#hurt marinette
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season 6 akuma wishlist
bonus:
#ml#miraculous#miraculous ladybug#ladybug#chat noir#cat noir#ladynoir#adrien agreste#marinette dupain cheng#marinette dupain-cheng#adrienette#adrinette#plagg#tikki#my art#ml spoilers#ml s6 spoilers#ml season 6 spoilers#miraculous ladybug spoilers#MY WRIST HURTS
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dad villain au doodle pile
#my art#dad villain au#tom dupain cheng#marinette dupain cheng#adrien agreste#it hurts to live. tiome to look at the Bakers
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Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year @isabugs! I was your secret santa for @mlsecretsanta this year! This took me FOREVER ;-;
I hope you like it! I love these weirdos. Peep the lil ladybug on Adrien's shoulder :3
For anyone else seeing this post, if you like my art and want to commission me (or buy me tea) here is a link to my kofi<3
#my back hurts lmao#hunched over my tablet for DAYS#DAYS I TELL YOU#marinette dupain cheng#adrien agreste#adrinette#emonette#emodrien#miraculous#miraculous ladybug#fanart#my art#tarot#vi the lovers#ml secret santa#isabugs
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i need adrienette to be closer than ever actually. they're both traumatized af i want them attached at the hip and a little obsessed w each other. i want them slightly unhealthy and codependent. they've been through so much shit together and now that they have each other i want them to sink their claws in and never let go
#genuinely i think if this show went the break up route itd be SOOO boring. its too overdone and too easy.#like have the main couple actually work things out for once instead of giving up when things get hard#adrien loves marinette dearly and she loves him desperately. even if i can see marinette distancing herself#or wanting a break for Adrien's sake#i think he'd beg her not to#he cant lose her too#even if shes hurt him he loves her. and he still wants her in his life and wants to love her.#text post#miraculous#controversial opinion maybe but breaking them up would almost feel like a cop out for something more interesting#ml spoilers#ml london special
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ML Big Bang 2024 Fic Recs
Angst/Hurt/Comfort
This collection of fics were recommended by the contributors of the @mlbigbang2024 for their favourite fics of 2024 (posted in between Nov 2023 and Dec 2024)
Gen and Teen and above Fic
A Small But Stubborn Fire (Rated: T)
By @cardiac-agreste (KPG)
Main relationship: Sabine & Marinette
Tags: Angst, Mother-Daughter Relationship
Summary: What if you were the parent of a teenage superhero, but didn't know they were? All you know is the nightmares, the panic attacks, and the bruises. She's missing school, she's disappearing on you, and she's not telling you anything.
And what do you do when you realize you weren't thinking dark enough? Because your fourteen-year old daughter is the hero who flirts with death on the nightly news.
--
Come inside and read about one mother's struggles to raise her daughter in a dangerous world while avoiding the mistakes her own mother made with her.
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: Such a lovely exploration of Sabine's character and the fascinating point-of-view that is being the parent of a superhero. Sabine's growth is awesome, and the passion and care of the author really shines through.
Holding onto the Memory of You (Rated: T)
By @fruitdragon1a
Main relationship: Juleka/Rose
Tags: Rose Lavillant has Cancer, Grieving Juleka Couffaine, Hurt No Comfort
Summary: Juleka and Rose are on the métro when something happens to Rose.
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: It is gut-wrenching and so sad and I love it so much.
Games of Destruction (Rated: T)
By DayRise1, ScribeOfRhapsody
Main Relationship: Gabriel/Nathalie, Adrien/Marinette
Tags: AU - Hunger Games, The Miraculous are Weapons in the Arena, Child Murder
Summary: Against all odds, Gabriel Agreste had won the Hunger Games at the mere age of fourteen. Now, years later, his worst nightmare has come to life in the form of his own son being selected for the Games.
Adrien didn't have a lot to worry about growing up as the son of a Victor. Until this year, that was. Now, he and the sweet baker girl from down the road have been chosen to represent their district in the 74th Hunger Games – a vicious battle to the death using magical artifacts where only one tribute may survive.
Marinette has spent a year comforting her best friend after her sister died in the Hunger Games, only for Alya to be reaped herself. Volunteering in her place, Marinette now finds herself alongside her crush and his father as she truly realizes the magnitude of what she's signed up for.
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: It's a hunger games AU with Miraculous, and it is really well constructed. The way characters are portayed in this is great, and there is a lot of references to the Hunger games books. Also this universe plays with its own rules for the games added with the use of the Miraculous.
All Wrapped up in a Bow (Rated: T)
By @trinketsinthesun
Main relationship: Adrien/Marinette
Tags: Oblivious Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Oblivious Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Angst with a Happy Ending
Summary: Although Ladybug knew it was her imagination, the Christmas lights seemed to shine brighter in Paris after Monarch was defeated. Everyone was happier, and she couldn’t blame them. One huge Adrien-shaped detail aside, she was happy herself.
So why wasn’t Cat Noir?
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: The angst is so delicious!
You Matter to Me: A Miraculous/Waitress Story (Rated: T)
By writeanytime
Main relationship: Luka/Kagami
Tags: Inspired by Music, Unplanned Pregnancy, Bad Parent Tomoe Tsurugi
Summary: Kagami is content with her life. Sure, it's busy, predictable, and lonely, but she's fine! But when a one-night stand with Luka leads to an unplanned pregnancy, she is forced to rethink her entire life
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: Kagami grows out of her shell following an unexpected pregnancy and comes to terms with her damaged relationship with her controlling mother.
The Beauty of Truth (Rated: T)
By @uptoolateart
Main relationship: Adrien & Emilie Agreste
Tags: Grief/Mourning, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Needs a Hug, John Keats
Summary: Cat Noir visits his mother's grave, in memory of a visit they once paid together to John Keats's grave in Rome.
Inspired by a line from The Cap and Bells by KPG: 'When he’d met Ladybug, all knots and tangles and grit, he thought he understood what Keats meant by a steadfast, bright star.'
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: It's UNREAL how well this one-shot is written. It’s so good. I love it because it made me ugly cry. I’m a sucker for Adrien & Emilie relationship. EGADS, READ THIS.
What Cuts Through the Silence (Rated: T)
By @coffeebanana
Main relationship: Adrien/Marinette
Tags: Post-Break Up, Phone Calls & Telephones, Depressed Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir
Summary: “Adrien? It’s late, are you okay?”
His stomach twists. Because it’s not late, not really. Not for Marinette, who he knows will be up until the wee hours of the morning, even if it’s one of those nights where she swears she’s going to bed early.
He knows her. And so he knows what she really means.
It’s too late for him to be calling her.
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: Adrien and Marinette have broken up. Adrien still relies on her. It’s sad and poignant and will make you teary-eyed.
Mature and Explicit Fics
Requiem for a Dream (Rated: E)
By @akumatisedhamster
Main relationship: Luka x Adrien x Marinette
Tags: Polyamory, Single Mother, Teacher!Adrien
Summary: Six years ago, the Supreme was defeated with the help of Shadybug and Claw Noir. But not without its consequences. Trapped in a magical coma using the power of jubilation, they were slowly tortured, reliving nightmares of their own design.
In an act of desperation, Hesperia wiped the memories of Shadybug and Claw Noir so that they could live the rest of their lives as normal teenagers.
What he didn’t know was that Shadybug was pregnant at the time.
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: I love the post-Supreme reverse world and the whole memory wipe element!
Bubblegum Soul (Rated: M)
By @wehadabondingmoment
Main relationship: Adrien/Marinette
Tags: Post-Defeat of Gabriel Agreste, Sentimonster Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Mind Control
Summary:
"The impulse to throw away his ring, to slam it on the ground and watch its metallic splinters chap away at his soul, got more tempting by the second. Maybe, for a moment, he would learn what it meant to be alive."
(Or: Hawk Moth has been defeated and Adrien is suffering more than ever. Armed with unhealthy coping mechanisms and the knowledge that he apparently isn't human, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery.)
(Except that his father isn't quite ready to give up just yet.)
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: A lovely exploration of Adrien's feelings about being a sentibeing and his relationship with his father. Some really gorgeous writing that comes from the heart. Hawkmoth has lost, and Adrien knows he’s senti. He has to deal with that knowledge. There are passages in this story that will take your breath away with the author's creativity and ability to evoke profound emotions.
Those We Leave Behind (Rated: M)
By @raspberrycatapult
Main Relationship: Adrien/Marinette
Tags: Character Death, Grief/Mourning, Child Death, Crying
Summary: Marinette dies suddenly. There’s no time to prepare. No time to say goodbye. She’s just…gone.
But she hasn’t quite left this world. She still lingers as a spirit, a ghost.
And the only person who can see her is Adrien.
Follows Marinette as she tries to process her death, Adrien as he struggles with the loss of his friend and partner, and her friends and family as they grieve.
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: Marinette DIES. Now she’s a ghost. Everyone is sad, nobody knows what happened to Ladybug, and it’s just SAD AND PAIN (and wonderful). RC is so good at making my withered old heart happy even when I'm reading something full of pain. Powerfully evocative.
Maybe This Life (Rated: E)
By @coffeebanana
Main Relationship: Adrien/Marinette
Tags: Suicide Attempt, Depression, Dissociation
Summary: "Adrien's in the hospital."
Woken in the dead of night by a series of frantic phone calls, Marinette finds herself boarding a bus from New York to Montreal instead of flying home for winter break. Not that she has a clue how she'll navigate living with Adrien—who definitely wants nothing to do with her since the break up—for the indefinite future.
Adrien just wants to find the energy to convince Marinette he's fine—that she can leave. Because having her here hurts too much, and he's better off alone. At least, that's what he tells himself.
They're an ocean away from home, stuck together in a one-bedroom apartment, in a city suffocated by snow. The distance between them has never felt so insurmountable.
But maybe there's hope after all.
Read on Ao3
What we liked about it: Adrien attempts suicide. His ex, Marinette, is the only one able to get to him in the hospital. It’s claustrophobic, angsty, and well-written.
#ml fanfic#fic rec#ml fanfiction#miraculous ladybug#fic rec 2024#mlbigbang 2024#mlbigbang#Sabine Cheng#Lukadrinette#juleka couffaine#rose lavillant#marinette dupain cheng#adrien agreste#gabriel agreste#nathalie sancoeur#angst#hurt/comfort
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I just want to talk about how absolutely emotionally DONE MariBug is.
Like, I'm not saying that she doesn't feel any emotions throughout the special. Clearly, she does.
But the way she handled the entire ordeal, calmly and with a level-head... I don't think it was just a show of being strong. I truly think that it was a breaking point for her. She could do nothing other than be calm, because something broke in her and she just became utterly numb. This girl has been THROUGH IT. (They both have)
But Marinette is done crying. She's done panicking. The worst possible outcome has already come to pass, so what's left but to pick up the pieces? And I don't think it's by choice. Sure, she's acting strong to get through it all. But at this point, I don't think she's truly capable of much else.
The weight on her shoulders has never been heavier. It was already too much for her, long before we got to this point. She's being completely crushed and it's like she's on auto-pilot just so she makes it out alive.
It's not until a true distraction comes her way that we see her come to life a little bit. The wish, Bunnyx, the whole time travel situation is exactly the distraction she needs to be able to snap out of that null, hollow, painful void. A task. A problem to solve. Something to take her mind off of the what she can't fix, and focus on something she can. Something she must fix.
I love her to bits and this girl just... deserves a break. a rest. A very long holiday. And she's so strong. SO STRONG. Like really, what 14/15 year old girl wouldn't completely dissolve under that kind of pressure?
(Okay and just for the added insult, I just wanna throw in here the old phrase "Pressure makes Diamonds" because I think that really parallels the whole 'Lila is a stone" thing.)
#miraculous ladybug#ml london special#miraculous london#ml spoilers#london special spoilers#poor marinette#marinette dupain cheng#ml ladybug#bug noire#LET THIS GIRL SLEEP#She's just so hurt
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Stardew Valley Adrien
He moves to a small town to escape his life. And he is gifted a small plot of land his mom left him. And while he is there he meets the locals and there is this cute girl Marinette who is trying to stop this big corporation from taking over. So he decides to help her out.
One day this random feral cat shows up on his door steps walks into his how and steals his cheese! Adrien was like okay that's fine and now he has this magical cat who just does the most unhinged shit ever and eats all the cheese.
All of the town people are super nice and helpful even though sometimes they have weird request.
But all in all he loves it and is so glad he moved there
#anyways if someone could write the fic that would be great#maybe add in so trauma or angst#a dash of hurt comfort would be good too#stardew valley miraculous au#miraculous ladybug#miraculous#ml au#miraculous lb#adrien agreste#marinette dupain cheng
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miraculous angst be great until its people breaking up like i cant handle that DONT MAKE ADRIENTTE BREAK UP THATS WORSE THAN ANYTHING ELSE PLEASE
#adrinette#ladynoir#marichat#ladrien#any of the ships in the show really#LIKE IT HURTS SO MUCH WYM#throw adrien into a blender#make marinette feel guilty about ladybug things#BUT IF YIU INTERFERE WITH THEOR ROMABTIC LIVES I JUSY CANT#miraculous ladybug#miraculous#adrien agreste#marinette dupen chang#marinette dupain cheng#miraculous lb#ladybug and chat noir#chat noir#ladybug#ml#mlb
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The S5 finale suggested that Marinette had told Adrien's family secrets to Alya and Su-Han. I was so relieved to see in the special that she didn't do this. She's lying to them all. If she'd told others, it would've been such a betrayal to Adrien.
Similarly, it's a relief that she asked Kagami and Nathalie to keep the secret. By extension, this becomes a request to Felix, too. Yes, they could tell Adrien at any time, but now it would mean getting between Adrien and Marinette. I better understand why they would think twice about it. For that reason, he will be better able to forgive them when he learns the truth - because he has to.
What really hit me was the way Marinette scrolled through her phone contacts and paused at Adrien's name, then moved on and rang Alya. From Adrien's perspective, there's no reason for Marinette to avoid him. But from her point of view, this can't help but become a wall in their relationship.
#it hurts#miraculous ladybug#adrien agreste#ml adrien#mlb#chat noir#adrinette#ml marinette#ml london spoilers#ml london special#ml s6 speculation#ml s6#ml analysis#ml thoughts#ml theory
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Chapter 1/2: the near-death equivalent of a booty call
Unknown Number hi Alya sorry to bug you i just need some hump. i mean help. oh god yo-yo voice-to-text is so—OW. FUCK. sorry i’m fine. well no i’m not. that’s why i’m texting. i’m outside your building? A series of texts from an unknown number leads Alya outside in the middle of the night to help an injured Ladybug—and to learn exactly why the girl behind the mask seems to trust her so much.
Chapter 1 of my @mlsecretsanta gift for @crizztelcb!! Sorry this is so last minute ahaha—but I had so much fun writing it!!
#ml secret santa#coffeebanana fics#miraculous ladybug#alyabug#alyanette#hurt/comfort#alya cesaire#marinette dupain cheng
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my first ml fanart from april 2020 :)
#miraculous#miraculous ladybug#ml#carpetbug art#marinette#adrien agreste#adrien#marinette dupain cheng#miraculous fanart#adrinette#god this thing kind of hurts to look at but at the same time i love it??#it was also my first attempt at like fr drawing people! yes they’re chibi but it counts to me#i literally taught myself to draw people with miraculous fanart. good times#i have a fuck ton of old ml art if you guys want to see any more/ if anyone might be interested in me redrawing old pieces#and yeah this is totally cause i haven’t drawn in a hot minute and have no new art to post lmao
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(random s5 finale musings) tbh I don't think Marinette chose to keep The Secrets™ from Adrien because Gabriel asked her to. I feel like Marinette keeping secrets like that is so consistent with her character; she hates giving people bad news, she hates rocking the boat, she hates upsetting people, she always chooses to keep any 'controversial' information to herself for as long as she can get away with (examples: bubbler scarf, telling Queen Bee she was benched, confessing to Adrien, warning Chat Noir about Scarabella or Rena Furtive, never told Chat Noir about Chat Blanc, etc) that I just totally believe she would've done it either way. She was even already having nightmares about Adrien hating her for finding out she defeated his father, so I feel like Gabriel's request was moreso giving her a go-ahead than it was a primary deciding factor, yknow?
#ml s5 spoilers#tbh half the time when thinking about it I forget that gabriel asked her to do it at all#because it just feels like such a Marinette™ thing to do to me lol#to be fair maybe I'm downplaying it? I do think Gabriel's plea struck some emotional chord with her too and helped push her that direction#but again I. totally believe she'd do it either way#and I do strongly believe that her decision is moreso ''I don't want to hurt Adrien'' than it is ''I want to honor Gabriel's final wish''#she loves to avoid verbal/emotional problems and hoooo boy idk a worse verbal/emotion problem than#telling your boyfriend that his entire life is a lie and that he's not entirely human and that he was abused and controlled and puppeteered#all his life and also that his father was a terrorist and that she saw his mom's corpse in the basement#I mean. I don't think I'd have the emotional maturity to break that to someone either and I'm not.... FOURTEEN.... LOL
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How does nooroo feel about Tom in your villian dad au?
After initial introductions, Tom basically thinks Nooroo is a figment of his imagination and a testament to his mind crumbling from the grief of losing Sabine. Nooroo gets an inside look on what really matters to tom, though
Tom uses the butterfly miraculous not for himself, but for the benefit of his daughter. The vengeance he's trying to take on "Hawkmoth" isn't quite as simple as "you're responsible for the death of my wife," it stems from a very, very different source - which makes Nooroo more sympathetic to helping him.
He's still not thrilled, but, Marinette and Tom are so kind to him, he really can't find it in himself to complain.
#replies#dad villain au#my art#nooroo#tom dupain cheng#marinette dupain cheng#marinette is all busted up because she's still very clumsy#and keeps hurting herself while cooking#she's also massively sleep deprived#because when she sleeps she dreams of her mom and it makes waking up a cruel joke she cant handle most nights#so as a result she's overworked. sleep deprived. stressed. physically banged up. and also dropped out of school due to bullying#long post
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It's weird to expect lb to be able to read cn mind and called her a bad partner for it. But it's even weirder for lb to ignore cn WHEN HES OBVIOUSLY IN DISTRESS and not called her a bad partner for it because I think called her a bad partner for ignoring it is understandable and justified especially since she consider herself as his boss.
Every time I bring up this conflict, I try to make it clear that I don't think Ladybug was blameless, I just think Chat Noir's writing was worse. Let's walk through the problem to show what I mean.
Season four stars with Marinette extremely stressed by her new Guardian status. In Truth and Lies, the first episodes of the season, we get this:
Ladybug: Will you cut it out with the practical jokes? I could have really hurt you! Cat Noir:(answering while hanging by the yo-yo) M'lady, the only thing that really hurts me is when you make me go on patrol by myself. (sighs, relaxing his posture) I even missed your little angry pout. Ladybug: Sorry, Kitty Cat, I'm a bit over my head at the moment. (pulling him up) Cat Noir: I bet! "Guardian of the Miraculous", big name, big responsibility!
This is also the start to Chat Noir communicating poorly. In this episode, he's straight up told that Ladybug is in over her head and he never once asks how he can help. In fact, we even get him saying this when asked how he feels about the change:
Truth: Cat Noir, tell me what- (interupted by Ladybug throwing a present at Truth) Ladybug: (covering her parasol with foil) ...do you think about my new role as guardian! Cat Noir: If it doesn't change things between us, then I'm good with it!
So not a great start to the season. I know people focused on Adrien's terrible treatment of Kagami in these episodes, but this Ladynoir dynamic was actually what rang alarm bells for me. I kept waiting for Chat Noir to offer his support since it was really, really obvious that Ladybug was in over her head since she was late to patrols, the last season literally ended with her losing her mentor figure, and, you know, she straight up told him that was what was going on?
The next episode is Gang of Secrets in which we see Marinette out her identity to Alya. I get why she did this, she needed support and her partner doesn't seem interested in giving it, but she can't say that for certain because she never asked him directly and she should have. Trusting Chat Noir over Alya would have allowed Ladynette to maintain the security of her secret identity - a thing she claimed was more important than ever - and to honor their partnership. At the very least, she should have told Chat Noir that Rena Rouge was now a full time holder so that he could account for that in battle and to minimize the fallout by owning up to her mistake asap. The longer a lie goes on, the worse the truth will hurt.
To Ladybug's credit, she does eventually acknowledge her mistake after the Scarabella incident:
Ladybug: You... must've been pretty surprised to discover there was another holder! (Silence. She sits beside Cat Noir.) Ladybug: I'm really sorry, Cat Noir. I should've told you. I mean, if I found out that you told someone about your secret identity, I'd... probably be upset, too. I'm really sorry I hurt your feelings.
This is a decent apology. She doesn't try to absolve herself of wrong doing. Instead, she acknowledges that what she did would hurt her, too, if the shoe were on the other foot. The only thing she loses points on is the fact that she doesn't tell him about Rena Furtive.
However, instead of agreeing with her and telling her that she has hurt him, Chat Noir says that she did nothing wrong and never once brings up how their weakened partnership is bothering him:
Cat Noir: You didn't hurt my feelings. You did everything right. Paris will always need a Ladybug superhero to watch over her. It's just... I realized that if one day that hero wasn't you, m'lady, since we don't know each other's identities, that means... I'd never see you again. Ever. And now, I just don't know if I can bear it.
This is the thing that I hate about this arc. The reason why I say Ladybug is blamed for not reading his mind. Especially because, three episodes later, we get Rocketear, which gives us this:
Cat Noir: Everyone has doubts now and then, (looks down) even me... Ladybug: Is everything okay, Cat Noir? Cat Noir: Yeah, yeah. (prepare his fist) Pound it! Ladybug: (fistbumps) Pound it!
Rocketear is the episode where Nino outs that he and Alya know each other's identities while acting like Ladybug said identities weren't a big deal even though that is very much not what happened. You'd think that Chat Noir would want to know the full story, but instead he just lies and says that everything is fine.
So we have two situations where the show allowed Ladybug to give Chat Noir a chance for clear and open communication and both times he turns her down.
What's worse is that he clearly starts making up stories in his head, leading to Kuro Neko, which starts with Adrien avoiding a fight on purpose as some sort of shit test. He then gets upset when Ladybug... doesn't lament his absence on national TV?
Clara: (from TV) By the way, where's Cat Noir? You've saved Paris without him quite a few times recently. Are you two at odds with each other? Carapace, Pegasus, Vesperia and Pigella: (from TV) Pound it! Ladybug: (from TV) Of course not, it's just that... umm, he's a partner like any other! The most important is to pick the best superheroes for each mission, with or without Cat Noir. No matter what, we've got a great team and we'll always be here to save Paris. (Adrien is shocked.) Adrien: (turns off the TV and sighs) "A partner like any other..."
Dude, what did you want her to do here? Complain that you flaked on her? Make Paris feel less safe by saying she doesn't know where you are? Imply that the fight was barely won without you? What are you doing? Plagg, you are completely failing as a mentor right now.
The shit test continues as Chat Noir goes to meet up with Ladybug now that the battle is over, arriving just as Ladybug has finished instructing the team on what to do:
Ladybug: Come on, guys! Hurry up before you all detransform. I'll meet you at rendezvous points. (The heroes jump away in different directions, and Ladybug starts typing something on her Yo-yo.) Cat Noir: Hey! Meow are you, m'lady? Ladybug: Great, thanks, but I gotta go retrieve all these Miraculous. Cat Noir: I could lend you a paw to help save time. Ladybug: Thanks, kitty cat, but it's a guardian's job to do it. Cat Noir: I know who some of them are, remember? I was there when you first gave them their Miraculous! Ladybug: You don't even know where their rendezvous points are, I don't have time to— Cat Noir: Playing cat and mouse is my forte, you know— Ladybug: (yelling) If you wanna save me time, stop wasting it in the first place! (Cat Noir gasps. As Ladybug swings away, Cat Noir clenches his fist.) Cat Noir: And take my Miraculous back when you're done!
So Ladybug doesn't publicly chastise Chat Noir for missing the battle and rejects an offer to help because of very legitimate timing concerns, leading to Chat Noir quitting because she failed his stupid, petty, childish tests. Realistic writing? Yes. Writing that paints Ladybug as the one in the wrong? No.
Going into this episode, Ladybug has no idea that things are messed up between them even though she has actually kept communication lines open. She asks him if things are okay, but he lies. And when he's ready to quit? He plays stupid games and wins a stupid prize. It's really not shocking that the next scene sees Ladybug totally baffled by what just happened:
Plagg: For a while now, you've been neglecting this camembert— I mean Cat Noir, and going on adventures with the all other cheeses! Ladybug: But he should be happy about it, it gives him more time off. Plagg: Cat Noir doesn't wanna have time off, Ladybug! He is in love with you! And your persistent calling on all the other heroes has broken his heart.
And how is she supposed to know that, Plagg? Was she supposed to assume that her partner was lying when he said he was fine? Because she did ask and he said that nothing was wrong. But something was wrong and it lead him to build up a story in his head, reading nonexistent intent into her actions, all of which is toxic and unhealthy communication.
I cannot stress how common this shit is. I've seen it so many times and I will own that I've done it in the past and wound up getting no support when I needed it because I'd directly told people I didn't and they committed the heinous crime of... believing me.
Here's the other thing, there are times when I'm in distress and legitimately don't want or need help. Times when I just need to be alone for a bit. So if someone asks me if I'm okay during those times, I'm probably just going to say, "Yeah, I just need a people break" or something like that. That's why the Scarabella scene is so bad. Ladybug can see that Chat Noir is in distress and he gives her a fully plausible answer: I'm not upset with you, I'm just saddened by the idea of losing you. And she believes him because why wouldn't she?
Same goes for Rocketear. It's reasonable for Ladybug to assume that Chat Noir is just shaken by the fight. She has no idea about the bombshell that Nino dropped right before the fight. She doesn't even know that Nino and Chat Noir are actually close friends, making this fight a lot more devastating than it looks at face value. Her actions here are not objectively wrong. They're only wrong if you know the whole story, including Adrien's needs. Things that she cannot know unless Chat Noir uses his words to tell her things.
I cannot over stress how much season four is a textbook example of denying yourself support because you cannot communicate your own needs. Is it an understandable character flaw for a character with Adrien's background to have? Yes. Absolutely. 100%. But it's still a character flaw. This season desperately needed an arc about Adrien learning to tell people what's wrong. Not because he's the only one in the wrong here, but because things cannot get better when Ladybug has no idea that she's hurting him. (Nino has no idea either, but let's keep our focus on Ladybug.)
One of the most important things you can do for your own mental well being is to dismiss the idea that your needs are the same as everyone else's. Everyone needs different amounts of attention and values different behavior based on things like their upbringing and life events.
I get the feeling that I'm wired pretty similar to Marinette. At least, it influences how I write her because I can go months without talking to my best friends and still call them my best friends, a trait we all share because two of use are artsy introverts and two of us are moms to young kids, which allows for very little free time. Meanwhile, my SO and his best friend spend hours on the phone almost every week. I swear that those two go into withdrawal if they don't talk at least once every seven days. If months went by without them talking? Something would be very wrong, but the exact same time gap isn't even remotely concerning when it comes to my friends. It's something my SO and I had to figure out when we got together because I need a lot less attention than he does. But we communicated and found a balance that we continue to work to communicate about so that he doesn't feel neglected and I don't feel overwhelmed by too little me time.
What I'm trying to say is Marinette wasn't horribly wrong for assuming that Chat Noir was telling her the truth or that he liked having a larger team so he had less responsibility. Those are reasonable assumptions. Especially since he never actually indicated that he wanted more responsibility until he was ready to quit and decided to shit test her by pushing for more to do when she was stressed and on a timer.
I do think that she should have offered it to him before that or - at the very least - the show should have clearly stated why she didn't do that since it apparently had nothing to do with Chat Blanc trauma like we all thought it did. I'm not saying that she's blameless or perfect or that there weren't things she could have done better. It's just really hard for me to look at Chat Noir's behavior in season four and go, "Oh yeah, he's the injured party here. Ladybug holds all the blame and did everything wrong." She did many things wrong, but generally speaking, she owned her faults and tried to keep communication channels open. Chat Noir chose to ignore those chances to talk or otherwise try to express his needs in a clear and understandable manner.
We'll end with one final point to drive this home: You said that she's his boss. Well, if my boss asked me, "is everything okay with the project?" and I said, "yes" while freaking out about the upcoming deadline that I'm probably going to miss because he's given me too much work, the issue is not all on my boss. It's on both of us. Him for overloading me and me for not telling him I'm overloaded. You could even argue that it's mostly on me because I'm the only one who can properly gauge my own ability to do a given workload. As soon as it was too much, I should have said something. And if I don't feel like my boss is approachable? Then I should quit. But that isn't the situation I'm in and it doesn't appear to be the one that Chat Noir was in, either. He wanted to stay part of the team, he just totally failed to tell Ladybug how being on the team was making him feel.
People magically knowing what you need and how you feel is a myth. I promise you, most people in this world do not want to cause you pain, but if you cannot clearly express when someone is causing you pain, then you will continue to get hurt by people who would be very happy to not hurt you if they actually knew that their actions were causing you pain.
#ml writing critical#ml writing salt#adrien deserves better#marinette deserves better#I do give Luka a bit of a side eye for not getting involved after Wishmaker though#Dude's supposed to be some sort of empath and he's at his best when he's in a mentor role#He should have been allowed to be Adrien's Alya since Nino is clearly not suited for the role#Season four my belothed#kuro Neko salt#ml season 4 salt#you cannot expect someone to correct their behavior when no one is telling them that they're behaving badly#And no one calls Marinette out so of course she doesn't change her behavior!#She is shown to be willing to change when prompted too#She only knew that something was wrong post Scarabella because Alya told her#Do you really think Marinette was aware that she was hurting Chat Noir and just willfully kept doing it?#Or is it more likely that she just didn't know because no one told her?#Feel free to give Tikki some blame too because she's been a real shitty mentor for a while now#which breaks my heart because I love Tikki and Plagg and want them to be good mentors
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Miraculous Lilanette Week 2024: Injury (Hurt/Comfort)
Day 6: Injury (Hurt/Comfort)
Warning: This post contains blood.
Paris is in danger. The Supreme has assaulted this world. Cat Noir is reported missing in action. A furious Chrysalis (Lila/Cerise) holds a hurt Marinette in her arms. Tikki is worried about her nearly-dying holder.
"Who has hurt my Ladybug in my back ? I will kill you all ! 🤬☠"
Bonus (original colours without the filter):
For the event from @lilanette-week.
#miraculous ladybug#marinette dupain cheng#lila rossi/cerise#ladybug#chrysalis#tikki#lilanette week#lilanetteweek#lilanette#chrysanette#chrysabug#cerisette#my art#injury#hurt/comfort#injury (hurt/comfort)#tw: blood#tw: violence#angst
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Looking for something hard hitting, will keep you on the edge of your seat and has a little Spice 🤌🫢😏 then look no further than 'To Fall' on AO3! Was beyond proud of this story! And huge shout out to Beahppy for making this beautiful artwork for one of my chapters! If only she knew what happened right after this 🤯
#lukadrinette#lukanette#miraculous au#miraculous fanart#miraculous ladybug#miraculoustalesofladybugandcatnoir#ao3 fanfic#fanfiction#fanfic#fanart#ao3 writer#ao3#adrinette#adrien agreste#marinette dupain cheng#bad parenting#hurt/comfort#smut
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