#adrien grew up his entire life keeping his real feelings to himself

[stellamancer]

okay i am finally home and i can ramble about adrien.

he is just!! baby. he was kicked out of his villiage as a child for taking in a violent plant monster as a 'pet' (he rescued it as a seedling and it's more his best friend than a pet)!! he nearly died in the woods afterwards!!

he has so much trouble talking to people because he is constantly afraid of failing to meet the expectations people have of him because as a child his father expected and wanted him to fulfill HIS dreams and ignored anything adrien might have actually wanted. no one takes him seriously!! and while he can't speak clearly most of the time, he's pragmatic and has good battle sense!! all he has ever wanted was to have friends who were patient enough and kind enough to accept him (and his violent murderous plant dog bestie)!!!

coughs.

[glitchydyke]

WAIT OMG only seeing your tags on that thing now !!!!! TELL ME ABT CHAT NOIR IF YOU WANT i don't actually know anything abt him and i heart characters who act like me GDGFHFFJFJFJ ALSO HI

HIIII MARS OKAY SO. what you need to know abt chat noir is. he’s silly. at his base at his core at the fundamentals of who he is as a person. hes a silly guy. this is integral to him. he also has the most fucking issues you will ever know of in your life <333

he grew up as a sheltered rich kid, only really knowing his parents and the people that worked in their house. and then his mum died (well. ‘died’. dw abt it) and he was left w just his dad and his house,, kind of became a prison. his entire life he’s known nothing except his parents and then one of them is gone and the other is so distant he barely knows him at all. he’s also made to be a model for his dad’s company, which he… both doesn’t enjoy and does? it’s bittersweet. he likes feeling useful, feeling needed, but also his face is all over paris and there’s people telling them they love him when they don’t even know him and never will. he’s a kid and he’s the most famous person in france. he’s beloved by the world and he’s spoken to maybe ten people in his life. he doesn’t know who he is. and then eventually he convinces his dad to let him go to school, and he’s so excited because finally, this is a chance to be a person. he’s never been a person before. it’s a rocky start, he makes some friends and he makes some enemies. and he doesn’t really know how to deal with that. everyone likes him. he’s the perfect child. he’s the face of paris. how do you deal with someone not liking you when that’s all you’ve ever strived for in your entire life? how do you enjoy the first freedom you’ve ever had in your life when you’ve upset someone else in the process? is your being there really worth it if you’ve inconvenienced someone else? were you better off staying in your house? he struggles with it a little.

but then he gets his ring, gets the chance to be a hero, gets the chance to be chat noir, and suddenly his freedom is his own. he doesn’t need to keep up expectations. he doesn’t need to be adrien agreste, son of gabriel agreste. he doesn’t need to be adrien agreste, best friend of chloé bourgeois. he doesn’t need to be adrien agreste, the boy who doesn’t even know who he is. he gets to decide who he is. for the first time in his life, he’s given the chance to be who he wants to be, and he runs with it. he’s suave, he’s confident, he’s outspoken, he has the whole of the city laid out before him to explore. and he has a friend, a real friend, someone who he’s partners with. equals. it’s not a business transaction, or an exchange. sure, they’re partners in the work sense too, but this is different. ladybug is different. she’s a little shy at first, which is cute, but when he sees her? really sees her? she’s everything he wishes he could be. she’s smart, she’s brave, she stands up for herself and the citizens of paris and does what she knows is right regardless of what consequences it may cause for her personally. she’s the fire that adrien wants for himself, she’s his hero in every sense of the word. and things are good, for a while. they have their episode-of-the-week adventures. he flirts, she scolds him, sometimes things become a little tense, but it’s okay. they work so well together. and he makes progress as adrien too - fixes the mistakes he made, solidifies a friendship with marinette, gets the school life, the normal life, he’s dreamed of.

it doesn’t stay perfect for long, though. new heroes arrive. ladybug drifts away, slowly but surely. he understands - her miraculous is more powerful than his, in its own way. she’s the centre of the world. she’s the hero. it makes sense that she’d get to know things he doesn’t, get to have abilities he doesn’t. he understands, he really does. but that resentment still sits with him. his entire life, he’s been the obedient one. he’s listened to his parents, to his staff, to his best - only - friend. he’s given up everything. he’s given up himself - he discarded who he could be in favour of what he was told he needed to be. he left behind adrien agreste to the point of uninventing himself entirely. chat noir was supposed to be different. chat noir was supposed to be freedom. and yet here he is again, kept in the dark, told to be patient, to leave it alone, that it’s for his own good. everything is always for his own good. he never gets a life all of his own, but it’s for his own good. there are things you can’t know. he wants to leave this behind. so he does, for a while. he’s sick of the secrets and the lies. why have two lives where you don’t exist when you can just narrow it down to one? what’s the point of an alter ego if they’re just the same as the first version of you? what’s the point of being part of a duo when the other person doesn’t need you anymore? adrien agreste doesn’t like his life, not entirely. but now neither does chat noir. he always comes back, though. always. maybe he’s mad at ladybug, sure, but he loves her. she loves him. they make it work. it’s strained.

as adrien, he starts to stand up for himself a little more. he quits modelling. stands up to lila, someone who lies and deceives and tricks people in ways that adrien can’t stand. keeps a shaky friendship with kagami, the girl he loves and dates but isn’t quite in love with. it’s going okay, he supposes. he still wishes things with ladybug were different, were the same, but sure. whatever. he’s dealing with it.

the other heroes thing doesn’t work out. most of them are fine - good, even. rena rouge, carapace, ryuko, viperion. they bring new powers to the table, new thought processes, they help. he makes friends with them, he likes them. and then they’re gone. suddenly the miraculouses are gone. no more heroes. no more team. just him and ladybug, the way it used to be. the way he wanted it to be. but it’s bad. it’s wrong. it’s put paris in danger. but now, with nothing left, ladybug finally sees him. which is what chat noir wanted all along, really. not for the other heroes to leave. not to have ladybug all to himself. just for her to want him as more than the comedic relief. to appreciate him. to know him. she’s his world, she’s the one constant he has in both of his lives, she’s everything to him. and so seeing her drift away, seeing her start to not need him, realising that maybe she never needed him - it stung. but now with just the two of them left, she sees him for who he is. who he’s always been. her own hero.

anyway this got long and i haven’t even gone into detail abt some fucked up episodes. like chat blanc which focuses on his fucking desperation to be loved and to hold onto that love at any cost. or desperada where he watches ladybug die again and again and spends years trying to save her before having to accept that he’s never going to be able to do it. or kuro neko where he creates an entirely new identity for himself because ladybug doesn’t want him anymore but maybe he can change himself into someone she does want. moral of the story is chat noir is such a fucking character holy shit

just. chat noir is about having the power of destruction and using it to create yourself. he’s about not knowing who you are. he’s about that fundamental human craving to be loved - and don’t even get me started on that, because human isn’t even a word that really applies to him anymore. all he wants is to be loved. that’s all he’s ever wanted, after a lifetime of growing up alone. all he wants is to be someone worthy of love.

[miraculouswolf99]

What I Am Salty About Over The Miraculous Fandom

Okay, there is a lot of new salt talk given what has been happening in the released episodes of season 4. Especially salt towards Adrien, Kagami, the Love Square, and the character designs as well.

And I admit that I am also far from okay with how the show is being written.

Now, anyone that reads my stories knows that I am a big fan of Adrien and will gladly defend him against those that salt and bash him. But at the same time, I am not oblivious to his flaws. I know ho they made Adrien in the newer episodes with him wanting to people to be akumatized so that he can see Ladybug, with him still having a crush on her even with him being with Kagami, but also him only sacrificing himself just to make Ladybug pay attention to him.

Yes, these are bad things. But there is obviously the lack of salt toward someone that hardly ever has salt on them. Marinette.

But I am going to start with Adrien. Adrien has definitely made mistakes and is no where near perfect, but he could be a lot worse. Adrien has gone through a lot in his life. He may be a rich, handsome, and privileged white boy, but that does not mean he acts like a spoiled brat like Chloe. His mother disappeared, his dad emotionally and mentally abuses him, he gets constantly sexually harassed by Lila, his childhood best friend betrayed all of Paris to Hawkmoth, and he is constantly being isolated from the real world and not taught how reality works. As someone that grew up as isolated as him, he does not know about real healthy relationships. All he knows is what he sees on TV. And given everything that he had gone through, he could certainly be a lot worse than how he is.

Yes, he could take his hero duties more seriously, but that does not mean that he is a bad hero. When Ladybug was about to be tagged by Timebreaker, Cat Noir took the hit for her because he knew that only her powers could bring everyone back. He also has not taken the opportunities that would have let him find out Ladybug's identity even when he could easily have. Like during Dark Owl, when Ladybug was hypnotized by Miracle Queen, and when Ladybug detransformed in that closet that she did not close all the way. How can people say that he is desperate to learn her identity when he does things like that.

I know that there are also things like in the episodes Syren, Frozer, and Glaciator where he throws "tantrums" and makes the fights harder. But let me hit you all with a hard truth. He trusts Ladybug enough to put his life on the line for her since she is the only one that has the power to undo all the damage caused. So, when he feels that she does not have the same trust in him, it actually hurts him. And while her keeping secrets from him is more Master Fu's fault, Ladybug could also have just told Cat Noir what was going on instead of letting Master Fu tell her how to treat her "partner."

There are also a lot of salt against him for his advice to Marinette on how to handle Lila. They say that he bullies her into keeping silent, that he does nothing to help her, that he chose Lila over Marinette.

Not, time for more hard truths. Adrien thinks of Lila as a tabloid since he has no experience at all dealing with real people like Lila. He believes that she will either lie her way into a corner or just get caught in her own web of lies by trying to keep her web intact. And that probably would be true if not for the fact that Lila is probably a straight-up sociopath. Plus, Adrien does not know that Lila threatened Marinette. If he knew that, he would probably change his approach to how to handle her. But Marinette did not tell him, so he does not think Lila is much of a threat because Marinette did not tell him that she threatened her. And as for him not helping Marinette, Adrien has actually tried to help her and actually helped her as well. In Ladybug, Adrien tried to stand up for Marinette but was silenced by Damocles. But in the same episode, he also made a deal with Lila to get Marinette back in school. There is also how in Chameleon, he tried to sit in the back with Marinette after the class moved her there. None of that says that Adrien ever chose Lila over Marinette.

And what Adrien probably thinks is love for Ladybug is probably him reflecting his love for freedom onto her. Whenever he sees her, he knows that he is able to be free of his "perfect model" image and be the sarcastic and silly Cat Noir. Yes, he could flirt less and take his job more seriously, but he is still an excellent hero.

But this leads me to Marinette and how she is basically treated as a pure angel that can do no wrong. I can not tell if it is because she is the main character or because she is a girl.

Let me list all the things that Marinette has done. She made a wall of pictures of Adrien, written down his entire schedule, went to the park multiple times just to see him even when she was babysitting, tried to give Luka's guitar to Adrien so that he could try and be Jagged's new guitarist, followed Adrien around with the girls to try and ask him out, teamed up with Chloe to try and sabotage Kagami, broken into Adrien's house as both herself and as Ladybug, stolen Adrien's phone just to delete an embarrassing voice mail, and also stalked Adrien just out of jealousy.

People hate on Adrien for almost everything he does in almost every episode but never say anything to Marinette's actions. Yes, Adrien does bad things sometimes, but he has not done nearly as much as Marinette has.

Double standard's, people. Just because Adrien is a guy does not mean that he is the one always in the wrong and always the bad guy in these situations. He is far from blameless, but that does not mean he gets all the blame just because he is a guy.

Now, I am not hating against women or girls or anything of that sort. But my form of gender equality means that men and women, boys and girls, everyone of all ages, gets treated the same.

That means that both men and women can be victims, it means both men and women can be the villains, it means both men and women can be in the right and in the wrong.

So, Marinette is not some perfect angel nor is Adrien some demon to be hated on.

I know that not everyone is going to agree with me or share my opinions. But if they can share their opinions, then so can I. Deal with it, haters.

[kasienda]

Right Behind You - Ch 2: Friends

Chapter 1

The silver limo pulled to a stop outside of Adrien’s building. His luxury oversized studio apartment was on the top floor. Adrien didn’t move from his seat, his eyes locked onto the white van parked across the street from the entrance. He couldn’t even come and go as Chat Noir as long as the media had him on stakeout. He wasn’t sure if they’d assume Chat was his lover, or if they’d piece together his identity, but neither possibility was remotely appealing.

He turned to Nino, who was seated beside him, popping the last chouquette into his mouth.

“You sure you want to be seen with me?” Adrien asked. “They might assume you’re my boyfriend.”

Nino shrugged, licking the crumbs off his fingers. “People have assumed far worse about me.” Nino turned to him with a grin. “We could make a show of it if you want?”

Adrien smiled in spite of himself. He couldn’t resist the boyish playful look on Nino’s face. “What do you have in mind?”

“Nothing major. We could hold hands! Just play it up, like we are together.”

Adrien laughed, feeling more than a bit tempted if only to turn the whole situation into a joke, but he didn’t want anyone else swept up in this scandal. Especially not Nino who already did so much for him. “I appreciate the thought, but I don’t want you or your family being harassed by reporters if it’s not even real.”

“We could handle it,” Nino insisted, his grin never fading.

“I’m not saying you couldn’t.” Though Adrien wasn’t sure if that was truly the case. Adrien knew that Nino wasn’t out with his family. He wasn’t going to force Nino to have that conversation before he was ready even if he did have the option of saying it was all for show. “I just… if you have to handle it, I want it to be for real.”

“Fine. Be that way,” Nino said, pouting.

“It almost seems like you want to be mistaken for my boyfriend,” Adrien teased.

Nino’s gaze turned towards the window. “If people think you’re taken maybe they’d be less likely to think they can get away with scamming you on the street.”

Adrien’s chest bloomed in warmth, and his lips stretched into another smile. He was never sure what he had done to earn Nino’s friendship, but he could no longer imagine what his life would be like without Nino’s warm, and often forceful, support.

Keep Reading on Ao3

Nino undid his seat belt, leaned forward, and clapped a hand onto Ezra’s shoulder. “Thanks Big G! Hope you have a good one!”

His bodyguard nodded acknowledgement, but didn’t smile. Ezra never smiled while on the clock. Adrien had no idea how he managed it.

Nino opened the door and exited the vehicle.

Adrien undid his own seatbelt. “Thank you, Ezra. You don’t need to stick around. I’m planning on hiding away all day. I’ll text you if that changes.”

The large man nodded, pointed his large index finger at Adrien’s chest, and signed an okay sign with raised eyebrows.

Adrien shrugged. “I’m… better than I was. I’ll be okay. Thanks for asking.”

Ezra pushed a knuckle to his own chin, flicking it upwards.

“I need to keep my chin up?” Adrien guessed.

The gruff man nodded. He still didn’t smile.

But Adrien did. “I promise I will try. See you tomorrow, Ezra.”

Then he exited the vehicle, and broke into a trot to catch up to Nino who was waiting at the top of the stairs in front of the double doors that led into the building. One short elevator ride later, they arrived at his front door.

The door swung open and they were greeted with the amazing smell of raspberry and flaky crust. Adrien kicked off his shoes, and glanced across the open floor plan towards the kitchen. Sure enough, Marinette was there, headphones in either ear, facing away from them as she wiped down the counter, which was dusted in flour.

When he had signed a lease, the elaborate space with marble countertops, stainless steel appliances, and an island prep space with a built in gas stove had all seemed remarkably excessive for him when he barely knew how to use a microwave. To this day, he ordered out more often than not. When he had first moved in four years prior, Marinette and Alya both refused to let the amazing set up go unused. And he was often spoiled with five star dinners from Alya, and baked perfection from Marinette. But Alya had left Paris for university, and Marinette had started coming around less and less often unless the whole gang had plans.

But she was here today and he was grateful.

Nino settled onto a high stool in front of the island, opposite Marinette.

“Marinette?” Adrien called loudly, hoping to be heard over whatever she was listening to.

She whirled around immediately, her blue eyes jumping up to his face. She tore the headphones out of her ears and threw herself at him. Her slender arms were quickly around his neck. He closed his eyes and basked in her comforting warmth against his chest.

“I came as soon as Nino texted me. Are you okay?”

“I’m okay,” he assured her, letting his chin rest on her shoulder. “It’s really good to see you.”

She pulled away, and stared into his eyes. He felt like he was being measured, but he couldn’t help the soft smile that grew on his face watching her so intently focused before she pulled him into a hug again.

“It’s been too long,” she agreed. It hadn’t been that long. Maybe two or three months, but once upon a time he had been unable to go a week without her dropping by at least once. “How can I help?”

Adrien let her pull away. “Tell me what smells so good and tell me it’s ready to be devoured right now.” He and Nino had just polished off a box of chouquettes from her parent’s bakery, but today felt like the perfect day for total self indulgence.

She laughed. “What you’re smelling is a raspberry torte, but it has to refrigerate for at least six hours. Papa says it’s better if you leave it overnight, but I’m never patient enough for that. It’s for round two later this afternoon. I was going to start on a batch of snickerdoodles next. Should only take about thirty minutes before we can partake!”

“Can I help?” he asked.

She grinned. “Absolutely!”

“The usual cookie ingredients?”

She nodded, “And cinnamon! Oh and do you happen to have cream of tartar? I already took out butter earlier.”

“Yeah, I keep all your baking ingredients in stock. I’ve learned I miss out if I don’t!” He grinned as he handed her a mixing bowl, and a large wooden spoon.

Nino had buried his head in his arms resting on the counter. Adrien poked him as he passed by with baking soda in hand. “You know there’s an extra bed right there,” he said, gesturing past the living area filled with leather sofas and ottomans to the guest “bedroom”.

It wasn’t really a guest room, as it didn’t have any walls. But the lack of walls was the whole reason he had elected to go for the studio over the three bedroom flat. He never felt trapped when the whole living space was one giant room. Even the wall to the balcony was made entirely of glass giving the illusion that the room extended into the open air around the building, but it was higher than any of the surrounding buildings meaning no one could really get a good view inside unless he was standing right at the window. A necessary consideration for a part-time superhero.

“Too far away,” Nino grumbled into his forearms. “I’m fine right here.”

“Suit yourself.”

A cell phone rang, and Nino immediately bolted to a sitting position, pulling out his device from the pocket of his green hoodie. He grinned at it, flashing the screen towards Adrien.

Nathalie Sancoer was calling.

“Mlle. Sancoer, I was expecting your call!” Nino answered, his voice positively gleeful as he mimed towards Adrien’s pocket.

“M. Lahiffe,” was the dry response on the other end, loud enough that Adrien and Marinette could hear.

Adrien pulled up his missed call log. Four missed calls from Chloé, one from Kagami, another from Marinette, and six from Nathalie. He held up the device to Nino with a resigned sigh.

His friend fist pumped in silent victory. Adrien supposed he shouldn’t have been surprised to lose the bet. “Ms. Sancoer, give me just a moment.” Nino muted the call. “I’m going to head out to the balcony. I might be a while.”

Negotiations apparently took time. Adrien seriously didn’t know what he had ever done to deserve a friend like Nino. “It’s all yours!”

Nino left out the back, and Marinette turned puzzled eyes toward him. “What was that all about?”

“They’re negotiating over me,” he explained, as he fished out white and brown sugar from his cupboards.

“What,” she said, her voice flat.

Adrien chuckled. “Father wants to talk to me, but he is unwilling to call himself. He makes Nathalie call me, and I’m not taking or returning her calls. My father apparently doesn’t find that to be an acceptable excuse for her being unable to get through to me, so when that happens she calls Nino and bribes him to get me to call her back.”

“That is awful.”

Adrien retrieved a couple eggs from the refrigerator. “No, it’s good! He gets her to take away a photo shoot here or there, or frees up my schedule so I can hang out with you and the gang.”

“That is still terrible! Adrien! I knew your father was strict and controlling and insufferable in so many ways! But Nino having to serve as your union representative? That is a new low! How long have you had to bargain this way?”

He ignored the question. He didn’t know the answer. It had been going on long before Nino started making it easier. “It’s how I got to have more control over my studies without being disinherited. For reasons I don’t understand, Nathalie listens to Nino more than she does me. And father listens to Nathalie and no one else. These are the tools I have, and I’m not going to be ashamed of using them. Fancy physics degrees don’t pay for themselves after all.”

She squeezed his shoulder. “I never said you should be ashamed. I just… I wish none of it was necessary.”

He shrugged. “That makes two of us. We never planned to do this. She just called Nino once when she couldn’t get a hold of me. I never asked him to go to bat for me.”

“Nino’s just awesome like that.”

“He most definitely is!” Adrien agreed enthusiastically, placing a bag of flour and the cream of tartar on the counter next to Marinette’s mixing bowl. “So… is that everything you need?”

Her eyes scanned over the items, as she silently mouthed the ingredients while counting them off on her hands.

“Just missing salt,” she concluded.

“Salt. Of course.” He retrieved the condiment from the third cupboard to the right.

“Are you really okay?” she asked him as he handed her the last ingredient.

He shrugged. “I’ll be fine. I’m mostly just embarrassed.”

She frowned, her eyes shining with concern. “I imagine it hurts too though. To think you’re having a moment only to find someone is lying to you the whole time?”

“I only knew him for a day,” he insisted, but he couldn't meet her eyes.

”If you say so. I’ve managed to fall in love in a day before,” she admitted softly.

He rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I’ve done that before, too. It hasn’t panned out for me though. You?”

Her eyes avoided his, intent on scraping the butter off its paper wrapper and into the stainless steel bowl. “Not as of yet.”

Her sadness hit him in the chest. “We make quite the depressing pair, don’t we?”

She scowled, her lips pursed to the side of her face. “No! Not today! Today, we’re indulging ourselves in baked goods, and maybe Chloé will bring some good wine and we can get tipsy.”

He laughed. “I like your plan. How much sugar?” he asked, holding up the bag.

“Umm… 150 grams.”

And quickly they fell into a rhythm almost not needing words. It was strange to him how easy it was to follow Marinette’s line of thinking, but as they had gotten older, it had only gotten easier.

Now, what she was feeling? He had no idea. She was as much as mystery to him now as she had been their first year of college.

“Did you ever hear back from Dior?” he asked into the silence.

Her whole form slumped, and he wished he hadn’t brought it up.

“Not good news, I take it?” he asked as he added the last portion of flour into the mixing bowl.

She growled. “The worst part is they left me glowing feedback. Practical and fashionable at the same time, they said.” Her stirring took on a furious pace, and flour burst into the air between them. He chose not to comment. “They had no criticisms to offer except that it wasn’t what they were looking for. I just wish they would tell you what they were looking for so that I could design with that theme in mind.”

“I don’t think they want to give away to the competition what they’re thinking.”

She groaned. “That makes sense. I just… I think I could deliver what they wanted.”

“I could talk to my father if you wanted?”

She dropped the wooden spoon and jerked her head towards him. “Absolutely not! You will not owe that man any favors on my account.”

“I bet New York would still take you, if you reached out. They seemed really excited about the possibility of you on their team. And you seemed so excited with their design philosophy.”

Her eyes turned glassy, threatening tears. “You’re probably right,” she whispered. “They probably would still take me…”

He turned her away from the counter and wrapped his arms around her in a tight hug. She trembled in his embrace. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you cry,” he told her softly.

She shook her head. “I-It’s not your fault,” she stammered through her tears. “I was… already a ticking time bomb just waiting to go off.

“I’m not pressuring you to leave Paris if you’re set against it. I would miss you if you were gone,” he mumbled into her shoulder.

She pulled away and offered him a watery smile. “I would miss you, too.”

The front door clicked open. Adrien didn’t spare it a glance, knowing it was likely Chloé. Kagami always knocked despite the fact that she had a key. His attention remained on Marinette.

She wiped her tears away. “Enough about me!” she exclaimed. “Today is supposed to be about cheering you up!”

“Maybe if I could make you feel better I would feel better,” he told her, his lips quirking upwards in a sideways smile.

Marinette giggled. “That’s sweet. But I’m a bit of a lost cause at the moment. Maybe it would make me feel better to make you feel better!”

Chloé’s heels clicked definitely as she stepped into the tile floor of the kitchen.

“Are you two seriously arguing about who gets to make who feel better?” she growled out in exasperated greeting.

“Uh… maybe?” Marinette hedged, turning away from Adrien’s comfort and back towards the cookies in progress. She soon was rolling out little balls of dough and lining them up on a baking sheet.

Chloé shook her head, mumbling something under her breath. But she didn’t comment further on how ridiculous they were. Instead, she wrapped Adrien in a tight embrace. “Are you okay, Adri-kins?” she whispered.

He nodded into her shoulder. “I am with you here.”

She squeezed him harder. There had been a time when she would have scoffed at such a statement. But a random off topic tangential lesson on recognizing abusive relationships in tenth grade Literature, a fortune spent on intensive therapy, and time spent in self reflection, his oldest friend had become someone he could rely on again.

She pulled back, and scooped out a spoon of cookie dough from the bowl, and began licking it.

“Hey!” Marinette objected. “Those aren’t done yet!”

“I hate to break it to you, Dupain-Cheng, but they are better this way.”

Marinette rolled her eyes, but didn’t comment as she dipped a cup in a sugar cinnamon mixture and then pressed the cup gently into each ball of dough.

Chloé turned to Adrien again. “So, what can you tell us? Who are we plotting revenge against?”

Adrien groaned. “No! No revenge.”

Chloé patted his shoulder consolingly. “Don’t worry. You won’t have to be a part of it at all. I’ll take care of it. I’m sure Tsurugi will help. You in Dupain-Cheng?”

Marinette cocked her head, her gaze considered the ceiling. “Yeah… I think I am.”

“Marinette!” he hissed.

“What?!” Marinette exclaimed. “Someone goes after my friend? After you? And you want me to just let it go?”

“Yesss!” Chloé grinned. “Welcome to the dark side, Dupain-Cheng.” She offered a fist, which Marinette reciprocated.

“No,” Adrien repeated firmly. Chloé remained unmoved while Marinette shifted more nervously from foot to foot. “I’m serious. No revenge! That won’t make this go away any faster. And it won’t make me feel any better.”

Chloé stared at him, her face a mask of stoicism. “Is it so bad that we want to protect you?”

“Chloé, please,” he begged. “Promise me. No revenge.”

Chloé pouted, glancing down at her nails. “You’re absolutely no fun.”

Adrien rolled his eyes, very aware that she had promised nothing. “Oh, I’m so sorry to ruin your day.”

Marinette threw her arms around him again. “We’re so sorry.”

“Speak for yourself,” Chloé said. “I have nothing to apologize for.”

Marinette and Adrien shared an eye roll, but a knock at the door suppressed any comeback from either of them.

Adrien shook his head. “I’m going to go remind Kagami for the thousandth time that she has a key.”

He swung the door open revealing Kagami in a deep red business suit. She always looked good in the color. He was more than a bit envious.

She stepped forward and they exchanged the formal la bise greetings before they stepped back into the entryway of his studio.

“Coming from the office?” he asked, as he took her coat and scarf.

“An interview. A potential psychologist to add to our founding team. She is somewhat an expert on assessment and screening for red flags that could be indicative of current or past trauma among children and adolescents.”

He grinned. “That’s fantastic! I know I’ve already said it a dozen times before, but I think this foundation for neglected and abused children you and Chloé have started is amazing. I just can’t help but wonder how much better off she and I would have been if someone had caught us earlier in our lives.” And maybe Kagami too, even if her situation could be classified slightly differently.

Kagami lips stretched into a fond smile. “I don’t know that you could be better than you are. You have so much integrity and resilience. I have always looked up to you.”

Adrien felt the heat burning to the back of his neck. He really needed to get better at taking compliments.

“I have always looked up to you, too, Kagami.”

She nodded in formal acknowledgement. “Before I forget, my mother wishes you good luck in light of your scandal, and offers the use of her PI if you want to check this guy out.”

He groaned. “Not you, too.”

She chuckled. “I told my mother you likely would not make use of her offer.”

“I’m sure that went over well,” he commented, his voice flat.

Kagami laughed. “She said you were foolish and naive to not go out of your way to protect your family legacy and honor from those that would besmirch it.”

“I wish I could say she was wrong, but it sounds like she has me pegged.”

“Would you two stop standing awkwardly in the doorway and come in?” Chloé called. She was sprawled elegantly across the corner of the black leather couch nursing another spoonful of cookie dough in one hand, and a glass of red wine in the other. Nino sat in the recliner, his red hat over his face. Adrien hoped he was actually asleep, but he had his doubts. Marinette remained in the kitchen, sliding her first sheet of cookies into the oven. He knew she would prepare a second before joining them in the living area.

Kagami took a seat on the opposite side of the couch of Chloé leaving the space between them for Adrien.

“Tsurugi! The suspense is killing me!” Chloé whined. “That report you just gave to Adrien was carefully neutral. How did it go?”

Kagami grinned. “I do enjoy giving you a hard time, but that was not my intention this time. I think it went really well.”

Chloé literally squealed and threw her hands up in a miniature victory dance without spilling any of her wine.

“You’re awfully excited,” Marinette commented with an amused grin. “Who were you interviewing?”

Chloé spun back towards the kitchen island where Marinette was dusting another twelve cookies in her cinnamon sugar mixture. “You don’t understand!” Chloé exclaimed. “This woman was amazing! It’s like she could have written our mission statement! She had so many ideas for how children in abusive situations could be identified earlier, for what type of education is needed for children to recognize harmful situations themselves. And she somehow projected this aura of such gentleness. She would be so approachable. And yet, it didn’t diminish her passion at all!”

“You fell in love didn’t you?” Adrien smirked at her.

She turned back to him, and held up two manicured fingernails a centimeter apart. “Only a little bit.” Her blue eyes immediately shifted to Kagami. “But that’s not why I want to hire her! She will be an asset in getting the foundation off the ground!”

Kagami nodded. “No, I agree with you. She’s a good fit. I would like to make her an offer.”

“Tsurugi!” Chloé whined. “Why haven’t you already done that? I already told you I wanted to hire her! She’s going to be snatched up so quickly!”

“No, you didn’t. You told me you wanted to date her,” Kagami countered matter of factly.

Chloé spluttered, and then blushed. Everyone else laughed, including Nino, which definitely meant he wasn’t asleep. Adrien would have to fix that. “Can we talk about something else please?” she begged.

As if the universe had heard her, a siren blared right outside the building. Chloé immediately bolted for the window. She pushed aside the curtain and peered down into the street below, her lips stretching into a smile as satisfied as the cat who had found the camembert.

“Chloé?” Adrien asked, his voice dripping with suspicion. “What did you do?”

“Mwah?” she asked, her painted nails flared out to her chest dramatically with complete innocence. “I only did my civic duty by reporting someone that looked exactly like the wanted poster down at the precinct this morning hanging out in a creepy unmarked van.”

“Chloé!” Marinette scolded, but she was grinning as she peaked through the drapes over Chloé’s shoulder. “That’s terrible!”

“Efficient,” Kagami disagreed.

“He was doing nothing wrong,” Adrien said.

“Nothing illegal, maybe,” Nino said, replacing his hat onto the top of his head, revealing his face once again.

“Did he really deserve to be arrested?” Adrien asked, but it was clear that he was the minority in this debate.

Chloé’s blue eyes pinned him in place. “Do you really want them to have you under surveillance like that? That kind of trash understands only one thing! Power.”

Adrien sighed. “No, but there were other ways to take care of it.”

Chloé shook her head. “Adrien, you are amazing, and I love you! But you are way too nice! It’s not like he’s a journalist speaking truth to power! It’s not like he’s going after some corrupt asshole that profits off the plights of others while not paying his taxes.”

“You’d sick righteous reporters on your parents like that?” Nino teased. He was clearly trying to deflect the subject. “Harsh.”

“Though not undeserved.” Kagami added. She and Nino exchanged a fist bump across the open expanse between the sofa and his lounge chair.

“Can it, both of you!” Chloé snapped, shooting a glare towards both of them from the window.

Nino chuckled. He rolled out of the recliner and took over Chloé’s vacated seat next to Adrien.

The oven timer went off, and Marinette scurried from the window back into the kitchen. “Who wants cookies?”

“Just bring a giant plate!” Chloé called back. “We’ll eat everything.”

Seconds later, there was a crash, and a scream from the kitchen. Adrien bolted to his feet and ran to her side, Kagami less than an arm length behind him.

Marinette’s hands wrapped protectively over her head, she was surrounded by broken glass.

Adrien tread carefully around the largest fragments to put a hand on her shoulder.

She peeked out from under her hands to him. “I’m okay,” she said.

“What happened?” Adrien asked.

“Just me being my usual clumsy self,” she said, her voice dripping with self deprecation.

Kagami handed him the broom and he immediately started sweeping up the glass, starting with the area closest to Marinette.

Marinette sighed, dropping her arms completely to her side. “I just was reaching for another wine glass, but I couldn’t quite reach it. In trying to urge it closer, I overdid it, and the two glasses went flying.”

Kagami tisked in disapproval. “Perhaps, next time you should just ask for help?”

Marinette nodded in agreement. ”Yes, I’m sorry for being stubbornly independent.” She turned her gaze back to Adrien. “And I’m sorry for breaking your glasses. I will replace them.”

Adrien shook his head. “Please don’t worry about it. I’m just glad you’re okay. And I do wish you let us help you when you need it.”

Marinette snorted. “You’re one to talk.”

He grinned. “Touché.”

Kagami held the dustpan and he swept the glass into the tray.

“Do you have a mop?” Kagami asked.

When he handed her the requested item, she leaned forward and whispered in his ear. “Would you mind letting me do this part? I wanted to talk to Marinetted about something.”

“Are you sure? I don’t mind helping.”

“I got this,” Kagami insisted.

He nodded, and turned back to Marinette who hadn’t moved since the glasses had fallen. “Are you okay?”

She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “I’m… I’ll be fine. You should get back to your party. Kagami and I can finish cleaning this up.”

It was obvious he was being dismissed. “Okay, well, let me know if either of you need help finding anything.”

Adrien let himself fall back onto the couch next to Nino. His head flopped back onto the couch, his gaze locked on the ceiling.

“Marinette okay?” Chloé asked. She had taken Nino’s former seat in the lounge chair.

“Just rattled, I think,” he reported. “They kicked me out. Kagami wanted to talk to Marinette about something.”

“Ooh!” Chloé leapt to her feet. “I think I want in on this conversation! Excuse me!”

Adrien sighed again.

“If all the revenge talk really bothers you, I will get them to stop,” Nino told him softly after a moment of silence.

Adrien smiled. “Thank you for the offer. I do appreciate that everyone is all protective. It’s really nice to have you all on my side. I just… I also want this to be over. Ideally, I never want to have to think about it again after I talk to my father.”

Nino nodded. “Yeah, I get what you’re saying. You do get why they want to go after this guy though, right?”

Adrien shrugged. “Maybe?” He understood it intellectually he supposed, but emotionally, revenge had never made sense to him.

“Imagine it was you mystery girl on that tabloid instead of you. Where you can look at the picture and she looks happier than you’ve seen her in a long time.”

“Is it really that rare to see me smile?” Adrien objected.

“Have you seen this pic?” Nino asked, whipping out his phone, swiping through his apps. “It is not just a smile!”

“Please don’t make me look at it,” Adrien begged, turning away from Nino’s phone, towards the kitchen.

Marinette giggled at something Kagami had just said, and Adrien found himself smiling fondly at the pair.

“Yeah, fine,” Nino continued. “But again, she looks amazingly happy, and you now know that the person who was kissing her was lying. That in fact, the whole image is a lie. And she’s hurting somewhere after the fact because of it. Wouldn’t you want to do something?”

“Yeah okay,” Adrien conceded. “I get your point. And for the record, that would be the case if it had been any of you.”

“Good! So, if you’re willing to stand up for others, why won’t you ever let us stand up for you?”

Adrien hadn’t really thought about it in those terms. Was he just being stubbornly independent? Thinking he should be able to manage everything himself? Or did he believe deep down that he wasn’t worthy of being defended.

He shook himself out of his thoughts. That was a therapy session for another day.

“How did the phone call with Nathalie go?” Adrien asked, intentionally changing the topic.

A grin bloomed across Nino’s face.“Pretty good for you, I think? We managed to get five am fittings until you complete your masters degree. She wouldn’t commit to an indefinite change.”

Adren didn’t know why Nino used the “we” pronoun in his summary. His friend was the one doing all the work in negotiating out a deal. If Nino wasn’t already running a successful DJ business, Adrien would have pushed his friend to become a lawyer.

“Nino, that’s literally a year or more. Thank you. When do I have to talk to my father?”

“Eleven tomorrow morning. At the mansion.”

Adrien breathed a sigh of relief. He may have wanted to do his fittings first thing, but it would be nice to have time to mentally prepare in the morning before seeing his father.

“You’re the best.” It felt like a weight had been lifted from Adrien’s shoulders. With an appointment on the books with his father and his friends all in the room, his phone would finally stop blowing up. He could almost pretend it was a normal day.  

“Anything for my best bro,” Nino said, offering a fist bump. He yawned in the middle of it.

“You should get some rest,” Adrien suggested.

Golden eyes turned toward him with eyebrows raised. “You didn’t get any sleep last night either, mec. Want to follow your own advice?”

Adrien barked a laugh. “I would love to, but I don’t think my brain shut up long enough to let me yet. It’s better to be distracted by all of you until I’m bone-dead tired. But you got everyone here, so if you want to take a shift off, I’m good for a while.”

Nino started to nod when there was a knock at the door. He jumped up to answer it.

“Isn’t everyone here already?” Adrien called after him.

“Not everyone,” Nino reported and answered the door. Alya Césaire stood on the other side of the threshold, and Adrien grinned at her unexpected presence. Last he heard, Alya had been chasing some International drug cartel in Italy.

“Hey Al,” Nino greeted as he enveloped her in a warm hug.

Adrien smiled at how well they fit together. He still didn’t understand why they had broken up. He rose to his feet to greet her, but a squealing Marinette came running from the kitchen, tackling Alya the second Nino had pulled away.

“I didn’t know you were in town!” Marinette exclaimed, a huge grin lighting up her features.

“Yeah, I honestly didn’t think I’d have time to see anyone so I was trying to keep it hush hush, but then I saw that headline…” she trailed off, her hazel eyes landing on him with a sympathetic smile from over Marinette’s shoulder.

“Say no more! You are totally welcome to be an honorary member of the “protect Adrien Agreste squad!” Marinette squealed happily as she pulled away.

Alya swept him up in a hug next, with Marinette and Nino joining in from behind him. He let himself melt into their protective holds. Once upon a time, the four of them had been as thick as thieves, and he had missed their dynamic.

“I called Nino as soon as I saw,” Alya confessed as they broke apart. “I’m sorry I didn’t call you myself. I just figured you would be more comfortable hearing from him, but if you ever need to talk about anything, please reach out.”

Adrien’s gaze landed on Nino who was grimacing over Alya’s shoulder. “Liar! I knew there was no way you were up that early.”

Alya laughed, her sparkling eyes flicking back toward Nino. “Sorry, I didn’t realize I was getting anyone in trouble.”

Nino waved away her apology.

Marientte quickly ushered them all inside and back to the leather sofas. Soon, the six of them all sat around the plate of snicker doodles and with glasses of wine in hand.

“Spill Césaire!” Chloé demanded.

“About?”

Chloé rolled her eyes. “Stop. I know you’ve already done your research on this bastard that landed Adri-kins in the tabloids, and have a half formed plan for vengeance. So tell us what you’ve discovered so we can get it on it.”

Alya set her glass of wine on the center coffee table with a sigh. “You don’t want to know.”

Chloé scoffed. “What do you mean? Of course I want to know!”

“He recently graduated university,” Alya reported. “Majored in theater and minored in physics.”

Huh. Adrien hadn’t expected that. Maybe the conman hadn’t feigned his interest in Adrien’s research after all. He frowned. Or maybe, he had been hired specifically because he had the expertise to feign interest.

Nino’s head fell onto Adrien’s shoulder. His golden eyes had finally fallen victim to Nino’s sleep deprivation. Adrien couldn’t help the fond smile that stretched across his face as he adjusted his arms to make his lean form a more comfortable pillow.

“He hasn’t landed a job in about six months,” Alya continued, “and apparently he has some crippling debt.”

“That doesn’t justify…” Marinette broke in.

Alya barreled over the interruption. “Medical debt. For his… kid sister.”

“Ugh! Just stop!” Chloé cut in. “You’re right! I don’t want to know if you’re just gonna make me feel sorry for this guy.”

Alya smirked. “The trashy tabloid that hired him, though?”

“Now we’re talking!” Chloé exclaimed gleefully. Even Kagmai leaned forward with her elbows on her knees to listen to Alya’s research.

Adrien let his own eyes fall closed and he leaned into Nino’s warmth only half listening to his friends as they plotted and schemed.

Soon he was dozing in and out, finding comfort in the familiar righteous voices that spiraled around him.

Alya wanted to sink this online tabloid that had a reputation for going after easy personal scandals of celebrities and regular people alike. Chloé had connections that could crash the server for a solid week. Kagami has strategies and clout to encourage divestment from the organization. And of course Marinette’s crafty mind worked to tie it all together in a plan so bizarre, it was worthy of Ladybug so it couldn’t be traced back to Adrien or any of them.

Despite his own misgivings, it felt really good to have them all so willing to pour in hours and resources to come to his defense. And if the tabloid couldn’t hurt anyone else, Adrien definitely could get on board.

“I’m so glad you’re all on my side,” Adrien interjected, sleepily after about an hour. These were four women you did not want to cross. “I’d never survive your combined wrath.”

Their laughter melted together in the best kind of harmony.

A second later his phone buzzed in his pocket. He slowly fished it out, careful not to disturb Nino who remained on his shoulder - still as a rock.

Marinette had sent him a picture. He opened it to reveal him and Nino curled up on his black leather couch seemingly asleep with the tagline “I slept with my best friend” scrawled across the bottom in elegant cursive. He flashed her a smile and she grinned back.

Thank you, he texted. I’m going to frame this.

yw. The two of you are too cute.

Before he could craft a response, all their phones went off at once, and Adrien’s contentment evaporated like liquid nitrogen on a laboratory floor. The simultaneous alert could only mean one thing.

Nino sat up, his thumb and forefinger rubbing at his eyes.

“Shit!” Chloe muttered. “It’s at the office.” She glanced at Kagami. “We have to go.”

Kagami gave a stoic nod and rose to her feet gracefully.

Alya was only a second behind her. “I should probably go, too. To make sure the twins stay out of trouble.”

Adrien nodded and waved her away with a smile understanding completely. Alya’s twin sisters running the Ladyblog were somehow more reckless than Alya had ever been.

Marinette didn’t even offer an excuse. She just gave him a hug, grabbed her purse, and ran out the door.

Nino stood as well, but he lingered. “You going to be okay, mec?”

Adrien nodded, grateful that his friends had learned over the years to make themselves scarce during an akuma attack. They believed he was contacting his bodyguard for added protection under his father’s orders. He wished he could tell them the truth.

And within a minute, Adrien stood alone in his lavish studio save for Plagg who came out of hiding the second the front door had closed behind Nino.

“Stupid akuma,” Adrien muttered under his breath. His friends would have stayed until two in the morning had the alert not gone off.

Adrien called for his transformation and stood on his own balcony with his eyes closed for a second, letting the chill breeze whip his hair around. A moment later he activated his baton and vaulted into the Parisian sky.

A hero’s work was never done.

…

Chapter 3: Akuma

[capesandshapes]

Don’t Speak, and I’ll Pretend not to Hear (Adrienette) (2/2)

Part 1 / AO3 / My Fics

Faced with the inevitability of Adrien and Kagami getting together, Marinette decided that she needed some time apart from the blond in order to properly move on. Since then, he hasn't been able to get her off his mind, even as Kagami begs him to define what they really are. Going against the wishes of that tiny voice in his head that tells him otherwise, Adrien ends up going to Marinette's balcony as Chat to figure out his emotions.

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

“Yes!” She paused, “I mean no! I mean-- Sort of?” Marinette began to ramble once more, her hands flying as she attempted to explain the situation to Adrien, her face turning a vivid ruby. “I’m trying to fix it, I mean that’s what this is supposed to do. I thought that if I didn’t talk to him for a while that these feelings would go away, maybe I’d fall in love with someone else.” She grimaced, her hand balling up in her hair as she pushed her bangs away from her face. “But that’s not happening! It’s like you and your friend, I can’t stop thinking about him, even if I don’t say a word to him!”

“That’s how you know that I’m in love with her,” Adrien summarized, his mouth still hanging a little bit agape. “But how long have you been in love with him? You were in love with me once, right? So then how long have you been in love with…?” He trailed off, struggling to say his own name once again.

There was no way that this could have happened, there was no way that Marinette was in love with him. Not the real him anyway. If he had known… Then what? What would he do? His heart was so tight at the moment that it felt like suffocation.

“Since almost the second day that I knew him.”

“The umbrella,” Adrien breathed, almost immediately regretting it.

“The what?”

It then dawned on Adrien once again what a truly awful idea this was. There were a million different places that he should be now, but in the bed of Marinette Dupain-Cheng was not one of them. He was supposed to be giving her space, he was supposed to be thinking of what to tell Kagami, and he was supposed to be letting her fall out of love with him. But now? He couldn’t bring himself to do any of that.

“The umbrella,” he began again, taking in how her shoulder rose with a nervous breath in response. He swallowed, hoping that he was at good at lying in real life as he was in his head, “he told me about it, I sorta visit him just like I do you. The only problem is, he just can’t stop talking about you.”

“He can’t stop talking about me?” She asked, her lips parted slightly and her face pulled into a stunned expression that was just so Marinette. He’d seen her look like that before nearly every time he’d talked to her, but he never realized how much he truly missed it.

“Never. It’s always Marinette this, Marinette that.” His tongue ran across his lips as he tried to think, Marinette’s eager eyes obviously expecting more out of him. The worst thing was that it wasn’t a lie, not really, he spoke an almost comical amount about Marinette now that he thought about it. God, how long had he been in love with her? “That day in the rain, he told me that he was so happy to be your friend and that you’re an important person to him.”

“He said that?” She asked, her voice wavering.

“He said more than just that, Princess,” Adrien said, his mind whirring with all the things that he wanted to tell her as Chat. It was easier this way, working out his emotions and what she meant to him. There were things that Adrien just couldn’t say to her, not know, but Chat could. “He told me that he’s proud to be your friend. You’re one of the bravest people he knows, and somehow you also managed to be the most compassionate as well. You’re smart, talented, kind, capable, modest, understand, beautiful--”

Her nose scrunched at the last one, her voice flatlining as she replied, “You’re lying. You’re worried that I’ll get akumatized, so you’re lying to me.”

“I would never lie to you, Marinette.”

“He doesn’t think I’m beautiful,” she replied, rolling onto her back. “Compared to models? No.”

Adrien got onto his forearms and leaned into her view, a look painted across his face.

Marinette brushed him off despite it, rolling her eyes as she stated, “you need to stop, kitty. You’re going to get my head full of all of these ideas, and then where will I be? Back at square one. When you tell me things like that and say that Adrien said them, then I’m right back where I started again, in love with him.” She frowned, turning her head away from him, “I can’t keep doing this; he’s in love with Kagami.”

“ He’s not ,” Adrien bolted upright with his admission, staring at her from above as he sat beside her. “I think it’s hard for him to admit to her, maybe even to himself, but I know that he’s not.”

“Chat, stop,” her eyes had grown cold as she sat up to meet him, he vermouth pulled in a thin line.

“He missed you--”

“Stop.”

“So much--”

“Please.

“Because--”

“Chat.”

“Marinette, listen!” He sighed, finding her wrists as she began to burrow her hands in her hair once more. Was it supposed to be this hard to tell someone you loved them?

She exhaled, her hands lowering as she began to calm herself. She quickly attempted to explain herself, “I don’t want you to tell me how he feels, kitty. I don’t want anyone else to tell me how he feels. This whole time I’ve been hearing from everyone else how he feels, how he was definitely looking at me and for sure has a ‘thing’ for me. But that’s not right, I need to hear it from him.”

His eyes closed in a slow, catlike blink before he replied, his mind running through the hundreds of scenarios in which he could tell her. “Then you will, I promise.”

“You can't make that kind of promise."

*****

I’m sorry. He’d sent the message to Kagami last night, and though she responded with understanding, it still didn’t feel great. Still, it was the least nerve-wracking part of things he supposed, and now he’d moved onto the most.

Waiting for Marinette was different than texting Kagami, somehow far more nerve-wracking than it was supposed to be. He’d waited the whole school day for her to talk to him in hopes of an easy out, but that had not quite come, not even with the added help of his text to her, we need to talk . Every single opportunity had been wasted, all because he wanted her to move first. Now, having run out of chances, he had rushed to her locker and blocked the way. What he hadn’t anticipated, however, was just how long Marinette was willing to camp out in the classroom to avoid him.

The hallway had long grown quiet, Alya and Nino having waved goodbye to hi with a mutual declaration of dude, and even Chloe having lost patience for an endless supply of Adrikins time if that meant staying at school much longer. There was no way Marinette could hold out for much longer; she had to go home at some point. When she did, he’d be right there, ready.

“Maybe you should give up,” Plagg tried for the umpteenth time.

“No.”

“But you’ve been waiting for hourssssss. If you wait any longer then you’re dad’s going to be mad, and you’ll be back under house arrest again, just like before.”

“She’s coming.”

“Maybe she’s not.”

“I told you, she’s coming,” Adrien snapped.

Plagg opened his mouth to speak, likely attempting to reason with Adrien once more. Before he could do that, light footsteps began to echo down the hallway. The kwami frowned, remind the boy, “remember, you owe me camembert for this,” before zooming into his hiding place in Adrien’s pocket.

Adrien blinked, his chest growing tighter as the footsteps grew closer. It was her, he knew that it had to be her. At this point there was hardly anyone else in the school; it was Marinette or bust. But still, a small, nervous part of him hoped that it wasn’t.

“Marinette,” he called, his voice light and uncertain. A small gasp responded to him, the noise of her shoes walking towards him stopped entirely. Encouraged by that, he tried again, his voice sounding a little more confident as he called, “Marinette,” once more.

A beat, and then he heard the sound of… her running away? No sooner had he heard the telltale sound of her ballet flats taking off in the other direction than he began to run himself, leaving his backpack outside Marinette’s locker. She was not making things easy at all, dear god was she fast.

The nice part was that she wasn’t able to get far before she tripped, nerves having affected her sense of balance and knocking her down with the first turn. The not so nice part was that, having taken off at full speed and fallen victim to the same corner, Adrien slid right into her and landed on top of her. Marinette looked dazed below him, and Adrien felt a momentary hint of pity. Momentary. As soon as it left, he placed his hands to either side of her, effectively trapping her.

“Stop running,” he demanded in between pants, wondering how an ordinary girl had almost outrun a Parisian superhero.

“I…”

“Don’t say that you’re not, I just chased you,” he breathed. “We’re ending this. We are stopping this right now; you have to talk to me, Marinette. I can’t do it anymore.”

“I can’t either,” she admitted, “I… I miss you.”

“I miss you too,” his voice cracked.

“But I can’t do this anymore, Adrien,” she replied. There were no hints of joy on her face, she didn’t want to do it. But in her mind, this was the only way. She couldn’t chase after Adrien forever, and she couldn’t manage a friendship where she was hopeless in love with the other person. This was how it was supposed to be. “Adrien, I can’t be your friend anymore.”

Was it supposed to hurt that much when she said it? Was everything supposed to come crashing down the way it did? Maybe he’d changed her mind the other night; perhaps in just confronting her with the idea of Adrien saying those things about her, he’d broken the illusion.

“And I’m sorry. I know it doesn’t make sense, but I can’t keep doing this to you or myself. You deserve a real friend.” Had she planned this speech? “I know that you care about me so much, and that’s what makes this hurt more. I don’t want to do this, but this is the right thing to do.” She took a moment to compose herself, “Adrien, I’m sorry, I’m in love with you.”

It was different hearing from her when she knew it was him, somehow more showstopping. Every as she began to tearfully explain, his mind still hung onto those words. Yes, he’d expected them, but like this? Never like this. She likely expected this to end their friendship, maybe that he’d be upset or something of the sort. But it didn’t, of course it didn’t, because there he was, madly in love with her.

And there she was, still talking.

She grew silent as his forehead pressed against hers, his face so close that his breath intermingled with hers.”I don’t think we should be friends either,” he admitted, absorbing the way that her eyes tightly closed and her skin blossomed beneath him.

“O-oh.”

“Oh,” he echoed, his lips hovering just above hers.

“W-Why is that?” She managed to mutter, her eyes just barely opening to look into his.

“Because I love you.”

How long had she dreamed of that moment? Did she ever think it would happen? Her lips didn’t respond to his just barely brushing against hers, but her arms did. They locked around his neck, her head quickly burying in his shoulder as she held him tightly. His arms wrapped around her torso in response, cradling her closer to him as he pressed a small kiss to the side of her neck.

“Do you get it?” He asked as he sat up, a slight chuckle very evident in his voice. “I can’t be your friend anymore, either.” After a moment, he playfully asked, “but if I’m not your friend, then what would I be now?”

Marinette snorted in response, pulling away from him. Slight tears clung in the corners of her eyes as she looked at him, but a large smile was painted across her face as she jokingly stated, “the worst.”

“Not exactly the title I was looking for,” Adrien admitted with a grin as he leaned forward to wipe the tears out of her eyes with the side of his thumb, “I think I’ll settle for boyfriend instead.”

[excidium]

“I wanted to tell you then, but I didn’t have the words and I didn’t have the time.” -gabriel

“Skulduggery Pleasant” Starters // NOT ACCEPTING

@lerfmuses​​ said something to Adrien.

      Adrien didn’t know whether to feel surprised, upset or angry. Somewhere deep down, he knew it was all three. But identifying feelings were never his strong suit, especially when it came to recognizing and coming to terms with his own. His emotions had been pushed down to the bottom of his chest, forced to congeal and combine into a lethal and overwhelming amalgam that was primed to detonate at any moment. But he couldn’t ever afford to express them, no. No, he never could. Gabriel’s eyes were much too critical and calculated, as were Hawk Moth’s. The name was accurate, he thought to himself bitterly. Much too accurate.

     One slip up, and he was always corrected harshly. Time and time again, met with very little leeway or the forgiveness that a child deserved. Emotionally and socially stunted, he tried his best to navigate a world which he was not prepared to enter, nor one that he understood. Isolation made it tough to adjust, but disability made it harder. His Father seemed so destined to see him fail in everything that deviated from the path that he meticulously approved, to the point where it almost seemed like sabotage. And now knowing his identity, it was nearly impossible not to come to that conclusion. But Adrien still refused to reach it, even though subconsciously he knew the very real truth.

    He had been subjected to so many lies and so many attempts to manipulate his reality, to the point where he could no longer navigate his other relationships in a healthy and meaningful way. A standard had been set very early on in his life. A standard which the boy from trial and error grew to understand was unhealthy, but he would need to work on it for years to correct it. Though acknowledging there was a problem, he had still tried to ignore it for the sake of their crumbling relationship. “He’ll change. He’ll come around. He loves me. He just misses Mom. He wants what’s best for me. He knows what’s best for me.” They were all lies Adrien told himself to cope, but at a point he needed to acknowledge the truth -- no matter how much it hurt.

   Why did he ignore his hurtful actions and make excuses for him? As simple as it was, he still loved his Father. Through every overreaction, every attempt at gas lighting & manipulation and through every lie and action committed with malintent -- he still loved him. His Father didn’t deserve his love, respect or even loyalty. The blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb, and he had already found people without matching DNA to call his family. Loving them never hurt nearly as much as loving his Father did. And that should have been a sign even before this, but the boy was much too optimistic and forgiving to even think in such terms.

   As he stood here analyzing the scene that lay before him, and his tears stung his eyes and fists curled and uncurled at his sides -- it was like he had a breakthrough, and he had had enough. How could he? How could he? This was all he had to say for himself? He didn’t have the time? Didn’t have the time, he said. That was a lie. Adrien narrowed his green eyes critically at the brooch resting on his Fathers chest, then looked back up to his face to meet his gaze again. His timid nature was no longer dominant, and he let his Chat Noir mask slip on. Metaphorically, of course.

  Gone was the Adrien who was unable to keep eye contact for more than a few seconds -- in was the son of a Father who had betrayed him. There was once a time he wished he could tell Gabriel about his alter ego -- but now? No, that was never something he would ever do willingly. That was information Gabriel would now need to find out for himself upon chance -- something which was now unlikely if he didn’t already know. The bridge to redemption, honesty and trust currently in flames directly in front of them.

  ❝ But you had the time to terrorize Paris almost every day, right? ❞ His voice was steady, but his voice was low and angry. He had used this tone before as Chat Noir, but never as Adrien -- and certainly never towards his Father. He could feel Plagg nestled up in his pocket against his chest, the little cat shaking in his own rage. He could cuss out his Chosen’s Father later, where it was safe. Now it was almost certain they would be met with a less than happy reaction if the Kwami revealed himself, compromising Adrien’s identity ( and safety ). Still, the weight in his pocket comforted him, letting him know that he wasn’t completely alone. ❝ When were you planning on telling me if I didn’t find out? ❞ He wasn’t asking, he was demanding an honest answer.

  ❝ Or were you just going to let me find out along with the rest of the city? ❞ That seemed to be the more likely scenario. If Adrien hadn’t stumbled upon his Father entering the secret basement that their mansion harbored, he likely would’ve found out when he and Ladybug eventually captured and defeated him -- or when he captured and defeated them. ❝ This entire time you told me that Mother was missing. But you always knew where she was. Didn’t I deserve to know the truth?! ❞ He was yelling now, something he was generally scolded for. He was hurt by the knowledge of Gabriel being Hawk Moth, yes. But the concealment of his Mother’s presumed corpse was far more alarming and painful for him.

   He allowed Gabriel a moment to defend himself before laying into him further or running off -- which he knew wasn’t wise. But his selfishness was overwhelming his rationality, causing him to act impulsively. He wanted his Father to be innocent so desperately -- for him to have a good excuse. He wanted this heaviness in his chest to be lifted, he wanted his Father to embrace him and tell him that it would be okay. He wanted Gabriel to be a Father, not his boss. Not a man who simply provided monetarily, but refused or nurture him and give him the attention and special care that he needed. He had so much love to give, and he wasn’t allowed to give it. He needed the love of his final remaining parent, but he never got it. His desperation made him blind and stupid time and time again, and even though he was standing up to him now, he still was making himself vulnerable by allowing room for an explanation.

   Though he was angry and upset, despite the yelling, he was keeping a surprisingly calm exterior given the circumstances. Well calm as he could possibly be, given the circumstances. His heart was thudding against his chest, and his mind was racing. Tears no longer pricked his eyes, because they were spilling over and down his cheeks. But that was the reaction to be expected of someone in this situation. He had hoped his Father wouldn’t Akumatize him if he was under the impression that he was simply an ordinary boy -- after all, it may pose as a security risk once his motive was revealed to the two beloved Parisian heroes. But beyond that initial motive, there was a sort of stubbornness here to prove that he was stronger than his Father thought he was.

  Whenever he raised his voice like this or got worked up, a meltdown wasn’t far behind. And while he could already feel his hands becoming numb as they balled at his sides, he was determined to hold this out for as long as he needed to. It was so fucked up that he was looking for some sort of messed up approval even now, but Adrien couldn’t help but hold out hope. This was all he had left.

[vgckwb]

ML: Are They Worthy? Chapter 81: Of Monsters and Men!/Superbug (The Battle for Paris, Part 1)

A cloud of darkness had descended upon Paris. At the center of it was a being who was entirely purple, masculine, had wings, antennae, grizzly sharp teeth, and void pupil-less eyes. Their fingers were clawed. He looked around. He noticed that he was being filmed.

“Heh heh” he laughed. “Greetings Paris” he said to his audience. “I’ve been waiting for a long time. Watching. Doing nothing but observing without the power to do anything. But finally, I am free! And now I shall conquer.

Ah. Forgive my manners. My name is Nurushwa. I am a kwami. A kwami labeled evil by some. A label I don’t hate. I’ll be blunt with you all. I wish to take over, and once I do, I will free my captive brothers and sisters also deemed evil. This can be as painless or painful as necessary. I don’t mind either way, but my personal preference is painful.” Nurushwa laughed.

Meanwhile, all the heroes and Hawk Moth were watching this unfold on their devices. “Evil kwami?” Ladybug remarked.

She got a call and took it, while also keeping an eye on Nurushwa. It was Sting. “Ladybug! Web-Spinner and I are converging on your position! Have every hero do the same!”

“What’s going on?” Ladybug asked.

“That thing is an evil kwami!” Sting replied. “It’s apparently a powerful creature that’s been locked away for quite some time!”

“How did it get out?” Ladybug asked.

“It takes three things to unleash it!” Sting explained. “A close proximity to the area in which they are locked, an affinity to miraculous energy, and overwhelming negative emotion! Someone MUST have found them!”

“But who?” Ladybug asked.

Nurushwa was still laughing when he started gagging a little bit. Suddenly and viscerally out of his mouth pops the head and torso of Lila. She takes a few breaths. “Paris! I am sorry! I don’t deserve your kindness! I lied! About everything! Truly, I am a terrible person! But please! Stop this monster! And if you could find it in your heart! Save me as well!”

“Well that answers that” Ladybug said.

Nurushwa used one of his arms to push Lila back in. “A feisty one.” He turned his attention back to the cameras. “Enough dilly-dallying! Now my pretties, DESCEND!” The dark cloud broke up. It turns out, they were a cloud of akumas. They rapidly descended on the city, engulfing the citizenry one by one. However, instead of any unique villains, they turned into beings that looked similar to Nurushwa.

Meanwhile, Lila was inside Nurushwa, fearing for her life. “Don’t worry. I’ll give you everything you’ve wanted. Power. Friends. Control.”

“I don’t care about that anymore!” Lila said, sobbing.

“Oh, but it isn’t a choice,” Nurushwa told her. “There’s just one thing I’m asking in return.”

“What?!’ Lila hissed.

“Your humanity” Nurushwa answered.

Lila started to feel her body start to fade away. “What are you doing to me?!”

“Heh heh” Nurushwa laughed. “I’m simply turning you into one of us.” Lila was even more scared. “Ah. You have the soul of a fox kwami. Trickstern would love a new playmate.” He laughed as Lila was struggling while her body was slowly turning into a kwami like him.

Within a matter of minutes, all of the heroes had met up with Ladybug and everyone else. “What do we do?!” Honey Bee asked. “There’s a crazy, maniacal...thing, and it has Lila!”

“AND it’s taking the rest of the city” Chienne Reaction pointed out.

Hawk Moth turned to face Adrien. “Adrien! Get out of here! Go to our house! You should be safe!”

Adrien looked at Hawk Moth. He smiled and sighed. “Sorry, but I can’t.” Hawk Moth was confused. “Plagg! Claws out!” he turned into Cat Noir.

Hawk Moth was surprised. But he shook himself out of it. “We’ll talk about this later. Right now, we need to deal with Nurushwa!”

“So, you’re willing to help out old man?” Carapace asked.

Hawk Moth glared at him. “I’ll be the first to tell you that I’m no angel. But today, I’d like to be on their side. I’ll do anything I can to help.”

Ladybug looked up at Nurushwa. “Well, Sting said that they need a person. What if we try to free Lila from him?”

“It’s a good idea” Rooster Gold started.

Bleat Star came in. “But I don’t think he’d let us get close to him!”

“Even with all of us, he’s creating an army as we speak!” Hog Wild reminded her.

Ladybug thought. She looked at Chienne Reaction and Hawk Moth. “That’s it! We need to power up! Chienne Reaction! Power up Hawk Moth! Once he’s powered up, he can bestow more power unto us! Once we have that power, we could take the fight to him more easily!”

“Plus, we could save people, and have Hawk Moth give them powers as well” Cat Noir said jumping in.

“Right!” Ladybug said. “Are you up for it?”

Chienne reaction thought. “While I don’t LIKE supporting Hawk Moth, I think it’s our only option.” She breathed out. “Here goes. Kiss of Luck!” She powered up Hawk Moth.

“Thank you,” Hawk Moth said. Butterflies surrounded him. “As a reward, here you go” he powered up a butterfly and infused it with Chienne Reaction’s miraculous. She transformed so that she was a bit taller, a bit stronger, the color of her costume was a bit darker, and she had three heads. “Cerberus. Once I give everyone else a Tenshi, I want you to power them up further. Can you do that?” Cerberus nodded. “Excellent. Now then, who’s next?” He created an army of tenshi, and one by one, they fused with the miraculous.

Bunnyx gained a light blue helmet with the bunny ears still attached, light blue elbow pads and knee pads, and was now floating on a giant chromatic light blue pocket watch. “Time Hopper!”

Viperion’s arms and legs got covered in different bangles, but the original one was still distinct. He also had a headband, which lifted his hair a little bit, a belt, and a metal mask going across his mouth, all of which were similar to his bangle. “Viperidae!”

Pegasus grew longer dreads, and they were no longer tied up. His shoes were edged with a bit of metal. Additionally, he had two black spots on the palms of his hand. Aside from that, he was made a little taller, and a little stronger. “Wyld Stallyn!”

Tigress’s stripes were made bolder, and more jagged. Her hair was let down, but more frizzed. She also grew nail-like claws of different colors on each one. “Neon Tigress!”

King Monkey gained a golden light around him, as well as a cloud-like essence coming off of his gloves, footwear, and tail. “Wukong!”

Ryuko’s face was enveloped with a dragon mask which kept the horns. Ryuko’s eyes peered through the nostrils, while the eyes on the dragon head were white, but reverberated an energy to them. Additionally, all of the black on Ryuko’s costume, aside from the seal, turned to that same white color as the eyes, and was also radiating energy. “Ryukyu!”

Hog Wild’s shoulder pads grew hair-like thistles. The tusk design on her respirator grew out into actual tusks. And her hair stood on end, with a line of pink going down the middle. “War Hog!”

Rooster Gold’s feet grew three talons. His hair grew a little bit longer. His crossbow became bigger, and he was also surrounded by two rings of feathers which made him look like an atom molecule. “Thundercluck!”

Scouries grew little tufts of hair on her suit to make her look more mangy, and her natural hair followed suit. Her torso was adorned with a multiplication sign with the number 1 in the middle of it. She gained longer mask ties, and she was also given a small, floating monitor. “Miss Souriesous!”

BleatStar’s horns grew in size. The suit’s black feet and hands turned gold to reflect the color of the bell. His hair was let down, leaving it a bit messy, and he had a lightning strike design going across his face. “Abaaaddin Sane!”

Each section of Oxenfree’s costume was given a little scale which read out how hard or soft he is. At the moment, all of the needles were in the middle. “Kiloxenfree!”

Paonne Ange gained two sets of deep blue wings; one set on her upper back, and one on her lower. Her domino mask gained a vertical rectangle in the middle of it. “Paonne Archange!”

Sting’s arms grew pincers that acted as gauntlets around his fists. His tail grew bigger, and his stinger grew sharper. “Heraculeaus!”

Web Spinner’s fangs became more pronounced. Her costume grew four legs that could hold her up. She also gained an hourglass insignia on her chest and back. “Web Weaver!”

Honey Bee’s decorative wings became real, and her honey colored gloves felt like they were made of tangible honey. Also, her hair was let down, and she had two more streaks going through it, one black, one honey colored. “Honey Queen!”

Carapace gained giant, shell-shaped knee pads, elbow pads, and shoulder pads, as well as a face scarf that covered the lower half of his face. “Murtle!”

Rena Rouge’s hair was let out of its ponytail, and the little tails in her hair stood on end. The black sections on her arms and legs gained orange lines that followed the skeletal structure of those areas. “Rintails!”

The hood of Judgement Wolf’s cloak was made more wolf-like. His cloak was now fully open, and his torso was adorned with three gray claw marks. He also gained claw-like nails on all fingers, except the one the miraculous resided on. “Lupus Judgement!”

Cat Noir’s entire body came to look like a black mist, but you can still see a tangible shape. Also, his claws were more pronounced. “Ultra Noir!”

Finally, Ladybug’s outfit changed so that she was white with red spots, instead of red with black spots. “Superbug!”

Cerberus powered up the tenshied heroes even further. Paonne Archange was next, as she brought back everyone’s sentimonster from a few days ago that had one. Heraculeaus got Golden Dragon back, and Web Weaver got a similar one called Jade Dragon. Paonne Archange also gave one to Hawk Moth; a humanoid figure who looked like Gabriel, except he was all white, with the exception of a red cross going across his chest, whom Paonne Archange dubbed “Healer.” Royal Guard came in and powered everyone up even further.

“Alright,” Superbug commanded, “I will go and confront Nurushwa directly and try and figure out a way to free Lila. While that’s going on, the rest of you are going to fight these akumas, save the people, and have Hawk Moth and Paonne Archange create more heroes and sentimonsters to aid us in that. Cerberus will continue to power people up as well. Are we ready?!” Everyone nodded. “Then let’s go!”  The heroes spread out from their position, while Hawk Moth stayed there to create more tenshi to spread around the citizenry.

Before they went off fully, Murtle stopped and pulled Wyld Stallyn  and Time Hopper aside. “Hold on” Murtle said. He created a barrier behind Hawk Moth that stretched across the remaining city on that side. “Nurushwa does not have anyone there!” Murtle explained. “Whoever we free, send them there.”

At that moment, a large group of people started appearing. Time Hopper shrugged. “I guess I already did.” Murtle nodded, shook his head, and the three of them left off.

While this plan came together fast, Nurushwa’s power was unlike anything they had seen, and he already amassed a powerful, sizable army to fight on his behalf. However, the process of turning Lila into a kwami was taking its time since Lila was his primary power source after being locked away for many years. “Why are you doing this?!” Lila asked.

“Because I can,” Nurushwa answered for his prisoner. “I have the power to exert dominance over others. The other kwamis go on and one about peace, and unity, and helping others. It’s disgusting. Once I have freed my like-minded brothers and sisters from the prisons those other kwamis made, we can finally subjugate these pathetic humans.”

Lila remained silent. She knew she couldn’t preach of the ideals he threw aside because she herself failed to live up to them herself. She realized she felt like she was doing what he was. “What, no comeback?” Nurushwa taunted. “Of course not. You’re just like me. And soon, that will fully be realized.”

Lila silently cried. I guess there really is no hope for someone like me.

There was an explosion. “What the?” Nurushwa sensed his army was taking several blows. “Grrrr. HOLD STRONG! WE’RE GOING TO TAKE CONTROL! NO BACKING DOWN!” he yelled at his army, to which they cheered. The army continued making advances.

Superbug was bee-lining it to Nurushwa, taking out what she could of his army, with Royal Guard doing a lot of the heavy lifting. Despite the fact that there were now tens of thousands, she was more confident than ever that her team, Hawk Moth, and the army he was conjuring up would handle them.

Ultra Noir was keeping close to Superbug, but focusing on the enemies rather than where she was going. His misty features made it hard for the enemies to hit him. Ultra Noir also found that he could create Cataclysms as big or as small as he wanted. He used it to destroy parts of buildings to land on Nurushwa’s unwilling minions, as well as destroy them outright, while keeping the humans inside safe. He continued his attack.

Meanwhile, his Sentimonster, Guardian Angel, flew close by; taking out Nurushwa’s army with their light powers and feather manipulation. They also had the ability to heal those who had been recently freed from Nurushwa’s control.

Lupus Judgement was going around freeing everyone he could with his powered up Reveal Claw. He only took out his sword when he needed to defend himself. Lucky for him, this was a rare instance because Firefighter was backing him up at every turn.

As Rintails was running, she saw Nurushwa’s akumas descending. She grabbed Murtle and said “I have an idea! I’ll lure them with fake people, and you capture them in little bubbles!”

“Sounds awesome!” Murtle. Rintails nodded and began phase one of her plan. The akumas took the bait, which allowed Murtle to do phase two. To protect them from danger, Composite Ladybug and Bubbleblast worked together to fight off any attackers.

Honey Queen was flying around the city. On top of her beebots immobilizing Nurushwa’s army, she could also shoot sticky honey from her gloves to make them stick to where they were. Following behind her was Pride Monster, who would swallow the akumatized people and spit them back out free of Nurushwa’s control.

Also taking to the skies was Paone Archange. She flew around granting people Sentimonsters. She would usually coordinate this with people being Tenshied by Hawk Moth to gain even more power. She would protect herself when needed, but she also received aid from Buzzstormer and Cerberus. Cerberus would also go around powering up the Tenshis to make them even stronger.

Time Hopper and Wyld Stallyn were working together to track and find anyone free from Nurushwa and time travel/teleport them to the area behind the defencive wall, while also taking care of anyone attacking them directly. MX-01, apart from being really good at taking out Nurushwa’s soldiers, was able to locate these people and relay that information to Speedstaker, who in turn would bring those people closer to Wyld Stallyn and Time Hopper. Time Hopper would invite people onto her watch-board and travel to the safe zone; instantly traveling back to take enemies by surprise. Wyld Stallyn would create portals for himself when the situation called for it, but he would also use the spots on his hands to make portals for others. His was his main way of getting people to the wall.

Viperidae launched chronospheres from each of his straps. Each Chronosphere covered a section of the city. He and Soundwave Rider would make their way through the city, battling the monsters. Every so often, each strap, at a different time, would reset everything in the chronosphere it had influence over, on the chance that things would go wrong in said Chronosphere. The heroes inside would be made aware so they could make adjustments.

Wukong would blast out disruptive objects to the minions, causing them to lose control. Valkyrie Archer would then use their arrows to pin the monsters. Both would attack together if the situation called for it.

Kiloxenfree was fighting the creature head on. Most of the time, he remained hard all around, since that made him practically invincible. However, if the situation called for it, he would go soft in some places; most notable whenever something was thrown at him, it would fly back at whoever threw it. Loveheart also helped with the offensive front.

Miss Souriesous was also fighting Nurushwa’s monsters, when one of them snuck up on her. However, another Miss Souriesous, at full size and with a number 2 on her X, attacked them. The two Miss Souriesouses smiled and nodded at each other. Miss Sourieous 1 looked at her monitor and saw that her plan of dividing and conquering was going well, with many Miss Souriesouses of differing sizes fighting these monsters all across Paris. Courificator helped by attacking these monsters, and providing transport to some of the smaller Miss Souriesouses.

Ryukyu was storming the area and fighting the Nurushwa army head on. Whenever she would call upon one of her weather powers, not only would the seal glow to the corresponding effect, but the eyes on the dragon mask would change color to match, as well as the sections on her costume that matched. This meant that not only could she change into the effect itself, but those parts would have the powers of said effect; making them really useful in combat. Aiding her was Oniposte, and their battle prowess alongside each other was astounding.

Neon Tigress was doing her best to remain calm. This is so that whenever she shot out a Reverb, the monsters around her would calm down as well. Because she was powered up, she could shoot out many reverbs at a time. Threadmaker would then tie them all up, and the two would continue to advance.

Wherever War Hog went, she would distort her surroundings before battle. She would do this during battle too, but doing it before allowed her to make the area to her liking, and it also gave Rebel Cat better opportunities for surprise attacks.

Thundercluck worked on keeping his distance and sniping the monsters with Down Strikes, while Pagemaster summoned as many drawings as it could to aid in the attack. Whenever one of Nurushwa’s monsters got close, they would touch one of the feathers circling Thundercluck and instantly fall asleep. This was helpful, as it allowed Thundercluck time to move when necessary.

Abaaaddin Sane notices that one he began harvesting feelings, they would continue to come to him. This gave him more than enough ammo to take down Nurushwa’s army in many creative ways. Following him was Multi-Bleat, who would often assist Abaaadin Sane with his takedowns.

Heraculeaus and Web Weaver were working together. Web Weaver would corner the monsters, alongside Golden Dragon and Jade Dragon, and the Heraculeaus would use his stinger to unlock the binds of the akumas to the people. Healer was not too far behind, and he would heal the citizenry after they were free, and protect them from getting akumatized again.

Nurushwa was furious that his minions were taking severe blows. “Well well, it looks like we’ll have another thing in common” Lila chuckled. “Losing to Ladybug.”

“Grrrr” huffed Nurushwa. “It’s not over yet! I’ll just have to keep making more! Soon, they’ll be so overwhelmed and overworked that they can’t help but fall!” Lila became worried.

However, as Nurushwa was gathering the energy to do this, he was interrupted. “HALT!” screamed Superbug. Nurushwa looked at her. She was staring at him intently. “LET LILA GO AND STOP THIS SIEGE ON PARIS! OR I WILL MAKE YOU SUFFER THE CONSEQUENCES!”

Lila looked up. She could see what Nurushwa was seeing. She could believe her eyes. “Ladybug?”

[bugaboosandbees]

I want Duchness Noir headcanons please!

Thanks for the ask lovely anon! Headcanons I can do. :)

It takes a while for Plagg to warm up to Chloe. Despite himself, he really grew to care for Adrien and he feels like he failed him, so he’s going to be pretty resistant to letting himself get attached to his new kitten. He lashes out about every mistake or problematic behavior she makes early on. He’s determined to not make the same mistakes he made with Adrien, so he ends up making new ones.

She has to work hard to prove herself to him.

Plagg sees the rich empty place that Chloe lives and hears her having a nightmare about her mom one night and his heart just clenches because they’re so alike and she needs him, but Adrien needed him too, and look how that turned out.

Chloe has proven that she can be a pretty decent superhero as Queen Bee, so Duchess Noir bursts onto the scene looking like a pro.

Ladybug can’t quite hide her relief that she’s not Chat, but she’s still wary of the newcomer.

Duchess Noir explains that Chat Noir broke the balance and his kwami took back his ring and sought her out. She proves herself in the first fight, but Ladybug takes a bit to trust her fully after what happened with Chat. 

Now, because Chloe came onto the superhero scene after LB and CN, she still tends to defer to Ladybug as a de facto leader. They’re supposed to be partners, so she has to work on supporting Ladybug without relying on her too much. That’s one thing I’m not crazy about in canon -- Ladybug is always so scared because Chat Noir isn’t the type of partner who’s shown that he can handle things if she needs to step back -- it’s all up to her to save the day.

Chloe learns to be a partner, not a shield with self-destructive tendencies.

She’d probably be a bit prickly if she had to work with a temp hero at first because she’s pretty leery after what Ladybug told her about Rena and Carapace and about what she saw with Chat. Besides, she’s the only partner that Ladybug needs, thank you very much.

Also, I’m an ABSOLUTE SUCKER for the trope where miraculous weilders get the traits of the animals represented in their miraculous???

I kind of headcanon that Chloe is pretty touch-starved at home, so she’s really touchy with Adrien because he is pretty much the only person she fully trusts. (I bet people have tried to use her to get to her famous parents in the past and she doesn’t get much love at home, so I don’t think it would be too off the mark to say that some of the bratiness probably developed as a protection mechanism.) That being said, she now trusts Ladybug too, and goddammit she wants to look suave around Ladybug but every time Ladybug rests a hand on her fucking shoulder she freaking purrs????

She gets a lot of cuddles when LB visits Chloe and she LIVES for those moments.

She’s definitely one of those cats who are really loyal to their person. (And the animal instincts know a thing or two she doesn’t.) So the next time someone comes after Marinette, her entire being bristles and she’s fighting them before she knows what’s going on. She’s confused afterward, but probably chalks it up as “well, I’m a superhero now, so I need to help people, even Marinette”

Denial ain’t just a river in Egypt, sweetie.

When she finds out how easily Ladybug gets cold, she is 1000% willing to be her human space heater all winter.

If she ever meets Fu she’s gonna THROW THE FUCK DOWN

Tikki approves

Eventually, Plagg can’t stop himself from warming up to her and when he realizes what’s happening, he tries to run away or some shit. Cue Chloe putting on a motorcycle helmet and helping Ladybug as a civilian a la Princess Fragrance. Plagg comes around and comes back for her, and after the fight she and Plagg have a tear-jerking heart to heart and end up getting everything out in the open and start to have a real partnership.

Plagg starts to think of her as his kit, as Tikki thinks of Mari as her daughter.

Chloe doesn’t get a lot of parental affection and she’s a lot more willing than Adrien to take advice from/emulate people she admires, so once she gets attached to Plagg, she would do anything for him.

When she’s really sick she admits that he’s been a better parent to her than her’s have ever been and holy shit if that doesn’t pull on his heartstrings.

Duchess Noir ends up finding herself drawn to Marinette’s balcony. Like Ladybug coming to Chloe, she doesn’t know why she’s there or why she keeps coming back, but she finds that she really enjoys spending time with Marinette and that really confuses her. She gets cuddles here too.

Duchess talks to Marinette about how she’s kinda not super nice as a civilian and that she has her reasons for that, but she’d like to get better. She’s really scared of letting other people in far enough to hurt her, so she’s conflicted about it. Marinette helps her work through her feelings.

As Chloe tries to incorporate Mari’s advice in her civilian life, who better to try it on than Marinette? Even when she was being a total bitch, Marinette never hurt her, and, God help her, she’s starting to trust her as Duchess Noir, so she hopes that she’s not going to get hurt this way.

Marinette talks about her strange growing friendship with Chloe to Duchess who is so happy she definitely has to cover up some tears.

Marinette loves getting to know her new partner this way. Duchess has cared about her since she first came on the scene and even if she is snippy with other people sometimes and acts like she’s not really sure what to do in social situations occasionally, she can’t help but feel that Duchess is the best thing that’s happened to her in a long time.

Mari falls in love with Duchess Noir, and Chloe has been in love with Ladybug for longer than she’d like to admit. They both are realizing that the way they’ve crushed on people in the past was less than healthy, so they spend a lot of time denying their feelings. They each care about the other so much, the last thing they’d ever want to do is hurt them, and neither of them is sure that they know how to love in a healthy way.

Then maybe an akuma almost kills Duchess and Ladybug can’t take it? She’s cradling Duchess in her arms as the miraculous cure takes effect and her wounds vanish and she’s crying because her most important person almost left her and she can’t deal with that even a little bit. So she kisses her and begs her to never leave her again.

Duchess tears up because Ladybug is so good, how could she possibly want her? But she loves her so much, and she’ll do whatever it takes to protect her.

At this point, they’re so totally in sync, they’re practically two parts of a whole and because they’re so in balance and their bonds with their kwamis have grown so deep, I think that’s when they unlock new aspects of their miraculouses and get some power-ups.

Give Marinette Wings 2k19, that’s all I’m saying, friends.

I feel like I’ve rambled on much more than you intended me to, anon, so I’ll stop here. That being said, if anybody would like more headcanons about anything, feel free to shoot me an ask!!!

[kittinoir]

Echoes of You ch. 18

Read on Ao3

Chat Noir couldn’t get the taste of Marinette off his lips.

He’d practically begged her not to join the fight again, nearly paralyzed by the fear of something happening to her and not being able to do anything but watch. It had never bothered him before, but then, blind trust in his Lady had given him false confidence. The Miracle Cure could fix anything, and together they could beat anything Hawkmoth threw at them. Now Red’s inexperience made them vulnerable. She was growing in leaps and bounds, but she just didn’t have the skill that came with over a year’s worth of practice.

He’d been afraid Marinette would distract him on the field, but he’d never imagined she could do it from over five kilometres away. As if to prove his point, Red’s yo-yo came flying out of the twilight and nailed him in temple.

“You’re not focused tonight,” Red accused as she appeared from around one of the many trees in Trocadero. “That’s, like, the fifth hit I’ve landed.”

“Maybe you’re just getting better,” Chat Noir lied, rubbing his head. Thank god the Miraculous absorbed most of the damage or there’d be a lot of questions about the crown of bruises he’d be sporting the next day.

“Don’t insult me,” Red scoffed, rolling her eyes. As she did he had to wonder how he’d never noticed how Chloe-like she was. It must have been the black hair throwing him off. “You’re just getting sloppy. What is it this time? Finally found your mystery Bug?”

“Don’t talk about her like that,” he snapped. She raised her palms in a gesture of peace as he glared at her, but the truth was it was his own guilt that was eating away at him.

He’d known - he’d known - he was confused about Marinette, and he’d convinced himself to see her anyway. ‘For her own good’. To protect her, because he couldn’t lose someone else. And then kissing her, not once, but twice, because no matter how hard he tried to keep her at arms length, he couldn’t stop himself from crossing the line, again, and again, and again.

And the past four days had been agonizing - not just because he’d laid awake every night convincing himself not to pass by her place until he fell into a restless sleep, but because he had to face her every day at school. And that, it turned out, was every bit as challenging. He’d catch the scent of lavender and vanilla, or their hands would brush in the hall, and he’d find himself swaying towards her like a star caught in her orbit.

He’d known he could fall in love with her. He just hadn’t known she’d be so addictive.

And in the meantime, his Lady was still out there, counting on him. He’d tried to fix things and all he’d done was make them more complicated. He still loved his Lady. A part of him thought he always would. But Marinette… that could be real, he realized for the first time. Attainable, and good, and steady. Different, but just as good as what he felt for his Lady, if he let himself pursue it.

And he was surprised to find he wanted to.

“Just a rough couple of days,” Chat Noir said, rolling his shoulders back. “Running extra patrols, that kind of thing. Let’s go again.”

Red raised a brow. “You sure?”

“This is all the time we have to prepare,” he said, squaring up. “We should make the most of it.”

“Well you two look much friendlier than the last time I saw you.”

Red scowled over Chat Noir’s shoulder, and he turned to see Salem leaning against a tree-trunk, half in shadow. At least they could agree on how they felt about their guardian.

“I was beginning to think you took off with the Miracle Box,” Chat Noir said, sheathing his baton. 

“Thought about it,” Salem admitted breezily. Chat Noir believed he probably had. “Decided I wouldn’t get too far, especially considering the…limitations on it.”

“I thought you couldn’t open the tablet,” Chat Noir said cautiously. 

Salem shrugged. “Couldn’t. But it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what happened, if they’re paying attention.”

“Uh, anyone feel like cluing me in here?” Red asked, crossing her arms. 

“Not really,” Salem said. For once, Chat Noir agreed with him. The fewer witnesses to this discussion, the better - especially since that witness was Chloe. His Lady may have trusted her, but he was still reserving judgement. “You can go, Lady-brat.”

Red’s scowl grew more ferocious, but she swallowed any retort that might have been on her lips. “What-ever. I’m out.”

Chat Noir crossed his arms as he listened to Red leave and subtly repositioned himself in front of Salem. He wouldn’t be surprised if she didn’t go far, but he wouldn’t be surprised if Salem anticipated that as well. 

“So you still haven’t found her,” Salem finally said. “I must admit, I’m surprised. I didn’t realize she was the entire brains of your little operation.”

Chat Noir stifled a wince, glad for the mask on his face. “My Lady knows I like a challenge,” he retorted.

“No, I guess she wouldn’t have made it easy.” Salem began to casually stroll around the hero. 

“Don’t tell me you’ve figured it out?” Chat Noir said, hope creeping into his voice. “Care to share?”

Salem snorted. “No, unfortunately your Lady is as elusive to me as she is to you, Adrien.”

Chat Noir’s ears rang with the sound of his name, so nonchalantly dropped he almost missed it. His heart began to pound in his chest. He’d been so hell-bent on finding his Lady and shocked at discovering Chloe that he’d never imagined a scenario where he’d be caught out, and certainly not by someone he wasn’t sure he could count among his allies.

“It isn’t like her to make mistakes,” he said smoothly. He didn’t allow any of the storm he was feeling to show on his face. For all he knew it was a bluff anyway.

“It was never supposed to be me; it was supposed to be you,” Salem continued as though he hadn’t expected him to make it easy. “In the end, it was no different from any other thing in my life..”

Salem ripped his hood back as his mask dissolved into smoke, revealing a familiar face.

“Felix?”

His cousin glared back at him, producing the same delicate Miracle Box he’d first seen months ago. “It was never meant for me,” he said, holding it out. “Getting Trixx to come out and play was a challenge, but in the end he did it for the same reason any of them have even deigned to speak to me - for her. Your Lady.”

“You’re supposed to be in London,” Chat Noir said stupidly. The mundane detail was the only thing he could seize on. The rest of it couldn’t make sense until that did. “How…?”

Felix sneered. “Seriously, Adrien? How hard is it? I was there, ok!? I was there that night. I was outside because I was trying to figure out how to steal the other Grande de Vanily ring. My mom didn’t know, no one knew. It was a mistake. Ladybug saw me and thought I was you, and she gave me the box. She was scared, and it all happened so fast. I think she was afraid you’d try to stop her, and then she disappeared just as quickly.”

“It’s been you the whole time…”

“More or less,” Felix said. “Like I said, Trixx was…generous enough to help out from time to time.”

“That night on the Eiffel Tower?”

Felix nodded. “Sneaking out of the house after nine is one thing, but travelling to a different country is quite another. Needless to say Kaalki wasn’t nearly as co-operative.”

Chat Noir pounced on his cousin, pinning him to the ground. Miraculous-born strength made it easy, and he had to remind himself not to hurt his cousin. “I asked you a thousand times,” he ground out, “For the details of what happened. And you told me there were no messages, no more answers.”

“Forgive me for not wanting to get mixed up in all this,” Felix snarled. “What was I supposed to do, leave a trail of rose petals to my front door for him to follow? Not all of us have a side-kick to throw under the bus when the bad guy comes knocking!”

Chat Noir hit him. He felt cartilage tear under his knuckles. Blood gushed down the front of his cousins’ jacket. Too late, he realized Felix had let him pin him - he was still using Trixx. He remembered, though, when Felix punched him right back. The two rolled across the grass tearing at each other until they stopped as suddenly as they had started, flat on their backs on the grass, out of breath, and staring up at the night sky.

“Feel better?” Felix panted, swiping blood of his face.

“Not as much as I thought I would,” Chat Noir admitted. “Sorry about the nose.”

But Felix shrugged. “Maybe now people will stop comparing me to the great Adrien Agreste. Besides, I know you were holding back.”

Chat Noir frowned and winced when he pulled his split lip. “What makes you think I was holding back?”

“You didn’t cataclysm my face,” Felix said, groaning as he sat up. “I guess I should thank you for that.”

“You didn’t deserve it,” Chat Noir said, sitting up as well. “Hawkmoth on the other hand…”

“I have to agree with you there,” Felix said. “That man has made my life a living hell ever since this happened. I have no idea how you’ve put up with it for almost two years. And Adrien…I never would have tried to sell you out to him if I’d known you were the one behind the mask.”

“I know,” Chat Noir said. He wasn’t sure how he felt knowing Felix would have been fine selling out a stranger, but supposed it was the best he was going to get. “Is that why you decided to tell me it was you? You want out?”

“Out?” Felix repeated. “Are you kidding? I want to take that man down.” 

Chat Noir frowned. “Because you felt threatened for seven weeks any time you showed up here as the guardian?”

“Do I need another reason?” Felix demanded, but his shoulders sagged. “Whether it was an accident or not, Ladybug chose me to be the guardian. It started out with me trying to prove to myself I could be just as good a choice as you. I didn’t realize she’d picked you because you were her partner, and I thought I didn’t care, but…”

“Are you trying to say you got invested?” Chat Noir asked.

Felix rolled his eyes. “Let’s just say I want to see how it ends. Besides, you guys need some more morally grey heroes to do the dirty work.”

“I don’t know that withholding information, manipulating people, and theft makes you a hero, Felix,” Chat Noir said. “But…and I’ll deny this if you ever bring it up, especially to Ladybug, you might have a point.”

“All true,” Felix admitted. “Maybe this will make up for it; Trixx, let’s rest.”

Chat Noir squinted as bright orange light lit the empty park. The little fox kwami spiralled forth and dove into Felix’s waist coat pocket, rummaging around for god only knew what snack he preferred. 

“You wanted information,” Felix said as Trixx reappeared with some snap peas. “They won’t talk to me, but they’ve been dying to talk to you.”

“Chat Noir!” Trixx sailed over, nuzzling his cheek bone. “So many things to tell you!”

“And you kept them to yourself because…?” Chat Noir asked as he held out his hand for the kwami. 

“First of all, you’re tough to track down,” Felix said. “And second of all, I wasn’t sure I could trust you. I didn’t put together you were Chat Noir until like three nights ago. I thought there was a reason Ladybug didn’t trust her partner with the Miracle box. I didn’t realize ‘Adrien’ was her partner.”

It made sense, in the worst way. The events of the past two months were beginning to remind him a little too much of one of Shakespeare’s tragedies for comfort. Missed messages. Mistaken identities. He had to make sure their story didn’t end the same way as those ones.

“Hey, Trixx,” he said, turning to the kwami. “Thanks for helping Felix out the past couple of weeks. What’ve you got for me?”

Trixx floated slowly into the air, spreading his arms. “The fox is the Miraculous of illusion,” he declared. “When I’m in play not everything is as it seems.”

“I know,” Chat Noir said, confused. “You and Alya have helped me and Ladybug out a bunch of times.”

“Not just her,” Trixx said, leaning in. “And not just me. I’m not the only one who makes people see things that aren’t there when someone needs to be in two places at once.”

“Two places at…are you saying Ladybug used you to appear in two places at once as her civilian self?”

Trixx smiled. “It’s easier to use me than a disguise, although a lie will do in a pinch.”

Wayem. He’d used Wayem as a distraction, and a lie…when he’d called Francios Dupont an elementary school. That had been his lie.

“You can’t give me a name, can you?” Chat Noir asked. He knew the answer and wasn’t surprised when Trixx shook his head, but he’d had to ask, just in case. “Did she use you before or after she became the guardian?”

“Before,” Trixx said, somersaulting through the air.

“Finally asking the right questions,” Felix muttered.

“There were too many times,” Chat Noir said, frustrated. “It could have been anytime in the past seven months. For all I know it could be Alya herself, or any one of the civilians Ladybug and I rescued. I don’t know how long Ladybug had access to the Miraculous. I never thought to ask later. It didn’t seem important.”

“Sleep on it,” Trixx suggested. “It’s not so complicated. Follow your heart. Sometimes instead of looking for what’s wrong, we should look for what’s missing.”

“Do you ever speak in anything other than riddles?” Chat Noir muttered.

“When the occasion calls for it,” Trixx said succinctly before drifting back to Felix.

“You should take this,” his cousin said, picking up the Miracle box from where it had fallen when they’d fought. Chat Noir hadn’t even noticed it, and he wondered if that meant maybe Felix should keep it.

“She named you,” Felix said, as though reading his mind. “More importantly, she chose you. It belongs with you. It’s safer with with you.”

“Not if anyone else figures out my identity,” Chat Noir mumbled, but he took the box.

“That secret’s safe with me,” Felix promised. 

“It was safe with Ladybug, too.” In the end, she’d been right. They were only as safe as Hawkmoth’s latest akuma, and the best kept secrets were the ones you never shared.

“What’s done is done,” Felix said, not unkindly. “It’s time to look to the future. The way I see it, there’s only one way to fix everything so it’s safe to find your Bug.”

“Oh?” Chat Noir flexed his claws. He had the Miracle box, he had the tablet; he was ready to get his Lady back. “What’s that?”

“We have to take out Hawkmoth.”

[authorlmfletcher]

Miraculous Valentine’s Day: Day 14

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13490619/14/Love-Bug-A-Series-of-Miraculous-Love-Stories

Valentine’s Day: Eternal Soulmates

Find this, and all the valentine’s day stories from @epcot97​, @livrever​, and I on Ao3 and FFnet.

                                  ________________________________

Eternal soulmates. It is a strange idea to think that your life is somehow intertwined with someone else's in such a way that you are destined to be together for eternity. Most people dismiss the concepts of soulmates as a fairy tale. Or they wash it down to the general idea of romantic love. Which is exactly what Adrien Agreste thought too. At least until he discovered exactly what eternal soulmates meant. Because he had one.

At the age of 14, Adrien had spent most of his life in the relative captivity of his home with a cold, stern father. Confined within the four walls of his room, he spent hours in front of screens trying to connect somehow with the real world. The oversized windows that lined an entire wall of his bedroom gave him a glimpse at the world outside, but cast long bar-like shadows across the floor in a silent reminder that this was his cage.

It was a ring that offered him the freedom he dreamt of - letting him escape through one of those windows and out onto the rooftops of Paris. Changing his appearance to one of a black cat, the power within the ring hid his identity, giving him the opportunity to be who he wanted without punishment. Freedom was exhilarating. He would never take that gift for granted.

When the girl in the red suit crashed into him unexpectedly, tangling them both together upside down, he met her eyes with excited trepidation. It wasn't an instant soul-shattering explosive moment when they first met - that came later - but as he stared into the depths of her blue eyes rimmed in a red mask, there was an overwhelming sense that he knew her.

Shrugging it off, he leapt off to save the day, encouraging his nervous new partner while revelling in the wonder of the world. He hated to go home to his gilded cage, locked behind windows, but his father would be furious if he discovered the truth. At least now, his prison had a door.

He dreamt that night of running. The sounds of his footsteps pounding against cement mingled with the heaviness of his breathing. He had no idea where he was running to, only that he was - buildings rushing by as he pushed forward. A distant voice called to him, his name echoing off the walls.

And then there she was: the girl in the mask. She stood alone, nervously hunched over herself in anxiety of failure. Her eyes met his in desperation, begging for him to help her but he didn’t know how. He couldn’t shake the feeling that, somehow, he knew who she was - a ridiculous idea since his life had been so carefully guarded that he basically knew no one.

The taste of freedom made him desperate for more, urging him to flee the house as himself and not just as his alter-ego. Against his father’s wishes, he escaped through the doors and raced to school, hoping to find the freedom that he desired. Every experience was new and overwhelming and exciting - surrounded by other teenagers and chaos. Desire for friendship led to well-intentioned mistakes and a girl in his class who responded in anger, leaving him confused.

Duty called, pulling him from the new room of potential friends, sending him jumping into the fray against giant men of stone. Finally, he stood side by side with his spotted partner in defiance against the villain, encouraging her to believe in herself. Deju-vu rattled his thoughts for the briefest of moments while her eyes turned from worried to determined and her stance grew in confidence at his words.

It was then, watching her in awe as she challenged their opponent with utter tenacity, her yo-yo whirling in well-controlled movements, that Adrien remembered. A thousand lifetimes flashed through his memories in a single moment, leaving him speechless and gaping at the woman in red. A woman who lived a thousand lifetimes beside him, fates tangled together for eternity. His lady.

Whoever she was behind that mask, he knew that he loved her.

“So she doesn’t remember?” Adrien asked, head spinning with too much, too fast. How does one process the reality of reincarnation and having lived before?  His advisor was a small black cat-like creature named Plagg - an immortal being known as a kwami who granted him the ring’s power of freedom. Plagg embodied the very essence of destruction and bad luck, addicted to the foul-tasting flavour of camembert, and typically aversed to offering much in the way of advice. But today, the cat looked concerned, hovering closeby with his tiny ears plastered against his head.

“No,” Plagg admitted, his words spoken with care.

“ Will she remember?” Adrien couldn’t really understand what exactly was happening. According to Plagg, the black cat and ladybug had been two halves of a whole since the beginning of man. Their lives were fused together with magic, their souls connected in each rebirth of themselves.

While their lives didn’t have to be connected by romance, it usually was. In every case, the black cat remembered while the ladybug didn’t. He was destined to remind her. And when life called its end, it was his life that vanished first to leave her behind and alone until she too passed on - the cycle to return again in the next lifetime.

The lives he’d lived before felt both vivid and hidden behind a pane of obscuring glass. He could only remember pieces, but enough to know it was true. War and peace, riches and poverty, happiness and sorrow. They ran the gamut and left his reality dizzy.

He would die first. The thought should have haunted him, but all he could think about was her. His Ladybug.

“How do I remind her?” he whispered, the vision of her eyes driving his soul to madness.

Plagg explained that this part of the journey was complicated. Each incarnation had a different experience than the past but mostly a connection together in some way, getting to know each other both in and out of the masks.

“And can you tell me who she is?”

Plagg sighed in response.

“No.”

The pull of destiny on his soul turned what had promised him freedom to a whole new adventure. Ladybug filled his thoughts and his dreams. Every moment that he could be with her and learn all about her made his heart sing. He loved her - each and every thing about her. When she laughed, he felt himself melt with joy. When she cried, his heart twisted in agony.

He threw himself in harm's way to keep her safe, taking the hits that were meant to hurt her. Made jokes to make her smile. Relished in her disapproving eye rolls.

He found himself hoping for the villain to attack more often so he could press forward in his attempts to woo her. When she whispered that she loved someone else, he yearned for more but gave her space. Wishing he could tell her of the lives they'd lived together, he waited, trying to respect her wishes and enjoy her companionship as a friend without letting his heart break in two.

As school, he daydreamed of who she could be behind the mask.

Sometimes, he thought he knew who she was -  that girl who had been so mad on the first day of school. He replayed the memory of their meeting in the rain as he apologized for the misunderstanding. It wasn't the same knowing as the first time he had met Ladybug, but when thunder cracked and their hands touched, he had hoped that maybe she was the one. Friendship blossomed between them.

As always, Plagg would caution wisdom in the search because finding out identities before destiny's plan would spell disaster for them both. So Adrien waited, dreaming of the lives of their past.

But as the months grew, he felt a knot in the base of his stomach that just won’t go away. Maybe this time around was when they would just be friends. He didn’t want to believe it - the moments of happiness that she could reveal of her life outside the mask cutting deep into his heart.

“We belong together, my lady,” he pleaded, begging her to listen to him, but she would shake her head with a soft smile and dismiss the thought.

He tried to forget, to accept what it was, but he couldn’t. Memories sank too deep to let it fully go. He tried to move on, to find some level of contentment with someone else, but he couldn’t. His heart belonged to her and her alone.

Time flew past, growing up together within their suits as partners- him always yearning for more and her always avoiding it.

When her happiness turned to heartbreak, it took every ounce of effort not to unleash the black cat's fury on the one who made her cry on his shoulder in deep racking sobs.

That night, something changed within her. Her head would rest on his shoulder a moment longer. Her eyes would linger for a split second more. Her eye rolls less dramatic. Change moved slowly, but he could wait.

As her broken heart knit itself together, he tried to weave himself into it with gentle care and compassion of adulthood instead of the brash dramatics of youth.

At the age of 20, Adrien Agreste had earned his freedom both in and out of the suit, clawing a life for himself away from the overbearing control of his father. Age had brought him wisdom and a heart that loved without ceasing.

Ladybug deserved the best he could be, even if it meant he could be nothing more than her rock to lean on. Because love does that - gives without expecting. But hope kept his heart beating.

They had been superheroes together for so long they were familiar and comfortable with each other's touch. Which is why he jumped at her unexpectedly sharp intake of breath as he touched her arm one day, a fiery burn creeping its way across her masked cheeks without explanation.

He guarded the questions he desperately wanted to know her answers to, waiting with a lifetime of patience.

When, underneath the moonlight, she stepped quivering into his waiting embrace to gaze at him with those beautiful eyes, his hope exploded. Her gloves trailed lines down his cheeks as she gaped with eyes that seemed to be truly seeing for the first time.

"I know you," she whispered, searching for answers.

"I love you," his only response before his lips fell to hers in soft warmth.

The world exploded in that single moment, fire and wind and ice wrapped up into one as their souls collided in perfect harmony. The memories he had only seen flashes of tore through the veil, pieces falling in place as they both remembered everything and every life.  

Pulling apart, they simply stared deep into each other's souls as they wove themselves together. Masks vanished in a rainbow of colour, leaving their faces as bare as their souls.

Marinette. The girl under the umbrella in the rain. His friend who had always loved him, too. It made so much sense now that he understood.

"Adrien." His name spoken in complete and utter love shook him to his core. This was how it was meant to be. Together forever.

He couldn't stop himself from kissing her again.

[estellestarlightevergarden]

Luka Couffaine 1

Title: Marinette's Investigation

Pairing: Luka x Fem!Singer!Reader

Fandom: Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir

Warnings: Angst (like my soul) , Fluff

Summary: Marinette is convinced that Y/n is intrested in Adrien. She comes up with a plan to expose Y/n for her true intentions but messes up.

A/n: Wrote this little drabble at 2:44 AM So my braincells will die. Or are dying Also will not have any Akumatizations here.

----

I walked towards the enterance of the school and heard people whispering. I blinked in confusion. What is going on?

I turned to Alya my best friend and tapped her on the shoulder. She jumped insuprise but, calmed herself after seiing myself.

"Hey Alya? Whats going on? Why is everyone so excited?" I asked her confused at the excited students buzzing through the halls. "Oh! You havent heard?!" She Gasped dramatically. I shook my head no as a reply. "Nope! But Can you tell me what's going on? Please?" I groaned already wanting an answer. I crossed my arms and tapped my foot impatiently. She sighed and put her phone away. She withdrew her hands and smiled at me. I mtioned for her to go on. "Well So Mari you know Y/n the singer right?" She asked her eyes filled with hope. I smiled and nodded. I hummed while nodding giving her a short response.

"Yeah? What about her?" I stated nonchalantly. Alya's smile stayed on her face.

"Well your not going to believe this but! Shes coming here! Because she wants to meet Kitty Section and study here!!" She belted out practically bouncing off the walls. I blinked in suprise at her statement. "R-Really! Thats amazing! Wait how did you know this?" I chirped but then had a teasing grin. Alya smiled and pulled out her phone. "She Just tweeted this a few months ago and has been keeping everyone up! And today she's coming here!!" She gushed. I smiled.

"Oh Alya I cant wait then!" I chirped suddenly the students inside flocked towards the entrance of the school. I had lost Alya and Was left alone. I sighed and went towards the stairs to get a better view.

I sighed in relief and looked from above. "Phew! Thats much BETTER?!" I almost screamed. There she really was but she is way too close to Adrien!

----

I nervously shifted in the car. I hope I can find Luka here to play with his band Kitty Section for my Concert that ends here in Paris. I took a few deep breaths before being snapped out of my own thoughts.

"Hey Earth to Y/n? Are you okay?" A voice spoke. I looked to the voice and it was Adrien. He is a member of Kitty Section and so is my boyfriend Luka. I jumped and looked at him nervously. I sighed and shook my head. "Hey its gonna be okay! I promise I'll be with you throughout the entire day!" He said reassuring me about today. I took a deep breath and smiled.

"Yeah.. Sorry about freaking out.. its just I haven't been to a real school in a very long time.." I mumbled looking at my hands again. "Hey its gonna be okay! I havent been here awhile either but your gonna love it here! I promise!" He declared. I burst out laughing and smiled at him.

"O-okay! P-promise?" I stuttered holing my hand out my pinky finger sticking out. "Hahaha.. Don't worry! I Promise!" He laughed at my silly action and intertwined our pinkies. I smiled at him returning my suggested gesture. The car had suddenly stopped and I walked out behind him sticking as close to him as possible.

"Here take this and don't let go okay?" Adriend said Sticking his hand out and nodded. I hesitated but grabbed his hand as we got through the crowd and inside my first classroom for the day. He let go and smiled. "See? Not so bad right?" He teased playfully trying to poke my cheek. I swatted his hands away with a silly noise. He laughed and I giggled. This isnt so bad.

Well boy was I wrong!

----

It was Lunch time at my new school. I stuck close to adrien because he is my clisest friend now. Besides He's basically my best friend now. I smiled as he took my hand and we walked together towards the Lunch room. I took my Tray and walked with him to the tables keeping to ourselves now that everyone has calmed down.

Suddenly chairs were pulled out and People sat in them. The girl with Navy Blue pigtails squinted her eyes at me. I blinked in nervousness.

"O-oh! Hello? I dont think I have met you!" I smiled warmly at her. Her gaze still strong and my nervousness grew.

"Oh Y/n this is Marinette my good friend!" Adrien chimed into the akaward tension hoping to break it. I smiled at the bluenette.

"Well Its very nice to meet you Marinette!" I smiled at her her gaze softened hearing Adrien's voice but kept her hard gaze once I had opened my mouth. I stopped smiling and frowned but smiled softly.

"I think I'll go Home early.. I'll see you soon at practice" I smiled at Adrien still feeling Marinette's cold gaze on me as I get up and leave. I sigh. "She hates me and I havent done anything wrong.." I mumbled walking home but then smiled at my memories to reunite with Luka.

--------

The Model looked at Marinette with a smile. "Marinette! Isn't she amazing" Adrien smiled then hearing a cough and there was Luka. He blushed in Embarrassment.

"O-oh! Luka! Sorry Your girl is really something!" He smiled sheepishly. He smiled and nodded taking a seat next to the model.

"Y/n is Your Girl Luka?" Marinette curiously interjects. Luka simply nodded. The green eyes male nodded.

"Mhmm! She is a really good friend Luka I wish I had a relationship Like Yours!" Adrien groaned jokingly. The bluenette from across her eye twitched in annoyance hearing the mentioning of the new girl slip everytime from her crush's mouth.

"Well She is the one for me and after all I would do anything for her.." Luka Softly spoke with a small smile his mund going towards the sweet memories with his said partner.

The Bluenette had a Plan in her head to finally expose the new girl for lying about who she was and her relationship with her two friends to bring peace to her self.

Her Plans were now in Motion.

-------'

I walked towards Luka's boathouse with a smile. Finally getting to see Luka after awhile of being away is the Female's dream come true. The said female stepped onyo the boat only to be met with an angry Kitty Section Along with an Upset Luka and Shocked Adrien. The girl Blinked in confusion.

"Did I come at a bad time?" The Female Questioned and The band turned to her with anger. There was the bluenette from earlier. Y/n Shrunk and felt small compared to the people.

"How could you do that to Luka?" "Is he not good enough?!" "I thought you were cool" "Think about your actions carefully" The members of Kitty section Lectured the girl. Y/n looked over at Luka and looked at him with confused eyes.

"Luka what's going on? Why are they mad?" She squeaked in fear. Luka sighed in anger and stood up and glared at her.

"Marinette's been telling me that you have been flirting with Adrien.. I think its better for us not to be together Y/n.." He stated coldly and walked to his guitar.

The girl was left stunned and her tears fell from her eyes. "Thats not True... You can even ask Adrien.. He was the only one that had shown me around because you are always busy.. I thought we were really meant to be..I-I.. I guess this is goodbye.. Im sorry!" She cried out and ran off the Boat. The members looked at the singer that had dashed off the boathouse in a flash then turned towards the trio.

Milan now with the three girl that were present looked at eachother and grabbed Marinette dragging her downstairs while the Guys tried to calm the now growing tension between Luka and Adrien.

------

"Marinette! What did you do?" Alya Interrogated the bluenette. Marinette laughed nervously.

"I thought that would help Luka out.. Y/n was flirting with him.. I think.." She Softly spoke. The four girls Groaned. Juleka stepped forward.

"Marinette.. Luka has never been happier with her since you rejected him Why would you do that?" She crossed her arms with anger. Marinette shrank in her seat feeling the cold gazes.

"Oh shoot.n My jealousy got in the way.. I gotta fix this now.." She Sighed covering her face in embarrassment. The girls before her nodded.

Suddenly a crash was heard upstairs causing the girls to run upstairs.

"WHY THE HELL WOULD UOU FLIRT WITH HER YOU KNOW HOW MUCH I LOVE HER YOU JERK!" Luka Yelled at the keyboard player. Adrien glared at him shaking his head.

"THATS NOT WHAT HAPPENED! LUKA! MARINETTE LIED! NOW GO FIX WHAT YOU HAVE WITH HER BEFORE ITS TOO LATE!" Adrien Yelled.

Luka Finally calmed down and saw the girls and Marinette looking away in embarrassment. The male sighed and stopped his rage and ran off in search for his girl.

-----

"I-I-I thought he Loved me.." I sobbed. I hugged my knees to my chest looking at the city of Paris in the Eiffel Tower.

'Ive never felt so fucking used in my life' I thought sobbing into my arms.

"He does love you.. He just believed a girl over his own true love.." a Familiar voice spoke. I turned and saw the male himself.

I turned away from him coldy. "What are you doing here? I thought you were at practice Luka.. and that you were done with us.." I whispered looking at the night sky. His footsteps grew closer and his arms wrapped themselves around me.

"I'm an Idiot you know... I shouldn't have said that.." Luka Sighed in frustration. I listened to the male ramble on. I blinked away my tears.

"Yes and you believed her over me Luka.. Do I even Matter to you anymore?" I mumbled my tears glistening in the paris lights that showcased the Eiffel Tower.

Luka took my hands in his almost hesitating. My head now facing him as I look at him in suprise.

"Oh Y/n.. you silly girl.. Of course you do matter to me.. Your My Muse.. My Girl.. My everything Y/n.. I wouldnt know if I didn't have you with me.. I'll be a mess...What Im trying to say is Je'taime Y/n" He breathed out.

"So... Will you give me another chance?"

Sidenote: Will someone please give me a Request I'm running out of Ideas and Since I'm currently still writing Thr Ron Weasley x Reader I just got Major Writer's Block So Requests are open!!!

[adriensbug]

The Baker’s Daughter

AO3 / Requests Open!

WC: 4K

Ship: Adrienette

The night is cold as Adrien Agreste walks down the empty path from his home to the Dupain-Cheng bakery. An hour ago the boy didn’t even have a destination, didn’t even know why he was sneaking out in the first place, but when his stomach started rumbling and his dramatic Kwami finally came out of hiding, he knew he had to get food fast.

Marinette’s was always his comfort place. Though his trips to her house were as Chat Noir, he was sure he would be welcomed. Marinette’s family were as kind hearted as she was, it didn’t take sneaking in as Chat Noir to notice that the apple didn’t fall far from the tree in that family. 

As the door to the bakery swings open, Adrien almost braces himself for who might pop out. If it’s Marinette, he knows exactly what to say and he’s already picturing her blush. If it’s Sabine, he knows how to make her smile while also asking for a bite to eat. 

Though, if it’s Tom... he hopes that it isn’t. Ever since Tom was akumatized, Adrien admits that he doesn’t know how to approach the man. He admires Tom, loves the fact that he would do anything for his daughter, yet he’s almost jealous of Marinette because of him. In some aspects Adrien wishes that he was a Dupain-Cheng. Maybe then he’d have a father that actually showed his affection.

His mind begins to ease as he sees a shadow of a girl with pigtails pop her head out of the store door to check the streets. Marinette’s eyes glance in every direction until they fall on Adrien.

He can’t help but let out a laugh as he watches Marinette let out a scream and hide behind the open door as he approaches. “Good afternoon, Marinette.” He smiles. “I hope you’re still open, I’ve been dying to take you up on that offer of free taste tests for that macaroon recipe you told me about... am I too late?” 

Marinette’s face is in shock as she looks up at the blonde. If this were any other day she would’ve had to tell Adrien no, that the bakery was officially closed. Tonight, however, her parents had entrusted her with the kitchen until curfew. So how was it, then, that Adrien had managed to show up on the only day in the history of her entire life where her parents left her alone in the bakery? 

“Wow, what perfect timing! No. Uh, I mean, no it’s not too late! You can absolutely not come in. I mean!” She takes a deep breath before walking out on to the side walk and offering the door to Adrien. “Come in.” She hides her pain in a small grin.

Adrien returns the grin as he walks through the door, ignoring a pestering Plagg who has made it his mission to tug at Adrien’s shirt whenever he misses something. He remembers a conversation with Plagg not to long ago about how Adrien always misses the signs. When Adrien asked what signs he was exactly missing, Plagg only rolled his eyes. Look, whenever you miss something I’ll tug at your shirt, okay? Maybe then you’ll figure things out. Unfortunately, Plagg had only made Adrien more confused and the more that Plagg tugged on his shirt in his every day life, the more oblivious Adrien got.

As the two set up in the kitchen, Marinette counting her ingredients while Adrien stared fondly at her from the bar stool, the tugging at his shirt grew more rapid. He flicked Plagg away with a pinch of his fingers and tried focusing back on Marinette. “So what flavors are you making tonight, my little baker?” 

Marinette’s cheeks flush as she opened her mouth to answer. Unfortunately, the words just didn’t come out. She wishes that she could talk to Adrien as a normal person would, wishes that they could be friends. But with just the way that Adrien was looking at her making her blush, she knows that she’s too far in. 

“Cake.” She says, knowing damn well that her answer had nothing to do with what Adrien just asked. 

“Cake.” Adrien repeats, a smirk forming across his lips. “Okay, cake. What flavor, then?” 

Marinette’s frustrations can easily be seen but Adrien pretends like he doesn’t notice as he watches her fumble to open a package of sugar. He reaches across the counter, taking the flour from her grasp, before opening it himself and dipping his finger in to have a taste. 

Marinette’s mouth drops as she rips the package from Adrien’s hands. “You’re not supposed to do that!” She cries. “Now we have to throw this out.” She frowns as she looks down at the small indent in the sugar that Adrien had made with his finger before looking up at the boy himself.

With his finger still in his mouth, he lets out a sheepish smile and outstretches his hand to tug at the back of his head out of habit. “Sorry,” he murmurs. “I guess I’m just too eager.” 

Marinette’s heart leaps as she sets the sugar down and takes a deep breath. She’s trying to gain enough confidence to tell him that it was okay, that they would just have to use up this sugar themselves. Instead she puts on one of the most fake smiles she’s ever tried to pull off before waving her hand. “It’s okay,” she insists. “It’s just... health regulations.” 

Adrien nods as his curious eyes watch Marinette pour sugar into the large bowl. “Right.” He says. “Sorry, Mari.” 

“M-Mari?” She questions.

Crap. Adrien had only ever called her Mari before when he was Chat Noir. How could he be so stupid as to make a rookie slip up like that? Before he gets the chance to think of an excuse, Marinette’s talking again and he can’t help but watch her lips as she speaks.

“Um... it’s funny, I only know one other person who calls me that. Do you... by any chance know Chat Noir in real life?” 

Lie. He told himself. Say you don’t know him. Say you were just kidding around. Say anything that doesn’t relate you to your alter ego. Lie, god damn it.

“Chat Noir? I’ve talked to him a few times.” 

Plagg tugs at Adrien’s shirt once more but this time he pinches the skin around his chest and Adrien can’t help but let out a groan as he reaches his hand into his overshirt to swat at Plagg. “Okay, I deserved that.” 

Marinette’s eyebrows furrow as she watches the blonde wince in pain. “Deserved what?” 

Adrien’s eyes grow wide as he freezes in place, feeling Plagg’s teeth surround his finger. If he wasn’t about to reveal his secret identity to the girl that he was desperately trying to hpld a conversation with he would’ve grabbed Plagg and shoved him away from his shirt, away from him completely, but instead he shoves his hand out and places it on to the counter in front of him. 

“What?” He repeats her once more. “I said that I could really go for a dessert platter.” He closes his eyes and smiles, hoping his lie would pass. 

Fortunately, when he opens his eyes and sees the crinkle in Marinette’s as she opens the fridge and takes out a plate full of cheesecake, he knows that the lie worked. 

“So you’ve talked to Chat?” She asks as she places the cheesecake in front of Adrien with a fork. “He comes to visit here sometimes, you know? Maybe if we’re lucky he’ll come tonight!” 

Adrien’s eyes almost turn into hearts at the sight of the cake in front of him. His stomach twists and turns at ease as he digs his fork into the center of the cake. He takes of bite of the cake before letting out a satisfied hum, giving the girl in front of him a thumbs up. 

“I don’t think he’d come by at a time like this,” he tells her. “Him and Ladybug are probably out patrolling or something. Last night I saw them at the Eiffel Tower. Not sure what happened but Ladybug looked pretty ticked.” 

Marinette’s face falls in annoyance as she subconsciously slams the milk down to the counter after pouring it into her mixture. She remembers the night before where Chat had called her in the middle of the night, telling her that he spotted another akuma victim. When she had met him at the tower, however, he pretended like he didn’t know anything about the twenty-three messages he had left her and asked her to hang out. 

‘Some of us have a life, you know.’ She had told him. 

‘Yeah, and some of us just want to see their best friend.’ He had an answer ready, she could tell, but it didn’t make her any less angry with the fact that he was keeping her from sleep on the day that she had 3 tests at school.

“Ticked?” She questions Adrien as she snaps out of her thoughts. “When I saw Ladybug this morning she looked fine. I wonder what she could’ve been mad about.” She smiles, not really knowing why she was trying to defend her alter ego, as she adds flour into her bowl.

Adrien shrugs, taking another large bite of the cheesecake. “Chat Noir says that she’s always angry with him at some point, he just chooses to ignore it because he values their friendship.” 

Marinette can’t help but whisper under her breath at his response. “Yeah well if he knew she had 3 tests and boy issues he would understand.” 

“Boy issues?” Adrien perks up at this and he can’t help but feel a tinge of jealousy rush over him. “How could Ladybug possibly have boy issues if she’s saving Paris literally everyday?” 

In some way Marinette feels obligated to defend herself, to defend Ladybug. At the same time, though, she wonders how in the hell she was able to hold a conversation with Adrien, let alone an argument. She watches as Adrien takes an angry bite of the cake and stuff it in his mouth and she wonders why the boy is so angry. 

“Do you have a thing for Ladybug?” She questions, pointing her mixing spoon at him.

Adrien’s fork falls into the cake as his mouth opens. “Wha- me? Have a thing for Ladybug? No, no, no.” He assures. “I’ve just... we’re just-”

“Just friends.” Marinette finishes. “Yeah, I’ve heard that one before.

The two are silent for a moment. The tension is rising and Adrien almost thinks that he should get up and bolt out of the store. Marinette continues mixing her cake batter in silence and Adrien can only guess why Plagg is tugging at his shirt once more. 

“Mari?”

He gets no response.

Adrien sighs as he gets up from the bar stool and turns to face the door. He takes two steps before he feels two arms wrap around his waist and a head lean against his back.

“I’m sorry.” Marinette whispers, clinging on to the boy. “Don’t go, you still haven’t tasted the cake.” 

Adrien’s heart skips multiple beats as he feels her against him. The warmth that radiates from Marinette is almost intoxicating and he wonders why this feels so familiar, why it feels so right. His hands fall to hers as he slips his fingers in between hers. “I don’t... know what I’m doing.” He admits. “I’ve never done this before.” 

“Done what?” She asks.

He tries to find the right words to express himself. He tries, damn it, but how can he tell Marinette that he’s never experienced an argument with someone who wasn’t a family member of his? He had made it up in his mind that he had already used the ‘I’ve never had friends before’ card way too many times and he was tired of making excuses for his actions but... what else could he really do?

“Please,” he begs, voice threatening to falter. “Just tell me what I need to do to fix whatever I did to you.”

Once again the bakery hovers in silence as Marinette slowly releases her hands from Adrien’s and takes a step back, completely untangling herself from him.

Adrien almost considers turning around and pulling her back towards him and wrapping his arms around her waist, tucking his chin into her neck. Instead, he sucks in before turning around and facing Marinette.

As he turns he notices her puffy cheeks, notices her hand reaching up to wipe away her tears, and his heart almost breaks. It was never his intention to make Marinette cry. In fact, he had made it his personal mission months ago to always keep her happy. She was good to him, he thought, so why did he constantly fail his own mission? 

“That’s the issue.” She utters. “You haven’t done anything, Adrien... at least not consciously.” She wipes away another tear for looking up at the blonde and waving her hand away. “It’s my fault, okay? Just forget it. You can go if you want to.” 

Adrien takes a step towards her now, reaching a hand out to caress her cheek, but immediately stops in his tracks as Marinette takes a step backwards and turns her face. She’s distant all of a sudden and Adrien takes it way too personally. 

“Tell me what I did.” He attempts. “Marinette, I won’t be able to go to sleep at night knowing that I upset you. Please, for the love of god, tell me what I did.”

“You called me a friend!” Marinette shouts, causing Adrien to take a step back in surprise. “That’s what you did, Adrien. You called me your friend. And I know how stupid that sounds and I know that you won’t understand because you don’t understand that I’m in love with you. Every time you say we’re just friends or that I’m one of your guys my heart feels like you’ve stabbed it into a million tiny pieces but you don’t understand that. I can’t blame you, either, because you’ve never experience friendship before. I can’t tell you how much it hurts or how much I wished you would stop calling me a friend because I’m terrified that I’ll upset you. Is that what you were wanting me to say?”

Marinette continues and Adrien feels like he’s sinking lower and lower as she does. Not once had he ever seen Marinette so worked up, he was almost afraid of her in all honesty,  but he was the cause of her stress. He made her this way.

While Marinette continues to rant, Adrien’s arms reach out to her and pull her closer to him. He wraps his hands around her waist as she tells him that he’s oblivious, tucks his chin into her neck as she calls him selfish, and closes his eyes as she compares him to a lost puppy. 

“W-What are you doing?” She asks as she realizes what’s happening. 

“I’m hugging you.” Adrien replies.

“I can see that, I’m not blind.”

He chooses to ignore her comment as he lets out a sigh. “I’m sorry.” He finally says. “I... I think I always knew you liked me but I’m not exactly quick to pick things like that up, you know.”

Marinette’s confused. Not once in the millions of times that she had confessed to Adrien in her head did the outcome look like this. Not once had she imagined she would confess to Adrien in a fit of rage just for him to hug her and tell her that he knew. Still, she can’t help but return the hug and wrap her arms around the boy’s shoulders. “You knew?”

A smile spreads across the boy’s lips as he gently presses them against Marinette’s neck. Of course he did, he thinks to himself. What kind of girl would go out of her way to make a boy breakfast every single morning after he had told her he doesn’t have enough time to if she didn’t like him? What kind of girl would blush at just the sight of a boy if she didn’t like him? Adrien had his suspicious for a while now. It was nice to know that he was finally right about something. 

The question lingered, however, if Adrien liked her back or not. The truth was that Adrien didn’t know. He didn’t know how to like someone if it wasn’t Ladybug. He was fixated on the superhero to the point where she was all he could think about at one point. Then he remembers, as Marinette begins to rub his back, that Marinette took up the other half of his thoughts.

He would constantly think of ways to brighten her smile or ways to make her blush. His goal was to make her happy, after all. Could that be what others would call a secret crush? But... how could Adrien have a crush on a girl without even realizing it, he wonders. 

“I think... I think I might like to you, too, Mari.” He whispers in her ear. He feels her body tense and he can’t help but let out a chuckle as he nudges his nose against her ear. “I’ll tell you what,” he offers. “I’ll try to be less oblivious and less puppy-like if you tell me how you’re feeling, alright? I want to make you happy, not be the cause of your anger.”

“You don’t have to do this.” Marinette says as she tries to untangle herself from the boy once again. She tries to push Adrien’s shoulders away but this time he has a hold on her and he refuses to let her go. “You don’t have to pretend for my sake. Let’s just... call it a night and pretend like nothing happened, okay?”

Adrien shakes his head, pulling her back into his arms. “No.” He protests. “I don’t want to forget that we finally made progress, Marinette. You’re the only person who’s actually told me how you feel about me. How am I supposed to pretend it never happened?” 

“It’ll be easy.” She insists. She’s accepted her defeat, standing awkwardly with her hands to her sides while Adrien continues hugging her. She doesn’t want to admit that it hurts her to say the next few sentences. “We’ll go to school like nothing happened. When Nino asks you how your night went you’ll tell him you got home late from fencing practice and studied until you fell asleep. I’ll tell Alya I was baking until curfew and then I went to sleep. You don’t have to like me out of obligation, I don’t want to do that to you.”

“You’re acting like you’ve already accepted that I won’t like you back.” Adrien removes his chin from her neck and decides that now is the time to look her directly in the eye. “Marinette, listen to me.” His face inches closer as he looks down at her lips, noting how inviting they look, before looking back into her pearly blues. “I refuse to go to school and act like this night never happened.” He tells her. “Tomorrow when Nino asks how my night went I’ll tell him that I came here and saw you. Then after school I’ll convince my bodyguard to drop us off at Andre’s for ice cream. I’m not rejecting you.”

Marinette’s eyes snap open as she takes in every word that Adrien has told her. It was as if her mind snapped back into reality as she realizes what just happened. “Wait...D-Did you just ask me out?”

The blonde can’t help but let out a laugh as he quickly kisses the tip of Marinette’s nose. “I guess you could call it that.” As he releases Marinette, he can’t help but run his hands down her arm, towards her wrist. His hand fiddles with the lucky charm bracelet he had made her before a shy smile is formed across his lips. Then he notices the thin watch and notices just how much time has passed since he had gotten here.

Nathalie normally checked in on Adrien at eight thirty. It was now eight twenty-three. 

“I really hate to do this but if I don’t get home now I’ll be grounded for the rest of my life... will I see you tomorrow after school?” He asks, watching Marinette’s shocked expression change to that blushy, school girl crush face that he knows all too well. 

“We’ll just have to wait and see.” She crosses her arms and winks, the first bold act she’s ever made in front of Adrien, before uncrossing her arms and shaking her head. “I mean yes!” She struggles for a moment before nodding and giving Adrien a sweet smile. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow,” Adrien repeats with a nod of his own head. “Bye, Mari.” 

Marinette’s heart is beating a million miles a minute as Adrien swings the door open and closes it behind him. It’s then that she makes a mental note to tell Chat Noir to never call her Mari again, that nickname would be reserved for Adrien and Adrien only from now on. 

“Wow, Marinette!” Tikki sings as she flies out hiding from the cookie jar. “Looks like you and Adrien are going to be pretty close from now on, huh?”

Marinette can’t help but giggle to herself before running in place and waving her fists in the air. “Did you see me, Tikki?!” She shouts. “I played it cool, I didn’t make a complete idiot of myself this time! And I have a date with Adrien tomorrow! Adrien!”

Tikki smiles before doing a dance of her own. “Yeah! Too bad you promised Chat Noir you’d meet him tomorrow after school also.” 

Immediately Marinette’s high is grounded. Her face falls as she sinks dramatically to the ground and pounds on the floor with her fists. “You’ve got to be kidding me!”

-

As Adrien runs down the street, Plagg can’t help but smirk as he flies next to him. “Well, well, well.” He starts. “Looks like you’re not most oblivious person in Paris after all.”

Adrien smiles as he looks towards his Kwami. Plagg had always thrown Marinette into the ring when Adrien was talking about his crush on Ladybug, telling him to broaden his horizons, had he been on to something all of this time? Adrien can only wonder.

“Can you believe it, Plagg? I’m going on my first date ever... and it’s going to be with Marinette!” 

“You two really are made for one another.” Plagg, knowing very well just how made for each other the two really were, can’t help but feel excited at what was to come in the future of this relationship. Maybe, he hopes, if they can trust each other enough as Marinette and Adrien they’ll finally be able to tell each other the truth. 

Plagg’s smirk is immediately replaced with a horrified look as he watches Adrien. “Uhh... did you fail to remember you’re supposed to meet Marinette tomorrow as Chat Noir also?”

That’s when Adrien stops dead in his tracks, Plagg almost failing to stop as well. Adrien’s shocked expression fades as his eyebrows lift upwards and his mouth turns to a frown. “I’m sure she’ll be happy with just me... right?”

He looks to Plagg one last time and notices the laughter coming from him. Adrien can’t help but laugh along as he picks up speed and continues towards home. 

“I can’t wait until you two finally figure it out.” Plagg chuckles to himself as Adrien speeds past him.

[secretevillustrator]

A moment to breathe - part 3

Aaaaand the third chapter is finally done!

You can either read it under the cut or on AO3.

-

Finally Marinette can start going back to her everyday life! The harassers are suspended from shcool, she's finally speaking with Adrien and everything seemes to be looking up.

However, Hawkmoth has other plans in store for her.

Marinette gave a small wave as she left the locker-room. The smile that she had gotten in return made her heart flutter. She was so happy she didn’t know what to do with herself.

The last few days had weighed so heavy on her, and now that she had told Adrien a bit about what happened she felt so much lighter. It wasn’t completely gone from her mind yet, of course it wasn’t, but it felt like a step in the right direction.

School had already finished for today, so she started to head home. She greeted her parents as she passed them in the bakery and continued towards her room. As soon as she entered her room she threw herself on the divan and buried her face in a pillow. Tikki flew out of the bag and landed besides Marinette, smiling at her charge’s antics.

Adrien thinks I’m amazing!!!

Marinette squealed in delight, the sound only dampened by her pillow.  

“Feeling better Marinette?”

Marinette tilted her head to look at Tikki and sighed happily, the motion making her feel lighter. ”Yeah, it was nice to get a chance to talk it out.”

Tikki giggled, “I’m glad Marinette”.

Marinette was thrilled that she and Adrien finally had a proper conversation. She was aware that she might not be able to keep up that kind of conversation again, at least not right from the get go. It’s quite hard to change that kind of behaviour after all, but she was happy she got to talk with him.

Maybe things were starting to look up for her and Adrien.

-----

Adrien was almost glad that the car ride home put Plagg´s incessant teasing on hold. But at the same time, the quiet atmosphere of the ride gave him time to ponder over his own feelings. He felt so confused and conflicted.

He loved Ladybug and had done so ever since they first faced Hawkmoth together. At first it was just her bravery and quick thinking, but he fell in love time and time again the more he got to know her. Everything from the way she talked, the playful manner she acted around him and just... her.

Then there was Marinette. She had been one of his first real friends. She was even beginning to talk with him more now! At first he had just been happy that they were becoming closer as friends, but something changed. He was suddenly longing to talk with Marinette more and more, and this urge to protect her was confusing to him. Of course he would protect all his friends, but with Marinette it felt... different, somehow. And now he wasn’t sure what Marinette meant to him.

He placed his head in his hands as he slumped in his seat. He didn’t know his own heart anymore. But the thing that confused him the most was that even though he might have feelings for two completely different people... it still felt right.

-----

The next morning Marinette didn’t even make it through the school’s front-entrance before being approached by the same two guys who had harassed her. She had been able to see them waiting out front, however she didn’t really have any way to avoid them. She still tried to pass by them, but they quickly blocked her path which forced her to face them.

“You got me suspended” the first guy said, his voice sounding nothing but accusatory. He loomed over Marinette while glaring daggers at her.

Marinette just looked at him. She didn’t even feel like it was worth trying to argue with him. Not because she couldn’t argue against him, in fact it would be quite simple to do so, but something told her it wasn’t going to get through to him.

Her lack of response only seemed to anger the guys further.

“Don’t ignore me you bitch!”

She could feel her jaw tighten. She wasn’t afraid, but angry. Not only did they not stop after harassing her the first time and almost causing her to become akumatized, but they also had the audacity to come after her like this.

She could feel Tikki nudging her leg through the bag and calmed herself down. They weren’t going to get to her.

“Excuse me, but I have to get to class”, Marinette walked past them. She could hear them yelling something after her, but ignored it and kept walking.  Just being near people like them was enough to make a heavy weight settle in her stomach, so she was more than happy to get away from them.

-----

Adrien waved and smiled at Marinette as she walked into class (only a few minutes late this time), and she gave a small smile in return as she scurried to her seat while apologizing to the teacher for being late. He tried to ignore the tiny flip his stomach did at the mere sight of her.

The remainder of the lesson was relatively quiet. That is, until an Akuma broke down the door.

Not again...

Adrien was already on his feet; ready to help the others get out of here and find a place to transform. It wasn’t the first time an akuma had appeared during class after all. But there was something that felt different about this akuma. It was a boy, around his age if he had to guess, and he seemed to be wearing an equally ridiculous costume as all the other akumas. But the air around him was different, more hostile... And his eyes were focused on Marinette.

Adrien felt the familiar surge of adrenalin as he ran towards Marinette. But the akuma was faster, the akuma shot at Adrien and in his momentum to get to Marinette, he didn’t have any time to dodge. The blond boy was hit square in the chest by something and for a second all he could see was a dark red flame engulfing him, but it didn’t burn... He fell from the impact and he could hear the entire class gasp while Marinette and a few others screamed his name.

The Akuma grabbed a hold of Marinette and smashed through the window. All Adrien could do was watch as the akuma sprinted across the rooftops, taking Marinette with him.

You’re weak! Adrien was startled at the voice now ringing inside his head. You couldn’t even save Marinette. The voice was painfully loud and made Adrien wince not only because of the harsh words it spoke, but the volume of it as well.

Yes I can. I can still save Marinette and I will.

Adrien ran out the class and found an unoccupied room where he could transform, the voice still ringing inside his head with insults. Plagg didn’t even manage to get a single word out before being absorbed into the miraculous and soon Chat Noir stood in Adrien’s place.

He followed the path of destruction hoping it would lead him to wherever the akuma held Marinette captive. There were words scattered across the city; big blocks of letters that crushed everything. He saw people on the street clutching at their heads in pain while others looked on in confusion and fear at the state of those inflicted.  

Worthless! Because of your incompetence as a hero people are suffering.

He had to try and ignore the voice in order to save Marinette and everyone else. His mind felt like it was tearing apart. His own thoughts and the voice seemed to be struggling for dominance. Although he himself was preparing for battle, his mind seemed to have become a battlefield in itself.

-----

Marinette was at a loss of what to do. It seemed the akuma had brought her to some abandoned storage-building, but she didn’t know how to escape and there was no way for her to transform (Tikki had managed to hide somewhere). Her captor, whom she estimated to be one of the two guys from earlier and who now called himself ‘Mind-game’, never left her side. The Akuma didn´t seem to target anyone else specifically, so for now she could focus on her own predicament.  

The outline of a purple butterfly hovered in front of the akuma’s face and from what she could tell it didn’t look like the Mind-game was agreeing with whatever Hawkmoth wanted him to do. Whether that was good or bad she had yet to find out.

The akuma neared Marinette and she backed away as far as her restrains let her, the cuffs gnawing at her wrist in the process, but the akuma soon stood towering over her.

“So, Marinette” his voice filled with venom as he spoke her name, “Apparently Hawkmoth has taken interest in you”. She felt herself pale. That definitely couldn’t mean anything good.

Mind-game’s hands began to glow a dark orange with a hint of red. The glow seemed like some sort of flame, but she couldn’t feel any heat emanating from his hand. He looked down at the flame, idly watching it as he continued talking.

“He says you somehow evaded an akuma. Mind telling me about that?” Although phrased as a question Marinette could easily sense the underlying threat (kind of hard to ignore actually). When she didn’t answer he looked at her, his eyes burning with pure hatred.

“I do have my own plans for you, but it will have to wait for now. After all, Hawkmoth was so kind to give me these powers, so the least I can do is to return the favour, right?”

Every word that left his mouth sent shivers down her spine. She really didn’t want to know what either of them had in store for her.

-----

Chat Noir overlooked the scene. He couldn’t barge in without a plan. He had to be sure he could take down the akuma without Marinette getting dragged even more into it than she already was or hurt in any way. Ladybug still hadn’t showed up, and he was beginning to feel antsy. The fact that he still had a voice telling him everything he did wrong wasn’t really helping either. His brows were furrowed and he his tail twisted around a nearby pipeline.

You’re hopeless without Ladybug! You’ll end up screwing up and letting Marinette get hurt.

The voice kept going, never even giving him a second to breathe. His thoughts and the voice oftentimes overlapping with one another. It was almost crippling. He shut his eyes as the pain of the voice grew more intense.

“I know you’re there.”

Chat noir snapped his eyes open at the sound of Mind-game’s voice.

He was still hidden, but Mind-game must somehow have realized that he was there.

He jumped down. There didn’t seem to be much of a point in hiding anymore. At the very least it didn’t seem like a surprise attack was an option anymore.

I shouldn’t just wait around for Ladybug to show up anyway.

He had to save Marinette no matter what. There was no time for him to doubt himself.

“Oh, how lovely” Mind-game said as he mockingly clasped his hands together, “the sidekick decided to show up.”

Chat clenched his hands into fist, but soon let the anger and tension go. Mind-game was trying to get inside his head and Chat refused to let him. And besides, he knew he was more than a sidekick. Ladybug made sure that he was aware of his importance in their partnership.

Mind-game cocked his head to the side; obviously trying to eye out the effect of his words.

Chat tried not to smirk, but he could feel the corners of his mouth twitch. Annoying others and getting under their skin was kind of his expertise after all.

“Well don’t mind me then” he said as he calmly sauntered towards the akuma.

Mind-game seemed taken aback by Chat’s reaction.

Only when Chat got close did Mind-game react. It looked almost comical how Mind-game jumped away from Chat, while the black cat hero himself looked completely at ease.

“Don’t worry, you can put your mind at ease. I don’t mean to hurt you.” Chat kept emphasizing his words, making sure that Mind-game would catch on to the taunts. And he had to admit; it was quite fun to see how Mind-game almost flinched at each pun.

He really shouldn’t play games if he can’t handle being played.

Frustration seemed to overtake Mind-game. “I can tell you have already been hit by my flames, but I guess you still need some sense knocked into you”

Mind-game leapt forward while shooting flaming words after Chat.

“Bold words coming from someone in that kind of costume.”

Chat found it mildly amusing when he noticed that a lot of the ‘word-projectiles’ seemed to be cuss words.

“Mind your manners young man” he said with his best ‘reprimanding-adult-voice’ (although he was pretty sure he was doing a terrible job a keeping a straight face), “You should be more mindful of others.”

As Mind-game shot yet another ‘word-projectile’ after him he couldn’t help but ad:

“What? Are you already at your wits end?”

As their dance around each other dragged on it became clear Mind-game was getting more and more aggravated. Even the flames that surrounded the ‘word-projectiles’ became darker and darker in colour.

“You’re doing this mind-over-matter thing wrong. Matter refers to your body, not everything around it”.

He tried to keep up with the puns and his taunting to make Mind-game move further and further away from Marinette. Mind-game didn’t seem to notice what he was up to. As soon as he had enough leeway he called forth his cataclysm, his hand simmering from the destructive energy, and slid across the floor towards Marinette. Mind-game finally seemed to have caught on to what he was doing and tried to get to him, but Chat had already used his cataclysm on nearby pillar supporting parts of the roof. The rubbles landed between the akuma and himself thereby severing off Mind-game’s access to him and Marinette.

Chat rushed to Marinette’s side, hoping to take advantage of this sudden standstill in the fight.

He moved to take off Marinette’s restraints but was surprised to find nothing except words inking her skin. The words were so small it was hard to read, but there were so many it still formed a thick black line around her wrist. Some of them read things like ‘cuffs’ or ‘trapped’, but others seemed to read along the lines of ‘painful’.

Now that’s just cruel.

But that just begs the question; how do you remove cuffs that aren’t really there?! But he had to try while the akuma was still trapped behind the rubbles.

The akuma calls himself Mind-game so maybe, just maybe, it’s all her head... so I guess he did have an understanding of mind-over-matter after all.

“Marinette, I need you to listen to me: There are no cuffs.” She blinked at him, her confusion evident to see. “It’s one of the akuma’s powers. I need you to trust me.”

-----

The resolve in his eyes was more than enough to convince her. She already trusted Chat Noir with her life so why wouldn’t she trust him now. She decided to fight against the apparently imaginative restraints, she had to keep reminding herself of what Chat had told her; there aren’t any cuffs. So she kept fighting even as the gnawing pain seemed to grow worse. And then it stopped. She brought her hands in front of her and saw the words on her wrist slowly fading. All that remained was a red line of irritated skin.

She looked up at Chat who looked relieved, only for his expression to morph into one of worry a second later as the akuma seemed to be breaking through the barrier.

She heard a beeping sound coming from Chat’s ring. She didn’t have time to comment on it before Chat took her hand, pulled her up and started running. Not only did they have to get away before the akuma came after them, but Chat Noir had already used his cataclysm; meaning he didn’t have much time left before he transformed back. Chat held on to her hand as he ran towards the exit.

------

Outside of the building it was clear to see the damage the akuma had managed to inflict.

He didn’t have much of a choice anymore. If he didn’t hide now, his transformation would wear off and Marinette, the akuma and Hawkmoth would discover his identity. On the other hand, he couldn’t leave Marinette to fend off the akuma by herself. Of course he knows that Marinette is a strong person and knows how to handle herself, but he didn’t want to let Marinette get in harm’s way.

He scanned the area for any possible hiding places for Marinette. He couldn’t leave her alone, but it was also risky for him to bring her with him. He could feel sweat running down his neck. He didn’t know what to do.

He scanned the area, desperately looking for a place to hide. There were still a lot of people in the streets and a lot of them were now looking at him. He had to get away before more people started to gather seeking help. He wanted to help everybody, but with his transformation soon to come undone he wasn’t exactly fighting-fit.

He grabbed a hold of Marinette and extended his baton, lifting them from the ground. He found a small space amongst the roofs where he would be able to transform. It wasn’t the most optimal hiding spot, but they would have to make do until he was able to transform again. When they had landed Chat opened his mouth to speak; intending to ask Marinette to close her eyes or turn around before he let go of his transformation. But he had realised too late that his five minutes already were up.

-----

She tried to look away, she really did, but as the blinding light of his transformation faded away she couldn’t help but notice the oh so familiar outfit he was wearing. She could deny the familiarity of his voice and his figure and shrug it off as her being with Chat so often, but as an aspiring designer she prided herself in recognizing different outfits. And with this high-quality outfit there was only one person that came to mind.

“Adrien...”

The flinch he gave in response was all the confirmation she needed. She hadn’t even meant to say the name out loud, but she hadn’t been able to help herself. She lifted her gaze and met the emerald green eyes of non-other than Adrien Agreste.

Extra:

Mind-game -The akumaticed object is a marker. Before becoming an akuma he had planned to vandalise Marinette's locker. - The "flame" that Mind-game uses is his way of "getting under people's skin". The one inflicted with the flames will be subjected to their insecurities, fears and more through a voice in their head. The colour represents the intensity of the voice. So red is more intens than orange and so on. The writing that is both in cursive and fat is the voice. - The writing seen on Marinette is an abilty to make people believe in something that it isn't there. So in Marinette's case; she is convinced she has restraints around her hands. This ability can be disrupted if other people make the inflicted aware that it isn't real. This ability only works if Mind-game actually touches the 'victim'. Others would be able to see the ink flow onto their skin, but the 'victims' themselves will see whatever Mind-game wants them to see. - Word-gun. This one is simple; he shoots words. The flame and word-gun can be combined. It's also what hit Adrien in the chest; he just didn't take the time to figure out what hit him. - He can't read minds, but he can sense negative thoughts (which includes the voice he inflicts). He could therefore sense Chat when he was nearby. It doesn't work over longer distances.

[rosegardentwilight]

Steal My Heart Chapter 12

a03

Summary: Prince Plagg had waited for the day that he could meet his betrothed, but when he does, he is met with a different reaction than he expected. He becomes determined that despite her mistaken assumptions, he will woo and win the Princess’s heart. Meanwhile, Prince Adrien finds himself thrust into an adventure after a brief encounter with a thief named Ladybug.

Pairings: Cheesecake and Adrienette

A.n.- Here we are, at the last chapter, my friends. I truly can say that this story has humbled me to my core, and I'm so thankful for each and everyone that supported me through this. Thank you to my writer discord group and all the support they poured out to me.

I hope you really enjoyed this Alex, it was written just for you.

Thanks to Blue, who edited the majority of this chapter and Remesa covered the remainder, I appreciate you a ton!

This wasn’t fair.

Marinette was all prepared to leave, and then Adrien had to crash into her plans with his big, green, pleading eyes. Marinette breathed out, trying to calm her hope-filled heart. Part of the reason she wrote the note in the first place was that she wasn’t sure she could face him and still say goodbye.

To get through this conversation, she would have to keep reminding herself that this was for the best. Although, every time she repeated it to herself, her resolve weakened.

“Alright-” a lump grew in her throat, “-let’s talk.” She had no idea how she was going to convince him to let her go.

“I don’t understand why you felt you had to run. Do you really believe that I’m better off without you by my side?”

‘ No ’ bubbled up inside her, but the word died before it could make it past her lips. Her mouth opened, closed, and opened again. With still no answer from her, Adrien reached out and squeezed her hand.

“What happened?” he pleaded.

“Well...” As much as she didn’t want to rehash the events from earlier, explaining may make him understand. “Earlier today there was a... situation with Chloé.”

“What did she do? Did she threaten you?” Adrien released her hand to slam his palm on the table. His overprotective behavior was endearing but unnecessary.

“No.” The urgency fled out of her, only to be met by confusion sewn into his eyebrows. “Nothing like that. But Princess Chloé has no intention of giving up on you.”

“I won’t marry her.”

“But Adrien”— She should have known that his stubbornness would be an issue.

“I don’t love Chloé.” His words echoed through her mind, but not louder than the other half of the sentence that wasn’t said.

I love you.

Tears started to escape her eyes before she could stop them. “But I don’t want you to die.”

“Marinette,” Adrien cooed leaning over the table, wiping the tears away with his thumb. “Who put these notions in your head? Was it my father?”

Marinette found that she couldn’t do anything, but nod. Her traitorous tears had given away her true emotions, no sense hiding them now. Part of their relationship was founded on trust. Where would they be if she wasn’t honest?

“Part of what my father said is true. Chloé won’t want to give up the marriage. In the worst-case scenario, it might lead to war. But”- Adrien hooked his finger under her chin, so their eyes met.

“I’m not afraid as long as I have you by my side. I believe our kingdoms can come to an agreement and no bloodshed will have to come of it. Chloé can wait a thousand years, but my feelings towards you won’t wane. No one can change that. Not Chloé, my father, or any force on this earth. You make me want to be better. You are the first thing I think of when I rise and the last thing before I slumber. I fully intend to fulfill my promise to you.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss on her knuckles.

"So, what do you say?" He peeked up through his bangs at her. "Will you come back with me?"

Marinette's breath hitched as she felt Adrien's gaze pass straight through her. He had countered every argument that she had. Deep down, she couldn't deny that she did want to go with him. If everything he said was the truth, then it didn't matter if she disappeared or went with him - he wouldn't marry Chloe. He made it clear that Marinette was the only one that he had eyes for. She would rather be with him than to be away and have the same fate occur.

"Yes." The butterflies that were once dormant fluttered once more. "Yes," she repeated, allowing her answer to sink in.

Adrien shot up from his seat and rounded the table to hold out his hand. Marinette blinked twice before accepting his help to stand. Their hands laced and Marinette found herself mirroring Adrien's movements until their lips met. She melted into his touch only for the kiss to be broken with hoots and hollers.

Adrien dug through his pocket and pulled out something that she thought she would never see again.

"I want you to hold my mother’s ring a little longer."

"Are you sure?" Guilt ate away at her insides. After the pain she caused him, Marinette was sure that he would have kept it. Adrien trusted her enough to give something so precious back to her.

"My heart is still yours, Marinette. It seems only right that you have it back." He squeezed her hand, eyes twinkling. Once more, his hand slipped into his bag and held up a familiar red sack.

"Is that my-" Her voice stopped as the realization settled in. "You stole my bag?"

"Seems only fair," he grinned mischievously, obviously proud. "You stole my heart."

Nathaniel grumbled silently to himself; he was rather enjoying the party before being summoned. He flipped up his hood to blend into the night as he slipped off the palace grounds.

This was just a job; he reminded himself.

He needed to eat, after all. Although, now he regretted not asking more questions when he accepted the job in the first place. If he had known that his target was protected under a prince, he would have demanded a higher price. If he were caught, Nathaniel would pay with his life. He slipped into a shadowed alley until he reached his destination. Nathaniel’s eyes widened at the use of a carriage; she was the one who insisted on secrecy in the first place.

A patterned knock swung the door open. Nathaniel eyed the two muscular men on either side of the room, a safety precaution, but regardless, they wouldn’t help his employer if she decided to double cross him. His mind had already sketched out multiple ways to dispose of them.

“You’re late.” Her iced tone slowed him to a halt.

“I had to take the long way to assure that I wasn’t followed from the party.”

“Did anyone suspect your involvement?”

“No, and the target fled the party.”

“You let her go?”

Nathaniel took a step back at the hissed question but stood his ground. “I had received orders”-

“The only orders you will follow are mine .” Her blue eyes narrowed. “Is that understood?”

“Crystal.”

“My informants shared that Marinette agreed to go back with the prince to Schmetterling. Here are your new orders. I want you to follow them there, get in the good graces of the prince, make him trust you. When you are alone with Marinette, kill her.”

“Now wait one minute, scaring the prince’s beloved is one thing—killing is”—

“I was told that you were the man I needed to see about  anything —is that not true?”

Before Nathaniel could reply, one of the men grabbed him from behind, forcing his arms to his side.

“If you cannot do as I ask, then it appears I have no use for you.”

In a swift motion, Nathaniel reached for his knife hide on his right thigh and spun it before jabbing it into the man’s leg. Immediately, he was released as the bodyguard cried out in pain. Nathaniel took a couple of steps forward, closing the gap.

“Does that answer your question, Your Majesty?”

“If you succeed, there will be a reward beyond your dreams,” she promised before eyeing the door. “I have to be off, I’ve been away far too long, and people will take notice.”

Nathaniel watched through the window as the carriage pulled away. Only then could he drop his defenses. What did the queen have against this girl anyway? Nathaniel had met Marinette twice, and both time, he could feel her kindness radiating off of her.

Get a grip, Nathaniel.

If he did this job, he wouldn’t have to want for anything for a long time. He had killed before, what was one more? Although her sparkling blue eyes were etched into his memory. He would gather what provisions that were needed and set off for Schmetterling. If he did his job correctly, then they won’t ever suspect his real motives, and after the deed was done, he could slip in the shadows once more. If he failed—well, failure wasn’t an option.

The next couple of days were a whirlwind, but Adrien had done what he promised and stuck by her side the entire way. They had borrowed a horse from Tikki and Plagg to make the journey, and even though he had the opportunity to ride in the carriage with his father, Adrien insisted that he ride alongside her the whole way. After the first day, she had forgotten that they weren't alone and allowed her walls to crumble. Marinette flirted freely with Adrien and more importantly, let herself be happy when her heart fluttered with the returned affection.

Once they did reach Schmetterling, the pit in her stomach grew. The journey had been a nice distraction for what came next, but she was still in a new place with her only friendly face being Adrien. She had to convince the king that she deserved to be there, and with this transition, there were bound to be obstacles that she would face. The one source of comfort was that Adrien continued to prove his promise.

"Hey," Adrien caught her attention and offered a kind smile, "it will be alright. We're home."

Home.

The word resonated within her chest, causing small pools of fire and warmth to appear.

She supposed he was right; this was her home for the moment. Standing there, next to him; words couldn’t describe how she felt other than right.

“I like the sound of that,” she admitted.  The horses came to a halt, and Marinette’s eyes wandered to the castle. It was hard to believe that this would be where she was living for who knows how long. Adrien hopped off his horse and hurried to her side, offering up a hand to help Marinette. She had only expected him to offer her help her down, so when he grabbed her hips and lifted her, Marinette let out a surprised yelp. The feeling didn’t last as their eyes locked the second her feet hit the ground. His hands hadn’t left their place on her sides.

“Adrien,” she coughed as heat flooded to her cheeks.

His hands jolted back as if they were on fire, and Marinette was sure that Adrien’s bodyguard had witnessed the whole thing.

“Nino, I can help put away the horses,” Marinette offered. She felt terrible that he had to watch all of her exchanges with Adrien over the last couple of days. No matter how subtle they attempted to be, Marinette did not doubt that the knight caught all of their flirtations back and forth.

“That won’t be necessary, Miss.” Nino collected the reins and headed off to the stables leaving the lovebirds behind.

“I fear Nino might not like me very much.” What other explanation was there to his silent behavior? Adrien’s arms slipped around her waist as he dragged his nose up the length of her neck to her ear.

“Just give it time, my love. Soon he’ll come to love you just as much as I do.”

“Well, hopefully not as much,” Marinette teased back playfully. “I shudder at the thought of other men kissing me at their whim.” Adrien’s grip tightened for only a moment

“You mean, I can kiss you at my every whim?”

A shiver rippled down her spine from something in his tone. The hair on her neck stood trying to greet Adrien’s lips as he kissed the area right behind her ear. Although her body swam with delight, the quad of the castle was no place for such an activity. She would have enough judgments from others without the servants witnessing the affection.

“Only if you catch me first.” Marinette pushed off Adrien and ran towards the castle doors. It wouldn’t be long before he did catch her; she had no clue where she was going. The butterflies inside her exploded at the thought of when Adrien would claim his victory, but until then, she would keep on running.

Adrien slipped into a position to catch Marinette as she rounded the corner. Reason would say that she could be anywhere in the castle, but he could hear the faint pitter-patter of running. No one in the castle would have reason to run, and needless to say, he'd be embarrassed if the person that he captured was a servant and not his love. He closed his eyes and counted as the sound grew louder. At the right time, he reached out and caught her waist, trapping his catch between him and the wall.

His heart pounded against his chest, desperately wanting to escape as Marinette's wide eyes greeted him.

"You found me,” she breathed out.

More stomach stirring as her promise replayed in his ears. Had she meant it? As royalty, no one would blink an eye if he ordered her to kiss him, but the fact that she would do so willingly brought forth so many emotions.

"I told you that I always would," he replied, biting back the urge to ask about a kiss. His body betrayed him as he started to lean in. Their hands laced by her side, closing the gap further between them. Marinette’s eyes fluttered closed; it seemed she was just as eager for this kiss as he was. This was the first time they had been alone in several days.

“I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that your heart easily distracts you.”

Adrien stumbled back from Marinette at the familiar tone. Acting on instinct, he placed himself between Marinette and the newcomer., he stepped so he was in between her and Felix.

“Lord Brother, I didn’t realize that you had returned.”

“Obviously,” Felix shot back amused. “I know our father taught you better manners, but it seems like the second he leaves, you revert to a fool.”

That was news to Adrien. “Father’s away?”

Felix raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. “He left shortly after he returned, to go and fix the mess you created with that intolerable blonde princess.”

Adrien’s shoulders scrunched as his head fell. Although his father had decidedly dropped the matter for now, Felix would be less forgiving. He didn’t understand why his brother kept pushing him to standards much higher than required of him.

“Who is your friend?” Felix arched an eyebrow, his gaze drifted over Adrien’s shoulder.

“Felix, My Lord Brother, this is Marinette, Friend to the Crown.”

“Such an unusual title, how did she come across it?”

“Crowned Prince Plagg bestowed the title upon her.” Felix didn’t need all the details of what went on in his adventures; the knowledge would make him disapprove further. Marinette already had an uphill battle for the approval of the First Prince.

Felix stepped forward, eyes not diverting from Marinette, “Are you a friend to our crown?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

His eyebrows furrowed and lip thinned to a line. “I guess only time will reveal your true intentions with my brother.”

"Lord Brother"-

"I'm bored of this conversation," Felix cut in. "I suggest you show more discretion in the future. I wouldn't want the servants to get ideas about you and your...friend."

Adrien opened his mouth to retort, but his brother turned his back and began to walk away before he could. Instead, his hands curled into fists by his side, and if he squeezed any tighter, he swore his fingernails would draw blood. His brother had been away for a considerable amount of time, and now that he was back, he felt he had the right to control certain aspects of his life.

“That was your-” The words died in her throat, and her eyes remained fixated on where Felix had disappeared to moments earlier.

"He's my older brother and first in the line to the throne," Adrien replied. He hadn't expected for his brother to be home and with his father absent for a while, it would prove challenging to have Marinette around. Felix, all things considered, was stiff, stubborn, and didn't care for the complexity of most emotions. He saw feelings as a weakness that got in the way of his duties. Adrien didn't trust his brother as far as he could throw a stone in the nearby lake; Felix could twist situations to his favor. Adrien swore to himself to keep Marinette as far away from his brother if he had his say.

"Mari," Adrien reached for her hand gently rubbing her skin lightly with her thumb. "Don't trust a word that my brother says. Promise me, ok?"

"But why?"

"Please, Marinette, just trust me on this." Adrien couldn't blame Marinette for the confusion flashing across her face. How could she understand without knowing the reason why he didn't trust his brother.

"Alright, I promise."

Relief flooded his body and he pulled her into a tight hug, resting his chin upon her shoulder. It would only be a matter of moments before he was summoned by Felix once more to discuss anything the elder prince didn’t think appropriate to talk about in front of Marinette. Since his brother outranked him, he would have to go and leave her. “Follow me,” he whispered, resting his forehead against hers. “I’ll show you to your room.”

Tikki found herself pacing back and forth, waiting for it to be the right time to enter. She had been watching all these people from Plagg’s kingdom pour in and could help but stare. These people, they had stories much as her people did. It would take time, but she hoped that they would accept her as their queen.

“Tikki, it’s almost time.”

Pollen’s voice made her jump from her watching place. She usually would be cross for scaring her, but Pollen had given up just as much as she had to come here.

“You look breathtaking, Your Highness.”

Tikki took the opportunity to admire her dress once more. It was a fiery red which divided in the front to reveal fabric as black as the night sky. Gold swirls were stitched into the bodice and if one peered close enough resembled the flight path of a butterfly. Red had been one of her favorite colors for as long as she could remember, and the dark fabric reminded her of her beloved. This dress represented them both combined - a homage to their union.

“Thank you,” Tikki replied, patting down the dress to calm the nerves. “I don’t know if I could have done this without you.”

“I do not doubt that you could have,” Pollen chirped back. “You’ll make a wonderful queen.”

Pollen’s pep talk was interrupted by another servant guiding her to the door.

The second the door opened all breath left Tikki’s lungs only to return seconds later. All eyes stared at her, and she knew she needed to start the walk. The distance seemed much more daunting than her wedding day. Her people had seen her time and time again, but now, new judgment was cast.

Tikki found the courage to start walking as soon as her gaze landed on Plagg at the end of the aisle. One step after another. It became easier as long as she kept looking straight at him.

Once she reached as far as she could go, Plagg’s hands helped to her knees.

Tikki didn’t remember much of what was said; her eyes were transfixed on her husband. Everything else faded away until a chilling sensation hit her forehead in the form of holy oil. After worry had plagued her this week of different ways she could mess up the ceremony, she was halfway there.

She couldn’t help but watch as Plagg picked up the nearby crown. The light caught the rubies embedded within and made the crown sparkle even more. Red was her favorite color, so Tikki was sure that this crown would be her favorite. There were so many people that were counting on her to rule this kingdom, and even though Tikki knew that she had to take one day at a time.

Her husband’s eyes crinkled in joy as he began to lower the crown.

Tikki released a sigh of relief when the metal rested safely on her head. A weight of anxiety lifted off her at one of Plagg’s beaming smiles. He was proud of her, and he wanted the world to know. Her husband had been reliable support every step of the way. The second they had arrived, Plagg’s parents sat them down and told them that they wanted them to rise to the throne as they took on a role of advisors. This would help them ease into the role when they passed. Although a huge responsibility, the king and queen wouldn’t have suggested if they did not think they were ready. Plagg helped her to her feet and turned her around.

“Long live the queen,” he shouted. The room filled with the chorus of the phrase Tikki’s lips pushed back into a smile before turning to her king.

“I love you,” she whispered under the roar of the room. Plagg’s eyes softened at the comment before he leaned in. Tikki expected him to return the words, but Plagg had other ideas.

“Long live, my queen.” He closed the gap to seal his statement with a kiss. Tikki found herself returning the gesture with fervor.

Despite what problems they faced, they could do it; together.

[t0bi0l0gy]

ML Fluff Month Day 1: Roommates

ML Fluff Month Day 1: Roomates

Ship: Marichat

AU: aged up!

Words: 1344

Rating: T

Summary: Marinette and Alya are roommates. It’s hard to keep secrets from Alya, especially ones involving the infamous Chat Noir.

A/N: Thanks to @miraculousfluffmonth for the amazing idea (this was supposed to get posted much MUCH earlier but ya know life?) and THANKS for reading

 ao3

Marinette was distracted in class all day. Alya was the first one to notice the way she was chewing on her pencil and smiling in a way that meant she was thinking of someone. The way she almost laughed to herself, the way her eyes lit up, and the way her cheeks were dusted bright pink just by the thought of him.

Alya smirked, knowing the girl was thinking of Adrien. Even after they left for college, Adrien was always on her mind. The girl still pined after him, even though she had never found the courage to ask him out. Alya sighed, before turning her gaze back to the lecture. She made a mental note to talk to Marinette later.

Marinette has been restless all day. So when she finally arrived at home, she’d never felt more relieved. Chat had promised to come over tonight, because Alya has a date with Nino. Just at the thought of seeing those bright green eyes staring at her, the way his smile grew exponentially wider whenever he looked at her. The way he accidentally purred when they kissed. Marinette knew her cheeks must’ve been as red as her suit. She hated that he had this kind of effect on her, but there was no use denying it now, it’s more obvious than her crush on Adrien used to be.

Adrien is now a world famous model, and he’s spending a lot of his time travelling, or so he says. Whatever Marinette had felt for Adrien, however real, had faded. But Marinette pretends to be into him, to cover up her relationship with Chat.

“You’ll be alright by yourself?” Marinette looked up from the notebook she was pretending to study from, a look of confusion crossing her face. Alya had been talking to her this whole time, and she hadn’t heard a word.

“I- yes?” Alya shot her a look, before sliding her jacket over her shoulders.

“I’ll be home in like 3 hours, we’re going to dinner and a movie. Don’t wreck the place, and no boys over.” Alya was playing the stern mom card again, and the pair just laughed. Rules were meant to be broken. And Marinette would be breaking at least one tonight. But Marinette just smiled and ushered Alya out the door, a little too quickly, but Alya brushed it off as she met Nino in the lobby of their apartment building.

Marinette waited nearly an hour for Chat to arrive, and when she finally saw his green eyes peeking trough her bedroom window, all annoyance she had felt towards the cat vanished, and she was left with butterflies. She opened the window, and Chat Noir slunk in, purposefully brushing against her as he moved to sit on her bed. She closed the window behind him, a smile spreading across her lips.

“Afternoon, kitty.” His ears twitched happily at the nickname, before he patted the spot next to him on her bed.

“It’s great to see you again, Marinette.” Marinette nearly melted just from the way her name left his lips. He hadn’t even been here a full minute and Marinette was putty in his hands. Chat saw this, as he smirked and brought one clawed glove to rest on her thigh. She gasped, slapping his hand away.

“Shouldn’t you take me out to dinner first?” Marinette giggled, before standing up to move away from him.

“I don’t know, I’m not really hungry.” The cat sneered, closing the space between them. She reached a hand up to rub the edge of his jaw, smiling to herself. Chat leaned into her touch, before he brought his lips down to kiss her. Marinette cupped his face, and pulled his head down so he could reach him, and she felt his heartbeat speed up, and she smiled into the kiss. No matter how playboy-ish the superhero tried to act, his heart could never lie. And his heart told her that he felt the same way she did, he was just better at hiding it.

Marinette pulled away first, and she flicked the bell on his collar playfully, before turning on her heel and leaving her room. She knew the cat was following her, because she barely made it into the kitchen, before he grabbed her around the waist to stop her. She gasped, before spinning around to face the grinning cat. The sneer that covered his face made her blush slightly, so she buried her face in his chest to hide it.

 “I love you.” She whispered, mostly to herself. It was unconscious, and it took her a bit to realize what she had just said. Immediately her blush darkened, and she made a very high pitched noise, before pulling away from the superhero, who was just gaping at her.

“Y-you what?” Adrien hadn’t heard the word love in ages. He’s been so unloved since his mother left, he’d forgotten what it meant. That didn’t take the meaning of the word away, especially as it had come from Marinette’s lips. He had put it together long ago that she was Ladybug, but she valued her privacy, and he would honor that. So the fact that Marinette had learned to love both sides of himself, he couldn’t begin to comprehend the utter happiness he was feeling. He’s never felt luckier in his entire life, and even though Chat Noir is supposed to be the miraculous of bad luck, for once he felt his luck was in his favor. Because she was his lucky charm. She always has been.

“Chat, I-“ Adrien placed a finger over her lips to interrupt her, before he grabbed her chin gently and kissed her. But she pulled away, looking downcast. “I’m so sorry,” she muttered, bringing her gaze up to his, and taking his hand. “I didn’t mean to say it...”

“Just stop.” Chat smiled at her, before he pulled her hand and placed it on his chest, so she could feel the way his heart was racing. She smiled, and then she giggled lightly. “You’re so addictive, Marinette. I seriously can’t get enough of you. You’re like catnip for this kitty.” Marinette laughed again, before wrapping her arms around him in an embrace. They stayed like that for a while, before Chat whispered happily. “I love you too, Purrincess.”

 “Get over here you silly cat.” Marinette couldn’t wipe the smile off her face as she kissed Chat. She felt like nothing could ruin this moment.

 “What the hell is happening?!” Alya. Marinette shrieked, as she shot away from Chat like he was the plague, and caught Alya’s shocked face.

 “N-nothing!” Marinette desperately tried to cover up what she had seen, but even she knew it was pointless.

 “Girl, every time I spoke of Chat Noir, you brushed him off. When did this happen?” Chat moved to stand between Marinette and Alya, and shot her one of his signature grins.

 “No one can resist my charms, not even her. I’m the cat’s meow.” Marinette and Alya groaned in unison, then laughed together.

 “It is half true, I have to admit.” Marinette said sheepishly, as she stood next to the superhero.

 “Girl! I need all the deets. Right now!” Chat rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, and Marinette just blushed.

 “A superhero can’t reveal all his secrets.” Chat winked at Marinette, before stepping away towards the window. “This cat’s gotta pounce. I’ll see you around Marinette?” She nodded, hopping to peck his lips, before he was out the window and gone.

 “So have you had sex yet?”

 “Alya!” Marinette cried, covering her face with her hands.

 “What? It was just a simple question. And that’s not the only one I have.” Marinette giggled as Alya began rapid firing questions about Chat, and Marinette felt a weight lifting off of her chest she hadn’t even realized was there. It felt so nice to share this secret with Alya. Now she didn’t have to hide her budding relationship from her friend.

 “I love him, Alya.”

 “I know, it’s stupidly obvious.”

[hallythelantern-blog]

The Blue Rose (Adrien Appreciation Week): Chapter 3

Theme: Favorite Ship

Chapter 1, Chapter 2

Fanfiction AO3

Chapter 3: Unplanned Rendezvous

Maybe Marinette was Ladybug.

It would explain a lot of things to him. First of all, why she had to go and do an “errand” right after the police had called Chat Noir out. Of course, it may have been a coincidence. Maybe she actually did have an errand to run to.

But after she had come back, she stuttered and almost said that she didn’t know of an errand, until she had caught herself. And then hesitated herself into making an excuse.

Which was suspicious. Did she not like him? No. It couldn’t have been that. If that was the case, she wouldn’t have let him in in the first place.

Of course, he knew that Marinette would probably shelter Chloe, whom he knew she hated, if Chloe had been in mortal danger like he had been. But, she wouldn’t have been happy that her archenemy was there in her room. With all the Adrien posters up in her wall.

Adrien blushed. Now that was something that he had never thought of.

Focus, he thought, uprighting himself on his bed.

But, anyways, she hadn’t seemed too unhappy about that fact that Chat Noir was there. And even after he had teased her about her crush on himself, she hadn’t been eager to kick him out or anything.

Second of all for further evidence that Marinette was Ladybug was that Ladybug had called right after Marinette had slammed the door shut. Thirty seconds was too much of a coincidence to be an actual coincidence. Wasn’t it?

And the fact that the police had retreated when she finally came back. If the police had retreated, it meant that Ladybug had solved everything. And then, right after he knew that Ladybug had solved everything, Marinette came back into her room.

And the finalizing evidence was the fact that she had came in from the trap door.

Unless there was something to lift her up into the trap door, she couldn’t have gotten in through the trap door if she was just a civilian. There was a front door that she could have used.

Adrien didn’t think that Marinette would be the kind to climb her house and enter from the trap door just for show. And plus, if Ladybug had helped her back, then he should have seen Ladybug gliding through the windows, or at least heard that familiar sound of her yoyo swishing into the skies after Marinette was in the room. If there was a vehicle that had helped her up or something, then he should have heard the vehicle. He had heard none of those.

Which was strange, because he had heard her yoyo. But it had stopped right after Marinette knocked on the trap door.

There were too many inconsistencies that were present, too many coincidences, that Marinette being Ladybug was the only option he could think of.

So it meant that his lady was Marinette Dupain-Cheng? The daughter of the two most well-known bakers in all of Paris? The girl who was extremely talented in fashion, was accommodating to everyone she came across, and was brave and sweet and smart and generally just an all-around awesome person?

Come to think of it, his lady and princess looked extremely similar. Those bluebell eyes, blue haired pigtails. If he had put a ladybug costume on her, he was sure she would look like the real deal. Because she probably was.

He liked the idea. He liked the idea a lot.

But…that meant that civilian Ladybug had a crush on him. Civilian Chat Noir.

It made him blush. Ladybug did reciprocate his feelings after all, although to the other half of him and not the half that her superhero self usually saw.

Wait.

So, it meant that when Ladybug had said that she had a crush on a guy, it was him?

Him, not as Chat Noir, but as Adrien Agreste?

He laughed. He hadn’t even needed to go through that heartbreak in Glaciator. If Ladybug had just revealed the name of the boy she had liked, then his heart would have grown even bigger instead of crashing down and splitting into two. Looking back now, it had been frustrating. They had liked each other back without knowing.

He looked at the ceiling, and then back at his phone to check the time. Tomorrow was Wednesday, the day that he would have to turn in his outfit for the fashion show.

The fashion show! Oh god.

He had invited Ladybug without knowing that she was Ladybug.

And Marinette – Ladybug – was making the gorgeous dress that she was going wear with him there.

His heart pounded out of his chest and his face grew hot. He couldn’t see or feel anything but his hands positioned on top of his heart and his flushing face. She likes me back! he thought.

His bed was the softest cloud he could have ever been on.

The bell rang, and all his classmates were now leaving the school. Principal Damocles was stationed at the front gates of Dupont, as always.

Marinette and Alya were very close to exiting the gates.

Panic rushed into his brain. He began to fidget with his fingers and couldn’t keep his legs in one place. He began walking frantically. What…what should he do? Should he just call out to her? He was just getting out of the classroom. Should he just run to her? Should he confess his love to her right here? What did she want?

Should he tell his identity to her? Should he keep it secret? Would she become suspicious of the fact that he was flirting with her? Would she be disappointed once she found out that Adrien was also Chat Noir?

He knew that she likely wouldn’t be disappointed by the fact that he was Chat Noir. But that didn’t stop his doubts from surfacing from his unknown depths.

“Dude,” a hand touched his shoulders. Nino smiled sympathetically at him. “What’s going on with you?”

“Nino,” Adrien said, touching Nino’s shoulders and staring with urgency and panic in his eyes. “I can’t hang out with you today. Maybe on Saturday?” he asked, the words blending into each other because they were too fast.

“Uh...okay?” Nino’s brow rose.

“Thanks, dude!” Adrien said, and ran down the stairs.

Uh……? Nino thought. But he shrugged it off as he watched Adrien approach Marinette.

Nino smiled with realization.

Adrien finally reached Marinette on the steps. He had never run so fast in his life, even as Chat Noir. He touched her shoulders.

Marinette turned around and saw him panting, his hands on his legs as he gasped for air.

“Adrien? Are you okay?” she asked.

“Uh..?” He was stupefied at the way she said his name. It was as if he had tasted cotton and peppermint candy at the same time: sweet, soft, and refreshing. How could someone say his name in a way that made it sound like a stranger’s name?

He probably stared at her a little bit much. “Yeah!” he breathed. “I’m fine,” he took another breath for air, looking down at the ground. Which he soon regretted, because he had tore his gaze away from her.

When he resumed, Marinette blushed.

He had a heart attack. Combined with her clear blue eyes, which were full of hope and anticipation, he was certain that she had come from somewhere else. He couldn’t have been graced with her presence otherwise. He blushed with her.

Alya, seeing the situation, smirked a devilish grin and tapped Marinette’s shoulders. “I gotta go work on my Ladyblog. Sorry, Marinette, and have fun!” she waved.

“Alya!” Marinette reached out to her, but it was futile. Alya wasn’t coming back. Marinette sighed.

He was certain that she was an angel. Even her expression of frustration and acknowledgement of the fact that her friend wasn’t coming back was too beautiful that the word beautiful didn’t do it justice at all.

He was sure that the word beautiful was going to be his most used word after today.

“Um..” he ruffled his hair with his right hand. “So, Marinette, would you…could you…”

She looked at him with those blue eyes of her. He got lost in it, soon forgetting what he was about to say.

“Yes?” her voice was a lullaby, putting his mind and consciousness into sleep. Reminding him of when his mother used to sing to him.

He heard a harp playing in the background, although that was impossible. The school didn’t have a harp player or a harp. At least, not that he knew of.

He was dizzy. He was running around in her maze, forgetting where the destination was and if he needed to get to it at all. Forgetting why he had stepped into her maze in the first place. She could do anything to him, and he would be perfectly fine being lost in it.

It was when he almost fell, and Marinette caught him, that he snapped out of it. He felt her hands on his, and that was when his entire face began steaming.

Marinette blushed with him.

He took a deep breath to stabilize himself again.

Breathe, Agreste.

“So…” he began. “For the fashion show, I haven’t…I haven’t yet picked out a suit to wear. I was wondering, since you’re my partner,” his face warmed at the word, “if you can come with me so that I could pick it out? I mean, if you are still working on your dress,” he began digging his own grave, “it’s okay if you can’t.”

Marinette’s cheeks were dusted red. “Of..of course!” she said. “I would love to. And I have already finished mine anyways.”

With that one response, Adrien’s whole face brightened. There are no bad things in life, no suffering. He thought. The world was wonderful and only did good.

“Great!” he may have said too enthusiastically. “When are you available today?” he asked.

“Um,” Marinette began, “Right now is okay,” she said and smiled. She flinched. Was that too desperate?

“Great!” Adrien smiled, revealing his perfectly aligned and white teeth. She blushed. “Let’s go right now, then.”

Maybe the floor was replaced by puppies, the school made by aliens, the sky purple with ice cream sprinkles, and she too caught up in the moment to realize it.

Marinette couldn’t believe what was going on right now. Didn’t this only happen in her dreams?

They walked together, both flushing their cheeks and unable to look at each other.

Adrien knew that he had to get some sort of conversation started. He had hoped that thinking of Marinette as Marinette instead of Ladybug would help him open up a lot more. After all, he hadn’t been that flustered around Marinette, except for that time when he had asked her to be his plus one.

But even if he thought that and separated Ladybug out of the equation, he still couldn’t talk to Marinette properly as he used to. And he was pretty sure that it wasn’t that he subconsciously thought she was Ladybug.

It was that he liked Marinette, he realized. Her being Ladybug was a giant plus, but it was nevertheless a plus.

It were these kinds of times that he really wished for the courage of his alter-ego.

“Is something bothering you?” Marinette broke the silence. She looked worried.

“Oh,” he laughed nervously. “It’s nothing,” he said.

“What suit do you think I should pick out?” he asked, trying to start a conversation.

“Hmm…” Marinette began to think. Honestly, she believed that he didn’t really need to worry about it. Anything would look great on him. But she was biased. “I don’t know. Maybe something white?” she said, remembering his all-white outfit for his fragrance ad. She blushed at that.

“Like the time I did the fragrance ad, except more formal?” he asked, as if he had read her mind. Marinette blushed with embarrassment. She rested her head on her hands, never wanting to face the world ever again. She remembered it. They had been in a movie theater, when Adrien’s fragrance ad had played. She had said that she didn’t know that he had a fragrance before then, and she had given herself away by staring at the eye, starry-eyed, as she said the words.

“Sorry Marinette!” he took her hands. “I didn’t mean to offend you in any way.”

“Oh no!” Marinette held her hands up. “You didn’t offend me. At all,” she smiled.

Adrien sighed in relief. “That’s good. Because that would have been a cat-astrophe,” he punned without thinking. He was surprised at what he did and shut his mouth with his two hands. He slowly looked up to Marinette’s face like a child that had been caught doing something wrong.

Marinette chuckled, the pun reminding her of Chat Noir. “Good one,” she said with her eyes closed, and kept walking.

Adrien had been standing still and waiting for punishment when she had passed him.

But there had been none. He smiled his biggest smile and ran after his lady.

After that slip up, Marinette and Adrien warmed up to each other to the point that they could get multiple coherent sentences with each other. They walked, talking about anything they could think about. School, the things they saw while walking to the mall, Ultimate Mecha Strike III, the film Solitude, Jagged Stone, the current fashion industry, anything.

Marinette flushed every time he flirted with her. She smirked at his puns, which he had a lot of. She was surprised at how punny he could be. It reminded her of Chat Noir. She giggled.

They were at the mall now. With people bustling, and the streets filled with people, it looked like a new and exciting world for Adrien. He had never gone to the mall without any supervision. And there were so many people! It was such a contrast to his home.

Now, all they had to do was find where Adrien could buy a suit.

“How are you going to disguise yourself?” Marinette whispered to him, as they entered the gates. He opened the door out for her, and she blushed and thanked him. He smiled.

“I’ll buy some disguises here,” he shrugged. He hadn’t really thought much after the part where he and Mari was going to be spending time together. Or during, really. He had only cared about the spending time together part.

Just as he was about to flush with embarrassment from realizing his mistake, he found a familiar face ripping his eardrums out.

“OH MY GOSH!” he said, screaming behind him. “ADRIEN! ADRIEN AGRESTE! The ADRIEN AGRESTE!”

“Wayhem, shhh,” Adrien tried to calm him down, putting a finger on his lips.

“ADRIEN REMEMBERED MY NAME! ADRIEN AGRESTE! ADRIEN AGRESTE REMEMBERED MY NAME!” he screamed.

This was not going to be good…

Passersby looked at what the fuss was about. Until strangers began calling out his name.

“Adrien?”

“Adrien?”

“Adrien?”

Cameras flashed in front of Adrien and Marinette. He hid his eyes from the bright light with his left hand, blocking the flash for Mari with his right.

“THIS IS SO AWESOME!” Wayhem said as he took a picture like the other fans. The only difference was that his was a selfie. He began typing on his phone. “Adrien, his girlfriend, and I at the mall!” he squealed.

Realizing that this was one too many flashes, he took Marinette’s hand and ran back to where they came from.

However, there were a horde of fangirls who were coming for him from the gates.

Marinette gulped. Those fangirls looked furious. She would probably be shredded into pieces if she were ever to be caught by them.

“Over here!” Adrien said, his hand still on hers, and he began pushing through the crowd. She loved that his hands were on hers. It would never get old.

“Excuse me, sorry, sorry, excuse me, sorry, sorry, I need to get out of here, sorry,” he said, chuckling nervously. Marinette gave an apologetic face to all of those that had to make way for him. Those he couldn’t get through, he pushed through.

“Wow. Who knew that a model could be so strong?” A man said to his daughter, impressed.

Meanwhile, his daughter looked miserable. “He has a girlfriend?”

They finally managed to escape the fans and get to where they needed to buy a suit. They put on mustaches and quickly bought sunglasses and different clothes so that they could stay disguised.

Well, Adrien did. Marinette had objected, saying that she should pay for her own clothes, but Adrien was surprisingly stubborn about the subject.

“No, it’s my fault that we’re in this mess. Let me, Marinette,” he smiled, as he touched her hands.

Marinette was disgruntled and became even more when she saw the price tags. She became disgruntled even more after Adrien swiped his credit card like it was nothing.

Then she realized that he was loaded. He probably didn’t think much of it.

But she still felt sorry that he had to pay for it all.

“Thank you,” he said to the cashier. The cashier was a girl around Marinette’s age, and she giggled. But when Marinette began to turn her head to thank her, the girl growled.

She slowly crouched down where she was. Until, that is, Adrien took her hand.

“Let’s go. I want to see you in them,” he said, as he winked and dragged her along. She smiled and got up to her feet.

When she looked back at the cashier, the cashier was giving her faces. Marinette made a face of her own and stuck her tongue out.

“Marinette?” he said.

She turned around, her face suddenly becoming the face of an angel who could do no harm. “Yes?”

Adrien was almost struck dead by her smile. Before he knew it, he had kissed her on the cheeks. He blushed sheepishly.

Marinette blushed profusely. Then, she remembered and gave a smug look back at the cashier, giving Adrien a peck on the cheeks. Do better than that, Marinette smirked.

Adrien blushed, his face becoming warmer.

The girl pulled her hair out in frustration.

After a few try-ons, they both decided on a suit.

Marinette had the time of her life. She was watching the boy of her dreams dress up for her. Granted, it was for the fashion show, but she was extremely happy that he considered her input valuable.

Plus, her imagination of what was happening behind the curtains could fuel her dreams for an entire month.

“Maybe we should get you a decoration or something for your dress?” Adrien asked as soon as his part of the shopping was done.

“Oh, no, it’s okay,” Marinette smiled. “I don’t want you spending too much money on me.”

Adrien smiled as if in understanding, but he started looking for something that would look great with her dress.

It took about five minutes, and Marinette was gently saying to him all the way that she didn’t need any decoration. That her dress was enough.

“Aha!” He said, holding up a blue pin in his hand. It was shaped like a rose, and made of blue sapphire. It was around the size of her eye – aka, huge.

It bled money. She couldn’t even imagine how much it cost.

“Try it on,” he said, smiling. “It will give a great contrast to your burgundy dress and will bring out your eyes.”

“No, Adrien,” she smiled. “I can’t accept something like this,” turning down the offer. Wait, how did he know about the color of the dress?

“No, I insist. You will look great in it,” he said, putting the hair decoration in her hand. She blushed.

“Adrien.”

“Hm?”

“How did you know the color of my dress?”

Oh no. He’d screwed up. Should he tell her? Or not?

“Um..” he chuckled. “A little birdie told me?” he raised his hands in a questioning motion.

Marinette stared at him for some time. He hoped this didn’t mean anything bad. He began rubbing his right arm with his left hand to avoid looking at her.

“It was Chat Noir, wasn’t it?” she huffed. “I swear, that kitty…” she collapsed her head on her palms. “I had wanted it to be a surprise.”

“Uh…yeah! Yeah!” he chuckled nervously. “Chat Noir told me about the dress.” He bent his back so that he could meet her eyes. “And it’s okay. It may not be a surprise, but I know you’ll look great in it.”

Marinette smiled. Until…

“Wait. But, I have only seen you and Chat Noir together once,” Marinette said. “How do you two know each other?” she asked with suspicion. “I, I mean,” she began chuckling nervously, “I’m friends with Ladybug and she told me that she hasn’t seen you and Chat Noir together except for when after we had our…whatever it was, going to the movies and escaping your crazy fans. Like we’re doing. Yeah. Heheh.”

“Heheh,” he chuckled nervously, hoping that the discussion was now over.

It wasn’t. Marinette still probed his mind with those blue eyes, which were clear as the summer skies and reflected him.

“Well,” he chuckled, “He knows me from multiple incidents when I have been victim to the akuma’s attacks. And he sometimes visits. We’re good friends,” he chuckled.

Marinette could tell that he wasn’t telling her the truth. “Hmm…”

Adrien looked to the sides, chuckling nervously once again.

Her eyes went wide with realization.

“Adrien, I could tell that you’re lying,” she said, crossing her arms.

He gulped.

She smiled and put her hands on his. “Although I do not appreciate that you are lying, thanks for trying to cover for Alya.”

Alya?

“She probably told you about the dress for some reason,” she frowned. “Right?”

He was going to owe Alya one.

“Ye..yeah. Alya told me,” he chuckled nervously. “Guess my cover’s blown. Ha..ha…ha...” he still looked to the sides, his left hand now messing his hair.

Marinette smirked and put her index finger underneath Adrien’s chin. She scratched it. “Thanks for telling me the truth.”

It felt nice, Adrien concluded and let himself be more his alter-ego persona. If he could purr as Adrien, he would have. Also, he hoped that the chin scratching was just a coincidence.

Wait. WHAT?!

Marinette looked at the cashier girl with a smirk on her face.

He hoped this was accidental and not because she knew. He really hoped so.

He wasn’t ready. His heart wasn’t ready. Not yet, to tell her that he was actually Chat Noir.

Trying desperately to change the conversation, he looked at anything that could be a distraction. He looked at the blue rose accessory. His heart beat began to slow down.

“Still,” he said, “I get to pay for this, right?” he smiled.

“Oh, no, please don’t…” she began, but Adrien had already run to the check-out line to buy the suit and pin. Besides being a distraction, he really wanted to buy her the pin anyways. He was killing two birds with one stone.

He decided that he will burn the receipt somewhere.

Marinette laughed from shock. That was unexpected, she thought. Who knew Adrien could be so stubborn? She was considering giving in, until she saw the numbers and was floored.

She ran to where he was and tried to take it away from him so that he wouldn’t be able to buy it. But he wasn’t giving up.

“Would you like a receipt?” The cashier girl asked.

“Yes!” Marinette said.

“No!” Adrien said at the same time.

They stared at each other.

Adrien smiled at the cashier, a desperate plea.

“Alright,” the cashier girl said, giving Adrien the suit and pin that were wrapped in a box with the brand’s name on it. She didn’t give him a receipt.

Marinette was stunned for a moment. She scowled at the girl. The girl gave a smug look back.

“Thanks again,” he said, and walked out. It was now Marinette who was after Adrien.

“Why did you have to do that?” she asked, sighing. “I mean, I’m grateful, but I don’t…and it’s just a fashion show that I’ll only go to once.”

“Well,” Adrien said, “There’s going to be lots of other people who will be wearing things like this,” he said, gesturing to the pin. “You’ll fit in.”

Marinette sighed in resignation. “I guess…”

Now that they were done shopping, all they had to do was turn in the clothes.

Adrien smiled. “Maybe we could go back to your house and then turn the clothes in together,” he suggested as they exited the shop.

“Oh..oh..okay!” Marinette blushed. “But is it okay for you to be spending all day with me?” she asked.

He smiled. “It’s okay. I’m open today,” he said, although he had ditched today’s schedule.

“Oh…” Marinette said, not sure if he was telling the truth. “okay.”

By the time they had gone back to Marinette’s house for her dress and Adrien’s house for the invitation and walked back to Le Grand Paris, it was already 6 PM. The receptionist for the party was waiting outside underneath a sign that read “For the Fashion Show”.

The receptionist smiled. “How may I help you?”

“We’d like to hand over our outfits for the fashion show,” Adrien said and smiled, handing over the invitation. Then, Marinette put her dress down on the desk. Adrien followed suit. (HAHAH I PUNNED.)

The receptionist took it and verified that it was not a fraud. “I assume that she is your plus one?” she asked, turning her head towards Marinette.

Marinette blushed.

“Yes,” Adrien said and smiled.

Just then, someone hugged him from the back. He turned with fright, only knowing who would hug him like this.

“Adrikins!” Chloe said. She had too many dresses on her right hand that they were almost about to fall.

“Hi, Chlo,” he chuckled nervously, pulling Chloe farther away from him and trying to grab her dress at the same time. Luckily, the dresses didn’t fall.

Marinette stared at Chloe.

“H..H..H..”

“Huh?

“Hi…Marinette,” Chloe murmured the words as they were very foreign to her but she was trying hard to get it right.

Marinette’s eyes widened. Was…Chloe trying to be nicer to her?

“Hi, Chloe,” she said.

“Just so you know,” Chloe said. “I hate that you are going as my dear sweet Adrikin’s plus one. But,” she continued, “since he’s taking you,” she said the word as if Marinette didn’t actually deserve to go with Adrien. Chloe pointed at her. “I’m going to tolerate your existence,” she said, and turned her head away.

Marinette was too stunned to speak. Chloe was…being nice?

Maybe the floor was made of puppies after all. And the sky was purple with ice cream sprinkles.

“Now move,” Chloe said, and pushed Marinette out of the way. Marinette fell from where she was.

Or maybe not.

“Are you okay?” Adrien said, helping her up. She blushed and nodded.

Watching all of this, Chloe gagged and turned to the receptionist. “Chloe Bourgeois,” Chloe said to her, and dumped the four – no five – dresses on the receptionist’s desk. One of them was the polka dotted dress that she had worn when she had announced the news to Adrien.

The receptionist nodded and wrote her name down on the paper.

“Thank you, Ms. Bourgeois. Mr. Agreste and Ms..?”

“Marinette. Marinette Dupain-Cheng.”

“Ms. Dupain-Cheng,” the receptionist smiled.

“You can call me Marinette. A lot easier than saying my last name,” Marinette smiled.

“Oh no, I can’t do that. We are supposed to greet our guests with only their last names,” the receptionist smiled.

Marinette gave a look of confusion which was soon replaced by a smile of acceptance. “Then you can call me Marinette after the fashion show is over.”

The receptionist’s eyes grew wide.

Adrien smiled, revealing his pearly whites.

Lots of fluff!

Sorry for the delay! I have tried to make it up by making this chapter (unintentionally) long.