#uptoolateart

[yunyin]

Quick doodle in tribute to @uptoolateart's fic "Finding a Way!" I really enjoyed it and wanted to at least scribble something. I figure Plagg has enough tact not to bring it up in front of the kids after what they've been through, but I totally think he'd tell Tikki.

[babywitchofthesouth-responds]

God I just read the trippiest MLB senti-Adrien fic where the original Adrien was a copy of Gabriel and Emilie’s original son by a different name that died, and then the current Adrien was a copy of the original Adrien when he was sacrificed by Gabriel’s Miraculous Wish to bring Emilie back, then in the new timeline Gabriel was the one a used the broken Miraculous to create another copy of Adrien causing him to fall into a coma and Emilie used the Miraculous Wish to bring him back, leading to the copy of Adrien being sacrificed and so on in an endless loop

All of them were copies, no one was the original, it was the most mind blowing thing I’ve ever read

[bonesbugs]

Sketch snippets from the FANTASTIC camp cretaceous AU fic ‘Finding a Way’ by @uptoolateart; I highly recommend it if you like peril and crack treated seriously and dinosaurs <3

[sizzleissues]

Spoilers for @uptoolateart’s fic All the Missing Pieces (which I highly recommend you read)

Had to draw art of the final chapter because oh my gosh!!!!!

Hugo’s expression is - Wtf my parents are superhero’s and also in a fight and also akuma’s are back fuck shit balls crap

Took some liberties with the adult versions of their costumes because we haven’t gotten much details yet.

Also I’m trying to be quicker with colouring because it’s my least favourite bit so things are a bit messy until I figure it out (:

[mlbigbang]

2023 Adrinette Fic Rec List

It’s the end of the year which means it’s finally time for the ML Big Bang’s yearly fic rec lists! We’re really excited to bring you our contributors’ favourite fics started this year to supply you with plenty of reading material while you’re waiting for the Big Bang fics’ publication in January.

Fate, Destiny... A Hamster by @mostmagical

After finally moving into his very first apartment per Ladybug’s suggestion, Adrien discovers something no movie or TV show could have ever prepared him for: someone else's hamster. Marinette was so excited to have her first pet. If only it would stop escaping! At least now there’s an excuse to talk to the new neighbor. (Adrinette Never Met AU)

This fic is peak adrinette identity shenanigans! Adrien and Marinette star as the next door neighbors losing and finding the titular hamster, falling in love, and avoiding an identity reveal like the plague.

If I Let Myself Love You by @uptoolateart

It’s hard to be a normal girl with a normal life when your mother has terminal cancer. And when fashion model Adrien Agreste moves back to Paris and wants to be Marinette’s friend – or maybe even more – her life is turned upside down again. How can she risk opening her heart to love when her whole world is falling apart? Especially when Adrien is hiding a dark secret of his own…. - COMPLETE FIC – updates on Sundays *** No kwamis AU - 100% Adrinette. About half of it is fluffy and half heavy. Please read tags for trigger warnings. ***

It is such an incredible balance of beautiful, heart-wrenching and funny! I adored the relationship between Adrien and Marinette, how it developed throughout, how natural it was, how they both helped each other through their grief. Just beautiful.

hearth by @asukiess

Because how do you describe a dream once you wake up, when it’s fleeting and slipping through the cracks in your mind like it’s a sieve? You can barely wrap your lips around the concepts and words before you realize it has slipped through like water, and what lay in your hands is just a pang in your chest? When every moment away from it clouds your mind just a little more, until the memories are threadbare? or: Adrien understands what it means to have a home.

call it even by @sha-nwa & @anna-scribbles

After a year of dating, there is one thing Marinette knows for certain: it's her and Adrien against the world. Through it all, Adrien is kind, patient, and endlessly understanding—even as she tries her best to keep her secret superhero identity hidden from him along with the rest of the world. Nothing could ruin it, not even the supervillains of Paris: Hawkmoth and Chat Noir. (adrinette dating // ladynoir enemies au)

A really well-written Adrienette fic featuring Ladynoir as enemies.

All the Missing Pieces by @uptoolateart

At 14, Adrien stepped into the time burrow and saw the truth no one could have guessed. When he came out, he was changed forever. And after defeating his father, he was finally free...or was he? At 37, Adrien has everything he ever dreamed of – married to Marinette, three kids, the hamster – but none of it has turned out as expected. Marinette’s career is such a success that she’s never home, Hugo is an angsty difficult teenager, and Adrien is still struggling with his secret identity as a sentimonster. And now, Lila Rossi is back after more than 20 years. But has time changed her? Or is she up to her old tricks?

It's my actual life (except I'm not good looking lol), and I vouch for how WILDLY accurate its treatment of the emotional issues of stay-at-home-dad stuff. I just cannot recommend highly enough how it handles jealousy, isolation, parenting struggles, etc. Not me in the comments every chapter telling the author how she got the feels so perfectly right.

If I Let Myself Love You by @uptoolateart

It’s hard to be a normal girl with a normal life when your mother has terminal cancer. And when fashion model Adrien Agreste moves back to Paris and wants to be Marinette’s friend – or maybe even more – her life is turned upside down again. How can she risk opening her heart to love when her whole world is falling apart? Especially when Adrien is hiding a dark secret of his own…

So absolutely sweet. So emotionally devastating. Gets meta by taking advantage of how AO3 works at one point. Next level in every way. I loved the developing Adrienette friendship. I loved Marinette and her father. I loved Marinette's feelings about her sick mother. Please everyone read this fic your face will melt with emotion, and you weren't really using your face, were you?

Our Tales are Endless (That's Why I Tell Them) by joonapeach

Marinette lives a simple life - one surrounded by pretty dresses, fresh macaroons, and the calming view of Paris. It's a life she thinks she has always fit in. And yet sometimes, when a certain boy comes by her shop with a flower and a new adventurous story, she can't help but wonder if there's something else she's missing.

you don't even know me at all (but i was made for loving you) by @ladyofthenoodle

They didn’t remember each other. The hospital told them there’d been an accident—brain damage—but Alya had told them the truth, later. Who’d they’d been to each other. What they’d given up, and why. But even with their memories of each other gone, Adrien and Marinette are still inextricably tied together—by law, by their social circles, and by their hearts. And in the apartment they share, there's only one bed.

If you like amnesia AUs, angst with a happy ending, married adrinette, and only one bed scenarios, you need to read this fic! It's beautifully bittersweet and will break your heart before putting it back together.

[yan-san-yan]

It’s been a pleasure to make art for the fantastic @uptoolateart for the @mlbigbang event! I’m happy to present the scene the chapter that birthed this art piece! Thank you so much for writing such an amazing fic! It made me laugh so much and the scenes hit deep at times and it was overall a comforting and fluff read!

‘Wow. Just…wow.’ It was crazy – like a whole new world, up here – a new, fantastic point of view.”

[raspberrycatapult]

Cover Art for @uptoolateart's AMAZING Jurassic Park/Camp Cretaceous AU fic!!!

[flightfoot]

ML Fanfic Recs for 2023: 80K - 125K Words

So I’ve been going through and adding particularly good fics I’ve read throughout the year. Only Complete fics, of course. Enjoy!

---

Tell Me Why You Love Me by @linnieluna

“Anyway, that piece of paper contains the name of this texting app. It’s completely anonymous, so you can download it, make your account with no attachments to your personal life, and communicate with me outside our suits. I included my username on the paper, too, so you can add me once you’re done."

Her partner skimmed through the words on the paper and nodded his head. “Brilliant as always, M’lady. I’m surprised we didn’t figure this out sooner within our superhero careers.”

“Yeah, it would’ve been nice to have this before, but hey, better late than never. Make sure not to have your phone screen on the messages if you’re going to leave it somewhere. We don’t want anyone reading our texts. Also, this is for emergencies only. No jokes or puns. I can only deal with you for so long.”

“I don’t know if I can agree to that last one,” he said.

Now 22 and working full-time, Marinette and Adrien seem to be getting busier and busier, which means fewer opportunities to keep track of akumas and show up on time. With the idea of using a messaging app to communicate with each other without revealing their identities, their lives immediately grew to be easier... until it wasn't.

This starts off as a mostly slice-of-life fluff fic, but about halfway through things turn dramatic when Monarch learns some things he really shouldn’t and takes action. I had a lot of fun with it as it was coming out, it’s worth a read.

---

Kwami Magi Homura Magica by Crossoverpairinglover

After eighty-four loops in time, Homura Akemi takes a new path to Paris to save her friends.

The sixty-third loop after that, Homura arrived at the Agreste Mansion.

After clash after clash with the heroes of Paris and its greatest menace, events have reached a tipping point.

Ladybug faces someone verging on a second wish, a wish that endangers space and time to save a friend.

This was an absolutely AMAZING story that crossoverpairinglover dropped out of NOWHERE. Seriously, if you like Puella Magi Madoka Magica and Miraculous Ladybug, this is a real treat - but be prepared to sit down and binge, because it’s over 100,000 words and only has three chapters. 

Anyway, I adore the care that’s taken with going through Homura’s mindset here, she gets a lot of character focus. And the lore! There’s some good explanations here for the history behind kwamis and Incubators’ interactions, and the Order of the Guardians normally treats Magical Girls, and why the Incubators are wrong in their assessment of the universe needing more energy to stave off entropy (hint: it involves Plagg), and just... there was a lot of love put into this.

And the action! Most Miraculous fics don’t have much in the way of fight scenes, and what they do have is mostly just functional. This is one of the rare exceptions. There’s some really long, detailed fight scenes in this (roughly the entire second half of the second chapter has one between Ladybug and Homura), which are a treat to read! 

We also get some glimpses into a variety of other universes here, other timelines, alternate ways things could have gone down - I’m especially partial to the rather detailed view we get of one where Homura sent a message asking for help to the Ladyblog on her third time loop, and how things progressed from there. 

The ending I also thought was really good, a happy ending that generally made sense and dealt with the issue of the Incubators. 

If you can’t tell I’m really happy with this fic, it was incredible and unexpected. The length of the individual chapters can be daunting, but if you’re up for the task, I highly recommend giving it a shot!

---

If I Let Myself Love You by @uptoolateart

It’s hard to be a normal girl with a normal life when your mother has terminal cancer. And when fashion model Adrien Agreste moves back to Paris and wants to be Marinette’s friend – or maybe even more – her life is turned upside down again.

How can she risk opening her heart to love when her whole world is falling apart? Especially when Adrien is hiding a dark secret of his own….

- COMPLETE FIC – updates on Sundays

*** No kwamis AU - 100% Adrinette. About half of it is fluffy and half heavy. Please read tags for trigger warnings. ***

This fic can be rough, definitely pay attention to the tags. There’s no villains in this story, it mostly centers around themes of dealing with illness - both being sick and having a loved one who’s terminally ill - and death, grieving someone who’s lost, and how difficult that can be. It can get pretty gut-wrenching at times, especially as you slowly discover more layers of what’s really going on, what both Adrien and Marinette are hiding, both from others and from themselves in order to help cope with their circumstances. But they still move forwards together, regardless.

---

Eventually by @lucid-ao3

Adrien’s life has been dictated by rules, monitored, and controlled for years. He has learned to compartmentalize. It’s not that bad. It always gets better, eventually. Doesn’t it?

Recovery can be an unexpected obstacle when you didn’t realize you were being hurt in the first place.

OR: How Adrien lives and copes with the emotional abuse inflicted on him over the years, and how he ultimately could overcome it.

If you want a good “Adrien doesn’t realize how abusive his father is but slowly buckles more and more under his tyranny, until things come to a head, and he actually gets the HELP HE NEEDS” fic, this is a good one!

---

Between the Heavens and the Embers by @readersmoon

Everyone in Paris remembers the fateful night of January 16, when the city was attacked by the most powerful and destructive akuma ever created. The assault, which lasted for hours, resulted in the death of 439 people.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng was among the casualties.

Years later, Adrien hasn't been able to move on, haunted by the memories of her broken body. So, when the opportunity to leave Paris for a while presents itself, he doesn't hesitate. But this trip might end up giving him more than he ever dreamt of.

This is a fantastic fic, though a serious and a dark one - make sure to mind the tags, and it’s M-rated for a reason. Vee - or rather, Marinette - is going through a horror story here. Imagine finding out that your life is a lie, that everyone you thought you could trust was manipulating you, that you were just being continually gaslit for years. 

As for Adrien, Alya, and Nino... well, none of them took Marinette’s “death” all that well, especially Adrien. Finding out that she’s been alive all this time, in these horrible circumstances, and they had no clue... it’s hard on them as well.

I love how this fic goes into how much trauma everyone has even after the immediate danger’s dealt with, you don’t just walk off this kind of experience, especially with how many years this lasted.

[cardiac-agreste]

Ch. 20 - Cricket

The final chapter grew so long it got split into three parts. Here is part one. Thank you so much to @uptoolateart and @raspberrycatapult for rescuing this chapter from all my shortcomings. I feel immensely proud of it because of the guidance I received that helped me craft the akuma battle that I saw in my head for much of last year.

I present the pen-penultimate chapter of my @mlbigbang fic. (Also, I'm writing for and modding for @mlbigbang2024 as well. Artists and betas, there are a few days left to sign up. Just navigate over to the Tumblr account (but only after you read this chapter, haha!).

Synopsis

Ladybug fights an akuma, and Sabine is confronted with a choice.

Extract

Chat Noir looked around in confusion as tendrils of dust appeared to draw themselves off the roof and coat him. Then, the coating split at the back and peeled itself off his body like a molting cicada’s skin that had taken on a life of its own. Once separated from Chat Noir, the skin took on an opaque white color, its hair grew untamed, and it arched its back like a feral cat.

A coldness spread through Sabine’s body. The sketch.

The Chat Blanc facsimile extended its claws and yowled, its voice becoming more human-like, until it appeared to be speaking to Ladybug. She cowered back into a crouch, like a toddler when scolded.

Sabine jammed her thumb against the volume rocker on her phone, turning it up as loud as it would go. She was desperate to hear what was bringing her daughter so low, but all she could make out were raspy, disjointed phonemes.

Chat Noir charged at Chat Blanc and knifed his palm through it. The clone’s skin gave way like the paper-like husk of a ground cherry. He dashed to Ladybug, trying to free her from her terror.

But the husk re-formed itself, and images flickered through Sabine’s mind like frames of a grind-house horror film.

[mysticraven20]

I’m excited to announce that this year I have once again taken part in the @mlbigbang

‘The Situationship’ will begin releasing on Friday 5th January (my birthday 🥳) as a special celebration. Then chapters will follow on a Sunday.

This year I have been paired up with the incredibly talented @peonyfanart and Miraculouslyshellie and I cannot wait to share the artwork for the fic! I am completely overwhelmed by what I’ve seen so far and I cannot thank you both enough for choosing this fic to work on 💗

Also, a huge thank you to my beta @uptoolateart for being magnificent and such a wonderful support, and also Lorena for reading through for inconsistencies in the story line.

Be prepared for 32 chapters of shenanigans, chaos and fun — with a twist

The Situationship

Synopsis: What if ‘the one’ split into two…?

Marinette Dupain-Cheng, Lady Luck herself, has finally fallen on her feet after years of playing catch-up. Her boss, Mary Humphries of The House of Humphries, has invited her to be first assistant at an important meeting in London with none other than Gabriel.

But with bad luck seemingly always knocking on her door, she needs to make sure she doesn’t ruin this opportunity — which is easier said than done.

When she mistakes handsome, geeky looking Adrien Agreste as Gabriel’s personal assistant, suddenly she seems to have magicked up some luck.

They could not be more different in personality, yet after surviving a rather interesting Akuma together, a strange and exciting friendship begins… It’s just a shame one person doesn’t agree.

Someone who happens to be his ‘other half’.

Except:

Absent-mindedly, she reached out and grabbed her Chat Noir plushy, holding it tightly against her chest and feeling the bubbling emotion edge to break free. She didn’t want to leave him, not when she’d just figured it all out, when she’d figured out what she wanted them to be. It wasn’t just Paris she was unwilling to let go of — it was her partner too.

They’d been dating for just over three months, and what a blissful three months they’d had! But now it was all prematurely ending. They’d known this would happen. They’d known when they decided to give it a try that there was an expiration date looming over them. Both understood that their lives were about to take drastic changes in direction – but they’d decided to do it anyway, to finally give in to their overwhelming feelings — even if it had a short shelf life.

And now, the inevitable was happening and she hated it. More than anyone could ever imagine.

Alya stood from her position, making her way around the back of Marinette and wrapping her arms around her neck, her chin perched protectively on her shoulder. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

Marinette nodded in response, aware the bubbling had finally broken free, spilling over and making a great escape down her cheeks. Alya knew the heartbreak she experienced every time she thought of leaving her partner. It felt like a divorce. Like a bereavement.

Every time Marinette thought of saying goodbye to her partner it was as though her heart had been ripped out. Nothing more than a confetti of complicated and complex emotions.

“I just… I…” She broke down, tears falling as she buried her face in her hands and grieved the loss of the most important thing in her life.

The sobs continued late into the darkness of night, as she and Chat Noir said their final goodbyes. Their hands were joined tightly together as they sat under the moonlight.

They were spending their last remaining hours together on their rooftop — exactly where they should be, spending hours talking into the darkness of night, reminiscing and conversing about nothing and everything – Chat Noir being his usual fun self even through the heartache he easily displayed on his sleeve. He was an open book to her, an encyclopaedia of all that was good and sweet in this world. No one would ever come close to him, and she understood that. No one was Chat Noir.

“You’re my true love,” he said. “And, as in the fairytales, true love will always prevail — because it's strong, and we’re strong. Stronger together.”

Marinette didn’t know where he was going, or what he was doing, but the pain of having to say a final farewell hurt more than anything she had done before, both giving in to one more night of passion before reluctantly leaving in the early hours of the morning.

Later that day, he left Paris.

Three weeks later, she did too.

[memoriesndew]

It’s the end of chapter 8 of 12 and we’re moving into chapter 9, wow this month went by so fast what, but i didn’t think it was so bad. This month wasn’t the best, and I could have done better but i did achieve a few things but it definetly could have been better, still working on my mental health and physical health though — but I feel really fulfilled that I was able to do much better than last month I just pray to continue to grow.

☆ last month’s small wins

● I hit an average of 6,880 steps. { This is a big deal for me}

● I completed the august quest on Duolingo and started practicing more languages

● I worked out for a good part of the month and started a new shirlyn kim workout {i tried doing other workouts but it just mad me feel bad}

● i walked a lot more often towards the end of the month

● I feel motivated to do better

● did my skincare (mainly during the day though)

● I made more sales - super grateful all the time

● speant more time orgainising and intergrating my notion and environment for productivity

● I uploaded 3 notion templates - some free - some premium

● I studied often towards the end of the year

☆ last month’s self-care

● I started watching blackish [need to continue]

● I started talking to old friends more and calling and stuff

● listened to music - more gospel - feeling good

● spent time with friends - its holiday season

● oh and i just loved the 3 day program in church it was amazing

● read some fanfics - didn’t like some and i just loved some {just love finding a way by **UpTooLateArt}**

● prayed more often

☆ what I’m looking forward to this month

● less notion work and more skill learning

● studying more

● being productive

● achieving my goals

● getting on my language study grind mainly

● driving i think

● writing i think i’ll finally have time to write

I hope your month was awesome and I pray the next month will be so much better for you

bye for now my dew drops…

[hailqiqi]

WIP game!

Make a new post with the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them, and then post a little snippet or tell them something about it! Then, tag as many people as you have WIPs.

Thanks for the tag, @menina89! Sorry to disappoint but I think I've actually cooled off on my unhinged wip titles; I'm very sad too.

Here's my list for Lockwood & Co (look we all know non-Lockwood wips are on indefinite hiatus):

Stevie

Cats that go Bump in the Night

crying into raspberry buns

Untitled document

Easter Time

Of Tampons and Lava Demons

Shisha Kisses oh no (prob won't get written)

Heads and Tails

Lavender and Clean Sheets

One Bed Why

Summer Warmth

A Rose by Any Other Name

Christmas Tree YASBWF

Shenanigans

So Confession time -- I completely forgot about a few of these. I've also found a file with some notes on Lucy's mum which I think I'll work into other fics.

I also found an untitle document containing the below snippet and I have no idea what it was for. Where was I going with this, past me?? I like it, it's rather good. What was going to happen?!

Lockwood’s bed was empty. The ghost-lamp flicked off, plunging the room back into darkness and George turned on his heel, leaving the door open to stomp downstairs. There was no point being quiet - Lockwood was already up, and Lucy slept like the dead. He’d have a job getting her up in a minute as it was. But when he got downstairs, the kitchen was empty. No light shone from the library or sitting rooms, and no boys slept on armchairs or sofas when he peeked in. Frowning, he turned the kitchen light on and opened the door to the basement. That, too, was quiet and dark.

That's it, that's the entire doc. Whyyyyyyy. Oh wait, I think this might be a post-aickmere's george fic that was gonna be a sequel to Worse. Maybe.

Do I have to tag 14 people?? I don't interact with enough people on tumblr nowadays!! OK let's go 1 @womaninwinter 2 @monsterbananatv 3 @the-biscuit-agreement 4 @synestheticwanderings 5 @sciroccoorion35 6 @ohmyoverland 7 @lemonsharks 8 @uptoolateart 9 @krash-and-co 10 @almostlikequake 11 @roselilac 12 @yveni 13 @justjudethoughts 14 @madamemigraine 15 for the snippet @themetaphorgirl

Sorry if I missed you but I have to leave some people for others to tag!

[miraculouslybobatea]

accidentally just read an over 122,000 word fic in a day is that unhinged? Idk I don’t read enough to know

Bit check out said fic- “Finding a Way” by @uptoolateart it’s really good I maybe cried (you can’t prove it either way)

[sizzleissues]

Are you currently reading anything?

Be prepared for an onslaught because I am not normal and I read several things at once and that’s not even counting fanfiction! These were all started within this year and I plan to finish them before next!

First section - Sizzle pretends she’s smart and knows things (non-fiction)

A village in the Third Reich by Julia Boyd - very readable and I highly recommend! Really deepened my understanding of the life of ordinary people during the Third Reich. On my need to finish list

How to Make an Apple Pie from Scratch by Harry Cliff - Wonderful and I learned a lot about particle physics from what I’ve read so far!

An Emotional Dictionary by Susie Dent - What is on the tin, words to describe common feelings that you might not have known existed. Less of a read and more of a resource but wonderful nonetheless.

For a recommendation of non-fiction that I would read again, Sapiens : a brief history of humankind and Homo Deus : a brief history of tomorrow by Yuval Noah Harari

Second section - Sizzle is a contemporary YA reader through and through (she swears she reads many genres not just YA romance, you caught her at a lacklustre month guys) (she wanted to slam her face into a wall reading Lord of the Flies - she gets its a satire, did not help the feeling) (fiction)

Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston - rereading with the movie out. As remarkably witty and swoony as ever

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston - rereading as well because it’s my favourite book by the author. Fun time all around

There’s a couple others but it think I’m dnf-ing them because I know my worth. Please throw me some good older thought-provoking fiction my way I need it >_<. I recommend Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson - gripping murder mystery novel in a writing style I adore (:

Final section - Sizzle faces the haunting sight of her ao3 marked for later list (fanfiction)

All the Missing Pieces by @uptoolateart - I will sing its praises from the rooftop. Amazing exploration of Adrien’s character and how canon things and the sort of au the fic is set in affects things in his future. Love me some adult Adrienette with kids expansion pack

Bon voyage by @keeperofthebox - Quickly ascending the ranks of my favourite fics with each chapter. I love seeing Adrien struggle I guess >_<

Of course I have plenty of other fics marked that I have yet to read or finish because a.time or b.they’re ongoing still.

Thank you for coming to my ted talk and wish me luck in finished all this by December.

[mlbigbang]

2023 General Fic Rec List

It’s the end of the year which means it’s finally time for the ML Big Bang’s yearly fic rec lists! We’re really excited to bring you our contributors’ favourite fics started this year to supply you with plenty of reading material while you’re waiting for the Big Bang fics’ publication in January.

drowning (in plain sight) by @buggachat

Everybody had expected Monarch's defeat to be a moment of triumph. Nobody had expected Gabriel Agreste, unmasked and mind frayed from continual abuse of the miraculous, crying out to all who would listen and making Paris certain of one thing: His son, Adrien Agreste, is one of his sentimonsters. And now he's missing. Nobody can find him— not even the superheroes, and not even his closest friends. But Marinette, Nino, and Alya aren't ones to give up so easily. They'll find him, no matter what it takes. (But, geez, would it kill Chat Noir to lend a hand?)

I think most of the fandom already read this fic, but if you haven't, you should give it a try! The angst is balanced by how deeply Adrien's friends (including Plagg and Felix) care for him, and the reunion at the end is so touching.

all of your flaws and all of my flaws (are laid out one by one) by @coffeebanana

Ladybug and Marinette have both been acting strangely since Monarch's defeat, and Chat Noir would give anything to know why—to be able to help them. He just…didn't expect his answers to come when Ladybug drags him to his father's statue in the middle of the night along with a bag full of spray paint.

An incredibly cathartic scene set after the Season 5 finale that is a perfect mix of angst and hurt and comfort! All the emotions are so raw.

Dreaming Wide Awake by @uptoolateart

Gabriel died a hero. He sacrificed himself in the final battle against Monarch. Or so Adrien's been told. At least he has his mother there to help him through the grief. So what is this niggling feeling that this isn't how the story was meant to go? And why does he keep having flashes of another world that lies just beneath their own?

A fantastic follow-up to the Season 5 finale in which Adrien is dealing with the loss of his father, and his relationship with Marinette, in a reality that's not quite right. Incredibly emotional and moving.

All That Glitters by @trishacollins

After - After the dust settles, and things feel a little bit more...permanent. Nathalie thinks back on her mistakes. With Felix as close at hand as he is, she thinks one of them might be fixable.

Every fic should be a Sentibug fic, and that's why I rec this. I love that it runs with the finale of S5 and addresses various characters' feelings about senti stuff, which is the real big question hanging over the end of the season. Well, one of them :)

The moment I knew (I’d no choice but to love you) by @bbutterflies

“He’s dating me,” Nino said, taking Adrien’s hand in his own. Adrien could only stare back at him in shock. “How dare you all force him to come out?” Nino continued, glaring at the reporters. “That was disgusting.” He pulled Adrien over to the car, guided him in, and shut the door behind them. In the relative quiet and privacy of the backseat, Adrien finally processed what had just happened. “So… when were you going to tell me we were dating?”

It's fake dating, but with Adrino!! What's not to like?

The Parable of the Caller by nemali

A week after Hawk Moth’s identity has been revealed, Adrien finds himself with nowhere to go, nothing he can do, and worst of all, strange gaps in his memory he can’t explain. In a stroke of luck, he stumbles upon a burner phone filled with voicemails from one of the Saviors of Paris: Chat Noir himself, who disappeared following Hawk Moth’s arrest. But with each new voicemail Adrien listens to, he’s forced to confront the fact that there might be some kind of connection between himself and Chat Noir — and discovering it might leave him more broken than before.

It's subversion of so much. Adrien is the ex-Guardian. Adrien has lost his memories. There's been no reveal. He has no idea what this mysterious series of voicemails from Chat Noir means. A+++ read.

A Masked Game by @mysticraven20

For almost ten years Paris has been peaceful. No villains. No heroes. No hate. But, as always, peace never lasts forever and as a new threat takes over the city of love, there’s a change in the game where this time death is permanent. Adrien has been living full of hope after the worst years of his life. He’s free. He’s settled. But most importantly, he’s in love. After years of trying to find his calling everything came together the day he married his wife, or so he thought. Marinette still craved the companionship of her partner. It had been a decade since she’d seen him; the dull ache in her heart constantly asking what had happened to him. If only she had the opportunity to speak to him one more time. The chance for a reconnection appears when Paris’ heroes are needed again and as feelings begin to resurface so does the hate, love and lies. Ladybug and Chat Noir will need to find a new dynamic to make this work, saving not only their friends but also themselves, leaving Adrien and Marinette to risk everything in a need to survive.

Whodunit, murder mystery MLB fic from a great author exploring a new genre/style. Not just exploring, succeeding. Acing it. Wonderful story. As each chapter dropped, it really felt like the entire fandom was racing to read it first. Everyone was hooked. You should get hooked, too!