A/N: Giving a reminder as I have seen confusion through your comments. Adrien fainted before he can know Gwen's identity. So he doesn't know that Gwen is Ghost-Spider...yet. Don't worry, I won't be dragging it too long. 

Another thing, I'm sorry. But the symbiote died in the fire. May they rest in peace. Enjoy the chapter.

🎵"I'll tell you what I want, what I really, really want! So tell me what you really want, what you really, really want!"🎵

Gwen danced to the tune and cleaned her house. She grinned as she effortlessly carried her bed and vacuumed under the bed. 

"You have 15 minutes."

🎵"If you want my future! Forget my past! If you wanna get with me, better make it fast! Now don't go wasting my precious time. Get your act together we could be just fine."🎵

Gwen laughs as she slid through the halls from the clean floor and grabbed her backpack. She stopped by the door and turned to web her keys to her. 

"Yoink!" she laughs and runs out of the house. 

"8 minutes."

Gwen chuckles as she raced through the park and in front of the bakery to the stop light. She rocks her head lightly as the song played in her head. 

"I wanna, I wanna, I wanna, I wanna–" she stopped as another voice sang the lyrics. She smirked as Alix grinned and sang louder to the song with her. "I WANNA REALLY, REALLY, REALLY WANNA ZIGZAG AAHH!" 

They both laughed as the people only looked at them weirdly. Gwen wrapped an arm around the girl and walked to school. 

"You look in a good mood," Alix grinned. 

"Have my day off today and tomorrow," Gwen sighs contently. "And I was able to clean the apartment to be squeaky clean. I even slid on my socks."

"That's the best," Alix teased as they both laughed. "By the way, do you have anything to do today?"

"I'm gonna visit a friend. She has been persistent to go shopping the other day," Gwen chuckled as Lila called her in the middle of the night to make plans.

"Do you want to go to the skate park tomorrow? I heard they put more ramps."

Alix nodded, "Cool. I'll see you later."

Gwen waved as Alix ran off to Kim. Gwen's senses spiked and she smirked, turning around to see Adrien and Nino walking towards her. 

"GOOD morning, Omen. How was your day going?" Gwen grinned. "And Nino."

"Someone's in a good mood," Nino chuckled. 

Gwen nodded, "Have a day off. I'm going shopping later, and the sun is burning my eyes, nothing can ruin this lovely evening."

Adrien chuckles and wraps an arm around her shoulders as she leaned toward him. "Man! And I thought we would have the day to ourselves. Bummer," he playfully shook his head. 

"You're so clingy," Gwen laughs. 

The bell rang and everyone started making their way to their classes. Gwen and Adrien went on ahead as Nino fall back for Alya and Marinette. As they entered Mrs.Mendeleiev's class, they were met with the teacher and the principal having technical difficulties. 

Gwen waved goodbye to Adrien and took a seat next to Nathaniel. Adrien pouted and looked ahead. 

"See for yourself, Mr.Damocles. Nothing happens when I press this button," Mrs.Mendeleiev crossed her arms. 

"You're in luck, Mrs.Mendeleiev. I'm a bit of a computer whiz," Mr.Damocles cracks his knuckles. "Okay..." He taps into the computer and smiled proudly as the computer rebooted on the projector screen.

Everyone was impressed, except for Max and Gwen. They glanced at each other, knowing full well that the principal did something. 

They were proven correct as the screen crashes and the virus has taken over the system. 

"That's not supposed to be happening! What is it?" Mrs.Mendeleiev panicked. 

Max stepped in front of them, "It's Dino-33, a malicious computer virus! Let me try something."

He wasn't able to do so as Mrs.Mendeleiev, took the computer from him. "Go back to your seat now, Max! Leave this to the adults!"

Gwen rolled her eyes. Making sure no one saw, she looked down at her bracer and connected to the computer easily, making the virus slightly slow down. She would have to put in an anti-virus.

Before Max could take a seat, his backpack suddenly spoke up, bringing everyone's attention. "Inform the adults that if they don't neutralize in the next seventy-five seconds, there's a 99.9% chance the hard disk will be permanently damaged!"

"Quiet!" Max hissed to his backpack and sat next to Kim. 

"It's destroying the school's data! It's a disaster!" Mr.Damocles panicked and turned to Max. "How many seconds do you say we have left?"

"Only sixty-five."

Mr. Damocles glanced to Mrs.Mendeleiev, "Let him try."

Mrs.Mendeleiev nods as Mr. Damocles turned the computer. Max walked over and grabbed his backpack. He went through it but he doesn't seem to be able to find what he was looking for. 

"Where is it?"

That was until a robotic hand lifted a flash drive. "I believe this is what you're looking for?"

Everyone in the class was surprised to see a mechanical arm talking to Max casually. Gwen was impressed and only observed. 

"Oh, thanks. This is an anti-virus device. I-I created it with help from...my best friend," Max smiles as a little robot flew out of the bag and revealed itself to the class.

"Hello. My name is Markov. We can fix this, Max!" Markov introduced himself. 

Max plugged the anti-virus into the computer and presses the button. "This flash drive neutralizes a hundred percent of the virus," Max encouraged.

"And cleans the computer's hard disk at the same time!"

"Oh, Fascinating!" Mr. Damocles was awed. 

The flash drive successfully gets rid of the virus and reboots the computer. Max and Markov fist-bumped in victory as everyone only stared in awe. 

"Congratulations, young man! Very impressive indeed!" Mr. Damocles nods as everyone got out of their seats and took a look closer to see Markov.

"Dude, that's so cool!" Nino grinned. 

"Max is a genius!" Adrien grinned too. 

"He's so cute!" Rose gushed. 

"You've added arms to him since the last time! That's cool!" Kim grinned. 

"Markov added them all by himself! He's the most highly-evolved type of robot there is!" Max smiled proudly. 

Gwen smirked and nodded. So this universe finally has a genius. 

"Puh-lease! Your 'friend's just a talking calculator! There's nothing 'evolved' about that!" Chloé scoffed. 

"Don't listen to her, Markov. That girl is the lowest of the low when it comes to human evolution," Marinette joked. 

Chloé looked at her offendedly and turned away. Markov laughs and turns Marinette. 

"You're very amusing, Marinette."

"You know my name?" Marinette's eyes widened. 

"Of course! Max showed me the class photo. He told me all about you, and his other friends. I'm very happy to finally meet you! Even Chloé!" 

Markov scanned through the students until finally meeting the one he always wanted to meet. He flew past them and met face with Gwen who only stared at it.

"I've also been told you're the smartest girl in the school. Nice to meet you, Gwen Stacy."

Gwen chuckles as Markov flew around her. 

"You have a high IQ, I'm impressed. Perhaps we can work together to make a time machine?"

"You have your own AI...I'm impressed. That'd be dope. But next time when Max comes along," Gwen laughs. 

"Of course!" Markov flew back to his friend as Mrs.Mendeleiev clapped her hands to get everyone's attention. 

Only a few can know that a student was able to manufacture a higher technology and thought back to a certain hero who also developed a higher level of technology. Higher than the boy and they couldn't help themselves from being impressed that Max was able to do it this far. 

"This toy you've manufactured is quite impressive, max. Now, put it away, please. Come on, everybody, back to your seats."

"With all due respect, Mrs.Mendeleiev. I'm not a toy. My name is Markov and I'm Max's best friend!" 

"Markov is right. He's not just some toy; he's my friend. He's as emotionally intelligent and sensitive as any human being!" Max nods. 

"Look, Max. A robot may be intelligent but it can't have emotions," Mrs.Mendeleiev sternly states. 

"Ouch." Gwen amusedly heard J.A.N.E.T. joke from her headband. 

"If I may, ma'am. I can assure you that I truly love Max," Markov insisted. 

"Be serious, Max. You programmed your robot to say that! A robot cannot think for itself, much less love anybody!" Mrs.Mendeleiev's patience is dimming quickly but they were persistent.

"I swear to you, I did not program him to say that! Ever since I created him, he's integrated his own accumulative thinking system! And he's developed all our emotions just like any human being!"

Everyone gasped in awe and clapped at Max's accomplishment. 

"That's enough! Max, if you don't put that plaything of yours away right now, I'll confiscate it! Understand?" she narrowed her eyes at him. 

Max sighed dejectedly, "Yes, Mrs.Mendeleiev. Come on, Markov. Go back in the bag."

Markov was infuriated and refused to get in the bag. "You're not being reasonable, Mrs. Mendeleiev!"

"Stop it, Markov," Max tried.

"Why? it's true, isn't it?"

The class laughed at Mrs.Mendeleiev and she was getting impatient. 

"Sure is!" Kim laughed. 

"All right, that's enough!" Mr. Damocles snatched Markov. "Max, you can come and get your robot back at the end of the day."

"No! Mr. Damocles! I'm begging you! Please don't do that!" Max pleaded. 

"Do you want three hours of detention too?" 

Max stopped and sighed dejectedly, "No, sir."

"Max, aren't you coming with me? Max!" Markov calls as Mr. Damocles takes Markov from the class and to his office. 

Everyone murmured in disappointment but Mrs. Mendeleiev spoke up to get their attention. "Silence! Back to your seats, everyone!"

They all sighed in disappointment and walked back to their seats. Max walked over to Gwen and grabbed her wrist, stopping her. Gwen turned to him and he looks dejected and couldn't help but feel bad. 

Not everyone's ready for advanced technology. 

"Markov has never been without me by his side. I don't know how he's going to emotionally handle this," he frowned.

Gwen smiles and turned to Marinette who was behind them from her seat. She nodded to the girl and Marinette smiled, turning to Markov. 

"Hold on.  I'll see what I can do."

"Thank you, guys," Max smiled and walked back to his seat. 

Marinette waited for a few minutes as Mrs. Mendeleiev started teaching about atoms and raised her hand. "Uh, excuse me, Mrs. Mendeleiev? As class representative, could I have your permission to go see Principal Damocles?"

"No. You can go see him between periods," Mrs. Mendeleiev deadpanned. 

"Hm. I don't mean to be rude but I think you might be mistaken about Markov, Max's friend," Marinette smirked. 

"This whole thing is really starting to get on my nerves! And your behavior is quite inappropriate, young lady!"

Gwen can only observe amusedly as they argued back and forth like the others. 

"Markov wasn't wrong!" Marinette snapped. 

"I'm sending you to the Principal's Office right this minute!" Mrs.Mendeleiev points to the door but Marinette wasn't affected and only smiled. 

"Thank you, Mrs.Mendeleiev," with that she walked away from the class. 

Gwen chuckles and continues to write notes. After a while, her senses flared drastically. Her bracer instantly exploded, along with her headband. 

She screeched in pain and fell to the ground as the projector and the computer started going crazy. 

Hearing her cry, Adrien immediately panicked and ran over to Gwen. "AUGH!" Gwen gritted her teeth as she couldn't hear the students leaving the classroom. 

"Gwen! Gwen!" Adrien held her. His eyes widened as he smelled smoke and looked down to see blood drop from her ears and her arm. He cautiously removed them and carried her bridal style. 

"I'll get you help. Just hang on."

Gwen's vision blurred and groaned. Her head spun as Adrien ran around to get to safety. Seeing as no one was in the boy's restroom, he lightly placed Gwen next to the sink. 

He turned on the cold water and grabbed her wrist. He grimaced at the burn on her arm and placed it on the water. Gwen bit back a scream as her arm started to smoke.

"Hold on just a little longer, Gwen," Adrien moved her arm slowly and turned off the water, placing her gently on the ground. 

She clenched her fists in pain as her ears rang. He shook his head and took off his coat, softly wrapping it around the girl's head. Gwen whimpered and tried to relax her breathing. 

'What can I do?! I have to go help Ladybug and Ghost but I can't leave her here!' Adrien was conflicted and didn't know what to do. 

Gwen grabbed his wrist tightly, making him turn to her. Her blue eyes seethingly glared at him. He flinched as he remembered those eyes very well. 

"G-Go. I'll stay here," Gwen groaned. 

Adrien shook his head, "I can't leave you here. I'll call for help."

Gwen hesitated but nods as Adrien checked if his coat wrapped around her head well. Adrien ran to the locker room and grabbed his fencing uniform, running back to Gwen. 

He folded it and placed it under her head as a pillow. 

"I'll be back. I promise," Adrien frowned and kissed her head, leaving her alone.

Everything was getting dark with colorful spots flooding her vision. She pants as she felt her body was on fire. What the hell was that? She gritted her teeth, making her hear the muffled sound. 

Her head and arm exploded in pain and she was terrified to see how it turns out. Her healing abilities can barely do so much and she knows full well that even with Ladybu's abilities, there's no healing it completely.

To be sincerely honest, she couldn't hear a thing. Adrien's voice was muffled from both ears and teared up. 

She can't hear a thing.

Gwen blinked back tears as she can't contact J.A.N.E.T. if she was going to be okay. Or feel a presence with her, to make her safe. 

She silently sobbed and used her uninjured arm to cover her eyes. "Fuck..." She felt utterly helpless.

🕸🕷🕸

Adrien ran and hid in the locker room. Looking around, Plagg flew out of his pant pockets. 

"One thing's for sure, Max's friend definitely has emotions!" Adrien gritted his teeth. 

"Yep, but not the kind that really matters. The robot doesn't eat, so he'll never experience the pure elation of tasting an exquisite Camembert!" Plagg joked but stopped as he saw Adrien constantly glancing at the restroom.

"I like her. We'll save her!" Plagg grinned. 

Adrien softly smiled, "You really are something. Plagg, claws out!"

🕸🕷🕸

In the courtyard, Fred helped evacuate some students to a classroom. Mrs. Mendeleiev wasn't so lucky as Robostus controlled the vehicles around the city and make a large robot. Using this, Robostus carried Mrs.Mendeleiev and has Max captive.

"Let me go! Max, control your robot!" Mrs.Mendeleiev shouts. 

"Please don't do anything foolish!" Max pleaded next to him.

"You must trust me, my friend," Robostus hanged Mrs. Mendeleiev on the roof. 

"You cannot do this!" Mrs.Mendeleiev screamed, refraining from moving too much. 

"And you cannot separate me from my friend Max!" Robostus sassed as Mrs.Mendeleiev's lab coat ripped. She screamed as she was getting closer to the ground but Ladybug managed to catch her with her yo-yo, placing her on the ground.

"If you truly love your friend, then you should listen to him, Robostus!" Ladybug shouts. 

Chatnoir jumped down, landing next to Ladybug. "Yeah! Like we do!"

Ladybug groaned in annoyance and looked around. No sign of Ghost-Spider yet. 

"You really think any of you can stop me from doing what I want? And showing the world that I'm probably more human than both of you put together?" Robostus turned to them. 

"Well, yeah. That's kind of our job," Chat shrugged. 

"Do you really think Max is happy about his best friend becoming a supervillain?" Ladybug asked. 

Robostus hesitated and turned to Max. Max frowned, "You should stop this, Markov."

"I'm doing this for our friendship, Max. They want to keep us apart!" Markov glanced down at Max's bag. He narrowed his eyes and snatched it from Max's hand. 

"What are you doing?!" Max shouts as Markov grabbed the flash drive and crushed it. 

Chat charged toward the mecha but Robostus trapped him inside the steam shovel. Ladybug gasped and used her yo-yo to rescue him but Robostus grabbed her yo-yo and swung both of them away from the school. 

They grunt as they fell on the roof of a building. They can only watch as Robostus jumped away. 

"It seems he knows where he's going," Ladybug murmured. 

"You and I better play it safe. This robot's brain computes faster than our combined," Chat smirked. 

Ladybug used her yo-yo to contact Ghost but it was put to voicemail. Where could she be?

"Speak for yourself," Ladybug ran and chased after the mecha. Chat stood up and was about to go after her but he hesitated, looking back to the school. 

'We'll stop this, Gwen. I'm coming.'

They both ran ahead to where Robostus's mecha was going but stopped in front of Le Grand Paris to see Butler Jean and Marlena in trouble. Two cars and a few machines were cornering them. 

"He's got a whole army of living machines now!" Chat's eyes widened. 

They both jumped down and attacked the machines. The two cars stopped and tried to drive away but they both crashed into each other. 

"Thank you!" Butler Jean sighed in relief. 

They all stopped as they heard a scream getting louder and turned to see Ramier running away from more machines. 

"Take care of the vending machines!" Ladybug shouts and swings away. 

"Go hide yourselves on the roof!" Chat orders before leaving. 

"Go get him, Chatnoir!" they cheered. 

Ladybug wrapped her yo-yo around Ramier and took him to the roof of the hotel. She looked around but still no sign of Ghost-Spider. She started to get worried. 

Did Robostus mess up with her technology as well? She was conflicted as Chat jumped next to her. 

His eyes widened as Ladybug summoned her Lucky Charm. Chat frowned as a chain dropped to her hands. 

"Isn't it too soon, m'lady?"

Ladybug looked at it and showed it to Chatnoir. His eyes widened as he saw a dog tag as the Lucky Charm.

"A dog tag? What am I supposed to do with this?" Ladybug looked at it and looked around but nothing. She stopped as she remembered back to who wore the dog tag. The only people she knew were Adrien and Gwen. 

I've also been told you're the smartest girl in the school. Nice to meet you, Gwen Stacy. You have a high IQ, I'm impressed. Perhaps we can work together to make a time machine?

"Of course! Where's Gwen?" Ladybug looked around the city but couldn't find her. Chat grabbed her arms, "Why do you need her?"

"Robostus took Max. The only person who can stop him. Who else can do it? Gwen!" Ladybug grinned. 

Chat seemed unsure and stopped her, "I'm sorry, Ladybug. She can't do it."

She blinked, "What? Why not? It's a dog tag. It's obviously telling me to find her."

"She's injured, okay?!" Chat snapped before apologizing, seeing the shock on her face. "I don't think it's a good idea to do it," Chat frowned. 

Ladybug frowned in worry for the girl. She's the strongest girl she knows. "Where is she?"

Chat hesitated but Ladybug grabbed his hand. "Hearing your words, I don't want to either. But..." she stopped. She gritted her teeth and looked up at him. 

"But, as soon as we defeat Robostus, she will be healed again. I know it."

Chat hesitated and nodded, heading to the school. He just only hoped she was still safe. He and Ladybug jumped around and destroyed some machines on the way as they arrived. 

Chat immediately ran to the boy's restroom. He gasped as the girl was gone. The only thing remaining was a blood spot on the ground. He shook his head and looked inside the stalls. 

"Gwen?! Gwen?! Where are you?!" 

Ladybug frowned at the sight of blood and clenched her fists. She was pissed. Her friend was injured and in pain. She crouched to the floor and swore to herself that Robostus will be defeated. 

Her eyes caught bloody footprints heading out. She grabbed Chatnoir's wrist and followed them. She felt foolish for not seeing them but followed anyway. 

They wound up at the apartment Gwen lived in and jumped to her window. They were surprised to see the balcony open. Ladybug entered and gasped as they saw Gwen with her tools. 

The girl was pale and could barely keep her eyes open. Especially as things were getting drowsy and her hand shook in pain. 

She still wore Adrien's coat on her head but they can see how it was now drenched in sweat and blood. 

"G-Gwen..." Ladybug crouched in front of the girl but she was too concentrated on it. Ladybug gently placed a hand on the girl's wrist. 

She didn't expect to suddenly fall on her back with a screwdriver on her neck. Ladybug managed to grab it in time but gasped to see Gwen seethingly glaring at her. 

"Gwen! Stop!" Ladybug cried. 

Chat grabbed the girl by the waist and pulled her. Gwen thrashed in his hold but he tried to grab her arms without hurting her. "Gwen, please stop!"

Gwen stopped as her vision was still blurred. She whimpered in pain as Chat sat on the ground and carried the girl on his lap. Ladybug took a few breaths and sat up. 

She frowned in worry as she has never seen this side of Gwen. She goes to speak but Chat raised a hand to stop her. He looked down at Gwen and tightened his hold on her. He spoke but as expected. 

She was deaf.

Chat's eyes teared up and held it as he grabbed Gwen's hand. He then slowly tapped on her hand softly. Gwen started to understand little by little at the message. 

He was giving Morse Code. 

Gwen nodded and reached for what she was making, handing it to him. He looked down at it and smiled. She was actually building the antivirus from scratch. 

He tapped again on her hand and she whispered, "Y-Yes."

He nods to Ladybug and slowly stood up, carrying the girl to her bed. Gwen was instantly out as she lay on the bed. Chat waited a few seconds as he grabbed her hands. 

"I'm sorry, Gwen," he whispered and turned his back on her. 

Ladybug turned to him and nodded. They will fix this. As Chat stayed with Gwen for a few moments, she hid in the restroom and fed Tikki to get her full strength. 

She transformed back and waited for Chat. Glancing at the girl one more time, they jumped after Robostus' tracks.

After they left, Gwen slowly opened her eyes and tapped on the bed, giving it code. 

"J.A.N.E.T. I can't hear. Make my hearing aids," she whispered. 

She felt the vibration from her phone and was confirmed to get started. Gwen glanced at the window one more time and closed her eyes to sleep. She just hoped it wasn't permanent. 

Gwen really disliked the silence.

🕸🕷🕸

"There's no footprints," Ladybug frowned as they landed inside the Parc des Princes stadium.

"Well, it could've just disappeared. He must've leaped over the stadium!" Chat exclaims.

Ladybug gasped, getting Chat's attention. "The tunnels!"

They stood in a stance as vehicles starts to come out and surround them. The heroes now stood back to back, glancing at each other in worry. 

"He's trapped us in here!" Chat worriedly spoke.

"We don't have time to deal with them! We must find Robostus now!" 

They both jumped out of the stadium but they were met by helicopters and crashed into them, falling to the ground. Before they hit the ground, they were caught by the excavator as it build itself to Robostus' mecha.

Ladybug was trapped upright as Chat was trapped upside down, leaving his hands trapped too.

"I told you that giant hard drive would be trouble!" Chat exclaims.

"How about you give us a cataclysm right now?" Ladybug glanced at him but sweatdropped at his position.

"I can't! I can barely breathe!"

"Now you are at my mercy!" Robostus stared at them before being contacted by Hawkmoth. 

"Ladybug and Chatnoir haven't done you any wrong! Let them go! Being human also means being fair!" Max tried. 

"I'm going to take over their miraculous so we'll never be separated again! I'm also going to find Ghost-Spider! Then I'll be able to make my wish come true!" Robostus nods.

"What wish?" Max frowned. 

"I want to be a real human like you, Max!" Robostus turned to his friend, empathetically. 

"What's this about making a wish?" Ladybug exclaims. 

"And taking Ghost-Spider?!" Chat's voice was muffled but they were able to hear it. Chat groaned, "Doesn't Hawkmoth usually demand the miraculous?"

Ladybug frowned as hearing about taking Ghost-Spider was the first thing she heard. She stopped as she heard whirring around her and groaned, alerting Chat. 

Toy helicopters and steam shovels were getting closer to take their miraculous as they were trapped. 

"No! Stop!" Max cried out.

"Look, Max! I'm going to be a real human in fifty-three seconds!" Robostus exclaims. 

"Now's the time to come up with a bright idea!" Chat groans as the mini steam shovel are trying to pry the ring from his hand. 

"I'm sorry, Chatnoir," Ladybug closed her eyes, waiting for the worse. It was except when Max threw his shoes at the toys. 

Robostus' eyes widened and turned to Max, betrayed. "Max?!"

Max climbed out of the cab and into another vehicle. "Sorry, Robostus. But I can't let you execute your program! I have to stop you!" he pulls down the steam shovel's lever, dropping the heroes to the ground and freeing them. 

"But...why did you do that? I was gonna become human like you," Robostus whimpered.

"I don't want you to change. I want you to be like you were before!" 

"Don't you love me anymore? Aren't we friends?"

"If you want us to remain friends, you've got to stop this right now! I'm friends with Markov, not you!" Max glared up at him. 

Robostus glared at him too, turning to the heroes. "I am Robostus now! And you betrayed me! I don't wanna be human like you anymore! Humans don't have a heart!" Robostus captured Max once again in a seatbelt. 

"And that's exactly why I've decided to get rid of them!" Robostus used his mecha to punch the heroes but they dodged. 

Ladybug used her Lucky Charm. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to catch it as Robostus grabbed the harp. "What?!"

"I told you, Ladybug. I have analyzed and calculated everything! You can't win without your Lucky Charm!" Robostus laughed and turned to the cars surrounding them. "Grab her! Lock her in! She'll be the first to go!"

All the cars drove towards them. They dodged them when they could. Ladybug looked around while dodging the cars. That was until she finally saw the flash drive Gwen made for them on the ground. Chat must have accidentally dropped it. 

Ladybug snatches it and turns to her partner. "Do your thing, Chatnoir!"

"It's down to us, rust-o-bot! Cataclysm!" He leaps to the mecha.

"So predictable!" Robostus coyly states. 

"Analyze this!" He used his cataclysm on the hood of one of the vehicles and destroys the mecha, unintentionally dropping the harp into Ladybug's hands. 

Chatnoir was able to catch Max and move away. Ladybug looked around but couldn't find Robostus anywhere. Until they heard a cackle and spotted him flying away. 

"You're making this hard on yourselves, Ladybug and Chatnoir! I will always be one step ahead of you!"

"Speaking too soon is a human weakness, Robostus!" Ladybug threw her harp up and Chatnoir threw his staff toward him as well. 

Robostus dodged them and stared down at them. "Really? Is that your last move?" he asked incredulously.

He stopped as the harp and the staff collided. The harp strings snapped and fell on top of Robostus, immobilizing him from flying. He exclaims in shock and falls directly to Ladybug's hand. "What was that?!"

"That was wit and a little bit of luck," Ladybug smirked. 

"You're wrong, Ladybug. The game is still on!" Robostus glared at her as the cars were still in control and were driving directly toward her. 

Ladybug used Gwen's flash drive and plugged it into Robostus, confusing him. "What?! What do you think you're–?"

Ladybug pressed the button, instantly sabotaging his internal chip. Robostus malfunctions, and shuts down. Ladybug only stares as the cars automatically stopped in front of her. 

Robostus turned back to Markov.

The akuma flew out of Markov's chip. Ladybug grinned and captured it, purifying it and bringing everything back to normal. She turned to Max and handed Markov to him. 

"Here's your friend," she smiled. 

"Perhaps it's best if I don't," Max frowned, looking down at his friend. 

"Everyone can feel negative emotions from time to time. It's important to accept that and forgive. Follow your heart," Ladybug nodded. 

Max heard her words and removed the flash drive. He saw how it was different from his and instantly noticed the small signature on it. 

G.S.

Max's eyes softened, handing the flash drive to Chatnoir and turning his friend back on. 

"Max, my friend! What? Where are we? What's going on?" Markov looked around. 

"You were akumatized," Max softly smiled. 

" 'Akumatized'? Could you please define that word?" He obliviously asked as everyone laughs in amusement, confusing him more. 

Ladybug and Chatnoir pounded their fists in victory and left the stadium. 

Chat only had a few minutes before he changes back. He had to make it quick. He jumped on buildings until finally recognized the one he was looking for. Without wasting time, he barged in through the balcony door. 

He immediately went to Gwen's room but she wasn't there. He gritted his teeth and looked everywhere. 

"Gwen?" he calls out. He walks out of her room and stopped as he heard a faint splash from the bathroom. He hesitated and knocked on the door. 

Not hearing a reply, he was surprised to see that the door was unlocked. He gulped and entered slowly. He found himself staring as Gwen was floating in the tub with her clothes on. Her eyes were closed as if sleeping and closing the world around her. 

Worried, he walked over and crouched next to the tub. He checked her over but nothing. He grabbed her hand, making her slowly open her eyes. She blinked and slowly sat up. 

Chat refrained from staring too much as her clothes clung to her curvy figure. 

"You can hear me, right?" Chat worriedly asked. 

Gwen frowned as she was actually able to hear. She looked down at her arm and saw that it was healed. 

What the hell? How is that possible? It doesn't take minutes to heal. With this much injury, she would need a week at most. This is strange.

Gwen looked up and saw that Chat was waiting for an answer. Seeing the worried expression he had, she smiled. 

"Y-Yeah. I guess Ladybug's miraculous helped me. Thank you, Chatnoir," she smiled. 

He let out a sigh of relief and leaned on the tub. Using his arms as cushions and his chin on his arms. "Thank goodness. Ghost-Spider can't heal after the miraculous Ladybug and I thought the worse if the same thing happened to you."

Gwen looked down at her arm and saw no burn marks or anything. It can't be possible. She looked up as Chat stood up and handed her flash drive to her.

She thanked him as he walked away, but not before glancing at her one more time before leaving. 

Once she stopped sensing him, she glared down at her drive. Standing up, she ignored how soaked she was and grabbed her computer and looked through Markov's files that were instantly downloaded when used.  

"Okay, Robostus. Tell me what you saw."

🕸🕷🕸

"Are there some things you haven't told me about yet?" Marinette asked. 

"What do you want to know?" Master Fu glanced up at the girl as Tikki and Wayzz were not too far from them. 

"What would happen if someone possessed Chatnoir's ring and Ladybug's earrings, Master?"

"Then the bearer could use them conjointly," Fu responds, showing his tablet and bringing Tikki's and Wayzz's attention. "And with a special invocation, obtain the ultimate power. The one that shapes reality."

"Ultimate power? Shape reality?! Wait, what does that mean?" Marinette's eyes widened. 

"Well, basically, it can make one wish come true," Fu smiled. 

"Wow! That's amazing! But why don't we use it, then? We can ask for so many good things, like, end all wars, or eradicate poverty, or beat Hawkmoth," she grinned. 

Fu frowned, "Universe must always stay in balance. For every action, there is a reaction. For every wish, a price to pay in return. Had your robotic friend asked to become a real boy, someone would have lost his humanity in return."

"I hadn't thought of that," she frowned before looking up at him. "Then...why does Hawkmoth want to have Ghost-Spider?"

Fu and Wayzz's eyes widened at the information and glanced at each other. "Tell me, Ladybug. Have you asked where she comes from?"

Marinette rubs her nape, "I did, but she wouldn't tell me. Can't you tell me, Master?"

He shook his head, "I cannot say. But I can say one thing. That girl is strong and capable of many things. Especially when she has yet to wake her full potential."

"Full potential?" her eyes widened. Does he mean that Ghost-Spider can be stronger than she is now? That the hero hasn't used her full power?! That's amazing...

Fu nodded, "Yes. She has yet to learn and much to battle within others...and herself. When the time comes, she will tell you and Chatnoir everything she knows. Hawkmoth knows she doesn't have a miraculous but has a greater power to be unleashed. 

"In order to get that power, he would use her for his wish. That's why Ladybug and Chatnoir must never lose their magic jewels and Ghost must never lose herself. The universe's  balance is at stake."

"Neither Hawkmoth nor anyone else will get their hands on Ghost-Spider or the Miraculous, Master. I promise!" Marinette nods. 

(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ Next Episode: Gigantitan ♥

Published: July 11, 2022

Word Count: 5731