"Ladybug!"

Ladybug stirred from unconsciousness. Her body hurt. Who was calling her name?

"Ladybug! Please! Wake up!"

Ladybug's eyes snapped open. She tried to move, but then realized she was on her knees, chained to the ground. Ladybug realized she was transformed, although she had no memory of transforming. Looking up, she saw she was chained up across from an unconscious Volpina, and a relieved Chat Noir.

"Oh, thank goodness you're okay!" Chat Noir exhaled deeply. "Volpina won't wake up!"

"What do you mean? Where are we?" Ladybug looked around, but all she saw was that she, Chat Noir, and Volpina were trapped in some dark room.

"I don't know where we are, I don't know how we got here, and I don't know how we're gonna get out of this." Chat Noir admitted.

"Well... At least Queen Bee wasn't captured." Ladybug realized. "She might be able to help us."

Chat Noir looked like he wanted to say something, but he remained silent.

Ladybug narrowed her eyes. "What's that look supposed to mean?"

Chat Noir sighed reservedly. "I don't know if we can depend on Queen Bee to save us..."

"W-what?"

"Volpina informed me that after Miss Blogger was defeated, Queen Bee was taken by Steel Peacock." Chat spoke hesitantly. "And even if she's okay, she's still injured from her leg wound. She'd be all alone against whoever's challenging us, and I've noticed that she fights better with others. Maybe it's because she's like a bee, and fights better with a swarm..." He paused. "I don't know. Things aren't looking very good."

Ladybug thought about this silently. But then, she turned to look at Volpina again.

"Doesn't it look like Volpina has more chains than the two of us?"

"Huh?" Chat squinted, and realized she was right. Volpina had more chains on her, and a gag over her mouth as well. She was also chained up in a slightly different position, with chains around her neck pulling her head down.

"Volpina!" Ladybug yelled.

Chat sighed. "I already tried that, Ladybug."

"Volpina, please! Wake up...!" Ladybug's voice cracked.

"Ladybug... I told you, I-"

"What else should I do?" Ladybug demanded. "What can I do? I'm not just going to sit here and wait for whoever did this to decide what to do with us!"

"What's all this yelling?" A voice demanded scornfully, and then someone else somehow entered the dark room.

Chat Noir was thoroughly shocked to see a girl who wore a Volpina-like suit, except it was blood-red instead of orange. Also, the girl had different hair than the real Volpina.

"Who are you?" Chat Noir demanded. "You're not Volpina."

Ladybug looked around wildly. "Who are you talking to? Where's that voice coming from?"

"I see." The fake Volpina mused. "So only the cat and his night vision can see me." She walked around the three until she was directly behind Ladybug.

Ladybug noticed how scared Chat looked. "What's with that look, Chat? Why do you look so-"

Suddenly, the false Volpina summoned a knife and pinned the blade directly against Ladybug's throat, interrupting her words.

Ladybug froze, and the false Volpina leaned closer to her and whispered in her ear.

"Don't you recognize this knife, Ladybug?" Ladybug stiffened.

Chat Noir felt fury burning in himself, seeing this imposter touching her.

"Get your hands off of her!" Chat Noir hissed.

"Ooh, you're awfully protective of your precious little bug, aren't you?" False Volpina cooed manipulatively. "Perhaps I'll cut her tongue out." Her knife traveled lightly up Ladybug's throat, barely grazing the skin.

"Noo!! Stop it, please!" Chat Noir begged, struggling against his chains.

False Volpina used her spare hand to pry Ladybug's jaw open. "Although you are right about one thing, I am most certainly not Volpina. My name is Vixen, and I will be the one to kill Volpina."

Vixen stood up, letting go of Ladybug, who still looked terrified. "Hehe, I won't really cut off your tongue, bug. I won't risk damaging you three, I'll have my revenge as soon as the preparations are complete. And oh, will it be sweet." She shot Chat Noir a glinted smirk. "But don't you dare doubt for a second that I wouldn't have done it, Chat Noir."