#I always have a hard time drawing chats/adriens hair

[miraculous-pyxie]

marinette headcanon time

marinette’s knees are filled with little scars and long-term bruises from how many time she falls over 

she carries a very cute first aid kit in her backpack just in case her skin breaks or if she needs a quick ice pack (those lil crack and shake things that get really cold)

marinette became the go to person when somebody got hurt is phys ed when the teens were younger. she eventually got first aid certified.

 marinette used to carry a bit more weight (you see her parents genetic make up) but from becoming ladybug she burns a lot of calories/fat from running around all day. to keep people/parents from getting suspicious, she starts running which keeps her even more in shape.

little marinette got into sewing because her mom always needed to repair her clothes from the rips and tears they would get from her falling over. she felt guilty about it so she said that she would do it. her mom taught her then she started teaching herself

I love the idea that Adrien and Marinette get stronger and more flexible from using the miraculous. Adrien has an excuse that this is how he needs to look for modeling (everyone believes that) but marinette has less of an excuse so she has to flub saying she started going to the gym and attempt to become less clumsy. not wanting it to be a lie, she starts going to a gym once a week for an hour (this is where she does her runs instead).

marinette meditates with her mom whenever she’s stressed and gets lightly told off when she starts fidgeting too much

along with Tikki’s cookies, marinette keeps a stash of protein shakes and protein bars in her room

 marinette has ADHD so she is prone to zoning out and has accidentally zoned out in someone’s direction before then zones back in and profusely apologizes for ”staring” at them

marinette will hyperfocus on a project for hours and she has almost missed patrol several times because of it.

adding onto that, she will sometimes be working till 3 am so getting up at 7 am for school is really hard. (delayed sleep phase syndrome let’s goooo)

on top of that, coffee is her best friend. not because of the energy boost but it keeps her focused in school. (Alya doesn’t know about the ADHD at first and thinks her best friend has a severe coffee addiction)

from becoming ladybug, Marinette has actually gotten very coordinated.  she was very clumsy as a kid, but now it only spikes when she feels emotionally vulnerable. (i.e. around Adrien, when she’s nervous)

 Adrien is Marinette’s first big crush  so for the first few weeks marinette actually was really uncomfortable. she was having an internal battle of never feeling something like a crush before and also beating herself up over the idea that this might be a celebrity crush and she’s just a crazy fan

i saw this somewhere else but marinette doesn’t like horror movies not because they scare her but because they are underwhelming to her. mari and the gang will be having a movie night and she’ll just sit their with her arms crossed and say “I’ve seen worse.” and alya nino and adrien will just looked at her absolutely baffled. (even though adrien is chat noir, he’s had less exposure to scary things growing up)

adding onto that, marinette 100% had unrestricted internet access as a kid but she does not let it show

Marinette doodles on her skin in pen and one time she was drawing on her arm in red pen in class and an akuma related explosion happened really close. The pen exploded all over her skin and it looked like she had just killed someone.

marinette wanted to join the costume department for theater but because of her crammed schedule she can’t do it. everyone is confused as to why she doesn’t bc she’s perfect for it.

marinette matches the color of her hair ties to her outfit

marinette is better at listening to people in chinese then speaking or writing it

marinette actually gets along with her grandma really well and that’s why her grandma knew exactly what bike to get her

even though Marinette’s focus is in high fashion, she loves learning about streetwear and street fashion in places like Japan and the US

she is an absolute force to be reckoned with when she’s being stubborn about something 

she indulges in the confidence that being ladybug gives her from time to time so when chloe is back on her bs she claps back better than the last time

 a personal retcon is she gets a hold of her boy crazy-ness after the first few weeks. (the show really did her dirty on this like stalking? stealing? they should not be promoting that behavior to kids tbh)

marinette wears her new designs to school. she also secretly has a commission style business (so she can keep on top of orders bc she is just 1 person)

all and all, she is a little frazzled gremlin and i wish we got more of that blunt ,frazzled, always-busy, gremlin side of her

that’s all i can think of for now :)

[miraculouslylazybug]

Mari absolutely fuckin’ hates it

(for context see this post)

[huge-enthusiast]

Miraculous fic recomendations!!

This is just an excuse to show all my bookmarks? Yes. Yes, it is. I'm pretty sure most of this fics are really popular, but try see if you find something you didn't knew about!

All of the fics will be rated Teen and up audiences or lower. Also if I don't put the author's tumblr is because they didn't put it in the fic or/and I couldn't find it.

Pairing: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug

knowing you by emsylcatac (they are not really the author of the fic but that's the account that says in the fic, the actual author doesn't have an account).

After dropping their transformations months ago, Marinette and Adrien see each other for the first time after being apart. They've both left too much unsaid and have to work to pick up the pieces of their confused hearts.

Chapters: 1/1

Post-reveal but mostly ladynoir, light angst with happy ending.

the last day on earth by Reiaji

The first time Marinette sees Chat Blanc, she's fourteen years old. The second time, fifteen—the third time, seventeen.

The closer she grows to Adrien, the harder it is to save him.

Chapters: 1/1

Post-reveal lovesquare, kinda heavy angst, hopeful ending.

tell me something i don't know by carpisuns (@carpisuns here on tumblr)

Do you think it still means something? To love someone, even if the universe said you had to?

The odds of having a soulmate are about negative one billion (or something like that). But somehow, like they always have, Marinette and Chat Noir find themselves together. They’re ready to finally tell each other everything, but it turns out that even soulmates have to keep secrets, and while their bond draws them together, duty forces them apart.

Chapters: currently 17/28 (WIPs can be exhausting but this one is 100% worth the wait!)

Mostly marichat but almost all of the lovesquare sides make an appearance, soulmates au, mostly fluff but it can get angsty if it wants to.

One Thing After Another by SKayLanphear

Marinette notices that, sometimes, Adrien acts a little out of the ordinary--like the time he stood in a cardboard box for no reason, or when he actually hissed at Nino. It's only when she starts to notice the similarities between Adrien and a certain feline that she begins to get suspicious.

Basically, Adrien acts like a cat when he probably shouldn't.

Chapters: 15/15

Mostly adrienette with one sided reveal by Marinette's side, miraculous side effects (by both sides wich is really cool!), it's fluff with a lil tiny angst for drama.

This would take some getting used to by Codango (@codango here on tumblr!)

Adrien peeked out from behind the chimney even as the magic of his own Chat Noir mask fell away.

She was still visible, her dark hair bobbing under the street lamps a couple blocks away.

“Marinette.”

Adrien blew out a confused breath. His fiery Ladybug… was the quiet little mouse who sat behind him in class?

“What. The.”

This… would take some getting used to.

Chapters: 8/8

Adrienette with one sided reveal by Adrien's part, awkward flirting, just fluff, nothing to worry about.

comfort food also by Reiaji!

In Marinette's house, cooking is a language of love, and Marinette loves Adrien more than most.

Chapters: 1/1

Adrienette with a little of ladynoir, super super fluff, a lot of insight into Marinette's chinese heritage.

The right side of his face by walkingonthestars (@hamsternamedmarinette here on tumblr!)

Marinette and Adrien are able to remain in their new seats in the back of the room at the end of Chameleon.

Chapters: 1/1

Adrienette, fluff with light angst.

it's a long way forward so trust in me by aloneintherain (@captainkirkk here on tumblr!)

“You’re not the only strong one around here, Chat,” Marinette said. She looked a little winded, but she wasn’t struggling to hold him up.

This close up, he could see the freckles on the bridge of her nose. He could see how that smug smile lit up her eyes. He could feel the strain of her arms—and wow, okay, he really wasn’t the only person around here with muscles.

Six times Marinette carried Adrien (plus one time he carried her).

Chapters: 1/1

All the sides of the lovesquare! Fluff with LOTS of mutual pining.

a fight that you were born to lose also by aloneintherain

When the prosecution starts throwing around the word victim in reference to Adrien, he has to stuff his hands under his thighs to keep himself from bolting out of the courtroom.

Adrien had felt unsafe during those last few weeks, but, until he had woken up and seen Father silhouetted in his bedroom doorway, that had only been paranoia. Father was controlling and cold, but he wasn’t hateful. Adrien was isolated. He was often hungry. And some weeks ago, when he had snuck out to visit Nino, sitting thigh-to-thigh on his bed while Adrien cried in that silent, crumbling way of his, he hadn’t argued when Nino put a hand on his shoulder and said, tentatively, That’s abuse.

But Adrien remembers being small and Father touching his hair after he’d aced another test; Father holding his scribbled drawings like they were something precious, and framing them around his office; Father, dressed as Hawkmoth, his eyes wild behind the mask, lashing his sword against Adrien’s baton; Father, collapsed against Mum, crying into her ashy hair.

Adrien finds out Gabriel is Hawkmoth, and Gabriel gets to bring his long-waited plan into action.

Chapters: 1/1

This one doesn't really focus in the ship that much as is an Adrien character study and an exploration of his relationship with his father, but they're still there so I put them here. Really heavy angst (this is one of this fics that haunt me in the middle of the night) with a happy ending. ❗TW: parental abuse, eating disorders❗

Supercut by LNC

Marinette loves her friends and Adrien can't deal.

Chapters: 1/1

Post-reveal lovesquare, again light angst, an exploration of Adrien's insecurities, Marinette Dupain-Cheng deserves the world, happy ending.

Madame Snare by jettiebettie

“Sounds like a lot of work for nothing. She should take this as a sign to have a relaxing weekend with no responsibilities.”

“It's a lot of work she put her whole heart into. It wouldn't be right for it to go to waste,” Adrien whispers to him. The look on Marinette's face is enough to cause Adrien's own heart to ache. If anyone deserves the satisfaction and pride from a job well done, it's her.

“Too bad there isn't anyone else who can walk in those death traps,” Plagg says. Adrien hums in thought, tapping his chin.

“I could.”

Chapters: 1/1

Marichat, episode-based, Chat Noir in a dress!!!, light angst but it's mostly just idiots being idiots and a lot of fun.

in the same sun by peachcitt (@peachcitt here on tumblr!)

"It’s hard to believe that I saw you last at the peak of summer, when the sun was close and warm - and so were you. It should go without saying that I miss you. I miss you something terrible."

//

"It’s been seven months to the day since I’ve seen you. I wish you were here more than anything else."

Two letters, signed with initials instead of names, found in Paris, France.

Chapters: 1/1

Ladynoir, just angst, that's it, written like letters. No ending, just pain.

an uncurtain discovery by Missnoodles (@ladyofthenoodle here on tumblr!)

When he returns from school on Wednesday afternoon, Adrien discovers the darkness in his own home. He struggles to come to terms with it. To his utter mortification and delight, Ladybug is nearby to rescue him.

(He does not discover that his father is supervillain. That will happen on a different Wednesday.)

Chapters: 1/1

Ladrien, it says it's crack, and don't get me wrong, is super funny, but I also found it sad as fuck?

An Open Secret by Kasienda

Adrien whirled around toward Marinette. She smiled at him.

He couldn’t smile back. He stared at her like the dumb blond model that he was often accused of being.

Something shifted in her expression. And her warm open Marinette smile transformed into Ladybug’s grin. He was looking at Ladybug right now.

He knew Ladybug’s name!

Her name was Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

And he couldn’t say anything! Not to Marinette! Not even to Plagg, who had confided two weeks prior that Master Fu was growing increasingly paranoid since the location of his home and hideout had been compromised. Their master had apparently decided that Chat Noir and Ladybug would have to give up their miraculouses if they ever discovered each other’s identities.

It wasn’t fair!

...

A fic where they both know, but can't openly talk about it.

Chapters: 4/4

Post-reveal... but is it? Mostly adrienette and ladynoir, fluff with light angst and them being absolute idiots at hiding their secret identity.

golden (like daylight) by okayanna (@anna-scribbles here on tumblr!)

Friendship, Adrien decided, shaking off the mental image of Marinette’s hurricane eyes and hesitant mouth, parted in a small, careful “o.” He had a very strong friendship with Marinette. That was all.

or

Adrien thinks a lot about words, love, and Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

Chapters: 1 + epilogue

Adrienette but has lots of ladynoir, another Adrien character study because I hate myself, it tries to not be angst but the writing will punch you in the guts and make you cry, it's so good.

Strangers in the Bright Lights by poodles (@ladybeug here on tumblr!)

Adrien is about two drinks in when he sees a girl at the end of the bar wearing black cat ears. It's kind of weird, so he watches her, and although it's crowded he can see her face when she turns around. She’s wearing a Chat Noir mask. He takes a quick look around- nobody else is wearing a mask. Just her.

Adrien finishes his gin martini and heads over to her. He could use some company tonight anyways, he hasn’t told anyone he’s back in Paris and Nathalie won’t arrive in town for another month. And it’s been a rough day, okay? A rough move! He’s not sure he wants to be back yet, and he spent most of the day in the Agreste mansion sorting through some photographs of his father he found in the study. Maybe he wants a drink and some stranger to tell him he’s pretty! That’s not a crime, is it?

Chapters: 1/1

Adrienette but it's also ladrien??? I think??? It's super super angsty but they're both drunk the entirety of the fic so it's also really funny.

Pick-Up and Chase by also SKayLanphear

After she accidentally trips into Adrien and apologizes about "falling for him," Marinette learns that he's no match for cheesy pick-up lines--whether they were unintended or not. And while she finds it flattering that he turns into a flustered mess with only a few words, Marinette comes to regret making him uncomfortable. That is, until she learns he's Chat Noir. At which point the phrase "just deserts" becomes a permanent fixture in her everyday plans.

A story in which Adrien is flustered, Marinette is smooth as glass at dropping lines, and Chat Noir gets the romance he was always asking for--even if he doesn't quite know how to handle it.

Chapters: 10/10

Adrienette with one sided reveal by Marinette's side, it doesn't say it in the tags but I'm pretty sure the characters are much older than they actually are in the show, so much fluff and so much flirting.

Pairing: Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe

Nino Has Done Nothing To Deserve This by GuardianKarenTerrier (@guardiankarenterrier here in tumblr)

It's nothing, really- just an innocent comment, a joke. But when they hear it, Nino and Alya come to a realisation.

There were, in retrospect, dozens upon dozens of hints. Now that they're suddenly aware of all their friend's flimsy excuses and rushed explanations, they're not only sure how they've missed it, they're not sure how anyone else has either. They realise that it had to be magic protecting their friends- and that same magic has ceased to work on the two of them.

Well, this means they'll just have to start watching over their friends themselves.

Chapters: 7/7

This is more a found family fic than anything else, Alya and Nino are the mom friend, has light angst but it's mostly identity shenanigans in the most bizarre way. ❗TW: eating disorders❗

christmas lights by demistories

Nino checks up and down the street, checking to make sure there’s no raging akuma headed his way before he crosses quickly and ducks inside the small café. He closes the door quickly before the icy air can blow inside and tugs his beanie down over his ears. He spots Alya sitting alone in the corner.

Chapters: 1/1

Just fluff!! Really short but really sweet.

hold on, i still want you also by Missnoodles!

Written for the @thedjwifizine ! Wich I also recommend if you wanna binge a lot of djwifi fics while also looking at amazing art!!!

Five times Alya ran into her ex, and the one time he stopped being her ex.

Chapters: 1/1

Light angst with a happy ending! I don't really like the ex-lovers to lovers trope but this one is the only exception.

I will continue to expand the list in the future! But by now I hope I was helpful in the search of new fics!

[jennagrinsoverml]

Do you have any Adrien-centric angst fics? Like, fics that will completely gut you emotionally and you have to lay down for an hour after you read it just to decompress?something like that?

I've recced angst fics before, but let's have some SADRIEN hours around here, shall we?

a fight that you were born to lose by @captainkirkk

When the prosecution starts throwing around the word victim in reference to Adrien, he has to stuff his hands under his thighs to keep himself from bolting out of the courtroom.

Adrien had felt unsafe during those last few weeks, but, until he had woken up and seen Father silhouetted in his bedroom doorway, that had only been paranoia. Father was controlling and cold, but he wasn’t hateful. Adrien was isolated. He was often hungry. And some weeks ago, when he had snuck out to visit Nino, sitting thigh-to-thigh on his bed while Adrien cried in that silent, crumbling way of his, he hadn’t argued when Nino put a hand on his shoulder and said, tentatively, That’s abuse.

But Adrien remembers being small and Father touching his hair after he’d aced another test; Father holding his scribbled drawings like they were something precious, and framing them around his office; Father, dressed as Hawkmoth, his eyes wild behind the mask, lashing his sword against Adrien’s baton; Father, collapsed against Mum, crying into her ashy hair.

Adrien finds out Gabriel is Hawkmoth, and Gabriel gets to bring his long-waited plan into action.

One-shot. (But a LONG one-shot--it's 18k.) This one really digs deep into the abuse that Adrien suffers at Gabriel's hands and the emotional fallout from that. Gabriel is really, really, really terrible here. Worse, I don't think it's OOC at all. This fic is gorgeous, but it's a hard read and it goes to some dark places.

Anhedonia/When Adrien Met Marinette... by @mikauzoran

Chat Noir hadn’t been lying when he told Ladybug he’d moved on. It was only when he found out that Ladybug was Marinette that he realized he was wrong. Meanwhile, Marinette thinks that she’s missed her chance when Adrien insists that he’s gotten over his feelings. Now, they’re roommates and making themselves miserable as they pine for one another, thinking the situation’s hopeless. Things finally come to a head, and they’re forced to sit down and have an honest conversation about their feelings.

One-shot. Adrien's just so sad and lonely and pining here, and I'm here for it. I really found myself getting swept away in his feelings as I was reading. This isn't dark and doesn't get into any heavy issues like some of the other fics on this list, but I found that it was very relatable and evoked a lot of emotion.

Adrien and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by @vickyvicarious

Chat Noir's used to bad luck - it kind of comes with the territory. But detransforming in the middle of a crowd of reporters is a little worse luck than he’s used to having.

And he hasn’t heard a thing from Ladybug since.

(AKA the "everyone finds out all at once" angst fic no one asked for.)

One-shot. Oof, does this one ever hurt. Adrien's painfully in-character, and the way he's trying so very hard to stay positive even as his life is completely falling apart and everyone keeps hurting him...it's so him and it packs a punch.

The Importance of the Black Cat by @chatonne-rousse

Plagg gets down almost two full wedges of cheese before Adrien sits down on the edge of his bed with a heavy sigh.

“Hey, Plagg?” His voice is quiet but doesn’t betray any emotion yet. That’s actually more worrying.

Steeling himself, Plagg swallows the last big bite of cheese and zips from the desk to perch on top of the globe, facing his holder. “What’s up?”

He heaves another sigh before looking up into Plagg’s eyes, emotions still unreadable.

“How important is the black cat?”

*****

Adrien has a lot on his mind - concerns, questions, doubts. And right now, he has only one being to confide in. There is not enough cheese in the world to make Plagg want to handle this situation, but his holder needs him, and he knows two things with certainty: his very important place in the world, and that no one hurts his kitten. Not if he has anything to say about it.

One-shot. You want some season 4 flavour Adrien angst? How about some post-Optigami wallowing? I love the portrayal of Adrien and Plagg's relationship with the mix of light and heavy. Pretty sure I still owe Rosie a sequel to this one because I wanted to see more resolution afterwards and made the mistake of sharing my thoughts on that 🙈 It's just very thought-provoking!!

Working Past It by Taitai83

Chat is deeply hurt by Ladybug's actions, and he needs to process those feelings. He finds that confiding in a friend is helpful in finding clarity.

One-shot. Here, have some more season 4 angst! This one is shamefully overlooked. Go read it and help fix that!! Remember when Gang of Secrets came out and we all wondered how Chat would react when he found out Ladybug told someone her identity? This was an early stab at that, and I found the reactions and thought processes here to be so in character. Plus there's some nice marichat hurt/comfort, though purely platonic.

Timetagger 3 by rosebud1000

Years after Hawkmoth's defeat, Marinette and Adrien encounter Timetagger for the third time. And this battle hits closer to home than any other.

One-shot. Here we have some more of the fallout from Gabriel being a shitty parent, only we have an adult Adrien who is a father himself struggling to reconcile how his father acted with his own parental feelings. As a parent, I really felt this one.

Chat Noir's Family by fleurjaune

The thing is-

The thing is Adrien doesn’t actually mean to lie. Not at first anyway, but they have to keep their secret identities secret don’t they?

And his family, well, their tragedy is out there for the world to see and the world did see it.

One-shot. The more Chat lies about his life and his family, the more we learn about Adrien and see how he wishes his life was. And that chasm...really fucking hurts. I wish this sweet boy could have the kinds of relationships and family dynamics he lies about.

Partners by @karkalicious769

"Um." Alya fidgeted nervously as her earrings beeped their countdown. "Ask me a question that only Ladybug would know the answer to."

Chat Noir barred his teeth, and— Were they always that sharp? At least he wasn't growling again. "You are not Ladybug," he snapped.

"Just do it!"

It was all Alya had to go off of and she really needed to pull this partnership together before the akuma got any worse. She wasn't deluded enough to think that she could do this without Chat Noir.

One-shot. SPOILERS FOR HACK-SAN!!! And yet some more season 4 feels because let's be serious, this season is putting our kitty through the ringer. And this fic definitely does it, though by playing with the episode a little. Although we've got a tight Alya POV, Adrien's hurt and suffering is palpable, and made all the worse by how resigned he is. Read this and sufferrrrrr.

[arty-shadow-morningstar]

Graveyard Siblings (6)

Class revenge. And mention of suicide.

[Masterlist]

(Part 1)(Part 5)

------

Normal class day and most of the class was still together. This is set after the class’s trip to Gotham.

Alix and Chloe had transferred to another class or a different school. There were a few new students but they transferred out within a week, when they all had tried to point out Lila’s lies and the class picked on them on Lila’s behalf.

Class is still taught by Mme. Bustier.

She rolled-calls and somehow Marinette’s name was on there and she just absentmindedly read it.

“Marinette Dupain-Cheng”

“Present.” A cheery voice said.

Goes to the next name before everyone froze and looked at the source of the voice which was where they exiled Marinette to before her ‘suicide’.

There she was. An older-looking Marinette who would look the same age as them as if she was still alive, her longer hair was in a high ponytail and her clothes were switched out from her usual pink to red and black and had a more mature look that was stylish instead of cute.

She wore her signature bright grin but the sight of it brought chills down everyone’s spines.

Lila thought that it was her curse kicking in and since she hadn't seen Marinette until then, fainted on the spot, thinking she was finally going to be killed.

“M-ma-marinette. What are you doing here?”

“What do you mean?” Older Marinette said with a confused face. “Oh. You mean why am I not late? First time for everything, I guess. I am not late today so Yay for me.” She giggles but everyone else thinks that it sounds terrifying.

“But this is impossible. You simply can’t be here.” Max said, “Odds of you still alive are zero.”

“Can’t I? I mean I woke up early and got here on time. What is impossible about me being early? I would normally be a zombie during the morning, Max but nice one.”

Some students checked their phones for akumas. Hawkmoth had mysteriously disappeared around Marinette’s death making a few rumours about Marinette being Hawkmoth floating around. (Lila was the first to suggest that as a theory.)

Mme Bustier cleared her throat, terrified out of her mind and scared that if she provoked the ‘ghost’ of her former star student, there would be consequences like the horror movies. But she was not going to let it hurt any of her students.

“Marinette, there must have been a misunderstanding. You should be home.”

“Why?’

“Because um...you are... you are sick and you don’t want to infect your fellow classmates, right?”

“Hm..I feel fine but now that you mention it, I feel a little dizzy. I think I am going to take the day off.”

The rest of the class murmured in agreement, scared not to offend the ‘ghost’. A few of the girls like Mylene had tears running down their cheeks. Horror movies logic dictates that you should not remind the ghost that they are dead or make them angry.

Juleka was half-scared out of her mind for Rose who was also crying and herself and also half-excited, even though Marinette might be a vengeful ghost, there is still a ghost in their classroom.

Mme Bustier started muttering prayers under her breath.

Marinette packed up her things and was out of her seat when Adrien came into the class.

He was held up because he started sneezing non-stop this morning. Turns out Natalie had some black feathers on her.

He sees Marinette in the back row.

“Ma-Marinette! How are you here?!” to which everyone in the class sans Lila who was still passed out, shushed at him.

Ignoring them, he blurted out, “You are dead.”

The word echoed through the classroom. It was silent for a moment and you could hear a pin drop.

“Dead? What do you mean dead?” Marinette took a step down the stairs, the perfect picture of confusion but her eyes seemed a little crazed and Adrien took a step back, the word ‘Traitor’ carved into his back started burning.

Everyone in their seats shifted slightly away from her. Some considered making a run for the door but they didn’t want to draw attention and face the ghost’s wrath. They all mimed at Adrien to stop.

He ignored them again. “Don’t pretend you are innocent. You did this to me. YOU MADE ME LOSE EVERYTHING. EVERYTHING. YOU SHOULD HAVE STAYED DEAD. I DON’T REGRET KILLING YOU FOR THE HORRIBLE PERSON YOU ARE, LADYBUG. YOU DESERVED TO DIE FOR WHAT YOU DID.”

Realizing what he said, he covered his mouth, hoping it would somehow fix the damage he had done.

Marinette smirked. The picture of innocence gone.

It took a moment for what Adrien’s outburst meant to register in their heads.

Adrien, in an attempt to get back into their good graces, had once claimed to be Chat Noir, the ‘hero’ of Paris. They had brushed him off. If what he had said was correct then that meant that they drove Marinette who was Ladybug to kill herself. Horrible realization sets in as it meant that Hawkmoth won.

Lila chose that moment to came back to the land of the living to scream bloody murder once she saw Marinette again.

The scream brought everyone out of their trance from their shock and started screaming or yelling.

The windows slammed open and the wind whipped. The doors of the classroom closed shut with a loud bang. The clouds were dark outside and there were some flashes of lighting and thunder. (Thank you Longg.)

Marinette’s hair was undone and whipped around her. Her eyes were glowing blue. As she started laughing at the chaos she had unleashed, the class and Mme Bustier ducked for cover and hid under their desks. Except for Adrien and Lila.

Lila, fueled by anger, pounced at the ravenette but was thrown against the classroom wall before she even had a chance to lay a hand. Fell down and appeared to be knocked out. Alya made a move to check up on her.

Adrien was thrown back against the floor when the strong winds started. The scars on his back were burning with a lot of intensity now and it was a miracle that he still hasn’t passed out from the pain.

Unknown to him, the words were glowing red and seen through his shirt. Mme Bustier, Nino, Sabrina and Nathaniel were the few that saw the bright red letters spelling out ‘TRAITOR’ on Adrien’s back as he got back up.

“Marinette, this isn’t you. Milady, please.”

“Shut up.” She flicked her wrist, sending Adrien against the teacher’s desk. He hit it hard and was knocked out like Lila.

Alya after making sure that Lila was fine. “Marinette, stop this. I know that you are probably mad at Adrien for killing you but we never did anything to you.”

“Never did anything?! Never did anything? Hah. What about the time that you slapped me in the face in front of the entire school and said our friendship was over? You called me names. You said that I deserve every bruise you gave me. The rest of you weren’t any better.” She turned around and with the flick of her wrist, the heavy desks were in the air, robbing anyone of a hiding place.

“You stood by and allowed it to happen. You destroyed my stuff, claiming I deserve it. My sketchbook, filled with commissions, torn and stepped on like trash. You all crossed a line that Chloe didn’t even dare and you call it the right thing to do. Hypocrites all of you. Some of you have known me since l'école primaire. What was it about me that you believed her over me?! ”

What happened next was all a blur to everyone, there was a lot of screaming involved, some blood, lightning and thunder everywhere and then, black.

Nino opened his eyes to see Alya peacefully sleeping on her desk. What happened?...Oh Crap I fell asleep. The last thing I remember was….MARINETTE!

Nino snapped his head up. And saw the rest of the class and Mme. Bustier asleep in their respective places.

But there was a sense of wrongness. Something was off... and he can’t pinpoint on what.

The bell rang, startling everyone awake. Nino checked the time. And crap did they all sleep through the first period?! Turning towards his now-awake girlfriend, “Hey Alya, Alya, what do you remember?”

He was surprised to see red eyes like she had been crying. “I- I- I had the weirdest dream. Marinette was there, like she never died and she… why are you looking at me like that?”

“Don’t freak out but I don’t think it was a dream.”

On the rooftop, above the classroom, a red clad figure lounged at the edge with her airpods in and chuckling to herself.

-----

Marinette didn’t torture them. Scared the hell out of them, sure but it was harmless. Mostly. She left carved words on everyone’s wrists which no one else but the class can see. (This one is more mental than anything.)

The scars are unique depending on how close they were to Marinette before she died. Most of the class had the word ‘friend’ crossed out. FRIEND

Nino and Kim had Childhood friends. It serves as a painful reminder of how long they had known the girl.

Alya was a special case with BEST FRIEND and ‘A good reporter always checks her sources’ underneath it. She remembers saying those words to Marinette a long time ago, back when she thought she knew Marinette.

Mme Busitier had Best Teacher and when she was in the comfort of her own home, saw ‘Bully Enabler’ on her other wrist.

Adrien and Lila were questioned as they weren’t the only ones with scars on their wrists. (Although Lila had LIAR written in big letters across her forehead with a sharpie and a drawn-on-moustache of a cartoon villain.)

Nino managed to get the class to back off on Adrien and later to pull him aside to explain about the scars on his back and why did Ladybug (who was apparently Marinette this whole time and she was dead... he thinks.) called him ‘Traitor’?

Adrien told Nino everything. The curse didn’t interfere so for the first time in months, Adrien was able to say the truth.

-----

That was also the day that Lila’s reign finally ended.

The class had suspected for a while about her lies and false promises. There were a few inconsistencies in the beginning that were overlooked and brushed off as Lila’s memory problems.

They all had for the first two years had defended Lila against anyone (mainly Marinette) who thought she was a liar. Lila herself made sure that her lies were believable, actually putting in research for once in her life and planting evidence here and there about her achievements with a few faked articles. They staunchly believed her lies until Marinette’s death.

With her main enemy finally down and everyone else who opposed her, lost their morale along with their ally, Lila stopped putting in the efforts to make her lies seem real and then the cracks of her kingdom began forming.

At first, the students of Mme Bustier class believed them but the stories soon seemed like bragging but they were too polite to point it out to their ‘nice’ and ‘shy’ classmates.

Lila began making mistakes from her lack of research and a few of them later pointed out the few inconsistencies but they were brushed off as memory lapses.

More and more of these ‘memory lapses’ happened more often and soon, most of the class had their suspicion of Lila.

They were just in denial of Lila lying to them.

A few like Max, Nathaniel, Juleka and Sabrina who finally find out that Lila was lying and confront her about it were threatened and they were too afraid to do anything.

After all, Marinette had tried to disprove them and look where she is now. Six feet under.

And the ‘ghost attack’ from Marinette was the final straw.

The class tried to help Lila get rid of the sharpie, especially the one on her forehead and Alya made a comment how it was so typical of Marinette despite being dead and some half-heartedly agreeing.

Max, frustrated that his friends still can’t see it that Lila is a liar and they were the ones who drove Marinette to death that she is now haunting them and it was all their fault, took out his detailed research to disprove Lila’s lies. Nathaniel, Sabrina and Juleka spoke up and brought out their own research. The seeds of doubts which had been planted the past years were finally sprouting

A while later, the entire class was in chaos, everyone was shouting at Lila, some of them were shouting at Adrien, Alya being in complete denial and Mme. Bustier trying to maintain the peace.

Unknown to them, the camera in the classroom was being live streamed to a screen in a room in Le Grand Paris, complete with audio as a group of teenagers watched the chaos unfold.

“You know.” Chloe said, “I thought it was hilarious when you went all bloody mary on them but this shit is way more entertaining.”

Maria smiled, satisfaction on her face as she snatched some popcorn from Alix. “Oh, I had fun. Took years but Lila is finally getting what is coming to her. In about an hour, Signora Rossi is going to come through the door with the police.”

“What did you do, M?”

“Let’s just say the Italian Embassy and the French Police got an anonymous tip this morning about Lila Rossi and the incidents following her around the schools she had attended in the past couple of years.”

“No..” Alix gasped.

Maria just smirked.

-----

Gabriel was freaking out when Adrien came home and told him about what happened to his class.

He did not need another ghost attack on top of everything else.

First, Afterlife had managed to steal some (read: a lot) of Gabriel’s investors and Gabriel’s shares were plummeting.

Secondly, there were a few important documents leaked onto the internet, showing a few suspicious purchases which had the brand and himself under scrutiny.

Third, Natalie told him about her recent condition which occurs during the night and raised a few suspicious glances from Emilie when there was a raven in the house while Gabriel wanted to see proof of this transformation.

Lastly, Emilie had been poking around about the years she was in her coma and it was sheer luck that she hadn't found out about Hawkmoth and connected the dots.

He called up John again to complain that it didn’t work and asked for a refund or face a lawsuit. John pointed out that the spell only worked in the house and kept ghosts out of it and other places were free game.

Needless to say, Gabriel pulled Adrien out of school to be homeschooled again and made sure Emilie stayed inside, no matter what.

The longer Natalie stayed as a raven, the whiter Gabriel’s head of hair became and he was beginning to lose hair at a very fast rate.

----

(Part 7)

I swear I didn't mean to forget tagging you guys.

Taglist: @local-witch-of-mn, @ladyqnoirr, @lolieg, @istoleyourcookies

[hauntedbythefanficsofmypast]

Spell Caster Pt. 1

Masterlist

Hawkmoth stood on the platform above, laughing at the two downed heroes. Ladybug and Chat laid facing each other barely able to move, exhausting shining in their eyes. They had fought long and hard but in the end he had led them into a trap, delivering hit after hit till neither could stand anymore. He had led them to his secret garden where beloved wife rested, and poor Adrien could barely keep himself together. He kept fighting, unwilling to let Hawkmoth win even if it was his father. While Marinette did her best to cover her hurting partner, he was just too much for them. Hawkmoth stood talking to Emilie as if she could hear him, going on about how he was finally going to bring her back. Ladybug shifted her gaze from Hawkmoth’s back to her partner’s eyes. Chat was crying as he stared at his best friend, knowing he hadn’t really helped in the fight.

“I’m sorry.” He whispered softly trying not to draw attention to them for as long as possible. “I’m sorry Ladybug, I should’ve helped but that-that’s my dad. I kept freezing up and I failed you.” Ladybug smiled gently, moving her arm and grabbing his hand.

“It’s not your fault Chaton.” A single tear fell from her eye as they stared at each other.

‘You need to move.’

Ladybug tensed at the voice looking around when she noticed Chat didn’t react to it. The voice was a woman's, it was soft and comforting, almost familiar.

‘You need to move now!’

She couldn’t find anybody else in the room, there was nobody but them. Yet the voice was still there, perhaps she was going crazy. It would make sense to her, especially because she couldn’t place who the voice belonged to.

‘Sweetheart, I will explain later I promise, but you must remember!’

Remember what? Why did this voice want her to remember something, couldn’t they see she was in a bit of trouble right now.

‘Ugh! Foolish girl! You are more than just Ladybug!’

Rude. Of course she was more than Ladybug, she was Marinette...she was Marinette daughter of..

‘Yes Marinette! Marinette daughter of! You are so close, remember the book!’

Marinette, she was Marinette, the book...what book, could the voice mean her spell book?

‘Yes! Yes, my little Spell Caster!’

She was Marinette, she was a spell caster. She was Marinette, and she was a spell caster. She was the daughter of Tom Dupain and Sabine-

‘Not by birth.’

Not by birth…Not by birth?! A distressed whine left her lips as she thought of her Maman, not by birth repeating in her head. Until she shoved it back focusing on her current crisis. She was Marinette and she was a Spell Caster, why hadn’t she thought of this before? She tried so hard to split Ladybug and Marinette to hide her identity that she forgot Marinette was special, if not more than Ladybug. What should she do though? She could alter his mind, but would it work? Would the Miraculous Gods affect her powers? Perhaps she could try an illusion?

“Chat, what was she like? Your mother.” Chat looked surprised as a gentle smile crossed his face.

“She was amazing, soft spoken, always so gentle and warm. She hated violence but she never backed down when it came to her family. She’d...she’d never want this to happen.” Chat broke as more tears fell and he held her hand tightly, barely even able to find the strength to.

“ Do you trust me?” She whispered as Hawkmoth began walking towards them. She’d need him in order to pull this illusion off. She’d need to see his memories. Chat nodded weakly, not willing to look away from her.

“Yes” She smiled and her dark blue eyes shifted into an unnatural swirling lavender.

“eciov reh raeh em tel.” Soon Emilie's soft and melodic voice graced her ear. Perfect, now the illusion will trick him.

‘That’s my Spell Caster.’

Who even is this voice, no no focus, she needs to create the illusion.

‘Silly girl.’

Hey! This voice seriously needed to stop distracting her. She turned her head slightly looking past Hawkmoth, and ignoring the smug smirk that she wanted nothing more than to punch off his face. Very hard.

“trapa mih raet reh evah efiw sih mih wohs.” She watched as an angry vision on Emilie appeared behind him looking as if she had sat up from her high tech coffin. Yes, coffin, the woman was dead, soul long gone and she didn’t have to be a daughter of Hades to know that. Daughter of Hades? What? What is she talking about?

‘Soon my child, soon.’

Who even was this voice! Later, she promised herself focusing on finalizing the illusion.

“Gabriel Agreste.” The same melodic voice called out, but instead of a soft and loving tone it was stern and angry. Hawkmoth turned immediately, staring at the vision of his wife in mute shock and disbelief. “What in the world are you doing!

‘I have called in a favor, one that will help you.’

Ugh, this voice popped in at the worst time. At least they were trying to help her though. She watched as Emilie’s illusion shifted slightly and it took her only a second to realize that it was more than an illusion now. No that was Emilie, just not her in body it was her, her soul.

‘Yes my child.’

She let out a wobbly grin as Emile began tearing into her husband. She squeezed Chat’s hand briefly hoping Emilie’s soul would be here long enough to say goodbye to her son. His eyes moved away from his mom’s form back to Ladybug’s.

“I will explain everything, I promise Chat. After this, no more secrets.”

She turned her attention back on Hawkmoth staring at his back intently. How could she get his miraculous? She was exhausted already so it couldn’t be anything complicated. Not to mention they’d need to get out of the lair after she took it. Summoning and a transportation spell, not a good combination when magically and physically exhausted. This left her in a very tough situation.

‘Someone is coming for you. You are too weak right now, the summoning spell will knock you out. Tell your partner to trust the one that comes from the shadows.’

Someone is coming? How can she know to trust them, just because a voice told her? Ugh, this was too difficult. Very well, tell Chat to trust the one from the shadows and then summon the butterfly Miraculous. She’d already taken the Peacock from Nathalie when they fought her earlier, so all that left was Hawkmoth’s.

“Chat, trust the one that comes from the shadows.”

“What? Ladybug-”

“Please Chat, trust me?”

“Always. Milady.”

“Then trust the one that comes from the shadows.”

“Okay.”

“Good. Suolucarim ylfrettub eht nommus i.”

The Miraculous immediately came to her hand but she didn’t get to celebrate as she began to see black spots. Her transformation dropped and she didn’t even get to enjoy Chat’s shocked face. Soon everything faded to dark with only parting words from the strange voice.

‘You and your partner are safe now my Spell Caster.’

She barely remembered what happened when she came to for the first time, everything was blurry as she panicked. Waking up in an unfamiliar room with someone she could barely see standing above her. Marinette threw a messy punch at the blonde above her, just barely missing even in her state. She lurched to throw herself off the bed but Will stopped her pulling her back onto it and talking softly. It did not help her at all and she didn’t stop panicking until Tikki flew in front of her face. Marinette took deep breaths staring at dearest friend. Will began pulling out new bandages getting ready to fix everything messed up in her panic. He was stopped by Marinette’s hand, she gave a weak smile as their eyes met. “Sorry…” She whispered out accent strong before falling back into the darkness.

Sun was directly in her eyes this time and she whimpered until it was blocked. Eyes meeting yet another stranger and instead of their stunning blue were a bright orange. She let out a distressed whine but did not move, Tikki was pressed against her neck. She was safe, even in the company of a stranger. Percy glanced at the door wishing for Will to magically appear before lifting the girl's head slightly holding a straw to her lips. “Drink please, it’ll help I swear.” He whispered trying to comfort her. Marinette took small sips, eyes changing to a soft and soothing blue at the taste of her favorite toasted white chocolate with triple espresso coffee. She glared when he pulled the straw away from her, causing Percy to laugh softly. He ran a hand through her hair in an attempt to be comforting. “I know, I know but too much will hurt you.” Her eyes watered slightly at the comfort.

“The voice didn’t lie.” She said softly, leaning into his hand. He quirked an eyebrow leaning closer to hear her. “The voice said we’d be safe, and we are.” Percy was silent before connecting the dots and nodding continuing to stroke her hair.

“The voice didn’t lie, you’re safe.” Marinette gave a small smile before darkness took her again.

“I can still barely believe it, Mar. The Gods are real, like real real, and you. You! You’re the daughter of one, her most powerful daughter too! I wouldn’t expect anything less of you. You’ve always been amazing in and outside of Ladybug. You’re my best friend, and-and I can’t wait for you to wake up. I need you to wake up please.” Adrien said softly, holding her hand, playing with her fingers. “I don’t know what our relationship will be. I don’t know if we’ll stay best friends or we’ll start dating. All I know is I want you in my life for the rest of my life.” Marinette squeezed his hand gently as her eyes faded to a soft pink.

“That sounds amazing, Rien.”

“Marinette!” Adrien cried out hugging her, laughter falling from both of them along with happy tears.

“Till the end?”

“Till the end.”

Percy smirked standing in the doorway, Chiron beside him as they watched the two.

“The holders of Creation and Destruction, in our camp.” Chiron mused watching the two before turning and walking toward the archery range. “This summer will be interesting won’t it.” He said ignoring Percy’s snort.

“I call training them Chiron!”

“Oh Gods help us, just what we need. Two more added to the chaos that is Percy Jackson.” Percy grinned, turning back to the two.

Yes, it would be a very interesting summer

✨Tag List Closed✨

@kanamexzeroyaoifangirl

@throneoffirebreathingbitchqueen

@athena452

@thornalchemist23

@fangirlnerd001

@witchbitch1998

@insane-fangirl-of-everything

@thewackest

@vivilikesmiraculous

[kimistorm]

Tomato Face [Nathaniel x f! Reader]

Fandom: Miraculous Ladybug

Pairing: Nathaniel x F!reader

Warnings: None

AN: Experimental epistolary writing!

Dear Diary.

Nathaniel Kurtzberg is the prettiest boy I have ever met, and nobody can convince me otherwise. Not even Adrien Agreste. He is also an insanely talented artist. Even if he doesn’t believe he is. And...he just happens to be the one person in the entire school who stole my heart. He is just, so wonderful to be around. He’s so sweet and kind. Okay, so I’m crushing on him. So what? It’s not like he likes me. He never could. Could he? No, stop, stop getting your hopes up. Why would he like me? I’m just, normal. I don’t run a famous blog about Ladybug like Alya. I’m not loved by everyone in the school like Marinette. I’m not sweet and adorable like Mylène. I’m not rich like Chloe. Okay, maybe not the best comparison. I wouldn’t want to be like Chloe. I’m not an artist like Alix. Yeah, those two would get together. Both of them are artists. They’d do art together. Me? Well, I just like to vegetate and binge watch Netflix and YouTube. Maybe I could become a superhero! Like Ladybug and Chat Noir! Maybe then I’d have something interesting in my life. I’d be able to practically fly around Paris saving people. People would love me! I’d be a hero! But then...what if I didn’t have the time to watch all of Jacksepticeye’s videos? That’d be so bad! Miss Bustier told us to read Le Petite Prince and to compare that to the movie. Ugh. I don’t want to do this. It’s a book for children! Well, I’m going to binge My Hero Academia.

(y/n)

To: This notebook that is definitely not my diary,

(y/n) is really nice. Pretty. Wonderful. Kind. Lovely. What is a crush? Is it normal to get butterflies in your stomach whenever you walk by a person? Why is my face always red whenever I’m near (y/n)? Why is it that I want her to notice me, but at the same time, I don’t want her to notice me because what if she sees me doing something weird and concludes that I am weird? Is it weird that I want to draw her? But what if she notices me staring at her? That’d be so awkward. It’s not like when I draw Ladybug. I don’t have to stare at Ladybug to draw her. I can just look at a picture, but with (y/n)...what if I took a picture of her? Then used that as reference? No, that’s even weirder. Then I just have a random picture of her on my phone. What if she sees? She’d definitely think I was a weirdo. Maybe Alix would know the answer to all of these questions. She’s a girl. No, that’s a bad idea. I don’t think Alix has a crush on anybody. She wouldn’t know. Why is human interaction so hard? It’s not like a drawing where you can plan out what happens and if you make a mistake you can erase it and it’s gone. Is this a crush? Is this what they call loving someone? But who wouldn’t like (y/n)? She’s got a beautiful smile. She’s very pretty. She’s very nice and kind to everyone. She’s almost like an angel. Oh….

Nathaniel

To: This notebook that is definitely not my diary,

Mayday! Mayday! I told Alix about my feelings for (y/n), I don’t know why I did it. It just happened. We were talking and it just-AH! Good news, Alix didn’t laugh at me. Bad new, Alix called me “whipped.” She said that I’m totally head over heels for her and that I should tell her how I feel, but how am I supposed to do that? I’m nowhere near (y/n) in the day. It’s always been from afar. Watching. Oh no that sounds like I’m a stalker! She definitely thinks I’m a weirdo now! She’s some ethereal being, no way I could approach her. Maybe I could talk to one of her friends. Yeah, that would work. But, if I’m near one of her friends, what if I accidentally spill how much I’m in love with (y/n) and they tell her and then she thinks I’m a weirdo! Maybe I’ll get Alix to talk to her. But then, what if she thinks I’m a jerk because I don’t even talk to her? What if she thinks that I think that I’m too good for her? No way, she’s way out of my league. There’s no way she could like someone like me.

Nathaniel

Dear Diary,

What if I cosplayed Bakugou? Maybe then I would get off of my butt and do something. Nathaniel has been acting weird lately. Not that I’m stalking him or anything. He’s just been avoiding me, and I’m pretty sure he’s consciously doing that. Since we passed each other in the hall today and when I said hi, he turned around and walked the other direction without saying anything. Did I do something wrong? It hurts. Here I am, harboring this insane crush on him, and he’s ignoring my presence. I need to get over him. There’s no way he could like someone like me.

(y/n)

TO: THIS NOTEBOOK THAT IS DEFINITELY NOT MY DIARY,

THIS IS BAD THIS IS BAD THIS IS REALLY REALLY BAD. FOR SOME REASON, AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHY, NINO GOT ME COFFEE THIS MORNING. BUT I DON’T DRINK COFFEE. AND SO THIS ENTIRE DAY I’VE BEEN AMPED UP. I COULDN’T EVEN DRAW ANYTHING I WAS SHAKING SO MUCH. IF THIS IS WHAT CAFFEINE DOES TO ME I DON’T NEED IT. THEN, AT THE END OF THE DAY, I SOMEHOW HAD THE COURAGE TO GO TALK TO (Y/N). FACE TO FACE. WHO IS THIS PERSON? I DON’T DO THAT. WAS THIS COFFEE SPIKED WITH ADRENALINE OR SOMETHING? BUT THAT DIDN’T HAPPEN! I WAS WALKING OVER TO HER, AND CHLOE SUDDENLY APPEARS OUT OF NOWHERE AND I TRIPPED. I DON’T KNOW WHAT I TRIPPED OVER BUT THE NEXT THING I KNOW MY LIPS ARE SMASHED AGAINST CHLOE’S LIPS AND (Y/N) SAW! WAIT, NOT JUST (Y/N). EVERYONE. EVERYONE. EVERYONE. EVERYONE IN THE ENTIRE SCHOOL SAW! IT WAS ON THE FRONT STEPS! OF COURSE EVERYONE IN THE ENTIRE SCHOOL SAW! AND YOU KNOW WHAT I DID? I RAN. OBVIOUSLY I RAN! I NEEDED TO GET OUT OF THAT SITUATION! IT WAS SO EMBARRASSING! I DON’T EVEN LIKE CHLOE! WHAT DO I DO?

NATHANIEL

Dear Diary,

Well. Today was just peachy. I saw Nathaniel on the front steps of the school practically eating Chloe’s face, and, well, my heart shattered. I didn’t think Nathaniel was that bold. Tomorrow everyone’s going to know how the two of them are dating. I knew I shouldn’t have gotten my hopes up.

(y/n)

“H-hey, (y/n).” You looked up to see Nathaniel awkwardly approaching you.

You tried to brace your heart, “h-hi.”

“So, you uh, I’m sure you did, you saw the uh, thing that happened on the, uh, front steps yesterday.”

“Yeah.” You answered carefully. The boy in front of you was avoiding your gaze, and it made you wary.

“That was all, uh, a mistake. Yeah, a mistake. I don’t like Chloe. At all. It was, I, I don’t even know. One moment I was, I was, trying to talk to, to you, and then she was there, and then I tripped, and then I was kissing her.” He stammered, “not that I wanted to!” he then shouted in a panicked fashion. “It was an accident.”

“Why are you telling me?” you asked carefully. Your heart was starting to rise in anticipation, but you shook your head. You weren’t going to get your hopes up again.

“BecauseIwantedtoaskyoutogoonadatewithme.” He mumbled under his breath.

“W-what?” did he just say what you thought he said.

“I was on the front steps of the building that day becauseIwantedtoaskyoutogoonadatewithme!” he shouted.

“I…what?” you still couldn’t understand what he was trying to say.

He took a deep breath and asked the floor, “do you want to go on a date?”

Your heart soared, “that thing with Chloe, it was all just an accident?” you asked shyly.

“Yeah.” He murmured, and your heart pieced itself back together.

“H-hey, Nathaniel.”

“Hm?” he asked and looked up from the floor to you.

“I’d love to go on a date with you,” you replied happily and leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his lips that left the two of you blushing redder than Nathaniel’s hair.

“Ugh!” a voice shouted from the end of the hall and the two of you whipped around to see Chloe standing angrily. “I can’t believe you two still got together! Even after yesterday!”

“Way to ruin the moment.” Nathaniel muttered.

“Come on, let’s go.” You took his hand and the two of you walked away from Chloe.

To: This notebook that is definitely not my diary,

She loves me! She’s not mad at me. She doesn’t think I’m weird. We’re going to go on a date together. Nothing could get me down. Cloud 9. I think that’s what it’s called. I’m on Cloud 9.

Nathaniel.

Dear Diary,

Today was fantastic. Yesterday was all just a misunderstanding. It was just Chloe being Chloe. But he likes me. He actually likes me! We’re going to go on a date together! Today is a wonderful day.

(y/n)

“Do I look good?” Nathaniel asked worriedly as he looked at Adrien and Nino. Alix was busy at a skating competition, but she sent him best of luck.

“‘Course you do!” Nino smiled.

“Maybe I should change jackets.” Nathaniel worriedly looked at himself in the mirror. He was wearing his normal purple pants, a white button-up, and his normal gray jacket. “It’s too normal.”

“If you were wearing something fancier, it’d look like you were going to prom.” Nino blurted out, but Adrien elbowed him, “I mean! You look great already!”

“There’s no need to get too fancied up,” Adrien smiled, “now come on, if you don’t get going, you might be late to pick her up.”

“Oh no!” Nathaniel panicked.

“Hey, don’t panic,” Adrien told him soothingly, “look, you’ve got your phone, you’ve got your wallet, you’re good to go. You’ll make it with time to spare.”

Nathaniel took a deep breath, “thanks guys.”

“No problem. Now go!” Nino shooed Nathaniel.

[imthepunchlord]

“I… I wish things were different.”

“No!”

.

.

.

It was a wonder, how were things so different, and yet the same? 

Marinette herself doesn’t get it. She has her guesses and theories. Why Paris was the same, in a sense, but also so different. Why Alya was still so energetic and level headed, but she had no passion for heroes. She actually loved taking selfies, being a star on the web. Nino was largely the same but wore pink instead of blue. And how Hawk Moth, the once distant threat that loomed over Paris, now literally loomed over it. In a blimp, with a big butterfly symbol on the side, an ever mocking, sinister shadow. 

One she couldn’t take care of, having no power or way to get up there and face him and free Paris. 

She ran a hand through her hair, feeling a numb frustration filling her. She thinks that when Adrien made the wish, she had her hand on the combined miraculouses. When he made that wish and she rejected it, their wishes clashed and mixed and now everything was… off and different. 

And for some odd reason, she remembered it all. Back when Alya loved heroes. Back when Chloe would wear yellow and white and not just white. Back when she was Ladybug and Adrien was Chat Noir and how they fought Hawk Moth’s akumas almost every day— 

She remembers it all. 

And she remembers this other life she’s now living in this altered world. 

And the weirdest thing is that they both feel like a dream to her. 

And she’s the only one who remembers. She even went and checked with Adrien, who was here, who did exist here as well, though now with a disability that requires a cane at his side. But he has no memory of the life he wished away. And Marinette didn’t even know how to describe the feeling as he gave her a patient and curious smile, answering no, he didn’t know who she was. 

Didn’t know her as the person he had insisted countless times as the one he loved. 

Didn’t even didn’t even know what he did. 

And didn’t know how alone and helpless and frustrated he left her. 

Her eyes traveled back up to the blimp, watching it drift by, mocking her. Her hand curled into a fist, wanting nothing more than to punch Gabriel Agreste in the face. 

She didn’t have the earrings. She couldn’t find Master Fu or the earrings anywhere. It was as if they disappeared. And Adrien, he didn’t have the ring. There was nothing on his fingers and she hasn’t seen anything of a cat hero running about. 

She doesn’t even know if the wish had erased them. If miraculouses still existed, and if what Gabriel has is the butterfly miraculous or something else. She knows he’s using something. She hears the explosions, the sirens, the screams. She can hear them now, ringing in her ears— 

She was on her feet in seconds, turning to glare at the adjacent roof. Moving back a little and bouncing on her heels, she ran towards her railing, leapt for it, and then jumped.

She hit the roof hard and scrambled to pull herself, her heart pounding quickly in her chest. For a moment, she wondered what was she doing. She was deadly and reckless and she got to the top, she looked up, seeing that blimp overhead. She glanced forward to see another close roof. 

Tikki once told her she didn’t need a miraculous to be a hero. 

Saving Fu from Feast confirmed that for her. 

If she can make it on the roofs, largely do what she’s always done, then she could bring down that damn butterfly without a miraculous. She can still help people. She can still save this city. Different as it was, it was still her home, and the people here were still people. 

She wasn’t going to bow her head and do nothing. 

Standing up, she went for the second roof, finding it was thankfully closer than before. She moved for the third, pushing off on the tiles, finding she slipped a little as she landed but she was able to pull herself up. She kept going, pushing her limit, proving that she can do this miraculous or no. 

On her sixth roof, she was going to leap for the seventh when she was grabbed from behind and dragged back. Instinctively, she dropped with the pull, startling the one who grabbed her and sending them both down on the roof and rolling down the slope and onto a flat section. 

“Are you crazy?!” a voice snarled out, drawing Marinette’s tense gaze up. 

She went still as a boy dressed as a black cat arose, looking very agitated and pissed. “You could’ve gotten us both killed!” He bared his teeth at her, showing her pointed canines that he had, canines Adrien didn’t have when he had been Chat. His hair, a more platinum blond and longer, wilder. His suit had more flare than what Adrien had, and a… giant bell? How helpful was that?

“Are you even listening to me?” the cat boy snarled. 

“Why do you have such a big bell?” she blurted. 

His face went red and he angrily sputtered, “Shut up!”

Faster than she could move, he was on his feet, hauling her up and setting her over his shoulders. To himself, he grumbled, “I don’t know what you were doing, I don’t want to know, I don’t care to know.” He dropped from the roof and she instinctively latched as the air rushed past them. She was unceremoniously dropped on the ground where her unsteady legs had her falling onto her butt. 

She looked up at the angry cat that was crouched over her, practically hearing him growl in warning, “Don’t ever do that again.” 

He slammed the ground, and a dark portal opened up that he quickly fell into. It closed up behind him, leaving Marinette alone on the sidewalk, gaping after him. 

“What a grumpy cat!” she declared, slightly in exaggeration, but unable to help the smile coming to her lips. The ring was here. There was a cat hero here. 

The ladybug had to be somewhere here as well. 

[multifandomwriter18]

“If only I could hear your voice” Chatnoir x reader PART 1

A/n: this was requested by DianaTales on wattpad I hope you like it, just to let you know this one shot I believe will be at least two parts. Also I thought this song was suitable for this one!

Also possible triggering warning. This imagine contains strong language, bullying etc.

••••

I never was born like this..

I don't remember much about when I was little..

Don't remember what happiness was..what peace was..how it felt to talk or sing..

How it felt to hear my voice..for people to hear my voice.

Things use to be perfect..my goal was to sing..to sing my heart out and become a singer.

I mean isn't that every girls dream? To become someone people look up to?

To be noticeable?

The doctor's voice rings in my head again.

"(Y/n) sweetie, I'm sorry but your voice box was damaged in the accident..I'm afraid you won't be able to talk..or sing.."

"(Y/n), honey you'll be late for school!" My mother called from down stairs. I let out a small sigh and I gave myself one last look in the mirror before heading down stairs.

I greet my parents with a smile and they gave me a kiss and a hug. I ate breakfast and I walk to school.

I kept my (eye colour) eyes glued to the ground while I listen to music. As I walked I tried to sing again.

I know I can't speak but I've been trying a lot to try to..I just want..I want to sing..

I let out a sigh which sounds like I was being strangled in a way. I hate not being able to speak.

I higher the volume on the music as I walk.

Once I get to school I scan the area for that girl Chloe and her 'friend' Sabrina. With them not in sight I head straight to the school doors.

Without looking up I bump into someone. When I look up I see Adrien. "Oh jeez I'm sorry (y/n) I didn't see you there..you ok?" I nodded and he helped me up.

"Oh Adrien!!!" I froze as I see Chloe and Sabrina running over. Adrien gasped as he is suddenly embraced by the mean blonde girl.

"I missed you so much!" I take a step back and turn to run to only be tripped by Sabrina.

"Well, well, well, look what we have here. The little mute girl is back." Sneered Chloe as she flipped her hair over her shoulder.

My eyes narrowed as I met her cold blue eyes burn in my (E/c) ones. I brushed a lock of my (h/l) (h/c) hair and glared at her.

What does she want now?!

As I stood up Sabrina pulled out a sheet of paper that slipped from my binder. My eyes widened as I tried to grab it from her.

As I opened my mouth try and speak only a squeal escaped my lips.

Chloe laughed. "Aw the mute is trying to speak again, you really a pathetic."

Tears weld in my eyes as my (s/c) became flushed with anger.

Sabrina giggled as she handed Chloe my sheet of paper I was trying to get back. "Chloe, give it back now." Adrien stated angrily.

She rolled her eyes. "Don't worry Adrien, I want to see what Mute made..oh my!"

It was a drawing I made of Chat Noir and I..in the drawing I was in his arms and he was holding me tightly as were in the sky.

It was based on the dream I had last night..when I have a dream I like to draw my favourite scenes so I could cherish it forever.

She laughed even more when she found some son lyrics on the back of it representing about Chat.

Chloe began to read.

" 'I don't want to say about you, the way you move, the way you talk, the way you walk, the way your always in my mind~your eyes shine so bright, it's like I'm seeing a whole new light yeah..' What kind of crap is this?" I froze and the look on Adrien's face made me heart shatter.

"Oh my god! You have a crush on Chat! What a loser!" She shouted loud enough for people to hear. Another squeak escaped my lips as I yank the paper out of her hands and ran the other way as tears escape my eyes.

I ran to the girls washroom and sobbed my heart out.

Stupid Chloe..

*Time Skip*

After crying for a while and controlling myself I stepped out of the washroom and cleaned up my hair.

My (e/c) eyes were red and blood shot. Around my whole eyes they were puffy and red. My skin colour was no longer had its natural (s/c) glow. It was now pale.

I splashed cold water on my face and tied my (h/c) in a pony tail.

I step out and walk to class. Miss. Bustier looked at me. "Ms. (L/n) your late to class." I bowed my head and walked up the back of the class.

"She was too busy dreaming about Chat Noir." Teased Chloe making some students laugh.

My heart clenched as I sat down. "Isn't that right Mute? Oh wait you can't answer that cause you can't talk!" Chloe added on with another laugh.

"Chloe, that's enough!" Our teacher stated calmly and I looked down at my shaking hands.

"I mean what chances do you have with Chat?"

"Leave her alone Chloe!" Snapped Marionette making my heart flutter a little.

Marionette and I use to be good friends when we were little. We still are..just..I prefer to keep my distance.

I let my (h/c) bangs cover my eyes as I tried to not focus on Chloe. "Hello? Loser I'm talking to you? Are you deaf too?"

"Chloe leave her alone!"

"She's so pathetic, at least now I don't get to hear her ugly voice, she has no talent what she ever, glad she had that accident."

I froze, my whole body just shut down on me. Without anymore thought I grabbed my things and ran.

A sob breaks out of my chest even before I could make it out the door. I stood back up trying to ignore Chloe's taunts.

"Maybe you should leave, like forever. There is no point if you even being here. No one wants a mute. Your just too pathetic for this world."

I ran, not caring that the teacher was calling after me. I don't care anymore..

I just want the pain to stop..

Strands of my (h/c) hair stuck to my sweaty (s/c) forehead as I ran down the hall and out on the streets.

I even ran all the way home, I didn't care about school, I'd rather stay home..that's the only place I can feel safe..

Where no one can hurt me..

I sobbed as I run to my room and collapse on the floor pulling my knees to my chest.

I tried to scream but only a squeak came out of my mouth. I kicked and three things across my room. I grabbed my music book and threw it hard against the wall making all my papers go flying.

Chloe's right..I am useless..

There's no point for me..

I cried even harder as I grabbed my sketch book and tossed it in my little garbage bin.

I sank to knees again and sobbed.

I hate her..

I hate her..

I hate them..

I hate the world..

I hate myself..

Hate..

Hate..

Hate..

The doctors voice rings in my head again.

"I'm sorry but she won't be able to talk again..she will be mute..I'm sorry.."

That what I always will be..

Forever and always..

Mute..

•••

Two updates in one day. I’ll probably post part 2 later on today. And I’ll try to post some more transformer one shots as well.

I’m also well aware that I got a few asks as well. I’ll try to work on them later if I can. I’m currently working on my other books too.

I’m also going back to work next week so I won’t be active that much again but I’ll try my best.

[syndianites]

A Queen Serves and Protects

Chapter Two

Last Chapter --> Current --> Next Chapter!

Summary:

Post-Style Queen, Pre-Queen Wasp.

Chloe finds the Bee Miraculous, but instead of finding an obliging, subservient Kwami, she finds the Kwami of Order and Subjugation, and Pollen is not about to let herself be used like Nooroo was.

Granted, the only danger in a teenage girl is the damage she poses to herself. Can Pollen shape Chloe into a hero? Or will she stubbornly refuse to change and remain the bitter, harsh person the city has long since known?

[My take on how Chloe’s character could have developed] ——————————————————————————————

Twenty four hours went by excruciatingly slow for Pollen.

First, she had to wait through the night. Chloe hadn’t unboxed her until late in the day, when the sun was almost gone. That left little time in the day for much interaction with others.

But she didn’t spend this time twiddling her thumbs. She did what research she could. After observing Chloe- who she learned the name of moments after their deal- meander on her phone and laptop for a few hours, she had a dubious grasp on how the current technology worked.

It was quite the adventure.

But after trial and error, she managed to look Chloe up on the internet. (And what a fascinating thing!). The results gave her a basic background; Daughter of the Mayor of Paris, Mother is a renowned expert in the fashion industry, and so on. She seemed clean, for all Pollen could tell.

So she searched her room. Most of what she could see was clearly expensive, from shiny new gadgets to prim and proper clothes. Beyond some Ladybug merchandise- and oh boy was this girl a fan of Ladybug- nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

A sneak around the hotel didn’t reveal much about Chloe, herself, but her parents on the other hand….

What disasters!

Calling their relationship dysfunctional would be a complement. They were completely polarized opposites, and not in the good, healthy way. Her mother was derisive and cruel, refusing to associate with those she believed were below her and didn’t meet her exceptional standards. Her father was, despite his position, a lapdog. He would bend over backwards to please his wife, acting like a doormat.

Together, they were the perfect image of an Evil Queen and her loyal Servant.

It didn’t give Pollen any good feelings about how Chloe herself would act. Would she take after her parents? Or would she be her own person?

Day time did not ease her fears. Chloe was brash and rude, clearly taking after her mother. She didn’t remember anyone’s names, was haughty and snappy towards her staff, and clearly was comfortable acting above everyone else.

Not a good sign at all.

The way she treated her ‘friend’ was yet another bad sign. Just like her mother had her father as a lapdog she, too, had her friend as a lapdog. However, Pollen took note of how she did remember her name. That must count for something, she considered doubtfully.

School was a disaster for Pollen.

Chloe started out just as haughty as she had in the hotel. Somehow, she got worse. Rude to other students, sneering at and belittling them, and outright mean. Treating her ‘friend’ as a servant. Disregarding other’s feelings. Causing chaos in the class.

There was little Pollen saw as redeemable for Chloe. Between her attitude towards those who worked for her and her family and those who she spent most of her time around, acts of kindness were nigh impossible to find.

As they made their way home, Pollen mulled over how to find Ladybug or Master Fu. In theory, she could try and call out to the other kwami, but such an act took a lot of power and could draw the attention of Hawkmoth or worse. She could camp out until Ladybug and Chat Noir had to come out for another akuma, but how would she manage to transport her miraculous across the city without getting snatched by said akuma?

But as Chloe walked into the lobby of the hotel, her mother’s voice caught her attention.

“Clara!” Audrey strutted up to her daughter, typing away at her phone with one hand. “I need you to fetch me something dear.”

‘Clara?’ Pollen mused, ‘Her name’s Chloe.’

Chloe perked up. “Of course mother. And my name’s Chloe. What can I do for you?”

Audrey waved her hand, “Whatever you say, Cindy. I heard that Adrien Agreste, Gabriel’s son, is in your class. I need you to ensure that Gabriel seated me in the correct location this time. The reshoot of the fashion show is today and I will not be in the second row again.”

From where she could just see Chloe from the gap in her purse, Pollen watched her face fall before she straightened back up with a nod. “Of course! Putting you in the second row is ridiculous, utterly ridiculous!”

“Yes, yes, now please leave. I have business to attend to Carrie.” Audrey dismissed Chloe with a wave before heading deeper into the hotel.

Chloe, despite being misnamed three times in a row, seemed determined to please her mother. She gripped the handle of her bag tighter before rummaging in it to fish out her phone. Barely looking up, she wandered towards the elevator that would take her to her penthouse suite.

When the doors closed and left Chloe alone in the elevator, Pollen poked her head out of the bag. “Is it often your mother gets your name wrong?”

Her lips thinned as she pressed them together. “Yes.” Chloe’s response was short and clipped.

Pollen mulled this response over. Pieces of the puzzle that was Chloe were falling into place. As the doors opened again, Pollen ducked back down into the purse.

Chloe continued to text until a smile lit her face up. “Oh, Adrikins! I can always count on you.”

She skipped into her room, shooting a text to her mother- who didn’t respond- that her seat was guaranteed to be in the front row. Chloe went to toss her bag before remembering that it was occupied and lowering it down on a chair gently.

“Alright, Pollen, how was I? As great as you imagined I would be?” Chloe placed the back of her hand under her chin proudly.

In lieu of an answer, Pollen merely replied,”It hasn’t been twenty four hours yet, Chloe.”

Chloe groaned, grumbling complaints about how her heroic qualities should be obvious by now, but ultimately let it go. They had made a deal, after all.

“Oh,” Chloe said suddenly, “Sabrina will be coming over soon, so you’ll want to hide out for a while.”

A perfect opportunity to see what Chloe was like behind closed doors.

Turns out, she was strangely sweet. 

Sabrina and Chloe played together like any teens would; watching shows together, gossiping- albeit in a less than kind way- doing each others’ make-up, and most embarrassingly playing ‘Ladybug and Chat Noir’. Despite herself, Pollen found it endearing.

Still, it was not enough to sway her. Endearing or not, Chloe was not fit for being a superhero.

///////

The fashion show was cute. True to word, Chloe and her family were sat in the front row where Audrey critiqued- quite loudly for such an event- each outfit that came about. A few she praised, but they were few and far between. 

When Adrien Agreste appeared, the Style Queen gave an appreciative hum. “What quality craftsmanship. Surely an exceptional designer made that hat.”

It wasn’t until after the show that things went south.

Audrey had approached Adrien and, to many’s surprise, Gabriel Agreste in the flesh to discuss the fashion. 

“My dear, it seems you’ve set up yet another exceptional line of clothing. That hat dear Adrien is wearing is quite the gem among them.” Audrey gushed to a polite but stone-faced Gabriel.

“Ah,” Gabriel began, “That hat is not a design of my own.”

Adrien piped up here, “It was actually made by a friend of mine! Marianette,” he called over his shoulder, locking eyes with a shocked dark haired girl. “Come show Audrey this hat you made!” 

Nervous and stuttering, Marianette explained the logistics of her hat and its design, from the synthetic feather to the careful craftsmanship. Audrey, a known harsh critic, glowed as she listened.

“Fabulous, my dear!” she crowed, “I simply must see more of your work. How would you like to come to New York with me to design more fashion for a line of mine?”

Pollen, invested in the conversation, was pulled out of it by a shaking sensation. She looked up to see Chloe outright trembling as she pulled her hands into fists.

“Mother! Why would you take her of all people!” Chloe burst out. All eyes turned to her. 

“Why, Connie, it’s because she is quite exceptional! I would recognize such talent a country away,” Audrey replied with a dismissive wave.

“So am I!” 

A laugh. “Dear, the only exceptional thing about you is your mother.”

Had it not been for the hubbub of people around them, you could have heard a pin drop. Chloe stared resolutely at the floor, teeth grinding together and tears threatening to fall. Marianette, for her part, looked like a deer in headlights, stuck between a sharp drop off a cliff and an incoming car.

“Now Audrey,” Gabriel started, before getting cut off.

“I am exceptional!” Chloe shouted. “I will show you! I’m going to be a super heroine! Just you wait, I’ll be better than this girl will ever be!”

Audrey outright cackled. “Oh honey, keep dreaming. There is not a heroic bone in your body.”

Eyes watering and lips trembling, Chloe turned on a dime and stormed off. Pollen caught Marianette make an aborted move towards her, but was stopped by Adrien putting a hand on her arm.

Fuming and ready to bawl, Chloe bust out the front doors and began running down the sidewalk. For minutes, safely tucked into Chloe’s bag, all Pollen can hear is hard footsteps, people shouting, and Chloe’s heavy breathing.

After hearing doors slam open and closed repeatedly, Chloe and Pollen are left in silence. When Pollen braved a look out the purse, she sees that they have found their way back to the locker room at Chloe’s school. Seeing that they were alone, she moved out into the open.

“Fuck!” Chloe exploded. “How dare she!”

Feeling the rage roiling off Chloe, Pollen rushed to calm her. “Chloe, take a deep breath. Give yourself a minute to let it simmer.”

Icy eyes shot up to look at Pollen. “Take a breath? Let it simmer? Are you kidding! I have done my best to make my mother see I am exceptional, so show her that  I am good enough, and what does she do? Invites Dupain-Cheng of all people to go with her to New York.”

Pacing back and forth in front of the benches, Chloe growled. “Do you know when the last time I saw my mother for more than a day was? Years ago! Years, Pollen!” Tears trickled down her cheeks as Chloe caved in on herself. “I’ve done my best to be just like her, to show her I can be great too. Why won’t she ever look at me?”

With a hesitant pause, Pollen reached a paw out to Chloe’s shoulder. “Some people can’t be pleased, Chloe. You shouldn’t base your self worth on the word of another.”

Chloe jerked her shoulder away, turning her back to Pollen. “You don’t understand.”

“My mother left when I was young.” She walked forward towards the door so that she could peer out the window. “I didn’t understand why. She didn’t even say goodbye.”

“But,” Chloe continued, “If I can just get her to see that I’m worth staying for, she’ll stay here. Maybe, just maybe, I can convince her to be part of our family again.”

Red-rimmed eyes and wet cheeks turned back to Pollen. “It’s just so hard. She hardly cares for me at all.”

A pause. “Pollen?” Chloe bit her lip. “Am I unlovable?”

“Of course not. Chloe, no one is beyond love. Not even the worst of people.” Pollen could feel the tides shifting. Before, she was determined to leave Chloe behind. But now? Her heart ached at the thought of abandoning her.

Chloe starts to say something else, but all Pollen could hear was the flap of wings. Her eyes flicked to behind Chloe to where the locker room door was just set ajar. A delicate butterfly of deep, cracked purple squeezed its way inside.

“Chloe!” Pollen yelled. But it was too late. The butterfly touched down on her white sunglasses and disappeared without a sound.

A sudden blank look came across Chloe’s face. A purple butterfly mask appeared across her eyes. Every part of Pollen screamed that she was in danger. Not just from an akumatized Chloe, but from Hawkmoth knowing that she was with Chloe.

Her eyes darted around the room. She needed to hide. It would be safer for the both of them if she kept herself unknown.

“Yes, Hawkmoth.”

[purrincess-chat]

Marinette Dupain-Cheng’s Spite Playlist: Remix CH12

It’s ya boooooy! Malin is here!! Super huge shout out to @salty-french-fry for bringing him to life. I commissioned her to draw all of my OC hero babies, so you can see Malin in all of his anime boy glory here! We stan a trans bicon. And for those who are unaware, Malin is another name for fox in French, but like with the connotation of calling someone sly or tricky. I hope you all enjoy this chapter! I tweaked it quite a bit from the original. ;)

Previous     First      Next     AO3

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

Chapter 12: WTF Do I Know

“I know our duty is to the city, but I can’t help these feelings stirring my heart. Every time I see her brilliant blue eyes shining in the moonlight, I am overcome with passion and admiration. She truly is Miraculous.” Eliott looked to Marinette sitting cross-legged on the floor for approval. “How was that?”

“Incredible! You really have Chat Noir down,” she said.

Eliott rubbed the back of his neck. “Thanks, but I still feel like I could do better. Opening night is only a week away, and I’m playing one of the leads. Everything has to be perfect.” He paced the length of the stage, adjusting his black mask.

“I’m sure you’ll be fine. You make a wonderfully convincing Chat Noir.” She assured him—and she should know.

“Wonderfully convincing isn’t perfect. This play is a tribute to Ladybug and Chat Noir’s triumph on Heroes’ Day. If I screw up then I’ll be dishonoring them.” He turned and gestured to the impressive backdrop of the Eiffel Tower.

“No, you won’t.” Marinette stood up and placed a hand on his shoulder. “You’re an amazing actor, and I know you’re gonna kill it.”

“Places in five everyone!” The director swept through the stage.

Stagehands rushed around the set. Costume designers made last-minute alterations, and each prop was meticulously tested and placed for ease of access during scene changes. Marinette never realized how chaotic theater was behind the scenes.

Eliott let a deep breath past his lips, and Marinette offered him a smile. “I’ll be watching in the audience. You’re gonna do great.”

“Thanks, Marinette,” he said. “And thanks for coming to watch our dress rehearsal.”

“Thanks for inviting me.”

“Sorry I’m so crazy about everything, I just want to be the best.” He fiddled with his gloves. “I’ve been studying English since I was little because my dream is to perform on Broadway. I know it’s a long shot, but it’s what I’ve wanted ever since my grandma and I watched a play together when I was a kid.”

“You’ll get there, and I’ll be sitting in the front row with Macy, Martin, and Adrien.”

Eliott smiled at that, pressing a soft kiss to her knuckles. “I actually owe you, Marinette. You’ve helped me a lot as an actor since we met.”

“Me? How?”

“You taught me to take risks. Before I met you, I was just coasting through life, staying out of the way, playing it safe, but now I can stand up for other people and speak out,” he explained. “You helped me find the courage to step outside my comfort zone.”

Her cheeks burned, but she smiled at the sentiment. All of her new friends gave praise so easily—something Marinette wasn’t used to. Helping others wasn’t about getting rewarded, and in most cases, the attention just made her squirm. She helped her friends because she cared. Although, even if their compliments embarrassed her, it was nice to know she was appreciated.

“Watch where you’re going!” A nasally voice grabbed their attention.

“Sorry!” A tiny stagehand shrank under the icy glare of her aggressor.

Eliott sprang into action to diffuse the situation. “Margot, is there a problem?”

“She bumped into me! Can you imagine if I had fallen and broken my wrist a week before opening night? How can I play Ladybug with a broken wrist?” Margot shouted.

Eliott stepped between her and the stagehand, holding up defensive hands. “I’m sure it was just an accident. No one got hurt, so why don’t you go cool off? We’re almost ready to start.”

“Ugh, whatever. Just stay out of my way!”

As she stalked off, Eliott turned to the small girl. “Are you okay, Lisette?”

“You know my name?” Her eyes widened.

“Of course. You hand me my props before I go on stage,” he said. “Don’t let Margot get to you. She’s just nervous because the show is in a week, and it’s her first time playing a lead.”

“It was my fault. I wasn’t watching where I was going,” Lisette said.

Eliott tucked a strand of her blonde hair back into place, brushing her cheek with his thumb. “Hey, don’t worry about it. We’re all a little high strung right now.”

“You’re not.”

Eliott flashed her a playful grin. “I’m a good actor.”

“I know,” she said, and when Eliott quirked a brow she fumbled to add, “I-I’ve kind of had to watch you for the past several months. You’re really good.”

“Wow, thanks, Lisette. I’m flattered that a pretty girl like you is a fan of mine,” Eliott said.

Her cheeks flushed, and she gave a small nod before scurrying off to her position at the director’s order.

Marinette couldn’t help the smile on her lips as Eliott found his mark and took a few deep breaths to center himself. He’d grown a lot since they met, and if someone had to play Chat Noir, she was glad it was him. She’d been uncertain at first, but Eliott really was worthy of being a hero, even if his costar was the worst. How could they cast such a brat to play Ladybug?

Taking her seat in the audience, Marinette thought back to her encounter with Gabrielle several nights prior. True to her word, Gabrielle hadn’t bothered them since, but what she was doing out on her own like that? And what was up with the apron in her bag? Something fishy was going on with her, but at least she was keeping her word. It was about time Marinette got some peace and quiet.

♪♫♪ I’m Not Calling You a Liar ♪♫♪

When the school bell rang, Alya remained seated, lips pursed. Her other classmates gathered their backpacks, eager to enjoy their weekend plans. Adrien paid her no mind as he slung his bag over his shoulder and followed everyone else out. They hadn’t spoken since their last encounter, and Alya still wasn’t sure what to think. He sounded so sure of himself. After being friends with Marinette, she knew far more about Adrien Agreste than she ever cared to, and truthfully, Alya didn’t think he was capable of being malicious.

Don’t believe everything Lila tells you. Be a journalist. Investigate.

But how? It’s not like Alya could just call up a bunch of celebrities and foreign princes to ask them to corroborate all of Lila’s stories, and even if she could, what would Lila think if they proved Adrien wrong? Or worse, what would Alya think if they proved him right? If they proved Marinette right…

It had been two weeks since she left. Two weeks since they… Alya had been hurt at first, and her heart still ached thinking about it now. In the grand scheme of things, she hadn’t known Marinette that long—only a few months—so it was possible that there were things Alya didn’t know about her. Dark secrets she kept hidden. But if that were possible for Marinette, couldn’t the same be true for Lila? And why was Alya so afraid to go looking?

“Alya? Did you hear me?”

She blinked out of her trance. “Sorry, what?”

“You’ve been awfully spacey lately,” Lila remarked. “I was just saying that I have an important meeting today with my youth ambassadors committee. Clara Nightingale has promised to sponsor our clean water initiative, and today’s the only day we can meet with her. Is there any way you can take care of that thing Mlle. Bustier needed for me?”

Don’t believe her.

“Actually, Lila, I have to go pick up my little sisters because Nora has practice this afternoon, and Mlle. Bustier did ask you to do it,” Alya said.

Lila’s eyebrows raised, but just as quickly, she puckered her lips into a pout. “Is there any way you could have Nino pick up your sisters? This meeting is really important.”

“Nino promised Juleka he’d help Kitty Section with their sound system today so they can practice before their gig this weekend.” Her heart pounded as Lila’s lip twitched.

“I mean, I guess I can put off my meeting. Those kids in India will just have to go a little while longer without clean drinking water…” Lila eyed her.

“Ya know, if you’re too busy to keep up with your class rep stuff, you can always tell Mlle. Bustier to let us elect someone else. I’m sure everyone would understand,” Alya said pointedly.

“And let Chloe become the class rep again? I couldn’t do that to you guys.” Lila shook her head.

“True, but I can’t cover for you all the time. I have my own stuff going on. Maybe I’m not saving third world countries, but sometimes I have a life to live too,” Alya said. “You were elected to do all of this, you know.”

“No, I understand,” Lila sighed. “I’ve been putting too much pressure on you to do my job. It’s just so hard to juggle going to school and saving the world. I’ll figure out a way to do it for all of you because you’re my friends, and my friends are just as important to me as any starving, third-world country.”

“Good. I’m glad to hear that you’ll be putting in more effort.” Alya stood up. “Have a good weekend.”

“Oh, I’m sure my weekend will be better than those thirsty children in Iran.”

Alya stopped in the doorway. “Don’t you mean in India?”

“What?”

“Earlier you said the meeting was for children in India. Now you just said Iran,” Alya said.

“Oh, yeah, that’s what I meant,” Lila said. “I have a different thing for Iran next week. It’s hard to keep everything straight when you’re so busy.”

“Right.” Alya’s eyes narrowed. “Well, good luck.”

“Give your sisters a hug for me!”

Alya’s hands shook as she headed up the hall. It was probably nothing, just a simple mix up like she said, but… Given the circumstances, it was a little suspicious. One thing was certain: Alya would be keeping an eye on her.

♪♫♪ Thnks fr th Mmrs ♪♫♪

“Your rehearsal was amazing,” Marinette said afterward over tea. “Well, except for Margot’s prop mishap. I thought she was going to have a meltdown.”

Eliott stirred his drink with a smirk. “She’s a great actress until something goes wrong,” he chuckled. “I just feel bad for Lisette. She looked like she wanted to kill her.”

“Speaking of Lisette…” Marinette gave him a knowing look. “I think she might have a crush on you.”

“Lisette? Nah.” Eliott averted his gaze, taking a sip of his tea. “I’m not anyone important. There’s no way she’d be into me.”

“That’s not true. You’re an amazing actor,” Marinette said. “I mean that, you don’t have anything to worry about.”

“Thanks, I guess the thought of someone liking me just makes me nervous.” He bit his lip.

“Come on. You flirt with everyone all the time,” Marinette said. “You flirted with me on my first day of school.”

“Flirting is different. Just because I flirt with people doesn’t mean they have to like me back,” he said, then biting his lip, added, “Do you really think she likes me?”

“As someone who struggles to get two coherent sentences out around the boy she likes, I think she likes you more than you know,” Marinette said.

“Speaking of… You and Adrien sure seem to get along.” He sipped his tea with a satisfied smirk as Marinette’s cheeks burned. He didn’t waste any time flipping the script, but it was her fault for opening that door.

“Oh, do we? I mean, of course we do. We’re just friends, I don’t have feelings for him at all,” she said with a nervous titter.

“I never said you did,” Eliott said.

“Oh, um, yeah, well then I- don’t tell Macy.” She hung her head in defeat.

“Your secret’s safe with me.” He shrugged. “But you don’t have to worry about Macy’s crush. It’s superficial. She fixates on some famous guy for a while, then moves on when something new catches her eye.”

Marinette relaxed. “Good. I’ve just liked Adrien for a long time, and ever since I left my old school, he’s been paying more attention to me, so…I don’t want it to come between us.”

“Nah, I’m sure if she knew she’d back off,” Eliott assured her. “She’s extremely loyal to her friends and would never try to take away something you wanted even if she wants it too. One time she and I argued for twenty minutes because she convinced herself I wanted the last cookie on the plate. We ended up breaking it in half.”

“That’s a relief.” Marinette let out a breath.

“Though I do have to wonder which sounds better, Marinette Agreste or Adrien Dupain-Cheng?”

Marinette nearly choked on her tea. “Eliott!”

“I’m kinda partial to Adrien Dupain-Cheng myself.”

“Stop!” She covered her face, cheeks burning, and Eliott threw his head back with a laugh.

A herd of people stampeded up the sidewalk right before a loud crash sounded a few blocks over. Debris fell from the ceiling, and Eliott tackled Marinette to the ground, cradling her head.

“That sounded close, we should run.” He pulled her to her feet. “My yacht isn’t far from here, we can hide there.”

As much as she hated to do it, Marinette needed to get away. Gradually, she let herself slip from his grasp in the crowd. Eliott turned over his shoulder in an attempt to reach her again, but too many people stood between them.

“Marinette!”

“Go! I’ll catch up,” she called.

His eyebrows furrowed worriedly, but he pressed on without question.

Marinette ducked into a nearby alley and opened her purse. “Ready, Tikki? Transform me!”

Ladybug tossed her yoyo across the street, tugging the slack and launching herself into the rooftops. Racing down the row of buildings, she followed the civilian trail to the scene of the attack. Overturned cars and broken windows signaled that she was on the right track, and she arrived at the same time as Chat Noir.

“Well, well we meet again, m’lady.” His flirtatious lilt echoed between the buildings as he staff-coptered down to join her.

“I would hope so since saving the city is our job.” She flicked his bell. “I think it’s about time we clocked in, don’t you?”

“Ladies first.” Chat Noir bowed as Ladybug tossed her yoyo and shot into action. “Don’t mean to interrupt your tirade, but I’m gonna need to see some license and registration for that car,” he said as they landed. “What’s the matter? Rough break up?”

The akuma turned to them with a growl, tossing the car aside, and Ladybug spotted a small blonde girl cowering underneath.

“Civilian alert!”

“On it.” Chat Noir charged forward, brandishing his staff.

“Ladybug! Chat Noir! I am Showstopper, and I’m about to give Paris the performance of a lifetime after I get rid of her.”

The small girl on the ground cowered under Showstopper’s glare, her blonde buns oddly familiar…

Ladybug gasped. “That’s Lisette which means Showstopper must be Margot! She really was upset by that mistake.”

Lisette attempted to run, but Showstopper served a ball of light at her with the tennis racket—the lucky charm prop from the play and likely where the akuma was hiding. The attack froze Lisette in place, but before Showstopper could make her next move, she blocked a blow from Chat Noir’s staff. A few seconds passed, and the magic faded, sending Lisette toppling forward.

“So that’s it,” Ladybug said, then to Chat Noir called, “Don’t let her hit you, or she’ll freeze you for a few seconds!”

“Got it!” He dodged an orb.

Once Showstopper drove him back several paces, she dashed after Lisette, launching a bus to the end of the street to block the exit.

“Going somewhere?”

“No, but you are.” Ladybug hooked her yoyo around Showstopper’s ankle. Showstopper lobbed several orbs at her before she could pull the slack, and Ladybug backflipped out of the way, diving for cover with Chat Noir behind two flipped cars.

“We need a plan to get that girl out of here.” He peeked over the side.  

Ladybug palmed her yoyo. “Lucky Charm!” Her eyebrows raised as a paper lantern landed in her hands.

“Oh great, you can light the way for her to wreck that girl,” Chat Noir said.

Ladybug pursed her lips contemplatively. “I need to go to Master Fu,” she said. “Can you handle things until I get back?”

“Just don’t keep me waiting too long.” Chat Noir nodded before they broke off.

Leaving in the middle of a battle was always risky, but this wasn’t a fight they could win alone. She just hoped that she could find an ally in time.

“Master Fu?” Marinette knocked, peeking her head inside.

“What is it, Marinette?” He glanced up from his book.

“I need to borrow a Miraculous to win this battle.”

Master Fu retrieved the Miracle Box from the phonograph and placed it on the mat in front of her. “Have you found someone you trust to wield it?”

Marinette contemplated her choices carefully, running strategies in her head. After she and Alya split up, she wasn’t sure she’d ever trust someone enough to replace Rena Rouge, but her new friends proved her wrong. Taking a deep breath, she nodded and reached for the fox. “I know exactly who to pick, and I won’t let you down this time.”

Master Fu offered her one of his proud, grandfatherly smiles. “You never have. I have always had faith in you, Marinette.”

Her chest swirled with pride as she stood up. “Transform me.”

Eliott’s yacht was empty when Ladybug touched down on the deck. He told Marinette to hide there, so she’d been certain it was where he’d be. Then again, Eliott wasn’t the same cowardly boy he’d been when they met, and he didn’t turn his back on a friend. She knew where to find him.

“Marinette?” His voice echoed between the buildings of the abandoned street, and he flinched when Ladybug landed behind him. “Ladybug! Thank goodness, have you seen my friend Marinette? We got separated, and I told her to meet at my yacht, but-”

“Don’t worry. She’s safe,” Ladybug said. “Actually, I need your help.”

“My help?” He arched a brow. “I mean, sure, I'll do anything.”

“Eliott Chasse, this is the Miraculous of the fox which grants the power of illusion. You will use it to fight for the greater good.” She extended the box to him.

“Whoa, you're giving me a Miraculous?” he gasped. “But wait, why me? What happened to Rena Rouge?”

“She's...not around.” Ladybug averted her gaze. “Will you help me?”

“I-I dunno. I think my friend Marinette would be way better at this than me.” He rubbed the back of his neck.

“Eliott…” Ladybug smiled, placing a hand on his shoulder. “You are the right person for this job. Have courage and believe in yourself. That's all you need to be a superhero.”

Eliott pressed his lips together, then accepted the box with a nod. Shielding his eyes from the bright light, he gaped in disbelief as Trixx materialized. “Whoa!”

“My name’s Trixx. I’m a kwami, and if you want to transform all you have to say is ‘Trixx, transform me!’” she explained as Eliott fastened the clasp of the necklace.

“Alright then. Trixx, transform me!” When the orange light faded, Eliott examined his orange and white suit with wide eyes. “Wait, is this really happening?”

“Do you know how your powers work?” Ladybug asked. There was no time to waste.

“Of course. I studied news footage in preparation for my role as Chat Noir in an upcoming play. I wanted to accurately portray the team's dynamic,” he said.

“Good, then follow me.”

Ladybug tossed her yoyo and shot off. Eliott hesitated only briefly, taking a few steps before leaping over the building after her. He touched down lightly beside her before they shot off again.

“I know it's a lot to take in, but we don't have a lot of time,” Ladybug said. She pulled up the news coverage of the akuma. Showstopper had taken the battle all the way to the Eiffel Tower. She skidded to a stop behind a chimney and closed her yoyo. “Hmm…Lucky Charm!”

“A bottle of soap? At least the villain will be squeaky clean?” Eliott shrugged.

Ladybug turned it over in her hands, a plan forming in her mind. “Okay, here’s what we’ll do.”

- - -

Showstopper held a frozen Lisette over the edge, and Chat Noir held up defensive hands as he attempted to negotiate.

“Hand over your Miraculous, or I'll drop her!”

“Maybe we can come to a compromise,” he reasoned, but Showstopper was in no mood.

“You have five seconds. One!”

“There has to be something else you want.”

“Two.”

“After all this is murder we're talking about.”

“Three!”

“I'm sure she didn't mean any harm.”

“Four!”

“Ladybug, hurry up!”

“Five!”

Before Chat could react, Showstopper released her grip, sending Lisette plunging toward her doom. Chat Noir attempted to dive after her, but Showstopper pitched another orb at him. To his relief, Ladybug swung in to deflect it just in time, but there was no time for gratitude.

“Ladybug! The girl!”

“Already taken care of,” she assured him.

- - -

Lisette unfroze midway down, eyes widening in fear as the ground grew closer. Just as a scream reached her throat, Eliott caught her, carrying her safely back to the Eiffel Tower. Her screams echoed across the bars as she clung to him for dear life, but they quieted the moment she looked into his eyes.

“Falling from heaven, angel?” He set her down gently. “Stay hidden. Showstopper can't see you if we want our plan to work.”

She blinked in shock, cheeks flushing. “Wait!” She caught his wrist as he turned to leave. “W-Who are you?”

“Uh… Call me Malin.” He winked, giving a two-finger salute before leaping up to the rafters.

Malin summoned his Mirage on the way up, cheeks still hot. Now wasn’t the time to worry about what Lisette thought of him. First, he needed to save her.

“You're too late!” Showstopper proclaimed, and Malin cleared his throat.

“Are we?” He clocked a brow.

Showstopper spun around where Malin held his fake damsel. “No!” she growled.

“New friend?” Chat Noir sized him up.

“I'll tell you later,” Ladybug said.

Malin set his illusion free with instructions to run, and as expected, Showstopper gave chase. Ladybug really was a wizard at coming up with plans. When Chat Noir moved to follow, Malin stepped in front of him with a wink.

“Who are you?” he asked, eyes narrowing.

“Name's Malin, and you are one foxy feline in person, Chat Noir.” He looked him up and down.

“Less flirting, more running. Phase two,” Ladybug ordered. “Kitty, follow me and get ready to use your Cataclysm. Malin, you know what to do.”

“On it.” Malin nodded, leaping back over the edge with a whoop.

Showstopper pursued the fake Lisette to the second-floor restaurants, falling right into their trap. She skidded against the soapy floor as Malin's illusion faded before her eyes. A broom perched between two chairs clotheslined her, sending her tennis racket flying from her grasp right into Chat Noir's waiting Cataclysm.

Malin helped Margot up as Ladybug captured the akuma and returned everything to normal. “Seriously, losing your cool over a prop malfunction is so lame.” He chided. “You're playing Ladybug, so my suggestion is: take a lesson from the real thing and let go of that bad energy.”

Lisette peeked up from the stairs timidly, pacing over to join them. “I'm sorry your yoyo string was tangled. I should have checked it,” she said.

“Yeah, whatever.” Margot rolled her eyes. “Sorry I tried to throw you off the Eiffel Tower.”

“Technically, you did throw her off the Eiffel Tower,” Chat Noir said pointedly.

“You were awesome, Malin.” Ladybug nudged him with her elbow.

“It was your plan, all I did was help.” He rubbed the back of his neck.

Ladybug shook her head. “You saved this girl, and we couldn't have done it without you. Be proud. You're a true superhero.”

Malin bit back a smile, surveying his suit and squaring his shoulders with a new sense of purpose. Ladybug was right. He had his doubts when she asked him because he still had a long way to go before he would consider himself an actual hero. If anyone deserved the title without a Miraculous, it was Marinette, and he owed this opportunity to her. He never would have had the courage to accept Ladybug’s offer without her. It was a shame she’d never know how much she truly changed his life. Maybe one day he could tell her this secret, but for now, he’d wear his secret identity like an invisible badge of honor.

“Pound it!” The three heroes said in unison.

Malin turned to Lisette and bowed formally. “Perhaps I will save you again someday,” he said.

Lisette bit her lip before stretching up to kiss his cheek. “Thank you,” she whispered.

Ladybug took his wrist and toted him off as a dopey grin spread across his lips. They retreated to a private corner at the base of the tower, and Malin returned the necklace to Ladybug. Shoving his hands in his pockets, Eliott shifted his gaze to his shoes with a sigh.

“What's wrong?” Ladybug asked.

“Nothing, just… Lisette kissed Malin, not Eliott.” He kicked at the ground.

“You really like her, don't you?” Ladybug asked.

Eliott flinched, rubbing the back of his neck. That morning the thought of falling in love with someone terrified him, but now… Maybe he hadn’t come down from his heroic high, but with Lisette’s kiss still burning on his cheek, he smiled.

“Yeah, I do,” he said.

“Well, Malin is very charming, but I think she might need someone to walk her home. Think Eliott can handle that?” Ladybug pointed to where Lisette was stepping off the elevator.

Have courage and believe in yourself.

On any other day, the fear of rejection would have convinced him to walk away, and maybe tomorrow it would. But today, today he wasn’t afraid.

“Lisette! Wait up.”

[mc-lukanette]

Sometimes, Luka hated being observant. He hadn't always been like that, but with his mother being so chaotic and his sister being so quiet, Luka had to learn to read people and anticipate their next moves.

Marinette was easy, honestly, and that just made everything worse. She was an open book, constantly wearing her heart on her sleeve. Everything she felt was right there, on display, for all to see.

So why was it that only he could see it?

It was why he was there, standing at the side door of the bakery and knocking gently to make his presence known. He was supposed to check on the Kitty Section merchandise designs that Marinette was sketching, but really, he just wanted to see her. The quality of what she was working on didn't matter to him in that moment, or he would've just asked her to text them to him.

Once Tom had let him in and encouraged Luka to head up the stairs, Luka did exactly that. His footsteps as he went were rhythmic, even though his mind was playing discordant notes.

He knew enough about everything that'd been happening. He knew enough about Kagami and her relationship with Adrien. He knew enough about what'd been going on in Marinette's class from what the rest of Kitty Section had told him. He knew enough about Marinette's work and how much she did.

He knew enough about her being Ladybug. He knew enough about all the effort it must take to balance being a civilian with being Paris' favorite superheroine.

And, as he tapped on the trap door and called out to her, he knew enough about tones to hear the tiredness in her voice when she replied that he could come in.

He entered, seeing her hunched over her table and working as usual. He could see various pieces scattered across the room, all with various degrees of completion.

"...Marinette—"

"Oh!" She scrambled, fumbling with the sketchbook she'd been working on as she picked it up. She spun her chair around to face him, her fingers pressing a little too hard against the pages as she presented it to him. "These are some of the designs I've been working on! Um, they're not complete yet, but if there are any problems..."

Luka approached, bending down to get a good look at her sketchbook. They were great designs, as always, but his gaze was still drawn to her uncompleted projects strewn about the room, and he knew that Marinette noticed him being distracted by the way she wiggled in her chair, making it creak just slightly.

"They're amazing, Marinette," he said honestly. He considered what to say next, then settled on, "It looks like you have a lot of projects. Do you—"

"It's fine!" she interjected. He looked at her and could tell that she knew her response hadn't been natural. "They're all going great and I've got plans for everything!"

She immediately turned back to the table and continued sketching. Luka could only let out a hum of thought, idly glancing at one of her earrings.

She couldn't have plans for everything, he was sure.

"I know Jule said this weekend, but I know you can get busy," he said carefully. "If it's ever too much for you, you don't have to—"

"No," she cut in curtly. "It's—it's fine. I can handle it."

He didn't miss the way her voice broke when she said it, and the strained expression on her face gave everything else away.

"I know you can." He quietly wished that he'd brought his guitar. "And if you ever need anything, I'm here for you."

She didn't respond, the silence in the room filled by the scratching of her pencil against the paper. Luka leaned over just a little more, careful not to get into her space but also needing to see her expression.

Something was wrong, as he'd thought. Her eyes were locked to the paper, but her heart wasn't into it. He remembered the sound of her sketching during the two-week preparation to make a video for Bob Roth's contest, and this wasn't it.

Softly, he repeated, "I'm here for you."

She stopped drawing this time, eyes staring blankly ahead before finally darting over to him. She blinked a few too many times to be considered normal, then returned her gaze to her sketchbook.

"I—" She swallowed, then exhaled audibly. "I need to finish these."

"For me?" Luka asked.

"No, not—" She straightened, looking at him and raising a hand like she was about to make a point, but stopped herself. "Not exactly. I know you—I mean—"

She blushed, but her face was hard to look at. She seemed pained, and Luka had to force himself to maintain eye contact.

She tore her gaze away from him, staring at the wall off to her side. "Never mind."

Except Luka minded. He minded a lot, and he was certain that she'd said something significant just then.

He looked at her sketchbook, riddled with drawings and notes. He looked at the projects around the room, now wondering exactly who they could've been for. He looked at her, noting the awkward posture of someone who'd clearly been working too hard.

Luka thought back to all the interactions he'd ever seen, along with all the interactions he'd ever heard about. He thought back to his own interactions with Marinette, which had often left her with a smile.

He seemed to be an exception of some kind, and his heart ached as he became aware of the implication.

Things had been rougher in the classroom as of late, hadn't they? He’d heard enough to know.

"Marinette?"

She stiffened, and he waited until she was looking at him again to continue.

He gestured to her sketchbook. "I'm sure they won't hate you, with or without these."

The flicker of shock in her eyes confirmed his suspicion, as much as he didn't want it to. Even as she tried to casually twirl a strand of her hair, he knew what he saw.

"I...I know," she said unconvincingly.

Luka struggled for a moment, torn between a desire to dig deeper and a need to respect her space. He wanted to help her but he feared making her uncomfortable.

"You—" He hesitated. "You don't have to tell me anything if you don't want to, Marinette, but I meant what I said."

She faltered, looking back down at her sketchbook and chewing her bottom lip. He vaguely wondered if he was selfish for wanting to be the one to help her.

He waited for what felt like a full minute, just to give her time to say anything, but she didn't. Slowly, he lifted his hand from the table, turning and walking away to give her space.

He felt a hand grab his wrist, almost startling him with the sheer suddenness of it. He glanced back, seeing Marinette leaning awkwardly away from her chair just to maintain her grip on him. Her head, however, was lowered, staring down at the floor.

"...Really?" she asked, her voice quiet. "Do you really mean it?"

"Yeah," he answered without hesitation. "I do. If you need someone to talk to about anything, I'm here."

He felt her fingers twitch against his wrist, like she was debating with herself.

She uttered meekly, "Can we sit down?"

She was already sitting, but Luka knew what she meant. He let out a sound of agreement, and she let go of his wrist as they both made their way over to her chaise lounge. Luka sat down first, then watched as she sat next to him. Her expression was as pained as before, but now there was a willingness there; an acknowledgment and acceptance that he was seeing it.

"Luka," she began, hunching over with her elbows on her knees and her fingers steepled in thought. "Do you... how much do you know about love?"

Luka kept his expression neutral. "What kind of love, Marinette?"

"...All kinds," she replied patiently.

Luka hummed, resting his hands on the cushion as he leaned back. "Enough," he answered, staring at the ceiling. "I love my mom. I love my sister. I love my friends." He managed a small smile as he looked at her. "I love the song in my head."

She clasped her hands together, her forehead pressing into her fingers. He couldn't see her face, but knew he hadn't made her uncomfortable.

She knew very well what he'd meant.

"H-how do you know it's real when you get it back?" she asked, a crack in her voice.

Luka leaned forward, copying her hunched position but letting his forearms rest casually on his legs. "Marinette?"

She shook, finally admitting, "I'm a mess. I don't know what's what anymore." She opened her hands, burying her face into her palms and letting out a groan. "I thought I knew everyone and I thought I knew what I wanted, but I don't. With Adrien, I—"

She flinched, even choking a bit. Luka, meanwhile, smiled reassuringly. "You can talk about him, Marinette. I don't mind."

He really didn't, and she must've sensed that, given how her shoulders relaxed.

"With Adrien, I was so confused once Kagami showed up, then Lila came back to my class and just made everything worse."

Luka, admittedly, had never met Lila, but he knew enough.

He knew Marinette.

"I thought I had it. I thought I had everything right and everything was great, but..." She shook her head, palms still pressed against her face. "I don't. I'm never sure anymore when people love me. It's either unrequited—"

Adrien, Luka was sure.

"—or it's not the kind I want—"

He silently presumed it was Chat Noir, but knew he couldn't ask.

"...o-or..."

She sniffled. Slowly, she lowered her hands from her face, and her eyes were shimmering. "or it feels fake. It feels like there are all these rules and requirements and all these things that I don't even know about until they happen."

Luka saddened, wanting nothing more than to hold her. His hands twitched, feeling the need to touch her, but he kept the desire to himself.

She looked at him. "Did—did I do something? Is that why—"

"No," he said quickly. "No, Marinette, of course not. You didn't do anything."

She seemed grateful for his answer, but her frown didn't waver. She hugged herself, only to then look dissatisfied by it. "I just... I want someone to love me. I want to be loved by someone who means it, but I know I'm a wreck and I'm not ready for anything right now and..." She trailed off with a sigh.

Luka stared at her. He couldn't stop staring at her, even when her vulnerability hurt him. Half of his mind was repeating her words in his head while the other half was racing with a million thoughts.

Then, a single thought managed to sing louder than the rest, causing his usual calm demeanor to weaken and his body to go stiff.

No. No, he shouldn't do this.

This was stupid. This was out of line. This was selfish.

The single thought then reminded him that he was the exception in all of this, and he let out a, "M-marinette," almost involuntarily.

She looked at him, and he felt something inside himself crack at the way her song was playing to him.

"I..." He reached a hand out, going slowly to give her each and every opportunity to pull away.

She simply followed his hand with her eyes. When his hand got close enough to one of her own hands, she raised it towards him in an offer. Accepting that as permission, he gently intertwined their fingers.

"If you'd let me... if I'd work," Luka began, pressing his palm to hers, "I'd happily be that someone for you."

Her eyes went wide, but not with the shock of someone who hadn't expected that response.

It was of someone who had hoped—considered—but dismissed the possibility of such a response a long time ago.

It made Luka's resolve all the greater, even when something in his conscience tried to protest.

"L-luka, no, I—" She shook her head. "I couldn't. You—I'd be taking advantage of you. I like you - a lot - but I'm so confused."

"I know," he assured, "but you can be selfish with me, Marinette."

He paused, considering his wording and realizing full well what both of them would be doing.

"...You can be selfish with me."

She opened her mouth to reply, stopped, then simply stared at him with wonder and curiosity that he'd never quite seen on her before.

"Y-you—you k-know what I meant, right?"

He nodded. He'd agreed wholeheartedly, and she knew that.

She used her free hand to slide herself closer to him. "And you know what that means?"

He nodded again. There'd be no strings attached, and he knew that.

Her face came closer to his as if she was testing him. Searching his eyes for any doubt or hesitance, she asked in a hushed whisper, "A-and you're okay with that?"

He nodded once more, with all possible conviction he had. They'd both be doing something selfish, and they knew that.

Luka leaned in, just enough to give her a sign of encouragement. She breathed up, eyes half-lidded, then copied him by leaning in as well.

Her lips met his, and any reluctance that Luka had was washed away by the eager noise that Marinette made as soon as he kissed her back. She pressed against him, her hand clutching his hand tighter as her other hand went to grasp his shoulder.

Luka shifted for comfort, making it all the easier for Marinette to climb onto his lap. He reached his arm around her, his free hand resting against her back. At his touch, she let out another sound, this one surprised and elated.

Somehow, this girl who had all the friends in the world, who had the adoration of almost everyone in Paris, who knew multiple celebrities who'd praised her...

She was affection-starved. She didn't want adoration, mindless attention, or even praise for her projects.

She wanted to be touched. She wanted to be comforted.

She wanted to be loved.

Marinette held the kiss for a precious moment longer, then pulled away, though she didn't look like she'd wanted too. Luka took in the sparkle in her eyes and the overload of emotion written all across her face.

He smiled, feeling overwhelmed himself. "You're beautiful, Marinette."

She gaped at him, blushing pink, and he giggled at how she was still surprised by his compliments after he'd just made out with her.

Then, she gave him a smile in return, he felt his heart jump at just how warm it was.

His face felt warm too, actually.

Marinette leaned closer, letting go of his hand to wrap both arms around his neck. She glanced at him for permission, then gave him a tight hug and buried her face into his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her in response, keeping the embrace gentle but loving.

He was in this now alongside her, and he was not going to let her misconstrue how he felt about her, even for a second.

[jennagrinsoverml]

The Closest Thing to Love - Chapter 1

Summary: When Gabriel tells Adrien it’s time for him to learn about the brand internationally, Adrien knows he can’t leave Paris - or Marinette. The two concoct a plan to allow Adrien to stay and finally achieve his independence from his father. They’ll just get married.The only problem is...they’re not actually dating.But that won’t cause any issues. After all, they’re just friends, right?What could possibly go wrong?

Read it on AO3

"Marinette, my lady, bugaboo, light of my life, will you marry me?"

Marinette looks down at Adrien where he kneels at the foot of the dress form she’s working on. She spits out the pins she was holding in her teeth and sticks them back into the pincushion at her wrist.

"That's not funny," she says flatly.

"I'm not joking," Adrien insists, trying to ignore the pang of hurt, even though he knows she has no reason to think he’s serious.

"Right." Marinette rolls her eyes and resumes pinning.

"I'm not!"

"You want to get married."

"Yes."

"To me."

"Sure," he says with affected ease because he can’t very well admit that he’s been dreaming of exactly that for years.

She sighs. “Get up,” she says, and he gets to his feet, feeling foolish. She turns away from her work, giving him her full attention and crossing her arms. "We’re fresh out of lycée, we’re not even dating, and you want to get married?? Adrien, what's going on?”

"It's my father," he tells her, swallowing uncomfortably.

Her face hardens instantly. "What did he do?"

"He doesn't want me to go to university. He wants me to continue modeling and learn the company better and...and he wants me to travel around the world to do it."

"You're leaving?" she asks in a small voice before gasping and grabbing at her hair. "But if you leave how will you be Chat Noir? This is a disaster! You'll have to give up your miraculous and then I'll have to choose a new Chat Noir and then you won't be my partner and we'll never see each other and the new Chat won't be experienced enough and I can’t even imagine being Ladybug without you and Hawkmoth will win and—"

"I'm not leaving!" he bursts in, grabbing her arms and cutting her off mid-rant. He curses inwardly. He knows better. He should've led with that. Gently, he disentangles her hands from her hair, and she allows him to lower them. “I’m not leaving,” he repeats as he gives her hands a squeeze. She squeezes back and he knows that she believes him. "I won't leave Paris—or you. Not with Hawkmoth still attacking. I told Father that I wanted to go to university and stay in Paris with my friends but..."

"He didn't care."

"He thinks I'm exhibiting poor decision-making by prioritizing staying with my friends over my future," he recites. Even though he's not sure the fashion world is his future. Modeling is fine and he's good at it, but he can't do it forever. And the business side of it doesn't appeal to him at all. But no one has ever asked what he wants and Father has never appreciated his desire to go to school.

She gives his hands one last squeeze before letting go and going to sit down on her chaise. "You could just tell him no? You're 18 now, Adrien."

"I'm still just a dumb kid to him,” he says, sitting down next to her.

Marinette's mouth twists unhappily. "But you’re an adult. He can't force you to leave if you don't want to."

"He can cut me off. How will I pay for school or food or a place to live?"

"What? Adrien, you've been modeling since you were a kid. You don't have anything saved up?"

"Some money since I turned 18 but everything from before... I can't touch it," he explains, swallowing uncomfortably. "It's in a trust and inaccessible until I turn 25. Father says it’s for my own good. To keep me from squandering it."

"That - that can't be legal."

"I don't know," he admits, "but what am I going to do? Sue my own father?"

He knows from many years of friendship that that particular expression means that she wants to do a lot more than sue Gabriel Agreste. The thought that she cares enough to be angry and protective on his behalf warms him as it always does.

"How does getting married fix this?" she asks instead of commenting. "Is he suddenly going to care about what you want because we got hitched?"

"Yeah, no." He huffs out a bitter laugh. "Actually I think he'll be really angry about it. Maybe enough to get akumatized again." Adrien pushes down the guilt that bubbles up at that thought. As much as he tries telling himself that it's not his responsibility to sacrifice himself to keep his father happy... old habits die hard. He clears his throat. "Maman's family… they're old money . Very old fashioned about it too. A husband should be able to take care of his wife, you know? When Grandmère passed, her bequests to her grandsons were set up as trusts that vest upon marriage."

"So your plan is to marry me, get your money, and tell your dad to suck it?"

"Pretty much."

"Not the worst plan you've had."

"So you'll do it?"

"Why me?" she asks, sidestepping his question.

"Because I trust you," he answers. It’s the truth, anyway, or at least most of it. And the last thing they need right now is his unrequited love complicating things. “Who else would I marry? Who else would even understand why it’s so important that I stay? And besides there’ll be advantages to you too!  I’d pay for our housing and living expenses and - and I’ll give you a payout when this is done.”

She sighs. “I don’t want your money, Adrien.”

His heart drops. “You won’t do it.”

“I didn’t say that. This is a lot, okay? I’m trying to figure it out. But you know it’s you and me against the world, right?”

“Always,” he agrees.

"What other options have you looked into?"

"What do you mean?"

"Adrien! Don't tell me that getting married was the first and only idea you considered? What about taking out a loan or - or moving in with Nino or, I don't know, getting a job??"

Embarrassment burns his cheeks, but he’s not willing to admit that once it had occurred to him, he’d thought it was so perfect that he’d raced over here without considering anything else.

Besides...

"My contract with Gabriel still has another 3 years in it. It's pretty draconian with the non-compete." He draws idle circles with his finger in the fabric of her chaise.

"Were you even an adult when you signed?"

"Does it matter?"

"Yes! This sounds very, very illegal!"

"I don't want to end up in a legal battle with my father. I don't want to keep doing what he tells me to but I don't want to publicly fight with him either."

She sighs. "What about working in a different field? Waiting tables or something like that?"

He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly and she glares.

"You think he'd sue you for that?"

"Maybe."

"Kitty, that's ridiculous."

He shrugs helplessly. It's not like he doesn't know his father is over the top. Ever since Maman disappeared...and of course after Nathalie... Adrien knows his father is just afraid of losing him too and he's tried so hard to be supportive. But he can't live like this forever and now... his father is forcing his hand. No matter how much he loves him or how understanding he wants to be, he can't leave Marinette to fight on her own.

(Or leave her at all , the little part of him he keeps pushing down whispers.)

(He pushes it down again.)

"Okay."

"Okay?"

"Okay, let's get married," she says and he doesn't try to suppress the smile that breaks across his face. Marinette's just agreed to marry him! It won't be real and she doesn't feel the same way about him that he feels about her but she does love him.

"Now if we're doing this, we need a plan."

"You know I always leave the planning to you, my lady."

She rolls her eyes. "As you should. Okay..." she trails off, clearly thinking as her face scrunches up in what Adrien has always thought of as her Lucky Charm Face TM. It's one of his favourite sights in the world and he can feel himself relaxing as he looks at her. If it's one of Marinette's plans, he knows they're going to be fine.

After all, when have any of her plans not worked out?

She meets his eyes. "Anything I need to know before I plan this out?"

I'm in love with you.  

"No."

Keep Reading

[marrys-dream-world]

if we’re bound to be something, why not together? (chapter three)

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Notes: Day 3: Tease. @ladynoirjuly

Ladybug had always known Chat Noir would be impossible to study with.

As much as she tried to compartmentalize her civilian life and superhero life into neat little boxes (with varying degrees of success), she slipped sometimes. She was only human! Of course she wondered what her partner was like when he wasn’t wearing the mask and her imagination had gone, against her will, through many scenarios where they met, bare of secret identities, and all her suspicions about him were true. 

She always laughed at the idea that Chat Noir’s secret identity would be a bad boy, a troublemaker. Her sweet kitty? She was sure he was a class clown, jokes silly and fun enough that the teacher was always fondly exasperated and let his interruptions slide when he interfered in class. He was always the life of the party and absolutely oblivious to the girls around him (“What do you mean wish-fulfillment? Tikki- stop laughing what do you mean?”). He has a loving family and a bunch of siblings. Chat Noir was a little bit of an endearing attention-seeker, like a middle child.

So of course he would be all over the place while studying. Her partner was rarely quiet when they were together, always a quip ready on his tongue, hands fidgeting with his belt. She imagined studying with Chat Noir (civilian him, all fluffy blond hair and soft green eyes that looked a touch too much like another boy that she knew for comfort) in her room, his notes messy and all in blue pen. He would sheepishly ask for a pencil, around a mouthful of croissant, because he forgot his case, and she would roll her eyes, call him irresponsible and still give him one of her prized gel pens.

Chat Noir not being like that at all threw her for a loop. 

He was deathly quiet. Cat eyes carefully looked over the pictures and symbols on the grimoire before turning to the notes written in Alya's chicken scratch and highlighting a passage with her pastel pink highlighter ("Hum" He said when she handed it to him "Is this brand popular? A friend of mine has one too."). In the beginning, when they sat across each other on a covered rooftop and sat on the pillows she made just for this, he had been humming an unknown song. 

"Oh, I'm sorry, my lady." He said when she mentioned it. She hadn't thought the way she said it was particularly mean, but he shrunk into himself. "I won't do it again."

"No, it's okay, I don't mind." She reassured. Chat Noir smiled prettily at that, even though he didn't start again.

Unfortunately, all of his mannerism, as endearing as they were, made it impossible to study with him. She just couldn't stop… looking. At the way his hair fell into his eyes and how much she wanted to tuck it back, how a clawed hand came up to scratch the creamy skin on his collarbone, how he stuck the tip of his tongue out when concentrating. Yes, Chat Noir studying made all her efforts to understand potion-making futile.

How did the girls in his school survive?

"Are you okay?" His voice snapped her out of her daze. His tone was almost too light, like he knew something she didn't. " You seem distracted."

That… that tease! He knew what he was doing, didn't he?! That damned cat!

"I'm just thinking about this potion for resistance to extreme heat!" She snapped, gesturing vaguely to a page in front of her.

"That's a page about healing kwami sickness." Chat said, voice triumphant. 

She resisted the urge to curse.

"I-I know. I said I was just thinking about it, not that I was reading about it."

"Of course." His words were belied by his smirk. "Whatever you say, my lady."

Was that what he usually did when he studied? Did he actually learn something or did he spend all his time teasing his female classmates?

Maybe that WAS really what he did. His friends would invite him to a study session in the library and suddenly all the girls who couldn't make it before were eager to study trigonometry. He would ask the one closest to him, a girl with dark brown hair and skin and kinda looked like Lila, actually, for help with a problem and she would fall over herself to do it, batting her eyelashes at every pause in her lecture. He would thank her with a blinding smile and by giving her the pen he borrowed earlier from her. She would tell him to keep it, just so she could have an excuse to talk to him again.

Did he do that with all the girls he met?

Did he call any of them "my lady"?

Her pink pencil snapped in half. 

“Hey.” Chat Noir said, a little more subsided. His green eyes shined with genuine concern. “I know I was joking before, but are you really okay? You can tell me.”

Her eyes softened. “I’m fine, really, just distracted.” As his gaze persisted, she added: “Nothing serious or guardianship-ish, just silly stuff. Really.”

Chat looked satisfied enough to turn back to his notes. She was being silly, his feelings for her were real and he didn’t treat other girls like he did her. Except the over the top chivalrous way he treated Marinette, but she wasn’t going to think about that either. It’s not like she could date him. Sure, it would solve having to lie about a boyfriend about her duties as Ladybug, but… There was Adrien. She had come to accept, under that umbrella after Mr. Ramier’s 72nd akumatization, that she hadn’t gotten over him at all.

And they didn’t know each other’s names, dating as Ladybug and Chat Noir would be way too hard. Not that she wanted to, exactly. But she thought about it before, almost impossible to not to with the way Chat Noir flirted and asked her on dates so often (not as much these days, not that she was counting or anything). Bottom line was: dating as Ladybug and Chat Noir bad. No matter if he was single and she was single again and that he adored her and that maybe she… Yeah, no matter. It wasn’t going to happen.

Looks like I’m my biggest tease. She thought, not noticing the pig-tailed and wild-haired stick figures she was drawing on the corner of her notebook.

They were holding hands. 

[ordinaryschmuck]

Why I (Want to) Love Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir

Salutations, random people on the internet who circumstantially won’t read this! I am an Ordinary Schmuck. I write stories and reviews and draw comics and cartoons.

Several weeks back, I got a request from an Anon to do a review of Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir. With it being the first time anybody has ever requested me to review anything, I was more than excited to say yes...too bad they picked a show I'm not entirely in love with.

Don't misunderstand. I do enjoy Miraculous (I'm not saying the rest of the title from now on. It is way too long). It is a fun show more times than not. It's just that there are a lot of issues about it that make it hard to love. Unfortunately, explaining those issues requires talking about spoilers, so I highly suggest that you check out the show for yourself before seeing what I have to say about it. It's always important to form your own opinion before listening to someone else's.

With that said, allow me the chance to explain that while Miraculous is a good show, it's not entirely a perfect one.

Now, let's review, shall we?

WHAT I LIKED

The Love Square: Ok, here's how it works: Marinette, who is Ladybug, has a crush on Adrien. But Adrien, who is Chat Noir, has a crush on Ladybug. Neither knows the other's secret identity nor do Ladybug or Adrien show feelings for Chat Noir and Marinette respectfully. And that. Is. Brilliant.

That is the best concept I've heard for a romantic subplot in the over twenty years that I have been alive. Not only because the dramatic irony is exquisite but also because of how Marinette and Adrien fall for the perfect versions of each other. Ladybug and Adrien are masks (the first one literal, the second not so much) that the characters put on for people to think they're the epitome of perfection. But Marinette and Chat Noir are the versions of their true selves, with the glitz and glam disregarded. So if they have to end up together, they have two options:

There's the easy way, which is to find out their "close friend" is the person they're head over heels in love with. Because why deny someone's feelings for you if they're the same person you've fallen for.

Then there's the hard way, which is to let Marinette slowly catch feelings for Chat Noir, and vice versa, as that's letting them fall in love with the honest versions of themselves.

Obviously, I'm more of a fan of option B (Marichat all the way, baby), but the end result doesn't really matter. What's important is how well-utilized the concept is, and I wholeheartedly believe it's executed perfectly. Yes, some moments make me want to tear my hair out (and I'll get to that), but more times than not, I find myself entertained by these two idiots being unable to figure out that the person they love sort of doesn't love them back. Some other ideas could have used a little more work, but I will always voice how the love square is easily the smartest move any writer has made in history.

The Animation: The animation is pretty incredible in this series. It's mildly expressive, movements are fluid and smooth, and the character designs are pretty impressive.

...most of the time. The designs are pretty impressive most of the time.

But what amazes me more is that this is all done through CGI animation. Televised CGI animation has come a long way, but only when enough money is put into the project. If not, the whole thing looks stilted and kind of ugly. And that's even with the best shows. For Miraculous, it's clear some care was put into the final product. Aside from a couple of poor designs and recycled animation (not counting the transformation sequences), a good majority of this show is pleasant to look at more times than not. Primarily through the action scenes, which I feel is where the animation shines the most. The camera angles can be impressive, and the dozens of cloned minions can be massive, which is something that would take much longer and with much more effort if the show was hand-drawn as initially intended. Although some fight scenes can look a little floaty and rarely does it look like characters actually get hurt, I can at least tell that the animators were hard at work trying to make the show look good. And they certainly succeeded in that end.

Tiki and Plague: Tiki and Plague act as the perfect companions to Marinette and Adrien. They both offer the right amount of support each character needs, offering the required advice to make them grow. Tiki, for example, acts as a moral compass for Marinette, extending words of wisdom as if Tiki was an angle on Marienette's shoulder. As for Plague, he offers fun for Adrien's life, urging him to live the high life and letting Adrien live carefree despite his responsibilities. Both are well-meaning mindsets to teach, and you see how much Tiki and Plague's influence affects Marinette and Adrien when they're Ladybug and Chat Noir. They act almost as if they're representations of their respective kwamis but still acting like themselves during specific moments. It shows how great mentors Tiki and Plague are while still giving Marinette and Adrien a chance to act as their own heroes.

(Plus, Tiki and Plague are cute as hell. And if you know me, you know I can't resist cute s**t).

Alya: Alya is the best character in the entire series, and no, I will not hear otherwise. She's a solid best friend to Marinette, her fangirling over superheroes are pretty fun, and Alya's work as Rena Rouge makes her the brightest and most capable hero in the show. Plus, it's pretty clear that out of all the characters, she has the one working brain cell. If you hate Alya as a character, something that just boggles my mind, I wholeheartedly don't understand what makes you do so.

The “Villain of the Week” Format: I really dig this style of storytelling when it comes to action cartoons. It's beginning to phase out recently as more and more shows lean toward having serialized storytelling and single villains for a season, which makes me appreciate the few times we do get a villain-of-the-week type of format again. It shines in Miraculous, as we get several really cool villains, most with their own creative powers that can create some epic action set-pieces from time to time. My personal favorite episodes are the times when not only do we see some villains return but even get to watch them team up and fight Ladybug and Chat Noir all at once. It forces our heroes to creatively think as they figure out how to properly deal with each foe and watching the villains use excellent ways to combine powers in an attack. You couldn't get this type of content with a serialized show where one antagonist takes most of the focus. This is why it's great to have Hawkmoth as the main antagonist. He creates supervillains, making him an ongoing threat while still giving the show its villain-of-the-week format. It's a "have your cake and eat it too" scenario that I personally can't help but admire with how well it's executed.

Season Four (So far): It's still pretty early to tell, but with what we've seen so far of the first half of the new season, Season Four has been killing it! The stakes get higher, the drama hits harder, most characters are improved, and the story is a helluva lot more tighter. Ever since Season Two, the series has been dipping its toe into having an overarching story, and it's been hit and miss for the most part. It's different in Season Four, as more times than not, you'll see how choices and events that happen in one episode directly affect what happens in the next. Like how character identities get revealed to create more tension and entertaining interactions. Or seeing Adrien grow more and more distant with Ladybug as he's beginning to feel a lack of trust from her. Most of it is really engaging, and if I had to judge the series by this season alone, I'd say it would have earned its spot on my Top 20 Favorites list.

But it's also four seasons too late, and...Yeah, let's talk about why that is.

WHAT I DISLIKED

“Guitar Villain”: ...Was Hawkmoth having an off day with this one?

I mean...Guitar Villain? What, was Evil Musician Who Plays a String Instrument too obvious?

I've heard that it's probably a pun to the video game titled Guitar Hero, but even then, who in their right mind would immediately think of that. A pun works by taking the well-known, common word, and twisting it for humor. Not an obscure title for a video game that nobody gives a s**t about anymore.

I'm never going to get over this. The series could have the most perfectly written and well-executed episode in television's history, and I still won't get over this.

(Ok, now that I got the jokey nitpick out of the way, let's move onto the real complaints)

Chloé: Yeah, I know, shocker. A person doesn't like Chloé Bourgeois. In other news: Guitar Villain is a stupid name (Told you I'll never get over it)!

Here's the thing: The reasons why I hate Chloé goes beyond the fact that she's so annoying and insufferable that she makes Ronaldo from Steven Universe pleasant in comparison. It's because the writers made an effort to make Chloé a better person, only to give up on it completely. Most of Season Two is dedicated to giving Chloé some form of redemption, making her role as a superhero all the more believable. But because she takes a page out of Iron Man's book and reveals her secret identity, that puts the Miraculous at risk, and Chloé can't be Queen Bee anymore. That shouldn't be a big deal, right? She should just take the lessons that she learned and still act nicer to her peers, right? And she would...but she doesn't. Instead, she backslides hard, ultimately joining Hawkmoth in the Season Three finale despite all the hard work put into making her decent. I'd agree that becoming a villain is part of the grand plan of the series, but if that's true, then why dedicate so much time to showing Chloé's good side? Did the writers suddenly change their minds? Why?! Why would they do this?! I'm honestly asking.

Oh, and before I forget, Chloé is DOWNRIGHT INSUFFERABLE! I'm ignoring her voice and line delivery because I exclusively watch the English dub. After all, I don't have the attention span to read subtitles. Do you want to know what I can judge, though? Her actions. Cheese and rice, Chloé might just be the most selfish, petty, and absolutely evil character I have ever seen on television, with the worst part being that most of it are probably not intentional. 

She caused so many supervillains, something noted by her classmates, Chloé herself, and even Hawkmoth. That's right. Hawkmoth openly admits, several times, that Chloé is his most valuable asset (emphasis on ass), and the other characters still don't do anything about it! 

They almost let her leave to New York with Mommy Dearest, but Adrien was sad, and therefore it was the wrong thing to do. Buddy, your stalker of a love interest and best friend who nearly killed you in a jealous rage treats you better than that witch of a girl! GET OVER IT!

And somehow--SOMEHOW--Chloé manages to get WORSE in Season Four. I didn't think it was possible either, but she did. And it's the one thing about Season Four I do not like. F**k Chloé, f**k everything she represents, and f**k our heroes for actually saving her life every time when they know that does more harm than good.

How the Romance is Written: Oh, boy. You thought I ranted about Chloé? Well, wait until you see what I've got to say about this. Because, yes, I like the love square. It's a clever concept that I've never seen before, and I consider it executed fairly well. The rest of the romance? Not so much.

Everything that the writers could have done wrong with Marinette and Adrien's romance is done in this series, and, surprise-surprise, it isn't fun to watch. Like the fact that they're an endgame couple who clearly won't get together until the end of the series. I full-heartedly don't understand why writers still do this. Are there people out there who seriously believe that the best part of a romance is never seeing both characters act like a couple? Oh, but that's the thing, though. In two separate episodes, we're given these hypothetical scenarios that do show them as a couple. And guess what: They're adorable! On top of that, it makes you think, "Wow, a series about a superhero couple would be pretty interesting." Which it would. Do we ever get it? Nope. And odds are, we never will. Because apparently, it's so hard to make an endgame couple get together halfway through the series and still craft interesting stories with them.

UNLESS YOU'RE INCOMPETENT!

But fine, whatever. Marinette and Adrien are an endgame couple that most likely won't get together until the series finale. It sucks, but I can live with that...what I can't live with are MOTHER F**KING LOVE TRIANGLES!

I despise them, as do others, as well. We do so because:

A. They're pointless because it's obvious who's going to end up with who in the end.

And B. It's always unfair to the people who find enjoyment with the pairing existing, only to find out it'll be torn apart.

But this show doesn’t just use one love triangle. No no no. That would be somewhat bearable. Instead, both Adrien and Marinette, for a brief time, fall for someone else. What's even worse is that they do the same will-they-or-won't-they crap that they pull on each other. And even worse than that, when Adrien and Marinette finally get together with these different characters, it basically lasts for one episode. Meaning that not only was it pointless, but it also didn't give fans the satisfaction of seeing them act as a couple. Which begs the question: "What the f**k was even the point?!"

Look, the love square was brilliant. And I wouldn't change it for a second. What I would do is eradicate the love triangles (because that's a trope that needs to die) and let Marinette and Adrien get together halfway through the series. Not wait until the end and tease fans of what could be instead of what should be. Otherwise, that's a failure on all parts.

Marinette is a Stalker: While on the topic of romance, let's dive into how the writers royally f**ked up on Marinette's end of it.

I'm not exaggerating, by the way. A lot of Marinette's behavior towards Adrien gets borderline creepy at times. She memorizes his schedule to an immaculate degree, has photos of Adrien, and only Adrien, littering her walls, and literally flew all the way to another country just to see him. Not her uncle, who was basically an after-thought to this plan of hers. Adrien. Just Adrien. And if you seriously don't see how that could ring SO MANY alarm bells in someone...you're part of the problem.

Seriously, and this is no joke, talk to professionals if you see Marinette's actions as normal. Because they aren't, no matter how much the writers try to make it seem so. Sure, they'll lampshade it a couple times, only to then do the whole bit where characters shake their head with a smile and say, "Oh, Marinette. You're so quirky!"

NO! She isn't! She might possibly be butt-f**king insane, which is a term that I shouldn't use to describe a superhero who's designed to be a role model!

Look, flaws for a hero are nice, encouraged even. Stuff like Marinette being clumsy or awkward around Adrien is nice. Her stalker behavior? Yeah, probably for the best to cut that s**t out.

Trying to Gain Sympathy for Gabriel: "Boo-hoo, my wife's dead!" SO GET ON TINDR AND MOVE ON--I'm sorry...I'm sorry...I'm still a little hot from my last three rants.

I'm not as infuriated that the writers try to garnish sympathy from Gabriel's efforts as I was with the last three complaints I had, but that doesn't change how poorly it is handled. The man created supervillains who can kill who knows how many people and utterly destroys Paris And yet we're also expected to feel sorry for him because he refuses to accept that his wife is gone and never coming back. I get it. Heartbreak hurts, especially from people we care so deeply for. But there's a limit for how far a person goes before we have to admit that enough is enough.

Now, in fairness, it's not necessarily a bad thing to make audiences feel sorry for the villains. Just look at Killmonger from Black Panther. His backstory is beyond tragic, and you can fully understand how it shaped his point of view to do some pretty heinous stuff. By the end, when his plans fail, you feel sorry for him after realizing how bad of hand he's been dealt. And do you want to know why that works so effectively? It's because it goes beyond him losing someone he loved. It's what that person did for Killmonger and the unfulfilled promises, made to him that forcing to live without in a less than desirable environment and make his actions understandable, even if you disagree with them. We don't get that with Gabriel. Or, at least, we haven't yet. There might be an episode down the line that better explains the lengths he goes through for his wife, but if there is, it should have come long ago. I'm sorry, but while seeing a villain shed a tear after their latest failure would be a moment of humanity I would applaud for, it doesn't work as effectively here.

Season Three’s a Mess: It is. It really is.

There are two halves to Season Three. The first half of it is that it's the season of pandering. Several episodes try to give fans exactly what they want they've been demanding from the series. Like Marinette and Adrien switching Miraculouses, Chat Blanc, Marichat being canon, Adrien's original pilot personality being his own character, and seeing Adrien and Marinette get together. All of these are actual plots to episodes in this series, and it is...not handled well. How? Well, let's run through them real quick.

Plague and Tiki delivering the Miraculouses to Adrien and Marinette in the chaos of duplicates was too risky, and it’s a miracle that they didn’t get caught. Having Adrien and Marinette just making a bet over who would be the better version of the hero would be simpler and easy to understand.

While Chat Blanc is notably disturbing in many ways, it is insanely contrived saying that it happened because he and Marinette knew each other's identities. Which it isn't. It's because Gabriel is a sick bastard who treats his son like s**t.

Marinette lying about having a crush on Chat Noir (not Adrien) and her father getting excited about it is painfully rushed, and it is excruciating seeing Tom act so idiotically.

Felix is an incredibly unlikeable character (not in a good way), and it is made so clear why the original version of Adrien's personality got dropped.

And the alternate scenarios of Marinette and Adrien being a couple is so uncalled for because it teases us with what we could get over what we want. With it being more frustrating in "Oblivio." Seriously, why the F**K WOULD THE MAGIC LADYBUGS MAKE THEM FORGET EACH OTHER'S IDENTITIES?! IT'S STUPID, MAKES NO SENSE, AND IS BORDERLINE--GAAAAAAAAAH!

The second half lies within the characters. More specifically, the choices that they make. Plague risking the safety of him and Adrien over cheese is too stupid, even for him. Marinette being so blind by Adrien that she doesn't even recognize Luka's talents is stupid, even for her. Master Fu bringing the Miraculouses with him to an all-boys party is stupid, even for--Actually, not even that. It's downright idiotic. He's supposed to be the all-knowing and responsible guardian of the Miraculous Box, so risking the safety of it for a party is a bad case of awful writing, even for this season!

And that's just the tip of the iceberg. So many times, characters act like total idiots all so the plot could happen. I mean, for f**k's sake, MARINETTE TEAMS UP WITH CHLOÉ TO SABOTAGE SOMEONE! That alone should tell you how badly the writers f**ked up this season.

The worst part is, a lot of important stuff happens this season. New heroes are introduced, new plot threads get added, and consequences to characters' choices largely impact the season going forward. Meaning that you really can't skip Season Three even if you wanted to. At least Community had the decency to blame a gas leak on why everything went so horribly wrong with the plot, characters, and overall development. Here? Not so much. Everything is canon, and you're going to have to deal with it. No matter how badly you wished you didn’t.

Luka (Seasons Two and Three): Take note that I'm talking about the Luka in Seasons Two and Three. By Season Four, he is written as a somewhat compelling character by gaining a strained relationship with his father and having the most intriguing concept given to anyone else: He knows that both Marinette and Adrien are Ladybug and Chat Noir. Alya may know Marinette's secret identity and vice versa, but Luca holds the most valuable secret out of all the characters introduced so far. It thoroughly grasps my interest, and I can't wait to see what happens next with him. Before that, though, Luka was barely even a character. If anything, he was a plot device used to make Marinette feel confused about her feelings toward Adrien, which any pretty boy can accomplish if they have the right face. It was boring seeing how stale and noble he was, making me all the happier to see the writers finally making adjustments to his personality, giving it time to develop more than the plank of wood we've dealt with for two seasons...which brings me to why I think I find myself wanting to love Miraculous.

IN CONCLUSION

This show...is far from perfect. It's a C- series with below-average writing, poorly-made choices, and some really hard to like characters. A good chunk of it needs improving, but that's the thing: It already is. Season Four is everything the show has been trying to be for a while, improving on some mistakes and keeping most of what we love. I wouldn't say it's miraculous, but it's at least trying. And that effort makes the series good enough for me.

[miraculoussuz]

Its cute fluffy headcanon time. I wanna eventually write some fics but for now this will do

MARICHAT

Whenever Adrien notices that Marinette seems unusually clumsy or stressed throughout the day. He will always make an effort to visit her as Chat Noir during the evening.

Sometimes he will just write little notes or make silly drawings and drop them through her balcony hatch. Usually these are just signed off as a simple cat face drawing.

Other times when he's more fortunate she will come out onto the balcony and they spend time talking about their favourite things. Chat Noir loves this as Marinette is prone to extreme hand gestures and her voice squeaks a little when she's passionate about something.

After doing this for a few years, it eventually gets to a point where Marinette allows Chat into her room, usually it's spend with him sitting on her bed, with her in-between his legs as he gently strokes her hair until she falls asleep.

He always takes care not to wake her when he realises she's in a deep sleep. Tucking her in and gently kissing her head before leaving.

And although he knows his heart will forever be with Ladybug, he appreciates the happiness he feels when looking after Marinette. It gets to a point where he almost looks forward to them having a particular hard day at work/school/college because he knows he gets to spend the evening making her feel better.