What The Future Holds

Truths and Disasters

The next day at first started like any other. Hugo woke up in Luka's room and he got ready for school. This time was a little different. Luka pat him on the back, having heard everything from Juleka, before advising him to talk to her. Luka didn't want to have to choose between the friend he sees as a brother and his sister.

"Luka, what if she hates me? I didn't want to hurt her feelings, but Lila pulled me away from her." Hugo says, clearly worried about his relationship with Juleka. "Juleka is a great girl, no better than that. She's awesome, but I'm afraid she'll hate me."

Luka pat his friend on the back and smiled a bit before saying, "she doesn't. Trust me on this and just talk to her. Juleka was just upset yesterday, but so were you, right?"

Hugo met his eyes, confused on how he knew. "Did Marinette tell you everything?" He asked, a little embarrassed by the fact that one girl had made him so upset. "It wasn't that Lila upset me by asking me out like she did, Luka, but it was... Something else."

"She told me a little about what had happened and asked me to make sure you were okay." Luka admitted to him before patting his back. "You don't need to tell me what happened if you don't want to. I could tell that it really did bother you, but as your friend, I wouldn't mind hearing about it when you feel comfortable telling me."

As the boys continued to talk, Emma had another plan in mind. Knowing Juleka wasn't in the mood to see her brother, she asked her to come along, promising to tell her everything she wanted to know about Hugo in return.

Juleka knew that Emma probably didn't know as much as she was trying to make her think, but she still didn't trust the child enough to leave her unsupervised.

Together, the two girls walked past the school, ignoring the curious glances the two were getting from Juleka's classmates. Most figured that Juleka was just walking Emma to her school, while those who knew them closely figured something was wrong.

Marinette and Adrien were both watching the girls walk away, both wondering where Hugo could be. It wasn't like Emma to go anywhere without her brother, and yet, there she was.

"Juleka, promise me you won't get mad, okay? Hugo will yell at me if he finds out I told you everything." Emma says as she continues to walk, dragging the tall girl behind her. "I swear that I will tell you everything."

Juleka sighed before saying, "Emma, where are we going?" She didn't want to be late for school, but she couldn't help but wonder what was so important that Emma felt the need to do it now. "We're going to be late for school."

The little girl stopped in her place before looking at the ground. Tears started to stream down her face slowly as she turned to her friend. "But I can't wait anymore. Hugo might be in trouble if I don't help him. Please Juleka. I'm not allowed to go out on my own, and I don't know who else to ask. Luka will tell on me."

Never having a younger sibling before, Juleka felt uncomfortable in this situation, not knowing what to do. She wasn't her brother. She wasn't as popular as he was, or as calming, but if there was one thing she was, it was a good listener.

"Emma, what if I make a deal with you. I'll go with you to help your brother, but you have to go to school first." With the most gentle smile she could muster, she met the little girl's green eyes to let her know she was serious. "I won't tell Hugo or Luka anything. It'll be a super secret mission."

Emma began to wipe her tears away with her arm before nodding at her friend. With a hug, Emma laid her head down on Juleka's shoulder. "Thank you, Juleka. You're really nice." When Emma pulled away a bit, she cleared away more stray tears before smiling. "Do I look messy? I don't want the other kids to tease me."

Of course, Juleka shook her head no to reassure the young girl that she looked okay. Together the two walked back to the direction of Emma's school.

"Juleka, where were you two going this morning? Doesn't Emma usually walk with Hugo?" Mylène asked her friend, slightly curious on what the little girl was up to. It was lunch time when she had asked, knowing Juleka would be able to answer now. "I don't think I've ever seen her away from her brother like that before."

After checking to make sure Hugo was no where in sight, Juleka looked over at the girls before saying, "I honestly don't know where she wanted to go, but I do know that wherever she needs to go, it's important to her."

"It's probably going to be a friend's house or something like that. Emma is around that age where she would want to be around her bff all the time." Alya says as she thought about her own sisters. That's when the idea hit her. "Hey, what if we set up like a play date for her? I mean, Emma is probably lonely being the only little kid in your house and used that as an excuse to hang out with you."

Juleka thought about it for a second, giving Emma the benefit of the doubt. Was she lonely? Maybe. Luka has been willing to watch her whenever Hugo needs help, and she goes out with the girls whenever they plan something. It is possible that she doesn't like being alone like that.

"Okay, sure. It sounds like a good idea for her. I'm sure she'll like it." Juleka couldn't help but give them a smile with that. "I'll make sure to tell Hugo just to make sure he's cool with it. I dont want to make him worry."

Marinette smiled at her friends, wanting to butt in without sounding as if she were against the idea. In fact, this could actually be a good way for her to talk to Emma alone if she plans it right. After all, Emma will one day be her daughter, right? She has to speak to her about the miraculous she's holding.

"Would you two mind if I come too? I think it would be easier watching three little girls with three people, rather than just two, right?" Marinette says as she looks at her friends.

Alya nodded, thinking it could be fun, and Juleka, of course was okay with it. After all, Marinette made a point. Little kids, especially at Emma's age are very active, and Marinette has more experience with babysitting than she did.

Nearby, Lila sat there listening to these girl's plans, figuring that if she could get close to Hugo's little sister, she could easily get Hugo to talk to her. After all, the sly fox still had a few tricks in mind. How hard could it be separating a little girl from those three?