Alya Cesaire was shot out of the tunnel as soon as the subway got to the next station. She was encased in Carapace's force field, but it didn't keep her from bouncing around her hitting her head against the interior. She startled what few civilians remained in the station when she flew into the opposite wall and after bouncing around and rolling across the floor for a bit, she finally came to a stop. Tattered and bruised, her nose was bleeding so much she stained her favorite shirt. She lay motionless in the forcefield, staring at the subway station lights hanging over her head with a dead gaze, questioning what was real or not.

After some time another subway came racing through, followed by some silence. A while had passed by and eventually, Carapace came crawling out from the tracks and onto the platform. His clothes were torn and he was bleeding all over. After being hit by a train, the only reason he survived was because he'd summoned his power of shield to endure such a thing. He didn't say a word as he dragged his sore body to Alya and collapsed next to her, releasing her from the force field.

Alya found the strength to get up and clasped her hands over her mouth. No one was in the station. It was just the two of them, bleeding out and too sore to get help. Carapace had closed his eyes, and blindly, he found her hand with his and held onto it.

"I-I was so scared," he croaked out, "that I didn't get y-you in the force f-f-field in time."

"Th-thank you."

"Volpina lied. Sh-she lied about everything."

"I know."

"I-I-I'm sorry th-this was how we found out y-your identity," Carapace said, his voice fading away.

"It's alright," Alya said, brushing her hands through Carapace's hair, "it's not like I didn't know yours already."

"What?" His eyes flew open and alarm.

"Shh," Alya trembled, "I've known for a while, Nino."

Carapace let out a breath, almost in relief, "for how long? H-how long have you known?"

"Since the bubbler incident. I watched you get akumatized, and then I witnessed the Bubbler reveal he was Carapace. I'm sorry I never told you."

"So that's why you were so weird around me after that. Too bad. I like being Carapace better." Carapace chuckled. He slowly pried himself away from the floor. They made eye contact in a moment that lasted forever.

"Nino Lahiffe is pretty cool too," Alya said.

"Well this is just embarrassing," Carapace said shyly. "I basically admitted I had a crush on Rena Rouge to you the other week, and all this time, you knew who I was."

"That's what you're concerned about right now?" Alya chuckled weekly.

"Well I'm embarrassed!"

"Don't be!" Alya said, scooting closer to him and pulling him into a hug. "Rena Rouge sort of maybe had a crush on Nino Lahiffe too."

"R-really?" Carapace asked in awe.

"Well, not really sorta. I like sitting with you in class. You made all my days better. It made my whole leg situation so much better. I guess Alya likes Nino too."

"What about Carapace?"

"Carapace too," Alya chuckled. They stayed in the hug for a while, melting into each other, too sore to move.

"I should get you somewhere safe," Carapace said.

"No. Take me to the kwami sanctuary. I'm not done with this fight yet."

"What? But Alya, you're a mess! It's dangerous!"

"Nino, come on," Alya said, slipping off his bracelet. Carapace transformed back into Nino, and his kwami, Wayzz, manifested behind him. "I need to go to the sanctuary."

"Are you sure?" Wayzz asked in alarm.

"I need to," Alya said. Nino stood up, hoisting her up and letting her use him as a crutch. "Can you take us?"

"Well, yes, I just hope the other kwamis won't be upset by this," Wayzz said, placing both his hands on the two. His armor, despite being so big and bulky, didn't make a sound as he moved. And his face, while stern and harsh, appeared soft, gentle, and kind. He was a man who only cared for protecting others.

The world began spinning and jerking quickly like a fast roller coaster ride filled with loops, sharp turns, sudden movements and a whole lot of spinning. Painting Alya's gaze was thousands of green shades in equal brightness to headlights of cars with the vibrancy of a lava lamp. And just as quickly as it started, all the spinning and lights stopped, placing Alya, Nino, and Wayzz in a completely new area; the kwami sanctuary.

Standing outside of the sanctuary, Alya could see it looked very traditionally Chinese. Someone, likely a kwami, must have been tending to the gardens with precision and immense care, for the flowers, grass, and trees were fruitful and abundant, even in the month of December. Alya could almost sense the power radiating from within the sanctuary that told her that something about this place was sacred.

"This is the sanctuary," Wayzz said, "home of the Chinese miracle box under the guardianship of Master Fu. Many of us have left the sanctuary now, so I don't understand what your intention here is for. If you are thinking of taking another miraculous, I'm going to have to advise against it."

"That is exactly what I'm here for, actually," Alya said, wiping blood from her mouth, "I'm going to do whatever it takes to get Trixx back."

"I appreciate your determination," Wayzz remarked as he led them through the front gardens of flowers and succulents, "however, the risk now is too high."

"Yet you took me here anyways," Alya said as she hobbled along with Nino.

"That I did," Wayzz shook his head, bemused. He stepped up on the front porch and raised his knuckles to knock on the door, but before he could, the door opened. Standing in the doorway was a white haired kwami with bright blue eyes and large rabbit ears.

"I was expecting you," she said with a small voice. "I knew you were coming because I saw it in the future, though perhaps I only saw it because I knew it would happen... but if I didn't know it would happen, would I have seen it? Or perhaps because I saw it I set it into stone."

"Don't confuse the kids, Fluff," Wayzz shook his head with exhaustion.

"Oh yes but of course! The kids!" Fluff beamed.

"That's the kwami of time?" Nino asked and Wayzz nodded. "Doesn't she have a wielder right now?"

"No, not at all!" Fluff said with a dreamstate voice, "I have a welder in the future which is also the present for me, but here I am without the wielder because it has not happened yet. But I was the one who traveled through time to choose him, so perhaps it is in my present that I have a wielder? But I made it so it would not happen for a good long while. In ten years I will have a wielder and that wielder will travel back in time to present day which will be his past despite him being from the future because the future to him is current time and future times would go beyond ten years. So really-"

"Fluff, no one understands you," Wayzz said as gently as he could to get her to shut up.

"Oh, I apologize," Fluff bowed her head in apology. She stepped aside so the three could come in. "Why are you here?"

"You already know why," Wayzz said.

"Well I do, or rather I could. I could know but perhaps only in the near future. I did look into the time burrow to foresee this, but in the burrow, time is nonexistent. I do not know from which timeline I came from when I saw this coming, and I simply do not remember all that well-"

"You're doing it again, Fluff," Wayzz said and patted her on the shoulder. Her ears twitched and she bowed her head again.

"I am sorry," she said quietly.

"It's quite alright," Wayzz said, "where are the others?"

"Out back, trying to figure out if the world is ending or not."

"Understandable," Wayzz conceded a little smile. Fluff accompanied them in guiding the three through the halls to the back of the sanctuary where they were back outside again in a large open yard filled with more gardens and grand walls to protect them. The kwamis Longg, Sass, Mullo, Stompp, Roarr, Kaalki, Xuppu, Ziggy, Orikko, Barkk, and Daizzi sat at the center near a small fountain. A seriously old, wrinkled man was sitting with them, keeping his lips tight and his eyes closed. His hands trembled with each of his movements, though he moved very little. His breath was shaky and his skin papery. That was Master Fu in the red Hawaiian shirt. 

"Good to see you again, Wayzz," Master Fu said, barely opening his eyes. As if he couldn't hold it in anymore, Wayzz suddenly burst forward and slid to his knees, hugging Fu tightly as if he hadn't seen him in centuries. Fu laughed at this and returned the hug. "I missed you too, friend."

"Oh, you look like you've aged years in the months I've been gone, what has happened?" Wayzz asked as he separated, sitting on his knees as he faced the master.

"I am human," Master Fu said, "and I no longer have your presence to lengthen my life." He began to cough, his whole body convulsing even with Wayzz holding him upright. When he recovered, Orikko spoke.

"I've been using my power to keep him as healthy as I can," Orikko said with a concerned voice.

"But my years are catching up to me, Wayzz. I'm afraid it's time I found a new guardian, before it is too late."

"Perhaps this is something we should discuss when not in the presence of two heroes," Stompp said, pulling reality back to them.

"The two heroes know each other's identity now," Sass said with a slight bitterness to his voice, "mistakes have been made that cannot be undone."

"We apologize," Alya said with a tremble in her speech out of nervousness.

"What is going on out there? Are you two alright?" Mullo asked with a motherly tone in her voice. She'd gotten off of the ground and approached the two teens. She was the shortest of the kwamis, just slightly taller than Nino. Her large mouse ears shaded her face when she perked them forward in concern, and her fat mouse tail twitched when she walked. She looked more Japanese than Chinese, in contrast to the other kwamis. She was also very, very pink.

"Lila Rossi, a girl from our class, was akumatized," Alya said, catching her breath and pretending to be confident in the presence of a kwami, "She already knew my identity prior to her akumatization. She had a plan with Hawkmoth this whole time to try and get the fox miraculous."

"So that's why Trixx is not with us," Sass's fins on his head flared upward in anger, "you lost him."

"I'm here to get him back," Alya countered. "He saved me from myself countless times. He's gotten me out of tough situations, and made me into a better version of myself than I could have ever imagined being. Trixx is not just my friend, he's like an older brother. I will get him back."

"We can't afford to send out another kwami," Sass argued, flicking a snake-like tongue out of his mouth in perturbation. "Ignoring this new knowledge that we may have permanently lost Trixx, there are too many out there. It's risky!"

"Sass, you are a kwami designed to take on risks," Orikko said sharply, "I am distraught by this information as well, but you mustn't lash out on the girl. Though, it was her responsibility to protect the miraculous."

"I know I messed it up," Alya said, taking in a deep breath, "I'm going to fix it. If not to save Trixx, then to save Paris. We're going to get your friends back. And damn it, I will lose another leg if it means Hawkmoth won't hurt another innocent life by the hand of his blind victims."

"The world is changing faster than I can keep up, and I will be honest, I've lost touch with the youth," Master Fu said, allowing Wayzz to keep him upright, "I am happy to see your compassion and fierceness."

"Master, you can't possibly be thinking this is a good idea," Sass snapped.

"I don't know what choice we could make here that would land us where we want to be. Only Fluff would know, but meddling with time is a tricky concept, and nothing is ever set in stone. We have to follow our hearts."

"My heart is telling me to never give the girl a miraculous again!" Sass hissed.

"And my heart is telling me that these two have more to offer than we've given them the opportunity to show," Master Fu said.

"Sass," Mullo sighed. She had her hand on Nino's shoulder almost protectively, "losing Trixx is another fatal blow against us. If we don't do something, we could lose more. What would happen if Plagg was lost? This is a methodical game, and we need to think clearly. However," she left Nino's side and squatted down next to Sass, flattening the fins on his head almost lovingly, "if anything goes wrong in the immediate future, we can always use your power to reset it. We'll figure out, even if it takes a while to get there. No one said this would be easy."

"Well you don't just waltz into a sanctuary and demand a new miraculous either!" Sass said, flaring up his fins again. Mullo immediately flattened them, jostling him a bit. "Trixx being a fit for her was an off chance. The likelihood of being able to pair with multiple miraculous is rare! Very few have been able to pull it off without the help of Orikko!"

"Orikko?" Alya muttered out loud.

"Those who have been paired with me in the past can give themselves the ability to pair with other miraculous," Orikko said, almost as if she were bragging, "but of course, it's even more rare to be paired with me than it is to be compatible with more than one miraculous! And dear, the two of us are far from compatible. Wear my thumb ring and you would probably burn up into a pile of ash!"

"How inviting..."

"Sadly, I don't feel a connection either," Mullo said softly, subtly stroking the fins on Sass's head, "I really wish I could help, but it just isn't possible."

"Most of our miraculous would probably get you killed if you tried to wear them," Stompp snorted.

"Hey wait," Roaar suddenly but in. She jumped to her feet. Her large dress was from the Wei and Jin dynasties which was orange-ish and purple Her face was rather devilish and ordinarily conniving, as though she always had mischievous thoughts on her mind. But right now, she looked excited or surprised.

"Don't tell me you feel a connection," Sass rolled his eyes.

"I mean, it is faint but it's there," Roaar said, skipping over to Alya to inspector her more closely. She went as far as grabbing Alya's face and tilting her head around to get a good thorough look.

"And who are you?" Alya asked while Roaar squished her cheeks uncomfortably.

"I'm Roaar, the kwami of exaltation!" Roaar said, fiddling with Alya's hair now, "I give a power called 'Clout' which gives you a super energy charged fist that-" Alya was giving her a blank stare- "it's a super punch."

"That's it?"

"I'm from the third ring, I only grant one power."

"And a demon-ish power it is at that," Sass sneered, "you know how much damage we could cause by putting the power of clout into the hands of a teenager?"

"We put the power of ruination and cataclysm in the hands of a teenager, what difference does it make?" Roaar pouted. "Besides, Trixx is my best friend, I want to do as much as I can to help. Clout isn't all that dangerous, she'll just have to get used to it first."

"You are both correct," Master Fu said sincerely. "With Rena Rouge down, we're at a serious disadvantage. Going out to search for a new person to be a hero would take too long, especially in warming them up to such a great task so quickly. Ms. Cesaire is already prepared, and knows the ins and outs of this game. If Roaar thinks she is fit to wield the tiger, then she shall be."

"But Master-" Sass tried to argue.

"Ah," Master Fu dismissed, "Roaar, are you sure about this?"

"I'm sure of it," Roaar nodded.

"Then it is so. Allow me to go and retrieve the panjas bracelet for you then. Roaar, give her some tips. I'll be back in a few minutes," Master Fu stated with assurance. Wayzz helped him to his feet and assisted him back into the house. Roaar was practically bursting with excitement.

"Oh this is great! It's been a good long while since I was out and about in the world," Roaar said gleefully.

"You almost caused an act of terrorism last time," Sass muttered.

"Shush," Roaar flicked her fingers. She returned her attention to Alya. "Alright, my jewel is a panjas bracelet. It's... a bracelet connected to five rings on your fingers, kind of gothic if you don't mind the style. Oh, and don't worry about disguising it if it isn't. I know wearing it in public as a civilian may be out of the ordinary for you, which is why many of my past heroes have simply wrapped the ring chains around their wrists to make it appear as a normal bracelet. Oh, but we don't need to fuss about that right now! I'm sure Trixx has taught you well about the miraculous?"

"He did a good job, I'd say," Alya shrugged.

"Well, whatever he taught you, you're gonna have to forget. Well... only half of it, probably," Roaar fumbled, "you see, the fox miraculous is very opposite to the tiger's. The fox is designed to keep heroes at a distance from the oponent, making them more graceful, agile, sneaky and graceful, if you will. The tiger forces you into hand to hand combat, you'll be up close and personal with your opponent. It's all about brute force and power."

"What will be my weapon? Are you a... Trixx called them yayue?"

"Yayue kwamis are musically influenced, such as Trixx, Sass, or Daizzi. I am not. I'm sorry to say, you'll have to learn to use an object you've likely never even heard of in this day and age. The bola. The bola will be attached to a long rope so you can swing with it if needed, and at the end, there's a series of balls connected by a chord. It's best used when aimed for the feet, as it is designed to wrap around whatever it is thrown at and tighten. It's good for capturing things."

"Oh... yeah I've never heard of that..."

"You'll get the hang of it," Roaar tsked.

"Roaar, are you absolutely sure about this? It's just... surprising to use that you feel a connection to a wielder of the fox. That certainly is unusual. As you said, they're opposites," Mullo said meekly.

"I'm certain of it. I'm attracted to her ambition and sturdiness. She seeks revenge, which even as a negative flaw, naturally draws our souls together. It's perfect!" Roaar declared.

"You do have a history of choosing bad wielders," Orikko reminded. "Purple Tigress? Too shy on the field, would have been much better with a miraculous that works from a distance. Laohu? Too arrogant and landed herself in a literal pit of fire for foolishly believing she could jump higher than she could. Da Mao? Sold his own children to the sanctuary to make them guardians without realizing the pain he was going to put them through, and ended up going insane. And of course, there was always Sun Master, Striped Bandit, Cat Girl, the Imperial Tiger, the-"

"I get it, I get it," Roaar waved her hand to shut Orikko up. "I can't help it. But we've seen Rena Rouge in action. We know she is talented!"

"But-"

"Sorry I took a while, the uh... key to the box was jammed.." Master Fu said as he came back into the gardens with the panjas bracelet. He handed the jewel to Roaar who held it tenderly in her hand for a moment, as if she actually were second guessing herself.

"Though of course, we can always have Sass set a time loop if something goes wrong," she muttered.

"Better hurry with it then," Sass said with annoyance. Roaar passed the bracelet to Alya who hesitantly slipped it on. Roaar shrunk down to the smaller version of herself and circled Alya's head a few times until she was sure that Alya was safe to wear it.

"That's not so bad, hmm?" Roaar said in relief, "now, the transformation phrase is 'Stripes on', just say it when you're ready.

"Ok. Roaar, stripes on!" Alya said, closing her eyes to brace for the transformation. The was consumed by pink salmon colored light, and when it was gone, she had a completely new suit completely different to the one she wore as Rena Rouge. Her arms were almost completely bare except for the bands around her biceps. Her hands wore fingerless gloves, and on her right hand, her bracelet rings hand transformed into long thick predatory claws. She assumed that would be where clout manifested. She wore a purple mask like most of the team did, not like the goggles she had as Rena. She wore a padded jumpsuit and her missing leg was restored with a gold robotic one. She had no hood, and her hair was up in a high ponytail. The bola was wrapped around her waist and formed into a tail, it was so long. She was dominately shades of purple and red, and felt almost like a completely different human being than she was as Alya, Rena Rouge, or Lady Wifi. This was a new identity.

"Who will you be?" Master Fu asked with a kind old smile.

"Tigre Rouge," she said confidently, "until I steal what was stolen from me."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Tigre Rouge," Master Fu bowed her head. She bowed back.

"You look..." Nino lost his words. "Er- should we get going then?"

"Nino, there's something the Master and I have... decided..." Wayzz said reluctantly. Nino's eyes went wide in alarm.

"No! Don't tell me you want to stay at the sanctuary! No!!!!"

"No! No! Nothing like that at all!" Wayzz nearly had a stroke, "no, it's something more... more serious than that."

"What is it?"

"Well, you see, erm..." Wayzz couldn't find the right words.

"I am old," Master Fu said gently, "186, to be exact. I'm much older than any human should ever be. I'm slowly starting to look the part, which means I will be dying soon."

"You need to be around Wayzz then, right? If we visit often-"

"No no, nothing like that. I am content with my time here. But someone needs to take my place as guardian. I wish I had planned for this, but I didn't think I'd live in Paris for so long. The time has come. I need a successor."

"... what..."

"Nino," Wayzz's voice trembled a bit. He looked like he was crying, but his tears were made of little stone marbles, "We want you to be the next guardian of the Chinese Miracle Box."

"I- what?!" Nino gasped, "no, no, I can't! I hardly know anything about the Miracle Box!" He grabbed his miraculous out of his pocket and slipped it onto his wrist.

"That is why I will be teaching you for as long as I can," Master Fu said humbly.

"I can't- I mean... maybe- er- I'll think about it! Shell on!" he said and transformed into Carapace. "Tigre Rouge and I have to go, our friends are dying. Thank you for uh... all of this. Bye-" Carapace said, grabbing Tigre Rouge by her wrist and yanking her up onto the roof where the two disappeared from the sight of the sanctuary as fast as they could.

"Nino! Why did you do that?!" Tigre Rouge demanded as soon as they rolled into one of the thousands of streets consumed by locusts.

"I don't know! It was sudden and random! It startled me! I can't do that! I have a whole career ahead of me! And Wayzz has never mentioned this, not even once!" Carapace walked back and forth anxiously, "Besides, our friends are in danger right now. They need our help. Who knows what's gone on since we left."

"You're right, but this subject isn't going to remain buried. We're talking about this later," Tigre said scornfully. "Now let's hurry back to the metro station!"

Fun fact: The original plan for this fic was for Natalie to get the tiger miraculous but it was going to cause plot holes so I rewrote my entire plan for the finale around Alya getting it instead.