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ijustliketoreadstuff · 6 months

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The choice that Kagami regretted.

In "Protection", Kagami comes to the realization that she had fallen in love with Adrien again.

Originally, Kagami was set in her decision to not only end her romantic relationship with Adrien, but also help him and Marinette find their way to each other, as she knew long ago that they were the ones who were made for each other.

(in "Mr. Pigeon 72", Regardless, of Marinette's effort, Kagami was set in her decision to end things with Adrien)

(In "Mr. Pigeon 72", Kagami understood Adrien and Marinette were made for each other)

And yet, despite previously accepting that a love life with Adrien was likely not meant to be, it was Lila who made Kagami question the choices she felt certain were right, and it all started with resurfacing one simple little emotion, pain.

Kagami used to believe Adrien was perfect and in turn the only one who was perfect enough to be worthy of her love, but it was not until they actually started dating did she realize that she did not know him as well as she thought. Adrien was secretive because of his life as Cat Noir, he distanced himself during important moments to save the day with Ladybug, and his at times undecisive choices disappointed her as it held him back from taking the initiative and saying what he needed to say.

However, in "Protection", as Kagami heard Lila talk about how she too was left broken hearted by a boy she once loved and struggled with the pain of knowing they would never be together, for a split moment, everything Kagami did in regards to Adrien and Marinette came flooding back, revealing to her a truth she had previously accepted, but had not properly grieved and gained closure on, the end of what she thought would have been a long and meaningful love life with Adrien.

(Back in "Heart Hunter," Kagami confides in Ladybug that she truly believed she and Adrien had a future together, believing they were made for each other as they were a lot alike. Such a future with him was something she could not give up, even if it was for the sake of friendship. )

Although Kagami tried to shrug off her past with Adrien and push away any feelings she believed were unimportant, to instead focus on her friendships and attempts to help him and Marinette get closer, it was a single conversation in the kitchen that would not only change her whole perspective of Adrien, but their lost love.

In the kitchen, as Kagami consulted Adrien over the events of the failed Ferris wheel plan and Marinette's struggles, Kagami witnessed Adrien do something she had never seen him do before, she saw him set aside his doubts and take charge.

As much as Kagami knew that Adrien disappointed her in their past relationship, to see him now in "Protection" proclaim how he should be the one to take care of a problem, all the while expressing a great deal of determination and confidence in his decision, made her realize that he was now far from the person who previously disappointed her, he changed, but it was precisely this change that made her fall for him all over again.

As Kagami heard Adrien make so much effort to plan something special for Marinette, she was honest when she said how lucky Marinette was to have someone like him, but deep down, Kagami felt a sense of pain surfacing as she heard the guy she once dated make so much effort for another girl, but not show that same effort when he dated her.

(Back in "Lies", it was Kagami who made the carefully constructed plans for the two of them to spend more time together, outside their busy schedules while also keeping their alone time a secret from their parents.)

(In "Protection", as Riposte Prime, Kagami speaks out about her frustrations and reminds Adrien about his past lack of effort in loving her when they dated)

As much as Tomoe wanted Kagami to take a second chance with Adrien, she couldn't, because she knew Adrien loved Marinette. Coming between them would not only hurt them, but her as well, they were after all, her friends and she loved them both. However, what Lila told her next, not only made Kagami doubt Adrien's past lack of commitment, but her entire perspective on breaking up with him.

Although Lila's words helped resurface Kagami's romantic emotions for Adrien, and although her own mother pushed her to cut the bonds she made so she could take Adrien back from Marinette, the one thing which held her back from taking her mothers extreme advice, was her sense of moral as she knew it was wrong to betray a loving and caring friend like Marinette, a friendship that was ultimately something Lila took away in an instant with a single lie.

Lila knew Kagami would never turn against Marinette if she did not cast aside the love and respect she had for her, and what better way to do that than by convincing Kagami that Marinette was a fraud. (More here)

As much as Lila's lie convinced Kagami that Marinette was secretly a horrible person who lied and manipulated her since the day they met, what finally crushed Kagami was the belief that she had wasted her life trusting and loving a friendship that was never real. As for the time and effort she spent helping Adrien and Marinette come together, well, all of it was now meaningless as it meant that she had not only lost Adrien, but also aided in helping him start a relationship with someone who was completely wrong for him, something her own mother had strongly believed.

Kagami had made the decision to break up with Adrien back in “Lies”, but given all that she has seen Adrien accomplish and having now been swayed into believing that Marinette had lied and manipulated her way into stealing Adrien from her, left her questioning if her decision to break up with him was not only too sudden, but possibly the biggest mistake of her life.

( As Roposte Prime, Kagami claims that Adrien's efforts and love towards Marinette is nothing more than the result of her “lies” and “manipulation” pushing him to love her and do more for her, it was not real and he was a naïve fool for ever believing it was )

Kagami used to believe she and Adrien were made for each other, and knowing now that Adrien had the capacity to change, was enough for her to question if Lila's words were true, that they truly were the ones who were made for each other and that things between her and Adrien were bound to work out, Adrien just needed more time and help from her to become the guy she always thought him to be and had now become, but for the wrong person.

Even after Kagami was de-akumatized, Lila's words stuck to her, making her believe that any of Marinette's attempts to reconcile with her was nothing more than another attempt to lie and manipulate her way out of trouble. Although she attempted to push Marinette away for "falsely befriending her" and "robbing" her of a life with Adrien she thought was meant to be, it was Adrien who took the initiative and cleared her clouded judgment, reminding Kagami of the truth she lost.

Adrien cared for Kagami and cherished her just as much as any good person in his life, he knew that no matter what it was Lila told her, Kagami knew just as much as he did that Marinette had always proven herself to be a kind and considerate person.

But for Kagami to see Adrien proclaim why it was he loved Marinette, reminded her that true love was something that could not be controlled, the knot that tied Adrien and Marinette together could not be undone, and despite her mother's belief, it could not be cut, not even by her own sword, because no matter how different her friends appeared to be, what they had was real, it was no lie.

Despite the love she and Adrien shared in their past relationship and despite how alike they thought their lives were, the two of them understood they could not ignore the truth, and the truth was that they too were still very different people with their own individual issues, and no matter how they tried to go about it, things just didn't work out between them, because they were simply not meant to be.

No matter how much it pained Kagami to realize that she and Adrien would truly never be together, she knew now better than ever before that she had to learn to acknowledge and sort through her own emotions, to learn to move on with her life just as he did, and accept that no matter what love she had left for him and no matter what future she thought they could have had together, such a life between them would never come to be, Adrien's heart belonged to someone else, and that someone was Marinette.

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous tales of ladybug and chat noir #tales of ladybug and cat noir #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #mlb ladybug #ml ladybug #thomas astruc #cat noir #mlb s5 spoilers #kagami tsuguri #tomoe tsurugi #ml s5 spoilers #ml protection analysis #mlb s5 analysis #mlb protection #ml s5 analysis

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ijustliketoreadstuff · 4 months

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Adrien was done with Chloe and Lila.

In "Protection", as Lila lies to Kagami, she makes up the lie about experiencing a tragic heartbreak in a previous romantic relationship she once had, saying that the boy she once loved had made the decision to no longer see her. Lila has lied about many things and although we know Lila is lying to Kagami about a past romantic relationship, it's not uncommon for some of her lies to end up being twisted versions of reality.

The "boy" Lila is talking about who left her in so much pain, is obviously Adrien since he is the only boy she has had eyes for since her first introduction in "Volpina". So, perhaps something did happened between her and Adrien, and that something might have occurred not long after Adrien made the decision to end his friendship with Chloe back in "Derision"

In "Derision", as Adrien silently walked away from Chloe, a lot of things must have been running through his mind as he thought about everything in his life and the life he had with Chloe (more here), but among those thoughts, he might have also begun questioning the one other thing that reminded him of his decision to end a friendship with someone, and that was his reasoning for staying friends with the only other person he knew would, and did, hurt the people he loved, Lila.

At the start of the series, Adrien had made attempts to be patient with Lila and her deceitful nature, why? Because no matter how much of a liar Adrien realized Lila was, after learning she was not a descendent of a superhero or saved by Ladybug, part of him could not help but hope that maybe Lila could eventually come around and realize her lies would not give her the life she wanted and would eventually turn others against her rather than give her the connections he thought she was searching for, to give her the love and attention he thought she needed. To Adrien, Lila had the potential to be good just as much as anyone, but she would never learn to be good so long as there were others who would attempt to expose her and humiliate her in front of others.

(in "Chameleon", Adrien questions Marinette if her attempts to expose Lila in front of everyone was a good idea as doing so would only humiliate and hurt Lila more, pushing her away from following a better path for herself.)

Adrien remembered the way Lila reacted when Ladybug exposed her back in "Volpina", to see Lila cry the way she did after being humiliated made him feel a sense of sympathy as he determined Lila was nothing more than someone who craved attention.

(Adrien explains his views of Lila in "Oni-chan", believing she was not dangerous and only craved attention)

At the start, Adrien genuinely believed Lila was not dangerous and just needed someone to trust and confide in, someone who would be willing to offer her a helping hand and be that person she could rely on, and he for one was more than willing to be up for the task so long as she was willing to be honest with him. However, over time, Adrien would learn just how dangerous Lila was, the more he saw the full extent of her lies, but more than anything, Adrien would also learn how his kindness for her fooled him into believing she was someone else entirely.

In "Oni-chan", Adrien did not appreciate Lila deceiving Nathalie and his bodyguard as he knew they would suffer consequences from his father, but despite this, he would later feel hopeful in seeing Lila show a sense of (fake)vulnerability as she clung to Ladybug and expressed how she understood heroes like them were only trying to help her, but it was precisely this moment of potential good that led Adrien to build his understanding of Lila and further imagine the type of person she was, as well as what she could do for herself in the future.

To see Lila have a more positive attitude towards Ladybug amidst Oni-chan's relentless pursuit, was more than enough for him to believe that Lila was coming around and learning that she could rely on others if she was willing to set aside her ways and open up as a more truthful person, that she really was just a girl who needed a little kindness and guidance her way.

(In "Oni-chan", Cat Noir really thought Lila was coming around to accepting Ladybug, a sign that Lila had made steps to being a better person)

Unfortunately, through that one little moment of watching Lila express a sense of "good", Adrien formed a positive view of Lila which had blinded him to the reality of her deceit, all the while he was amidst a fight against Oni-chan. Ladybug knew what Lila was capable of, she knew how much Lila could deceive others because Lila told her in "Chameleon" just how far she was willing to go to ruin another person's life if they did not fall under the line she had set and let her continue to live out the life she had built around her lies.

(Marinette/Ladybug saw Lila for who she was, a bad person).

Adrien on the other hand, could not see the same truth Ladybug saw because it was in his nature to see the good in everyone, to love everyone just as much as they were willing to love him, but the good he believed he saw in Lila was something he wanted to believe Lila would prioritize for herself, however, Lila had no such plans to do so regardless of understanding the harm her lies could cause.

(Lila is perfectly aware of her actions and the lies she is telling other people )

Still, regardless of what Lila did during "Oni-chan" and "Ladybug", Adrien was still not willing to end their friendship, why? Because no matter how cruel Lila appeared to be, Adrien did not have the heart to leave someone, not when he still held out hope that things could change for the better, which is why he didn't officially end his friendship with Chloe back in "Queen Banana", even after he watched her continued cruel actions towards the others over the year.

(Despite their actions in "Ladybug" and "Queen Banana", Adrien could not bring himself to end his friendship with Lila and Chloe and only reminded them of the possibility of doing so if they did not fix what they caused and stopped their ways. Regardless if they did or didn’t, he held out hope they would listen to him and do as he asked, because they we’re friends)

And yet, in some ways, it was as if Adrien thought he understood Lila and her desperation for attention from others, because he too had experienced life where he was all alone and in desperate need of others' attention. Adrien grew up being isolated from the rest of the world, devoid of interacting with others his age.

Sure, he had Chloe growing up, but it was precisely his experience in having just one person in his life to talk to that made him believe it would be all the difference in others like Lila who had no one. However, to Adrien, it would also be all the more painful if Lila ever lost someone like him who was willing to listen to her. After he became Cat Noir, Adrien even understood what it was like living a life surrounded by lies, lies he knew would hurt him and the good people around him, but was something he would not need to continue in the future if he found ways to improved things for himself, and so odds are, Adrien thought Lila felt the same way, but as we all know, she didn't.

Much like Chloe, Adrien believed Lila's toxic behavior was temporary, that somehow, he could help change her. Adrien never stopped trying to hold out hope that Lila would eventually realize the harm she was causing and learn to make positive changes, all things he had also thought of when it came to facing Chloe. But the more Adrien saw Chloe and Lila continue to fall back into their ways, the more he began to question Lila and Chloe, their actions and whether or not they actually wanted to hold true to their word, to their apologies, as well as their promises and commit to the hard work and sacrifice of bettering themselves, but more than that, Adrien had to question whether or not his kindness and loyalty actually meant anything to them.

After learning the full extent to Chloe's bullying in "Derision" and knowing that Lila had already succeeded in ruining Marinette's life and reputation in "Ladybug", Adrien had to face the cruel reality of his friendship with Lila and Chloe, as well as his attempts to salvage his friendship with them, time and time again, and the reality of it all was that his friendship with the two of them was not like the friendships he had with the others, it had become toxic and one sided.

Things he believed Lila and Chloe would never do, were things he would not do himself and only assumed others had the good sense to do the same, but Lila and Chloe had every intention to continue doing what they did, why? Because they did not see the world the same way Adrien did, and to them, they were entitled to more than others and felt justified for much of what they did.

Adrien had tried to understand how Lila and Chloe felt and thought, but in many ways, those thoughts and feelings were his, not theirs. He tried to find the reason behind their actions, but in many ways, he believed their reasons would be the same as his if he was in their position, but they weren't, their reasons were their own and they took joy for much of what they did, even when they knew it was not morally right in the eyes of others like Adrien.

In the end, as Adrien faced Chloe in Derision and heard her talk about her views of the world (more here), he did not give the same approach he would always give, because for the first time in a long time, Adrien did not see Chloe through his eyes, he saw Chloe through her eyes and understood that no matter what his hopes and expectations were, no matter what opportunities he and others were willing to offer and no matter how much time and dedication he was willing to give, he could not expect another person to decide the path he believed was best for them, they had to decide for themselves if they would take it, and that is exactly what he had to think about when it came to Lila, he had to look at Lila through her own eyes and understand her for who she was, not who he had imagined she would become if he stayed with her long enough.

In one little moment with Chloe in "Derision", Adrien knew he had a choice to make, should he allow one sided friendships with people like Chloe and Lila to continue? To live a life where he would only have brief moments of hope over the possibility that maybe the two could one day give up their ways, as he continued to watch from the sidelines knowing they felt they were entitled to hurt Marinette and others the moment they did something again, OR set his boundaries and stick to them, say enough was enough.

Adrien told Chloe as far back as "Despair bear" that he could not be friends with someone who was cruel to others, he told Lila as far back as "Oni-chan" that she could always rely on him as a friend, but not if she hurt the people he loved.

The day Adrien ended his friendship with Chloe, was likely the day he also decided to end his friendship with Lila, he was done with both of them as he understood that although anyone can change, not everyone wanted to, some people are who they are, and not even he could change that.

#miraculous ladybug #miraculous tales of ladybug and chat noir #tales of ladybug and cat noir #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #mlb ladybug #thomas astruc #cat noir #mlb s5 spoilers #mlb protection #mlb protection analysis #ml protection analysis #lila rossi #chloe bourgeois #ml volpina #ml queen bee #mlb derision analysis #ml s5 analysis #mlb s5 analysis

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