#I’m not a big chat/adrien fan because I don’t think he’s super fun or interesting (personally. I get that he is like. objectively)

[unforgivingchorus]

I’ve slowly been catching up with miraculous ladybug after like 6 years of not interacting with it, and why is my girl Mari doomed by the narrative. She was going through enough she doesn’t need this

[sk8terzz]

OK WAIT VAMPIRE AU AND IM LIVING FOR IT i have a shit ton of headcanons so,,,

here’s a quick summary

Humans hunt vampires and they’re often outcased/killed, although there’s been more recently since they’re learning from a young age to disguise themselves and can now hide their teeth.

also there's a couple types of vampires: some who melt in sun but have wings and can eat normal diets and those who don’t melt in sun, don’t have wings and need a little bit of blood in their diets (but it can be from like,, animals. It doesn’t have to be humans)

the vampires who melt in the sun (ILL CALL EM MELTY BOYS) are super rare so unless stated otherwise, whenever i say “X is a vampire” i'm referring to the not melty ones with no wings

setting/time/almost everything is the same. They are just. Vampires. (THEY LOOK DIFFERENTS TOO SFBDJHG)

also ships include: adrinette/ladynoir, djwifi, julerose, kimax, myvan, nathaniel/marc (I FORGOT THEIR SHIP NAME) and chlolix (chloe/alix)

You can send me ask if you want more details on certain things but yeah

if that interest you there’s more stuff under the cut

here’s what everyone is because its easier

Marinette: vampire *MELTY BOY

Adrien: vampire *MELTY BOY

Nino: human

Alya: half vampire thing?? Idk it just feels right *the sun hurts her skin a little, and she has little wings*

Chloe: vampire

Sabrina: human

Alix: vampire

Kim: human

Max: human

Rose: human

Juleka: vampire *MELTY BOY

Nathaniel: human

Lila: human

Mylene: human

Ivan: vampire

Everyone else is a human except for marc, nathalie and adrien’s mom *MELTY BOY

- marinette feels rlly bad about being a vampire (ALSO she a melty one)

- “TIKKI IM A VAMPIRE BRO I CANT BE LADYBUG”

- can go in the sun for about a minutes before it begins to really hurt so being ladybug isn’t awful cause she can hide in the shade most of the time

- ALWAYS HAS A SUN CAP ON (when she’s marinette) she just wants to be in the sun bro

- some guys start a theory that ladybug’s a vampire and she’s SCREAMING LIKE BRO HOW DO THEY KNOW but it was a joke

- alya is like,, super weird about vampires cause she was taught her whole life to hate vampires by nora because she thinks they’re super dangerous

- at first alya’s like “yeah suck it vampires” and then she learns she’s actually half vampire and she’s kinda like

- “fuck”

- almost rejects the miraculous lb gave her cause she was like “no im kinda vampire”

- but lb just goes “yeah me too so what”

- ALYA FREAKS SHE’S LIKE FUCK YEAH VAMP GANG

- nino’s super chill with her being a vampire!! he finds it rlly cool lol

i feel like i could go into more detail about their relationship but That’s Another Story For Another Day

- adrien kinda hates being a vampire (esp a melty one) and hides it from everyone but plagg

- his dad would kill him for being a vampire because then his son wouldn’t be perfect and that’s not good enough

- felix figures out he’s a vampire but doesn’t tell anyone

- felix isn’t a fan of vampires but respects his cousin and keeps his secret

- hiding his wings is so annoying like??? He wraps them around his body and wears a cap all the time is the WORST

- also same thing as lb he can go in the sun for about a minute as chat noir before he begins to melt

- again i can go into more detail about chat noir/ladybug and marinette/adrien but im trying to keep this kinda short

- CHLOE OH GOD chloe is so scared

- don’t get me wrong she still is mean and petty but she’s really scared someone will find out shes a vampire

- and someone does

- BUT ITS ALIX AND SHES ALSO A VAMPIRE LMAO

- alix is super chill with chloe and is like “hey man i know ur a vampire but i am too”

- after this they both end up getting feeling for each other lol

- THEY BE DATING but that’s a secret

- chloe’s mom knows she’s a vampire because she saw her fangs when she was born which is part of the reason she doesn’t like chloe

- in this au audrey never warms up to chloe instead chloe learns to not give a shit about what her mom thinks (with the help of marinette and ladybug) and tells her off before her mom leaves for new york

- her mom still keeps the fact that chloe’s a vampire a secret from everyone tho

- cause outing someone as a vampire is actually so low that even thought like yeah,, not everyone likes vampires but like no one’s gonna like u either bc you outed them on something so personal and something they trusted you with

- sabrina doesn’t care if chloe’s a vampire she still really cares about her

- but sabrina wouldn’t like it if anyone else was a vampire

- also another thing about chloe she tends to act like she hates vampires to avoid detecting from the Vamp Police 

- ig the vamp police is like sabrina’s dad who really hates vampires and actively looks for them (which is part of the reason sabrina isn’t a big fan of vampires either.)

- they’re not called the vamp police it’s just the police but i like saying that

- like i said before alix is Vampire and basically learns who’s a vampire in the class super quickly

- she knows what to look for when someone’s hiding their identity and knows she’s not the only vampire in the class

- she also figures out everyone’s super hero identities (which is why she gets the rabbit miraculous)

- max knows from stats that it’s likely that there's a couple people in the class who are vampires

- KIM DIDN’T ACTUALLY KNOW WHAT A VAMPIRE WAS BECAUSE HIS FAMILY THOUGHT IT WOULD SCARE HIM SO THEY NEVER TOLD HIM LMAO

- max had to teach him (with the help of alix) what a vampire was but it took like an hour

- the only reason kim actually learned something is because his boyfriend told him that if he paid super close attention (after running through the whole presentation like 3 times) he would give him a smooch

- after that kim grew a big brain and learned everything

- both of their parents and ondine would be super accepting if they were vampires tho

- but they’re both human

- also a little more lore its not biological if you’re a vampire or not it’s purely chance

- Its kinda like being born lgbt ig

- ALSO EVERYONE IS SOME FORM OF LGBT but i have my own hc for that

- lgbt vampires are incredibly oppressed like they can’t go out into the street *pensive*

- ANYWAYS juleka is a melty vampire and rose is a human

- rose’s family is super into hunting vampires 

- rose invited her gf over for a family dinner and the whole time they talked about killing vampires

- juleka doesn’t hate being a vampire and thinks it’s really cool

- SO SHE DRESSES LIKE A VAMPIRE???

- rose had marinette design juleka a sun hat similar to hers because juleka kept forgetting she melts in the sun and went out in it more times then she should’ve

- juleka’s a little bit more outgoing in this au and drops hints that she’s a vampire because she thinks it’s Epic

- rose has to remind her that not everyone thinks it’s epic

- nathaniel is really passionate about vampires and wants to learn more about them

- HE POPPED OFF HARD WHEN HE LEARNED HIS BOYFRIEND’S A VAMPIRE

- nathaniel is so supportive of marc it’s rlly cute

- he has to stop himself from mentioning his bf’s a vampire bc he remembers not everyone thinks it’s as cool as he does

- marc loves that nathaniel is so supportive

- when he first saw nathaniel drawing the class of vampires he just went “fuck he’s the one”

- 100% nathaniel draws marc looking super vampire during class

- i’m just now thinking of akuma’s but like here’s kinda how it would work

- They’re basically the same as they were before (being all evil and shit,, basically the same powers) but i think there would be some story changes??

- lady wifi would be less concerned with lb’s identity and more with if she’s a vampire or not because the cause of her akuma would be her theorizing if lb’s a vamp or not

- causing chloe to make fun of her and say stuff like “cool people can’t be vampires they’re stupid and serve no purpose in life”

- lady wifi doesn’t manage to rip of either lb’s mask for her fake teeth because the costume change also adds fake human teeth to replace the real ones (and you can’t take them off like the mask)

- but lady wifi doesn’t know this so she assumes lb’s not a vampire which she’s disappointed with but alya doesn’t remember this

- BUT the media and chat noir think that she’s not a vampire

- reflekta’s design is a little different but that’s about it

- The change with lady wifi is the only akuma i can think about rn but if i do more headcanons about this i might go more into detail on stuff like that

- CHAT BLANC IS ALSO DIFFERENT

- the build up to the akumatisation is basically the same but adrien realises that lb is marinette and also a melty vampire cause he she’s her melt a little when she leaves the room

- after marinette breaks up with adrien he runs in and transforms 

- after the reveal of adrien’s mom and stuff adrien reveals his wings and tries to kill is dad

- gabriel is disgusted by his son and tells him how disappointed his mother would be

- then chat gets akumatized and stuff

- instead of hitting the moon he’d hit the sun so that he didn’t need to struggle with being a vampire anymore

- he sucks the life out of hawkmoth and claims that he and lb can be together now that there’s no daylight but she says she can live like this which is when he kills her and goes on a murder spree

- then he just sits atop the eiffel tower in complete darkness until past lb shows up with bunnyx and she fixes everything

- his motives are more about disappointing his mother this time and being ashamed about being a vampire

- and also that his wish would be to make it so nobody is a vampire so people wouldn't have to feel ashamed about their identity and hide it all the time

- lb teaches him to love himself and his identity as a vampire and how proud his mother would’ve been of him

- ok enough about chat blanc 

- lila is a human and she acts like she loves vampires 

- but she actually hates them

- she’s super touchy with adrien and he’s even more uncomfortable now cause he knows she’s lying and would hate him when she found his wings

- all the vampires have seen this act before and tell their s/o’s so basically everyone’s against lila except for like maybe sabrina

- no one thinks she’s cool because i hate her

- she still lies about going on rides with prince ali and other stuff 

- WOULD TOTALLY OUT SOMEONE AS A VAMPIRE

- absolute jerk

- her family is known for hunting vampires but she claims she’s different

- ok but ivan is just a sweet vampire trying to keep his identity a secret and mylene is just his support human gf who loves him just the way he is

- ivan doesn’t hate being a vampire but also doesn’t like it cause he’s worried that everyone will say stuff like “i bet you’re a vampire” “you’re a villain and you’re cruel, just like vampires” and other stupid stuff

- he is just a soft man

- MYLENE DEFENDS HIM WITH HER LIFE

- mylene thinks him being a vampire is super cool!!

- they kiss a lot and ivan is worried he’ll bite her but she’s ok with it

- sometimes ivan wishes he was a melty vampire so he could wrap his wings around mylene to cuddle her and stuff

- they are v cute valid couple

- gabriel knows nathalie is a vampire and she knows he knows but neither of them make comments on it

- nathalie does really like vampires and doesnt mind being one herself

- she knows adrien’s a vampire and helps him hide it

- his father likes to know everything about adrien so he tried leaving cups with blood in them in his room to see if he would drink them

- and if he did cause he didn’t know his father was testing him nathalie would just refill them

- she starts keeping blood around the house and gabriel assumes it’s just for her cause he isn’t educated and doesn’t know the difference between rare vamps and the common vamps

- but it’s for adrien

- ALSO LIKE LAST ONE BUT one time lb and chat went out at night to hunt for blood cause they were thirsty but they ran into each other and it was rlly awkward

- but they’re both rlly oblivious and convince each other that they were out for a nightly stroll cause they couldnt sleep

[sincerelymarinette]

A Recorded Life (13/50) - Miraculous Ladybug

Words: 1199 Chapter Summary: On a nice day in Paris, Marinette and her friends go out for a picnic. She discusses a video idea, and her friends are all for it. Later that night, she addresses her fans, and has a surprise visitor. Author's Note: Kind of a set up for something fun- and I'm so excited for the next part! I think I finally figured out where I want to put the climax in the story so we are finally gonna get into some JUICY stuff soon!

Prev / Next / Masterlist

Live Stream to Address The Fans

---

"Hi! I'm Marinette!" Marinette introduced herself in her newest video with a big smile on her face. "Today, I have the whole gang with me. Alya, Nino, and Adrien are here!" She turned the camera around to face her friends. They were walking to the park for a picnic, finally having a time where all four of them could make work.

"Finally!" Alya sighed with a smile. "And the weather is actually decent for once, what more could we ask for?"

"Don't jinx it," Nino said, shaking his head. "Let's just enjoy everything we have going for us right now," He chuckled.

Marinette put the camera down while they found a place to set up their picnic. "So, guys, I need your opinion on something," Marinette said and pulled out her notebook from the basket. "Some video ideas. Of course, Alya and I are celebrating our friendship anniversary in a few weeks, and we're having a party, and I've got some more videos about Jagged Stone as he's going to release one of the album jackets with his new song soon," Marinette's rambled. "But..."

"But what, girl?" Alya asked. "Spit it out."

She took a deep breath. "I kind of want to do a video with Chat Noir," Marinette spit out.

Adrien started coughing when he heard her idea, and covered it up by drinking his bottle of water. "That sounds like a cool idea," He gave a thumbs up.

Marinette nodded slowly. "I mean, he told me a few weeks ago he likes my channel, so I thought it would be interesting. I just...don't know how to contact him," Marinette sighed.

"If anyone were to know how to contact him, I'd say either you or Alya. Probably even more so you," Nino chuckled. "Alya can be scary. Besides, you've helped him out before, and he seems to like you as a backup," He said. "Maybe send a tweet or something and hope he sees it."

"Maybe. I'll probably send a tweet out," Marinette shrugged.

"Or, maybe he'll just show up on your balcony like he's done a few times. I think Chat Noir has a crush on you, Marinette," Alya smirked.

Marinette shoved Alya's arm, making her burst into a fit of giggles. "Yeah, right," She rolled her eyes and pulled her camera back out to continue making a vlog with her best friends. Adrien sat quietly as he heard them talk about Chat Noir, and finally snapped back into reality when Marinette went into video mode.

---

It was a beautiful night in Paris. Marinette was sat in the chair on her balcony, headphones on, and editing a video. The sun was almost done setting, so there was still some light.

She was upset. The akuma that attacked her for being friends with Adrien was getting a lot of hate online. And most of the hate came from fans who aren't from Paris and don't understand all the Hawkmoth and akuma nonsense that goes on. The people can't control what happens, Hawkmoth takes over, feeding on negative emotions. Going back and forth between editing a video and looking at social media, Marinette decided to pause editing and go live on Instagram to address the issue.

"Hey guys, I'm Marinette," She smiled, but it faded quickly. "We've got to discuss something. The person that attacked me for being friends with Adrien was not a person. She was an Akuma, and people from Paris are very familiar with it. Many people in Paris have been akumatized before, and they have very little control over it. Hawkmoth is a hidden villain in Paris who feeds on negative emotions, and because of the negative emotion, his deals are tough to resist. He gets in your head and makes you believe everyone else is wrong, and what he's doing is right," Marinette explained, entirely seriously.

"Do not hate on the girl who was akumatized and came after me. I'm safe, Chat Noir and Ladybug saved the day and restored Paris from all the damage caused. We may never truly know what struck her to have such negative emotions, but he fires them up past one-hundred when he gets to you. She had no control over what she was saying or doing, and had no idea what happened when the Akuma was released. She wrote a personal letter to my family and me the following day and delivered it to my parents at the bakery to show how sorry she was," Marinette said. "She wasn't trying to hurt me; she said she's a huge fan. I talked with her, and we sorted it out, and it comes down to just Hawkmoth catching her at the right time on a bad day," Marinette continued. She was very passionate about this, as she knows the ins and outs of how Hawkmoth and akumas work.

"You guys know we stay positive on my channel and social media. If I see anyone else say anything bad to or about the girl, you will be blocked. If there's anyone who needs a talking to, it's Hawkmoth," Marinette said. "I hope I made myself clear, and I expect no more comments like those hateful ones I've been seeing to be around my name again," Marinette finished, and shut off the stream.

She set her phone down in her lap and leaned back in the chair, hands over her eyes, followed by a big sigh.

"Even when you're assertive it doesn't come off as mean," The familiar voice of Chat Noir sat in front of her, sitting on the railing. "That's a good thing!" He said. "I respect it."

Marinette shrugged. "I'm tired of seeing people say so many hateful things to that girl. Sure, she was upset, but Hawkmoth just makes the emotions so much worse, and she had no control of it," Marinette said, "People don't understand how it all works, especially outside of Paris."

Chat Noir nodded. "Yeah, I heard she was really apologetic and upset that she let Hawkmoth take hold of her."

"She was nice. I felt bad for her," Marinette finished and took a deep breath. "Is that why you stopped by?"

"Only half the reason," Chat Noir said. "I heard you've been looking for me. What, did you miss me?" Chat Noir rested his chin on his hand, that was sitting on his knee, still sat on the railing of her balcony.

That was right. She, as Ladybug, did drop a hint that Marinette wanted to speak with him. Said she heard from the Ladyblog, which was not a lie. Alya did make a post in case Chat Noir saw it. "Right," Marinette nodded. "Would you like to make a video with me?"

Chat's smile grew wide. "You're serious?" He asked.

"Yeah, I think it would be really cool. People know I'm a fan of Chat Noir, and they know we've had some chance encounters, I think it would be awesome. It doesn't have to be super long or take too much of your time, and obviously, it wouldn't be anything personal, but just something fun," Marinette rambled. "Only if you want to, though."

Chat Noir smirked. "What's your idea for the video?"

---

@lady-of-the-roses-and-lilies @bookishserendipity03 @avatheexceed @gkz10 @coccinellegirl @kat-thatoneweirdo @strawberryblondish @snow-swordswoman @lilgaga98

[nytreecx]

Marinette is not a Bad Designer

Alright… I’ve seen one-too many bitter posts by fans of Miraculous Ladybug disappointed by Marinette’s deep-down costume choice to not put my thoughts on the matter forward.

When considering a design in textiles, we are taught to critically observe it through two lenses: functional and aesthetic. Simply put: how it serves its purpose and its overall appearance (usually how visually appealing it is). Despite often clashing and getting in the way of one-another, they sometimes are easier to see as concepts that blend into one another. In water colour, if you paint red and blue next to each other, they are going mix to create purple. (I blather when I explain these concepts, so if you wish to get to the analysis of Marinette and Adrien’s designs skip ahead to ***)

As an example for this outlook, I’ll use a cushion on a lounge. Its functions are to provide lumbar support; help maintain good posture; filling the gaps of a comfortable sitting space the lounge may have missed; to last continuous uses; and to complement and accentuate the design of the lounge. This means function will control the shape, size, density, and – to a degree – the fabric choices such as category and type (e.g. woven and cotton respectively) of the cushion, and provide a starting point for the aesthetics via the lounge’s aesthetics. The cushion’s aesthetic purposes on a plain lounge are to create interesting and appealing focal points; on a patterned lounge, they provide plain yet grounding points to bring focus and calm to an otherwise busy design. Aesthetics therefore controls the shape, fabric type and pattern (e.g. cotton or plush, and floral respectively), and notions such as piping and buttons. I have most likely missed a plethora of points, but I am aware I am usually long winded and am an amateur.

Of course, some designs need to heavily lean to one side of planning. A wall-hanging is a piece of art using textiles mediums; therefore it will have dependence on aesthetics planning to be successful. Its function is simply to look good. A tent taken on a camping trip, however, is going to be all purpose. It wants to keep you safe from the elements, and not take up too much room in your car or weight in your backpack. If the tent is made from chiffon, with bolts of cloth dedicated to frills and decorative drapes, it will be bulky; be even more difficult to stuff into its bag than your sleeping-bag; tear easily on the first bit of nature it comes in contact with; and metaphorically take on the properties of fairy-floss when it rains, not only drenching you, but keeping you wet and trapped as the delicate and light fabric becomes heavy and collapses on top of you and whatever unfortunate soul tried to foolishly take refuge in it. One may even say its aesthetic purpose it to look durable. The only acceptation I can think of is a camouflage design, where a specific pattern and frills that mimic leaves are necessary.

***

Through this, I have hopefully illustrated that the relationship between function and aesthetics is one of give and take. Adrien does not give a damn about this. His father may be a famous designer, and whether or not he has shared a few tips of the trade, this boy grew up on manga. He is going to hit this super-hero costume with as much magic-girl that his kawaii desu ne heart possesses. He’s got cuffs; a long-ass tail that has its own pose in the transformation sequence; paw prints on the boots; unnecessary seams and piping; morphed pupils (that may be an automatic change to give him night-vision); and a big bell that rings, for crying out loud. The only functions I can see are steel-caps, pockets, removability of the tail, and claws. Even then I suspect these were mainly chosen for the aesthetics. Even his seams are what you would call aesthetic seams. It’s a suit made from magic. You don’t need seams.

Marinette, on the other hand, is focused on the function of this being a superhero costume. She knows she will be going into battle. Taking leaf out of Edna Mode’s book and then the whole library, she forgoes the iconic billowing cape and anything else that would hinder or even put her in danger her while fighting. Seams, zipper tags, cuffs, tails, and bells can be exploited by getting grabbed by a villain or accidentally caught on an edge or pointy debris while dodging or escaping. She only has an allusion to antenna as ribbons rather long poles sticking out of her head will basically become handles for whomever she is fighting. The only fault I can see is keeping her pigtails (*SPOILER* which we know she can change from the leak of Kitty Noir *SPOILER OVER*). Even then they may serve to create some kind of barrier from the back for her miraculous. She doesn’t need such things as steel caps because her magical fabric is already all the armour she needs.

I’ve had fun creating alternative costumes for Marinette. With function in mind, and wanting to reference the beetle, I added plate armour to the front to mimic the underside of the ladybird; angled spikes on the arms and legs like many beetles have to catch blades and cause damage; white spots like on their head on a black helmet that conceals her identity better; and the red and black shell only as a detachable shield on the back. Apart from being a design more appropriate for an AU, I forgot one important thing that all these features I wanted as tributes to the source material took away. Marinette knew that a superhero needs to be recognisable. Hence, this is the goal of the aesthetics.

The simplicity of the fabric’s pattern is to be iconic. What’s the most salient part of a ladybird? The black spots on their red shell. What pattern has she chosen? Exactly that. She is supposed to be a hero of the people. Someone every citizen can recognise as she swings by so fast she’s a blur. Parisians are going to be attacked so often that the red with black polka-dots needs to inspire feelings of safety, so that when they see her they don’t instantly think she’s akuma they need to seek shelter from. When she rescues terrified and flustered citizens, or toddlers crying for their mother, she needs to be recognised immediately; to create a focus point for the panicked mind; and to inspire peace and a sense that it will all be okay now that she’s here. A plain pattern in bold colours is the easiest way to do this. Adrien has even done this with the almost unanimously black outfit and silhouette alluding to a cat with the ears and tail. Her simplicity is necessary BOTH functionally and aesthetically.

*SPOILER*

In the event they swap kwamiis, they retain their design philosophies, and yet are influenced by someone they love and care about’s take on it. They need to hold onto the established iconic design the other has come up with, yet express they are someone else with their own unique take on it. Adrien keeps the iconic spots as the main feature, but adds panels of black to accentuate the pattern; give a nod to the actual ratio of black to spots on the ladybird; suggest armour; and to add depth and accentuate muscle anatomy. Marinette turns the bells and whistles into lines on the fabric to remove the danger of them while honouring them. Her plat imitates a tail instead of a more-easily-grappled belt and the collar tells of her Chinese heritage. In the event of the mouse fiasco, she needs to alter her design philosophy from hero to “omg please don’t find out I’m Ladybug”. Her colours are the usual palette she wears to inspire Marinette thoughts for Chat; her hair resembles mouse ears and are definitely and defiantly not Ladybug’s piggy tails; and her stripes and spikes, and tail create the farce that she is an inexperienced hero by forgoing the ungrabblable and to be easily recognised as the animal of their miraculous holder attitude Ladybug adopts.

*SPOILER OVER*

Being a designer isn’t just “Ima add frills for days cuz that shit’s tight”; knowing that busy patterns next to each other clash; making things look visually appealing or stunning; or even knowing what’s hot this season. It’s about making something for and around a purpose. And through this, Marinette can indeed retain her title of “good designer”. Thank you for reading my one thousand and five-hundred word essay. I hope this has enlightened some confused and vexed fans.

[freedom-shamrock]

Two are Better, But Three is Best - Chapter Three

Also on AO3

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The second part of this chapter includes some sexy talk and implies sexual intent, but there is no on screen sex. 

Please Stay

Marinette was a little surprised to hear voices from inside the apartment when she reached Luka's door.  He hadn't mentioned company, and it was a little disappointing because she kind of wanted to pounce on him for a nice heavy makeout before they went out dancing.  She knocked on the door.

"Come on in," Luka called.

She stepped across the threshold to find a scowly Adrien sitting on the couch next to her boyfriend.  "Hey Adrien." She kicked off her sandals and scampered over to give both young men a hug. "You okay?" she asked, surprised when he continued to look frustrated.  He was a people-pleaser, and it was in his nature to hide things rather than make people uncomfortable. That he wasn't concealing his feelings spoke volumes of how he felt here at Luka's or just how angry he was.

Adrien shrugged, slouching into the couch a bit. "My father's being a complete asshole."  He rolled his eyes. "Even more than usual. Like, take his usual dickwad behavior and turn it up to eleven."

She winced. His language alone was a good indicator of how bad things were with Gabriel. "I'm so sorry. You don't deserve that at all."  She gave him another hug, holding him a little longer this time. "Is there anything I can do?"

He shook his head, his messy blond hair flopping about. "I have to make some pretty extreme decisions on how I want to deal with this, and… really, it's all on me to do that at this point. I've put it off way too long already."  He looked at Luka. "Thanks for letting me vent, for listening. I really appreciate it."

"Anytime, Adrien," Luka promised with a slow nod. "And when you've decided what you want to do, let me know.  Let us know. We're here for you, okay?"

Adrien's smile was small and hesitant, but it was genuine.  "I will." He stood up. "Now I'll get out of your hair. I know better than to mess with date night."

Marinette giggled.  "A fiend having a crisis trumps date night."

"Definitely," Luka agreed.

"That's really nice to know, but I'm good for now," he promised.

"You're not going to go out drinking, are you?" She gave him a stern glare.  

Adrien shook his head.  "Still not a drinker, Mari. If my father couldn't drive me to it, I suspect it's just not my thing"  He sighed. "Oh, hey, I love the hair." He reached out and touched the strands of red she'd pulled up on the sides to create a colorful ponytail over the loose black hair.  "It really suits you. Fun, but on your terms."

"Thanks," Marinette said with a laugh.  The day they'd done her hair was a ton of fun.

"We did it last week," Luka added. "And it's been well received."

"I can see why."  He leaned in and gave each of them another hug and a quick bise. "Catch you later."

Marinette grinned when she realized she and Luka were both watching him walk away with the same degree of interest.  She waited for a few moments after the door closed before turning to her boyfriend. "He has an unfairly perfect butt."

Luka laughed and grabbed her in a hug that pulled her onto his lap. "Just one more thing we agree on. And those legs… hmmm."  He nuzzled her neck. "He's gonna come hang out with me Tuesday afternoon when you're working that shift at the bakery. I think we're going to figure out his plan of action, once he's picked a path. You should come over when you're done and we can make him dinner or something.  He needs supportive friends right now."

"Is his rebellion imminent?" she asked, leaning back to look at him.

Luka nodded.  "I really can't see any way for him to get out of his current situation otherwise. He's tried the sensible adult options. He's tried talking to his… father. Ugh, such a repulsive man." He kissed her cheek. "But enough about Adrien. It is date night, after all, and I'm really excited about this."

"Maybe scale your expectations back a bit," she suggested.  "I'm not that great a dancer. I love it, but…" She leaned into him to hold up her feet, her toes wiggling.  "Two left feet."

Dancing with Luka was somehow both better than just making out, yet also ten times more frustrating. Neither of them were big fans of public displays of affection, so any grabbing or touching had to be extra subtle or extra sneaky, so she was both literally sweaty and completely hot and bothered when they finally stumbled out of the crowded club onto the sidewalk.  They hadn't gone three meters when she stopped and grabbed him by the belt loops to pull him close. The only bad part of dating Luka was that he was so damn tall she couldn't kiss him without pulling him down, jumping, or literally climbing him, which she hadn't tried yet, though she was sorely tempted. Fortunately they were on the same page, and he bent to capture her lips with his.

His kiss seared through her, igniting the heat in her belly to explode throughout her entire body. She forgot about things like public decency or the lengthy walk home, focusing solely on the moment. When he broke the kiss, he didn't pull away. He rested his forehead against hers, his eyes still closed, as his hot breath caressed her face in sharp pants. It was nice that he was as affected as she was. She slipped one hand into his hair, and his eyes fluttered open.

"Stay with me tonight," he asked softly. "Please Nette."

She shivered in delight at the thought that he wanted her. They'd had at least three conversations about sex in the last few weeks, agreeing to let it happen naturally without rushing or overly scheduling it.

"We don't have to do anything you don't want to," he promised.

"What if I want to do… things ?" she asked, gently tugging at his hair. "What if I want to be the one to rock your world for a change?" She grinned when he gasped, closing his eyes. "Think you'd be up for that?"  Chat Noir would laugh his tail right off if he ever learned that she'd propositioned her boyfriend with puns.

"Very much so," he sighed. He loosened his hold and stepped back, catching her hand when she did the same. "Let's go." They still had several blocks and a subway to catch.  "And on the way, I think we should get creative to… sustain the mood."

She raised her eyebrows, looking at him in question as they walked faster than necessary down the sidewalk.

"Little things that aren't indecent, but… titillate," he suggested.  "I can go first."

"Please do." She wasn't sure what he was looking for, and she did not trust her ability to provide dirty talk.  At least not any that wouldn't result in laughter.

"That thing you did with my hair was super hot," he pointed out.

"Aaah. I've noticed that you like it when I play with your hair."

He nodded, pink washing over his cheeks.  "Yeah, but that grabbing a fist-full and pulling on it, just a little?  That's definitely a kink."

Ooh.  So that's what he meant. "Did you know about this one?" she asked.

He shook his head. "Nope. It's a new one for me, but I very much liked it and am happy to encourage a repeat later."

They slowed down a bit for the stairs to the subway. "I'll take that under advisement," she said. "Hey, did you know that you're like, ridiculously sexy when you dance?" She couldn't quite bring herself to try for special voice or anything, but her words alone were enough, and he stumbled a little on the last stair.

He was grinning stupidly, his lower lip trapped by his top teeth. "You think I'm sexy?" he asked.

She raised her eyebrows and gave him a look. "Obviously."  She stepped closer to him on the platform. "Adrien's not the only one with an unfairly perfect butt." She loved watching the pink fill in his cheeks as his eyes went wide. "When we were dancing, there were a couple of times I brushed up against it entirely on purpose." The station was deserted, so the worst that could happen was a security guard would catch her copping a feel on video.  She slid her hand up the outside of his thigh, before dragging her fingers around to grab his ass.

He let go of her hand to pull her close, his forehead resting on her shoulder.  "You're too good at this. I think I'm going to die before we get back to my place."

She giggled, basking in the warmth and affection of his embrace. "I've seen you in shorts and without a shirt, and I have to tell you, I really like what I've seen. I'm looking forward to peeling away all your clothes when we get back to your place."

"Yeah?" he asked.  "Then what?"

"I want to touch you everywhere, kiss you everywhere." She let out a startled squeak when his lips attached to the side of her neck. "Aah, you're not supposed to start that now, you know," she spoke in a soft breathy voice.

A gentle rumble warned them of the approaching train, and they stepped just enough apart to be decent.  Once they were seated, side by side in a mostly empty car, Marinette snuggled up to him. Stretching up to breathe across his ear, she whispered to him. "So what's on your wishlist for tonight, Rockstar?"

He closed his eyes and took a slow deep breath. "If you'll let me, I want to make love to you." His eyes fluttered open and focused on hers.  "I want to narrow your awareness to just me, worshiping your body. I want to make you lose all track of time and language as I tease and taste you, learning how you like to be touched to bring you to bring you over the edge."

She squirmed a bit, feeling uncomfortably aroused in the bright light of the subway. She was more than a little tempted to transform so she could get them back to his apartment right now. "I like your plan."  She shivered.

"Oh, I'm not done," he said with a sly smile.  "That's just the warm up, Nette."

"Oh my god," she whined. "If you don't knock it off, I'm going to pin you to the bed and fuck you stupid."

He chuckled. "I'm a fan of that idea, but not tonight.  Tonight isn't about fucking. It's about loving." He ran one thumb under her jawbone as he slid his hand to cup her cheek. "If that's all right with you."

"Since you asked so nicely, I guess we can do it your way," she agreed. She pulled her phone out of her purse and sent a quick text home.

"What are you doing?" he asked, peeking at her screen.

"Making sure my parents don't worry when I'm not there in the morning," she said.  They weren't still up, not with early bakery hours, and her message shouldn't wake them. And while they would probably suspect where she was, it was common courtesy to let them know.

"Is this going to make things weird with them?" he asked, sounding a little nervous.

"Hmmm?"  She tucked away her phone. "Why should it? I'm an adult. They know I've been sexually active, and they much prefer I engage in relationship sex than one night stands." It was something they'd discussed as part of her decision to live at home through university. "It also helps that they like you; they haven't been fully on board with everyone I've dated." When they'd talked about past relationships, she'd been surprised to find that Luka had been in two long term relationships and had done very little casual dating. Her own experience had been a bit more chaotic and varied.

"I like your parents," he said. "It's nice you have such a good relationship with them."

She kissed his cheek.  "I like your ma, too." She gave him a mischievous smile.  "Am I going to have to worry about what she thinks of me, going home with you like this?"

He chuckled. "You know my ma.  She's all about free love."

She felt the subway slow down.  "Oh look. It's our stop." She grabbed his hand and pulled him, laughing, to the door as they were pulling into the station.  "In the morning, I'm going to wear your clothes while I make breakfast."

He pulled her to his chest, leaning over her shoulder to breathe in her ear. "Do that, and I will interrupt you." He relaxed his hold on her as the doors slid open, then it was he who was urging her out of the train and to the steps.

She grinned at him as they walked swiftly, hand in hand. "I'll take that as a promise."

Check out Chapter Four  >>>

This took several days longer than intended. I've kind of over-committed myself on paying projects, which is a good thing when you're a freelancer, but it can put a damper on fun projects. I have some family vacation and spring break coming up next week and hope to get the next chapter in during that.

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If you’re so inclined, feel free to support me over on Ko-Fi

[jellojolteon]

Hi! I know you get a lot of asks on the grey long Ay but I was curious about something. How are some of the main characters supposed to get Akumatized. Eg. Nino wanted Adrien to have a birthday party but that didn't happen because Gabe was being a jerk, or Alya when she got Akumatized because she wanted to find out LB secret identity. I know this might be too much to ask but I'll ask anyway. Could you make a master list of how the Champions were made in this AU? (pt. 1)

No, no worries! Every ask I get makes my day! In fact you made my dreams from last night come true by filling my inbox haha ;u;

So as a basic pretense, the champions still come about the same way; the folks who get made into Champions are still upset about something when Greyling reaches them, but it’s the handling thereafter that makes the difference between what Hawkmoth does and what Greyling does. I can still make a master list for you of people who have been akumatized up to S1 (sorry if I miss anyone lol), but there are only a handful of changes. 

As for Chloe? An excellent question. I think it’s complicated because she’s still Adrien’s oldest friend and now she’s indirectly doing him a huge favor, but he is also much quicker to wake up to the bully she’d become since he see what she’s like when he “isn’t watching”. 

Unfortunately for this end of the story I’m more interested in the interactions between the main three, so it’s likely that a lot of this, if I can get this big ol thing off the ground, won’t make the actual cut.

(See below cut- numbering is not indicative of order, but if order is important I’ll mention it. Also note that this may change in the final go, if I get there.)

1. Stoneheart - This is LB’s first fight against Tux and while the theory of it is the same, Greyling does not exist yet to bring Stoneheart to life. Marinette encourages Ivan much the same way as she does in canon and he and Mylene still get together.

2.  Stormy Weather - We’ll go with this one as Greyling’s first Champion. Aurore loses the weathergirl competition, but Adrien tells her that if it’s recognition she’s looking for, he might be able to help. Help he does.

3. Mister Pigeon - Ramier gets chastised by the police for feeding the pigeons. Adrien consoles him (somewhat regrettably considering his allergy) and tells him that pigeons are not inherently bad, and that a good way to show how honorable and invaluable pigeons can be might be for Ramier to help enlist them to fight Tux. This champion marks the beginning of Mari’s internship.

4. Lady Wifi - Alya snoops in Chloe’s locker, she pitches a fit, gets suspended. Greyling comes to her explaining that he knows her intent was innocent, and that if she really wants to show everyone she’s the bigger person, perhaps she can help him fight Tux today. Alya is of course like “oh fuck, I’m communing with my homegirl’s crush” and wholeheartedly agrees. Things look dire, and hers is the first instance of possession we see. I’m going to (unoriginally) henceforth call this special “ability” the Butterfly Effect.

5. The Bubbler - Mari introduces Adrien to Nino and Alya via video chat. Adrien is super excited to have friends and both Nino and Alya want to meet him. Adrien’s birthday is soon and Nino suggests a party. Gabe never yells at him directly but Nino finds out from Adrien that it’s a no and gets upset on Adrien’s behalf. Greyling suggests later, when Tux attacks, that it’s no birthday but hoo boy would Adrien think it great if Nino helped fight one particularly nasty adult. It might help get all those negative vibes out.

6. Copycat - This one might ultimately not happen in the AU, just because the pretense is so intertwined with the canon dynamics.

7. Kung Food - This is the first time LB witnesses and must repair a cataclysm death. Mari is lucky that her Uncle is in town to help her through the experience. Greyling reasons with Kung Food in Chinese (which is much better pronounced than in the show) that the cooking competition isn’t the end of the world, and that he’ll help him get another chance to prove himself in a fair environment.

8. Darkblade - not sure where this one falls, but when D’Argencourt loses the mayoral election, Greyling explains that maybe he can help show Paris true nobility by standing up to another person who has usurped the peace.

9. Vanisher - Greyling catches Sabrina at a low point when Chloe is snubbing her. He points out that there are many many unsung heroes throughout history but if it would help her, he might be able to arrange something that would get her recognized in the form of assisting LB.

10. Antibug - Here’s a fun one! This one doesn’t go super hot but I think this is where Chloe develops a little bit. Greyling tells Chloe that if she really wants to make a good impression on LB, maybe getting in the way isn’t the answer. But what if she was a champion instead? Chloe is too bitter to be working alongside LB at the moment, but things eventually turn out ok, even if it involves Tux getting the upper hand for a bit there.

11. Horrificator - Mylene is scared and Greyling explains that sometimes it takes some help to face your fears. I’ll help you face down the scariest monster in all of Paris, and I assure you that you’ll always be able to face your fears after that. This one is also a bit of a shaky one but it works out ok because as she grows bigger, Tux gets more frightened by her.

12. Timebreaker - another that I’m not sure happens? I feel like time travel is a bit of a slippery slope in this AU for some reason.

13. Princess Fragrance - After Chloe belittles Rose, Greyling compliments her heart and says that helping him fight tux might be a good way to prove Chloe wrong. (Aside: I can’t imagine a lot of these kids would normally have the sense to take down a murderer. But Ladybug hasn’t lost anyone yet and the trust they put in her to keep them safe is immense)

14. Reflekta - You might see that showing Chloe what a good person looks like is a pretty common thread here. Greyling gets good at convincing people that Chloe is wrong and that fighting Tux with the things she demeans about them is a great way to prove it. She slowly learns.

15. Evillustrator - Nath wants a date with Mari, and also for Chloe to Not. This one doesn’t go well.

16. The Puppeteer - This is where Greyling figures out that Tux is his dad. In his rage, he makes a very bad decision to send out Manon after Tux. Granted she’s not doing anything directly but still. Ladybug deadpans him a look through Puppeteer and he has an ‘oh shit’ moment. He pulls her out and goes for Simon Says instead.

17. Simon Says - Adrien isn’t quite ready to let go of his petty yet and this is just as much for himself as it is for Simon. Nooroo and Adrien have an important talk about choosing champions after this battle is over.

18. Heartbreaker - Much of the same spiel about proving Chloe wrong, though I don’t know how his powers could be of threat to Tux. Not sure if this one makes the cut.

19. Rogercop - After getting fired, Greyling hits Roger with the whole “If you really want to serve and protect, boy could I really use your help.” After Roger’s proven bravery against Tux, he regains his job. There are probably more long-winded effects of this in the au but I’ll have to get there before I figure it all out.

20. Animan - When Kim insults Otis’s prized panther, Greyling suggests that maybe a catfight is exactly the kind of shakeup Tux needs, and it would certainly prove Kim’s ridiculous comments wrong. As for Alya and Nino getting together? I can still see them getting locked in the exhibit for their own safety.

21. The Gamer - Mari and Adrien kick ass in a gamer tournament, and Max gets upset because he’s overthrown by someone he’s never even met. Adrien just has a lot of time to play video games when he’s shut in, y’know? But Adrien realizes he may have gone a little too hard and requests Max’s help defeating Tux. He fluffs Max’s confidence by pointing out what a skilled and analytical fighter he is. Ladybug could use someone like that (instead of someone who sits from afar… hm…) in her fights against Tux.

22. Guitar Hero (pffff oops) - “Hey Jagged Stone, you know what would absolutely skyrocket your popularity? Riding around Paris on a DRAGON while blasting a cat man with SOUND WAVES. Does that sound like some killer album art to you? It sure does to me. Also I’ll throw in glowy tentacle hair as a bonus, I’m a big fan of your work actually.”

23. Pixelator - Greyling says, “Hey, man, maybe let the guy have some space, y’know? Being famous is stressful. Here, if you really want to be like him though, help me fight this guy.” Please don’t ask me how that works Greyling just gets real good at his job at some point.

24. The Mime - Fred’s meddling understudy tricks him into missing a performance, but Greyling sees an opportunity for the most kickass show of Fred’s career. He’s not wrong.

25. The Pharaoh - unfortunately, another one I’m not sure happens? Remnants of this ep might be involved though, with Jalil helping LB uncover some of the history of the miraculouses. Looks like the Kubdels get off easy in this story haha

26. Volpina - Lila’s compulsive lying gets her into a sticky situation (probably actually not with LB tho) and Greyling tells her that maybe he can give her a true story about herself worth telling. Greyling has been itching to get out for a few attacks now and this is where he finally gets the opportunity to go out. He just has a bad feeling about things and goes out to check. As I mention in the comic about their first “meeting”, Greyling’s intuition is correct and he saves LB from a nasty head injury as she passes out on top of a building from a previous wound. This also incidentally marks, for the most part, the end of Greyling’s use of others to fight. He still brings a few out (maybe I’ll get to integrate some from S2?) but this pretty neatly ties up most of the pre-outside timeline.

Sorry this got so long, but thanks again for the ask, @randomstar365! I hope this is a satisfactory answer.