#..technically this was to me rather than adri and adri was never mentioned but adri is me so it still counts

[moved-to-void-kissed]

SO BUSY I ALMOST FORGOT. BUT IT'S BEFORE MIDNIGHT SO IT STILL COUNTS RIGHT AHAHAHAAH

Like a very cool dude once said "a wizard is never late"

AAAAH OF COURSE IT COUNTS FRIEND DO NOT WORRY

This is just so so sweet, the way that you formatted it and everything is just so really lovely ;w; thank you so so much!!!

The detail of "these last few years by your side" was very precious to me, because of the fact that I first found out about selfshipping as an established concept while I was playing through Pokémon Reborn for the first time myself (having found out about it through a playthrough I was watching a few months prior). So, Luna as a character will always hold a special place in my heart because of that when it comes to being here as a selfshipper. So, thank you for that detail, it meant a lot to me ^-^

And this whole letter means a lot to me as well!!! It's just really really cute and it really feels like something from Luna herself, so thank you so much again for this, friend - I really, truly appreciate it~

[miraculous-mari-netta]

Salt AGAIN

Adrien actually does things in this one, believe it or not.

“Sir” Nathalie entered Gabriel’s office, placing a tabloid magazine on his desk. “Adrien’s made quite a story.”

Gabriel picked up the magazine and looked at the cover.

“Marinette Dupain Cheng is truly making herself known” Gabriel frowned, and began flipping through the magazine.

“You know this will upset Lila Rossi.” Nathalie pointed out. “Perhaps this jealousy could push her to continue protecting Adrien.”

“You’re right, Nathalie. Miss Dupain Cheng could be an asset.”

“H-hi Adrien!” Marinette smiled, approaching the model. “I can’t believe your dad let me join you on set for these new ads!”

“Yeah me either! He usually only lets Lila in...” he looked back at Lila, who was chatting with the photographer. “And she’s not as... professional as you are.”

“Wow, thanks Madrien— I mean, Adrien!” She laughed awkwardly, taking a seat next to the model.

“So... your dad just wants me to keep things running smoothly, right?”

“Yeah, but he also said you should study some of the designs I’m modeling today. He still has a few slots open for the next clothing line. It’s being released in a few months, and he wanted some ‘fresher’ pieces for the younger fans.” Adrien explained.

“Really?! This is amazing!” Marinette stood up, practically yelling to all of Paris, “I mean, tell your dad I say thank you!” She smiled before heading over to help set up the makeup station.

“Adrien!” Lila called as she walked towards him. “I saw Marinette is here. Is she like, interning for your dad?”

“Yeah, she’s his newest designer.” Adrien said, knowing it would upset her. “He personally requested her. Her designs are so impressive.”

Lila looked visibly upset by this, which only made Adrien’s white lie all the more satisfying. I mean, Marinette wasn’t technically a designer yet, but she probably would be. At least he hoped.

“All ready!” The Italian photographer announced, practically pushing the teen models out of their seats. “Up, up! Get excited! Mr. Gabriel needs passion! He needs magic!”

The photographer positioned Lila and Adrien next to each other, sitting them back to back. They sat on the edge of the fountain with the water splashing around them. It was the perfect picture.

Marinette watched the two, and began putting away makeup palletes. She sighed, but continued her work and studied the designs despite her sadness.

“Hmm....” the photographer scratched his chin, staring at the models. “Something’s missing...”

“Should I sit closer to Adrien?” Lila asked, leaning towards the model. “Our chemistry is great.” She giggled.

“That’s the problem!” The photographer snapped his fingers and put his camera down. “The boy’s posture is wonky.”

“I’m sitting normally.” Adrien said, slowly attempting to scoot away from Lila.

“How long have you known this girl?” The photographer asked, pointing at Lila.

“A few months?”

“And that one?” The photographer pointed to Marinette, who was sorting through a box of Gabriel products.

“She was one of my first friends. Maybe about a year?” Adrien shrugged.

“Perfecto!”

The photographer whisked Lila away and practically flew to Marinette.

“You! What’s your name miss?” He asked, already whipping out makeup.

“Me? I’m not a model— I’m just here to study the Gabriel Agreste pieces.”

“Name!” The photographer yelled, taking out her hair ribbons.

“M-Marinette.” She answered. “Wait, am I going to model with Adri—“

“Go change in the booth! Wear this.” He shoved a pair of jeans and a Gabriel brand blouse into her arms. “Quickly!”

Marinette didn’t have time to argue as she was pushed into the changing booth. She put on the clothes, careful to not mess up her makeup. She looked into the large mirror on the wall, and was shocked by how professional she looked.

She stepped outside and was seated next to Adrien on the fountain edge. She could see Lila trying to beg the photographer out of the corner of her eye, but her attention was quickly taken to Adrien.

“Marinette, thank you for doing this.” He smiled, turning to her. “I’d much rather model with you. You’re one of my closest friends.”

“I— uh... yeah! I’ve never modeled before though, so...sorry if I mess up.” She blushed, but looked away after she realized how out of place she felt.

“Don’t worry. I’ll give you all the tips.” Adrien patted her shoulder reassuringly. “And your hair looks really good down!”

She practically fainted.

Meanwhile, Lila Rossi was busy fighting every possible person on set. She wanted that spot back. She needed it.

“Please, Mr. Gabriel asked for me to be the model. Marinette doesn’t have any experience!” Lila explained, even putting on a bit of an Italian accent to win over the photographer.

“Did...did she just put on an accent?” Marinette whispered to Adrien.

The two of them laughed, almost falling into the fountain. This only upset Lila further.

“I don’t think Mr. Agreste will be happy when he sees I’m not in his recent photo shoot.”

“I don’t think he’ll be happy if his photos turn out like the garbage ones you were in last week.” He retorted. “Adrien’s uncomfortable in the photos with you— his back gets all weird...”

“That’s not true. He’s probably just tired. Plus, he’s not used to having a partner.” She emphasized the last word, leaning in to make sure he understood.

“Yes, but those two—“ he gestured at Adrien and Marinette, “they work together. They are like Ladybug and Chat Noir— a good team!”

Lila burned at the mention of the superhero, and stormed off the set. But she couldn’t escape the change. Gradually, Marinette did more modeling with Adrien and eventually became a designer. The two clearly had chemistry, and all magazines ate it up. The fact that they weren’t dating just made it more interesting for the fans. The Gabriel brand became more popular, which inspired him to keep Marinette on his design team rather than simply using her against Lila Rossi.

And it was true—

Adrien and Marinette are a good team.

[princessselene126]

Human

I DID IT. I promised it, and I did it and I’m actually proud of how it turned out. I needed this yall. This fic could technically take place before Wedding of the Era, but I’m too lazy to go back, link and re-number chapters in order to put this in there. It could also just be read as a stand alone. 3339 words Kaider angst where he realizes just how shitty Adri was to Cinder. Warnings: mentions of past emotional abuse and neglect.

masterlist

Cinder took a deep breath of humid air as she stepped out onto the balcony attached to Kai’s suite. The view was exquisite. She could perfectly see the city below, buildings upon buildings cramped together. There was something so beautiful about the chaos of New Beijing.

But it was strange, Cinder thought, that she now lived in the palace on the cliff she used to pass every day. Sometimes she even wondered what was happening inside the walls. Her life before the Lunar Revolution felt like it was decades ago instead of a couple years. She used to be lonely--Peony and Iko as her only friends. But now she had so many friends, so many people who loved and cared for her. The differences between her past and her present were like night and day.

The doors opened behind her and familiar footsteps approached. Seconds later, Kai’s arms wrapped around her waist. He rested his chin on her shoulder, letting out a content sigh. “Welcome back home,” he whispered.

“It feels like home more than it ever did before.” Cinder leaned into his touch, still looking out to the city.

“What do you mean?”

She shrugged. Cinder learned that it was best not to dwell on the past too much. When she thought too much about her life in Phoenix Tower, she grew sad. There were some good times, sure. Peony and Iko always managed to make her smile. But there were far more bad times. Far too many memories of Adri telling her she was worthless. Far too many times she went to bed hungry. Far too many nights with not enough sleep so she could work for too many hours in her little booth the next day.

“This is the happiest and most comfortable I think I’ve ever been,” she said simply. She didn’t elaborate, and she hoped Kai wouldn’t press for more.

Much to her relief, he didn’t.

Holding each other close, they watched the sun set on the horizon.

Kai had always known that Cinder was more affected by her time living with Adri than she cared to admit, but now that he’d been living under the same roof with her for a few months, he was beginning to realize just how deep her emotional wounds ran.

Even though they had separate suites she would always stay in his. He loved it. He loved holding her in his arms and running his fingers through her mousey locks as she fell asleep. But every once in a while he would wake up to her missing.

The first time it happened, he panicked. Kai searched the entire suite before he tracked Iko down and asked if she knew where Cinder was. She did, of course. Iko wouldn’t tell him why exactly Cinder was up in the middle of the night, but she did agree to take him to her.

Iko led Kai across the palace to the garage where Cinder was tinkering with a palace android. It broke his heart to see the blank expression in her eyes when she finally lifted her head to look at him.

“Cinder,” he said softly as he walked over. Kneeling down in front of her, he carefully pried the screwdriver from her hands and set it on the bench. “Cinder, darling, let’s go back to bed.”

“I can’t sleep,” she mumbled, looking away from him.

He noticed her eyes settle on something behind him, and he turned around to see what it was. Or rather who.

Iko was still standing there, a sympathetic smile on her face. She nodded as if to reassure Cinder that everything was okay, that Cinder was safe.

Kai turned to look back at his exhausted fiancee. “Will you at least come back upstairs with me? You don’t have to sleep if you don’t want to.” He wished she would sleep, but something in the back of his head warned him not to push his luck right now, not to push her too hard.

“Okay,” Cinder whispered.

Kai stood back up, Taking her hands in his, he pulled her off the stool and wrapped an arm around her waist. It took them a while to get back to their room since it was on almost the exact opposite end of the palace, but they made it. Iko followed as well, and Kai invited her in. He hoped that she could bring Cinder whatever comfort he couldn’t.

The three of them laid down on the large bed, Cinder protectively, but comfortably, squished between Kai and Iko.

When Cinder fell asleep just as the sun was beginning to rise, he turned his attention to Iko once again.

“Has she always done this?” he whispered. “Woken up in the middle of the night and wandered?”

Iko nodded. “Ever since the revolution ended.”

“Why?”

Even though she didn’t have lungs, she let out a deep sigh. “Adri made her wake up an hour before dawn so that she could get to the market right as it was opening. Even though she doesn’t have to do that anymore, it still happens every once in a while.”

“She does it a lot?”

“More often than she’ll ever admit. I always try to get her to go back to sleep, but she never has until now.”

Kai’s frown deepened as he looked down at the wonderful woman between them. How had he not noticed this before? All their vid calls when he asked if she was okay and getting enough sleep because she looked so tired…

“Has it been getting better?”

Iko nodded. “It has. First few months on Luna it happened a few times a week, now it’s usually only once every few months.”

“So you don’t think I should be worried?”

“Not unless it starts happening more than that.”

Kai pushed a strand of hair off Cinder’s forehead and stroked her cheek with his thumb. He would trust that Iko was right. Iko knew Cinder longer than anyone else and she knew Cinder’s limits. “Okay,” he said.

The next thing Kai noticed was that Cinder had a hard time accepting compliments that she didn’t feel she earned. Every time he would tell her she looked beautiful or pretty or even nice, she would brush him off. That or she would get uncomfortable, like she wasn’t used to someone saying nice things about her.

What he found more alarming than her inability to take a compliment based on her physical appearance was that she couldn’t take a compliment based on her personality or actions either.

Any time he said something about how kind or caring or courageous or intelligent she was, Cinder would wave him off. It was like she didn’t believe that she was those things. Worse, she didn’t believe there was even a possibility she could ever be those things.

When he said she did an amazing job holding her ground on something she believed the Eastern Commonwealth and the world desperately after a meeting with world leaders, she would say that it was nothing.

On a day they had time to relax and not worry about any government duties, he decided to ask her about it.

“Cinder?” He said from where he sat lounging on one side of the couch.

Her eyes were closed, head resting on the cushions. “Hm?”

“Why don’t you like it when I compliment you?” he asked.

Cinder lifted her head and opened her eyes, staring at him. Long moments dragged on. She opened and closed her mouth a few times before shutting it for another minute more.

Kai patiently waited for her to speak.

“I don’t know,” she admitted after a while. “It’s not that I don’t think it’s nice of you to say. It’s just…”

“Just?”

“I guess I’m not used to it.”

“Iko compliments you all the time.”

“Yeah, but Iko is Iko. As human as she acts, she’ll never be fully human. And neither will I. It’s easier to take a compliment from someone who really, truly gets me.” Her eyes widened and she quickly amended, “Not to say that you don’t get me--”

Kai cut her off with a reassuring smile. “Cinder, I know. I didn’t take any offense.”

“Oh… Okay. Good.”

He reached out, taking both of her hands in his own. One of his fingers brushed over the engagement ring on her titanium hand. He loved how the metal of her hand and the metal of the band sparkled together. “Cinder,” Kai said, “you are human though. No matter what anyone tells you.”

She didn’t meet his eyes. “Technically I’m lunar.”

“Which is still human.”

“And a cyborg.”

“Still human,” he insisted.

Cinder met his eyes and he realized there was something hidden there, something dark that was eating her up inside. He wondered how long it’d been there.

Before he could ask more about what happened to make her averse to compliments, his portscreen pinged with an urgent comm from Torin.

Kai also began to realize that Cinder was terrified to ask for help with something even when she was desperate for it. There were times when he caught her scouring for information on legislation that he knew by heart. And every once in a while she would wander into a part of the palace that wasn’t on her blueprints. When that happened she’d just wander around until she found a place that was.

This time Kai didn’t ask her about it. He didn’t ask her why she didn’t like to ask for help. Instead one night when Cinder was tinkering in the garage, he sought Iko out and asked, “Why doesn’t Cinder ever ask for help?”

Iko looked up at him from where she was painting her synthetic fingernails. She wore a pained expression. “Because she wasn’t allowed to.”

His brow furrowed as he took a seat on the couch next to her. “She wasn’t allowed to ask for help?”

“No.” She shook her head. Twisting the cap onto the bottle of shimmery navy nail polish, she set it down on the coffee table in front of her. “When we lived with Adri, she’d get… punished if she asked for the smallest things or necessary things. It wasn’t explicitly expressed that they were punishments, but that’s what they were.”

“Things like what exactly?” He was afraid to know the answer, but he asked anyway.

“Her metal limbs for starters. The prosthetics she had before the titanium ones Dr. Erland gave her were years old. They were built for an eleven year old. Sure they were meant to extend and grow with her a little bit, but not as much as she needed.”

“So she asked for new ones.”

“Not even new ones, she asked for second hand ones when she was about 14. Adri said that if she wanted ‘new robot parts’ she’d have to make money and pay for them herself. So that’s what Cinder did. But once Adri realized she was making money, she had it all put into her account. Cinder couldn’t use it to buy what she needed.”

Kai’s heart ached to hear that. “What else did Adri do?”

“I don’t know if I should tell you more. Cinder doesn’t really like to talk about it…”

“Please Iko,” he begged.

She hesitated for a moment before continuing. “There were times when she’d lock Cinder in her room for a day or two because there was someone important over or because she didn’t want to look at her or because she thought Cinder asked for something irrational. She usually didn’t bring her food those days either. Peony or I would have to sneak it to her in the middle of the night.”

Kai swallowed the lump in his throat. How could someone be so cruel to a person? He knew Levana was evil, but he never imagined someone who wasn’t in a position of power could do such horrid things.

The few times he’d met Adri, he could tell she was a terrible person. The way she looked at Cinder and talked to Cinder never failed to make his blood boil. But he didn’t understand the true extent of how awful she was until now.

“Cinder didn’t have a real bed either,” Iko said quietly. “She just had a mattress on the floor with a thin sheet and a single pillow. And sometimes Adri would lock her out of the apartment if she was downstairs in the garage too late.”

“Where would she sleep?” Kai asked.

“Usually hunched over her workbench in the basement.”

Kai wasn’t sure if he wanted to throw up or if he wanted to find Adri and strangle her to death. He was not by any means a violent man--with the exception of the one time he tried to stab Levana with scissors--but hearing all this was pushing him into a mentality he never thought he’d reach again.

He ran a hand through his hair, tugging it lightly as he tried to think.

“Is there anything I can do to help her?” he whispered.

Iko put a hand on his knee. “Keep doing what you’re doing. Tell her you love her enough and she just might start to believe it.”

Cinder squeezed her eyes shut and rubbed her temples with her pointer fingers, doing her best to will away her headache. It was one of those headaches that reminded her she’d be crying if she had tear ducts. Those were the headaches she hated the most. They reminded her that she wasn’t whole. That she wasn’t human.

She wasn’t even sure why she felt like crying.

Her day had been fine. It was full of ambassador duties, and preparations for the wedding, and a few other miscellaneous things, but it wasn’t a bad day. It was just busy. And she was tired. She wanted to take a nap, but she didn’t have the time. There was another meeting she had to get to in 20 minutes.

There was a knock on the bathroom door and she startled.

“Cinder?” Kai called.

She forced her hands away from her temples. Taking a deep breath to calm herself down, Cinder stood up and walked over to open the door. She put on a neutral expression, hoping Kai wouldn’t see how tired and stressed she was.

But of course he saw through her the second he saw her face. His expression went from hopeful to concerned right away.

“Hey, what’s wrong?” Kai asked. He took her hands in his own, pulling her out to the seating area in his--might as well be their--suite.

“Nothing’s wrong,” She lied.

“Iko said you hung up in the middle of a call with Bromstad and ran off. That doesn’t seem like nothing’s wrong to me.”

Cinder pulled her hands out of his. She opted to trace the scar tissue around her wrist where skin met metal.. “I’m just a little stressed, it’s nothing you have to worry about.”

“I know I don’t have to worry about you, but that doesn’t mean I don’t sometimes.”

“Kai,” she sighed. “Really, I’m okay.”

She wasn’t and they both knew that, but she hoped that he would let it go. She didn’t want to bother him with her problems. He was just as busy as she was, if not more so. He didn’t have the time to run a country and make sure that she was constantly okay. She could take care of herself, she always had and she always would.

Cinder tried giving him a smile, but it fell flat.

He purposely reached out to take her hands again. “Why don’t we cancel that meeting you have soon and spend some time together?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea--”

“Then ask Iko to do it. It’s about the wedding, not diplomacy.”

That would make her feel a little better… “Okay,” she agreed. “Let me just send a comm to her quick.”

“She’s already on her way there.”

Cinder raised an eyebrow at him.

He shrugged. “When she said you dipped, I asked her to do it before finding you.”

She wasn’t expecting that. It was a sweet gesture, but how did he know she would even go along with it in the first place? Oh right. In the last few years they’d gotten to know each other almost as well as the backs of their own hands.

“Thank you. You didn’t have to do that.”

“I know. But I wanted to, and so did Iko.” He laughed. “Iko was actually a little too eager to do it. I think we might end up having pink table cloths at the reception.”

“Oh stars.”

He grinned, leaning forward to press a kiss to her forehead. “Now come on. I want to show you something.”

“You do?”

“Yup. It’s not much, but I think you’ll like it. Come on.” 

He led her through the palace and out to the gardens. It was a beautiful day. The sun shone high in the vibrant blue sky. A gentle breeze blew through the trees as they walked through rows of roses and azaleas and chrysanthemums. They walked over the bridge above the koi pond, nearing the back where the bench Kai and Cinder claimed as their own was nestled under a cherry blossom tree.

As they got closer, Cinder saw something new planted around the bench.

“Are those…?”

“Peonies.”

Her breath caught in her throat. Another crying induced headache made its way to the front of her head. She swallowed. Reaching out, she touched one of the pastel pink flowers with her flesh hand. It was soft and smelled wonderful.

“Do you like them?” Kai whispered. He sat on the stone bench, one hand on her shoulder as he patiently waited for a response.

Cinder sat next to him, wrapping her arms around his waist as she buried her face in his chest. “I love them. Thank you.”

“I’d do anything for you.” He held her close, rubbing her back slowly.

“What made you think of this?” she asked.

“I remembered you mentioning how sad you were that you didn’t have anything to remind you of her. Planting some peonies seemed like a good way to remember her.” He paused. “She would have wanted you to have something. I’m only sorry that I can’t do more.”

She shook her head. “Don’t be, it’s perfect.”

They were both silent for a few minutes, basking in each other’s embrace. Cinder felt her stress melting away the more time she spent with him, so she didn’t let go. This was exactly what she needed and she couldn’t have been more grateful to him.

“It’s not your fault, Cinder,” he whispered. “I know you still blame yourself for her death, but it’s not your fault.”

“Kai--”

“And it’s not your fault that Adri treated you so terribly either. You didn’t deserve that. You’re a wonderful person. So strong and brave and kind and smart. And I love you so much.”

Her fingers bunched up the silk material of his shirt, holding onto him as if her life depended on it. No one had ever told her that before. No one ever told her that it wasn’t her fault for all the things people did and said to her in the past.

For the first five years of her living memory she was told that she was worthless, that she wasn’t human because of things that were out of her control. Those words broke her down, shattered her heart into millions of little pieces.

Somehow Iko, Kai, and all their friends were putting the pieces back together these last couple years. Somehow she was becoming whole, becoming loved again. Hearing him say that was like he put in the last piece. Cinder was finally able to genuinely believe that nothing Adri, Pearl, or any ignorant person on the street once said to her was real or her fault.

She was blameless when it came to the actions of others against her.

“I love you, Kai,” she said.

“I love you.”

[pabotofus]

A Four-Part Tale of Confusion (and love)

This is a gift for the wonderful @jesus-otaku! I hope you enjoy <3

Summary:  All Marinette wants is to go to patrol with her partner. But when Alya gets involved, things spiral into something much, much more complicated.

Read it on AO3 here!!

All Marinette wants is to go to patrol with her partner. It's a nice night, not too warm but not too cold, either. It's perfect for races to Notre Dame and late night talks and laughs.

Granted, no one knows about her patrols, seeing as they're supposed to be secret. So to be completely honest, Marinette can't blame anyone who unknowingly interrupts. But still, can't a girl ask for a quiet night?

The answer, she learns, is no. At least, not when Alya is involved.

Part One: Ladynoir

The fateful day is a Friday night, when she's ready to meet Chat for patrol. Now that they know each other's’ identities, patrol has become less of an actual duty and more of a chance for them to hang out.

If she’s completely honest, it was never a real duty in the first place.

Cautiously checking her room, Marinette confirms that it's empty before heading to her balcony and calling Tikki.

“Ready, Tikki?” She asks.

The ladybug kwami smiles up at her, twirling gracefully in the air.

“Tikki, spots on!”

With a flash of pink light, a red and black suit forms over her body. Ladybug puts a foot on the balcony railing, ready to push off and look for her partner when she hears a soft thump behind her. Leathery appendages cover her eyes as a familiar voice sing-songs, “Guess who?”

“Hmm,” Ladybug teases. “Could it be my favorite person in all of Paris, Adrien Agreste?”

“You wound me, m’lady,” Chat laughs, withdrawing his hands. “Ready to start patrol?”

“Ready as ever,” she replies, turning around and leaning in to tap his cheek affectionately.

Her hand freezes an inch from his face when she sees Alya standing behind Chat. Alya’s mouth hangs open, finger shaking slightly as she raises it to point at Ladybug.

“Alya?” She asks cautiously. She doesn't want to give away too much, just in case Alya knows less than expected.

Chat turns around, taking a step back to stand beside her.

“It was you,” her friend whispers, ignoring the call of her name. Her voice rises, becoming more shrill as she continues. “The entire time, it was you?”

Ladybug drags a hand down her face, grimacing. “Alya- why are you even still here?”

“Don't you dare ‘Alya’ me,” her friend shrieks. “I was here to study, and all of a sudden you push me out. I come back because I forgot my textbook to- to- you think you can just, before my very own eyes, do this?”

“This is my house, Alya,” Ladybug deadpans warily. There's not much point denying it now; she'd only dig herself a deeper hole if she did.

“Technicalities,” Alya says, waving a hand in the air irritably. “You could tell me that Chat Noir was secretly Adrien Agreste right here, right now, and I still wouldn't care. Don't change the subject!”

Next to her, she sees Chat flinch ever so slightly and slips her hand into his, squeezing it in comfort. This action, unfortunately, is noticed by Alya. She eyes it, a victorious eyebrow raised high on her forehead.

“You better have an explanation, Marinette Dupain-Cheng,” Alya snaps, jabbing a finger at her. “Now tell me, why exactly are you kissing Chat Noir in a Ladybug cosplay suit?”

Ladybug freezes, shock and confusion from Alya’s question still running rampant. “E-excuse me?”

The fact of the matter is that while she, Marinette, is indeed in a Ladybug suit, Alya shouldn't have recognized her as Marinette in a suit, but rather as Marinette actually being Ladybug.

Neither, she thinks, did she actually kiss Chat Noir. What on earth is going on?

“Every Ladynoir kiss was you and not actually Ladybug!” Alya rants, eyes wide. “You never told me about this. What, do best friends not count for anything today?”

“Ladynoir?” Chat echoes in confusion. “What's that?”

Both girls deign to ignore him in light of the situation.

“Why are you kissing Chat Noir in a Ladybug cosplay suit?” Alya repeats, almost insultingly slowly.

Ladybug has to stifle a hysterical laugh, not quite believing the situation.

“I- uh, Chat and I…” Ladybug flounders a bit before deciding on a lie and hoping Alya would buy it. “We're… more than friends.”

There's a beat of silence as Alya stares at her. Chat moves to slip a hand around her shoulders, squeezing it in silent solidarity.

“That's right,” Chat chirps, and Ladybug sighs a breath of relief, thinking her partner has caught on. “We’re best fr-”

“Dating,” Ladybug cuts in firmly, laughing awkwardly. “We're dating. Yup. Us! Dating.”

Alya stares blankly at them, blinking slowly. “Dating.”

Chat’s smile grows slightly strained as he repeats the word in confirmation.

“But what about Adri-”

“Who?” Ladybug asks, pasting a smile on her face. “I'm sorry, you must be mistaken.”

Alya’s face is dubious, and Ladybug can tell that her friend doesn't believe her one bit.

“Say I believe you,” Alya says slowly, staring at Ladybug. “It still doesn't explain the suit.”

“I was afraid of the backlash that might come from dating a superhero,” she fibs. “If the press, or god forbid, Hawkmoth found out, we'd be in pretty big trouble. So I talked to Ladybug, and she agreed to let me make and wear a copy of her suit.”

Alya narrows her eyes at Ladybug, scrutinizing her face before moving on to stare at Chat Noir with the same intensity.

“I won't interrupt your… activities for now,” Alya warns, “but the next time I see you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, you have hell of a lot of explaining to do.”

Ladybug smiles weakly, sagging against Chat’s hold when Alya leaves.

“We're… dating?” Chat Noir asks cautiously.

“It wasn’t the best thing to say,” Ladybug admits. “But we’ve gotta stick with it now.”

“I can’t believe Alya bought that,” Chat marvels.

“She didn’t,” Ladybug grimaces. “When she interrogates me tomorrow, I expect your full support.”

“Me?” Chat squawks. “Your problem; you deal with it! I’m not getting within fifty feet of an interrogation-mode Alya.”

Smart boy, Ladybug thinks, and she’s ready to fire back a reply when the tolling of a loud bell signals that it’s eight already. They still haven’t started patrol yet.

She pitches her yo-yo at a nearby lamppost and glances back at her partner with a devious grin.

“Last one to the Tower pays on our first date!” She shouts, swinging off.

Chat’s insulted yowl echoes behind her, and as she hits a roof running, an unbidden thought comes to her head.

Dating, huh? Maybe I wouldn’t mind.

Part Two: Marichat

The next day, as Marinette is dismissed to lunch, she catches sight of Adrien. Making sure his eyes are on her, she tucks a lock of hair behind her ear to bring focus to her plain black studs.

Adrien tilts his head but waggles his fingers in greeting from across the room, light glinting off his silver ring.

Good, she thinks, and waves her phone in the air.

Adrien nods at her and then disappears into the swirling crowd of hungry students. Marinette turns around as well, heading for a less crowded hallway to safely text in.

(11:54) M: hey, wanna check if that black cat you found is still in the alley next to school?

The ‘read’ symbol pops up, and so does a response not too long after.

(11:54) A: not quite sure why you’re so interested in him but sure if you want

(11:55) M: meet you there

Shutting her phone off with a click, Marinette quickly exits the school, making sure that no one is following her before ducking into the alley she had mentioned.

“What’s going on?” Chat Noir asks, dropping down into the alley with a barrel roll.

“Show-off,” she teases. “You’re taking me out on a date.”

Chat turns surprisingly red, spluttering and leaning away from her. He opens and closes his mouth like a fish, unable to form words.

“C’mon, chaton. Isn’t this what you’re always asking for?” Marinette asks. “If we want Alya to believe our dating lie, we have to act like we are dating. So come on. We’re going on a date.”

“So, uh,” he manages to say, “where are we going, exactly?”

“You’re the one with the magical supersuit,” Marinette retorts. “You decide.”

“What are we even going to do?” Chat asks. “I’m going to need to feed Plagg extra cheese for this; it’d better be worth it.”

“You decide,” Marinette repeats.

Chat Noir rolls his eyes, putting on a dramatic demeanor.

“Come, my Princess,” he winks, bending down in an exaggerated bow and placing a kiss on Marinette’s hand. “Let us go share some spaghetti… together.”

Marinette struggles to control her smile, falling into her given role of a princess.

“My dear chaton,” she says, swooning, and Chat instinctively stretches his arms out catch her. “Might that have been… a Lady and the Tramp reference? Never thought I’d see the day you became an alley dog- or well, cat, but here we are.”

“How you offend me!” Chat cries, pretending to wipe a tear off his face. “I am nothing less thana fine aristocat.”

“Then act like one,” Marinette fires back playfully.

“Meouch!” Chat exclaims, waggling his eyebrows. “M’lady has claws!”

“Not a princess?” Marinette teases, and immediately regrets her words when she hears Chat’s response.

“A rose by any other name would smell as sweet,” Chat quotes, and pulls Marinette into a twirl that ends up with her against his chest.

Marinette breaks her hands free from his hold, ringing his bell as her arms fall to her sides.

“If you’re suggesting that we elope and run away, I’ll have to decline, Chat.”

“The pain of rejection,” he mourns, clutching his chest dramatically.

Marinette laughs, rising onto her toes to give Chat Noir a little cheek pat. “Pick some place to eat, kitty. Maybe food will soothe your wounds.”

“The Italian place near my house?” Chat offers, eyes hopeful.

“Chat, you know I’m not a big fan of tomato sauce,” Marinette grumbles. “And our goal is to get Alya to notice us, but there’s no chance she’s going there. She never eats Italian food.”

“Only because she knows you don’t like it,” Chat wheedles. “Please, Princess?”

Marinette groans when faced with Chat’s kitty eyes, but a thought comes to her mind and she grins deviously.

“But chaton,” she says, turning to look up at him. She opens her eyes, blinking slowly, trying to maximize the effect.

“You’re not allowed to use chaton like that,” he whines, covering his face with a clawed hand. It doesn’t manage to completely cover the blush spreading on his face, and Marinette grins in victory.

“Now, minou,” she says in satisfaction. “What about… the cafe two blocks north of here? With the soup that you love so much?”

“Tempting,” Chat admits. “But think- Italian food.”

“That doesn’t work on me; I don’t like Italian food,” Marinette reminds. “Do I need to use the eyes again?”

“Aha!” Chat exclaims. “So you do admit to using your eyes as an unfair advantage?”

“Gotta use them if I know I’ve got them, pretty boy. Shouldn’t the model of the two of us know that?” She teases.

“You’re gorgeous, Marinette,” Chat states plainly. “I may be a model, but you’re absolutely gorgeous.”

Marinette lets a small squeak slip from her lips, able to practically feel the blush on her cheeks.

“I- uh-”

“You know that, right?” Chat Noir asks, his brow furrowing. “Y-you- don’t take Chloé’s words to heart, Marinette, she doesn’t know what she’s talking about, okay? You’re literally the most awesome girl I’ve heard the pleasure of knowing, and-”

He peers closer at the frozen girl, capturing her face between his hands. If even possible, Marinette’s blush grows stronger.

“Marinette?”

“Chat, what the hell, you can’t just say that,” she shrieks, pulling back and batting at his hands. “Do you- are you aware of what you’re saying?”

“Is there something wrong?” Chat asks, face crumpling in worry.

“Fine,” Marinette dismisses, pointedly refusing to look at him. “We can go to the Italian place.”

Chat peers at her oddly, but nods.

“Would the lady like a ride?” He asks, extending his baton. “I’ve gotten good Chatsportation service reviews. Get it? Transportation?”

Marinette never thought she’d ever think this, but she’s grateful to Chat’s puns for dissolving the relative tension.

“That was a stretch and you know it,” she declares, accepting Chat’s hand. “An awful pun, if I’ve ever heard one.”

“All puns are sacred and beautiful,” Chat Noir argues, and Marinette lets loose a laugh.

“Whatever you say, chaton,” she hums. “Whatever you say.”

Outside, Alya walks by on her way to get lunch. Marinette left to go somewhere, leaving her alone to pick whatever food she should choose to eat. She was craving… something Italian, maybe. That sounded nice.

Hasn’t Adrien recommended this place near his house? Alya thinks. Might be a good choice.

She pauses outside an alley, poking her head in to see what the commotion was about. Inside, Marinette and Chat Noir are… she’s not sure what on earth it is that they’re doing, actually, but it looks like some convoluted form of flirting. Marinette is clinging onto Chat’s back as they ascend into the sky, talking loudly about some subject that’s lost to the wind.

Alya sighs, continuing on her way. She might’ve been skeptical about it at first, but it was clear now. Those two are definitely dating.

Part Three: Adrienette

“You might as well detransform,” Marinette says, jumping off of Chat’s back. She lands on the ground with a soft thump, smoothing her clothes with her hands. “Alya’s not going to be here, and it’d be awkward for people to see me having lunch with the famous superhero Chat Noir. Think of what the tabloids would say.”

“Then you’d be having lunch with the famous supermodel Adrien Agreste,” he points out, but does as she suggests.

“But Chat Noir is so much more impressive,” she says, pretending to be a star-struck fan. “He’s dashing and heroic, and he’s saved me from an akuma at least three times now.”

Marinette lowers her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, grinning. “Rumors say he’s ripped, too. Practically shredded, they say.”

She emphasizes her point with a jab to Adrien’s stomach, who curls in on himself with a yelp. “Ooh, is someone ticklish?”

“You wish,” he says, and darts away from her reaching fingers to walk into the restaurant. He isn’t able to dodge a final poke, but leads them into the restaurant with no other problem.

They’re seated and have their orders taken in practically no time. With Adrien’s name helping smooth along the process, they receive their food in fourteen minutes and twenty three seconds (an amused Marinette had timed the whole event) and began eating.

Marinette is laughing at a comment Adrien had made, tears welling up in her eyes as she clutches her stomach. He laughs with her, muffling his mouth with a napkin, when all of a sudden he goes silent.

“Adrien?” Marinette whispers. “What’s wrong?”

“Alya,” he replies grimly. “At the counter. It looks like she’s ordering to go though, so if we stay calm and act normal, everything should be fine.”

Marinette forces herself to swallow her bite of chicken, trying to keep herself calm like Adrien had advised. Breathe in, breathe out; continue eating. But her fingers won’t obey, and as she lowers her hand to scoop up another bite, her fork drops onto her plate with a loud clatter. This, of course, attracts Alya’s attention.

“Adrien? Marinette? What are you two doing here together?” Alya Shrieks.

“I-” Marinette glances at Adrien, not sure what to say.

He licks his lips nervously, blurting out an excuse. “I, uh, I mean… can’t a guy take his friend out for lunch without being questioned?”

Alya sniffs disbelievingly, leaning over their table. “Oh, a lunch date? Just you two? Alone? Tell me, Agreste, what’s the truth?”

Adrien squirms under Alya’s unwavering gaze, and Marinette decides to jump in and help him.

“Alya, don’t-”

Alya ignores her, continuing to look at Adrien. “What’s going on, Adrien? Or do you really not know?”

Adrien shrugs helplessly, casting a nervous glance at Marinette. She winces back at him, having absolutely no clue what Alya is leadingup to.

“She’s using Chat Noir as flirting practice for her dates with you!” Alya declares loudly, and Adrien’s eyes widen. He starts coughing, covering his mouth as he hacks.

“Did you know that, Adrien? Did you know?”

“I-” Adrien smothers a hysterical laugh with a napkin. “No, I can’t say that I did.”

“Alya, could you, uh, go, please? So Adrien and I can talk this out?” Marinette gasps out between hiccuping giggles.

Alya only departs at Adrien’s nod, frowning at the two before grabbing a tentatively offered take-out box and stomping out.

“I can’t believe you would do that to me, Marinette,” Adrien wails dramatically. “What did I do?”

“It’s not you, it’s me,” Marinette sobs, and a waiter arrives at their table hesitantly.

“Monsieur Agreste, deepest apologies for… intruding on your, ah, private moment. But you might want to, say, leave?”

Marinette and Adrien are ushered out after paying, collapsing into each others’ arms once they reach a public bench.

“Chat Noir and I are ditching you, and we’re going to start dating,” Adrien declares.

Marinette crumples in laughter, tears streaming down her face.

“I cannot believe that just happened,” she admits. “This is rom-com level stuff, you know?”

“Definitely,” Adrien agrees with a sigh. He stands up, offering her an arm. “Would the lady like to be escorted back to school?”

“How kind,” Marinette responds, linking arms with him.

The two walk in silence, save for the occasional random giggle. They’ve almost reached the school when she’s tapped on the arm, and she turns to look at Adrien questioningly.

“Why would Alya think you’d want to date me?”

Marinette nearly chokes, thumping her chest as she coughs loudly. “What would make you think that I’d, uh, hypothetically want to date you?”

Adrien shrugs, and suddenly their arms aren’t entangled anymore. “On your balcony the other day she mentioned civilian me after you said we were dating, and just now…”

Marientte sighs quietly in relief. “You know how Alya is,” she fibs. “Always trying to set people up.”

“So you don’t like like me,” Adrien concludes under his breath, but she can still hear his words.

“What? I- I like you perfectly fine!”

“As a friend? I know, but you’ve always rejected me, even after we revealed each other.”

Marientte’s mind swirls. Rejection? She hadn’t ever reject- oh. She was never aware that Adrien was seriously into her, as Chat or not. She smacks her forehead, shaking her head in exasperation.

“Oh, boy,” she groans. “We were both super oblivious, weren’t we?”

“H-huh?” Adrien stutters. “You didn’t know that I, uh- liked you?”

“Uh, not… really?” Marinette says slowly, drawing out the word.

“You mean the only reason you rejected Chat-me was because you didn’t know I liked you in the first place?!”

“Maybe?” She admits, ducking her head in shame. “That, and the fact that I had a blindingly huge crush on Adrien-you.”

Marinette immediately slams her hands over her mouth, eyes wide. Adrien stares at her in a similar manner, shocked into silence. After a while, he regains his speech, stammering out a disbelieving response.

“You… liked me?”

Marinette nods hesitantly.

“You liked me,” Adrien repeats slowly.

He turns to Marinette, a bewildered look on his face. “Why were we so dumb?”

“We can be dumb together,” Marinette offers with a half-hearted laugh.

Adrien blinks. “A-are you asking me out?”

“Do you want to be asked out?”

Adrien laughs, a disbelieving grin on his face. “Hell yeah,” he responds breathlessly. “But- Alya’s pretty much onto us now. She’s seen pretty much every side of us together.”

“That’s going to be an awkward conversation with her,” Marinette agrees. “But for the time being… I don’t think she’s seen Ladybug and Adrien together yet, has she?”

Adrien’s conspiratorial grin is the only answer she needs.

Part Four: Ladrien

Ladybug perches precariously on a window ledge, rapping on Adrien’s bedroom window.

He shows on the other side barely a second later, opening the window with a click of a remote.

“M’lady,” he greets, leaning in and offering her is hand.

Ladybug smiles, dropping onto the floor, and pulls him into a full-on kiss. She smirks at the dazed look on Adrien’s face, standing on her tiptoes to ruffle his hair.

It had been a month since they decided to date, a whirlwind of awkward first kisses, cuddling, and late night visits. Of course, they had to keep everything under wraps while they weren’t Ladybug and Adrien (after all, that had resulted in the whole Alya mess), but it wasn’t too difficult.

But if Marinette couldn’t resist giving Adrien a quick peck on her way to class, well… Alya couldn’t see everything.

“Hey, handsome,” Ladybug greets. “Care for a night out?”

“Forward as usual,” Adrien notes mildly. “It’s still bright out, though. You sure this is safe?”

Ladybug pauses, demeanor suddenly shy. “Ah- I was planning to, um. Reveal us to Alya today. If that was, you know, okay with you?”

Adrien blinks in surprise, mouth dropping open.

“Reveal this,” He asks slowly, waving his hand at the two of them, “or this?”

Adrien gestures at his whole body, eyes blown wide when Ladybug indicates at his body.

“O-our identities too?!”

“If we’re going to reveal us dating then it’s going to be difficult to explain why we’re not mad at our other selves,” Ladybug reasons hesitantly. “But if we reveal that we’re, you know, us, then it should be okay?”

Adrien gives no response, and Ladybug cringes. She knew this might’ve been a bad idea, and hurries to fix it.

“Of course, we don’t have to if you don’t want to, but it would just be easier-”

“It’s fine,” he reassures. “It’s just- Alya is the first non-Miraculous person who’s going to know about us, so this feels really, like, big. If you know what I mean?”

Ladybug nods, huffing a smile in relief. “It’s a while until Alya goes out for her superhero hunt, so we can hang out for a bit until we meet her.”

“Superhero hunt?” Adrien echoes worriedly.

“She goes out to look for us on patrol,” Ladybug explains. “And I heard she was going to do that tonight. But we’ve still got a good hour or two until then, so what do you think of a date?”

“Sounds miraculous,” Adrien agrees with a cheeky smile.

Ladybug scoops him up with a playful groan. “Why do I continue to date you when you’re like this.”

“It’s because you looove me,” Adrien teases, and Ladybug forces a laugh as she swings out the door.

If Adrien sees the blush on her cheeks, he doesn’t mention it.

Ladybug is laughing, sticking out her tongue at Adrien.

“Punning is an under-appreciated art form,” he defends, pointing a croissant at her.

“Is not,” Ladybug defends, sighing in defeat when Adrien raises an eyebrow at her. “You’d get along marvelously with my dad.”

“Meeting the parents?” Adrien gasps dramatically, clutching his hands to his chest. “What an honor!”

Ladybug grins at him. “And when, pray tell, can I meet yours?”

“Whenever he’s actually around for you to meet, I guess,” Adrien comments offhandedly, but Ladybug is surprised.

“Is- is he not around that much?”

“Gone more often than he isn’t,” Adrien admits.

”I’m sorry,” Ladybug says softly, leaning over to plant a kiss on his cheek. “You know what? Forget about Alya; we can do that another day. Right now I’m taking you to my house so that we can play Mecha Strike and eat all the food we can stuff into your stomach.”

“Aww, you’re too kind, m’lady,” Adrien coos, but his eyes give his sincerity away.

“Come on, Agreste,” Ladybug says, standing up and wrapping an arm around his waist. “We’re going home.”

They swing off, not noticing the red-headed biker that follows them.

Ladybug takes a more scenic route as she heads home with Adrien, a path that took more time. It was a choice she would come to regret.

She leaves Adrien on her balcony first, detransforming in her room and walking down to the bakery under the pretense of getting a snack. She greets her maman with a kiss, turns around, and bumps right into Alya.

“Alya?” She gasps, face resolving into a genuine smile. “What are you doing here?”

“The project,” Alya lies.

There’s no project.

“Right,” Marinette says slowly. She knows she can’t deny Alya’s claim without seeming suspicious, but Adrien… Adrien is in her room, and she doubts he stayed on her balcony, out of sight. “Um-”

Before she can protest, Alya grabs her arm and drags her upstairs, where she grins triumphantly jabs a finger at a confused Adrien Agreste.

“I’m onto you now,” she says. “Really, a low blow, Mari, but if it’s for the good of Ladynoir, I guess I can let it slide.”

Marinette exchanges a truly bewildered look with Adrien. “Um-”

“That’s ingenious of you, actually,” Alya continues. “I saw Ladybug bring Adrien over to your house. So if you play with Chat like that and break his heart, then he’ll go running to Ladybug, and Ladynoir will be canon while you and Adrien can live your happy lives.”

Adrien can’t help but let a snort slip from his lips, and Alya raises an arched eyebrow at him.

“Am I wrong, Agreste?”

Marinette exhales bemusedly, eyes flicking towards Adrien’s scrunched up face as he tries (and fails) to contain his laughter.

They had a lot of explaining to do.

[pandapantslovesyou]

Disillusioned

Omegaverse! Semi-dystopian Modern AU (also my first fanfiction on this site!) For the past twenty years, the world has been coming apart at the seams. Disease, natural disasters, and - according to John Laurens - the inherent crappiness of human beings. The world's population is dropping rapidly, and everyone knows that it's only a matter of time before the government steps up and does something about it. Time's up.

Warnings: mentions of socially accepted rape.  Also John’s not exactly in the best place.

Chapter 4

They hadn’t figured anything out.

Lafayette, Adrienne, and Hercules hadn’t left since they’d come over.  They all exchanged, and shot down, idea after idea.

When everyone else slept, Alex and John stayed awake with the aid of coffee, energy drinks, and sheer willpower.  Alex typed countless essays.  John sketched out escape plans, but hourly updates about the strengthening of defenses and the increasing number of Omegas being caught crushed each and every one.

On the eve of the 15th, he dropped his pen.

Lafayette and Adrienne were asleep in Lafayette’s old room.  Hercules was asleep in the guest room.

Alex was nursing another cup of coffee.  He hadn’t eaten in close to forty-eight hours.  John could see the shaking in his hands as he typed, the exhaustion under his eyes.  This wasn’t fair to him. This wasn’t fair to any of them.

“They’ll induce heat,” John said softly.  He stared at his notebook.  He couldn’t bring himself to look at Alex for this.  “They’ll use pheromones on the Alphas.  It might not- it might not-”  He swallowed.  “I don’t think it’ll hurt -”

“No,” Alex snapped.  “Don’t you dare. Don’t you dare think like that.”

“Marty will probably help me raise it.  Henry will hopefully provide some kind of funds for his grandchild.  I wouldn’t be totally alone.”

Alex shoved his computer off of his lap.  “No.” He fixed John with a glare.  “Stop it.  We’re not going to stop until we find a way to get you out of this!”

“I don’t see what we can do!”

“You won’t be bred against your will -”

“I can’t see a way to avoid -”

“I will not let anyone breed you against your will!” Alex grabbed John’s arms and stared into his eyes desperately.  He was on the verge of shattering.  John reached for his face, reached for the stubble that had grown there, but stopped himself.  He looked down, shoulders slumping.  It was time to admit defeat.

“Alex.”

“No, John.  We’re not giving up.”

“I’m -”

“We’re not giving up.”

“I’m unbonded, Alex.  There’s nothing we can do.”

Alex froze.  “John.  What if you...  What if you weren’t unbonded?”

John shook his head at him.  “I don’t - I’m not -”

“But what if you bonded with someone?”  His eyes had that gleam in them.  He had an idea.

John sighed.  “Alex, there’s no one who’ll bond with me.  Bonds are for life-”

“If you don’t consummate-”

“I’d still be tied to them for life.  Not to mention it’s a huge risk. That’s bond fraud.  That’s a serious crime.  I can’t even begin to imagine what the consequences would be in a case like this.”

“Someone who’s willing to take that risk-”

“Who the hell would be willing-”

“Me.”

John stopped short.  “You?”

Alex nodded.  “I don’t give a damn about what might happen if we get caught.  No risk is too large if it means that you’re safe.”  He sighed.  “But it’s gonna be a lot on your part.  Because technically, you’re the only one who has to be bonded for this to work.  You’ll be tied to me, but I won’t be tied to you.”

“What do we tell the government when they ask us why I’m suddenly bonded to my college roommate?”

Alex shrugged.  “That we’ve been in love for years and were planning to wait until after we graduate to bond, but this kind of forced our hands.”

This was a very big deal.  John needed to spend time mulling it over, rethinking his options.

But he didn’t have any other options.  And being bonded to Alex was a better alternative than being shipped off to some facility and only released once he got pregnant or died.

“Okay.”

“Okay?” Alex seemed surprised.

But John nodded.  “What other choice do we have?”

Alex made a face.  “Right.  Um.  Would it be more comfortable for you if you were, um, on the bed?”

John stood on stiff legs and lay back on the mattress.  This felt wrong. Mechanical.  Alex leaned over him and smiled awkwardly before lowering his face to John’s neck.

“Wait.”

Alex stilled.

“If we do this...  We’ll still be friends, right?  No matter what?”

“Of course.”  Alex pulled away and met John’s eyes.  “We’ll always be friends.”  A beat.  “You’re sure?”

“Yeah.” John took a deep breath.

Alex once again lowered his face to John’s neck.  His breath tickled John’s skin as he searched out his scent gland.  John stared up at the ceiling.  He felt Alex’s lips touch his skin.  The sharp pain of teeth.  He stiffened, clenched his jaw, eyes snapping shut as his heart pounded in his ears.  Then the teeth were gone and Alex was kissing away the blood that bloomed on the surface.

He'd been told stories about bonding.  That looking into his lover's eyes would give him feelings he'd never felt before, he'd be swept away in a sea of affection and love.  But when Alex pulled away and gave him an uneasy smile, no such thing happened.

John didn't know whether to be disappointed or relieved.

Instead he took a stab at humor.  “Does this mean you're going to use your shitty Australian accent and call me mate all of the time?”

Alex laughed.  “Absolutely.  You okay?”

John nodded, sitting up and touching his scent gland.  It was sore. Rightfully so.  “I'm fine.”

“Feel any... different?”

John shook his head.  “Not really.  Your scent's a little bit stronger, I think.”  He inhaled a little and the word home immediately came to mind.  But Alex had always smelled like home to him.  He smelled like home and ink and coffee and a little bit like cinnamon, which never made sense because Alex wasn't a baker.

“So you're safe now.”

John stood and grabbed his phone, opening the front camera and examining the bite.  The little mark on his skin was supposed to mean everything.  It meant nothing.

A part of him felt sick.

It was our only option, he reminded himself.  It didn't make him feel better.

“We need to prepare ourselves for the investigation,” John muttered, pulling himself away from the dangerous thoughts.  “They’ll ask us weirdly specific questions that only mates should know the answers to.”

“We're mates.”  Alex's voice sounded a little off when he said it.  Then he shook his head sharply.  “We'll be able to convince them easily. It's not like we're strangers.  And we can deal with the questioning.  We just need a backstory.”

John sat down on the bed.  “Right.  A backstory.  How long have we been together?”

“Six months.  But we've been dancing around each other since before we went to college.”

“Easy enough.  Um, where do we go out for dates?”

Alex didn't miss a beat.  “We always order takeout from either the Chinese place on Fifty-first or Thai on Elms.  We get Chinese more often than Thai, because you have to be in the mood for Thai or else you don't like it.”  All of that was technically true.  Alex took his laptop and began typing.  “I'm sure there's sample questions online for...  Here we are.  Here's a good one: do your parents approve? My parents are dead.”

“My father didn't know until we bonded.  He doesn't like you.”

Alex snorted.  “When is your birthday?  October twenty-eighth.”

“Yours is January eleventh.  Who knows about the relationship?”

“All of our close friends.  They'll all lie for us, I'm sure of it.  We just wanted to keep it quiet because we knew your dad wouldn't approve, and we were going to wait to bond until you passed the Bar.”

“We were?”

“We wanted to have steady jobs so we could afford to hold a huge celebration.”  Alex smiled.  He'd been planning his ceremony since he was in the fourth grade, when they'd first talked about it in their history class.  John remembered Alex showing him his sketches and notes.  His heart hurt a little.  Would this keep Alex from having that?

John took a breath, focusing on the task at hand.  They could get divorced after the Protocol ended, Alex could find someone that he really loved.  “Are there any weird questions?”

He scrolled down the page.  “Oh.  Um, when was your last heat?”

“I take suppressors.  So years ago. We weren't together yet.”

“That's right.  I remember you telling me about how your professor was confused as to why you hadn't taken your five days off each semester.”

“And I know you take suppressors for your rut, too.  If you remember to.”

“How many children do we want?”

John looked down at his hands.  Thought for a moment.  “Well, we'd be waiting to have any until we both had steady jobs.  And a house.  I don't know how many I want to have.”  He leaned back on the bed. Felt Alex's eyes on him.  “We already have a huge family, with my siblings, and Frannie and Daniel and Lafayette.  And then there's Hercules and Adri and the Schuylers because they're family, too.  At least, to me.”

“Yeah, they're my family, too.”

“And I love them all, and having a lot of kids will only add to that.  But I don't want my kids to become my only job, and having a bunch tends to do that.”  John paused.  “Is that wrong?”

“That you'd rather work and try to change the world instead of have fifteen kids like society expects you to?”

“Fair enough.  I think I want three.  Maximum.  Just one or two would be fine with me.”

“I like two.  It's an even number, and the kids won't outnumber the parents.”

John nodded.  “Two it is, then.”  What would we name them, though? He didn't ask.  That would be too much, and he figured that no one expected them to know the answer just yet.  “What's my favorite color?”

“Green. What's mine?”

“Red. Not just any red.  Dark red, like a shade or so lighter than blood.”

“That's really morbid.”

“I'm not wrong.”

“No, you're not.  Um...”  More clicking as he looked through the page. “What was your mother's maiden name?”

“Ball. Yours was Faucette.  And your father's last name was Hamilton, obviously.”  John gave a half smile.  “Rachel Faucette and James Hamilton.”

“What's your deepest fear?  Yours is... being alone.  Like truly alone.”

“And yours is being forgotten.”

There was a knock on the door and Lafayette entered, rubbing his eyes. “Morning.”

“Morning?” John echoed.  “What time is it?”

“Three-thirty. Adrienne's still passed out.  I think she's more worried about you than she -”  He stopped and inhaled deeply.  “John?  You smell... different.”  He looked at the man in question, eyes searching and finally falling upon his neck.  “Mon dieu.”

“It was the only way,” Alex said.

Lafayette shook his head.  “This is equal parts genius and idiotic.  You do realize that this changes everything about your dynamic?”

“It doesn't have to,” John said.  “We're not going to consummate -”

“What?”

“- and we're already roommates.  It's not like this is a big step for us.”

“Non, it is a monumental step! You two are bonded! For life!”

“I'd rather be bonded to Alex than forced to have children I don't want with someone I don't know!” John spat.  Lafayette looked at him, eyes wide and concerned.  He knew, John realized.  He knew that he had feelings for Alexander.  And that this was a little more complicated than everyone thought.  “It was the only thing we could think of that wasn't guaranteed to end with us in prison.”

Lafayette sighed and sat down on the bed.  “This is cruel to you, John.”

“I know.”

“Alex, you're cruel to John.”

Both John and Alex winced.  “I made sure that he was okay with it before I bit him.”

“Yet you didn't let him bite you.”

“Only the Omega needs to be bitten for this to work.”

Lafayette's eyes narrowed, but he didn't say anything else.  Just pulled John into a hug and kissed the top of his head.  “John, I don't know if this is the same for Omegas, but when Adrienne bit me, she became very attached right before her rut.  She clung to me like a child. She did not let me leave her side.”

“Is this for every rut?”

“No, just the first one.  And when it happened, she was insatiable.  She could not get enough of me.  I couldn't leave the room, or else she would become miserable.”

John swallowed.  The heat or rut that immediately followed a bond was supposed to be ridiculously strong, as a way to reaffirm the relationship.  No amount of suppressors could stop it.  “Then I'm glad I didn't bite Alex.  He won't have to go through it.”

“But you will.”

“It's just one heat.  It's not going to kill me.”

“When are you due for it?”

John looked at the calendar on his phone.  It was harder to determine since he’d been on suppressors for so long.  “Two weeks, I think.”

Alex looked stricken, like he hadn't considered any of that.  John hadn't, either.  “John,” he said, “I -”

“I'm safe now,” John said firmly.  “That's what matters.  If it gets too bad, I'll make Marty drive me to the heat clinic.”

Alex nodded and looked away briefly.  John understood.  As close as they were, this was new territory.  It hadn't been discussed before.

When Adrienne and Hercules woke up, they explained the situation, which warranted roughly the same response.

Mimi texted John that she’d gotten out of the Protocol and was going up to Canada for the rest of the summer.

The head of the soup kitchen called and told him that they would be closed until further notice.

At around 8 in the morning, John's phone began to ring.  It was Eliza.

He sure was popular this morning.

“Just checking in,” she said when he answered.  “Any solutions?”

“Yeah, actually.”  John excused himself and went out onto the back porch. “Alex bit me.”

He had to hold the phone back from his ear as the shrill “What?” came over the line.

“Yeah. I'm no longer unbonded.”

“Did you two -?”

“No. We're still just friends.  Which reminds me, I need to ask you and your sisters to lie to the government for me.”

Eliza didn't say anything for a long time.  “I'm sorry, John.  This must be really hard for you.”

“I'll live.  It beats the alternative.  And as far as impromptu bondings for the sake of avoiding governmental tyranny go, Alex isn't the worst choice.”

The Schuyler sisters were in Italy for the summer, along with Eliza's mate, Maria.  Eliza was an Omega, too, but she and Maria had bonded last year, in a huge ceremony that everyone attended.

John had tried to hate her when they'd met, because she was Alex's first girlfriend, but he couldn't.  There was something about Eliza that he just couldn't bring himself to resent.  Not to mention she'd helped him with Marty when some girly issues arose.  There wasn't a malicious bone in her body.  John had nothing to hate.  And he hated that.

But when she and Alex broke up – after John helped Alex pick up the pieces of his broken heart – it was easier to get along.  He also realized just how smart she was when, a year later, she confronted him about his feelings for Alex.  At that point, John was so miserable after his own breakup that he admitted it freely to her.  She was the only person he'd told.

But apparently not the only one who knew.

“Do you want us to come home early?” Eliza asked.

“No, no, enjoy the rest of your vacation.  I'll live.  I promise.”

“You know to call me if you need anything, right?”

“Of course.”

They talked for a couple more minutes before he heard a throat clear behind him and turned to see Mr. Washington standing by the screen door.

“Hey, Eliza, I've gotta go.”

“Okay. Say hi to Marty for me.”

He hung up and faced the man in front of him.  “Sir.”

“Alex told me what happened.”

“Oh.” What else could he say?

“He tried to tell me that you two have been together for the past six months.  I don't believe him, and said as much.”

“Oh.”

He sat down at the patio table and gestured for John to join him.  After just a moment, he did.  “I'm sorry that this is what it's come to,” George said.  He was a lawyer.  He had his own firm.  He'd studied political law in college and got high marks on everything.  John was terrified.  “I'm not fond of lying.  You've known me for long enough to know that.”

“I do, sir.”  He was going to report him.  And then Alex was going to go to prison and John was either going to prison with him or to one of the breeding facilities the government had erected in the past three days.

“But as much as I hate dishonesty, I hate this new policy more.  So your secret is safe with Martha and me.”

John let out the breath he'd been holding in, shoulders relaxing in relief.  “Thank you, sir.  Thank you so much.”

Mr. Washington nodded.  “If you need a lawyer, or if your father becomes an issue, you can always come to me.”

John went back to Alex's bedroom and sat down next to his new mate – ha – who was furiously typing again.  “New essay?”

“Just because we've gotten you out of it doesn't mean everyone else is in the clear.”

John nodded, picking up his notebook and a pen.  He'd been saved.  Now it was time to work on saving everyone else, too.