#as much as I enjoy adrienette

[westywallowing]

wondering why he jumped out of the way,,

(a prelude for a new au I'm making :))

[kubabamia]

hNNNNNNGGGGGGGG IM nOT oKaY

[flightfoot]

Miraculous movie review

Just watched the movie. Overall, I'm pretty mixed on it. There were some things I thought it did well and others I thought it was pretty poor at, especially with how the constraints of its runtime meant it couldn't build relationships as well. Ultimately, I prefer the show, though the movie definitely had some things going for it.

More details below the break, warning there will be SPOILERS below.

What I liked about the movie:

It had some really nice music and song sequences, they were my favorite part of the movie! I thought the singing was top-notch, and I loved the visuals they brought out for them, even if it was clearly non-diagetic most of the time. I adore musicals and sadly there haven't been enough of them lately.

The movie was more consistent with its tone and theming than the show usually is. Granted, that's a LOT easier to do in a single movie than in a show spanning 100+ episodes over seven years. They really leaned into the "Marinette has low self-confidence and just considers herself a useless mess who causes disasters all the time, so she needs to learn that she IS capable and heroic."

This movie BELONGED to Ladynoir, specifically with the song sequences with both of them, I adored them singing duets and dancing together.

ADRIEN GOT TO FIND OUT GABRIEL WAS HAWK MOTH AND REALLY REACT TO IT. Gabriel gave a genuine, heartfelt apology for everything, and gave up when he realized he'd been hurting his son. Since this version of Gabriel had only been avoiding Adrien out of grief and hadn't seemed to ever go out of his way to hurt him or subjugate him, Adrien forgiving him worked, I thought. This version of Gabriel jives nicely with most Gabenath fics I've read.

---

What I didn't like about the movie:

While I enjoyed the song sequences the most, they did feel kind of jarring with the rest of the movie, especially since Marinette and Adrien had different voice actors for the singing parts.

Adrien's and Marinette's relationship was barely developed in the Adrienette dynamic. I was actually surprised when Ladybug told Chat that her heart belonged to someone else, given that she'd only had like, two scenes with him as a civilian? And neither one was THAT meaningful. The library scene was nowhere NEAR the level of the umbrella scene.

This movie had beautiful music... for the singing parts. But then they tried to bring out the opening chords of "Careless Whisper" for some bits that were supposed to be romantic and... yeah no, that didn't work at all. It felt like a parody. The show uses its OST WAY better, especially "In The Rain".

While this movie emphasized the Ladynoir dynamic, it didn't actually work for me? It was nice to see them sparring, but I didn't like their actual interactions - mostly because of how Chat was portrayed.

Which leads to a point about Chat: he got done dirty here, with his over-the-top bravado getting to the point of arrogance and it even seeming like he was putting Ladybug down sometimes, with him calling her a "sidekick" several times (which Plagg joined in on for some reason) and a watermelon and while that seems to have been in order to show how his and Ladybug's relationship strengthened and became more playful over time, the shortened length of the movie didn't really allow that to be conveyed well. He was mostly just annoying, and it didn't feel like he actually got to do much in fights. We didn't get to follow him much so there wasn't much reason to get attached to Adrien, either.

Were the fart scenes with Plagg really necessary?

---

Overall I'm happy I watched it, but I wouldn't call it the definitive version of Miraculous by any means. For all its flaws and foibles, I far prefer the show, with the relationships and characters its built, and the creative, intelligent superhero fights it showcases. Just watched the movie wouldn't have gotten me into Miraculous's world, but the show entranced me after only two episodes.

[quickspinner]

Do you have any hidden gem fics or lesser known authors you would recommend for Lukanette?

I'm not going to lie, it's way easier to call to mind friends' fics so the same names tend to pop up when I'm trying to think of recommendations, so this is a great question. I don't really want to claim these are 'hidden gems' or 'lesser known authors' just because they're not in the circle of authors I hear from and talk to frequently, so let's put it this way: here's some works I love that haven't come up in the recs I've been asked for recently.

(full disclosure some of them are still written by friends 😂 but may be older or don't get as much love as I think they deserve)

I don't know tumblr names for most of these authors so I can't tag them but if you recognize your fic here and would like to be tagged, shoot me a message or leave a reply and I'll edit the post to add it.

A Discordant Song by Bounemr (this one is not heavy on the lukanette but I still love it)

Standing Here All Alone by Thistle_and_Thorns

Cherry Blossoms at Midnight by FrivolousFlare

The Feel of Music by Renigan

Juleka vs. the Forces of the Universe by @goldenlaurelleaveswrites

Drunk Talks (and Sober Confessions) by @chrwrites

Saltinette by @freedom-shamrock

if you know, you know by RenderedReversed 

i'm in a world apart (a world where roses bloom) by nonbinarynino (STILL one of my absolute favorite ever stories)

In Vino Veritas by Marie_Chambers

The Hope of it All by Marie_Chambers

Crowned by @semi-slaughtomatic

Five-Minute Time Machine by L3245

Wingwoman by @mintaka14

So, You Met Tchaikovsky? by @mamanabeille

The Swan Song of One Marinette Dupain-Cheng by Wolfsbaene

the reason you stay by @eat0crow

Ewww... Not even dead by @bloody-writes

Acmé by @astronavigatrix

Or I could Just Kiss You... by @livrever

Where Late the Sweet Birds Sang (Lukanette Week 2019) by @semi-slaughtomatic

Brave New World: Lukanette Week 2019 by seasonofthegeek

Chai Tea and Fresh Starts by @freedom-shamrock (I still looooove this one)

Awards and Appreciation by whatarubberchicken

music to knit a broken heart by Nanimok 

In Between the Metro by damagectrl

Okay, disclaimer on this one: It is adrienette endgame, but I enjoy the Lukanette part of it so much that I'm listing it anyway. When I reread, I just stop before they breakup. I don't know that this kind of recommendation would actually be appreciated, so apologies to the author. 😂 More of What Was Once Mine by RavenclawPianist 

Oooh and I haven't read this one myself yet but friends are gushing about it so I'm reccing it based on that: Hunted by the Night Light by hislittlelady (NSFW)

Have fun! and be sure to leave the authors a comment, I'm sure they'd love it.

[theerurishipper]

Oh god finally. Someone who also hates season 5 Adrinette! Finale gaslighting of Adrien aside…. I found the romance boring? It was kind of hard to watch? The second hand embarrassment of certain scenes me me have to pause and take breaks lmao. The first 2 seasons of LadyNoir weren’t like this, so I know they can write romance if they wanted to! What makes you hate Adrinette in season 5? Because personally I think it has issues even if you erase the gaslighting of the finale

Anon, it's like you read my mind.

I'll just come out and say it. Pre-reveal Adrienette is literally the most boring and asinine way to get Marinette and Adrien together. It's not even about the ship. I like Adrienette. I enjoy reading fics focusing on it. But canonically, their relationship is not that developed and Ladynoir has the bulk of the development, which makes total sense since the show revolves around those sides of them. But they made Adrienette canon first, before the reveal, and I have things to say about that.

First of all, it's just so... lazy. Making Adrienette canon the way they did let them flake out on writing meaningful character development. The thing is, having Adrien do all the work is just bad. Marinette's whole arc that has been built up for four seasons is that she can't confess to Adrien. Part of her story is about gaining the courage and confidence to be able to tell him her feelings. But guess what? She didn't need to do shit, because that would mean the writers actually had to write character development, and that's too hard. So they had Adrien fall in love with Marinette and had him confess to her, which made it so much easier for them to get together. And it is just so lazy.

You know what else is lazy? How they wrote Marinette and Adrien's relationship in general. A part of Adrienette's relationship is that Marinette is under the impression that Adrien's life is perfect and that he has no problems at all. She just began to realize that that isn't the case in Risk. This was the perfect set up for some much-needed development in their relationship, because quite frankly Marinette and Adrien were not close at all before this. But now suddenly, Adrien is in love with her for seemingly no reason at all and she doesn't have to make the effort to get to know him, because he ends up pursuing her and just... lets her see the real him without any effort on her part. And it's like she just got handed the relationship without having to undergo any character development.

And it's so bad because Marinette was the one in any of their dynamics who had to learn to accept Adrien for who he was. She was the one who had to undergo the development of learning to love both sides of Adrien. She was the one who couldn't reconcile the idea that Adrien and Chat Noir were the same, and therefore couldn't love Adrien in his entirety. Adrien never had that problem. The moment he figured out Marinette was Ladybug, it just clicked for him. He already knew her and valued her. So, to have him be the one who has to give up on his feelings for Ladybug and fall for Marinette while Marinette doesn't have to start seeing him for who he is... it's just so bad. To have him do all the work and her not have to lift a finger and just get her dream boyfriend without truly knowing him... it's just bad writing!

And Adrien! I've always mentioned that he only exists to be Marinette's prop, and that is so visible here with the way he just... falls in love with her for no reason and does all the work to make Adrienette happen so that Marinette can just get what she wants handed to her without needing to grow as a person. And like, you're telling me he started to like her in Puppeteer 2? Fucking there? Don't make me laugh, show.

Apparently, all it took for him to fall in love with Marinette was her telling him that he should talk to his father. You mean, the same thing that Nino and Kagami and Plagg have been telling him throughout the series? Despite them knowing him better and being closer to him than Marinette? And apparently since that's all it took to make him fall in love with her, why didn't he fall in love with Nino or Kagami? Make it make sense!

And speaking of which, let's talk about the plot contrivances. Because Adrienette is the side of the square with the least development and least stakes, making it canon means they have nothing left to explore about it. So they introduce all these contrivances in order to try to make it interesting, and they do this at the expense of other plotlines. Marinette growing brave enough to confess? Forget that. Marinette realizing that she has a lot to learn about Adrien? Forget it. Ladybug and Chat Noir resolving their conflict from the previous season? Who's she?

Instead, we get episodes like Derision that deal with Marinette's supposed trauma that came outta nowhere. Now she's having trouble holding Adrien's hand and telling him she loves him. This was never a problem before. She held Adrien's hand just fine in episodes like Gorizilla and Chat Blanc and even as late as Risk. They made Marinette not being able to confess to Adrien about some retconned-in trauma instead of just about her not having the confidence to express herself. But no, we get this new trauma so that we can drag out the Adrienette drama for more episodes, because surely we have nothing else to deal with! Not like we have so many unresolved plot points and underdeveloped characters that could use some focus! The only reason Derision even exists is so that they can stretch this drama out for longer in an effort to pretend that it actually has something going on. Because now that Marinette knows that Adrien loves her, she shouldn't have any trouble telling him she loves him, and that would be the end of any relevance Adrienette has. So we get a bunch of episodes that go on and on about Marinette being unable to confess and Adrien being the Perfect Boyfriend™ who only exists to support her and help her with her trauma while asking nothing of her.

And speaking of Adrien, all he does throughout this season is talk about his relationship with Marinette. He isn't allowed to have any other emotions other than those that relate to her or Adrienette. Even his relationship with Gabriel is about how he's not letting him date Marinette. Him being a Sentimonster is only about how it affects Adrienette. And so, we get the scenes with Adrien blaming himself for Marinette's "suffering," and him being the one to change himself instead of her developing more confidence. The way they make it seem like Adrien has to change himself because of Marinette's reactions which are not his fault just so he can make her happy at his own expense is just... ugh. Like, I don't mind that he wants to help her be more confident, but the show puts the onus on him to be the one to do most of the work to make her feel comfortable and confident while she just sits back and doesn't grow or develop at all.

And this isn't a huge criticism compared to the actual problems I've laid out, but Adrienette is just so... bland. Like, it's the basic cookie cutter high school romance we've seen in hundreds of shows before this. I'll say it again, Ladynoir is what gives the square its flavor. Adrienette should have developed enough to be interesting in its own right and to compliment Ladynoir, but they chose to go the drama and contrivance route instead of developing their relationship. So, we have things like the whole sex metaphor thing, you know, because that's the most important thing in a season where Monarch is at his most powerful and Ladybug and Chat Noir should be more proactive.

I actually have more to say but I have no energy rn to say it. So I'll probably make a longer post about it sometime in the future.

Thank you for your ask!

[aalissy]

What If

Andd day 16 is done now :). Another short lil post-relationship, pre-reveal Adrienette chapter. I hope you like it <3. Lemme know what you think!

AO3

“What do you think would have happened if we never found each other?” Adrien murmured softly. They were at her computer, playing Ultimate Mecha Strike for what had to be close to the millionth time.

“Ha! Impossible!” Marinette waved off his comment. The idea of her having never met Adrien was too crazy to think about. She had always been destined to meet him.

He paused the game and she turned to look at him, blinking in slight surprise.

“I’m serious. What if we had never met?”

She shook her head, her pigtails swaying as she did so. “And I’m telling you that it’s an impossible question. I was always going to meet you.”

“Come on, Marinette.” Adrien chuckled, scratching the back of his neck. “What if we had been in different classes or different schools?”

Marinette frowned slightly, taking a moment to think. The first scenario seemed very unlikely for them to have never met but the second... the second seemed quite a bit more likely.

Slowly, she began to word her thoughts, “I think I still would have met you quite easily even if we had been in different classes. After all, I know both Marc, Aurore, and Zoé and they’re in different classes.” Adrien tilted his head in agreement with her point. “Different schools might be a bit trickier but we had that field trip to New York once so I’m sure eventually we’d have had a trip together or something that connected our two schools.”

Marinette beamed over at him after finishing that last sentence. After all, the thought of having never met Adrien just seemed inconceivable. Besides, she was Ladybug, so she’d certainly have to save him at one point or another. But, she couldn’t exactly just say that. As much as she may want to.

“Alright, fair enough.” Adrien chuckled, leaning back in her chair as he popped one of the macaroons her parents brought up for them in his mouth. “But what if my father had never allowed me to go to school at all? How would we have met then?”

She hummed lightly, nibbling on her lip in thought once again. This was also a fair bit trickier. But then, she snapped her fingers. “Fashion!” Marinette practically shouted.

“What?” he asked, his brow creasing with confusion. “What do you mean?”

“Well,” she dragged out. “I’m destined to be a fashion designer and you would be a model working for Gabriel Agreste. Our first meeting would be legendary!” She sent him a goofy grin.

“Ahh, but you’re forgetting. I’m not a model anymore,” he teased.

“Adrien, sweetheart, I love you.” Marinette reached over, placing her hand over his, practically melting into a big puddle when his eyes softened at the touch. “But if, in this alternate universe, your father was keeping you from school, then I’m certain he’d force you to continue modeling forever.”

Adrien opened his mouth, surely about to say something before he closed it with a quiet, dumbfounded laugh. “You know what, I think you’re right. I was only able to stand up to my father in the first place because of you.”

She squeezed his hand, trying to bring the smile back to his face. “Not to worry, of course, once we met, I would swoop in and save you from your modeling career. Maybe I’d get you a job at the bakery or something.” Marinette giggled.

Adrien grinned, a warmth spreading through him at Marinette's words. "A job at the bakery, huh? I could get used to that."

Marinette laughed, her eyes sparkling with affection. "Just imagine, you in an apron, covered in flour, trying to bake pastries."

"I think I'd make a mess of it," Adrien admitted with a chuckle. "But if it's with you, I'd give it a try."

They sat there, enjoying each other's company, the game paused forgotten on the screen. It was moments like these, simple and sweet, that made them cherish their relationship even more.

"Hey, Marinette," Adrien said softly, breaking the comfortable silence.

"Yeah?" Marinette turned to him, her gaze filled with curiosity.

"I'm glad we found each other," he said, his voice sincere. "No matter how crazy the 'what ifs' are, I'm just happy we're here, together."

Marinette's heart fluttered at his words, a smile spreading across her face. "Me too, Adrien. Me too."

He leaned over, pecking a kiss against her lips that had her smiling into his mouth. She wrapped her arms around his neck, tugging him down to her as she deepened their kiss.

They shared this sweet moment of kisses, just relishing in the warmth of their connection. They knew that no matter the twists and turns life might have taken, they were meant to be together, playing video games, baking pastries, and facing whatever challenges came their way, side by side.

[australet789]

Im so sorry the ML fandom has been treating you so badly, you deserve much better

Thank you

It was weird though, because out of nowhere my ML art started getting notes and some asshole started spamming my inbox with "draw hugo, emma and louis with Marinette" over and over as it i was some kind of slave???

My blog has never EVER been one fandom only. My first post here was about HTTYD, then i have been jumping over and over

I don't know what kind of entitlement the ML fandom has about artists that think they can demand art from us and if it's not a 10 long page comic with a funny joke by the end of it, you dont get traction either way.

And i have never said anything about the asks demanding me to read Lady Scarlet or Buggachat's comics. I have respect for the artists but i got tired of those ask as well, and i had some instance in someone tagging my art as it if was Bugga's. You know how hurt i was that moment? And no, i dont blame Bugga, but the fans that put artists in a pedestal thinking any fan thingy is better than the original show, something even Bugga has said they dont like at all.

But the fandom doesnt listen, they just want their joke, their shitpost being made, instead of being a community. We used to be, i remember the days when we waited patiently for fans to translate every Sunday all the episode in french, we made chain posts with characters in our style, the drawing pile of Adrienette sleeping, the Break Dance AU that was such a hit!!

But now? It's just fans wanting their fanservice, how much they can complain and how much they can spoil stuff. And it has tired me. And im... pissed and sad that the new fans wont ever get to enjoy that.

I want to come back, but not like this. I don't want to be bitter because i still love the show. And until the fandom gets better im going to stay away.

[jennagrinsoverml]

HI i love your fic recs! This is gonna sound really specific but do you have any good fics about time? I'm thinking Bunnix-involved, time loops, alternate universes... it's been on my mind lately. thank you so much!

I had a lot of fun with this list! I feel like this one has been anxiously awaited since I posted about it a while back haha

Remember That Time When... by @mostlovedgirl

Twenty-two-year-old Marinette Agreste was looking forward to the anniversary trip she would be taking with her husband Adrien that weekend. Those plans are derailed when she wakes up in her old bedroom... and she’s seventeen again.

Multi-chapter. This fic is so fun, and I love the way it plays with both sides of the time travel trope. On the one hand you’ve got Adrien and Marinette suddenly transported to a future where they’re married, while in their time, they’re not together (though Marinette’s crazy in love with him of course). And on the other hand, you’ve got married Adrienette back in the past needing to pretend they’re not even together! It’s sweet and fun, and I loved seeing both how Adrienette got there, as well as what they’re like as an established couple at the same time.

A Hundred Thursdays by Midnight Musume (Peas)

Marinette is stuck repeating the same day over and over. Her friends (and especially Chat Noir) help her cope.

Two-shot. Groundhog day type fic where Marinette’s stuck in a time loop. (In the second chapter, Adrien’s the one who is stuck.) It’s extremely well executed, and I really enjoyed the Marichat dynamic, especially with how it was influenced by the interactions Marinette had (or did not have) with Adrien earlier in the day.

Clairvoyance by @whatarubberchicken

Being hit by an akuma is not usually this delightful. Or bright. Or completely eye-opening.

One-shot. This fic hits me right in the feels, with Chat Noir being transported to a perfect future where he’s married with children and so, so happy, and it’s just so beautiful. Before, of course, the akuma’s power is ended and it’s over.

Eight Years Overnight by @coffeebanana

All Adrien wanted was to finish grading papers and have a relaxing weekend with his family. He most definitely did NOT expect Bunnyx to show up and drag him eight years into the future. When Ladybug followed her husband into the future, she didn't expect to see him playing the part of the villain. She didn't expect fourteen-year-old Emma to follow her through, either. And Chat Noir from the future was wrong to think that saving his kidnapped wife would be a piece of cake the second time around.

OR: Ladynoir July with a time-travelling twist.

Multi-chapter. This fic is exactly the kind of fic I’m usually thinking of when I think of a time travel fic. It’s a little bit confusing in the way that such stories always are, but the confusion is really kept to a minimum. It’s so interesting because the love square get together is not a component of this fic, they’re married in both times! But it works so well, and the trust they have in each other in both times is a recurring theme and it’s beautiful. This is plotty and well constructed. 

Why Are You Like This? by @carpisuns

An older Chat Noir shows up in the middle of a class field trip with a special mission for his younger self.

Two-shot. This is sweet, hilarious, and utterly perfect. Chat Noir meddles in the love square and it cracks me up.

A Sound of Thunder by Tempomental

“Bye-bye, little… actually, that’s your line, isn’t it? Sorry.”

Ladybug stared at the man in front of her. Tall. Shaggy, but not unkempt blond hair. Oh yeah, and he was wearing a Ladybug costume.

“Who - who are you?”

“Oh, right, sorry.” He drew himself up to his full height and proudly announced, “My name is Adrien Agreste, and I’ve come from the future to rescue you!”

Multi-chapter. Adrien also comes back from the future to help out with the ladybug miraculous. It’s extremely intense and well written and every time I thought I had spotted a problem in the writing, it turned out to be a plot element but holy shit I thought I was going to die with how intense this is. If you like plot, you will absolutely LOVE this fic.

when you weren’t mine to lose by @bugsandchatons

Change is a scary thing, especially when it feels like nothing has stayed the same.

It’s been a year since Marinette became the Guardian of the Miracle Box - a year of struggling beneath a burden she never asked for, a weight that has her leaning on her partner more and more as the hours fly by, of letting him come to her, too, when he needs a soft place to land. A year of falling for the boy who takes on the world by her side with a smile made of sunlight, and fighting the growing urge to tell him what he means to her.

After all, they’ll have time enough for that when Paris is safe.

But when the unthinkable happens, Marinette learns the tragedy of loving someone quietly, and the lines she’ll cross to save him.

Multi-chapter. This is what happens when Ladybug loses Chat Noir: she uses Hawkmoth to go back in time to save him. It hurts in all the best ways and the writing is absolutely gorgeous and somehow we still get a happy ending!

[ladybugpowermakeup]

Okay. Okay. Hear me out. Because I'm Greek mythology trash.

An Odyssey AU for Miraculous Ladybug. Think about it. Adrien is the most Odysseus character I've ever seen. Fake piano playing? Hiding in a fountain? I mean, it practically writes itself. And Marinette as Penelope is equally as perfect - she creates, but she's smart enough to pull it all apart at the end of the day.

Now here is where things get a little strange: Telemachus. Being an avid MLB fanfiction reader (and ignoring all of seasons 4 and 5), I'm very well aware that Adrienette's kids are supposedly going to be Louis, Hugo, and Emma. Now tell me, what could Emma be short for? That's right, Telemachus. So hear me out - Adrien was drafted into the war *Before* Emma was born, so he never knew he had a daughter and his last request for his child was to name them Telemachus. But when she was born a girl, she was nicknamed Emma. Hugo and Louis don't exist in this version, obviously.

So we have our main family, what about everyone else? Well, we have Adrian's two crewmates, Polites and Eurilochus. Or in this case, Nino and Felix. Nino is his friend who fought at his side and is tragically killed along the ride back, causing Adrian to go into a spiral of grief, whereas Felix is his somewhat suspicious and angry second in command who can't understand why Adrien is being so reckless with his own life and that of the crew to get back to his wife and child. So eventually he starts straight up sabotaging the trip to try and get through to Adrien, which doesn't ever work because when Adrien is in love, he doesn't notice other people.

As for the people they meet on their travels:

Circe is Lila - this one feels pretty self explanatory, except for the fact that Lila would never care that much about the nymphs around her, so I'm thinking she lives alone on the island and basically functions as a non-water siren - she draws men in with comfort and beauty and then turns them into pigs.

The wind god Aeolus is just Trixx - they're weird and whimsical and would absolutely give someone a bag of wind with the word "gold" written on it.

Calypso is Chloe, left there alone on this island for "protection" from her overbearing father, a minor deity. Again, this just kind of makes sense in my brain. And she gets a little bit of a redemption when she finally willingly lets Adrien go home.

When the crew of the ship go down into the underworld, they meet "Tyresius", who in this case is Master Fu. Weird cryptic old wise guy who's maybe dead? Yeah. That fits.

And finally we have the deities themselves. Like I said, Trixx is already accounted for, so we have three main ones - Posideon, Athena, and Hermes.

Posideon is most definitely ShadowMoth - not really any meaning behind this, we're just making him mysterious and powerful and angry at Adrien for seemingly no reason. But he's doing his best to keep this man from reaching home, possibly because early in the journey, Adrien was instrumental in killing a sentimonster, which canonically is kind of a piece of the creator.

Athena and Hermes are two of a pair - Tikki and Plagg, obviously. Wisdom and trickery, sounds just about right to me.

Anyway, this has been on my brain. Enjoy the weird crossover! If you do anything with it, please tag me!

[nirby-wirby]

Rating: General Audiences

Relationships: Adrienette (not much), mostly focused on non romantic relationships

What to expect: Angst, Hurt/Comfort, set post-s5 finale, Gabriel Agreste is dead

Summary: Now, laying on his bed with only the soft light of a bedside lamp illuminating the room, he felt guilt eating at him from inside his chest. His miraculous burned on his finger, a reminder of what he’d given up. Of what had somehow led to his father helping Ladybug and dying in the process. The guilt was suffocating, building more and more until he felt like all that was left of him was guilt.

Or: Adrien deals with the grief and guilt of losing his father with some help.

A/N: This was written for @justmagicalgirl for @mlsecretsanta. I hope you enjoy your gift!!

Adrien sighed, staring up at the ceiling. He was back in his room, the destruction of his house having been restored by the miraculous ladybug cure, or so he assumed. He couldn’t have really known exactly what happened, though Ladybug had assured him that his father had been a hero. He’d never thought his father was capable of giving up his life for the sake of Paris, but there was a lot he hadn’t known about the man.

Now, laying on his bed with only the soft light of a bedside lamp illuminating the room, his curtains drawn, he felt guilt eating at him from inside his chest. His miraculous burned on his finger, a reminder of what he’d given up. Of what had somehow led to his father helping Ladybug and dying in the process. The guilt was suffocating, building more and more until he felt like all that was left of him was guilt.

Chat Noir should’ve been there. He shouldn’t have let fear consume him. The visions of a ruined Paris shouldn’t have stopped him from doing his job. He was supposed to be a hero, stopping civilians from getting hurt. Instead, his incompetence allowed his father to die. It shouldn’t have been that way. It shouldn’t have been his father, just like it never should’ve been his mother. It should’ve been—

A knock on his bedroom door snapped him out of his thoughts. “Adrien?” Nathalie called from the other side of the door, “Can I come in?”

Slowly, he sat up, wiping the tears that had started to form in the corners of his eyes. He cleared his throat, “Yeah.”

“Hey,” Nathalie said softly, closing the door behind her, “how are you feeling?” She stood in front of him, a bit stiff and clearly unsure of how to go about this.

Adrien scooted over to give her some space to sit beside him if she wanted. “I’m fine,” he lied. The words tasted bitter on his tongue.

Nathalie hesitantly sat in the space he’d given her, clearly not convinced. “Are you sure? You can talk about it with me if you’d like.” Her hand hovered over his shoulder for a moment, only to drop back into her lap.

How could he even begin? Of course, it made sense for him to be upset. His father just died, leaving him as an orphan. But how could he explain the guilt he felt? How could he explain that his akumatized father had unknowingly left him with a nightmare that rendered him unable to do his job, later causing his death? It was almost impossible to explain without giving away his identity. Even if he wanted to, he couldn’t possibly tell her that—

“I’m Chat Noir,” Adrien blurted, his heart thundering in his ears. Why’d he say that? He couldn’t even look at her; he couldn’t bear to see her reaction.

“What?” Nathalie asked weakly.

He took a deep breath, staring at his blankets. “I’m…Chat Noir,” he repeated, a little bit more slowly. He was shaking. He really shouldn’t have said that. It was too late to take it back now.

Tears sprung to his eyes as a heavy silence settled between the two of them. Nathalie wasn’t saying anything. Why wasn’t she saying anything? Did she blame him, too? Did she hate him now? For not doing his job? For not being there when Ladybug— when his father needed him? 

“Oh,” she breathed, pulling him into a hug, “oh, Adrien, I’m so sorry.” All it took was that simple gesture, the simple act of affection, and he broke, clutching sides of Nathalie’s blazer like a lifeline as he sobbed. 

————

Nathalie was in shock as she held a sobbing Adrien in her arms. This boy, who she considered a son, had been the very boy she’d fought for almost a year with Gabriel. She’d beaten him up — she’d hurt him — all while believing Adrien was safe somewhere. How had she never realized? Was she just as neglectful as his garbage excuse of a father? No, no, she couldn’t have been. Right?

“I-it’s all my fault,” Adrien hiccuped, her heart breaking at the broken words, “if-if I’d been there then—“

“No,” Nathalie said, vehemently shaking her head, “none of it is your fault, Adrien.”

The only person at fault was Gabriel. Nathalie felt anger bubbling inside her chest. That stupid, idiotic man who’d been driven mad by the miraculous. He left Adrien all alone, determined to be reunited with Emelie no matter what. In the time that Gabriel was blinded by his goals and his grief, Adrien grieved alone and moved on. In the time Gabriel left his poor son without a family, Adrien was in danger fighting something that only existed because of his own father. And now Adrien felt guilty? No, she couldn’t let him believe that he was ever at fault.

“But if I’d been there—“ he protested.

“Adrien,” Nathalie tried to keep the rage she felt for Gabriel at bay, making an effort to keep her voice gentle. “Your father is the only one at fault here. He shouldn’t have gotten involved with something so dangerous if he wasn’t prepared to be hurt,” she told him, careful of her wording. 

She couldn’t tell him the entire truth right now, not when he was already in so much pain. Someday, she would tell him everything. But the timing wasn’t right, at least not at the moment. How could she tell him how it all started when he was already blaming himself? 

Of course, none of it was his fault. Emelie and Gabriel knew there were risks to using a broken miraculous, they just hadn’t known the extent of it. Gabriel, however, had taken it too far when he’d tried to get his wife back. As much as Nathalie had missed Emelie, she knew Emelie would’ve never forgiven Gabriel for his actions. Seeing how his actions left Adrien only made Nathalie more sure of this fact.

“I just feel like if I’d been there, he’d still be alive,” Adrien mumbled, sniffling. He looked up at her, his eyes watery and red-rimmed. “I don’t want to be alone,” his voice was paper thin as a new wave of tears hit him. 

Nathalie felt her own eyes sting, but she continued to keep the tears at bay. “Adrien, look at me,” she told him gently. As always, he did as told. “You are not alone, and I won’t ever let you be alone.” Slowly, she took his shaking hands in hers, making sure to hold eye contact and let the words sink in. “You have me, you have your aunt Amelie, you have your cousin Felix, and you have all of your friends. I won’t ever take those people away from you, I promise.” 

Nathalie wouldn’t be like Gabriel and she would never be complicit in the ways Gabriel had treated this boy ever again. She’d make sure he wasn’t neglected or isolated or hidden away. She’d witnessed the effects of Gabriel’s terrible parenting and let them slide for too long. Adrien shouldn’t have gone through any of it, and she shouldn’t have just watched. She wanted to make a change, to help heal this broken child. 

Slowly, Adrien’s tears dried out and his sniffling died down, save for the occasional sniffle. He let go of Nathalie’s blazer, wringing his hands together instead. After a few beats of silence, she said, “I’ll let you have some rest, alright?” 

Adrien nodded as Nathalie got up to leave. As she opened his bedroom door, he called after her, “Nathalie?” She turned to look at him, “Thank you.” 

She smiled, “You’re welcome, and let me know if you ever need me.” As she closed the door behind her, Nathalie knew she needed to come up with a plan to help Adrien feel better. The only question was, how?

————

Marinette wanted to scream. Not for a good reason either. No, she wanted to scream because she felt like she was going to go insane as she paced back and forth in her room.

Gabriel Agreste was Hawk Moth/Shadow Moth/Monarch/whatever just as she’d once suspected way back in what felt like a whole lifetime ago. But no one knew. Except for her and Felix and possibly Kagami and probably whoever Mayura was. And she couldn’t tell anyone because his dying wish was that no one knew what a villain he was, especially Adrien. But she still knew. And it wasn’t even guaranteed that the people who knew still knew because she didn’t really know how the wish worked. Was it just that he ascended into some afterlife with Emelie or was it also that no one would know that he was the villain all along?

She’d complied because, well, it’s not like he could be put into prison or anything. There was no way for him to be held accountable because he was dead. The only person who would really be harmed by everyone knowing would be Adrien and Marinette never wanted to hurt Adrien. If everyone knew that Gabriel was the very person who’d terrorized Paris then the hate would be piled onto Adrien even though he didn’t do anything wrong. It wouldn’t be fair to him to have everyone hate him while he was grieving because he just became an orphan and if they found out he was a sentimons- sentibeing then—

Marinette’s phone rang, effectively stopping her downward spiral. She walked over to her desk and picked up the phone, surprised that Nathalie was calling her. “Hello?”

“Hello, Marinette,” Nathalie greeted on the other end of the phone. “I know you’re probably confused about this call, but Adrien wasn’t feeling well and I wanted to help him feel a little bit better. I figured you would be the person to call for help.” Maybe not the bestperson to call for help since the only reason his father was gone now was because he’d made the wish and the reason for that was she’d let her guard down and— “Hello? Are you there?”

Marinette let out a nervous laugh, forcing a smile even though Nathalie couldn’t see her. “Yeah, sorry about that, my, um, my service is bad. But I’d be happy to help, of course. I’ll call some of our friends and see what we can do.”

“Great. Thank you, Marinette.”

“No problem!” She lied. Nathalie promptly ended the call, leaving Marinette alone with her thoughts again.

Obviously, Marinette wanted to help Adrien feel better. She loved him very much and if she can take his mind off the fact that he’s an orphan for a couple hours and lift his mood, she’d gladly do so. But how was she supposed to face him knowing everything she knew? How was she supposed to face him knowing that his father wasn’t a hero and that he died because she’d lost? 

Marinette glanced over at the two silver rings she’d be given, glistening on her desk from the light that came through her window. She groaned, running a hand down her face. And how was she supposed to tell him that he was a sentim- a sentibeing? There was no way to do that without making everything worse. There was also no way to do that without him knowing that his mom must’ve had the peacock miraculous at a certain point. Which would easily lead to him questioning why his father never told him about that. Which would easily lead to him realizing that whoever Mayura was must’ve been someone his family knew. Which would easily lead to him wondering if his father knew Mayura. Which would easily lead to—

“Marinette!” Tikki was waving her arms in front of Marinette’s face. “Are you ok?”

Marinette waved away her thoughts. “Sorry, Tikki, I was just—“ She shook her head, “I’ll be ok.”

Focus, she had to focus. Nathalie asked her to help make Adrien feel better and she was going to help make Adrien feel better. She just had to figure out how. 

Marinette picked up her phone, dialing a number. “Hi, Nino!”

“Hey, dude,” Nino greeted from the other end of the phone. 

“I need your help…”

————

Adrien woke up from his restless nap when he heard a knock on the door. He rubbed at his eyes as he sat up in bed. “Come in,” he called, voice a bit raspy. His eyes brightened, his mood just a little bit lighter, when he saw Marinette hesitantly walk into the room with Nino and Alya following suit. He scrambled out of bed, running his hands through his hair in an effort to tidy it.

“He—“ Adrien could barely get out a sentence before Nino tackled him into a hug. He couldn’t help but crack a little smile at his friend’s enthusiasm.

“Hey, man, how are you feeling?” Nino asked. “Wait. That was kind of a stupid question.”

“No, no, it’s ok. I’m actually feeling a little bit better now that you guys are here.” It was true. Seeing his friends helped him even just a little bit.

“Awww,” Alya and Marinette said in unison.

It was then that Adrien noticed the bag in Marinette’s hands. “What’s that?”

She smiled, “Well, I thought you’d need a little something sweet to help you feel a little better, so I brought your favorite pastries and some extra for us to share.”

Adrien’s heart warmed at Marinette’s thoughtfulness. He really did have the best girlfriend in the world. “That’s really sweet of you, Marinette,” he murmured, hugging her.

“So, is everyone getting a hug except for me, or..?” Alya asked, causing them all to laugh as Alya and Nino joined the hug for one big group hug.

After separating, the four of them sat at Adrien’s couch, ready to enjoy the pastries Marinette brought. Just as Marinette reached into the bag of pastries, she paused, sniffing the air. “Do you guys smell that?”

Adrien sniffed the air. “Yeah…it smells like something’s burning.” Burning?

Alarmed, the four of them got up and rushed downstairs, following Adrien into the kitchen. There, they found Nathalie looking distraught as she coughed and waved at the smoke in the air, burnt pancakes on the stove which she’d just turned off. She turned to face them, a frown on her face.

“I’m sorry,” she said, “I was trying to make some pancakes but…” She trailed off as she gestured toward the burnt heap. Adrien grimaced at the sight. “I wanted to follow a recipe that would actually be good, unlike the ones Gabriel made,” she continued, nodding toward Marinette who knew just how bad his father’s pancakes were.

The only reason Adrien ate them was because he didn’t want to upset him. He was making an effort and he wanted to show gratitude. It wouldn’t have been right to say how he really felt about them. (Why didn’t it feel right?)

“I guess I’m just as bad at making pancakes as he is,” Nathalie concluded, shaking her head.

Adrien felt like there might have been more to that statement than what she’d said, but he wasn’t sure. He felt the urge to comfort her, but how? There was no way he could possibly eat those burnt pancakes and make her believe that he actually liked them. (He wasn’t sure if he even wanted to do that. Why did he ever feel the urge to eat the pancakes his father made him even if he hated them?)

“We can make a new batch,” Marinette offered with a smile. “I know how to make some and they’ll definitely be better than Mr. Agreste’s pancakes.” She glanced at Adrien, “Um, no offense.”

“Yeah,” Alya added, “it’ll be fun to make some pancakes together.”

“And we can save the pastries for later,” Nino supplied. They’d left the pastries in Adrien’s room and he’d almost forgotten about them.

They all looked at Adrien, waiting for his response. He wasn’t sure how he felt about the idea. His past experience with pancakes wasn’t great. But maybe it would be different this time. Maybe making the pancakes with his friends and Nathalie would be fun. Maybe they’d actually taste good. Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to make some pancakes together.

(Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to make new, better memories. Was it even right to say that? To use the word “better”? He should feel bad for that. He shouldn’t think of his father in a bad light. His father was a hero. A hero.)

“Adrien?” Marinette asked gently, suddenly appearing at his side. “What do you think?”

What did he think? Adrien made himself give a small smile, hoping it was believable enough, deciding he’d leave the thinking for later. “Yeah, I think that’s a good idea.”

“Awesome!” Nino exclaimed, clapping him on the shoulder. “I haven’t had pancakes in a while.”

So, the five of them got to work, looking for and gathering the ingredients Marinette needed and measuring the amounts necessary for each. Before long, they’d had flour all over their clothes, and the wonderful smell of fresh — not burnt — pancakes was in the air and laughter surrounded them. With so much going on around him, and so much joy in the air, Adrien almost, almost, forgot why they’d come over.

In the midst of all the chaos, Marinette pulled Adrien aside, her brows furrowed. “Hey,” she murmured, “I saw you pull your model smile earlier.” He opened his mouth to protest but a pointed look made him stop. “You know you didn’t have to make pancakes if you didn’t want to, right?”

Adrien sighed, “I know that, it’s just…” Just what?

“Just..?”

“I didn’t want to disappoint everyone. You all looked so excited to make pancakes.”

“Adrien…”

He looked down from her disappointed look, unable to look her in the eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“What? Why are you sorry?” Marinette gently took his face in her hands, guiding him to look at her. “I just don’t want you to feel like you have to do something if you don’t want to. Your father made you do too many things you didn’t like, and I don’t want to keep doing that to you.”

He shook his head, “I wasn’t just doing it because you guys wanted to. I think that maybe… Maybe making pancakes with you will be more fun than eating the pancakes my father made.” Why did he feel so guilty for thinking that? Why was he so conflicted?

“Is this what you want?”

When was the last time he’d heard that question? His father seemed to never ask him such a thing. It was never Adrien’s decision.

“Yes, it is.”

“Ok. If you change your mind, just let me know.”

He leaned down to kiss her forehead, “Thank you, Marinette.”

“Anytime,” she smiled warmly.

“The pancakes are ready!” Alya called from the kitchen.

Soon, they sat down with stacks of pancakes on their plates and toppings laid out in front of them. Adrien opted for some chocolate syrup and whipped cream on top of his pancakes. He’d never tried them like that before, but Nino assured him that it was a good combination.

As they ate and talked, Adrien found himself able to actually, genuinely crack a smile and let out a chuckle. Just for a moment, surrounded by the people he loved, Adrien felt like maybe he was going to be ok. It wasn’t going to happen overnight, but with people who cared about him by his side, he’d get there eventually.

[airi-p4]

Things that a proper ship needs

Chemistry

Effort

Proper Development

But the Love square is just

Destiny

Like i'm sorry what?

And then there's some Toxic LS stans who bash the characters (and doxx lukanette and adrigami shippers), with their only excuse being "ThEy R iN tHe Way of adrienette/Ls

Imagine being so insecure about ur ship knowing it's just a heterosexual basic, boring, baseless, bland ship. So then u have to ruin others happiness just so u can feel good abt ur crappy ship.

^^^^^^ I agree.

Originally, I wrote a full rant/rambles about how I strongly agree with this but you know what?

I don't care at all about canon anymore and I don't want to salt much either, so I'm keeping it very short:

YES, these are some of the reasons I dislike/hate the LS. And YES, I'm tired of the hate Lukanette gets for nothing (I could go on and on about this topic but I won't).

Honestly, I don't want to comment on canon anymore (I'm not watching the show and I hate it- it's so much CRINGE to me), so I don't think I'll be answering any more asks regarding it.

All I want is to freely enjoy our little Pro Lukanette / Pro LukaMari bubble and the (fan) content. That's all.

Sorry for taking so long to answer ^^; Have a nice day!

[emsylcatac]

I want your neighbour scenario to be the new Adrienette AU. Marinette puts a winky face letter for her new neighbour Adrien, and then regrets it like 30 mins later.

OKAY I hate how it sounds sooo neighbour AU but for real though not to use my current very awkward neighbour story (more details about what this is about in the tags of this poll for those who've missed my latest misadventure) buuut:

Post Hawkmoth-defeat AU where they're in uni or something

Marinette lives in an apartment, number 7 (the number isn't relevant it's just my apartment number ok)

Adrien changed his last name a few years following his dad's arrest because being an Agreste is Not Cool At All and Marinette doesn't know it

Adrien is new in the apartment building and just so happens to move in apartment 6, right on the same floor as Marinette's. Adrien being an early bird on time and Marinette a disaster owl very much not on time in the mornings, they haven't crossed paths yet

On Adrien's mailbox, there's his new name but it's not like Marinette would know it's him, while she hasn't her name on her mailbox apart from her apartment number because she got too lazy to grab a piece of paper and write her name on it. So she's just. Appartement n°7, and so they're not recognising that it's Adrien and Marinette who are their neighbour.

And here comes my story, MLified: Adrien makes a poll in his neighbours' mailbox asking whether anyone would mind if he parked his bike in the building's corridor

Marinette answers his poll and says that of course it's not a problem for her :)

Adrien being nice and slightly too enthusiastic at getting a nice answer telling him he's not a problem coupled with an emoji smiling, decides that the best way to thank his neighbour in a not at all over exaggerated way is to buy her crispy m&ms with a note saying (and I'm quoting the note I got in my mailbox) "congratulations appartement 7, you picked the right answer! Here's a little gift to thank you, enjoy!"

Marinette who finds that waaayy too adorable (and who really needed a snack that day) gets a little too excited, and decides to leave back a note in Adrien's mailbox to thank him

She writes (and I have to quote myself on that): "THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THE M&M'S!!! So nice!! Don't hesitate to knock if you ever need an egg or salt or something else ;)"

AFTER she dropped the note in his mailbox she realises that the winky face could be WIDELY MISINTERPRETED OH MY GOD YOU DUMB ASS, and promptly goes into "catastrophe" mode. She naturally and rationally considers moving out in a country far, far away.

(and here stops my story for now because I'm at the 'moving far away' part and I do not intend on having whatever lovesquare romance with my new neighbour thank you very much, but Adrinette would enjoy it)

Adrien, who's an oblivious and innocent baby doesn't notice anything wrong with the note and just thinks it's really sweet and friendly :). To thank his neighbour for being sweet, he buys her another pack of crispy m&m's

Marinette on her side start to think he misinterpreted her winky emoji, and is second guessing every new m&ms package coming in her mailbox

Anyway I don't have a follow up for this right now, I guess we could add some ladynoir bonding moments:

Like Ladybug talks to Chat Noir about her winky emoji note all panicked, and Chat Noir is just like "what of it, it just proves you're being nice, right?"

To which Ladybug explains that NO, WELL YES, but it could have other interpretations, and what if her neighbour thinks she's not only offering egg and salt??

To which Chat Noir proceeds to have a mental breakdown because "oh my god my Lady, my neighbour left me a note with a winky smiley the other day offering 'something else', do you think it means she's...implying something else???"

To which Ladybug is like "oh my GOD Chat Noir your neighbour is TOTALLY hitting on you 😱"

HENCE identity shenanigans because they DUMB.and don't notice that their stories are similar, and the notes exchange becomes a lot more confusing on Adrien and Marinette's sides but they keep sending some because heyyy, new friend and free food right?

I will stop this now because it's way too long and nonsensical for what it is, and it's late here fjzjfnzkfn but. Yeah I guess in my distress I. Can make every situations lovesquare-able 🥲

[red-balloon12]

Another reason why I prefer Miraculous!The Movie over Miraculous!The show is that the writing isn’t as in your face about Adrienette then the show is. At no point does anyone say “Oh my god Marinette and Adrien are MADE for each other!” Alya and Nino don’t try as hard to push Adrienette to become canon, Master Fu never compares the yin and Yang symbolism to their relationship.

The movie allows the relationship to grow naturally AS WELL AS letting the viewer enjoy the growth of the relationship without being reminded time and time again that Adrienette is end game.

The “They are made for each other” is replaced with “They are stronger together” which pushes the equality between the two MUCH MORE than the show does which I also appreciate. (And I find it way more romantic Snksksks)

[flightfoot]

ML Fanfic Recs for 2023: 125K+ Words

So I’ve been going through and adding particularly good fics I’ve read throughout the year. Only Complete fics, of course. Enjoy!

---

Dreams of You by @chocoluckchipz

Dreams had long been his only escape. Dreams of Ladybug, the girl who had always been there for him.

If only in his dreams. And only while she was also sleeping.

Because with the first rays of sunshine gliding over her skin, with the first fluttering of her eyelashes, from the moment she opened her eyes in the morning, memories of Adrien would vanish from her mind.

She would go on living her life.

He would always be the only one who remembered.

At least until they meet in the real world and fall in love all over again, something that would’ve been easier to do if Adrien wasn't a prisoner in his own home.

Chocoluckchipz has some of the most beautifully executed lovesquare fics I’ve read, and this is no exception. Most of the fic is dedicated to Adrien wooing Marinette, spending time with her, with her own dream self acting as his wingman, giving her tips on how to get her to fall for him, all the while frustrated that she can’t share memories with her waking self, and that she and Adrien can’t share as much information as they’d like while asleep, due to limitations of the “curse” that allows Adrien to share dreams with his soulmate. 

It’s not all cute Adrienette fluff though. There’s a threat in the background waiting to erupt, as the weirdness of Gabriel’s ultimatum to Adrien about finding Ladybug or else being forced to marry Lila keeps on gnawing at him - and with good reason. This is a world with magic and kwamis still, and that fact makes itself very relevant in the last third of the story. 

It’s a well-written tale and very much worth a read!

---

one does not love breathing by @wackus-bonkus-maximus

All of Paris watched as Hawkmoth murdered Chat Noir, taking the Black Cat Miraculous for himself. Ladybug swears revenge, but her enemy—and every miraculous in his possession—disappear without a trace.

Six years later, a new team of villains launches an attack for the last remaining Miraculous: Volpina, armed with new powers; Queen Bee, with questionable loyalty; Argos, the new holder of the Peacock Miraculous; and Cat Walker, who Ladybug hates the most.

Takes place after S4 - Strike Back.

This is a simply phenomenal fic. You get to explore a lot of different perspectives, like Felix, Kagami, Marinette, and Adrien’s, just to name a few, and see their different thought processes and plans and priorities, and how it can cause their plans to collide with each other, even when they all ultimately are aiming for a good outcome for everyone. The characters are pretty complex and can mess up at times, even when they’re doing things (or not doing things, looking at you Luka) with the best of intentions. It was a joy to read and a real nail-biter the whole time, I actually wrote a fic for it halfway through just to resolve some of the tension for myself, One Does Not Love Shadows.

It also features the version of Luka I’ve connected best with to date, as he feels like Luka, but also is a lot more fleshed out, and can make some major errors while simply trying to avoid missteps. It’s helped me get a better handle on a character who I’ve generally had a lot of problems with really understanding.

It is an M-rated fic, though I think Wackus is being overly cautious on that front. There’s no sexual content and I wouldn’t put the violence or gore above a T-rating, so I wouldn’t let the rating scare you off.

---

Boomer!Luka: FeLuka Ending series by @19thsentry-blog

In the Shadows (the first fic in the series) summary:

On one side is Luka, 140-year-old Snake Miraculous holder and keeper of the Guardian's secrets, on the other is Marinette Dupain-Cheng, a relatively newly minted hero of Paris and Guardian of the Miracle Box. Each is looking to fulfill their promises to their now gone mentors to reunite the Kwamis and keep them safe. Sounds simple--until you throw in a rocky start, the Atlantic Ocean, Félix Graham de Vanily, and a whole host of secrets…and suddenly simple becomes complicated (story of Marinette's life, right?).

So this is obviously way outside my normal wheelhouse. I don’t typically read Lukanette fics, even ones that turn into FeLuka later on in the series (though boy it becomes apparent quickly that the author’s fascinated with FeLuka’s dynamic.) But this one is really good, with the best Luka-centric fics I’ve ever read, and some of the best Felix-centric content as well. I love how Luka has his own baggage here, with all the pressure of wandering around for over a century, looking after the few Miraculous he found, trying to keep what’s left of the Order alive, unaware of Fu’s survival or of the Miraculous user’s re-emergence in Paris. There’s a lot of focus on Luka’s own feelings and thoughts and problems, not just on helping other people with them. 

The plot works even without the romantic aspect, so even if Lukanette isn’t a pairing that draws you in, I still recommend this fic, so long as you don’t actively dislike the pairing itself. And even though it’s a Lukanette fic, Adrien and Alya are treated fairly and with respect. Adrien may not end up with Marinette and is bummed about it, but the narrative is still kind to him overall, there’s clearly no ill well towards him, or Alya for that matter. (There are later fics in the series that focus more on Adrien just healing and coping and living after finding out that his father’s a villain and his mom’s been in the basement this whole time, and in the multiversal travel fic, Alya gets some standout appearances as Scarabella which are fun).

And FELIX - it’s clear that 19thsentry has this whole conception about Felix’s psychology. He’s wrapped in a ton of self-loathing until it started to consume him, made him lash out. Him being a sentimonster, wanting to get the Peacock Miraculous, actually gave him some direction for that at least. And he’s just in this pit of his own making, until he meets Luka, who can see through him when no one else can, who cares for him even though he doesn’t understand why, who’d been through so much over the years and yet kept himself kind. He’s attracted like a moth to a flame, infuriated that he cares, yet not able to stop himself from caring about this mysterious, infuriating musician. 

Yeah if you can’t tell this is the series that really sold me on FeLuka as a couple.

Oh yeah, one of the fics in here is M-rated, and it does earn the M rating for sexual content, though it’s nothing too major.

---

Accidents Are Also Miracles by @liiinerle

After a few turbulent days where four new people discover her secret identity, Marinette loses faith in her ability to keep the secret hidden. Wracked with doubts and insecurities, she pleads with Alya to take over as Scarabella, but she still can't let those worries go. Especially not once Monarch starts taking a particular, and personal, interest in her.

Along the way, she also starts to date Kagami, and has to deal with changing feelings about herself, Adrien, Alya, Kagami, and the idea of being Ladybug. At the same time, Alya works to uncover Monarch's secret identity, while Kagami struggles against a controlling parent, and a girlfriend who seems bent on destroying herself - with or without Monarch's involvement.

Fantastic Marigami fic here! You’ve got three major POVs in this fic: Marinette, Kagami, and to my delight, Alya. I loved getting to see Alya cope with taking over as Scarabella especially.

But of course, this fic centers more around Marinette and Kagami, with Marinette struggling with Monarch targeting her, and Kagami struggling against her abusive parent, as well as both of them trying to navigate their relationship together when they know that not everyone will approve. 

There’s also some other plots going on in here, like Sabrina breaking away from Chloe and becoming more independent (and closer to Adrien in fact), as well as a Lila takedown plot, though thankfully not one that involves demonizing other characters. While there are conversations about people believing Lila and siding with her, no one’s actually attacked for it except for Lila herself.

Oh yeah, and while this fic may not have much focus on Adrien, he’s still treated fairly and with respect, even when he messes up. He can make mistakes, but people understand where he’s coming from, and are still kind to him and want things to be okay, and to help him escape his abusive circumstances.

---

Awaken by InkyIbis

The previously white butterfly, now oozing black and purple as a conduit of the butterfly miraculous powers, flutters softly within the silvered-gloved hand.

It sits there for a long time.

"Go, my akuma," The soft sigh pushes the butterfly, the akuma, out towards the despair of a love not returned. The same ache within his chest. On a level so great that he's willing to sacrifice the city to mend it.

It's okay if he's the villain for now. He'll force the miraculous of creation and destruction to be revealed, and once he gets his hands on them, none of this pain, none of his loss, will ever happen.

This is essentially a canon rewrite for Miraculous (specifically seasons 1 and 2, with a bunch of the events mixed around) that focuses primarily on Adrien, with his relationship with Nino being the main driving relationship of the fic. (Don’t worry, Marinette’s still treated fine, she’s just not the focus). This is the best “rewrite Miraculous with more of a focus on Adrien” type fic I’ve seen, with it reworking the plots of the episodes so that they’re different enough to be their own distinct thing - it’s not trying to just rewrite the canon episodes but from Adrien’s POV, there’s a lot of lore changes going on as well, and things occur in different orders.

Like lorewise, Chat’s given a more important role in cleaning up the mess the akumas leave, with his power helping to cleanse akuma victims and he and Ladybug needing to use their powers in tandem in order to cast Miraculous Ladybug. There’s also no Miracle Box holding the kwamis. Instead, Chat sometimes surpasses his limits and ends up summoning kwamis, which is dangerous to him, but very useful.

What really makes this fic great though, is its focus on Adrien’s emotions. You really get a feel for Adrien’s insecurities, especially when it comes to not feeling like he’s good enough for Nino, with not wanting to bother him when he absolutely should, with feeling like he’s not a good enough friend to him, and then there’s dealing with all of Gabriel’s usual abuse on top of that.

Speaking of Nino, this is an Adrino fic (though several characters get crushes on Adrien, Nino’s the one who matters most for this), though a slowburn one. Nino’s clearly head-over-heels for Adrien, but Adrien has like, no context for what a romantic crush feels like and is basically viewing Nino the way he viewed Marinette in canon prior to season 5. He clearly cares for him a lot, including romantically, he just... doesn’t get it.

Anyway, if you want an interesting canon rewrite fic from Adrien’s perspective with Adrino as the main pairing, this is a good story to pick up!

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Kintsugi - The Beauty Of Broken Things by @xaran-alamas

When freed from Mayura's control, and given a chance at a normal life, the Sentimonster clone of Ladybug must learn what it is to be not only a hero, but also a human being, and part of a family.

Meanwhile Marinette needs to figure out what to do with a hyper-energetic Kwami with a broken Miraculous.

Sentibug-centric fic here! The longest one in existence, in fact. Xaran does a great job of developing Centi, having her figure out what she wants and how to belong, and also deal with her feelings towards her creator - which are pretty negative since, you know, Mayura tried to kill her. The way she’s developed is excellent, and I adore her fitting into the Couffaine family after they take her in, with Juleka, Luka, and Anarka taking a shine to her quickly, and her to them. We spend a lot of time with the Couffaines as a result, so it’s also worth reading if you want to see more of that family, especially Juleka.

---

you made me a hero - reverse crush short stories series by @non-fantasy

This series is just plain fun! Like the title says, it’s a reverse crush AU, so Adrien’s head-over-heels for Marinette, while Ladybug’s smitten with Chat Noir. Which means that Adrien’s constantly trying to woo Marinette while Ladybug’s attempting to have normal conversations with Chat Noir (and failing), and both of them are oblivious to each other’s feelings. 

I love the way non-fantasy executes it, with Alya literally carrying around a spray bottle because of how eager Adrien is, and Ladybug being VERY SCARY if you ever lay a finger on Chat Noir (seriously akumas will literally beg for their akumatized object to be broken just to escape her wrath). 

Oh, also, Ladybug regularly stops by Adrien’s room so they can both lament how difficult of a time they’re having wooing their crushes, and just have fun together.

There’s a lot of entries in this series - 29 of them in fact - but most of them are pretty short, making it great if you want to devour some quick, cute, hilarious romcom action! 

Some stuff does actually change over the course of the series, it’s not just slice-of-life. Like identity reveals, dating, and even Hawkmoth’s defeat, so there’s clear progression and changes in circumstances as well.

---

Not a Monster at All by @book-sandwich

Adrien Agreste overhears a conversation he shouldn't, and a revelation sends him falling onto the terrace of the only person he can trust: his good friend (?) Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

Takes place sometime after the first two episodes of season 5!

As you can probably guess from the title, this is a Sentimonster Adrien, Monarch takedown fic. Adrien’s going through a tough time, and Marinette’s just trying to be there for him as his whole world’s collapsing around him. Unfrotunately, they still don’t know what the object is, or how likely Gabriel would be to control Adrien if he hinted that he knew the truth, which leaves Adrien in a precarious position - still not having done an identity reveal doesn’t help matters.

It’s a really solid fic for the genre, though since it started up before the later parts of season 5, there are a few things that don’t match up with the canon information we obtained later on. 

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Under Oath by @eoscenes

In the aftermath of Hawk Moth's defeat, Ladybug finds her heart torn between her schoolgirl crush and her superhero partner ― who returns, after an unexplained hiatus, more irresistible than ever.

⋆☆⋆

Gabriel Agreste is unmasked, and Paris rises up in the aftermath.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng must weather Paris' anxious protesters, ravenous reporters, a scattered team of judiciary investigators, and her conflicting feelings for two different boys. In the eye of this storm is the elusive Adrien Agreste, the primary witness in his own father's trial, who might just hold the secret to finding the Peacock Miraculous.

(If only she wasn't in love with him.)

Meanwhile, locked away in Le Grand Paris hotel, Adrien grapples with his responsibilities to a city that can't decide if it hates or loves him. Keeping his daytime persona and Chat Noir separate entities becomes even harder when Ladybug, whom he has finally decided to get over, starts visiting him at night, determined to figure his secrets out.

(If only he wasn't in love with her.)

When an unknown figure returns with the Peacock Miraculous, Ladybug and Chat Noir will have to save their city once more — or lose each other trying.

I love how this fic shows Adrien just breaking down over the reveal of Hawk Moth’s identity, he’s in a Very Bad Place for a substantial portion of the fic, and being a suspect and witness in the case does NOT help. It’s got the most detailed “Adrien suffering the consequences of the backlash to his father’s prosecution” plot that I’ve seen.

Still, things get better with time, slowly, gradually. It’s not all at once, or a completely linear road, but he’s got his friends, even after everything.

[riceballmari]

ranking my favorite marinette pairings

okay, so, i am a HUGE multishipper. like, i greatly enjoy shipping characters with different people. since marinette has chemistry with pretty much most of the cast in some way, shape, or form, i figured i'd rank my personal favorite ships with her that i'm fond of.

5. feinette

coming at #5 we have fei and marinette! i think this is a very unique rarepair and their relationship and dynamic in the shanghai special is adorable! the only reason they're so low is because i just prefer the others with marinette. i think we really need more of them together, as they were the highlight of the entire special for me. overall, very cute, just not my favorite!

4. marigami

if you asked me to make this ranking a year or two ago, i probably would've put these two lovely gal pals higher up. but my opinion of them has changed drastically since last time so.

i think their relationship is so amazing. the "sunshine x grumpy" dynamic is always something i enjoy (hence why i love tohrin for the same reason). aside from surface level stuff, marinette really shows just how much she cares for kagami. she's her first friend, so naturally, marinette wouldn't want kagami to be left lonely with no one. and knowing marinette, she'd do everything in her power to make kagami feel comfortable and happy when they're together (see mr. pigeon 72).

at first, kagami needed time to warm up to marinette, but she really made a strong impact on her life (gee, i wonder who that reminds me of). i especially like how marinette wanted to get adrigami back together, when that probably wouldn't have even crossed s3 marinette's mind. her willingness to be there for kagami is why i love these girls so much. and kagami actually appreciating marinette's friendship is so wholesome. don't ask me about s5 i like to pretend that season doesn't exist, especially with regard to kagami and how her character was handled.

3. zoenette

first off, i just want to say, I LOVE THEM SO MUCH?? zoe's crush on marinette is so so cute and i REALLY like how they handled it in adoration. zoe's confession was so heartwarming and marinette's reaction and reassurance was wonderful.

zoe, who had practically NO ONE when she moved to paris, is automatically befriended by marinette, who didn't even know who she was and was so welcoming to her. marinette cares so much about zoe and worries for her because she doesn't want her to be a doormat to chloe and wants her to stand up for herself.

eventually, once zoe does, marinette is so proud of her and it really reminds me of the time when tohru congratulated yuki for standing up to akito, but i digress. she can see just how far zoe has come since she first arrived and her growth is everything. their relationship is built on support and trust and that's what makes their dynamic so compelling and sweet.

2. alyanette

MY BABIES. i am a sucker for the “best friends to lovers” trope and this is basically that, just without the ‘lovers’ part. they support each other so much. their level of trust is put to the test in s4 when maribug tells alya her identity. alya, in return, helps marinette out even more than she already has. marinette needed to tell someone of the burden and heavy weight that's been put on her shoulders, and i think alya is the perfect candidate.

contrary to popular belief, alya is an AMAZING friend. she's the one who gets marinette out of sticky situations and doesn't get upset easily if she slips up (see the mime). despite not knowing what marinette is up to at times, alya still puts her full trust in her because she knows that, at the end of the day, marinette will make the right decisions.

i could ramble on and on about these two, but you get my point. also, i can't be the only one who could just FEEL the tension in the air rising during their oh so very intimate scene towards the end of the reverse special. no, just me?

1. adrienette

to no one's surprise, adrienette comes crashing down in first place. i love these two SO MUCH. they care about and love one another in different ways. marinette shows her love through gift-giving and grand gestures. adrien shows his love through words of affirmation and by spending time with someone. they would go above and beyond for the other. adrien confronted AND blackmailed lila about marinette's expulsion and her treatment of her in order for marinette to come back to school. (honestly kinda reminds me of haru when he went and confronted akito about what she did to rin). marinette went to adrien's house numerous times to save him from a possible dangerous situation, i.e. oni-chan, gabriel agreste.

in oni-chan, lila sneakily made her way inside the agreste mansion and lied to nathalie about adrien needing to get some extra homework done to bring his grade up. obviously, she has an ulterior motive: to get close to adrien. marinette, hoping to prevent this, follows them. unfortunately, with no luck, she wasn't able to get inside. this does, however, showcase the lengths she's willing to go to for his safety.

another instance of this is in gabriel agreste, after chloe maliciously recorded a video of marinette and her friends talking about gabriel being a bad parent. knowing what this would do to adrien, chloe was planning on showing the video to his father to get him out of school, DESPITE the fact that chloe would never see him again (it's very telling that chloe does not care about adrien or what he wants in the slightest, and would rather fulfill her satisfaction of revenge for shits and giggles).

in contrast, marinette, despite sneaking into the mansion uninvited, comes up a plan with her friends to ensure chloe does not show the video. note that her goal was not to hurt adrien but to save him from chloe's clutches. this was not out of jealousy in the slightest. the video ends up not getting shown, much to chloe's determination, and adrien is safe, which was marinette's goal from the start.

i could list so many different instances where marinette and adrien show their tenderness for each other but we'd be here for hours. their relationship means everything to me. and as much as i love the other dynamics, adrienette work the best in canon, (again, not going to mention s5) and, unsurprisingly, complement each other really well.

[aliensunflower-fics]

Any plans to watch Miraculous Awakening?

Not unless I’m suddenly overcome with the urge to bash my head through some drywall.

Like no offence to those happy with the way Miraculous is going right now but after the whole:

“Look we made a chloe clone because recycling designs is easier then giving the bee to someone else.”

And then

“heres a bouquet of senti-kids! Thats right all rich parents basically suck and want to manufacture perfect children! Also don’t think to hard about how this literally destroys Adrien’s character by taking away his free will and also LITERALLY makes Adrien ‘perfect’ who needs interesting flawed characters who learn lessons and grow when we can just force Marinette to carry the entire shows moral lessons on her back!”

and then again!

“hey we finally decided to make Adrienette canon! all it took was mentally ripping Marinette down to rock bottom because the best time for romance is when your stressed beyond belief and one bad day away from a mental breakdown! and also dont forget stepping on every other ship by insisting that Adrien and Marinette are soulmates! Thats right Marinette’s soulmate is a ‘perfect’ senti-human who can have his free will and personality rewired at any time! Don’t think about the details or how messed up this all is or how the show has jumped the shark 100 times to produce this many seasons just enjoy the cute ship that we spent years avoiding only to speedrun when we noticed viewers getting tired!”

So yeah idk maybe I will watch the film but like I might just continue aggressively ignoring the canon of this show because my GOD is it poorly written so much potential so many neat ideas wasted because they don’t feel like having characters develop or talk or be nuanced and flawed.