Miraculous: Tales of Scarlet Beetle and Ikati Black

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"Okay, everyone! Thank you all for taking time out of your busy schedules to come here... Not that you had a choice," Adrien snickers and elicits a few giggles and eye rolls from his small audience. "Now, I'm sure some of you are terrified to be back here, and some of you may have screamed into your pillows this morning, and a lot of you probably looked into the mirrors, and told yourselves, 'No fear. No mercy.'"

"Hell yeah!" Alix hollers.

Reshma continues, "But, we can assure you, none of you have anything to worry about. Come on, we are fifteen and sixteen-year-olds. Some of us have faced Akumas, so this should be nothing!"

The DuPont students glance up at the building before them. Even after so many years away and so many growth spurts, the collége still looked so intimidating and sent shivers down their spines. Jean even gulps and tugs on the collar of their sweater. To those who went, their years at Antoine-Laurent Collége weren't exactly... The best. Hell, no one had the greatest time in middle school. Even those who didn't go to Antoine-Laurent felt their lisps and stress acne coming back.

Juleka, for example, spent many lunch hours alone due to the other kids being scared of her fascination with the morbid and strange. And she's been the target of many bullies after she came out when she was twelve. Girls treated her like the plague and boys made all sorts of crude insults.

Spinelli had a horrible lisp due to his braces, and the students did not hesitate to taunt him for it. So, he fought back. Countless times. It was a miracle he was able to get into DuPont's early learning program in the ninth grade.

For years, Marc was bullied relentlessly for his height and how lanky he was back then. He was no stranger to getting shoved in lockers, having his glasses stolen, or getting tripped in hallways. Even after he joined the soccer team in the seventh grade, there was still the locker room torment.

"Remember," Kim's voice cuts through the crowd. "They can smell fear!"

"So, no crying," Victoria adds. "If you have to, just go to the bathroom." This does nothing to settle everyone's nerves, and a few of them resort to biting their nails. "Guys, we're gonna be fine!" DJ and Gerard move a bit to the side so he can roll up to the front and address their grade. "Some of you are forgetting, we're in charge now. We're not gonna let some wannabe Plastics and little hormonal douchebags intimidate us again. We've been training for this day, getting stronger, and smarter! We know how they think!"

Lacey whoops from the back. "It's time to stop being on the receiving end!" Marcelle points to her and grins.

"I like the way you think, Greene!"

Reshma tries to settle everyone down. "Okay, everyone! I love the enthusiasm, and it's wonderful that you are all excited about confronting your fears, but remember! This is still a school. Let's try not to let these demons get under our skin." Right as she says that, a young girl with her hair done in a braid stops by her. "Oh... N-not you." She nods and continues her way into the school. "Adrien, do you want to continue?"

"Gladly. In your folders, you'll all find your occupations for today, along with which classes you'll be teaching, and your schedules." He gestures to the red folder in his hand. "If you happen to run into any problems, Reshma and I are here, or you can email Mme. Bustier, Mme. Mendeleiev, or M. Grotke. Any questions?" No one speaks up. "Great. Do your best, good luck, and may the odds be in your favor," he said the last part a little grimly, once again putting everyone on edge.

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"Listen up, you little grunts!" Lotta's voice booms through the gym. A few of the students straighten up while the rest continue to look at the group with disdain. "Just because your regular gym teacher is out today, doesn't mean you're free to laze about and try to trick us into giving you an hour and thirty minutes of free play! And if I see any, and I do mean any sort of nonsense, I will paint this gym floor with your guts!"