thesaltyoceanwaves

[thesaltyoceanwaves]

Finally got to read ch. 3 translated, here are some thoughts!

Opinion time!~ Spoilers for up to ch. 3 of Jewel Joker!

Just wanna start by saying I haven’t felt so invigorated to talk about something like this in so long. Like, Shugo Chara isn’t my first magical girl manga, but I think it’s the one that resonated with me the most. One of these days, I really need to write that Dia arc essay, because years after reading it, it’s resonated with me so much.

—> So we learn about the existence of Arc-eggs, which seem to be some sort of manufactured (?) egg made by the school? I have a few theories that pertain to them:

A. The X-Egg in chapter 1 was an Arc-egg, and the reason it couldn’t be healed was because it wasn’t anyone’s actual dream.

B. Kurumu (Amu’s roommate) will have an arc about rejecting the manufactured arc-egg and coming to accept her own dreams, even at risk of not actually being able to have her own guardian character

C. Erito will reject Rosetta in favor of an Arc-egg, with Amu trying to convince her to accept her own authentic self over seeking out power or whatever else tempts her.

—> Kinomi (the Spade dorm leader) is def a horse boy, that is the only explanation I will accept. Also, what are the chances he’s related to the Arcana academy director?

—> Niya is another character I suspect has deeper ties to the director. Also, he’s clearly meant to foil Ikuto. We know he’s into make up and content creation (just as Ikuto is a musician), and he’s got the cat thing going for him, but now we have Michaelangelo the Second (who insists on his full name), and interestingly, Niya’s egg isn’t an arc-egg (which isn’t entirely surprising).

—> Erito insisting that she will beat Amu at the games when Amu doesn’t even know what’s happening is funnier than it has any right to be.

—> It’s interesting to see Tadase and Amu no longer in positions of power, and now be on the outside as part of the student body. Of course, they’re not entirely normal, and still have targets on their back (especially from Erito) and it almost feels like it’s using what made them popular in elementary school and leveraging it against them.

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I've been reading your list of things you would change if you could restart TOTMIS, and honestly it makes me realize that spite is not always a good motivator when it comes to fix-it fics. Sure it may lead you to fix the mistakes of canon like it's supposed to, but it may also cause you to make new mistakes as well.

I have a bit of a mixed take on that.

Don’t get me wrong, I 100% agree that you need more than spite when writing a long, on-going story. If that is your only motivator as a writer, you’re going to burn out pretty quickly. For most of TOtMiS, the chapters mostly focused on being an AU version of season 3 episodes to accommodate for the ship and story beats that were present due to the changes. That made outlining for those parts of the story much easier.

But later parts, like “Horror Head��� were much more difficult. And that’s because at that point, I couldn’t just pick a season 3 episode to draw from and write in response to it. I had to write in response to what I set up, which ended up being a lot more than I realized. (Note: yes, you should be writing in response to what you set up in general, but that’s beside the point).

It also didn’t help that I hadn’t planned on writing a long series - “Silence Can Be Beautiful” was originally a one shot written because I loved “Silencer” so much and just wanted more of it. And then the rest of season 3 started to happen, and the rest is history.

That being said, I don’t want to discount the value of venting frustrations via fanfic (to an extent). Certainly, I’d rather people vent their frustrations that way over more toxic means, like harassing people for not agreeing with their opinions. And if someone stumbled upon their fic, doesn’t like or agree with it? They can just block or drop it and move on.

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I learned today years old that Shugo Chara has a sequel running now, and I had some thoughts on it on main. Since I occasionally can’t shut up about it here, I figured I’d share :)

Time to be abnormal about Jewel Joker, thoughts below, spoilers for chapters 1 and 2

—> I can’t believe we’re back in the year of our Lord 2024 with a sequel, I never would have imagined

—> Like in my opinion, Encore wrapped up enough conclusively that I wasn’t really sure what they could do for a sequel. It’s the same reason I wasn’t sold on them doing a movie back in the day (and thankfully we didn’t get one)

—> But I’m actually pretty interested in the premise and the characters they’ve introduced so far. Erito is a nice evolution of the mean girl adversary Amu has faced in both Utau and Rima - both of them were pretty upfront about not liking Amu at first, which is honestly pretty indicative of the elementary school experience. But middle school? Totally different ball game. People laughing at you behind your back, spreading rumors, pretending to be nice while secretly hating you… oh how I don’t miss those days.

—> And the best part is that AMU KNOWS! I like that she isn’t oblivious here! Like they could have so easily written her not picking up on it and they didn’t! That’s going to make this conflict and dynamic much more interesting!

—> Something I don’t like though is Amy’s fan girly behavior around Tadase. I was pretty sure she was past this later in the OG manga? I don’t mind her getting flustered every now and then and I know it’s been almost a decade and a half since we left off, but I was hoping this part of her characterization would be more consistent (especially compared to the anime)

—> Also did I just not pick up on how sus Tsukasa was before, or is he just worse here? Like he sends these 2 to Arcana DAYS before they’re supposed to start middle school, and doesn’t say that they’ll be boarding there? He must have rolled a nat 20 for charisma with Amu’s parents bc IDK how her father would have okayed that (since he’s Tadase’s uncle, I don’t think his parents would have many objections). But then later after getting there, they find out THEY CAN’T KEEP THEIR PHONES?? THEY CAN MAKE 1 OFF-CAMPUS CALL ON SUNDAYS FOR 10 MINUTES?? I know this is functionally to force Amu and Tadase to get to know the other students, and possibly for Rima to try and make friends on her own (which would nicely parallel Amu attempting to befriend Rima in the Día arc) but like??? Did Tsukasa know this??? If he did, why didn’t he warn them???

—> The Arcana uniforms are DOPE. I love how, unaltered, they kind of look like detectives. Kind of fits the mission they’re here for!

—> And of course, the style game is still on point! I was enjoying the fashion and styling montage with Amu and Niya, since I always headcannoned Amu becoming a fashion designer in the future (her mad style game, and it easily blending elements from each of her charas).

—> I say enjoyed because then Niya got a little too forward with asking Amu out… only for her to firmly turn him down and set boundaries! I know the “cool and spicy” persona has been limiting to her at times (mostly people not being able to see past it to see the entirety of who she is), but I think it’s completely warranted here and not inauthentic. I def remember boys being pushy in middle school, and Amu already has enough on her plate.

—> The tech gap doesn’t bother as much as it could have. My understanding was that the OG story started in 2006 (when the first chapter was published), and it ended in 2008 (I have a theory to explain this but I’ll share in a separate post). So even if I continue to believe that Jewel Joker is still set in 2008, I can still buy it a little (since smart phones were around, even if they weren’t commonplace, though streaming is stretching it a bit). Compare this to the whiplash of Cardcaptor Sakura, which would have been set in the 90s, and seeing smartphones in Clear Card…

—> Now I know logically, they’re keeping the story contemporary with modern tech and fashion, but I refuse to believe that Shugo Chara isn’t still set in 2008. I’m particular about time being consistent, so I realize it’s a me issue.

—> We’re left on a cliffhanger regarding the Arcana games. My guess is that chapter 3 will explain the rules and set up, and possibly tease any rivalries that’ll crop up as a result.

—> In the scenario that they decide to make more anime, I hope they’ll decide to start off by doing a more faithful adaptation of the manga and then cover Jewel Joker. (mostly so they avoid having to pad out the seasons like they did in the OG days). Since we never got the ending of the manga or Encore adapted, this gives them the perfect chance to do that.

—> Which leads me to ask the following question…

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It’s been 5000 years since I’ve done a potential salty prediction for the show, but I’ve been thinking about this for a bit. This time though, it comes with a twinge of angst.

I think it’s more than safe to say that Marinette and Adrien are going to temporarily break up. I mean, if they are really aiming for more seasons, they’re milking it for all it’s worth.

Now there IS a way they could make it interesting - if Lila is the one to reveal the truth about Gabriel to Adrien.

Details wise, IDK how this would work. I was thinking that Lila would create an akuma that ply some dark secrets from its target, leading her to extract the truth about Gabriel from Marinette (maybe not everything, but enough for Lila, who was going to twist the story anyway).

She would drop this truth on Adrien in some emotionally vulnerable moment - maybe he and Marinette had a fight or he just had a bad day. At first, he wouldn’t believe her (because either A. It’s Lila, B. it’s Shadowmoth 2.0, or C. If she’s using an alias, he doesn’t immediately trust her word over Marinette’s.

However, as she keeps talking, something in his memory connects with what she’s saying. If Marinette is also here, she tries to argue against it, but enough details are right that it convinces Adrien that she betrayed him.

TL;DR: my theory is that Lila will reveal the truth about Gabriel to Adrien, leading to the temporary break up.

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Psyche and Bewitched Ch. 6

First half of new installment, because apparently it's almost been a full year since the last one, but there should be a second part. Eventually.

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The tags on that post about the Adrien Remix of TOTMIS got me wondering, have you ever written a Love Square fic before? And would you be willing to do it again?

Way, way back in the day (think the hiatus between season 1 and 2), I wrote a oneshot where Marinette and Adrien revealed their identities to each other in the same vein as the Dic dub of Sailor Moon.

I wouldn't write a full-on fic for them, if that's what you're asking. Maybe oneshot rewrites, or just HCs with changes I'd propose to the dynamic, but nothing in the vein of TOtMiS or Psyche and Bewitched.

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Psyche and Bewitched Ch. 6 Snippet

Subject to change prior to final publication.

“Speaking of which,” Mylene hums, looking around, “I heard Chloe isn’t pleased that we still submitted the film without her. She overheard Nino planning a late birthday party for Adrien, so she’s decided to one-up him.”

“How so?”

Mylene shakes her head. “I’m not sure, honestly. She only got as far as threatening Nino’s party before she turned tail and left.”

Marinette frowns. That wasn’t Chloe’s typical style. Usually, she would brag about a few details here and there to catch everyone’s interest. Perhaps she had something a bit more elaborate in mind then if she wasn’t leaping at the chance to show off right away.

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Ah yes, the dreaded sentikids storyline. Do you think it could have worked? Or do you think it should have been scrapped all together?

I would have scrapped it, shredded it, loaded it up into one of Mayor Borgueois’s garbage can rockets, and sent it straight into the sun.

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How do you feel about Felix's character?

Assuming you're referring to canon? Well, keep in mind I haven't seriously watched the show since Season 3, so my opinion pretty much stems from his debut episode, and the few things I know after that.

CW: Discussions of sexual harassment/assault

I have... mixed feelings on the guy. Him trying to force a kiss on Ladybug, and tricking Ladybug so he can take the miraculouses and give them to Hawkmoth are definitely bad, don't get me wrong.

My issue is that they write him this way to make Adrien look good. Especially in "Felix" when he tries to force the kiss, and Ladybug says that "Adrien would never be that pushy."

Now, obviously, Ladybug doesn't know that Chat Noir = Adrien, but like... Chat Noir has definitely been pushy before. And so it's kinda hypocritical for the show to call out Felix for that, and not Adrien.

Now, if Adrien saw what Felix was doing, and was like "hey, maybe I need to rethink how I'm treating LB," I don't think I'd mind nearly as much. After all, sometimes we can only really learn when a mirror is being held to our faces or we're watching from the outside.

But... no. We can't do that because Adrien is perfect or whatever.

The sad thing is, Felix has so much potential to be an interesting wild card character, wanting the miraculouses for his own reasons. Maybe he wants the Ladybug and Cat miraculouses so he can become a "real boy" (although if I was rewriting this, we are dropping the sentikids subplot, I hate that with all my hate). Or he has some other goal that puts him at odds with both Hawkmoth and Ladybug + Chat Noir. Heck, "Felix" already shows him to be self-motivated and proactive (scheming to get the Graham de Vanily rings).

Now, when writing Felix in TOtMiS (since I'm sure some of you are curious), I wanted a balance from the PV, canon, and fandom interpretations of the character. Him being self-motivated and proactive was retained from his PV and canon characterizations, because those were his best qualities. Also... because he's an antagonist.

However, I also like aloof interpretations of the character. Him being someone that only got involved with a situation if it benefited him personally or if he was interested just made sense to me. He might do good things, but altruism was not instinctive to him. If the show stuck to the PV route, I thought his character would have started him in this area, before growing out of it as part of his development.

When I wrote his confrontation scene with Adrien in "Horror Head," the idea was that both of them were wrong and both of them were right. Felix had valid points concerning Adrien's behavior and actions towards his friends, but Adrien's frustrations are fair too, and Felix addressing him in front of his friends the way he did was pretty boneheaded and petty. Which is why Nino ends up intermediating and presenting Felix's position in a more constructive way, while still showing care for Adrien's situation.

And before anyone asks, Feligami is a hard no for me. If they were allowed to banter and bicker like they were clearly meant to do, it would be far more entertaining and better. But as is? Forget it.

Anyway, TL;DR: my own decisions for writing Felix were inspired by how I wished canon would have taken more nuance to the dichotomy between him and Adrien, and he is at his best when he's being a smarmy know-it-all who plays by his own rules. And like most things in this show, his character and relationship with Kagami can work, just not with the way things are in canon.c

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TOtMiS Anniversary Collection Ch. 9

Ao3

Aka the one where we feed the Marigami fans.

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You think you might end up doing a rewrite of TOtMiS in the future?

Uh, so here’s the thing.

On the one hand, I truthfully want to move on and do other things. Like MAYBE more Psyche and Bewitched? Or like… original projects that I haven’t touched in so long… Not to mention I haven’t really been watching Miraculous or been super active in the fandom for super long so…

On the OTHER hand… I would still like to make the series into one complete story, so it could be read in its intended order instead of needing to skip around. And if I end up doing that, I’m pretty certain I’d probably change a few things here and there so…

Don’t take this as a promise or anything, just a glance into my thought process.

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Were you really that bitter on both Adrien and Alya back when you started the fic?

Oh, absolutely. Remember, this was during S3, where they really hammered down on making Marinette "learn a lesson" every episode, and pushing that Lila was a master manipulator in the absolute worst way possible. While Alya and Adrien's actions and behaviors were exaggerated in TOtMiS... they still had some basis in canon. Episodes like "Chameleon," and "Ladybug," are pretty obvious examples of this, but you also have stuff in "Gamer 2.0," "Reflekdoll," "Weredad," and of course, the infamous "Puppeteer 2". And I'm sure there's others I'm forgetting. But regardless, it was an infuriating time, to say the least.

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Post "Blue Skies" Storylines: Adrien and Felix

Just a rough idea of how the storylines and characters would continue after "The Blue Skies and Your Eyes". If you haven't finished it yet, there's spoilers ahead! The full series is here.

First, we'll start with Adrien and Felix after leaving Paris and heading to London.

Adrien

-> Adrien is getting the therapy he needs while in London. He's able to unpack the issues he had with his father, the grief over losing his mother, and repair his relationship with Felix (who occasionally joins him for sessions). I also imagine him getting some social skills training to supplement the therapy. He's a bit hesitant at first, but is encouraged by his Aunt so he can better understand how healthy relationships work.

-> It takes some time for him to settle into London, but once he does, he starts exploring various interests and hobbies he didn't get to before. I've written a post addressing this before, but to reiterate, I imagine him getting into tricking (combination of martial arts and gymnastics that combines kicks and flips), baking, and romance fiction. To add on to that, I also see him joining a book and/or anime club at his school, or starting one outside of it. And since he's into tricking, I think I'd just have him join a martial arts school while we're at it (a glance at the wiki says that he does karate and kung-fu, so whatever school offers one of those is where he's enrolling).

(For those who need a visual reference of what tricking looks like).

-> His friend group consists of some members of the club he joins, people he regularly tricks with, students at his martial arts school, and some normal people at school. And of course, Felix, once the two have addressed the issues between them.

-> He still keeps in touch with Nino and Kagami, and occasionally Alya too. After doing some soul searching and healing, I could see him reaching out to Marinette and Chloe as well. Adrien and Chloe repairing their relationship helps her quite a bit as she's trying to adjust to New York.

-> Admittedly, he shies away from superhero fiction. Oftentimes, he thinks back to when Miracle Queen took the ring from him, and he can get defensive about it. He's aware of his behavior, but it takes him some time to really let go of it.

-> He is still a romantic at heart, but holds off on dating until a year or so has gone by. He wishes to avoid the fumbles he made with Kagami and Maribug, so he focuses on healing and self-improvement first. His first relationship ends up being someone from his tricking circle.

-> Down the road, I eventually see him becoming a romance author. However, he takes a pen name in order to disassociate himself from the Agreste name. He may also change his name legally for this reason.

Felix

-> While he does put effort into repairing his relationship with Adrien, Felix is well aware that he can never tell him about becoming the Guardian. Over time, he starts to feel a bit guilty about this, but never peeps or hints at it.

-> There were two things I thought of including for him originally in the main story, but never got to address properly: the first was another layer to why he was so hard on Alya. Initially, he was supposed to be a big fan of the Ladyblog, and even develop a small crush on Alya. However, he felt betrayed when he realized she wasn't entirely being truthful on there. The storyline would have focused on their rivalry, and him rekindling his crush on her, but letting go as she was happy with Nino.

-> The other main beat focused on why he was so interested in unraveling mysteries and secrets, which ties back to his own family history. The idea was that every male member on his father's side of the family died relatively young. This would make him concerned over his own mortality, and he would get into investigating the cause of it, since the circumstances were unusual. He would go around involving himself in situations he had no business in, simply to test his own skills.

-> Well, to tie into this new storyline, he'd balance his Guardian duties with finding the answer to this mysterious question. He refuses to admit it, but he's worried about his own mortality, if his own life will end shortly, and if so, by what means. This may cause him to take rash actions and to be called out by various people (Marinette, Luka, Fu, Adrien, etc.) It takes him some time to realize that he needs to practice self-care if he wants to prolong his life.

-> He ends up becoming a beta reader for Alya's autobiography. As they end up having to communicate a lot, I could see him developing a small crush on her, but choosing not to pursue it since she's with Nino. I think she's more observant at this point and picks up on it, but doesn't say anything.

-> You'll often find him spending time in the library doing research or studying for his Guardian duties. He earns the top grades in his class and seems to do so effortlessly. He only joins clubs if it benefits his investigations, with maybe debate team being an exception.

-> He develops a rapport with Marinette and Luka over time, as he continues his Guardian duties. He refuses to call them his friends, but it becomes pretty clear that he's fond of them.

-> In general, he's slow to make new friends. He often meets people when doing his investigations, or if his mom asks Adrien to drag him to one of his events, but they really only stand out to him if they're a person of interest.

-> One person decides to become his rival (for some reason), challenging him to various things, and often losing. When Felix declares that they aren't really friends, this person becomes really competitive... about making Felix his friend. And that's how Felix gains his confidant/sidekick.

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Alright, 2 other major things that, in hindsight, I find not so great and would change. CW: Discussions of ableism and sexual harassment.

1. I would have changed the “Lila fakes a disability” part that led Marinette and co to want to transfer to Mendeleiev’s class for the next school year. As an autistic woman with ADHD, I found it frustrating that at no point in the show, none of the teachers asked Lila for proper documentation to give her accommodations. IRL, this is done so that our teachers can better work with us, and I wanted to share that experience in the story (this was also why I explicitly made Luka autistic, and if I were to rewrite or edit now, I’d establish it earlier).

In hindsight… I would instead opt to have Lila lie about her schedule as a reason for why she can’t do things, and try to get out of taking exams. I know *canonically* her faking having tinnitus is done to show that Lila is a liar and a bad person, but I think we can portray this aspect of her character without perpetuating ableist stereotypes. So I’d also rewrite Chameleon for this reason.

2. Looking back, I’d have Kagami better reflect on how Lila’s harassment might have impacted how Adrien reacted to things. Maybe not right away, like when she initially feels betrayed, but more so in the aftermath, when she’s had some time to reflect on things.

Anything you would have changed about the fic if you could go back in time and restart it?

Ooh, there’s been a few things on my mind:

-I’d try to better balance Adrien and Alya’s arcs. It was harder at the beginning of the fic because I was so annoyed with how the show was handling them at the time, and wanted them to be held accountable for their actions. There are times where, in hindsight, I felt Adrien’s depiction went too far, and would have either dialed it back or balance him out a bit better. He would still need to face consequences (because he was too shielded from them at the time), but looking at spoilers going forward, I’d also try to give him moments of emotional agency. I do think there was one point where I was going to write him as he ended up in “Nice Guy Adrien the Musical” but I’m glad that I didn’t go that far. I think there was also a point that I considered having Marinette and Alya call off their friendship, but it’s been a while so I don’t remember.

-Intersplice the “Paper Sky” chapters into the story. I’m still considering uploading the story as one full thing so there’s no jumping between parts, and it flows better.

-Fleshed out Ivan, Juleka, and Rose more. I wanted to do more with them, but the story was taking me in other directions. I’m at least glad I got their POVs and the dream chapters.

-I wouldn’t have announced Marinette not forgiving Adrien by the end. Not because I think she’s obligated to or because he deserves it, but because I now feel compelled to write it that way rather than letting it happen organically. Truthfully, I’m undecided now if she will or won’t. She’s the last chapter of the epilogue so I have some time, but still.

Those are the ones that come to mind, but others might hit me later.

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🥹🥰

Hey, i'm bored, can u recommend me some adrien salt fics (Bonus points if it's lukanette)

Bonus for Lukanette? Looks like I’m getting all the bonus points😂 I mean I haven‘t really read any Adrien salt fics for the sake of reading salt as of recent but because it was a Lukanette fic that happened to also have some salt😂 so yeah they’re all Lukanette whoopsie

Also I don’t know what exactly you’re looking for but most of those aren‘t really super heavy salt? And several salt on other characters as well, so beware. I‘ll try my best nontheless, hope that works for you

From the top of my head, here‘s a few I can think of:

Juleka vs the forces of the universe by @goldenlaurelleaveswrites , multichapter. Juleka is fed up with Mari being „meant for“ Adrien and works against the forces of the universe to get Lukanette to come closer. Beware, it‘s more or less salt against… well, everybody😂

Choice chances by @miraculouscontent , one-shot. Takes place after 5x02. Mari hangs out with Luka and opens up about her not feeling like she has much of a choice for her life. Adrien is only mentioned

Dread string of fate by @miraculouscontent , multichapter. You probably know that one, in which case, go reread it. It‘s a masterpiece

Everything from @miraculouscontent really😂

The one to make it stay by @thesaltyoceanwaves , multi-chapter. S3 Lukanette au. I love everything about it

Live with it by @quickspinner , multichapter. Aftermath of Chat‘s fuck-up in the NY special

The Ladybug‘s knight by Nyx_the_dragon on AO3, one-shot. Chat is being his obnoxious and flirty self and Luka gets akumatized over it.

Patient by 19thcentury on AO3, one-shot. Also NY special salt with mild Adrien salt. He‘s only mentioned

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Marinette: So I was just at the diner and they asked me if I wanted a super salad. I was not sure what it was so I just said yes. They gave me this weird look O_o

Luka: Marinette?

Marinette: Yeah?

Luka: Are you sure they didn't say soup or salad?

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TOtMiS Anniversary Collection

Ao3

Note: This is Adrien's POV of "Good Intentions," a oneshot I wrote some time after "Startrain" aired. Aka, the oneshot where Lila gets exposed from everyone else trying to accommodate her so Marinette doesn't have to. If you remember, Adrien was the one to orchestrate the whole thing.

When I initially pitched the anniversary collection, I wanted to do alternate takes (or as I'll call them "remixes") in which Marinette found support from Kagami or Felix, and eventually Kagami, Felix and Luka. But after I wrote "Good Intentions," I realized that this could be the "Adrien Remix" of TOtMiS. Or more likely, a rewrite of canon.

Either way, I hope you enjoy it.