#ALSO PLAGG AND ADRIEN I LOVE THEIR RELATIONSHIP

[arts-and-drafts]

Someone New (Miraculous Ladybug)

Or; Adrien Agreste Does Drag (The Complete Novelization). I am just in love with Fem!Catwalker AUs I couldn't resist

AO3 LINK

-

Adrien groaned audibly and dropped his head in his hands after looking in the mirror to see Chat Noir for the thirteenth time.

"Claws in," he moped.

"This isn't working." Adrien complained, as soon as Plagg rematerialized. His kwami rolled his eyes and floated over to his desk to pick up another rancid slice of cheese.

"Just try harder, kid!" Plagg replied, oh-so-helpfully. "Really feel the role! Aren't you supposed to be an actor?"

"I'm a model," Adrien grumbled the correction, with no real bite behind it. Plagg made a flippant 'same-difference' gesture with his paw, his mouth full of camembert. He must've realized how genuinely upset Adrien was right now, because usually the kwami would talk with his mouth full, regardless of how much Adrien hated it.

Well, it was nice to know at least someone was taking his feelings into account.

Adrien shook the thought from his head. It was his own fault he had to be doing this, right now, trying to find a way to be someone he wasn't just to be Ladybug's partner again.

He couldn't pin his bitterness on her. He'd known how she felt for a long, long time.

’I'm sorry, mon chaton...there's someone else.’

Adrien locked eyes with his reflection. It looked sad.

"Alright-" Plagg announced, making a show of cracking his back and neck as he floated back over to Adrien. "Ready for round fourteen?" The kwami asked cheekily.

Adrien rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to the mirror, scrutinizing the reflection looking back at him. What wasn't he getting? Something was missing, something he needed, but he couldn't begin to figure it out.

Feel the role.

But he was trying, and it wasn't working.

"Hey, what'd the mirror do to you?" Plagg asked, pulling Adrien from his thoughts. He turned to his kwami, hoping his despair was clear on his face.

"Aw, come on, Adrien, it's really not that hard!" Plagg said, flying around to Adrien's other side and turning his chin to look back at the mirror. "Maybe don't think of it like acting. Think of it like...wearing the scent of a new cheese!"

Adrien couldn't help but scoff, a traitorous smile quirking at the corners of his lips. Plagg continued on, undeterred.

"You're not trying to say you hate cheese." Plagg said. "You're just expressing another cheese that you like!"

Adrien blinked.

Somehow, this time, Plagg's cheese metaphor made sense to him.

"I'm still me." Adrien said slowly. "I just...need to be a different part of me."

Plagg made a delighted noise. "Finally! I get through to you! About time you started listening to my genius."

That got Adrien to actually laugh, and he turned to his kwami.

"Alright. Let's try again."

Plagg nodded, and floated up to eye level, looking at Adrien with confidence. Confidence in him. Confident that Adrien could do this.

How could Adrien have ever thought that giving him up was the right thing to do?

"I'm...sorry, by the way." Adrien admitted, looking his kwami in the eyes. "I didn't consider how backing out of being Chat Noir would make you feel."

"Pshh." Plagg waved his paw in the air fervently, like he was swatting a bug. "Enough of that mushy stuff. I have my favorite kitten back, and that's all that matters."

Adrien smiled so wide his cheeks hurt.

"Plagg, claws out!"

-

Adrien couldn't sleep.

He'd tried and failed to transform into someone new over and over after his and Plagg's "heart-to-heart", despite the advice his kwami gave him. He just couldn't see himself being anything other than what he was. Chat Noir.

Sometimes, being Chat Noir felt even more right than being Adrien Agreste.

Most times.

Adrien groaned and pressed his pillow over his face.

Maybe it would be better to just go back to Ladybug as himself. Apologize, and ask to be let back on her team. On their team.

Jealousy, hot and guilty, clenched in his gut at the thought. He'd do anything for his lady and her love, but he wasn't willing to resort to crawling back to her like a street cat, desperate for a home.

He was better than that. Or at the very least, he was more stubborn than that.

"What's eatin' ya, kid?" Plagg asked, curled up on his own little section of Adrien's pillow, his eyes softly glowing green in the dark. Adrien lifted the pillow from his face to cut a glare at his kwami.

"Geez, I was just asking." Plagg replied, his brow furrowing. "Are you really that caught up on the transformation thing?"

"Of course I am, Plagg!" Adrien cried, throwing his arms up hopelessly. "This is the only way I can be with my lady again and I can't get it right!"

Plagg made a gagging sound, which did not help Adrien's mood.

"I'll never understand how mortals are obsessed with anything other than cheese." Plagg sighed wearily, and then floated upwards off the pillow. "Okay, kid, let's go."

"Go where?" Adrien asked, his bad mood faltering a bit.

Plagg zipped over to the window. "To somewhere that will really help you transform. In any way you want."

Adrien squinted suspiciously, but sat up in bed all the same. "...What place can do that?”

-

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this," Adrien seethed, mortified, his face flushed and hot as he stared up at the neon sign that Plagg had led him to.

"What?" Plagg said, smugness in his tone as he poked his head out of Adrien's coat pocket. "There's no better place in Paris to find such masters of natural transformation. And you have superpowers at your disposal, too!"

"No better place than a drag bar?!" Adrien asked, his voice shrill as it could get with him still whispering. Plagg narrowed his eyes.

"Don't you dare talk bad about drag bars! One of my past holders got his start in one, you know!" Plagg reprimanded, sounding unusually serious. Adrien stammered.

"I don't—Plagg, I don't care that it's a drag bar!" Adrien tried to say. "I just—what if anyone sees Adrien Agreste lurking around a place like this! My father would-"

"Calm down, Adrien, sweet brie!" Plagg rolled his eyes. "I'm not asking Adrien Agreste to go in there."

Adrien went quiet as the wheels turned in his head.

"Wh—Chat Noir?!" Adrien balked. Plagg stared at him deadpan, like he was stupid. "No, obviously I mean Hawkmoth. Of course Chat Noir!"

"That's not even legal! I'm not eighteen yet!" Adrien tried to argue, though he was pretty certain nobody would question Chat Noir's age. Plagg scoffed.

"Your human lives are so short." Plagg complained. "Why would you wait for anything when every moment is so important? I'll never understand it."

"Claws out." Adrien commanded instead of answering, closing his eyes as the magic washed over him. He didn't want to risk another second being here as Adrien Agreste, even with his coat hood up.

No sooner did he open his eyes as Chat Noir, his paranoia was rewarded.

"Hey, kid, you okay?"

And Adrien turned to see the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen.

She was tall, with a wig that added two feet to her height, clad in a flattering hot pink skin-tight dress. What looked like a coat entirely made of baby pink feathers was draped over her, to combat the cold.

The most striking thing was her face. She was wearing lots of makeup, not just to look pretty but to also stand out, every stroke of eyeliner and every brush of lipstick and every pad of foundation expertly placed to accent her handsome features in all the boldest ways. 

A drag queen. Adrien had never met one before.

Is this what being starstruck was like?

"Not the well-mannered type, are we?" The queen teased, and Adrien quickly snapped his mouth shut, his face going scarlet. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't-"

"Easy, honey. I'm only kidding." The queen stood back to her full height from where she bent slightly to address him, and Adrien had to crane his neck to look her in the eye.

"What's Chat Noir doing around here?" The queen asked, and Adrien knew she wasn't being accusatory, but his heart rate picked up anyway.

"I—a friend told me—" Adrien stammered. "I-"

"You're here for the show?" The queen guided his question gently, and Adrien tried to get a hold of himself.

"Um...I-I don't know." He said, deciding to be honest. "I wanted to see how your...makeup is done?"

Blessedly, the queen's eyes lit up.

"Oh, of course!" She said, smiling. "We love teaching the next generation. It's not often we meet a lot of younger ones interested nowadays."

Oh. She thought Adrien meant he wanted to see the makeup to do it himself.

Though...isn't that why Plagg brought him here?

"It's just—really impressive," Adrien tried to pull off his regular superhero charm, and it wasn't a lie. He'd been around makeup his whole life, people all around him powdering and painting him to make sure he was the epitome of perfect before a shoot.

But this, this was...something truly incredible. This queen wasn't using makeup to cover her imperfections. She was using it as an identity, as much of a mask as his was when he transformed into Chat Noir. 

Something clicked in his head all at once.

"That's sweet of you, honey." The queen brought him back to reality with a smile. "I'd love to tell you how it's done, but I go on in five." She said, turning away from him to shuffle through her bright pink clutch she procured from her feather coat.

"But," she continued, and held out a card to him with a smile. "I have a backstage VIP class on how I apply my look, and a behind-the-scenes tour. Just give my manager a call."

Adrien took the card, glancing a look at it. In swirling purple letters were the words 'FELICITY VALENTINE', followed by a phone number.

"Felicity?" Adrien looked up, and the queen flipped her hair. "The one and only," she confirmed with a wink.

"And, hey." She said, her voice turning gentle. "Take it at your own pace, okay? No pressure."

"Thank you," Adrien replied, startled by her sudden change.

Felicity Valentine smiled at him, waved her acrylic-nail accessorized fingers, and with a swish of her feather coat, disappeared into the bar, her only goodbye being a call over her shoulder. "Ciao, whiskers!"

Leaving Adrien dumbly standing with a business card in hand, staring at the doors of the building.

He oddly felt that her words of encouragement weren't just talking about giving her a call.

-

Back in his bedroom, Adrien laid flat on his back on his couch and stared at the ceiling. It was well past 2:00 AM now, but he wasn't tired in the slightest.

A weird buzzing had overcome his chest after he got home. Something like giddiness, but much more tinged with nervousness instead of excitement.

He couldn't for the life of him figure out why.

Something about the way Felicity looked at him. Like...she knew something. Something that he didn't know himself.

Her words continued to rotate in Adrien’s mind until they didn’t sound like words anymore. 

’Take it at your own pace. No pressure.’

He thought about how Plagg compared drag to being a mask, a new identity.

Adrien sharply sat up, fueled with new determination. He quickly went to the mirror and flicked on the overhead light, his kwami uttering a sleepy mumble.

“Kid…? Wha’ are you doin’?” Plagg yawned, exposing his tiny needle-like teeth.

“I’m gonna try again.” Adrien replied, staring his reflection in the eyes.

“Can’t it wait til’ the morning?” Plagg grumped, but floated up from his little pillow despite his complaining.

“Claws out,” Adrien replied, and Plagg’s sleepy yelp was lost in the transformation.

Adrien opened his eyes, and saw-

Someone new.

He gasped, raising a hand to his masked face. His clawed gloves had been replaced with fingerless leather, the tips of his fingers now adorned with neon green acrylic nails sharp as claws. His mask was much more angular and lined in bright green, much more akin to a masquerade mask. His cat-like eyes were complimented by long, neon green eyelashes in the corners of his eyelids. His cheekbones now looked sharp as knives, the magic of the transformation having worked actual magic with his makeup and foundation.

His lips were painted black, though outlined with that same striking green. His blond hair still kept that short and shaggy look from Chat Noir’s persona, but it looked like a blown out perm that was now longer in the back, of course all pulled together by signature cat ears.

His suit was still the same skintight leather-like material, but it was now complemented by green line patterns starting at his wrists and ankles and climbing up to his knees and elbows, mimicking a fishnet texture. His boots had become platform heels with green soles, seamlessly blending with his suit. His belt-tail was now that same neon green, which hugged his waist flatteringly and pulled the eye to his figure.

Adrien uttered an awed laugh, turning to look at his—her—reflection over her shoulder and striking a pose.

“Me-ow.”

-

Adrien set off the next morning, after snatching a few hours of sleep that finally came after taking a liberal amount of photos in the mirror of the new and improved Chat Noir.

No, wait, he couldn’t be Chat Noir anymore. What would this—well, drag persona of himself be called?

Adrien chewed on the question as the “new” Black Cat Miraculous holder deftly leapt over rooftops in search of her lady.

She spotted (ha) red and black while flying over the Louvre, and redirected her course to land in front of Ladybug.

Ladybug gasped, stepping back with wide eyes. “O-oh, Plagg did it…”

Adrien fought to not smile. His plan worked perfectly, if he could even fool his beloved lady into thinking he was someone else.

Instead, she crossed one platform-heeled foot behind the other and curtsied with an imaginary skirt, her eyes on Ladybug.

“Ladybug,” She said, emulating Felicity Valentine’s confidence. “Your new Black Cat is here, upon request,” She winked, and Ladybug went as red as her suit.

“I-I can that see—I-I mean! I can see that,” Ladybug stammered, her eyes wide. “What—what should I call you?”

Adrien paused, thinking about it. Thinking about Felicity, how she effortlessly strutted like she owned every step, out to perform for another night.

“Catwalker,” She decided, unable to resist.

[zoe-oneesama]

The Kwamis! Some of these came easier than others, but since Angelic Layer has no magic involved, all the kwamis became human~ They won't be very prevalent, they're mostly here to fill in background character roles - shop clerks, MCs Tournament Directors, fans - so they won't have a whole lot of speaking roles (aside from, you know, the MCs who're there to commentate on the fights lol). But I thought I'd give them all a nice nod in the story somewhere.

As expected, Tikki and Plagg are the main MCs. Marinette and Adrien's fights will be going on concurrently so Tikki will be commentating Marinette's fights while Plagg commentates on Adrien's. They'll have the most dialogue of the kwamis, so I do want them to have unique ways of discussing what they're seeing.

Pollen will be working directly for the Bourgeois'. As a VIP with a direct relationship with the international director of Angelic Layer, Chloe has her own private practice layer in her home and Pollen is in charge of it's upkeep and maintenance. She matches Armand the Bulter's levels of competence.

Trixx is a Rena Rouge mega fan. They've been following Alya's blog for as long as they can remember and are mega stoked that Alya moved to their city. When Alya starts to doubt herself, it's Trixx's voice that can be heard cheering her on to not give up.

Nooroo and Duusu are servants in the Agreste Estate. Unknown to Adrien, they are fully aware of his sneaking around to play and the two do what they can to make excuses and deflect Nathalie when Adrien isn't where he's supposed to be. They're rooting him on from the shadows!

Wayzz is the adult son of Marianne and Fu. He brings them to Angelic Layer fights against his will because the two really enjoy them. The two seem to be really invested in Ladybug and Chat Noir's career (and the behind the scenes shenanigans that they secretly spy on).

Longg is Kagami's bodyguard. Like Nooroo and Duusu, they are fully aware of what Kagami is doing behind her mother's back and feigns ignorance when Kagami pulls something..."sneaky" to get to a fight secretly.

Here's where we get into some existing jobs from the show:

Orikko and Kaalki are the "Layer Hot Girls (and boy)". lol I just thought it was funny that Angelic Layer even has them.

Mullo is the sales clerk at the Princess Piffle store (the store where you can buy your Angel and all the accessories). All of them lol. Mullo and her many many sisters who look just like her.

Barkk and Fluff take similar but still different roles (the uniforms are ALMOST the same but there are some tiny differences). So Barkk is the receptionist at the Practice Ring (literally you pay to reserve a mini-layer to practice on) while Fluff is the waitress/cashier at the cafeteria at the Tournament Center.

(and back to making shit up lol)

Daizzi is a nurse where Rose goes to the hospital and she has segmental localized vitiligo. Rose is particularly close to Daizzi since she helps Rose make her donations to the hospital.

Sass is the backstage directory, aka, the guy who makes things run. He has an earpiece that has the same diamond pattern as his pants on it! The anime does show one person who helps backstage, but I wanted to have a little fun with Sass's look and tie in to him being "in charge" of the kwamis.

Ziggy works at Socqueline's family art supply shop, which is frequented by Angelic Layer players who are on a bit of a budget. They love talking with the customers about their angels, though mostly the design part.

Stompp is Ivan's foster mother and Roarr his foster sister (Stompp's bio-daughter). I actually didn't think of what kind of job this outfit would be good for, but I think she'd make a good security guard - usually working at rock concerts, which she bonds with Ivan over, but she's also been hired for Angelic Layer tournaments. Sometimes sore losers get a little...violent.

Roarr falls in love with Juleka's Angel Purple Tigress immediately thanks to her pre-existing love of tigers in general. She's even bold enough to proclaim her love to Juleka herself!

Xuppu is Ondine's sibling and a fan of King Monkey, though they'll go out of their way to make fun of Kim himself. Secretly, they're very invested in Kim's career and get very upset on his behalf when he loses.

[tumble-witch]

For your Bread Girl Au, do Gabriel and Emilie still have the peacock miraculous and the Grimoire? In canon Emilie gifted the Grimoire to Gabriel on a trip they went to Tibet, so would that be the same in this au? Or does Sabine have it? And what about Adrien being a sentimonster, how does that work? Is the sentimonster thing not canon here, or did Emilie and Gabriel find another way to create Adrien magically without consequences. Also, what's the relationship between the kwamis like? I can see Plagg being like a chaotic big brother figure to your au's Marinette rather than the "I'm not your dad except I totally am" figure he plays to Adrien in canon, and Tikki being a mother hen figure to Adrien (I think it's rare for the ladybug miraculous to choose men? So Tikki might be extra protective of Adrien while also being confused cause this is the first time a boy has been chosen for her. Also Adrien could remind her of Joan of Arc and THAT brings up feelings.) rather than the cheerleader/mentor figure she plays to Marinette in canon. Idk, I have alot of thoughts about your au and I just love it so much!!!

Gabriel doesn't have the Grimoire and since he went through a much different life experience, he's a different man than he might have been. In my drafts there is an already fully sketched out comic about him, so I won't be saying too much yet :)

Senti-monsters are canon here. Adrien is a normal human boy though. I might even fuck with the canon way they make sentimonsters a bit, you know, for the plot. Bread girl is Bread girl for a reason

I haven't really thought about the kwamis yet, it's a bit hard to implement such powerful beings. They're a cool plot device, but just like smartphones, they solve a bit too much problems for my liking. There's a reason in every horror plot ever there's suddenly no cell service, or the protagonists lose their phones for some reason

Really interesting questions, a lot to think about! Thank you <3

[trashart00]

Less than 12 hours until the release of “The Tortured Poets Department”!

Hence, I present to you, “The Tortured Catboy Department”

Track List:

SIDE A: Deux Semaines (feat Ladybug) / The Tortured Catboy Department / My Lady Abandons Only Her Favourite Partners / Down Bad

SIDE B: So Long, London / But Daddy I Love Her / Fresh Out the Slammer / Akuma !!! (feat Monarch)

SIDE C: Guilty As Sin? / Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me / Even Ladybug Can’t Fix This / loml

SIDE D: I Can Do It With a Broken Heart / The Smallest Man Who Ever Lived / The Cataclysm / Adrien Agreste

Bonus Tracks: The Black Cat / Solitude / Doppelgänger / Tell-Tail Heart

(Love how so many of the original track names still work)

My takes of what each song is about/inspired by under cut (but, if you feel like it, tell me yours :D)

I’m picturing all of these to be from Adrien’s perspective so they reflect mostly his version of the situations rather than the objective reality (especially the Laybug centered ones)

Deux Semaines (feat Ladybug): This one would focus on the sequence in Multiplication where Monarch doesn’t attack and how LadyNoir’s relationship recovers from the events of Season 4.

TTCD: Kept the “Catboy” singular because while there are multiple Catboy identities, there is only one boy underneath them all. Hence while I think it would be about him just stating his issues with everything, it would also focus on loneliness and how his department is understaffed :(

MLAOHFP: All of the Season 4 LadyNoir separation arc angst, with the “Favourite” being a callback to Risk (and kinda a jab at Rena because he thinks that she’s really her favourite, but y’ know, she didn’t abandon her so Rena can’t be her actual favourite)

Down Bad: Mainly about how Chat’s love for LB makes him excuse her behaviors, but also makes him act out (maybe a reference to Elation).

SL,L: About the whole arc of Gabriel sending Adrien to London and all of the memories he would have surrounding this ordeal - key point, not “So Long, Paris” because he didn’t want to leave, and in the end he comes back to a changed world.

BDILH: This one’s either about the Chat Blanc breakup or Gabriel’s dislike of Marinette in Season 5 (or both, with maybe a line about how he feels like this has happened before)

FOTS: Adrien realizing his father is a Bad Person.

Akuma !!! (feat Monarch): This one would be like a song about his daily life and then the chorus would start with a shout of “Akuma!!!” and it would switch to him as Chat Noir. I feel like it would start out with normal life being boring/hero life being fun but as it goes on he grows exhausted. Monarch has a rap verse.

Guilty As Sin?: Chat Blanc centeric - would ask who is to blame for the destruction of the world, like is it Chat because he lost control or Hawkmoth because he took advantage of his son’s emotion?

WAoLOM: Chat Blanc centric at first (like a villain song) but ends with Adrien reflecting on the events of Evolution-Destruction-Multiplication-PS night

ELCFT: I think it would be about his relaction ship with his father and how he wishes there was something he could do to go back to how they were when Emilie was alive but there’s no easy fix and his father keeps on getting worse and worse after any attempt.

loml: A song for Marinette with a bittersweet air - she’s the love of his life but he can’t tell her everything, and she can’t tell him everything either

ICDIWaBH: CatWalker centric - him going back to Ladybug in Kuroneko.

TSMWEL: I actually have three for this one - 1. About Gabriel and his need to domineer because he feels small and powerless. 2. About Adrien feeling small and insignificant. 3.About Plagg because he’s a smol boi (it would be like a lighthearted, cheeky song, like when you sing to your pet about how adorable they are)

The Cataclysm: Literally about how he cataclysmed Monarch, but also about how the event impacted his perception of self.

Adrien Agreste: Ending the album with a song that’s his own name :o.

Now for the variants:

The Black Cat: This one has Chat on the cover and the song is mostly about his bad luck. ‘I Love You It’s Ruining My Life” works both directed at Ladybug and his father.

Solitude: With Chat Blanc on the cover, this one’s about his mother. I think the “You Don’t Get To Tell Me About Sad” is pretty self-explanatory.

Doppelgänger: CatWalker is on this one, his song would be about how he may literally be the same person but he doesn’t fully feel like himself. He had to repress a lot of himself to be CatWalker hence I thought “Am I Allowed To Cry?” fit him really well (especially with Plagg not giving him the time to fully recover before he had to jump back in). Please note the crossed out name (unlike Chat Blanc) because he’s reinventing himself.

Tell-Tail Heart: This one has Ladybug on the cover - wait she’s not a Catboy?? The song is titled “Tell-Tail Heart” as a reference to Edgar Allan Poe’s “Tell Tale Heart” and would explore Chat’s perspective of Ladybug’s guilt for keeping secrets, how any excuse she makes is ultimately unimportant because she would do it either way. The fact that this is the only song title with a pun references how Chat tries to lighten the mood and avoid serious conversations, and the “Tail” is supposed to refer to Rena Rouge. The flowers she’s holding are meant to be foxgloves which symbolise secrets and insincerity (they’re also poisonous and damage the heart :)). I also really liked the “Old Habits Die Screaming” for her as it could mean both Chat Noir’s love for her being an old habit that he cannot get rid of, but also her habit of keeping things from him (especially with how she does it again at the end of season 5) being something she can’t stop. It is also him being able to see that, despite what she tells him, her “Heart” is tells him otherwise.

(also would like to point out that he wouldn’t mention Rena by name, he’s upset, not evil)

[theerurishipper]

Something I've noticed is that the show goes out of its way to portray Adrien's trauma as romantic.

In Kuro Neko, Adrien is exhibiting a trauma response wherein he invalidates his own feelings and tries to be whoever the other person wants him to be, and Catwalker is explicitly based on the mask Adrien puts on to please his abuser, which is also the persona Ladybug develops an instant crush on. What the show tells us, however, is that Adrien as Catwalker telling Ladybug that it's his own fault for being sensitive because he was hurt by her actions and following that up by promising to take care of her is romantic and wonderful.

In Strikeback, Adrien is once again downplaying his feelings and hurt in order to come to Ladybug's support because she needs him. He is once again invalidating his own hurt and absolving her of all blame. What the show tells us is that it's so romantic that Adrien was willing to push away his hurt feelings and come to her aid like a loyal partner even though she never apologized to him or promised to change her behavior.

In Protection, Adrien's tendency to want to be perfect for everybody and cater to their needs is depicted on screen, with him assuming the full blame for Marinette's confidence issues. He has a whole conversation with Kagami about how he needs to change himself for her. What the show tells us is that Adrien is so romantic and so sweet for essentially assuming blame for Marinette's inability to tell him her feelings and saying that he has to be the one to change and cater to her needs.

In Collusion, Adrien's reacting to his father sending him to London by saying "Marinette and I will last forever," is him clinging to the very little good that is going on in his life. It is him once again centering his identity around this girl and his relationship with her because he has never been allowed to be his own person. What the show tells us is that "Adrien loves Marinette so much uwu."

In Confrontation, Adrien writing "All I know is that I love Marinette Dupain Cheng," is him once more centering his whole life around his girlfriend because he has been conditioned into defining himself around other people because he has never been allowed to an individual in his own right. What the show tells us again is that Adrien loves Marinette so, so much, you guyz.

In Conformation (credit to this post by @youremarvelous), Adrien telling Plagg he's angry at himself for falling short of Marinette's love is also him downplaying his own feelings and placing more importance on her, and him believing that he has fallen short of her love stems from him belief that he has to earn love. He's just shifted from defining himself based on Gabriel's wishes to defining himself based on Marinette's wishes. What the show tells us is that Adrien is such a good boyfriend for wanting to be perfect for Marinette.

The discrepancy between what has been portrayed and what the show wants us to think is concerning, to say the least.

[marinettesaltprompts]

Not sure if you're still active, but here's a 'prompt':

Maribat, but without the wish-fulfillment:

The bats-family comes to Paris, and the usual Maribat stuff happens. Shadowmoth is found, Lila gets revealed, Marinette gets to castigate her friends to the bone beofre dimissing them as vile people beneath her notice and Adrien gets summarily replaced because Plagg's Miraculous is apparently Ladybug's engagement ring and Damian is "just better". To top it all off, Marinette is taken under Batman's wing, and without an active threat in Paris leaves for Gotham.

It's not what she expected.

She realises the true depths of human cruelty without the insanity of Akumatisation to hide behind,

She gets to learn what it's like to be the last person to know plans because SHE'S not the one calling the shots anymore, indeed: she's the most junior person int eh chain of command. She's the one who has to shut and obey when push come to shove, and get excluded from decisions that effect her and information that she should have but Batman keeps locked up under "need to know". And she's not on the list.

Because why would she be? She was the child who struggled to find Shadowmoth while she had a box of magical superweapons- including one that could give her any power she asked of it- when it took Batman his Robins maybe a week at most to do the same with conventional methods.

She even finds out that Batman has a dozen contingencies in place to take the box and Miraculous from her if she goes rogue. Based on information he's accumulated from her while she spent time under his roof and trained to impress him.

Oh, and to add salt to the wound: Damian makes it clear that he doesn't consider her his equal. Guardian or not. Certainly not someone he's going to take orders from, or someone he's interested in romantically for that matter. It takes more than a reasonably attractive face and talent for magical devices to interest Damian Wayne; and beyond those things what's exceptional about Marinette Dupain-Cheng compared to the other potential love interests he already had?

Did it occur to her that he might already be in a relationship before she gave him the ring? Because it seems like she's committing the same sin that Adrien Agreste once did in assuming the bearers of Destruction and Creation have some special destiny to be together.

(Adrien could tell her how that works out).

So now Marinette's stuck in a new, far less friendly city, speaking a foreign language and in a home filled with strangers she impulsively threw her old life away to be with. And she has to live with it because of how she burned her bridges.

Great Post! You put a lot of thought into the prompt, and the idea of Ladybug being brought into a situation where she's way in over her head and not instantly the main person in charge (just because she holds a powerful set of magical earrings) actually sounds great! Though that itself could be its own fanfic idea.

I myself am not personally fond of the Maribat part of the fandom or the idea of even mentioning it, given that it and the the idea of Marinette and Damian ever being a thing represents everything bad about the salty part of the fandom, especially from people who likely never read any actual DC comic involving Damian.

However, I do appreciate how you deconstructed the idea of not only Damian instantly being Marinette's love interest, but also how Marinette meeting the Batfamily would instantly make her part of it or even their favorite, since neither of those would likely ever happen given the dark and gritty nature of Batman comics contrasting with the light and generally perfect world of Miraculous.

I mean, the idea of Marinette relating in any way to the BatFam would be ridiculous in canon, considering her generally perfect and happy family life in comparison to everyone in the BatFam differing flavors of trauma. By comparison, Lila being a bitch or her friends not believing her seems mundane by comparison.

Anyways, love the post!

[immaturityofthomasastruc]

Every Episode of Miraculous Ladybug Season 5 Ranked (Part 2)

Part 1

(This site's stupid 30 images per post forced me to do this, so thanks for nothing, Tumblr)

#14: Transmission

I swear, I'm not doing these on purpose. This is just how I've been ranking the episodes.

Like I said in the last part, this episode just did not need to happen. The first half is cheap melodrama between Marinette and Adrien and the second half is a run of the mill Akuma fight with two different heroes. This is the story that seriously warranted two parts this season?

I just can't stand the fact that Marinette and Adrien gave up their Miraculous so easily here. Maybe if it was Season 2, Season 3 at the latest, I'd buy it, but near the middle of Season 5? They honestly view their love lives as more important than the battle with Monarch. If it was anything else like the stress or physical danger, I'd also be understanding, but Tikki and Plagg decide that Marinette and Adrien are so miserable that they need to be happy by losing their Miraculous without a fight. Remember, this was just two episodes after “Reunion”, which showed Joan of Arc was a Miraculous holder. So fighting in the Hundred Years' War didn't get so much as an ounce of concern from Tikki, but teenage angst is too much for her little heart to bear?

Maybe it's the benefit of knowing this won't be permanent, but the issue I have is how much the show draws this out for so long, as if the audience is supposed to buy it. “It's really happening, guys! Ladybug and Cat Noir won't be the stars anymore, we swear!” This kind of plot can work under the right circumstances. All you needed to do is at the very least, make it something they choose to do instead of their Kwamis taking their Miraculous away so we can see them weigh the benefits of giving up life as a superhero in ways that aren't exclusively about their love lives. I'd even buy it if it's something Ladybug and Cat Noir actually agreed on before quitting.

While I can sort of get Alya becoming Scarabella due to her experience with the Ladybug (even if she chose to give up using any Miraculous at the end of Season 4), Zoe getting the Cat just feels like the writers put a bunch of names in a hat and picked hers. The two just don't have as compelling a dynamic as Ladybug and Cat Noir do, because they don't get a lot of time to know each other. Alya and Zoe have almost never interact with each other, so the masks don't really shake up their relationship, because there's no relationship to speak of.

Also, the Akuma here was really forced. We know nothing about this new character while the show acts like we're supposed to know who he is based on some minor hints with Nora calling earlier. While I will give the show credit for arguably giving us the most powerful Akuma of all time due to being both a man and a bear, he's as forgettable as a villain as Kitty Noire is as a hero.

Just about nobody here comes out smelling like roses in this episode. The Kwamis are morons for caring about one ship becoming canon, Marinette and Adrien are selfish cowards for giving up their Miraculous with little hesitation, their friends are ignorant buffoons for thinking some random attempt to get Marinette and Adrien to talk will somehow seal the deal, and Alya and Zoe are idiots for not thinking that they should take off the shiny ring that tracks their every movement. It's a terrible episode, and the only reason why “Deflagration” is ranked higher is because it didn't irritate me as much as this one did.

#15: Determination

And now we're onto the really bad episodes this season.

This episode is pretty much what you've come to expect by Season 5. People keep forcing Marinette into situations she's clearly uncomfortable, and we're supposed to just laugh at her anxiety, because we still have eight episodes to go before the show decides to take her mental health seriously.

What makes this episode really sting for me is that it's Luka and Kagami that are forcing Marinette into these unfunny antics this time. For the most part, they never really stooped to this level and didn't try to force anything with their respective love interests until they had trouble in their relationships that required them to communicate. But now, even though one knows Marinette and Adrien are superheroes while the other is usually very blunt with her feelings (at least, before she became this season's next victim), they're going to try forcing Marinette and Adrien to spend time together even they both know they have feelings for each other and MY GOD, THIS IS SO STUPID! It's just a cheap excuse for more pointless shenanigans that stopped being funny years ago.

Yet somehow, that's not the worst of the Love Square drama this episode. It's here where we learn that Adrien fell in love with Marinette over a season ago, during a scene where she violated his personal space. In addition, Adrien somehow showed no signs of attraction to Marinette until the plot demanded it, and came right after another episode showing him falling for her. Why not make it the fake confession Marinette practiced with Cat Noir in “Glaciator 2”? The kiss Marinette gave Adrien at the end of “Heroes' Day”? I'd even take another umbrella scene callback like in “Mr. Pigeon 72”. But no, it's the statue scene that the writers decided on. It's like they noticed all the criticism Marinette got in that episode and were like “Joke's on you! Adrien actually liked being lusted over like an object!”.

And then the masks come on and make things even more convoluted. Adrien at least got to reflect on the events of a previous episode to explain his new feelings for Marinette, but what caused Ladybug to suddenly fall for Cat Noir after four seasons?

The writers don't even bother with an explanation for this. Ladybug spontaneously becomes attracted to Cat Noir with absolutely no foreshadowing, buildup, or even callbacks to earlier episodes. The writers either wanted to complicate things one last time before Adrienette became canon, they wanted to bury the Ladynoir conflict arc from last season in the sand, or the most likely option, a combination of both.

The idea of the public turning on Ladybug was an interesting one to take, seeing how she's been universally beloved for the past four seasons. But despite hinting at it in “Multiplication”, this is the farthest is goes, and even then, guess who's behind it? You can't keep raising points against the main characters if it's only Chloe who does it. It doesn't open debate on the story and essentially tells the audience that they're wrong to agree with her, no matter what kind of point she makes.

As dumb as the way it happened was, Ladybug still screwed up and endangered the city by losing the other Miraculous, but we can't actually challenge children by acknowledging that the hero actually did something wrong and needs to grow as a person. We need to use a recurring character as a strawman to tell the audience that only bad people think this way! Way to remove any interesting internal conflict, writers.

The Akuma was pretty weak, just being an older Puppeteer, down to using wax statues like what happened in “Puppeteer 2”. The army of wax heroes could have been interesting, but there wasn't enough time to do much with the idea. The one thing I liked was how the Ox Miraculous' Resistance was used. It felt like an upgrade instead of a core power Manipula got.

This episode pretty much set the stage for a new level of frustrating Love Square drama this season, and it was one of the season's first outright awful episodes.

#16: Conformation

The only reason this episode isn't at the bottom is because the rest of the ones on this list are far worse by comparison. Make of that what you will.

Like most season finales, this one continues the tradition of being better at buildup than actual execution. Gabriel's plan is pretty decent, even if it's just Heroes Day on a global scale. He utilizes his public influence and business skills to plan out a plan to get almost all of humanity working for him. While I don't like the Miraculized, I still think Gabriel being on top works here, especially since he's not going out into the field like the last three finales.

But other than an okay evil plan, this episode is still pretty bad. Marinette being infected with nightmare dust only happens to get her to the Agreste manor because the writers forgot that Marinette learned Gabriel was Monarch last episode. It could have been a decent way to up the stakes by showing Ladybug not being at 100%, but like everyone else, she just fights off the nightmare dust and doesn't have a single problem during her fight with Monarch. In general, the nightmare dust isn't really utilized well, only being an excuse to bring out the Miraculized. It doesn't impact everyone fighting off the Miraculized, and there's no lesson or theme about fear that's conveyed here.

Speaking of nightmare dust, I'm pretty sure the only reason why it was introduced in the first place was to bench Adrien, which is still easily one of the dumbest decisions the show has ever made. While everyone else had no problem resisting the nightmare dust, Adrien is just physically incapable of doing so because of some half-assed character arc the show pretended happened. So either Adrien got a more potent dosage of the nightmare dust, or Adrien's just too weak to actually overcome his fears. “Sandboy”? Never heard of it! The fact that the writers also tried to claim they were being subversive with fairy tale tropes and cliches didn't help, since it devalues Adrien as a character even further. He's not a superhero and Ladybug's closest ally. He's just some damsel in distress who needs to be saved. Let me just remind you, if the genders were reversed, this would not be seen as some bold move, but the same overused cliche trying to be something new.

I already talked about my problems with Nathalie in “Passion”, and the stuff she does here isn't really different. Despite enabling Gabriel for five seasons, the episode has the balls to act like Nathalie always had morals and is appalled by Gabriel planning to sacrifice someone to save his wife. Just remember, “Passion” established that Nathalie had a history as a treasure hunter, so this is like Indiana Jones not knowing what the Holy Grail does. Nathalie only got dumber than in “Passion” because she somehow thought she could take on a supervillain with nothing but a crossbow and a body that already has one foot in the grave. And just like Felix, Nathalie can't even apologize to Ladybug for the aiding and abetting a terrorist thing. Between Nathalie, Felix, and Gabriel, does using the Peacock Miraculous just make you an idiot?

While the buildup is decent, it's just not enough to really get audiences excited for the second part.

#17: Representation

This episode is yet another example of the show's double standards.

Without going into detail too much, this episode came right after “Revolution”, the one that essentially portrayed Audrey taking control of Chloe's life as a karmic punishment. What happens in this episode? We learn Felix's father literally took control of his life and it's portrayed as wrong as child abuse should be. That's why this episode is still better than “Revolution”. It at the very least understands how serious child abuse is, and tries to tell Felix's story with as much dignity as two teenagers in white onesies can have.

With that being said, there's a reason why this episode is as low as it is. The Sentimonster play used to tell Marinette about Felix is just so stupid. The sets and costumes look ridiculous, it's hard to take the story seriously with Felix and Kagami doing all the voices, and most of it is unnecessary since the whole point is to tell Marinette that Gabriel is Monarch... something that the writers decided she needed to find out on her own in the next episode. It comes across less like Felix trying to alert Ladybug to who Monarch really is and more like he's just trying to justify his own actions. Hell, the actual reason he decided to tell Marinette about Gabriel was because he and Kagami were worried about their own relationship being ruined by him. And yet somehow, Ladybug lets him on the team at the end of the season.

The stuff with Adrien was also pretty dumb. It's cheap fanservice that reminds the audience of Cat Blanc when none of the characters should know who Cat Blanc is. You can call him Anticat all you want, but everyone can see that he's just Cat Blanc with blue hair. It's bad enough that this was what all the times Cat Noir almost Cataclysming people this season was meant to lead up to, but this is pretty much the reason why Adrien is benched during the finale.

This episode really shows how desperate the writers are to make people take this show seriously by showing serious topics like genocide and child abuse, as if the show didn't already ignore the horrible implications previous episodes (like the very last one before this) raised and will continue to raise during the season finale. So much of the episode is just dark for the sake of being dark. It's nothing too horrifying for children, of course, but the issue is how obvious it is that the writers are trying to raise the stakes right before the season finale and show how mature the show's writing is. For lack of a better term, it's this show's equivalent to “Ow The Edge”.

#18: Revelation

Get ready for the episode where the writers abandon all attempts to be subtle and create an episode specifically to attack people who think Chloe isn't the most evil character on the show. Because how dare they be optimistic and try to see the good in people! What do they think this is, a kids' show?

While a big problem with the Lila episodes was how stupid the class is, this episode made it so Marinette got to join in on losing brain cells too. Despite outright admitting to neglecting her duties as class representative (as absurd as it is to be in charge of notifying teachers about student progress they should be aware of), we're supposed to agree with her for not telling her teacher about Chloe cheating. Not only does this make no sense since you'd think Marinette would want to see Chloe get punished, but her claiming that all Chloe does is abuse her privileges loses any point to it because Marinette admitted to not doing her job as class representative, making her just as lazy as Chloe and unintentionally helping her through not telling the teachers. And that's not even getting into how many times Marinette has broken the secret identity rule despite also being the one to enforce it the most as the Guardian.

If the episode at least admitted to Marinette having personal issues that prevented her from displaying any form of professionalism towards Chloe (especially since this episode takes place after “Derision”), that'd be fine. Sometimes, people just can't let bygones be bygones and let their emotions dictate how they handle things. If she willingly resigned from her position by admitting she was just as at fault for Chloe getting as far as she did with her cheating, that would have worked. Instead, the episode does the same things it did with Adrien for the last few seasons: Go out of its way to vindicate Marinette's complaining and never even consider the idea of her being wrong in the slightest.

It's also hilarious to see Ms. Bustier act like an actual teacher for once and plan to work with Chloe to help make up her missed work, but portray it as a bad thing because in Marinette's eyes, that's not a punishment. Since the school year is almost over, Chloe will have to attend summer school at best and be held back or even expelled at worst. How the hell does that not count as a punishment, Marinette?

And don't forget how she gets not one, but two separate scenes insulting people for being idealistic and not wanting to write off people as beyond saving, the second one being copied from Astruc's Twittter.

And remember, this was right before a string of episodes where characters were able to change their ways, including Sabrina (Chloe's accomplice), Andre (Chloe's enabler), and Gabriel (Chloe's supervillain contact). How the hell is Chloe the only one being written off as irredeemable when she didn't pull off any of her evil plans without help? You can still punish Chloe. All I want is for the other characters to be punished as well.

But let's talk about the main event for this episode: Lila. In one of the most confusing “twists” in the show's history, she's now an identity thief who lives with three different mothers. Why? Because the writers have no idea how to hype people up for her being the main villain for Season 6, so they think just making her mysterious for the sake of making her mysterious is enough to build her up as a villain. It's like the writers realized Lila had absolutely zero resources of her own, so they felt like they needed to establish her as an evil genius to compensate. “Who cares if there's no logical explanation for how she's gotten as far as she has despite constantly boasting about her celebrity connections in public? We have to make her vague and mysterious, damn it! It worked for Judas Traveller and Kaine, didn't it?”

This episode takes multiple shots at fans and tries to make Lila seem more compelling than she actually is. It feels more like damage control than an actual plot-relevant episode.

#19: Illusion

Want to see the main characters acting like idiots for almost a half-hour? No? Too bad!

So much of this episode's conflict, the characters trying to investigate a possible lead related to Monarch, comes from everyone making stupid decisions. Nino tries to get one of the most influencial men in Paris akumatized, talks about it in public, falls for his trick, and lets him into his secret alliance. This season really cemented his role as the Zapp Brannigan of Miraculous Ladybug with how incompetent he is. If you really want to start portraying Nino as a tactical genius, maybe you should actually show him doing something smart instead of getting outsmarted by obvious tricks.

Of course, the other characters aren't immune to Nino's stupidity either. Marinette, Adrien, and Alya just go along with his asinine plan to get Gabriel akumatized, never question his logic, and ultimately still go along with the Resistance despite how obnoxious their leader is. The worst part is Ladybug not recognizing her own partner being stung by Venom... when they're fighting someone with access to over a dozen Miraculous. I know Cat Noir was born with glass bones and paper skin, but I don't think he literally freezes in terror when he's scared. And of course, Ladybug never questions the tiny invisible men who stunned Cat Noir after this scene.

The cafeteria scene is something that should really be cited as an example of how terrible this show is with acknowledging continuity. You thought there would be some compelling drama discussing the secret identity rule and all the double standards it has? NOPE! It's a funny joke about how confusing the identity stuff is at this point. The fact that Nino somehow doesn't understand the concept of secret identities in this scene is yet another reason as to why he isn't even qualified to lead an anime club, much less a resistance against Monarch.

The idea of Monarch using an illusion to fight Ladybug and Cat Noir was an interesting one, but it still had some holes. For one thing, what if the two heroes can't dodge one of the illusion Collector's attacks? What if they're fast enough to try tying him up, only to dispel the illusion? The entire plan pretty much relies on the fact that Ladybug and Cat Noir are too slow to catch the Collector.

But one scene that has only become more questionable after the finale is Ladybug trying to reach through to the illusion Collector. Like several episodes this season, it comes across like the show is spitting on idealism and wanting to solve problems peacefully because Monarch tricked Ladybug into believing he willingly rejected an Akuma. Remember kids, if someone says they want to change, it's really a trick as part of an evil supervillain's plan to maintain his secret identity.

This episode is like a microcosm of everything wrong with Season 5. Poor morals, characters acting like idiots, shooting down any potential for plot development, and being told characters are right when their actions say otherwise.

#20: Confrontation

Ladies and gentlemen, I give you the episode where the writers just gave up.

There is just so much that happens in this episode that the writers cram in. There's Marinette's “final” confrontation with Lila, the battle with Reflekta, Sabrina's redemption, Juleka's character development, Ms. Bustier's character development, Mr. Damocles' character development, and the reveal of Lila's true nature. I don't think I need to tell you that the writers struggle to make all of these plot threads work in less than a half-hour.

First off, Marinette and Lila. The previous episode implied that Marinette let Lila have this short-term victory because she had her own plan to expose her. This episode puts that plan into action. See, she has the genius idea of going along with submitting school application forms to Lila and Chloe with no actual countermeasure in place, waiting for Sabrina to have a sudden change of heart so they can work together to expose Lila and Chloe through a bathroom peephole. This is the kind of tactical intelligence that will be studied in the history books, let me tell you. There's just no weight to Marinette and Lila's final battle of wits because there isn't any. There's no series of gambits or scenarios that actually pit their minds against each other, so you don't get a lot of satisfaction from Marinette's triumph over Lila. It doesn't help that there's more focus on Sabrina than on Marinette, but I'll get to that later. Even the actual payoff is anti-climactic. Most of the class' apology to Marinette was deleted because Mr. Damocles using a Magical Charm shield was just too important to leave on the cutting room floor according to the writers.

This episode really shows just how Marinette's classmates are like NPCs in the Lila-centric stories. They don't second guess Lila's accusations due to their past experiences with Marinette, and as soon as Marinette's name is cleared, they instantly apologize to her and don't even think about how easily they were fooled by Lila and Chloe. The worst example is Alya, Marinette's confidant and someone who was trusted to temporarily use the Ladybug Miraculous last episode, falling for this and not trusting Marinette. My sister in Christ, your friend goes out and saves lives on a weekly basis at least. How can you fall for Lila's story? This is why I think the Lila episodes should have all been set pre-Season 4, so Alya falling for Lila's lies is a little more believable since she isn't already in on Marinette's biggest secret.

I also have to roll my eyes at how melodramatic the talk about everyone's “futures” is. Yes, I don't know a lot about the French education system (If there's anything I'm getting wrong here, don't hesitate to let me know), but I don't get why they're treating their high school choices like such a big deal. Maybe if it was college, I'd get it, but high school? Why can't you just transfer if it doesn't work out? But then again, this is the same show created by a man who thinks school uniforms are a sign of fascism.

THIS IS WHAT THOMAS ASTRUC ACTUALLY BELIEVES.

Speaking of futures, this episode also showed just how little the writers cared about Adrien at this point, with how a supposedly heartwaming moment is him having no plan in life other than Marinette. I know this might seem weird given my problem with him last season was his refusal to think about anyone but himself, but there's a difference between wanting someone to follow orders without complaining and giving them absolutely no motivation outside of their significant other. And once again, if you swap the genders, this becomes sexist as hell.

But the big problem comes in the form of how the side characters are utilized. I don't know why the writers decided to focus on developing characters like Sabrina, Juleka, Ms. Bustier, and Mr. Damocles with five episodes left in the season. This should have been done in earlier episodes, not in the middle of a major story arc. I'm just left not caring about the development because it takes away from the conflict between Marinette and Lila, to say nothing about how little Adrien and Alya contribute to the story.

To me, this episode feels like the writers had no idea how to make Marinette outsmarting Lila into an episode, so they crammed in all these half-assed character arcs to pad out the runtime. While “Revelation” personally upset me more, I personally think this is the worse episode of the two from a writing standpoint.

#21: Revolution

Given how often I've criticized the way Chloe has been handled over the years, I bet you're surprised that this one isn't at the bottom of the list. You'll be even more surprised to learn that I think Chloe is one of this episode's saving graces.

This episode (along with “Derision”) provide an example of the Chloe we should have gotten ever since Season 3 ended: A villain who's allowed to be a threat while still being funny. So much of the past two seasons have done nothing but portray Chloe as nothing but an incompetent joke, but here, near the end of the season, she's in a position of power and is taken seriously. The episode does a good job showing how tyrannical Chloe's rule as Mayor is while still making it funny and in-character for her. She uses her power on frivolous things because she's a teenage girl who doesn't understand the complicated issues that come with politics. It's also why her idea of punishment involves detention, because it's something she's more familiar with as someone in middle school. Of course, even the episode all about Chloe ruling Paris with an iron fist isn't stupid enough to actually let Chloe be a compelling antagonist. No, we need to constantly remind the audience that Chloe is being played, as if we're supposed to see her as nothing more than a pawn even though the show still wants us to see her as an irredeemable monster.

Putting aside that one speck of something interesting, this episode is still incredibly bad. So much of the story is dependent not on how smart the villains' plan is, but rather, how lazy the heroes are. Not only is there not a single moment where Ladybug and Cat Noir acknowledge that the whole reason why Chloe was able to take over as Mayor was their fault, they act as if Chloe abusing her power to make everyone's life a living hell isn't enough of a reason to stop her. What kind of Prime Directive bullshit is this? YOU JUST HELPED SOMEONE LEAD AN INSURRECTION AGAINST A POWERLESS CIVILIAN! HOW IS THIS ANY DIFFERENT?! If there was at least something involving Ladybug and Cat Noir taking responsibility for what happened or at least showing that they played a part in this (especially since they “grow up” in this episode), I'd get it. Instead, because this is Season 5, our heroes are perfection incarnate, and can't ever be wrong. Even when they finally decide to get off their asses and stop Chloe, they didn't know she was akumatized, and nobody seemed to care before Chloe blurted it out, so Ladybug and Cat Noir have no excuses for slacking off.

The final battle is just a joke. Not only is it another excuse to force the Resistance into the plot, it shows Ladybug and Cat Noir unlocking the full power of their Miraculous in the most anti-climactic way possible. Even though they spent most of the episode caring more about their personal lives than actually stopping the obvious threat, somehow, this means they “grew up”. There's no buildup, no explanation, and no catharsis gained from this achievement. All of a sudden, Ladybug and Cat Noir are adults now. There's one decent scene with Adrien, but that's far from an actual explanation. What, did you actually expect an explanation for something this huge? Too bad! We need to have Marinette tell Chloe she's not afraid of her anymore even though she was never afraid of her prior to this season. Of all the things that happened this season, this is the one that makes it clear that Season 5 was supposed to be the end. There is no way Season 6 can happen unless the writers come up with some crap that undoes this, because Ladybug and Cat Noir have essentially unlocked god mode.

But I saved the worst for last, and you all know what it is: Chloe's punishment. I still can't get over the fact that there's actually a scene heavily implying we're supposed to be happy Chloe is going to live with her emotionally abusive mother in the same season that's trying to tell a serious story about child abuse. There's already been so much said about all the horrible things this implies, so I'm going to try and bring up something else. Specifically, how everyone is just okay with this. I can buy Ladybug given all the things Chloe has done to her, but it's pretty odd that Cat Noir, Andre, and Zoe all decide to wash their hands of their association with Chloe as if they never knew her. They don't even feel bad that it had to come to this, and feel absolutely no sympathy for her. Remember in episodes like “Malediktator” and “Queen Banana” that showed Adrien and Zoe still cared for Chloe despite all the terrible things she's done, teaching kids a lesson about trying to show compassion to your enemies? The writers sure didn't, because Adrien and Zoe don't get to say a thing about Chloe after she's defeated. Way to establish connections between characters and do nothing with them, writers!

This episode had so many things wrong with it, and it only got worse the longer it went on, to the point where the ending is essentially condoning child abuse. It's disgusting, but at the very least, it means we're not going to have to deal with Chloe in Season 6.

.....

#22: Adoration

This is one of those episodes I honestly didn't think would hate as much as I did.

I think of all the episodes this season, this is the one that shows how frustratingly inconsistent the characterization is. Characters will either announce how much someone has changed or will take a complete 180 while the show makes it clear this is how things have always been. Not only does the show say Zoe has somehow changed and suddenly developed feelings for Marinette, but Chloe's view of Sabrina has gotten even lower, to the point where she calls her an underling to her face. Because actually showing character development and changing interpersonal relationships is too hard for these writers. It's like that rule everyone knows: Tell, don't show. That's how it goes, right?

Before anyone gets on my case about this, I'm not trying to say that Zoe having a crush on Marinette was a bad idea. The issue is more how it comes across like the show is trying to earn brownie points with LGBT+ audiences with the reveal. The issue is that this major revelation isn't about Zoe, but rather, Marinette. It's from a Marinette-focused episode all about her heterosexual feelings for Adrien while Zoe's coming out story is nothing more than a cautionary tale to get Marinette to finally try kissing Adrien. I'm not saying Marinette should have dumped Adrien to be with Zoe. The point I'm trying to make is if you want to show something as huge as a character coming out as sapphic, maybe put more focus on that character's struggles than the struggles the straight main character goes through. Maybe instead of being an afterthought in the story, make the episode about Marinette helping Zoe confess her feelings to a girl she likes.

This was also the episode that laid the groundwork for Andre and Sabrina's “redemption arcs”. Normally, I wouldn't mind something like them changing, but it's less to show a character becoming a better person and more to vilify a different character. Andre went from a corrupt politician who abuses his power to please his daughter to an honest politician who is forced to abuse his power to please his daughter. Sabrina went from Chloe's loyal friend who chooses to help her make people miserable to Chloe's underling who is being forced to help make people miserable. Both of them were perfectly willing to go along with Chloe's acts in the past, and as we saw in “Revolution”, being a pawn didn't excuse her from being punished, so by that logic, they shouldn't get a free pass either. It's also strange how this wasn't the episode where Andre and Sabrina officially cut ties with Chloe, considering they already had issues with them. There wasn't really a reason to wait if they already made their issues clear, especially Sabrina. Somehow framing Marinette here is okay but doing it a few episodes later is too much for her?

Also, Lila served no purpose in the episode. Just like in “Collusion” and “Revolution”, all she does is tell Chloe to do things she was perfectly capable of doing in earlier episodes. We're supposed to see her as a mastermind, but I don't get why she has to hold Chloe's hand here. Why can't Lila come up with her own plan or manipulate different people from behind the scenes? It only further highlights the double standards because while Sabrina being a lackey to Chloe earns her sympathy, Chloe being a lackey to Lila doesn't for some reason.

I am getting really tired of the whole “Nobody believes Marinette” formula that every Lila episode relies on (Chameleon, Ladybug, Risk, Revelation, Confrontation). It's the exact same story. Everyone who has known Marinette for the past four seasons suddenly loses all trust in her, only instead of instantly believing Lila, it's Chloe. CHLOE. This is worse than Lila, because she's at least in good graces with other people, but this is the same season that solidified the idea of nobody liking her at all. They seriously take her words at face value over Marinette, someone whose friends know has tormented her for a year at least (Derision)? Put aside how I feel about Chloe, this is a story that depends on trusting someone nobody has any reason to trust, and it makes no sense.

There are just so many minor issues in this episode that pile up enough to really piss me off. It's like a death by a thousand cuts.

#23: Collusion

I normally don't try to get political on this blog unless I absolutely have to, and talking about this episode is one of those occasions.

If you've been around since the early days of this blog, you'll remember that Astruc once compared Chloe to Donald Trump, and not too long after the January 6th attack on the Capitol Building at that.

Even before that thread, Astruc made a joke comparing Trump to Chloe less than a week after the attack.

Whether you agree with Astruc's views on Trump or not, the point is that he kept up with American politics and strongly opposes him. So anyway, let's get to the episode where the heroes let someone lead a small army to storm the mayor's office and force him to resign, which is totally different from what Trump did.

I cannot get over just how confusing this episode is. For a show created by someone who usually keeps up with American politics, this is such a tone-deaf episode. I get that the story is trying to lean into French history, and I'm not sure how far into production the crew was when the attack on the Capitol happened, but given how Astruc was aware of the drama, he and his team should have at least considered the implications this episode could raise. The problem with the discussion around January 6th is that the supporters see it in as righteous a light as Miss Sans-Culotte is. As far as they know, what happened wasn't a violent invasion of government property, but a peaceful demonstration. Sure, none of the talking balloons said “Hang Andre Bourgeois!”, but it still brings similar imagery to mind.

Something that also harms the French Revolution narrative is the fact that all of Miss Sans-Culotte's supporters are helping her against her will. Much like countless Akumas throughout the show's history (Darkblade, Kung Food, The Puppeteer, Princess Fragrance, Despair Bear, Befana, Zombizou, Malediktator, Gamer 2.0, Mr. Pigeon 72, Hack-San, Revelation, Confrontation), Miss Sans-Culotte brainwashes innocent civilians so they can help her cause. This goes against the idea that she's speaking for the people, because her victims don't have a say in this. She's not reenacting the French Revolution, she's reenacting Order 66!

Also, this is something I've neglected to discuss. Why make Miss Bustier pregnant at all, much less akumatize her while pregnant? Outside of her students telling Chloe not to make a scene because the stress caused from dealing that is bad for the baby, Ms. Bustier's pregnancy adds nothing to the story. Seriously, the story thinks Chloe annoying the class is more dangerous for Ms. Bustier's baby than Ms. Bustier herself running around and getting into fights with her baby inside. It could have made for some interesting drama where Ladybug and Cat Noir are hesitant to hurt a pregnant woman, even if she's been akumatized. While the writers do try to work around it by giving her minions to do the fighting (as much as it mucks up the themes of this episode), it still doesn't explain why she needed to be pregnant during this episode in the first place.

Putting aside how unlikable Miss Sans-Culotte is in this episode, you can't even enjoy seeing Andre getting kicked out of office because this is the same episode where the writers really want us to feel bad for him. Look at how sad the rich white politician is. Let's ignore the fact that he's a big part of the reason why Chloe is as bad as she is, has abused his power multiple times, and is all around the cause of his own problems. But even though this is a show that tries to take an anti-capitalist stance (which I'll get to more in “Emotion”), we're supposed to side with one of the biggest symbols of everything wrong with capitalism and political corruption. Even then, Andre is framed for corruption instead of the several instances he actually abused his power, as if they're trying to say he was never a corrupt man. He just loves his daughter. Is that too much to ask for? His daughter herself? Eh, who cares? You really need to support the rich white man. Are we sure this show was created by a liberal?

But the biggest issue is the moral. It's impossible to frame Miss Sans-Culotte storming the mayor's office as a peaceful protest because she's clearly inspired by one of the bloodiest and most violent revolutions in history. If she was supposed to be a violent warrior who needed to learn there was a better way, that would work, but instead, the show downplays how dangerous she is... when she has a guillotine blade for a weapon. You can't claim Miss Sans-Culotte is non-violently protesting Andre's administration when she brainwashes innocent civilians, storms into the building, and demands he resign without any question. Even taking all that into consideration, the moral ends up backfiring because forcing Andre out of office caused an even bigger problem with Chloe taking over, and the very next episode threw the non-violence message out the window.

Whether or not you want to consider the political implications here, this is still a terrible episode with a terrible moral.

#24: Pretension

I've always had issues with Felix, and after the trainwreck that was “Emotion”, let's just say this didn't exactly do anything to raise my opinion of him. Just like his other appearances for the last few seasons, he did absolutely nothing to help Ladybug, focused on only doing things that benefited him, and making everyone's lives worse due to his incompetence. And somehow, this idiot is the one who moves the plot along the most.

The entire conflict happened because Felix kidnapped Kagami without even coming up with a plan. Even when he believes that Kagami is a Sentimonster (I apologize for saying that word Felix hates, but once again, the show provides no alternative to it), he doesn't think of Tomoe being able to track her or command her to leave even at a far distance. He doesn't even try to explain himself to Ladybug and Cat Noir and spends more time running away from everyone who wants to kick his ass. But by the show's logic, he just needs friends, even though his entire deal is that he works alone to get what he wants.

It's bad enough that Felix has to screw up everything he touches, but now he's dragging Kagami to his level. Kagami has cemented her role as Felix's lackey/girlfriend and nothing more. People give Marinette crap for the way the behaves around Adrien in and out of universe, but Kagami knows nothing about Felix, yet a single conversation about his past is enough for her to fall head over heels in love with him. She went from someone not willing to take any bullcrap from Marinette and Adrien to believing Felix's story in a fraction of a heartbeat. This season really likes ruining the few likable characters the show has left.

I also have to roll my eyes at the conversation Marinette and Gabriel have about fashion. For one thing, it's one of the few times the entire season remembers that Marinette wants to be a fashion designer and doesn't really factor into her rivalry with Gabriel. This season made their conflict revolve around how to treat Adrien, not their views on fashion. It feels like they only brought it up to remind viewers that Marinette is still into fashion. Well, that, and also to take a stance on artistic integrity... supposedly.

And on that note, it's amazing how the writers display little to no self-awareness during this scene. The show that embraces sticking to the status quo and rejecting almost any attempt at keeping consistent continuity is now trying to teach children about the importance of being willing to take risks when creating something. This is like Hannibal Lecter trying to promote veganism. I get the message, but the messenger's history is keeping me from buying it. It doesn't help that for a scene trying to point out how outdated certain views are, the show ultimately chooses to take the side of the man with the “wrong” mindset by the end of the season.

The pancake metaphor really confuses me too. It's meant to be a running gag that the only thing Gabriel knows how to cook is pancakes, but A) Nothing is really indicated to show how terrible they are as a metaphor for how bad his outdated views are other than Marinette's verbal assessment of them, and B) We later learn Gabriel used to be poor, so either he never knew how to cook prior to earning his fortune or being rich somehow made him forget basic living skills. I'm just saying, when an episode of Sid the Science Kid manages to better convey someone doing a terrible job making pancakes, you might need to put in a little more effort to show how bad Gabriel's pancakes supposedly are.

Finally, Tomoe. This episode didn't really do much to show her as a compelling threat, given all she did was nag Gabriel and try to shoot her daughter when she didn't even try commanding her to fight back when she was kidnapped. She's nothing more than a female Gabriel and is another example of how overstuffed this show's cast is,

This episode is awful, plain and simple. It took aspects from previous episodes that were already questionable, and doubled down on them while acting like there weren't any problems at all.

#25: Derision

And now we're onto the really, REALLY bad episodes this season. One of the reasons why this post took so long to make was that I wasn't sure how to rank these last three episodes. Thankfully, I managed to find a way to rank them based on the morals are executed. With that being said, let's start scraping the bottom of the barrel.

Ah, “Derision”. You're the only episode that makes the backlash caused by “Chameleon” seem like a pleasant breeze. It's incredible to see just how much negative a reputation this episode has in the fandom. Virtually nobody likes it because it manages to upset everyone with its poor characterization. I'm talking Marinette fans, Adrien fans, Chloe fans, Kim fans, and pretty much every other character's fans. I've only seen a few die hard fans defend this episode, and they're the people on Tumblr who defend pretty much everything done this season.

I have just one question to ask about this episode: Why did it need to happen? We didn't learn anything new that we didn't know already. We know Chloe is mean, and we know Marinette used to be more timid and had no friends. We didn't even need that much of an explanation for why Marinette acts the way she does around Adrien, seeing how it was usually played for laughs

Speaking of which, let's talk about the fact that the episode tries to shame the audience for laughing at the jokes about Marinette's reactions to Adrien. You know, something that was the show's primary running gag ever since Season 1? A running gag the writers ran into the ground by the end of Season 3 but still chose to go with it? Now we're not supposed to have laughed at it, assuming we laughed at it all. Way to insult even the small portion of viewers who didn't get on your case about this, writers.

I only have about two positive things to say about this episode. For one thing, Chloe actually served as a pretty decent antagonist in the flashbacks. Much like in “Revolution”, when the writers actually let her be a villain on her own without being made a pawn, she can be somewhat entertaining. If this was the Chloe we got after Season 3, I don't I would have been as upset at the direction Astruc's team took with the character.

In addition, the thing that saves this episode from being at the bottom is that unlike the next two, it actually understands that what the antagonist did was wrong. They don't make up excuses for what Chloe did and she actually gets called out as a result. It doesn't lead to anything major, but it's something.

Like with “Queen Banana”, there's not much else I can say that hasn't already been said. There's plenty of retcons, the characterization for everyone is off, it attacks the audience, and the message about trauma got fumbled by the show's usual double standards. It's been said over and over again, and it's become a symbol of how much the show's quality has degraded.

#26: Emotion

I think if you've kept up with my reviews of this season, you should know by now that I don't exactly like Felix, and most of the problems I have with him can be attributed to this episode. In fact, for a while, this was going to be my choice for the bottom slot.

It's clear that the writers want to make Felix this wild card who's only in it for himself, but like most of the show's antagonists, they want to show Felix as this devious mastermind... but he's also not really evil, and you should feel bad for him. For most of the episode, Felix does nothing but make everyone's lives worse during his first outing as Argos. He smears his cousin's reputation yet again, tricks his girlfriend into dancing with him, condemns some rich kids for the crime of being rich when he's just as rich, and eventually wipes out all life on the face of the earth. But he's just doing it for his cousin, we swear!

While Felix has understandable motivations for what he does, wanting to free Adrien and Kagami, the way he tries to achieve his goal makes it hard to sympathize with him. If the whole point was that what he did was wrong and that he needs to find a different way, that could work. Instead, we're supposed to see him as this tragic figure who was forced to do terrible things when the episode shows him happily singing while causing chaos. It's the same problem with Gabriel, wanting a sympathetic character to do unapologetically evil things. The fact that he has to be told that genocide is bad doesn't make us want to sympathize with him when he breaks down crying. It paints a picture that he's crazy but the show wants to act like he isn't.

Even putting all the crap with Felix aside, the episode is still unbearable. The stuff with Marinette was poorly executed and was just done to get her involved in the plot, and later become the first one to excuse Felix for betraying her. Other than the dance scene, you could easily just have Marinette swing in as Ladybug when Argos starts his rampage and nothing would really change. The episode tries to make jokes about how unnecessary this is, but as usual, its attempts to be self-aware come across like its saying “What we're doing it wrong, we know it's wrong, but we're gonna do it anyway!”

Speaking of the dance scene, I can't stop rolling my eyes whenever Felix tries to be all “We live in a society” to Marinette. Forget the corrupt politicians, corporate moguls, human traffickers, and despotic rulers of foreign nations. The absolute worst section of humanity is composed of the teenage children of the 1%. Sure, you'd have to break my legs before I'd agree to supervise them at this party, but I don't get why these are the people we're supposed to see as irredeemable monsters. Do the writers think because these kids associate themselves with Chloe, we'll automatically hate them? Newsflash, but if I had to choose between hanging out with some annoying kids and a mass murderer, I'd stick with the annoying kids.

Rewatching this episode was what helped me finally realize just what my problem with the show's anti-capitalist message is. How the hell am I supposed to hate the villains on this show for being rich when several characters are rich or at the very least, are successful thanks to their connections to the rich? Think about it for a second. Putting aside Adrien and Kagami, you have Marinette, the daughter of two of the most popular bakers in Paris and earned the respect of multiple celebrities, Alya, the daughter of a chef who works at a five-star hotel, Nino, someone who got to DJ at a major fashion show, Rose, who is friends with a literal prince, Luka and Juleka, the children of a popular rock star, and Max, the son of an astronaut with access to cutting-edge technology. Somehow, these people are supposed to be poor? They make Monica from Friends look like Oscar the Grouch. It's why I can't take the message seriously. You can't write a story about a class struggle when both classes are shown to be pretty well-off.

The only thing that saves this episode from being at the bottom of the list is the fact that despite committing genocide while singing, Felix at least gets what he did was wrong and makes up for it. It doesn't fix everything else he did in this episode, but that's better than nothing. As for the villain featured in the episode that's at the bottom of this list? If you've been keeping track, I think you know who I mean.

#27: Re-Creation

I'll admit, I'm sort of cheating here. I'm judging this episode more as a finale than an individual episode, but I'm making an exception because the plot is tied to wrapping up all the loose ends this season.

I'm mentioning this because for a season finale, the stakes just feel so low. The fight between Bug Noire and Monarch doesn't have any weight to it because they've barely interacted at all for the last five seasons. These are supposed to be two mortal enemies, but you can't really buy the enmity between them. It ultimately cheapens the moment of Bug Noire triumphing over Monarch in the end... before Monarch triumphs over her not long afterwards, but we'll get to that.

The stuff with the Miraculized doesn't help either. We already know that the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous are in the Agreste manor, so the Miraculized's goal is impossible to achieve. It's never even explained why the Miraculized don't go back to the manor to help Monarch beat Bug Noire, since they should still be able to track the Miraculous. All of the fights with them just come across like filler, and there's no real sense of danger or hopelessness to be found. Whether the Miraculized win or lose is irrelevant. Nothing will happen either way because the important stuff is happening in the Agreste manor.

This extends to the part where all the heroes appear to help. It doesn't come across as an Avengers-esque moment for the climax, because it doesn't change anything. The episode never explains what any of these characters were doing prior to the events of this episode and why only now they're helping out. The United Heroes are the most egregious example because unlike Fei or Su-Han, they're a major organization whose members include the president, and they didn't do a damn thing when Monarch stole all of the other Miraculous. Speaking of, there is no way in hell that Su-Han taught Mirakung-Fu to three random people over Ladybug and Cat Noir, much less that those three people are actual masters after about two months at best. Maybe they got to train in Bunnix's Burrow? After all, she's not doing anything else to stop the end of the world other than sending four people over to Paris. This whole sequence really highlights how bland the other heroes of this universe are. If they're not slacking off when they're needed, they're criminally underdeveloped because there's a slim chance they'll get spin-offs to flesh them out.

But I think the biggest issue me and other people have with this finale is the resolution. In what is easily one of the most baffling decisions the show has made, Bug Noire doesn't defeat Monarch, and Monarch gets to make his wish. I don't care how many times the writers technically say she won because she beat him in a fight. Gabriel backstabbed her at the last minute and got her Miraculous to make his wish. Yeah, he died, but he succeed in achieving his goal, never faced any real consequences, didn't get any closure with his son (much less apologize for abusing him), told Marinette to lie about the monster he was to him, and was turned into a martyr with a statue made of the same things he used to control the world.

This ending infuriates me because it not only makes Marinette out to be a terrible hero for failing to do the one thing she was chosen to do (get the Butterfly Miraculous back), but it also ultimately makes Gabriel out to be a decent person even though he destroyed and recreated the world. All Marinette did was take credit for saving the world, and even then, Gabriel got more celebration in the end. Our hero, ladies and gentlemen! She got outsmarted by an abusive parent and didn't even get a new statue in her honor!

But the most damning thing of all this is the fact that this finale retroactively makes everything that's happened over the last five seasons completely pointless. If Gabriel making a wish wasn't as bad as it was supposed to be, why didn't Ladybug and Cat Noir let him borrow their Miraculous? Why make the stakes this high if you're going to downplay the impact of a madman recreating the world in his own image? Follow-up question: why make the stakes this high if the wish being made is ultimately shown to have huge benefits for society? In an attempt to wrap things up with a happy ending, the writers accidentally made the conflict completely meaningless.

That's why this resolution is the ultimate example of the writers refusing to allow any major changes to happen. If they're willing to treat the end of the universe as less important than Ms. Bustier becoming mayor, why should we assume they'll ever take their story seriously? For God's sake, every character you know and love is essentially dead, and we're supposed to act like that isn't a big deal? That's how you wanted to end the show originally? Then again, at least they tried to resolve something, unlike the Love Square. We still haven't gotten a reveal, and I don't think we ever will at this point. These writers will drag out the story until the show stops becoming profitable, which won't be for a long time.

And with that, I am officially done with Season 5. Honestly, after having to rewatch this season again, I'm not sure if it's even worth giving Season 6 a shot. There's nothing to look forward to, and Lila becoming the main villain isn't really appealing to me. At the very least, I have the movie review to look forward to, meaning I can watch something good for a change.

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

Different nonnie from the Tikki-Xuppu person, but what you said about Tikki’s personality fitting Order better than Creation made me think about how Pollen would’ve be a better fit for Creation symbolism-wise over Tikki given how much bees better fit that image over ladybugs with their beeswax, honey and hive-making, not to mention the intimate relationship humans of various cultures have had with bees for literal millennia. Even the restoration of Miraculous Ladybug fits bees better due to the connotations of pollination and how essential bees are for the world’s ecosystem. In a universe where Pollen was the kwami of Creation with Tikki’s canon powers (though with bee-theming of course) to Plagg’s Destruction, how do you think things would’ve gone with Marinette and Adrien while having their canon personalities? How do you think they would have played off of each other with their canon personalities?

(Post that spawned this ask)

Before we begin, I want to note that my answer is probably going to be at least a little biased by @zoe-oneesama Scarlet Lady comic because Pollen has a big role in that and Zoe's read on Pollen pretty closely matches mine. Do with that what you will.

This is the first Kwami swap that I could see working. Plagg's personality is so iconic that it's hard to imagine anyone being an improvement, but Tikki is pretty generic. While she has a clear personality, she has no real interests or hobbies that make her stand out. She's mostly just here to be cute and act as the writer's mouthpiece. While I hate that for her and think she deserves better, it does mean that booting her and replacing her with a different Kwami doesn't feel like you're breaking a core element of the show so long as her replacement plays off the other characters well.

We don't see much of Pollen in canon, so it's hard to get a great read on her, but she her love of calling Chloe "my Queen" and the fact that Pollen is a bee give me vibes of a loyal, devoted Kwami who thinks that her Chosen is the best thing ever no matter what. Compare that to Plagg who delights in tormenting his Chosen and there's major potential for some excellent banter and fun contrasting moments, which is what Tikki's replacement would need to be able to do. Tikki and Plagg's contrasting dynamic is a lot of fun and you wouldn't want to lose it. Pollen and Plagg's dynamic would be different, but in a similar enough vein that I think it could work. Which is actually a point in Pollen's favor. If she was just another Tikki, then there would be no point in making the switch.

While Tikki is often dishing out lectures, her most valuable role is building Marinette up in moments when Marinette is feeling down. Pollen should be able to do that no problem. If anything, Pollen may be a little too zealous in supporting Marinette, but since Marinette isn't often shown to listen to Tikki's advice, that's not really an issue. It could even be a new source of comedy where Marinette comes up with insane plans and Pollen hypes her up while the audience watches in fascinated horror. It could be a lot of fun and also give Alya a better chance to fill the voice-of-reason role that she's occasionally allowed to have. That's one of the many awkward things about Alya knowing now. Her and Tikki often fill the same role on the civilian side since Tikki isn't presented as a wise, ancient mentor who knows things that these kids don't.

I especially love the idea of a Kwami swap where Adrien is praised to death and then refuses to give Pollen back because he needs this right now, okay? His lady can have the cheese loving gremlin for a few days while Pollen floats after him, calling him a Queen and praising his every move. Maybe Pollen even starts sneaking into his backpack and leaving him whatever her favorite treats are as a little sign that he's appreciated, leading Plagg to get all territorial, which further validates Adrien. (I just really like comedy that has a sweet undertone, okay?)

Since we don't have a full understanding of Pollen's personality, I won't speculate further than that as I'm trying to avoid getting too far into the realms of headcanon, but I do really like this idea and think it could be a lot of fun. I even like the idea of Pollen as Creation because bees do make more sense than ladybugs from a theme perspective. Plus Ladybee was such an iconic look, one of the few good unifies, and a version of that without the red would still be fabulous!

[ilikekidsshows]

Wow. I've wondering with dread overthinking how would she treated Adrien if reveal ever happened. And boy do me feeling dread spot on.

Now we know she could and would sacrifice the love of her life if that the easiest way to get rid of akuma. She, unlike when sacrifice other people, would flinch, sure. But she still ready to sacrifice Adrien even if there are safer, slightly inconvenience options. If she know Adrien is Chat Noir, her favorite sacrificial lamb, it would be easier.

Werepapas break any goodwill I have for her the very moment she gamble on Adrien life. Not that I have much left after cluster fuck that is season 5.

---

We almost had an entire episode where Marinette didn't do something thoughtless, selfish or morally abhorrent. So close.

Although, in the name of honesty, I have checked out 'Daddycop' and, while Marinette was thoughtless in that, it was season 1 levels of thoughtless, making 'Daddycop' the best showing for Marinette in this season so far!

Like, I still would have pointed fingers at 'Werepapas' for once again telling us to be sympathetic towards the rich man abuser while his victim gets Akumatized and purifying the Akuma supposedly makes everything better for her. Look at the abuser smiling happily with his family, all is right in the world! Abuse Apologia The Show is at it again!

Also, the episode practically turning to the camera and saying we'll be lucky if we get one proper interaction between Adrien and Plagg this season has made it abundantly clear that the writers have figured out how to erase any relationship Adrien has outside of Marinette, by never showing them on screen.

[quindread]

THE COTTAGECORE MARI AU PROMPT THAT NOBODY ASKED FOR

Pairing: Daminette (edit: they’re like 19/20 in this, post high-school)

Rating: It has mature themes, you have been warned. But it’s pretty tame at the same time. Violence + Sexual Themes

________________

Mari is diagnosed with PTSD and anxiety disorder after she quite literally removed her beloved city’s supervillain (and her dear partner’s parent) from the plane of existence. Like she removes the suffering from the minds of all of Paris and has Gabriel written off in a car accident a year after his wife’s disappearance. Only her Court (Adrien, Kagami, Zoe, Alix, Max) and the Order remembers. Mari and Adrien decide not to pursue a relationship. They’re both healing and are decidedly better off friends - siblings in everything but blood.

Lila, who was not punished due to her not really being a miraculous holder and upsetting the balance, continues to slander Mari. Her class isn’t hostile but has no desire to interact with the “new and mean Marinette” Lila was painting her to be. It’s still a huge betrayal given the fact that Mari was supportive and very generous to these people.

So here’s how her new housing arrangement works: have you ever wondered how Gina can afford to travel around the world without a job? Yeah, I think she came from money. Like, old money - real estate old money to be precise. Passive income and such. Hearing about her Fairy’s situation, she offers an unused property at the countryside of Metropolis.

Marinette’s therapist and parents approve of her vacationing there for the summer when they realize that her stressors and triggers where all environmental. So off our girl goes!

Note: She does not have the mother box with her anymore, just Tikki, Plagg, and Kaalki. (She does have unrestricted access to it as the Grand Guardian though - she trains with the Order once a week in Tibet until she doesn’t)

Mari is aware of the Supers and was relieved that the Kwamis don’t show up in x-ray visions and with the fear of them eavesdropping she learns FSL to communicate with them.

The townhouse and the verdure around the property inspires Mari to start a garden. The quiet oddly soothes her and when she feels lonely she goes into town or the nearby farmer’s market where she charms the locals. She meets the Kents - they love her! Martha enjoys baking with her. Lois uncovers her identity as Jagged and Clara Nightingale’s exclusive (and reclusive) designer - they bond over fashion trends and the gossip surrounding the industry. Clark and Jon were another story.

She figures them out having sensed the same soul in Superman and Superboy in this father-and-son duo. They x-ray her as a precaution and finds the mysterious cracks and evidence of past injuries that should have killed her. There’s a very anti-climatic reveal that Martha and Lois are not privy to with respect to Marinette’s wishes.

At least one Kent would be in her home during the day. The Kwamis are free to roam around when it was Clark and/or Jon visiting. She ends up bonding with Jon who also grew up too fast (metaphorically and literally).

She ends up extending her stay in Metropolis indefinitely. Her parents also decided to open a branch of their patisserie there which Mari managed. They visit her as often as they could.

Mari was dismayed to find that no, Metropolis had no schools with both a fashion and business degree - that’s how she ends up in Gotham University.

Jon tells Mari about a Damian - a friend of his.

J: He’s…. uh… he has a big heart.

M: …

J: He’s a bit of an asshole(?)

M: Ah.

Mari meets Damian who reminds her of Kagami - antisocial and proper. They share a few business classes and are both members of the art club.

Mari is still this ball of anxiousness and has only allowed Mia “Maps” Mizoguchi and Katherine Karlo into her life, the former she learned was close to Damian - she didn’t mind when she and the girls met up with Damian, he was quiet, honest, and minded his own business. Through their hangouts Damian finds out about the friendship between Jon and Mari.

He’s hesitant to befriend her at first due to the conflicting rumors about her: due to her timid personality she had a split reputation. One side called her sweet, shy, and kind. While the other calling her arrogant, high-maintenance, and rude. He soon finds out that the latter half were spread by cliques who’s offer of friendship she declined and men she rejected. He was glad that he relented to Maps’ insistent invitations - she was a decent person to hang out with and it didn’t hurt that she was pleasing to the eye. (She also enjoyed sharing her vegetarian salads with him - he starts appreciating it more when he learns that she picks the vegetables straight from the garden she grows.)

As her luck would have it, a robbery unfolds at one of their favorite coffee spots. Mari and Damian - who were both pretending to be civ - try to find a way to protect their friends. The robbers recognizes Damian as a Wayne and takes him and another GU(a school for rich and affluent people’s children) kid - Marinette - who had stood in front of her friends.

They’re gagged, blindfolded, and carted off to who knows where. Damian discreetly activates a distress signal and the bats spur into action. Mari, aware that she was sturdier than Damian, draws the men’s attention to her (she purposely pisses them off and gets beaten up when they start to pester Damian).

M: [removes her gag somehow] Really? A ski mask? And in black? How boring can you get?

*Damian shaking his head furiously in the background*

Kidnapper(KN): Shut up, girlie!

M: You know I always wondered how Kidnappers could have a secret a warehouse as a hideout. It’s not like you can afford the rent—

KN: Are you trying to get yourself killed?

M: You’re backed up by some politician aren’t you?

KN: H-How the fuck did this bitch know?

M: There’s literally a stack of campaign papers behind you.

KN: Wha—

M: That’s some shit graphic design by the way. I’ve seen grade schoolers that can do better.

KN: [points a gun at her] Shut up or I’ll blow your brains out.

M: You wouldn’t.

KN: The fuck do you know—

M: You need me alive to get ransom from my parents.

KN: …Nobody said you had to be in one piece though.

M: Touché—[get slapped hard]

*Damian basically starts convulsing in the background*

M: …Damn. You punch like a cunt—[And the kidnappers basically start to rough her up]

The bats arrive in five minutes and it’s Red Hood that finds them first. He sees these mf’s beating up a woman and goes ballistic(pun intended). Red Robin and Spoiler has to forcibly restrain him when he starts to use his fist instead of his guns.

M: [bleeding and bruised] And that’s how you deck someone, you amateurs.

D: [who was released by Black Bat is confused, mad at himself, and in awe] You blithering idiot! Why the fuck would you aggravate our captors like that?

M: [delirious] It was either you or me Damian. Can’t have your pretty face damaged now, can we?

D: [Is floored and very concerned] And what of yours?

M: … dun worry—my assets are…elsewhere… [passes out from the pain]

D: …

Later, his family would tease him about the flirting when he isn’t all sensitive about the incident.

Winter break comes, most of the Batfam visits the Kents(they have a penthouse/some ridiculous property in Metropolis) as a tradition. The Kents went to visit Gotham and stayed at the manor last year.

(Batfam who went: Bruce, Dick, Jason, Steph, Cass, and Damian)

They visit Mari too. Dick and Steph are absolutely thrilled about her cottagecore lifestyle. So much so that they match her aesthetic and begin helping out in the garden - they send pictures to Alfred who request they bring back fresh produce.

Jon and Jason plot to get Damian and Mari together. Unbeknownst to them that Damian was already resolute on courting Mari like the decorous man that he was - he didn’t know what he was doing but Mari’s flush when he initiates flirting tells him he’s doing okay.

Because of his childhood, Damian was never the type to be touchy but imagine his shock when he finds out that one of his more prominent love languages was physical touch. He realizes he’s touch-starved almost immediately when Mari starts giving him small touches like a hand against his bicep, she had a fondness for touching his hair which never failed to deliver a shiver down his spine, and hugs from her are comforting - she felt like home.

Meanwhile Mari does not have any idea how she survived the early stages of Damian’s advances. He was blunt and did not pull his words with insults but it apparently translated to him being verbally open with his affections.

M: I always wanted to be the Knitting Fairy while growing up.

D: Does it not please you that you became a garden fairy instead?

M: Huh, that doesn’t sound so bad.

D: Well, you certainly look the part.

M: [turns into the same shade as the poppy beside her]

And then when the tension between them became more prominent he wasn’t shy with dropping innuendos too.

M: [open’s the door for Damian, haggard from lifting sacks of garden soil] Oh, I didn’t know you were coming so early. I’m a bit of a mess. Sorry.

D: [Tilts his head] You say that as if I wouldn’t appreciate you sweaty and tousled after a rigorous activity.

M: [self-combusts]

And when the touching began?

M: Damian, what color do you think looks better with this shade of blue?

D: [places a hand on her side while looking over her shoulder] I think the a more neutral cream would do.

M: [stops functioning]

Their first kiss?

Pulled straight out of a book that Marinette only read in the privacy of her bedroom.

They’re teasing each other, it evolves to a game of cat and mouse with Damian skillfully evading her. She corners him by turning on some of her sprinkles. He gets wet, growls in the way he would in Mari’s dreams, and pulls of his shirt. She’s too distracted by the hard planes of his stomach to notice him prowling towards her like a beast moving to claim his prey. He picks her off the ground with ease - he’s a foot taller than her - and takes her to the sprinklers.

(I’m going to write this part out properly, maybe to inspire myself or a potential adopter of this prompt)

“Nononono!” Marinette shrieks as the first round of water splashes her. She writhes but Damian had her arms held down her sides.

“All is fair in love and war, Ya Amar.” She ignores the endearment in favor of closing her eyes as the sprinkles rotate in their direction again. But she knows what it means. Ya Amar. My moon. His moon. The water had nothing on the chill that ran down her spine

The water stars seeping into her intimates and she’s soberly aware that the light fabric of her dress would betray her. It doesn’t take long for Damian to discover that fact, he releases a strangle sound. She opens her eyes, he snaps his eyes from where he was clearly looking at her chest. He scrambles to drop her.

“Shit— I’m sorry. This was not my intention—“ he starts but she’s faster. Her now free arms grasps his shoulders and without a second thought, she drops her lips to meet his. Damian inhales sharply and he tilts his head, temporarily breaking the kiss before raising her higher and pulling her by the back of neck - he kisses her with hunger and passion that has Marinette melting further against his chest.

She wraps her legs around his back and he moves to tightly grasp both the back of her thighs. She would worry about bruises later when she didn’t have Damian’s tongue caressing her own. He drops them to the ground and Marinette does not release her hold over his waist. She whines against his lips when she feels the consequences of their activity.

His hands start wandering as he greedily collects and files the sounds that leaves her lips. He begins to trail kisses down her neck to the neckline of her dress that now clung to her body like a second skin giving him his first peek at the maddening shape of her body. And just when he trails a finger against the underside of her breast a loud noise pulls them apart.

Jason finds them and the sight in Mari’s garden has him dropping the shovel he was asked to bring over.

J: Fuck! No, don’t stop! Hell—I’ll leave—I didn’t see shit!

D: [moving to cover Marinette who covered her face in embarrassment] Fuck off, Todd!

J: I’m sorry! [slams the door shot]

D: Tt.

J: [shouts from inside the house] Use protection!

D: Todd!

They started officially dating that day and Jason had no reservations in sharing that he definitely cockblocked his little brother much to Mari and Damian’s horror.

Both keeps the PDA to minimum in school but it was very clear how amorous they where in “private”. There is a table in the art hall that Mari can’t quite look at without blushing to her roots.

She finds out he’s Robin after her first encounter with his alter-ego. He confesses his past when she confronts him. There’s fear of abandonment in his eyes when he gazes at her after his spiel but she kisses his worries and doubts away. She even goes to show her appreciation for his years of service to Gotham.

Her reveal happens when she unceremoniously drops a vial in Jason’s hand claiming that it would remedy the effects of the Lazarus pits with continuous use - it was completed after a year in the making.

Cardinal joins the Batfam occasionally as part of Batman’s contingency plans. They respect her choice as a retired super-soldier and try to keep her out of the business which she appreciates. She is officially initiated as a member of Justice League Dark as an informant/magic specialist and a wildcard.

Years later, she legally inherits the property from Gina when she and Damian get engaged. Damian moves in with her and she lives her cottage life all while being a reclusive designer that comes out once in a while for fashion week.

FIN

AN:

Maybe there’s a Lila take down somewhere but I don’t have the energy to write her at all. We all know its Damian and Tim that makes sure she never sets a foot in high society ever again.

Ig add some details about learning to healthily cope with her anxiety disorder under the guidance and love of her found family? (I have a similar illness but me and my therapist are still figuring it out so I have little idea how to write this) Her PTSD does not need further discussion (miss ma’am had to kill someone) but her anxiety disorder stems from the fact the she’s a person who’s in charge of world-ending powers - everyone and even yourself can become untrustworthy. She starts to get nervous from misreading body languages and everyone is suddenly out to get her.

[miraculouswolf99]

Ranking Every Miraculous Ship

Categories: OTP/One True Pairing, Love, Like, Good, Don't Mind, Eh, Dislike, and Hate.

I remind everyone that these are simply my own opinions. If you don't like it, then that is your choice. These are simply the ships that I like and don't like.

OTP/One True Pairing: Luka/Adrien- I love these two as a ship so much! Luka's calm and relaxed personality would totally balance Adrien's organized, stressed, and chaotic personality that he has from being Gabriel's son and Cat Noir. Plus, I feel that Luka would help give Adrien the confidence to stand up to Gabriel while Adrien would be the shoulder that Luka would need so that he did not need to be everyone's therapist.

Nathaniel/Marc- They're adorable in so many ways! When Marc was dragging Nathaniel to the stadium in the Penalteam episode has to be one of the cutest things I have ever seen on the show. It's also really cute how the two of them fit together so well. They are both so shy but opened up once they discovered all they had in common. They would be the power couple of comics! An artist and a writer is such a cute artistic pair!

Juleka/Rose- Another really adorable pair! The two obviously care a lot about each other. Especially with how Juleka was one of the few people who knew about Rose's secret illness. Plus, Rose was also really sweet about wanting to help Juleka overcome her photo curse back in the Reflekta episode. Plus, they show that two people who look so different can still get along great. Rose is all pink and cheery while Juleka is goth and shy. They are literal opposites, yet get along like peanut butter and jelly.

Jagged/Penny- They went through their own journey as characters and people. Jagged first comes across as an arrogant celebrity with Penny as his "yes, sir" assistant. But, then we see how the two of them really do have a special bond. They care about each other a lot. Plus, when Penny was understandably stressed from work during the Troublemaker, Jagged grew to understand her more. They have more than just a "boss and employee" relationship. Penny is also an adorable second mother figure to Luka and Jagged.

Tikki/Plagg- First, I love their nicknames for each other! Tikki is "Sugarcube" and Plagg is "Stinky Sock." While they do sometimes appear like siblings, they also sometimes act like an old married couple. Plagg gives me vibes of being the cheerful and fun side of the relationship with Tikki being the responsible "voice of reason" side. They balance each other in every sense, which really makes them even better for each other.

Love: Adrien/Kagami- These two have so much in common. From their love of fencing to their desire to step away from the forceful hands of their parents. The two brought out a lot of good things about each other. Kagami helping Adrien realize how awful his dad's treatment of him was and Adrien helping Kagami embrace her artistic side even when her mother doesn't approve of it.

Alya/Nino- Probably the least problematic couple on the show. Once they spent time together while locked in a cage during the Animan episode, they found out how much they had in common and how good they would be together. Nino might have had his moment of jealousy when he thought Cat Noir was flirting with her, but both have had plenty of moments where they showed how much they cared about each other. During the start of the Scarlet Moth attack when both were promising to take the other to the movies once everything was over, it was adorable.

Luka/Kagami- Another pair that would be all about balance while also sharing a lot in common. Both of them have such calm personalities. They would definitely be one of those couples that could happily sit together quietly for hours while simply enjoying each other's company without the need for constant talking. They both also have senses of elegance about them. Kagami with her fencing and Luka with his music. Luka would certainly also help Kagami relax her "I need to be perfect" train of thought.

Tom/Sabine- They are the definition of a healthy marriage. There is not a moment that is not completely sweet when they are together. They are probably the best parents on the show with how much they both obviously love Marinette. While a little cliche, it makes sense for the owners of a bakery to be as sweet as sugar.

Adrien/Nino- I am a sucker for friends-to-lovers stories. While Adrien and Nino are definitely great friends who give off big "bro" vibes, they would also make such a sweet couple. Nino has already made it clear how much he cares about Adrien given how often he tries to help him stand up to his dad. Especially when Nino tried to get Gabriel to let Adrien have a birthday party in the Bubbler episode. Adrien has also shown Nino support when he needed it, such as going with him when he was on The Challenge show in the Simon Says episode.

Like: Kim/Alix- These two have such a fun dynamic. They would be one of those couples that like to compete with each other but also would have a very nice relationship. Plus, their height difference would only make their relationship even cuter.

Sabrina/Chloe- Given actual character development and they could be a good couple. When Chloe had been trying to get better, she did show that she was protective of Sabrina. Such as when in the Ladybug episode, Chloe shielded Sabrina from the scarlet akumas. We also saw in the Miracular episode that the two did have a sweet friendship before Chloe got even more toxic. It would have led to a very sweet friends-to-lovers story.

Ivan/Mylene- Another of the most solid couples on the show. They were the first teenage couple on the show, actually, since they were brought together in the Origin episodes. And they have always been shown to be incredibly sweet. Mylene's nickname for Ivan, Teddy Bear, is very adorable! Plus, Ivan is also shown to be incredibly protective of Mylene.

Kim/Ondine- Kim is the loveable idiot while Ondine is basically his brain. The two are a great match with Kim's energy and child-like attitude balanced by Ondine's seriousness and maturity. Plus, Ondine helps Kim grow as a person when she helps him realize how harmful his past actions have been against Marinette. Not to mention also helping him see that jokes are better if everyone is laughing rather than just him.

Adrien/Plagg- Obviously, I am thinking about this with the headcanon of kwami having human forms. If that were true, then the two of them would make a cute couple! Plagg would help Adrien embrace his more chaotic side while also helping him stand up to those like Gabriel, Lila, and Chloe. Adrien would also help Plagg find a balance between his love of chaos and a more sensitive side.

Luka/Nathaniel- Two artists being together would be nothing short of adorable and cute! Luka's calm and gentle personality would fit very well with Nathaniel's shy and quiet personality. I can already picture how adorable it would be for Nathaniel to be leaning against Luka and sketching while Luka would be playing a soft melody on his guitar.

Adrien/Nathanial- I mostly enjoy these two together because of my headcanon that Adrien is a big anime fan. Given that Adrien did pose for Kagami when helping her with her art, he would definitely do the same thing for Nathaniel. Plus, it would be really cute for them to have moments where they are simply in a comic book store and geeking out over finding comic books they enjoy. And given his love of anime, Adrien would certainly want to help Nathaniel with his comic. It gives Adrien a chance to be himself rather than being the "perfect model" while giving Nathaniel the chance to open up by being with such a bright and cheery person.

Rose/Prince Ali- It's the little details that make these two work. Since learning that Rose has an unknown illness, it made even more sense why she admires Prince Ali for his charity work. Because charities like his probably were a bright spot in her life when her illness was worse. Plus, being with Rose would give Prince Ali a break from royal life when Rose would show him how to live like a normal teenager rather than always having to act like a prime and proper prince.

Adrien/Nathaniel- Two adorable boys who both have different kinds of shyness. Nathaniel is the usual kind of shy while Adrien is more the kind of shy where he is socially awkward, which leads him to not be as open as others. I headcannon that Adrien is a big fan of anime, which would give him something in common with Nathaniel. It could also allow Adrien to help Nathaniel with his comics and art. Plus, despite not being a designer, Adrien would have been around the fashion world for long enough to help Nathaniel with the designs of some of his creations. Also, maybe give him some fashion advice so that Nathaniel would STOP WEARING THOSE AWFUL PURPLE PANTS!

Nathaniel/Luka- Another artistic pair. An artist and a musician. Plus, Luka's calm personality would help a lot with Nathaniel's shyness. He would know when he should push Nathaniel out of his comfort zone and when he should simply let him be. Nathaniel can also help be Luka's muse for his music. Not to mention also help create looks for Kitty Section and give great ideas for music videos they could do.

Good: Marinette/Alya- Friend-to-lovers is one of my favorite relationship tropes. It's adorable in so many ways. Plus, the two are very good together. Alya always helps Marinette go outside her comfort zone while Marinette helps keep Alya grounded whenever she goes too far with her ambitions.

Alya/Ladybug- Aside from the obvious hero worship Alya feels for Ladybug, the two have shown to have more than that. Alya has seen the human side of Ladybug when she helped her with Damocles when he tried to be a superhero. Plus, Alya has also shown that she is still willing to put herself at risk to help even when she knows there are heroes around. Which is the reason Ladybug gave her the fox miraculous.

Marinette/Kagami- Despite Marinette first being jealous and also trying to sabotage Kagami, the two later formed a really good friendship. Plus, Marinette has tried to encourage Kagami to stand up for herself against her controlling mother. Plus, Kagami's organized way of life is a perfect balance to the chaos of Marinette's life and general personality.

Marinette/Nino- Nino did have a crush on Marinette before Ladybug locked him and Alya away during the Animan episode. If he never got over his crush, the two could have been a cute couple. Especially since they are childhood friends, which makes it an even cuter take on the friends-to-lovers trope. Plus, Nino is also a naturally relaxed person, which definitely would help balance Marinette's chaos.

Don't Mind: Gabriel/Natalie- The two could be cute as long as Gabriel would get over his obsession with his wife. If he simply moved on, he could see how close he and Natalie had become, which could naturally grow into a relationship. It does help that Natalie is already a surrogate mother to Adrien.

Nathaniel/Alix- This could be a cute friends-to-lovers story. Alix could easily balance out Nathaniel's shy nature, helping him to open up more and take him out of his comfort zone. Nathaniel could also help Alix calm down and not be as competitive as she usually is.

Sabrina/Max- They would be a fun brainy couple who could be that nerdy couple that likes to spend time reading the same book in the library together. Plus, both of them tend to avoid confrontation and enjoy being on the quiet side. They would be the type of couple who prefer to stay inside to watch movies or read books than to go out to clubs or parties.

Nooroo/Dusuu- They would bond over their shared trauma of having to deal with Gabriel. They would probably spend long nights complaining over Gabriel and his lack of fashion sense. They could have a lot of fun making fun of him, his lack of fashion sense, and his horrible akuma designs.

Wayzz/Trixx- Wayzz would be the calm and thoughtful one while Trixx would be the wild and reckless one. Another couple who would balance each other out very nicely.

Wayzz/Pollen- I just think they would be cute together. Especially since they are both similar with how they hold a lot of respect for their holders. Even if their holders do questionable things. Aka, most of Chloe and Master Fu's actions. But, their loyalty is something to admire.

Sabrina/New York Boy- She was shown to have chemistry with him. Even if they did not have a lot of time and he did not even get a name, giving Sabrina any development beyond Chloe is great.

Eh: Adrien/Juleka- The two are great friends, but there is only a little potential for them to be a couple. The most that I can see would be Adrien helping Juleka get more confident because of his more open and optimistic personality and Juleka could help Adrien learn to rebel against his father.

Chloe/Lila- Talk about a match made in hell. They would probably only end up together when they would realize that no one else would ever be able to want them.

Marinette/Cat Noir- The best side of the love square, in the opinions of most people. They have had fun together while also being able to talk to each other about their worries and insecurities. But, they did both really overdo it during their "fake date" which caused Marinette's dad to become akumatized.

Marinette/Nathaniel- They are both artistic types and would probably make great art together. Marinette could even be able to help him design outfits for his comic.

Max/Alix- The pairing of a nerd and an athletic girl is cute to think about. It also is cute to think of them together because they are two of the class "shorties." Just two small teens getting together. Very cute.

Ladybug/Queen Bee- It might actually give Chloe the chance to become a better person if she were to get together with her hero. Or, it could end in disaster because it would make her believe that she really could have whatever she wanted.

Chat Blanc/Dark Ladybug- It would not be the first time that two villains would end up together and fall in love with causing chaos as a pair. It would be like a more "healthy" version of Joker and Harley Quinn.

Dislike: Ladybug/Chloe- A hero and a civilian would never work! Especially since Ladybug never did much to stop Chloe from being a bully. After Chloe nearly crashed a train by using Venom, Ladybug should have put her foot down and never gave her the bee miraculous back. Giving it back to Chloe only encouraged her in the worst ways.

Marinette/Chloe- I have no idea why people ship these two together. It's a bully and their victim. Why does anyone think they would be good together? I have never understood that whole "bullying someone means they secretly like them" trope. It never made sense to me and it makes even less sense for these two. Chloe tormented Marinette beyond just simple bullying. They would NEVER work together.

Ladybug/Luka- Again, a hero and civilian would never work. Especially since we saw how Monarch specifically went after Luka when he learned that Luka was aware of Ladybug and Cat Noir's identities. A hero dating a civilian would only make an even worse situation to that. Plus, if they did not work as civilians, then they wouldn't work as a hero and a civilian.

Lila/Sabrina- Sabrina already is basically a slave to Chloe. Lila is shown to also hate work in any form. So, any type of "relationship" between the two would mostly just be Lila taking advantage of Sabrina and using her lies to make Sabrina do all of her work for her while likely making Sabrina think she was "helping" because she was doing something for "such a charitable person."

Marinette/Tikki- Unless kwami have a human form, I highly doubt that it's possible. Plus, Tikki doesn't do much to rein in Marinette's worst personality traits. So, they would be a slightly toxic couple.

Marinette/Max- Marinette already has been shown to not think about Max's feelings when she joined the video game tournament just to be close to Adrien despite how much she knew Max had practiced for it. I doubt she would fix things even if she and Max got together.

Marinette/Marc- I am one of those who headcanon them as cousins, so that is mainly why I don't ship them.

Alya/Adrien- I like them as friends, but I don't see them as a couple. I wish they had more moments of friendship between the two of them rather than having Marinette and Alya being the friendship that shines through the most.

Felix/Marinette- Literally the first time they met was when Felix pretended to be Adrien and tried to force a kiss on her/Ladybug. Not exactly the best way to start a relationship.

Hate: Adrien/Chloe- Chloe clings to Adrien as if he is a piece of prized meat. She treats him like a trophy to be won and doesn't care about him as a person. While they may be childhood friends, that only has made Chloe think she has some type of claim to him. Also, she brings out a lot of the worst parts of Adrien's passive side since he did make excuses for a lot of her behavior until he fully learned how abusive her bullying was.

Adrien/Lila- They are very similar to Chloe/Adrien in how Lila also clings to him. And unlike Chloe, Lile had not known him for long enough to make it acceptable in any way. She also treats him like a trophy to be won and openly acts like that when she uses her lies to try and get close to him. Also similar to Chloe, Lila doesn't care about Adrien as a person. She only cares about him as the "perfect model" that his father forces him to be. Plus, she had also teamed up with Gabriel to spy on Adrien and use her lies to try and isolate him from "bad influences." Which basically translates to anyone who is not her.

Marinette/Lila- Is there really any reason to explain why this is an awful ship? It's even worse than Marinette/Chloe. Even if Marinette was not aware that Lila is a liar and was simply kind to her, Lila would likely use that to take advantage of Marinette's kindness while also manipulating her feelings. It would be like an even worse version of Chloe and Sabrina's "friendship."

Marinette/Adrien- I have made it clear how I feel about these two. Marinette is a stalker! The schedule she keeps of Adrien's activities, the presents she has planned for him up to his fiftieth birthday, the wall of pictures of him, the plans for their children right down to how they look, and the video she sent to him on the anniversary of his mother's disappearance to confess her "love." It's all awful! It's one thing to have a celebrity crush, but it's another to be as obsessed as she is. Adrien may have a file of pictures of Ladybug and a bunch of her merchandise, but it's nowhere near as extreme as how Marinette behaves with him. Plus, as a superhero, there is no doubt there are tons of people who have the same stuff for Ladybug.

Luka/Lila- Did the two of them ever even officially meet on the show? People usually have Luka as one of those who remain on Marinette's side when others turn against her because of Lila. But, I don't think Luka has ever even met her. But, despite that, I don't think they could ever work. Luka is the best character on the show. He's calm, kind, empathetic, and protective. He's the opposite of Lila in every way. Given his ability to hear the inner songs of the people he meets, he would likely get a headache from being around Lila and forced to hear whatever noise her inner "song" would be.

Kim/Chloe- Chloe would bring out the worst in Kim. And she has done so before. She was the reason Kim had been a bully when she influenced him to do that awful prank against Marinette by using her fear of bugs against her. Plus, it's hard to forget that even when Kim did have a crush on her, Chloe stomped on his heart by insulting him and the gift he got her, which got him akumatized into Dark Cupid.

Ladybug/Adrien- Ladybug's common sense pretty much goes right out the window whenever Adrien is involved. During Volpina's first appearance, when she created an illusion of dangling him off the Eiffel Tower, Ladybug was incredibly close to giving up her earrings if it hadn't been for Cat Noir destroying the illusion. Ladybug knew Volpina's powers were illusions and still believed it just because it was an illusion of Adrien in danger. Also, Ladybug abused her powers during the Bubbler episode when she used her lucky charm to stop Adrien from slow dancing with Chloe. Also, with Adrien, it's never a good idea to date your celebrity crush. It's bound to end badly.

Luka/Chloe- Another pair that never officially met on the show. The only time the two have interacted was during Miracle Queen when Chloe had Luka under her control and she used him to fight against Ladybug and Cat Noir. And while she did say he was cute, she also immediately insulted him by saying he looked like he got his clothes out of the trash. Luka would never put up with any of her bratty behavior and would call her out every time she would act like that. Plus, once he would hear that Chloe was the reason Juleka was akumatized into Reflekta, on two different occasions, he'd never want to date her.

Luka/Marinette- The two of them failed completely as a couple on the show. For starters, he had only been Marinette's rebound when she tried to get over Adrien and failed completely since she honestly did not try very hard to get over him. Luka gave her his whole heart, including the most adorable confession of love I have ever heard. But he always came second to Marinette whenever she had a choice of anything else over him. There was also the episode with Desperada when Jagged Stone came to the houseboat for a new guitarist. Marinette didn't even give Luka a glance before taking his guitar, one of his most prized possessions, and handed it to Adrien to audition for Jagged despite knowing full well that Adrien played piano and not guitar.

Chloe/Prince Ali- Very similar to the issues with Adrien/Chloe. Chloe would only treat Ali as arm candy and a walking bank. Plus, Chloe would definitely abuse the power she would get from being a "future princess." She's bad enough as the mayor's daughter, so she would only be even worse as a princess.

Chloe/Kagami- Every time the two have interacted, it has not gone well. The biggest example being when Chloe teamed up with Marinette to try and sabotage Kagami at the movie premiere of the Ladybug and Cat Noir movie simply because Kagami was there at the invitation of Adrien. There has never been a single good interaction between the two of them.

Chloe/Nathaniel- The argument against these two begins and ends with one word. Evillustrator. That entire episode basically summed up why the two would never work. One, Nathaniel is way too shy and soft-spoken to be with someone as loud and proud as Chloe. Two, she would want him to quit doing his hero art and only make drawings of her. And three, she humiliated him on his birthday and defaced one of his drawings that she stole.

Ladybug/Cat Noir- Cat Noir's crush on her did get in the way of him being a good hero multiple times. I do think he was a better hero than Ladybug, but that doesn't mean I don't see his flaws. Especially with the way he acted during Frozer and Glaciator. But, at the same time, Ladybug could have treated him so much better. She treated him like a sidekick and not a partner. She constantly left him in the dark and used him as basically a human shield. She gambled with his life multiple times and never once saw anything wrong with it.

[sizzleissues]

I've just finished the most recent episodes. WE'RE SO BACK! (slight spoilers)

Nathalie you've converted me, I love you I love you I love you. You've been freed of that crusty old man now kiss Amelie and lets the cousins be brothers

I squealed and geeked out the whole way through the new episodes, ITS SO GOOD I LOVE (My brother came in to make sure I was alright after I gasped when Nathalie came on screen)

Sabrina I just wanna give you a give hug, also I love her new hero design as well as her haircut. Every hero design so far has been amazing. The added texture and depth, even to the ones that remain fairly simple. They are not all skin tight suits and we are living for it!

Love the insight into more of Adrien's family and past. He feels so much more real now, the whole side gag of him trying to catch Plagg while the family beefed was so endearing and really shows why him and Marinette are made for one another. THE FACIAL EXPRESSIONS

I love the new animation, particularly the lighting. Its like a sag episode EVERY TIME!!

I'M JUST SO EXCITED RAHHHHHHHHHHH

also love that Kagami has joined the main gang (finally my girl gets friends) and it feels so natural she's there (not like we've all been doing so in our fanfics for years now, love to see it canon. AND THE ONDINE MENTION GOD, literal fanfic writer heaven)

They're fleshing out Zoé and we stan because I love her and could not stand the criticism lobed at her being a 'nice' Chloe to replace the queen bee and that she has nothing going on except being the new bee holder (and Chloe's cameo CANNOT go unmentioned. The bee print on her jacket, someone's clinging onto her hero days). How she helped Sabrina (now kiss) and post-ending scene of her being taunted. WE LOVE WHEN OTHER CHARACTERS GET THEIR MOMENT TO SHINE!

And it wouldn't be a post about miraculous if I did not mention my one and only girl, MARINETTE. Outfits, slayed. Her facial expressions, movements and overall CHAOS has not been lost in the change as is better than ever. She ran UP THE WALLS and dived into her room. SHE IS PEAK CINEMA. And I love how anxious she is about her relationship but meanwhile how unanxious Adrien makes her. She works herself up but her friends and now Adrien help her to wind back down, grounding her to planet earth. She's still herself and we love her for it. I was nervous after the episode with Sublime, that she'd reverted but its clear that a lot of her growth is intact, its just being tested and improved upon as she navigates her new situation. She is so relatable and she is me. (I get sad watching Adrienette now T-T -- my autism connected my past relationship to them. Its getting better but I cried after Illushater because of it, oop)

BUT WE MOVE ON AND BOY IS THE SHOW GREAT AND MAKES ME FEEL UNBRIDALED JOY OTHERWISE

[lostuntothisworld]

Luka is Sun-Coded, Why the Snake has Time-Related Powers, and What the Future Might Hold for His Character

There’s been some back and forth whether Luka is represented by the sun or the moon, with most people seemingly on the side of him being moon-coded.

I have to disagree. More below the cut.

The name Luka is usually translated as “bringer of light.” This is of course the most common translation of his name. In This post, it’s explained that his name is also a Serbo-Croatian word for harbor or port. (Another win for my “the Couffaines are Balkan-Romani" headcanon).

I would also like to point out his hero name, Viperion, is a portmanteau of Viper and Hyperion. Hyperion was a Greek Titan, and along with his son Helios, was a personification of the sun. Sometimes the two Solar deities were conflated. It has also been suggested that the name Hyperion actually reads as “Apollo,” another Greek solar god. In fact, Apollo’s name has been suggested that it should be read as Hyperion. Also, Apollo famously has a younger twin sister, Artemis, a lunar goddess. Hyperion’s name translates to “He who goes before,” which is an apt name for Luka’s hero form.

Famous romantic poet John Keats wrote two unfinished epics on the subject of Hyperion. The second poem he wrote, titled The Fall of Hyperion: A Dream, was published after his death. It is a prequel to his first poem about Hyperion. The prequel is about his personal quest for truth and understanding. More on the topic of truth later on in this essay.

On a more scientific note, the theorized massive star that went supernova and created the our solar system is often called Coatlicue, who was the mother of the Sun in Aztec mythology. She is depicted as a woman wearing a skirt of snakes, and even her name translates to [she who has] the skirt of snakes. An aspect of this goddess was known as “snake woman”, and she was considered a very motherly figure.

Anarka went supernova and destroyed her music career and relationship with Jagged after she fell pregnant. Luckily, she built a wonderful new life for her twins, and The Liberty is a safe harbor for them and all their friends, just like our Sun and solar system. Remember, Luka can also be translated as harbor.

It’s also worth noting that one of Saturn’s moons is named Hyperion. Yes, I know, a moon, but hear me out. Hyperion’s orbit is extremely chaotic, and unpredictable, a quality that is needed in order to end time loops. I had a lovely dialogue with another person on the implications of that in the notes in this post.

Now onto part two: Why the Snake Miraculous has time related powers. It has been suggested by fans that we don’t need two time-related Miraculous, and Snakes are mythologically healers (Think Hermes and his caduceus), so the Snake should have healing powers. It’s a compelling argument, but I disagree.

I’ve touched on this topic before, but it bears repeating. There is a misconception that Wayzz was originally the leader of the Kwamis, and Sass was retconned to be leader at a later date. This is untrue. For one, Kwamis cannot leave the Miracle Box without an owner, so Sass is stuck in there with the rest of the Kwamis. Secondly, in season 2’s Sandboy, the episode where we meet the rest of the Kwamis, Sass is the one calling all the shots. Tikki and Plagg even defer to him. Furthermore, Wayzz was chosen by Master Fu because his power is Protection. Narratively, it makes more sense for an un-evolved character who is terrified of his past choices to choose the power of Protection, as opposed to Sass’ power of learning from past mistakes, and change through choice.

I dare say that they made a point of Marinette wearing the Turtle Miraculous in the season 5 finale due to a planned character arc. I predict this character arc is one where she learns to not be so overprotective of Adrien, or one where she needs to learn to accept the help of others and not put up such a shell and be so controlling. Or both, even.

Anyway, back to Snakes. I made a previous post about how the main three kwamis, Tikki, Plagg, and Sass are a reference to (a very simplified) Hinduism, with Tikki being Brahma (god of creation), Plagg as Shiva (god of destruction), and Sass as Vishnu (god of preservation). Shiva and Vishnu are both symbolized by snakes, but I think it’s important to note that one of Vishnu’s mounts is Shesha, a primordial snake deity of creation. It is said that when Shesha uncoils, time moves forward and creation takes place; when he coils back, the universe ceases to exist. Shesha’s name translates to “he who remains”, as even when the world is destroyed, Shesha remains as he is. It doesn’t take much thought to see how this relates to the Snake Miraculous and the power of Second Chance.

I had originally theorized that Second Chance erases the entire universe in order to reset, but the Paris Special brought the concept of a multiverse, and simple logic declared this untrue. No, I believe that Second Chance erases EVERY multiverse. Terrifying stuff.

And of course, there is the Snake Miraculous’ bracelet form of a serpent biting its own tail, an Ourobos. Ourobos is a symbol used all over the ancient world to represent various things, most notably of cycles, such as life, death, and rebirth. This feels like the most obvious reason for the Snake to have Second Chance.

Of course, we cannot ignore the elephant in the room… or the snake that swallowed the elephant a la the python in the beginnings of famous French novella The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. The dominant religion in most of the western world is Christianity, and snakes have a reputation for being evil. But I think there’s more to the story ML is presenting to us.

In the season 5 finale, we are presented with a perfect utopia, an Eden, if you will. We can all agree this is not going to last, and all the glitter is not gold. Maribug’s web of lies, Lilamoth knowing the Truth, Adrichat being left in the dark. It will all come undone sooner or later.

Which is why I propose that it is Luka who helps Adrien discover the Truth. There are some academics who believe humanity wasn’t truly born until Eve tasted the forbidden fruit of knowledge and left the Garden of Eden. It’s very poetic that a Snake named Light would present Adrien with the Truth. Remember Keats’ epic poem Hyperion about searching for Truth.

And of course, it needs to be reminded that Ladybug’s Lucky Charm CANNOT bring back a sentimonster after the amok is purified or destroyed. But you know what CAN bring back a sentimonster? The Snake’s Second Chance. Adrien and Luka have unlimited chances to figure out how to sever the connection between Adrien and his amoks.

Remember also, the point of Second Chance is to end the time loop. This all goes hand in hand with my theory that ML is a 15-year time loop of Wishes, and Gabriel made at least one, if not multiple Wishes in the past.

Of course I could be completely off the mark and they made Luka a Guardian for no reason, and Adrien will never amount to anything other than being Ken to Maribug’s Barbie.

If you made it to the end, thank you for coming to my TED Talk.

[flightfoot]

ML Fanfic Recs for 2023: 10K - 20K Words

So I’ve been going through and adding particularly good fics I’ve read throughout the year. Only Complete fics, of course. Enjoy!

Chat Noir and Marinette decide to fake date in order to get Buttercup jealous enough to confess. Why won’t that boy make a move on such a wonderful girl as Marinette? And why is he beginning to hope that Buttercup stays blind?

Adrien wakes up in Nino’s arms. Neither of them have any explanation for this, considering they were nowhere near each other the night before. 

Marinette and Zoe uncover a ring stashed away in a closet. Why does it have an unusual effect on Chloe?

Felix isn’t careful enough when he goes snooping around the Agreste Mansion. Gabriel decides that he can’t let him roam free.

Kim bets Alix that she won’t be able to attend all of her friends’ weddings in a row. She has never been one to turn down a challenge.

All this and more below the break!

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May I Introduce Myself, Your Highness? by @chocoluckchipz

Whether picking up a stray animal off the streets or saving a dying child at the market, Adrien had always strived to be the best version of himself. Truly, he would've been the perfect candidate to be snatched up by a kwami, were he an orphan, dying somewhere remote after a short life full of nothing but suffering and misery. Yet as it stood, the sole heir to the French throne had little to complain about. Apart from, perhaps, a complete absence of a love life. That is until a mysterious girl, wandering around his gardens at night, catches his attention.

I love Fantasy AUs. It’s a bit unclear what’s happening at first, but it all gets explained in the last chapter. Also don’t worry about the age gap between Marinette and Adrien at the start of the story, I promise it’s not a problem in the end.

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do you think I have forgotten about you? by @roseinaugust

Based on the song 'About You' by The 1975. Memory Loss. Told in alternating time lines, one leading up to and one dealing with the aftermath of Marinette relinquishing the Miracle Box and the guardianship. Marinette struggles with her life after losing her memory, though there is a persistent voice that calls to her that always seems just out of reach in her memory.

Beautiful memory loss fic here, with seeing Ladybug’s and Chat Noir’s relationship before she gave up the Miracle box, juxtaposed with the present day, when Adrien is only a stranger to her. I could really feel how Marinette was struggling with navigating these new circumstances, with her friends seeming to expect her to remember, to be who she was to them, to Adrien especially, before, and her just... not knowing whether she can do that. It’s got a happy ending though, for those who are concerned about that.

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Creative Lies and Destructive Truths by @azuriteartist

Alya and Lila are two sides of a never-ending fight. The fight between truth and lies, between honesty and deception, between justice and personal gain. And now they have the powers to elevate that fight to a city-wide level.

Can Alya stop the deception before it destroys the city? And can Lila stop the truth before it destroys her?

So everyone who’s been around my blog for awhile knows how much I love Alya getting the spotlight (I mean my sideblog alyaappreciation is dedicated to her, because frankly, she needs it), and azurite’s lovely fic here is no exception. Fu ended up giving Tikki to Lila and Plagg to Alya. There actually isn’t tension between them at first, they get along well to start with, but Plagg knows Lila’s lying about things and eventually pushes Alya to take action once they grow alarming, until the two of them are both accusing each other of being liars as superheroes, and the public doesn’t know what to believe. 

I’m betting there’s more of this AU to come. I hope so, I love the consideration and agency it gives to both Alya and Lila.

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How Marinette Learned to Stop Worrying And Love The Ball by @rosie-b

Hidden from the crowds thronging around the busy fairy portal in Paris's town square, a fae gate sits at the edge of the forest, locked, rusty, and full of ancient magic. Marinette thinks that this abandoned gate must not work anymore... but one day, a fairy disguised as a black cat steps through it.

Ah, Fantasy Soulmate AUs, my beloved XD. This ain’t the only one of this fic type I’m gonna be recommending. This is just a cute fluff fic without much strife. I love Marinette and Chat Noir being able to be childhood friends via his visits, even if he has to pretend to be her cat whenever he comes over, and I ESPECIALLY adore Alya being his chaperone and quickly becoming friends with Marinette in her own right. It ain’t a complicated plot, but it is a nice and warm fic.

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Vengeance Noire by @phiellydinyia

After a horrific argument with his father, Adrien escaped from the mansion with his heart in pieces. In hindsight, it made sense why an akuma was sent his way. He shouldn't have let his emotions get the better of him.

But he never expected Plagg to be even more upset than he was. He never expected his own kwami to be akumatized. To become the threat of a city he swore to protect. And what's worse is the fact that Chat Noir can't jump in to save this one.

But Ladybug can. And that's why he has to find her as quickly as possible, suit or no suit.

I love some good Adrien angst, especially with a delicious side order of Plagg and Adrien’s bond with each other. Even as Adrien’s barely functional, though, he’ll do everything in his power to save Plagg, even if Plagg wishes he wouldn’t go quite that far. 

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the best laid plans (of bugs and bakers) by @mexicancat-girl

Paris is buzzing with the appearance of a new ladybug-themed hero, Scarabella.

Alya decides to use her second hero identity to help her best friend Marinette. A bit of her flirting with Marinette is bound to make Marinette's crushes jealous and finally ask her out! Her plan is fool-proof…!

Except when it's not. Not enough people are talking about Scarabella flirting with Marinette. How can Alya properly help her best friend if the news can't be bothered to cover Marinette's budding romance with Scarabella and only posts things about Marinette with Chat Noir?! So Alya puts her all into her plan, upping up her flirting each time she appears as the newbie hero Scarabella.

This totally does not backfire in any way.

I adore fics that center on Alya, I haven’t exactly been shy about that fact. This is a nice one for some Alyanette adorableness! (And some Scarabella and Chat banter, I really enjoyed reading that as well). “Fake” flirting to make crushes jealous tends to turn real very quickly, and this is no exception. It’s hilarious, Alya’s the last one to figure out that her romantic relationship with Marinette is very much real XD.

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Control by @generalluxun

A fun and rebellious gesture by her friend Zoé leaves Marinette accidently in possession of something more precious than she ever expected to hold.

It's a blessing. It's a curse. It's life itself.

She has no idea what to do. There is so much wrapped up not only in WHAT, but also WHO. Her friends and partners can offer advice, consolation, and support, but in the end when you are both Ladybug and the Guardian you are the one in control.

This is a fantastic SentiChloe fic. Marinette ends up with Chloe’s amok and isn’t sure what to do with it, whether to try to give it to Chloe, whether to try and use it to make Chloe a better person, or whether to just hold onto it secretly. Along the way, she ends up getting into Chloe’s head, getting a better idea of Chloe’s mindset, what she thinks and feels when she does the things she does. I loved seeing her struggle with figuring out what to do, it ended up being a great character study for both Marinette and Chloe!

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Within Your Heart by Inkyibis

It's Valentine's Day and Ladybug just wants to her superhero partner to find his love.

And what she wants, the Lucky Charm will create.

If only she could remember what it is she did last night.

Adrino fic here! Marinette’s drunk and feeling awful that her superhero partner is alone on Valentine’s (she’s in a loving and committed relationship with Alya), so she creates a Lucky Charm to help Chat find love! In this universe, Ladybug’s Lucky Charms have the power to create new rules for the universe to follow, such as making one that demands that if you have any magic in you, you have to tell the truth or else you’ll freeze. Or in Adrien’s case, that he has to wake up in the arms of his true love every day XD. It’s very sweet and I love both Adrien’s and Nino’s relationship, and the relationship between the rest of the Miracuteam members as well, even though that’s not the focus.

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This Distance Between Us by @coffeebanana

After defeating Monarch, the search for the Peacock Miraculous brings Ladybug and Chat Noir to a hotel room in London. But it's hard to enjoy the victory when Ladybug can't figure out why Chat's been so quiet, why he seems so sad. How's she supposed to help if she has no idea what's wrong?

This is a great Sentiadrien fic, with Chat freaking out about it and feeling like he’s not worthy of Ladybug’s affections, but not telling her what’s actually wrong because he thinks she won’t want him anymore if she knows. Of course, he’s wrong about that.

Also there’s a pretty intense confrontation with Felix, pissing Chat Noir off is a bad idea.

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Auspicious by The_Rabbit42

Entry #6 for AU April 2023: Reverse-Crush Kwami-Swap

Adrien is quiet and reserved whenever he's not consumed by stress. And between extracurriculars and modeling and his responsibilities as Mister Bug, he's often stressed. He appreciates his kitten, but he loves his bright and outgoing classmate. Not that she knows that.

Marinette's parents have always allowed her a good deal of independence, but she's felt her confidence skyrocket since getting Plagg. Simply being Lady Noire allows her to be more flirty and free. She likes her friends, but she loves her stoic and heroic partner. Not that he knows that.

This is just a lovely fic that’s exactly what it says on the tin. I like how Rabbit goes into what Lady Noire’s and Mister Bug’s dynamic is like here especially.

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Of Crisp Days and Crispier Cakes by @scribeofrhapsody

Gabriel wants to not be sick. Adrien wants to make a cake. Nathalie wants a chill birthday. Maybe they can help each other. Maybe it'll be a disaster.

So this starts off as just the cute fluff fic of Adrien and Gabriel attempting to make Nathalie a birthday cake that the summary indicates, but soon evolves into a more action-filled drama fic when Gabriel makes the terrible decision to akumatize a cashier while sick... a cashier who happens to be in the same shop as Nathalie and Adrien. Who are willing to put their secret identities at risk in order to save each other.

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After Irritation Do Us Start by @scribeofrhapsody

It was the most difficult decision of his life, but Gabriel did it. He let go of Hawk Moth. He moved on from Emilie. Now, all he wants is to enjoy life with his son and new wife. Unfortunately, a certain nephew of his seems to be determined to unearth what Gabriel needs to remain buried.

I love this look at what could have happened if during the season 3 finale, Gabriel had decided enough was enough and given up on being a supervillain, moving on with Nathalie instead. How much better things could have been if he’d just decided to stop - though Adrien still wouldn’t be happy to discover why Hawk Moth had suddenly stopped attacking.

Oh yeah, there’s an OC here called Gerald who Adrien’s puzzled by, since he’d never heard of this guy before the past year. At the end of the story you find out why he’s included in the story. It’s not a major thing, but it is kind of funny and fits well with the rest of the story.

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Rocking the Cat-Eyes by @buggachat

“I like being a girl.”

“That’s the alcohol talking,” Marinette snorted.

“I’ve always been a li’l jealous,” Adrien admitted.

“... Of what?”

“That you get to be a girl,” Adrien murmured, “and I don’t.”

—

When Marinette and Adrien host Girls' Night at their apartment, Adrien is easily welcomed to attend as "one of the girls"... but has a bit too much to drink. Some drunken confessions are spilt, some assumptions are made, and most of all...

Adrien is confused.

This is a great Genderfluid!Adrien fic. Marinette actually figures out that Adrien’s not entirely cis before he does, and tries to let him know she’s supportive... but unfortunately Adrien comes to some incorrect conclusions...

Anyway it’s a lot of fun, and Adrien rocks a dress and makeup!

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Desperation by OuzoAthena11

Marinette is at the end of her rope. There seems to be no hope for defeating Monarch, not now that he has most of the Miraculous and has figured out how to transfer their abilities to others.

Tikki has an idea: Awaken the memories of who Marinette was in the past to see if any of their knowledge across time and the multiverse could help.

But this means that Marinette might forever be changed, and so will Chat Noir, if he should choose to do this.

Little did they know that they knew each other in their past lives, and how frequently they crossed paths and even were a couple... well, that meant that they are soulmates.

Star Wars crossover fic here, with Marinette as Obi-wan and Adrien as Quinlan. I like how the reincarnation aspect was handled here, with Obi-wan’s and Quinlan’s memories being prominent and them “waking up” in a way at first, but those settling back down after a bit and Marinette and Adrien going back to being mostly themselves, but with a lot more life experience under their belts and some cool new abilities - which comes in handy for taking down Monarch!

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Family by @unecoccinellenoire

“You know,” Nino grins, “if you need advice on being a big brother in a year or two I’m sure I could help.”

The bottom of Adrien’s stomach dropped out.

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Adrien struggles with the concept of his father and Nathalie having children.

So this is a world where Adrien and Marinette managed to defeat Gabriel, taking his Miraculous, with them giving him an ultimatum: they won’t out him as being Hawk Moth so long as he doesn’t cause any more trouble and does right by Adrien. Gabriel does, in fact, move on finally to Nathalie, giving Adrien a lot of mixed feelings to deal with. He still loves them both despite everything, but he’s also angry at them and he definitely does NOT want them to have children, both because he thinks they’d like any biological child they had more (he’s also harboring guilt from indirectly being the cause of his mom’s death), and because frankly, they screwed up too much with Adrien for him to want them to inflict that on another child.

And then there’s also Adrien dealing with the realization that he’s a Senti on top of that and wondering why he and Felix look the way they do, what Emilie’s reasons were.

It’s mostly just Adrien getting to talk things out, navigating this emotionally fraught situation he finds himself in now that the dust is settled.

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Galaxy In Your Eyes by @liiinerle

Arriving in Paris, Kagami almost immediately finds herself assaulted by a dark, infectious butterfly. When she wakes up, a ladybug-themed superhero is standing over her, and her eyes are like holes into an empty, vast, and incredibly alluring universe...

An AU where the two main Miraculous function differently from the norm.

Nice Marigami fic here! Or should I say, Ladygami - technically Marinette doesn’t exist, only Ladybug, who’s an immortal creation goddess, or something like that. But she still fights to protect Paris from Hawk Moth alongside Chat Noir, who is still a normal, squishy human underneath the suit.

Anyway, there’s a but of inspiration from Nimona here, with a lot of people being scared of Ladybug because she’s a bit... out there, especially when she shapeshifts to have like, 6 extra arms and a lobster tail. Kagami’s into it though XD

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Stay Weird, Ladybug by @diadraws

Ladybug receives an invitation at the end of a patrol!

Contains some of my own headcanons, most notably: MIRACULOUS HOLDERS ARE CREATURES!!! They get actual animal traits when transformed instead of just a costume. My tumblr is diadraws where I elaborate some more on my headcanons which may add some additional context to this fic if you are interested!

CONTENT WARNINGS: *major* depictions of panic attacks, discussion of child neglect/abuse, and a minor emetophobia (vomiting) warning towards the end.

I’ve loved the comics and fanart I’ve seen dia create for this AU, with Ladybug’s and Chat Noir’s more animalistic designs, so reading a fic set in that AU was a real treat! It’s mostly just a Ladrien sleepover at Adrien’s house, but it’s very nice and cozy, with some good character development of Adrien helping Ladybug with panic attacks she keeps having.

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Trapped by @consistent-chaos-corporation

Felix asks to visit Adrien as soon as his father is gone. Gabriel catches him snooping, looking for Adrien's Amok.

Everything gets worse from there.

Damn, poor Felix. He came to try and help Adrien, but instead Gabriel stole his Amok, forcing him to obey his commands, holding him prisoner in his basement for months. If you want some quality Felix whump, this is the fic for you!

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When Secrets Come Undone by SortaArtsy

Ladybug promised not to tell Adrien... but she never promised not to confide in Cat Noir. What happens when Ladybug unintentionally vents to the one person who wasn't meant to know any of it?

****MAJOR SEASON 5 SPOILERS WARNING! ****

May not be season 6 compliant when it comes out.

This is a “Adrien finds out what everyone’s been keeping from him post-S5″ fic, and I think it’s handled really well! He feels very hurt, betrayed, and disbelieving initially about being a Senti and his father being Monarch (...mostly being a Senti, it ain’t that hard to believe that Gabriel was a supervillain), and is angry at everyone who kept it secret from him, but he still handles it well, going and talking to the people involved, getting their reasoning and perspective. 

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Wanted: Catnap by SortaArtsy

Adrien Agreste has barely been sleeping, trying to be everything expected of him. What happens when he spreads himself too thin? Sick!Adrien/ Cat Noir

Adrien’s just pushing himself so hard, trying to do his regular duties, until his illness forces him to rest. I love how concerned everyone is over him - even GABRIEL eventually relents and wants him to rest. It’s just cute and nice and fluffy.

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Felix is Fine by SortaArtsy

Felix wakes up sick, but is determined to keep it under wraps. Kagami refuses to be fooled. Feligami fluff. Implied past trauma/ abuse, though nothing explicit. Set post S5 so there are SOME SPOILERS!

If you want a Felix sick fic, this story’s the fic for you! I like how Felix and Kagami actually talk about why Felix is so determined to keep the extent of his illness hidden, what caused him to feel like he needs to do that, and Kagami’s understanding about it. Colt sucks.

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Our Tales Are Endless (That’s Why I Tell Them) by @joonapeach

Marinette lives a simple life - one surrounded by pretty dresses, fresh macaroons, and the calming view of Paris. It's a life she thinks she has always fit in.

And yet sometimes, when a certain boy comes by her shop with a flower and a new adventurous story, she can't help but wonder if there's something else she's missing.

This was a truly gorgeous story. It’s the classic “Marinette gives up the Miracle Box and loses her memories” storyline, exploring her life two years later. Even though she’s had time to heal and recover, she still feels like she’s missing something, something big. At least Adrien’s stopping by regularly to tell her stories about Ladybug and Chat Noir, even if she doesn’t understand why they resonate with her so well.

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a winter so warm by @rosekasa

winters were hard for even the best of vampires, but at least adrien had marinette to keep him warm with her cuddles.

december was going to suck without her. so it was only to be expected to get extra cuddles in before she left, right?

(well, not really, considering those heating supplements he was taking, but she didn't need to know about that).

This one’s mostly just cute cuddly adorableness! It’s basically like all those “Marinette gets the Ladybug trait of needing to cuddle up to someone for warmth”, but with Adrien instead. And of course featuring Marinette being a very talented witch who just wants to help Adrien stay warm when she isn’t there XD.

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The 8 Weddings of Alix Kubdel by The_Rabbit42

The bet is simple: with the Rabbit Miraculous, Alix will be speaking at all of her friends' weddings. No matter what age they tie the knot, she'll be there looking the same. From Alix's perspective, she's going to each ceremony and reception one right after another in a nonstop bender.

This fic’s a lot of fun! I loved seeing all the different weddings, as well as how Alix slowly felt more and more out of place, with going forwards in time. Some of the weddings could get, uh. Exciting as well XD. And while there’s been years in-between Alix’s appearances for her friends at the wedding, for Alix, it’s only been a few hours, if that...

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and I thought I heard you sing by @into-september

When Hawkmoth has been defeated and unmasked, Marinette is left with two problems and no solutions.

First, that Adrien is further out of her reach than ever before, and no-one can tell her how to get to him.

Second, that Cat Noir is far more troubled than she knew, and the only thing she can do is wait for him at the place they agreed to meet.

It’s your classic “Hawkmoth’s defeated and taken into custody but that means Adrien’s in for a rough time” sort of fic. Everyone’s worried about Adrien and wants to give him what comfort and support that they can, but he’s being hidden away from everyone (which I mean, honestly that’s a good move), so that’s not really possible. Plus, Ladybug’s noticed that Chat’s having a tough time in his civilian life, which worries her.

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Time Locked AU by PumpkinPatchworkQuilt

In Time Locked, instead of just fixing the damage it puts everything post akuma back to exactly how it was, people, buildings, memories, time. Since it’s more extreme than in canon it requires both The Cat and The Ladybug to complete the Cure,(and visually contains both as well). Because of this only those with a miraculous can recall the events and only those who cast the Cure will have any lasting effects from the fight and even then it’s limited to scars, phantom aches, getting a tad more muscle definition and of course spatial displacement in extreme cases.

Since technology is slightly resistant or incompatible with the miraculous magic, footage of right after the akuma attack will survive, on a technicality and as such only reappears when the time catches up the the recorded time, that could be minutes, hours, or days depending on how long it took to defeat the akuma.

First story: Alya’s Guide to Surviving a Magical Terrorist Which You Can’t Remember

In a world where the fight against Hawkmoth is kept secret from the public, one Alya Césaire sets out to bring the whole thing to light, (and possibly win a journalism award while she's at it)

This was an interesting AU, I loved the focus on Alya especially and her investigative abilities, figuring out that there was a battle between good and evil taking place in the background of everyone’s lives even though most signs of it are wiped clean after the battle’s over. And Adrien and Marinette pick up on her cleverness and want her to help! I love how much appreciation this fic shows for Alya.

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Stitched Together by @nedjsmlfavs

Stitch Witch Marinette was just supposed to be having a nice, terrifying outing with her best friends. She never expected to find a magically trapped kitten, but here we are! Whatever happened to this poor little guy?

Poor Adrien, being transformed and chained up for ages, having no idea that he was gonna be rescued. But at least he got to have fun at Marinette’s place as a cat! 

Most of this fic is adorable, though with some dark undertones lying in wait. After all, SOMEONE chained up that poor little kitty...

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Love Remains by @kasienda

Marinette stood in the center of her own room. The pink walls were adorned with sketches and photos, and other unfamiliar souvenirs of her life. Her eyes jumped curiously from a hand made purse to a bowler hat decorated with a feather to a cork board covered in pictures of her friends.

She loved her room. Which made sense, she supposed. She had theoretically been the one to decorate it, but she didn’t remember decorating it. And now, the room was like a cave filled with treasure.

Because each little piece of it held a secret - some part of herself that meant something to her, a clue to what her life had been like before…

Before she had woken up in the arms of a boy wearing a magic black catsuit. His heartbroken sobs had caused something in her chest to twist painfully. She hadn’t understood why then, but from that very first moment she knew she had wanted to make things better for him.

She had no idea how to do that now that she understood what she had lost.

Sixteen years worth of memories.

The echoes of which were papered onto the walls and notebooks of her room just waiting to be rediscovered.

No one else seemed to share her excitement.

Unlike most “Marinette loses her memories” fics, this one isn’t super angst for Marinette - she takes it in stride. Now, everyone else, not so much. It’s really interesting seeing her contrast who she appeared to be before with who she is now, particularly when it comes to her previous self being in love with Adrien and not Chat, while she’s in love with Chat and not Adrien. Of course eventually she finds out certain things that makes that make a lot more sense. She isn’t so different from how she was before after all...

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Betrayal by @jennagrinsoverml

MAJOR EPHEMERAL SPOILERS!!

Ladybug planned to use Viperion's power of Second Chance to get Chat's identity to Su-han without Chat knowing or agreeing.

Of course, then the world went crazy, and she didn't go through with it.

But when an akuma exposes Ladybug's plan to Chat, he doesn't know that. He just knows that his Lady betrayed him.

He deals with his feelings in the best, most mature way he can think of.

He disappears.

So I, like a lot of others, wanted more follow-up on Ephemeral, and particularly on the betrayal of trust it was for Marinette to try to trick Chat Noir into giving up his identity to a third party without his knowledge or consent (I wrote my own take on that at the time, called Transcient, that I’m proud of). This fic did a good job of exploring that, with Adrien reacting in a manner that made sense to me (repressing his negative feelings about the situation as much as possible and trying to justify it to himself, but still feeling terrible despite his own best efforts), and how Marinette realized that she messed up, since Luka keeping it secret that he knows hers and Chat’s secret identities caused her to be upset as well. It did a great job of exploring those negative feelings and letting everyone talk things out, explain their viewpoints, and rebuild their relationships afterwards, which is something I really value.

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Swimming in Circles by @generalluxun

Life has moved on for Marinette Dupain-Cheng. She's not where she thought she would be seven years ago, but she's still in a good place. Classes, hobbies, friends, her life is full despite the lingering shades of her faded yet sweet middle-school romance. Then just as quick at the first time, someone drops into her life and turns her into an absolute mess once more.

Love and crushes might be her undoing, but she's got a little more experience this time to weather the storm. This fateful stranger stirs memories as well as emotions inside of her, and with a forthrightness her old self would be jealous of, Marinette takes the plunge.

So this is a Trans fic, with Marinette’s new crush being a trans version of a certain classmate who she doesn’t recognize, who’s changed a lot, for the better. I like how it deals with the baggage she has with that person, has her think that through.

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Three’s company by @torvalvt

Kagami has been doing her best for years to ignore her feelings for her friends. It doesn't help that Adrien and Marinette insist on spending as much time as possible with her, even going so far as inviting her along on their dates together. If only the affection she felt for them wouldn't get in the way of their relationship. Because it is growing harder and harder to tamp down her feelings with how close they are getting to her.

This is adorable. Adrien and Marinette really want Kagami to join their relationship and she just doesn’t dare hope for it. If you want some adorable Adrigaminette from Kagami’s perspective, I recommend checking this fic out!

[ninadove]

top 5 miraculous ships?

This one is also surprisingly hard, because Miraculous is the shipping show by excellence, and they’re all pretty compelling! That being said —

1. Feligami

Hopefully there’s no doubt about it by now. They single-handedly kicked me out of a months-long writer’s block, and ever since I’ve written paragraph over paragraph about them... with no intention to stop! 💜❤️

2. Lukadrien

With how much I talk about the Sentikids, you’d almost forget Luka was my favourite character back in season 3! Every time I write him, he and Adrien go heart-eyes over each other. It’s almost against my will at this point.

There’s so many interesting things to explore about them, from the angstiest to the sweetest. Luka feeling left out in Wishmaker only to bask in love in Migration. Adrien opening up about his Aspik trauma to someone who can understand. Luka being, to this day, the only person who figured out Chat’s identity. Two very pretty boys who are unlucky in love and terrible at getting what they want... Has anyone ever written Luka x Cat Walker? Lukatwalker? I think someone should write Lukatwalker. Don’t look at me, I have too many WIPs already!

3. Lukadrinette & Adrino

See, that’s where rankings get complicated, because where the Hell do I put Lukadrinette hmm? Hmmmmm? I love the three of them together more than I love Adrinette and Lukanette individually, but less than Lukadrien on its own. It’s a question of balance, I think.

And at the same time, Adrino. There’s just something so comforting about them. The warmth of it all! The dorky flirting in Rocketear! Nino being willing and ready to throw hands with Gabriel since the early episodes of season 1! I love Lukadrien, I love Lukadrinette, but there are universes in which my brain won’t accept any endgame other than Adrino. The Reverse is one of them — all it took was that one conversation between Adrien and Claw and BOOM!!!!! Clawdrino!!! They’re kissing as we speak. I follow the brainworms where they take me.

“But Nina!” I hear you ask, “why not get the best of both words by writing Lukadrino?” to which I reply that you are so right. I’m very curious to see where that might lead us. Unfortunately I am, as previously established, battling an army of WIPs, so the exploration will have to wait.

4. Ladynoir

For the Strikeback of it all. And the London special of it all, too! Marichat was my favourite side of the Love Square for a very long time, but recently I’ve had a craving for…

5. Adribugnoire. Or whatever it’s called.

I’m a hurt/comfort enthusiast, so this surprises absolutely no one. It’s perfect to explore Mari’s crushing responsibilities and her relationships to the people in the know (Kagami Felix Kagami Felix Nathalie Kagami Felix Plagg Bunnyx Kagami FELIX FELIX FELIX). It’s perfect to explore the Sentilore, which you know is my brand. It’s perfect because if I’m going to put a character through the angst machine, you better believe it’s going to be Adrien. It’s perfect because have you seen Bug Noire??? She’s so pretty!!! The London special spoiled me so much!!!

Special mentions:

Julerose and Marcaniel are very cute, of course. DJWiFi I think works best as a QPR, but I might be biased because Kittybella!!! I love Kittybella. Zoenette is also cute. I love Alyanette and especially Loveyalya, the pining is simply excellent. Speaking of the Loveybug AU, Loveyblanc… All these dynamics are so fun to play with, but I rarely get around to it because the Sentikids take up so much of my writing time. As they should! 💚💜❤️

And then there’s the box of ships I don’t want to be canon/endgame, but which I think bring something extremely interesting to the story. Feligami would not be as compelling as it is if it weren’t for Adrigaminette. The plot would not exist at all without Gabeminath. Cholila has so much narrative potential. I’m not rooting for them, but I enjoy what they bring to the table!

Thanks for the ask! 💜❤️

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

Hey, saw your recent post, and I just want your opinion on something I thought of regarding the final episode of MLB. Never did like how frivolous the whole "wish-making" thing was, when it was parroted as a devastatingly serious thing.

So... kind of restructured the scenario.

In what I thought of, in order for a wish to be made, the sacrifice had to be of equal value (not more/less, a balance kind of thing). It seems cold, but if the sacrifice offered was too much/too little, one will be forcibly taken.

This is what happens to Gabriel. Typical thing, wish is made, he offers himself + Emilie. However, Tikki and Plagg (never going to call them Gimmi) reject his sacrifice, and that is because the instant Gabriel decided he was willing to lose his and Emilie's lives, it lowered the value of his sacrifice.

BUT once a wish has been made, it cannot be arbitrarily stopped. And there is only one sacrifice of equal value. Adrien.

Obviously, I didn't kill Adrien. I managed to spin it so he doesn't get sacrificed, but this is ask is already long, so I can't get into the specifics here.

I'm willing to explain it another time though, if you'd like.

I could see a version of this working in a story where the goal was redeeming Gabriel. Where he makes his wish, gets something he didn't expect, and then has to face the reality that his actions have consequences that can't be magically undone. I'm not sure how well it would work in a story where he stayed evil or wasn't a major character, though, because the story is less compelling if it's just about someone else fixing his mistakes.

The Gabriel-centric plot might be interesting if Marinette kept a key role, forcing the two of them to work together to save Adrien. You'd need a way to save Adrien, though, and I'm not sure how you can do that if the wish is off the table which it would be if sacrifices always have to be of equal value. That's probably my only criticism. If something like a life for a life isn't equal value, then how does the wish function? What makes something worthy? What would have happened if Gabriel didn't love anyone? It raises a lot of questions that would be hard to avoid since the wish and its consequences are the driving plot of the story.

There's also the complication of the Kwamis. Because of them, the wish isn't something you can just sort of shrug off and say, "Who knows what happened?" Plagg and Tikki are right there, ready for interrogation. You'll need to figure out how to handle that. If the wish hurts Adrien, then Plagg and Tikki will be freaking haunted by that. It could easily hurt or even destroy Marinette's relationship with her Kwami. (This is yet another thing I expect canon to never address, btw. The fact that Plagg was the tool Gabriel used to off himself should have some pretty major consequences for Adrien and Plagg's relationship. It won't, but it should.)

A less complex route would be to let Gabriel make a wish not caring about the cost or offering a sacrifice only to realize afterward that Adrien paid the price. The end result of that story could be Gabriel being willing to sacrifice himself and the wish allowing it. I'm not seeing a clear ending for a story where the wish hurts Adrien and there's no way to undo it.