#adrien gras

[adrinoir]

You know what’s an interesting observation I made recently?

I’ve seen Mardi Gras things everywhere, and - of course - their three main colors are purple, green, and gold.

My brain made the connection: Adrien has those exact colors on his shirt

There’s symbolism behind each of those colors:

Purple = Justice

Green = Faith

Gold = Power

You think about these words and they describe Adrien’s personality pretty well. His behavior is usually very just, he’s someone that others (particularly Ladybug) have faith in, and he’s a powerful hero.

Also consider the symbolism behind the Mardi Gras celebration itself. This is a direct quote from the website: In the beginning, masks worn during Mardi Gras allowed wearers to escape society and class constraints. When wearing a mask, carnival goers were free to be whomever they wanted to be, and mingle with whatever class they desired to mingle with.

That perfectly fits Adrien when he’s playing his role as Cat Noir. Hiding behind a mask and acting as a different person allows Adrien to escape his house and how everyone perceives him (ie a famous, good looking model). He’s free to be whoever he wants to be. I’ve talked about this many, many times.

I’m not saying character designers necessarily had this in mind when they were creating Adrien, but I think it’s an interesting connection that works well with his character.

[zmijowka]

Sixth episode of my radio show Szumy Szepty Szelesty @ Radio Kapitał is available to listen on mixcloud! Link: (x)

ambient / ethereal wave / field recordings / dream pop / lo-fi

Tracklist:

Felicivs - Everything Will Be Fine

Nighttime - Forsythia

Bunnymilk - King Of The Rats

Kaelin Bougneit & Devon Ford - Adrien

Twelfth House - Tremble

Yui Onodera and Celer - A

Foresteppe - Zola (TDPINV cover)

Nighttime - Spring in the Valley

I s - Այն ժամանակ ինչպես հիմա

Foie Gras - Brother Sister (First Draft)

Lyndsie Alguire - demeter weeping

Paulina Fae - Chrysalis

redwood monastic - cock eyed

Felicivs - Goodnight, My beautiful

[taminoarticles]

— Tamino for GQ Middle East, September 2022 (x)

Tamino’s Truth

On the brink of a new album and tour, Belgian-Arab singer Tamino Amir is ready to take his career to the next level. But there won’t be room for compromise.

Words Jad Salfiti  Photography  Emil Pabon  Styling Adrien Gras  Groomer Sanne Schoofs  Producer Mercator

STEPPING OFF THE plane and on to the air­craft’s stair­case, the warm air hits Tamino Amir squarely in the face. It’s a famil­iar sign that he’s just arrived back in Om El Donya (the Arabic nick­name for Egypt, mean­ing mother of the world). Blearyeyed from a long-haul flight from Bel­gium, he hands his bur­gundy Bel­gian pass­port to the immig­ra­tion officer. It’s met with silence, and then something strange hap­pens.

Immig­ra­tion officer: “Ana araa laqabak hu fuad. Hal antum eay­ilat Muhar­ram Fouad?”

Tamino: “Sorry, I don’t speak Arabic.”

Immig­ra­tion officer: “Are you related to Muhar­ram Fouad?”

Tamino: “Yeah, he was my grand­father.”

Cue frantic excite­ment as sev­eral secur­ity guards rush to the desk and sur­round the singer, des­per­ate for a photo oppor­tun­ity with the grand­son of the late Muhar­ram Fouad, a titan of Egyp­tian musical cinema’s golden age of the 1960s. Tamino’s creased with laughter as he tells the story from his apart­ment in Ant­werp, but you get the impres­sion that it’s not one-off.

“Even now if we go to Egypt and people know that I’m the grand­son of Muhar­ram Fouad they’re like, ‘Oh, I know all the names of his wives! Then they start nam­ing them all [includ­ing] my Grandma.’”

How many wives did he have?

“Six in total, not at the same time of course, but they only had one kid which seems like a mir­acle. Yeah, one kid: my father.”

Though the musi­cian’s memor­ies of his grand­father are hazy, he had a dir­ect influ­ence on his now bur­geon­ing musical career. As a teen­ager, Tamino even dis­covered his antique res­on­ator gui­tar in the attic of the fam­ily home in Cairo. “The first time I sang through a micro­phone was at my grand­father’s stu­dio. He had one in a house in 6th of Octo­ber city [so-named after the 1972 Arab-Israeli war].”

With so much atten­tion focussed on his grand­father’s leg­acy, you have to won­der whether the shadow ever looms too large on Tamino’s own career. It’s something he’s given thought – and fraught – to.

“I was really scared that maybe the people who would come to my show in Egypt [Tamino’s first there in 2019], would come mainly because I was the grand­son of Muhar­ram Fouad. But it wasn’t the case. Usu­ally they would just say, ‘Oh and by the way, my grandma is such a huge fan of your grand­father’. But they came because they liked my music. It was really cool.”

Today, Tamino is in good form; chatty and smil­ing ear-to-ear. He’s just returned from hol­i­day in Italy (a trip to Mono­poli in Puglia) as well as spend­ing time hanging out and work­ing in New York’s Wil­li­ams­burg and Lower East Side Man­hat­tan. But with a new record and a US and European tour around the corner, things are about to get very busy for the 25-year-old.

Born to a Bel­gian mother and Lebanese-Egyp­tian father, Tamino lived in Cairo until he was three when his par­ents split up. It led to a move to Bel­gium with his brother and mum and has been home ever since. Not that he gave up his roots for Europe. “We’ve vis­ited Egypt many times,” he explains. “I also vis­ited Lebanon once on my own to spend time with my cousin – she also makes music and is super cool.” The cousin he’s refer­ring to is the fledgling singer Tamara Qad­doumi. “She showed me around Beirut and in the moun­tains, too. She actu­ally brought me to a Syr­ian oud teacher there and we had a sort of Arabic singing les­son. He sold me an oud to start prac­ti­cing on.”

He might not speak the lan­guage, but Amir is well-versed in Arabic music. “There’s this one Fairuz album in par­tic­u­lar – it’s actu­ally a reli­gious album,” he says, refer­ring to Good Fri­day East­ern Sac­red Songs, a choral album of 10 hymns recor­ded by the Lebanese legend in a num­ber of Beirut churches between 1962 and 1965. “She’s Chris­tian and it’s such a beau­ti­ful record.”

“Even now if we go to Egypt and people know that I’m the grand­son of Muhar­ram Fouad they’re like, ‘Oh, I know all the names of his wives!’”

Amir’s ven­tures into the Arabic music land­scape, as well as his her­it­age, have undoubtedly impacted the sound of his own music. This, and a new album, are the reason behind today’s Zoom call, and Amir is in poetic mood.

“If you take the meta­phor of a storm,” he starts, “well the storm has passed and we don’t really know what happened dur­ing it. We just see the after­math. Dust particles are in the air and maybe some scratches on the face or whatever. That’s the sort of image I have when I listen to the record,” he’s describ­ing his sopho­more album, Sahar, the fol­low-up to 2018’s Amir recor­ded with the Nagham Zikrayat Orches­tra (many of whom are Iraqi and Syr­ian refugees). “Sahar means just before dawn, it con­jures up this in-between realm. Every­body has had those times where they wake up before every­body else does. It’s not night, but it’s not day either. It’s kind of…limbo.”

The 10-track album is pared down, mid-tempo and reflect­ive baroque rock with Arab-inspired melisma. Unlike his debut, it doesn’t include an accom­pa­ny­ing orches­tra, pla­cing the focus squarely on his voice; a quaver­ing fal­setto that lends itself per­fectly to the darker, intro­spect­ive Arab-gothic moments such as standout track “A Drop of Blood”. The song is a hyp­notic, cres­cendo-build­ing chant which sees Tamino’s voice rise and drop, weav­ing around the pluck, vibra­tion then strum of a clas­sical Arabic oud (which he plays). It will sit com­fort­ably along­side fan-favour­ites like “Habibi”.

“I under­stand for some people that it’s con­fus­ing, because I write these two types of songs,” he says. “Almost like these very typ­ical, Clas­sic West­ern songs or whatever. And then there are these songs inspired by Arabic music, too. To me, they can per­fectly coex­ist on one album, but some people, I think, would rather be like, ‘choose one!’ I can’t. They come as they come.”

Sahar is alto­gether a quieter, more min­imal record than its pre­de­cessor, “We really embraced the subtle ele­ments this time around and we didn’t want to emphas­ise too much on the big­ger things”. The gui­tar-strummed “Cin­na­mon” sounds like a lul­laby. Dreamy. Sul­try. Sunkissed. “Sun­flower” is a duet with Angèle, argu­ably French pop’s biggest star, and sees the artist ven­ture more into elec­tron­ica, it opens moment­ar­ily like a Massive Attack track, with a swell­ing tone and the mur­mur of heav­enly voices, before set­tling into a piano-led folk-rock song. Mean­while, “You Don’t Own Me” is equally rous­ing and mys­tical, as it lightly teases a more exper­i­mental sound. The intro sounds like Revolver-era Beatles as he pairs mon­strously dis­tor­ted voice effects before dis­solv­ing into a more tra­di­tional torch song. It’s refresh­ing to hear Tamino take small strides in build­ing on his sound world, some­times though, there is a sense he could go fur­ther into the avant-garde if he allowed him­self to. No doubt these are songs that will cause minor tremors when per­formed live.

It’s hard to know how Tamino’s new album will be received, but as he pre­pares to set off on tour, one thing is clear: authen­ti­city is cent­ral to what he does, espe­cially when it con­cerns bring­ing together dif­fer­ent musical tra­di­tions. “I think if I tried to [force it] then it becomes gim­micky and then we end up in Alad­din ter­rit­ory” he says laugh­ing.

Get­ting hybrid Arab-inspired Anglo-pop to work is a ter­rific­ally hard under­tak­ing, espe­cially if you want to avoid fall­ing into cliché or musical ori­ent­al­ism. But with loyal audi­ences already clam­our­ing to see him in both the Arab coun­tries and Europe, Tamino is bliss­fully aware that he just needs to keep doing exactly what feels right to him. “If it’s there, I’ll embrace it, you know, and I’ll just let it be. But equally I won’t force it because, really, I just can’t.”

[sing-in-me-oh-muse]

Snippet July - Forevermore

Blond hair. Green eyes. Smoking hot body.

Kagami definitely had a type.

Fortunately for her, though, her fiance, Félix, fit that type and more. He was much more decisive than Adrien, which she appreciated and which helped when they were planning their wedding.

“I definitely think we should serve cucumber sandwiches as a starter.” Félix smirked at her, his eyes glittering maliciously. He crossed his legs, seated next to her on her couch. “My aunt hates cucumber sandwiches.”

Kagami chuckled, looking over their menu of scallops, lobster, beef filets, duck breast, and medallions of veal--with the main meats all served pink. “Cucumber sandwiches?” Kagami wrinkled her nose in disgust. “They’re not bad, but foie gras is traditional.”

“Bah, foie gras.” Félix threw his hands in the air, almost smacking Kagami, which she glared at him for. “Who likes foie gras? Not me.”

“I bet your aunt does.”

Félix grinned at her, shooting her the fingerguns. “Okay, you got me. She loves the stuff.”

Kagami barked out a laugh. Hilarious. “We can’t plan our wedding around things your aunt doesn’t like.”

“Why not?” Félix flopped down into her lap, upsetting the paperwork comparing various venues there, which annoyed Kagami but didn’t cross the line into pissing her off. Yet. “She’s awful.”

Kagami set her menu down and booped his nose. “As awful as you?” 

Félix shrugged, an interesting maneuver given that his shoulders brushed her thighs. “Eh. If you want, I can let bygones be bygones with my aunt. Just for the wedding.”

“You’ll be too distracted during the wedding to even pay attention to her, I’m sure.” 

Félix raised a brow. “That’s because you won’t let me see your wedding dress. Let me see it?”

Kagami’s tone was as dry as dust. “No.”

Félix folded his arms, giving her the worst pout. He stuck his lower lip out, letting it quiver a little. “You’re mean. I’m marrying a mean woman.”

Kagami picked up the menu again, deciding to ignore him. If her fiance was going to be silly, well, she didn’t have to give him the time of day. “You can get over yourself anytime now.”

“Hey.” Félix poked her in the cheek, causing a flare of irritation to build in her chest. “Hey, Kagami.”

Kagami huffed, setting her menu down. Now he was treading the line between ‘annoying’ and ‘truly-angering.’ “What?”

Félix batted his eyelashes. “You know I love you, right?”

“So I’ve been told.”

Félix rested his palm on her cheek. “It’s true. I love you like you hung the moon. I love you like you’re the air in my lungs. I love you forevermore--”

Kagami placed a finger on his lips, effectively cutting him off. “Poetry is not your strong suit, dear heart. You don’t need to tell me you love me when you show me everyday.” 

Kagami knew that Félix loved her. She loved him, too, even though their relationship started as a matter of convenience. But he was dead set on explaining himself, the reasons of which Kagami couldn’t fathom.

Félix smiled against her finger. “Kiss me?”

Now? Kagami shook her head. “I can’t; you’re in my lap. Bending down like that is awkward.”

Félix grumbled, sitting up. “Now kiss me?”

Kagami pecked him on the lips, but he captured the back of her neck and pulled her close, slanting his mouth against hers. Grunting, she opened up to him, her shoulders going slack. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and tugged her close to him, and though the position was awkward, kissing Félix was always thrilling.

But Kagami had a job to do. She spoke against his lips between kisses. “We have to…” A kiss. “...do the…” Another kiss. “... menu.” A third kiss, and this one was long, deep, and lovely.

Félix trailed kisses along her jawline to nip her ear. His breaths came thick and fast, and as he traced the shell of her ear with his tongue, Kagami’s arms and legs broke out in goosebumps. “Screw the menu,” he whispered. “It’s kissing time.”

Kagami pulled back and placed her hand on his face, shoving him down into the couch. “No.”

Félix squirmed, so she placed her hand on his chest instead. “Wedding planning is boring.”

“Between your mother and mine, if we don’t plan this perfectly, there’ll be hell to pay.” Kagami pursed her kiss-swollen lips. “Sulking doesn’t become you, dearest.”

Félix furrowed his brow. “I’m not sulking.”

“You are.” Kagami traced circles on his chest, causing him to shudder. “We can kiss after we decide on where to source the croquembouche.” 

“Can we plan the cocktail reception instead?” Félix asked hopefully, his eyes shining playfully. “With actual drinking involved? I would love to taste test some alcohol right now.”

“I am not allowing you to get drunk during wedding planning.”

“I wouldn’t get drunk, per se.” Félix’s grin was as sharp as a bear trap. “Just a little tipsy.”

“And then you wouldn’t be able to drive home, and you’d have to crash on my couch.” Kagami wagged her finger in his face, irritated all over again. “Tonight is not the night for that. My mother’s coming over tomorrow to inspect the planning we’ve done.”

Félix’s brows rose. “Wait, she is?” He plucked the menu up immediately. “Why didn’t you say so? I think we should have our parents spring for lamb.”

“Lamb?”

Lamb was delicious. First wise decision he’s made all night.

Félix offered her another one of his characteristically-knife-like grins. “My aunt hates it.”

@miraculousfanworks​

[sasuhinasno1fan]

A wish for a different life - Adrien AUGreste Day 5

Was almost late but I didn’t get to my laptop for a while. Kinda short but hopefully you enjoy it. I also hope I didn’t forget anyone in the Bustier class other than Chloe and Sabrina. We’ll see more of Luka with the next chapter. And the word Ms Rossi says is ‘oh god’ in Italian. and yes, foie gras macarons are a thing, as are truffle ones.  @adrienaugust

Best friends

“Does that say foie gras?”

Adrien let out an audible gag and then realised that people around could hear him. His mother narrowed her eyes at him at his blatent bad behaviour but he felt justified, if only a little. The few times they’d been invited to high class events, foie gras was usually a main and Adrien hated how it tasted. Which for a person who was a bit of a garbage disposal, that was saying something.

They quickly got their macarons and left before they could be cursed at. And Adrien thought disgruntled old Italian men were bad.

“I cannot believe you said that! Adrien!” his mother scolded, slapping his shoulder with every word.

“I’m sorry! But you know I hate the stuff.”

“It’s a miracle you’ve never said that to a host when we have dinner. Oh, that was mortifying.” His mother said, hiding her face in her hands.

Adrien shrugged. “Guess we’re lucky there weren’t tables.” Deciding to turn his mother’s attention away from smacking him again, he took her to the Garden of the Eiffel Tower. Thanks to advice from his friends, they found a shady spot to spread their blanket and away from most of the crowd.

“Do I have time to check my phone?”

“10 minutes, you know the rules.” Adrien reminded, fixing the beret on his head. The bow on the back jingled slighting from the bells before falling silent again. He’d have to remember to thank Marinette again for it. He’d been informed by Alya that she had a crush on him. Granted her sudden inability to speak words around him was also a massive hint. Thing was, Adrien didn’t feel the same and he was very sure he wouldn’t. he got crushes pretty quickly. Marinette, while a kind person and someone he felt happy to call his friend, hadn’t ticked any boxes for him. It was incredibly awkward having to tell Alya this and figure out how to tell Marinette. But in the end, he did and after giving her space, she’d gotten over her crush on him.

“You’d think with all the problems the city is having with Hawkmoth, I’d get answers quicker.” His mother complained, practically throwing her phone into her bag in annoyance.

“Is it the mayor?”

“Surprisingly, no. I truly wonder how the man has any power but he’s been rather good at answering any questions I have. What’s his daughter like? The other diplomates who have met her say she’s…”

“a spoiled queen bee?” Adrien suggested. “They’d be right. She knows she’s got power and she isn’t afraid to use it but honestly, I think there are times she could be worse. Lila is a whole other bag of crazy to deal with. I don’t think I’ll ever understand her, nor do I want to honestly. Ok, pictures of the food first and then we record a few favourites.”

After instructing his mother to hold the open boxes certain ways, they were finally allowed to dive in. while his mom unwrapped one of the separate macarons, Adrien picked up the massive eclair. To him, it looked like more sophisticated cannolo.

“Oddio.” His mother said, her face contorting into shapes.

“Are you ok?”

All she did was hand him the half-eaten macaron and stole the éclair from him. He took a bite and realised why it had been in its own box and why his mother had just devoured half the éclair. It was a truffle flavoured macaron. His dad loved truffle and whenever he got to visit his dad and they got dinner, Adrien was allowed to have some. But never this much all at once.

“I’m gonna have to kill Alya for suggesting this place. Oh, that’s disgusting. Where’s the passion fruit ones?”

“Oh, don’t kill your classmates. We’ve finally gotten settled. How is school by the way? Truly?”

He couldn’t help but smile, even with the disgusting taste of truffle in his mouth. “it’s amazing. I was worried, you know, about making friends. Even though I knew we’re here for longer, there’s still that voice in my head telling me I wouldn’t make friends. But my classmates are amazing. Most of them are the nicest people I’ve ever met and they’re so cool. Max, he built a robot called Markov who’s so smart. And he’s an awesome gamer. He’s been working on this video game involving past akumas, which sounds amazing.”

“Was that robot akuma his?” his mother asked, remembering the transformer that had appeared at his school.

“Yeah. But really, Markov is really sweet. He can understand human emotion. Kim’s his best friend which make them a pretty interesting pair. He keeps thinking he can beat Alix in a race but she’s insanely fast on her skates. She’s offered to teach me how to do a few tricks on an old pair, which means I can finally do that Carpcaptor photoshoot idea I wanted. Rose and Juleka are some of the sweetest people and they’re such a cute couple. They’ve got tough competition from Ivan and Mylene though. Their dynamic is the classic bad boy and good girl but he’s such a teddy bear for her. It’s so cute. Nathaniel is quite but his art is so good. Oh! And guess what, one of my friends from out of the class, Marc? He’s got the biggest crush on Nathaniel. He’s also such an amazing writer. I have to show you some of his work. Then there’s Alya and Marinette. Alya is a lot, really sure of herself and stubborn. We’re constantly yelling at her to stop chasing down the fights Scarlet Bug and Catseye get into but she never listens. But she knows when not to go to far. Marinette is really cool. She’s a designer and get this? She’s actually designed for Jagged Stone! I might have started begging for help getting tickets when Nino told me he tends to perform in Paris more often. Can you believe I’ll finally get to see Jagged Stone?  No more last-minute moves when he’s in town! Marinette had offered to help me with my more complicated cosplays and she made this beret for me. And Nino, he’s such an amazing DJ and videographer. He was the first person I really got to hang out with at school and he’s been so welcoming. He’s invited me to his house, if that’s ok?”

His mom nodded, this small smile on her face. “I know making friends was always hard, especially when surrounded by people who just liked acting like they were better just because of their parents. I’m so happy to hear that you have so many now.”

Adrien shared a smile with his mom. “Yeah. It’s been a long time since I’ve said I’ve had best friends, but I’d definitely call Marinette, Alya and Nino mine.”

“When I know my next day off, how about we invite them over? We can give them a taste of true Italian food.”

“Oh yes! It can also be a thank you for all the food they’ve suggested. We should also check out Marinette’s family bakery on the way home.”

“More sweets?”

Adrien shrugged. “They’ve also got the best bread in France.” His phone buzzed and he looked at the screen, smiling a little as he bit his lip.

“Oh, I know that look. That’s your ‘I think I might like this person’ face. You can answer it. What’s their name?”

“Luka. he’s Juleka’s brother. He was the delivery boy that first night. the first time I walked home myself, I bumped into him and he walked home with me. We exchanged numbers and we’ve gotten to know each other a little.”

“Is he cute?”

Adrien nodded. “Very. He’s got this whole punk look about him and his blue eyes make me feel like he could understand everything about me. I’ve barely seen him but I like talking to him.” Adrien felt his face start to get red. He had no clue if this was just a superficial crush or if this could go deeper. Dating didn’t happen much when he tended to move a lot.

“You know, I’ve noticed you’ve got a thing for people with blue eyes and a welcoming personality.” His mother teased.

“No, I don’t!” he nearly shouted, feeling flustered as his mom laughed.

“Well, even if it doesn’t work out like that, at least you’d gain a new friend, right?”

“I guess so.”

“So, what did he want to talk about?”

“Oh, he invited me to this music festival he’s participating in.”

[thombrowneny]

... smile ...

fall 2017 for le vif weekend

shop new arrivals now on thombrowne.com

ph: kris de smedt

style: adrien gras

[heuffopla]

Did you know. That Limelight's suit is an outfit you'll find at least a dozen people wearing at any Mardi Gras day celebration in New Orleans, Louisiana? Purple, green, and gold are the traditional Mardi Gras colors.

Oh sick! I was just going for the stripes on Adrien's civilian shirt :p

[krisdesmedt]

https://models.com/newfaces/modeloftheweek/57425

[intercoursefluids]

PTDWHAH Chapter 4

I know I know its about time huh?

Intercoursefluids wrote this chapter btw

First Last Current Next

AO3

“Rise and shine you little shit! We’re going sightseeing!”

Damian groaned, doing his best to cover his head with the covers as Jason flug open the curtains to his temporary bedroom.

“Go away you bumbling oaf!”

Jason hummed and for a moment, Damian truly thought that he would leave…

Damian was in fact wrong.

Jason reached under the covers and grabbed Damian’s ankle pulling him out from under them and causing him to hit his head on the floor.

Not allowing him a moment to recover Jason drags Damian over to his suitcase, dropping his leg and rifling through his clothes.

“Why do you suck so much? What did I ever do to you?”

Jason turns back to Damian, one eyebrow raised as they make eye contact for a few solid seconds.

The silence is loud.

Very, very loud.

“Point taken. Now leave.”

Jason’s smug look was evidence enough that he would not, in fact, be leaving.

“No. Put some clothes on. We are in Paris and I want to see the Notre Dame Cathedral.”

Damian barely has time to get dressed and eat breakfast before Jason is hauling him out the door of their Paris safehouse.

“You do realize we are supposed to be here on a mission, and not to be tourists looking for pretty Parisians, right?”

Jason merely shrugs, completely ignoring Damian as he pulls up a map on his phone.

“We are supposed to be setting up a new WE branch and helping Paris with the recovery from some rich dude being HawkMoss. No one said we can’t sightsee and, what did you say? Look for pretty Parisians? Yeah, we can do both.”

Sighing Damian follows after Jason, it’s not like he can do all the work himself and they aren’t even supposed to start working for another three days.

_________________________________

“Mari? Sweetie, he's back again, do you want me to call the police this time?”

Marinette sighs from the couch in her parent’s living room.

“No Papa, not yet at least. Can you distract him though? Chloe wants to see me and I don’t want Adrien to see me on my way to the hotel.”

Marinette’s Papa walks over kissing her head and letting her know he will give her at least ten minutes to get out, maybe more if her Maman spots him in the bakery.

Gathering her belongings Marinette waits for the shouting to start before she runs out the back door and takes off down the street.

The hotel is only 25 minutes away anyway, and with the speed walk Marinette keeps up she makes it in less than 15.

As soon as Marinette enters the doors to the building Chloe’s butler Jean ushers her into an elevator, leading her up to Chloe’s suite.

When the door opens she is only half surprised to see it full of her friends.

“Mari, how are you holding up? Want a hug?”

Luka says from his place on the bed, holding open his arms in clear invitation.

Nodding her head Marinette walks over to the bed, plopping down on top of Luka making him grunt.

“Gnrghp.”

Chloe sighs, dragging Kagami over to the bed they lay on either side of Luka, encasing Marinette as the others start making a pile of comfy stuff on the floor so they could all fit in the cuddle puddle.

“We can’t understand you when you talk like that Melody.”

Marinette groans again, fishing out Kagami and Chloes arms and pulling them over her before retreating back into a ball.

“Ghanganndhhhhhhhhh.”

“We still can’t understand you, Mari-hime.”

With a frustrated grunt, Marinette finally sits up and moves to the completed pile on the floor, waiting for the others to join her before she starts talking again.

“Adrien won’t stop coming to the bakery. It’s really getting on my nerves, why can’t he just leave me alone?! Hasn’t he done enough to me already?!”

Alix reaches over, pushing Chloe out of the way to get to the now crying Marinette.

“Mari, look at me. I promise you, things are going to start looking up for you soon. The first step to healing from what happened is deciding where you want to go from here.”

Marinette grabs her hand, shaky and uncertain she grasps at the line Alix has thrown her.

“What do I do, Alix? I don’t know where to go from here.”

Marinette’s voice trembles as she stares into her friends eyes. Begging for some clue of what she needs to do to get any semblance of a happy ending.

“Well, start small, Nette. Do you still want to see Adrien? Not, “do you still want to be with him” I mean do you even want to see his stupid face right now?”

Kim’s strong voice sounds from behind Marinette, making her turn to see her large friend huddled up with both Nino and Max and a dark look in his eyes.

It takes a moment for the meaning of Kim’s words to hit. And an even longer moment to actually think about them and take them into consideration.

Marinette loved Adrien. She really and truly did, and that's what made it hurt so badly.

Marinette didn’t want to love him.

Loving Adrien was like having a noose around her neck as she dangled over the edge of a cliff.

He had been the only thing keeping her afloat for so long but he was steadily killing her.

Marinette didn’t like who she was when she loved Adrien, she was more timid and afraid. Always scared to make a wrong move and make him angry.

An angry Adrien was never good.

While he had never hit her he would ignore her for days at a time, constantly leaving their shared apartment and refusing to answer his phone. Even going so far as to block her until he was ‘satisfied that she understood her punishment and why it was happening’.

“I’m not sure anymore. I love Adrien, I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to stop, but I don’t want to. I don’t want to love him anymore! His love hurts!”

Marinette can barely get the words out before she is choking up, throat closing and refusing to let anymore words out.

Seven (and a half including Markov) bodies envelop Marinette in a tight hug, nobody moving or saying a word until Kagami’s phone starts going off. Groaning loudly Chloe removes herself from the pile to grab her girlfriend's phone for her.

After Kagami answers it is clear that whoever is on the other side is not the bearer of good news.

Another seven minutes and 38 seconds (thank you Max and Marcov) of muttered conversation and tense postures later Kagami finally hangs up the phone…

…And immediately starts passionately cursing to the point that even Luka was blushing.

“Gami-Bear? What’s wrong, love?” Smacking Kim and Alix across the head for gagging at the pet name, Chloe makes her way over to Kagami, taking her hands and pulling her to sit back down on the floor.

Running her hand through her short hair Kagami sighs, “It’s about Adrien- He’s going around asking people if they have seen you anywhere, Marinette. He’s saying that you two had a fight and that you ran off. Apparently he’s very worried about his wife.”

Marinette’s heart plummets to her stomach. She feels sick at the mere thought of Adrien calling her his wife. Taking a deep breath Marinette looks behind her towards Luka.

“Hey Luka? Do you think I can stay with you and your family on your boat for a few days? I- I think I want to leave Adrien, officially.”

Luka nods, wrapping his arms over her shoulders and nuzzling her hair.

“Of course, Melody. Besides you know Juleka and Mom love you. And if we catch sight of Adrien we can just sail away.”

Marinette nods, tucking her head under his chin and looking towards the others in the room.

“Will all of you help me get my stuff from my- from Adrien’s apartment? I would rather not have to face him by myself if he shows up.”

Getting nods from everyone in the room Marinette finally starts to relax, feeling safe surrounded by her closest friends.

…

Banging on the hotel room door pulls her from her little slice of heaven, immediately worrying that Adrien had figured out where she was, Marinette glances at Kim, silently asking him to check the door, which he does without hesitation.

Everyone previously on the floor stands, pulling Marinette with them and pushing her as far away from the door as they can manage.

“Jagged Stone-?!”

“WHERE IS MY LITTLE ROCKER?!”

Kim’s incredulous voice is cut off by Jagged’s very prominent, very loud voice.

Moving out from where Chloe and Max had backed her into a corner Marinette heads into view of the door, waving to Jagged as he and Fang push past Kim leaving an apologetic Penny to check if he was alright.

“I just heard the news from one of my mini-mes, are you okay? I can and will feed that boy to Fang he won’t mind eating a skinny little bit-”

“Jagged!” “Dad!”

Penny and Luka both shout at Jagged, cutting him off from his rant.

“Ignore him honey, but really, are you alright? Anything we can do to help?”

Penny’s soft voice, followed by her strong arms wrapping around Marinette, nearly have her breaking down in tears again.

“I’m as okay as I can be right now.”

Squeezing Penny one last time Marinette finally bends down to give the scaly, water puppy the attention he deserves.

“Who’s a good boy, Fang?! That’s right! Yes you are!”

Fang’s tail lashes from side to side, mimicking an actual dog, as he opens his mouth wide showing off all of his teeth.

Kim shudders, stepping away from his gaping jaw and pulling Max with him.

“Mari, sweetie, that is a whole ass crocodile. Not a puppy.”

Marinette laughs, feeling loads better than she had when she had first arrived.

“Hey Kim? How would you feel about taking a bet?”

Almost immediately a smirk takes over his face.

Ribbing Alix in the side Kim leans forward.

“I’m always down for a bet. What are the conditions?”

Marinette reaches behind her, grabbing a pillow and whacking him in the face while he was still in range before continuing.

“Whoever can get more of my stuff out of Adrien’s apartment the fastest wins a month’s supply of baked goods and 3 free commissions. The bet is open to everyone now who’s in?”

Kim rubs his cheek, shooting a dirty look towards Marinette (She pretended not to see it) before agreeing.

Kim’s agreement is soon followed by everyone else, including Jagged.

Everyone heads to the door on a mission.

Operation: Liberate Marinette is a go.

(No Nino, we are not calling it that!)

That One Bitch

@IsaQueen

—

Can somebody explain why my neighbor just came back home from her wedding with a group of people and an alligator?!

I AM HERE

@Noreallyimoutside

—

It’s not an alligator its a crocodile you limp noodle

That One Bitch

@IsaQueen

—

Not my roomie calling me out😭😭😭

That One Bitch

@IsaQueen

—

OMFG IS SHE MOVING OUT?! HOW DID HE FUCK UP SO BADLY?! MARINETTE IS LITERALLY A GODDESS?!

I AM HERE@Noreallyimoutside

—

I don’t know how he messed up to the point that she is leaving him… but good for her she can do better

[thewritewolf]

Mari Christmas And A Happy New Adrien

Summary:

Lost in the aftermath of Hawkmoth's defeat, Adrien loses complete track of time and before he knows it, the holiday season is upon him. Will a Christmas visit to his girlfriend's house be just what he needs to move on?

Hello and welcome to my piece for the @mlsecretsanta event! My giftee, @lesslinette, asked for among other things, Adrienette, family bonding, fluff and just a bit of hurt/comfort and I aimed to please!

I had to do a good amount of research into French and Chinese Christmas traditions (including interviewing my long-suffering French friend - thanks @emsylcatac!), so hopefully I didn't get anything *too* wrong.

Read on Ao3

Enjoy!

Marinette 💖: You still up?

Adrien: Yeah Still not sleeping great House was always too quiet Never thought it could get more quiet tho lol Whats up?

Marinette 💖: :( Just wondering what u were doing 4 xmas Since You know

Adrien: Since father went to jail and mom died again? Haven’t thought about it Guess ive still got time to figure it out

Marinette 💖: … ..Its the 23rd of Dec Like 2am Not a lot of time left

Adrien: oh Guess uh Stay at home?

Marinette 💖: Adrien Its been like two months Youve been going crazy in there Youll just be stuck in there all by yourself Why don’t you come over?

Adrien: I don’t know… I don’t want to bring anyone down Or ruin anyone’s christmas

Marinette 💖: Adrien ‘Kindest Boy in Paris’ Agreste

Adrien: Oh no she used my middle name

Marinette 💖: You are coming over tomorrow And letting me pamper you And letting my family - your REAL family - love you And that is the end of that ...Is that okay with you?

Adrien: Whatever you say ma’am

Marinette 💖: Good Be here no later than fifteen hundred Let me know if I need to pick you up

Adrien: Will do

Adrien laid back down, his face lit up only by the glow of his phone and the only noise in the room being Plagg’s snoring. Putting his phone to sleep, he turned over, closed his eyes, and honestly smiled for what felt like the first time in a long time.

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

Adrien reached the door to his girlfriend’s house with a gift under one arm, an envelope in his pocket, and a weak smile on his face. The latter wasn’t because of a lack of feeling on his part - the exact opposite, actually.

It had been hard to go to sleep after their conversation that night, a swirl of mixed emotions keeping him from getting the rest that he craved. Last night wasn’t much better and he was left exhausted. He’d even been half tempted to call and say that he couldn’t make it, but somehow that only made him feel worse.

So here he was. He’d shambled his way to the car, driven himself there through blurry eyes and frequent yawns, and turned the doorknob. Maybe they’d understand if he just dropped off the present and headed home.

Well, maybe not home, but just where he lived.

The instant the door opened, a wave of hot air buffeted him. Not only did it warm his freezing face, it brought all sorts of wonderful smells on it. There were the expected scents - baked potatoes, salmon, chicken. But then was something else, something a little harder to place.

After puzzling over it for a moment, he shook his head and stepped into the house. No sooner had he closed the door behind him than he heard some voices calling out from deeper inside.

“Wait, was that the door? The family wasn’t supposed to be over until tomorrow, weren’t they?”

“Tom, that has to be Adrien!”

There was excitement in Sabine’s voice that warmed his heart, but not quite as much as when he’d taken a couple steps into the house and was blindsided by Marinette bursting out of the living room to wrap him in a hug.

“Worried I might not show?” Adrien whispered after they parted from their kiss.

“Not even for a moment, chaton.” She smiled up at him before her eyes wandered down to his arms, a suspicious look on her face when she saw the one present. “Looks like you showed some restraint this year.”

“Of course!” At her continued doubting look, he added. “Come on, I’m perfectly capable of giving reasonable gifts.”

“Last year you tried to give me my favorite restaurant.”

“But I didn’t!”

“Only because I hid your checkbook and credit cards!”

Adrien snorted. “Details.”

Rolling her eyes, Marinette tugged on his coat sleeve. “Follow me, you ridiculous man. You can put your gifts under the tree, we’ll open them tomorrow.”

She led him into the living room, where their Christmas tree had been set up in all its glory. There were red paper chains wrapped all around it and a huge variety of homemade ornaments - including a few that he’d made in years past. Ever since he and Marinette had started dating, he’d been welcomed into their household with open arms. And even before that, they’d been nothing but kind to him.

His eyes poured over the tree, looking for one specific ornament. It didn’t take him long to find it - with its poor quality, it stood out among the beautiful glass orbs and painted baubles. His fingers brushed over the patches of glitter, a nostalgic smile spreading across his face as he took in the patterns of melted wax inside it. His first ornament. They’d barely been dating a few months when he’d made that one.

Had it really been four years already?

Arms wrapped around him from the side and he looked down at Marinette’s chin resting on his shoulder, peering up at him with big blue eyes.

“What’re you thinking about, hot stuff?”

“Old memories, that’s all.”

“Hmm…” She leaned up to give him a kiss on the cheek. “You just about ready to make some new ones?”

“With you? Always.”

“You two want to come in and help us finish cooking dinner?” They both jumped when Sabine’s voice reached them.

Blushing, Marinette reluctantly let Adrien go and headed toward the kitchen. “Coming, maman!”

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

A few hours later and the four of them were seated around the dining room table. Some things had been moved around from what Adrien remembered from the usual arrangement, and a long table had been set up. Most of the spaces were empty - with the four of them, only about a third of the table was occupied. But while the chairs were mostly left bare, the table was not.

Even though he had helped make some of it, Adrien was still amazed at how good the food all looked when laid out on the table like this.

Most of it was pretty traditional, at least from what he knew. A lot of the time his experience with Christmas dinners were meals allowed to grow cold until he gave up on his father showing. But the roasted chicken was still steaming when they cut into it, the smoked salmon and toast still holding the heat of the oven on them. Add in the gratin dauphinois and this was just about the ideal Christmas dinner he could imagine.

Naturally, it got even better with Sabine’s contribution - spring rolls.

As Adrien shoveled them onto his plate, he asked Sabine, “Is this the only Chinese dish for today, maman?”

“Just you wait, dear.” She smiled over her plate. “Today was Tom’s turn to make dinner. Tomorrow will be mine and you’ll definitely have your fill then.”

“I can’t wait!” Adrien took some of the chestnut sauce to pour over his chicken. Which reminded him… He glanced nervously toward the oven. “I don’t suppose you made foie gras, did you?”

Marinette made a face and shivered.

Tom quickly shook his head. “Oh no, son. Back when Marinette was… what? Eight, nine? She found out how it was made and made us promise to never have it again.”

“Eleven years later and we haven’t broken that promise yet,” Sabine finished. “There are plenty of other foods in the world.”

“That’s good.” Adrien breathed a sigh of relief. “It always made me uncomfortable when my father ordered it.”

“Ordered, dear?” Sabine gave him a confused look.

“Oh, we never really cooked our own dinners.”

Tom’s jaw dropped. “Not even Christmas dinner?”

“Nope. Sometimes he’d have to order the dinner prepared the day before and then we’d reheat it the day of, since no one wanted to come into work on Christmas day, you know?”

“I see…” Tom shared a look with Sabine, but the meaning was lost on Adrien. “Well, you make sure you have your fill, son! We’ll be making more for tomorrow, so this is all for us.”

“Thanks,” Adrien said with a grateful smile.

The conversation meandered and for the most part Adrien was just content to listen in, drinking in the company after spending so much of his time recently just by himself. Well, mostly by himself. Marinette would visit whenever she could get the time between college classes and internships. Nino and Alya were more elusive, if only because they were outside the city so often these days.

But there was one person who was his constant companion, Adrien thought with a smile as he peeked into the breast pocket of his T-shirt…

...Only to see that it was empty. Maybe he’d gone to visit Tikki and the kwamis of the miracle box? Adrien was drawn out of his thoughts when Sabine directed a question at him.

“Are you ready for the pre-dessert snacks, dear?”

“Oh! Sure, yeah. What do you have?”

“You’ll love it!” Tom excitedly got up and hustled over to the kitchen, Sabine right behind him. He raised his voice to be heard as he went to the room next door. “We know how much you love camembert so…”

Adrien’s eyes widened. They didn’t…

Tom returned with a platter of cheeses in his hands and a frown on his lips.

“Something wrong, papa?” Marinette’s eyes glanced between Tom and the cheese platter.

“No, no… its just… I could have sworn I bought more cheese than this. And I was so sure that I had purchased camembert.” He rubbed his chin. “Ah well, there is more than enough for the three of us anyway.”

While Sabine set down a large bowl of salad in the middle of the table, Adrien glanced at Marinette. At his side, Marinette was biting her lips and pointedly staring into the middle distance, trying her hardest not to laugh. For his part, Adrien was frustrated that he couldn’t go anywhere without Plagg making a noticeable dent in the food supply.

His annoyance with Plagg was so great he almost didn’t enjoy the Yule Log that Tom had made for dessert. Almost, but not quite.

Once they were done with dinner, they cleared the table.

“So, how’d you like the meal?” Marinette asked as she dried off the dishes while Adrien washed them.

“Definitely better hot. And homemade.”

Marinette chuckled. “I’m glad the bar was so high for us. Really makes us feel like we accomplished something here.”

“How about…” Adrien bit down on his lips and narrowed his eyes in thought. “It was the most delicious meal I’ve had in months.”

“Ooo, now we’re getting somewhere.”

“Years even.”

“Good, good, go on.”

“I had never known food could taste so delicious until you graced me with your heavenly meals.”

Marinette’s eyes gleamed with restrained laughter, the hint of a barely contained smile ruining her deadpan. “Glad I could finally weasel how you really feel out of you.”

“Yeah you’re pretty good at that, aren’t you?” Hands still in the sink’s soapy water, he leaned over and planted a kiss on her forehead.

“No fooling around now, we still have to help put up the last decorations before we relax for the night.”

“What sort of decorations?”

“Paper lanterns and paper chains. That sort of thing.” At Adrien’s politely confused look, she added, “It’ll help make mom’s side of the family feel welcome. Plus they look pretty cool.”

“Well what are we waiting for then? Let’s kick this into overdrive!”

Adrien suddenly worked in a flurry, Marinette scream laughing as she got splashed with some of the water thrown up by his breakneck pace. Marinette could barely keep up between her giggling, but she somehow managed.

With the last fork, plate, and glass sparkling clean and put away, Marinette shook her head and dabbed at her slightly damp shirt with a fresh towel.

“You’re a dork, you know that?”

“So my girlfriend tells me.”

Adrien relished the sometimes quiet, sometimes loud evening he spent with the Dupain-Chengs. When he went upstairs and cuddled Marinette in the cozy darkness, Adrien felt only excitement for the next day

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

Morning came swiftly, but Adrien rose to meet the dawn’s first light with a smile on his lips and a spring in his step. Marinette was… a little less eager, but he managed to coax her out of the bed, eventually.

When they finally got down the stairs and made it to the kitchen, Sabine’s eyes widened and she even froze in the middle of folding one of her dumplings.

“Marinette? I’m surprised to see you up so early.”

Bleary eyed, her daughter simply jabbed a finger toward Adrien and grunted. Adrien rubbed the back of his neck and chuckled.

“I knew you’d be a good influence on her, sweetie.”  Sabine patted his cheek with a warm smile. “Now, once you’ve had some breakfast I’d really appreciate some help out here. From you especially, Marinette, since you know exactly how to do it the way I like it.”

“Can’t Tom help?” Adrien made some toast for him and Marinette, doing his best to stay out of Sabine’s way. “Not that I’m not willing to lend a hand, but he’s got to be pretty good at it after all this time, right?”

Sabine laughed and even Marinette cracked a smile. “You’d think so, but no. The man can make almost any dessert known to French mankind, but I’ve yet to see him finish one spring roll or dumpling in all our years of marriage. Just about the only thing I’m trusting him with today is the roasted pork.”

“Not even the cheese plate?” Adrien asked, tongue in cheek. To his surprise, Sabine shook her head gravely.

“We don’t make one for Christmas day. After all, everyone that is going to be here is from my side of the family and we’re all lactose intolerant.”

“Oh.” Adrien glanced at Marinette, who shrugged.

“I got lucky and got papa’s tolerance for it, I guess.”

“Huh… well, can I help?”

A few hours passed, most of which Adrien spent doing vital but unskilled cooking like stirring and kneading. Although they did let him try to fold a few dumplings. It ended up nowhere near as well done as Marinette’s, but she still gave him a kiss on the cheek for the good effort. From what he gathered, Tom had never even managed to get it to stay together.

They had just put the last batch in the oven when they heard a knock at the door, Sabine quickly taking off her apron as she rushed to answer it.

Adrien’s ears perked up when he heard a conversation in Chinese start up, but between him being a little rusty and them speaking so fast, he couldn’t pick out much.

A few moments later, Sabine walked back into the room with an older Chinese couple. Marinette pulled him towards them. Sabine put a hand on Adrien’s shoulder and introduced them.

“Adrien, these are my parents. My mother, Ling,” she said, gesturing towards the grey-haired woman currently hugging Marinette. “And my father, Zheng.”

The older man’s grey eyes sparkled with excitement as he held out a red envelope for Adrien, who just now noticed that Marinette had also been given one. He froze, eyes widening. Was he supposed to have gotten them something too? He hadn’t realized that anyone would be getting him anything, except maybe Marinette. There was a moment where he was about to decline but he took a shot in the dark and accepted.

The moment his hand touched the envelope, Zheng spoke in Mandarin, “Best wishes for the New Year!”

“Thank you very much!” Adrien replied automatically in the same language. While the finer points might escape him, Adrien was fluent in niceties.

Zheng’s eyes widened before he nodded sagely to himself. “Ahh, I see you’ve picked up some Mandarin from my daughter, yes?”

“Oh, no, sir. I’ve been studying since I was fourteen.”

Once again, Zheng’s eyes widened before he chuckled and looked knowingly at Marinette. “This one is definitely a keeper! I approve.”

Marinette’s cheeks were almost as red as the envelope, but she still smiled.

The bright, enticing red of the envelope made him want nothing more than to open it right then and there. But Adrien took a nod from Marinette, who had very pointedly left it sealed even as she refused to set it down. He chose to follow her lead as they all made their way to the living room.

While the Dupain-Cheng parents and the Cheng parents were getting settled there, Marinette volunteered them to go make some tea. Once they were in the kitchen and out of earshot of the new arrivals, Adrien held up his envelope with a raised eyebrow and curious look.

“You can go ahead and look at it now, it’s just not polite to do it right when you get it.” She carefully unsealed the envelope. “It's this Chinese tradition - good luck money for the new year, you know?”

Adrien followed her lead and found one ten, one twenty, and one fifty euro note inside. Glancing over, it seemed Marinette got the same. He was half tempted to just give her his euros since he didn’t have any need for it, but decided that might be tacky. If she would even take them at all. After stashing the envelopes away in a kitchen drawer, they came back with tea for everyone.

Over the next few hours, more and more family members funneled into the house. Adrien, used to seeing maybe four people during the holiday season, thought the room would be close to bursting after the first aunt arrived with husband and two kids in tow. But then came the uncle and his family, then the second aunt with her boyfriend and by the end of it fifteen people were packed into the living room. For some reason apples in boxes became involved? Adrien thought that was a pun but that was more his pun sense than his linguistic skill.

Before anyone could get too settled in, they finally got to opening presents. Despite his fears from the red envelope, no one else seemed to have gotten Adrien anything.

At least, none of the extended family had. The Dupain-Cheng family, however…

“Here you go, dear.” While the rest of the room was chattering among themselves, Sabine placed a package about as big as a shoebox on Adrien’s lap. Before he could react to it, Marinette had shoved a bag stuffed with packing paper.

“Let me go get your-”

Adrien felt a tug on his arm and looked down at Marinette seated beside him. “Open your gifts first and then we’ll open the ones you got us.”

“Okay, okay.” Adrien looked at the box on his lap and tore it open. He tilted his head in confusion as he lifted the fabric that he found there out of the box. His eyes widened when he realized it was an apron with ‘Kiss the Chef’ on it.

“Its for when you come over to cook with us!” Tom beamed down at him proudly. “Now you don’t need to borrow our aprons any more - you’ll have one of your very own!”

Adrien felt his eyes get misty and he bit his lips to keep himself from crying. After a few moments of pulling himself together, he managed to say, “Thank you, guys. I’m really looking forward to wearing it!”

“Speaking of…” Marinette prodded the bag she left with him.

“Right, right.”

Adrien removed the paper and pulled out what turned out to be a sweater, cream colored and decorated with mistletoes and black cats in red scarves. It felt amazingly soft as he slipped it on over his head, embraced in a warm hug that - he lifted the fabric to his nose and took a deep breath - yes, smelled exactly like Marinette. For now at least.

“Do you like it?” Instead of replying, Adrien wrapped his arms around Marinette and pulled her close to him, nuzzling his nose against her neck. Giggling, she smacked his arms lightly. “I’ll take that as a yes, now let go!”

After he pulled his arms back, he stood up and stepped between the Cheng family members and made it to the tree before heading back to the little corner of the living room that they had claimed. He passed the envelope to Tom and the box to Marinette.

“A… gift card for an appliance store?” Tom said, his brow furrowing.

“I wanted to get you an actual new stove because you’re always upset at it,” Adrien explained in a rush, feeling embarrassed that his gift felt so… impersonal compared to theirs. “But when I went to the store I had no idea what actually made a good stove and searching it up on the internet only made it more confusing and… yeah,” he finished lamely.”

He glanced up at them and felt better to see them smiling back.

“That’s very thoughtful of you, Adrien! Thank you, we’ll make good use of this.”

Beside him, Marinette began opening her gift, which Adrien was much more excited for. Not because he had spent any less for it, but because that at least he knew exactly what to get.

He knew he’d done good when she gasped as she pulled out the expensive fabric she’d once stared at longingly from the otherside of a store’s window in Paris. Which, of course, meant that he was also expecting the smack on his arm from her as well.

“Adrien! This is expensive! You definitely shouldn’t have bought this.”

“Actually, you’ll remember that I get to spoil you exactly three times a year - birthdays, Valentine’s, and Christmas.” He gave her the most innocent look he could manage. “So you like it then?”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “You know I absolutely love it, you cat.”

“Then that’s great!” He continued with the overly chipper and oblivious tone, knowing how much it bugged her. He rubbed his hands together. “So… when’s dinner?”

-----------

After a Christmas dinner packed with Chinese dishes, they slowly returned to the living room.

Adrien sat in a corner of the room, taking in the warm and inviting atmosphere, the excitement and energy of so many people gathered together in such a small space.

Holding Marinette close, Adrien felt like he was part of a real family for the first time in a long time.

[badgaymovies]

Today's review on MyOldAddiction.com, Staying Vertical (Rester Vertical) by #AlainGuiraudie, "a painfully unwatchable misfire that gains nothing by its bold imagery" ALAIN GUIRAUDIE Bil's rating (out of 5): B.5.  France, 2016.  Les Films du Worso…

[photoavocado]

New Orleans Louisiana

New Orleans was at first nothing but a trading base USA due to it being located on the east bank of the Mississippi River but, things soon changed and New Orleans became a fortified Nobel community.

New Orleans is known for Mardi gras, voodoo, hauntings, 1800 French architecture, loud music, and more.

---

Facts:

Do you know the reason why bourbon street is named bourbon? Well, it's was named after the French bourbon dynasty. When new Orleans was founded. When Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville and French engineer Adrien de Pauger laid out the streets of New Orleans they chose one to carry the name of the French royal household ruling at the time and that man was to be Rue Bourbon.

New Orleans is known to be the most haunted city in American, New Orleans has Many old creepy mansions and graveyards. The reason why New Orleans is haunted it's because of a sad fact, many Native Americans and slaves have passed away unfortunately there from tragic events.

Let's talk about brighter things of New Orleans one fact is that New Orleans is the creation of the Jazz. You can find Jazz being played everywhere especially in the congo square.

---

Fast facts:

The first game of poker was played in the city in the 19th century using just a 20-card pack of cards.

While the town is known for Cajun food, the predominant type of food cooked here is in fact Creole.

Some of the best and most historic murals in the city can be found in bus stations. 

----

New Orleans is sure full of history! I could talk about so many facts and history but I'll leave you to research and dive deeper of new Orleans.

Thank you for reading!

(I'm not a historian and so I don't know if all these facts are true or fully correct)

(All photos were taken by me on my trip to 2021, please don't repost my photos!)

[awholelotofladybug]

Stammering Adrien Prompt: Marinette and Adrien going on a double date with Chloe and Luka

Marinette and Luka had stars in their eyes at the beautiful ambiance around them, then looked at their dates.

“I can’t believe you two managed to make reservations here,” said Marinette.

“Yeah,” said Luka. “How did you manage this?”

Adrien took his seat. “We b-b-booked this place a few weeks ago.”

“It also helps that my daddy knows the Maitre D,” said Chloe, adjusting her bun.

The boys couldn’t stop staring at the girls. Marinette wore a little red dress while Chloe wore a little black dress. Chloe had her hair in a bun while Marinette had her hair down with a rose hair clip on the right side. Meanwhile, Luka was in a classic black tuxedo and tie, while Adrien was in his best suit. The two couples simply stared at each other longingly until the waiter arrived with water, clearing his throat.

“Good even, Monsieurs and Madamoiselles,” he said. “What can I get you this evening?”

The four teenagers blushed at the situation as they looked over the menu.

“I will have the Foie gras,” said Chloe.

Adrien then found his choice. “I will have the Filet Mignon, medium rare.”

“Let me see,” said Luka. “I will have the Confit de canard.”

“And I will have the Filet Mignon too, also medium rare.” said Marinette.

“Excellent choices,” said the waiter. “I’ll have them out momentarily.”

[sing-in-me-oh-muse]

Snippet July - Forevermore

Blond hair. Green eyes. Smoking hot body.

Kagami definitely had a type.

Fortunately for her, though, her fiance, Félix, fit that type and more. He was much more decisive than Adrien, which she appreciated and which helped when they were planning their wedding.

“I definitely think we should serve cucumber sandwiches as a starter.” Félix smirked at her, his eyes glittering maliciously. He crossed his legs, seated next to her on her couch. “My aunt hates cucumber sandwiches.”

Kagami chuckled, looking over their menu of scallops, lobster, beef filets, duck breast, and medallions of veal--with the main meats all served pink. “Cucumber sandwiches?” Kagami wrinkled her nose in disgust. “They’re not bad, but foie gras is traditional.”

“Bah, foie gras.” Félix threw his hands in the air, almost smacking Kagami, which she glared at him for. “Who likes foie gras? Not me.”

“I bet your aunt does.”

Félix grinned at her, shooting her the fingerguns. “Okay, you got me. She loves the stuff.”

Kagami barked out a laugh. Hilarious. “We can’t plan our wedding around things your aunt doesn’t like.”

“Why not?” Félix flopped down into her lap, upsetting the paperwork comparing various venues there, which annoyed Kagami but didn’t cross the line into pissing her off. Yet. “She’s awful.”

Kagami set her menu down and booped his nose. “As awful as you?”

Félix shrugged, an interesting maneuver given that his shoulders brushed her thighs. “Eh. If you want, I can let bygones be bygones with my aunt. Just for the wedding.”

“You’ll be too distracted during the wedding to even pay attention to her, I’m sure.”

Félix raised a brow. “That’s because you won’t let me see your wedding dress. Let me see it?”

Kagami’s tone was as dry as dust. “No.”

Félix folded his arms, giving her the worst pout. He stuck his lower lip out, letting it quiver a little. “You’re mean. I’m marrying a mean woman.”

Kagami picked up the menu again, deciding to ignore him. If her fiance was going to be silly, well, she didn’t have to give him the time of day. “You can get over yourself anytime now.”

“Hey.” Félix poked her in the cheek, causing a flare of irritation to build in her chest. “Hey, Kagami.”

Kagami huffed, setting her menu down. Now he was treading the line between ‘annoying’ and ‘truly-angering.’ “What?”

Félix batted his eyelashes. “You know I love you, right?”

“So I’ve been told.”

Félix rested his palm on her cheek. “It’s true. I love you like you hung the moon. I love you like you’re the air in my lungs. I love you forevermore--”

Kagami placed a finger on his lips, effectively cutting him off. “Poetry is not your strong suit, dear heart. You don’t need to tell me you love me when you show me everyday.”

Kagami knew that Félix loved her. She loved him, too, even though their relationship started as a matter of convenience. But he was dead set on explaining himself, the reasons of which Kagami couldn’t fathom.

Félix smiled against her finger. “Kiss me?”

Now? Kagami shook her head. “I can’t; you’re in my lap. Bending down like that is awkward.”

Félix grumbled, sitting up. “Now kiss me?”

Kagami pecked him on the lips, but he captured the back of her neck and pulled her close, slanting his mouth against hers. Grunting, she opened up to him, her shoulders going slack. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and tugged her close to him, and though the position was awkward, kissing Félix was always thrilling.

But Kagami had a job to do. She spoke against his lips between kisses. “We have to…” A kiss. “...do the…” Another kiss. “... menu.” A third kiss, and this one was long, deep, and lovely.

Félix trailed kisses along her jawline to nip her ear. His breaths came thick and fast, and as he traced the shell of her ear with his tongue, Kagami’s arms and legs broke out in goosebumps. “Screw the menu,” he whispered. “It’s kissing time.”

Kagami pulled back and placed her hand on his face, shoving him down into the couch. “No.”

Félix squirmed, so she placed her hand on his chest instead. “Wedding planning is boring.”

“Between your mother and mine, if we don’t plan this perfectly, there’ll be hell to pay.” Kagami pursed her kiss-swollen lips. “Sulking doesn’t become you, dearest.”

Félix furrowed his brow. “I’m not sulking.”

“You are.” Kagami traced circles on his chest, causing him to shudder. “We can kiss after we decide on where to source the croquembouche.”

“Can we plan the cocktail reception instead?” Félix asked hopefully, his eyes shining playfully. “With actual drinking involved? I would love to taste test some alcohol right now.”

“I am not allowing you to get drunk during wedding planning.”

“I wouldn’t get drunk, per se.” Félix’s grin was as sharp as a bear trap. “Just a little tipsy.”

“And then you wouldn’t be able to drive home, and you’d have to crash on my couch.” Kagami wagged her finger in his face, irritated all over again. “Tonight is not the night for that. My mother’s coming over tomorrow to inspect the planning we’ve done.”

Félix’s brows rose. “Wait, she is?” He plucked the menu up immediately. “Why didn’t you say so? I think we should have our parents spring for lamb.”

“Lamb?”

Lamb was delicious. First wise decision he’s made all night.

Félix offered her another one of his characteristically-knife-like grins. “My aunt hates it.”

@miraculousfanworks

[acefrogmonarch]

Hi There! one-shot

Ao3

Not the update you wanted. Maybe I continue one-shots that are similar to my universe, maybe not.

What else is new, we are thriving in this fandom.

When you're late to the Maribat fluff week but you don't really care so

I used this to help me with https://www.talkinfrench.com/how-to-read-a-french-menu/ the dinner scene. Because I'm going to be as accurate as god damn possible! Every single meal I have stated is real and can be eaten. These characters aren't mine!

Mariette couldn't wait for tonight! It's been months since she and Adrien got to catch up. Looking through her closet, she couldn't decide between her cardigan and favorite blazer. Both were in the same navy blue that matched well with her outfit.

Placing both jackets on her bed, Marinette compensated which would look best for the white tank top, watermarked with "I survived Gotham." Walked around her old room, Marinette looked back at the tan shorts under the tank top.

Making her way back to bed, Marinette grabbed her phone from the end table. Sending a text to Adrien if they could color coordinate together.

Mari-Bear <3: I don't know what to pick for my outfit, whats your main color?

Adrikins: uhhhhh

Adrikins: I think it's blue???

The last time Adrien questioned what color it was, he wore hot pink shorts to a stakeout. "But Mari, I said it was red!" Marinette didn't trust his wardrobe again. Never again. If he dressed in hot pink shorts with a yellow shirt again, Marinette was going to have words with him. Maybe throw hands. Both.

Mari-Bear <3: Photo.

Adrikins sent a photo.

It was a relatively nice outfit. On the model figure, it complimented all his looks, even brought out the colors of his eyes. "A bluish-green?" Talking out loud, or mumbling help her spin ideas out even if it annoyed Damian to no end. "A mesh, with green and blues."

Marinette kept mumbling to her self, then suddenly an idea hit her. She threw her phone at her bed and went straight to her closet. Pulling out an old jacket full of meshed blues.

Marinette didn't like how it never went with any of her other clothes, often forgetting it in the back of the closet. With the chilly night and perfect color combo, it was the clear winner from her other choices.

Hoping in the shower, she cleaned herself up. Humming lightly to "Ugly heart by G.R.L". That song was still stuck in her head after so many years. It meant so much to both of them. It was the first time since the defeat of Hawkmoth that they enjoyed being teens again.

Granted they were 18, but that didn't put a damper on their mood one bit. After Chloe moved to New York with her mother, she sent the lastest pop songs that circulated the radio. That song immediately caught Adrien's attention. "We should dance to this Mari!"

Marinette was video calling from Gotham, on a visit to spend time with Damian and his family. "What? Why?" Searching up the lyrics to the song, Marinette let Adrien beg. "And before you say 'Let's put it on youtube.' Let me remind you, that last time, I got recognized all over Paris."

The first-ever dance/singing video they did it to was Indila love story. Marinette had a black mesh on with Ladybug inspired shirt that went to her upper thighs. Adrien had a leather jacket and black pants on.

They didn't even notice they were being recorded by Alya. It blew up once people recognized who were dancing, a lot of theories started popping up if it was their love story. Dancing had been an outlet for both of them.

That 1) wasn't dangerous.

2) helped the itch of staying still for too long.

Adrien was the one to answer questions via Instagram live. Saying it was the love story of Ladybug and Chat Noir. True but no one knew that they were the real Ladybug and Chat Noir. Giving back the Miraculous and Kwami's to Master Fu was the hardest decision for either party.

Stepping out of the shower, Marinette dried off her body and patted her hair down. "You're not my sunshine anymore!" Singing off-key and spinning around in a circle, striking a pose. Marinette giggled and wrapped the towel around her body.

Taking her hairbrush with her, she stepped out of the bathroom. Marinette went to her dresser and took out undergarments. Damian shifted in his place on Marinette's bed next to her laid out Clothes.

Marinette looked at her... Well, she didn't know what Damian was to her. At first, he was insufferable to be around, but then he let her in and they've changed since. Her patience growing and his temper lowering.

They started to balance each other out. Marinette hoped that she wouldn't have to be the one to confess first. It was hard enough on Luka and Adrien, but then again. They weren't Damian, not by a landslide.

Checking her phone, Marinette checked the time. "22:30 Perfect timing." Putting it back down, Marinette grabbed her clothes and undergarment and headed back to the bathroom to leave her partner in crime in peace.

Humming the tone of Indila in the bathroom as she dressed. Putting her hair into a messy fishtail braid, Marinette opened the door to find Damian on the other side. Moving out of the way, Marinette noticed how Damian shuffled to the toilet.

"No no no no" Quietly whispering in embarrassment. Quickly closing the door behind her and getting her mind out of the gutter, she quickly found her socks and flats, making her escape. "I'm leaving, bye Damian!"

As she went downstairs, her parents were already in bed. Sneaking out of the bakery she closed the door with her key and checked herself in the mirror. Nodding in satisfaction at her attire, she briskly walked to the designated restaurant. Adrien was outside in a coat, looking at his phone.

"Adrien!" Turning to the familiar sound, Adrien began waving wildly, they hugged each other as they got closer. Adrien squealed a little. "I'm so happy to catch up tonight." Marinette looped her arm around Adrien's. "Me too." Adrien already making his way inside the restaurant.

"I have so much to tell you." Adrien took off his coat as they entered the building. "You always pick the grandest of places, Mon Chaton." Adrien couldn't help but blush slightly, scratching his cheek in embarrassment.

"Ever since I took time off of modeling to get my teaching degree, I rarely treated myself and I thought that since it's been a while since we've last talked, why not do it now." Marinette hummed skeptically at Adrien.

"Or maybe." Marinette stopped in front of the door, effectively stopping Adrien from walking in any further. "Hiding from a couple of someones?" Raising in eyebrow as Adrien looks everywhere except her face. "We gotta work on your 'What are you talking about' face." Marinette snorted at the oblivious man in front of her.

Adrien sighed in relieve at the lack of interrogation by his companion. "Please don't tease me so much Mari, I can only take so much." Marinette laughed and Adrien couldn't help but give a little chuckle.

"Let's enjoy the evening, M'Lady." Adrien slightly bowed and Marinette, in turn, curtsied with her 'dress'. "Of course, silly tomcat." Folding the coat in his hands, Adrien puts it over his arm, letting it hand. While Marinette went and asked for the reservations. "Dupain-Cheng."

As the waiter sizes their outfits, Marinette looks over to Adrien to check his outfit. "That damn coat always gets in the way of your outfit." Adrien chuckles softly. "Well, It was from a thrift store." Marinette patted his arm and laughed.

"From all those years ago?" Adrien nods as the waiter clears his throat. "Right this way Ma'dam." With the waiter in front, Marinette followed with Adrien right on her tail. As they reach a clearing near the middle, Adrien rounded around another table to Marinette's chair.

"Allow me." Bumping the waiter out of the way, Adrien bowed, letting him pull the chair out for Marinette. Marinette let out a snort and curtsied again and sat down. "Oh thank, kind sir." Adrien let out a huge grin and made his way to his chair, hanging his coat on the back of his chair. "But of course madam." They laughed as the waiter set down their menus.

The waiter looked at Marinette. "What is for your Apéritifs and Digestifs?" Looking up, Marinette smiled. "Le pâté de mouton artisanal and Cointreau for me-." Adrien looked up from his carte. Even if they both knew what he would order, he still wanted to act clueless. "Fino and Cognac for me."

Marinette's stomach couldn't help but growl thinking about dinner. "For entrée, we'll get a salad." Marinette started listing off, while Adrien put down the menu. Adding in little things for himself, Marinette took care of the le plat principal.

"I'll have a Boeuf Bourguignon while he'll take Foie gras." Adrien leaned over and stopped Marinette from talking. "With assiette of Fromage." Marinette raised an unimpressive eyebrow and glared at him.

"Really? What else would you like Le dessert." Adrien was practically bouncing in his seat. "Can we!" Marinette's sass is replaced with sorrow, smiling softly. "Yeah. Yeah, we can."

"Two Crème Brûlée for later into the evening." The waiter nodded and took away la carte. "You know." Marinette started as Adrien had taken out his phone, looking up at Marinette. Adrien stared at Marinette.

"You know I can't do the eyebrow thing, Mari, What's up." Putting his phone back down on the table, he brought his hands up to rest on the table. "You know the rules."

Humming, Marinette kept looking at them. The drinks and pâté quickly arriving after a beat of silence between the two. Digging in, Marinette continued. "You better be careful Agreste or you might charm two reptiles." She pointed at him with her spoon.

Adrien blushes at the implication and scrambles to shush her. "I told you in that confidence, Mari!" Marinette couldn't help but laugh at her friend's sudden shyness. "How's everything else." Adrien beamed. "Oh gosh, Mari, I have so much to tell you!"

Getting back in the rhythm of having each other's presence. was one of the most basic things to do. Easier then coping with anxiety, easier than dealing with people, easier than being Ladybug. They still completed each other in every way except romantic. And that was okay.

"I'm getting ready to be a TA. Helping in the classroom and seeing how teachers interact with their students. But I'd rather work at a college level. Not many people enjoy Physics at 16." Marinette smiled at her partner. "I sure didn't."

Adrien grinned and sipped his Cognac. "No, you were horrible." Marinette grabbed her napkin and swatted at him. "Don't let me relive that." Adrien jumped away from the harmless napkin and tittered. "You're gonna get us to kick out of another restaurant again," Adrien warned Marinette. Offended Marinette dug in her Pâté.

"That was you and you know it." Laughing together this time, they hardly noticed the waiter. "Your food, Ma'dam." Moving the finished pâté, the waiter places sliced ficelle in a basket in the middle, time for the next course!

The waiter places their meals in front of them. "Thank you garcon." Digging in, Marinette hummed in delight. Looking at the meat, Marinette couldn't help but feel a little guilty. After discovering that Damian was vegan. She made the time to learn and make homemade vegan meals for Damian.

Marinette asked for Alfred's opinion on what meals Damian liked the most and what she'd seen him eat on the few dates they've had together. Mari spends many nights on perfecting numerous deserts. Damian caught her several times making a dinner menu and tried some.

Marinette just assumed that it was Jason or Dick. Many turned out great, while others... Let's just say she wasn't allowed to make something the boys couldn't stomach.

Marinette turned to her dinner and scarfed it down. Taking a sip of her drink she turns to Adrien. "You know that Kagami and Luka are right behind us." Adrien dropped her head then looked up at her and smirked.

"And Damian is right behind me." Marinette whipped to turn behind her. Lo and behold, there he is. "Dami?" Adrien couldn't help but tease it. "It's not Dove?" Marinette couldn't help but flush red at the nickname she accidentally gave him.

"Adrien!" Marinette swatted at her with her hand. "That wasn't true Dami." Damian turned and smirked. Marinette couldn't help but flush brighter. 'O-oh god. Why do I like you again?" Damian raised an eyebrow. "You like me?" Marinette's eyes widen at her slip. Abruptly standing up, she walked out of the building. "Nope, nope, nope."

Damian followed after her, catching her arm and looking at her eyes. "Dami, let go." Damian didn't. 'Of course, you didn't even listen to me half the time." Damian grinned slightly. "You should watch your mouth, Malak." Groaning, Marinette raised an eyebrow at him. "Really that's what you're addressing right now?"

"If you wanted my opinion on how I feel about you, you could have asked." Marinette stared at him, no smirks, no grins, serious Damian wasn't a Damian she could handle. It was too much! "Ugh, curse your genes." Damian let out a small chuckle. "Whatever you say ya qamar barid**."

Looking away, Mari sighed and noticed his loosened grip on her arm. "我的爱人* you know, there is only so much you can do that doesn't effect me." Damian picked her up and Marinette giggled at the strength her deepest friend had. "And you should know that it's the same for me habi alghali***."

They walked over, leaving Adrien to clean up the mess with Kagami, Luka, and the restaurant bill. "Just one night Mari, why couldn't you enjoy dinner instead of running off with Damian." Picking up her coat, Adrien continued onto Luka's and Kagami's table. "Room for one more?" The hidden meaning saying so much more than anything that night.

"Of course. Hime." Adrien blushed at the nickname. "Just because my preferred pronouns are she/her doesn't mean you can keep doing that Kagami." The blush on Adrien's pale face says otherwise. Luka went in to kiss her cheek, Kagami did the same on the other.

"我的爱人" is my lover.

"Habi Alghali" Is my precious love.

"Ya Qamar Barid" is Oh cold moon.

[eldritchsurveys]

903.

Alabama: Do you like the movie Forrest Gump? >> It’s not a favourite of mine, but I can tolerate it, I suppose. ...Actually, come to think of it, I probably couldn’t tolerate it now. I find Forrest’s accent grating and I don’t want to hear it anymore.

Alaska: Would you rather deal with 30 days of day or 30 days of night? >> I don’t think either would be preferable. I like the night/day balance best.

Arizona: Can you handle heat well? >> Moderately well, I suppose. I feel like I complain about the heat far less frequently than most of the people I run into. At the same time, I also know my limits and I don’t just run around in direct sunlight for hours at a time or anything foolish like that.

Arkansas: What are your opinions on Bill Clinton? >> I don’t have any opinions on him.

California: Who is your favorite actor? Favorite actress? >> I have multiple favourites. Here are five: Matthew McConaughey, Gillian Anderson, Joaquin Phoenix, Adrien Brody, Gina Torres.

Colorado: Do you smoke weed? What are your opinions on its legalization? >> I don’t, it causes adverse reactions for me. I think decriminalisation would be wonderful, and applying it retroactively to the people who were imprisoned for marijuana possession would be even more wonderful. The unfortunate downside to legalisation is that now there are marijuana monopolies, because capitalism is a nightmare. So... you know.

Connecticut: Have you ever had a school shooting at your school? >> No.

Delaware: Are you usually the first to do something, or are you more of a follower? >> I don’t pay attention to this. I just do whatever I feel like doing whenever I feel like doing it.

Florida: Have you ever been to Disney World? >> No.

Georgia: Would you consider yourself a southern belle? >> No. I’m not Southern and I’m not a woman.

Hawaii: What would be paradise for you? >> ---

Idaho: What is your favorite way to eat a potato? >> Roasted, I guess. Skin-on.

Illinois: Did you vote for President Obama (or would you have)? >> I didn’t vote in that election. 

Indiana: Do you like corn? >> Sure.

Iowa: Are roses your favorite flower? >> No.

Kansas: Do you like the Tin Man, Scarecrow or Cowardly Lion better? >> I never much cared for that story, period.

Kentucky: Have you ever been to a horse race? >> No.

Louisiana: Have you ever celebrated Mardi Gras? >> I haven’t. Sometimes I think I’d like to go, but then I remember how I feel about crowds and noise. Kind of a bad idea.

Maine: Do you like lobster? >> Sure.

Maryland: Have you ever been to Washington DC? >> No.

Massachusetts: Are you smart enough to go to Harvard? >> I do not have the kind of brain that functions in a way that would be acceptable for Harvard, no.

Michigan: Have you ever swam in a lake? >> I’ve been in a lake, but I can’t swim, so it wasn’t swimming. Just wading around.

Minnesota: Have you seen Drop Dead Gorgeous? >> No.

Mississippi: Do you follow college football? >> No.

Missouri: Have you ever convinced someone to show you their private parts? >> No.

Montana: What is the greatest treasure you have ever found? >> ---

Nebraska: Do you eat beef? >> Occasionally.

Nevada: Are you good at card games? >> I don’t know any card games (aside from UNO and solitaire... and Magic The Gathering, lol).

New Hampshire: What are your views on gay marriage? >> It should be legal, and fortunately, it is.

New Jersey: Do you watch The Jersey Shore? >> Geez, couldn’t Jersey have gotten a better question than this? I guess there’s really nothing anyone from other parts of the country would know about NJ except racist stereotypes on MTV. Anyway, no, I’ve never watched Jersey Shore. The actual Jersey shore is pretty nice, though.

New Mexico: Would you consider yourself a hippie? >> No.

New York: Have you ever been to New York City? Would you like to? >> I used to live in New York City.

North Carolina: Are the Panthers your favorite football team? >> No.

North Dakota: Have you seen Fargo? >> Not yet. I’d watch it if I came across it on a streaming service.

Ohio: Did you watch The Drew Carey Show? >> No.

Oklahoma: What is your favorite musical? >> Phantom of the Opera.

Oregon: Did you ever play the Oregon Trail game? >> Yeah.

Pennsylvania: Do you watch It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia? >> I do. When I first saw it like 8 years ago or some shit, I didn’t really get it. But I tried it again a couple of years ago and got fuckin hooked. It’s hilarious! I might rewatch it at some point (starting with season 2, though, because Frank joining the crew is when it really gets into its stride).

Rhode Island: Who is the smallest person you know? >> I know a toddler?

South Carolina: Do you think Aziz Ansari is funny? >> Eh. I don’t find him memorable. I feel like I’m getting him confused with someone else, in fact... *googles* Okay, no, I had it right. Yeah, like, he was okay on Parks and Rec but honestly he had a great cast to bounce off of. Otherwise I just don’t find him remarkable.

South Dakota: Who is more interesting: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Teddy Roosevelt or Abraham Lincoln? >> None of them.

Tennessee: Who is your favorite country singer? >> Orville Peck. Also Johnny Cash. And Jace Everett.

Texas: Do you like barbecue or Tex-Mex better? >> I like both.

Utah: Do you know anyone who is Mormon? >> No.

Vermont: Do you get the full autumnal colors in the fall where you live? >> Yeah, usually.

Virginia: Are you a virgin? >> No.

Washington: Do you like grunge? >> Sure do.

West Virginia: Do you like the mountains? >> Yep.

Wisconsin: What's your favorite kind of cheese? >> Pepper jack. It’s the one I eat most often. I like other cheeses but then you have to match flavours and all this other shit and I don’t have the energy. 

Wyoming: Do you love westerns? >> I like western fusions and adaptations. Like how Firefly is a space western. I probably like some classics too (Shane was good), but I just don’t go out of my way to watch them.