In Love, Always

Chapter 10

Marinette's point of view:

Master Fu stood up and walked towards the door. He beckoned, "come with me." Marinette got up and followed him out of the room, Tikki close behind. Once again they were in the halls of Fu's home. Where will we be going next?

They followed Fu through the winding corridors until he led them to a door. He presented the room to them and opened it. Marinette walked in, noticing right away the startling contrast from the room they had been in before. The walls were painted a light brown, but the paint was chipping, and the floorboards creaked where she stepped. A sole window on one of the walls let in the necessary light, sunning the few desolate houseplants stashed in the corners. While the sitting room had been colorful and lavish, this one was plainer and more practical. Not that it mattered much to Marinette. A room was a room.

Master Fu picked up a round box from a shelf and brought it to Tikki and Marinette. At first, it looked like an old-school record player, but when Marinette saw the strange markings covering it and the buttons on the side, she presumed that its purpose was a bit less mundane. Sure enough, Master Fu twisted his fingers around the box, placing his fingers over the buttons and pressing. The box hissed. Slowly, it began to open, the record-player top tipping back and the gap in the middle growing wider and wider. Like a flawlessly running clock, the contraption opened smoothly and cleanly, revealing underneath.... Another box? Marinette looked up at Fu then back down at it. The octagon sides had golden buttons (Marinette decided that Master Fu really liked boxes and buttons) and a labyrinth of red lines covered the top, forming some type of symbol. Whatever it stood for, Marinette didn't know. But for some reason, the pattern looked so familiar. Like deja-vu, with a hint of nostalgia. What is it?

Answering Marinette's unspoken question, Fu said, "You will recognize this box as the one that you first received your miraculous in. The markings on the top are practically identical, save for some chipping and fading. And the box you got is smaller, but still, the two are almost nearly matches." Marinette's eyebrows lifted up in recognition and surprise. Now that she knew to look, she could see that he was right. She was staring at a large version of her miraculous box. It had been years since she got that thing. Around two and a half years if she was remembering correctly. How much has my life changed since I got that box...? How much will it change someone else's... Master Fu lifted the last lid.

A circle of colored blocking outlined the middle, five sections. Orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple. In the center of the box, a yin and yang symbol clashed. Marinette looked down in wonder. In each colored portion, a small brand labeled its object. In the black yin, a red spot stood out, the darker dots on it contrasting nicely. Marinette reached up to her ears. Her miraculous was a match. In the light grey yang, however, a pure white paw print lay inside of a small circle. It had to stand for Chat's miraculous, Marinette knew. She looked past the familiar symbols to the edge, where most colors and symbols meant nothing to her. First: the orange. Marinette couldn't see the brand, for an object was on top of it. A necklace. An orange tail, from the look of it. Marinette looked up at Master Fu.

"What is this?" She asked, pointing at the necklace. Fu glanced down to where her finger gestured, then back up to Marinette.

"I would've thought you would know." At her blank stare, he added, "Why, it's a miraculous! The fox!" Marinette looked up at Fu in awe. A fox miraculous... imagine that. Of course she had known that other miraculous existed, otherwise she wouldn't even be here, but it was weird to hear the word 'miraculous' and not having it refer to her own, or Chat's.

"The fox miraculous is one of trickery, more so than the others. Styled after a fox, the fox miraculous user would be sly and smooth, and with the power, mirage, they can create whatever illusion they desire. Powerful against people who don't know it is fake, but can be rendered useless once your opponent is aware of reality, and therefore, is aware of what is not." Marinette's head was reeling. Imagine all the possibilities. The user of the fox miraculous would be a powerful one...