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angellekookie · 6 days ago

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Stupid Little Things

The way I have been struggling with this for the longest time! Between whatever has happened to the show and writer's block, this is what I have after so long. But anyways... enough of that, I hope you guys enjoy my lil self indulgent Chlonath, because I've realised that they are my babies and I will always love them <3 This also crossposted to Ao3

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For most of Paris, it was your typical Thursday afternoon. For Chloe Bourgeois, it was the day she realised that she had a crush on Nathaniel Kurtzberg. The guy who had always seemed to be in a world all on his own. All she's been doing for the longest time was to argue with the boy, and before, she used to make fun of him for falling asleep and drawing in classes. She would go back and change that for sure, but that’s not an option. She’d gladly ask her daddy to pay for it if it were. She had no idea what she was to do now. Chloé couldn’t just walk up to Nathaniel and start being extra nice to him, he’d suspect something was the matter. She wouldn’t go back to being really mean to him, and she definitely couldn’t, wouldn’t under any circumstance, tell the boy how she felt. That would just be ridiculous. Definitely not an option at all.

For most students it was the last day of school before their glorious two week break. For Chloe Bourgeois, it was day one of ‘avoiding Nathaniel Kurtzberg like her life depended on it.’ In a way, it did.

After hours and hours of pondering and talking things over with Pollen and an all night phone call with Sabrina, Chloe came to the conclusion that it would be best for everyone if Nathaniel never knew about her feelings. She also realised that she couldn’t quite possibly trust herself to speak to him at all. It was definitely much easier this way, at least she imagined it would be. What Chloe didn’t imagine was that she would miss arguing with the artist. She also never imagined that someone could feel physically tired from avoiding someone else. Granted, it never ever crossed her mind that she would have to quite literally doge him in the hallways. That in itself was an olympic sport. She’d have to congratulate Marinette for somehow pulling off these stunts on the daily. It was hard, sure. But it was the only way to get over this whole crush situation. Distancing herself from him now before the break would make things easier since there would be two whole weeks where seeing him would be near impossible. That should be enough time to mourn the loss of what never could have been. It's an easy plan, completely foolproof. Even Hawkmoth himself could pull it off. Chloe was sure, without a shadow of doubt that this master plan of hers was definitely going to work.

What she failed to take into consideration was that many things in life were easier said than done. This was one of them.

The first week of ‘avoiding Nathaiel Kurtzburg like her life depended on it’ was relatively easy. Afterall, it was spring break and it was only necessary to leave the hotel if there was school going on or if she needed to fight an akuma. The former isn’t an issue at the moment and the latter oftentimes doesn’t include the very attractive, very talented artist that happened to be in the same class as her. With all the free time that she suddenly had on her hands, Chloe found that it is possible to finish all the assigned readings and homework for all her classes before the eve of school resuming after a break. Who would’ve thought? The only downside was that with the homework out of the way, she was bored by day three.

By day seven, she gave up on being a lonely prisoner in her room and decided to spend some time with Sabrina doing mani pedis, watching movies and pranking the hotel staff- just like any ordinary sleepover. The days were both peaceful, and quiet… Well, as peaceful and quiet as it gets when watching superhero movies and debating which team was right in 'Civil War.' Chloe appreciated this more than anything, and Sabrina knew this when Chloe gave her the tightest hug in history before she left that day.

Days eight through thirteen of ‘avoiding Nathaiel Kurtzburg like her life depended on it’ really changed for Chloe. The problem was evolving and she needed to fix her strategy to accommodate that. Avoiding the artist wasn’t a problem, it couldn’t be because he wasn’t here. No, the problem was bigger. She couldn’t stop thinking about him. Every other building she saw suddenly seemed so interesting and she couldn’t help but think how he’d for sure stop and try to sketch every little thing that interested him even a bit instead of taking a picture like a regular person. The graffiti walls reminded her of the wall in the art classroom and the times she would notice Nathaniel doing some graffiti of his own. Even the quaint bookstore reminded her of the time she found out she had a crush on him two weeks ago when he handed Chloe her chemistry book after school. She needed to stop thinking about him, for her own good. After all she put him through, there was no way he’d ever like her back. This wasn’t a movie, or a fairytale or one of those romance books Sabrina likes to read.

Day fourteen, had it gone according to plan, would have proved that Chloe could have absolutely been able to pull off her elaborate idea without a hitch. Midday came and went, it was evening time. That was just enough time for the day to end peacefully. It was also just enough time for everything to drastically change. Of course, one could guess what happened since Ladybug and her team found themselves on top of the Eiffel Tower trying to figure out the best way to defeat a giant multicoloured monstrosity to stop it from destroying all of Paris once again.

Well, Ladybug and most of the team.

If you asked Chloe about the akuma, she would tell you it smelled like grass. If you ask her on a deeper level, she would tell you that it smelled like the lawn was being cut and that she wasn’t sure that she liked it, and that she was tired. In truth, they have been fighting this akuma for almost an hour now and the end did not seem within sight. The only thing that she truly was sure about was the fact that she just had to get pollen a snack soon as possible. She had used her miraculous ability Venom and missed! She doesn’t think the day could get any worse.

She found an empty alleyway and dropped her transformation. All she had to do was get pollen fed and jump back into action. Pollen had just finished eating when Chloe saw tomato red hair behind her. She only knew one person in Paris who had obnoxiously red hair like that, and he was currently passed out on the ground behind her. She quickly went to kneel beside him and was relieved to find that he was bleeding, worried that he had passed out and a lot stressed since he was practically in the middle of the akuma attack. She had to get him somewhere safe. It took approximately three seconds before Chloe realised that there was no way she could move Nathaniel, at least not in her current state. After checking that pollen had eaten and another sweep of the area to make sure no one would see her, she quickly transformed into Queen Bee and took off with Nathaniel in her arms. After placing him safely on a balcony of her father’s hotel she took off again, this time to put an end to the akuma that was terrorising Paris. Only because of the akuma, and not something absurd like her feeling flustered by her crush or anything.

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Nathaniel sat in his bedroom staring at his hands, or his feet, or the floor. He had too much to process from the last sixteen hours and as a result sleep has been evading him. Or maybe he has been evading sleep. He would argue that both things can be true at once, one does not cancel out the other. Much like how Chloe Bourgeois and Queen Bee appear to exist within the same person. The superhero that he has a crush on and the girl that he definitely DID NOT have a crush on, no matter what Juleka says, just so happen to be the same person. No big deal. He would laugh if he didn't find the whole situation strange. This type of thing doesn’t just happen to him of all people, at least that was what he kept telling himself.

He was walking across the city. Briskly walking may be a better word, or perhaps running for his life best describes it. The akuma of the week had made its appearance and regrettably Nathaniel found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time, narrowly escaping getting hit by whatever was coming from that thing's mouth. When his back hit the ground with a not so gentle thud, he thought that maybe it wasn’t one of his brightest ideas as the air was quite literally knocked out of him. He wasn’t feeling any excruciating pain, thank God! He knew he just wouldn’t hear the end of it from his mother who, by the way, told him it was not a good idea to go out today.

Nathaniel finally found the strength to open his eyes and try to look around to see just where he landed himself. He sat up and turned around when he saw Queen Bee landing in his alley. Her back was turned to him, so she never saw him. He was feeling a pretty mix of relief and disappointment because he has a crush on her but didn’t want this to be how she met him for the first time. He was also having an internal battle trying to figure out whether or not he should try to get her attention when he heard her say… something followed by a flash of blinding golden light. When he looked back at where Queen Bee was standing, she was nowhere to be found. In her place stood none other than Chloe Bourgeois. Was he shocked? Absolutely! Chloe Bourgeois being a superhero was not a part of his bingo cards. Was he surprised? Not as much as he thought he should be, since if Chloe was going to be a superhero she would of course choose royalty.

There was no time for him to dwell too long though, since he was pretty sure he saw something he probably should not have. With no other option, he quickly laid down again and closed his eyes, hoping that Queen Bee would soon be gone. Again, it wasn’t his best idea, but he was an artist, not an athlete. There was still an akuma out on the loose and Nathaniel was not going to get caught up in that again. He could've sworn he heard her maybe whisper a “thank God!” But he was definitely sure he heard her say “Pollen, buzz on!” He was definitely sure that there was a flash of light again, and he was almost 97% sure that Queen Bee was now where Chloe stood. The 3% is him hoping that maybe this is a dream. He has a concussion and he is dreaming.

In no time at all Nathaniel was hoisted up bridal style and Queen Bee launched into the air. He tightened his hands around her neck because this was the sky they were flying through, and he wasn't that he was scared of heights or anything, it was just that he’d rather not be that high up. He also couldn’t help but tighten his eyes as well. He really did not need to see the world below whizzing by him. Although, he reckoned it might be a really good reference for painting. Maybe he could capture it with some water colours, or perhaps oil paints would do a better job at replicating the essence of it all? The only way to tell was to look and see for himself.

He never got the chance to find out.

In the time it had taken him to maybe consider opening his eyes he felt that the air around him had gone still. “Nath- uh… Citizen, thank goodness you’re awake. You’re safe now, you can let go.” Maybe it was his brain, or perhaps his heart that had gone still instead. Seconds passed, maybe minutes, maybe hours before he was able to peel himself away from Queen Bee. He would much rather blame it on the fact that he was shaken up from the flight than on the fact the her voice was so soft, that her eyes were so soft as she spoke to him. Yes, Nathaniel would much rather blame it on shaken nerves than on the fact that he might have felt enchanted looking into Queen Bee's eyes, Chloe’s eyes.

As quickly as the moment began it had ended and after a “Be safe,” Queen Bee was gone. He did not remember leaving the hotel, or how he got back home. He barely registered the looks his mother gave him during dinner, or even when he made his way to his room. Not even staring at his hands, or his feet, or the floor could quite help him come to terms with everything that he had seen today.

Nathaniel knew he was going to spend all night thinking about it. Chloe Bourgeois is Queen Bee, Queen Bee is Chloe Bourgeois. One of them is a beloved superhero of Paris, the other is… or was a bully who rained terror on everyone that breathed in her direction. Both of them stay on his mind though for completely different reasons. It was just his luck that all this had to happen the day before school started again.

#miraculous ladybug #chlonath #chloe bourgeois #nathanael kurtzburg #ml fanfic #technically an au #kookie wrote it #finally #chlonathweek2k17

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screenmaven · 1 year ago

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Film Share Sunday - with Banannasui

*update as of 10/27/23 I am no longer doing film shares do to a hectic time in my life, I do however appreciate anyone who has taken the time to join me in that spotlight. I may return to in the future, but for now I do not have time.*

I usually spotlight creators Top 5 Favorite Films each Sunday, via my SCREENMAVEN Instagram (now just starrymayx) but this week I welcome an extension of that to the blog. I love fashion probably as much as I love film, so it’s a two for one special when a film produces both.

I had the pleasure of connecting with one of my favorite fashion content creators Banannasui, and wanted to share her insight into why she highly acclaims these as her top 5 fashion films.

Charlie’s Angels (2000)

The 2000 Charlie’s Angels is fast-paced, flirty, lurid in both color and dialogue, and I feel like the outfits completely reflect that. The opening scene alone give us Cameron Diaz wearing the ultimate accessory that bridged the late 90s and early 00s: gradient sunglasses adorned with rhinestones (hers specifically were from Chloé). I remember reading that the costume designer had stacked up 3,000+ outfits for the movie, with each of the three girls having a wardrobe cultivated specifically for their character; Cameron is the all-American girl, Lucy is sophisticated and mature (her cooking muffins in a leather corset is amazing), and Drew is the scrappy rebel-type. Overall the movie is such a fun, campy feast for the eyes, but I think my absolute favorite outfits are the trio of glossy red white & blue jumpsuits they don on the racetrack.

The Bling Ring (2013)

God, it’s such a period piece of its time. A millennial’s period piece. The outfits aren’t ones I’d necessarily consider fashionable now, but (the year it came out) it was the pinnacle of it! The skinny jeans with pumps, the Uggs, the clunky jewelry, the scene of them walking out with their iced coffees wearing capes and vests and scarves and pencil skirts. All staples of that weird time period where office-chic infiltrated Polyvore boards. I love movies where the outfits are such a direct reflection of the person wearing them, it elevates the wearer to the point where you stop seeing them as the actor and start seeing them as the character. Especially when the one dressing them does their homework! Case in point, costume designer Stacey Battat said she bought every back issue of US Weekly from 2003 in preparation for dressing the cast, and then incorporated elements of the early 2010s as well, in order to make the time period of the movie feel more ambiguous. Although not included in the film, thinking of the outfits reminds me of a line from the famous Alexis Neiers phone call to Nancy Jo Sales: “..you saying that I wore six inch Louboutins heels to court with my tweed skirt, when I wore four inch little brown Bebe shoes.” It’s just so of its time.

Faster Pussycat! Kill Kill! (1965)

I love, love, love the outfits for Faster, Pussycat! It’s campy, visceral, with an appropriate amount of violence— you can see echoes of it in John Waters and Quentin Tarantino films (both of whom have cited the movie as inspiration). The outfits within the movie are very 60s, composed of simple shirts and jeans, yet are menacing, sexy, and striking. There’s no shortage of tight pieces and plunging necklines, yet the provocativeness doesn’t feel exploitative or demeaning. I like the idea of sex as armor in this movie, a notion expanded upon by Robert Ebert in a 1995 review. Despite the much exposed skin and cleavage, Ebert notes that the director, Russ Meyers, “from the beginning of his career and almost without exception, has filmed only situations in which women wreak their will upon men.” The trio of intimidating women in this film constantly leave behind a streak of havoc, literally snapping men’s spines and running them over with cars. They do all this whilst donning tiny tops, push up bras, hot pants, and bikinis, taking full control of their situations. It subverts the girly 60s look, both in attitude and appearance. Personally, I especially love Billie’s (Lori Williams) looks in the movie, in particular her iconic white hot-pants and polka-dotted crop top getup.

Female Trouble (1974)

I love 70s fashion, a lot. I also enjoy the garish vibrancy of camp, where the attitude of the story bleeds into the wardrobe. Female Trouble deploys all of that, served on a sickening platter of glitz and glamor. The John Waters film stars legendary drag queen Divine, and is chocked full of fashion references to the 50s and 60s, splicing decades of style together in a way that matches the pacing and overall attitude of the movie. There’s beehive hairdos and pastels, as well as brightly colored dresses, slick animal prints, heavy eye makeup, sequins, and fur coats. It’s very gaudy, very glamorous, and very much full of fashion inspiration. I actually originally found out about this movie due to fashion collections that took cues from the film, namely Miu Miu spring ‘15 and Adam Selman fall ‘15.

I love how despite the frivolity and outrageous storytelling that the outfits weave, they’re also very stylish in a wearable way. I mean, the orange transparent mini dress with a fur coat and sky-high hair? I’d wear it.

Blow Up (1966)

It’s a cult fashion movie, and for good reason. The movie takes place in the midst of the swinging sixties, and the clothing is accordingly immersed in the world of mod: flats with tights, kitten heels, a-line mini dresses, sharp lines and sleek ensembles that evokes imagery of both Twiggy in Vogue, and Edie Sedgwick in her iconic black tights and chandelier earrings (though of course, Edie had shrugged away the label of mod). It’s very much representative of its time, notably featuring a young Jane Birkin, as well as legendary model Veruschka playing herself. Some of the frames in the movie might as well have been pictures of collections from the iconic designers of that era, including Mary Quant, André Courrèges, and Pierre Cardin. It’s fun, simple glamor, encapsulating the time in which it was created.

I’ve always loved the style of this era of the sixties, and how it’s portrayed in Blow Up; simple mini dresses that accentuate attention-stealing pieces such as fur coats and red tights (which are timeless, even now). Nothing beats a barely there a-line dress to me, and they are bountiful in this movie.

I myself (screenmaven) absolutely love Blow Up!! That one is definitely on my film style list.

Thanks again, for sharing with me and my followers your insight into style through film.

Follow @ starrymayx on IG & banannasui for more great content.

#film #movies #fashion #SCREENMAVEN #style #banannasui #content creator #creator appreciation #charlies angels #the bling ring #faster pussycat kill kill #female trouble #blow up

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aidanchaser · 1 year ago

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Boulangérella: A Miraculous Fairy Tale AU - Chapter Six

Table of Contents Read on Ao3 Prologue

beta’d by @7wizardsshallanswerthecall, @mothmanhamlet, @ccboomer and @aubsenroute

Chapter Six Volpina

The rhythm of the harpsichord piece still thrummed through his fingers, even as Adrien returned to his room. He was exhausted; it felt like his father was running him ragged purely as revenge for his brief outing to the seamstress last week.

There were lunches with the Bourgeois family, dinners with the Rossi family, teas with nobles and ambassadors and their daughters, and his evenings were spent cloistered in his father’s receiving room, either reviewing work with his father or practicing the harpsichord while King Gabriel multitasked between reading reports on his own and critiquing Adrien’s performance.

He appreciated the time with his father, certainly, butt even with this change in schedule it was still obvious the work was first. Adrien was second. He never thought he would miss the strict tutorial schedule he had once kept, but as he collapsed onto his bed fully clothed, he could think of nothing he wanted to do more than just have one hour fencing with his cousin again.

Well, there was one other thing he could think of, but he wasn’t sure that he had the energy for Chat Noir.

“Please?” Plagg needled, as if he could read Adrien’s thoughts. “You haven’t been out in a week.”

“The city hasn’t needed me in a week. Everyone’s so excited about a ball, I guess Hawk Moth’s been out of work.”

“We don’t need a curse or a monster to have a little fun.”

“Ladybug said she was too busy to patrol this month, so what’s the point?”

“We could steal something,” Plagg offered.

It was tempting. “We promised Ladybug that we’d behave.”

“You promised Ladybug.”

“All right, so I can’t steal. You’re welcome to go off on your own if you like.”

“What if it’s not really stealing?”

Adrien knew he was about to get an absurd spin on thievery that was closer to a flat-out lie than any true loophole.

“Is this about Lila again?”

“It’s not really her pendant, so we can’t actually steal it from her.”

“It’s the same thing.”

Plagg, who had far more energy than Adrien could even fathom, jumped on Adrien’s chest, and used each bounce to punctuate his points. “One—Lila said she inherited the necklace from her grandmother. You can’t inherit a fay gift. Two—her magic doesn’t seem to runout which means she made a lifetime bargain and those are dangerous. Three—she revealed her identity to the royal family, and now the whole kingdom knows who Volpina is. That’s a bad thing!”

Adrien closed his eyes. Plagg did not lecture very often, but it made for a decent lullaby. “Why is that bad?” he asked with a yawn.

“For one, anyone could steal her gift.”

“Like you want to do?”

“For another, Hawk Moth could target her. You think his normal curses are bad? Imagine if he cursed someone with a magical gift. Think about if he knew who Ladybug was, and he cursed her. Or even you! How would Ladybug face a cursed version of you?”

Adrien had considered, on occasion, what he might do if Ladybug fell victim to one of Hawk Moth’s curses. But it was not a very fun thought exercise, so he didn’t dwell on it.

“Come on,” Plagg whined with another jump. “You know if you take Lila’s pendant, your father won’t ask you to marry her.”

Adrien ignored this point. He knew that his father had only entertained Lila Rossi’s proposal because she bore a gift from a fay, and it was one of the reasons he did not want to go after Lila. He was not interested in stealing from her precisely because it benefited him. That broke Chat Noir’s vaguely ethical code of thievery.

“What does it really matter?” Adrien sighed. “Father will just ask me to marry Chloé or Princess Kagami instead. I can’t imagine he’ll be too thrilled if I tell him I want to marry Ladybug.” Though if his father was tempted by Lila’s fay gift, why not Ladybug’s?

Adrien twisted the ring around his finger and considered it. Not knowing who she was under her mask made it a hard pitch. At least Lila was from a noble family who had a relationship with the royal family. But if there was a chance Adrien could have Ladybug, maybe he could get married without have to give up being Chat Noir.

“What will you do when I get married?” Adrien asked.

Plagg’s growl was low and guttural, as if he were announcing just how feral and ancient he truly was. He felt displeased by the change in topic, but played along for a moment, for Adrien’s sake. “Do you want me to be the ring bearer or something?”

“No, I just mean, you know, I’ll have other… nightly duties to attend to. I won’t be able to be Chat Noir anymore.”

Plagg laughed. “Your wife won’t need more than fifteen minutes of your time. An hour if you want to be nice about it.”

Adrien ran his hand over his face in an attempt to hide the red in his cheeks. “Maybe I want to be very nice about it. It just… seems unfair to disappear if my evenings aren’t entirely my own anymore.” His parents had not kept separate chambers, and he had expected to follow suit. But he supposed his chance of marrying for love was slim. Maybe Plagg had a point…

Plagg jumped on Adrien’s chest again and this time landed in the shape of a scrawny cat, putting proper weight into Adrien’s diaphragm, and even a bit of claw.

Adrien yelped and sat up. “That was rude.” He rubbed his stomach ruefully.

Plagg returned to his fay form and hovered so that he was level with Adrien’s eyes. “Look, I don’t actually care about Lila getting cursed or whatever, but I do really think she stole this pendant with an ancient, forbidden ritual. Just like Hawk Moth stole his brooch.”

Adrien frowned. “How do you know that Hawk Moth stole his brooch?”

“I just mean Hawk Moth probably stole his brooch. The whole curse thing isn’t Nooroo’s style.”

Adrien had been with Plagg for nearly a year now, and he knew when his fay was hiding something. “Plagg, tell me the truth. Maybe it can help Ladybug and I catch Hawk Moth.”

But Plagg had no intention of telling Adrien the truth, not yet. He had chosen Adrien in the forest nearly a year ago because he had seen a desperate young man who needed a bit of hope and freedom. He saw someone who would benefit from some chaos. But Plagg had also seen someone who might lose himself in that chaos. For Plagg, that was the best sort of partner. He enjoyed walking along the knife’s edge of destruction.

But it took some care to stay on the right edge of that knife, and Plagg was not interested in pushing Adrien over. He did not know what might happen if he told Adrien all of the truth: King Gabriel had gone into the forest the night that his wife had fallen asleep and used a terrible curse to capture a fay creature. Maybe the truth would help Ladybug catch Hawk Moth, but the truth might also break Adrien Agreste.

So Plagg shared as much of the truth as he thought he could get away with. “The truth is that I know Nooroo was taken against his will because I saw it happen.” He sank down onto the bedspread and looked up at Adrien, hoping his green eyes looked earnest. “There’s a… a really dark ritual that a human can use to call a fay to them. Hawk Moth came to the forest looking for Tikki and me, but he couldn’t find us. He tried using this old ritual to capture us, but Nooroo used his magic of transmission to give Tikki the strength to resist the call. And the price was that he took her place. Tikki and I agreed to save Nooroo, but we couldn’t risk Hawk Moth capturing us, so we decided to make deals with humans that we could trust. I chose you and Tikki chose Ladybug.”

Adrien frowned. He couldn’t believe that Plagg had been keeping this from him for nearly a year. It seemed like the sort of thing that should have been brought up at the forest’s edge when they had first met, or at least after their first fight with Hawk Moth. Had Plagg really chosen him because he was the first human to wander into the forest after Hawk Moth? “You promised me freedom in exchange for cheese. You never said you wanted Nooroo back, too.”

“I’d never ask you to make a promise that you couldn’t keep.”

“You think I can’t do it?”

“I don’t make a habit of binding my humans to promises outside their power to grant. Our deal has been met. You can give me up any time you want. I wanted to give you freedom, not limit it. But I also picked you because I believed you would help.”

Adrien bit down on his lip. He knew from the fairy tales that he had read as a boy that uneven deals were a large part of fay lore. It was common for a fay to ask for anything from a mountain of gold to a first born child in exchange for their power. But Plagg had asked for nothing but cheese in exchange for each night of freedom. Ladybug had once told him that Tikki had asked for sugar in exchange for luck. They were small gifts, ones Adrien and Ladybug could easily meet. It had never occurred to Adrien that small gifts were a fay’s version of kindness.

It still hurt to know that Plagg had kept all of this from him for so long. Adrien didn’t have much in the way of companionship outside of his family, other than Plagg.

“You think Hawk Moth and Lila could really use Nooroo and Trixx’s powers without making a proper deal?”

“If they knew the ritual, yes.”

Adrien rolled out of bed and stretched his arms behind his head. “Well, what Ladybug doesn’t know won’t hurt her.”

And with a whisper of, “Plagg, claws out,” Chat Noir was free to run off into the night.

He headed straight for the Rossi family manor. He was prepared for the dogs this time and crept along the wall until he found a tree that looked climbable. He chose a branch sturdy enough and long enough to get him close to the rooftop. With a bit of trepidation and a small amount of hope, he glanced over his shoulder to see if Ladybug was there to stop him.

Chat Noir was alone.

He leapt onto the roof and slipped down to the nearest dark window. It took a bit of heft to slide it open, but soon he was inside.

Chat Noir had never snuck into the Rossi manor before. It was usually empty, and there wasn’t a lot of appeal to infiltrating an empty house, either because it lacked the recklessness that Plagg desired or the intimacy that Adrien craved.

The Rossi family traveled the world, working as ambassadors for King Gabriel, but they returned every summer solstice for the annual hunt in the Forest of Fay. Last summer had been the only exception that Chat Noir could recall, and he had assumed it was because King Gabriel had forgone the hunt in his grief.

Chat Noir had been surprised by the dogs the other night, since they were six months from the summer solstice, but now that he knew Lila Rossi had inherited the miraculous gift of trickery and illusion from her grandmother, he guessed that the family had come back for her grandmother’s funeral service.

He also had learned, after Lila had made her grand declaration of her intention to wed Prince Adrien, that one of the reasons she had come back to the city was to challenge Chloé Bourgeois for his hand. Adrien had tried to explain to her and Chloé that he would make his own decision on the twenty-second, but that had not stopped Chloé and Lila from doing their best to explain to King Gabriel why they were each more suited for Prince Adrien. Even they didn’t think Adrien would truly be the one with the final say on whom he married.

Chat Noir slipped out of the dark attic storage room and into an empty hallway. He pressed his ears against each door, listening for sounds of slow, steady breathing or, preferably, loud snoring.

He did not care that marrying into the Bourgeois family would give the royal family more money and influence; he did not care that the Rossi family had international connections around the world and ancestral connections to the Forest of Fay that could benefit the kingdom. All he cared about was having someone at his side that he trusted, that he knew would support him, and someone that he could support as well.

He already had a partner that met those qualifications.

Chat Noir pushed open a bedroom door and cast his cat-like eyes around the dimly lit room. A couple was asleep in the bed, so he closed the door softly and continued his search for Lila’s room. He finally found it at the end of the hall.

The mess surprised him. Pieces of her dresses were scattered on the floor. Her jewelry hung haphazardly on the mirror. Chat Noir looked for her pendant among the mess but he did not see it. He had a feeling it was around her neck. It wasn’t as if he took off his ring when he went to sleep, and he did not think Ladybug took her earrings off each night either.

Still, he searched the drawers of her vanity, just in case. With clawed fingertips, he picked at a locked drawer and was surprised to find nothing of value inside. He hadn’t really expected the pendant, but perhaps a family ring or a diary might be worth protecting behind a lock. Instead, it was filled with ribbons.

Ever curious, Chat Noir ran his hands along the edges of the drawer and there he found it, a catch hidden beneath the scraps of fabric. It opened up a side panel on the inside of her vanity and Chat found a collection of papers with ragged edges, like they had been torn out of a book.

His first thought was that these were pages of Lila’s diary, and he had no interest in prying, but before he could put the pages back, he saw a fairly detailed drawing of Plagg in the corner of one of the notes. Chat frowned and flipped through the pages. He could see well-enough in the dark, but reading was a bit more challenging.

He slipped closer to the window where a bit of silver moonlight could aid his night vision. As he turned through the pages, his mouth went dry.

Plagg had been right about everything that he had suspected about Lila, but Plagg had left out some key details of the ritual. Maybe to spare Adrien from the horror or maybe to keep the ritual secret. For whatever reason, Plagg had failed to mention that the ritual to summon and control a fay creature’s gift in a lifetime bargain required a different sort of price: the life of another human.

It certainly put what Lila had said about her grandmother’s passing into a new light.

Chat Noir folded the papers and tucked them into his belt. He had to tell Ladybug somehow. It might mean a lot of sleepless nights hoping she found the time for him, but this was more important.

He stepped across the floor to Lila’s bedside without a sound. As he had expected, her fox-tail pendant gleamed around her neck. Chat carefully pulled aside her hair to reach the clasp at her neck. He moved slowly, concerned about waking her. As much as he wanted to confront Lila about what she had done, he was not interested in a fight with Volpina, particularly not in these cramped quarters.

But as his hand closed around the fox pendant, Lila’s hand closed around his wrist. Her dark eyes were furious as she glared at him.

“Trixx, let’s—”

But Chat Noir yanked his hand and the pendant away before she could finish her summon. He backed towards the window.

“Sorry, Lila. I don’t think this actually belongs to you.”

Lila climbed out of bed and gripped the heavy brass candlestick from her bedside table. She seemed unbothered by a strange boy in her bedroom, even though she was dressed only in a thin nightgown. Her eyes were filled with nothing but fury, a fury that reached Hawk Moth instantly.

“Give it back, chaton,” she hissed.

“I’m afraid you don’t get to call me that.”

Her eyes drifted from the pendant in his hand to the notes at his waist, and suddenly, her anger melted as if it had never been.

“Chat Noir,” she said softly, in a pleading voice, “do you really think I stole a fay? I could never do something like that.”

“You’re the one who told Ladybug and I that your grandmother just passed away.”

She stepped closer, and though the heavy candlestick was no longer brandished like a weapon, her grip on it was still tight. “I’m not a bad person,” she said. “Will you let me explain?”

Her voice trembled like she was on the verge of tears. Chat Noir put his hand on the windowsill, but he did not run, not yet.

“My grandmother gave me that pendant, just like I said.” Lila took another step closer. “You made a trade for your gift, right? I made a trade, too.”

“You traded your grandmother’s life!”

“Because she told me to!”

Chat Noir shook his head and threw the window open. The cold night air rushed in.

“Please,” Lila begged and fell against Chat before he could slip out the window. Her hand brushed against the bell at his neck. “She gave me those pages. She gave me the pendant. She told me to do this so I could help my family. You have to believe me.”

“Lila, I’m sorry, but —”

He saw the brass candlestick move just in time.

“Cataclysm!”

Her candlestick collided with his burning palm and it crumbled to dust. All her fury returned in full force as she reached for the pendant with her now empty hands.

“It’s mine!” she snarled, struggling to open his other fist, still closed tightly around the pendant.

Chat Noir tumbled backwards out of the open window and landed gracefully on his feet two floors below. But he looked up and saw his worst fears confirmed: a dark violet butterfly flitting through the moonlight and towards Lila. It landed on a small bundle of papers clutched in Lila’s hands and Chat Noir hastily checked his waist. His belt was empty.

He looked back up to see that Lila was no longer herself. Instead, Volpina stood in the window. She tucked the papers into the sash at her waist and glared down at him.

“Come here, chaton,” she called to him with a vicious grin.

Chat Noir’s emerald ring flickered. He gritted his teeth then turned and ran.

He had exactly one way to contact Ladybug. The trouble was that Ladybug would only know that he was trying to reach her if she was already transformed. He clutched the baton clipped to his belt and pressed on the green paw in its middle.

His emerald ring flickered again, so he made his story brief. “Hawk Moth has cursed Lila Rossi into the form of Volpina and it is technically my fault but I had good reason, I promise, and I could really use your help.”

Chat Noir avoided his usual rooftop route in hopes that he could hide from Volpina by taking to the streets. He felt like there were enough tight corners and wide roofs, but her voice was still so close as she called, “Chat Noir,” in a sing-song voice. “Come out and play, chaton. I just want my miraculous gift—and yours.”

His ring flickered again and he pressed himself into the doorway of a darkened shop. He bit down on his lip and waited until the sound of Volpina’s footsteps moved off. He could only pray it was truly a sign of her leaving and not another illusion designed to trick him.

“Plagg, claws in,” he hissed, and the cloak of Chat Noir fell away.

Plagg’s panicked face did not do anything to help Adrien’s nerves. “That wasn’t how I thought that would go at all.”

Adrien searched his pockets for cheese. “If you had just told me that the ritual involved human sacrifice, I might not have wasted time looking around her room.”

“I said it was a dark ritual!”

“That could have meant anything!” Adrien sighed as his pockets came up empty. “This is the last time we go out unprepared for a refresh.”

Plagg sniffed the air and followed the most pungent smell he could find. “You would think you might have learned to keep some on hand after a year.”

“Sorry I don’t want to smell like rotting cheese every day. I do still have appearances to keep up.” He followed Plagg down the alleyway as quietly as he could. He might know that Lila Rossi was Volpina, but she had no idea who Chat Noir really was. It was unlikely for her to realize the truth even if she managed to get eyes on him, but he also didn’t want her asking any questions about why Prince Adrien was out of the palace in the middle of the night.

Adrien held up the pendant he had stolen from Lila. “What do I do with this?”

Plagg shrugged his tiny shoulders and sniffed the air. “You could put it on and call Trixx.”

“Are you allowed to make a deal with a second fay creature?”

“Sure, if you don’t mind going mad.”

“I’ll pass, thanks.” Adrien shoved the pendant into his pocket. When he realized Plagg had stopped, he looked up at the building Plagg had chosen.

“Isn’t this that boulangerie?”

“They must have thrown out some old cheese.” Plagg disappeared into the garbage. “Glad we’re here to rescue it.”

Adrien stared up at the light visible in the top room of the building. He wondered if the family was getting prepared to start baking or if they were going to bed after a long night. Not that it mattered, really, he just liked knowing how other people lived. He thought about the seamstress girl who had invited him to eat with her family that owned this boulangerie—Mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng. He wondered if she was related to the flour-covered girl who had spilled pastries in the palace. Félix had suggested that they might be twins or sisters, one incredibly nervous and clumsy, the other confident and artistic. The bakery owners must be kind people, to have raised two girls like that.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng, who was both the clumsy baker and confident seamstress that Adrien wondered about, was hard at work on her fifteenth redesign of Prince Félix’s outfit for the first night of the ball. Everything she came up with looked appropriate for a funeral, and none for a celebration. She wanted to honor his mourning of his father, just as she wanted to honor Adrien’s mourning of his mother, but how did she respect the princes’ grief and dress them for their birthday celebration that was supposed to turn into a wedding celebration?

To help with the enormous workload of dresses and modifications that the shop was swamped with, Master Fu had taken on a new assistant, a quiet girl by the name of Juleka. She wasn’t an apprentice proper, but she was skilled enough to put together pattern pieces, hem dresses and jerkins, and stitch buttons and lace down where they were needed. She’d been an exceptional help this last week, and though she did not talk much, she was very sweet, and had even helped Marinette through a couple of small crises of self-doubt about her commencement project. Juleka had also found some lovely black and silver shot silk just yesterday that Marinette was trying to make work, but it needed something more and she could not decide what that something was.

Marinette pinned her artwork to the ceiling in hopes of getting a second perspective, but a crash from outside distracted her. She stuck her head out of the attic window and looked down. It was hard to see in the darkness, but she thought that she heard someone burp.

Plagg finished off the cheese and burped rather loudly for someone who was supposed to be hiding from Volpina. “You know,” he said, “we don’t really have to get back to it. We could just hide until Ladybug takes care of it.”

“She’ll need our help.”

“She didn’t with the Gilded Queen.”

Adrien swallowed. He wondered if Plagg knew how much that fact hurt him. He hated that he had been unable to help Ladybug in the throne room last week. But he set aside his small heartbreak. “She had Volpina’s help then. She won’t have it now.”

“Fine,” Plagg sighed. “If you insist.”

“Claws out,” Adrien said, and once again donned the guise of Chat Noir.

Marinette had difficulty hearing more than murmurs of the conversation below as it echoed up to her bedroom. She thought the cadence of the voices sounded familiar, but just as she was about to give up on placing them, she caught a glimpse of silver flashing in the moonlight and the flick of a black cat’s tail disappearing around a chimney.

Hastily, she slammed the window closed and yanked a curtain over it. “Tikki! Spots on!”

The pink light flashed as her night clothes disappeared, replaced by her bright red dress, spotted in black and decorated with gold ribbons. She climbed up the attic trapdoor to her rooftop balcony and pulled her bandalore from her waist. The spots on it flashed, and as she searched the rooftops for a sign of where Chat Noir might have gone, she played his message.

“Hawk Moth has cursed Lila Rossi into the form of Volpina and it is technically my fault but I had good reason, I promise, and I could really use your help.”

“Oh, chaton,” she sighed, “what have you got yourself into now?”

Chat Noir had no desire to engage Volpina directly, but he wanted an idea of where she had gone. His reflective green eyes scanned the city skyline, but he could find no trace of her.

With a bit of hope in his heart, he reached for his baton, but saw no message from Ladybug. He wondered if it would be worth it to leave another message, but as he pressed his finger to the button, he heard movement behind him.

He turned, staff ready, but it was not Volpina. It was Ladybug.

“You got my message?” he asked.

She must have, because she looked displeased with him. “I know what you did, Chat Noir.”

“I’m sorry—”

“We both knew your thievery would get you into real trouble someday.” She held her hand out. “I think it’s time you give up your miraculous gift.”

Chat Noir blinked at her. “Wh… Buginette, I made a mistake—but I had to. Lila, she—”

“I already know what Lila did. You think she didn’t tell me after we first met? She’s always been honest with me, unlike you, Chat Noir.”

Chat Noir took a step away from Ladybug, as if distance might spare him some of this heartbreak. “I know I made a promise, but I…” He tried and failed to find the words to explain what he had done. “I’m your partner,” he finished helplessly.

“I can clean up your messes without you. I’ll find someone else to make a deal with your fay.”

He swallowed. If he handed his ring to Ladybug, he wasn’t just giving up her, he was giving up the only chance he had at freedom. But if Ladybug didn’t want him anymore, was his freedom really worth this heartbreak?

He clipped his baton to his belt and reached for his ring, but he did not remove it. “Please don’t ask this of me. I need this.” For however long he had left until his wedding night, he desperately needed freedom.

Ladybug’s face was unsympathetic. “Hand it over.”

Chat Noir’s shoulders slumped in defeat. Hadn’t he said that he would do anything his lady asked? Even this…

“Chat Noir, don’t!”

Chat Noir turned, surprised to see Ladybug behind him. She threw her bandalore at the Ladybug before him. The cord surrounded her, but as it closed in, the first Ladybug vanished.

Chat Noir blinked. “She wasn’t… real?”

Ladybug pulled her bandalore back into her hand and leapt across the gap between roofs to land at Chat Noir’s side. “Are you afraid to face us, Volpina?” Ladybug called out to the empty rooftops.

She was answered with a laugh from somewhere in the night.

Chat Noir drew his baton again. His voice was still unsteady as he said, “She can’t be far. She would need to be nearby to grab my miraculous gift.”

“How cute,” Volpina’s voice called, “that chaton thinks he can be helpful.” She stepped out from behind a chimney with her reed resting comfortably on her bare shoulder. “You’re never going to catch me. You might as well give up. I’m more powerful now than I ever was as a hero.”

Volpina pressed her reed to her lips and the night was filled with a haunting melody. There was no longer anything playful about her music. A dozen mirages of Volpina appeared surrounding Chat Noir and Ladybug.

“Hand over your miraculous gifts,” they said in unison.

“One of them has to be real,” Chat Noir said.

But Ladybug had seen Volpina’s fight with the Gilded Queen and she knew that it was just as possible that none of them were real. If they were going to find the real Volpina, they would need a bit of luck.

She gritted her teeth. Ladybug didn’t like to use her power before she knew where the curse was located, since its help could be limited, but she felt like they did not have much choice. She tossed her bandalore into the air and called on her Lucky Charm.

A bright light flared in the night sky and into Ladybug’s hands fell a small red sphere, decorated in black spots just like her dress.

“What is it?” Chat Noir asked, unwilling to take his eyes from the skulk of fox-like women that was closing in around them, reeds at the ready.

There was nothing unique about the sphere to indicate what exactly it was, but Ladybug was able to identify the object immediately, the way one could identify someone in a dream, regardless of the appearance.

“It’s a smoke bomb.”

“Are we running?”

It would not be the first time that her Lucky Charm told her to retreat and regroup, but she did not think that was the case this time. She scanned the encroaching pack.

“Hold your breath, chaton!” she said, and threw the smoke bomb to the ground.

The cloud rose instantly from their feet and, moved by the cold night air, spilled out into the illusions. Ladybug covered her nose, but the illusions did not react, as she had expected. They had no need to breathe, and the smoke would not irritate their illusory lungs.

“I guess Volpina isn’t here.” Chat Noir’s voice was muffled by his elbow, and Ladybug shushed him.

She heard it from behind another chimney—the sound of coughing.

Without warning, she threw her bandalore in the direction of the noise, wrapping it around the brick. She heard a yelp as the real Volpina was pinned to the chimney, and the illusions around her and Chat Noir vanished.

Chat Noir hurried across the rooftops, following the line of Ladybug’s bandalore. He found Volpina struggling to get free on the other side. He was not going to give her that chance.

“Cataclysm,” he hissed, and touched his hand to the notes at her waist. The inky black papers detailing the horrid ritual crumbled to dust. Ladybug’s magic would restore everything when all was said and done, but the object of Hawk Moth’s curse would remain broken in whatever way he and Ladybug managed to destroy it. While Chat Noir wished he had been able to save some sort of proof of Lila’s ritual, perhaps it was for the best that such terrible magic would be nothing more than dust.

As the black butterfly flitted upward into the night, Ladybug withdrew her bandalore from Volpina and swung it up to catch the butterfly. She pulled it back into her hand and when she reopened the two halves of her bandalore, the butterfly that flitted out of her hands was pure white. She wished it luck on its journey and tossed the remnants of the smoke bomb up into the air, shouting the incantation for her restorative magic.

There was not much damage for the magical ladybugs to undo. A cracked chimney and restoring Lila to herself were the most that they could fix. The rest of the damage Volpina had done was not the sort of damage the ladybugs could fix.

Chat Noir helped a disoriented Lila to her feet. She shivered in her nightgown and looked around. When she realized where she was and, more exactly, who was holding her, she yanked away, leaning up against the chimney. “Get away from me, Chat Noir!”

“I’m not going to hurt you. Let me help you home—”

“Give me my miraculous gift back.”

“You know I can’t do that.”

Ladybug came around the chimney and pushed her way between them as Lila lunged at him. “Chat Noir, is that what this is about? You stole her miraculous gift?”

“My fay creature asked me to rescue it,” Chat Noir said.

“It’s mine!” Lila said, and lunged for Chat Noir.

Ladybug barely managed to hold Lila off, digging her elbow into Lila’s stomach and bracing herself against Chat Noir’s chest on her other side. “Chat Noir, you promised me you wouldn’t steal.”

“It wasn’t hers,” Chat Noir insisted. He placed his hand over Ladybug’s, even as his ring began flickering out. “My fay believed she stole it, and when I went after it, I found evidence that he was right. That she may have even killed someone for it.”

“Liar!” Lila shrieked. Her hands scrabbled against Ladybug, pulling at the magical dress in an effort to reach Chat Noir. “You have no proof!”

Ladybug found herself grateful that Lila could not tear the magical fabric her dress, but she did not care for the scratches Lila was leaving beneath the fabric and winced, even as Tikki’s magic healed over the scrapes. “Chat Noir, where’s the evidence?”

“I destroyed it to free the curse.”

“See?” Lila snarled. “He has nothing! He’s a liar.”

Ladybug took Lila’s wrists in her hands to stop the desperate scratches. “Lila, I’m sorry, but I trust my partner. I’ll help you home and—”

Lila yanked her hands away. “You two think you’re heroes? Just wait—I’ll be a queen soon, and you can see what it’s like when everyone turns on you.”

“Mademoiselle Rossi—” Ladybug reached her hand out in an effort to comfort or calm her, but Lila jerked away.

“I don’t want your help. I can make my own way home.”

And, true to her word, she stalked to the nearest ladder and climbed down to the street below.

“I don’t think we should let her walk home alone,” Ladybug said, but her earrings flickered, letting her know that she would not be much of an escort for Lila.

“She’ll be all right,” Chat Noir said. “I just wish I had a way to prove what she did.”

“You don’t have to, chaton. I really do trust you. And even if I didn’t, I’m sure my fay will be able to confirm everything that your fay said.”

A small, unhappy smile worked its way across Chat Noir’s face. It was so uncharacteristic that Ladybug almost took a step back.

“If you want to confirm stories,” he said “you should ask your fay to tell you how she picked you.”

She tilted her head, unsure why he was suddenly so displeased. “She already has. She saw my creativity. Why did Plagg pick you?”

“Necessity.” Chat Noir hoped his voice did not sound as bitter as he felt. “To stop Hawk Moth after he did the same thing that Lila did.”

She rested a hand on his arm, delicately, afraid he might break if she pushed too hard. “No, chaton, that can’t be the only reason.”

“You and I made our deals nearly a year ago. Our first night together—it was the same night that Hawk Moth first attacked. Did you always think that was just a coincidence?”

Ladybug had wondered about the timing, yes, but she had not thought that the timing was a bad thing, nor a sign that Tikki had picked her foolishly. She struggled to find the words to help Chat Noir through his self-doubt. “You are my partner, Chat Noir. I wouldn’t want anyone else.”

Though Ladybug’s magic had undone the physical damage from Volpina’s attack, the illusory Ladybug’s words still stung. He had nearly given up his miraculous gift tonight. That, coupled with the new knowledge that Plagg had chosen him simply because he had been nearby, that Plagg did not even think he was capable of defeating Hawk Moth left him feeling unwanted and useless.

And, despite Plagg’s cold-hearted ideas about marriage, he had to confront the reality that in just a few weeks’ time, his nights would no longer be his own in a far more complete way than the rigorous schedule his father had recently imposed. He would have to give Ladybug up eventually, and while he wasn’t ready for that, he would have to be.

Chat Noir pulled the fox-tail necklace from his pocket and held it out to her, but still refused to meet her eyes. “I told you I won’t be around in a month, so you’ll need a new partner eventually.”

Ladybug could not understand which part of her words had been the wrong choice. “Chat—”

“Take it.” One of the emeralds embedded into his ring flashed another warning.

Reluctantly, she took the pendant from him. “Chaton, you told me you’d always be there.”

“I can’t get out of what’s coming. I might as well accept it.”

“Can you tell me what it is? Maybe I can help.”

He smiled, but it was as dark and bitter as his destructive gift. “I don’t know that you would.”

“What do you mean?” Her earrings flickered, but she ignored them. “Chat Noir, tell me what you mean.”

“Come to the ball,” he said suddenly, and finally he looked at her. His green eyes that were usually so playful were now desperate and wild. A new brand of chaos surged in Chat Noir, one Ladybug was not quite as familiar with. “One night, just give me one night with you.”

She smiled indulgently, but shook her head. “I think if you showed up to the ball, King Gabriel would arrest you on the spot. You’re a hero, but you’re also a wanted criminal.”

Chat Noir searched desperately for a way to match Ladybug’s gentle teasing. He was the expert at teasing, but he could not conjure up even a scrap of his usual good humor.

His ring flashed. He turned to go, but she reached for his hand.

“Chaton,” and his heart burned to hear her use the nickname so gently, “can’t you tell me what’s wrong?”

He hesitated, afraid to hope. “Not without telling you who I am.”

“You know that we can’t—”

He could endure no more. “Goodbye, Ladybug.”

And he disappeared into the night.

#miraculous ladybug #ladynoir #miraculous ladybug fic #ml fic #miraculous ladybug fanfic #fairy tale au #ml fairytale au

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mirandamckenni1 · 1 year ago

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Autistic Influencer BULLIED off Social Media 🐌 I have a new Patreon community! You can get 2 exclusive videos a month, access to the Discord server, and more 🐌: https://ift.tt/NA4aiW5 *Read Chloe's Book: https://amzn.to/3RlnrDx 💛WATCH NEXT💛: Not Stimming is MORE dangerous than you think...: https://youtu.be/RTw-32j0vm0 STOP Forcing Autistic Kids to Like Christmas | Autism TikToks: https://youtu.be/g28cC-nYhYA 📹 My Videos mentioned 📹: Not Stimming is MORE dangerous than you think...: https://youtu.be/RTw-32j0vm0 📒 Sources 📒: *Different Not Less by Chloe Hayden: https://amzn.to/3RlnrDx Chloe's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@chloeshayden/videos Chloe Hayden's Instagram Post: https://ift.tt/bvxyLel Autistic joy is the most unadulterated joy in the world 🐋: https://ift.tt/TyKhpdO Stimming: https://ift.tt/QxdA2JK DSM-5 Diagnostic Criteria for Autism: https://ift.tt/8LRf3y5 Changes in the severity of autism symptom domains are related to mental health challenges during middle childhood: https://ift.tt/e48d1Ao Lets talk about stimming: https://ift.tt/oBGCrK4 Brittany_Broski: https://ift.tt/pa2w38y I’ve seen trends of other autistics reacting to stimmy music and was told to blind react to this 🥺: https://ift.tt/jYtuAEf #stitch with @yourfavoritepickme2 Stop Posting Ableist Content For Clout Challenge: https://ift.tt/4y5NGCD Bullying and Autistic People: https://ift.tt/DzRdANv #stitch with @Chloé Hayden I dont exist to meet your poor understandings of normality. Grow up, go read my book xoxo: https://ift.tt/t3Yv6Wi 00:00 Why has Chloe had to leave? 03:54 18,000 horrible comments 06:21 Mocking Stitches & Duets 08:55 Pretending to be Autistic? 11:05: Chloe says Grow Up 13:28 The Autistic Community's Response 14:13 DON'T Stop Stimming! 📖 *Books I'd Recommend about Autism 📖 : Aspergirls by Rudy Simone: https://amzn.to/3xSZ6Mg Different not Less by Chloe Hayden (read if you want to cry): https://amzn.to/40fKx2m Unmasking Autism by Devon Price: https://amzn.to/3LhMV3j *These are affiliate links. The channel will receive a small commission if you buy anything on Amazon after clicking through with this link. There's no extra cost to you; any money will go towards putting out more content. I'd love to post twice a week and put more time into research for these videos. Thank you so much - I really appreciate every like and comment! DISCLAIMER: I am a second-year psychology student and a late-diagnosed #actuallyautistic individual. I am not a qualified healthcare professional. via YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jv0EW2CJws0

#IFTTT #YouTube #Youtube

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auroralynne · 6 years ago

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Chloé Week, Day 5: Mirror, Mirror, by Aurora Lynne

I had this sketch on my folder for a while now, and it ended up inspiring a little moment on one of Season’s drabbles (I feel so honored <3) so I wanted to finish it for today’s theme. Hope you like it! All of my pieces for this week event are inspired by @seasonofthegeek‘s fic ‘Just For Tonight’, and I’m currently obsessed with it.

--DO NOT REPOST--

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thebigpapilio · 7 years ago

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All That Glitters: Chloé Appreciation Week’s “Golden” Prompt!

Hi, everyone! As you’ve most likely picked up, I’m AspergerBloodthirst, and this is my first submission for Chloé Appreciation Week (I call it CAW)!

The first prompt I needed to do was entitled “Golden.” After some thought, I remembered the lyric “All that glitters is gold, and only shooting stars break the mold.”

The fingers started tapping from there. This fic is Chlonette, and if you don’t like that (or Chloé, or non-hetero ships whatsoever), you don’t have to read it!

ENJOY!!!

Chloé was 7 and three-fourths years old when she first saw Shrek 1. She had known Adrien for 3-4 years at this point, but the two of them had just been best friends to her at that point. She had been generally uninterested in the movie, to be honest - she was younger and not vain (just spoiled), and these factors led to her not truly understanding why anyone would give up their title and looks for love. But Adrien seemed to love it, and that made her happy. It was that day when she realized she’d fallen for him.

She rewatched Shrek 1 a few days later (she also bought the rest of the movies and was preparing for the soon-to-be-released Shrek 4) so she’d be able to hold conversation with him about it.

She had been planning to surprise him on his next birthday, but it was not to be; Emilie passed away a few days before, so Adrien’s birthday was spent mourning Emilie.

Chloé was 9 and one-half years old when she first met Sabrina. Sabrina and her were only friends then, though Chloé would look back as an adult and occasionally cry about it; Marinette always knew how to comfort her. Things got hairy one time when she heard Sabrina jamming out to All Star and started a fight, but they fixed things quickly. The fact that Sabrina gave up what she liked for Chloé would “earn” her the grand title of Best Friend.

Chloé was 14 and one fourth years old when Ladybug and Chat Noir appeared on the scene. The Bourgeois heiress was in awe of the spotted superheroine, dodging Stoneheart’s attacks like she’d been training exactly for Ivan becoming a weird rock monster her whole life.

Oh, and Chat Noir was good too, she supposed.

She didn’t know it at the time, but she fell in love with Ladybug too. She was in love with Adrien, she thought to herself if her mind ever brought it up.

All that glittered seemed to be gold, and life seemed to be a cool place. Of course, it only got colder.

Chloé was 16 and five-sixths years old, and also in danger of being sent to an orphanage or something like that when she realized her mistakes; at last she figured out that she’d been a massive brat and dangerous to her beloved city. André had finally been busted; he was arrested for robbing folks’ bank accounts blind (among other things), and while Chloé was declared innocent of everything but leading near half of the akumatized victims to the trauma being supervillains gave them, she felt incredibly bad (it wasn’t just because she had nowhere to go). She could have done something if she’d known; the depressive thoughts opened her mind to the truth of her actions. She would have nowhere to go, and so she decided to fix her behavior.

She started with Sabrina, and then the rest of her classmates and teachers followed suit. Not all of them were trusting, but few if any of those people didn’t even give her a chance. Marinette Dupain-Cheng and Adrien were the last ones - she’d forgotten about both of them somehow. She and Dupain-Cheng (stop referring to her as that, she noted to herself) had found a very uneasy truce when Adrien started dating them. She got over that very quickly - as it turned out, they decided to call it off rather quickly, yet they stayed great friends. They probably stopped because of Gabriel saying no, she snarked to herself. One sincere apology to both of them later in which she achieved both of their forgiveness (we’ve been waiting to hear it for far too long, the two said), B.C. had finally reached closure (it stood for Bratty Chloé, and it was the nickname for the past version of herself - it was also a clever quip that made Adrien proud of her).

They celebrated by watching the all 4 Shrek movies - something Chloé had wanted to do for a very long time.

Chloé was 21 and one-sixth years old when she started dating Marinette. The formed rivals had bonded over Adrien, fashion, and other things post-graduation; Tom and Sabine had legally adopted Chloé, given the fact she had nowhere else to go but the foster care system; henceforth, the two former contenders for Adrien’s affections seeing each other and eventually falling in love. After their first date of staying home and watching all the Shrek movies without inviting Adrien (they felt bad later and confessed to him. He forgave them, of course), they started saving for university. Chloé got into an impressive business school, while Marinette made the fashion school of her dreams. While they were in a long-distance relationship, the two did their best to make sure they chatted at least once a week. In fact, Chloé was planning to propose to her when they got back to each other.

When the day came, it turned out that Marinette had a giant (albeit superheroine-themed) surprise for her too. Of course, both agreed to keep these new revelations secret for as long as they needed to. Needless to say, everyone had been very pleased.

It was one month after Chloé’s 26th birthday that she married Ladybug. Sometimes she still couldn’t believe Paris’ savior (and former love rival when a civilian) wanted her for a bride. It was a grand affair - Gabriel (who had lightened up after beginning his relationship with Nathalie, who also helped him to see the immense pain he’d left his own son with) had helped a lot, even agreeing to not only make a dress for the both her and Marinette, (who was his new star designer and possible heir), but he’d walk the blonde down the aisle to her raven-haired bride too (did you really think André was able at the moment?). After all, the Bourgeois and Agreste families were close; not to mention that (alongside Ms. Bustier and their entire class), Chloé & Marinette had made sure that Adrien had a lot of people in his corner when his own father had not been. Heck, even Hawkmoth ended up being merciful during the time of the wedding - he hadn’t made akumas since a few days before their announcement, and it was coming close to a year without akumas. Marinette and Adrien, still amazingly close friends (Chloé had figured out Adrien was Chat Noir before the duo’s first anniversary, so she was surprised she hadn’t figured out Marinette sooner) were half-joking and half-seriously worried that Hawkmoth had figured out Marinette’s identity and was going to swarm the place any second, maybe take Chloé hostage. Chloé’s new hair comb, however, would have perplexed the purple perpetrator, most likely allowing the now-quartet of heroes to finally take him down.

But things never end the way we expect them to, do they?

Chloé was 29 years old when Hawkmoth finally yielded. His moth-made head told the crowd of Parisians led by Mayor Raincomprix (Chloé was still incredibly proud of Sabrina for that) he was giving this speech and then handing over his Miraculous to his two enemies. He did not state why he was going to do this, nor did he explain how he could do this, but in the end, he’d profoundly and professionally apologized for the horrors he had unleashed upon Paris, swept up his un-evilized moths and packed up shop. That was the last the public saw of Hawkmoth for a long time.

Chloé, Adrien, and Marinette were incredibly sure knew it was Gabriel after that, so after transforming, they stormed the mansion with Rena, cornered the fashion mogul, got the details. Ultimately, he was forgiven, so long as he didn’t try anything else (then again, he was not able to - he renounced the Peacock and Moth Miraculi). She’d been Queen Bee for less then two years, and now it ended. She was fine about it, though - she and Rena Rouge only showed up sometimes anyway. The reveal between the four was not particularly interesting to Chloé - she knew all of them except for Rena. Marinette had willingly told her on their engagement day, and Adrien was Chloé Bourgeois-Dupain-Cheng’s best friend! It made sense that Alya was Rena Rouge, Chloé would laugh while reflecting upon her time before and with the hair comb. One trip to Master Fu later, and all Miraculi were safe and where they needed to be when unnecessary. Chloé would miss Pollen, that said, but she hadn’t known her for long enough to have the bond with the bee kwami that Marinette and Adrien had with… Tinky and Lagg, was it? It wasn’t important now - that was the last the public would hear of Ladybug, Chat Noir, Queen Bee and Rena Rouge (really, Miraculous things in general) for a long time.

Chloé was a girl who’d had the best and worst the world had to offer. While it was true that the years had not stopped coming, Chloé just had to remember her loved ones, and then she would be a Believer of their opinion: She was an All Star, and this was the way she liked it (and she never got bored).

#Chloé Appreciation Week #We Are Miraculous #chloe bourgeois #chloe x marinette #chlonette #shrek #all star shrek #shrek puns #IT'S OGRE NOW

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sheeoni · 7 years ago

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Probably the last picture I can squeeze out for Mermay. This could probably be classified as an early day 5 entry, but I really just wanted to do a drawing for Chloé Appreciation week! I kind of imagined her as part Guppy. I was going to layer her mask and add yellow but decided not to at the last moment. @wearemiraculous

#mermay2018 #miraculous ladybug fanart #we are miraculous #chloé bourgeois #Chloe appreciation week #day 5: mirror mirror #myfanart #Sheeoni #miraculous mermay #queen bee #miraculous ladybug

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3laxx · 7 years ago

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Alya Appreciation Week: Reveal (Day 7)

A reveal that doesn't quite go as wished.

Ao3 / FF.net

He first thing that shot through Alya’s mind was ‘damnit’.

The second ‘How to delete the memories of the last five minutes out of your boyfriend’s mind?’.

The orange flash rushed up her body, unstoppable and she felt the familiar weight of her fox ears appearing at the top of her head.

Nino’s eyes widened even more, more than she had ever thought one’s eyes would allow to open.

Her transformation ended with a last flash and she held Nino’s shocked gaze, her eyes just flickering to the side for one brief second before flitting back to him. Searching for an emergency escape way.

She gulped as he continued not to say anything, obviously still shocked.

“Uh-… Nino…?”

He remained still and motionless, his mouth open and his eyes unblinking.

“Hey, Nino? Uhm-… How about-… We forget this all an-”

She couldn’t even finish her sentence as Nino’s eyes already rolled up and his body went slack, making him faceplant on the floor right in front of her.

“Uh…”, she intelligently commented, then she kneeled down beside him, “Shit, shit! Nino?”

Nino stayed unconscious as she rolled him on his back, lightly slapping his bruised and scratched open cheek from hitting the ground.

“Oh c’mon, you can’t be serious…”

Another explosion from the Akuma let her recoil, then she rolled her eyes and groaned. She had to go. She just had to drop him off somewhere safe…

One Nino tucked into her bed later she joined her friends at the Akuma attack. Queen B was already on it to make a snippy comment on how late she was but Firena gestured for her to stop before even a sound came from her.

“My boyfriend just found out about me and he hurt himself on top of falling unconscious from shock. Spare me, please.”

Queen B shut her mouth and Firena sighed in relief as Ladybug came over, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

“Is he okay?”, she gently asked while Chat kept the Akuma busy.

“I don’t know, honestly.”, she admitted, a weird feeling pooling in her stomach, “I just-… I brought him to my home. Let’s finish this Akuma fast so I can get back to him?”

After the fight Firena silently slipped through her window into her room, her transformation dropping the second she set foot on the floor. Trixx shot out of her necklace and immediately jumped on the prepared bowl of carrot pieces, already gulping down the first without even chewing as Alya snuck to her bed.

Nino laid in a slightly different position as she had dropped him off here, he had rolled to his side. That was a good sign, Alya supposed.

He breathed calmly and evenly by now, his eyes moving behind his closed eyelids and crooked glasses. She carefully took his glasses off and put them on her nightstand, then she sat down on the edge of the bed, beginning to brush over his face. One of his cheeks had turned blue and he had scratches over that side of the face as well. She could speak of luck that his glasses hadn’t shattered at the impact.

He must’ve recovered his senses again and then fallen asleep here because he wasn’t unconscious anymore. Alya lightly snorted, leaning down to kiss his temple and nuzzling her nose against his cheek. He was warm and a little bit stubbly, comfortably scratching her nose. She hummed and leaned in a little more until she finally laid beside him, her nose pressed against his cheek and her arms tightly wound around him.

“I’m so sorry, Nino…”, she murmured, lightly nudging him, “Sorry…”

She remained like this, tightly holding him, until she was about to fall asleep as well, but just then, he woke up.

When his breath began becoming a little uneven she had the first hint that he was waking up. Unwillingly, she parted from him but his hand on her waist held her back, keeping her close.

His eyes fluttered then, only to close again and move his head a little, his lips pressing against her forehead.

“Kicked the Akuma’s butt?”

She giggled, hugging him firmly and intertwining their legs.

“Yeah… We kicked that Akuma’s butt and we did good.”

“Good.”, he sighed, his lips not ever parting from her skin. She closed her eyes and sighed, steadying his head with her hand in his hair, leaning her forehead against his kiss.

“You gonna be okay?”, she asked, referring to his mental and physical state. He merely chuckled, shrugging a little.

“Well, my face will heal. Thanks for catching me, by the way.”

“Wait but I didn’t-…”, only then she felt how his lips stretched to a smile and that he had spoken with a smug undertone, “… Oh, you idiot…”

“I love you, too, beautiful.”

#Alya Appreciation Week #We are miraculous #miraculous ladybug #alya cesaire #firena #fox!alya #nino lahiffe #ladybug #chat noir #marinette dupain-cheng #adrien agreste #queen b #bee!chloé #chloé bourgeois #Trixx #djwifi #reveal #freckles writes

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tourmei · 7 years ago

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Miraculous Editor Appreciation Week Day 7: Free Reign ↳ Team Miraculous (x)

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cherisher-ao3 · 7 years ago

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Chapters: 1/7 Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Chloé Bourgeois/Nathanaël Kurtzberg Characters: Chloé Bourgeois, Nathanaël Kurtzberg, Alix Kubdel Additional Tags: Nathaniel Appreciation Week, One really big fic with all the prompts, I have been thinking of this for a while now, chlonath, tomatoboy, Chloe is Queenbee, We are Miraculous, It is mega late, Eventual reveal, painting is everything to Nathanaël, Cave Paintings Summary:

Nathanaël must be appreciated more as a side character. He is a beautiful smol tomato child with many ambitions and pathways in life. For the Nathanaël Appreciation Week, I have opted to join all the prompts together in a seven-day, seven-chapter story, that I hope will be awesome. I love Chlonath, and therefore, the story is Chlonath based.

An idea that Nathanaël is a small time artist that hit big with a mural project inside a cavern.

@wearemiraculous

#cherisher writings #nathaniel appreciation week #we are miraculous #nathanaël kurtzberg #nathaniel #chloé bourgeois #chloe #chlonath #painting day #i am mega late

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mayura-simp · 3 years ago

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bi-weekly reading list

Hello! this is the first of many of these to come :) Basically I write down some stuff I read in the last two weeks and link it, and give fics and authors I like shout-outs, etc.

Comics

Recently reread all of @zoe-oneesama‘s scarlet lady au. It’s really good, and if you haven’t already checked it out, please do. I’m probably gonna rec this every week, tbh, because it's awesome and I'm always hype for updates.

I’ve been keeping up with @buggachat‘s Bakery Enemies for a while, and I’m looking forward to the next update. That’s another one that if you haven’t read, go do so.

I recently added the Limelight comic by @heuffopla to my followed tags. It doesn’t update very frequently but the concept is great and Adrien’s akuma design is awesome. It’s really entertaining so far, and I’m excited to see where it goes.

Fics

“Drink your Loving and Appreciating Marinette Juice” by snekwami on Ao3 is a really cute one-shot, with some Lila redemption and a smidge of lilanette at the end. It was a fun read this week and if you’re looking for lilanette feels, this is it. https://archiveofourown.org/works/16764766

“Outfoxed” by enigmaticEditor on Ao3. Solid Rena v Lila takedown, with some adrigaminette AND alyanette AND djwifi (the best of both worlds is possible!). It’s also got some really interesting magical world building that was cool to read about and made me scream at 2 am about how clever it was. Also the line “turtle power” absolutely sent me lol. Planning to read the next one in the series and report back on it in the next roundup :) https://archiveofourown.org/works/23908072/chapters/57484297

I also recently revisited an old favorite of mine, “A Cat, a Fox, and a Bee walk into a Bakery” by SsilverStreak on Ao3. It's one of my favorite OT5 fics out there (Chloé/Adrien/Marinette/Nino/Alya) and was part of the reason I started shipping them in the first place. It's pretty good, and extremely long, and absolutely worth the 3 am binge read. https://archiveofourown.org/works/10650384/chapters/23566125

That’s all for today, tune in in two weeks for the next one!

#scarlet lady au #bakery enemies #limelight comic #fic rec #biweekly reading list #links #lilanette #ladynoir #kagaminette #marigami #djwifi #alyanette #adrinino #OT5 #original post #miraculous ladybug #adrienette #bi-weekly reading list

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iwasbored777 · 3 years ago

Note

I have been back into the fandom for like,,, a week now and honestly sooo tired of people having to demonize a character in order to justify their continuous rage against them. Can we all just agree that the writing is shitty in this show and move on??

Demonising a character is when you make a little thing sound like they killed the president and enslaved a whole town. Criticising is when you openly dislike something a character did. The difference is when you're explaining fact without letting your opinion influencing the fact. Yes, this is a huge problem in our fandom.

Fact: Ladybug was rough to Chat Noir in Glaciator 2 but he was wrong to ask her to kiss him if front of everyone while she was already angry with everything and everyone.

Demonising: Ladybug is abusive b*tch who deserves to die and Chat deserves so much better.

Demonising 2: Chat Noir was going to sexually assault her if she didn't reject him and he would do it again even though he said he won't anymore.

Until I see some well thought takes on characters and their behaviours and their acts and I can't appreciate that person. That's why I hate it that so many YouTube geeks let YouTube change their opinion. And this is not just about ML. I saw a hate video on Brie Larson's Captain Marvel like "if you look her name up you'll see a lot of hate articles which means that people have good explanation for it" cool but I don't need that to form my opinion on Captain Marvel. I know what I think of her live action adaptation ever since I watched the movies and I don't care if my opinion is popular or not - that's what I think of her.

I wish I could agree with the last part but I can't. I don't think the writing is that bad. There are some stuff there that I hated and I still hate, like Jagged Stone and Coufaine family subplot, love rivals, new characters who are usually evil appearing out of nowhere and being more relevant to the whole plot than some other characters who were there since the first episode and a bunch of some other stuff that lead nowhere and don't make a lot of sense. But overall, if I had to sort Miraculous Ladybug in either bad or good I would say it's good. As someone who's seen so many movies and TV shows and cartoons and everything Miraculous Ladybug is one of the better stuff. It's interesting, unpredictable and messed up. I wish there were less characters here that's true but I still think Miraculous Ladybug is still doing a good job with so many characters. When I hear "some of them are not treated right by the writers" doesn't always mean that a character is suffering, it's that a character doesn't have enough screen time and that's not bad writing because of course if we're talking about a minor character it CAN'T have more screen time. Sometimes they get more but not always. This is also a difference in opinions and facts. Of course you want your fav to be in the centre but that's not up for you to decide.

Fact: Chloé's character development was too rushed and it isn't a surprise that it didn't work. (see how I didn't say if she deserved it or not, I'm just saying it was rushed and it really was, it felt out of the place and it ended just the same)

Opinion 1: Chloé is a great character and she deserved so much better. The writers failed her.

Opinion 2: Chloé doesn't deserve character development because she is a bully and I hate bullies.

I hate bullies but if they can make it work, let Chloé have her character development.

Sorry for this much text 😅

#miraculous ladybug #Ml analysis #Ml ask #ask and answer #Ml fandom salt

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fridayfirefly · 4 years ago

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Sunrise on Gotham

Read Sunrise on Gotham on AO3

Masterlist

Written for Maribat March Day 29 - Wait!

Gotham wasn’t Marinette’s first choice for the location of their class trip. In fact, the grim American city hadn’t even made her top ten list. Marinette wanted to go to Amsterdam, a city rich with history and culture. But when Mm. Bustier announced that a vote for the class trip location would be held, the class voted almost unanimously. After all, Lila’s long-distance boyfriend, Damian Wayne, lived in Gotham. Wouldn’t it be great for Lila to be reunited with him? And Lila traveled so frequently that she had already visited all of the other cities Mm. Bustier suggested. Would it be fair to make her go visit a city she had already been to? Marinette scoffed as she overheard the class discussion. She knew that this was just another one of Lila’s lies, perfectly designed to manipulate the people around her into doing what she wanted.

Marinette kept her mouth shut while her classmates all decided to vote for Gotham. But that didn’t stop her from putting her checkmark next to Amsterdam on the ballots Mm. Bustier passed out. Maybe that would have been the end of Marinette’s bitterness if Lila hadn’t “accidentally” glanced at the ballots on Mm. Bustier’s desk she was leaving the classroom. Marinette could still remember Lila’s sickeningly sweet voice, feigning concern for Marinette, asking why Marinette wanted to go to Amsterdam so badly.

As Marinette scrambled for an answer, Alya turned to her with cruelty in her eyes. “I can’t believe you’re trying to sabotage Lila and Damian’s reunion. You’re so selfish, Marinette.”

Marinette didn’t bother replying - it never helped. As she left the classroom that day, she could see the disappointment in Adrien’s eyes. Her crush on the blonde model had long since faded, and alongside it went the rose-colored glasses she used to see him through, back when they were both thirteen. Now, four years later, all she saw was a selfish boy who cared more about avoiding conflict than actually solving problems.

Four months later, the plane landed in Gotham just as the sun began to rise. As her class walked from the airport to the hotel, Marinette felt herself zone out. Even though it wasn’t her first choice, Marinette could still appreciate the sight that was the Gotham skyline. Looming silver skyscrapers were framed by the gray, cloudy sky. As Marinette took in her surroundings, she began to wish that she could stop and get her sketchbook out. Ideas for a Gotham-themed fashion line popped up in her mind like weeds, and she needed to stop and pick them before she could properly zone back in. Gray was a color she had never properly worked with, which would make incorporating the color a nice way to challenge herself. In her mind, shades of gray instinctively started organizing themselves into the different ways she could pair them together.

“Wait!” A hand grabbed Marinette’s arm, pulling her back. Marinette gasped as she realized that she was about to walk onto the street, straight into traffic. She whipped around to face her savior.

The first thing Marinette noticed was his height. She was used to feeling short, at 5′2″, most people were taller than her. But he seemed to dwarf her. She figured he was 6′0″ at least. The second thing she noticed was the look of concern in his eyes. “Are you okay?” He asked.

Marinette nodded jerkily, trying to control her breathing. Having a panic attack alone in the middle of downtown Gotham would be just about the worst thing for her to do. She was supposed to be Ladybug, the savior of Paris, yet she was so unaware of her surroundings in a completely foreign city that she almost got killed in traffic. “I’m okay, I was just daydreaming,” she babbled, “Usually I’d be more aware of my surroundings, but I just got off of the plane and I’m not used to jetlag.”

The stranger had a bemused smile on his face as he walked her talk. Marinette blushed as she realized how dumb she must look to the handsome stranger. “Your accent, is it French?”

Marinette nodded. “I just got here from Paris. I’m on a class trip.”

“Where’s the rest of your class?”

Marinette looked around, trying to figure out which way her class went, but they were already gone, out of sight. “I’m not sure...” She trailed off. “But I have the address for the hotel on my phone, so I’ll be able to catch up with them there.”

“Gotham is known for being difficult to navigate. I can take you there if you’d like.”

“Sure,” said Marinette, pulling her phone out to check the address. “It’s called the Gotham Grand Hotel. It's on the corner of 7th Avenue and 22nd Street.”

“That’s about twelve blocks away. It’s pretty far. Are you sure you’re up for the walk?”

Marinette nodded. “I’m sure I can make it."

His smile returned as he introduced himself. “I’m Damian, by the way.”

“I’m Marinette,” Marinette introduced herself as Damian led the way.

A moment later, Damian's phone started to ring. He answered it while still walking. "Hello.”

A brief pause, then. “I’m on 4th Avenue, by the Starbucks.” Another pause as he listened to the person on the other end of the phone conversation. “I’m not free right this moment, but I will be in a few minutes." Another pause. "I'm helping someone get around the city. She got a little lost on her school trip, and you and I both know that the city isn't exactly safe when you don't know your way around it."

Marinette was beginning to wonder who exactly Damian was talking to, but she didn't want to be rude and interrupt. Instead, she got her phone out of her pocket and sent a quick text to Alya, telling her that she would be a little late because she got disoriented on the hectic Gotham streets.

"I'll be free until five tonight. Father's insisting that I come and have dinner with the family, and I have my internship afterward, from seven to nine." Another pause, this one longer. "I suppose that would work. I was planning on going out to eat at some point, anyway. I'll just have to ask Marinette if she's okay with it."

Damian put the phone down and turned to face Marinette. "My boyfriend, Jon, offered to pick us both up and drop you off at your hotel on our way to get brunch. If you don't feel comfortable with that, I understand."

"Oh, it's perfectly fine," Marinette assured him.

Damian frowned slightly before replying to his boyfriend. Marinette knew that Damian probably thought she wasn't being cautious enough, but she didn't care. After four years as Ladybug, Marinette was confident that she was capable of taking care of herself.

A minute later, a car pulled up beside them. “This is Jon’s car,” said Damian as he grabbed the door for her.

“Thank you,” Marinette smiled in return as she pulled her suitcase in after her. "Hello, Jon. I'm Marinette."

"Welcome to Gotham, Marinette." Jon leaned past the driver's seat to shake her hand. Marinette noticed that he had a very friendly face: a nice smile and kind eyes. "How are you enjoying the city?"

"It's nicer than I expected, I suppose, but I didn't exactly have high expectations. Gotham has a reputation in Europe for being the worst tourist destination in America."

Damian nodded. "That sounds like Gotham. It'll grow on you, though."

"Like a fungus," added Jon.

"If you say so." Marinette cast a distasteful look out the window of the car at the gray streets.

"Do you have any plans for lunch?" asked Jon.

Marinette shook her head. "Not really. The hotel has a restaurant on the ground floor, but their lunch menu is pretty limited. I'm vegetarian, so my only option is a salad."

"Would you like to come to brunch with us?" offered Jon.

"Are you sure you want me there?" Marinette didn't want to be a third wheel if brunch was supposed to be a date between Jon and Damian.

"Of course," said Damian.

"Alright. I don't think I'll be missing anything if I go with you. Our itinerary keeps us pretty busy at the beginning of the trip, but we were given today to rest up, to help get rid of the jetlag. I switched my sleep schedule a week ago, though, so my body is already running on Gotham time.”

Damian nodded thoughtfully. “Do you want to check the itinerary, just to be sure?”

Marinette shrugged. “It can’t hurt to check it one more time.” She pulled the paper out of her suitcase. “Our class doesn’t have anything planned until tonight. We have dinner at a restaurant called..." Marinette consulted her itinerary, "The Coast, and then we’re seeing Wicked at one of the theaters downtown.”

“I've been to The Coast before with my family. They have very good vegetarian options. It is very expensive for a high school class trip,” Damian noted.

“I go to an accelerated school. The school has a very large budget, due to the amount of tuition, and the number of alumni who give back to the school.” Marinette shrugged, a nervous tick. She didn’t like talking about how much her tuition cost. Even with her 50% scholarship to Francois Dupont, tuition was still a struggle sometimes. Her parents didn’t make that much money from the bakery, and compared to the elite professions of some of her classmates' parents, Marinette was often considered to be poor. It left her feeling out of place, guilty every time she felt embarrassed by her working-class parents.

“That sounds-“

Marinette continued to babble. “I’m grateful for the opportunities that François Dupont gives me. Much more grateful than a lot of my classmates, anyway. Some of them only read the itinerary for the first time on the plane ride to Gotham. One of my classmates, Chloé, threw a fit because she believed that the entire trip would be a shopping spree through Gotham. Other students got mad for other reasons. One of my classmates made some promises that she had no business making - telling everyone that we would be getting way more free time than we were actually given. It’s a shame. I used to love being a part of Mme. Bustier’s class, but everything fell apart after...”

Marinette stopped half-way through her sentence and stared down at her hands as she realized that tears had sprung to her eyes. She felt the red flush of embarrassment begin to overtake her face. "I'm sorry."

"You don't need to apologize. It sounds like you have a lot going on with your class at the moment."

"That's putting it mildly," said Marinette. "It's been... difficult, to say the least."

"Do you want to talk about it?" asked Jon.

Marinette shook her head. "Not really. Even if Gotham wasn’t my first choice for our class trip, I still want to at least try to have a good time.”

“What was your first choice?” asked Damian, a hint of curiosity to his voice.

“Amsterdam,” said Marinette longingly. “But Lila wanted to visit her boyfriend in Gotham, Damian Wayne, so the whole class ignored the fact that Gotham is the most crime-ridden city in America, all so that Lila could visit her boyfriend.”

Damian looked shocked. “Did she say her boyfriend is Damian Wayne?“

Marinette nodded. “Uh, yeah.”

Jon snorted. “I know that you like girls too, Damian, but I figured you would tell me before adding a third to our relationship.”

Damian rolled his eyes, quipping back something just as clever. Marinette was too stunned to listen, as she realized that the rich and powerful Damian Wayne whom Lila claimed to be dating was the same Damian who helped Marinette on the streets of Gotham. Marinette stuttered out, “I didn’t- I didn’t realize that you- you’re Damian Wayne.”

Damian chuckled. “I can tell. I have to admit, I’m not used to not being recognized. I'm pretty famous around Gotham."

“The Billionaire Bisexual Ice Prince of Gotham,” quoted Jon with a grin on his face. “The tabloids love Damian.”

“It’s unfortunate, but it can’t be helped. The tabloids obsess over everything even slightly unconventional, and to them, the bisexual bastard son of billionaire Bruce Wayne is the perfect target. Even more so when he started dating another man.” Damian's voice was smooth, but there was an undercurrent of bitterness to it. Marinette got the sense that he didn't often open up about his relationship, for fear that the media would not be kind about it. Marinette sympathized. Françoise Dupont had been a progressive school: they had a GSA and a no-tolerance policy (not that the policy was ever upheld). She hadn’t been bullied, per se, for being bisexual, but she had experienced the all too familiar feeling of being othered for who she happened to love.

“Nice use of alliteration,” said Jon. His words would have lightened the mood if it wasn’t for the slight strain to his voice.

It was obvious to Marinette that this was a sore subject between the boys. “So how long have you two been dating?” asked Marinette, hoping to lighten the mood.

“Two years, but we’ve been friends since middle school,” answered Jon. “Damian was the world's most uptight twelve-year-old, so I took it upon myself to get him to loosen up. We became friends and everything since then just sort of fell into place.”

“An apt recounting, even if it omitted some pertinent details.” Damian conceded.

“Like what?”

“Like the fact that I was the one to ask you on a date, and you were so shocked that I had figured out that you were bisexual that you dropped the glass in your hand, shattering it,” teased Damian.

“I thought I was being subtle about it,” Jon defended.

Marinette giggled. If she could just spend all of her time with Jon and Damian, rather than her class, she might just have fun on her class trip.

Damian turned to Marinette. “He had a pride pin on his jacket and listened to Carly Rae Jepsen. Subtlety is not, and has never been one of Jon’s string suits.”

Marinette noted that she had a pride pin of her own attached to the front strap of her backpack. Most people never took any note of it - Marinette had quite a few pins on her backpack - but Marinette got the feeling that Damian was aware of it.

"We're here," said Jon, parking the car in front of a little café.

"Café Carlisle has good vegetarian options," Damian assured her as he opened up her car door and helped her out. "They make a superb gourmet grilled cheese sandwich and tomato basil soup. I would recommend it to anyone."

"That's pretty high praise. I get the sense you don't give false compliments."

"I don't." It was a simple answer. Marinette was beginning to get a clearer picture of Damian, who didn't waste unnecessary words but was never afraid to speak his mind.

"Then it had better live up for expectations," teased Marinette.

Damian smiled at her as he held open the door to the restaurant. "It will."

As Damian led Marinette to a booth in the back of the restaurant Marinette caught sight of the reflection of her little group in one of the windows. There was a look on Jon's face that Marinette wasn't sure how to interpret. He had a smile on his face, but it wasn't the joking smile Marinette saw a lot of in the car. It was more of an indulgent smile, giving Marinette the sensation that Jon knew something that she didn't. Marinette wanted to turn around and ask him what it meant, but part of her brain begged her not to ruin this budding friendship before it had even begun.

Marinette had only known Damian and Jon for twenty minutes but already had the strangest feeling that there was a connection between them, some sort of relationship that needed nothing more than a little bit of shown vulnerability to create a deep bond. The only thing Marinette could think to liken it to was love at first sight, but it was beyond that. This wasn't infatuation or obsession (both of which Marinette knew well from her days of crushing over Adrien). This was deeper. This was the knowledge that Damian and Jon had seen her vulnerability and had embraced it, showing vulnerability in their own way. Neither boy had said it out loud, but given that they had both closed themselves off from physical affection as soon as they were in public, Marinette made the assumption that any sort of public display of affection was off-limits to them anywhere that the tabloids could see. It put the fact that they had been incredibly open about their relationship in a new light. It reassured Marinette that she wasn't just imagining their connection. Damian and Jon must have felt similarly about her to be able to talk to her about their relationship.

"Marinette?" Damian spoke her name, snapping Marinette out of her thoughts.

Marinette blushed. "Sorry, I tend to daydream a lot."

Damian smirked. "I'm aware. You almost wandered right into traffic the last time I caught you daydreaming."

Jon stifled a laugh. "What could you possibly be thinking of that would make you so focused that you managed to ignore the traffic right in front of you?"

Marinette launched herself into a spiel about her newest design inspiration, explaining as she went that she was incredibly passionate about fashion and designs and that her designs often had her zoning out for hours at a time. Jon and Damian looked so interested in her explanation that Marinette blushed, not used to having anyone's undivided attention.

Marinette wasn't yet certain where she stood with Damian and Jon in terms of the relationship between the three of them, but she couldn't wait to find out.

@maribatmarch-2k21

#maribat #Damian Wayne #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #daminette #maridami #marinette x damian #MaribatMarch2021 #miraculous ladybug fic #my work

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