A Miraculously Tangled Tale (Tangled AU) #miraculousladybugawards2019

Chapter 8

   Befana furiously rushed through the forest in pure panic, anxiously wondering the well-being of her adopted daughter. She had earned herself quite a bit of bruises and tears in her maroon-colored cloak from tripping over a number of rocks and various twigs. But still she continued without even thinking about resting her aching feet. When she finally pushed through the thickness of the trees surrounding the tower, Befana paused to catch her breath. She then raced toward the tower and stood underneath Marinette's window, like she had done so many times before. 

"Marinettaaaa!!" she called in her sing-song voice, attempting to sound cheerful, though she was sweating in desperation. When Befana didn't receive an answer, she attempted to call again. 

"Marinettaaaa!! Let down your hair, my sweet fairy!"

No response. 

At this point Befana was a few minutes away from driving herself completely insane. She circled around the tower until she came to a heap of rocks piled up against the wall. Pushing them aside, she uncovered a secret door and immediately opened it, revealing a dusty staircase leading up the the top of the tower. Befana wasted no time climbing up the stairs and finally reaching the top floor. There, she searched every room in vain, hoping to find Marinette sleeping somewhere or invested in a random book or in the midst of piles of fabric for dresses. 

When she had look into every nook and cranny she could think of, Befana covered her face with her hands and collapsed onto the kitchen floor in helplessness. 

"Well, well, well. I'd never thought I'd see you come to this point, my dear."

Befana jerked her head up from her hands upon hearing the sound of that particular voice. 

"M-Master?" she stuttered. 

A mysterious man stepped out of the shadows. Befana instantly rose to her feet and bowed her head respectively. 

"Forgive me, Master," Befana said, trying to her hardest to keep her voice at an even tone. "I was not able to carry out your instructions as you have ordered."

"Quite the contrary," replied the man as he stroked his chin. "I believe you have followed my instructions successfully."

Befana raised her head, confused. "But, she was taken...someone found out about her..."

The man shook his head and smiled. "Don't worry, she is still within our reach. And I have a definite idea who her kidnapper might be. But," He folded his hands behind his back and circled around Befana,"in order to retain her, you will need to carry out my new instructions. Are you willing to obey my command once more?"

"Yes, Master." Befana replied without hesitation. 

"Good, good. Now, here is what I want you to do..."

**********

"Oww!!"

Chat Noir let out a yelp when he accidentally tripped over and rock and banged his head against the rocky wall of the tunnel. 

Marinette gasped. "Are you okay, Chat Noir?" she asked, momentarily pausing her singing as well as extinguishing their only light source. 

Chat Noir picked himself off the ground and rubbed his throbbing head. "I'm fine. Let's just get out of here."

"Maybe we should take a break," Marinette suggested, biting her lip. 

"Are you crazy? And waste time staying in complete darkness?" Chat gave a short cough before adding, "We need to keep going. And also...WHAT THE HECK IS UP WITH YOUR HAIR?!?"