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saturnrin · 6 months

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The miraculous affecting their users outside transformation is one of my favorite concepts because it has so much potential.

For my sake, I'm going to use the ladybug miraculous as the sole example in this post. Otherwise, I'd never shut up.

The ladybug miraculous is the miraculous of creation, good luck, order, and ladybugs (duh).

Maybe the ladybug miraculous gives its user extreme good luck outside transformation.

Or, it could do the opposite; give the holder bad luck outside transformation for cosmic balance or whatever.

As the miraculous of creation, it's not hard to imagine that living beings (plants and animals specifically) would feel pulled towards its holder. Not entirely dissimilar to the way sunflowers follow the sun's light.

The holders could also gain creation magic, if you'd like. The ability to simply create whatever they'd like out of thin air. (This can include the ability to create pocket dimensions.)

Healing magic is also not-farfetched as the ladybug is used to heal injuries and revive thousands of people almost daily in the miraculous universe.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Developing traits of a ladybug is also an option;

• Maybe the holder has thicker skin than the average person, a mimicry of a ladybugs protective shell. (Harder to bruise, takes more to break through the skin, etc.)

• Or maybe they're more susceptible to the cold (not a positive aspect, but it's good for angst, i suppose).

• a newly found fondness for flowers, nature, and sweet fruit (like strawberries)

• Ladybugs hibernate, so an increased need for sleep could be possible?

• An increased diet, as ladybugs are considered insatiable.

• you could toy with the idea of vitiligo/skin discoloration as a mimicry of a ladybugs warning spots.

• toxic blood is also a really cool idea for a ladybug-like trait.

• ladybugs secrete a pheromone to deter predators when scared or threatened. This could also be a trait the ladybug holder could inherit.

Or maybe ladybugs just regularly land on the users of this miraculous.

The side effects could be so cool! Or inconvenient! Or debilitating! Or they could be completely and totally underwhelming.

Or there could be no side effects, but where's the fun in that?

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

The Miraculi don't just affect their users physically or magically, but also mentally and emotionally.

Let's dig into that.

The Ladybug Miraculous has a fixed alignment with order. (This fact can be reflected in Tikki, the kwami of creation, as well.)

When transformed, this alignment is more obvious as the influence of a miraculous and its kwami is stronger in transformation.

The holder of the Ladybug Miraculous will gradually feel the need to take control of situations around them. Whether this be in battle (there's a reason the ladybug holder is always the leader) or in their personal life.

Things being out of their hands or control, especially when it directly affects them, can make the ladybug holder feel anxious or uncomfortable.

The ladybug holder may find themselves having a harder time loosening up or calming down. Being on high alert 24/7 isn't exactly an expected side effect, but, unfortunately, it is one.

Lists are friends to the ladybug holder; checklists, bullet-point lists, numbered lists, and even lists scribbled across the corners of notebooks in teeny tiny handwriting. Lists help keep everything in order, which is in the comfort zone of a ladybug user.

Plans are also friends. Planning is already a required skill for using the ladybug miraculous in general, as it's very important to know what to do with a lucky charm. But planning is also another way for the ladybug holder to know what to do if something happens.

Take Marinette, for example. She has backup plans for her backup plans. Marinette has plans for when things go right, plans for when things go wrong, plans for when things go semi-right, and/or semi-wrong. She's prepared for every possibility she can think of.

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* *:･ﾟ✧*:･ﾟ✧

Also!

The idea that the ladybug costume has to be based on the classic red and black-spotted ladybug is ridiculous! Utterly ridiculous!

Don't get me wrong, the original ladybug suit and the lucky charm suit will always hold a special place in my heart.

But.

There are so many variations of ladybugs!

There's even a pink ladybug! Pink is Marinettes favorite color.

The Large Leaf Eating Ladybeetle is pretty darn cool as well; it's a static grey with gradient yellow to orange spots. (Which would make such a pretty suit if done right)

Some other ladybugs have white rings around their spots. Some have white spots, or red spots, or no spots at all!

And they come in so many colors?!?! Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, white, grey, or black.

One of my personal favorites is the Steelblue Ladybird. A shiny, blue ladybug. I keep imagining an armored ladybug suit based on it.

Also, ladybugs have wings, which would be pretty cool to incorporate into the ladybug costume.

In conclusion, the ladybug miraculous is cool as fuck and I'm tired of pretending that it isn't.

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taldigi · 10 months

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Can we please know more about your version of Amber Clairmont

What I wanted to achieve with Amber was to do what Chloe and Lila were trying to do + some of what really pissed me off about Alya. Chloe is a bully, she's mean, and the stereotype of the queen bee- popular, beautiful.. and Lila is a petty manipulator who seems to press the exact buttons needed to get her way.

Amber is.. well... she's a real queen bee with the school buzzing all about her! She's beautiful, she's popular- and with good reason, too- she's generous, she's patient, she's polite. she's top of the class and she's the rep too! She's an overachiever and a perfectionist.. she can read you like a book and twist you in the right way to keep that reputation. Even the teachers love this golden girl!

So when she does do anything particularly despicable? Not a soul would believe you! Thing about Amber is that she has ambitions, and she uses her empathy, popularity, and ability to manipulate people and uses it to get ahead... when she sets a target, you better hope you're not in her way.

She's head of the journalism club, and duh, why wouldn't she be? People hang on to her every word.. and what words are more exciting than the exploits and drama of Ladybug and Chat Noir? Sure, she polishes it up a bit, but nobody notices- and it brings in the views, sells the papers, and gets people subscribing to her blog all about it.

The Ladyblog is hers in my stories, more of a gossip column and dramabait site than anything truly newsworthy. It's wildly popular, and she often gets the spotlight as the utmost authority on the heroes- which she laps up eagerly. this props her up against Alina, who is less of a "obnoxious reporter" and more of a tech wiz who is trying her best at using her abilities to help people.

Only a few people seem to see through her- those who have been wronged by her (Alina, as well as the other three), those who are aware of her intentions (Claude, Alix), and those who are unable to justify her lie by living the truth (Marinette and Felix as LB and CN, specifically.).

in Fashion Club, it's revealed that her ability to do this has been magically boosted by a kwami called Brocc. Her desire for attention and power leads her to gaining an internship, and eventual job at Pergue/Fury- where she uses her charisma and sway to fuel a slander campaign against LB & CN as well as prop up the company. What little humanity she may have had is eventually stripped away by Null (due to being too close to Richard/Null) and her vendetta against the heroes for slighting her goes from personal to just her default state of being. She's one of the few people who go down with Richard at the end of the world, and reveals that her Nullification was very very willing.

#shiningharmony #Amber Clairmont #digit's miraculous tag #digit's art tag #amber denelorac

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wehadabondingmoment · 3 months

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I'd like to hear about alliance au and ND fics!

Oh my god gladly!!!!

Okok so the ND fics are a row of one shots that I'm working on with @kittykyryi and Cal (fallinginlovewithrain on ao3). We have two one shots in our current collection and are planning to write more in April. The fics can be about any neurodivergency but focus on Autistic!Adrien and AuDHD!Marinette because we share a lot of headcanons <3

Now about my alliance au! I'm in the process of planning it so it will be a while before anything gets written (@raspberrycatapult I appreciate you for letting me ramble) but it's essentially an AU where magic exists but superheroes don't. Adrien officially died like 1-2 years ago and Marinette is studying fashion (which she has a natural talent for due to her magical affinity, creation [duh])

The alliance rings are insanely popular in this world since Gabriel Agreste has the highest affinity for transmission magic since Nooroo, founder of their town. He weaves his magic into the technology, giving it abilities unseen before. Prior to dying, Adrien was a model here too, leading him to being the face/ avatar/ Siri of the rings in this world as well.

Marinette is trying to live her normal life when suddenly, while Alliance!Adrien is answering a question she asked him, he glitches out and his face gets replaced by... Adrien? Except he looks a bit different and is speaking frantically, not like the automated version she's used to, begging her to help him.

#so yeah #that's the premise at least #feel free to dm me on discord if you have more questions #i appreciate you giving me an excuse to rant #asks #miraculous fanfic

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mochegato · 2 years

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Ready, Aim, Are You Going to Fire?

Marinette was bouncing with excitement as if the ground was electrified, giving her a shock every time she touched it… a feeling she knows from personal experience. She had never even held a gun that wasn’t conjured up and disappeared as soon as she cast the Miraculous Ladybug, but today she was not only going to hold one, she was going to learn how to use it. She was living in America after all, she should at least know how to fire a gun. True American experience and all.

It wasn’t that she was interested in actually using a gun let alone owning one, but the prospect of learning how to use one, of learning to become a good shot? That was exciting. Not to mention a good stress reliever and with all the stress she’s been under the last few weeks, she could desperately use one that was cheap and not self-destructive.

“For the love of all that is holy, please calm the fuck down,” Jason groaned as he walked into the clearing, not even bothering to look at her. “Dealing with that was not part of the punishment. I’m barely awake enough to deal with his,” he motioned with his coffee cup toward Duke, “smug snark. I definitely can’t deal with it and fucking Rapunzel on her first outing from the tower.”

“Yes, it was part of it. You have to play nice for whoever I bring even if said person had two espressos before coming.”

Duke’s grin widened at the whimper Jason let out. “Fucking Tim,” Jason huffed. “It was hundred to one he could land that.”

“Hey, I didn’t realize you held anything as holy,” Duke snarked at him. He rolled his eyes for Marinette but sighed heavily when he noticed Marinette watching Jason intently, her mouth slightly agape. Why did all his friends develop a crush on at least one of his siblings. Granted he had a lot and they kind of covered the spectrum of interests, but still.

Jason scoffed. “Of course, I do,” he held up his gun as emphasis. “Duh.”

Marinette raised an eyebrow. “I would have chosen chocolate, but sure, okay.”

Jason took a long drink from his coffee cup before looking up to greet her, the coffee cup freezing at his lips once he finally looked at her. Fucking Hell, why did his siblings have the best-looking friends? “Chocolate is good,” Jason acknowledged with a charming grin, “but have you ever emptied a magazine into something after having a bad day?”

“No, obviously. That’s why I’m here,” she snarked back with a matching smile.

Duke snickered. “Marinette, this is Jason. Jason, this is my friend Marinette I told you about.”

Marinette waved. “It's nice to meet you, Jason. Thank you for doing this. Duke said you were the foremost expert on guns in Gotham, which is pretty high praise. I would have thought that was Red Hood or a goon.” She smiled at him. “You must be really good with them. And don’t worry, he was lying about the two espressos, I promise.”

Jason got caught up for just a second in the way the sun was glinting in her eyes. “Good to know, but I’m more than just good with them, sweetheart,” he smirked at her, immediately dropping it when she wrinkled her nose and turned away and making a mental note not to use that endearment anymore.

“I’ve met Red Hood,” Duke commented a little too casually. He threw Jason a pointed smirk behind Marinette as he slung his arm over her shoulder to guide her toward the embankment they would be shooting into. “He’s way overrated.”

Jason narrowed his eyes and pointed a warning finger at him but Marinette scoffed. “I’ve seen pictures of the man. If anything, those thighs are underrated.” Her eyes immediately widened, and she slapped a hand over her face in embarrassment. Jason choked on the drink he had just taken but recovered quickly to grin victoriously at Duke.

Duke groaned and pushed her away. “There are things I don’t ever want to hear come out of your mouth and things like that, are the majority of that category.” He shook his head to give him time to stop laughing. “I meant with guns, you pervert.”

Marinette shrugged, her cheeks still a rosy hue from her earlier statement. “Should have been more specific. That’s on you.”

“Yeah, Duke. Let the woman speak,” Jason chimed in. He was still grinning smugger than Duke liked.

Duke opened his mouth, but his phone rang, cutting him off. He scowled when he saw the caller id and gave Jason a pointed look. “Mari, I think I’m going to have to go help Cass with something, but I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

Jason nodded in understanding and turned to Marinette to distract her but froze. Marinette was pouting at Duke, her lower lip jutting out and catching the light. He cleared his throat to focus. “That’s okay. We don’t want you getting in the way anyway. Right, princess?” Marinette rolled her eyes and scoffed. Jason puckered his lips. Nope, not ‘princess’ either then.

“Hurry back.” Marinette gave him a hug. “Because if I have to endure many more of these nicknames, someone’s going home bloody, and not from a gun wound.”

Duke grimaced. “I’ll do my best, Skyfall.” He turned around and smirked at Jason when Marinette didn’t object to his nickname.

Jason narrowed his eyes at him but didn’t say anything. As soon as he left Jason eyed her from the corner of his eye. “Give me just a few seconds to set up the targets.” She nodded and explored the area around them while he worked. Growing up in a large city, she hadn’t had a chance to spend too much time in any woods, but now she could see the appeal.

There was a peaceful, cooling breeze rustling the leaves above them offering sanctuary to songbirds who seemed more than happy to sing to each other. The leaves, bushes, grass, weeds, wildflowers, and thousands of other plants she couldn’t name offered a million delicately varied shades of greens and browns that stood out brilliantly against the blue and white sky.

Her eyes caught on a small path through the underbrush and over the embankment. She followed and froze as soon as she made it over the embankment. “Holy sh...” she muttered in amazement. Stretched out in front of her was the most ornate obstacle course she’d ever seen. She jumped and almost fell down the rest of the embankment when she felt Jason come up behind her, but he reached out and steadied her before she could.

“Uh, yeah. I get really into this stuff,” he said awkwardly.

Marinette looked between him and the course a few times. “Are you sure you’re not secretly one of the bats? Because...” Her eyes widened and snapped back to him before quickly slamming shut. She shook her head and walked back to the firing range. “Nope! Nuh uh. Forget I said that. I don’t want an answer. I saw nothing. I know nothing. Nothing!”

Jason cringed and watched after her. He was going to have to talk to Duke about this. He rushed after her. “No need to go all Sargent Shultz. I just have more money than I know what to do with.”

Marinette scrunched her nose at him. “I don’t know who that is.”

Jason stared at her for a few seconds before letting out a long, deep breath. “Fucking kids. I’m surrounded by fucking children who don’t even get good references.” He walked back toward the makeshift table with guns. “Coming up with their own language and reference that make no fucking sense,” he grumbled agitatedly.

Marinette couldn’t stop the giggles that burst out of her. “You sound like my grandfather.”

Jason opened his mouth but snapped it shut, choosing to narrow his eyes at her instead. Suddenly his lips quirked up into a smirk. “So... Skyfall, huh?”

“Uh huh,” Marinette confirmed, turning to study the woods around them in a failed attempt to hide her blush. “I’m not telling you where that came from.”

Jason grinned, suddenly much more interested in the nickname’s origin. “If Duke was involved, I’m sure it’s an interesting story too.”

Marinette nodded. “It is.”

“Probably either impressive or embarrassing… or both,” he continued.

“Yep,” she confirmed.

Jason waited a few seconds to see if silence might drive her to keep talking. When it had no effect on her, he raised an eyebrow but continued on. “Here, before we start shooting, lets make sure these fit,” he instructed passing a set of earmuffs.

“Ooh, sexy,” she commented wryly, but put them on quickly.

“Pretty sure you can make anything sexy,” he said absently repositioning one of the guns.

“What?” she asked pulling the earmuffs off. “Sorry the earmuffs were on. I couldn’t hear you.” She smiled at him. “Guess that means they work.”

Jason froze momentarily but recovered quickly. “Yeah, that’s... I was just seeing if you could hear me. I’ll make sure to speak up more when you have them on.”

Marinette nodded back. She opened her mouth to say something but snapped it closed when she saw the guns. The guns were laid out with great care and attention, almost reverently. She felt a surge of excitement flow through her. “Are we going to shoot all of those?” Her eyes caught on some of the larger guns. They were almost as big as her making her wonder if she would even be able to shoot those.

Jason shrugged. “Probably not, but it’s always good to have options.”

She started bouncing from foot to foot. “Okay, what first.”

“First, pumpkin...” he started.

A loud groan interrupted him. “What is it with you and the terrible nicknames?” she exclaimed, the exasperation bleeding out of her voice.

“Terrible?” he exclaimed in mock scandal. “These are high quality nicknames... sugar?” he ended weakly.

Marinette gave him a flat look. “Truly awful,” Marinette confirmed. “It’s like you’re not even putting effort in.”

Even with his eyes narrowed at her, the playful glint was shining clearly. “I’ll find a nickname you like,” he promised her.

“Prospects aren’t looking too good,” she scoffed with a smirk.

“As I was saying, princess...” he continued.

“You already tried that one,” she cut in. “That’s still a ‘Hell no’.”

“Hm? Oh right.” He paused for a minute to think. “As I was saying... buttercup...”

Marinette choked and looked at him wide eyed. After a few seconds she shook her head slowly. “No.”

“No?” He just held himself back from chuckling at her expression.

“No,” she said firmly.

Jason nodded. That was another story he definitely wanted to hear. “Let’s start with the basics...” Marinette listened and watched intently as Jason did a quick overview of gun safety and the parts of a gun. Honestly, she didn’t think she really needed to know every part of a gun, but Jason was on a roll and his enthusiasm was pretty cute. Yeah, maybe she was paying closer attention to the teacher than the lesson now, but the teacher was a subject worth studying and she was always an excellent student.

In fact, she was such a good student, focused entirely on her study, she was caught completely off guard by the gun shots as he emptied his magazine into the target, letting out an undignified yelp and flinching away. Jason raised an eyebrow and smirked. “You okay there?”

Marinette grinned overly wide as if it could distract him from her embarrassing display. “Yep! Great!”

“Right,” he chuckled, his tone and sparkling eyes making his disbelief clear. He motioned toward the target next to it. “Your turn.” Marinette’s prior excitement turned to nerves now that she was about to actually hold a real gun with no miraculous involved. Her hands shook as she reached for the gun, but he pulled it away before she could reach it. “Let’s get into position first and take off the earmuffs until we’re ready. Stand like I stood,” he instructed gently.

Marinette nodded and tried to emulate his shooting position, facing the target and planting her feet securely. Jason stepped up behind her and lightly tapped her leg with his foot. “Legs shoulder width apart.” Marinette nodded and widened her stance. He tapped her shoulder. “Relax your shoulders. This is supposed to be fun.” Marinette offered him a weak smile and rolled her shoulders to ease some of the tension out.

“Right. Just a little nervous,” she said sheepishly.

Jason nodded. “Good. Guns should make you feel a little uncomfortable. It’s when you feel like you need to have one nearby that you should start worrying. But you don’t need to worry too much. I won’t let anything happen to you and as long as you follow the rules I gave you, you’ll be safe.” He turned her just enough so she could see the soft sincerity in his eyes. You’re safe with me,” he vowed.

Marinette stared back at him, lost in the darker flecks of blue against the lighter blue background of his eyes. She wet her suddenly dry lips. “I’ll hold you to that,” she murmured.

Jason searched her eyes for a moment and quirked his lips up. “Good, thunderbolt.”

Marinette groaned and faced back toward the target and eased into the position Jason had described; mood completely lost. “Just terrible,” she grumbled. “Posture good?” she asked louder.

Jason’s lips quirked down. He thought that one was pretty good. “Yeah. Now remember what I told you; line up your shot and breathe out as you pull the trigger, yeah?” He waited until she nodded before motioning for her to put her earmuffs back on and handing her the gun, ignoring the electric feeling when their fingers touched. Very thunderbolt like, thank you very much. He stepped just a bit behind her as she got ready.

Marinette nodded to let him know she understood and focused back on the target. She lined up her shot, holding the gun steady as she took a few calming breaths, and… hesitated. Jason gave her a few more seconds before leaning closer. Close enough so she could see his teasing smile, but not enough to scare her. “You going to shoot?”

Marinette scowled at him playfully. “Yes,” she hissed. “I just needed to... there was... butterflies...”

“Butterflies,” Jason repeated slowly.

“Butterflies,” she confirmed with a wince. “Shut up,” she pouted at his laughter. “Okay. For real this time.” She lined up her shot again, took another calming breath, and pulled the trigger. She reeled back into his chest and immediately felt his arms wrapped around her waist to balance her.

“Yeah, that’s the kickback I was talking about,” he said into her ear without removing his arms. “You should be able to brace for it a bit better next time.”

She looked up at him, finding his face angled down toward hers, considerably closer than she had expected. Her eyes flicked between his lips and eyes a few times before she cleared her throat. “Thanks. That was more than I was expecting.”

Jason chuckled. “I think we’ll definitely skip the larger guns today. I’m pretty sure you’d end up on your ass with those.”

Marinette scrunched her nose at him and turned back toward the target in mock offense. Because he was right. If the 9 mm did that to her, those larger guns would probably cause permanent damage, but she’d be damned if she admitted that to him. Instead, she opened her mouth to hit him with a snappy retort, but her eyes caught on her shot, dead center of the bullseye. She squealed in delight and jumped up and down.

She spun to hug Jason, lifting the headset but the gun was still in her hand and Jason balked immediately lunging for the gun. “Never do that with the gun still in your hand,” he chastised. “And the safety isn’t on.”

“Oh,” she chuckled sheepishly. “Right. Sorry.”

Jason waved her off. “Everyone makes that mistake. Just don’t do it again. You could shoot yourself in the head, or someone else. If you’re not firing, the gun is on safety.”

Marinette nodded seriously. “Right.” She switched the safety on and set the gun down. “Sorry, I was just really excited. I hit the bullseye! Did you see! First time!”

Jason grinned, taking in the way her cheeks flushed with excitement and her butt wiggled when she did a little victory dance. “Yeah. It was a really good shot. Congratulations.” He continued looking at her for a few more moments before nodding to the target. “Let’s see if you can keep it up.”

Marinette let out a quiet noise but nodded quickly. “Yep, right. Let’s go.”

“See what happens if you empty the entire clip. Don’t worry about running out of ammo. I have plenty,” he assured her.

She looked up at him incredulously. “I’m going to end up in the weeds behind you is what’s going to happen.”

Jason chuckled. “No, you won’t,” he assured her. “You know what to expect now. And if it’s too much, I’ll be right behind you. I told you I’d keep you safe. I will. Now go for it, cupcake.”

Marinette wrinkled her nose. “Who knew there were so many food related nicknames.” She pulled her earmuffs back on and proceeded to empty the clip without falling.

The next few hours blew by in a flurry of shooting, talking, and joking. The sound of Duke’s car interrupted their laughter. Marinette glanced toward the break in the trees that lead to the parking area before looking back and taking a breath. She looked up at Jason with a small smile. “Looks like we don’t have much time left. So... you going to shoot your shot?”

Jason looked at the gun in his hand, a slight confused frown pulling down the lips that had previously been blown wide in laughter. “Uh, no. I’ll just save the ammunition for later.” His frown deepened enough for a crinkle to form in his brow at the flash of sadness in her eyes and the dropped smile. Maybe she was hoping to see what the gun would do? It was larger than her and could do a lot of damage. He wouldn’t blame her.

Marinette took a step back and handed the earmuffs back to Jason with a smile back on her lips. “Thank you for today, Jason. I had a lot of fun. Maybe we can do it again sometime.”

Jason’s frown disappeared in an instant. “Yeah, that sounds fun. Let me know. Anytime,” he answered quickly, pulling out his phone as he did. “Here, put your number in. I’ll text you so you have my number.”

Marinette’s smile warmed as she took the phone and entered her number. She had just handed it back when Duke made it through the break in the trees. “Sorry!” he called out loudly. “It didn’t take too long, but traffic back was ridiculous.” He slowed when he looked around. “Did I miss everything?”

“Yep,” Jason confirmed. “I was just about to pack up.”

“But he said we can do it again,” Marinette grinned. Jason eyed her for a moment. He hadn’t meant for Duke to come too, but if that made Marinette feel more comfortable, he guessed he could handle it.

“Actually,” Duke started. His accompanying grin was dangerous. “That’s perfect timing. Because I was hoping to get you,” he looked pointedly at Marinette, “to help me with something.”

Marinette stared at him analytically for less than a second before walking past him. “No.”

Duke padded after her. “What do you mean no? Mari, you wouldn’t do that to me. Come on, Mari. Mari? Skyfall?” he called after her, racing to catch up.

She whirled on him just before passing through the break in the trees. “No. Last time you smiled like that, I ended up waist deep in the Gotham River... the Gotham River,” she repeated pointedly, disgust from the memory of the night bleeding through “wading to shore while trying not to attract any goons’ attention.”

“It wasn’t my fault! That boat was already on fire,” Duke protested.

“No, it wasn’t. It...” Marinette’s voice faded out as she got into the car.

Jason chuckled as he heard the car pull out. Oh yeah, he was going to enjoy getting to know her better.

Continued in Hit Me With Your Best Shot

@maribat-calendar-events @jasonette-july-event

#maribat #Jasonette #Jasonette July #Jasonette July 2022 #prompt - aim

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adrinoir · 1 year

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Determination - The *Official* Start of Reverse Love Square

It’s here’s, it’s finally here!! Reverse love square is officially established by Adrien and Marinette themselves. Determination was such a wild ride. I’m still here trying to process everything that happened between the two of them.

Anyhow, I wanna break down what’s happening here and why their approach was good but also what I want to see moving forward.

What makes sense now

At first glance, it seems like they flipped the switch and made Marinette drop her feelings for Adrien and Adrien drop his feelings for Ladybug. But, this isn’t true.

In Jubilation - 1 episode before Determination- Adrien wanted to keep living a fantasy with Ladybug. And even in Determination, he still acted very sweet and loving towards her, with that look in his eye.

In Determination, Marinette still continues to act very nervous and giggly around Adrien. That’s something that has never changed. Yes, her feelings for him are getting pushed down and she’s doing a good job of no longer making plans to confess, but she’s still not over him. Notice how she even made an active effort to tell him that she’s not with Luka.

The whole change in dynamic is because these two can’t figure out how they have feelings for “two different people.” It’s a normalized thing to only be in love with one person (unless you’re poly, haha hi. I am.) and that loving two people at the same time is wrong. Almost like cheating in your mind. But, little to their knowledge, it’s not like that at all. They’re in love with the same person without knowing (duh).

Marinette cried looking at Cat Noir’s photo at the end of the episode. She’s finally accepting her feelings for Cat Noir and that’s not an easy thing to come to terms with. She’s had her heart so dead set on Adrien for such a long time. Now she’s finally realizing she screwed up, constantly denying her feelings for Cat Noir and hurting him despite feeling the same way.

Also, take notice as to how they didn’t turn each other down. Marinette tried to turn the conversation around to be about Adrien being her friend and then ran off. Meanwhile, Cat Noir didn’t seem to realize Ladybug was making an effort to confess and was more focused on the Marinette situation in the moment (and the fact that they were about to detransform). Both valid reactions to have.

Additionally, Adrien got pressured by Kagami to tell Marinette how he feels, even though he wasn’t completely ready and still juggling his feelings between her and Ladybug. Same with Marinette, she got pressured by her friends to go talk to Adrien.

Although it’s not good to pressure your friends, I understand why they did it. It makes perfect sense. They’ve all known for the longest time how Adrien and Marinette feel about each other - it’s blatantly obvious. But, Adrien needs to tell Marinette when he feels ready to, not because he was pressured by Kagami into telling her. And, Marinette needs to sort out her feelings before turning down Adrien.

Marinette also needs to stop being in this ridiculous amount of denial of her feelings for Cat Noir. She’s toyed with him for a long time because of it and even lied about the dream sequence. However, it makes sense that she hinted at having feelings for him vs telling him directly - she’s not completely ready to, either. Also, it’s very much like Marinette to avoid confessing, as we’ve seen 20 something times with Adrien.

But, Marinette’s feelings for Cat Noir always seem to spark when he reassures her about things and offers a helping paw. For example, in Determination and Strikeback, he tells her she’s not alone. And, in Kuro Neko, he holds her hand and tells her he’s going to take care of her (even though he was playing his role as Cat Walker, she got real flirty with him.) It makes sense why she decided to try and confess when he did this again in Determination.

Lastly, I am so proud of Marinette for realizing she’s more in love with the idea of Adrien and doesn’t know exactly what to expect if she went on an actual date with him. She of course has feelings for him and is closer to him than she was at the beginning of the series, but she still has so much to learn about him. I’m glad that she realized that and mentioned it to Luka. Man, wait until she starts to figure out he’s Cat Noir.

How the love square should progress

Don’t mind me being nit-picky here lol. It has been so long and these two have barely connected any dots. What I mean is that it’s supposed to be them falling for the two different sides of each other. That was implied as soon as signs of the reverse love square started appearing.

Maybe it’s going to start happening as season 5 progresses (I obviously can’t predict this yet), but I hope to see them start connecting dots that Marinette is Ladybug and Adrien is Cat Noir. I’ve always wanted this. Throughout the seasons, they should’ve had Marinette slowly start to realize “hey these are qualities Adrien has” with Cat Noir, and vice versa with Adrien realizing Marinette has similar qualities to Ladybug.

Take for example in Ephemeral - which mind you was less than a whole season ago - that Marinette couldn’t believe Adrien and Cat Noir were the same person after the reveal. It was super funny seeing her imagine Cat Noir everywhere, but upsetting how disappointed she was that Adrien is Cat Noir.

Sure, Adrien connected dots rather easily in both Chat Blanc and Ephemeral that Ladybug and Marinette are the same person, but it shouldn’t happen that quickly. It should gradually build up more and more over time. Noticing small things here and there. Then they sit down in their Thinking Chairs and think, putting the clues together lol.

I’d also like it if Marinette stopped suddenly drooling over Cat Noir the moment he offers help. It’d be adorable and make more sense to have her show all the qualities she likes about him. Like, in Jubilation and Truth, she makes it obvious she likes his silly jokes - have her laugh more at his jokes. And, maybe make her get really blushy and tongue-tied like she gets when she’s around Adrien. They’ve already done a really good job of making Adrien get all googly eyed around Marinette. More of that should happen in the Ladynoir dynamic.

I’ve seen a season 5 spoiler of Marinette telling Adrien she doesn’t love him. I’d love to see the drama of her friends trying to figure out why she told him that and Alya being the one to figure out she’s fallen for Cat Noir too.

Also I’m really surprised by the fact that Adrien realized his feelings for Marinette after the embarrassing moment in Puppeteer 2?! He got so freaked out by her trying to kiss him, and even mentioned “the girl he loves” in their car ride home. Was not expecting that to be when he figured out his feelings for her.

Conclusion

I don’t mind where the love square is at right now, but I think some aspects of it could be bettered moving forward. That’s pretty much it. Determination made me scream and I’m just ready to see these two finally date.

#miraculous ladybug #tales of ladybug and cat noir #miraculers #miraculous #adrien agreste #chat noir #ladybug #ladynoir #adrienette #ml love square #ml reverse love square #ml season 5 #ml season 5 spoilers #ml spoilers #ml determination #ml jubilation

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ladykyriaa · 9 months

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MLB Awakening review, which btw, will DEFINITELY CONTAIN SPOILERS

Okay so first off, gonna start with the things that I undeniably ENJOYED.

1. Duh. The animation. Everything looks. HEAVENLY. I love how they used so many vast techniques of lightings for all kinds of things and situations. I especially love how glowy they made the kwamis and miraculous look. I also love how expressive the kids are. Even freaking gabriel holy shit.

2. The MUSICALS. Literally y'all can fight me on this. I know some people hate that it's a musical, but personally I've never had much problem with it. (Though season 5 is a whole other situation and I was a bit skeptical) but the movie being a musical honestly excited me. The only downside is that freaking Ce mur qui nous separe SHOULD'VE BEEN HERE.

3. The lines and comedic timing. Gotta say. Is top tier. The watermelon bit? Loved it.

4. The lore and worldbuilding, though a bit different. I actually loved it. (There are some downside but I'll write that later) up till the reveal everything is pretty well done I'd say. And y'all the interactions is to DIE FOR (and yes, i especially loved how they talked and argued like actual 14 y.o apparently people hate this a lot? So i just feel a bit compelled to add this one in. And as much as i love the show, most times it honestly feels like they'reolder than 14, which again isn't necessarily a bad thing but I remember being surprised when it was first revealed that they were actually 14). And did y'all see gabriel holy shit. That man would've won in season 2 if his powers in the movie were put on the show

5. And i love, how both the show and movie are separate existence to each other. The movie is definitely a cute little fanfic that i get to treat myself to watch to again and again.

6. Hot take, I actually don't mind the voice change as much as I though I would. Lou and elliot sound heavenly and I live them for that

Now that that's all said and done. I must say there are some things that I prefer in the show.

1. Mainly. How their powers work. Now i dont think i have much problem with hawkmoth and chat noir's powers. Cause honestly the movie was able to highlight how dangerous the power of destruction is. And how a miraculous fallen to the wrong hand could be something so devastating, two 14 yo teenagers just, realistically at least, would not have been able to defeat said villain.

But ladybug's powers however. Well. I mean does she even have one at this point? Cause in the show her power is lucky charm and she had to use her wit to defeat the akumas. In the movie however she could just. Idk jazz hands and things are fixed.

2. What the heck happened to plagg😭. Like. I mean it was funny. But seriously why the fart jokes. It was kind of unnacessary i think. Show! Plagg would've patted adrien in the back for standing up to his dad

3. You can argue on me with this one. But i honestly think Adrien's headphones hust became his character trait cause everytime he appears he always has them on💀 it's not something I hate, but it really got you wondering and again, just a bit unnecessary.

Edited and a bit of an afterthought, but as much as i love the reveal. I do feel like the Adrienette side isn't developed enough for them to readily declare that they're immediately in love with one another. And hey not to be that person screaming about loving only one side of them. But it's not even about that really. Just that we've barely seen their interactions. And the last time they talked, adrien just found out that Marinette owns a bakery. So uh. Yeah.

#ml awakening #also can yall stop with the comparison between the movie and show #they are two very different entities idk why its necessary to think one is better than the other #guys. you can like both. its really not a crime #miraculous ladybug

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purrincess-chat · 1 year

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Fashion Faux Paw CH5

Only one chapter left! Tensions are rising in this chapter. Thanks as always to my beta @avrilmaria for putting up with me. The last chapter will be posted on Monday with my second artist’s work, so please be ready to show her some love! I hope you all enjoy~

Read on AO3

Chapter 5

“Girl, wake up!”

Marinette rolled over with a groan, blinking up at Alya kneeling next to her on the bed. Her best friend’s shoulders heaved with each pant, sweat glistening on her forehead.

“What’s going on?” Marinette checked her phone for akuma alerts, but other than a slew of missed calls and texts from Alya, her phone was quiet. “It’s 7 AM on a Saturday. Why are you here?”

“Your blog is on TV!”

Marinette pulled her blanket back over her head, the siren call of sleep weighing her eyelids after a long night of sewing.

“Can we talk about it later?” She yawned.

“M.” Alya yanked the blanket down again and quirked a brow at her.

The gears in Marinette’s brain turned slowly, each word grinding until they broke through the fog. Her blog was on TV? Her blog was on TV?! She shot up, following Alya down the stairs to the living room where she turned on the morning news.

“Almost as viral as a superhero herself, this young collége student’s fashion blog is feline the love. This isn’t the first time Marinette Dupain-Cheng has made headlines, having designed the cover of rockstar Jagged Stone’s most recent album as well as a derby hat featured in world-renowned fashion designer Gabriel Agreste’s fashion show earlier this year. It seems the young stylist is packing yet another celebrity endorsement under her belt, this time in the form of one of Paris’s own superheroes,” the news anchor said. “Dupain-Cheng began uploading photos of Chat Noir to her fashion blog last week, garnering thousands of likes and comments overnight, but the real catalyst driving her success are the recent outfits and accessories inspired by the cat king himself. Fans of the hero are going rabid asking where they can purchase the merch in question. Marinette Dupain-Cheng might only be fourteen, but she’s stitching her name at the top of everyone’s watch list. What else does this trail-blazing teen have in the works? We’ll just have to wait and see what she does next.”

“Girl!” Alya yanked Marinette’s arm with a squeal. “I knew this Chat Noir merch would be big for you!”

Marinette’s phone rang in her hands, a number she didn’t recognize flashing on the screen. Tilting her head to the side, she answered it apprehensively.

“Hello?”

“Is this Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” A woman asked.

“Uh, yeah? Who is this?” Marinette shrugged when Alya quirked a brow.

“My name is Alize Lemieux, the event coordinator for tomorrow’s fashion expo, and we would love for you to display your designs. It would be a great opportunity for you to network with real people in the business,” the woman said.

“For… For real?” Marinette blinked.

“Of course. We have a lot of promising upcoming designers featuring their work, and everyone is talking about you,” Mme. Lemieux said.

Marinette glanced at Alya who took the phone and said, “We’ll be there.”

“Excellent! I look forward to seeing your designs in person, Marinette.” She hung up, leaving Marinette standing stunned in the middle of her living room.

“Girl, this is huge! Real live people in the industry have their eye on you. This is your chance to show them what you’re made of!” Alya shook her shoulders.

Marinette’s lips curled into a smile, an elated squeal bubbling up from her chest. “Will you help me with my display?” She took Alya’s hands.

“Duh, I’m part of your team,” Alya said. “I’ve got your back. Let’s go see what you have.”

The moment she’d been dreaming of since getting her first sewing machine as a child was finally happening! People were taking her seriously as a designer, and she was going to show her work to real industry professionals. Soon she’d be flying all over the world opening boutiques for her brand. She’d fly back to Paris in her private jet, and Adrien would see how amazing and successful she was. He’d be so impressed that she’d finally get the opportunity to ask him to the movies! She owed Chat Noir a thousand croissants for his help.

“-is she okay?”

“I think her head’s stuck in the clouds. She’s been like this for hours.”

Marinette blinked out of her daydream to see Alya and Chat Noir giving her curious looks.

“Chat Noir, when did you get here?” She tilted her head to the side.

“Like five minutes ago, girl.” Alya shook her head, zipping a pink dress into a garment bag. “You’ve been zoned out since you got that phone call earlier. You even almost packed your lunch into a box for the display.”

Marinette gave a sheepish grin and rubbed the back of her neck. “Sorry. It’s still sinking in.”

“Alya told me you’re going to show off your work at the fashion expo tomorrow. That’s incredible news, Marinette,” Chat Noir said.

“I couldn’t have done it without you. Really, thank you.” She stretched up to hug his neck.

“Tell you what, why don’t I come down tomorrow and model a few things for you live? It’s sure to impress some people, and as the official superhero spokesperson for your brand, I feel obligated to promote you as much as I can,” he said.

“That would be amazing! I’ll pack the mask and ears.”

“Great, then I’ll see you two tomorrow.” Chat Noir gave a two finger salute and took his leave through her skylight.

Marinette patted her cheeks and took a deep breath. Alya was right, she needed to get her head out of the clouds and focus on impressing everyone tomorrow.

“Should we pack any of your Chat Noir stuff?” Alya asked.

Marinette pursed her lips, examining the pile of cat sweaters and skirts, and shook her head. “Nah, I want to show off my regular stuff. The Chat Noir designs are more of a side project, and I want them to take me seriously.”

Alya shrugged and hung another garment bag on the rack. They finished packing everything for the display, and Alya called her sister to bring over clothes for a sleepover. The following morning, with the help of Marinette’s parents, they brought all of the items for her display down to the venue to set up.

Nervous butterflies fluttered in Marinette’s stomach, but she swallowed them down as they arranged her display. She could totally do this. Everyone was going to love her work, and pretty soon she and Adrien would be flying off into the sunset in her private jet and-

“What’s all this?” A tall woman in a fitted green blazer examined a pink dress on a mannequin with a peculiar look.

Marinette recognized her voice from the day before.

“You must be Mme. Lemieux. I’m Marinette, you invited me yesterday on the phone.” She offered a hand for her to shake, but Mme. Lemieux’s eyes were fixed on the items in Marinette’s display.

“It seems there was a bit of a miscommunication,” she said. “When I invited you to present your work, I just assumed you’d bring your Chat Noir pieces to display.”

“Oh…” Marinette deflated. “Well, the cat stuff isn’t what I primarily design. I do a variety of things as you can see, I’ve got-”

“Yes, yes, but no one wants to see variety. We want to see what you’re known for,” Mme. Lemieux said.

“What I’m known for?” Marinette recoiled.

Mme. Lemieux gestured to her display with a dismissive wave of her hand. “The event starts in a little over an hour. Can you swap all of these bland designs out for the Chat Noir line?”

Bland?! Marinette’s jaw clenched, the hammering of her heart burning her chest. As much as she wanted to scream and defend her work, Marinette didn’t want to ruin her chances, so she swallowed her pride.

“Sure,” she said through clenched teeth.

“Excellent. I look forward to seeing your true work.” Mme. Lemieux offered her a smile and disappeared up the aisle.

“Ugh!” Marinette growled when she was out of earshot. “Seriously? They invited me here to show off my stupid cat merch?”

“What’s the big deal, girl? You wanted to show off your work, and you did design all of the Chat Noir stuff.” Alya shrugged.

“Yeah, but I don’t want to be known as Chat Noir’s personal stylist! This was supposed to be my moment.” Marinette crossed her arms over her chest.

“And it still will be.” Alya paced over to wrap an arm around her shoulders. “Let’s just run home and grab your Chat Noir stuff and get it set up before the event starts, okay? There will be plenty of time in the future to show everyone your other stuff, but right now you’re riding the Chat Noir express.”

“I don’t suppose there’s any chance for me to hop off at the next station?” When Alya gave her a look, she let out a huff. “Fine. We’ll go get the Chat Noir stuff.”

They managed to make the swap in time, but as people flocked to her display, Marinette felt no sense of pride as she fielded questions about what Chat Noir was like (annoying) or what his favorite color was (who cares?). No one was even looking at her designs, and to add insult to injury, her live model was running late. When he finally dropped in from the ceiling, everyone abandoned her to gawk over him.

“Chat Noir!”

“Is Ladybug with you?”

“Are you single?

“Will you sign my face?”

“Whoa!” Chat Noir held up cautioning hands. “One at a time, girls. This cat needs to talk to his purrsonal stylist.”

Marinette crossed her arms over her chest, grinding her teeth together. “How nice of you to finally join us.”

“Sorry, I got a little caught up, but my incredible physique is all yours for the rest of the afternoon.” He flexed a bicep, sending his fangirls into a tizzy of excited shrieks and squeals.

“Great.” Marinette grabbed the nearest articles of clothing from the rack — a green cat jacket and a black kitten skirt — and thrust them at him. “Go put these on.”

“Uhh…” His mask furrowed.

Alya stepped in and linked her arm through his. “I’ve got you. Chat Noir will be back shortly, ladies.”

“Yay.” Marinette rolled her eyes.

She retreated back to her display while Chat Noir’s fans crowded around to await his return. When he reemerged in a green and black biker jacket, pawprint shirt, and dark jeans, his fans went wild.

“Whoa, whoa, back up! One at a time.” Alya forced herself between Chat Noir and dozens of grabby hands. “Single-file, everyone will get a turn to take pictures with Chat Noir.”

Marinette watched them all bounce up to him twirling their hair and batting their eyelashes, asking him what his favorite TV show was or if he and Ladybug were together. They commented on how cute he looked, giggling in delight when he’d flip his hair or strike a pose. Not a single one of them complimented her craftsmanship or even cared about the tiny cat-shaped buttons she’d molded by hand. No one cared about her designs, not even on her blog — they only cared about him. And Marinette had enough.

Squeezing through the throng of teen girls, Marinette tapped his shoulder. “Chat Noir, I need to talk to you.”

“Sorry, but you’ll have to wait your turn like everyone else,” he said, smiling for another picture.

“I don’t think I will.” Marinette yanked his collar to face her.

“Oh, sorry, Marinette. I didn’t realize it was you.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Your display is really popular right now, and I’m kind of busy, can we talk later?”

Marinette bit a sharp retort on her tongue, opting instead to say, “No. We’re gonna talk right now.” She took his wrist and dragged him away from the crowd.

“Hey? Where are you taking him? It was almost my turn!” One girl whined.

“Chat Noir is going to model another outfit for you, he needs to change. It’ll just take a minute,” Marinette called, shoving him behind the curtain of her booth.

He looked her up and down apprehensively when she pulled the curtain shut and cocked a hip.

“Uh, are you gonna stand back here while I change or-”

“You’re not changing, dummy!” Marinette snapped, rolling her eyes.

Chat Noir shrank, lips puckering into the perfect pout that she wanted to slap off his face.

“Did I do something wrong?” he asked.

Marinette took a deep breath, forcing her shoulders to relax. “No, I’m sorry. It’s not you, it’s just… Today isn’t really going how I thought it would. I was hoping to show off my original designs, but then the event coordinator told me no one wanted to see my real designs. This is all just a lot, and it’s really frustrating.”

“Marinette, you’re worrying about nothing. You made this outfit with your own two hands. It is your original work, and everyone is looking at it!” Chat Noir said.

“No, everyone is looking at you.” Marinette jabbed his chest with her finger.

“I mean, can you blame them? I am incredibly handsome.” He flashed her a smug grin, but she wasn’t in the mood.

“Kittycat? What’s taking so long? I was hoping to get a picture with you.” One of his fangirls poked her head behind the curtain as if to prove Marinette’s point.

“I’ll be out in just a sec!” he called. “I gotta go, but don’t worry. I have this in the bag for you.”

“Oh, do you? How generous,” Marinette said, not bothering to mask the bite in her voice.

“Whoa, hey, I’m just trying to help you out.” He held up defensive hands.

“Help me out or boost your own ego?”

“Here, kitty-kitty!” His fans called.

“Me-ouch! You’ve got a temper to match Ladybug’s. It’s not my fault I’m so popular!” Chat Noir huffed. He pulled back the curtain and waved to his adoring fans.

Marinette’s nails dug into her palms, cheeks burning hot. Her annoyance bubbled into her throat, poisoning her tongue with red-hot rage.

“You are the most selfish, self-absorbed, egotistical boy I’ve ever met!” she shouted. “You were supposed to be doing me a favor, but all you’ve done is inflate your own big head! I’m tired of making designs with your stupid face on them!”

Chat Noir’s eyes widened, the shock of her words sending a hush over the room, but just as quickly as the words left her lips, Chat Noir’s fangirls turned on her.

“Ugh, she’s just jealous.”

“Yeah, no one would ever look at her ugly designs without you, kitty.”

“She should be thanking you!”

One girl pushed over a mannequin in protest, another ripped a page of unused designs from Marinette’s sketchbook off the wall and crumpled it up. Two girls flipped the table of shirts for sale while another set ripped a sweater in half.

“Whoa, whoa, girls!” Chat Noir attempted to catch another mannequin as it fell. “Marinette worked really hard on all of these, so please just-”

“No, go ahead!” Marinette urged. “Make sure you rip every last stitch!”

“Marinette!” Chat spun on her, eyebrows knitting together.

She pursed her lips when his eyes watered and shook her head. “Just transform and go home. I’m done.”

She turned and stalked off, leaving his rabid fangirls to do their worst. Kicking open the door to the women’s restroom, she locked herself in the nearest stall and rubbed her temples. She should have listened to Alya from the beginning and been more patient. Then her blog wouldn’t be filled with Chat Noir’s stupid fangirls. At least when it was just her friends, the comments came from people who actually cared about her work. Getting attention quickly came with more drawbacks than she anticipated. Why did she ever agree to let Chat Noir model for her? She should have known she’d get buried under his fame.

“M?” Alya knocked on the stall door.

“I’m not coming out.”

“Okay, then let me in,” Alya said.

Marinette pursed her lips and unlocked the door, letting Alya slip into the stall with her before locking it again. She leaned against the wall and crossed her arms over her chest.

Alya looked her up and down, shoulders slumping. “I’m sorry, girl. You tried to tell me earlier that the Chat Noir stuff bothered you, but I didn’t listen. I guess I just didn’t want you to miss an opportunity to get your name out there, but I never considered that this wasn’t the attention you wanted.”

“It’s just so annoying! This was supposed to be my chance to shine, but as far as they all care, he could be modeling a potato sack. No one’s even looking at my designs, and truthfully, I don’t want to look at them anymore either! I never wanted to be Chat Noir’s official brand ambassador.” Hot tears stung her eyes, spilling down her cheeks in streaks.

“Then we’ll start over and put out something you’re proud of next time, okay?” Alya placed her hands on Marinette’s shoulders. “You don’t have to work with him anymore, but I think you owe Chat Noir an apology. When I took him to change into the first outfit, he said he was really happy for you. I know he can be kind of full of himself, but he just wanted to help. I don’t think he ever wanted to upset you.”

Marinette swallowed the lump in her throat and shifted her weight. Alya was right. Chat Noir was a lot of things, but the last thing he’d ever want to do is hurt someone. Even if his theatrics got on her nerves at times, he was a good friend. A good friend that just wanted to help…

“Ugh!” Marinette buried her face in her hands. “I shouldn’t have yelled at him. He probably hates me.”

“He was pretty hurt, but… I think he realized how out of hand things had gotten. We both ran off to look for you. You should go try to find him. I’ll go do damage control at your display,” Alya said.

Marinette wiped a tear from her cheek and smiled. “Thanks, Alya.”

“What are best friends for?” She winked, pulling Marinette in for a tight hug. “Go make things right. I’ve got your back.”

Marinette unlocked the stall and retreated from the bathroom. Alya split off toward the showroom, while Marinette started up the hall. When she rounded the corner, she collided with a soft shirt, stumbling back. Gentle hands caught her as she scrambled to find her footing, and Marinette found herself looking up into woeful green eyes bordered by a black mask.

“Hey!” She blinked.

“Hey…” He steadied her, then let his hands fall back to his sides.

She bit her lip. He shifted his weight, and silence stretched between them as neither one knew quite what to say.

“I’m sorry!” They finally blurted at the same time.

Chat Noir rubbed the back of his neck. “I shouldn’t have blown you off when you told me you were upset. I’m sorry.”

“No, I’m sorry,” Marinette said. “You were trying to help, and I lost my cool. I guess I was just jealous that everyone cared about you more than me.”

“You had every right to be mad. Today was supposed to be a big opportunity for you, and I let all the attention go to my head. I didn’t mean to steal your thunder. Will you forgive me?” He hung his head like a scolded kitten.

“Only if you forgive me. I shouldn’t have yelled at you and said such hurtful things,” she said. “Are we cool?”

He nodded, a smile breaking over his lips. He pulled her in for a tight hug, but just as her shoulders relaxed, Chat Noir flipped her to the ground, narrowly dodging a cat-shaped throwing star.

#miraculous ladybug #marichat #marinette dupain-cheng #chat noir #mlbigbang2022 #my writing

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jacquesthepigeon · 1 year

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when will the marinette is poor propaganda end though like every time i see/hear it in the show it's just that scene from bodies bodies bodies where the girl goes "you're Upper. Middle. Class". it's not like the show doesn't know what an average family's place looks like - alya's mom is a chef at a fancy hotel iirc and Her flat is more "modest" and realistic than marinette's. it's the show wanting to have their cake (main character acting as wish fulfilment with her multi-story house/Maybe penthouse apartment above her parent's city-renowned bakery) and eat it too (main character is made to feel inferior "Just Like You" for not being rich). like it would be more apt if there was some sort of stigma against working for your money/being a sort of service worker BUT her parents own a bakery in PARIS. the mayor and all sorts of celebrities commission their pastries. and never has the show once had marinette not able to afford something like the multitude of international class trips or flights. to get into missed opportunities: they literally never address the potential of competition from other bakeries or not making as much money as a result of something or the other (or needing to hire staff lol). the bakery is the only bakery in paris that matters and that doesn't somehow make marinette known by the rich™ people?? obviously a kid's show wouldn't really bother to get into the different types of wealth and class dynamics and shit but the way they harp on about marinette specifically being just a baker and common et cetera to a certain extent starts to sound a little like they're trying to veil some racism (which would make sense considering chloe, her mom, and gabriel are the worst offenders). sorry for the rant it's just really annoying as someone who has been and is currently poor watching a show present this girl who is one step short of being an actual celebrity in her civilian life as a down-to-earth girl of the people with no regard for the many ways that she is decidedly Not.

Yeah like. Marinette is the heiress to the best bakery in Paris. Her apartment spans multiple floors. She is never shown having financial issues (except for when she had to borrow money from her mom which, duh, she’s 14). Her family was able to easily buy her a moped to replace an already purchased motorcycle. She’s been shown to hoard countless gifts, some handmade (materials cost money) and some premade (also cost a lot of money). I don’t know how much her equipment costs but she has no problem sourcing it. The only thing that slightly indicates low wealth is that her parents collected money for her in a tin, which to me indicates distrust of banks more than poorness.

Marinette is not poor. She is upper middle class. She lives in a rich area which happens to be within their means and that’s why some of her classmates are richer by comparison. But she is well above average wealth. She is not poor kid representation.

#anon #ask

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fragileizywriting · 4 months

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imagine with me luka and marinette walking hand and hand (duh) and they pass by a fish shop and luka just locks up right at the sight of a huuuuuge (checks notes) mackeral. big fillet of a big fish through the window on that ice bath at a fish shop. he locks up and he just stares, because yeah, he's been human for a long long time but he's also a "human". he's still a deep-sea mermaid and reaaaaally likes fish. beef is cheaper and they eat so much of it because the two of them live for protein so.... it's been a while since he's had fish.

do you wanna go in?

i think we should get a really nice lunch.

let's do it!

and then:

if we can't afford it, let's go hunt for some ourselves. stretch out our tails a little bit and get you back into the swing of things?

you just want an excuse to see me without my miraculous on.

oh no, you caught me... me wanting to see my super attractive husband.....

#speakizys #cest la sea

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marauderundercover · 2 years

Text

Nightmares and Tea Parties

AO3

Conner froze the second he walked into the living room of Lois and Clark’s. He’d been expecting his mentor or his mentor’s wife. What he hadn’t expected, was the small child he’d met over the summer who claimed she was his little sister (but that was a story for another time). He starts to back up. Maybe she hadn’t noticed him? Maybe he could sneak ou-

“Conner!” She chirps, her previous scowl immediately replaced by a wide grin. He nods at her.

“Hi Marinette. Where’s Clark? Or Lois?” He asks. She sighs, slumping back on the couch.

“Auntie Lois is on a call in her office and Uncle Clark got called away for work.” She pouts. Conner blinks.

“Oh. And they just left you in here?” He asks. She huffs.

“Duh. I’m five, I can watch a movie alone.” She says. He glances at the tv (it was off) before looking back at her.

“Right.” He says, glancing over her again. She was much angrier than she’d been when he’d seen her last. “Are you okay?” He asks.

“No. Well, yes, but no. Maman and Papa won’t let me get a dog.” She says. Conner raises an eyebrow. He hadn’t thought the kid was a brat before, but-

“Why do you need a dog?” He asks. He understood, to a point. He had Wolf, and would feel pretty lost without him. But to act like this? Over a dog? It was-

“Mme. Camille says it’ll help with the nightmares.” She says, her voice hollow and quiet. Conner jerks back slightly, as if he’d been slapped. Marinette had curled in on herself, obviously trying to make herself smaller. The nightmares? Marinette sighs, tugging her knees closer. “I have really bad nightmares. All the time. Maman and Papa took me to Mme. Camille to try to help. It doesn’t work. And since we can’t have a dog, they’re gonna make me take medicine.” Conner drops onto the armchair closest to the couch.

“I- I’m sorry, kiddo.” He says. She shrugs.

“Not your fault. ‘m just tired. But I’m too scared to sleep.” She says, and Conner can hear the exhaustion in her voice. Exhaustion that shouldn’t be present in such a young kid.

“Is there- can I do anything?” He asks. She shakes her head.

“No.”

“Do you wanna talk about the dreams?” He asks. She hesitates, eyebrows scrunching together.

“Sometimes, Paris is on fire. And sometimes the whole world is underwater. Because- because the stars are scared. And they’re really loud when they’re scared. And then I can’t stop thinking about the scary stuff that they’re worried about.” She explains, her voice barely audible. Conner just stares at her. That was- not what he was expecting. Weren’t kids supposed to have nightmares about clowns? And monsters under their bed? Not fires and floods. Before he can think too hard, Marinette begins to sniffle. Crap. Eyes wide, he moves so that he’s sitting next to her.

“Want a hug?” He asks softly. She doesn’t hesitate before throwing herself forward, wrapping her tiny arms around him. Conner, despite having super strength, is still caught off guard how strong the little girl is. “It’s okay, kiddo, I got you.” He says softly, gently petting her hair. He wasn’t exactly sure how to help her, but he could at least hug her. Maybe remind her she wasn’t alone.

“I’m sorry.” She sniffles after a few minutes.

“You don’t have to apologize, Marinette.” Conner says softly. “It’s okay.” AFter a minute, a thought comes to him. “Do you have a phone?” He asks. She pulls away from the hug, her eyebrows raised.

“I’m only five.” She says. Conner winces slightly. Right.

“Do you have a house phone?” He asks. She nods. “Can you use it?” Another nod. “Okay. How about I write down my phone number for you so that next time you have a nightmare, you can call me.” He suggests. She frowns.

“But Maman says the times are different and we can’t call all the time.” She says. Conner nods.

“Your maman is very smart, Marinette, but I’m saying it’s okay to call me if you have a nightmare or you’re scared. I’ll talk to your maman about it, too.” He says. Her eyes fill with unshed tears, and for a moment, he’s afraid he messed up.

“You’ll really help me?” She asks. He nods, pulling her back into a hug.

“I’ll always help you, kid.”

---

Letting out a long sigh, Clark puts the key into the door. Lois had apparently left for an emergency at the Daily Planet, but had assured him that Conner was a perfectly fine babysitter and that he could finish his League meeting before coming home. Doesn’t mean he wasn’t tired…or worried. Gently pushing the door open, he immediately raises an eyebrow at the sight. Conner and Marinette were sitting on the floor in front of the coffee table, but that wasn’t the part that shocked him. The crown on his niece’s head and the tea set on the table also weren’t shocking. What was shocking was the feather boa around Conner’s neck. That and the floppy hat on the boy’s head.

“Lord Conner, you must remember to keep your pinky up.” Marinette chastises the boy as he picks up the tea cup. Conner nods, the twinkle of amusement in his eyes a contrast to the serious expression on his face.

“But of course, Princess Mari.” He says, before sticking his pinky out. Clark quickly snaps a picture with his phone before clearing his throat. Conner’s eyes widen slightly, before he grins lopsidedly.

“Having fun, kids?” Clark asks. Marinette nods rapidly.

“Conner’s the best!” She exclaims with a toothy grin. Conner’s grin becomes impossibly wider at the little girl’s statement.

“It’s my first tea party.” He says, shrugging. Clark ignores the slight twinge of anger in his chest. Not at Conner, of course. At the shit hand the boy had been dealt. The childhood that had been withheld from him. Even Clark had had a tea party when he was younger. Ma, Gina and Tom were all tea party fanatics. It hadn’t really occurred to him that it was an experience Conner might enjoy, too.

“Well I’m glad you guys have had fun. What do ya say we order a pizza for dinner?” He asks. Marinette cheers, and Conner nods. Clark grins at the two of them. Their family was odd, but he wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Tag list: @maribat-calendar-events @stainedglassm @kittenmywaythrulife @laydeekrayzee @doll246 @queenz-z @deathssilentapproach-blog @literaryhiraeth @unoriginalmess @kking13 @toodaloo-kangaroo @crazylittlemunchkin @buttercupsbitch @jayjayspixiepop @iloontjeboontje @idontwannaexistsopleasekillme

#supermari #supermari may #supermari may 2022 #platonic supermari #maribat #maribat marinette dupain cheng #maribat conner kent #maribat clark kent #maribat lois lane #platonic #platonic relationships #found family #maribat found family #maribat platonic relationships

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gentil-minou · 2 years

Note

nooooo, "prpr no hug rule" sounds so evil, please tell me about it!

dskjfdsklgsjdskj i actually love it even though i forgot about it for a while but basically:

prpr adult Adrien and Mari are roommates (also of course secretly in love with each other duh) and having trouble getting along so they see a couple's therapist (because they're not a couple yes, but Alya signed them up so that's not a big deal right?).

The couple's therapist gives them an assignment to not touch each other, and yes this includes no hugging.

Naturally, this leads to quite a bit of frustration and sadness.

I don't have much of this written out because whenever I try to write as a therapist my first desire is to be accurate and then I get hung up about work sdkjghdf but here's a snippet

“So, to summarize; you two have been having challenges in your relationship.”

Marinette leans forward and hurriedly corrects, “No, no. Not a relationship. We’re just—just roommates.”

“Roommates,” Dr. Farraz confirms, peering over the edge of their glasses. Their eyes dart Marinette to Adrien in an attempt to discover the whole truth.

Adrien tries his darndest to not sound put out when he repeats, “Yeah. Roommates.”

Well it’s not like he could say they’ve been having challenges living together after a lifetime of fighting crime as superheroes and unrequited love.

So yeah. Roommates.

Their therapist, who was heavily endorsed by Nino and Alya, closes the notebook they’d been scribbling all manner of fun little details about why he and Marinette are a mess. Adrien tries to peek into its secrets in a vain attempt to see if he could find something to help him deal with her, but no dice.

Dr. Farraz glances at him knowingly. “Well, by trade I am a relationship therapist. But, every relationship is a relationship. Why don’t we call this your…partnership.”

#asked and answered #miabrown007 #im always so wary about sharing wips cause i make a lot of mistakes in my first writing and then redo the hell out of it #and other times i cringe at my writing #but well for mia #anything reall uwu #bushy writing #ask game

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serenescribbles · 2 years

Text

and so are you

For the Tag Team Tournament 2022 Day 4 Prompt

Marinette cheerfully skipped down the steps of the school. When she reached the gates, her ride was waiting for her.

“What’s up, kid?”

Her adoptive brother, Jason, stood on the sidewalk leaning against his motorcycle. He had his red helmet tucked under one arm and her pink one under the other.

CW: Implied/Referenced Character Death, Grief/Mourning

AO3 | Masterlist

一

It was a sunny afternoon in Gotham. The rain from the morning was mostly gone, but there were still small puddles on the sidewalk. Students from Gotham Academy had just been dismissed and could be seen walking home with their friends. They all sported the uniform of the school.

Marinette cheerfully skipped down the steps of the school. When she reached the gates, her ride was waiting for her.

“What’s up, kid?”

Her adoptive brother, Jason, stood on the sidewalk leaning against his motorcycle. He had his red helmet tucked under one arm and her pink one under the other. A gaggle of girls from her school was fawning over him from the side. She rolled her eyes at them.

“The sky, duh!”

Jason handed Marinette her helmet and laughed. “You always say that!”

She put her helmet on and made sure it was secure. At the same time, Jason put on his.

“Of course I do,” Marinette huffed. “When is the sky not up?”

“Touché,”

The two got on Jason’s motorcycle, Jason in front and Marinette behind. She’d been looking forward to this the whole day! Marinette couldn’t hold in her excitement.

“Hurry up! If you’re going to be this slow, the ice cream shop will be closed by the time we get there!”

“Okay! Okay! I’m going! I didn’t know you liked ice cream that much,”

“It’s not just because of the ice cream,”

-----

Marinette had been adopted by Mr. Wayne a few months ago. Her family had been on vacation in Gotham and were caught up in a Rogue attack. Her maman and papa protected her from the Rogues until Batman and Robin showed up. But by then, it was too late for the two of them. Her parents requested Batman find someone to take care of her. That was the last time they said they loved her.

It was hard for Marinette to live without her parents. The first few weeks with Mr. Wayne were spent crying in her room. Even now, it was hard for her to cope. According to Mr. Wayne, the pain would never go away, but it would become more bearable over time.

Living with Mr. Wayne was different. The Manor was more spacious than the bakery and made Marinette feel lonely sometimes. The bakery had never been quiet. It was always filled with warmth and laughter. Mr. Wayne was kind and all, but he seemed distant. And he always disappeared at night! No matter where she looked in the Manor, Marinette couldn’t find him. She had heard that Mr. Wayne was a playboy. Did he go out and meet people at night when she was (supposed to be) asleep?

Alfred also seemed very warm, but Marinette always felt she shouldn’t distract him from doing his job. He looked like the type of person who didn’t tolerate any nonsense. Before, Marinette wanted to ask him if she could use the kitchen and bake something because she missed her maman and papa’s food. However, whenever she approached him, something always came up! Marinette gave up after the 10th attempt.

And apparently, Mr. Wayne had adopted two sons before her, but they were never around. The first one, Dick, lived in Blüdhaven and was a police officer. He and Mr. Wayne had a tense relationship. Dick didn’t visit much. No one really talked about the second son. Marinette had to find out about him on her own. That’s how she figured out why they never mentioned him. Apart from them, a kid named Tim came around sometimes. He was a little older than her, and Marinette thought she recognized him from school. They didn’t talk much, either.

She really couldn’t understand them. What kind of family didn’t communicate with each other? They barely spent time together! Marinette had been even more confused when she met Jason for the first time. From what she read, he was supposed to be dead! Jason never answered her questions regarding that.

On their first meeting, Marinette had been walking out the gates of Gotham Academy, like today. Some random guy (Jason) came up to her and said he would drive her home. Neither Mr. Wayne nor Alfred had told her about this, but Marinette went with him. He looked a little scary the first time he approached her and introduced himself as Jason. Then he took her out for ice cream before sending her home.

That was pretty nice of him. Mr. Wayne and Alfred must’ve asked Jason to take care of her. After that, Jason continued to pick her up from school. They didn’t get ice cream every day, but they did go a couple times a week.

The thing with Jason still bothered her, though. Marinette understood why they wouldn’t mention Jason if he were dead. But he was actually alive! So why did they never talk about him? In the end, Marinette figured it wasn’t her place to judge them on their family dynamics. Mr. Wayne was already generous enough to take her in.

-----

“If you say so, kiddo,” Jason replied.

“I’m being serious, though!”

Part of the reason Marinette wanted Jason to hurry was so she could hang out with him. Jason was friendly and easier to approach than the rest of the family. They had lots of fun conversations together while eating ice cream. He also knew the answer to almost everything she asked him. Sometimes, he would help her with her homework.

Jason started driving the familiar path to the ice cream shop. They had to stop at a traffic light, and when it turned green, they went left. They took a few more turns before arriving. After all, the shop was pretty close to Gotham Academy.

Her adoptive brother parked his motorcycle, and when they fully came to a stop, Marinette took her helmet off. Jason did the same. She dashed to the door and opened it for Jason to come inside. Once he did, Marinette went in, too.

The inside of the shop was the same as always. The paint on the walls was faded, while the tiles on the floor had chips and cracks. There was a teenage girl at the counter, and she looked utterly bored out of her mind.

“Welcome. What can I get for you today?”

“Let’s see,” Marinette paused for a second to look at the menu. “Can I get two scoops of cookies and cream in a waffle cone, please?”

“And I’ll have two scoops of black raspberry in a waffle cone, please,”

“Okay,” the girl replied. “Please insert or swipe your card here,”

Jason paid for their orders, and they took a seat near the window.

“So, how was school today?” He asked.

Marinette shrugged. “School is school. It was okay, I guess.”

“Are you still having trouble understanding what the teachers are saying?”

“No, not as much anymore,”

When Marinette started at Gotham Academy, she had a hard time, given that English wasn’t her first language. But over time, she slowly began to pick up the language, making things easier for Marinette. She still struggled at times, but that happened less and less.

They continued talking until the girl said their orders for ready. Then Jason and Marinette took their cones and sat back down.

She took a bite of her cookies and cream. Her ice cream was so delicious! It was the perfect way to cool down after a long school day. Marinette closed her eyes and let the ice cream melt away on her tongue.

“Ahem,” Jason cleared his throat.

Opening her eyes again, Marinette saw Jason staring at her, and he looked amused. The corners of his lips were turned up.

“Yes? Oh, dearest brother of mine?”

He chuckled. “Earlier, didn’t you say the reason you wanted me to hurry up wasn’t only because of the ice cream? Well, you sure look like you’re enjoying yourself right now,”

“Hmph!” Marinette crossed her arms and looked away from Jason. “I’m allowed to enjoy ice cream, you know! And since you’re that interested in my enjoyment of ice cream, why don’t you give me yours, too?”

“What? No thanks! I’m enjoying my ice cream very much,”

“See?”

“Sure I do, kid. No one can beat your logic!”

Marinette puffed up when Jason said that. “Of course, they can’t! My logic is sound!”

“Yes, all hail Marinette, the Queen of Logic! Thank you for gracing me with your presence!”

Jason pretended to bow to her, and Marinette couldn’t help giggling. “You’re always so dramatic,”

“Please, you love me because I’m dramatic!”

“Keep telling yourself that,”

He made offended noises when she said that. “Hey!”

Bzzt-bzzt! Bzzt-bzzt!

Her phone started ringing all of a sudden. Marinette looked at the Caller ID, and it was Mr. Wayne!

“Sorry, Jason, Mr. Wayne is calling me,”

Marinette picked up the call. “Hello, Mr. Wayne!”

“Hi Marinette, I was wondering where you are right now since school has already ended, and you haven’t come back to the Manor yet,”

“Oh, I’m with Jason right now! We’re eating ice cream.”

“Jason? You’re with him?”

Mr. Wayne’s voice turned tense, and Marinette realized her mistake. She wasn’t supposed to mention him! There was nothing Marinette could do about it now.

“Y-yeah,” she continued. “I thought you knew. Didn’t you ask him to pick me up from school every day?”

“I… did? I mean, yes, I did. I just forgot momentarily. Do you mind letting me speak to him for a moment?”

“Sure,”

“Jason, Mr. Wayne wants to speak to you,”

She handed her phone to him, and Jason began talking to Mr. Wayne. His face looked tense, just like how Mr. Wayne’s voice sounded. For a few minutes, Jason’s expression became angry. The two were speaking in low voices, so Marinette couldn’t hear them clearly. Though, she wondered what they were saying to make Jason look like that.

After a few more minutes, Jason returned her phone. He looked unhappy.

“Marinette?” Mr. Wayne asked.

“Yes?”

“Alfred will pick you up in a few minutes. Jason has something he needs to do, so he can’t send you home. I hope that’s alright with you,”

“Yeah, that’s okay!”

They exchanged goodbyes before hanging up.

Once Marinette put her phone away, she glanced over at Jason. “Are you… okay?”

In an instant, the upset on Jason’s face washed away. He turned and smiled at her. “Of course! No need to worry! I’m doing fine. Your ice cream, on the other hand…”

“Noooo! My ice cream!!”

It had melted and was dripping on the table a little. Marinette tried her best to clean the mess up and salvage what was left of her ice cream. By the time she did that, Alfred had arrived.

Jason took her out of the shop to greet him.

“Master Jason, Miss Marinette,”

“Hello!”

“Hey, Alfred,”

Alfred and Jason were locked in an intense staring contest until Jason finally looked away. Then Marinette got in the car with Alfred.

“Bye, Jason!” She waved. “I had fun today!”

“See you later, kid,”

-----

“Alfred, did you know about this?”

“Know about what? I’m afraid you’ll have to be more specific, Master Bruce. I know many things, but I am not sure what you want me to tell you,”

“...”

“Silence doesn’t tell me what you are talking about. Forgive me for being old and unable to speak with you using telepathy.”

“...did you know about Jason meeting Marinette every day after school?”

“There! How wonderful. Isn’t it much nicer when we use our words to communicate our thoughts? And to answer your question, I didn’t know. It was quite a surprise for me, too,”

“What if Jason harmed her? I should’ve been more aware of who she was meeting! Did you notice anything off about him when you met him?”

“Well, I suppose the dear boy has grown taller. I didn’t notice anything else different about him. And Master Bruce, you should know Master Jason enough to know he wouldn’t harm Miss Marinette! She’s just a child,”

“But he-”

“I’m terribly sorry, Master Bruce, but I’m going to have to cut you off. Master Jason hasn’t harmed Miss Marinette, and I doubt he would in the future. Miss Marinette looked happy when she was with him. You aren’t going to deny Miss Marinette her happiness, are you?”

“...”

“Haah, again with the telepathy. Bruce, my boy, you may be well-versed in it, but I am a simple butler who can only understand words. Please, surely you can accommodate my needs?”

#maribat #ttt2022 #jasonette #dc x mlb #mlb x dc #day 4 #Book Design

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natedogx15 · 2 years

Text

Miraculous Descendent Chapter 15: The Project Matter

Previous Chapter

It was 8:15 a.m, and Nate was waiting for Marinette to arrive at school. Adrien and Nino had already gone to class, so he was only him waiting at the entrance for her. Well, that wasn't true. Nate had noticed someone else waiting until the last minute at the front door. Alya was also at the entrance, and she held the photo with Ladybug's face cut out and pointed at various girls that walked to school. Nate couldn't see the picture but did get curious about what she was doing.

"What are you doing?" Nate asks as he walks up to her.

Alya turns to him and grins.

"Oh, I'm just using this picture to try and figure out who Ladybug is?" Alya honestly explains to Nate.

Nate's eyes widen in surprise when he hears that.

"Why are you doing that?" Nate said in a surprised and slightly panicked tone.

"Well, because everyone deserves to know about the person protecting them. Plenty of heroes talk about themselves." Alya tells him.

"What heroes do that?" Nate asks in surprise.

"Don't you know, some of the United Heroez revealed their identity, and they come out fine," Alya explains to him in a tone that suggests it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"I did not know that, no," Nate tells her, his tone calming down after getting over the shock of what Alya was trying to do.

"Well, if heroes can do that in America, then I don't see why we can't do that here. People should get to know more about the people protecting them after all. It'll help the public feel more comfortable around those heroes, right?" Alya asks him with a grin.

"I mean, shouldn't the heroes get to decide when they reveal themselves?" Nate asks Alya.

"But what if they never do? The public won't be as comfortable if the heroes keep secrets from us. Besides, so much help can be provided to the heroes by those around them if their identities are known." Alya explains to him.

"What do you mean by help?" Nate asks in confusion while his eyes drift to the streets, trying to catch Marinette before Alya.

"Duh, they can get help with work while they're busy, help tracking down Hawkmoth, and maybe later they can become members of the superhero team," Alya explains.

Nate looks at Alya blankly while thinking.

"That is pretty much what I'm doing; and what I'm trying to do. Well, except for helping track down Hawkmoth." Nate thought now that he thought about his role in Marinette's life.

"Plus, they could get royalties for all the merchandise on them. I've already seen plenty of Ladybug and Cat Noir-themed merchandise around. That could go to the heroes and make their lives a bit easier while they're saving us. That's why I'm trying to figure out their identity right now. First will be Ladybug's and then Cat Noir's." Alya tells him with a smile.

"Alright, but what's with the papers?" Nate asks her as he sees the two stacks under her arms separated by plastic zip ties.

"Oh, these?" Alya asks as she looks at the papers in her arms.

Nate nods, and Alya seems to gain a better grin than before.

"These are for my new newspaper club and new website," Alya said as she pulled out two different posters for Nate to see.

"The Ladyblog is gonna be for learning more about our heroes, and the club is gonna help spread the word about them and other news around the school," Alya explains to Nate.

"That's cool," Nate tells Alya before catching sight of Marinette.

He quickly rushes to be in front of her before Alya can do anything.

"Hey Nate, Jean-Yves told me you had to go to fencing practice this morning," Marinette tells him with a smile.

"That's later. For now, we need to get to class." Nate whispers in a panic as he hurriedly pushes Marinette to where their class is while trying to keep in between her and Alya.

However, that gets cut off by the sound of destruction. Marinette looks at Nate, and Nate sighs before motioning for her to go while watching Alya.

"This was such a bad time for this to happen." Nate thought as he watched her run off to find somewhere to transform.

Alya had a different reaction.

"Perfect, I can get more footage of the heroes fighting," Alya tells herself as she tries to run off.

Unfortunately or fortunately for Alya, depending on your view, someone manages to stop her while not being able to do the same with Marinette.

The person was a man in his mid-thirties with short combed brown hair, light skin, and brown eyes.

The man wore a black bowler hat, a dark green jacket over a white long-sleeve, blue jeans, and white and black shoes.

"Hold it right there, young lady. The school's policy states that all students must get to their class and go under lockdown procedures when there is an Akuma attack. I want you to get to your class and follow the procedure." The man tells Alya.

Alya looks outraged, having seen Marinette get to run off.

"What, but one of my classmates got to run off to the fight," Alya tells the man angrily.

"And, I'll have to bring her over to the principal's when she gets back. She'll be getting in trouble for running off." The man explains to Alya in a calm tone before motioning for Alya to leave and head to her class.

Alya begrudgingly does as she's told and starts to head to class.

"I can't believe this. I missed another opportunity to get live coverage of the heroes' exploits." Alya angrily thought to herself.

Nate watches her go while thinking.

"This could be very bad, very quickly."

The two run toward Miss Bustier's class. Miss Bustier was peeking her head out the door to try and catch any of her students that weren't already in the room.

"Hurry in, you two, and get under your desks." Miss Bustier tells them as she opens the door to get them inside.

Nate and Alya quickly run under their desks while Miss Bustier looks to be doing a count in her head before looking out the door again. Alya still had an angry look, which her deskmate noticed.

"Are you okay?" Ivan asks in an unsure tone.

"No, I didn't get to go out there and record footage for my new blog." Alya angrily tells him as she hugs her posters.

Ivan raises an eyebrow at this, and Alya goes on.

"I started this new blog to get the scoop on our two heroes. I started a newspaper club too." Alya tells him.

"Oh, well, that sucks then." Ivan nods.

"That's not even the worst of it. Marinette got to leave the school and seemed to be running where the Akuma was." Alya angrily tells him.

"Why would she be running to it after seeing what the last couple and I could do?" Ivan asks Alya.

"I don't know." Alya muses as she thinks about Ivan's words.

However, that stopped when she got an idea after remembering who she was talking with, more specifically, that Ivan was the first Akuma victim.

"Hey, Ivan, why don't you give me an interview?" Alya requests.

Ivan blinks in surprise when he hears that.

"Come on, it'll be great," Alya tells him when he sees his surprise.

"We can hear your side of the story on what happened. You can even talk about how it felt and how you've been doing after it." Alya tells Ivan, trying to get him to agree to an interview.

Nate was texting Marinette.

"Try to sneak into the school before you change back or you're gonna get in trouble." He texts her.

"Hopefully, she sees the text. These moments make me glad I'm not wielding a Miraculous. Well, yet." Nate thought before he laid down under the desk and began playing games on his phone.

However, this is cut short by Nino sneaking to where Nate is.

"Hey, dude, did you see Adrien when you ran up here?" Nino asks him with a worried look.

"No, why?" Nate asks with a raised eyebrow.

"Because he left to go to the bathroom right before this all started," Nino tells him.

"Well, Alya and I didn't see him on our way here. Maybe he's hiding in one of the stalls. I'd be too afraid to come out too." Nate tells him in a calm tone.

"I hope you're right, dude. He's been disappearing for the last couple of times we've been together during Akumas." Nino tells him.

"It doesn't help that Hawkmoth seems to be going nuts with Akumas this week. The guy has been making them daily since Stormy Weather." Nate sighs.

"The dude needs a life outside of terrorizing us." Nino agrees.

Nate looks at him, and Nino gets nervous.

"What?" Nino asks.

"Is it bad that we seem to be getting used to this situation so quickly?" Nate asks curiously.

"What do you mean?" Nino asks.

"It's been a little over three weeks, and now we're just casually insulting the guy terrorizing our city. I'm wondering if that's a bad sign for the future." Nate muses as he looks at the top of his desk.

Nino thought about Nate's words before saying.

"I don't know, dude."

Nate shrugs and goes back to his game.

Within the next half hour, a wave of ladybugs flies over Paris, signaling that Ladybug and Cat Noir had won the day again. After its cast, both Ladybug and Cat Noir rush to Françoise Dupont. In their hurry, they didn't even notice the other was heading in the same direction.

"Gotta get to school, gotta get to school." They both chanted in their minds as they zipped, pole vaulted, and ran toward the school.

When they arrived, both immediately bolted into bathrooms on opposite sides of the school before transforming back and exiting the bathrooms.

"Phew." Both said at the same time.

Their Kwamis had different reactions to these events. Tikki giggled, much to Marinette's confusion, while Plagg was giving Adrien a flat look.

"What?" Adrien nervously asks.

"Nothing, kid," Plagg tells him in a bored tone.

"Then why are you giving me that look?" Adrien asks him.

"Because this is my face." Plagg states.

"Is something wrong, Tikki?" Marinette asks worriedly.

"No, no, I'm just reliving a few old memories of other similar situations to the one you were just in." Tikki giggles out to Marinette happily.

"Huh?" Marinette questions.

"Don't worry about it right now, Marinette. I'll tell you about it at some point." Tikki waves her off while still giggling.

Marinette looks confused before shrugging and running out of the bathroom. When she does, the person that stopped Alya catches her.

"You, what were you thinking running out of the school like that?" The man asks her in an angry tone.

Marinette was inwardly nervous while staring at him but did her best to keep outwardly calm. She then began to feign confusion.

"What do you mean? I was hiding in the bathroom when I heard an explosion." Marinette tells her in a confused tone.

"Don't lie to me. I saw you run out of the school but couldn't stop you because another student tried to do the same thing." The man tells her with a stern glare.

"But there is only one door into the school. How could I have gotten past you getting back in if I had gone outside." Marinette asks him curiously.

"Please work, please work, please work." Marinette chants in her head.

"Well, you-I mean-you could have." The man couldn't come up with a good rebuttal.

After a minute of thinking it over, the man sighs before saying.

"Alright, you have a point. I'm sorry for getting after you, young lady." The man tells her apologetically.

"Oh, no, no, no. You were looking after my safety. It's no problem, sir. Really." Marinette quickly tells him while waving her hands in front of her.

The man sighs at that but does gain back his stern expression.

"I understand being afraid to leave somewhere you think it's safe. But please try to get to your classroom, if you can, next time." The man tells her, his tone holding a fair amount of worry.

"Right, sir. I'll try to do that next time. Thank you." Marinette nods before running to her class.

Adrien had peaked his head out the bathroom door. When he saw the coast was clear, he left and did the same.

Marinette was the first to arrive, and Miss Bustier gained a thankful look.

"Thank goodness you are okay, Marinette." Miss Bustier lets out a sigh of relief.

She ushers Marinette in, and Marinette quickly enters and sits at her desk.

"So, how'd it go?" Nate whispers.

"We managed to win, but it was difficult," Marinette whispers back to him.

Nate nods, and Adrien runs into the room.

"Sorry, it took so long, Miss Bustier. I wasn't sure if I should leave the bathroom during an Akuma attack." He explains to her.

Miss Bustier smiles at him before saying.

"That's okay, Adrien. However, next time you should be back here. So I can know you're safe." Miss Bustier tells him.

"Yes, ma'am." Adrien nods before going to his seat.

Adrien heads to his seat next to Nino, and Nino smiles at him before lifting his hand for a fist bump.

"Glad you're okay, dude." Nino smiles at him.

"Thanks." Adrien smiles as he fist bumps Nino.

"Alright, class. Because of the Akuma, we're a bit late in starting class." Miss Bustier tells her class before heading to her desk and pulling out a couple of stacks of books.

"So, I'm going to be explaining what our future lessons will be while passing out your reading material." Miss Bustier tells them before passing out the books.

Nino and Adrien look at the books, and Nino gains a confused look.

"The Big Book of Fairy Tales?" Nino questions out loud.

"Correct, I'd like all of you to read these stories. You don't have to read them all, but I expect you to finish at least two or three." Miss Bustier tells everyone in her class as she passes them out.

"This will be part of our first big project coming up soon. So this is a mandatory activity." Miss Bustier warns her class as she passes out the last book.

The class takes the books, and Rose looks excited that they get to read fairy tales as an assignment.

"This is awesome. I've already read these stories over a hundred times." Rose tells Juleka happily as she holds the book.

Juleka smiles at her deskmate's words and blushes slightly.

"D-do you mind helping me with them then? I have trouble reading sometimes." Juleka asks her.

"Of course." Rose smiles.

Sabrina raises her hand.

"Excuse me, Miss Bustier, but what will the project be?" Sabrina asks.

Miss Bustier smiles.

"I'm glad you asked Sabrina. It'll be a reading project where you compare tropes and story genres. I want you to read these stories, then look for similar tropes in different genres." Miss Bustier explains to her class.

Max raises his hand.

"Yes, Max?" Miss Bustier asks.

"Can we do any genre we want?" Max asks her.

"Yes, you can. The only limit is that you can't compare these stories to another fairy tale." Miss Bustier tells them.

Max smiles when he hears these words.

"Also, I'm going to be putting you in groups of three for this project. You'll be helping each other with the reading and your essays." Miss Bustier informs them.

That got a couple of reactions from the class.

Juleka gains a sad look and side-eyes Rose. Mylene, Nate, Rose, and Nathaniel looked toward Chloe nervously, not wanting to be in a group with her. Alix and Kim groan in dissatisfaction at being unable to choose their group. Chloe had a smirk on her face when she heard this.

Miss Bustier walks over and grabs her clipboard. As she does, Alya points the cutout photo of Ladybug at the various girls in the room.

"Group one will be Kim, Max, and Nathaniel Kurtzberg." Miss Bustier states.

Kim and Max high-five while Alix groans upon hearing this.

"Group two will be Nathaniel Dupain, Chloe, and Alya." Miss Bustier lists off the second group.

A couple of people in the room let out a sigh of relief when they hear that. Nate bangs his head on his desk.

"Of course." He mutters with his head down.

"Group three will be Marinette, Sabrina, and Alix." Miss Bustier lists.

Marinette looks around the room, trying to figure out who those were again. Alix seems to perk up slightly when she hears that Sabrina will be in her group but doesn't look happy still for some reason.

"Group four is Ivan, Myléne, and Adrien." Miss Bustier lists.

Adrien's eyes widen when he hears Nino won't be in his group, and he becomes nervous. Ivan also seems nervous while stealing glances at Myléne. Nino pats his friend on the back while whispering.

"Sorry, dude."

"And group five will be Rose, Juleka, and Nino." Miss Bustier states as she puts the clipboard away from her face to stare at her class.

Juleka perks up at this and looks at Rose with a smile again while whispering.

"Awesome."

"I want you to get into your groups and talk a little before you start your projects." Miss Bustier tells her class.

The class does so. Chloe gladly gets out of her seat next to Sabrina to head toward Nate and Alya. Marinette and Alix went to Sabrina's desk. Nino went over to Rose and Juleka. Ivan and Adrien walk over to Myléne's desk. Max and Kim walk over to Nathaniel's desk.

Chloe smirks as she sits in her seat in between Alya and Nate.

"What's up, losers?" Chloe rhetorically asks.

Alya glares at Chloe and says.

"Nothing that you'd care to know." Alya snaps at her.

"You're right. I really don't care what your insignificant activities are." Chloe lets out a laugh as she says this.

She then puts her book on the desk and gains a focused expression as she glares at the two.

"Now shut up and hurry up and start reading. I want to finish this project and get another A+." Chloe tells them before she focuses on her reading.

Alya was about to snap at her before Nate cut in.

"Just listen to her, Alya. The sooner you do, the sooner we can stop being near her and listen to her." Nate tells her.

Alya grumbles to herself while glaring at the class bully before she starts to read her book.

Things looked to be going better for the Miraculous wielders. Well, to varying degrees, that is.

"So, what do you guys want to start with?" Adrien asks Mylene and Ivan.

"How about Little Red Riding Hood?" Myléne suggests

"Hansel and Grettle," Ivan adds in.

"We can go with that." Myléne immediately agrees as she nervously moves her chair a little bit away from Ivan.

Ivan sees this and seems to get both sad and angry.

"Uh, I guess we can start with that." Adrien nods.

"What story would you like to start with?" Marinette asks her two groupmates.

"I don't really care what we pick. I've never been a fan of fairy tales." Alix states as she flips through the book.

"Then why not The Three Little Pigs," Sabrina suggests.

"I guess that'll work." Marinette nods.

Alix shrugs before flipping the pages to that story.

Next Chapter

#miraculous descendent #miraculous ladybug rewrite #miraculous au story #ml au story #miraculous ladybug

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angelofthequeers · 2 years

Text

Free to Be You and Me: chapter 17

Chapter 16 | Chapter 18

Disclaimer: I don’t own ML.

Look, I just re-used my Alya suit design from chapter 19 of ‘Hold Me By Both Hands’ with a few tweaks to suit the context of this story. Sue(it) me.

“So,” Alya says as she and Marinette push through the multitudes of people pouring out of the school gates, “when are you gonna tell him?”

“Huh?” Marinette says. “Tell who? What?”

Alya rolls her eyes. “Chat. About me. Duh.”

“What?” Marinette’s head whips around. Thankfully, everyone around them is too focused on their own lives and dramas, so no one seems to be listening or even able to hear their conversation. Though she wouldn’t put it past Lila to pop up out of nowhere. “Why would I –?”

“Marinette.” Alya facepalms. They happen to be crossing the road at this point, so it’s up to Marinette to guide her exasperated best friend across safely while Alya’s face is covered. “Don’t tell me you’re not going to tell Chat Noir that I’m a perm now.”

“Of course not! The fewer people who know, the better!” Marinette waves her hands around in a desperate attempt to make Alya understand. “Chat knows about you and then he takes another hit for me and gets brainwashed and spills to Shadowmoth that you’re a permanent hero and Shadowmoth will know there’s something special about you and target you and our identities will be revealed and I’ll lose Chat and –”

“Whoa. Whoa. Okay.” Alya suddenly stops, which almost makes Marinette trip over her own feet in surprise until Alya grasps her by the shoulders. “First of all, you really need a therapist.”

“Therapist? Pfft,” Marinette scoffs. Her eye twitches. “I’ve got tiny gods living in my room! I’m fine!”

Alya raises an eyebrow and resumes walking, pulling Marinette with her. “Right. Okay, let’s just skip over that and go back to the beginning. Why would Shadowmoth know about me?”

“Because I’d be telling Chat that you’re permanent –”

“Yeah. You’re telling him that there’s a new Fox hero who’s not a temp. Why on earth would he think it’s me?”

“Because…” Marinette’s shoulders slump. “I was under the impression that I’d be telling him everything. To keep him in the loop. So he didn’t end up akumatised like Nino. And if he knew Rena was permanent and then Shadowmoth found out…”

They make it to the bakery by then, so Marinette’s conversation with Alya is put on hold while they say their hellos to her parents on their way up to her room. Once the trapdoor is shut and the kwamis are flying around, with Trixx ducking out of Alya’s bag to join them, Marinette sighs and sinks down onto her chaise.

“Okay, back on-topic,” Alya says, sitting down next to her. “Why would you tell Chat that Rena’s the new perm hero? He only knows, like, a few of the other heroes and he’s cool with that. He doesn’t need to know anything apart from Rena being retired, especially since he doesn’t even know my identity.”

“But…I thought after the other day, with Nino…”

Alya laughs. “Marinette, there’s a difference between keeping someone in the loop while not telling them everything, and just outright keeping them in the dark. That’s what I learned after we saved Nino. I haven’t told him everything about –” She gestures to the two of them. “– this, you know, just like how you told Chat that someone knows your identity without actually telling him who I am.”

“Oh.” Well, now Marinette feels silly. “I just…want to protect him. The less I tell him, the less useful he is to Shadowmoth.”

“Until he gets so upset about being kept in the dark while you’re running off with me that he’s vulnerable to Shadowmoth’s influence. You know, like a certain person did when she knew her best friend was keeping secrets but wouldn’t share anything.”

Marinette’s blood freezes in her veins. Icy blue eyes flash before her – white, cold, broken, devastation – and she forces herself to take a deep breath and dig her nails into her forearms to ground herself.

“Oh,” she whispers. When she peeks up at Alya, her best friend’s face is soft and understanding.

“I’m sorry.” Alya holds out an arm and waits for Marinette to nod before pulling her into a hug. “I didn’t mean to –”

“No, you didn’t,” Marinette interrupts. “You didn’t mention anything about that. That’s…just where my mind keeps going.”

“Still, I should’ve realised.”

“Alya, if you try and nail every single thing that gets to me, even Mullo wouldn’t be able to help you.”

Alya snorts. “You are so messed-up, girl. When this is all over, you’re getting your boyfriend to pay for the best therapist around.”

“I’m not gold-digging for therapy!” Marinette splutters, her cheeks flaming at the reminder that yes, Adrien is her boyfriend. Adrien Agreste is her boyfriend. No one knows how hard it is to sit behind him every day, knowing that she’s the girl he’s in love with when he has no clue, and she can’t just go up and kiss his brains out! Alya just laughs long and loud.

“I love you, Marinette, I swear,” she chokes out, wiping her eyes. “The things you say.”

“Yeah, yeah, whatever,” Marinette grumbles, crossing her arms. “So, when do you want to tell him? Tonight?”

It takes another minute for the traitorous Alya to get herself under control. “Y-Yeah,” she finally manages to wheeze. “You have patrol tonight, right?”

“Yep. That’s why I figured tonight would be best. No time like the present, right?” Marinette pastes on a cheerful grin. Alya just rolls her eyes.

“You’re killing me,” she says and starts to rummage around in her bag. “Let’s just get as much homework as we can done before your patrol. It’s not like you’re far enough behind already.”

“Ouch,” Marinette says. “Rude.”

“But true.”

“Whatever. I’m taking Trixx back.”

“Like hell.”

Marinette had expected the time before patrol to creep by at a snail’s pace while she had a mini freakout an hour at the thought of telling Chat Noir that they’re no longer the only two permanent heroes around. But the prospect of getting relatively on top of her work for once is too tempting to pass up. If anything, it’s too soon before Marinette’s phone chimes to remind her of patrol.

“Time to face the music,” she sighs, pushing her book away.

“Oh, please,” Alya says. “He’ll love me. Trixx, let’s pounce!”

Marinette still can’t get over the fact that suits can change with personality. Rena Rouge’s had been light and airy and a typical tight superhero suit, just like Alya’s heroes before her. But Foxglove’s suit has volume. The only tight part of it is her black-collared white and orange torso. Now she has an actual jacket open over her chest, baggy and cropped and orange. Her legs are still orange with white inner thighs, but they actually tuck into her knee-high black boots like pants. Her fox tail is a wide strip of orange and white around her waist that falls behind her, and Marinette’s brain is already thinking of all the things she could do with that fabric in the middle of a battle, just like how she uses Chat Noir’s tail. Her ponytail, no longer big and bushy, now falls behind her in dozens of box braids. In fact, the only parts of Rena Rouge that she retains are her ears and mask.

Marinette’s glad about that part. She’s already feeling rotten enough as it is about pulling Alya into the pit with her; at least Alya’s not a completely different person because of it. At least Rena Rouge is still a part of her and always will be.

“Damn.” Foxglove brushes invisible dust off her suit, visibly preening. “I look so cool. I’ll miss my Rena suit but…damn.”

“Look,” Marinette says. “If you and I didn’t have boyfriends and if Chat didn’t exist, I’d be all over you. I think I was infatuated with you for the entire first week we were friends.”

“If Chat didn’t exist?” Foxglove says, arching an eyebrow. Marinette’s brain record-scratches and rewinds to what she’d just said.

“Well! Yeah! Because he’s in love with me and I’d hate to let him down and hurt him!” she splutters. “Even though I’m not in love with the best partner I could have! I love Adrien!”

Foxglove raises her hands in front of her face like she’s praying. “Okay,” she says. “Okay. Let’s just focus on the compliment. Thank you for reaffirming how hot I am, because I’ve had the biggest thing for Ladybug since forever and now I can tell myself that Ladybug thinks I’m gorgeous.”

Marinette groans and hangs her head. “You’re welcome,” she says pitifully.

“But I’m still getting you therapy after –”

“Tikki, spots on!”

Not even the cool night air can soothe the burning in Ladybug’s cheeks as she and Foxglove bound towards their rooftop rendezvous. Foxglove, bless her, doesn’t bring up her slip-up again, instead whooping as she takes a massive leap and handstands off a chimney. By the time they make it to the right street, where Chat Noir’s swinging his dangling legs and humming up at the clouded full moon, Ladybug’s cheeks are thankfully back to their normal temperature, and she doesn’t feel like she’s about to die of heatstroke anymore.

“Milady!” Chat Noir’s whole body perks up when Ladybug lands next to him. She instantly sits down, so close that their arms are practically glued side-to-side, and Chat Noir’s wide smile is just everything right with the world. But then that grin fades when Foxglove appears next to Ladybug. “Look out! It’s another Volpina!”

“See?” Foxglove crosses her arms. “What did I say? Right as usual.”

“Oh, shut up,” Ladybug scoffs. Foxglove sticks her tongue out.

“Ladybug? What’s going on?” Chat Noir no longer looks like he’s about to claw Foxglove’s eyes out. “Why’s there someone with the Fox who isn’t Rena?”

Ladybug and Foxglove share a look. Then Ladybug sighs and goes over her mental palm cards one more time before she explains the situation to Chat Noir.

“This is Sentinelle,” she says. “Foxglove, now.”

“Almost went with Vulpine,” Foxglove chimes in. “Just to annoy the hell out of Lila.”

Ladybug rolls her eyes at Foxglove, then looks back at Chat Noir. “I just…after Clueseau threatened you, I thought we could use someone to help us out. To have our backs. Especially since Shadowmoth’s hammering us with two Miraculouses at once.”

“So…what, Rena Rouge isn’t a thing anymore?” Chat Noir’s brow furrows.

“No. If I was drawing on someone for this kind of support, I didn’t want their identity to be known by Shadowmoth. This way, Rena’s family is safe and so is a new hero’s identity.”

“This kind of support?” Chat Noir’s eyes widen. He looks from Ladybug to Foxglove, then back at Ladybug. “She’s keeping her Miraculous?”

“Well…yes.” Ladybug holds her breath, waiting for Chat Noir to explode on her, to get angry at her making this decision unilaterally, maybe even to rage at her for lying about Rena Rouge’s identity even though he can’t possibly know that Rena Rouge and Foxglove are the same person. Instead, for a fraction of a second, he looks like a lost cat that Ladybug might walk past on the street, and then his features smooth into his trademark smirk.

“Well, then,” he says, taking Foxglove’s hand and kissing the back of it. “I’ll miss Rena, but if bugaboo thinks this is the best move, then I’m cool with it. Welcome to the best team in Paris.”

“You’re…not mad?” Ladybug says, sounding about as lost as Chat Noir had looked in that split second.

“Why would I be?” Chat Noir stretches, looking more like a cat than ever as his spine lengthens. “You’re the Guardian. You think this is the right thing. I’ll follow along with whatever you say.”

Ladybug’s stomach twists. No, she hadn’t been expecting it to go this way at all! Where’s the anger? The hurt at not being consulted; at their duo being stretched to a trio? A sick stone of realisation suddenly settles inside her as her mind flashes back, unbidden, to a time that seems so long ago.

“So, what's my role, then? The guy who's always left in the dark? What else are you hiding from me?”

Before Syren had attacked. Before Chat Noir had been allowed to even know of the existence of Master Fu.

“You’re not really replacing me with a turtle, are you?”

He can’t possibly think he’s just another teammate, can he? What about all the times it’s just been them? Ladybug and Chat Noir against the world? Heroes’ Day. Miracle Queen. The time Hawkmoth had held Chat Noir hostage on that rooftop, only letting him go in exchange for Mayura. So close to taking her kitty from her.

No. She can’t lose her kitty. She can’t lose him to the white. She can’t let Chat Noir think that he doesn’t matter.

“Well, how about we start our patrol?” Chat Noir climbs to his feet and helps Ladybug and Foxglove up. “Are we splitting it into three or are you two lovely ladies patrolling together?”

“You know you’re irreplaceable,” Ladybug blurts out in an echoing mockery of the line she’d given him after defeating Anansi. Chat Noir raises an eyebrow.

“I appreciate that, bugaboo,” he says. “Maybe Foxglove can take the Eiffel Tower route for her first time –”

“No, you don’t get it!” Ladybug stamps her foot. “You’re standing there being all understanding about me doing…this!”

“What do you want me to say?” Chat Noir spreads his hands. “You’re the Guardian. What you say goes.”

“But you’re my partner, you stupid cat!” Why is Ladybug even angry? Chat Noir didn’t blow up. He didn’t get upset. He just accepted it and moved on. Why is she continuing to poke that hornets’ nest? “Aren’t you gonna yell at me for keeping you in the dark?”

“Do you want me to?” Chat Noir says. He’s so infuriatingly calm and collected that Ladybug has to resist the urge to punch him in his pretty cat face. “Just give me a minute to channel my inner Psycomedian and put on my angry face and I can –”

“Ugh!” Ladybug shoves Chat Noir. He staggers back, almost right off the rooftop, but he still doesn’t look angry. “Why are you so – so – like this?”

“I’m just…gonna go over there,” Foxglove says in the background.

“What’s the point of getting angry?” Chat Noir says as Foxglove sidles away. “You’re the Guardian. What you say goes.”

“Stop saying that!”

“Why do you want me to get angry?”

“Because – because –” Because I want you to fight me. I want you to know your worth. I want you to not stand there and just take what you’re given. “Because you should be!”

“Because I should be.” Chat Noir crosses his arms. “What do you want me to say? Yeah, I’m upset you just up and made a new permanent hero without me? Yeah, I’m upset that it’s not you and me against the world?”

“Yeah, you’re upset that I’m with someone else?” Ladybug says, desperately fumbling for something to goad him into reacting. Chat Noir blinks.

“What? Where did that –”

“Just admit it!”

“What do you want from me?” Finally! Finally, Chat Noir actually looks angry as he advances on Ladybug, though she never once feels threatened. Not by her kitty. “I get upset, you remind me you don’t love me, I just walk away and sulk while you make out with someone who’s not Chat Noir? Can’t I just be happy that the girl I love is happy?”

“You’re supposed to be fighting for us!”

“What’s the point?” Chat Noir gives her a twisted smile. Immediately, Ladybug wishes she could take it all back; could grab the Snake and rewind so that she’d never spoken this into existence. “If you need more allies, you need more allies. If you need to lean on people outside the mask, that’s what you need. I’ll just show up and do my job like a good Chat Noir.”

“Don’t you get it?” Ladybug jabs him in the chest. “I don’t want you to just be a good Chat Noir! You’re irreplaceable! I wish you’d get it through your thick kitty head that I could never ask for a better partner!”

“Really?” Chat Noir’s twisted smile widens. “After all the mistakes I’ve made? I’m sure there’s someone out there who’d be better than me. Like Foxglove. I’m sure she’d do better with the ring than me. I almost killed someone in New York, remember?”

“I don’t care if I found the best wielder in the world who never made a single mistake.” Ladybug slips her arms around Chat Noir and hugs him, squeezes him to her tightly, drinking in his warmth like a cat on a sunny roof as the realisation of why she’d picked this fight hits her. “They wouldn’t be you. They could never be you. Re – Foxglove could never replace you. Carapace couldn’t. Vesperia, Viperion, Ryuuko, Roi Singe, Pegasus, Polymouse…none of them are you. You’re the one who keeps me going. You’re the one who lifts me up, who supports me, who looks me in the eye and knows exactly what to say when I doubt myself. That’s what I wish you’d understand.”

For a long while, Chat Noir says nothing. He just continues to stand there, in Ladybug’s embrace, holding her close in return while she closes her eyes and lets herself finally breathe.

“Thank you,” he finally murmurs. “That means more than you could ever know.”

“Do you get it now?” Ladybug says with a watery laugh. “That’s why I wanted you to be angry at me about Foxglove. About not getting a say. About feeling like I was replacing you. I wanted you to fight. I wanted you to know that you’re irreplaceable to me. The way you just accepted it…it terrified me.”

“Well, if you wanted a catfight, all you had to do was ask,” Chat Noir grins. Ladybug groans and punches him in the chest.

“Okay, are you two idiots done?” Foxglove pops up next to them. “I thought this was patrol, not group therapy. Not that Ladybug doesn’t need it.”

“Excuse me?” Ladybug splutters.

“What?” Foxglove shrugs. “I was looking forward to my first ever patrol and instead I get stuck with you crying over your cat.”

“You know what?” Ladybug crosses her arms. “You can patrol by yourself. See if I care. At least then I won’t be bullied.”

“Fine by me.” Foxglove salutes and bounds off in the vague direction of the park. Chat Noir chuckles, then turns and bows to Ladybug.

“Until we meet again in an hour, milady,” he says. He shakes his staff out and heads in the opposite direction to Foxglove.

“You’re such a dork!” Ladybug shouts after him. When all she gets in return is a light laugh, she rolls her eyes and swings off on her usual path, unable to wipe the smile that’s embedded in her face.

#aotq fic #aotq: free to be #miraculous ladybug #ml fic #marinette dupain-cheng #alya cesaire #adrien agreste #alyanette #ladynoir

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mcheang · 2 years

Text

Costume Designer

Inspired after I read the movie companions for the first two Narnia films

Marinette gets the job of a lifetime working on costumes for the upcoming movie, The Silver Chair.

It is hard work with little sleep, especially for a heroine. So good thing it is taking place during the school holidays.

Marinette travels all over the world, truthfully telling her disappointed friends that she is working while on vacation.

Alya: don’t you think you should chill for a while? You look like you missed a whole week of sleep!

Well, she does have to help make thousands of costumes, so no. This is why Marinette’s best friend at work is the coffee machine.

Marinette makes a good impression on the costume team, including head designer Isis Mussenden. She even got to be the one to work with Ben Henders, the very cute actor playing Prince Rilian.

When Marinette returns to Paris, she does not brag about her job, only mentioning how satisfied she was that the costumes were without flaw and she had met the quota.

After one or two years, The Silver Chair is about to be released.

Chloe brags about getting to sit at the premiere viewing thanks to her world-renown mother.

Lila gushes about how the stars of the movie are like family who had asked her to play Jill Pole but she had to decline since she had already made a commitment to save endangered penguins up in the frigid north. However she will still get to sit at the premiere.

Marinette: penguins live in the Antarctic!

Nino is a huge fan of the Narnia chronicles and even buys the movie companion book to learn about the film making process. It is how he learns about Marinette’s job.

Because at the costume design section, Isis praises Marinette and there is even a picture of Marinette helping Ben into his knight suit.

Realizing Marinette had actually been on the set, Nino wondered why she never told them about it.

Ok, maybe he can understand considering that they might have pestered for her information about the movie the way they asked Lila.

Hang on, Marinette will probably be at the premiere.

Maybe once she sees that Lila was there herself, she will finally believe their newest classmate.

But in the meantime, he can respect her wishes and let her secret remain, at least till premiere day.

At the premiere, Chloé was surprised to see Dupain-Cheng. Immediately she began mocking her, asking if she was there as a waiter again.

However, the cast and crew (seeing Marinette as part of their second family) defend her from this rich brat, praising Marinette for being a talented designer and even bringing them homemade pastries that were to die for.

Audrey could see the odds were in Marinette’s favor, and that Chloe was an unwanted blot in the party.

As the director begins to ask Chloe to leave, Audrey swoops in. “You’ll have to excuse my daughter. She gets jealous whenever she sees Marinette’s exceptional talent.”

Chloe: mother!

Audrey: marvellous job, Marinette, as always.

Chloe: mother, you can’t be serious! She’s just a baker girl.

Audrey: who is renown for her talent. What are you famous for, Claudette?

Sensing danger, Chloe flushed and stalks away, trying to hide her tears.

To make herself feel better, she has to make others feel worse. Dupain-Cheng is surrounded by the crew so no hopes of sneaking over, especially when she won’t be welcome.

Hmm, what about that Lila girl?

Somehow Marinette always got the short end of the stick whenever they were together.

She headed over to the director. “You, where is Lila Rossi.”

Andrew Adamson scowled at Chloe. “Am I supposed to know who that is?”

Chloe ignored the cameras recording her bratty behavior. “Well, duh. She’s the one you wanted to play Joan Pill instead of that creature,” she waved her hand at the young lead actress.

Andrew’s scowl deepened. “I think you meant to say Jill Pole. And I don’t know any Lila Rossi, but if she is friends with you, I’m glad not to have been introduced. Good day.”

Chloe gaped, then rounded on Marinette. “Dupain-Cheng, explain yourself this instant.”

“What is there to explain, Chloe? I’ve been telling everyone for months that Lila’s been lying about her celebrity connections.

Chloe gasped then rounded on Ben Henders. “You, do you know a Lila Rossi?”

Ben: no.

Meanwhile, back in Paris….

Class are watching videos about the premiere (some official and some leaked), and are shocked. Lila had lied to them?

That kind of put a damper to their happy surprise about Marinette being one of the costume designers.

Lila’s phone was bombarded with texts demanding explanations.

Squealing, she immediately switched her phone off and tried to think of a suitable lie.

….💡

Lila said she was friends with the director of Narnia, but she never said his name. There have been more than one media series of Narnia. She can use that to excuse Andrew’s ignorance of her name.

As for Ben Henders…that was more tricky. She had claimed to the girls to be good friends with the actor, talking about the very movie itself. Hmm, maybe she can attribute his denial to Chloe’s abrupt and rude attitude?

Satisfied, Lila turned her phone back on, only to pale at what she saw. Since she took so long to reply, the others had done their own research and were now calling her fraud, that she now owed their money back (as if!), etc.

At the premiere, Chloe felt humiliated and overshadowed as all the celebrities ignored her.

At the Rossi residence, Lila began pleading to her mother that they should move because she was being bullied by the very same people who had sent Mrs Rossi video interviews of her contrasting opinions of Ladybug and demanding their money to be returned.

#miraculous ladybug fanfic #miraculous ladybug fic #ml fanfic #ml fanfiction #ml fic #miraculous ladybug fanfiction #Lila salt #chloe salt #Lila karma #Chloe karma

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