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kasienda · 3 years

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Hi! For the WIP ask game, oh gosh. I LOVE Restorative Justice, and I've been wondering if you were going to update it. I'm so glad it's still in the works and I totally understand the difficulty with writing that particular fic. And you know I recently discovered The Five Minute Adventures!!!

I suppose I'll ask about Rena Rouge: Secret Keeper, because I feel like that one would be very relevant to the current season (which I still haven't watched, just have had spoilers). So, what's the dynamic there?

Ahhh! Thank you! I love Restorative Justice, too!! The next chapter is kinda a monster both in content and size. I thought about breaking it apart, but so far I haven't found a good place to do that. But that's part of the problem in terms of an update. The other part, being what I already said - just having a hard time channeling the restorative circle experience when I haven't done one is so long! Haha!

...

Rena Rouge: Secret Keeper Preview (I couldn't choose between these two scenes, so you get both):

“Marinette, why didn’t you just tell him? I totally love that you have trusted me, but why did you never trust Chat?”

“I want to! I almost did! But it would be a selfish decision. He and I cannot know each other until Hawkmoth is defeated.”

“But why? Seems so arbitrary.”

“Yeah…” and she shook.

Alya held her as she cried. “There’s more to this than you just following the rules, isn’t there?”

Marinette nodded tearfully. “There was another timeline. He knew who I was. We were in love. Or that’s what he said, anyway. But… he was akumatized. And Chat Blanc destroyed the world. He said that it was our love that caused it to end. Bunnyx said he couldn’t know who I was. Not yet.”

“Not yet?” Alya questioned. “Maybe it’s okay now?”

“I don’t have some metric! The only thing I know is that he can’t be akumatized! So I have to wait until the risk of akumatization is over!”

Alya was quiet, uncertain what to say.

“I almost told him anyway, Alya. I’ve hurt him so badly. He’s never going to forgive me! I don’t know how to do this without him, but I didn’t know how to convince him to stay. And now it doesn’t matter because I don’t know who he is! And I’m never going to see him again!”

Marinette crumpled into tears. And Alya rocked her but her mind was already awhirl. Marinette has seen the end of the world? Alya hugged her tighter.

“You’ll see him again,” Alya promised.

“How?”

“His kwami knows who he is right?”

“They all do! But they can’t tell anyone!”

Alya looked over at Trixx who nodded in confirmation.

“Can they give hints?”

Trixx shook her head.

“It doesn’t matter, Alya! I can’t know who he is either!”

“But what if you weren’t the one to know?”

“What?”

“What if I knew Chat’s identity? It keeps you from knowing each other but helps us coordinate. We could include him in the planning! I could help support him like I do for you!”

Marinette was staring. “I… I don’t know all the details. But yes, anything, please! But you have to never slip, Alya. You can’t tell me who he is. You can’t hint! You may have to lie to me to protect him!”

“I understand.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’ve already lied to Nino you know… to protect you.”

Marinette slumped. “I’m sorry.”

Alya shrugged. “It’s part of being a superhero, and I know Nino would be okay with it if I could tell him the reasons, and I knew it had to happen to protect you because you protect the whole city. I understand the stakes! And I’m telling you, that I can do this.”

Marinette crashed into her abdomen, her arms circling around Alya.

“You are the bestest best friend in the whole world!”

Alya laughed. “I don’t know if I would go that far.”

“I would,” Marinette mumbled. “So how are you going to find him?”

Alya opened her mouth.

“No wait! Don’t tell me! I shouldn’t know!"

...

“Chat, Ladybug needs you to come back.”

“Then why are you here?” He ran his hands through his hair. “If I’m so important to her, why did she send you?”

“Because she’s still convinced you can’t know each other’s identities.”

He throws his hands up in frustration or something. “I don’t understand what’s so different that you can know and I cannot? I know she says she trusts me, but her actions say something different. And I’m not sure what I did that she found so unworthy of trust—“

“It’s nothing you did!” Alya interjected.

“— but I didn’t take myself off the team because I think I have the right to know. It’s putting us all - her and me and you - in danger when we’re not on the same page!”

“I agree completely!”

He glared unhappily at her for a moment, then his eyebrows furrowed together.

“She wants to know, Adrien. And she wants you to know who she is, too! I promise you, she does!”

“She has a funny way of showing it.”

“She spent the last few hours bawling her eyes out about how much she’s hurt you and that you’ll never ever forgive her. And that it doesn’t matter because she’s never going to see you again.”

He sighed and dropped his head. “I’m sorry, Rena. I can’t come back. I’m a danger to her and to the whole team because we can’t communicate.”

“I agree completely,” she said. “Which is why I’m here! Will you let me explain?”

“Yeah, sure,” he said, his voice the calmest it had been since she had arrived. “I’m sorry. I don’t mean to take my frustration out on you. What did you come here to tell me?”

“Ladybug trusts you more than anyone. More than me.”

“But—“

“More than anyone!” she insisted. “Apparently she did trust you. You both knew each other’s identities at some point.”

“I don’t remember that.”

“I know you don’t. She doesn’t really either. But she saw what it led to. Bunnyx… you know who Bunnyx is right?”

He nodded.

“Bunnyx came and got her and took her to a future where the world had been destroyed. Bunnyx told her the inciting event was you two learning each other’s identities.”

“Why did she never tell me this?”

“She’s never been one to share burdens.”

He winced.

“She didn’t plan to tell me her identity either, you know. She just had a mental breakdown and I happened to be there. I imagine being a full time super hero when no one knows, wears you down.”

He snorted. “Understatement.”

“When she was spiraling, I convinced her that we could find some kind of loophole. Show you that she does trust you. She’s only trying to protect you, Paris, and apparently the future. I figured I could know both your identities, and act as a go between. That way you’ll always be in the know.”

“That only works if I know who you are, too.”

“I’ll drop the transformation as soon as you agree, Kit Kat.”

He stared at her for awhile. “I will want to talk to Ladybug about all this.”

“Obviously.”

“Okay then.” He put the ring back on.

“Will you stop renouncing me every time you have a bad day?!” Plagg screeched at him.

“I’ve only renounced you twice,” Adrien being surly.

“Twice too many! And there was a third time you threatened to do so.”

“You’ve given up the ring before?”

“Ugh! I don’t want to talk about it. Are you going to drop your transformation or not?”

“Trixx, let’s rest.”

“Alya?”

“Hi, Adrien. I swear I didn’t know you were hurting this much. I’m sorry I’ve been so blind as your friend.”

“It’s fine,” he shrugged it off. “I never told you anything was going on... Wait! If you’re Rena. That means Carapace is…”

She waved him forward. She wasn’t sure what she was allowed to say, but if he figured it out himself, it wasn’t her fault.

“Carapace is Nino,” he concluded. “Isn’t it weird that practically all the holders are in our class?”

“The same class where literally everyone except you has been akumatized?” She was proud of herself for delivering that line with a straight face. And felt guilty that she was already misleading him. But wasn’t that what she signed up for? To keep both Ladybug and Chat Noir on the same page while misdirecting them from each other?

Which was going to be way harder than she thought because they were together like all of the time. They saw each other every single day almost! They sat like half a meter apart in class! How had they not already figured each other out?

Some of this must have shown on her face because Plagg was laughing his head off at her. “Welcome to my world, kit,” the black kwami said.

She sighed. She definitely had her work cut out for her.

#miraculous ladybug fanfiction #alya cesaire #fic preview #ask games #ask answered #ask me anything #Rena Rouge: Secret Keeper #My own content

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aalissy · 3 years

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Dreams Part 2

Anddd here’s the reason for the shorter chapter today and the special surprise I mentioned hehe. @bamberry asked for a part two to dreams so here it is!! I really hope you like it <3. Lemme know what you guys think!

AO3

When Adrien opened his eyes to his blaring alarm the next morning, he brushed away the lingering feelings of heartbreak and sadness. He may not have been able to change the ending to his dream but maybe he could change it in real life. If Marinette did accept his invitation to go to the movies, he’d have to be the perfect gentleman, showing her that they should stay together so she won’t even think about breaking up with him. With that last, determined thought, he pushed himself up out of bed and towards his bathroom.

He got changed and brushed his teeth rather quickly, his excitement brimming as he realized that he’d be able to see Marinette soon. Plagg simply floated above the boy, watching him bemusedly as Adrien hummed lightly to himself. It was going to be a great day.

After Adrien finished getting ready, though, he frowned at himself in the mirror. Something felt missing. But that thought didn’t make any sense. He was dressed in what he usually wore and he didn’t typically feel like he was forgetting something. The furrow between his eyebrows grew deeper as he dug back through his closet.

Still not certain what he was looking for, he paused slightly once he saw a familiar beret. Slowly, Adrien reached for it as a memory from his recent dream popped up in his thoughts. He had worn this beret every day whilst dating Marinette. His fingers trailed lightly over the fabric as he tried to remember why he had done that. After all, it was a gift Ladybug had given him from his Brazilian fan club.

As his fingers ran along the inside of the beret, he stopped once they ran into a different type of threading. With a small frown, Adrien peered inside the beret and felt his mouth fall open when he saw the name inside. In tiny, gold lettering he saw the words Marinette.

“Plagg,” he wheezed out. A million thoughts ran through his mind as he tried to connect the dots. How had his dreams known something that he hadn’t? It didn’t make any sense. There had to be a reason.

“What’s wrong, kid?” Plagg hovered nearby, looking disinterested even as Adrien felt like he had just got hit by a truck.

Instead of answering, he practically shoved the beret in his kwami’s face. With a small whimper, he pulled it back to stare down at the name once again. Marinette had made this for him and somehow his dream-self had known.

“Listen, Adrien...” Plagg started rather cautiously, even as Adrien’s expression went from one of shock to adoration, “I don’t know what you think but—”

“My Brazilian fan club commissioned Marinette to make this for me,” he cut in, shimmying with excitement. “And my dream-self knew. That’s what those dreams were about, Plagg! I was trying to tell myself that Marinette made this for me.”

His kwami coughed lightly before shaking his head. “Right, right... that’s exactly what happened.”

“She’s so amazing.” Adrien sighed, staring down at the beret lovingly. Placing it on his head, he raced downstairs so that he could get to school faster.

He almost missed Nathalie, who tsked at him in disapproval before handing him his schedule for the day. She raised an eyebrow after he thanked her and ran to the front door. Her voice cut in, dripping with distaste before Adrien could open the door and slide into the limo, though. “Why are you in such a hurry today?”

Adrien turned back to give his father’s assistant a sheepish grin. “Sorry, Nathalie. I guess I’m just really excited to go to school today.”

With that, he gave her one last wave, ducking into the limo. Once inside, he carefully readjusted his beret, feeling his heart tug gently in his chest. As the vehicle slowly pulled out of the Agreste mansion, Adrien tapped his fingers against his leg impatiently. He couldn’t wait to see Marinette’s face when he told her that he knew she made him the beret. Would she give him a shy smile before ducking her head cutely or would her whole face turn red as she stuttered and stammered?

Adrien gave a quiet, lovestruck sigh as he turned to stare out the window. As the buildings passed by him and he got closer and closer to the school, his excitement and anticipation grew.

Finally, when the limo pulled into the entrance, Adrien barely waited for it to stop before bursting out of the doors. His face lit up immediately as he scanned the surroundings only for it to darken once again when he saw no sign of Marinette. Kicking at the sidewalk with disappointment, Adrien sat down at a step. He scoffed when he pulled out the phone and checked the time. He was still very early and knowing Marinette she would be late.

With a quick shrug, he began to scroll through some of the apps on his phone, occasionally looking up to see if he could spot Marinette. It took way too long before he finally did see her. She was walking and giggling with Alya, her pigtails bouncing and swaying with every step that she took.

Beaming brightly, Adrien bounded over to them, missing the rather suspicious look Alya gave him as his gaze was entirely focused on Marinette. Her own blue eyes seemed to be staring directly at the beret on his head. His grin turned slightly amused as he adjusted the hat before saying, “Hi, Marinette.”

At that, her eyes blinked to his as her face turned a bright red. She lifted her hand in a small wave before murmuring, “H-hello.”

“Can I talk to you for a minute?” Adrien gave Alya a rather pointed glance before returning his attention to Marinette.

Alya smirked smugly at that, giving her best friend a pat on the shoulder before saying, “Well, I’m going to head to class then. I’ll see you in a bit, ok girl?”

Marinette nodded her head quickly before gnawing on the bottom of her lip. Alya gave a quiet laugh before going inside the school. Adrien then quickly looked around before taking Marinette’s hand and guided her behind the steps with him. Once he was certain they were alone, he looked down at her with a soft smile. “So, I wanted to thank you, Marinette.”

“F-for what?” she squeaked, her face turning an even darker shade of red.

Adrien chuckled lightly before pulling off his beret to point out the name she had sewed inside. He traced over the tiny, gold lettering before murmuring, “For the beret.”

Lifting his head back up, his mouth fell open in shock as he saw Marinette’s expression. She looked horror-struck. Her face was pale and she looked about ready to bolt. Blinking in surprise, he slowly reached a hand out to hold hers gently.

“Marinette?” Adrien spoke her name softly.

She shook her head, clenching her eyes shut tight. “I-I don’t... I-I didn’t.”

“Is everything alright?” he squeezed her hand in his. He watched her spiral even further and he wondered how he could fix it. How did I even start it in the first place? I still don’t know what I did, Adrien cursed in his mind.

At that point, Marinette’s eyes popped open and she looked at him seriously. She jerked her hand away from his grip. Her blue eyes blazed with resolve as she stepped closer to point at him. “You can’t tell anyone, especially Chat Noir, ok? Very, very bad things will happen if you do. In fact, I’m surprised Bunnyx isn’t here yet.” She looked around nervously, as though expecting the end of the world to suddenly happen.

His mouth fell open in bewilderment. What wasn’t he allowed to tell himself? And how did she know Bunnyx? Adrien certainly hadn’t expected this reaction when he imagined talking to her today. Shaking his head, he tilted his with confusion. “I’m sorry, Marinette, what am I not allowed to tell anyone?”

Her gaze narrowed as she practically glared at him. “Don’t tell me you’ve already told someone?”

“I-I haven’t. I promise,” he said as he held his arms up in surrender. Was he already messing everything up? Couldn’t they just go on one date before having to break up? With a quiet gulp, Adrien gave her an anxious smile. “At least, I don’t think... what was I not supposed to tell?”

Marinette stared at him in surprise before slowly gesturing to her earrings. “You know... about this. You didn’t tell anyone, did you?”

He frowned in confusion, opening his mouth to tell her that he still didn’t understand before realization slammed into him like a truck. Marinette was gesturing to earrings she never took off. Besides one day, that is... the one day where he also took off his ring and ended up switching kwamis with Ladybug. Ladybug who dropped off Marinette’s present. The same Ladybug who couldn’t accept Chat Noir’s feelings because she was in love with another boy.

Adrien breathed out one word as he gazed down at her in shock, “Me.”

Marinette’s brow furrowed as she looked up at him. “You told yourself?”

“No!” he shook his head, “I mean yes! Well, kind of... but, I was mainly saying that I was the one you were in love with.”

Her face turned the shade of a tomato before she laughed awkwardly, waving a hand in the air. “W-what? W-what do you mean? L-love you? Uh, w-where did you hear that? I mean, that’s just crazy.”

Adrien simply chuckled loudly, slapping a palm to his forehead as so many things suddenly made sense. He hadn’t predicted the future with his dreams and he certainly wasn’t clairvoyant. He must have subconsciously figured out Marinette’s identity and had been trying to tell himself that he had been in love with the same girl from the very start.

With a small, smug grin, he leaned down to look into Marinette’s wide, blue eyes, “That’s not going to work on me, anymore, princess.”

She simply squeaked, her entire body tensing up as Adrien leaned even closer to her. He swiped at her nose playfully and smiled softly once he saw how flustered she got. Leaning back, Adrien spoke simply and gently, “I wanted to talk to you so that I could tell you that I love you too.”

“Y-you do,” Marinette whispered, her body relaxing as she gazed up at him in wonder.

“I always have, m’lady.” He bowed delicately, taking her hand in his to brush a sweet kiss on the back of it.

“No,” she breathed out, her eyes widening further, “You're not... you can’t be.”

Adrien simply winked at her, giving Marinette a particularly Chat Noir esque grin. Her eyes firmly shut as she shook her head furiously. As she ran a hand through her hair, he heard her mutter, “That makes so much more sense now. You didn’t need to tell anyone because you already knew.”

“Knew what?” He tilted his head at her in confusion, watching as her head jolted up to stare at him with longing and sadness.

Slowly, Marinette took in a deep breath, her eyes brimming with tears. “W-we can’t be together.”

“What?” Adrien practically spluttered, feeling his heart plummet deep in his chest. “Why not? I-is it because I’m Chat Noir?”

“No! Of course not, kitty! I love both parts of you, just like you do for me.” Marinette shouted in a rush to reassure him. “B-but, one day, Bunnyx showed me the future. You had gotten akumatized, Adrien. It was awful, a-and you knew my identity. Y-you said it was our love that ended the world. So, don’t you see? We can’t be together until after defeating Hawkmoth.”

Adrien’s face dropped as he stared down at Marinette. Slowly, he shook his head. “No, that can’t be. I can’t have gotten akumatized. Not if I was in love and with you. You are one of the only people I ever feel truly happy with.”

She sniffled quietly, a soft, wobbly smile forming on her lips. “It’s the truth, Adrien. We’re not supposed to know our identities for a reason. This is probably why. Now, we should really get to class, we’re probably late enough already.”

Marinette started to walk away and before he could overthink, he reached out and grabbed her wrist, staring at her desperately. “What if we dated in secret?”

“I-in secret?” she looked at him doubtfully.

“Yes!” Adrien snapped his fingers as his face lit up. “That way Hawkmoth would never even know. It doesn’t even have to be as Marinette and Adrien or Ladybug and Chat Noir, we could make it work as Ladybug and Adrien or Chat Noir and Marinette. I can’t just let you go, Marinette. Not now when I know we’re both in love. Please, let’s just give this a chance.”

She nibbled on her lip as she peered up at him from beneath her lashes. She then spoke hesitantly. “No one would know?”

“Not a soul, I purromise.” Adrien lifted his hand up as he solemnly swore to her.

Marinette looked up at him for a few moments longer before slowly nodding her head. “Ok, we can try it. But if anything starts to go wrong, and I mean anything, Adrien. You let me know right away and we’ll figure it out together, alright? I’m not going to lose you again.”

“You won’t.” He grinned, pulling her closer to him as he brushed his nose against hers lightly. Quietly, he murmured, “Now, am I allowed to give you a kiss that we can both remember.”

Marinette giggled, her cheeks turning a light pink. She still swatted his chest, though, hissing at him, “We can’t do this here. What if someone sees?”

“No one’s going too. Everyone’s in class already. Please, Marinette, just one,” Adrien whined, giving her a small pout.

She rolled her eyes with a fond smile. Instead of responding, however, she simply wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him into a sweet kiss. Shivers raced up and down his spine as he lifted her up, smiling into their kiss. Nothing was going to take this away from him. Not even Hawkmoth. He’d make sure of it.

#adrinette #adrienette #miraculous #miraculous ladybug #fanfic #fic #ml #mlb #ml spoilers #chat blanc spoilers #chat blanc aftermath #i hope you like this <3

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gabriel-agreste-has-no-rights · 4 years

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Rating: T

Summary: From cleaning up their city, to strengthening their partnership, to untangling their love lives—New York has taught Ladybug and Chat Noir that they can get through anything together. Well, everything except automatic doors. (New York special reveal fic)

Word Count: 6722

XXX

Marinette had gotten back from New York three days ago, but it wasn’t until she saw Chat Noir that she really came home.

He’d arrived early to the meeting spot—a rooftop where someone had planted a pot of blue forget-me-nots—and he hummed under his breath while perching at the roof’s edge.

“Little kitty on a roof... all alone without his lady…”

She thought she’d overcome the stutter in her heart when she heard that tune. But that was before she’d almost lost her partner again.

“Not alone anymore,” she said, plopping down next to him and bumping his shoulder.

He didn’t bump back. That was weird.

“Kitty?” She leaned forward, trying to get a better look at his face. The mask made it difficult to tell, but she was pretty sure his green eyes were rimmed with red. “Are you alright?”

He shrugged too quickly. “It’s nothing. I’m really glad to see you again, LB.”

“Which is why you haven’t looked at me this whole time.”

Finally, he met her eyes, and she gasped. He’d definitely been crying. A lot. What had… what had happened? Was it just seeing the city for the first time since they’d been back? Mayor Bourgeois had done a surprisingly good job of organizing the cleanup, but there was still a long way to go. That was the reason they’d come out on patrol tonight, so surely he’d expected the damage.

Could he still be upset about everything that had happened between them? No. He knew she’d forgiven him.

Still, she squeezed his hand just in case.

“Chat. You know you can always tell me the truth.”

His eyes went wide, and then fresh tears welled in them.

“I—right. I promised I’d never hide the truth from you again.” He wiped his eyes with the heel of his free hand. “I’ve just been stupid. Even more stupid, if that’s possible.”

“You’re not stupid,” she said. Stupidly. She didn’t know what would help, but surely she could come up with something more comforting than that. “You’re the brave, amazing, irreplaceable Chat Noir.”

He snorted. “My girlfriend thinks I’m replaceable.”

The world screeched to a halt. The moon could’ve fallen from the sky, and she wouldn’t have noticed.

“You have a girlfriend?”

Chat Noir winced. Oops. She probably shouldn’t have shouted right by his ear.

“I had a girlfriend. For almost a month.”

“And you didn’t tell me?”

His brow scrunched under his mask. “I didn’t want you to think I was trying to make you jealous. And… I didn’t tell anyone, actually. It kind of had to be secret in case my father…” He shook his head. “Sorry. I don’t want to get too close to my identity. Which is another reason I didn’t tell you.”

Of course. There was no good reason for him to tell her.

She still felt like she should’ve known.

“I’m sorry. You had every right to keep your personal life private.” She rubbed her thumb over the back of his hand. “And I’m sorry about your girlfriend, too. She clearly doesn’t know who she’s missing out on.”

He looked up from where he’d been staring at their hands. “I—uh-um-hhhh-yeah.”

She made a noise somewhere between an eep and a cough, jerking her hand back so quickly she almost fell backwards.

“I—I mean, anyone would be lucky to date you—no! Um, you’re a catch?” Oh, that was even worse! What was wrong with her? “You—you know what I mean!”

His head tilted. “I, um. Do I?”

She dropped her head in her hands. She didn’t even know what she meant. She was still in love with Adrien. The last thing she wanted to do was give Chat false hope.

“Sorry,” she groaned. “Lately I can’t get two words out without making a mess of things.”

“Join the club.” He snorted.

“I might not be much help, but… do you want to talk about it?”

“You—you’d let me?”

“You did say you weren’t going to hide things from me anymore.” She smiled, bumping his shoulder.

This time, he bumped her back. “I guess I did.”

He paused, seeming to gather his thoughts. The sounds of traffic drifted up from below to fill the gap. Funny how even the traffic felt more like home in Paris.

“It was my fault, as usual,” he murmured. “I didn’t tell her I was leaving Paris, either.”

“You didn’t?” It made sense that he wouldn’t want to hurt his partner, but why would he hide from someone in his civilian life?

“Like I said. Stupid.” He shook his head.

“Not stupid enough to break up with you over.” She frowned. “Not if she really loved you.”

That probably wasn’t the most tactful thing to say, either. She hoped Chat’s girlfriend loved him. He’d always been so full of love, it was difficult to imagine him with someone who wouldn’t return it.

“It… wasn’t just that.” He took a deep breath. “Promise you won’t hate me?”

That question didn’t reassure her, but she still knew her answer.

“You’re my best friend, kitty. I could never hate you.”

The tension drained from his shoulders.

“Right. I should know that by now. It’s just hard to remember, when I’m so scared and stupid and—I think I might have accidentally cheated on her.”

Marinette blinked. Chat? Cheating? The boy who would rather turn Marinette down in front of her Marichat-shipping papa than hide his feelings for Ladybug?

“What did you do?”

His ears drooped. He looked so limp without the over-the-top confidence that normally filled him.

“I danced with another girl. And hugged her a lot. I thought it was as friends but then my other friend posted some pictures of us to Instagram, because she didn’t know that I was dating K—my girlfriend, and it looked way worse than it was and my girlfriend thinks I’m in love with this other girl and I… the worst and best thing is she might be right.”

Wow. That was. There was a lot to unpack there.

“You’re… in love with… two people?” Neither of which are me?

No. Bad Marinette. This wasn’t about her; this was about Chat Noir. Besides, she wanted him to move on!

“I don’t know. All I know is that I never wanted to hurt either of them, and I feel awful.”

...Was this about her? The sentiment definitely hit too close to home.

“It stinks, doesn’t it.” She sighed.

“More than Plagg’s cheese.”

That got a smile out of her. “I wish I knew how to help, but the truth is, I’ve never had any luck with love either.”

Chat’s brow furrowed. “But what about the boy you…?”

Her throat clogged. Memories flashed through her mind—her and Adrien dancing in the sky, tumbling through doorways, accidental touches and soft smiles and words she’d said too late.

“This isn’t about me,” she said, banishing those thoughts.“We’re working on your love life tonight.”

Unraveling hers would probably require an intervention from Bunnyx. Or a Lucky Charm. Why hadn’t she thought of that before?

Because Tikki would kill me, probably.

“I don’t think there’s much to work on,” he muttered. “I blew it with my girlfriend. And what if I do try to ask out the other girl, but I just make the same mistakes again?”

Marinette smiled and placed her hand over his arm. “You always learn from your mistakes, kitty. And you’re always thinking of other people first. If you just learn how to be honest with everyone—including yourself—I don’t think you’ll have a problem.”

Wow. Three whole coherent sentences. That was miraculous.

“Heh. And you said you didn’t have any love advice.”

“Well… I guess I can give it, but I can’t take it.” She grimaced. If only she’d been honest with Adrien…

But it wasn’t over. She knew how much he meant to her, and she knew what she stood to lose. Somehow, she’d find a way to tell him.

He bumped her shoulder. “Come on, bug. Spill the tea.”

She blinked before bursting out laughing. “Spill the tea?”

“What? That’s what you say when you want your friends to tell you some juicy secrets, right?”

“Ew. Please never call my secrets juicy. They’re more like… tangled up yarn, so knotted even I barely know what’s happening anymore.”

He winked. “I’m a cat. Playing with yarn is what I do best.”

She bit her lip. He’d opened up to her. By her own logic—that of no unnecessary secrets—she should return the favor. But could she really do that to him, knowing how long he’d pined after her?

It doesn’t matter. He’s in love with someone else now. Maybe even two someone elses.

The thought was still so bizarre, she could hardly comprehend it. Clearly he’d been serious about the yellow rose. He’d moved on, and she… well, she was still where she’d started. Chasing after Adrien, falling farther and farther behind.

“Maybe another night,” she said. A coward’s retreat.

He gave her a long look before nodding. “Alright.”

She let out a breath of relief. Another night. He was an outside perspective. She would tell him later, if only because he might give clearer advice.

She stood and dusted off her legs, even though there was no dirt there.

“Vacation’s over. We’ve got some cleaning up to do.”

XXX

“Hey. It’s okay.” She squeezed Chat’s hand when he paused in front of their statue. Or, well, what was left of it. Senti-Robostus had snapped the bronze Ladybug off, then tossed her into the front of a nearby convenience store. The statue of Chat Noir looked lonely without her perched on top.

“This isn’t one we can fix, is it.” His voice was sandpaper-rough.

“No. I don’t think so,” she admitted. “But it’s okay. I never really liked that statue anyway.”

It always reminded her of Copycat, who had turned out to be a total creep. The Ladyblog had had to ban Theo’s accounts from the discussion boards too many times for comfort.

“...We should get moving again, then,” Chat said, but neither of them did. They remained standing in place, still linked by their hands.

They’d been shifting rubble for hours, using their enhanced strength and even their powers. Each time Marinette fed Tikki and transformed, she felt more exhausted than the last. But Chat had to feel even worse. His Cataclysm was the most useful for clearing chunks of broken walls, while her Lucky Charm was less reliable when not facing a concrete enemy. The one score had been a bag of cement mix to fill in a busted sidewalk.

“We can’t fix everything in one night,” she said. “We can patrol again tomorrow. Or maybe the night after.” She had a feeling she’d be too sore to move in the morning, enhanced strength or not.

“Easy for you to say,” he muttered. “It’s not your fault that everything’s broken.”

She stared at him, stunned. “Chat. This is just as much my fault as it is yours.”

“But—”

“No buts.” She pressed a finger to his lips. “Paris is our city. Not yours. Not mine. Ours.”

He didn’t argue, but his gaze still remained fixed on the ground.

“I could have stayed. I could have downloaded an akuma alert app. There are so many things I could’ve done differently, it could eat me alive,” she admitted, her voice trembling. “I don’t want that to happen to you.”

“It’s so hard,” he whispered.

She dropped her hand from his lips. “I know. But we’ll get through it together.”

He was silent for a moment before nodding. “You’re right. You and me against the world… or in this case, you and me against a bunch of crushed buildings.”

She smiled. It might not be a glamorous part of the job, but they would do their part to make it up to their city.

She raised her fist, and he bumped her knuckles gently.

“I’ll let you know when I’m free for next patrol,” he said, a little more life returning to his voice. “Probably the day after tomorrow. My family’s been on edge lately, with… well, you know.”

He nodded towards the broken statue.

“Right. I’ll keep an eye on Plagg, then.”

Chat chuckled. “Plagg” was what she’d named the little cat toy that he had the remote for.

This time, she looked forward to hearing the toy’s tiny mew.

XXX

It turned out to be three days before they could meet for patrol again.

“Soooo.” Chat walked backwards in front of her, grinning in a way that was somehow both obnoxious and adorable. “It’s another night.”

Oh. She should’ve known he wouldn’t let that go so easily, especially now that he seemed to be in a better mood. Had he asked out the other girl he liked? Or did he patch things up with his girlfriend? Or maybe he did neither, and he just knew how to move on.

“Technically, it’s not night yet.” She pointed to the sun that sat low over the skyline. “Also, there’s a—”

He tripped over a crack in the sidewalk, then toppled backwards against a No Parking sign. The metal clanged like a gong where his head hit it.

“—pole behind you.” She giggled.

He pouted, rubbing the back of his head. “No Parking? Why would anyone even try to park here?”

They’d arrived at the worst scene of damage: in front of the Eiffel Tower. There wasn’t even a road left to park on. Most of the chasm had been filled in by now, but there were construction crews repairing the pipes and electrical wiring that had been uprooted.

Of course, the workers had gone home for the evening already. Marinette and Chat would have to be careful not to get in the way of their unfinished work. Luckily, there was still plenty of rubble to move, and they’d come prepared with their powerups tonight.

“I’ve got two sets of ears, my lady. That makes me twice as amazing of a listener.” He swiveled the leather ears on top of his hair. When had he learned how to control that?

“Why don’t you save the interrogation for after patrol?”

“It’s not an interrogation! You accepted my yellow rose, which means we are friends for time and all eternity. And friends can ask each other about important things in their lives. Like their crushes.”

“I regret ever bringing that up.” She pulled the purple macaron from her yo-yo and tossed it into her mouth. At least she couldn’t say anything incriminating while she was chewing.

The power shocked over her, leaving her magenta space suit in its wake. A grin tugged at her lips. She’d never get tired of that.

“It can’t be that bad.” Chat unzipped a pocket and dug out a purple slice of camembert. He made a face before chewing it. “Not as bad as this nasty cheese, anyway.”

He transformed too, plasma-like wings sprouting from his back.

“You know, I can make you the powerup macarons, too. That way you only have to use the cheese if you’re giving it to Plagg.”

“Wait, really?” His eyes widened. “Why didn’t you say that weeks ago?”

“Because it’s too fun to watch you make that face.” She smirked and flicked his glowing bell. “But I’m willing to pass up on that in exchange for you leaving my love life alone.”

He sighed. “If that’s really what you want.”

He looked surprisingly dejected. Was it just because she was keeping secrets?

“I’m surprised you want to know about… Him,” she said quietly. “I don’t want to make you feel worse.”

“You don’t have to worry about me, my lady. I haven’t figured out exactly what I feel for my friend yet, but your advice has helped me start. I just want to help you in return.”

He smiled behind his helmet. He meant it. Somehow, despite all the times she’d turned him down, he just wanted her to feel better.

“Alright,” she relented.

“I swear, I—wait, what?”

“I said alright.” She chuckled. “Though I’m a little curious how you planned to convince me.”

He blushed. “I was going to swear on my honor as your friend that I would take your not-juicy secrets to my grave.”

“Thanks for the thought. Now come help me with this chunk of cement, and I’ll ‘spill the tea.’”

XXX

It was surprisingly hard not to spill too much tea. As they flew pieces of rubble out to space, she told him everything she could without jeopardizing her identity. A few unspecific details, vague confession plans, even that there was another boy in love with her. Though that seemed less relevant now that she realized she couldn’t quench her feelings for Adrien.

“Wow. Can you imagine being dense enough not to realize Ladybug is in love with you?” He sighed wistfully. Maybe he hadn’t completely given up on her then.

“He’s not dense.” She grunted as she shoved the chunk of road with her shoulder, finally sending it floating off out of the atmosphere. “He’s sheltered. And I don’t always send the clearest signals.”

“I guess helping set him up with a different girl would be a mixed message.” He winced. Without giving names, she’d explained the whole double-date fiasco. He’d been polite enough to stifle his laughter.

“I told you my love life was tangled. I don’t know that there’s anything you can do to help, but thanks for listening anyway.”

She adjusted her wings, slowing the flare from her jet pack.

“Wait.” He grabbed her hand before she could begin her descent towards earth.

She stopped, barely daring to breathe. Had he changed his mind? Did he still want to be a thread in her knotted love life after all?

“You told me to be honest with myself,” he continued, his voice soft but sure. “It sounds like you’ve already done that—so be honest with him, too.”

Oh. She grimaced. Of course he’d use her own advice against her.

“It’s not that easy.”

“I know. But if you never tell him how you feel, you’re not giving him the chance to swoon at how amazing you are.”

He mimed falling backwards, literally head over heels. He turned a full 360 degrees in midair before grinning back at her.

“You’re such a dork.” She shook her head fondly. “You’re right, though. That’s what everyone else has told me too. I can’t keep backing down, not if I want anything to change between us.”

Despite imagining a thousand scenarios where they were married with three kids, Marinette found herself unable to picture herself actually asking Adrien out. It felt as far away as an alternate universe.

“I can help you out, if you want,” he said cheerily. “Just put your communicator in your ear, and I’ll feed you all the best pickup lines in real time.”

She laughed. “Thanks, but I think my awkward stuttering will still be better than that.”

“You’re right. You should give yourself some credit. You did call me a catch, after all.” He winked.

“Chat!” She punched his arm. “I was just trying to cheer you up!”

“Uh-huh. Suuure.”

He was just messing with her. He wouldn’t be trying to help her with Adrien if he still had a crush on her, would he? Even after all this time, it was still difficult to tell when he was actually flirting, and when he was just engaging in friendly banter.

...When she thought of it that way, it was less surprising that his ex-girlfriend had misjudged his actions too.

“What about you?” She asked as they floated back towards earth. “Do you have any updates on your love situation?”

“Sort of.” He sighed. “My girlfriend is clear about her feelings. She’s given me too many second chances already, and my uncertainty has hurt her. I can’t expect her to keep waiting while I try to figure out what I want.”

“That’s fair.” Marinette nodded. “I’m glad she can be so honest with you, even if it hurts. She must trust you a lot.”

If only she could have that kind of trust in Adrien. She… she could, couldn’t she? Their friendship wouldn’t be destroyed after one tiny declaration of love. Not after everything he’d said about her in New York.

Right?

“She’s never been afraid to speak her mind. It’s one thing I really admire about her.” Chat smiled wistfully. “I hope that she finds someone who’s better to her than I was.”

“Chat…”

“No, my lady. She deserves someone who’s as decisive as she is. Someone who can love her the way she loved me.”

That sounded almost familiar. Hadn’t Marinette had that same thought about Chat Noir?

“Yeah,” she murmured. “Yeah, I guess she does.”

XXX

“What’s on the agenda today?” Chat asked brightly when he arrived at their rooftop. “Restoring the Arc de Triumph? Planting more grass in the park?”

“No.” Marinette fidgeted with her hands. She’d rehearsed how to ask this a thousand times in the past few days, but she still felt stupid. “I actually, er… I wanted to take you up on that offer.”

His ears perked up. “You’re going to let me cut your hair?”

“No, not that offer.” She smacked her forehead. She’d forgotten he’d mentioned that when she’d complained about how her pigtails stuck out of her space helmet. “The one you said? About the communicators, and helping me, with um, Him…?”

Chat’s jaw dropped. It would have made a great photo, if she’d gotten out her bugphone in time.

“You’re actually going to use my pickup lines?”

“No! Those are still awful.” Except the one about her being the lady of his dreams, but he didn’t need to know how soft that had made her. “In fact, I don’t actually want us to use our communicators at all.”

He blinked. “So, you want to take me up on my offer, but you don’t want me to do a single thing I offered. Makes perfect sense.”

“Ugh. Sorry, I’m so bad at this.” She should just pretend she was explaining a plan to Alya. Or maybe that she was coming up with a solution to her Lucky Charm. That was never so awkward, right?

“I want you to use this,” she clarified, pulling the toy cat out of her yo-yo. “I always chicken out before I tell him how I feel. I was thinking, if I felt like you were there… I might be a little braver.”

He still looked stunned, but a smile slowly crept across his face.

“So I can be your wingman?”

“...Sort of, I guess? All you need to do is push the button when I inevitably start to panic.”

His head tilted. “But how will I know when you’re trying to talk to him? You need a Plagg, too.”

“You’re one step ahead, kitty. I was thinking we could go pick one up before patrol. Since you’ll be keeping it, you should get to choose what kind of buzzer you want.”

He beamed at that. “Brilliant as usual, my lady.”

Whew. She’d worried he would think it was stupid.

“Come on.” She unhooked her yo-yo from her waist. “The store I bought Plagg at was set to reopen today. If we’re quick, we can get there before they close for the night.”

He kept pace with her as they swung and leapt towards the west side of the city. The novelty shop had been in the path of destruction, but by now most of the buildings were functional again.

The repairs had restored Chat Noir’s good humor, too. Either that or he’d sorted out his own romances. Curious as she was, she found herself too nervous to ask.

I’m asking out Adrien. It doesn’t matter if Chat Noir gets a girlfriend. Him having a girlfriend hadn’t changed things between them before, after all. He’d always be her partner. Always.

She dropped down in front of the store—

—and felt her soul leave her body.

“Nooooo,” she groaned, gaping at the brand new, shiny, automatic doors.

Chat Noir landed beside her and strapped his staff to his back.

“What’s wrong, my lady? Are they all out of—” He blinked at the doors, too. “Oh.”

Oh? Was her fear of automatic doors that obvious? Okay, fear was a strong word, but there was no way she could get into the store with her dignity intact. She’d embarrassed herself in front of Chat plenty of times, but it was still light out, and too many civilians were on the street.

“I, just, uh—feel a draft coming out of this store! Maybe another place sells the same kind of toys?” She grinned uncomfortably.

It wasn’t likely. They were marketed towards people in long-distance relationships. She’d been lucky to notice the beeper toys when she was looking for design inspirations in this out-of-the-way shop.

“Maybe. Do you know where? Most stores will be closing pretty soon.”

She sighed. That had been such a flimsy excuse, she was surprised he’d even bought it.

“No, it’s fine. You just—might want to go in without me.” She tapped her fingers together. “They, um, have some toy spiders in there that are reeeeeally scary.”

“Oh, no!” He replied too dramatically. “I’m, uh, afraid of spiders too!”

“...Are you making fun of me?”

He grinned nervously. “Why would you think that?”

“Because I know you’re not afraid of spiders. You picked one up and moved it the other day because you didn’t want to kill it.” It had been really cute, even if she’d originally screamed for him to squish it.

“Crud, I forgot about that,” he said under his breath.

They were drawing stares by now, standing in the glow of the shop’s windows without stepping inside. One little kid waved at them, and Chat waved back.

“It doesn’t matter.” She shook her head. “We’re going in this shop, and we’re getting you a beeper toy, and we’re not going to be stopped by some stupid automatic doors.”

“Automatic—wait, you can’t get through automatic doors either?”

She didn’t answer. She was busy slamming into the glass.

“Ow,” she muttered with her nose squished against the door. Which still. Didn’t. Open.

Behind her, Chat Noir started to laugh.

“Shut up,” she said, but it probably didn’t have much effect when muffled by the glass.

“Sorry, sorry!” He rushed to help her as she peeled herself off. “It’s just, this happens all the time to me and my good friend. I thought I was going to be the one smushed like a bug on a windshield.”

“There’s only one bug here,” she said, brushing off the front of her suit. “And she’s going to get through those stupid doors if it’s the last thing she does.”

“My lady—”

Frustrated, she banged her fists against the glass—

—and shattered it into a million pieces.

Sirens blared. She yelped, jumping back towards Chat.

This was it. Her life was over. She was going to go to jail and lose her miraculous all because she’d used super-strength on a stupid door!

“Uh-oh.” Chat gulped.

“M-miraculous ladybug!” She yelled on reflex, though she didn’t have a Lucky Charm. Could a Lucky Charm even fix this? A villain hadn’t done the damage at all, unless she counted as a villain, because she’d just committed vandalism, and oh no the owner was coming towards them and—

“Ladybug! Chat Noir!” The man with the white mustache looked more concerned than angry. That was… that was good, right? “Did an akuma come through here? Do I need to evacuate? There’s no one else in the store right now. I don’t think anyone realized I’ve reopened.”

She blinked. Would it be alright to lie, just this once? To avoid being arrested, losing her miraculous, and letting Paris fall to Hawkmoth?

“No, no, there’s nothing to worry about,” Chat answered for her, holding up his hands.

Meanwhile, the shopkeeper pressed a button on the wall, turning off the alarm. If only her pounding heart could be quieted so easily.

“It was an accident,” Chat continued. “It’s my fault.”

...Wait, what?

“I was trying to hold open the door for my lady, as all good gentlecats do. But my powers of destruction and automatic doors don’t get along.” He smiled ruefully, then produced a wad of euros from his pocket. The shopkeeper looked as shocked as Marinette was. “I hope this will be enough to cover the damage. And I’m very sorry. You have a lovely shop.”

The shopkeeper’s glasses slid down his nose. He pushed them back up, still not moving to accept the money. “Chat Noir... this is far too much.”

“Consider it a tip.” He winked.

A tip of… she couldn’t count every bill in his palm, but she swore that was at least three hundred euros. Where did he get that kind of money? Did he have some kind of superhero donation drive she didn’t know about?

“Please, at least buy something,” the owner insisted. “If there’s no akuma, then I assume you were coming to make a purchase? Or was it a return? Was the item you purchased not to your liking, Ladybug?”

“N-no, it was perfect!” She said quickly. Her heart still hadn’t stopped pounding. He remembered her. What was his name again? She should be better at remembering citizens’ names. “I—we—um, wanted another one, actually.”

“A matched set.” Chat grinned. “Would that be alright?”

“Of course.” He looked relieved. “Right this way.”

Chat stepped through the broken door frame—which opened just in time to trip him. Marinette tried to catch him by his tail, but his weight dragged her down too. They both ended up sprawled among the broken glass.

“Oww…” He groaned against the tile floor.

She picked a shard out of her cheek. “Why does this keep happening to me?”

The shopkeeper blinked down at them. “On second thought, I’ll bring my options out to you.”

That was probably for the best. While he left, she and Chat untangled their limbs and helped each other up.

“Sorry.” He grimaced. “I didn’t mean for my bad luck to rub off on you.”

“Bad luck?” She tried to brush some glass out of her suit, but it just ended up sticking in her hand. “If anyone’s unlucky, it’s me. This kind of thing happens to me all the time.”

“My lady, you haven’t been this clumsy since the day we met. And I know for a fact that automatic doors hate me.”

“They hate me more. I couldn’t get through them once in New York.”

“Me either.”

She blinked up at him. Glass shards were still scattered in his hair, reflecting the shop’s bright lights. Yes, she could picture him being this unlucky—but could they really both be unlucky in the same exact way?

“I fell in a tangled mess with my crush, and then the doors kept smacking into us. I’m pretty sure my ribs are still bruised from it.” There was no way his luck was worse than that.

Pink flushed across his cheeks. “Uh… me too?”

She snorted. “It’s not a competition, Chat. You don’t have to make up stuff to prove you have worse luck than me.”

“I’m not making anything up.” He took a step forward and brushed a piece of glass from her bangs. “Did you say that happened to you and… and your crush?”

His voice came out as a squeak. But—if he was being serious—

How many French kids had been in New York last week? And more importantly, how many had been repeatedly squished between automatic doors?

No. There’s no way. She was the girl who couldn’t even get through automatic doors—she was not this lucky.

“No, you couldn’t be her.” His face fell. “She wouldn’t even sit next to me on the plane. There’s no way she has a crush on me.”

Her mouth hung open.

“Adrien?” Her shout was tinged with panic. She was lucky that the street had cleared out, probably because the citizens thought their heroes were investigating an akuma.

His wide eyes snapped back to hers.

“M-Marinette?”

“Oh my gosh. You’re—you’re really Adrien. Adrien Agreste.” The love of her life. Who couldn’t even believe she liked him!

She wanted to shatter like the automatic door. Maybe then she could avoid the horrible, soul-crushing embarrassment of admitting her feelings after committing accidental vandalism.

“And that’s… okay?” His voice was barely a whisper.

“Okay?” Her grin must have looked manic, which probably didn’t reassure him. She tried to force a normal expression.

...What was normal again?

He swallowed and rubbed the back of his neck—only to grimace and pull out another glass shard.

“Sorry. I—you didn’t want to know, and—” His expression turned to horror. “Do I have to give up my miraculous now?”

“What? No!” She clasped her hands over his before he could even think of removing his ring. “Adrien—you’re the only Chat Noir for me. I’m thrilled it’s you.”

“Really?” His ears perked up. “But I thought… I’m confused. You said you were stuck in the automatic doors with your crush… but that was…?”

She smiled as tears pricked her eyes.

“You.”

After all this time, it was him. Adrien was her partner.

And she could trust her partner.

She rested her hand on his cheek, careful not to press any pieces of glass deeper into his skin. “It’s always been you.”

The corners of his eyes crinkled, filling with water that spilled over onto his mask.

“Even when I thought I was moving on from you, I guess I was falling right back.” He chuckled and wiped his eyes. Then he rested his hand over hers. His ring was a spot of cold against her fingers.

“This would only happen to us.” She laughed too. “And here I wanted your help to confess to, well, you.”

“That would’ve been awkward.” He grinned. “If we didn’t realize each others’ identities now, we would’ve then.”

She snorted. “I wouldn’t give us that much credit. We’ve both been stupider than that before.”

“Fair enough. All this time, Ladybug was in love with me!”

“You do realize that means you called yourself dense, right?”

He smacked his forehead, then winced. “Ow. I’d like to contest that, but I think I just proved it.”

She held back a laugh. “As long as you don’t tease me for taking two years to confess to you, I’ll call it even.”

“Two years?” He blinked. “You’ve had a crush on me for that long?”

She shrugged sheepishly. “I did say it’s always been you.”

His expression melted into something so soft, she could hardly stand it. So it was a relief when he pulled her into an even softer—if glass-filled—hug.

“It was you, too. Marinette you,” he murmured by her ear. “It took me too long to realize it, but I always knew there was something special about you.”

Her heart soared at that, even higher than when they’d been dancing in the sky. It all made sense now. Alya had posted those photos on Instagram. Neither of them had known Adrien had a girlfriend—Kagami, probably. Hopefully she wouldn’t end her friendship with Marinette over this. They were supposed to have their weekly orange juice tomorrow; Marinette would make sure to be honest with her, too.

But right now, that could wait. All she wanted to do was feel the warmth of Adrien’s arms—Chat Noir’s arms.

“It was Chat Noir you, too,” she admitted. “I didn’t want to let you go. I think I took your love for granted, even when I was in love with ‘Adrien.’”

She felt his arms tighten when she said love.

“Considering you were torn between me and me, I think I can forgive that.” He chuckled. “Actually, I could do more than forgive you. I could kiss you right now.”

Tingles shot through her. Was she ready for that? She’d hardly been able to imagine this moment—and she’d definitely never imagined it like this. Covered in glass, Chat’s claws gently cupping her shoulderblade.

Somehow, it still blew all of her fantasies out of the water.

“I could let you,” she softly replied.

He pulled back just enough to rest his forehead against hers. “Really? I mean… I can still hardly believe this is happening. I can still hardly believe you’re Marinette.”

She frowned. “Why? Because I’m so clumsy?”

“No, because you’re so—” he waved a hand, searching for the word. “Perfect isn’t the right word. You’re endearing, and smart, and brave enough to stand up to my father. You can crush me at video games, and you can forgive me even when I don’t deserve it.”

“Adrien—”

“I left you.”

In that moment, something shifted in her mind. She knew he was Adrien, but finally, she could hear it in his voice.

“I left you twice. As Adrien and as Chat Noir. How can you still want me?”

She took his face in both hands. Never again, not for one second, would she let this boy feel like he wasn’t wanted.

“How could I not want you, Adrien?”

He broke, the tears flowing freely. They glimmered off the bits of glass still stuck to his face. She wished she could clear both of those away, that she could stop him from hurting.

“See? This is why I can hardly believe it. I’m not supposed to be this lucky.”

“Me either. But I’m tired of worrying about what we’re supposed to be.” She smiled. “I love you, kitty. And if you plan on collecting that kiss—”

He did. Somehow he was both clumsy and careful, probably because he was dodging the bits of glass still stuck to her face. Not that she minded. It was him, and it was her—Adrien and Marinette, Ladybug and Chat Noir.

Though it should’ve been the last thing on her mind, she couldn't help thinking that both of Alya’s ships had sailed tonight.

She was just about to deepen this kiss when Adrien pulled back.

“What?” she asked. Had she been that bad of a kisser?

But no, he was looking at the shopkeeper. Who had his arms full of animal toys, and a face red enough to blend in with her suit.

“Oh—ah—sorry to interrupt.” He cleared his throat. “Did you still want…?”

Her face flushed too. She didn’t think it was possible to be any more embarrassed after breaking the man’s doors, but she hadn’t thought it was possible to kiss Adrien without spontaneously combusting, either.

“I don’t suppose we need one now, do we?” She glanced at Adrien sheepishly.

“That doesn’t mean I don’t want one.” He inspected the boxes in the man’s arms.

“If afraid we’re out of Ladybug toys. They’re our hottest selling item right now. I even looked in the back to be sure none were hiding there.”

Adrien grinned, and she remembered why she never would’ve guessed his identity. That toothy smile was all Chat.

“That’s okay. I know the next best thing.”

XXX

“I hope you know that I’m never going to press the button,” Marinette said when they returned to their rooftop.

“What? And I thought you loved me.” Adrien put a hand over his chest in dramatic offense.

“You obviously don’t love me if you thought the best toy to represent me was a cow.”

“Cows are so cute though!” He held up the black-and-white cow beeper toy, which he’d already named Stompp. “And she has spots, just like you!”

Cows might not be cute, but Adrien certainly was. And he knew she couldn’t resist his pleading kitty eyes.

She sighed and pressed the button.

“Moo!” Chat mimicked the toy. “See? Moo and mew! They even sound alike. What noise would a ladybug have made, anyway?”

“It would probably just call you a dork.” She smirked.

“Or it might tell me it loves me.” He wiggled his eyebrows.

“Or,” she took his hand, “you could just be happy with your real girlfriend telling you she loves you.”

His smile was soft and warm, enfolding her like a blanket.

“I think I can live with that.”

#ml new york special #ml new york #miraculous ladybug #chat noir #ladybug #fic tag #tali writes #reveal #very happy with how this turned out #thanks to alyce and winter for all the help!!

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p-artsypants · 4 years

Text

Longest Night (45) Adjusting

Ao3 | FF.net

The few days they had spent at the Dupain-Cheng bakery so far were like a vacation. Not that their routines were much different…a lot of naps, video games, TV, reading…sometimes, Adrien would sit at the keyboard with headphones and tap out a tune. Whenever Marinette asked what he was playing, he’d just give her a little shrug and admit, “it’s not ready yet.”

The dinners with just Tom and Sabine were a lot more relaxed and warm, and they were usually followed with board games or a movie. At night, Adrien and Marinette would sit out on her balcony under a blanket, just enjoying the view of Paris.

Just in general, the bakery felt more like a home than whatever the mansion was. Marinette’s loft bed was cozy, and provided privacy and comfort. Like a cradle or a cocoon. Many nights, Marinette and Adrien would sit up late, talking about anything and everything, or sometimes nothing at all. Allowing the soothing presence of the other to fill the silence. Yes, the move proved to be for the best. Marinette’s room provided an environment that aided healing, and allowed the two to indulge in old hobbies. Marinette had yet to touch her sewing machine, but she had sketched a little in a sketchbook. It was the start that counted.

“You remember when you asked me to get that constipation medication for you from England?” Adrien asked one night, late.

Marinette had almost been asleep, but she groaned. “Ugh, yeah? Why did you have to remind me?”

“What was that about? I just assumed it was something we couldn’t get in France…but I wanted to do the friendly thing. But honestly, it’s been on my mind for a while now.”

She pushed up, propping up on one arm so she could look down at him. “First of all, that medicine wasn’t for me. It was for Master Fu.”

“Wait what? Why?”

“So here’s the story: He got really sick and asked me to deliver a love letter to his sweetheart. He wanted to connect with her in case it was the end. The doctor gave me the prescription. And because Master Fu was taking the leap to confess, I thought I would too, so I wrote you a letter. So I delivered a piece of paper to Master Fu’s girl, the pharmacist, and to you.”

“Oh no…”

“I gave Fu’s letter to the pharmacist, the prescription to you, and my letter to Fu’s girlfriend, which was so bad that it got her akumatized!”

“Oh my lady…I’m sure it was lovely, just out of context.”

“That was probably my worst attempt.” She groaned, rolling away from him.

“Worse attempt? There were others?”

“Good night, Adrien.”

He snuggled up behind her, whispering into her ear. “Please tell me your failures, my precious lady.”

She groaned again, kicking the blankets off of her legs so that she could sit up and face him. “Fine, you know what? Because of Alya, all of Paris already knows how hopelessly in love with you I was. And because of Lila, you know how much of a stalker I was.”

“A cute stalker.”

“Gee thanks.” She rolled her eyes. “God, where do I even start? Oh…you know that blue scarf that you got for your birthday one year?”

“Yeah?”

“It was actually from me. I don’t know how the mix up happened, but you thought it was from your father. It made you happy, so I let it be.”

Adrien leaned closer to her, his mouth opening in awe. “My lady…”

“That beret that Ladybug hand delivered was also from me. That was my closest attempt, but I had to erase my name on it…”

“Whatever for? I would have cherished it more! It’s collecting dust in my closet somewhere now.”

Marinette looked away, trying to find the words to explain. The beret brought up so many sour memories, and even more trauma that she didn’t need right now.

“My lady?”

“I shouldn’t have mentioned that one. It’s stupid.”

“Don’t shut me out,” he begged. “Please. I can’t stand it when you shut me out. I want to know everything about you, Marinette. You’re my best friend…and my wife. For better or for worse, right?”

She nodded, swallowing the thickness in her throat. “The first time I dropped it off at your house, I was shortly after stopped by Bunnyx. She said she needed my help because something had gone wrong in the future. So she took me into her burrow and dropped me off in Paris…” She shut her eyes, exhaling harshly. She had never gotten to tell anyone about this, and it weighed on her heavily, even after all this time.

“In Paris…?” Adrien urged her on.

“It was flooded. The Eiffel tower was toppled, and I could see the moon in the distance, completely shattered. You were there, all alone, and…akumatized.”

“Into Grimalkin?”

She shook her head. “Chat Blanc. All white suit, hair, even your skin was pale. And your eyes were piercing blue.”

He frowned, imagining that image.

“You knew my name, and you said it was our love that destroyed the world. We fought, and I fell in the water, where I found myself and Hawkmoth frozen in stone. I touched my statue and it turned to dust. I don’t know how long you’d been like that. But you were desperate to get my earrings. You said…you said a lot of terrible things. It was horrible to see you like that…so deranged, so lost and unhinged. A little like Grimalkin, to be honest.”

“I assume you won.”

“Yes, but you still knew my name afterwards. I realized that in that timeline, learning my identity led to you becoming an Akuma. And I figured, you, Adrien-you, must have seen me leaving your room when I left that beret for you. And somehow that led to my identity. So, I erased my name.”

“Why didn’t you tell me any of that earlier? That couldn’t have been fun to keep bottled up.”

“It wasn’t. But...I prevented it. So it never happened. It was just a bad dream.”

“But...it wasn’t. Your Miraculous Ladybug undoes all the damage akumas do. It’s like those never happened, but the memories remain. Why is it different if you’re the only one that remembers?”

Marinette shrugged. “I guess I just didn’t want to worry you. I’m sorry.”

Adrien leaned forward to bump his head with hers, affectionately. “As long as we’re being honest about erased timelines...there’s something I should have talked to you about too.”

“What’s that?”

“Aspik.”

“Oh…that’s right! You used the Snake and Second Chance for a while.”

“25,913 times.” He answered, his voice portraying the pain the number brought.

“How do you remember?”

“Every time I restarted, the number flashed in front of my eyes. It went up and up…every five minutes. Every time I lost you. Every time you turned to dust. Every time I failed.”

“You tried so hard…”

“You insisted that you needed the snake, and that you didn’t need Chat Noir. Several times.”

“But it was only when you passed the snake onto Luka that we won. I did need you. I always need you, and I’m sorry if I made you feel like I didn’t.”

“Plagg warned me. Over and over, he said I was making a mistake. And I kept shutting him down. I was being selfish. Every time I restarted, I got five more minutes with you, as Adrien, not as Chat Noir. I wanted to do so good you’d fall in love with me. But I just ended up hurting myself, because I kept letting you down. It was so painful…”

“I’m sorry for putting that burden on you. That wasn’t fair.”

“You couldn’t have known.” He sighed, feeling lighter than he had in a long time. There was still plenty of trauma to work through, but getting this out of the way paved the road for clearing his head. “I’m sorry for traumatizing you in another timeline too. I know I’m not at fault for that, but I hate that any version of me hurt you.”

Marinette held his face gently, letting her thumb roll over his cheek bones. Her mother’s cooking had done well to fill in his face, but there was still a sunken look to him. His cheeks and his eyes especially.

“You’re wonderful to me, Adrien. Always have been, in and out of the suit. And even with all the pain, trauma, and sadness…I’d still rather be with you than anyone else.”

“I feel the same. I feel connected to you. It might sound corny, but I feel it right down into my soul. When I was in solitary, there were moments where I would just hold my breath and see if I could feel you. If maybe I could somehow sense if you were still alive or not.” He looked away from her. “That sounds insane. I’m sorry.”

“No. No it doesn’t.” She urged. “I did the same thing. Sometimes during akuma fights, I can tell when something bad happened to you. I’m sure it’s because of the bond of our Miraculous, but I had hoped it had extended beyond that.”

Tikki’s sleepy voice spoke from the bedside table. “You really felt that way?”

“Oh, sorry Tikki, did we wake you?”

“A little. But it’s okay. Are you really able to tell when Chat’s harmed?”

“I…think so? Yeah…even when I don’t see him, I can feel a little pain.”

“That does happen, but not usually so early into a partnership. but…you both have gone through a lot together. It would make sense.”

“So...we are bonded?” Asked Adrien.

“Loosely. It’ll grow stronger the longer you’re together. A pair of holders in their 80’s were able to read each other’s minds!”

“Oh wow! That’s...that’s a little daunting.”

“I’m not crazy then,” Adrien stated, with a hand over his heart. “Pretending like we were connected was just about the only thing that kept me going through solitary. I thought that maybe…maybe as long as my heart was beating, yours was too.”

Marinette fell forward into him, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face into his chest.

That strong heartbeat beat for her in her ear. “I thought as long as I thought about how much I loved you, you’d feel it.”

“I did, My Lady. Every time you whispered it to yourself, I got a warm feeling inside. Even in my darkest moments, I knew you loved me. Thank you. Thank you for loving me.”

“It wasn’t hard.”

—

Interacting with Gabriel came sooner than they hoped.

Today was a ‘progress day’, as Dr. Zollar had noted. A day that would push boundaries, and challenge them emotionally and maybe physically.

They were going back to school. Just for the day, to find out graduation requirements, but even going on the property was going to hurt.

The last time they were here…well, Marinette was still a ‘perverted stalker’.

They were going in with their parents, while class was in session, so it wasn’t likely that they’d be cornered by anyone.

“You ready, kiddos?” Asked Sabine.

Marinette nodded and slipped her hand into Adrien’s. For the first time since capture, they were both wearing jeans. The wounds on the back of their legs had healed enough to allow it, though it still wasn’t very comfortable. Adrien wore a loose T-Shirt, since his skin graft on his shoulder blades was still healing.

Tom rested a hand on Adrien’s shoulder. “It’s okay son. We’ll be right there with you.”

So, they slowly made their way over to the school.

The Agreste’s silver sedan waited at the curb, and the Gorilla greeted them as they approached, opening the door for Emilie and Gabriel to exit.

“So this is your school?” Said Emilie, ever cheerful.

Adrien nodded. He had yet to resolve the tantrum he had over her, now that Gabriel had come clean. But the sting of betrayal still lingered, even if Emilie couldn’t have helped it.

Everything was just tense and no one was willing to talk it out.

For now, they had time, and Emilie was willing to give him space.

“It’s a really nice facility,” Sabine saved. “Adrien was on the fencing team!”

“Oh they have fencing? That’s wonderful! Not many public schools do!”

As the mothers led the group, talking, Marinette squeezed Adrien’s hand. “You doing alright, kitty?”

He tilted his head, and gave her a look, silently asking the same question.

“I’m nervous. I know I should probably…you know, at least see the class.”

“Don’t do anything you don’t want to.” Tom encouraged, patting her back patiently.

They had only been gone for about four months now, only a little longer than summer vacation, but the school just felt so small. It’s like that, when your world isn’t revolving around just one building anymore. In all of the nightmares Marinette had in solitude, the school was just so much bigger, and her classmates were even more vile, nasty, and cruel. Such is the poison of isolation.

Thankfully, class was in session, and no one was loitering in the halls as they made their way upstairs to Mr. Damocles office.

“Good afternoon and welcome back!” He greeted, too loudly.

“Thank you for meeting with us, Mr. Damocles,” Sabine shook his hand.

“Oh it’s a pleasure. I would like to do my part to make sure Adrien and Marinette are all set for whatever they have planned next in life. What are we thinking? College? Working with Mr. Agreste?”

Marinette hunched her shoulders while Adrien scuffed his shoe on the floor.

“Let’s just think about getting their GEDs for right now.” Said Gabriel. “This is my wife, Emilie. She’s recently returned from an extended sabbatical.”

Marinette held back a snort. That’s what they were going with?

Mr. Damocles looked skeptical, but managed to smile and shake her hand anyways. “Welcome back, madam.”

Adrien and Marinette found chairs in the back of the room, allowing the parents to lead the conversation.

“So, here we have Marinette and Adrien’s transcripts. Starting in College, they are basically identical, since they took the same classes together. Adrien’s fulfilled his foreign language credit, and Marinette’s completed her arts credit. It appears that this semester, Adrien was planning to take Visual Arts, Physics, Trigonometry, Written Rhetoric, and World History, then he had two free periods for studying, or taking college level courses. Marinette was planned to take Chinese, Anatomy, Economics, Written Rhetoric, World History, and Visual Arts.”

“Well,” began Sabine, “Adrien and I can certainly help Marinette complete her Chinese credit. You know, I’ve been trying to teach her forever, she’s just so stubborn.”

“I’m just not good at it.” Marinette defended. “I haven’t had the proper motivation.”

“I will sign off on Written Rhetoric for both of them. I think they’ve given plenty of speeches as superheroes to count. And I think Anatomy and Physics can be counted as well. So we will just need to get them homeschool work for World History, Trigonometry, and Economics. And Adrien will need a Visual Arts credit.”

“His modeling wouldn’t count?” Gabriel asked.

Mr. Damocles hummed and hawed over it, then finally asked. “Was he getting paid for it?”

“Yes.”

“Then I don’t think I can count it for a credit. However, if he was allowed to work behind the camera for a little while, learning how to use the camera and the lights and such, I could count that.”

Gabriel turned to look at Adrien. “That’s doable, right?”

Adrien nodded.

“Alright. Then I’ll get the paperwork ready. I will look through my contacts for tutors in those subjects.”

“I wouldn’t mind teaching Marinette Economics.” Gabriel volunteered. “It’s something I’m rather proficient in, as a businessman.”

“Can you handle that?” Sabine asked her daughter.

Marinette wanted to say no, but she didn’t really want to spit in Gabriel’s face. Especially since he was just volunteering for her, and not Adrien. “I think that would be fine.”

“You said you were still interested in fashion design right? Then I can tailor what I teach you based on the industry.”

That was a pretty sweet deal. And old Marinette would have leapt on the chance. But the new Marinette was frightened by change, by stress, by the threat of disappointment.

And with how high Gabriel’s expectations continued to be, failure almost seemed certain.

There must have been a big stamp on her forehead that said ‘I’m not sure’ because Emile came to her rescue. “Let’s just try it out for a little while. If you need something…less intense, we can switch to a tutor.”

“Excellent.” Mr. Damocles stated, not really paying that much attention to the conversation anyway. “Adrien, Marinette…the rest of this meeting is going to be boring for you. Why don’t you both go pop in and say hello to your classmates, hm?”

Neither of them replied right away, as Adrien waited for her lead, and Marinette debated the pros and cons.

“Alya and Nino will be there.” Sabine said calmly. “And your classmates were all very worried about you. It’ll be okay.”

Marinette wrapped an arm around her waist, squeezing the nausea away.

Adrien stood, holding his hand out to her. She took hold, and let him lead her out of the room.

After the door closed, he answered, “I thought I’d at least get you away from prying eyes. We don’t have to go.”

She gnawed at her lip, before finally deciding, “let’s go. Just for a little bit, to prove that we could.”

“We don’t need to prove anything to anyone. They’re the ones that failed us.”

“You’re right…but, I’m tired of being afraid of everything. I’m tired of being set off by every little thing. I shouldn’t let a bunch of stupid high school kids bother me anymore. We have Alya, Nino, and Chloe on our side.” She clenched her fist. “Do you want to say hi to everyone?”

“I don’t care about them.” He shrugged. “I know Alya and Nino said everyone changed their tune after we were revealed on TV, but they failed us when we needed them the most. They couldn’t save us from Salo, but they could have made the days before a lot less painful.”

Marinette clenched her eyes shut, feeling the sting of his words. It was as if he was a mind reader, since that was exactly how she was feeling. He didn’t even need to ask. “They could have made my time in isolation hurt less. I might have been optimistic. If only they had cared when it mattered. If only they trusted me when I was just Marinette.”��

Adrien curled his fingers into her palm, brushing against the scar there that bore his name. “Do you think…we should say this to them? Would it help?”

“Dr. Zollar said we should let people apologize to us. That it’ll help more than we think.” She sighed. “But I’m afraid that they’ll sweep it under the rug, and pretend like it didn’t happen.”

“Then, we’ll sweep them under the rug. Cut our losses and forget them. We don’t need anyone anyway, right my lady?”

“You and me against the world,” she nodded. She took a shuddering breath. “Okay. I think…I think I can go. You’ll be right beside me?”

“Of course.”

He never let go of her hand as they made their way down the hall. The classroom appeared far too soon for Marinette’s liking, and they stood just outside, waiting. Adrien would let her take the initiative, whenever she was ready.

She had to prepare for every bad scenario, no matter how unlikely. If she had a plan for each one, she couldn’t be surprised. Right?

Finally, she nodded to Adrien and then knocked on the door.

“Come in!” Called Miss Bustier.

Marinette turned the knob, holding her breath, before pushing it open.

The class was silent, save for a few gasps.

“Well hello you two!” Miss Bustier greeted warmly, tears in her eyes. “I didn’t know you’d be coming back!”

“We’re not. We just…came to visit.” Marinette barely whispered, looking only at the teacher.

“That’s wonderful!”

“Are we interrupting anything? Do you want us to come back later?”

“No no, please come in, we’ll take a little break!”

And then she dared to cast her gaze to her old classmates, her old friends.

Every eye was on her, coupled with trembling lips, tense postures, and vainly restrained tears. It looked like everyone wanted to say something, but no one wanted to be first.

She didn’t know what to say either.

The front desk that her and Adrien had shared for one day was empty.

“What brings you both here?” Miss Bustier asked, rescuing them.

“We’re…we’re uh…looking at graduation requirements. We won’t be…coming back to class.”

“That’s understandable. Well, I’m sure any of your classmates would be willing to study with you anyways if you need help.”

“Alya and Nino have been coming around a lot…keeping us in the loop.”

“Oh that’s good! Well, don’t let me take all of your attention, I’m sure someone has a question for you--”

“Yeah, I have a question!” A voice called from the back of the classroom. She stood, crossing her arms. “How the hell are you allowed to be here?” Lila asked.

Marinette flinched at the sound of her voice.

“Lila, I think you better sit down and be quiet.” Miss Bustier warned. “You’re on probation, you should watch yourself.”

“I am! In fact, I have a restraining order on both of them. They are breaking the law by being here.”

“If them being here is a problem, then why don’t you just leave?” Asked Chloe, also standing.

“Because I belong here! I’m a student in this class and I have a right to be here! They, on the other hand, are monsters!”

Marinette clenched her fists as Adrien turned to hide his face in her shoulder.

“Lila, shut up!” Alya shouted, slamming her fist on the desk behind her. “Admit that you dug yourself into a hole and you’re too proud to apologize! I’m not buying this stupid restraining order fib, just like we haven’t bought a single story out of your mouth in the last three months!”

“I’m not lying about the restraining order!” Lila shouted right back, with real venom in her tone. Her sweet veneer was completely gone, and all that remained was the nasty, snarling beast that had been hiding the whole time. “They came to my house! They cut out my tongue! Ask my mother! Ask the hospital!”

“Oh yeah?” Asked Alix, “If they cut out your tongue, you seem to be talking really well without it.”

“Like they would bother with you…” Someone else muttered.

“It was when they were akumatized!”

“Just save your breath.” Chloe huffed. “You can’t tell the truth even if you wanted to.”

“She’s telling the truth this time.” Said Marinette, tone blank and devoid of emotion.

The class turned to look at her, seeing the look on her face. It spoke volumes of pure wrath, and Adrien’s matched.

“We cut out that bitch’s tongue.” She said, her voice calm, deep, and vacant of regret. “The last thing we did, we went to her house. I had a pair of clamps, and Grimalkin had his claws. We ripped it out. She cried the whole time. She cried and screamed…it was the happiest I felt in a long time. I’d do it again if I could. I’d rip out her tongue, I’d crush her throat…”

The body laid on the ground.

“I’d cut her in half…”

Organs spilling on the floor.

“Make her scream…”

Red hair sprawled across the bloody cement.

“Make her writhe…”

The screams of men and women echoing through the halls, their dying breaths capping them off into silence.

“Make her suffer…just as I suffered.”

“Go ahead, kill me. Let your God punish me.”

“He’ll get his turn…he’ll get his turn…burn in hell. Burn in hell!”

Salo’s body laid right in front of her, turning into dust from Grimalkin’s cataclysm. Marinette kicked in vain, trying to get it to disappear.

“Go away! Leave us alone!” She sobbed. “Die! Die! Die!”

By the time Marinette realized she wasn’t in the catacombs anymore, she was sitting on a bench in the school courtyard, head back with a wet washcloth on her face.

“That’s right, just breathe. You’re alright, Marinette.” Alya held her hand, rubbing comforting circles on the back of it.

A pair of strong hands gently massaged her shoulders, and opening her eyes, she found that they belonged to Kim.

“Hey girly. You back with us now?” He asked softly.

Marinette clenched her eyes shut. “Shit.”

“If I had known you were going to visit, I would have asked Miss Bustier to get rid of her for a while. I’m sorry, girl.”

Marinette sat up, glancing around. Alya, Kim, Alix, and Mylene were around her, just silently watching to make sure she was alright.

“Where is he? Where’s Adrien?” Was her next concern.

Alya simply pointed at the upstairs railing, where he was walking with Nino and Chloe. “He started crying when you started talking about...some violent stuff. We thought it best that we separate you until you calmed down.”

“I’m sorry...I don’t know what got into me...”

“Girl, you do not need to apologize. If Lila has a restraining order on you, she should have kept her mouth shut and left the room. She doesn’t deserve any rights.”

“Did I hear Miss Bustier say she was on Parole?”

“For ‘disrupting police activity’. She couldn’t get jail time just for Libel, but the judge slapped her with that, since what she did wasn’t just mean, it was dangerous.”

“So if she got jail time, why is she here at school?”

“She only got a week in jail,” responded Alix with an eye roll. “But her punishment isn’t over. She has to stay with our class until she graduates, and then she’ll be reevaluated based on performance.”

Alya continued, “The judge wanted her in an environment where everyone knew what she did, and no one would want to be her friend. He wants her to focus on school, and not have an audience. This is according to Miss Bustier, of course, who instructed us not to talk to her.”

“Wow. Go Miss Bustier.”

“Yeah.” Said Kim, “Except Lila makes sure we all know how awful we are and how this is as much our fault as hers. ’This never would have happened if you weren’t all so gullible! Marinette and Adrien wouldn’t be tortured if you weren’t so stupid!’”

“Oh my god, she said that?” Marinette sneered. “Our capture had nothing to do with her. Chat and I still would have fought against Edward Savauge and still made…her go out for revenge. Lila knows this. She was in that room. She saw my mouth—“ Marinette pressed her nails into her lip, feeling the sting of the needle.

Mylene grabbed her arm and pulled it away from her. “We’re not listening to Lila. She’s loud and demanding, but we know the facts. She’s just angry she’s not getting attention. Don’t think about her anymore.”

By this time, Adrien, Nino, and Chloe had reached the bottom of the stairs. He ran to her, scooping her up into a hug with a shudder.

“I’m sorry, Kitty. I’m sorry…”

“It’s all okay now,” Nino assured, patting Adrien on the back. “We calmed him down. I think he’s more concerned about you.”

“I’m…I think I’m okay. Just seeing her face and hearing her accusing me…I just snapped.”

“It was pretty badass,” Alix commented. “Yeah, it sucked, but it probably instilled the fear of Jesus in her for a little while. I think she needed that.”

“Oh my god, you didn’t hear the best part!” Said Chloe, “She got jail time! And now she’s on parole—“

“Yeah, we already told her all that.” Said Alix with a smirk.

“Well, did you mention the lawsuits? Gabriel and the city of Paris both sued her and her family for Libel. Her mother refused to pay it for her, so now as soon as Lila’s of age, she’ll be paying the city police department and both of you thousands of dollars. Most likely for the rest of her life!”

“I don’t want her money,” Marinette scoffed. “Especially if I have to interact with her.”

“You won’t.” Chloe assured her. “Gabriel will be taking care of it for you.”

“And you don’t have to accept her money,” suggested Alix. “You could put it in a fund or a grant. Give it to other people who have been slandered against! Or people that what’s-her-face hurt! The possibilities are endless!”

“I don’t know if I have the will to run a charity right now guys…” Marinette shrunk on herself.

“Then let someone else do it.”

“I volunteer!” Shouted Chloe. “After all, I’m the one with all the real contacts. You all can help, of course.”

Tom and Sabine hurried down from the Principal’s office. “There you are! Miss Bustier said you had an episode, Marinette. Are you alright?”

“I’m fine now, Maman. Just…had a run in with an old enemy.”

“Well, Gabriel’s wrapping everything up now. So let’s get you kiddos home, okay?”

“Can we come visit you?” Asked Mylene. “We, as a class, wanted to so many times, but we weren’t sure if you wanted to even see us. Alya, Nino, and Chloe said you’d might not be up to discuss it.”

Marinette breathed slowly, considering the question. She turned to Adrien, asking him silently. He gave a little nod.

“I suppose, that would be okay. Is that okay with you, maman?”

“Of course, baby. I’m always happy when you’re willing to have guests.”

“Awesome!” Said Alya with a little clap. “We’ll come over after school! We won’t stay too long, just long enough to say hi and bye!”

Marinette stood, holding out her hand to Adrien. “Can’t wait.”

—

After they returned home and closed the trap door to her room, Adrien embraced her, squeezing her tightly. “You worried me,” he whispered. “What happened?”

“I…don’t know. I just vividly remembered the night we cut out her tongue…and then I got lost. Salo was there, the last time we saw her. What did I do?”

“Just a lot of screaming. Over and over, you just shouted ‘die’ and ‘burn in hell’. It was…really scary.”

“I’m sorry, Kitty. You were right, we shouldn’t have gone.”

“Well…I don’t know about that. Chloe and Nino seemed to be really proud of us for stopping by. I like it when they say they’re proud of our decisions. Makes the pain worth it.”

“I suppose.”

There was a knock at the trap door before Gabriel opened it. “I’m sorry to interrupt. I just wanted to let you both know you’re all set to start homeschooling whenever you’re ready. Mr. Damocles said even if you don’t finish your credits in time, you can still walk with your class, if you’d like.”

“That’s nice,” Marinette said quietly.

“Are you alright? Your teacher said there was an…incident.”

She turned to look him right in the eye. “Why do we remember being akumatized? No one else ever has. Is it because we had Miraculous for so long?”

Gabriel shook his head. “I’m not completely sure, but I have a hunch. Since I made two akumas at the same time, I split the tether I had on you. That’s why you overpowered my control. Nooroo warned me it would happen, but I thought it would be worth the risk. I didn’t know you’d keep your memories of that, however. I never wanted to add to your trauma.”

“Well. If it wasn’t on purpose, I suppose we can’t be mad at you.”

Gabriel shrugged helplessly. “You can be as mad at me as you want. I’m expecting it.”

Adrien left Marinette’s arms and went over to lay down on the chaise.

“At any rate, thank you for the explanation.”

“Of course. Any answers you want, you deserve.” He swallowed. “Your outfits for the Mayor’s ball are coming around lovely. If it’s alright, let me know when I can bring them over for a fitting. It’s still several weeks away.”

“Thank you, Gabriel. Whenever my mother is free for her fitting should be fine.”

“Alright. I’ll leave you alone now.” He took a step down, partially closing the door. Then at the last second he added, “bye son, I love you.”

—

Only a few hours later, after Marinette and Adrien had changed into more comfortable clothes, there was another knock at the trap door.

“Come in,” said Marinette, as she spread cushions out on the floor.

“Um…” Said Rose from below. “Could you…open the door and then stand back?”

Curious, Marinette did as instructed.

A bunch of balloons floated up into the room, followed by a huge bouquet of flowers, and then a giant stuffed black cat.

Both Marinette and Adrien stared in shock.

“Too much or not enough?” Asked Rose, poking her head in.

“What is all this?” She asked, beckoning her classmates into the room.

“Offerings of apologies and gratitude, of course,” said Max. “Everyone in our class was akumatized at least once, and we all agreed we owed both of you a huge thank you for rescuing us. And of course, we all owe you an apology, Marinette.”

“O-oh…thank you.”

“We sort of thought you’d never want to see us again…but you took the initiative to come see us at school…the least we could do was follow up.” Said Nathaniel. He handed her a handmade card. “I hope you can forgive us for ever doubting you.”

Marinette took the card, admiring the artwork. The outside showed Ladybug and Chat Noir standing proudly over the city. Inside, a cartoon-ish Ladybug, bandaged up, was putting bandaids on an equally cartoony Chat Noir. The caption read, “you’re still Purr-Fect to us!”

It was enough to bring tears to her eyes. “I…I will forgive you. I have a lot of bad feelings, but my therapist is helping me work through them.”

“Do you do hugs?” Asked Kim.

“Gentle. Especially with Adrien, he still has some stitches on his shoulder blades.”

Getting hugged by each and every person who had doubted her did wonders. With each kiss to the cheek and pat on the head, she could feel some of the bitterness fading. It wouldn’t leave fully for a long time, but to see genuine remorse was like a soothing balm on an inflamed wound.

It felt nice to have friends again. Adrien had worked so hard to get them in the first place. Losing respect for everyone he had known had really solidified his decision to stop speaking.

But for them to come around and humble themselves and apologize really took the fight out of him. Maybe cutting them off wasn’t necessary. Maybe there was more to these traitors. Maybe people were capable of change.

Maybe it wasn’t just teenagers that changed either. Maybe adults too. Adults like his father and Salo.

“Oh Adrien,” asked Nino, sitting on the chaise lounge. “Is that the keyboard the Couffaine’s let you borrow?”

Adrien nodded.

“Are you practicing anything right now?”

“Adrien’s been working on something. A song he had in his head in the catacombs. It’s in the works.”

“Cool! Bro, you gotta let me hear!”

Adrien shook his head.

“Sorry Nino, I can’t get it out of him either. He says it’s not ready yet.”

“Aw bummer!” Nino groaned. “But let me hear it the moment it’s done, okay?”

Adrien gave a twitch of a smile.

The girls had already settled on the cushions on the floor, and beckoned the boys to join them.

“Now,” began Alya, as she took a binder out of her backpack, “we have some very important business to discuss.”

Marinette frowned at her. “Hey wait a minute…that’s my—“

“Your dream wedding planner? Yes, I held onto it when we hid all of your personal belongings when you were first captured.” She cracked it open and set it on the floor.

Adrien peered around, trying to get a look.

Marinette covered his eyes. “Alya, put that away! That’s private!”

“Is it not accurate anymore?”

“I mean…I still would like to use it…”

“Great! We’re going to start planning now! And don’t worry Sunshine, this book is tailored to you as the groom.”

Adrien smiled, despite Marinette’s hand over his eyes.

“Must you humiliate me this way?” Marinette asked, blushing.

The class shared giggles at that.

“Don’t even sweat it Marinette,” said Chloe, waving her hand around. “We’re going to make sure you and Adrikins have the bestest, most glamorous wedding since William and Kate!”

Still blushing, “well, I don’t want big and glamorous…I want small and intimate.”

“Small and glamorous it is!”

—

This chapter was fun because I had to recall the classes I took in my senior year of high school. I felt like I was leaving a subject out, but Adrien and Marinette have no reason to be taking Bible classes lol (I went to a pre-seminary Christian School)

A friend who wishes to stay anonymous wrote this for me. She said she was inspired, and in turn, she inspired me! This bonus scene is canon to the story:

A creaking moan gently woke him. His eyes opened—once, then twice. He took a moment to realize that the cloud caressing his body, which still stung with every pulse, was not a cloud, but a down-alternative comforter.

He was in Marinette’s—his bed, in their room, in their house. And there was sound coming from his left—warmth and sound. A whimper. A cry. And, again, a moan—quiet anguish. He rolled over to face the source.

“Marinette,” he whispered. “What’s wrong?”

The dark figure of his wife’s frail form didn’t stir. He asked again. “My lady? Are you awake?”

Still nothing.

He brought his face closer to hers. The light pollution filtering through the skylight served as the only source of illumination. As his eyes adjusted and focused on hers, his stomach churned. Her face was a scrunched display of pitiful agony, and her hands were at her throat. She whimpered once more—her lips pressed together in a hard line, unmoving as her sad cries escaped them. The light reflected from her cheeks in dribbles of tears.

He sat up, electrified. “My lady! My lady!” His voice cracked. He grabbed at the hold she had on her own neck.

Her eyes shot open as she gasped awake. She saw his silhouette and was instantly sitting up to meet his gaze.

“Adrien! Adrien! What’s wrong? Talk to me! It’s okay! I’m here! You’re not alone! You’re not locked in!” She was panting.

“Nothing is wrong. I’m okay. I am worried about you. You’re crying in your sleep.”

She wiped at her face with bony fingers. “Did I wake you? I am so sorry, mon chaton.”

“Don’t apologize. I was just worried. Are you alright?” He was whispering now.

“Yeah, I am okay. Just another nightmare. Happens all the time. Go back to sleep.”

“Nightmares?” It hit him as the words left his lips. She was back there. All the time. The burns at her neck, the blood and the thread at her lips. The sounds and the smells and the cold and the—he choked as he took a deep breath; there was seemingly no air to take in.

“Adrien, breathe,” Marinette pleaded. Everything is okay.

He tried again, more slowly, through his nose. It worked.

“Good kitty,” she praised.

Her sweet praise, like a narcotic through his veins, made his muscles relax and his pain momentarily vanish.

He reached out and brought her closer to him. They embraced in silence. He squinted his eyes tightly so that his tears would not betray his resolve to finally become strong once more.

Like a divine epiphany, the sight of her suffering in slumber awoke something in him that he thought was long dead. It growled past the shadows of his worst repressed instincts. It brought a burning feeling back to his core—his soul.

How could he continue to let himself drown in self pity, when she was so strong a life preserver to him? Was he so preoccupied with his own suffering that he didn’t think to ask if she, too, was drowning?

Why? Why did she swim so strongly when he was watching, only for her head to go under as soon as he turned away? The bravery she displayed for him was full of cracks he couldn’t see.

And she was dragged back to Hell, every night, alone.

Never again. He would get strong. No—he would become even stronger than he was before—his armor, bulletproof and fireproof; his claws, devastatingly destructive; his senses, heightened to an atmospheric level. He would grow powerful enough to protect her and capable enough to rescue her from any evil. His magic would evolve into a force strong enough to infiltrate her dreams and deliver her from suffering. Silent was this promise as he held his life preserver tighter to his chest.

He let out a low, menacing growl. “I’ve come back, My Lady.”

#ml #miraculous ladybug #longest night #ladybug #chat noir #fanfiction #adrinette #adrienette #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #lila rossi is exposed #chat blanc

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coffeecomicsgalore · 3 years

Text

I Want to Spend My Lifetime Loving You

Ao3

Summary: She didn’t know how it began. The stirring feeling that welled within her chest whenever he gazed into her eyes. How her heart skipped a beat when he bowed and kissed the back of her hand so sincerely after a battle. How she had to focus her energy on forming a cohesive sentence whenever he complimented her on the fly.

But she did remember the day it hit her hard, the way she stared into his vibrant green orbs, ones that were hopeful and filled with love when he gazed into her soul, a set of eyes that had so much to give. That feeling came, a rush of happiness filling her very soul and making her feel wanted. It felt amazing for a moment, but she deterred back. She always did. The thought of grasping onto that feeling when identities had to remain a secret scared her, but breaking the wall that she put up a year ago terrified her more than she cared to admit.

Yet, all she wanted was to spend a lifetime loving him.

She didn’t know how it began. The stirring feeling that welled within her chest whenever he gazed into her eyes. How her heart skipped a beat when he bowed and kissed the back of her hand so sincerely after a battle. How she had to focus her energy on forming a cohesive sentence whenever he complimented her on the fly.

But she did finally admit to herself not that long ago that knowing him and loving him fully would be so much easier most days… especially after the disaster of today.

Ladybug sat at the edge of the highest beam of the Eiffel Tower, looking out into the Parisian night sky as she wallowed in her thoughts. Her knees were brought up to her chest for comfort, while her arms folded nicely over her knees. Her chin rested on her arms as her eyes roamed from star to star that peaked through the lightly polluted sky. Her eyes landed on the waning moon that was waiting to be revealed by the thick billowy clouds that had covered most of its glow, and she let out a heavy sigh as she felt held back by the mixture of sadness, fear, and hope that had rolled within her.

She knew when those feelings started. She just tried to forget. She willed herself to forget.

It was nearing the anniversary of when she had to defeat him - blue eyes, white hair, stark white suit that sucked the life out of her sweet, fun kitty. She never wanted to tell Chat Noir about Chat Blanc for fear it coming true, so she didn’t. Yet, something he said lingered in the back of her mind, and it made her shiver every moment she remembered the phrase.

“It was our love that did this to the world...”

She let out an anxious sigh, the threat of a sob threatening to spill from her lips. How often did their paths cross? How often did something happen that led them both together in one way or another? How many times did Bunnyx have to come in and fix a timeline she wasn’t aware of?

Dark Cupid with True Love’s Kiss™ breaking the spell. Glaciator believing they were in love enough to defeat him. Oblivio and that wholesome kiss that showcased how in love they were even when their memories were wiped clean. And of course Chat Blanc indicating that he loved her in and out of the mask and causing the destruction of the world.

She just wished she knew why it happened.

She let out another sigh as her eyes left the moon and wandered to the streets below. A flash of the day flitted across her eyes. She swallowed the sob, but it didn’t stop the silent tears as they began to fall the moment the memories plagued her mind.

Marinette was finally going to confess. She was finally going to tell Adrien how she felt, and it would be the pinnacle of whether she would finally be with him or move on. She wanted a chance to move on, to maybe finally give in to her partner’s interest in her, yet she knew how painful it would be to give Adrien up completely.

But when she remembered the look on his face when she asked him about the cute, crooked smile he had unconsciously expressed... she laughed bitterly to herself at the memory. She took that look and hoped that giving him an off handed compliment would give her the confidence to finally tell him, but when he started to talk about this girl he likes - in a detail she had never heard him express even after the subtle confession after the wax museum - her world came crashing down around her, and it took everything in her to keep on smiling before excusing herself to the bathroom to cry.

She knew it was futile. Insanity, really. Trying to confess and hoping for the hopeful result, yet, everytime she did confess, the world stopped her like it was the stupidest thing to do.

All she wanted was to spend her lifetime loving him. Was that so much to ask?

She buried her face into her arms as she considered her options. She didn’t hear the silent footsteps of her partner joining her on the platform, and when she did, she silently hoped that he wouldn’t question her disheveled state.

Chat sat beside her, keeping a small gap between them and focused his attention to the night sky. He could feel her sadness, could see her body trembling in the dark. He wanted to say something, anything to help her feel better, but he knew it was best to wait and give her the space to either talk it out or bury it within her.

Hesitantly, he placed a hand on her shoulder, rubbing soothing circles with his thumb as a calming gesture. Ladybug brought her face out from hiding, resting her chin back on her arms.

“Hi, Chaton.” She responded, quietly.

“Hey, bug.” He echoed. “Pretty night.”

She hummed, not wanting to touch how awful she felt, but let out a shuddering breath to ease the tension building in her heart. They fell into silence for a few heartbeats, not wanting to leave, but enjoying the comfort of companionship.

“When do you know it’s time to give up?” Ladybug stated, dejectedly. Chat turned, slightly alarmed, and Ladybug responded to his silent thoughts. “No. Not about being a superhero. Sometimes that’s the only thing keeping me going these days.” Chat looked back towards the sky, giving her his undivided attention without staring at her. “What I mean is, when do you know it’s time to move on from loving someone?”

“Did something happen?” It was all he could ask.

“No- Yes.” She decided to admit. “I tried to confess today. I decided that I needed to tell him so I could move on, or at least try to. He said he liked someone else.”

“Oh.”

“I knew he was never going to see me as more than a friend. But I was just… hopeful for one second.”

“I understand.” Chat commiserated. “I loved you for a long time. Remember?”

Loved? The word haunted her.

“I still do. But I won’t lie and say I haven’t started having feelings for another girl. It was… unexpected. But I understand why.” Ladybug eyed her partner before looking back down to the street below. She could feel her heart shattering once again. “I want to love her. But loving you, and trying to let go of you, has been so much harder than I ever imagined.”

She sadly smiled, unsure if it was right to explain her feelings when she herself felt the same turmoil. Would it be better? Would he drop everything if given the chance?

Chat broke the slight silence with a whisper. “And if given the chance, I would spend my lifetime loving you.”

Ladybug pursed her lips as he repeated the words she had said to herself earlier. Spending a lifetime loving you. Could she allow herself to say it to him?

“It seems like a heavy promise.” She said instead.

“Yeah. But it’s a promise that I had made myself and it seems like I’ll never let go of it no matter how much I try.”

Ladybug contemplated the words for a few minutes. Chat Noir made his way into her heart. Without his trust, without his comfort, she wouldn’t be who she was today. It was a blossoming love that was slow and wanted, and she couldn’t deny that all those feelings bundled up together outweighed the potential catastrophic disaster of the world like in that timeline.

Ladybug let out a bitter laugh. She hated the secrets between them. Hated how she is the guardian and yet she didn’t know who he was. Then the idea struck her. Maybe it was a secret that caused the disaster. Maybe not knowing each other was what caused the destruction. Or hiding the fact that they did love each other caused some sort of inner turmoil enough to akumatize him.

Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing to reveal themselves once and for all. And maybe, just maybe, she could finally allow herself to give in to the love building within her, to love Chat completely and freely.

“You would really spend a lifetime loving me? Even knowing who I was underneath the mask?” She hesitantly asked, never once looking at him for fear of the answer.

Chat turned to her with confusion in his eyes. “Of course. I love you no matter who you are.”

She looked at him, a quick fear as blue eyes and white flashed before her eyes before fading to green eyes and black leather. She mentally scolded herself that he was fine and not insane.

“I won’t lie,” she began, her eyes closed as she sorted her thoughts, “I have this inkling, a little flame that’s been building inside of me and I don’t know how much longer I can go without it bursting into a blazing flame of destruction. But I also don’t know how I can continue being the guardian and not know you are.

“I’m... scared. I’m scared to know who you are. I’m scared to fall further into love with you because I loved that boy so… so damn much and for so many years only for him to never love me back. I’m afraid to give out my whole heart again just to have it destroyed by a single word.”

The tears flowed down her face and Chat’s heart shattered at the sight.

“Then let me show you. Let me give you the happiness that you deserve.” Chat turned to her, wrapping his fingers around her palm and bringing his free hand to her cheek and wiping the tears from her mask. “But I’ll only show you if you let me.”

Ladybug could feel the truth spilling from his lips and hear the sincerity in his tone. She closed her eyes, allowing her this one chance to feel free, to feel in control of something, to stop feeling the fear that threatened to swallow her whole. When she opened her eyes and noticed the small smile that curled his lips, she knew what she needed to do.

“Okay.”

“Okay?” He repeated, a little hopeful.

“Okay.” She smiled, standing up.

He followed her lead, holding onto her palms as they stood before each other in the dimly lit platform. They stood for a moment, looking at each other in silence, while their hearts hammered in their chests.

With one nervous breath, Ladybug closed her eyes and called off her transformation. Chat did the same.

“Chat?” Marinette called out, biting her lip.

“Bug?”

“Ready?”

“On the count of three.”

“One… two… three.”

The moment they both opened their eyes, the tears began. Marinette placed a hand over her mouth, holding in the sob that threatened to come out. She wanted to say something, anything to break the silence between them. She could see the smile on Adrien’s face, his own tears falling down his cheeks.

“A- Adrien?” She whispered out, afraid she was seeing a lie. “I- I fell in l-love with you… twice?” Her resolve was breaking but the brimming confidence finished her sentence, ending the relentless stutter.

“My lady?” Adrien cried out, before watching her nod in assurance. His excitement took over, picking her up and spinning her around in his arms as he continued to cry. He dropped her back down and nuzzled his face into her neck, his body wracking in happy sobs as his adrenaline calmed down to a buzz. “I can’t believe it’s you.” He managed to mumble out, letting out a happy sigh when he finally emerged from his position. “It’s always been you.”

“Are you okay that it’s me?” She had the courage to say, biting her lower lip as she waited for his anwer. It struck her how he had spoken of another girl earlier, and the fear started to eat at her.

He smiled and placed his palm on her cheek. “You were the other girl, Marinette. I was thinking about you earlier and tried to subtly tell you.”

Marinette looked to the sky for a moment before shaking her head in disbelief. “I was going to confess to you. You started talking about another girl and I thought I needed to give you up because it was fruitless and thought you were never going to love me back and it broke my heart so I left and cried in the bathroom and continued to cry-”

Whatever Marinette wanted to say next dissolved as his lips met hers. She relaxed to his touch, barely registering the slight movement of his thumb rubbing smooth circles against her cheek.

The kiss was slow but full of passion. It was wanted and desired, the barriers breaking as their love oozed through their pressed lips. Seconds turned to minutes, soft presses turned into little chases, and fingers slowly intertwined with the soft tresses at the nape of their necks. Little pecks ended the lingering kisses, but it was only because they needed to breathe in between.

Adrien was the first to pull away, resting his forehead against hers, as they relished in the high of their confession. Their cheeks were flushed and delirious smiles had permanently etched onto their skin.

Adrien sighed and pressed one kiss onto her forehead before nuzzling his nose against hers.

“I meant it when I said I want to spend my lifetime loving you.”

Marinette looked up into his gaze and felt the love for him overflow from her heart.

Her smile brightened as she cupped his cheek, running her fingers along his cheekbone. “And I promise you that I’ll spend my entire life loving you, too.”

#LadyNoir #adrienette #identity reveal #love confessions #miraculous ladybug fanfiction

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ladylynse · 4 years

Note

Thought of this yesterday, thought it might be a fun prompt for you: ML AU where the Kwami can "possess" the hero if the hero gets knocked out during battle, as an extra measure to keep the holder safe. Think of the shenanigans the different combos get into like that--also, imagine the public's perspective on how differently they might act if they act different at all (or if some kind of physical change happens, like hair or eye/sclera color). How do the Kwami do/work together as heroes?

Ooh, that is a fun AU, Anon! The colour change in the eyes would be a great visual for that—and much creepier if it’s the whites that change—and that’s not something that would be noticed from a distance, which it would mean it would take longer for someone like Alya to pick up on it. On the other hand, though, not having any sort of visual indicator is worse for the first time this happens, because they probably don’t know it’s coming, or what it is once it starts. And I like that idea more for fics—more initial confusion and terror because of not understanding what’s happening and not being able to immediately write it off as ‘maybe this is okay’ (since that is what happens when Adrien transforms), more questioning, more fear—though in the actual cartoon, I’d prefer the visual.

Now, if it’s something the kwami have always been able to do, they’d be very good at working with each other and would–within the physical capabilities of their Miraculous Holder–have a fighting style that is probably not like the style of whoever is currently holding their Miraculous. They would have a better idea of how to use their magic–it is theirs, after all–and probably wouldn’t face the same time limitation, given that their ‘possession’ would no doubt equal an increase in magical power that would mitigate any negative effects that might normally be associated with using their powers again too soon without properly growing into them.

That being said, there would undoubtedly be a physical toll on the body that the Miraculous Holder doesn’t typically bear. Like the exhaustion the kwami normally feel, except magnified. They’re sore, they’re tired, they’re hungry, and if they don’t just sleep the next day away, they don’t really have the strength to get out of bed. Their parents worry that they’re sick, but though they aren’t running a temperature, it must be something like that. Even though they still have an appetite. A particularly ravenous appetite. But no sooner do they eat than they can barely keep their eyes open. It’s…not ideal. The first time it happens to Adrien, he can’t keep Nathalie from calling the doctor. He can’t come up with an explanation she believes, an excuse that is good enough to overlook the downturn in his health.

But the second time Adrien is stricken with this mysterious illness, it comes with a cough that lingers well past the time he’s back on his feet.

The third time, it hangs around even longer, and she starts watching. Not saying anything to Gabriel–it’s coincidental, and she might very well be wrong, so she’d rather observe and build a stronger case first. But it’s a very familiar cough that rattles in Adrien’s lungs, and she knows very well what it’s like to hide perpetual exhaustion behind a carefully cultivated mask.

The first time one of the kwami are forced to take over, of course, Marinette and Adrien don’t expect it. Marinette remembers fighting, but not the details of it, not really anything after the latest akuma victim brought the roof down on them in the darkness. When she wakes up, blocks away, she assumes Chat Noir got her out of there. She doesn’t understand why he keeps asking if she’s okay, if it’s really her; the villain they’re fighting isn’t a shapeshifter. She tries to struggle to her feet, but it’s harder than she expects, and she doesn’t fight when Chat Noir tells her to keep lying down. That he’ll take care of her. That she doesn’t need to worry.

She assumes that the villain just got away from them in the distraction, but he says it’s over. The akuma is cleansed. They’ve won.

But she can’t remember any of that, and she convinces him to help her into a sitting position. Looking out at the horizon, she sees the very building that came down on them, as whole as it had been before the fight. It…scares her. Shouldn’t she remember using the Miraculous Ladybug spell? Or cleansing the akuma? After she lost her Lucky Charm….

“Tikki’s a good fighter,” Chat Noir tells her quietly. Marinette tries to figure out what that means, when he might have even seen Tikki since the time they’d been forced to switch Miraculous, and all she can come up with is Tikki’s assurances that she’d always do everything she could to protect her. She’s still transformed, after all; Chat Noir shouldn’t have had any opportunity to talk to Tikki now, let alone fight alongside her.

And then Chat Noir adds that it only took Tikki a few moments to get the hang of her body. That after a few trips and swings and misses, it was as if he were working alongside his lady like usual. Except that she was suddenly taking risks she wouldn’t usually take, proposing ideas at lightning speed and even offering him advice on how to use his staff more effectively for their current situation.

He also says that Tikki ignored his questions, answering with a terse ‘later, once this is over and we’re safe’ and a more than a few grumblings about Plagg. Apparently, she’d apologized afterwards, insisted that her priority was keeping Paris and her Miraculous Holder safe, and explained about this, something he’d never heard of–though he did admit that might be because he hadn’t listened to everything Plagg tried to tell him.

He doesn’t have to tell Marinette how worried he must have been, to see her go down and not get back up. He doesn’t have to tell her how quickly terror had replaced relief when she came to and began to fight again. He doesn’t have to tell her how uncomfortable he still felt about fighting alongside someone who very clearly wasn’t his lady, despite fighting with Ladybug’s body. She can hear it all in his voice, see it all on his face.

She doesn’t have the strength to get home, but she doesn’t dare ask Chat Noir for help. She pretends she is better than she is and collapses when he is gone, when his use of Cataclysm forces him to leave. She remembers thinking that she doesn’t know what to do, that she isn’t sure if she has the strength to crawl to somewhere she might be found. She remembers crying, talking to Tikki even though she’s still transformed, convinced that the moment the strengthening magic of the kwami disappears, she’ll lose consciousness.

She doesn’t know when she blacks out; she only knows that she wakes up in her own bed as Marinette, staring into the worried faces of her parents.

Marinette doesn’t see the Ladyblog until later. Not like Adrien, who sees the update that night and the slew of speculation that follows. Alya noticed that Ladybug was fighting differently than usual. She never saw Tikki’s initial bout of clumsiness; Tikki was too quick to adjust to the feel of Marinette’s body, and Alya was too far out of that particular destruction zone—thankfully—to catch any of that. She wasn’t close enough to see much more than how Ladybug handled the situation, either.

She wasn’t close enough to tell the difference.

She just knew there was one.

There was discussion about whether or not this was another power. There were theories about why Ladybug was able to produce multiple Lucky Charms, why she didn’t need to worry about her usual five minute time limit. Adrien knew perfectly well Chat Noir had looked much like a bumbling fool alongside Tikki, whose thousands of years of experience fighting showed in the way she could read a situation and act or react accordingly, but there were more than a few comments praising him, too, for how well he adjusted to this change in his partner’s rhythm.

Alya had been too far away to see the panic in his face, too.

Thankfully.

Adrien has a long, whispered conversation with Plagg that night. Plagg insists that he told Adrien about this ages ago, or tried to. It’s meant to keep them safe. They know the toll it takes on the human body, and that’s why they don’t do it unless absolutely necessary. It’s meant to keep them safe, all of them safe—Miraculous Holders and Kwami alike. It’s rare that more than one kwami has to take action like this in one fight, but it’s happened. He’s fought alongside Tikki before. He’s had to. That’s better than the alternative.

Kwami magic can protect them from a lot, but it cannot protect them from everything. When they’re pushed past their limit or otherwise can’t hold on to consciousness during a fight, when their lives and their secrets hang in the balance– That’s when the kwami can choose to act. It’s a last resort. If expressly forbidden, they won’t be able to do it. If the act will endanger their Miraculous Holder, they won’t be able to do it. Plagg isn’t very good about explaining the rules. Adrien just learns that it’s complicated, to hope that Plagg never has to do it, and to be thankful that he can. It’ll be hard on him—the kwami doesn’t sugarcoat that—but it’ll mean he’ll be able to fight another day. It means he’ll survive.

It’s because of that conversation, really, that Adrien recognizes it when it happens to him.

The aftermath marks one of the few times Adrien has ever accepted Plagg’s offer to share some of his precious camembert.

He doesn’t remember the destruction Plagg left in his wake when he acted as Chat Noir, but the footage and pictures on the Ladyblog were extensive.

The speculation started up again, too, the conversation about what this was, if it was them, or maybe even that it meant one of them from the future, albeit temporarily, a jump of consciousness or influx of futuristic knowledge, perhaps the activation of another Miraculous that worked in more subtle ways—

Ladybug hadn’t yet handed out Bunnyx’s Miraculous—not to their Bunnyx, anyway—but they’d run into enough akuma with some sort of power of time travel that everyone knew perfectly well it was a possibility.

Of course, looking over the footage on the Ladyblog doesn’t help him decipher Ladybug’s comments about Plagg one bit. Adrien still isn’t sure what he said to her. How much he told her. How much he hinted. And Plagg isn’t giving anything up, whether bribed with cheese or threatened by having it withheld. He’s always told Adrien that secrecy is important for their own protection, but he…hasn’t practiced that at every opportunity. And he’s encouraged Adrien to do quite the opposite. Adrien knows the risks, knows he can’t let it get out that he’s Chat Noir—not just because of Hawk Moth, but because of his father—and he doesn’t want to give up his partnership with Plagg, but….

But it doesn’t explain why Plagg makes the comments he does.

Or why Tikki, the next time he’s forced to fight alongside her, makes the pointed retorts she does when he dares bring up the subject.

It’s all very confusing.

Ladybug doesn’t want to examine it. More to the point, she doesn’t want to risk examining it. And he trusts her.

But he also sees the sidelong glances she sometimes gives him when she thinks he’s not looking, and he wishes someone would answer his questions.

At least coming up with something to tell Nathalie about his sudden illness when he’d been perfectly fine when the Gorilla had dropped him off at fencing practice an hour ago is something of a distraction.

-|-

(In case people aren’t aware, I am collecting musings like these in my fic ideas post. This post also includes a link to further musings on dual possession, as well as these anon additions…and the anon’s nickname for Plagg!Chat Noir and now their awesome edits (and more and more edits)!)

#miraculous ladybug #ml au #au #tikki #plagg #adrien agreste #marinette dupain-cheng #fic ideas #musings #asks #ladylynse #I had a lot of fun Anon thank you #have some implications in return #Anonymous #kwami possession au

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waltzofthewifi · 4 years

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Kota Chapter 8: Mayhem

Beginning | Previous| ToC | Next

"I'm just saying," Alix continued. "A time traveler would be great addition to the story!"

Nathaniel shook his head. "No one has a clear shot of Bunnyx. It would be hard to draw them accurately."

"Then use your imagination," Alix countered. "Creative license, right?"

Nathaniel turned to Marc for support, but he just shrugged.

"It's up to you," Marc said. He checked the time on his phone. "I've got to get to class. See you later."

"See you," Alix replied.

Lacy, Alix, and Nathaniel walked into their class, which was about half full. Marinette and Nino were sitting in their seats, whispering something between them. Chloe and Sabrina were ogling over something on Chloe's phone, and Ivan was in the back talking to Rose and Juleka.

Nathaniel headed to his seat in the back and Lacy and Alix took their seat behind Chloe. Both girls tried to peak at what she was watching on her phone, but Chloe moved her body so they couldn't see.

"Are you feeling better?" Marinette asked, pulling Lacy away from her nosiness.

"Yeah, I just needed to calm down," Lacy replied, giving Marinette a bright smile. "How about you?"

"I'm doing a little better," Marinette said. "Kagami still stayed the night, so that was fun."

She returned back to her seat, and continued talking to Nino.

Adrien walked in, talking to Mylene about something. He waved hi to Nino, but after a moments hesitation, sat down next to Marinette.

Marinette yelped in surprise and stuttered out a greeting.

Lacy gave Alix a conspiratorial grin, and Alix rolled her eyes, but by the quirk in the corner of her lips, she was happy with Adrien's decision too.

Ivan and Mylene took their seats, and after greeting each other, Ivan started talking with Adrien and Marinette. Nino tuned out of the conversation and put his headphones on.

Chloe muttered something under her breath.

"What do you think that's all about?" Lacy asked Alix.

Alix shrugged. "Maybe he finally got over his obliviousness."

"Who, Adrien?" Chloe asked. "He's just being kind. Everyone knows Dupain-Cheng and her friend got into a fight last night. Adrien must realize Marinette doesn't want to sit next to Cesaire."

Alix and Lacy exchanged dubious looks.

"That sounds way too... socially aware for Adrien," Lacy said.

Chloe hesitated. "Okay, yeah, fine. Maybe he's not that clued in. But he's just being nice - there's nothing between the two."

Lacy glanced over at the couple in question, and yeah, Adrien was definitely giving Marinette puppy dog eyes.

Kim and Max arrived, talking animatedly with each other. They sat down behind the girls.

"Okay, so I need your opinion about something," Kim said. "Would Squirrel Girl be able to defeat Thanos?"

Chloe rolled her eyes and turned back to her phone.

"Uh, who?" Lacy asked.

"Thanos," Kim repeated. "You know, the titan who-"

"I know who Thanos is," Lacy interrupted. "But who's Squirrel Girl?"

Kim opened his mouth to answer, but the class fell dead silent.

Lacy turned to see Alya and Lila had walked in.

Alya and Marinette stared at each other for a moment.

Alya broke the silence first. "Hey girl. Sorry about last night."

"You have nothing to apologize for-" Lila started.

Alya held up her hand, silencing Lila. "I was thinking about last night and while I still think you were being unfair to Lila-"

"Unfair?" Marinette echoed.

"It was your room and you have every right to keep others out." Alya sighed. "I'm sorry girl."

Marinette hesitated. "I appreciate it, Alya. I wish you could see that I'm not being unfair to Lila, but I guess we can just agree to disagree."

"I guess."

There was still tension in the air, but when Alya sat down next to Nino, she turned to give Marinette a smile. Marinette smiled back before returning to her conversation.

"That was tense," Lacy commented.

"This is why I don't do drama," Alix replied. "And yes, Squirrel Girl could totally beat Thanos."

Alya was trying, Marinette could tell.

Her apology earlier was genuine, and by lunch, Marinette was inclined to forgive her.

She never had a chance to talk with her, though, because an akuma attacked just as they were leaving for lunch.

Marinette excused herself to the bathroom, but she casted a forlorn look to the cafeteria.

"Couldn't the akuma wait until after I ate?" She said wistfully.

"Don't worry!" Tikki chimed in. "You have a full hour to eat! I'm sure the akuma attack won't last that long!"

"You're right," Marinette agreed.

She slipped into the bathroom, checking over her shoulder for anyone following her. She caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of her eye.

Marinette frowned, a flutter of suspicion in her stomach.

Instead of transforming right away, Marinette took her time using the bathroom and washing her hands. The uneasy feeling hadn't gone away, and as two more students entered the bathroom, Marinette resigned herself to finding another hiding spot.

She exited the bathroom, catching once again a glimmer of movement, like someone stalking her.

Great. Only Lila or Chloe stalked her, and those were the last two people Marinette needed seeing her transform. She debated ignoring the stalker, and finding a more secure place to transform.

No. Better face this problem head on.

"You're not as good of a stalker as you think," Marinette called. She waited a beat, and then another.

"Okay, fine, you got me." Lila walked out, hands in the air and a grin on her face. "What are you going to do about it?"

"Is there a reason you're following me or are you just be annoying?" Marinette asked.

"Just seeing where you're about to run off to," Lila replied. "Alya gets so worried when you disappear, you know? A good friend would let her friends know where she was heading, after all."

Marinette scowled. "And a good stalker doesn't get caught."

Lila scowled. "Not like it matters. No one will believe you."

"Whatever you're planning, Alya will never believe," Marinette argued.

"How can you say that, after all she's fallen for already?" Lila taunted. "She trusts me, Marinette, more than she does you, anyway."

Marinette growled.

Lila flipped her hair and left.

"Well that was inconvenient," Marinette finally said. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to brush off the encounter.

"If you text Alya, you'll be able to warn her about you disappearing," Tikki suggested. "And she does trust you, Marinette."

"Good idea," Marinette agreed. She quickly texted Alya an excuse - she had a commission she just remembered, and had to rush home to use her lunch hour to work on it - before double checking the room for any more lurkers.

"Tikki, spots on!"

Ladybug landed on the rooftop, watching as Lila, Nino, and Alya sat down to enjoy their lunch outside. She lingered a moment on the roof, watching them talk. Chat Noir had already messaged her, saying they needed back up, and Rena Rouge had been her immediate thought. But as Alya and Lila talked, Ladybug began to doubt her decision.

When Alya has apologized earlier, she had done it even against what Lila was saying. Alya wasn't completely caught up in Lila's lies, no matter what Lila said. In fact, that's probably what made Lila follow Marinette - the apology had made Lila nervous.

But Lila was so openly antagonistic to Ladybug, going anywhere near her - especially with the fox miraculous - was a risk.

Ladybug would have to find other allies.

She was disappointed to see Kim and Max had left for their lunch period - she had no idea where they were. She did know where Luka was - and Kagami, even if that was a risk.

But Kagami was a friend, someone Ladybug trusted, and also someone Ladybug could find.

Ladybug landed a little ways from Fu's apartment before detransforming.

She knocked on his door, and he immediately let her in.

"Chat Noir said this villain has ability to create mayhem and illusions," Marinette said, sitting down opposite of the Fu. "He believes we'll need back up."

Fu opened the box, giving his using spiel about trustworthy allies. Marinette grabbed the snake Miraculous and reached for the dragon.

"I thought you said Ryuko's identity was compromised?" Fu questioned.

"It is, but I don't have time to find anyone else," Marinette explained. She grabbed the second miraculous. "Besides, I trust Kagami."

Thankfully, Luka and Kagami were where they were supposed to be, and it wasn't long before the three of them were heading towards the fight.

They landed on a rooftop next to the battle, and Chat Noir joined them a second later.

"Viperion, Ryuko," he greeted. "It's great to see you again."

"Likewise," Viperion said.

Ryuko didn't bother with a greeting, focusing in on the villain instead.

Ladybug turned her attention to the villain has well. He was dressed in horribly garish colors, with a large orange top hat and a pink cane. He pointed his cane at various objects, either causing cars to explode violently, or causing cartoonish illusions to pop up around the street.

"What do we know?" Ladybug asked.

"He calls himself Mayhem," Chat Noir reported. "Like I said, he can create small illusions - nothing compared to our Rena Rouge, of course - and can magically cause things to explode into colorful powder. And he has a thing with firecrackers, too."

"Any weaknesses?" Ladybug asked.

"None that I know," Chat Noir answered. "And I don't have any idea where the akuma is. The canes look like they're disposable. He threw one at me and created another out of thin air."

Ladybug squinted at Mayhem. The bright, nonsensical patterns on the clothes made it hard to tell where one piece ended and another started - any kind of trinket would be impossible to spot.

"The hat would be the obvious choice," Ryuko said.

"The hat seems too obvious," Ladybug answered. "But it's the only thing I can make out."

"What's the plan?" Chat Noir asked.

Ladybug frowned in thought, the inklings of a plan already forming.

"Okay, here's what we're going to do-"

Chloe huffed. "I can't believe that Ladybug isn't letting me help her with this latest akuma."

Nearly everyone was back in the classroom, except for Marinette, Adrien, and Miss Bustier. Without adult supervision to keep them on track, they were all talking animatedly about the current akuma.

Lacy scowled. "Why? Why would you want to go anywhere near that fashion disaster?"

Lacy's eyes were closed, but she could still feel Alix's confused and slightly judgmental look.

"It hurts my eyes," Lacy protested. "It's like Hawkmoth loses a little more fashion sense every time he akumatizes someone."

"Loses?" Chloe scoffed. "Did you see the Bubbler?"

"Who?" Lacy questioned, finally lifting her head up from her hands.

"Lahiffe," Chloe commented, which would have been more helpful if she remembered the last names of her classmates better.

"Nino," Alix translated. "He was akumatized because he thought Adrien's dad was being unfair to him-"

"Which he was," Chloe confirmed.

"Which he was," Alix agreed. "But yeah, his outfit was ugly."

Lacy debated asking for pictures, but after Mayhem, decided against it.

"Alright everyone," Miss Bustier said as she walked in the room. "I know we're all excited about the new akuma, but it's a safe distance away, so let's focus on our schoolwork."

Alya raised her hand. "Marinette and Adrien aren't back from lunch yet."

"Yes, well Adrien went home from lunch so we can assume he's waiting until it's safer," Miss Bustier said. "Same with Marinette."

"I hope she's okay," Lila commented. "I heard she was going that direction, something about an event this afternoon-"

"Don't worry girl," Alya replied. "She's just home working on a last minute commission. I'll text her, remind her that lunch is over and to keep safe from the akuma."

"Good idea," Miss Bustier said. "Nino, will you text Adrien?"

"Sure, Miss Bustier."

"Alright, now on to our lesson for today-"

"The akuma has been defeated," Alya reported. "Ryuko apparently-"

"Alya," Miss Bustier scolded.

"Sorry."

Alix pulled out her phone, shifting so that Lacy could see as well. She pulled up a video of the fight, and they watched the replay of the fight show Ryuko doing an insane stunt to help trap the akuma.

"She's super cool," Alix whispered to Lacy.

Lacy nodded eagerly in agreement.

Miss Bustier sighed loudly, alerting the two girls that they were caught.

"Perhaps it would be beneficial if we discussed the akuma quickly, so we could focus better?" Bustier suggested.

"I think that's a great idea!" Alya agreed. "Did you all see that stunt Ryuko pulled?"

"Yes!" Alix agreed. "I wish I could do something like that!"

"What stunt?" Kim asked. Alix showed him the video, and Kim's eyes widened in amazement.

"She's so cool!" Kim said.

"She must have athletic training," Max added.

"Even with a Miraculous, that had to be hard," Chloe admitted. "As the only one in the room who's used an miraculous, I would know."

"Did she just compliment someone?" Alix whispered to Lacy.

"Even Chloe can't insult a move like that," Lacy replied.

"She's a gymnast," Lila contributed. "Ladybug told me herself."

"That looks more like swordfighting technique," Lacy commented.

"Yeah it looks like some of the training Adrien does," Nino added. "Except ramped to like, a thousand. That's one cool dude!"

"Well, she picked up fencing when Ladybug gave her her miraculous," Lila continued.

Alix replayed the video on her phone again.

"That's just so cool," Lacy commented. "I wish I could do something like that."

"Me too!" Alix added.

"You know, I was the one who suggested using Ryuko to Ladybug," Lila lied.

"Really?" Alya perked up. "What about the other heroes, like Rena Rouge?"

"Babe..." Nino said.

"Oh, no, Ladybug choose most of the others on her own," Lila said. "But when she needed help with Ikari Gozen, she had run out of ideas, because she already trusted everyone else she knew with miraculous - except for me, but I couldn't at the time, because of a bad knee injury. And Ladybug liked her so much, she let Ryuko keep the miraculous right then!"

"Wait, Ryuko permanently has her miraculous?" Alya inquired.

"She's a good choice," Alix admitted. "I mean, look at her."

"Ladybug says she's the best hero she's worked with, besides Chat Noir," Lila added.

"Ugh, I bet Adrien's a big Ryuko fan now," Chloe muttered.

"I think everyone is," Lacy replied.

Chloe pouted. "No, you don't get it. He goes crazy over tough girls like that - when Ladybug first premiered, he wouldn't shut up about her!"

"Neither would you," Alix pointed out. "Or Alya."

"Still," Chloe complained.

"Don't worry Chloe!" Sabrina piped up. "Adrien's still a big Queen Bee fan!"

Adrien, with his great sense of timing, chose then to burst into class, shutting Chloe up.

"Sorry I'm late," Adrien muttered.

"I understand," Miss Bustier said. "Your father is strict about akumas, isn't he?"

Adrien sighed in relief. "Yeah, he is."

"Hey, Adrien, what do you think about that stunt Ryuko pulled?" Alix called.

Adrien smiled. "I thought it was really cool! She must be a serious athlete outside of the suit!"

It wasn't his Marinette eyes, but Lacy could tell he did have a thing for Ryuko. Chloe knows him well.

Chloe huffed in annoyance, turning back to her school work.

Marinette arrived a few minutes later, blustering about getting caught up in a project and not seeing Alya's text.

"Alright, can we begin our lesson now?”

Marinette decided to drop by Alya's place. At the last second, she decided it was better for Ladybug to drop by.

Ladybug tapped on Alya's window, and Alya let her in.

"Is it true?" Alya asked. "That you let Ryuko keep her miraculous?"

"What?" Ladybug asked. "Who told you - never mind, I think I know who - but why would you believe that? Ryuko was benched until today, and only because you were occupied."

Alya looked taken aback. "Oh. Oh, I'm sorry - you can always interrupt what I'm doing, Ladybug." She sat down on her desk chair, and Ladybug sat down on the edge of her bed.

"It's not that." Ladybug sighed. She did not want to get into this with Alya right now. "It's the people you - just, I need you to be better."

"Be better? How?" Alya leaned forward in her chair.

Ladybug hesitated. "For one, you need to be more careful with what you post on the Ladyblog."

"Careful with what?"

"For one, check your sources."

Alya frowned. "But I do! To the best I can, at least - after all, there's so little we know about the miraculous and you and it's not like there's much I can double check. Thankfully, Lila-"

"Then don't post what you can't prove," Ladybug said.

"Is this about the whole guardian order thing?" Alya questioned. "I didn't know how to tell you otherwise-"

"No, I appreciate the thought, though I do wish you wouldn't post theories like that where Hawkmoth could find them. You probably know more than he does-"

"Than what's this about?" Alya asked, her voice starting to sound irritated.

"Your interviews, Alya," Ladybug snapped. "They're not all true."

"Well, how am I supposed to know?" Alya questioned. "I can't do a lie-detector test on all my sources. Everything right now is by word of mouth - you're the only one who can really say what happens at akuma attacks! If something's false, just tell me!"

"I can't!" Ladybug said. "I need you to be able to-"

"To what? Magically be able to read minds?"

"You're getting a little defensive right now-"

"You're attacking me for things that are beyond my control!" Alya took a shaky breath. "I want to help you Ladybug, but it feels like you're expecting things from me that I can't do!"

"I'm expecting thing from you because I trust you!" Ladybug said. "But you need to prove that I made the right choice."

"I thought I did." Alya's voice was a small whisper.

"Listen, I'm explaining things badly," Ladybug said. "I don't think this is going to work out."

"What isn't going to work out?" Alya asked. "You're not taking me off the team, are you?"

"No," Ladybug said. "But you're on probation."

"For what?"

"I'll explain when you're ready," Ladybug decided.

"And now you're talking to me like a child!"

Ladybug winced. That was how her statement came out.

"Listen, I've had a long day. I'll see you later, okay?"

"Fine."

Ladybug didn't look back as she swung away.

Alya sunk into her chair, barely breathing. Probation?

And for what?

Ladybug hadn't been saying anything clearly - except that about the blog, but what was Alya supposed to do? She did try to check her sources, but that was near impossible sometimes.

Whatever happened, Ladybug was mad at her, possibly considering taking her off the team.

She didn't hear her mom call out to her.

Alya choked out a sob.

She didn't see the butterfly.

"Lady WiFi," Hawkmoth's voice echoed in her head. "Your idol expects more of you than you can give. But with my powers, I can give the ability to see the truth behind any article - and your blog will be the best in Paris, and all will trust you again. All I need is-"

"No."

It was more of a sob than a word, but Alya forced it out.

"No, Hawkmoth. I refuse. Either I show her I'm worthy of her trust, or I don't, but that's on me. I won't do this again."

As quickly as it happened, it went away. Like a rush of energy falling away.

Alya pulled her knees up to her chest and sobbed.

Someone knocked on her door. "Alya?"

"Nino?" Alya asked. She glanced over her shoulder. "What are you doing here?"

"Just checking in with you."

Nino moved into her room, sitting down on her bed.

A second later, Alya found herself crying into his shoulder.

#kota #miraculous ladybug fanfiction #miraculous ladybug #Percy Jackson fanfiction #pjo #hoo #kane chronicals #my writing #fanfiction

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