Miraculous Ladybug: The New Holders

Volpina: Part Thirty-Eight

She was back. Still just as dead and rotted as before.

Alya trembled, but Eliza shook her head.

"Fear not, Alya. I have not come to hurt you." Eliza's voice was the only change from when she had appeared earlier. It sounded just as it did before she died.

"You- you won't?" Alya stuttered.

"This is simply a dream. I cannot hurt you, as I am not really here."

"Really? But you seem so real..." Alya looked down remorsefully.

Eliza reached out with one hand and lifted Alya's chin lightly. "This can be real if you want it to be, Tesorino."

Alya noticed Eliza's hand seemed brighter, more lively, more solid near Alya. "Your hand! It's..." She couldn't find the words to describe what she saw.

"Alive?" Eliza suggested. "Yes, I suppose it is." She drew her hand back slowly, and it morphed back into its bony, corpse-like structure.

"Eliza... Words can't fathom how happy I am to see you again. But how are you here? Wh- why are you here?"

"From what I've learned since I've died, I cannot ascend until all of my debts are settled in the mortal world. While I'm not all sure what I must do yet, the reason I am here, how I was able to appear for you earlier, was because I was summoned by dark magic."

"I tend to stay away from satanic rituals." Alya admitted. "But if it wasn't me, then who summoned you?"

Eliza scowled and crossed her arms. "I know exactly who did this. She's done it before, too."

"Who? And why you of all people?"

"My sister." Eliza spat the words out. "She's a manipulative liar, and was always so jealous of me because I was a superhero. So she wanted to even the odds by studying magia del diavolo." She thought for a moment. "I don't think she was trying to summon me exactly, because I doubt she even knows I'm dead. Perhaps she was trying to summon something that could inform her about me, and she accidentally just summoned me instead."

Alya still had one question burning in her mind. "But if your sister summoned you, then why come to me?"

Eliza's expression softened. "My sweet Alya, I came to you for many reasons. I feel drawn to you, I wanted to see you..." She paused and moved closer to Alya. "But I think, above all-" She leaned in closer towards Alya's face, with her own losing it's deathly touch and growing back to how beautiful she had once looked. "You make me feel alive." Eliza pressed her lips on Alya's, with Alya melting into the soft kiss.

Alya suddenly jerked awake. It was just a dream.