#I wish marinette was petty

[oli0-0]

thinking about in dark cupid when Marinette blamed herself for Kim’s embarrassment, because she encouraged him to ask out Chloé. She is way to nice, I would’ve been laughing in his face.

karma’s a bitch

[sliceofhotsoda]

miraculous has wormed into my brain again and I just wanna say WHY did alix not have marinette's back when lila was targeting her??? PLEASE alix is the biggest hater who isn't a bully and youre telling me that she didn't even give lila a side-eye or think of her as annoying and attention-seeking (like she so clearly is)? im so sick of this, WHY does everyone even like that girl!! ur telling me there's NO haters in paris who don't like her out of jealousy or spite? come on. come on. this is exactly why chloe would've been so good as an anti-lila weapon.

[princess-of-the-corner]

I've had this thought before, but every time the discussion about lila and marinette "hating liars" comes up, I am once again reminded that Adrien has to lie WAY LESS than Marinette.

His combination of being incredibly sheltered, not having many friends, overbearing crazy unpredictable schedule that---critically---he doesn't actually care about, and just enough parental neglect means that this stuff kinda just. . .works out for Adrien. Beyond being like "I gotta pee" whenever there's an akuma and then not doing that, his life as Chat Noir disrupts his Adrien life very little all things considered. It's usually more the other way around, with his responsibilities as Adrien disrupting his desires as Chat. And every time he does indulge in a bigger lie, it's usually to his dad about what he was doing that day, and we're all hysterically cheering in the background because Adrien got to express autonomy. . .which sadly went away later but whatever.

Kinda adds another layer of why they react to Lila differently. And I so wish it was good writing and not a weird accident that stemmed from some other places of bad writing. Because if you handle the characters well, then you get:

Yes, Marinette is jealous and vindictive and petty, but she also has to lie all the time for her Ladybug thing and it is actively ruining her life, so she has this subconcious hate/guilt complex around lying and liars (and Lila does in fact need to chill the fuck out). Adrien, meanwhile, is currently learning the value of just lying his ass off to his dad and authority figures and doesn't see how this stuff can be really harmful if you go too far.

See this kinda leads into my thought that Lila would've been a better narrative foil for any of the Main 5 other than Marinette.

Specifically with Adrien.

In that yeah lying can be helpful to him. It lets him get around unfair rules. Lets him get what he wants. And, really, no one's getting hurt.

Until they do because something does go wrong.

[marinetteplztakeabreak]

(Until s6 comes out i am living in my own world where anyrhing can happen btw. So lila is still gonna be a student in their class until otherwise proven)

Anyway my first wish is for lila and marinette to figure out each others’ identities so they can have extremely petty arguments that no one else in the room can understand. Marinette being like “well i think Lila should have done more of the group project essay because I didnt sleep because Someone sent an akuma to my roof at 2am and made so much noise” and everyone can very gently be like “okay? Marinette please stop yelling, its not Lila’s fault that happened” and Marinette can be like “it IS her fault she’s ruining my life” and Lila can be like “well maybe if you weren’t such an annoying little stubborn jerk the akumas wouldnt be bugging you. Maybe this is karma.” and marinette can hiss at her loudly and everyone in the room can be like. Okay. Okay. What is this energy

My second wish is for marinette and lila to constanrly disappear at the same time (bc of akuma fights) and accidentally have to start coordinating their excuses because both of them have identities to hide. Because theyre stupid. So they start passing each other notes like “okay today we’re gonna say we saw a lost puppy while running and had to take it to the vet. Here’s the details to keep our story straight” (neither of them know adriens identity so neither notice he Also disappears at the same time)

My third wish is for Lila to join the resistance as an undercover agent to try to usurp it except it turns out the resistance doesn’t have Any information about anything ladybug related but Lila gets in over her head and ends up trapped in a cycle of making “we love you ladybug youre so strong and cool!!” Glitter posters every single day and whenever she tries to lie her way out of it instead of just saying she doesnt want to, nino’s like “omg no problem!!!! I’ll get you new resistance activities that work better with your needs!!! That’s what friends are for!!!”

My fourth wish is for lila to crack under all this pressure, and start monologuing so passionately to her accomplice chloé that it accidentally turns into into a makeout session.

[eddo-tensei]

"YOU JUST WANT HER TO STAY THE SAME!" - A short essay on the misconception of why people wanted Chloe to be redeemed.

Interpretations are important when it comes to understanding media and despite what some people may say, there's never "one true interpretation" of a piece of media. At this point, it's been at least a couple months since the fifth season of Miraculous had ended and it's been at least a month less than that since the movie had premiered. In both cases, even though she just barely qualifies as being a main character in the franchise, Chloe had become a hot topic in both iterations. In the show, she started out as your stock mean girl archetype, started to gain some depth in Seasons 2 and 3, and then suddenly nose-dived into being the resident Hate Sink come Season 4 and onwards while any bit of depth she had was stripped away from her. In the movie, she started out as relatively the same as she did in the show, but what's interesting is how her progression in the movie was handled in that there barely was any progression for her in either path. There wasn't a path of redemption written for her, but she wasn't thrown into the Hate Sink like what the latter half of the show did with her. In fact, even though the movie gave her an extremely petty motivation to bully Marinette, she's somehow better than how the show depicted her because she actually has a motivation, albeit a petty one, and yet she's somehow shown to be less of a monstrous psychopath that the show tried desperately to make her out to be. Granted, I do feel like something is lost with Zag retconning out most of Chloe and Adrien's past friendship, but the rest of the writing for Movie Adrien more than made up for that because Adrien actually feels like his own character instead of someone morphed into an accessory for Marinette. Same goes for Movie Marinette for that matter because even though they don't have a backstory together, Chloe's bullying of Marinette actually holds weight and Marinette felt more like a genuine introvert than the neurotically creepy mess she was in the show and to whom the writers spent the last season desperately attempting to justify the questionable actions of. All that said, the movie did a lot of right in terms of characterization and while Chloe, Nino, and Alya had reduced roles, they were still written pretty nicely and I hope to see this version of these characters again should Zag pen another sequel.

Even so, it led me to think about something that's been bothering me concerning Chloe and the discourse surrounding her. Even now, especially after how the fifth season's finale played out, the debate for whether or not Chloe should've been redeemed is still ongoing and it's very clear that the show had only served to strengthen those who said she never deserved to be redeemed to begin with. While there's a lot to debate over this, I do feel like there's one particular idea among those who are against a redemption for Chloe that's just completely wrong and deserves to be called out. Namely, a lot of people who argue against Chloe being redeemed seem to have this assumption that those who do want that are defending all of Chloe's actions or worse, that those who are pro-redemption actually just want Chloe to remain the same character-wise while she gets to be a hero again. Honestly, it's baffling that people would believe that Chloe fans who wish for a redemption just want Chloe to remain the same bully she always was even though that is literally the opposite of what most Chloe fans want and completely goes against the point of her having a redemption arc to begin with.

Now the reason I said this is the opposite of what MOST Chloe fans want is because there are indeed some fans of Chloe who do think she did nothing wrong and that she should be given the hero spot because Marinette is just being stupid. These fans usually come from people who get most of their ideas for Miraculous from watching goons like CyrusLovesOwlCity and to put it simply, these people are wrong and should not be taken seriously. Frankly, they're no different from any Marinette stan or Adrien stan who argue until they're blue in the face about how their respective characters did nothing wrong while violently salting any other character, including each other, that did something even slightly negative to their favorites. Those people do not deserve to be allowed in any polite conversation involving Miraculous regardless of which character they do it for.

In any case, despite what people might think, a lot of Chloe fans do want to see her change and stop being a bully. They want to actually watch her learn that what she's doing is wrong and thus improve herself. Of course, the showrunners seem to vehemently disagree with the concept of her ever becoming better and actively shoot down any possible hint of that happening. People will argue that there were never any hints to begin with and that Chloe fans are just being delusional, but that's where interpretations come in. While one could easily just say that Chloe is just impossible to redeem and one can even dive deep to even find reasons as to why that is, people can also look deep enough to find reasons as to why Chloe CAN be redeemed. While there's no true evidence that Chloe had a hidden heart of gold, there is evidence to show that she's much more sensitive and insecure than she lets on, primarily seen in any episode where Audrey is a primary character. Moreover, while Chloe is more of an overt bully in the movies, the scene of the ball towards the end of the movie does indicate that while Chloe still has a front, she does respect Marinette to an extent to the point of allowing her to dance with Adrien. This latter scene does seem to lean more into what Chloe fans actually want in that even though she is a bully, she's also starting to grow and it does seem like there's hope that she could get out of that role instead of just getting worse and being treated as a worse person than someone who attempted genocide and someone who wanted to erase reality.

With all that said, I feel like one more thing that needs to be addressed is that some people seem to believe that Chloe fans only complain about the show's writing when Chloe looks bad. While it may seem like cope, when people are complaining about it for multiple characters that arguably span the entire show, I don't think they're just complaining because one character is written in a bad light. Kagami, Nino, and Alya are just some of the other characters that come to mind when talking about how bad the writing is and of course, when Marinette and Adrien get their awful moments, a lot of their fans seem quick to jump to bringing up "bad writing" as a complaint as well with them often rewriting these characters to fit how they themselves view them. Frankly, if those fans are allowed to just create their own versions of these characters, I don't see why Chloe fans shouldn't be granted that same luxury for Chloe herself.

Overall, while the future of the show is uncertain, it's clear that Chloe's fandom is never going to truly disappear no matter how much people try to make that happen. All that said, you shouldn't just assume that a Chloe fan just wants her to get away with everything and be treated as a hero without having to change. Ultimately, you shouldn't just accuse a fan of Chloe of defending all of her bad actions just because they want her to be better. Save that negative energy for the people who unironically say that she did nothing wrong and then actively salt other characters for her. This is a lot to write, but I really wanted to get my thoughts out there and hopefully clear some things up.

Also, people who say that Marinette is somehow the true bully do not belong in the Miraculous fandom. Simple as.

[pearl484-blog]

To the Survivors

Sentimonster Adrien Agreste arranges a long awaited meeting with the real Adrien Agreste

Adrien AUGreste prompt: Truth

Ao3 link

The meeting was never supposed to happen, but Adrien had made it so. He'd used every ounce of power and influence he'd had, but he was sure it would all be worth it to meet the real Adrien Agreste. No, not the real one, Adrien corrected himself. The human one. His friends were very insistent that Adrien call his counterpart the human one, as if that changed anything. No matter what, that Adrien had been the one that his parents raised, the one that ran away, the one Adrien had replaced. He lived under a different name now, Gabby Grassette, a name that brazenly mocked their father's in alevel of pettiness that screamed preteen. A 12 year old, the very age that Gabby had left. 12 years old and Gabby had been gutsier than Adrien ever was. Now though, as Adrien laid eyes on his human counterpart for the first time, Adrien didn't see guts. He saw exhaustion. Gabby's eyes had bags bigger than some designer purses, and he was skinny, to the point that Adrien could see his ribs. His body was littered with scars and pockmarks. His hair was pulled into a loose ponytail, green and crunchy with cheap dye. But his eyes. They were the same shape and color as Adrien’s, the same as their mother’s, but that glare. It could only have come from their father Gabriel. The Gabby’s gaze could paralyze Adrien from across the room, leaving him drowning in the memory of cold, lonely nights and the overwhelming weight of disappointment. By the time Gabby had approached, Adrien had mostly worked his way out of it, but it still took everything he had to start up some small talk. He talked about the weather. He talked about his friends. He avoided talking about their family, but it didn't stop him from discussing his fiance, Marinette. Yet every attempt at small talk was parried with the grace and speed of one of Kagami's ripostes, until finally Gabby gave him a glare strong enough to rival their father's Gabriel’s. "Let's cut to the chase," Gabby said. "Why don't you ask me what you really want to know, what everyone wants to know. 'Why did you leave?'" Gabby glared at him bitterly, silently daring him to say otherwise. But that wasn't the question Adrien wanted to ask. It wasn't the question that ate him up at night, the burning reason he'd set up this meeting in the first place. "How?" Adrien blurted out. "How'd you do it? How'd you escape?" Gabby raised an eyebrow, "the windows in my room never lock, and I-" Adrien shook his head furiously. "That's not what I'm asking," he cried, before shrinking back at the sudden stares his outburst drew. Then, more softly, he explained, "you were 12 when you left. You weren't even a teenager yet. I lived your life. I know why you left, but I don't know..." He couldn't finish. He couldn’t say 'why I didn't'. Adrien thought of all the times he was weak, the times he gave in. He could've fought, should've fought, but he didn't. Instead Adrien had just taken it. No, even worse, Adrien had defended it. He'd made so many excuses, told so many lies, not just to himself, but everyone else. Ladybug may have made Gabriel a hero, but it was Adrien’s constant justifications that had allowed it.

"You were so young," Adrien tried again. "So how'd you run away? How were you strong enough?" Gabby sighed. "I wish I could say that I never regretted it. That I left and never looked back, because I did. God, some nights, I missed my home so much I wanted to crawl back on my hands and knees.' "But every time, I thought about it, I remembered just how suffocating that-"Gabby struggled to get the words out, like the very thought choked him, "that man was. I couldn't live like that. He was like a vampire, constantly draining the life out of everyone." Gabby gave Adrien a comforting smile. "But I found a better life. I found people who care about me, who make me happy, and from what you've told me today, so have you." Adrien nodded sheepishly. "Yeah," he admitted, "I guess I did." Gabby held up his glass and said, "To the survivors. Who outlived Gabriel and live happier lives." "To the survivors," Adrien echoed, and together they downed their drinks.

[ali-annals]

All's Fair in Love & Prank Wars

Pairing: Jason Todd x Marinette Dupain-Cheng, implied Timdrien

Rating: G | Ao3 | WC: 2k | CW: - | A/N: M?GI! Secret Writer's Bracket 2023, Round 1

"Damn right I'm pretty." "I said petty."

Jason angrily huffed and flounced out of the small living room, disgusted by the scene before his eyes. His dramatic exit was barely noticed by the main culprit, but their partner-in-crime did and looked at them, confused.

“Why is Jason so moody? He seemed happy to see me earlier.” Marinette looked up from where she was sketching cartoons of the Waynes, stretched out under Tim’s arm as he made snarky comments about it.

Tim rolled his eyes, tired of the pair’s blindness. “I wonder why.”

Marinette frowned. “Because you showed up and he’s mad at you for getting distracted on patrol last night?”

“That! Was partially your fault! Admit it!”

“Patrol was slow!” Mari defended herself. “I didn’t think he’d hate the idea of roof tag that much.”

“Probably just because you were constantly jumping me,” Tim mumbled. 

“Well, how else was I gonna get my coffee back?”

Their bickering quickly devolved into play-wrestling and Jason huffed in annoyance, glancing in as he walked by with his steaming tea and book.

~~~~~

Jason was mad that Tim was with Marinette, he was mad that he was mad about it, and he was mad that the two were so close he couldn’t dare say anything about it.

Yet another thing the Pretender had that he didn’t.

And he couldn’t even begrudge it, because she was just so bright, anyone would be lucky to have her companionship. But he sure wished that she’d toss a couple rays his way sometimes.

It bothered him that she was so nervous around him, so he tried to stay out of her way, but she was like the sun and he her earth, constantly drawn to her and staying close to her. Any further away and he’d freeze. As it was, he burned when he was around her, but the burning was from anger. Tim was often by her side, meaning if he wanted to bask in her warmth for a while, he had to put up with her and the Pretender’s…closeness.

The trouble was that he was delusional enough to wonder if he did have a sliver of a chance. The way Mari and Tim acted was sometimes more sibling-like than boyfriend/girlfriend. 

Then again, whenever he was around her and she noticed (which was often, she had good situational awareness), she turned into a nervous, awkward, endearing mess, stuttering and twice as clumsy, her eyes always flitting from him to exits to the people around them. He wondered if he could ever make her see him in a way that made her less tense around him.

Tired of not knowing if Tim and Mari were dating or simply concerningly close friends, Jason made up his mind to find out once and for all.

The trouble with this plan was that in this family, you couldn’t simply ask a question and find out the answer, unless it was an emergency or you were Cass.

This would require finesse…

Prank war it was!

He was 98% sure Tim was the one who’d spilled coffee in the library, anyways. The little brat was practically asking for it.

~~~~~

Marinette screeched and yanked the towel tighter around her. “Knock!”

“Sorry!” Tim backed out of his bathroom very quickly, his hands held up in innocence. “I just heard your screech and then a thump, I was worried.”

“Thank you, but please, boundaries !”

She shook her stringy hair in annoyance. Jason had messed with Tim’s shower in the Nest and it had been incredibly cold, which she hadn’t expected. This meant war.

Once she had showered, in the spare shower this time, which was thankfully untouched, she returned to Tim’s room and demanded an emergency War Council session.

He agreed, feeling a teeny bit guilty that Mari had taken the prank intended for him and a lot amused by her appearance as a half-drowned mouse , and pulled up his list of possible pranks to play that he’d been brainstorming.

Mari wrapped a towel around her hair and rolled over to the desk on a roller stool. 

“That’s a long list; how long have you been creating this list?”

“Since the very First Official Prank War,” his answering grin was a little maniacal.

~~~~~

Jason perched in the ceiling of the Nest, contorted to avoid Tim’s sensors and cameras. This position was starting to be a bit uncomfortable, especially since it had taken both of them longer than he expected to shower after their spar and workout. The Pretender still hadn’t showered, actually. 

Gross.

Unfortunately, Mari had been the victim of his tinkering with the taps, and he still hadn’t gotten conclusive evidence to her and Tim’s relationship either way.

He used his helmet’s capabilities to zoom in on the pair.

Marinette was pointing out prank ideas and Tim was listing what they were in retaliation to.

Jason raised the volume of his bug in Marinette’s bracelet. It was Bat-tech, for her to press if she was in trouble as a civilian, but he had hacked into it and activated it for this operation.

Tim finished saying something and Marinette slapped his arm.

Ugh, a flirty gesture, or friendly violence?

“You’re so petty!” she accused Tim, and Jason snorted. Petty was a weak adjective for him.

“Darn right I’m pretty,” Tim attempted a flirty hair flip with his loose bangs.

"I said petty. You sure think highly of yourself, huh."

"I've been told I'm very pretty, it's the truth," he shrugged.

"Yeah, by Adrien , he's biased. You know what's better than pretty?” she grinned.

Tim looked at her incredulously.

“...Okay, fine, you're pretty!” She gave into Tim's ridiculous puppy-eyes.”But it's delicate pretty, you know my type is rugged pretty-"

"- like Jason,  yes, I know. Ugh, when will you stop rhapsodizing over Jason, it's so gross,” Tim shivered dramatically.

What.

"You're so rude! You know, if I get with Jason, then I'll be out of your hair more…"

"Ooh! Good point, I should change my objective in this prank war to getting you two idiots together instead of just getting revenge on Jason…" Tim pulled up a new doc and began outlining plans that Jason heard nothing of, too stunned by what he’d just learned.

Marinette was nervous around him, not because he was so big, intimidating-looking, violent, or any of the other things he’d thought, but because she had a crush on him?

…Well, then, things just got a whole lot more interesting.

He focused on Tim’s plans again.

~~~~~

Jason “just happened” to be loitering in the kitchen waiting for the kettle to boil for his tea when Tim and Mari stormed in, arguing about coffee.

It seemed like normal, but Jason had learned of Tim’s plan and bribed him with pictures of Adrien he’d bought off Chloe last time she was in Gotham.

Tim was going to make Marinette think that they were pranking Jason by meddling with his tea. 

While Marinette was in the pantry fishing out the ingredients for his not-tea, Tim would blackmail him into baking for them, then when Jason was also in the pantry, Tim would lock them in.

(Of course, there was a way to unlock the pantry from the inside, but Marinette didn’t know that.

He hoped.

There was no way for him or Tim to casually ask her if she knew of the safeguard without giving its existence away.)

Everything went as planned and Jason was shoved further into the pantry, the door clicking shut and the decisive snick of the handle locking echoing in the neatly organized chamber.

Jason flipped the lightswitch and looked at Marinette, who was holding a variety of ingredients in her hands, attempting to look innocent.

“Oh, you’re in here too? What are you making?”

“Um…was just getting some things Tim asked for; he wanted to make something, I think?”

Clever, Sunshine, deflecting and twisting the words to not give anything away. Well, that won’t work here. I learned from the best.

“Oh, okay. I guess we’re stuck here till Timderella lets us out so I can make his beignets.”

Marinette muttered something under her breath, likely something uncomplimentary about her traitorous ex-prank-partner as she realized she’d been played. Good, she didn’t know about the safeguard.

“We haven’t hung out much one-on-one,” he noted casually, sitting cross-legged on the floor and opening a bag of M&M’s.

“I thought that was on purpose? You seemed to avoid me.” She cautiously joined him on the floor.

He smiled behind his handful of M&M’s. “You seemed nervous around me.”

He could see the realization cross her face.

“But recently I learned that my assumption was wrong,” he started. “I didn’t think this amazing girl I know would like someone like me, but apparently, she does, so I thought I should ask her out.

“Marinette, will you go on a date with me?”

She blinked, then nodded vigorously. “Yes! I’d love that!”

He grinned back at her. “Then giving my best collection of blackmail photos to Tim to lock us in here was the best investment I made.” He pulled out his phone to text Tim.

Marinette’s jaw dropped. “That little traitor,” she hissed.

Tim came back a moment later and unlocked the pantry, a self-satisfied smile on his face. “Congratulations, you two, I was waiting forever for you to realize what dunderheads you were being.”

The smile was quickly wiped off his face as Mari launched herself at him, chasing him around the kitchen.

“Call off your girlfriend!”

“She don’t bite,” shrugged Jason, cheering Marinette on.

“YES SHE DO!” screeched Tim, vaulting over the island.

“Wait, let me tell you something, let me tell you something,” Tim begged, poised to sprint to the safety of the hallway, his hands held up innocently, pleadingly.

Marinette paused, suspicious.

“Jason was the one who came up with the idea to lock you two in there!”

“He confessed,” said Mari, taking a step forward.

“He forced me to!”

“It was a bribe. That’s on your weak moral compass for falling for such material things,” she sniffed disdainfully.

“It was pictures of little Adrien! How could I refuse?!”

Marinette glanced back at Jason. “You have pics of little Adrien?”

He shrugged. “I bought ‘em off Chloe. All’s fair in love and war.”

Afterword:

[Once Marinette has chased Tim enough that her vengeful streak is satisfied] Tim, annoyed at Jason and Marinette being all cute and in love (oh how the tables have turned): Hey, Mari, did you know there was a way to get out of the pantry that Jason didn't want you to know about so you couldn't run away from him? Jason, silently promising Tim that he'll hide all his coffee if this turns out badly for him: Marinette, too happy to care about anything now: Yeah, I knew there was a way to get out. Alfred showed me the first time I baked here, just in case I got locked in. I decided it wouldn't be a bad thing to be locked in a small space with my crush, and Jay didn't look like he wanted to leave any time soon, which was great! Jason and Tim: ... Jason: Have I ever told you how much I love your devious mind, Sunshine?

[sayuricorner]

Rage-Jin - A Miraculous Ladybug X Magic Kaito story: Part 2

Part 1

Warning: English is not my first language so sorry if it’s confusing.

Warning 2: This one-shot content salt don’t like don’t read!

Part 2 of the ML / Magic Kaito crossover one-shot!!! ^^ for @lupsss1412

“-I can’t believe he got away! And with the gem no less!”

If a word could describe Marinette’s mood right now, “frustrated” would be the best choice.

Chat Noir and her had been so close, SO CLOSE! To stop Kaito Kid and arrest him but of course of all the night Hawkmoth had to choose to akumatize someone it has to be this night.

Yes! Fighting akumas was Chat’s and her main priority, she even told Chat herself… 

But thinking about all what happen last night:

-The thief stealing the gem despite the security organized by the police.

-Chat Noir having been unbearable, again, during the whole thing despite her telling him more than once to take this seriously and not lower his guard.

-Climatica attacked when they were about to capture Kaito Kid giving the thief the opportunity to get away.

-And most of all Chat Noir thinking that attempting to capture a thief for his ego was more important than fighting an akuma who would have more than certainly hurt a lot of innocents, leaving her to face the akuma all alone before he finally decided at one point to let Kaito Kid go and help her.

All those accumulations of misadventures in one night just added frustration to Marinette, she was angry, at Kaito Kid for having stole the gem, at Chat Noir for having complicated things, at Hawkmoth for having akumatized Aurore that night and more importantly at herself for not having been able to handle the situation better.

If she actually handled the situation then maybe she would have captured Kaito Kid before he even left the museum, maybe she’d have been able to be a better partner with Chat Noir they would have been able to work as a team…

And maybe this whole night wouldn’t have been a mess…

“-Oh Marinette!” Her kwami told softly, looking at her with sad eyes.” Please don’t be so hard on yourself! Sure this thief got away but you had to do what’s important as Ladybug: to fight the akumas and protect the innocents! And it wasn’t a failure, you did defeat Climatica and saved Aurore before things turned worse and this is what matters so please don’t say such things about yourself!”

Ah… She didn’t notice her speaking her thoughts…

She knows Tikki was right, defeating akumas and protecting civilians from them were her top priority, if an akuma is on a rampage she must go take them down, even if it means letting a petty thief escape into the night.

But still, she wishes she could have caught Kaito Kid and taken back the gem in addition to desakumatizing Aurore.

Speaking of her, apparently, the reason for her akumatization was because she was under a lot of stress lately at KIDZ+ and Alec unintentionally made her stress worse to the point she had a breakdown last night.

“-I know Tikki, stopping akumas is my priority as Ladybug, as a miraculous holder, heck that what I was telling Chat over and over again, but… with everything which happened last night, not to mention Chat’s behavior during the whole fiasco… The fact is that I let everything get out of hand and I wasn’t able to manage the situation… It’s just so frustrating…”

“-I understand, but sulking about it and beating yourself over it will not do anything! And maybe you’ll have another occasion to catch Kaito Kid? Who knows, maybe he will still be in Paris for a time and you’ll get a new opportunity to catch him and this time without an akuma attacking with a bit of luck!”

Honestly Marinette wasn’t really sure about the last part, for all the “lucky moments” she could have, having a day without akumas or not having an attack at the worst times weren’t a part of them, there wasn’t a day nor a moment without Hawkmoth creating an akuma.

Really, one wonders what kind of creepy shut in Hawkmoth must be to have so much free time to be able to send akumas everyday whenever he wants. Maybe he was one of those strange rich guys that are secluded in their mansions and his real wish was to cause chaos just because he could.

But on the other hand Tikki does have a point, sulking will not change anything all she can do right now is making sure Kaito Kid wouldn’t steal in Paris again, keep on fighting the akumas, and try to had a word with Chat Noir if there’s an opportunity, and like she said, maybe she will be able to catch the thief before he leaves the town! Who knows? Anything could happen!

“-You’re right Tikki, thanks!” Marinette told her kwami with a little smile.

The tiny goddess happily nobbed at her but quickly realized something and turned her gaze toward Marinette’s alarm clock before turning back to Marinette nervously.

 “-Hum… Marinette, aren't you supposed to join Kaito and Aoko at the park this afternoon?”

Her eyes wide, the young girl quickly looked at her alarm clock before panicking and quickly grabbing her purse, in which Tikki fled.

“-OhmygoshIcompletelyforgotthankyouTikki!” Marinette quickly said before sprinting out of her room.

(Time skip)

After a hasty departure Marinette gets, thankfully, at the park on time to meet up with Kaito and Aoko.

The day was sunny and no akuma was rampaging the city, a perfect day for hanging out at the park in Marinette’s opinion.

“And hopefully, this outing will go smoothly and peacefully!” The bluenette thought, hoping no one and nothing will come and ruin this day, whatever it would be an akuma, her classmates or even Lila, she lives very close to the park after all.

She found the two Japanese students on a bench near the fountain and without wasting any time joined them.

They spent a long time talking about everything and nothing.

Until the subject of Kaito Kid’s last heist was put on the table, which Aoko profited from to rant about the thief.

Turns out Kaito Kid and Aoko’s father had a sort of “history”, and the latter dedicated his life into trying to arrest Kaito Kid.

“-People back in Japan may see him as a japanese Arsène Lupin and look up at him but honestly he is nothing more than an obnoxious petty thief, he even makes my dad’s life hard with his crimes!”

Marinette couldn’t help but agree with Aoko’s rant, from what she saw during her “encounter” with Kaito Kid, the infamous thief was indeed very obnoxious and his flirting which remind her way too much of Chat Noir’s flirting didn’t help to make her think otherwise.

Kaito, Marinette noticed, was silent and looking at them with a strange smirk on his face…

As if he was laughing at them in his mind or something.

“-Eeeh… I agree, he is not bad at magic and all but we know who is way cooler than him right Aoko?” Kaito asked his childhood friend, his smirk still on his face.

This only makes Aoko roll her eyes in annoyance.

“-Oh please, don’t flatter yourself you’re both equally annoying Bakaito!”

“-Oh?”

Kaito stood suddenly in front of Aoko, looking at her with a smiling face and suddenly his head began to shake before twisting around in a way which is impossible for any human.

“-What.. Is… The… Color… Today?” Kaito asked in a weird automatic voice.

Then suddenly, Kaito’s head popped up out of his body and landed in Aoko’s hand before throwing serpentines out of “his” mouth to an exasperated Aoko.

Marinette looked at the scene dumbfounded, a robot? What? How?

Her confusion was interrupted by Kaito’s voice, which strangely seemed to come from the robot’s legs.

“-Ah-ha! It’s pink!”

“-KYYAAAAH!”

Here upside down was Kaito’s head between his legs and looking right under Aoko’s skirt.

Laughing at Aoko’s reaction, Kaito standed up revealing that his body was in fact upside down this whole time and hid it with a very good disguise.

Marinette was torn up between being dumbfounded and amazed, just how in the Kwamis’s names Kaito managed to stay upside down on his hands this long?

“-A feminine color uh? You know that putting on you feminine things will not make you look more sweet or cute right “Ahoko”? Kaito teased his embarrassed friend.

“-I should have known… THAT YOU WOULDN’T BEHAVE FOR VERY LONG!!!” Aoko screamed angrily before beginning running after Kaito, the latter running away and avoiding any punch and kick from Aoko, keeping on teasing her at the same time.

“-See? Just like I said: no matter how many cute things you use you’re violent as always!~”

“-SHUT UP BAKAITO!!!”

Meanwhile, Marinette could do nothing but staring at the two japanese students with a deadpan expression, any other person would be surprised and puzzled by the exchange student's behavior but in Marinette’s case, let’s just say that after having spend times with them ever since they get to know each other, she end up to be used to their particular “lover quarrels”.

… This and the akumas attacks may have made her immune to the oddities she witnessed in her daily life.

  Kaito suddenly stopped moving, making Aoko stop in her tracks and looking at her childhood friend in confusion.

“-Now now Aoko, you know I’m just teasing you! No need to act like an enraged ape!”

“-Why you-”

“-Ooh! Look at that! Looks like there’s something behind your ear!” Kaito interrupted her.

The young man moved his hand to the confused girl’s ear and with a snap of his fingers, a little lighted candle appeared.

Still smiling, Kaito took the candle in front of Aoko.

“-One… Two… Three!”

Realizing what was going on, Aoko quickly blew out the candle as soon as Kaito finished counting and to her and Marinette’s surprise, the candle exploded into a little gift box.

“-Ta-da here you go!” Kaito told Aoko while giving her the gift.

Curious, Aoko opened the gift and was amazed to find a beautiful pair of earrings inside.

“-Kaito they’re amazing!”

“-He he I know! See this as a little apology gift!” Kaito responded to her while winking at her.

Marinette looked at the duo with a tender smile, despite all their fights, arguments and shenanigans it was easy to see that Kaito and Aoko genuinely cared for each other and had each other’s back despite their flaws.

A series of beeps were heard, bringing Kaito’s intention and making him take out his cell and looking at what seemed to be a notification, his eyes widened a little before he quickly put away the cell in his pocket.

“-Welp! Sorry you two but I’m expected somewhere, see you later!”

And just like that, Kaito quickly left the park, leaving a puzzled Marinette and an exasperated Aoko at Kaito’s shenanigans.

“-Hum Aoko, if it’s okay to ask, where is Kaito going like that?” Asked a still confused Marinette.

“-Ah! That's right, you’re not aware! Remember when we told you about Kaito’s mother traveling around the world? Well currently she’s in Paris and when she learned that Kaito and I were going to be in Paris at the same time as her, she arranged with Kaito a moment to meet up and spend time together!” Aoko explained.

Ah, yes she remembers the two japanese students talking about Kaito’s mother’s travels to her in a conversation during which they were getting to know each other better.

The notification in Kaito’s cell was most probably to remind him of his meet up with his mother then.

Meanwhile, Kaito walked through Paris’s streets, after a while he got to his destination which was a little café.

Looking at the occupied tables, he spotted a brown short haired woman, who happily waved her hand at him when she noticed Kaito.

Smiling, the young man got to the table and took a seat.

“-Heya mom!”

“-Kaito! It’s so good to see you!” Chikage tells her son with a smile. “How are you and Aoko doing? How is your stay in Paris going so far?”

“-We’re both good as usual! Paris is not bad so far, of course if you don’t count those akumas.”

“-Ah yes! I heard about them, luckily I wasn’t in the area whenever an attack happened! Oh by the way, when I got to Paris a few weeks ago I met an old friend I haven’t seen in ages!”

This sparks Kaito’s curiosity.

“-An old friend?” 

—--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Marinette carelessly threw herself on her bed while sighing happily, today has been a good one, no akuma, no Lila, no nosy classmates, just a nice peaceful day she spent with Aoko and Kaito.

It felt so good to spend a simple and calm day, when was the last time she had a day like this?

She doesn’t really remember, most of the time her days were filled with akuma attacks or when Alya and the other girls roped her in another scheme to get her to confess to Adrien.

Others would have argued that she didn't seem to mind during those times and while she would agree that this was the case at the start, her pink stained glass mind even justified it by seeing those moments as her friends genuinely trying to help her.

But recently, ever since she began to hang out with Kaito and Aoko she couldn’t help but compare her relationship with them with her friendship with the class.

“ If you could really call it a friendship ” A little voice in her mind said, which she tried to ignore.

“-Something is on your mind Marinette?” Her thoughts got interrupted by Tikki.

“-Ah! Nothing, don't worry about it Tikki!" The young girl reassured her kwami."I was just thinking back about how today has been a peaceful one for a start!"

"-True! You looked like you had a lot of fun and were very relaxed!" Tikki agreed."It was even a relief to see you so at ease around some friends to be honest!"

This statement confused Marinette who stared at the tiny goddess.

"-What do you mean?"

"-Well…" Tikki hesitated."As you know us kwamis don't have a total understanding of human feelings so take what I say with a grain of salt but… I couldn't help but notice that you seem more comfortable around Kaito and Aoko than when you're with your friends from your class! And before you begin, I know Alya and the others aren't bad people and, normally, mean well, but… What I mean Marinette is… Even before Lila came you seemed tense and stressed around your class, always anxious to do something which could offend them or disappoint them while with Kaito and Aoko you're just being… you, relaxed and spending time with friends without being worried about anything…"

Marinette stared at her kwami thoughtful.

She knew Tikki wasn't wrong, she herself noticed it for some time now…

Before this seemed normal for her, the classmates were her friends after all, so it was normal to do favors for them…

It seemed normal for her to be constantly anxious about doing something which could disappoint them and losing them as friends, she was the class’s representative and their “everyday ladybug” she couldn’t let them down…

With Kaito and Aoko however, it was… Different… She wasn’t the “everyday ladybug” always ready to do favors without asking anything in return, she wasn’t the class representative who must be a model to the rest… Or even the center of a “Adrinette ship scheme”...

With the Japanese students she was just… Marinette…

A clumsy girl who loves fashion…

A simple middle school girl doing simple things like hanging out with friends…

A girl who lives her daily life without worrying about what her next step will be…

And she was… Feeling good about it…

When was the last time she actually felt that way with her class? When was the last time she actually spent time with her friends without involving favors or her crush on Adrien?   

 When was the last time she was around people who made her feel like she was just herself?

Just be Marinette?

“-I think I get what you mean Tikki… When I’m hanging out with Aoko and Kaito I feel great and don’t feel gnawed by my problems like Lila, the class, the akumas or the gem-...” 

Marinette stopped on track, her eyes widening in horror.

“-Oh kwamis the gem!” She whispered in horror.

How could she have forgotten about it?

“-How can I be there like that all relaxed when Kaito Kid still had the gem?!” She exclaimed in panic.

“-Marinette…” Tikki tried to call her without success.

“-What if he tried to leave the city with it? What if he tried to leave France with it? What if he decides to sell the gem to some shady people or something?”

“-Marinette!” The kwami tried again but the young girl was way too deep in her panic.

“-And… And with the powers the gem hides, who knows what he could do… Ooooh this is a disaster! I-I must transform and find Kaito Kid and take back the gem before-...”

“-MARINETTE!!!” The tiny god screamed startlingly at the dark haired girl who looked at her kwami with shocked wide eyes.

Sighing at her holder’s antics, Tikki looked at Marinette and spoked in a reassuring voice.

“-Marinette, we already talked about it: Don’t worry! You will catch Kaito Kid and take back the gem! It’s not very easy to leave a city or a country with something precious which was stolen, it takes time and a lot of organization so I’m sure this will give you enough time to find him! As for the risk of him using the gem’s “powers” you don’t have to worry about it either! He will not be able to do anything even if he wanted to!”

Okay, now Marinette was confused!

“-What do you mean?” Marinette asked her.

“-Well…” Tikki begin.

(Elsewhere)

“-So this confirms it then!” Kaito Kid said as he put away the still purple-ish gem from the moonlight.

“-This is not the pandora!” The magician thief concluded.

“-It unfortunately seems like it, master Kaito!” Jii confirmed with a sad sigh.

Kaito stared at the gem, a beautiful but ordinary gem, unlike what the media claimed.

While it was a bummer that, once again, he got the wrong gem, it was also a relief.

The gem not being Pandora, just a common precious gemstone, means that Kaito will not have to worry for the Black Organization to try to steal it, the obvious lack of magic in the gem even mean that the ones like Hawkmoth will not be interested in it.

Yes, while it was a shame he didn't get Pandora, the fact the gem is not magic will not get the intention of any potential threat.

 "-Well, it's a shame!" Kaito said with a Fake sad sigh."But at least we will not have to worry about the organization coming to Paris!"

"-So what do we do now, Master Kaito?" Jii asked him.

"-Now?" The thief said as he turned toward the old Man with a smirk."Kaito Kid will find a perfect moment to give back the gem and After that Kaito Kuroba will profit from the rest of his stay in Paris!"

"-I understand Master Kaito!" Jii nodded in understanding."I will look out after the gem until you give it back!"

"-Good idea Jii-chan ! Welp, I should go now! If I don't come back soon Aoko will be wondering where I could be! Good night!" Kaito declared as he left.

"-Good night Master Kaito!"

—--------------------------

"-THE GEM IS NOT MAGIC?!"

Tikki stared at her holder in amusement.

"-Nope! No magic at all!" The kwami of creation confirmed."So rest assured when I'm telling you that the thief using the gem's so-called "powers" is the last of our worries!"

"-B-But the legends about it…" Marinette stuttered in confusion.

-"Marinette !" Tikki laughed."While many legends are true, that doesn't necessarily mean that ALL of them are real! You know how humans love to tell stories to create magic out of common things and to want to believe in those stories, this makes the Magic of those myths! You'd be surprised by how much of those stories exist compared to the number of actual magic beings and artifacts!"

"-So…" Marinette hesitated."The gem is truly not magic and we don't have to worry about Kaito Kid trying to do… kwamis know what, with it?"

"-Exactly!"

Marinette reflected on what she just learned, all this was… a relief to be honest.

With the gem being a normal gemstone, all Kaito Kid could get out of it would be money and the safest way to do that would be to get the gem out of the country to sell it on a black market in another country, which is not an easy task.

That means she still had time to have the occasion to stop Kaito Kid and take the gem back before he could even leave the city!

"-You know what Tikki?You're right! Worrying about the gem being used for magic is the last of our worries since it is not magic! And if Kaito Kid stole it because of the myths around it then he will more than certainly have a bad surprise which will give us time to bust him!" Marinette said with determination.

"-That the spirit Marinette !" Tikki cheered.

Smiling, the young girl looked at her kwami before turning a determined look at the starry Sky through her window.

Kaito Kid will be stopped and the gem will be retrieved, she as Ladybug will make sure of it.

—---------------------

The next day things were very agitated at Françoise-Dupont, only one thing was in the students’s and some teachers’s lips: the latest heist of Kaito Kid.

Miss Bustier’s class wasn’t excluded and were actively talking about the heist’s events.

While most of them were very excited, some were reacting differently.

Aoko’s face was wearing a scorn expression being, like usual, very annoyed at the mention of the magician thief.

Kaito was just sitting at his seat ignoring the whole ruckus and being completely indifferent to the whole thing.

One girl among Bustier’s students was trying her best to not make herself noticed in the form of Sabrina.

The young girl was keeping her head down and was as silent as a mouse feeling very uncomfortable at the mention of the heist, a feeling which is very understandable with the media having relayed how her father was played and ridiculed by Kaito Kid during the whole night.

Two students, however, were irritated and were trying to not show it.

Those two students were Marinette and Adrien.

Even with her newfound determination to catch Kaito Kid next time, the weight of the failure from the heist was still there in her and being reminded about the night during which she and Chat Noir failed to catch the thief wasn’t pleasant.

As for Adrien, he was fuming inside at the mention of Kaito Kid, he was still upset about the thief having flirted with Ladybug and pass him for a fool so let’s just say that Kaito Kid isn’t on his favorite persons list currently.

“-I’m still shocked that Ladybug and Chat Noir weren’t able to capture him!” Alya said to the classmates, her voice showing her obvious excitement.

“-Yeah! But on the other hand Kaito Kid had been stealing for years so he must had gained skills into escaping anyone who would try to catch him!” Max explained.

“-You know an uncle of mine had been a victim of Kaito Kid!” Lila exclaimed, not supporting that anything or anyone beside her get the class’s intention.

“-WAIT REALLY?!”

“-What happened?”

“-Nobody was hurt I hope!”

“-What did he stole?”

“-Oh my god! Girl you MUST tell us!”

Lila smirked, satisfied, the effect she wanted was immediate.

“-Well, it’s happened some times before I moved to Paris!” Lila begin to explain taking a fake soft uncertain voice.”I have an uncle in Italy who is the CEO of a successful company, the biggest in the country. In fact, he earned millions with his work! My uncle was also very sceptical about banks so he always kept his money in the most secured safecase in the world inside his mansion! But one night, Kaito Kid had broke in and begun to stole my uncle’s money after managing to open the safecase!”

Seeing that most of the class was captivated by her story, Lila kept going, adding a bit of sadness to keep her audience on her.

Marinette just ignored them and was focusing on her sketchbook and Adrien just shook his head.

“-He… My uncle tried to stop him and got into a fight… He fought as much as he could but things have gone really wrong and he… He… He was severely injured and Kaito Kid just left with the money and… Since then, my uncle has never been the same!” The liar sobbed while opening the waterworks.

“-Lila this is awful!” Alya said while comforting her.

“-I’m really sorry for your uncle!” Rose said with tears in her eyes.

“-What Kaito Kid has done is horrible! I hope someone will end up caught him so he could finally pay for what he had done!” Alix exclaimed in anger.

“-Yeah! He deserves to be in jail!” Kim agreed.

The class was now surrounding Lila, altering between comforting her and cursing Kaito Kid.

The liar couldn’t help it but smirk secretly in satisfaction, it's just so easy!

“-Oi! Did you finish your little act already?” Kaito’s annoyed voice interrupted the moment.

The class, Marinette and Adrien included, turned their intention toward him, he and Aoko looked extremely annoyed.

“-Hum… What do you mean?” Lila nervously asked, trying to feign confusion.

“-I mean your little drama queen acts as fake as your face!” Kaito said while staring at her clearly annoyed, and this time he wasn’t even going to bother and hide it under some poker face

“-Because there’s no way everything you just said is true as 1) It’s a worldwide known fact that Kaito Kid only stole gems, not money!”

“-2) In his whole career, he never intentionally injured anyone! In fact if something like that ever happened my father would have been one of the first informed since he is fixated on arresting him!” Aoko added annoyed as well, she might hate the thief but she could at least acknowledge he has morals. 

“-3)Kaito Kid NEVER had done heists in Italy! Outside of Singapore and Paris, he exclusively steal in Japan!” Katio finished, the last hit on the nail knowing that it would be something he could prove without exposing himself “since every single one of his heists have been announced before happening”

“-And finally 4) It's impossible that something like that happened and wasn't relayed at all by any kind of media, reporters, paparazzi or bloggers! A story like this would have been spread all around the world if it actually happened!” Both japanese students concluded, aoko nodding along with Kaito.

The whole class was silent, Marinette winced knowing about the storm which was about to burst out.

She know it will happen, she had been in this type of situation before after all.

"-And what do YOU know about it uh?" Alya asked Kaito and Aoko with an accusatory tone."How would you know this story is fake, which ISN'T the case, just because "no any type of media talked about it"? For all we know, Lila's uncle's story could have passed unnoticed. This kind of things Can happen!"

The other classmates nodded in agreement and stared angrily at the two japanese students while Lila was hiding a smirk.

Alya crossed her arms and frowned at Aoko and Kaito with defiance, thinking she had won the argument. Completely ignoring the predator’s gaze both teens were giving him.

"-One can't just spew any affirmations without proofs to back it up! So I'm waiting! Where's your proof, huh?" she pointed at them.

From her seat, Marinette was making the best she could to not groan in frustration. She couldn’t believe it was HER talking about getting proof.

Here we go again!

"-Whoa! The kettle calling the pot black aren't we? And didn't Rossi say her supposed uncle was the CEO of the most prestigious company in Italy? How the media couldn't had relayed that a very important CEO had been severely injured by Kaito Kid during a heist?" Kaito commented, unimpressed, irritating Alya even more.

Aoko then suddenly got up from her seat and walked toward Alya and the rest of the class and put in Alya's hands her phone, which was showing a bunch of tabs.

"-You wanted proof? Here's the proof!" The japanese girl announced coldly."Those are all the info websites, blogs and tabloids which had archived Kaito Kid's heists! ALL his heists are archived on those websites from his very first one many years ago in Paris to his latest one, again, in Paris! Even his most obscure and less known heists are archived, fans follow him just like a celebrity, so, if Lila's uncle's story actually happened it will be in one of those websites's archives!"

Shooting an angry stare at Aoko, Alya looked at the phone she was actively searching through the websites, but as the minutes passed, Alya’s face slowed and deflated in shock.

“-Nothing…” She said in a whisper, her eyes looked haunted the more she read

“-What?” Nino asked, worried.

“-There’s nothing about Lila’s uncle…” Alya said in shock “nothing about a sinlge heist in Italy either…”      

The class stared at her in shock, the young “reporter” then passed the phone to Max who looked and searched in silence.

No one said anything, staring in apprehension and after five good minutes, Max slowly left up his head and said in a whisper.

“-I can confirm… There’s no article about Kaito Kid stealing money nor about an italian CEO having been injured during one of Kaito Kid heist!”

The whole class was now silent, all of them turned their heads toward Lila, starring at her in shock and confusion waiting for a logical explanation.

The liar looked at them, her eyes wide in panic, trying to find an excuse, until she decided to play her last but most efficient card:

Opening the water broke.

"-I-I'm not lying! Why did you two persist on passing me for a liar? What did I ever done to you? Especially you Nadoko, I know you don't like me but do you had to go After me like this?" Lila asked as fake years were rolling down her cheeks.

The results were immediate as the other classmates began to glare at the two Japanese students.

"-She's right! You can't just talk to her like that!" Alya snapped as she was comforting Lila.

"-Yeah! What give you the right to act like this?"

"-Honestly Aoko that's not cool at all!"

Marinette just wanted to bang her head on her desk in frustration, it was like this everytime! Lila just had to cry and everyone turned into a Guard dog!

Aoko and Kaito, as for them, seemed completely unfazed.

"-Honestly, do you even hear yourself?" Kaito asked, annoyed.”We were just stating facts to correct what was obviously misinformations! No insults, no nasty remarks, just facts! We even showed you proofs to back up our statements, but you just choose to ignore all this and simply view this as a personal attack against your “precious Lila”! You want to do that? To paint us as the “bad guys” despite we just proved facts? Fine, be that way! But don’t expect to go far in life with this immature snowflake attitude!”

“-EXCUSE M-”

* Bang *

The sudden loud sound interrupted everyone in the classroom and made all of them, Marinette included, turning their intention toward the source of the noise which turned out to be Adrien who had clapped both his hands on his desk to get everyone’s attention.

The blond boy was looking at Kaito and Aoko with his usual “sunshine smile” despite the sudden and unusual action he had done a few seconds earlier.

“-Aoko, Kaito can I talk to you in private for a moment please?” Adrien asked them.

Both japanese students stared at him confused before nodding and following him.

From her desk, Marinette could only stare and sigh as she look Adrien, Kaito and Aoko get out of the class.

She knew exactly where this was going…

—---------------------

“-So, what did you want to talk to us about?” Aoko asked Adrien once she, Adrien and Kaito were in the corridor in front of the class’s door.

“-I wanted to ask you if you could just stop?” Adrien asked frowning.

“-Stop what?” Kaito asked, folding his arms.

“-Debunking Lila’s stories! You’re not helping anyone by doing that you just make things worse so stop it!” he said, exasperation on his tone and almost wanting nothing more than to scream.

“-Right! Because things weren’t already bad with all the lies she was already spewing!” Kaito told sarcastically.

“-Listen! Lila’s stories are just little tales! They’re not harming anyone so it’s better to just let it go, it’s better to avoid getting Lila akumatized because you would had upset her!”

“-Oh? So it’s very important to be aware of Rossi’s feelings but if others are getting akumatized it’s less important?” Aoko asked, narrowing her eyes at Adrien and frowning

“-I never said that!” Adrien said frustrated, relaizing he might have misjudged the situation thanks to his mind being clouded by last night’s events.

“-But you still implied it unintentionally or not! And you said those “tales” don’t harm anyone, but they are already causing harm! Not immediately, but the longer those idiots believe those lies, the bigger they will become and may end up becoming outright dangerous!” Kaito sais, anger in his tone as he rolled his eyes wanthign bothing more than to tell the blond just how stupid he was.

“-But Marinette and I know her stories aren’t true!” Adrien countered.”As long the both of us know it’s gonna be alright! Just like I told her times ago!”

“-Oh yeah, great advice! Too bad this doesn’t seem to work since Rossi keep on passing Marinette for a bully despite the fact she didn’t try to debunk her lies! Oh but silly me, since protecting Rossi’s feelings is so much important, Marinette’s well being and the risks of her getting akumatized probably matter even less right?” Aoko commented sarcastically, her eyes moist about to get overthown by frustrated tears.

“-Oh come on, Marinette is our everyday Ladybug she-”

“-Is a human just like you, me, Kaito and everyone else in this city!” Aoko cut him, now completely mad.”A human with feelings, fears and struggles! You can’t just expect her to just take everything this pest is throwing at her like she was her emotional punching ball while staying all happy and smiling! This kind of treatment had bad impact on anyone’s mental state, even the most happy, optimistic and kind one! Seriously, are you this egotistically blind that you would rather throw Marinette under the bus like a scapegoat and put your other friends safety at risk just to keep your so called “peaceful ambiance”?”

“-It’s not true! I care for my classmates and I care for Marinette’s well being!” Adrien encountered but even to his ears, that sounded fake and weak

“-Really? Because with how you seem to let Marinette face Rossi’s antics alone and how you stay silent everytime this liar spew a lie it doesn’t look like you do, you insensitive jerk!” Aoko screamed from the top of her lungs, Kaito immediately got on guard it had been very few times since he had seen Aoko lose it like that. 

Aoko was about to keep going when she felt a hand on her shoulder and noticed Kaito looked at her.

They stared at each other for a few seconds before Aoko calm down and nodded at Kaito who then turned his intention toward Adrien.

“-Agreste, while your “high road” logic is not a bad one in other circumstances, in this situation it doesn’t work!” Kaito explained with a serious tone.

“-What do you mean?” Adrien asked, confused.

“-What I mean is that your logic would have worked if EVERYONE in the class was aware that Rossi’s lies weren’t true! If this was the case, they would just listen but not give to those stories too much attention and by so those “tales” would stay tales! But here, outside of you, Marinette, Aoko and me, none of our “classmates” are aware that those tales are just tales and this is why it’s could be dangerous! With how most of the class believe her, this gave Rossi a feeling of power and confidence to tell more bigger lies and one day she will tell lies this serious and big that it will seriously harm them! Hell, it could also harm you! How would you feel if she tell a lie, for example, about someone very close to you?”

Adrien just stared at them in silence, not knowing what to answer.

“-Just think about what we told you, Agreste!” Kaito sighed as he pulled Aoko to his side making them go back in the classroom, leaving an extremely confused Adrien lost in his thoughts.

—-------------------------------

Aoko looked in the mirror in front of her with satisfaction at the dress she was wearing.

It was Saturday in the morning and Aoko wanted to profit from it by trying a clothes store nearby she and Kaito’s studio and that Marinette recommended to her.

She was wearing the earrings that Kaito gifted her and wanted to find a few dress which would go well with the earrings. She couldn0t help but smile whenever they glinted in the light.

So far she wasn’t disappointed and found some dresses which fit perfectly, the one she was wearing included.

But as she was about to go back to the dressing room, she got interrupted by an awfully annoying voice calling for her.

“-Akako! What a surprise, I didn’t expect to see you there!” an unfortunate known voice said with a sacharine tone making Aoko want to gag.

Here was Lila, coming right to her with a clearly fake friendly smile on her face.

“-I’m sorry but my name is Aoko Rossi-san…” Aoko gritted her teeths in annoyance but do as much as she could to remain polite, wanting nothing more than to get out of there.

“-Oops silly me! Sorry for not getting your name right!” The liar apologies still in a fake way, anyone would be able to see it ”I mean, let’s be honest, you’re not very noticeable and just… plain! No offence!”

“-Not at all!” Aoko said, a fake smile on her face trying to get away from the auburn girl

“-But of course you must be aware of it! Why then would you try so hard to make yourself pretty by buying from a store which is obviously way out of your league!”

Aoko felt her anger becoming bigger the more the liar was speaking, she needed to remain calm or else things will end very badly!

Must stay calm… Must stay calm…

“-And I must say, I really pity your friend Kaito! A boy as handsome as him should have by his side a true woman instead of a kid without any kind of femininity!”

Stay calm! Stay calm! Stay calm! Stay calm!

“-On the other hand I understand why Kaito even bothers to be your friend, you seem to be the loner type and he must pity you! That’s quite sad really!”

Calm!Calm!Calm!Calm!Calm!Calm!Calm!Calm!

“-Oh well, not that I don’t like our little conversation but I must go! Have a good day Nadoko!” Lila said still with a fake kindness.

“-Good day to you too Rossi-san…” Aoko answered calmly, doing her best to hide her distress.

As the italian girl left the store, Aoko stayed in front of the changing room shaking.

She knew everything Rossi said was not true, she knew she shouldn’t listen to her lies.

So why? Why does she seem so affected by her words?

—---------------------------

Marinette, as Ladybug, was on the roof of a building, waiting.

It was late in Paris and Ladybug was waiting for Chat Noir to come for their night patrol, she was also hoping they could profit from tonight patrol to find clues about where Kaito Kid could be hiding and , hopefully, take back the gem as quickly as possible.

“And with a bit of luck, no hiccup will happen and it will not end in a mess!” Ladybug thought.

Now if Chat could hold back on his antics just for tonight…

“-Good evening my Lady!~”

Welp, speaking of the devil!

Ladybug turned around to find Chat Noir a few steps behind her, his iconic smirk on his face.

She frowned in annoyance, she was still upset about Chat's attitude back at the heist’s night.

They’re going to need to had a serious talk once all this was over.

“-Chat Noir.” Ladybug greeted him with a neutral tone.

“-So, what’s the program for tonight’s patrol?”

“-Like usual: we patrol for any akuma activity! But we’re also on the look out for Kaito Kid! We must find and arrest him before he could leave Paris with the gem!”

“-Got it my Lady! Don’t worry about it, we’ll got him in no time!”

“-... Yeah… Hope so…”

Chat Noir frowned at the spotted hero’s tone.

“-Ladybug, what’s going on? Don’t tell me you’re still upset about Climatica’s attack when we were chasing the thief? It’s going to be okay, we’re going to catch him next time!” Chat tried to reason, optimism spewing from his words as he tried to lighten up the mood.

“-That’s not it Chat!” Ladybug answered irritated.”While I’m upset we didn’t managed to catch Kaito Kid I’m more upset about your attitude from that night!”

“-My attitude?! I was trying to catch Kaito Kid that what we were supposed to do right?”

“-Not when an akuma is attacking the city! I told you this that night and telling you it again: Akumas are our top priority! If there’s an attack we must intervene before the akuma do too much damages, which mean that even if we’re chasing a criminal we must fight the akuma when there’s an attack! And most of all, we must fight the akumas TOGETHER!” Ladybug raised her voice, annoyed about how little Chat seemed to care about what had been happening lately.

“-But everything ended well in the end! And beside, even if anything bad happened the cure would have brought everything back to normal again!” Chat said, trying to appease his lady, unfortunately it wasn’t really effective

“-Not in this situation! I was in a very dangerous position! A dangerous position which could have incapacitated me and could have made me unable to use the cure and all this because you decided to play solo for a matter of ego!” Ladybug screamed, now fed up with Chat’s antics

“-I was doing my hero job! And it’s rich to call me out on “playing solo” with all the secrets you hide from me!” Chat exploded, his anger taking the best of him.

“-... Okay, I give you that, we both need to work better on our team dynamic! But still, there's a big difference between not telling everything and leaving your partner to face an Akuma alone because of your ego!" Ladybug conceded, even if she knew that all of those secrets were to protect her partner.

“-Whoa! Aren’t you two a great team?” 

The heroic duo got startled and turned their attention toward the sudden sarcastic voice.

Right before them was standing Kaito Kid looking at them with his iconic smirk.

At the sight of the thief, both Ladybug and Chat Noir get into position, ready to fight at any moment.

"-Now, now! No need to be like that! I Come in peace!" Kaito Kid said in a playful tone.

"-What do you want?" Chat Noir demanded angrily, his baton pointed at the magician wanting nothing more than strike.

"-Oh, just coming for a friendly visit! I wanted to thanks you two for the show back at Le Louvre, despite the poor finale of "some people"!" He added while throwing a mocking stare at Chat Noir, who growled in anger."It's not everyone who manages to pursue me this long during a heist, very impressive! Especially you Ladybug! Brave, strong, intelligent and, in my opinion, very cute! Yes, you're truly up to your reputation!~"

Ladybug clenched her teeth in exasperation.

Nope! No way! Not now! Not tonight! Just. No!

As she was about to say something only to be beaten to it by Chat Noir who snapped angrily at Kaito Kid.

"-CUT IT OUT! JUST TELL US WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!!!" Chat growled, his eyes wseemed to glow a toxic green as he stared at the magician.

"-Chat is right!" Ladybug added, trying to hide her annoyance."Your little flattery will get you nowhere so how about just get straight up to the point? And can you PLEASE stop with the flirting? It's very annoying and I'm getting sick of it!"

The thief looked at the duo in silence for a few seconds before nodding in acknowledgement.

"-Very well, I'll stop then! It wasn't my intention to make you uncomfortable!"

This surprised Ladybug a bit, it was rare when someone actually listen to her and respected her requests for boundaries.

"-As for why I'm here…" Kaito Kid added as he walked toward Ladybug."It was to give you this!"

He handed his hand toward Ladybug, in the palm was a little purple gift box.

Looking simultaneously at the gift and Kaito with a lot of warryness, Ladybug ended up going ahead and opening the gift.

She barely removed the ribbon that the gift exploded in a little cloud of smoke and, to the heroic duo's surprise, revealed a beautiful purple rose. 

"-A little gift as a token of respect for your wonderful performance!" Kaito Kid playfully said as he offered the rose to Ladybug, who took the rose after moments of hesitation and looked at it uncertain.

If Ladybug was confused, Chat Noir, as for him, was getting more and more frustrated with the thief’s antics.

“-Okay! Cut it out! You better stop your little act, turn yourself in without any fuss and tell us where you hide the gem right now!” the cat hero screamed

To Chat Noir’s frustration, Kaito Kid smirked and had a little laugh at his outburst.

“-It would have been with pleasure but, unfortunately, I’m needed elsewhere! As for where the gem is, well, its location is closer than you think!”

On those cryptic words, Kaito Kid began to walk away toward the edge of the building, the heroic duo was about to go after him when the thief suddenly stopped.

“-You know Ladybug, I really meant what I said back at the museum!” Kaito Kid said with a serious tone much to Ladybug’s surprise.”And I think you deserve better for everything you are going through! Maybe you should begin to realize that too!”

He then jumped from the building, startling both Ladybug and Chat Noir who ran toward the edge but when they looked they saw no one, as if the thief disappeared in thin air.

“-Shoot! He got away!”Chat Noir cursed, frustrated.”Ladybug, you think we can find him?”

“-He may be out of our sight, but since he doesn’t have actual magic powers he must not be far away!” Ladybug nodded as Chat Noir ranted in his breath against Kaito Kid.” So if we go after him immediately and if we’re lucky enough we could manage to catch him!”

“-Uh Ladybug?” Chat suddenly interrupted her.”Look, the rose…”

Confused Ladybug looked at the rose in her hands and much to her shock the flower was suddenly losing all its petals.

But the most shocking was the presence of a shiny purple object inside of the flower once all the petals had fallen.

A shiny purple object which turned out to be the gem that Kaito Kid had stolen nights ago.

…

“-EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!”

—---------------------------

̎ -Don't be bemused, it's just the news ! New update on the stolen gem’s case! We just received the news that the gem stolen by the infamous thief Kaito Kid nights ago, had just been found by Ladybug and Chat Noir! According to the two heroes, the gem was given to them by none other than Kaito Kid himself!

This isn't the first time Kaito Kid gave back a gem he had stolen as it's part of his modus operandi! Why he does this, however, is still a mystery to this day!

Currently, the gem has been brought back safely to Le Louvre, much to the researchers' delight who hope to be able to study it soon!

This was Najda Chamack reporting and now, back to the studios ! ̎

—----------------------------

Plagg stared at Adrien in annoyance as his holder walking back and from in his bedroom like a lion in a cage, which when you think about it and taking into account where the boy lives this doesn’t make the comparison too far-fetched.

Ever since they have gone back from last night’s patrol, Adrien have been ranting non-stop against the thief, Kaito Kid.

This have gone for hours and all Plagg could do was to go take a camembert and half-listening his holder’s ramblings.

Which bring to the current situation with the kwami of destruction still half-listening his holder’s rants as he was slowly eating his last piece of camembert with a bored expression.

“-And seriously who does he think he is to criticize my dynamic with Ladybug! Ha! As if some thief would know something about relationships or team work!”

“-Not to try to start an argument, kid.” Plagg interrupted Adrien, his mouth full of camembert.”But this Kaito Kid is not wrong you know?”

“-WHAT?” Adrien screamed, appalled Plagg had just agreed with a criminal

"-None offense, but it's true your behavior with Ladybug is not the best!" he exclaimed, it was too much from what he had seen whenever they would interact.

"-I don't behave badly toward Ladybug! I even show how much I care for her!" Adrien exclaimed, his arms moving around widely trying to understand just when everyone had turned on him

"-Uh, it's one thing to show affection toward your "lady" but there's times and places and that's the problem: it's the fact you flirt with Ladybug at the worst moments! And didn't Ladybug told you COUNTLESS OF TIMES to stop flirting with her anyway?" PLagg deadpanned, amused when he saw the shocked expression of his holder

"-I'm just showing my affection to and trying to make her see that we are perfect for each other, is this bad ?" Adrien asked, his voice low and barely more than a whisper.

"-This is how YOU feel and what YOU want, kid!” Plagg continued, flying around Adrien until he ended up infrot of him “But did you ever once think about how Ladybug actually wants and truly feels about it? Listen, I know being Chat Noir is the only way for you to be your true self and feeling free but that doesn't mean you can just put aside everyone else's feelings and safety to do so! You hate when your dad makes decisions for you without taking your opinion into consideration and acts as if he owns you, so why do the same thing to other's?"

At the silence of Adrien, Plagg just keeps going.

"-And it's not just in your hero life! That's also apply for your civilian life with how poorly you handle the "liar situation"!" Plagg continued to press, the kwami knew it wasn’t the best but he needed to make a point.

"-How many times do I have to explain? Lila's stories are harmless!" Adrien said annoyed.

"-Oh sure, totally harmless!" The Kwami of destruction answered sarcastically."So harmless that Pigtails and those two Japanese kids aren't victims of them!"

This only exasperated Adrien who let out a frustrated scream.

"-Oh come on! This is an exaggeration! You know it's important to avoid Lila to be akumatized again! Punishing her will not help her to be a better person and will only contribute to her akumatization! Things would be better for everyone if Marinette, Aoko and Kaito stopped taking this situation this seriously!" Adrien huffed, trying his best to make Plagg understand

"-Oh? So when those two Japanese kids explained to you how Lila's lies could become harmful to everyone, you included, they were exaggerating too?" Plagg asked with sarcasm.

Once again, Adrien became silent, looking at his Kwami in a very awkward silence at the reminder of his conversation with Kaito and Aoko.

Plagg just sighed and shaked his head.

"-Look kid! I know you mean well and you just want everyone to be happy! However, you must realize that not everything can be solved easily and be all sunshine and rainbows! And bending to everyone’s will and being a doormat will even less help! It's only making things worse and will truly hurt others! Heck, I wouldn’t be even surprised if Pigtails or one of the two japanese students end up akumatized because of that liar!" Plagg said, not wanting for it to happen but knowing it was a high possibility.

Adrien stayed silent as Plagg was speaking, his expression becoming incertain and thoughtful from what Plagg was telling him.

"-Just think about what I told you, okay?" the kwami sighed, knowing they were young but knowing that it was a time for everythig to change.

In those words, Plagg flew away to his sleeping spot, leaving Adrien alone in his thoughts.

To be continued

[jacquesthepigeon]

Sorry guys but Alya is redeemed for her gaslighting. You can't be salty about her never believing her best friend. /s

I wish Marinette were just a bit more petty and resentful and less understanding sometimes

[dried-deep-sea]

Scrap

I need this to exist somewhere that isn't my hard drive and isn't my A03, so take it or whatever.

It was difficult to keep himself occupied while waiting for breakfast time. He couldn't stop thinking about that other version of himself, about how different their lives were. At the slim chance he had to make his own better. He wondered if there was a chance for him to repair the damage he had done to his friendship with Nino, about how that would even work now that he was cooperating with Betterfly and the Rebellion. Marinette is Shadybug.

Marinette is Shadybug. He had been so shocked, and excited and relived and more terrified than he had ever been in his life. But now he was just worried, he wanted to be out of the theatre so fast he practically abandoned her there. It didn't matter that she had seemed off, he had decided to run from his memories again. There were a thousand reasons why Betterfly had chosen that particular abandoned building, but it still left a chill on his spine and a bitter taste in his mouth. Why that building.

He sighed flopping down on the couch again. "I wish you would do something other than eat and mess with my TV." He chided the Kwami that was working its way through a wheel of camembert and season one of Myth busters. The small black void blinked at him for a moment, and then ate another piece of cheese. "Petty gets us nowhere, Plagg." the creature ignored him, retuning its attention to the TV screen.

He sighed again looking back up to the ceiling, he felt bleary, and he wasn't exactly sure how many hours of sleep he had gotten this week, less than usual by how terrible he felt. Even without the pain from his miraculous gripping his consciousness he couldn't remember the last time he was this drained. Not even sleepy, just exhausted all the way through to his bones.

his room the sun had crept. He rubbed his eyes his palms coming away smudged with grey. "Cat-astrophic,"

[sweetcloverheart]

Clover Rants Miraculously - No Defense

Spoilers for script/ s5 finale leaks below, so readers beware and all that!

“But why are people defending Lila and Chloe? They helped Hawkmoth and are cruel to Marinette for no reason!”

Look, if I have to choose between two teenyboppers acting out out of spite and a middle school celebrity crush and a grown man who’s actively making bad choices that are hurting his loved ones with himself not even giving a damn because “he just really loves his wife”, then the decision’s practically being made for me - especially if I’m told I have to treat said teenyboppers like they’re Satan incarnate solely because they’re big meanies to the MC instead of everything else they’ve done in series while the man in question has to be celebrated and given everything he wants despite all the pain and bs he’s put both the leads and entire city through because dead coma wife made him sad :C.

And at least the show was honest about Lila being that petty and egotistical enough to team up with a supervillain because it might give her power (and also ruin Marinette’s day) - half the stuff she pulls doesn’t surprise or upset me that much because I was told from the jump she’s a little jerk with no attempts to excuse/humanize it (or telling me I need to feel bad/like her or I’m “bad” too like with Gabe). Meanwhile, of the two times Chloe joined Gabemoth, one required him to go out of his way to manipulate and isolate her into saying yes (Like yeah, she was already told she couldn’t be QB anymore and shouldn’t have been that upset/shocked Ladybug got a different hero to help fight her parents, but that doesn’t change the fact that Gabriel and Nathalie purposely made Chloe think Ladybug didn’t want her help specifically so she’d turn on her more easily), while the other was Chloe...trying to get out of gym class and thus waits for an Akuma to just show up and posses her (as opposed to Lila straight up grabbing one from the air that just happened to be passing through and giving Gabemoth her own evil plan to take down LB just because), so that one was just a regular Akuma of the day plot with a minor twist. Otherwise, Chloe’s just a self-centered jerk who does whatever makes her feel like she’s the best but overall is frankly harmless (as Marinette and co either ignore her or quickly undo her nonsense) unless she’s throwing daddy’s mayor title around - something that was also told to me at the start. The fact that the show is only now trying to make these two seem like, King Ghidorah levels of evil/bad (especially when they took no time to help build up Lila to her future big bad status like they clearly wanted it to seem like due to never using her more) when they’re done nothing to really earn it (yes, even with the events of “Ladybug” and “Miracle Queen”) is...kind of silly, especially in comparison to Gabriel’s crimes. Yeah, they should face some form of consequence for the bullying and deliberate akumatization, but on a scale that actually matches those actions.

On the other side of it though, Gabriel is literally doing everything he can to make his son and said son’s girlfriend miserable as possible as he torments the people of the city into becoming his willing/unwilling goon squad to fight two magical teenagers for their Miraculous, yet we’re supposed to just see it as “a misunderstanding” and accept him getting rewarded with the wish and Emilie’s revival because “oh, just let the poor magical terrorist have his dead wife back! He really is sorry and feels bad about it - not enough not to use his son as a bargaining chip for an evil magical eugenics cult and backstab the heroine after she gives him a chance to repent and steal her magical objects to get the Wish, but he really rweally fweels bwad”. If Chloe has to be disowned and Lila forced into one of her many alt-identities as a result of their actions, then Gabriel should not get to have his happily ever after self-sacrifice, even if it does end up hurting Adrien in the long run.

[anotherttpfanaccount]

an MLB AU i put way too much time and thought into

.

here are some changes i've already made:

there are only 8 miraculous

the roles will be altered from the canon

the relationships will be altered from the canon

all ages are the same ( 18 and up ), so the setting is college

for right now, i have no images, but expect the costumes to look different, as i hate most of them

disclaimer - i don't watch or support the show, i am merely a viewer from afar ( aka via fandom ) and i like the base concepts, so i decided to give in and indulge myself.

.

Characters . . .

Marinette - Amir ( Sir Ruby ) Adrien - Rupert ( Vesper ) Chloe - Cecily ( Lady Wasp ) Alya - Joan ( Vixenary ) Nino - Percy ( Terraperc, but Rupert said that was a terrible idea, so now it's just Terrapin ) Luka - Darling ( King Serpentine ) Natalie - Chamberlain ( Mr. Plume ) Gabriel - Lavinia ( Queen Admiral )

rest are various other side characters that will serve the main plot and subplots, rather than me making up a bunch of bullshit on the fly.

-

Key Relationships . . .

Amir .

Rupert - strangers to friends to lovers Cecily - one-sided awkwardness to friends to 'lovers' Joan - childhood best friends Percy - cordial acquaintances to... sorta friends? Darling - absolutely hate each other Chamberlain - polite strangers to... Lavinia - polite, but on edge strangers

-

Rupert .

Amir - strangers to friends to lovers Cecily - friends to best friends Joan - respectful acquaintances to friends Percy - no one knows why they're friends Darling - awkward exes ( like, bad awkward ) Chamberlain - father // son-like dynamic Lavinia - cordial at best

-

Cecily .

Amir - 'we're so friends!' to actual friends to 'lovers' Rupert - early teenhood friends to best friends Joan - unknown to friends to lovers, somehow ( it was Cecily ) Percy - chaotic friends Darling - 'you're on thin ice, mister' Chamberlain - they think the other is funny Lavinia - only met her a few times, very tense

-

Joan .

Amir - childhood best friends Rupert - respectful acquaintaces to friends Cecily - unknown to friends to lovers, somehow ( Joan has no idea ) Percy - that one meme of A having B on a leash Darling - they haven't met ( yet ) Chamberlain - respectful and agreeable ( they talk about work ) Lavinia - Joan kinda sorta idolizes her just a little bit ( she has no idea what Lavinia is doing )

-

Percy .

Amir - "rivals" to tense acquaintances Rupert - not even he knows how they're friends, he just rolls with it Cecily - chaotic friends Joan - 'tense' friends Darling - thinks he's pretty, but doesn't know him that well Chamberlain - friendly-ish acquaintances Lavinia - has only seen her once, and it was on a bad day

-

Darling .

Amir - they hate each other Rupert - awkward exes ( Darling keeps trying ) Cecily - keeps getting vaguely threatened by her Joan - they haven't met, but only doesn't like her because of her relation to Amir ( yes, he's that petty ) Percy - thinks he's cute, but doesn't him that well either ( way too focused on Rupert ) Chamberlain - used to be friendly, but now also gets vaguely threatened by him Lavinia - hardly cared for his existence, even after the breakup

-

Chamberlain .

Amir - polite strangers to... Rupert - father // son-like dynamic Cecily - thinks she's hilarious Joan - respectful and agreeable, almost colleagues Percy - is only nice to him because of Rupert Darling - displeased at best Lavinia - haven't gotten along on personal levels in years

-

Lavinia .

Amir - judgmental, but won't say it ( Rupert knows ) Rupert - loves him very much, wishes he'd understand Cecily - doesn't see her enough to care a whole lot Joan - likes that she feeds her ego Percy - got on her nerves once, hasn't seen him since Darling - does not give a fuck Chamberlain - frustratingly opinionated ( the irony )

.

Extras . . .

Amir and Darling already did not like each other, due to wicked bad vibes, but after Amir is noticeably developing feelings for Rupert, Darling becomes a bitch.

as a society, we simply don't know if Percy and Darling will get together. not even i know. only time will tell.

there are Miraculous swaps, but only if necessary and // or akumatized with that miraculous ( for ex, there's a thing where Darling gets akumatized with the fox miraculous ).

Joan isn't necessarily like Alya in terms of personality, but she is very interested in documentation of abnormal // supernatural events, reporting, etc., and does become a fan of Sir Ruby and Vesper.

the Kwamis are the animals within the podcast or based off other characters ( Rupert's kwami is a cat-version of Fitzroy, Amir's is a ladybug-version of Porridge, etc. ), and it's unknown if the Kwamis can actually choose their holders or not.

there are not many side villains. to be honest.

Rupert isn't very flirty as Vesper at all, that's more in line with Darling // King Serpentine. similar thing with Amir, he's not nearly as awkward ( or creepy ) as Marinette.

.

this AU is very focused on the relationships of the characters rather than the superhero-y stuff, but i do dabble in that every now and then in my train of thoughts.

feel free to ask me any questions.

[princess-of-the-corner]

Probably not my place to comment but I think if MLB were to redeem Chloe it could go one of a few ways that try to fix the damage to her reputation & maybe avoid some other potentially problematic elements:

1 Farcical. IE, Chloe's redemption is almost comedically easy & serves as a meta commentary on the redemptions of Adrien, Felix, Gabriel & Nathalie. Where Andre just sort of awkwardly leaves the room when a question about "Where Chloe learned that?" came from & he's not seen again, Felix is like "Can we trust her?" only to get a flat look from Kagami, Marinette & Adrien, "Ah, touché" & so on. She's folded into the cast with zero drama, she & Marinette are like, fashion buds now, and her main role is snarking about Akuma.

2: Hyper serious, long gam stuff Basically, Chloe's seeming degrading in head space and behavior was being actively engineered & influenced by Gabriel, Akuma, Lila, ETC. Not just in the manipulation sense but in the magical sense, which is used to hand-wave some of the more problematic elements. If Derision need be brought up, it can be framed as either no longer canon (The shows not new to soft reboots) or having been faked somehow, or laid on Andre or Audrey's feet.

3: Forced alliances Basically there's a third faction out there causing trouble and so Chloe (serving as Lila's Champion) ended up on the heroes side by proxy and its through working together that it pans out.

4: The wish and or soft reboots IE, a bunch of stuff is just kind of ignored or forgotten to return things to a more familiar status quo and no one comments on it. Very much "Nothing bad, ever happened. EVER" Jury's out on how well this one would work but it felt worth mentioning.

Honestly the thing about it for me is that there's not even like.

Her /worst/ actions can be handwaved decently with 'manipulated by the Bigger Bads' and other than things like taking over as Mayor is just. Petty teenager shit.

Like even Derision is petty teenager shit. Doesn't mean it's not 'bad' or didn't have a lasting impact. But it's not like. Genocide. It's pulling a mean-spirited 'prank'.

But like. She's a teenager she can learn. She can come back from that and apologize and become a better person. It's really simple to do.

But anyway:

The retcons can also work beause like. Speaking of Derision, this wouldn't be the first time ML had a 'oh that bit you were supposed to be laughing at how over the top and cartoony it was the last several seasons? That was actually a super serious trauma response!' so just.

Yeah point out how Chloé acted the way she did because of the various traumas and roll with letting her get better.

[nirby-wirby]

I’m just gonna put all of my thoughts on the miraculous ladybug season 5 finale here so if you haven’t watched it, don’t read this unless you want to be spoiled!

Ok. So. There are parts that I thought were interesting and parts that I didn’t really like about the finale. Hopefully these parts will be expanded on in the next couple seasons because I think they should be!

First! I don’t really like how Marinette lied to Adrien but!! I understand why she had to. She obviously didn’t want to be like “hey so. Your dad was kind of the villain all along and kept your dead mom in his basement and you were sort of the reason this all started because she created you with a broken miraculous and then face the consequences of it.” Because obviously that would lead to Adrien spiraling!! He’d feel so guilty even though he didn’t do anything wrong by just existing.

And I think that this can lead to some angst and drama if he ever eventually finds outs and just with her struggling to keep this from him. And if Ladybug ever tells Chat Noir about what really happened, then that would be very interesting. So while I don’t really like it, I do find it interesting and think that if it’s expanded upon it could be really cool.

The next thing I don’t really like is the statue of Gabriel Agreste because I just think it’s ugly. Like. A statue of him in the middle of the city is just ugly. But it can also be interesting for Marinette to know the truth and have to deal with Paris thinking Gabriel is a hero, if it’s expanded on. I also wanna know if this changes Nino’s perception of Gabriel. Because we all know Nino hates the guy, so would his opinion change or not? Or did Gabriel’s wish make everyone think he was a good person? I think it’ll be interesting if it gets expanded on.

Also, I don’t like how Felix is just one of the good guys now. But that’s probably just me being petty because I’m still mad at him giving all the miraculous to Gabriel and giving Marinette a panic attack. Maybe if they talked things out and he apologized I would feel better but as of right now I don’t really like it.

I do have a lot of questions that I hope will be answered in the upcoming season(s) like: Is Lila gonna trick everyone again with a new disguise? Does Lila know who Ladybug is now? What exactly are her motives?

Of course there were parts that I liked too! I liked Marinette’s confidence and the way she didn’t hesitate to through Gabriel around. And I thought Bug Noir looked cool (even though I kinda wish Adrien could’ve seen how cool she looked but that wouldn’t really be possible). The animation looked pretty cool at times too! And the Adrienette kiss the end looked so pretty! I also like that Adrien has his amok now, but I wonder if he’ll find out what it actually is in the future and how he’ll react to it. But yeah that’s all. For now.

[imthepunchlord]

In the Marinette and Adrien Swap with thier special!counterparts, how they would interact as civilians?

A little hard to say with most, as I don't have anything to work off civilian wise for the Special duo outside looks. Hero wise, easier as promo images shows off their dynamic (which I see strong sibling vibes as that's the only reasonable explanation for them to work together but also upstage/dig at each other; which is just icing on the cake cause this Special looks hilarious and I actually kinda want to check it out, everything I see just cracks me up).

Anyway! Civilian interactions with the swapped pairs, yeah it's hard to say. Marinette's the easier of the two to try and predict, Adrien not so much.

Like, Adrien in the Special could look like that cause he's rebelling against Gabriel/his parents (as far as we know Emilie could be alive in this reality), or it's his way of dealing with his mom's death(?), or he could be looking like that cause he's possibly crushing on Marinette and trying to connect with her.

I actually have yet to hear/see anything of why he's this way. Though I have heard, supposedly, Marinette is that way because she reached her limit due to Chloe's bullying and no helping her (which is so valid, I wish canon Marinette got to do so).

So for this ask, I'm going to stick to Special Leads being in canon as I just don't have a lot to work off yet in the Special's reality, and as far as I know, the Special isn't going to give me a lot, but who knows. Also, I'm going to work off personalities I'm predicting/speculating based on promos and what it seems like to me. Also this is not written with romance in mind.

So Special Marinette in the canon settings, working off Canon Adrien, civilian wise it's up in the air what their relationship could even be, it may not even exist. It does depend on how Origins goes, whether Alya or Adrien sits next to Marinette.

If Alya sits next to her, I don't really see them having much relation, civilian wise.

Given Marinette is this way due to Chloe, knowing Adrien is Chloe's friend, when he shows up at the end of the day, she just nopes out. She'd rather walk through the rain than be near "Chloe's friend". Also Adrien may be wary of her. Like, if Gum Incident still happens, I could see this Marinette taking a napkin to get that saliva filled wad of gum and chucking it at Chloe's hair. And given that Adrien does not like getting involved in conflict, he'd be a little intimidated and uncertain. Plus, him hardly reaching out and really interacting with any of his classmates on his own, yeah I don't see them really clicking or having much of a dynamic. The narrative/universe would have to go out of it's way to get any sort of relationship civilian wise.

Now, if Adrien sat next to Marinette, you'd have more to work with by default of them sitting next to each other and are expected to work off each other more naturally.

Like, first time, when Gum Incident happens, Adrien's going to be compelled to try and make up with her cause she's his desk mate and he wants his first year in school to go smoothly and she's a little scary to him.

Also due to think he gets to face and deal with Chloe's bullying, he's set up to see it more as she comes after Marinette because he sat next to her, and he's going to have to deal with that.

And what starts with tension to neutrality becomes a familiar dynamic as Adrien learns Marinette's a softie despite her glare, pettiness, and appearance; and Marinette softens up because Adrien reminds her of a more subdue Chat. And you just pretty much have the same dynamic civilian and hero wise, though the former is a little tamer. And when the reveal happens, they want to slap their foreheads cause it was so obvious. And things were all so familiar. They were idiots for not realizing sooner.

And then Marinette has to deal with Adrien ramping up being a dork, and letting the Chat persona bleed into his life more, escalating the puns and jokes until he gradually becomes who he is, the mixing of Adrien and Chat.

And she may roll her eyes a lot, but life is improving, she has someone on her side, potentially relations with the class also improves, Chloe finds she can't bully as much as before, and Marinette starts easing back into her previous style. Things just really worked out.

Now, for Special Adrien being in canon and working off Canon Marinette, for this we'll go with the style being a mix of rebelling against Gabriel and dealing with his loss. And by default of who Marinette is, they are set up to work off each other whether Adrien's sitting next to her or not, as Marinette is someone who socializes and involves herself with her classmates.

Marinette by default is set up to have an easier/better time with this Adrien existing too, specifically, Chloe isn't going to bother her over Adrien. She took one look at Adrien and was horrified and disgusted and won't be seen with Adrien, denouncing their friendship then and there. So if Marinette ever talks with him, no Chloe shoving her aside.

Now getting into this Adrien rebelling against Gabriel, he doesn't care to uphold a public standard his father wants. He makes his opinions more clear, he's a little more openly rude and dismissive, makes his lack of care clear, and anyone into fashion kinda leaves a bad taste in his mouth. So by default of her interest, Adrien rarely will make a backhand comment about her designing, projecting some of his frustration onto her since his dad is largely absent. Marinette though is able to ignore his comments and continues forth, knowing that he's not interested and he has something going on with his dad the fashion designer, it's probably meant more for him than her. And I don't know if she'd crush on this Adrien or if he'd even offer an umbrella to her, but for this, we'll say there's no crush.

So his words don't really leave much of an impact.

Figuring he's going through something, she does make an effort to include him in group activities, and he does show up. Usually he's a little hard to talk to, but as he joins more activities, he starts to talk a little more, cracks some jokes and makes jabs, and will happily share embarrassing stories about Chloe (much to Alya's delight).

And through friendships and kindness, and a lot of patience, this Adrien gets nicer, smiles a little more, laughs and jokes with the class a little more. Even shuffles up his looks a little bit, though he doesn't break away from the aesthetic entirely. It's not going to go until his dad's controlling habits go. At some point, him and Nino discover a shared interest in film and bond over that. Through Nathalie's help, Adrien breaks away from the modelling Gabriel tries to get him to do and does more acting, starting to set himself up as an upcoming acting star.

And if by chance Adrien is sitting next to Marinette, this relationship is a little more speed ran.

It'd be a slowburn in their dynamic, but that's not a bad thing. At the core, it'd probably be more bubbly sass working off cynical snark, and have it turned up to 110% when she's working off Claw.

[plumsaffron]

"I wish marinette was petty."

Do return back to season 1-3 and watch again.

It's funny how a past event gets used as haha karma claim.

Be quiet.