#but we know Adrien and he probably would blame himself

[australet789]

I just had a twisted theory, maybe even crack theory but hear me out

What if Gabriel's wish was Adrien's?

Because once the wish is made, the next shot is Adrien opening his eyes

We get Adrien's pov and everything is pinky lighted

What if the wish was to make every single one of Adrien's wishes real

What if Adrien asked for his father to be a hero, for his life to be free and better

What if Ladybug wanted to tell the truth but Adrien's wishes interfered with it

And we don't see Plagg after the wish, just Tikki

What if Plagg knows the truth behind the death of Gabriel.

That in some part of Adrien's heart, he wished for his father to be gone.

[mochinek0]

Looking Back (Part 1)

Adrien couldn't help but look at Marinette across the room. The only thing that bothered him so much was that she was there with her husband, Damian Wayne. He saw the smile he missed; saw her laughing with friends. He could see how close she was to him, every time she turned and looked at him to continue the story.

"How did you meet your husband, Marinette?"

"Yeah he doesn't look familiar."

"Did he go to school with us; I feel like I would have remembered him."

"Uncle Jagged took me on tour when I graduated, half way through the year, and I met Damian during one of the stops." Marinette answered.

Adrien looked away and noticed his friends were uncomfortable. Some people, those closest to Mari, stopped listening to Lila. Kitty Section had launched to stardom with their amazing clothes, lyrics and Jagged Stones backing. The others…..'Did I do the right thing?' was running across their minds.

"Hey, let's get out of here for a bit." Kim spoke, "I need a drink.

"Alya nodded, "It's….unnerving, right now."

"I don't know." Nino declared.

"It'll only be for an hour." Kim sighed, "There's a place to drink a block away. We can walk over and back."

"We can take my car." Adrien smiled, "I'll probably only have one drink."

Outnumbered, Nino groaned, "I'll drive us back."

After a quick round up, they left to a near by bar.

"This isn't how I expected this reunion to go!" Alya whined, "I thought Marinette would be miserable and we would be telling her, 'You should have be nicer to Lila'. Why is her life; her friends' life, better than ours?"

"Odine broke up with me two months after she found out that I had pulled a prank on Marinette when we were twelve." Kim sighed, "She never got over it. She said I was heartless and a monster to do that to a girl. She said she would be terrified of having daughters with me. I wasn't even thinking that far ahead."

"Looks like you are now." Nathaniel stated.

"I- She was the first girl to confess to me and our dates weren't horrible!" Kim retorted.

Alix chuckled, "Thought that was Marinette."

The former swimmer growled, "Shut up! It's not my fault that girls only want some slim-fit guy!"

"Mylene and Ivan are married." Nino pointed out, "Neither of them are 'slim-fit'."

"That's right!" Alya shouted, "You're blaming us, but guys only want model types. Where's the love for curvy girls, huh? Show me thicc love, dammit!"

"I don't know." Kim spoke, "Where did it go, Nino?"

The DJ rolled his eyes, "It was a mutual break up. We had conflicting schedules and barely had time to talk to each other. It was a ten minute talk at most and then class or sleep. Even now, most dates I've had have been coffee because I'm tired after a gig."

Nino realized his best friend had been quiet so far. He was sure he would have defended himself when his long-time ex brought up models. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted five shot glasses.

"Hey, Dude, are you okay?" Nino questioned, "You ususally don't drink this much."

Adrien turned to Nino and pouted, "I should have married Marinette."

The model didn't expect the table to erupt in laughter.

"Nice one, Dude." Nino smiled, "I understand you want to be included."

"I'm serious!" Adrien whined.

"Dude, if you really feel that way, you only have yourself to blame." his best friend stated.

"Huh?" Adrien replied, confused.

"You were the blindest idiot, as a teen." Alix cackled.

Alya rolled her eyes, "Mari was head over heels for you. It's why she bullied Lila, duh."

Adrien tried to shake off the alcohol, "Bullied Lila?"

Alya took another sip, "You know because you and Lila were dating."

"I would never date that Bitch!" the model shouted.

Everyone froze and looked at him.

"What?" Kim questioned.

"I never dated Lila." the Agreste heir snarled, "I would have never-She's not my type. Fuck, I would never date a model, period. I have always hated modeling; both Chloe and Mari knew that. I did it to get my father's attention."

Everyone looked at each other as the web of lies began to untangle in front of them. After all these years, the thread had begun to snap.

"You all thought Mari was bullying Lila because she liked me?" Adrien continued to rant, "You forget she helped me get with Kagami. Kagami even told me she tried to get us back together. Hell, 'Gami had a crush on her, but ended up with Felix instead. She still says that if Mari suddenly wanted to get together, she'd drop Felix."

No one knew what to say. Everything they thought they knew, that kept them as friends was slowly coming undone. They had been 'Team Lila' for the longest time and now….what were they? Adrien never dated Lila. Adrien said he would never date her. He believed Marinette wouldn’t bully Lila simply because Lila had feelings for him because Marinette helped him get a girlfriend. If that was all true, why did Lila say they dated? Why did she say Marinette bullied her? As if a distant echo, they recalled Marinette calling their friend a liar. Had Lila really lied to them all this time?

Kim let out a loud belch, "Like we believe that." his speech slurring.

"You're saying I'm lying?" Adrien questioned.

Mr. 'Just A Friend' had feelings for her?" Kim answered, "Yeah, right."

"Mr. what?" Adrien asked.

"It's your catchphrase." the former swimmer laughed, "I'm sure you all remember. 'Who, Marinette? No! She's just a friend. She's a good friend. She's a great friend. You'll like her once you get to know her and be friends with her. She's an amazing friend'."

Alix yawned, getting bored of the dying party, "You had 'FRIENDZONE' tattooed on your forehead."

Alya relaxed. She had been so close to believeing that she had betrayed the wrong person, but Adrien having feelings for Marinette was laughable at this point.

"Marinette obviously got tired of hearing how much of a 'friend' she was to you." Alya declared, "The shit I had to listen to when we were friends! How 'dreamy' you looked. The names of you imaginary kids! You two gettign a hamster."

"She found someone better." Alix shrugged, "He's taller and looks strong as hell. The only things you share in common are green eyes and wealthy families."

"Gold digging, Bitch." Alya snarled.

"I thought that, too." Alix admitted, "From what Juleka tells me, Marinette makes more than Adrien alone on her fashion commissions. That's without using her muscle hubby or his family name. Rose said that not even Luka compares. Kitty Section went with them to the Caribbean and …muscles and scars. Said Mari couldn't keep her eyes of him and they barely saw her after that."

"Demon God." muttered Nathaniel.

"Demon God?" questioned Nino.

"His brothers call him 'Demon Spawn', but he's chiseled like the sexy Lucifer marble statues that the church said no to." Nathaniel groaned, "I should have taken my chance, too."

Nino glanced at Adrien and saw him tearing up.

'Shit.'

"Okay, I think we get the idea." the DJ stated, trying to change the subject.

"Alya's right. We tried to get them together so many times, but he always thought they were 'friendly outings' even though eveyone had a date." Kim continued.

Nathaniel took another shot, "Imagine getting kissed by the most popular girl at school and thinking she was 'just being nice'."

"Lila?" Alya replied, "I thought-"

"Lila was popular in class, only." Nathaniel answered, "Marinette was popular all over school. The true 'Queen' of the school."

Adrien quickly stood up, scraping his chair against the floor, and rushed out. Nino quickly rushed out after him.

"What's his problem?" Kim asked.

Alya's eyes trailed after Nino's back before she took another drink and turned back to the group.

Nino quickly spotted Adrien's car. He slowly approached it and found him sobbing in the passenger's seat.

'At least he didn't think he could drive.'

Nino walked around and sat in the driver's side. He simply patted his friend's back.

"Did-Is what Kim said true?" Adrien asked.

Nino unintentionally paused his hand's movements, trying to decide what would be best.

"Nino!" Adrien shouted, "You're my best friend! Is what-"

"Yes." he answered.

He could feel the weight of Adrien's gaze on him.

"We did try setting you up with Marinette." Nino spoke, calmly, "Everyone in the school could see she liked you. I don’t know when she stopped; we truly believed that she was mean to Lila because Lila was with you."

"Not in a million years." Adrien replied.

"You sure?" Nino asked, looking at his friend.

"Not even if it brought my mother back." Adrien growled, "I can't stand her."

Nino started the car as Adrien sunk into his seat. They drove in silence, but he faintly heard the model's sniffles. He knew Adrien might not possibly remember the night and he didn't want to say anything that was too damaging. It was a conversation for another time…if there ever was.

Adrien thanked Nino as they got out of the car and he took the keys form him, "She looked happy tonight, didn't she? Her smiles were always the brightest."

Nino watched as tears fell down his friend's cheeks. Adrien quickly turned and went inside. Nino sighed and took out his phone.

"Yo, Max. I need a ride." he spoke, "Got a minute to spare?"

[wield-the-mighty-pen]

Am I the only one who doesn't think if/when Adrien finds out about everything (him being a senti, the wish, his father being Hawkmoth/Shadowmoth/Monarch (pick your poison)) that he'll break up with or even lash out at Marinette?

I know we've seen him get angry with Ladybug over secret keeping, from not telling him important information and keeping him out of the loop. But isn't this situation different?

For starters, in this scenario, Adrien has already been dating Marinette for a while, at least a few months, before finding out. While this might not seem that it changes much, as he was already close to and in love with Ladybug when they went through their rough patches, there are actually some key differences between these relationships.

For starters, Adrinette at this point is in a devoted and loving relationship. Adrien feels secure in his relationship with Marinette, which is something not always afforded to him with Ladybug. Finding out that she had been keeping big secrets from him might cause a disturbance to this, but being as how their relationship is on much more stable foundation from Adrien's perspective, they may be able to recover more easily.

Additionally, Adrien tends to experience love in an all-consuming manner. Being as how he is in a reciprocal relationship with Marinette, his feelings are allowed to flourish a lot more and are arguably more potently felt than with his stunted affections towards the unavailable Ladybug. He's not going to easily just let go of something that fills him up and makes him feel loved and content.

What's more so is that Adrien as a civilian, is a lot more insular in expressing his feelings than Chat Noir is. Meaning, while Chat Noir might blow up when feeling angry or hurt, Adrien is more likely to keep it inside and either internalize the hurt (by blaming himself) or give himself time to get through it.

Finally, we have seen Adrien's reaction to Marinette being hurt (and it doesn't end well for the person who hurt her). What is, in my opinion a far more likely outcome to an Adrinette fight/breakup, is Adrien seeing Marinette as a victim, because let's be clear here, she is a victim.

Marinette has been through a ton of trauma. And then after seeing it all, she was sworn to silence by a number of people who honestly have more of a responsibility for disclosure with Adrien than Marinette does. Is it not Felix's responsibility to tell him about being a senti? Is it not Nathalie's responsibility to tell him about the crimes his father committed with her as an accomplice? Is it not Plagg's responsibility to tell Adrien about the wish he had to grant?

It is not Marinette's fault that all of these things transpired, and yet, she has been burdened with the knowledge of all of it and will likely be the one saddled with having to relay it all to Adrien. Adrien, who is compassionate and loves her, would likely see the position she was put it and rather than lash out, he would probably want to comfort her.

Thereby putting two very traumatized kids in the position of having to help each other out of their guilt and grief.

[theerurishipper]

What's ur opinion on the whole "Blame the writing not the character" thing for writing, cause I think miraculous and its Fandom is a weird case.

Normally I prefer approaching everything from the "Blame the character" angle because at the end of the day all a character is IS their writing (this also applies to good things oc, not just bad). Especially regarding their emotions I don't see much purpose in distancing everything one doesn like about a character from them by saying "Oh, it's just the writing. Disregard it, tahts not who the character truly is" cause at some point that just reads as.. kinda refusing to acknowledge who the character on screen actually is bc one doesn like it.

Miraculous is just a weird case. You can smell the meta decisions 10 miles against the wind - like Marinette and Alya for some reason being able to beat Adrien in battle and Cat Noir pre-s5 being "incompetent". You know exactly that this is not character based writing, Cat has to be weaker than Ladybug and Scarabella because they're girls and they have to look good. It's hard saying Adrien is a weaker fighter in all those cases, or when the temp heros need to be brought in, because you at some level know exactly that there is a meta reason behind it. And that makes it hard to discredit him for that just as much as it's harder to actually give the girls credit for their abilities. They shouldn't be able to beat him so easily, but they do because of their gender and this shows "rules". Just like there is no actual reason in-universe for why he's suddenly on Ladybug's level in season 5. It just is.

(kinda weird how the show also never gave Kagami credit for being a trained fighter either. I guess they thought they can't acknowledge her training either or else they couldn't get away with making Adrien weaker as Cat Noir. So they probably dead ass denied Kagami her special spotlight too for shallow reasons (but at least their consistent)

But on the other hand, I personally don't think Marinette and Adrien leaving in Kwamis choice without saying goodbye to each other is out of character the way most people say it and then just disregard it by saying "it's the writing, not the characters". Rewatching that two parter, it set up alot from the finale, and I don't think them leaving each other like that is out of character just a harsh reality check where we are at after s4.

They never came out of that season actually "better" partnership wise just because Adrien decided to stay by her side these two times and remained kind and supportive. That was decided to be the Cat's definitive job towards the Ladybug so that's what he's continuing to do but that doesn't really concern anything beyond that. In my opinion it is very much questionable how much Ladybug and Cat Noir are actually REAL FRIENDS and not just kind collegues the way Marinette wanted in s4 (with potential for real friendship under better circumstances).

That's also why Adrien gave himself up in the finale, no? If they were real friends he would have been able to ask for her help as she was the only one who could have kept him save because of her yo-yo. But they're just kind collegues, so he didn't.

And just because he stayed her teammate doesn't it mean he's still in love with Ladybug or that he still WANTS to be in love with her after all that pain it caused him. So he made a harsh decision thanks to Plagg and prioritized finally being happy and getting some stability, especially because Gabriel was being fake loving.

And Marinette's romantic feelings for Cat Noir and her acknowledgment of him all together have always been of shakey and chaotic nature. Her feelings for him really started whne she was at her lowest an thinking herself all alone while also being afraid of her feelings for Adrien.

This was from the get go an already dark orange sign for how genuine her feelings are (desperation is always an iffy foundation) and as others already said, she's never seeing more in him than the mask. How can you say you really love a person when you only acknowledge half of their personhood? Marinette only started taking interest in who Cat is when she started getting frustrated by him not reacting the way she wanted him to. If he had I don't think Marinette would have thought about wanting to know who he really is, it really came across like a frustration thing which explained why she was so reckless about it in Elation, and why she then left afterwards.

I don't wanna say she saw no purpose in him anymore after being rejected by him (that's too strong) but we already saw in season 4 that Marinette's treatment or acknowledge of Cat Noir very much reflects what use and purpose she sees in him, hence why he was basically reduced to an irrelevant footnote by the end of season 4. Yes, she wanted him there as teammate but thats it. It's still questionable in my opinion if she even noticed him not showing up anymore at the beginning of Kuro Neko since she reacts surprised when the reporter points out his absence and then claims towards Plagg Cat should be happy that he gets to have time off, as if she just convinced herself that she generously allowed him a week off instead of her having been so deep in team leader mode that she didn't even notice him not showing up anymore.

Marinette not noticing him having stopped showing up is a harsh characterization, but I wouldn't call it out of character in the broader sense.

So her leaving when he rejects her, because she doesn't want to be his friend and teammate but his girlfriend and he said no? Can't say thats out of character either because the show is also really consistent in her characterization that she doesn't see much value in being friends with Adrien either because she loves him, so being friends is the worst thing possible for her.

À décision being harsh and not what one likes doesn mean it's out of character and one should distance the event from the character in one's head.

I think Kwamis choice makes alot of sense, as does the focus on Adrinette instead of Ladynoir, and how the finale played out.

Which goes back to my original question. It's very obvious that there are 20. 000 meta reason controlling the narrative, but in my opinion only in a specific way. Everything still makes sense in my opinion, it just feels so CONTROLLED.

Marinette is a mouthpiece for the writers messages but even if I think the messages are fucked up and hypocritical, I can't say any of it was ever out of character for her?

You get what I mean?

Yeah, I get that. I myself approach it from the "blame the writers" way, but like you said, it's a blurry line. What tips me over ultimately is the fact that Marinette should have grown but clearly didn't. What she does isn't out of character for her for sure, but as far as the writers are concerned, she has grown and she is better, and all the stuff she's doing isn't really a bad thing. So, I can't in good conscience blame the character for being bad when the people who are bringing her to life are the ones who really believe all the stuff that's being said through her. She's supposed to have developed as per the writers' vision, but clearly, she hasn't. It's bad writing, and that really isn't the character's fault. That's how I see it.

Thank you for your ask!

[miraculouslbcnreactions]

With the state Adrien was in just before the finale, can you think of any way he could have made it to the final battle without getting akumatized or otherwise being a liability?

So I've talked about how the final could have been improved by Adrien being the one to get the ring to Paris or by having Ladybug fight while Adrien goes and finds the jump rope lucky charm so that they can save his father but there is one other path you could take without massive rewrites. A path I haven't talked about because - imo - Chat Blanc and Ephemeral made it impossible by establishing that Gabriel is a terrible father who doesn't care about traumatizing Adrien and/or using him for evil.

If we accept the final's retcon that Gabriel totally loves his son and would change his wish at the last minute (a premise I DO like, but not one that the show earned) then here's what you do: have Ladybug and Chat Noir be at the final fight after Adrien fought off the nightmare dust the same way that all of his friends got to do. Have everyone's identities revealed during the fight so that Gabriel doesn't have time to plan. Have Gabriel do his normal evil route and command Chat Noir to stop fighting/switch sides, leading to Gabriel winning and getting both miraculous.

Have Gabriel in his moment of triumph release his son so that Adrien can share in this moment because Gabriel truly thinks that Adrien will be on his side now that Adrien has had a moment to process everything. Have Adrien instead run to Marinette, crying, apologizing because he couldn't save her. Because he's supposed to be her protector and he failed.

Have a horrified Gabriel flash back to when Emilie was lost because Gabriel always blamed himself for letting her use the peacock instead of him and now he's FORCED his own son to go through the same kind of pain. Have Gabriel suddenly question his goals at the sight of his child's anguish. Have Gabriel look at his wife, knowing that she never wanted to be saved. Have Gabriel make his final wish: give my son my humanity. Let him be free so that no one can put him through this again. Make me the senti. Everything fades in a ball of light.

Cut to graveyard. Adrien is dressed in black standing before his parents' grave stone, holding his mother’s broach. Marinette joins him, taking his hand, squeezing it.

He squeezes back, then sighs, putting the broach in his pocket.

“I wish that I had more than this. Even their wedding rings are gone.”

Marinette smiles, tapping his miraculous. “You’ve got the only ring you’ll ever need right here, Kitty.”

Adrien smiles back. “I don’t know, in a few years, I’d like to add one more.”

She blushes and he laughs, kissing her softly. Then they hug each other tight. Adrien looks at the graves longingly, then closes his eyes and tightens his hold on Marinette. He's got long journey of healing ahead of him, but with his Lady, he can do anything.

That's probably the most satisfying thing that I can come up with without completely rewriting the whole season (or even the whole series). The basic premise behind this rewrite is that letting an old video of Emilie change Gabriel's mind makes no sense in the story they wrote.

For starters, there is no way that this is the first time that Gabriel is hearing these words from her. I mean, you really believe that she took the time to make videos for Nathalie, but never actually talked to her husband? Of course you don't! So why would the video change his mind when the real woman couldn't?

This is especially true because the video is played at the end of a season that started with Gabriel choosing defeating Ladybug over saving his wife!!! In other words, the narrative has literally gone out of its way to establish that Emilie has no sway over him when it comes to Ladybug. You do not write Evolution (S5E1) if you want to have this be your ending, but they did and nothing in season five undermined Evolution's message, so this ending makes no GD sense.

But Gabriel changing his mind because of Adrien? We have actually seen that before and we want the Father-son relationship to build to something big. We also want the senti stuff to build to something big. This type of change would satisfy those expectations while also giving a resolution to the central conflict of season five: Gabriel trying to control his son because he thinks that he knows best. A conflict that will now never be resolved because Gabriel will never have that moment where he gives up control. His final act was literally controlling the fate of the entire universe. That is not a satisfying conclusion for a villain who's all about control!!!! It doesn't matter that he's dead if you let him control his death! But if he has control of the universe and uses that control to do the opposite of what he's been trying to do all season? Arguably the entire series? That is actually a somewhat meaningful and powerful conclusion to one of your main themes.

Yes, Emilie was his motivation, but he gets to be with Emilie, so he didn't actually give her up. He still gets exactly what he wanted and controlled the fact that he got to be with his wife while also further traumatizing his son! This is not a meaningful surrender of control. This is Gabriel just having enough and deciding he wants to be with his wife and Nathalie can deal with Adrien from now on even though she has never expressed any interest in being Adrien's primary guardian. Idk, let's not get into it, this is already long.

[familyagrestefanblog]

If the woman at the pool really is Amilie then from S6 onwards we will have 2 orphans in the main narrative: Adrien and Lila

That fact that it's these two is honestly weirdly giving me hope

and yes, Adrien is an orphan. Just because he doesn't live alone and has legal guardian/s and a girlfriend doesn't it mean he isn't an orphan anymore. Marinette holding his hands and kissing him is not undoing the fact that Adrien's mother died harshly of illness almost 2 years ago and he thinks his father now died because Ladybug was partnerless and Gabriel as the only adult member of the Resistance and as Adrien's father - Adrien, who was thought to have been kidnapped - filled in Chat's place to defeat Monarque.

The amount of death surrounding Adrien's narrative right now - if the woman truly is Amilie - is beyond concerning.

Add Adrien blaming himself for Monarque having been cataclysmed in "Destruction" to the mix, plus depending on how Ladybug will go about Monarque's defeat she may use as a cover story towards the world in a panic reaction that Monarque crumbled to dust because of the cataclysm, which would indirectly but very directly include making Chat Noir responsible for Monarque's death in front of the whole world which in normal Miraculous fashion Marinette probably only accepts 20 episodes later to sweep it under the rug because *sighs; unfortunately insert random excuse for why she's blameless*

And let's not forget the fact that Adrien still had to wittness Nathalie having been sick like his mother (though Adrien never saw Nathalie in her worst state) and he also knows that Nathalie and his father were very close to the point where he has already given his blessing in season 3 and in s5 Nathalie has worn his mother's ring.

And now Adrien has every reason to blame himself for his father's death.

Take a damn guess if Nathalie being his legal guardian is enough for Adrien to not be or feel like an orphan anymore!

Then there is Amilie being around who looks like his dead mother and most likely can't stand either of his dead parents

Or Félix being around who gave ShadowMoth the 15 miraculous' which made Monarque as powerful and dangerous as he was (that's an objective fact) which for Adrien also would have lead into his father's death which is gonna be awful when Félix bad mouths Gabriel with Kagami, Marinette, Ladybug or in general.

Depending on what everyone else thinks and remembers, Adrien's friends may bad mouth Gabriel as Adrien's father too since that's what everything has lead up to by "Representation".

And let's not even get into Lila now.

The way Lila at this point would have such alarmingly easy game taking Adrien from Marinette and the rest of his friends and family, and also Chat Noir from Ladybug and her team that has barely ever been his anyway - especially now that there are 4 people in Ladybug's team who know her identity and he will continue not being allowed to be included in any of that, because I don't know how realistic it is to hold onto any hope regarding this - is ... insane. This is absolutely insane.

I know hoping that the new villain will latch onto everything bad and unfair is a shitty and biased thing to do, but Lila's villain narrative will be all about her being an orphan (right? That makes sense with the whole mothers thing and her extreme attention seeking behavior while not having a home. Just dialed up to the worst 11) and now Adrien is one too after.. all of THAT and how Adrinette and especially Ladynoir are at risk because of all the lies and secrets Lila is perfectly aware of.

For me there is a difference between wanting a new villain to latch onto the unfair treatment of a character because of one's own personal biase and just straight up refusing to get out of one's denial to acknowledge it when a new villain not only as an established character but story wise too has every reason in the book to do that now.

Do what you want, but I'm not putting my TRUST into LILA for her to not be as stupid as Gabriel because that's "mean to Marinette/Ladybug"

[nothingtherefornow]

What scares me for Season 6 is that no matter what happens Marinette will be blamed - since the show writers's method for creating drama is "Marinette commits a mistake and have to atone"....

Indeed, this is why I'm not feeling that bad if the season 6 of miraculous don't come out before at least the end of 2024.

To hide the truth from Adrien may have been a mistake, but one that Adrichat himself could have also make have his and Marinette's positions been reversed.

And hiding the truth about Gabriel from Paris is even more understandable, because even if making them beleive that Gabriel was a hero is a big injustice, the truth would have put Adrien in a very difficult situation. We can't tell if Parisians would have been able to dissociate Adrien from his father.

And who know if had LAdybug told the truth to the parisians, if Tomoe Tsurugi may not have tried to portray a false story where her and Gabriel were forced to act as Monarch' agents because he held their children hostage or something (she probably used that excuse to explain why the alliance rings where used to miraculize people and falsely making them beleive that Kagami and Adrien were kidnapped by Ladybug and Chat Noir)

Not to forget that it would be so unfair to only blame Marinette for that situation when Kagami, Felix and Nathalie are as much aware of the truth as her, and maybe even Bunnix for she has the power to see the past, present and future.

[onomonopetabread]

Declawing the Cat, Chapter 3 (after literally three years)

“Father, do I have to go?” Adrien asked for the hundredth time.

“Of course Adrien. I refuse to go on a business trip as important as this one without you. You’re my son.���

Felix rolled his eyes. He and his mother were visiting the two bachelors (against his actual will, obviously). Everyone in the room knew the real reason why Adrien had to go; he was the face of the brand, and it was common fashion knowledge that to go to such a high-ranking event without your leading model would get you shunned and cancelled. ‘You’re my son’ EVERYONE’S arse.

It was obvious that Adrien was all too aware of this fact, because he couldn’t seem to run out of excuses for why he couldn’t go.

Well, he could also not wish to go because of how brain-numbingly boring the whole affair is, and honestly, who could blame him? This year’s Annual Pre-Junior’s Fashion Competition Assembly was being held in Sydney, and all of the biggest names in the industry were going to attend. The assembly takes place over the course of two. Entire. Months. For what, not even the attendees know. Felix swears, these designers were as mad as a bag of ferrets.

I mean, if you’re into that sort of thing, like Miss I’m-all-that Ginger Breadhouse, you’d probably be in Seventh Heaven there, but if you were, how do you say, normal, you’d sell your soul to be another else. In fact, Felix could almost bet Chat Noir’s Miraculous that Adrien would sign that demonic contract in a heartbeat if that were an option.

“But Father, what about school? I’ll miss so much instruction-”

“Natalie will tutor you, just like she did before you attended that … institution.”

“And my fencing practice? Surely, you wouldn’t want me to miss out on those.”

“Adrien, are you suggesting that they don’t have fencing areas in Sydney?”

“No, I’m just saying that fencing without Kagami wouldn’t be the same…”

“Well, you aren’t going to be fencing with her forever, so think of this as a sample for the future. Now, no more of this arguing, Adrien. You are going to the Assembly and that’s final. Have I made myself clear?”

Adrien’s shoulders slumped in defeat and for a heartbeat, Felix felt sympathetic. “Yes, Father.”

“Good, now go pack some clothes you will need for the weeks. We won’t be at the events the entire time, so I will permit you to bring some of your own wardrobe. Please remember we will be there for a long time, so pack accordingly.”

And with that, they were all dismissed. Adrien trugged upstairs looking particularly peeved. He invited Felix to come with him, and Felix agreed, but only to keep up appearances. If he knew any better, Felix would have sworn that he heard him talking to someone on the way up, but he decided to ignore it; he couldn’t be bothered to guess what weird habits his wanker of a cousin had.

Once they got to Adrien’s room, Felix sat himself down at the piano while Adrien took out a suitcase from his closet and started choosing some informal clothing for when they were just doing day-to-day activities.

“Can you believe that he’s making me go, Felix?”

“Yes, I can believe it.”

“AND we have to leave tomorrow! I won’t even get the chance to say goodbye to our friends.”

“Not to worry, cousin dearest. I’ll tell them for you. Anyways, don’t look at this trip as a burden, look at it as a new opportunity. You can gather information and resources for your friend Marinette.”

Adrien’s face brightened at the mention of his friend and Felix rolled his eyes when his back was turned. He swears, all it takes to cheer him up was to be reminded that Pigtails was alive and well somewhere on the planet.

“You’re right, Felix! This way I can help her pursue her dreams! I can’t wait until we get back to tell her everything I’ve learned about the industry.”

“...Can’t you just text or call her?”

“You mean with my phone?”

“No Adrien, I mean with a plastic banana you can buy at the baby store. Yes I mean your phone!”

Adrien paused in the middle of folding a t-shirt and packing it into a suitcase. “I didn’t tell you? Father confiscated it for ‘my own good’. He thinks I spend too much time around my friends and not enough time focusing on my studies, so it’s with him for the time being.”

Well, there goes Felix’s plan to pull a quick cell prank before Adrien leaves. “Adrien Bartholomew Agreste, is that resent I hear in your voice?”

“Yes, it is. I’m tired of responsibilities and having people depend on me every second that I breathe. That’s why I wanted to go to school in the first place; it gives me eight hours of non-Agreste related freedom.”

Felix narrowed his eyes. What did this boy know about responsibilities? All he had to do was play a keyboard, wave a stick around, and look pretty for pictures. Felix couldn’t understand how a job like that could burden someone so badly.

“Goodness, Adrien. You make it sound as though Uncle asks you to carry the weight of the entire ever-loving world on your shoulders.”

Adrien sighed. “That’s just how I feel, sometimes. Anyways, I think these are all of the casual clothing Father will let me take with me. Maybe if I’m lucky, he might not see the video game I hid under them all.”

The next day was a Saturday, so Felix the delivery boy was going to have to give the mega-twits the message at a later time. Today, it was all about acting as emotional as he could for the departure of his Cousin & Co. gabriel thought it would be a good idea for Felix and his mother to stop by the mansion every once in a while to make sure everything was all right, accounted for, and in the case of the house plants, watered. This was news to Felix. He doubted his uncle was even a living being, let alone the type of person to have plants in his home. Right now, they were standing next to the family limo. Natalie and gabriel were talking to Ape Man about transportation in Australia.

“Oh, darling Adrien, I’m so sad to see you go. We only just now got here, and you’re leaving. Why must the fates keep up apart?”

“It’s alright, Aunt Amilie. We’ll be back before you even realize we’re gone.”

“We? Oh, I wasn’t talking about your father, dear. I wouldn’t mind some time away from him. Anyways, I hope you have the best time in Australia. Bring something back for me, will you? I’ve always wanted to get a real boomerang, ever since I was a young girl.”

“I’ll be sure to get you the best boomerang in the country, Aunt A. What about you Felix? Do you want me to get you anything?”

Felix, who was standing some ways behind the others, pretended to ponder it over. “Bring me a friendship bracelet.”

“...A friendship bracelet?”

“If you can’t find one it’s okay I really don’t mind-”

“No, I’ll get you a bracelet. I was only surprised because you aren’t really the type to want one.”

He’s right- there was no way on Good Green Earth would he want some dingly little arts and crafts project. There also wasn’t any way that maybe he wanted his cousin thinking about him during his trip, that he wanted to envision Adrien getting something for him. Don’t even think about considering that Felix felt bad for him, dealing with the devil himself in a new place and wanting to give him something to do. Nope. Not a chance. Felix simply thought that Adrien would look hilarious running around Australia looking for beads and twine.

“...Just make sure you make me a good one, alright?”

Adrien smiled as though he could read right into Felix’s mind, and of course he had to look completely handsome in doing so. Stupid model. They practically had the same face and somehow Felix ended up looking like the off-brand knockoff.

“Adrien, we have to go now. The plane leaves in five hours,” gabriel said, entering the car.

“Why do we need to leave so soon?”

“So that I can buy fabrics with threads, gather all of my designs, double check with Natalie that the suite is still booked for us-”

“Alright, Father. I understand. Well, bye Felix. I’ll miss you.”

With that, he entered the limousine and the four of them drove away.

“Come Felix. Let’s go check the house for anything they might have accidentally left behind. We wouldn’t want them to leave something important,” said Amilie, still a little teary-eyed over the loss of her precious little baby nephew. She couldn’t stand the idea of being away from him for so long, even though his look-alike (her own bloody son) was right in front of her. Of course, Felix wasn’t bitter! Why wouldn’t ever say such a thing?

“Yes, Mother. Would you like me to check Adrien’s room?”

“Please, dear. Oh, look at you, watching over your cousin! And to think you said you wouldn’t like him!”

It was as though his mother never met him. Couldn’t she see that he was just trying to gain some sort of upper hand against Mr. Perfect or to uncover a secret of his? On the sunny side, at least he knows his facade is effective. He was beginning to worry that someone other than Blue-Eyed Phoenix Wright would figure him out.

Felix pushed open the door of Adrien’s room and immediately began to look around and turn things over. He was being extremely careful to make sure that everything he touched was put back in the place he got it from. After looking through his closet and library, however, he was disappointed to find that Adrien was actually as innocent as he seemed (and acted). In fact, the worst thing he could find was a disturbing amount of Ladybug memoria. It was a pity, really. Felix hadn’t blackmailed anyone in a long time, and he was beginning to get antsy. He turned around and headed out.

“Adrien, is that you? I thought you said you weren’t going to come back for another two months.”

Felix did a complete 180 and faced the source of the voice, which seemed to be some sort of floating cat-thing. It looked like a deer in headlights.

“You aren’t Adrien. Wait, are you okay, you seem to be swaying-?”

The thing was right; he was feeling woozy, and it didn’t take him that long to hit the floor, having fainted. The last thing he heard was the talking cat muttering,

“Shit.”

[kasienda]

Celebrity Status: Ch 6 - Just Another Day

Chapters: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7

Read on Ao3

Chapter 6: Just Another Day

“Who wakes up thinking I’m totally cut out to be a superhero?!” Ladybug asked. “No one. Certainly not me,” Ladybug said, laughing. 

Adrien winced and x-ed out of the tab. He knew her comments hadn’t landed well before any commentary or analysis came out. 

This was all his fault.

Turned out that while humility and self-deprecating humor played well for a wealthy privileged male teen model, the same traits were not admired in a female superhero tasked with saving the city over and over again. 

He probably should quit as her PR coach before he made things worse, and he’d have to figure out how to make it up to her. 

She groaned loudly behind him, burying her face into one of his throw pillows. 

“It’s not that bad,” he insisted. 

“You’re just trying to make me feel better.” 

“Is it working?” 

“You always make me feel better,” she mumbled. 

Heat burned across his face. He could not have heard that correctly. 

“Oh god! Did I just say that out loud?” 

He laughed, and let himself fall onto the couch next to her. “I’m glad that I can do something to help. Seems like I’m just making the rest of your life worse.” 

“I promise you’re not. I’m a disaster enough at that all on my own. I don’t even care about the internet hating Ladybug at the moment. Like, who cares what they think.” 

Adrien frowned. He knew that public opinion could matter a lot. He didn’t know how in this case, but his father poured hundreds of thousands into public relations for a reason. 

“Right now, I just wish I could get my parents to stop repeatedly grounding me for literally saving the city! It’s not my fault Hawkmoth’s timing sucks!”

He had it easier than her in some ways. He usually was able to get away from his friends pretty easily by blaming his father. And it wasn’t that hard to get out of the mansion when no one paid attention to him. 

At least Ladybug had parents who paid attention. 

"Maybe you just need a more plausible explanation," Adrien suggested. “Is there something in your life that occasionally prevents you from doing your best, or being where you're supposed to be? Something that you could just exaggerate or stretch?"

She lit up, and smiled at him like he hung the moon. "We could say I'm having panic attacks! It wouldn't even be that much of a stretch since I've always had anxiety."

The comment was sobering. "You struggle with anxiety?" he asked quietly.

She blushed. "More than a little bit honestly."

"You seem so confident as Ladybug. Like nothing seems to faze you during akuma strikes."

"Yeah, when it's a disaster I handle it no problem! I guess I don't have time to overthink it? I just have to act? But the day to day things, I'm usually a mess."

“I can’t even imagine that.” 

Her face turned beet red and she turned away. “Yeah,” she croaked. “My best friend could tell you some really embarrassing stories. Thank goodness you have no idea who she is!” 

He smiled. “It’s a shame. I would love to pick her brain.” 

… 

Akuma attacks had become the bane of her existence. The akumas themselves weren’t that bad. But ever since her first interview had gone off the rails, it seemed reporters and journalists smelled blood in the water. They wouldn’t leave her alone. 

Thank god for Chat Noir who usually knew what to say or would physically get between her and any microphone held out to capture another sound bite. But he had to bolt today - said he was about to be missed. 

And this one particular lady would not get off her tail. She finally gave up, and whirled around. 

“What?!” she roared. 

The lady stumbled back. “I umm… I’m sorry! I wanted to speak to you about Alya Cesaire?” 

Ladybug breathing quickened. Had they figured her out? 

She supposed she didn’t need to lie about having panic attacks if she started having them for real. 

“Wh-what about her?” 

…

“Oh my god! Marinette! You won’t believe what happened!” Alya squealed.

Marinette tried not to grin. She had a little bit of an idea. 

“The city is giving me an Award!” 

“What?! No way! What for?” Marinette asked, now letting her smile run free reign. Alya deserved this. 

“My blog was nominated for best citizenship reporting and I won! There’s gonna be an award ceremony and everything. I’m going to be the first minor ever to receive it! Ladybug herself is going to be there!” 

“You’ve already met Ladybug!”

“I know, but– now, she’s gonna give me an award!” Alya turned to her, grinning so widely. “Will you go with me as my plus one?!” 

Marinette’s chest tightened. “Oh! Umm… wouldn’t you rather go with Nino?” 

“Absolutely not! He will be so bored!” 

Marinette made herself smile. “Then of course I will be there,” she said, proud that her voice didn’t wobble at all. She had no idea how to pull this off. 

The akuma alert went off. 

Alya grinned excitedly at her while Marinette just wanted to groan. 

“Looks like it’s time for this award-winning journalist to shine!” Alya squealed.

Marinette smiled fondly. At least one of them was getting something from all these akuma attacks. 

She transformed and followed the sound of nearby explosions. 

The akuma chased a group of teens slightly older than herself. One of them tripped. Ladybug swooped down and scooped her up just in time to dodge the blast of projectiles that struck the ground behind them. 

The boy squirmed in her arms. 

“Hold still. I’ve got you.” 

But the boy only fought harder. “You don’t know what you’re doing,” he said. “I’m better off on my own.”

He broke free in the middle of her arc and fell like a lead weight to the ground forty meters below.

She let go of her yo-yo to chase him, but gravity wouldn’t let her fall any faster than him.

He landed with a horrible crunch and a scream. 

Her miraculous cure healed him after the battle, but she could still see the agony on his face whenever she closed her eyes. 

…

[gale-gentlepenguin]

Gale Reviews: ML Season 5 episode 21 Confrontation

Spoilers below

-Ohhh okay, starting out with the drama bomb

-So for those that forgot (Like me) Gabriel is sending adrien to London for Private school. And Adrien cant fill out the orientation form because of it

-Plagg... My boy. No cheese jokes.

-So all the students are stressed about the meeting

-Oh so Marinette also got the guilt that now that Lila is the class rep there will be some fishy business.

-Yea the jobs are what I would expect for Nino and Alya

-Ivan out here showing himself to be loyal af. All other men need to step up their game. Mylene showing ambition.

-Juleka wants to be a mortician. Sticking to your asthetic, but didnt she want to model? Or was it just to help her get out of her shell. Meh

-Sabrina wants to be a nurse,

-Yea, Marinette's worries are justified

-Chloé and Lila having Opposite goals, one doesnt care because she is rich, Lila basically wants to "Resolve everything" but thats a lie

-Adrienette cuteness!

-Adrien, you are going to have to tell her eventually

-You can screen shot this and write "Moments before a disaster" and it would be accurate

-And they are shredding them. Im not even surprised

-"In case of a problem, blame it on your predecessor." Its nice to know kids shows are accurately explaining politics to children for once.

-"Its gonna hurt people?" THATS 90% OF THE S*** CHLOÉ HAS YOU DO! NOW YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH IT?

-Also Sabrina being a whistle blower is TOO on the nose, even for this show.

-Principal damocles is going to find out about the resistance! Wait, is he cool with it? He actually covered for them. I guess being a hero has helped you be less of a jerk... BUT I still am not cool with the BS from episode 14. You are on VERY thin ICE Owl man

-The class wants to go to the same school together, thats sweet

-Oh, that call must have been Sabrina. But we will see

-Oh right, Adrien still hasnt filled out his form

-Welp now he did

-But now I believe this is where all the pennies drop

-Why is there a just a random ass toilet trailer? Is that really the only bathroom in the school?

-Adrien exhibiting true AND KEN behavior.

-Lila once again proving that all the adults in this show are idiots. Bustier does seem at least a little bit suspect tho

-It is interesting to see how the teachers are. Bustier is suspect of it since she knows her students, Damocles is being his best to be supportive and Mendelev doesnt give a f***

-Juleka already repeated a year, thus confirming Luka and her as twins via the retcon

-Cue the reactions

-Juleka is gonna get akumatized...

-Monarch must have a guy that writes all of these speeches for him to speak before he does this.

-Yea I know Rose was trying, but yea. If I was repeating a year. I would NOT be in a mode to try and be positive.

-And she gets Roarr

-WHY IS ALWAYS REFLEKTA THO?

-Bustier realize she let this happen

-Lucky charm is tape.

-"You cant touch the bakers, I love their croissants to much" and their daughter. You forgot that last part chat noir

-SO THATS WHAT HAPPENS IF TWO FALCON PUNCHES COLLIDE?

-Wait... thats it? That barely lasted 2 minutes. and the episode isnt over.

-Monarch thinks there will be more akuma soon. I see

-Chloé and Lila really pulling this crap

-Oh they remember how Sabrina can forge handwritings and thus Marinette isnt going to get in trouble. And Chloé throws her under the bus

-Lila and Chloé really didnt expect Sabrina to turn Whistle blower on them. Chloé I get, because Sabrina has been loyal dog for years and the writing for her has Chloé have the mental capacity of a parsnip since season 4.

-Okay Lila that was well played lie right there. That is A tier gaslighting.

-I will give this scene credit, Lila is absolutely HORRIFYING. I can see the next season's main villain already. Since I assume Gabriel is probably dying this season.

-Chloé out here being a dumbass

-Sabrina you sly dog, you got her Monologue-ing

-Sabrina I put you as the least favorite classmate after episode 14, but now I gotta retcon that. Sure it was messed up what you helped chloé with. But that absolute MASTERY of playing Lila. Just, Chef's kiss. Beautiful. Absolutely beautiful.

-Sabrina and Marinette's plan worked. Also, Mr.Damocles was okay with that?

-Ah so none this matters. Because Andre is also being whipped.

-Damocles looking like he cant take the bulls*** anymore and Monarch ready to capitalize on it

-The magic reacts to emotion, which means... IF the person is strong enough emotionally to resist it. Then the charm has a purpose

-Lila just straight up left.

-CHAT NOIR! But he is making it worse

-JULEKA! This moment probably will not have as much impact as it does in any other dub. French dub superiority

-OOOO it makes a shield that purifies the mega akuma. Neat

-Monarch crying like a bitch

-Damocles finally standing up to Andre. Good on him

-Damocles going out like a G.

-Chat noir telling ladybug what happened and her having to act like she didnt know

-Bustier calling Chloé in.

-"You cant expell me." "Nah bitch, thats a problem for you." is how I saw that exchange

-LILA WAS WEARING A WIG! I KNEW SHE WAS A FAKE B****

-HER NAME IS CERISE?

______________________________________________________

WELL that was a lot.

So i think part of me really likes this episode, but also doesnt.

I like that Lila finally got exposed and Damocles got his redemption for his failures of the past. Going out like a G.

But all this stuff with Lila having ANOTHER life. Thats just nuts.

so overally 7/10

I will do a review of Collusion tomorrow

[cutest-bug]

Ok so two options. Either Ladybug tells Chat Noir who Hawkmoth was or she doesn’t.

If she doesn’t then we can definitely expect some weird tension between them in season 6. It seems like regardless identities probably won’t be revealed?

Way more drama scenario is Ladybug does tell Chat Noir and also her identity and like rants and raves about it and he just kind of, take all the information in shocked silence and then she’s like I KNOW IMAGINE HOW I FELT THATS MY BOYFRIENDS DAD and goes on a long rant about Gabriel’s final request before using the gift and now she has to decide if she’s going to tell her boyfriend the truth and break his heart or lie to him and be someone else who’s kept secrets?? But I don’t think I can hurt him like that? And I basically convinced him not sacrifice someone else which I think got through to him because he sacrificed himself and what if Adrien blames me for it? Oh god that’s so selfish why am I thinking of myself right now

And later when they part ways he has several thoughts like oh my god it was my dad the whole time this actually is breaking my heart. How could he do all those awful things? How could he ever think any of us would want this? Also Marinette is Ladybug MARINETTE IS LADYBUG she’s the most amazing person ever and she cares about me so much and oh my god she can never know. I can’t tell her I’m Chat Noir she can’t ever know. I’m the worst super hero ever. All the awful things she’s gone through this year were because of my dad oh my god

And anyway Adrienette gets awkward. Like they’re super in love but they’re keeping secrets from each other and feel guilty about it.

[peachy-lemon83]

Y’all, everyone likes to give Luka sh*t for being alumatized twice, especially since he knows Ladybugs and Chats identities. But like…Alya, who Marinette TOLD about her secret has litteraly been akumatized at least three times. And she isn’t even the record of know characters either. Of course we have Mr Pidgin who’s been akumatized 72 freaking times, but also of more known characters Juelka (who is a precious baby and I love her so much so no hate on her) has been akumatized a minimum of four times.

And I know people keep saying, yeah but Luka got akumatized bc of Marinette 2 separate times, but like 1) we all know Luka and Marinette is very toxic tbh, it’s not purely Marinette, Luka is amazing but very selfless. He doesn’t fully talk to her about how much that stuff hurts him, nor does he demand her full love. Which anyone who you’re dating deserves to know that you love them, and they’re not your second choice, something Luka wasn’t really given. 2) Lukas first time being alumatized can’t really be blamed on Marinette, she did nothing wrong there. All she did was stand up for her friends. It was Bob Ruth (if I’m remembering his name correctly), XYs dad, that threatened Marinette. Which then lead to him being alumatized. Yes, she was involved, but no way the problem there. And tbh I think of Luka as a fairly protective person in general, while he most likely wouldn’t have gotten AS mad if it was someone else in Marinettes position, I would definitely think he would still get mad. In my point of view, Luka didn’t get mad when he was the one being talk to, bc like previously state the boi doesn’t really stand up for himself. He probably saw it more of a personal attack then one on his friends. But Bob Ruth directly threatened Marinette.

In this Ted Talk I would like to say that the Love Square is toxic, but honestly so is Lukanette (Luka x Marinette) and Adrigami (Adrien x Kagami) (idk either ship name tbh). Adrien doesn’t seem to really see Kagami as freedom from his “pretty boi model” life, which leads to him not rushing back when they have an akuma, often leaving her by herself. And Marinette just doesn’t have the communication skills to talk to Luka in a healthy way.

Personally I think the only way to save the love square is to have Marinette get over Adrien, with Chat, Adrien falling in love with Marinette (not completely getting rid of their admiration and love of Adrien and Ladybug) but having it in a way more healthy way. And falling in love with the way more real side of them. (Another reason why I don’t think Kagami really seemed right with Adrien, she fell for the serious model Adrien, while more real than the one Marinette originally becomes obsessed with, still not fully him. She even brushes off his ‘silly’ side in Lies, when she tries to draw him and he does the Chat pose)

Tho I’m gonna be honest here and just say I personally really like Marinette x Kagami and then Lukadrien (mainly bc of the representation, and they seems to have a way easier time communicating with each other)

I’ve also seen a lot of people being Adrino, and while yes it has representation, it takes away an amazing couple who have shown good communication skills, and know how to support each other and when they need to discourage things from happening (Like Nino being Alya’s common sense on what stuff to post on her blog, when she’s taking the reporter stuff too far, making sure she’s actually safe during akuma attacks). And on the other side we have Alya helping Nino understand social cues a bit better. I honestly think we need more of Alya helping hold Nino back and sane but personal opinion there. I mean this is all my personal opinion but…

[wackus-bonkus-maximus]

Got another Song rec for Gabriel! Behind Blue Eyes by Sheryl Crow

No one knows what it's like To be the bad man To be the sad man Behind blue eyes

No one knows what's really going on with Gabriel. That he's being manipulated and controlled, that he's not IN control, that he's arguably the most powerless person in the story, and definitely the one who's suffered the most.

And no one knows what it's like To be hated To be fated To telling only lies

Gabriel's HATED, especially by Adrien, the only person left who he really cares about. But he's stuck with it. He has to continue to spout Lila's lies, to dance on her string. And the only person who might have a clue about it is Felix, and even then, it's doubtful that he knows the full extent of it.

But my dreams They aren't as empty As my conscience seems to be

He knows he's morally bankrupt. That he's done horrible things, and would have done more, if he hadn't gotten a very hard lesson in how awful the things he was doing were. He has no such illusions anymore. But still, even with everything... he hopes for things to get better.

I have hours, only lonely My love is vengeance That's never free

Gabriel would like nothing more than to get back at Lila for murdering his friend, for tormenting his son, and tormenting him. But he can't let it go free. Lila would take it out on Adrien, and then on him, personally. She could make him take a swan dive off a roof, if she wanted to.

No one knows what it's like To feel these feelings Like I do And I blame you

This part is one of the few that doesn't really fit. Mostly because Gabriel's very aware that others know what it's like to feel these feelings. He's inflicted them in his son before, after all. And Ladybug's thought that she lost her partner for a long time, like Gabriel lost his.

No one bites back as hard On their anger None of my pain and woe Can show through

We see this in your story, his white knuckles as he bites back on his anger and woe and has to try and suppress it - or has them suppressed for him, it's not always clear which. In any case, Lila will punish him severely if he lets the truth slip.

When my fist clenches, crack it open Before I use it and lose my cool When I smile, tell me some bad news Before I laugh and act like a fool

He has to keep his feelings under control, both good and bad. He has to make sure not to anger Lila either way.

If I swallow anything evil Put your finger down my throat If I shiver, please give me a blanket Keep me warm, let me wear your coat

I think this is more his hope for the future than anything else. That in the future, he'll be free enough for him to be able to ask people to help him avoid going too far again (well he'll probably be in prison, but still). That he'll feel worthy of asking for a blanket when cold, that he'll have built or rebuilt some relationships somewhat.

i am seriously loving all these song recs 😍 and honestly i didn't think there was one out there that fit odnlb gabriel agreste so well, but this one is really haunting and beautiful.

i think you captured his situation really perfectly with this song. gabriel is so alone, and not just alone but also hated by the one person he loves and trapped by a person he thought he could trust. ironically, he's the only one who really understands what adrien is going through. yet, he can't do anything about it! this is his own doing, and remorse and guilt mean nothing. only adrien would probably pity him, but of course, gabriel would never want adrien to know.

i like the last thing you said about gabriel's hope: "my dreams/ they aren't as empty/ as my conscience seems to be." he knows know what he would do better, how he would fix it. and it's not even for the purpose of redeeming himself. it would just be to prevent adrien getting into this situation at all.

[flightfoot]

Soooooooooooo

people are now back again with the double standards, blaming Adrien and making him out to be stupid and oblivious because he has troubles believing that Ladybug suddenly loves him for real when we had the development of 4 seasons of Ladybug rejecting Chat Noir, making him understand that she is not interested in him which had its last finale episode in s4 Glaciator 2 where LB angrily chucks CN into a trashcan, throws him up on a roof in it and then kicks him out of it. She said she needed him to understand and accept that she doesnt love him and he did make that effort for good.

I find absolutely shitty that people are giving Adrien crap for being "oblivious" and "stupid" when he is doing exactly what Marinette asked him to do for 4 seasons: Not immediately interpreting every bit of affection from her as a romantic chance. Wasnt that EXACTLY what the discussions in- and out of universe were about? That just because Ladybug shows (flirty) and genuine affection doesnt it mean its supposed to be read by him as her suddenly having changed her mind entirely, that she suddenly loves him now?

I dont like how the fandom, encouraged by the show to a certain degree, just pulled a 180 here and its exactly what I expected to happen. That the moment Marinette changes her mind absolutely NOTHING about the prior rejecting of 4 seasons gets to matter anymore as if the rejecter is the only person in this whose feelings and emotional development has any importance. Chat told Ladybug at the end of Determination that he has discovered his true feelings (for someone else) too and sees LB and himself as the best partners in the world...

...

...

So for the fandom ignoring being rejected and being told that someone has feelings for another person is okay now when its the GIRL doing it? After 4 seasons of rejecting and enforcing the "no" means "no" message, THATS the morality we're going with now? Just throwing it out of the window the moment the BOY is the one saying "no"? Really? The fandom is actually going to give Adrien shit AGAIN, just this time because Marinette herself doesnt act accordingly to the situation at hand and her partners mindset regarding the topic she herself asked for to be like this.

I just... Marinette changing her mind is not even the problem. You can absolutely change youre mind in romance even after several rejections, thats not the problem and it was obvious from the start that it would happen at one point here in Miraculous. But the sexist double standard the fandom is pulling once again for a sorely Marinette-focused Morality as per usual is honestly ruining the Lady Noire and Mister Bug interactions for me.

Just let this boy live for 2 secs in a state where he isnt returning marinettes love the way she wants it without branding him oblivious, stupid and "not treating her right". How is this NOT the female equivalent of fuckboy logic the fandom is spitting out?

And for all it is, wouldnt it make MUCH more sense that Adrien IS noticing that Ladybug's approach to him has changed in the romantic direction, but he is interpreting it as "As I know Ladybug is currently emotionally totally overwhelmed because of everything that was thrown at her, she lost the miraculous, the entire team, she probably fears to date the boy she loves for real bc of her position as Ladybug and thought that I would leave her too because of how things stood between us. Ladybug isnt in love with me but she thinks she is because she is confusing her blooming platonic affection for me, as her partner who is still on her side and takes care of her, for love. When all of this settles down again she will be able to properly sort out her feelings again"

That is the most logical take for me right now for how Adrien approaches Ladybugs love. And that isnt offesive or infantilizing her, confusing platonic affection with real love is not uncommen for people in Marinettes position and emotional state. I'm pretty sure thats how I would approach the situation if I were in Adriens shoes. So isnt it GOOD that Adrien is not immediately taking Ladybugs love as face value, since that would basically be him taking advantage of her overwhelmed emotional state? Isnt this what we as a fandom should WANT him to do?

Dude, this FANDOM

I haven't actually seen Adrien getting any flak, but I'm pretty sure I've blocked or unfollowed people to the point where that just doesn't happen as much. Everyone I follow has just been squealing about how cute Adrien's blushing over Marinette is. So I can't totally relate to this ask? Like I can believe that there are segments on Twitter somewhere that are yelling at Adrien for supposedly being oblivious (especially the people who already hate Adrien, though the level of Adrien slander you're outlining here is very mild by those standards. Adrien salters are WILD), but it's not a take I have personally seen in the wild so far.

Anyway, I don't think Adrien deserves to be yelled at any for not grasping that Ladybug IS returning his feelings now - I mean, his relationship with Ladybug has always had a flirtatious element, and she's returned his banter flirtatiously often enough. Plus, like you talked about, she's made it pretty clear in the past that she doesn't view him that way. Of course he doesn't think she's changed her mind. Even just in Jubilation she was still denying her feelings for Chat Noir, how real that Gift would be, to his face when he directly asked.

And yeah, I'm thinking that Adrien's probably noticed the change in Ladybug's approach to Chat Noir, but personally I think he's noticed on some level that it's reminding him of Marinette more than anything, so he might just be thinking she's being endearingly sweet and funny.

[scottpetersen]

‘Bridgette The Sentimonster’ Chapter 5

Bridgette got Adrien back to the Agreste mansion. And once they got there, Adrien looked like he was about to have a panic attack.

“What does all of this mean?!” Adrien screamed frantically.

Bridgette couldn’t blame him. Adrien just found out that he’s a sentimonster and there’s so many ways that news could change his life for the worse. It could make Adrien question if he’s even real, make Adrien question he ever had any freedom at all, make Adrien realize that his father is Hawkmoth and has been terrorizing and brainwashing the people of Paris including his friends. It might even make Ladybug think that Adrien is a sentimonster imposter created by Hawkmoth and Mayura while the real Adrien is being held captive by them.

OH NO!!! Bridgette thought as she realized what would happen if that last scenario were to come true.

If Ladybug believed Adrien is a sentimonster imposter, Ladybug will probably destroy him thinking that creating him is part of Hawkmoth’s evil plans.

Snapping herself out of her thoughts, Bridgette realized that she has to do something before that could happen.

Bridgette grabs Adrien’s shoulders and brought him to face her.

“Adrien. I know you’re beyond scared right now but I think I have a plan.” Bridgette said.

“I’m listening.” Adrien said after pulling himself together.

“I’m gonna send Tikki out to talk to everyone who might know anything about this situation or how to help find a solution. That includes your father, Nathalie, your aunt Amelie, your cousin Felix, Ladybug, even the Order Of The Guardians themselves.” Bridgette stated.

Adrien nodded. “Great idea. Thank you, Scarab Walker!”

Bridgette was about to leave when Adrien asked, “Wait. I know you probably found out about the Order Of The Guardians from Alya’s posts on the Ladyblog but how did you know about the rest of my family and Nathalie?”

“Oh…uh…Google research.” Bridgette said thinking up an excuse on the spot.

“Oh. Ok. Good luck!” Adrien said as he waved goodbye.

“Thank you.” Bridgette replied as she jumped out the window.

Bridgette landed on the Agreste mansion’s yard and, after making sure no one was watching, shouted:

“Tikki Spots Off!”

After Bridgette’s Scarab Walker suit disappeared, Tikki appeared in front of her.

“Bridgette. Is everything alright?” Tikki asked most likely wondering how the battle ended.

“No. Turns out Adrien is a sentimonster and we gotta help him before things get too out-of-hand.” Bridgette stated barely resisting the command Gabriel gave her with her Amok object to not share that Adrien is a sentimonster.

That command is also the reason why Bridgette didn’t tell Tikki that she already knew that Adrien was a sentimonster or that she herself is a sentimonster earlier. Another reason why she didn’t tell Tikki earlier is because before, none of the superheroes knew about Adrien being a sentimonster. But now that Ryuko and Carapace do, there’s really not much point in keeping a secret from Tikki either.

“Adrien is a WHAT?!” Tikki shouted with a combination of shock, horror and confusion.

“I know that’s hard to process but right now he needs your help.” Bridgette said. “You have to get back to Ladybug and ask her if there’s anything in the Guardian Spellbook that can help Adrien gain freedom from his Amok object. Also, see if she can contact the Order Of The Guardians to help out.”

They’ve only met hours ago but Bridgette knows Tikki can be trusted. While Tikki was giving her those tips on how to use the Ladybug Miraculous, Tikki struck Bridgette as altruistic, thoughtful and responsible. Those personality traits allowed Tikki to also strike Bridgette as someone who might give sentimonsters a chance. Bridgette isn’t sure if she can trust Ladybug or the Order Of The Guardians to do the same. But she’s hoping that Tikki will be able to convince them considering the Kwami of Creation’s trustworthiness.

Tikki responded to Bridgette’s request by saying, “Ok. I’ll do everything I can to help.”

That caused Bridgette’s faith in Tikki to increase slightly. But she knows there’s only one thing that can confirm Tikki’s willingness to help for sure.

Bridgette handed the Ladybug Miraculous to Tikki. Bridgette knows that without the Ladybug Miraculous on her, Tikki will no longer be required to obey her. So, it will be what Tikki says afterwards that will really decide it.

After the Ladybug Miraculous was given to Tikki, Tikki rewarded Bridgette’s faith by saying, “Don’t worry. I’m not gonna dismiss Adrien as a living being just because he’s a sentimonster.”

“Good.” Bridgette replied. “Try to argue a great case for him. Make sure Ladybug and the Order Of The Guardians know that he’s not another sentimonster being used by Hawkmoth. Lastly, make sure they don’t tell anyone else about this.”

“Since Adrien’s been helping Paris as Cat Noir and didn’t give his Miraculous to Hawkmoth, I have no doubt that he isn’t. And I’ll make sure they keep this secret.” Tikki said.

“Ok. Good luck.” Bridgette replied.

With that, Tikki flew off and is heading back to Ladybug.

Bridgette knows what she has to do next.

I have to find Nathalie. Bridgette thought.

Bridgette then went back into the Agreste mansion searching for her creator.

-

Nathalie got Gabriel to his bedroom.

Nathalie then put Gabriel onto his bed and buried him under its sheets.

Looks like he’s resting comfortably. Nathalie thought as she watched him.

Suddenly, the bedroom door opened and in walked Bridgette.

“Hello, Nathalie.” Bridgette said awkwardly.

“Hello, Bridgette.” Nathalie replied.

Nathalie then sighs. She knows there’s no point in beating around the bush. “Listen, Bridgette. I know you were Scarab Walker. So, I also know that you’re aware that Adrien knows he’s a sentimonster.”

It was now Bridgette’s turn to sigh. “Should’ve known I couldn’t keep it from you. I gave too much of my personality away during our fight.”

Nathalie nodded. “Yes. But that’s besides the point now. What matters now is that we have to help Adrien and Gabriel. I was planning to continue helping Gabriel get Ladybug’s and Cat Noir’s Miraculouses. But now, too many secrets have been revealed.”

“Yeah. Like how Adrien was actually one of the heroes you and Gabriel have been fighting in order to bring back Emilie. And how Adrien along with a couple of superheroes now know that he’s a sentimonster.” Bridgette said breaking it down.

“About those “couple of superheroes”, their secret identities are Nino and Kagami. 2 of Adrien’s friends. They can probably be trusted to keep this secret.” Nathalie said.

Bridgette then looked nervous. “About that, I already told Tikki, Ladybug’s Kwami, to go to Ladybug to see if there’s anything she or the Order Of The Guardians can do to help Adrien.”

“Wait What?!” Nathalie shouted in complete shock. Who knows what letting them in on this will do?!

“Don’t worry though. I made Tikki promise to make sure they don’t let anyone else about it.” Bridgette tried to reassure her.

That did reassure Nathalie a little bit.

“But still there’s…” Nathalie started but stopped and regained her composure.

Nathalie sighed. “No matter. We can still make a cover story to make sure they don’t figure out that Gabriel is Hawkmoth. And they can indeed give Adrien some much needed help. After all, they probably know much more about the Miraculouses than we do. Plus, we can use their findings to help you too, Bridgette.”

Bridgette looked speechless for a moment there. But then, she smiled and said, “Sounds like a plan to me.”

Nathalie then realizes something else. “We also have to call Audrey Bourgeois, Tomoe Tsurugi, Amelie de Vanily and their families. Ms. Bourgeois and Ms. Tsurugi worked closely with Emilie and Gabriel to help them get the Peacock and Butterfly Miraculouses. And as for Amelie, as I said earlier, she intervened in Emilie’s experiments on Felix. So, we have to make sure they don’t get any ideas about exposing this to the public. I also think we should get Nino and Kagami to ask Ladybug to come over and help discuss this.”

“Ok. And I think Adrien is also gonna need more emotional support if you know what I mean. He’s gonna need his friends.” Bridgette said solemnly.

Nathalie nodded. Bridgette does have a point. “I understand, Bridgette. But I think we should only ask those who are among the people I just listed.”

“You got it. So, I guess we have our plan.” Bridgette said. Then, it dawns on her. “Except…”

Nathalie nodded. “Yes. We’re still gonna have to get Gabriel to cooperate. I’ll see what I can do as soon as he wakes up.”

“Ok. Good luck.” Bridgette said. “You don’t mind me making the calls, do you?”

“I don’t mind. I trust you.” Nathalie replied.

“Thank you.” Bridgette says as she leaves the room.

Nathalie is now alone with Gabriel.

I’m so sorry, Gabriel. But soon, you’re gonna have to look past the memory of your wife. Your son needs you. This family needs you. Nathalie thought.

-

Gabriel finally regained consciousness.

Where am I? Gabriel thought bewildered.

He looks around and sees that he’s getting in his bedroom.

He also sees Nathalie sitting on a chair beside him.

Then, Gabriel remembers everything that’s happened. Cat Noir turning out to be his own son Adrien. Those superheroes finding out Adrien’s sentimonster nature. Him getting overwhelmed by the thoughts and emotions of himself, his son, Nathalie and those superheroes.

Gabriel then burst out of his bed’s sheets and frantically asked Nathalie, “How long have I been out?! Is Adrien alright?! Are our secrets exposed?!”

Nathalie with a surprisingly straight face said, “Only an hour, sir. And yes, Gabriel. Adrien is safe. At least for now. And not too many people know about our secrets just yet.”

Gabriel gave a sigh of relief.

But then, Nathalie said, “Gabriel. I think it’s time we stop this crusade to bring back Emilie.”

“WHAT?!” Gabriel replied. He couldn’t believe Nathalie would suggest such a thing!

But Nathalie continued, “As you know, Adrien and those superheroes now know that he’s a sentimonster. If we keep this up, we’ll without a doubt be found out.”

Gabriel can tell that Nathalie is right. Too much has been revealed already. Going on like this will draw attention on both his son and himself. His identity as Hawkmoth will be revealed. Nathalie’s identity as Mayura will be revealed. Both of them will be locked away in prison. Adrien will have to live with the reputation of being Hawkmoth’s son! But…

“Bu-but I made a promise to Emilie to bring her back.” Gabriel said stuttering a little.

“Listen, Gabriel. You’ve already took too many risks when it comes to your son’s safety. Are you really willing to take more. Especially given the current circumstances.” Nathalie said with an incredibly stern tone.

Once again, Nathalie’s words struck Gabriel’s heart.

They also caused Gabriel to have flashbacks about what he almost did to Adrien during Gorizilla’s rampage. Gabriel recalls how his mistakes that day almost caused Adrien to plummet to his death. He made Gorizilla drop Ladybug to save him because even with suspicions that his son was Cat Noir, one of his enemies standing in the way of bringing his wife back, he couldn’t bring himself to hurt his son.

Ironically enough, now that he knows for sure that his son is Cat Noir, he can’t bring himself to fight him at all. Especially not with the current stakes.

But at the same time…

“Would Emilie be disappointed that I just gave up? Would she be furious?” Gabriel asked anxiously.

“In case you’ve forgotten, Gabriel, Emilie is not the only one in this house you should be thinking about.” Nathalie replied. “Besides, if you keep going, you’ll lose both Adrien and Emilie. But if you stop now, you at least won’t lose Adrien.”

As much as Gabriel hates to admit it, those words ring true.

There’s no getting around it now. Gabriel knows he has to stop.

Nathalie offers him a hand to help him up.

Gabriel accepts it.

“By the way, we’ve invited the Tsurugis, the Bourgeois’s, the de Vanily’s, Adrien’s friend Nino and Ladybug here. We figured we should talk to them before they get any ideas.” Nathalie stated.

Gabriel understands. After all, the de Vanily’s are directly connected to his family, Kagami was one of the superheroes who found out that Adrien is a sentimonster and she’s a Tsurugi, Nino also found out about Adrien’s sentimonster nature, Audrey has a lot of power and influence and knows about what he and Emilie were up to in Tibet, and they need to steer Ladybug off their trail.

Gabriel then started wondering about something.

“We?” Gabriel asked.

“Yes. Me and Bridgette.” Nathalie said.

The way Nathalie addressed Bridgette as if she were a truly living being didn’t sit right with Gabriel.

“Nathalie. Bridgette is not like Adrien. She was created with a specific purpose…” Gabriel started but Nathalie stopped him.

“And she was created from a combination of emotions that ensure she’s just as much of a human as Adrien. Besides, she’ll probably look past that particular purpose one day. After all, she was able to completely overcome our commands.” Nathalie said.

Gabriel sighs. “You really care about her as if she is your own daughter, don’t you?”

“Yes. I do.” Nathalie replied.

“Then, I’ll be sure to treat her as such as well.” Gabriel said.

Then suddenly, Gabriel accidentally sensed something coming from both himself and Nathalie.

A strange emotion. Very wild but at the same time, harmonious.

And it looks like Nathalie accidentally sensed the same thing too from the same source with the Peacock Miraculous.

“Nathalie. You’re…we’re…” Gabriel said at a complete loss for words.

“I know, Gabriel. But now is not the time.” Nathalie said.

Just as she said that, the doorbell rang.

“Looks like they’re here. Let’s go.” Nathalie said as she walked towards the front door.

“Right behind you.” Gabriel said as he followed suit.

Gabriel knew what that emotion he and Nathalie were sensing was.

So wild.

Yet so harmonious.

So powerful.

Gabriel knew it can only be one thing.

Love.

Notes: Ok. Credit for this partly belongs to @unecoccinellenoire. She was the one who encouraged me to make this fanfic. It was also inspired by her fanfics ‘A Nightmare In Cerulean’ and ‘Nobody’s Perfect’. Also, I decided to lengthen this fanfic to 6 chapters (plus the Prologue) rather than 5 (plus the prologue).

[miraculouscontent]

Luka stepped back from the ladder as Ladybug dropped down from the manhole cover. He noted her typical Ladybug bodysuit and guessed that she'd probably recharged on her way back to see him.

"Sorry that I had to leave you here," she said, looking genuinely guilty about it. "I should've taken your miraculous so you could go, but with everything going on—"

He raised a hand, smiling to reassure her. "It's okay, really. I'm just glad everything's alright now."

He meant it. He hadn't known what to make of the assault on his senses when Sass had apparently used Second Chance all on his own, but all he could feel now was a sense of relief that everything had been fixable.

Ladybug smiled back, just as relieved as him. "Me too."

She extended her hand, allowing them to get back to where they were before she left. He took the silver bangle off his wrist, reaching out to drop it into her palm.

Then, at the last second, a hand shot out and grabbed her wrist. He looked up, a feeling of deja vu hitting him as he saw the person who'd been scolding Ladybug earlier standing there. Luka caught himself glaring at him, though it wasn't as if a poker face would've mattered anyway since the guy seemed almost oblivious to his presence.

"Grand Master Su-Han?" Ladybug gasped in alarm.

Ah, so that was his name. If she'd said it last time, Luka hadn't cared to remember.

"What happened!?" Su-Han asked in alarm. "Who permitted Sass to use Second Chance!?"

"I don't know!" she replied, throwing her arms out in an anxious shrug. "All Sass said is that he saw a picture of the time we set and he had to go back!"

"A kwami using their power on their own isn't something to be taken lightly!" he retorted, pointing a finger at her accusingly. "And if we wanted to prevent whatever happened, then we need to know why."

The demand was obviously unreasonable, as none of them could see the future, or rather the past future in this case. Just like before, Su-Han may have had a good point somewhere, but his way of going about it was blaming Ladybug for everything.

Luka would be lying if he said he wasn't unfairly upset with Adrien for not showing up. It'd been bad enough having to watch Su-Han yell at Ladybug before, but now he was seeing it again, with Chat's lack of arrival as the starting cause of Su-Han's concern.

"I—" Ladybug halted before she could say anything else, seeming hesitant to argue with him. Her fingers twitched in her temptation, but curled into fists as she hung her head in defeat. "...You're right, but what could've caused it?"

She rubbed her chin in thought, and Luka tried to think himself in an effort to help. After all, he was her snake, and it was a snake's job to learn and see through possibilities. This was a step up from his usual, but he agreed with Ladybug that it would be helpful to have a guess on what happened.

"Sass using Second Chance stopped us from going through with our plan, so it could've had something to do with that," Ladybug guessed. "We just don't know what about it made everything go so wrong."

It was a logical enough conclusion; with everyone being superheroes, it seemed only natural that they were the ones who had impact great enough to cause any problems. At the same time though, Luka watched as Ladybug's shoulders tensed, the brows of her mask furrowing when she bit down on her bottom lip.

He could see it in her shrunken pupils. She was going to blame herself, and there was no way Su-Han would take it lightly given how he was still angry with her even after she'd saved the day twice now. Luka mentally debated with himself, knowing his time to act was limited just going off of her shifting lips and the regret taking over her expression.

Thus, when she looked up at Su-Han and opened her mouth to speak, he made sure to speak first.

"It was my fault."

The utter confusion on Ladybug's face would've been comical had things not been so serious, her eyes wide and her mouth still open. Su-Han, meanwhile, had finally acknowledged his presence, albeit with skepticism.

Luka hesitated, looking back and forth between the two in front of him. He didn't know what consequences his actions would bring, but shielding Ladybug from unnecessary blame was his priority. He only felt bad given what he knew about her relationship to "Chat Noir."

"Ladybug wanted to use this chance so I could know Chat's identity, but she didn't have to. I..." He averted his gaze. "I already know it, and Ladybug's too."

"You what!?" Su-Han and Ladybug asked, giving each other brief glances when they realized that they'd spoken in unison.

Before Su-Han could assume anything about Ladybug's role, Luka stepped forward to insist, "It wasn't Ladybug's fault either. She didn't do anything wrong."

Su-Han squinted at him, suspicious. "Then it was you? A snake holder who uses his powers selfishly is—"

Luka shook his head. "It wasn't me. I would never want to betray Ladybug's trust. I know how important it is for her to keep her identity as secret as she can. I didn't tell her when I saw their identities, but I protected them as best as I could."

Out of the corner of his vision, Ladybug's gaze softened.

"Then what happened?" Su-Han demanded, clearly dissatisfied with the information that was blatantly being left out.

"It was Wishmaker. He was an akuma who made anyone's childhood dream come to life. Ladybug came to get my help as Viperion, but while she was figuring out her Lucky Charm, Chat Noir..." He paused, but there really was no nicer way to say it than, "he let himself get hit."

"The cat holder," Su-Han muttered in disbelief. Really, it was almost a hiss, and Luka could only guess as to how much had flown under the man's radar.

"I don't know why he did it. When I tried to hurry and deflect the shot, Ladybug ended up getting hit, and when I went back to tell Chat to duck instead, he didn't listen."

Suddenly, Ladybug's voice piped up. "Childhood dream..."

Luka, as well as Su-Han, looked back at her. She seemed troubled by the thoughts going through her head just as much as the revelations he'd dropped.

"Chat made fun of me for my childhood dream. I tried to do it back to him, but he got upset and said that he couldn't remember," she explained.

Su-Han was twitching in place, almost reminiscent of boiling lava in a volcano. "Do you mean to say that Chat Noir put his identity at risk so that he could learn about a meaningless fantasy!?"

Ladybug made an attempt to respond, but nothing came out. She was completely speechless from the overload of information, her eyes darting back and forth as she processed it all. In the end, she never even answered Su-Han's question, her gaze locking with Luka's instead as she asked, "Why didn't you tell me?"

Luka felt the guilt gnawing at him further. It wasn't as if he wanted to keep any secrets from her; if he could have it his way, he would've told her everything on his mind, or had a relationship where they could tell each other anything with no concerns.

"I—I'm sorry," he said, knowing that even his reasoning didn't act as an excuse. Though he hesitated to say more given the additional bomb he'd be dropping, both Su-Han and Ladybug were looking at him for answers.

Sighing, he relented, "I was worried something might happen to him if I told the truth. You always try so hard to get his attention as Marinette and I didn't want to take that away from you, even if you didn't know it was him."

Her lips parted at that, her expression remaining blank for a long, painful moment before everything seemed to click. She inhaled sharply, a hand going up to her mouth in realization. "No!"

"What is it?" Su-Han asked, frustrated to be left out of what had been implied but not said. "Who is he?"

Luka looked up at him. "Adrien Agreste."

"Adrien—" Su-Han became rigid - even more rigid than before - and brought a hand up to rub at the various creases in his forehead courtesy of his outrage. "You mean the boy whose face is all over Paris? That boy?"

Ladybug replied quietly, albeit still in a state of shock, "Yes..."

Su-Han glanced at her, then out at nothing in particular. "I was right. Wang Fu is a fool, and the Order of the Guardians will certainly be putting in measures to prevent such people from becoming guardians in the future." Su-Han paced about in the limited space in utter disbelief. "To not only give the miraculous to a child, but one who the entire public knows about. I may have been gone for over a century but time has changed little about how our holders are decided. To take such a risk and give a miraculous to a famous boy with a schedule that puts him all over Paris is absurd, and the fact that I know of him says as much. We are all lucky that he hasn't been found out." He tossed a glance Luka's way. "At least by anyone else. Perhaps it was best that he never arrived to battle, else he be seen by someone on his way out."

Luka couldn't say anything, only watch as Su-Han turned away in a mixture of anger and contemplation. Ladybug looked small by comparison, hunched over and fiddling with her fingers.

"It's—" she spoke up, floundering for words. "His schedule isn't his fault? He's struggling at home, and—"

Su-Han spun around to face her, so fast that she and Luka flinched. "Struggling? Struggling?!" He approached her. "We do not give this kind of power to weak-minded, struggling individuals! As the new guardian, he is meant to report to you about his failings, yet you were completely unaware of all of this!" He grit his teeth, his right hand coming up and tightening into a fist. "Imagine what else you don't know about? With actions like that, you cannot trust him to have integrity, and whether it's due to his schedule or his own childish whims, a demolished city rife with dead bodies will only know that he failed to be there!"

Something about his words made Ladybug tighten up, her eyes shutting and her hands slamming against them as if she was remembering something horribly unpleasant. Luka hurried to her side, his hands hovering over her shoulders but unsure of what comfort she needed.

He couldn't tell if Su-Han felt bad for what he'd said to her or had merely gotten his anger out, but he didn't yell anymore and his posture returned back to normal.

"...I'm taking the boy's miraculous. What we do with it afterwards can be discussed later, but it will certainly be better than what we have now."

Ladybug didn't answer, her breathing shaky and too quick for Luka's comfort. He willed himself to bring his hands down, feeling her flinch at first but slowly relax against him. He squeezed the shoulder opposite of him, rubbing along it with his thumb.

Then, without gracing Su-Han with so much as a look, he demanded, "Apologize to Marinette."

Su-Han, who'd been about to hop away, froze in place and glanced over his shoulder. "What was that?"

Ladybug jolted up, lowering her hands to look at Luka with her eyes wide in alarm. "L-luka!"

But Luka remained firm, not caring about any potential consequences. He separated himself from her to show that she had nothing to do with his call, then stepped forward to face Su-Han himself.

"I don't know anything about this besides what I've heard you two talk about," he admitted, "but I know that Marinette has been alone for a long time; stressed for a long time. You coming here now, showing up when she's still on the job, tells me more than enough about the song you've been playing." He watched Su-Han's expression carefully, noting that he wasn't responding despite how tense he was. "You haven't been here. If this Fu person picked Adrien, it's not fair to blame Marinette for a decision someone else made. If you didn't have faith in her, you could've taken her miraculous too, but you didn't because she's been doing better than anyone else you have."

It was a bold claim, but he stuck to it with a look that dared Su-Han to challenge him. With the limited knowledge he could gather about the miraculouses, he knew that adults didn't have timers, meaning that Marinette would have to far exceed Su-Han's expectations in order to not be replaced by an adult. As much as Luka didn't care for the attitude Su-Han took with Marinette, he didn't doubt that the man was dedicated to Paris' safety; the problem was who he was choosing to take out his frustrations on.

Su-Han stood in place, staring Luka down as if it were a mental battle of wills. "You have quite the nerve to make such a claim for something you know so little about."

"I believe in Marinette," Luka said, as if it were the simplest thing in the world. "Even if she wasn't the guardian - even if she wasn't Ladybug - she has talent just the way she is, no matter what you think. She can learn any instrument with time even if she doesn't need them to sound great."

He had a feeling that his music metaphors were wasted on Su-Han, yet the look he got in return for them wasn't one of confusion. It was more like one of deep thought, Su-Han taking more of a pause than before at his statement.

"...Loyalty," he spoke suddenly.

Luka blinked, becoming the confused one himself. "What?"

Su-Han exhaled through his nose, lowering his head to him. "A necessary trait for a guardian's chosen, but simply for a friend? Perhaps I still have more to learn about these relationships in the modern era."

And with that, he stepped around Luka, unofficially dismissing the conversation as "over." He then went to stand in front of Ladybug, the two meeting gazes for so long that one might think they were telepathic. Ladybug had eased from his prior yelling, though unsure of where to take their discussion.

"Your chosen—" Su-Han paused. "Your friend is right. I haven't been here," he agreed, finally. "I've been listing rules you know nothing about and failing to explain why they exist. You are indeed competent as a guardian and ladybug holder, but we've already seen where Fu had brought himself without any guidance in his life. I worry about this city - about the miraculouses in Shadow Moth's hands - and I've been taking it out on you." It clearly pained him, but he nevertheless bowed to her and said, "My actions have been little more than sightseeing. Competent or not, you're still a child, and I apologize for not giving you any guidance."

"O-oh." Ladybug was dazed at first, then stiffened and rubbed the back of her neck. "Oh, it—no, I'm... it's not really..." She pressed her lips together, showing a mix of awkwardness and embarrassment at Su-Han behaving in such a way to her. Dumbstruck for a more proper response, she could only squeak out, "Thank you?"

The atmosphere didn't phase Su-Han - perhaps he didn't even sense it - as he immediately turned away to head back off in the direction he came. Luka didn't make any comment this time, focusing wholly on Ladybug.

"Do you want me to go after him?"

"Huh?"

Luka clarified, "He's taking Adrien's miraculous. I still have the snake if you...?"

Her gaze was slowly drifting from him, Luka following it to see Su-Han still hopping away. Even though Ladybug's eyes seemed distant and unfocused, he knew she was aware enough to understand what was happening.

They watched as Su-Han turned the corner, leaving him completely out of their sight. Only then did Ladybug truly breathe, shaking her head as she insisted, "Let him go."

She was certain. There was no doubt there and not enough of a pause to imply hesitation. She meant it.

"Grand Master Su-Han is... difficult," she admitted. "But he's right. Adrien... he shouldn't have a miraculous. He's too busy, and the world's always watching him. Even with Chat, he knows I'm the guardian, but I don't know any more than I did before. I might not be experienced - Su-Han even said that miraculous holders aren't supposed to be guardians in the first place - but I know I'd be putting Chat over Paris if I kept trusting him when he doesn't deserve it, and I don't want that."

"Are you okay?" Luka asked. When she looked at him, he gestured around them and explained, "All of this is beyond what I know how to play, but it couldn't be more important to me than how you feel. If I'd just told you what I knew after we fought Wishmaker, this wouldn't have happened, or maybe you would've at least had more time to think it over before Su-Han showed up." He lowered his head in shame, reaching into his pocket and offering her the snake miraculous that he'd been prevented from giving back earlier. "You have every right to be angry with me."

He could feel her eyes looking him over, but didn't meet them back. He'd been mentally preparing for such a moment ever since he'd learned her identity, particularly in the case that she never wanted to see him again. Even if it was Chat that led to both identities being revealed to him, Luka felt guilty for simply knowing and always thought of what he could've done differently to prevent it. If he'd just tilted his lyre just a little more when deflecting the blast, or realized that physical force would be the only way to prevent Chat from being struck otherwise...

Point being, he couldn't - wouldn't - blame Marinette for any negative reaction she had. He wanted to be a part of her life, but only as much as she'd let him. If she didn't want him, then he would accept that and take his knowledge all the way to the grave.

Ready to face the music, he saw Ladybug's hand silently reaching out towards the miraculous in his palm, only for her to stop short before it could get there. She took hold of his fingers, curling them inwards to cover the miraculous, at which point he looked up to see her expression.

Yet, it was a blur, Ladybug lunging at him to bring him in for a hug. He staggered, not from the force but from shock, her scent taking over his entire sense of smell despite the location they were in.

"I'm not angry," she whispered, burying her face into his shoulder. "How could I be? You've been the best partner, hero, friend that I could've ever asked for. You could've taken advantage of what you knew but you didn't, and you defended me even though you didn't have to, even though you thought I could turn you away." She squeezed him in reassurance, exhaling audibly against his jacket.

"I avoided you once already, Luka. I never want to do it again."

His heart clenched at the intense rush of emotions he felt, his arms automatically moving around her to hug her back. "Thank you."

She hummed, leaning her full weight against him while he enjoyed every second of it. "Thank you for protecting me."

"Protecting you?" He tilted his head.

She raised her head just enough to look at him, blushing faintly in embarrassment. "You knew that Chat was Adrien. If anything caused things to go wrong, it was probably..." She trailed off, averting her gaze from him and letting the silence fill the rest of the sentence.

He gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile. "I know. Your music box shuts around him, but we can't know for sure what happened and it wouldn't be right to blame you for anything."

"Music box?" she asked, her lips pursed in thought.

"Oh." He realized belatedly that he might've said too much in his emotional high and offended her. "Sorry, I—"

"No," she assured. "Just—wouldn't it be that my music box is wound up too much? Or playing too loud?"

He blinked, thrown off by the questioning of his music dialect. She didn't even seem insulted, more like—she wanted to hear him explain it?

He couldn't understand, all too aware of how delicate the subject was, but answered her question anyway. "If you were wound up too much or playing too loud, I would be seeing more Marinette - more of you, with more energy and passion - but that's not what I hear." He hesitated. "A closed music box is when I can't hear all your notes. They're muffled, and it sounds like the song is trying to break out but can't."

It made him uncharacteristically nervous to talk about it, as it was an opinion he wouldn't share with anyone normally. The thought was largely why he understood her actions: it wasn't Marinette, but an anxious and stressed Marinette writhing in a desperate attempt to break free of an invisible prison. He couldn't relate to such feelings of "love," but he supposed he didn't have to either.

Marinette, to his continued surprise, wasn't offended by his explanation. Rather, she seemed puzzled.

"Why haven't you told me that before?" she asked.

He shrugged. "It's none of my business. I want you to be happy, Marinette, and I'm..." He chuckled, almost shameless in his admittance. "Well, I'm biased."

She let out a small hum of acknowledgment, her hands having not left him the entire time they were talking. "I—I don't really mind that, though? You can be biased."

He snorted. She was really too cute sometimes. "I'm glad."

"Anyway, I think..." She smiled faintly. "I think this might've been just what I needed. For Adrien, anyway."

"Oh. You mean—"

Gesturing vaguely around them with a wave of her hand, she clarified, "The whole thing. Knowing what I know now, about Chat, and what he did, and you."

He blanked. "Me?"

She nodded casually at first, then straightened and blushed a deep shade of red. "Ah—I mean, what you said!"

"I wasn't trying to make you change your opinion," he gently insisted, not pointing out her temporary panic so as to make her feel embarrassed.

"You didn't!" she reassured. "Besides—!" She patted at his chest for emphasis. "—your opinion matters! I want you to be able to share whatever you're thinking with me!"

The bluntness didn't make him blush, but he definitely felt warm. "I'll keep that in mind, Marinette." Then, remembering the bangle that she'd only kept in his hand symbolically before, he showed it to her again. "Do you want to take this back now?"

She glanced at the bangle thoughtfully, one of her hands leaving his to rub the back of her head. "Actually... are you doing anything?"

His eyes drifted briefly to the hand still firmly on his chest. "...No. I was just going to go home after this."

"I was thinking of taking a walk. I'm not ready to go back to the bakery just yet. Do you—" She lifted the hand that'd been off his chest, unsure. "Do you want to walk with me?"

He opened his mouth - half in surprise, half to answer - but didn't trust his voice in the end and settled for a nod.

She perked up immediately. "Great! I know a place nearby we can go!"

As she called for her detransformation phrase, she moved to his side and their hands brushed. He pretended not to notice, then felt their palms press together as she slipped her fingers through the gaps of his own, the feeling of the bodysuit fading away to her skin.

He lagged for a moment in his stupor - having been used to being the one to take her hand - as she gently led him to the nearby ladder. Raising his hand towards the ladder with a beaming smile and silent instruction, he got the message and smiled back at her. Releasing her hand briefly, he made sure the snake miraculous was secure in his pocket and promptly gripped the bars of the ladder, starting to make his way up. He could even hear the subtle 'clink' noises from below as Marinette climbed after him.

Once they'd exited the sewers, Marinette checked that the manhole cover was back in its proper place, then returned to Luka's side to take his hand again.

"Luka?"

"What?" he asked.

"The music box," she began. "Is it open?"

He unconsciously gave her hand a small squeeze, struck by the earnest expression on her face. Not bothering to hide his smile, he nodded.

"Yeah," he replied, stepping in sync with her as they walked. "It's never sounded clearer, Marinette."