#But I know it inspired me to do a Chat Noir saving Silencer piece???

[cindersapfrog]

I am wracking my brain and frantically scrolling through @miraculous-prompts looking for a specific prompt that inspired me months ago and losing my mind cause I can't find it or figure out how I got to this point or what it was

[writer-panda]

Ruin and Rebirth - Chapter 1

Ruin and Rebirth

Chapter 2

Inspired by @jumpingjoy82 on Tumblr. Thank you for the amazing prologue.

I don’t own the characters, only the plot. Miraculous and Justice League belong to their respective creators

--------

"It's okay Marinette. Everything is going to be fine. You’re too young to understand, but it was for the greater good."

To young.

TO YOUNG!

It was all the Justice League's fault. If they kept their incompetent asses out of Paris, none of this would have happened.

Apparently, they just spontaneously decided to go through the Watchtower’s recycling bin, and what they found astonished them. Years upon years worth of pleas for help from Paris.

They decide to finally investigate, and it just so happens that it was during an Akuma Attack, and they threw everything the Parisian heroes were telling them out of the window, wanting to do things their own way.

Superman was one of the ones there.

And they learned just how far the Miracle Cure could go.

He decided to use his super strength and threw a car at the akumatized victim, who moved out of the way at the last minute, so the car sailed right through the Tom & Sabine Bakery, promptly, catching on fire, giving no time for the people inside to get out. No one got out alive.

Ladybug froze for a moment, before fighting with more determination than before, knowing that the Miracle Cure would bring them back.

She was wrong, which brings us back to this point.

"I don't give a damn about you so-called 'greater good' and now you’re telling me, that I'm too young to understand, but am I too young to experience it? Too young to actually see everything and everyone I love torn from me because of these heroes?! Why the hell are they here now? Where were they when this first started? What changed? And now, because of them, my entire family is dead!"

After that everything was hazy, but she knew, she hated superheroes.

They never knew when to stop, and just like Chat Noir, they expected to be praised for whatever happens, no matter if there were casualties or not.

The world would be better off without them.

----------------

The sun has long since set over Paris. The fires were still burning in some parts of town. For the first time since Ladybug first appeared, the citizens of Paris felt true fear. It was ironic. They didn’t fear the akuma. They feared the heroes that came to their rescue. For the first time in four years, the casualties were piling up. And the akuma was responsible for none.

True, many of them initially asked for it. With each fight, Ladybug and Chat Noir were taking longer. It’s been obvious for some time that they were slowly being worn out. Some media started to criticize the duo, question their skills, age, their right to act in Paris. They weren’t part of the UN Justice League Charter. Their only real authority came from the trust of the citizens themselves. And that trust was lost. The civilian pleas to the Justice League increased in number and frequency. Under public pressure, the mayor had no choice but to issue an official plea for help.

But then, then… the heroes came. 

In retrospection, almost everyone would agree that it was a mistake. Justice League was not used to fighting magical threats. They weren’t practiced in dealing with possessed villains. They didn’t understand. And they treated Ladybug and Chat Noir worse than sidekicks. 

That flying chicken even dared to wrap Chat Noir in a metal bar so he wouldn’t get in the way. 

Ladybug… tried her best. She allowed herself to trust the new heroes. She stopped saving every civilian from the rubble. She focused on the akuma. If heroes didn’t bother with the lives, it must’ve meant they trusted her cure, right?

WRONG

They were like a tank, riding through the city with a singular goal in mind. 

It didn’t help that they deemed the akuma a “world-level threat”. Yeah, right. Stormy Weather was powerful, but the damage could’ve been repaired. 

Or so she thought.

The volcanos, the tsunami, the tornadoes, the earthquakes? Those were fixed. The rubble caused by them was put back in place and those who suffered under them were better than new. 

But not the damage caused by the heroes. 

Not the bakery.

There was no magic in what happened. There was nothing to reverse. Those were human actions. For the first time perhaps, the people could see how much of the damage caused by the fight was the fault of heroes. How many deaths they caused. That is if they admitted, before themselves at least, that it was their fault. 

And yet, the so-called ‘heroes’ dared to lecture her about responsibility. About the sacrifice of few for the lives of many. About the innocence of young. 

She ran away. She managed to dodge them and vanish. Meld with the crowd when there were no cameras in sight and she was sure they couldn’t track her. 

Now, Ladybug stood alone on the top of the Eiffel tower, with her yo-yo communicator in her hand. She sent the message fifteen minutes ago. She wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but at this point, she no longer cared. There was nothing more for her. 

“He thought this was a trap.” A voice spoke from behind her. Ladybug twisted immediately, taking a guarded stance. She was still avoiding the Justice League after all. Before her stood… someone. She suspected it was an Akuma. The woman had pale skin and wore a black dress, black gloves, and a black veil over her face. 

“It isn’t. I’m alone. The city suffered enough as it is today. I suffered enough.” Ladybug’s voice cracked slightly.

“I see…” The akuma pursed her lips. For a moment, a purple butterfly appeared over her face before the woman nodded. “Fine. Give me your miraculous and I will take you to him.” 

“That isn’t going to work and you know it. You would just leave me stuck here. I’m willing to offer a token of goodwill though.” With that, Ladybug pulled a necklace and dangled it before the akuma. 

“Is that…?” 

“The miraculous of the fox? Yes. No tricks. I want to negotiate. In-person.” She made sure to emphasize the last part. 

The outline of the butterfly appeared in front of the Akuma’s face for a moment before she silently nodded. “I can lead you to him, but not before you reveal your face.”

“Fine.” Ladybug didn’t hesitate. She was past that point long ago. There was no hesitation, no doubt… no regret. Not for her actions anyway. No more.

In the flash of light, instead of Ladybug, Marinette stood before the akuma. 

“You’re…” the woman’s voice was stuck in her throat.

“I’m Marinette Dupain-Cheng.” 

Tikki, floating nearby gasped in fear. The Kwami didn’t get a chance to explain before Marinette resumed her transformation. 

“Fine. Let’s go.”

The two leaped from the tower and started to zoom over the city. At first, they remained silent. Neither wanted to speak. It was tense anyway. It was, of course, Marinette who broke the silence first. 

“Your… your look. Have you lost someone today?”

The woman didn’t answer immediately. She appeared to be mulling over the question at first. Or wondering if she should answer.

“A… colleague; coworker. He was… a friend of mine you could say. We’ve been working side-by-side for at least a decade.”

“I see…” Marinette pursed her lips into a thin line. “I’m sorry.” She spoke up after a moment. “I imagine you blame me now?”

“No.” The akuma snapped. “You’re just a child. I put the blame where it belongs. With heroes. And with people who chose to invite them.” 

“Not hawkmoth?” Escaped ladybug’s mouth before she realized it. 

“He… he never wanted this either. He isn’t a villain you believe him to be.” The akuma hesitated for a moment, but Marinette could sense it was her own opinion. She filed it in her brain under interesting. 

-----------

When they arrived at Agreste manor, Marinette was surprised.

When they entered the study, she was baffled.

When they went down the secret elevator, she was angry. 

When she stood before Hawkmoth, she was furious. And it wasn’t because he was her mortal enemy. 

“So that’s why you neglect your only son?!” She screamed at him as soon as he turned to see her. His mouth moved, probably to give some excuse. “I don’t care if you want to rule the world or be a god or whatever. No matter what little sick excuse your brain found to justify your actions. You are not allowed to just ignore Adrien like that! He needs a father. He is a teenager and he needs you!” 

“Madmoiselle Dupain-Cheng.” His voice was cold, but in a different way than she ever heard Gabriel Agreste or Hawkmoth speak. 

“Gabriel Agreste. And I assume you akumatized your Assistant, Nathalie?” She pointed to the woman next to her. 

“Astute observation, Ladybug. You risked a lot coming here to speak with me. I could take your miraculous now, or any other time. You gave me your most precious protection: your secret identity. So… what was that important?”

“I want to know. What is so important to you that you’re willing to go any length to get it?”

“That’s it?” Hawkmoth raised an eyebrow. “That’s all? You’re ready to risk everything over that little piece of knowledge?”

“Yes.” Once more, there was no hesitation. There was no doubt. Her heart had no place for doubts anymore. Her heart was still stuck under three levels worth of rubble. 

“And what, pray tell, would you do if I told you?” He asked with a hint of amusement in his voice. 

“That depends.” She could see he was now intrigued, so she started to explain. “On whether I like the goal or not. And on whether you understand fully the implications. If you pass, you will get my miraculous and I will deliver you Chat Noir’s miraculous too. If you fail, you still get my miraculous. But you will never get the ring. I made sure that if something happens tonight, he will retire. He will leave Paris and toss the ring into the ocean in a concrete box. You would be left to torture the city all you wish until the League found you, but the ring’s power would forever remain out of your reach. You would be left with nothing but a criminal record. And your son would sooner than later be left without both parents. Of course, you could abandon your crusade, but then I would’ve won. I’m not a naive girl without a plan. Not anymore.” She spat the last part angrily, but her gaze was not focused on Hawkmoth, but far in the distance. 

“I… see. Clever. You’re right. This will probably end tonight.” He looked her over top to bottom. It was the first time he stood so close face to face with Ladybug. His nemesis. 

Gabriel wasn’t sure if he was impressed with her, or infuriated. Scratch that, he was sure he was both. She outsmarted him. She was willing to make an ultimate sacrifice for the sake of ending the fight. In that very moment, in her determined expression, he saw a reflection of another headstrong woman he knew. It was as if Emilie’s spirit stood before him. 

“So? How will it be?” she asked impatiently.

“Follow me.” He simply motioned for her and started walking. 

Soon, the group entered a large chamber, lit by several lights. In the center of a platform in the far end stood a glass coffin. Even from the distance, Marinette easily saw there was a woman inside. She was quick to pass Hawkmoth and get there, even as he was trying to grab her.

When the akuma and Gabriel arrived, they watched as Marinette was carefully pacing around the coffin and muttering under her breath. 

“She overused the damaged miraculous.” It wasn’t a question, but Hawkmoth answered anyway.

“Yes. Only the wish can bring her back.”

“You’re one of the biggest idiots in this whole city!” The girl screamed. “She is not dead, you moron. There are literally five different ways listed in the book which, may I remind you, you possess!” She continued to yell at him. “Hell! You could akumatize someone and give him healing power. You know… use the butterfly miraculous like it was meant to be used!” She scolded. “But nooo! You’ve got to be an idiot and immediately go for the most dangerous, imprecise, reckless, chaotic, risky solution there was! I’m sure she would’ve been ashamed.” 

Gabriel was at a loss for words. Was it really that easy? It couldn’t have been. He checked several times. He would’ve known. The akuma left Nathalie, who collapsed onto the ground. Some tear stains were now visible on her face. “I… I was just… I did what she told me. Only the wish can bring back the dead.” He stammered. 

“She. Is. Not. Dead.” Marinette made sure to punctuate each word. “She is in a coma. She is alive you moron. Tikki! Spots off!” The flash of light signaled the end of her transformation. “Be silent, little one.” She said in a caring voice. She couldn’t bring herself to take her anger on Kwami, but she couldn’t doubt now. “Akumatize me. Give me the power to heal her.”

The corruption left the akuma that was floating in the air, only for Hawkmoth to get his hands around the white butterfly and pour a new dose of power into it. It flew the short distance between them and sunk into Marinette’s purse. She smirked as the corrupted energy passed through her, turning her into an akuma. That is until she could see how she looked. 

“I’m not sure how you can call yourself a designer and yet dress me in this!” she complained. Her skin was now deep red, the color of blood, and her clothes turned into a white nurse uniform. Still, she walked to the coffin and easily opened the top. From her purse (now medic’s bag) she pulled a needle and injected the content into Emilie.

When the beautiful woman started to move, letting out an exhausted groan, Marinette sighed in relief. 

“Wha… what’s going on… the last thing I… Gabriel!” She bolted upright and immediately moaned in pain. Her hand instinctively flew to her back. “Gabriel Agreste! Did you keep me in this coffin for a whole week!?” She yelled at her husband. “And who’re those two?” She pointed at Marinette, who was smiling next to her, and Nathalie, still exhausted on the floor. “You were supposed to only reveal this to Adrien if anything happened to me. There was no talk about your assistant and… um, who’re you?” The woman turned to the akuma, who sighed and tore a strap of her bag. The butterfly left the item and Marinette reverted back to her normal form. 

“I’m Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I’m… was… used to be Ladybug.” 

“But you’re just a kid. And why was Ladybug active… Gabriel!” She roared and her husband took a step back. 

Marinette was… surprised. She didn’t expect Emilie to be like that. From what Adrien told her, she was supposed to be the kindest, nicest person in the world. Then again, he might’ve been looking at it through tinted glasses.

“Yup.” The bluenette couldn’t stop herself from commenting. “He decided that the best way to wake you up was to get the miraculi of Ladybug and Black Cat.”

“You nincompoop. That plan was only for when I was dead.” She glared heatedly at her husband and Marinette couldn’t help but be a bit smug. “And you couldn’t get the items from a kid? How many other heroes are there?” 

“Only Chat Noir. He’s my age. And I sometimes call in some help from others.” Marinette supplied quickly. She was having entirely too much fun from watching Emilie tear Hawkmoth a new one. 

“Two kids! You couldn’t defeat two kids! I leave for just one second and you start getting your rear kicked by kids!”

“He also neglected Adrien for the last two years.” Marinette decided to have as much fun as she could while it lasted.

“Gabriel Agreste. You’re officially grounded until I sort this mess. Now take your secretary and leave. I will sort the mess with you later,” she ordered. Her husband could only nod and leave as quickly as possible. 

Marinette was now holding her sides laughing. ”That was amazing. Merci Madame Agreste. I didn’t think I would get to laugh tonight… But this was too good.” 

“Oh sunshine, don’t worry. I will get him in line for you. Whoever decided to let kids fight for them was clearly sick or senile.” 

“Master Fu was… he made some mistakes. I… maybe if I wasn’t so young…”

“It’s not your fault. Whatever you blame yourself for. You shouldn’t have been responsible for Paris. Or whatever else my husband did. I think some time on the couch will do him great.” The woman got up and walked over to pull Marinette into a hug. She then led the girl back to the (now half-open) coffin and seated them both on the edge. “Why don’t you tell me what ails you? I’m sure I can help.” 

For a moment, Marinette looked the woman in the eyes. Then, she started talking. She told her everything.

About a class full of idiots who believed every lie and actively fought against her.

About Lila, who manipulated everyone and did everything to turn her life into a personal version of hell. 

About the teachers, who preferred to let her be walked on then do their jobs.

About her partner, the dorky cat who couldn’t take life seriously and at times was immature. She came to like his antics, but he infuriated her as much as he kept her sane. 

About the so-called heroes, who came into the city and ruined her life.

About the destroyed bakery. The four bodies inside.

“It was her birthday. Today my nonna had her sixtieth birthday. We were celebrating when the Akuma happened. Except the Justice League came. Funny thing. The cure can return anyone killed by magic. It can’t return those killed by aliens tossing cars around.” 

“Do you have any other family?” Emilie asked, worried about the girl. She walked through so much pain in her short life. 

“My uncle… but he lives in Shanghai now. Papa was the only child and Maman moved here from Asia… I’m not sure what will happen next.” The girl revealed. 

“Next? Next, you will come live with us. No strings attached. I have no need for your earrings or other miraculous and I can keep my husband in check. I owe you that much.”

“I… you don’t owe me anything, Madame.” The girl quickly protested. “You’re not responsible for what happened. I don’t blame your family. Those were the American heroes who killed my parents. They were the ones that destroyed half the city. They are the ones to blame,” Marinette informed the woman in a solemn tone. 

“And that’s why I want you to stay with me. With us. I can protect you. Teach you. You can have your vengeance on those who wronged you. I can make you a queen. They will regret the day they wronged you.”

“I… I accept.” Marinette bowed her head.

[yannowhatigiveup]

T.W.A.A: The Eccedentesiast

This is a one shot I started last night and I finished it at around 2 am because I’m an insomniac. Sadly this isn’t the 10k+ word one shot I was talking about (I’m still writing it aaa) but this one is around 4-5k words long so I hope you enjoy. This is rushed, badly written, badly plotted and badly named.

TW: Dark topics such as sexual assault and suicide is mentioned in this piece of writing.

Paris, the City of Love, what a big misconception that was. If anything, Paris should've been labeled as the City of Misery considering the fact it was haunted by a villain who preyed on negative emotions. No one outside of Paris knew though, they were oblivious to the fact hundreds, thousands even millions had died in the city home to the Eiffel Tower, only to be resurrected and tormented with the memories of their death. It was worse for Marinette though, she had watched all the citizens, her beloved citizens, die before her eyes and she was powerless to help them. Their screams of anguish and cries of pain forever ghosted her nightmares. It wasn't just their blood that she drowned in, she was bullied, abused and betrayed in her civilian form by those she trusted the most.

Her classmates. She thought she could trust them but they left her for someone shinier and newer. They all hurt her, destroyed her hard work, verbally and physically bullied her. Nino and Kim, her childhood friends had turned their backs on her too, even joining the others in causing her physical and emotional pain. Alya, her best friend, had become her main abuser. The reporter stabbed the poor bluenette in the back, figuratively. Lila was the one who did it literally. Lila, the sound of the name itself made Marinette sick, after all, the brunette was the one who did this to her. She made her friends turn their backs on her, she made them abuse her and she only watched with fake crocodile tears and a smug smile when no one was looking. And Adrien, he was the worst of all. When Marinette was younger, Adrien was the embodiment of perfection. But now? All she could see was a spineless coward and a predator.

As Chat Noir, he wouldn't participate in the battles, only flirting with her hero persona. He would whine like a toddler when she rejected his advancements. Even when he did join in the battles, he was useless, ignoring anything that Ladybug would tell him and go straight for the kill which never worked. Chat Noir was incompetent and a sexual harasser. As Adrien, however, he was much more. Just two days ago, he had tried to sexually assault the young bluenette. The blonde had underestimated the girl and she managed to get away but nothing could erase her memory of the event.

The ultimatum Lila had delivered to Marinette when she thirteen seemed over-dramatic and seemingly impossible at the time. Yet three years later, she was at the point of no return. Her classmates, her friends, her teachers, the boy she once loved, her partner, her parents. They all left her. Mayor Bourgeois, fearing for his daughter's safety, had sent Chloe to New York with her mother. Luka was on tour with his father so they could build a better relationship. Kagami had a family affair back in Japan that would last for at least a month. She was truly alone. Her parents had fallen victim to Lila's lies and Marinette overheard them discussing about kicking her out. The only one by her side throughout the whole ordeal was Tikki, her beloved kwami. Even Master Fu had to leave her.

Marinette felt shut out by the rest of the world. Sure, Paris adored Ladybug but it felt different. She was fighting battles alone, she stood as the last survivor, the last protector of Paris. She took that title in stride, or that's what the Parisians thought. In reality, she was hiding behind a mask.

The bluenette had suffered endlessly for years, she was ready to break that cycle of torture. Yesterday, she came to the solid conclusion of who Hawkmoth was, who is accomplices were and what his motive was. Gabriel Agreste was the man behind Paris' torment, Nathalie Sancœr was one of his accomplices and so was Lila Rossi. For his motive, he wanted to bring his wife back. Marinette understood the pain he was in but she wouldn't go to such extreme lengths as he did. Many years ago, Marinette made a friend, one of her very best friends who she fell for. But she never told anyone who he was, where he came from or even the fact that she met someone. The reason behind this was the fact she witnessed his murder. That death, of all she witnessed, was the most heartbreaking. Even when all these years have passed, she never truly got over his death. His green eyes always lingered her mind.

The bluenette let out an anguished sigh, she was on the Eiffel Tower, admiring the city's skyline despite all its obvious flaws under close inspection. Though Marinette had drastically mentally changed, she would always put on the same mask, she would always portray herself as a regular school girl. This was the one time she felt a little peace in her chaotic excuse for a life. Her blue eyes stared off into the distance, focusing on nothing in particular when she heard footsteps coming from behind. In her peripheral vision, Marinette could see the figure of Gabriel Agreste slowly approaching. Not wanting anything to happen, she made her knowledge of her appearance known.

"I never expected to see you somewhere so public, Monsieur Agreste" Her voice remained neutral. Gabriel didn't flinch meaning that he had expected her to sense his arrival, it made the young girl slightly unnerved but she refused to show it.

"The Eiffel Tower holds the greatest inspiration, as a designer yourself I'm sure you are aware" Marinette was used to his cold voice by now, she kept her guard up reminding herself that this was Hawkmoth was standing a few feet away.

She hummed, putting the two miraculous users in a deathly silence, until she decided to break it. "You know, you could've just asked" The older man raised an eyebrow in confusion but Marinette never looked in his direction, "It would've saved a lot of bloodshed"

Gabriel managed to catch up with what she was saying. "Are you implying that I am Hawkmoth?" He didn't sound offended or defensive, merely curious.

"I'm not implying anything" She replied curtly, then turning to face him. "I am merely stating a fact"

The miraculous user turned away from her, focusing his gaze on the city's skyline once more. "What are you going to do with this knowledge?"

The question confused Marinette, surely he would've attacked her or try to get her to remain silent?

He must've noticed her confusion. "Even if you wanted to, you wouldn't say anything"

Marinette turned her full body towards the taller man, she was going to end Hawkmoth's reign as quickly as she could. "I can heal her"

"What?"

"I can heal her" The bluenette repeated. "Emilie"

Gabriel also turned to face her, his usual cold scowl was replaced with a staggered expression. "Y-you can? Even after all I've done as Hawkmoth?"

Her head twisted back to portrait that was Paris. "To end it all, yes I will"

"Then please, follow me and I promise I will give you my miraculous as well as Mayura's. Just, heal my wife please" His tone changed from intrigued to pleading, Marinette could see that he meant every word.

"Oh don't worry... I will"

~~~

"I did it!" Tim's voice echoed in the Batcave.

"Did what replacement?"

"I found Hawkmoth's identity!"

Around three months ago, Wonder Woman had noticed Green Lantern trying to delete a video. She stopped him before he successfully did the task and watched the video herself, calling a meeting to express her anger about the situation. Most were shaken since they had never seen the Amazonian this livid before. She briefly explained how her mother was once a miraculous user and how powerful these magical jewelry could be. Aqua Man also shared his concerns, revealing that the fall of Atlantis was due to the miraculous. They knew the logical decision was to work on this from outside of Paris, the villain preyed on negative emotions and they had been ignoring the Parisians' calls for help for four years. Their sudden appearance would definitely trigger the heroes. So in the last month, they had gathered files of nearly every person in Paris as well as all the necessary information about every akuma attack. It was tiring for the Bats but they trudged through it anyway.

Damian had taken a special interest in the spotted-heroine specifically, without the knowledge of any of his family members. She appeared similar to a female friend he had made quite some time ago, the one who had witnessed an assassination attempt on him. He saddened him to no end knowing that the friend he loved thought he was dead. The green-eyed boy became one hundred percent convinced that this hero was his friend.

One day, Dick had caught him in the Batcave observing a recently taken image of the Ladybug heroine. His older brother thought that Damian was crushing on the lady and began to tease him as others entered the cave.

"Tt, that's not true" the green-eyed boy retaliated.

"If you don't have a crush on Ladybug then why are you staring at an image of her?" Dick added more information necessary so that his younger brothers could join in on teasing his youngest brother.

The Robin vigilante sighed and brought everyone's attention to the screen. "See that?"

"All I see is this little lady Demon Spawn" Jason's smirk was quickly gone when he noticed Damian's serious expression.

"She's alone" he stated simply and before anyone could get a word in, her explained further. "There is usually a team with her"

Everyone seemed to lean closer to the screen.

"She's fighting alone. Her 'partner' doesn't participate in the battles anymore, he stays on the sidelines, observing" He let the others catch up to what he was saying. "The attacks have been lasting a lot longer than usual, Ladybug leads a super hero team correct? Then why is she fighting alone this time."

"They could have all been killed... We have to go to Paris to help the poor girl" Dick turned to Bruce. "Who knows how much longer she'll last alone fighting a psycho butterfly man!"

Bruce's fatherly instincts were screaming at him from merely looking at the photo. "I'll announce to the League that we'll be joining the fight in Paris"

~~~

Gabriel lead Marinette to his office, Nathalie wearily watching. Just as he was about to open the double doors, his assistant collapsed in uncontrollable coughing. Marinette was much faster than the older man so she got to the woman first. The bluenette carefully put Nathalie down on one of the chairs available while putting her hand on where she thought the assistant would where the peacock brooch. The blue-eyed girl could sense the broken miraculous' energy trapped in the woman so she did the only reasonable thing she could at that moment, she extracted the corrupted magic, healing Nathalie almost instantly. Marinette ignored Gabriel's relieved expression and gestured for him to lead her to Emilie.

"When this is over, I wish to have a restraining order against your son"

"May I ask why?"

"..."

"...I understand, I'll make sure to tell Nathalie"

The older man stopped before a painting of his wife, his fingers reached for the painted shapes and pressed on them, revealing an elevator to which he went down in. Following his motion, Marinette placed her hand on the painting and allowed herself to descend down the mansion. It lead her to a repository with a catwalk which lead to a circular platform covered in luscious greenery. In the middle on the platform was a class-covered cryogenic pod which the sleeping body of Emilie Agreste lay. The bluenette carefully made her way to the glass casket, placing her hand on the transparent material when she finally reached her destination. Focusing all her energy, a red light erupted from her finger tips and it soaked into Emilie's skin. Gabriel opened the pod, carefully watching his wife as Marinette took a step back. Suddenly her eyes fluttered open.

"G-Gabriel, what happened?"

The man didn't reply, he simply hugged the woman of his dreams before turning the the young girl.

"I... Thank you Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng, I can give you the miraculous now if-"

"Ladybug will be at the Eiffel Tower soon, I suggest you give the miraculous to her then"

Gabriel nodded and thanked the girl once more as she left. Before she reached the lift that would lead her back up to Gabriel's office, Marinette turned to face the newly reunited couple.

"Enjoy the happiness in your life, Monsieur Agreste, you never know when it may end"

She then turned to leave, not wanting to here what her former idol had to say. When she reached the main floor of the Agreste Mansion, Marinette was greeted by Nathalie. The bluenette acknowledged the assistant with a nod, meaning that Emilie was awake. The assistant let out a sigh of relief and rushed to Adrien's room, not wanting to be around the blonde boy, Marinette promptly left. Once out of the premises of the mansion, she transformed and waited for Gabriel to return the miraculous. What she didn't realise was that the Justice League would also be coming to pay her a visit.

It felt like an eternity, waiting for the miraculous to be handed back to her but the bluenette was patient. She waited four years for this moment, but she had to share the moment alone. It was bittersweet. Soon enough Gabriel arivied, hastily giving Ladybug both the brooches with apologetic eyes and leaving without a word. The spotted heroine presumed that he wanted to get back to his wife and son, she couldn't blame him. Ladybug reached for her yo-yo teary-eyed, she was going to put both miraculous in her weapon before returning them in the miracle box but she stopped when she heard multiple figures approaching where she was standing.

~~~

Batman and his sons were the ones to go to Paris and alert Ladybug of their findings. The five men found themselves in front of the Eiffel Tower, Tim found out that was were the heroes would return to after their patrol.

"We must tell Ladybug right away" Batman pulled out his grappling hook and flung himself to one of the higher levels, all but Robin followed suit.

The vigilante had a feeling to remain on a lower level. He wanted to be reunited with his long lost friend but he couldn't find the words. Simply, he used his grappling hook to bring him onto one of the beams, low enough so he couldn't be seen but high enough to hear any conversation.

"Greetings, Ladybug" His father's voice echoed through the quiet building.

"Monsieur Batman? Wh-what are you doing here?" Her voice sounded almost exactly as he remembered, of course it sounded deeper and more matured but it had a more desolated edge to it.

~~~

"We apologize for not intervening earlier but we didn't know how well we needed to control our emotions" Red Hood watched as Nightwing brushed a hand through his hair nervously.

"But we can help now!" Red Robin's excited voice came out of nowhere, Ladybug looked at the vigilante in surprise. "We found out Hawkmoth's identity so we can finish this once and-"

Ladybug put a single hand up, a small smile on her face, silencing Red Robin's rambling. "That's very considerate of you, all of you" Her gaze landed on each vigilante one at a time. "But I... have things sorted" She pulled out two brooches from behind her back to show the men before putting the miraculous in her yo-yo. "I appreciate all you've done, truly I do. But can I ask one for one more favor?"

"Of course, what is it?" Nightwing asked, clearly wanting the spotted heroine to be gleeful once more.

"Could you... help the other heroes to help the Parisians to heal?"

"It's the least we can do" Batman replied. "Will you be there too?"

"I'm afraid not" Ladybug turned around and leaned forward on the banister. "You know how Hawkmoth prays on negative emotions, so I've had to deal with my emotions in an unhealthy manor but now... Hawkmoth is no more. I can be free"

"Wh-"

"Thank you, truly" Ladybug jumped up on to railing, facing the group of vigilantes. Her sad smile faded as she stared at the floor.

They didn't even get a chance to process what was happening before it did. A bright light surrounded the young hero and they were forced to close their eyes. As the light died down, Red Hood saw a small bluenette. She looked so weak, so pretty, so... fragile. It hurt the vigilante's heart seeing someone like this being the sole protector of Paris with no one by her side.

"Hey little lady-"

"I'm sorry Tikki"

The girl looked at all the vigilantes slowly, mouthing a 'thank you' before letting herself lean backwards.

Gravity took the Parisian heroine and she fell.

A small creature holding something shiny stared in horror as its owner fell."MARINETTE!" The small creature's anguished scream seemed to bring the vigilantes back to reality.

~~~

"MARINETTE!"

Robin's head shot up, that name was all too familiar. Suddenly, he took note of a figure falling fast from above, her raven hair flowing in the wind. Without giving a second thought, he bounded down the ledge he was on, landing on one of the platforms and had his arms out ready to catch the fallen angel. The bluenette was close enough for Robin to grab her and he pulled her in so that her feet landed on the platform, her body still looming over the edge of the building. His brother and father landed not far from him, bounding over to help the bluenette but Robin took no notice of their presence.

"Why didn't you just let me f...all" The girl's voice trailed off as her eyes widened in recognition, the air in her lungs escaped from her lips. "...d-Damian?"

The two friends took no notice at how the vigilantes behind Robin stiffened. Her eyes developed a watery sheen as the situation began to really hit her. Tears threatened to spill as her lip quivered. Robin pulled her away from the ledge and she jumped into his arms, she was heavily touch-starved. Much to his family's surprise, he didn't push her away. In fact, he hugged her back. They heard what she said next.

"I... I thought you were dead, Dami"

"...why? What made you do this, Malaki?"

They didn't hear what she said next as her mumbling was muffled in Robin's chest. Nightwing walked up to the two first, kneeling down to be eye level with the girl.

"Hey Sunshine... we don't know what you've been through but we're willing to help you though it okay?" The girl looked at his sincere gaze, her eyes were so round with innocence, Nightwing thought he would melt.

"I... thank you, I'm sorry for worrying you when I... jumped" No one failed to notice when Robin ran his fingers through the bluenette's hair.

"Don't apologize Little Lady" Red Hood walked over to where Nightwing was kneeling, sitting next to his older brother. "Hawkbitch forced you to bottle up your emotions, you were just strong for too long."

Marinette looked between the two men, a grateful smile on her face while she wiped the tears of pure happiness running down her cheeks. "Thank you, I- this... this is the nicest I've been treated recently"

"If you don't mind me asking," Batman walked over and Marinette felt slightly intimidated you his presence as well as his tone. The dark knight must have noticed this since he cleared his throat and began talking in a softer manner. "What happened to cause you to go to such extremes? You're obligated to not having to talk about it right away if the subject makes you uncomfortable"

"Well I guess I do have to talk about it eventually..."

Recognising the bluenette's discomfort, Red Robin stepped in. In his palm was the shaken kwami who flew straight for Marinette once the vigilante got close enough. "Since you know Robin's identity, and we already sorta know yours, it's only fair if we tell you who we are, right?" He looked at his two older brothers and then at his adoptive father. "My name's Tim Drake nice to meet you"

Marinette was about to take his offered hand when the vigilante she presumed was Red Hood took it instead, "Jason Todd, Robin's most charming and handsome brother" She giggled at Damian's obvious annoyance.

"Well I'm Richard Grayson, Robin's favourite brother, but you can call me Dick" The vigilante in the suit who comforted her first, introduced himself.

"It's nice to meet all of you"

Batman soon came over as well to aquatint with the young heroine, offering out his hand for a handshake. "Bruce Wayne"

She returned the hand shake and brightly smiled, it blinded nearly all those near. "Thank you, Mr Wayne. Wait..." she turned to face Damian, one of her eyebrows raised. "Wayne?"

"I may have failed to mention that part" To Robin's surprise, Marinette started giggling so he huffed in taken offense.

"Sorry it's just- a girl in my class as been boasting about dating you and about the Wayne Family seeing her as their 'honorary member'. I knew she was lying I just didn't know that I would bump into the people she was lying about"

Bruce hummed. "We'll have to do something about this girl you're talking about. In the meantime, why don't you come back to the hotel with us? You and Damian can catch up" The older man saw the hesitation in her eyes but he also saw the willingness that shine through the most. "If you're living in a bad environment then you do have to escape" His sons nodded along.

"I'll come, can I bring some overnight clothes? It's been a long day..."

"Of course, you go get your belongings and you can meet us at the Grand Paris Hotel"

"I... thank you again" She transformed and headed in the direction of her house, leaving Robin at the mercy of his brothers.

"You like her, Brat" Red Robin spoke up first.

Nightwing pretended to wipe his tears. "Baby Bird's all grown up now"

"That means you can't adopt the little Pixie, don't think I haven't seen the adoption papers"

~~~

When Marinette destransformed on her balcony rooftop, she quickly went inside, packed some clothes as well as some essentials. When she was satisfied with her belongings, she gave a macaron to Tikki before heading downstairs where she was met with two disappointed looking parents.

"Is something wrong?"

"We've decided," Tom began. "We're kicking you out for what you've done to your lovely classmate, Lila"

"We don't recognise the person you've become, Marinette. You are not the daughter we raised" Sabine added

"May I pack my things in the morning?" Marinette inquired, her eyes void of emotion. When her parents nodded, she left the bakery and down to the hotel where Damian was waiting in the lobby. As she approached, he took her bag and intertwined their hands together. She blushed at the contact but leaned into his embrace.

When she entered the hotel room she was greeted by the vigilantes who were now changed and unmasked. The bluenette was welcomed with open arms, she felt the warmth in her heart for the first time since Lila's Tyranny. She briefly explained Lila's lies, what she had done to Marinette and how the bluenette was able to protect Paris. She would've carried on longer if it weren't for the hotel phone ringing. It was the receptionist, saying that someone had asked to see Marinette. Confused, she went down with Damian, Jason followed closely behind since he had grown quite attached to the little fairy. Waiting at the front desk as a woman, Damian and Jason recognised her instantly as Mayura. Damian tried to step in front of his friend but she completely ignored their futile attempts to keep her in reach.

"Ah, Hello Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng"

"Hello Nathalie, we're you the one who asked for me?"

"Yes, I just need to clarify a few things"

"Go ahead"

"You're request for the restraining order has been fulfilled" the bluenette nodded, waiting for Gabriel's assistant to continue. "May I ask what did he do to make you request for it?"

The two notices how Marinette stiffened. She contemplated before sighing. "Attempted sexual assault. If you look at the camera footage outside of the Louvre from two days ago, seven pm onwards, you'll see your evidence." Marinette turned away from Nathalie and walked back to Damian who, once in range, pulled her in for a hug.

"I'll never let him near you again, Angel"

~~~

The next day, Bruce had shown up with Marinette at her parents' bakery. Upon hearing about the young bluenette being kicked out, he had asked for her permission for him to be her Guardian until she was old enough to live in her own. Marinette accepted his offer. When they had entered the building, her parents had greeted their customers kindly before recognising Marinette. Bruce turned to the young girl next to him and smiled.

"You go pack your things I'll deal with this" She smiled and bounded upstairs, leaving Bruce to talk with the bakery's owners.

"Hello Sir, how may we help you?" Sabine began, wanting to know who this man was.

"I've come to gain guardianship of your daughter, Marinette Dupain-Cheng"

"Why should we give you guardianship?" Tom asked.

"I'm sure you know the liability for child neglect, Mr Dupain" With his words, both adults seemed to turn white. "I will file the necessary and submit it with the court, I'm sure you'll be willing to give your approval"

Both Marinette and the mystery man left, true they were glad that their mistake of a daughter had gone but they wondered who she had gone with.

~~~

Later that afternoon was a charity event which the Waynes were supposed to attend as they were invited by the mayor himself, the plus side was that the Akuma class would also be attending and they had no clue the Wayne Family would be there.

"...And finally I'd like to thank the Wayne Family for joining us this evening" Mayor Bourgeois finished his speech and all heads turned to the table the Waynes and Marinette were sitting on. As his speech was over, a teenage girl with glass and a very pale brunette came over to the table.

"Hello Mr Wayne, My name's Alya and I'm your honorary daughter's best friend and I was hoping-"

"Marinette" Bruce began, cutting off the aspiring reporter. The Alya girl only then seemed to notice that the bluenette was sitting at the table. "Is this girl you're friend?"

The bluenette took one hard look at Alya before shaking her head, "No"

"Marislut what th-"

"It would be appreciated if you did not talk about my honorary daughter and future daughter-in-law on that manner" Both Damian and Marinette turned red, one much more than the other. "In fact we should be leaving" Bruce and the rest of the family got up. "Miss Rossi, I will not tolerate your lies. You will receive a lawsuit for defamation and slander. Have a good evening" They left, leaving a reporter, a liar and a class speechless.

When they reached the hotel room they finished packing up, they would be leaving that night. Marinette made a few phone calls, telling her friends that she would be moving to Gotham. They had their belongs taken to the limo downstairs and had a few snacks before making their way down. In the lobby were many different people around the bluenette's age, she recognised them as her classmates and continued walking beside Damian until Alex came over.

"Marinette... we're sorry. We understand that you probably won't forgive apps but we wrote you letters anyway" the skater girl gave Marinette a pile of enveloped letters, ones she put in her bag straight away.

"Thank you for your apologies but I don't think I can forgive you just yet, goodbye Alix" the bluenette got in the limo and let out a breath she knew she was holding.

Her eyes glanced out the tinted window, she smiled knowing that she was leaving Paris for a better life. A better life with a friends, a better life with a new family. A better life with Damian.

~Bonus~

The harsh blizzard outside was definitely being felt from inside the manor, leaving a cold and tired Marinette on the couch. Damian, noticing his girlfriend's state, went to grab a blanket to cover both Marinette and himself. She snuggled into the green-eyed boy, taking all the warmth she could get, and slowly she drifted off to sleep. Damian too felt drowsy so soon followed his girlfriend into dreamland.

Jason came in a few moments later to find the sleeping couple, he was then reminded by how tired he was so he went on the couch and leaned his back against his youngest brother, himself too falling victim to slumber.

The next person to walk in was Dick, he had just finished training so he was exhausted. But he couldn't help to coo when he came across the scene in front of him. The eldest son then got on the sofa and carefully leaned against Marinette, similar to what Jason had done with Damian. It didn't take long for him to join them in dozing off.

Tim arrived with a big cup of freshly made coffee, one which he was about to drink until he noticed his siblings all curled up on the couch sleeping. The co-CEO went back to the kitchen, left his cup of coffee then went to grab a blanket to join his family. Wrapping himself in a blanket burrito, Tim placed himself on the floor pressed up against sofa.

When Bruce returned home safely, he went to the main living room to see his children, and his future in-law who was basically his own by now, sleeping soundly with the TV still running. Reaching for the remote, he turned the television off and grabbed his phone to take a picture. He planned on printing it out and having it framed in his study. Bruce sat on one of the armchairs, taking a book to read. If there was peace in the house, he might as well enjoy it while it lasts.

[erinxneil]

When The Hero gets Saved

(or, when Marinette saves Chat Noir during an akuma attack and he forgets how to function in front of her when in his human form.)

Marinette gazed at her bare wall in awe.

Tikki swirled around her head, a collection of photographs and polaroid's held tightly in her grasp. “Have you really moved on, Marinette?” A picture of blonde hair with green eyes nearly fell from the kwamis grasp, but Marinette grabbed the photo and stared at it with a sad smile.

“Of course not, Tikki. But I need to. And this is the first step. Besides, I think that Luka deserves an actual chance.”

A soft grin graced Marinette’s lips at the thought of the blue-haired boy. After he held her in his arms during her breakdown last week, she has begun to see him in a new light. Although it seemed he understood her maybe a little too well, she was not too concerned with it. He was there for her. He listened to her cry about her problems while not knowing the half of it, and yet he was still there for her. He needed no explanation. He was perfectly okay to simply hold her.

Adrien couldn’t do that for her. Granted, she was sure if he had been there he would have been there for her as well, Luka’s presence offered her comfort that Adrien could not. This is especially relevant considering Adrien was part of the reason she was so upset. After this, Marinette and Luka began to spend more time together, and she decided that it was time to move on from the blonde boy.

“If this is what you want, then I am happy for you, Marinette.” The kwami nuzzled into her shoulder and smiled. Marinette grinned in response and began to walk to the door. As she was about to walk outside, a car was hurled just a few feet before her. Glancing into the distance, a giant creature was terrorizing the city. An akuma, surely.

Marinette turned to the side. “Tikki, sp- ah!” Before she could finish her sentence, a force grabbed her side and lifted her into the air, and the kwami hid inside her purse.

“Marinette! It isn’t safe out here. There’s been an akuma attack, you need to hide.” Chat Noir.

Internally, Marinette groaned. Yeah, and we would be able to end this if you left me alone long enough to transform. However, she knows Chat. He won’t let her out of his sight.

Once they reached the top of a particularly tall building, the cat set Marinette down. He turned to her and offered her a cheeky grin. “Don’t fear, Princess, my lady will be here soon enough and this will all be over.” She sent him a half-hearted smile before turning around and rolling her eyes. 

Before she could even begin to think of a plan of how to escape Chat, the ground beneath them rumbled. She spun around to face the giant rock-structured akuma. Mud crusted its ridges and dark eyes glared upon them.

“Why, don’t you look paw-sitively stunning on this gorgeous day? Do you happen to have a skincare routine I could follow?” Chat joked before leaping and narrowly missing being pounded into the dirt by the giant rocky fist. Each step or hit caused the ground to crumble in part.

Chat continued to fight the akuma, however he kept glancing over at Marinette or offering cocky comments, making it impossible for her to escape to transform. All that she could do is hope to help in her human form.

After a few moments of observing the fight, Marinette realized that the creature seemed to avoid the puddles of water that scattered the ground. Out of curiosity, the next time they were near her, she splashed a bit of the water onto the akuma. He angrily hissed, and shrank a small amount. Marinette grinned. Of course.

“Hey, kitty, I’ve got a plan!” Chat glanced over with a patronizing smile. “That’s cute, Princess, but I really think we should just wait for Ladybug to arrive.” She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “Just trust me, alright?”

Chat hesitated for a moment, before nodding and gesturing for her to proceed.

“I need you to lead him downstairs, after me.” He frowned. “Aren’t you going to be in danger if he’s following you?” Marinette smiled. “Thanks for the concern, kitty, but I’ll be fine. Trust me.” He sighed. Chat did not like this plan, but he obliged. A few moments after Marinette ran downstairs, Chat ran down after her, making sure the creature followed him.

Chat continued to fight the akuma in the bottom floor, however he looked around, searching for Marinette. After a few seconds, a flower pot cracked on the creature’s head. It halted and turned toward the source in anger.

“Hey, hard-head! I think you need a bath.” The akuma ran after her, stomping as it did so. Chat panicked and began chasing it, before he realized her plan. As he drew closer, Marinette turned the showerhead and turned it on, coating the rock-figure until it shrunk the size of a container of nail-polish. As it shrunk, the bracelet on its wrist fell on the ground beside Marinette. She quickly placed a cup and heavy object over the akuma, before grabbing hold of the bracelet.

She smiled before glancing up, her eyes widening in panic. “Chat!”

Before he had time to react, she lunged into him, the roof crumbling where he had just been standing. Chat glanced at the area, chuckling softly, preparing to make a joke as he turned to face his heroine, before his breath caught in his throat as he realized their position.

Marinette leaned over him, her hands on either side of his head, and she sat on his lap as he lay flat on the ground. His eyes widened and he gulped, suddenly feeling heat rush to his cheeks. 

Marinette, oblivious to their predicament, smirked at the boy before playfully hitting his bell. “You gotta be more careful next time, Chaton.” She stood, offering her hand.

The ringing of the bell hummed in the atmospheric silence for a few moments before Chat blinked and grabbed her hand. “Oh-uh- right. Thanks, Mari.”

She smiled, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. “Not a problem. Why don’t you go make sure no civilians are stuck in the remains of the fight, and I will wait here with the bracelet for Ladybug to arrive and de-evilize the akuma?”

Chat gazed at her, barely hearing a word she said. 

“Chat?” Her sweet voice broke him out of his trance.

“Oh- right! Check on the citizens. See you later, Princess!” He quickly leapt away before he could embarrass himself more, although all he could think about is how he never realized how beautiful her dark hair is and how bright her eyes were.

-*-*-*-

School the next day was unpredictable.

Marinette walked through the classroom door with Alya, chatting about their plans to help Mari move on from Adrien. As they sat down, focused on their own conversation, the blonde-haired boy entered the room. He waved at Nino with a grin, before he glanced up and his smile faltered when he noticed Marinette. Oblivious to his own actions and the bag on the ground in front of him, he tripped and flopped face-first onto the floor.

The class went silent at this, before a few of them laughed and stared at him, confused by the sudden clumsiness of the usually put-together boy.

“Adrien! Are you okay?”

Glancing up from his position on the dirty floor, Adrien nearly groaned out loud. Before him stood Marinette, offering him a hand in the same way she had the day before.

He offered a tight grin before grabbing her hand. “Thanks, Pr- er, Marinette.” She smiled, confusion passing her features for a moment before she brushed it off and sat back down.

Adrien sat down and immediately put his face in his hands and letting out an irritated sigh.

Nino laughed beside him. “Dude, are you alright?”

Adrien nodded, muttering something about how he didn’t get enough sleep last night, but all he could think about was the pink lip-gloss on Marinette’s lips and how she smelled of flowers and vanilla.

-*-*-*-

The next day, Adrien was prepared.

He had spent the entire night preparing himself, and talking sense into himself.

Marinette is your good friend. She did a good thing by saving Chat Noir. She is just a girl who you have known for years.

It seemed more he was trying to convince himself rather than anyone else.

Ignoring Plagg’s mocking, Adrien arrived to school before anyone else had gotten to class, making sure he would avoid the embarrassment of falling yet again.

However, in all of Adrien’s pre-emptive planning, he did not plan for what he would do when Marinette arrived to school with her hair down.

As she entered the class, she offered a smile to the teacher before beginning to walk past him to her seat.

He almost hoped she would walk straight past him and ignore his presence. Of course, however, she is Marinette, so she did not.

“Hey, Adrien! Good morning!”

The boy blinked up at her, just staring at her for a few moments. Marinette glanced behind her in confusion, before coughing awkwardly.

Adrien shook his head. “Oh! uh, good! Yeah!”

Marinette smiled softly, eyebrows still furrowed in confusion, before she proceeded to her seat. Adrien sighed and dropped his head onto his desk, ignoring Plagg’s snickers inside of his school bag.

As he sat there, thinking about how long her lashes are, and how sweet her voice sounds, he knew he was screwed.

Adrien would never be able to look at Marinette Dupain-Cheng the same ever again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I hope that you all enjoy and that this lives up to your expectations!

I’m considering making this a series or making more posts related to Ladybug, so please give your input!

This was entirely inspired by @princessamericachavez and her post about Marinette saving Chat Noir, as I had seen it on TikTok and everyone in the comments was looking for a fanfic inspired by the concept, so I made one! I hope you enjoyed and let me know what you think :)

-Erin

[consumeconstantly]

Not a Saint or a Hero

Summary: To civilians, Ladybug is a hero. In the eyes of the law, Ladybug is a vigilante at best, and a villain at worst. 

______________________________________________________

Conquering the Parisian underworld is child’s play for Ladybug and her partner, Chat Noir. The ex-boss of the Parisian underworld, code name Hawkmoth, may have been good at pushing drugs and ruining people’s lives, but he was woefully incompetent at... basically everything else. Which meant that other than Hawkmoth and his direct underlings, there really wasn’t much of a structure at all that Ladybug had to be worried about. No cohesive unit, fighting as one, just easy pickings and an even easier way to convince the drug dealers, homeless, illegal fight rings, and various other under the radar activities to band together to topple Hawkmoth’s empire. 

Ladybug, after all, had experience with overthrowing established mafiosos. She did it once in Wenzhou at her mother’s side, another time in Beijing because somebody made the mistake of trying to push her into prostitution, and twice in Italy with her grandmother, code name Befana.

“Do you really have to leave, m’lady?”

Ladybug shrugs. “I trust you and the team to keep things up and running. We had a good run, but there’s a good structure in place now and Befana wants me to go with her to another country.”

Nobody says no to Befana, not unless they’re bullet proof. Ladybug may have high quality Kevlar sewn into every outfit she wears, but even she isn’t the biggest fan of the impact of a bullet. Depending on the gun, broken ribs are a kindness.

“I know you don’t get along with Queen Bee, and almost everyone else is out of the country, but you’re not going to say goodbye to Rena or Carapace?”

“It’s not like I’m going to be gone forever. Just a few months. A year at most.”

“Promise me you’ll come back, m’lady?”

Ladybug puts a hand on her partner's shoulder. “You know I can’t make promises like that.”

Chat pauses, dull thud of the rave music filling in their silence. 

He swirls the whiskey in his glass. “Stay safe, Bug. Play it smart.”

“I always do.”

#

It comes as no surprise that Befana dumps her in the middle of one of the most crime infested cities world wide without a backwards glance. Her granddaughter is grown up now, after all. 

“Have fun, darling. Black Mask is particularly nasty, make sure to watch out for his assistant, she’s very sharp.” Befana pulls away from the nonexistent curb— nonexistent because there’s no sidewalks in the slums of Gotham, at least, not many of them in good enough conditions to have curbs or whole piece of cement to walk on— and leaves Marinette all on her lonesome with a backpack, a key to a cheap apartment.

Marinette eyes the broken bottles leading to the entryway of her new building and the boarded up windows. Across the street, there’s two women smoking and conversing in hushed tones.

“Well,” Marinette mutters underneath her breath, shifting the straps of her only worldly possessions. “It’s definitely quieter than I expected.”

“Hey, new girl,” one of the women in the group calls out to her. “What’re you in for?”

“School. This is the cheapest apartment I could find.”

The woman exchanges a glance with one of her friends. 

“You’re better off finding a more expensive apartment elsewhere. This isn’t a place for someone like you.”

An excellent line for Marinette to begin to fish for information. “What do you mean by that?”

“This is disputed territory, now. If you can’t afford to stay somewhere else, you better stay with whoever just dropped you off.”

Marinette fidgets. Gina is long gone. Grandmother or not, even though Gina is undoubtedly loyal and will never hurt her, she believes that the best way to inspire growth is through adversity. Like now. The only information she got out of Befana was that she had to figure out a way to keep Gotham in line… whatever that meant. “She’s not going to come back. I guess I’ll just have to try my luck.”

“You really got nowhere else to go?”

“No. I’m from abroad.”

“That explains the accent,” says the one holding a beer bottle. “Then listen up, girlie. If you wanna survive, there’s three rules you’ve gotta learn. One. Don’t cross the Black Mask. Two. Don’t cross Red Hood. Three. Don’t sell to children.”

“Sell to children?”

“Well, I don’t suppose you’d be doing it anyways, given the whole,” she motions to Marinette’s body with a cigarette, “but Hood goes after anyone who sells drugs to kids real bad. Worse than if you fuck him over with anything the Black Mask’s doing, anyways.”

“Red Hood doesn’t sound like that bad of a guy, then.” Maybe she’ll look into a collaboration with him.

The woman with the beer bottle laughed. “Oh honey, you’re a saint. Don’t go fostering any dreams. You just stay away, hear?”

“I hear you,” Marinette says.

But they got something wrong. 

Marinette isn’t a saint, and never has been.

#

The walls of her crappy one bedroom apartment are thin enough to hear the baby upstairs scream at ungodly hours. If it’s not the baby waking her up, her neighbors in the apartment to her right are fucking very, very loudly. The apartment below her blasts rock music at all hours, the apartment to her right is likely selling drugs, given that she sees at least fifteen different people come in and out each day, and they always have a vaguely dazed look in their eye. She hasn’t heard anything from the apartment across, but she’s sure they’ll start up some noisy activity that Marinette doesn’t particularly want to hear soon enough.

She really got pampered in Paris, didn’t she?

Marinette lived a life of relative luxury whenever she stayed with her parents, instead of Gina. While in Beijing and Chongqing with Tom and Sabine, Maman did all of the heavy lifting for her. Well, Beijing had ended rather disastrously, and they had to make a quick getaway, but at least in Chongqing, Sabine managed to get rid of the prostitution ring. 

Back in Wenzhou, Catania, and Bologna, Gina took the reins, and it always turned out to be a sink or swim sort of situation. First off was her mother’s birth place, which had an astonishingly high crime rate and definitely explained why Sabine Cheng was so adept at self defense, and once they were there, of course they had to reform the fight rings. In Catania and Bologna, Gina practically threw her at two of the lowest rank mafia groups and told her to use them to bring order to the warring mafias. During those years, Gina didn’t make a front like Sabine and Tom did, purchasing a bakery and running a business to aid their more behind the scenes work. No, with Gina, it was either war of peace, and there was nowhere in between.

Which, of course, meant that Marinette rarely got to stay in nice rooms or pursue hobbies like sewing or drawing or anything, really.

Now that she is of age, Marinette could potentially try to wrest herself out of Befana’s influence, but that’s almost a laughable thought. Befana has eyes and ears everywhere. If she wants to escape the rat race of reformation, Marinette needs to gather power. 

The best thing she can do for now is try to figure out the situation in Gotham. If it’s not particularly bad, maybe she’ll have an easy time of it, and figure out how to disappear herself. She’s not totally opposed to the whole making-criminals-act-within-the-bounds-of-morality thing, but it’s gotten pretty tiring. Not repetitive, necessarily, but after experiencing an almost normal life in Paris, Marinette does want to have the privilege of not having to worry about her life every hour. Maybe she can even start up a little boutique. 

Marinette dumps most of the contents out of her bag, only leaving her wallet, a knife, and her trademark yo-yos. 

“Maybe I can go back to Paris, eventually.” She has become very fond of the city; the first place where she took fate into her own hands, where her mother and grandmother didn’t push her to reform the underworld. The first place where she chose to change the world around her. The first place where she saw things through from start to finish. The first place she formed her own team. 

The power of change is both incredibly addicting and terrifying. She sort of gets why Befana roams the world, looking for the next place she wants to shake things up in. But Marinette can’t get addicted. This is going to be her last city, then she’s going to return to Paris and settle down. She’ll leave city beautification to the so-called vigilantes that almost every city has acquired, save Paris.

Oh wait, she supposes that Ladybug and Chat Noir were-- and Chat still is-- a type of vigilante back home. But as it stands now, it will be more correct to refer to them as heads of the Parisian underworld; they definitely don’t work on the side of the law, but she and Chat made sure that drug deals were more… regulated. That deaths and the induction of children into such a dark world were curbed. That if people really wanted to get out, they could.

All of that doesn’t matter. Not in the eyes of the law at least. Parisian citizens love the duo for helping keep crimes off the streets and for banning the particularly strong strain of drug that Gabriel called AKUMA off the market, but the Parisian police? She and Chat both have targets on their head. Their whole team does.

She eyes the apartment across from her. There’s blood on the door handle. It’s a good thing that Sabine and Tom never tried to instill those odd customs of ‘house warming’ and ‘getting to know her neighbors’ that most other people teach their children. In good neighborhoods, it’s important to have a cordial relationship with whoever’s living next door. In neighborhoods like these? It’s even more important.

But rule number one of pissing people off? 

Coming over uninvited.

Marinette doesn’t bother locking the door behind her. 

#

“New to the neighborhood?”

Apparently, it really is bizarre for her to have moved into this apartment complex. She’s come across a grand total of five people during her week here, and every single one of them stopped whatever they were doing in order to take a closer look. 

Marinette knows that this is a disputed area. She looked into the two women’s words the day she arrived. But, for a disputed area, everything is remarkably quiet. No fights, nobody on the streets, most people keep indoors, unless they’re out for a smoke, to throw out the trash, or are going to or coming back from various activities outside of the block.

What’s even more odd is that all of her neighbors seem to know each other intimately. Or at least, intimately enough to know that she doesn’t belong there.

“Yeah,” Marinette says, ready to leave this conversation behind. She doesn’t bother getting information out of the people who are in her apartment complex or on this block. To be more accurate, she tried with one of the first people she came across, but it was apparent that someone encouraged them to be tight lipped with information. 

Given the current information she has, she thinks it’s more likely that the one who gave that order is Red Hood, rather than Black Mask.

“Been here a week.” The guy lights his joint and breathes out. “Not so new anymore.”

Over the years, she’s gotten used to the smell of marijuana, though she can’t say she likes the scent. She’ll take cigarettes over weed any day.

“You could say that.”

“Don’t suppose anybody’s laid out the rules for you yet, have they?”

Maybe this will make things easier for her. Mostly, she’s just settled into her apartment over the past seven days. There's no need for her to immediately get to work, and she does enjoy comfort. Taking down criminals is hard work. She wants to come back to an apartment that doesn’t look awful and lets her relax. So what if she spent most of her money on an expensive mattress and a coffee machine? She’s an adult now. Nobody can tell her what to do. (Except for Befana.) “No, not really.”

“Tina and Audrey give you a crash course?”

“Mostly just warned me not to sell to children.”

The man barks, smoke spitting into the stale air. “Some of the best advice around. Let me tell you, Black Mask might have more manpower, but Red Hood has rage. Cross Black Mask by gypping him, he’ll send a lackey after you. Fuck with children, Red Hood himself will come for you.”

He pauses, evaluating her appearance. 

“Though you look like a child yourself. Mighty pretty too. lucky girl. Hood will protect you if you stay around these parts, but if you go south on the diagonal, you’ll be in bad territory. Plenty of prostitution rings around there.”

“Thought this was disputed territory.”

“Not really. Anywhere Hood has claimed is said to be disputed because Mask hates his guts and keeps sending goons to these areas. But anyone who’s dealing under Mask aint gonna take the risk of their lives just to branch out to these spots.”

“Sounds like Red Hood is pretty well liked around these parts, then.”

Perhaps she’ll look into working with him. From what she’s heard of the guy and what she’s found trawling the dark web, his morals seem to align with her own. A little bit more temperamental than she’d like, a little too quick to kill, rather than apprehend, but Gotham prisons seem to have jailbreaks every other week, so she can understand why it may be easier just to make every encounter a one and done.

“Liked?” Blunt finished, he flicks the stub into the dirt, crushing the embers under foot. He wipes his mouth with the scarf around his neck. “Like isn't the question in Gotham, Frenchie.”

Marinette inwardly cringes. She’s tried to minimize her accent because it makes natives distrust her, or think they can take her for a loop. Most people she’s come across accept her as one of their own, but apparently she hasn’t been doing as well as she thought she was. Maybe this is why people seemed a little more reluctant with any information.

“When it comes down to it, liking means nothing. It’s who you trust to watch your back.” He fumbles in his pockets, pulling out another blunt. Marinette notices that his fingers are fairly heavily bandaged and that the man is shaking slightly. Medicinal marijuana, maybe. “Wouldn’t trust that Mask farther than I can throw him. And he used to be a wrestler, so he’s a fat bastard. At least you can trust Hood not to cross you as long as you don’t cross him first.”

Lighting the tip, his eyes sharpen. “You seem like the trustworthy sort. Active, too. I’ll leave you with one more piece of advice. If you ever run into Hood? Don’t mention two things: the Joker, and Batman.”

“I doubt I’ll ever run into him,” Marinette lies. 

The man laughs. “I’m a Gotham native, Frenchie. I can tell what kind of person you are. You’ll be meeting him soon, I know. Hood needs someone to watch his back, and you? You need someone to keep your head above water.”

He flicks the ash off the blunt and turns his back on her, and Marinette can’t tell whether he’s showing her respect or belittling her.

#

 Two weeks into her stay in Gotham and Marinette has finally collected enough information about her surroundings to feel confident about going out as Ladybug.

Guns are infinitely more available here in America than they were back in France, which means she needed more than one costume, and an upgrade to her current one. High quality kevlar is good and all, but it’s heavy, and not everyone in Gotham is high off their minds using AKUMA. Replacing kevlar with polythene, now that it’s available to her, is only a natural decision. She has to be more careful here in Gotham. Not only does she have no support network, she’s also highly inexperienced with the terrain. She’s at a disadvantage here.

With a combo polythene and kevlar bodysuit, a crop top with her signature ladybug embroidery on the backside, an all black domino mask, and a utility belt with two yo-yos , knife, and emergency medical supplies, she’s as ready as she ever will be to witness the nightlife first hand.

And just like in Paris, Wenzhou, Beijing, Chongqing, Catania and Bologna, she doesn’t have to go far to find the trouble.

Befana has told her multiple times that Marinette is like a lucky charm for problems. Judging by the amount of time she’s gotten herself into sticky situations unintentionally, she’s inclined to agree, though she’d call herself more of an unlucky charm.

She doesn’t bother speaking, instead hurling one yo-yo at the guy who’s trying to tie up a girl half her age and the other yo-yo at the wheels of his car, to make sure he can’t make a quick getaway.

Ladybug may not use guns, but she never said that her weaponry wasn’t tricked out; yo-yo knocks the guy up the head, sending him down for the count, and yo-yo two slashes through the rubber tire. The man waiting in the car rolls down the window to shoot. Ladybug rolls her eyes. Dumb and dumber. She’s not sure whether he’s trying to preserve his windows or doesn’t realize that rolling down his window leaves him open for her own attacks.

Reeling back in yo-yo one. She hurtles it through the window, presses a button, then ducks. The head of the yo-yo detached and shocks the driver.

“Need help getting home?” Ladybug asks the girl who’s currently edging away from her. 

“Who are you? Why did you help me?”

Ladybug shrugs. She’s never been particularly good at explaining herself; Chat took care of most of the conversions within Hawkmoths retinue. She’s good at making the occasionally public statement and making sure people she’s close to don’t stray, but strangers? Most people back in Paris just trusted her blindly, and she never had to think about how to present her reasoning.

She takes two sets of zip ties out of her pack, then restrains her first victim. After she slaps a patch on the tire-- if she is going to take this girl home, she certainly doesn’t want to walk her back in this neighborhood, and judging by the size of the van, there are probably a few people in the back she’ll need to free as well. Ladybug moves on to tie up the guy in the car, back towards the girl. “If you don’t want my help, that’s fine too.”

As soon as she turns, there’s a sharp intake of breath. “You’re with Hood, then.”

Not yet. “M not, actually. Never met the guy. What makes you say that?”

A bout of nervous, high pitched laughter. “The red, maybe. Or, I don’t know, the fact that he’s here and not knocking you out?”

Ladybug whirls, trying to see where the infamous vigilante is. True to the girls word, he is just a little ways down the alleyway they’re currently in, looking, for all intents and purposes, not about to kill her. How pleasant. Better than she was expecting; his temper precedes him, and she was expecting to have to fight with the guy before even dreaming about having a civil discussion with him.

He doesn’t have his hands on his guns, which she takes as a good sign. Taking a good look at him she’s almost surprised that he’s calming himself the Red Hood instead of the Red Helmet, but she supposes the former sounds better.

“Let me finish tying that one up,” Ladybug says.

Red Hood grunts in response.

“So you are working together,” the girl concludes.

Ladybug shrugs again, tapping another button to reattach the head of her yo-yo and grabbing the keys and phone from the driver’s pocket. She pops the back of the van. There are three girls tied up in the back. 

Her knife makes quick work of the bonds that restrain them. The girls take the duct tape off their mouths themselves; she feels a deep disgust of the men that are currently knocked unconscious. Not only are they traffickers, but they’re new traffickers. Inexperienced. Duct tape isn’t used most times because it damages the goods. Either that, or they’re organ dealers, because people don’t need the bodies to look pretty when they just want the innards. Judging by the fact that all of the people in the back are girls, she’ll put money on the first one.

“You going to let me drive these girls back before we have our talk?”

“Fine,” Red Hood bites out, moving to sit shotgun. “You move one finger out of line, and I’ll shoot.”

Ladybug tosses the unconscious body out of the driver’s seat.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

@jasonette-july-2k20

[airi-p4]

While it lasts

This was supposed to be kind of a S4 theory about akumatized Luka + a canon-verse Lukanette approach. I guess my hand slipped?  This is similar to my previous fic ‘Betrayer’, in which Juleka was the akumatized one. 

Warning: ANGST.

AO3 _________________________

"Jagged Stone is your father" Anarka had just told her twin children.

Luka's world was shattered into pieces.

Jagged Stone. His favorite musician. His inspiration. His mother's old music partner.

Their father.

One word occupies his mind: abandoned.

And the image of him takes a 180 degree turn. From admiration to despise.

His idol abandoned him. Him and his sister. His mother too.

Why?

He hates it. He hates all of it.

He hates it so much, not even his girlfriend Marinette can calm him down like she usually does. Not even her sympathetic voice or her sweet heart melody can heal him. Neither could her hand pressed on his in comfort.

Juleka's mind had gone blank for some seconds. Memories of how fond Luka was of Jagged Stone occupying her mind. 'Cool', she thinks, and then she focuses on her brother, who is clearly in shock.

In silence. In a trance.

He can't hear anything anymore, she realizes, after noticing how he isn't paying attention to either Marinette's, her mother's or her own calls.

His heart song is strident, loud, noisy- And his eyes lose all his light, all his kindness too.

'Abandoned'

This word keeps spiraling in his mind. On repeat. In an infinite loop.

"Luka!" He hears Marinette's voice call him in alert, finally making him snap out of it and find the strength to fight the akuma that just entered his guitar.

“Marinette… Don’t abandon me…” he begs, holding her while fighting not to lose control and fall under Shadow Moth's control.

“I won’t”, she assures him, clearly supporting him. She keeps encouraging him not to fall into the darkness of the dark butterfly.

Her melody is sincere. So sincere she can’t hide her still unburied feelings for certain blond hair and green eyes that make her heart flutter. And he can see it: the moment that is bound to happen, the moment Marinette will break up with him to go to Adrien. The moment all walls separating them will collapse and they will meet each other in the tangled maze of secrets they’re currently trapped in. The crumble of the castle that allowed him the miracle to have her by his side at this moment.

“You won’t” he whispers, feeling his biggest fear close: Silence- loneliness.

Abandoned.

His arms tighten around her, holding her even closer, impeding her from moving. He pulls her so close he's even hurting her a little. Marinette slightly protests in a cry, but she’s more emotionally affected than physically. "Luka-!"

She's scared.

She wants to assure him she’s honest. She wishes to be able to give him all her love, her existence-

And his newly appeared akuma form is willing to take it all.

His guitar is now a big fish net, his body has grown 3 times bigger and his looks are similar to a sea God. ‘Glaucus’, he calls himself. The name of the God of the fishermen in Greek mythology. His hair is longer, and his belly has become a transparent fish tank, where he plans to keep his loved ones, both safe and close so they don’t abandon him.

Punishment for the ones who abandon, lie and betray.

Protection for the loved ones.

'Justice', he calls it.

He doesn’t even need a big fish tank, because his loved ones are limited. A countable number of individuals is enough for him: Marinette, his mother, his twin sister, the rest of Kitty Section… Mylène too, maybe, since he would feel bad for Ivan if he left her out of it. And he would consider Marinette's family too, since he knows how much she appreciates them.

As for punishment? It's also clear: Jagged Stone comes first, followed by Lila Rossi among others who have dared to hurt his loved ones, such as Chloe Bourgeois and Bob Roth.

Marinette trembles at the vision after he finally lets her go of her to grab his fish catching instrument. A tear escapes her eye, and slides to fall from her chin. And then she runs: because that’s the only way she can help him: run, transform, defeat him and fix the damage she will fight to prevent from happening.

But she's ignoring the most important fact. The fact that that's exactly the action which will lead to her down fall, the sight that frightens Luka the most: Marinette turning her back to him, leaving him all alone.

His song abandoning him.

Rage, pain and despair fills his heart, unable to be contained with his meditation or her music. The music he himself turned into a loud mess, sounding just like nails scraping on a chalkboard, painful to his ears and his soul.

And that’s when he traps her, his net capturing her and turning her into a small, bright pink colored mermaid, he literally swallows to get her inside the fish tank he carries inside his transparent glass made belly.

A relieved sigh leaving his throat: Marinette is now secured. She won't leave his side again. ‘Who’s next…?’ He questions himself, looking at his horrified mother, Anarka as he smirks. He'll soon have all of them in his treasured fish tank.

And what will happen to those who deserve punishment? Fish out of the water- dry fins gasping for oxygen. Dead fish with eyes as cold as their hearts. Or even better- Jagged is going to be abandoned on his own before that- just like he cold-heartedly abandoned him and his sister.

And now that he mentions it… 'Where's Juleka?'

The akuma looks for her, but he doesn't see her around. 'She can wait' he decides, his chants summoning a big sea wave to carry him to his unwanted father's hotel suite.

__________

Jagged Stone can't believe his eyes. An akuma claiming to be his son has just turned Penny into a goldfish, who is now struggling with tiny desperate jumps for oxygen to breathe through her newly acquired fins. Impossible without water. Fang is next to join Jagged's personal assistant, now tiny and convulsing.

"Who are you!? Why are you doing this!? I have no kids!! Don't lie!! Stop this! Turn them to their original forms! They could die!" The rock star angrily begs under Glaucus lashes.

"You're the one who is lying! My mother never lies, so you are the one lying when you say you have no children! You're the one who abandoned us!" He yells as angry as Jagged. "All the admiration and respect I had for you is now hate and disgust! You deserve punishment for the sake of Justice!"

"Stop right there, mermaid boy. Didn't we already make it clear what the difference between revenge and justice was when you were 'Silencer'?" Chat Noir joined the battle, protecting Jagged from being crushed under the akuma's weapon.

The akuma attacks again, but this time he's stopped by someone else. Someone Chat Noir brought along with him- a new superhero.

_______

During the time Marinette was trapped, Tikki, safe and sound, had carried a Miraculous to Juleka, who was watching terrified at how the events developed on TV. She was too focused to notice the kwami, but she clearly noticed the box that fell on her hand out of nowhere. Reaching it, she curiously opened it, and a magical creature appeared in front of her.

"Hi there! I'm Roarr. It's nice to meet you, Juleka!" The little tiger introduced himself.

"What are you? What's going on?" Juleka questioned.

"I'm a kwami. I grant powers! Put on that jewelry and call for the magical words to transform into a superhero"

"Me? A superhero like Ladybug? I don't think I can-" she nervously mumbled, unconfident.

"The guardian chose you for this mission! You want to save your brother, right?" Juleka nodded. "Then say the words: Roarr, transform me"

"Roarr, transform me" Juleka said, and magic surrounded her. Her new appearance was purple with tiger-like orange colored stripes over her body. Her mask was the same colors of the suit, and a pair of tiny ears decorated her now tied hair, her ponytail loose in the wind.

Moments later, she ran towards the hotel, unknowingly followed by Ladybug's kwami.

And the battle started.

________________

"Luka! I know you're hurt, but Jagged is telling the truth! He never abandoned u- you! He never knew he was a father! He probably doesn't even know by now!" The new hero desperately yelled.

"Lies! All lies! He deserves punishment! And you do too!" The akuma points at the heroes and Jagged who is hiding behind them.

"I'll show you the truth!" The tigress announces, calling for her superpower.

Her claws become shiny and with one touch, she marks an ‘X’ on Jagged's forehead, and a purple cloud comes out of his mouth and surrounds them, as if they had just entered his dreamland- except it's, in fact, the rock star’s memories.

Luka is in denial. It is true. Jagged Stone never knew about them. Which means he abandoned them unknowingly. Was he innocent, though?

No, he wasn’t. Because he had indeed abandoned his mother.

_______

Meanwhile, Marinette had been trying to find a way out of the fish tank. She couldn't transform into Ladybug even if Tikki was free, because that would make her identity public. She needed another plan.

That's when she asked Tikki to get Juleka the tiger Miraculous- and it had, once again, been the right choice.

Marinette couldn't just stay still,watching. She fought to find a way out.

Making use of the constant moving water, and with Anarka and Kitty Section's help, she found a way up, arriving to his heart. Or was it the akuma’s heart? It didn’t matter to her as long as she could save him.

The sight was not what she had expected: a vast sea surrounded by colorful stained glass with the people he cared the most portrayed on them. Anarka, Juleka and Kitty Section were there. Big, colorful and shining bright.

Marinette continued swimming in his inner tormented sea of darkness until she found another glass under a cliff: hers. It looked beautiful, but unreachable, since a rose garden guarded and protected it. Untouchable beauty.

Was this Luka's vision of her? A beautiful flower surrounded by thorns, with green stains on paint messing with the almost perfect piece of art’s balance and making it painful to watch?

Marientte felt her heart ache in guilt.

She knew she was the cause of the hurt in his eyes which he sometimes looked at her with. He had always seen through her, despite how much she had been starting to believe her own lies about ‘moving on’ and ‘love’.

Marinette shook her head: no time to waste. Cry later. Focus now.

Her tail brought her to a cliff island with a broken stained glass window next to it. The one that belonged to Jagged Stone, as his name was written on a rock. It most likely broke at the revelation of Jagged being Luka’s father, but now the window was pitch black, with the pieces scattered on the floor. Silent.

She could feel his fears of being abandoned in her own skin, and froze at the realization: his endurance and his strength were only there thanks to music. A music his heart lacked at the moment.

Music.

That's the answer. Music was what healed his heart. This time too, he needed music.

But what could she do without musical knowledge? Or without any instrument to play?

'My voice' she notices. ‘I still have my voice’

Marinette starts singing her own heart song as composed by Luka, while the battle outside continues, now with their visit to Jagged Stone's memories.

Perfect timing.

And clouds appear over Jagged's glass window, the wind carrying some pieces back to its original place- partly reconstructed.

Maybe the mermaid form had another purpose, Marinette wonders. Maybe Luka couldn't completely let go of music, after all, whether he was akumatized or not. Or maybe...

Back to present, Marinette sees a light up that lifts her out of Luka's insides. Next time she blinks, she has recovered her original appearance- clumsy human girl Marinette.

"Run!" Chat Noir commands, and she obeys. As she runs, she gazes back at Luka, who shows her a painfully sad smile.

"Marinette!" Her kwami calls her before she can give it deeper thought. "Tikki! Spots on!"

Moments later, Ladybug makes it to the battle. "Lucky charm!"

____________

The battle ends soon. Too soon, to Ladybug's surprise. ‘Why did he offer no resistance?’

She'll have time to think about this later. First… "Miraculous Ladybug!" Ladybug rushed to recover Juleka's Miraculous so they could go back to Luka as soon as possible.

"Thank you, Ladybug" Juleka says, running off to hug her brother.

Marinette detransforms next and soon reaches them too. But she hesitates again. Should she be by his side when she hurts him so much?

Luka meets her gaze and smiles softly, apologetically and embarrassed, but clearly welcoming her. And she doesn't hesitate anymore to join their collective hug, melting in love after a swirl of emotions. They part from the hug and they all focus on Jagged Stone who is still processing what happened.

"Wait a second- Are you really my children…? You thought I abandoned you…?” Jagged asks the twins, before turning his head to Anarka. “Why didn't you tell me? Weren't we partners? 'Rock-'n'-roll until the crocodile controls'. Remember?"

"You said you wanted to go solo. You left me behind. Did you really expect me to go back to you after the humiliation I suffered? I gave you my heart and you threw me away as soon as you could!" Anarka yelled.

"I was young and immature, and not the best father figure, I admit it! But I deserved to know! You should have told me!"

"I'm telling you now! They are your children, Luka and Juleka. If you ever want to meet them, you know where we live. Don’t you ever come back if you plan to abandon them later" Anarka says, grabbing her children's shoulders and guiding them to move out of the hotel room with a push.

"I'm sorry…" Luka mumbles to Jagged, before leaving the room.

"I'm the one who is sorry…" Jagged admits to Marinette before she runs to follow the Couffaines and Kitty Section. “I’ll go visit sometime! I promise!”

“Are you ok, Luka?” Marinette asks after leaving through the hotel doors, seeing how Jagged is looking at them from the highest balcony.

“I will be. Eventually…” he returns his gaze down to focus on Marinette, reaching to hold her hand. “I don’t need Jagged’s music as long as I can listen to yours''

Marinette feels her cheeks burn.

________________________

On their way home, Marinette can’t take what she’s seen out of her head. ‘It was Luka's heart, right? And Luka’s true feelings. He truly loves me’, she realized. ‘But why…?’

With an instant of bravery, Marinette pulls Luka's hand to separate themselves from the rest of his family and friends.

"Luka… I- Am I painful to be with? To watch?" She bites her lip a bit and asks in terror. “Am I hurting you?”

"Of course not, Marinette. Never.” Luka assures her with a soft, faint smile. “You're more than I could ever ask for. You're the most beautiful song I've ever heard"

"Even if I have those unbearable to watch green stains...?" she whispers, embarrassed and angry at herself for not being able to make her feelings go according to her wishes.

"It can’t be helped, can it? And even if that’s the case, for me, you’re still the most beautiful despite those colors"

“Is my heart song really enough to cover for that ugliness? I hate it myself…”

“You shouldn’t. Imperfections can enhance beauty. I don’t mind them as long as I can hear your song up close” he answers.

“But-! Are you sure…? Aren’t you afraid I might end up abandoning you?” she finally asks, scared for his answer.

“I am. I’m terrified” he admits. “But how am I supposed to stand in the way of your wishes- your happiness? I can’t and I won’t do that” Luka shrugs, “Aren’t you scared of being abandoned too?”

“I am” she answers, after giving it some thought. “and that’s not the main reason for it, but I want to stay by your side” she realizes, “more than ever”.

Luka squeezes her hand and shows her a soft expression. “Thank you for always saving me. Akumatized or not,” he whispers to her ear. It surprises Marinette to see how his cheeks are pink over his fond smile.

“No-! I- I just sang a song and- It was all thanks to the new her-” she stopped herself. Luka couldn’t possibly remember what happened when he was akumatized. No one told him, no one showed him the news. He couldn’t know he turned her into a mermaid, or how she sang. Yet he thanked her for saving him.

‘Of course he knows’ Marinette understands. ‘Yet he didn’t reveal me to Shadow Moth and he let me go on purpose, too’. Her thoughts deepen. ‘I get it now’ she reaches her conclusion. ‘He wanted me to save him. He wanted me to take him back after he realized he was on the wrong side. It makes sense. He protected me despite being akumatized once again- like when he was Silencer’.

The girl’s feet stop walking for a moment at the revelation, causing Luka to look back at her. Taking one step closer, she raises on her tiptoes and gives Luka a kiss on his lips, surprising both of them.

‘I wonder what kind of music his heart is hearing now,’ she wonders, ‘because I can only hear a grateful and sincere happy tune in my own heart right now’

“Your heartsong is beautiful” she finishes with a smile he reciprocates.

Most likely, both of them knew deep inside that their relationship as it was now was bound to end at some point, sooner or later. Maybe both of them would always be afraid of loneliness and being abandoned, too. But wasn’t it enough to enjoy the music they created in that instant, while it lasts? Isn’t it the same with live concerts? They might end, but the sensations last forever in memories. Is it something to regret? Neither of them felt it was. And perhaps both of them secretly agreed with that logic as they continued walking hand in hand, enjoying each other's company and welcoming their mutual love and support, in whatever form their relationship changes into in the future.

[kasienda]

A Miraculous Reveal - Instagram

I forgot to post this here! Inspired by a prompt from @ladyofthenoodle. She also figured out how this one should end because she’s genius like that. Hope you enjoy! 

~~~

Marinette stared unhappily at the photo on her computer screen. Part of her thought she should be overjoyed at the revelation before her, but in the moment, she only felt frustrated. What was that stupid cat thinking?! Could he be any more obvious? If she didn’t know better, she’d think he did it on purpose.

“Marinette?” Tikki’s familiar voice called. “What’s wrong?”

The dark-haired girl sighed, and then gestured halfheartedly to the picture on her instagram feed. “Do you think I should be more mad at Adrien for uploading this picture? Or at Plagg for being difficult in the first place?” Tikki looked at the picture of Adrien sitting at his desk leaning forward to the camera with light from tall panes of glass windows lighting up his hair in a golden glow. As someone who collected all things Adrien, the picture honestly wasn’t the best Marinette had ever seen. His face looked washed out, and he had bags under his eyes. He just looked tired, and she couldn’t help but worry about him. Especially now that she understood that his plate of responsibilities was larger than she had ever imagined. The image was further spoiled by a random plain white sock floating upright in the air behind him. It was so stiff it could have been hanging from a clothesline.

Marinette observed Tikki carefully as the kwami considered the picture, watching for any reaction. At times, her kwami was amazingly expressive, but Marinette had come to learn the embodiment of creation could pull off quite the poker face when the need arose.

“I don’t see Plagg,” the red sprite finally concluded, her eyes furrowed together in seeming confusion.

“Really?!” Marinette scoffed. “That’s what you’re going with? I already know that kwamis don’t show up on camera, Tikki. What else could that be?”

Ao3 Link Ff.net

“Photoshop?” TIkki suggested lightly.

Marinette rolled her eyes.

“Maybe Adrien threw the sock backwards when he took the picture,” her kwami said.

Marinette crossed her arms over her chest, not remotely convinced by Tikki’s attempts to dissuade her.  “It’d be blurry, Tikki.”

“Not if it was at the height of its arc.”

“It wouldn’t be at this angle,” Marinette argued, pointing at the artifact. She didn’t like physics, but she couldn’t help pick up on some things being a superhero fighting akumas over the rooftops of Paris. “This is like it’s hanging upright. If it was flying through the air it would be bent and floppy.”

Tikki sighed, her mouth opening in search of another argument, but no words left her lips.

“You know who else might know that kwamis can’t be photographed?” Marinette asked rhetorically, and then answered the question herself. “Papillion.”

“Yeah, Adrien needs to delete that photo,” Tikki agreed.

Marinette laughed at Tikki’s sudden change in tune. “Oh, you think so?”

Tikki didn’t bother to respond to the “I told you so,” and Marinette found herself looking at the picture. His eyes were actually green. After her stint as Lady Noire, Marinette hadn’t been certain that her partner’s eyes were that vibrant shade of fresh spring grass. But they were, and for whatever reason that little detail made her feel like she knew him.

And of course, she did know him. He was Adrien. But now… She couldn’t help the giddy little smile that burst over her face as the reality of Chat Noir’s identity really sunk in, and she loved him even more.

“I’m glad that you’re happy,” Tikki observed softly. “That it’s him.”

Marinette twirled around in her chair towards her kwami. “Yeah, me too,” she admitted with a blush. “But goodness, he makes things so difficult sometimes! Why doesn’t he think things through?!”

“Let’s go yell at him!” Tikki encouraged, executing an excited dance in the air.

Marinette laughed. “Alright, then! Tikki, Spots On!”

…

Adrien lay back on his bed, one arm behind his neck supporting his head, and the other hand holding his phone up in front of his face, watching the likes and comments come in from his latest Instagram post. He didn’t really know why he always watched the reactions come in live. The constant notifications and attention from people he had never met had lost its joy and appeal ages ago, and yet, he still couldn’t help but check the recent post every few seconds anyway.

And this post was special. He had an ulterior motive.

“Do you think she’ll figure it out, Plagg?” Adrien asked, daydreaming of a certain Ladybug darting through his window.

“I’d say that’s a pretty good bet!” the mischievous cat like kwami said, snapping the t before phasing out of sight.

Adrien dropped the phone and looked up. “What makes you say…”

Ladybug stood in his window frame. Her blue eyes narrowed as they landed on him, and he wanted to hide from her obvious displeasure.  

“...that?” he trailed off. He leapt from his prone position on the bed, and slid forward, allowing his legs to hang over the mattress as he sat smiling at his mostly unexpected guest.

“Hi, Ladybug! What brings you here?” Adrien greeted brightly as if it was totally and completely normal to have a superhero standing in his open window. Which, if he counted himself, it kinda was…?

Her glare turned frostier, even as she jumped gracefully from the window sill to the marble floor. “Don’t play dumb, Chaton. It doesn’t suit you. Delete it now!”

“Delete what?” Despite her command, he figured it was in the interest of his survival to pretend he had no idea what she was talking about.

“The photo that you just posted to Instagram!” she growled.

He grinned. Ladybug had arrived within thirty minutes of him posting the photo. “So, you follow my Instagram?”

To his shock, pink flushed across her face. “That’s s-so not the point!” she spluttered.

His grin widened. “I always told you, you’d find my unmasked face irresistible.”

Her eyes hardened. “You need to delete that photo now, Adrien!” she barked harshly. “If I could figure it out, Papillion and Mayura can too!”

His grin evaporated in an instant. Shit! He hadn’t thought about that. He darted back to his phone that lay abandoned on his bed, rapidly unlocked it, and then swiped and tapped his way through the app. “It’s done,” he reported, all his bravado gone. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think.”

His partner’s form slumped in relief and she let out a frustrated sigh. Her resigned exasperation with just that dash of disappointment cut deeper than anything she had actually said. He had been needlessly reckless and for selfish reasons. It seemed so obvious now.

“It’s probably not gone, though,” he admitted softly. “I have crazy fans that screen cap everything. And repost stuff. I can’t control any of that.”

“It was only up for like half an hour. I can’t imagine it got too far or that most people will understand its significance. And it’s not the most flattering photo of you honestly, so hopefully less people felt the need to save it.” She flicked a piece of lint off her shoulder, not making eye contact. “How many likes did it have?”

“Around five thousand,” he reported.

“Five thousand?” she repeated in disbelief, her bright blue eyes as wide as the Seine. “I don’t think I could get that many likes in a year! God damn celebrities!”

“Ladybug could,” he told her confidently. “If she had an Instagram.”

“I’m not getting an Instagram as Ladybug!” she countered hotly.

“Why not?” he asked with genuine curiosity. “I imagine you could post some beautiful pictures of the city.”

“Because of stuff like floating socks!” she snapped back. She started pacing in front of his window in agitation. “I might not catch something in the background, and then I would give away my whole identity! I’m not willing to put my friends and family in danger for likes!” she lashed out at him.

His shoulders wilted. She was right. His father had a lot of resources and could probably protect himself even from a supervillain. Maybe Kagami too. But what about Nino, Alya, and Marinette?

“I-it wasn’t for likes,” he whispered, but the objection felt weak even to his own ears. He had only wanted one person to see it. Her. He just wanted her in his life. His actual life. Was that so bad? But his plan had worked better than he thought possible. She had figured out his identity. And that meant…

Knots formed in Adrien’s stomach as the implications sunk in. “You’re right. I didn’t think. Are-are you going to take my miraculous, now?” He wasn’t brave enough to look at her face. He hadn’t thought about the consequences at all. He hadn’t thought about the fact that other people, including his enemies, might recognize the properties of a kwami. Didn’t think about the fact that he didn’t know how to survive without the freedom of Chat Noir. No, he had only been thinking that Ladybug would understand the significance of the photo and if she “accidentally” figured out his identity, then she couldn’t be mad at him for telling her. He had only wanted her to see him and understand him. She was his partner. His other half.

He risked a glance up at her continued silence. She looked like she had been hit by a bus at the question. Her eyes were blown wide and her mouth hung open, and she still didn’t say anything.

“That’s the consequence, right?” he prompted when she didn’t respond. “Someone figures out my identity, I have to give up my miraculous?” He shrugged, trying to hold up a strong front. “That’s what Plagg said a few weeks back anyway.”

He slipped off the ring and held it out to her, his eyes burning with threatened tears.

Her gloved hands reached out, and he clamped his teeth down on the sob that wanted to tear out of his throat. Her gloved hands, which felt strange touching his bare skin, carefully closed his fingers around the cold metal circle and pushed it back towards him. He looked up at her in surprise. Her eyes glistened with her own unshed tears.

“Maybe I should take it. That was Master Fu’s rule, but Chaton…” she whispered, and then rapidly shook her head with her teeth pressed down into her lower lip. “I can’t do this without a partner.”

“You could find a new partner. One who is more worthy of your trust.”

She scoffed. “I can’t just find another partner! They don’t fall from the sky. And yes! I’m not going to lie! You drive me absolutely crazy sometimes! With the flirting and your stupid puns while I’m trying to figure out how to use a lucky charm! When you wouldn’t take no for an answer after asking me out for like the third time. When you fell for fake Ladybug just because you wanted me to love you even though it was so obvious she wasn’t real. And oh my god, you accepted Sass when you were already Chat Noir! Ugh!”

His shoulders slumped, and his eyes burned with unshed tears. When she laid it all out like that… maybe she needed to find a new partner. Someone who understood the responsibilities his power brought him, and would respect her boundaries, hopefully better than he had.

She dropped to her knees in front of him, and her red gloved hands gently took his own, and squeezed reassurance. She tilted her head down to catch his fallen gaze. And she smiled softly at him.

“But Chaton, you’re also the person who can figure out my crazy plans with almost no explanation, the person who has taken hit after hit for me. I’ve literally watched you die in my arms, more times than I prefer to think about. I have the nightmares to prove it. You talk me up and encourage me when it feels impossible to succeed.”

She gripped his hands harder. “Hell! I would have quit being Ladybug on the first day, if it wasn't for you. I don’t know how to tell you this, but I need you. No one else can even come close to replacing you. Not even if I trained them to fight because you do more than watch my back. You just know how to lift me up when my world has fallen apart.”

Hot tears slipped past his defenses as her words settled into his being, planting soft seeds of warmth.

“Please don’t cry,” she begged.

He wiped his tears away furiously. “Thank you, LB. it feels really good to hear you say all that. Sometimes, I’m not sure where I stand with you. Some days I feel like your best friend, and other days, that annoying weird kid you wish you never had met.”

“Chaton,” she crooned. “I care about you so much. I promise I have never once wished that I hadn’t met you. You have become a huge part of my life!”

“You too, LB! You’re the best thing in mine.”

She blushed and fidgeted. It was actually weird to see her as anything other than confident and focused. Her nervousness relaxed him, made him remember she was just a teenager like him.

“I love you,” he blurted into the growing silence. “You make me feel like I have value and a purpose. Like I’ve done something good, and that I’ve done it well. I don’t feel like that very often. And I know I’ve said it before, and I’m not expecting anything, but I just… I wanted to say it just once… as myself.”

“You love me,” she repeated, her form rigid as she stared at him with wide eyes as if she couldn’t believe it.

He laughed. “Yes! Why do you sound so surprised? I’ve only told you three times before!”

“But that was Chat Noir. Adrien told his friends he was in love with someone but he didn’t give a name. I’m the person Adrien is in love with.”

He placed a hand absently to his neck. “It’s not like I could tell my friends your name. It’d be dismissed as a celebrity crush.”

Then her comment registered and his green eyes shot up to her masked ones. “Wait! How do you know that I told my friends that?”

She glanced toward the window, and took a step back. “Uh… well, you see…” she stuttered. And that was weird. He’d never seen Ladybug so nervous, and yet, her body language tickled his memory with its familiarity.

“Do I… do I know you in my civilian life?”

Ladybug bolted to her feet. “Well, this has been fun,” she said rapidly, a nervous smile stretching across her face. “I need to get going now. Remember to be more careful with your social media accounts. See you at patrol tomorrow, Chaton!”

He darted in front of her before she could launch her yo-yo out his window, his mind awhirl. He had only told three people that he was in love with someone. Nino, Marinette, and Kagami.

None of them seemed likely to share that information with anyone else.

And Ladybug definitely wasn’t Nino.

He had seen Ladybug with both Marinette and Kagami. But… his lady was clever. She might have tricked him. And of those two, only one of them made sense.

“Marinette?”

Her face fell into her hands. “Tikki’s going to kill me.”

Warmth burst in his chest like a firework going off. Adrien felt like he was floating above the ground. He was just that elated. He knew Ladybug’s identity. And the girl behind the mask? She was amazing! And she was already his friend.

He stepped forward and seized her in a hug. “It’s you!” he laughed, giddiness spilling from every fiber of his being.

She didn’t reciprocate. Instead, she remained frozen in his embrace - awkwardly patting his shoulder. He immediately let her go and backed away with an arm to the back of his neck as his nerves caught up with him.

“Sorry,” he muttered, heat blooming in his face. “I am so excited to know that you are Marinette, I… I got carried away.”

“H-how can you be s-sure that I’m Marinette?” she asked, pink spreading from her mask to her ears.

He smiled fondly at the suddenly very familiar stutter. “You know I can see the resemblance now, right? It’s really obvious. Plus, who else could live up to Ladybug, but Marinette?”

She fidgeted and turned away from his gaze. “Y-you can’t tell anyone.”

He rolled his eyes and took another step towards her. “I know how the superhero schtick goes.”

She crossed her arms across her chest and glared at him. “Really? Have you already forgotten why I came to visit you today?” And here she was all Ladybug righteous fury.

He blushed. “I only did that because I wanted you to know who I was. No one else. And trust me to guard your secret better than my own. I know you have a family to protect.”

“You say that like you don’t,” she observed with a frown.

He shrugged. “I mean, I guess I have my father. But I hardly ever see him. So does it count?”

Adrien immediately regretted saying that as an awkward silence descended upon them. A silence that he had no clue how to fill.

“I’m sorry, Adrien,” she finally whispered, and then she took a step forward and her spotted arms encircled around him.

“What for?” he asked in surprise. He stood frozen uncertain and amazed at this turn of events, before he let his arms wrap around her petite form and his chin rest on her shoulder.

“I just… I don’t think I ever understood why having a connection with me as Ladybug was so important to you,” she whispered in his ear. “I didn’t realize that it would be just as difficult to make friends in your civilian form as it would be as Chat Noir.”

He pulled back a little, but just enough to take her hand and bring it to his lips. He kissed her knuckles as he always did. But unlike usual, she didn’t pull away or rebuff him. In fact, her cheeks blazed red the way Marinette’s often did in Adrien’s presence.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

“F-fine,” she stammered, snatching her hand out of his hold like she had been burned.

“You just... usually pull away sooner. And your face is all red,” he pointed out, gesturing to her cheeks with his free hand.

She punched him in the shoulder. And it hurt more than he was willing to admit. He wasn’t transformed at the moment, but he tried to play it off.

“You don’t have to be a jerk about it!” she admonished him.

“What are you talking about?” he asked, his eyebrows furrowed in genuine confusion.

“You’re making fun of me,” she whined.

“I swear that I’m not.”

“Then why do you keep teasing me about being embarrassed?” she shot back.

“I… you’re embarrassed?” he asked. “What on earth would you have to be embarrassed about? You’re amazing!”

“You know who I am! You can remember every time I’ve put my foot in my mouth or embarrassed myself horribly in front of you with every attempted confession,” she spoke rapidly, her hands waving around wildly. And he found himself smiling softly. This behavior was all Marinette. And he loved it. Then her words registered. His eyes widened, and time froze and he felt as alert as he did facing an akuma. He could see her hands fidgeting nervously, her heaving chest as she struggled to replace the air she had just used, the faint pink still staining her cheeks, and her blue eyes darting away in self-consciousness.

“Confession?” He tried to keep the hope out of his voice, but he failed.

Her eyes widened before her face fell into her hands again, as she mumbled incoherently into her palms. And god, this blending of Marinette and Ladybug right in front of him was making him dizzy. He stepped forwards again and gently pulled her hands from her face, revealing swirling orbs of blue that peeked out from under her dark eyelashes.

“I’m the boy? Me?” He asked. Her blush darkened, but she gave a slight nod. He laughed in absolute delight. “I’m the boy,” he repeated, but this time it was a revelation and not a question. If he felt like he was floating before, he was flying now. And he was never going to come back down to earth again.

“Me. Adrien. I’m the boy you love,” he rambled, a grin as wide as the Seine stretched across his face. “You rejected Chat Noir-me for Adrien-me.” He was never going to stop smiling.

“Adrien,” she whined, over enunciating all three syllables of his name. “Stop looking so pleased with yourself!”

He shook his head. “But you love me. Ladybug loves me.”

She blushed yet again, and offered him a gentle smile. “Yeah… I guess she does.”

He caressed her cheek and leaned into her space. “May I kiss you?”

She nodded.

His right hand cupped her while his left slipped his fingers between hers. His lips pressed into hers. Just a touch, lingered there for a moment relishing in the gentle contact. She felt soft, warm, and tasted sweet like fruit-flavored candy.

It wasn’t his first kiss.

But it was the first kiss he could remember.

He pulled away to see her face still lost in the contact. Her eyes were closed with her head angled up, and she had the smallest smile. Warmth bloomed in his chest at her expression.

Posting that picture had been the best idea he had ever had.

Unless of course, Papillion figured him out. That would lead him straight to Marinette whether or not the villain had cause to suspect she was Ladybug.

His stomach turned to ice.

No… he wouldn’t let that happen. He would protect her. He was Chat Noir, and Chat Noir always protected his partner. He always did whatever needed to be done, whether he had to sacrifice himself or just simply created a distraction.

His eyebrows shot into his forehead. That was exactly what he needed to do!

“I have an idea!” he exclaimed.

...

Ladybug refused to open her eyes. She wouldn’t recover if she opened them only to discover that the last two minutes had only been a dream.

This wasn’t her first kiss, and it wasn’t even her first kiss with Adrien. But the first one had been in the middle of a battle with no time to savor the moment. This is the kiss she would choose to cherish in her memory.

He pulled back, and she tried not to chase him, but she wasn’t ready for him to go.

“I have an idea!”

Her eyes finally blinked open at the excitement in his voice. “An idea?” she asked. “F-for what?” Why was she still stuttering?!

His meadow-green eyes were vibrant, and he still held her hand. The contact was grounding her even if the gloves of her suit remained between them. “To solve my floating sock problem. We need a distraction. Can you detransform?”

Her eyebrows furrowed. “What? Why?”

“Please?” he begged and somehow his eyes got wider and softer, and his lower lip trembled in an over-exaggerated pout. She was going to have to work on her resistance to that look. “We could do this as Ladybug and Adrien. It might even work better at solving the sock identity vulnerability, but it would do that by putting your identity more at risk if we show any public affection in our civilian identities. It’s better to do this as Adrien and Marinette.”

“Spots off,” she whispered. Chat Noir was the person she trusted most in the world.

The familiar buzz tingled down her form, and Adrien was staring at her like he’d never seen her before all over again.

Her face and neck blazed in sudden embarrassment. “What?” she asked, looking down at her fingers.

“I just… it really is you,” he whispered, his voice filled with awe. “I mean, I knew that, but… but now, it’s real.”

Tikki took that moment to flutter up between them. “Marinette, what are you…?”

Marinette waved her off. “Not now, Tikki! It’s too late. I’m sorry!” She turned back to Adrien. “What did you have in mind?”

He grinned so brightly. Seriously, she was going to get sunburned from his smiles, and reached a hand out to her. “Come here,” he directed as he pulled her into his arms. It was terrifying how good it felt to be held in his arms. She felt hot and cold, vulnerable and safe, nervous and loved. And she felt it all at once. It was quite the heady experience.

Then he touched their foreheads together and she got lost in his eyes, which beamed with absolute adoration all directed at her. Heat pooled into her cheeks at the intimacy of their unwavering eye contact.

She chided herself. They had been in far more intimate and compromising positions in their suits. But right now, they were without their masks. And she felt so much more vulnerable.

But also giddy with joy.

After only seconds had passed, Adrien pulled out his phone, and snapped a few pictures of them, but his eyes never left her face until after he finished. Only then did he glance down at the screen to view their results.

“What do you think?” He asked, swiping through the burst of shots as he turned the screen to show her.

Looking at the pictures, Marinette couldn’t breathe, let alone speak. The only thing more powerful than seeing Adrien’s love sick eyes focused intently and unerringly on hers was seeing her own expression mirroring his own. She brushed his hand away and went through the pictures herself more slowly, tears threatening to drop from the corner of her eyes when she landed on her favorite. In the image, Adrien was smiling like a child tasting sugar for the first time in its life, while Marinette looked dazed like the world had just been turned upside down, which it had, but in the best possible way.

She had to clear her throat before she could speak. “This one,” she said, handing the device back to him.

“I like this one too,” he agreed as his fingers flew across the small touch screen, setting up a new Instagram post. He turned the final result towards her, so she could read the caption.

Spending the afternoon with my new girlfriend.

“What do you say? Are you ready to become social-media-official with me?” he asked with a smirk. But his free hand was rubbing the back of his neck.

The nervous tick threw her, and she realized he wasn’t just creating a distraction. He was also asking her out, and he was nervous. Somehow that calmed her.

She bit her lip and nodded again. And suddenly he was kissing her again, and she hoped that she never got used to the sensation. It was perfect. Even though she disapproved of his recklessness, part of her was really glad that he had posted that picture if it meant she could have a dozen more moments like this.

When he pulled away, he buried his head into his phone once again. She frowned at how quickly he was distracted, and looked over his arm to see what he was adding to his post.

When I kiss her, I feel so dizzy I see spots.

“Adrien!” she scolded, slapping his arm. Was he seriously going to risk her identity for a stupid pun! He laughed, and immediately deleted the sentence. “Okay! Okay! How about… the princess of my heart?”

“Totally over the top cheesy!” she screeched, trying harder to wrestle away his phone.

Before she succeeded, he hit the “share” button. Then, he immediately surrendered the device to her, and pulled her back against his chest, his chin resting on her shoulder as they stood cheek to cheek, looking at his phone, which was already lighting up and buzzing with dozens of notifications. Marinette watched in abject fascination. This was almost unfair.

Within two minutes, Marinette’s cell had started ringing, and over the next five minutes, Alya had called fourteen times and left four voicemails. Exasperated, Marinette texted her back.

I’m trying to make out with my boyfriend. Quit interrupting!

That ought to get her to shut up.

Sure enough, Alya sent her a squealing emoji in response and then there was silence.

Within ten minutes, the new photo had exceeded the five thousand likes of the deleted picture. Congratulatory and heartbroken comments poured in almost faster than Adrien or Marinette could read.

Another five minutes passed, and the newly formed couple jumped apart at the sudden pounding on Adrien’s bedroom door.

“Adrien, would you please open this door right now and explain how Ms. Dupain-Cheng came to be in your room without going through the front door,” Nathalie called from the other side of the wooden barrier.

“I guess that’s my cue to leave,” Marinette whispered, stepping away from her new boyfriend - she had an actual boyfriend - and towards the window.

Adrien immediately grabbed her hand. “Actually, it might be better if you stayed?” he said nervously. “I may not have thought this entirely through either… as this photo is obviously in my room. It’s easier to explain sneaking you in here than is explaining where you disappeared to.”

“Adrien!” She hissed. “What am I going to do with you?”

“Hopefully love me forever?” He suggested with an exaggerated grin.

“Adrien!” Nathalie yelled through the door.

Marinette laughed. “You might want to open the door before your father's assistant gets akumatized.”

“You’ll stay?” he whispered, his trembling eyes the only sign that he was scared to face the dragon on the other side of his bedroom door alone.

She nodded, and threaded her hand through his. “You and me against the world, right?”

“The world plus Nathalie. She’s scarier than the rest of the world,” he said cheekily even as he unlocked and opened the door.

God, Marinette was completely in love with this dork. And she was going to have to put up with him, his ill-thought-out-over-th-top schemes to impress her, and his stupid smug smirk for who knew how long.

Maybe forever.

But then again, maybe none of those things were so bad.

[silvia7272]

ML Salt Songfic ~ 1 Good For You

I actually forgot about this, but I think I can put it out now considering you’ve all read about/seen my OC Rosina, if you haven’t it’s on my page. Anyway, I hope you enjoy and like the song.

Also, this is an AU of my AU? I guess that’s what I’m calling it yeah. So, it’s not canon and it never was going to be canon, when I heard this song it just inspired me to write this and I could’ve done it without my OC, but I wanted to include her. Well anyway, I hope you like it.

Word Count: 2553

Tags: @queenmj10, @fangirl39, @animegirlweeb, @northernbluetongue, @daminett4life, @raisuke06, @indecisive-mess-named-me, @luleck​, @themamaravenclaw, @emmathedestroyer, (I know you wanted it) if you wish to be tagged all you have to do is say. Sorry, it’s different but this was the reason I started posting in the first place.

***

Akuma Alert! Akuma Alert!

The alarms were blaring in the park, and yet no one could move from their place.

Because the Akuma was right in front of them.

It was Marinette, she had been Akumatized. But it seemed somewhat unusual, she didn’t look any different, but they had seen the purple mist cover her, maybe she was like Chameleon?

So then why did it feel like it had changed?

Adrien couldn’t tell, and he needed to transform into Chat Noir, but he couldn’t just leave his friends to deal with the Akuma alone? Right?

Lila didn’t think that, she tried to make her escape, but a musical note blocked her way. She really was Akumatized!

Her face was contorted with pain as the pink mask covered her face, she was trying to break free!

“C’mon Marinette, you can do it,” He shouted, He tried to reach out, but someone pulled him back.

“Are you crazy, she’s been Akumatized she’ll hurt you, it’s what she’s always done to us. She’s already gotten her other friends hurt because of that transformation!?” Lila spoke, gripping his arm like a lifeline. But it was true, Rosina, Kagami, Chloé and Luka all tried to reach out to her mid-transformation, but they all fell to the ground and no one was brave enough to check on them.

“Shut up!” It was the first time Marinette had spoken since she had been Akumatized, tears were raining down her face, but the blond couldn’t tell if she was talking to the class or Hawkmoth.

“Just shut up, stop lying already, just stop hurting me” She had to be talking about Hawkmoth, she must still be fighting it.

But not everyone thought that.

“Come on Marinette, for once just admit you were wrong already. It’s getting really tiring.” Alya rolled her eyes while reciting how that was the only reason, she got Akumatized in the first place, the piece of paper she was holding had been a music draft of Lila’s that she was going to throw away in the first place.

Everyone knew Marinette didn’t write songs, she only made clothes and baked treats, that the class wasn’t provided with the past few days, and Adrien did think it was strange that she had a music draft, she probably found it and would’ve returned it to its rightful owner.

Why was she so upset about it anyway?

But she stopped, she lifted her head up, her face full of shock.

“You… Really still think I’m lying?” She sounded so disheartened, and Adrien would’ve sent her a ‘don’t rock the boat anymore’ look but she didn’t even spare him a glance.

Weren’t they friends?

“Of course, Lila’s so talented at making song lyrics so she had someone write them down for her. And now you’re holding onto a draft claiming it to be your own, that’s pathetic, even for someone like Chloé never mind you. Just stop being so pathetic and admit it. You’re jealous of Lila and everything she could do for us while you did nothing but whine like a child!” Adrien thought that the last line was a bit overkill, but he wasn’t about to say anything.

But all of that struggling, all of that resistance had completely vanished from Marinette. Why had she given up? Why hadn’t she continued fighting?

“I’ll show you my Melody” It was a whisper that only Adrien was able to pick up. Melody? What did she mean by that?

But he didn’t have time to think of that before everything in his vision turned white. He couldn’t feel his body. He couldn’t move… He couldn’t…

***

“Adrien? Yo Adrien, wake up man” He groaned as he opened his eyes.

“Nino? Is everyone alright? Where are we? What happened? Where’s Marinette?” Nino put his hands up startled.

“Whoa easy there one at a time dude. Anyway, yeah, we’re fine, we don’t know it looks like a white void, Marinette happened and we don’t know”

He couldn’t believe it. When he took in the view, it was devoid of life, it was devoid of colour.

It was just white all around him, he didn’t understand it. It reminded him of Pixelator.

“Oh Adrien I’m so scared, what are we going to do?” He couldn’t shake her arm off so had to relent, everyone around him tried to console the girl.

“Stick together, there should be an exit around here, but I’ll post it on the Ladyblog, that way Ladybug and Chat Noir will come.” He sighed, knowing that his Lady would be all alone for this one.

“Hey, my phones not working!” The others then tried to get their phones. No result.

“Oh no we’re trapped in here and no one is going to save us! What do we do!?” Everyone was panicking, but what could he do, if Chat Noir were to show up now, they would all get suspicious.

Nathaniel wasn’t doing great either. But he stepped back and heard a crunch.

“Huh?” He looked down and found a note.

“What’s that?” Max noticed the discovery and went over to Nath to see what it was.

“It says [The Song Of Truth Is Your Only Escape In This Labyrinth] What does that mean?”

“And why is it on a music sheet?” A simple question they all couldn’t process.

♫I’ll never know why I ever wanted to restore my friendship with you!?♫ The voice seemed to come from nowhere and everywhere at the same time. But he knew who it was.

“Marinette stop this please, we can get through this together” He shouted, he had to get her to stop being so angry.

♫Silence. I am Marilody, Marinette is no more. And you will all be punished for your lies and harassment towards your students! My friends!♫ It was there that she revealed herself.

If it wasn’t for her hair and dress, she would’ve been camouflaged with the background. But she didn’t look like a regular Akuma, no.

Her skin was pure white, along with the white flowing dress she wore. It was embroidered with musical notes, similar doodles he had seen previously on her sketchbook. It was shoulderless with the same pattern, and her hair was the same colour but in a small ponytail to the side. Her eyes were hidden by a giant accessory in the shape of a musical note resembling a hat.

If Ladybug didn’t already occupy his heart, Adrien might be thinking Marinette was more than a friend.

“Marinette please, you’re stronger than this! Don’t let Hawkmoth-”

♫Hawkmoth isn’t controlling me! The one who made me become Marilody is myself. And I will show you the truth of what I can and have done for you selfish people, my Melody will be performed before you and you will see the truth!♫

They heard the sound of a guitar being played. And notes in the air with a red dot flowing through it.

“What’s going on?” Rose and Juleka huddled together along with Ivan, Mylène, Nino and Alya scared. He was scared. He had the power to protect them but couldn’t use it. You could sense the irony looming over the boy’s head.

♫So you found a place where the grass is greener And you jumped the fence to the other side♫

The class was treated to a front-row seat of a scene that had just happened mere moments ago. When they were at the park.

Just what was Marinette’s power?

♫Is it good? Are they giving you a world I could never provide?♫

The scene cut to Lila being crowded around by everyone while Marinette was alone.

But she was still smiling. Even if it seemed fake.

♫Well I hope you’re proud of your big decision Yeah, I hope it’s all that you want and more♫

They saw the past of when Marinette was always handing out free pastries to them, wearing that happy and bright smile on her face, they had forgotten what it had looked like.

Because it was never directed towards them anymore.

They had forgotten.

Everything she had done for them.

♫Now you’re free, from the agonizing life you were living before~♫

Then it changed to everyone leaving her for Lila, she was telling a tale of her time in Achu, Rose couldn’t stop gushing about Prince Ali. He thought the lies wouldn’t hurt anyone.

♫And you say what you need to say So that you get to walk away It would kill you to have to stay trapped when you’ve got something new♫

They couldn’t move.

♫Well I’m sorry you had it rough And I’m sorry I’m not enough♫

Everything single thing Marinette had done for them had flashed in front of them.

♫Thank God ‘they rescued’ you♫

But then Lila appeared, and everything she said was almost out of a fairy-tale, it was amazing, they wanted to hear more. They needed to hear more of her adventures.

♫So you got what you always wanted? So you got your dream come true? Good for you Good for you, you, you!♫

They were addictive. They couldn’t get enough.

♫Got a taste of a life so perfect So you did what you had to do Good for you Good for you!♫

Marinette had vanished from view but the scenes were still playing. The blond needed to find a way to free himself. He needed to get Plagg to cause a mini-explosion, to cause a distraction maybe. Anything! But he couldn’t get to him in time. Because he saw someone who he hadn’t seen since at the park.

“Rosina?” They all turned their heads to their new red-haired friend. But Adrien was able to notice, the Cat Miraculous had certain side effects he was giddy to have but that’s not the point. Instead of a black pupil, it was a musical note.

“She’s under Marinette’s control” They all gasped, horrified at what had happened to their friend. They believed her being near Marinette was bad, never mind this!

♪Does it cross your mind to be slightly sorry?♪ 

She really was under her spell! Adrien desperately wanted to shake her awake and free her, but now his arms couldn’t move.

♬Do you even care that you might be wrong?♬ 

Kagami!? Oh god, his two friends were under Marinette’s friends. He watched as they circled each and every one of his friends.

♬Was it fun?♬ 

They flinched.

♪Well, I hope you had a blast while you dragged me along~♪ 

They started to walk away when there was a whine from Lila, they were still able to turn their heads and saw Chloé, she kept prodding Lila as she cried, he wasn’t able to tell if they were even fake tears anymore.

♩And you say what you need to say! And you play who you need to play! And if somebody’s in your way! Crush them and leave them behind!♩

Even if they wanted to help Lila they couldn’t. Their legs wouldn’t let them. It was like they were in quicksand, only they weren’t sinking into the ground, they were sinking into their sorrow and sadness they were feeling. If Marinette wasn’t already Akumatized Hawkmoth would be having a field day.

♮Well I guess if I’m not of use Go ahead, you can cut me loose♮

And then they saw it.

A scene that shocked them.

♮Go ahead now, I won’t mind♮

If her power was to sing the truth.

And all of the scenes had been of the truth.

They felt sick to their stomach.

Then the scene of Lila cornering Marinette in the bathroom must’ve been true as well.

If Lila had been so kind to everyone why were the words [Soon you won’t have any friends left at all. Trust me. You will lose your friends and wind up all alone] written underneath, they couldn’t think anymore, just look.

♫I’ll shut my mouth and I’ll let you go Is that good for you? Would that be good for you, you, you?♫

Some couldn’t believe, they kept screaming how it had to be wrong, how it might just be Marinette’s doing. But the more it came on, the more they started to believe.

♭I’ll just sit back while you run the show Is that good for you? Would that be good for you, you, you?♭

Just like how they should’ve believed Marinette, and they had only just realised their mistake.

♯All I need is some time to think♯ Max. He never needed time to think, he was the smartest one in the class.

♭(I’ll shut my mouth and I’ll let you go)♭

♯But the boat is about to sink♯ Rose. Wasn’t she meant to be the kindest one out of everyone? Why didn’t she give Marinette a chance?

♭(Is that good for you?)♭

♯Can’t erase what I wrote in ink♯ Alix. She had written some things on her desk once… Twice… She had lost count.

♭(Would that be good for you, you, you?)♭

♯Tell me how could I change the story?♯ Lila. She had been caught, and she needed to spin her story. Fast!

♯All the words that I can’t take back♯ Alya. All those mean comments claiming Marinette was a bully. She was the bully. Weren’t they friends? Besties? She didn’t deserve to be called anything like that.

♭(I’ll just sit back while you run the show)♭

♯Like a train coming off the track♯ Kim. He wanted this pain to end, he should’ve trusted her, she had been the one to console everyone before an Akuma had gotten to them. And they treat her like this?

♭(Is that good for you?)♭

♯‘Cause the rails and my bones all crack♯ Nino. They had been childhood friends! How could he think she was lying!?

♭(For You!)♭

♯I’ve got to find a way to♯

♯Stop it, stop it! Just let me out!♯ Adrien. If only she had told him Lila had threatened her, if only he had done more, taking more of the brunt, if only- no he had to stop, he had to accept it was all his fault. He could’ve stopped it, but he was afraid he’d never get to see his friends again. He had to accept that he had hurt Marinette so much she had been Akumatized. He had to accept that- maybe he couldn’t save her, after all, you could never really trust someone who had betrayed you… Right?

♭So you got what you always wanted So you got your dream come true Good for you Good for you, you, you♭

They were sorry.

But images of Marinette gone from their life terrified them.

♭Got a taste of a life so perfect Now you say that you’re someone new Good for you Good for you Good for you Good! For! You!♭

But what would it matter? She probably would never want to speak to them ever again.

♭So you got what you always wanted!♭

What had they done?

They had seen the truth.

All of it.

But they didn’t have time to dwell on that, because as they continued to watch the scenes in front of them, they couldn’t help but feel slightly tired. Only a bit… Maybe if they had a small nap it would… Help.

♫The truth will come out… There will be no more lies for anyone… Anymore♫

***

End. I changed a word for Lila because I thought it would fit better. They, in the song, are Lila and a bit of Adrien. Originally, I wasn’t going to make a two-parter, however, if anyone has an idea I could use, and then a song as well, I will consider continuing this to become a two-shot. Or even if someone wants to continue this? Feel free to do so, just tag me, please.

Well, I hope you enjoyed it and I hope you have a nice day.

Edit 1: This is how Marilody looks like, I thought she’d look a bit more fashionable since you know, Marinette. and since she has more control hawkmoth didn't design her.

[gabriel-agreste-has-no-rights]

Rating: G

Summary: Luka's replaced his broken guitar with a kazoo. Marinette realizes just how important that guitar was to their burgeoning relationship....Maybe she should've made sure no one was around before she ranted about that to Tikki.(Set during/after the end of Miracle Queen)

Word Count: 2569 | Chapter 1/2

Notes: No Luka bashing is intended with this fic, but it is lovesquare endgame Disclaimer: I love kazoos and if someone tried to woo me with a kazoo I would probably swoon. Rip to Marinette but I’m different Disclaimer 2: I didn't come up with the idea for kazooka, @bugaboo-n-bananoir did in this post ). sorry for all the shoutouts lately bud lol you're just an inspiration Special thanks to @botherkupo for betareading!

XXX

“Are you okay?”  Luka asked when Marinette returned from getting ice cream.

It took some effort to pry her gaze away from where Adrien and Kagami were sharing at the other end of the ledge, but she promised herself she wouldn’t be jealous.  

...Or at least, she wouldn’t show it this time.  Both of them were her friends, and they deserved to be happy with each other.  

Did that mean she was okay?  No, not really.  But she didn’t really want to get into that, especially since Luka had already seen her so vulnerable last time.

“So, uh… where’s your guitar?”  she asked instead.

“Oh.”  Luka blinked, as if surprised his instrument wasn’t there either.  “Remember the last time I saw you?  When you were… crying in the street?”

She’d really been hoping he forgot about that.  It definitely wasn’t her most awkward moment, but Adrien at least tended to ignore the worst of hers.  He hadn’t even breathed a word about the whole constipation incident.

But comparing Luka and Adrien wasn’t fair to either of them.  

She shook her head.  “Um, what about it?”

“I dropped my bike when I went to hug you.  My guitar fell out of the basket and… yeah.”  He moved his hands as if to strum a chord, only to slump when they just stroked the air.

“Oh, Luka, I’m so sorry.”  She winced.  She knew his guitar was basically an extension of himself; she hadn’t intended for him to sacrifice it for her.  Was she really that important to him?

“It’s alright.  I’ve almost saved up for a new one.”  He shrugged.

She couldn’t tell if he was actually alright or if he was just faking.  “Well, I’m still sorry.”

“It really is alright.  You’re the music that’s been playing for me since we met, anyway.”

She blushed and looked away.  Luka had always been more forward, but she really didn’t know how she felt about his love confessions, especially considering…

No, she wasn’t going to glance back towards Adrien.  (Not that she could do that subtly, with all their classmates packed between them.)

But the point was, she couldn’t return Luka’s confession while her heart still hung somewhere in the balance.  She could try to move on—she should try to move on—but no matter what Luka said, she didn’t want him to feel stuck as a second choice.

“Well, um… thanks, I guess.” 

She took a bite of her raspberry ice cream to fill the awkward silence.  Normally his guitar did that.  Ivan’s hand drum sort of helped, but it was too far away (and too sporadic) for her to pretend she was focused on his music.

“I guess you can’t play that song for me now,” she added when he didn’t speak up.  It was too bad, because she thought she might actually want to hear it, if only to give them something to connect over.

Had she really listened to his music that often?  It was painfully obvious now that his guitar was absent.

“Were you ready to hear it?”  Hhe asked.  “I still can, if you’d like.”

Her head tilted, her eyebrows scrunching together.  “But you don’t have your guitar.  Unless you’re going to borrow Ivan’s drum.”

He chuckled a little at that.  “I’ve got something else.”

His hand reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out…

“Is that a kazoo?”  

Was this a joke?  Was he playing a joke on her?  He’d never shown that much of a sense of humor before.  If Juleka hadn’t been in the middle of the group sharing ice cream with Rose, Marinette would’ve flagged her down for help.

“Yep.  Juleka got it for me as a replacement present, you know, until I can pay for my new guitar.”

“Oh.”  She forced a grin.  “That’s… sweet of her.”

So no help from Juleka then.  Maybe this wasn’t such a big deal.  Maybe Luka would be an amazing kazoo player, and sweep her off her feet with his buzzing melody and help her forget all about Adrien and— 

Yeah, even her normally-vivid daydream couldn’t paint that picture.

“It really is.  She’s the best.”  He smiled.  She hadn’t heard him talk about Juleka often, honestly.  It was a little weird to remember that he was her friend’s older brother, but Juleka hadn’t seemed to mind Luka showing an interest in her.  

Well, unless the kazoo was more of a warning than a present.  But that was branching into conspiracy theory territory.

“Are you going to play it, then?”  she asked before she could lose her nerve.  Maybe hearing the melody, even if just on the kazoo, would give her the answers her heart was looking for.

“Right.”  He nodded and raised the blue piece of plastic to his lips.

She didn’t wince at the first high-pitched buzz.  She might have just… cringed a little.  Kazoos weren’t really meant to be played at close distance—at least that’s what she assumed, because could anyone really want to unironically listen to that?

The melody was… hard to pick out with all the screeching.  She tried to smile through it—he’d written this for her, and it wasn’t really meant to be played on the kazoo—but then Marc and Nathaniel looked up in shock-slash-horror, and Mylene just about fumbled her ice cream into the river, and Juleka let out an uncharacteristically loud cackle.

Luka’s playing petered out with a sad doot doot.  He still looked up at her expectantly.

And because he was staring at her, of course the rest of their group did too.  Including Adrien, the green mint of his ice cream still staining his lower lip.

“Um… that was…” Marinette’s face burned as she sprung to her feet.  “W-well!  Look at that I have to go—buy a birthday present for my grandpa’s mouse!”  Wait, had she used that one before?  It didn’t matter, her legs were already wooshing her away, leaving only the cherry from the top of her ice cream behind.

She hurriedly shoved the rest of her ice cream into her mouth to cool her burning face.  That was… probably an overreaction.  Luka had just tried to play her a song.  It wasn’t her that everyone else was laughing at.

A horrible feeling settled in the pit of her stomach, and she was pretty sure it wasn’t just the odd mix of raspberry and cotton candy ice cream.  She should’ve stayed to cheer him up, right?  

“Tikki, what’s wrong with me?”  She groaned, dropping her forehead against the side of the alley.  “Why did I run away like that?  I probably made Luka hate me!”

The kwami flew out from her purse.  “I don’t think he can hate you, Marinette.  He still liked you even when he knew you were in love with Adrien.”

“For some reason.”  She sighed.

“Do you want him to like you?”  Tikki prodded gently.

“I don’t… I don’t know.”  She bonked her head against the wall again. Ow.  “He likes me, and he’s nice, and we… have absolutely nothing in common.”

There.  She admitted it.  They both liked Jagged Stone, but lots of people liked Jagged Stone.

(Adrien liked Jagged Stone.  He’d asked for her autograph, and she’d just about melted.)

What she felt with Luka was nothing like that.  It was nervous usually, until he started playing his guitar.  The chords, if simple, were still soothing.

“Did I just think he made me comfortable because he played the guitar?  Am I really that shallow?”

“Of course you aren’t.”  Tikki rubbed her cheek to hers.  “A boy liked you, and it sounds like you liked him at least a little bit.  Even if it was mostly because he played guitar.”

Marinette groaned.

“But now he plays the kazoo and I don’t want to hear his song!  And I really can’t think of anything else we have to talk about.  And I won’t go on dates with him and move on from Adrien and I’ll end up old and alone with a tarantula instead of a hamster and—”

“Marinette, you know that’s not going to happen.”  Tikki patted her face again.  “There are plenty of other boys besides Adrien and Luka.  And you don’t have to move on with a boy.  You have plenty of time to just be you.  Maybe that’s for the best, with you being the guardian now.”

“Don’t remind me.”  She squeezed her eyes shut.  She wished she had someone to rely on as the guardian.  Luka had been there that one time when she couldn’t take it anymore, but she couldn’t actually tell him anything.  If only she could talk to…

“Chat Noir,” she whispered, eyes going wide.

“What?”  

She paced back and forth across the width of the alley.  “I want to talk to Chat.  I can do that now, can’t I?  I’m the guardian.  No, but Master Fu did what he did for a reason.  I can’t go sharing important secrets.  But if Fu did tell us more maybe we could’ve protected him better.”

“Um, Marinette—” 

“Either way he’s gone and I don’t know what to do, Tikki!  He didn’t finish teaching me everything and here I am worried because of a boy playing the kazoo!”

She spun, breaths coming too quickly, hoping to hear Tikki’s words of wisdom to help her calm down.

Instead, she came face to face with Adrien.  Adrien, whose eyes were practically bugging out of his head.  A cute smear of ice cream still clung to his parted lips.  That was easier to focus on than the fact that he’d almost certainly heard every word she said to Tikki.

His mouth opened and closed again.  “Uh.”

“Oh no.”

“You’re…!”

“No, no, of course I’m not!”  She waved her arms frantically.  Tikki’d had the sense to dive back into her purse, but the damage was already done.

“You’re Ladybug,” he breathed.  “It’s you.  Of course it’s you.”

Tears pricked her eyes.  One day into being the guardian, and she’d already let someone figure out her secret identity!  And it was Adrien, and while she thought he could keep a secret, she couldn’t ignore the incident with the beret, and if he told anyone and that awful future happened— 

“Marinette, hey, hey, it’s alright.”  He stepped towards her, too close, not close enough.  “I’m not going to tell anyone.  I swear.  I—I didn’t mean to.  I just wanted to make sure you were okay, and then I heard and I can’t unhear and—please don’t be mad.”

He looked down at her with such a distraught expression, she couldn’t imagine him ever breaking that oath.

“I’m not mad at you, Adrien.”  She bit her lip and looked down, afraid she might actually start crying if she had to see his pain any longer.  Which was ridiculous, because it was her identity that was compromised.  “You were just trying to help, and—and it’s my fault for not being careful enough.”

Her voice choked.  His arm reached towards her, hesitated, fell back to his side.  Of course he wouldn’t pull her into the hug that she craved.  He was dating Kagami now; it was surprising enough that he’d left her just to come make sure she was alright.  He really was a wonderful friend.

Maybe that was all she needed right now.

“It’s not your fault, my—Marinette.”  He swallowed.  “It could’ve happened to either of us.”

“Yes, but it’s not a big deal if someone finds out you once used the snake miraculous.  Nearly all of the other heroes were compromised yesterday, anyway.”

Her fault again.  She was back to square one, just her and Chat Noir against the world… and possibly Adrien too.  He hadn’t been revealed yesterday.  Maybe it would be worth it to give him a miraculous again?

He laughed awkwardly.  “Yeah. Of course.”

“So… yeah.”  She nodded.  “I’m just going to.  Go home now.”

Where she could cry in peace and Tikki could lecture her and she could find someone else to pass off the miracle box to because clearly she wasn’t ready, only there was no one else who could possibly do it except maybe Chat Noir, and he didn’t deserve that kind of pressure either, and— 

“Marinette, wait.”  

This time Adrien did grab her hand.  She did her best to control her flush.

“I know you didn’t want me to know, but… I’m still your friend, okay?  You can tell me anything.  Especially now, if you need someone to lean on…”

She did.  Oh, she did, and any other day she would leap headfirst into that offer.

But all she could think of now was Adrien smiling softly as he wiped ice cream from Kagami’s cheek.  It wasn’t like he couldn’t still be her friend when he was dating someone else, but she wasn’t sure her heart could take trusting him with all of her secrets except the one she’d actually wanted to tell.

She loved him.  Even now, knowing he had just become a threat to her identity, she loved him.

And it was too late to say it.

“Thank you, but I’d actually rather talk to Chat Noir right now.  I hope you’ll understand.”

He blinked and opened his mouth before shaking his head.  “Right.  Of course.  I’m glad you trust him.”

“I do.”  She looked towards the sliver of sky above the alley as hope blossomed in her.  She did trust Chat.  He would be able to help her through this, just like he’d supported her during Miracle Queen’s short reign.  “I wish he’d been the first to know my identity, but if anyone else had to… I’m glad it’s you, you know.  I lo—I trust you too.”

Really?  Now she almost said it?  He didn’t seem to notice, though.  His expression softened into a smile.

“Thank you, Marinette.  That means a lot to me.”

She smiled back, palm braced against the alley wall to make up for the weakness in her knees.

“Oh, um—is Luka alright?”  She barely remembered to ask.  It was probably the least of her worries, but it was still worth checking.  “I didn’t mean to hurt his feelings.  The whole kazoo thing was just—I was so embarrassed and I ran away without thinking.  He was just trying to be nice, and I didn’t have the heart to tell him that I didn’t like it.”

“You never seemed to have a problem telling that to Chat Noir,” he said.  Was that a hint of… jealousy she detected in his voice?  No way; she had to be imagining that.

“That’s because I know Chat Noir.  He knows I don’t return his feelings…”  she trailed off, blinking at the ground.

Chat had been the first person she wanted to talk to when she was upset.  The one who always supported her, who knew all her weaknesses and flaws and still looked at her like she’d hung the moon in the sky.  Who wouldn’t hesitate to risk everything for her, who trusted her even when she was wrong but was always, always there to make things right.  

He was the one who called her his Lady.  He was the one whose hug felt like home.  

“Marinette?”  Adrien asked.

“Oh,” she breathed.

“Oh?”

She looked up and met his eyes, and before she knew it, she was confessing to the wrong crush.

“I think I’m in love with Chat Noir.”

[mikauzoran]

Adrienette: Serendipity: Fifty Marichat and Adrienette Kisses: Kiss Eighteen

Read it on AO3: Serendipity: Fifty Marichat and Adrienette Kisses: ...as encouragement.

“What did I miss?” Adrien called as he trotted up to his friends waiting at the bottom of the school’s front steps.

“Marinette’s going to win this contest Hermès is holding,” Alya announced with a smirk. “You know. No big.”

“Alya,” Marinette sighed in exasperation. “I haven’t entered yet. I haven’t even come up with a design.”

Adrien gave Nino a fist bump in greeting before turning to beam at Marinette. “Yeah, but you’re going to win once you do.”

“I don’t know about that,” Marinette mumbled, looking back down at her sketchbook.

“I do,” Alya snickered. “Listen to the boy. He knows what he’s talking about. He’s a fashion thoroughbred.”

Adrien blushed, finger going to tug at his collar. “Uh, technically, I think I’m more of a nouveau riche upstart, but I definitely know a thing or two about fashion, and you’ve got talent, Marinette. What kind of contest is it?”

“Ties,” she sighed, trying to hide how red her cheeks had become at his praise. “The artistic director for the men’s line, Véronique Nichanian, is going to be judging the finals herself, so I really want something that’s going to stand out.”

Nino gave Adrien a nudge. “Didn’t you do some modeling for Hermès a year or so ago when your father was pimping you out to other fashion houses to quote-unquote ‘expand your resume and build up the foundations of your career’?”

Adrien sighed, rubbing at the back of his neck. “Yeah. That happened.”

“Well, hook a girl up,” Alya chuckled, giving Adrien a teasing shove. “Not that I don’t think Marinette can win on her own merits, but having an edge never hurt anyone. What kind of insider knowledge do you have?”

“Nothing really,” Adrien admitted shamefacedly. “I wish I could be more helpful, but the only piece of advice I can think of is to do a fun, quirky pattern, but camouflage it so that it doesn’t look tacky. Like, Hermès does have some silly patterns. For example, there’s this one with horses and jockeys up in the clouds, and then on the reverse side it has the horses and jockeys with parachutes.”

Nino cracked up. “Seriously? And let me guess…they want, like, two hundred euros for it, yeah?”

Adrien shrugged helplessly. “It’s hand-sewn silk?”

Nino shook his head sadly. “Mec…no. Two hundred euros for a silly tie? That’s criminal.”

“Okay,” Adrien admitted. “That one’s a little…less sleek, in my opinion, but then they have this one tie I actually really like.”

“Also probably for two hundred euros,” Nino chuckled, elbowing his best friend playfully.

“It’s got a bunch of little blue fish on it,” Adrien explained, giving Nino a light shove. “From afar, it just looks like a normal tie with a small geometric pattern repeating, but when you get up close, you can tell that they’re fish, and it’s kind of funny. It looks professional at a distance, but up close it’s a quirky tie. I think that’s the kind of design the judges will be looking for.”

Marinette, who had been hanging on Adrien’s every word, nodded, making mental notes.

As if coming to an important realization, Adrien gave a start and hurriedly added, “Only if that’s what you’re inspired to do. I don’t want you thinking you have to limit yourself based on what I said. I don’t really know what I’m talking about, and you have such a sharp instinct for this kind of thing, so…just do whatever you think is best.”

“No, I really appreciate your input,” Marinette assured, stepping in across the little circle their group had formed to rest a hand on his forearm. “In the end, I’ll go with my gut, but what you said gave me some ideas, so I think I’m off in the right direction. Do you think there’s anything I should avoid doing? Any colours or patterns or subjects?”

Adrien bit his lip as he considered briefly. “A lot of their products have the H logo all over them. I think they’ve done the H in all the ways it’s possible to turn an H into a design element. I know you’re super innovative, but I think that, since it’s their signature thing, they’ve probably seen pretty much everything and have higher standards for what they want in that kind of design, so it might be really hit or miss. I’m not saying to play it safe, but maybe save tackling a new take on one of the signature elements of their branding for later.”

“Noted,” Marinette affirmed.

“Also, maybe avoid horses,” Adrien added with a grimace. “It’s another one of their things. I’m sure plenty of other people do horses, so if you do horses, you might not stand out unless your design is over and above amazing—which I’m sure it will be anyway, but—and, besides, they already have a lot of merchandise with horses on it, so I don’t know that that’s what they’d be looking for.”

“Why horses?” Nino couldn’t help but wonder aloud…though, he wasn’t sure he actually wanted to know.

“If I remember correctly, the company founder originally made luxury leather goods like saddles and stuff for English nobles for horseback riding. So, yeah. Lots of horses,” Adrien explained with a smile and a shrug.

Nino frowned. “I mean…I guess that’s legit.”

“So, do you have any ideas now?” Alya excitedly inquired of Marinette…who didn’t respond because she was already absorbed in her sketchpad, quickly drafting the beginnings of a handful of possible designs.

The squad watched in awed silence as Marinette’s pencil moved frenetically across the page.

Less than five minutes later, she had three rough sketches and half a dozen other fledgling ideas in the works.

“What do you think?” She flipped the sketchbook so that the others could see the page with her quick sketches and notes on colour.

Adrien’s eyes went wide as he observed that the designs were all Chat Noir-inspired.

The first featured green paw prints on a black ground, spaced close together and turned around anticlockwise on their axis so as to give the impression of cohesive dynamism.

The second was black cat heads on a rose-pink background that had the same effect as Adrien’s fish tie. From a distance, it would look like a respectable, grownup tie, but up close you could see the fun in the design.

The third had miniature Chat Noir batons arranged in staggered, downward diagonal lines that, again, looked like a normal tie design from farther away.

“That’s amazing,” Adrien breathed, looking up at Marinette as she stowed the sketchbook back in her satchel. “Did you seriously just come up with all these right now, in, like, five minutes?”

Marinette smiled shyly, tucking a bang behind her ear as she shrugged. “What can I say? You really inspired me.”

A surge of joy and pride and love welled up in his chest.

His girlfriend was the most talented, incredible woman, and he wanted to put her up on a pedestal so that everyone could see how awesome she was. And yet, she was so humble about her gift and her achievements, going so far as to pretend that he had anything to do with her genius.

He took her by the hands and watched as her eyes went wide, locking with his.

“You are so amazing, Princess,” he cooed, overwhelmed by her greatness and the miracle that a girl so out of his league could be interested in him. “You’re going to win this contest. I know you are. Do you even know how epic you are?”

She opened her mouth to reply but was cut off as Adrien leaned in, catching her lips in a short, sweet, bolstering kiss.

Marinette froze as her brain tried to reboot.

Alya gasped even as she mentally lamented the fact that she hadn’t been recording this momentous occasion.

Nino cursed under his breath, preparing to build his bro back up after Adrien inevitably got shot down.

“I am so proud of you,” Adrien continued obliviously as he pulled out of the kiss. “You’re going to have your own label before you graduate.”

“Adrien!” Marinette hissed as her system came back online, pulling back and turning away.

Adrien blinked, shrinking slightly at her sharp tone. “What? I think it’s true.”

“Adrien, you can’t kiss me like that,” she groaned.

“…Oh, crap,” he breathed, covering his face with his hands. “I did it again. I am so sorry, Marinette. I don’t—”

“—Back up,” Alya interrupted. “‘Again’? As in, this has happened before?”

“Al,” Nino growled warningly.

Alya didn’t seem to hear him. “How many times have you guys kissed behind my back?”

“Three now?” Adrien mumbled miserably.

“Alya, this is serious,” Marinette chided. “I have a boyfriend—a serious boyfriend.”

Alya rolled her eyes. “Who I’ve never met and don’t even know the name of. Girl, you may have given up on Adrienette, but I haven’t. If my ship is sailing, I deserve to know.”

“Alya,” Nino snapped even as he put one arm around Adrien’s shoulders and rested the other hand on Adrien’s forearm. “Situational awareness much?”

To Adrien, he directed a soft, comforting, “Hey, it’s okay, Mec. It’s going to be okay.”

“This is kind of a big deal,” Alya huffed. “My bestie could easily have the man of her dreams, but, instead, she’s insisting on pretending to have some fake boyfriend she made up because she’s afraid to accept happiness and the good things the universe has sent to her. Clearly, an intervention is necessary for the good of both of our best friends.”

“He’s not fake!” Marinette retorted vehemently. “I told you, I met him online. We game together, and I only know his username, but he’s a real guy, and we’re really dating, so I can’t be making out with other blondes behind his back.”

“The good of our best friends?” Nino snorted crossly. “Right now, I think the best thing for our best friends is to keep them from getting akumatized.”

“I am so sorry,” Adrien repeated powerlessly, unsure of what else he even could say.

Nino gave him a squeeze. “It’s okay, Mec. Why don’t we head down by the river and try to calm down, yeah?”

“Sounds like a plan,” Marinette huffed, making a break for it and striding off towards the bakery. “I’m going home.”

“Marinette!” Alya called and started to chase after her.

Nino sighed, briefly watching them go before getting back on task.

“Come on, Adrien,” he gently coaxed, leading Adrien down onto the walkway along the river.

They found an empty bench and sank onto it, Adrien snuggling up against Nino’s side and dropping his head onto Nino’s shoulder while Nino wrapped an arm around his friend and gave another supportive squeeze.

“It’s okay,” he repeated like a mantra, keeping an eye out for purple butterflies. “It’s okay.”

“I think I just ruined things with the person I’m desperately in love with,” Adrien responded blandly. “I don’t think it’s okay.”

Nino was silent, contemplating for a moment before he amended, “It’s going to be okay. I’m going to make this okay for you, all right? Marinette’s still going to be friends with you, and everything’s going to be fine, yeah?”

Adrien didn’t have the energy to engage in optimism. “I royally screwed up, Nino.”

“Yeah, but what you did wasn’t unforgivable,” Nino tried to comfort. “Things can be patched up. You’ll see. Just hang in there for me right now, okay? Try to think happy thoughts.”

Adrien managed an affirmative grunt.

And then his phone chimed with an incoming text.

There on the screen was a short message that restored his strength.

Marinette had written: “I’m not mad at you. <3 Everything’s fine between us.”

Adrien tipped the screen so that Nino could see and then smiled up giddily at his friend.

“There you go,” Nino chuckled. “Everything’s fine.”

Adrien sighed, sinking back into Nino. “No, it’s not. Wanna hear a secret?”

Nino shrugged. “Sure.”

“I’m Marinette’s boyfriend.”

It felt really good to finally get it out into the air.

Nino took a deep breath, schooling his expression into a cautious neutral before responding. “…The one she plays online games with?”

“Yep. She doesn’t know it’s me, and you can’t tell her. She has her reasons, but she won’t let me reveal my identity to her, so…I keep accidentally kissing her because she’s my girlfriend, but she doesn’t know she’s my girlfriend, so…we end up having scenes like the one you just witnessed,” Adrien wearily informed.

“…Dude,” Nino replied poignantly.

“Yeah,” Adrien sighed.

“You have to tell her,” Nino insisted. “No joke.”

“Yeah,” Adrien repeated. “It’s complicated. I don’t want to talk about it.”

Nino pursed his lips, trying to process. He wanted to tell Adrien that nothing too bad had happened when Nino and Alya found out about Rena Rouge and Carapace’s secret identities. (In fact, Alya had seen through Carapace right away, so…) And nothing bad had come of Nino being ninety-nine-point-nine-repeating percent sure that Adrien was Chat Noir, so…

Nino took a deep breath and let it out, giving Adrien’s hair a distracted tussle. “Well…if…when you do want to talk about it, I’ll be here. You know you can talk to me about anything, right? Anything.”

“Yeah,” Adrien breathed, snuggling in closer, resting his head under Nino’s chin. “Yeah, I know. I want to, and I know I can trust you with anything, but…I can’t talk about it right now.”

“Okay,” Nino agreed, letting his chin rest on top of Adrien’s head. “Okay.”

“Thank you,” Adrien hummed, closing his eyes and letting himself relax.

[hermionemonica]

Cause I knew I was in love with you (when we sat in silence): Marichat May 2020 - Day 31

AO3 | For the @marichatmay

Collab with @lalunaoscura

DAY 1 | <-30 | 31 

Day 31 — Time travel (Chapter by both me and @lalunaoscura)

“For the last time, woman, let me taste it!” he begged and Marinette giggled. “Marinette, stop!”

She held the bowl in her hands and raised the spoon, letting the chocolate cake batter fall in her mouth.

“It’s so good.”

“Sometimes I regret marrying you so much, you know?”

“No, you don’t.” She put a little smudge of chocolate on his cheek and licked it. “You looove me!”

Adrien took the momentary opportunity and grabbed her waist. “Gotchu Princess!”

“Oh no, what will you do with me now?” Marinette pretended to be shocked.

He smirked. “This.” Saying so, he took a spoonful of chocolate batter from the bowl and splashed it on her face.

“You know you have to clean it off now?” Marinette cocked an eyebrow.

“With pleasure.” He purred and set to work, kissing and licking the chocolate off her face.

She giggled, putting the bowl on the island and trying to push him away, but Adrien lifteded her off the floor and carried her to trap her against the kitchen wall.

“You’re at my mercy now, princess,” he whispered against her mouth.

“Oh, am I?” She wrapped her legs around his waist with her hands in his hair, pulling a little so she could have access to his neck. “Or are you at my mercy?

He grunted, turning his head to kiss her.

It had been almost ten years since he went to her room to offer her help with her nightmares and their love for the other increased every day more. She was there for him and he was there for her, like they had promised that night when they confessed.

If someone had told thirteen-year-old Adrien that in some years he would be married to his lady, who was his princess, he would have passed out and had a nosebleed out of happiness.

That woman was able to make his life so much better and he loved her so much.

“Hmmm, where is your mind other than on me?” she whispered, biting his bottom lip.

“I’d rather not say that out loud, m’ lady.” He smirked suggestively, making Marinette’s heart thump so loudly.

It was so not fair that it had been so many years and still he could make her go weak in the knees anytime he wished.

Just then a loud boom sounded from outside, followed by a collective scream.

“Not again!” They said together.

“This is not over, Princess.” He winked. “Let’s get this akuma over with and we’ll continue this.”

“For sure, kitty.”

 *

“Another time travelling akuma?” Chat Noir groaned. “I swear this is the third this month!”

“Chat Noir, focus!” Ladybug yelled from the side.

“I’m trying to!” He extended his baton so that it stuck like a pole between two walls and he vaulted on it to land a kick right in the akuma’s face. “That one’s timeless, ha!”

“You little animals!” The supervillain shouted, “I’m gonna remind you both of the past!”

“Watch out m’ lady!” Chat Noir leapt in front of Ladybug to push her out of the way of the akuma’s beam. 

But it was too late to save himself. The beam hit him straight in his back.

“CHAT NOIR!” Ladybug shrieked as he zapped away.

When he disappeared, Ladybug grabbed her yo-yo and looked at the akuma.

“Oh, you’re gonna regret this so much.”

For a fraction of time, her mind flicked and she remembered exactly where her chaton was and with whom - and her heart calmed down.

He was in good hands.

 *

 When she had woken up that morning, the last thing she thought that would happen was being crashed down on the floor by her older and hot partner - but hey, when you’re a miraculous holder, life is a surprise every day.

It was their first anniversary together and she wanted to surprise Adrien because she knew her boyfriend and he would do everything possible to make that night amazing. She had a zillion ideas of what to give to him but nothing looked good enough.

So, during that lazy Saturday afternoon, she decided to go to la tour Eiffel to get inspired. She sat on the grass, picked up her sketchbook, the old iPod Chat had given to her, and started working.

And then something - someone - fell on her.

“Ouch!”

“Oh, shit, I’m so sorry!” he got off her and offered his hand.

She looked at the hand covered in leather and somehow she recognized that voice.

Oh. My. God!

She looked up and saw a version of her dork, silly, handsome, cute, hot as hell and how did Paris get so hot suddenly that she was sweating so much?

“Princess?”

Holy shit his voice was so deep and sexy and she was going to faint.

“Chat Noir?” More like Chat Hunk.

“Aww, I almost forgot how adorable you looked in those cute pigtails!” He smiled warmly at her as he helped her up.

Marinette knew she was much shorter than her boyfriend, but she only came up to the waist of this one. That was inconvenient.

Almost as if he heard her thoughts, he bent down so that his face was on the same level as hers. “It’s you,” he whispered.

Calm down Marinette. Breathe.

“How did you- what are you- you-” Good job at being eloquent. 

“I’m from the future.” Chat Noir explained, almost unbothered by her stutter. “An akuma sent me back to the past. So, hi.” He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it.

His smile said he knew very well what he was doing, and Marinette hated him for it. But before she could say anything, Chat Noir lifted her up in his arms. “It’ll be better to talk in your room than here, don’t you think?”

She could feel his sturdy chest and chiselled abs against her body. Is this how she was gonna die?

He bounded across the rooftops, holding on tightly to her. Marinette had taken many trips along Parisian rooftops in the arms of her boyfriend, but this time it was making her so nervous and excited at the same time. 

He put her down only when they reached her balcony. “Sorry for the bumpy trip,” he rubbed his neck nervously, “Seeing you made me a little nervous.”

Marinette let out a giggle at that. No need to be intimidated, this is just your dorky boyfriend you’ve been dating for a year. 

“That’s okay,” she smiled at him, but her expression grew worried shortly after. “But how are you gonna get back to your time?”

“Oh, I won’t worry about that,” he shrugged. “I know you’re going to save me!”

“But I don’t know how!” she wailed.

“Relax!” He placed his hand on the side of her face. “I meant older you. Who is just as awesome as you are now.”

Marinette blushed at the compliment. “So, what, we’re just gonna wait around till she gets here?”

“Actually, do you have some cheese lying around? I think Plagg would like to meet you too.”

“Oh, yeah, of course. I- I’ll be right back, okay?”

“Take your time!”

She went to the kitchen, almost falling two times on the stairs and grabbed some cheese. She was so lucky that her parents were at the bakery, so she wouldn’t have to explain how, after going out from the bakery’s door saying that she was going to the park, she appeared miraculously in her room.

After grabbing some cheese, she ran back to her room and almost let the plate she was carrying fall from her hands.

If older!Chat was hot as fuck, so was older!Adrien. He had a side cut hairstyle that made Marinette forget how to speak properly, his face was so much more mature and that damn body was-

“I think you broke the mini-bug again.” Plagg said, making Marinette break out of her reverie.

“Thanks for the cheese, Marinette,” Adrien said gently and picked up the plate from her hand, putting it on her chaise. “Come on, Plagg, eat up. We don’t know how long it will take for Ladybug to bring us back to our time.”

The kwami flew to the cheese and Marinette looked at Adrien sideways, devouring every detail of him that she could. His beautiful emerald eyes that were still able to make her get lost in them forever, the black version of Kwagatama that Tikki had given her years ago hanging on his muscled chest. His t-shirt clearly showed off his physique, but she didn’t let her eyes linger on his body that long because she knew her heart wouldn’t survive. Just then she noticed something that made her heart flip and she had to sit down because she was almost fainting.

“Are you okay, mini-bug?” he said, kneeling in front of her.

“Is… is that a wedding ring?” she swallowed.

“Oh,” he chuckled, looking at the wedding ring on his hand. “Yeah, it is.”

“Am I… your… wiiiii?”

“Wife?”

“YES!” She squeaked and put her hands over her mouth after the high-pitched, embarrassing sound came out of her mouth.

She watched as he scrunched up his face into an amused expression, and the corner of his lips turned slightly upwards. And then he broke into a laugh.

A deep, heavenly laugh that sounded like angels and croissants and first rains. 

Her heart was full of so many emotions in that moment that she could not distinguish between them.

“Does that come to you as a surprise, little princess?” He came up to her and bent down in front of her. “Don’t you already know that we are meant to be together?”

His face was so close to hers and it was such a pretty face and would it be cheating if she kissed the older version of her boyfriend right now?

It probably wouldn’t be cheating, but it’d definitely be weird.

“You’re so cute when you blush like that, bugaboo.” Adrien lightly booped her nose. Then he walked over to her chaise and plopped onto it. 

Marinette stood frozen in her spot for a few moments before she finally turned to look at him. Adrien was looking at her with that brilliant smile on his lips as he patted the spot next to him.

Marinette gulped. Deep breaths, Mari, one, two, three. She took slow, short steps towards him. When she sat down, she kept her eyes on everything in the room except the absolutely gorgeous man sitting right next to her.

“I know exactly how you’re feeling right now.” She heard a laugh in Adrien’s voice.

“What?” She turned to him with widened eyes.

“Must be a little unnerving being around such a good looking piece of meat like me, huh?” He had a very evil smirk on his face and it was driving Marinette crazy.

But she was not Marinette if she was going to let him get away with that.

“Excuse me?” 

“If it’s any consolation,” Adrien put an arm around her, “you’re gonna be the hotter between the two of us.” He winked before continuing, “Not to mean that you aren’t hot already.”

“Yeah, I almost gave you enough heart attacks in the past year,” she said and Adrien chuckled.

“Oh, you have no idea how much I almost died.”

“I can’t wait to continue doing this.” she smiled and Adrien gave her a cute smile, brushing her bangs to the side.

“It will be amazing years, little princess. I can guarantee.”

“Did…” She got nervous all of a sudden.

“Yes?

“Can I ask you something?”

“I can’t give you a lot of information because it can affect the future, but if it’s something that I can reply to, I will.”

“You know that the reason why I got so hesitant about dating you and being with you was because of what I saw when I was thirteen.”

“Chat Blanc, yes.”

“Did our relationship cause anything?” She looked at him and for a fraction of a second, she thought she saw anger and sadness in his eyes.

“I can’t tell you a lot, but I can guarantee something. If there is anything that our relationship did was to make me feel like the happiest man in the world. We’re partners and we love each other so much that any problem we have we get over it together.”

“You make it sound like a fairy tale.”

“But it isn’t. Yes, we fight sometimes, we’re humans after all, but we always talk after it and make things better. We don’t let things stay unsolved between us.” He gave her a lovesick smile that made her smile back. “I can’t tell you more but I need to ask you something.”

“Of course.”

“There will be a moment in our future when I will really, really, need you. Something will happen and I will get a little lost, but you will be there for me. I’ll be a little bitch and it will be hard and god, I don’t know what made you stay, but you were with me in every single moment I needed, so… Please, please mini-bug, don’t give up on me, okay?”

“I won’t, chaton. I won’t.”

“Great.” he raised his fist to her and she smiled. “Bien joué, mini bug.”

“Bien joué, kitty noir.”

He chuckled.

“So, what were you doing at the park?”

“Oh, I was trying to get some ideas for your gift for today.”

“Well, I already know what you gave me, so I can help and it won’t ruin the surprise.”

“Ohhh, yes, please! I’m so lost!”

He got up and offered his hand to help her get up.

“Shall we, princess?”

“Yes.” She blushed.

“Oh my God, we’re going to make a gift for us!” 

The delight in his voice made her smile. “So, what now?”

“Okay, let’s play a game.”

“I thought we were preparing your gift?”

“Yeah, we’re doing that too!” He waved his hands around. “So your first hint is I don’t like closed spaces.”

“The park?”

“You’ve got the mood, but let’s go a bit higher.”

Marinette rolled her eyes. “Can’t you be a little more direct?”

“Hey, direct isn’t fun!”

“For you!”

“Alright, I’ll tell you.”

 *

 “Okay, we’re all set here!” Adrien straightened up and stretched his arms over his head, and as he did that, his t-shirt rode up his waist slightly. 

Trying real hard not to stare at his exposed skin, Marinette asked, “Are you sure that’s enough? I mean-”

“Hey,” Adrien lifted her chin with his finger, “you know all I really want is to be with you, right?”

Marinette gulped nervously. It was getting more and more difficult to keep herself in control.

“So,” he went on, “how much time do we have before I turn up?”

“I thought you’ve been through all this in your past?” 

“Hey, just because I’ve been through this doesn’t mean I remember!” He protested. “After all, I didn’t know at that time how long you waited. But I do know one thing,” A mischievous look came upon his face. “In a little while, something fun is going to happen.”

“Fun?”

She didn’t have much time to think as she heard footsteps approaching her room. Her trap door was opened and she turned, feeling fear ran down her body.

Oh god, her parents would see her in her room with an older man who was identical to her teenage boyfriend and how would she explain that?!

And then a golden happy boy entered her room with a box in his hand. He looked at her and almost dropped the box.

“What are you doing here?”

“Look, Adrien, I can explain-”

“Your parents said that you were at la tour Eiffel, that’s why I came to put the box without you knowing!”

“Wait, what?”

And only then did she finally remember who was in the room with them because her Adrien turned pale and he choked.

“Is- is-”

“Hello, mini-me.” older!Adrien smiled and waved. “It’s good to see you.”

“Wh-What is happening?”

“Long story, so let’s just say that I’m waiting for my lady to save me, so why don’t you put this really fragile gift on her desk before you drop it?”

“O-Oh, okay.” her Adrien said and put the box up her desk.

Older!Chat rested his elbows on his thighs and smiled.

“Perfect.”

Marinette and her Adrien glanced at each other. It was just for a moment, but older!Adrien caught it.

“Hey,” he held up his hands in front of him, “don’t let my presence hold you kids back! I’m not your guardian, and I know very well what you’re thinking right now, mini-me.”

Her Adrien blushed a deep red at that. “I- I think we can wait.”

“Suit yourself.” Older!Adrien leaned behind, resting his weight on his arms. 

“So,” her Adrien spoke up, “you’re me from the future?”

“That’s right, boy.”

“And are me and Marinette still-” he hesitated, “you know what I mean?”

“Together?” Older!Adrien held up his hand, showing off his ring. “Is that even a question?”

Her Adrien looked over at Marinette with a confused expression on his face. Only when she nodded did his face break into an ear-to-ear grin.

Suddenly, Marinette and her Adrien yelped in surprise. A blue portal had opened up in the middle of her room.

“Ah, I guess that’s my ride!” Older! Adrien got up to his feet. “Plagg, transforme moi!”

“Come on buddy!” A voice sounded from the other side of the portal, which they both recognized as Bunnix. 

But just then a second voice spoke up. “Just gimme a moment Bunnix.”

It was unmistakably Marinette’s voice, but a little deeper, more mature.

A red and black spandex-clad hand came out of the portal. It grabbed older!Chat’s bell collar and tugged him. 

“M’ lady, I- mmph!”

A face barely appeared through the portal before it crashed onto older!Chat’s face.

“Why do you keep doing that?” The deeper Marinette voice spoke again, but this time there was a face to it. 

It was Ladybug, but her features were sharper and more mature. Her long hair was up in a high ponytail, tied with a red ribbon. 

And good Lord, was she beautiful.

“Guys, stop being so gross in front of the kids!” Bunnix shouted from behind them.

“Oops sorry!” older!Ladybug stuck her tongue out and pulled a slightly dizzy Chat into the portal. “Hey, mini-me!” She waved at Marinette. “And you too, kitty Noir.” She blew a kiss at Adrien, who almost combusted on the spot.

After that, she disappeared through the portal. 

Bunnix’s head appeared shortly after. “You’re doing great, mini-bug and kitty Noir! Take care, love you, bye!” And then she was gone, and the portal disappeared too.

“So…” Adrien said, looking at her. “That was something.”

“Yeah, it was.” she sighed.

“We’re going to be so hot when we grow up.”

Marinette laughed, agreeing.

“So, not that I mind my beautiful and delicious boyfriend in my room…” she approached and pulled him close by his shirt collar. “But what are you doing here?

“I-” he blushed. “I wanted to give you a surprise. Hide your gift in your room and later we could try to find it.”

“Oh.” She smiled. “You’re so sweet, mon chaton.”

He kissed her lightly.

“But we can open it now if you want to?”

“Nah, leave it for later. We can do it after our celebration.” She kissed him.

“Hum, celebration?” he said, wrapping his arms around her waist. “What are you planning?”

“Guess you will have to wait to see,” she whispered against his mouth and smirked when he shivered. “My parents are waiting for you to leave my room, so why don’t you go and come back as a stray cat?”

“Oh shit okay, I’ll be right back!” he promised and left her room while she laughed.

Oh, her chaton was so silly. And she loved him so much, and it looked like it would be for a long, long time.

She was really relieved that Chat Blanc wouldn’t be anything more than a bad memory in the past and that they could be together without that torment happening.

Now, she needed to apply some lipstick to mark her silly boyfriend.

 *

 The tips that older!Chat gave to her were perfect. 

“Chocolate fudge pastries? And passionfruit macarons?” Chat squealed in delight as he rummaged through the picnic basket. “I thought the bakery had stopped making them!”

“Well,” Marinette shrugged, “nobody said that I had stopped making them though.”

“Oh Princess!” Chat Noir wrapped his arms around her and swept her off the ground, twirling her around. “You really know me so well!”

Marinette pecked his lips. “Of course I do, mon chaton. But you haven’t seen all of it yet, open up the left compartment.” 

Like a little kitten, he carefully lifted the lid on the left side of the basket. And as soon as he did that, he gasped and covered his mouth with his hands. “Marinette,” he whispered in a shaky voice.

“A year ago, you came to my room, trying to help me sleep better. You brought me these lavender candles and bath bombs,” she ran her hands over the items in the basket, “and it helped me so much. But what matters more,” she touched his face, “is how much you cared about me.” She leaned in to touch her forehead to his. “How much you still care about me. And I won’t change it for anything in this world.”

“Princess…” he murmured before kissing her deeply.

“Do you like it?”

“I love it! Oh, it would be so amazing if we could use the bath bombs and the candles! I can’t wait for us to use them and… I mean-”

She chuckled and grabbed his face, making him look at her.

“One day we will use them together, okay?”

He caressed her cheek with his thumb.

“I can’t wait.”

Oh, god. The way he was looking at her… she needed to do something and fast!

“So what do you say?” Marinette said when they broke away. “Let’s take this outside and have our anniversary date?”

“I’d love nothing more than to be with you, my Princess.”

Marinette blushed as she remembered hearing the same line earlier that day. 

“Climb onto my back, Princess,” Chat offered, “and I’ll take you somewhere”.

“You know, I can transform too, right?” Marinette smirked.

“Let me carry you this time, please! I promise you, next time, Ladybug will carry Adrien to places!”

Marinette laughed as she wrapped her arms around his neck. “Of course.”

 *

 Chat took her up to the roof of a building, where they had a beautiful picnic. Although older!Chat had already told her about this, it was a completely different thing being there in person than listening about it. It was a beautiful day and the cool breeze brought in a feeling of freshness. From that height, no one could see them and so they could have a bit of privacy, and also they could look over the entire city. It was the best she could have asked for.

“Hey, Princess?” Chat Noir asked as they lay side by side on the picnic mat. 

“Yes?”

“You don’t have those nightmares anymore, do you? You know, about-” He hesitated.

“About Chat Blanc?” Marinette offered. She turned to look at him and placed her hand on the side of his face. “I don’t. After all, I’ve got you right here with me, don’t I?”

Chat placed his hand on top of hers, and kissed her palm. “You do. You’ll always have me.”

“And you’ll have me too, kitty. Always.”

They had a very nice and lovely moment, just enjoying the other and sharing tons of kisses and caresses. They ate, they laughed, they teased each other, they said “I love you”. When it was late and both of them were tired, they went to the bakery.

They said goodbye with a kiss and then Marinette entered her room, all on cloud nine, her mind and brain agitated after all the amazing moments she had with her boyfriend (and future husband).

She turned the light on and wasn’t even surprised when she found the damn cat laying down in her chaise in a very cliche sexy pose. 

Marinette put her hands on her waist and raised both of her eyebrows, smiling.

“Did you lose your way home?”

“I’m already here, right? My home.”

She put her hands on her chest.

“Don’t murder me, please. I’m too young.”

He giggled and got up, destransforming.

“Plagg, go find Tikki. Marinette and I have plans.”

“Again?” the kwami mumbled. “I regret supporting this disgusting relationship, so much.”

“Shut up, you’re the #1 Marichat stan.”

“Lies!” Plagg said and flew to find Tikki. Marinette giggled and went to Adrien, letting him wrap her in his arms. 

“So, what are our plans?”

“First, we’re going to make out on the chaise. And then we’re going to open your gift. And then…” he said, hiding his face in her neck and kissing it.

“Then?” Her voice was affected by his actions.

“Then we’re going to make out on your bed.”

She grabbed his face and brought it close to her. “Sounds good to me,” she whispered with her eyes narrowed. Then she leaned back against the back of the chaise. “I see we’re already set for part one of your plan, huh?”

He crawled over her and placed his hands on the sides of her. “I like how you think, Purr-incess.” With that, he lunged forward and kissed her. 

Marinette snaked her arms around his neck and tangled her fingers in his hair. He moaned against her lips, she knew he loved that.

But she did not expect his hands to wander gently to the exposed skin of her waist.

She broke off with a gasp. Chat had a smirk on his face. 

“Not my fault that you decided to wear a crop-top today, Purr-incess,” he purred.

“Shut up and kiss me you stupid cat!” She said and pulled his face towards her so that she could kiss him.

And he was definitely not going to resist. He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned into her. 

“Let’s put this on hold for now, shall we?” Chat spoke up when they broke away for air. “I really want you to see your gift right now.”

Marinette grunted in protest. “You better hope it’s worth it.”

“Damn, isn’t my princess naughty?”

She smirked, her hands lowering at his back until she reached his waist. Gently as she stared at him, she put her hands under his shirt and wandered, smirking when she felt him shivering.

“Am I?”

“Marinette, I won’t be able to behave if you keep doing this.”

“Maybe I don’t want you to behave?”

He whimpered and hid his face in her neck.

“I’m using a black bra with a green paw print,” she whispered and he got up, putting a huge space between them.

“You’re evil.”

“Maybe.” She sat up and Adrien devoured her with his eyes. She was a mess, a beautiful mess, all messy hair and wrinkled clothes.

“We’re going to continue this later, okay?” He pointed a finger to her. Marinette laughed and got up, approaching him.

“Okay.” She kissed the corner of his mouth and went to her desk, where the box with her gift was there. “So, should I try to guess what is inside?”

“You can, but I think you won’t guess right,” he said as he hugged her from behind.

“Oh?” she loosened the ribbon on the box. “What can it be?”

“Something really special.”

“My, my! Isn’t my chaton so mysterious?”

“So much.” he kissed her cheek. “You have three chances. Every time you don’t guess right, I’ll misbehave.”

“Now you’re making me want to guess everything wrong.” she purred and he chuckled.

“Go, first chance.”

“Okay. Is it jewellery? Because if it’s jewellery, I will punch you. I told you no expensive gifts.”

“The fact that you think I didn’t listen to you hurts a little. No, it’s not jewellery.” He said as he opened his hands on the skin of her belly.

“Hm, a cloth then? Or fabric?”

“Two wrong guesses in the same sentence? Damn, princess.”

“No! It’s just one!”

He wrapped his mouth around her earlobe and pulled, making her gasp and stick her nails into the skin of his arm.

“You’re distracting me!”

“Am not. Last guess, princess.”

“I don’t know, a sketchbook?”

“Tsk, tsk. My older self gave you a tip and you still guessed wrong,” he whispered against her ear and she shivered. “Open it up, princess.”

With him peppering kisses on the nape of her neck, she opened the box and tears filled her eyes and she gasped.

“Did you like it?” he whispered.

“Adrien!” she said all emotional as she took his gift out of the box.

It was a beautiful picture frame made from blue crystals with gold details, and a picture that Alya took of the two when they told their friends that they were dating was framed inside it.

In the photo, Adrien and Marinette were sitting on the swing set where the confession happened, looking at each other with their hands intertwined and lovesick smiles on their faces and in their eyes.

“Happy anniversary to us, princess.”

She put the picture frame on her desk and turned to him, wrapping her arms around him and kissing him with all the love that she had for him.

He kissed her back with equal fervor, if not more. As he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close, he could feel her smile against him. This could not be any better.

Marinette refused to let go of him even after they broke apart. She put her hands on his neck and leaned her forehead against his. 

“That was a good reaction, huh?” He whispered.

She smiled, but did not say anything. After a few moments, she spoke up. “How are you always the best boyfriend I could ask for?” 

“You make me want to be the best, Marinette.” He planted a kiss on her forehead.

“I love you so much Adrien,” she whispered.

“And I love you too,” he whispered back.

They stayed like that for a few minutes. And then Adrien leaned a bit away from her to look at her face. 

“We have some unfinished business up there, didn’t we?” He pointed with his eyes in the direction of her bed.

Marinette laughed. “I think you’re right.”

 *

 (Years Later) 

“If we have another time travel akuma, I swear I will cataclysm something,” Chat said, following Ladybug inside their apartment.

“I’m with you.” She chuckled. “But it was nice to see our younger selves. We were so small!”

“And you were already so beautiful, lovely, and sexy,” he said, hugging her from behind. She tilted her head to the side so he could have his way with the part of her neck that was exposed.

“And you were already so charming, kind, and hot.” She turned around to wrap her arms around his neck. “My sweet,” one kiss on the corner of his cheek “beautiful,” one on his nose this time “sexy,” one on the right corner of his mouth “chaton.” and this time, she kissed him senseless.

He pushed her against the wall, his hands wandering on her body.

“Can we continue where we stopped?” he asked, biting her earlobe, playing with the miraculous there.

“I have to put the cake in the oven. And we have to eat something,” she said between kisses.

“We can eat later.”

“I don’t think so, chaton. I’m so hungry!” She licked his nose and he made a sound of disgust.

“You know, I regret licking you that day we confessed. I gave you a weapon to tease me.”

She laughed and kissed his nose.

“I will make it worth it, okay?”

“I know.” He smirked and kissed her.

 After dinner and the dessert, her amazing chocolate cake, Marinette went to the room saying that she would shower. He stayed on the couch, watching some anime waiting for her, since she didn’t call him to join her.

And then, some minutes later, she came back using only a bathrobe with her hair in a bun.

“Do you want to join me?”

He got up so fast that he almost tripped. Laughing, they went to the bathroom hand in hand.

When he entered, Adrien put his hand on his chest, feeling his heart beating like crazy. The bathroom was filled with lavender scented candles, the bathtub full and with bubbles and two amazing bath bombs were waiting at the corner.

“I told you that we would use it together one day,” she said and squeezed his hand.

He got rid of his clothes quickly and took her bathrobe off in a second, making her laugh. They got inside the tub, with Adrien leaning against the corner and Marinette sitting between his legs, her back against his chest.

He wrapped her arms around her waist while she put the first bath bomb in the water, making it all colourful. Adrien sighed and kissed the nape of her neck.

“Did you have fun today? Teasing the hell out of young me?” she whispered and he chuckled

“You were cute, there was nothing that I could do but tease you.” he let his mouth make its way to her shoulder. “And I helped you with my gift, don’t forget.”

“Oh, I can’t forget that day. You don’t know how many times I almost told you what you said to me that day.”

“Yeah?” he caressed her thighs. “What did I say?”

“How much you were crazy for me.”

“I’ve said that to you since we’re thirteen,” he said amused.

“Yeah, but when your hot partner from the future says that it’s different.”

This time, he laughed so loud that Marinette couldn’t do anything besides follow him. When he finally calmed down, she turned to watch his face.

“Damn, you’re such a dork.”

“And you’re worse since you married the dork.” he kissed her.

“I don’t regret it. I would marry you a million times if I had the chance.”

“Yeah? Even when I screamed for you to leave me alone when I found out Gabriel was Hawkmoth?”

“Yes.” She caressed his arms around her waist.

“I always asked myself why you stayed. Why did you fight against my stupidity?”

“Because when I was young, a kind man asked me to not give up on him. And I promised I wouldn’t.”

He gasped and she smiled as she cupped his face.

“I couldn’t let you fight alone.”

“And I’m so glad you didn’t, my lady,” he said with his voice choked by tears.

“What else could I do besides love you, mon chaton? You saved me from my darkness and nightmares and I wanted to do the same for you.”

“And you did, my princess. You did and still do every day.”

“Like you do for me every day.”

He smiled, cupped her face and kissed his princess one more time.

(Don’t forget to check out amazing art made by the talented @minetteenfers​ of adult!Adrien: LINK)

[vicisintoomanyfandoms]

The downsides of being a hero

Read on Ao3

Summary:

“NO, YOU’LL BE ABLE TO MAKE IT! WE’LL GET YOU TO THE HOSPITAL, THEY’LL SAVE YOU! IN NO TIME, YOU’LL BE WALKING JUST LIKE BEFORE WITHOUT PROBLEMS! YOU’LL BE FLIRTING ME AND TRYING TO GET MY ATTENTION AGAIN!” She wished she would’ve believed her own words at the moment.

............................................................................

“Ladybug…...I…...love……….you……….a-and t-tell……...M-Marinette……...t-that……” He hadn’t managed to finish his sentence before his heart stopped from the blood loss.

Notes:

Thank you so much Krisbeecream and Aquamarinarchive for beta reading my fanfiction. You really saved my butt.

This fanfiction is very angsty, so read at your own discretion. If you feel uncomfortable, feel free to drop it. 

Trigger warning:

Angst, blood, major character death

“So Adrien, what do you think about Marinette? Isn’t she cute and perfect?” Plagg asked his holder while blinking innocently.

“Yeah, she’s awesome, but she’s just a friend” 

‘She’s just a friend’ Plagg thought mockingly. The kwami was very tired of this expression, and it took him a lot to hold back his anger.

 “Marinette, are you sure you’re over Adrien?” Tikki knew it was annoying for the girl to hear the same question over and over again, but she wanted Marinette to be happy, and she would’ve done anything for her holder’s happiness.

“Yes, I’m one hundred percent sure I’m over him. All these pictures are just for my designs.”

The little creature was about to say that you don’t just hold inspirational pictures under your bed, but she gritted her teeth and didn’t say anything for the sake of silence.

 “Plagg, we need to do something about them. I can’t just watch them suffering like this. How can you be so indifferent about this?” Tikki said desperately, while the immortal creature put the slice of cheese in his mouth. Tikki simply rolled her eyes.

“I am not indifferent about anything. I just want the kid to smile, but you know very well how oblivious he is. It’s not like we can set them on a date and they’ll suddenly get together.”

The red creature opened her eyes wide at the realization.

“Actually, we can. Plagg, you’re a genius!” She said, amazed, and wrapped her small arms around his cat-like body. 

“We can?” he said, surprised

“Look, this is what we’re going to do,” she whispered in his feline ears the plan, then she looked at him with a small grin.

 Adrien found a note on his desk as he arrived at school. He slowly opened it, finding handwriting that looked pretty similar to his friend’s, only messier.

Dear Adrien,

Meet me at parc today at 3 pm. I need to talk to you about my feelings.

Marinette

He was shocked to see the message of the note but folded it quietly.

It happened just the same to Marinette, except her reaction only showed sadness, because she knew it wasn’t going to end up very well. She had a feeling in her gut that something unpleasant was going to happen.

 When they were both at the meeting place, neither of them dared to say anything. Marinette just looked down at her hands that were sitting there on her lap.

“Adrien,”

“Marinette,’

Both of them called each other at the same time. 

“Ladies first,” Adrien said politely while rubbing his left arm and trying to smile nervously.

“I wanted to ask you, what did you mean on the note when you said you wanted to talk about your feelings?” The model blinked rapidly.

“I’m sorry, what note are you talking about? I didn’t send you any note. You are the one who invited me to come here to talk about how you feel about me.”

“Huh?”

He got the note out of his bag and gave it to her; she did the same thing. They quickly unfolded the papers and read the sentences written on them.

“No way, I never wrote this, and besides, if you were a good friend, you would’ve already known my handwriting is nothing like this”  She said as anger filled her eyes. 

Suddenly, the bakers’ daughter realized who had set up the date, and she gritted her teeth in annoyance.

“Are you accusing me of being a bad friend? I tried almost everything to make you stop running away from me, yet you always do!” Adrien felt his emotions bubbling up. “You never want to talk to me about your life or how you feel. When I read the note, I thought you would finally open up to me! I wanted to be able to support you like you always do to everyone, but you seem to just refuse it every single time!”

“What do you mean, Adrien?” Marinette said, confused but angry

He clenched his fists.

“You are always here when I need help, or anyone else does. You always help others, and I look up to you. I thought I could be like you, awesome in so many ways. Every single time you walk by me I admire everything in you.”

He wasn’t lying. Whenever she was standing in front of him, his heart always went crazy, making him nervous. He loved the way her hair flew in the wind, the way her bluebell eyes would check on everything around her. He loved the way her lips parted when she was about to say something, the way her small waist moved around when she was walking. Adrien adored her small, genuine smile and her gentle touch when she brushed her skin against his, making him feel an electrical connection. He loved every single part of her, but his love for Ladybug blinded him, making him think that it was all just friendly admiration. 

“Wow, Adrien, I had no idea. No one’s ever tried to make that big of a connection with me”.

“You’re wrong,” Adrien said while biting his lip.

“Excuse me?”

“You’re wrong.” He was holding his hands together. “Everyone is trying to help you, you’re just too selfless to see.”

The bakers’ daughter was about to say something, but she couldn’t bring herself to; everything he had said was true. Saving Paris took her a lot of time and energy, and she didn’t get anything back for that. But for her it was enough, seeing safe smiles on their faces couldn’t make her happier. 

Suddenly, they heard many terrifying screams. They knew what was happening immediately, it was another Akumatized victim. The heroes rushed into different hiding places to transform into their alter egos. Hawkmoth knew that if he didn’t start to use more dangerous villains, he would keep losing every single time.

 Ladybug and Chat Noir arrived at the scene; neither of them seemed happy about the Akuma’s power. It could get blades from the ground, which was a great danger to the citizens and heroes. 

The truth was that lately, the heroes had been dealing with more dangerous villains every battle, some of them with deadly powers. A lot of times they made it out barely alive during battles. All these fights were only happening in Paris, which was supposed to be the city of love. Except for the fact that now, it was mostly the city of terror and fear. Love was lost there, it was the last thing that mattered, and the first thing in people’s minds being how to protect themselves from death. The only two people who didn’t fear it were the amazing Ladybug and Chat Noir. Their biggest worry was protecting the people they cared about. Their brains seemed to work the same way in the last three months: the biggest goal being to protect the world and each other.

“Ladybug, Chat Noir, you two and that blonde spoiled brat are doomed. She dared to insult my aiming skills, and the two of you are just a pair of fake heroes who pretend to be saving the world when they could easily just give their Miraculouses to Hawkmoth and end this terror once for all. You two are selfish; you only think about yourselves!” The akumatized victim shouted at them with no shame.

Neither of them seemed to listen to the speech, knowing it was all just Hawkmoth. The teenagers knew why they shouldn’t give their jewelry to the villain. All actions have consequences, and the equilibrium in the universe would be destroyed if a wish was made by the man. 

“I am Bladenizer and I am going to take your Miraculouses and give them to their rightful owner.”

The villain threw some blades at a mother with her child in her arms, but ladybug caught her quickly with her yoyo before she got stabbed. The teen heroine got a small scratch from throwing herself there. 

The black cat split his baton in a half and threw the pieces at Bladenizer, who dodged them like a pro.

“W-what are you?” Chat Noir asked with a terrified look on his face.

“I am an ex-Miraculous holder. I know every single way Miraculouses work, including the fact that you are only teenagers who detransform after using their powers. I know martial arts and my muscles are built up for any fight, so be ready to lose, so-called ‘heroes’” the Akumatized victim’s eyes gave a small glow and then he put a grin on his face.

Many blades came from the ground and one of them went through Ladybug’s hand, breaking some of her bones painfully. The spotted hero hissed in pain while the black cat watched in horror.

“LADYBUG!” he yelled with his full voice, hurting his throat, yet he didn’t care. All he wanted was his lady to be safe, but she got hurt because he couldn’t protect her. 

“Stay back Chat and keep fighting! I’ll be fine.”

She ran to a woman nearby who was waving a piece of material, offering it to Ladybug so that she could stop the bleeding.

It all seemed pointless. They both continued dodging and telling everyone to stay far away from the fight. Luckily, people actually listened to them and didn’t get into the impossible scuffle. 

“I thought you two were useless, but I never thought you would be that easy to defeat. Guess the Guardian is the same as he used to be, terrible at making decisions.”

As he finished his small speech, he made several towering blades appear from the ground. They were nearly mountain-sized, so there was no way the heroes could climb them. It was all over for both of them,, and they knew it. There was no way they could get out of it alive, unless the villain took pity on them. 

Then, unexpectedly, a blade came through Chat Noir’s chest, shattering one of his lungs completely, with the other and his heart being barely touched. Blood was pouring from the wound, making the poor boy unable to move. He screamed in pain, even though he knew it was fruitless. 

Ladybug simply froze; she wasn’t able to say anything or move, as if some unnatural force was holding her from doing so. But it was all in her head, everything was just in her head, right? She was actually dreaming, Chat noir didn’t actually get stabbed, right?

But it was all true. When the realization hit her, the heroine simply rushed to the black cat, hoping that he would be able to survive with her by his side. He took her hand and put on his heart, but she dodged his gentle grip lightly, calling for the lucky charm that she hoped would help her. 

Into her hands dropped a full syringe of a magical sleep serum.

“L-ladybug…... p-please s-stay with m-me,” The boy in the leather catsuit asked the teenage girl who couldn’t refuse his face full of love and hope. 

The ravenette took the green-eyed boy in her hands so that he could be in a comfortable position. She parted her lips, about to say something, but he put his index finger on them.

“Shhh, my lady, if necessary, w-we’ll meet in t-the af-afterlife” he took her hand in his rubbing it gently with his thumb. At this point, they were barely three centimeters apart. The blonde could smell the weak, yet pleasant scent of strawberry shampoo coming off of her. He then coughed up a spatter of blood.

“NO, YOU’LL BE ABLE TO MAKE IT! WE’LL GET YOU TO THE HOSPITAL, THEY’LL SAVE YOU! IN NO TIME, YOU’LL BE WALKING JUST LIKE BEFORE WITHOUT PROBLEMS! YOU’LL BE FLIRTING ME AND TRYING TO GET MY ATTENTION AGAIN!” She wished she would’ve believed her own words at the moment. 

He let go of her hand and cupped her cheek. Every second their faces were closer to each other until he finally, gently, pressed his lips on hers. She could clearly feel a billion butterflies in her stomach. He grabbed her waist and pulled her closer to his body, pressing it against his own. She pulled away, but not from anger or disappointment in her partner, but grief. That’s when she realized that she had always loved him, from the beginning, but, being too blinded by Adrien’s perfection, she wasn’t able to see that.

“Ladybug…...I…...love……….you……….a-and t-tell……...M-Marinette……...t-that……” He hadn’t managed to finish his sentence before his heart stopped from the blood loss. 

“Tell Marinette what? C-Chat Noir. Chat Noir! CHAT NOIIIIIR!” Ladybug screamed in emotional agony for her breathless partner. She hoped he would wake up and flirt with her again. Except he didn't. He couldn’t. He was dead.

“No, y-you’ll pay for that. You heard me? YOU’LL FUCKING PAY FOR THAAAT!” The teenager yelled from her weak throat. She left the black cat’s lifeless body and rushed to the villain, injecting him with the serum the lucky charm gave her. The Akumatized victim fell instantly asleep and Ladybug took the bracelet and broke it. She purified the Akuma that transformed into a white, innocent butterfly.

“Miraculous Ladybug!” Millions of small butterflies flew all around Paris repairing the damage made by the Akuma. After the process was finished, she quickly ran to her friend’s body, hoping he would be healed. Checking his pulse, she slowly fell down on her knees, a crushing weight falling on her heart and a realization coming to her mind: The miraculous couldn’t bring people back from the dead.

Notes:

Thank you very much for reading.

I hope you liked it.

And if you did, please don't forget to join the Miraculous Fanworks discord server here. It's a perfect place for everybody: writers, readers, artists and cosplayers. Feel free to join right now.

We're waiting for you.

[gryffindorcls]

Can i ask for a angsty marichat 10 for the prompts? I would love to read it!

Angst...okay...as you wish.

I’m going to post most of this under a “keep reading” line because it has some brief mentions of blood.  Nothing gory, but definitely angsty.  

ALSO, once again...season 3 spoilers...ish?  I got kind of inspired by the Kwmai Swap.  It’s still definitely MariChat, but there are some other things thrown in there.

If anyone else would like to submit a prompt ask, the list of what’s left can be found here. 

Enjoy!

---

#10 Marichat- Hear my heartbeat? Just focus on that. 

Adrien was hoping that this would be an average, run-of-the-mill Akuma attack, but when the explosions started, he knew it was going to be a difficult battle.  Sneaking out of his classroom amidst the chaos had been the easy part.  However, finding a place to transform when half the school had been reduced to rubble was a challenge.

When he finally transformed into Chat Noir, he began his search for Hawkmoth’s latest victim.  Another explosion shook the building, and Chat ran towards the source; however, he came to a screeching halt when he heard screams coming from one of the classrooms.  Chat turned his head in time to see Marinette helping several students who had gotten trapped underneath a partially collapsed ceiling.

This wasn’t the first time he’d seen his classmate helping people in dangerous situations, but the thought of something happening to Marinette terrified him.  Chat cherished her as a friend, and his need to protect her was almost on par with his desire to defend Ladybug during Akuma battles.  Unlike Ladybug, Chat knew that Marinette did not have a magical super-suit to minimize injuries in perilous situations, so getting her to safety was paramount.

“You need to get out of here,” he yelled, “Go somewhere safe!”

After pulling the last student free, she looked up.  “I can’t.  I have to find him first.”

“Don’t worry about anyone else.  It’s not safe here.  Ladybug and I will take care of everything.”

“But he wasn’t with the class when we evacuated the building.  You don’t understand!  I have to find him.  If anything happened to him...I...I...”

“Who are you looking for?”

Instead of answering his question, Chat heard Marinette scream as another explosion caused the rest of the ceiling in the classroom to come crashing down.  He shielded his eyes from the dust and debris that flew into the hallway.  Panic settled in his gut when he saw the entrance to the room obstructed by looming piles of shattered glass, chunks of concrete, pieces of ceiling tiles, and broken light fixtures.  

He desperately clawed at the debris to make an opening.  “MARINETTE!  Please tell me you’re okay!  Answer me please!”

Chat’s ears were met with silence. 

Frantic thoughts raced through his head as he tried to find a solution to the problem at hand.  “I have to get her out.  Please be okay, Marinette...please...I can’t lose you, too.  This would be so much easier if Ladybug was here.”

One minute passed.

Two minutes passed.

Ladybug was nowhere to be seen.

He had to do something.  Chat knew that it was important to save his Cataclysm for when it was needed most, but he wouldn’t be able to function during the fight if he knew that Marinette was alone and hurt.  Taking a deep breath, Chat called for his power and ran his hand across the rubble.

When the pile had been reduced to dust, he charged into the classroom.  His eyes quickly landed on the lifeless form of his classmate on the floor.  

Chat rushed to her side and cradled her in his arms.  “Marinette...Princess...wake-up.  I need to know you’re okay before I leave.”

“She’s not going to wake-up, Chat Noir,” a sad voice said in his ear.

As he turned his head, his gaze was met by the striking blue eyes of a small, red Kwami.  “Tikki!  What are you doing here?  Ladybug needs you.  I need Ladybug.  Marinette is hurt, and Ladybug is the only one who can fix it.”

A loud beep came from his ring, causing Tikki to sigh.  “You used your Cataclysm.  You only have a few minutes until you transform back.”

He ignored her statement.  “What did you mean when you said she wouldn’t wake up?  And where is Ladybug?  If she’s not going to wake-up, I can at least get her somewhere safe until Ladybug fixes this.  The Cure will fix her…right?  It has to.  She’s my friend.  I can’t lose her.”

Tikki landed on his shoulder and placed a paw on his cheek.  “Chat...I know you’re upset right now, but I need you to think for a moment.  Why would I be with Marinette right now?”

“I don’t know.”

“Yes, you do.  Think.”

Another beep came from his ring.  

“How do you know she won’t wake up?” he asked a second time.

Tikki floated down to Marinette and lifted up her blood-matted bangs to reveal a deep gash.  “The force from the blast that caved in the ceiling threw her away from the falling debris, but she got knocked out in the process.  I can feel her life-force.  It’s there, but it’s weak.  So, yes, the Miraculous Cure will heal her, but Ladybug isn’t coming...because she hit her head and won’t wake up.”

A third beep rang through the room.

“Ladybug is hurt, too?  Where is she?”

“Chat...think.”

He took a moment to soak in Tikki’s words, and a revelation came with the sounding of the fourth beep.

A cry escaped his throat as he tightened his grip on Marinette’s limp body.  “My lady...no...I can’t lose you.  Tikki!  I can’t lose them...I love both of them.  Why do people keep leaving me?”

A bright green light flooded the room as the fifth and final beep resonated throughout the space.  Plagg eyes grew wide as he took in the scene before him.

“This is bad,” he mumbled under his breath.

“Plagg...Marinette is Ladybug, and I don’t know what to do.  How are we going to fix her?”  Adrien sobbed.

“Kid, it’s going to be okay.  This isn’t the first time we’ve encountered something like this.  I know it’s scary, but we’ll get through this.  I need you to do your best to calm down and focus.  Take a few deep breaths.”

Adrien followed his Kwami’s instructions and did his best to clear his head.  “I still don’t know what to do.”

“Take off your ring.”

“What?”

“Take off your ring and put it on Marinette.  Then, take her earrings and put them on.  This isn’t the first time you’ve done this.”

“Yeah...that makes sense.  Okay...I can do that.  If I defeat the Akuma and call for the Cure, she’ll be okay, right?”

“She might be a little worn out when she wakes up, but she’ll be okay.  The explosion was caused by the Akuma, and all damage caused by magic gets reversed by the Cure,”  Tikki explained.

Adrien gently laid Marinette on the ground before switching their Miraculouses.  He then called for his new transformation.

“Plagg,” he fiddled with the yo-yo now attached to his hip, “I can’t just leave her here.”

The black Kwami nodded.  “I understand.  Take her home, and I promise I’ll stay with her.  I will be there to explain everything when she wakes up.

“Thank you.”

“Anything for you, kid.”

He scooped up Marinette in his arms and held her against his chest.  Mister Bug made sure her head was secure as he vaulted out of the demolished school building and onto the balcony above Marinette’s bedroom.  Plagg helped him open the lock on the windowed hatch, and he gingerly placed the unconscious girl onto her bed.

Mister Bug did his best to push the fear of losing Marinette out of his mind to focus on the task at hand.  “It’s up to you now.  She’s counting on you.  They’re all counting on you.  You can do this.”

The Akuma had moved away from the school and was wreaking havoc at the Trocadero Gardens.  The victim had been transformed into a mad scientist with various pieces of lab equipment attached to different parts of his body.  

Mister Bug called for his Lucky Charm and was given a fire extinguisher that he used to put out what looked like a pilot light on the top of the victim’s head.  This gave Mister Bug just enough time to grab the Akumatized object and smash it.

He cleansed the Akuma and called for the Cure.  As the pink ladybugs swirled around the city, Mister Bug breathed a sigh of relief.  His lady was going to be okay.

As much as he wanted to rush back to Marinette, he stayed to make sure that the Akuma victim was emotionally stable.  He learned that the victim was a student at his school who had failed a test in Ms. Mendeleiev’s class.  He had begged for a retest but was instead told to study harder before the next exam.  After becoming upset, Hawkmoth had given him the power to use the elements on the periodic table to exact his revenge on Ms. Mendeleiev.

Once he felt sure that the former victim was not going to be re-Akumatized, Mister Bug used his yo-yo to swing towards the Dupain-Cheng’s bakery.  Several warning beeps sounded before he made it back to Marinette’s house.  As he landed on her balcony, his transformation melted away.  To his surprise, Tikki stopped him from entering Marinette’s bedroom.

“Wait...I understand you want to see her, but maybe you should transform back into Chat Noir first,” the red Kwami suggested.

“Why?” Adrien asked, feeling a restless buzz course through him, “I already know her identity.  It’s only fair that she learns mine, as well.”

She shook her head.  “Trust me.  Finding out that you’re Chat Noir is going to be a lot for her to process.  It’ll be best for you to take it slow.”

Tears started to form in the corners of his eyes.  “I really need to see her.  I can’t get the image of her…like that...out of my mind.  Please just let me see her.  It’ll be okay if she knows who I am.  We’re friends...please, Tikki.  I love her.”

“I know.  Please trust me on this one.  Two minutes...that’s all I’m asking.”

“I don’t know if I can wait any longer than that.”

Tikki phased through the hatch.  Moments later, a familiar hand pushed open the window and tossed his silver ring onto the terrace.

“I fed him!  Don’t worry!” Marinette called out.

Hearing her voice made Adrien’s knees feel weak.  Knowing that she was okay flooded his body with relief.  He hastily put on the ring, called for his transformation, and rushed over to the hatch.  When Chat Noir peered into the room, he was met by a smiling, very much alive Marinette.  

He hopped onto her bed and reached a clawed hand out to touch her face.  She leaned into his touch and giggled.  Chat was immediately reduced to tears.  

He threw his arms around Marinette and whispered into her ear.  “Don’t ever leave me like that again.  I can’t lose you.  You almost died, and I…I can’t...”

She pulled him closer and had him rest his head against her chest.  “Hear my heartbeat? Just focus on that.  Thanks to you, I’m okay.”

He released a tearful chuckle.  “Honestly, I never pictured the return of Mister. Bug going quite like this.” 

“You did well, Chaton.  I couldn’t have done it better myself.”

“That’s high praise.”

“You deserve it.  Ladybug would be nothing without her Chat Noir.”

“I’m nothing without you.  I don’t ever want to let you go.”

“We can stay like this for a little while.  School is definitely canceled for the rest of the day, but I really need to check that someone is okay in a few minutes.”

He broke away from their embrace and looked her in the eyes.  “Was it the person you were looking for before the ceiling collapsed?  May I ask who it was?”

Her cheeks turned red.  “Oh...ummm...it’s uhh...Adrien Agreste.  Now that you know who I am, I might as well tell you that he’s the boy that I like.  I know that the Cure makes everything okay again, but he wasn’t with the class when everyone evacuated the school.  I...I need to know he’s okay.”

Chat laughed.  “Him?  Oh my gosh, Bugaboo.  He’s fine.  Trust me.  If you let me tell you who I am, I can prove it.”

She smiled at him.  “No, I trust you.  If you say he’s okay, then he’s okay.  Anyway, it’s not like I’d be able to talk to him if I found him.  I always manage to freak out or jumble up my words around him.”

Tikki’s reluctance to have him reveal his identity suddenly made sense.  “And you really like him?”

“Yes, and I know what you’re thinking.  It’s not because he’s rich or a model.  I like him because he’s kind and selfless.  The fact that he’s cute is just an added bonus.”

“Please let me tell you who I am,” he begged.

Marinette rolled her eyes.  “I’ll make a deal with you, kitty.  I’m really tired right now, and I don’t think I can handle any more surprises at the moment.  I give you full permission to tell me who you are tomorrow, and you may do it any way you’d like.  For today, I’d like you to just be my Chaton.”

“I think I can live with that,” Chat said as he pulled her into another embrace.  

They stayed in each other’s arms until Marinette couldn’t ignore the sudden and incessant ringing of her cell phone any longer.  “I’m sorry, kitty.  That’s Alya.  She knows I was in the building when the roof caved in.  She’s probably freaking out.”

“That’s okay, Princess.  Besides, I have a reveal to plan.”  He winked shot her his signature grin.

“I’m looking forward to it.  Until tomorrow, Chat Noir.”

“Until tomorrow, my lady.”

He gently kissed her knuckles before leaping out the window and vaulting across the rooftops.  When he jumped through his window and detransformed in his bedroom, he sat down on his couch and thought about how surprised Marinette was going to be when he gave her a bouquet of roses at school tomorrow.

[fandomsphere]

Here's day 2 of our AU Yeah August series. This one was also written by Emery. @auyeahaugust

Enjoy!

2. Convention by @emerywrites

Ships: Marc/Nathaniel

Author's note: For this AU the characters are aged up to about 19, and Marc and Nathaniel did not attend school together.

It was loud, hectic, and crowded. More people than Marc had ever expected had shown up for the first ever Ladybug and Chat Noir convention. He suspected that it had to do with all of the rumors that the super heroes themselves were going to make an appearance.

He admired Ladybug and Chat Noir as much as any Parisian, but they weren’t the reason he scraped together enough money for a ticket and forced himself out of his comfort zone to attend the convention. It was a certain artist who posted his fan art of Paris’s heroes on a blog. As soon as Marc had seen that Nathaniel was going to be selling his artwork at the convention, he knew he had to be there. He desperately wanted to meet the artist who had inspired him so much in the past year. But now as he stood nearby watching people walking by and admiring the art at the booths, doubts swirled within him, clouding his mind.

Was it creepy that he was attending specifically to meet Nathaniel? Would his favorite artist think him a stalker? Marc wanted to run. His eyes darted to the nearest exit and he took a step in that direction. A laugh turned his attention back to Nathaniel’s booth. The red-head was laughing at something a girl visiting his booth had said. His stomach fluttered at the sound. Marc shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He just had to work up the courage. Nathaniel didn’t have to know he was there only to meet him.

The minutes ticked by as Marc tried to make himself go over. Just as he took a step, a rather boisterous group of teens ran up to Nathaniel’s booth. Marc let out a shaky sigh. And, as if the artist could here it over his fans and the rest of the convention, Nathaniel looked up and his gaze shifted to Marc.

Marc bolted. He didn’t know why, maybe he was afraid Nathaniel would be able to tell just from looking at him what his motivations for coming to the convention were, or maybe he was just afraid of nothing… like he always was.

He got outside and felt himself deflate. His shoulders hunched as he wrapped his arms around himself. Other convention goers strolled past in their Ladybug and Chat Noir cosplay and holding their merch that they had purchased, completely unaware of the fool he’d just made of himself.

Marc pulled out his cell phone and called his friend. She drove for a rideshare app and he hoped that she would spare a few minutes to come pick him up to save him from any further humiliation.

“What’s up, Marc?” Alix greeted when she answered.

“Hey, could you, maybe come get me. This whole meeting Nathaniel thing isn’t working out. I’m just embarrassing myself here. I’ll pay you if you want. I just… I need to leave.”

“What? Why? What happened? Was he a jerk to you or something?” She sounded as if she was about to come out there just to beat up Nathaniel.

“No!” That would be quite the headline: “Small, Angry Rideshare Driver Murders Up And Coming Artist”. “Please, he would just think I was pathetic if he met me. I’d rather not put myself through that.”

Alix sighed. “Look, man, you are a cool guy. He would be so lucky meet you. I’m sure you guys would hit it off if you just gave him a chance… gave yourself a chance. Nath is a great guy. I think he’d really like you.”

Marc frowned in confusion. “You talk like you know him.”

“We went to school together. We lost touch after we graduated. I text him sometimes pretending to be the ghost of the goldfish he killed when he was seven.”

“You know him!” Marc shouted into the phone, attracting the attention of those around him. He blushed and turned away, speaking lower. “Why didn’t you tell me before?”

“Because I wanted you to do this on your own. Go talk to him. If he turns out to be a jerk now, call me back and I’ll come get you. Deal?”

Marc didn’t see what other choice he had. “Fine.”

After hanging up with Alix, Marc procrastinated going back to Nathaniel’s booth. He walked around, bought a hand-made Chat Noir plush, watched the costume contest, checked out some other booths, saw some cosplayers putting on a show, and even sat on a bench to contemplate his life choices for a while.

Finally, he made his way back to Nathaniel’s booth… just in time to see him packing up. His work must have been pretty popular. There were a few other artists who were throwing Nathaniel dirty looks as he put away the one print he still had left.

Marc wanted to kick himself. He had wasted the opportunity he had to meet someone so special. He buried his face in his hands. Now, he had to call Alix and admit that he had screwed up.

“Excuse me.”

Marc lifted his head to see… Nathaniel.

His heart leapt into his throat and he would have run if his feet hadn’t felt like they were glued to the floor. How was Nathaniel there, standing in front of him, talking to him?

“Y-yes?”

“I saw you earlier. You were watching my booth for a while.”

Marc blushed and nodded.

Nathaniel let the silence stretch for a moment as if he was waiting for Marc to say more. When he didn’t, Nathaniel continued. “If you want a print, I still have one left.” He pulled out an art piece from his portfolio case and handed it to him. “Free of charge.”

It was a drawing in a night setting of Ladybug sitting on the ledge of a roof, looking contemplative. It was beautiful. He wondered what Ladybug would think if she had gotten to see it. To him, it was a masterpiece.

Nathaniel rocked back on his heels and chewed his bottom lip. “Do you like it?”

Marc’s eyes flicked up to the artist then back down to the drawing. He wouldn’t be able to speak if his eyes were on Nathaniel. “I love it. The way you did her eyes is amazing. I can see the reflection of the stars sparkling.”

He let his gaze drift back up to see Nathaniel looking away and only just turning back to him. “You’re very talented,” Marc managed to breathe out.

“Do you want to get dinner?” Nathaniel blurted. “Together, I mean. Or drinks? Or coffee would be great to.” He rubbed the back of his neck nervously as he waited for an answer.

Marc’s mouth went dry. How was it possible, that Nathaniel was asking him out? He gripped the Chat Noir plush in his hand and tried to keep his voice steady. “I’d like that. Any of those… Any of those would be nice.” The look of surprise on Nathaniel’s face threw him. Marc couldn’t imagine why he would be expected to reject someone like Nathaniel.

“There’s a café across the street. Would you want to go there?” Nathaniel shrugged, as if he was pretending that he didn’t care as much as he actually did. “If you don’t, that’s fine. We could-”

Marc made a split-second decision, refusing to allow himself to second guess it. He shoved the Chat Noir plush in his pocket and grabbed Nathaniel’s hand. “Let’s go.”

Earlier…

“One second,” Nathaniel said to the convention goers admiring his artwork. He took a few steps away and answered his ringing cell phone. He glanced at the caller ID and sighed as he answered. “Hi, Alix.”

“Okay, Nath, I sent him back in. All you have to do is turn on the charm and not screw it up.”

“Obviously he doesn’t want to talk to me.” He glanced back at those standing at his booth. They didn’t seem too bothered that he was on the phone. “Are you sure that he likes more than just my art?”

“Of course I’m sure, stupid,” she said flatly. Then she continued more patiently. “I’m not the kind to play matchmaker, Nath. You know that. So, can’t you just trust that if I’m making this much effort that I must seriously think you guys would be good for each other?”

He shook his head to himself. She was right. Alix normally didn’t care about his love life. This Marc guy had to be something special if she was practically begging him to give him a chance. “Fine. I’ll try.”

“Great! And don’t sound so put out. You said yourself when I sent you his picture that you think he’s hot.”

Nathaniel gave a huff of air that was a suppressed laugh. “Okay, okay. I have to get back to selling my art. I have to pay for food somehow.”

“You still live with your parents.”

“Bye.”

[miraculousturtle]

17!! any pairing of the love square (maybe having to do with reveal??)

“I thought I could trust you!” ladynoir.

set in my anti-hero chat/quasi-reverse love sqaure au 

(and this is def a crack additon lmao) 

“I thought…I thought I could trust you, Chat,” Ladybug says quieter this time. She wipes her at her eyes with the back of her hand. “I needed you and you said you’d always be there when I needed you and today–today, oh god, it was so scary without you.” 

He catches the reflection of a few remaining tears in the soft moonlight, the way her face twists with her confession. Sorrowful words hang in the air as the wind sweeps between them.

Chat Noir’s heart cracks with little fissures. They are always meeting somewhere high up and far away from everyone else. As if they are always on a different plane of existence compared to the rest of Paris.

One just for them.

It’s part of the reason he tries to move on from her, doesn’t want to try, but at this moment, this could be the actual end without any beginning. They are two sides of the same coin separated by duty and desire. 

(He wants her more than anything.

And that terrifies him.)

He should have…he should have gone to her, he should have. He knows.

But he didn’t. 

(Didn’t want to because he is tired of obligation and being told what to do.)

He stares at the ground instead, his claws stinging his palms even through the leather.  He really fucked up this time.

“–and I know, I know you’re not actually part of the team because you don’t want to be and I get that your life at home is strict, but dear God, Chat–what were you…what was more important today?” she sniffs.

He outwardly cringes at what he’s going to say. “Please don’t hate me, but…” 

Ladybug pauses and closes the space between them. Cranking her neck as far back as she can, she eyes him. “But. What?” 

The shift in mood is palpable, seeping into his very pores as he knows he’s going to put his foot, or well, both his feet in his mouth.

“I was…,” he starts, sucking in air and squeaking out the awful truth of his fuck uppery. “I had a date.” 

And as if Ladybug is also able to control the dynamics of time and space, everything freezes on the rooftop instantly. The wind stops blowing, the world silences to nothing, and Chat Noir is the only creature in the universe save for Ladybug.

He’s not sure if he likes his odds. 

Ladybug takes a deep breath, eyes closed as if she can’t bear to look at him. “You had a date.” And then, her eyes snap to him, pinning him to his spot. “So you stood me up in my hour of need?” 

He coughs. “In my defense, I actually got stood up without realizing it and so…when I realized I could help you, I was like…across town…like a poor sap waiting for a girl who only sent me a text message after the fact….and um…”

Oh, how he would love to escape this situation right now, but here’s the thing: no one escapes from Ladybug. That’s why she’s the good guy.

And he’s the sorta good guy when he feels like it. 

An eerie sort of peace settles over them as Ladybug does actions similar to what the prayer pose in yoga. Chat Noir counts to ten with her and braces himself when she looks back at him and smiles. 

Smiles. 

“You had a date today? And got stood up?” 

“Um. Yes.”

Her smile widens to an unsettling degree. “I had to stand up someone today because I had to do my job. And he’s a nice guy who I kinda have a crush on and would totally like to like more than some knucklehead I know!” 

Chat Noir scoffs and throws his hands in the air. “See? This is why I hate the whole obligation thing because we can’t have normal lives because we are bounded to help others! You shouldn’t have to stand up guys, Ladybug! You should. You should go on them!” 

(With me, a part of him says, but he won’t verbalize it.)

Ladybug growls and stomps her foot. “I would love to go on dates, but someone needed me and I needed you! God, this whole dating thing wouldn’t be such a problem if you would just be part of the team!” 

Chat rolls his eyes, knowing they are about to have the same fight again. “We have been over this a thousand of times. I like being free. Joining the team is opposite of free. I have a life outside of being a superhero and I would love to, I don’t know, meet a girl who could be a part of that too.” 

Ladybug clicks her tongue, almost as if she about has a fiery response with her finger pointed towards him, but it dies. Like a spark doused by water, she evaporates. Shoulders then hunch and she curls in on herself. 

“You’re stupid. So stupid,” she whispers. “You don’t get anything.” 

“Hey!” he says, bristling.

She laughs, hallow and gives him a watery false smile. “You just don’t get it. All this time, I just want you.” 

“C’yeah. To be part of the team.” 

Ladybug shakes her head and tentatively reaches out as if to hold his hand. A heartbeat skips between them and he gives her his. 

In the moonlight, her bluebell eyes are bright-edged with a softness he’s not accustomed to seeing. 

“Chat Noir, do you remember how we first met? Where I was scared and didn’t know what to do?” 

His voice is quiet. “It was new for both of us. You were…you were really cute and I knew you could do it.” 

Her hand is warm in his and he knows this moment might just change everything by the way his heart is beating.

Ladybug smiles with all the starlight of the sky. “Exactly, because you believed in me and that day I never wanted you to be away from my side. Because…,” she pauses. “Oh, I might as well go for it,” she says under her breath and takes a step back. “Tikki, spots off.” 

Before he has a chance to stop her, the world bathes pink for a flashing second. His heart hammers in his chest and he knows if he looks away, he doesn’t have to accept this. He can still back out.

But he doesn’t want to.

Blinking his eyes a couple of times, a girl comes into view and he is unable to suppress his gasp. 

“Hi,” Ladybug says weakly. “My name is Marinette Dupain-Cheng and I’ve loved you from the first moment I saw you. I want you with me always because I love you. Simple as that. I don’t care if you don’t feel the same, but there is no one else on this Earth that I trust as much as you, who inspires me like you, who–well, is you.” 

And Chat Noir isn’t sure when his heart stopped beating, but it picks up again as he runs towards her. She lets out a yelp of surprise as his hands cradle her face, but when he tilts her mouth to his, she smiles against his lips and the world has never been so right. 

“Oh, My Lady, My Marinette,” he breathes in between kisses. “I love you, I love you, I love you.” 

More than anything, I’ve loved you from the beginning.

Her arms wrap around his neck and he holds her just as tight. He kisses her because this is all he’s ever wanted, but was too afraid to ask for. If only he knew, if only he told her sooner that:

“I love you so much, Ladybug. You have no idea,” he says as he buries his face into her neck and breathes deep. 

He wants to cling to moment and never let it end, never let it slip through his fingers for this is what it means for something to be perfect. 

Lady–Marinette giggles and it’s music. “Well, um, I can definitely say I’m surprised. And happy. Really, really happy.” 

He lifts his head and pulls back. “Why are you so surprised? I told you I’m always yours!” 

Marinette rolls her eyes and flicks his bell. “You just told me the whole reason you didn’t help me today because you got stood up on a date!” 

And as the pieces line up and it clicks, Chat Noir throws back his head and laughs. “Oh my Lady, just–just give me a sec, I swear, this is gonna be great. Oh God, this is priceless.”  

Letting go with a large smile on his face, Chat Noir says. “Plagg, claws in.” 

This time the world is bathed in green and when everything comes to, Marinette screams with delight and throws her arms around him.

“Adrien! Oh my god!” 

Laughing, Adrien picks her up and swings her around. “See, you should have just gone on the date with me! And not stood me up!” 

Marinette giggles and kisses him quickly. “Well, in my defense,” she teases, “you stood me up too.” 

 Adrien grins and kisses her forehead. 

“Fair point, my love. Next time I’ll just have to be with you always.”

Buy me a Ko-Fi? :D

[megatraven]

Kitty Kisses

A birthday gift to one of my very amazing friends, @ladyserendipitous <3333 Hope it was an amazing day, you sparkling sandstone! This is written off of something you said about reveal by kitty kisses a week or so ago!

Summary: Marinette sees if Chat Noir’s cat tendencies extend to slow blinks, or, as she liked to call them, kitty kisses.

AO3

It all started when the light of the sun began to fade, and the lights of the city began to illuminate the darkening sky. It had never been unusual for Marinette to be out past the the setting of the sun, for her parents understood her need for inspiration. So when she laid down on a bench in the park nearby her home, as she so often did, she hadn't expected company.

A dark figure had leaped from the rooftops and landed nearby her, thankfully not startling her because she'd already been tracking its movements from some distance away. She gave him a nod of acknowledgement before returning her attention to the landscape of her city.

Chat Noir didn't speak right away, but instead sat in front of the bench and settled himself so that his head tilted back, pressing into Marinette's arm. He watched the city with her, enjoying the moment of peaceful calm that had fallen over Paris. Even with the comfortable silence, Chat couldn't keep from talking any longer.

"You're out pretty late, Marinette," he commented, going the route of obvious observations.

She hummed in response, tracing the lines of the buildings with her eyes. When she finally spoke, her voice was quiet in a way that perfectly matched the atmosphere of the city. "I have art block. This usually helps."

Trying to match her softness, Chat murmured, "Can I ask what you're working on?"

"It's... kinda hard to explain since I don't have a solid idea. If you're free some other night, you could stop by the bakery to see any sketches I come up with." She shrugged as much as she could laying down. "You're out pretty late too. I saw you patrol earlier."

"Running around Paris helps me think," he admitted, scratching his head. "Your parents won't mind if I stop by later this week?"

"Nah," she said with a small smile. "Maman and Papa would love to see you. They still want to thank you for your help during Animan. And when you made sure I was safe during Evillustrator. And when you saved me from the Gamer. They're especially fond of you after that one."

Chat cracked his own grin. "Your parents seem really great."

She sighed happily. "Yeah, they are." Her head rolled to its side so that she was looking at her partner. He shifted slightly, as if he were about to get up. "You gonna get back to running?"

"I probably should. I don't wanna stay out too late, considering it's a Monday."

"Hah, that's a good point. I should head home myself. I think I've gotten the inspiration I needed." She glanced back to the city before sitting up. "Suppose I've got a kind alley cat to thank for that."

His breath hitched slightly, only noticeable to Marinette because of the close relationship she had with him as Ladybug. He twisted around to look her in the eyes, his own wider than normal. "Really?" he breathed.

"Yep! Watching you hop around the city before you came over here was... well, it was enough to push me through my art block." Propelled by how natural it was to hang out with Chat Noir, she reached out and ran her fingers through his hair once, twice, three times. He leaned into the touch, not considering the action or the person performing it odd at all. A purr was pulled from him, and she laughed lightly at his tendencies. Over the course of their partnership, she'd become pretty familiar with them, from his purring to the way his hair puffed up when he was agitated. There was one thing, however, she'd never seen him do.

"Hey, Chat?"

He squinted up at her, his voice rumbling from the purrs. "Princess?"

Instead of saying anything, she paused the combing of her fingers through his hair and stared at him. When the purring tapered out and he stared back, she slowly blinked at him. He didn't react, and she scowled a bit.

"Marinette? What're you doing?" he asked when she leaned closer to his face and proceeded to slowly blink again.

Again, there was no reaction, so she sighed and sat back. "I was trying to see if your likeness to cats extended to kitty kisses."

Seeming amused, Chat laughed. "Kitty kisses? What're those supposed to be anyways?"

"Most people probably just say slow blinking, but kitty kisses sound way cuter." She shrugged. "They're supposed to signify that the recipient of such blinks has he trust of the blinker. So like, if a cat does it, you should do it back to show that you trust it as much as it trusts you."

"Huh. That's pretty neat. Kinda sad it doesn't come with the other cat tendencies, I would love doing that towards LB," he mused. "Can you do it again though? I'll do it back this time!"

Marinette complied, and when she blinked once more, Chat Noir returned it. Both grinned like a couple of dorks before they stood.

"So, make sure you come by sometime this week, yeah?"

"Not even Hawk Moth himself could keep me from it," he said with a wink.

She snorted and playfully pushed against his shoulder. "I'll see you later then." She offered a small wave and turned, walking back home.

Chat watched her go, feeling content in how easily they interacted this time around.

On Thursday night, Marinette's parents called her down to the bakery, where Chat Noir stood to the side with an awkward smile. His demeanor perked up when he saw Marinette, and seeing her made the tension in his body melt away.

"Hey, Chat!" she greeted, gesturing for him to step behind the counter to follow her. He did so, and nodded politely to Sabine and Tom as he passed them by. When they were in the stairwell that led to the Dupain-Cheng's house, Marinette asked, "So, are you ready to be dazzled?"

"Oh, I was born ready," he replied, grinning at her confidence.

They walked up to her room, only stopping for a quick moment when Marinette remembered a plate of snacks she'd set aside for them earlier.

Entering her room as Chat and without there being an akuma was certainly something else. There were pieces of fabric strewn about, and designs with details in the margins pinned or taped down around the space. On her wall were pictures of her, her parents, and her friends. He felt warmth fill his chest at seeing him up there, as Adrien and Chat. He supposed she really did trust him, which only warmed his heart further.

Marinette cleared her throat a tiny bit to catch his attention, a patient look on her face. "Wanna see the ones inspired by you?"

Chat nodded eagerly, and followed her over to a few designs. A couple were cat themed, some were based on his color scheme, and one...

"Princess, what's this one?"

"Oh! That's actually my favorite one. I'm hoping that if I were to do it, it would flow kind of like water when you walk. Your movements are pretty fluid, and watching your almost-silhouette running across rooftops made me want to try, I dunno, imitating the way you move. There would be small silver accents that would hopefully take after the studs on your suit." She hummed and tapped her chin, looking at her sketch critically. "I'm not super happy with this sketch of it because it looks really stiff, so I'll probably keep working at it."

"Well, however it turns out, it'll be great," he said, extending a clawed finger to hover over the image and trace its lines. "You really are amazing, Marinette."

She didn't reply, but instead tugged on his arm to pull him away from the designs. She led him over to her chaise, where she'd set the plate of pastries down. "I didn't really know what you'd like, so I've got a few things in case you're hungry at all."

Taking a couple macarons, he grinned appreciatively. "I actually had dinner before coming over, but I'll never pass up a nice dessert. Thanks, Marinette."

"It's no problem at all! Thanks for actually coming, I'm glad I got to show you my designs."

He looked up from his food and was about to say something, but the words caught in his throat when he caught her gaze and she gave him a 'kitty kiss.' He returned it. "I got it this time."

"That you did," Marinette said with a chuckle.

"How did you ever find out about cats doing that, by the way? Have you ever had one?"

"Nah. Can't have pets in the bakery, you know? No, when I was younger I would go stay with my aunts while Maman and Papa renovated the bakery, and they had like, five cats. I ended up researching cat behaviors because I wanted to know what ones liked me, and I came across kitty kisses!" She grabbed a croissant from the plate and took a bite. "Anyways, after the purring, I wanted to see if you did slow blinks."

"Well, even though it's not a tendency that comes with the suit, I have the feeling it'll become a habit of mine anyways."

"Oh, me too. I did it to my friend Alya yesterday," she admitted.

"Did she do it back?"

"I don't think she noticed. Which I'm thankful for, because I do not want to be explaining that to my non cat-hero friends."

Chat snorted at that, but was still touched by her words. "I'm glad you consider me a friend."

"Of course! Why wouldn't I?"

"I dunno. I mean, we've only met a few times, you know?"

She considered it. "I guess. But... but Alya and I became best friends on the first day that I met her. It's been reinforced as we got to know each other more, but it doesn't change that that's how I looked at her that first day."

Chat blinked. "That's... really cool, actually. My best friend and I were similar in that regard. Well, both of my best friends, actually."

"Yeah, so see? It's not unusual that I would consider you a friend!," she exclaimed, correcting it to 'best friend' in her mind.

"Guess not! Then, I'm glad I get to consider you a friend as well."

Marinette ruffled his hair and giggled. "Thanks, you silly cat.

"But of course."

After that, the pair finished off their plate of pastries. They chatted for a little while longer, both of them initiating kitty kisses every now and again. Eventually, Marinette's parents took turns to come up and give their thanks to the hero, and it was after that that he took his leave.

Things began to escalate from there, and resulted into certain pieces falling into place.

Sometimes on patrol, Chat Noir would initiate a slow blink, and Ladybug would return it without hesitation. He never asked her about it, but he didn't really need to when, after a particularly difficult akuma, she reminded him that she trusted him with her entire heart, mind, and body. She had punctuated it with a slow blink of her own, and he watched her leave as her miraculous counted down.

He realized belatedly that she had been headed in the direction of a certain classmate.

In school, Marinette was often distracted. She doodled hearts and designs and cats chasing ladybugs all over her notes as she stared ahead of her. Her pencil scrawled images across the page, but her focus turned from the board to the boy who turned to face her. His green eyes, warm and bright, caught her gaze, and she froze momentarily.

And then, his eyelids slid closed in a slow, achingly familiar manner. When he reopened them, Marinette felt herself relax. She gave him a small smile and returned the action.

When the bell rang, Adrien gathered his things and, instead of heading out to his locker, he waited by Marinette's desk.

"So, I, um... I don't think I ever agreed with you on how kitty kisses sound cuter than slow blinks," Adrien said.

Marinette beamed at him as she gathered her things. "And I don't think I've ever told you that I'm glad we started exchanging them- I've been able to convey my trust in you far more often than I used to."

Standing up, she bumped her shoulder into his. "Shall we?" she asked, gesturing to the door.

"We shall," he answered, a silent 'my lady' present at the end of his answer.

They walked out of the classroom as if they were best friends, and to anyone that watched, it truly looked like they were.