#and lila made pulling away very very very easy to do

[bigfatbreak]

Birds of a Feather previous / next

[brooooswriting]

Do you think you could do a part two to the tutors to lovers leighton fic absolutely loved it 😍 no pressure though xx

Tutors to lovers 2

“Y/n y/m/n y/l/n” your mothers voice suddenly rang.

Gosh you were fucked.

You and Leighton quickly pulled away, trying to fix whatever you could before turning to your mom. “Mom, what are you already doing here?” You asked hectically, your voice wavering.

“I should be asking you that. What are you doing here making out with that blondie? This is the reason you’re failing y/n” she said, her voice harsh as she took a step towards you. You were used to them being disappointed in you but it wasn’t often that they said it out loud like that. Leightons phone rang again and you gave her a nod to signal that it was okay if she left. She was reluctant but still did as it was her father calling.

“Mom please, she’s to only re-“

“No! This is not ok y/n and we are going to talk about it once your father is here. I am very disappointed in you” you sighed and gave her a nod. By now you were happy that Leighton left, unknown to you she could still hear every word your mother said. Luckily other students and their parents filled the room before your dad came. “We are going to sit down. Your father will join soon” your mother said making you nod and walk up to your place.

Not long after the blonde came into the room followed by her parents. You could feel your mom’s eyes on her, an annoyed look on her face when she realized that the blonde would sit next to you. Her parents gave you a warm smile and greeted you with a hello which you quickly returned. Leighton send you a comforting smile, shifting so her thigh was touching yours to give you some comfort. A couple of minutes later your father joined, followed by some whispering between your parents and then a disappointed look from your dad. It was obvious that she told him what she walked into making this weekend an even bigger hell. Throughout the whole lecture your parents nagged you. ‘Why didn’t you know what?’ ‘Why didn’t you say that?’ ‘This was literally so easy’ ‘Didn’t you learn anything?’ And even if you said something they played it down, ‘your sister was able to do that in 9th grade’

Leighton in contrast was extremely proud of you, it may have taken a while but you finally understood the topic. “You did great” she whispered into your ear, her hand finding yours for a moment. This interaction alone gave you new energy to deal with your parents and their disgusting behavior. Once the lesson ended it was time for lunch in the cafeteria, another nightmare of yours.

“So, do you have any friends?” Your dad asked, even though it was more rhetorical you decided to answer.

“Yes dad, I do. I’m not some weirdo” you walked in front of them, leading them towards the cafeteria. As soon as all three of you had food, you walked to your usual table. On the way there you stopped at Lila’s, caneens, Willows, Jenna’s and some others just to show your parents that you had a lot of friends. You couldn’t help the smile that came onto your face when you saw your usual table, Whitney, Bela, Kimberly and obviously Leighton, sitting there with an annoyed look on their face. Each of them trying to tune out their parents.

“Those are your friends?” Your mother’s voice was clearly portraying her emotions which made you sigh again. Probably the 100th time today. You gave them a nod and settled next to Whitney, opposite from Leighton.

“Oh, you sat next to Leighton in math just now right?” Henry asked once he looked at you, a friendly smile on his face. You smiled back and nodded at him.

“Yeah, I’m y/n. She’s actually the only reason I’m passing that class, she’s so smart” you send both of them a smile before pushing your food around. Normally you were more than happy with cafeteria food when it was build your own pasta bowl day, but your mother had made a comment about your weight just before lunch.

Leighton send you a quick text asking if you were alright as you didn’t eat, her face full of concern as she looked up at you. You only gave her a nod with the best smile you could muster.

“You shouldn’t wear this top, it looks terrible” your mother suddenly said making everybody at the table look at you. You only gave her a nod, to scared that you’d cry if you talked, before standing up and leaving the room. The blonde waited for a moment before excusing herself ‘to get another water’ but it was no use. She couldn’t find you anywhere and when she texted you, you told her that you’d be back shortly.

And you were. Fifteen minutes later you came back, dressed differently than before and new layer of makeup on your face. You sat back down giving everybody a small smile, trying to act as if nothing had happened. But all of them knew, they weren’t stupid and they wished that they could do something. “We should go. We have another event planned” your parents said and stood up, giving you an expecting look which made you stand up too.

“I’ll see you later” you told the rest turning back to your parents “I’ll just use the restrooms real quick” they nodded and told you that they would be waiting in the room of the event, not caring about walking with you. You sighed once you entered the bathroom, happy that it was empty as it gave you some space. You’d have never thought that your parents could make you feel even worse than they already did all those years, but here they were destroying everything new you had and humiliating you in front of your friends, and even worse Leighton. As you stared into the mirror new tears formed in your eyes. You hectically wiped them away when the door open just to reveal the blonde.

“Hey, I just wanted to see how you’re doing” she said as you turned towards her, your back against the sink with your hands resting on top of the cold surface.

“I’m good, thank you” it was a good lie, everybody would have believed it. With a family like that you had gotten good at faking and lying. But after spending hours on hours cramped up in a dorm or in the library there was no way that you could lie to Leighton, especially after you tried many times just to stop the tutoring. The problem was that, even though she could see past the lie, she didn’t know what to say. All those years she had complained about her family and sure sometimes they could be annoying and rude, especially her mother but they were nothing against yours. Plus, her mother showed that she could change, she was happy for Leighton when she came out and supported her when it came to the decision that she wasn’t joining kappa.

She looked at you for a moment before deciding that there was nothing she could say that would even out what your parents said. So she instead leaned in to kiss you, pulling you closer to give you comfort. It helped, a lot. The closeness to her gave you new energy, you just had to wait until your parents left again so you could be happy again. It was as easy as that. That’s atleast what you tried to tell yourself. She only pulled away when there were footsteps in front of the door. “My parents want to invite you and your family to have dinner with us tonight, we are going to the fanciest place in town. So I’ll come over and help you choose an outfit when our parents go back to the hotel ok?”

You didn’t have it in you to have a discussion, so you only nodded. “I should go now before they kill me” you pressed a kiss to her cheek and went to the building next door, trying to find your parents in the sea of people. Sadly, you found them rather quick and sat down.

“The Murray’s found us” your dad started the moment your ass touched the chair, “they invited us to dinner. Great. As if we haven’t already spend enough time with them.” You decided not to say anything, everything you said they’d use against you.

“We want you to break up with that blonde” your mother added moments later making you freeze.

“What? No way. Why would I?”

“Because she’s bad for you. You’re failing” you could only shake your head, it amazed you how they would never listen to you.

“She’s the reason I’m not failing, mother. She tutors me and now I’m got from an E to a C and the prof said that if I keep up the work I’ll easily get a B and he’d give me some extra work that will get me an A. Than I’d have a gpa from 3.8. What more do you want?” You argued. There was nothing else you could do to please them any more. You’d never be enough for their standards.

“Don’t talk to your mother that way” you couldn’t believe it. Of course that was the only thing he heard, not the fact that you had a great GPA or the fact that you found a smart, loving partner. No, only that you weren’t 100% nice to your mom.

4 hours later, you walked into the restaurant immediately seeing the table filled with your friends and their parents. You were clad in a suit like outfit that Leighton had chosen, the colors matching what she was wearing. “Hello everybody” you said and sat down between the blonde and Kimberly’s mother.

“Ah, great to see you y/n. Where are your parents? Still waiting for the valley?” Belas dad asked, receiving an elbow from her mother.

“Uhm, no. They said that they couldn’t make it, sorry” you mumbled, fumbling around with the sleeves of your top. It was embarrassing but you felt like you would disappoint the rest if you didn’t show up.

“Well, I for one am very happy that you’re here. You’re such a nice young lady” Kimberly’s mother said, her hand squeezing your shoulder in a comforting manner. The rest of the table nodded in agreement making you blush a bit.

“Thank you very much Mrs. Finkel, that means a lot to me” the woman talked with you for a bit before you guys decided to order. While you waited you talked to everybody at the table, it felt like a big family. Something you had always wished for. Just as Evette asked you something you saw your parents walk in. And sit at another table. You swallowed heavily before quickly focusing on Evette again, hoping that nobody else noticed them.

“So, y/n, any suitors?” She concluded before looking at you expectantly. You opened your mouth, unsure of what to say until you felt leightons had squeeze your thigh.

“Actually, I’m dating Leighton” you gave them a smile as you intertwined your hands together and placed them on your thigh. PDA wasn’t her strong suit and you were fine with that.

“Oh that’s so great. Whitney, why don’t you have somebody like her?” Her mom said causing everybody at the table to giggle. You collected all your courage and looked over at the Murray’s who gave you a warm smile, your shoulders immediately relaxing. You turned your head further to look at the blonde who was already looking at you. You only smiled at each other, forgetting everybody around you for a moment.

Once dinner was finished and paid, all of you walked out. Running into a, to you unknown, tradition. Family pictures. “Alright, Leigh, come on. Fix your hair quickly. We want to take the picture” Henry said, getting his phone out already.

“Oh, here. I can take the picture” you extended your hand, but never received the phone.

“No, you can’t. You’re on the picture. You’re family now” her mom took your extended hand and pulled you next to your girlfriend who smiled brightly. You positioned yourself slightly behind her with a hand on her lower back, while her mother stood next to you. All of you smiled brightly while Bela took the photo.

“Take another one just of them, they look so good tonight” her mother said as both her parents detached from you. A small laugh left you, before you scotched a bit closer to her and soon after you could hear the click of the camera.

“Wait, not that quick. I want one with a bit of action” Bela said, her brows raised which made you and her parents laugh while Leighton hid her face in your neck. If they were your parents you’d probably also be embarrassed but like this is it was quite funny.

“A bit of action” you mocked quietly, causing the blonde to laugh and leave your neck. Instead she turned towards you so she could look at you. Unsure of what to do you just looked at each other until you both smiled. You decided to just take the shot as now everybody was watching you, you quickly leaned in and kissed her softly until you heard the click again.

“So cute” Kimberly’s mom said, earning an agreeing hum from her daughter.

“Let me look” Leighton demanded, scrolling through the hundreds of pictures her roommate took. She stopped at a specific one, smiling slightly. It was the moment you just smiled at each other, you couldn’t lie it was a really sweet and amazing picture which you’d definitely set as your background.

“Alright ladies. The car is there” her father said, opening the door for his wife. They were really cute, you couldn’t deny that.

“Oh, I think I forgot my lipliner inside. I’ll be back in a second” you asked if you should go for her out with her but she denied, saying that you could already get in the car. You waited outside, you felt like it was impolite to already get in. When she came out a couple of minutes later, you opened the door for her and then scooted in after her.

“Thank you for the evening and the driving, that was really nice. And it was really great to meet both of you” you said as all of you got out of the car. They really took you in today.

“We can only say the same. We are sorry for how the rest of the day went, but we are happy that you ate with us” they both hugged their daughter before hugging you. “We are going to the hotel now, sleep well.” Both of them said their goodbyes before disappearing, leaving you and Leighton on the street in front of the college.

“Wanna sleep over tonight? My roommate is sleeping at the same hotel as their parents” you asked. You had wrapped your arm around her shoulder as you walked back. She immediately agreed, a quiet room with you sounded better than her loud dorm.

It didn’t take long for you two to settle on the couch after changing into some sweats and a hoodie. There was no way to fight of the smile that crept onto your face when you saw her wearing your clothes. Getting them back was out of question though. You were cuddling on the couch while watching some random movie when there was a knock on your door. Reluctantly you both pulled away so you could open the door. “Mom? Dad?” You asked confused to why they were here after leaving you the whole evening.

“Hello. We just wanted to say goodbye” your father said, not really looking into your eyes. He was more focused on watching something behind you.

“And we wanted to say sorry. We treated you poorly and shouldn’t have said the things we said” your mother added. They weren’t a hundred percent honest but it was more than you imagined.

“Well, thank you. Have a save ride home” you said unsure of how to react. You definitely weren’t going to say that it was okay cause it definitely wasn’t.

“Goodbye y/n, goodbye Leighton” that was what really shocked you. Them saying goodbye to her was a mystery, a couple of hours ago they wanted you to break up with her. Confused you settled back on your previous spot on the couch.

“What was that?” You asked, your brows furrowed.

“Well, who knows” you immediately recognized a weird pitch in her voice. You studied her face carefully before deciding that something was off.

“What did you do?” She grinned up at you guiltily.

“I may have had a talk with them at the restaurant. And before you get mad at me, I couldn’t let them treat you like this. You’re such a Valuable acquisition to all of our lives and they were making you feel bad about your whole life. It sucked and they shouldn’t be able to do it without consequences” she explained, sitting up so she could look at you. She could be overprotective of the people she loved and she was kinda scared that she’d scare you off with it, but she was utterly wrong. You couldn’t help but admire her.

“That’s the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me. Thank you love” you pushed her chin up with two fingers before pressing multiple kisses to her lips. She really was the whole package and you wouldn’t change her for anything. “Nobody ever made me feel so good about myself” you added with a smile before standing up and extending your hand. “Come on, let’s go to bed” you smirked. She was up faster than you could realize, pulling you into your bedroom.

Gosh, you were so in love with her.

[fandom-nursery]

Diego agere headcanons

Regresses young and is almost never older than 4 

Probably one of the most frequent regressors out of his siblings 

He has been regressing since Ben died and has gotten a pretty solid handle on it during the years he lived alone. It's usually pretty easy for him to either put himself in or keep himself out of his headspace 

He loves the feeling of being little and he knows for sure that it’s something that has really helped him over the years 

Little Diego gets a bit clumsy in his movements but he is usually able to do most of the things big diego can even if he doesn't do them quite as neatly 

His stutter usually comes back big time when he regresses and he prefers to babble or hum rather than talk 

Little Diego is an absolute angel. He is inquisitive and always eager to help out 

He does nap however he needs someone else to be in charge of making him go to sleep. If he’s regressed on his own he won’t realize he's tired and then wont take a nap until he gets super cranky and frustrated and has no choice but to give in to exhaustion 

He loves physical touch when regressed and could happily spend his entire day curled up in someone's arms 

He really likes the baby toys where you put the different shapes into their correct holes. He also loves stories and has a big collection of children's books. He gets excited about superhero cartoons as well and likes to mimic the fighting poses of the hero’s on the screen 

Big puffed rice lover. He also really enjoys convenience store foods like pop tarts and twinkies. Thinks he never got to try when he was growing up 

He owns a lot of bottles, sippy cups, and those no spill snack cups 

He does have some toys. Some of them were gifts from Eudora that she got him while she was his caregiver and one of two are things that he bought himself. He has one or two lego sets and a couple hotwheels. He also has a lot of baby toys that make fun sounds or light up and an army of stuffed animals

When he said goodbye to Grace and left home she gave him a package with all of his baby things that she had managed to save and keep from reginald including the blue baby blanket he was swaddled in when he was brought to the academy. They are all very dear to him. Additionally, after Eudora's death the things that she had gifted him became precious. He was devastated when their time travel took him away from them for so long 

He has to be dressed in loose soft clothing while little or he will whine and cry. If he doesn't manage to change before slipping fully into headspace then Diego will perform the toddler act of aggressively pulling off all of his clothing while acting like they are strangling him. Little diego also has so much beef with shoes for literally no reason 

He has several pacis that he rotates through. He really can’t sleep without one in while regressed 

He wears diapers or pull ups the majority of the time while little 

He suspects that Grace knew about his regression when he first started doing it. 

He tells Klaus (and by extension Ben) about his regression first and five finds out pretty soon after. Allison also figures it out pretty quickly. He tells Luther about his regression after finding out that Luther also regresses. He tells Viktor after he comes out in an attempt to try and start to rebuild trust between the two of them and as something of a peace offering. Lila clocks him as a regressor right away due to the fact that she also regresses but he didn't find out till much later. 

Diego has always needed and wanted a caregiver. For a long time that was Eudora until their relationship fell apart. After that he and Lila made a deal to watch over one another while they were little. Eventually he started to allow his siblings to watch over him as well even eventually letting sparrow Ben watch him 

He called Eudora mommy. After her death he couldn’t bring himself to use that title for anyone else. Lila is occasionally mama and he will usually use a butchered version of his siblings names when talking to them 

[uniasus]

Reflections

Five approaches his brother slowly. "What's wrong, Viktor?"

"Nothing."

"I don't believe that."

"I don't…I don't like how they're talking about Harlan."

"Why? He's dangerous."

"Because they said the same things about me, Five! They locked me in a soundproof box in the basement, prepared to leave me there for who knows how long."

"They wouldn't do that, Viktor."

"They did, Five. And the only reason I don't worry about that happening now is that the box doesn't exist."

"You don't mean that."

"Oh, I do. What's the difference between then and now?"

"For one, time."

Viktor laughs. "What time, Five? Because to me, that was less than two weeks ago."

"You were in Dallas for months."

"With no memory. I only regained that less than a week ago, but the question stands. What's different now?"

"You're not being manipulated by Harold."

"It wasn't Leonard that made me blow up the world. It was you all. And nothing has happened since to make sure I don't do it again. Heck, I almost did it days ago by all our counts and took Ben out in the process."

"But you wouldn't, not by choice."

"Yeah well, hate to break it to you, I'm pretty sure I chose to the first time."

"So you learn control-"

"When? Dad trained you and the others for years. Years before the Academy had its first mission. Me? I've been aware of these powers for two weeks and I've had zero training sessions. I'm running on instinct and vague memories that started filtering through once I realized I was rumored. I haven't even been able to touch the telekinesis since-"

"Since what?"

"I'm not actually sure if I used it to pull down the Academy or if that was something else. Used it to kill Leonard though. Pogo as well. Haven't touched it since then. Or the weather. Or…or what dad had me do. And what Harlan did, Five? That's me too. I gave him my powers. Anything can he do, I can do too. Except Harlan hasn't almost destroyed the world twice so he's a better me."

"That's not true."

"It is. So yeah, I don't like how they're, you're, talking about Harlan. Because I have no guarantee I'm not next. We can't suppress my powers; Dad's drugs don't exist in this timeline."

"We're not saying to hand over Harlan because of what he can do. We're saying it because that's how we ensure cooperation from the Sparrows in saving what's left of the universe."

"And we need them for that? Absolutely need them?"

"We need access to the Kugelblitz."

"Klaus was able to sneak in and see it. I'm sure you can too. Giving up Harlan is the easy option. Just like Luther locking me in that chamber was." Viktor runs his hand over his head. "At the very least, Harlan is one of us. Like Lila is. Someone with powers, and just as much experience using his are you are yours. We might need him to stop this."

Five hums in the back of his throat.

"Whatever. I'm not going to assume that what I says matter. You'll get rid of him, because you don't know what to do with him. Just like you don't know what to do with me."

He turns to walk away, but Five grabs his wrist. "Viktor. I promise, we won't."

"You can't do that, Five. Just cuz you love me doesn't mean you won't hurt me." Viktor lights up. "I'm done talking. I suggest you let go."

Five releases his grip, and Viktor marches off.

[lilian-writes-sins]

“𝑅𝑒𝑙𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛𝑠ℎ𝑖𝑝 𝐴𝐵𝐶𝑠.”

★ pairing: Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug x Reader

★ p.o.v: 2ⁿᵈ person

★ summary: Marinettes’ relationship ABC’s.

★ tags: fluff; that’s it; some anxiety from Marinette

★ word count: 2,196

       main masterlist

★ 𝐀. attraction: What are they looking for in a partner? What’s their ideal person?

Marinettes’ ideal partner would be someone who’s very supportive of her. She’s a messy ball of anxiety, so she needs someone who can calm her down when she gets in her own head. She also wouldn’t particularly like someone who’s mean or rude all the time.

Considering her history with Chloé and Lila, she’s less likely to consider someone who bullies others as a good partner. She likes someone who’s sweet, caring, and is respectful of those around them.

★ 𝐁. bonding: What activities do they enjoy doing with their partner?

Honestly, she likes when both of you are doing your own thing in the same space (parallel play). Marinette finds comfort in knowing you’re just there.

She also likes it when you model/try on some of her designs. She won’t mention it — intentionally — but you’re her muse. You inspire her so much, and she just wants to share her passion with you.

Another thing: video games. We’ve seen how good she is at them, so be prepared to lose unceremoniously over and over again, because she’s not gonna go easy on you.

Lastly, if you were given a Miraculous, she would enjoy transforming and running along the city rooftops with you.

★ 𝐂. cuddles: How do they feel about it? Do they initiate or wait for their partner to do so? Favourite cuddling position?

She loves them! Marinette might be nervous about it at first, worried she might do something to make you uncomfortable, but a little reassurance is all she needs.

Once you’re both comfortable, she’s so giddy to be so close to you. She still feels a little nervous about initiating, so most of the time she waits for you to do it. Though, after patrol, she’s usually too tired to care.

Marinette likes to put her head on your chest; hearing your heartbeat helps take her mind off of her racing thoughts.

★ 𝐃. dates: What kind of romantic evening do they plan? What is their ideal type of date?

Between school, designing clothing and her superhero duties, Marinette’s a very busy girl. Sometimes she feels like life is trying to pull her apart in all directions. But she always tries to make time for you and your dates. Yes, she might be chronically late to them, and until you learn of the actual reason why, it might seem like she doesn’t care, but at this point, it’s part of her charm.

She loves going to the park with you, just sitting on a bench and talking, snacking on a few pastries her parents made. When you find out she’s Ladybug, she loves to swing both of you to the top of the Eiffel Tower and stargaze. She loves to just be in the same space with you; her life is just so hectic that taking a breather with her lover is just what she needs at the end of the day.

★ 𝐄. emotional: How open are they with their partner? Does their partner see a different side of them that others do not?

She’s pretty open, considering her situation. Obviously, she’s not going to confess to being Ladybug right away; those things take time. She tries to keep you at a distance, not wanting you to worry about her.

But, when you’re past all of that, Marinette’s very open about her worries, even if she doesn’t specifically say what the cause is. When you find out about her secret identity, that barrier gets broken, and she feels like she can show you a different side of herself completely and be more open with you.

★ 𝐅. family: What are their their thoughts on marriage/kids? Would they want to get married? Have kids?

She’s still a teen with her whole life ahead of her, so marriage and children are not happening anytime soon. However, she does like to daydream about it (re: Louis, Emma and Hugo). She wants to spend her whole life with you, preferably married with kids, but she wouldn’t force you to do anything.

One of her favorite things to daydream about is making your guys’ wedding outfits. Whether you’re both wearing dresses, or you’re wearing a suit or a mix of both. Marinette really wants to design matching wedding attire for both of you. She already has multiple ideas and sketches, but probably won’t share them with you, worried you’ll find her weird.

★ 𝐆. grand: What do they think of grand gestures? Do they go all out or prefer something lowkey and chill?

Marinette likes big gestures of love in moderation. She mostly prefers to keep it private and is not one to like being in the center of everyones’ attention.

Though, if you really want to spoil her and show her/the relationship off, go ahead — just know that she’s going to be as red as a tomato all throughout. She gets really flustered at these types of things, but literally anything you do for/around her flusters her to no end.

★ 𝐇. harsh: What are they like during fights? Do they get into arguments often or are they rare?

She doesn’t like arguing in general, especially with you. Marinette is really nervous that you might fall out of love with her with every spat.

Of course, sometimes you will have your disagreements, mostly about her hiding things from you or her health and safety — especially after she reveals her identity to you.

★ 𝐈. injury: What do they do when their partner is injured?

As a civilian, she is panicking, running around, and doing anything she can to help ease the pain or comfort you. She’s really frantic and uncoordinated, resulting in her also getting hurt while trying to help you. But it’s okay; at least you have matching bandages!

When she’s Ladybug, though, it’s a bit of a different story. She’s probably fighting some Akuma and doesn’t have the time to fret over you as she usually would. If she hasn’t revealed herself to you yet, she has to act like she would with any other civilian.

Ladybug is obviously worried and takes you to as safer place, away from the destruction. She still makes sure you’re okay and asks if you can get home on your own. After Ladybug cleanses the Akuma, she swings straight to your home, concerned out of her mind and feeling a bit guilty that she couldn’t do anything more to help. Just say it’s okay and that you understand her situation — she’ll feel a lot better.

★ 𝐉. jealous: Do they get jealous often? What are they like when jealous?

Oh yeah, she gets jealous alright (re: the Volpina episode). It’s not that she doesn’t want you to have friends or anything, but if someone’s heavily flirting with you, it’s on sight.

Marinette gets very passive-aggressive with the person she’s jealous of, but she would never redirect that to you. I mean, it’s not your fault so many people are into you!

★ 𝐊. kisses: Do they like kissing? What is their favourite spot to kiss/be kissed? Do they initiate or wait for their partner to start?

Yes! Marinette loves kissing you! She gets so giddy and excited every time. She loves placing a kiss on your cheek — she finds it sweet and does it every time she sees you: at school, when you come over, during her evening patrols with Chat Noir, ect.

On the other hand, she loves being kissed on the forehead — it’s a comforting gesture to her and makes her feel so loved. Same as with cuddling: in the beginning, she would wait for you to initiate, no matter how much she wanted to kiss you.

Now she’s the one doing it more often than not. Though, no matter how much time passes, you kissing her will always make her cheeks redden and her breath stutter.

★ 𝐋. love: Who says ‘I love you’ first? What was their reaction to it being reciprocated?

She’s known she has loved you for a very long time, but she doesn’t have the courage to say anything for the longest time. She wants to tell you so bad, but you’ll probably beat her to the punch. If that’s not the case, she’ll probably burst out all the words she’s wanted to say to you in one big ramble. When she stopped to catch her breath, she looked so scared and ashamed of herself. She practiced confessing to you so many times, and she just fumbled it. She snapped to look at you when you put your hand on her shoulder, smiling reassuringly at her and telling her you loved her back. She couldn’t hold herself back from tackling you to the ground in her excitement.

★ 𝐌. meaningful: What’s a meaningful memory they have with their partner?

It was probably the time when you defended her and talked back to Lila, before you two got together. When the entire class sided with Lila even when she didn’t have any proof, even Alya, her best friend. So, seeing her crush stand up for her?

That’s never leaving her head now.

★ 𝐍. nicknames: Do they like nicknames? What do they call their partner? Do they enjoy having their partner calling them nicknames or by their actual name?

Oh, she loves nicknames! She loves calling you nicknames; she loves being called by nicknames — it makes her feel special.

A few nicknames she calls you: ‘Honey,’ ‘Love,’ ‘Sunshine’ and ‘Dearest’.

Nicknames she likes to be called: ‘Sweetheart,’ ‘My Love,’ ‘Snugglebug’ and ‘Lovebug’.

★ 𝐎. oddball: What quirks or habits do they have? Do they pick up any from their partner?

She talks to herself a lot — she’s actually talking to Tikki, but you don’t know that yet. It looks as if she’s talking to her bag, something about how ‘no one can know’.

It’s a little weird, but you don’t really mention it, finding it part of her charm.

★ 𝐏. patience: How patient are they with their partner? Are they short to blow a fuse?

Marinette’s very patient, especially with her partner. She knows what she’s like, so she might feel like she has no room to speak up on certain things (ex: being late). Those things happen, so she’s understanding in that aspect. Of course, sometimes she gets frustrated and lets it out on you, but she’s quick to apologize.

★ 𝐐. query: How good is their memory? Do they remember everything their partner tells them or only the ‘important’ things?

Oh boy, she’s got one hell of a memory. She’s got your schedule, favorite/least favorite things, and all the special dates in her mind. She remembers your rarely used middle names, when your 3rd cousin’s twice-removed birthday is — you didn’t even know you had one?

★ 𝐑. romantic: How romantic are they? How do they show their love?

Very romantic, she’s got her parents as an excellent example oh how a relationship should be. Super sweet, quite literally, Marinette likes giving you pastries her parents made or ones she spent weeks making.

Like I mentioned in 𝐁, she wants to share her passion for design with you, so expect a lot of handmade items to be gifted to you.

She also likes doing the cheesy romance stuff (ex: giving you comically large bouquets of flowers, ect.)

★ 𝐒. security: How protective are they? Are they overbearing or trust their partner to take care of themselves?

She’s overbearing in the sense that, as Ladybug, she patrols the area around your home or apartment more often. When in battle with an Akuma, Marinette always tries to steer clear of the area as well.

In general, she just looks out for you more than she would other civilians. She tries not to make it obvious so as not to bring any attention to her relationship with you, but Chat Noir has his theories.

If she has given you a Miraculous, it’s because she trusts that you can take care of yourself and others in battle.

★ 𝐓. trying: How much effort do they put into the relationship, dates, anniversaries, holidays, ect.?

She’s got it all planned out… for the next 5+ years. Yeah, Marinette’s very commited to these types of things, so she’s got it all figured out. She knows what gifts she’ll get you, where she’ll take you — everything.

★ 𝐔. understanding: Are they understanding of their partner? Do they comfort them when needed?

Like I mentioned in 𝐏, Marinette is very understanding of her partners situation. Does it annoy/bother her sometimes when you have to leave suddenly? Yes, but she also does that so she’d be a hypocrite if she picked a fight about it.

She helps you with your own worries like school or your home life — anything you disclose with her.

★ 𝐕. vanity: How concerned are they with their looks?

She likes taking care of herself, but she’s not overly obsessed with her overall looks. She’s content with how she is and isn’t looking to get anything changed any time soon.

She does like playing around with her clothing and hair, though.

★ 𝐖. wild ride: A fluffy moment with them.

** aged up, Marinette’s in collage/university and you both are living together **

It was late at night, and Marinette was poring over her — rather lackluster — class notes and trying to make sense of the questions on the paper. She’d been at it for hours now, ever since she and Chat Noir defeated the Akuma of the day — Mr. Pigeon. His antics made her miss half of the school day, again. Marinettes’ eyes were starting to feel heavy, but she couldn’t rest now, not when she had a history test tomorrow; she just needed a little more time.

Suddenly, [Y/N] appeared from behind her, a freshly brewed cup of tea in hand. “Here you go, My Love,” they said, smiling gently. Marinette looked up at them, startled, wondering how her lover managed to sneak up on her.

[Y/N] set down the cup and planted a quick kiss on Marinettes’ forehead, before wishing her goodnight. The girl felt warmth spread through her body, and not from the tea. She sighed wistfully and went back to work, a tranquil smile decorating her lips.

★ 𝐗. x-ray: How well can they read their partners’ body language?

I think she’s the type to ‘over-read’ someones’ body language. She takes in the slightest things and overcomplicates them (ex., You yawned during one of her rambles, and she thought you were bored by her speaking so much, even if you were actually just tired from pulling an all-nighter for a test).

★ 𝐘. yearning: How do they deal with being separated from their partner? Do they feel like something’s missing?

She can make do without you around, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t miss you like crazy. If you’ve been gone for weeks or even months on end, and you don’t even message her? Oh god, she’s gonna mope around and be in a bad mood.

The only thing that would cheer her up is getting a call from you. Or better yet, seeing you walk into her parents’ bakery/ walk through the school entrance.

★ 𝐙. zzz: What is it like to share a bed with them? What sleeping habits do they have?

Marinette is very cuddly when tired, wanting to snuggle under the covers with you after a long day. Whispers of adoration and love for each other are the only sounds heard in the comfort of her bed. With the moon as the only source of light.

As for sleeping habits, she’s the complete opposite; she spreads out starfish-style, kicks, rolls around and steals the covers — the whole shebang. Be prepared for war, is all I’m saying.

       main masterlist

★ author's note: Yo! Here’s a little something to munch on so I don’t feel bad for leaving “New Bug in Town” abandoned for so long. This was really fun, so I might do other characters (maybe from other fandoms 👀) in the future!

[simpychocochan]

Leon X Lila - Morning after dark

My very first try writing something with Dreamily. Ngl- I am flustered ;////;

It was a cold night, when Lila and Leon were resting in their little apartment in spain. They wanted to rest, before they had to start their dangerous mission. But while Leon seemed rather calm, Lila was worried, walking up and down through the apartment. "Do you want to talk about it?" asked Leon, noticing his girlfriend's restless behavior. Lila paused her movement in midair and turned around to face him. She didn't say anything, just walked over to sit beside him on the bed and cuddle close. Her face was flushed red, and she looked scared. "I am scared…" she said quietly, not wanting to raise her voice or wake everyone else in the apartment. "Why is that? I know you're strong." answered Leon softly, holding Lila tight. "No… I mean… I don't know, Leon…. You know how I feel, right? I don't want to mess this up." "Lila… I understand your feelings." he replied, caressing her cheek with one hand. Lila sighed deeply, feeling more relaxed when she felt his touch. "Leon… I know this time might end badly…. but… do we have to do this? We can run away from here as fast as we can…. and no one will ever find us again…" "We can't do that. Besides… what happened in Paris is not the same situation as now. You're still afraid of another zombie outbreak, aren't you?" "Well… yes, actually…. But what if.. what if something happens…? What if I… what if you get hurt?" "I won't let anything happen to me." replied Leon firmly, kissing her on the lips. Lila smiled, and kissed him back. As they kept kissing each other passionately, Leon pulled away. He leaned back against the headboard of the bed, staring into Lila's eyes. "Lila… we've talked about this. If there are any problems during our mission, you need to tell me. Don't keep silent anymore." Lila nodded slowly. After seeing Leon nod back at her, she continued speaking. "You're right, but… I wish I could be as strong as you! I just started fighting zombies and it always looks so easy, when you're doing it!" "Lila… you are brave, that is why you made it past the first time. You are strong, We are strong. We are stronger than fear, remember?" Lila smiled, snuggling against Leon who hugged her tightly. "Don't worry, Lila. There is nothing to worry about. Everything is going fine. No matter what happens, we will be together and we can get through everything. Remember?" "Yeah… I know Leon. Thank you for being my strong shoulder, to lean on." "Of course, Lila! I'll always be here." After talking like this for awhile, Lila fell asleep. Leon was still holding her, smiling slightly as he watched her breathe peacefully. Soon enough, Lila's breathing became slower and softer. Eventually, she fell asleep. Leon sighed deeply, feeling his heartbeat slow down after watching her sleeping expression. It made him realize something very important: Lila was his world. His best friend, his lover, his partner in crime… his life long partner… and his girlfriend.

[siderealscribblings]

“I am ninety-nine percent sure I know who Chat Noir is.”

It was a heck of a thing to drop out of the blue, but since Marinette revealed her identity to Ladybug, Marinette had gotten used to Alya texting or calling at odd hours with sudden revelations.

(“THAT’S how you knew Lila was lying?!”)

(“So when you skipped on our hangout sess a few months ago, was it because-”)

(“I’m just saying, I know I guy who might be able to doxx Hawk Moth.”)

Unlike her usual stunning revelations though, this one was not one Marinette already knew.

“Okay,” Marinette said, blinking to keep her eyes from completely bugging out of their sockets. “How do you-”

“I just felt like I should be honest, you know?” Alya chuckled. “Since...you know-”

“Yeah, no...thanks,” Marinette said, slightly dazed. “I...um...how do you know?”

“Well...let’s just say I noticed a pattern,” Alya said, chewing on the corner of her lip. “Do you want to know who-”

“No,” Marinett said, before quickly adding. “I mean...it would be better to keep things between us secret for now.”

Alya opened her mouth, an argument on the tip of her tongue, but seemed to swallow it with a nod. “Okay...yeah, sure, I get it.”

“It’s not that I don’t trust him,” Marinette said quickly, maybe more for her own benefit than Alya’s. “I do! I swear! I just-”

“You don’t have to explain anything to me,” Alya said quickly.

“And he’s wanted to reveal ourselves to each other for a long time,” Marinette muttered, ignoring Alya’s easy-out. “I was the one who insisted we keep our identities secret and I’m just...really, really not looking forward to the conversation where I tell him I was the one to break our no-sharing rule...you think he’ll be mad?”

“You tell me ,” Alya said, throwing her hands up. “He’s your partner-”

“He’s going to be mad ,” Marinette moaned, burying her face in her hands. “And hurt and-”

“And...so what?” Alya asked.

“So he’s my partner and we already have this...trust...thing between us,” Marinette sighed. “Long story short the last Guardian wasn’t a very good teacher to him and he’s had to deal with being locked out of the loop before...I just worry that I keep asking him to trust me while constantly keeping secrets from him.”

“And he’s keeping one from you,” Alya said gently. “Kind of a crappy situation all around but...well, let’s just say I think he’s a really understanding guy.”

“I don’t want to be in a relationship with someone who constantly has to just understand me though,” Marinette said with a wince. “Sorry, I don’t mean to keep dumping all my Ladybaggage on you.”

“I’ll tell you if I’ve had enough,” Alya said firmly, squeezing Marinette’s wrist. “I don’t mind; really.”

If she lived another hundred years, she would never stop trying to return the kindness and understanding Alya had displayed to her since revealing her identity.

“Thanks,” Marinette said,, the movie on the screen forgotten as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. “So...n-not that I’m prying for details but...this guy you think is Chat Noir-”

“Sounds like you’re prying for details,” Alya snickered. “Don’t tell me you’re curious about him.”

“Of course I am!” Marinette huffed. “Wouldn’t you be?”

“I don’t need to be curious; I figured out my boyfriend’s identity by myself,” Alya said smugly. “You want covert deets?”

Marinette weighed her words carefully before speaking. “Is he...out of costume...when he goes home...is he happy?”

Alya’s expression was unreadable for a long moment. “Do you want the truth or...do you want me to say something that will make you feel good?”

“Well that tells me the truth probably sucks, doesn’t it?” Marinette sighed, rubbing her eyes. “He’s got...he’s got a lot of friends, right?”

“He has a...few really good ones,” Alya reasoned.

“And his family?” Marinette asked.

“His family...exists,” Alya said as diplomatically as she could. “Look, we’re treading on major spoiler territory here; can you tell me what you want to know so I can pull it out from all the other information?”

Marinette stared down at her hands thoughtfully for a moment. “...being the Guardian by myself has been one of the loneliest times in my life. I have you now; I had Master Fu for a lot longer than he did. It would make me feel better if I knew Chat Noir was...okay outside the suit. But I think you just answered my question.”

“Look, I can’t tell you how he feels,” Alya said, rubbing Marinette’s shoulder gently. “I can’t read minds, Mari...but-”

“You think I should tell him about me?” Marinette asked hesitantly.

“I think that’s your call,” Alya said. “Do you want my advice?”

“You think I should talk to him,” Marinette said, deflating a little.

“If he finds out from someone who isn’t you, it’s not gonna do wonders for the whole Trust thing you got going on,” Alya said. “And...look, I think it’s great you reached out to me. And I think whatever you want to do with your identity is your business...but I think he deserves the same opportunity to confide in someone. In fact...I think he really needs it.”

“But how do I know he’ll pick the right person?” Marinette blurted out. “What if he picks someone who Hawk Moth compromises and-”

“Didn’t you just say you trusted him?” Alya asked, stopping Marinette’s catastrophizing in her tracks.

“I do...I promise I do...but-”

“You either do or you don’t,” Alya said softly. “And telling him that you broke your rules and he can’t is not going to convince him you trust him. Saying you trust someone is like saying you’re going to work out; you don’t get the results unless you actually do it.”

“I could pick someone for him,” Marinette muttered, looking up at Alya. “Someone trustworthy.”

“Someone you trust,” Alya said. “This has to be someone he trusts. Or else what’s the point?”

“You already know though!” Marinette said.

“ Hey Chat Noir, I completely trust you with my life but also, I’m going to make the choice of who you can and can’t talk to about your personal business,” Alya said, watching Marinette’s nose wrinkle in irritation. “Tell me how that chat is going to go.”

“You know ignoring your advice is getting harder now that you know about me,” Marinette grumbled, crossing her arms.

“Ignore it if you want; just don’t be surprised if this pushes you apart,” Alya shrugged.

“It won’t, he’ll…” Marinette trailed off. “He wouldn’t stop being my partner over this, right?”

“And if he did?” Alya probed. “Just pick a new Chat Noir.”

“I don’t-” Marinette swallowed, shaking her head. “No...I don’t want another Chat Noir.”

“Then you’re going to have to keep this one,” Alya said, squeezing her shoulder. “That means being honest and fair with your partner; if not about your identity, then about his .”

Marinette nodded mutely, turning her gaze back to the movie as Alya stood up. “Want something from the kitchen?”

“I’m good,” Marinette said, fidgeting with her bracelet as she tried not to dread the conversation she knew she had to have.

---

To his credit, the storm of accusations she imagined would come out of Chat Noir’s mouth did not come; Ladybug might have felt better if they did.

Instead, her partner looked dazed, blinking and nodding as his gaze turned away from her. “...okay-”

“I swear this is not about you,” Ladybug said quickly, tugging on Chat Noir’s arm as he turned away from her. “And it doesn’t mean I don’t trust you! I swear I do.”

“No I...I understand,” Chat Noir said, the cheer in his voice becoming more and more forced. “Um...you know, I-I have a lot of homework to do tonight-”

“Chat...please look at me,” Ladybug said, tilting her partner’s face towards hers. Of course she had made him cry, but she tried to push down her guilt. This wasn’t about what she did; given the same choice, she would have picked Alya again, even if it meant hurting Chat Noir in the process.

“I know I don’t have a lot of opportunities to display how much I trust you,” Ladybug said, licking her lips. “So it probably feels like I just tossed aside a huge chance to show how much you mean to me...but this was about me doing what I needed-”

“You don’t need to...you’re the Guardian-”

“That doesn't make me your master !” Ladybug said emphatically, startling Chat Noir out of his daze. “That doesn’t mean I can control who you talk to and who you confide in! I still...I still think we’re too close and rely on each other too much to jeopardize our working relationship...but if there’s someone in your life you trust, I...I want you to have the same opportunity. To confide in someone you trust.”

“Not you though,” Chat Noir muttered.

“There has to be someone else,” Ladybug said almost desperately. “Tell me I’m not the only person in your life you can rely on…”

Alya had been such a positive force in her life since she had told her; she thought back to all the times they had stayed up late talking, all the times Alya had listened to her vent about akuma, all the nights she held her hand because she had watched Chat Noir die to save her yet again.

Was there no one Chat Noir could turn to when he was alone?

Chat Noir seemed to chew it over for a long moment, blinking back tears still as he tried to grapple with the fact his relationship with Ladybug had shifted out from underneath him yet again. “...do I have to tell you who it is?”

“I think it’s better if you don’t,” Ladybug said softly. “Sorry...if I knew who you trusted, I might be able to figure out who you are. This way...I’m not the only one keeping secrets-”

“I don’t want to keep secrets,” Chat Noir grumbled.

“I know,” Ladybug sighed. “And I promise, I swear, the minute Hawk Moth is gone, there will be no more secrets between us! This... mess of half-truths and half-lies will end and we can just be-”

The idea of being something to Chat Noir outside the mask was something not even Alya knew; a secret all her own that might never come to light.

“This is just for now,” Ladybug said firmly. “Not forever.”

Chat Noir nodded, once again resigned to a fate someone else had picked for him. “I get it...I do.”

“Are you mad at me?” Ladybug asked.

Chat Noir weighed the answer for a long moment. “...no,” Chat Noir said with a shrug. “Just...can we pick this up some other time? I wasn’t kidding about the homework.”

For the first time there was a real wall between her and Chat Noir and Ladybug was shocked by how much she detested it.

“I understand,” Ladybug said quietly. “But I meant what I said when I said you should find someone to turn to. I wish I could help you with everything, but-”

“For now...you can’t,” Chat Noir nodded, putting on a brave face. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”

Ladybug let Chat Noir slip out of her fingertips, momentarily reaching out to pull him back before thinking better of herself. She didn’t expect him to be sunshine and rainbows after telling him, but as firm as she was in her convictions, it still sucked to see him in pain.

Just deal with it yourself like he has to, Ladybug thought as she watched Chat Noir turn and dive off the roof of the building. Alya’s had enough on her plate...you don’t need to bother her with-

Her resolve lasted until she transformed, blinking back tears as she pulled her phone out of her pocket.

---

“Did I do the right thing?”

Alya said nothing, running her hands through Ladybug’s hair as she laid her head on her lap.

“Sometimes...doing the right thing hurts people as a result,” Alya said carefully. “It’s just a sucky part of life.”

“I hate it,” Ladybug sniffed, wiping her eyes with another tissue. “I think he thinks I love keeping secrets from him but...I really hate it. It makes me feel so alone...and I don’t want him to feel that way either.”

“And he can figure out how to feel less alone himself now,” Alya said soothingly. “This guy...I know he has at least one really great friend.”

“Like you?”

“...maybe a little better,” Alya said fondly. “I know he’d move earth to put a smile on Chat Noir’s face, so maybe let this problem fall in his lap instead of yours. You don’t have to do everything to make everyone happy all the time.”

“I want to,” Ladybug muttered.

“ Everybody includes you ,” Alya said firmly. “Take care of yourself first ; let Chat Noir take care of himself now.”

“I worry about him though,” Ladybug said quietly.

Alya glanced down at her phone, seeing a message from Nino flash on her screen.

Nino: hey babe

Nino: can’t make it tonight

Nino: adrien sounds really upset and said he wanted to talk to me about something

“Don’t." Alya smiled as she laid the phone on the bed beside her. “He’s in good hands.”

Ao3 

[sturchling]

Could I ask for Chat Noir salt where

After Marinette leaves Paris and heads to your city for choice (Star City, Central City, Metropolis, Gotham) and gets into a relationship.

She has to return to Paris via Horse Miraculous to fight an akuma and bumps into Chat immediately after leaving the portal, so he asks why and she explains her new living situation (its actually been a while since she moved, he just now noticed)

Maybe he wants her identity since she's no longer at risk and she shuts it down

He gets violent and she takes the ring?

Sorry for the wait! Hope you like it and was worth the wait!

Marinette had decided enough was enough. Things in Paris had been getting worse lately, with Lila and the class. So she had decided to move to Gotham as a part of a student exchange program. She had a pen pal that attended Gotham Academy and their family had offered to host her, if she decided to participate in the exchange program. At first Marinette had been hesitant about leaving Paris while Hawkmoth was still active. But now, things had gotten so bad in Paris, she was worried she could be akumatized herself. That couldn’t happen. She figured the distance from Paris would do her good. So, she packed up her stuff and left for Gotham.

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

Marinette had been in Gotham for about a month now. So far everything was going great. Her host family was really nice and welcoming. Her new class was fantastic, and they all became friends quickly. She had even started growing close to Damian Wayne, much to her new class’ shock. Damian wasn’t exactly outgoing, or friendly to the rest of the class. So it was a bit of a shock to see him warm up to Marinette so fast. Marinette was very happy with Gotham and really enjoyed her time there. 

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

But without fail, about once every few days, Hawkmoth would attack Paris and she would have to go back to deal with an akuma. She had been using the horse miraculous to travel back and forth as needed, and so far no one had figured out that she didn’t live in Paris anymore. She hadn’t even told Chat when she left. She didn’t want to risk anyone knowing she didn’t live in the city anymore and that news getting back to Hawkmoth. The less people that knew, the better. And that includes Chat. She had always made sure to open a portal to Paris, somewhere isolated, where no Parisians would see her. She had always been very careful. But today, she had been at Wayne Manor, having a movie date night with Damian, when the alert went out. So she was in a rush once she found a spare bedroom to hide and transform. So, she also didn’t realize that the portal she had made put her in an alley that Chat was also using to transform.

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

Marinette stepped out of the portal, thankfully already transformed, and right in front of Chat. He stared at her, confused. “Milady? Why are you using the horse miraculous? What’s going on?” Marinette, trying to focus on the task at hand, said “Let’s focus on the akuma for now. I will explain everything after.” Chat nodded, but was distracted for the majority of the fight, trying to figure out why Ladybug had used the horse miraculous. 

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

It was an easy fight, Mr. Pigeon again. They didn’t even have to use their powers to beat him. Which left them plenty of time to discuss the horse miraculous. Marinette explained everything. How things in Paris had gotten bad for her in her civilian life and she was worried about being akumatized. How she had moved to Gotham as part of an exchange program. And how she had been using the horse miraculous to go back and forth between the two cities for about a month now. After she was done, Chat was just staring at her in shock. Marinette waited for him to be mad at her for keeping this from him, or maybe be concerned about whatever had happened in Paris to make her leave. But instead, the first thing he said was “This is great Milady!”

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

Marinette was now the one in shock, as she stared at her partner. “What do you mean, ‘this is great’? I thought you would be mad I didn’t tell you sooner.” Chat shook his head. “Well, maybe I was a little mad, but its fine. Because now that you don’t live here, your identity is perfectly safe! We can tell each other now and it will be fine!” Marinette just stared at Chat, not sure what to say. “Chat, we can’t. Our identities have to be a secret. Just because I live in Gotham now, doesn’t mean it is safe. You could be akumatized and Hawkmoth would find out. Or if I come back to Paris for a time, and get akumatized, he could learn your identity. I am sorry Chat, but we can’t.” Marinette turned to leave, about to open a portal, when Chat’s clawed hand grabbed her arm tightly. She turned around to look at him again, and Chat looked furious.

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

Marinette tried to pull her arm out of Chat’s grip, but she couldn’t get away. “Chat, what are you doing? Let go!” Chat’s grip tightened, definitely leaving a bruise. “No! I am tired of this Milady. I have waited long enough. I deserve to know who you are!” Much to Marinette’s horror, Chat reached with his free hand for her earrings. Thinking quickly, Marinette twisted her arm Chat was holding, making his arm twist too. She kneed him in the stomach, sending him to the ground. Chat jumped up and actually tried to use his claws on her! Marinette couldn’t believe this was happening. Chat had managed to land a few hits, leaving Marinette with several bleeding cuts on her arms and chest. Before Chat was able to cause any life threatening injuries, Marinette was able to trip him and pin him to the ground with his arms behind his back. In this moment, Marinette knew that Chat was not fit for a miraculous anymore. Maybe he had been once, but he couldn’t be trusted now. Marinette removed the ring from his finger. A green light flashed, and then Adrien was on the ground in front of her. Adrien tried to apologize and beg for the ring back, but Marinette didn’t listen. She just opened the portal, and arrived back at the manor, still bleeding. Of course though, with the way this night had been going, she wasn’t alone in the bedroom she had come back to. Damian had been looking for her and came into the room, just as the portal opened and Marinette stepped through, still transformed. For a while, after the portal closed, they just stared at each other in silence. Finally, Damian broke the silence. “So, Angel, are we going to talk about the portal, your new outfit, or the bleeding wounds first?”

[aliensunflower-fics]

How to Exploit Kindness [A New Kind of Lila Salt Prompt]

[ Ive seen Lila and Class salt that goes a lot of different ways. In some Lilas a sad lonely girl who will do anything for friends and the class fall for her lies through a mixture of manipulation and Lila’s genuine sad lonely but real persona. In others Lila is insane and the class get basically sucked into her cult. And in others still, Lila slowly breaks the class down by preying on there insecurities, hidden jealousies ect. There are the versions where Lila just bribes the class with connections and the versions where Lila frames Marinette until no one believes her. But I wanted to write a new idea for people to use, one that I feel is a bit more realistic. One where Marinette’s classmates are more their more authentic kind selves but still get slowly pulled into Lila’s web and where Lila is just a bit more intelligent. ]

[ As usual with all my prompts feel free to borrow the idea to write for your own thing salt, sugar, cuteness angst ect just be sure to credit me for the idea so I can read it. ]

Lila was furious! This wasn’t how it was supposed to go! She was supposed to be everyone's friend! She was supposed to finally get a cute perfect boyfriend who would cherish her like she deserved! She was supposed to be HAPPY! But no, the pathetic beetle Ladybug and that goody two shoes Marinette kept ruining everything!

No… No that wasn’t quite true. As much as she wanted to blame her problems on those two it wasn’t entirely their faults. Honestly Lila wasn’t quite sure what had happened. Her lies had been working at first, they had gotten her praise and compliments and adoration and friendship! But now? Now they were all ignoring her, unimpressed by her celeb lies! She could not understand it! At first she’d been sure it was Marinette or Ladybug maybe even Adrien had turned on her! But when she’d probed for information she’d learned that none of them had blown the whistle. So what was it! Tomorrow… Tomorrow she will find out one way or another. She needed to get them back under her thumb somehow.

 It was Chloe who gave Lila her answers. Chloe was the reason none of her classmates cared about her stories! Chloe was the idiot mayor's brat. And what a brat she was constantly wiggling her way into her mothers fashion shoots or had celebrities over at the hotel. Of course Lila’s classmates didn’t care about Lila’s celebrity connections because Chloe was always name dropping just as many people as herself. The only difference was Lila used fake modesty and shyness that made her ‘friends’ view her lies in less of a gloating light than Chloe’s haughty claims of celebrity meetings.

It was a damn shame, celebrity lies were her bread and butter, they were exciting got people to think you were important and they were hard to prove or disprove allowing Lila to easily get around the messy little detail of ‘proof’ if someone asked for pictures all she could say was that her mom didn't let her take any because she didn't want her precious daughter being targeted by crazy fans. And if someone asked her to use her celebrity connections? Well she could just turn on the water works and cry about them just being her friend for her connections. Thus her prey would be forced to be her ‘friend’ , always listening to her and doing things for her, unable to ask for anything in return. Then when her mother announced their next move Lila would tearfully say goodbye and leave all her suckers behind. But without the sway of her celebrity lies her system broke down. That was the problem with picking the school full of rich talented idiots she supposed.

Well with Chloe ruining her system she’d need a new one. Scrolling through her classmates' social media for a clue she sneered at their overly cheerful and cutesy posts. Always encouraging one another and posting encouraging puff pieces about this or that. Always acting like they were so nice. As Lila scrolled over a charity fundraiser event that Alya had retweeted from Milene a sudden thought crossed her mind. Her classmates were very ‘nice’ and annoyingly so. They were always butting into each other's business, always being SO concerned, always organizing events to help each other and appreciate each other and going to charity events.

In fact now that she thought about it the stories that had intrigued her ‘friends’ always had some sort of charity garbage attached. Saving Jagged’s kitten or raising money for some cause or other that always got her heaps of praise. Sure saying Clara whatshername stole her dance moves got attention but not in the same way saying she raised money for some green project. Was it really that simple? Sure her classmates all loved Marinette for her extreme generosity and kindness but was it REALLY that simple? She needed to check.

 It was actually that easy. One simple little lie about how she pulled a blind old man out of danger when he was nearly run over and suddenly the class was bathing her in praise. And the ‘fact’ that the whole very real thing made her miss first period and sprain her ankle? Well that was just the cherry on top. Suddenly Max was offering her a copy of his notes and everyone was back to caring for her like she was a princess. The fact that Marinette looked like she was seething only for sweet naive Adrien to keep her mouth shut was just so perfect. She’d found her golden ticket. Her classmates were truly ‘good kind people’ and nothing could be exploited quite like kindness.

With this knowledge Lila would easily be able to destroy Marinette, sure she wouldn’t be able to do it quickly but slowly she would replace her, with every good deed she made up with every act of false modesty she would build a reputation greater than Marinette’s she would replace her and become there new ‘everyday ladybug’ and the best part was she wouldn’t have to say ANYTHING against Marinette. Not. A. Thing. No sweet righteous Marinette would eventually snap, sadly for her it would probably be too late with how much control Adrien had over her, so when it happened Marinette would look like the jealous crazy girl going after the girl that was kinder, sweeter, and better than herself. As for Adrien… Well she had a hard time believing it at first but he really was an idiot with a pretty face as long as she was careful as she built her new reputation he would genuinely believe that she was changing for the better and then he'd fall for her.

The best part was, her classmates were genuine. As she built her new good girl heart of gold persona they would genuinely come to love her, all the loyalty Marinette got to enjoy all the perks of being friends with such talented, kind, sweet people would become hers. Slowly no matter how Marinette struggled she would lose, eventually she’d have nothing left. Of course she’d need to be careful with her lies but that was easy. Bring the class to a charity here and there and tell them that she was the one who gave the idea for the charity to the actual organizer but didn't want any credit because she was just that kind and humble. If they tried to make her do actual work then she’d have a sudden accident that would require she sit down.

And then once she’d done more photoshoots with Adrien for Gabriel she’d ‘convince’ the man that a charity would make him look good and boost sales. She’d MAKE her lies true all while winning over her future father in law, and heck maybe she’d even pocket a little of the money, she could use a better wardrobe and the extra would be perfect to buy her ‘friends’ the occasional ice cream or presents. In between that she’d just lie about saving people or volunteering on weekends. Maybe even let it ‘slip’ how she was a temp hero for Ladybug . One of the sweetest parts was that between volunteering with Lila, there own activities and hanging out with Lila so she could ‘thank them for their hard work’ no one would be spending a second hanging out with sweet pink little Marinette, they'd abandon her without even realizing it because they’d be SO busy. Sadly this plan of hers would take a little more work then her others, but it would be worth it to become the queen bee of the class- NO the school! And when Marinette eventually slipped up and looked like the biggest jealous bully in the school. Well she’d have no choice but to leave the school with her tail in between her legs.

Victory was looking sweet and satisfying.

 [ And where it goes from here is up to you. Lila can win, she can slowly convince the class and school that she's a model citizen and an everyday hero. She can sneakily maneuver the class to not spend time with Marinette slowly separating the girl from her friends. In this way Alya and the rest of them don't become evil salty versions of themselves who overnight hate Marinette and love Lila, but rather they are good naive people who got slowly separated and tricked by someone who wants to use their genuine talents and skills to make herself look better. Adrien who is already shown to be naive and wants to believe the best in people, can fall into Lila’s trap and become genuinely convinced that his high road method really worked and ‘reformed’ Lila into a better person. OR Lila can fail, she can claim to be the wrong temporary hero for ladybug, or she can pick the wrong charity to lie about, or get exposed any number of ways and the class can realize with horror that because they are kind but flawed people who are perhaps too trusting and gullible that they got pulled away from Marinette through subtle manipulation and so they can be redeemed because instead of turning into outright bullies they stayed the same kind people they always were but just got genuinely tricked which is something that can actually happen in real life. You can go heavy salt where Marinette does eventually leave the school or class heartbroken that her kind friends have fallen prey to a bad person Marinette cant find a way to expose. Or you can go clever salt where Marinette figures out Lila’s plan and fights her from the inside slowly exposing the cracks in her facade. Or you can go sugar and redemption where maybe just maybe Lila actually LIKES being nice to people and having real friends who dont care about her fake celeb connections, maybe she honestly redeems herself and even makes amends with Marinette. You can do genuinely anything with this idea and I hope to see this generate some new less *and suddenly everyone is evil* content for those that like salt and angst. ]

[miraculouscontent]

I say Miraculous AU where Luka comes on the trip as a chaperone.

- Marinette stressing over what happened with Fu and now being guardian. Tom and Sabine are actually concerned about their daughter and want to do something about it, so when Luka visits the bakery to say “hi” to Marinette, they recognize him (he’s been in Marinette’s room in “Silencer” so they’ve almost definitely seen him before) and ask him to go along on the trip with Marinette, with them pulling all the strings to find a way for him to join. Luka isn’t a fool, so he happily agrees. Tom and Sabine like, “oh don’t forget to ask your parents if it’s okay,” and Luka’s just, “trust me, she’s fine with it.”

(optional bonus that, since the whole class but Lila went, there is actually an extra seat that they’d reserved for her before she backed out when she thought Adrien was going to stay behind)

- During the scene where Ms. Mendeleiev offers Marinette her seat, Luka moves in after the switch has been made, chiming in to offer Marinette his seat so she’s not uncomfortably crammed in between two adult men. She’s surprised at the offer, but thanks him and swaps with him, earning a nice window seat in return.

- At nighttime, Marinette wakes up (her head probably slipped and it hit the wall; didn’t hurt but she’s awake now) and slips out of her seat to go check on Luka to see how he’s doing. She giggles at the popcorn Mr. Damocles has dropped on him, finding it cute, then carefully reaches over to wipe off the pieces. She turns to leave, but her earlier motion brushing the popcorn off wakes Luka up. He gently calls her name and slips out of his seat to join her; she tries to apologize but he just smiles and assures her that it’s fine.

- While on their way to the back of the plane, Marinette trips slightly on Alya’s foot (as Alya is sleeping on Nino and her foot was partly in the aisle; Marinette didn’t bump into it earlier because she didn’t have to move to the side for Luka back then). Luka steadies her and Marinette covers her mouth to suppress a yelp, then they keep walking to the back.

- Still, the movement woke Alya up and she glances back to look at Luka and Marinette watching the sunrise together. Confused, she nudges Nino so the both of them can look together. Alya comments that she’s seen Marinette making “lovey eyes” at Luka (referencing “Captain Hardrock” and “Frozer”), but Marinette is so OBVIOUSLY into Adrien and “can’t be honest about her feelings.” Nino chimes in that he’s having “best bud struggles” too because Adrien is still as sheltered as ever and “won’t come out of his shell.” They get the idea to perform “Operation New York” as in the original and think that it’ll be totally easy with no roadblocks whatsoever!

- Meanwhile, Marinette and Luka have their talk about her getting her “clarity.” Marinette sighs and admits that it feels like people are going to talk about her and Adrien no matter what she says/does (which tips Luka off that something’s wrong), to which Luka replies with a smile that he promises not to bring up Adrien for the rest of the trip unless Marinette does so first. She agrees to that, even giving him a “thank you” hug that he eagerly returns.

- On the ride to the place everyone’s staying at, Alya tries to engage Marinette in conversation about Adrien, clearly smug and feeling confident that it will be easy, but then she realizes that Marinette isn’t paying attention and is idling on her phone. Alya nudges Marinette, earning her attention, but when Alya starts talking about Adrien again, Marinette’s phone goes off and she looks back down at it, now giggling. Alya, now annoyed, asks Marinette if she’s even listening, which gets Marinette to look up and really give Alya her attention. “Oh, sorry about that. I was texting Luka.”

- Alya is just, “?????”

- Yes, this special is very much going to be Alya and Nino suffering to try to get Adrien and Marinette alone together and constantly failing. You’re welcome.

- No sliding door lock-ins because that’s dumb and the special is dumb for thinking it. Also, when Alya goes to mock “tease” Marinette about her Adrien crush in front of Sabrina, she turns to realize that Marinette is with Luka talking to Miss Mendeleiev about where he’ll be staying since he’s not technically with the class, and/or Luka is talking to some of the New York people about how amazing Marinette is ala Jagged Stone.

- Later in the night, everyone sneaks out to the party (bonus if someone comments that they “never took Luka for the type to sneak out” and Luka just grins like, “You clearly haven’t met my mom.”; double bonus if Luka stumbled into Aeon and Jess’ room with Marinette and Adrien, so Aeon was all “those two are--!” before seeing Luka and being confused) and a few party-goers ask Marinette and Luka if they want to dance to the energetic music. Marinette grins nervously and insists that she’s clumsy and will just end up falling all over people (a few pout and complain that “it would’ve been fun” but drop the subject).

- Cue the superhero hot dog vendor (a description I never thought I would say but here we are) handing out hot dogs. Aeon (foreseeing what will happen; it does pain me to still put her in the roll of “love square shipper” but I’m trying not to change what characters do or how they act unless I’m specifically adding things, meaning the main change is just that Luka’s here) and knowing that Luka interfered earlier, sees the guitar case on his back and quickly requests that he play some music alongside Jess since they both play guitar. Luka agrees, assuring Marinette that it’s alright and he’s not interested in having hot dogs since he’d just get crumbs on his guitar.

- Alya and Nino grin because they’re finally going to do something here!! As in the original, the hot dog vendor only has two hot dogs left and Alya and Nino split them in half, handing two halves of the same hot dog to Adrien and Marinette, who eat their respective half.

- Marinette yelps as her feet leave the ground and Luka’s head darts up on alert. He immediately abandons his guitar, his hand reaching out and catching hers as pulls her back down (or at least as down as she’ll go while still floating). He looks up at Adrien - as if to consider helping - but Adrien doesn’t want it and seems to be having fun trying to figure out how to fly, even muttering to himself about how he wish Kagami were there because they could’ve done “air fencing.”

- Luka looks back at Marinette, ensuring that she’s okay. She’s staring up at Adrien, expression mixed, then looks back at Luka, his presence grounding her as she calms down. She almost seems to forget that Adrien is there, focusing on her current flying capabilities and how light on (off?) her feet she is.

- “Oh...oh!” She gasps, realizing with a grin. “I can’t fall over if I’m floating! Luka, dance with me!”

- He’s caught off-guard by the enthusiastic request, then chuckles and nods in agreement, happily taking her other hand as well as he guides her to the other people dancing.

- Cut to the next day when the group is going to the museum. Alya and Nino are absolutely exhausted because Luka has consistently gotten in her and Nino’s way, which leads to them coming up with the new scheme with Aeon and Jess.

- Nino sends Adrien to the planned room and Alya goes to send Marinette, but Luka catches on and casually asks Marinette if he can go with her. Alya cuts in to “playfully” dismiss Luka and tell him to stop “hovering over Marinette,” leading Marinette to slowly walk off with one longing look back at Luka.

- Luka intentionally waits for Alya to not be watching anymore, then follows after Marinette.

- Episode plays out mostly as normal, though because Marinette has to carry Luka off to somewhere safe, she’s not as easily able to go off after Chat until later since she had time to cool down. Aeon doesn’t die but Paris is still a wreck because Chat Noir didn’t show up, leading to the same Chat Noir quitting scene (just with Ladybug calling out Chat here instead of mid-battle) as before. Adrien still ends up having to leave and Alya still snaps at Marinette, which leads to Marinette chasing after Adrien (mostly due to just mounting stress and pressure and the loss of her partner).

- As Marinette lies on the pavement, Luka shows up, soaking wet because he had actually never gone back with the rest of the class; he’d run off when Ms. Mendeleiev explained to him that Marinette was missing. He panics when he sees Marinette lying motionless there, running up and quickly checking her for injuries and to ensure that she’s breathing. She just leans forward and hugs him without warning, defeated but happy to have him with her.

- Marinette slowly explains the situation, Luka looking horrified when she starts talking about what Alya was shouting at her about, and he listens all the way up until the end before pointing out, “You didn’t have to like him that way to want him to stay.” “W-what?” “Marinette, you can be Adrien’s friend and still want him to stay in New York with us. It didn’t have to be any deeper than that.”

- His words cause Marinette to realize something; she - and definitely her friends as well - had put so much weight to everything she did for Adrien just because of her silly crush that of course she couldn’t see him as a friend. With all the insistence that getting him permission to go to New York and wanting him to stay was due to her crush, it was all she could focus on. She can want things for Adrien and want to do things with him regardless of her feelings for him, and she doesn’t have to put a name to those feelings either; she’ll never be able to truly move on if she keeps equating any good feeling towards Adrien with crushing on him.

- That done, Luka helps her up and they slowly walk back to go inside, though stopping as they see that Ms. Mendeleiev is at the front of the building chewing out Alya and Nino; both of them for sending Marinette and Adrien away from the group for fake tasks at the museum, and Alya specifically for sending Marinette after a car in the rain. Ms. Mendeleiev states that they’ll talk about it more inside but everyone should get back to their rooms for now.

- Marinette heads back to her room alone (as she shared a room with Alya but Alya’s getting a talking to at the moment) and is later visited by Uncanny Valley, who explains that she’s needed. Marinette - now with renewed confidence in how she feels thanks to her revelation - doesn’t say that she “can’t imagine Ladybug without him” and instead states that she and Chat Noir are partners, and a partner doesn’t abandon the other. She did it once herself, a long time ago, but she was ready to face her mistakes afterwards and she hopes that Chat Noir is too.

- Cue return of Chat Noir (no LadyNoir hug because no Chat, you have to earn that back) and the battle plays out as usual. Adrien still has to go home and Marinette sends him a text for later saying, “I wish you could’ve stayed,” but with a smile on her face, confident that this really is a friend thing and that’s all it needs to be.

- Marinette and Luka end up sitting together on the plane ride back to Paris, right behind Juleka and Rose. It’s nighttime, but neither can sleep and Marinette decides to use the private time to thank Luka for what he said (really, all the things he said), but Luka assures her that any improvement is all on her and he’s just happy to be around for it. She chides him for his modesty and tells him to take the compliment because he deserves it (they’re just flirting at this point), then slips out of her seat and into Luka’s, lightly jabbing at his chest with a finger while insisting that he accept everything’s he’s done for her. He laughs and replies that he’s happy to do that and is just glad seeing her smile.

- Eventually, the subject shifts to Juleka and Rose, who are once again sitting in the same seat, all cuddled up and sleeping together. Marinette asks playfully if Juleka and Rose are like that back on the Liberty, to which Luka nods and answers that they are, all the time. They have a good giggle about it, with Luka explaining that they’re very close (possibly giving some exposition on how long they’ve been “together” which is obviously referring to dating but could be seen as friendship by writers who are chickens).

- Marinette thinks about that for a moment, fingers briefly twitching, then she settles a little closer to Luka, asking quietly, “Do you think we’re that close?”

- Luka gapes at her in response, needing a moment to study her expression - which is more confidence than he’s ever seen her show before - and make sure that she means what he thinks it might. Once he’s certain, he gives her an almost shy smile, replying, “I’d like us to be. What about you, Marinette?”

- Marinette turns more towards him, one of her hands falling upon his. She leans up, and the camera then cuts away to Juleka and Rose in the seat in front of them, smiling and cuddling closer to each other (a very obvious hint that Luka and Marinette kissed because the show is allergic to people kissing if it’s not the love square so fine, I’ll get creative)

- Just as the screen fades out, Marinette’s voice can be heard, saying, “Luka, I think I found my clarity after all.”

[mysticraven20]

Destiny - Chapter 10

@adrinetteapril

[Prompt 16: Dance]

There was one thing Adrien hated to do, and that was to repeat himself. Whether it be words or actions, or what he did day to day in his life. The tight routine Gabriel had kept him on made him start to despise the same thing happening over and over again. Yet here he is, once again repeating something that the world likes to throw at him. Sheer bad luck.

He hated, hated, a couple of models he worked with. He hated their personalities, the way they messed around with him, lied to him, groped him, made deals with his father over him, but most of all, he hated how to them he was just a 'thing', nothing more than a face and body. None of them cared about him, just what they could get from him.

The models who caused him the most issues seemed to find him no matter where he went or what he did and, just his luck,one of those girls managed to find him tonight - to find him and cling onto him like a limpet. To make matters worse, she was currently pressing herself into his body, dancing in a very unlady-like way and making him feel increasingly uncomfortable.

Jason had cheered him on, after all Lila Rossi was a beautiful girl. Her long brown hair sat perfectly mid back, and her body was 'model perfect'; skinny, with no muscle tone or interesting curves, and her face was that of a doll, but she was no Marinette, and the more Lila rubbed up against him, the more he felt like he was cheating. God, he missed her. It had only been a couple of days but he missed the easy chatter which fell between them, the constant texting and the strength he felt when she was near.

But was it cheating if you weren't even dating? If the girl was dating another guy?

Lila turned around, moving backwards and pressing her back into his chest. Man, he wanted to get out of here.He knew his face was reading discomfort, but everytime he sought relief in Jason, the guy's eyebrows would just wiggle and he'd pout his lips at him.

Dear Lord, did Jason think he should kiss Lila? Could he not tell the unease on his face?

The song they were dancing to had lowered to its ending, and a new one was beginning to mix into the end beat, this was his cue, his chance to finally escape . "I'm going to the toilet," Adrien shouted down into Lila's ear, not wanting to get too close in case she tried something. She'd done it before, at the last summer photoshoot for 'Gabriel'. Her lips had attempted to seek any part of his face to connect with, and an unwelcome shiver ran down his spine as he remembered the unwanted advance.

Lila turned to face him again, and wrapped her hands around his neck pulling him down. She placed her lips on his cheek and knew his face had morphed into something ... disgust, horror ... he wasn't sure, but what he was sure about was he needed to escape and quickly.

Grasping her arms to unlock them from his neck, he pulled them away and placed them by her sides, framing the too short dress she was wearing and backing away like a stealth pilot before heading towards the restrooms.

He prayed that she wasn't following him and he was too afraid to turn around and see. He kept his eyes solely on his destination, wondering if there was a way he could get out of this place and run home.

•••••

Marinette couldn't believe she'd been dragged out ... again!

Her budget definitely didn't cover this, and she had an early shift at the café the following day. Plus the dress she was wearing was cute but not entirely functional, especially in the weather they were currently facing. Adding to the fact, she had forgotten to put on a coat.

Woe is her life.

She took her phone out of her pocket for the umteenth time, checking to see if there was any reply from Adrien.

She'd sent him a message in the Uber, apparently they were bringing out some new flavour M&M's ... peanut butter or something like that, and she had hoped that the addition to the M&M range might respark a little of their (suddenly) none existent relationship.

Avery had messaged to say she was running late, but she would meet Alya and Marinette in the club. Apparently her latest Tinder match would be there too, killing two birds with one stone and all that. It seemed Marinette would be the only singleton tonight, that really did suck.

A sigh left her lips as they queued outside the club, each and every person in the line getting ID'd before being accepted in.

"I'm cold! Why did I let you force me into this?" Marinette dithered, wrapping her arms around herself and rubbing her arms.

"Force you," Alya scoffed, "you dived at the chance."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever! Let's just get inside so I can warm up and dance."

The line was slow, and Marinette was ready to fake fainting to see if it would help get them inside quicker. By the time she weighed up the pros and cons of a sudden medical emergency, they had made it to the front of the line, ID's at the ready and the sight of a warm building ahead of them.

Finally, they were inside and thank God, because Marinette could feel the goosebumps on her arms growing their own little friends.

Wandering in, hand firmly connected to Alya's so she didn't get lost, they began to weave their way through the crowds and to the bar. It was heaving, and Marinette was worried she'd end up lost in the crowd.

She was more of a pub and bar girl, a nightclub being the last choice. The scene always left a lot to be desired and wasn't exactly up her alley. She loved to dance but the drunk people bumping into her, the guys thinking every girl was free meat, and the girls who thought they were in competition every time they saw someone slightly better looking, or with a slightly more defined body annoyed her greatly.

Tonight was starting out no different. Her legs had already been splashed by beer, she'd been shoulder bumped at least three times, and she'd managed to deflect two guys heading close to grind on her. She'd been here ten minutes and already wanted to go home.

"This sucks!" She hissed to herself quietly, fitting herself in besides Alya at the bar. She considered her options; a - go home and forget this night (but making sure Alya was safely with Nino first and Avery found her date), b - stay sober and hate every minute, c - get drunk and hate any minute or d - save Adrien Agreste from the woman currently trying to mount him on the dancefloor.

Now there was an unexpected surprise.

Whilst waiting for their drinks, Marinette watched Adrien standing like a dummy as a girl took it upon herself to grind rather horrendously against him. Anyone with eyes could tell he was hating every minute of it. The stiffness of his body, and the way his hands were clenched at his sides was pretty self explanatory when it came to how Adrien felt about this 'womans' display of affection.

Marinette studied him as he bent down to say something into her ear, before she pulled him down and attempted to kiss his cheek, he grabbed her arms moving them away before stalking off towards the restrooms, his face equivalent to someone currently standing as prey in the lion's den.

•••••

When Adrien had finished in the restroom, he made his way back to the dancefloor praying Lila had gone to annoy someone else. Someone who wasn't him.

He spotted Nino in the crowd making out with a red head, who he guessed was his girlfriend as Jason was speaking to two other girls. One had pink and purple hair, and the other looked oddly familiar,

"I was beginning to wonder if you'd fallen down the toilet," a voice sounded in his ear and he couldn't hold back the fear racing down his spine. She was back ... dammit! Turning around he came face to face with Lila once again.

"Lila!" He said in warning, taking a step backwards, hands out in defence.

" Oh come on, Adrien. You were fine a few minutes ago."

"I wasn't fine, I just couldn't find a way to get away from you."

"Don't be so dramatic!"

"Adrien?" A sweet softer voice spun Adrien around once again, this time to a face he had only seen recently in his dreams., God she was a sight for sore eyes.

"Mari, hi." His voice was breathless, and he knew he was slightly trembling. Could he deal with Marinette at the moment when he was trying to get away from Lila?

His poor heart was beating out of his chest. Marinette was here and she was close, but she had a boyfriend. He had no right to be looking at her that way he was, like she was his everything.

"And who is this little thing?" Lila crossed her arms over her chest and eyed Marinette up and down, the look made Adrien want to grab Marinette and run away with her. Far, far away. Maybe to an island, and they could get a hamster, get married and live off fruit ... His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by Marinette's words and actions. She stretched out to hold his hand as she snaked her other hand around his arm like she owned him. His heart was going to explode.

"This 'little thing'...," Marinette's voice was laced with sarcasm, and Adrien wanted to grab her, lift her and kiss her ... right on the lips. Dammit, why did she have to have a boyfriend. "... is Adrien's girlfriend."

His breath left his lungs and he floated to the ceiling. What did she just say?

"Yeah, right. Adrien Agreste is dating a 'nobody'? Not a chance."

"Actually, it's a big chance because it's true. We've been seeing each other for two weeks and have been official for one. When you know you just know." Adrien couldn't speak, but he didn't need to, Marinette had got it covered.

"Yeah," he squeaked out. His mouse-like sound causing a chuckle from the girl next to him, the girl who was currently making his dreams a reality.

"This isn't over." Lila said, pointing towards them and walking off.

Well, he thought, that was easier than expected.

Adrien followed Lila's disappearance into the crowd before he turned back to Marinette. Any slight joy showing on his face suddenly evaporated as he saw Marinette's worried and anxious expression.

"Are you okay?" He asked, her slight nod the only response.

He looked around the room noticing both Jason and Nino were pretty busy, so he grabbed Marinette's hand and led her onto the dancefloor, pulling her body close and taking the chance. He knew he would regret it if he didn't.

"Dance with me," he whispered, pulling her to him.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and began to move with the music. She kept a distance from his body, and her head facing away.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked," he said, "I'm sure your boyfriend wouldn't be happy with this." He turned his head to the side only to be whipped in the face by her hair as she turned to look at him.

"I don't - I - what?"

"Your boyfriend, the one from Saturday night." He began to separate himself only for Marinette to pull him in closer.

"Is that why you've been avoiding me? You think I have a boyfriend?"

Adrien shrugged, he didn't want to show the utter jealousy he felt. He'd never been jealous before in his life, and he hated the way it was making him feel.

"I don't have a boyfriend." Her voice was stern as her hand cupped his chin and turned him towards her. He looked down into her bluebell eyes, watching them glisten and sparkle under the disco lights in the hall.

"Who? What?"

"He's a friend of Avery's, he liked me, but there's this other guy."

Adrien tensed, stopping the swaying and freezing, he didn't want to listen to this. It was too much.

"Another guy?" He managed to get out, vulnerability taking over the tone of his voice.

"Yep, do you want to know his name?"

No! Thought Adrien.

"Yes," he said, his stomach coiling as a knife poised to stab him directly in the heart. Marinette stretched up, placing her lips near to his ear as she spoke.

"His name is Adrien Agreste."

[marauderundercover]

Taking Chances Ch. 14: Back to Basics (De-Aged)

AO3

Prev

The constant attention after her temporary death was a little stifling. Adrien was good about not overwhelming her. He’d seen her take bad hits before and he knew (from personal experience) that the cure would bring the two of them back to normal. No, despite being there in person as she died, Adrien was not drowning her in attention. She was thankful.

Her family, despite her constant reassurances however, did not get the memo. That she was okay. That she would be okay. Now and in future attacks. No, instead they constantly blew up her phone. ESPECIALLY during akuma attacks. Which was one of the only times she didn’t even have her phone on her. But whatever. One good thing did come from her temporary death though. She was talking to her dad. Like, actually talking. The bonding kind of talking. He wouldn’t talk to her about hero stuff (though she imagined he also wanted to forget about her “death” seeing as it was the third time he’d seen the dead body of one of his children). No, instead they got to know each other. She asked about Bridgette, which led to her finding out about his fiance- Selina Kyle. Marinette was really looking forward to meeting her, hopefully next time she took a portal to Gotham.

They also talked about Marinette’s designs- Uncle Jagged, MDC, how the company started, where she wanted to go with the company. Most of their conversations stayed at the surface level of getting to know you, but they were definitely getting closer. Though, she thought that if he’d just talked to her about hero work already (or took her on another patrol), their bonding would happen more naturally. Less like twenty questions. Her brothers, though…

Her brothers were constantly asking questions about how she was, how she felt, if she was safe, if she was sure they couldn’t convince her to leave Paris. It was a lot. But still nice. Nice to know that they cared so much, even if her death was only temporary (as she’d tried to remind them a million times).

The whole “dying painfully and then being resurrected after the battle” thing also led to her and Adrien making a lot of plans. Different ideas and things to do in case of certain akumas, types of attacks, deaths, just a LOT of contingency plans. She’d filled Alfred in on some of the plans, since several involved that half of her family or running to Gotham. But she didn’t tell her brothers. Or her dad. No need to worry or stress them out more than they already were. So she moved on. For several weeks. An entire month passed without Hawkmoth using a nightmare inducing akuma. It was nice. --- Adrien Agreste was not having a good day. It wasn’t really anyone’s fault though. Well, okay that’s a lie. It was definitely his fault. He’d thought after his crazy declaration in Gotham, asking Mari out would be easy. Simple. It was not. All the times he’d said she was “just a friend” were definitely coming back to haunt him. Every single time he tried to ask her out, something happened. An akuma attack. Marinette fell. Emergency photoshoot. Mari dropped all of her stuff and was almost late to class. Lila got someone to confront Marinette about something. He suddenly had an extra fencing lesson with Kagami.

But no more. No. Even though today hasn’t exactly gone as planned (overslept, late for photoshoot which made him extra late for school, got permission to eat at school but forgot to bring his food and then Mari left lunch instead of staying because her brother called so he didn’t even get to see her, forgot his science homework- yeah, bad day) it would be better. Because now he’s walking over to Mari’s and he’s going to ask her out if it’s the last- The shrill blaring of the akuma alarm breaks him out of his thoughts. Really? Now? Groaning, he darts into an alley.

“I blame you.” He deadpans to Plagg, glaring at the kwami’s maniacal laughter.

“Sure kid, sure. You know Pigtails is crazy ‘bout you. Doesn’t mean anything that you can’t ask her out.” He says once his laughter dies down.

“I hope you’re right.” Adrien mumbles. “Plagg, claws out!” He smirks as he’s transformed, feeling a lightness he hasn’t felt all day. He immediately uses his staff to launch himself onto the roof, taking in his surroundings. No crazy weather. No giant stone monster or baby. Nothing flying around. Nothing looks out of the ordinary. Frowning, he retracts his staff to call Ladybug. It rings, but she doesn’t answer.

“Hey Bugaboo. Where should we meet? I don’t see anything unusual. Call me back.” He hands up and decides his best bet is to patrol around, keep an eye out for anything unusual. Just as he starts to think that maybe it was a false alarm, a red blob flies at him. He blinks.

“Chat! Follow me!” Tikki directs, whirling around and zooming away. Adrien’s heart sinks. Please let her be okay. I can’t watch her die again. Please. The words go on a cycle in his head as he runs behind Tikki, too worried to ask. He frowns when she dips down into an alley where someone- not Mari- is waiting.

“What’s going on?” He asks, completely confused.

“The akuma was able to get to Marinette before she could transform.” Tikki explains and Adrien frowns.

“Marinette? Are you- that’s Marinette?” He asks in bewilderment. The girl standing in front of him couldn’t be older than three.

“Unfortunately. The akuma can de-age people.” Tikki says with a sigh.

“Oh gosh, okay. Hi, I’m Chat Noir!” Adrien says, squatting down so that he’s eye level. He extends a hand, smiling at the girl.

“Kitty!” She giggles, throwing her arms around him.

“Oh, uh, hi.” He says, putting his arms around her and picking her up. He turns to Tikki.

“So is this one of those “take her to Mr. Wayne until the fight is over because she can’t be Ladybug right now” situations? Or a “hide her until this is all over” situation? We had  a lot of plans. De-aging was not one of them.” Adrien asks.

“Take her to Mr. Wayne. This akuma is sneaky and we can’t risk Marinette revealing her identity.” Tikki says.

“What?” Adrien asks. How could a baby Mari reveal her identity?

“Adri, wanna cookie please.” Mari says with a pout. His jaw drops and she giggles, patting his face. “Silly kitty!”

“She still knows?” He asks, his voice jumping an octave as he panics. How much did she know? Did she still know everything about the other kwami and the other heroes and- oh god, her dad is Batman. Oh this could be bad. Very bad.

“Okay, nevermind that, where are the glasses? I’ve got to get her out of here before someone hears her tell everyone’s secrets.” Adrien says, suddenly understanding the entire situation.

“Here go!” Mari says, pulling glasses out of her purse. Adrien takes them with a forced smile and merges Plagg and Kaalki. Though the akuma didn’t appear to be deadly, it was going to be a long battle for just one person. Especially since this akuma was actually good at hiding. He makes the portal and steps through, scoffing at the immediate defensive stances from her brothers.

“I’ve been here before.” He reminds them, letting his transformation fall.

“Who’s the kid?” Jason asks, going back to his breakfast when he deems Adrien not a threat. Adrien grimaces.

“So, yeah about that...um, Plagg will explain.” He says, slipping the ring onto Mari’s finger and taking the earrings. Time to get out of this mess. --- Bruce blinks as Adrien leaves as quickly as he came, no explanation. Only a ring of light. He glances at the little girl and frowns. Based on pictures he’d seen, he’d guess the girl was Marinette. But his daughter was a teenager. Which meant this little girl couldn’t be Marinette. But then who-

“Daddy!” She squeals, finally looking at him with her bright eyes. She runs up to him and raises her arms. He blinks, unsure of what she wants. She huffs. “Up.” She demands. He picks her up, eyebrows furrowed as she squeezes him tightly.

“Marinette?” He asks, still confused. A loud cackling draws his attention to the tiny floating black cat at the other end of the table. Of course.

“Pigtails is gonna freak about this later.” He says with a snort.

“And you are?” Bruce asks, wary of the creature. It was definitely not hostile, Adrien did leave it here. But he was still uncertain of its intentions.

“Plagg. The black ca kwami. Akuma back in Paris hit her and you all are her safe house. If she’s unable to fight as Ladybug, someone is supposed to bring her here. The kid or her, if she can still use a Miraculous.” Plagg explains, glancing around. “Say, you got any cheese?” He adds, and just like that, the kwami is off-supposedly to find cheese in the kitchen.

“So- how does she know you if she’s this little? She’s gotta be like, three.” Dick asks with a frown. “You just met.”

“Cause I’m Batman!” Marinette says, mimicking his voice. Jason snorts.

“Sure Pixie, and I’m Ladybug.” He says, reaching over and ruffling her hair.

“No, I am!” She pouts, crossing her arms. “You can’t be, you’re Red Hood.” She adds. Tim- who had been silently sipping coffee- spits over the entire table.

“Good job Drake. Now breakfast is ruined for everyone.” Damian sneers.

“She knows! But she’s tiny! She shouldn’t-” Tim rants.

“It’s magic, Drake.” Damian says, cutting him off. “I am unsure of what you expect. Now, since breakfast is ruined, I will be taking Titus on a walk.” He adds, standing up and starting to leave. Bruce is barely able to stop Marinette from falling as she leaps from his lap and rushes to Damian.

“Can I come?” She asks with a wide smile. Damian hesitates, glancing at him. Bruce shrugs. “Can I come, please?” Marinette adds, sticking out her lip in a pout.

“Tt. I suppose you can come with.” He says with pursed lips. Marinette squeals, grabbing Damian’s hand and tugging him along. The sound of a camera shutter makes Bruce whirl around to see- of course. Dick had his phone out and was taking picture after picture, a wide smile on his face as the two walked away, Marinette babbling on about how cool superheroes are as they walk.

“Who would’ve thought we’d be able to get pictures of baby Mari with us!” He says cheerfully, looking down at his phone. Bruce stills. He could have pictures with one of his kids, as a baby. He glances over at Tim, trying to figure out a way to ask that wouldn’t be too weird. Was the request too weird?

“Don’t worry, B. Already on it.” Tim says, shaking his phone. “Got several pictures of your little hug situation.” He adds. Bruce nods. Still…

“Everyone in the parlor in five minutes. Make sure Alfred comes too. I’ll go get Damian and Marinette.” Bruce says, standing from the table.

“For what?” Jason asks, visually bristling at the orders. Though their relationship was getting better, it was still rocky. And it likely would be for years.

“A family picture.” Bruce says simply. They’d have to take another when Marinette is herself, but he wasn’t about to miss this opportunity. --- Damian Wayne was many things. A former member of the League of Assassins. The current, (and in his unbiased opinion, best) Robin, an animal lover, a brother and a son. He also enjoyed drawing, occasionally painting too. What he was not, was a babysitter. He did not enjoy small children. They often cried for no reason, talked too much and smelled odd. His sister, luckily, did not smell odd. Nor had she cried. She was, however, babbling incoherently. And smiling. Nonstop. It was odd, but not awful. Looking down at the small girl, he was suddenly struck with the awful memory of her death. Of the sword that- no. She was fine. She may be a toddler now, but she was still fine.

“And then, Chat was a bad guy.” She says as he tunes back into her words. He frowns. That’s odd.

“What do you mean?” He asks, sure he misheard her.

“Chat! His suit turned bad and the moon went boom!” She exclaims, gesturing with her hands to mimic an explosion. Why was there no footage of this?

“That sounds like a very bad dream.” He leads, certain that it was just one of her fears. He knew Marinette struggled with anxiety and doubted herself as a hero. Surely that’s all she was referring to. She shakes her head.

“Nu-uh. Not a dream.” She denies, frowning. He starts to ask for clarification, to try and help, when she squeals and runs forward, wrapping her tiny arms around Titus. Damian sighs. It was useless to attempt to have an actual discussion with her right now anyway. Perhaps later they could revisit the topic.

“Careful, Titus.” Damian says, slightly concerned for how the large dog would react to Marinette. He had never really been around small children before, and while he was nice, some dogs just disliked children. Not that Damian blamed them. Instead of knocking her down or growling at her though, Titus nuzzles into her. Gently pushing her along as they walk around the gardens. Damian feels his lip quirk up in a smile. Pulling his phone out, he takes a quick picture, certain Marinette would like to see it later. Out of the corner of his eye, he notices Father walking towards them swiftly.

“Father.” He acknowledges.

“Damian. We’re going to take some pictures together before she turns back.” Father says, glancing at Marinette who was giggling against Titus. She turns and notices the two talking, her smile growing even wider.

“Daddy!” She cheers, running forward and jumping into Father’s arms. Damian quirks an eyebrow at the uncharacteristically large smile on his father’s face. It was odd, but he also knew that his father regretted losing so much time with both him and Marinette. The others it was to be expected, but to not even have that time with his own blood children….

“Did you have fun with Damian, sweetheart?” He asks, and Damian blinks at the surprisingly soft tone. Very odd. He suddenly couldn’t wait for Marinette to turn back. He did not care for the sudden changes in his father.

“Yup! Dami showed me the flowers and the trees and Titus is so silly!” She rambles, nearly whacking Father in the face as she gestures wildly. Damian barely holds back a snort as he watches them.

“I’m so glad you had fun. Can we go inside now, there’s some things we want to do before you go back to Paris.” He explains. Marinette frowns, a pout replacing her large smile.

“I don’t wanna.” She whines, and Damian is shocked to see tears. Actual tears.

“Why don’t you want to go home?” Father asks, and the look on his face makes it obvious. He’s thrown.

“Tired.” She says, laying her head on Father’s shoulder. “Akumas are bad.” She adds.

“We’re going to help Marinette. You won’t be alone anymore. You and Chat Noir will both have help. We’ll figure this out.” Father assures her, holding her.

“Perhaps we could continue this conversation later, Father. You wanted to take pictures and there is no guarantee how long she will be...young.” Damian points out, making a mental note to also bring up the ‘Chat was bad’ scenario later.

“Er, yes. Let’s go. Come on honey, it’s okay. You’re still here.” Father says, turning and walking towards the house, quietly reassuring Marinette until she starts smiling again. While seeing his older sister younger than him was entertaining, Damian much preferred older Marinette. She had a better handle on her emotions. And though he would never admit it to her face, was also much more bearable in conversation. --- Jason was not fond of family pictures. Hell, he wasn’t fond of most things that involved family bonding. He’d been around more since they discovered Marinette, but that was mostly to make sure that Bruce didn’t fuck it up too badly. The kid was the most emotionally available one he had. She could do more than brood. And Jason was not about to let Bruce mess that up by being an asshole. So, sure, he’d been around more. But that didn’t mean he had to be in a family picture.

“I don’t wanna.” He argues, glaring at Dick who was trying to get him to come stand next to him. Dick, Alfred and Replacement were all coming up with poses will B got Demon Spawn and Pixie to come back inside. Jason wanted no part of any of it.

“Master Jason, this is a unique opportunity.” Alfred chastises. Jason rolls his eyes.

“I’ll join when he finds another kid.” He mumbles, trying not to sound too bitter. He wasn’t mad at Marinette, not at all. But being Bruce Wayne’s kid was a fucking recipe for disaster. Three of them had died (and come back). All of them were a vigilante or hero of some sort. None of them had a normal life. So as nice as it could be, being a kid of the Bruce Wayne, it was also a bit of a curse.

“Jay!” Marinette squeals, practically throwing herself from Bruce’s arms as they walk into the room. Jason lunges forward, catching her.

“Shit, Pix, you just about fell.” He swears, eyes wide as she giggles uncontrollably.

“Language.” Dick calls. Jason narrows his eyes, about to argue, when Marinette shifts in his arms. Oh yeah. She’s kind of tiny right now. Probably shouldn’t say anything too bad.

“Daddy says we’re gonna take pictures!” She says, grinning widely. Jason winces. Damnit Bruce.

“Really? Well, I’m sure you’ll have lots of fun.” He says, preparing to put her down so that he can dip out.

“We have to get a picture of just the kids too! Daddy says we’ll take more another day, but we gotta hurry.” She rambles, struggling in his arms to be let down. He sets her down, taken aback by how strong she is as she grabs his hand and tugs him behind the couch. Standing right next to Dick. Of fucking course.

“Pix, I don’t-” He tries to say.

“Nope. Picture time!” She cheers, running back to Bruce. Jason shakes his head. Of fucking course the Pixie was gonna get him to do some stupid shit he didn’t want to do. Of course. --- Alfred glances at the new pictures on the wall as he walks down to the kitchen. It had been a few days since Miss Marinette had left. A few days since he was able to see a genuine smile on Master Bruce’s face. The family had managed to get dozens of pictures and videos on that day, including a picture with himself, Master Bruce and the children. Glancing at the picture of just the children, all laughing and cuddled up on the couch, Alfred smiles. It was nice to have these pictures, pictures with genuine joy on his family’s face. Even if it happened because of a villain attack.

Next

Master list

Tag list: @maribat-bdbwm @vixen-uchiha @stainedglassm @liquid-luck-00 @jayjayspixiepop @jjmjjktth @mizzy-pop @trippingovermyfeet @queenz-z @thepaceperson @iloontjeboontje @waiting247 @laurcad123 @toodaloo-kangaroo @ritacrow-blog @deathssilentapproach-blog @kittenmywaythrulife @nerd-nowandforever @tazanna-blythe @jaybird-and-co @jumpingjoy82 @imarivers8 @when-no-wings-do-broomsticks

[dumdumsun]

And Dusk

A/N: Enjoy ❤️

Warnings: brief violence

Word Count: 1560

—————————————

Chapter 14: The Countdown

The walk from Elliott’s to Reginald’s took up enough of (Y/N)’s time. When she approached the door, she hastily wiped her tears before pushing the front door open. The house was wrapped up in its usual silence. It never really made noise unless she was home, after all. Rushing up to her room, she locked the door and set her puppy on the ground before changing her clothes. She avoided looking at Mr Pennycrumb as she moved about her room, throwing on articles of clothing and pulling on shoes. Opening her wardrobe, she dug into the pocket of one of her coats and pulled out a folded piece of paper. The note was pressed to her lips as she shut her eyes, a moment for the world to freeze only for her, before slipping it into her pocket. With a deep breath, she spun around to meet the expectant stare of her beloved pet.

“Nothing’s ever easy, huh, Penny?” She sniffled, kneeling down beside the bed to watch him lean down and lick her fingers. “This was supposed to be my easiest relationship, baby, and now I gotta leave you… I know we’ve only known each other for less than two months, but I’ll remember every single moment we spent together, bud. I wanted so badly to watch you grow up, to finally grow into that big personality of yours. But I’ll need you to be good for Mom… because we both know how Dad feels about you being around.”

The puppy barked and licked her face, clearing her tears as he did so. She giggled and kissed the top of his head.

“I’ll never forget you, Mr Pennycrumb. You absolute angel. I love you so much.” Standing to her feet, she slowly approached her bedroom door, giving the entire room one last look. She wasn’t attached to it. Not in the slightest. But there was one little savior who, sitting on her bed and tilting his head, she would forever be connected to. “I’m leaving you in the best hands possible. Goodbye, baby.” She breathed and shut her door. Covering her mouth, she sped down the staircase and towards the front door.

“(Y/N)?! Where have you been?!”

Shit.

Wiping her tears away yet again, she turned to her mother and swallowed the lump in her throat. “I-I...” She croaked. Grace’s frown softened before she crouched down in front of her.

“Honey? Is everythin’ alright?”

“Yeah, Mom, I’m fine… I just, uh… I have a really bad headache and it’s a little overwhelming.”

“Oh… I can get you some-”

(Y/N) quickly shook her head. “It’s fine. I was going to head into town, get some fresh air.”

“Well, that’s fine, hun, but you cannot run off like that. You nearly gave us a heart attack! You can’t do that to me. Y-You just can’t!”

“I’m sorry, Mom-”

“Especially right now… I-I wanted to talk to you.”

I don’t have time, I don’t have time.

“Have you,” Grace sighed and looked away, a very clear internal battle going on within her. “Sweetheart, do you notice anything about your father? Anything strange?”

Furrowing her brows, (Y/N) stepped closer. “What… do you mean…?”

“I mean with his work. Do you know anythin’ about what he’s doin’? With the meetings, the secrecy. I-I know it isn’t fair to ask this of you, but I… I-I need to know.”

(Y/N) glanced to the side as she weighed her options. She could always lie to Grace, tell her that she had no idea what Reginald was up to, his plan to kill the president. But she knew her mother deserved so much better than yet another lie from another person she trusted dearly. So, she lifted her head and nodded, hoping it was enough. It seemed as if that were the case, because Grace took a deep breath and enveloped the girl in a hug. (Y/N) sniffled and held her mother tight.

“If I find anything dangerous goin’ on, I’m leaving, (Y/N). I’m leavin’ and I’m takin’ you with me.”

The young girl widened her eyes at these words. “You what?”

“You’re my daughter, (Y/N), adoption be damned. I promised you I would take care of you no matter what. And if removin’ you from Reggie’s life will do that, then I will do what I have to.”

“And I appreciate everything you’ve done for me. I love you so much, Mom…”

“I love you, too, hun.”

(Y/N) never wanted to get attached, she never wanted to build happiness like this for herself, because she knew it’d eventually get ripped from her. One way or another. Still, it was a fun ride while it lasted. Pulling away from the hug, she sniffled again and rubbed her nose. Grace’s smile was full of so much care, adoration and unconditional love that (Y/N) had to step away to let herself breathe. “Well… I’m going now. Um… Mom? Could you do something for me while I’m gone?”

“Anythin’.”

“Please, take care of Mr Pennycrumb. I don't know what I’d do if something happened to him.”

Quietly chuckling, Grace nodded and clasped her hands together as the girl opened the front door. “I promise, only if you promise to be careful. I need you here with me, darlin’.”

“I promise, Mom.”

Stepping out of her home- of Reginald’s house, (Y/N) glanced down at her watch.

Thirty minutes. Shit!

Spinning on her heel, she sprinted her way in the direction of the alleyway. Her chest heaved, her breath was labored, and her arms pumped as her legs worked restlessly to take her to her destination. Locals scowled and gasped when she pushed past them, the girl calling out multiple apologies over her shoulder after the fact. She nearly ran past a corner she had to round, skidding to a stop and turning back around. When she did, she was met with a pair of dark brown eyes. “Preston!”

“You’re coming with me.” He huffed and grabbed her by the arm, dragging her in the opposite direction, back where she started. “I’ve been looking all around Dallas for you. I talked with your dear father and he said you didn’t mean what you said.”

“I don’t have time for this! Let go of me!” (Y/N) thrashed in the hold he now had around her waist. Preston growled and pinned down the arm she had just freed from his grasp.

“You never have time for me, (Y/N)! That’s the problem with you women! You always want the world to revolve around you! Well, you’re just gonna have t’make some time for me! Right now!”

“Goddammit! Let go of me, you little shit!” She shrieked. She freed her arm once again and reared her elbow back towards his face, but he quickly moved his head away to dodge it. The next second, she heard a grunt, and Preston’s hold on her was gone. Spinning around, she saw the boy on the ground, unconscious, blood dribbling from his nose. “What the hell?”

Her eyes moved up and widened at the sight of Lila dusting herself off. Her expression was almost unreadable to (Y/N), but she detected exhaustion. The two stared at each other for a beat before they both nodded. Lila turned her gaze forward and ran off in (Y/N)’s opposite direction. The young girl let out a breath, took one last look at Preston, and continued her sprint to the alleyway.

Arriving there, she almost crashed into the brick wall. “I’m here, I’m here!” She breathlessly called out to Five and Luther. “I’m here- Ew, what the fuck?!” She yelped, her foot almost landing in a splatter of vomit. Beside it was a groaning Klaus, the man muttering something about a strange dream.

“Thank god,” Five clenched his jaw and checked his watch. “Anymore last minute arrivals?!”

“Hey, I’m here, aren’t I?!” (Y/N) hissed and made her way over to the seething Five, who only spared her a glance before looking around the alleyway again.

“We’ve got a minute left.” Luther muttered and smashed his fist against the top of the closed dumpster.

Klaus groaned and placed his hands over his face. “What’s going on, guys? Are we going somewhere?”

“It was a simple task,” Five ranted as he paced the alleyway. “It was a simple task! All we had to do was be here. Didn’t have to fight a giant sea monster, no. Any army of mutants? Nein!”

(Y/N) checked her watch, sighing as their last remaining minute ticked away. Heading to the opening of the alley, she moved her head from left to right, hoping to see the last of her siblings rushing to their way home. But alas, no one arrived and she could hear the three behind her yelling at each other. The sound of clicking got her attention and she turned around to see everyone watching the briefcase.

“Goddammit.” Five muttered before bending down and picking up the briefcase by the handle, flinging it into the air. With a zap and a whoosh, their ticket to 2019 disappeared in a bright blue portal. The four watched as the portal disappeared, much like the first time they were left in this timeline. “We were that close.”

“That close…” (Y/N) sighed.

—————————————

Taglist: @unfortu-nate-ly @sapphicsyn @m00n-sh @starcurrent @alexander-hamilhoe @youcandalekmyballs @wonderlandfandomkingdom @yrdadjstcallsmekatya @sm0kingcrack @a-t-h-r-e-e-n-a @moatsnow @bubblegumflamingos @starstormssymphony @meowiemari @magicalgothpandamaker @keayastitties @hehehehannahthings @harrystylescherrie @rhain3 @himikaphoo @xxeiraxx @camerondiaz48104 @georgeweasleys-gorl @theyaremorethanjustfictional @that-can-of-fizz @luckyzipperscissorsbat @cuupiid

[fan-written]

Maribat Tropes AU

First

----

Dick wasn’t sure what to think when the cab pulled up to the building. The young girl he was sharing it with seemed shy and very lost, but one couldn't be raised by the world’s greatest detective without learning a few things. And one of those was how to spot fake tears.

He did have to give it to the girl. They seemed real. Right up until she wiped them away and climbed in. But maybe she was just relieved to have a way to rejoin her class.

Speaking of the class, Dick was very confused when she named Ms. Dupain-Cheng. He had emailed her several times over the last month about finalizing the tour as well as accommodating a few allergies for lunch and such. She seemed like a kind girl, but online interaction could be misleading.

He’d have to reserve judgment for now.

“Here we are, Ms. Rossi. I promise I will watch closely to ensure you don’t get left behind again today.” Dick guided her inside to find the class just settling into the waiting room chairs. “If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to have a quick word with your teacher.”

She nodded and Dick had a hard time not staring at the pigtails hanging by her face. He was sure if Jason, or even Damian were near they would have called them sausages. 

He watched as the entirety, save two, of the class greeted her cheerfully. The interaction calmed some of his paranoia and it was easy to assume the tears were a one time thing. No, he wouldn’t fall down that rabbit hole and make mountains out of mole hills.

Dick quietly took note of how the two loners rolled their eyes at the greeting as he turned to speak to the teacher. She seemed competent enough since she was talking with the secretary about the tour, but the Lila girl said she believed stories made up by a bully. She also left a student behind.

“Madame Bustier, I presume?” He interrupted, “I’m the guide, Dick Grayson. Do you mind if I have a word with you?” 

She nodded and they stepped away from the counter. “Madame, if you don’t mind me asking, did you know one of your students missed the bus earlier? She’s lucky I was the one to find her.”

Dick was slightly shocked when she simply smiled, as if she wasn’t worried about the student. Something was seriously wrong with this teacher. “I did know, Mr. Grayson. My class president informed me on our way over that Lila wasn’t on the bus. I assumed she simply decided to skip this tour and stay in the hotel.”

“Why would she be allowed to do that?” The class president said she was missing? The same one Ms. Rossi said may have convinced the bus to leave early?

M. Bustier giggled as if he’d said something funny and Dick was thoroughly confused. “Why wouldn’t she be? This is a graduation trip and all but one of my students are considered adults. Those who are eighteen were allowed to sign a waiver towards the school that allows them to choose what activities they attend. Only Marinette is required to join every activity and that’s because she skipped a grade and is only just seventeen.”

Once again Marinette was mentioned. He really needed to know who she was so he could get this all straightened out. “So why did the bus leave without her when you weren’t sure if she was joining or not?” Seriously, what kind of chaperone didn’t check in with the kids first?

Dick looked back at the kids to find a few of them comforting Ms. Rossi. One girl with pink hair was glaring at the two who were separated, but the rest seemed to ignore them. The boy and girl were ignoring them back and seemed content to look over the business magazines they stored in the lobby.

“Because every bus is scheduled to leave at a specified time. If they aren’t on the bus by then I figure they aren’t joining us.” She shrugged as if it wasn’t her problem past that point, and he guessed in her mind it wasn’t. Just what were these parents thinking sending their kids to Gotham of all places with a teacher like this?

“Alright,” Dick nodded slowly. “Then Ms. Rossi wasn’t left behind on purpose?”

“Mon Dieu, no! She must have just missed it. In fact, I forgot to thank you for bringing her here Mr. Grayson. She is indeed lucky to have met you.” M. Bustier gave him a grateful smile and looked at her students with kind eyes. “If you don’t mind, Mr. Grayson, could we start the tour now? We have a play scheduled this evening and I’m sure some of the students would like to rest before we go.”

He nodded again, “Of course. Why don’t you gather the students and I’ll get the visitor badges.” At least when he passed them out he could put names to faces. Why did he ever think this would be an easy favor to Tim?

-

Richard Grayson: prefered name Dick, eldest of Bruce Wayne’s children, detective for the Gotham City Police, tour guide for their group as a favor to his brother, and currently giving her a blank stare.

Marinette wasn’t sure what she’d done since their last email exchange, but she was betting it had something to do with Lila. Mr. Grayson was still professional, but when he handed out the visitor passes she received a hard stare, as if he was trying to piece together clues. Seconds later he sent a text to someone and started the tour.

She normally wouldn't have taken note of the text, but he'd looked right at her as soon as it was sent then looked over at Lila and M. Bustier. Marinette just hoped that he found the truth instead of whatever lie was whispered in his ear.

"Mari, what's going on?" Allen asked. His eyes darted to Mr. Grayson before he raised an eyebrow. 

Kwami, she loved her friends. They were always attentive to potential problems. It was probably a side effect of being heroes for as long as they have been.

"I'm not sure," she shrugged, "but you saw him arrive with Rossi. I have a feeling she spun a web and he's not sure what to believe. We've already talked through email so who knows what he thinks." At the moment, probably nothing good. How was this her life?

Allen hummed and updated their group chat. "Well the others know now. Maybe they'll have an idea on how to counteract anything she says."

Marinette nodded but wasn't sure they'd have anything new. She'd just have to use her actions, like always, to prove she didn't do whatever lie was spread.

----

Next

----

Hey! So I’m a little shocked at how part one was received, like I have a tag list!! I am a little new to this whole posting my own work though so if I missed your name just let me know and I’ll try to add it next time. Thank you for all the love!

Tag list:

@ladybug-182 @theymakeupfairies @violetfandomaddict @ultimatetornshipper @prudencerika @heckofhell @tumbling-down-hills-and-stuff @charming-mage @just-an-observer-ignore-me @i-need-blog-ideas @mewwitch @user00000003 @nathleigh @goblinwhoships @indecisive-mess-named-me @fantasyloversblog @hetalia-lover-is-here @miraculousandmore

[capesandshapes]

All You Had to Do Was Stay (Post Reveal/Pre Relationship) (4/4)

Summary:

Three years ago, Marinette revealed her identity to him. Three years ago, he promised to wait in a hotel room for her. Three years ago, she opened the door to find it empty.

Now she's expected to play nice with him, since she's the maid of honor and he's unfortunately the best man. But old habits die hard, and old feelings die harder.

"This is a wedding, not a death march, Marinette."

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

She took a step towards him.

And then another.

All the words that she knew had failed her, and all of the emotion in her body had left her. What could she say? What would even make sense? There was no fixing the situation, not really, you couldn’t take away three years of waiting and wanting. You couldn’t take away three years of replaying every word in your head and wondering if you said the wrong thing.

“But you’re not him,” that was all she could say, and it hit the air like a deadweight. Because Adrien wasn’t Gabriel Agreste, because he never would be. The love Gabriel had was greedy and selfish, it took and took until it tore away all that he knew, until it ruined Paris and everything inside it. But Adrien? “It wouldn’t have mattered that he’s your dad, because you’re Adrien Agreste, not him, because I would have stood by you no matter what. I wouldn’t have cared what they thought or what they said. I wouldn’t have listened to them or let them stop me. If people wanted to close doors in my face because of who I loved, I’d make new ones. If people didn’t trust me, or see me for who I was, I wouldn’t care because I would know the truth.” Another step, another mountain climbed on her way back to him. “If they hated you because of who your father was, I wouldn’t want to be around them anyway, I wouldn’t want what they had to give me. I know that you’re good. You’re so good that everyone can see it—that they would have to admit it eventually.”

She held his gaze, her hands holding onto her shoulders like that could save her from sinking—like she wasn’t so far gone under the tide of Adrien that everything she had tried to hold back for three years wasn’t already killing her. She couldn’t stop drowning; she couldn’t stop wanting him.

“Adrien, I’ve been in love with you since I was fourteen years old,” she whispered, “all of you.”

He exhaled, the low, throaty sound hitting the air.

“When you left, I…” She stopped, because he didn’t need to know, because she didn’t need to see him hurt like she had. “You broke me, and no one else has been able to put me back together since.” That was enough, that had to be enough for then.

“I’m sorry,” he muttered, the words almost lost to the crashing of the waves outside.

She shook her head. Maybe she needed the apology, maybe someday she’d want it, but then, at that very moment? She was the only person who could give herself what she needed, the only person who could pull her head above water.

She tugged her hands from her shoulders, and walked closer, far too close to him. It was the lack of distance she would have dreamed of when she was in school, the kind that led to moments she cherished such as placing her head on his shoulder or reaching across his lap to hold his hand. It was the proper distance to look him in the eyes, the proper distance to say what she should have said before.

“Adrien, I would wait three more years for you, fifty if I had too—because I’m so stupidly in love with you, I’ve been so stupidly in love with you.” She inhaled, looking up at him, taking in those beautiful green eyes, “all I want to know is, are you still in love with me too?”

And maybe she would have gotten the answer she wanted. Maybe she would have finally kissed him. Maybe that would have been the start of their happily ever after—

Had Lila Rossi not stumbled into the cabin with Kim’s hand on her ass and her fingers laced in his hair.

“God, you are so fucking lucky I’m horny right now,” Kim muttered.

And just like that, all the romance left the air.

And though she wanted to ask, to drag him out on the deck and demand it, she saw that look in Adrien’s eyes and she knew.

He was terrified.

And really, who wouldn’t be? Who wouldn’t be scared? Who wouldn’t worry about what the future held?

So, she laughed. An empty, loud sound, one enough to break any tension. And, not knowing what else to do, she ran. Because maybe not knowing was better than the truth.

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

"This is a wedding, not a death march, Marinette,” Alya said, frowning at the reflection of Marinette in her mirror.

Honestly, if it wasn’t Alya, Marinette might have gotten by. Anyone else would have believed her fake smile as she looked in the mirror, applying her makeup.

But Alya? Being her best friend, she was in the business of reading Marinette’s emotions. Marinette couldn’t get anything by her, she was surprised that she somehow managed to hide being Ladybug from her for so long.

“It’s your wedding, Alya, am I not allowed to be sad that I’m losing my best friend?”

“To your other best friend?” Alya asked. She could have at least hidden her skepticism.

“It’s your wedding,” Marinette repeated softly. As in, it’s your wedding, not my problem parade. It’s your day, not mine. Don’t worry about me.

“He’s just over in the next room,” Alya said, reading her mind.

“It’s been a month,” Marinette repeated, shutting down the plan before Alya could even begin to form it. “If he wanted to respond, he would have done it by now.”

“I’m just saying.” She was not just saying. She was suggesting in that Alya way that wasn’t really a suggestion, but rather a demand. “I’m sure if you vanished for just one minute, I could get Nino to pull him out in the hallway and you could get your answer.”

“Alya.”

“I’m just saying.”

“Focus on your wedding,” Marinette commanded.

Alya scoffed. “Right. And how am I supposed to enjoy said wedding knowing that my best friend is miserable waiting for a response that, if she doesn’t go and demand it, might not ever come?”

“You could look at your groom and be happy about spending the rest of your life with him?”

“Oh please, I would choose you over Nino anytime.”

She didn’t doubt that.

“Listen,” Marinette began, putting down her make up brush. “I’m going to be fine; I promise. I’m just going to get some air.”

“Sure,” Alya said with a roll of her eyes as Marinette got out of her chair and moved to the balcony door. “I’ll see you when you’re done having your fifth mental break down and finally want to talk, Marinette.”

Damn, she was good. Marinette sighed, turning the deadbolt before looking back at her friend’s knowing expression, the other bridesmaids busying themselves in the background. “Thank you,” she said, because she wasn’t about to deny it, not to Alya. And maybe, once she got it out of her system, she would talk to her. Maybe once it was all over, she would tell Alya everything.

But at that moment, all she needed was air. And so she went, pulling open the balcony door of the hotel room and letting the night air cool her skin. She let go of the handle, letting it click shut behind her as she walked further onto the balcony, the streetlights of Paris gleaming far in the distance.

It was times like this that she missed being a superhero. She wondered what Paris would look like then, sprawled out in front of her years later. Brighter, probably, the city had changed since Ladybug left.

“It’s pretty, isn’t it?” A voice said, and she was sure that it had said it to her a thousand times before. The words were so familiar in that voice, said in the same inflection at the same volume that she had heard growing up. “It’s ours,” she was sure he’d only said that once or twice before—on the nights when it felt like there was no one else and the city belonged to them alone.

“It’s Paris,” she corrected, just as she had before. Because there was no owning it. It was this living, untamable thing, a treasure for her to protect.

For them to protect, because there he was, standing out on his own balcony, looking at the city like it was far more beautiful than the stars.

Not Adrien, not at that moment. Just as she wasn’t Marinette, not when thinking of Paris. Chat Noir and Ladybug, the heroes of the city, both standing out in their civilian forms, looking over it once more.

There was so much distance between them, and yet it felt like he was right there. At any moment he would leap, clad in his black leather cat suit, and stand right beside her. That was how the story should have ended; if it couldn’t end with a kiss, then it should have ended with Chat Noir and Ladybug, together again.

But Tikki and Plagg were far away in a box in Nepal.

“I came out to get some air,” he said, not turning to look at her.

“Me too.”

“Do you remember when we used to sit on your roof and watch all the cars go by?” He asked, and she could only smile. How could she forget?

Things were so easy when the masks were on.

“We have half an hour,” Marinette informed him. “Then the wedding starts and we start walking. We should go inside.”

“We should,” he agreed. Neither made to move. Neither wanted to move.

She caught him staring at her out of the corner of her eye. Never mind the fact that she was staring too. She wished then, like she had so many times before, that she knew the right thing to say.

“What if we didn’t?” He asked, like it wasn’t this crazy, completely irrational thing to do. Like there weren’t so many people in the rooms behind them waiting on them. “What if we didn’t go at all?”

“It’s not even your wedding,” she said, turning to face him entirely. “Or mine.” He grinned anyway, sauntering over to the side of his balcony nearest her, leaning on the railing. “Don’t you think that would be rude?” They had been chosen for a reason.

“What do a best man and maid of honor even do anyway?” Adrien fired back, raising his eyebrows at her. “Past all of the party planning that we’ve already done, there’s just speeches and toasts ahead of us. I don’t think either of them want us reading our speeches, I planned almost every word of mine to embarrass Nino.”

She frowned, wishing she was able to resist it, but meeting him on the side of the balcony beside herself. He was so close that she almost thought she could leap. “And what would we do?”

“Stay here forever, find a way off this roof, run—Your pick, really,” he said, as if it was that simple. As if they could leave. It was her best friend’s wedding. “I know Andre’s stand closed years ago, but maybe if we’re lucky there’s another icecream man in Paris running around at night. I bet there’s one outside of the Eiffel tower, if you wanted to revisit old times.”

“And why would we do that?” She asked. This stupid, awful part of her was considering it.

“Because Nino just told me that he wanted me to be happy and that was one of the most important things to him today, and I bet Alya just told you the same thing,” he said. “But we’re not happy.”

“And?”

He looked at her like she was stupid. Maybe she was. He’d been out there longer than her, she could tell by the pink of his cheeks, maybe some great clarity had befallen him in that time, and he’d realized that she actually wasn’t all that bright. “Come over here,” he said.

“I am not coming over there.”

“Then I’m coming over there.”

“You are not coming over here!” Marinette declared, slightly astounded. “People are changing!” He didn’t seem to care all that much. “We’re not all models, some of us have shame!”

He laughed. Fuck, his laugh. She’d forgotten how good it was. “Meet me in the middle then,” he said, hauling a leg over his guardrails before she could protest. “I want to be closer to you.”

She was going to die because of him, she was sure, even if he was sitting oh so comfortably on his own railing. With her luck, she’d slip then fall to her inevitable doom. She could only hope that the bushes below her were soft.

“There,” he said once she’d settled, kicking out so that his foot lightly tapped her leg to prove his point, “Closer.” This was obviously some elaborate scheme to kill her that he had spent the last three years planning.

Almost as soon as she sat down, she began to second guess it. The voice in the back of her head was screaming for her to get up and go back to the suite. She could see the girls in the hotel getting ready to leave, Rose hauling up Juleka’s dress and Mylene reapplying Alix’s eyeshadow. She knew she should have left, sitting out there dangling herself over the edge of a building with Adrien wasn’t the best idea. She was supposed to be in there, taking care of things, fixing dresses and calming down nerves. But then there was Alya at the door, her face lighting up as she looked out at her, craning her neck just enough to see Adrien. She didn’t look like she missed her, only like she wished she could stay a moment longer.

She had to see it out for Alya, if only so there was finally an end to it all, a yes or no to the Adrien situation. Then she could be better, the kind of friend Alya deserved, one who wasn’t stuck in the past. Then she could dance at the reception with Nino’s cousins, and faun over men with Alya who weren’t blond supermodels.

“I know I should have told you that night,” Adrien said, drawing her back in. “And I did try to. Actually, I should have told you many nights ago, years even, but I don’t even know how to start now.” She closed her eyes, things like this were easier to take when you didn’t have to look. “I don’t regret disappearing, Marinette.”

There it was.

“But I do regret not taking you with me,” he said, and her eyes flew open.

If she hadn’t been holding on for dear life, she might have fallen off the balcony.

“Not just now,” he clarified, because it felt like a split decision. “But before too, so many times before. From the moment I left, I knew that I wanted to turn back, but I kept telling myself that I was doing the right thing. Over and over again, this is for Marinette. Marinette will move on. It didn’t matter if it hurt, you would be okay.”

“But I wasn’t.”

“You weren’t,” Adrien agreed. “I’m going to sound like an awful person, but I was happy about that. I was way too happy,” he admitted. “And this isn’t going to fix anything, this isn’t going to give you those three years back, this isn’t going to solve the problem an empty hotel room caused, and this won’t bring back Tikki and Plagg—But I’m asking you for just one second to give me this chance. I’m asking you to make the dumbest mistake of your life with me; to leave this party and everyone in it, to walk Paris again like it’s our city to own. For just one night, even though your body will practically ache with stupidity, disappear with me. Leave them all to wonder where we went, how even years later we always seem to miss things. Because I love you, even when you’re just walking on the sidewalk beside me and not saving the day, you’re my everyday Ladybug. Because I just want those moments back where it’s just you and I, and no one else knows who we really are.”

“And who are we, Adrien?” She asked. “The two biggest idiots in Paris?”

“A team,” he said, “amongst other things.”

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

Epilogue:

Alya Lahiffe was dancing with her newly obtained husband when she saw it, a flash of red and black over the hotel garden wall. Her hands tightened around his neck as she took it in, a woman in a red bridesmaid dress and a man dressed in all black sprawled out in a heap on the ground, laughing after having practically tumbled over the brick wall surrounding the venue. They both looked from side to side, their noses nearly colliding with each other as they turned, both lighting up in laughter as they assumed the coast to be utterly clear and them to have snuck back into the party without anyone realizing.

“You okay, hun?” Nino asked as he looked down at her, taking in her expression.

“Yeah,” she grinned, watching as Marinette left only a peck on Adrien’s nose, resulting in the young man’s outrage. “I think I am.” She turned them, letting Nino see as Adrien reached for Marinette once more, dragging her down to kiss him.

“The absolute worst best man,” Nino chuckled, looking away as he pressed his forehead against Alya’s.

“And the most seasick, lovelorn maid of honor,” Alya said. “It’s a wonder they got anything done.”

“I give them a year before we get to pay them back, and we’re not skipping the ceremony. We’re giving bad speeches and throwing the bachelor party on a boat, doing the cupid shuffle—the whole nine yards.”

“And letting Marinette’s dad overload them with cake?”

“If he forgets any, we’ll just have to pull the samples out of our freezer.”

[helaintoloki]

Hi! Can I send a request for five x reader where reader controls nature (plants, flowers) and he meets her in 1963? And she helps him with the apocalypse and before they go back he confesses and it’s cute? 😊

a/n: I strayed from the request a little and added some angst I hope that’s okay! // also slight s2 spoilers

“Elliot’s plants are very sad,” you point out with a small pout. “He should have talked to them more.”

“Y/n, focus,” Five admonishes, but the lightness in his tone and the absence of his usual murderous rage does not go unnoticed by his siblings.

“I can’t help it, you know how sensitive I am when it comes to these things!” You defend before turning your attention back to the wilting flower pot before you. With your fingers dug deep into the soil you focus all of your energy into reviving your new little plant friend, making sure to offer gentle words of encouragement and praise for its rejuvenation. “Look at how beautiful you are!”

“Remind me again how a girl like that is friends with someone like Five,” Diego murmurs quietly to an equally perplexed Luther. The comment earns a scowl from the boy, but it’s one of the very few times that he’s unable to prove his brothers wrong. You had made him soft, and though he tried to cover up the fact that he’d basically fallen in love with a ray of sunshine personified, he couldn’t deny the sickeningly sweet attraction he felt for you.

You met Five just a few days ago during one of weekly trips to the park in search of some flowers to tend to. In passing he assumed you to be just some insignificant annoying hippie girl unable to comprehend the fact that “love and peace” won’t be enough to save you from the world’s impending doom. But then he saw the way you bent the branches of your favorite tree to your will, the oak carefully wrapping around your waist before hoisting you up into the leaves, and Five was forced to do a double take. The fact that no one had noticed your little stunt was beyond him, but he knew he needed all the help he could get navigating such troubling times, and so you were recruited as an honorary member of the Umbrella Academy.

No one really knows why or how you got your powers, and no one ever really bothers to ask. Your parents preferred that you kept your little gift hidden away, and for the most part you did. But there was something special about being so in tune with the life around you that you found it hard to resist being roped into interacting with the surrounding flora. People like you were rare nowadays, so when the chance to join a group of people with special abilities just like you arose you gladly jumped at the opportunity. Plus, it didn’t hurt that the boy who had recruited you was very easy on the eyes.

“Y/n,” Five calls again, this time beckoning you away from his siblings to speak to you in private. Up the stairs and away from the five sets of prying eyes downstairs, you sit yourself down on Elliot’s chair and look to the boy attentively; Five doesn’t have the heart to tell you that you’re sitting in the same spot Elliot was brutally murdered.

“You’ve done a lot to help us, more than I ever could have asked, and there’s no way I’d ever be able to thank you for that,” he begins rather ungainly. Compliments and praise weren’t exactly his strong suit considering he always found himself surrounded by complete idiots, but he was trying his best and you appreciated him for that. “But I need you to know that once the apocalypse has been stopped and we find a way home...”

“I know,” you nod with a faint smile. “I never expected to go with you. I belong here and you belong there.”

“I’m sorry it has to be that way,” Five offers lamely.

“Don’t be. Someone has to stick around and take care of things while you guys are gone,” you note lightheartedly. “Besides, I’m sure we’ll see each other again soon somehow.”

”Maybe,” he smiles weakly, amazed at how anyone could be so optimistic at such a time. For a moment he questioned whether or not you’d actually miss him when he was gone, but Five was quick to shake that thought away before it could settle in his mind. It wouldn’t matter whether you did or didn’t, he was leaving and that was it.

But when the time came for his departure he found that leaving you behind was the hardest thing he’d ever have to do. The apocalypse had been stopped and though Lila had gotten away the Handler was good and dead. All that was left to do was take a briefcase and go back home to 2019. But how could he do that with your doe eyes and kind smile focused solely on him. Honesty, he’d prefer it if you were angry or upset at him for leaving, at least then it would be easier. Your understanding nature only made him feel all the more guilty for having to leave you behind.

“I don’t know what to say,” Five admits softly, the softest he’s ever spoken in his life.

“You don’t have to say anything,” you comfort.

“But I should,” he argues. Taking your hands in his own, Five anxiously runs his thumbs along your knuckles and struggles to meet your gaze. He’s never really done this sort of thing before, but your patience and your comforting smile is enough for him to muster up the courage to confess. “Y/n, I...”

“I know,” you say before pulling him into a tight embrace. Caught off guard and definitely not used to such a display of affection, it takes him a while before he’s actually able to process the fact that you’re actually hugging him. “I’m really going to miss you, Five.”

“I’m going to miss you, too,” he murmurs quietly, unable to restrain himself from nuzzling his nose into the crook of your shoulder. Five can’t really remember the last time he’d been hugged like this, so secure and affectionate, but he savors the feeling for all it’s worth.

When you release him from your hold he finds that your eyes are glossy from the tears you do your best to hold back, and yet you still wear that same dazzling smile of yours in spite of the circumstances.

“Have a safe trip.”

“Take care of yourself.”

“I will,” you assure him with a small smile, glancing towards the pocket of his blazer. Five follows your gaze to see a single daisy peeking out from the inside and a small smile graces his features.

Five isn’t one for cliches, but it’s true when they say it’s better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all.