#chloe's lament asks

[nobodyfamousposts]

In the Lament series, if Red Queen was desperate and decided to take the risk to trust Chloe with a Miraculous, which Miraculous would it be?

She wouldn't. All of the classmates could be taken down and she still wouldn't trust Chloe even if she was her last option. She would dual wield if she had to.

If Red Queen was really desperate, she would reveal herself to her father and ask for his help. Or go to the Mayor or Tom or Damocles or any other adult over Chloe.

Remember, Sabrina finds out not too long into the new timeline that Chloe was a former Miraculous user and that she chose to help Hawk Moth, betrayed the heroes, took over the city, and ultimately decided to make the Wish to attempt to rewrite reality to suit her wants when even all of that wasn't enough for her. Even now, in the current iteration of Chloe's Lament, Chloe is still more focused on trying to "win" or "regain her rightful place" than actually learn from her mistakes or try to do better.

But let's say that Chloe did. Let's say for the sake of argument that she learned her lesson about how much of a brat she was and decided to change her ways. The thing is, no matter how much "better" Chloe may appear to be, that's not the sort of thing a chooser of heroes can just overlook. Especially where the power of the Miraculous is concerned and the temptation to use that power for one's own ends once they have the chance.

This is especially important given Chloe's initial plan was to misuse the Ladybug Miraculous once she got it. And her later plan to find a different Miraculous so as to steal the others and ultimately regain the Ladybug and Black Cat so she could make another Wish.

Let's also bear in mind that this is a better Paris. With a more competent and helpful Mayor, and more involved citizens. Contingency plans would be put in place. They would set up a multitude of options and resources so that having to offer a Miraculous to someone like Chloe and pray she doesn't use it to betray them wouldn't have to be one.

[aliensunflower-fics]

My Recommended Fic List

So, I got this ask awhile ago, and since I have been re-reading a bunch of my old favorite fics as a way to cheer up after work I figured why not. This list will be long... and varied but mostly its older fics cuz idk there my favs. Now lets go:

Fashion Upgrade - By @soap-lady : Straight up one of my favorite fics ever, its fun, its creative, it never fails to make me laugh when I need something warm and wholesome after a bad day. Also go check out the rest of her stuff there's so much good okay like shes just a writing queen. Shes on AO3 I don't want to spoil you on her other stuff just GO experience it for yourself.

Ode To Decoy pt 1 / 2 / 3 - By @a-marlene-s : Ive always liked this short sweet little fic about Lila getting caught. Its Lila + class salt though so avoid if that's not your flavor.

EVERYTHING - By @unmaskedagain : They have salt, they have sugar, they have funny, they have crossovers. Like honestly they are a just a great writer with so much variety so go check out the masterlist I linked and I guarantee there will be something there you like.

@ravennm84 Is a writer on the saltier side but they have a wonderful selection of weird wacky tales from the salty but oh so well written Damning Evidence that sees Lila get caught in the best way to the 3 part Horror inspired Serafina other great fics from them include Marinettes Family Court Circus pt 1 / 2 and Of Moldy Bread and Cockroaches / Be Kind to Servers honestly its worth giving there blog a look.

@mochinek0 Is another writer with several beloved fics. They write a lot of Maribat and we love them for it. Ones to check out would be Blind Date / Bruce vs Gabriel just go check out there tag list of daminette for more.

Accidental Crime Boss Marinette - By @lady-literature : This is a wonderful idea and a wonderful little fic and I just... I just like it okay. Sadly I haven't read a lot of there other stuff... But I might after finishing this list considering how much I enjoy this one.

@nobodyfamousposts I love a LOT of there fics. They are one of the best when it comes to striking that sweet spot of calling out the show for some of its garbage while not getting so salty that you cant have fun lighthearted goodness. I have been looking for a masterlist of there work but cant find one so just go stalk there tags. I do recommend there Chloe's Lament Series 1 / 2 exploring how certain 'wishes' would backfire. Guardian Assistant Kevin is also a good one Miracle Queen Aftermath pt 1 / 2 / The 8 parter Burn the Witch series / The Wisdom Teeth Reveal / Kagami Vs The Wall of Faces / Resigning With Grace & Spite / I tried to give a lot of links cuz they have a lot of stuff

Kill Them With Kindness - By @luki-fanfic : Well written, good salt without going overboard. Just good vibes. I havent stalked there other stuff but if its anything like this fic its probably excellent quality.

Stephen Vladislav pt 1 / 2 - By @stormiclown : Adrien centered salt on the idea of finally giving Adrien his own proper rival. I like the idea of Adrien having a rival because its usually Marinette and this was just the right length to get those creative ideas flowing. Also just well written what more can you ask for.

Power Trip - By @storygirl000 : This was the first fic that made me go... Wait would it be more fun if Lila was actually competent? And that set me on the path to writing my own fics where Lila is more villainous and more capable. Its short, well written. Good.

Your Wish is My Command - By DemiGoddess28 on AO3 : A great 11 chapter fic looking into Lila's life if she were to win and get a miraculous wish. Its got sugary goodness for our protagonists and the class and salt for our dearest friend Lila.

LadyBugOut AU - By Miraculous-Content on AO3 : A 50 chapter fic made up of snippets and ideas. I found it really inspiring in many ways. I also love how it redeems Marinettes classmates showing how and why they were tricked but holding them accountable anyway its just... Good.

Juleka vs The Forces of the Universe - By goldenlaurelleaves on AO3 : For those of us not yet ready to accept the death of luka/mari we have this wonderful fic showing Juleka being the biggest wingman as she helps these idiots find there way together.

ChaoticNeutral on AO3 has there own Chloe's Lament fic as well as a Gabriel's Lament fic for people who need sweet salty of those two characters.

BroadwayCutie16 was Inspired by the person above and DemiGoddesses your wish is my command fic to write Lila's Lament fic going over Lilas failed wish. Honestly I always love these fics because there just so interesting and the way wishes can be taken and twisted is always a fascinating idea to me.

#WayneAngel - By Tired-Writing-Teach on AO3 : For us Maribat lovers. Its fun and lighthearted with some good gags and some light fluff.

Damian in Paris - By Lilliesandliveries on AO3 : A sweet Maribat series showing what would happen if Damian ran away from home and found himself in Paris and getting therapy.

How a Demon Commissions an Angel - By AlixAnonymous : Damian blackmails Marinette into letting him be her client so he can get his bros the best gifts, they end up becoming penpal buddies.

Mythomania - By LadyEnna_50 on AO3 : Proof that I dont hate Adrien or Mari/Adrien. In this fic Adrien's spine gets titanium plating and he sees just how bad Lila is hurting Marinette and does something about it.

The Contingency - By AbyssalGuardian on AO3 : SALT. Also Tim/Mari but even still I love the way this was written, the style, and some of the ideas just ugh love it. Its not for those who dont like salt so just avoid at your own discretion. Its about a chaotic Marinette done with her life running away to Gotham where she meets her true black cat, and gets her life back on track.

The String That Binds Us - By FaithAndATypeWriter on AO3 : Okay so is there any Mari/Bat fan who hasnt already heard of this one? Who cares its good, its cute, I love it. May the author be blessed with snacks.

The Great IKEA Game - By @batsandbugs : Okay again... I think every Mari/Bat fan has probably heard of this one already because its just that good and that popular. But who cares I am recommending it anyway. Don't read if your allergic to fun I guess.

If this list still doesn't somehow have enough salt for you then try @goggles-mcgee fics here is a link to there Masterlist. They are in a way a professional at salt and angst and they make you want to adopt Marinette and pop her in a blanket fort.

Honestly I could keep going but this list already feels so long for other great recs though I can link you to @jayphoenic who has some great Daminette Fic Recs and some Lila Salt Fic Recs!

Feel free to reblog this and add some links to stuff you would think I or others might like! Also lets just acknowledge how many talented authors the community has like wow.

[cobaltperun]

One Last Time

Tara Carpenter x female Reader (Request @ortegalvr)

Part 2 of One Time Too Many

Masterlist

Word count: 1.8k

Crying in your arms was… as ridiculous as it was, the moment she needed. She cried her heart out, lamenting what was lost, what could have been, holding on to you, clinging hard, and you let her. You, against your better judgment, held her just as tightly, held her together because you both knew if you let go for even a moment she would fall apart, crumble, never to be whole again.

“I’m with you, no matter what kind of relationship we have, you can always count on me,” you told her, whispered it into her ear.

Her knees buckled, legs unable to hold her weight, but you held her up, tightened your hold on her and supported her weight. Once again you supported her like you did countless times, and she let it slip through her fingers. How she wished she could kiss you, love you, but she no longer had that right. Even this, being held by you, felt like more than she deserved.

She kept weeping, embarrassed by her emotional outburst, but she couldn’t stop it. As hard as she tried, she only made it worse, damn near triggering her asthma when she tried to hold back the sobs. “Don’t hold it in, Tara, let it all out,” you encouraged her, you hand gently rubbing circles on her back, the way you used to, the way she loved. “It’s okay, I got you.”

Tara let it all out, no longer trying to stop herself as she cried in your arms. At some point you took her to the couch, letting her sit down and lean on you. And when that was done, when she released all of her emotions, when you brought her breakfast and lemonade, when you were absolutely sure she was well enough, you drove her back to her apartment.

She felt empty as she unlocked the doors.

“Tara!” the relief in Sam’s voice as she ran up to her and hugged her, and Tara felt like she didn’t deserve it, Sam’s love, your love. She needed to fix this, to get her life together. “I was so worried,” Sam muttered, her face buried in Tara’s hair, holding on with desperation and helplessness Tara hated.

Sam gave her space to breathe, to take her time and overcome her issues, no matter how much it hurt Sam to do so. And Tara kept hurting her sister, the only family that ever cared about her, as well.

“Sammy? Can we get rid of any alcohol in the apartment? Even the one we use for cooking?” she asked, her voice still a bit hoarse from all the crying, causing Sam to pull back.

Tears of relief filled Sam’s eyes and she once again pulled Tara into a tight hug, one that Tara returned this time. “Of course, of course we can! Okay? No more alcohol for you or cigarettes for me, we’ll both quit it,” and that was the beginning. Tara would get better, for Sam, for you, and for herself. Even if it was too late to fix your relationship, even if she broke your trust one time too many, she could still make an effort to improve her own life, regardless of her relationships.

~X~

It's been over two months since Tara slept in your apartment, since she cried her heart out in your arms. You heard from Sam about the effort Tara was putting in. She didn’t drink one drop of alcohol since that night, and you were proud of Tara, but you felt like you couldn’t go to her, congratulate her properly, tell her just how happy you were for her.

In your mind you couldn’t stay by her side and help her get to this point while you were in a relationship. So, you didn’t have the right to support her now, especially when she didn’t reach out to you after that night.

“Talk to her!” your best friend, Chloe, yelled at you as you worked on the assignment.

“Drop it,” you sighed, sometimes wondering why you even told her anything in the first place. She wouldn’t shut up about you and Tara getting back together.

She scoffed then blew at the strand of her long, wavy, blonde hair that fell over her eye. It fell right back annoying her further. “She’s great for you, dumbass! You were happier than ever!” she exclaimed, absolutely not dropping it, as you politely requested moments earlier. “Someone else will swoop in and win her over.”

You felt a vein popping on your forehead as your shoulders tensed and you turned to glare at her. “Fuck off, Chloe,” you were pissed, not even using Chloe’s nickname this time. You made a mistake though, in your anger and need to avoid an argument you went to grab a glass of water, only to come back and find the blonde menace on your phone.

“There, you have a meeting with Tara in half an hour, she’ll come here, I’m leaving, bye!” she just ran out of your apartment while you stood there, frozen, stuck between anger and panic and murderous intents toward your traitorous former best friend. “You owe me a month worth of food!” she yelled from your front door.

“I owe you a rope around your neck!” you yelled back only to hear a very distant, but undoubtedly loud, from the middle of the building hallway, for every single one of your neighbors to hear, ‘Kinky!’ coming from the bane of your existence.

Well, the damage was already done, so you just sat down on the couch, glass of water long forgotten as you waited for Tara to knock on your doors.

A bit less than half an hour later you heard knocking on your door, and you were absolutely not right in front of it for the past ten minutes, absolutely not! Anyway, you took a deep breath and opened it, and seeing Tara, after all this time, sober, completely sober, looking beautiful, though a bit shy, like she’s been standing in front of your doors for some time as well, it just brought the memories of your relationship right to the forefront of your mind.

“Hey,” you both said at the same time, chuckling lightly as you invited her inside.

“You, you wanted to see me?” she asked as she sat down on your couch, and you sat down on the other end of it. The three feet between you felt like an almost insurmountable distance.

You looked to the side and glared at your phone. “Chloe sent the message. I’m sorry about that,” you admitted and heard Tara’s breath hitch. “I did want to see you, I just, I guess I wasn’t sure how to approach you,” you clarified. “I felt, actually, I feel like I didn’t support you enough, that maybe if I was more patient, you would have stopped drinking sooner,” there, you said it all.

“Y/N,” her voice cracked, and you turned to look at her. “You were more patient than I ever deserved you to be,” Tara told you, causing you to swallow hard.

You shook your head, not entirely believing that to be true. Yes, you couldn’t stand alcohol, but maybe if you tried to approach things in a different way, maybe Tara and you would still be together. Because here was your proof that Tara could quit drinking. “Tara,” you tried, but the words were stuck in your throat as she closed the distance, and you saw her moving to hug you, only to freeze at the very last moment. “Fuck, just come here,” your voice shook, and you pulled her in and the tension disappeared from both of you in almost an instant. Much like she did for months while you were together, Tara sat on your lap, her weight, the heat of her body, her arms around you, everything about her made you calm, at peace.

“I missed this, so, so much,” she whispered as she leaned her forehead on your shoulder, clinging to you hard. “I know I shouldn’t, I know we aren’t together anymore,” she continued, unspoken words hanging in the air as you both, deep down, wondered if there was a way to rebuild the relationship. “Y/N,” she swallowed the lump in her throat and pulled back a bit, so she could look you in the eyes. “I wanted to fix myself, for you, for Sam, for myself, I had to do it alone, to prove to myself I wouldn’t go back to drinking the moment I come across an obstacle,” she told you, and you caressed her cheek, wiping a stray tear from her cheek. She cried every time she saw you lately. When you broke up, two months ago, and now today.

“I still should have been there for you, telling you how proud I am of you, and not just telling it to Sam,” you told her, and she smiled, that beautiful smile that won you over thousands of times.

“She told me, it kept me going when things got hard,” she leaned her forehead against yours. “I can’t ask for it though,” she said.

“For what?” you asked softly, the distance between your lips slowly decreasing.

“For one last chance,” Tara told you and parted her lips when you brushed your thumb against her lower lip.

“Do you still love me?” you just needed to hear her say it.

Tara’s eyes told you everything, that there was no one she’d love the way she loved you. “With all my heart. I want to be with you,” she answered and you lowered your thumb, closed the distance and captured her lips.

The reaction was instantaneous. Every feeling you tried to hold back for almost half a year came back, stronger than ever, as your lips danced together, as Tara pressed her body against yours, removing any distance between you, as her hand snuck up to the back of your head, and her other hand clutched the back of your shirt. You kissed her, desperately, pouring all the need and desire into the kiss, caressing her cheek and holding her. You kept your arm on the small of her back, pulling her closer to you. But as desperate as the kiss was it was soft, filled with love, almost as innocent as your first kiss.

And then you parted for air. The conclusion was clear. You’d try, one last time, to make it work, and you’d try as hard as you would need, because you never wanted to let her go again. You wanted to stay with Tara for the rest of your life. And you saw those feelings mirrored in her eyes.

“I love you,” you told her. “I will always love you.”

“I will always love you too,” Tara said, kissing you once more.

[ineedtherapydesperately]

@valengory1234 you just sent me down an endless path imagining chloe speaking like shakespeare and being a shakespeare purist and shit like imagine the way she confessed to red or like flirts with red, or when she makes dirty jokes that nobody quite understands

like imagine chloe quietly confessing romeo and juliet style like but soft, what light through yonder window breaks? it is the east, and red is the sun. arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon, who is already sick and pale with grief, that thou, her maid, art far more fair than she all because red dragged them onto a random rooftop on auradon prep to stargaze?? and red is just laying there, staring at the moon in complete shock, slowly attempting to translate everything because what the fuck, was that shakespeare?? and holy shit chloe is such a nerd?? because red NEVER bothered to learn shakespeare but it's so familiar and she feels like that little monologue was important?? and chloe is sat there, looking down at red lovingly, straight cheesing as she watches the love of her life attempt to understand her words

i already headcanon bridget calling red 'rose', but imagine chloe calling red that because of shakespeare?? because the man LOVED using rose imagery to talk about love, and just imagine chloe saying like a rose by any other name would smell as sweet which leads me to another idea about glassheart/charminghearts that i may post later if anyone is interested

like imagine chloe just sees red one day and starts reciting sonnet 18 at her, just because?? shall i compare thee to a summer’s day? thou art more lovely and more temperate- and red is just here, steadily growing redder, face absolutely matching her name because chloe, isn’t that like a love poem??? and chloe is here like well yes, i am trying to confess to you here if you don’t mind

ugggh imagine chloe fondly watching red scale the walls of auradon prep, running along the rooftops which is absolutely against the code of conduct, but chloe can't find it in herself to care because it's red, because red, you draw me, you hard hearted adamant, but yet you draw not iron for my heart is true as steel. let's ignore how this is contextually where helena is crying to demetrius and pretend that it's just chloe lamenting quietly to herself about her (not so) unrequited crush <3

imagine chloe rereading much ado about nothing (because she would absolutely reread shakespearian plays) and when red asks her how the play is, chloe says i mean, i'd much rather there be some to do about your nothing and red is confused because that didn't make sense?? only it makes sense if you take elizabethan era slang into account, which chloe, face completely straight, suggests red searches up, only to burst into borderline maniacal giggles when red's face once more flushes horrendously because chloe what the actual fuck?! because this is so out of chloe's character??? whether this happens before or after they're dating is anyone's guess

@blood-carnation here you go :D i have so many more scenarios in my mind hehe (my english nerd is showing 😔)

[dalekofchaos]

We should've learned more about Max's parents

One of the things that annoys me about Life Is Strange is we never get any substance about Max's relationship with her parents.

She never answers her mom, but has no problem replying to her dad. Despite her dad dragging Max away from a grieving Chloe.

There's really no evidence to support Vanessa Caulfield is a bad mother or was harmful towards Max in any way shape or form. For all I know she could be a controlling mom over her neurodivergent child(I should know, my former friend is in that situation)

You could paint it as Vanessa is more outwardly abusive(control freak, domineering over Max's life), but Max’s dad Ryan is a pushover like Enid's dad from Wednesday and does whatever she tells him to (like, for example, “Time to go from William’s funeral, grab Max and make sure she comes along”) but she encourages Max's dreams. But since he doesn’t seem as bad as Vanessa on the surface, Max thinks of him as the one she can trust more (which is something she’d need to unpack in therapy at some point, cause in this scenario they’re both awful parents/people).

Maybe in a proper rewrite or a sequel that doesn't do a fucking 10 year timeskip, we could see some insight into Max's family life and why Max cut her mom out of her life.

You could add this during episode 3 or 4. Ryan and Vanessa return to Arcadia Bay after hearing all the crazy shit that's going on. A kid trying to commit suicide, freaky weather, a girl gone missing and their daughter caught up in the middle of all this. Ryan at first nicely asks Max to come home. Max insists that she's needed at Blackwell and she can't leave Chloe again. Vanessa then puts her foot down. She demands that Max come home and refuse to give Max a say in the matter. Chloe and Warren are defending Max from her mother. Vanessa tells Chloe "I don't know what the hell happened to you Chloe, but you will not drag my daughter down to your level, unlike you she actually has a future" then depending on who you choose between Chloe and Warren. With Chloe "Max I didn't sacrifice everything so you can go out and claim to be gay" with Warren "I don't know who you think you are, but you are nowhere near good enough for my daughter" and then Joyce shuts Vanessa down and defends Chloe and stands up for Max. If you sided with Chloe in episode 3, then Max gets the courage to finally stand up to Vanessa. "NO! I AM NOT GOING ANYWHERE WITH YOU! You don't get it, do you mom? I didn't just come back to Arcadia Bay for Blackwell and Chloe, I came back to Arcadia to get away from you. You suffocate me. I was practically dragged from my grieving childhood best friend at her father's funeral when she needed me most. I know well enough to know pop wouldn't have done that without your say so. And maybe I never contacted Chloe for 5 years, because I was scared how you would react. You kept telling me "don't bother worrying about Chloe, you'll make new friends" meanwhile Chloe was going through hell, did you even bother to reach out to Joyce after William died, because it sure seems like you were in such a hurry to leave them behind and didn't care how it would affect Chloe or me. I was grieving too, William was like a second father to me and I needed the support, me and Chloe needed each other and you took her from me. God, I am sick of your need to control EVERY aspect of my life. My best friend tried to kill herself, Chloe's girlfriend is missing and there's a serial killer and a practical end of the world storm coming and I need to help stop what's coming. So please leave me be and just maybe, I will come home when all this is done and we can talk. But until then, just trust me and learn to respect my boundaries and me as a person mom. Vanessa laments and apologizes to Chloe, Warren, Joyce and most of all Max. Ryan smiles and wishes his daughter good luck and wishes Max happiness with Chloe or Warren. If you sided with David, David surprisingly stands up for Max and order Vanessa to leave their house or he would call the police.

but there is no evidence to support that as all her texts seem to be a supportive and worried mother. Max does give vague responses as the episodes go on, but leaving a parent in the dark like that but giving more to her dad more just makes you wonder...

Max and her mother sewed a cushion together, and thinking of the day they did that makes Max smile. She brings the cushion with her to Arcadia Bay and it is on her bed in her room. Max's mother sends Max a $200 dollar gift certificate and a box of chocolate coconut bites for her birthday. She and Max's father also send Max a birthday message. and Max mentions Vanessa is into true crime. So it might not be as bad as I made her out to be, but the complete lack of context and Max's lack of response to her mother just makes more to be desired.

I always thought this was because Max was just distracted with the investigation and finding out she has powers but she has the time to text other people. So it's weird.

And there doesn't seem to be a hint that we will get more answers about Max's family in Double Exposure. She ignores Vanessa like nothing ever happened and there is very little to suggest we'd ever see them.

I mean if we could actually see Chloe's family, house, William and her deteriorating relationship with her mom and her hatred of David. Hell, we get insight into Victoria's parents as she's pressured by her gallery owning parents. We know the horror story of the Prescott family and we see Kate having a doting father, but a domineering religious mother and a zealout of an aunt. We actually know nothing about Warren, but I chalk that up to DONTNOD being lazy and I know SE has no plans to revisit his character. But I choose to see Warren as the male Matilda. He had neglectful parents, so he found comfort in science, sci-fi and a lot of obscure but retro stuff. They were neglectful when he's young, but learning to be harsh/strict as he's shown his potential as a genius. But of course anything of substance for Warren's character is asking too much..

We should have seen Max's home life and even her childhood home in Arcadia Bay. We should have seen Max's dynamic with her parents whether it's a fucked up dynamic or not. we really should have gotten more of that explored in game.

[massivedrickhead]

Bechloe Week Day 2: “You’re up early”

Words: 1694

Notes: Trigger warning: an eating disorder is alluded to. 

Read on AO3

-

“Hey,” Beca said, entering the kitchen that morning, her hands pulling her hair into a ponytail. “You’re up early.”

“Hmm?” Chloe said, blinking as she looked up from her phone. “Oh, yeah, I guess I am.”

“Everything okay?”

“Yeah,” Chloe said. “What are you doing up? I thought you were off today?”

“I was, but they want me to go in and meet a potential new artist for the label,” Beca said, turning on the coffee maker. “Which apparently can only be done at the ass-crack of dawn.”

Chloe nodded but offered no more conversation, which was extremely unlike her. The coffee maker beeped, Beca poured some into her thermos and then poured a mug for Chloe. 

“Are you sure everything’s okay?” Beca asked, setting the mug down in front of her.

Chloe opened her mouth to say yes but then closed it. “It’s nothing,” she said, after a few more seconds of silence. “Just family stuff.”

Beca’s shoulders slumped. “Your Mom again?”

“It isn’t important,” Chloe said. “You’re going to be late.”

Beca pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and looked down at her watch. “We’ll talk later?” 

“Sure,” Chloe said, trying her best to give Beca a reassuring smile.

Beca kissed Chloe goodbye and grabbed her keys from the kitchen counter. 

“I shouldn’t be too late,” Beca said. “I’ll see if I can score an early finish since I had to go in at this time. Love you.”

“Love you too,” Chloe replied, wishing she could take hold of Beca’s hand and stop her from leaving. Wishing she could pull her close and cling to her. But she knew Beca would stay if she asked her to, and she couldn’t do that to her career. Not when they were finally starting to take her seriously as a producer. 

At the sound of the door closing, Chloe let her shoulders slump. She twisted the engagement ring around her finger and picked up her phone again. 

Chloe scrolled up through the barrage of texts she’d received from her Mom since 3 am. 

Some of them seemed perfectly normal - a text about a friend of a friend who was a wedding photographer who might be available for their chosen date, or an update on how her uncle was doing after his knee surgery, or pictures of her cousin’s new puppy - but then every so often there would be a jellyfish sting amongst the calm water. A new diet she’d heard about, because Chloe would need to fit into her wedding dress. A photo of her neighbour’s newly single son who apparently had a thing for redheads. A lamentation about not having any grandkids yet, and how now it was unlikely that she’d ever get one. 

Her relationship with her Mom had always been difficult, and she’d done bouts of little to no contact before, but when Beca had proposed last week, Chloe had decided to extend an olive branch.

It was something she was regretting now. 

Her phone buzzed with a new message.

Mom: Well? Aren’t you going to reply?

Chloe: I’ve only just woken up, give me a chance to read through them.

Mom: It’s 10 am! Why are you only just getting up now?!

Chloe: It’s 7 am in L.A., and it’s my day off. You’ve been texting me since 3, I had to put my phone on silent.

Chloe decided a lie was better than the truth in this situation. She didn’t want her Mom to know that she’d crept out of bed at 3 in the morning and had sat at the kitchen island, her stomach full of dread and anxiety, as she’d watched each message come in.

Mom: What if it had been an emergency?!

Chloe: I assumed you’d have called if it was. Me being too fat for my wedding dress doesn’t really seem like it needs an urgent response.

Mom: You’re too sensitive! I’m only telling you that because I’m worried about your health. If no one else is going to be honest with you about this, then I’ll have to be the bad guy. I usually am anyway as far as you’re concerned.

Chloe sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She could feel a headache beginning to push at the backs of her eyes.

Chloe: I’m not fighting with you about this. We’ve had this conversation a million times, please just keep the comments about my body to yourself.

Mom: I don’t know why you have to take everything so personally. Anyway, did you see my text about Alice’s puppy? 

Chloe: Yeah, it’s super cute. I need to head out so I’ll talk to you later.

Chloe locked her phone and closed her eyes, wishing more than anything that she could just have a normal relationship with her Mom. 

Her phone continued to buzz, and Chloe switched it to silent. She was exhausted both physically and mentally, and she didn’t think she could read another text from her Mom without snapping and uninviting her from the wedding.

She made her way back to bed, crawled under the blankets, and fell asleep in seconds.

-

It was close to 2 pm when Beca made it home. She was pleased with how the meeting had gone and was even happier about being able to get home before 5. Being home in time for dinner felt like a rare occurrence these days, and Beca was excited to spend the rest of the day with her fiance. 

She frowned when she walked into their home and saw that Chloe wasn’t in the kitchen or lounge like she’d expected her to be. Her coffee mug from that morning was still on the counter, and it was still as full as it was when Beca poured it.

“Chlo’?” She called out, wondering if she’d gone out for the day. 

She went to their bedroom so she could shower and change into some sweats, and she saw Chloe curled up in bed.

Beca sat on the edge of the bed and gently put the back of her hand against Chloe’s forehead.

Chloe didn’t seem to have a temperature, but Beca assumed she must be sick. It was the only reason she could think of for Chloe being asleep in the middle of the day since she never napped. 

Not wanting to wake her, Beca stood up from the bed and went for a shower. 

Chloe was just beginning to stir when Beca was pulling on her sweats, her hair still damp. 

“Hey,” Beca said, her voice quiet.

“Hi,” Chloe mumbled back, rubbing her eye with the heel of her hand. “Time is it?”

“Two-ish,” Beca said. “Are you okay?”

Chloe nodded and settled back against the pillows again. “I didn’t mean to sleep for that long.”

Beca climbed onto the bed beside her, and Chloe turned to cuddle into her side. 

“Are you sure you’re okay?” Beca asked, her arm wrapping around Chloe. “You aren’t sick or anything?”

“Not sick,” Chloe said, stifling a yawn. “Just tired.”

Beca pressed a kiss against the top of her head.

“How was the meeting?” Chloe asked.

“Pretty good,” Beca said. “The kid was really talented, I think he has a good shot at being signed. How was your day?”

Chloe shrugged as best as she could, and Beca knew that something was definitely wrong. 

“You gonna tell me what had you up so early this morning?”

Chloe sighed. She grabbed her phone from the nightstand and opened up her text thread with her Mom. She scrolled back up to where it had started that morning, and she handed the phone to Beca.

She could feel Beca’s anger increase with each message she read. She could feel the tension in her arms, the way her breathing changed, could see the scowl on her face becoming more and more pronounced.

“I know,” Chloe said when Beca handed the phone back. “You don’t need to say it, I already know.”

“Okay,” Beca said, trying to soften herself. Trying to shift the anger out of her bones to a place where Chloe couldn’t feel or see it anymore. “I won’t say anything. Just… You know she’s wrong, right?”

“Yeah, I do,” Chloe said. “And I’m gonna tell her that if she wants to come to the wedding - if she wants to be in my life at all - then she needs to change.”

Beca stayed silent. It was a conversation Chloe had had with her Mom before, and the outcome was always the same. Tears, pleading, and promises to do better, but it never lasted, and Beca was tired of seeing Chloe get hurt by the one person who was supposed to love her unconditionally. 

“I know you think she’s already had enough chances,” she said. 

“I do,” Beca agreed.

“But she’s my Mom,” Chloe said. “I want at least one parent at our wedding.”

“I know,” Beca said. “And I know it’s not my place, I just…” Beca trailed off. “I want you to be happy, and she doesn’t make you happy. She’s… You’ve worked so hard to get to where you are now, and I’m terrified that, I don’t know, like, one afternoon dress shopping with her will have you spiralling again.”

“That won’t happen,” Chloe said. “I’m not a kid anymore. I know that everything she says comes from a place of jealousy and insecurity, and it actually has nothing to do with me.”

Beca wasn’t convinced, but she nodded anyway. “I’m sorry that your Mom can’t see you for the amazing, incredible, beautiful person you are,” she said. 

“I love you,” Chloe said. “Thank you for asking me to marry you, even with all my Mom issues.”

“I love you too,” Beca replied. “You’ve got Mommy issues, and I’ve got Daddy issues. I’d say we make a pretty great pair.”

Chloe laughed and felt some of the tension in her shoulders loosen.

“She gets one more chance,” Beca said. “Right?”

“Right,” Chloe agreed. 

They lay together in silence for a little while longer before Chloe spoke up again.

“Bec?”

“Hmm?”

“Can we get pizza for dinner?”

Beca smiled and squeezed Chloe tighter. “Absolutely we can.”

[wisteriasymphony]

MORE FUCKING SAMAU LETS GOOOO

Gabriel feared having to tell Adrien he was going to die tomorrow. He'd never been a good father, and that was never by choice. After being told of the situation, Gabriel supposed he wasn't even Adrien's father at all. Despite being three feet taller, despite having white hair and wrinkles... the 'father' and 'son' had been born the very same day, completely separate from each other.

The lack of resemblance had given it away from the very start, he supposed.

They sit in the dark, because the powers that be tend to have more control when things are lit. Gabriel worked to create a meal for Adrien—a real meal, one with steak and potatoes and not a few flimsy pancakes topped with banana. Gabriel had found that meal to be a disgrace, even when he was making it. But his arms had moved on their own.

Adrien kept glancing between the meal and the stranger in front of him. He was surprised he had ever even tried to kill Gabriel, in all honestly—the rage felt ridiculous now. They're not even really related, just like how Adrien and Emilie weren't even really related. ...How does one really become related to another? Adrien cannot and will never be able to comprehend it. His brain isn't suited to conceptualize things like childbirth or marriage licenses—Nobody in his world was written that way.

Adrien pokes at his steak again, taking another piece into his mouth. It takes like sand. ...He doesn't know what sand tastes like, barely knows how it feels. Beaches, if he's ever been to one, feel the same as grass and wood and sidewalk concrete.

"Your cataclysm arm is getting worse," Adrien jokes, rather dryly.

Gabriel can't respond. It hurts that he'll eventually have to.

"...Well, I suppose I won't be worried about it for long. Tomorrow, I'm..."

Gabriel breathes in, unable to feel the air fill the hollow of his chest.

"...Something's wrapping up, Adrien. I'm going with it."

"You're leaving?"

"I suppose I have to," Gabriel laments. "You're giving up your ring tomorrow, right?"

Adrien tries to remember what he'd been told—Not by a voice or through written text, but merely by gut feelings.

"...Yes," he grimaces. He can't see his ring but knows that it's there. "Good riddance."

"All I know so far is that I will try and make the wish, and then I'm gone. Forever." To lighten his own spirits, Gabriel laughs and adds "Maybe they'll send me to New York, too. I'll keep an eye on Chloe while I'm there."

Adrien could only hope that Chloe was somewhere safe, 'New York' or not. As far as he knew, he'd never see her again. Even if her being his childhood friend meant nothing if he never had a childhood... he knew she must been alone there. He knew someone out there had been lying.

"Where's Nathalie?" Adrien asks, hoping to redirect the conversation.

"Asleep." Gabriel takes a bite of potato, chewing silently. "I told her earlier, don't worry. She has her own things to do tomorrow."

If anything, Nathalie is more of Adrien's mother than Emilie ever got the chance to be. Adrien's stomach turns and twists at the notion. He stabs the steak with his fork, using a little more force than he has to.

"Do you think it's possible to love someone you never really knew?"

Gabriel is caught off guard by the question, but he's been plagued by it ever since he learned the truth. Adrien asks it like he's asking someone his own age, which is right. Gabriel is no adult, Gabriel has no answers.

"I don't know, Adrien," he responds. His son—whatever that word even means—isn't happy with this answer.

"I just don't know why you didn't tell me," he grumbles. "Why you didn't ask from the very start if I'd be okay with any of this." It's not even close to what he was wondering, but Adrien pretends the contrary. "I just don't know why I wasn't allowed to be let in on any secret. Why was I chosen as the last person in the world to trust?"

Gabriel remembers having to watch himself akumatize his son not once, but twice. He wants to protest, tell this stranger in front of him that he wasn't even able to think about telling him anything, and that every step closer to death could only bring him comfort in the sense that he would no longer be forced to watch himself hurt and lie, because now he had to think and he had to know it was wrong, and...

"We've all been trapped in our decisions, Adrien," was all he could bring himself to say. "...I'm not really your father, nor will I ever be. But if I was, and if things were different..."

He can't see Adrien in the dark. Can't see himself.

"...I want to believe that I would've told you. At the very least, I would've told you."

[chloe-caulfield94]

Max at Chloe's funeral

Max stood over her best friend’s coffin. Or was it her former best friend’s coffin? She wasn’t sure.

On one hand, the last time she saw Chloe had been five years prior, in the rear windscreen of her parents’ car. As Max drove away, Chloe was standing over her father’s coffin, almost in the exact same spot Max now stood. The last time Max communicated with Chloe had been four years ago, when she responded to a text from Chloe. Chloe asked Max not to ignore her phone calls and to pick up her phone from time to time. Max responded by saying she had been really busy, but she would totally call her later. She never did.

On the other hand, while Max had made new friends in Seattle – Kristen and Fernando, both of whom she liked and trusted - she had never developed with anyone a bond similar in depth and intensity to the one she had had with Chloe. It was only after Chloe had been murdered that Max realized Chloe had been like a family member to her. Like a sister.

As other mourners began to walk away, Max continued her silent watch over Chloe’s earthly remains, imagining the five years she could’ve spent with her best friend. The five years she had stolen from herself.

When Max saw Chloe’s bloodied corpse on Monday she didn’t recognize her. Only when the school security officer David Madsen started lamenting over his daughter’s lifeless body, repeating her name over and over, Max realized it was her best friend lying in a pool of blood on the floor.

Chloe’s short messy hair, dyed neon blue, was so unlike her old, long and straight blonde hair. During the wake, when Chloe’s body was displayed in an open coffin, she was much more recognizable to Max. She was dressed in a black pantsuit provided by the funeral home, almost identical to the one she wore during her father’s funeral, only slightly longer, to account for her growth in the meantime. Her hair, while still short and blue, was neatly combed behind her ears. Her hodgepodge of cheap jewellery was gone. Her tattoo was completely covered by the pantsuit’s long sleeve.

During the wake, Max heard other mourners say that Chloe looked “finally at peace”. She didn’t understand why they thought Chloe couldn't have been at peace in life. And the way Max saw it, while Chloe’s face, even paler than usual, was completely still, it conveyed anything but peace. Max was painfully aware that beneath Chloe’s black pantsuit was a hole in her breast, its edges held together by a thick thread, covering an entrance to a tunnel burrowed in Chloe’s flesh by a piece of metal which stopped her heart forever.

As Max was standing over her best friend’s coffin, not ready to let Chloe out of her sight as she had done five years prior, a blue butterfly flew in and sat on the wooden box.

And then Max remembered. She heard a voice. Chloe’s voice. She sounded differently. Not like a child anymore. But Max would recognize Chloe’s voice no matter how many years passed in the meantime. The older Chloe’s voice said all the things Max had ever wanted to hear. And all the things Max didn’t even know she wanted to hear, but deep down desperately needed to. Sweet, wise and heartfelt words of her long-lost best friend uplifted her heart.

“Every great artist gets rejected before they get accepted. So you have to enter a photo”.

“Stop being so goddamn humble. You’re like the smartest, most talented person I’ve ever known”.

“Once you get over yourself, you’re going to make the world bow”.

“You are! You just have to stop being afraid”.

“You’re kind and caring. Nobody could have a better best friend. Nobody!”

“You need to accept how awesome you are”.

“Stop beating yourself up, okay?”

“It’s time to start moving forward in time”.

“You’re Maxine Caulfield ... and you’re amazing!”

Max also remembered her own words, the ones she would’ve said during a week that never was, all in acknowledgment of how much Chloe meant to her.

“As long as we’re together, I don’t feel afraid”.

“As long as you’re there with me”.

“I always wanted my life to be special, an adventure. But not without you!”

“Your life has changed mine”.

And then she remembered things other than words. Handholding. Hugs. Longing stares. Kisses. Max discovered, to her great but oh so pleasant surprise, that while her love for Chloe was familial, it wasn’t like a love between sisters. It was like a love between spouses.

Max smiled wide remembering all of that. And then the butterfly flew away and she remembered something else. A kiss in pouring rain followed by a gunshot and a pool of blood. Smile immediately disappeared from Max’s face. She felt her heart stop for a moment. Then it started pounding furiously. It pounded so fast Max thought it would escape out of her chest. Her limbs became heavy and ice-cold.

“I … killed her?” – she asked in her thoughts.

“I killed her”- she answered her own question, muttering under her breath.

“I killed her!” – she screamed at the top of her lungs, having fallen to her knees.

The other mourners turned to Max. Joyce and David rushed to her. Joyce placed her hand on Max’s shoulder. Max’s body shook as she cried bitter tears. “I killed her, I killed her, I killed her” – she repeated.

“Oh, Max. it’s not your fault” – Joyce tried reassuring her. “Chloe … she was troubled. She ran in bad company. There was nothing you could’ve done to help her. She … She chose to remain angry”.

“She chose to remain angry” – Joyce’s words echoed both in Max’s ears and in her memory. She felt fury rise inside of her. Anger at herself and at everyone else in the town that had failed and killed her best friend.

“Fuck that. Fuck. That” – Max thought. She wiped her tears and slowly stood up. She turned to Chloe’s mother and said calmly: ”You know what, Joyce? I think I now understand why Chloe was always a daddy’s, not mommy’s girl”.

Joyce was taken aback. She took her hand off Max’s shoulder. “What? Max, what do you …”

“So when are you going to take down all of Chloe’s pictures from the walls? You hid away all of William’s pictures two years after his death. So in two years’ time they are going to be reunited in the closet, right? Father and daughter together at last. Just like they’ve been already reunited here in this cemetery plot”.

David intervened: “Max, you have no right to talk to Joyce like that …”

Max turned to David and asked him, in a raised voice, almost shouting: “What kind of a man hits his own child? I’ll tell you! No man at all!”

David opened his mouth to defend himself, but said nothing, apparently finding nothing to say in his defence. Max jabbed him in the chest with her index finger. Repeatedly. Hard.

Max screamed: “I’m pushing you! I just keep pushing you! Do something about it! Do what you always do when teenage girls push you!”

David’s face turned red. Not out of anger. Out of shame.

Max turned to walk away. And then she saw Frank Bowers standing on the sidelines. Fury rose inside of her. She pointed him with her finger and shouted: “What the fuck is he doing here? Why isn’t he in jail with Jefferson and Nathan? He’s the one who supplied them with date rape drugs!”

Frank looked around hesitantly, unsure if he should start running away or not.

Looking at David, Max shouted: “Hey David! This scumbag, who you were somehow unable to apprehend even though he often parked his drug van in the parking lot of the school you claim to provide security for, sold Nathan the drugs he used to roofie your daughter! You failed to protect her in life. How about saving the last shreds of your masculine pride and avenging her?!”

Frank tried disarming the situation the only way he knew how. With lies and threats: “This brat doesn’t know what she’s talking about! She’s probably high as a kite. Listen, girlie. I don’t know you. So I suggest you stop falsely accusing me, or you and I are going to have a serious talk …”

Max almost ran at him. She pushed him with both hands, making him stagger for a moment. Pompidou remained calmly seated on the ground. He did not stand in his owner’s defence, perfectly aware that Frank deserved every bit of what he was now receiving.

Max screamed at Frank: “But I thought you loved brats! Your entire life revolves around schoolchildren! You peddle your drugs to them! You exploit them as accomplices to your crimes, to do things you are too cowardly to do yourself! And some of them you even fuck, like Rachel!”

“I don’t know you. Get the hell away from me!”

“But I know you! Did you go to Rachel’s funeral as well? You know you killed her, right? You sold Nathan the drugs that he used to murder her. You know what he did to her? Have you seen the pictures he took of her? How he groped her? All of that is because of you!”

A grimace of rage appeared on Frank’s face. Without thinking, he instinctively reached into his pocket to retrieve his switchblade. Before he did, Max pushed him again, making him stagger.

“Stop that, you brat!”

“Or what? You’re going to put a knife to my throat, like you did yesterday at the beach? Chloe wrestled your knife away from you. If one girl beat you, I’m fairly confident I could kick your ass too!”

“You’re crazy! We never met before! And your friend Chloe …”

“She owed you money, I know. So you threatened to cut her! What a big, strong man you are! But when push came to shove, she beat you. She always did. Even when you had a gun and she was empty-handed. Always! Because you’re a weak parasite preying on kids. And she was strong. Stronger than you! You know how much time I spent replaying things so that you would come out of our little talk alive and unharmed? I really shouldn’t have. When violent armed thugs assault teenage girls, teenage girls have the right to defend themselves. But I didn’t do it for you. I did it for her. Because she was gentle and kind and I didn’t want her having to live with hurting you, even if it was just a scratch to the leg”.

Frank was still furious, but he didn’t reach for his switchblade a second time.

“You’re making shit up! Nothing of what you said ever happened!”

“Yes it did!” Max turned to David once more. He was holding Joyce in his arms, who was sobbing. Max shouted: “David, this piece of shit threatened your daughter with a knife. He called her a whore, over and over again. You want proof? Go through the text messages on Chloe’s phone. Mister genius drug lord over here sent death threats from his own phone number. David, if Frank is not arrested by cops by the end of the day, you have no right to call yourself a man, you hear me?”

David let Joyce go and started walking towards Frank. Frank sprinted away. Pompidou hesitated for a while, looking curiously at Max, but then he followed his owner.

Kate approached Max. She placed her hands on Max’s shoulders. With a sincere smile on her gentle face, she said: “Max, I am so, so sorry about Chloe. We’re here for you. It’s okay to feel hurt”.

Max wanted to thank Kate for her kind words. But before she did, something caused her anger to rise again. She and Kate were approached by Victoria, who said: “Kate is right, Max. If you need any help, just let us know. I …”

“Why are you here?” – asked Max coldly.

“Oh, I knew Chloe. One time she gave me a pep talk when I was afraid to go out on stage. She told me everything I needed to hear then. Ultimately I didn’t perform that night, but that’s another matter, involving Rachel, and I don’t want to speak ill of …”

“No, I mean why weren’t you expelled from Blackwell?”

“What? Max I was … misled. I didn’t know …”

“You led an intense campaign of cyberbullying against a fellow student. I’d say that warrants expulsion. Oh, right. Your parents are too rich for you to experience the consequences of your actions”. Max turned to Kate and said: “Kate, you do realize she knew you were roofied by Nathan, right? The campaign of hate she unleashed against you would be evil in its own right even if she thought you genuinely got drunk. Because Victoria has no right to judge you or anyone else. But she knew Nathan drugged you. She witnessed something that any rational person would consider to be a date rape in progress. A girl was drugged and removed from the party by a boy. And not only she let that happen, she laughed, recorded it and then lied about it to the world”.

Victoria was indignant: “I didn’t know about that, Max. I thought that was just a stupid prank by Nathan. I couldn’t possibly have known …”

“You knew, Victoria. You knew about ‘the good shit Nathan hooked Kate up with’. Why even lie? Kate would forgive you even if you told her the truth. If you know you will be forgiven, why hide your crime? At this point, aren’t you lying mostly to yourself? And explain one thing to me. Yesterday at the pool, when I told you what Nathan did to Kate, you didn’t believe me. But when I said you might be next, it’s like a switch flipped in your brain. You almost immediately believed my warning. Isn’t that a double standard? When it was about Kate, you were willing to give Nathan the benefit of the doubt that even though he did to Kate exactly what date rapists do to their victims, he was actually taking her to get help after an innocent prank. But when your safety was on the line … Then you weren’t willing to take any risks. Then you immediately assumed the worst about him”.

“You’re delusional! We didn’t talk yesterday at all!”

Kate interjected: “It’s okay, Max. I forgive her. Let’s not get angry over the past”.

“Forgive her for the both of us, then. Because I don’t. I won’t”.

Max turned to walk away but once again the sight of one of the mourners fuelled her anger. At that point, she wanted to feel angry. Anger staved off guilt. She approached the pastor. She remembered him from before her move to Seattle. The Prices and the Caulfields went to church together on Sundays. One of his sermons now rang loudly in Max’s head. It was about the people living on the edges of Arcadia Bay’s society. Homeless, runaway teenagers, drug addicts. He preached standard Calvinist filth. How the destitute and the sick deserved their lot in life for being sinners and how the youths who disobey their parents and use drugs have only themselves to blame when they inevitably turn up dead. To his credit, the pastor had at least one tiny shred of decency left and he didn’t repeat that sermon at Chloe’s funeral. Max asked him: “Reverend, what do you call a person whose blood washes away the crimes of unrepentant sinners?”

“Oh, Max. Don’t worry. By his blood, the sins of your friend are forgiven. She’s with him in heaven now”.

“No, you are wrong. By her blood you all were spared”.

Max left the cemetery. Warren ran after her.

“Woah, Max! That was … badass! I didn’t know you like that!”

Max kept walking. Warren walked next to her.

“Warren, are you blind? A beautiful, cool, strong-willed girl is into you. Why are you ignoring her?”

“You mean you’re into me, Max?”

“No, Warren. I obviously mean Brooke. There was a girl like that who was into me. I fucked it up. Don’t repeat my mistakes”.

“Oh … I know about Brooke. I just … you know, kind of benched her until the situation with you is resolved”.

“Wow. You are a player after all, Warren”.

He smiled. But Max had more to add.

“And I didn’t mean that as a compliment”.

He stopped smiling and fell behind.

Continue reading: https://archiveofourown.org/works/56245288/chapters/142889017

[expertnuerodiver]

Random Songs that remind me of MXTX characters

Smooth by Santana (feat. Rob Thomas) reminds me of Hua Cheng and Xie Lian because of the lines that say

"And if you said, "This life ain't good enough" (Implying Xie Lian says that) I would give my world to lift you up I could change my life to better suit your mood (yeah) Because you're so smooth" (The rest of the line being Hua Cheng)

Something about that line just fits them perfectly to me (Note that I only have read up to the end of book 2 lol)

2. Government Hooker by Lady Gaga reminds me of Hua Cheng because you cannot tell me otherwise that is is not a Lady Gaga or Britney Spears fan

3. Smooth Operator by Sade reminds me of Xie Lian but it is directed to Hua Cheng some way (I do not know why, I do not make the rules though)

4. I Won't Say (I'm In Love) in Hercules the Disney movie reminds me of Shi Qingxuan. She would sing her heart out to this and nail it. (The message is probably directed to either FengQing or Xie Lian.)

(She would also sing Scars to Your Beautiful by Alessia Cara to Lang Ying. He is probably scared by the singing.)

5. Noel's Lament in Ride the Cyclone is also Shi Qingxuan. Moving on!

6. Sex With a Ghost by Teddy Hyde is, you guessed it, Hualian. Cause like- never mind...

7. Tongues and Teeth by The Crane Wives reminds me of Beefleaf or FengQing

8. 1812 Overture Op. 49 TH 49 by Tchaikovsky reminds me of Mobei-Jun I just know that that man listens to classical music and SQH is sick of it. (SQH actually likes hearing it.)

9. Mess is Mine by Vance Joy reminds me of Hualian. Imagine it as Hua Cheng comforting Xie Lian, or even vice versa.

10. Walk You Home by Sir Chloe reminds me of Shen Qingqiu and Luo Binghe or even Shen Jiu and Yue Qingyuan. (Shen Qingqiu and Yu Qingyuan are the ones asking to walk the others home aka comforting Luo Binghe and Shen Jiu.

11. Let It Go in Frozen reminds me of Shang Qinghua because of him possibly poking fun at Mobei-Jun (Mobei-Jun doesn't understand what Frozen is.)

12. Literally any vocaloid song reminds me of Shang Qinghua.

If you want more of these, I will make a part 2 eventually.

[princess-of-the-corner]

Isakai Chloe

So overthinking how Isakai Chloe is working with the timeskip in One Piece; And my half asleep thoughts made this.

Like Chloe gets yeeted out of the MLB universe after Hawkmoth tries blackmailing her on the roof. He uses the Rooster (Somehow doesn’t think to do what the Paris Special did yet) and then goes to the park to have Mayura make a Senti to replace Chloe. Because the Butterfly lets Hawkmoth have empathic abilities they actually make an internally well programmed copy, but because Hawkmoth only cares about the NEGATIVES the Senti is worse than S1-S3 ever was. Hawkmoth doesn’t care about keeping her reputation good. Thus Chloe is seamlessly replaced in canon with Fu, Chat Noir, and Ladybug being the only ones to know that there is a phony-Chloe turned into Miracle Queen. To the rest of Paris Chloe was attacked by Hawkmoth right after her parents were overshadowed. 

Senti-Chloe doesn’t seem to be aware that she isn’t the real Chloe and is left to wander and act independently; with Gabriel and Nathalie nonchalantly holding her life hostage. Adrien and Marinette have to go through their days silently unable to tell their peers that its a fake Chloe; they don’t know what happened to the original. 

Meanwhile Chloe ends up in the Romance Arc of One Piece and seeks the main character! The Echo of this is that the pages of Adrien’s manga collection begin to change to reflect a new character. Luka and Juleka’s copies also change. Juleka tells Rose and Ivan. When Rose tries to ask S!Chloe about pirates she gives a rude, but clueless answer about it. S!Chloe moves on but pays no mind. When Marinette and others go to The Liberty they see the books and learn something is up. Adrien looks at his copies at home and confirms the changes. Adrien and Marinette each pretend to have ‘told’ their respective secret identities about the development. The Class now knows that their Chloe was yeeted out of universe. Sabrina agrees to keep an eye on S!Chloe. The heroes get to keep wrestling with the options of telling Chloe’s parents but don’t want to cause another Malidictator incident.

The time difference isn’t evenly split so Chloe ends up in Sabaody Archipelago arc with only 2-3 months passing in MLB-universe. When Kuma sends the various Straw Hats to their ‘vacations’ Chloe gets sent home to Paris.

Adrien helps hide Chloe at his house. Nobody mentions the thousands of dollars this guy spends on cheese; hiding the food budget for another whole person will be easy. If anything the private chief is relieved that Adrien is eating more fish to balance out his dairy based diet.

Nino’s rebellion is informed about Chloe’s return and now they’re seeking to find S!Chloe’s amok. Since Adrichat and Maribug know that Mayura doesn’t need to be in possession to dispose of a ‘loose end’ insist on taking Mayura’s miraculous first priority. The two of them silently lamenting the other Senti’s killed in the line of duty because of Hawkmoth’s obsession.

Chloe is frustrated and vents to Sabrina. She knew the two year timeskip was going to happen regardless of her actions leading up. She just didn’t think she’d end up in a different world? How was she supposed to get stronger in the wrong universe? How was she supposed to get stronger here? She can’t bring a Miraculous over to the Grand Line. She has to stay in hiding until they can guarantee S!Chloe’s safety.

TBC…

-

Oh hell yeah

[nobodyfamousposts]

What if Chloe had lost her memories of her old life after making the wish in Chloe's Lament? If so, would she remotely be nicer given not being rich means her father has less reason to spoil her? Or would she still be mean anyway even with her memories gone, implying she may just be born evil?

Yes but also no? It's a bit complicated so please let me explain:

If Chloe's Lament didn't happen and Chloe was the Chloe of the reality in question, things would pretty much be the same way they are for her in the Lament. The difference would be how Chloe herself handles it since she's fully aware of her position in this life going in without any memories from an alternate self getting in the way.

Andre is still Andre. He is a pushover and loves his little girl. He WANTS to give her whatever she wants, so it's not that he has less reason to spoil her and more that he simply CAN'T, at least not to the extent she wants. Think to the setup in canon where he was able to buy Chloe a golden bracelet and a diamond-filled phone case, fire Roger when he upset Chloe, arrange the closure of an ice rink to build a gym for her, and shut down Clara's music video on her demand...but ended up in an outright panic when he told Chloe that he couldn't banish Marinette and her family from the city, something he legitimately could not do. Not for lack of wanting to. Just that he can't.

That's pretty much the position he'll be in here. He loves Chloe and he WANTS to give her her every desire, but he's not rich or powerful this go around and he has no weight to throw, no money to spend, no influence to use, and no status or backing to protect himself or Chloe from the repercussions of her antics.

But this ask isn't about him, I know. I'm just trying to give perspective here.

Andre would still spoil her...at least as much as he could. And you have to bear in mind that he is trying to make up Chloe's lack of a present mother while also running a functional and decently well off but not outstanding business. He would deny her things she wants because he can't give her everything she wants.

But the Chloe of this world would know that. And since she never had the wealth and power that Canon Chloe has, she wouldn't expect all the things that Canon Chloe did when waking up in her position.

This is actually what makes the primary difference. I have said before that it is fully possible for the characters who make the Wish to end up happy in their Lament, and while I'm sure many of you doubt me or think I only apply that to Marinette, I meant it for everyone.

See, the main thing that makes this a Lament isn't the position of the Chloe in this world but in how Chloe HANDLES it. Canon Chloe is going to try and handle it like Canon Chloe handles anything, and it's going to fail because her expectations are based in a setup that she cannot understand no longer applies and her go-to methods require resources and protections that she doesn't have here.

THIS Chloe is going to handle it differently. Her expectations are already more down to earth than Canon Chloe to begin with. And by the time the events of the story start, she's going in with the knowledge that she is on thin ice and some change needs to occur if she doesn't want to lose everything she has left.

Chloe by this point is the bastard child of "Style Queen Audrey" and is just as acknowledged by her as she was in canon if not less, so she's still dealing with abandonment issues while trying to endear herself to her mother however limitedly she can. She still has Adrien as a friend but knows that's hanging on by a thread as well (her friendship with him was mostly through Andre's friendship with Emilie and she's gone now, and Gabriel himself is not that impressed with her). She has Bustier's support and is still able to go to the school, but she's on probation with the administration watching her. And her father is working desperately to get her out of consequences for her previous behaviors. So if she messes up again, she's going to lose all of that.

So yes, in that sense, this Chloe is going to be "nicer". She has to be. She is trying to change her behavior in order to avoid a bad situation. To try being "kind" and "helpful" when she's still very much a selfish and angsty teenager who doesn't get why she should. "Nice" and "Good" are two different things, after all. Though that's not to say that she'll be very good at either.

This change in behavior is difficult for her. Change usually is. But practice makes perfect, right? So that's why Chloe starts trying to do things she normally wouldn't. Like helping her father in the bakery. Planning a box of goodies for her classmates to try and make peace for the next school year.

And yes, help out an old man on the street.

However, there's another aspect to consider here.

After all, in this universe, Chloe and Adrien are childhood friends. And Adrien and Marinette are childhood friends, too.

So wouldn't it stand to reason that Chloe and Marinette were also childhood friends as well?

...

...

IF I wrote this setup as its own story sans the Wish and Lament, we'd be dealing with a story of Chloe growing out of a negative mindset, addressing her inner fears that drive her actions, and improving her life and her relationships. All while dealing with the stress and responsibility of being a hero. And just the clash overall of the difference between who she is as Chloe vs who she is as the Ladybug Hero.

As Marinette in Canon pointed out, "Ladybug has made me a better Marinette. So, perhaps being Queen Bee will make her a better Chloé, too!"

That's what happens here.

Chloe KNOWS she's not a good person. She'd even convinced that a mistake was made when she was chosen. But being a hero lets her do good more easily under a mask where no one has preconceived feelings or expectations of her. It would be freeing in a way. And give her the positive reinforcement she needs.

But the biggest issue would be dealing with her toxic mindset and how it led to her situation and strained relationships. Which would be what the course of the story is meant to address. Chloe in this world doesn't understand what "healthy" or "healthy relationships" are anymore than Canon Chloe does. But she's getting a crash course in the matter while also receiving guidance courtesy of Tikki.

Ultimately, this Chloe would have more of a chance than Canon Chloe.

She wouldn't go into this looking to take advantage and cause harm the way that Canon Chloe did.

She would be a selfish teenager learning to be a little less self centered and a little more aware of her impact on others.

[celestiall0tus]

All That Remained - Meanwhile - Velze

Beginning || Previous || Next

            Chloe sat in a lounge chair on her couch. She flipped through a magazine before she threw it at the floor. She crossed her arms and looked out the window. It was just about sunset. That kwami promised her a “friend” before the day’s end. There was still several long hours left, but how much longer did she have to wait. It was utterly ridiculous.

            Chloe sighed and lamented on the conversation with Velze. It claimed to see into her heart, but it didn’t judge her. Even when she broke down, it merely listened, then gave her a miraculous. Was this a good idea? What if she wasn’t worthy of it? What if she has it taken away again? She wasn’t sure what she’d do if that happened again.

            A knock interrupted Chloe’s thoughts. She got up to answer it as Audrey strolled in. She flinched and stepped back as Audrey glared down at her.

            “Zoe, a decision has been made,” Audrey said.

            Chloe sneered. “I’m Chloe!”

            “Whatever. I’ve spoken to your father and we’ve agreed to send you off to London. Perhaps there you can learn to be a daughter we can be proud of.”

            Chloe’s jaw dropped. Her mind raced when she remembered Velze’s words. She gritted her teeth and glared at Audrey. “Maybe you should have done better. You all call me a monster, berate and hate me, but maybe you should take a moment and think who made me this way!”

            “And you couldn’t even get that right. You could have been a shrewd, powerful woman, but instead you allowed yourself to care. You grew soft somewhere and I don’t know where we went wrong,” Audrey remarked.

            Bile rose in Chloe’s throat. She attempted to form a sentence, but all arguments died on her tongue.

            “Now, get your luggage packed. You leave in a few hours.”

            Audrey slammed the door. Chloe stared at the door a while longer before she fell to her knees. Tears poured from her eyes as her heart ached. She stifled a scream and reached for the necklace. A bright light flashed, and she moved her hand away. She blinked away the light and saw a dog kwami before her.

            “Oh my. What happened? Why are you crying?” Barkk asked.

            Chloe sneered. “What do you care?”

            “Because I am Barkk, kwami of love. It is my very nature to care, but I won’t deny a polite curiosity as to what troubles you.”

            Chloe crossed her arms and refused to answer.

            “Uh, ok. Let’s play a game. If I guess right, you need to tell me more. Ready? It’s about your parents, right? Wanting to send you away because they hate you.”

            Chloe’s jaw dropped. “How did you know?”

            Barkk smiled sadly. “Velze. He spoke with you, remember?”

            Chloe swallowed hard and nodded. She attempted to fight the tears, but they fell once more. “What do I do? They are sending me away. They don’t want me anymore.”

            “Forgive me, but I believe this is the best for you.”

            “Excuse me?”

            “I see it does you no good to be here. Your heart is suffering. The cold indifference of those who are supposed to love you is warping you. Being in this environment with these people will only continue to do so.”

            “But… but I don’t want to go! I want to stay! I want them to love me. They have to. They’re my parents!”

            Barkk looked at Chloe with sorrow in her eyes. “I wish that were true. I really do, but it isn’t. I’m sorry.”

            Chloe snarled and hissed as she broke down into another fit of tears. Barkk watched as Chloe cried, then settled down.

            “What do I do?” Chloe asked.

            “What do you want to do?”

            Chloe took a long moment to think. “I don’t want to be this way anymore, but I don’t know how to be different.”

            “I can help you,” Barkk offered.

            “Why?”

            “Because I like you.”

            “You… you do?”

            Barkk nodded.

            “Would… would you come with me to London?”

            “I’d love to!”

            Chloe gave a soft smile. “Then let’s pack. We leave soon.”

~~

            Lila carefully inspected the foxtail necklace. She took out her phone and flipped through the images of the grimoire she made Nathalie send her. She matched the necklace with the one in the fox entry and it was the same. She grinned and reached for it when a flash surprised her. She covered her eyes until it died away. She looked back and saw a fox kwami above the necklace.

            Lila gasped gleefully. “You’re Trixx, kwami of illusion!”

            Trixx tilted his head and laughed. “Illusions? That’s too good. No, my dear. I’ve shed such mundane concepts for something far more grand.”

            “What do you mean?”

            “The kwami you chased after, he is my father, for lack of better terms. He saw into your heart and saw a girl that held no value in honesty. One that only looked out for herself. And yet you do a magnificent job concealing it, until a certain opponent finally outsmarted you.”

            Lila scoffed. “Whatever. She wouldn’t have gotten away with it if not for that traitor, Sabrina. Besides, I more than plan on getting my revenge.”

            Trixx gagged. “Revenge? How mundane.”

            “They need to pay for their deeds. And I’ll be the one to make them suffer.”

            Trixx rolled his eyes. “Kit, you brought it upon yourself. You were careless and thought you could manipulate the sheep forever.”

            “Oh yeah? What would you have done differently?”

            Trixx grinned. “Oh, so much, Kit. And I can teach you to truly wield deception. To pull the strings from the sidelines and no one would ever be the wiser. You could ruin lives without even needing to leave the comfort of your home. You need only accept my offer.”

            Lila considered and put the necklace back on. “I accept. Trixx, let’s pounce!”

            Nothing happened.

            “What gives? That’s the transformation phrase, right?”

            Trixx snickered. “Once you are ready, you’ll gain the knowledge you seek.”

            Lila huffed. “Fine. I’m ready.”

            “Excellent. Your lessons begin now, Kit. I know you won’t disappoint.”

[airi-p4]

On the ice - Chapter 1

Chapter 1 | Ch 2 | Ch 3 | Ch 4 | Ch 5 | Ch 6 | Ch 7 ....

_________________________________________

Summary:

Ice girls AU

After failing a double axel in her last competition and getting injured as a result, Marinette quits ice skating and moves to her paternal grandfather's city with her mother. Seeing a blond girl performing at the local ice rink and becoming her friend, makes her start thinking about skating again. Thankfully, she'll find the help that will grant her a second chance in figure skating and to follow her dream, finding friendship, rivalry and love in the process.

AO3

_________________________________________

Chapter 1 Marinette found herself absorbed watching the blond girl on the ice. She could almost feel the thrill on her own skin as the teenager elegantly skated to the 'Swan lake' music. A well balanced performance in both technique and artistry, fluid transitions, accurate edges, moves and steps beautifully executed. Memories of her recent past- of when she was the one dancing on the ice- vivid in her mind.

The blond girl's ponytail flew as she spinned around in a layback, sit and upright spins, finishing in a difficult Denise Biellmann position before dramatically pausing for a moment- enough for her to catch her breath for the second part of the program. Marinette wondered in excitement what her next element would be and… “Wow!” she exclaimed in a low voice. A clean double axel. Amazing. Marinette silently applauded a little.

"Wow!" A man watching from the other side of the ice rink repeated with a big smile on his face. The next instant, the woman on his right turned to shush him.

"Wow!? Don't be ridiculous! Better? Yes. Wow? No way!" That said, the blond woman noticed Marinette staring and snapped her fingers. "Chloe! Chloe! Stop! Chloe, stop!" She called the skater. Marinette looked confused at the scene, until her eyes met the woman's. "You. Who are you? This is a private lesson! You're not allowed here. Go away!" She said under her sunglasses.

"Oh, I'm sorry" Marinette quietly apologized. "I didn't know…"

"Oh, my dear Audrey, she's doing nothing besides watching. I don't think-" the man started.

"Oh, shut up, André! She could be spying!" She yelled and turned to someone who was looking from a little behind them. "Philippe! Hurry up and make her leave!"

"Madam Bourgeois, there's no need for that. Class has already ended for today"

"What? This is ridiculous! This nuisance has made us waste three minutes of training!"

"Don't worry, Madam. We'll get those minutes back next practice" the man focused next on the skater. "Good job today, Chloe. You did well"

"Obviously" Chloe flipped her hair proudly as she got out of the ice rink to meet her parents.

"You're ridiculous, Philippe! This is unacceptable! I'm firing you and changing coaches as soon as I find a decent one!" Arms crossed, she lifted her chin in disgust.

"Not again, mom!" The skater groaned.

"Then you better show me the results of your training, Chloe. Show me it's worth it to keep investing in your stupid figure skating classes!"

"But dear, if she enjoys it-" André started, but Chloe interrupted him.

"Of course, mom! I won't deceive you"

"Good" the woman's sunglasses lifted just enough to look at the determination in her daughter's eyes.

After the scene, they disappeared towards the changing rooms and the man called Philippe approached Marinette.

"Hi there. I've never seen you around before. Do you skate?" He asked.

"Skated. I don't anymore..." Marinette answered, nostalgic. "I've just moved here from Paris"

"So new to the city, huh? Money or injury?" He asked, referring to what made her quit.

"Both..." she lamented, and he offered her an empathic look.

"Wouldn't you like to skate again?" Philippe asked.

"I can't," Marinette answered, sorrowful and bluntly. Her dream for competitive skating had been crushed when she failed her double axel and got severely injured during her last competition. Adding money struggles to the mix, she decided to stop and give up on her dreams for good.

"Then you shouldn't have come here" the man stated, making her snap back from her thoughts. "Skating is addictive. You'll want to get back on the ice as soon as you see it again. Your eyes were glowing at the thought while watching Chloe" The man surprised the girl. "What's your name?"

"Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Sir"

"I'm Philippe Candeloro. Former figure skater and coach. I can help you, if you want" Marinette's eyes glowed for a moment, but she looked away the next moment. "Who was your coach back in Paris?" He asked.

"Oh, it was Miss Caline Bustier, Sir," she recalled fondly.

"Oh, Miss Bustier, huh? She's nice, isn't she? Always kind but also persistent and encouraging" Candeloro smiled at her surprise.

"You know her?"

"I do,” he smiled longingly. “We skated in the same ice rink a long time ago, and we've been together in some competitions and ice shows, too. We've been friends ever since" Marinette listened with curiosity. "I bet you're really good if you were in her hands''

"No I-" she quickly denied, but Philippe continued.

"There's classes for children next Wednesday. 20€ an hour. No need to bring skates, but there's lockers if you prefer to bring yours. What do you say? Would you like to try teaching?" The coach winked, and Marinette didn't hesitate to answer.

"Ah- Yes! Thank you very much!"

"See you on Wednesday, Marinette"

Marinette left the ice palace with a bright smile on her face and giggling, but she stopped when, outside, her eyes noticed a boy around her age. His blue hair stood out too much not to notice. 'He's handsome', she thought, shyly watching him humming an unknown melody while feeding a stray cat next to the side door of the ice stadium. He didn’t seem to have noticed her. Marinette stood there, by the main gate, wondering what was the reason for his bittersweet aura.

Curious, and somewhat worried, she took a step closer. And then, another. And another. Until he finally noticed her when he heard her steps close by. Their eyes locked for a moment and she gulped at their blueness. 'They are like the sea', she thought. But before her voice could even leave her throat to say ‘hi’, his smile had already faded away, almost immediately, and his expression became cold and distant. Silently, he stood up, took the hockey stick that rested on the wall and walked inside the ice rink through the side door he closed after him.

His reaction saddened her, but she decided to stay positive and not think about it while her mind went back to skating. She continued smiling hopefully as she returned home.

[cybercookiepainteralmond]

Miraculous undead

A scream rings out, she feels an agonizing pain in her throat as the splash of blood falls down her mouth, her eyes open from the nightmare of the night she became a Marinette wakes to yet another day of her "life" as she dresses in a blue turtleneck, purple jeans and brown boots and gloves, she puts on a red scarf and a motorcycle helmet before grabbing her bag and heading downstairs. She passed her parents Sabine Cheng and Tom Dupain, who give her a hug as Sabine says

"Marinette, are you sure you still want to go to school?"

And Tom adds in "We can try to homeschool you if you'd like."

The concern in their voices obvious as they clearly just want to make sure she's doing ok after the incident last month.

"Mamman I'm going to be fine, Chloe's been a good help, and if things get too much she'll be there to stop me."

Marinette says with a voice that says she's clearly anxious but is trying to do something to manage it .

She walks to school, trying to make sure she doesn't draw attention as she sees an old man in a Hawaiian shirt about to get hit by a car, she rushes to help him using an unnatural speed, her helmet lost as her skin starts to burst and she screams in pain, quickly getting into the shade and making her way to school that way after making sure the old man was safe. Her rather roundabout route means that once she gets to school she's late for class and rushes only to find that the seat next to Chloe that the two had planned for her is reserved for someone else, she's forced to sit next to the new girl who introduces herself as Alya and comments

"You look kinda pale, are you sick?"

With an obvious curiosity that Marinette isn't sure she likes being so close to someone who doesn't realize how dangerous she is as Alya notices how cold her skin is and Chloe thankfully butts in and says

"Hey new girl! Buzz off!"

And Marinette is forever grateful for the intervention as the teacher finally arrives. She introduced herself as Mdme. Bustier and gives a wary look to Marinette, clearly she knows about her condition. The next few hours pass as a normal school day might, Chloe laments that Marinette couldn't meet someone named Adrien who's supposedly her childhood best friend. Marinette is barely paying attention as her hunger is getting harder to ignore, Chloe notices and asks

"Need help with it?"

While rolling her sleeve back, the burning agony of hunger causing Marinette to briefly bare her fangs before pulling Chloe's wrist to her mouth and biting down, drinking the blood that wells up to the surface until Chloe manages to get her attention to stop her from taking too much. Marinette looks away shamefully as she gently wipes a little blood from her lip, Chloe applying a bandage to her own wrist to prevent bleeding out as she says

"You don't need to apologize, I'm volunteering because I genuinely want to help."

They hear a gasp as the two realize that Alya had seen this and instantly tries forcing questions about being a vampire on Marinette, who clearly doesn't want to talk about it. Thankfully they're saved from that problem as a giant stone Goliath attacks the school and they run, Chloe dropping Marinette off at her home after lending a hoodie to protect her from the sun. Once Marinette is home she heads to her room, thankful that she convinced her parents that painting her windows was a much cheaper option than digging a basement. Once she takes in the sight of a strange box on her desk, she opens it to find a pair of earrings that once she touches out pops a humanoid little bug plushie looking thing that says

"Hi"

and Marinette can't help but hiss in fear, before shouting

"What are you!?"

In terror, the bug thing says

"Names Tikki, I'm your kwami little vamp. I give the power of creation through those earrings."

Marinette just stays quiet for a minute while she processes what she was told, she's surprisingly taking it well while Tikki asks

"Are the humans downstairs your familiars or something?"

To which Marinette quickly denies and says

"Those are my parents!"

While absolutely horrified by the implications of Tikki's question Tikki quickly asks

"Like a cover family or?"

And Marinette just says

"Parents, parents, I'm 14"

and Tikki asks

"How long?"

Having understood what happened before saying

"You know what, doesn't matter right now, we need to team up with the holder of the black cat ring and stop that stone villain."

As Marinette starts denying it Tikki says

"We can argue about this later, right now we have a job to do, just say 'Spots on' to transform, I'll give you an outfit to protect you from the sun"

"Spots on"

To be continued

Next

[i-like-anything-water]

Imagine: Chat Blanc AU, but after Marinette leaving her letter in Adrien's room, she realized that while writing this letter, she was thinking more not about Adrien, but about Chloé. So, Marinette still date Adrien, Gabriel still barred them from dating, Adrien still became Chat Blanc... But now he wanted to kill Ladybug because she didn't really loved him. Ladybug, after arriving to the CB future, saw Chloé, frozen like everyone else, and she is crying over her body. After defeating Chat Blanc, Marinette decides to leave Agreste Mansion and enter another house. She is on balcony of Chloé's apartment, waiting for her to give the letter and hug her

sup

tbh I haven't watched the whole episode of chat Blanc lmao but I'll try to answer from what I know. so basically akumatized chat noir, conflicted between love and family.

I'm taking a guess in this au Chloe is already redeemed and friends with Marinette since it would explain thinking about Chloe. while she's not at the part she realizes her feelings fully, she's almost there. she thinks it's just because she wasn't expecting they could be friends and goes on believing her one true love is Adrien.

Then it hits her so randomly it almost gives her whiplash. She likes Chloe.

Cue Chat Blanc.

I'm kinda conflicted here. On one hand I could go the angsty comfort hurt way where she tries to fix everything while lamenting on her decisions and wanting to confess to Chloe once everything is okay. This was becoming a nightmare for her. Bunnix explains everything will be okay once she is able to de akumatize Chat.

Or she goes berserk, doesn't hold back and then cures everyone. Bunnix can't even stop her because she knew if she did, she'd just make things worse. She does keep track in the burrow of something she might have missed and she really didn't wanna deal with a love driven Ladybug. Chat is saved and the cure is set. She makes sure everything is safe and sound before going over to Chloe and talking to her.

Alternatively, Chat Blanc AU but it's Chloe Noir and the start of their making up seems nice. Chloe having destroyed everything, everything. And Marinette needs to save her. Really save her this time. Drama ensues.

That's all I got. Thanks for the ask!

[dropintomanga]

Get That Bit of Chunibyo Inside You

"We must have a bit of 'chūnibyō' inside us. The fact is we like manga because of the moral within that could touch us emotionally, and we have to behave as we are taught from these media." -Chloe Lisa Kung, Organizer of Rainbow Gala 30, Source: Rainbow Gala 30 and the End of an Era: Hong Kong's Biggest Doujinshi Convention Set to Shutter

I stumbled across an Anime News Network article about a Hong Kong doujinshi event, Rainbow Gala, possibly not existing anymore after a long run in a convention center set to be demolished in the near future.

The organizer, Chloe Lisa Kung, was asked about the future and what led to the impending doom of her event. She spoke about how Hong Kong youth aren't allowed to thrive or chase creative pursuits. Kung lamented on how there's no breeding grounds for young artists to shine or inspiration for art in Hong Kong compared to almost 30 years ago when she started to draw at the age of 12 after seeing doujinshi art.

It does make me think about Hong Kong's anime culture today. I remember visiting Mong Kok Shopping Center back in 2009 and it felt like going to Akihabara in some ways. Every floor was filled with anime, manga, video games, artbooks, toys, etc. When I hear about Hong Kong now, I hear that it's "dead." And reading what Kung said now makes me hesitant to go back there in some way. I do feel that Hong Kong is a bit too commercialized at times. I never liked Canto-pop much and listened to counter-cultural Cantonese music. While anime has always been popular in Asia, it does feel like there's a very genuine communal vibe in that part of the world when it comes to anime/manga fandom and outside forces are slowly stripping that away as everyone wants to jump in on the fan convention train.

There's something that Kung says about the future of Rainbow Gala that makes me think about fans in general and the growing appeal of anime to doujin artists.

"Indeed, there are more consumers now than ever, but the most important lead still lies in the people inside drawing."

I think about the kids who draw manga after watching an episode of anime. I think about the various drawings I've seen over the years of their favorite characters. Sure, some adults will find it "cute" and suggest that it's just a "phase." But to me, the magic starts to happen there.

There's so many consumers, but not enough people to create stuff that can touch lives. It's hard to be creative. Creativity is often devalued due to a general obsession over measurable outcomes.

Kung's words about learning from manga also make me think about how much manga has meant to me. While I did write that I needed mahjong to save me, manga is still what I care about the most. A lot of my mannerisms and attitudes still come from manga. I try to incorporate my manga reading experiences into how I behave. Sometimes, I make blunders, but I still try.

I think about how most fans aren't like me and countless others who use their love to talk about manga on the internet (shout-outs to the bloggers, YouTubers, and podcasters that promote manga in their way). What drove us to start talking about our love to manga to people who don't know us in person? What drove us to become more than just consumers? How do we cultivate that mindset? Those are questions that I'm still trying to get the answers for.

I can only speak for myself in that my own personal mental health experiences combined with the environment I grew up in made me want to blog in the first place. I continue to do so because of how much manga has grown in the past few years. I know it's not just a phase for some youth.

Until then, I'm proud to say that I still got a bit of 8th grade syndrome in me. I'm proud to say that stuff that's mostly read by teens still gets me pumped to seize the day. I'm proud to be a fan that wishes for future creators and their youthful enthusiasm to be treasured as much as the mainstream works that inspired them.