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fridayfirefly · 4 years ago

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Retirement

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For Maribat March Day 21 - Domestic Bliss

The first time Marinette and Garfield ever discussed retirement was before they even started dating. For superheroes, retirement was just a fact of life. One day, if you make it long enough, you'll put down the suit and you'll never pick it up again. Maybe someone will take your place. Hopefully, no one will need to. But no matter how strong you are, not even if you're Superman in his prime, the simple fact was that someday you would retire.

"What do you think you'll do after you retire?" Marinette mused to Garfield. Out of all the Titans, Marinette spent the most time around Gar, simply because the two of them spent a lot of time in the living room. Marinette liked the ambient noise that his video games provided when she worked on her projects, and Gar liked to have someone to talk to while he played. Most of Marinette's current focus was on the embroidery in her hands, as she stitched vines running down the sleeves of her shirt, but she still took the time to start a conversation with Gar.

"I dunno..." Gar glanced up from the game he was playing. "What'll you do once you give up being Ladybug."

"That's a tough question. I used to think that I wanted to run a big fashion company, like Agreste Fashion, but now I think I want something a little more low-key. In my ideal future, I own a little boutique where I make custom clothing. There would be a fabric store and a café on the same block as me, and I would never have to leave the neighborhood."

"That sounds nice. I think I might try going to college and see where that takes me. I applied to Jump City University right before Christmas, and they accepted me. If I went, I would start classes in the fall.”

Marinette’s head jerked up as she gave Gar her full, undivided attention. “I’m going to JCU next fall!” she exclaimed excitedly. “We might have classes together. What are you planning on majoring in?”

Gar shrugged, “JCU has a veterinary program that I'm interested in. I'd be taking animal behavior, biology, chemistry, and a whole bunch of other science classes.”

“That’s so cool!”

“It’s nothing much. I didn’t expect them to accept me, anyway.”

Gar seemed oddly subdued about the idea of going to college. He was a naturally enthusiastic person, which made it very out of character for him to be so dismissive. It worried Marinette. “No, you deserve praise for your accomplishment. Jump City University is a very selective school.”

“I’m not a genius. I’m just me.”

“You’re smart, Gar, I know you are. Getting accepted to JCU is just one of the many reasons why you are brilliant.”

“Are you gonna name them all for me?” joked Gar.

His question was rhetorical, just a joke, but Marinette wasn't finished convincing Gar that he deserved all the praise in the world. “For starters, you can finish any video game in less than a day. Even the ones where you need logic and strategy, you fly right through them. Secondly, you’re a genius when it comes to animals. And it’s not just because of your superpower. You taught yourself animal behavior so that you could blend in with the animals you’re imitating. Thirdly, you pretend not to be invested in politics, but I’ve seen how you keep yourself informed about environmental policies and activism. You really care about the planet. Fourthly-“

"Alright, Buginette,” laughed Gar, a slight blush on his cheeks. “You’ve proven your point.”

Marinette set her embroidery down on the coffee table and moved to Gar's couch. "Is this game multiplayer?"

"Yep. Do you want to play a few rounds?"

"Hmm... I think I could spare a few minutes to kick your butt."

"Please. I'm going to squash you like the little bug you are."

"You wish!"

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The next time Marinette and Gar discussed retirement was well after they started dating. They got together in their Junior year at JCU after spending two years in relationship limbo, with both too nervous to make the first move. They finally confessed their feelings for each other after Dick and Starfire locked them in a closet together until they admitted that they liked each other. They graduated college as a couple, with Gar planning on attending veterinary school and Marinette planning on starting up her fashion business. That summer they spent a lot of time talking about the future.

"I've been thinking of recruiting someone to take over as Ladybug," remarked Marinette as she cuddled up next to Gar on the couch.

"Really? Who do you have your eye on?" asked Gar.

"Wonder Woman recently took on a new protege, Cassie Sandsmark. The Ladybug Miraculous already has some connections to Wonder Woman and her home of Themyscira. Her mother, Queen Hippolyta, was a wielder of the Ladybug Miraculous for quite some time."

"If you gave up the Miraculous would you still fight crime?"

Marinette shook her head. "I think it might be time to give up crimefighting. It's been ten years since I took up the Ladybug Miraculous to fight Hawkmoth, and six years since Hawkmoth was defeated. I wasn't ready to give up that responsibility then, but I think I'm ready now."

"When would you give up the Miraculous?"

"Soon. I talked to Wonder Woman about it last week and she's enthusiastic about the idea. I would need to spend some time getting to know Cassie, just to make sure she's a good fit, and Tikki would need to vet her as well, but I have a good feeling that she'll pass any tests of character we put her through." Marinette turned to face Gar. "I didn't want to make any concrete decisions before I talked to you. I know that we've always fought crime together, but I'm ready to move on with my life. I'm ready to retire."

Gar nodded. "I understand and I fully support your decision. I've been considering leaving the Titans as well. I know I could continue living in the Tower and attend veterinary school at JCU, but last week I got an acceptance letter from UC Davis for their School of Veterinary Medicine."

Marinette's eyes widened. "Gar, that's amazing! I remember looking into UC Davis when you were applying, and their program is nationally ranked."

Gar grinned. "The best in the country. It's too good to pass up."

"You have to go!" exclaimed Marinette. "This is your dream!"

"I think I'll send in my acceptance tomorrow," decided Gar. "Maybe we can go to Davis this weekend and scout out an apartment."

"And fabric stores," chimed in Marinette.

Gar laughed. "Anything for you, Buginette."

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The final time Marinette and Gar discussed retirement was years later. Marinette and Gar had gotten married and had moved back to Jump City. Marinette opened her fashion boutique, which had very quickly exploded in popularity. Gar started working for a non-profit veterinary clinic, which provided free veterinary services to lower-income neighborhoods. They had both achieved their dreams, and yet neither seemed content with their lives.

"Maybe we just need a change of scenery," suggested Marinette, leaning her head against Gar as they both sat on the beach watching the sunset. "I'm so tired of the city."

"Maybe," said Gar. "It would be nice to have a house with a backyard, rather than just an apartment."

Marinette sighed. "I know that I always said that I wanted to be the owner of a successful boutique, but this wasn't really what I had in mind. I'm so busy that I feel like I never get to spend any time with you anymore. Every day my inbox is filled with emails asking me to sell my company or expand to more locations. I'm tired of it. My passion is for making clothes, not running a business."

"I know how you feel. Every day I encounter another neglectful pet owner who brings their animal to the clinic for help but refuses to listen to me when I tell them that they need to change the way they treat their animal. It's exhausting."

"We could both just quit our jobs and move into the woods," joked Marinette.

Gar nodded, but he wasn't joking. "I've actually been thinking about that. There are a lot of remote regions with a real need for veterinary practices to provide medical assistance for the farm animals out there. I would feel a lot more useful taking care of animals that don't have anyone else."

Marinette turned to face Gar. "I wouldn't mind moving. I've been sending all of the offers to buy my boutique straight to my email archive, but I'm sure if I looked through them all I could find someone who would be able to take care of the business aspect of Ladybug Designs. I could retire from the business and design on my own time, when the inspiration strikes, instead of forcing myself to churn out design after design."

"You really wouldn't mind?" asked Gar, a hopeful look on his face.

Marinette shook her head. "I was serious about moving out of the city. There's something I've been wanting to tell you for a while, but I've been waiting for the right moment. I think that moment is now. Gar, I'm pregnant."

The deer-in-the-headlights look on Gar's face was comical, to say the least. Marinette giggled, "Well?"

Gar snapped back to reality, transforming into an elephant, trumpeting his joy. He turned back into himself and wrapped his arms around Marinette. "I'm so happy! This is the best news I could have ever heard, Buginette. Now we have to move. I want our kid to have a backyard and a dog and a big driveway where I can teach them how to ride a bike and a pond where they can swim in the summer-"

Marinette cut Gar off with a kiss. "One thing at a time," she giggled.

"I think this will be the best decision we have ever made," declared Gar.

Marinette agreed. "I think that partial retirement will be good for us."

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This was bliss. The feeling of grass under Marinette’s bare feet as she walked back to the house from the lake, hand in hand with Gar. The sound of their daughter's laughter as she danced around them, catching fireflies. The taste of homemade apple pie and vanilla ice cream, eaten rebelliously early as Gar proclaimed, "Dessert before dinner!" The sight of the stars up above them, no light pollution to mask the beauty of the heavens. The sound of Gar's voice, whispering, "I love you, Buginette," into Marinette's ear. And as Marinette settled into her husband's arms, she knew for certain that retirement was the best decision she had ever made.

@maribatmarch-2k21

#maribat #garfield logan #marinette dupain-cheng #garmari #MaribatMarch2021 #miraculous ladybug fic #my work

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poppyknitt · 6 years ago

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Chase and Marvin: Things to love

Alright so i noticed there’s been some dark stuff going around about my two upmost favorites in the JCU (namely the demonizing of chase/stacy and the evil marvin shit) so...

I would like to write why I love them, but also, I want you all to chip in, too.

Let’s make this blow up with love and positivity, so our favorite boys can see and know that the poll and such mean nothing— We do love them. Unconditionally. curse the inability to underline text on tumblr >:^

So, if you reblog, add why you love them! No demonizing Stacy or Chase, because they’re both lovely people in a bad situation, and no demonizing Marvin either, because he’s a lovely boy and we need to show him we really do love him! Same for Chase. Who knows how our negativity is hurting them? I’d say a lot, cus if everyone said I or my loved one are bad or evil, I, too, would be really sad and feel left out or forgotton or something.

Anyways— On with the loving tea!

Chase and Marvin are absolutely my top favorite egos. Everything about them is absolutely wonderful. Hell, Jackie is even up there with them for me, but he’s definitely not a first-place winner. Chase and Marvin are.

“How are they your favorites? Aren’t they the egos you put through the worst of your angst in your stories?”

Well, yes. But they’re not my only favorite characters that I do that to. I’m naturally inclined to write angst and whump, and I just so happen to feel the most motivated to write and draw my favorite characters, which leads them to suffering more clearly than the other characters. But, you should also know that I rarely write something without considering the closest people to the main/focal characters, too. So, if you read a fic of mine where one is suffering, the other main characters of that story are, too, if I don’t plan for them to suffer later on, or if they haven’t already. Rarely do I ever write an angst story without a plan for all the supporting and/or main characters to suffer something, too. Sometimes it’s less than the character the fic is about. Sometimes it’s equal. And others, it’s more.

What I’m saying is that what I write, how I write it, and who it’s about doesn’t usually contribute to how much I like the character. Hell, a lot of the time, I wanna cry about what I’m writing because it’s so sad for me to see the characters in pain.

Anyways, my point in saying that is that the angst I write is, in a way, how I express how much I really love them. I write my happy, bubbly, bouncing sunshine boys into so much horrible stuff because I don’t want them to fall flat in my stories, I don’t want them to be static. I want them to be lovable, three-dimensional characters— and the easiest way to achieve that in stories is to throw challenges of all shapes and sizes at them.

Hell, arguably, I’ve put much more blood, sweat, and tears into my many Chase and Marvin interpretations than i have any other egos.

But, those interpretations aren’t who I’m here to idolize and show my love for. I’m here to let my favorite canon boys know just how much I care and love.

So, let’s start with Marvin.

Marvin was the first character who I really connected with and related to on an emotional level in a long, long time. Sure, there were other characters in the recent past that I loved, but those were affections I learned over the course of writing, drawing, and developing my interpretations of. Marvin is a different story.

Looking at him, both back in August last year, when I finally cared enough about the JSE fandom to look into the egos, and now, I realized (and still do!) just how much I connect with him. In his powerhour, he acted all happy and bubbly and humorous, but you could peek through the cracks and see there was more to him than just a bouncy, happy, bubbly sunshine boy. He showed signs of anxiety, and, from my memory, possibly even depression, albeit probably high-functioning. This was, and still is, something I resonated a lot with, so I became very, very attached to him very, very quickly. Quicker than I’ve ever become attached to a character I didn’t make myself, even.

So, because of the connection I have to him, as silly as it may be, Marvin is absolutely my favorite and most adored character that I’ve ever come across or worked on at least an interpretation of— which says a fuck ton because there’s a lot of characters like him who I love and adore, but none of them quite as much as I adore him.

And of course, this post wouldn’t be complete if I didn’t do Chase, too.

I love Chase almost as much as I love Marvin. Right off the bat, he was presented as a well-made, rounded character with many flaws and many things to love. His now-ex-wife Stacy was likely as wonderful a woman as he is a man. He didn’t deserve any of what happened to him in canon, nor does he deserve the pain we angst, gore, and whump writers put him through. Just like Marvin, he’s a happy, bouncy, bubbly sunshine boy, and even more like Marv, I love him for it, especially since it’s not his only character trait, just like it isn’t Marvin’s only trait. I love him, and strive to see him happy in the end, because he’s a wonderful man— a great father, a great vlogger, a great husband, and most important, a lovely character— who deserves nothing less than the best.

Same goes for Marvin.

I hate seeing how people try to cast these two wonderful boys in such a negative light, especially because we haven’t yet had confirmation that either are truly bad people deserving of being cast out. (Of course, me being as empathetic and arguably even naïve as I am, I don’t think anyone deserves to be cast out, shunned, or hated, but I especially feel that way for these two lovely, amazing boys.) They deserve to be loved, appreciated, and hugged (so long as they’re okay with that!), no matter what anyone else says.

So, now that I’m done with that, feel free to reblog this and add why you love them! (please try to keep the evil/demonized theories out please, i want to show these boys that we do see and love all the positives about them. I know, i’m a sentimental old fool in the body of a goofy idiot, but I really feel like the negativity going around the community about them lately is only going to hurt them more, and, well, you know what they say about labels— they become self-fulfilling prophecies, and honestly? I don’t want that to happen to my boys, damn it!)

(also don’t be afraid to tag other people in this too! the more the merrier!)

@antis-loyal-puppet @tiny-septic-puppet @phoenix-wint3r @chaoticcrimsonrose @ihaveanunhealthyteaaddiction @startschantingpma @sqxxddygremlin

(& also @senseless-septic-shambles & @skyewardlight since they wanted to pitch in)

thanks for coming to my TED talk, this has been ya bro RJ/Edgy, back at it again with a wild-ass gOTTA LOVE MY SONS YAKNOW???

#jacksepticeye #jacksepticeye egos #chase brody #marvin the magnificent #marvin the magician #let’s get these boys some hecking ***p! m! a!!!!!***#everyone send them love damn it!!!#D’:<#>:^#>:^ love them damn it #also please at least reblog #i dont mind if you dont add on i just want this to blow up so seán (and by effect chase n marv) can see it yknow?#thank you for coming to my TED talk #that’s all for now

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