#and I can not stress this enough but ONLY FIVE MINUTES FOR THE AKUMA IS UNACCEPTABLE

[spittyfishy]

I can’t believe they only gave him five minutes of screen time 💔

That episode,, man was it a retcon-y mess lol. Derision was the only season 5 episode I was looking forward to (purely bc of Dark Cupid) and it was terrible in the most hilarious way lol

[quiet-girl-short-stories]

True Crime

"...Sadly, none of the victim's families can get closure and the police don't even have a suspect anymore. Whoever did this are likely free to do whatever they want until the police get a lead or tip on who could have committed these crimes." Cassie took one last look around her room before thinking that even with the lights on, she still wasn't protected enough. "Other than that, I hope you all stay safe out there and I will see you next time, Bye!"

As the video ended, Cassie couldn't move her fingers fast enough as she went to anything she thought would save her from this frightened state she was in.

She thought about calling someone, but who would be up at this hour? Time had gotten away from her, and it was now two in the morning. She knew she shouldn't have been watching a true crime story this late anyways, but it was only one! Her finger scrolled anxiously until she mistakenly tapped twice and dialed someone's number.

"Oh, shit, oh shit, oh shit!" She panicked and thought about hanging up, but then she thought all they would do is call her back. So she just waited it out and shockingly they picked up.

"So you finally decided to call me at the right hour?"

Cassie sighed at the more than sultry voice on the other side. "Akuma, please, could you not right now."

"You called me remember. So what did you call for?"

She thought about telling him, but figured she'd just get made fun of for being scared of a crime story. Then she figured maybe that'd be good so her mind would get off it.

"Well, I was watching a True Crime story and I got a little scared... guess I just wanted some solace."

"Really?"

"Would I be lying?"

"No, but a phone call won't protect you. I'm better off just stopping by there."

"Wait, what?"

"You heard me, so I won't repeat it. I'll be over in five minutes, I'll text you when I'm at the door so I won't scare you." He snickered.

"Well yeah, but-" He hung up. She looked at her phone in slight anger. "Who the fuck just hangs up like that?" She threw her phone to the side before sighing and pulling her feet up to the couch.

A part of her was... happy Akuma was the one she had mistakenly called, but another part of her stressed out as the hour was much too horrible for her and him to be alone together.

"Ugh... this can't be happening!"

...

Akuma now sat on her couch while the television played something neither of them were really watching. Cassie kept a blanket over her body while Akuma sat beside her.

"You know," she looked over, "here I thought you were going to cling to me and cry out about how you don't want me to leave tonight, or how we should stay in the same room... possibly even the same bed?" He had whispered that last part causing Cassie to jump out of her seat and head out of the room. Much to Akuma's amusement.

Now inside of the kitchen, Cassie took a deep breath while resting on the counter, Okay, shit can't get any worse than this. Akuma will likely get bored, especially if I don't offer him anything good. He'll be gone before I know it!

Akuma entered the kitchen seeing the expression she was making.

His brow rose. "Why are you looking like that? What, are you worried I might leave, shut off the power and attack you?"

Her eyes narrowed. "That's not even something to joke around about; and no, I'm just thinking if I should get ice cream or not. I don't really want to have to go and buy some more later."

"Well, I say you should get some ice cream." He went to her fridge, and before opening it he said; "Cookie dough right?"

"I swear you must stalk me or something." Her arms crossed. "How do you even know that?"

He got a bowl and got a few scoops out as he spoke, "let's just keep that to myself, but it's nothing bad I promise." Cassie sighed. "Besides, you did call me over here and now you act like you don't want me here?"

It's not that I don't want you over here, I'm just trying not to do anything with you.

"Honestly, I just wanted someone over here so I can be less paranoid," she eventually said.

He walked to her front and held up the bowl, "I know, and that's what I intend to do." Cassie took it and sighed a bit again, "There's that sigh. When you don't make it I kind of forget what it sounds like."

Cassie ignored that and went back to the living room. She figured he was hell bent on staying with her, so the least she could do was occupy him.

"How about this, until I get tired you play a game for me."

He shrugged to the offer. "Sure, what game?" He said as he grabbed the controller from the TV stand and sat down beside her.

"Demon's Crest."

He chuckled. "Oh, you mean the one you haven't even beat the final boss for?"

"Shut up. That's why I want you to play it, I wanna see if you can beat him and in the meantime, while you lose, it'll provide some much needed entertainment."

"Alright, but if I do beat him what do I get for it?"

"The credits?"

"From you, Cassie."

"I don't know..." I would ask you what you want, but I don't need you in my bed tonight. "How about I cook you something."

"Why?"

"Because you're always complaining about how you never have anything to eat and how you hate fast food. So I'll just make you something as a reward."

Akuma smiled at her. "I guess you're on then, but I'm expecting something good from my future wife."

"Sexism at its finest," the spoon clinked against her teeth as she spoke.

"Be glad someone even wants to marry you."

Not that I want it to be you, but I guess good looks help me to ignore that terrible personality of yours.

[marauderundercover]

Taking Chances Ch. 17: Talking (Alt Prompt: The Talk)

AO3

First

Prev

Tim walks into the kitchen, blinking sleepily at his little sister. He glances over at the clock on the microwave, blinking again to make sure that he hadn’t misread the time. Five thirty in the morning, and she was baking cookies. He clears his throat, smiling apologetically as she jumps. 

“Sorry Mari. Early morning?” He asks, moving to get coffee and noting that the pot was already half empty. 

“More like, late night.” She corrects. Tim frowns. Her summer in Gotham was supposed to be relaxing for her. It was supposed to be a way for her to be a kid again. Instead she was making cookies by herself at five thirty in the morning after not sleeping. He wasn’t sure what was wrong, but he was determined to figure it out. There was no way he was going to make her deal with whatever this is by herself. She has backup now. 

“Did you want to talk about it?” He offers, leaning against the counter, drinking his coffee quickly to try and wake up more. 

“Not really. Kinda just wanted to stress bake.” She says quietly. He nods. Sometimes it was hard to talk about things. That’s okay, he can look into it later. 

“Well, I’ve gotta go work on some things in the cave. Did you want to come with?” He asks, refilling his coffee. She frowns, looking at the bowl in front of her. 

“Can you wait like, five minutes? I just need to get these ready to chill.” She says, gesturing to the bowl. He nods, watching as she zips around the kitchen as if she’d grown up in the kitchen. He wasn’t sure why she’d been up baking so early, but he was determined to help her. As much as he avoided sleep, he knew it wasn’t exactly healthy. Probably shouldn’t encourage his little sister to do the same thing. 

---

Bruce walks into the theatre room, frowning when he sees Dick and Jason, but no Marinette. That was odd. She hadn’t been in her room either. He decides to check the kitchen next, knowing his daughter enjoyed baking. Walking into the kitchen, he’s surprised to find it empty as well. Glancing at the coffee pot, he notices it’s nearly empty, but still on. Which meant Tim had been up to get coffee recently. Flipping the pot off, he turns and starts towards the Batcave. Perhaps Tim knew where Marinette was. Walking down his usual entrance, he’s unsurprised to see Tim working at the computer. What he hadn’t expected, however, was Marinette curled up in a chair next to Tim, sleeping. 

“Tim?” Bruce calls, catching his son’s attention.

“Oh, hey B.” Tim says, not looking away from the screen. 

“Is there a reason Marinette is sleeping in a chair instead of her bed?” He asks. He knew she had a nightmare last night, but he had assumed she’d fallen asleep with Jason and Dick in the theatre room. And if she hadn’t, he’d at least expected she’d return to her own room. Not the Batcave. While some of his sons preferred the cave to any of the other rooms in the manor, he’d hoped his daughter was different. That he had at least one child willing to live in the house instead of the cave. 

“I’m sure there is. And I’m going to find out.” Tim says, leaving Bruce with more questions than answers. 

“Okay. How long have the two of you been down here?” He asks. Tim stops typing, glancing down at his watch before looking back up to the screen. 

“Little under two hours.” He replies, jerking his head towards Marinette. “Think that’s also the only sleep she’s got all night, so probably best to leave her for a little longer.” Bruce frowns at this. Sure, he knew that she had a nightmare last night. He knew it was bad enough that she had sobbed into his arms. But had she really avoided sleep after that? Was it really that bad? She didn’t want to talk to him about it last night, but maybe she’d talk later today. He wouldn’t push her, lord knows that any child of his isn’t going to take well to that, but maybe she’d talk to 

him now. Hopefully the nightmare would now be far enough from her mind that she could talk. 

---

Marinette gasps, sitting up so quickly that she manages to flip the chair she’d fallen asleep in. She hisses in pain as her head bounces off the stone floor. So much for being the holder of the Miraculous of good luck. 

“Did you just fall out of your chair?” Tim asks. She glances up at her brother, who had apparently left for another cup of coffee. 

“No?” She says, smiling awkwardly from the floor, where her limbs are currently entangled with the chair. Tim shakes his head and snorts, sipping from his mug. 

“Whatever you say Mari.” He says, walking over and sitting back in his chair, going back to his work on the computer. 

“What time is it?” She asks, carefully untangling herself and getting off the ground. 

“Mmm, around nine.” He says, not looking away from the screen. 

“In the morning?” She asks, knowing it was completely possible for Tim to have worked nonstop in the cave.

“Yes.” He says, shaking his head. “B wants to talk to you, by the way.” He adds.

“Oh. Okay. Am I in trouble?” She asks, suddenly self conscious. It was the first time anyone in her family had had to deal with one of her nightmares. Usually, Tikki was the one to wake her up and calm her down before she attracted an akuma. 

“Of course not.” He reassures her. “He’s probably in his study.”

“Oh, good, okay. Well, I’m gonna go talk to him. Please take a break, Tim. I know you haven’t eaten anything today. You can’t run on coffee and spite, trust me, I’ve tried.” Marinette says, grinning at her brother before using the tunnel that connected straight to the study. She still hadn’t figured out the many rooms of the manor, but the maze-like setup of the Batcave was something that she’d figured out easily. Taking a breath, she knocks on her side of the Grandfather clock, waiting for a response. 

“Come in.” Her dad says. She walks in, grinning at the exasperated look on his face. 

“Hi dad!” She says cheekily, plopping down onto one of the couches. 

“Is there a reason you didn’t use the actual door?” He asks. She shrugs. 

“Why get lost in the manor when I can just use the secret tunnels from the cave?” She asks. He sighs. 

“I still don’t understand that, but alright. How are you feeling this morning?” He asks, his face turning serious. She smiles, but it’s forced now. She didn’t want to talk about this. She really didn’t want to talk about this with her dad, who would surely never give her permission to date Adrien if he knew. Not that she needed permission, but it would make it easier not having her dad against her. 

“I’m fine!” She says, keeping her plastered on smile.

“I talked to Tim this morning.” He says, instead of calling her out. Well crap. 

“Oh really?” She asks, silently cursing Tim. Or, wanting to anyway. But she wouldn’t because she knew he meant well. 

“He said that you hadn’t slept last night. I know you didn’t want to talk to me about your nightmare last night, but maybe now-”

“No. No, I’m fine. It’s fine.” She rambles, cutting him off. He frowns. 

“Marinette, I’m not going to be angry with you if that’s what you’re worried about. You had a nightmare, and it has clearly left you shaken.” He says. She huffs, running her fingers through her hair exasperatedly. 

“I just- I can’t tell you. If I tell you, you’re going to be mad at someone and I don’t want you to be mad at them.” She explains, wincing as his face darkens. 

“Did someone hurt you?” He asks, his voice the coldest she’s ever heard. 

“Dad-”

“Did someone hurt you?” He asks again, cutting her off as he stands up.  

“Not on purpose.” She insists, wringing her hands together. 

“It doesn’t matter if it was on purpose, Marinette! This person hurt you badly enough that you had a nightmare about it. Bad enough that you were sobbing, that you couldn’t go back to sleep. I don’t care if it was on purpose or not, Marinette, that person does not deserve to be anywhere near you.” Her dad says, his face and voice hard as stone. 

“But Dad, it really wasn’t his fault-”

“His?” 

“Yes, Dad, he was akumatized.” She says, watching as he unclenches his fist and collapses back into his chair. “So it wasn’t his fault.” She adds, frowning as he shakes his head. 

“Why didn’t-” He pauses, seemingly recollecting himself. “Why isn’t there a story on it?” He asks. She frowns. 

“Story on what?” She asks. 

“A story on Adrien being akumatized? Why isn’t there any record of it?” He asks. She jerks back like she was slapped. How did he- world’s greatest detective. Of course. 

“He doesn’t know.” She says softly. 

“How?”

“One of the Miraculous users is Bunnix. She holds the Miraculous of time, and is able to time travel. It was about a year ago, she came and grabbed me and took me to the future.” She explains, avoiding looking at him. She didn’t want to talk about this. It was the talk that she’d been avoiding, no matter how many times Tikki assured her she could talk to her dad about it. Or her brothers. But she couldn’t. She didn’t want to. But now she had to. 

“In the future, Adrien and I had been a couple. He found out my identity as Ladybug, and I’m not exactly sure how it came to it, but for some reason, Hawkmoth targeted us. He was able to akumatize Adrien while he was Chat Noir. He….he became Chat Blanc. The complete opposite of Chat Noir.” She says, watching her hands as they shake in her lap. He doesn’t say anything, so she continues. “He still had the power of destruction but with the help of the akuma...it was awful. His power became unlimited. He blew up the moon.” 

“The moon?” He asks. 

“Yes.” She says. “He also flooded Paris, destroyed the Eiffel tower, and killed both Hawkmoth and future me. That was why Bunnix needed me. I had to fix it. But she wasn’t able to stay with me, so I had to fight him alone. And I didn’t know that he was Adrien then, but he was still my partner and he kept calling me Marinette and he told me that it was our fault. That our love did it to the world. And it hurt, Dad. It hurt that my best friend destroyed the world because of me. Because of us.” She says, voice breaking as tears fall. 

“Marinette, honey, look at me.” He says softly. She looks up at him, surprised to see that he had moved to kneel in front of her. “That was not your fault. And you should not have had to go through that by yourself. That was wrong of Bunnix. It was not your fault.” He reassures her. She lets out a sigh of relief, throwing her arms around him and crying into his chest just like she did last night. 

“Father, have you seen- what did you do to Marinette?” Damian asks, barging into the room. Marinette snorts, her cries quickly becoming laughter as she catches a glimpse of her little brother’s face. His usual scowl had become full of anger before flickers of confusion flit across as she laughs. 

“I’m sorry, petit oiseau. I’m okay now. I just had a nightmare last night and Dad asked about it.” She explains, knowing that Damian hated being out of the loop.

“Tt. Very well. I was trying to find you to see if you would like to accompany me to the park with Titus. Alfred said that I cannot go alone, and you are the least annoying possible companion.” He says. Marinette smiles. Ever since she’d been hit by the de-aging akuma, Damian had wanted to spend time with her and Titus together. She assumed it was the best way he knew to bond with her without sparring (which her Dad had banned for the moment unless he or Dick were able to supervise, honestly you break one little display case). 

“I’d love to. Could we come back to this later?” She asks, glancing at her Dad who had moved to lean against his desk. He sighs, but nods. 

“Yes. Keep your phones on, both of you.” He instructs. She nods, grinning before pulling her brother after her. They couldn’t keep Titus waiting, after all.

Next

Tag list: @maribat-bdbwm @stainedglassm @laurcad123 @vixen-uchiha @liquid-luck-00 @jayjayspixiepop @jjmjjktth @mizzy-pop @trippingovermyfeet @queenz-z @thepaceperson @iloontjeboontje @waiting247 @toodaloo-kangaroo @ritacrow-blog @deathssilentapproach-blog @kittenmywaythrulife @nerd-nowandforever @tazanna-blythe @jaybird-and-co @jumpingjoy82 

[liquid-luck-00]

My Life is One Complication After Another 2

Some cursing 🤬

Ao3 *** Previous *** Next

~~~~~~~~~~

"Okay so where were we?" she smiled turning and sitting back down with Fang.

"As Damian had asked are you in reality my biological child," Bruce took back control automatically.

"You can't be serious Brucie!" Jagged went and began to squish Mari's face. "This little ray of sunshine related to your broody majesty. I don't buy it."

"I am not broody Jared." Bruce defended.

"I'll believe that when Ladybug dates Chat Noir." he joked.

"So it is possible" Bruce responded with a straight face.

Now it was Mari's turn to laugh, "Not a chance. Ladybug and Chat Noir dating is as possible as Atlantis resurfacing." she finally stopped laughing. The Wayne's tensed as if they knew more than others about Atlantis. "I honestly don't know if I am your child. I have no objections to taking a paternity test if you want, but I already have parents who love and support me, but I am not opposed to adding to my family though." she again smiled like the sunshine she is.

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng What the Hell!?!" Chloe screamed storming into the room.

"What did I do!"

"How are you trending and you never told me" she gave a mock gasp.

However it was not the same for Mari. "I'm what." She opened her phone and sure enough she was trending. "How did this happen?"

She went into the first article she could and backtracked, through the sources and timestamps. Then it all made sense. She was on the Ladyblog, an interview with Lila claiming she was friends with a Wayne. The media then believing her a lost Wayne which explains why she is sitting with the Waynes and them asking about her paternity.

"How did you not know. M."

"All my accounts are private and I've been busy. But this explains the reporters now huh."

"M you are ridiculous, utterly ridiculous" Chloe grumbled. She was now sitting on the armrest Mari was leaning against next to Jagged. "At least tell me you remembered to send the photos and interview." Mari sprung up, Fang having sensed the impending jump. "logged into my laptop" Chloe yelled throwing her key to Mari.

"Meet you at the hospital. 20 minutes. bye" she yelled as she ran down the hall taking the stairs faster.

Chloe and Penny got up followed by Jagged heading to the door.

"Whatcha wait'n for Brucie come on" Jagged called to the billionaire.

Slowly the Waynes stood and followed the others to the hospital, sharing looks and texts the entire time.

True to her word Marinette met with them 20 minutes later on the dot in the hospital.

Both Marinette and Bruce had a blood sample and a mouth swab taken. The doctor then came back an hour later with the results.

"Alright. By the genetic markers that were tested. I can say quite confidently that M. Wayne is the biological father of Mlle. Dupain-Cheng." The doctor handed them a folder. "I'II leave you to process."

Marinette didn't need long to process. In fact her only thought was, Well one more for the list. Everyone in the room was watching her. "Okay" she jumped down from the bench, crap. Forgot about that. Her smile never faltered but her eyes were closed a second too long.

In that second Chloe had taken her purse and was holding up a pair of athletic gloves. “Care to explain!” She held the gloves waving them towards Marinette.

"Um, Well, You see" Marinette started to mumble.

"Why don't you explain in the car" Penny came to her rescue.

"We'll get Pizza and have a Rock' n time" Jagged lightened the mood.

Everyone nodded, walking out Mari kept her hands in her pocket. She was putting on her second pair of gloves, Tikki in her hood, she needed to think and running always helped. Mari was only a few yards away when Chloe noticed, Mari spun to face her when she heard her.

"Red!" Chloe yelled. She noticed how two boys froze, Jason and Tim if she is correct.

"Goldie!" she responded, not missing a beat. She heard Chloe behind her.

"Cat." Penny stated.

"Bird." responded Jagged further confusing the Waynes as they neared the hotel.

Tim was the first who noticed the two girls in front of the hotel. Meaning he was on his phone mapping and timing the route.

"Pizza will be delivered in 10." Mari spoke as the other seven stepped out of the car.

The two girls went ahead of them, but instead of the elevator they took the stairs.

Half way through the second of three pizza did Tim finally speak. "How did you two get back so fast." Tim set down his Pizza as he began to gesture frantically. "There is no way for you guys to have beat as it is a fifteen minute drive and a 30 minute walk, 20 if you run. Wait how did you get there in 20 minutes with a detour." Tim surprisingly still had breath.

"The fastest way from point A to B is not through C." Was Marinette's response as she took a bite. Yet that didn't seem like a sufficient answer as her now brother's eyebrows were still knit in confusion, so she took a breath and said. "Free running, it's a great stress reliever." she finished.

"What did you hit this time?" Jagged gave her a semi serious look.

"I didn't hit anything," a pout on her lips. "The pigeon flew into me."

Dick started laughing "she is definitely yours B, I can say for sure even without that paternity test." Another two hours had passed before she noticed the time and bid everyone goodbye. She gave her number to her father and brothers, Damian begrudgingly because Dick put it in and gave it to Mari.

Her parents had closed early for a date so she was home alone. She went to the couch to sketch a few gift ideas for her newly extended family. She was finishing a semi formal coat with a hidden sling for a katana for Damian. He kept grumbling that if he had it, the way the sword appeared in his akuma form, and she is pretty sure Jason's jokes were more literal by everyone's expressions. When her parents came home.

"Bon soir Maman, Papa," she cheerily greeted them.

"How was your day sweetheart." her Papa smiled kissing the top of her head.

"I met a handful of interesting people." she really didn't know how to broach this subject.

"What's wrong sweetie," her mother must have noticed her be uncomfortable. She sat down next to Mari, and her papa sat across from them.

"Did someone or did these people hurt you." her papa's words began to ring with a hard edge.

"Non, nothing like that. It's just, um," bitting her lip then looking up. "Your not my biological father, are you?"

Her parents froze, and had a silent conversation.

"Marinette, your biological father is an important and busy man. Who has no time for children." Her Maman spoke gently and calmly. "His name is Bruce Wayne."

Okay hold up, she tilted her head empathizing her confusion. "He didn't seem to bad, in fact he has four boys."

"That was who you met today," her papa affirmed, seemingly surprised.

She nodded her head and told them what had occurred today, leaving out the akuma and her free running. When she finished her parents once again held a silent conversation.

"Why don't we invite him over tomorrow for lunch. While you show his boys around." her maman smiled.

"Okay I'll send them a message then." Mari smiled taking out her phone.

Tomorrow will be interesting.

But first she had to survive tonight.

Tonight Ladybug, Todd Tenko, and Emeraude Racer were on patrol. Meaning she had the evening with the Couffaine siblings. Since both were holders it wasn't uncommon for them to swap. Meaning Luka would either be Todd or Viperion, and Juleka could be either Racer or Kitsune.

They each knew what was their designated route, and because of the akuma sent earlier the chance of Hawkmoth striking again was less likely. Each one of the heroes went their separate ways and made their rounds. So when the three heroes went to their rendezvous at Notre Dame's bell tower it ways almost two hour later. However, she noticed she had a tail when she passed the Eiffel tower. So she called Todd and Racer to set an illusion and ambush at the bell tower.

When she stepped on the bell towers stopped in the center and so did her tail with four others, forming a 'v" behind her. Todd's illusion left a Ladybug in the center of the tower while she moved to an ambush point. Four figures swung in and stood at each corner, a Todd Tenko, Emeraude Racer, Honey Bee, and Chat Noir.

"Shouldn't all of you be in Gotham?" Ladybug asked for her.

That seemed to take the vigilantes in her city by surprise.

"We heard about the situation and we just want to help." Nightwing, she is pretty sure, spoke up.

Chat Noir scoffed, "huh as if we would believe that."

"Tt. believe what you want. That is the truth." Robin spoke this time. Interesting.

"Yes after being ignored and called liars for three years really builds trust." Honey Bee's hand curled on her top as she spoke.

Batman seemed like he was going say something, but she jumped down from her perch breaking the Ladybug illusion. As they watched her materialize fifty feet up, followed by Racer and Todd flanking her mere seconds later.

"Todd," her eyes never left the five in front of her as she spoke.

"What!" Red Hood jumped in surprise, "How?"

"Curious. But Todd," this time she turned. "can you drop Mirage." Her teammate nodded and the four illusions disappeared. "Do you need to recharge?"

"Already did LB", he smiled.

"Okay," she pulled out her yoyo, and a box fell out into her hands. "who wants a snack before heading back out."

"Me!" Racer rushed to the box pulling out a strawberry eclair.

It is almost a good thing she always makes eight eclairs for patrol. Seriously she makes two for those on patrol, but after Adrien always left them with one and ate four, did she start bringing more.

Before leaving to do a final sweep of patrol. The three Parisian heroes spoke with the visiting vigilantes.

"We could send them Pinky's way," Ladybug responded to Batman's ask for more information.

"Do you think that's smart?" Todd asked.

"Who is Pinky?" Red Robin stepped into the conversation.

"She is our civilian contact and reserve hero." Racer answered.

"Why isn't she a permeant hero?" Nightwing brought up the question.

"Her identity was compromised but and we aren't sure how many know. So she is kept an back up." she answered.

"Who is she and how do we contact her?" Batman demanded or asked in his case.

"She is Multimouse, her name is Marinette Dupain-Cheng." All of them seemed to flinch and paled slightly. "And she'll find you."

The three Parisians stood and left.

Yup, tomorrow is going to be interesting.

Extra:

“So was I supposed to find out the Wayne’s were the Bats on my own or would you have told me?” Mari scolded her boyfriend over video call when she got home from patrol.

“I knew you were smart but less than a day you really are a lucky bug.” He smirked at her.

She crossed her arms and glared at him.

“Okay, okay.” He rose his hands in surrender. “But how did you figure it out anyways?”

“Apart from Tim and Jason flinching when Chloe called me Red, Damian’s katana grumbles and Tt., Jason freaking out because Todd was on patrol with me, and all of them paling at my name. It wasn’t to hard to piece together after that.” She shrugged.

“You know you’re scary sometimes right?” He feigned chills a goofy grin on his face.

“You love me though.” She teased him.

“I know I do but I know to keep in your good graces.” He responded now completely serious. “By the way, why was my idiot in Paris?” '

“I apparently made headlines a a lost Wayne.” She waved. “Which has more truth than the media knows apparently.”

“You’re serious!”

“Turns out your idiot is my adoptive idiot brother.”

“So are you related to Dick or Tim?”

“Try Damian.”

“To Demon Spawn! How?!”

“Bruce is my biological father.”

“The bug is a bat. Great!” he rolled his eyes, “I knew you weren’t normal but this is ridiculous.”

“You aren’t exactly normal yourself.” She replied pointedly.

“Ya but you love me.” His goofy grin was back.

“Yes I do.” She smiled in return.

Next

~~~~~~~~~~

Taglist: @dolphin-ghost @unabashedbookworm @bookgirl14 @laurcad123 @mochegato @vixen-uchiha @jjmjjktth @deathwishy @toodaloo-kangaroo @stackofrandomstuff @megaafangirl @trippingovermyfeet @chocolatecatstheron @nathleigh @nyx-in-line @indecisive-mess-named-me @ichigorose @maribat-is-lifeblood @user00000001

[judyhopps934-mt-zd]

Thoughts on Truth

Warning: Spoilers and intense emotions. You have been warned.

So that's how you fix a broken miraculous. And once it's fixed, Duusu seems to be better and felt that she was living a nightmare. Okay, we see.

I never spoke about ShadowMoth's costume. It's okay. I just don't like how powerful he is now.

I guess since the Kwamis were never out of the Miracle Box, they don't know how to behave in the human world. Its funny to see how they behaved, but I also feel bad for Marinette who looked like a crazy person trying to get the kwamis under control.

Also, the Miracle Box reflects Marinette. Does that mean that Marinette is spontaneous or that she is willing to let the Kwamis out of the Miracle Box? I say its both.

Also, how did the writers let Marinette forget that the Kwamis live in their magical world??? (Did they forget about "Sandboy"???) Also, didn't Master Fu or Tikki ever tell her about the whole kwamis and technology thing??? Is Adrien the only one that knows??? Or do I have amnesia?

The girls thought Adrien was at her place??? Did anyone even tell them about the whole Adrien and Kagami thing? Or is that why they are shocked???

The goat kwami apparently did not know about the technology thing and called photos paintings. I get it though: photos are like paintings.

And they sent a photo of Adrien to Luka. Oh boy *facepalms*

...and when Marinette answers Luka's call (made by the goat kwami whose name I cannot recall), she mistakes him for Adrien. I wonder how long this will last (if it even lasts)

Being a guardian means many responsibilities... and forgetting many things, including having a date with Luka. I feel bad for both of them, especially since the date was yesterday. YESTERDAY! Also, forgetting what they were going to be doing and what they will see in the movies

I love Lukanette's chemistry (even though I am a Love Square stan as you all know). Their guessing game on the way to the movies was adorable and in line with couple goals.

The necklace as a gift theory was right! We did it peoples!

Marinette screaming the answer "Kiss me" was a whole mood. And so is the staring thing.

WE/I WERE/WAS RIGHT THAT THEIR KISS WOULD BE INTERRUPTED!!! AND THAT IT WAS AN AKUMA!!! Take it as you will, although they were both passed that there kiss was interrupted.

Ladybug yeeting Chat Noir off the roof only to pull him back, break an office window, Chat smiling about it, and Ladybug enjoying this moment while simultaneously being concerned is what I live for! My Ladynoir heart is satisfied.

IT IS CANNON THAT THEY HAVE PATROLS. Although, it was cannon ever since the IG accounts existed.

ShadowMoth and all these sentimonsters is bananas. How do Marinette and Adrien handle this????

Well, we know for Marinette is the excuses that sometimes make no sense. And the fact that we see Luka become more upset with the more excuses she makes hurts, to the point that he mentioned it at the performance.

LUKA HAS A CHARACTER PEOPLES! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!

He had no idea who his father is and his mom would not tell him. This is why he has some form of trust issues and why he is very hurt when Marinette would not tell him anything (because that would mean that she has to tell him she's Ladybug and that could mean the end of the world).

Side note: He is still aware that she still likes Adrien.

Luka resisting the akuma and amok because he still trusts Marinette hurts and shows that they have a healthy relationship (or as healthy as it could be when your girlfriend is a superhero and cannot tell you). Also, how he tells Marinette to run before succumbing to ShadowMoth shows how much he really cares about her. Luka I owe you an apology

Love how everyone in Paris thinks that Marinette's secret is that she loves Adrien. Marinette, you got them all fooled. But if this is the case, then that means Adrien is really dense.

Truth spots his mom and gets her to say who his father is...

ITS BEEN JAGGED STONE ALL ALONG!!! WE WERE RIGHT PEOPLES! OUR HEADCANNONS BECAME CANNON BECAUSE WE ARE GENIUSES!!!

My first thought was "Holy chiz, we were right! We were freaking right!" I had to pause for a miniature victory dance.

Miniature victory dance break!

Anyways, he goes to Jagged Stone not before ShadowMoth yells at him and Truth yells back that he always tells the truth. Man this all hurts so much seeing Jagged's absence having an effect in Luka's thoughts about honesty.

Chat Noir saving Ladybug from saying who she is, giving her the oxygen mask, and saying how he won't force her to tell the identity is wholesome.

Luka is understandably angry at Jagged for leaving him and his mom as Truth. Understandable. I also get Jagged's perspective of the fears of being a horrible parent. But once you are a parent, you have to stay unless you are a danger to children. Jagged is not a danger to children and he should have stayed. Just saying.

People are being yeeted left to right in this episode like wha???

Now Truth heads for Marinette's house and attacks her parents. They also think her secret is about Adrien lol.

I love Tom. Even under the spell, he was willing to make sure Truth does not go up to her room. Too bad that wasn't enough though.

Just as he was about to open the place with the Miracle Box, they catch him! Now, the showdown starts.

Ladybug loves Chat's confidence, courage, and SENSE OF HUMOR!!!! AHHHHHHH!!!!

Ladybug and Chat saving each other from revealing their secret identities is just wholesome!

It sucks being in a room that belongs to your soon to be ex (Note: Marinette is not his ex yet, so do not say ex until a certain point). And with photos of the one she loves. Yikes.

Ladybug and Chat's conversation is wholesome. They are safe in each other's company because they trust each other and such. And they like each other's company. But they will catch ShadowMoth no matter what his name has changed to.

Also, Adrien must have had a hard time in his civilian life to be excited about fighting akumas and sentimonsters. I mean why am I surprised this is the same guy that is excited about throwing himself to death get this kid some dang therapy!

The Lukanette break up. So they are taking a break because Marinette wants to be honest to Luka, but cannot be honest for now. Luka takes this surprisingly well and says that he will be waiting while Marinette is the one that appears to be hurt the most. It hurts me

Luka and Jagged Stone collab! I can't wait for it!!! Glad that Jagged and Luka will slowly bur surely mend their relationship.

It hurts me knowing that Marinette can't be with anyone as long as she is Ladybug (or at least until ShadowMoth is defeated) because of the responsibilities and secrets she holds. She is afraid that she is a danger to others and being a danger to others means that they are a danger to Ladybug and Chat Noir and that means the end of the world! My precious bean is 15/16 and she has the weight of the world on her shoulders and this is the first step to her eventual breakdown from the Gloob trailer. Like, can we not hurt Marinette FOR FIVE GOSH DARN MINUTES???????

At least being a guardian has some perks, like having all the Kwamis giving you a hug in exchange for the world on your shoulders. Glad that the kwamis are being understanding to this extent.

Also, can I have kwamis to hug me when I am sad/stressed??? Especially since I am going to college

Overall, this is a very heavy first episode and I am here for it! Luka has a backstory independent of Marinette and a lot of our headcannons are confirmed! Also, Ladynoir are very much alive in their platonic banter and I am here for it even if the rest of the Love Square is somewhat dead.

I have my two cents on Lukanette and that is even as a Love Square stan, they deserve better, at least for half the season, and allow Luka to heal, and Marinette to focus on herself and being a guardian.

I sort of see the impact of Chat Blanc in this episode, but I am not a very emotional person when it comes to watching TV and even though it did not make me cry, it was still emotionally heavy for me, so take it as you will.

Anyways, we are back on track my peoples and I will add on to this post once the English Dub comes to light. See you all soon!

[saltymiraculer]

Ceremonial Kisses (Part 1 of 3)

Part 2

So I decided to try my hand at the “Marinette, the princess of China” trope and see how I did! Tell me what you think?

Also, the first chapter is going to be fluffy, the second chapter’ll have a sprinkling of salt, and the third chapter will be a mix of piles and piles of salt and some fluff. Be warned!

.

“I’ve got a big, big, big announcement for you today, class!“ Bustier chirped, clapping her hands to get their attention. “China’s princess will be coronated in a week and a half, the day she turns 18, as many of you know, and one class from the school will be selected to travel to China and watch the ceremony. Guess which class it was?“

“Uhhh…Mme. Mendeleiev’s!“

“Ooh, M. D’Argencourt’s? They’ve wanted that trip for weeks!“

“No, class, it’s ours! In three days, we’ll board the plane to Asia and have a few days to sightsee and explore, then attend the coronation on the second-to-last day!“

“Wow! Why our class?“ Kim asked.

Marinette knew exactly why. Marc had told her that the entire school was sick of Lila’s lies and wanted to enjoy the coronation without her butting in in the middle of the assembly to tell a ‘story’ about herself.

But she couldn’t just say that.

“You know, I actually know the princess,“ Lila said, immediately drawing the attention of everyone in the room. “But her identity is being kept a secret for now. That’s how we landed the trip!“

“Wow, Lila!“

“That’s amazing!“

“So cool of you.“

“They know that’s stupid, right?“ Alya stage-whispered, earning a glare from Lila’s new puppy–more commonly known as Kim. She shrugged. “I’m just tellin’ the truth!“

Alya, who was now her only other supporter next to Nino (and technically Adrien, but she’d discuss that later–it was very complicated), had decided to Google Lila’s name during a sleepover and found…some rather incriminating Facebook posts.

After that, she was 100% team Marinette and an amazing friend, along with Nino, who had decided that he needed a theme song. No one knew why.

But they loved him anyways!

So while Bustier was rattling off facts about Chinese emperors and kings and queens, Nino was showing them his latest idea to expose Lila.

“Okay,“ he started. “First, we go to China. Then we do our sightseeing and shit, and then. I did some research, and we can ask the princess questions if we’re with a national news channel. Alya’s blog counts. For real, we can talk to the princess of China. And we ask her if she knows Lila.“

“Brilliant plan, Nino. I wonder how the princess will react to a few teenagers in the middle of a crowd of famous people.“

Nino frowned. “The princess is only, like, 17. She’ll probably notice us, Als.”

“Oh, that reminds me, your birthday’s on the same day as the coronation, Marinette! Weird, isn’t it? That you and the princess have the same birthday?“ Alya asked, pulling out her phone and swiping through something.

“Huh, yeah. You’re right. Maybe we can invite her to my birthday party?“

“Ooh, the wiki page says she likes custard buns, and I’m not sure how they know that,“ Nino chuckled. “but make sure to stock up on those.“

“Noted,“ Marinette said drily as Bustier turned to them with a condemning look on her face. “Alya! I hope what you’re doing on that phone relates to the lesson!“

“China’s princess’s identity is being kept a secret because the last two were sent death threats, dangerous items, highly innapropriate items, and several other things that prompted them to not reveal the princess until it was necessary.“

“C-correct, Alya. Good job.“

“Nice!“ Marinette mouthed, high-fiving Alya, who flipped her phone around to reveal a website about the princess.

                                                           -🌸-

The final bell rang as several of the students cheered. One school day until the trip over, three more to go. Alya swung her bag over her shoulder and bumped Marinette’s elbow. “We goin’ to your place to hang out?”

“Yeah, my dad’s out anyways and mom closed the bakery for the afternoon. let’s go!“ Alya took Nino’s hand and walked the short distance to Marinette’s house. They entered and immediately felt something off.

Ah, there it was.

Sabine was leaning over the counter with a cup of very strong-smelling peppermint tea beside her. She was rubbing her temples and muttering to herself in rapid Mandarin.

“Maman? Are you alright?“ Marinette asked worriedly. Alya and Nino stood by the door–they had only seen her like this once before, when her cousin had been run over and killed.

“Yes, dear, everything’s okay, it’s just–there’s something I need to tell you.“

“Oh, no, did something happen to someone?“

“No, no, everyone’s just fine. I can’t not tell you without there being serious problems.“

“So what is it? What’s so important you had to close the bakery?“

“You’re the princess. China’s princess. The one nobody knows about.“

“I’m what?!“ Marinette screeched, grabbing at her hair. “I’m the heir to the throne of the most populated country in the world, and you waited until a week before the coronation to tell me?!“

“Holy shit.“ Alya and Nino said simultaneously. Sabine stared at them, likely just realizing they were there.

“Oh. They know now, too. Perfect, that’s just what we need, a reporter knowing who–“

“Maman! Alya wouldn’t tell a soul, I know she wouldn’t.“

Sabine turned to Alya. “I’m sorry, dear, I’m just stressed. With that trip to China in a few days and all that, we’ll have to close down the bakery for about a week.”

“And we never close down the bakery.“ Marinette finished, putting a steady hand on her mom’s shoulder. “But I know just the person to run it while we’re gone.“

As she was about to say who exactly would run the bakery, Nino backed into the door, wide-eyed.

“Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit. My best friend…holy shit.“

“Nino, I know this is a lot, but we’ll have to stay calm,“ Alya said, grabbing his hand. “So we don’t spill her secret. That’s top priority, all right? Don’t–tell–anyone.“

Nino sighed. “Sorry, babe. This…“ he turned to Marinette. “Do you have any cookies?“

Marinette grinned and led them into the kitchen. “Of course! Chocolate chunk or raspberry frosted?“

“Raspberry, all the way!“

“There’s the Nino I know!“

After a quick cookie interval, Marinette pushed her plate away and sighed. “Anyone up for an impromptu sleepover? You all left a bunch of your clothes here the last few times.”

“Marinette. If you know us, you will know our answers.“ Alya said solemnly.

“Hell yeah. Wanna go choose which terrible rom-com to watch this time?“

They ended up settling on The Kissing Booth, one of Marinette’s personal favorites (”To lighten the tension, you know?” Alya had said. “Although the tension in here probably weighs the same as an obese hippopotamus at this point.”) and made a bowl of caramel popcorn, with a tiny bag of sea-salt Skinny Pop for Nino.

“Sugar on popcorn is a crime, man. I ain’t touching that.“

“You’ve tried it once, Nino.“

“Yes, and I hated it. Is there anything else to be said?“

So they spent the next two hours in a blanket fort that was made almost entirely of throw pillows laughing over Elle and Noah and Lee being idiots, with a few highlights such as the iconic “Ninth grade skirt, eleventh grade body” scene, where Alya snorted and said “You know, Lila’s skipped so much school, might as well be ninth grade brain, eleventh grade work.”

“Too true,“ Nino agreed. “The other day, she called Chloe’s mom Aurora Bourgeois. That was a pretty major mess-up.”

“Shhh! Let’s just watch the movie!“ Marinette said, effectively quieting them down.

They watched the rest in silence with the usual laughs., ending up falling asleep halfway through the second movie, snuggled up on their respective couches. Marinette mother shook them awake the next morning, telling them to take showers and eat breakfast and get dressed and for god’s sake, Marinette, finish your homework.

“Crap, crap, crapcrapcrap! Nino, we’re going to be late if we don’t get ready fast!“ Alya shouted as Marinette ran up the stairs to change. “Can I use your shower, M?“

“Sure!“ was the muffled reply.

After about 10 minutes of running around and shoving waffles in their mouths, they grabbed their bags and ran off to school.

They burst through the door in the nick of time, the bell ringing just as they plunked down their things.

Bustier wasn’t there five minutes into the class, so they started talking.

“Marinette, you have to listen to Nino’s latest track, it’s–“ Just as she was about to describe Nino’s latest track, a bouncy-ball the size of a walrus snashed through the wall, nearly taking off Kim’s head.

There was a cackle from outside. “I am Gradack! You will all feel the same sorrow that I did!“

                                                          -🌸-

The fight was over relatively fast, and everything was calmed down and restored before their next class. Turns out Chat Noir didn’t show, so Marinette had to ask Alya for assistance.

In hindsight, she probably should have picked a better place to transform.

“Tikki, spots on!“ After she transformed, she was about to go to Fu to get one of the Miraculous, when she heard a strangled gasp.

“…shit.“

“My best friend is the princess of goddamn China and Ladybug? What the fuck?! Who are you? How did I not know? When did–“

“Alya, I know the feeling, but you can’t tell anyone. Got it?“

“Nino?“

“Well,“ Marinette paused to think. “Yeah, I guess. I trust him enough. Now, take this and transform!“ she tossed Alya the hexagonal box, and after a quick transformation, they ran off to defeat the saddened graduate of an akuma.

As she said, it was an easy fight.

They comforted the victim with four minutes (each) to spare, then ran back to the locker rooms to transform back.

                                                   Time Skip!

It was the morning of the flight to China, and she was ecstatic. Of course, she had to get up at 3:45 in the morning, but it was worth it–the flight took off at six in the morning, of course.

She could see the logic of wanting to arrive at 12:00, but she would’ve much preferred a red-eye.

Then she wouldn’t have had to stay up all night reading, because no way in hell would she just wake up at 3:45 in the morning.

The alarm would’ve had to go off for hours.

But back to the morning, she poured herself a sasquatch-sized mug of coffee, with about a gallon of cream and enough sugar to put an entire city of diabetics into shock, she started getting dressed.

Trudging around and haphazardly pulling out shirts, she finally decided on a simple red-and-orange flannel, a white t-shirt, and a pair of cropped jeans.

The she downed the rest of her coffee with an apathetic “Bottoms up!” and slapped her cheeks.

She grapped her suitcase and walked outside to where her mother was typing away on a laptop in the pitch-black night.

“Mom, why are you up?“

“Because I have to drive you to the airport, that’s why. And no alarm would be able to wake me up at 3 in the morning.“

“Preach. I’m ready to go, so can we get in the car now?“

After driving to the airport and saying goodbye to her mom, she walked into the airport and immediately saw the group of sleepy teens (and a certain disheveled teacher) leaning on their suitcases, trying not to fall asleep.

Nino and Marinette were already there, their eyelids drooping. The only person who looked properly awake was Sabrina, who was–inevitably–holding a saucer out to Chloé, who was sipping from a teacup.

Alya rolled her eyes and walked over to Marinette and Nino. “Who’re we missing?”

“Kim and Rose. They’re carpooling, so they should be here any minute.“

Just as Marinette had said, a few seconds later, Rose and Kim walked into the airport. Kim was still wearing pajama pants.

                                           Another Time Skip!

“Marinette.“ Alya groaned, shaking Marinette’s shoulders. “Marinette, wake up, we’re here.“

Marinette’s eyes fluttered open. “No. Five more minutes.”

“Everyone else is already off the plane!“

“Shit. Let’s go!“ Marinette said, jumping up, grabbing her purse (which she had recently learned concealed a kwami) and scrambling out the door.

Alya picked up the mini-backpack she now carried (which held Trixx, cookies, and some grape jelly) and followed her out the door.

Almost as soon as they stepped off the plane, they heard a loud wail.

“Great. She’s back on her bullshit.“

“I just can’t believe she would steal that, Lila! It’s so unlike her!“

“M-maybe, but there’s p-proof! Look!“

“Oh, great, what did we do this time?“ Alya asked exasperatedly. They watched as Lila held out the remains of–from what they could see from a meter away–a sketch of an orange mermaid gown with a black lace collar, ripped into quarters and laid out on the ground.

Marinette gasped beside her.

“That’s your dress, isn’t it?“

A small tear made its way down Marinette’s face. “It was going to be for you,” she said softly.

Alya threw her arms around Marinette and rubbed her shoulders. “It’s okay, sweetie. Once you’re princess, we’ll sue her for all she’s worth.”

Marinette detached herself from Alya and wiped her eyes. “Yeah. Yeah, thanks, Alya.”

                                                         -🌸-

Nino stormed up to where Alya and Marinette were standing with a furious expression on his face.

“That fox,“ he seethed. “that bitchy little fox of a liar stole your drawing.“

Marinette chuckled wetly. “Yeah, we know.“

“Are you okay? I know how important they are to you.“

“I’m fine, Nino, and o–who the hell are you?“ A man in an oddly formal suit was standing next to her, holding out a small red envelope.

Marinette plucked the envelope from his fingers, opened it, and read the contents. She looked up and nodded at the suit-wearing guy.

“Good. In that case, Miss Dupain-Cheng, I’m going to need you to come with me.“ Alya and Nino immediately stepped in front of her in a protective shield.

“She’s not in trouble, is she?“

The strange man looked surprisingly amused. “Not at all–but you might want to come with us, too. You as well, headphone-boy.”

Nino put a hand on his chest and gasped in offense.

“Nino. He’s going to drive us to the palace. You’re coming, too, ya doof!“ Nino made a noise of realization and followed them out to where a black limousine was waiting.

They climbed in and drove off.

About five minutes into the drive, he moved his foot to the side, accidentally kicking a black box.

Just as he was preparing his final goodbyes, it sprung open, and inside was a junk food lover’s heaven.

“Dude.“

[toujoursmiraculous]

Thoughts and Reaction to Lies!

It's another long one because so much happens in this episode! The episode starts with Marinette trying to figure out a "secret" within the grimoire. Literal first thought was that this "secret" may be the key to waking up Emilie. It's obviously going to be of huge significance later, anyway. By looking at that piece on Adrien, it does appear Adrien has an amazing life. And really, that's what a lot of people think. That's the point of featuring him. A life of a celebrity is pretty amazing, really interesting and fascinating. But it's also filled with a lot of stress, chaos, loneliness, etc. But viewers rarely ever see it. As for Marinette, while Adrien has said things about what his father allows that makes him sad, we haven't ever heard him complain to her in any way about that lifestyle. To her, he's a guy whose father has him busy with activities (interesting ones at that) and very rarely ever lets him spend time with friends. I love how this episode parallels Truth! But Adrien's POV. My boy has an episode centered around him, finally!

So we know her standing Chat Noir up is because Luka came by reminding her of a date she forgot she rescheduled. You know she's extremely distracted and stressed when she can't remember a date with Luka or a patrol with Chat Noir, or remember that she planned them at the same time. It's really not her fault, and I feel so bad for her that things are becoming so difficult. "No messages, but don't forget my cheese!" LOL this is perfect. Plagg has to get that reminder in wherever he can! The Chat Noir appreciation was so wholesome to see awww, I bet so many boys in Paris look up to him, so sweet x33 Mr. Banana, Chat Noir, and the man who frequently is Mr. Pigeon just chilling on a bench in the park together. What a scene! lol But Chat wanting them to be akumatized so he could see Ladybug. Big oof. He's going to get his wish, a few times over. Careful what you wish for, Kitty! "A glass of milk as usual, mister Chat Noir?" Okay so when Chat's down, he goes to that bar and has a glass of milk. Or more if he's having a bad day. Awwwww. If you think about it, Adrien probably isn't allowed to have milk. With the fat content and all. :/ Kagami lying to her mother and Nathalie/Gabriel just to spend some time with Adrien. Considering how difficult their lives are, that's pretty impressive to be so brave. Not too fond of the lying part though, since there's not a noble reason for doing so. But I can understand it. We found out Kagami's real passion: drawing! Which is pretty cool. That's one thing Kagami and Marinette have in common that'd make them good friends. Very sad how her blind mother tells her she's not good enough. That just tells you what she thinks of her daughter and what she wants her to do with her life. She's afraid she'll pursue the arts rather than something practical, so best shoot down any thoughts of being an artist now. And then, like with all episodes that have Kagami in them, this is where I start to dislike her. "I want to draw the real you, on the inside." Adrien makes various model poses, none work for her as she knows they're just him being a model. Then he actually poses as himself. A silly, goofy cat having fun and being happy. Adorable. "What do you think of... CAT?" deathglare "No, this is absolutely not natural." "Yes it is. I promise, this is really me!" "NO! This is you when you're acting like a clown!" Adrien looking hurt, "But maybe when I act like a clown, it's really me." Then she takes his hand, (gently) pushes him back up against the wall, her hands on his chest, "That way, that's who you really are." What way? Her telling him how to be is who he really is? He stammers, looking very uncomfortable. "But are you sure?" "Yes... you are perfect." Then she leans in to kiss him, while he's still looking uncomfortable. Right here, she's trying to tell him who he is. What kind of relationship is healthy and a good one one at that, when one side is trying to tell the other who they are, how they must act, etc? That's toxic. Keep in mind, after this scene, during Truth's attack. He found out that Ladybug actually in fact loves (said she prefers) the humorous, "clown" side of him. Yes, she only knows it as Chat Noir for now, but she actually appreciates and loves Chat for who he is. Kagami doesn't love nor appreciate that side of Adrien. Which is a very big and important side of him. We knew this in Ikari Gozen, she couldn't stand the thought of Chat Noir being compared to Adrien, pretty sure she even seemed offended by it if memory serves. But it's laid out more in Lies, it's more direct. (Marinette's done this too in the past, but when she's done it, her tone's more like pssssh please! while she looks off to the side, like she's mostly just telling herself that, to convince herself, rather than believing it.) Kagami thinks she knows Adrien, knows that him being funny and a clown is not the "real" him. Acting like she knows him better than he knows himself. Thinking he's perfect. That was a very hurtful thing to have said and you can see it in his expression the same kind of pain and hurt

he gets a lot. I also want to talk about how watching her back Adrien up against the wall like that and leaning into kiss him made me feel particularly uncomfortable. While they might have a little thing going on, he was clearly not comfortable by it and it just did not sit well with me. This entire scene was riddled with red flags. Adrien smiled at the end of that on his way out, yes, but having someone tell you you're perfect would seem like a compliment to you, wouldn't it? The one you like thinks you're perfect, thinks the facade you put up is perfect and anything less isn't okay with them. That'll end up so well! The almost kissing scenes this episode literally had me like

I'm sorry, I just feel so very uncomfortable by them, I can't help it. xD Just before Chat Noir sneaked up on Ladybug, he almost kissed Kagami right? And yet here he is, being a bit flirty, saying he's missed her on patrols. I also want to point out she tells him to stop with his stupid jokes, because she doesn't want to accidentally hurt him! She could've hurt him by scaring her like that. While she likes his humor, they're only problematic if it puts himself in danger or distracts them from fighting an akuma. "I promise I won't forget our patrols anymore." The looks that passed between LB and CN here is just so cute! OOOF as Luka walks away sad because Marinette had to run off, here comes Adrien, about to do the exact same thing as Marinette to Kagami... Now Kagami's not as accepting of him running off as she was just a little while ago.

Even Andre's like, what the heck was that?! His expression watching Adrien run off made me laugh, I had to share it. I was wondering how Adrien got to the boathouse before Marinette did, as it made it seem like Adrien was there long before Marinette was. He just ran in and started playing along where they were. Good lord, he has a lot going on too, doesn't he? Only difference from Marinette here is Adrien has a built-in and believable excuse he can tell his friends. Kagami's forceful "Adrien, it's time." "Five little minutes?" *shakes head sternly* Who does this remind you of in Adrien's life already? Is this what a good girlfriend, what a good friend would do? And here again is the pattern we see a lot with Kagami. She manipulates situations so that they can spend time together. Adrien wants to spend time with his friends AND girlfriend at the same time. Rehearsing for their band, it looks like. He rarely ever gets to spend time with others, be a normal kid. But no, she drags him away early, making it sound like they had to leave, but it's just her wanting him to herself. When he couldn't go to New York, oh well that's unfortunate you're sad, but we can spend more time together now, isn't that great? It's about what she wants, not what he wants or what's best for Adrien. She spends more time with Adrien (not counting Ladybug spending time with Chat Noir here) than anyone else does by the looks of it, and she doesn't even know him at all. It's really sad. Adrien still carrying around Marinette's lucky charm bracelet in his pocket x3333 This never fails to make me happy. But oof that boy's seriously going to lose it one of these days if he's not careful! There's something different about seeing the Ladynoir scene on the roof that we got in Truth, but from Adrien's perspective. Something about it feels like it means more to me, idk. Adrien gets caught in a lie, saying he lost something but found it. Kagami asked what it was, holding Marinette's lucky charm behind her back. He says it was the lucky charm Marinette gave her, as he's scrambling in his pocket to pull it out seeming a bit frazzled, but realizes he actually in fact lost it (again! he says). But Kagami caught him in that lie, showing him that she actually had it.

I'm not sure if he's so shocked because she actually had it and wonders how she got it, or if he looks like that because he just got caught in a lie. But the way his eyebrows raised a little makes it seem like he's surprised she had it after all and was testing him the whole time. I've always hated the way sometimes someone when in a relationship will test the other one like this. Really not fair in Adrien's case at all. Things aren't always as they may seem. And here's the thing, she's admitting to him that she's lying just to be with him. She lies all the time. Adrien caught on that she was lying, but didn't really understand why I don't think. Earlier in the episode he says, "What are you hiding, Kagami?" he didn't know her purpose for it. Now she says, "We're both liars, the difference is I lie to be with you. You. You lie to get away from me." Which is a yes but actually no situation. It's not that he doesn't want to be with her, it's that he needs to get away temporarily. It just looks really, really bad. Getting off track from that conversation briefly, but that scene where the akuma goes off into the night, with the blurred city lights that becomes clear. Just wow. That shot is beautiful, I can't help myself from playing it back and admiring it. I'm also totally digging the new transformation music! it gives me 90s vibes and makes me happy. Seeing Jagged after Truth is just completely different xD "I fear nothing, I am an artist! I still hold to my fans." Both Roth: "Wrong, you lie to them about your age!" "That's not Rock and Roll!" Had me rolling!! Jagged sure is something XD Chat just up and about to cataclysm the sphere, thinking he'd be okay because he doesn't lie. Except he lies all the time to protect his identity and get himself away from people so he can transform. xD Silly Kitty. The drone as a Lucky Charm is super cool! In Truth, Chat Noir said a truth about how he felt about Ladybug. In Lies, he tells lies to Lies to get her attention. "My name's not Chat Noir! I'm not a superhero! I hate Ladybug! And I think Hawk Moth should've called himself Panfly! It's funnier! Oh, I was about to forget: my favorite dish is cabbage with white sauce! Yummy!" Cabbage...with white sauce... as a dish. Is this like, a real fancy dish or something or is this boy being completely starved? o.o CN: "There are only two more liars left in Paris, and one of them knows how to turn his attention." LB: "No, wait! Don't do that! What if I'm mistaken?" "You know what? I trust you." he lets go, sacrificing himself again "Chat Noir, no! Don't do that! You're crazy!" "Yes, crazy for you, m'lady." Says softly, sadly, "No, you're just crazy unconscious." This ENTIRE scene right here. The love, the trust, the pain in this scene. It's so beautiful and well done that I can't stop getting emotional from it and gushing! Everything's on the line from that decision, and the trust he has for her, the faith he has in her really helps her know she can do what she needs to do. She's always doubting herself, and he's always there to say he doesn't feel that way at all, and it gives her that confidence and courage she needs. The moment Chat Noir is okay, the first thing Ladybug does is run up and smack him, grabbing him anxiously saying "Seriously, you need to stop doing this to me!" The girl is stressed seeing her partner sacrifice himself time and again! IF THIS BOY DOESN'T REALIZE JUST HOW MUCH SHE CARES ABOUT HIM AT THIS POINT, I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY. Any fan that still thinks Ladybug doesn't love Chat Noir and thinks poorly of him, clearly does not understand it at all. My Ladynoir heart is SO HAPPY! I was thrilled with them in Truth, but this is a totally different level. I'm almost in tears with how happy I am. And then I noticed something. I don't know if it's anything or not. But Chat Noir says to her, "Yes, but it's because I find that angry look of yours irresistable." and Kagami turns around to look at him, only him and never Ladybug. Just watching him. Which is a bit... odd. "Ahh, Ladybug..." he sighs. After what

just happened, I don't blame him! x3 These two are honestly fire. When D'Argencort has to step in to keep Kagami from hurting Adrien during fencing... Doesn't matter how upset she is, that's gross to physically take it out on him to the point a teacher has to intervene. Kagami tells Adrien she knows he's hiding something, but that he's sincere, too. But when he asks if they can't be friends then, she responds, "How can you trust someone who lied to you?" and finally gives him back the lucky charm. Ever since Gorizilla, I've been worrying of him losing it for good! Glad she gave it back to him. I've said it already, but he's really going to lose that thing if he's not careful! "When I'm ready to see you again, I'll let you know." and she just leaves. I get she's upset, he's been lying to her to get away when he's with her and all that. But this is worse than what happened with Lukanette. Luka wanted to actually know what was going on, he asked Marinette about it directly. She told him honestly, it's the one thing she can't tell him. Kagami on the other hand never actually asked. During one of the scenes when he was spacing out, she asked what was the matter is all. All she's cared about is that he's lied, and now that he's lied she can't trust him. Doesn't even want to hear him out, not that he'd explain it to her. Kagami doesn't even want to see Adrien for awhile now. At least Luka's more understanding and isn't as harsh being in the exact same situation. This poor boy... But it's also for the best. Marinette and Adrien both after breaking up with Luka and Kagami, decided to transform and meet up to just be in each other's company. They're both sad, but not especially so. "Do you know what the difference is, between us and the rest of the world, m'lady? We can't be completely honest with each other. We have our secrets, and sometimes we have to lie." Ladybug frowning hums in agreement. But at the same time, they both turn to each other and say happily "But we know we can trust each other!" finishing with a pound-it! IT'S JUST SO BEAUTIFUL AND MY HEART IS HAPPY After Truth, where Luka and Marinette were so sad and having a hard time, I really needed such an episode with such good Ladynoir! It really looks like the story is going in a really good direction, in my opinion. x3

[olivia-anderson-fanfic]

Soulmarks, Part 11

First part

Previous

~~~

She let her pleasant smile drop as the door closed behind the most recent akuma. Her grip tightened on her yoyo.

She and Adrien had missed the akuma’s appearance. Again.

“There’s just not enough time,” she hissed.

Adrien flopped onto the pavement with a groan. “Christ, Nette, why is working in two cities so hard?”

Marinette shrugged and tossed her lucky charm with a mumbled “miraculous ladybug”. Ladybugs swirled around them both and she felt the bones in her leg repair themselves. Perfect. Now that she could, she kicked the nearest lamppost as hard as she could and grinned at the tiny dent that it made.

“Property damage isn’t a good look on you, M’lady,” said Adrien.

She scoffed. “Fuck it! We save this city once a day, we get a little bit of property damage!”

“Fair enough.”

They ducked into an alley and detransformed, bitter expressions stuck on their faces.

They slipped out into the dark of the night. There was no one out, they’d been surprised to even find an akuma at this hour. Hawkmoth must have kept an alarm for three so he could catch people out when their emotions peaked due to exhaustion.

“School’s starting soon and there’s been no progress on Joker or Hawkmoth,” she whined. “There’s no way we can keep going back and forth like this.”

“Can’t you just do your creepy stalker-y thing and find this guy?”

Her face reddened and she sent him a glare. “The bats can hear us, y’know!”

She heard a click in her ear to indicate someone had turned on their comm and her face burned even hotter as she heard Barbara’s laughter.

“Of all the things for you two lovebirds to have in common, the stalking would not have been my first guess.”

There was a silence as this sunk in…

Then Adrien started cackling. “OH MY GOD HE DOES THAT TOO?!”

“Yeah! It’s how he found out our identities!”

He grinned. “It’s how she found out mine, too! Oh this is so good.”

“Shut up!” Said Tim and Marinette at the same time, which only made the others laugh harder.

“I only stalked you to figure out if you were my soulmate,” she tried to defend herself. “You were hot and nice to me! Those were my main two requirements!”

He snorted. “And Kagami?”

“She was hot and nice to me. I literally just said that was all it took.”

She heard the bats gasp. Shoot. Time to rush past that!

“Besides, you should be thanking me! I figured out she was your soulmate for you!”

He rolled his eyes and laughed.

“You shouldn’t be laughing, guys, stalking is serious,” said Dick.

Marinette blinked. She hadn’t realized he was on.

Adrien’s eyes widened in surprise as well. When he spoke next, he’d sobered a little.  “It’s creepy, Nette… but it’ll be useful. So, I’m hereby giving you permission to stalk Hawkmoth.”

“I don’t need your permission.” She hesitated, pulling a yoyo from the pocket of her hoodie and messing with it. “I’ll do it, though. School is starting soon, and since our class is so good for akumas, I guess it’s the best time for me to do my thing.”

“I’ll help,” said Tim. “If we work together we’ll be able to do this way faster.”

She blinked. “You’re going to help from America?”

“Nope, I have an idea.”

She and Adrien gave each other confused looks.

~

The three of them stood at the base of the steps, eyeing the unfamiliar building warily. They were all new students there, and none of them looked eager to begin their first day of high school.

Tim shuffled awkwardly in his uniform. He hadn’t attended school in years. His parents hadn’t noticed, and it gave him a lot of time to do what he actually enjoyed. It felt odd going back, especially since he’d be in a group with people who were two years younger than him and French and oh god he was going to be the new kid oh fuck.

Marinette and Adrien also looked like they wanted to run as far in the opposite direction as they could. When Tim had asked, they’d both instantly said that it was just ‘first day nerves’. It obviously wasn’t but they weren’t going to fess up and it wasn’t like he was going to interrogate them.

Even if he wanted to, getting them to talk about something that stressed them out was a dangerous thing in Paris. Especially for Marinette and Adrien.

The bell rang, pulling the three of them from their thoughts and they quickly joined the throng of kids struggling to find their classes.

In true Marinette fashion, she stumbled into class five minutes late with a shouted apology. However, this wasn’t at all normal for the two boys that rushed in after her. The class giggled a little and went back to what they were doing.

He was told to remain at the front of the class and both Marinette and Adrien sent him pitying looks as they took two out of three of the empty seats at the back of the classroom. They fastened tiny nametags to their chests, probably mandated because he was new, and Marinette flashed him a thumbs up.

He gave her a tiny smile and shoved his hands in his pockets.

Tim cringed internally as he looked up at everyone. Fifteen students when you included Marinette and Adrien. At least they didn’t seem all that interested, listening to a girl in orange talk about some prince she apparently knew. Maybe he could just coast through the school year without drawing attention --.

The teacher gave a pleasant smile and clapped her hands for attention. It didn’t work, so she raised her voice slightly to speak: “Welcome back to school, everyone! Before we go over our syllabus, I’d like you to welcome our newest student. Would you please introduce yourself?”

So much for that idea.

He jutted his chin out. “Hello. I’m Tim Drake-Wayne.”

Everyone’s eyes snapped to him instantly.

“Yes, that one. Great, we’re done here.”

Their gazes never left him as he made his way up to Marinette and Adrien. He tried to brush it off, but he just couldn’t seem to ignore the pair of eyes boreing into the back of his head. He turned slightly and looked at where the girl in orange sat.

She smiled and batted her eyelashes at him.

He rolled his eyes. He’d gotten used to people like her long ago. People always did that when they heard his name.

To her credit, she didn’t look at all phased by his blatant annoyance by her.

His eyes flicked down to her nametag and he clenched his fists in his pockets.

Lila Rossi.

He shook his head slightly and kept walking, taking his seat beside Marinette.

The teacher was trying desperately to pull everyone’s attention back to her as she practically shouted her syllabus, but it was useless. They were all whispering among themselves, not even bothering to hide the fact that they were staring, and he was thrown a few pitying looks.

He didn’t know why he was getting the pitying looks, he doubted it was because of all the attention, but it wasn’t like he could just ask.

The only people who were actually paying attention to the teacher were Marinette and Adrien, who were copying down everything she said diligently.

Tim looked back at Lila and narrowed his eyes slightly. She was a bit two-faced, but he didn’t quite get why she was so important that she had a spot by Hawkmoth. He supposed even superheroines have personal problems but, damn, that was definitely some skewed priorities.

Still…

He glanced at Marinette’s free hand resting on the table and laced his fingers with hers.

He watched Lila’s flirtatious smile morph into an ugly scowl and tried not to smirk too much.

Tim’s gaze found its way to Marinette again and his smirk softened into a smile. She was a brighter red than her costume and her already ghastly penmanship was now, somehow, even worse.

He reached into his bag with his free hand and pulled out a pen and some paper. As cute as Marinette was, he doubted that he could glean anything from her notes and asking Adrien for his would work but likely include a lecture on how he should pay more attention.

He could feel Lila’s glare the whole time he copied down notes.

~~~

Next part

Taglist

@pawsitivelymiraculous @golden-promises @salty-fang @kitsunebell @sassakitty @octobitch @glastwime859 @miyla-lokidottir @onlyabatfan @ira-sairain @2confused-2doanything @ultimatetornshipper @ladybug-182 @laurcad123 @we-want-mini-mini @roguishredaxion @just-reblogs-by-h @futursworld @magic-miraculous @nathleigh @smolplantmum @vroomtaka  @emimar7 @toodaloo-kangaroo @charme-de-malchan @spicybelladonna @fusser90 @indecisive-mess-named-me

[itsmeevie01]

A Moment in Time- Ch 13

MASTERPOST

has it been...a week? wow.

BUT I have planned a bit of the next few chapters. YAY!

I'm also failing bio but whatever. it's fine. everything is fine. (it's really not but I won't acknowledge it.)

anyways, no warnings for this ch, just Mari and Tim time!

Tim’s hotel room was nice. He really couldn’t complain, but there was something that made the back of his neck prickle. It hadn’t been only at the hotel either, but it was where he had felt it most acutely. There was someone at the hotel watching him.

When he had arrived in Paris the night before, Tim had been shocked at the tense atmosphere. The last time he had visited six months earlier, there hadn’t been this feeling of everyone holding their breath. Now, Tim was tense simply because everyone around him was. He wasn’t sure if it was the feeling of being watched or if it was the way everyone was holding their breath, but Tim’s nerves were frying very quickly.

He was supposed to meet Marinette for coffee in the next hour, and Tim was more than ready to see a face that he wasn’t paying to like him. As he slumped into a chair, the teen debated texting Marinette to ask for somewhere slightly more private to stave off his paranoia. As the clock ticked down, Tim gritted his teeth, caught up in his head. A ding from his phone brought him back to the present. With a glance down Tim jolted.

Tim+Marinette

Marinette- Hey! Just a reminder that we are meeting at that café I gave you the address to. I’ll be there in about 15 minutes, so I’ll see you soon!

Tim- Thanks, Marinette! I’m looking forward to seeing you!

Marinette- Me too 😊

Tim studied his phone before he yelped. It was a five-minute walk to the café, and he still hadn’t changed from his suit from earlier. The teen groaned and shook his head at his forgetfulness.

Marinette was surprisingly nervous when she sat down at the café she had told Tim about. Her hand was shaking, and she had no idea why. In front of her was a plate with a muffin and a coffee cup that had been made the way the staff knew she liked. The truth was this is where she camped out when her room was closing in on her. That meant that the people who worked there knew Marinette well enough to respect her privacy, while also holding a conversation when she had the time.

With a shaking hand, Marinette set her sketchbook on the tables and opened it to the last sketch she had been working on. As she cleaned up the lines and made notes about what specifications she wanted Marinette started to fall into the mental spiral that could trap her for days.

Had she picked the right clothes?

Why was she worried about what she wore?

Would Plagg behave? He was known for causing trouble for her.

Would Tim be nice in person, or would he be like most of the corporate douches that she worked with at Agreste?

Would Hawkmoth attack while they were together?

What if the media caught sight of them? Oh, she should have picked a more private place to meet!

A sharp prick on her thigh had Marinette yipping quietly, but the look Plagg gave her told the teen that he knew what was going through her head.

The Kwamii snuck up to her shoulder and his in her hair. “careful, Red. There are people here but not too many, this kid seems like he has a good head on his shoulders. We can trust him on that. You won’t get a better read on him until you spend time with him in person, so don’t start the spiral just yet. Plus, you know that some of the stress from this week is getting to you. Training three Miracle holders is stressful in the best of times. You are doing it in combat times without the full team the guardians used to use.” the duo could feel the tension leave Marinette’s shoulders at the small god’s words.

The teen whispered “thanks Plagg” as she focused back on the design in front of her.

Tim walked into the café and glanced around as he ordered.

There were only a few patrons there. in one corner was a red-headed boy who was obviously absorbed in his schoolwork. Near the middle was a girl who was typing on her computer with the manic speed of someone who had a paper due in the next day. In the far corner was a dark-haired girl who was working in some kind of notebook. And a few tables away from the register was a duo. A blonde girl whose hair was held in the kind of ponytail that made Tim cringe in sympathy, and a boy with dark hair that looked completely uncomfortable. Hopefully, Tim wasn’t witnessing a date gone wrong.

as he accepted his food, the teen headed for the girl in the back corner. He knew that Marinette had dark hair and that if she was anything like Jason, she would choose the place that would give her the best view of the space. Tim cleared his throat as he approached, breaking her out of focus on what Tim now realized was a sketchbook. “Marinette?”

“Tim! Hi! Come sit with me.” The girl’s enthusiasm made Tim smile, and he easily settled into the chair across from her.

The first few moments were awkward, but soon, Tim and Marinette were laughing and talking together happily. At one point, Tim got Marinette to really laugh. As she was pulling herself together, Tim tilted his head back. A smile danced over his features while he stretched his neck. as he leaned back, Tim noticed the blond girl narrowing her eyes at him, before glaring when she realized that she had been caught. She flipped her hair and whirled back around to face the boy that was laughing at her. Marinette snorted at the flush on the girl's face and rolled her eyes.

“that’s my friend, Chloé, she doesn’t think that I know that she is here with our friend. She’s just a big snoop.” Tim huffed a laugh and shrugged.

“Well, as long as it's just your friend spying on us, we should be fine. Are you interested in perhaps taking a walk?” Marinette giggled before standing. Tim joined her and offered her his hand. She sent him a smile and wiggled her fingers at him, before collecting her stuff and skipping off.

As she turned to smile at him, Tim called out a “hey! Wait up!” before hurrying after her.

After he had caught up with her, Marinette shot Tim a smile and led him off down the streets. He laughed and followed. The ease the girl used to navigate the streets had Tim marveling. The sound of her giggles had him smiling as he followed. Soon, they arrived at a small townhouse on the outskirts of the city. She glanced over her shoulder and inclined her head. Once they were both in the foyer, she guided him through to the sitting room.

“sorry about the…adventure. I know that you had more questions, and there were a few people in the café that I don’t trust.” Tim blinked, before nodding.

“I…ok? How did you know that I had questions? And as much as I liked exploring the city, where are we?” Marinette blushed slightly.

“we-ah. Well, we are at my Nona’s house. She lets me use it when she isn’t here to get some space. And…well…I know that your emails were full of questions, and I realized that anyone who wasn’t Parisian would have questions. And. Well. I saw a girl I don’t get along with in there and I wanted an excuse to get away from her?” Tim studied her for a moment, before bursting out laughing.

“Marinette, that would have been a perfectly fine reason, even without any reasonable justification. But” here, Tim worked to reign in his laughter, “the trip through the labyrinth of Paris, and the who thing…thank you.” A look of confusion crossed the girl’s face. “ever since I’ve landed, I’ve had the feeling that there was something watching me. Not only that, but everyone I’ve met has been holding their breath. I know that there is something going on, but I haven’t asked because I’m afraid of setting someone off. Do you know what’s going on in Paris? And why…why do I feel better here in your Nona’s home than in my hotel or the café?”

Marinette tensed as Tim talked. When he finished, she hesitated before voicing her concern. “Tim…did you say that you don’t feel like you’re being watched anymore?”

“yes?”

“oh my god. Tim! That’s…oh no. No. no. no! Tim…that means that Hawkmoth had decided that you would make a good Akuma. This house is out of the city proper, so he can’t get us here. Oh, this is so bad!”

“Marinette, hey. Stop. Look at me.” The girl, who had started to pace, paused. She glanced over at the older teen, her blue eyes wide in panic. Tim reached out and took her hands in his and gripped them tightly. Once her eyes were focused on him, and not the wall behind him, Tim spoke quietly. “Marinette are you with me?” she nodded. “is the reason that you reacted like that because of panic?” another nod. “talk me through why.” Her eyes went wide, and she looked at him in shock before taking a shaking breath and turning away.

“you could have been akumatized. You could have been akumatized and would have been with me and I would be to blame. Then you would-or still can- turn Jason and Nona against me. Then I could be exiled from Paris, or-“ Tim had squeezed her hands that he still somehow held during her spiral. Marinette spun around to face the older boy in shock.

“Marinette, how would me being akumatized become your fault? If we are going to lay blame on anyone, it would be Hawkmoth. He is the one who is going around possessing people with evil purple butterflies.” She studied him, shocked, before breathing out a sigh of relief.

“I am so sorry, Tim. I shouldn’t have freaked out like that. That was so rude.” Tim shook his head in response as she collapsed onto one of the couches.

“you have nothing to apologize for. I have a feeling that after the time you spent in Gotham, living under a supervillain for four years has been stressful. Maybe during your time in Gotham, if you don’t have the sight of my face by then,” here the younger girl giggled, relief evident in her face at the proposal for other plans, “maybe I can take you around Gotham and give you the time to explore without a psychopath with mind-reading abilities hanging over your head.”

A small smile danced over Marinette’s lips. “I would love that Tim, thank you.”

Later that evening, Marinette sighed in frustration.

Her homework was just one more thing she had to worry about. Beyond that, she really wanted to spend time with Tim. With Hawkmoth watching him, she wasn’t sure how long her friend would last in the city of love.

Another sigh broke its way free from Marinette’s throat, and the girl pushed aside the pile of schoolwork in favor of looking over her sketchbook. There, on the open page, was Tim’s face staring back up at her. She wasn’t sure what prompted her to draw him, but in this case, she was chalking up to her hand having a mind of its own. Looking down at the picture, she felt anger overtake her. Marinette had already given up so much, and yet here she was.

If this ridiculousness from Hawkmoth didn’t stop, the teen knew she would have to sacrifice her friendship with Tim as well, If only to protect him. the seed of anger seemed to burn brighter, and the girl clenched her jaw, trying to remind herself that no, this was not worth an Akumatization.

She looked up, trying to drain her eyes of the tears that had gathered without her permission, and caught sight of a purple butterfly. With trembling hands, the teen pulled out a glass jar that she had been experimenting with. One muttered spell later, the Akuma was sitting inside of the jar, and the glass had clouded over. With an angry shake of the Jar, the girl pulled out her phone and sent one text. They were ending this, tonight.

As Marinette prepared to meet her team, an assuredness settled over her. She knew that they had the ability to take down Adrien’s father. Apate just had to give the signal. And Marinette Dupain Cheng would be damned if she let an emotional terrorist ruin one more day of her life.

It was time to take Gabriel Agreste down.

sooooooo........... who liked Alya, Chloé, and Adrien date crashing. one was unintentional, but the other two totally knew something was happening bc Mari did tell ANYBODY about Tim or meeting him.

side note, yes, I consider this the first date. they don't...yet.

ahhhhhhhhh Hawkmoth is going down. Angry Mari because her friend is being threatened? you bet! no, Chloé is NOT going to be happy.

if anyone has a good suggestion for a Gotham villain who is not the Joker or Riddler PLEASE let me know. I am PLOTTING. yes, my next stop is Google. no, no one is going to be happy.

TAGLIST

@moonlitceleste @redscarlet95 @ultimatetornshipper @mochegato @liquid-luck-00 @maskedpainter @trippingovermyfeet @nathleigh @m0chick0furan @susiej1118 @t1dwarrior-of-earth @sassakitty @remy-289 @solangelo252 @corporeal-terrestrial @woe-is-me0 @toodaloo-kangaroo @sizzling-fairy-oil

[miraclekittyandbug]

Ten Questions With A Twist Chapter 2

Hey guys! Here’s chapter two! I’ve decided I will be posting a chapter every other day. There are seven chapters on this story and they have all already been written, so you won’t have to wait for me to write them before they can be posted. Enjoy!

~Chapter 1 ~ This Chapter ~ Chapter 3 ~ Chapter 4 ~ Chapter 5 ~ Chapter 6 ~ Chapter 7 ~

Adrien was distracted. Having had a fitful night of sleep, he was mostly focused on staying awake during classes, not necessarily taking notes. Once lunch rolled around, Nino pulled Adrien to the side.

“Hey, dude, did something happen with you and Marinette?”

Adrien responded that he wasn’t sure what he meant.

“Well, you’re really distracted, and so is she, I just figured you guys got into a fight or something.”

“No, I barely talk to Marinette outside of class,” he clarified.

“So…” Nino narrowed his eyes at his friend, “So you guys aren’t secretly dating?”

Adrien’s jaw hit the floor. “What!?”

“What do you mean ‘what?’, it is so obvious you’re in love with her!”

Adrien stuttered and flung his hands, grasping at invisible somethings as he tried to figure out where the hell this came from. “It can’t be obvious, because it’s not true! What even makes you say that?”

“Well mostly the way you look at her.”

“I look at her the same way I look at anybody else!”

“Nah, dude. If you looked at my girlfriend the way you look at Marinette, we would have to have a serious conversation.”

Adrien was at a loss for words. “This is ridiculous.”

“I’m just saying!” Nino raised his hands, signifying innocence, “You guys would make a cute couple! You like her, she likes you, it isn’t a far stretch to think that something was going on. And I think you’d make each other really happy.” Adrien could only stare. “Just think about it, dude.”

Adrien thought about it for around thirty seconds. Then he saw Marinette and Alya wave himself and his friend over to eat and, though he tried to push the thought from his mind, he suddenly couldn’t stop thinking about it. 

He had visions of himself and Marinette. They would sit on the same side of the table, rather than opposite sides as they sat now. He would use that excuse to lean into her, just to be more aware of her presence. He pictured going to the movies with her again and using that trick they use in movies, pretending to yawn so he could put his arm around her and hold her close. His heart did a spin at the thought, but he found himself being drawn back to reality.

“Yeah, Adrien and I will totally sit with you guys.” Nino said, and Adrien nodded, mostly to shake those thoughts out of his head. For the first time, he had to remind himself that he was in love with Ladybug. Not Marinette.

Soon enough, the group of four friends were sat around a table, chatting absentmindedly about something random. (The exact topic of discussion was unknown to Adrien. Tired as he was, he was more concerned with pushing food around his plate and not thinking about Marinette). 

“Are you okay, Marinette?” Alya asked her friend. Reminding Adrien that he still had to interact with the bluenette. They were friends, after all. “You seem really out of it today.”

Adrien looked up to see that Nino had been right. Marinette was also looking really tired and distracted. She was blushing and had organized the food on her plate according to color, but was glancing up at Adrien every so often. “Yeah, I just…” She looked up and made eye contact with Adrien before outright asking, “What’s your favorite color?”

Adrien just stared at her, wide eyed and slack jawed. A million thoughts went through his head at once. He finally settled on Wow, that’s a coincidence. But that isn’t so weird, right? It is a pretty common question, even though it was kinda out of the blue. “My favorite color is green, but I’m also rather fond of orange.”

Marinette smiled and the world seemed to shine brighter for it. 

The warning bell rang, signalling that they had about five minutes before lunch was to end. Both students started shovelling food into their mouths, suddenly aware of their own hunger.

A few more classes went by when they heard a scream coming from not so far away. Phones started going off left and right, alerting the entire class that an akuma had been sighted a few streets down. Ms. Bustier reacted as she normally does, calmly asking everybody to move away from the windows, calling for each student as she did so. When Marinette failed to respond to her name, the class found that she was missing. 

“Didn’t she just go to the bathroom?” Rose said, stress underlying her voice.

“I’ll go find her!” Adrien quickly called, leaving the classroom before anybody had a chance to point out the fact that it wouldn’t be proper for him to search for her in the women's restroom.

Once out of the classroom, Adrien rushed towards the nearest broom closet, looking up and down the hallway to make sure there was nobody to see him. He called for his transformation and immediately vaulted out of the nearest window, ready to assist his Lady in taking down yet another bad guy.

Soon enough, the akuma was tracked down and purified. Having finished up this particular villain fairly quickly, Ladybug and Chat Noir stood back for a moment admiring their work. Ladybug decided to let Chat in on a secret.

“His favorite color is green,” She said, blushing profusely.

Chat was amazed! “That’s my favorite color too!”

Ladybug threw her yoyo and made one more comment before zipping away, “Sure, but are you rather fond of orange?” And off she went,

Too late to see Chat’s very very VERY shocked face. 

And that gut feeling from the night before was back, now, and stronger than ever. But this time it was telling him to think. He went back to class and proceeded to think hard. And here’s the thing. Adrien liked to consider himself smart. And no person with two brain cells could deny that that was more than coincidental wording. That was word for word what he had told Marinette earlier that day. A moment of clarity shone through the clouds of his mind and left him with one piece of information: Ladybug goes to the same school as Adrien. It all makes sense! She must go to his school because she overheard Marinette ask him that question earlier that same day! They’re even usually at the scene of an akuma at the same time so even that makes sense! It wasn’t until fifteen minutes before class ended that the next series of realizations hit him: causing his flat hands to slam against the desk, getting everybody’s attention.

Ladybug is in love with Adrien Agreste

Adrien Agreste is secretly Chat Noir

Ladybug is in love with Chat Noir

Lucky for him, Adrien is both of those people

The entire class stared at him. His green eyes wider than they thought possible. His arms straight with his hands flat on the desk in front of him, sweat starting to gather on his collar. He only snapped out of it when Ms. Bustier waved her hand in front of his face and asked him if he was alright.

“I-uh- I just remembered I have a photoshoot after school. Nothing else. I’m good. Sorry.” He picked up his pencil and put the lead to his notebook, trying to prove that he was ready to learn now, 

Ms. Bustier saw right through his act, but decided it was close enough to the end of the class anyway. “Alright, well that’s as good of a stopping place as we’ll get to today, so I’ll just remind everybody to finish their homework and that there will be a quiz on Friday.”

Adrien let out a sigh of relief. After a realization like that, he was most certainly not ready to learn. He rushed out of the room and to his locker, desperately trying to get away from prying eyes. He needed to have a conversation with his Kwamii regarding what the FUCK to do about this! His lady was in love with him! This was amazing news! But also… kind of terrible.

Ladybug was set on them not knowing each other's identity, but what did he do now? He hadn’t meant to come so close, but he had! Now he was so close to finding out who she was and he couldn’t turn back. He knew what Ladybug would say. She’d tell him to not dig further, to let it go, and to move on without looking back. Adrien didn’t think that was possible though. It was like when he and his lady both de-transformed on either side of a door. He was on one side, lonely Adrien, and on the other was the love of his life in her everyday clothes. He wanted more than anything to open that door. To view his Lady in all her citizen’s glory. But she trusted him.

So now what? They were in the same situation, but with the door slightly open. They were both about to cross that line. He looked down and could see her feet. She was wearing flats, not tennis shoes. Her pants weren’t blue like his, but he couldn’t quite make out the right color. Directly across from him, her hair was visible. Just as blue-black as it had always been. Her hair was tied back in hair ties rather than ribbons like her superhero alter ego. Her eyes were deep blue and staring right back at him and the rest of her face…

That’s as far as he got. As he stepped into the back of the car with Gorilla at the wheel, he let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding. That feeling was back again and it told him that he couldn’t stop. He couldn’t drop it when he was so close, just inches away from knowing who she truly was. 

And so, he had decided. And as easy as that, a plan started to form. A way that would bring him and his lady closer than they had ever been.

~~~~~~~~~~~

And there’s chapter two! I’m working on another fic after this one that’s a little similar, but that one is going to take a while, so feel free to leave requests in my inbox! I really look forward to writing for you!

Chapter 1 ~ This Chapter ~ Chapter 3  ~ Chapter 4 ~ Chapter 5  ~ Chapter 6 ~ Chapter 7 ~

[e-milieeee]

haunted

Summary: When Gabriel goes a step too far, Plagg has decided he’s had enough. 

Meanwhile, Gabriel Agreste has discovered that his house may or may not be haunted, because a vengeful spirit certainly seems to be after him. 

Notes: basically plagg being a little gremlin and trolling gabriel like he deserves. ft. gabe’s 3 remaining braincells. based on this post by @hamsternamedmarinette and @snail-noir im sorry its so crappy lol 

haunted

“Well,” Adrien is saying as he trudges inside the room and kicks the door shut. “There’s that, then.”

Plagg flits out from his shirt. His face is set in an angry mask, tail sticking straight up. “That’s that?” he echoes. “No, that’s absurd! Your father’s absurd! He should come back here and I’ll give him a piece of my mind and—”

Adrien squeezes his eyes shut. “Plagg, it’s fine. Forget it.”

Plagg makes an angry noise in the back of his throat. “So you’re just gonna take that? For weeks? He has no right.”

In his hand is the piece of paper—now crumpled—that his father had shoved into his fingers before he stormed off: the schedule for the fashion show. It runs for a week, but there’s also a terrifying amount of preparations to be done two weeks prior—all of which his father had decided he needed to be present for.

“I can’t risk making father angry,” Adrien settles with.

Plagg folds his arms. “Fine,” his kwami says curtly, in a manner of speaking that Adrien always finds hard to argue with. “Hypothetically speaking, then, if your father found out his plans had been cata—destroyed, would you be allowed to go out?”

“Plagg, I’m not going to break into my father’s study as Chat Noir to cataclysm his work just so I can go out with friends.”

Plagg smiles at him. It’s the smile Adrien had often gotten before he’d discovered the toilet paper in his washroom all scratched up and littering the floor. “Don’t worry,” comes the reply. “You won’t have to.”

***

Gabriel Agreste’s study is locked, but that doesn’t prove a problem for the small black shape that slips through the doors like they’re made of nothing more than mist. It’s dark, but cats have always seen better at night anyway.

There, on the top of his desk, lies the designs for the first set of clothes that are to be showcased. Meticulous notes. Fabric samples. Timing and schedules. Signatures and contracts.

The small, black cat picks the folder up with two paws. Then it crumbles into dust.

***

“Nathalie, did you touch the folder on my desk?”

It’s been a long morning—Gabriel had been up at 4 AM in an attempt to see if he could get an edge on Ladybug and Chat Noir. It had been horrendous to find someone to akumatize so early, and by the time he’d pinpointed his victim—forty five minutes later—he had nearly fallen asleep. He’d been pummelled by Ladybug and Chat Noir. Absolutely pummelled. And then, as if the situation couldn't help but get worse, Audrey Bourgeois had called him at six (just when he was about to go back to bed) and told him she couldn’t make it to the fashion show.

That woman had no regard for timezones. And no regard for him, either, because part of the marketing for the fashion week was Audrey’s attendance.

Gabriel was considering akumatizing himself when he realized the manila folder on his desk—that had been there when he left the night prior—was nowhere to be seen.

He searches through all his files. Crawls under his desk. Checks his lair. It's gone.

“Nathalie!” he bellows again, and she comes barrelling through the door to his office.

“What is it, sir?”

Gabriel takes a deep breath. ���Have you seen the files for the fashion show? It was in the folder on my desk when I left.”

“Sir, I haven’t been in your office since last night, and I’m certain I saw your files there. Are you sure you haven’t misplaced it?”

Misplaced it, yeah. That’s what it was. Probably.

Now, what he needed was a nap.

***

The files do not turn up. Gabriel sends Nathalie to print them out again. The most important stuff is stored on his computer, but there are signatures he’d spent weeks getting.

He locks the files in his drawer the next time he gets it.

***

Tuesday morning finds Gabriel Agreste feeling much more refreshed. He even joins Adrien for three minutes during breakfast.

He walks into his office to find his favourite coffee mug in smithereens on the ground.

The files are still stored safely in his drawer. But there is a big, ugly tear across the dress he’d been working on for the past three months.

Gabriel screams.

***

Gabriel Agreste isn’t a fan of security cameras in his office. Especially because anyone with some hacking ability could possibly get their hands on the tape, and the last thing he needs is someone seeing him descending into his lair, or opening the safe behind his painting. Really—there’s simply too many sketchy things he’s done in the office for him to trust putting a camera there.

But he installs two of them nonetheless. His coffee mug could be an accident. But that rip on the dress? No, the only explanation is that it was intentional. But how?

Gabriel thinks of possibilities until he gives himself a headache.

***

“Father seems stressed lately,” Adrien notes to Plagg. There’s not much time for himself between busy schedules, but the moments in between he catches to talk to his kwami. The past week, stuck alone in his room with barely any interaction with his friends, has been draining. He cherishes the precious minutes he gets to spend with Plagg.

“Does he?” Plagg asks in a tone of practiced disinterest. “Well, he does have that really important fashion week thing coming up.”

“He asked me if I’d broken into his study a day ago, but he always locks his study. I think some of his files were missing.”

“Oh?” Plagg replies. “That’s terrible misfortune.”

“Father says he thinks a thief snuck in in the middle of the night and stole them, but we have security cameras all around the house and nothing happened.”

“Spooky.”

“Plagg…”

Plagg only shrugs. “Perhaps your house is haunted,” he replies disinterestedly. “Good thing you’re not scared of ghosts, Adrien.”

***

The house is haunted, and Gabriel cannot sleep.

The most terrifying part of watching the footage is that he sees nothing. There is no movement. No nothing. But then, the next morning, his files inside the locked drawer have disappeared.

Nathalie asks him about the dark rings around his eyes. He drinks two more cups of coffees in response.

***

Gabriel’s eyes are burning, but he’s determined to stay awake.

He likes to think himself neat and meticulous, but even he has his breaking point—his desk is littered with coffee cups, and he’s resorted to drinking energy drinks to keep himself awake. There’s less than ten days until the fashion show starts. It’s been so heavy on his schedule that he’s barely found time to akumatize three three people the past week.

Ladybug and Chat Noir must be having a field day while he’s sitting miserably in his office, waiting to catch the thief, too exhausted to summon up more akumas.

The clock ticks past midnight. Gabriel nearly faceplants into a coffee mug.

Another cup of redbull.

By the time it’s two in the morning, nothing shocking in particular has happened. Every time the flashing light of a car drives past the front of the house he starts, sits back down, and struggles to keep his eyes open.

It’s 2:04 when a crash sounds outside of his office.

Like a madman, Gabriel scrambles up from his seat. He knocks over a half-finished mug of coffee in the process, but that doesn’t matter. The door of his office slams open. He trips on a rug. But he gets up and runs like he’s never run before.

With all the force he can muster, he slams his palm down on the light, and the once-dark staircase and hall become bathed in golden light. The chandelier flickers twice and he stares down at the hall with half the mind to wonder if he’s going to finally see the ghost.

Gabriel is the only one in the hall.

He checks once more. Then again. Then again. But there is no one there, no source of the crash—

Oh, no.

The painting he’d bid at an auction twelve years ago—one that had cost a fortune—has fallen off the wall and face planted into the floor. The sight of it physically hurts Gabriel, and he’s scrambling towards it in a mixture of fear and anger when another noise sounds in his office.

In the months of being Hawkmoth, Gabriel Agreste has felt a generous range of emotions. But never has he felt such bone-chilling fear.

He heads back up the steps with robotic movements numbly. Down the corridor. Into his office.

There is no one there, and the mess that has been made is moreso his fault than of the invisible thief—or ghost—but then Gabriel sees one of his locked drawers open and the contents inside dumped unceremoniously on the ground.

The next day, when Nathalie finds him out cold on the ground, he attributes it to the exhaustion and the amount of coffee and energy drinks he’d consumed. But deep down, Gabriel knows that it’s the terror that’s finally caught up.

Either way, he faints.

***

Gabriel is confined to bed by a very concerned Nathalie. She usually heeds to his instructions, but the rare insistence from her and his own fatigue lands him out of commission for the day. It doesn’t stop him, however, from giving her a set of instructions.

“First, my office,” Gabriel croaks. His throat hurts—he must’ve caught a cold as well. “Please clean everything up and reinstall the locks. And then… and then…”

He thinks of the missing files—three times—and grits his teeth. “Cancel the fashion week.”

Nathalie’s jaw drops open. “Sir—”

“I know,” Gabriel mutters. “I just… I’m left with no choice. I’ll reschedule. Make up some excuse.”

She dips her head. “Noted, sir. Is that all?”

Gabriel gives her a miserable nod. She’s halfway out the door when he remembers.

“Nathalie!” he yells. “Get me a shaman, too.”

***

“The fashion week is cancelled.” Adrien looks up from practicing piano. “Father is sick, I think, which might be why. Nathalie looked super stressed when I saw her before my lessons.”

“Cancelled?” Plagg echoes dispassionately. “Huh. That’s too bad, I guess.”

“No, that’s good! I mean, it’s not good that my father is sick and Nathalie is stressed, but… at least I won’t be hounded about preparations. I even got permission to go out today.”

“Huh,” Plagg replies. He settles himself into his wheel of cheese. “I guess you’re lucky after all, then.”

Notes: yeah idk what i wrote but master fu is the shaman they hire and he finds out gabriel is hawkmoth and arrests him and the end if u wanna know what happens next 

Here’s my fics masterlist! 

[p-artsypants]

Five Minutes

Gabriel has had enough of all these girls fighting over Adrien. He decides it’s high time Adrien picks one, and arranges the perfect opportunity for him to do so. Each candidate has five minutes to present why they’d be a good girlfriend.

Marinette decides to take this opportunity to shoot her shot.

Ao3 | FF.net

Adrien came into school that morning with the weight of an entire future on his shoulders. His face pale, his lips tight in a line, and everything tense.

He bypassed everyone that wanted to talk to him, including his friends. Chloe and Lila seemed in a chipper mood, as they took turns hanging on his arms and blowing kisses at him.

It bugged Marinette more than she wanted to admit. Did no one else notice he was suffering?

At lunch, she dug down deep inside herself and asked him, before he could leave the classroom. “Hey Adrien?”

He cringed at her voice, but relaxed a moment later, sending her an easy smile. “Hi Marinette. What’s up?”

The smile reeked of stress and despair. Given their lose, almost-friendship, she didn’t know if she had the right to ask him, but plowed ahead anyways. “You seem…stressed. Are you okay? Anything I can help with?”

The question gained the attention of Nino and Alya, who were also packing up to head home for lunch.

“Yeah dude, you’ve been kinda tense all day…I just didn’t know how to ask.”

Adrien’s eyes flicked around the room. Chloe had already left, but it seemed like Lila had hooked an end of the conversation and walked down to them, placing a hand on Adrien’s shoulder.

“He’s just a little nervous, that’s all. Mr. Agreste has decided that he can finally have a girlfriend, and invited some worthy candidates to the mansion this afternoon!”

Marinette’s heart squeezed painfully. She hadn’t heard anything about this, so she obviously wasn’t invited. But if Lila knew, then…

“Are you a candidate?!” Alya nearly shouted, excited.

That only heightened the pain in her chest.

“Naturally! Adrien and I have a great working relationship, and we’re great friends! Mr. Agreste really respects me as an artist too! Of course he invited me!” She pet Adrien, like he was an animal, and not a person. “Adrien and I both know it’s already a done deal. But the…contest, it’s more of a formality.”

“It’s not official yet,” Adrien said, scooting away from Lila. “You still have to go through the interview.”

“Of course, but I’m a sure win.”

The quiver of his lip and tense eyebrows told Marinette otherwise.

Adrien took a deep breath and looked at his friends. “My father said I could invite a few friends, for morale support. Would you guys be willing to come?”

“Of course dude!”

“You’ll come to support me too, right Alya?” Asked Lila.

“Of course girl!”

Adrien’s beautiful eyes met Marinette’s, pleading with her. “Marinette? Are you in?”

“I’m sure she’s busy in the bakery, Adrien,” Said Lila, “don’t make her feel guilty.”

“I’m free.” Marinette blurted out. “I’d love to be there.” She really didn’t want to, actually, but felt it better to go and plunge the knife in and rip her heart out. With Adrien officially taken, she could finally move on, right?

At least, that was her hope.

Adrien smiled at her genuinely, looking relieved slightly.

He and Nino went to eat lunch together, while Alya followed her back to the bakery, quiet on the way.

“Hey…um, I’m sorry you didn’t get invited to participate.”

“I suppose that’s what I get for sitting with a thumb up my butt.” Marinette answered with a sigh.

“And, I know you don’t like Lila, but she’s just as deserving of Adrien’s affection as you are, okay? Please please please don’t be embarrassing and try to ruin this in a fit of jealous rage.”

Marinette wanted to say, ‘No promises’ but instead, she stated, “I won’t.”

“Kay, cause like…that wouldn’t be fair to Adrien, you know? This is his future girlfriend. He deserves a fair chance to look at his options and choose who he wants.”

Marinette glared at Alya, a million red flags popping up in her mind.

The sudden anger took Alya aback. “What?”

“You think this is fair?”

Alya just blinked.

“Mr. Agreste has decided that Adrien can have a girlfriend and selects a handful of candidates for him to pick from? What is he, a Prince?”

Alya shrugged. “I don’t know how the wealthy work! Besides, I think Adrien and Lila have real chemistry! Better than him and the Ice Queen.”

“You mean Kagami? I think he’s got better chemistry with her than Lila.”

Alya scoffed, “no offense girl, but I don’t think you can judge that objectively.”

Marinette frowned, hurt and betrayal flashing through her head before she stomped it down. “Maybe I can’t. But Adrien’s happiness is still important to me. Even if he doesn’t find it with me. Kagami isn’t as much of an ice queen as she seems.”

Alya shrugged. “Okay, I might be wrong. I don’t really know her that well. Maybe she got invited too.”

“I’m sure she did. She was always Adrien’s professional date for events. Gabriel seems like the type to build up PR where he could.”

“Mmmm, you’re right. I bet Chloe’s up there too.”

“She and Adrien have been friends forever. I wouldn’t doubt it.”

They ate their lunch quietly, both mulling over their own thoughts.

“Adrien didn’t look too happy.” Marinette commented.

“He’s sure he’s just nervous. He’s never had a girlfriend before.”

“Right…”

Alya sighed again. “I can’t help but feel like this is really good for you, Marinette. This might be what it takes to get over him. You’ve been stuck on Adrien for a while now.”

“Yeah…silly me.”

“Come on, I’m not calling you silly!” She protested. “I’m just…it was frustrating watching you get all tongue tied over him. I want you to be happy, Mari. I desperately do. But Adrien might not be that for you. Take some time and then…who knows? Luka has his eyes on you.”

“I know.” Marinette said, some guilt popping up at the name. “Maybe…maybe someday.”

—

After school, the limo arrived to pick them up. Adrien told his driver that Nino, Alya, and Marinette were joining him, while Lila jumped in to grab a ride.

Marinette sat on one side of Adrien, while Lila sat on the other.

“So like, what’s this contest like?” Asked Nino, conversationally.

“Well,” began Lila, with a confident little flourish. “Mr. Agreste is going to interview all the contestants. We’ve all been given a five minute allotment to write a speech on why we would be a good candidate. Of course, he has files on all of us so he can see background, family income, achievements, charities, etc.”

“With all of your accomplishments, I bet you have a real chance!” Chirped Nino. “How many contestants are there?”

“I’m not sure.” Said Lila, with an honest shrug.

“Dude?” Nino probed Adrien.

Adrien shrugged too, as he had been quiet the whole ride. “I…I have no idea. I was just told about it this morning.”

Marinette sucked in a gaping breath next to him. He’d only had a day to think this through? This really was completely unfair!

Finally, they arrived at the mansion, and they were ushered inside.

Gabriel greeted them in the entry hall, as cold and professional as ever. He raised an eyebrow. “I believe I said you could invite one friend for support,” he said, by way of greeting.

“This is a…big decision. I wanted people around me with opinions I could trust.”

Gabriel glanced at the assembled, his eyes lingering on Marinette for a touch too long. “I understand. Come now. The other’s will arrive soon.”

They were escorted into the parlor, where three chairs sat in a line, then a table with two other chairs behind it.

“Miss Rossi, please take a seat. The other two contestants will be here shortly. Mr. Lahiffe, would you be so kind as to grab more chairs for you, Miss Cesaire, and Miss Dupain-Cheng?”

“Sure dude—er, yes sir.”  

Gabriel took a seat at the table, looking at the three folders upon it.

Adrien begrudgingly sat next to him, as his three friends took up seats behind him.

Gabriel didn’t really want to do this. Match-making wasn’t something that felt worthy of his time. However, he considered this as killing three birds with one stone. 1) He’d get these girls to stop fighting over Adrien and being an embarrassment for Adrien’s career. 2) He’d have a controlled environment for Adrien to pick a girl. He wanted his son to pick a girl that was worthy of the family. After all, once Emilie came back, they would be a family again. 3) Whoever won or lost didn’t really matter. He’d get an akuma or two. And that made this all worth it.

And with the unsuspected surprise of Marinette Dupain-Cheng added, that added his 4th goal, to finally akumatize her. He wasn’t stupid. He knew very well that Marinette had feeling for Adrien. It was glaringly obvious. But since she had made no attempt to ask him out, he didn’t feel the need to invite her. Perhaps he should have anyways.

The second contestant arrived, as Chloe Bourgeois.

“Running late, are we Chloe?” Alya taunted.

“Not a bit.” Chloe flipped her ponytail over her shoulder. “You can’t rush perfection, you know.”

Gabriel twitched an eyebrow, and wrote down some notes. “Please, take a seat. The final contestant should be here soon.”

Lila had taken the middle seat, and Chloe took the one to her right.

Nearly as her butt hit the chair, the final candidate was escorted in. Kagami Tsurugi.

“Thank you for having me, Mr. Agreste.” She bowed politely.

“Thank you for attending.” He replied, cooly. “Please have a seat.”

As Marinette looked across the three girls, her stomach churned with unpleasant feelings. Nerves, nausea, dread…

And idea popped into her head, speaking in a voice that sounded a lot like Tikki. But she simply waved it away with a shake of her head.

‘Please please please don’t be embarrassing and try to ruin this in a fit of jealous rage.’ Alya’s voice piped up, as the angel on the other shoulder.

She swallowed, and looked to Adrien.

He was hunched in his seat, his leg bouncing quickly. She couldn’t see his face, but his body spoke of uncontested anxiety.

As far as Marinette was concerned, Kagami was the only one up there that deserved a chance to be with Adrien. She was honest and a hard worker.

But Marinette feared that she wasn’t affectionate enough to help Adrien.

Her voice crawled up her throat, resolution pumping through her veins, pounding in her ears, sweating through her palms.

This was a bad idea, a very very bad idea—

“Excuse me, Mr. Agreste?” She blurted, right as he was about to speak.

All eyes were on her, and she felt the immense pressure of it all. This was not like being Ladybug. These weren’t akumas and she had no authority in her civilian clothes.

“Yes, Miss Dupain-Cheng?”

Gabriel looked right at her, staring her down. But his tone held no judgement or impatience. Just curiosity.

“I was hoping, if it isn’t too late. May I also throw my proverbial hat in the ring?”

“You?”

“Yes. Of course, I know I wasn’t invited. So I understand if it’s a no.”

Gabriel was quiet a moment, thinking.

Adrien, however, was staring at her, mouth open, eyes wide. Utterly gobsmacked.

“Adrien, do you have any objections to having Miss Dupain-Cheng join the others in the interview?”

He breathed, his whole body relaxing in one sweep. “No, I don’t mind at all.”

Maybe it was the nerves, but Marinette could have sworn he looked relieved.

“Then I see no problem. Please bring your chair over with the others.”

“Thank you sir,” she said, humbly.

As she moved, Alya grabbed her wrist. “You promised!” She hissed.

“This isn’t a fit of jealous rage.” Marinette said calmly. She walked over and sat her chair next to Chloe, who looked furious. Lila gave her a smile that looked like friendly competition, but came off as a little smug.

Kagami just looked cold, and a little betrayed.

Marinette flicked her eyes meaningfully over to the other awful contestants, trying to send a message.

Kagami, smart as she was, seemed to get it, and quirked her lips in forgiveness. But her expression turned steely again. This was a competition, and she would not loose.

“Thank you ladies for all coming today,” Gabriel began. “I asked each of you here, because you have shown interest in Adrien in a romantic way. Relationships are important in our line of work, but Adrien’s significant other must reflect well upon the brand. Therefore, I have arranged this meeting. You will each be given five minutes to present why you would be the right candidate for this position. I will have a little say so, but ultimately the decision is up to Adrien.”

Alya and Nino shared a look, both getting the same vibe from the situation.

This was a job interview.

“Miss Kagami Tsurugi, the floor is yours.”

Kagami stood. “Thank you, Mr. Agreste.”

Marinette’s face paled. Kagami had note cards. She was prepared. She had probably prepared all week for this!

What was she doing!? Her whole speech was going to be her going “Da-uh--eh—cute boy—love Adrien!” And she’d be an embarrassment forever! She’d loose all progress she made with him! Their friendship was effectively over!

And judging by the way Alya was glaring at her, it wasn’t the only friendship that was going up in smoke.

“Adrien,” Kagami began. “You and I met in a duel. A match that was repeated over and over because we were in perfect sync. Perfect in rhythm and time, and perfect off the mat as well. We match in wit and grades, and in talent and grace. We match in family, and background. Our relationship will only be good for both of us, and our families. I strive for perfection in all that I do. Each task I come upon, I complete flawlessly. You are the only boy for me, as you have reached a level of perfection unparalleled in man. You and I connect and understand things that most people don’t. Fine manners, and public relations. You need a girl that can withstand the scrutiny of the media. A girl like me. I can be scrutinized and not bow to the pressure, for I have no flaws to display. Together, you and I will be perfect.” She nodded once and sat down.

“Thank you, Kagami.” Adrien said, sincerely. He liked Kagami, he really did. She was nice, and they got along…but the amount of times she dropped the word ‘perfect’ was a little unsettling. He didn’t forget Oni-chan. And while akumas couldn’t be held responsible for what they said, Kagami had announce that she deserved him because he was perfect.

But surely, there was more to her than that, right?

Gabriel said nothing, just wrote down some notes. Then, “Miss Lila Rossi, it’s your turn.”

Marinette watched Lila stand and take on this air of confidence that only came from living in a state of denial. “Adrien, as you and I have both discussed before, you and I make a wonderful pair. As you can see from my long list of achievements, you can see that I have a broad repertoire of skills, spanning from assisting with and upstarting charity work, leadership, academics, and of course, design. As the daughter of a diplomat, I am well spoken and naturally charismatic. I have a vast network of connections, and you’ll find it a benefit to join that network. Though I don’t doubt the power of the name Agreste, I can get you in contact with people you’ve wanted to connect with before. As an artist myself, I carry a fine eye to design, and can lend myself to the family business. I am acquainted with the workings of the modeling industry, and therefore require no training to pick it up. In fact, I can work as a liaison between different departments with my vast skill set. Along with all of this, you and I have good chemistry on the set as models. We work well together. And we’ll be even more amazing together.”

Marinette would have been impressed if that wasn’t all flaming garbage.

But judging by the way Alya was giving her a thumbs up, it must have sounded somewhat convincing.

Adrien nodded, “Thank you Lila.” He stated plainly. She sounded very professional for someone who just lied through her resume. But weirdly enough, it seemed like Lila was more presenting to his father than to him.

He already knew he wasn’t going to pick her, but he wondered if she was playing on her connection she had to his father. That would not be good…unless his father really was letting him pick.

That’d be a first.

“Miss Chloe Bourgeois. You have the floor.”

Chloe stood, a hand on her hip. “Adrikins,” she started.

Marinette couldn’t help but smile. Good old Chloe.

“You and I have been friends forever. You know what friendships are built on, right? Memories. And you and I have shared a whole lot. We were there for each other when our moms left. We survived that together, so why can’t we do more? Of course, you have no need of my money or fame, but business talk, we’re great. We’re already great. Adrien Agreste and Chloe Bourgeois, heiress and supermodel, beauty incarnate!”

That actually made Adrien chuckle.

“We’ll be the modern Brangelina. We’ll have fan clubs! We might even have a movie made about us!” Then she smiled, a smile that Marinette had never seen on her face before. One that was actually happy. “And you know, I like imagining a future with you. I think it could be fun.”

He quirked a smile at her. “Thanks Chlo.”

It was a nice sentiment. But he never had any feelings of romance towards Chloe. She was always a sister to him. And she had begun to fall out of his favor with her treatment of other classmates. It just wasn’t going to happen.

Marinette pressed her palms down hard into her knees to keep from trembling. Would it be awful to bow out now? Would that be rude and unprofessional? Would Mr. Agreste forbid Adrien from talking to her, since she was so flakey? She swallowed, once, twice, but her throat was still dry. Why did she do this?

Adrien looked at Marinette while his father finished writing notes about Chloe. Kagami had been somewhat predictable. She wasn’t being completely honest about her feelings with his father in the room. But, she did have a competitive streak in her. And…she always wanted the best.

Lila was also pretty predictable. It was all horse shit. Even if his father bought it and pressured him to pick her, she wouldn’t last because she wouldn’t be able to pull through on her promises.

Chloe. Chloe was a little refreshing. Informal, not really seeing a need to elaborate. They’d known each other forever, like she said.

But Marinette was a wild card. Sweet, kind, helpful, everyday Ladybug. As much as he detested this stupid stunt, having Marinette speak up to participate made it a little more tolerable. But…if she said anything like the other girls, he didn’t know if he could look at her the same way.

“Miss Dupain-Cheng. I apologize that you didn’t have time to prepare, but you have five minutes, just like the others. It starts now.”

She stood. “Thank you, Mr. Agreste.”  

I’m Ladybug. She told herself. I’m worth it. I deserve my chance at happiness.

Adrien watched as she closed her eyes and breathed. When she opened them, she looked right at him.

Were her eyes always so blue?

“Adrien,” her voice was soft and tender. This wasn’t a pitch, this was a secret, just for him. “I love you.”

Adrien gasped slightly, warmth settling in his chest immediately.

“When we first met, I hated you. I saw this fancy rich kid who was friends with the other bratty rich kid, and I made an assumption. I misunderstood your good deed. It was never the fame or wealth that drew me to you.

“It was that moment in the rain. You humbled yourself, and confessed you didn’t know how to make friends. I scoffed at you, I was rude and you had every reason to write me off and never speak to me again. But you didn’t. You offered me that umbrella, and took the time to explain yourself, because you wanted to be my friend. That kindness was an arrow to my heart, Adrien. And every time I see that kindness, I find myself falling over and over again.” Her voice wavered, as she started to loose courage.

Adrien just smiled at her, and nodded her on, desperate to hear what she had to say.

“I don’t have much to offer you. I’m the daughter of a baker, which makes for a modest living. The Dupain-Cheng’s are famous, but just for our macarons, and only in Paris. I come with a lifetime supply of sweets and carbs,” she giggled. “And um, I can make things for you. I know you can get whatever clothing you’d like, but…I can knit you some mittens to match that blue scarf of yours. And…most of all, I can offer you me. My ears to listen to you when you have a rough day, or when you just want to make puns. My eyes to watch you at your tournaments and support you. My hands to play video games with you and massage your shoulders after a long photoshoot. My arms to hold you when you feel lonely. And my lips, to kiss you and reassure you when you feel inadequate.” Then she swallowed again, her eyebrows furrowing. “If…even if you don’t pick me. I still offer all of this to you. Because you’re my friend, and I care about you. I want you to be happy. Even if it’s not with me.” She smiled slightly and sat down.

For a while, Adrien just stared at her, struggling to breathe. He could see her trembling. He wanted to run to her and hold her. He had never felt this strong of an urge before, but that’s what he wanted to do.

“Marinette, I…thank you…” he finally managed out.

“Miss Dupain-Cheng,” Gabriel spoke. “I must ask, you’re a budding designer, correct?”

“Yes sir.”

“Does a relationship with my son look like a in for you in my company?”

Adrien almost wanted to yell at the accusation, but stayed quiet.

Marinette thought a moment, then answered. “I’m here for Adrien. If I get a chance to work in the industry, that would be amazing. But if dating Adrien meant I sacrificed my own career…I think it’d be worth it.”

“Thank you, for being candid.”

“Yes sir.”

“Now then,” Gabriel stood. “Adrien and I, and company,” he gestured to Alya and Nino, “will be stepping into the other room to reach a decision. Please remain seated.”

As the door closed behind them, Marinette let out a sigh of relief and let the weight fall off her shoulders. She did it. She confessed to Adrien. She made her shot. Now it was up to him.

—

In the other room, Gabriel, Adrien, Alya, and Nino gathered around a television projecting the parlor on the screen.

“What’s this?” Alya asked.

“People act different when they think others aren’t watching.” He answered simply, and turned up the volume.

Chloe hauled off and whacked Marinette on the arm. “What the shit, Dupain-Cheng!?”

“Ow!” Marinette cried, more from shock than pain.

“Yeah, what the hell were you thinking?” Lila asked.

“I thought you were my friend.” Kagami bit. “How could you do this to me?”

Marinette rubbed her arm. “I just…I just wanted a chance to tell him. Before it was too late.”

Lila scoffed. “It was absolutely pathetic. And you ruined your own chance! You said ‘I can’t offer much, but what I can offer, I can give as a friend too.’ Why would he consider dating you then?”

“At least I had something to offer!” Marinette shouted back. “Your resume is all lies!”

“Doesn’t matter! Mr. Agreste likes me more than his own son. It doesn’t matter if Adrien knows I’m lying, Gabriel doesn’t. And daddy pulls all the strings. I’m going to be Adrien’s girlfriend.”

“Whoa whoa whoa!” Chloe shouted. “No way! Gabriel likes me more! Who doesn’t? I have fame and notoriety! And I’m prettier!”

“Stop it!” Marinette shouted, genuinely upset. “Stop talking about Adrien like he’s a prize to be won! He’s not a trophy or a piece of meat! He’s an intelligent, kind, loving man! He deserves someone that will love him!”

“I love him plenty!” Chloe cried indignantly.

“I love him more!” Kagami interjected. “And Marinette’s right. He’s a person. He needs someone on his level that understands his life. Marinette…that person isn’t you. You don’t understand what kind of pressure he’s under. You don’t understand strict families and high expectations…you haven’t done anything to deserve him.”

Marinette closed her eyes, trying to keep from crying. That was a low blow.

Lila chuckled. “Did you see the look on Alya’s face when you invited yourself up here? She was so angry! Probably because she’s so sick of you embarrassing yourself.”

“It was really embarrassing.” Chloe added. “You super don’t belong up here. I’d be surprised if Adrien ever spoke to you again after that stunt.”

Lila grinned at that. “Hey, nice work! You did my job on your own. I told you, didn’t I? You’d loose all your friends, and Adrien would be mine. Jealousy really is a little bitch, isn’t it?”

Marinette screwed her eyes shut, rocking in her chair, and begging herself not to cry. This had been all a big mistake.

“So what are you going to do now?” Lila asked, taunting her more. “I hope you switch schools. It would be so much easier. But if you stay, I’m sure that would be even more fun. After all, I hold all the cards now. No one will ever listen to you again!”

Alya’s mouth dropped open as soon as Lila went off. “She…she lied?”

“She’s lied this whole time.” Adrien provided softly. “Marinette tried to tell you. I guess…I didn’t realize why you didn’t believe her.”

Gabriel muted the TV. “Well. We have four candidates, each with some benefit…except Miss Rossi, obviously.” He closed her file. “But, true to my word, the final decision is yours.”

“I know who I want.”

“That soon?”

“It’s easy.”

Gabriel nodded. “Then we’ll return.”

—

Marinette breathed and dabbed her cheeks with a handkerchief to wipe away her tears. If this was how it ended, she would remain dignified.

The door opened and the others returned. Adrien looked nervous again, but a lot more optimistic.

“Adrien has reached a decision.” And Gabriel gestured him forward.

Adrien swallowed. “I’m sorry that you all had to get involved in this. It hurts me that I have to break hearts today. That’s something I never wanted to do. Kagami…I’m really sorry. I did enjoy the fun we had together, and I hope we can still be friends.”

“Of course, Adrien. I understand.” She looked mildly forlorn, but hid heartache well, for Adrien’s sake.

“Chloe, you’re right. We have been friends for a long time. And I love you, but like a sister.”

Chloe pouted. “Ugh, save me your ridiculous pity speech.”

Lila sat up a little straighter, her smug smile emerging as Adrien turned to look at Marinette.

Marinette looked to him, steeling herself for the rejection that would come.

“Marinette…I…” he stepped closer. “I’m speechless. I…I’m so glad you spoke up!” And he rushed to her, scooping her out of the chair and crushing her to him. “Thank you. For seeing me.”

She blinked up at him, still in shock. “Does…that mean I won?”

“Yes!” He laughed, exasperated. “I chose you!”

Marinette trembled before clinging to him tightly, and sobbing. “These are happy tears!” She declared.

He laughed at her and just squeezed her tightly.

“Um, I don’t mean to interrupt.” Said Lila, obviously interrupting. “But Adrien, I think I should warn you. Marinette isn’t as innocent as you think—“

“Oh shut up Lila.” Alya spat. “No one’s buying your bullshit.”

Lila gaped at her. “But-But Alya! You know how Marinette gets!”

“Yeah, she’s not as bad as you. She didn’t have to lie to make friends. And she certainly cares about Adrien more than you do.”

“What? I would never—“

“Dude, there’s a camera. We saw the whole thing.”

Gabriel loomed over Lila. “‘Daddy pulls the strings’ hmm?”

“Its…a figure of speech?”

Gabriel wasn’t impressed. “Leave my house. If you so much as touch my son or Miss Dupain-Cheng, I won’t hesitate to file for a restraining order. Consider this your only warning.”

Furious, Lila stomped out of the mansion.

Kagami approached the couple. “Sorry for what I said, Marinette. I guess you really do deserve him.”

Marinette wiped her cheeks. “I forgive you Kagami. I’m sorry too.”

“You have nothing to apologize for. You love him, and you deserve to be able to tell him. I’ll see you guys around.” She bowed to them and then to Mr. Agreste. “Thank you for the opportunity.”

Then Chloe was left. She looked at them, and ‘hmph’ed. “I don’t approve. But…as long as you’re happy.”

“I am.” Adrien confessed.

“And Dup—Marinette?”

“Yes, Chloe?”

“Break his heart, and I’ll ruin your life.”

“Noted.”

“Good. Now, I’m off to shop my woes away. I might even pick out somethings for you Marinette, now that you’re dating the son of a fashion mongol, you have to look presentable.”

“That’s very kind of you, Chloe.” Marinette smiled softly.

“Of course, I’m the nicest.” And she left as well.

“Now,” said Gabriel. “Miss Dupain-Cheng, please tell your parents to expect a call from Nathalie in the coming days. We will be arranging a time for us all to sit down for dinner and discuss this relationship going forward.”

Marinette nodded, trying to collect herself. “Yes sir, absolutely.”

“And, in regards to the question I asked. I don’t expect you to quit designing. In fact, perhaps I can give you a portfolio review, when you’re ready.”

“That would be wonderful, sir.”

“Now that that is settled, I must get back to work. Adrien, your friends may stay for dinner, but must leave before 8:00. Agreed?”

“Yes sir, thank you.”

He nodded once and then headed to his office.

Alya met Marinette’s eyes and just shrugged shamefully. “Mari I…I don’t know what to say. I’m glad you ignored me!”

Marinette offered a smile. “It’s alright Alya.”

“No, no it’s not. Lila conned us, all of us for a long time. What was that thing she said? ‘Your friends will all leave you and Adrien will be mine?’”

“Yeah, it was a threat she made against me, the first time I called her out.”

“God, I’m such an idiot. I thought about it two seconds after she admitted to lying about her achievements, and saw right thru her stories. I have no idea how I was so blind!”

“Well, we have some damage control to do,” said Adrien.

“Nah uh.” Alya poked him in the chest. “We have damage control to do. You two, have a lovely first date!”

Marinette blinked, a blush rushing to her face. “O-oh!”

Adrien’s arm hooked around her waist. “We’ll pass the time somehow. Video games?”

Marinette breathed. Everything was fine. This was great. “Yeah, that sounds fun.”

“Catch you dudes later!”

—

Up in Adrien’s room, Marinette sat on the couch as Adrien glanced through his video game collection. “Let’s see, I knoooow you like Ultima Mecha Strike, but I want to win a little.”

“Aw, won’t let the girl win on the first date?”

“You’re cute, but you’re not that cute.”

She giggled, her face alighting with a blush. Adrien thought she was cute! “Rude!”

“Yeah, I forgot I’m bad at jokes.”

“You’re not bad at—“ The girl I love doesn’t like my jokes either. “Oh. Oh my god.”

“What?” Adrien returned, hearing panic come into her voice.

Marinette stood, preparing to leave. “Adrien, I…I can’t do this.”

He blinked. “What?”

“You don’t love me.”

“Well…” he rubbed the back of his neck, awkwardly. “Not…not quite. But I really like you, and I know if I just spend a little more time with you—“

“But, what about the girl you’re in love with?”

He wilted, instantly. “Oh. Right.”

“We have to redo this contest or something! She has to know! She needs a fair chance too!”

Adrien smiled at her. Even at the sake of her own heart, she was still thinking of others. “No, Marinette, that ship has sailed. I held out for her…but she rejected me. A lot actually.”

Marinette’s heart ached for him. She reached out and took his hand. “Adrien?”

He shook his head. “For a while, I believed that any other romance was being unfaithful to her. But, how can you be unfaithful to someone you’re not in a relationship with? It’s stupid.”

“No, no it’s not.” She insisted. “I know exactly how you feel.”  

“You…you didn’t give up someone waiting for me, did you?”

“I turned someone down, but I didn’t love him. I was fond of him, and he’s a great friend…but I didn’t love him.”

“Oh…Luka?”

“Oh…yikes, him too. And Nathaniel. Gee, I’m a heart breaker.”

He chuckled. “No Mari, I think you’re just very lovable.” He kissed her forehead. “Don’t worry about that other girl, okay?”

“But like…I am going to worry. Can you tell me who?”

He pouted. “Don’t laugh.”

“Never.”

“Okay…it’s Ladybug.”

She blinked. “…Ladybug?”

“I know it sounds crazy, but…she’s saved me a few times, so…”

Adrien had never confessed to Ladybug. Unless he did it as Aspik and she didn’t remember, but she knows she would have said yes to him. Ladybug had gotten plenty of confessions, but not several from the same person, except for—

No.

No way.

Marinette stepped away from him, her hands over her mouth.

“Oh great, now you think I’m some sort of weirdo, right?”

She shook her head, but didn’t remove her hands.

“Then what is it?”

Marinette was the new guardian. She alone held the responsibility of the Miraculous. But this thought kept nagging at the back of her head. Someday, they’d have to reveal their identities to each other. She’d need to know who he was incase of emergency.

Looked like today was that day.

She pulled her hands away, resting on her heart. Then she drank him in, letting the pieces come together.

“Oh kitty.”

Adrien’s eyes widened. “Wha—?”

“I’m so sorry for hurting you. You were the other boy.”

He choked on his breath, then took a staggering step towards her. “My lady?”

“Yes, kitty. I’m right here. You found me.”

He closed the distance, crushing her body to his once again, this time with tears of his own. “I knew I picked right! I knew it!”

“Oh Chat! It’s you! I’m so glad it’s you!”

“My lady!” He pressed his lips to her face over and over again, not caring if he connected to her mouth or not. He just wanted to shower her in affection. “I love you! I love you I love you I love you!”

“Adri—“ Her words were cut off by his kisses and her giggles. “I love you too, silly boy.”

He cupped her cheeks holding her like she was precious and delicate. “We have to be even. I can offer you my wallet, to pay for school and whatever supplies you could ever want. I offer my eyes to drink in your perfect face every day. My ears to listen to your adorable laugh at my perfect puns.”

She giggled.

“Like that! And I offer my hands, to hold you when you’re lonely. And my lips to kiss you senseless when you need a break from all your stress!” He kissed her deeply, making her hazy. “And I offer my abs, to carry you through the threshold when we’re married!”

“You lift with your legs, Dingus.”

“Then what can I offer my abs for?”

“Those are just for me,” she cheeked, running a hand down his shirt.

“I’m going to kiss you again.”

“I’m not going to stop you.”

He pushed her over to lay on the couch, as he leaned over her and kissed her again. Her fingers dove into her hair as his own cradled her. “My lady,” he breathed.

“My prince.”

An explosion rocked the city, startling the two teens apart. They shared a look, and then laughed.

“Alright, four macarons says it’s Lila.”

“Hmm…five says it’s Chloe.”

A third voice, belonging to Plagg, spoke up. “And if it’s Kagami?”

“A draw.” They said together.

“Oh, one more smooch before we go, my love?” Adrien grinned.

Marinette rolled her eyes. Rolled her eyes at Adrien! “Oh, I suppose one wouldn’t hurt.” She pecked him gently. “You can have more afterwards.”

“Smooches Gracias!”

“Smooches revoked!”

“Nooooo!!”

[shoryubug]

Broken Crown

Marinette's bluebell eyes were intense on her paper, simply jotting down a small bit of poetry, reflecting the state of her mind.

Upon my head lies a broken crown, As I sit upon a porcelain throne, And there beneath my feet they lie, My subjects, all but known.

She glanced around her, her eyes focused on the boy sitting in the seat before her, finding him focused, just as she previously was, and a small sigh escaped her parted lips, she had heard the murmurs of others in the halls in between classes, saying that she was a mess, and what's more, it was true, she felt like everything she had was slowly slipping out of her grasp, that the things she knew were slowly changing, aging her knowledge out.

Running a hand through the fringe of her hair, she closed her notebook and crossed her arms over her desk, laying her head against them, as if to form a small pillow. Nothing was the same since she was expelled. Things were different, people were treating her differently, and everyone seemed to have some sort of thoughts of her that...to be frank...conflicted with what they should have known about her as a person. It was almost like she was being phased out, and though strange as it was, she was thankful for one thing...that despite the others slowly phasing her out...one person was sure to always pull her back to everything.

A smile formed on her lips at the thought. Not so long ago she was chosen to become a guardian, the duties of her mentor Wang Fu thrust upon her...and since then it had been like watching disaster after disaster unfold into her life, starting with Lila. Everything that she had thought was good about her life had slowly become tainted, poisoned by the grasp of that horrid girl, and it all began with Alya. More and more Alya was hanging out with Lila, and because Alya was more involved with her, Nino went along with it, until the two of them had extended their flow out to Mylene and Ivan, and before long Juleka and Rose joined in, and Lila's friend circle had basically overthrown anything that Marinette had considered her own.

Soon she found herself without the ability to seek solace away from Lila, not wanting to cause a problem or dispute any of the lies the girl spouted, due to the promise that she'd made Adrien...and that left her mostly alone, even if it had been seemingly of her own volition, she couldn't help but feel uncomfortable around the girl that had threatened her...she just wished that the others didn't have to be so simple in their own dealings with her.

As she had learned, nobody wanted to be around someone that didn't want to talk about the most popular thing, and in this case, that was definitely Lila, but Marinette didn't really care. All she really could do was find something to busy herself with, so she had often found herself making her way to the art room, making new projects, or just...being alone in there. It wasn't private, of course, because anyone could go in and work on a project, as she'd known, but...it was enough for her at that time, until Lila and her entourage began to infiltrate it, then she just started to spend all of her spare alone time at home, working on new outfits inspired by her superhero partner, who...strangely, had become a godsend to her in these glowering times.

Every so often she would find herself making something for him, coats, accessories, shirts, pants, hats, anything she could think of really...but that left her with a pile of gifts that she knew she couldn't give to him...because all the plans for them had been in her sketchbook...and her sketchbook had been seen by others while she was in class. It had become the place she basically lived, stuck on paper, and out of the way.

She pursed her lips, hoping for the one thing that this class could bless her with...the sound of the bell that excused them from class...because more than anything she wanted to just...get away from it all, she wanted to don her mask and just feel the wind on her face, she wanted to scout from the Eiffel Tower, gaze down at the people below...but she knew she couldn't. She was Ladybug...and if she was seen then people would either assume it was for patrol or due to an akuma...and given the time of day that it was, they'd likely believe there was an akuma before anything else. As much as she loved the citizens of Paris...she had known that they would definitely assume the worst and work themselves into a panic, and probably cause an akuma...it had seemed as though she never could get the chance to be her real self...in or out of her mask.

An irritated grunt escaped her at the thought, her eyes squeezing shut as her body tensed up. She hated this. The isolation, the feeling of loneliness, the fact that the only person that she could confide in about anything in the class would have made her more of a target for Lila's crap, maybe even escalate it...and the other person in the mask...she couldn't find him as a civilian, especially now, when she wanted more than anything else to just rid themselves of that safety guard between the two of them, Hawkmoth be damned...but she couldn't do that to him just because she was under a bit of stress. It wouldn't be fair to any of the other times that he'd wanted to reveal himself, or for her to reveal herself, so she groaned in irritation as all the thoughts clouded her mind. She was sinking like a stone into the depths of the ocean, and without anything to help her float back up, like a keychain without a floating device...and she knew that she couldn't ask for help.

Her breathing was shallow as panic crept in, she couldn't move, she couldn't speak, and she didn't want to. She wanted to fade...she didn't want to be there in class, and she didn't want to be around the others. She wanted to be alone, without them around her...her eyes squeezed shut as she squeezed her hands into fists, trying to steel herself from allowing the panic to take over her sense of rationality. Her heart labored in her chest, going twice the normal rate.

'It's only five more minutes...five more minutes then I'm free, I can go home...I'll be okay.' she thought to herself, trying to push the subconscious intrusive thoughts out of her head as they spun around, telling her that she wasn't wanted, that she wasn't needed, that nobody would like her, that Lila's threat was ones he should have heeded, and that was when a hollow sob escaped her, her body tensed as the tears spilled, and she couldn't stop herself. Nothing could have stopped her, it was just a reaction to the words that she was trying to push away, but she tried to keep quiet, the words of people around her unable to get registered, she was there...yet she was so far away.

[sassyduckqueen]

Miraculous: Rise of Anatis 40

Here's heroes day!!! God, this is the longest chapter I've ever written! A whooping 17,000 + words :O so if you decide to read this chapter, get a drink and get ready for a long read. Anyway, this was super fun to do. As for the akumatized heroes, I've got some fun facts about their chosen names in this. Culpeo, Abeille and Leatherback become Void Fox, Frelona and Tortue Serpentine. Void Fox is a reference to a type of Kitsune, known as the shadow fox, the void kitsune or dark kitsune. Frelona comes from the french word for Wasp and Tortue Serpentine is Snapping Turtle in french, which my friend Naruwitch suggested then we have Ryuko and Aspik. Ryuko becomes Okami and Aspik becomes Aapep. Now Okami is a legendary dragon who tends to be portrayed as evil and Aapep is another name for an ancient Egyptian deity who is the personification of chaos and takes the form of a giant snake. Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter :D

Oh and also I recommend going back and re-reading Reverser. I've edited it a little to work in with this chapter and Volpina.

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Chapter Forty: Heroes Day

"See you next time, Bug a boo!" Lady Noir called out as she ran off in a different direction then him. He smiled and shook his head before running off towards the Seine. He jumped off the building and threw his yoyo, swinging across the water and towards the Liberty. He landed on the roof and backflipped off before jumping through the porthole to his room. He landed on the floor as his transformation dropped before catching Tikki. Both of them let out a yawn before Luka stumbled to his bed and fell onto it almost instantly before crawling into it. Tikki helped him pull on the covers before gently kissing his forehead before curling up on his stomach as he breathed in, having fallen asleep straight away. However, his alarm went off two hours later, causing him to groan and hide his head in the pillow.

 "Five more minutes," He mumbled as it kept ringing. He groaned and slammed his alarm, silencing it before trying to go back to sleep. However, his second alarm went off, making him groan even more. Once again, he turned it off and went to fall back to sleep but the final alarm went off, turning on the radio. As the person on it talked, Luka groaned, wanting nothing more to sleep and was mentally cursing Hawkmoth for creating an akuma at 3.30am. However, his eyes widen when the host mentioned Heroes day and he jolted up, wide awake. Tikki gasped and jumped as he did before he grinned at her and jumped out of bed.

 "Are you ok?"

 "It's Heroes day!" He gasped, getting dressed and grabbing his school bag before he stopped with wide eyes. Tikki rose an eyebrow. "Oh no! I forgot to plan a good deed! Uh!! I am an awful human being,"

 "And the fact that you were up all night saving Paris isn't enough of a good deed?" She asked, causing Luka to shake his head.

 "Unfortunately not. You see heroes day is when everyday citizens preform a good deed for everyone's benefit " He explained, making her pull a thinking expression. "Besides, it's not like I can't tell anyone about been a hero and two it would count as Anatis' good deed, not mine... well, I'll just do what I did last year,"

 "What was that?"

 "See what happens and improvise," He grinned, making her smile. "Last year, Rose ended up needing help with something so I helped her. I'm sure there'll be someone I can help this year too,"

 "That's a great idea, Luka," Tikki smiled as he handed her a cookie. She happily bit into it as he made sure he has his books before pulling on his usual hoodie. He glanced over at the jacket Marinette made him and smiled to himself before turning to Tikki, who had finished her cookie. He opened his bag for her and she flew in before he closed it and left his room. He grabbed a piece of toast from the kitchen and gave Anarka a kiss on the cheek before heading up to where Juleka was. Almost instantly, he was hit with the emotion of the city, making him grin. All of Paris was singing today and it was a gorgeous song. For a second, he closed his eyes and let himself bask in it's crescendo before Juleka cleared her throat.

 "What are you doing?" She asked, as he looked at her.

 "Listening to the music of the city," He replied, making her roll her eyes before he grinned at her. "Shall we get going?"

 "Sure," She nodded, walking off. Luka shook his head and followed, smiling to himself. They passed several stores and saw lots of balloons. Luka smiled a little as he saw Juleka go bright red when she noticed several Culpeo themed things.

 "So what's your good deed for today, sis?" He asked, making her look at him.

 "Oh... well, me and Rose are sharing a good deed," She mumbled, moving the bangs from her eyes a little. "We're planning to doing a collection for Prince Ali's charity,"

 "That's a great idea," He grinned as they came to the school, along with some of the other kids. Rose was already there, waving happily and Ivan was stood with Mylene. They greeted Luka and when inside almost straight away.  Luka looked at his phone and decided to linger for a little bit. He closed his eyes and breathed in, once again listening to the melody of the city. He opened his eyes as he heard a familiar melody. Marinette was running over, causing him to look at his phone again. She was on time but only by a few minutes. She stopped to take a breathe, causing him to smile. "Hey, Melody, you ok?"

"Luka!" She gasped, jumping. The box she was holding flew out of her hands but he caught it, causing them both to let a sigh of relief as he handed them back to her. "Uh sorry,"

 "No, no... I'm sorry," He mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. "I didn't mean to make you jump,"

 "Ooh, it's ok!" She grinned before holding up the box. "Want a macaron?"

 "Sure," He smiled, taking a chocolate one before gently kissing her cheek. She blushed and smiled shyly. "Thank you,"

 "N-No problem," She gasped before jumping against as the bell rang. "Ah that's class! We have to go!! See ya for lunch! I have a favor to ask!!"

 "Ok," He nodded as she ran off. He shook his head and smiled a little as he walked to his classroom. He walked in and took his seat as Kagami waved at him. He smiled and waved back as Aurora rushed over with Jean and Mireille and wished him a happy heroes day. He wished them one back as Ms Mendeleiev walked in and clapped her hands.

 "Alright, students, we have an assembly so let's move it to the gym," She ordered, causing them to get up and grab their bags. They walked over to the gym and took seats as the other classes came in. There was a stage at the front with a couple of teachers stood on it already. Luka took a seat next to Aurora, who smiled at him. He smiled back as the rest of the classes took their seats. Marinette walked past with Alya, shaking her head as she walked behind her.

 "I don't get it, Marinette... I know you and Lila don't get on but she isn't lying about this," She sighed, making Luka frown as Marinette turned to her.

 "Not lying?! Alya, you know she's a liar!" She gasped, clearly stressed. "It is literally on your blog,"

 "Ok so it was a one time thing and who wouldn't want to know the heroes?" Alya gasped, shaking her head. "Besides, I asked her about that and she apologized. Sure, it wasn't cool to do that but she just wants friends, Marinette and she promised not to lie again so why would she be lying that she's in Achu?"

 "Because she's a liar, Alya," She gasped, looking annoyed. "Even Miss Bustier questioned her!"

 "Yeah and Lila literally showed us that she had permission from both her parents and her therapist," Alya sighed, pinching her nose. "Been away has been good for her. You know it's stressful getting akumatized. I mean you took a day off after yours,"

 "Exactly! I took a day! One day! Not weeks!" She gasped, making Alya roll her eyes. "And none of us got a 'trip' around the world to deal with our stress,"

 "True but her mom is also there and she's the Italian ambassador," She stated, making Marinette roll her eyes. "Look, why don't you give Lila a second chance for your good deed for heroes day? I know she was lying but trust me, girl, she's turned over a new leaf,"

 "No! She hasn't because she's lying!" Marinette gasped, sitting down and crossing her arms. Alya sighed and shook her head as Miss Bustier walked in front of the school and clapped her hands, getting everyone's attention.  

 "Hello everyone and welcome to our annual heroes day assembly," She grinned, causing everyone to look at her. "Now I know everyone may have a hard time working out what good deed to do for today but let's not forget today is about been able to be a hero for one day and your good deed doesn't have to be something huge liking helping save planet earth. It can be anything from making small donations to a local charity to helping an elderly neighbor. All we need is..."

 "A little imagination! Hoo, hoo!" Mr Damocles called as he ran onto the stage in his owl costume. "This year, Anatis and Lady Noir have been our heroes, protecting us from the terrible Hawkmoth. They have shown us that heroism is beyond comic books and fairy tales! Heroism is real and it is up to you to show how Anatis and Lady Noir have brought out the best in all of us, by been every day heroes! Now a few of our students will tell us their eyes to be everyday heroes! For those of you who have yet to work out a good deed, their suggestions may be able to inspire you! Over to you, Miss Bustier!"

 "Thank you, Mr Damocles," She smiled. "From my class, we have Nino Lahiffe and Alya Cesaire. Care to tell what you two have planned for heroes day?"

 "Of course, Miss," Nino grinned, standing up. The whole student body faced him, causing him to take a deep breathe. "I gotta admit. I never use to do anything for anyone before but Anatis and Lady Noir have showed me what been cool is really about... so, this year, I'm gonna visit the elderly down at the retirement home and play them all their favorite songs!"

 "Excellent, Nino," Miss Bustier smiled, clapping along with everyone else. "Alya?"

 "Last year, I wrote an article about public buildings providing disabled access," Alya stated as she stood up. "But after seeing Anatis and Lady Noir going that extra mile every single day, I decided that I too could do better... so I got the mayor's approval to improve facilities so disabled kids can actually attend our school!"

 She sat back down as she got a round of applause. Mrs Mendeleiev stood up next as the applause died down.

 "From my class, we have Aurore Beauréal and Kagami Tsurugi," She stated, causing both girls to stand up. "Girls, care to tell us what you have planned?"

 "Yes, Mrs Mendeleiev," Aurore nodded as everyone looked at her. "Me and the others at the Kidz plus tv studio will be doing a live show with celebrities guests and all proceeds we get will be donated to a number of children charities,"

 Everyone applauded again, making her smile as she sat down. 

 "Kagami?"

 "I have signed up to volunteer at a soup kitchen for a couple of hours on the weekend," She stated, getting a round of applause but she held her hand. "My family will also be making a considerable donation to a number of charities who help the blind and the visually impaired,"

 She got a huge round of applause for that one. She sat back down as the other teachers introduced to of their students who proceed to tell them what their good deed would be. Luka frowned to himself as a little as the whole thing made him feel like he wasn't doing enough. It wasn't that he was jealous of the other students. Far from it but compared to what they were doing, just helping a person out seems so small and trivial. He let a sigh out and looked around. He frowned a little as he saw Marinette didn't look happy either. He decided he would ask her what was wrong for lunch. Aurore leaned over to him and gently poked his arm, causing him to look at her.

 "You ok?" She asked, making him nod.

 "Yeah," He whispered back. "Just not sure I can match up to whatever one else is doing,"

 "I'm sure you'll do a cool deed, Luka," She grinned, making him give her a small smile as Mr Damocles took to the stage again as the lunch bell rang.

 "Alright, everyone, now don't forget that we have the parade this evening," He shouted before dismissing everyone. Luka got up and headed over to Marinette but before he could reach her, she bolted off causing him to frown but she did say she needed to talk to him. He took out his phone and messaged Juleka, saying that he was going to grab dinner at the bakery before heading there. He hummed a little as he walked there, glancing over and smiling as he saw the huge balloons of Anatis and the other heroes. His phone vibrated, causing him to take it out and read the text. Apparently, Marinette was going to be hosting a massive tasting party after the parade tonight and has invited everyone. She and the rest of Kitty Section will be going so she thought she'd inform him off it. He texted back, saying he'd love to go before walking over the bakery door. He knocked on the door and entered, causing Sabine to look up and smile. Marinette was talking to her father, who was looking at a list nervously.

 "That's not the same as every year, Marinette," He mumbled, rubbing the back of his neck. 

 "How about just half then?" She asked, looking at her hand. "500 Macarons, 100 pies, 300 sweet buns and just a thousand croissants! That should be enough!"

 "Is that for the party at the park tonight?" Luka asked, making her jump and turn around. She grinned and nodded before turning back to her dad. 

 "You can do that... right?" She asked but Tom frowned and sighed, scratching the side of his head.

 "If I didn't have this giant Anatis cake to finish by tonight, I would gladly rise to the challenge but there's simply no way I can do both," He replied, making Marinette frown and look down. Luka frowned a little too. "I've committed myself, Marinette. I can't let the mayor down,"

 "I committed myself way over my head and now I'm gonna let everyone down," She sighed, slumping down on a stool. Luka frowned a little and moved over to her. She looked up at him with a sad expression. "Sorry, Luka,"

 "It's ok, Marinette," He smiled in a reassuring manner. 

 "You know it's not too late to tell your classmates the truth. I'm sure they'll understand like Luka has," Sabine smiled at him, causing him to nervously look down.

 "But it won't be very heroic..." Marinette muttered, looking down. 

 "Of course, it will," Sabine smiled, trying to reassuring her. "Been brave enough to face one's mistakes is heroic,"

 "You're right!" She gasped, jumping up and grabbing an apron as Luka rose an eyebrow. She rushed over to the door before turning to them as Luka rose an eyebrow. Her parents on the other hand appeared to be use to this. "If I get to it right away, I'll have enough time to make the macarons myself!"

 With that, she disappeared into the apartment, causing her parents to sigh as Luka shook his head a little. While he loved how passionate and enthusiastic Marinette was, he worried about her a little bit. Sabine cleared her throat, making him look at her as she held out two bags.

 "Would you mind making sure she's eaten, dear? Tom needs a hand with the cake," She smiled as he took the bags.

 "Of course, Mrs Cheng- I mean Sabine..." He muttered before nodding and heading into the apartment. Marinette was mixing something in a bowl and appeared to have already started to make the macarons. She grinned at Luka who placed the bags down before giving him the bowl and checking on the macarons in the oven. However, they were burnt, making her groan and sink to the floor, tears filling her eyes. Luka put the bowl down and knelt down next her as she sniffed.

 "This is just one big failure," She sniffed as he wrapped his arms around her. "I'm a terrible everyday hero..."

 "No, you're not,"

 "But I haven't done any heroic at all today... all I did was bring macarons to class wherever else is doing so much more. Alya is helping disabled kids, Nino is going to visit old people, Adrien is helping his classmates and all I've done is brought in stupid macarons," She mumbled, looking down as tears roll down her face. Luka frowned and gently wiped them away. She hugged her arms and let out a small sigh. "I doubt that made anyone's day..."

 "It made mine," Luka stated, causing her to look at him. She narrowed her eyes a little, looking for any sign of pretense or lies but her eyes widen when she didn't find any. Instead, she saw sincerity and honesty. 

 "T-That really made your day?"

 "Yeah," He smiled, causing her to blush as he looked to the side. "No one's ever offered me a macaron before... anyway, I think the bravest thing you can do is just tell everyone the truth... they'll understand,"

 "But that will ruin the whole party..." She mumbled, looking down as he frowned.

 "It's not the end of the world if it doesn't happen," He replied, making her sigh before he gently moved a stand of her hair. "I don't want to see you burn yourself out just to please everyone else, Marinette,"

 "Luka..." She muttered, blushing before gently leaning in and kissing his cheek. "Thank you,"

 "Let's have our lunches,"

 ~Meanwhile~

 "Lila?" Mrs Rossi stated as she knocked on her daughter's door. A few minutes later, Lila opened it and smiled falsely at her, though she was more focused on her phone. "Were you on the phone earlier?"

 "Oh, yes, it was my boyfriend, Adrien," She gasped, making her mother nod. "He just misses me so much,"

 "You weren't lying to me, were you?" She asked, briefly looking at her. Lila mentally cursed Anatis as his live interview with Alya had almost revealed her for the lying fox that she was. However, she did damaged control as best as she could. With Alya, she claimed that she just lied to be popular as she was afraid that no one would like her, especially since Marinette seemed to have it in for her. Alya was weary at first but she also was too willing to give Lila a second chance, especially Lila 'promised' not to lie again. She also convinced her that she didn't realize that she had overstepped boundaries with certain people and was learning how to understand social interactions with her therapist. Alya lapped it up and easily forgave her. The school, on the other hand, wasn't as easy but Anatis and Hawkmoth unintentionally gave her the perfect reason. She was far too stressed out to possibly come back to school right now. She knew she couldn't get it to last forever but it was a temporary solution. As for her parents. Well, that was the easiest. Her father dotted on his little princess, refusing to believe a word of Anatis' interview as he believed the ladyblog was ran by an amateur tabloid writer. He wasn't exactly wrong but this man is believed that Elvis Presley was abducted by aliens so pulling the wool over his eyes wasn't exactly hard. When he questioned it, she just turned on the water works and since he didn't want to upset his precious princess, he would drop it and ignore it. It helped that he worked aboard a lot of the time. Her mother on the other hand wasn't as easily convinced and she was forced to take a similar route to Alya. Of course, she promised not to lie again and to go to a therapist to get help but her mother's job worked to her favor as well. Since she was constantly busy with her job, she trusted her husband to arrange a therapist for Lila and since Lila was his little princess who could do no wrong, she was able to convince him to send her to a very basic therapist who was certainly not equip to deal with a teenaged pathological liar who knew how to exploit people's weaknesses and strengths to her advantage. She had even convinced the 'therapist' that she needed time of school to help her deal with the trauma. Contrary to popular belief, this wasn't the first time she had been exposed. The only difference was it wasn't a superhero who called her out last time. It was some snotty nosed kid who thought that people actually cared about what he thought. That's where she came up with the whole been bullied thing. It did wonders for her that time but she would have to play her cards a little differently this time. Most because she was dealing with a superhero but there's also the fact that someone else might catch on her lies and get akumatized. "Well?"

 "Of course not, Mama," She sighed, making her mum frown. She began to 'cry' as tears rolled down her face, causing her mother to gasp. "Y-You don't believe me, do you? I'm trying so hard to be a good person and you d-don't even believe me,"

 "Of course, I believe you, mia bella," She gasped, looked distressed. Her phone vibrated, causing her to looking at her phone as the sound of cheering caught Lila's attention. She moved over to her window and frowned as she saw people cheering in the streets. Huge balloons of Anatis, Lady Noir and the other heroes moved past, making her scowl as she closed the blinds. Her mother walked over to her. "It's just... Well... that interview Anatis did..."

 "B-But I didn't even do half of those things... I know I told the principle that Marinette had stolen off me but I really thought she had because of how she was treating me and because of what Chloe Bourgeois told me," Lila replied, making her mother frown as she took in her points. Seeing her chance to poison her mother's mind, she smirked a little. "It's not like Anatis is competent anyway..."

 "What do you mean?"

 "Well, he lost a miraculous which ended up in the hands of Chloe Bourgeois who used it to cause a crash and then was akumatized but he didn't take responsibility for his actions," She pointed out, noticing her mother had a thoughtful look. "I don't hate Anatis but he could at least own up to his mistakes instead of blaming someone else. After all, he blamed the Style Queen for it. I understand that Chloe is her daughter but none of that would have happened if he hadn't been careless..."

 "You have a point, mia bella," Her mother replied, making Lila smirk a little. "And these akumas are concerning. I'll bring it up in the next embassy meeting. Ciao, mia bella. Your lunch is in the fridge. I'll try not to be home too late,"

 She kissed her hand and walked off, failing to notice Lila's wicked smirk before she glared at her closed blinds. She turned on her heel and walked over to her laptop, logging back on. She went onto a news website and the ladyblogger, growling as she saw the recent video from Alya that was devoted to Anatis and the other heroes. It was showing a bunch of floating balloons that had the faces of the heroes on it. She growled as she saw the Anatis one and rolled her eyes at the Culpeo one. She was the better and the original fox. Volpina was the best and these were just second rate heroes compared to her, especially that pretender Anatis. He may pretend to be the kind hero that everyone loved but she knew the truth. He was a cruel and malice bully, who deserved to fall for calling her out. Sure, she lied but it wasn't hurting anyone and he didn't have to ruin her chances with Adrien. He would be hers by now and she would be worshiped by all of Paris as the true hero if it wasn't for that goody two shoes and his dumb sidekick, Lady Noir. She nearly had him at her mercy with that Marinette illusion but that stupid cat worked out it was an illusion. She didn't think it was possible to hate someone more then Marinette but that was before she met Anatis. At least, Marinette was easy to torment and it was child's play to get her expelled. Targeting Anatis wasn't going to be as easy. In fact, it would be the most challenging take down of her life, which is why she had prayed every night that Hawkmoth would choose her again. She longed to have her powers back and squash that nasty bug. 

 "Liar," She growled, flicking through different channels as she glared every moment. All of them showed something on Anatis and his pathetic team. They showed him stood next to the mayor, waving shyly at the cameras or standing with some little kids in Anatis themed merchandise. "Traitor! Coward!"

 "In honor of the wonderful Anatis, who has saved my son, Adrien, and myself and who has relentlessly protected us everyday, I have financed this tribute to him and his team of heroes," Gabriel Agreste stated, causing Lila to stay on that channel as she stared at the screen. Gabriel moved his hands together and looked up at the camera. "Anatis is clearly a true hero... unlike false heroes such as Actis, Lady Copycat and Volpina!"

 Lila gasped and threw her laptop against the wall in rage. How dare Anatis think he is better then her?!

 "I hate you, Anatis!!" She screamed as she began to trash her room. She would give anything to be Volpina again right now. Then she could show Paris who Anatis really was. She would reveal him for the monster and fake he is. After all, he ruined everything for her and she was yet to have her revenge. She swiped her desk before sinking down to her knees before hugging them. "I hate you, you stupid bug!"

 The sound of fluttering got her attention, causing her to look up and gasp in surprise as she saw an akuma right near her. It flew into her bracelet, causing it to turn dark as a connection with Hawkmoth formed. A wicked smile came across her face as she felt him inside her head.

 "Volpina," He stated, making her grin even more.

 "Hawkmoth,"

 "Your dreams were once a reality until Anatis turned them into a nightmare," He declared as she stood up. "Reclaim your power of illusion and make this heroes day a nightmare for all Parisians,"

 "With great pleasure, Hawkmoth," She declared, moving her arms up in front of her face before moving them to the side. The purple smog engulfed and transformed her into Volpina. She climbed out the window and jumped across the rooftops until she got to the Eiffel Tower. She jumped up and landed on top of it before stepping onto the fencing. She narrowed her eyes as she looked down at the city, happily celebrating their heroes. Noticing a helicopter near by, she smirked and listened to what the reporter was saying with her fox hearing.

 "Look at these Parisians," The blonde reporter stated as they filmed live. Volpina's smirk increased. "So happy to be parading in honor of their heroes,"

 "Well, that won't do," She stated as she narrowed her eyes. "That won't do at all,"

 Smirking to herself, she took out her flute and placed it to her mouth as she envisioned the illusion she wanted. When it was clear in her mind, she played a tune on the flute, creating a ball of light at the bottom of it. She threw it towards the parade, causing a bright orange light to cover it. When it disappeared, there stood Lady Noir facing a very scary looking Anatis.  

 "Look, Mummy," A little girl stated, pointing to the balloons. "Annie looks weird,"

 "Come on, sweetie," Her mother stated, kneeling next to her. "That's not Anatis... that's..."

 She gasped as she looked over and saw Anatis and Lady Noir. Only her daughter was right. This Anatis didn't look like his normal self. Unlike the normal one, he had pure black hair and his skin was a little paler then usual. His outfit was reversed with red spots and sides on a black back ground instead of red background with black spots and sides. He also had long black gloves that showed off his hands, revealing his nails were black and his boots were completely black and styled like combat boots. His mask, yoyo and earrings were reversed as well, along with his boots but the bit that really sealed was the dark smirk on his lips and his eyes. His normally blue eyes were replaced with black scleras and crimson irises. Not only did he look terrifying but he wasn't standing with Lady Noir. He was fighting her. Luckily, the cat girl was giving it as good as she got but it was a scary sight.

 "Anatis?!" She gasped, causing other people to look as he grabbed Lady Noir and threw her his shoulder, sending her flying across the Culpeo balloon. She managed to recover and landed on it, taking out her baton as Anatis let out an evil laugh that send shivers down the spine.

 "Move out of the way everyone!" Lady Noir shouted, panic clear in her voice. "He's been akumatized!"

 He jumped across to the balloon she was on and laughed again before looking at her with a psychotic grin.

 "What's the matter, Kitten?" He asked, tilting his head to the side. She growled but didn't answer. "Cat got your tongue?"

 "Annie, this isn't you!" She gasped, clearly not wanting to fight him. "You can fight this! You can fight against Hawkmoth!"

 "Aww, such sweet words, kitten," He replied, playing with his yoyo. "But you didn't take one thing into account!"

 He threw the yoyo at her, causing her to knock it back as he grinned.

 "Oh and what's that?" She asked, charging at him. 

 "I don't want to!" He grinned back, jumping up and slamming his fist towards her. Luckily enough, she jumped out of the way before he could hit her, making him growl before he straightened up and narrowed his eyes. She narrows her back as he threw up his yoyo. "Dark Charm!"

 "D-Dark Charm?" She gasped as he summoned a huge blade and grinned evilly at her. She gasped as he charged at her, trying to cut her into tiny pieces before she managed to grab the sword and threw it away from the scene, causing him to growl.

 "You think that will stop me?!" He roared, trying to kick her and hit her. She dodged and blocked his attacks before he threw his yoyo at her. She managed to move her head but he brought it back and threw it again, causing her to move and jumped back as the helicopter filmed them. Distracted by the yoyo, she didn't see his foot coming until he kicked her, causing her to fall back. She landed on her feet and faced him as he spun the yoyo, walking towards her. She backed away as he smirked evilly. "It's over, Kitten. You know I can't be beaten so give me your miraculous!"

 "Never!" She screamed, running away from him. He smirked evilly and ran at her, spinning his yoyo. She jumped up and he followed, clashing with her in the air. She intentionally got the upper hand but he headbutted her and hit her with his yoyo, sending her flying onto the Leatherback balloon as he landed on it. Blood was dripping down her chin as she weakly looked up at him.

 "I'll tell you one more time," He started as everyone gasped, looking at them. "Give me your miraculous,"

 "No," She growled, getting back up and taking a fighting stance. "If Hawkmoth wants a ring so badly, he can go to the jewelers like a normal person,"

 "Now, now, Kitten," He scolded, glancing at her. "It's rude to deny a request from a friend of a friend. Clearly, I'm going have to teach you some manners,"

 "We're not gonna be friends until you're deakumatized, Annie," She shouted back, causing him to growl and throwing his yoyo towards her. She caught it around her arm and held her hand to it. "Cataclysm!"

 "I don't think so, Kitten," He growled, yanking her towards him and grabbing her hands, holding one behind her back and one in the air. She struggled against him as he moved his lips closer to her ear. "I've always wondered what would happen if your cataclysm was used on a person... let's find out, shall we?"

 "No!" She cried out as he slammed her charged hand onto her chest, causing her to gasp as a tear rolled down her cheek. Her body appeared to turn to coal and disappeared into dust as the wind blew. He laughed and picked up the ring, holding it up as he looked at it as a purple mask appeared over his face.

 "You've won, Hawkmoth. I have both the ring and the earrings!" He declared, making everyone panic before the mask disappeared. He held up his hands like a typical villain and laughed evilly. "Fear, people of Paris! Your heroes have fallen and there is no one left to save you!"

 He let out a wicked laugh before swinging away, leaving devastation in his wake. Volpina smirked to herself as she grinned from the Eiffel tower. That when even better then she expected. A purple mask appeared around her eyes, making her smirk.

 "My dear Volpina, you've performed your role very well for the time being," Hawkmoth declared as she smirked. "We will meet again, very soon,"

 "I'll be waiting, Hawkmoth,"

 ~Hawkmoth's Lair~

 "So much sadness! So much disappointment!" Hawkmoth declared as he looked up at the window. "I can feel the chasm of despair and fear able to open about to open and swallow up every single Parisian... my dear Volpina, you've performed your role very well for the time being. We will meet again, very soon,"

 "I'll be waiting, Hawkmoth," She replied, causing him to call back the butterfly he used to grant her powers. With that one called back, he took another one and corrupted it before turning to Nathalie.

 "Are you ready, Nathalie?" He asked as she walked over.

 "They've been keeping you from achieving your dream for too long," She declared, looking up at him. "I will go to any length to end the reign of Anatis and Lady Noir,"

 "Good," He declared, looking at her before he placed his hand on the tablet she was hold and lifted it up. He placed the akuma on it, causing it to enter the item and set up the psychic link before him and Nathalie. "Catalyst, you've always been my most loyal supporter. I give you the ability to boost powers,"

 She nodded, transforming into a strange looking akuma. She had periwinkle skin and wore a black helmet with a red visor with black edges and a red spike pointing towards the back of her head, leaving her mouth exposed. She was also wearing a black dress suit. It had stiff shoulders, a dark red front and swan neck collar with red arrow-shaped sections in the center. The sleeves covered her entire arms, with the tips of her fingers fading into red. She also had pocket-like ridges on each side of her hips, and her pant legs came down to her feet, turning into red high-heels with red soles and tips. She took Hawkmoth's arm and placed her other hand over the top of his cane, infusing it with a crimson energy.

 "Hawkmoth, I give you the power to release as many akumas as you desire," She declared as he looked at her. "From now on, you are the almighty scarlet moth,"

 A red energy traveled up from his feet, transforming his outfit into a crimson version. He grinned as the transformation was complete. He took out his cane, spinning it before tapping multiple butterflies with it. Each one turned into a scarlet akuma, causing him to smirk even more before addressing them.

 "Fly away my little akumas!" He declared, continuing to tap more butterflies with his cane. "Find the Parisians as they despair over Lady Noir and Anatis' final hour and evilize each and every one of them!"

 He threw his arms out, causing the scarlet akumas to flutter out of the window and decent on Paris as he smirked at them. Once they had left, he turned to Catalyst.

 "Stand here while I head to the Eiffel tower," He ordered, getting a nod of her before he dropped his transformation and left as Gabriel Agreste. It would be much easier to get to the tower as Gabriel Agreste then as Hawkmoth after all.

 ~At the Bakery~

 "You ok?" Marinette asked, causing Luka to look up from his phone. "You keep looking at your phone... Am I boring you?"

 "Oh, no!" He gasped, shaking his head. "I was just keeping an eye on time so we're not late for the rest of school,"

 "Ah, ok," She smiled a little as she cleared up their lunches. They had disposed of the burnt macarons as well. "What time is it anyway?"

 "Nearly time to head back actually," He replied, getting up. "Shall we head back to school? I've got double art,"

 "Lucky you," She huffed, grabbing her bag and walking with him into the bakery. "I have double maths,"

 "Ouch," He replied as they waved to her parents. Sabine gave him a grateful smile and a thumbs up before grabbing something for Tom as they left. Almost as soon as they stepped out of the bakery, Luka was hit with an intense amount of fear and despair that it actually caused him to stumble back and grip his head in pain, causing Marinette to look at him with worry.

 "Luka?" She gasped, moving over to him. "What's wrong?"

 "I.. I don't know... I just... never mind..." He muttered, looking to the side. While she knew he was a musical empath, she didn't actually know how deep his empathic abilities went. Most people would think that the music is his empathy but they are far from it. The music is simply how he projects it into the world but it's not the ability itself. For him, the feelings that he plays, he actually feels them as if they are his own. He can feel other's pain and symptoms when they are sick or their sorrow when they are down. Music was an outlet for him as it can become too much to have everyone's feelings as well as your own. It especially helps with the whole akuma thing. Marinette gently took his hand, making him look at her.

 "You can tell me," She smiled, making him look at her before nodding.

 "The world sounds different," He replied, making her frown. "Like this morning, the song of Paris was glorious this morning. Everyone's hearts were singing happily at their fullest,"

 "And it's changed?" She asked, making him nod. "To what?"

 "It's fear..." He muttered, making her frown. "Something isn't right..."

 Before she could question him any farther, he grabbed her hand and ran as fast as he could to the school. As soon as they walked through the door, Marinette realized he was right. Everyone was in the courtyard but they were completely silent and looking at their phones with horrified expressions. Marinette looked at Luka before the two of them rushed over to Juleka, Rose and Mylene. 

 "What's going on?" Marinette asked, causing Rose to look up at her before she showed them a news broadcast on her phone.

 "Lady Noir defeated," Nadja Chamack stated, looking heartbroken. "Anatis in the clutches of the terrible Hawkmoth! This is Paris' worst nightmare!"

 "What?!" Marinette gasped as Luka frowned deeply. "I... I don't understand..."

 "A-Anatis was akumatized..." Mylene sniffed, making her frown deeply. "Lady Noir tried to stop him but he used her cataclysm on her..."

 "No..." Luka gasped, looking what the girls mistaken for distraught as they nodded. Marinette covered her mouth as Jagged Stone appeared on the video.

 "Anatis defeated?" He gasped, playing a sad song on his guitar as Clara Nightingale looked heartbroken. "Nothing will ever be rock and roll again!"

 "We'll have to cancel the concert?!" She gasped, causing him to play his hand on his head dramatically and pull her in for a hug.

 "You're right, Clara," Nadja gasped, sadly. "There's no sense in celebrating Heroes Day either,"

 She closed her eyes sadly as Luka frowned and Marinette looked afraid before she turned to him.

 "You were right..." She gasped but the sound of screams came from the video, causing them both to look back as the camera turned, showing red butterflies fluttering towards everyone. Clara and Jagged ran away from them as Nadja attempted to swat them but then one of them went into her mic and engulfed her arm with a red energy, causing her to fall back before the video briefly cut off. Marinette looked at Luka, who was frowning deeply.

 "Akumas?" She asked, frowning.

 "Red ones..." He muttered as the video went back online. This time showing Prime Queen.

 "Dear viewers, what does makes sense is getting ready for the coming of..." She declared, gesturing to the side as Guitar Villain rose up, causing Luka to grit his teeth a little.

 "Our New Lead Rockstar..." He stated, playing his guitar as Frighteningale spun onto the screen.

 "Scarlet Moth!!" She sang, making both Marinette and Luka gasp. Literally as hundreds of Scarlet Akumas fluttered over the school. One of them aimed for Marinette but Luka grabbed her and pulled her to him, glaring at it and daring Hawkmoth to come at him. He would keep his promise and hunt him down. The butterfly seemed to know what he intended as it fluttered away from him, causing Marinette to look up at Luka with awe as students and teachers began to get akumatized as they panicked. One flew over to Mylene, turning her into Horrificator. Ivan backed away as one came towards him but Luka ran over and pulled him away from it as a number fluttered over to Juleka and Rose, who were backing away from them. Adrien and Kagami backed away and ran from the school as fast as they could. He didn't blame them.

 "T-This is bad..." Juleka gasped as she and Rose backed away from some. "R-Real bad... Aah!"

 "Juleka!" Luka gasped, causing one to come at him again.

 "Don't let fear get a hold of you, Juleka!" Marinette called out, causing his heart to flutter. The akuma stopped, confused about his conflicting emotions and giving him a chance to came down. He took a deep breathe before glancing at his sister and Rose.

 "Marinette's right!" He shouted. "Don't let fear control you, Jules!"

 "Remember, there's a hero in everyone of us!" Miss Bustier added in as they moved in closer to people.

 "As long as we show we aren't scared! Hoo, hoo!" Mr Damocles added in as Nino ran past. Almost instantly, he got turned into the Bubbler, causing Alya to cry out before she turned into Lady Wifi. Luka frowned as more people panicked, creating more fear. He climbed onto a bench and looked around before he placed his fingers in his mouth and whistled loudly, getting everyone's attention.

 "Everyone, listen!" He shouted, making people look at him in surprise. "We can beat this because they are nothing but stupid little butterflies and we are Parisians and we do not go down without a fight! Jules, you are not easily scared! And Rose, thinking of pink and fluffy kittens!"

 Juleka took a deep breathe and began to calm herself down, glaring at the akumas at it.

 "That's it!" He grinned. "Don't let fear get the better of you,"

 Rose nodded and took a deep breathe too, glaring at the butterflies as well. Luka jumped down as Dark Cupid swooped down, terrorizing a few people and allowing them to turn into akumas. Marinette was helping a few people escape as Luka rushed over to her, along with the others.

 "We can't stand here," She pointed out, making him nod. "Or we'll end up been akumatized,"

 "It might sound crazy but we need to split up and find a safe hiding place in the school," He points out, making everyone nod and split. He rushed over to the boys bathroom and opened his jacket, causing Tikki to fly out. 

 "This is bad!" She gasped, causing him to nod.

 "There's too many to fight at once. We need to see Master Fu right away," He muttered before transforming into Anatis. He slipped out of the bathroom and made his way to the roof, keeping low as he saw the akumas. They were leaving the school, making him let out a sigh of relief but he did wonder where they were going. He had a feeling he would find out but he needed to get to Master Fu's. He jumped off and swung off, landing on the rooftop. He swung down to the ally but stopped as he felt like he was been followed. He glanced around but saw nothing. However, he didn't go to Master Fu's shop. Instead he opened a manhole and headed down there. He moved around the corner and frowned as the manhole was opened and closed again. He narrowed his eyes as Vanisher moved down and threw is yoyo at her but to his surprise, she dodged it and charged at him, knocking him back. She dived at him but a baton knocked her back, causing her to dodge. Taking the chance, he got his feet and grabbed her glasses, breaking them before catching the butterfly and purifying it as Vanisher turned back into Sabrina. He let it go as Lady Noir grabbed her baton and rushed over to him. 

 "Annie!" She gasped, hugging him. He hugged back. "God, I was so worried when I didn't see you on the roofs,"

 "I'm sorry, Kitten," He gasped before glancing to Sabrina, who was confused. "I had a tail to get rid off,"

 The two of them looked at her before Lady Noir let go and Anatis walked over to her. She gasped and backed up a little, causing him to frown but he knelt down in front of her as Lady Noir walked over. Sabrina gasped and looked at her in surprise.

 "Lady Noir? You're alive?!" She gasped, making both heroes frown before she looked at Anatis. "And you're not akumatized?!"

 "Akumatized?" He asked, making her nod before looking at Lady Noir.

 "Y-Yeah, everyone saw it on the news!" She gasped, making him frown even more. "You were akumatized and you killed Lady Noir... but it wasn't real because she's here right now and you're you... you are you, right?"

 "Yes, Sabrina," He smiled, causing her to hug him. 

 "I'm so glad!" She gasped, tears rolling down her face. "It was just..."

 "An illusion," Lady Noir muttered before Sabrina jumped on her. "Whoa!"

 "An illusion..." Anatis muttered, standing up before his eyes widen. "Volpina!"

 He turned Sabrina, who had let go of Lady Noir.

 "Sabrina, head back to the school. It's probably the safest place right now," He stated, making her nod as he walked over to Lady Noir and began climbing up after her. 

 "I will do, Anatis!" She grabbed. "And when I get there, I'm gonna tell everyone not to lose hope, cause the real Anatis and Lady Noir are still going strong!"

 "Well, it is heroes day after all," Lady Noir grinned as she opened the manhole.

 "And we wouldn't miss it for the world," Anatis continued before the two of them climbed out of the sewer and ran to Master Fu's shop. Checking that no one was around, they headed inside and knocked on the door. Master Fu answered it, looking afraid.

 "I always knew that Hawkmoth would one day realize how powerful he could be," He muttered, letting them in. "That day has come,"

 He walked over to the phonograph and took out of the miracle box, placing it in front of the two heroes and opening it.

 "Anatis... Lady Noir... you must pick an ally you can trust to fight along side you this mission," He stated as the draws popped open. Anatis reached for them as he looked at him, working out some sort of plan. "Once the mission is over, you will get the miraculous back from them and return it to me,"

 Anatis nodded and looked around at the miraculous. He honestly didn't know what to expect. Lady Noir leaned near him.

 "Take them all, Annie," She whispered, making him look at her. "They're need to be as many of us as possible..."

 "No, Kitten. In this case, less is more," He stated, surprising her. "We don't have time to find new holders and explain everything again. We need allies who already know what they're doing,"

 He grabbed the bee, the fox, the dragon and the snake before looking up at Master and gesturing to his bracelet.

 "May I, Master?" He asked, causing Master Fu to take off the bracelet and handed it to him. "Hawkmoth wants miraculous and that's exactly what he's gonna get,"

 "You got a plan?" Lady Noir asked, leaning on her baton as Anatis took out his yoyo and checked something before she walked over to the draw with the little boxes in. She grabbed enough for the miraculous as he walked over to her.

 "The akumas are all heading to one place," He stated, showing her. "The Eiffel Tower... we're gonna head there too... as soon as we have help that is,"

 "Calling in the cavalry?" She grinned as he placed the miraculous in the boxes. He put the fox, the bee and the turtle in his yoyo before handing the snake and the dragon to her. She took them and put them in her pocket.

 "Once you've collected Ryuko and Aspik, head to the Palais de Chaillot," He stated, getting a nod of her as he walked over to the window. She moved over and quickly gave him a kiss on his cheek, making him blush before he saluted her and dived out of the window. He landed on another building and saw Lady Noir heading to the neighborhood where Kagami lived. He smiled a little before diving off that building and swinging through the city. He landed on the school building and jumped down into the courtyard before looking for Ivan, Rose and Juleka. He found Juleka and Rose in one of the locker rooms, trying their best to fend off scarlet akumas. Juleka was holding Rose and gently talking to her while trying to keep her own emotions under control but he could tell they weren't going to last much longer. Just as two akumas fluttered towards them, he burst through and caught them with his yoyo, causing both girls to look up and gasp. "I don't think so,"

 "A-Anatis?!" Rose gasped as he let the two purified butterflies go. Juleka stared speechless as Rose began to cry tears of joy. "It's really you?!"

 "Yes," He smiled, causing her to hug him. He gently hugged her back as Juleka walked over before sighing. "I'm really sorry for what I'm about to do. I know that I'm able to reveal your secret identities but I haven't got time to find excuses to give them you separately,"

 He took out two of the boxes from his yoyo.

 "Culpeo and Abeille," He stated, holding them up to them. "I need you both,"

 "You're Culpeo?!" Rose gasped with massive eyes as she held her face, causing Juleka to blush as she took her box. "So cool!!"

 "And you're Abeille?" She asked back as Rose nodded with enthusiasm as she grabbed her box. "Awesome,"

 "Why didn't you tell me though?" Rose asked as Juleka opened the box and allowed Trixx to manifest.

 "It was suppose to be a secret, right?" Trixx grinned as Juleka put on the necklace.

 "Trixx, let's pounce," She mumbled before swiping her necklace as Trixx got sucked into it. She swiped her hand over her eyes, creating her mask before holding out her arms as the orange energy spreaded over them and her body, creating her outfit. She swiped her hands over her hair, creating her ears and changing it to orange and black before swiping her hands down her back, creating her tails. An orange light appeared on her back, creating her flute and completely the transformation. Rose squealed in pure excitement as Culpeo nodded at Anatis. "Ready when you are, Boss,"

 "Good," He smiled before looking at Rose, who nodded and opened her box. Pollen manifested and bowed to her.

 "Greetings, my queen," She smiled, making Rose smile. "It is good to see you again,"

 "Same here, Pollen," She replied before fixing the comb into her hair before holding her hand up. "Pollen, Buzz on!"

 She threw her head back as her hair turned honey blonde and black strips appeared in it before holding up her arms as a golden light traveled up her body from her feet, creating her suit before the second light appeared, giving her gloves and adding the black detail to her suit. She swiped her hand across her face, creating her mask as her transformation completely.

 "Let's go kick some akuma butt!" She declared, causing Culpeo to giggle and Anatis to shake his head.

 "Head to Palais de Chaillot but stay low," He ordered, making them nod. "Lady Noir is collecting Ryuko and Aspik and I need to find Leatherback. I'll meet you there as soon as I've got him... be safe,"

 "You too, Anatis," Culpeo nodded before taking Abeille's hand and leaving through the window. Anatis turned on his heel and left the locker room.

 "Now if I was Ivan, where would I hide?" He muttered to himself before clicking his fingers. "Of course,"

 He ran to the music room and looked inside before opening the door and looking around. He found Ivan hiding under the table as best as he could as he hugged his knees but as soon as he saw Anatis, he jumped up.

 "Is it really you?!" He gasped, making Anatis nod. He lifted him off the floor as he crushed him in a hug before putting him down. "I'm so glad you were deakumatized.... but Lady Noir..."

 "Is alive and kicking," Anatis grinned, making Ivan look at him in surprise. "And I was never akumatized. It was just a cruel illusion, engineered by Hawkmoth and excused by Volpina, to create mass panic and sorrow,"

 "That's awful," Ivan gasped, looking disgusted. "Mylene was re-akumatized... I would have been too if my pal Luka hadn't helped me... you know you should consider him for a miraculous. He's really brave,"

 "I'm sure he is but right now, we need to focus on the task at hand," Anatis replied, trying not to give away how happy he was that Ivan saw him as brave. He took out the last miraculous box. "I need Leatherback's help. You up for it?"

 "You bet ya, Anatis," Ivan grinned, taking the box and open it. "Sup, Wayzz,"

 The two of them did a secret handshake before Ivan slipped on the bracelet.

 "Wayzz, shell on," He declared, causing Wayzz to be sucked into the bracelet before stomping his feet on the ground and pushing his arms out, causing a green energy to creating his outfit. The green energy burst from the center off his chest, creating his emblem that resembled a turtle's shell attached to a harness. The energy traveled down his arms, leaving a gray strip in it's place before causing green spikes to burst from his gloves before he pulled down a pair of goggles over his eyes as the blonde tuff of his hair turned a forest green, completing his transformation. "Alright, Boss, what's the plan?"

 "We're heading to Palais de Chaillot," Anatis declared before the two of them ran out of the music room and jumped up to the roof, heading to the Palais de Chaillot.

 ~Meanwhile~

 Lady Noir jumped across the roofs until she came to Kagami's house. She dived down into the garden as Kagami practiced her fencing. She stopped as soon as Lady Noir landed in the garden and rushed over to her.

 "You're alive?!" She gasped, causing Lady Noir to nod. "And Anatis? Is he... still akumatized?"

 "No, he never was," Lady Noir explained, making Kagami frown deeply. "It was an illusion,"

 "An illusion?" She asked, frowning deeply. "That was an extremely cruel one,"

 "Indeed but part of Hawkmoth's plan," She replied, reaching into her pocket and taking out a box. "Which is why we have a plan. You in?"

 "Of course," Kagami grinned before taking the box from Lady Noir and opening it, causing Longg to manifest. "I'm honored to see you again, Longg-sama,"

 "The honor is mine, Kagami-san," He replied, nodding and making her smile as she put on the choker. "We shall accomplish great things together.

 "Indeed," She replied before holding her arms out. "Longg, bring the storm!"

 Longg got sucked in her choker. She held her fingers in the peace sign and moved them across her eyes, creating her mask. She threw up her left hand, creating a dark light that created her glove. It traveled down her arm and body, creating her outfit as she held out her other arm. She held her head up as a golden light covered her hair, creating her horns before the same golden light created her sword on her back and the tail detail on her suit, completely her transformation.

 "Alright, let's go find Adrien," Lady Noir grinned.

 "I believe he should be at home with his bodyguard," Ryuko stated, getting a nod of Lady Noir. "As soon as the red akumas hit, we escaped. Both of our parents have been akumatized and we wanted to make sure they were ok,"

 "Understandable," She nodded as they jumped across roofs, coming to Agreste Manor. Lady Noir held out her hand, causing Ryuko to stop. Adrien was there in his room but he was been guarded by Gorizilla. The two girls dived off the roof towards them. With Ryuko keeping Gorizilla busy, Lady Noir grabbed Adrien and jumped to the roof with him, placing him down before joining Ryuko and breaking his akumatized object before grabbing a jar and capturing it in a jar. The two girls jumped back on the roof as Adrien started at them.

 "Lady Noir! You're alive!!" He gasped with relief. "And Anatis?"

 "Not akumatized and never was," She smiled before she handed her the akuma jar to Ryuko and took out the snake miraculous, holding it out to Adrien. "Annie needs help. You in?"

 "Anything for my friends," He replied, taking it and opening. Sass manifested and nodded to him as he slipped on the bracelet. "Sass! Scales slither!"

 He held up his hand as Sass got sucked into the bracelet. He moved his hands over his face, creating his mask and giving his hair green streaks. The teal green energy moved down his body creating his outfit before a ball of teal light turned into his lyre. He grabbed it and placed it on his back, completing his transformation. 

 "So what's the plan?" He asked, looking at the girls.

 "We're meeting Annie at the Palais de Chaillot," Lady Noir replied, spinning her baton. "Shall we go?"

 Ryuko and Aspik nodded before the three of them jumped off the building and headed to the Palais de Chaillot. They ran across the buildings until they came to the Palais de Chaillot and jumped on it. Lady Noir grinned as Culpeo and Abeille was already there. Abeille was gently leaning on her and Culpeo was patting the bee's head, making Lady Noir smile. They were very cute together.

 "Hey, foxy," Lady Noir grinned, causing Culpeo to gasp and look up. "How's it going?"

 "Lady Noir," She gasped as Abeille looked up as well. "I'm really glad to see you're ok. Anatis told us it was a trick but still,"

 "I get ya," She nodded, looking around. "Where is my handsome partner?"

 "Getting Leatherback," Abeille replied, smiling as they moved over to the edge of the building and looking at the akumas. Lady Noir frowned a little as she looked at them but they didn't seem to be planning anything, just waiting. She wondered why. "They've just been stood there for about 15 minutes,"

 "Strange," She muttered as she heard the sound of a yoyo. She turned around as Anatis landed on the building with Leatherback. "Hey, Turtle, good to see you again,"

 "Lady Noir!" He grinned, hugging her as Anatis smirked. "I'm glad you're alive!"

 He put her down as Ryuko threw the glass jar at Anatis. He caught it and looked at it before he opened it and caught the akuma before releasing the now purified butterfly before he signaled for all of them to moved over to the edge and hide as he looked down at the akumas. He narrowed his eyes as it reminded him off Princess Justice's reign but it appeared that she wasn't here. However, almost every akuma that ever was had turned up yet they weren't running wild like they did with Princess Justice. They were just stood there. Lady Noir moved over to him.

 "So what are they doing?" She asked in a hushed voice.

 "They're waiting," He muttered back, making everyone frown as they moved a bit closer to him.

 "For what?" Aspik asked as an extra person jumped onto the Eiffel tower, causing Anatis to narrow his eyes and clutch his fist a little. The rest of them gasp in shock as they stared at the person. "Is that-"

 "Hawkmoth," Anatis stated, causing his mini army to look at him. "In the flesh,"

 They watched as Prime Queen sent up one of her flying camera, causing Hawkmoth to look at it.

 "Anatis! Lady Noir! Behold my powerful army!" He shouted, gesturing to the akumas. "And have no doubt that today belongs to Scarlet Moth!"

 "Not for long," Anatis muttered, glaring at him.

 "He better not get too cocky or I'll slam my shield into his face," Leatherback grinned as Aspik smirked.

 "It's only like ten villains to everyone of us," He grinned in a chilled back way. "Who wants Hawkmoth? How about we rock, paper or scissors for him?"

 "No need for that game, danger noodle," Ryuko smirked, holding her sword. "For he shall taste my blade,"

 "I'll protect you no matter what, Culpeo," Abeille gasped, determined.

 "No, I'll protect you," Culpeo gasped as Lady Noir leaned next to Anatis as they both glared at Hawkmoth and his Scarlet army.

 "So what's the plan, Annie?" Lady Noir asked as Anatis narrowed his eyes. The akumas had started to chant 'hail, scarlet moth' repeatedly, causing Anatis to frown even more as questions popped into his head. Scarlet Moth held up his arm, silencing his akumas. He smirked as Prime Queen's cameras focused on him before addressing them.

 "Anatis! Lady Noir! I can feel your close present," He stated, smirking as he brought down his arm before lifting his other into a fist shape. "If you want to save Paris and all it's people, I'll give you one last chance!"

 He threw out of his hand dramatically.

 "Give yourselves up and bring me your miraculous!" He shouted as Anatis watched with a worried expression. Lady Noir moved a little closer to him and gently placed her hand on his arm, causing him to flinch a little before looking at her and his team.

 "Annie?" She asked as he looked back over. "Want to share what's on your mind?"

 He frowned before sighing a little.

 "It's like he's been preparing for this for a long time...." He sighed, making his team frown as he glanced at them. "But we... we're not prepared for this..."

 "Yes, we are," Lady Noir stated, making him look at her in surprise. "We've faced all of these akumas before... this is just like Princess Justice's reign but on a slightly grander scale. Only this time, you're not alone. There's seven of us this time,"

 "Yeah, Hawkmoth doesn't stand a chance," Aspik grinned as the rest of the team nodded. Anatis looked at them all, seeing nothing but determination in their eyes.

 "Alright but if we're gonna do this, we have to have a plan," He muttered, glancing back over to Hawkmoth and his army. "If we want to win, we have to fight Hawkmoth even though we've never fought him before,"

 The team nodded as Anatis stood up and climbed onto the edge of the building.

 "Hawkmoth!" He yelled, getting the villain's attention. "I hope you liked Volpina's illusion... because me and my team will never hand over our miraculous!"

 "And we've got a better idea!" Lady Noir shouted, joining him before she pointed at Hawkmoth. "You're gonna give us your miraculous!"

 Culpeo, Abeille and Leatherback stood next to them, on Anatis' side.

 "You may have an entire army of akumatized warriors!" Leatherback shouted, clicking his hands.

 "But we're a team of heroes!" Abeille added in, taking out her spintop.

 "And we're gonna kick ass..." Culpeo added in, albeit quieter then the rest. Ryuko and Aspik jumped up and stood next to Lady Noir.

 "So bring it, old man!" Aspik shouted, making Hawkmoth frown a little.

 "We're ready for a fight!" Ryuko added, smirking before tilting her head. "Are you?"

 The seven of them took their fighting stance, making Hawkmoth laugh. 

 "I understand you want a fight," He stated, smirking. "Then so be it. Guitar Villain, Frighteningale.... Music!"

 The two musical villains began to sing and play as some of the scarlet army charged towards the heroes. Anatis nodded and jumped down with his team, charging towards them. They could hear Prime Queen narrating the fight as they ran towards them. Anatis narrowed his eyes as he couldn't see her around. He could see Lady Wifi, Pharaoh, Mime, Timebreaker, Style Queen, Troublemaker and Desperada running towards them on the ground while Bubbler, Stormy Weather, Reverser, Sandboy and the Puppeteer flew towards them. Rogercop and Malediktator stood at the back, along with the giants.

 "Don't forget our main object!" Anatis yelled towards the others. "We want to get to Hawkmoth!"

 "Well then let's go for the big, bad boss," Lady Noir grinned, getting a nod of Ryuko and Aspik as Stormy Weather lifted her parasol towards the sky.

 "Cyclone!" She shouted, creating a whirl wind that lifted up Desperada, Trouble Maker and the Mime. 

 "Horus, give me your wings!" The Pharaoh shouted as his head transformed. He flew down towards Lady Wifi and picked her up. Timebreaker smirked and sped up on her skates as Style Queen turned into glitter. Stormy Weather directed her parasol towards Anatis, shouting Thunderbolt as she did.

 "Leatherback, shield!" He shouted, causing Leatherback to throw it as a bolt of lightning headed towards him. It blocked it, causing Stormy Weather to growl and pull back her parasol. The wind disappeared, allowing the akumas to fall. Desperada went to hit Anatis but he jumped back as Ryuko ran over and held out her sword as Mime and Troublemaker landed behind her. Mime mimicked a sword while Troublemaker clicked her pen before the three of them charged towards them. "Your weapons are no match for Ryuko's sword. Show them what you've got,"

 "Lightning Dragon!" She shouted, transforming into a bolt before repeatedly attacking the three akuma, keeping them busy as Anatis dived back as Lady Wifi fired at him. Leatherback jumped in front of him and blocked her attacks. 

 "Abeille! Pharaoh's pendent!" He shouted, causing Abeille to throw her spintop and break it. Pharaoh transformed back into Jalil Kubdel, causing him to drop Lady Wifi. Anatis captured the butterfly as Lady Wifi threw a symbol and landed on it, flying upwards. However, Jalil was still falling. "Culpeo! Rescue!"

 "Good aim, mon cherie," She smiled as she slid and caught Jalil before turning around and throwing her flute at Lady Wifi's phone and turning her back into Alya. Abeille jumped and caught her as Anatis captured her butterfly too. Bubbler dived towards Ryuko as she blocked Mime's invisible sword. Lady Noir jumped over to her and used her baton to pop the bubbles he created as Apsik slammed his lyre into Desperada, which caused her to fall onto Troublemaker, who was attempting to fight Leatherback. Unfortunately for her, she clicked her pen at the wrong time which allowed Desperada to knock her down. In turn, she dropped the pen, allowing Leatherback to break it as Apsik grabbed Desperada's guitar back and slammed it into the ground, breaking. Anatis captured the freed akumas as Lady Noir blocked Bubbler's sword with her baton. She grinned and stomped on his foot before grabbing him and throwing him towards the mime, who was too distracted by Ryuko to notice Bubbler flying at him. Both villains fell to the ground, causing Mime's hat to fall off. Ryuko impaled it as Lady Noir jumped and landed a kick at Bubbler's sword, crushing it. Anatis captured those butterflies next before jumping back as Stormy Weather started to fire at him. He caught Timebreaker skating towards him, causing him to backflip and throwing his yoyo, destroying her skates as Lady Noir extended her baton, allowing Abeille to balance on it as Stormy Weather fired a bolt towards Anatis again. She threw the Bee heroine towards the weather witch, who used her parasol to protect herself. Abeille brought her leg down on it, breaking it and freeing the akuma. Lady Noir dived and caught Aurora as Anatis caught the loose akumas. Leatherback and Culpeo ran towards Rogercop, using Leatherback's shield to protect them from been hit. Culpeo threw her flute over Leatherback, causing Rogercop to dodge it but Anatis broke his whistle while he was distracted, capturing that akuma too. He jumped back as Style Queen went to slam her staff at him. Lady Noir  dived at her and began to fight her as Ryuko ran towards Leatherback, who held out his shield. She jumped on it, causing him to throw her into the air and towards Reverser. She cut his plane and caught Marc before dodging Sandboy's attack. Aspik jumped over them and threw his lyre at Sandboy's pillow, ripping it. He caught his Lyre and the little boy who fell to the ground. Anatis caught their akumas as Lady Noir wrestled with Style Queen. He jumped over them and threw his yoyo, breaking her rose and capturing that akuma.

 "By the power invested in me, I declare your miraculous are mine," Malediktator shouted, throwing balls of light at them as Puppeteer charged towards them. Since she didn't have her dolls with her, they couldn't be used in battle but it appeared she could control people she hit with her wand as she got Alya to try and attack Lady Noir. 

 "I'm sorry!" Alya gasped as she tried to punch the heroine, allowing Malediktator to fire a ball of light towards her. Anatis jumped over and blocked it as Leatherback threw his shield at Malediktator, who knocking him back. Abeille jumped at him and grabbed his sash, tearing it and freeing the akuma as Leatherback grabbed his shield and held it up again. This time, Abeille ran and jumped onto it, flying towards Puppeteer. She wrapped her spintop around her wand and pulled it from her hands, snapping it when she caught it. Manon flew from the sky but Leatherback caught her and put her down as Anatis caught the rest of the lose akumas. Lady Noir pushed Alya towards the other civilians.

 "Your days of attacking innocent people will soon be over, Hawkmoth!" Anatis declared, throwing up his yoyo. "Lucky charm!"

 He frowned as he caught a tennis racket before he glanced around, working out what to do with it. His luck vision lit up a canal boat, a lamp post then finally his team as a plan came into his mind. He smirked before nodding to his team.

 "Get ready," He stated, turning to the akumas. "I'm gonna need all of you,"

 The team nodded but before they could do anything, the sound of arrows been fired caught their attention. The people they rescued suddenly turned angry and aggressive, showing off black stained lips as they glared at the heroes. Anatis' eyes widen as Hawkmoth released and handful of akumas that turned them all back into their akumatized selves, causing Anatis and his team to go the defense. Lady Noir glanced up at the sky before gasping.

 "Hawkmoth is using Dark Cupid to create all the negative emotions he needs!" She gasped as Dark Cupid flew up into the sky and aimed his arrows at Anatis, causing him to jump out the way and the fight to start up again. Ryuko was fighting against the Mime while Aspik was up against the Bubbler . Culpeo and Abeille were going against Style Queen and Malediktator as Leatherback was trying to fight off the Pharaoh and Troublemaker. Anatis was blocking Desperada's attacks while Lady Noir was fighting Lady Wifi, all while Dark Cupid led the air bound villains in an assault on the team. 

 "This is a nightmare!" Aspik called out as he dodged an attack from Reverser and hit Bubbler with his lyre before grabbing it and kicking the mime as Ryuko cartwheeled away from Stormy Weather's attack.

 "Stay focus!" Anatis shouted as he jumped down and tripped up Desperada before blocking an arrow aimed at Leatherback. "We can't let them win,"

 "Fall on them like rain, my scarlet akumas!" Hawkmoth shouted, causing Anatis to look at him as he thrust his cane into the air. A huge swarm of Scarlet akumas fluttered up from behind him, causing Anatis' eyes to widen in horror.

 "Oh no," He gasped as they fluttered towards them. He turned to his team as they continued to fight. "Watch out!"

 Lady Noir gasped as she looked over before pushing back Lady Wifi and landing a kick on her, sending her flying. Lady Wifi smirked at her as Puppeteer and Sandboy flew down towards her, shooting at her. She jumped back as Aspik fought with the Pharaoh, who managed to knock away his lute and grab his arms. Aspik managed to get free and kicked him back, glaring at him.

 "Aspik! Watch out!" Ryuko called out, causing him to look behind as Dark Cupid fired an arrow at him. His eyes widen as she dived in front of him, taking the arrow. He caught as she fell and gasped as her lips turned black. She shoved him back and glared at him. "Keep your hands off me, you snake!"

 "Ryuko..." He gasped as an akuma fluttered towards her. Anatis caught it before it could hit her.

 "Ryuko! Don't let any negative emotions over take you or you'll get akumatized too!" He shouted, blocking Rogercop's attack as she sunk down, trying her best to fight it as she held her arms. "That's what Hawkmoth wants,"

 "It's going to be ok, Ryuko," Aspik gasped, moving closer to her and causing her to look up.

 "Coward," She growled before trying to attack him. "You're not worthy enough to be a hero!"

 He grabbed her and restrained her as she struggled against him. One of the akumas tried to take advantage of the situation but Abeille dived over and blocked out the attack as Culpeo fought against the mime. Style Queen and Malediktator began to attack Abeille, causing her to move away from them. Ryuko slammed her fist into Aspik's rib and threw him over her shoulder before opening her arms and allowing an akuma to flutter into her choke.

 "I am now... Okami!!" She declared, turning into a scarlet version of her self as Apsik looked up at her in horror and fear. Almost instantly, an akuma flew into his bracelet, covering him in a red smog as Anatis looked over.

 "Apsik!" He shouted before blocking an attack from Pharaoh. 

 "There is no more Aspik," He declared as the smog disappeared, showing a scarlet version of him. "There is only Aapep!"

 He then dived at Anatis, causing him to jump back as he slammed his fist into his ground. Leatherback threw his shield at him but Aapep dodged it as Okami charged at him. Abeille dived out of the way but Despair Bear jumped at her and forced her to stop. Culpeo jumped and landed in front of her, spinning her flute to deflect Dark Cupid's arrow but Lady Wifi threw a pause icon at her, trapping her too. Dark Cupid fired two arrows, hitting her and Abeille then akumas landed in their miraculous.

 "Culpeo! Abeille!" Anatis called out, getting knocked back by Pharaoh. He kicked him back as they turned into scarlet akumas.

 "Culpeo is no more, pest!" She growled, charging at him and trying to fight him. "Only Void Fox exists!"

 He blocked her attack as she tried to attack him relentlessly. He managed to kick her back and jumped away but the akumatized Abeille jumped at him, trying to sting him with her now unlimited venom.

 "Stay still, cockroach!" She growled as he back flipped away. "Frelona orders you to!"

 Malediktator smirked and held up his fingers to his mouth.

 "By the power invested in me, I order to stand still," He declared, throwing it towards Anatis. However, Leatherback pushed him out of the way and took the hit, allowing Dark Cupid to fire an arrow at him and a scarlet akuma to fly into his bracelet.

 "Leatherback..." Anatis gasped before jumping out of the way as the newly villain threw his shield at him.

 "Don't call me that!" He growled, catching it. "I'm Tortue Serpentine now!"

 "Annie!" Lady Noir gasped as a number of akumas dived at her. She fought them off as Anatis blocked and dodged the attacks aimed at him. "Now would be a great time to use that lucky charm!"

 "I need all o us for it to work!" He called out, rolling out of the way of Frelona as she tried to sting him again and block several attacks with his yoyo. "I can't do anything with it now,"

 He jumped over and landed next to her, holding up his fists as she held up her baton. All of the akumas began to move in on them, causing both heroes to try and look for a point of escape. However, there wasn't one. The two of them blocked the attacks as best as they could but they really needed to get out of there.

 "How are we gonna get out of this?!" Lady Noir gasped as she blocked another attack. Aapep managed to get pass their defenses and dived at Lady Noir but Anatis grabbed him and pinned his arms behind his back, in cased he had already activated his second chance. Anatis nodded at Lady Noir, who threw up her hand and summoned her cataclysm before slamming her fist into the ground. Anatis threw Aapep away from him as the ground cracked beneath them and gave away, causing the two heroes to fall into the sewers. Wasting no time, they swam away from the scene and climbed out of the water. Anatis helped Lady Noir out of the water before the two of them took off. Judging by the fact that they were still running and hadn't been ambushed, Aapep hadn't activated his second chance. They ran as fast as they could, heading deeper into the sewers as they did. Anatis frowned as his earrings beeped before glancing at Lady Noir.

 "I'm about to transform back," He declared as they saw forked tunnels up ahead with a wall between them. "I'll take the side of the left, you take the right,"

 "Kay!" She nodded, jumping across to her side. He jumped across to the other side and sighed as his transformation dropped. He caught Tikki and took out a macaron for her. She happily took it as he heard Lady Noir call off her transformation and give Plagg some cheese. "Enjoy it but don't take too long,"

 "Let's share it," Plagg replied as Tikki suggested the same thing with her macaron. Both holders thanked their kwamis before eating their halves.

 "You ok, Annie?" Marinette asked, causing Luka to sigh.

 "Hawkmoth has never akumatized so many people in one go. The amount of akumas was... worrying to say the least and he looked different..." He frowned, thinking about it. He called the akumas scarlet akumas and he was referring to himself as Scarlet akumas. Not just that but the amount of them was well in the hundreds. "Something's changed,"

 "He must have worked out how to boost his powers," She sighed, thinking. "Just like we did. Though I don't think he did it with magical food or potions.... Annie?"

 "Do you still think we can win?" He asked, making her frown a little. He sounded small and so unsure of himself. Despite the fact that she couldn't see him, she knew he was holding his arms and looking down. She placed her hand on the wall as he let out a small sigh.

 "We can't give up hope," She declared, causing him to look at the wall. "People are relying on us,"

 "But our whole team crumbled," He sighed, looking down. "I failed to protect them..."

 "Annie, listen to me. You did not fail. Hawkmoth cheated and that's all there is to it," She stated in a firm voice. "As for a crumbled team... well, let's go back to what we know works. A duo! You and me against the world, Annie,"

 "Thank you, Kitten... I needed to hear that," He muttered, making her smile a little before they hear the sound of snarling and running. "They've found us,"

 "Time to make a quick escape," Marinette grinned before noticing the flowing water. "You like Water Rides, Annie?"

 "Don't forget to put your diving gear on," Luka replied, taking out a green macaron as they both ran towards the edge and dived off with their eyes closed. He threw it towards Tikki, who ate it as Marinette did the same with Plagg. "Tikki, power up!"

 "Plagg, Power up!" She shouted as they free-fell towards a pool of water. "Aqua Plagg, Claws out!"

 "Aqua Tikki, Spots on!" He shouted. They both transformed then hit the water. Once underneath, they opened their eyes and swam into a tunnel but Syren appeared to block their way, grinning. They heard a splash, causing them to look behind them as Animan in the form of a fish swam towards them. Anatis grinned as Syren charged at them. Lady Noir grinned back as she blocked Syren's attack. She knocked her weapon out of her hand and broke her bracelet as Anatis tied Animan up with his yoyo and broke the button on him before catching the akumas. Animan and Syren turned back into their civilian selves, causing Anatis and Lady Noir to give them their weapons so they could breathe before swimming off with them into the Seine.

 "It's gonna take a long of time to deakumatized these villains one by one," Lady Noir pointed out as they swam.

 "Which is exactly why we have to take on Hawkmoth directly," Anatis replied as they swam. "I think his cane is the source of his power up. I'm not sure how he did it but if we can destroy it, it should revert him back to normal and free everyone from his control,"

 "Good plan but we can't do it from the water," Lady Noir pointed out as they both swam up and jumped out of the water, landing on the ground as they transformed back into their normal forms. As soon as they did, Timebreaker skated towards them, holding her hand out. However, Anatis clocked her before she could get them and broke her skates again, capturing her akuma before jumping to the bridge in front of the Eiffel Tower, causing Hawkmoth to glare at him. Ondine and Otis ran off as Anatis faced Hawkmoth with Lady Noir stood next to him, holding her baton behind her back.

 "Hey, Hawkmoth! You're not gonna wanna miss what happens next! Time to show everyone that the real Anatis and Lady Noir are back!" He yelled out before taking out his yoyo. He pressed it open and threw it up in the sky, releasing all the purified butterflies he captured and causing a white beam of light to escape from it. Almost instantly, he could feel the change in the city's song and smirked as he closed his yoyo, knowing Hawkmoth could feel it too. "You feel that, Hawkmoth?! It's called Hope!"

 "No more escaping for you, Knaves!" Dark Blade called out, causing Anatis and Lady Noir to face him and his army. "Down with the enemy!"

 "Time for a little detour, kitten," Anatis suggested as they began to back away.

 "Couldn't agree more, Annie," Lady Noir nodded before they ran off, causing the akuma army to follow them as they ran as fast as they could through the streets of Paris, trying to avoid the akumas that followed them. The ones from the sewers climbed out and joined the hunt. Lady Noir looked at him as they ran. "Got any ideas?"

 "Besides running and surviving?" He asked, glancing at her before they both look ahead and saw a barricade of cars and a bus. The two of them jumped over it, rolling as they landed before noticing those behind it. Both heroes blinked as none of other then Nora Cesaire climbed onto the bus and lifted a broom up. Chloe and Nathaniel joined her, along with Tom, Sabine and Gina. Alya's mother was there too as was Anarka, Tomoe and a number of others. 

 "Parisians!" Nora shouted, getting their attention. "We can be heroes just for one day!!"

 "What?! A revolution!" Dark Blade yelled before pointing his blade towards them. "Charge!"

 "Charge!" Chloe shouted back, causing the Parisians to run into battle. A number of them grabbed the akumatized heroes from windows as Gina moved over to them, along with Anarka and Marlena Cesaire before helping the heroes to their feet.

 "Are you two ok?" Anarka asked, causing Anatis to nod. 

 "It's awesome seeing you two again," Marlena grinned, clearly happy to see them as Gina placed her hand on Lady Noir's shoulder.

 "Parisians are all on your side,"

 "We're slow them down, Lad," Anarka grinned, clearly thriving in the chaos. "You two go save the world!"

 "Leave the akumas to us," Gina grinned, causing Anatis to smile.

 "You guys are amazing," He gasped as Lady Noir nodded.

 "Thank you so much," She added as the two of them turned and ran off before jumping onto the rooftops. They came to a stop as the giant akumas arrived but the Parisians distracted them too, giving Anatis and Lady Noir a chance to get to the Eiffel tower. The two of them worked together against Glaciator and Gamer, causing them to take out each other before they jumped up and landed on the Eiffel Tower, rushing over to where Hawkmoth was standing, causing him to gasp as he turned around. Lady Noir held out her baton as Anatis spun his yoyo.

 "It's just us three, Hawkmoth," He declared, causing Lady Noir to summon her cataclysm before he threw up his yoyo and summoned his lucky charm. He caught the little box and opened it before glancing at Hawkmoth, stopping as he got a shiver. This was too easy but he knew he couldn't let Hawkmoth catch on. He lifted his arm in front of him so the box reflected what was behind him before grinning. "It's a sign, Hawkmoth. That your miraculous will end up in this box,"

 "Are you sure you're not making a mistake?" Hawkmoth asked. "How do you know that my wish wouldn't be beneficial for everyone?"

 "Hm! I doubt that!" Lady Noir gasped as Anatis stepped forward. He moved his hand behind his back and pointed to his shadow. 

 "Even if it was, there would be a price," Anatis shouted, hoping Lady Noir got when he meant. Using the box, he saw her glance downwards towards Hawkmoth's feet. "Why don't you tell us your wish, Hawkmoth?"

 "Give me your miraculous and find out," He replied as Lady Noir flicked her hair in a way that made it look like a nod. Anatis hid his smirk. "Unlike you, I'm not afraid to use these powers. Since you're so good, why did you never bother to change the world for the better?"

 "We are changing it... by our actions..." Anatis stated, making Hawkmoth frown. "Instead of just wishing for it or taking advantage of innocent people,"

 They moved forward to him as Anatis held out his hand with the box so he could still see behind him.

 "But it's not too late.... you can fight for good with us," He stated as the real Hawkmoth climbed behind them with two akumas in his hand. Anatis placed his hand on his yoyo, waiting til he released the akumas. "Now!"

 Lady Noir destroyed the Hawkmoth illusion and blocked Dark Cupid's arrows as Anatis captured the two akumas. She threw her baton at Dark Cupid, breaking the button on his chest. The akuma escaped and Anatis captured it, returning Dark Cupid back to Kim before he caught him with his yoyo and lowered him to the floor before the heroes faced Hawkmoth. 

 "No!" Hawkmoth growled.

 "You're such a coward," Anatis growled. "But did you really think we were stupid enough to fall for that?!"

 "No where to hide now," Lady Noir smirked as Hawkmoth growled. The two heroes charged at him and began to fight him. Anatis blocked his attack with his yoyo before he knocked him back. Lady Noir instantly took over, using her baton like a bo staff and attacking him relentlessly, annoying Hawkmoth until he got annoyed enough to try and beat her with his cane. Seeing his chance, Anatis threw his yoyo and snatched his cane out of his hand as Lady Noir flipped over to him. Hawkmoth charged at him but Anatis threw to Lady Noir, who caught it with her charged hand, destroying it. Hawkmoth returned back to his normal form as a number of white butterflies fluttered away. "As Annie said... it's over!"

 "Alright, Kids," Hawkmoth growled with a look of determination on his face before he got into a fighting stance and held up his fists. "Watch what a man who has nothing to lose can do,"

 The two heroes charged at him as he ran towards them, fighting him as best as they could but Hawkmoth was so much stronger then they were. He used his limbs and height to his advantage, beating them as he did until he knocked them onto the floor. Anatis tried to push himself up as Lady Noir's ring beeped. Hawkmoth smirked as he walked towards them.

 "You're never going to win," He declared, walking towards them. "You're still so green, young heroes. You can't even stay transformed after you use your powers!"

 He went to grab Lady Noir but before he could, Anatis slammed his foot into him, knocking him back before he got up, surprising Hawkmoth as he held up his arms in a strange position, similar to a snake.

 "Annie..." Lady Noir gasped as he stood in front of her. 

 "I'm not done yet," He snarled, making Hawkmoth smirk before charging at him. To his surprise, Anatis managed to hold his own, using his hands to hit Hawkmoth with powerful jabs but gradually Hawkmoth got the upper hand, knocking him back. Hawkmoth smirked and lifted his arms to beat the knocked down heroes but he went flying when a shield was thrown into him. Leatherback jumped with the other heroes and caught it, allowing Anatis and Lady Noir to jump. Anatis threw his yoyo around, creating a net around the Eiffel Tower that trapped Hawkmoth. Ryuko clicked her fingers as the seven of them stalked towards Hawkmoth. Abeille held up her spintop and called upon her power, ready to sting him as he backed up. "It's over, Hawkmoth,"

 However, a blue mask suddenly appeared around his eyes, causing his expression to change to one of genuine surprise. Anatis frowned deeply as they moved closer.

 "No, don't do that!" Hawkmoth suddenly gasped, making everyone confused. Who was he talking to? The mask disappeared and he sunk to his knees, apparently admitting defeat. Anatis took another step forward but as he did, a giant moth suddenly appeared, causing the heroes to gasp before it began to flap it's wings, causing a gush of wind that sent the heroes flying. Anatis tried his best to hold onto his yoyo as he grabbed Lady Noir's hand, stopping her from been blown away.

 "What is that monster?!" He gasped as his yoyo's string up wrapped, sending him flying. He threw his yoyo and wrapped it around the moth's tail, pulling himself and Lady Noir towards it so they could attack but it vanished as soon as they got near. They landed on the Eiffel Tower and looked around as the others returned. Anatis moved over to the broken cane as a darkened feather escaped it but as it fluttered away, it turned back to white. Lady Noir walked over and looked up at it as the others looked around for Hawkmoth.

 "A feather?" She questioned as he frowned before his eyes widen. 

 "Master Fu mentioned that the Butterfly Miraculous wasn't the only lost miraculous," He muttered, making her look at him. "There's another one... the Peacock and I think we just saw it's power,"

 "Anatis, Hawkmoth is gone," Culpeo stated, making the team move over and look around.

 "He must of have escaped when that monster appeared," Lady Noir sighed before they moved over to the broken cane. Abeille leaned down and picked it up as Aspik and Ryuko frowned deeply. 

 "The timing of that monster was too good," Ryuko muttered, frowning.

 "But where did it come from?" Aspik asked, getting a nod of the rest of the team.

 "Another miraculous holder," Anatis answered, standing next to them. "Which means Hawkmoth is no longer working alone. He had help from the owner of the Peacock miraculous,"

 "Well, maybe this can help us track him," Lady Noir muttered, taking the cane from Abeille but it disappeared, making them all gasp.

 "There goes our chance at tracking him," Leatherback frowned as Anatis sighed.

 "He must have detransformed," He muttered as his earrings beeped along with Lady Noir's ring. "We've gotta split, guys... but first..."

 He held up the box and threw it into the air.

 "Miraculous Ladybugs!" He shouted, causing it to burst into the magical swarm and fix everything before the heroes headed back into the city. Leatherback, Abeille and Culpeo followed Anatis while Ryuko and Aspik followed Lady Noir. Landing back on the school roof, Anatis jumped down, followed by Leatherback who detransformed and gave back the bracelet after saying goodbye to Wayzz. Anatis thanked him before jumping up to the roof, where Abeille and Culpeo were waiting. They detransformed and said goodbye to their kwamis before handing back the miraculous. Anatis thanked them before swinging off into the city back to Master Fu, briefly de-transforming on his way there. Meanwhile, Lady Noir dropped off Ryuko and Aspik at Kagami's house. The two of them detransformed and said goodbye to their kwamis before handing her the jewels without hesitation. 

 "Thank you for your help, you two," Lady Noir smiled.

 "Thank you for trusting us," Kagami replied, bowing a little before her ring beeped again. "Send my best to Anatis,"

 "I will," Lady Noir nodded before jumping off into the city. She briefly found somewhere to hide before her transformation dropped. Taking out some cheese, she threw it towards Plagg and headed to Master Fu's place. Arriving there, she re-transformed and entered through the open window, smiling as Anatis placed the fox and bee back in the box. She moved next to him and placed the dragon and the snake back, allowing Master Fu to close the box and lock it away.

 "You both did very well today," He stated as he moved over to them. "But I sense something is troubling you, Anatis. Would it help to share what's on your mind?"

 "The owner of the peacock miraculous helped Hawkmoth escape..." He muttered, frowning. "And I feel like Hawkmoth was planning this... I think Princess Justice was his inspiration for this attack... since she was arguably one of his most successful and intelligent akumas, he took her plan and evolved it... he was calling himself Scarlet Moth and had amplified his own powers... it was concerning..."

 "Yes, it does seem that way," Master Fu agreed, making both heroes frown. "We were lucky that she did not make an appearance though... however, I think you two have earnt a well deserved rest. Go and celebrate this victory. It is heroes' day after all,"

 "That's a good idea," Anatis nodded before getting up. "I have something I need to do,"

 ~After the Heroes Day Parade~

 Marinette frowned to herself as she walked towards the park. She wasn't sure why but Alya asked her to meet her there at 7 pm, despite the fact that she told pretty much everyone that she couldn't do the party. Alya also insisted she bring a box of macarons. Luckily, because of the time, she was able to make some from scratch and these ones didn't burn. She saw Alya stood outside and waved towards her, getting her attention. Alya rushed over and smiled.

 "Did you bring the macarons?" She asked, confusing her but she nodded. "Good! Right, close your eyes!"

 "Uh.." She blinked. "Alright?"

 She closed her eyes and allowed Alya to lead her into the park. She frowned as she felt Alya leave her side, making her nervous.

 "Ok! Open your eyes!" Alya gasped, causing her to open them. She gasped as she took in the scene in front of her. Fairylights had been put up and tables had been set up. All kinds of food covered them and there were several picnic blankets with people on. Everyone who she had invited were there and it was exactly how she imagined it. Tears filled her eyes a little as she looked around.

 "Oh my gosh..." She gasped. "But... I don't understand.... I cancelled the picnic because I couldn't provide the food I promised,"

 "We know," Kagami stated as she walked over, holding a tray of food. "Which is why we all brought a dish each,"

 "You're always helping people," Rose gasped as Juleka nodded. 

 "Like when you helped me with my photo curse," She muttered, pushing her hair out of the way as Nathaniel and Marc came over.

 "Or when you helped me and Marc meet so we could create a comic book,"

 "Or the time when you helped me escape so I could see my mother on the big screen," Adrien piped up as she looked around. "That's why we all jumped at the chance to help you. You do some much for us so today it was our turn to help you,"

 "B-But... I still don't understand..." She gasped, confused. She was sure she cancelled the picnic. "Not that I'm not grateful... cause I am but I definitely cancelled the picnic so who asked you all to help?"

 "I did," Luka stated, making her turn around in surprise as he walked over. "That's why I was looking at my phone all lunch,"

 "Y-You did this for me?" She asked, tears appearing in her eyes as he nodded. She suddenly hugged him, causing him to stumble back a little as he caught her. "Thank you so much,"

 "It's fine," He muttered as he rubbed the back of his neck. "It's heroes day so this is the least I could do,"

 "You're my hero, Luka," She muttered, causing him to blush before she kissed his cheek and looked at him before the two of them joined the rest.

 ~Later that Night~

 "Hey, Annie," Lady Noir grinned as she joined him. He was sat on a rooftop, writing down something down. "What ya doing?"

 "Working out a code," He muttered, looking up at her as she sat down next to him before he handed her the note pad. He had written down several colour codes on there. Each one corresponded to a threat level. The lowest threat was Code Gray for weak akumas like Mr Pigeon. Code Black were for akumas like Lady Wifi. Code Yellow is for akumatized miraculous holders that weren't them. Code Orange was literally reserved for Volpina. Code Blue was for the peacock holder and Code Purple was for Hawkmoth. "I'll be adding more as time goes on but what do you think so far?"

 "It works but what's Code Red?" She asked, making him frown a little.

 "It's the warning if I'm ever akumatized..." He muttered, making her look at him. "The list isn't finished yet but I think it helps to have codes. That way we can prepare... speaking of preparing... I think we should train the newbies and look into calming techniques,"

 "That's a good idea," She nods before looking at him. "You are ok right?"

 "Yeah, I'm good, Kitten," He smiled, placing the notepad in his yoyo. "Are you?"

 "Yup,"

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

Next Chapter: https://ultra-sassyduck.tumblr.com/post/638625574156419072/miraculous-rise-of-anatis-41

[mikauzoran]

Marichat/Adrienette: Serendipity: Fifty Marichat and Adrienette Kisses: Kiss Thirty-Eight

Read it on AO3: Serendipity: Fifty Marichat and Adrienette Kisses: ...because they’re running out of time.

It was bad.

It had been an honest mistake, a simple oversight, but Marinette was now regretting it immensely as an akumatized Adrien fangirl tore the roof off the Gabriel warehouse where Marinette was doing her summer internship like the lid of a soup can.

Two days previously, Chat Noir had rescued Marinette when she got caught in the crossfire of the latest Gabriel Agreste-caused akuma attack. Unthinkingly, Marinette had rung his bell, called him her hero in a flirty, saccharine tone, and kissed him on the cheek.

One of the other interns (Marinette’s rival Benoit) had gotten it all on tape as he took cover behind a clothes rack and posted the video online, the sniveling coward.

Of course, Adrien’s rabid fans were now calling for Marinette’s head on a platter despite Adrien’s insistences that Marinette was not cheating on him.

Clearly this fangirl was a little slow on the uptake if she’d only found out about and gotten akumatized over the quote-unquote “scandal” just then.

“You!” the akuma (Marinette hadn’t gotten her name yet) shrieked like a banshee as she pointed threateningly at Marinette, flapping her harpy-like wings as she slowly descended. “I’ll show you, you little hussy! The penalty for breaking Adrien’s heart is death!”

Marinette groaned, standing her ground and letting herself be a sitting duck to keep the akuma’s attention while the rest of her coworkers fled to safety.

“News flash!” Chat Noir growled as he leapt through the hole in the roof the fury had created, bashing the akuma over the head with his baton like a baseball bat on his way down.

He landed in a crouch in front of Marinette, putting himself between her and the monster. “Adrien’s heart isn’t broken, and he’s pissed that you’re harassing his girlfriend,” Chat snapped as he rose to his full height, teeth bared.

Marinette mentally noted that her boyfriend was really hot when he was worked up over protecting her.

The fury recovered from Chat’s little love-tap faster than expected, hissing like a feral cat as she dropped to the ground, denting the warehouse floor with her clawed, bird-like feet.

“You and your lover will die!” the akuma screeched, pulling a cartoonish gun-apparatus off her shoulder holster and firing it at them.

Acting on instinct, Chat dove at Marinette, pushing her to the ground.

Unfortunately, it was a net gun, and the resulting net got a two-for-one special, trapping both Marinette and Chat Noir in one shot.

The harpy akuma cackled, slowly advancing on her prey. “I will sacrifice you both to Adrien, and then he will realize his love for me!”

“Hate to break it to you,” Chat grumbled as he and Marinette struggled to free themselves and only wound up making it worse. “but Adrien’s ninety percent vegetarian, and he frowns on human sacrifice.”

Checking to make sure Marinette was clear of his right hand, Chat shouted, “Cataclysm!”, and the rope trapping them dissolved away.

“Run!” Marinette yelped, half pulling him to his feet as they took off.

The akuma screamed in anger, folding her wings and giving chase much faster than a bird of prey that large should have been able to on land.

“We need somewhere you can hide while I lead her away,” Chat panted as they raced down evacuated hallways.

“Storage closet,” Marinette agreed, spinning on her heel and going back three doors to where they kept bolts of the three dozen hues of chiffon regularly used at Gabriel.

Just as Marinette managed to yank open the storage room door, the fury rounded the corner and shrieked, “There you are!”

She dove at them, snatching them up in her talons and tossing them into the closet together.

They landed with a thud, bolts of fabric raining down around them.

“Stay put,” the akuma commanded, shutting them in and piling debris up outside the door to make sure that they couldn’t escape. “I have to go get Adrien so he can watch your demise.”

And, with that, the girl flew off to find her idol, certain that her prey would still be right where she’d left them when she returned.

“Marinette? Are you okay? Did she hurt you?” Chat called desperately as he dug himself out of the fabric pile.

“I’m good,” Marinette groaned, shoving the blots of chiffon off of herself. “I’m probably going to be nursing some bruises later, but nothing’s broken or bleeding.”

Chat sighed in relief as he made his way over to her, helping to clear away the last of the fabric before assisting her to her feet. “Thank goodness,” he whispered, pulling her in for a gentle hug. “I kind of flipped when I saw that harpy monster on the news announcing her manifesto to put you to death.”

“My phone is in my purse in my locker, so I didn’t hear the akuma alert,” Marinette sighed, thinking, not for the first time, that she needed to come up with a way to stay on top of akuma notices even while at work because this was becoming a problem.

“I’m just glad you’re safe,” he sighed, nuzzling her hair. “I was really scared.”

He shuddered even as he held her. His first thought had been of Marinette’s lifeless body being presented to him by the akuma, and that was quickly followed up by the terrifying thought that if Marinette was gone, there would be no Ladybug to restore her to him.

“You’re still freaking out, aren’t you?” Marinette realized, wrapping her arms around him tighter and nuzzling him back.

He nodded. “I couldn’t live without you. It would break me.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” she promised. “We’re going to get out of here, and then you and Ladybug are going to purify the akuma. Everything is going to be fine.”

He took a deep inhale of her scent, letting it calm him.

“Right,” he breathed. “You’re right. Everything’s going to be fine.”

She held him a little longer until his breathing evened out, and then she pulled back, giving him an encouraging smile. “Are you ready to get us out of here, My Love?”

He returned her smile weakly and nodded. “On it.”

“I’m honestly worried about Adrien,” Marinette sighed as Chat Noir squared off against the door. “He’s probably going out of his mind worrying about the both of us. You and Ladybug need to stop Harpy Lady before she abducts poor Adrien.”

“Won’t be a problem,” Chat assured, raising his right hand and calling out, “Cataclysm!”

Nothing happened.

Marinette and Chat frowned in tandem.

“Not enough juice for a second Cataclysm today?” Marinette hummed.

Frankly, she was impressed with how his abilities had grown over the years. It was a little unpredictable, and it changed from one fight to the next, but sometimes he could get off two or three Cataclysms before having to detransform, and the five-minute timer no longer seemed to apply to him.

Ladybug’s powers, on the other hand, hadn’t seemed to improve or grow at all. She still got one Lucky Charm and then detransformed five minutes later.

She’d asked Tikki about it, but that hadn’t gotten them anywhere. Tikki thought maybe Marinette’s stress was limiting her growth.

Marinette couldn’t bring herself to be amused by the irony.

Chat Noir’s ring began to beep in warning, causing the hero to groan. “Plagg, it hasn’t even been ten minutes. What the heck?”

“Has he not been feeling well?” Marinette inquired, a deep frown of concern etching itself into her brow.

Chat shook his head. “He’s been his same old annoying, cheese-eating self. I don’t know. Maybe I’m the problem. I am kind of off my game because an akuma is trying to kill the woman I love.”

Marinette grinned, stepping in to give him a sweet kiss on the cheek. “Aww. That’s kind of romantic.”

“It’s kind of annoying,” he laughed self-deprecatingly. “Unfortunately, this is my reality.”

She stepped back with an affectionate smile and turned to face away from him, closing her eyes and covering them with her hands. “Go ahead and detransform. I won’t look while Plagg recharges.”

He pressed his lips together, considering as his ring gave another beep.

“I promise I’ll keep my eyes shut,” she insisted, misinterpreting the cause of his hesitation.

He dropped his transformation and tossed Plagg a piece of Camembert.

Taking a deep breath, he stepped in, wrapping his arms around his girlfriend from behind.

She jumped, startled at the contact at first, but then settled back against him, enjoying the feeling of his bare skin on hers. She usually only got so much skin-on-skin contact during intimate moments, and the sensation now lit little flickers in her stomach.

“I love you,” he whispered into her shoulder, pressing kisses like a flower chain up her neck.

“Love you too,” she giggled, hoping Plagg would take his time with the cheese.

“Marinette?” he called tentatively.

“Hm?”

“I love you, and I can’t keep doing this anymore,” he confessed, making her suddenly go rigid as all of the happy, warm feelings vanished.

She swallowed hard. “W-What do you mean?”

“Keeping secrets from you. Lying to you,” he explained, nuzzling her neck and pulling her closer, his hand on her stomach.

“What exactly are you lying about?” she found the words to ask even as they stuck in her throat.

“Who I am,” he sighed. “I can’t do it anymore. I need you to open your eyes and look at me. I need you to know who I am because we’ve been dating a year and a half, and I’ve let this farce go on far too long.”

“Chat Noir, no,” she stressed, pressing the heels of her hands harder to her face. “I can’t know. We’ve been over this many, many times. It’s not safe while Papillon is still at large.”

“Marinette, all the things you’re afraid of aren’t going to happen,” he sighed in frustration. “I know you’re scared, and I’m not saying your fears are unfounded, but…Papillon doesn’t seem to be going away any time soon, and I cannot keep up this act for another month, let alone another year or more. I’ve always respected your wishes because I didn’t want to force this huge burden on you without your consent…but we’ve passed the point of ridiculousness, and I need you to know now. I can’t hide this any longer. I won’t.”

“Minou, don’t be unreasonable,” Marinette coaxed. “I…It’s not safe.”

He turned her around to face him and rested his hands on her shoulders. “Open your eyes and look at me, or I’m breaking up with you.”

Her body gave a jerk, and her mouth fell open in a silent gasp of shock at his harsh words and no-nonsense tone.

“Please,” he returned to pleading, taking her hands and gently pulling them from her still-closed eyes. “Please,” he whispered against her lips, giving them a desperate kiss.

“Please,” he repeated in a tearful, strained voice, getting down on his knees, pressing his face to her stomach and giving it a nuzzle. “Please, look at me.”

He sat back on his heels, looking up at her plaintively, giving her hands an entreating squeeze. “Please, Marinette?”

Her lips were quivering as tears slowly trickled down her cheeks. Her hands too were shaking even as he held them.

Gradually, her eyelids did part, and her gaze came to rest squarely on Adrien Agreste, a supplicant mess at her feet.

She pulled back, falling over backwards as her hands went to cover her mouth.

“A-Adrien?!”

“I’m so sorry,” he rushed to get out. “You didn’t want me to tell you, and then things got so messed up that I didn’t know how to tell you. I’m sorry, Marinette. I’m so, so sorry.”

But she didn’t hear him. She was too busy panicking and shaking her head and trying to come up with reasons why what she was seeing couldn’t be true.

“—No,” she finally responded, cutting him off as he babbled apologies and tried to explain himself. “No,” she laughed just on the right side of maniacal. “I’ve seen you two together. I’ve made out with the both of you. I’ve seen the both of you making out with each other!” she accused, desperate to keep her understanding of reality in one piece.

He shook his head and replied in a very small, brittle voice, “Fox Miraculous.”

She blinked at him, not comprehending.

He gulped and tried again. “I used the Fox Miraculous to create a doppelgänger.”

She stared at him, hurt and betrayal flooding her senses. “You…used the Fox Miraculous…on me?”

Adrien visibly shrank, his shoulders rising up to his ears as he responded with the smallest, most timid of nods. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know what to do. I…” He trailed off as she shook her head, her eyes cutting into him with the depth of their hurt and anger.

“How could you?” she asked quietly, calmly, leaving him wishing that she would just yell and get it over with.

He had nothing to say for himself.

He didn’t think she’d react well to “How could I not?” or “What else was I supposed to do?”

So he didn’t say anything. He just sat there, looking at her penitently, waiting for her to get to the part where she forgave him and told him it was okay. He waited for her to say she still loved him.

He wondered if he should say it first.

That didn’t feel right, though. He knew he still loved her, but he wasn’t so sure that she still loved him. He wasn’t good at fights. When his parents fought, they sometimes didn’t speak for days or weeks afterwards. Adrien had never gotten to see how those fights were resolved, how couples made up.

When Adrien got in trouble with his father, the usual protocol was for Adrien to stand still and take whatever verbal abuse his father threw at him until Adrien was dismissed.

He wondered if that’s what he was supposed to do now. Though Marinette seemed to be done talking. She seemed to be waiting for Adrien to say something.

Adrien had no idea what that something was. He didn’t usually get a turn to speak when his father took him to task.

He’d seen Alya and Nino argue about little things from time to time. They usually apologized, kissed, and made up…but Marinette didn’t look like she wanted a kiss.

“Well?” she asked, voice emotionless…like his father’s.

Marinette wasn’t supposed to make him feel like his father did.

Adrien looked for Plagg, hoping his kwami might offer some assistance, but Plagg was nowhere to be seen.

Adrien was on his own, feeling very tiny, stupid, and not good enough.

“I’m…sorry,” he tried miserably. “I love you.”

She stared back at him and sighed, shaking her head as she got to her feet.

Was she breaking up with him? Did her shaking her head mean that she didn’t love him?

The only thing he truly understood was the disappointment on her face. He was very, very familiar with disappointment.

“We’re wasting time,” she decreed, scrubbing at her face with her hands. “I’m sorry. We’ll have to talk about this later. I’ll come over to your apartment. Right now, there’s an akuma to fight, and you need to get us out of here.”

“R-Right,” he readily agreed, pushing himself up on shaky legs.

He tried to focus on the task at hand and not let himself think about losing Marinette’s love forever.

“Plagg?” he called, uncertainly.

The little deity flew out from behind a stack of chiffon and came up to nuzzle Adrien’s cheek.

The affectionate gesture almost made Adrien cry, it meant so much to him.

“Thanks,” he whispered in heartfelt appreciation before calling on his transformation.

Once the storage closet door and the pile of rubble blocking it was Cataclysmed away, Marinette was on the move, tossing an, “I’m going to find somewhere safe to hide. I’ll drop by your apartment after the attack,” over her shoulder as she went.

He tried to tell himself that her cold, distant behaviour was the result of shock. She was dealing with a lot of emotions, and maybe springing a reveal on her during an akuma attack where the akuma was trying to kill her hadn’t been the best timing.

He tried to tell himself that it wasn’t him. It was just Marinette panicking because that’s what Marinette did.

Somehow, those thoughts didn’t make him feel any less miserable.

 The akuma was purified, and, while that was all that truly mattered at the end of the day, the battle had been a clown fiesta that surely left Paris wondering what was wrong with its heroes.

They were a mess. Chat Noir and Ladybug were horribly out of sync, tripping each other up, misreading signals, and getting thrown all over one another by the harpy lady.

Everyone was just happy that they’d somehow pulled it off regardless.

No fist bumps were exchanged at the end of the battle.

This was a little disheartening because Adrien took it to mean that Marinette was so upset with him that she’d forgotten or didn’t care that Ladybug shouldn’t be behaving coldly toward Chat Noir because he wasn’t supposed to know that Marinette and Ladybug were the same person.

 Adrien collapsed on his bed, arms spread wide as he let out a long, bone-weary sigh. “Today is the worst.”

Plagg came over and settled on Adrien’s chest, giving his ward a nuzzle and a comforting purr. “At least nobody died,” he offered.

Adrien groaned, throwing an arm over his face as tears began to leak from the corners of his eyes. “I’m such an idiot.”

Trixx poked his head out of Adrien’s right shoulder and flew up to stroke Adrien’s hair. “You’re not an idiot,” he cooed, trying to be helpful.

Usually he left these kinds of interactions to Plagg who knew Adrien better and was, therefore, better suited to providing comfort. Today’s confrontation with Marinette in the storage closet had been particularly intense, though. Trixx could feel the way Adrien’s body had shaken and tensed and braced to be struck. Trixx could smell the stress hormones Adrien gave off, and he could tell that his holder needed more comfort than usual.

“I’m sorry Plagg and I didn’t give you the best guidance,” he whispered his regret. “We didn’t help you handle the situation well.”

Plagg snorted, stopping mid-nuzzle to look up and glare at Trixx. “We didn’t do anything wrong. This is all on Tikki. It’s her fault for filling her girl’s head so full of horror stories of identity reveals that went wrong in the past. It’s Tikki’s fault we got to this point. She knew Adrien and Chat Noir were the same person. She should have said something, told her girl it was okay to lighten up.”

Trixx couldn’t help but think that it was rather ungenerous of him to throw his other half under the bus like that. He would have thought that Plagg would show more loyalty to Tikki. On the other hand, Plagg’s kitten was suffering and had been suffering for quite some time, as the Adrichat charade had been going on for about a year at that point.

Plagg turned back to Adrien, insisting, “Kid, you know this isn’t your fault, right? You didn’t do anything wrong.”

“I didn’t really do anything right either,” Adrien mumbled despondently.

Trixx kept petting Adrien’s hair in the absence of anything more helpful to do.

“Don’t beat yourself up,” Plagg coaxed.

Adrien only sighed in response. “…Are we broken up now, do you think? I’m not good at fights. That felt like a pretty big fight.”

“That’s not what I took away from the encounter,” Trixx offered, mentally crossing his fingers that his understanding of human interactions aligned with the reality of the situation.

“Kid, no,” Plagg assured, going back to nuzzling. “She’s just upset. She’s not dumping you. She said she’d be by to talk it over later, so—”

“—So she can dump me officially?” Adrien groaned.

“I believe this is what that therapist person we saw the other day referred to as the cognitive distortion of ‘catastrophizing’,” Trixx remarked, trying to be helpful.

“What the fox said,” Plagg seconded. “You’re doing that catastrophe thing. Stop that and go into your talk with your girlfriend with an open mind. Maybe she’ll scream at Tikki first and get all of her anger worked out before she comes here, so she’ll be able to think clearly and see that this is all her own fault.”

Adrien took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Yeah,” he replied half-heartedly. “Maybe.”

He felt bad for hoping that Marinette yelled at Tikki because, deep down, he knew he was in the wrong too, but he had a feeling that Tikki could withstand Marinette’s anger better than Adrien could.

“Just try to stay calm,” Trixx coached. “We’ll deal with whatever happens when it happens, so there’s no point in worrying about it now.”

“Okay,” Adrien mumbled, trying to focus on his breathing and the comforting caresses of his kwamis.

 Adrien woke to muffled voices coming from the main room about two hours later. Trixx was still curled up beside him, his head resting on Adrien’s shoulder, but Plagg was nowhere to be seen.

Adrien wiped the crusty debris from the corners of his eyes and sat up, trying to make out to whom the voices belonged. He rolled off the bed and onto his feet, going to investigate.

He found Plagg and Marinette in the main room of the apartment, hissing at each other in hushed tones.

Her complexion was splotchy, and her eyes were red. She looked a mess, but his heart still leapt for her.

Sensing their audience, Plagg and Marinette looked to where Adrien stood in the bedroom doorway, and Marinette’s eyes lit up.

“Adrien,” she breathed, rushing to his side, wrapping her arms around him, and squeezing him tight.

Reflexively, he untensed, settling into her embrace and dropping his head to rest on hers, his face buried in her hair.

“I’m sorry,” she stressed into his chest. “I’m so sorry. I’m not breaking up with you. Ever.”

“O-Oh,” he choked, beginning to tremble as an overwhelming wave of emotions washed over him. “Good,” he managed.

“Come here,” she coaxed, tugging him to the couch so that they could sit before their legs gave out.

She pulled back to look him in the eyes, gingerly cupping his face in her hands. “I’m sorry for how I reacted before. I was really upset, and there was a lot going on. There was a lot to think about and digest, and…” She shook her head. “I’m hurt and I’m angry and I’m still upset, but I will always love you, even when I want to scream at you and slap you silly, okay? I can be mad and still love you at the same time, all right? Plagg wasn’t sure if you knew that, so I wanted to make certain we were clear on that point.”

Adrien had to swallow and take several deep breaths before he was able to reply. “…I wasn’t sure,” he admitted. “I’m not good at fights. I don’t know how this works.”

She nodded, stroking his face and petting his hair. “That’s okay. I know you haven’t always had the best examples in your life, so… When my parents fight, things can get ugly. Sometimes they say things they don’t really mean. I think everyone does that. The important thing is that once they cool down, they sit down and talk about what happened and what they were thinking and feeling, and they work together to fix the problem that started the fight. They say sorry, and they remind one another how important they are to each other, and then they try to learn from the experience and not make the same mistakes again. Ideally, that’s how it’s supposed to work,” she explained.

“So…” He frowned as he tried to wrap his head around this new information. “You said sorry and that you still love me. I said sorry earlier. Does that count, or do I need to say it again now?”

Marinette grimaced and had to remind herself that he was struggling to grasp this new concept, so she needed to be patient.

“It’s not quite so formulaic as that,” she informed gently. “Those were more guidelines than a script, but…Plagg told me how torn up you’ve been about keeping secrets from me and how hard it’s been for you not being able to tell me who you were, so…I know you’re sorry. That’s the important part. I believe you’re sorry, so you don’t have to say it again.”

He nodded, tentatively, still not quite sure of his footing. “So…you forgive me? Are we done fighting?”

She bit her lip, dropping her hands from his face to his palms as she looked away. “Yes and no. I’m still…feeling things. This is a lot to process, and I’m still mad and hurt and upset, so…I need some time,” she confessed, looking back up at him imploringly.

He averted his eyes, shoulders inching up towards his ears as he began to curl in on himself defensively.

“Okay,” he mumbled, even though her answer wasn’t the one he’d wanted to hear.

“It’s going to take a while for me to sort through things in my head,” she explained. “I still love you, and I still want to be with you, but…you lied to me.”

He flinched but didn’t bother saying anything to defend himself.

“Like…a huge lie. For a long time,” she stressed. “That isn’t something I’m just going to get over. It doesn’t feel good to be tricked and betrayed like that, Adrien, so it’s going to be a while before I’m able to forgive you. That doesn’t mean I don’t love you anymore, though,” she reiterated, wanting to make sure that he believed her. “Do you understand?”

He nodded, trying to make himself smaller so that he would, hopefully, shrink away and disappear.

This hurt worse than when his father scolded him. When he got in trouble with his father, it was usually for something Adrien had no control over. It hurt worse when he had actually done something wrong and knew his punishment was justified.

“But we’re going to get through this, okay?” She gave his hand a reassuring squeeze. “This is just a rough patch. We’re going to come out on the other side stronger.”

“Okay,” he whispered, trying to believe her.

It was hard because he had always been a screwup, and he didn’t anticipate that changing anytime soon. He would always disappoint her and make her question the trust she placed in him. He’d been doing it for five years now, and it made him wonder which time would be the final straw. He always felt like he was on the precipice of losing her forever.

When he tuned back in, at least a minute or two had passed, and Marinette was in the middle of saying, “…you ever thought this was a good idea. I just…I don’t understand. How could you trick me like that?”

She stopped talking and looked at him expectantly.

He looked up and blinked at her.

She frowned. “Adrien, are you listening to me?”

“I…” He gulped. “Sorry. I don’t usually get to say anything, so…”

Slowly, her left eyebrow drifted up toward her hairline. “When have I ever not let you talk?” she inquired in honest confusion.

“Not you. My father,” he informed. “When I’m in trouble and he’s yelling at me. I don’t usually get to say anything, so…” he trailed off again with a shrug.

Marinette stared at her boyfriend as a cold chill walked its fingers up her spine. “You feel like you’re in trouble and I’m yelling at you…like your father does.”

His shoulders rose back up to his ears, and his gaze cast around on the floor for something to look at instead of her. “That’s…yeah. I mean…it’s a little different because you said you loved me, and that…that doesn’t happen with my father, but…yeah. …You’d think I would get used to being told what a disappointment I was,” he chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

Marinette didn’t laugh. “…You’re not,” she stressed, taking one of his hands in both of hers and squeezing tight. “Just because I’m disappointed in something you did, that doesn’t make you a disappointment.”

Tentatively, he peeked up at her. “Is that anything like the saying, ‘You are not your failures’?”

She nodded enthusiastically. “Exactly. Just because you did something that disappointed me, that doesn’t make it a part of who you are. It was just…just a mistake. Human beings make those.”

“Even you?” he ventured softly.

“Especially me,” she agreed. “I’m sorry, Adrien. I wasn’t trying to make you feel bad; I just wanted to understand what had happened, but… What your father does to you is horrible, and I don’t want things to ever feel like that with me. Say something next time.”

Taking a deep breath and finally meeting her gaze, Adrien asked, “When we fight, afterwards, do I get to talk about what I’m thinking and feeling too?”

It hurt her that he even needed to ask.

She nodded, assuring, “I care very much about what you’re feeling and thinking.”

He blew out a long exhale. “Okay. So…I don’t get to make choices often. I mean, I do this past month now that I’ve moved out, but…my whole life, I’ve just kind of had to do what people tell me. This past month is the first time I’ve been able to pick what I wear or what I eat or what I do with my free time, so…thinking for myself and making decisions on my own is a bit of a foreign concept.”

She had known that on some subconscious level, but now that he spelled it out for her, it was horrifying in a whole new way how tightly controlled he had been.

“I know you said you still loved me, even though you were mad,” he continued uncertainly, “but…will you still love me if I’m mad at you?”

She blinked at him in surprise but nodded, assuring, “Of course…but…why would you be mad at me?”

He took a deep breath, gathering his courage. “Usually, when my father is scolding and punishing me, it’s for something that wasn’t my fault. Normally, I keep my head down and take it without protest because I have no control over the situation, no say in what happens to me…but…this relationship isn’t like that, is it?”

Slowly, she shook her head. “No. It’s not.”

He held her gaze as he continued shakily. “You’re not my father. You’re not unfair like that, and you care about what I have to say.”

She nodded vehemently.

“And it’s okay to fight with you because you’re not going to stop loving me,” he added and waited for her to confirm it, needing to be sure.

“Yes,” she promised, internally bracing herself, even as she squeezed his hand tighter.

“Okay,” he breathed out shakily. “In that case…Marinette, I’m kind of tired of always accepting the blame for things that aren’t my fault.”

Her eyebrows drew into a frown of confusion as she tried to parse his words for meaning.

“I’m not trying to say that I didn’t do anything wrong because I know I did,” he rushed to explain. “I never thought it was a good idea to pretend to be two different people. I never wanted to do that, and it wasn’t like it was all fun and games for me. I hated lying to you…but even though what I did was wrong, it wasn’t entirely my fault.”

She pursed her lips, trying to figure out what he meant, if he was trying to blame Plagg for giving him bad advice or what.

“Marinette,” he called imploringly, eyes wet with the start of another round of tears. “You didn’t give me a choice.”

Her mouth dropped open in stunned disbelief.

“What was I supposed to do?” he pleaded. “It all got really messy really fast right from the very beginning. I didn’t mean to fall in love with you as Chat Noir. I didn’t mean for us to get so close, but we did, and that wasn’t something I could give up. You have no clue how horrible it was in that deserted mansion all by myself, always feeling like an impulse buy my father deeply regretted but couldn’t return. I felt safe with you. Your house was always a happy, warm place, and you made me feel like I was worth something. I couldn’t keep away,” he explained, praying that she would understand even a little bit where he was coming from.

He shook his head. “I couldn’t stop coming as Chat Noir…and then I fell in love with you, but that day when I accidentally tried to kiss you as Adrien, you said there was someone else, and, I mean, that someone else turned out to be Chat Noir, so…I was just so overjoyed to have my feelings finally returned that I didn’t stop to think that it was stupid to date you as a masked superhero. I didn’t think,” he sighed, mentally kicking himself for the thousandth time. “And then I accidentally kissed you as Adrien, and you accidentally kissed me back, and…”

He pinned her with an intent gaze. “Remember how I tried to tell you who I was that night? After the kiss in the library with Adrien, I came over that night as Chat Noir, and I was going to tell you everything, but you wouldn’t let me. You said no, and I respected your choice because you were right; it is a really freaking big deal, and knowing my identity could potentially put you and the people you love in danger, and that wasn’t something I could force on you. I respected your choice. Was that wrong?”

He stopped, offering her space in which to speak.

She took a measured breath and blew it out slowly, confessing, “I don’t know. I wasn’t operating with all the facts. I don’t… I think…maybe you should have said something.”

“I tried,” he whined. “I dropped so many hints, Marinette. As things got further and further out of hand, I kept trying to tell you. You always said no, but I kept trying. I let so many things slip, hoping maybe you’d figure it out so you could stop beating yourself up about cheating on me, but… Marinette, I even asked you as Adrien, ‘What if I’m Chat Noir’. I tried.”

“…You…did, didn’t you?” she replied hollowly, image after image of him trying to tell her flashing before her eyes.

He nodded miserably. “The whole dating myself thing was purely idiotic, but I panicked, and I just wanted you to stop being so distraught over quote-unquote cheating on me when that was mostly my fault in the first place for not being able to keep my hands off of you as Adrien. I was stupid, and I messed up, but I was just trying to make you happy. I asked you again and again to let me tell you my identity, and you were aggressively against it…so I just let it go. When you wanted Chat Noir and Adrien in the same room, I figured out a way to make it happen, and that was that.”

He shrugged helplessly. “I was going to say that Chat and Adrien couldn’t find a time in their schedules that worked, but…you were so excited for the three of us to all get together,” he groaned. “I couldn’t let you down, and then when I asked Ladybug for the Fox Miraculous—”

Marinette paled, feeling incredibly stupid as she played the scene over in her mind.

“—I asked her if I could just tell you my identity, and she said no too, so…and then it just kept going for so long it felt like I couldn’t say anything anymore, but today… This has been eating me alive, Marinette,” he sighed, sounding every bit as exhausted as he looked. “I couldn’t do it anymore. I’m sorry. I knew I was in the wrong the whole time, but I didn’t know what else to do. Like I said, I’ve grown up my whole life with very little opportunity to think for myself and make decisions, so those are things I really struggle with. I’m sorry, and I’m working on it.”

“Oh, Adrien,” Marinette cooed, pulling him into her arms. “I’m sorry. I can see why you didn’t feel like you had a choice. I’m so, so sorry.”

She tipped her head up, pressing her lips gently to his.

He leaned into the kiss, his heart fluttering at the contact.

When they pulled back, he gave her a goofy smile. “I was so scared you’d never kiss me again.”

“I’m sorry I hurt you,” she sniffled, stroking his cheek lovingly.

“I’m sorry I lied and tricked you,” he answered, touching his forehead to hers.

“I’m actually really touched that you put that much time and effort into trying to make me happy,” she giggled through the tears leaking from the corners of her eyes.

He gently brushed them away with his thumb. “I’m glad that that’s worth something.”

“It’s worth a lot,” she assured. “You’re worth a lot.”

A light blush spread across his face, and he smiled, leaning in to press a kiss to the tip of her nose. “I really, really love you.”

“I really, really love you,” she responded with a giggle.

They pulled back just to look at one another, smiles pulling their mouths wide.

“…Hey,” Marinette remarked after nearly two minutes of gazing softly into one other’s eyes.

“Hm?” he hummed in answer.

“Have you eaten?”

Adrien frowned, trying to recall. “I…Maybe? I don’t remember.”

“He hasn’t!” Plagg and Trixx called out in unison from the arm of the couch where they were watching the scene develop.

Adrien blushed, looking away sheepishly. “Thanks, guys.”

“You’re welcome,” Plagg snickered.

Ignoring the kwami of destruction, Marinette forged ahead with her plan, “We should make dinner. How about I prep some salad for us while you brew two mugs of mint tea? Then we can snuggle on the couch while watching that one anime you mentioned the other day. Maybe even make popcorn. What do you say? I think we could use some low-energy bonding time after the day we’ve had.”

Tears spilled over down Adrien’s cheeks as he nodded enthusiastically. “You know just how to make me feel better.”

[idk-mlb-is-reals-cute44]

A Miraculously Wonderful Wedding Day

Requested by @crazyfanatic97 (Dress design also by @crazyfanatic97 )

Summary: When Marinette's wedding day is interrupted by an akuma attack, she thinks her luck couldn't be worse. Little does she know, this unfortunate turn of events is about to lead to what might be the most miraculous revelation she's ever had. (AO3) 

*****

Marinette usually considered herself a pretty relaxed person. After coming into her own in the fashion world, finally asking Adrien out, and successfully upholding her responsibilities as Ladybug for almost ten years and counting, she had faced enough “this is gonna be the end of the world” to figure out how to keep her cool in stressful situations. On particularly bad days, she might get a little “loud, angry fashion designer.” On a rare, worse day, she might feel like she was fourteen years old again. 

Today she was at full out teenage-Chloe-levels of stressed. 

For one, it was her wedding day. The week had already been busy. But starting at seven a.m., it had been an endless parade of “how do you want your makeup” and “let me mess with your hair” and “are these flowers ok?” and Marinette wanted to scream. 

But on top of all of that, the fussing and worrying and getting ready, there was an akuma. 

An akuma. On her wedding day. 

To say Marinette was pissed was an understatement. Marinette was experiencing full-on “let’s murder Hawkmoth” levels of rage. 

The ceremony was starting in two hours. There were a million tiny, but also somehow unimaginably important, tasks to complete and details to check. The caterer was late. There was no time left over to deal with a battle. 

But Marinette had been Ladybug for long enough that she didn’t hesitate to clear out the room, citing “wanting some alone time on this special day,” and other such excuses that rolled off the tongue. (She was practiced at this--she knew what she was doing.) 

“This is so unfair,” Marinette complained to Tikki. 

“I know! It sucks!” said Tikki, in companionable indignance. She trusted her chosen not to need any convincing to do her job. 

Marinette gave herself a minute to push down the worries and anger and stress. Paris needed their hero, their Ladybug, right now. Not a stressed out bridezilla. 

(Marinette, in usual fashion, was not giving herself enough credit. To deal with all this, she was a saint.) 

“Tikki, spots on!” 

*****

Ladybug arrived on the scene, to find Chat Noir already there. She smiled at him. Even though the timing was just so inconvenient it had to be cosmically planned, she always loved to see her kitty. 

“Hello, Bugaboo!” Chat called out as she landed on the roof side beside him. 

“Hello, kitty,” Ladybug returned, “It’s always a pleasure to see you, as you know, but I’m hoping we can make this quick? I have a big day.” 

“Same,” he nodded, “I’m short on time as well.” Here he let a big grin loose, and said, as if he couldn’t contain himself in his joy, “I’m getting married.” 

Ladybug gasped. 

“You’re kidding!”

He shook his head. 

“That’s insane. I am too!” she continued, bumping him lightly with her hip. 

Chat snickered. 

“I’m the ying to your yang, right? We’re on the same wavelength!” 

Ladybug laughed. 

An explosion boomed from the north of them. 

“Let’s get to it, hmm?” said Ladybug, slinging her yoyo in the direction of whatever today’s brand of catastrophe would be. 

“Right behind you,” Chat said, taking a running leap. 

****** 

Hawkmoth was apparently bringing out all the stops today. Who knows how much time had passed as Ladybug and Chat Noir faced off against the overpowered, claustrophobia-themed akuma he’d sent out. 

It didn’t help that the longer the two spent struggling, the more their banter and confident energy drained. The time constraint only served to raise the stakes, which didn’t exactly translate to “the superheroes at their best.”

Angoisse, who wore the grossest (bright yellow and somber grey) bodysuit Ladybug had ever seen, had the power to trap people in tiny opaque boxes. Pretty standard akuma. The formula tended to be “something bad happens = does that bad thing to other people.” Hawkmoth was getting bored, it seemed, after all these years. He rarely got too creative. 

Still, the infamous super villain had managed to create a serious challenge this time around, formula or not. 

So, one thing led to another. 

That is to say… Ladybug and Chat Noir got trapped in a teeny, tiny box together. No way out, and hardly any wiggle room. 

Both their timers were running out, so they stood with their eyes closed, waiting for the telltale sparkly, ultra-shiny glow of detransformation. 

What they hadn’t expected was Marinette’s wedding dress. With the poofiest bell shaped skirt to ever exist (or, as close to that as Marinette could reasonably achieve), it was about four or so feet in diameter. It suddenly sprang into existence, and shoved Chat back towards the opposite wall. 

A few things happened, in quick succession. 

Both Marinette and Chat’s eyes involuntarily opened in momentary shock. 

Before Marinette could squeeze her eyes shut, Chat lost his skin tight super suit, in favor of a tuxedo (designed by none other than Marinette). 

A few moments pause, for shock. Here we find lots of rapid blinking, and loss of words. 

“Holy sh-” Adrien started. 

“You’re not supposed to see the dress!” Marinette suddenly squealed, lunging for Adrien. 

She covered his eyes, and he burst out laughing. 

“It’s you!” he almost yelled, his smile so supernova it was probably visible from Mars and rivaled the sun. 

She let out some panicked giggles, which soon became full out cackling. Uncovering his eyes, she grabbed his arms and tucked her face into his neck, shaking with mirth. 

“It’s you…” she returned, then let out one last snort. “I think we might miss our wedding, dear.” 

He enveloped her in a hug. 

“Ehh,” he shrugged, “We’ll elope.” 

Marinette let out a mock shriek. 

“Not on your life, Adrien Agreste!” she pulled back to give him her best imitation of her mother’s sternest face. “What will the families say?!” 

He slowly shook his head, staring at her in earnest wonder. 

“I can’t believe you’re Ladybug,�� he said, “The love of my life and my best friend are the same person.” 

“I can’t believe you’re Chat Noir,” Marinette cried, “You’re like, my two favorite people! In one!” 

The two stared at each other, dumbstruck, for a few moments. 

“This is so surreal,” Marinette finally said, “...But also it somehow makes sense? Of course you’re Chat Noir. No one else makes puns as bad as you two-I mean, as you do.” 

“I feel kind of dumb for not realizing sooner,” he said, “We’re total idiots, right?” 

“Total idiots,” she agreed, “Total idiots who are in loooove!” 

“We’re getting married!” Adrien exclaimed. 

“Today! And we’re all dressed up!” Marinette said, “I can’t believe I’m marrying Chat Noir. You! Adrien! Adrien Noir! Chat Agreste!” 

“I’m marrying Ladybug,” Adrien smirked, making the resemblances to his alter ego even more striking, “Fourteen year old me would be over the moon. And you’re Marinette! I’ve got to be the luckiest guy in the world.” 

Marinette leapt forward, kissing him. He let out a surprised gasp, before returning it.  

 “I hope we don’t miss the cake,” she breathed, pulling back. 

“At our own wedding?” Adrien chuckled, a little breathless himself. “I think they’ll wait for us before they get into the cake, sweetie.” 

“You might miss the cake if we don’t bust out of here!” Plagg suddenly interrupted. “I’ve given you like… five minutes for your disgusting love fest. Now you’ve gotta bust us out!” 

“Plagg’s right,” Tikki sighed, sounded disappointed, “Can this be postponed?”

Marinette nodded, digging macarons out of the pockets she’d been very adamant about sewing into her dress. 

“I hope this is alright,” she said to Plagg, “I don't know what you normally eat.” 

Within seconds the dynamic duo was back in costume. 

“Ready, dear wife?” Chat asked, pressing a quick kiss to his lady’s mouth. 

“Not your wife yet, kitty,” Ladybug winked. “I’m ready. Let’s do this!” 

Chat destroyed the box with his signature Cataclysm! 

Spirits were definitely lifted, and the second part of the fight went much quicker than the first. Within ten, twenty minutes Ladybug had purified the akuma and restored the city to its previous, un-rampaged, glory. 

“We’re so late,” Ladybug said, fistbumping her partner. 

“We are!” Chat said. “I’m kind of too happy right now to care.” 

“Me too!” 

They beamed at each other for a moment. 

“Race you,” Ladybug finally said, wiggling her eyebrows. 

“You’re on!” 

***** 

Alya and Sabine were understandably a little mad at Marinette, who had turned up only ten minutes before the ceremony was set to begin. 

Still, she had Supreme Bride Privilege, so all was quickly forgiven. They touched up her Miraculously unruined hair and makeup, and sent her to wait with Tom as the bridal chorus quietly began. 

Marinette’s dress, the instigator of the happy revelation earlier that evening, had delicate off-the-shoulder sleeves. The dress was white, but cut short to reveal the blue underskirt that matched her eyes. Gold trim lined the bodice and waistline, and sparkly star-shaped details peppered the whole affair. Designing her own wedding dress had been possibly the most challenging, and most rewarding, creative process of Marinette’s life. 

Usually, when wearing a design she was proud of, Marinette was hyper aware of everyone’s reaction. Today, as her voluminous skirt swished along the aisle, her hand tucked into her father’s arm, she had eyes only for Adrien. 

They had already seen each other that day, but it had been in the excitement of battle, and the shock of discovering each other’s identities had superseded any other observations. Now, as Marinette milked the walk for all it was worth, moving at almost a snail’s pace, she really took a moment to take in her groom. 

His golden hair was tousled, almost sparkling in the bright mid-afternoon light streaming through the windows. His black tuxedo (with gold and blue accents, to match her own dress) fit him perfectly, and the almost imperceivable dusting of blush and mascara Chloe had insisted upon meant he looked almost too handsome for words. 

But, in all honesty, Marinette couldn't care less about any of that. 

She stared into his bright green eyes, crinkled from his dopey smile, and Marinette felt like she was coming home. She knew he felt the same way. Just like she knew she and her partner would always be an unstoppable team, just like she knew the sun would rise and the moon would set. Adrien was Chat Noir, her kitty, her best friend, the love of her life and her ultimate inspiration. She had hardly known so for even thirty minutes, but she had never known something so fully and completely as she did now. 

As she finally stepped up to the dais, she shot him a quick wink, before turning to the priest. 

Vows were exchanged. They both said their “I do”s. They gave their first kiss as a married couple. 

Later, as they sat, feet near-blistered from dancing and eyes sparkling with happiness, sharing a piece of cake, they had their second kiss. And their third. And their forth. 

“My kitty.” Marinette giggled. 

“Today was perfect, wasn’t it my lady?” 

And despite the stress, and the battle, and almost being late to her own special day, Marinette was completely sincere when she said, “Yes. Yes it was.”