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hawkland · 3 years ago

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(Mostly) Destiel Fic Recs #5

This is a LONG recs post because it’s been a while since I did an update and I fell hard into reading one author’s work (DeanRH). In fact I could easily do a rec post just of their fics alone, but for this round I’m just going to pick out a handful of my absolute favorites so far, the ones I’d recommend to start out with, along with more other authors’ works I’ve especially enjoyed lately.

Absolution at the Five-and-Dime by DeanRH (125k) - this is perhaps THEE DeanRH fic to start with if you want a good, long read with a little bit of everything (Roadtrips! Intriguing casefic! Americana! Tasty Dean/Cas pining! Wing!kink and unique angel lore! Kinky soul fisting and tentacles!) It’s kind of two of parallel stories in one: the first, a flashback to Dean and Sam's first year hunting on their own (as well as trying to avoid hunting, and John in general); the second on how Dean and Cas finally get together during an unusual case and when Dean is able to really let go of his past trauma and accept himself/accept love from Cas.

What I love about DeanRH’s work is that they write from the unique point of view of a drifter, so they understand living on the road, traveling place to place, and the highs and lows of that life like no others I’ve encountered in SPN before. (The author’s notes are often as much fun to read as the stories themselves). They also write a kickass angel!Cas and never lose sight of his non-human traits and background. Their writing style is unique - almost poetic in nature, and I know some readers have found it difficult to get into. But it works really well for me in their SPN fic...gives it the flavor of oral story telling as might actually happen at a drifter’s camp (with one story written exactly as such). Be warned this particular fic does play up the idea of John Winchester being mentally abusive and Dean having to turn tricks when he was younger in order to support him and Sam, so there is some dark stuff. But as someone who grew up with mentally abusive parent, reading this was extremely cathartic to me and believably written (unlike some stories that go too over the top with abusive John, or just don't understand how that kind of abuse leaves lifetime psychological scars.)

The rest of this round’s recs below the cut.

Carnevale by DeanRH (18k) - Actually the first fic by this author I read, because I just couldn’t resist a story set in my favorite place in the world, Venice, Italy. Castiel is the Angel of Venice, banished there for so long he does not even know or remember the reasons why. But Carnevale season is the one time a year he can let his wings out - figuratively and literally. And during this particular Carnevale season, he meets an intriguing masked young American tourist there with his brother and their one night stand turns into something far more powerful than either expected. This one’s hot, romantic, and achingly sad at the end as it all ties together unexpectedly with canon-verse...though with a hint for the future so it’s definitely not totally sad. I loved how DeanRH clearly understands Venice as a fellow lover of the city, the side of it most tourists never see unless they spend a long time there. This story made me cry just from wanting to be back in Venice again.

Ice cream was sweeter, food more satisfying, everything was an epicurean delight. There was just something magical about Venice, and he had lived here in the city for hundreds of years, so the shine should have worn off by now.

But it didn't, and there was always something more, something wonderful to discover around the next corner. The painted eaves of a church. The beauty of two women dancing with flowers in their teeth across the Piazza San Marco one day, overcome by the sheer joy of just being there. The way the university students still created Venetian masks, like Castiel's extravagant volto mask and Dean's humble servetta muta, with crafts that had been handed down across the generations. The morning silence that lay against the stones.

Hard Landing by DeanRH (26.9k) - A bit similar in theme to Carnevale. A pre-series Dean and Sam are sight-seeing in Spain when an angel, struck by a babel-spell, crash lands right in front of Dean. A strange yet seriously hot encounter with the angel turns into something much more complicated when the brothers return home and realize something more serious is afoot and they are both trapped in the middle of it. This is another story where things are very much not as they seem at first (as fun as that is!) It features master strategist Cas at his best, with a side helping of delightful trickery care of Gabriel and Balthazar as they deal with Lucifer, Michael...and a few others along the way.

The Sacred Band of Thebes by DeanRH (14.5k) - The last DeanRH fic I’m gonna allow myself to include in this round up, because it’s just very soft and sweet and beautiful - for a story about Dean & Cas being magically transported back in time to ancient Sparta! This is another story infused with a great knowledge of place and history, with some wonderfully delightful original characters added in that make it all the more enjoyable to read.

And now on to some other authors, I promise!

IPAMIS OL OLPRIT by emmbrancsxx0 (56k). A really wonderful fic that take a different look at what might have happened with a temporarily resurrected John Winchester during Season 14. Dean & Cas are in an established relationship here, and John here isn’t too happy about it — though mostly because he sees Cas (and Jack) as monsters, the kind of monsters he spent his lifetime hunting. This is a great fic for the emotional complexity of how John, Dean and Cas are all handled. John isn’t a cardboard evil dad, Dean is struggling between his loyalty to his father and to Cas, and Cas is increasingly bitchy/frustrated at Dean still being so desperate for his father’s approval (and all the more complex for not just being a quietly suffering perfect supporting boyfriend.) There’s some great action sequences in this too along with the emotional angst and a delicious dose of hurt!Cas if that’s your thing (as it is for me :D)

Abrenuntio by Neonbat (51k). A very dark but compelling AU take on the/a apocalypse universe. Dean, Sam and John are all alive in this post-angel war-apocalyptic world. They are part of a group of human survivors fighting against the angel army when they manage to capture “Blue” — a particularly feared angel of death. Dean is tasked with bringing Blue in for interrogation and he becomes a prisoner in their camp after John is killed. As mentioned, this is a pretty dark/sad fic (with some rather gruesome torture scenes) but I still found it quite compelling as a look at how things could have gone in some other parallel universe. And somehow the author manages to make the Dean/Cas relationship come together despite them starting out as complete enemies. This is one of those AUs that works for me because the core of the characters really shine through despite the differences in the setting.

if it all fell to pieces tomorrow by spocklee (37k) - a gorgeous post-Empty rescue fic that takes an approach I haven’t really seen explored in detail before (despite being something I’ve actually thought about as something that could’ve happened.) What if Cas has spent so long denying himself happiness, and then trapped in regrets and false-rescue scenarios created by the Empty, that he can’t trust that his rescue is real? And so he runs off to be on his own - literally stealing the Impala because he can’t handle being in Dean’s presence one moment longer - and only slowly comes to terms with the idea that it’s over now and he can be happy with/around his friends and family. This one’s both deliciously angsty and at times funny/sweet, looking at Cas’s relationships not just with Dean but with Sam, Jack, Claire, even Eileen. It does some fun stuff with other returned angels and demons who now find themselves back on Earth (and human), and...I just really enjoyed this one a lot.

Both Saved and Lost by angelfishofthelord (13.7k) Gen Cas character study, absolutely gorgeous and sad and one of those fic I couldn’t stop thinking about the day after reading it. AU where Apocaverse!Cas isn’t immediately killed by our Cas during 13x22 but instead hitches a ride back to the main ‘verse. Dean and Sam want to keep him alive for information on Michael; Cas is torn and trying to figure out just how similar—or different—they really are. Some great angel stuff here (I also highly recommend this author’s Jack & Cas “dadstiel” fics, they’re equally lovely and heartbreaking at the same time.)

flesh of the mighty by Mudprophet (2.7k) - THEE “What exactly did Dean eat in Purgatory, anyway?” fic you’ve probably already heard about. *cough* I’ve been trying to work up the courage to read this one for a while and finally gave in and OH MY CHUCK I’m so glad I did. It’s perversely disturbing and beautiful at the same time, Cas is wonderfully DERANGED and ALIEN in that way that I love it when fics managed to convey just how much angels are NOT human. Do heed the tags.

Full of Grace by ilovehowyouletmefall (11k) - Another one for the weird-as-fuck-angel!Cas lovers’ list. Heaven/canon-compliant fic where Dean knows he should feel happy and at peace but he just...isn’t, even with Cas and all of his friends and family there. He finally goes looking for Cas when he’s been absent for a time and, for the first time, gets to not just see but experience his true form. Another one that hits some kinks I knew I had and others I didn’t...until now. ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

don't ask me where i've been by saltwound / @1x06 (8k) - I can never resist a good 09x06 fiction gap fic! What makes this one really stand out is how well it captures Cas’s internal voice - his struggles adapting to human senses, limitations and emotions versus what/how he experienced things as an angel. The longing and feelings between Dean & Cas here are so achingly beautiful and I just wanted to cry when Cas says he misses hearing Dean’s prayers, so Dean, he...oh, I’m not going to spoil it. *happy sigh* Just read it.

this room is wrong by DarkHeartInTheSky (12k) - Sometimes I like torturing myself with some good 15x03 divorce arc angst and this fic hit that button just so. It’s an alternative take on where Cas might have ended up after leaving the bunker and features some great Cas & Sam friendship feels, when Sam sets out to try to bring Cas home. It’s all the stuff you’d wish the writers would’ve let them talk out in canon.

Well that’s more than enough for this round! Go forth, read and give some great writers some kudos & comment love!

#fic recs #my fic recs #destiel recs #destiel #deancas recs #my destiel recs

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wannajointhecrabcult · 5 years ago

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Masks and Music

(Part 1)

Part 2

I didn't think that my last post would've gotten ANY notes at all, so imagine my surprise when I find out that people actually liked it. After that suprise I thought why not and make another one so here we go! This is a Miraculous/Batfam crossover.

Imagine that Damian gets sent to Paris because the fam doesn't want him to become an emotionally constipated sad boi like Bruce and think that a change in scenery would help.

They don't know about the whole Hawkmoth situation because SOMEONE from the justice league decided that the while thing was a prank DESPITE that it was an ENTIRE CITY calling instead of a single person.

Like, aren't you guys supposed to be the world's greatest heros or something?

Who hired you?

Damian being the grumpy lil kid that he is holds a grudge and decides to not accept any calls or video chats from his family or tell them about Hawkmoth because that's what you get when you send someone across the world against their will.

(and because of plot convenience shhh)

Anyways, Damian goes to school as instantly adds Lila onto his mental list of people he needs to get rid of.

I mean, seriously, he's only been is the room for what, 15 seconds and he's already getting a migraine?

Great. Juusssttt great.

He sits in the back of the class with what seems to be the only person with brain cells in this room.

The dark haired girl just looks over and sees the disgust at Lila written all over his face and gives him a silent empathetic nod.

'This is unfortunately normal here.' she tries to convey through the small action.

He just nods back to show his understanding before turning around to observe the others.

In a few minutes Ms. Bustier walks in the room and asks him to introduce himself to the class.

It looks like the teacher never told the class that they were getting a new student because they all have to do double takes when they realize that there's a new face in the room.

He gives them the bare basics, telling them that his name is Damian Grayson, he's from America, and that he doesn't want any of them to talk to him before sitting down.

Clearly the teacher wanted him to say more or scold him for being so rude but a glare shut her up.

Later during a break period Lila tries to flirt with him and brags all about how she's met so many different celebrities and her achievements.

He tells her off and tries to move away but her nails are digging into his arms as she tries to convince him that he should stay away from Marinette.

Before he can maim her, the dark haired girl comes out from behind him and starts spraying Lila down like an unruly cat with some sort of strong smelling liquid from a spray bottle.

Lila screeches and stomps away.

When he turns to his hero the girl explains.

"It's a mixture of shredded lemon, expired maple syrup, vinegar, and pomegranate juice. I call it People Repellant but Thot Begone works too. Oh, and I'm Marinette by the way."

He eyes her hand before shaking it.

"Damian, though I assume you already know that. Can I get some of that by the way? I know a couple insufferable annoyances that would benefit from a spray down.

Marinette just blinks for a second before she bursts out laughing and that was the start of a great friendship.

Together they:

Make fun of Lila in the back of class.

Help eachother with homework (they only cheat off eachother when they REALLY need help)

Prank Lila in odd ways (Hey, just because she found hundreds of furbies hidden around her house that turn on one by one in the middle of the night effectively scaring the crap out of her when she's trying to sleep doesn't mean that it's their fault. She had it coming.)

Break a couple laws (shhhhhhh. Those toy stores don't need those furbies anyways).

Dare eachother over stupid things (they still insist that the cereal incident was caused by the other).

And overall become closer as friends.

They bring out the overdramatic chaotic gremlin child in eachother.

One time when Damian goes over to Marinette's place to work on a project he finds her singing a Disney song to herself on her balcony.

This isn't the first time they've caught eachother singing.

One time Marinette caught Damian in the art room at school humming one of the many annoyingly cheesy and catchy songs that Dick likes to listen to.

Despite him explaining the embarrassing situation to her she still teased him for weeks after.

He'll never get to live it down.

Damian shakes his head to get rid of the flashback when a devious smirk spreads across his face as a revenge plan comes to mind.

After carefully placing his stuff on the floor he sneakily makes his way across the space until he's right behind her.

That's when he joins in.

Screaming at the top of his lungs at first, effectively giving her a mini heart attack before eventually quieting down to a normal singing volume.

She glares at him, annoyed by his loud and obnoxious entrance before she starts singing again.

They eventually end up full Disney movie dramatically performing around her balcony with dance moves and over dramatic acting.

Is it bad that actual birds and other animals are appearing and joining in?

Damian totally kept one of the pigeons.

He named it Dolores.

(He later trained Dolores to attack Rossi on sight.)

When they're finished they end up on the floor out of breath.

They stay like that for a few minutes before Damian sits up.

"That. That was fun. I don't think I've actually ever sang before."

Marinette jolts up in suprise and turns to face him.

"Really? I never would've guessed. You have a really nice singing voice."

He would deny till his dying breath that he blushed when she said that but he covers it up with a smirk.

"Well I guess that's just because yours is so terrible in comparison."

He squawks when she jabs a finger in his side.

"Pshh. As if. Besides, my singing skills can't be worse then your gaming skills." She challenges with a cheeky smile.

"ExCuSe mE?!"

And that's how they spend the rest of the day playing video games, leaving the unfinished project to be completed on a later day.

Good thing it isn't due until 2 weeks time.

After a couple of hours playing video games, creating many possible Lila murder plans, eating pastries, and joking around, it's time for him to leave.

As Damian left for his place he got a feeling that something big was gonna happen.

Marinette also got the feeling but they both ignored it.

Little did they know, someone just happened to walk by and starstruck by the amazing singing they recorded the performance before posting it on the internet.

Imagine the duo's suprise when they wake up the next day to find themselves trending on the internet.

Luckily the video quality was pretty trash so their faces weren't identifiable but the audio was loud and clear.

The world was talking about the cute couple singing to their hearts desire on a balcony. If that's not cliche and adorable then the world doesn't know what is.

The assumption about their relationship status left them looking like tomatos but that didn't stop them from wonder why they didn't notice a creep recording them.

Damn Disney songs and their unnatural ability to distract people.

Of course Lila took advantage of the rising popularity of the video and talked about how she taught the two people in the video how to sing and gave them tips.

The two just walked past the idiot squad and sat down in their seats, making a mental note to come up with a prank later, when the akuma alarms came on.

They fall into their normal routine of Marinette running out to find a place to transform as Damian covers for her.

Oops did I forget to mention that Damian found out her identity because she crashed through his window in the middle of the night still transformed and asked him what's the answer to question 24 in their science homework because she just defeated an akuma by herself and was running on 20 minutes of sleep?

My bad.

Anyways it turns out today was the day Marinette had officially had enough of Chat's bullcrap.

It was gonna be a normal akuma situation.

Ladybug trying to fight the poor butterfly victim while chat noir either doesn't show up, tries to do everything on his own to impress her and ruins the whole plan, or just watches and complains about how she needs to get over her denial and date him BUT

This time he decided to actively try to push her in the akuma's way therefore putting her in SO MUCH MORE DANGER than she was already in.

Now she had to dodge out of the akuma's way AND CHAT'S!

WhAt ThE fUdGe?!?!

You think possibly killing Ladybug and trying to force her to beg for you to save her is gonna make her like you?!?

Just how hard did you hit your head when Gabriel dropped you on the floor when you were 2?

After the akuma was eventually defeated Ladybug told Chat to meet her on an abandoned rooftop that night because they needed to talk.

Chat being the oblivious person that he is (I swear I don't actually hate chat noir, this is for the plot I'm sorry) thought that it was for a love confession and became overly smug before leaving.

Making sure that he isn't following her, Marinette meets up with Damian at his place (school's over because of the attack) and asks him to help.

Later that day when the two miraculous holders meet up Ladybug distracts the Catboy by flirting with him while Damian uses his ninja skills for something other than sneaking up on her and giving Marinette mini heart attacks.

From behind he quickly hits a pressure point causing the other boy to fall unconscious.

Using her ALMIGHTY GUARDIAN OF THE MIRACULOUS powers, Ladybug takes Adrien's ring away and places a spell on him that makes it so he will never be able to use another miraculous ever again.

After they take Adrien home Marinette gives Damian the ring and Night Prowler is born.

He promises to do everything in his power to make sure that Selina and his family doesn't find out for the sake of his pride.

We'll see how that goes.

Night Prowler first officially appeared during an akuma named 'Break Dancer'.

Ironically, she was a ballerina that had to drop out of the finals in a competition because she broke her right leg the day before the show.

She could turn civilians into back up dancers and forced them to perform against their will.

They also worked as minions who would attack the duo for her while she stayed a safe distance away.

It was pretty obvious that the akumatized item was the music box held inside the bag that Break Dancer had slung around her shoulders but the real question was how could they get to it without becoming attacked by the backup dancer or becoming one of them.

Luckily (eheheh), a car with an open window playing music just happened to pass by before driving off.

Before it drove off, the music coming from the car was loud enough to play over the music box which caused some of the minions to become free again and run off.

Ladybug called her lucky charm and a Bobby pin landed in her hand.

As she looked around she noticed a store a couple blocks away that had a couple radios.

Unfortunately, the store was locked and closed.

Fortunately, she knew how to pick locks and a Bobby pin did come from her lucky charm soooo......

Who is she to deny literal gods.

They break into the store and grab a radio, and a speaker and rush over to where the akuma was causing chaos.

They turn on the radio, connect the speaker and turn the volume on as loud as it can go before flipping through the stations for a good song.

If they're gonna fight with music in the background they're gonna be picky about it and wont settle for anything other than epic.

While fighting they eventually get swept up in the music and end up singing along.

It's nothing less than full on majestic.

When the fight is over and the akuma is purified they find out that someone recorded it and posted it on the internet as well.

Now everyone knows that the beloved hero of Paris and her new partner were the two people singing on that balcony.

Ummmmm.....

Good thing that the video quality was trash right?

If it weren't for that their identities would've been busted the moment they started singing in hero form.

Luckily there aren't many people other than Damian that know what Marinette's singing voice sounds like so they're okay.

Well.... They WERE okay,

Until a certain rockstar and his agent came across the two videos and put two and two together.

So now King Sting (bee!jagged) and Peridot (turtle!penny) have joined the team.

Poor Penny, now she has to deal with two gremlin children and a some sort of bizarre man-child.

The next akuma confused the group quite a bit.

He didn't really do anything but sit on a rooftop waiting for the miracle team to show up.

They were all suspicious of him at first but when they did reveal themselves to him he explained his situation.

He was akumatized because his favorite rock band broke up but he didn't really want to take their miraculouses away.

He just asked if they could perform another song for him and he would give his akumatized item to them.

They all sorta looked at eachother and collectively went 'screw it why not' and sang another song.

If they were great before, they are absolutely AMAZING now.

Well that's what happens when you add a famous rockstar to a team of singing superheros I guess.

The akuma was blown away and true to his word handed over the rolled up picture in his pocket and was purified despite of Hawkmoth's nagging.

Haha screw you Hawky.

This time the ordeal was recorded by a news station and the 'hand over the akuma in exchange for a song' thing became a trend.

There were still normal akuma's that didn't follow follow it but those were far flung between.

It seems like Hawkmoth was getting annoyed by this so there started being less akuma attacks over the months.

Because of this some people were actively trying to get upset to attract one of the purple butterflies.

They traded one good thing for another I guess.

To stop that from happening the group started performing in public as superheros during concerts and festivals.

Because of this they became quite well known outside of Paris as well.

Is it ironic that more people know them as a band rather than a superhero team now?

When Marinette learned that they could change what their superhero costumes looked like if they put enough will into it she squealed.

Marinette designs superhero performance costumes for them whenever they have a festival to play at.

Whenever asked about their outfits they always reply with MDC.

Marinette's business gets really popular after that.

And since no one knows who MDC really is, she doesn't have to worry about the whole "Oh no me and my family are gonna be in danger!" thing

It's a win win!

Overtime they basically become a second (or third for some people) family to eachother.

Damian becomes more 'kid like' and open to others,

Marinette becomes more confident and overall happier,

Jagged gets to hang out with his awesome niece and her 'maybe more than just a friend',

And Penny gets a new outlet for stress and has so many more crazy stories to tell people.

One day while she's in the living room on the sofa watching 'The AristoCats' Damian just barges into the room and dramatically flops over onto of her.

He just lays there with his head in her lap and the rest of his body sprawled on the couch.

After everything that has happened this is normal for them now.

Without asking any questions or talking at all they just watch the movie together with the occasional remark or quip between them.

Around half way through the movie Jagged kicks down the door, effectively scaring the crap out of the two teens, while Penny follows behind him with an apologetic look on her face.

At first Jagged was yelling about something having to do with'Fang' and 'Dragon' and 'Miraculous' but after taking in the domestic atmosphere of the room he just sits down on the floor and joins in on watching the movie.

Penny, shaking her head in both amusement and exasperation, sits down on another chair and does the same.

While combing through Damian's hair with her fingers Marinette looks around the room.

'My life can't get any more complicated, can it?'

Oh boy, she just jinxed it.

This is just an idea I've had bouncing around in my head for awhile and I couldn't resist the urge to write it out. I AM planning on making a part 2 so if you like this keep an eye out for that. I'm by no means a fast writer though so it will take a while. But then again not many people will probably read this soo.... Yeah.

#maribat #maridami #miraculous x dc #daminette #Miraculous crossover #damian x marinette #i still cant believe that people actually liked my last post omg #people are so supportive in this fandom #masks and music

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bard-of-worlds · 4 years ago

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Ladybug AU/ The Law is The Law CH1

Adrien scowled as he reached the location of the photoshoot, the way the battle with Mayura and Hawkmoth, what had been done to Sentibug was still causing him some problems, he didn’t know if after everything that had happened today he didn’t know how he would be able to handle the shoot. When he saw Lila sitting on a chair and having her makeup done he stopped and grabbed Vincent as he walked by. Vincent turned to Adrien and paled as he saw the look in Adrien’s eyes.

“Vincent, hey……quick question, why in the name of everything good and pure is Lila here?” Adrien asked flatly as Vincent swallowed.

“I don’t know Adrien, all I know was that I was told there would be a new model at the shoot, nothing about who or why only that Nathalie would introduce her…..Love to talk kid but I have to go and get my camera ready, sooooo. Bye.” Vincient said as he dashed off, throwing a look at Adrien as he walked away. You know, I wondered how he was Gabe’s kid but that there, it’s gone now. He thought as he looked around and saw the looks on the other crew’s faces and hoped Adrien wouldn’t explode.

Adrien looked at Lila and scowled, not needing this now. I don’t know what Father’s thinking, anyone in class could have been a better pick, Sabrina, Juleka or Chloe if he wanted someone my age to model with that’s not in the bussniess. But maybe I can use this, if I can talk to her she might clean up what she did to Marinette, and if not then I might get the pressure to make her do it. Adrien thought as he reached for his phone and moved it to his pocket, praying that he wouldn’t have to use this.

“I don’t know how but you will fix this Lila. How could you get Marinette expelled?!” Adrien demanded as he discreetly pointing his phone’s camera at her, part of him hoping this wouldn’t be necessary.

“Why should I do that? I tried to get her play ball and she wouldn’t, I warned her and we both made our choices, I made mine and here we are.” Lila said as she looked at Adrien as he stared at her. “I told her I would ruin her and I did, I said I would get you and here I am.”

“So just so we’re clear, you lied, you threatened Marinette and got her expelled because she called you out on your lies? How did you even do it anyway?” Adrien asked as he fought to keep his temper down ‘Get me’, so I was right about her. Just another person who objectified me or sees what they want to think. Adrien thought as he looked at her.

“It was so easy, all I had to do was go to the bathroom after the test, pull the alarm and get the answer sheet that was left on that idiot teacher’s desk and put it in Marinette’s bag. They never even noticed it but it was after the last class and well.” Lila said with a giggle as Adrien fumed and glared at her.

“And you would do it again, wouldn’t you?” Adrien asked as he kept his face plain, but inside he was shocked that this was so essay to get what he needed from her.

“I would even without the bonus your father gave me.” Lila said as Adrien looked at her in confusion.

“Bonus, my father? What does he have to do with this?!” Adrien demanded as he looked at Lila, on the inside he wasn’t scared but angry, and he felt the last vestige of his control was starting to burn away.

“Don’t act so surprised, he had to have talked to you about it and told you to act the way you did before the Akuma attacked everyone, the Gabriel brand over all, and its spokesperson speaking up for someone accused of a crime would be a perfect publicity stunt.” Lila said she looked at him.

Adrien stared at Lila as his vision went red as she sat there grinning back at him as he went over what she had said before whipping his head around and he saw Nathalie in the limo looking towards the shoot, his eyes widening as he realize that for once Lila was telling the truth, turning off his phone he turned to look at the river and tried to calm down. I can’t believe this! I knew something was wrong when I learned that Lila was going to model with me but I can’t believe……Wait….if she’s here because of that then this means! Adrien thought as his thoughts crystalized

“You did that for this!? You were completely willing to ruin her life for this?!” Adrien exploded as he shot up from his chair looking at her. As the crew looked on Adrien grabbed her, pulled her behind him despite what she was saying and with surprising strength threw her into the river! Nathalie got out of the car and rushed over towards the water as the crew stared in total shock before they moved to help Lila out.

“Adiren what were you thinking! Your father will not be happy about this at all. I don’t even know what….!” Nathalie would have kept talking but Adiren turned around and looked at her with such a look of rage, anger and disgust in his eyes that she stopped talking.

“I don’t care.” Adrien said flatly as Nathalie tried to recover.. “Nathalie, tell my father that for the first time ever I’m glad that mom is gone. This way I have memories of a beautiful person instead of someone who could love the monster that he’s become!” Adrien said as he looked at her and gripped his phone. “An Agreste is held to high standards; well this has shown me that mine are very different from his and no amount of effort will ever be good enough for him!”

As Nathalie looked at him, really looked at him for the first time ever she could comprehend what she was seeing. Adrien had always been an accommodating to Gabriel’s wishes that she never thought that he would ever act this way. Adrien turned, manipulating his phone as he did so and walked away, not even paying her any piece of mind. Nathalie looked around and saw the photo crew trying to get Lila out of the river and stormed over to them, pulling them back and staring down at her. ”What did you say?”

“What?” Lila asked as she tried to climb out of the river.

“What did you say Lila!?” Nathalie demanded as Lila looked up at her. “Adrien has never, ever acted even remotely like that or said anything about his father, so WHAT. DID. YOU. SAY?”

“I told him about the job that got me here. Why the hell he’d react that way, Gabriel told me to do it!” Lila said as Nathalie looked down at her and paled.

“Louis, hey. Sorry to call out of the blue but can we talk?” Adrien said into his phone as walked off, ignoring the camera crew as they stared at him, he just kept walking.

“Yeah Adrien, what’s up?” Louis’s voice came through the phone as Adrien could hear the squeak of his chair as he leaned back in it. “Need some wisdom from somebody who’s been around the block a few times?”

“No, not wisdom do it, that thing we talked about. He’s finally crossed my final line, I don’t have a choice anymore.” Adrien said as he looked behind him, not seeing the Gorilla anywhere so there was that.

“You sure kid? Once this goes out there’s no turning back, this is a big choice to make?” Louise asked causing Adrien to nod before he realized that Louise couldn’t see him and blushed before he spoke again.

“Yeah I am, what he is, what he’s willing to do for his brand, I just can’t live with myself if we don’t do this.” Adrien said as he walked.

“And…….. done! In a few hours there’s going to be such an investigation that gonna cause old Gabe to pass out! I’m sorry you were pushed to this point kid, but I’ve got a spare coach if you want to use it.” Louise said.

“Don’t be, I should have done this months ago. Looking back my relationship with him died when mom disappeared.” Adrien said as he felt Plagg press against him and he reached into the pocket Plagg was in and felt Plagg hug his hand. At least I still have him and Ladybug, and her kwami too. He thought as he released a breath and let the last of his relationship with his father die as it should have when he started to treat him as only an employee. “And about that second thing I just sent you a video I just shot, and I think I have some pro bono work you’ll love, do you know the bakery near my school?”

“Yeah, I love their cookies, but what do Tom and Sabine have to do with this? And you know I only do that stuff when I have a good target of injustice so what happened?” Louis asked. Wait a minute, don’t those two have a daughter who should be around the kid’s age? Louise thought as he waited for Adrien’s reply.

“First off, is it legal for a student to be expelled on the same day as the crime?” Adrien asked as he walked through Paris, hopping that

“No, all students need a hearing for expulsion, did he use that world? Hold on I’ve got the file you sent me………holy! And this bitch framed a friend of yours at Gabe’s direction?!” Louise said as he “Kid you should have called me soon, now I can probably get the expulsion off her records and I think I can get a nice settlement for her and then there’s your dad but….”

“That’s it Louise it happened today!” Adrien interrupted him and Louise stopped talking. “There wasn’t a hearing, she wasn’t suspended, the principle just expelled her in front of everybody!”

“Adrien, buddy. You bring me the best presents! A perfect way to strike against the school that let the person that abused my goddaughter into trying to commit suicide walk free, I love it!” Louis said with a laugh.

“Wait, what! My school is the one where that happened?” Adrien asked as he stopped moving for a moment as his eyes went wide.

“Yeah, this bitch always believed the whore and punished my goddaughter, she almost killed herself. In the end the teacher was fired, the bully had left and moved to a different county and what a teacher could do to a student was changed. I think they were talking about changing the rules for how they punish someone. One of the most idiotic ideas was to for it to only apply if the teacher saw them do it or they got it on camera, the most insane idea I have ever heard.” Louise said as Adrien gasped. “Kid, what is it?”

“I think they did make that rule Louise. Chloe hasn’t changed much and besides words and actions taken where no one besides the victim could see it she’s gotten away with a lot. And this time Mari….the victim was expelled based on only on the accusers word, they even made it a public spectator. ” Adrien said flatly. Is this why Chloe gets away with everything she does? But wait the cameras! He thought as he heard Louise’s chair pushed backwards as he got up.

“WHAT! I know they’ve got cameras in that place; it was part of the settlement! Don’t tell me that they aren’t being used!” Louise exclaimed with a hint of anger in his voice.

“They’re practically ornamental at this point! They never even looked at the ones in the courtyard, all Lila said was that Marinette pushed her down the stairs and the principle believed her!” Adrien said as he heard Louise grit his teeth. “And I admit finding the necklace in her locker was damming but there are no locks on any of them and it could have fit through the grill!”

“This necklace, it was tested for fingerprints at least right?” Louis asked as Adrien stayed silent and Louis felt a headache coming on. “Adrien tell me they at least did that and listened to more than just one student right, please?”

“I can’t Louise, I just can’t.” Adrien said softly as he heard Louis trying to keep his temper down and count backwards from twenty.

“Kid, I’ll meet you at the bakery, if I hear anything more now I’m going to scream. I’ll have my people send out the papers for the first thing you called me about before I leave, see you there.” As Adrien heard the call end he sighed.

“Plagg, I should have done this when this began.” He said softly as he walked towards Tom & Sabine Boulangerie Patisserie.

“The throwing Lila into the river or calling in Louise when pigtails got expelled, causing I’m all for transforming and going to cataclysming her.” Plagg said as Adiren laughed. I guess I can’t expect any different from Plagg, he’s been saying to get rid of her for weeks! I had to hope she was acting that way like my mask have when I’m in public or around fat….Gabriel. I guess this finally proved once and for all where I stand with him, and somehow I feel lighter. Adrien thought as he walked.

“The calling Louise, I mean I had hoped she was just telling stories thing because she was nervuis and scared, I mean moving around so much I can understand that, it took me weeks to lighten up and start to be more then my mask at school.” Adrien said with a sigh. “And most of Chloe’s act is because she wants her mom to love her.”

“I’ll say once and I’ll say it again, that woman is a piece of work! I’ve seen a lot of people over the centuries but like her, always the worst of the worst.” Plagg said as he looked up at Adrien.

“Adrien there you are!” Chloe’s voice caused Adrien to turn and see her pounding towards him with Sabrina following behind her. “How the hell are we going to get Marinette un-expelled? This is ridicules, completely ridicules!”

Adrien looked at Chloe as she started a terade and frowned as what she was saying got through to him. “Wait, you want to help Marinette?”

“Of course! Nobody but nobody messes with Dunpain-Chang but me! And even I wouldn’t threaten her how Lila did!” Chloe said a huff as she looked up at the sky.

“What do you mean, threatened Marinette?! When did that happen?!” Adrien demanded as Chloe looked at him and Sabrina’s mouth dropped open.

“It was when she came back, she cornered Marinette and she felt so scared an Akuma was summoned but she fought it off!” Sabrina said causing Adrien to gasp at her.

“That’s where that Akuma came from, that’s how Lila was Akumatized, not because I talked to her?!” Adrien said with shock, stepping backwards as he paled in horror. “God, I am the most idiotic person on the planet!”

“Sabrina saw her reach for it Adrien what are you…..What did you do?!” Chloe demanded as she saw him react to what she and Sabrina told him and started to grow worried, he had only acted like this when he had made what he thought was a mistake, like when he had given his mom flowers and she turned out to be allergic to them.

“I thought Lila’s emotions spiked because I talked to her about how she didn’t have to lie to get people to like her, not that she chased one down! I told Marinette to take the highroad about her lies, I never knew…….” Adrien said as Chloe gasped and started to get mad and was about to exploded when Sabrina spoke up.

“You thought she was so emotional that talking to her about her lies caused her to get on Hawkmoth’s radar?” Sabrina asked as Chloe looked at her then at Adrien with her mouth open.

“God, and you were worried that she’d attack anyone who called her out, did you at least explain that to Marinette?” Chloe asked only to sigh when Adrien hung his head. “Adrien!”

“I……. I knew she’d probably react like you guys are and I didn’t want to give Lila any ammunition to use, I’ve been trying to get alone to talk to her about it but I haven’t been able to yet.” Adrien said miserably.

“Then go and talk to her now! And wait……. Don’t you have a photoshoot about now?” Chloe asked as she looked around, confused beyond words.

Adrien’s phone seemed to burn a hole into his leg and he looked at Chloe steadily. “I’m handling Marinette’s problems. And about the shoot I walked off after I threw the other model there, Lila into the river!”

“What the hell was Lie-la doing there? And how are you handing what happened?” Chloe demanded as she looked at Adrien, fuming. Why the heck did Gabriel get Lila to model, if he wanted a new teen girl anyone would have been better, heck even Alya could do it! She thought as Adrien seemed to be struggling with something.

“I called Louise about it, he said that what the principle did wasn’t right…..and I told him to send off the notice to the Department of Child Services.” Adrien said as Chloe and Sabrina gasped and looked at him.

“Why, I mean you should have done it months ago but why now?” Sabrina said, having been Chloe’s friend for years she knew Adrien at least superficially and this wasn’t like him.

“Lila did what she did because he told her to.” Adrien as they looked at him, not understanding what he was saying. “She said that the modeling thing is a bonus and that she thought how I tried to help Marinette was a publicity stunt for the brand.”

Chloe gasped a hand shooting to her mouth as she looked at him with shock, wondering what had driven Gabriel to do that. “I’m sorry Adrien, you know that there’s always a room at the hotel if you need it.”

“I’ve got a couch dad will be happy to lend you.” Sabrina said with a small smile.

“Yeah thanks girls…..I’m meeting Louise at Marinette’s, do you want to come along as support?” Adrien asked and Chloe laughed.

“I can guess what’s going on, so I’ll do a little research and get back to you and Marinette later, good luck groveling to her.” Chloe said as she and Sabrina walked off. Adrien looked at her and shook his head, wondering if Marinette would forgive him for his mistake.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Sabine sighed as she tried not to think what had happened earlier today at school but she couldn’t. “Nothing about it makes sense, I mean I know my daughter, she’d never do this! And how Lila was still walking around after she was pushed, it doesn’t make sense!”

“Your right Sabine and the necklace looked like it could have fit through the grill on the locker and did any of them have locks on them at all? I thought Marinette said she only used hers for holding her coat during winter and projects?” Tom’s voice caused Sabine to turn and look at her husband as he brought a tray of bread out from the kitchen, the workers looking out as they all knew something was wrong with what happened.

“Yeah, boss I guess you can bring them up when the hearing right?” One of the cooks asked as he poked his head out of the back.

Sabine and Tom looked at each other, confusion in their eyes. Did that idiot owl do something wrong when he expelled Marinette? Tom thought as he frowned. “What hearing?”

“The expulsion hearing, the one she has to have after her suspension is up. The one that by law all students are required to have before their expelled?” The cook said in

“The principle said Marinette was expelled, that’s it, are you saying he did something wrong?” Sabine asked as she looked at him.

“That’s something I think I can help with!” A voice caused all of them to see Adrien standing behind a man in a brown business suit holding a briefcase in his right hand. “My name is Louis Artoga, attorney at law and I’d like to have a long talk with you about that if you don’t mind.”

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

Marinette lay down on her bed and hugged one of her pillows as she tried to forget the look in Sentibug’s eyes when Mayura destroyed it….her. That was something that will only haunt her for weeks if she’s lucky.

“How could she do it Tikki, I just can’t believe that she was even able to do it.” Marinette said as she hugged her pillow.

“There have been people who have been bad holders, but I’ve never seen Duusu’s powers used that way.” Tikki said as she floated and looked at her chosen. “You gave the Amok the talisman that created her; Mayura shouldn’t have been able to do it.”

“Why does that have to do with anything?” Marinette asked as she tried to understand Tikki.

“That should have broken the link to Mayura, she should have been fully independent….. I can’t explain it.” Tikki said as she floated there, not letting Marinette detect any of her thoughts. The only way that could have been possible was if the Miracolous itself was damaged, but Duusu wouldn’t have transformed then, it would have hurt her chosen. Tikki thought as she watched Marinette try and deal with what she had seen happen earlier, some part of her glad she wasn’t thinking about how she had been expelled.

“Something to talk to Master Fu about then, I just want to forget everything happened today and deal with it tomorrow.” Marinette said before a knocking caused her to look at the door down and frown as Tikki hid. “It’s unlocked!”

She didn’t know what she was expecting but when Adrien came into her room she stared in shock. “Adrien! Are what doing you here?”

Adrien looked at her and sighed. “I…..Marinette…. I called a friend of mine about what happened, he’s downstairs with your parents and I volunteered to come and get you. I told them I wanted to talk to you for a few minutes, I want to apologize first.”

“Apologize, Adrien what happened today wasn’t your fault at all, you tried to help but he wouldn’t listen.” Marinette said but stopped when Adrien shook his head.

“No, not that. The advice I gave you when Lila came back.” Adrien said as he hung his head. “Sabrina was in the bathroom too, she heard Lila threaten you and then the Akuma came at you…… while that was happening I was talking to Lila about her lies and she tried to ruin my life at school and my friendships after sooo.”

“You told me not to act against Lila because you thought she summoned and Akuma from you talking to her about her lies?” Marinette said in shock.

“I thought she had summoned the Akuma while I was talking to her about how she didn’t have to lie to get people to like her and she acted normal so……I’m sorry.” Adrien said as he looked away from Marinette and she just looked at him as she tried to understand just what Adrien had thought

“You gave me advice based on what you knew.” Marinette said after a few moments. “If I thought that way about someone I might have said the same to you.”

“Then?” Adrien asked as he felt a bit of hope.

“Apology accepted. So who’s downstairs?” Marinette said as she got up and walked towards Adrien who smiled at her.

OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

“So she’s always been making clothing?” Louise asked as he drank a cup of tea and looked at Tom and Sabine as they sat in the living room.

“Clothing, blankets, odds and ends, it’s been her passion for years. She really blossomed when she started to look at fashion and started to design her own cloths really and make gifts for her friends.” Sabine said as she looked at Louise with a smile as she remembered her daughter’s antics. “Why I remember how she went and got a roll of blue wool to make a scarf for a present last year. But enough about that, you think you’ll be able to get the expulsion off her record?”

“If she really was expelled and not suspended, of course, it will barely be a problem. I’ll talk to the board of education and once I see the paperwork I’ll go from there, but there’s another subject that I need to talk to you about that I think I should wait until the kids are back to really start…..and here they are.” Louise said as he smiled as Marinnete and Adrien walked into the room, Louise standing up and offering Marinette his hand. “Nice to meet you mam, I’m Louise, Louis Artoga, attorney at law and I want to help you.”

“Help how?” Marinette asked as she and Adrien sat down after she shook his hand. Louise beamed at her and before he continued.

“I’d like to help you out, now fair warning. I’ve have a goddaughter, a few years back she was bullied, badly enough that she tried to commit suicide. She didn’t succeed and she got the help she needed, she’s studding to be a social worker last I heard.” Louse began. “The people I blame are the teachers and the school, the same school that you go…..went to.”

“Mr. Damocles had something to do with it?!” Marinette asked with shock, going silent as Louise’s face started to go red.

“‘Damocles’?! An old man with a beard, bald, has a fixation with owls?! He’s the new principal” Louise screamed as he lunged to his feet.

“Louise?” Adrien’s voice caused Louise to look around the room and saw the looks on the others face and he released a breath and sat down slowly.

“Sorry kid, he was the vice principle who let that bitch get away with everything back then. I thought he was blacklisted.” Louise said as he sat back down, and got out a cell phone that he put in in a holder he got out of his briefcase so the camera was pointed at her. “Start recording, this is Louise Artoga, recording a questioning of Marinette Dupain-Chang about her ‘expulsion’ from earlier today. As of right now I ask her parents, Tom and Sabine Dupain-Chang their permission to do so. Also of note is that Adrien Agreste is here, as he was the person who told me about this incident.”

“I, Sabine Dupain-Chang give my permission that my child; Marinette Dupain-Chang may decide if she wishes to be questioned and recorded.” Sabine said formally.

“I, Tom Dupain-Chang give my permission that my child; Marinette Dupain-Chang may decide if she wishes to be questioned and recorded.” Tom said as he turned and looked at Marinette who smiled back.

“I, Marinette Dupain-Chang agree to be question and recorded about the events earlier today.” Marinette said as she looked at the camera.

“Thank you all, with that done the questioning shall begin. So, walk me through what happened.” Louise said as he looked at Marinette.

“Miss Bustier called me to the front of the room at the start of class and searched my backpack, the answer key was in it.” Marinette said and stopped as Louise held up a finger.

“Point of clarity what class was it in relation to the order of classes on a normal day in number format and has your backpack been out of your sight for any length of time before that.” Louise said as he looked at Marinette.

“It was the first class of the day, as we had a test yesterday so I hadn’t looked at my backpack since then……..and my backpack was out of my sight because someone pulled the fire alarm yesterday and everyone evacuated, most taking their backpacks as it was the end of class and they were getting ready to leave. As the class Representative I had collected the tests and had just put them on Miss Bustier’s desk with the alarm went off and we all evacuated.” Marinette said as she thought about yesterday.

“Why were you called to the front?” Louise asked, a frown forming on his face as he went over what he knew about proper class room behavior for teachers.

“Miss Bustier said that someone had given an anomalous note that someone had seen me steal the answer sheet and my bag.” Marinette said as and stopped as Louise held up a hand.

“She didn’t call you outside the classroom?” Louise asked in shock.

“No, after that I accused Lila of taking and putting it in my backpack to frame me and Madame B took both of us to the principal’s office.” Marinette answered as she looked at

“Point of clarity, why did you believe that Lila is a liar?” Louise asked and Marinette went silent. “If it’s just what you believe about her its fine, sometimes we get feelings we can’t explain but please clarify your belief.”

Marinette looked at Adrien before she hardened her eyes. “I know Lila is a liar and a thief. A few months ago when she first came back I saw her take a book from Adrien, buy something at a store and throw it in the trash so he wouldn’t see her with it.” Marinette said causing Adrien to stare at her.

“A book, my father’s book, the one that he took me out of school for losing, Lila was the one who lost it?! You were the person who brought it back?!” Adrien exclaimed as he looked at her before blushing and turning away as everyone looked at him.

“Yes and I was in passing by the park when Ladybug confronted her about her lies. I was going to give it back to you the next day and tell you that you dropped it in the Library but then, well your father pulled your from school.” Marinette said as she hung her head. “So after I saw that I had enough skepticism not to trust everything she said at face value.”

“We’ll talk about that later, what happened next with Lila today?” Louise asked as Marinette looked at him.

“I told Lila that she wouldn’t win, that I wouldn’t fall for any of her traps and she said I did and then she walked down the stairs, sat down and made a commotion about how I had pushed her down the stairs.” Marinette replied as Louise tried to keep his temper down.

“Point of interest, at no time were any of the camera’s that the school is required to have had checked at all? And what about this Lila’s mother, was she contacted and was she sent to the nurse at least?” Louise inquired, his eyes twitching a little as Marinette shook her head.

“They never checked and she wasn’t sent, they all just followed after Lila to my locker, a locker I only use to hold my coats and projects since none of all have a lock on them.” Marinette said as Louise nodded at her. “And they contact my parents but Lila’s was unable to be reached, they left five messages as far as I know.”

“Thank you Miss Marinette; that’s all I’ll need for this case, I will bring around paperwork that basicly says the sequence of events that you explained and have yourself and you’re parents sign them and that should be it. This has been Louise Artoga, recording Madame Marinette Dupain-Chang.” Louise said as he turned off the phone’s camera and picked it up and started to look over the file, they could hear the sounds of Louise or Marinette’s voice and he nodded. “Thank you that should be all I need. With this and the Adrien’s matter I think I’ll have a good few days of work to do. Now on your case, once I get to the board of education I think everything should be straightened out, but it might be best to wait a day, just so it’s not been filed as a suspension and it was the heat of the moment and all, if nothing comes tomorrow then I’ll move in. And now let’s talk about Lila, with the video a Miss Sabrina has I think we could sue her for slander and making that threat.”

Marinette gulped and looked at her father and mother who both went still and turned towards her as what Louise said penetrated their brains. Louise winced as he realized that she hadn’t told her parents the same time as Adrien did and they both winced at what.

“What threat?” Tom asked quietly as Marinette just looked at the table and stayed silent.

“Who threatened my daughter!?” Sabine asked as Adrien looked up and motioned to Louise to let him talk.

“It’s a long story, but may I can explain if Marinette lets me.” Adiren said prompting Marinette to nod at him. “From what I found out Lila corned Marinette in a bathroom the day she came back and threatened to take away all her friends and after that I gave her advice to take the high road, not confront Lila about her lying.”

“Why did you tell Marinette not to confront her after she threatened my daughter.” Sabine asked coldly as Adrien looked down ashamed.

“Because I thought Lila summoned the Akuma that got her from my talk with her. And her first actions as a shape-shifter was to try and ruin my social life! I didn’t want to think what would happen if she summed one when she wanted to hurt Marinette as the trigger!” Adrien explained as he held his hands up. “Of course idiot that I was I didn’t explain it, I didn’t want to take a chance that Marinette would get hurt, I never knew about the threat!”

“Oh, so you were trying to protect her but didn’t know about she had been threatened.” Sabine said as Tom’s rage died down and he understood why Adrien had done what he did.

“Kid was raised to ignore lies the tablods said, do it and they die, like Tinkerbell, don’t act out and they die.” Louise said with a sigh. Tom looked at Marinette as his wife hugged her and frowned.

“Wait, you thought Lila had summoned the Akuma? But wait if she didn’t summon it ….then who did?” Tom asked and Adrien went wide eyes and looked around, trying to find anything to say when Marinette spoke up.

“Me.” Marinette said softly from within her mother’s arms causing Sabine to look down at her daughter as she closed her eyes. “I was so scared she could do it. She had them eating out of her hands, she even convicted Max that a thrown napkin could have taken out his eye and he wears glasses.”

“I can’t even, I don’t even know where to…..just I can’t…. is she serious?” Louise asked as looked at Adrien in shock and when Adrien nodded as Marinette’s parents comforted her Louis sat there stunned. Okay, getting that bitch sued is gonna be a public service and probably improve the intelligence of all those kids! Louise thought as he hung his head in disgust.

“Ohhhh Marinette, I’m sorry that we never noticed how you were feeling! I should have, I don’t know!” Sabine said as she hugged Marinette and before suddenly she went still. “And those idiots at that school never even noticed, no they didn’t want to see!”

“Kid, I don’t know but after the paperwork’s filed maybe you should look for a different school.” Louise said into the table as he put his head on it.

“Wait, why would Adrien look for a different school? After all that he did to make it into school in the first place…..and what paperwork?” Marinette asked as Louise looked up at her before paling as he realized what he had let slip. Adrien spoke up and caused all of them to look at him.

“I’m suing my father for not paying me for my work, the contracts I never signed and emotional abuse while going for emancipation or having myself removed from his control.” Adrien said flatly. “The fact that he might have told Lila to do that, that he gave her a modeling contract and might have even hinted that I might be a prize to her, it’s too much, he crossed a line I didn’t even know I had.”

“Oh Adrien, I’m sorry you were pushed to do this.” Marinette said as she looked at him as her parents looked on with concern, knowing from their interactions with him that he probably hadn’t want to do this but felt he had to.

“I thought he was going around, that we had started to heal our relationship, especially after my birthday when I got that scarf from him.” Adrien said as closed his eyes.

Louse went still when he saw Marinette wince, things connecting in his mind that didn’t paint a good picture. Please, please don’t tell me. He thought with a sinking feeling as he asked what he didn’t want to. “Scarf, what scarf?”

“A blue scarf that dad made with his own hands, I thought that maybe he was trying and……… what is it?” Adrien asked as he saw Sabine and Tom exchange a look and turn to Marinette who looked down as Louise held his head.

“Adrien, do you have any picture of it?” Tom asked as he turned to look at Adrien as he started to get a sinking feeling.

“Yeah, I did a selfie with Nino a few days after I got it and here it is.” Adrien said as he pulled up the photo and turned it around and Tom sighed and Sabine closed her eyes. “What’s wrong?”

“Ask your friend kid, ask her.” Louise said around his hands and he turned to Marinette, who looked up,

“I made it.” Marinette said softly. “When you came to school so happy that you thought that he had put the effort into making it by hand, I couldn’t take that from you...”

Adrien stared at her and he saw red, the sheer gull of what his father….what Gabriel had done causing him to lose focus and he felt so dizzy.

“Adrien, Adrien are you okay?” Sabine asked as she got up and Adrien shot to his feet as he held his hands to his mouth. “Oh hell. Tom! Open the door!”

“Got it, Marinette help you mother!” Tom said as he shot up and opened a door as Marinette and Sabine guided Adrien to the room which was revealed to be a bathroom.

Louise just sat there and shook his head and winced as he heard Adrien throw up in the bathroom and he knew he would have to mention this to the social worker. Maybe it would be better to do it here, Nathalie wouldn’t look for him here and whoever they send could be in plain clothing and get around his eyes. Louise thought as he looked at Tom and Sabine watch the door as Marinette rushed to the kitchen to get a glass of water. “Tom, Sabine would you two mind if I called the social worker I sent the email to and have them come here, it might be helpful for Adiren.”

“Please, the boy needs to know that not everyone is against him and what Gabriel did, I can’t even imagine.” Tom said as Louise smiled and sent off a text.

“It’s taking all I have not to get my staff and go beat him up!” Sabine bit out as she glared towards the Agreste mansion. “To have that little bitch hurt my daughter, but to have sold his son?!”

“I’m tempted to get a sledgehammer and join you.” Louise said with a sigh as he shook his head. His phone buzzed and he looked down and up at Tom and Sabine. “The Agent is nearby, and would like to get an initial statement from him, there are already a few red flags based on the paperwork and well, she wants to meet soon.”

Tom and Sabine shared a look at each other and looked at the bathroom and after a few minutes looking at each other Sabine knocked on the door.

“Adrien, are you okay? The agent from child Services texted Louise, they want to meet soon. If you’re not up for it there’s nothing wrong with waiting.” Sabine said before they heard a toilet flush and the door open to reveal Adrien whipping his mouth with the back of his hand.

“No, I want to get this done with and close off any chance of that monster from getting around this.” Adrien said as he clenched his hands. I thought you were just hard to understand and had a hard time with emotions but this, dad this is the last freaking straw! Adrien thought as he tried to get his emotions back under control. He felt Plagg press against him and hide a smile. If I didn’t have Plagg, Chloe and my lady to help me, I don’t know what I would be. Probably broken beyond all points by now, if I didn’t have Plagg and my lady to inspire me I wouldn’t have snuck out on that second day to school. Adrien thought as he accepted a cup of water from Marinette and smiled at her before he drank it, not seeing her blush or her parents grin as Louise chuckled at the byplay.

#miraculous: tales of ladybug & cat noir adrien Fanfiction #ml fic #miraculous au #miraculous tales of ladybug and cat noir #adrien x marinette #chloe redemption #lila bashing #lila rossi bashing #mlb sugar #mlb fic #mlb fandom #Miraculous Ladybug AU/ The Law is The Law

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chocoluckchipz · 4 years ago

Text

The Other You - 7

Read it on A03, FF.net, WattPad

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Chapter by Maerynn

The first morning Marinette woke up in Chat Noir's mother's apartment, the most accurate word to describe how she was feeling would be "awkward".

Chat had carefully wiped the apartment of any hints of his mother's identity before bringing her here, but Marinette still felt as if she was invading this faceless woman's privacy. Sleeping in her sheets, showering in her bathroom, cooking with her appliances, leafing through her books. And yet, she couldn't help but love it. Marinette knew it was wrong, that she was playing with fire and jeopardizing her own identity, but by living in his late mother's apartment, she felt closer to her partner.

Laying on her back in that wide bed, Marinette found herself wondering what kind of child her partner had been. Had he crawled into his mother's bed at night, claiming to have nightmares to be allowed to sleep in that very same bed? Was he a picky eater, forcing his mother to deploy ingenuity to have him eat his broccoli? Was he the kind of little boy to get into trouble every day or, on the contrary, was he a little angel?

As she stretched out on the comfortable mattress, his ridiculous rent fee came back to her mind—a meal. It was kind of cute, in a way. Yet that obnoxious kitty had to go and ask for the single thing she didn't have to spare: time. Luckily though, being a daughter of two bakers, Marinette had a few quick but tasty recipes up her sleeve, and would probably be able to cater to her partner's culinary needs.

Reluctantly tearing herself from the sheets, she ventured into the kitchen and opened the fridge. Chat Noir was definitely a really thoughtful man. Even though the apartment hadn't been inhabited for the past few years, the fridge was fully stocked with everything she could ever possibly need to cook delicious meals for both of them. Various fresh meat and fish, vegetables, multiple kinds of fruit, and seasonings were waiting for her. The pantry hadn't been forgotten, bursting with spices, crackers, and every possible type of oil, flour, and sugar she would ever wish to use.

With a fond smile dancing on her lips, Marinette wrote a quick list of the supplies she would need to feed her silly kitty over the course of the next week, marveling once again at the apparent infinite kindness of her partner. Why would he go out of his way like this for a girl he hadn't seen in years?

The idea that he was ready to go to such lengths for a long-lost friend made her heart clench painfully in her chest out of longing. Because if she was entirely honest with herself, Marinette wanted more out of their relationship. Way more. She was done hiding behind masks, done playing games. Yet, this recent development had thrown some sand in the gears. How could she reveal herself to him now? He would know what a complete failure she was, would know she had kissed him out of sheer selfishness, would know she had been on the receiving end of his kindness without offering anything back.

No. Keeping her identity to herself, at least up until she could manage to look in the mirror again, was a safer bargain.

She was almost done with her grocery list when her phone chimed on the countertop beside her.

Alya: Please. Let's just talk. Nothing else, I promise. No questions. I just need to see you to make sure you're alright.

Marinette groaned. One would think that if someone wasn't answering your calls and texts for a week, one would give up until that person is ready to reach back. Not Alya. She kept trying, again and again, all while Marinette hesitated. On one hand, she really wanted to avoid revisiting all the issues they had, much less having to explain her new living arrangement. But another part of her, the one that was currently lonely and lost, wanted her best friend back, no matter the cost.

So she shook her head and grabbed her phone before she could change her mind.

Marinette: I'm free around noon.

Alya: Works for me. Usual spot?

That was how Marinette found herself sitting in the café they liked to frequent, nervously sipping on a vanilla latte.

Alya came in right on time, taking a seat in front of her best friend without even bothering to order a drink but not before wrapping her arms around Marinette in a tight hug.

"Okay," Alya said in a soft voice, "I know we have a bunch of things to talk through, and we'll come to it, but first I wanna know if you're safe. A little birdie told me you were sleeping in your office, and I won't let—"

"I was," Marinette cut her rambling short. She knew she had worried Alya sick, that her famous mama bear instincts had kicked in the second Marinette had walked out the apartment. "But I'm not anymore."

"What?" Alya squealed. "Are you homeless? Where is all your stuff? Hang on, I'm going to call Nino and—"

"Alya, stop." Marinette smiled softly to herself, her heart warming up despite herself thinking of her current living arrangements. "I'm staying at a friend's place, that's all you need to know for the time being."

Her best friend eyed her critically, from head to toe. "Who? I know for a fact that you aren't staying with Rose and Juleka or Mylene. Who else could you stay with?"

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you more than that right now," Marinette sighed. "But it's not someone you know personally, and I really can't say anything."

"Are you sure you can trust this new roommate of yours? How come I have never heard of them before? This whole 'can't tell' sounds a bit fishy, don't you think?"

Marinette sipped on her latte, a fond smile spread on her lips. "I trust him with my life, Al. And he's not living with me, he just lent me somewhere to stay until I get back on my feet."

"So this mysterious friend is a he. Mari, you can't possibly be that naive. He'll expect something in return."

"No. Don't worry, Alya. Not him. He already has someone in his life, anyway."

Marinette could almost picture Tikki rolling her eyes in her purse upon hearing those words, and she had to repress a giggle. In front of her, Alya merely frowned, looking at her friend intently.

At last, seemingly reaching a decision, Alya sighed, "Look, I'm sorry, Mari. I should've realized you were stressed out much more than you let on, and instead of supporting you like a best friend should, I just yelled at you and kept putting pressure on you."

"You've had stuff going on too, with the wedding and everything," Marinette said softly.

Her best friend huffed, looking down at her clasped hands in her lap. "That's no excuse. You clearly needed someone to lean on, and I failed you. Marinette, please come back to the apartment, it's yours as much as it's mine."

The young woman couldn't help the smile that spread on her lips. This was the Alya she knew and loved. The one taking charge of everything, making sure everything was alright, caring for her friends more than herself.

"I can't, Al. You and Nino are gonna be married in a few months, I'm not gonna third-wheel you guys forever. I'm going to be fine."

The frown still lingering on Alya's face was eloquent on its own. She was still worried sick about her friend, worries that had been growing for quite a long time now. "Why don't you quit that sinking job then? Everyone's quitting; it's all over the newspapers."

"I can't quit." Marinette tried to ignore the knot tying her throat up, focusing on explaining herself, at last giving some sort of sense to her actions. "I didn't complete my degree at ESMOD, if you recall. Gabriel pulled me out of school midway, said it was a waste of time and money, that he'd show me everything I'd need to know. And without a degree, I don't really have a bright future unless I prove myself with this new collection—"

"And with him gone that's your only option," Alya ended for her. "Okay. So there's a dude at work that owes me a big favour for conveniently forgetting to mention to his wife he lost his wedding band. I might be able to score you a four-page spread covering the next Gabriel fashion show. Do you think there might be a way to have the months you spent working for Gabriel recognized by ESMOD? I mean, you have paychecks to prove your experience, and definitely the skills to own up to it. Whose ass do I have to kick or kiss to get you your degree?"

Marinette lifted wet eyes toward her friend. Alya had always had her back, through thick and thin, and for a minute, she wondered how she could have let herself forget that. At a loss for words, she ultimately mumbled weakly, "Why would you even help me?"

Alya scoffed, looking at her best friend disbelievingly. "You're my best friend, Mari, and I love you to pieces. Obviously I'm gonna help you tear yourself out of that dump."

***

That same day Marinette stood outside of Adrien's office, sighing softly to herself.

After her talk with Alya, she had devised a bunch of things she had to take care of right away to salvage what was left of her name.

And Gabriel's women's line was among them.

Clutching the heavy folder to her chest, Marinette raised her fist and landed two sharp knocks on the door, her heart beating heavily within her ribcage.

"Come in," Adrien's familiar voice compelled her, tossing all of her worries aside. No matter how she felt, no matter how hurt and lost she was, Gabriel Agreste was gone and there was no one who could help her right now but herself. She had to carry on his legacy and in the process help herself even if it meant dealing with a man she'd rather not even see right now. All that was needed was to be a professional, and that she was.

Taking in a hefty breath, she pushed the heavy door. "Good evening, M Agreste."

"Marinette?" Adrien blinked. He seemed a bit tired. "What can I help you with?"

"I have a favour to ask of you."

Adrien straightened up in his chair, staring at her curiously. He seemed to search his words for a few seconds, before replying disbelievingly, "A favour from me?"

If they were still friends Marinette would almost certainly have giggled, seeing his dumbstruck face, how his hand was still clutching the pen that had halted its course on the paper. But as of now, they weren't, so her face remained emotionless. Yet, for the first time since crossing paths with him again, she really paid attention to him. Saw the dark circles underlining his familiar green eyes behind his glasses. Saw how his hair was wildly swept back, sticking out in every direction. Saw how wrinkled his shirt was, saw how poorly his tie knot had been done.

He looked exhausted, at his wits' end.

He looked broken. Just like her.

Immediately Marinette shook those thoughts away. She was here on a mission, and couldn't let wandering thoughts distract her.

"I need some papers from your father's office in order to proceed with some of the designs. Would you be kind enough to retrieve them for me?"

If he looked surprised a minute before, now Adrien was looking completely dumbfounded. "You have full access to his office at any given time, why would you need me for something like this?"

Shaking her head, Marinette pushed the heavy file on his desk. She couldn't help but notice physics exams scattered through legal documents in front of him. "The designs I need are most likely kept in his personal office at the mansion. I scoured his entire office here without any success."

"The mansion?" Adrien's eyes widened. For a moment he remained silent before quietly adding. "I'm sorry, Marinette, ask me anything but this. I haven't been there since I moved out."

"Maybe you could send someone trustworthy on your behalf then?" She sighed. This conversation wasn't going in the direction she would've liked. "Listen, I understand that going back there might be hard for you emotionally, but those last few designs were the best pieces of the line. If I want to succeed, I need them."

Adrien stared at her for what felt like an eternity. "You need them that much?"

"Desperately."

Raking his hands through his hair, Adrien dropped his pen on the desk beside him and pulled the file she had given him closer. "So, those are the designs you need?" he asked quietly, the traces of uncertainty still lingering in his eyes.

"Yes, those are only preliminary sketches I drew for him in a creative meeting. He should have the final designs with all the specs in his personal files. If I want to meet the deadlines, I need those files. I can't start over from scratch on time."

"Alright," Adrien sighed softly, "I'll get them for you. If they're really in that office, you'll have your designs first thing Monday morning."

A sigh of relief escaped Marinette's lips as his lips twitched into a tiny smile. At that moment she clearly understood that this was an olive branch, offered to her to try and make peace between them after years of a feud that had lasted way too long. She wasn't sure, though, if she was ready to accept it yet.

As she reached forward, shaking his hand firmly while thanking him as professionally as she could, Marinette couldn't help but suddenly wonder if a teenager's mistake was worth ostracizing an adult who had just suffered the loss of his last relative and had had a withering fashion empire thrust upon him without warning, an empire he neither asked for nor wanted to deal with. Walking out of that office, she also found herself thinking that even if she wasn't quite ready to forgive him his past cruel actions, maybe, just maybe, Adrien Agreste wasn't as horrible as she thought he was.

Next >

#miraculous ladybug #adrienette #marichat #aged up #ml fanfiction #the other you #myart #my art

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hateswifi · 5 years ago

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Rising from the Ashes: Of Second Meetings and Mysteries

So this is Part Six here is to my Master List and Part Five.

-------------------------------------------------------

Marinette got up, went to work. Everything was normal a couple more customers than yesterday. Diana closed early because she was going to see family today she closed at three o’clock. After work, she headed home and ate a small snack before the driver arrived. She got into the car quietly and quickly

“Hello, Miss Marinette. I am Wayne’s butler and friend, Alfred Pennyworth,” Alfred said from the front.

“Hi, Monsieur Pennyworth. Thank you for the ride,” Marinette responded with a smile.

“It is no problem and please call me Alfred. That’s what the rest of the boys call me. Speaking of the boys, they're excited to see you again,” he said. Now ten minutes later they pull into a house, well not exactly a house but more like a mansion. The mansion was big, dark, and ominous. “Welcome to Wayne Manor, Miss Marinette. Please make yourself at home for the time you’re staying.”

“Thank you, Monsieur Alfred,” Marinette says, following him into the house. “Would you be able to show me where the last boy is? I’m sorry I was never told his name.”

“The young Master is this way, please follow,” Alfred said, walking down a long hallway. “Last time I saw all the boys were in the parlor. They were playing Ultimate Mega Strike Four. Have you heard of it?”

“I love that game! I grew up playing Ultimate Mega Strike Three. I also won the competition that my school participated in,” Marinette said, happily.

“Well they’re right in here,” Alred said, opening the door. “Boys, Miss Marinette is here. Damian, are you ready for your fitting?”

“Damian?” Marinette asks, looking closer at the boys. She realized it was her mystery first friend. She blushes remembering her conversation with Dick, Jason, and Todd. “You guys were with more for more than an hour yesterday and did it not cross your mind to tell me that he is your brother?”

“Nope. Did you say, Damian? Ohhhh… you mean Demon Spawn,” Jason smirked, wrapping an arm around Damian's shoulders.

“Marinette? You’re doing my measurements?” Damian asked shrugging off Jason’s arm.

“Diana asked me to come over after work, she’s visiting her family,” Marinette smiles. “You ready for me to take your measurements?”

“I’m sure he wants to give you more than just his measurements,” Dick laughs, Marinette blushes as Damian slaps him. “I meant your number, get your mind out of the gutter.”

“Come on we’ll go to my room,” Damian said, grabbing her arm. He leads her to his room, which is quite spacious. He stands in front of his floor length mirror.

“You know Dick was right about one thing,” Marinette said, measure his shoulder blades lightly touching his back.

“What… what is that, Angel?” Damian asked, turning his head towards the small girl.

“Angel?” Marinette squeaks, surprised by his nickname for her.

“Sadly, an angel without wings, but even after you got tackled by Titus you tried to pay for my meal,” he turned to look at her then leaned in a whispered. “Plus my brothers told me what you said about me.”

Marinette backs up flustered. “Well, you are incredibly nice, caring, and extremely handsome.” She says, wrapping the measuring tape around his chest to measure it, but was closer than she needed to be.

“Well what I wanted to give you the day we had breakfast was my number, but you ran off before I could give it to you,” she said, measuring his arm.

“I wanted to give you my number as well but Dick called me to remind me about a meeting,” he said, smiling. “Angel, I was disappointed when I left you. Dick suggested to do a modern Cinderella, but I was embarrassed, especially after what Jason posted.”

“What did Jason post?” Marinette asked, backing up so she could see his whole face.

“You didn’t see the picture? Oh right, you probably haven’t gotten into Gotham news yet,” Damian said. “He posted a picture of me holding a door open for you.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Marinette asked, crossing her arms.

“Well I’m famous because of my father and I’m seen as the ‘Ice Prince’ of Gotham because I’m cold to most people,” Damian explained.

“That’s what the guy at the grocery store meant,” Marinette realized. “I finished measuring you. I guess I should be going.”

“I overheard what you told Alfred in the hall, do you want to play Ultimate Mecha Strike and maybe stay for dinner? Umm… my brothers like having you around as do I,” Damian offered, grabbing one of her petite hands.

“That would be wonderful by the way can I see your phone before I forget?” Marinette asks. He gives her his phone, she types her number in once she hands it back he names her contact Angel. She gives him her phone so she can put his number in.

They walk out and join the rest of the boys, when they got there Dick was facing off against Tim. After a few minutes, Tim’s character died and Dick celebrates.

“Ok Dick, I’m going to beat you, but don’t be salty when you lose,” Marinette said, taking Tim’s controller then sits down next to Damian.

“Sunshine not gonna lie, I feel like I’m being threatened by a cupcake because those are some bold words coming from such a small person,” Dick says, nonchalantly.

She doesn’t respond, but once the game starts she knows that Dick realizes he’s about to eat his words. She’s better at the game than the boys thought she would be. After losing three times to Marinette, he grumbles at the loss and crosses his arms while sitting down on the couch, he was being overdramatic. The rest of the boys laugh at Dick’s antics.

“Damian, where’d you find your girlfriend?” Tim asks, shocked that someone had beaten Dick the master of games.

“First off, she’s not my girlfriend. Secondly, she’s from Paris,” Damian smiled, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

“Sure, you’re not dating at all,” Jason sarcastically replied with a snigger and an eye-roll.

Marinette’s phone ringing interrupted Damian before he could respond. She smiles widely; Adrien was video calling her. “Do you guys mind?” Marinette asks.

“Nope, not a problem. You can answer it right here if you want,” Jason said.

“Cool thanks guy,” Marinette smiles, brightly.

“Buginette! You promised to call!” Adrien exclaimed, putting his face super close to the camera.

“I had work today and yesterday. Plus you had school and countless other activities Gabriel has you doing,” Marinette justifies her actions.

“Mar calm down I’m messing,” Adrien laughs but stops hearing the game. “Are you playing Ultimate Mecha Strike without me!? Mewouch Buginette you wound me.”

“Calm down I was just kicking Dick’s butt,” Marinette laughs.

“This literally ray of sunshine killed me three times,” Dick cries, pushing his way into the frame.

“So this is one of my best friends and part of my family, his name is Adrien Agreste. This is Dick Grayson,” Marinette introduces.

“Take care of my Buginette,” Adrien says with a wave.

“I’ll take care of the literal sunshine that stumbled into all of our lives,” Dick smiles back as Tim and Jason come up behind the couch. Marinette moves her hand back so everyone, including Damian, is in the frame.

“Oh my gosh! Bug is that the boy you told Chloe about!” Adrien screamed, trying to point towards Damian, who still has his arm wrapped around her. Tim and Jason sat back down and Dick moved back to play more games.

“Chaton! Aren’t you and Kagami supposed to be at a match it is Thursday night,” Marinette asks, looking at the time: five.

“Bug, it’s already eleven here,” Adrien yawns falling onto his bed.

“That’s why I’m so tired,” Marinette yawns also.

“You should come home soon,” Adrien complains.

“I haven’t even been gone a week and while I’m there I don’t want to be someone I’m not,” Marinette sighs. “I’ll probably be back for Chinese New Year though to honor my parents. I’ll let you know when I have a plan.”

“Night Mar, just know Paris isn’t as bright with you not here,” Adrien says, sadly. “Luka misses you too. Chloe was angry, but it’s because she’s just dealing with it differently.”

“I understand bye Adrien love you. Hug everyone for me,” Marinette waves.

“Byeee!” He finishes as he hangs up.

Marinette puts her head on Damian’s shoulder.

“It’s good that you have supportive friends,” Damian states.

“Ya, I miss them a lot. Chloe got angry last night and hung up on me because she doesn’t deal with her sadness by getting angry almost like a self-defense mechanism. Luka is a mellow person, but I haven’t talked to him since Monday. Kagami is lovably awkward. I think she shuts down a bit with grief,” Marinette explains. She then stands up while saying. “I think I’m going to head to my apart because in Paris, as Adrien said, it’s quite late. Luckily for me, Diana is going into work later than normal because she returning from her family.”

“Can I show you the way out?” Damian asks, standing as well.

“That would be lovely,” Marinette said then turned to look at the rest of the boys as she left. “Bye guys it was nice seeing you again.”

“Wait, are you having someone drive you home?” Damian asks, catching her hand before she could walk out the now open door.

“I feel like walking. It’s been two weeks since I’ve been on a nice long walk. I’ll text you when I get home,” Marinette says, hugging Damian. She then waved as she walked out.

Once she was a good distance away from the manor she transformed. She loved the feeling of wind in her hair. She swung up to the tallest building, Wayne Enterprises, and sat on top looking over the foreign city. Not long after she looked over the city she heard footsteps land and crunch in the snow behind.

She jumps up and is in a fighting position as she demands. “Announce yourself.”

“I could say the same to you,” a deep voice says from the other side of the building that was somehow shadowy.

“Stop it, be nice,” another voice answers, then steps into view. “I’m Red Hood.”

“I’m Ladybug,” Marinette responds, dropping her stance. The other person steps into view. “You look like a traffic light. Seriously? Who wears yellow, green, red, and black?”

“Hey! That’s was my suit design!” Nightwing tries to defend himself.

“How old were you when you designed it,” Marinette deadpanned, crossing her arms.

“Twelve,” the traffic light boy said. “Wearing this costume is a right of passage and the name is Robin. Your concept isn’t much better. Seriously a ladybug?”

“Master chose to give me this miraculous; I didn’t have a choice. But I’m quite fond of the spots thought and I’m pretty sure I needed Tikki’s luck back when I first got the miraculous,” Marinette said, backing up. “Well, it was nice meeting you guys.” She then jumped off the building. Robin and Nightwing ran to the edge and saw her catch herself with her yo-yo.

“A yo-yo? Is she an actual child?” Robin sighed. “Do we even know if she is a hero?”

“Red Robin, Ladybug is her name. Find out everything you can about her,” Nightwing states into his comm.

They finished their patrol quickly and headed back to the manor. He received a text from his Angel that told him that she made it home fine.

Tim has information on the hero when they made to the Batcave. “She is from Paris.”

“Was she one of the heroes that banned all supers from entering Paris?” Jason asks, pulling up a chair, he sat back facing the computer with his leg on either side. He had come to the Batcave when he had heard of the new to Gotham hero.

“Yes that was her and for good reason,” Tim says while pulling up the video. “This announcement made a little over two and a half years ago.”

A young Ladybug stood in front of Le Grand Paris Hotel while speaking into the crowd and cameras. “To all supers, we had previously reached out to, we no longer want any help from any superheroes besides the ones of either Chat Noir or my own choosing.’

“If akumatized, we don’t know how we would deal with superpowers on top of Hawkmoth’s powers. For the good of Paris do not enter here till further notice,” Chat Noir says. “Not only would the power be unbearable, but Hawkmoth would also know everything you know, including any secret identities. Thank you for all of your patients, have a good rest of your day,” he finishes before him and the young Ladybug jump off the scene.

“They look so young,” Dick says, leaning on the back of Tim’s chair.

“That’s because they were that young. Ladybug, now, couldn’t be any older than me. That means that, if Chat Noir is the same age, they started with this Hawkmoth bull when they were thirteen or fourteen. That god damn city put their faith in teenagers barely in high school,” Damian says, looking closer at the video.

“That’s not right,” Dick says, shaking his head.

“At least we had the choice, but who chooses to be a city’s only hope against the unknown?” Jason says, putting his head on his hands that were resting on the chair’s back.

“They recently defeated the terrorist, who was a miraculous holder named Hawkmoth. He had been terrorizing Paris for three years. Her partners’ names are Chat Noir, Ryuko, Viperon, and Queen Bee, they still do patrols and help with petty crimes. She had more partners, now retired never told why, but their names were Carapace and Rena Rouge, they haven’t been seen in two years. Chat Noir gave a statement earlier this week saying that Ladybug has left, but would be back sometimes or if Paris was in danger. She was last seen at a house fire of the Dupain-Cheng’s house and Bakery all people died. Only two bodies were found,” Tim summed up, looking at his brothers.

“What’s Marinette’s last name?” Jason asked, looking at Damian.

“Dupain-Cheng? But she said she was an only child,” Damian thought sitting down in a chair beside Tim.

“She is by these pictures, but it says three dead,” Tim said pulling up the picture of her family standing out front of the bakery, this was back when she wore her hair in pigtails.

“She said she didn’t want to talk about her past during the measurements,” Jason said. “Does everyone think she’s dead?”

“That’s true, right here, an article says all the Dupain-Chengs died in the fire two weeks ago on Saturday and were buried last week Sunday,” Tim said, scrolling through the article.

“But she’s clearly alive, why would she move?” Jason asked, standing

“But more importantly there’s a connection between her and Ladybug. Wait… blue hair and eyes, petite figure. They were both last seen, well accounted for at the fire” Damian said.

“They’re the same person, both from Paris and they were last seen around the same time. Both, Ladybug and Marinette, had a reason to run even if we don’t know what that reason is just yet,” Tim said.

“Seriously, even Damian’s girlfriend is special? Why can’t we meet normal people?” Jason said, throwing up his hands and left the Batcave.

“I’ll ask her about it next time I see her,” Damian said, leaving the Batcave as well.

------------------------------------

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mittensmorgul · 5 years ago

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Today on the TNT loop, a wonderful direct callback to 15.09 and 15.10, via 4.15, 4.16 and 4.17...

I need to start out by reminding everyone that the entire purpose of s4 was to manipulate Sam and Dean into “playing their roles,” even before they knew their roles existed as roles. Cosmically fated to act out a specific story for the entertainment of a bored God. Remember, they’re about to learn of the existence of “Chuck the Prophet” who’s been writing their lives down, in explicit detail, and publishing them as a series of pulpy horror novels. Hooray, 4.18, up next for me.

But I really need to pause here, because the sort of manipulations that Sam and Dean suffered through in 15.10, while I’ve already pointed out a lot of other “silly” episodes they referenced:

https://mittensmorgul.tumblr.com/post/190430063655/mittensmorgul-episodes-i-expect-1510-to-remind

I’m gonna now add 4.17 to that list, too, because holy HECK.

Remember the setup to this episode? 4.15 and 4.16 both? Where Dean had been DIRECTLY MANIPULATED into stopping Alistair from breaking another seal-- to “kill death twice” by ritually murdering two reapers-- a hunt that Cas “tricked” Sam and Dean into taking on by literally making them think that Bobby had sent them on that hunt.

Then 4.16 used Uriel to manipulate both Dean AND Cas into believing they needed to torture information out of Alistair. The goal was to break both Dean AND Cas here, because Uriel knew all along that Alistair was literally just a distraction, a diversion from his own actions, recruiting angels for Team Lucifer and murdering those who refused to join him. But also breaking Dean’s will to just... do what he’s told. Because Dean himself was never destined to be anything more than a tool to Heaven, a vessel for Michael to wear to the apocalypse. Of course, Dean didn’t know any of that yet, and neither did Cas. He knew Dean was “important,” but truly didn’t know why.

At the end of 4.16, lying in a hospital bed, Dean felt hopeless:

Castiel: It's not blame that falls on you, Dean, it's fate. The righteous man who begins it is the only one who can finish it. You have to stop it. Dean: Lucifer? The Apocalypse? What does that mean? Hey! Don't you go disappearing on me, you son of a bitch. What does that mean! Castiel: I don't know. Dean: Bull. Castiel: I don't. Dean, they don't tell me much. I know our fate rests with you. Dean: Well, then you guys are screwed. I can't do it, Cas. It's too big. Alastair was right. I'm not all here. I'm not—I'm not strong enough. Well, I guess I'm not the man either of our dads wanted me to be. Find someone else. It's not me.

Tell me this isn’t super similar to his state earlier in s15. Let’s say... at the beginning of 15.06, holed up in his room in his bathrobe, bingewatching tv shows and eating cereal directly from the box. By the end of the episode, he still wasn’t sure what was real and what was Chuck’s doing in his life, and he’s absolutely right to question that, given his lifetime of experience being manipulated in exactly this way by higher cosmic powers.

In 4.17, that higher cosmic power was Zachariah, literally giving Sam and Dean alternate memories and directly inserting them into entirely different lives to prove a point. In 4.17, the Winchesters had their lifetime of knowledge of the Supernatural excised from them-- and even all the practicalities of hunting like “how to buy guns,” and “how salt can repel ghosts,” and “how to fight.” Throughout the episode they were forced to re-learn all of these skills for themselves, ironically using Ghostfacers videos about ghost hunting that directly referenced information that the Ghostfacers had learned from “The Winchesters.” Very much like how the Winchesters were “depowered” in 15.10, and yet... they were saved because of their prior relationship WITH GARTH, in which they had not only saved Garth’s life a couple of times, but had also learned things and imparted knowledge and information TO GARTH in the past.

I guess what I’m attempting to point out here is the direct parallel to Chuck’s active manipulation of Sam and Dean in 15.10. They may not have had their memories removed like Zachariah did to them, but they’ve been reset to a similar sort of “baseline” status where NOTHING they do actually works this time. It’s... it’s almost a perfect inverse of 4.17.

Literally the episode leading up to the first appearance of Chuck The Author in canon.

Tell me Dabb isn’t explicitly suggesting an inverse parallel here, framing everything as Dean’s CHOICE, when it’s been one grand manipulation to pressing him into making that choice through any means necessary-- up to and including direct deceit and false narrative:

Zachariah: Believe me, I had no interest in popping down here into one of these smelly things. But after the unfortunate situation with Uriel, I felt it necessary to pay a visit, get all my ducks in a row. Dean: I am not one of your ducks. Zachariah: Starting with your attitude. Dean: So, what? This was all some sort of a lesson? Is that what you're telling me? Wow. Very creative.

and

Zachariah: I know, I know. You're not strong enough. You're scared. You've got daddy issues. You can't do it, right? Dean: Angel or not, I will stab you in your face. Zachariah: All I'm saying is it's how you look at it. Most folks live and die without moving anything more than the dirt it takes to bury them. You get to change things. Save people, maybe even the world. All the while you drive a classic car and fornicate with women. This isn't a curse. It's a gift. So for God's sakes, Dean, quit whining about it. Look around. There are plenty of fates worse than yours. So are you with me? You wanna go steam yourself another latte? Or are you ready to stand up and be who you really are?

Zachariah KNEW the bigger plan all along. Here he showed Dean an “alternate life” that was entirely manufactured to be a “false choice.” Dean, because of who he is as a person, would never have chosen that corporate falsehood. Just like he rejected Zachariah’s intended lesson in 5.04. And Gabriel’s lesson in 5.08.

Dean... doesn’t want to play his role. His role sucks. It’s a river of crap that would send most people howling to the nuthouse, after all... oh... wait, that’s a direct quote from 5.09, aka another episode where Chuck is directly involved, and directly manipulates them into a hunt... Dean... is not a fan...

But... we also learn something that I still think is true, and that I still think is IMPORTANT to s15. And important to Chuck as a character on this show we’re watching. I really don’t think he’s omniscient. I don’t think he can actually see every possible outcome. I don’t think he can control everything. But I think, and will always think, that because of Free Will, his ability to truly influence the outcome of his story is hindered. Unless he can use everything he CAN manipulate to crush Sam and Dean’s free will... to force them into making choices directly against their own interest, because of their perceived situation, or in this new post 14.20 universe, Chuck’s perceived intent for them.

Sam and Dean (and Cas! remember this was also about his discovery of the “rot” in Heaven, and how he himself had been used and manipulated into helping start the apocalypse) spent s4 thinking they were doing the right thing, because they’d been lied to from the start. When they questioned their path, questioned each other, their actions were met with often comically implausible verging on outright ridiculous situations that nudged them back into this cosmically “destined” series of events.

And Chuck’s history of this is directed at Sam and Dean in different ways-- Sam through the psychological manipulation and emotional angst, and Dean through physically hindering him. Chuck needed to break Sam’s trust in Dean, and replace it with the false belief that he was actually doing the right thing back in s4:

SAM: Dean’s not... he's not Dean lately. Ever since he got out of hell. He needs help. CHUCK: So you got to carry the weight? SAM: Well, he's looked out for me my whole life. I can't return the favor? CHUCK: Yeah, sure you can. I mean, if that's what this is. SAM: What else would it be? CHUCK: I don't know. Maybe the demon blood makes you feel stronger? More in control? SAM: No. That's not true. CHUCK: I'm sorry, Sam. I know it's a terrible burden – feeling that it all rests on your shoulders. SAM: Does it? All rest on my shoulders? CHUCK: That seems to be where the story's headed. SAM: Am I strong enough to stop Lilith tonight? CHUCK: I don't know. I haven't seen that far yet.

Chuck needs to break Sam’s will in 15.09, but Dean? Dean he needed to break his car, break him physically, and break his belief in his own choices and actions. Break his belief in his own identity. Because Dean’s will is not so easily shattered. He’s still willing to punch God in the face, for all of this.

And that’s how we end up with 15.10...

bonus destiel content: Dean’s very first prayer to Cas, ever, is asking him for help to stop Chuck’s prophecy from coming true. Dean question’s Cas’s “mission,” i.e. the thing Dean is unaware Cas has been questioning himself all this time, in the face of Dean’s refusal to just sit around and wait for Chuck’s prophecies to happen to them. Cas supplies him with the bit of information Dean needs to interfere and break the prophecy. I’ve written about the importance of that act before:

https://mittensmorgul.tumblr.com/post/187983341865/i-always-thought-anna-said-only-an-angel-can-kill

(and it bothers the everloving fuck out of me that people still don’t see that Chuck is a flim-flam artist of the highest order, and is the most unreliable narrator in the history of unreliable narrators, because not only is he biased to his own view of the story, he has the power to make the story conform to his own views, even if he can’t fully control each of the characters like glorified puppets)

and then Lizbob has also written about this scene and its import:

https://mittensmorgul.tumblr.com/post/169437649690/elizabethrobertajones-dean-cas-are-in-love-a

which is incredible when paired with Dean’s most recent prayer to Cas in 15.09, not about a problem he needs help fixing, but directly about their relationship... to quote Layla from 1.12, speaking on the subject of prayer, there’s a miracle right there.

#spn 4.15 #spn 4.16 #spn 4.17 #spn 4.18 #spn 15.10 #spn 15.09 #chuck's process #sam sympathizes and dean empathizes #spiders georg of the tnt loop #s15 meta rewatch #destiel #it's spirals all the way down #the scheherazade of supernatural #spn 1.12

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comic-the-adventurer · 5 years ago

Text

The Origin Of The Order [C1]

“Hurry up, Ivor!”

A ginger boy with the name of “Soren” energetically sprang away from the schoolhouse, of the step of the establishment’s staircase, his boots scraping the dirt beneath his soles as he turned around while one foot hit the ground, graceful as could be. In a movement of enthusiasm, his scarf’s loose end waved behind him slightly, cutting through the summer’s air in motion, the same for the drawstrings of his hoodie. It was summer at last! After numerous months of academy, he was remarkably thrilled to have time to sit back, relax and enjoy the stress-free glow! Hell, he was so excited the schoolbell didn’t even ring yet, he ran out a second before the chime went off which would be the signal for the conclusion of class for the ensuing several weeks! He couldn’t wait to play with his good, probably best, friend, “Ivor”--The irony--all throughout the holiday. The two had been good allies since around the beginning of the school-year and ever since then, the pair have always hanged out whenever possible. Because of that, Soren was eager to call out for him in exhilaration and he did just that, soon before the schoolbell rang;

“It’s finally summer vacation!”

- - -

The schoolhouse immediately filled to the brim with children’s cheers and exclamations as the bell fell out. The doors of the school were swinging open. Not a second went by without a younger running out of the building, shouting in glee. Students eagerly rushed down the few stairs onto the ground, some jumping, others running. The delight of the concept of this wonder-filled holiday commenced to the calls of names, footfalls and everything in-between to be let into the atmosphere of this play of an environment twice more than it usually would on any ordinary schoolday, same for the mirth and laughter of the children. In the background, Ivor wasn’t a fan of Soren just running out ahead of him. It was something that happened every day though, so he was used to it. Besides, he knew Soren for a while and if he knew anything about him it was that he was a very energized and enthusiastic person and that nothing he could think of would be able to stop him from his passionate personality and nothing besides isolation ever did, did it, Sorie?

“Soren!” Ivor called out, running up to him, his longer, sable hair in the wind. “It’s not polite to make a friend run!”

“Yes well, the more time we spend in that school, the more time summer is gonna pass by us, Ivor and I for one, am not letting a second of this spectacular vacation pass by!”

“We’re going to be asleep for the majority of it, Soren.”

Ivor reminded his green-eyed friend of that in an eye roll, shortly before he turned to the dirt trail the both of them had always walked aside home, prompting Soren to follow him to the dusty path that led to their home village which they shared. The two accompanied each other on their saunter which wasn’t a short distance from their school but not a long one either. It was good, however, for it gave them more than enough time for the pair to talk, mainly discussing their plans of the ventures and activities they would be doing throughout the season break, exclusively involving only the two of them, alike to how they always did. They weren’t sad about that either. They never needed nor did they have anyone else to be getting in the way of their hang-outs with one another. Ain’t that ironic?

“We could always go to the beach, Ivor.”

“I’ve told you about a million times, Soren! I can’t swim! What I would be doing would be making a laughing stock out of myself!”

“Very well, forgetting the beach...we could...go and explore a cave...!”

“With kitchen knives? I prefer to live, thank you.”

“Ivor, where’s your sense of adventure? I recognize that you like to explore!”

“Well, yes…” Ivor sighed, “Listen Soren, I just...don’t want to get in trouble just as summer is starting, alright?”

“I understand...all that I wish is that you’d lighten up a bit. It’s best we take chances and do things...! Without taking chances...well...life is point–”

Arg! Soren’s vision took a blur briefly in distress as his eyes took a cross in startlement. He shook his head slightly, trying to clear his perception from blear. His hands felt a dirt trail, small pieces of dust clouded his arms throughout. Once his mind was freed from confused he gazed up and saw a boy and a girl before him, standing on the field ahead where the clay route had yet another fork of right and left, the greenery with an overhead carven, numerous feet behind the quad that truthfully looked like something that should be of a world-wonder. Ivor was knelt on one knee next to his gingered friend, though his robe didn’t seem to help his action. The boy who Soren had fumbled into had a shaved head whist the lass had some shorter light brown hair, the bloke’s expression could be said to be unimpressed but a bit mad. The lass was more neutral than anything but clearly expecting someone to say something. You didn’t change one bit, did you, Ellie?

“Do you mind looking where you’re going?” The boy asked with a slightly rude tone but not that he was screaming, the boy brings his hands open-palmed above his head in a sarcastic movement, "Here I am, innocently trying to talk with my friend and you have the nerve to bump into me...!”

The unnamed lass did nothing more than a facepalm at her friend’s play but she didn’t say anything. Soren got to his feet and quickly dusted off any possible dirt that could have came onto his clothes when he fell onto the dusted track and quickly settled the loose end of his scarf back into the place around his neck, how it was beforehand. Ivor stood back up almost in sync of Soren who took a glance at him. Ivor didn’t really seem to be offended or remarkably concerned about Soren’s moderate injury. It was nothing more than a small fall, after all.

“I should have been looking where I was going and I’m sorry I crashed into you,” Soren takes his arms down a bit which were previously at the same height as his head, a surrender-like stance, fingers loosely fixed and opens his eyes, slight sarcasm removed, “You’re not hurt, are you?”

“Yeah, I don’t think a small bump would break my neck, if you didn’t know.”

“Magnus, hear yourself,” The girl stepped up, reaching an arm out, almost cutting off her bandana-wearing friend, “He clearly didn’t mean to.” The lass unpressed shrugs her arms, palms open, “Do you really think that they’re out to get you or something?”

The boy sighed a breath of sass because of his friend’s remark. Nevertheless, he turned gazed back at the ginger and black-haired, looking at a slight angle. The damsel in a dress, for the first time, in the thirty seconds that Soren and Ivor knew the lass, was the one to speak up instead of the bloke she had for an associate. She first did a sigh of the air regarding her dismissal of the event;

“I’m sorry about him.” The girl slightly waves her hands apart, around the same height as her chest, “He can be friendlier but when he remembers that the world doesn’t revolve around him, it starts to make him intolerable.”

“Ellie!” Magnus shouted forcefully to “Ellie,” hands clenched and drawn to his heart. The scene causes Ivor and Soren to have a small laugh as “Ellie” rolled her eyes with a smile of backhand before loosely bringing a hand to just below her throat;

“The name’s Ellegaard, by the way. I habitually go by ‘Ellie,’ though. This is Magnus. AKA, the world’s best rogue.” Ellegaard hastily nods her head down, clenched hand in sync.

“I’m taking that as a compliment!” Magnus announced proudly, both wrists on his hips.

This is yet another case of the kids having a cursory case of laughter while Ellegaard and Ivor shook their heads both donning unimpressed smiles. Honestly, none of them understood if they were laughing at Magnus or with him, though Magnus was wearing a proud beam, therefore, it was likely the ladder if anything. They did seem to have a sense of humour. Perhaps these two aren’t so bad, after all. Given the fact that these two unfamiliar kids gave their names to the duo, Soren took it upon himself to provide him and Ivor their customary introductions, bringing a hand to his chest, talking a bit slowly at first;

“My name is Soren and this is my friend Ivor. Do you two live around here? I have never seen either of you before.”

“Don’t answer, Ellie!” Magnus interrupted, hands hovered above his chest, “They may be creeps...!”

“Stop being so paranoid.”

“The worry can be understandable,” Ivor added quietly, close to interrupting Ellegaard, turning his head slightly aside, an out-of-character thing to say. Nowadays, at least.

Although Ivor spoke this one-liner nearly alike to inaudibly, a wave of hush befell upon each and every one of the kids in result, leaving the sound of a slight breeze and distant, unimportant voices all to the ears of the four. Ivor had single-handedly brought them all to an awkward silence, uncomfortable for all of the children for a few, thin seconds, though it felt like longer before Soren discontinued the inconvenient deadlock on any kind of known social cue with an apprehensive shrug, more to the right and a proposal which he said slowly;

“Perrrrrrhaps we could be friends? Ivor and I were planning some plans for the summer! If you want, you can join us.”

“All I was going to do this summer was study redstone techniques,” Ellegaard raised an arm swiftly as she said that, closing her eyes and raising her shoulders with slight sass, “So, I wouldn’t mind.”

“Yeahhhhhhh, I got nothing better to do either,” Magnus said glinting away with a shrug before turning back to Ellegaard addressing her, “Ellie, we should include Gabe.”

“Gabe?” Ivor asked slowly, tilted head, “Who’s that?”

“Gabriel,” Ellegaard answered, “He’s our friend. He’s likeable.”

“This will be excellent!” Soren exclaimed, clapping his hands together, “Ivor and I were discussing how we were going to go and explore a cave later! You both could come too!”

“I never agreed to that!” Ivor retaliated in a gasp, his hands bitterly closed and brought to his chest. You know something? It’s kind of funny how some people never change even throughout the span of several years.

“Well, if purple-eyed is up to it, so are we,” Magnus asked casually, one hand on his hip, “Where you two wanna meet?”

- - -

The four children processed to discuss their plans to go on an adventure through a cave that same night which wasn’t quite a ways from Ellegaard’s, Magnus’s and “Gabriel’s” village, though their village wasn’t a very far venture from Soren’s and Ivor’s town either, which was good. It might be a dangerous risk, lives might be put in jeopardy but that would mean nothing more than it also being an adventure. After talking it over with one another, Magnus promised to bring wooden swords for the group, Soren promised to bring torches for the four, Ellegaard promised to inform their unseen friend, Gabriel to come along and, most importantly, each kid promised not to tell their parents that evening and go with the other few at nightfall without their parent’s knowledge or consent. Who knew that an adventure could be sparked by a clumsy action? What would happen if Soren wasn’t distracted? Maybe The Order Of The Stone would’ve never existed...! If only, huh?

This is the story of how The Order Of The Stone first began. Their Origin. This Is The Origin Of The Order.

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fantasyfandommaiden · 5 years ago

Text

ML Counsellor AU: Talking with Jagged Stone

Not so much a session as two adults talking shop about mental health, akumas and the magic behind music.

[[MORE]]

Carmine sat in her office during lunch, with the door locked and the radio playing softly in her office as she updated her reports on various students, as well as some of profile on Hawkmoth. There was still not a lot of information to go on, which was frustrating, but unfortunately there wasn’t anything she could do about it.

She perked up slightly when she heard a familiar song come on the radio, smiling as she turned it up ever so slightly to hear it better. It was a classic Jagged Stone song from his first Album, and also one of Carmine’s favourites that she would often listen to, as well as any Jagged Stone song. She began to sing along softly to it as she typed away at her laptop, her work seeming slightly less tedious now.

Her enjoyment was short lived by a very loud, obnoxious knock at the door, causing Carmine to scowl slightly before sighing and turning down the volume as she stood up to open the locked door.

She opened the door, expecting a student, however instead of looking down like she expected she would have to do, she ended up looking up to see none other than Jagged Stone, looking at her and grinning widely.

“Hello!” He said in English, grinning widely “Your Miss. Regal right? The cool psychologist helping the akuma victims right? Was wondering if you had a few minutes to talk?”

Carmine stared at Jagged for a solid five seconds, her face completely neutral of any emotion before she said softly “Sorry, could you give me ten seconds please?” She asked, closing the door as Jagged look at her with a raised brow “Okay?”

Once the door was closed, Carmine’s face broke into a large, ecstatic smile asp Carmine jumped up and down, her arms flailing in excitement as she did everything in her power to not make a sound because ‘OMG JAGGED STONE IS HERE AND HE WANTS TO TALK TO, MY FAVOURITE ROCK STAR WANTS TO TALK TO ME, OH MY GAWD, OH MY GAWD!’

After exactly ten seconds Carmine open the door, the picture perfect image of calm as she smiled warmly at Jagged. “Sorry about that, come on in!”

Jagged smiled, gesturing beside him where Carmine looked and jumped back at the sight of a very large crocodile laying down beside Jagged. As the rockstar began to walk into the office, the crocodile did the same, Carmine looked at it cautiously, even pinching her arm to see if this was all a really bizarre dream.

She slowly walked over to her desk, looking at Jagged as he sat down on one of the chairs “Can I offer you some blackberry tea?” She asked, going straight to her tea shelf, looking at the different tins she had.

“If it’s not too much trouble.” The rockstar asked, looking around the room with mild interest. Fang, ever the loyal crocodile, lay beside Jagged, also lazily looking around.

Carmine took a deep breath, calming herself as she turned around and handed Jagged one of the mugs of tea. “I’ll have to admit Mr. Stone-“

“Jagged.” Jagged corrected her, smiling “Mister is so... dull and boring, not rock and roll you know?”

Carmine smiled “Than please call me Carmine, anyways, I have to say I am surprised by your visit Jagged. I was aware you were in Paris and knew about what happened the other day with you being Akumatized... but I didn’t know you knew of my exsistance.”

“Oh of course I did!” Jagged stated grinning “Marinette Dupain Chang mentioned you after she made me these awesome Eiffel Tower sunglasses! Said how you helped a lot of the kids around here and were a fan of mine!”

Carmine blinked, her cheeks becoming a soft pink colour “Um... I don’t see how she would know that-“

“Something about you singing to one of my songs really loudly hours after school was out or something.” Jagged said, sipping his tea “She promised me you would treat this conversation professionally however, which you are, which I greatly appreciate!”

Carmine felt her face become red hot, brining her tea cup up to sip her tea in a vain attempt to calm her nerves. She wasn’t sure if she should chastised Marinette for revealing that little secret to someone or to thank her for arranging this. “I see, well I try to make it so that o remain professional well in my office.”

“That’s good! Isn’t that right Fang!” The rockstar said, looking down at the crocodile, who simply looked up at Jagged and gave a slight nod, and a yawn. “Anyways...” Jagged began “It all started with my lousy producer Bob and his usual antics...”

Jagged than regaled Carmine with the tale of what happened to cause him becoming Akumatized, leaving no detail out.

“I mean, he goes behind my back and had this awesome girl redo the album design because it’s not like his lousy sons band? Who does that? ALSO, she drew up two COMPLETELY different album covers, IN ONE DAY!” He said excitedly, almost bouncing in his seat “I’ll tell you, that girl is GOING places! She even found me these shades!”

Carmine smiles, an idea suddenly forming in her head as she smiled coyly “Oh, Marinette most likely made those actually. She wants to become a fashion designer.” Carmine said off handedly, sipping her tea.

Jagged blinked, looking at Carmine with a new found interest “She any good?”

“She won a hat design contest that was judged by Gabriel Agreste...” Carmine said slowly “And I know that all the art teachers rave about her work with fabrics and design.”

Jagged let out a soft hum, rubbing his chin as an idea slowly mulled over in his head “Hmm.... maybe I’ll ask to take a look at her designs next time I see her, she do commissions?”

“Couldn’t hurt to ask” Carmine stated, smiling “But back to the topic at hand... how do you feel after everything that happened?”

Jagged gave a nonchalant shrug “Honestly, after the whole thing, nothing. I mean, don’t get me wrong, I was confused as heck and pissed that I let some lame ass villain get the best of me, but hey, what can you do? At least I got to see Ladybug and Chat Noir in action, even if it was well beating me up.” He said, taking a sip of the tea.

Carmine’s pencil stopped mid sentence as she looked up at Jagged, blinking “... I’m sorry, what do you mean by that exactly?”

“The fight? It was spectacular! Don’t remember all of it, but bits and pieces are there.”

“... that’s... not possible.” Carmine stated slowly, looking at the rockstar “No one remembers anything after being Akumatized.”

Jagged looked at her with a neutral tone, giving a small shrug “Guess that just means I’m a special case, which makes sense. I am pretty awesome!”

Fang, who had been quiet for most of the conversation, gave a small rumble from his throat that almost sounded like laughter, Jagged looked down at the crocodile with a slight scowl “Oh quiet you!”

Carmine sat up a little straighter at the interaction, looking between Fang and Jagged, eyes narrowing slightly. Carmine tried to remember everything she knew about crocodiles from living in New Orleans for a few years during her childhood... one of which being they were unpredictable and made poor pets. She, however, knew of some mages who enjoyed having familiars that were on the more dangerous side for protection...

“... how long have you had Fang Jagged?” She asked slowly, looking at the croc.

Jagged looked up at the ceiling, letting out a soft hum “Since I was 15, when he hatched.” He said nonchalantly.

“Hatched or appeared?” Carmine asked, causing Jagged to freeze momentarily, the rockstar looking at her with a raised brow.

“When I was 13, my dog Gladiolus appeared before me, he’s a ferret now thought...” Carmine said to him in a hesitant tone, hoping beyond hope she was right.

“You don’t say...” Jagged said, looking the woman straight in the eyes.

The two adults sat there, starring at eachother for a solid thirty seconds, not saying anything, waiting to see who would make the next move.

Jagged broke the silence first “Anyone every question why you don’t buy your familiar food?”

Carmine let out a short laugh, grinning “No, only people who know I own a ‘ferret’ are my close friends, and I just say he likes to eat in private, I’m more curious how you convience your staff on why you have a crocodile that doesn’t eat!”

Jagged grinned widely “Oh, he eats fish and the like, so they leave it off. Fang prefers to be a crocodile is all, been like that ever since I first summoned him.”

“Ahh I see.” Carmine stated grinning “... this would explain why you remember bits and pieces, your magic must have been interfering with the akuma. Do you remember anything about Hawkmoth?”

Jagged frowned leaning back in his chair “Sadly no. Don’t even remember his voice or what he said to me sadly, which is weird since my entire magic DOMAIN is under music, yours?”

Carmine grinned “Equal parts creation, illusion and brewing. I specialize in ‘tea’ magic however.”

“Kitchen witch?”

“I loath the term but yes, the kitchen is my domain.” She said grinning as she sipped her tea “Do any of your staff know about you being a mage?”

“No... not yet anyways.” He said sighing “... I’m probably gonna tell Penny soon, she’s stayed around the longest of any of my previous managers and I’ve grown quite fond of her... however...”

Carmine looked at him, frowning slightly “... she isn’t a magic user is she?”

“Nope, not a drop of it. Unless you count her unnatural patience for my antics.” He said, letting out a small chuckle “Ah... still, she’s important to me, and I’ve known her for... God’s, almost seven years now, about time I told her.”

Carmine looked down at her tea as Jagged continued to speak, the blackberry liquid the same hue as her best friends hair, albeit without the red streak of colour in it. She’s known Nathalie nearly twelve years and hasn’t uttered a word to her yet, or any of her friends for that matter...

A loud ringtone brought Carmine out of her train of thought as Jagged brought out his cellphone answering it “Ello!” He said into the small device.

After a short conversation Jagged ended the call “That was Penny, reminding me of my recording session.” He said grinning “But I would love to come back and talk shop with you sometime! I haven’t spoken with another magic user that wasn’t some old bat in YEARS!” He exclaimed holding out a business card to Carmine.

Carmine gave a small grin, taking the business card from the rock star “Like wise Jagged, like wise.”

#ladybug au #ml au.#counsellor au #carmine regal #jagged stone #tea magic #carmine is a fangirl

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fallen-stars-story · 4 years ago

Text

Random Drabble: Friends?

A random drabble about Haruka and Aria’s first time meeting each other and eventually becoming friends.

She laid back in the grass, letting the summer’s angry skin beat against the exposed skin of her face and arms and legs. She groaned. She was so freakin’ bored! It was the summer following her first year of school. The young girl hadn’t liked school but at least it was something to do!

Father Gabriel was off doing something which left her alone.

She had played with her dolls and action figures. She had attempted reading. Nothing could keep her attention for long.

With a frustrated groan she got up and wiped the dirt from her denim overalls and pulled the twigs and dirt from her unruly hair. She marched her way back into the main building and headed to the cafeteria. She got in line and got her tray of food before sitting at the first table she found. She picked at her food, not completely interested in actually eating it as much as moving it around on her plate.

But then, she overheard what may have been the best conversation she had ever heard. Father Gabriel strongly discouraged eavesdropping, but then again, Father Gabriel wasn’t there, so eavesdrop she did.

“The boy is apparently being...difficult.” The woman that Aria knew to be one of the nurses shook her head before taking another bite of her sandwich. “They should be back soon, but Father Gabriel called and warned the charge nurse that he’s difficult.”

“How old is he?” One of the teachers asked curiously.

“Seven.”

Aria beamed at that; a kid her age was coming!

She was the only child living there and it was boring. The adults got annoyed with her quickly. The teenagers had no interest in playing with her. But a seven year old! That was only a year older than her! Finally! Somebody to play with!

Leaving her mostly untouched tray on the table, she took off as fast as her little legs would carry her to the dormitories to change. She would be putting on her best clothing. Father Gabriel had taught her that first impressions mattered, right? She flung her dirty clothes into the corner of her room and changed into her favorite Power Rangers shirt and a pair of clean shorts in fire engine red. She traded her dirty sneakers for her church shoes.

Aria yanked a brush almost violently through her hair before tying it up into a ponytail as neatly as she could.

She was practically vibrating with excitement while she waited in the foyer. She had brought her best toys along with her; several Power Ranger action figures and a few Rescue Heroes.

After what felt like eons had passed, the main doors had opened. She saw Father Gabriel first and instinctively straightened her back and grinned. But then she saw the kid with the Father. I thought they said it was a boy? She wondered curiously as she studied him. His face was pretty with light green eyes and a frown. His hair was as dark as chocolate and fell straight, just past his chin.

Girl? Boy? Who cares! She gathered her toys in her arms and flew down the stairs, skidding to a stop in front of them.

“Hi! I’m Aria! What’s your name? Do you want to play? I have some pretty cool toys andー”

Father Gabriel cut her off with a hand on her head, ruffling her hair. “Aria, take a breath. This is Haruka. We have some things we have to do and he needs time to adjust.”

“But!” Her eyes went wide and she felt tears pooling in them. “I want to play!” She whined.

“Stop whining like a baby.” Haruka lips twisted into a scowl of disgust.

“Don’t call me a baby!” She roared, her cheeks puffing.

“Then don’t act like one.” His voice was flat, but his eyes had darkened.

“Aria! Haruka!” Father Gabriel scolded. “Aria, go to your room, now.” He demanded, his eyes hot on hers.

The tears spilled down her cheeks then.

Haruka snorted, his lips pulling into a smirk as he crossed his arms over his chest. “Now you’re gonna’ cry? Figures. Baby.”

“Jerk!” She screamed before dropping all of her toys and lunging at him, using her entire body to knock him to the ground.

He fought back, grabbing her ponytail and yanking before jamming his knee into her stomach.

A full blown battle ensued. And by the time that the adults, an entire hoard of them, were able to separate the two, the entire foyer had been destroyed. The small table and vase of flowers on it broke to pieces when the boy had launched her small body like a projectile at them, the fancy velvet chairs by the window had broken to pieces when Aria had literally picked them up and thrown them at the boy.

Both children were bruised and bleeding by the time that they had made it to opposite sides of the medical ward.

Haruka had sat there silently, rage literally radiating off of him, as a nurse dressed his wounds while Aria sobbed so loudly that she could be heard through the entire ward.

For months, this had become a cycle for them. The girl would regularly try to engage with Haruka, as though nothing had ever happened between them, and he would reject her, sending her into a violent rage that always ended with whatever room they were in being obliterated.

Finally, a kid around her age was moving in, and he had to be a freakin’ jerk.

⚹⚹⚹

She was going to break Haruka, one way or another. He was the only kid her age here and she was bored! But any time she attempted to play with him or even just talk to him, he dismissed her as though she were some pesky gnat. It made her furious. And each time, they ended up fighting each other, having to be dragged apart and brought to opposite wings of the building for their own safety. And while the staff patted her on the head through her loud sobs, she could faintly hear his shouting about how he hated her and wished she’d just leave him alone. It always hurt her feelings.

She just wanted to play.

She found him sitting alone underneath one of the big trees out back, a book in his hands. What a loser! He was reading when he could have been doing something fun!

She climbed up high into another tree, careful to stay quiet. This was going to be a surprise attack. She had even dressed in all black, wanting to look the part of the ninja she was playing at. Once she was up high enough, she settled comfortably onto a thick branch. The pretend ninja carefully removed her bag from her back, resting it between her thighs on the branch.

From it, she pulled out the first of several water balloons.

Tongue sticking out in concentration, she closed one eye as she took aim. Her eyes went wide and her arms shot into the air at her victory once the balloon hit its targetーHaruka’s head. He shot up, dropping his book, and looked around wildly for the culprit, snarling. He’d kill the idiot that did it, though he had a sneaking suspicion who it was.

He looked up and his clear green eyes locked with the golden ones of the girl who was grinning maniacally in a tree above him.

With inhuman speed he raced to the tree and then up it, more agile than Aria had anticipated.

She was panicking, trying to stuff her stuff back into her bag while looking for an escape route. While going up high had been a good idea for making her shot, she hadn’t thought about the fact that she could also potentially end up trapped there.

When he made it to her branch, she didn’t have time to even cry out before he shoved her off of it, sending her body hurdling down into the ground.

When he made it back to level ground, the two immediately proceeded to fight and wrestle with little thought. She had hurt her leg in the fall, but she wasn’t planning on letting that stop her from kicking his ass.

But kick his ass, she did not. It wasn’t long before he had her pinned to the ground, his forearm shoved down into her throat as he snarled at her.

“What is your problem, you freak?” He shouted at her. “Why can’t you leave me alone?”

His eyes were practically on fire as he glared at her. He quickly let go of one of her arms to shove his bangs back out of his face, though they were quick to fall right back into his way. She blinked back tears as she noticed that pretty boy had a small problem that he seemed totally unaware of; his bangs, a thick curtain had matted to his forehead with sweat, while the rest of his hair which had been about shoulder length at the time, curtained both of their heads. She noticed that it was now full of twigs and dirt, and also seemed to be blocking some of his vision.

She cocked her head to the side, ignoring how light-headed his choking was making her.

“Haruka?” She rasped out, a smile tugging at her lips. “Why don’t you tie your hair back? So it’s not in your way when you fight or play.” Her own hair had been pulled back into a ponytail in preparation for her attack, though it had fallen a little bit loose in their struggle.

“Because I’m not a stupid girl and ponytails are for girls, you moron.”

“Then why do you have long hair at all? Idiot.” She grinned at him when his eyes went comically wide.

In all honesty, it was just because he didn’t care overmuch for his hair. It was easier to just let it grow and do its own thing. He only put minimal energy into keeping his bangs somewhat trimmed, since that was the part of his hair that got into his face.

Against his will, a faint blush speckled his tanned cheeks. He hadn’t wanted to admit that he had tried countless times to tie it back because yes, it did get in his way regularly. He had sat in his room on more than one occasion, growing frustrated as he faced his mirror and attempted to tie it back. If he used an elastic, he usually couldn’t get it placed correctly on his head and it would be lopsided. He seemed to have better luck with ribbons, but he didn’t know how to properly tie them and they ended up so loose that the ponytail fell out within minutes.

“Let me up, stupid.” She shoved at him and lost in his thoughts, he backed off of her, resting his bottom against his heels.

She stood and walked behind him, ignoring the batting of his hands and his protests at her as she proceeded to pull an extra ribbon from her pocket. She had preferred elastic ties for her own hair, but had found a cool looking ribbon a while back, and kept it on her as a spare.

She grabbed his hair and pulled it into a low tail that rested at the nape of his neck, explaining step by step what she was doing as she did it. She thought that a higher tail would suit him better, but his hair wasn’t quite long enough for one yet.

The ribbon she used was a thin, white braided cord. And it was something that he had kept and used every day since.

#past!aria #drabbles #past!haruka #haruka #aria #oc #original #characters #character #story #writing

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wannajointhecrabcult · 4 years ago

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Superchat September

Day 1: Meet Cute/First Meeting

I know im not the BEST artist but i decided to do a little drawing for each prompt.

Btw i will be hiding a ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) in all of my drawings so see if you can find them heheh.

Can you guess who the red speech bubble is?

@superchat-september2k20

~~~~~~

Adrien was having a bad day.

Actually, it's more of a bad month.

Not to mention that he was also so incredibly TIRED.

He's been doing a ton of late night photoshoots lately as well as eating less

Aka just really living up to that vampire esthetic

as there was a fashion show coming up and his father needed him to be as skinny as possible in order to fit into the tiny clothes.

That bitch.

Couldn't he just make the clothes bigger???

He's literally the designer.

Oh well.

Earlier that morning his father's slave

I mean Natalie

informed him that he was going to an interview later and that his father wanted him to look his best to represent the Gabriel brand.

Hard to do that when youre looking like a skeleton that hasnt slept in 45 years but okay.

Adrien was in his limo trying to get as much shut eye as he could while being driven over to the studio where the interview would take place when all of a sudden the ground shook.

All he could think about at the moment was 'Fudge you Hawky'

--------

Jon was taking in his surroundings with wonder.

He was with his mom in Paris in order to interview some big designers son or something like that later but right now he was enjoying exploring the city of love.

'Heh i wonder if I'll find my *true love* here'

He was about to go into this nice cozy bakery and try some of their amazing smelling pastries when all of a sudden the ground shook.

'I guess these treats will be a ground breaking discovery for me haha, no bad Jon! Time to focus on the possible danger.'

As he looked around for a place to change into his suit he noticed that everyone else wasn't really bothered with what was happening and either calmly went inside the builings to hide or just straight up didn't care and continued to do what they were doing .

He was gonna ask short asian woman at the counter what was happening when he saw some bright yellows beams of light coming from the Eiffle tower.

'Action now, questions later i guess' he thought in his head.

Jon asked to use the bathroom, changed, and headed over to the tower.

'What the heck is going on??'

-------

Chat Noir was falling.

In his defense he wasnt exactly at his 100% at the moment and this is all his father's fault.

He was fighting off the akuma and trying to avoid getting hit by their lasers on like 2 hours of sleep.

Not falling off the eiffle tower wasn't one of his priorities at the moment but it seems like that was a mistake.

As he was falling he heard Ladybug yell but all he could focus on was his empty stomache and the sound of it growling

And his screams of terror since he was falling of the fucking eiffle tower of course.

'Maybe it's about time for me to sue my father for child neglect.

I wouldn't even need any proof.

The authorities would just take one look at me and they would understand.

Of course, that's if i dont go splat on the pavement right about now.'

As Chat noir was preparing to finally get some sleep in the form of being dead he landed on something.

Well, it wasn't the pavement considering that it wasnt cold and painful.

Oh poo

He was looking forward to finding out what sound he would make when he hit the ground.

'Would it be more of a splat or more of a crunch?'

Welp, it looks like he hit the sleep deprieved random thoughts stage.

Chat opened his eyes only to be welcomed with the sight of eyes bluer than anything he has ever seen before.

Even bluer that that one cookie monster balloon that he had when he was like 6 that his father popped because he claimed that our family was above playing with rubbery bags of air.

When his savior smiled

Oh gosh his adorable smile that just made his stomache do flips,

That's when Adrien decided that maybe today wasn't going to be too bad after all.

#superchatseptember2020 #superchatseptember #adrijon #jondrien

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fullmoon-death · 6 years ago

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Analysis of Silencer

I wanted to share this analysis of the episode Silencer made by the Italian group "Gli Ambrogisti Anonimi". I truly agree with it so I decided with them to translate it and share it on Tumblr. What do you think?

What happened?

Have they gone crazy? What happened to Marinette? Has she forgotten the great love for Adrien opting in favor of Luka?

Well no! Calm down! There is an explanation for everything!

The episode Silencer made us understand so many things without betraying the personality of the characters, but taking a step forward in the plot instead.

1. First, we see Bob Roth, an unscrupulous manager. He is a mean person! He achieved success stealing other people's work and teaching the same to his son.

2. Wait, what? Is XY his son??? Surprise!!!

3. Bob and XY have no ideas for the DJ's next album, so they decide to hold a contest for up-and-coming bands in order to steal their ideas. Don't! What horrible people!

4. Marinette and her friends, the Kitty Section, decide to participate: she will make the costumes and they will make music.

5. Wait a minute, was not Adrien part of the Kitty Section? Where is he? I think that in order to give Luka some space Gabriel locked him up at home, otherwise Marinette wouldn't have seen Luka at all.

6. It seems that Luka and Marinette have seen each other off-screen several times, but they didn't show it to us, perhaps because it was not important. Now she often blushes in front of him and he looks at her intensely. Indeed, he is really in love with her!

7. Ah! Luka's looks!

8. The costumes made by Marinette recall a mix between the musical Cats and Kiss.

9. Rose singing is wonderful!

10. Everything goes well, the video is ready, they participate, but Bob and his son steal their song and their costumes, and Marinette and Kitty Section run to the studios for an explanation.

11. The animations of the episodes are becoming more and more beautiful!

12. Bodyguards have been fooled by the oldest joke in the world.

13. Luka and Marinette sneak into the studios and Marinette wants to report Bob Roth, but he threatens her telling that, if she does, he will make sure he will never let her make a costume again and he will destroy Kitty Section's musical career.

14. Here we can see how pure and wonderful Luka is: he can't stand Bob threatening Marinette, hurting the girl he loves. Indeed, first he thinks about Marinette and then about his music and Kitty Section! And that's why Hawk Moth akumizes him in Silencer.

15. Ok, Silencer's design is pretty cool and so is his power, but the fact he talks with his "duckbill" hands is pretty funny. Ahahahahah!

16. An important thing happens: while he is akumized in Silencer, Luka declares himself to Marinette.

Now let me make you think about this: why didn't Luka declare himself before? It is clear that he is in love with Marinette, and she looks at him and blushes, so that is a sign that she likes him as well.

Simply: because he knows that Marinette doesn't love him.

In Frozer Luka saw that Marinette loves Adrien, in fact at the end of the episode he invites her to go to him. This means that, despite his feelings, Luka understood that there is no place for him in the heart of Marinette and decides to stand aside. He respects her feelings.

Now that he is akumized, however, he has no restraint, he is in the grip of anger, so he tells her clearly what he feels for her and, boys, it was a sweet declaration!

Luka is really precious!

17. Before transforming herself, even Marinette is not sure if that was a true declaration. Indeed, she thinks it may be an effect of the akuma.

18. Ladybug goes into action and defends Bob Roth, even if he doesn't deserve it. But, you know, Ladybug is a true heroine, she is correct, loyal and honest, and she always does the right thing: shortly after transforming, in fact, she tells to Silencer that forcing Bob to tell the truth would be revenge, not justice. It's really true: Ladybug always does the right thing.

19. I still think that Bob is a bad person and, because of him, Silencer manages to steal Ladybug's voice! How will she fight now?

20. And here finally Adrien comes on stage. Did you notice? If Adrien had been there right away, Marinette would have looked only at him and Luka wouldn't have had his space. It was right instead that he wasn't there, because Luka needed his space in order to show what a beautiful character he is; also because, I believe, he will be very important to make Adrien understand how much he cares about Marinette, and perhaps also to make Marinette get over her shyness with Adrien.

21. Am I wrong or Chat Noir is doing more jokes than usual?

22. But he spells "I love you" to his Lady. How can you not love him? Even when he has little space, he is always wonderful!

23. After stealing other voices, Silencer captures Bob Roth and tries to make him admit what he has done live on television, but Ladybug and Chat Noir also have a plan.

24. Ladybug's plan is brilliant, she manages to make Silencer say with her voice "Lucky Charm" in order to evoke it and it is... a vacuum cleaner.

25. Who you gonna call? Ladybug!

26. Ladybug not only recovers her voice and fixes everything, but without any constraint she gets a confession from Bob Roth who, to save his face, recognizes Kitty Section’s talent and says that they will have a disc of their own!

27. Ladybug says goodbye to HER Chaton. HER. And he sighs in love, while Paris (and I) cheer for him.

28. And now the most important scene, pay attention: before Luka takes the stage, Marinette has doubts about Luka's declaration and asks him if what he said under the influence of the akuma was true.

Luka doesn't even remember it.

The first thing he thinks is that he told her something bad, so he immediately wants to fix it and, since it wouldn't be fair to betray his feelings for her, he repeats the declaration and then leaves.

Marinette blushes, glad that those words were true, but says nothing.

Let’s analyze it.

As we said, Luka is a pure character (Hawk Moth himself said it), mature and sensitive. In Frozer he saw with his own eyes that Marinette is in love with Adrien and, despite his feelings for her, he stepped aside and told her to go to him.

Luka respects Marinette's feelings.

For this reason, it is not his intention to declare himself to her.

Luka is not flirting with Marinette.

He loves her, he’s not able to do anything else but love her, because you can’t rule the heart, so he often looks at her while he plays, but he also knows that she loves Adrien.

The first time Luka declares himself to Marinette is when he is akumized, so he is prey to negative feelings and he has no restraint.

The second time he does it only AFTER Marinette asks him for a confirmation.

Since he fears he could have told her something bad, first, he apologizes. Afterwards, he repeats the same words of the first declaration, a sign that the feelings for her are sincere, because he doesn’t want her to think wrong, but the opposite.

Luka cannot betray himself and what he feels for Marinette, so it is right for her to know what he thinks about her, what he feels for her, but he also knows that she loves Adrien, so he leaves, not waiting for an answer.

The episode ends up like that on purpose.

Let's see about Marinette.

Marinette likes Luka: he is a mature, sweet and sensitive boy. He fascinates her, so she blushes every time he looks at her or during the declaration (everyone would blush in front of such a beautiful and sincere declaration). But Marinette doesn't love Luka, she loves Adrien.

For the first time, Marinette receives a true declaration of love for her as Marinette, not as Ladybug, moreover from a cute and charming boy like Luka: it's obvious she blushes!

As we saw in Weredad, Marinette divides herself from Ladybug, in fact she becomes jealous of herself when she thinks that Chat Noir has forgotten his feelings for Ladybug after Marinette's declaration. Tikki also points out that she has no reason to be jealous because she IS Ladybug. Nevertheless, she still keeps dividing herself from her alter ego.

Therefore, a declaration made to her as Marinette excites her even more.

However, she only wanted a confirmation if what Luka said was true or not.

And when Luka involuntarily repeats the same words to her, she blushes.

Who wouldn't be flattered by such a declaration?

But if Marinette loved Luka, if she felt something profound for Luka, she would have immediately given him an answer. She didn’t, instead.

She didn’t say anything. She just wanted a confirmation.

Because she knows the answer and Luka knows it too: Luka likes her, but she doesn't love him. Her head and her heart are for Adrien.

29. Now, we said it: maybe Marinette can be confused about love, but we know for sure that she is an honest person, someone who always does the right thing.

Would it be right to reciprocate Luka’s deep and pure feelings, even if in her heart there is Adrien? Absolutely not!

Marinette cares about Luka, she would never toy with him.

Reciprocating his feelings only means toying with him, because she always thinks about Adrien, and she would never do such a thing, just like she didn't want to toy with Chat Noir in Glaciator.

Therefore, even if she likes Luka, I really think she'll say no to him. She’ll never be able to be with him until she loves Adrien.

Not to mention that there is also Chat Noir next to her and she will notice him too, sooner or later.

30. I really believe that Luka will help Adrien wake up a little.

#miraculous ladybug #silencer #mlb #mlb season 3 #ambrogisti anonimi #marinette dupain cheng #luka couffaine #episode analysis

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grigori77 · 5 years ago

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Summer 2019′s Movies - My Top Ten Favourite Films (Part 2)

The Top Ten:

IMPORTANT NOTE: You WILL NOT find It Chapter 2 here, but that does not mean it isn’t awesome. I saw it AFTER I had sompleted this but while it was still editing., Technically it’s part of the Autumn/Winter period anyway, opening as it did in September. Undoubtedly look out for it at the end of the year when I post my Top 30 for the year.

10. CAPTIVE STATE – WAY back in 2011, Rupert Wyatt followed up his impressive directorial debut The Escapist with an even more astounding show helming sci-fi franchise reboot Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and I knew here was a talent it was definitely gonna be worth my while to watch in future. Then the years ticked by and he spectacularly failed to follow it up, and I began to think he might become one of those frustrating auteur talents that explode onto the scene, wow us with their wares and then just STOP, like Donnie Darko’s Ryan Kelly or Blade’s Stephen Norrington. I was just about to give up hope when Wyatt returned with this dark and troubling skewed take on the alien invasion trope, but now, perversely, this film’s failing fortunes make me think his career might just take a swan dive after all, and as far as I’m concerned, on the evidence of the final film, that would be a crying shame. Instead of telling the story of how the Earth falls to the conquering might of invading alien forces, Captive State concentrates on what happens after, focusing on a humanity stagnating under the thumb of an all-powerful occupying force, the collaborating police force that maintains discipline on the populace through tagging and intrusive surveillance, and the deep cover resistance movement that’s built up in the eight years since “The Legislators” took over. The main narrative focus of the story is Gabriel Drummond (Moonlight’s Ashton Sanders), a downtrodden Chicago youth working a menial job but dreaming of getting out with his pregnant girlfriend, who discovers a tentative connection to the underground resistance when his brother Rafe (White Boy Rick’s Jonathan Majors), whom he previously thought was dead, re-enters his life with a desperate request. Unfortunately Gabriel has also come to the attention of local cop Will Mulligan (John Goodman), who’s looking to use this connection to finally penetrate the “dangerous terrorist element” his office has been working for years to eradicate. This is about as far from the classical invasion action territory of films like Independence Day, Skyline or even Signs as you can get, playing out much more like a World War 2 occupation thriller, and this is, in my opinion, one of its great strengths – there’s a palpable, knife-edged tension throughout, Wyatt cranking up the suspense as each new plot development ups the stakes for all involved, and when that tension does eventually break it does so in suitably explosive style, leading to some taut and harrowing set-pieces, while the director and his co-writer Erica Beeney pull off some impressive twists and skilful rug-pulls that consistently surprise. Indeed, this is one of the most skilfully written pieces of science fiction I’ve come across for a good while, brimming with big ideas and asking some suitably challenging questions throughout, before finally paying off our patience with a suitably powerful climax. It’s also extremely well-performed by a uniformly impressive ensemble cast – Goodman offers a performance of cool subtlety that proves the equal to much of his showier work on hits like 10 Cloverfield Lane and The Big Lebowski, while Sanders and Majors are both exceptional in what should have been major breakthrough roles that really built on their already impressive debuts, and there’s quality support from the likes of Machine Gun Kelly, Vera Farmiga, Alan Ruck, Kevin Dunn and Madeline Brewer. This is DEFINITELY one of the most robust and challenging pieces of scif-fi cinema I’ve seen this decade, and it certainly does deserve a lot more attention and appreciation than it’s received – it essentially bombed on its long-delayed release and suffered from painfully mixed, sometimes quite negative reviews, and I genuinely don’t understand either. This is an EXCELLENT film, and it’s a strong indicator of just what a great talent Rupert Wyatt is – I just have to hope this hasn’t ruined his chances for the future, because I couldn’t bear seeing him pull an undeserved vanishing act like so many others …

9. GODZILLA: KING OF MONSTERS – back in 2014, rising star director Gareth Edwards (already one-to-watch thanks to the sleeper hit success of his debut Monsters) proved he wasn’t going to be a one-hit-wonder when he aced his first major studio gig, reinventing Japanese superstar property Godzilla for western audiences and EFFORTLESSLY wiping out the appalling stigma of Roland Emmerich’s underwhelming previous attempt (needless to say he was then a no-brainer to helm the first Star Wars spinoff movie, Rogue One, but that’s another, even more awesome story). Suffice to say, the Big G’s name was good in western cinema again, and Legendary Pictures swiftly put their planned Monsterverse franchise into action, building on this solid foundation with a similarly stylish “prequel” in 2017’s Kong: Skull Island, with a showdown between the two screen icons intended further down the line. The next major hurdle, however, was this super-important follow-up, intended to get all the gears turning – if THIS ONE flunked, the Monsterverse would take a massive nosedive. Did it pull it off? Not quite … turns out this one’s not looking likely to scrape even on its massive investment, never mind make a profit, but that sure ain’t for lack of trying. Sure, the plot’s a bit of a far-fetched muddle and, as with its predecessor, the human characters are drawn in broad strokes and somewhat lacking in real spark, but the spectacle’s still there in spades and besides, the REAL selling point of these movies has always been their more gigantic characters. Godzilla’s just as much of a colossal badass as he was in the first film, still a skyscraper-high bruiser with a moody mean streak and some suitably apocalyptic bad breath, but ultimately just the kind of monumental reptile you want on your side in a cataclysmic scrap, and he’s sure got his work cut out for him with one serious collection of similarly massive monsters crawling out of the woodwork (or, in this case, compromised secure black sites controlled by covert Titan management organisation Monarch) – they’re a colourful bunch, from returning nasty Muto to newcomers Rodan and, particularly memorable, the beautiful but deadly Mothra, and most of them are heeding the call of the film’s TRUE scene stealer, triple-headed rival alpha Titan King Ghidorah, who is in every way a genuinely viable nemesis for the Big G himself. Needless to say, the BIG stars are presented without compromise throughout, as gargantuan and terrifying as their reputations make them out to be, and whenever they’re on screen it just lights up, the visual effects budget working overtime and all the money’s up there on the screen, while the property damage quota shoots through the roof in suitably pulse-racing style … and yet again, the human story does kind of get buried in the fallout. Not that they’re a completely unmemorable lot – it’s great to see Ken Watanabe return as elegantly noble Monarch honcho Dr Ishiro Serazawa, along with his assistant Dr Vivienne Graham (another winning turn from Sally Hawkins), and the rest of Monarch gets much stronger representation this time round as we’re introduced to a crew that includes Bradley Whitford, Ice Cube’s son O’Shea Jackson Jr. (Straight Outta Compton) and Aisha Hinds, while there’s a typically classy bad guy turn from Charles Dance as Alan Jonah, the amoral ex-soldier leading an eco-terrorist group who (for baffling reasons) want to awaken all the Titans at once so they can fight for supremacy. The main narrative focus, however, is on the fractured family unit of former Monarch specialist Dr Mark Russell (Super 8’s Kyle Chandler) and his fellow scientist wife Emma and daughter Madison (Vera Farmiga and Stranger Things’ Millie Bobby Brown), who have both been kidnapped by Jonah, a story that’s contrived and clumsily written, shot through with plot-holes when the twists aren’t painfully telegraphed ahead of time, and Brown barely gets ANYTHING to do other than be scared or stubborn, but they still give it their all and, since they’re all great actors, they largely win out against the writing. This certainly isn’t the best movie released this year, definitely leaning more towards the guilty pleasure category, but there’s more than enough good here to outweigh the bad, so this is definitely one of those wonderful movies where you get PLENTY out of it if you just sit back and GO WITH IT. It’s certainly got a strong director and co-writer in Michael Dougherty, who cut his teeth working for Bryan Singer on X2 and Superman Returns (which was similarly flawed, but still enjoyable in its own right) before making his big break behind the camera on Krampus, and for all its clunkiness it wins you over with its big-wow factor, can-do attitude and industrial-sized bucket-loads of heart and emotional heft, as well as a particularly cracking score from Bear McCreary, one of the most deservedly well respected composers working on both the big and small screens today, so in spite of the flaws this still deserves to be counted as a pretty rousing success. Thankfully Godzilla Vs. King Kong is still greenlit and scheduled to arrive next spring, so there’s still life in the old lizards yet – long live the King indeed.

8. DARK PHOENIX – wow, this really has been a summer for mistreated sequels, hasn’t it? There’s a seriously stinky cloud of controversy surrounding what is now, in light of recent developments between Disney and Twentieth Century Fox, all but QUARANTEED to be the last true Singer-era X-Men movie, a film which saw two mooted release dates (first November 2018 then this February, before finally limping onto screens with very little fanfare in June, almost as if Fox wanted to bury it. Certainly rumours of its compromise were rife, particularly regarding supposed rushed reshoots because of clashing similarities with Marvel’s major tent-pole release Captain Marvel (and given the all-conquering nature of the MCU there was no way they were having that, was there?), so like many I was expecting a clunky mess, maybe even a true stinker to rival X-Men Origins: Wolverine. In truth, while it’s not perfect, the end result is nothing like the turd we all feared – the final film is, in fact, largely a success, worthy of favourable comparison with its stronger predecessors. It certainly makes much needed amends for the disappointing mismanagement of the source comics’ legendary Dark Phoenix saga in 2006’s decidedly compromised original X-Men trilogy capper The Last Stand, treating the story with the due reverence and respect it deserves as well as serving as a suitably powerful send-off for more than one beloved key character. Following the “rebooted” path of the post-Days of Future Past timeline, it’s now 1992, and after the world-changing events of Apocalypse the X-Men have now become a respected superhero team with legions of fans and their own personal line to the White House, while mutants at large have now mostly become accepted by the regular humans around them. Then a hastily planned mission into space takes a turn for the worst and Jean Grey (Game of Thrones’ Sophie Turner) winds up absorbing an immensely powerful, thoroughly inexplicable cosmic force that makes her go powers haywire while also knocking loose repressed childhood traumas Professor Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) would rather had stayed buried, sending her on a dangerous spiral out of control which leads to a destructive confrontation and the inadvertent death of a teammate. Needless to the situation soon becomes desperate as Jean goes on the run and the world starts to turn against them all once again … all in all, then, it’s business as usual for the cast and crew of one of Fox’s flagship franchises, and it SHOULD have gone off without a hitch. When Bryan Singer opted not to return this time around (instead setting his sights on Queen biopic Bohemian Rhapsody), key series writer Simon Kinberg stepped into the breach for his directorial debut, and it turns out he’s got a real talent for it, giving us just the kind of robust, pacy, thrilling action-packed epic his compatriot would have delivered, filled with the same thumping great set-pieces (the final act’s stirring, protracted train battle is the unequivocal highlight here), well-observed character beats and emotional resonance we’ve come to expect from the series as a whole (then again, he does know these movies back to frond having at least co-written his fair share). The cast, similarly, are all on top form – McAvoy and Michael Fassbender (as fan favourite Erik Lehnsherr, aka Magneto) know their roles so well now they can do this stuff in their sleep, but we still get to see them explore interesting new facets of their characters (particularly McAvoy, who gets to reveal an intriguing dark side to the Professor we’ve only ever seen hinted at before now), while Turner finally gets to really breathe in a role which felt a little stiff and underexplored in her series debut in Apocalypse (she EASILY forges the requisite connective tissue to Famke Janssen’s more mature and assured take in the earlier films); conversely Tye Sheridan (Cyclops), Alexandra Shipp (Storm), Kodi Smit-McPhee (Nightcrawler) and Evan Peters (Quicksilver) get somewhat short shrift but nonetheless do A LOT with what little they have, and at least Jennifer Lawrence and Nicholas Hoult still get to do plenty of dramatic heavy lifting as the last of Xavier’s original class, Raven (Mystique) and Hank McCoy (Beast); the only real weak link in the cast is the villain, Vuk, a shape-shifting alien whose quest to seize the power Jean’s appropriated is murkily defined at best, but at least Jessica Chastain manages to invest her with enough icy menace to keep things from getting boring. All in all, then, this is very much a case of business as usual, Kinberg and co keeping the action thundering along at a suitably cracking pace throughout (powered by a typically epic score from Hans Zimmer), and the film only really comes off the rails in its final moments, when that aforementioned train finally comes off its tracks and the reported reshoots must surely kick in – as a result this is, to me, most reminiscent of previous X-flick The Wolverine, which was a rousing success for the majority of its runtime, only coming apart in its finale thanks to that bloody ridiculous robot samurai. The climax is, therefore, a disappointment, too clunky and sudden and overly neat in its denouement (and we really could have done with a proper examination of the larger social impact of these events), but it’s little enough that it doesn’t spoil what came before … which just makes the film’s mismanagement and resulting failure, as well as its subsequent treatment from critics and fans alike, all the more frustrating. This film deserved much better, but ultimately looks set to be disowned and glossed over by most of the fanbase as the property as a whole goes through the inevitable overhaul now that Disney/Marvel owns Fox and plans to bring the X-Men and their fellow mutants into the MCU fold. I feel genuinely sorry for the one remaining X-film, The New Mutants, which is surely destined for spectacular failure after its similarly shoddy round of reschedules finally comes to an end next summer …

7. FAST COLOR – intriguingly, the most INTERESTING superhero movie I’ve encountered so far this year is NOT a major franchise property, or even a comic book adapted to the screen at all, but a wholly original indie which snuck in very much under the radar on its release but is surely destined for cult greatness in the future, not least due to some much-deserved critical acclaim. Set in an unspecified future where it hasn’t rained for years, a homeless vagabond named Ruth (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) is making her aimless way across a desolate American Midwest, tormented by violent seizures which cause strange localised earthquakes, and hunted by Bill (Argo’s Christopher Denham), a rogue scientist who wants to capture her so he can study her abilities. Ultimately she’s left with no other recourse than to run home, sheltering with her mother Bo (Middle of Nowhere and Orange is the New Black’s Lorraine Toussaint), and her young daughter Lila (The Passage’s Saniyya Sidney), both of whom also have weird and wondrous powers of their own. As the estranged family reconnect, Ruth finally learns to control her powers as she’s forced to confront her own troubled past, but as Bill closes in it looks like their idyll might be short-lived … this might only be the second feature of writer-director Julie Hart (who cut her teeth penning well-regarded indie western The Keeping Room before making her own debut helming South By Southwest Film Festival hit Miss Stevens), but it’s a blinding statement of intent for the future, a deceptively understated thing of beauty that eschews classic superhero cinema conventions of big spectacle and rousing action in favour of a quiet, introspective character-driven story where the unveiling and exploration of Ruth and her kin’s abilities are secondary to the examination of how their familial dynamics work (or often DON’T), while Hart and cinematographer Michael Fimognari (probably best known for his frequent work for Mike Flanagan, including forthcoming Stephen King horror Doctor Sleep) bring a ruined but bleakly beautiful future to life through inventively understated production design and sweeping, dramatic vistas largely devoid of visual effects. Subtlety is the watchword, but that doesn’t mean that there aren’t fireworks here, it’s just that they’re generally performance-based – awards-darling Mbatha-Raw (Belle) gives a raw, heartfelt performance, painting Rith in vivid shades of grey, while Toussaint is restrained but powerfully memorable and Sidney builds on her already memorable work to deliver what might be her best turn to date, and there are strong supporting turns from Denham (who makes his nominal villain surprisingly sympathetic) and Hollywood great David Strathairn as gentle small town sheriff Ellis. Leisurely paced and understated it may be, but this is still an incendiary piece of work, sure to become a breakout sleeper hit for a filmmaking talent from whom I expect GREAT THINGS in the future, and since the story’s been picked up for expansion into a TV series with Hart at in charge that looks like a no-brainer. And it most assuredly IS a bona fide superhero movie, despite appearances to the contrary …

6. ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD – since his explosion onto the scene twenty-seven years ago with his runaway smash debut Reservoir Dogs, Quentin Tarantino has become one of the most important filmmakers of his generation, a true master of the cinematic art form who consistently delivers moving picture masterpieces that thrill, entertain, challenge and amuse audiences worldwide … at least those who can stomach his love of unswerving violence, naughty talk and morally bankrupt antiheroes and despicably brutal villains who are often little more than a shade different from one another. Time has moved on, though, and while he’s undoubtedly been one of the biggest influences on the way cinema has changed over the past quarter century, there are times now that it’s starting to feel like the scene is moving on in favour of younger, fresher blood with their own ideas. I think Tarantino can sense this himself, because he recently made a powerful statement – after he’s made his tenth film, he plans to retire. Given that OUATIH is his NINTH film, that deadline is already looming, and we unashamed FANS of his films are understandably aghast over this turn of events. Thankfully he remains as uncompromisingly awesome a writer-director as ever, delivering another gold standard five-star flick which is also most definitely his most PERSONAL work to date, quite simply down to the fact that it’s a film ABOUT film. Sure, it has a plot (of sorts, anyway), revolving around the slow decline of the career of former TV star Rick Dalton (Leonardo Dicaprio), who languishes in increasing anonymity in Hollywood circa 1969 as his former western hero image is being slowly eroded by an increasingly hacky workload guest-starring on various syndicated shows as a succession of punching-bag heavies for the hero to wale on, while his only real friend is his one-time stunt double, Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt), a former WW2 hero with a decidedly tarnished reputation of his own; meanwhile new neighbours have moved in next door to further distract him – hot-as-shit young director Roman Polanski (Rafal Zawierucha), riding high on the success of Rosemary’s Baby, and his new wife Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie). Certainly this all drives the film, along with real-life events that involving one of the darkest crimes in modern American history, but a lot of the time the plot is largely coincidental – Quentin uses it as a springboard to wax lyrical about his very favourite subject and pay loving (if sometimes irreverently satirical) tribute to the very business he’s been indulging in with such great success since 1992. Sure, it’s also about “Helter Skelter” and the long shadow cast by Charles Manson and his band of murderous misfits, but these are largely incidental, as we’re treated to long, entertaining interludes as we follow Rick on a shoot as the bad guy in the pilot for the Lancer TV series, visit the notorious Spahn Ranch with Cliff as he’s unwittingly drawn into the lion’s den of the deadly Manson Family, join Robbie’s Tate as she watches “herself” in The Wrecking Crew, and enjoy a brilliant montage in which we follow Rick’s adventures in Spaghetti westerns (and Eurospy cinema) after he’s offered a chance to change his flagging fortunes, before the film finally builds to a seemingly inevitable, fateful conclusion that Tarantino then, in sneakily OTT Inglourious Basterds style, mischievously turns on its head with a devilish game of “What If”. The results are a thoroughly engrossing and endlessly entertaining romp through the seedier side of Hollywood and a brilliant warts-and-all examination of the craft’s inner workings that, interestingly, reveals as much about the Business today as it does about how it was way back into Golden Age the film portrays, all while delivering bucket-loads of QT’s trademark cool, swagger, idiosyncratic genius and to-die-for dialogue and character-work, and, of course, a typically exceptional all-star cast firing on all cylinders. Dicaprio and Pitt are both spectacular (Brad is endearingly taciturn, playing it wonderfully close to the vest throughout, while Leo is simply ON FIRE, delivering a mercurial performance EASILY on a par with his work on Shutter Island and The Wolf of Wall Street – could this be good enough to snag him a second Oscar?), while Robbie consistently endears us to Tate as she EFFORTLESSLY brings the fallen star back to life, and there’s an incredible string of amazing supporting turns from established talent and up-and-comers alike, from Kurt Russell, Al Pacino and a very spiky Bruce Dern to Mike Moh (in a FLAWLESS take on Bruce Lee), Margaret Qualley, Austin Butler and in particular Julia Butters as precocious child star Trudi Fraser. Packed with winning references, homages, pastiches and ingenious little in-jokes, handled with UTMOST respect for the true life subjects at all times and shot all the way through with his characteristic flair and quirky, deliciously dark sense of humour, this is cinema very much of the Old School, and EVERY INCH a Tarantino flick. With only one more film to go the implied end of his career seems much too close, but if he delivers one more like this he’ll leave behind a legacy that ANY filmmaker would be proud of.

5. CRAWL – summer 2019’s runner-up horror offering marks a rousing return to form for a genre talent who’s FINALLY delivered on the impressive promise of his early work – Alexandre Aja made a startling debut with Switchblade Romance, which led to his big break helming the cracking remake of slasher stalwart The Hills Have Eyes, but then he went SPECTACULARLY off the rails when he made the truly abysmal Piranha 3D, which I wholeheartedly regard as one of THE VERY WORST FILMS EVER MADE IN ALL OF HISTORY. He took a big step back in the right direction with the admittedly flawed but ultimately enjoyable and evocative Horns (based on the novel by Stephen King’s son Joe Hill), but it’s with this stripped back, super-tight man-against-nature survival horror that the Aja of old has TRULY returned to us. IN SPADES. Seriously, I personally think this is his best film to date – there’s no fat on it at all, going from a simple set-up STRAIGHT into a precision-crafted exercise in sustained tension that relentlessly grips right up to the end credits. The film is largely just a two-hander – Maze Runner star Kaya Scodelario plays Haley Keller, a Florida college student and star swimmer who ventures into the heart of a Category 5 hurricane to make sure her estranged father, Dave (Saving Private Ryan’s Barry Pepper), is okay after he drops off the grid. Finding their old family home in a state of disrepair and slowly flooding, she does a last minute check of the crawl-space underneath, only to discover her father badly wounded and a couple of hungry alligators stalking the dark, cramped, claustrophobic confines. With the flood waters rising and communications cut off, Haley and Dave must use every reserve of strength, ingenuity and survival instinct to keep each other alive in the face of increasingly daunting odds … even with a premise this simple, there was plenty of potential for this to become an overblown, clunky mess in the wrong hands (a la Snakes On a Plane), so it’s a genuinely great thing that Aja really is back at the height of his powers, milking every fraught and suspenseful set-piece to its last drop of exquisite piano-wire tension and putting his actors through hell without a reprieve in sight. Thankfully it’s not JUST about scares and atmosphere, though – there’s a genuinely strong family drama at the heart of the story that helps us invest in these two, Scodelario delivering a phenomenally complex performance as she peels back Haley’s layers, from stubborn pedant, through vulnerable child of divorce, to ironclad born survivor, while reconnecting with her emotionally raw, repentantly open father, played with genuine naked intensity in a career best turn from Pepper. Their chemistry is INCREDIBLY strong, making every scene a joy even as it works your nerves and tugs on your heartstrings, and as a result you DESPERATELY want to see them make it out in one piece. Not that Aja makes it easy for them – the gators are an impressively palpable threat, proper scary beasties even if they are largely (admittedly impressively executed) digital effects, while the storm is almost a third character in itself, becoming as much of an elemental nemesis as its scaly co-stars. Blessedly brief (just 87 minutes!) and with every second wrung out for maximum impact, this is survival horror at its most brutally, simplistically effective, a deliciously vicious, primal chill-ride that thoroughly rewards from start to finish. Welcome back, Mr Aja. We’ve missed you.

4. BRIGHTBURN – torpedoing Crawl right out of the water is this refreshing, revisionist superhero movie that takes one of the most classic mythologies in the genre and turns it on its head with TERRIFYING results. The basic premise is an absolute blinder – what if, when he crashed in small-town America as a baby, Superman had turned out to be a bad seed? Unsurprising, then, that it came from James Gunn, who here produces a screenplay by his brother and cousin Brian and Mark (best known for penning the likes of Journey 2: the Mysterious Island, but nobody’s perfect) and the directorial big break of his old mate David Yarovesky (whose only previous feature is obscure sci-fi horror The Hive) – Gunn is, of course, an old pro at taking classic comic book tropes and creating something completely new with them, having previously done so with HUGE success on cult indie black comedy Super and, in particular, Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies, and his fingerprints are ALL OVER this one too. The Hunger Games’ Elizabeth Banks (who starred in Gunn’s own directorial debut Slither) and David Denman (The Office) are Tori and Kyle Breyer, a farming couple living in Brightburn, Kansas, who are trying for a baby when a mysterious pod falls from the sky onto their land, containing an infant boy. As you’d expect, they adopt him, determined to keep his origin a secret, and for the first twelve of his life all seems perfectly fine – Brandon’s growing up into an intelligent, artistic child who loves his family. Then his powers manifest and he starts to change – not just physically (he’s impervious to harm, incredibly strong, has laser eyes and the ability to disrupt electronic devices … oh, and he can fly, too), but also in personality, as he becomes cold, distant, even cruel as he begins to demonstrate some seriously sociopathic tendencies. As his parents begin to fear what he’s becoming, things begin to spiral out of control and people start to disappear or turn up brutally murdered, and it becomes clear that Brandon might actually be something out of a nightmare … needless to say this is superhero cinema as full-on horror, Brandon’s proclivities leading to some proper nasty moments once he really starts to cut loose, and there’s no mistaking this future super for one of the good guys – he pulverises bones, shatters faces and melts skulls with nary a twitch, just the tiniest hint of a smile. It’s an astonishing performance from newcomer Jackson A. Dunn, who perfectly captures the nuanced subtleties as Brandon goes from happy child to lethal psychopath, clearly demonstrating that he’s gonna be an incredible talent in future; the two grown leads, meanwhile, are both excellent, Denman growing increasingly haunted and exasperated as he tries to prove his own son is a wrong ‘un, while Banks has rarely been better, perfectly embodying a mother desperately clinging to the idea that her son is innocent no matter how compelling the evidence becomes, and there’s quality support from Breaking Bad’s Matt Jones and Search Party’s Meredith Hagner as Brandon’s aunt and uncle, Noah and Meredith, and Becky Wahlstrom the mother of one of his school-friends, who seems to see him for what he is right from the start. Dark, suspenseful and genuinely nasty, this is definitely not your typical superhero movie, often playing like Kick-Ass’ even more twisted cousin, and there are times when it displays some of the same edgy, black-hearted sense of humour, too. In other words, it’s all very James Gunn. It’s one sweet piece of work, everyone involved showing real skill and devotion, and Yarovesky in particular proves he’ll definitely be one-to-watch in the future. There are already plans for a potential sequel, and given where this particular little superhero universe seems to be heading I think it could be something pretty special, so fair to say I can’t wait.

3. FAST & FURIOUS PRESENTS HOBBS & SHAW – it’s official, this summer’s most OTT movie is THE MOST FUN I’ve had at the cinema so far this year, a genuinely batshit crazy, pure bonkers rollercoaster ride of a film I just couldn’t get enough of, truly the perfect sum of all its baffling parts. The Fast & Furious franchise has always revelled in its extremes, as subtle as a brick and very much playing to the blockbuster, popcorn movie crowd right from the start, but it wasn’t until Fate of the Furious (yup, ridiculous title, says it all) that it really started to play to the inherent ridiculousness of its overall setup, paving the way for this first crack at a new spin-off series for the post Vin Diesel years. Needless to say this one has fully embraced the sheer ludicrousness, and director David Leitch is the perfect choice to shepherd it into the future, having previously mastered OTT action through John Wick and Atomic Blonde before helming manic screwball comedy Deadpool 2, which certainly is the strongest comparison point here – Hobbs & Shaw is every bit as loud, violent, chaotic and thoroughly irreverent, definitely playing up the inherent comic potential at the core of the material as he cranks up the humour. Dwayne Johnson and Jason Statham take centre stage now as, respectively, DSS agent Luke Hobbs and former SAS black operative Deckard Shaw, the ultimate action movie odd couple once again forced to work together to foil the bad guy and save the world from a potentially cataclysmic disaster. Specifically Brixton Lore (Idris Elba), a self-proclaimed “black superman” enhanced with cybernetic implants and genetic manipulation to turn him into the ultimate warrior, who plans to use a lethal designer supervirus to eradicate half of humanity (as supervillains tend to do), but there’s one small flaw in his plan – the virus has been stolen by Hattie Shaw (Mission: Impossible – Fallout’s Vanessa Kirby), a rogue MI6 agent who also happens to be Deckard’s sister. Got all that? Yup, the movie really is as mad as it sounds, but that’s very much part of the charm – there’s an enormous amount of fun to be had in just giving in and going along with the madness of it all, as Hobbs and the two Shaws bounce from one over-the-top, ludicrously destructive set-piece to the next, kicking plenty of arse along the way when they’re not jumping out of tall buildings or driving fast cars at ludicrous speeds in heavy traffic, and when they’re not doing that they’re bickering with enthusiasm, each exchange crackling with exquisite hate-hate chemistry and liberally laced with hilarious dialogue delivered with gleeful, fervent venom (turns out there’s few things so enjoyable a watching Johnson and Statham verbally rip each other a new one), and the two action cinema heavyweights have never been better than they are here, each bringing the very best performances of their respective careers out of each other as they vacillate, while Kirby holds her own with consummate skill that goes to show she’s got a bright future of her own. As for Idris Elba, the one-time potential future Bond deserves to be remembered as one of the all-time great screen villains ever, investing Brixton with the perfect combination of arrogant swagger and lethal menace to steal every scene he’s in while simultaneously proving he can be just as big a badass in the action stakes; Leitch also scatters a selection of familiar faces from his previous movies throughout a solid supporting cast which also includes the likes of Fear the Walking Dead’s Cliff Curtis, From Dusk Till Dawn’s Eiza Gonzalez and Helen Mirren (who returns as Deckard and Hattie’s mum Queenie Shaw), while there’s more than one genuinely brilliant surprise cameo to enjoy. As we’ve come to expect, the action sequences are MASSIVE, powered by nitrous oxide and high octane as property is demolished and vehicles are driven with reckless abandon when our protagonists aren’t engaged bruising, bone-crunching fights choreographed with all the flawless skill you’d expect from a director who used to be a professional stuntman, but this time round the biggest fun comes from the downtime, as the aforementioned banter becomes king. It’s an interesting makeover for the franchise, going from heavyweight action stalwart to comedy gold, and it’s direction I hope they’ll maintain for the inevitable follow-up – barring Fast Five, this is the best Fast & Furious to date, and a strong indicator of how it should go to keep conquering multiplexes in future. Sign me up for more, please.

2. SPIDER-MAN: FAR FROM HOME – this summer’s been something of a decompression period for fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, with many of us recovering from the sheer emotional DEVASTATION of the grand finale of Phase 3, Avengers: Endgame, so the main Blockbuster Season’s entry really needed to be light and breezy, a blessed relief after all that angst and loss, much like Ant-Man & the Wasp was last year as it followed Infinity War. And it is, by and large – this is as light-hearted and irreverent as its predecessor, following much the same goofy teen comedy template as Homecoming, but there’s no denying that there’s a definite emotional through-line from Endgame that looms large here, a sense of loss the film fearlessly addresses right from the start, sometimes with a bittersweet sense of humour, sometimes straight. But whichever path the narrative chooses, the film stays true to this underlying truth – there have been great and painful changes in this world, and we can’t go back to how it was before, no matter how hard we try, but then perhaps we shouldn’t. This is certainly central to our young hero’s central arc – Peter Parker (Tom Holland) is in mourning, and not even the prospect of a trip around Europe with his newly returned classmates, together with the chance to finally get close to M.J. (Zendaya), maybe even start a relationship, can entirely distract him from the gaping hole in his life. Still, he’s gonna give it his best shot, but it looks like fate has other plans for our erstwhile Spider-Man as superspy extraordinaire Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) comes calling, basically hijacking his vacation with an Avengers-level threat to deal with, aided by enigmatic inter-dimensional superhero Quentin Beck, aka Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal), who has a personal stake in the mission, but as he’s drawn deeper into the fray Peter discovers that things may not be quite as they seem. Of course, giving anything more away would of course dumps HEINOUS spoilers on the precious few who haven’t yet seen the film – suffice to say that the narrative drops a MAJOR sea-change twist at the midpoint that’s EVERY BIT as fiendish as the one Shane Black gave us in Iron Man 3 (although the more knowledgeable fans of the comics will likely see it coming), and also provides Peter with JUST the push he needs to get his priorities straight and just GET OVER IT once and for all. Tom Holland again proves his character is the most endearing teenage geek in cinematic history, his spectacular super-powered abilities and winning underdog perseverance in the face of impossible odds still paradoxically tempered by the fact he’s as loveably hopeless as ever outside his suit; Mysterio himself, meanwhile, frequently steals the film out from under him, the strong bromance they develop certainly mirroring what Peter had with Tony Stark, and it’s a major credit to Gyllenhaal that he so perfectly captures the essential dualities of the character, investing Beck with a roguish but subtly self-deprecating charm that makes him EXTREMELY easy to like, but ultimately belying something much more complex hidden beneath it; it’s also nice to see so many beloved familiar faces returning, particularly the fantastically snarky and self-assured Zendaya, Jacob Batalon (once again pure comic gold as Peter’s adorably nerdy best friend Ned), Tony Revolori (as his self-important class rival Flash Thompson) and, of course, Marisa Tomei as beloved Aunt May, as well as Jackson and Cobie Smoulders as dynamite SHIELD duo Fury and his faithful lieutenant Maria Hill, and best of all Jon Favreau gets a MUCH bigger role this time round as Happy Hogan. Altogether this is very much business as usual for the MCU, the well-oiled machine unsurprisingly turning out another near-perfect gem of a superhero flick that ticks all the required boxes, but a big part of the film’s success should be attributed to returning director Jon Watts, effectively building on the granite-strong foundations of Homecoming with the help of fellow alumni Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers on screenplay duty, for a picture that feels both comfortingly familiar and rewardingly fresh, delivering on all the required counts with thrilling action and eye candy spectacle, endearingly quirky character-based charm and a typically winning sense of humour, and plenty of understandably powerful emotional heft. And, like always, there are plenty of fan-pleasing winks and nods and revelations, and the pre-requisite mid- and post-credit teasers too, both proving to be some proper game-changing corkers. The future of the property may be in doubt, but this is still another winner from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, but then was there really ever any doubt?

1. JOHN WICK CHAPTER 3 – needless to say, those who know me should be in no doubt why THIS is at the top of my list for summer 2019 – this has EVERYTHING I love in movies and more. Keanu Reeves is back in the very best role he’s ever played, unstoppable, unbeatable, un-killable hitman John Wick, who, when we rejoin him mere moments after the end of 2017’s phenomenal Chapter 2, is in some SERIOUSLY deep shit, having been declared Incommunicado by the High Table (the all-powerful ruling elite who run this dark and deadly shadowy underworld) after circumstances forced him to gun down an enemy on the grounds of the New York Continental Hotel (the inviolable sanctuary safe-house for all denizens of the underworld), as his last remaining moments of peace tick away and he desperately tries to find somewhere safe to weather the initial storm. Needless to say the opening act of the film is ONE LONG ACTION SEQUENCE as John careers through the rain-slick backstreets of New York, fighting off attackers left and right with his signature brutal efficiency and unerring skill, perfectly setting up what’s to come – namely a head-spinning, exhausting parade of spectacular set pieces that each put EVERY OTHER offering in any other film this year to shame. Returning director Chad Stahelski again proves that he’s one of the very best helmsmen around for this kind of stuff, delivering FAR beyond the call on every count as he creates a third entry to a series that continues to go from strength to strength, while Keanu once again demonstrates what a phenomenal screen action GOD he is, gliding through each scenario with poise, precision and just the right balance of brooding charm and so-very-done-with-this-shit intensity and a thoroughly enviable athletic physicality that really does put him on the same genre footing as Tom Cruise. As with the first two chapters, what plot there is is largely an afterthought, a facility to fuel the endless wave of stylish, wince-inducing, thoroughly exhilarating violent bloodshed, as John cuts another bloody swathe through the underworld searching for a way to remove the lethal bounty from his head while an Adjudicator from the High Table (Orange Is the New Black’s Asia Kate Dillon) arrives in New York to settle affairs with Winston (Ian McShane), the manager of the New York Continental, and the Bowery King (Laurence Fishburne) for helping John create this mess in the first place. McShane and Fishburne are both HUGE entertainment in their fantastically nuanced large-than-life roles, effortlessly stealing each of their scenes, while the ever-brilliant Lance Reddick also makes a welcome return as Winston’s faithful right-hand Charon, the concierge of the Continental, who finally gets to show off his own hardcore action chops when trouble arrives at their doorstep, and there are plenty of franchise newcomers who make strong impressions here – Dillon is the epitome of icy imperiousness, perfectly capturing the haughty superiority you’d expect from a direct representative of the High Table, Halle Berry gets a frustratingly rare opportunity to show just how seriously badass she can be as former assassin Sofia, the manager of the Casablanca branch of the Continental and one of John’s only remaining allies, Game of Thrones’ Jerome Flynn is smarmy and entitled as her boss Berrada, and Anjelica Houston is typically classy as the Director, the ruthless head of New York’s Ruska Roma (John’s former “alma mater”, basically). The one that REALLY sticks in the memory, though, is Mark Dacascos, finally returning to the big time after frustrating years languishing in lurid straight-to-video action dreck and lowbrow TV hosting duties thanks to a BLISTERING turn as Zero, a truly brilliant semi-comic creation who routinely runs away with the film – he’s the Japanese master ninja the Adjudicator tasks with dispensing her will, a thoroughly lethal killer who may well be as skilled as our hero, but his deadliness is amusingly tempered by the fact that he’s also a total nerd who HERO WORSHIPS John Wick, adorably geeking out whenever their paths cross. Their long-gestating showdown provides a suitably magnificent climax to the action, but there’s plenty to enjoy in the meantime, as former stuntman Stahelski and co keep things interestingly fluid as they constantly change up the dynamics and add new elements, from John using kicking horses in a stable and knives torn out of display cases in a weaponry museum to dispatch foes on the fly, through Sofia’s use of attack dogs to make the Moroccan portion particularly nasty and a SPECTACULAR high octane sequence in which John fights katana-wielding assailants on speeding motorcycles, to the film’s UNDISPUTABLE highlight, an astounding fight in which John takes on Zero’s disciples (including two of the most impressive guys from The Raid movies, Cecep Arif Rahman and Yayan Ruhian) in (and through) an expansive chamber made up entirely of glass walls and floors. Altogether then, this is business as usual for a franchise that’s consistently set the bar for the genre as a whole, an intensely bruising, blissfully blood-drenched epic that cranks its action up to eleven, shot with delicious neon-drenched flair and glossy graphic novel visual excess, a consistently inspired exercise in fascinating world-building that genuinely makes you want to live among its deadly denizens (even though you probably wouldn’t live very long). The denouement sets things up for an inevitable sequel, and I’m not at all surprised – right from the first film I knew the concept had some serious legs, and it’s just too good to quit yet. Which is just how I like it …

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