground and slammed the Baker back onto the concrete.

He landed with a thud and Volpina grinned, pleased to have at least paused his attacks.

While she kept the Baker distracted, Ladybug helped the police force quickly usher away innocent Parisians who had been trapped by the Baker's commotion.

Volpina risked a glance over her shoulder and saw that more than half the people had already been safely evacuated. She let out a small sigh of relief. They were safe.

The Baker wasn't out for long, though, because he jumped back to his feet and snarled at Volpina. "You think you can defeat me?!"

Volpina grinned. "Oh, I know I can."

The Baker roared and swung his wooden spoon far above his head down to the ground. A large croissant formed in the air and shot straight for the orange heroine.

Volpina rolled to the side, hoping to dodge the attack but saw it switch directions and tailback towards her. She didn't have enough time to conjure an object so she grasped her staff in both hands and swung out toward the boomerang croissant.

Her staff collided with the pastry; the croissant stopping inches away from her body. Volpina struggled against the force of the croissant but still managed to fling it away from herself toward the large doors of City Hall.

It smacked against the doors before falling in a heap onto the floor.

When Volpina turned back toward the Baker, she saw him charging towards her, hoping to defeat her through physical strength.

Volpina grinned and twirled her staff around in her fingers. She brought her instrument to her lips and blew a quick little tune that caused the ground beneath the Baker's feet to turn into quicksand.

He roared as his feet and legs sank into the rising sand. His eyes gleamed with hatred and rage as he struck out his spoon again and swung it toward the top of the Capitol.

A large licorice rope flared out of his spoon and wrapped around the tallest spire on the building. The Baker pulled on the rope and quickly heaved himself out of the pit, his lower body caked with sand and mud.

Volpina risked a glance around her, her eyes searching for Ladybug. She found her best friend swinging back toward her. She landed a few feet away to Volpina's right.

The red-clad superheroine smiled. "Everyone's been cleared out. We don't need to worry about anyone getting hurt anymore."

Volpina nodded, happy that everyone had made it out safely. Just as she was about to respond, though, the Baker growled and glared at Ladybug, annoyed that she had joined Volpina.

"You!" he shouted as he lifted his wooden spoon at Ladybug. "Hand over your Miraculous and show me where Félix Martin is and I'll grant you both mercy."

"In your dreams, Baker!" Ladybug yelled, swinging her yo-yo at her side, ready for any attack the Baker would throw at her.

Just as he raised his wooden spoon to strike, his eyes darted over the two superheroines and glared at something behind them.

Volpina glanced over her shoulder, still keeping the Baker in her peripheral vision, and scanned the area behind them.

A lone figure in a tan suit stood on the opposite side of the Capitol plaza, his face contorted in anger.

"Well, it's about time you showed up, Mr. Martin!" the Baker roared as he grinned wickedly. Though his tone was light, his eyes betrayed his fury towards the man.

The same, haunting butterfly outline appeared around the Baker's eyes as Hawk Moth communicated something to him that seemed to make the Baker even more enraged.

Félix yelled back to the Baker, but his words got lost in the wind. He huffed before he turned and began to walk away, back to where the police force was shouting for him to quickly run back to safety.

To Volpina, it seemed that Félix was in no hurry to return back to the police line. He acted as if the threat of the Baker wasn't the least bit concerning like he already knew that the Baker had lost the war between the two.

Volpina wondered what could've possibly happened between the two men that would cause Mr. Dupain to become akumitized. But she didn't dwell on the thought too long because the Baker charged forward...right past Ladybug and Volpina, heading straight toward the retreating form of Mr. Martin.

Ladybug reeled back and swung out her yo-yo, ensnarling the Baker in its magic rope.

The Baker thrashed, trying to break free from the yo-yo's grip before he lunged forward and yanked on the rope with so much force that Ladybug fell forward.

Her chest collided with the ground and the air raced out of her lungs. Her yo-yo fell out of her hand and the Baker burst free from the ropes.

Volpina quickly reached out a hand to help her friend back to her feet, but Ladybug just waved her off.

"Stop him," she huffed, "now!"

Volpina turned back toward the Baker and Mr. Martin and brought her flute to her lips. She blew out a soft tune and the ground began to shake underneath the Baker's feet.

He fell to his knees, unable to stand with all the motion, but so did Félix, who turned back to see that the Baker had almost closed the distance between them. Volpina saw his eyes grow wide with shock and a twinge of fear before he scrambled back to his feet and bolted for the safety of the police line.

The Baker hopped back to his feet, once the shaking stopped, but it was too late. Mr. Martin was gone; he had successfully managed to disappear into the crowd of police, news reporters, and spectators.

The Baker yelled in outrage before he spun back to face the superheroines. "How dare you! How dare you stand in the way of my victory!"

"Oh, dude, we so dare!" Volpina smiled, while she twirled her flute through her fingers.

Ladybug rolled her eyes at her friend, but a smile tugged at the corner of her lips. When her best friend glanced at her akumitized father, though, Volpina saw it vanish.

"You will severely regret interfering," the Baker said, his face red with anger. He swung out his wooden spoon and pointed it at Volpina. He roared as macaroons flew out of the spot and shot straight for the orange-clad heroine.

Volpina tried to duck down and roll out of the way, but her foot got caught on a raised tile and she fell forward and landed on the ground with a thud.

She wrapped her arms around her head and braced herself for the onslaught of macaroons, but they didn't come.

Volpina peeked around her arms and saw Ladybug standing over her, her yo-yo zipping around them at a speed only magic could allow. The macaroons disintegrated upon impact with the yo-yo, but Ladybug's energy was fading fast.

Volpina blew another soft song with her flute and a large gust of wind swept the Baker off his feet, his wooden spoon flying out of his hand.

The onslaught of macaroons stopped and Ladybug sank to her knees.

"Ladybug!" Volpina cried as she reached for her best friend. Ladybug's eyes were closed as she tried to reach for more strength deep inside of herself.

"It's okay. I'm alright. I just need a minute. Think you can handle the Baker without me for a few?"

Volpina saw the akumitized father leap back to his feet, the same haunting butterfly outlining the Baker's enraged face.

Before Volpina could move, Baker roared in frustration. "No!" he yelled. "You can't just leave me here without-"

The purple butterfly vanished and the Baker slammed his foot on the ground, causing the stone beneath him to crack. Volpina realized that Hawk Moth left him to fend for himself. Adrien and Nino must have made it to Hawk Moth's lair, and the Hawk Moth couldn't handle two problems at once.

Without Hawk Moth guiding the Baker now, the Baker's moves would be sloppy and uncoordinated.

Volpina didn't know whether to be happy or worried. She could face him now without Hawk Moth interfering, but now Nino was facing Hawk Moth's wrath.

When the Baker lunged for his wooden spoon, Volpina was snapped out of her thoughts and sprinted toward the object as well. Nino could handle himself; he had Adrien on his side. They would be okay.

And the sooner Volpina saved Marinette's father from the Akuma, the quicker she would be able to get the Agreste Mansion and help her friends.

Though the Baker was fast, Volpina reached his wooden spoon first and stepped on the handle, just before the Baker could reach for it. She brought her foot up and stomped down on the spoon, breaking it in two.

She expected the Akuma to fly out but no butterfly emerged. Confused, she looked up at the Baker just in time to see his fist hit her square in the jaw.

Volpina reeled back and her face stung with pain. She brought her hand up to her mouth and blocked the Baker's following punch with her other hand.

Pain and anger pooled in his brown eyes. He roared and swung again, Volpina barely missing his attack.

She danced out of his way and prepared to fight the Baker. But the Baker's anger deflated and he sank to his knees. "Neither of you understands," he whispered.

Ladybug walked up to Volpina's side and looked down at her father. Her eyes broadcasted her pain and sadness towards the man in front of them.

Volpina couldn't handle looking at the two of them, both lost in their sadness and knew she had to figure out a way to save her friend's father.

"We don't understand?" She asked. "Dude, I think Ladybug and I both understand what it feels like to feel helpless and broken."

The Baker's gaze left the ground in front of him and pinned the heroine with an icy stare.

"You don't know anything, hero," he spat.

Volpina leaned against her flute, hand on her hip. "I don't? I don't know what it's like to feel so hopeless and betrayed? I don't know what it's like to only want to help, but be betrayed in the end? I don't know what it feels like to have my world come crashing down around me when I discover that everything I thought I knew had been a bunch of lies? You actually believe I don't know that betrayal, that pain, that utter disappointment, and shame of not knowing what had been the truth and what had been lies..." Volpina stopped and took a deep breath. "Look, I know that Hawk Moth says he can help, give you strength when you have none left, and-"

"No!" The Baker exclaimed, rising to his feet. "You don't know! I'll lose them! I lose them both! Martin took it all away. My home, my life, my family... he's taking my family away from me. I can't lose them. I can't lose her. My daughter...she'll never forgive me for letting it all go...for not trying harder..."

The Baker's voice wobbled before he lashed out, his rage being the only emotion giving him strength against his sadness.

Ladybug couldn't move, though. Her feet wouldn't allow her too, and Volpina saw that the Baker was going to hit her if she didn't move.

The orange heroine tackled her friend to the ground with the Baker's arm narrowly missing them.

"Ladybug! I know you're hurting, but your father needs you to save him! Come on, girl. You have to fight!" Volpina yelled, shaking her friend's shoulders.

Ladybug shook her head and opened her eyes, physically shaking away all emotions other than determination.

After a moment, she said, "You're right."

Volpina pulled her back to her feet.

The Baker turned and charged toward them but the two friends danced out of his way.

"Where do you think the Akuma is?" Volpina yelled as she ducked away from another swing by the Baker.

Ladybug's eyes skimmed over his body before they landed on his apron. "His apron!" she exclaimed. "He always wears it, even when he's not baking. It must be in his apron."

Volpina nodded. "Gotcha!"

Volpina brought her flute back to her mouth and blew another tune. A large tarp appeared above the Baker and fell onto him.

He yelled and squirmed, trying to get the tarp off of himself.

Ladybug ran toward the disoriented Baker. "Who needs a lucky charm with Volpina around?" She smiled.

Volpina spun her flute between her fingers and winked. "I'm just that good."

Right as the Baker threw the tarp onto the ground and looked around, Ladybug swiped his apron off of him and sprinted away.

"No!" He cried out reaching toward the red superheroine.

But he was too late. Ladybug ripped the apron in two and an Akuma flew out from the remains.

"No more evil doing for you, little Akuma," Ladybug said as she in unhooked her yo-yo from her hip.

"Time to de-evilize!" She exclaimed as she flung her yo-yo toward the escaping butterfly. She caught it and reeled back. Her yo-yo flung back into her hand and she smiled.

She released the white, cleansed butterfly and said, "Bye bye, little butterfly."

Volpina pumped her fist in the air and joined her friend in yelling, "Miraculous Ladybug!"

The ladybug cleaning crew swept throughout the streets of Paris, repairing all the damage the Baker had caused.

When Volpina turned, she saw Mr. Dupain sitting up and holding his head.

He moaned before he opened his eyes and took in the police line and two super-heroines standing in front of him.

"Oh no, don't tell me I..." His words faded away as realization dawned on him.

Ladybug bent down and placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's alright, Da- I mean, sir."

Mr. Dupain shook his head. "No, it's not alright. I'm so sorry for the trouble I caused. I never...I never meant for any of this to happen and I..."

"Truly, it's okay. No one was hurt and you're back to yourself. And that's what Volpina and I are here for. We're here to protect you from evil."

Mr. Dupain looked up at the two heroines and softly smiled. After a moment, he said, "Okay."

He stood up from his spot on the ground and smiled down at the two heroines. "Thank you so much you for saving me. Volpina and Ladybug, you two are amazing heroes. But if you don't mind me asking, where is Cat Noir? Is he battling another Akuma too?"

Volpina's eyes widened and she turned to Ladybug the same time her friend turned to face her.

They had to go. Now.

"I'm sorry, sir, but do you think you'll be okay to talk with the police officers on your own? Volpina and I need to go now," Ladybug said.

"Oh yes, I'll be fine. I need to...face the consequences of my actions, no matter what they may be. I deserve it. Thank you, Ladybug and Volpina. Thank you for saving me from myself."

Volpina smiled and gave a single nod.

Ladybug looked like she was going to say something else, but her words halted at her lips. She then decided against it and turned to Volpina.

She nodded once then took off, swinging from rooftop to rooftop with her yo-yo.

Volpina blew a lighter tune on her flute and she felt a gust of wind lift her up and fly her over to the top of the nearest building. She blew another tune and another as she bounded over the rooftops of Paris toward Hawk Moth's lair.

~~~

"You know, I truly did not think you would ever stumble upon my lair," Hawk Moth said once he recovered from his initial shock at seeing Cat Noir and Jade Turtle. He turned to face the two heroes, hands clasped behind his back, a smirk on his face. "But you have. Do you now know what it feels like? Do you now know what it feels like to have your own family betray you, son?" He spat the last word as if it tasted sour in his mouth.

Cat's face didn't betray the emotions that ran rampant in his mind. "I didn't betray you, father. You are the one who left me," he said in a voice as cold as ice.

Hawk Moth raised an eyebrow. "Did I now? Did I really leave you?" He didn't give Cat Noir a chance to answer. "No, I didn't."

He took a step toward the superheroes. Cat Noir and Jade Turtle remained still.

Hawk Moth continued, "I have been the one who is always here. I am the one who provides for you, shelters you, gives you food, though I must say you are strangely fond of cheese," Hawk Moth shook his head; he was getting off track. "But that's not the point."

"Then what is the point?" Cat Noir growled.

"The point is that I've always been here to help you...and you go and disgrace me by stopping me from attaining what I want."

Cat's eyes widened at his father's proclamation and his blood began to boil. "You have always been here to help?"

Cat Noir could only remember a handful of times when he had felt so enraged. He couldn't believe that his dad had the audacity to say that he had always been there for him.

His father nodded, answering Cat's rhetorical question, the same smirk still on his masked face.

"Sorry to disagree, father, but you have never helped me," Cat's control was holding on by a thread. "You have always put me down, locked me away in my room, and sent me to the same darn photo shoots that I go to just to make you happy." He took a deep breath and focused his eyes on his father. "But what I truly don't understand is why. Why do you want the other Miraculous so badly when you already have your own?"

Hawk Moth studied the boy in the black cat suit, his eyes glazing over in memory for a split second. Cat Noir blinked and the look was gone.

"You remind me of someone who was once very close to me, Cat Noir."

Cat's knuckles had turned white from his grip the staff in his hand. "Answer. my. question."

Hawk Moth chuckled under his breath and switched his staff to his other hand. "You don't know? Why Ladybug's and your Miraculous are the two strongest and most powerful Miraculous of them all. I need them in order to achieve my goal. You think I would ever want to keep my butterfly Miraculous or have Slow Turtle's Miraculous over there?"

"Jade Turtle," Nino corrected, his hands twitching at his sides. Cat noticed that his friend was struggling with the need to reach behind him and unclasp his turtle shell shield.

Hawk Moth waved a hand. "Whatever. Anyway, your Miraculous is special. On your finger, you wield the power of destruction, disruption, and chaos. The only equal to your power is that of the ladybug, which holds the power of creation, order, and luck. If someone wore both Miraculous at the same time..." Hawk Moth looked up at the sky through the window and smiled. "They would have ultimate power...the capacity to do anything."

Jade Turtle and Cat Noir exchanged glances. "But...what could you possibly want?" Jade Turtle asked.

Hawk Moth turned back to face the two and met Cat's stare. "The power to keep something horrible from taking place."

Cat cocked his head slightly to the side, confused. "What would you want to change? What could you possibly..." Cat's words trailed off as he slowly realized the only thing his father would ever want.

Though he knew that his father had money, success, and a thriving fashion empire, he was still sad. He had lost someone so dear to him long ago. They both had. But his father couldn't be talking about her, could he?

Hawk Moth slowly nodded his head. "I could bring her back, Adrien. She can still be here with us."

For a moment, Cat Noir couldn't say anything. His father had stunned him to silence. But then he started shaking his head. "No....no...no! Y-You can't. That's impossible."

"Nothing's impossible, son." Hawk Moth's eyes gleamed with a sinister light, something maniacal. His father had completely lost his mind. Though he may have been still grieving over the loss of his wife, Cat Noir's mother, what his father was talking about was absolutely ludicrous. It just couldn't be done.

"Yes, this is!" Cat Noir raised his staff and slammed it down on the floor in front of him. The strike of metal on metal bounced over the walls and reverberated loud in his ears. "You can't bring her back from the dead, father. It can't be done, not even with a Miraculous, and certainly not with and Ladybug's and mine."

Hawk Moth took a step toward the two heroes. Jade Turtle and Cat Noir took a step back.

"You don't understand the true power you possess. But that's where you're wrong. I don't want to bring her back. I want to go back to that night and stop her from leaving in the first place."

Cat's mind felt like it was going to explode. His father had become delirious and irrational. And one look at Jade Turtle told Cat Noir that his friend agreed with him. Cat saw Jade Turtle reach behind his back and unhook his shield. He was going to attack Hawk Moth, whether Cat Noir wanted him to or not.

But Cat still wanted his father to see reason before it came to that. Instead of fighting his nemesis, Cat Noir now only wanted to help his father. Cat now saw the man with the butterfly Miraculous for who he truly was, grief-stricken and crazy.

"Father, you can't go back in time. It's never been done before, and certainly can't be done now."

"Have you forgotten Timebreaker?" Hawk Moth said as though he were talking to a small, clueless child. "I had granted her the power to go back in time to fix the wrongs that had been done to her. What makes you think that only an Akuma retains that kind of power? The ring of the Black Cat and the earrings of the Ladybug can do just that! Your power of destruction allows the ring's holder to disrupt the current time loop and time bring time to a halt. The power of creation can create a portal to the exact time the holder wishes to return to." Hawk Moth took another step toward his son. "Don't you want her with us again? Do you even miss her like I do?"

Cat's response was immediate. "Of course, I do. She was my mother. But don't you even remember why she left in the first place? She felt unloved! She felt like you didn't care for her the way you once did. She believed that you loved your work more than her so she wanted to escape from a suffocating life of never being good enough. She left me behind too...I still don't even know why. Maybe so that you would have someone to love if you ever realized that work is not the most important thing in the world."

Rage filled Hawk Moth's eyes. "No, she wouldn't leave us...she wouldn't leave me believing that I didn't love her. I told her I loved her every day! But that's why I need to go back. To fix my wrongs. To get her to stay. To not leave the night of the accident....I'll go back and prove my love for her and she'll stay with me."

"Do you even know what love is?"

"Oh, and you think you do, son?" Hawk Moth shifted his staff to his other hand again and gripped it tightly in his palm. "Who do you love? Ladybug? You don't even know her."

"Yes, I-"

Hawk Moth cut him off. "No, you don't. You never truly loved her. Sure, maybe the one side of her that you fought alongside with every day. But you never gave the other side of her a chance. And don't think I don't know how she feels about you, son. I know Marinette; I saw her thoughts and emotions when she was Miss Fortune, and I know how she truly feels about the great Cat Noir. She only thinks of you as a sidekick who says lame puns. Nothing more."

Though the words were meant to throw him off, Cat held strong because he remembered the night on her balcony. He remembered the way she looked at him and he remembered the way he felt.

She loved him and he loved her; he knew it as he knew that the sun always rose in the east.

And he wouldn't let his father hurt him, not again. Never again.

After a long stretch of silence, Cat asked, "Why are you trying to hurt me with lies?"

Hawk Moth sighed. "So I can get you to see the truth. Look, we've both said horrible things, but if you just hand over your ring...I can fix everything for the better and start over."

Cat shook his head and raised his staff. "No, Hawk Moth. I won't let you do this."

Hawk Moth's eyes saddened, and something told Cat that his father had known that it would have always come to this. His father closed his eyes, and when they opened, all traces of the father Cat knew were gone, replaced by the evil determination that was Hawk Moth.

"Very well, then. I'll just have to take it from you."

"You'll have to go through me first, Hawk Moth," Ladybug said as she ran up the steps into the large room, Volpina right on her heels.

"Ah, Ladybug and...fox girl?" Hawk Moth raised an eyebrow.

"The name's Volpina," the orange heroine said as she came to a stop beside Jade Turtle.

The hero turned and smiled at her, relief evident on his face.

Volpina winked at him before she turned back to face Hawk Moth.

Cat felt a small hand take hold of his. He looked down and saw his Lady already gazing back up at him. She smiled softly and squeezed his hand, offering her strength and support.

Cat had never been more grateful to have her by his side.

He looked back at Hawk Moth when the villain raised his staff above his head.

"Despite what you may think," the villain sneered, "I only need Ladybug and Cat Noir's Miraculous to achieve my goal, so the other two are disposable and not needed." Hawk Moth raised his staff above his head and the scattered butterflies in the room took to the air.

"Disposable?! Oh, you did not!" Volpina said, raising her staff up to her lips.

Hawk Moth ignored her and focused on the flying butterflies. The butterflies being to circle around Hawk Moth, like a cocoon. Three out of the swarm began to glow an ominous purple. The villain grinned wickedly.

The purple butterflies flew out of the swarm and started to morph, their legs extending, their wings retracting.

The four heroes stood, stunned as they watched the three Akumas land on the ground with fully formed legs. The Akumas raised their heads and Volpina screamed.

Standing in front of them were the akumitized versions of themselves, the Bubbler, Lady Wifi, and Miss Fortune.

The three Akumas looked as if the color had been drained from their bodies, for they were all in black in white. Their faces bore no resemblance to the four friends except their eyes, which glowed menacing purple.

Hawk Moth chuckled. "How do you like my Akumas now?"

"But...but this shouldn't even be possible!" Ladybug said, her eyes wide.

"Nothing is impossible, Ladybug. You more than anyone should know that," Hawk Moth said smugly. "You two have just never seen what Akumas are truly capable of."

"But we cleanse the Akumas. They shouldn't be able to akumitize people again," Cat growled.

"True, you do stop from that single person from becoming akumitized again, but that does not affect the ones already here. I only send Akumas out into the world because it requires less energy and concentration to keep the puppets animated and I guess I can also help someone with their problems, especially if what they want is to get revenge on the great Ladybug and Cat Noir."

"This is insane!" Car shouted. "Please, father, stop what you're doing. You can end all of this if you would just..."

Hawk Moth raised an eyebrow. "Hand over my Miraculous? Never. Not until I have what I want."

"Then we've come to an impasse."

Hawk Moth nodded, solemnly. "That we have." His eyes flashed and in one quick motion, Hawk Moth thrust his staff forward at the heroes and unleashed his Akumas.

The three puppet Akumas charged and attacked their counterparts, Lady Wifi ran toward Volpina, the Bubbler met Jade Turtle head on, and Miss Fortune took on both Ladybug and Cat Noir.